The best parts for me (again!) are the various references to Scripture.

The first one comes from today’s set text for reading and meditation. Paul writing to the Corinthians, and in this section (1 Corinthians 14:1-25) is talking about the proper use of prophecy and tongues. In verse 20, as highlighted by Selwyn, he gives this advice: “Brothers and sisters, stop thinking like children. In regard to evil be infants, but in your thinking be adults.” This advice is just as valid today, as it was back in Paul’s time – don’t you agree?

The next set of verses, I read were Ephesians 1:1-15.  Selwyn writes in today’s study: “Ephesians 1:3 tells us that God  has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in Christ. Every spiritual blessing. Does that mean He can bless us mentally (with the ability to understand His Word)? Well, He did that for me and I am sure He can do the same for you.”

Let’s look at Ephesians 1:1-15 (New International Version): “Paul, an apostle of Christ Jesus by the will of God,  To the saints in Ephesus,  the faithful  in Christ Jesus: Grace and peace to you from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.

Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in the heavenly realms with every spiritual blessing in Christ. For he chose us in him before the creation of the world to be holy and blameless in his sight. In love he predestined us to be adopted as his sons through Jesus Christ, in accordance with his pleasure and will – to the praise of his glorious grace, which he has freely given us in the One he loves.

In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins, in accordance with the riches of God’s grace that he lavished on us with all wisdom and understanding. And he made known to us the mystery of his will according to his good pleasure, which he purposed in Christ, to be put into effect when the times will have reached their fulfillment – to bring all things in heaven and on earth together under one head, even Christ.

In him we were also chosen, having been predestined according to the plan of him who works out everything in conformity with the purpose of his will, in order that we, who were the first to hope in Christ, might be for the praise of his glory. And you also were included in Christ when you heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation. Having believed, you were marked in him with a seal, the promised Holy Spirit, who is a deposit guaranteeing our inheritance until the redemption of those who are God’s possession – to the praise of his glory.”

You can see from the above it’s always a good idea to look at any verse in context. God ‘has blessed us in the heavenly realms with every spiritual blessing in Christ.’ In addition there are a few other verses in the above text, which are worth while thinking about today – especially; ‘in Jesus we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins, in accordance with the riches of God’s grace that he lavished on us with all wisdom and understanding’.

One, final comment about the above verses – did you notice ,verse 10?  “… to bring all things in heaven and on earth together under one head, even Christ.”  This is a good example of where, you sometimes need, to look at other translations, to clarify what is meant. The NIV is pretty much alone in its use of the word ‘even’.  Most other translations, have either ‘in’ Christ, or its equivalent (the KJV has, ‘even in Him’).  Consequently, this is not a verse which can be used to support any false ideas that our glorified Jesus in not who He claims to be! 

Now, the last reference – Paul’s second letter to the Thessalonians 1:3-12 (NIV): “We ought always to thank God for you, brothers and sisters, and rightly so, because your faith is growing more and more, and the love every one of you has for each other is increasing. Therefore, among God’s churches we boast about your perseverance and faith in all the persecutions and trials you are enduring.

All this is evidence that God’s judgment is right, and as a result you will be counted worthy of the kingdom of God, for which you are suffering. God is just: He will pay back trouble to those who trouble you and give relief to you who are troubled, and to us as well. This will happen when the Lord Jesus is revealed from heaven in blazing fire with his powerful angels. He will punish those who do not know God and do not obey the gospel of our Lord Jesus. They will be punished with everlasting destruction and shut out from the presence of the Lord and from the majesty of his power on the day he comes to be glorified in his holy people and to be marveled at among all those who have believed. This includes you, because you believed our testimony to you.

With this in mind, we constantly pray for you, that our God may count you worthy of his calling, and that by his power he may fulfill every good purpose of yours and every act prompted by your faith. We pray this so that the name of our Lord Jesus may be glorified in you, and you in him, according to the grace of our God and the Lord Jesus Christ.”

Clearly then;  Selwyn is right when he writes that every good purpose prompted by our faith will be fulfilled by God’s power.  That’s a very powerful statement  – one, that we can carry around with us – as we follow Jesus!

What are your views on this ?

I think it’s worth while, reading the verses set for meditation – because the context, and the order of the words, perhaps helps us understand this important passage of Scripture.

Mark 12:28-34 (New Living Translation): “One of the teachers of religious law was standing there listening to the debate. He realized that Jesus had answered well, so he asked, “Of all the commandments, which is the most important?”

Jesus replied, “The most important commandment is this: ‘Listen, O Israel! The Lord our God is the one and only Lord. And you must love the Lord your God with all your heart, all your soul, all your mind, and all your strength.’ The second is equally important: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’ No other commandment is greater than these.”

The teacher of religious law replied, “Well said, Teacher. You have spoken the truth by saying that there is only one God and no other. And I know it is important to love him with all my heart and all my understanding and all my strength, and to love my neighbor as myself. This is more important than to offer all of the burnt offerings and sacrifices required in the law.” Realizing how much the man understood, Jesus said to him, “You are not far from the Kingdom of God.” … ‘

A number of points – a small one first; Jesus is talking to ‘Israel’, accordingly this discussion has at its core -  there is but one God, and the relative importance of the 613 odd rules (found in the Old Testament, which includes commandments about burnt offerings and sacrifices). Jesus is here emphasising the total commitment of our ‘being’, all that makes us – the person,  to love (100%) the one and only God; and this is the foundation stone, of all the commandments. We can only truly love others through the love of Christ!

Now, the important point is this: love comes first and from the heart; both Jesus and the teacher of religious law put them in the following order: heart, understanding and strength.  An aspect that is often forgotten is that the context for the word ‘mind’ – is one of understanding ['I know it is important to love him with all my heart and all my understanding and all my strength'].  It is NOT the ability to remember & recall a lot of sayings, events and other facts found in the Bible isolated from their true meaning. What I’m saying – is, that some people can demonstrate a thorough knowledge of the Bible yet fail to understand its meaning; and, apply its truths to their lives.

Today, Selwyn talks about ‘those whose emotions are ahead of their thinking‘. He says later: “A danger in some charismatic churches [not all] is the continual emphasis on emotion and experience to the exclusion of the mind.”

Any church, which allows the expression of any sort of emotion which results in the promulgation of a view that is in conflict with God’s Word – is one, not blessed by God!  Many, if not most, of these churches are counterfeits – they are the work of Satan.

To balance these harsh words – the opposite is also true in my view; a church which religiously listens to God’s Word but shows no love – is a dead church.

In summary, the little word, ‘and’  – provides the order and the relationship: to love the Lord your God with all your heart AND with all your soul AND with all your mind, AND with all your strength. The commandment has at its centre - to love God.

I also liked Selwyn’s concluding sentence: “Jesus would encourage us to use our minds, to think. He would awaken us mentally (to awaken our understanding) as well as emotionally.”

[As an aside, there are some 'academic' elements within the traditional churches who reject the charismatic movement, to such an extent, that they dismiss any experience of God as being 'real'. Over the years, I have had at least two ministers tell me rather bluntly, that my own experiences of God were probably just creations of my imagination.

Even though I did stress that (in my view) my experiences were aligned with Scripture and did not conflict with God's Word in any way. They had a closed mind; and one, went to great lengths to try to prove that such experiences mean nothing. This type of response no longer worries me, as once it did - I just think to myself - ' ... well, they will find out the truth - when they die'; and,  I go on with my life, following Christ.]

Selwyn, now moves on to look at another pair of ‘opposites’; the mental and the emotional.

One aspect which struck me from today’s reading, is found in these words: “Christian discipleship involves every part of our personalities. Our minds are renewed (Romans 12:2), our emotions purified (Ephesians 4:26), our consciences kept clear (Acts 24:16), and our wills surrendered to God’s will.” These processes of renewal, purification, and surrender are on-going, we never cease to strive towards the goal of being like Jesus – because, in this life – we never quite get there.

Yesterday, I heard a reference to Acts 17:30, it’s part of Paul’s discussion with the pagan Athenians concerning their many gods. The verse, in context with the surrounding verses (27-29,31), follows: ‘ “His purpose was for the nations to seek after God and perhaps feel their way toward him and find him – though he is not far from any one of us. For in him we live and move and exist. As some of your own poets have said, ‘We are his offspring.’ And since this is true, we shouldn’t think of God as an idol designed by craftsmen from gold or silver or stone. God overlooked people’s ignorance about these things in earlier times, but now he commands everyone everywhere to repent of their sins and turn to him. For he has set a day for judging the world with justice by the man he has appointed, and he proved to everyone who this is by raising him from the dead.” ‘

I hadn’t realised the significance of what Paul was saying; because, before this, I had detached his words from his audience, he is not talking to fellow Christians but to the people of this world. It’s rather an amazing statement when you think about it – God commands everyone, everywhere to repent of their sins and turn to Him. Everyone is under God’s commandment to turn away from sin and whatever idols they are trusting in (money, family, or work) – and, to turn to Him. There are no excuses for anyone, anywhere!

Consequently, Christians have no grounds to remain silent about their faith and there are no excuses to sit and do nothing in regard to the need for  continuous renewal and purification; we must strive daily to be bright lights of God’s love to the rest of this world. The need to seek God’s help to become a whole person is not only for our benefit but also for all those around us. Who, on seeing the light in our lives will ‘seek after God and perhaps feel their way toward Him and find Him’.

I agree with Selwyn, our light can be ‘half-dark’  :) , when we don’t have our mind and heart in balance, with each other; our joyous experiences of God’s presence in our lives must be aligned with the awaking of our knowledge of God through His Word. What do you think?

Selwyn leaves us with a list of challenging questions: The main one being, ‘have we pushed our virtues to an extreme, so that others see them as vices’. He asks; “Has your strength become stubbornness, (or) your meekness become weakness, (or) your righteousness become rigid and rutted?”

His conclusion is excellent: “Surrender yourself afresh to Jesus Christ. Don’t end up trying to be balanced by using your own strength. Fix your eyes on Jesus. He has all the virtues perfectly balanced in Him. Become Christ-centred, not self-centred, even in the balancing of your virtues.“

At the end-of-the-day, our virtues are used to serve God not our own sense of self-righteousness. I think we go out of balance when we don’t seek God’s daily help in guiding our steps during each moment of our journey. Put another way, the longer we leave it between check-ups, the greater the risk will be, of going out-of-balance. Do you agree, that the time for a check-up, is every day?

Selwyn continues with his discussion on the need for us to be always prepared to share with others, our faith in Jesus.

He concludes today’s study with these words: “Behind a reluctance to share one’s faith lie many reasons, but the biggest one I have found is the fear of rejection. Overcome that, and sharing your faith becomes a lot easier. And how is the fear of rejection overcome? The answer is given by our text today [1 John 4:18, 'perfect love drives out fear ... ']: fear is expelled by the invasion of love. Love for God is the key.”

Love for God goes, hand in hand, with love for others. I think that when we realise that eternity – is a period longer than billions and billions of years – and that our family, relatives and friends who do not have a relationship with God will condemn themselves to an eternity of hopelessness, fearful weeping and total loneliness. Once, we have a truthful realisation of this fact, then it’s far easier to suffer the fear of rejection for a very short period of time.

I could not bear to think of someone in hell, saying to me after I died (if it was possible), “why didn’t you warn me about this – you, knew the truth but did not share it with me – you did not love me!”  For me, this thought is unbearable (putting aside all the ideas about predestination etc.); this particular ‘fear’ is a real driving force for me. What about you?

Selwyn starts today’s study with these words: “ (some of us) talk more than we act. And very often the talking substitutes for the doing. But on the other hand, there are those who are strong on deeds, and weak on words. They cover up their unwillingness to share the Christian faith by substituting deeds.”

To a certain extent, I had to smile to myself when I read this: because, it has been my experience that most are short on both words and deeds, there are few who are ‘very long’ on words; and, those who are strong on deeds are very thin on the ground. In addition, those who are strong on deeds often speak through their deeds – God will always give the right ‘spiritual’ words to those, who have given their heart to Him.

I’m certain, that if you love Jesus with all your heart, mind and strength – and, if someone were to ask you to explain your faith then the Holy Spirit would give you the perfect words to say. (This view is also supported by Scripture.)  I believe this is not an area you need to worry a lot about – you don’t have to do a theology course to be able to share your faith. (Yet, many senior church people appear to promulgate this idea, regarding formal theology studies.)

In 1 Peter 3:13-18 (NLT), a subset of the verses set for reading and meditation, we find some ‘huge’ thoughts (highlighted) to meditate upon: “Now, who will want to harm you if you are eager to do good? But even if you suffer for doing what is right, God will reward you for it. So don’t worry or be afraid of their threats.

Instead, you must worship Christ as Lord of your life. And if someone asks about your Christian hope, always be ready to explain it. But do this in a gentle and respectful way.

Keep your conscience clear. Then if people speak against you, they will be ashamed when they see what a good life you live because you belong to Christ. Remember, it is better to suffer for doing good, if that is what God wants, than to suffer for doing wrong!

Christ suffered for our sins once for all time. He never sinned, but he died for sinners to bring you safely home to God. He suffered physical death, but he was raised to life in the Spirit.”

I think the last verse is a fantastic one to remember. Another verse, brings with it a certain sadness, ‘they will be ashamed when they see what a good life you live because you belong to Christ.’ It’s begs the question, just how many people see the good life we live for Jesus – or, do we appear to be just like, anyone else?

It’s an interesting title to today’s study  – and an equally interesting comment made by Selwyn – ‘sometimes we have to see reality before we seek it’.

In addition, his conclusion has a curious aspect to it: ‘If all we have to give to the world are words, that is likely to make people feel inferior. But if we put actions to our words, that gives weight to what we say.’

I don’t know that it does make people feel inferior – perhaps more anger or even a dismissive attitude; due to the perceived lack of relevance, of Christian talk, that comes out of many churches. What do you think?

Again, I believe that the verses, set for reading and meditation, contain a lot of substance, Paul’s first letter to Timothy 4:1-16 (New Living Translation): “Now the Holy Spirit tells us clearly that in the last times some will turn away from the true faith; they will follow deceptive spirits and teachings that come from demons. These people are hypocrites and liars, and their consciences are dead.

They will say it is wrong to be married and wrong to eat certain foods. But God created those foods to be eaten with thanks by faithful people who know the truth. Since everything God created is good, we should not reject any of it but receive it with thanks. For we know it is made acceptable by the word of God and prayer.

If you explain these things to the brothers and sisters, Timothy, you will be a worthy servant of Christ Jesus, one who is nourished by the message of faith and the good teaching you have followed. Do not waste time arguing over godless ideas and old wives’ tales.

Instead, train yourself to be godly. “Physical training is good, but training for godliness is much better, promising benefits in this life and in the life to come.” This is a trustworthy saying, and everyone should accept it. This is why we work hard and continue to struggle, for our hope is in the living God, who is the Savior of all people and particularly of all believers.

Teach these things and insist that everyone learn them. Don’t let anyone think less of you because you are young. Be an example to all believers in what you say, in the way you live, in your love, your faith, and your purity. Until I get there, focus on reading the Scriptures to the church, encouraging the believers, and teaching them.

Do not neglect the spiritual gift you received through the prophecy spoken over you when the elders of the church laid their hands on you. Give your complete attention to these matters. Throw yourself into your tasks so that everyone will see your progress.

Keep a close watch on how you live and on your teaching. Stay true to what is right for the sake of your own salvation and the salvation of those who hear you.”

Don’t you agree that in our age, we have many religious leaders who ‘are hypocrites and liars, and their consciences are dead’? I’m not one, to dwell on the end-times, but many of the symptoms can be seen – that this creation’s death is close.

Yet, the best bit I found in the above verses, is: ‘ … train yourself to be godly. “Physical training is good, but training for godliness is much better, promising benefits in this life and in the life to come.” ‘

What training for goodness is included in your daily schedule? A good question for all of us!