Windows of the Soul

Admonition

13Be on your guard; stand firm in the faith; be men of courage; be strong. 14Do everything in love. (I Corinthians 16)

 

 So, what's an admonition?  Well, according to the American Heritage dictionary it is a noun.  It means:

• Mild, kind, yet earnest reproof.
• Cautionary advice or warning.
• Counsel or advice; gentle reproof; instruction in duties; caution; direction.

Admonition can sting a little, yet help us immeasurably from taking the wrong path, attitude or action.  Scriptural or Biblical admonishment is different than what the world things of this word.  It's meant to help and not harm.  To encourage the right path. 

There was a time in my life when I did not want admonition - I wanted to find out myself, based on my own experiences and learning.  I take quite a different view these days.  I learned relatively quickly that I could learn a lot from others' warnings, advice and life experiences, rather rack up mistakes on my own. So, admonition is a good thing.  More like encouragement.  

In today's verses, Paul is talking via letter to the church at Corinth. His admonition, or encouragement, is still good for us today. Be on your guard – remember the devil prowls like a roaring lion seeking whom he may devour.  Stand firm in the faith.  This is where Satan will make us question – did God really say….?  Be courageous.  Even if you don’t feel courageous.  Be strong.  You have Christ in you.  You and God make a majority.  Yet still do all things in love.  As God has loved you.  Good admonition for the church then, and the church today.

A reminder…. Encouragement. Similar to the many encouragements both in the old and new testaments. And the reminder to do all things in love.   Why is this important?  Why then, why now? 

Simply because these are the areas where we find ourselves under attack. When we let our guard down. When we are not watchful.  When we doubt our faith.  And then we fear.  And feel weak.  And somehow get off track.  Yet if we remember these things, then the devil cannot make any inroads into our lives.  It is precisely in our faith, and in our feelings that we often fall under attack.  These are the places where Satan will find a crack in our armor. 

So, something to remember for today and every day. Be on guard. Be alert and watchful.  Know your surroundings.  Stand firm in what you believe regardless of what you see.  Hold on to your faith.  Be courageous.  God is with you.  Be strong.  You have God’s strength – He will fight for you.  And do all things in love.  As Christ did.  As Paul did.  As your Christian brothers and sisters do.  Keep on. 

LORD, may we remember these things. When we do these things nothing can stop us. And when we do these things, we are imitating and reflecting You to a watching world.  

Perspective

18When his accusers got up to speak, they did not charge him with any of the crimes I had expected. 19Instead, they had some points of dispute with him about their own religion and about a dead man named Jesus who Paul claimed was alive. (Acts 25)

The entire Jewish community wanted to see Paul dead. And they were willing to ambush him, which is why they pleaded with Felix to send Paul to Jerusalem. Paul, however, appealed to Caesar.  This put the authorities in a bind.  Here he was a prisoner, and as the above verses point out, the dispute was about their religion, and about a dead man named Jesus, who Paul claimed was alive. 

So, Felix had a visitor, King Agrippa. And King Agrippa was listening to Felix’s dilemma concerning what to do about Paul. King Agrippa decided he wanted to hear Paul.

Things from a strictly human perspective seemed to go from bad to worse for Paul. And he had done nothing wrong. But, if we step back and look at things from a godly point of view, the Jews looked really petty, and Paul is getting an audience with a king, and will get one with Caesar himself. 

So, what’s the take away? Maybe to take a step back and look. Take a moment and evaluate, or reevaluate, our circumstances according to how God views them. 

So many of the day-to-day things we are concerned about, are not the things God is concerned about. God does not seem to be moved by our inconveniences, by our sense of time and timing. He does not seem to be concerned about our comfort – creature comforts. 

God is primarily concerned about the heart. About our relationship with him. He is concerned that others come to know Christ.   He is concerned that we become not only seekers, but followers.  He is concerned that His Word accomplishes His purposes.

LORD, may we be obedient to your precepts.  May we be the people you have called us to be.  May we honor you with our lives, and be instruments of your love and peace.  Selah.

Purging Evil (Sin)

You must purge the evil from among you. (Deuteronomy 22:21)

The LORD hovered over the camp of the children of Israel as they traveled through the desert those forty years. The law was given and presented to God’s people by Moses.

As we see from the verse above, there was an emphasis to purge the evil among them. It would defile them – make them unclean – and unfit for God’s holy presence. Evil was delineated in the law, and specific situations were given as examples.  Evil - was then and is still - the major factor in keeping us from God.  God cannot tolerate evil.  And it is our sin that separates us from God. 

So, routinely, the Israelites were told to purge the evil. It meant put it to death. Bury it.  Stone it.  Kill it.  Sometimes that meant the lives of those committing the sin.  Sometimes it meant the lives of those surrounding and threatening them.  The bottom line, however, was that the LORD did not want his people defiled.    Worshipping other gods.  And these were the practices of the pagan nations around God’s people. 

There were rules and regulations they were to live by – the Law. Sin they were to avoid. Things that were forbidden.  Situations that were intolerable.  Practices they were not to engage and indulge in.  It was that simple. 

Yet, every time we turn around, the children of Israel were giving themselves over to pagan practices, indulging in revelry, sinning against God, and worshipping idols. God would get angry, discipline his people, and they would return.

Aren’t we much the same? Think about your life. Think about modern day America.  That would be an affirmative. 

So, what are we to do about it? Well, the lesson for today is pretty straightforward: purge the evil among us. That means, in short, to examine your life in light of God’s Word, and decide if you are doing the right things or not.  There is a lot of junk this world offers, a lot of junk this world passes off as the real thing.  But it’s not. 

So, in a word, take stock. Look at yourself soberly. And determine where you are and where the path you are on is going.  If you are about to crash, you may want to examine your life, get on your knees, and make some changes. 

Before the train runs off the track. Before the ravages of sin control you with addiction. Before it’s too late. 

Purge the evil among you. Within you. Around you.  And seek God’ s forgiveness and His plan for your life.  After all, He came to seek and save that which is lost.  He’ll help you find your way back … to life. 

LORD, each one of us gets off track from time to time. May we take stock of our lives. May we find forgiveness and the way back to You.