SEPTEMBER THEME – “Seeing THE CROSS from God’s Perspective”
Join us in prayer and celebration as Belmont Baptist Church celebrates our Year of Jubilee, marking fifty years of God’s amazing faithfulness and looking forward with grateful hearts to all He has yet to do.
BEATS FROM YOUR PASTOR’S HEART’S
WHEN GOD’S WORD DISAGREES WITH YOU
“But be ye doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving your own selves.” — James 1:22
WHEN THE BIBLE SAYS SOMETHING I DO NOT WANT TO HEAR
It is easy to love the Bible when the Bible is telling me something I want to hear. I love reading, “The LORD is my shepherd.” I love, “I will never leave thee, nor forsake thee.” I love the promises that comfort me, encourage me, strengthen me, and assure me that God is with me. But what happens when I turn the page and God’s Word confronts me? What happens when it tells me to forgive the person who hurt me, control my tongue when I want to speak, flee a temptation I enjoy, give when I would rather keep, love somebody who has treated me badly, humble myself when I believe I am right, apologize when my pride wants to defend itself, or surrender something I desperately want? That is when I discover whether the Bible is really the authority in my life. It is easy to say, “I BELIEVE THE BIBLE,” when the Bible agrees with me. The real test comes when God’s Word crosses my will. THE AUTHORITY OF SCRIPTURE IS TESTED WHEN GOD’S WORD DISAGREES WITH WHAT I WANT. There are three simple responses that will help us remember what to do when that happens:
READ IT. RECEIVE IT. RESPOND TO IT.
READ IT — LET GOD’S WORD TELL YOU THE TRUTH
“Sanctify them through thy truth: thy word is truth.” — John 17:17
The hardest Scriptures are often the Scriptures we need the most. We naturally gravitate toward verses that make us feel better, but God loves us too much to give us only comfort. Sometimes He must correct us, confront us, expose us, and show us something in our lives that needs to change. That is one reason we need the whole counsel of God’s Word. If I only read the verses I like, I can eventually create a version of Christianity that agrees with everything I already believe. But when I consistently read Scripture, sooner or later I am going to encounter something that challenges my attitudes, priorities, habits, relationships, spending, words, thoughts, or desires. When that happens, do not immediately explain the verse away. Do not begin thinking about somebody else who needs to read it. Stop and ask, “LORD, WHAT ARE YOU SAYING TO ME?” The Bible is not a window through which I examine everybody else’s life. IT IS A MIRROR IN WHICH GOD ALLOWS ME TO SEE MY OWN. Before I ask, “Who needs to hear this?” I should ask, “What needs to change in me?” Read it honestly. Read it humbly. Read it willing to discover that perhaps the problem is not with what God said. Perhaps the problem is ME.
RECEIVE IT — LET GOD’S WORD HAVE THE FINAL SAY
“Wherefore lay apart all filthiness and superfluity of naughtiness, and receive with meekness the engrafted word…” — James 1:21
Notice that James says we are to “receive with meekness” the Word. Meekness means I approach Scripture with a surrendered heart. I am not coming to the Bible to determine whether I agree with God. I am coming to discover what God says so that I can bring my life into agreement with Him. That is a completely different attitude. Sometimes we read Scripture and immediately begin negotiating with it. “I know the Bible says forgive, but you don’t know what they did to me.” “I know God says not to worry, but my situation is different.” “I know I should apologize, but they were wrong too.” “I know God says this is sin, but everybody does it now.” “I know God is telling me to surrender this, but surely He understands how important it is to me.” Every one of those statements has the same dangerous word hidden inside it: BUT. “I know what God says, BUT…” There comes a point when faith has to remove the “but.” God’s Word does not need my approval before it becomes truth. Culture does not get to overrule it. My emotions do not get to edit it. My circumstances do not get to rewrite it. My preferences do not get to veto it. WHEN MY FEELINGS AND GOD’S WORD DISAGREE, MY FEELINGS MUST BOW. Receive the Word with humility. Let God be right. Let Scripture have the final word.
RESPOND TO IT — DO WHAT GOD HAS ALREADY TOLD YOU TO DO
“But be ye doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving your own selves.” — James 1:22
James gives us a frightening warning. It is possible to hear so much truth that we begin confusing KNOWING the truth with OBEYING the truth. We can underline verses, fill notebooks with sermon notes, attend Bible studies, listen to preaching, quote Scripture, discuss theology, and know exactly what the Bible teaches—while refusing to do the one thing God has clearly told us to do. James says when that happens, we deceive ourselves. Spiritual maturity is not measured merely by how much Bible I know. It is revealed by how much of the Bible I am allowing to change the way I live. TRUTH THAT NEVER REACHES MY CHOICES HAS NOT FINISHED ITS WORK IN MY LIFE. Sometimes we continue praying about something God has already addressed. We ask for another sign, another confirmation, another sermon, another verse, or another feeling. We say, “Lord, show me what You want me to do,” when the truth is that He already has. Sometimes delayed obedience disguises itself as spiritual caution. If God says forgive, forgive. If God says confess it, confess it. If God says stop, stop. If God says go, go. If God says give, give. If God says apologize, apologize. If God says flee, flee. If God says surrender it, surrender it. There comes a moment when faith must stop discussing obedience and SIMPLY OBEY.
THE PRESCRIPTION YOU NEVER TAKE
Imagine going to a doctor because you are sick. The doctor examines you carefully, identifies the problem, writes a prescription, explains exactly what you need to do, and sends you home. You read the instructions. You highlight them. You memorize them. You tell your family how wonderful the doctor is. You attend a weekly meeting where everybody discusses the prescription. You even frame the prescription and hang it on the wall. But you never take the medicine. Then weeks later you return to the doctor and say, “I don’t understand why I am not getting better.” The problem was not that the doctor failed to speak clearly. The problem was that you never acted upon what he said. We can do exactly that spiritually. We ask God to speak, God speaks through His Word, and then we admire what He said instead of obeying it. THE BLESSING IS NOT MERELY IN KNOWING WHAT GOD SAID. THE BLESSING COMES WHEN I RESPOND TO WHAT GOD SAID.
WHAT WILL YOU DO WHEN GOD’S WORD CROSSES YOUR WILL?
Sooner or later, if you are seriously reading God’s Word, you are going to come to a verse that disagrees with you. That is not a bad thing. That may be one of the greatest moments of spiritual growth in your life. Because at that moment you have a choice. I can change what the Bible means so I do not have to change. Or I can allow the Bible to change ME. Every act of obedience is a small surrender of my throne. I am saying, “God, You know better than I do. Your wisdom is greater than mine. Your ways are higher than mine. Your Word has authority over my feelings, preferences, opinions, and desires.”Do not be afraid when God’s Word makes you uncomfortable. Sometimes conviction is evidence that God is putting His finger on the very place He wants to transform. Remember:
READ IT. Let God tell you the truth.
RECEIVE IT. Let God have the final word.
RESPOND TO IT. Do what God tells you to do.
THE BIBLE WAS NOT GIVEN ONLY TO INFORM YOU. IT WAS GIVEN TO TRANSFORM YOU.
WARFARE PRAYER
Father, forgive me for the times I have heard Your Word without obeying it. Forgive me for wanting Your promises while resisting Your commands, and for asking You to speak when You have already spoken clearly. Search my heart and expose every place where I have allowed my feelings, pride, preferences, fears, excuses, or desires to become more authoritative than Your Word. In the name of Jesus, I reject every lie of the enemy that tells me obedience can wait, that my circumstances are an exception, or that following my feelings is safer than following Your truth. Give me discernment to recognize Satan’s attempts to twist Your Word, courage to resist temptation, and humility to admit when I am wrong. Lord, when Your Word disagrees with me, CHANGE ME. When Your Word exposes sin, HELP ME REPENT. When Your Word commands something difficult, HELP ME OBEY. When Your Word challenges what I want, HELP ME SURRENDER. Bring Your truth to my remembrance when temptation comes, and give me strength through the Holy Spirit to choose obedience over convenience. I surrender my opinions, feelings, desires, plans, and will beneath the authority of Your Word. LET YOUR WORD HAVE THE FINAL WORD IN MY LIFE. In Jesus’ name, Amen.
DAILY CHALLENGE — WHAT DOES THIS REQUIRE ME TO DO?
As you read your Bible today, do not only ask, “What does this mean?” Ask one additional question: “WHAT DOES THIS REQUIRE ME TO DO?” When God shows you something clearly, write it down in one sentence: “TODAY I WILL __________________.” Then do it before the day is over. Do not wait for another feeling, another confirmation, or a more convenient opportunity.
Today remember three simple words: READ IT. RECEIVE IT. RESPOND TO IT. And when God’s Word disagrees with you, make this your prayer: “LORD, DON’T CHANGE YOUR WORD TO FIT ME. CHANGE ME TO FIT YOUR WORD.”
WEDNESDAY’S PRAYER NEEDS
Anna Belle Taylor – Irregular Heartbeat – Jackson’s Special Friend
Britany Smith
Darlene Kelley – Our Cousin _ Recovering from Cancer
Darlene Thaxton
Ginny Ford
Kim McClain’s Mother
Nancy Brown
Rob Davis – cancer