Keeping In Mind That God Knows You Have Value

My Utmost For His Highest

 

By the grace of God I am what I am, and His grace toward me was not in vain… —1 Corinthians 15:10

 

“We say things such as, “Oh, I shouldn’t claim to be sanctified; I’m not a saint.” But to say that before God means, “No, Lord, it is impossible for You to save and sanctify me; there are opportunities I have not had and so many imperfections in my brain and body; no, Lord, it isn’t possible.” That may sound wonderfully humble to others, but before God it is an attitude of defiance.[…] There is only one relationship that really matters, and that is your personal relationship to your personal Redeemer and Lord. If you maintain that at all costs, letting everything else go, God will fulfill His purpose through your life.”  CHAMBERS

 

I had a friend, who has since passed on, who would get upset if someone said “I am not worthy.”  Meaning they had no value.  He would reply, “Because of sin you may not be deserving of the grace that has been shown to you through Jesus, but you were of so much value to God that Jesus went to the cross to die for you.  Don’t say you are not worth it.”  That truth escapes many Christians.  In our sinful condition, God could have no part of us.  But because of Jesus, well perhaps this verse says it better.  (1 John 3:1-2) “See what great love the Father has lavished on us, that we should be called children of God! And that is what we are! The reason the world does not know us is that it did not know him. Dear friends, now we are children of God, and what we will be has not yet been made known. But we know that when Christ appears, we shall be like him..”

 

Remembering that fact each day and acting on it is every Christian’s challenge.  Our spiritual nature should be primary in our day to day living.  If we are  to fulfill the purpose God has for us, then we must reprioritize our lives.  A spiritually focused life requires discipline .. determination … intentionality.  Spiritual maturity doesn’t happen on its own.  (Joshua 1:8) “Keep this Book of the Law always on your lips; meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do everything written in it. Then you will be prosperous and successful.”

 

If you are reading this, perhaps you are already practicing that discipline, perhaps not.  But if you are then let serve as a reminder to encourage someone else. ELGIN

 

Bondye Beni Ou (God Bless You)

 

Charley Elgin

To Do Good You Must First Be Good - That Starts In The Heart

My Utmost For His Highest

 

…being justified freely by His grace… —Romans 3:24

 

“We have to realize that we cannot earn or win anything from God through our own efforts. We must either receive it as a gift or do without it. The greatest spiritual blessing we receive is when we come to the knowledge that we are destitute. Until we get there, our Lord is powerless. He can do nothing for us as long as we think we are sufficient in and of ourselves. We must enter into His kingdom through the door of destitution. As long as we are “rich,” particularly in the area of pride or independence, God can do nothing for us. It is only when we get hungry spiritually that we receive the Holy Spirit. The gift of the essential nature of God is placed and made effective in us by the Holy Spirit. He imparts to us the quickening life of Jesus, making us truly alive. He takes that which was “beyond” us and places it “within” us. And immediately, once “the beyond” has come “within,” it rises up to “the above,” and we are lifted into the kingdom where Jesus lives and reigns (see John 3:5).”  CHAMBERS

 

When it comes to “doing” most of us prefer to do whatever it is we are going to do, ourselves.  At the inception of our new life in Christ is grace, not self-effort. (Ephesians 2:8-10) “For by grace you have been saved through faith; and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God; not as a result of works, so that no one may boast. For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand so that we would walk in them.”  Our salvation is not something we did. It is supernatural.  Yet, verse 10 says we were created for good works.  So here is what I believe.  Our old nature is sinful and can offer nothing to the world or to our Father in heaven that has any eternal value.  If you are trying to be good or do good by the power of your will … you are going to fail.  The wrong thinking is that by doing right I will be right.  The correct thinking is that by being right, I will do right.  In Philippians 3:8-9, Paul wrote “ What is more, I consider everything a loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, for whose sake I have lost all things. I consider them garbage, that I may gain Christ  and be found in him, not having a righteousness of my own that comes from the law, but that which is through faith in Christ—the righteousness that comes from God on the basis of faith.”  There is nothing we can do that will make us right with God.  Nothing that we can do that will “make Him happy”.  We have nothing to offer except what He desires the most .. the devotion of our hearts.

 

God can and will use us for His glory, but many times people use Him for their own glory.  (Matthew 6:2) “So when you give to the needy, do not announce it with trumpets, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and on the streets, to be honored by others. Truly I tell you, they have received their reward in full.”  Anything that you do in the name of Jesus by the power of Spirit, is for the glory of God, the Father.  I am sure you have heard the saying, “don’t shoot the messenger”.  We are all messengers. And in the same way, don’t give the messenger credit for something that God has done.  I can offer nothing … I can do nothing on my own… that has eternal value … anything that comes from my old nature.  And I cannot take credit for anything that springs out of my new nature.  So my point.  Stop trying to do good (it only leads to hypocrisy) and, instead, be good.  If you want to make a difference in this world, if you want to please the Father, it starts in the heart.  ELGIN

 

Bondye Beni Ou (God Bless You)

 

Charley Elgin

How To Live In This World And Not Get Muddy

My Utmost For His Highest

 

…by whom the world has been crucified to me, and I to the world. —Galatians 6:14

 

“Our Lord was not a recluse nor a fanatical holy man practicing self-denial. He did not physically cut Himself off from society, but He was inwardly disconnected all the time. He was not aloof, but He lived in another world. In fact, He was so much in the common everyday world that the religious people of His day accused Him of being a glutton and a drunkard. Yet our Lord never allowed anything to interfere with His consecration of spiritual power.[…] The Spirit of God has set a great many people free from their sin, yet they are experiencing no fullness in their lives— no true sense of freedom. The kind of religious life we see around the world today is entirely different from the vigorous holiness of the life of Jesus Christ. “I do not pray that You should take them out of the world, but that You should keep them from the evil one” (John 17:15). We are to be in the world but not of it— to be separated internally, not externally (see John 17:16). We must never allow anything to interfere with the consecration of our spiritual power. Consecration (being dedicated to God’s service) is our part; sanctification (being set apart from sin and being made holy) is God’s part.”  CHAMBERS

 

Jesus did not separate Himself from sinners, but ministered to those that would receive the Truth.  The Pharisees and other religious leaders who criticized Jesus were sinners as well, but they would not receive the Truth.  So fast forward to today.  Can you walk through a mud puddle and not get muddy?  Can you live amongst non-Christians and not get drawn back to the world you were saved from?  The answer is, it depends.  It depends upon the strength of your faith .. the strength of your relationship with God.  Many Christians are convinced that they will be the ones who will sway the lives of their unsaved friends, when, in my experience, it is the Christian who is swayed.  Why?  Because the Christian is more committed to their friends than to the Lord.  (1 Corinthians 15:33) “Do not be misled: “Bad company corrupts good character.””  I have known a number of Christian women who convinced themselves that they could influence the unsaved man they wanted to marry.  I cannot think of one success story.

 

When Jesus said that we must pick up our cross and follow Him.  When Paul wrote that we must offer ourselves to God as living sacrifices.  When Jesus said you must love God more than anything or anyone else … this is what they were talking about.  If you hear the truth of God and feel resentful or resistant toward it .. like you know better … be alert!  That is your flesh .. your old nature .. not the Spirit in you.  The Spirit is always in agreement with the Truth.  You are in the world .. not so you can be a friend of the world … but so you can be a beacon of light to point people to Jesus.  Should you love your unsaved friends? Absolutely.  Should you spend time with your friends? Yes.  Should you participate in their sin to gain their approval?  What do you think?  ELGIN

 

Bondye Beni Ou (God Bless You)

 

Charley Elgin

We All Have A Sermon To Preach

My Utmost For His Highest

God forbid that I should boast except in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ… —Galatians 6:14

“Most of us are not consistent spiritually because we are more concerned about being consistent externally. […] The great basis of his [Paul’s] consistency was the agony of God in the redemption of the world, namely, the Cross of Christ. State your beliefs to yourself again. Get back to the foundation of the Cross of Christ, doing away with any belief not based on it. In secular history the Cross is an infinitesimally small thing, but from the biblical perspective it is of more importance than all the empires of the world. If we get away from dwelling on the tragedy of God on the Cross in our preaching, our preaching produces nothing. It will not transmit the energy of God to man; it may be interesting, but it will have no power. However, when we preach the Cross, the energy of God is released. “…it pleased God through the foolishness of the message preached to save those who believe.…we preach Christ crucified…” (1 Corinthians 1:21, 23).”  CHAMBERS

What? You say “I am not a preacher so this does not apply to me.”  Your life is a sermon.  Your life is to be a proclamation of a sinner reborn by faith in Jesus and the Cross.  Romans 10:9 says that salvation comes by believing that Jesus is Lord, that God, the Father, has established Jesus the Son as Lord of all and that God raised Jesus from the dead after Jesus paid the penalty for our sin on the cross and died for us.  Through our re-birth – which is spiritual – there is, or should be, a change in us.  The old things, the love of this world and the things of this world, the things we once did that do not honor God, pass away, (2 Corinthians 5:17) and our lives change.  People see the change in us.  They notice it and wonder what has happened.  And we must always be ready to share what has happened to us (1 Peter 3:15).  That is our sermon.

I can remember when my mom became a Christian.  The four older children, there are seven and I the youngest of the oldest four, saw the change, but we didn’t believe it was real.  We knew what our mom had been like in the past, and thought that what we were seeing in her, the change, would not .. could not last for long.  Before she would get very angry, yell at us and cuss like a sailor.  But out skepticism proved to be wrong.  We could see the change in her, but our problem was that we had no spiritual understanding.  Each of the four of us (actually all seven) eventually put our faith in Jesus as well.  Our mom lived for Jesus, she had feet of clay, but she loved the Lord and His Word.  My point in sharing this is that there should be a change in our behavior .. in the core of our being. It is not because we are acting differently, but because we different.  And that difference is happening from the inside out.   So what is your sermon like?  ELGIN

Bondye Beni Ou (God Bless You)

Charley Elgin

If You Are Looking For Solutions - Look Up Not In

My Utmost For His Highest

Behold, as the eyes of servants look to the hand of their masters…, so our eyes look to the Lord our God… —Psalm 123:2

“This verse is a description of total reliance on God. […]  Our spiritual strength begins to be drained when we stop lifting our eyes to Him. Our stamina is sapped, not so much through external troubles surrounding us but through problems in our thinking. We wrongfully think, “I suppose I’ve been stretching myself a little too much, standing too tall and trying to look like God instead of being an ordinary humble person.” […] For example, you came to a crisis in your life, took a stand for God, and even had the witness of the Spirit as a confirmation that what you did was right. But now, maybe weeks or years have gone by, and you are slowly coming to the conclusion— “Well, maybe what I did showed too much pride or was superficial. Was I taking a stand a bit too high for me?” Your “rational” friends come and say, “Don’t be silly. We knew when you first talked about this spiritual awakening that it was a passing impulse, that you couldn’t hold up under the strain.[…]” You respond by saying, “Well, I suppose I was expecting too much.” That sounds humble to say, but it means that your reliance on God is gone, and you are now relying on worldly opinion. The danger comes when, no longer relying on God, you neglect to focus your eyes on Him. Only when God brings you to a sudden stop will you realize that you have been the loser. Whenever there is a spiritual drain in your life, correct it immediately. Realize that something has been coming between you and God, and change or remove it at once.”  CHAMBERS

When we decide to commit our lives, our priorities to God, we enter into a spiritual struggle.  Salvation comes when we surrender to God.  When we accept the gift of grace.  Living by the Spirit means that we must be focused on God and not ourselves or the world.  Living that way is a decision we make.  A daily decision.  We cannot live this new life by self-effort but only by surrender.  Galatians 2:20 “I am crucified with Christ, nevertheless I live, yet not I, but Christ lives in me.”  And how does He live in us?  By the power of the Holy Spirit.  Our new life is dependent upon the spiritual – not the natural.  Success in our new life is dependent upon the Spirit, not our effort.  If we think that we can live the Christian life without a vital connection with God, we deceive ourselves.  If we think that reading the Word is not really that important.  If we think that praying is not really that important.  If we think that corporate worship is optional, we deceive ourselves.  Think of a person in the hospital on a resuscitator.  Someone comes in the room and disconnects the machine.  The reason the person was using the machine was that they could not breathe on their own.  Now they cannot breathe and are bound to die.  If we disconnect ourselves for spiritual influence – we lack the power to live our new life successfully.  I don’t mean we will lose our salvation, I mean that, practically, it will be as it was before we were born again.  Self-effort is the enemy of godly living.  The works of our flesh were unacceptable to God before we became a Christian and they are unacceptable after we become a Christian.

If you are struggling … if you are fearful .. if you are doubtful … if you are wondering, what difference does your faith make … you need to stop trusting in yourself and trust in God.  If only it was that easy you think.  The hard part is yielding control to God.  That begins with a small step of faith. It ends .. well I guess it never ends.  This new life is one step of faith after another.  Stop trying to act like a Christian, and be one.  Stop looking to yourself for the answers and ‘look to the hand of the Master’.”  ELGIN

“O soul, are you weary and troubled? No light in the darkness you see? There’s light for a look at the Savior, And life more abundant and free   Turn your eyes upon Jesus.  Look full in His wonderful face.  And the things of earth will grow strangely dim, in the light of His glory and grace.”

Bondye Beni Ou (God Bless You)

Charley Elgin

Loosen Your Grip On Your Life And Cling To Jesus

My Utmost For His Highest

 

Have mercy on us, O Lord, have mercy on us! For we are exceedingly filled with contempt. —Psalm 123:3

 

“There are certain attitudes we should never dare to indulge. If we do, we will find they have distracted us from faith in God. [then] our faith is of no value, and our confidence in the flesh and in human ingenuity is what rules our lives. [1] Beware of “the cares of this world…” (Mark 4:19). They are the very things that produce the wrong attitudes in our soul. […] Refuse to be swamped by “the cares of this world.” [2] our passion for vindication. St. Augustine prayed, “O Lord, deliver me from this lust of always vindicating myself.” Such a need for constant vindication destroys our soul’s faith in God. Don’t say, “I must explain myself,” or, “I must get people to understand.” […] When we discern that other people are not growing spiritually and allow that discernment to turn to criticism, we block our fellowship with God. God never gives us discernment so that we may criticize, but that we may intercede.”  CHAMBERS

 

The cares of this world and our need for people to think that we have it together … for us to believe that we have it together, even though we know that we don’t.  We are afraid that people might find out who we really are.  Christians already know who you are … a sinner saved by grace.  Someone who struggles with sin, who yields to temptation, who cares more about themselves than they do God or others.  Someone who tries really hard to be good.  We don’t want people to know that  .. and we certainly don’t want God to know . so we pretend that it’s our secret … from God and the world.  The problem is one of self-righteousness.  It is not from God, but from the devil.  Stop trying to be righteous and turn to the one who is righteous – Jesus.  Stop clinging to your own devices and cling to Jesus.  Let go of your grip on the world and what it offers and cling to Jesus. Stop trying to vindicate yourself and justify your sin and cling to Jesus.   ELGIN

 

“You are my strength when I am weak, You are the treasure that I seek, You are my all in all.  Jesus, Lamb of God worthy is your name.”

 

Bondye Beni Ou (God Bless You)

 

Charley Elgin

Feeling Guilty About Feeling Guilty - Confess, Repent And Move On

My Utmost For His Highest

 

“I have finished the work which You have given Me to do.” —John 17:4

 

“His death was the very reason He came. […] God forgives sin only because of the death of Christ. God could forgive people in no other way than by the death of His Son, and Jesus is exalted as Savior because of His death. […]The greatest note of triumph ever sounded in the ears of a startled universe was that sounded on the Cross of Christ— “It is finished!” (John 19:30). That is the final word in the redemption of humankind.[…] Jesus Christ became a curse for us by divine decree. Our part in realizing the tremendous meaning of His curse is the conviction of sin. Conviction is given to us as a gift of shame and repentance; it is the great mercy of God. Jesus Christ hates the sin in people, and Calvary is the measure of His hatred.”  CHAMBERS

 

(John 16:7-8) “But I tell you the truth, it is to your advantage that I go away; for if I do not go away, the Helper will not come to you; but if I go, I will send Him to you. And He, when He comes, will convict the world concerning sin and righteousness and judgment.”  We are sealed by the Holy Spirit, our bodies are the temple of the Holy Spirit (where He resides), and we are not to grieve (ignore) the Spirit.  God, the Father, sent the Spirit for specific reasons.  When you feel convicted of sin, it is the Spirit that brings that conviction.  He does for the purpose of confession and repentance.  So that you can remain spiritually connected to the Father.  That doesn’t mean lose your salvation, it means that your ability to be blessed by the Father will be interrupted … that your personal access to the Father. (Proverbs 6:16-19)  “There are six things the Lord hates, even that are detestable to him: haughty eyes, a lying tongue, hands that shed innocent blood, a heart that devises wicked schemes, feet that are quick to rush into false witness who pours out lies and a person who stirs up conflict in the community.”  So why would we think it is ok to come before God with things like this on our hearts?  When the Spirit convicts us, we need to understand the significance of living with sin and not confessing it.  It makes no sense, so why do we do it?  Well, it started in the Garden .. Adam and Eve believed they could hide from God … hide their sin from God … they couldn’t and we can’t either.  We need to stop feeling guilty about feeling guilty and then confess and repent.  ELGIN

 

Bondye Beni Ou (God Bless You)

 

Charley Elgin

Don't Leave Your Gift Laying In The Yard

My Utmost For His Highest

In Him we have…the forgiveness of sins… —Ephesians 1:7

“Beware of the pleasant view of the fatherhood of God: God is so kind and loving that of course He will forgive us. That thought, based solely on emotion, cannot be found anywhere in the New Testament. The only basis on which God can forgive us is the tremendous tragedy of the Cross of Christ. To base our forgiveness on any other ground is unconscious blasphemy. The only ground on which God can forgive our sin and reinstate us to His favor is through the Cross of Christ. […] Forgiveness, which is so easy for us to accept, cost the agony at Calvary. We should never take the forgiveness of sin, the gift of the Holy Spirit, and our sanctification in simple faith, and then forget the enormous cost to God that made all of this ours.[…] Compared with the miracle of the forgiveness of sin, the experience of sanctification is small. Sanctification is simply the wonderful expression or evidence of the forgiveness of sins in a human life. But the thing that awakens the deepest fountain of gratitude in a human being is that God has forgiven his sin. Paul never got away from this. Once you realize all that it cost God to forgive you, you will be held as in a vise, constrained by the love of God.” CHAMBERS

The point here is that we must be careful not to make the Cross a small thing and make our feeling good about ourselves a big thing.  No one likes to feel guilty.  Paul asked the question “should we sin so that grace can abound?” (Romans 6:1)  The more aware we are of the great cost of our salvation, the more we will want to draw nearer to the One who granted it, God, and to identify with the One who paid it, Jesus.  And the nearer we draw  to God, the more we will be aware of our true condition and desperate need for a Savior.  How can we be content with our old, sinful nature in the light of our new nature in Christ?  Imagine a child receives an expensive gift for Christmas.  The gift is fragile.  On your way to the car, you notice the gift laying in the yard in the rain.  Because of the neglect, you realize that the gift you have given was not considered significant by the one who received it.  That is how it is when we are content with sin.

I am not suggesting that because you struggle with sin, that you are neglectful.  I am saying, when we stop struggling with sin .. when we are no longer bothered by its presence on our lives, it is because we have become neglectful and ungrateful.  Paul encourages us in Romans 12:2 to not be conformed to this world but be transformed.  Why did he need to do that?  Because it is a problem .. it is the tendency of the flesh.  Things do not naturally get better.  Look at our environment .. look at the chaos in the world.  Why don’t things just get better as the years go by?  The answer is the Fall in the Garden. This world cannot get better on its own, it needs a Savior, Jesus.  2 Corinthians 5:17 “If any man is in Christ, he is a new creation, old things are passed away, all things are becoming new.”  Don’t be content with your old nature … Never be satisfied with where you are spiritually.  ELGIN

Bondye Beni Ou (God Bless You)

Charley Elgin

Are You Passionate Or Passion-less Toward God?

My Utmost For His Highest

When He has come, He will convict the world of sin… —John 16:8

“[The] conviction of sin by the Holy Spirit blots out every relationship on earth and makes us aware of only one— “Against You, You only, have I sinned…” (Psalm 51:4). […] God does forgive, but it cost the breaking of His heart with grief in the death of Christ to enable Him to do so. The great miracle of the grace of God is that He forgives sin, and it is the death of Jesus Christ alone that enables the divine nature to forgive and to remain true to itself in doing so. […] The love of God means Calvary— nothing less! The love of God is spelled out on the Cross and nowhere else. The only basis for which God can forgive me is the Cross of Christ. It is there that His conscience is satisfied. […] Forgiveness means that I am forgiven into a newly created relationship which identifies me with God in Christ. The miracle of redemption is that God turns me, the unholy one, into the standard of Himself, the Holy One. He does this by putting into me a new nature, the nature of Jesus Christ.” CHAMBERS

In Isaiah chapter 6, Isaiah became very aware of who he was and who God is.  It was at that moment, he understood that sin was standing in the way.  In Romans chapter 7, Paul cried out “Who will save me from this body of death?”  It is only through the intimate awareness of the holy God that we serve that we come to that place of self-awareness.  We tend to trivialize our un-holiness, our propensity to sin.  When we do, we also trivialize what Jesus did on the cross.  We should never be satisfied with where we are spiritually.  Content with a lukewarm faith.  Instead we should be passionate like the person in the movie theater trying to get out of the exit because there is a fire.  Striving, pushing, straining, eyes fixed on the exit sign, anxious … can you sense the emotion? Well, that is like the desire we should have in wanting to draw close to God.  Rather, we are more like the person leaving the movie theater, strolling casually out of the main door after the show is over.  Moving on to the next event.  The point is not to make you feel guilty about your attitude toward sin in your life, but to encourage you to be passionate about your desire to be close to God.  When you love God with all your heart, that is the way it should be.  ELGIN

Bondye Beni Ou (God Bless You)

Charley Elgin

The Impossibility Of Finding Freedom In This Life .. Apart from Jesus

My Utmost For His Highest

If the Son makes you free, you shall be free indeed. —John 8:36

“… the spiritual part of our being never says “I can’t”; it simply soaks up everything around it. Our spirit hungers for more and more. It is the way we are built. We are designed with a great capacity for God, but sin, our own individuality, and wrong thinking keep us from getting to Him. God delivers us from sin— we have to deliver ourselves from our individuality. This means offering our natural life to God and sacrificing it to Him, so He may transform it into spiritual life through our obedience.[…] His plan runs right through our natural life. We must see to it that we aid and assist God, and not stand against Him by saying, “I can’t do that.” God will not discipline us; we must discipline ourselves. God will not bring our “arguments…and every thought into captivity to the obedience of Christ” (2 Corinthians 10:5)— we have to do it. […] Stop listening to the tyranny of your individual natural life and win freedom into the spiritual life.[…]  what Paul meant in Galatians 2:20 when he said, “I have been crucified with Christ….” His individuality had been broken and his spirit had been united with his Lord; not just merged into Him, but made one with Him. “…you shall be free indeed”— free to the very core of your being; free from the inside to the outside. We tend to rely on our own energy, instead of being energized by the power that comes from identification with Jesus.” CHAMBERS

Freedom comes when we stop making other things more important than our relationship with the Lord.  It is really not that simple for us to do that.  Our natural devotions are so strong in us.  They demand first place in our hearts.  They suggest that we can never be happy if we set them aside for devotion to God.  Then we think, perhaps we can do both.  Trying to do both is the reasoning of the flesh, not the truth of God.  (Matthew 6:24) “No one can serve two masters. Either you will hate the one and love the other, or you will be devoted to the one and despise the other…”  Our struggle is letting go of those natural devotions and placing our full trust in God.  That is where faith comes in.  If you are having trouble doing that, and you know if you are, then you need to draw closer to the Lord.  Start by reading the Word more and setting time aside to pray.  When God says do something and you think .. “I can’t”, that is the point you need to realize that you never could and never will be able to do what God commands … that is apart from the spiritual power you find through His Spirit, His Word and His Son.  (Philippians 4:13) “I can do all this through Him (Christ) who gives me strength.”  We find our supernatural abilities and strength through the work of Jesus and by faith.

The truth of the matter is that when you make the choice of preferring God over the world, you will find freedom.  Freedom no matter where you find yourself.  No matter what problem you face.  ELGIN

Bondye Beni Ou (God Bless You)

Charley Elgin

A Promise In A Foxhole Is Not What God Is After

My Utmost For His Highest

“By Myself I have sworn, says the Lord, because you have done this thing…I will bless you…” —Genesis 22:16-17

“My goal is God Himself… At any cost, dear Lord, by any road. “At any cost…by any road” means submitting to God’s way of bringing us to the goal. There is no possibility of questioning God when He speaks […] When Jesus says, “Come,” I simply come; when He says, “Let go,” I let go; when He says, “Trust God in this matter,” I trust. This work of obedience is the evidence that the nature of God is in me. It is through the discipline of obedience that I get to the place where Abraham was and I see who God is. God will never be real to me until I come face to face with Him in Jesus Christ.  The promises of God are of no value to us until, through obedience, we come to understand the nature of God. We may read some things in the Bible every day for a year and they may mean nothing to us. Then, because we have been obedient to God in some small detail, we suddenly see what God means and His nature is instantly opened up to us. “All the promises of God in Him are Yes, and in Him Amen…” (2 Corinthians 1:20). Our “Yes” must be born of obedience; when by obedience we ratify a promise of God by saying, “Amen,” or, “So be it.”” CHAMBERS

So many people think that we can bargain with God.  If you do this, God, I promise I will do that.  Instead, God says .. when you do this, Christian, I will do that.  In the Army there is something called “foxhole” religion.  When soldiers, who had nothing to do with God, were in desperate straits, they would make promises to God that “if” He would save them from their peril, then they would …… Our relationship with God does not begin with Him fixing our problems.  It begins with us giving Him our hearts .. our devotion … our obedience to the Truth.  It is in our obedience, which is an act of faith, that we see the nature of God and are blessed.  ELGIN

“Turn your eyes upon Jesus, look full in His wonderful face.  And the things of earth will grow strangely dim.  In the light of His glory and grace.”

“Lord you have my heart, and I will search for yours.  Let me be to You a sacrifice.  And I will praise you Lord.  And I will sing of Love come down. And as I seek Your face, I’ll see your glory here.”

Bondye Beni Ou (God Bless You)

Charley Elgin

Obedience To God Is A Result Of A Yielded Heart Not A Determined Mind

My Utmost For His Highest

 

…whatever you do, do all to the glory of God. —1 Corinthians 10:31

 

“We have a tendency to look for wonder in our experience, and we mistake heroic actions for real heroes. It’s one thing to go through a crisis grandly, yet quite another to go through every day glorifying God when there is no witness, no limelight, and no one paying even the remotest attention to us. If we are not looking for halos, we at least want something that will make people say, “What a wonderful man of prayer he is!” or, “What a great woman of devotion she is!” If you are properly devoted to the Lord Jesus, you have reached the lofty height where no one would ever notice you personally. All that is noticed is the power of God coming through you all the time. […] To be utterly unnoticeable requires God’s Spirit in us making us absolutely humanly His. The true test of a saint’s life is not successfulness but faithfulness on the human level of life. […] our purpose should be to display the glory of God in human life, to live a life “hidden with Christ in God” in our everyday human conditions (Colossians 3:3). Our human relationships are the very conditions in which the ideal life of God should be exhibited.”  CHAMBERS

 

The United States Airforce has three core values.  Integrity First, Service Before Self, Excellence In All We Do.  Just the other day I was telling someone that those values are lofty and easy to recite, but apparently very difficult to do.  Those core values, by the way, are totally consistent with the Bible.  What seems to get in the way of is “preservation of self”.  Wanting to be recognized for your effort – having your personal value acknowledged – or wanting to ensure that your future is secure by taking actions that violate the core values … that sounds a lot like Christians who choose their own way and not God’s doesn’t it.

 

Let’s consider them from a Christian perspective for a moment.  Integrity first.  Doing the right thing even if it means personal loss.  Choosing good over evil.  An unwillingness to compromise our relationship with God because we value Him more than our own well-being.  Service before self.  Jesus said He came to serve not to be served. (Mark 10:45)  “No greater love has one man than this, but to lay down his life for his friends” (John 15:13)  Serving others and not serving ourselves first, knowing that God is our provider and protector.  Excellence in all we do.   “whatever you do, do all to the glory of God.”(1 Corinthians 10:31)  “Whatever you do, do as unto the Lord …”  (Colossians 3:23-24)  It doesn’t do any good to write the Air Force core values on a wall … or the 10 commandments on a monument … they must be embraced and exercised to have value.  It is not enough to know it, you have to show it.  Obedience to God is a result of a yielded heart not a determined mind.  Think about it.  ELGIN

 

Bondye Beni Ou (God Bless You)

 

Charley Elgin

How Do You Respond To The Conviction Of The Holy Spirit

My Utmost For His Highest

As for me, being on the way, the Lord led me… —Genesis 24:27

“A child’s life is normally obedient, until he chooses disobedience. But as soon as he chooses to disobey, an inherent inner conflict is produced. On the spiritual level, inner conflict is the warning of the Spirit of God. When He warns us in this way, we must stop at once and be renewed in the spirit of our mind to discern God’s will (see Romans 12:2). If we are born again by the Spirit of God, our devotion to Him is hindered, or even stopped, by continually asking Him to guide us here and there. “…the Lord led me…” and on looking back we see the presence of an amazing design. If we are born of God we will see His guiding hand and give Him the credit.  We can all see God in exceptional things, but it requires the growth of spiritual discipline to see God in every detail. Never believe that the so-called random events of life are anything less than God’s appointed order.” CHAMBERS

(Zechariah 7: 4-6, 9-12) “Then the word of the Lord Almighty came to me: “Ask all the people of the land and the priests, ‘When you fasted and mourned in the fifth and seventh months for the past seventy years, was it really for me that you fasted? And when you were eating and drinking, were you not just feasting for yourselves?  “This is what the Lord Almighty said: ‘Administer true justice; show mercy and compassion to one another. Do not oppress the widow or the fatherless, the foreigner or the poor. Do not plot evil against each other.’ “But they refused to pay attention; stubbornly they turned their backs and covered their ears. They made their hearts as hard as flint and would not listen to the law or to the words that the Lord Almighty had sent by his Spirit through the earlier prophets. So the Lord Almighty was very angry.”

The nation did not have the Holy Spirit, per se, it had prophets.  But the people hardened their hearts toward the Word of the Lord.  Like many times before.  So how could that be when the mighty acts of God were so obvious. Let’s fast forward to today.  We have the Holy Spirit in us as a seal and as an advocate.  When we are convicted by the Spirit, there is an inner conflict created in the heart.  But, if our hearts are not committed to the Lord, we will resist the leading of the Spirit and follow our own way.  As time goes on, the inner conflict becomes less intense.  We no longer are responsive to the spirit.

(1 Thessalonians 5:19-22) “Do not quench the Spirit. Do not treat prophecies with contempt but test them all; hold on to what is good, reject every kind of evil.”  If the Spirit brings inner conflict and you brush it off, thinking that doesn’t really matter to God, the hardening process has begun.  Have your children ever said to you “You just don’t want me to have any fun.”?  What they mean is, they know better, let them do what they want to do without any constraints.  That is essentially what we tell God when we resist the Spirit’s influence.  Be careful Christian.  Many well-intentioned people have slipped down this slope.  Every day, yield your heart to the Lord and welcome the conviction of the Spirit.  It is for your good and His glory.  ELGIN

Bondye Beni Ou (God Bless You)

Charley Elgin

Trusting In Yourself Is Like The Song Of The Sirens

My Utmost For His Highest

…the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself for me. —Galatians 2:20

“Stand in absolute adoring faith “in Christ Jesus, who became for us wisdom from God— and righteousness and sanctification and redemption…” (1 Corinthians 1:30). How dare we talk of making a sacrifice for the Son of God! We are saved from hell and total destruction, and then we talk about making sacrifices! We must continually focus and firmly place our faith in Jesus Christ— not a “prayer meeting” Jesus Christ, or a “book” Jesus Christ, but the New Testament Jesus Christ, who is God Incarnate, and who ought to strike us dead at His feet. Our faith must be in the One from whom our salvation springs. Jesus Christ wants our absolute, unrestrained devotion to Himself. We can never experience Jesus Christ, or selfishly bind Him in the confines of our own hearts. Our faith must be built on strong determined confidence in Him. […] All of our fears are sinful, and we create our own fears by refusing to nourish ourselves in our faith. How can anyone who is identified with Jesus Christ suffer from doubt or fear! Our lives should be an absolute hymn of praise resulting from perfect, irrepressible, triumphant belief.”  CHAMBERS

Jesus asked that question of His disciples often .. “Why did you fear?” “Why did you doubt?” “Oh, you of little faith.”  As we go through life, day after day, we will have many opportunities to place our faith in Jesus or misplace our faith in ourselves or other people or things.  The object of your faith will be determined by you and you alone.  My encouragement to you is to seek Jesus.  Stop trying to find satisfaction and peace in the things of the world … they have no power but are like the Sirens who lured the sailors to the rocks and their demise.  Rather live with the constant awareness of what Jesus has done for you through the cross and what He is doing for you as your high priest and intercessor before God, the Father.  Looking for motivation and perspective for the day … let that be it.  ELGIN

Bondye Beni Ou (God Bless You)

Charley Elgin

Why Is The Word Of God Is So Important?

My Utmost For His Highest

“If anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new.” —2 Corinthians 5:17

“What understanding do you have of the salvation of your soul? The work of salvation means that in your real life things are dramatically changed. You no longer look at things in the same way. Your desires are new and the old things have lost their power to attract you. One of the tests for determining if the work of salvation in your life is genuine is— has God changed the things that really matter to you? If you still yearn for the old things, it is absurd to talk about being born from above— you are deceiving yourself. If you are born again, the Spirit of God makes the change very evident in your real life and thought. And when a crisis comes, you are the most amazed person on earth at the wonderful difference there is in you. There is no possibility of imagining that you did it. It is this complete and amazing change that is the very evidence that you are saved. What difference has my salvation and sanctification made?”  CHAMBERS

What I am going to share is limited to cultures where the people are literate and, the written word is available in their language.  For others, the Word must be read or spoken by someone else.  The effect is the same.  When people who are denied access to the Word receive it, there is must rejoicing … hunger for the Word is something that God has put into place.  So, with that caveat, one of the indicators that I look for in a person who professes faith in Jesus is their attitude toward the Word of God.  What happens at the point of rebirth is supernatural.  And like a new born baby is hungry for its mother’s milk, the new Christian is spiritually hungry for the milk of the Word.  If there is no interest in spiritual matters, then I question whether or not the person is, indeed, a Christian.  (1 Peter 2:2-3) “Like newborn babies, crave pure spiritual milk, so that by it you may grow up in your salvation, now that you have tasted that the Lord is good.”  

It is up to the mature Christians to ensure that the baby Christian has the opportunity to be feed with the proper food …. The bread of life … the Word of God.  There is a Haitian proverb “An empty stomach has no ears.”  That was the by-line for our feeding program in Haiti for the school children.  And so it is for Christians.  If you have not been reading the Word, then you cannot hear spiritual truth as you should.  The Word will bring change to your life.  It is the catalyst for old things passing away and new things coming to be.  (2 Peter 3:16-17) “All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, so that the servant of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work.”  ELGIN

Bondye Beni Ou (God Bless You)

Charley Elgin

Our New Life In Christ Is More About Giving Than Getting

My Utmost For His Highest

He said, "Take now your son…" —Genesis 22:2

“God’s command is, “Take now,” not later. It is incredible how we debate! We know something is right, but we try to find excuses for not doing it immediately. […]  Beware when you want to “confer with flesh and blood” or even your own thoughts, insights, or understandings— anything that is not based on your personal relationship with God. These are all things that compete with and hinder obedience to God.  […]  Always guard against self-chosen service for God. Self-sacrifice may be a disease that impairs your service. If God has made your cup sweet, drink it with grace; or even if He has made it bitter, drink it in communion with Him. If the providential will of God means a hard and difficult time for you, go through it. But never decide the place of your own martyrdom, as if to say, “I will only go to there, but no farther.” […] You must go through the trial before you have any right to pronounce a verdict, because by going through the trial you learn to know God better. God is working in us to reach His highest goals until His purpose and our purpose become one.” CHAMBERS

Is that what you thought being a Christian was all about?  Did you think it was about giving or getting. Actually it is about both.  There is, visibly, a simplicity at the point of salvation.  The reason is that the transaction is not a physical one, it is spiritual.  The internal struggle to reach that point may have taken years, I know it did for me. The point of surrender is but an instant, a blink of an eye.  So what then? Our physical circumstances may not change, but how we respond to life and its circumstances should.  God demands that we surrender our devotions until He is in His proper place as first.  It is not wrong to like things, but it is wrong to prefer the things we like over God.  That includes trusting in ourselves.  Proverbs 3:5-6  is not a suggestion .. it is a command.  (look it up)

Rather than avoiding difficulty, God may lead you through of times of great difficulty … like Abraham, testing your Christian metal.  Shaping you to be like His Son.  The question is “Are you willing to give your desires and preferences to God and trust Him?”  That was Abraham’s test.  Your faith will not grow unless it is tested.  You will not experience spiritual blessing … stop thinking of God as our financial benefactor … unless you are willing to be obedient to His leading.  No matter what He leads you through.  It is all for His glory and our good.  Think about it.  ELGIN

Bondye Beni Ou (God Bless You)

Charley Elgin

Living An Unbalanced Life - Following Jesus

My Utmost For His Highest

…fellow laborer in the gospel of Christ… —1 Thessalonians 3:2

“[...] As long as you maintain your own personal interests and ambitions, you cannot be completely aligned or identified with God’s interests. This can only be accomplished by giving up all of your personal plans once and for all, […] Your understanding of your ways must also be surrendered, because they are now the ways of the Lord.  I must learn that the purpose of my life belongs to God, not me. God is using me from His great personal perspective, and all He asks of me is that I trust Him. I should never say, “Lord, this causes me such heartache.” To talk that way makes me a stumbling block. When I stop telling God what I want, He can freely work His will in me without any hindrance. He can crush me, exalt me, or do anything else He chooses. He simply asks me to have absolute faith in Him and His goodness. Self-pity is of the devil, and if I wallow in it I cannot be used by God for His purpose in the world. […] and God will not be allowed to move me […] because of my fear…” CHAMBERS

Chambers said that God “simply asks me to have absolute faith in Him and His goodness.”  It may be simple, but it is not easy, is it?  Giving my life wholly to God.  Not clinging to any of it.  (Luke 14:26-27) “If anyone comes to me and does not hate father and mother, wife and children, brothers and sisters—yes, even their own life—such a person cannot be my disciple. And whoever does not carry their cross and follow me cannot be my disciple.”  That is what loving God with all means (Matthew 22:37).  Than can be no equal.  There can be nothing greater.  God must be first.  The cross that Jesus carried represented complete submission to the will of God. The potential of God’s grace was unlocked through the obedience of Jesus on the cross. 

I was talking to someone, just yesterday.  We were talking about finding balance between family and work.  He said there are three things that he had to balance … work, family, and spiritual matters.  We often see them as being equal when in fact they are not.  You need to live an imbalanced life, where living for God carries the most weight.. So often the Bible, praying, worship are the things we give up first. Most easily.   Why?  Because we don’t really understand their importance to the quality of our life here and now and in the sweet bye and bye.  So Jesus said you must hate everything that you think is important if you are going to follow Him.  Do you consider yourself a Christ follower?  Do be one you simply have to have absolute faith in Him.  That’s all!  Growing your faith is like your kids bedroom needing to be cleaned up, it doesn’t happen by itself.  It requires effort, effort that most kids don’t want to exert … and neither do most Christians.   Think about it.  ELGIN
Bondye Beni Ou (God Bless You)

Charley Elgin

Oh Lord It's Hard To Be Humble When You Are Praised In So Many Ways

My Utmost For His Highest

“I now rejoice in my sufferings for you, and fill up in my flesh what is lacking in the afflictions of Christ…” —Colossians 1:24

“[…] When we preach the historical facts of the life and death of our Lord as they are conveyed in the New Testament, our words are made sacred. God uses these words, on the basis of His redemption, to create something in those who listen which otherwise could never have been created. If we simply preach the effects of redemption in the human life instead of the revealed, divine truth regarding Jesus Himself, the result is not new birth in those who listen. […] When we say, “What a wonderful personality, what a fascinating person, and what wonderful insight!” then what opportunity does the gospel of God have through all of that? It cannot get through, because the attraction is to the messenger and not the message. If a person attracts through his personality, that becomes his appeal. If, however, he is identified with the Lord Himself, then the appeal becomes what Jesus Christ can do. The danger is to glory in men, yet Jesus says we are to lift up only Him (see John 12:32).” CHAMBERS

Do you have a favorite preacher or Bible teacher?  What makes them your favorite?  Their charisma, method of preaching or teaching?  All of that is good but if Jesus is not being lifted up, it is merely vain religion.  Elders and preachers are worthy of double honor (1 Timothy 5:17), but they are not to be lifted up in the stead of Jesus.  People can do that.  When pastors are called to another place, often times, people will leave to either follow him or to find another church.  The trouble is that the pastor was prompted by the Spirit of God, the people were prompted by the leaving of the pastor.  Do you see the difference.  I have been told that I remind people of someone of renown.  That is flattering, but what I would prefer is that I remind people of our Lord.  Not because of what I look like on the outside, but because of who I am on the inside.

Martie and I were recently invited to a church so they could express their appreciation for our service to the Lord.  That seems simple enough.  We have served and people have seen.  But the danger is that the people might attribute what we have done to us and not to God.  If we did not have Christ in us, would we have done the things that we did?  If the Spirit had not prompted us and strengthened us for the task, would we have been willing to sacrifice and serve?  My guess would be “no”.  Without Christ we would have been scrambling to get along just like most other people.  We must remember what we were before Christ and what we would be without Christ and then what we have done because of Christ will be seen in its proper context.  God gets the glory .. and when we receive honor for being obedient, we must lay that crown at Jesus feet. We must have the attitude of a servant.  And what is that?  Jesus told us.   (Luke 17:10) “So you also, when you have done everything you were told to do, should say, ‘We are unworthy servants; we have only done our duty.’” It is not feigned humility, it is embracing spiritual truth. ELGIN

Bondye Beni Ou (God Bless You)

Charley Elgin

People Don't Need A Judge, They Need Jesus

My Utmost For His Highest

 

“We know that all things work together for good to those who love God…” —Romans 8:28

 

“The circumstances of a saint’s life are ordained of God. In the life of a saint there is no such thing as chance. God by His providence brings you into circumstances that you can’t understand at all, but the Spirit of God understands. God brings you to places, among people, and into certain conditions to accomplish a definite purpose through the intercession of the Spirit in you. Never put yourself in front of your circumstances and say, “I’m going to be my own providence here; I will watch this closely, or protect myself from that.” All your circumstances are in the hand of God, and therefore you don’t ever have to think they are unnatural or unique. Your part in intercessory prayer is not to agonize over how to intercede, but to use the everyday circumstances and people God puts around you by His providence to bring them before His throne, and to allow the Spirit in you the opportunity to intercede for them. In this way God is going to touch the whole world with His saints.” CHAMBERS

 

Has anyone ever shared Romans 8:28 with you when you were facing difficulties in life?  Like it is balm for your wounded heart.  But we must be careful in sharing the Word with people are in the midst of a physical or relational crisis.  Tossing a verse at someone can be an uncaring  act.  What the people need is compassion and intercession and we toss them a spiritual “bone” as it were.  That is not to say that we should not share scripture.  The Word reflects God’s heart and His character.  We need to encourage one another with the Word.  But we must go a step beyond that and care about the pain they are facing.  Dr. John Maxwell said “people don’t care how much you know until they know how much you care.” 

 

We can approach people in two ways.  Like Job’s friends who told him to confess his sin, because surely God would not allow these problem into his life, or like the good Samaritan  who did not ask why the man was in the condition he was in, but went the extra mile to bring comfort and healing.  People don't need you to be a judge, they need you to be Jesus.  God allows us to face difficulty but not without the possibility of enduring that difficulty.  Rick Warren said “God never wastes a hurt”.  Not let me toss a verse at you!  (2 Corinthians 1:3-6)  Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of compassion and the God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our troubles, so that we can comfort those in any trouble with the comfort we ourselves receive from God. For just as we share abundantly in the sufferings of Christ, so also our comfort abounds through Christ. If we are distressed, it is for your comfort and salvation; if we are comforted, it is for your comfort, which produces in you patient endurance of the same sufferings we suffer.” Think about it.   ELGIN

 

Bondye Beni Ou (God Bless You)

 

Charley Elgin