The Rewards of Holiness by C. Spurgeon

"All the days of his separation shall he eat nothing that is made of the vine tree, from the kernels even to the husk." / Numbers 6:4

Nazarites had taken, among other vows, one which debarred them from the use of wine. In order that they might not violate the obligation, they were forbidden to drink the vinegar of wine or strong liquors, and to make the rule still more clear, they were not to touch the unfermented juice of grapes, nor even to eat the fruit either fresh or dried. In order, altogether, to secure the integrity of the vow, they were not even allowed anything that had to do with the vine; they were, in fact, to avoid the appearance of evil. Surely this is a lesson to the Lord's separated ones, teaching them to come away from sin in every form, to avoid not merely its grosser shapes, but even its spirit and
similitude. Strict walking is much despised in these days, but rest assured, dear reader, it is both the safest and the happiest. He who yields a point or two to the world is in fearful peril; he who eats the grapes of Sodom will soon drink the wine of Gomorrah. A little crevice in the sea-bank in Holland lets in the sea, and the gap speedily swells till a province is drowned.  Worldly conformity, in any degree, is a snare to the soul, and makes it more and more liable to presumptuous sins. Moreover, as the Nazarite who drank grape juice could not be quite sure whether it might not have endured a degree of fermentation, and consequently could not be clear in heart that his vow was intact, so the yielding, temporizing Christian cannot wear a conscience void of offense, but must feel that the inward monitor is in doubt of him. Things doubtful we need not doubt about; they are wrong to us. Things tempting we must not dally with, but flee from them with speed. Better be sneered at as a Puritan than be despised as a hypocrite. Careful walking may involve much self-denial, but it has pleasures of its own which are more than a sufficient recompense. 

Let us continually pursue holiness without which no man shall see God. (Heb. 12:14)

He Will Never Let You Go by Max Lucado

The Lord said to [Hosea] again, "Go, show your love to a woman loved by someone else, who has been unfaithful to you." – Hosea 3:1

God will not let you go. He has handcuffed himself to you in love. And he owns the only key. You need not win his love. You already have it. And since you can't win it, you can't lose it.

As evidence, consider exhibit A: the stubborn love of Hosea for Gomer. Contrary to the name, Gomer was a female, an irascible woman married to a remarkable Hosea. She had the fidelity code of a prairie jackrabbit, flirting and hopping from one lover to another. She ruined her life and shattered Hosea's heart. Destitute, she was placed for sale in a slave market. Guess who stepped forward to buy her? Hosea, who'd never removed his wedding band. The way he treated her you would have thought she'd never loved another man. God uses this story, indeed orchestrated this drama, to illustrate his steadfast love for his fickle people.

Then God ordered [Hosea], "Start all over: Love your wife again, your wife who's in bed with her latest boyfriend, your cheating wife. Love her the way I, God, love the Israelite people, even as they flirt and party with every god that takes their fancy." (Hosea 3:1 MSG)

This is the love described in John 3:16. Hasaq is replaced with the Greek term agape, but the meaning is equally powerful. "God so [agapao] the world ... "

Agape love. Less an affection, more a decision; less a feeling, more an action. As one linguist describes, "[Agape love is] an exercise of the Divine will in deliberate choice, made without assignable cause save that which lies in the nature of God Himself."

Stated more simply: junkyard wrecks and showroom models share equal space in God's garage.

A Wonderful Dedication Celebration! August 25, 2013

Special thanks to all who made today's Dedication and Celebration service possible. To God be the glory for great things He has done!!!

Saved to Worship by A.W. Tozer

Give to the Lord the glory due His name; bring an offering, and come before Him. Oh, worship the Lord in the beauty of holiness!—1 Chronicles 16:29 

 There is nothing intrinsically wrong with signing a card when people come to Christ. It can be a helpful thing so we know who has made inquiry.

But really, my brother or sister, we are brought to God and to faith and to salvation that we might worship and adore Him. We do not come to God that we might be automatic Christians, cookie-cutter Christians, Christians stamped out with a die.

God has provided His salvation that we might be, individually and personally,vibrant children of God, loving God with all our hearts and worshiping Him in the beauty of holiness. 

"Lord, I don't need another name in my file, another notch on my belt. But I would like the privilege today of bringing someone to the point of salvation so he could become a genuine worshiper of You. Use me today, I pray, in Jesus'name. Amen." 

A Healthy Regret by Max Lucado

There is an old story about the time Emperor Frederick the Great visited Potsdam Prison. He spoke with the prisoners, and each man claimed to be innocent, a victim of the system. One man, however, sat silently in the corner. The ruler asked him, "And you, sir, who do you blame for your sentence?" His response was, "Your majesty, I am guilty and richly deserve my punishment." Surprised, the emperor shouted for the prison warden: "Come and get this man out of here before he corrupts all these innocent people." The ruler can set us free once we admit we are wrong. We do ourselves no favors in justifying our deeds or glossing over our sins. When my daughter Andrea was five or six, she got a splinter in her finger. I took her to the restroom and set out some tweezers, ointment, and a Band-Aid. She didn't like what she saw. "I just want the Band-Aid, Daddy" Sometimes we are just like Andrea. We come to Christ with our sin, but all we want is a covering. We want to skip the treatment. We want to hide our sin. And one wonders if God, even in his great mercy, will heal what we conceal. "If we say we have no sin, we are fooling ourselves, and the truth is not in us. But if we confess our sins, he will forgive our sins, because we can trust God to do what is right" (1 John 1:8–9). Going to God is not going to Santa Claus. A child sits on the chubby lap of Ol' Saint Nick, and Santa pinches the youngster's cheek and asks, "Have you been a good little girl?" "Yes," she giggles. Then she tells him what she wants and down she bounds. It's a game. It's childish. No one takes Santa's question seriously. That may work in a department store, but it won't work with God. How can God heal what we deny? How can God touch what we cover up? How can we have communion while we keep secrets? How can God grant us pardon when we won't admit our guilt? Ahh, there's that word: guilt. Isn't that what we avoid? Guilt. Isn't that what we detest? But is guilt so bad? What does guilt imply if not that we know right from wrong, that we aspire to be better than we are, that we know there is a high country and we are in the low country. That's what guilt is: a healthy regret for telling God one thing and doing another. Guilt is the nerve ending of the heart. It yanks us back when we are too near the fire. Godly sorrow "makes people change their hearts and lives. This leads to salvation, and you cannot be sorry for that" (2 Cor. 7:10). To feel guilt is no tragedy; to feel no guilt is.

Transformational Worship

By Pastor Chad A. Stafford

       

 In Worship and Witness by David Wheeler and Vernon Whaley, they state that worship is transformational. [1] They argue that “God uses our obedience, repentance, spiritual growth, and relationship with Him to transform us.” [2]  They say further that “one way we experience transformation is through obedience to the Holy Spirit’s direction.” [3]  I too believe that God transforms the worshiper through obedience. King David equated obedience as the highest form of worship. “When our hearts remain attentive to the Spirit’s transformational work, we can experience transformational worship and display the Spirit’s work to the world.” [4] A great example of this can be found in Acts 1 and 2 at Pentecost when the disciples’ tarried in Jerusalem for the fulfilled promise.  Their obedience to the command of Christ was an act of worship that placed them in a position to receive the promise of the Spirit’s power. 

“Sin robs us of our ability to be Great Commission worshippers.” [5] The Bible teaches that sin is enmity to God and thus separates us from Him.  The word enmity literally means to be hostile or opposed to God.  Living a life that is hostile to God is obviously incongruous and antithetical to a life of loving worship and devoted obedience.  It simply is not possible to please God with a divided heart.  Our sin must first be dealt with if we want to commune with our God who is holy. Think Isaiah in Isaiah chapter 6.  Our sin must be remitted or taken away as Isaiah’s was. [6] This happens when our spiritual eyes are opened to behold His glorious splendor and we recognize His true holiness in light of our sinful depravity.  Once we have been enlightened by the Truth, conviction comes to us by the Holy Spirit and we are given an opportunity to repent and be set free.  Repentance involves a change of mind AND direction which leads to life transformation, or transformational worship as the authors’ call it.  In Isaiah 6, God initiates Isaiah’s vision, cleansing, pardon, and calling – and so it is with us.  God initiates the redemptive act and we are saved by grace as we respond in faith, confession, and repentance.  God always takes the initiative in restoring the broken relationship between God and man.  Our humble acknowledgment and repentance from sin leads to transformation and readiness for service.

The authors’ describe spiritual growth as a result of transformational worship.  Just as a flower naturally grows from a seed in the ground or a baby eventually grows to become a toddler, a child, a teenager, and eventually a full grown adult, spiritual growth naturally occurs over time in the life of the healthy believer who is walking with God in obedience to his Word. So, if you are struggling with obedience - don't give up.  He who began a good work in you is faithful to complete it, but you also must cooperate with that work of obedience by renouncing sin in your life. This turning from sin and obedience to God’s Word leads to spiritual growth AND transformational worship!  David said in Psalm 1 that the righteous ones who meditate upon God’s Word day and night would be like trees planted by living waters that never stop bearing fruit in its season and whose leaf does not wither.  Jesus also said in John 15 that as we abide in Him multiplication will naturally occur.  Jesus calls us to not only to bear fruit but to bear much fruit.  However, apart from Him we can do nothing!  Therefore, I would argue that Christ-connectedness and dependency upon Him is the key to personal spiritual growth and transformational worship. 

In other words, we need to see transformational worship and spiritual growth as the natural and eventual outflow of a healthy and abiding relationship with Christ. The authors correctly argue in Worship and Witness that God “greatly desires an active and personal relationship with His children.” [7] How did God demonstrate this to us?  By giving His only Son to die in our place while we were still in our sins. [8] What further proof do we need to be convinced of God's love and desire for a restored relationship with mankind?  In John 15 we see that our connection to Christ involves intimacy, communion with, and dependency upon Christ.  Jesus said in verse 4, “Remain in me, as I also remain in you. No branch can bear fruit by itself; it must remain in the vine. Neither can you bear fruit unless you remain in me.” [9] 

Finally, we were created for relationship with God AND others which is why Jesus said, “Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. This is the first and greatest commandment. And the second is like it: Love your neighbor as yourself. All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments.” [10] God desires a love relationship with his children.  In Christ, we are no longer strangers but sons and daughters of our Abba Father.  Living in an intimate love relationship with Jesus Christ wipes away all fear. Fear involves punishment but we have been made friends of God brought near by the blood of Christ.  We have access through Christ to the God who is love and perfect love casts out all fear.  The authors relate our relationship with God to a marriage relationship where a man and woman dedicate themselves to loving and knowing one another intimately.  Building a love relationship takes time, even with our Heavenly Father.  We come to know Him better as we abide in close relationship with Christ who is the image of God.  This is a relationship where love, devotion, communication, and trust can flourish because it is built upon mutual affection, trust, and commitment. As stated earlier, God uses our obedience, repentance, spiritual growth, and relationship with Him to transform us.  Like the metamorphosis of a caterpillar to a butterfly we too are transformed and conformed to the image of Christ through intimate relationship with Him which is the highest purpose of transformational worship. Let us daily aspire to this abiding relationship so that we may experience His transforming power in our own lives!

Mega transformational blessings to you in Christ!!

[1] David Wheeler & Vernon M. Whaley, Worship and Witness: Becoming a Great Commission Worshiper, (Nashville, TN: Lifeway Publishing, 2012), page 38.

[2] Ibid., 61.

[3] Ibid., 41.

[4] Ibid., 40.

[5] Ibid., 45.

[6] Ibid., 42-43.

[7] Ibid., 56.

[8] John 3:16 & Romans 5:8

[9] John 15:4

[10] Matthew 22:37-40

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