One of the most instructive scenes in all of scripture is the moment when Moses encountered the burning bush and engaged in a dialogue with the “I Am.”  You remember the background, of course.  Moses as a child was set afloat in the Nile River to prevent his being slaughtered by Pharoah’s men after Pharoah had decided that the Israelites were becoming too numerous.  The daughter of Pharoah found him and adopted him as her own. Moses was raised in the courts of Pharoah and received the best education available which undoubtedly included rhetoric and leadership. 

When Moses was about forty years old, we discover that he had become aware of his Hebrew connection and sensed that he was chosen to somehow lead God’s people out of Egypt.  In his zeal for his people and, perhaps, for his vision of deliverer, he killed an Egyptian who was beating a Hebrew slave one afternoon.  When Moses learned there had been witnesses to the murder, he gave up his life in the palace and fled Egypt.   He disappeared into in the back country of Midian where he married Jethro’s daughter and became a simple shepherd. For forty years, he lived the dirty and often lonely life of a shepherd rather than the opulent life of a prince of Egypt.

Then came the day he saw a bush that was burning but was not being consumed.  Unaware of the adage that “curiosity killed the cat,” he turned aside to investigate.  As he approached the bush a voice told him to remove his shoes for, he was standing on holy ground. The thing that made the ground holy was the presence of God. Yaweh identified himself to Moses as “the Godof your father, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac and the God of Jacob” (Ex.2:6) Moses then hid his face because he was afraid to look at God.

Then came the big reveal.  God said, “I have indeed seen the misery of my people in Egypt.  I have heard them crying out because of their slave drivers…I am sending you to Pharoah to bring the Israelites out of Egypt” (Ex. 2:7,10). 

Then came the litany of excuses that Moses made in order to exempt himself from his chosen destiny:  Who am I that I should go?  What if I go and tell the people that God has sent me to lead you out, but they ask “What is His name?”  What if they don’t believe me? You know I’m not a good speaker. Please send someone else. After each of Moses’ objections God gave him an answer – I will go with you; I will cause them to believe; I will do signs and wonders through you; I made your mouth so I can give you the capacity to speak; etc.  After each assurance, Moses found another reason that God was speaking to the wrong guy.  Finally, the text says, “Then the Lord’s anger burned against Moses…” (Ex. 4:14). God had given him a more than adequate solution to his every objection, but he still kept saying “No” to God.  Even God gets frustrated like a parent whose child keeps asking “Why” to every instruction. 

We know that Moses eventually surrendered to God’s will and became the great deliverer of Israel. But initially, Moses believed his own evaluation of himself rather than God’s evaluation of him.  Moses saw himself as a failure, a nobody, a stutterer, a murderer, and a lowly shepherd who once possessed greatness but had run away.  Interestingly, Moses had once seen himself as the deliverer that God was now releasing to fulfill his destiny.  Forty years as a no-name shepherd in Midian had erased that perception. Moses’ appraisal was that the job had to go to a man of prominence and power, a man of influence, and a persuasive orator. God’s evaluation was that when Moses had all those things in Egypt, he was not qualified to lead because those things had made him arrogant, entitled, self-sufficient, and self-directed.  What God needed was a broken man, a humble man, and a man who had learned the patience and ways of a shepherd. God would give him the gifts, the eloquence, and the influence but what he needed was Moses’ character.  Of course, God had to stir up some faith in Moses, but God excels in using the willing rather than the highly qualified.

Now comes the application.  How often has God called us to leadership and how often have we made excuses as to why we were not the person?  How often has he called us to a moment of greatness…to speak out for righteousness, to share the gospel, to pray an audacious prayer for healing, to share a prophetic word that we sense is from God, or to lead a ministry…but we have found reasons not to do those things.  

Inevitably, we turn down the opportunity because, like Moses, we don’t feel qualified. But here is the thing…God will go with us; he will give us the words; he will do signs and wonders through us; he will give us favor, and he will guide us into our destiny…if we are willing.   All those promises for the followers of Jesus can be found in the New Testament. How much more would the Kingdom of Heaven advance on earth if the children of God would say “yes” to his call for greatness, rather than insisting that he use someone else?  Typically, we don’t just say “No,” but we say, “Not now. I’ll do it when I’ve had more training, when I’m more mature, or when my life is less hectic.” When God calls, he already has everything you need ready for you. You typically won’t receive those things before you start the journey, but only after you have said “yes” to the call and taken the first steps.

Let me encourage you (and myself) not to be the Moses in front of the bush, but the Moses in front of Pharoah.  Say “yes” to the moments and ministry that God puts before you and trust him to go with you.  If your faith has become boring, it’s because you are not stepping into moments and circumstances that require faith and you are not letting God stretch you.  Moses had been totally prepared for the call on his life but couldn’t recognize the reality.  However, God knew when the time was right. We too have been prepared and we should trust God to know when the time is right for us.  My goal is to follow Jesus with no excuses. It’s still a work in progress, but I want to encourage you to join me, at least in sincerely setting the goal. 

How often do we hear the word “deserve” used in our culture and, especially, on television ad campaigns?  “Get all the benefits you deserve.”  “Find all the happiness you deserve.” “Finally, you can live in that dream house you deserve!”  There are times when we definitely deserve some things because we have earned them.  If you put in the hours at work and do the job, you deserve to be paid.  If you have poured out the sweat to learn a craft, develop a skill, or become the best in a certain field you merit some recognition.  However, in our entitlement culture of participation trophies and no criticisms or rebukes, too many of us feel we deserve only good things and positive outcomes,  simply because we exist.

There are numerous dangers attached to that mindset, but the spiritual dangers are immense.  The moment I begin to believe that I am simply entitled to everything that others have, I feel cheated and victimized when I don’t have the possessions, the position, or the recognition of those around me.  Any rebuke, criticism, or discipline that comes my way is met with my anger and my demands that you or life has been unfair to me. What I am finding is that the entitlement mindset in our culture is creating an anger towards God because we think he hasn’t given us everything we desire and deserve.

That mindset eventually robs us of a heart of thankfulness and gratitude, which is a key to spiritual life and even spiritual warfare.  Paul taught the Philippians, “Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, 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” (Phil.4:6-7).  Peace in our hearts is a quality that keeps Satan at bay. 

Thanksgiving places the emphasis on the goodness and generosity of God rather my own entitlement. My assurance in the goodness of God, despite my circumstances, leads to peace and peace guards my heart. The belief that I should always have what others have, with no effort on my part, and that I am not loved unless I get everything I want, breeds a life of envy and jealousy.  It robs a man or woman of contentment and is an open door for the enemy.

One of the key lessons to life and maturity is to understand Paul’s admonition to the Galatians. “Do not be deceived: God cannot be mocked. A man reaps what he sows. The one who sows to please his sinful nature, from that nature will reap destruction; the one who sows to please the Spirit, from the Spirit will reap eternal life. Let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest” (Gal.6:7). God has established a principle that we harvest what we plant in this life…both in the natural realm and the spiritual realm.  A harvest requires personal investment, work, effort, patience, and faith.   Any other view is deception. Certainly, gifts come to us that we did not earn, but those are the exception in life rather than the rule.  Our salvation is a gift from God, not something we could earn, but kingdom rewards come as a result of our faithful service to the King and our patient pursuit of His kingdom.  

For our children who have developed an entitlement mentality through our desire to give them everything they want when they want it, along with status and recognition they have not earned through effort, life is going to be a series of disappointments that they blame on everyone but themselves – including God.  The belief that they deserve all the perks of life and the blessings of the Kingdom without real effort on their part, is going to shortchange them in the long run and leave them empty and bitter. They will eventually feel cheated by life and eventually feel victimized by everyone and every circumstance. 

What we need to understand is that the only thing any of us truly deserve is eternity in hell.  Everything else should be considered a gift for which we are truly thankful even when it took effort on our part to receive it. Our focus must remain on what we have rather than what we don’t have.  What God has done for us, rather than something he hasn’t yet done for us. 

Paul spoke about the fact that he had learned the secret of contentment in every circumstance – when he had plenty and when he had little. The secret was his faith in the goodness and sovereignty of God.  He believed in every circumstance, what he had was designed by God to bring out the best in him and to produce the greatest harvest through him.  Even when he suffered, he believed there was some significant purpose that redeemed the suffering.  He never questioned God’s love when he didn’t have the position, possessions, or recognition “he deserved.”  He was simply thankful for what he did have – especially eternal life.  That needs to be our perspective on life and entitlement as well, and we need to teach that to our children.

I’m one of those guys who plays occasional golf.  What that means is that when I do play, I hit a lot of bad shots.  I comfort myself knowing that even the pros hit bad shots from time to time.  There are different kinds of bad shots.  Sometimes you just top the ball and it rolls weakly down the fairway.  Sometimes you hit the ground before you hit the ball and it pops up feebly while you look around to see if anyone was watching. 

The truly bad shots are the ones that fly deep into the rough.  In West Texas, that means that you are hunting a small white sphere in a forest of mesquite trees and careless weeds dotted with an occasional rattle snake.  If you can find the ball and if you can even swing a club, you have to make a decision.  Do you accept the fact that you hit a bad shot and simply try to hit back onto the fairway, or do you decide to try to hit a miracle shot up next to the green, deceiving yourself into believing that you might still get a par or a bogey?

In other words, do I accept the penalty that I earned with a bad shot into the rough or do I try to deny my error, avoid the penalty, and go for it. Of course, most of us go for the miracle shot, in which case, we usually hit a mesquite and bounce into a worse place than we were originally. Then the pressure is really on to hit another even more miraculous shot because the strokes are adding up.  I might even be tempted to cheat just a little.  If I had simply acknowledged my error and shot back onto the fairway, I would have probably ended up with a bogey or double bogey (two over par.)  If I try to beat the penalty, I will likely end up with a triple or quadruple bogey or even a lost ball. 

I find that we do that a lot in life.  We make mistakes. We sin. We fail.  Then, instead of acknowledging our mistakes or sins, we try to deny them or cover up what we have done with denial, lies, rationalizations, or blame.  Then the Law of Sowing and Reaping (Gal.6:7) kicks in.  If I sow to the flesh (lie, excuse, blame others), I will reap disaster.  If I sow to the Spirit, I will reap life.  The flesh (and the devil) prompt us to deny and cover our sins while the Spirit prompts us to confess and receive forgiveness.  When there are consequences, God will walk with us through those difficulties.

I’m reading through the life of David again.  As I read, I notice once again that King Saul caved to the flesh on numerous occasions. In 1 Samuel 15, God commanded Saul to attack the Amalekites and totally destroy them including the animals (There is a long history to that which I will leave for your research).  Saul attacked the Amalekites as commanded, but left King Agag alive and took the best of the sheep and the cattle.

The text says, “Early in the morning Samuel got up and went to meet Saul, but he was told, ‘Saul has gone to Carmel. There he has set up a monument in his own honor and has turned and gone on down to Gilgal.’ When Samuel reached him, Saul said, ‘The Lord bless you! I have carried out the Lord’s instructions.’  But Samuel said, ‘What then is this bleating of sheep in my ears? What is this lowing of cattle that I hear?’ Saul answered, ‘The soldiers brought them from the Amalekites; they spared the best of the sheep and cattle to sacrifice to the Lord your God, but we totally destroyed the rest.’  ‘Stop!’ Samuel said to Saul. ‘Let me tell you what the Lord said to me last night.’ ‘Tell me,’ Saul replied.

Samuel said, ‘The Lord anointed you king over Israel. And he sent you on a mission, saying, ‘Go and completely destroy those wicked people, the Amalekites; make war on them until you have wiped them out.’  Why did you not obey the Lord? Why did you pounce on the plunder and do evil in the eyes of the Lord?’ ‘But I did obey the Lord,’ Saul said. ‘I went on the mission the Lord assigned me. I completely destroyed the Amalekites and brought back Agag their king. The soldiers took sheep and cattle from the plunder, the best of what was devoted to God, in order to sacrifice them to the Lord your God at Gilgal.’

But Samuel replied: ‘Does the Lord delight in burnt offerings and sacrifices as much as in obeying the voice of the Lord? To obey is better than sacrifice, and to heed is better than the fat of rams. For rebellion is like the sin of divination, and arrogance like the evil of idolatry. Because you have rejected the word of the Lord, he has rejected you as king’ (1 Sam. 15:12-23).

It is amazing that Saul continued to justify his failure to do everything the Lord had commanded. Later in the chapter, he blamed his soldiers for sparing Agag and the best of the animals and then asked Samuel to go with him to honor him before the people.  The rest of Saul’s reign as King was marred by the same rationalizations, blame towards others, and an attempt to justify whatever he did, although it was clearly sin.

If he had acknowledged his weakness, his fear, and his sin and repented before God, things could have been very different. Remember that David himself slipped into extreme sin through adultery and murder, but God did not reject or forsake him.  His confession and repentance in Psalm 51 demonstrates the difference between David and Saul.  David did not deny his sin.  He blamed no one else. He was overwhelmed with his own sense of unworthiness, instead of building monuments to himself. Ultimately, he leaned on the mercy of God and, although there were hard consequences in the natural realm for his actions, he was reconciled to God and God walked with him through those consequences.  In the end, he was still known as a man after God’s own heart. 

So, the next time you shank a shot into the rough of life, I encourage you to acknowledge the mistake, lay it before the Lord, and receive the consequence without trying to escape it, cover it up, lie about it, excuse it, cheat, or even blame someone else for your predicament. Otherwise, you may find yourself in deeper weeds and lose much more in the long run than you would have if you had simply back in to the fairway. 

It has always been my ambition to preach the gospel where Christ was not known, so that I would not be building on someone else’s foundation. Romans 15:20

Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit, but in humility consider others better than yourselves. Each of you should look not only to your own interests, but also to the interests of others.  Philippians 2:3

The apostle Paul wrote both of the verses quoted above.  At first glance, they may seem contradictory so I want to ask the question:  Is there a difference between godly ambition and selfish ambition and does it matter?

Ambition in Greek word study books means “to seek after honor and praise or to aspire to a lofty goal.” Clearly, there is a difference between seeking honor for God and seeking honor for ourselves, but sometimes it is not so easy to determine what the real core of our own motives is.  However, one brings the blessing of God and reward in heaven, while the other does not. 

Many of the issues Jesus had with the Pharisees revolved around this point.  He warned those to whom he preached not to be like the Pharisees – not to practice their righteousness, their prayers, nor their fasts in order to be seen by others so that they might receive the praise of men for their “great spirituality” (Matthew 6).  Rather, he directed them to do those things in ways that only God could see and promised that the Father would reward them for doing so. Jesus declared that those who did good things in order things to receive praise from men had already received their reward. 

This teaching is relevant today because some of the most “gifted” church leaders I have known through the years, have struggled with their motives and with the challenge of pride or a desire for approval.  Because they were church leaders, it was easy for them to believe that their motives were pure – to build the kingdom of God.  But underneath that goal, were darker drives.  If they were honest with themselves, they loved the praise of men, they loved to be counted in the top tier of church leaders in their denomination, they loved the spotlight, and often resented moments when others were asked to speak, write, or lead other than themselves.

The truth is that these men often operated out of exceptional natural gifts even more than spiritual gifts.  The exercise of spiritual gifts made us all assume that that they were driven by godly ambition rather than selfish ambition.  Those gifts – healing, prophecy, teaching, leadership, preaching, etc. made it hard for them to detect their own deeper motives as well.

Here is the thing, we are all subject to the same temptation.  David wisely prayed, “Search me, O God, and know my heart; test me and know my anxious thoughts. See if there is any offensive way in me and lead me in the way everlasting (Ps. 139:23).

Many of us desire leadership roles or greater leadership roles, profound spiritual gifts, speaking opportunities, opportunities to serve on significant planning teams, and expanded influence.  If our goal is to use those opportunities to reach the lost, build up the body of Christ, and to bring praise to God, then we are in a good place.  If we detect any selfish ambition in those desires, then we must acknowledge them, repent, and keep an eye on our hearts.  We should also pray David’s prayer on a daily basis.

Sometimes, we are promoted in the kingdom of God by men rather than by the King himself.  Our gifts can exceed our character.  Some of the failures of high-profile church leaders in recent years occurred because their gifts and promotion exceeded their spiritual character.  One of the great differences between King Saul and King David was that Saul was promoted to power and influence before his heart had been tested and before his character had developed to carry the weight of his office. The result was leadership based on polling data, the envy of others who succeeded, and jealousy to the extent that he desired to murder those who might have more influence than he did.  David, on the other hand, went through years of testing and being humbled before he ever ascended to the throne.  He made mistakes – huge mistakes – but he humbled himself before God and ultimately put himself in God’s hands when it came to promotion rather than listening to men or engineering his promotion by his own efforts.  Saul is not remembered as a great King.  David is.

We should all want to do more for Jesus.  But we need to ask the Holy Spirit to make it clear if we have any motives that muddy the waters of our heart.  And let me be clear… it is not whether we have any mixed or selfish motives, because we all do.  The difference is about what we do with our patches of selfish ambition.  

Among other things, Satan is described as “the accuser of the brethren” who accuses them day and night before God (Rev. 12:10).  In the Old Testament, we find a detailed account of him accusing Job before God (Job 1:6-11) and again we find him standing before God to accuse Joshua, the high Priest (Zechariah 3:1).  Jesus revealed to Peter that Satan had asked to sift him like wheat (Luke 22:31).  I think we can safely assume that Satan had stood before God accusing Peter and wanting to unleash hell in his life.  Those accusations take place in the courts of Heaven, but Satan is even more active shouting his accusations on the earth.  

How often must the accuser whisper accusations in our ear about our spouse, about our neighbor, about our boss, about our church, or about our leaders.  He makes accusations about their motives and intent – that they are withholding what is due to us, that they are taking advantage of us, that they are liars and manipulators and want what is rightfully ours.  How often do we judge others because we presume to know their hearts and motives?

But not only does Satan accuse those around us, he also accuses us to ourselves.  He accuses us of being unworthy of love, unworthy of success, unworthy of God’s blessings, and unworthy of fulfilling a great destiny that God has already written in his book for us. He schemes to make us feel unloved and disqualified from every blessing of God…even his grace.  

Through his accusations, we can come to a place in which we believe that someone is beyond help, beyond transformation, beyond forgiveness, beyond grace, and beyond hope.  We may even believe that about ourselves.  When we get to that place, we give up on others or ourselves.  We feel so condemned that we feel hopeless and at that point we give up and give in.

A young man, we’ll call Gary, came to our church several years ago.  In a counseling session, he revealed that he had been in bondage to a homosexual life style for years.  His family, including his wife, knew nothing about his “other life.” For months he had been telling his wife he was working late but instead he had been having liaisons with other men he was meeting online.  He had grown up in a conservative church and the shame he felt for his deceit and his homosexuality was overwhelming. He despised himself and was certain that God despised him as well.  His words were,” This is my last stop.  If I can’t get help here, I’m giving in.   I’m going to leave my wife and family and give into the lifestyle.  Resisting is just too hard.”

I asked him if he had ever heard God speak.  He said that he thought he had once or twice, so I asked him if we could ask Jesus to speak to him.  He very reluctantly agreed and I simply asked Jesus to speak to him and tell Gary how he felt about him.   We sat quietly for a moment and then Gary burst into tears and began weeping.  After another minute, I asked him what Jesus had said to him.  Gary said, “He didn’t say anything, but I literally felt his arms around me.”

Gary had believed the accusations of the enemy that he had gone too far … even beyond God’s grace, but a gentle hug from the Savior ignited his hope and his faith again.  

Within four weeks, Gary had learned to treat the compulsion as a spirit that he commanded to leave whenever it pressed in on him. One afternoon, spirits of rejection, unworthiness, and homosexuality were cast out and he was free from his bondage. He fell in love with his wife and his Savior again.  Years later, he was still walking in freedom.

When our life or the life of someone we know spins out of control, Satan wants us to believe that God is through with us or them.   It is a lie.  No one is beyond God’s grace whether it is a Mary Magdalene with seven demons or a Gadarene tomb-dweller filled with a legion of demons.  We must learn to treat Satan’s accusations as lies when he whispers them about those around or when he accuses us in our own hearts.  To do less is to deny the immense love of God and the immense power of the blood of Christ.

The highest heavens belong to the Lord, but the earth has been given to mankind. 

Psalm 115:16

The verse quoted above is an interesting verse that may explain a lot.  The Passion Translation words it this way: “The heavens belong to our God; they are his alone.  But he has given us the earth and put us in charge.”  

One of the primary meanings of the Hebrew word translated as “given” is “to transfer possession of a thing.”  In Genesis 1:28, the text says that after creating the earth and man, God blessed Adam and Eve and told them to fill the earth and subdue it, and to rule over the fish, the birds and the animals. The psalmist declared, “You made them (mankind) rulers over the works of your hands; you put everything under their feet” (Psm.8:6). In other words, God created the earth. Called it good, and them put man in charge.

Now, we weren’t put in charge to rule as we want to rule, but to rule as his representatives on the earth – to do what he would do if he were physically present.  Rulership in the kingdom is not about perks and power but about responsibility and stewardship.  He made us responsible to rule over the earth with care and good stewardship of both culture and the environment. Jesus summed up the principle of representation by saying, “If you have seen me, you have seen the Father.” The idea Is that we would care for the earth and one another just as God would do.

It seems that most people who believe in God seem to hold a theology that God is solely in charge of things on the earth. When bad things happen, we accuse God of being angry, harsh, and vindictive.   When school shootings occur or when tsunami’s kill thousands, we point at God.  However, if we are in charge, then we must take responsibility for most of those things.   The fact that God could control everything that happens on the earth is not the same as saying that he does control every event. It is true that God wields his power and sovereignty over nations and kings and people but he does not do so capriciously or at his whim. It is in response to a people or nations’ choices.

Think of it this way:  If God has given us authority over the earth, then he is compelled to honor our choices and the consequences of our choices. For example, if a father spends a lifetime building a business based on integrity, customer care, and quality products and then signs it over to hIs children, it is up to them to continue his good business practices or not.  If they do, the business will continue to thrive. If not, it will dwindle.  Even if he is available to help them out and give sage advice, it is up to them to involve him or leave him out.  In essence, God has given mankind the family business of operating the earth.

In Deuteronomy 28, God assembled Israel and declared that they could choose blessings or curses as the atmosphere in which they would live.  God promised that If they involved him and were careful to obey his commands, then he would bless then in every way. If, however, they chose to exclude him and live in disobedience to his commands, then curses would be released as the consequence of their choices.  God plead with them to choose blessing, but if they chose curses, he would honor that choice.

If you read the chapter, some of those curses are financial failures, war, disease, mental illness, crime, natural disasters, etc. When Kane killed Abel, the Bible says that the blood of Abel cried out from the ground and that the earth would no longer produce crops for him because of that sin.  That text and others suggest that the creation itself will respond to our sin. The more that sin prevails on the earth, more natural disasters will occur, more disease will afflict the planet, and more war will ravage mankind.  We may blame natural disasters on coal plants or car emissions, but the truth is that our sin contributes heavily to these disasters.

Paul declares in Galatians 6:7 that God will not be mocked.  Whatever a man sows he will reap.  If he sows to the Spirit, he will reap life.  If he sows to the flesh, he will reap destruction.  Our sin does not affect us alone but contributes to an atmosphere of curses because our sin gives Satan the right to kill, steal, and destroy.  It is not God’s desire for man to suffer, but he will honor our choices.  How can we shake our fist at God for earthquakes, forest fires, tornadoes, polar vortexes, famine, and outbreaks of devastating disease when the world is bent on disobedience?  The blood of every aborted child cries out.  Sexual sin and perversion flood the airways.  The word of God is removed from schools and places of government.  The heavens belong to God but he has given us the earth and we are in charge.

It has always been God’s intent to rule though his people and, as the church, he has given us authority in the earth. If we, then, as believers are in charge, then we should take charge – not through violence or religious tyranny, but first of all by obedient living ourselves…then, by evangelizing the world, being a true leaven for righteousness, standing against unrighteousness, and inviting God back into the business through massive amounts of prayer. 

 God is willing to get involved if we ask. God is waiting to bless the nations through his people and through his Messiah.  Because he has put us in charge, he will do all of this with us, but not without us.  God has called us to subdue the earth and rule over the works of his hands with an outpouring of love, truth, and the supernatural power of heaven to bless rather than curse.  God is not angry, he is just a God of his word and if we are in charge, then we should act like it.

As we push into 2023, I think it is helpful to be reminded of truths and commands, about which, we often become careless.   Ephesians contains one of those simple verses that says so much when we actually dig down into it. That verse is Ephesians 4:29 which says, “Do not let any unwholesome talk come out of your mouths, but only what is helpful for building others up according to their needs, that it may benefit those who listen.”  

Sometimes, the danger of reading modern translations is that we understand the text according to our current, cultural meaning of a word.  For instance, when I read the phrase “unwholesome talk” in the NIV, I immediately think about cussing or sexually explicit language.  If I don’t cuss or use obscene language, I may check the box and move on.  However, that is not what the original language means.  Paul talks about those issues in Ephesians 5:3-4, but not in Ephesians 4:29.

So, what does Paul mean by “unwholesome talk?”  The word in the original language is sapros.  It means rotten, putrid, rancid, decaying, things that lead to death, harmful, hurtful etc.  In his letter, Paul is forbidding language that imparts death, decay, weakness, emotional or spiritual harm to another person.  

We know that the tongue has “the power of life or death” (Prov. 8:21).  Our words have impact and even spiritual power to produce good or harm, life or death, health or sickness.  Because we walk in the authority of Jesus Christ, our words also carry authority.  When Jesus spoke healing over others, they were healed.  When he spoke life over the dead, they were resurrected.  When he spoke to the storm it was silenced.  When he commanded demons, they left. When he cursed the fig tree, it died immediately (Matt.21:19). All of those things were accomplished when Jesus spoke words. His words had authority and power.   Our words do as well. I believe the words of all men and women have some authority because God gave mankind dominion over the earth. The Psalmist declared, “The highest heavens belong to the Lord, but the earth he has given to man” (Ps. 115:16).

The words of believers have even more authority because we represent the King. Like it or not, we speak for him. Remember, Jesus said that those who have faith in him would do all that he did and even more (Jn. 14:12). We could not do those things unless our words and commands carry power and authority.  The Hebrews believed that words possessed spiritual energy that went forth and, like Elohim speaking the universe into existence, had power to create something that did not exist before. Words are the basis of blessing and cursing.  When spoken, they activate forces in the spiritual realm to either bring life or death to a person or situation. 

Unwholesome words impart death and decay like curses.  They may be in the form of constant criticism, telling someone that they are worthless, declaring that a child is stupid or will never amount to anything, or any words that demean, dismiss, or suggest that someone is unimportant and useless. I noticed early in my life that men, especially, use demeaning humor towards one another as a kind of self-promotion that declares “I am always superior to you and you are always inferior to me.”  Of course, we laugh at the “put downs” or the sarcasm, but for those of us who have already received a barrage of words undercutting our sense of value and significance, even the jokes burn.  A Greek philosopher once wrote, “The boys throw the sticks in jest, but the frogs die in earnest.”  In other words, we may mean no harm, but harm may be done anyway. Unintended consequences are still consequences.

Our careless words can be like those sticks.  Our mean words, can be like stones.  Each word carries power and pushes a person either towards life or death.  If we are prone to speak words that undermine health, joy, self-esteem, confidence, security, etc. over others or ourselves, Paul would call us to repent and begin to speak only words that encourage, build up, affirm, and bless.  We can curse without cussing.  I know many believers who do so in their marriage, over their children, over their spiritual leaders, over our national leaders, and so forth.  At times, I catch myself doing that. Social media is a reservoir of curses.  We all can fall into that trap when we forget who we are.

Jesus said that on the day of Judgment, each of us will have to give account for every careless word we have spoken (Matt. 12:36). It is not that we can never point out a fault or a flaw in another person, but we must determine how to speak the truth in love at just the right time rather than in a fit of anger as we assault their worth.  Ask the Holy Spirit to highlight any tendencies you have to speak negatively over others or yourself. It is not just that we hurt someone’s feelings or damage their self-esteem. That is serious enough, but because we have authority, the spiritual realm will take our words as an assignment for either blessing or cursing and will not relent.

Make a decision for 2023 to be a source of fresh water in everyone’s life and not a source of salt water that kills living things. James put it this way. “With the tongue we praise our Lord and Father, and with it we curse men, who have been made in God’s likeness. Out of the same mouth come praise and cursing. My brothers, this should not be. Can both fresh water and salt water flow from the same spring? My brothers, can a fig tree bear olives, or a grapevine bear figs? Neither can a salt spring produce fresh water” (Ja. 3:9-12).  

One of the life-changing decisions we cam make for this year, is to eradicate “unwholesome talk” from our words. It is not easy. Much of what we say is so automatic that we are not even conscious of what we saying. It will take the Holy Spirit and some close friends and family to even make us aware of what we speak. It will also take a steady diet of the word of God to renew our minds and our old patterns of speech. But remember, what you speak creates realities. What you speak truly imparts life or death and our God is a God of life.

For the past few weeks, I have been teaching the book of Ephesians at our church in Midland/Odessa.  The great thing about teaching a verse-by-verse study is that you are forced to look closely at verses you typically read over with the assumption that you know what they mean without going deeper, doing the word studies, or thinking through applications that go beyond the obvious.

There are some challenging texts in Ephesians that are subject to several interpretations – all of which have merit.  There are also some straight forward texts that are challenging in the application if we were to incorporate them in a lifestyle of following Jesus.

One of those is Ephesians 4: 1.  There Paul challenges the church by writing, “I urge you to live a life worthy of the calling you have received.”  We are called to be sons and daughters of the King, ambassadors of Christ, God’s chosen people, priests, and so forth.  Each of those positions carries the responsibility of representation.  In other words, we are called to represent God to the world – Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.  

Jesus lived out the principle of representation when he said, “If you have seen me, you have seen the Father.”  A King is first known by the qualities that others see in his ambassadors.  A Father will be judged by the quality of his children.  If a man’s representatives or a father’s children are confident, well-spoken, intelligent, and tactful truth-tellers, the assumption will be   that the King or father will be the same or even greater. If, however, the representatives are lazy, unkempt, arrogant, and deceitful…those who encounter them will assume the father or king will also be the same.

In many cases, first impressions about a father, leader, or a nation are established by encounters with those who represent them.  To live a life worthy of the calling we have received is to live a life that honors God, that imparts a positive and attractive impression of God, and that represents his values, laws, and character well.  Just as Jesus said, “If you have seen me, you have seen the Father,” Paul urges us to live in a way that we can say the same.  Our goal should be to live in a way that accurately represents the King and his kingdom – his heart, his character, and his righteousness.  

The truth is that God honored us with an incredible honor when he adopted us and gave us his name. Our role as a representative of the crown, is a privileged role that should be cherished and protected.  And yet, that seems to be the exception among believers today.  Many of us seem to live in ways that give little thought to how our lives will impact those who do not yet know the Lord.  They will naturally assume that we are like the God we serve.  

I’m not concerned when we try to live a life worthy of our calling and stumble or fall short.  I am concerned when we give little thought to living such a life and live in ways, speak in ways, carry on business in ways, and steward relationships in ways that dishonor God rather than representing him as those who reflect his goodness, holiness, and glory.  

When we give little thought to our representation, we give Satan all the ammunition he needs to discredit believers, the church, and even God himself in the minds of unbelievers.  Jesus was the perfect representative of the Father. His strategy was simple. He said that he only did what he saw the Father doing and only spoke what he heard the Father saying.  Our goal should be to act as Jesus would act and speak as he would speak if he were physically present.  

If we have forgotten that we represent or re-present Jesus, then we need to evaluate our words, actions, and attitudes to see where we are misaligned with the Father.  There is a story told about Alexander the Great.  He had a soldier in his ranks that was also named Alexander but he had a reputation for laziness, cheating at cards, and extremely poor hygiene.  One day he encountered Alexander the Great who said, “I understand that we share the same name.” The soldier replied proudly, “Why, yes we do.”  Alexander answered by simply saying, “Well soldier, either change your ways or change your name.”

I wonder if the Father feels that way about us at times as we misrepresent him to the unbelievers in the world who need to be drawn to him rather than repulsedd.  Paul’s message to the Ephesians challenges me and, perhaps, it challenges you as sell.

Most of us who minister in the arena of spiritual warfare are forced to talk about mainstream churches in America that have little theology and little interest in the supernatural move of God and his Holy Spirit.  It’s not that these churches don’t love Jesus and don’t preach the gospel.  Many have great ministries to the community, many reach hundreds of people each year for Jesus, but they have been victimized by a theology that declares that God no longer works through the “miraculous gifts of the Spirit,” nor does he supernaturally intervene in the lives of men as he once did in the biblical record.  These churches have a lack of balance in the area of spiritual warfare that leaves their members ignorant of many spiritual realities and gives them very few tools to work with even if they were to become aware.  Our usual cry is for people to embrace all the gifts of the Spirit, authoritative prayer, deliverance, and so forth.  It’s a valid cry.

However, on the other end of the spectrum is a theology that makes everything about demons and spiritual warfare.  I believe that position often gives Satan too much credit because if every bad thing that happens to me is demonic, then my prayers to God to keep the evil one from me are totally ineffective.  That means that either God doesn’t hear my prayers or that Satan and his minions are more powerful than God.  Both of those conclusions are bad theology. 

The truth is that we live in a fallen world and sometimes stuff just happens.  Sometimes I have a flat because people who drive will eventually run over a nail.  Sometimes my washing machine flies apart because it is old or wasn’t well made. Sometimes I find myself in a bad place because I consistently make bad decisions and the Word says that I will eventually reap what I sow.  

Even temptation is not always a demon whispering in my ear.  The New Testament says that we can be drawn away from God by three things:  the promises of the world, the desires of our flesh, or demonic strategies.  Only one of those is direct demonic assault.  Don’t get me wrong, I am not downplaying the demonic.  We minister deliverance and cleanse houses all the time. All of that is very real.  But what I do see frequently are believers who rarely say “No” to the flesh and consistently make bad decisions in spite of godly counsel, and then blame demons when the wheels come off. 

Demonic oppression and affliction are real, but deliverance and commanding demons is no replacement for godly wisdom and holy living.  Without those components, we constantly leave a door open for the enemy.  Without those components, the devil doesn’t need to spend much time on us because we are constantly derailing ourselves even without his help. If we blame every setback, every failure, and every sin on the devil (“The devil made me do it!”), then we will give no attention to our own need to grow spiritually. 

 Yes…we always need more faith, more authority, and greater spiritual gifts.  But to support all that, we need the fruit of the Spirit in our lives, the armor of God, personal holiness, and godly wisdom…not to mention self-control.  Unfortunately, I know several individuals who have amazing spiritual gifts for healing, impressive authority for deliverance, and keen spiritual discernment, but whose ministries and lives were wrecked because they didn’t pay attention to growing in character and wisdom.  Bad decisions took all of that away and it wasn’t just the devil attacking them.  

In scripture, some things are results of living in a fallen world, while other things are demonic.  If you search the gospels, you will see that sometimes a man was born blind and needed a creative miracle to gain his vision.  Others were blind because of a demonic presence. Deliverance restored their sight.  Some were deaf because of a spirit, while others had a physical defect that needed healing rather than deliverance. I could go on but my point is that we need wisdom to discern what is a spirit and what is simply a result of poor decisions and a lack of spiritual maturity in our own lives.  If we keep trying to cast out the flesh instead of crucifying it, we will not find the solution. 

I used to think that truth was on one side of the road, while error was on the other.  I eventually learned that truth is typically in the center and a ditch with tall grass, mud, and snakes lies on either side of the road.  That is true in spiritual warfare as well.  Sometimes Jesus cast out demons but at other times he simply called on the father to heal.  If the wheels are coming off in our lives, it may be an all-out assault of the enemy, but it may simply be a need in our own lives to say “No” to the flesh and “Yes” to godly wisdom for making better decisions.  Of course , it could be both but the closer we walk to God and the greater our alignment with him, the fe wer openings the enemy will have and the greater our authority will be.

One of the major keys to keeping the enemy at bay is holiness in our own lives.  Yes, we do stand before God as holy because Jesus has imparted his righteousness to us. He became sin for us that we might be become the righteousness of God (2 Cor. 5:21). Our position is righteousness, but that is not always our condition.  God saves us by grace and gives us the legal position or standing of being forgiven, being children of God, and being citizens of heaven, etc. That relates to our salvation, but other important things relate to our sanctification.

Sanctification is a theological word that simply means “how much have we become like Jesus?”  To the extent that we have areas of our lives that are unsubmitted to Jesus and his righteous standards, the enemy has access and authority to harass and oppress us.  Sanctification is not the same as salvation.  We can be saved and still have much of lives or thoughts that are not in agreement with God. 

My experience is that many believers (all of us from time to time) are blind to many areas that need to be confessed and repented of. That is typically because we compare our holiness to the world around us, rather than the standards of heaven. We look at the people we work with who are unredeemed and compare our lifestyles to theirs or we know those who are struggling with addictions or homosexual sin and we aren’t.  When we do, we think that we are living at a higher standard than those around us, so God must be pleased.  However, we often ignore or justify much in our own lives that needs to be submitted to the Lord…our words, our pride, our judgmental attitudes, our unbelief, our indifference to the lost and the poor, and so on. 

! believe that even the great prophet Isaiah fell into that trap because when he was given a vision of God in Isaiah 6, the text says he cried out, “Woe to me…I am ruined for I am a man of unclean lips and I live among a people of unclean lips, and my eyes have the King, the Lord Almighty” (Isaiah 6:5). Compared to the culture around him he was a righteous man, but compared to the holiness of God and the standards of heaven, he was overwhelmed by his own sense of sin and undone.

I know that I let the culture around me creep in and desensitize me to sin. Even on primetime television nudity, bad language, adultery, homosexuality, fornication, and violence are normalized and I believe we lose our sensitivity to such sin so that we are no longer offended by it.  When we are no longer offended, we no longer guard against it and eventually start to compromise with the world. However, the Holy Spirit has not been desensitized and as we willingly watch those things or read those things, we defile the temple in which he lives and grieve him. That willing participation (even passive participation) gives the enemy reason to accuse us and gives him access to us and our families.  

We must guard against the “culture creep” that numbs us to those things that offend the Father.  Let’s pray that the Holy Spirit would re-sensitize us to the things that offend God and open the door to the devil. Let’s pray as David prayed, “Search me O God and know my heart. Test me and know my anxious thoughts.  See if there is any offensive way in me and lead me in the way everlasting” (Ps. 139: 23-24).