To recap…

Knowing God’s Word + Believing God’s Word + Applying God’s Word = God’s Will

The more of each element we have, the more of God’s Will we’ll be able to do.

So how can we grow in each of these elements?

Let’s just take “Knowing God’s Word”.  How can you grow in Knowing God’s Word?

Obviously you could start with church and daily devotions.  But you can’t just stop there.  The scriptures are so deep that we can’t get everything out of it just by reading some random chapter each night.

Pretend you read this verse during your devotional…

1CO 3:1 Brothers, I could not address you as spiritual but as worldly–mere infants in Christ. [2] I gave you milk, not solid food, for you were not yet ready for it. Indeed, you are still not ready. [3] You are still worldly.

Now, who was the author of the passage?  Who was he writing it to?  Why was he writing it?  What problems was he trying to address?

So you might know what it says, but do you know what it means?

If you don’t know what it means, how can you believe it?  How can you apply it?

This is where the limits of your own understanding stop and you need to call in help.

I’ll talk about where you need to get help in a different devotional, because before you get to the help, you need to realize that we all need help.

A lot of times when things are going relatively well and we’re fed, clothed and sheltered, we get lulled into a feeling that we have things under control. And when reliance on God and Scripture isn’t really tested, our devotion to his Word sometimes doesn’t take the priority it should.

It’s kinda like only watching what we eat and exercising when we’re overweight.  We really should be doing it all the time, but it’s only when things are bad does it become a priority.

If we are doing our best to stay healthy, then when we’re needed like having to save a bunch of kids from the tenth story of a burning building, we’ll be in shape to go into action.  Or we’ll be able to swim further and longer, preventing ourselves from drowning when things get bad.

But we have to realize we need to work out.  We can’t think we’re awesome on our own, because that would be pride.

So we’d want to get pride out of the way first.  And how do we eradicate any sense of pride?  With it’s opposite…

Humility.

We must understand we are like helpless children who need guidance and protection.  We don’t hold the right answers.  In fact, a lot of times we hold all the wrong answers.

So what do we do?  

We have to realize that our spiritual lives are a lot like our physical lives.  We need to work on humility, knowing that we’re not where we should be, then we need to exercise daily – if we are to be ready for action (ministry) or keep ourselves from drowning (getting upset when things go wrong).

Come up with a plan for your ‘exercising’, for staying spiritually healthy.  It’s not enough to say, “I’m gonna lose weight.”  How are you going to do it?

How many times a week will you run a mile?  How often will you meet up with your friends at the gym?

The humble know they can always improve.  And that’s why the Scripture says,

James 4:6 But he gives us more grace. That is why Scripture says: “God opposes the proud but shows favor to the humble.”

The humble will be ready to minister when the time comes and will be able rely on Him when things get tough.

MT 18:1 At that time the disciples came to Jesus and asked, “Who is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven?”

MT 18:2 He called a little child and had him stand among them. [3] And he said: “I tell you the truth, unless you change and become like little children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven. [4] Therefore, whoever humbles himself like this child is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven.

PHP 2:5 Your attitude should be the same as that of Christ Jesus:

PHP 2:6 Who, being in very nature God,
did not consider equality with God something to be grasped,

PHP 2:7 but made himself nothing,
taking the very nature of a servant,
being made in human likeness.

PHP 2:8 And being found in appearance as a man,
he humbled himself
and became obedient to death–
even death on a cross!

PHP 2:9 Therefore God exalted him to the highest place
and gave him the name that is above every name,

PHP 2:10 that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow,
in heaven and on earth and under the earth,

PHP 2:11 and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord,
to the glory of God the Father.

PHP 2:12 Therefore, my dear friends, as you have always obeyed–not only in my presence, but now much more in my absence–continue to work out your salvation with fear and trembling, [13] for it is God who works in you to will and to act according to his good purpose.

Today’s Fruit of the Spirit: Love, love for God and His Word

Take time to pray: Ask God to help you with humility and for wisdom to come up with a good plan of spiritual exercise.

We discussed how there are three parts to God’s Will.  But what happens if you take one of these pieces out?  What would that look like?  Can we identify it in our own lives if we see it?  What exactly is in a Taco Supreme?  These burning questions and more in today’s exciting devotional.

As we said in the previous devotional:

Knowing God’s Word + Believing God’s Word + Applying God’s Word = God’s Will

But what happens a lot of times is we think we’re doing God’s will but in fact we leave out one of the elements in the equation.

That would be like saying: 1 + 1 – 1 = 3

Or that would be like saying a Taco Supreme is still a Taco Supreme without the shell, or the sour cream, or the intestines.

Let’s see what happens when we take one of these things out.

Let’s say Billy hits you in the face.  The Bible says to turn the other cheek.

“I know God’s Word says to turn the other cheek.  I believe that it’s the right thing to do.  But instead I’m going to disobey it and hit Billy in the face with my Taco Supreme.”  That’s just flat out rebellion.

Knowing God’s Word + Believing God’s Word – Applying God’s Word = Rebellion.

What happens if we remove the second element, Believing God’s Word.

“I know God’s Word says to turn the other cheek, but I really don’t want to, but I’ll do it anyways.”  Or my mom tells me to say I’m sorry to Billy, but I’m not sorry, but I say sorry anyways.

Knowing God’s Word – Believing God’s Word + Applying God’s Word = Legalism

Legalism is following rules, not because you actually care or understand why, but just for the rule’s sake.

What about taking out the first element?  Knowing God’s Word.

If you don’t base it in God’s Word what are you replacing it with?  Your word (or Satan’s, or the world’s).

You could be completely sincere about your love for God and do a whole ton for God.  But if it’s not based in God’s Word, you’re calling it God’s Will but really doing your own will.

“I believe that that God says in the Bible that I need to punch Billy in the mouth.  And God I really want to do your will, so I will not only punch Billy in the mouth, I will do it many times, while praising you.”

When done to the extreme you’ll see the crazy type of Christians who, in the name of Christ, kill others or carry protest signs with hateful words.

We have to completely rewrite the equation because none of it would be based in God’s Word.  It would actually look like…

Knowing my will + Believing my will is God’s Will + Applying my will = Emotionalism (or in more extreme cases, Fanaticism).  

So what do we do?

We need to be in communion with God’s Word if we are to know it, believe it and act on it.

God’s Word has to be the core of our day.  Devotionals, Bible studies, church, memorized verses all help.

But sometimes we may not be able to pull out a super specific Scripture that tell us what to do – but in the meantime we still need to act.  In those cases we can live by the general principles found in verses such as the Fruit of the Spirit (Gal 5:22, 23) or the Love Chapter (1 Cor 13:4-7).

I really like these passages because they are those one-size-fits-all type of verses.  Scripture is true no matter what, and these verses sum up a lot of other passages and themes very conveniently.

Of course you need to dig a little deeper because you want a Biblical definition of love, of patience, of goodness.

So when you do this… as you go about making decisions, you can be sure that what you are doing is a correctly defined Biblical passage that you can know, believe and do.  And therefore accomplish God’s Will.

And then maybe Billy won’t have to pick out taco supreme intestines out of his busted mouth.

 James 2 ¹⁴ What good is it, my brothers and sisters, if someone claims to have faith but has no deeds? Can such faith save them? ¹⁵ Suppose a brother or a sister is without clothes and daily food. ¹⁶ If one of you says to them, “Go in peace; keep warm and well fed,” but does nothing about their physical needs, what good is it? ¹⁷ In the same way, faith by itself, if it is not accompanied by action, is dead.

¹⁸ But someone will say, “You have faith; I have deeds.”

Show me your faith without deeds, and I will show you my faith by my deeds. ¹⁹ You believe that there is one God. Good! Even the demons believe that—and shudder.

²⁰ You foolish person, do you want evidence that faith without deeds is useless? ²¹ Was not our father Abraham considered righteous for what he did when he offered his son Isaac on the altar? ²² You see that his faith and his actions were working together, and his faith was made complete by what he did. ²³And the scripture was fulfilled that says, “Abraham believed God, and it was credited to him as righteousness,” and he was called God’s friend. ²⁴ You see that a person is considered righteous by what they do and not by faith alone.

²⁵ In the same way, was not even Rahab the prostitute considered righteous for what she did when she gave lodging to the spies and sent them off in a different direction? ²⁶ As the body without the spirit is dead, so faith without deeds is dead.

Today’s Fruit of the Spirit to Work on: Faithfulness (faithfulness to His Word).

Take time to Pray: Pray that God would give you wisdom to see when you are missing one of the elements of His will.

HEB 12:1 Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles, and let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us.

So according to this verse we need need to throw off “everything that hinders.”

But what hinders us?  What are the sins that so easily entangle us?

If our goals we have for ourselves are truly goals that God has for us, then the things that hinder our goals also hinder us from doing God’s will.

So what’s a good way to figure out what hinders us?

If I find myself unable to accomplish a goal (which is often), I try to figure out which one of the fruit of the spirit I’m lacking to get the goal done.

But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control (Gal 5:22-23)

One of my goals this year is to run 12 miles per week.  If I skip my run for a day cause I’m lazy, well the fruit of the spirit I’m lacking is self-control.  And actually half the goals I miss is due to lack of self-control… or another way of saying it is that it’s a lack of discipline.

Another goal is to spend time doing a devotional every day.  Same thing.  I need self-control.  Self-control to set aside time and to set aside other activities.

Another goal I have is to set aside a certain amount each month for my retirement account.  Again, it’s self-control… with spending and by taking time to come up with a budget.

If I want to decrease raising my voice at my wife and kids, then it’s a mix of fruit – love, patience, gentleness and self-control.

The thing is I may have a fruit of the spirit in one area, but lack the same fruit of the spirit in another area.  Just because I’m becoming more patient in traffic, doesn’t mean I’m becoming more patient with my family.

So a particular fruit of the spirit that I lack needs to be worked on in each separate goal.

I find that this works for me because it simplifies how I find my weakness.  It’s not TV that’s bad, it’s my lack of self-control by not turning it off when it’s time to accomplish some goals.  It’s not videos games that are bad, but my lack of self-control by playing too much.

Finding the fruit of the spirit I lack is much easier than trying to figure out the million reasons that prevent me from exercising (like TV, sleeping or leprechauns)…

If I don’t want to exercise – I’ll find a reason.

Finding the fruit of the spirit is getting to the core of the problem because…

What we choose to do, or not do, is ultimately a spiritual decision. Because decisions start in the heart.

We’re not robots that are programmed – we actually make decisions.  What do I do now?  Should I eat pork rinds or run?  Should I buy this car now or wait till next year?

Because we actually have to make decisions to live life, and decisions start in the heart… our goals are tied into our hearts. And that’s why finding the right fruit of the spirit is critical.

So what do we do?

We should go to our list of goals and figure which fruit of the spirit we need to have to be successful with that goal, then add that along with our goals to our prayers.

And that’s why I’ve been praying for patience.  I’ll need patience and perseverance if I am to accomplish my goal of eating one bag of pork rinds per day.

HEB 12:1 Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles, and let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us. [2] Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy set before him endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. [3] Consider him who endured such opposition from sinful men, so that you will not grow weary and lose heart.

Take time to pray: Ask God for wisdom to identify which fruit of the spirit you need for each of your goals.

Resolutions really are us changing what we love and prioritize.

Here’s a good verse that takes that and uses an analogy of two masters:

MT 6:24 “No one can serve two masters. Either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other.

That’s cause we can’t magically split ourselves into two people and have one listen to the first master and the second self listen to the second master.

That would really come in handy for dudes since half the girls out there are always asking dudes to buy them useless stuff like birthday presents and $15 dollar salads – but then at the same time these girls ask them to spend more time with them.  And last I checked, you can’t make the money to buy all that stuff by spending time with girls.  I know this guy who tried that.  The only thing he got was an ulcer.

We have finite bodies, with finite amounts of time and resources.

If you choose to sit down and watch TV, you inherently have chosen not to do other things like exercise, do devotions or build a giant robot.

At any particular point in time, you are inherently asking yourself, “What is my priority right now?”

I don’t want to say that if you sit down and watch TV for five minutes that your priority isn’t God.  Maybe before that you evangelized to thirty people that day, built a church and sang nothing but Celine Dion songs.

If you write down all those priorities during the day you’ll see what your overall priority is – and more importantly – who you serve.

Does your priority list look like you serve yourself or God?

Try this…

Ask yourself, “What priorities does God want me to have?  If God got a hold of my calendar and came up with a schedule for me, what would it look like?”

“If God were to write down my New Year’s Resolutions for me, what would be on that list?”

Right after you’re done reading this, take a couple minutes to jot down what you think God’s priorities for your life for this year are.

And no, $15 salads are not a priority.

MT 6:24 “No one can serve two masters. Either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and Money.

MT 6:25 “Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more important than food, and the body more important than clothes? [26] Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they? [27] Who of you by worrying can add a single hour to his life?

MT 6:28 “And why do you worry about clothes? See how the lilies of the field grow. They do not labor or spin. [29] Yet I tell you that not even Solomon in all his splendor was dressed like one of these. [30] If that is how God clothes the grass of the field, which is here today and tomorrow is thrown into the fire, will he not much more clothe you, O you of little faith? [31] So do not worry, saying, `What shall we eat?’ or `What shall we drink?’ or `What shall we wear?’ [32] For the pagans run after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them. [33] But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well

Take time to pray: Ask God for wisdom on what His priorities are for your life.

Today’s Fruit of the Spirit: Love.  A love for God so as to value what He values.

For Christians we of course can also think about resolutions we can make about our spiritual life like reading the Bible, or being committed to prayer, or finding your callings, or finding places of ministry.

This begs the question – why weren’t we doing these things before?

The reason we come up with resolutions is because we weren’t motivated enough to do those things in the first place.  And it being a new calendar year isn’t this great magical reason to get started.

So what would be the right reason to get started?

If you weren’t doing devotions in the first place, why would you start now just because the calendar flipped?

What new year’s resolutions show us is what motivates us.  And what motivates us?

Love.

Do you love double cheeseburgers more or your weight.  Do you love having a nicer car more or being in debt.  Do you love American Idol more or your dignity?

What do you love?

Your new year’s resolutions will give you a hint to that.

When we look at our resolutions, we really are saying that we want to fix the priorities of what we love.

And for Christians, what we really want to do is make sure that we love… what God loves.

God loves when we honor him by being good stewards of his money. God loves when we honor Him by taking care of the bodies he’s given us.

God loves when we display more of the fruit of the spirit by trying to have more self control when we try to quit smoking, spend less time on the internet, or eat less pork rinds.

The right motivation for us to change should be our love for God.  It should be the basis to get started on our resolutions.

Maybe that’s why we fail so often at our resolutions… because we don’t see them as accountable to anyone other than ourselves.  If our motivation for resolution is our love for God, then we’ve coupled our resolution with accountability to God.  If we fail, it’s not just ourselves that we disappoint, but God as well.

So what do we do?

Whatever new year’s resolutions you come up with this year, make sure you tie it into your love for God because doing something like exercising more or less is useless unless your resolution is something that you think God loves AND you’re doing it out of love for God.

And hopefully God loves pork rinds because that’s what’s most of my new year’s resolutions involve.

Col 3:23 Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord

Take time to Pray: Pray for a desire to love what God loves so it can help you with your resolutions.

Today’s Fruit of the Spirit to work on: Love.

During this Christmas time it’s easy to say, “let’s remember the true meaning of Christmas.”  It’s also easy to say, “I’m going to eat three pounds of pork rinds.”  But some things are easier said than done.

Yeah yeah Conrad, the “true meaning” of Christmas is the gift of Christ and not material things like smartphones, TVs and handguns.

But so what?  We know that.  Great. Now what?  What we do with that?

Christians go around thinking they know the true meaning of Christmas, but spend the Christmas shopping period acting like everyone else.  Thinking stuff like, “Man, these other shoppers are idiots, this traffic sucks, that cashier looks like he just ate three pounds of pork rinds.”

The true meaning of Christmas isn’t knowing that it’s about Christ…

The true meaning of Christmas is living like Christ.

When we go out Christmas shopping, are we in a loving mood?  Do we bring joy to the cashier?  Do we rejoice in long lines and parking lot chaos?

When we get together with our families, are we the ones serving and cleaning up the mess with a smile on our face?  Do we forgive our relatives for being jerks for the past three years?

It’s pointless to know that Christmas is about Christ if it doesn’t affect how we live.

So as we understand what Christmas is about, let us allow it to change how we act.  How we interact with other people, how we interact with our family and how we view life.

Let us be Christ to others.  And let us live life knowing about the amazing gift of salvation.

During this season, let’s not just remember what Christmas is about, let’s live it.

James 1:22 Do not merely listen to the word, and so deceive yourselves. Do what it says.

Take time to pray right now: Pray for help to live like Christ.

Today’s Fruit of the Spirit to work on: Whatever fruit you need according to the situation as you are shopping (love, patience, self-control)

The unexpected is at the core of Christmas.  And it’s found in this verse…

Luke 2[10] But the angel said to them, “Do not be afraid. I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people. [11] Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; he is Christ the Lord. [12] This will be a sign to you: You will find a baby wrapped in cloths and lying in a manger.”

Okay, so God, coming down to earth, in the form of a human, as the Savior of the world.  Born to two nobodies, in some little town, not in a castle or palace, not even in a condo.  But a stable, and His crib was a feeding trough.

Why?

Humans think backwards.  We think power is how many people you have serving you.  But it’s really the opposite, it’s how many people you are serving.

Matt 20[28] just as the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.”

PHP 2:7 but made himself nothing, taking the very nature of a servant, being made in human likeness.

MK 9:35 Sitting down, Jesus called the Twelve and said, “If anyone wants to be first, he must be the very last, and the servant of all.”

The whole reason for Christmas was so that Christ could “serve and give his life a ransom for many.”

Christ’s servanthood is an aspect we should focus on this Christmas time.  This is how we can truly celebrate Christmas, by imitating Christ.

As you do your last minute shopping, as you get together with your family as you live your life – be a servant.  Show humility.  Minister.

And be the servant of all.

This Christmas, let’s not just talk Christmas, but let’s live Christmas by serving.

PHP 2:7 but made himself nothing,

taking the very nature of a servant,

being made in human likeness.

PHP 2:8 And being found in appearance as a man,

he humbled himself

and became obedient to death–

even death on a cross!

PHP 2:9 Therefore God exalted him to the highest place

and gave him the name that is above every name,

PHP 2:10 that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow,

in heaven and on earth and under the earth,

PHP 2:11 and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord,

to the glory of God the Father.

Take time to pray: Ask God for wisdom for ideas an opportunities to serve and minister.

Today’s Fruit of the Spirit: Kindness