On May 9, America experienced something that it had never experienced before. For the first time, a sitting President in the United States formally endorsed a blatant act of immoral sin. President Obama officially endorsed gay marriage.
Marriage is defined in Scripture, in both the Old Testament and New Testament, as the union of a man and woman.
Jesus, quoting Moses, said,
Have you not read that He who made them at the beginning made them male and female (Matthew 19:4).
I believe the reason Moses and Jesus made a point to address marriage as male and female was that there was already a homosexual problem in their day. Therefore, both Moses and Jesus set out to define marriage for God’s people as the joining of a man and a woman.
After defining male and female, Jesus went on to say,
For this reason a man shall leave his father and mother and be joined to his wife, and the two shall become one flesh (Matthew 19:6).
Gay marriage is an attempt to redefine absolute morals and standards of Scripture. Much speculation has been given for President Obama’s motive in endorsing gay marriage. Regardless of the motivation, it is an endorsement of sin and an abomination before the Lord.
God’s Word contains a solution to the homosexual problem.
Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new (2 Corinthians 5:17).
In Christ, a homosexual can be transformed into a heterosexual through the power of God. We have actually seen this happen in several people’s lives at Abundant Life Covenant Church. Our testimony is that of the Corinthian church,
Do you not know that the unrighteous will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived. Neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor homosexuals, nor sodomites...will inherit the kingdom of God. And such were some of you. But you were washed, but you were sanctified, but you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus and by the Spirit of our God (1 Corinthians 6:9-11).
The first step to freedom from homosexuality is an admission that homosexuality is sin. After the admission of sin, repentance and cleansing can follow (1 John 1:9). Then God begins a process of transformation and retraining of actions, emotions, desires, and lifestyle. The power of God for transformation is available to all who want to live godly in Christ today.
I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that you present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable to God, which is your reasonable service. And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God (Romans 12:1, 2).
The apostle Peter wrote to …you, who are kept by the power of God through faith…. (1 Peter 1:5).
Kept is a military term picturing a sentry standing guard as protection against the enemy. We might think of it as a night watch guard that keeps thieves away from a company, or the Secret Service that keeps assassins away from the President.
I draw comfort knowing that the power of God is our sentry against the enemy. With it, we are kept from fear, doubt, anxiety, depression, and a host of other enemy emotional forces that would like to take us under.
We can have regular power of God encounters by soaking in God’s word, praying in His Holy Spirit, and fellowshipping with His people in church. I look forward these encounters every time I open His Word in the morning and every time I give my best to gather at church to be with His people, and He does not disappoint.
The power of God through (our) faith also keeps those who are in rebellion and pulling away from the Lord. When loved ones pull away, it always hurts, but then I release them by faith to God’s power to keep them, work in them, draw them, and restore them to Himself.
Faith is a gift from God (Ephesians 2:8), but when we express it in prayer, worship, and fellowship with God’s people, the power of God is released to do all kinds of miracles.
As the weather was warming up this spring, my daughter Natalie texted me, "I just about stepped on a snake and then got chased in by a wasp. I think you should spray for snakes and wasps." I laughed and said I would spray for snakes and wasps. Snakes, bees, and spiders, oh my. What do they all have in common? They can sting/bite you. The apostle Paul drew on this fear and talked about death:
“O Death, where is your sting? O Hades, where is your victory?” The sting of death is sin, and the strength of sin is the law. But thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ (1 Cor. 15:55-57).
“O Death, where is your sting?
O Hades, where is your victory?”
The sting of death is sin, and the strength of sin is the law. But thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ (1 Cor. 15:55-57).
The death of Jesus Christ on the cross frees us from sin—stinger removed. The death of Jesus Christ on the cross frees us from the condemnation of attempting to live by the law to please God—poison from stinger removed. The resurrection of Jesus Christ removes any victory of fear that death had over us who are in Christ—snakes, bees, and spiders all sprayed for.
So when this corruptible [body] has put on incorruption [spiritual body with Christ], and this mortal [body] has put on immortality [new body in Christ], then shall be brought to pass the saying that is written: “Death is swallowed up in victory” (1 Cor. 15:54).
Truly the best is yet to come!
In Exodus 34, God promised to do wonderful things with His children,
Before all your people I will do marvels....For it is an awesome thing that I will do with you (Exodus 34:10).
After this powerful promise, God went on to explain how to continue this blessing from generation to generation.
All that open the womb are Mine... and none shall appear before Me empty-handed (Exodus 34:19-20).
For an agrarian culture, their wealth was in that which opened the womb. Birthing was their method of exponential multiplication of wealth. God took this source of wealth and gave them a principle to live by: “Give the best to Me (which is the first), and I will bless the rest.”
Historically, because man kept getting this principle wrong, God ultimately practiced this principle for man Himself in the cross of Jesus Christ. He gave Jesus, the First and Best of Himself, then blessed the rest, which we are (Romans 8:28-29). Now we never have to appear in worship before the Lord empty-handed. We can appear before Him with the blood of Jesus Christ of Nazareth as God’s best unto Himself, and when we appear in worship before the Lord that way, He promises to bless the rest, which is our life.
If we want that blessing to continue to multiply, we can imitate what God did by giving the best of other parts of our lives, trusting Him to bless the rest. For example, we can appear in worship before the Lord today and give the best of our finances by giving Him the first tenth (the tithe) of our finances, the best of our talents, and the best of our energies in service to His kingdom in the church, which is His body in the earth. As we are faithful to give God our first and best, He will be faithful to bless the rest.
As the car commercial says, "What a deal!"
I prepared and preached a message from Revelation 3:20 about our ability to open the door of our heart to Jesus when He is knocking.
Behold, I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears My voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and dine with him, and he with Me (Rev. 3:20).
As I was sharing this truth, I asked someone, “So who has the power to open the door?” The response surprised me, “Jesus does.” Truly, Jesus does have the power to open the door.
These things says He who is holy, He who is true, He who has the key of David, He who opens and no one shuts, and shuts and no one opens (Rev. 3:7).
When talking about who has the power to open the door, one person might be bent toward Jesus having the power, and another person might be bent toward us having the power. The Scripture teaches both. Jesus is always knocking on the door of our hearts. In every circumstance, every voice we hear, every day, Jesus is knocking, inviting us to open the door of our heart to let Him in. When we do so, He gives His life, His wisdom, His counsel, His power, His knowledge, His forgiveness, His hope, and His faith into our lives for prosperity and success in Christ. When we choose to open the door to Jesus’ knocking, He begins to set a great open door before us. This word was actually given to our church in this form, Behold I’ve set before you a great open door, and no man can close it. Those who enter therein shall reap an abundant harvest. You shall reap both within the body of Christ and without. You shall reap where others have labored and you have not sown. Today, Jesus is still knocking on the door of our hearts, and we are still choosing whether or not to open the door to Him. Today, Jesus is still setting a great open door before all who choose to open the door to His knocking. We have the power to open the door of our hearts, and Jesus has the power to set a great open door before us as we fully yield to Him and His working in our lives. Truly the best is yet to come!
In the book of Philippians, Paul makes such an outrageous and controversial statement in comparison to American thinking that I decided to do a word study just to confirm that the translators were accurately portraying what Paul was suggesting. Paul said,
…I seek the fruit that abounds to your account (Philippians 4:17).
In this statement, Paul was referring to the finances that the Philippians were giving into his ministry. In Philippians 4:15-20, Paul is saying that the Philippians, by giving into his ministry, were creating and depositing credit into an account with God that they would be able to draw upon to get all their needs met.
And my God shall supply all your need according to his riches in glory by Christ Jesus (Philippians 4:19).
This could be compared to the American Social Security system where people make contributions all of their lives with the promise that when they retire they will be able to draw upon Social Security for retirement. The difference is that instead of making a deposit with the government, Paul is suggesting we make deposits with God.
The word I questioned for this study was the word “account,” just to make sure Paul was actually referring to a credit or financial account. The word Paul used for “account” is the Greek word “logos.” This is the Greek word that describes the word of God as God’s revelation to man. That said, it is also used in certain tenses (“logon,” as it is used in this passage) to refer to logic or reasoning for financial accounting. It is used this way in Matthew 18:24 and Matthew 25:19, where Jesus spoke parables about investors coming to settle accounts with the people with whom they have invested.
After my study, I believe the translators got it right. In plain American English, Paul is suggesting that by giving into God’s ministry we create a credit account with Him that we can then draw upon to meet all of our needs. I personally consider this a better account than Social Security, personal savings, pension plans, 401(k) s, IRAs, or any other investment vehicle. It is one more good reason to become a consistent and generous giver of finances in Christ.
The simple phrase “but God” can be a game changer. I did a concordance search using the New King James Version of the Bible and was amazed at how many times the phrase “but God” came up. The Bible is full of “but God” intervening in man’s life to change his natural ways. When we are relating to God and this world, we have to learn to get the “but” in the right place. Many people place the “but” after God rather than before Him. This is a mistake because it causes their testimony to go something like this, “I know God's Word says…but this is reality…” The reality of the gospel is actually that God is intervening in man’s worldly reality with “...but God” to change things. Here are just a few of the “but God” sayings in Scripture: “You…were dead in trespasses and sins…but God who is rich in mercy…” (Ephesians 2:1-4). He/she/it “meant it for evil…; but God meant it for good” (Genesis 50:20). People step on one another to climb the ladder, “but God… puts down one, and exalts another” (Psalms 75:7). People lie, “but God knows [our] hearts” (Luke 16:14-15). People are prejudiced and don’t like to associate with people who are unlike them, but God breaks down prejudice by placing people who are unlike each other together in Christ (Acts 10:28). People are basically selfish, “but God demonstrates His own love for us, in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us” (Romans 5:8). People are sinners, “but God be thanked that though you were slaves of sin, yet you obeyed from the heart that form of doctrine to which you were delivered” (Romans 6:17). I believe that if we keep the “but” in front of God rather than behind Him, His power will enable us to live a quality life in Christ and be transformed by His Gospel in every circumstance of life.
Editor's Note: On November 4, 2011, World Magazine published an article called "Turning Inward: Giving Declines as Mainline Churches Focus More Resources toward Themselves," by Tim Dalrymple. The article provided the findings from a study on tithing in mainline churches. The magazine has provided a link to this article for us to use on our website. Please read the article and Pastor Davis's response below.
http://www.worldmag.com/articles/18789 Response by Pastor Davis
I appreciate the author’s intent to address the problem of mainline churches turning inward with their limited giving. That said, there is a key problem with the terminology used in the article.
The author states, “…these denominations tithed a mere 2.38 percent of their income, down from 2.43 percent….” It is impossible to tithe 2.38% or 2.43% of a person’s income.
Tithe literally means “tenth.” To tithe is to give a tenth of our increase to the Lord as a covenant response to God’s faithful provision. This is an important distinction because the whole of the Bible calls man back to a tithing covenant relationship with God. As long as man is only giving 2.38% of his increase, he is merely giving God some of his leftovers, not a tithe.
When God’s people return to a tithing covenant relationship with God, His prosperity will begin to flow in their lives for practical solutions to today’s problems.
The prophet Jeremiah wrote:
“Let not the wise man glory in his wisdom, Let not the mighty man glory in his might, Nor let the rich man glory in his riches; But let him who glories glory in this, That he understands and knows Me, That I am the Lord, exercising lovingkindness, judgment, and righteousness in the earth. For in these I delight,” says the Lord (Jeremiah 9:23-24).
God’s lovingkindness is His grace. That is always the first lens that we have to look through to come to know Him. His grace was expressed through the cross of Jesus Christ and is sufficient for all our needs. When we look through the lens of grace first, we see clearly into the ways of God for our lives and those we care about.
After we look through the lens of lovingkindness (grace), we begin to see God’s judgment. The word for judgment is literally used for a judge that is deciding a case. As believers in Christ, we have the same one who is charged with our care, the God of lovingkindness, judging our case. When we have the God of lovingkindness judging our case, we don’t even need a lawyer to get justice, because the Judge is on our side!
Lastly, God is executing righteousness in the earth. The Bible word for righteousness is primarily about relationships. God is restoring right relationships in the earth. By His grace, He empowers us to keep our commitments and relate to one another with integrity. In Christ, we have a righteous standing before God (2 Corinthians 5:21), and the empowerment to live righteously with people in the earth today.
When we look through the lens of God’s lovingkindness, His judgment, and His righteousness, we can remove all the doubt of agnostics who claim “We cannot know for sure...”
I always find it interesting that at the end of each year, I start to receive letters from ministries encouraging me to do some end-of-the-year giving. These letters seem to imply:
1. People haven’t been giving as they should, so now is a good time to catch up on your giving before the tax season ends. 2. People are going to give from their leftovers at the end of the year, so this ministry would be a good place to give some of those leftovers.
At Abundant Life Covenant Church, we have never pushed end-of-the-year giving. Our end-of-the-year letter consists of a simple explanation that there are laws about when the last deposit can be made for a person to receive tax credit for that year, so there will be a deadline for giving in that year for tax purposes.
I believe a better approach to encouraging giving would be at the beginning of the year, rather than the end of the year. Here is why:
Honor the Lord with your possessions, And with the firstfruits of all your increase; So your barns will be filled with plenty, And your vats will overflow with new wine (Proverbs 3:9-10).
The Scriptural admonition is always to give from our first and best, never from our leftovers. As we give from our first and best, God’s promise is to make us people of abundance, more than enough, so that we will be a people with leftovers.
The best time to set goals for our giving in 2012 is January 1st. As we commit to give from our first and best, rather than from our leftovers, God promises to manifest Himself as a God of abundance, and in 2012 we can believe that our vats will overflow.