DAILY ENCOURAGEMENT WEDNESDAY - WHY CALL ME LORD? Part 2.
Jesus Christ is not valued at all until He is valued above all. – Augustine.
"Why do you call me 'Lord, Lord,' and not do what I tell you? Everyone who comes to me and hears my words and does them, I will show you what he is like: he is like a man building a house, who dug deep and laid the foundation on the rock. And when a flood arose, the stream broke against that house and could not shake it, because it had been well built. But the one who hears and does not do them is like a man who built a house on the ground without a foundation. When the stream broke against it, immediately it fell, and the ruin of that house was great." - Luke 6:46-49.
Peter T. Forsythe was right when he said, "The first duty of every soul is to find not its freedom but its Master." - Warren W. Wiersbe.
"Why do you call me 'Lord, Lord,' and not do what I tell you? Everyone who comes to me and hears my words and does them, I will show you what he is like: he is like a man building a house, who dug deep and laid the foundation on the rock. And when a flood arose, the stream broke against that house and could not shake it, because it had been well built. But the one who hears and does not do them is like a man who built a house on the ground without a foundation. When the stream broke against it, immediately it fell, and the ruin of that house was great." - Luke 6:46-49.
Peter T. Forsythe was right when he said, "The first duty of every soul is to find not its freedom but its Master." - Warren W. Wiersbe.
Yesterday in Part 1, we realised that whenever the term “Lord” is used in reference to Christ, it may be taken in the most literal and complete sense of the word. He is our Lord! He has all power and authority over us...
THE WISE MAN BUILT HIS HOUSE UPON A ROCK
The key lies in V 47, the wise man does 3 things in this verse; He comes to Jesus, hears his words, and puts them into practice…
First Of All He Comes To Jesus.
If you want to be wise, if you want your life built on a solid foundation, then come to Jesus. This is never a promise of an easy ride, and Christ does not promise the storms will not come, in fact, the storms will come, the floods will rise, and the wind will blow hard, believe me, it's guaranteed. But if we have a solid foundation built on the Lord Jesus Christ, our life will stand firm.
Secondly, He Hears His Teachings.
Faith increases by hearing the Word... So faith comes from hearing, and hearing through the word of Christ. - Rom 10:17. Take advantage of every opportunity to hear His word. When Jesus walked upon the earth sometimes there were thousands who gathered to hear his teachings, they valued his teachings.
What happens if we miss a meal during the day? We get hungry don't we? Our stomach tells us about it, maybe a headache. More often than not, we tell others we missed a meal, or were too busy to eat. How come we take such notice when we miss lunch or dinner? And how come its so hard to diet from physical food, but we can go on a spiritual fast and last for days, some go for weeks, even months.
We should be hungry for the teachings of Christ! We should be in church every Sunday, developing a loyalty, making it priority, and studying our Bible at home. If Jesus is Lord we will do these things.
Thirdly, He Obeys The Teachings, And Puts Them Into Practice.
This is the clincher! It's good to come to Jesus, and it's good to hear His teachings. But obeying them is what consummates the relationship, the Lordship with Jesus... But be doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving yourselves. - James 1:22. Think about it. Do we deceive ourself? How can we deceive ourself? By coming to Jesus, by hearing his teachings, but not practicing them!
Who is at risk for this kind of deception? It won't be the people that don't come. It won't be the people who don't listen to the word. It’s us, we're the ones at risk because we're the ones who come and listen, let’s examine ourselves, and not be foolish people! James teaches that faith without works is dead. We must be doers of the word and not hearers only!
And by this we know that we have come to know him, if we keep his commandments. Whoever says "I know him" but does not keep his commandments is a liar, and the truth is not in him, but whoever keeps his word, in him truly the love of God is perfected. By this we may be sure that we are in him: whoever says he abides in him ought to walk in the same way in which he walked. - I John 2:3-6.
The person who says, "I know him," but does not do what he commands is a liar, and the truth is not in him. But if anyone obeys his word, God's love is truly made complete in him. This is how we know we are in him: Whoever claims to live in him must walk as Jesus did. Let's stop fooling around, if we're not living for Jesus we're liars!
We are not talking about a person who falls into sin, realises it, confesses it, and is again right with God. That person's better off then a professing, lukewarm Christian who isn't living for the Lord. I'd rather be a confessing Christian than a professing Christian! Jesus says... So, because you are lukewarm, and neither hot nor cold, I will spit you out of my mouth. - Rev 3:16.
The people who come to Jesus, hear His teachings, and practice them, are like the people who go out to build their house, they dig in deep, and they build on a solid foundation. When the storms of life come, their house stands firm, because they have built solidly on the Lord Jesus Christ!
I think that many of us, when Christ has enabled us to overcome one or two sins that were an obvious nuisance, are inclined to feel (though we do not put it into words) that we are now good enough. He has done all we wanted him to do, and we should be obliged if he would leave us alone. But the question is not what we intended ourselves to be, but what he intended us to be when he made us...
Imagine yourself as a living house. God comes in to rebuild that house. At first, perhaps, you can understand what he is doing. He is getting the drains right and stopping the leaks in the roof and so on. You knew that those jobs needed doing and so you are not surprised.
But presently he starts knocking the house about in a way that hurts abominably and does not seem to make sense. What on earth is he up to? The explanation is that he is building quite a different house from the one you thought of -- throwing out a new wing here, putting on an extra floor there, running up towers, making courtyards.
You thought you were going to be made into a decent little cottage, but he is building a palace. He intends to come and live in it himself. - C.S. Lewis.
He is Lord! Come to the Lord Jesus… Obey His Teachings… Put them into Practice!
Loving Father, Help me by the power of the Holy Spirit, to make Jesus Lord of all my life, family, time, finances, and employment. Help me to put into action what I believe and say, that my family, friends, neighbours, workmate and classmates alike, may know, that Jesus Christ is my Lord, and Lord of all! In His wonderful name I pray, Amen!
THE WISE MAN BUILT HIS HOUSE UPON A ROCK
The key lies in V 47, the wise man does 3 things in this verse; He comes to Jesus, hears his words, and puts them into practice…
First Of All He Comes To Jesus.
If you want to be wise, if you want your life built on a solid foundation, then come to Jesus. This is never a promise of an easy ride, and Christ does not promise the storms will not come, in fact, the storms will come, the floods will rise, and the wind will blow hard, believe me, it's guaranteed. But if we have a solid foundation built on the Lord Jesus Christ, our life will stand firm.
Secondly, He Hears His Teachings.
Faith increases by hearing the Word... So faith comes from hearing, and hearing through the word of Christ. - Rom 10:17. Take advantage of every opportunity to hear His word. When Jesus walked upon the earth sometimes there were thousands who gathered to hear his teachings, they valued his teachings.
What happens if we miss a meal during the day? We get hungry don't we? Our stomach tells us about it, maybe a headache. More often than not, we tell others we missed a meal, or were too busy to eat. How come we take such notice when we miss lunch or dinner? And how come its so hard to diet from physical food, but we can go on a spiritual fast and last for days, some go for weeks, even months.
We should be hungry for the teachings of Christ! We should be in church every Sunday, developing a loyalty, making it priority, and studying our Bible at home. If Jesus is Lord we will do these things.
Thirdly, He Obeys The Teachings, And Puts Them Into Practice.
This is the clincher! It's good to come to Jesus, and it's good to hear His teachings. But obeying them is what consummates the relationship, the Lordship with Jesus... But be doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving yourselves. - James 1:22. Think about it. Do we deceive ourself? How can we deceive ourself? By coming to Jesus, by hearing his teachings, but not practicing them!
Who is at risk for this kind of deception? It won't be the people that don't come. It won't be the people who don't listen to the word. It’s us, we're the ones at risk because we're the ones who come and listen, let’s examine ourselves, and not be foolish people! James teaches that faith without works is dead. We must be doers of the word and not hearers only!
And by this we know that we have come to know him, if we keep his commandments. Whoever says "I know him" but does not keep his commandments is a liar, and the truth is not in him, but whoever keeps his word, in him truly the love of God is perfected. By this we may be sure that we are in him: whoever says he abides in him ought to walk in the same way in which he walked. - I John 2:3-6.
The person who says, "I know him," but does not do what he commands is a liar, and the truth is not in him. But if anyone obeys his word, God's love is truly made complete in him. This is how we know we are in him: Whoever claims to live in him must walk as Jesus did. Let's stop fooling around, if we're not living for Jesus we're liars!
We are not talking about a person who falls into sin, realises it, confesses it, and is again right with God. That person's better off then a professing, lukewarm Christian who isn't living for the Lord. I'd rather be a confessing Christian than a professing Christian! Jesus says... So, because you are lukewarm, and neither hot nor cold, I will spit you out of my mouth. - Rev 3:16.
The people who come to Jesus, hear His teachings, and practice them, are like the people who go out to build their house, they dig in deep, and they build on a solid foundation. When the storms of life come, their house stands firm, because they have built solidly on the Lord Jesus Christ!
I think that many of us, when Christ has enabled us to overcome one or two sins that were an obvious nuisance, are inclined to feel (though we do not put it into words) that we are now good enough. He has done all we wanted him to do, and we should be obliged if he would leave us alone. But the question is not what we intended ourselves to be, but what he intended us to be when he made us...
Imagine yourself as a living house. God comes in to rebuild that house. At first, perhaps, you can understand what he is doing. He is getting the drains right and stopping the leaks in the roof and so on. You knew that those jobs needed doing and so you are not surprised.
But presently he starts knocking the house about in a way that hurts abominably and does not seem to make sense. What on earth is he up to? The explanation is that he is building quite a different house from the one you thought of -- throwing out a new wing here, putting on an extra floor there, running up towers, making courtyards.
You thought you were going to be made into a decent little cottage, but he is building a palace. He intends to come and live in it himself. - C.S. Lewis.
He is Lord! Come to the Lord Jesus… Obey His Teachings… Put them into Practice!
Loving Father, Help me by the power of the Holy Spirit, to make Jesus Lord of all my life, family, time, finances, and employment. Help me to put into action what I believe and say, that my family, friends, neighbours, workmate and classmates alike, may know, that Jesus Christ is my Lord, and Lord of all! In His wonderful name I pray, Amen!
GBYAY
posted by John @ 7:00 AM
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