By pastorbillwalden
John 17:4 I have glorified You on the earth. I have finished the work which You have given Me to do.
2 Timothy 2:5 And also if anyone competes in athletics, he is not crowned unless he competes according to the rules.
In track and field, some races require that the runners stay in their own lanes. If they drift over to someone else’s lane, they are disqualified for that race. There is no reward for them for that effort. Their intentions and preparation can be admired, but they have lost that particular race. They learn to stay in their own lane.
It doesn’t matter how sincere they were about trying to run well.
It doesn’t matter that they didn’t mean to stray out of their lane.
It doesn’t matter if they promise to never do it again.
For that race, there will be no reward. There will be other races, but that one race is lost.
Before Jesus went to the cross, He prayed to His Father. He was able to say that He had finished the work which the Father had given Him to do.
Some might argue that point. There were still sick people unhealed, demon possessed people that were still tormented, and the Romans still ruled Israel with brutality. Some would have told Jesus that He hadn’t done enough.
Both Jesus and the Father would have disagreed. Jesus’ mission wasn’t to be evaluated by human standards, but by Heaven’s standard.
Jesus had run His race, and finished His course. He had healed those who were supposed to be healed, though not all were healed. He had cast demons out of some, but not all. The Father’s plan wasn’t for Jesus to overthrow the Roman occupation.
Jesus ran His race, He didn’t stray into someone else’s lane, he follow Heaven’s course for Him, and was able to say:
“I have finished the work which You have given Me to do.”
That truth would allow Jesus to also say, “And now, O Father, glorify Me together with Yourself, with the glory which I had with You before the world was.” (John 17:5 )
Jesus ran His race, stayed in His lane, finished His course, and then requested the glory that was due Him.
There are a lot of needs in the world, but the Christian’s life cannot simply be one of responding to needs. We must seek the Father’s will for our own lives, for our own race.
May all we who know Jesus run OUR course, and stay in OUR lane, and finish the work that the Father has given to EACH of US.
It probably is true that God will rewards us for our intentions, because He is such a gracious God. But how much better to make every effort to be running the race He has set before us.
Hebrews 12:1 let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which so easily ensnares us, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us…
By pastorbillwalden
As was noted in a previous post, Peter had good intentions, but sometimes very wrong words and actions.
It could be argued that that was before he was filled with the Holy Spirit. It is true that after Acts chapter 2, we see a very different Peter, willing to stand up to hostile crowds, and preach about Jesus with great courage. He was even willing to suffer for Christ, and eventually died a martyr’s death.
But even after being filled with the Holy Spirit, Peter still had good intentions that weren’t God’s leading.
We read in Galatians 2:11-14, that Paul had to rebuke Peter for some wrong behavior. During meals, Peter gave in to some old prejudices, and separated himself from some Gentile Christians. He segregated himself to eat with some Jewish Christians, who were not yet accepting of the idea that God would save Gentiles. Paul called him a hypocrite for doing that. Peter, being the influential leader that he was, had even led others away with his moment of carnality. I am sure that Peter thought he was doing no wrong.
So being at one time filled with the Holy Spirit is no guarantee that our good intentions are indeed, God’s leadings.
The remedy for this is simple but not easy. We need to obey God, and the promptings and restrainings of His Spirit.
I used to be a bow hunter. Bow hunters can only make close shots, due to the limited range of a bow and arrow. They have to wear full camouflage to hide themselves visually. They have to move silently. Most importantly, they have to get very close to their prey without being smelled.
Bow hunters are constantly checking wind direction, and approaching their prey in such a way as to not be smelled. They are constantly checking the wind. Some bow hunters carry a small container of talcum powder to squirt into the air so that they can discern even the slightest wind direction.
I used to tie a very small feather to the top of my bow. A quick glace at that feather would indicate wind direction.
If a bow hunters does everything else right, but fails to check the wind, he is not successful, though he has prepared in every other area.
The Greek word for spirit is pneuma, which is also translated wind, breath.
Back to our topic…
Like a bow hunter, I can have my (good) intentions. As a Christian, I have good intentions, but am I checking the wind, the Spirit, in the day to day things of life?
If I am ignoring the Spirit on some plain things, such as forgiveness, mercy, holiness, Bible reading, dying to self, giving to God, etc., then I am a well intentioned Christian who doesn’t obey the wind of God’s Spirit.
We have to obey the obvious before we can discern that which is less obvious.
When an opportunity to do good comes, I might react out of a well intentioned heart, but not by the leading of the Holy Spirit, because I may not have been recently sensitive to His leading.
A bow hunter that was sensitive to wind direction last week can’t depend on last week’s efforts for a new day. He must be sensitive moment by moment.
Thus, like Peter, I can have experienced the filling of the Spirit, but be, at times, spiritually dull, and not in tune with God’s leadings.
How do avoid those Peter-ish moments of having good intentions, but saying and doing the wrong thing?
I believe the remedy is for us to obey the moving of the Holy Spirit in EVERYTHING, ALL THE TIME. It isn’t enough to know “how” to be a Christian, or “how” to be a bow hunter. It isn’t enough to have all the gear and understand the theories.
We must be people that obey the direction of the wind.
By pastorbillwalden
(Editor’s note) From time to time, I will be posting these funny, fictional stories. They have an authentic tone to them, because if you have been in church for any amount of time, you recognize that the ridiculous statements contained in these stories have seeds of truths in them from among the congregations we are apart of. So though these stories are fictional, there is some truth in them that we can learn from. Let the reader beware, and discern.
CHAMPAIGN, Ill. — Members at Avalon Baptist church were angered to discover that the soap used for years in the church restrooms was replaced by a new, economical foaming soap.
“You get this bubbly mound that disappears once you rub it in your hands,” one man complained as he exited the restroom. “It’s all show, this new soap.”
Others agree.
“What happened to the thick, slimy stuff?” one man asked. “That really worked.”
Last Sunday was supposed to be the kick-off of the church’s annual Missions Week. But the buzz in the foyer was about the soap change. Some suggested taking a special offering to restore the original liquid soap.
“You have to wonder about the leadership’s judgment, if they’re willing to make a poor decision like this,” says one woman. “It signals weakness at the top.”
The pastor and custodian released a joint statement on Monday saying they believe people will get used to “the new foaming action soap, and appreciate its many benefits for our church going forward.”
