The Plumbline

What you heard me teach is an example of what you should teach. Follow that model of right teaching with the faith and love we have in Christ Jesus. This teaching is a treasure that you have been trusted with. Protect it with the help of the Holy Spirit, who lives inside us. (2 Timothy 1:13-14) Teaching or instruction abounds, but knowing which one should be impacting your life is best left to the best tutor one could ever have - the Holy Spirit. When we ask the Holy Spirit to 'control' what comes into our minds, hearts, and emotions, we are trusting him to 'weed out' any instruction that isn't 'spot on' and 'zero in on' that which is truth. Any 'almost truth' isn't worth our time or effort! What you hear me teach - God gives us so many positive examples, but is it wise to just 'accept without question' whatever it is they are teaching? No, absolutely not. We need to test every teaching against the Word of God and then rely upon t...

 And because you belong to Christ Jesus, God’s peace will stand guard over all your thoughts and feelings. His peace can do this far better than our human minds.(Philippians 4:7) Those who belong - do you 'belong'? Some perceive 'belonging' as having the 'proper credentials', such as when you 'belong' to the country club in your local town and can get the benefits of that 'membership'. Others might think of 'belonging' as 'being properly placed' - having a specific purpose in what you do somewhere for someone. The oldest meaning of this world indicated a certain 'dependence' upon one another or someone with a 'greater position' than you had. If we think of 'belonging' to Christ as 'having a relationship' with one who holds a 'superior position', we might just be a little closer to how this word is used in scripture. To 'belong' to Christ suggests a relationship of willing service to ...

Don’t stop the work of the Holy Spirit. Don’t treat prophecy like something that is not important. But test everything. Keep what is good, and stay away from everything that is evil. (I Thessalonians 5:20-22) Don't stop the work of the Holy Spirit - just how might we do that in our own lives or the lives of others around us? We might not listen when he is giving us guidance, choosing our own plans or path. We could discount something he has shown another, making them question if they are really hearing from God at all. We might find ourselves disagreeing with truth simply because it doesn't 'fit' our present lifestyle or choices. Whenever we 'stop the work of the Holy Spirit', we might find ourselves walking away from truth and toward deception quicker than we think! Test everything - does God really mean 'everything' when he says this? Yes, he does! Test what you hear before you put your full belief into it! I always tell someone if something doesn'...

  I write this, dear children, to guide you out of sin. But if anyone does sin, we have a Priest-Friend in the presence of the Father: Jesus Christ, righteous Jesus. When he served as a sacrifice for our sins, he solved the sin problem for good—not only ours, but the whole world’s. Here’s how we can be sure that we know God in the right way: Keep his commandments. (I John 2:1) Ever break a commandment? I can honestly say I have broken more than one! No wonder God is so intent on 'guiding us out of sin' - he knows our propensity toward breaking those doggone things! We ALL sin - break commandments - but we don't have to try to find our way out of our sinful condition on our own.  Our attempts to get this 'sin problem' under control in our lives is a feeble attempt to get things 'right'.  God's plan was to 'solve the sin problem for good' - not just give us a temporary fix for the sin problem.  We get to know God and in turn, we get to understand h...

Do you not know that your body is a house of God where the Holy Spirit lives? God gave you His Holy Spirit. Now you belong to God. You do not belong to yourselves. God bought you with a great price. So honor God with your body. You belong to Him. (I Corinthians 6:19-20) Is there anybody out there other than me that struggles to treat their body right? You know what I mean - eating healthy, making wise choices with your physical activities so as to not stress out your body too much, and getting enough rest. If you struggle with any of these, then just know you are not alone. I constantly go back and forth between desiring to eat healthy, but also craving a luscious brownie! The two are incongruous, aren't they? I haven't met a 'healthy' brownie yet! We crave a whole lot of things in this lifetime that are incongruous with what God desires for our lives. If you don't really understand what that word means, then let me explain. Anything that is 'incongruous' i...

Are you a people person? You probably know the type of individual I am referencing here - that one who is so comfortable around everyone and just 'fits in' wherever they go. There are those who just like the comfort of a few close friends and then there are others who seem to flourish in huge crowds of friends. I am probably more like the former than the latter - just really comfortable with a few close friends and a little less comfortable with those 'larger crowd' of friends. Did you realize the Holy Spirit actually helps us be good friends - to be comfortable around people - and to have those really good relationships with them? He is God's gift to us in so many ways, but this particular 'gift' to us is significant because it is often in others that we see elements of God's love and grace in ways we don't always see it in ourselves. We have the opportunity to get to know God when we get to know those God brings into our circle of influence - becau...

When the Feast of Pentecost came, they were all together in one place. Without warning there was a sound like a strong wind, gale force—no one could tell where it came from. It filled the whole building. Then, like a wildfire, the Holy Spirit spread through their ranks, and they started speaking in a number of different languages as the Spirit prompted them. (Acts 2:1-4) When we are filled with the Holy Spirit and continually renewed in his presence, the result will be that there will be less of "self" around to influence our decisions and to take our focus off of our Lord. We will experience a hunger for the Word of God that goes well beyond what we have ever known before - because the Holy Spirit is sent to teach us the things of God. He is our "tutor" in the things that relate to God's holiness, right living, and the love of our heavenly Father. There is an opening of the Word to us like never before - we call this revelation. Those things that we may have...

26  And in the same way—by our faith—the Holy Spirit helps us with our daily problems and in our praying. For we don’t even know what we should pray for nor how to pray as we should, but the Holy Spirit prays for us with such feeling that it cannot be expressed in words.  27  And the Father who knows all hearts knows, of course, what the Spirit is saying as he pleads for us in harmony with God’s own will.  28  And we know that all that happens to us is working for our good if we love God and are fitting into his plans. (Romans 8:26-28 TLB) Most days I need someone's help - if not "human help", I certainly need the help and guidance of the Holy Spirit. What is so certain is that we have DAILY problems. They aren't occasional, once in a great while, in the by and by kind of problems that emerge - they are DAILY. Sometimes we don't recognize them as problems, but they are nonetheless. Problems demand a solution - ignore them and they just get bigger. Sometimes th...

2  People think that whatever they do is right, but the  Lord  judges the reasons for everything they do.  3  Do what is right and fair. The  Lord  loves that more than sacrifices. (Proverbs 21:2-3 ERV) What are the reasons behind the actions you take? This is a reasonable question, but one that may require a bit more soul-searching than we often want to make at any given moment. It is not uncommon to "act", then think of the motivation behind those actions. It usually happens as a result of the action falling short of whatever it was you thought you were doing when you acted! It is then that you look back, wondering just how quickly your actions got that off-course. I've said this before, but it bears repeating - actions really do follow thought. We may not realize what we have been entertaining in our minds until we see the actions in play. As I have often said, having a "guard" over our thought life can be our salvation in more ways than one! ...

For his Spirit searches out everything and shows us God’s deep secrets.   11  No one can know a person’s thoughts except that person’s own spirit, and no one can know God’s thoughts except God’s own Spirit.   12  And we have received God’s Spirit (not the world’s spirit), so we can know the wonderful things God has freely given us. (I Corinthians 2:10-12 NLT) Did you ever stop to really consider why it is we are given the Spirit of God as a teacher or guide in our lives? In looking at this passage again this morning, I realized it is so we can know the really intentional and purposeful thoughts of God - so we can really get to know him on an intimate basis. It is so true that the thoughts of one man's mind are known only to him - he has to share them in his words, actions, and attitude in order for us to even get a "hint" of what might be going on in that mind. In elementary school the kids used to taunt with the saying, "It takes one to know one", whenever so...

There is great joy in having the right answer, and how sweet is the right word at the right time! ( Proverbs 15:23   VOICE ) What is the right answer?  This is the question asked in schoolrooms all around the world by teachers desiring to "test" a student's knowledge or learning. The question seems innocent enough, but when called upon to actually provide the right answer it is a bit more difficult that one may first think.  There is this thing inside many of us which society has labeled as "test-taking anxiety" which seems to abruptly interrupt the "circuitry" in our brain and we "freeze" under pressure. I don't think this phenomena is limited to the classroom, though, for I know a good many times in my own personal life where I was called upon to share  the "right answer", but came up blank! The hard disk in my brain was spinning as fast as it could, but somehow the information I was looking to produce was misfiled or just ...

We are made  free - we didn't get there on our own.  It isn't like we somehow did a "Harry Houdini" act and came out of the chains and locks "magically" - regardless of whether they were emotional, spiritual, or physical bonds.  We needed a deliverer.  I know I didn't possess the emotional stability to bring myself out of the places of depression I've experienced on occasion in my life. I also know I didn't possess the physical stamina to withstand the bonds of the things which physically wanted to keep me back like chronic pain.  We don't act as our own "deliverer" in this life - we are "made" free from those things which hold us in bondage - we aren't "making a way toward freedom" on our own.  To attempt this is as dangerous and unreliable as thinking we could find our way out of the chains and locks while submerged head first under water like Houdini. The world wants us to believe the "illusion"...

As we have been looking at the differences between the wise, simple, and foolish, we will continue today down the path of observing some of the character traits of the wise.  One of the most profound things I believe we begin to possess when we move from just having knowledge about something into a place of actually using that knowledge is this whole idea of developing a little better judgment.  Judgment is a really tricky thing - for some it comes in the form of some awful mistake-ridden steps; for others it may seem like a walk in the park. I don't know which end of the scale you might find yourself on at the moment, but I can confess to the fact of walking at both ends of the scale at one point or another!  It is kind of like watching an speedometer on your car's dashboard - it goes up and down - depending on what you are doing with your foot on the accelerator.  If you depress the gas pedal with your foot, the speedometer goes up and the car speeds forward, but ...

In most Bibles today, there are little sub-section titles which give you some idea what the chapter or section you are reading will be about.  These section or chapter titles help to focus us and get us "set" for the passage we are about to take in.  There are time when I just ignore them entirely because I find they might "sway" my opinion of what I will find in that section, though.  For example, if I think the section deals with the feeding of the five thousand, I just see this as a miracle of the fish and loaves being multiplied and a bunch of hungry people being fed.  I miss some of the detail within - like the fact that the only one in the group of five thousand who had any food being a little boy! The five thousand were just the men - you mean all the women in the group left home without packing even "snacks" for the day?  Or how about the fact that the disciples have all these empty baskets to put the food in - what does this say about empty ...

We often discount the influence of God's Spirit within us, but also how much he does on our behalf as we walk through the daily grind.  If you have ever been at the point of just not knowing what to do next because the situation just seems to be overwhelming you, you probably have been at the point you just want to give up instead of plunging ahead.  In those moments of frustration, the Spirit of God is within us encouraging, exhorting, and elevating us from the position of frustration to the place of possibility.  If we were to be entirely honest here, we'd admit that even our prayers get a little scattered in these times and we might not even want or know how to pray.  Thank goodness we have the Spirit of God to keep those prayers rising to the throne of God even when we cannot figure out how to pray or what to pray! Meanwhile, the moment we get tired in the waiting, God’s Spirit is right alongside helping us along. If we don’t know how or what to pray, it doe...

If you have ever tried to "watch your steps", you might just have tripped over your own two feet!  Worse, you actually are paying so close attention to your steps, you miss the post in front of you and run smack-dab into it!  You probably notice this the most whenever you are trying to watch what you say; for words can be the toughest things to keep a rein on, can't they?  At the moment we determine to watch our words, we can almost count on something slipping past our lips, out into the open space between us and the one who will hear them, never to be in our control again!  The main issue with US determining we are gong to influence our steps or control our tongue is our total inability to do either!  We definitely need some influence outside of our own effort to get this stuff right, don't we? I’m determined to watch steps and tongue   so they won’t land me in trouble.  (Psalm 39:1 MSG) The very next verse of this psalm points to the dilemma...

We began to explore a little about "fruit-bearing" yesterday.  As you may recall, we need to both recognize what seed is being planted and have the knowledge to know whether it is good or not.  Today, let's go a little deeper into this idea of "fruit-bearing" - keeping in mind that fruit is "grown", not just magically "given" in our lives.  We can use all kinds of excuses for any "bad fruit" we want to - truth be told, it grew there because of the seed which was planted.  On occasion, we have explored the concept of "character" being formed in our lives - a process requiring a period of time with a series of adjustments this way and that until there is evidence of God's character shining through in a pretty consistent manner.  I don't think you can consider "fruit-bearing" apart from this concept of character formation.  In fact, as fruit is becoming evident, it is only because of the "character...

Memory is a powerful tool - learning how to use it to our advantage is probably one of the most difficult tasks we can undertake, for we remember what we'd be best to let go of and we don't remember some of the most awesome moments God provides for our growth and restoration.  If you have ever caught yourself bemoaning where you ARE, you have probably forgotten where you came FROM.  We have selective memories, at best.  Focusing too intently on one thing keeps us from seeing the things we might just need to hold a little closer to our hearts. God  makes everything come out right; he puts victims back on their feet... God  is sheer mercy and grace; not easily angered, he’s rich in love. He doesn’t endlessly nag and scold, nor hold grudges forever. He doesn’t treat us as our sins deserve, nor pay us back in full for our wrongs. As high as heaven is over the earth, so strong is his love to those who fear him. And as far as sunrise is from sunset, he has separated...