Discerning what is best - Ruminating in the Word of God

The Lord is awe-inspiring, fearsome, fascinating, intriguing,
majestic, and full of splendor: breathtaking! Here is what I saw of
him and what came to my mind and heart in Philippians 1:9-11,

"And this is my prayer: that your love may abound more and more in
knowledge and depth of insight, so that you may be able to discern
what is best and may be pure and blameless for the day of Christ,
filled with the fruit of righteousness that comes through Jesus
Christ—to the glory and praise of God."

Discerning what is best is connected directly with abounding in love
with the resulting "knowledge and depth of insight" it brings. It is
within the confines of this knowledge and depth of insight that we are
enabled to discern what is best. Paul goes on to point to the purity,
blamelessness, the fruit of righteousness that is spawned by
discerning what is best. And, most importantly, his observation is
that the outworking of all this has a unique and magnificent aspect:
it all comes through Jesus Christ and results in the glory and praise
of God. Sounds important to me!

We often assign importance to what is best, even the little things in
life. Not everything is. We will all make choices today based on our
concept of what is best. It is best I go to work today, and not play
hooky to go fishing. It is best I finish this before starting on that.
I think I will go to this restaurant tonight because they have the
best Italian cuisine.

There are, however, those bigger things that have tremendous impact on
how we might consider if ours was a life well-lived when it comes to
an end. As all people do, we have our own free will to determine those
things we invest our lives in. If we live 60, 70 or 80 years, those
years will be spent doing certain things and not others. What is best?

This is exactly the point. It is only within the bounds of the love
the Holy Spirit brings that we will be enabled to ultimately discern
what is best. We can't make wise choices without an ability to discern
what is best and our best first choice is to participate in the
reservoir of love the Lord makes available to us. I am reminded of
Paul's words in Romans 5:5, "Hope does not put us to shame, because
God's love has been poured out into our hearts through the Holy
Spirit, who has been given to us."

Anything we can do to cultivate this love in our lives will reap rich
rewards for us. We all know of poor choices people make. We all know
too well of the poor choices we ourselves have made. As I think over
the years of my life, I can't help but think if I had been able to
discern what was best at crucial times, my life might have been better
lived. The wonderful thing is that regardless of what choices I have
made in the past, given where I am at today, if I abound in love I
will be enabled to discern what is best and I can make those choices
that will ultimately bring glory and praise to God.

We all have that ability given us in Jesus Christ. Pretty exciting, isn't it?!

Anything of the Lord capture your heart from Scripture today? Share
what moved you about him from your Bible reading today. I'd love to
hear from you!

Trevor Fisk
trevor.fisk@gmail.com

What is worthy of the gospel? - Ruminating in the Word of God

The Lord is awe-inspiring, fearsome, fascinating, intriguing,
majestic, and full of splendor: breathtaking! Here is what I saw of
him and what came to my mind and heart in Philippians 1:27,

"Whatever happens, conduct yourselves in a manner worthy of the gospel
of Christ."

Here is a simple statement by Paul in his exhortation to his readers
to live their lives in such a way that would be pleasing to the Lord.
After all, we need to acknowledge something Paul says in this letter a
little later, "it is God who works in you to will and to act in order
to fulfill his good purpose." Philippians 2:13. God has his agenda and
it is his desire we participate in it. God's agenda doesn't exist for
our purposes, we exist for it.

So, the question I have for myself this morning is, what exactly is
worthy of gospel of Christ? What is the gospel worth? Here are some
things mentioned by Paul in this letter alone that helps establish the
worth of the gospel to each of us:

-- Through the gospel, the good work God has begun in us will be
continued by him, in his faithfulness to us, to completion at the day
of Jesus Christ, 1:6.

-- We all share in the riches of God's grace, 1:7.

-- We will be found to be pure, blameless and filled with "the fruit
of righteousness" on the day of Jesus Christ, 1:10-11.

-- Because of the gospel, our deaths will be our gain, as it was
Paul's, 1:21. We will be saved by God, 1:28.

-- We have encouragement by being "in Christ", 2:1.

-- We have comfort from the love of Jesus Christ, 2:1.

-- We have a "common sharing in the Spirit", 2:1.

-- We experience tenderness and compassion, 2:1.

-- God works in us to fulfill his good purpose, 2:13.

-- We become "children of God without fault", 2:15.

-- We have "the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus", 3:8.

-- We have a righteousness that comes from God on the basis of faith -
not on our performance, 3:9.

-- We attain to the resurrection of the dead, 3:11.

-- Christ Jesus takes hold of us, 3:12.

-- We have a prize for which God has called us heavenward, 3:14.

-- Our citizenship is in heaven, 3:20.

-- Jesus Christ will transform our lowly bodies to be like his
glorious resurrected body, 3:21.

-- The peace of God "which transcends all understanding", will guard
our hearts and minds in Christ Jesus, 4:7.

-- God will meet all our needs according the the riches of his glory
in Christ Jesus, 4:19.

Here are nineteen items to consider as I think of the worth of the
gospel. Not an exhaustive list to be sure, but nineteen items Paul
happens to mention in this letter to the Philippian church. Look at
what the Lord gives us through his gospel if we but respond to it and
embrace him in faith! These things are of greater worth than all of
which the world pursues today. Living my life worthy of the gospel is
a call to make choices that can never exhaust the value for which the
gospel represents to any one of us.

I'll bet we can add many things to Paul's list here. What would you add?

Anything of the Lord capture your heart from Scripture today? Share
what moved you about him from your Bible reading today. I'd love to
hear from you!

Trevor Fisk
trevor.fisk@gmail.com

The Lord's response to prayer - Ruminating in the Word of God

The Lord is awe-inspiring, fearsome, fascinating, intriguing,
majestic, and full of splendor: breathtaking! Here is what I saw of
him and what came to my mind and heart in Philippians 1:18-19,

"Yes, and I will continue to rejoice, for I know that through your
prayers and God's provision of the Spirit of Jesus Christ what has
happened to me will turn out for my deliverance."

There appears to me a connection between God's provision of the Spirit
and the prayers of believers. At least here, for Paul, he seems to tie
the two together. This letter speaks of the fellowship and
participation of the church in Philippi with Paul's ministry. Paul
connects the prayers of these Philippian believers with the provision
of the Spirit that his imprisonment and all it brought would result in
his deliverance.

One thing is clear, prayer makes a difference. In Philippians 4:5-7 we
read, "The Lord is near. Do not be anxious about anything, but in
every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present
your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all
understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus."
God is listening to his people and he responds. In another place Paul
says, "And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of
prayers and requests. With this in mind, be alert and always keep on
praying for all the Lord's people." Ephesians 6:18.

If God responds to prayer, if God will bring the "provision of the
Spirit of Jesus Christ", I can't think of a more productive, a more
effective activity to bring about the Lord's involvement in our lives
than prayer. What is it we might miss out on if we fail to pray?

It really has me thinking...

Anything of the Lord capture your heart from Scripture today? Share
what moved you about him from your Bible reading today. I'd love to
hear from you!

Trevor Fisk
trevor.fisk@gmail.com

The mindset of Jesus Christ - Ruminating in the Word of God

The Lord is awe-inspiring, fearsome, fascinating, intriguing,
majestic, and full of splendor: breathtaking! Here is what I saw of
him and what came to my mind and heart in Philippians 2:5-8,

"In your relationships with one another, have the same mindset as
Christ Jesus: Who, being in very nature God, did not consider equality
with God something to be used to his own advantage; rather, he made
himself nothing by taking the very nature of a servant, being made in
human likeness. And being found in appearance as a man, he humbled
himself by becoming obedient to death— even death on a cross!"

Merriam-Webster provides the following definitions for "mindset": "a
mental attitude or inclination, a fixed state of mind, a mental
inclination, tendency, or habit." Paul describes the mindset of Jesus
Christ in a moving reminder of his service to us in tremendous
humility, particularly when considering his station as God the Son.

Although he was God, Jesus Christ did not cling to what was his as God
in order to provide us a way into his family. He "made himself
nothing" by becoming a man with a body, entering into the human race
to sacrifice his body on our behalf. As sinners, all mankind faced
God's own judgment of an eternity in hell - every individual. To make
a way for us to not only avoid such an horrific fate, but also to be
enabled to join his own family with a place at his table, he
sacrificed his body as full payment for each one of my sins and each
one of your sins. This is what is meant by the prophetic proclamation
of God's servant, "Surely he took up our pain and bore our suffering,
yet we considered him punished by God, stricken by him, and afflicted.
But he was pierced for our transgressions, he was crushed for our
iniquities; the punishment that brought us peace was on him, and by
his wounds we are healed. We all, like sheep, have gone astray, each
of us has turned to our own way; and the Lord has laid on him the
iniquity of us all." Isaiah 53:4-6. What humility! What servant-hood!

When here Jesus Christ provided us with the greatest expression of
love. "Greater love has no one than this: to lay down one's life for
one's friends." John 15:13. As Paul portrays Jesus Christ in
Philippians 2:5-8, the stunning expression of the love of God's own
Son for us sinners is graphically portrayed in the cross of Jesus
Christ. A cross that we are told he looked forward to with joy, "For
the joy set before him [Jesus Christ] he endured the cross, scorning
its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God."
Hebrews 12:2. What love!

All the Scriptures inevitably point to Jesus Christ, no matter the
part you find yourself in. Here in Philippians is a remarkable
statement of Paul that speaks of the mindset of Jesus Christ, a
mindset of humility, a mindset of servant-hood, a mindset of love, a
mindset energized by his own joy in what he pursued: wretched sinners
just like me!

Breathtaking, isn't it?!

Anything of the Lord capture your heart from Scripture today? Share
what moved you about him from your Bible reading today. I'd love to
hear from you!

Trevor Fisk
trevor.fisk@gmail.com

What are we boasting in today? - Ruminating in the Word of God

The Lord is awe-inspiring, fearsome, fascinating, intriguing,
majestic, and full of splendor: breathtaking! Here is what I saw of
him and what came to my mind and heart in Philippians 3:3-4,

"It is we who are the circumcision, we who serve God by his Spirit,
who boast in Christ Jesus, and who put no confidence in the flesh—
though I myself have reasons for such confidence."

Paul boasted. He boasted in Christ Jesus, he looked forward to
boasting when Jesus Christ returns in the investment he made in the
Philippian church, that his work was not in vain.

At times boasting is precluded in the Scriptures. In 2 Timothy 3:1-5
we read, "But mark this: There will be terrible times in the last
days. People will be lovers of themselves, lovers of money, boastful,
proud, abusive, disobedient to their parents, ungrateful, unholy,
without love, unforgiving, slanderous, without self-control, brutal,
not lovers of the good, treacherous, rash, conceited, lovers of
pleasure rather than lovers of God— having a form of godliness but
denying its power." Being boastful, as listed here, is a trait of the
wicked in the last days.

James points to the object of boasting as that which makes it evil,
"As it is, you boast in your arrogant schemes. All such boasting is
evil." James 4:16. In his condemnation of the Corinthian schisms Paul
told them, "So then, no more boasting about human leaders!" 1
Corinthians 3:21.

What we learn is that not all boasting is bad. Some boasting is good -
it depends on the object of the boast. The boasts Paul engaged in
pointed to the person of Jesus Christ. So wonderful was Jesus Christ
to Paul when he wrote this letter, whatever he could do in
collaboration with the Lord in the lives of these Philippian believers
was cause for boasting as well. We see this also in 1 Corinthians
1:13-14, "And I hope that, as you have understood us in part, you will
come to understand fully that you can boast of us just as we will
boast of you in the day of the Lord Jesus."

Other places Paul mentions his boasting includes verses as: Romans 5:2
and 11, "We boast in the hope of the glory of God...", "Not only is
this so, but we also boast in God through our Lord Jesus Christ,
through whom we have now received reconciliation." In quoting Jeremiah
9:24 Paul says, "It is because of him that you are in Christ Jesus,
who has become for us wisdom from God—that is, our righteousness,
holiness and redemption. Therefore, as it is written: 'Let the one who
boasts boast in the Lord.'" 1 Corinthians 1:30-31. In 2 Corinthians
11:30 Paul says, "If I must boast, I will boast of the things that
show my weakness." He tells us why in the following chapter, 12:9-10,
"Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so
that Christ's power may rest on me. That is why, for Christ's sake, I
delight in weaknesses, in insults, in hardships, in persecutions, in
difficulties. For when I am weak, then I am strong." Paul's weakness
became the canvas upon which Jesus Christ manifested his own strength,
providing Paul opportunity to boast all the more in his Lord.

The reality is we all boast and we do so often. We boast of how well
our children or grandchildren are doing, we might boast of our
spouse's wonderful qualities, of our work place, our favorite sports
teams, or our entertainers or politicians (or lack thereof!) or
whatever.

What we boast in speaks to what wells up within our hearts. What we
boast in points others to what we find as important and meaningful to
us. The question I have of myself this morning is what is it I will
boast in today? How about you?

Anything of the Lord capture your heart from Scripture today? Share
what moved you about him from your Bible reading today. I'd love to
hear from you!

Trevor Fisk
trevor.fisk@gmail.com

A man after God's heart - Ruminating in the Word of God

The Lord is awe-inspiring, fearsome, fascinating, intriguing,
majestic, and full of splendor: breathtaking! Here is what I saw of
him and what came to my mind and heart in Philippians 1:18,

"What does it matter? The important thing is that in every way,
whether from false motives or true, Christ is preached. And because of
this I rejoice."

As Paul considered the fact that there were some who preached the
gospel message from dishonorable motives, such as envy, rivalry,
selfish ambition and insincerity, as opposed to others who preached
the gospel from such honorable motives as goodwill and love, he
rejoiced either way. While the former did their preaching in an
attempt to stir up trouble for Paul, he rejoiced in it anyway.

The reason Paul rejoiced at the preaching of the gospel regardless of
the motive, even bad motives, was that in any event, the gospel was
advancing. Paul was so committed, not to his own welfare, not to his
own personal satisfaction and pride, but to the gospel enterprise. It
simply didn't make any difference to him what the motives were. He
rejoiced in the message going out. I suspect there may be few who
today who might rejoice at evangelism taking place at the expense of
their own good name or whatever the trouble intended for Paul may have
been.

It is apparent that Paul found his enthusiasm in his work for the
kingdom of God in adopting God's agenda as opposed to his own. I
suspect Paul was not one who took pride in being a best-selling author
of religious material. I suspect Paul didn't take pride in
establishing a huge congregation in a magnificent building that bore
the name of his own ministry. It mattered not that others may have
been causing him personal trouble as long as God's agenda of advancing
the kingdom of God was being furthered.

Paul was interested in the things of God alone. Recognizing the chief
purpose of the age in which we live is to build up God's kingdom,
things that may distract ministers of the gospel today held little
interest for him. He adopted the Lord's agenda, he sought the purposes
of the Lord, he was on the Lord's side. In his selfless abandonment
for God's kingdom it turned out he became a "best-selling author"
having written half the books of our New Testament. In his selfless
abandonment for God's kingdom he planted the church among Gentiles
such that his impact western civilization cannot be overstated.

Why was Paul this way? Was he just born a wonderful man after God's
heart? In 1 Timothy 1:13 he tells he was once a blasphemer, a
persecutor and a violent man. No, Paul wasn't born a godly man. God
made him that way. I wonder what he could do with me?

Anything of the Lord capture your heart from Scripture today? Share
what moved you about him from your Bible reading today. I'd love to
hear from you!

Trevor Fisk
trevor.fisk@gmail.com

An inexpressible and glorious joy! - Ruminating in the Word of God

The Lord is awe-inspiring, fearsome, fascinating, intriguing,
majestic, and full of splendor: breathtaking! Here is what I saw of
him and what came to my mind and heart in Philippians 1:4,

"In all my prayers for all of you, I always pray with joy..."

Joy is a word not often used today, but certainly a word well
understood. Perhaps used more at Christmas time than during the rest
of the year. Christmas cards often employ the word "joy" and "rejoice"
as well as many of the carols we sing. We all know what it means. If
not, Merriam-Webster defines it as, "The emotion evoked by well-being,
success, or good fortune or by the prospect of possessing what one
desires, a state of happiness or felicity, a source or cause of
delight." I love the words related to joy that on-line dictionary
provides: "elatedness, elation, exhilaration, exultation, high,
intoxication; ecstasy, euphoria, glory, heaven, nirvana, paradise,
rapture, rapturousness, ravishment, seventh heaven, transport;
delectation, delight, enjoyment, pleasure; cheer, cheerfulness,
comfort, exuberance, gaiety (also gayety), gladsomeness, glee,
gleefulness, jocundity, jollity, joyfulness, joyousness, jubilance,
jubilation, lightheartedness, merriness, mirth; content,
contentedness, gratification, satisfaction, triumph." That kind of
rounds-out my understanding of what Paul means when he speaks of the
joy he holds in his heart. In this instance it is his prayerful
consideration of the participation the Philippian believers had in his
ministry.

Joy is a current we see in this letter of Paul to the Philippian
church. We have the word provided us by our translators five times. We
also find the term "rejoice" six times in this letter. Perhaps the
crowning use of the word is found in 4:4, "Rejoice in the Lord always.
I will say it again: Rejoice!" From this we see there is an
expectation that believers will rejoice, should be rejoicing in their
Lord. There should be an unmistakable exuberance and exhilaration of
joy in the heart of a believer for his Lord. If we are not finding it,
maybe we should take a look under the hood to see what is going on.
Possibly something missing in our understanding of the Lord, some
impediment on our part in our relationship with him, maybe the thrust
or temperament of the fellowship we are involved with. Paul tells us
that the kingdom of heaven is a matter of righteousness, peace and joy
in the Holy Spirit, Romans 14:17.

We read in Galatians 5:22 that joy is a fruit or product of the Holy
Spirit in our lives. Paul reminds the Thessalonian believers they
received the gospel message in the midst of suffering, yet with "the
joy given by the Holy Spirit." 1 Thessalonians 1:6. God is all about
joy. God the Father anointed Jesus Christ "with the oil of joy",
Hebrews 1:9; Jesus endured the cross "for the joy set before him",
Hebrews 12:2; The "city of the living God" is where "thousands upon
thousands of angels in joyful assembly" are gathered, Hebrews 12:22.

Peter tells us, "Though you have not seen him [our Lord Jesus Christ],
you love him; and even though you do not see him now, you believe in
him and are filled with an inexpressible and glorious joy, for you are
receiving the end result of your faith, the salvation of your souls."
1 Peter 1:8-9. "An inexpressible and glorious joy"! This should be
evident among God's people. It is the nature of God, our source and
our experience in life with him. Our God is a joyous God and this
can't help but be expressed by those who are his.

Anything of the Lord capture your heart from Scripture today? Share
what moved you about him from your Bible reading today. I'd love to
hear from you!

Trevor Fisk
trevor.fisk@gmail.com