Unwarranted

Unwarranted

Revelation 6: ³ Then the Lamb broke open the second seal; and I heard the second living creature say, “Come!” ⁴ Another horse came out, a red one. Its rider was given the power to bring war on the earth, so that people should kill each other. He was given a large sword.

 

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Walking down the hall after practice, I was met with a fist in the chest. I saw stars and in a dizzy state fell against the lockers. Tired of bullies, I wanted to get “big.” I lifted weights and became stronger. One guy at the gym who was bigger than me wanted to go to a bar to pick on people. “No thanks” I replied.

 

• I thought that fighting was a good idea until I was invited to do the bullying.
• I thought that I needed to be prepared for battle, so I wanted to get my defenses up.
• I thought that if someone was combative, I needed to be combative to “win.”

 

John, the disciple JESUS loved, heard the second living creature say “Come!” after the second seal of Satan’s sentence scroll was opened. A spirit of combativeness was unleashed, causing people to fight and to kill one another. This is the second step in tearing down Satan’s kingdom.

 

My Observations:

• GOD showed us how HE would take down Satan’s kingdom by using unwarranted fights.
• War can easily happen when the heart is ready to fight.
• Destruction is the solution of war.

 

Fighting stinks and unwarranted fighting stinks more. I mean, whether passive or aggressive, attacks, combat and war only ends up in destruction. No one wins. BUT GOD has a remedy. JESUS.

 

Every human is capable of war because there is a war inside us. At times we fight against GOD by trying to get our own way and other we side with HIM by trying to get HIS way. Fortunately for us HIS will, will be done.

 

Challenge

• What is the tone of the writer?
• Have you ever been so frustrated that your only way out is to fight?
• Will you mimic JESUS and drop your defenses by adding love as your weapon today?

Offense Defense

Offense Defense

2 Corinthians 2: ⁵ Now, if anyone has made somebody sad, he has not done it to me but to all of you—in part, at least. (I say this because I do not want to be too hard on him.) ⁶ It is enough that this person has been punished in this way by most of you. ⁷ Now, however, you should forgive him and encourage him, in order to keep him from becoming so sad as to give up completely. ⁸ And so I beg you to let him know that you really do love him. ⁹ I wrote you that letter because I wanted to find out how well you had stood the test and whether you are always ready to obey my instructions. ¹⁰ When you forgive people for what they have done, I forgive them too. For when I forgive—if, indeed, I need to forgive anything—I do it in Christ's presence because of you, ¹¹ in order to keep Satan from getting the upper hand over us; for we know what his plans are.

 

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Seeing the car dart in front of me gave me offense. I couldn’t do anything about it, so I carried that offense down the road. I missed the light I usually made and when I got to the parking lot I could see a car slip into my usual spot. I was offended. In many meetings, people kept saying offensive things like asking for the day off when we had a lot of work to do. Everyone was pretty offensive that day.

 

• I had a day that I wanted to be angry.
• I had a day that I carried one offense to the next.
• I had a day that I was looking for fights and I easily found them.

 

Paul writes about a specific person who offended many. He did not justify the offenders actions, nor did he say the punishment given was too harsh. He did however limit the offense time for a greater purpose. He wants people to forgive to keep the offender from giving up completely after receiving reasonable punishment. Causing people to give up is a plan of Satan.

 

My Observations

• When I get offended, GOD wants me to take a moment to give it to HIM.
• When I get offended, GOD wants me to see if it is a tactic of Satan to throw me off my praise.
• When I get offended, GOD wants me to understand that forgiveness is the only way from the bondage of hate to the freedom of love.

 

Love sets me free. I mean, when I set my prayers on the offender, I must realize that I am going to the thrown of GOD. I have two choices; “Hurt my offender” OR “Forgive my offender.” The latter of the two is the choice GOD wants me to make all the time, because HE did the same for me.

 

But this is not easy. It sometimes takes a little time and maturity to forgive. Quite honestly, sometimes it doesn’t happen. BUT GOD understands that too. The more I can forgive, the freer I can be. I am glad GOD can make my days stress free when I let go of offenses. HE also enables me to sleep by not being offended.

 

Challenge

• What do you notice about the offender in this passage?
• Have you ever messed up so bad that you needed to be forgiven?
• Does your offended state offend others?
• What offenses can you let go of so you can be free as CHRIST has set you free?

Cannot Be Stolen

Cannot Be Stolen

John 16: ¹⁹ Now Jesus knew that they desired to ask Him, and He said to them, “Are you inquiring among yourselves about what I said, ‘A little while, and you will not see Me; and again a little while, and you will see Me’? ²⁰ Most assuredly, I say to you that you will weep and lament, but the world will rejoice; and you will be sorrowful, but your sorrow will be turned into joy. ²¹ A woman, when she is in labor, has sorrow because her hour has come; but as soon as she has given birth to the child, she no longer remembers the anguish, for joy that a human being has been born into the world. ²² Therefore you now have sorrow; but I will see you again and your heart will rejoice, and your joy no one will take from you.

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Seeing the broken glass made my heart race. I looked into my car and to my dismay, all of my music had been stolen. All of that hard work, meticulously collecting the right songs that pleased my moods, was gone. I was not very happy.

• I have been robbed.
• I have had thieves threaten to shoot me.
• I have lost several items to burglars, liars and people who I was supposed to trust, stealing ideas, to claim it as their own.

JESUS explains the temporary nature of sorrow. It will only be here for a little while. BUT GOD has a remedy for sorrow that surpasses all understanding.

• GOD wants me to focus on joy rather than happiness.
• GOD wants me to be filled with joy rather than fleeting pleasure.
• GOD wants me to take joy into difficult days with difficult people.

Happiness, I find, is fleeting. I mean when things are new and shiny, I may be “happy”, but when the thing gets old, rusty or torn, I may not be as pleased with it. BUT GOD wants me to have something that lasts forever, namely joy.

When I am filled with joy, pain becomes temporary. I mean, when that stuff is stolen, or that person is causing strife, joy kicks in and enables me to calm down from being riled up. Joy doesn’t always stop me from getting angry, hurt or upset, but it is there to soothe me back to a place where I can see and hear GOD. No one can steal my joy because it comes from GOD.

• Are you hurting and trying to be happy by the world’s standards?
• Do you think happiness is the goal?
• Will you ask GOD for joy that is overflowing and can cover all of your situations you may ever face?

Rage Controlled

2 Chronicles 11: ² But this word of the Lord came to Shemaiah the man of God: ³ “Say to Rehoboam son of Solomon king of Judah and to all Israel in Judah and Benjamin, ⁴ ‘This is what the Lord says: Do not go up to fight against your fellow Israelites. Go home, every one of you, for this is my doing.’” So they obeyed the words of the Lord and turned back from marching against Jeroboam.

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Tired of this guys’ annoying ways, I stormed into my boss’s office and demanded justice! I mean this guy was loud and obnoxious and something had to be done. He handled the situation smoothly but I noticed I was getting passed over for promotions. I asked what was going on and he suggested I attend a leadership class.

“What would another class do?” I thought to myself. I mean I already know more than all of my peers in the department! I went and one of the first questions they asked was “Do you have rage?” As if I were in a twelve step program, I had to admit “yes.”

• Rage is a buildup of tiny bits of anger inside of me.
• Rage is a stack of bad memories that causes me to react negatively.
• Rage is a backlog of unmet desires coupled with disappointing results that causes me to be furious.

Rage is a wild animal inside of me that wants to tear the place down and stand on the burning rubble. The problem with rage is that it is very short sighted and blinding.

• GOD wants me to seek HIS face first each day in order to turn my rage into positive momentum.
• GOD desires that I give my rage to HIM and let HIM deal with the entire situation.
• GOD wants me to recognize what is causing me to have rage in the first place and allow HIM to replace it with grace and peace.

GOD doesn’t desire that I have rage pointed in the wrong direction. Rage at my own sin versus rage at a misinterpretation of someone’s intentions is the path that enables me to mature. The more I can seek GOD’s face without fear, the more GOD grows me to control rage, take a deep breath and ask GOD for grace.

• Do you have rage?
• Are you furious?
• Can you take a step back and ask GOD to help you identify why you are full of rage?
• Can you let go of your rage for a moment and give GOD your disappointment?

Speak up humbly

Genesis 44: ¹⁴ Joseph was still in the house when Judah and his brothers came in, and they threw themselves to the ground before him. ¹⁵ Joseph said to them, “What is this you have done? Don’t you know that a man like me can find things out by divination?”

¹⁶ “What can we say to my lord?” Judah replied. “What can we say? How can we prove our innocence? God has uncovered your servants’ guilt. We are now my lord’s slaves—we ourselves and the one who was found to have the cup.”

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After another friend of mine was released I figured something had to be done.  I scheduled a meeting with the head of the very large department to give him a piece of my mind.  We sat and discussed what was going on.  He seemed cordial listening to my rants.

I later spoke to someone about my approach. They insisted that I had made a terrible mistake and I should do damage control. I had made an enemy because my approach was abrasive.

• Sometimes when I think I’m right I speak up loudly.
• Sometimes when I speak up I forget who I am talking to.
• Sometimes when I forget who I’m talking to I may use words of rage.

Depending on who I am speaking with, common conversation could be words of condemnation. Information has to be worded carefully to convey the right message to be heard rather than repulsed.

Judah did not recognize his brother Joseph but knew he was a man of great stature. Joseph could have Judah thrown in jail or killed instantly so Judah spoke with humble words. He thought about his approach and didn’t blurt out what was on the top of his head.

• GOD wants me to consult HIM before I address people.
• GOD wants me to ask HIM for the message before I respond.
• GOD wants me to humbly deliver messages rather than adding my poison.

Actually I should speak to everyone with tact. Building people up should be top of mind. My humble tongue helps the situation.

• Do you speak to people abrasively?
• Do you have harsh words for people?
• Do you feel people need to hear you or should you humbly request to be heard?
• Can you ask GOD for your words before you speak them?

Take GOD’s advice

Genesis 4: ⁶ Then the Lord said to Cain, “Why are you angry? Why is your face downcast? ⁷ If you do what is right, will you not be accepted? But if you do not do what is right, sin is crouching at your door; it desires to have you, but you must rule over it.”

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“One day I will knock that guy out” I thought to myself.  After a lot of weightlifting I did get big enough to fight the guy, but it took time to transform my scrawny into brawny. I had actually matured enough to realize fighting doesn’t solve everything.  But I still wanted to hit him!

• There are some things people do that make me angry.
• There are some actions people take that make me livid.
• There are some ways people go that drive me to rage.

Anger is a very dangerous beast.  It sets a fire in my soul that ignites a battle between me and that person. But little do I know that while I’m fighting that person, I may also be fighting GOD.

• GOD says “rule over” my anger because sin is not far behind it.
• GOD says “Do what is right” because HE knows how to reward me.
• GOD says “you will be accepted” to me if I focus on HIM.

Sin is always waiting to jump on me.  It hides behind arguments, jealousy, lust, envy, insecurity, doubt and fear.  GOD wants me to control my actions and focus on “what is right” to follow HIM to a better place.

• Are you angry at someone?
• Is rage building up in your soul?
• Can you take control of your anger and focus on what GOD wants you to do?
• Won’t you give that person the gift of mercy and grace?