The crucible for silver and the furnace for gold, but people are tested by their praise. (Proverbs 27:21)
The Message paraphrase says you can tell what’s in someone’s heart by how they react when they are praised—“The purity of human hearts is tested by giving them a little fame.”
The Amplified Bible says you can tell what’s in someone’s heart by listening to what they praise—“A man is judged by what he praises and of what he boasts.”
These are two sides of the same coin, and both are equally true. How we handle praise and what we praise both reveal what’s inside our heart. Both of these are responses to which we shouldpay careful attention.
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The second-to-last book of the New Testament is a short letter to the Church in which Jude felt urged by the Holy Spirit to challenge Christians to “contend for the faith that was once for all entrusted to the saints.” Does contend mean Christians are supposed to be combative about sharing their faith? We can learn a lot from the way Jude opens this letter.
First, let’s look at who wrote this book.
The names of the brothers of Jesus are listed twice (Mark 6:3; Matthew 13:55), and Jude is either the youngest or second youngest of these male siblings. He was a part of the family delegation that went to bring Jesus home because they thought He was out of His mind (Mark 3:21, 31). Later on, Jude would also mockingly taunt Jesus (John 7:5).
James is the oldest brother after Jesus. When Paul writes that Jesus appeared to James after the resurrection (1 Corinthians 15:7), it’s possible that it means Jesus appeared to all of his brothers, because Paul also mentions that the brothers of Jesus had become evangelists (9:5). It’s not surprising that Jude calls himself a brother of James, but it is quite shocking that he calls himself a servant of Jesus Christ.
In fact, he calls Jesus:
our only Sovereign and Lord (v. 4)
the One who gives us eternal life (v. 21)
the only One who is our entrance into Heaven (vv. 24- 25)
We need to adopt this servant’s mindset as we interact with others.
Second, let’s notice who Jude’s audience is.
Jude writes to people who are called, sanctified, preserved (NKJV).
called = invited to the banquet
sanctified = hagiazo = holy ones or saints
preserved / kept = carefully attended to
Finally, let’s consider how Jude expects saints to be living each day.
Jude says in verse 2 that we are to live…
mercifully = not wanting people to get the punishment they deserve
peacefully = having our soul so secure that we fear nothing from God
lovingly = agape love like Jesus (John 3:16, 13:1) and like us (13:35, 15:9)
And all of these things are to be in abundance—ever multiplying!
After all of this, we are now in a place to consider how to live contending for the faith (v. 3).
We are servants of Jesus, called to His banquet, set apart and preserved for His glory; we are intimately aware of His mercy, peace, and love, which we want others to know for themselves.
Before we learn how to contend, let’s ask the Holy Spirit to check our attitude to ensure we indeed have the attitude of a secure servant.
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We had our final service of the summer joining with Hillcrest Community Church in Morley Park. Pastor Caleb Claybaugh shared a message that challenged me.
He started out with a simple question: Why do we do ministry? “Because the Bible says so” is a good start but it’s not enough. It’s not just doing but having the right attitude.
God is more interested in the attitude of our hearts than He is the actions of our hands.
First, we have to love others as Jesus loved: So now I am giving you a new commandment: Love each other. Just as I have loved you, you should love each other. Your love for one another will prove to the world that you are My disciples (John 13:34-35 NLT).
When people hurt, Jesus hurts. When Jesus saw her weeping and saw the other people wailing with her, a deep anger welled up within Him, and He was deeply troubled. … Then Jesus wept (John 11:33, 35 NLT). So, too, when we see people hurting, we should hurt with them, and our pain should move us to action—When [Jesus] saw the crowds, He had compassion on them because they were confused and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd (Matthew 9:36 NLT).
Christ’s compassion prompted Him to preach the Good News and to heal the sick (v. 35). And then Jesus prayed that more of us would be involved in this type of compassion-driven ministry (vv. 37-38).
Although this was a word Peter spoke to pastors, it’s a good challenge for all of us about checking out attitude: Care for the flock that God has entrusted to you. Watch over it willingly, not grudgingly—not for what you will get out of it, but because you are eager to serve God (1 Peter 5:2 NLT).
May our prayer be for God to give us both the heart of compassion that Jesus has, and also the hands of compassion that meet the needs of hurting people.
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Godly leaders should be secure enough to think of themselves as servants and stewards—nothing more, nothing less. And people in the church should look on their leaders as servants and stewards—nothing more, nothing less.
So then, let us apostles be looked upon as ministering servants of Christ and stewards (trustees) of the mysteries (the secret purposes) of God. (1 Corinthians 4:1 AMPC)
Q: How do I know if I am a servant?
A: People treat me like one.
Q: How do I know I have a servant’s attitude?
A: I don’t mind being treated like a servant.
Paul lived this out—Now, brothers and sisters, I have applied these things to myself and Apollos for your benefit, so that you may learn from us the meaning of the saying, “Do not go beyond what is written.” Then you will not be puffed up in being a follower of one of us over against the other(1 Corinthians 4:6).
I closed the chapter ‘Secure to Serve’ in my book Shepherd Leadership like this—
God wants to use you as a leader. He has called you to great things. Just remember that He does the calling and the equipping so that you can serve and shepherd others. It may be a prominent, noticeable position, or it may be an obscure position unseen by very many. It may be a position God keeps you in until the day He calls you home, or it may be a temporary position. A humbly confident leader doesn’t fight to climb a ladder nor strive to keep a position on a higher rung of the ladder. The shepherd leader is confident to serve where God places him, and humble enough to be moved, or even removed, as God sees best. But most of all, a secure shepherd leader knows that God’s desire for His leader in any position is a heart to serve others.
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In March 1966, at the height of Beatlemania, John Lennon was quoted—
“Christianity will go. It will vanish and shrink. I needn’t argue about that; I’m right and I will be proved right. We’re more popular than Jesus now; I don’t know which will go first—rock ’n’ roll or Christianity. Jesus was all right but His disciples were thick and ordinary. It’s them twisting it that ruins it for me.”
Maureen Cleave, the reporter who included this quote in her article about the Beatles, tried to clarify that John was talking specifically about the Church of England, especially when John mentions the disciples of Jesus twisting the words and example of Jesus as it is recorded for us in the New Testament.
But I wonder if the same argument could be made today about the “stars” in the evangelical movement? Many of those who claim to be preachers of the Gospel have both an online and in-person following that rivals that of the Beatles of the 1960s. Their gatherings are rock concert-esque, with their fans spending lavishly on their books, videos, and seminars.
But here’s my question: Are these “rock star preachers” making Jesus famous or themselves famous?
How would John the Baptist’s words sound coming out of the mouths of these mega-stars: “[Jesus] must increase, but I must decrease. He must grow more prominent; I must grow less so” (John 3:30 AMPC)?
Before John was born, the angel Gabriel told Zechariah that John “will be great in the eyes of the Lord” (Luke 1:15).
Notice: “Great in the eyes of the Lord” is so infinitely better than “great in the eyes of the world”!
John’s whole life was one of confident humility (or humble confidence). He spoke God’s Word confidently, but wasn’t seeking the praise of men nor intimidated by the criticism of men. As a result, God’s Spirit remained on him in an unmistakable way.
God will use anyone in the way that He used John, if they will only have the same attitude John had: “I must decrease and Jesus must increase.”
May I suggest this attitude-adjusting prayer for everyone who has been called by God to herald the Good News about Jesus—
Heavenly Father, as I preach today may all eyes move past me and turn to Jesus. “He must increase, but I must decrease. He must grow more prominent; I must grow less so.” Thank You for this opportunity You have given me today to point people to You. May I only be seen as great in Your eyes, but may the world view me only as Your humble servant.
Listen to the podcast of this post by clicking on the player below, and you can also subscribe on Apple, Spotify, or Audible.
As both a consultant and in one-on-one conversations with colleagues, I have lost count of how many times I’ve heard leaders tell me how incompetent their teammates are. When I have gently asked how they could help their teammates improve, the response is usually something like, “I think they are giving me all they have right now.”
There is an age-old leadership principle that goes something like this—
A poor leader doesn’t believe his people can achieve more than they already are, so he stops training them and stops expecting great things from them. His people soon discover the level of performance their leader will settle for, and then gravitate to that level.
The leader then assumes that’s all that his people are capable of achieving, so he accepts it as fact and quits challenging his people to get better.
So both reinforce what the other believes, and the vicious downward cycle continues.
How sad!
But I have found that exemplary leaders believe the best is still to come. They challenge their teammates to strive for greatness. They take time to train, resource, and encourage them to strive for the next level. They don’t beat them up or give up on them when they stumble, but they treat stumbles as learning opportunities. They always believe their teammates can achieve more.
If you were on a team with a leader like that, wouldn’t you want to live up to those expectations? Of course you would! So instead of the vicious downward cycle I just outlined, an environment like this creates a virtuous cycle that keeps pulling people upward.
The apostle Paul talked in virtuous terms about his teammates. He wrote publicly about Timothy (I have no one else like him—Philippians 2:20), Epaphroditus (my brother, co-worker and fellow soldier—Philippians 2:25), Mark (he is helpful to me in my ministry—2 Timothy 4:11), and Luke (the beloved physician and faithful comrade—Colossians 4:14), to name just a few.
Even when he had to speak a challenging, correcting word to the saints in Corinth, he still believed the best for them—
I am not sorry that I sent that severe letter to you, though I was sorry at first, for I know it was painful to you for a little while. Now I am glad I sent it, not because it hurt you, but because the pain caused you to repent and change your ways. … I am very happy now because I have complete confidence in you. (2 Corinthians 7:8-9, 16 NLT)
I love that phrase: I have complete confidence in you!
A mark of a godly leader is his supreme confidence in his people to grow and improve.
If you feel like your teammates just aren’t measuring up, can I suggest that you take a look in the mirror? It may be that your expectations of them are too low, that your attitude toward them has been squelched, and that your words and actions are perpetuating a downward cycle.
By changing your attitude toward your teammates, you can put the brakes on that downward pull, and begin a brand new virtuous cycle that pulls your entire team—and your whole organization—up to heights where they have never gone before!
This is part 82 in my series on godly leadership. You can check out all of my posts in this series by clicking here.
And I will take you to Me for a people, and I will be to you a God; and you shall know that it is I, the Lord your God, Who brings you out from under the burdens of the Egyptians. And I will bring you into the land concerning which I lifted up My hand and swore that I would give it to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob; and I will give it to you for a heritage. I am the Lord [you have the pledge of My changeless omnipotence and faithfulness]. Moses told this to the Israelites, but they refused to listen to Moses because of their impatience and anguish of spirit and because of their cruel bondage. (Exodus 6:7-9)
We may not be able to do anything about our external circumstances (“cruel bondage”), but can make sure that we are addressing what we can control. Both “impatience and anguish of spirit” are internal attitudes that we can change.
If we don’t remove these impediments, we will not be able to hear the message God is trying to speak to give us encouragement.
Listen to the podcast of this post by clicking on the player below, and you can also subscribe on Apple, Spotify, or Audible.
Paul’s first visit to Philippi didn’t go so well!
It started off with some success—Lydia and her household accepted Jesus as their Messiah, and a demon-possessed girl was set free—but then things turned sour very quickly! Paul and Silas were falsely accused of subverting Roman law, and without any sort of trial they were beaten and thrown into prison.
Even after the local magistrates realized their mistake in mistreating Roman citizens in this way, they simply asked Paul and Silas to leave town. You can read this story in Acts 16:11-40.
But there were seeds planted in this city. Not just Lydia’s family, but the jailer’s family as well, became followers of Jesus. And what about the girl set free from demonic oppression? I have a hunch she joined with the Christians in praising God too! This group of believers then became the first financial supporters of Paul’s missionary work.
Paul knew that his brief imprisonment in Philippi had resulted in a thriving group of believers. And now as he writes a letter to these saints from a Roman jail, he is once again starting to see what God is going to do through this hardship—
Now I want you to know, brothers and sisters, that my circumstances have turned out for the greater progress of the gospel, so that my imprisonment in the cause of Christ has become well known throughout the praetorian guard and to everyone else, and that most of the brothers and sisters, trusting in the Lord because of my imprisonment, have far more courage to speak the word of God without fear. (Philippians 1:12-14)
Paul was not embittered by his imprisonment, but he was rejoicing in all of the good things God was accomplishing because of his imprisonment.
✅ An attitude of thankfulness allows our eyes to stay open to God’s blessings even in hardships.
❌ A grumbling attitude prevents us from acknowledging what God is doing.
Paul’s trust in God’s provision gave him an attitude of gratitude in a difficult place, and he now encourages his friends to adopt this same mindset. In the next chapter, he writes—
Finally, my brothers and sisters, rejoice in the Lord. To write the same things again is no trouble for me, and it is a safeguard for you. (Philippians 3:1)
Paul knew that in a heart full of gratitude there is no room for grumbling. That’s why always rejoicing in the Lord is “a safeguard” for Christians. Rejoicing in God’s character and God’s blessings keeps our mind on Him, making it very difficult for any temptation to ambush us.
Let’s proactively keep a heart full of gratitude so that no grumbling can seep in. But if we do find ourselves in a dark place that may prompt us to grumble, let’s react quickly to turn any complaints into praying and singing hymns to God, just as Paul and Silas had done in the Philippian jail, and undoubtedly as they were also doing now in their Roman jail.
In the morning, Lord, You will hear my voice; in the morning I will present my prayer to You and be on the watch. (Psalm 5:3)
The phrase “be on the watch” is just one word in Hebrew. It means to lean forward, to peer into the distance, to be the best of watchmen trying to see something the moment it appears on the horizon.
This is the posture David encourages us to take with each and every prayer request we present to our Heavenly Father. Our attitude should be, “I am so excited to see how God is going to answer me!”
“wait expectantly” (NIV)
“look up” (NKJV)
“wait for You to speak to my heart” (AMPC)
I shared a video on this idea on an episode of The Podcast—Faith Starts Walking.
Listen to the podcast of this post by clicking on the player below, and you can also subscribe on Apple, Spotify, or Audible.
Jesus sent us and the Holy Spirit empowers us to take the Good News to all nations—all the streets (Luke 24:47-49; Acts 1:8). As we move away from Jerusalem and into Judea, we should expect to see more differences with our audience. And then as we move into Samaria, there will probably be more differences than similarities. Regardless of how little we may have in common with those on other streets, the Holy Spirit still empowers us to witness there.
When we don’t live on someone else’s street, we tend to make some pretty big assumptions about them. For example, until I married a school teacher, I thought, “How nice it must be to be done with work by 3:00 every afternoon and have three months off in the summer!”
Mistakenly, we think we can so easily fix the problems people on other streets have—we think we can show them how simple it is to correct anything out of balance on their street. These are natural thought patterns when so little of our circles overlap.
If you live on Main Street, two streets which are quite different from you are Easy Street and Skid Row. When it comes to finances, there tends to be extremes in our thoughts about the Samaritans that live on those streets—
Those on Easy Street only cares about themselves
Those on Skid Row should work harder
Those on Easy Street have too much—it’s not fair!
Those on Skip Row don’t have enough—it’s not fair!
But here’s the thing: It’s really not about the money but it’s about our attitude about the money.
In Luke 21:1-6, Jesus saw both rich people from Easy Street placing their tithe in the temple treasury, and a poor widow from Skid Row doing the same. Jesus said this widow put in more than anyone else. He was talking in terms of quality, not quantity.
While they were still in the temple, the disciples pointed out how beautifully embellished the temple was. These decorations came from the money those on Easy Street had contributed. Jesus told them not to focus on the temporal temple but on the eternal Kingdom of God.
As I said, Jesus doesn’t have a problem with money, but He does warn us about our ungodly attitude toward money (Luke 8:1-3; Matthew 27:57; Acts 4:32-5:4; Exodus 20:17; Luke 12:13-22).
Even though Easy Street and Skid Row seem to be at opposite ends of the spectrum, I think we are effective witnesses for Jesus on these streets in exactly the same way.
(1) Guard your attitude about money. Remember that Gad often provides for us by giving us a skill, and then making a job available that can use our skill. So let’s be thankful for our God-given jobs. Then we guard our attitude about money by tithing regularly, and making sure that when we bless others financially, we do it without expecting any fanfare (Colossians 3:23; Malachi 3:10; Matthew 6:2-3).
(2) Let God be unique as unique with these folks on Easy Street and Skid Row as He is with you on Main Street. Don’t try to be someone else, and don’t expect others to be you—simply obey what God has spoken to your heart, just as you allow others to obey what God has spoken to their hearts.
(3) Don’t tell, but show how you use the resources God has given to you. It’s not our place to “preach” to others about how they should or shouldn’t be handling their finances, but simply live out the biblical principles outlined above, and let your life show your godly attitude.
(4) Always turn the focus to the eternal. Just as Jesus did with His disciples in the temple, He always reminded people that this world with its perks or tragedies is only temporary. What ultimately matters is where we will spend eternity (Luke 13:1-5).
Money is always a touchy subject with people, so let’s make sure we have our own attitude aligned with Scripture before we try to bring the subject up with others.
If you’ve missed any of the other messages in our Takin’ Him To The Street series, you can find them all here.
Craig T. Owens 