Embracing our Sacred Responsibility with Christ

 

I spoke at a conference recently that was entitled, "Integrity Conference." I was the speaker on Saturday morning, following the Friday night speaker. When I started my talk, I asked if anyone had given them the definition of integrity, to which all shook their heads, “No.” I then asked why it would be important that we got a clear definition before I began speaking to them about the subject. They connected pretty quickly and answered, "Because we probably have forgotten what it means." They were right.

 

The majority of men today have a disconnect to what true integrity is, for in this day of synthetic heroes and situational ethics, we just don't see a clear representation of integrity. When we think we have found someone with integrity, we are often disappointed by his life behind the scenes. We must often go someplace other than where our publicized celebrity heroes live to find integrity in action, for it seems very hard to find.

 

Oftentimes, we think we have found him as an idealized hero in a movie. The problem is that Hollywood is good about selling an idealized character in their movie without living it out themselves. So, who and what can we believe? Occasionally, there is a character in a movie that is close enough to real life by what he says and how he acts that it resonates within us. We see qualities we need to embrace, for they encourage the hero deep within us to come out. I think there is a movie character such as this, and there are parts of him that need to be embraced. He is not all good. But he has a code of honor which is very good. Allow him to introduce himself:

 

If you haven't figured it out yet, this quote comes from the lead character in the movie, Gladiator. I mentioned he is not all good, for certainly, we know that God would not have us seek our own revenge. God says, "Vengeance is Mine." But I know God would appreciate a man who would look an accuser in the face  and tell the truth about what he has done when it would be easier to lie about the truth. When Maximus revealed who he was, and came out of hiding, a hero emerged and won our hearts.

 

Don't you think this is something "Rocket Roger Clemens" needs to do? Everybody, including those who don't know the game of baseball, knows the guy "juiced" with some kind of steroid. And yet, he has crawled into a zone of denial, thinking if he keeps denying the truth, they can't really determine if he did it. But we already know he did it. What Roger doesn't understand is the public isn't looking for his admission so he can be broken by the truth. We are looking for truth, so he can be liberated by it.   We want the guy, who could do more with a baseball than could be imagined, to come forward and say, "I am Roger Clemens. I made a mistake, and I sincerely regret it. I'll take my punishment, for I want to be the man all you expect me to be." I believe if Roger did this, his integrity in the public eye would be restored. He would - demonstrate a key ingredient in integrity- honesty.

 

As we continue to explore the word integrity, I find it interesting that the word has a synonym that says a lot, for I think it is in fact a major motivation why a man would live with integrity. The synonym is honor. In other words, integrity and honor go hand in hand. Little wonder our character General Maximus would challenge his men before a battle with the words, "StrengthandHonor." Honor and integrity is strength, and these characteristics are at the core of all heroes, whether they are real-life or idealized characters in the movies.

 

Now, let's go to some real life heroes who really did live and die in the Colosseum in Rome. These are men and women who died by wild animals, by being burned alive, and by every cruel way one could think of, simply because they were Christians.   They didn't get the applause of the audience like our hero Maximus did. The fact is that they were there to die for the entertainment of the audience. Speaking of courage for telling the truth, these men and women, and likely, children, could have been dismissed from the cruel death they would face by simply denying Christ and by worshipping Caesar. They could not and would not, for they lived by their integrity, and this required of them honesty and honor. They could not deny the truth, and they would not dishonor their King Jesus by dishonoring Him with a lie. This required the greatest courage of all, a courage to do what was right when it was not for themselves, but for Jesus Christ. Little did they know, their courage was building a foundation of faith that you and I walk on today.

 

Men, this is where true integrity, honor and courage is seen. It is seen in those men and women who are willing to live their faith out in spite of the negative backlash it will bring to their life. This kind of courage and integrity is inspired and caught through living side-by-side with the greatest and most courageous Leader Who ever walked this planet Earth. We don't earn it, or discipline ourself into it. These characteristics are absorbed in us, as we abide in the Vine. They are called the "Fruit of the Spirit," and they are available for all God's men, if we will get into close proximity with Him. So, let's allow Him to make of us the true heroes needed for this world today. The world wants to see men like this, and it needs to see us in action.

 

Courage and Honor, through Jesus Christ, and Him alone,

 

Rocky

TO DOWNLOAD A COPY OF THIS DEVOTIONAL, CLICK HERE

 

Embracing our Sacred Responsibility with Christ

Like many men who take up golf and tennis as an adult, I had a problem with my grip on the racket and golf club. I would grip it too hard. It was more of a mental issue for me, which had its roots in my perceived notion that I could control the outcome of the shot by keeping a tight grip on the racket or club. Now, you golf and tennis aficionados know I would not be able to control my shot this way, but rather, it leads to terrible results. A tight grip not only impedes a natural swing through the ball, but it also robs power from the swing and decreases accuracy. It goes against our instincts to loosen our grip on just about anything, especially in these sports. But when those instincts are retrained and the grip is loosened so that correct fundamentals can take over, enjoyment of the game follows, along with success. Most experts will tell you it starts with the grip. Even though your fundamentals may be good on every other aspect of the swing, if your grip is faulty, the other fundamentals will not work as they should.

 

One thing I have discovered about my relationship with Christ and my Christian walk is that there is also a grip fundamental that must always be practiced, before the other religious fundamentals come together. The grip fundamental I speak of is faith. My relationship with Christ begins with faith, and learning to walk with Christ requires faith. Maturing as a Christian requires faith, and learning to live with peace, power and purpose requires a correct faith grip, or else I will frustrate my other Christian fundamentals. Since it is the most foundational fundamental in our Christian life, I think we need to explore what a correct faith grip looks like.

 

In the passage above, we see Paul being required by God to relax his grip on his life, so that he could be taught how to have a correct grip. As an ex-Pharisee Paul had been well-schooled as a religious fundamentalist. He had taken all the classes and had done well in his religion training. He had then arrived to an "elite" status in his profession and religion. He was a "Pharisee of Pharisees." When he had his great conversion experience with Christ on the road to Damascus, his reprogramming then began to prepare him for the rest of his life. You see, God had to do with Paul as He does with many successful men who come to know Him. He had to break his tight grip on who he was and how he got things done. God had to break Paul of his self-importance, his self-reliance and his notion of how to relate with God. All the religious fundamentals he had studied could not work and would not make complete sense, until the basic fundamental of faith was engaged first. This was a hard life divergence for a performance-driven, religious, perfectionist like Paul. He was now asked to give up his notion that salvation could be earned by his adherence to the Law, and put his faith in another Man's work on the cross. If this was not hard enough, he was then taught that his ability to do great things for God would not be by way of his credentials, his training, and his hard work, as he had been taught, but rather, by God's grace and his dependence on it. In the passage above we read where Paul says in essence, "I get it. I get in the way of God's great power being delivered to me and through me when I operate in my own strength. God is binding me to a concept that through my weakness, and my dependence on Him, His power is perfected in my life!" When this was done, he then had a complete picture, and all the religious fundamentals that seemed so incomplete before then came together for him. When he got his faith grip right, the other fundamentals fell in place.

 

Although the Apostle Paul was a unique man and had a unique experience, the basic fundamental of our faith grip is the same as his.   The hardest part for us to understand is how our weakness and dependence on God's grace works for the good because we have been raised to think otherwise. Just like a new golfer who grips his club too hard by thinking that he will have more power and control, likewise is our grip on life as we try to get things done "correctly." We actually hurt our ability to do things "correctly" by doing it this way. Just as fear and our attempt to control the outcome of a shot will destroy a good swing in golf, so it is with life. Our fear and our attempts to control the outcome of our life, destroy our joy, peace and spiritual growth. We must loosen our grip on these things, so that God can grip them for us, and then, we will live a life that He can bless.

 

Personal Abandonment of ourselves and Absolute Trust in Christ always require of us a step in faith. But this step is always rewarded, as we begin a life that will eventually lead to fulfillment, joy and great power from God being delivered to us. As with Paul, it is the beginning step in a journey with Christ that will go with us into eternity. It all begins with the faith grip, which makes everything else make sense. Listen to Paul's words as he tells us what he thinks about his new faith grip: 

 

Ok guys. Let's loosen our grip so that Christ's power will rest on us. That's the kind of grip that will keep our life under His control.

 

In His grip,

 

Rocky

TO DOWNLOAD A COPY OF THIS DEVOTIONAL, CLICK HERE

 

Embracing our Sacred Responsibility with Christ

                                                                                                                          

When the Holy Spirit whispers His invitation to us, "Go with ME", He also whispers...."with personal abandonment of yourself, and absolute trust in ME." In essence, He tells us to strip off the old man, and leave him behind. Why is this?

 

The old man is self-centered and fear driven, for it is the basic nature of man to be this way. Although we men do not want to admit that at our core resides a spirit of fear, this becomes evident in our thinking and actions. It is fear that makes us create walls of defenses for dealing with people and circumstances. Do a little introspection and look at the number of decisions you make that are driven by your need to build a wall against your fear of failure, fear of vulnerability, fear of being duped and fear that comes in many other forms.   This core fear debilitates spiritual growth and peace of mind. It will really hold us back in our spiritual journey to becoming the Champion God wants to make of us. Furthermore, our man-made defenses will do little to dispel the fear that resides within us. 

 

By leaving this old man behind, as a result of responding to Christ' invitation to Go With Him, God is able to begin the process in us of recreating a new man..... a better one. The new man Christ recreates is a man He can pour His own life through, without tainting the Living Water that begins to flow in him. This will be a man after God's own heart, a new man who rises from the one that was abandoned and left behind. It is the work of the Holy Spirit to disciple God's man into this kind of man. It starts with a deep conviction within us that suspects something is not right in our walk with Christ, that there is more to the Christian life than we’re experiencing. It then becomes a holy discontentment within us to seek and find an answer. The answer will always point to our need to leave the old man behind and become the new one Christ will make of us, if we will follow Him. If you have begun this pilgrimage, or now realize it is the next step in your Christian walk you need to take, there will be a necessary discipleship process God will use to make of you this new man. Do not be surprised, and certainly, do not be discouraged, when the process begins. Remember, it is only part of your training regiment, as your Heavenly Coach uses this process to make a man after His own heart. This "process" I speak of is Refinement Through Waiting.

 

The transformational process needed to become God's Champion is very difficult because it is thorough. To be thorough, God uses long periods of waiting time for God to act on a prayer for a certain need or situation, which is a process most of us do not want to endure. The “refinement through waiting” process also has many applications, from finances to health. In all cases, we must suffer through some delay when an immediate intervention is thought to be required. When we get into the darkest hours of our waiting, we often cry out "Why Lord?" and only hear the echo of our question bounce off the walls of our room. To be sure, Refinement Through Waiting is the most transforming process we will ever face. But when it is over, a new man will emerge from the purifying furnace, a man forged into God's Champion.

 

Concerning the waiting process, there is no greater test within it than waiting on God to defend us than when people, inspired by evil, whisper their lies with the intention to hurt us. Often this act is delivered through personal betrayal. King David went through just such an ordeal, as we read about it in his life story. He also gave us insight into the way he got through it, in the passage I have referenced in this devotional.  Look at how he processed it:

 

I've heard it said that it's OK to talk to ourselves. But we better get a little worried when we answer our own questions. However, this is not always true, for we see David doing it in the passage referenced. David is agonizing with the lies and deceit of people around him whose intention it is to undermine him. If it were not true, he could be seen as being a little paranoid. But the truth is that his life as king consistently saw this kind of opposition. Now, keep in mind, David was a warrior. So, we know he was fully capable of facing a foe in battle and physically dispatching his opposition. However, in the realm of politics and dealing with schemers around him, he was out of his element. I know the feeling. Being raised to be a man of my word and to play by the rules, I have had my greatest battles, not on the gridiron facing an angry behemoth in front of me, but rather, in being instructed by God to refrain from defending myself against the betrayal and deceit of another person. This was one of the most agonizing periods of my life, for not only was I denied the pleasure of taking revenge on this guy, but I also had to allow him to continue for a period of time to expand his deceit. There was no debating it. God made it very clear to me that I must obey Him and allow Him to work in His own time and way to both defend me and reveal what the man had done. It was in my own lonely hours of Refinement Through Waiting that I did as David did. Like David, I talked to myself and gave these words of assurance to my soul:

 

 

I can say truthfully that the schemes and the schemer were eventually found out. God did defend me and cleared my name. But far greater to me was the benefit that came from it, as God forged me in His furnace of waiting and recreated a man He wanted to reform. I am so glad He did.

 

If you find yourself in the furnace of waiting on the Lord, don't be discouraged if the delay seems too long. Be encouraged that God is working in your life, and when the process is over, His Champion will emerge. Therefore, wait patiently and expectantly for God to act. He hears your prayers, and there is a work He is doing that you do not see going on behind the scenes. Find rest my brothers, for He is your fortress, and you will not be shaken.

 

Rocky

TO DOWNLOAD A COPY OF THIS DEVOTIONAL, CLICK HERE

 

Embracing our Sacred Responsibility with Christ

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I just wanted to drop you short note and say I am home from the hospital and doing remarkably well. I owe this to the barrage of prayers given on my behalf and a loving God Who responded. I am a very blessed man to have the friends and family that I do. I will have several weeks of physical therapy before being released. I intend to use the time wisely as I have many books I want to get caught up on. Please thank all our friends for their support.

 

Embracing our Sacred Responsibility with Christ

                                                                                                                          

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

For those of you familiar with the "Lord's Prayer," you know the Matthew 6:12 verse above is part of it. I first learned the Lord's Prayer in the King James version. Trespasses was used instead of debts. Living in Mississippi as a child, I saw a lot of signs that said, "No Trespassing," as farmers wanted to protect their property. In fact, the neighbor near our house had one that could be clearly seen. So, I kinda thought the Lord was talking about those times I trespassed on the neighbor's land to steal some of his plums. As a child, I grasped pretty quickly that the Lord knew I stole those plums, and I needed His forgiveness for it. I had climbed the fence, crawled on my belly to a big plum tre, and helped myself to the forbidden fruit. It was clear I did something wrong. What I couldn't understand was why I needed to forgive my neighbor his trespasses against me. We had no plums to steal, we didn't have a "No Trespassing" sign posted, and we didn't even have a fence. But for the sake of being obedient, I forgave the neighbor for stealing the plums we didn't have, on the land without a "No Trespassing" sign posted on it. And just in case he caught me stealing his plums again, I could tell him I had forgiven him, as if he had done it to me. Sounds like some perverted theology doesn't it? Also, it sounds like I was skewing the theology to meet my own needs, doesn't it? Well, I was a child, so I get a free pass on my thinking. But even when older, I still tried to make this verse say what I wanted it to say. For example:

 

Later in life, I began reading the NIV translation of the Bible. This is when I read the words "forgive us our debts", instead of “forgive us our trespasses.” The new description really spoke to me. You see, I was a man in his 20s, married, with a child. Like many young couples who started out, we had no assets or savings to buy necessary household things, requiring me to use the only thing I had as collateral for buying these things, which was debt and my future ability to earn money. And like many couples, it got out of hand and became a burden to cash flow our debt for the cars, the house, the furniture and the boat. This is when I saw the passage, "forgive us our debts" as a quick way out of the burden. Of course, I was looking for a rapid bail-out by the Lord. I later learned that He builds in us a lot of faith and character by helping us dig out of our mistakes over a long period of time rather than with a quick remedy. By viewing it the way I did, I maintained the same self-serving perversion of the true meaning of Matthew 6:12 that I had as a child.   Ever caught yourself trying to make God serve you, rather than you serve Him? Ever tried to make a verse support your point of view, even though, in truth, your position is in opposition to what God's word is really saying? You would be surprised how easy it is to do, especially if it is all about "me" rather than God.

 

Financial debt is a hard thing to carry for a long period of time, especially if the interest compounds, making the original debt grow way beyond the amount borrowed. It can become financial bondage, and it can destroy our happiness and quality of life. Most of us know this from personal experience or by the experience of others. However, spiritual debt can be much more damaging than financial debt. Spiritual debt can eat us up inside out, and unless it is dealt with completely, this kind of debt will compound in such a way it will make us detestable and without peace. It can also deeply wound the people we love, and hinder our fellowship with Christ. It was when I began to understand that Matthew 6:12 was speaking of spiritual debt, that I came to understand how important this passage was. This verse is directing us how to have the burden of spiritual bondage lifted from our life, to find the blessed life God wants for us.

 

There are two components in spiritual debt. First is the sum of our offensesagainst God, and second is the sum of other people's offenses against us. Retaining either will bankrupt us spiritually. I use the word "sum" to describe the compounding effect of unforgiven sin, and our unforgiveness of an offense against us, especially in the way we view those people who have hurt us. The longer we hold our forgiveness from people who have hurt us, the greater their offense grows in our mind. In our mind, their debt to us compounds and grows, even to the point they can do nothing that would pay off their debt to us. And like most debt collectors, we often become ruthless in our dealings with those in debt to us, and we can be super critical in our view of them. It can come to the point where this person can do no right, and the original offense against us is only the tip of the iceberg with how bad he or she really is --- in our mind.

Jesus made it quite clear how important it is to Him that we extend debt cancellation to others who "owe us." He connected our motivation to do this with the debt we have been forgiven by Him. Why is it so important to Jesus? It is important to Him, for we are important to Him. He knows how our life will be ruined if we allow the poison of unforgiveness to live and grow in our life. He knows how it will destroy the most important thing He can have with His child, which is unhindered fellowship with us. He also knows Satan will exploit unforgiveness that we retain, and it will allow access for him into other areas of our life, thus "compounding" the effect of our debt to the Father even further. If we retain the debt that others owe us by not forgiving them, we also retain our debt to God for the sins we have committed against Him. Because of this, we will not be able to grow spiritual equity, for the compounding of our debt will demand an interest payment of our joy, wisdom and spiritual maturity. What a price we pay when we hold back our forgiveness of others. It is just too big of a price to pay. Nothing is worth giving up the blessings God wants for us by doing this.

 

Here's the good news: God is always willing and ready to forgive us the sum total of our debt to Him, if we seek it. Because His grace, by the atonement through Jesus Christ, has brought us into His family, He has completely demolished the separation from Him that would have led to our spiritual death. That is a done deal for those who have received Christ. But I am not speaking on the issue of our forgiveness that leads to salvation.   Rather, I speak about spiritual debt that breaks our fellowship with God and the ongoing responsibility we have as His children to get rid of it. Our King is a God of mercy, grace and love, and He is willing to forgive all wrongs, even our unforgiveness of others. But He also wants us to reflect His heart and values to the people who have hurt us, by forgiving them as He does --- completely. The good news is we can be forgiven our debt that breaks our fellowship with Him, when we forgive the debt others owe us. Believe me when I tell you that this is the best deal we will ever have, for our debt to Him is far greater than any debt owed to us by another person, no matter what it might be.

 

Do not argue or debate the facts as I have presented them. Anyone who knows the teachings of Christ, knows what has been presented is true doctrine. Research it for yourself, if you doubt this. If you agree with me, then move without haste to the place where you hand over your forgiveness of another person to God. Yes, giving your forgiveness to another person is actually a gift to God, and this is a holy place for you to go, a place of "Living Sacrifice." This is an act of worship, and is something that will bring great delight to the Lover of your soul. Therefore, go to this place right now and do that which you know you should do.

 

Forgiven ,

 

Rocky

TO DOWNLOAD A COPY OF THIS DEVOTIONAL

 

Embracing our Sacred Responsibility with Christ