Heavenhigh

True Godliness!

# 36 2019 Devotion, 1 Tim.3:16. True Godliness! Read all of chapter 3. The purpose of these devotionals is to draw Gremar and I closer to God and grow spiritually by applying His Word to our daily living. All passages are taken from the NIV.

1 Timothy 3:16 “Beyond all question, the mystery from which true godliness springs is great:”

Here we have another worthwhile saying that at first glance seems to be the first verse, but when you read the whole chapter it is more likely that all of chapter three is based on an early confession or hymn.

It also appears that this instruction for leadership is directed to married men. On a side note, the church we worked with in Africa does not allow single men to be ordained as pastors. Today many churches and some Christians apply these instructions to both men and women, single or married and there are churches and Christians who apply these instructions to only men. The jury is still out on this issue of leadership but what is important to know that both groups are dedicated followers of Jesus and and practice the whole gospel of Jesus!

The issues that Paul mentions in his instruction are: “Now the overseer is to be above reproach, faithful to his wife, temperate, self-controlled, respectable, hospitable, able to teach, ³not given to drunkenness, not violent but gentle, not quarrelsome, not a lover of money. ⁴He must manage his own family well and see that his children obey him, and he must do so in a manner worthy of full respect.” These characteristics bring respect and good rapport in the community, inside and outside the church.

Paul gives us the reasoning for his instruction: So that “you will know how people ought to conduct themselves in God’s household, which is the church of the living God, the pillar and foundation of the truth.” Here, Paul applies these characteristics to all followers of Jesus! This makes sense when we read: “the mystery from which true godliness springs is great:” and the poem that follows.

“He appeared in the flesh,
    was vindicated by the Spirit,
was seen by angels,
    was preached among the nations,
was believed on in the world,
    was taken up in glory.”

Our true godliness comes by our belief in Jesus! Simple! Thank you Lord Jesus!

God is Great

# 35 2019 Dev. Psalm 70:4. The Lord is Great! Read all of Ps. 70. The purpose of these devotionals is to draw Gremar and I closer to God and grow spiritually by applying His Word to our daily living. All passages are taken from the NIV.

Ps. 70:4 “But may all who seek you rejoice and be glad in you;
may those who long for your saving help always say, “The Lord is great!”

Ps. 70 is the second of four related Psalms and is titled: A Petition. The Psalmist is petitioning God to intervene into his life in order to save his life from the enemy. The Psalm is short but is a desperate prayer for help. The Psalm is framed in two urgent requests; “hasten, O God to save me” and “come quickly to me, O God”. He is overwhelmed, but in verse four he falls back on the anticipation of hope, on his expectation of salvation and he praises God; “The Lord is great”!

That really is what following Jesus is all about; hope and expectation. Every one of us are overwhelmed at one time or an other. We are not physically threatened but we have spiritual enemies, as Peter tells us: “Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion”. Sometimes we are overwhelmed by illness, or other setbacks also brought on by Satan. God does not bring evil on His followers. God is completely sovereign and that is why we pray with hope and expectation. But God answers our prayers in His own way and in His time but He always answers. Along with the psalmist we say: “come quickly to me, O God. You are my help and my deliverer. But may all who seek you rejoice and be glad in you; The lord is great”!

Worship!

# 34 2019 Devotion, 1 Tim.2:3-5. Worship! Read all of chapter 2. The purpose of these devotionals is to draw Gremar and I closer to God and grow spiritually by applying His Word to our daily living. All passages are taken from the NIV.

1 Timothy 1:3-5 “³This is good, and pleases God our Savior, ⁴who wants all people to be saved and to come to a knowledge of the truth. ⁵For there is one God and one mediator between God and mankind, the man Christ Jesus, ⁶who gave himself as a ransom for all people.”

When Paul says “this is good” he is referring to what he says before it: “I urge, then, first of all, that petitions, prayers, intercession and thanksgiving be made for all people— ²for kings and all those in authority, that we may live peaceful and quiet lives in all godliness and holiness.” Paul encourages us to intercede and pray for all people, and for leaders and for those in authority. The political environment of today has prevented us from praying for our leaders, we use one or another excuse not to pray, but read Rom. 13 to put things back in perspective. The lack of our prayers only adds to the chaotic political situation we are facing today.

Secondly, Paul talks about worship: “Therefore (pointing back to vs 3-5) I want men everywhere to pray” and put aside disputes and anger. “I also want the women to dress modestly” and do “good deeds appropriate for women who profess to worship God.” If anger, disputes and modesty was a problem then it certainly is a problem today. Now people do what they want and wear what they want but Paul says no, everything you do and wear sends a message. Worship is a daily activity, 24/7.

Thirdly, Paul is speaking about male headship which has unique responsibility. Paul talks about the fall in this passage. The fact is that Adam was responsible, God addressed him first, but Adam passed the buck, “it is the woman you gave me”. God addresses Eve, she passed the buck to Satan. God addresses Satan: God cursed him and said: “I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your offspring and hers; he will crush your head and you will strike his heel.” This is what we call the “Mother Promise” the promise of salvation in Christ (Gen.3:15). This promise is why Paul says: “women will be saved through childbearing if they continue in faith and love.”

Paul does talk about male headship but this is not always understood: Paul had female coworkers, and there were female deacons in the early church. Paul is not restricting women, but what he is saying is what we are experiencing now; mutual submission and mutual respect which is lacking today. Our culture is moving to a female centric orientation. How are people depicted in advertisements, movies and in social media? Men are depicted as bumbling idiots, and as only sperm donors, while women are depicted as strong and reliable. But this is not how things are supposed to be: “Submit to one another out of reverence for Christ.” The husband must love his wife and the wife must respect her husband. Read Eph.5:21-33 for God’s standard on human relationships. Praise be to God!

Affliction

# 33 2019. Dev. Psalm 69:5,29. Affliction! Read all of Ps. 69. The purpose of these devotionals is to draw Gremar and I closer to God and grow spiritually by applying His Word to our daily living. All passages are taken from the NIV.

Ps. 69:5 “You, God, know my folly; my guilt is not hidden from you.”29 “But as for me, afflicted and in pain—may your salvation, God, protect me.”

Ps. 69-72 begins a new series, ending book 2 of the Psalter. They contain three prayers and a royal Psalm of Solomon. Ps 69 is a prayer for relief from persecution and rejection applied to the king unjustly. The king’s situation echoes Christ’s experience while on this earth. Along with Ps. 22, Ps. 69 is the most quoted Psalm in the New Testament. The Ps. is divided in half; Vs. 1-15 and 16-36. V. 5 is the middle of the section 1 and v 29 is the middle of section 2, vs 5 and 29 compliment each other.

While v. 5 acknowledges the king’s guilt it also leads to concern for the innocent, concern for those associated with the king. This applies to Jesus but also applies to us as the followers of Jesus who stand opposed to our secular culture: “Lord, the Lord Almighty, may those who hope in you not be disgraced because of me. God of Israel, may those who seek you not be put to shame because of me.” We share the burden of Jesus, rejection, maligned unjustly, hated because we promote love and forgiveness.

Section 2 begins with: “V 16. Answer me, Lord, out of the goodness of your love; in your great mercy turn to me.” Certainly a prayer we share with the Psalmist. The center of this section is: V 29 “But as for me, afflicted and in pain—may your salvation, God, protect me.” We have been spared much of the pain of following Jesus that over 200 million people experience around the world. Yet God is faithful: “I will praise God’s name in song and glorify him with thanksgiving. The Lord hears the needy and does not despise his captive people.” Even where we live; facing only a few of the challenges of the king in this Ps. or of followers of Jesus in some countries today, Jesus is faithful to us.

The promised Land always was and is a metaphor for the Kingdom of God and for Life Eternal. This is how this Psalm ends: “Let heaven and earth praise him,
the seas and all that move in them ³⁵for God will save Zion and rebuild the cities of Judah. Then people will settle there and possess it;³⁶ the children of his servants will inherit it, and those who love his name will dwell there.” The inheritance of our God. Thank you Lord Jesus!

Grace

# 32 2019 Devotion, 1 Tim.1:14. Grace! Read verses 12-20. The purpose of these devotionals is to draw Gremar and I closer to God and grow spiritually by applying His Word to our daily living. All passages are taken from the NIV.

1 Timothy 1:14 “The grace of our Lord was poured out on me abundantly, along with the faith and love that are in Christ Jesus.”

Paul thanks God for strengthening him, for His trust in him and for His mercy by “appointing me to His service.” Paul “acted in ignorance and unbelief.” He gives us “a trustworthy saying that deserves full acceptance”. We find 5 trustworthy sayings that most commentators consider to be confessions of faith in the early church, four are found in Timothy and one in Titus. Also, Paul encourages Timothy by reminding him about prophecies made about him; hold “on to faith and a good conscience”.

Along with Paul we profess: “Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners”, we confess our sins. As sinners we are “shown mercy so that in me (in us) Christ Jesus might display his immense patience as an example for those who would believe in him and receive eternal life.” We are not only shown mercy to the point of salvation but we are the example of that mercy to those who do not yet believe. As a church and as individual believers we are the body of Christ in this broken world, the only place in the world where Christ is actively displayed. That is what Christ by Paul suggests to Timothy and now also to us, fight the good fight with a strong faith and a good conscience.

Paul also mentions two former followers of Jesus who had rejected a good conscience and “have suffered shipwreck with regard to the faith.” Those who reject salvation after receiving it are much worse off than when they did not yet believe: a strong warning for those once saved, but now reject God’s grace.

We end with the benediction from an early confession: “Now to the King eternal, immortal, invisible, the only God, be honor and glory for ever and ever. Amen.”

Redemption

# 31 2019. Dev. Psalm 68:19-20. Redemption! Read all of Ps. 68 The purpose of these devotionals is to draw Gremar and I closer to God and grow spiritually by applying His Word to our daily living. All passages are taken from the NIV.

Ps. 68:19-20 “Praise be to the Lord, to God our Savior, who daily bears our burdens.²⁰Our God is a God who saves; from the Sovereign Lord comes escape from death”.

Ps. 68 is the last Psalm in this series of praise prayers and/or praise worship. Psalms 65-66 praises God for His care of the world through maintaining His creation and Psalms 67-68 praises God for the salvation of His people. What this series is about is God’s sovereign reign of His creation including His people. “Our God Reigns”!

This Psalm divides into two sections: vs. 1-18 echo God’s leading His people in the wilderness to Mt Sinai, establishing God’s presence with His people and establishing His laws for man’s return to righteousness. “But may the righteous be glad and rejoice before God; may they be happy and joyful.” V. 18 is picked up by Paul in his letter to the Ephesians 4:8-13, Christ ascending to His heavenly throne, receiving and bestowing gifts on His people.

The second half: vs. 19-35 is summarized in vs.19-20 “Our God is a God who saves”, He “daily bears our burdens” and “from the Lord comes escape from death”. Jesus’s love and sacrifice is foreshadowed in these passages.

We tend to forget that God’s mission to the world is to redeem His World. We need to look at the Scriptures as God dealing with this world and with His people from the point of view of God’s intention to redeem His people and His creation.

Second, salvation is from God and by God alone, His initiative alone, but God chose Israel as His agent for His mission to the world. This Psalm is about God’s initiative, His agent to the world and God tabernacled among His people.

What God started with Abraham is still with His people; flowing from the Old Testament church to the church of Christ today, still dwelling among his people, “Immanuel, God with us”! Today, followers of Jesus are God’s agents of God’s mission to the world, regardless of ethnicity. Was there opposition then and is there opposition today? Yes, God’s enemies are active still. We look to God, “You, God, are awesome in your sanctuary (His creation), the God of Israel (the church) gives power and strength to his people. Praise be to God”!

A Pure Heart!

# 30 2019 Devotion, 1 Tim.1:5. A Pure Heart! Read verses 1-11. The purpose of these devotionals is to draw Gremar and I closer to God and grow spiritually by applying His Word to our daily living. All passages are taken from the NIV.

1 Timothy 1:5 “The goal of this command (not to teach false doctrine ^any longer) is love, which comes from a pure heart and a good conscience and a sincere faith.”

Paul left Timothy in Ephesus on his fourth missionary journey. On Paul’s second missionary journey he spent three years in Ephesus teaching the Word of God to many people in the area. Now, eight years later heresies had set in by those who departed from Paul’s teaching of the pure gospel. Paul writes two letters to Timothy to expand on his charge to deal with the Ephesian church. There were several issues; the beginnings of Gnosticism, false asceticism, Judaism expected from Gentile converts and a wrong application of the law.

Paul begins with false teachers of the Law. In vs. 9-11 he lists a long list of actions of “lawbreakers and rebels, the ungodly and sinful, the unholy and irreligious.” The law is good and addresses those negative actions. The law is not for the righteous, not for people of faith but sets the boundaries for those who practice “sound doctrine”.

Paul does not condemn but tells us that the goal of his command is to restore love, a pure heart, a good conscience and a sincere faith. Today there are Christians that accept a couple of actions included in Paul’s list as unacceptable. Christians who stand with Paul’s evaluation and do not accept those actions are considered to commit a hateful crime at worst and an unloving attitude at best. The Word of God tells us that the Summary of the Law is: “Love the Lord your God and your neighbor as yourself”. Followers of Jesus are to love all humans, they bear the image of God; people who fall short of the glory of God, people who disagree with you, people who dislike you and those who are your sworn enemies. The love that Paul makes as a goal of his command calls Timothy and us; to love people so much as to present the gospel and that not regarding God’s law hampers a happy and meaningful life.

That love flows from a pure heart often affected by sin, yet, followers of Jesus are a new creation; they are given a new heart and work done in the name of Jesus is good work.

Paul directs Timothy and us to a good conscience. Human beings are created with the ability to know right or wrong. People are able to make good decisions when bordered by God’s law and decisions are clouded when the law is not regarded.

Paul also directs Timothy and us to sincere faith. Faith, is a sure knowledge of things not seen and otherwise not known. We believe that the Bible is the Word of God and we believe it: that the precepts, commands, laws and values in the law of God is God setting parameters for our lives in Jesus Christ. Paul, tells us that those claiming to reinterpreted the law of God “do not know what they are talking about”. Further, it is “contrary to the sound doctrine.”

Paul puts his command to counter the beginnings of Gnosticism, false asceticism, Judaism expected from Gentile converts and any other deviation from God’s law on a Biblical basis. At no point does Paul condemn the errant leaders in the Ephesian church. Instead, Paul promotes love flowing from a pure heart, a good conscience and a sincere faith when confronting departure of sound doctrine. We thank God that Paul puts us on a path of love, instead of condemnation. Amen!

Be Glad!

# 29 2019. Dev. Psalm 67:4 Be Glad! Read all of Ps. 67 The purpose of these devotionals is to draw Gremar and I closer to God and grow spiritually by applying His Word to our daily living. All passages are taken from the NIV.

Ps. 67:4 “May the nations be glad and sing for joy, for you rule the peoples with equity and guide the nations of the earth.”

Ps. 67 is the third Psalm in a series of four prayers. This Psalm is a communal liturgical praise prayer including a benediction. Vs. 1,2 is the closing of worship that is the beginning of living for God and the beginning of God’s grace extended through a group of people.

Vs. 3-5 seems to be a Psalm within a Psalm bracketed with “May the peoples praise you, God; may all the peoples praise you.” Rejoicing is called for by God’s fairness and God’s guidance to the whole earth.

Vs. 6,7 call to mind God’s blessings and His continued blessing on his people, “so that the end of the earth will fear Him”. Fear in this case means to revere God; to honor, to praise and to worship.

For followers of Jesus, this Psalm brings to mind the centuries of God’s grace. God’s intention is to redeem His whole creation; reconciling His people back to Himself. In terms of making His ways “known on earth, your salvations among all nations” God began with Abraham and his offspring, “By them all families of the earth will be blessed”. In that sense God ends with the birth of Jesus, His life on earth, His death, and His resurrection. “It is finished”!

As a result, the lines of Israel are now blurred; all followers of Jesus are the the children of Abraham. In God’s view “Israel” is now not a nation but is what God intended it to be at the beginning, agents of God’s mission to the world: “After this I looked, and there before me was a great multitude that no one could count, from every nation, tribe, people and language, standing before the throne and before the Lamb. They were wearing white robes and were holding palm branches in their hands. ¹⁰And they cried out in a loud voice: ’Salvation belongs to our God, who sits on the throne, and to the Lamb” (Rev. 7:9,10).

I think you will join me in saying: I for one am thankful that God chose us to be agents of God’s mission to the world. We end with the blessing at the end of this Psalm: “God, our God, blesses us. May God bless us still, so that all the ends of the earth will fear him.” Praise be to our God!

Do Good!

# 28 2019 Devotion, 2 Th.3:6. Do Good! Read verses 6-18. The purpose of these devotionals is to draw Gremar and I closer to God and grow spiritually by applying His Word to our daily living. All passages are taken from the NIV.

2 Thessalonians 3:6 “In the name of the Lord Jesus Christ, we command you, brothers and sisters, to keep away from every believer who is idle and disruptive and does not live according to the teaching you received from us.”

This section is the end of Paul’s letters to the Thessalonians. Up to this point Paul has nothing but praise for this young church; their faith is an example for all and their perseverance under persecution an inspiration. But like any church with members who lose sight of God’s purpose for the church, problems start to develop. Paul warns believers not to associate with those unrepentant, those who know the truth but refuse to follow the truth, “Yet do not regard them as an enemy, but warn them as you would a fellow believer.” We don’t ignore or isolate them but we pray for them daily.

From the very beginning the church started to take care of the needy; (Acts 3:32-37) what funds they had “was distributed to anyone who had need.” Religion that is pure and accepted by God is “looking after widows and orphans” (James1:27). It appears that this ministry of the church was being abused. The reason for this, Paul points out in verse 6; is that members are not living “according to the teaching you received from us.” That is the problem isn’t it? We lose site of what the church is really about, that is, being an agent of God’s mission to the world.

We have forgotten that church traditions in this changing culture is not important, traditional music is not important, orders of worship are not important because it has no meaning to new Christians and in fact may be a hindrance to assimilate them into your church. What really is important for churches is to be agents of God’s mission to the world and to the people around us.

Paul gives us some good advice in 1 Th. 2;7,8 “we were like young children among you. Just as a nursing mother cares for her children, ⁸so we cared for you. Because we loved you so much, we were delighted to share with you not only the gospel of God but our lives as well.” Think on this: to be the Church of Jesus Christ; churches must share the intimacy of a loving family, share it with each other and with the people around us, especially with people out side of the church who consider the church as irrelevant.

In the passages for this week Paul encourages the faithful and he encourages us as well: “as for you, brothers and sisters, never tire of doing what is good. Now may the Lord of peace himself give you peace at all times and in every way. The Lord be with all of you.” Amen!

Praise!

# 27 2019. Dev. Psalm 66:8 Praise! Read all of Ps. 66 The purpose of these devotionals is to draw Gremar and I closer to God and grow spiritually by applying His Word to our daily living. All passages are taken from the NIV.

Ps. 66:8 “Praise our God, all peoples, let the sound of his praise be heard; he has preserved our lives and kept our feet from slipping.”

This prayer starts out with a call for communal praise and ends with an individual personal praise of what God has done for him (her). The prayer includes praising God’s power, “awful deeds for man kind” and God testing mankind; “for you, God, tested us; you refined us like silver.”

Vs. 1-4 The Psalmist calls for universal praise. “All the earth bows down to you”.

Vs. 5-7 “Come and see what God has done” He is the ruler of the earth, He watches “the nations”.

Vs. 8-12 praises God for protection and for disciplining his people, “you refined us like silver”.

Vs. 13-15 The Psalmist worships his God; “I will come to your temple and fulfill my vows”, my promises.

Vs. 16-20 The Psalmist praises his God personally and proclaims God’s grace, “come and hear, all you who fear God. I cried out, God has surely listened”. He repented from the heart, removing all that hindered fellowship with his God. “Praise be to God, who has not rejected my prayer or withheld his love from me!”

How can followers of Jesus identify with the Psalmist prayer? We begin with organizing our lives around being agents of God’s grace to the world. God sends us as His ambassadors, He protects and empowers us, grooms us; refining our lives and our witness. We also worship in our places of worship, studying God’s Word, applying it to our lives by living our faith. As important as communal worship is, it does not compare with our personal commitment, to God’s mission, our thankfulness for Jesus’s grace and love and our thankfulness for God choosing us to be His child. Empowered by the Spirit and empowered by praying, we praise God!