Grieving The Holy Spirit

Ephesians 4:25 - 5:2

Most of us have known one or two angry, foul-mouthed, sour people over the years, perhaps at our job or in the neighborhood.  Because of their temper and disagreeableness we generally avoid them. What a poor testimony and disappointment it is if we find out they claim to be a Christian.  In our Scripture passage today Paul reflects on some actions and behavior we sometimes have, and how it not only reflects poorly to others, but can grieve the Holy Spirit, as well.

Our passage begins with Paul’s admonition against lying (vs 25). Not only is lying breaking the ninth Commandment, lying creates conflicts and destroys trust.  It also tears down relationships. God is a God of truth, and His followers are to be truthful at all times.  The devil is the father of lies (John 8:44), and we do not want to be aligned with him. We are not fit instruments for God’s use if we are not truthful.

Anger is another issue brought up in this passage.  In verse 26 Paul implies that there are times when anger is not wrong.  He says we can be angry, but not to let the anger lead to sin. There is such a thing as righteous anger.  Jesus displayed righteous anger when He drove the moneychangers out of the Temple (John 2:13-16). Moses had righteous anger when he came down from Mt. Sinai and saw that the people had made and were worshipping the golden calf (Exodus 32:19-29).  This is anger against sin, that hates injustice, immorality, ungodliness, and other evildoing. If this anger is based on love of God and others, Scripture shows it is permissible. We must be careful that righteous anger does not turn to bitterness or make us hostile.  We must set it aside at the end of the day. We work against the Holy Spirit, and give the devil the advantage when we let our anger get away from us. (vs 27).

Another issue that Paul speaks about here is the words we speak to each other (vs 29).  Paul warns us against using corrupt language. Corruption brings to mind what is foul or rotten, such as spoiled fruit or putrid meat.  Foul language should not be spoken by a Christian. It is out of character with our new life in Christ. A Christian’s speech should be encouraging and uplifting to others.  A believer should live and speak with grace.

Not only does our poor behavior and speech give a bad testimony to others, it grieves the Holy Spirit (vs 30-31).  God is grieved when His children live in the old ways of sin rather than the life of righteousness in Christ. We can grieve the Holy Spirit by the way we live.  Unwholesome language, bitterness, improper use of anger, brawling, slander, and bad attitudes are all behaviors we should put away from us when we’ve taken Jesus as our Savior, and the Holy Spirit indwells our heart.

Paul tells us of several actions to be cast off, but there is one thing we should be doing consistently, and that is to forgive others (vs 32). Those who have been forgiven so much by God should forgive the offenses by others. Jesus even forgave those who crucified Him (Luke 23:34). If our Lord could do that, then we should be able to pass on forgiveness to others.

Little children like to imitate their parents and other adult role models.  When we accepted Jesus as our Savior we became a child of God. Now is the time to start imitating our Heavenly Father (vs 1). Sanctification is growing in the likeness of the Lord Jesus. Our greatest calling and purpose is to be imitators of Him. We need to imitate Jesus in love and forgiveness.  Our words and behavior as Christians should be more and more like Jesus, and less like that angry and sour character we all know in our neighborhood.

David's Escape

Psalm 34

Today’s psalm is perhaps my most favorite one.  It was written by King David. The background story of this psalm is rather interesting.  David spent a number of years in his early adulthood fleeing for his life from King Saul. On one occasion David fled and received sanctuary from the king of the Philistine city of Gath, the enemy of the people of Israel (I Samuel 21:10-15).  While there, some of the king’s advisors reminded the king that this was David, from King Saul’s court, the one who had killed their hero, Goliath. David heard, and knew his life was in immediate danger. David comes up with a rather clever plan in order to escape with his life safe.  He pretends to be a crazy man, scratching the walls, slobbering all over, acting raving mad. The king then has him cast out of Gath, and David’s life is safe from him. David knew that it was the Lord God who had helped him escape from Gath in safety, and he wrote this psalm in praise to Him.  Let’s take closer look at some of the verses.

David never took any of the Lord’s blessings or protection for granted.  He praised the Lord throughout the day, every day (vs 1). Sometimes things can look rather bleak.  Nothing good seems to be happening. It sure looked that way to David in Gath, but he was going to bless the Lord at all times, praising Him continually.  We should take his response to troubled times for our example, with a heart of praise.  It is hard to fall into despair when we praise God for His love and strength. We cast out doubt by remembering God’s past faithfulness.

As we can imagine, David was afraid when he heard that they found out he was the one who had killed their champion, Goliath, and his life was in serious danger.  However, David knew that God heard him and would deliver him (vs 4). When fear, any type of fear from any source, overwhelms us, we need to seek the Lord. He hears us and cares for us, and will bring us deliverance.  No one is closer to us in the midst of our troubles than Jesus Christ. David saw this in Gath, and also all the other times he fled from Saul. David calls upon us to join him in His praise to God (vs 3).

David knew that the Lord and His angels were around him, no matter where he was, even in the enemy’s land, and would protect him (vs 7).  We are well-guarded. The only way something can touch us is if God allows it.

When we have found something good, don’t we want our friends to get the same thing?  That is what David is doing in verse 8. One thing he knew all throughout his life was how good God was to him. Here in our psalm David extends an invitation for us to come to God and experience the same gracious and loving care he has known.

In verses 9-10 we have a promise from God that those who fear Him, those who seek Him, will not lack from any good thing from Him. This is not a blanket promise that all Christians will have everything they want. All those who call upon God in their need will be answered, sometimes in unexpected ways.  God does give us good things. Not all “good things” are possessions or worldly goods. God’s idea of “good things” can be other types of blessings (James 1:17). We need to seek God, Himself, not just what He can give us. Come to Him with an open heart, not just an outstretched hand for something He can give. To have God is to have all we really need. He is enough.  God sometimes allows us to go without some things so we will grow more dependant on Him.  We need God more than our physical desires fulfilled.

Throughout this whole psalm, David testifies that no matter where we are or what is happening, the Lord is always watching over and caring for His children.  Whenever we are afraid, it is good to remember times in the past when God heard and answered our prayers in the past, and delivered us from our troubles. David knew this first hand.  God had delivered him from wild animals when a shepherd. He had delivered him from Goliath and from Saul. Now in Gath, he knew God would protect him. Let’s put our faith and trust in God during our needs, whatever they are, just as David did, and see how He will come to our aid.

An Attitude Of Gratitude

Deuteronomy 8:1-10

Our Old Testament reading for this week, from the Lectionary of the Book of Common Prayer, is from Deuteronomy.  The Book of Deuteronomy, written by Moses, is the last of the five books of the Pentateuch, or Books of the Law. The people of Israel, having been delivered from slavery, had spent the last forty years traveling in the wilderness.  Now they were camped near the eastern banks of the Jordan River, ready to cross and conquer the land of Canaan, which the Lord had promised them. Before entering the land of the Canaanites, Moses is reviewing the laws that God had given them earlier, which is what the Book of Deuteronomy is.  If the people want the Lord’s help and blessings, they must follow and obey Him.

Throughout the forty years that the people traveled through the wilderness, the Lord God provided them with food and water.  Every day He miraculously fed them with manna. This was not something they went out and hunted for with their skill, nor was it something they planted and harvested.  Nothing they did provided this food. It came from God alone. This was to teach them that physical food is not all we need to live. We need God’s Word in order to truly live (vs 3).

When Jesus was in the wilderness, fasting and in prayer to God before starting His ministry, Satan came and tempted Him.  One of the temptations Satan threw at Jesus, knowing that He was hungry, was to turn the stones He saw into bread (Matthew 4:1-4).  Jesus responded by quoting verse 3 from our passage today back at Satan. So many people today spend their lives pursuing the satisfying of their appetites for pleasure and possessions.  These things inevitably leave us empty and dissatisfied. Real and true life comes from a total commitment to God.

While speaking to the people before they were to cross the Jordan and enter the land, Moses reminded them that while they were in the wilderness, in addition to providing food, they wanted for nothing (vs 4).  He specified that their clothes never wore out, nor did they even ever get swollen feet. All those years in the wilderness, with limited resources, God made sure that their clothes stayed fresh and new so they didn’t need to make additional clothes. He also took care of even the the most insignificant of their health needs. Do we remember to thank God for all of the smaller daily blessings the Lord God gives us? The list is endless! Besides the obvious of food, shelter and health, there’s all of nature, flowers, birds, etc.  The music you enjoy, and that radio station you found that plays it. How about that good book you just read, or not missing the train you needed to catch, the compliment you received for your work? The people Moses was speaking to failed to thank Him for His care during the forty years in the wilderness.  Let us not be so ungrateful to the Lord for His blessings to us, including the less obvious ones.

As they prepared to enter the land, God was seeking to correct the people’s wayward attitude, so that they might be prepared to obediently go into the promised land (vs 5-10).  God was seeking obedience and faithfulness to Him, but also gratitude and thankfulness for His blessings and care. Why is it that people so easily forget to thank God for His blessings?  For many families saying grace before a meal is a thing of the past. It’s as if they feel that they worked hard to earn the money to buy the food, so why bother thanking God for it.  The same for their clothes, home, etc. Pride and self-centeredness get in the way. Gratitude doesn’t even enter the mind.

Just as Moses spoke these reminders to the people of Israel before they entered the Promised Land, let’s remember exactly Who gave us the blessings we have received, and give God thanks.  It is not through our own efforts that we have them, nor do they spring up by themselves. Gratitude and thankfulness are always appropriate by God’s people.

Spiritual Junk Food

John 6:24-35

In our previous two Gospel readings from Mark’s account we saw how Jesus fed the multitude with the five loaves of bread and two fish, and then walked on water to reach the disciples in the middle of the Sea of Galilee.  After they landed on the shore, the crowds came seeking Jesus again, which is where our passage in John’s Gospel picks up today.

The crowds, seeing Jesus, asked Him as to when He arrived.  Jesus knew the real reason they were seeking Him, as He knows what is in everyone’s heart (John 2:23-25).  He knew that many of the people were coming to Him because of the recent miracle of the multiplied loaves and fishes.  They were seeking Him for physical and temporal benefits, not to satisfy any spiritual hunger (vs 26). They were motivated by superficial, worldly desires, not the spiritual message Jesus had to give.

What is the world seeking after?  There is an emptiness in people, and they are seeking to fill it.  Many try to fill it with entertainment and the latest technological gadgets.  Others try to fill it with alcohol, drugs, and sex. Some will try to satisfy this empty void with various philosophies, the latest New Age gurus, and other false religions. Only Jesus has the truth, and only His way is the way to live (John 14:6).

These crowds were spiritually blind.  The feeding of the multitude and other miracles wasn’t enough.  They wanted their physical desires satisfied, and in this instance they wanted constant feeding like Moses brought with the manna (vs 30-34).  People must eat bread or food to satisfy hunger and live. Likewise we satisfy spiritual hunger and sustain spiritual life only by a right relationship with Jesus Christ.

When we are physically hungry, we can choose to eat good healthy food, or eat junk food.  The junk food may temporarily satisfy us, but ultimately leaves us empty and without any nutritional benefit.  It can also lead to sickness and poor health. Good and healthy food is just that, good and healthy. False religions and philosophies are like that junk food.  They may temporarily satisfy one’s spiritual hunger, but in the end they cannot bring true spiritual truth, and ultimately lead to eternal death. Jesus is the true bread who gives spiritual and eternal life to the world (vs 35).  We must invite Jesus into our life to spiritually live and gain eternal life.

The false religions and philosophies of the world are all based on works.  Their pathway to heaven and salvation is by doing something, a “works-based” salvation.  These people who came to Jesus that day were thinking this way (vs 28).  They wanted to know what they could do.  Jesus gave the only answer - believe on Him whom God has sent (vs 29).  The only work God wants or accepts is faith and trust in Jesus as the Messiah, the Son of God.  The only way to obtain salvation and to get to heaven, is to believe that Jesus is God’s Son, who came to pay the price for our sins, and to accept Him as your Savior.  We must accept that Jesus is who He says He is.

Are you feeding on the true Bread, Jesus Christ, or are you going after the world’s junk food, the latest guru and his false philosophies?  You may not think those beliefs so bad at first, but just as a steady diet of junk food will eventually make one ill, these false religions will lead to spiritual death.  Come to the true Bread of Life, Jesus Christ, the Son of God.

Our New Selves

Ephesians 4:17-24

Picture, if you may, a young person who is homeless and desperately poor, and whose clothes are filthy and smelly, no better than rags. By some stroke of luck this person is adopted into a wealthy family. They are bathed with soap and hot water, and given beautiful, elegant clothes.  The nasty clothes are taken and thrown out. What would you think if this young person, though grateful to be in this new family, takes his old, smelly clothes back and wears them?  No, we say! Take off those old, nasty clothes and put on the new! The Apostle Paul gives a similar picture in our passage in his letter to the Ephesians today.

When we ask Jesus into our heart, and accept Him as our Savior, we become a new person.  Paul calls this the “new man”, and the former unsaved person we were is called the “old man” (vs 22-24).  Our old, unsaved behavior and conduct is to be cast off of us just like the filthy clothes of a former homeless person’s is thrown off.  Instead, just like new clothes, we put on the holiness and righteousness we receive from Jesus when we are saved.

As Paul opens our passage, he tells his readers to stop acting like they did before they were saved (vs 17-19).  Our “walk” is our daily conduct, and the Scripture here tells us not to act like the ungodly, the unsaved (vs 17). Unbelievers are spiritually separated from God. They are in spiritual darkness and moral blindness, and their conduct shows this (vs 18).  Unbelievers are morally insensitive. They sin and turn away from God. They are behaviorally depraved.

The world is “past feeling” (vs 19), having lost all sensitivity and all feelings of shame.  Today there are no feelings of shame or embarrassment when certain topics are discussed, like there used to be.  Now everything coarse and vulgar is openly spoken of, and if Christians don’t like it, we are mocked. People have grown comfortable with sin, which is the first step on a downward slope of disaster.  If we repeatedly ignore our conscience it will become seared, and we will no longer even feel its pricks. As Christians, the Holy Spirit’s convictions should be our God-given defense against sin.

God’s priorities and the world’s priorities are completely incompatible.  Before salvation everyone wants to satisfy their own desires. The world says we can each decide what is right for us. God’s way is the opposite. He says to deny oneself and be a servant to others.

After we are saved, we have a decision to make.  We have to decide to put off the old man and put on the new man.  We have to decide to stop living like the unsaved and followers of false religions.  Their behavior is sensual, self-indulgent, impure, and greedy. Wrong thinking leads to wrong actions.

When saved, the old man no longer exists.  The new man is created in the likeness of God.  Though the old man no longer exists, we sometimes choose to act and live as though it did.  Paul tells us to decide to “put off” the old man. That describes repentance from sin and submission to God.  Paul also tells us to “put on” the new man. To do that is to live according to the truth of the Gospel. We need to renew our mind with His Word (Romans 12:2).  We must grow in obedience, love, and compassion.

It’s time for us believers to live like the family we have been adopted into.  We are no longer the dirty street urchins we were before. It’s time to take off the old filthy, contaminated clothes and destroy them.  It’s time to put on the clothes the Lord Jesus has given us.

Learning From Past Mistakes

Psalm 78

Most parents like to share with their children stories of their past. Usually our stories are complimentary of ourselves. We’ll tell of all the “A’s” we got in school, how we made the sports team or the cheerleading squad, or how we had the cutest date for the high school dance.  Everything to make ourselves look good. Do we ever tell them the bad things? The jobs we were laid off from, the mistakes we made at school, all of our disappointments and failures throughout life. In our psalm for today, the author Asaph reviews some of the nation of Israel’s past history for them, and it’s not all that flattering. Furthermore, he urges them to tell it to future generations, too.

What would the purpose be in telling one’s children our failures and mistakes of the past?  Why would Asaph tell the people their nation’s failures? Though today there may be more honesty in some school history books, in the past most history textbooks glossed over their country’s failures and instead told how great they were.  There were two reasons for this. One was so that the people of Israel, and our own children as well, would learn from past mistakes so they might not repeat them themselves. Paul knew this when he wrote to the Corinthians, telling them Biblical accounts so they could learn from their examples (I Corinthians 10:1-12).  Another equally important reason that Asaph gave was to praise and give God glory for His ongoing love and mercy, despite the people’s sins and failure.

Our psalm gives a brief overview from the time of Moses until King David took the throne.  Asaph spoke of the Ten Plagues upon Egypt (vs 42-51), God leading the people through the wilderness and providing manna and water (vs 13-31), bringing the people into the Promised Land (vs 52-55), the time of the Judges (vs 56-64), and David taking the throne (vs 65-72).

Even with these blessings and providing for the people, they continually rebelled against God, refusing to obey His laws or believing Him.  They were not faithful to Him, consistently going after false gods. They forgot all God had done for them (vs 11-12). They put Him to the test by making demands of Him (vs 18).  They lied to God, and tried to flatter Him (vs 36). They continued to forsake Him, regardless of all the works He did for them (vs 42-56).

Despite the Israelites faithlessness and sin, God continued to love and care for them (vs 38).  Many times people follow God with their words, but not with their hearts (vs 36-37). Their repentance is empty.  This was the case with the Hebrew people. How blessed and fortunate we are that God has not dealt with us according to our sins (Psalm 103:10).  God restrains His anger and gives mercy to those who have put faith and trust in Jesus (Romans 5:8-11).

As Asaph testifies, we need to remember all that God has done for us in our past, both during our good times and throughout our failures, and to praise and thank Him for what He has done.  He has been there for and with us, forgiving us when we confess and repent, leading His children like a shepherd leads his flock, protecting and caring for us (vs 52-53).

If our children learn of our past mistakes, hopefully they won’t repeat them. Asaph was hoping for this as he penned this psalm (vs 3-8) . Paul also, as he indicated in that portion of Scripture in I Corinthians.  When they see this, they will see how faithful God is to believers, forgiving us of our mistakes. How very important it is for us to tell our children and grandchildren about the Lord, and all He has done.  The saving message of Jesus must be shared with future generations.

Complainers

Exodus 16:2-15

Nothing can ruin a nice day quicker than having to spend it with a complainer. It’s even worse if you’re with the complainer on a long trip! Nothing is good for them.  They’re hungry, but then they don’t like the food. They’re thirsty, too hot or too cold, tired, uncomfortable, bored, etc, etc, etc.  We might expect that from little children, but it’s much worse when this comes from adults. This is what Moses is facing from the Israelite people in our Scripture today. Let’s look at our passage, and see what God can teach us.

It was only a few weeks prior to our account that God had miraculously delivered the people from slavery in Egypt, including parting the waters of the Red Sea.  Now they are complaining to Moses and Aaron that they have nothing to eat (vs 2-3). After they crossed the Red Sea, they entered a wilderness desert area, a hostile environment of sand and stone.  Rather than trusting God, who had proven His love and care for them, they complained and worried. When our situation isn’t ideal, instead of immediate complaints, try to look for something positive.  Even in the desert there is some beauty. Desert flowers can be some of the most beautiful, along with desert sunsets.

Imagine having been in slavery for multiple generations, then being miraculously delivered, and now once free, wishing to return to slavery!  Why? Because you don’t believe God can provide you with food! Just a few weeks ago He had delivered them from slavery to the most powerful nation the world had ever known to date, and prior to that they had witnessed the ten terrible plagues He had brought on the Egyptians.  They had an attitude of negativism and self-centeredness, along with a short memory.

God was gracious, loving, and merciful to the Israelites, despite their ungracious complaints, and He promised them food, manna, for each day (vs 4).  God provided for their needs on a daily basis, not all at once. The miraculous food of manna, which came every morning, lasted only a day. They were to only gather enough manna for each day.  If they gathered more, it rotted (Exodus 16:20). This teaches us to live one day at a time, trusting each day for His provisions. Jesus teaches us the same lesson in the Lord’s Prayer - “Give us this day our daily bread” (Matthew 6:11).  God was testing the people to see if they would trust and obey Him.  The Lord sometimes tests us to see if we will obey Him. We might not understand everything, but our obedience will bring blessings.  He will provide for our needs.

The Israelites had seen one miracle after another, God providing and protecting them step after step, but they still lacked faith and worried. Throughout their journey, from the first day onward, the Israelites complained and wished they were back in Egypt. Before we get too critical of them, let’s look at ourselves.  How quick many of us are to forget all that God has done, and continues to do for us. When situations get rough, and stress levels high, complaining and anger is often the response.  This is really a lack of trust in God. Instead we need to focus on God’s power and deliverance.

Complaining about circumstances and blaming others is really complaining against God (vs 8).  Between verses 7 and 9 we read “your complaint” four times, and “you complain” once. I have to ask myself how many times am I complaining, rather than praising God for His blessings and provisions?  After all He has done for us, is it really that difficult to trust Him?

Jesus compared Himself to manna (John 6:48-51).  Just as the manna satisfied the daily physical needs of the people, Jesus Christ is our daily bread who satisfies our eternal spiritual needs.  Have you accepted Him as your personal Savior? If not, do not let another day pass before you call upon Him for salvation.

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I pray that you have enjoyed and benefited from these Bible meditations that I have written for this blog.   I hope you will prayerfully consider donating as the Lord might lead you. This blog is not run through a large ministry with a wide funding base.  I am an individual with limited financial resources. Thank you and God bless.