Don Guthrie

Squeaky wheels

Re: Verse reading – Luke 11:1-13; 18:1-8 (day one)
“Now He was telling them a parable to show that at all times they ought to pray and not to lose heart.” (18:1)
[Sorry for the late post. Yesterday was a full, happy day at FBCSA.] Jesus believed it. Squeaky wheels get grease. People who pray get answers. Significant effort is required. Maybe, that is why the Lord knew he needed to encourage us not to give up. Sometimes when I don’t talk to Holly, don’t tell her what I feel or want, it is because I don’t know, myself. It is an attempt to avoid the emotionally taxing exercise of listening to my own soul, being honest with myself and with her. Talk is easy. Truth is hard. Same with God. Is it possible to live without prayer? Yes. It is possible to do so and experience what He promised? NO. “Come let us reason” says the Lord. Talk! Be honest! The squeaky wheel . . .

Saul’s heart and mine

Re: Verse reading – 1 Samuel 15:1-35 (day seven)
” ‘But I did obey the Lord,’ Saul said.” (v 20) I have been thinking this week of Abraham, how FULLY he obeyed God. Even to the point of sacrificing his own son. See Genesis 22. I can’t imagine how difficult that must have been, but need to do so because obedience to God doesn’t allow me to “lean on my own understanding” and omit the rest. I have Saul’ heart. (Apart from the grace of God his heart is ALL that I would have.) My tendency is to propose a new definition for obedience. Doing “mostly” what God requires and rationalizing the rest, being self-deceived that partial obedience is enough. That’s what I do. What Saul did. It does not work. Ever. What God wants, requires, deserves is the full surrender of my will, a deep change in my heart. I suspect Saul looked back with regret. Unless I take different steps, I will too.

WHY did you not obey?

Re Verse reading – 1 Samuel 15:1-35 (day six)
“WHY did you not obey the Lord?” (v 19) It is a question that we should hope to never hear. 2 Corinthians 5:10 says that “we will all stand before the judgment seat of Christ.” What if, on that day, we hear the words He used with Saul? Why? What possible reason did you have for not immediately, happily obeying the expressed will of your creator? WHY did you give avoidance and reluctance to the ONE worthy of life and loyalty? I am certain that our excuses will sound as hollow as Saul’s. Because God KNOWS the true answer. In v 23 He identifies the problem– rebellion and arrogance. As much as we hate to face it, the true explanation for our disobedience is that we don’t WANT to obey God and we think we know a BETTER plan. Embarrassing to admit? Wait until the blaze of His glory makes this question impossible to answer! Why? Why?

Hearing and Obedience

Re: Verse reading – 1 Samuel 15:1-35 (day one)
“This is what the Lord Almighty says: ‘I will punish the Amalekites for what they did to Israel. . . go, attack the Amalekites and totally destroy everything that belongs to them.” (v 2) The basic assumption of our faith is that God speaks and when He does, we are obligated to obey. No protest is allowed for personal or humanitarian reasons. God is judge. He is holy and fair in all that He decides–who can doubt this without placing ourselves above Him? Like the authorities in Romans 13 who are given a “sword” and commanded to use it for good, Saul is obligated to obey and guilty when he fails. “Faith comes through hearing” says Romans 10:17. When we hear God, we have the opportunity to trust him. When we trust God, we have the responsibility to obey Him. Until I hear, I cannot believe. Unless I obey, I do not believe. Hearing =faith. Faith = obedience. Always.

Fearless

Re: Verse reading–Proverbs 17:17; 1 John 4:7-21 (day seven)
“There is no fear in love; but perfect love casts out all fear.” (v 18) “Little children, let us not love with word or tongue, but in deed and truth. We shall know by this that we are of the truth, and shall assure our hearts before Him.” (1 John 3:18-19) What sort of love drives out fear? It is a question that many believers still have. Having come to Christ, we still face a daily battle with anxiety, fear of loss or punishment. Where can we find assurance for our anxious hearts? John teaches us where to find this desperately needed power. Perfect love (fully matured) is required. We must be “all in”, remaining in Christ until His love has its way with us. It must also be practical love, faith that receives God’s goodness and answers back “in kind” by loving others. Only this perfect and practical love has power to liberate us from fear.

Is love a habit?

Re: Verse reading–Proverbs 17:17; 1 John 4:7-21 (day six)
“Dear friends, since God so loved us, we also ought to love one another.” (1 John 4:11) Is love a habit? With time and training (from the Spirit) can the human soul become predisposed to unselfish service toward others? We are mid way through a summer study series called, “14 HABITS of Highly Effective Disciples.” Our topic this week is love. So. . .what do you think? The Bible presents love as the expression of worship. Since God loves us, we should love others. Familiar Biblical, moral argument. John’s version. What God is, we should be! If He is holy, we should be holy! If He loves, we have an obligation to do so as well! It goes to the heart of worship–to honor God, to acknowledge Him in all that we do and think, gradually reshapes us into His image. The real habit is worship. (See lesson 14). Love is the best proof. Habit forming. God, please!

This One Thing I Do

Re: Verse reading–Proverbs 17:17; 1 John 4:7-21 (day one)
“This is love, not that we loved God, but that He loved us and sent His son to be an atoning sacrifice for our sins. Dear friends, since God so loved us, we also ought to love one another.” (1 John 4:10-11) When all is said and done, the one thing that we will either regret or treasure is love. “If I have not love, I am nothing” said Paul in 1 Corinthians 13. Lesson learned by experience. Paul spent years being “right” with a hard heart. He found out (and John agreed) that truth without love is ungodly. With God, for God, at church, in the world, love is our main task and the standard by which the world identifies us. Did I love? Do I? Will I? Scripture defines it. Love is sacrifice made for the welfare of others. (v 10) The opposite of selfishness. The lesson and example of the cross. Brothers, love one another!

Uncommon?

RE Verse reading–Acts 2:42-47; Romans 12:3-13 (day seven)
“They devoted themselves to the apostle’s teaching . . . the believers were together and had everything in common.” (Acts 2:42, 44) “An UNCOMMON love for God’s word and an ability to teach it.” That’s how the profile describes the Associate Pastor for Young Marrieds at FBCSA. It is a quality the search team is looking/praying for as the Lord leads us in this interview process. Ironic, isn’t it? Our scripture this week indicates that the will of Christ is for such a love to be VERY COMMON among the people of God. Koinos is Greek for “common”. Koinoinia is Greek for those who “share life together, love the same thing, bear the same burden.” Is this uncommon in a selfish and “me-centered” world? Perhaps, but not for those who have experienced the power of Pentecost! I am looking forward to being with you in worship today. May the Lord us uncommon people in His normal way.

Humility and grace

RE Verse reading–Acts 2:42-47; Romans 12:3-13 (day six)
“For by the grace given to me I say to every one of you; do not think or yourself more highly than you ought, but rather think of yourself with sober judgment, in accordance with the measure of faith God has given you.” (Romans 12:3) Humility is a blessing. To the humble man and to his friends. “God is opposed to the proud, but gives grace to the humble.” (James 4:6) It is an important factor in the equation of Christian fellowship. Proud people compete. Humble people recognize the value of every member and make allowances for the needs of all to be met. They join a team and do so gladly. Paul was powerfully gifted as a preacher/missionary. Even so, he knew that the God’s grace gives each of us only “a measure” of the faith that is necessary for the full work of the church. With grace comes humility. In theory at least.

A Jolly Good Fellow

Re: Verse reading–Acts 2:42-47; Romans 12:3-13 (day one)
“For he’s a jolly good fellow (repeat twice more), that nobody can deny.” It is a song we sing to recognize friendship. More than friendship, fellowship. Fellow comes from the same root word as follow. To follow the same commander (in the military sense), or the same Lord (in a religious sense) is to become a fellow to other members of your unit or church. Not something that happens automatically. Effort is involved. “They DEVOTED themselves to the apostle’s teaching and to fellowship.” (Acts 2:42) Probably means that they were careful to include, to learn names, to spend time together, to listen, to forgive, to “do life together”. Friendships require time and effort. Fellowship even more. Maybe we should add a song to our hymnal. It would remind us of this gift from God, this proof of the Spirit’s presence. “For he’s a jolly good fellow. . .” I look forward to seeing you on Sunday.