SPIRITUAL TEMPERATURE

"The Love of many will grow cold..."

I would like to challenge you today to take your spiritual temperature.  Jesus warned His disciples that in the last days, times would be difficult.  Much like our day!  Natural disasters, wars and rumors of wars, famines and earthquakes, not to mention political disaster everywhere! In our Christian nation it is becoming less and less popular to actually BE a Christian!  We are in the times when many are turning away from the faith.  Jesus said in Matthew 24: 12-13, "Because of the increase of wickedness, the love of most will grow cold, but he who stands firm to the end will be saved."

In our nation we are seeing an increase in immorality, shamelessness, rebellion against God and throwing off of moral restraint.  If you try to speak into people's lives they call you old fashion and not hip with the times.  They call us intolerant and mean spirited. The problem is there are many Christians who name the name of Jesus, but don't actually know Him or love Him.  This "knowing" Him means to experience His Presence in such a way that everything changes.  We should be those who have a passion to read the Word, to devour it and to spend time with Jesus.  Then we will be filled with Him and His love will flow from us to others!

 In the Old Testament God told Moses to teach the priests to keep the fire burning on the altar continuously.  Leviticus 6: 12-13, "The fire on the altar must be kept burning; it must not go out.  Every morning the priest is to add firewood and arrange the burnt offering on the fire...The fire must be kept burning on the altar continuously; it must not go out."  In 1 Peter 2:9 we are told that we are the "royal priesthood" now! The altar of His Presence is found within our hearts.  It is in our hearts where we have communion with Him and know Him!  So every morning I must get up and put fire on the altar!  I have to keep the flame burning within my heart, keep my passion for God vibrant and burning!  Proverbs 4: 23 tells us that above everything else in this world we must guard our hearts!  In my heart is everything that determines how I will live my life!

 How do I do that?  

 By spending time with Him.  It can't be said enough!  Only I can keep the fire burning in my heart!  I must fuel the fire, by worship and prayer, by reading His word, by communion with Him, by yielding myself to His will and His ways.  The only thing that can separate me from the love God has for me is MYSELF!  If I refuse to fuel the fire every day and keep my passion for Him alive, then my heart's love for Him WILL grow cold.  Jesus told the church in Laodicea that they were neither hot or cold and he wished they would be one or the other.  Because they were lukewarm he was ready to spit them out of his mouth.  Ouch!

 Time for a reality check!  What is the temperature of your heart today? 



Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

WHAT COMES OUT OF YOUR MOUTH?

Have you ever really listened to yourself in the course of a day? Do you see the glass as half empty or half full? Do you build others up or tear them down? Do you believe that there is power in the words that come of your mouth? Proverbs 18: 21 says "The tongue has the power of life and death, and those who love it will eat its fruit."  If I have to eat the words that I speak, I want them to be sweet and full of good things!  There is a lot of responsibility that is handed over to us by our Heavenly Father.  He left us in charge of this earth!  We are supposed to take dominion and rule.  Unfortunately, most of can't even rule our own lives.  James says in chapter 3 verses 5-10..."Likewise, the tongue is a small part of the body, but it makes great boasts. Consider what a great forest is set on fire by a small spark. The tongue also is a fire, a world of evil among the parts of the body. It corrupts the whole body, sets the whole course of one’s life on fire
Read more

WARRING BRIDE

Image
The picture of a warring bride! Beautifully dressed with her sword in hand.   This is how each of us should look in our daily life!   Seriously.   We are the Bride of Christ and we are making preparations within ourselves to be worthy to walk beside Him. Revelation 19: 7-8 says " Let us be glad and rejoice, and let us give honor to him.  For the time has come for the wedding feast of the Lamb, and his bride has prepared herself.  She has been given the finest of pure white linen to wear.” For the fine linen represents the good deeds of God’s holy people."    Another way we prepare ourselves to walk at His side is to..." Put on all of God’s armor so that you will be able to stand firm against all strategies of the devil. For we are not fighting against flesh-and-blood enemies, but against evil rulers and authorities of the unseen world, against mighty powers in this dark world, and against evil spirits in the heavenly places. Therefore, put on every piece of G
Read more

SHEPHERD'S STAFF

Image
      I have a staff in my office that I bought several years ago at a Jewish Festival. It has a lion's head on the top and for a long time it just sat in my office.  One Sunday morning, when I was in charge of the service, I was deeply offended by something that happened before service. I had to get up and preach.  I knew that I could not go out and preach if I didn't let this go and have a clear conscience before God.  I had about a half hour before service was to begin to talk to God about what I was feeling.  I saw that staff sitting there and I grabbed it and began to write the names of God on it.  All the names of who God was for me.  It brought me comfort and reminded me of how good He was to me, of how much He loved me.  That staff still sits in my office and reminds me of who God is for me. Recently I heard that a shepherd's staff was indeed a place where a shepherd would record his history with God.  In fact, the shepherd David, carried a staff.  Imagine fo
Read more