Bearing with Each Other

 

“Bear with each other and forgive one another if any of you has a grievance against someone. Forgive as the Lord forgave you.”

—Colossians 3:13

Supposedly, Rodney King—who became famous when some Los Angeles police officers mercilessly beat him—once reportedly uttered: “Can’t we just all get along?” The answer, of course, is: “No, we can’t! We can’t get along!”

We do seem to often rub each other the wrong way. Just this past weekend, in talking over lunch with some friends, I tried to express my frustration with a particular political figure. Speaking in hyperbole, I said something about physically confronting this particular individual and demanding he tell the truth. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw someone sitting at the table whom I greatly admire. Immediately, this person recoiled at my words. Instantly, I regretted saying them, even though I knew I was exaggerating for effect.

We are more prone to disagree and argue with each other than we are to simply find ways of allowing people to be who they are without succumbing to the urge to take exception to what they might say or what they might do. The Apostle Paul warned the Christians at Colosse using these words found in Colossians 3:13:

Bear with each other and forgive one another if any of you has a grievance against someone. Forgive as the Lord forgave you.

God really does want us to get along with each other. At the same time, we are to hold each other accountable and help each other deal with our besetting sins.

At the start of this new day, and every new day, we should begin by determining to help our brothers and sisters in Christ, by accepting them for who they are, recognizing that, just like us, they are not yet perfect in their Christian Spiritual Formation, and doing what we can to bear with them and to also quickly settle any grievance we may have with them. If we do this, we will show the world how God’s love has transformed us. By trusting in God’s mercy, grace, and abiding love: transformed we are, and transformed we shall become.

 

Based on a blog originally posted on Monday, September 17, 2018

_{Copyright © 2024 by Dean K. Wilson. All Rights Reserved.}

_{More info at www.DeanKWilson.com}

 

The Narrow Gate

 

“Enter through the narrow gate. For wide is the gate and broad is the road that leads to destruction, and many enter through it. But small is the gate and narrow the road that leads to life, and only a few find it.”

—Matthew 7:13-14

In the “Sermon on the Mount,” as recorded in Matthew 5, 6, and 7, the Lord Jesus Christ teaches His disciples about several very important concepts necessary for proper Christian Spiritual Formation. Among the topics that Jesus covers is His discussion of the way to eternal life.

Recognizing that Jesus Himself is the way, the truth, and the life, and that no person comes to the Father except through Him (John 14:6), He did make some comments that should prepare all Christians for the kind of life they will find themselves living, if they choose to faithfully and obediently follow in the footsteps that Jesus has left for us. In Matthew 7:13-14, Jesus shares these words:

“Enter through the narrow gate. For wide is the gate and broad is the road that leads to destruction, and many enter through it. But small is the gate and narrow the road that leads to life, and only a few find it.”

This instruction is not so much a teaching of the kind of action that a believer must take. Rather, Jesus is sharing rather distinctly the kind of life that will naturally follow a believer who chooses obedience to God’s will and to His written Word. You see, the way of Jesus is not an easy way. Devotion to Christ will lead believers into very narrow passageways where they will find themselves hemmed in on all sides by those who want to minimize, and even destroy, the gospel.

Yes, the Holy Spirit will lead us along the right pathway. But, there is a definite price to pay for our faithfulness. We cannot earn our way. But, by determining to follow the pathway God gives us through the leading of the Holy Spirit, we will be subjected to many and interesting consequences—not all of which are pleasant ones.

As we start this new day, let’s keep our minds and hearts clear about the price we will pay for obedience. Not so much as a direct result of what we do. But, more so in what will be done to us by a world that rejects the power of Christ’s love and sacrifice.

We do well to understand that following in the footsteps of Jesus will subject us to the same kind of hatred that He experienced. Naturally, the Holy Spirit will comfort us and give us strength. But, we must not think for one moment that the natural world will easily accept our allegiance to the King of Kings.

 

Based on a blog originally posted on Friday, September 14, 2018

_{Copyright © 2024 by Dean K. Wilson. All Rights Reserved.}

_{More info at www.DeanKWilson.com}

 

The High Places

 

“The Sovereign Lord is my strength; he makes my feet like the feet of a deer, he enables me to tread on the heights.”

—Habakkuk 3:19

The British writer and missionary, Hannah Hurnard, in the middle of her life at a time when she held to strongly orthodox Evangelical Christian beliefs, penned a great Christian classic in the fabulous little book, Hinds Feet on High Places. Written in 1955, and re-published many times since that date, the book traces the journey of a young woman named “Much Afraid,” as she traveled from her family, “Fearing,” to the “High Places of the Shepherd,” guided by her two companions “Sorrow” and “Suffering.” This allegory packs so many wonderful truths into a relatively few paragraphs.

Hurnard drew the idea for this wonderful book from the writing of the Prophet Habakkuk, as recorded in Habakkuk 3:19:

The Sovereign Lord is my strength; he makes my feet like the feet of a deer, he enables me to tread on the heights.

God is our Great Enabler. He gives us the ability to tread ever upward in our spiritual formation, in our dependence on Him, and in our quest to represent Him well to the people around us who need His love and His care. We can most certainly celebrate this imbued power of God, as we begin this new day.

Let’s be sure to thank Him that He enables us to tread on the heights. We can rely on His mercy, grace, and abiding love to empower us as His dearly loved children.

 

Based on a blog originally posted on Thursday, September 13, 2018

_{Copyright © 2024 by Dean K. Wilson. All Rights Reserved.}

_{More info at www.DeanKWilson.com}

 

Before All Things

 

“Before the mountains were born or you brought forth the whole world, from everlasting to everlasting you are God. “A thousand years in your sight are like a day that has just gone by, or like a watch in the night.”

—Psalm 90:2, 4

There is a distinct advantage when one has the privilege of serving a particular cause for a long, long time. If one is present, awake, and has a good memory, “long-time-serving” can prove to be an adjective that indicates the person has much to offer in helping to understand how things came to past. Please allow me to illustrate this point:

By God’s grace, and through absolutely no merit of my own, I had the deep honor of serving the fire protection community as a member of various National Fire Protection Association’s codes and standards Technical Committees since 1974. Though I have served on numerous NFPA Technical Committees, I have spent the greatest amount of time serving on the Technical Committees related to the development of what has now become NFPA 72, National Fire Alarm and Signaling Code.

Over the years, one of the things that I have brought to the table is that I was present during many discussions that led to changes in the Code and can explain to others, who have come along later, why the Code states the requirements that it presents.

Now, magnify my rather insignificant contributions over many years by a large factor. Next, imagine what it would be like to have the ear of someone who was, in every case, present from the beginning of everything—someone who knows and understands why things are the way that they are. This is exactly what Moses was declaring about God when Moses wrote these words in Psalm 90:2, 4:

Before the mountains were born or you brought forth the whole world, from everlasting to everlasting you are God.

A thousand years in your sight are like a day that has just gone by, or like a watch in the night.

God is the ultimate “Technical Committee” member, and so much more. He knows why He made things the way He chose to make them. He understands all the systems He put into place. He is the one who understands how climate works, along with every other conceivable system that makes up our universe.

God also understands the people He has created, His knows His divine purposes for them, their advantages, and their limitations. He knows and understands, at the most basic level, everything that anyone might wish to know about heaven, earth, and the creation therein.

It makes sense for us, at the start of another new day, to recognize how fortunate we are to have access to God through His written Word—the Bible—and through His Living Word—the Lord Jesus Christ. In the Triune God and through Him, we have an inexhaustible resource to lead us and guide us in every aspect of our lives.

God is before all things, in all things, above all things, around all things, and through all things. Nothing escapes His attention. Nothing is beyond His caring. And, to top that off, He loves us—loves us!—with His unfailing love. And, that is certainly worth celebrating.

 

Based on a blog originally posted on Wednesday, September 12, 2018

_{Copyright © 2024 by Dean K. Wilson. All Rights Reserved.}

_{More info at www.DeanKWilson.com}

 

Dimensions of the Love of God

 

“I pray that out of his glorious riches he may strengthen you with power through his Spirit in your inner being, so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith. “And I pray that you, being rooted and established in love, may have power, together with all the Lord’s holy people, to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ, and to know this love that surpasses knowledge— that you may be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God.”

—Ephesians 3:16-19

In any building project, there are four qualities that determine the ultimate integrity of that project and make the project “true”:

• Dimensions
  
  
• Square
  
  
• Level, and
  
  
• Plumb
  
  

Thus, the likelihood of your project being “true” is nearly assured:

• If you measure the components of the project carefully to make certain they have the proper dimensions,
  
  
• If you erect the components of the project so that they have perfectly square corners of 90 degrees,
  
  
• If you make certain you maintain level—that is, square or 90 degrees off the horizontal—and
  
  
• If you make certain you maintain plumb—that is square, or 90 degrees off the vertical
  
  

So it is with our relationship with God. We need to understand how uprightly we stand in response to His calling for us. We need to understand the dimensions of His enormous love and His enormous caring for us. And, we need to be able to receive the strength He will give us through the in-dwelling Holy Spirit to perform that to which He has called us.

The Apostle Paul wrote these words to encourage the Christians gathered in the church at Ephesus, as recorded in Ephesians 3:16-19:

I pray that out of his glorious riches he may strengthen you with power through his Spirit in your inner being, so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith.

And I pray that you, being rooted and established in love, may have power, together with all the Lord’s holy people, to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ, and to know this love that surpasses knowledge—that you may be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God.

The prayers of the Apostle surely helped the Ephesian Christians grow into a proper Christian Spiritual Formation, so that they could serve as well-prepared ambassadors of the Lord Jesus Christ. We need this same kind of encouragement in our own spiritual lives.

As we begin yet another day, may we commit to pray for each other this very prayer of the Apostle. May we ask God to give our dearly loved brothers and sisters in Christ the power of the Holy Spirit, so that we may apprehend the depth, length, and breadth of the love of God for us through His Son. May our roots go deep into the soil of His precious written Word. May we live our lives in obedience to His will and to His written Word. And, may we experience the great joy that comes from knowing we are fulfilling the calling to which He has called us. That, dear ones, will be wonderful, indeed.

 

Based on a blog originally posted on Tuesday, September 11, 2018

_{Copyright © 2024 by Dean K. Wilson. All Rights Reserved.}

_{More info at www.DeanKWilson.com}

 

Follow the Example of Barnabas

 

“Therefore encourage one another and build each other up, just as in fact you are doing.”

—1 Thessalonians 5:11

I would like to begin this blog post by sharing the following account with you:

My wife and I have a very dear friend who spent most of her formative years studying music. She majored in music in college. She devoted herself to composition and refining her skills as a brass player in graduate school. She obtained a Ph.D., in order to gain even more knowledge about music. And, she even took post-graduate studies in conducting, so that she could achieve an excellence in conducting and managing a symphony orchestra. She is talented in so very many ways: performer, composer, conductor, mentor, and teacher. But, God seems to have had an entirely different path for her to travel. When He brought her into the lives of my wife and me, she was unable to secure a full-time position in music.

She very much wanted a post that would allow her to manage and conduct an orchestra. But, those doors—largely guarded by an “old-boys network”—seemed closed to her. She was, after all, a woman. She was very smart. And, she likely threatened, even intimidated, the normal job politics of most organizations that support an orchestra. So, she took what was essentially a very low-paying data entry position in a company that provided support operations for the insurance industry. She often sat in our living room and shared the woes of corporate life.

Since I had worked in the corporate world for many decades, I was able to help her understand some of the typical corporate politics and to offer suggestions as to how to deal with those who would stand in her way of advancement. By God’s grace, lots of hard work, and her own superior intellectual ability, she began to slowly climb the corporate ladder, made a few job changes within a different company to positions of ever-greater responsibility and compensation, and eventually found a very nice niche in understanding the rigors of corporate human resources management.

Now she has her own business, helping people apply for jobs and navigate the ever-complex world of on-line job applications. She has truly become an expert. Many now seek her help in locating the ideal position. She understands the technology behind the on-line application systems, how to tweak one’s input to match the systems’ algorithms, and her clients readily find new and better jobs in a climate that is largely unfavorable to those looking for high-level employment.

She was wise enough to seek advice when she didn’t understand something. And, she was very willing to listen to the advice when she was given it. More so, she worked very, very hard to put into practice every bit of knowledge she accrued. Perhaps, most importantly of all, she honored God at every step along the way. She was, and is, a choice servant of the Great King Jesus. And, she was always willing to have Him lead her in a new direction. She sought her primary sustenance from Him and from His written Word.

I share this story with you because I believe it illustrates the role we all must play in each other’s lives. We each must be an encourager—a Barnabas, if you will, since that name means “Son of Encouragement.”

Consider these questions:

• To whom have you been a Barnabas today?
  
  
• Is there someone to whom you have spoken an encouraging word?
  
  
• Do you actively seek to say things that encourages others to think well of themselves and to celebrate their accomplishments for Christ and His Kingdom?
  
  
• When one of your fellow brothers or sisters in Christ achieves something new, do you purposely and purposefully, cheer them on and celebrate with them, letting their joy become your joy?
  
  

The Apostle Paul urged those in the church at Thessalonica to do what Barnabas was known to do. Notice what Paul writes in 1 Thessalonians 5:11:

Therefore encourage one another and build each other up, just as in fact you are doing.

As a new day opens before us, it presents yet another opportunity for each one of us to become an encourager—a Barnabas—to our fellow believers. And, we can become encouragers to everyone who may cross our pathway, too. Certainly almost everyone can benefit from hearing words that will make them think better of themselves.

 

Based on a blog originally posted on Monday, September 10, 2018

_{Copyright © 2024 by Dean K. Wilson. All Rights Reserved.}

_{More info at www.DeanKWilson.com}

 

Acknowledging Our God

 

“Yours, Lord, is the greatness and the power and the glory and the majesty and the splendor, for everything in heaven and earth is yours. Yours, Lord, is the kingdom; you are exalted as head over all.”

—1 Chronicles 29:11

When you watch a movie, do you stay and watch all the credits roll by on the screen? I do. I find it fascinating to see all of the people it takes to make a movie. I am also fascinated by some of the job titles listed in those rolling credits. It’s important to acknowledge those who contribute to any project. After all, they’ve worked diligently to bring that project to completion. They’ve invested their personal energy into making the project successful.

I wonder how often we stop to acknowledge what God has done in creating and sustaining our world, and also in guiding us to become the people He wants us to become. We probably take God for granted far more often than we care to admit. Fortunately, we have an excellent example of how to acknowledge God’s marvelous works in a prayer of King David, as recorded in 1 Chronicles 29:11. Here’s a part of that prayer:

Yours, Lord, is the greatness and the power and the glory and the majesty and the splendor, for everything in heaven and earth is yours. Yours, Lord, is the kingdom; you are exalted as head over all.

As we begin another day, let’s remember to acknowledge what God has done in our world and also in us. We can justly praise Him for the magnificence of who He is, as well as for what He has done. And, let’s face it: all we are and all we have has come to us as a precious gift from God, who loves us with His infinite love.

 

Based on a blog originally posted on Friday, September 7, 2018

_{Copyright © 2024 by Dean K. Wilson. All Rights Reserved.}

_{More info at www.DeanKWilson.com}

 

Give a Gentle Answer

 

“A gentle answer turns away wrath, but a harsh word stirs up anger.”

—Proverbs 15:1

I am a profoundly impatient person. My impatience gets me into trouble all the time. In my old age, I may have mellowed somewhat. But, I still get really impatient, particularly when people misunderstand me. Then, in my impatience, I all too often give a harsher-than-appropriate answer to someone’s legitimate question. When I do this, I almost immediately feel embarrassment and remorse. But, my behavior never seems to change. Shame on me!

Once in a while, when someone pushes back hard at something I’ve said, another emotional modality within my being kicks into place. I believe that different emotional modality comes to the surface based on memories I have of being relentlessly bullied as a child.

In those instances, I often respond with a quiet gentleness, rather than my usual bombast. And, do you know what? That soft, quiet, gentle speech often diffuses the anger coming at me from the other person. Please let me illustrate:

One day, more than twenty years ago, I had a conversation with a man who chaired a committee that I had joined. We were talking about the cultural norms of the organization that sponsored the committee. As I outlined my observations about those cultural norms, he became very agitated and finally in an angry outburst suggested that, if I didn’t like the way the other members thought, felt, or acted, I should resign from the organization.

The harshness of his words and the angry tone of his voice triggered that different emotional modality I mentioned above. Instead of responding with my usual harshness, I began talking very quietly, almost at a whisper. I heard myself saying soothing words about the positive things I had noted in the organization’s cultural norms. Soon, his anger seemed to dissipate. The conversation ended more pleasantly.

Now, truthfully, this man was justified in his response. After all, he had been a member of this organization for many years and had many close ties with other members. I was making observations that placed some of the cultural norms of the organization in a very negative light. No wonder he jumped to defend the organization about which he felt so fondly.

That my observations were correct didn’t really matter. But, what did matter was that unusual softness—for me—in my answer helped repair the breech I had created.

I believe that this is what King Solomon meant when he penned the words found in Proverbs 15:1:

A gentle answer turns away wrath, but a harsh word stirs up anger.

At the beginning of another new day, we can all learn to speak more gently to one another. We can cause angry speech to dissipate when we choose gentle words of response. Gentleness does not indicate a lack of strength, nor does such gentleness negate the passion we may feel about our particular beliefs. Rather, it illustrates that our strength is under proper control. And, that is a very good thing.

 

Based on a blog originally posted on Thursday, September 6, 2018

_{Copyright © 2024 by Dean K. Wilson. All Rights Reserved.}

_{More info at www.DeanKWilson.com}

 

The Second Coming

 

“… so Christ was sacrificed once to take away the sins of many; and he will appear a second time, not to bear sin, but to bring salvation to those who are waiting for him.”

—Hebrews 9:28

For the past few blog posts, I’ve written about the general theme of the Second Coming of the Lord Jesus Christ. To many folks, this seems like a flight of fantasy, something that could never actually happen. In fact, it’s one of the reasons that Christianity repels many individuals.

You see, it takes faith, given as a gift from God, to make the reality of God’s plan come alive within the hearts and minds of the people He has chosen to belong to Himself. Without that gift of faith, Christianity appears ludicrous. We believers absolutely must understand this fact.

In contrast, we can receive great comfort from knowing that we await Christ’s return. This is the same theme that the writer to the early Hebrew Christians records in Hebrews 9:28:

… so Christ was sacrificed once to take away the sins of many; and he will appear a second time, not to bear sin, but to bring salvation to those who are waiting for him.

Christ brings salvation to all those who believe. As we begin a new day, we can rest with genuine confidence in the anticipated joy of Christ’s return. That will truly be a glorious day! Even so, come, Lord Jesus, come!

 

Based on a blog originally posted on Wednesday, September 5, 2018

_{Copyright © 2024 by Dean K. Wilson. All Rights Reserved.}

_{More info at www.DeanKWilson.com}

 

Jerusalem Renewed

 

“I saw the Holy City, the new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride beautifully dressed for her husband.”

—Revelation 21:2

When I was about eight years old, a visiting evangelist, who also happened to be a tenor soloist, came to our church for a week of special meetings. One night, he sang “The Holy City,” with music by Stephen Adams and words by Frederick E. Weatherly. This stirring song moved me deeply.

Four years later during our Wednesday night youth prayer meeting, our youth group leader, Mrs. Isabel Young, began a three-year-long study of the Book of Revelation. Imagine my surprise when I encountered these words from the Apostle John, found in Revelation 21:2-4:

I saw the Holy City, the new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride beautifully dressed for her husband.

And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, “Look! God’s dwelling place is now among the people, and he will dwell with them. They will be his people, and God himself will be with them and be their God. ‘He will wipe every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death’ or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away.”

As believers in the life-transforming power of the living Lord Jesus Christ, one of our great hopes and expectant joys is the anticipation of seeing the New Jerusalem for the first time. Even as we begin another new day, let us remember that we will spend eternity with God within the boundless walls of that great city. And, let us hasten to heed the nudging of the Holy Spirit to share the message of God’s love whenever He leads us to do so.

Please watch a moving version of the song I wrote about in this blog post, sung by Stanford Olsen and the Mormon Tabernacle Choir.

 

 

 

 

Based on a blog originally posted on Tuesday, September 4, 2018

_{Copyright © 2024 by Dean K. Wilson. All Rights Reserved.}

_{More info at www.DeanKWilson.com}

 

A Great Day is Coming

 

“For the Lord himself will come down from heaven, with a loud command, with the voice of the archangel and with the trumpet call of God, and the dead in Christ will rise first. “After that, we who are still alive and are left will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And so we will be with the Lord forever.”

—1 Thessalonians 4:16-17.jpg

Over the centuries, there have been many times when Christians became discouraged. They have been persecuted and dismissed, marginalized and killed, and every possible attempt has been made to destroy them and their faith.

In the midst of such trials—trials that, for the most part, we can hardly imagine—Christians have always held firm to their beliefs and found encouragement from the Apostle Paul’s words found in 1 Thessalonians 4:16-17:

For the Lord himself will come down from heaven, with a loud command, with the voice of the archangel and with the trumpet call of God, and the dead in Christ will rise first.

After that, we who are still alive and are left will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And so we will be with the Lord forever.

Knowing that, on some great day, Jesus will return provides unimaginable comfort. Even as this new day begins, we can receive comfort from these words. Let’s rejoice in knowing that God will receive us as His dearly loved children on one great day.

 

Based on a blog originally posted on Monday, September 3, 2018

_{Copyright © 2024 by Dean K. Wilson. All Rights Reserved.}

_{More info at www.DeanKWilson.com}