Wearing Jewlery vs Quiet Spirit

[Photo by caroline.Apollo]

1 Peter 3 Wives, likewise, submit to your own husbands. Do this so that even if some of them refuse to believe the word, they may be won without a word by their wives’ way of life. 2 After all, they will have observed the reverent and holy manner of your lives. 3 Don’t try to make yourselves beautiful on the outside, with stylish hair or by wearing gold jewelry or fine clothes. 4 Instead, make yourselves beautiful on the inside, in your hearts, with the enduring quality of a gentle, peaceful spirit. This type of beauty is very precious in God’s eyes. 5

   The previous verses were not written to forbid us of wearing make-up or nice clothes. Those verses are meant to bring peace to our hearts. In other words, what God is telling us is: "Do not trust on your make-up or your efforts to win your husband. Instead, believe and rest in Jesus!"

   I remember as growing up. I observed my mom get ready to receive my dad from work.  She always made sure that her hair, nails and clothes would all look good for him. I tried to follow her example when I got married. I always made sure to look good for my husband. I trusted in my own efforts to win my husband's heart. The first 3 years of marriage I was able to keep up taking care of my self, the house and the kitchen. My ability to take care of my self was hindered when we had our first baby. First of all, when we got pregnant, I gained many, many, many pounds. So my silhouette completely changed. Then, when my baby was born I was tired most of the time. I had very little time to do something other than taking care of my baby. Time to shower I considered it a luxury! Time to shop for nice clothes was out of the question. There were many times that I felt anxious because I was not able to look nice when my husband was back from work. I was afraid to lose his interest in me. By the way, when I am anxious or afraid I do not necessarily have a gentle and quiet spirit.

  The reason why I was feeling so anxious and afraid was because I forgot about an important piece of our marriage. I forgot that God was the one who brought us together. He is the one who sustains our marriage! (Colossians 1:17)  Thanks be to Jesus that my marriage is not dependent on my efforts to look good neither on my efforts to do everything right. My marriage is dependent on Jesus' efforts at the cross! I've heard that a good marriage does not happen by accident. Well, I believe that I am not the one who should work to make my marriage work because Jesus payed the price to redeem my marriage from the curse of destruction. He made the effort and the work to hold my marriage together. 

 When we trust that our marriages are held together by the work of Jesus at  the cross, we can have peace. The peace in Christ will cause us to have a quiet spirit.  When we trust in the work of Jesus at the cross, there is no need to strive to get our husband to do what is right. Instead, we can rest because we know that Jesus already did what is right. When we trust in Jesus, we will not struggle to win our husband with our own efforts. Instead, we will be resting in the victory that Jesus has already given us. We can only have a gentle spirit when we are in a position of rest.
 
 My dear readers, having a gentle spirit and submitting to our husbands was not meant to be made a work. We who are in Christ are called to live by faith not by works. When we live believing that Jesus' work at the cross is more than enough, then submitting to our husbands will be a piece of cake. On the other hand, When we depend on our own efforts to win our husbands, we may become bitter and angry, which is the contrary of having a gentle spirit. Today, I encourage you  to turn to Jesus and rest in his finished work.

Self-effort is a gamble.

In response to a question on mom's in tune forum:

Question:  In the morning sow your seed, And in the evening do not withhold your hand; For you do not know which will prosper, Either this or that, Or whether both alike will be good. Ecclesiastes 11:6.

Answer: I think the context of Ecclesiastes is about trying to get satisfaction from things of this world (such as money, relationships and work) through your own self effort.

Those things are not meant to satisfy our heart because we were designed to be satisfied through relationship with Christ. Once we have Christ in our hearts we are satisfied and then we are able to enjoy all those good things in the world that God wants to bless us with. Ecclesiastes 5:19 says that it is God who gives the gift to enjoy our work and wealth.

However, if we try to find satisfaction or success in the world, through our own self-effort, without Christ, we are gambling.

For example, a mom may try teaching her child God's law through self effort (sowing) but it may result in failure if the child grows up and turns away from the Lord. The mom does not get to reap what she sowed.

Another example, a man may work really hard (sowing) at his job in hopes of getting promoted. However, even though he is the most qualified man, another employee gets promoted instead. So the man did not get to reap what he sowed. 

That is why without Christ we must sow "here and there" and all day long because some of our efforts will fail. We don't know which one will be successful. But we can trust in Jesus. Jesus did the things we cannot do.  He is the fulfillment of the law (Mathew 5:17) Jesus was the one who sowed "here and there." When we rely on Jesus' finished work for our success or satisfaction, there is no gambling. Christ at the cross  sowed his sinless life so we can reap his righteousness.(2 Corinthians 5:21) He became a curse so we can be blessed (Galatians 3:1-13).  When we received the finished work of Jesus Christ we have guaranteed success. In our weaknesses his grace super abounds.

Leave the Old Covenant Behind and Come To Jesus

What does the law (old covenant) say? Do not murder, do not steal, honor your parents, etc. On whom does the burden of fulfilling the old covenant depend on? It depends on man. All of the commandments are directed at men, not God. The old covenant is based on man's ability to perform a set of "do's" and "don'ts" by relying on his self-effort (his flesh). In other words, it is works-based. How many commandments must man keep to be blessed? All of them. And how often must he keep all of the commandments? All of the time. How many commandments can man break until he becomes cursed? One. How many times can he break that ONE command before he becomes cursed? Once.
We know we are not perfect and all of us have sinned, so does that mean we are cursed under the law? Yes! That is why the bible says:

Galatians 3:10 "For all who rely on doing the works of the law are under a curse..."

So don't deceive yourself into believing you can be successful under the old covenant.
What hope do we have then? We have a great hope indeed!

Galatians 3:13 "Christ redeemed us from the curse of the law by becoming a curse for us, for it is written: "Cursed is everyone who is hung on a tree."

We have a new and better covenant. The success of the old covenant depended on our self-effort---it was works-based (that's why it failed.) But the success of the new covenant is dependent ONLY on Jesus' work at the cross! Hallelujah! The new covenant is not work-based, but faith-based! Believe it!

Galatians 3:14 "in order that in Christ Jesus the blessing of Abraham would come to the Gentiles, so that we could receive the promise of the Spirit by faith ."

So you see that the blessings come strictly by confessing Jesus is Lord and believing in your heart that God raised Him from the dead.

Romans 10:10-13 "For with the heart one believes and thus has righteousness and with the mouth one confesses and thus has salvation. For the scripture says, "Everyone who believes in him will not be put to shame." For there is no distinction between the Jew and the Greek, for the same Lord is Lord of all, who richly blesses all who call on him . For everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved."

What is the context of Galatians? Galatians was written to gentiles who accepted Christ by faith, but then later, began adopting the Jewish religion and went back to the works-based old covenant. They were trying to earn righteousness by doing the works of the law. Here is the first part of Galatians 3 so you can read it in its proper context and enjoy it for your self:

Galatians 3:1-14 3:1 You foolish Galatians! Who has cast a spell on you? Before your eyes Jesus Christ was vividly portrayed as crucified! 3:2 The only thing I want to learn from you is this: Did you receive the Spirit by doing the works of the law or by believing what you heard? 3:3 Are you so foolish? Although you began with the Spirit , are you now trying to finish by human effort? 3:4 Have you suffered so many things for nothing?---if indeed it was for nothing. 3:5 Does God then give you the Spirit and work miracles among you by your doing the works of the law or by your believing what you heard?

3:6 Just as Abraham believed God, and it was credited to him as righteousness, 3:7 so then, understand that those who believe are the sons of Abraham. 3:8 And the scripture, foreseeing that God would justify the Gentiles by faith, proclaimed the gospel to Abraham ahead of time, saying, "All the nations will be blessed in you." 3:9 So then those who believe are blessed along with Abraham the believer. 3:10 For all who rely on doing the works of the law are under a curse, because it is written, "Cursed is everyone who does not keep on doing everything written in the book of the law." 3:11 Now it is clear no one is justified before God by the law, because the righteous one will live by faith. 3:12 But the law is not based on faith, but the one who does the works of the law will live by them. 3:13 Christ redeemed us from the curse of the law by becoming a curse for us (because it is written, "Cursed is everyone who hangs on a tree") 3:14 in order that in Christ Jesus the blessing of Abraham would come to the Gentiles, so that we could receive the promise of the Spirit by faith.

(Verses from New English Translation (NET) bible.)

Lyall Jonathan Di Trapani 04 Jan 2012

Highly Favored

© Copyright James Yardley and licensed for reuse under this Creative Commons Licence

Luke 1:28 The angel went to her and said, "Greetings, you who are highly favored! The Lord is with you.

       Have you ever wonder what did Mary do in order to be able to be the mother of the savior?   The angel's announcement of Jesus' birth answers that question.  He told Mary "You are highly favored. God is with you." If you notice, the angel never told her because you've followed every law then you will be Jesus' mother. No, the angel told her: "It is because of God's favor that you will conceive. It is because of his power in you that you will be fruitful."

 Luke 1:29 Mary was greatly troubled at his words and wondered what kind of greeting this might be. 30 But the angel said to her, “Do not be afraid, Mary; you have found favor with God. 

Before Jesus died on the cross, everyone had to obey God's law in order to be blessed. There was no "free-lunch" at that time. Sin had entered the world through Adam and everyone had to pay to earn blessings. The old testament mentality is: "If you do good you get good, and if you do bad you get bad." There was no understanding of the word "grace" or "unmerited favor."  That is the reason why when the angel told Mary "You are highly favored" she was greatly troubled and wondered what kind of greeting was that? In other words, Mary was wondering:  "What do you mean by favor?" She thought:  "I've made mistakes, I've not perfectly followed every moses' law. I've done nothing right for an angel to greet me with this words." The angel explains to her again that God wants to bless her not based on her actions but based on His favor.

Luke 1:31 You will conceive and give birth to a son, and you are to call him Jesus. 32 He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High. The Lord God will give him the throne of his father David, 33 and he will reign over Jacob’s descendants forever; his kingdom will never end.” 34 “How will this be,” Mary asked the angel, “since I am a virgin?”

When the angel told her about the miracle of conceiving Jesus,  Mary looked at her self, thought of her flaws, her age, her civil status and wonder how will this be? The angel didn't gave her more laws to follow, he didn't gave her a lesson in the 10 commandments. He didn't gave her a link to a parenting website either. The angel said: Luke 1:35 “The Holy Spirit will come on you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you. So the holy one to be born will be called the Son of God. It was by the work of God and his Spirit! In other words, God was saying: "My work will make yours unnoticeable"

Mary received God's favor when she said:  "I am the lord's servant May your word to me be fulfilled."  She was humbled to receive God's favor. She wanted her life to be a testimony of it. Maybe she said: "Even though I am not perfect, I want my life to be used as a testimony of grace!" Maybe you are like Mary and you look at your flaws, your performance as Christian, parent, spouse and you wonder how can it be that my marriage will thrive? How can it be that my children will be set free?   Let us answer those questions as Mary did.  We can say: "Even though I do not deserve to be blessed by my actions, and even though I have failed, may your word of grace to me be fulfilled. "

  Today, God's word is a greeting of unmerited favor to us. Jesus is telling us that we do not need to pay for our mistakes. We do not need to perform to be blessed.  Jesus died on the cross so we can find unmerited favor. Our sins were punished in the body of our Lord Jesus.   The Lord is telling us today: "Because of what my son did at the cross you are highly favored to raise your child or to have success in your marriage. My power will overshadow you!"


 If Mary was called highly favored when Jesus had not yet died for our sins , how much more favor have we found today?! We are much more jolly favored ones!

The new covenant makes us succesful

 Hebrews 10:16 This is the agreement (testament, covenant) that I will set up and conclude with them after those days, says the Lord: I will imprint My laws upon their hearts, and I will inscribe them on their minds (on their inmost thoughts and understanding), 17 He then goes on to say, And their sins and their lawbreaking I will remember no more.

Photo by olliethebastard on Flickr

    The previous verses are the main clause of the new covenant. God has promised to write his law upon our hearts.  In other words, he promises to fill our minds and hearts with his word so we can be successful in every area of our lives.  Contrary to the old covenant,  where man had to work to receive God's blessings, in the new covenant God is the one who does the good work in us so we can be blessed. He wants us to be conscious of his work and not of our own.

When God writes his law in our hearts we instinctively do the things that God requires us to do (Romans 2:14.) We do not need to put effort into following the right steps to be successful in our ministry, careers, relationships, diets or freedom!  Jesus has done the work already! His work opened a way for God to write his law in our hearts.

  Many times, when are successful we look back we count the steps we took to get to the top of the mountain. Then we write a formula out of it and think that if we follow those steps again we will have great results. For instance, we may say: "To have a happy marriage follow this steps...," or "to be free from bondage do... ." " To receive the Holy Spirit you need to do..." The truth is that our works are shaky ground and will never save us! If we try to be successful based on our works we will end up being frustrated. It is only by beholding Jesus and His work that our steps can be blessed. We do not have to work to earn success. What work is there left for us to do if Jesus himself said: "IT IS FINISHED!" (John 19:30)

      The bible has examples of people who was successful because God wrote his law upon their hearts.  Joseph is one example. He was very successful because God was with him (Genesis 39:2.) In other words, God put his word in Joseph's mind and heart. Joseph was not sin conscious, he was only aware that God loved him, that God was for him.  That is the reason why he received strength against temptation. When we are conscious of God's love for us, he writes his law in our hearts and as a result we are empowered to run away from temptations.

   Samuel, one of the greatest prophets of Israel, is another example. His mother brought him to the temple at a very young age. At that time the priest Eli was in charge of the temple. Eli did not have good parenting skills. The bible tells us that his two sons were wicked. Neither Hannah nor Eli had the ability to raise a great prophet----specially in a time where no one was able to hear the voice of God.  The reason why Samuel was successful had nothing to do with human efforts. It was God who wrote His law upon Samuel's heart.  God said " I will raise for me a faithful priest that shall do according to my will. " (1 Samuel 2:35) When God writes his law upon our hearts we are able to have his thoughts, hear his voice and do his will.

  As we can see, Joseph and Samuel were not successful because they did everything right. On the contrary, they were successful and did everything right because God was giving them his favor, his thoughts, his word and his power.  In the same way,  in the new covenant we are not successful because we do everything right. We are successful because Jesus did everything right.

  The new covenant  is the invitation God extends us to rely on his grace. Lets remember that it only took place after Jesus died on the cross. Therefore, God can only write his law upon our hearts when we focus on what he did for us at the cross. The more we look at Jesus, the more we are transformed. The more we accept our possition in Christ apart from our works the more fruits of the spirit we will bear, the more freedom, healing and success we will experience.

 Scriptures

 Romans 2:14 14 (Indeed, when Gentiles, who do not have the law, do by nature things required by the law, they are a law for themselves, even though they do not have the law. 15 They show that the requirements of the law are written on their hearts, their consciences also bearing witness, and their thoughts sometimes accusing them and at other times even defending them.)

John 19:30 When he had received the drink, Jesus said, "It is finished." With that, he bowed his head and gave up his spirit.

Genesis 39:2
The LORD was with Joseph and he prospered, and he lived in the house of his Egyptian master.

1 Samuel 2:35
And I will raise me up a faithful priest, that shall do according to that which is in mine heart and in my mind: and I will build him a sure house; and he shall walk before mine anointed for ever.


Hebrews 8:8 For finding fault, he says to them, Behold, days come, saith the Lord, and I will consummate a new covenant as regards the house of Israel, and as regards the house of Juda;



Romans 3:20 Therefore no one will be declared righteous in his sight by observing the law; rather, through the law we become conscious of sin.

James 2:10

For whoever keeps the whole law and yet stumbles at just one point is guilty of breaking all of it.

1 John 4:17

In this way, love is made complete among us so that we will have confidence on the day of judgment, because in this world we are like him.


Mathew 11:30
For my yoke is easy and my burden is light."

Tell God about it... (Part 2)

[Picture by jaqian, flirk]

In the previous post we read Jeremiah 3:20-23 (Click the link to read the verses.) We also learned that  Jeremiah was very sad because Salomon's temple was destroyed. Jeremiah, in the midst of his trouble, blamed God for causing him pain. Even though he was hurt and suffering, he ran to God and presented his lament to him. After doing that, Jeremiah changed his perspective about God. He stopped blaming God for his suffering. Instead, He received hope and began to expect God's faithfulness and loving kindness in the midst of his heartache.

Sometimes, we respond to our disappointments the way Jeremiah did. When we face loss we have a tendency to blame God for it. We tend to doubt of his faithfulness and loving kindness.

Like Jeremiah, we can freely come to the throne of God. We can express our  sorrow at the cross of our redeemer. When we do that, we will find that God is not the one who causes us pain. In fact, he is the one who wants to deliver us from evil. The Bible says that Jesus has come only to give us life.  John 10:10  "The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full." 


The bible also tells us that death and destruction came because of Adam's sin.  As human beings we are born sinners. We do not deserve anything good from this world. We do not deserve blessings. We only deserve death. Romans 5:12 " Therefore, just as sin entered the world through one man, and death through sin, and in this way death came to all men, because all sinned."   This verse tells us that we need a savior with power to redeem us from that death. There are good news! Jesus Christ came to redeem us from that curse. Jesus Christ died for all of us. He became sin so we may become the righteousness of God. His blood, His death at the cross qualify us to receive God's blessings.

We can come to Jesus and find hope in his finished work at the cross. When we come to him, we realize that God is not angry at us. He does not wants to punish us for our sin any more. He has already punished our sin at the cross.  Jesus took our punishment so we can enjoy a life of victory.  Isaiah 53:5 "But he was pierced for our transgressions, he was crushed for our iniquities; the punishment that brought us peace was upon him, and by his wounds we are healed."

Jesus Christ is the gift from God that gives us life. We have an assurance that Jesus will bring us out of any storm alive and victorious. His blood is greater than any circumstance we are facing. His name is more powerful than anything that would try to hold us back. There is no sin, offense, heartache that his blood cannot cover and heal  Romans 5:15  "But God's free gift is not like Adam's sin. Many people died because of the sin of that one man. But the grace from God was much greater; many people received God's gift of life by the grace of the one man, Jesus Christ." 

Today is a good day to start focusing on the gift of salvation. Instead of placing our expectations in this world of imperfection, let's come to the cross. Let's bring our heartaches to Jesus. He is willing to help us.  When we come to him, we must believe that Jesus' death and resurrection qualifies us to see God's faithfulness.  Our victory in this world is secure in him.  John 16:33 "I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world."

                       

Tell God about it... (Part I )

Hello dear readers,


 I've been reading some verses in the book of Lamentations. This verses have taught me about the merciful and faithful heart of our father God. God can reveal all his kindness to us when we present our heartaches before Him.

 Lamentations was written by the prophet Jeremiah. In this book we can read how bitterly the prophet mourns before God for the destruction of Jerusalem and the Holy temple. According to Jeremiah, The city and temple were destroyed because God was punishing the sins of Jerusalem.

 In our time, God does not punish us for our sins because the punishment fell upon Jesus at the cross. God's wrath was exhausted when Jesus died for all of us.  So, Lamentations seems to be a book that can no longer be applied to us. However, I do think that when we sin we will still have to face natural consequences. We may hurt our loved ones, and our loved ones may hurt our feelings too.

 When people make mistakes or sin against us it can be painful for us. Therefore, sometimes there is a lament in our hearts. This lament may lead us to question God's love for us.

 The reality beyond all the things we go through is that God is always faithful. He never changes. When it rains or when is sunny God is faithful. His faithfulness sustains us. His faithfulness renews our strength. His faithfulness will never leave us nor forsake us. His mercies are new every morning.

  In the book of lamentations we can learn that the secret to see God's faithfulness in the midst of our troubles consists in crying out before God. We can pour out our pain, our every thought, doubt, complaint, and every injustice that's ever happen to us. We can be completely naked before God without shame.

Please, Read with me Lamentations 3:20-23:

20 My soul has them continually in remembrance and is bowed down within me.

21 But this I recall and therefore have I hope and expectation:

22 It is because of the Lord's mercy and loving-kindness that we are not consumed, because His [tender] compassions fail not.

 23 They are new every morning; great and abundant is  has been made to us your stability and faithfulness.


 God invites us to present our cases before him. In other words, God likes when we tell him about the things that trouble our hearts. Indeed, we can read his invitation to do it in Isaiah 43:26 where it says:" Put me in remembrance; let us argue together; set forth your case, that you may be proved right."

 The benefit of presenting our case before God is that He has the ability to change our perspective. He can reveal His son to us so we can see the truth of our circumstances.

   When we tell God about our pain and struggles, He heals our hearts so we can trust again in His faithfulness. We will no longer need to put our trust in people, life or circumstances, which have the potential to let us down. Instead, we can learn to trust in Him.

God surely will show His faithfulness to us by restoring everything that we've lost. He will show us His new mercies every morning in the midst of our trials because He is faithful, and His love will never fail.

Invitation to your heart

Pour out your heart before God. He'll listen, He'll reveal His love and faithfulness to you. Then He will restore everything that you've lost.

 Exercise:

1. Make a list of all the things that have hurt your heart.

2. Make a list of the things that you've lost because of people's sin or because of circumstances you faced in this fallen world.

3. Bring the list before God, pray about each of the things listed there.

4. Tell God: "I expect to see your faithfulness in this area____."  Please restore into me  health, my innocence, my joy, my relationships, my sound mind, my confidence, my trust, my job. (You name it!)

5. Expect and believe to receive double of  health or boldness (You name it!) from now on.

6. Pray in Jesus name Amen!