Comedian Brian Regan has a great bit about the “Me Monster.” Don’t be that person! John Maxwell wrote, “The problem is that interrupting translates to ‘What I want to say is more important than what you are saying.’” We probably can all do better at this.
“To bear the burdens of others we need to be careful to maintain an attitude of humility, coupled with a readiness to serve, according to the gifts and opportunities God gives us at any time (Romans 12:3-8). Even if it’s true that our fellow believers are acting like children, or like people who just need to ‘grow up’ in their faith, our responsibility is to humble ourselves and be ready to show them the love of Jesus however we may (Romans 14:1-18).” —T.M. Moore
“A cosmos one day being rebuked by a pessimist replied, ‘How can you who revile me consent to speak by my machinery? Permit me to reduce you to nothingness and then we will discuss the matter.’ Moral: You should not look a gift universe in the mouth.” —G.K. Chesterton [see Job 38:1-4]
“Moral principles do not depend on a majority vote. Wrong is wrong, even if everybody is wrong. Right is right, even if nobody is right.” —Fulton Sheen
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There is nothing in your spiritual armory that makes the devil afraid of you. But there is one thing that will always cause him to flee from you: When you bow to Jesus.
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Last week we talked about biblical beliefs carrying more weight that non-biblical or extra-biblical beliefs. Christians must stand firm on God’s Word to give biblical meaning to everything we say and do, otherwise we lose the true meaning of essential terms like Church and Christian. That means there are words we need to let go, and there is the Word for which we must stand without wavering or backing down.
Have you heard people make the “They say” claim? “Well, they say you said…,” “They say that Christians are…,” or “They say that Jesus said or did…” It’s always a good idea to get to the source of these statements.
This is what Jesus did in Matthew 16:13-14. Jesus asked His followers about the “they say” claims they had heard, especially in light of what Jesus had already addressed in Matthew 11:18-19.
Matthew 16:15 is a great question to ask others: What do you think of Jesus? By asking this question and truly listening to the answer, you may just be able to uncover some non-biblical “they say” thinking that you can help correct.
But this verse is also a great question for us to ask of ourselves! Why? Because there is a huge difference between a verbal confession and a lifestyle confession. Look at vv. 16-23 to see the difference between Peter’s verbal confession in verse 16 and his lifestyle confession in verse 22.
John may have had this exchange in mind when he wrote 1 John 1:5-10. Notice John’s contrast between the verbal confession (“If we claim”) and our lifestyle confession. Listen: Demons can make a verbal confession (Luke 4:41) but they will be confined in Hell for eternity (Matthew 25:41). In the same way, religious people can make a verbal confession and walk out a completely opposite lifestyle confession (Matthew 7:21-23).
A lifestyle confession can either amplify or cancel a verbal confession.
Jesus loved Peter’s verbal confession, but then He gave us a lifestyle confession in Matthew 16:24-28.
The essential confession is not just, “I believe You are the Christ the Son of the living God,” but also, “I will take up my cross and follow You!”
We lose our life when we live for Jesus’ words (“I will build My Church”) and not living for “they say” words. As Brennan Manning sad, “The greatest single cause of atheism in the world today is Christians: who acknowledge Jesus with their lips, walk out the door, and deny Him by their lifestyle. That is what an unbelieving world simply finds unbelievable.”
So let’s ask others, “What do you think of Jesus?” But let’s also ask ourselves that question. Let’s make sure that our verbal confession is being amplified by our lifestyle confession. Ask the Holy Spirit to search your vocabulary and your lifestyle. A great prayer for this is in Psalm 139:23-24.
If you’ve missed any of the messages in our series “I Will Build My Church”, you can find them all here.
Your gratitude blesses future generations. When you talk about the ways God has blessed you—and you are continually grateful for His provision—you are fortifying future generations as well.
“Wherever men are still theological, there is still some chance of their being logical.” —G.K. Chesterton
“We must not be too hot upon cold matters, but even this is better than to be cold upon matters that require heat.” —Charles Spurgeon
Clinton Manley says, “Although the teaching of Jesus in Matthew 5–7 is often called a sermon, these words are closer to Henry V on the battlefield than to a pastor in his pulpit.” Before you read the Beatitudes again, check out this background to this battlefield message from Jesus.
“The ping of a notification, the silent vibration in a pocket, the ambient awareness that something, somewhere, might require a response: these are not incidental features of modern life. They are now its architecture…. The mind never fully settles. It hovers in a state of anticipatory vigilance, perpetually primed for the next interruption.” —Carl Hendrick
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Everyone wants to fit in—it’s an entirely natural human instinct to desire the approval of those around you. However, when this instinct causes us to change who we are it can become very destructive to us both personally and professionally. In today’s episode Greg and I discuss how being a poser is a sneaky leadership killer that can creep in without you even noticing.
[0:00] Introduction
[1:38] Posing is a leadership killer that might not be obvious to a leader.
[2:52] Why would a leader think they have to pose in front of certain groups?
[5:38] Leaders need to be cautious of thinking, “I have to fit in. I have to be liked by this group.”
[7:31] Posing isn’t changing a style of communication.
[8:26] Being misunderstood is very difficult for everyone, but we cannot fall into the posing trap in order to try to be understood.
[10:30] Our teams need to know what to expect from us.
[11:48] How does posing limit leadership effectiveness? How does authenticity launch a team?
[15:15] Posing leaders force their teams to think inside-the-box.
[16:54] Authentic leaders want to hire authentic team members to promote an authentic culture.
[19:40] Leaders need to be confident to be authentic, and that authenticity is incredibly freeing!
[23:40] Coaches who listen and observe and can help you spot the hidden areas of posing. Check out the Maximize Leadership coaching services.
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Charles Spurgeon said, “The resurrection of Christ is the cornerstone of the glorious temple of truth, the keystone of the arch of revelation.”
What we believe about the resurrection gives meaning and purpose to everything else. The resurrection is the defining Truth. In 2 Timothy 2:19 we read two important truths about this foundation: (1) God knows those who truly know Him, and (2) Those who really know Him must unabashedly stand for the Truth.
Words are powerful, they are creative. At the very beginning of Time, God said, “Light” and light existed (Genesis 1:1-3). God’s Word is still creating today (Hebrews 4:12). There are words we need to let go, and there is the Word for which we must stand without wavering or backing down.
In 1 Timothy 1:3-7, Paul essentially says we have two choices: Do we want to promote controversy or do we want to promote God’s work? We have to learn to distinguish what is biblical and what is not.
Biblical things—God’s Word clearly tells us “Yes” (2 Timothy 3:14-17)
Unbiblical things—God’s Word clearly tells us “No” (like: do not murder, do not commit adultery, etc.)
These two are fairly straightforward. As Dr. Donald Stamps wrote, “The Church has the responsibility to safeguard the true and original apostolic doctrines found in Scripture and commit it to others without compromise or corruption.”
What is harder to sort out is:
Extra-biblical things—something in addition to or outside of God’s Word
Non-biblical things—something not specifically addressed in God’s Word
Passages like 1 Timothy 4:1-7 and 2 Timothy 2:14-19 help us sort out biblical and non-biblical things.
Are extra-biblical things wrong? Not necessarily. Paul quoted poets, and even uses an extra-biblical example of Jannes and Jambres [who] opposed Moses (3:8).
Are non-biblical things wrong? Not necessarily. But both extra-biblical and non-biblical things can become wrong when we give these things biblical status (Mark 7:9).
“Church” and “Christian” can completely lose their biblical meaning if we allow unbiblical, extra-biblical, or non-biblical ideas to define them. We must stand firm on God’s Word to give biblical meaning to everything we say and do.
Jesus said, “I will build MY Church.” He’s going to build it His way, not our way. We don’t want to fight the Architect, but neither do we want to fight the erring saint or the scoffing skeptic (2 Timothy 2:22-26).
Let me give you four applications for this:
Do get into God’s Word everyday.
Don’t define the words but let God define His own words.
Do gently challenge those saints who are getting caught up in non-biblical or extra-biblical things.
Don’t quarrel with those who are living an unbiblical lifestyle (Colossians 4:5; Jude 1:22).
You can find all of the other messages in this series called “I will build My Church” by clicking here.
You may also be interested in these posts and videos:
Is it possible for you to accurately judge whether or not you are being honest with yourself? Probably not. You need something or someone else to help you see yourself clearly.
“The Christian optimism is based on the fact that we do not fit in to the world. … That is what makes life at once so splendid and so strange. We are in the wrong world. When I thought that was the right town, it bored me; when I knew it was wrong, I was happy. So the false optimism, the modern happiness, tires us because it tells us we fit into this world. The true happiness is that we don’t fit. We come from somewhere else.” —G.K. Chesterton
“It is easy enough to remove the particular kinds of graft or bullying that go on under the present system: but as long as men are twisters or bullies they will find some new way of carrying on the old game under the new system. You cannot make men good by law: and without good men you cannot have a good society.” —C.S. Lewis
Del Tarr’s life “embodied a simple conviction: to preach Christ well, one must first listen and learn well.” Tarr was a missionary and a linguist. His legacy is empowering for all Christians, not just those missionaries who minister in other countries.
The ICR reports, “According to the online Smithsonian magazine, ‘The calls and songs of some species in these groups [parrots, songbirds, and hummingbirds] appear to have even more in common with human language, such as conveying information intentionally and using simple forms of some of the elements of human language such as phonology, semantics and syntax.’” There are numerous corroborating studies that tell of the complex language of birds that never could have developed by chance, but were designed by an all-wise Creator.
“In Biblical times, farmers would put olives in the trough of a stone olive press, and then roll the large, heavy circular stone over them. The enormous weight of the stone crushed the olives, allowing the oil inside to pour out through a spout cut into the stone. The first pass of the heavy stone produced the most precious, pure drops of olive oil. This oil was extremely expensive and was used to anoint kings. In Hebrew, this sort of olive press is called a ‘gat shemanim’ (גתשמנים pronounced ‘geth-sem-uh-nim’), which we translate in English as ‘gethsemane.’ Sound familiar?” —Dave Adamson [see Mark 14:32-36]
“To overcome the world takes faith and faith comes when we hear the Word quickened by the Holy Spirit. Be faithful in prayer and reading your Bible. It sounds like a Sunday school answer, but it is quite literally the application for every verse in the Bible.” —YouVersion reading plan Uncommen: Holy Connection
Listen to the podcast of this post by clicking on the player below, and you can also subscribe on Apple, Spotify, or Audible.
Consistent leaders are exemplary leaders, but consistency doesn’t happen automatically. Effective leadership of others starts with effective leadership of yourself.
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Recognition of the proper chain of command is drilled into every soldier, and knowing and following that chain of command is essential to success. In fact, it’s so important that violating this hierarchy could result in court martial and a dishonorable removal from military service.
This is just as true in our service in the Lord’s army.
Pastor Dan Chastain noted how similar the US Army’s Non-commissioned Officer (NCO) creed is to the way Roman centurion’s operated: “I will know my Soldiers and always place their needs above my own. I will communicate consistently with my Soldiers and I will never leave them uniformed. I will be fair and impartial when recommending both rewards and punishment.”
The centurion we meet in Luke 7:2-10 cared for his servants and understood the chain of command. He recognized the supreme authority that Jesus had, even His authority over death and disease.
Pastor Dan also noted that the backing for an NCO’s authority is fear. There is an understanding of the authority that officer has to both reward and punish.
The Romans had perfected the torturous act of crucifixion. It struck fear into the hearts of their enemies. In Mark 15:15-38 we see just how well the Romans had developed this gruesome act to keep people living in fear of them.
They knew just how much to flog their victims to demoralize them for maximum effect—just enough to take the fight out of them, but not too much that they died before being crucified.
The death of Jesus, however, was probably not what the Roman kill squad expected. It was probably a bit of a letdown for them that Jesus died rather quickly because they were used to their enemies suffering for days. But they also knew they had to ensure that their victims were truly dead (see John 19:31-34).
Governor Pontius Pilate was also surprised how quickly Joseph of Arimathea showed up to ask for the body of Jesus, so Pilate summoned the centurion who had been in charge of the crucifixions to verify that He was indeed dead (Mark 15:42-45).
Did you notice that Pilate called “the centurion”? Who is this? He’s the one who oversaw the kill squad that had crucified Jesus and the two other criminals.
This centurion was a professional soldier. He had obtained his rank by his military skill, his leadership capabilities, his bravery, and his rigidly following the chain of command. His climb through up the ranks would have had him saying over and over again, “Kyrios kaiser,” which means “Caesar is lord.”
But notice that throughout the time that the Roman soldiers gambled for Jesus’ clothes, hurled insults and Him, and thrust a spear into His side that this centurion remained silent. There was something about this Man that was different.
When Jesus breathed His last breath, this soldier didn’t say, “Kyrios kaiser,” but something entirely different—“And when the centurion, who stood there in front of Jesus, saw how He died, he said, ‘Surely this Man was the Son of God!’” (Mark 15:39). He changed from “Caesar is lord” to “Jesus is Lord”!
Just like the Romans terrified their enemies, our enemy wants to do the same thing—to steal, kill, and destroy (John 10:10); to prowl and growl like a lion (1 Peter 5:8).
Our authority comes from bowing, from giving up our way of doing things, from not trying to figure out solutions on our own. When we bow to our King, we have victory!
If you’ve missed any of the messages in this series on spiritual warfare, check them all out here.
As we mature physically we pay more attention to our physical health. Why is that people who see themselves as spiritually mature think they can do the exact opposite by taking it easy? We must pay more attention, not less.
A worldwide missions movement that was started by five college students while they were sheltering from a storm in a haystack. Appropriately enough, this is remembered as the haystack prayer meeting.
“Intangible falsehood, based upon no authority, is of all things the most difficult to fight.” —G.K. Chesterton
“In his gospel, Luke traces Jesus’ genealogy to Adam. He then says Jesus went into the desert to be tempted by satan, the same spiritual being who tempted Adam thousands of years before. The apostle Paul makes the same comparison in Romans. Adam brought death into the world; Jesus brought life. In fact, Jesus came to save us because of what Adam did. When Paul is in Athens, he explains that all people are descended from one man. When Paul writes to the Ephesians, he says marriage goes back to the first couple. And when Paul talks about roles in the church, He refers to the first temptation.” —From the ‘Is Genesis History?’ reading plan on YouVersion. Check out Luke 3:23-38, 4:1-13; Romans 5:12-15; Matthew 19:4.
Comedian Brian Regan has a great bit about the “Me Monster.” Don’t be that person! John Maxwell wrote, “The problem is that interrupting translates to ‘What I want to say is more important than what you are saying.’” We probably can all do better at this.
Craig T. Owens 