Diagnosing and Curing Itchy Ear

4 Comments / November 1, 2023

2 Timothy is the final book that Paul wrote before being executed under the evil rule of Nero. It is full of practical wisdom and much exhortation for Timothy and for any believer who would read it throughout the ages. In chapter three Paul describes what the last days would look like. This description was not about what we would see in the world but about what would take place within the professing church.

As he moves to chapter four, he continues to let us know what would be the natural response of those he is describing in chapter three:

For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine, but according to their own desires, because they have itching ears, they will heap up for themselves teachers; 4 and they will turn their ears away from the truth, and be turned aside to fables. (2 Timothy 4:3)

When true believers come to this passage we often shake our heads in agreement and feel deep sadness at all of “those” people who are doing this very thing. We see them everywhere.

But today I’d like to take a bit of a different turn and think through this verse with a different lens.

Have you ever talked with someone about something and came away thinking, “they are so blind!” This might be a godly person who really wants to live for the Lord. But, for some reason, they can’t see their own sinfulness in a certain area or the truth about a false teacher or some other truth that is clear. Could this be because they have a slight case of itchy ear?

According to 2 Timothy 4, verse 3, there are a few ways we can diagnose itchy ear. Let’s look at them now–

1. We won’t endure sound doctrine. If we aren’t willing to endure sound doctrine in any particular area, then we probably have at least a slight case of itchy ear. What exactly is sound doctrine? In this context, it is the pure teaching of the Word. If we aren’t willing to submit and obey the Word in all areas, it will lead to a definite case of itchy ear.

But this is not always as cut and dried as we’d like to believe. Many of us will gladly obey most of the Bible. But when we get to a part that convicts us of entertainment, the lifestyle of anxiety or worry that has become our normal, or of giving up that long-held grudge and forgiving someone who deeply hurt us…well, that’s just too much to ask. And so we won’t endure that particular “sound doctrine”. This is a sure sign of itchy ear.

2. We only want to hear things that match our own desires. And so if someone brings something to our attention that we don’t care for–perhaps about a false teacher we love or a sin that is firmly entrenched in our lives– we will respond in one of two ways. We will get very defensive and maybe even a bit angry. Or we will just ignore it and go on with life. However we respond, we certainly won’t honestly examine our lives in regard to what is being said. Because we will choose not to hear what goes against our desires.

3. We will only like positive, uplifting teachers. If someone dares to call out sin, worldliness, or a false teacher (by name) we get all up in arms, declaring them to be negative, judgmental, and all sorts of other awful accusations. How dare they?!? And we conclude they must be the most unloving and unkind person we know.

4. We will turn away from truth and turn towards fables. The Shack is a rather old book by now but it is the perfect example of this very thing. This book (and its subsequent movie) presented a fable about God. It was not truth, according to scripture. And, yet, because so many loved the god that William Paul Young presented in his book, they turned away from the true God (as described in scripture) and embraced this false god. They turned away from truth and turned towards a fable. This is just one example. There are countless others and countless more to come. Satan loves to fool Christians. And he does it in such a way that it looks so good and so…right.

Do you have itchy ear? Even a slight case? Perhaps we all do to some extent. We don’t like to hear what is uncomfortable and demands change, do we? Change is hard and ingrained habits are hard to break. Teachers are much loved and the loyalty runs deep. Following hard after truth is not for the fainthearted and weak. And, yet, God can turn a fainthearted and weak person into someone willing to stand courageously in His strength, through the power of the Holy Spirit. But how?

How do we cure our case of itchy ear? How do we become someone who is willing to endure sound doctrine, willing to turn from our own desires in humble submission to God’s desires, willing to hear both the positive and the negative as we listen to teachers, and willing to turn toward truth and away from fables? How can we be sure to be the kind of listener that benefits our spiritual walk and blesses a biblical teacher?

There are a few things we can do. It’s rather simple really. But we can’t miss a step.

First, we must pray and read the Word. Let’s bring a humble spirit before the Lord, asking Him to show us the truth and to help us be willing to change. And then let’s read and study the Word with perseverance and diligence, so that we can know our God and what He desires.

Second, we must be willing to examine ourselves in light of the Word. Many of us live in a superficial way because we are unwilling to do this. And, I must admit, it is much easier to just live day to day as we endeavor to complete our to-do lists and take care of the many things calling our names. But, without taking the time to examine ourselves, we are opening ourselves up to a severe case of itchy ear, for it will sneak up on us when we least expect it.

Third, we must be willing to turn from our feelings. For many of us (myself included) the temptation is strong to let our feelings drive our lives. And so we don’t read our Bibles because we don’t feel like it. Or we turn on the TV and waste hours of time because we don’t feel like doing anything else. We don’t feel like reading hard books that help us grow but we feel like reading easy novels that fill our mind with fluff (at best) or trash (at worst). We make choices about going to church (oh, it was such a late night, let’s skip), we make choices about music (oh, this has such a catchy tune), we make choices about our children’s entertainment (but I don’t want to upset my child and take this way from her because then she might be mad at me) all based solely on how they make us feel. This will almost always lead to itchy ear.

With God’s help, we must move from making decisions based on feelings to making decisions based on what will please God. For a genuine believer that wants to live out their faith, no decision escapes this examination. Am I choosing this because of how it will make me feel or am I choosing it because I want to please the Lord? (I am convicting myself here!)

Fourth, we must be willing to listen to biblical teachers that will preach the whole word of God instead of those who just give us the positive, uplifting messages that make us feel good.

If we do these things, then we will cure our case of itchy ear, whether it be a severe case or just the slightest case. I don’t know about you, but I don’t want to be walking around with itchy ear, spiritually sick and weakened, when God has made a way for us to live out a radiant, vibrant faith as we journey through this darkened world!

But What About My Dreams?

2 Comments / October 24, 2023

We all have dreams and aspirations for this life. For some, they are BIG dreams of wealth and power or to travel the world. For others, the dreams may be simpler, such as to be married or to be a parent or to own a house. As we get older, we begin to recognize that we need to say good-bye to some of our dreams, as they just aren’t going to happen. Some of us find this out when we are young.

Does God care about our dreams, our desires, and the longings of our hearts?

We know He does because He cares for us. And, in fact, Psalm 37 tells us He will give us the desires of our hearts. So is there a condition for this promise?

There certainly is. But before we look at what that condition is, I want to share the story of a man by the name of Samuel Pearce.

Born in 1766, Samuel was saved at the age of 16. He was soon on fire for the Lord and his heart’s desire immediately was to go on the Mission Field. He made plans to sail to New Zealand for this purpose but those plans fell through. And so he became God’s hard-working and faithful servant right where he was.

However, the dream to go on the mission field never left him. And when he met William Carey (pioneer missionary to India), they became great friends. Soon he was making plans to join Carey in India. It was his heart’s burning desire to join Carey there. Surely, God wouldn’t deny this godly man his dream?

But God said no. And Samuel Pearce never did get to go to India.

Why was this godly man denied such a godly dream? Why wasn’t he able to go to India?

Let’s go back to Psalm 37:4 and read the entire verse–

Delight thyself also in the Lord: and he shall give thee the desires of thine heart.

There is a condition and that is we are to delight ourselves in the Lord. This is the condition to receiving the desires of our hearts. That is because, when we do this, our desires naturally change.

And so, Samuel Pearce chose to delight himself in His Lord and he surrendered his dream to God’s will. There was no bitterness or rancor in his heart. Oh, I am sure he questioned God but He also trusted His heavenly Father to know best and gave even this most holy dream over to God’s Sovereignty.

Samuel Pearce suffered from illness and died by the age of 33, never seeing India or any other part of the world. But He continued to serve God until that day. He never turned from God because he trusted God.

And this leads us back to our own dreams. Is it wrong to have dreams for our lives? Well, not necessarily (more about that later). But we need to surrender any dream or desire we may have to God’s will for our lives. His will may be different than ours and we need to accept that without bitterness and without resentment.

This is easier said than done, isn’t it? But it’s our only path to the peace that God promises. And, in fact, it’s our only path to the fulfillment of all God’s promises. We must surrender to His Sovereign will for our lives.

Oh, as usual, this is so much easier to write than to live out! We get upset at the smallest detour in our mundane plans. Perhaps the best way to prepare our hearts for the loss of our big dreams is to practice submitting to God’s Sovereignty without complaint in the small, everyday things.

And let’s not forget to thank God for those wonderful blessings He gives us and for the dreams we have had that have been fulfilled. He is a God full of lovingkindness and mercies. Psalm 103:1-5 reminds us of this–

Bless the Lord, O my soul;
And all that is within me, bless His holy name!
2 Bless the Lord, O my soul,
And forget not all His benefits:
3 Who forgives all your iniquities,
Who heals all your diseases,
4 Who redeems your life from destruction,
Who crowns you with lovingkindness and tender mercies,
5 Who satisfies your mouth with good things,
So that your youth is renewed like the eagle’s.

So what about my dreams? Is there anything wrong with having a dream for my life? Well, that depends.

If our dreams and aspirations for our lives are completely self-centered and selfish, then…yes. God clearly tells us in His Word that when we are redeemed, our priorities change. We are living for Him and not for ourselves. But if our desires are not born out of our own selfish agenda, then…no. Nothing wrong with these.

But, no matter what it is we long for, we need to surrender this to our heavenly Father, trusting that He knows best and remembering that He loves us more than we can even imagine!

For the Lord God is a sun and shield;
The Lord will give grace and glory;
No good thing will He withhold
From those who walk uprightly. 

O Lord of hosts,
Blessed is the man who trusts in You! (Psalm 84:11-12)

You can be encouraged by the life of Samuel Pearce and also by the lives of others godly Christians in the book Sound of Trumpets by Faith Cook. I highly recommend it.

It’s Simple Really

4 Comments / October 18, 2023

This morning as I studied my Bible, I got to thinking about something I heard yesterday in a sermon. Basically the thought was that false doctrines and teachings arise out of our lusts (for sin and for the world). This struck me profoundly.

The Bible’s message is actually pretty easy to understand. Sure, there are a few areas that are hard and we can’t really “get”. But, generally, it’s actually pretty understandable. The Bible clearly shows that we are lost sinners without hope and that salvation comes by faith in Christ alone through grace alone. There are NO works we can do to merit favor with God. It also clearly shows the terrible eternal destiny of those who reject Christ. Our call, as genuine believers, to please God, to turn from sin and worldly lusts and passions, to deny ourselves, to die to self, to call out false teachers, to expect persecution and antagonism for following the truth, and to turn from man’s vain philosophies (such as so-called “science”)… all these things are very plainly expressed.

So what is the problem?

The problem is that we want to “feed our flesh”. Oh, that awful flesh. It gets us into so much trouble. The old man wars with our new man and we can so easily lay our weapons down and stop fighting (i.e. rationalize and excuse our sin and worldliness away) if we but take a few verses out of context here or twist a verse or two there. And that’s how false doctrine is born.

As those who want to sincerely follow Christ, we must pray and ask God to open our eyes where we may be blind. We must ask Him to help us to follow the truth no matter the cost. This is a frightening prayer, isn’t it? And, yet, to be caught up in deception has far, far worse consequences than knowing the truth.

I was studying 2 Timothy 2 this morning and verses 3 and 4 of that chapter give us some guidance on how following the truth is even possible–

You therefore must endure hardship as a good soldier of Jesus Christ. No one engaged in warfare entangles himself with the affairs of this life, that he may please him who enlisted him as a soldier.

So, according to Paul, here in this chapter, we are to–

Endure hardship.

Remember that we are a soldier and God is our Captain (which means we are in a war!)

Do not entangle ourselves with the affairs of this life.

And there you have it: Three critical ways in which we must follow God’s Word, if we are to keep from being deceived and confused.

This is so much harder to live out than it is to write. The costs of following after God and His Word are very real and can be very painful. They can cost you relationships, material gain, jobs and careers, your beloved church home, and any other number of things.

But we must remember that it is worth it. Oh, so worth it. I am reminded of Paul’s words in another epistle–

But what things were gain to me, these I have counted loss for Christ. Yet indeed I also count all things loss for the excellence of the knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord, for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and count them as rubbish, that I may gain Christ and be found in Him, not having my own righteousness, which is from the law, but that which is through faith in Christ, the righteousness which is from God by faith; that I may know Him and the power of His resurrection, and the fellowship of His sufferings, being conformed to His death, if, by any means, I may attain to the resurrection from the dead. (Philippians 3:7-11)

Paul tells us all is rubbish when compared to the treasure of knowing Christ. May we remember this as we travel in the confusing landscape that makes up modern day Christianity.

Following God is simple really. But it isn’t easy.

Our Plan of Action for the Last Days

6 Comments / October 16, 2023

In 2 Timothy 3 we find out what the world will look like in the last days —

This know also, that in the last days perilous times shall come. 2 For men shall be lovers of their own selves, covetous, boasters, proud, blasphemers, disobedient to parents, unthankful, unholy, 3 Without natural affection, trucebreakers, false accusers, incontinent (meaning: without restraint), fierce, despisers of those that are good, 4 Traitors, heady, highminded, lovers of pleasures more than lovers of God; 5 Having a form of godliness, but denying the power thereof: from such turn away. 6 For of this sort are they which creep into houses, and lead captive silly women laden with sins, led away with divers lusts, 7 Ever learning, and never able to come to the knowledge of the truth. (2 Timothy 3:1-7)

While the world has always been evil, the convergence of last days signs that evidence themselves as we study prophetical passages like this one, has overwhelmingly confirmed that the last days are upon us now. How long they will last, we have no way of knowing, so we can’t make predictions or set dates. But this passage, along with other passages that give descriptions of what the end of this current age will look like, would certainly seem to confirm that they have begun.

This chapter goes on to share some very important information regarding these days, which includes our expectation of persecution as we try to stand against the “form of godliness that denies the power thereof” (otherwise known as fake Christianity).

But at the end of this chapter, Paul gives our plan of action as true believers as we endeavor to stand strong against the tidal wave of wickedness and apostasy–

But continue thou in the things which thou hast learned and hast been assured of, knowing of whom thou hast learned them;15 And that from a child thou hast known the holy scriptures, which are able to make thee wise unto salvation through faith which is in Christ Jesus.16 All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness:17 That the man of God may be perfect, thoroughly furnished unto all good works.

Someone pointed out to me a year or two ago that this verse we are all so familiar with and many of us have memorized: All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness: (verse 16 of 2 Timothy 4) was written specifically after the rest of the chapter. The verse, in its context, gives us our plan of action for such a time as this. Paul shows us what we must cling to as we endure these perilous last days.

In the past few weeks, I’ve been reminded, through a variety of events and conversations, of the danger of loving the world (and fostering our kids’ love for the world) while relegating God’s Word to the background or even to discount it completely. The world is eating Christians alive and, yet, those who call themselves Christians continue to feed on it and follow after worldly passions and dreams. Why is this?

I believe it is because God’s Word is not valued nor are those who call themselves Christians willing to follow the difficult parts that are within its pages.

In many churches and families, the Bible has become an afterthought, at best, and outdated and unnecessary, at worst. Many preachers insert a verse here or there to support their own opinions. Many parents care more about grades and sports than they do about the eternal destiny of their precious children. Throughout all walks of life, people who call themselves Christian live their lives without any love for God’s Holy Word.

This is leaving a generation (or perhaps two or three!) floating in a sea of non-absolutes, setting their hearts on worldly pursuits and passions… and utterly devoid of truth and completely severed from the anchor God has so kindly given us.

We cannot control the choices of others. While we can point people to God’s Word as He gives us opportunity, we cannot change hearts and minds. But we can choose, ourselves, this very day, to follow God’s plan of action and to ground ourselves in His Word. It’s a serious and urgent thing, this grounding ourselves in the Holy Scriptures. We are so susceptible to Satan’s subtle tricks and so vulnerable to worldly lusts without it.

I am so thankful God gave us the Bible and how He specifically reminds us in 2 Timothy 3 that our job is to continue strong in the faith and to remember the importance of His Word as we are blasted on every side with apostasy, deception, and wickedness. And as we do this, we can rest assured that–

But the Lord is faithful, who will establish you and guard you from the evil one. (2 Thessalonians 3:3)

So let’s not be discouraged and anxious but let’s keep ourselves immersed in God’s Word, remembering that it has the answers we need, no matter what challenge, trial, or conundrum we face today.

The Missing Earring

4 Comments / October 10, 2023

I was vacuuming the other day when I spotted something shiny on the carpet. I reached down to pick it up and realized it was a favorite earring. I have a rather bad habit of putting my earrings in the back corner of the fourth or fifth step so that I can grab them on my way upstairs. Up to this point, that had worked just fine.

That is…until Dixie came along. Our Labrador Retriever puppy gets into everything and I had grown a bit lazy with keeping the gate across the steps. I knew right away that she had found them.

But there was only one earring lying there. Where was the other one?

I briefly scanned the floor, the path to the steps, and the steps and then started to panic a bit. Had she eaten it? She must have eaten it!

I made the assumption that somehow (and for some unknown reason) she had eaten my earring. I started thinking about the size of it, trying to discern if we were going to be dealing with a pet emergency. I was also more than a little disappointed to lose a pair of earrings I actually cared about (there aren’t many that I would care about).

As I stood there, my husband came in the house and asked what was wrong. I cried out in dismay that Dixie had eaten one of my favorite earrings. He wisely cautioned me not to panic and to take some more time to look.

So I went back over the path from the steps to where I had found the earring. Nothing there. And then I stood at the steps and really looked at each one. The earring blended in with the carpet, which made it a bit harder to find. My eyes carefully searched each step. Reaching the bottom step, I finally saw the small piece of jewelry winking up at me.

How had I missed it the first time? I realized that it was because I was already assuming that Dixie ate it so I didn’t expect to find it.

I’ve been thinking about how this incident can teach us a variety of lessons regarding discerning the truth in a “Christian” culture filled with lies.

1. Laziness is dangerous. The whole problem with the earrings began because I couldn’t be bothered to shut the gate to the stairs. So many issues begin because we aren’t willing to do a little background work on that author that our best friend recommended or the Instagram account that our sister insists is just great. It’s just easier to go off someone’s recommendation, isn’t it? But we can’t do that anymore. We need to carefully make sure that this person recommended is someone that lines up with scripture. We can’t afford to be lazy.

2. Assumptions are rarely helpful. My assumption that the earring had been eaten kept me from seeing the truth: The earring was still on the steps. Only when I opened my mind to the possibility that I might find it, could my eyes see the actual truth of what really was. Oh, how similar this is to us in real life! Whether we assume someone is a biblical teacher or we assume someone is not a biblical teacher, we cannot fairly make an assessment until we compare something they have said, done, or written to scripture. We need to be open to the possibility that we are wrong in our assumption. It is critically important that God’s Word be our litmus test for ALL things. It is our only certain anchor in the midst of the religious chaos we find ourselves in.

3. We need to pay attention. I could have vacuumed that earring right up. Thankfully, my eye caught the little shiny object before I heard that familiar “clank clank” in the vacuum tube. But so often, in life, we don’t spot that lie before it’s too late. It’s so important that we become familiar with some of the common red flags that signal a false teacher OR a teacher that is moving away from solid biblical doctrine. (I wrote about some of these red flags we can be looking for in this post.)

4. We need to be teachable. When my husband encouraged me to keep looking for the earring, I could have just ignored him or even told him to “stop being so optimistic”, assuring him it was a lost cause. But, instead, in this instance (I don’t always respond like this!), I heard what he said and I followed his advice. I was so glad I did. I think so often when someone tells us something that goes against our assumptions or the thoughts already so firmly embedded in our minds, we just don’t want to hear what they have to say that might not agree with those assumptions and thoughts. BUT what if they are right? What if that person we so dearly love to follow is compromised? We have much so much to gain by at least checking into what they might be saying and so much to lose by not checking. It’s a win win situation. If they are biblical, we have lost nothing but a little time. If they aren’t biblical, we have saved ourselves from imbibing false teaching and straying off the narrow path.

I don’t know if this is helpful. I’ve noticed a real change in the “Christian” culture over the past few years. It seems to me that you are either someone who is already aware of what I wrote above or you are someone who doesn’t see the importance of what I wrote above and do not care. There just do not seem to be many in between anymore.

But, I know that God is still working on the hearts of His children, one by one. And so I hope that this will be an encouragement and blessing to someone out there today.

A Choice Not to Be Made Lightly

1 Comment / October 3, 2023

Can you remember back to your dating years? Did you ever date someone who said with their mouth that they still loved you, but their actions showed something quite different? They said one thing, but their actions contradicted their words. In your heart, you knew this. Even though you’d try to talk yourself into not believing what you knew to be true.

We’ve all heard the saying that “actions speak louder than words”. And this is true. What we believe to be true will be shown by our choices and decisions. Anyone can say anything. Anyone can profess to believe anything. The truth of their words is evidenced by their actions.

If this is true in a human dating relationship, how much more true must this be when we are examining our relationship with God. There are quite a few things scripture says will evidence true faith. Such as loving God and obeying His commands; loving others; loving the Word of God; living in the Spirit and producing good spiritual fruit; and others. None of us will do these perfectly (of course!) but we will be seeking to live this life described in scripture if we have been saved from our sin and are God’s redeemed child.

I’ve been thinking a lot these past few weeks about one very specific evidence the Bible gives of a true believer–

Adulterers and adulteresses! Do you not know that friendship with the world is enmity with God? Whoever therefore wants to be a friend of the world makes himself an enemy of God. (James 4:4)

We do not get to be friends with God AND with the world. We have to choose. And, although we may not have made an intentional choice, our choice is made clear by our actions.

Do I choose God or do I choose the world?

The world, with its glittery temptations and its promise of acclaim and popularity, looks so appealing. Its entertainment; its trends and fads; its philosophies on life (marriage, parenting, careers, wealth, church, etc); its advice and counsel; its theories on the origin of the world or regarding the value of life–all of these things are generally in direct contradiction to God and His Word.

If we love God, we should at least be asking the question, right? Will this choice move me toward God or away from God? Will this prove my friendship with God or will it give evidence that I love the world more?

Because we are one or the other: A friend of God or a friend of the world. Because the Bible says we can’t be both.

The thing is this…

Our flesh loves the world. And so, while it seems cut and dried, it’s just not as cut and dried as we’d like, is it? We struggle with our desires and sometimes we give in to the temptation.

So how do we know that we have chosen God over the world?

I believe it is in the awareness that there is a battle raging to win our hearts to the world and away from God. A genuine believer is aware of this battle and is seeking to be God’s friend rather than the world’s. They want to avoid being God’s enemy at all costs.

It’s because we know that loving the world not only proves we aren’t really God’s but it also functions as poison, hardening our consciences and killing any holiness that is growing in us.

My brother, Pastor Dean Good, gives a helpful analogy (listen to him explain it here). He explains that holiness is like a banana plant. We can’t manufacture it by following instructions. It comes through a life that is being transformed by Jesus Christ. And as that plant grows, we have the opportunity to grow it or to crush it. Worldliness crushes that plant. It pours poison on that tender plant that is growing towards Christ.

So worldliness for the true believer stymies our growth and hinders our holiness. As believers, we really need to be aware of this and be evaluating our lives constantly for how our love for the world is seeping into our lives through all avenues.

But a love for the world can also function as a barometer that we can use to test if we are truly saved. If we say we love God but we are still filled with the love of the world and have no interest in giving up what we love in order to please God, we should rightly examine our hearts.

(Parenthetically…If you are worried about your salvation, I want to encourage you to study your Bible to understand what true Christianity is and to get to know the real Jesus. The fake version with its counterfeit Jesus has led to so many false conversions and given assurance of salvation where there should be none. Jesus will never leave or forsake His own, but it is critical we determine our eternal status based on God’s Word and not on what modern day Christianity is telling us.)

We cannot be friends with the world and with God. We will either love one or the other. It’s not a popular concept these days but the Bible could not possibly make it any clearer.

I am thankful for God’s grace in this area. And I offer much grace to you, my reader, as you seek the Lord in this area of your life. So often, we can see some spiritual truth, while completely missing another one. I know how blinded I was for so long in some areas of worldliness. I recognize that I am still so blind in other areas.

The key is not to be looking around at others but to be examining our own lives, praying that God will open our eyes to how we have succumbed to our desire to be friends with the world. And then being willing to surrender that which we know is pouring poison on our plant of holiness.

And so this choice to love God or to love the world should not be made lightly. We must consider the cost. For to love the world causes great damage to the believer, even when they are aware of the battle and fighting against it. But to love the world and not even be aware of the raging battle indicates a real problem in the life of someone who claims to be saved. Because the Bible says that being a friend of the world means that we are the enemy of God.

Words not to be taken lightly. And a choice not to be made lightly.

Do You Want to Feel Better or to See Better?

3 Comments / September 27, 2023

The other day I was listening to a Lamplighter Theatre story and the introduction had a young boy who was quite distraught over recent news. He had gone to visit an older gentleman to talk and expressed his hope that he would help him feel better. The man laughed and said this profound thing:

I won’t help you feel better but I do hope I can help you see better.

I have been thinking on this ever since. How many of us prefer to feel better than to see better? We’d rather be blind and feel good, than to have clear vision and experience some pain in the process.

The pastor’s job is to help his congregation to see better. He is to preach the word, in and out of season–

Preach the word! Be ready in season and out of season. Convince, rebuke, exhort, with all longsuffering and teaching. (2 Timothy 4:2)

Many preachers (and authors and song-writers and popular social media personalities) refuse to do this because it is not what their listeners want. Their listeners want to feel good. Right now.

Paul tells us to expect that this time will come. Right after writing “Preach the Word!” in 2 Timothy 4, he writes this-

 For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine, but according to their own desires, because they have itching ears, they will heap up for themselves teachers; and they will turn their ears away from the truth, and be turned aside to fables. (2 Timothy 4:3-4)

He knew that eventually the visible church (as opposed to the remnant genuine church) would eventually turn completely apostate in order to take part in bringing in the antichrist. Paul gave us warning signs of what that would look like throughout his epistles. One of these warning signs is that people who claim to be Christians would be obsessed with hearing things that they want to hear; things that would make them feel better temporarily but that would be based on fables.

Instead of hearing the things that they needed to hear–things that would make them see better but wouldn’t necessarily make them feel better–they’d choose to believe fables and lies.

As we watch this happening around us–perhaps even in the lives of those we care about– it is important that we examine our own lives. What is our goal when we read the Word or listen to a godly preacher? Is it to feel better or is it to see better?

I think something really important to remember as we consider this is that, while we may not feel better in the moment, the good feelings will come. God promises peace and joy and these are not empty promises. When we surrender our will to God’s and when we choose to obey His commands in scripture, feelings of peace and joy do come.

As a friend once told me: Our feelings should function as the caboose and not the engine as we decide what will drive our decisions and choices. Feelings generally follow after our right choices.

We can compare it to a doctor who must administer bad-tasting medicine or painfully dig out an infection that has set in in a wound. These things do not feel good when they are happening but, in the long run, they make us feel so much better. What would we think of a doctor that just bandaged an infected wound, rather than to deal with the real issue? And, yet, this is so often how spiritual infections are treated by preachers and teachers. They don’t want to hurt or offend anyone so they never get around to lovingly telling their hearers the plain truth of scripture.

We may not like what we are reading or hearing from the Word and it may not make us “feel better” in the moment, but if we choose to submit to and obey God’s Word, we will see better. We will not only be given correct perspective but we will begin to understand why it is so important. And…eventually…we will feel better as we honor the Lord with our lives.

So what are you looking for when you study scripture or listen to a preacher? To feel better or to see better?

What matters to you most? That you are happy? Or that you are holy?

I am afraid many of the lies will reap eternal ramifications. We must pray for protection from the abundant lies around us that sound so very appealing. May we not grab on to any of these simply to feel better temporarily. For in the long run, an infection that is not cut out will kill you.

He Helped Us Sing

8 Comments / September 12, 2023

Five years ago this month, I found out that my sister-in-law’s cancer had returned. For the next year and a half she, along with her husband and daughter, walked the path that no one wants to walk but so many are forced to. Through that time, they were beacons of God’s light, attesting to His tender care as He met their needs and provided so many kind mercies. My sister-in-law’s emails consistently pointed to God and to His precious care for her as she took her journey to meet Him. Their testimony will forever be a light and encouragement in the hearts of those that watched them walk through this. But, unless you knew them personally or read what I wrote during that time (you can read that here) or listened to her memorial service (you can listen to that here), you wouldn’t be aware of this. To most, my dear sister-in-law and her battle with cancer were unknown.

A couple of years after she passed away, I reached out to an online pastor friend whom I hadn’t heard from in a long time. Unbeknownst to me, he and his wife were taking the same journey my brother and his wife had taken so shortly before. I asked to be put on their update list and found that their emails, too, attested to God’s constant faithfulness, His sufficient grace, and His kind and abundant mercies as they faced so many trials and tribulations. Their response to this unforeseen, overwhelming trial and their consequent testimony was so similar to that of my brother and sister-in-law. All four of these dear brothers and sisters in Christ were so encouraging and inspiring at a time when it would have seemed impossible. Only God could provide the strength and sufficient grace to walk this path.

The pastor’s wife passed away at the beginning of 2022 and a year later, he wrote a book about their journey. As you are well aware if you’ve been around here for any length of time, I do not tend to write book reviews. And I never write reviews for compensation. It is important that you know that I purchased this book and am writing about the book because I think you would benefit from it and not because of any benefit to me or to the author of the book.

In the book, the author shares the emails he sent, along with other details and insight that he could look back on and add. It is a source of great encouragement, not only to those walking through deep waters, but also to those who may be wavering in the faith, wondering if God is really real or if He actually cares about them.

I thought about sharing some quotes from the book but I think I am going to let you discover its wonderful content all on your own. I do not recommend books lightly (as you probably already know) and I whole-heartedly recommend this one. I know that you will be encouraged and strengthened in the Faith as you read. Due to some extenuating circumstances, the author decided, along with his family, to use a pen name and to change all names. In the book, you will meet “Justin and Courtney”. And you will be greatly blessed by them.

The one thing I will share here is a letter that was written by Courtney, shortly after the diagnosis. This will give you an idea of their attitude going into this journey (you can find the letter here)–

Dear Friends and Family, 

By now you know about my cancer. It has happened so fast, but the Lord is with us and encouraging us. I want to ask two favours of you. 

First, this song (“We’re Going Home to Glory Soon”) got real. Please, listen to it, it is short: https://www .youtube.com/watch?v=xL7rDeNYwDY. I so want to see you over there. 

Second, can you join us, sometime this Sunday, in singing “Because He Lives”? If you don’t know it, you can play this and sing along: https://www .youtube.com/watch?v=Sm2wLKZoGPY. I know people around the world are receiving this, and it would be an encouragement to know that we are singing it together, because it answers everything. 

It hurts me when people blame God and say He hasn’t been fair. I know people mean well and say it out of love and affection. But please don’t say that, even to yourself. The song answers it. 

I don’t want people who care about me to be angry with God on my behalf. I love Him for everything He has done for me, and I want you to love Him, too. 

What is fair? If God were fair, He wouldn’t have sent Jesus to die, and rise again for me. If God were fair, I’d have “crossed that river” long ago, and I would be in Hell. 

But God did send His Son for a sinner like me, and He “bled and died to buy my pardon.” Now He lives and I will, too. I will be with Jesus who loves me so much, in Glory. I’m ok, I’m better than ok. 

I want to be honest with you. I’m afraid of “life’s final war with pain.” But it doesn’t matter if I’m a coward, the lights of Glory will still be there. They are there for me, not because of any good in me, but because He lives. Death will give way to victory, and I’m not going to lose that even if I’m afraid of the pain. Jesus guaranteed my victory. He lives, and so will I. 

Isaiah 25:8 He will swallow up death in victory; and the Lord God will wipe away tears from off all faces; and the rebuke of his people shall he take away from off all the earth: for the Lord hath spoken it. 

John 3:16 For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life. 

John 11:25 Jesus said unto her, I am the resurrection, and the life: he that believeth in me, though he were dead, yet shall he live:

John 11:26 And whosoever liveth and believeth in me shall never die. Believest thou this? 

Do you believe that? I’m asking you if you do, but do you see that verse? Jesus asked it first. We believe it. That is what we count on. You can believe it, and if you do, we will see you over there. Please contact Justin if you need help in understanding. 

It appears I may not see many of you again unless it is “over there.” That only has to be sad if you aren’t going there. Please, come join us. 

Love, Courtney

Throughout their journey, they both kept this same attitude. Through the hard times, through the impossibly difficult, through the painful and sorrowful moments. Justin does not sugarcoat what they suffered. And, yet, through it all, is the thread of God’s peace and strength. He gave them what they needed to endure. He helped them to sing!

You can purchase the book here (least expensive option) or you can also purchase on Amazon here. You can find out more about the book here. I know that if you purchase the book, you will be blessed by it. No matter where you find yourself in your walk with God today, this book will deepen and strengthen your faith. It will help prepare you for that day when you or someone you love walks through that dark valley of the shadow of death.

I will conclude with Justin’s own words on the website–

I wish I could cure glioblastoma and this world’s other heart-wrenching ills. I can’t even offer the peace we had— it’s not mine to give. Perhaps, though, this book may help draw you a step closer to the God who fills hearts with peace beyond human understanding. There is no One better to have with you when your world turns upside down. He can help you sing too.

Oh, that we, too, may find out along with Justin and Courtney and Dean and Grace, that God will provide His all-sufficient grace, His abundant mercies, and His peace that surpasses understanding…exactly when we need it. He will help us sing, too!

Just a Reminder

6 Comments / September 8, 2023

One of the things I do over on the Growing4Life Facebook page (and also my personal page, as well) is to share old posts. I have been writing for thirteen years now and so there is much here on the blog that may be worth a revisit. Yesterday, I shared a post about responding to criticism (find it here).

A few hours after I shared it, I was criticized. I responded as I tend to do—with a defensive and argumentative spirit. Even after reading what I wrote earlier in that same day about how God, according to His Word, wants us to respond to criticism, my flesh took over and I failed. Miserably.

A few minutes after that all happened, I thought of the post I had shared earlier that day and my failure in responding as I had encouraged my readers to respond.

And I wanted to share this because I just want to remind you of something that is very important to me as I blog here at Growing4Life.

I want to assure you that I do not believe that I have arrived spiritually. I do not believe that I am somehow way ahead of you in my walk with Christ. And, in fact, I realize with humility and sometimes with humiliation, that I am far behind many of you in lots of areas.

I simply write what God’s Word says and try to live what I write. But I am still faced with challenges and temptations as I endeavor to do this. I don’t deserve (nor do I want) any pedestal. I also do not want anyone to believe I consider myself above any of you, for I do NOT.

One of the things that has caused so much strife in the body of Christ are misperceptions and assumptions about our brothers and sisters in Christ. We believe things that may not be true. And so it was important to me today to just say once more: I do not consider myself anything special because I happen to write at Growing4Life. God has give me this ministry for His good reasons and it is my prayer that He—and you—will find me faithful in sharing His Word here. But He will not find me perfect and sinless in my life and neither will you.

May we grow together, unified in our love for God and His Word and in our abundant grace for one another as we strive to please God while still living in the flesh. Knowing that one day, our battle with sin will be over and we will forever be with the Lord!

It’s All True or None of It Is

Leave a Comment / September 5, 2023

I remember talking to someone once who spent quite a bit of time with rather liberal Christians. The one thing this person told me is how much these people hate Paul. It’s pretty easy to guess why this is. While Paul gives us such encouragement regarding the love of Christ and His personal care for us (Romans 8) and encourages us to love one another (I Corinthians 13, Philippians 2), he also wrote quite a bit of what would be considered controversial in this modern day church era. He wrote about the role of women (I Timothy 2); he wrote about false teachers (Romans 16); he wrote about modesty (I Timothy 2); he told us about how those who practice and live in sin won’t inherit the Kingdom of God (Galatians 5); he wrote about the rapture (1 Thessalonians 4); he wrote about having no fellowship with someone who claims Christ and yet lives in unrepentant sin (I Corinthians 5) and he set down very specific qualifications for church leaders (Titus 1). In fact, it is Paul who was charged by God to give much of the practical outworking of true faith to all believers throughout the ages.

But many of these truths are unwelcome to those who are looking to have their ears tickled. Rather than going to the Bible to find truth and words of life, they go to the Bible out of habit or duty…or perhaps they don’t study the Bible at all. And this lack of love for and trust in God’s inerrant, infallible Word leads to so many problems. One of them being the tendency to pick and choose what we like or don’t like.

As I have started studying I Timothy this week, I came across those unpopular verses about women and their role in the church. In the midst of a culture that has been feminized and crippled by the women’s liberation movement, there has been much effort to figure out a way to render these verses null and void.

Unfortunately, there is no possible way to do this unless we turn our backs on all that Paul has written, and therefore the entire Bible. Paul was either inspired or he wasn’t. We can’t say he was inspired to write the things we like but not inspired to write the things we don’t like. It just doesn’t work that way.

H.A. Ironside gave the account of a woman who was confused about this in his I Timothy commentary–

I remember years ago at a special series of meetings a servant of God was opening up many precious truths in connection with our calling in grace, our place in the body of Christ, our inheritance in Him, and other spiritual themes. One lady who attended the meetings was so stirred that she told how these truths had meant much to her and that she had received great blessing from them. Then in the course of the series of messages the preacher came to a certain passage in 1 Corinthians 14 that had to do with women’s behavior in the church of God. As he was reading—it was an open Bible class where people were free to ask questions—this same lady who had testified to having found such blessing through the precious Word spoke up and said, “I do not believe that. I think this is all nonsense. Paul was an old bachelor who hated women, and that is why he writes the way he does. We can’t depend upon what he says.”

The preacher said, “My dear sister, you have been rejoicing in the truth that nothing ‘shall be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord’ (Rom. 8:39), haven’t you?”

“Yes,” she said, “I do rejoice in that.”

“Well,” said the preacher, “I am pained to have to inform you that Paul said that, and Paul was an old bachelor, so you can’t depend upon what he says! I understand you have been rejoicing in the truth that there is ‘one body of which Christ is the head.’“

“Yes,” she said, “I rejoice in that too.” “Well, I am sorry to have to tell you that that is something made known to us by Paul, and Paul was an old bachelor, so you can’t depend upon what he says.” He went from one Scripture to another, pointing out the truths which were given to us by Paul, until that dear lady burst into tears and said, “May God forgive me. I see now that I have been trifling with the Word of God.”

One part of the Word is as truly inspired as another part. When you come across some things in God’s Word that you may think are perhaps questionable, remember that the Holy Spirit who presented Christ as Savior, the Holy Spirit who showed how the way into the Holiest has been opened, is the same Holy Spirit of God who tells our sisters how they ought to behave, and how careful they ought to be to maintain feminine modesty.*

You see, we don’t get to choose. We don’t get to love and embrace what we like and toss away what we don’t. We must accept it all. But the beauty of it is that when we do…when we understand that all of God’s Word is the inspired, inerrant revelation of God to us and we accept it as the glorious gift it is, our hearts start to change. The rebellion in our hearts towards those things we hate starts to dissipate like the mist dissipates in the heat of the sun. When we ask God to change our hearts toward His Word, He does just that.

Does this mean we “like” every truth we read in the Word of God? I don’t think it does. This isn’t about liking or about feelings. But we accept them and we bow our knee to God, acknowledging that He knows best even if we don’t agree or understand.

If we don’t come to the Bible with this attitude then we may as well not come at all. It’s either all true or none of it is. We can’t have this middle ground that so many desire where we can embrace and apply all the comforting promises and words about loving others but then toss out God’s commands regarding women and false teachers and all of that other stuff that isn’t as palatable. We don’t have that right. If the Bible is God’s Word then it is all of His Word. We don’t get to pick and choose.

I am probably writing to the choir here as I know most of my readers would agree with me on this. But I do want to encourage you to be thinking about the conversations you have with others regarding this because much of the false teaching and wrong beliefs held by your family members, friends, and co-workers stem back to this one thing: They will not accept the Bible for what it is…the inspired, inerrant Word of God in its entirety given to us by our loving, holy God.

It’s either all true or none of it is. Oh, how important that we remember this as we read and study God’s Word and have conversations with others regarding what the Bible has to say about…well…everything.

*Ironside, Harry A.. Addresses on the First and Second epistles of Timothy (pp. 41-43). Unknown. Kindle Edition.

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