What motivates you as a Christian?

What motivates you as a Christian? There needs to be something or we will most certainly quit. The Apostle Paul had two things.

1) Hell itself. - (2Cor. 5:11) “ Knowing therefore the terror of the Lord, we persuade men…” 2) The love that Christ. (2Cor. 5:14) “For the love of Christ constraineth us…” Motivation is the key to Christian success. My two motivations are: 1) The cross. The Lord died for my sin there, in my place, and I owe him my life. 2) The call of God. Not just as a Pastor but as a Christian. We have a call to go, and make disciples. You and I need a cause higher than ourselves to stay motivated. So how can you and I stay motivated? 1) Be appreciative. Only unappreciative and self-centered people take without being thankful. Repent and be truly thankful for all that God has done for you. Don’t let yourself forget. 2)Be approvable. Prove yourself faithful. Live approved by practicing the basics again: Church attendance, Bible reading, Prayer, Witnessing, and living godly. Faithfulness is proved by living God’s standard’s. 3) Be accountable to someone. Change takes obedience and discipline, but sometimes we need the help of another. Find someone else who is faithful and trustworthy, and ask them to hold you accountable. Motivation is the key to success in the Christian life, but it can't start until you learn to have a heart of appreciation.

Forgiveness

As we grow in the Lord, God places us in certain situations, that allows us to make certain choices that reveal to us our true character. One of those situations is in the area of forgiveness. When we get saved we are forgiven for every transgression, but even though God has forgiven us, wrongs that we have committed against others may not be. In the book of Philemon, Onesimus was a run-away slave that later was led to Christ by the Apostle Paul. Although he was now saved he still needed to right his wrongs with his owner, Philemon. Paul sent Onesimus back to Philemon to correct his wrong. Onesimus sought forgiveness, but Philemon was asked to grant it. After we’re saved, we may be asked by God to right past wrongs. It may be that God would have us humbly seek forgiveness, or possibly humbly grant it to another. In both cases it takes a strong character to admit wrong or forgive the wrong of another. To often we sweep under the rug the very things that God wants us to deal with. (Eph 4:32) “ And be ye kind one to another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, even as God for Christ's sake hath forgiven you.” So learn the character trait of forgiveness, and experience the joy that will come from it.

Cast it down and destroy it, before it is too late!

(2Co 10:5) “Casting down imaginations, and every high thing that exalteth itself against the knowledge of God…” In the O.T. whenever God introduced a new King, He always mentioned the words, “ he did right in the eyes of the Lord,” or “he did evil in the eyes of the Lord.” Time and time again, the Lord was displeased with Israel and Judah for not tearing down the high places that were erected by Solomon (because of his ungodly wives), and Jeroboam, Israel’s first king of the northern tribes. The high places were places erected to sacrifice to devils and false gods, and God instructed Israel long before to get rid of them utterly or their children would find them. Only one King (Hezekiah) out of 40 kings of Israel, had the spiritual obedience to destroy them, and as a result God brought a great revival. A few weeks back we had revival meetings and many of us made decisions to change, but the question is have we kept our word. In the above verse, God is instructing us to tear down the high places, and to stop making excuses for why we let them remain. Israel did so, and as a result their children found them, and fell away from the God of heaven. All because they thought it was no big deal to keep them around. Don’t be surprised, if that sin you keep around ends up being the very sin that your children pick up on and worship. Cast it down and destroy it, before it is too late!

Love To Give

How can we as Christians develop a heart that loves to give? I think the answer to this question can easily be answered by simply putting God and His Word first in our life. When we do, our hearts will automatically desire to give as it should. As a Pastor, I always here of Christians being short money, and some even use that as an excuse for why they don’t give as they ought, but the real problem is not their lack of money but rather their lack of faith. If God is not first, fear will do the deciding for you. (2 Cor. 8:12) says, “For if there be first a willing mind, it is accepted according to that a man hath, and not according to that he hath not.” 10% of nothing is nothing, but 10% of any amount is still something. It’s the heart that determines the amount we give, to whom we give it, and the degree for which God basis His blessings back. (2 Cor. 9:6-7) “But this I say, He which soweth sparingly shall reap also sparingly; and he which soweth bountifully shall reap also bountifully. Every man according as he purposeth in his heart, so let him give; not grudgingly, or of necessity: for God loveth a cheerful giver” If we love God and obey His Word, God will honor us. If we are content with what God has provided and not greedy, God will continue to be gracious. If we will just believe and obey the known will of God, God promises to provide for our every need. God cannot respond to fear and doubt, so stop making excuses, put God first, and give from the heart.

“Parable of the Sower”

The “Parable of the Sower,” is an interesting parable. Every time I read it I get more out of it. In fact, if we’re going to be effective in winning people to Christ, we had better understand it. Why? Because it helps us understand why some people listen and why some don’t, or why some people get saved when others won’t. You see, when we deal with people spiritually we need to understand that we all are on different levels. In this parable Jesus compares a “seed” to the Word, and the four “soils” to the hearts of all men. 1) Hard soil is a hard heart that hears the word but understands it not. In this case, there is nothing wrong with the word preached, but this person’s heart is not willing to hear, and so Satan steals away the word. 2) Stony soil is a heart that listens and agrees, but never really lets the word take root. So, because they are faking salvation they quit when difficult times arise. 3) Thorny soil is a backslider’s heart. Although they are truly saved the world has control of the heart, and so they lose interest in winning souls. 4) Good soil, Is the heart of someone who not only accepts Christ, but loves Christ above all others, and bears much fruit. The heart is the key to bearing fruit. This parable is as much about us, as the unsaved! The reason we don’t bear fruit is because of heart #3.

For the love of money

“For the love of money is the root of all evil: which while some coveted after, they have erred from the faith, and pierced themselves through with many sorrows” (1 Tim. 6: 10). The Bible does not say that money itself is evil, but it does say that the love of it is. We as Christians must be careful how we handle the money God has entrusted to us. The church is to be a non-profit organization, and we must be careful that it does not lose its focus or why its money has been entrusted to us by God. 1) The church is not a welfare system whereby we support everybody in it. In (1 Tim. 5:3-13) we are warned to not even support widows unless they are desolate. The reason being, that men and women of the church should learn to care for themselves, because  our  giving to them may encourage them to be lazy and selfish people. 2) In (5:17-18) we are instructed to provide for the Pastors that labor in the church. It says that they are worthy of a “double honor.” That being honor and respect, and our financial support. 3) In (6:19) we are also instructed to be content with our income, and not love money more than serving God. Too many Christians work too much, (and some even on Sunday), and give very little time or money to the church. Jesus said, that we must make a choice to either serve God or (mammon) or money. The love of mammon steals away from the tithe, Faith Promise, church, and the churches outreach, because our hearts are no longer faithful, but covetous.

Purity

“Rebuke not an elder, but intreat him as a father; and the younger men as brethren; The elder women as mothers; the younger as sisters, with all purity.” In the above verse the Apostle Paul is instructing the young Pastor Timothy to teach his church to respect their elders and to treat one another as if they were a family. The word “elder” here is not just the pastor of the church, but the older men and women of the church, and the words “rebuke not,” mean to not disrespect them verbally with harsh or critical words. In the church the elderly are to be treated with the same respect as one would give to a mom or dad. Be careful in this world of selfishness and self-centeredness that you do not forget to love and treat the older saints with honor. The Apostle Paul also wanted the younger members to treat one another as brothers and sisters. Sometimes brothers and sisters fight and disagree, but they are still family. We need to have a spirit of kindness, longsuffering, humbleness, forbearance, and forgiveness, if we are going to get along. Most families have conflict sometimes, but somehow they work at getting past it, and so should the church. Be careful to be a brother of grace more then of conflict, and as the Holy Spirit says, learn to also practice brotherly love in “purity.” The purity He is referring to, is a moral purity between churches members. Since the church is composed of men & women, respect for the opposite gender is extremely important. The highest regard to avoid instances of sexual temptation and bad behavior between ourselves needs to be a priority. Many a church, or Pastor, or life, has been destroyed by not taking heed to brotherly purity.