WATCHWORD:
Trivialize even the smallest item in God’s Law and you will only have trivialized yourself. But take it seriously, show the way for others, and you will find honor in the kingdom. Unless you do far better than the Pharisees in the matters of right living, you won’t know the first thing about entering the kingdom. Matthew 5:19-20 The Message
Trust God from the bottom of your heart; don’t try to figure out everything on your own. Listen for God’s voice in everything you do, everywhere you go; he’s the one who will keep you on track. Don’t assume that you know it all. Proverbs 3:5-6 The Message
Meditation:
Disposition and Deeds
The characteristic of a disciple is not that he does good things, but that he is good in motive because he has been made good by the grace of God. The only thing that exceeds right-doing is right-being. Jesus Christ came to put into any man who would let Him, a new heredity which could exceed the righteousness of the scribes and the Pharisees. Jesus says — if you are My disciple you must be right not only in your living but in your motives, in your dreams, in the recesses of your mind. You must be so pure in your motives that God Almighty can see nothing to censure. Who can stand in the eternal light of God and have nothing for God to censure? Only the Son of God, and Jesus Christ claims that by His redemption He can put into any man His own disposition, and make him unsullied and as simple as a child. The purity that God demands is impossible unless I can be remade within, and that is what Jesus has undertaken to do by His Redemption. No man can make himself pure by obeying laws. Jesus Christ does not give us rules and regulations. His teachings are truths that can only be interpreted by the disposition He puts in. The great marvel of Jesus Christ’s salvation is that He alters heredity. He does not alter human nature, He alters its mainspring. — Oswald Chambers
What do you make of that statement: “If you are my disciple you must be right not only in your living but in your motives, in your dreams, in the recesses of your mind?” To me, that seems like a major lift, a total overhaul. What about having the disposition of Jesus Christ? The high bars are everywhere!
We can only live one day at a time, one moment at a time. We build on that moment with intentionality, following our Lord, making the right choices, living the best “Me” we can live. Will we fall short? Of course we will. Will there be times when we fall on our knees and cry “Forgive me, Lord!”? Yes, and there will be times when we will weep with regret, and wonder how we could be such a sinner. Our task is to continue to seek His disposition and His deeds in this time and space of ours.
How can I possibly do that? I can’t, you can’t, we together can’t, only by resting fully on our Lord and Savior, Jesus the Christ, can we embrace His disposition and be made good through the grace of God. Remember — Trust in the Lord with all your heart and do not rely on your own understanding. In all your ways know Him and He will make your way straight.” (Proverbs 3:5-6). We should practice that and trust God to do the rest. Amen.
Bulletin Board:
How are you dealing with this, day-by-day? Are you –
- Are you trusting the Lord with a partial heart?
- Are we trusting ourselves with our whole heart?
- Are we trusting the Lord with our whole intellect but not our heart?
- Are we leaning on our own understanding?
- Are we acknowledging God in some of our ways?
Sound like anyone you know? How did you grade yourself? How is the way you are living your life working for you? Just askin’.
Closing Prayer:
Almighty God and Father, I come before You this morning for I need help. Help in getting back on the track of Your will, Lord, in my life. Too often, Lord, I think I know all I need to know, I think I know what I need to do. I think I think I think, when I should be praying and talking to you, God. I know that I am nothing unless You are guiding my life, and so, Lord, I lay it all on You. Every scrap of my life. Help me to hear you more clearly, understand when You speak and nudge me along, and not worry about what I understand, but simply to trust in You. You are my Lord and my Savior and I offer these prayers in the name of Your son, Jesus the Christ. Amen.
