HE Cannot Be—Unless . . .
“Jesus said to him, “If I want him to remain until I come, what is that to you?
(John 21: 22 NASB)
You follow Me!”
Maybe you are like me and enjoy sports—athletics—strength of body—so maybe, (like me) you are saddened that your body is “not as it once was.” As we strolled along a paved path on a sunny afternoon, I heard myself make the statement, “In my brain, I am just as athletic as I once was, but for some reason, my body disagrees with my mind.”
Did we catch that?
“My body disagrees with my mind.”
“Your body is “not as it once was when you were a child.”
“I am just as athletic as I once was when I was young.”
Life is about balance: This for That.
- We balance our work with our family time.
- We balance our pleasure with our work.
- We balance our friends with our enemies.
- We balance our output with our input.
We balance, or we try to (balance).
- Have we ever failed—JESUS?
- Have we ever been unfaithful—to JESUS?
- Have we ever promised (this or that), but then did not keep our promise—to JESUS?
- Have we ever wondered if we really have anything to offer—JESUS?
To help us understand, allow your mind to travel with me to a golf course. Now, I am not a golfer; in fact, in the “trueness” of the acronym G—O—L—F, there is no way I could ever be a participant of the game for a single reason: I am a lady, a girl, a female, a daughter, a sister, a wife. Guys—Only—Ladies—Forbidden!
G—O—L—F!
Yet, I want to learn to play the game of Golf, and in fact, the other day, I voiced those words to my son-in-law, a golfer from his high school years. As fate would have it, my desire might just become a reality because for the next year, my daughter and son-in-law will call home (you guessed it) very near a golf course. I just might get my wish! I just might get back my athleticism that resides within my mind. However, what I already know about the game of Golf can be seen in watching the professional golfers on television. Placed within their back pocket, we see a notebook (a score card), but not one that keeps the “final end low par score” that wins the game. NO! The score these golfers keep are the individual scores: the scores about their long drive distance, the scores about how many times they reach the greens, and the scores about their number of putts.
My wish. My mind.
Your wish. Your mind.
There is an “exclusive space” where we need to be, one we need to daily strive to retain, and one that remains our eternal promise. OUR CLOSE WALK WITH JESUS!
How much do we want to know God?
How often do we want to do God’s will?
How much do we really love God more than we love ourselves?
How much do we want to do God’s will more than our own will?
Really—How much?
Unless JESUS is Lord of My Life, HE Cannot Be—LORD of Me!
Unless JESUS is Lord of My Will, HE Cannot Be—LORD of Me!
Unless JESUS is Lord of My Heart, HE Cannot Be—LORD of Me!
Unless JESUS is Lord of My Mind, HE Cannot Be—LORD of Me!
HE Cannot Be—Unless I Allow HIM To Be!
This is true for You as well.
HE Cannot Be—Unless You Allow HIM To Be!
“You are my God, and I
(Psalm 118: 28 NASB)
give thanks to You;
You are my God, I exalt You.”
Once Atheist but now changed by God’s Amazing Grace into a Forever Believer, the Christian author C.S. Lewis wrote: “Every Christian would agree that a man’s spiritual health is exactly proportional to his love for God.”
- Do we love God above all?
- Do we love our neighbor as much as we love ourselves?
- How much do we love Almighty God?
- How much do we desire to walk in obedience to God?
- How much do we study God’s Word?
- How much do we want to know God?
The Lord Jesus Christ must be Lord of your mind, Lord of your heart, Lord of your will.
IF the Lord Jesus Christ is not Lord of ALL these three, then there is no way HE CAN BE LORD OF YOUR LIFE!
We equated an acronym earlier with a word, with a game we might one day (in our retirement) desire to play. Now, let us think of another word, another acronym that is applicable to our current day, to our day-to-day, right now—LIFE.
L—Learn & Obey What We Read Within God’s Word!
I—Invite Others to Come to Know Jesus as Savior!
F—Form Deep Relationships with Our Brothers & Sisters in Christ (the family of God)!
E—Engage in Serving God, for there is no retirement plan for our Christian Service!
The apostle Peter often intrigues me because he reminds me of my self. Consider:
- It was Peter who outran John to the tomb that early morning.
I was often the fastest girl in class when I was young.
- It was Peter who boasted to Jesus that he would never deny Him.
I have made a promise to Jesus, only to be reminded by the Lord of my broken promise.
- It was Peter who looked at another disciple, and ask Jesus, “What about him, Lord?”
I too often struggle with making comparisons between myself and others, between my obedience and theirs, between my daily taking up my cross to follow Jesus & theirs.
- It was Peter who took “his stand with the other eleven, raised his voice and declared to them” [the men of Judea & the inhabitants of Jerusalem]. Peter preached that first sermon found within Acts 2, the sermon that led to over 3,000 coming to know Jesus.
I too when confronted with opposition, desire to take my stand with the other believers, raise my voice with them, and declare the TRUTH of GOD to the Lost.
- Maybe you are like me, and you are saddened that your mind, body, heart, and strength is “not continually as it once was.”
- Maybe you are like me, and you hear your brain say: “My body disagrees with my mind.”
- Maybe you are like me, and your LIFE sometimes seems “out of balance.”
- Maybe you are like me, and you desire— The exclusive space where we need to be, the place we need to daily strive to remain, and one that God has promised us—our eternal promise!
There is a missionary to Thailand who once said, “I am convinced God’s call on my life is until He calls me home.”
WHY?
She said: “I have committed my life to being a steadfast missionary presence, even though the commitment is not easy. God is not finished with me. He uses me to REACH the NATIONS!”
- Our Job: Proclaim the Gospel; to Sow the Seeds.
- The Job of the Holy Spirit: Determine where the Gospel Goes; Determine Where the Seeds Land; & Determine What Happens In People’s Lives!
OUR CLOSE WALK WITH JESUS REALLY MATTERS!
OUR LORD JESUS CHRIST CANNOT BE LORD OF OUR LIFE—UNLESS JESUS IS LORD OF OUR MIND, HEART, & PERSONAL WILL!
“First Things First” by Consumed By Fire speaks this truth through melody. Maybe, like me, you will find time today to listen to this song and be reminded of what must remain 1st.
“Jesus said to him, “If I want him to remain until I come, what is that to you?
(John 21: 22 NASB)
a paraphrase—“YOU PETER, KEEP YOUR EYES ONLY ON ME & NOT ON OTHERS,” JESUS said.
&
a paraphrase—“YOU NANCY, KEEP YOUR EYES ONLY ON ME & NOT ON OTHERS,” JESUS said.
“You follow Me!”