The Plumbline

The Spirit, not content to flit around on the surface, dives into the depths of God, and brings out what God planned all along. Who ever knows what you’re thinking and planning except you yourself? The same with God—except that he not only knows what he’s thinking, but he lets us in on it. God offers a full report on the gifts of life and salvation that he is giving us. We don’t have to rely on the world’s guesses and opinions. We didn’t learn this by reading books or going to school; we learned it from God, who taught us person-to-person through Jesus, and we’re passing it on to you in the same firsthand, personal way. (I Corinthians 2:10-13 MSG) God's Spirit takes what we cannot understand with purely human knowledge and brings it into our hearts and minds so we can begin to not only comprehend it, but act upon it. All of God's scripture is meant to be actionable - either we do as it says, or we avoid what it says we are to avoid. There is nothing within scripture that is th...

We, of course, have plenty of wisdom to pass on to you once you get your feet on firm spiritual ground, but it’s not popular wisdom, the fashionable wisdom of high-priced experts that will be out-of-date in a year or so. God’s wisdom is something mysterious that goes deep into the interior of his purposes. You don’t find it lying around on the surface. It’s not the latest message, but more like the oldest—what God determined as the way to bring out his best in us, long before we ever arrived on the scene. (I Corinthians 2:6-7 MSG) Wisdom comes in all forms. When I want to make the most of my investments, I don't consult the grocer, I go to my financial adviser because he has studied the various investment strategies and knows how to make the best of them. When I want to understand why my car is making a certain noise, I don't consult the plumber, I go directly to my mechanic who will be able to tell me what causes the noise and how it can be repaired. Why is it we seek wisdom...

You’ll remember, friends, that when I first came to you to let you in on God’s sheer genius, I didn’t try to impress you with polished speeches and the latest philosophy. I deliberately kept it plain and simple: first Jesus and who he is; then Jesus and what he did—Jesus crucified. (I Corinthians 2:1-2 MSG) We humans like to complicate God's simple message of salvation with a whole lot of religious talk and mumbo-jumbo. The fact of the matter is that Paul came to establish the New Testament churches with two messages: 1) Jesus and who he is; and 2) Jesus and what he did. When you teach those two things, you pretty much have the entirety of scripture rolled up into those messages, don't you? No 'fancy words' or great 'oratorical' messages - just the simplicity of telling us who Jesus is and what he has done. There is wisdom in keeping things simple, isn't there? When we add the complications of this or that regulation, rule, or requirement, we get into the ...

Take a good look, friends, at who you were when you got called into this life. I don’t see many of “the brightest and the best” among you, not many influential, not many from high-society families. Isn’t it obvious that God deliberately chose men and women that the culture overlooks and exploits and abuses, chose these “nobodies” to expose the hollow pretensions of the “somebodies”? That makes it quite clear that none of you can get by with blowing your own horn before God. Everything that we have—right thinking and right living, a clean slate and a fresh start—comes from God by way of Jesus Christ. That’s why we have the saying, “If you’re going to blow a horn, blow a trumpet for God.” (I Corinthians 1:26-31 MSG) Hollow pretensions abound, don't they? There are tons of people going around 'tooting their own horn', proclaiming they have 'made it' all because of what THEY did, what THEY know, or how THEY created this or that. The truth of the matter is that their in...

The Message that points to Christ on the Cross seems like sheer silliness to those hellbent on destruction, but for those on the way of salvation it makes perfect sense. This is the way God works, and most powerfully as it turns out. It’s written, "I’ll turn conventional wisdom on its head, I’ll expose so-called experts as shams." So where can you find someone truly wise, truly educated, truly intelligent in this day and age? Hasn’t God exposed it all as pretentious nonsense? Since the world in all its fancy wisdom never had a clue when it came to knowing God, God in his wisdom took delight in using what the world considered stupid—preaching, of all things!—to bring those who trust him into the way of salvation. (I Corinthians 1:18-21 MSG) Using what the world considered stupid - preaching. Paul has just made a very pointed statement that we cannot overlook. He said, "God didn’t send me out to collect a following for myself, but to preach the Message of what he has done,...

I have a serious concern to bring up with you, my friends, using the authority of Jesus, our Master. I’ll put it as urgently as I can: You must get along with each other. You must learn to be considerate of one another, cultivating a life in common. (I Corinthians 1:10 MSG) When God has a 'bone to pick' with us, he certainly doesn't mince words, does he? Here we find the believers in Corinth at each other's throats, comparing what Paul, Apollos, and even the Messiah himself had taught or were presently teaching. They were 'taking sides' - in other words, there was division in the church even from the start! Imagine that - division amongst God's chosen - now how could that have happened? Pride, jealousy, misunderstanding, and even gossip could have been at the core of this division - we just don't know the specifics, but we do know God wanted it to stop. Learning to live in unity as believers is sometimes a bit of a challenge because we all come into thi...

Just think—you don’t need a thing, you’ve got it all! All God’s gifts are right in front of you as you wait expectantly for our Master Jesus to arrive on the scene for the Finale. And not only that, but God himself is right alongside to keep you steady and on track until things are all wrapped up by Jesus. God, who got you started in this spiritual adventure, shares with us the life of his Son and our Master Jesus. He will never give up on you. Never forget that. (I Corinthians 1:7-9 MSG) Some people make grocery lists, ensuring that items needed for the week's meals are purchased when an order is placed online or they visit their local grocer. Others 'wing it', hoping for the best and then wonder why they are missing that one key ingredient that would have made the meal 'perfect'. Those who know and serve Christ might think they can 'wing it' a bit in this walk, hoping for the best in their spiritual growth. The truth is that we have been given ALL we need...

I send this letter to you in God’s church at Corinth, believers cleaned up by Jesus and set apart for a God-filled life. I include in my greeting all who call out to Jesus, wherever they live. He’s their Master as well as ours! May all the gifts and benefits that come from God our Father, and the Master, Jesus Christ, be yours. (I Corinthians 1:1-3 MSG) I used to write many handwritten letters to send back home to my parents or send a little update on life events to those relatives farther away, but I could not tell you the last time I actually sent a 'snail mail' letter! As Paul begins this letter to the Corinthian church, he begins by telling us who the letter was written to or for - believers cleaned up by Jesus. In other words, he was writing to those who had already said yes to Jesus. This letter isn't for the unbeliever as much as it was intended to address some topics of concern among believers - those who were set apart for a God-filled life. Like us, they needed a ...

God, the one and only— I’ll wait as long as he says. Everything I need comes from him, so why not? He’s solid rock under my feet, breathing room for my soul, an impregnable castle: I’m set for life. (Psalm 62:1 MSG) Waiting doesn't come easy for some of us. To those of you who are waiting, perhaps for a lot longer than you might have imagined you'd wait, let me say this - God isn't finished yet, so hold on! There are times when God says it is going to take some time for the fulfillment of your prayers. We don't want to hear those words because we know something else has to occur BEFORE then. It is the 'in between' that we dread the most, isn't it? We don't like the 'what else needs to occur' phase, do we? The 'what else' could be the readying of our heart to receive the answer God will bring. It could be he needs to see another's heart be made ready. Readiness comes in stages - it doesn't always happen just because we want it to....

Take good counsel and accept correction— that’s the way to live wisely and well. We humans keep brainstorming options and plans, but God’s purpose prevails. (Proverbs 19:20-21 MSG) We have to take counsel. We must accept correction. Counsel is often sought. Correction is frequently not sought but is much needed. Both play a very important part in helping us grow up, become mature in our faith, and stay on course. Wisdom isn't just a thing for the aged - it is found by those who know the value of both good counsel and thoughtful correction. Advice can be good or bad; thoughtful or spur of the moment. We might seek the advice of an 'expert' if we want to install a ceiling fan where one does not exist - the electrician knowing how and where to provide the needed electrical connections. We might give into the 'advice' of social media 'counsel' that advises us to buy this or that 'next great thing' because we know we don't have that item yet and ...

Does the God who lavishly provides you with his own presence, his Holy Spirit, working things in your lives you could never do for yourselves, does he do these things because of your strenuous moral striving or because you trust him to do them in you? Don’t these things happen among you just as they happened with Abraham? He believed God, and that act of belief was turned into a life that was right with God. (Galatians 3:5-6 MSG) God's grace is provided in lavish amounts - because we need all we can get! His presence comes as we say yes to him, so we are entering into a new relationship that needs to be developed just like any other relationship. The difference is that we don't 'work' our way into his presence or into his grace as we might with our earthly relationships. In our relationship with Jesus, he draws us to himself, shows us exactly who he is, tells us clearly what he likes and dislikes, and then he provides all we need within that relationship - not in limi...

Have some of you noticed that we are not yet perfect? (No great surprise, right?) And are you ready to make the accusation that since people like me, who go through Christ in order to get things right with God, aren’t perfectly virtuous, Christ must therefore be an accessory to sin? The accusation is frivolous. If I was “trying to be good,” I would be rebuilding the same old barn that I tore down. I would be acting as a pretender. (Galatians 2:17-18 MSG) We are not yet perfect. Man, that is certainly true on my account! I do a decent job at 'doing the right thing' most of the time, but ALL of the time - nope. I slip up on occasion - say things I shouldn't, think things I know better than to be thinking, make judgments based on what I see or think I know, and the list could go on. The point is that we ALL are not yet perfect - none of us has it all together or is without sin. Even those religious leaders who wanted to stone the woman caught in adultery couldn't throw th...

As long as I’m alive in this body, there is good work for me to do. If I had to choose right now, I hardly know which I’d choose. Hard choice! The desire to break camp here and be with Christ is powerful. Some days I can think of nothing better. But most days, because of what you are going through, I am sure that it’s better for me to stick it out here. So I plan to be around awhile, companion to you as your growth and joy in this life of trusting God continues. You can start looking forward to a great reunion when I come visit you again. We’ll be praising Christ, enjoying each other. (Philippians 1:22-26 MSG) If you are still breathing in and out on this planet earth, there is still so much for you to be doing for Christ. You can spread his Word. You could gather the children in the neighborhood and give them a safe place to play and learn. You might even find yourself taking an elderly friend to the grocer each week to get the necessities. Whatever way God chooses to use you - be us...

I want to report to you, friends, that my imprisonment here has had the opposite of its intended effect. Instead of being squelched, the Message has actually prospered. All the soldiers here, and everyone else, too, found out that I’m in jail because of this Messiah. That piqued their curiosity, and now they’ve learned all about him. Not only that, but most of the followers of Jesus here have become far more sure of themselves in the faith than ever, speaking out fearlessly about God, about the Messiah. (Philippians 1:12-14 MSG) Stop for a moment to consider what God can do through you when you remain faithful to him even in the face of untoward circumstances. Paul was imprisoned for preaching the gospel of Christ - yet his imprisonment didn't stop his ongoing work of spreading the gospel message. Not only did he continue his work of establishing the New Testament churches by writing and instructing via his writings, he was a positive witness of God's grace even while in a jai...

Seek God while he’s here to be found, pray to him while he’s close at hand. Let the wicked abandon their way of life and their evil way of thinking. Let them come back to God, who is merciful, come back to our God, who is lavish with forgiveness. (Isaiah 55:6 MSG) God has mercy that far out reaches ours, doesn't he? Given our tendency to be impatient with other people, we'd want to cut off those 'sinners' and 'heathens' who refuse to heed his warnings, listen to his truth, or outright oppose his message. Did you ever stop to consider what would have happened if Jesus had of been that impatient with us? Seek God while he's here to be found. That is a pretty specific command with a pretty limited opportunity, is it not? It implies that God will not always wait - he will call for the day of judgment at some point. The question at hand is whether those who will hear will heed his call and reach out for his mercy.  Mercy is available - now, at this moment, witho...

Few things are brought to a successful issue by impetuous desire, but most by calm and prudent forethought. ---Thucydides A prudent person foresees danger and takes precautions. The simpleton goes blindly on and suffers the consequences. (Proverbs 27:12 NLT) Impetuous desire has been the downfall of many since the beginning of time, has it not? If we were to be honest with each other today, we'd likely have our own accounting of 'impetuous' decisions we've made that didn't end so well. Without thought or care, we trudged into something, finding what we hoped to be there fell short of our desires. Did we learn from those impetuous decisions, or do we continue to make them, thinking the outcome will somehow change? As a wise person once told me - if you do what you've always done, you'll get what you've always gotten. We might refer to that failure to learn as being a little bit foolish, right? We know the outcome will be a certain way, but we blindly ...

God is keeping careful watch over us and the future. (I Peter 1:3 MSG) I cannot help but think that someone needs to hear this today. God is keeping his watch over our lives - regardless of what we may see happening around us that seems to indicate he has 'slacked' in his watchfulness and care. The present and the future are both in his hands. We can never forget this fact. We don't rely upon a changeable God - his power is unchanging as is his presence with us as we navigate through life. Living with a fear that God may abandon us is a message straight out of the pit of hell. God can no more abandon one of his children than we can take the earth out of its orbit by blowing into the wind. The oversight of God in our lives isn't diminished because evil abounds. We may feel like the pressures of life have overtaken us, but we are still clearly in his hands. While the devil tries to 'huff and puff' and blow our house down, God's right hand is holding us secure...

The fear of human opinion disables; trusting in God protects you from that. (Proverbs 29:25 MSG) Human opinion can be crippling at times - especially when we care deeply about something and then encounter very boisterous opinions to the contrary. God isn't concerned about what 'opinion' someone holds - he cares about what one's heart holds. We can have all the world's opinions about a topic put out there on the table and find that some are very close to others, but there will be a wide variety of opinion even for those who say they hold similar opinions! God's commandments aren't opinions - so they don't change and they don't vary from day to day or circumstance to circumstance. If we always keep that in mind, we will look to his commands to formulate our plan for living rather than human opinion. If you have ever been 'put down' for a choice you have made or an 'opinion' you held, you know how emotionally debilitating that has the...

Not only that—count yourselves blessed every time people put you down or throw you out or speak lies about you to discredit me. What it means is that the truth is too close for comfort and they are uncomfortable. You can be glad when that happens—give a cheer, even!—for though they don’t like it, I do! And all heaven applauds. And know that you are in good company. My prophets and witnesses have always gotten into this kind of trouble. (Matthew 5:11-12 MSG) If you have ever felt like you were under a bit of a 'persecutory attack' from someone, you might have felt like they didn't like you, your message, or your lifestyle. Something just got their dander up and they found fault with whatever it was, and you were taking the brunt of their harsh, hurtful words or deeds. Jesus told his disciples they should count themselves blessed when people put them down or even if they spoke lies in an attempt to discredit the testimony of the disciples. I don't know about you, but whe...

So this is my prayer: that your love will flourish and that you will not only love much but well. Learn to love appropriately. You need to use your head and test your feelings so that your love is sincere and intelligent, not sentimental gush. Live a lover’s life, circumspect and exemplary, a life Jesus will be proud of: bountiful in fruits from the soul, making Jesus Christ attractive to all, getting everyone involved in the glory and praise of God. (Philippians 1:9-10 MSG) Flourishing love is evident in all our actions - not just some of them, when the urge strikes, towards the individuals we find 'worthy' of that love. Loving 'appropriately' means that we don't let our feelings determine who we love or when we reveal love's actions toward anyone. Feelings get the best of us many times and we stop short of expressing true love in humility and kindness just because we didn't 'feel like it' at that moment. Jesus reminds us that love conquers our fee...