The Very Costly Purchased Possession

"...you were sealed with the Holy Spirit of promise, who is the guarantee of our inheritance until the redemption of the purchased possession, to the praise of his glory." Ephesians 1:13-14 "The purchased possession…' I cannot read this without my mind going back to that day, the day I was born again, because this is how the man who brought me to the Lord said it to me ..."The purchased possession." What he said was this: "You are a house with many, many rooms. There are 'nice' rooms, and there are rooms that are not so nice. And ...there are hidden rooms, rooms locked tight which no one can go in to. Are you happy with the condition of your house as you have been the owner there?" I was a broken soul so I answered, "No. Obviously I'm not." He continued: "The Lord Jesus Christ wants to purchase the house. Before you respond, listen carefully to the terms of the purchase. When he has become the owner of your house, he will go in and make major renovations. First, he'll fix the faulty foundation. That's going to mean digging and cementing, and it might hurt. Next he'll clean out the garage, a very dark and dirty place. It needs to be thoroughly cleaned. Next he'll begin redoing the rooms, one at a time. He will strip them bare. All decorations will be taken down, and then he will paint it fresh, and put new and different decorations up. Finally, he will open up the hidden rooms, those dark places you have never allowed anyone to go into. When he is the owner he will go into them and remove all the darkness, opening them up to fresh air and light. All of this is going to be uncomfortable to you. You will wince with every hammer blow and with every nail that he pounds. Now listen carefully: the whole purpose of this is to take your shack and make it into a palace fit for the King to dwell in." "Are you willing to hand to Jesus Christ the keys to your home?" "I know one thing," I said, "I'm surely not happy with the way my life has turned out. So yes, I am willing to hand the keys to Jesus Christ and let him take over completely." "There's more," he said. "There is a purchase price which you must agree to. He has paid the price. He paid it with his own blood, the blood he shed for you by dying in your place on a cruel cross. If you understand that, then you can be sure that he will take good care of your house after having paid such a tremendous price for it." That scene is a true story, and it took place many years ago, on the day I was born again. Jesus Christ has done exactly what that man told me he would. There were many more changes than I ever expected, and some were very painful, but my life today bears absolutely no resemblance to the condition of my heart back then. If this touches you, pray with me: Father, I have not been a good manager of my "house." My life bears the image of someone who didn't know what he/she was doing. It's the fruit of years of doing things "my way." I ask you, I invite you, to take over the ownership of this house. I realize you will come in and make major changes, and I understand that some of it will hurt. But it seems to me like going to a doctor who prescribes a very unpleasant treatment, you take it because it's the one that will work - but in order for it to work one has to actually take the treatment. You are the great physician and I am willing to take the treatment, I'm willing to relinquish my life to you because I know I can trust that your will for me is good. Here are the keys to my house, Lord. Every one of them is there, I have not kept any hidden room back from your sight. Redo me from the inside out, so that in the end both you and I will be pleased that this shack was turned into a palace fit for the King to dwell in. And then you and I will dwell in it together ...forever!

What Is Wisdom? Where Can It Be Found?

"Have I not written to you excellent things of counsels and knowledge, that I may make you know the certainty of the Words of truth, that you may answer Words of truth to those who send to you?" Proverbs 22:20-21 "of counsels and knowledge…" Wisdom it is not acquired from the resources of the world which are often wrong and often deceiving. People heed "experts," but experts can be wrong, sometimes very wrong, they develop their knowledge from the wrong sources. Their counsels come from the wisdom of the world, and that is ...foolishness. "For the wisdom of this world is FOOLISHNESS with God." 1st Corinthians 3:19 The source of wisdom is the Word of God, and it is certain, it is sure, it is ...the truth. Therefore, any position that opposes the Word of God is foolishness. For example, the "theory" of evolution. The world insists that people believe it, in fact professors have lost their jobs for refusing to teach it as truth, but the bottom line is that it contradicts God's account of how this world came into being, and so it is FOOLISHNESS. When you note the multitudes of people who believe it, you get some idea of the magnitude of the foolishness of the world. And this is only one "theory" that is clearly false, therefore it behooves us to look with a critical eye at all "the philosophies of the world." Another example is the "Arab-Israeli conflict." It's almost comical to watch the great men of the world deciding how they're going to solve it. If they knew the Word of God, they would cease trying because they would know they are not going to succeed. This is a great example of the "foolishness" of the world. God has shown in his Word how that conflict is going to be settled, and there is no man on earth who will be able to accomplish it. God alone will settle it. Consider the "Rapture." The Lord has promised to remove the born-again believers from the earth before the seven-year "Tribulation," begins. Satan has gone to great lengths to mock this event, causing men to come up with all kinds of arguments stating why they don't believe it. Again, this is a great example of "foolishness," just as the flood of Noah seemed as foolishness to the men watching him build an ark in a place where it didn't rain - and oh how they mocked him! The fact is the rains came and they all perished except for Noah and his family. Jesus said that "the last days" - which we are clearly in - will be "as the days of Noah." Something is going to happen that the world not only doesn't believe, but that they scoff at and mock those who do. And the result is going to be the same. Friends, desire wisdom. In God's eyes it is the most valuable thing one can find. Pick up the Word of God, the Bible, and begin reading it. His Word is true, and it's the ONLY thing one can rely on to be truth. Begin reading it and seek after wisdom in the only place it can be found. "Wisdom is the principal thing; Therefore get wisdom. And in all your getting, get understanding." Proverbs 4:7

How Divisions Start

"For I say, through the grace given to me, to everyone who is among you, not to think of himself more highly than he ought to think, but to think soberly, as God has dealt to each one a measure of faith." Romans 12:3 This is where many of us get into trouble. It can be a tough one, one that causes division and separation in the Body of Christ. The passage goes on to say: vs: 4-6 "For as we have many members in one body, but all the members do not have the same function, so we, being many, are one body in Christ, and individually members of one another. Having then gifts DIFFERING according to the grace that is given to us, let us use them…" The point is that God equips each one with all that goes along with the person's gifting and calling. The believer's very personality will have been crafted to support his calling in the Body of Christ, and that will make us all different. For example, it speaks of one "who shows mercy" as a specific calling. That person will generally be soft-spoken, kind, and gentle. We all know people like that. A teacher, on the other hand, is usually going to be of the serious sort, focused on doctrines, and associating with people of like mind. These two may have little in common. Then the passage cites "ministry" as one of the callings. Someone who whose gift is in this area is going to be interested in all that makes up the ministry. Imagine administrators, coordinators, overseers, elders, and the like. Now ...can we see how these differences can cause division? One who has mercy as his calling might chafe, for example, at decisions made by administrators, especially if there seems to be anyone whose feelings get hurt in the process of administration. Resentments build, the mercy-giver starts thinking (and, God forbid, speaking) ill against the administrator, and lo and behold we have a problem. This is how divisions can be launched in the Body of Christ. We all want to be with like-minded people and that's perfectly ok, even necessary, because we support each other when we understand each other; furthermore, sharing perspectives, sharing cares, praying for each other, it all comes more naturally when we're doing so with people of like character and callings, with whom we share interests, viewpoints, and ...life.. But getting back to the opening verse, we are counseled by the Lord: "...not to think of himself more highly than he ought to think, but to think soberly, as God has dealt to each one a measure of faith." In other words, before we write off a brother or sister with whom we disagree or whom we chafe at, it's important first to take into consideration that person's calling and see if our disagreement is not really a disagreement over truth or principle but rather over each one's natural approach to things, which may be different from ours by very nature. This is where God calls us to patience and forbearance, and to soberly consider that that person is following his own call, and never to think that that person is inferior because he/she sees things in a totally different light than we do. Brothers and sisters, we need to give great respect to the various gifts and callings and ministries and functions that God has sovereignly placed within the Body of Christ, especially when they ARE so very different from ours, and restrain the tendency to let it become an issue between us. Anything less is showing a great disrespect for the gifts and callings that GOD HIMSELF has provided and placed among us, which must be lived out each according to its own character. The bottom line is that we must love one another and hold in the highest respect each one's place in the Body of Christ.