Reformation: the Celebration Continues

Reformation:  the Celebration Continues

By Rev. Lonnie C. Crowe

            On October 31, 1517, Martin Luther posted 95 theses on the door of  a church in Wittenberg, Germany.  The reaction sparked the Protestant Reformation and the counter-reformation within the Roman Catholic Church itself.  In short, God intervened and cleaned His house. 

            Unfortunately, we have allowed the practice of Halloween to obscure the significance of the Reformation.   While some congregations recognize its history on Reformation Sunday, most Christians are unaware of the impact that the Reformation made, not only within the family of God, but within Western Civilization as a whole.  

            Reformation should not be considered as just a historical event.  Reformation should be a continuing experience in our Christian lives.  Scripture tells us that we are to grow from faith to faith and glory to glory:

▪ For in it the righteousness of God is revealed from faith to faith; as it is written, “The just shall live by faith.” ( Rom 1:17 NKJV)

▪ But we all, with unveiled face, beholding as in a mirror the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from glory to glory, just as by the Spirit of the Lord. (2 Cor 3:18 NKJV)

            Paul wrote to the Roman Church declaring that the reformation experience results from the transformation of our thinking: 

▪ And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God. (Romans 12:2 NKJV)

            Many believers struggle with a flawed concept of good vs. evil.  This is an area where we can be transformed by the renewing of our mind. Part of the problem is that we have determined that good is the opposite of evil and have, thereby, equated the power of good with the power of evil.  The next step in that erroneous thinking process is equating the power of God with the power of satan.  Transformation of our minds about this perception can lead us into deeper reformation and further growth in grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. 

 Evil is not the opposite of good.  Evil is the absence of good. In like manner, darkness is not the opposite of light.  Darkness is the absence of light.  Hatred is not the opposite of love. Hatred is the absence of love.  Just as light dispels darkness, love dispels hate and good dispels evil. 

     Remember the words of the beloved apostle John, “You are of God, little children, and have overcome them, because He who is in you is greater than he who is in the world.” (1 John 4:4 NKJV)  

We need not fear the enemy of our souls.  We need not ascribe power to the one who was made powerless by the blood of Jesus.  “Yet in all these things we are more than conquerors through Him who loved us. For I am persuaded that neither death nor life, nor angels nor principalities nor powers, nor things present nor things to come, nor height nor depth, nor any other created thing, shall be able to separate us from the love of God which is in Christ Jesus our Lord. (Romans 8:37-39 NKJV)

May we continue our reformation through the transformation of our minds until we live and move and have our being in Him.

Blessed Are the Peacemakers

Blessed Are the Peacemakers

By Rev. Lonnie C. Crowe

Matthew 5:9 (NKJV)
^“Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called sons of God.”

            God has called His Church to be peacemakers.   Fulfilling our calling as peacemakers is a powerful testimony of victory over the tribulations of life.  When the others see us walking in peace and seeking to bring peace, they will recognize our relationship with Father God.  Paul instructed the Church at Galatia that peace is fruit, or evidence, that we are welcoming the ministry of the Holy Spirit in our lives.  Galatians 5:22-23 (NKJV): “ But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness,  gentleness, self-control. Against such there is no law.”

            Peace permeates our lives when we focus on the Lord and put our trust in Him. Isaiah 26:3 (NKJV):   “You will keep him in perfect peace, whose mind is stayed on You, because he trusts in You”.  Paul encouraged the Philippians with a similar thought:  Philippians 4:8-9 (NKJV: ” Finally, brethren, whatever things are true, whatever things are noble, whatever things are just, whatever things are pure, whatever things are lovely, whatever things are of good report, if there is any virtue and if there is anything praiseworthy--meditate on these things. The things which you learned and received and heard and saw in me, these do, and the God of peace will be with you.”

The ways of the world, founded on envy, pride, confusion and evil, bring chaos and strife.  Peace, however, is rooted in wisdom which comes from heaven to earth through the power and presence of the Holy Spirit in our lives. James 3:16-18 (NKJV): “For where envy and self-seeking exist, confusion and every evil thing are there. But the wisdom that is from above is first pure, then peaceable, gentle, willing to yield, full of mercy and good fruits, without partiality and without hypocrisy.  Now the fruit of righteousness is sown in peace by those who make peace.”  We long for righteousness in our lives.  This scripture reminds us that righteousness is not birthed in strife, but in the pursuit of peace. 

Life is a battleground.  Those who desire to be peacemakers are often caught in the midst of the fray.  Nevertheless, in wisdom, they choose their battles.  Christians spend too much time arguing about issues that make no difference in the advancement of the Kingdom of God.  Paul warned Timothy: 2 Timothy 2:22-23 (NKJV): “Flee also youthful lusts; but pursue righteousness, faith, love, peace with those who call on the Lord out of a pure heart. But avoid foolish and ignorant disputes, knowing that they generate strife.”

I have been witness to many foolish and ignorant disputes that have generated strife:

A.     Should the church Christmas tree be in the sanctuary or in the fellowship hall?

B.    Is the KJV Bible the only translation that should be allowed in the church?

C.   Is Paul the author of the book of Hebrews?

D.   What color of can opener should we purchase for the church kitchen?

We have laughed at the medieval theologians who argued about the number of angels who could dance on the head of a pin.  Our arguments are often just as futile and just as dividing.  We overlook the Word which admonishes us:  Romans 12:18 (NKJV):  “If it is possible, as much as depends on you, live peaceably with all men.”  Let’s pray to fulfill that call on our lives.

Lord, make me an instrument of Thy peace;
where there is hatred, let me sow love;
where there is injury, pardon;
where there is doubt, faith;
where there is despair hope;
where there is darkness light;
and where there is sadness, joy.

O Divine Master,
grant that I may not so much seek to be consoled as to console;
to be understood, as to understand;
to be loved, as to love;
for it is in giving that we receive,
it is in pardoning that we are pardoned,
and it is in dying that we are born to eternal life.

Amen

--St. Francis of Assisi - 13th century

Blessed Are the Pure in Heart

Blessed Are the Pure in Heart

By Rev. Lonnie C. Crowe

Matthew 5:8 (NKJV)
^“Blessed are the pure in heart, For they shall see God.”

To be pure in heart is to be filled with honorable, godly thoughts and emotions.  It is to think positive thoughts toward ourselves and toward others.  It is to have the heart of God that is expressed through the prophet Jeremiah:  ^“For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, says the LORD, thoughts of peace and not of evil, to give you a future and a hope.” (Jeremiah 29:11 NKJV)

To be pure in heart is to follow Paul’s advice to the Philippians:  “Finally, brethren, whatever things are true, whatever things are noble, whatever things are just, whatever things are pure, whatever things are lovely, whatever things are of good report, if there is any virtue and if there is anything praiseworthy--meditate on these things.  The things which you learned and received and heard and saw in me, these do, and the God of peace will be with you.” (Philippians 4:8-9 NKJV)

In purity of heart, we will see God.  In the Greek, the word translated as “see” means to gaze “with wide-open eyes, as at something remarkable.” (Strong’s Exhaustive Concordance)

In purity of hearts, we will see the wonder, the power and the glory of God.  In purity of heart, we will rest in His promises. In purity of heart, we will abide in hope and in peace.  

Remember: “For as he thinks in his heart, so is he.” (Proverbs 23:7 NKJV) God’s desire is that we be pure in heart so that we will be pure in deed, and in that purity we may gaze on His glory.

“Search me, O God, and know my heart today,
Try me, O Savior, know my thoughts, I pray.
See if there be some wicked way in me;
Cleanse me from every sin, and set me free.

“I praise Thee, Lord, for cleansing me from sin;
Fulfill Thy word and make me pure within;
Fill me with fire, where once I burned with shame;
Grant my desire to magnify Thy name.”

---James E. Orr

Blessed Are the Merciful

Blessed Are the Merciful

By Rev. Lonnie C. Crowe

Matthew 5:7 (NKJV)
  ^"Blessed are the merciful, For they shall obtain mercy."

Translated from the Greek, “merciful” means actively compassionate.  Just as God actively bestows mercy on us, we are actively to give mercy to others.  We are to demonstrate God’s consideration, caring and benevolence to the world. 

However, in order to be truly merciful, we must be able to discern the fine line that exists between compassion and negative enabling.  God is merciful, but He does not enable our sin, our doubt, our unbelief.  God, through the Holy Spirit who lives within each believer, enables us to be over comers.

Paul admonished the Galatians to be merciful and, yet, to encourage others to do their share. Galatians 6:1-5 (NKJV) ^“Brethren, if a man is overtaken in any trespass, you who are spiritual restore such a one in a spirit of gentleness, considering yourself lest you also be tempted. Bear one another's burdens, and so fulfill the law of Christ. For if anyone thinks himself to be something, when he is nothing, he deceives himself.  But let each one examine his own work, and then he will have rejoicing in himself alone, and not in another. For each one shall bear his own load.” 

If we do not allow and encourage others to grow and do the work of the Lord in caring for themselves and others, they will be unable to rejoice when examining their own work.  If we do not encourage others to “bear their own load,” they may come to believe that they are unworthy and/or unable.  In our mercy, we must encourage others to depend on the Lord and who they are in Jesus Christ and not on us.  It is not merciful to promote low self-esteem and dependence on man. 

Paul’s letter to the Thessalonians expresses the same thought:  2 Thessalonians 3:10-13 (NKJV) “For even when we were with you, we commanded you this: If anyone will not work, neither shall he eat. For we hear that there are some who walk among you in a disorderly manner, not working at all, but are busybodies. Now those who are such we command and exhort through our Lord Jesus Christ that they work in quietness and eat their own bread. But as for you, brethren, do not grow weary in doing good.”

To give someone a fish is to be merciful for a moment.  To teach him to fish is to be merciful for his life time.  One of the greatest mercies we can extend to others is to teach them to steward their time and their resources.  Even people who must legitimately rely on the mercy of others will prosper more if they spend both their time and their money more wisely.

We are, likewise, merciful when we encourage others to use their abilities, no matter how limited, in service to themselves and to others.  When we encourage their stewardship and their abilities, we are doing the Lord’s work in delivering them from the bondage of low self-esteem.

In our country, the welfare system, meant to be compassionate, has become a political program that discourages the work ethic and promotes low self-esteem and dependence on the government. For numerous families, dependence on the welfare system has become a generational curse.  Many politicians foster the program to insure their own reelection.  

We pray that the Church will, in mercy, encourage God’s people to be merciful indeed.  May we be compassionate enablers for a positive change in the lives of others.