A Disciple Can Only Be Like His Teacher

No matter how we count it, Jesus is bigger than we are. He endured more and will always be the example of who we are to be.

“³Consider him who endured from sinners such hostility against himself, so that you may not grow weary or fainthearted.” – Hebrews 12:3 (ESV)

The above verse is a reference one as pertains to where I was led this morning in study of the word “disciple”, Matthew 10. Jesus is sending the twelve out and is letting them know that they will be persecuted in their work. Their journey and work are not going to be easy and they should stick together and rely on their teachings and the LORD to get them through. Jesus also reminds them that they are only like Him, but not Him and certainly not greater than He.

“²⁴A disciple is not above his teacher, nor a servant above his master. ²⁵It is enough for the disciple to be like his teacher, and the servant like his master.” – Matthew 10:24-25a (ESV)

This should serve as a reminder to us that no matter how “big” or important we may be or get to, Jesus is bigger than we, and He will always be our teacher. We can only work to be like Him and not greater than Him.

I have to remember that Jesus came to save us all and He endured unspeakable persecution to the point of death, just for existing as who He was. No matter the extent of the work that I do, I will always be the disciple of Christ. Even as I take on the task of being a discipler, I will still only be a disciple myself. Jesus will always be bigger and more than I.

What is your thoughts on who you are in relation to Jesus? Do you feel that you will somehow reach heights greater than He? What if you were to see that Jesus is bigger and better and that no matter how “big” we may get, He will always be bigger and better than we?

The LORD Rewards According to the Heart

“²³…And all the churches will know that I am he who searches mind and heart, and I will give to each of your according to your works.” – Revelation 2:23b (ESV)

I have to remember that the LORD is looking in my heart. He is searching for the works that I have performed in this world, and where those works started from. It is up to me to ensure that all of the works that I am performing in this world are coming from my heart and with the guidance of the Holy Spirit.

“¹⁹I know your works, you love and faith and service and patient endurance, and that your latter works exceed the first.” – Revelation 2:19 (ESV)

Here we see the Revelation of Jesus Christ and is related to the Church in Thyatira. We see that He knows the works performed and the order of those works in the lives of the church. We should be looking for similar words from the LORD about us. We should seek to ensure that our works today are greater than our works of yesterday and that those works are driven from our heart which is filled by the LORD and guided by the Holy Spirit.

Whether we are guided from our heart by the world or by the Holy Spirit, we are rewarded in heaven for that work. When guided by the world, we are rewarded with the wrath of God. When guided by the Holy Spirit we are rewarded with treasures in heaven. But regardless, our reward is from the LORD and specific to each of us according to the works found to have come from our heart.

What works are guided from you heart? Are you proceeding to please the world? What if you were to proceed as guided by the Holy Spirit to the Glory of the LORD?

Be Tender from the Heart

“⁸Finally, all of you, have unity of mind, sympathy, brotherly love, a tender heart, and a humble mind.” – 1 Peter 3:8 (ESV)

Peter has been indicating submission, whether to authority or your husband or wife. In the above verse, he is giving the approach to that submission, including with a tender heart.

I have to remember that it is not my words, but my heart that the LORD is reviewing. He lives in my heart and I am to live from the inside and allow the Holy Spirit to guide me from my heart. And where I am to fear the wrath of God, I also have to remember that He is a gentle and caring God that loves me and wants only the best for me. I have to give that same approach to those around me.

I have to have a tender heart when doing the LORD’s Work in this world. There are those who will want to wreck me and all that I am doing for the LORD. I have to defend the LORD, but that defense is in a tender and loving way that comes from my heart and Christ who resides there.

How do you approach the world? Are you treating it the way it treats you? What if you were to be tender with the world as the LORD is tender with you?

A Pure Heart is Obedience to the LORD

We are “Called to be Holy”. And that is the title of the passage in 1 Peter I am reading through and studying this morning.

“¹⁴As obedient children, do not be conformed to the passions of your former ignorance, ¹⁵but as he who called you is holy, you also be holy in all your conduct, ¹⁶since it is written, ‘You shall be holy, for I am holy.’” – 1 Peter 1:14-16 (ESV)

Thinking about it, I am a brother of Christ. And as we are sons of God, we are called to be obedient. I am to be an example of Christ today and therefor am to be obedient to the Father as He is obedient to the father.

I have been saved by the grace of God and the death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus who went through it all for me and not for Himself. Thanks to the salvation that I have been given, I have been washed clean and received the chance to start again.

“²²Having purified your souls by your obedience to the truth for a sincere brotherly love, love one another earnestly from a pure heart,” – 1 Peter 1:22 (ESV)

I have been given that chance to start again and in doing so, I am to be obedient. That obedience is rooted in love for the LORD and keeping Him in my heart where His purity can reside. I am to keep the LORD there in my heart and love with that pure heart.

It is easy to fall into conforming to the world and the outside forces that are running rampant throughout. But we have been given instruction to “not be conformed” to those forces. We are to set aside our own desires and passions and live and love from the inside and our hearts as made pure thanks to the grace of God who resides there.

The Glory of the LORD shines from us as we are exhibiting the Love of Christ. His Glory starts in our heart and emanates from our heart where the LORD resides and has purified. Sharing His love is in obedience to Him and therefor our pure heart is in obedience.

Where is it that you share with the world? Are you an example on the outside only for the world to see? What if you were living according to the Word of God and allowing your obedience to Him shine through you from your heart which is pure thanks to the LORD?

Draw Near With and From the Heart

This morning I was led to the book of Hebrews and reminded of a sermon series titled, “Jesus is Better”. This was the series that was being delivered when I first began my dedication to studying God’s Word and sharing my learning through my writing.

“¹⁹Therefore, brothers, since we have confidence to enter the holy places by the blood of Jesus, ²⁰by the new and living way that he opened for us through the curtain, that is, through his flesh, ²¹and since we have a great priest over the house of God,²²let us draw near with a true heart in full assurance of faith, with our hearts sprinkled clean from an evil conscience and our bodies washed with pure water.” – Hebrews 10:19 – 22 (ESV)

In the verses above I was reminded that “Jesus is Better” in that He gave all of Himself in death for me. He provided the way for me to commune directly with Him and not through another. That He is the High Priest. And that I have the opportunity to draw near to Him because of it.

Here is the catch, cause as we all know there is always a catch. I come and draw near to Jesus from my heart. Not with platitudes or sayings for the world to see and hear. Not just showing up on Sunday mornings or at Christmas and Easter. Not simply through my words. But I draw near to Jesus our LORD with and from my heart that is filled with Him and where I am led by the Holy Spirit.

The title of the passage in my ESV Bible where I am in this morning is “The Full Assurance of Faith”. Not the temporary assurance. Not the assurance for now, but the “full” assurance. I know in my heart and from my heart that Jesus died in my place and that because of that, I have the chance to draw near to Him. In that chance, I am assured that He is there when I come. I know without a doubt that He is waiting for me. I am confident that He is their waiting for me with His arms wide ready to comfort and protect me from any and all. I draw near to Him with and from my heart. Jesus is Better than any and all that came before or come after.

How are you coming to Jesus? Are you coming to Him from the surface of your life? What if you were to look in your heart and find the one who is better, Jesus, and draw near to Him with and from your heart?

God’s Word Discerns the Heart

“¹²For the word of God is living and active, sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing to the division of soul and of spirit, of joints and of marrow, and discerning the thoughts and intentions of the heart.” – Hebrews 4:12 (ESV)

Yes, we lead our lives from the heart and yes, the Holy Spirit is guiding our lives from our heart. And how is it that we understand our heart and that which God has for us, we utilize His Word.

I have been doing my daily bible study and writing for almost 10 years. And over that time I know that I have grown and have found more direction. I know that today I have a better idea of my role with the LORD and the spreading of His Word, but even still I know that I am not done.

I take direction from the Holy Spirit in when and where I am to go. I may not be making impacts in the world that the world recognizes, but I am making impacts that the LORD recognizes. This is the direction that I know I am to go, and I can say without question this is due to my study of God’s Word each day.

Without God’s Word, I am not sure that I would understand the Holy Spirit’s direction means to me. I would be headed blindly ahead and just doing as I am told. Where that is, to some degree, a good thing to be that obedient, it is a bit short sighted in not understanding the why and impacts of the work being done.

Take my Bible study and writing. I am diligent and dedicated to the actions, and therefor am fulfilling that which the LORD has for me. Even still, I do not know those who are impacted. I post here and yet receive little feedback as to who and how the work I am doing is fulfilling God’s plan. Yet, I know that the LORD is using me in the way He would have me to reach even one, and that one may be the reason I am here. So, I carry on understanding that God’s Word is my why and that the LORD is using His Word to direct my heart.

How are you discerning that which is in your heart? Are you using end results to impact your next move? What if you were to lean on the LORD and His Word to provide the direction of your heart and know that direction is making the impact that He would have for you?

Maturity From the Heart

We are too often corrupted. Not even by things that are overtly corrupting. It comes from those things that are meant for in more youthful times. We are to seek maturity and not chase after our youth and those things that of our youthful time.

“²²So flee youthful passions and pursue righteousness, faith, love, and peace, along with those who call on the Lord from a pure heart.” – 2 Timothy 2:22 (ESV)

When young, we seek things of youth. We look for fun and enjoyment in the moment. And when the moment passes, we move on to the next moment. We are limited in responsibility and therefore, those moments get in the way less often than when we are in a more mature season of life. Don’t get me wrong, we should be seeking enjoyment and joy in our lives. I am not advocating for no fun or living in the moment. We should however be grounded in maturity and seeking more sustainable joy and enjoyment.

As we see in the verse above, Paul guides Timothy to those joys and enjoyment that are of a more mature way. “Righteousness, faith, love, and peace” are where we should be seeking that joy and enjoyment. These are the more mature attributes, and we will find stability and comfort in them. There is more depth to them and more thought that comes with them. They are found deep inside us and are guided from, yes you guessed it, the heart. It is from our heart, where the LORD dwells, that we find the more lasting and mature things in life.

As we grow, we not only grow in size and age, but we should be growing in maturity as well. We should be pursuing those things that come with maturity such as those listed by Paul to Timothy. We are to grow up find the LORD in our heart and allow Him to guides us forward through the Holy Spirit. We are to find our joy and enjoyment in seeking the LORD and all that He has to offer in our lives.

And for those who ask what about the fun of our youth, where does that fit. Well, it still fits and should be a part of our lives, only we are not to seek after them and if/when they taking over our focus, we are to run from them. The word Paul uses above is to “flee” or run away from those things that are not building us up in the LORD. We will find ourselves in moments of youthful fun, and we should enjoy our time in those moments, yet they should be just that in our lives, just moments. As we grow in maturity, those moments are no longer “passions” but just moments of enjoyment that we find along our path with the LORD.

Where are you spending your time? Are you seeking out continually the passions of your youth? What if you were to flee from those and sought out the maturity that comes from the LORD, righteousness, faith, love, and peace that He has in your heart where He abides?

All Service From the Heart

How often is it that we take on tasks and just work to complete them without a clear motivation or purpose? I believe this is the case a good amount of the time. The thing is this is not the proper way to approach things according to God’s Word.

“⁵Bondservants, obey your earthly masters with fear and trembling, with a sincere heart, as you would Christ, ⁶not by the way of eye-service, as people-pleasers, but as bondservants of Christ, doing the will of God from the heart, ⁷rendering service with a good will as to the Lord and not to man, ⁸knowing that whatever good anyone does, this he will receive back from the Lord, whether he is a bondservant or is free. ⁹Masters, do the same to them, and stop your threatening, knowing that he who is both their Master and yours is in heaven, and that there is no partiality with him.” – Ephesians 6:5-9 (ESV)

In the above passage we find Paul’s instruction to the church at Ephesus as relates to those serving others and those they are serving. We find that regardless of the position we are in, whether bondservant or master, we are to approach the work from the heart as we would in our service of the LORD.

I have studied this passage a number of times and each time the learning for me is about the service itself and that we are picked for the service where we are and that work is God centered. But this morning I see the work is to be both of those things and yet it comes from the heart. I am to commit to the work for the my LORD and savior as well as my earthly master in the same way, from the heart and fully devout to that work. Even as the earthly master, we are to commit the work from the heart and for the glory of the LORD and not for our own reward.

I think that too often we look at “work” in the world as that thing that is to be done, and not really enjoyed, when according to the Word of God, we are to do the work from the heart with the same intensity that we do work for the LORD. We are to devote to the work from our heart regardless of who that work is for in the moment.

I know that when I am focused of doing work, I find that time moves quickly and when I reach the end, there is a sense of satisfaction with the work. All to say that when I am concerned with who assigned the work or what is in it for others and carry animosity for the work, it seems that time stands still and the work never ends.

The approach we should have is one of doing the work from our heart to ultimately bring glory to God. Yes, we do have to engage in actions that positively impact others and less so for ourselves. But, those actions, when conducted from the heart are a gift to others and will be rewarded in heaven as we are recognized as good and faithful servants of the LORD.

Where does your attitude for work come from? Are you doing the work with animosity and anger as others seem to benefit from it? What if you approached the work with love from the heart knowing that your reward is coming in our forever home, heaven?

Love and Sing from From the Heart

I have studied the passage I was led to this morning, many times. I have even written about my study in the passage in my study of other words from the concordance in my bible. This morning I was brought here as I continue studying the word “heart”.

“¹⁹addressing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody to the Lord with your heart, ²⁰giving thanks always and for everything to God the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ,” – Ephesians 5:19-20 (ESV)

I was struck this morning reading Paul’s words to sing “to the Lord with your heart”. I am an emotional person even as I do not always display a lot of emotion to outsiders. When I am singing I have challenges with keeping my composure in that I am overcome with feelings that flow from my heart. I almost have to just look a singing as a task to complete and that I am reading words and the words have no meaning when I am singing publicly. This morning I ask myself why check myself to not let the emotion flow.

God’s Word tells us above to sing from the heart and allow the emotion to flow. In the same way, we are to love from the heart. We are to give everything to the LORD and let everyone know He is filling our heart. The world needs to know that the LORD is in our heart and that He guides our love. God is what fills us and where we sing from.

I commit this morning to expressing myself from the heart. As is my nature to be more even and less emotional to the public, it will be a struggle and subtle, but I will be praying for and working to act more from the heart for the world to see (even if the world is only those closest to me). I will sing and love from the heart to show them that it is filled with the Lord Jesus Christ.

What is it that drives your love and singing? Are you demonstrating based on those things that are on the surface and not really from your heart? What if you were let the LORD spill from your heart in your song and in your love for the world to see that your heart is filled with/by Him?

Defend the Heart over the Flesh

The LORD has armed us to defend. He has given us His Armor. We put it on daily. This morning in my continued study of the word “heart” I was brought to Paul’s second letter to the Corinthian church and the passage titled in my bible “The Ministry of Reconciliation”. Where I have been in this passage before, again, the LORD points me to another realization.

“¹²We are not commending ourselves to you again but giving you cause to boast about us, so that you may be able to answer those who boast about outward appearance and not about what is in the heart.” – 2 Corinthians 5:12 (ESV)

When we are defending, we are to focus on the heart. You see, out there in the world there are many that make claims to be of Christ. They are outward (public) Christians and want everyone to know it. And where it is great to be so bold for Christ in the public square, it is in the heart where our true allegiance to Him is found.

I do not know the heart of others as it is not my place. Yet, it is my role to defend the heart for Christ and not just the outward declarations. I have to take people at their word and then utilize the Armor of God to defend Christ and my heart for Him. I have to be aware and on guard for those who are only boasting on the outside and may not have accepted Christ in the heart. Again, I do not know their heart, but I can and should still defend Christ who is in mine.

It is hard, I know. And there is a balance that must be struck. But, when we are defend the heart, we should be determined and steadfast. We are to defend with vigor. We are to stand firm in Christ and know that as we are doing work for Him, He is actively defending, guarding, and protecting us. Be bold for Christ who is in your heart and know that the LORD is with you every step of the way.

What are you defending? Is it the actions that we see on the outside? What if you were to look inward to your heart and defend Christ who has found a home there in you?