Tag Archives: alert

ALERT AND THANKFUL

December 26, 2024Christian Lifealert, devote, thankfulLuella Campbell

Colossians 4:2-4 NLT
[2] “Devote yourselves to prayer with an alert mind and a thankful heart.”

Paul was a great one for praying and urging others to pray. After all, isn’t prayer the hallmark of the believer? Apparently, the Holy Spirit said it is.

When Saul, later called Paul, was brought to his knees before Jesus, the one he was trying to destroy, Ananias was skeptical about Saul’s so-called conversion. How could this vicious persecitor of the church suddenly become one of them? Jesus assured him that Saul was changed.

Acts 9:11 NIV
[11] “The Lord told him, “Go to the house of Judas on Straight Street and ask for a man from Tarsus named Saul, for HE IS PRAYING”.

He is praying! Now that was something Saul had never done before!

What was Saul doing in his pre-conversion days? Obviously, despite his religious fervor, he wasn’t praying. He was mouthing words of Scripture, psalms, and “mantras” relating to his religion. None of that was prayer!

So, what is prayer, this new activity that identified Saul/Paul as a new man?

Real prayer must have the correct foundation, which is only for those who are “in Christ”.

1 Corinthians 3:11 NIV
[11] “For no one can lay any foundation other than the one already laid, which is Jesus Christ.”

The foundation of all true prayer is the Father-child relationship, a two-way connection between God and His new-born son or daughter which Jesus restored through His death. We speak…God listens. He speaks…we listen.

This means that “prayer” outside of the Father-child relationship is not prayer. It’s an empty, meaningless exercise that achieves nothing. Unless prayer is the expression of the love-relationship between the Father and His beloved child, whatever it is, it isn’t prayer.

Matthew 6:9 NLT
[9] “Pray like this: Our Father in heaven, may your name be kept holy.”

The next important part of prayer is constant communication between heaven and earth, like soldiers staying in touch with headquarters for detailed directions for life. You see, when we bowed the knee before Jesus as Lord, we gave up our independence for a union with Christ so intimate that He took up residence in us, called “Christ in you, the hope of glory”. In this new status, sons of God, we are going somewhere. “Glory” is the word that encapsulates our destination.

Hebrews 2:10 NIV
[10] “In bringing many sons and daughters to glory…”

“Glory” is everything that God…Father, Son, and Holy Spirit…is in His nature and attributes. After Israel’s dismal failure, Moses requested to see God’s glory to which God responded with a revelation of His nature.

Exodus 33:18-20 NIV
[18] “Then Moses said, “Now show me your glory.” [19] And the Lord said, “I will cause all my goodness to pass in front of you, and I will proclaim my name, the Lord, in your presence. I will have mercy on whom I will have mercy, and I will have compassion on whom I will have compassion. [20] But,” he said, “you cannot see my face, for no one may see me and live.”

Exodus 34:6-7 NIV
[6] “And he passed in front of Moses, proclaiming, “The Lord, the Lord, the compassionate and gracious God, slow to anger, abounding in love and faithfulness, [7] maintaining love to thousands, and forgiving wickedness, rebellion and sin. Yet he does not leave the guilty unpunished; he punishes the children and their children for the sin of the parents to the third and fourth generation.”

In our fallen human state, it is impossible for us to live up to God’s nature (glory)…

Romans 3:23 NIV
[23]…”for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God,”

…but, through Jesus, the Father has made a new life possible. He has given us His nature, the potential to become like Him. So, on our journey through life, God is working in us, gradually transforming us into the likeness of His Son. Our part is to stay in touch, to receive and obey instructions as we are led by the Holy Spirit.

Romans 8:14 NIV
[14] “For those who are led by the Spirit of God are the children of God.”

Another amazing facet of real prayer is partnership with God in His work of establishing His kingdom on earth. Just as the Father is going somewhere with each of us, so is He also going somewhere with all of creation, but not without us. He includes us in His way of spreading His message to the world.

Creation, the universe in all it’s magnificent detail, is intimately connected with God’s children. Our transformation and the restoration of creation to its original perfection will happen together.

Romans 8:19-22 NLT
[19] “For all creation is waiting eagerly for that future day when God will reveal who his children really are. [20] Against its will, all creation was subjected to God’s curse. But with eager hope, [21] the creation looks forward to the day when it will join God’s children in glorious freedom from death and decay. [22] For we know that all creation has been groaning as in the pains of childbirth right up to the present time.”

How about that!

Although true prayer has many facets, there are reasons for us to be DEVOTED to prayer Through His marvellous grace, God has brought us into partnership with Him to change us into the likeness of His Son and to fulfill His will on earth and for earth, as we play our part in it. Prayer is the way we participate with Him in this enterprise.

Now, Paul says, we must carry out this mandate with alert minds and thankful hearts.

Why alert minds?

First, we must be alert to the enemy’s schemes.

We have an implacable enemy who prowls around looking for opportunity to deceive and derail us in this specific partnership role. One of his favourite tricks is to distract us with irrelevancies. How easily we allow insignificant things to keep us from prayer! We must be alert at all times to keep us from falling into this trap.

Apart from distractions, many other unimportant things keep us from prayer…busyness, for example, people and situations, even sin, and…and… Our role is to identify and deal appropriately with anything that might interfere with our keeping in touch with heaven.

Second, the other equally important consideration is our state of mind, our attitude to human circumstances, specifically concerning worry and anxiety. We can easily derail prayer if we don’t guard our attitudes. These attitudes of fear, worry, and anxiety are weapons of the enemy and evidences of unbelief. Since faith keeps the line open between us and the Father, fear, doubt, and unbelief will effectively cut us off from contact with Him. Thanksgiving is the language of faith, therefore, thanksgiving will maintain our open line to the Father.

One more point to consider. In 1 Thessalonians 5:17, Paul says we must never stop praying. This can mean either that we must not give up on prayer or that we must pray all the time. How can this be possible?

I used to entertain the false notion that my daily “quiet time”, as I was taught as a young believer, took care of my “praying” for the day. As long as I had “spent time with the Lord”, I was safe and could go my merry way for that day! Woe betide if I missed my “quiet time”. Everything would go wrong on that day!

That’s certainly not what Paul meant. I think we have, in Jesus, the perfect example of “praying without ceasing.” Jesus lived a life of prayer, not on His knees but in His heart. He was never out of touch with the Father. “His Father’s business” was the centre of His life, and His perspective of everything that happened around and to Him.

What if we learned to see God in everything that unfolds around us? We don’t need to send WhatsApp messages to the Father. All we need to do is to cultivate such an awareness of “Christ in us” that we instinctively consult Him in our everyday activities. Then we won’t need to “pray” as we understand prayer. Our lives will become, like Jesus, prayer. In this way, we will remain in Him as the branch remains in the vine.

STAND AND RESIST

January 20, 2021Bible Studyalert, mind, of sober resist himLuella Campbell

STAND AND RESIST

Be alert and of sober mind. Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour. Resist him, standing firm in the faith, because you know that the family of believers throughout the world is undergoing the same kind of sufferings. And the God of all grace, who called you to His eternal glory in Christ, after you have suffered a little while, will Himself restore you and make you strong, firm and steadfast. To Him be the power for ever and ever. Amen. (1 Peter 5: 8-11)

‘Spiritual warfare’ is a very current topic in the Christian world. There are all kinds of weird and wonderful teachings around regarding spiritual warfare; we have international prayer movements that teach and write about spiritual warfare; we even have people who regard themselves as specialists on spiritual warfare – generals, they are sometimes called!

But what is ‘spiritual warfare’ if there is such a thing in the Bible?

Unfortunately, many of the ideas about so-called ‘spiritual warfare’ are gleaned from the Old Testament – things like identifying ‘Jezebel’ and other kinds of spirits, identifying principalities and powers and pulling down strongholds, doing Jericho marches and prayer walks, dealing with gates and altars etc., etc. We have to ask, ‘How legitimate is this way of dealing with the devil? Is this the teaching of the New Testament?’

Both Peter and Paul did not deny the existence or the activity of Satan. He is powerfully at work in the world through unbelieving people. But what power or influence does he have in the lives of believers and how do we deal with him and his minions?

Firstly, for those who believe that Jesus is the Son of God, that He rose from the dead and who live by the truth, Satan has lost the power to deceive. Jesus exposed and defeated him through the cross (Col 2: 15) If not, then He died in vain. When He cried out, ‘It is finished!’ He meant it. Believers have been ‘rescued from the dominion of darkness and brought (us) into the kingdom of the Son He loves, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins.’ (Col 1:13, 14)

As long as we believe and live by the truth, he has no power to touch our lives any longer. The only power he has is the power we give him when we believe his lies and open ourselves to his influence. We are immune from his wicked schemes. So, what does he do? He tries to trick us into believing that he still has the power to harm us. Peter and Paul’s answer to his lies? Stand! Stand! Stand in the truth! Don’t fall for his lies. Don’t believe what he insinuates. Resist him by submitting to God and standing firm in the faith.

It is true that our struggle is against principalities and powers, not human beings. They are the agents through which the devil works. It is true that the devil is always trying to destroy us, like a roaring lion on the prowl for prey but, as long as we are aware of what he is up to, and do not allow him to lure us into his ways, we have nothing to fear. We are protected by the power of God’s name. (John 17: 11)

But what about so-called “warfare” against the devil in the world? Are we not supposed to engage the enemy on behalf of the lost? Yes, we are, but not in the way that it is being done. We must take our pattern from the New, not the Old Testament. It is not the so-called spiritual warfare prayers that rescue people from their wicked ways but the power of the truth.

The city of Ephesus is a case in point. When Paul went to Ephesus, it was the seat of the worship of the many-breasted goddess Diana, or Artemis, the goddess of the hunt, of wild creatures and of birthing. She was called ‘great’ to distinguish her from all other lesser goddesses of the same name. She had the attributes of Ashteroth, the female counterpart of Baal.

How did Paul deal with Diana-worship? Did he lead prayer marches around the city? Did he hold prayer meetings to discern the identity of the principalities and powers over Ephesus and pray ‘powerful’ prayers to pull down strongholds? Did he pray at the gates of the city? No, he did none of these things. He preached Jesus. And the result? People turned to the Lord; they burnt their books on witchcraft; Diana lost her power and the silversmiths, led by Demetrius, lost their business and set off a riot against Paul.

Jesus told His disciples at Caesarea Philippi, the ‘red light district’ of Israel, where Pan was worshipped by people having sex with goats, that there where the devil’s practices were rife, He would build His church and not even hell itself would be able to withstand it. How would He do that? By placing His yoke, His way of understanding and applying God’s teachings, on the very people whose yoke was the yoke of Satan.

Come on, people of God. Let’s get real. Let the Bible teach you, not those who have invented their own theories and now consider themselves experts. We do not need to be taught how to do spiritual warfare. Every time we obey the word of God and live by the truth, we defeat the devil. Every time we share the message of Jesus and someone turns to the Lord, he loses another battle.

If we spent as much time sharing our faith with others by our lives and lips instead of learning how to do spiritual warfare and engaging in these futile activities, the kingdom of God would be advanced more powerfully than it is advancing right now.

ALERT AND SOBER MINDS

December 24, 2020Bible Studyalert, set your hope, soberLuella Campbell

ALERT AND SOBER MINDS

Therefore, with minds that are alert and fully sober, set your hope on the grace to be brought to you when Jesus Christ is revealed at His coming. As obedient children, do not conform to the evil desires you had when you lived in ignorance (1 Peter 1:13-14).

Straightforward and serious, not exaggerated, emotional or silly” is the definition of set your hope”sober”, according to the Free Dictionary. Alert and fully sober! How much we need minds that are not cluttered with unnecessary information and irrelevant junk in order to focus on what really matters.

Because of our access to the media in all its forms, we are a people who suffer from information overload. It’s as though we think we will somehow suffer damage or deprivation if we are not constantly informed about everything that goes on in the world. As soon as we have an unoccupied moment, we tune in. We flick on the TV, switch on the radio, pick up the newspaper, or check what’s going on, on Facebook, and fill the air with sound or our eyes with words – and we blot out the opportunity to think soberly.

Even in the Christian context, we are constantly bombarded by every “wind of doctrine” that Christian thinking produces. Never has there been a time when so much confusion is being sown in the minds of believers through the media and Christian writing. Everyone who broadcasts or writes makes his or her own contribution to the chaos. It’s imperative that God’s people switch off the radio and TV, put away the Christian books and magazines for a while, shut down the computer or cellphone, and get back to God’s word. It’s there that the simplicity of Jesus’ teaching and what He came to accomplish will be rediscovered.

To the Jews who had believed Him, Jesus said, ‘If you hold to my teaching, you are really my disciples. Then you will know the truth and the truth will set you free.’ (John 8:32).

Peter’s three basic instructions are as relevant today as they were for the believers of his day who were in urgent need of redirection. They were in danger of being swamped by the threat of persecution. How much more are we in danger of being drowned in the sea of misinformation because everyone is intent on making his or her opinion known!

What were they to do? Be alert! Let your mind be like a sieve. Filter out everything that does not come from the Word or does not match the teaching of Jesus. He is the authority, not the theologians, no matter how many degrees they might have.

Jesus gave His disciples the mandate and the authority to ‘bind’ His yoke on those who believe their word and choose to follow Him. This is a huge responsibility – His yoke is His interpretation of the Torah and His application of the spirit of the Torah in their everyday lives. Our interpretation and application of Jesus’ teaching must match His disposition: ‘I am gentle and humble in heart.’

Be sober! Be straightforward and serious, not full of exaggerated or silly ideas which do not come from God’s thinking but ours. Take the Christmas and Easter seasons, for example. Where did these traditions originate? Certainly not from God’s mind but from the minds of people ‘drunk’ with their own ideas and the deliberate plan to deviate from the truth.

Santa Claus, snow and reindeer, Christmas trees and lavish decorations, presents and feasting? From God? Really? Merry Christmas – wishing you a merry sacrifice of Jesus! Does this come from God? And as for Easter bunnies and Easter eggs! The very name ‘Easter’ has a pagan origin. Are these the product of sober minds or the stupidity of our ‘sheep’ nature who follow tradition because everyone else is doing it!

The ‘silly season’, we call Christmas. Why? Because God’s people are no longer alert and have lost their ability to think soberly. Overindulgence, spending sprees, debt, drunkenness etc. in Jesus’ name? I don’t think so.

What is the antidote? Set your hope on the grace to be brought to you when Jesus Christ is revealed at His coming. There is a reward for those who live in the light of Jesus’ return which presupposes that they will live as obedient children of God and no longer according to their old, evil desires.

Now there is in store for me a crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will award to me on that day – and not only to me, but also to all who have longed for His appearing (2 Tim, 4: 8).

Watch!

August 24, 2015Bible Studyalert, day and hour, in charge, no one knows, servantsLuella Campbell

WATCH!

‘But about that day and hour no one knows, not even the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father. Be on guard! Be alert. You do not know when that time will come. It’s like a man going away. He leaves his house and puts his servants in charge, each with his assigned task, and tells the one at the door to keep watch.

‘Therefore keep watch because you do not know when the owner of the house will come back – whether in the evening, or at midnight, or when the rooster crows, or at dawn. If he comes suddenly, do not let him find you sleeping. What I say to you, I say to everyone: ‘Watch!’ (Mark 13: 32-37).

How could Jesus claim to be God and yet not know when He would return? Was He contradicting Himself? Was He or was He not God?

We must understand His statement in the context of His humanity, and also as wedding talk! After a Hebrew bride and groom had drawn up and signed their marriage contract – ketubah – the bridegroom would tell his bride, “I am going to prepare a place for you and, when my father approves of the bridal chamber, I will come again to take you to where I am.” She would respond, “When will you come for me?” and he would reply, “No one knows the day or the hour except my father.”

Does that sound familiar? Of course, Jesus was talking to them, in the language of a wedding that He intended to return for them when the Father sent Him back to claim His bride. One of the great themes of the Bible is a wedding. God chose Israel to be His bride, but she broke her betrothal promise time and again by committing adultery with the gods of the surrounding nations. God eventually “divorced” her by sending her away into captivity in Babylon.

Once again, on the day of Pentecost, Jesus proposed to His followers; they accepted, and the church became the bride of Christ – betrothed to her Bridegroom and awaiting the wedding when He returns. The Book of Revelation describes that great event – the marriage supper of the Lamb.

Then I heard what sounded like a great multitude, like the roar of rushing waters and like loud peals of thunder, shouting, ‘Hallelujah! For the Lord God Almighty reigns. Let us rejoice and be glad, and give Him glory! For the wedding of the Lamb has come, and His bride has made herself ready. Fine linen, bright and clean, was given her to wear.’ (Fine linen stands for the righteous acts of God’s holy people – Rev. 17: 6-8).

Did you get that? When Jesus repeated, over and over again, that His disciples must be ready, what did He mean? How can we be sure that we are ready for His return? It does not mean, as some have done, that we must quit our jobs, stockpile supplies and hide in a cave in the mountains to watch for His return. That is a foolish way to interpret what He wants of us.

To be ready means to be doing what He called us to do, faithfully, until He comes. What did He call us to do? He called us to be replicas of Him where we are, in our homes, at work, in society – showing mercy to all people because God has shown mercy to us. He called us to follow Him – to be His sons and daughters in the midst of His enemies, walking in the light of His Word and showing the path to others so that they, too, will return from their wicked ways and walk in obedience to God’s instructions.

The “bridal gown” which the bride was given to wear, in John’s vision of the future, is a picture of the lives of God’s faithful people. Fine linen symbolises the lives of those who follow Jesus – filled with deeds of mercy and compassion as a witness to the transformation of their hearts by God’s grace – from greed and wickedness to generosity – because the Holy Spirit had taken up residence in their hearts.

Like the five foolish virgins in Jesus’ parable, those who have neglected to take care of the needs of others will be shut out of the wedding celebration when the Bridegroom returns. He will reject their plea to open the door because He did not know them. They were strangers to Him because they were not like Him.

Jesus’ warning that they must be ready was to alert His disciples to their role in the kingdom of God as they await His return – not to become lazy or neglectful, or to return to their old ways but always to remain on the alert because the Master’s return will be unexpected. Like a homeowner who went away and left his servants in charge to see that the household continued to run smoothly in spite of his absence, they were to keep doing what they were assigned to do up to the very last moment.

In the interim, we are not to sleep but to be alert and to keep watch.

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Live For Others

February 4, 2015Bible Studyalert, gift, love, pray, serve, soberLuella Campbell

LIVE FOR OTHERS

The end of all things is near, Therefore be alert and of sober mind so that you can pray. Above all, love each other deeply because love covers over a multitude of sins. Offer hospitality to one another without grumbling. Each of you should use whatever gift you have received to serve others as faithful stewards of God’s grace in its various forms. (1 Peter 4: 7-10)

Peter and Paul must have shared many hours together and many thoughts about their understanding of what the Christian journey was all about. Peter echoed Paul’s instructions about prayer which we have already studied in Col. 4. In fact, what he wrote is almost word-for-word Paul’s words.

Devote yourselves to prayer, being watchful and thankful. (Col. 4: 2)

Prayer is a pivotal part of our lives as followers of Jesus. Prayer is the unique activity of a son. Jesus’s role on earth was to take us to the Father so that we can interact with Him as His sons and daughters. For what purpose? To get to know the Father, to listen to Him and to submit to His authority and His will. Our task is to reproduce Jesus on earth so that His will and purposes will overtake and replace the rebellious designs of mankind. We are here for Him, not Him for us. To listen to Him is our greatest privilege and responsibility and that happens, among other things, through prayer.

And for the rest, our lives are to be lived for others. Jesus came to earth both as a son and a servant. By serving people He served the Father. Strange as it may seem, a child’s primary responsibility is to learn submission and obedience and in so doing to serve his father. How else will the family unit be established? Unless God’s authority structures are followed, the unity He envisages in the family cannot happen.

The pattern for unity is the Godhead; each one serving the other for the mutual benefit of all. When unity is disturbed, the entire universe descends into chaos and disintegration. The way to establish and maintain unity is through mutual submission and loving service.

That brings me to another thought. Power in the kingdoms of men and in the kingdom of God are in direct opposition. In the world, power is exerted by one person over another. Power is about controlling other people for one’s own ends. If people do not reciprocate, the next step is force. Make them do what I want by whatever means works – intimidation, manipulation, domination. That is Satan’s way.

Power God’s way is through self-control. Part of the miracle of the new birth is the infusion of God’s nature into the believer. He has given us His nature – mirrored in Jesus so that real power begins to operate when we respond as Jesus did to sin. Jesus showed us how it is done. Submission to the Father motivated Him to take everything that was thrown at Him without retaliating. By not participating in the sin of those who crucified Him (and that includes you and me), Jesus put an end to it right there, in His body, when they nailed Him to the cross.

Our way is to react, retaliate, take revenge or allow our anger and hatred to fester inside. Sooner or later we will take it out on someone close to us, and so the sin of others is perpetuated in us and through us. The good news is that God is the just judge. We can leave it to Him to fight for us. How much better to let it go when we have been wronged, knowing full well that we can, like Jesus, entrust ourselves to Him who judges justly (1 Peter. 2: 23)

So, Peter said, instead of spending your time fighting your own cause, let God do it for you. It is better to spend your time serving others because, in this way you’ll be spreading goodwill around you instead of fomenting hatred and bitterness. This is the way of the kingdom. By serving others, we confirm our relationship to God as His children. We resemble Jesus, our elder brother, by acting the way He did and we, in the end, earn the right to have authority in God’s kingdom.

By investing our time and abilities in the wellbeing of others, at our own expense, we will grow in the likeness of God, whose nature is in us, and we will put to death the old selfish nature that leads to death.

Ebenezer Family Church

HE IS RISEN!