Who Is Christ? He Is Your Life, That’s Who

This is taken from Colossians 3:

 

 So if you’re serious about living this new resurrection life with Christ, act like it. Pursue the things over which Christ presides. Don’t shuffle along, eyes to the ground, absorbed with the things right in front of you. Look up, and be alert to what is going on around Christ—that’s where the action is. See things from his perspective.

Your old life is dead. Your new life, which is your real life—even though invisible to spectators—is with Christ in God. He is your life. When Christ (your real life, remember) shows up again on this earth, you’ll show up, too—the real you, the glorious you. Meanwhile, be content with obscurity, like Christ.

And that means killing off everything connected with that way of death: sexual promiscuity, impurity, lust, doing whatever you feel like whenever you feel like it, and grabbing whatever attracts your fancy. That’s a life shaped by things and feelings instead of by God. It’s because of this kind of thing that God is about to explode in anger. It wasn’t long ago that you were doing all that stuff and not knowing any better. But you know better now, so make sure it’s all gone for good: bad temper, irritability, meanness, profanity, dirty talk.

 Don’t lie to one another. You’re done with that old life. It’s like a filthy set of ill-fitting clothes you’ve stripped off and put in the fire. Now you’re dressed in a new wardrobe. Every item of your new way of life is custom-made by the Creator, with his label on it. All the old fashions are now obsolete. Words like Jewish and non-Jewish, religious and irreligious, insider and outsider, uncivilized and uncouth, slave and free, mean nothing. From now on everyone is defined by Christ, everyone is included in Christ.

So, chosen by God for this new life of love, dress in the wardrobe God picked out for you: compassion, kindness, humility, quiet strength, discipline. Be even-tempered, content with second place, quick to forgive an offense. Forgive as quickly and completely as the Master forgave you. And regardless of what else you put on, wear love. It’s your basic, all-purpose garment. Never be without it.

Let the peace of Christ keep you in tune with each other, in step with each other. None of this going off and doing your own thing. And cultivate thankfulness. Let the Word of Christ—the Message—have the run of the house. Give it plenty of room in your lives. Instruct and direct one another using good common sense. And sing, sing your hearts out to God! Let every detail in your lives—words, actions, whatever—be done in the name of the Master, Jesus, thanking God the Father every step of the way.

That is who Christ is in you.

Have a blessed day.

Pastor Robert Coutts

 
If you have a comment, click below or email me at rcoutts60@gmail.com and thanks in advance. If you would like to support this ministry in any way, please click the donate button at the top right of this page. Thank you and the Lord Bless You.

WHO CHANGED THE STANDARD?

DISCLAIMER: This message is rated PG for parental Guidance. Simply because I am going to be very straight forward and may use some language that the pious will find offensive. So for their sakes I warn you ahead of time…don’t judge me or what I say, rather listen carefully and take it to heart for how it is sent.

     This is just my little way of encouraging you as we start a new year.

I was reflecting on Ephesians chapter 5 and what follows is my take on it. We live in a time when a new generation is coming along that wants nothing to do with church, the things of God or God Himself. They want their own way. Unfortunately they are swaying some of the old stock believers into following them. So many things that were once taboo or unchristian are now acceptable. Well I read Ephesians Chapter 5 and I see it differently than this new generation because I just don’t believe God changed the standard. Here’s what I got out of it.

     God is pure, clean, good, mighty, loving, forgiving and so many other things and we are to do what God does. We are to be imitators of Him in every way. When we were growing up, our parents taught us many things and we imitated them. That’s what we are to do with God, be imitators of Him. Most of what God does is done because He loves us and He is motivated by love for us. If we stay close to Him He will teach us that love and how to share it with those around us. That is learning the love of God. Check out your Scriptures and see how Christ loved us, then go out and love others the same way. Christ never held back His love for us but rather poured it out abundantly and without measure. We ought to be doing the same with those we are constantly in contact with.

     Today, many have turned love into lust which is the cause of many a fall. So many caught up in the bonds of it and are trapped in affairs, pornography, adultery and end up in the ditch.

     Others have lowered their standards to the point that gossip is on their lips all the time. If you are a true follower of Christ, you will know that He has a better use for your tongue than dirty talk, idle jesting, foul mouth or gossip. That kind of crappy mouth should not fit a Christians lifestyle. Thankfulness and loving one another fits into our way of life better.

     Then there are those who just use religion for gain or use people for what they can get out of them. That is not a Christian way of life, it is worldly. You can be sure that using people or religion or things just for what you can get out of them, the usual variations on idolatry, will get you nowhere, and certainly nowhere near the kingdom of Christ, the kingdom of God.

      Don’t let yourselves get taken in by religious smooth talk. God gets furious with people who are full of religious sales talk but want nothing to do with him. Don’t even hang around people like that.

     You groped your way through that murk once, but no longer. You’re out in the open now. The bright light of Christ makes your way plain. So no more stumbling around. Get on with it! The good, the right, the true—these are the actions appropriate for daylight hours. Figure out what will please Christ, and then do it.

     Don’t waste your time on useless work, mere busywork, the barren pursuits of darkness. Expose these things for the sham they are. It’s a scandal when people waste their lives on things they must do in the darkness where no one will see. Rip the cover off those frauds and see how attractive they look in the light of Christ.

     Wake up from your sleep,  Climb out of your coffins;  Christ will show you the light!

So watch your step. Use your head. Make the most of every chance you get. These are desperate times!

     Don’t live carelessly, unthinkingly. Make sure you understand what the Master wants. 

    As you enter a new year, keep in mind that we are closer to the second coming of Christ than we have ever been and it could be sooner than you think.

    It is time to get back to holiness and your roots as a born again Christian. Time to start fresh and make every effort to move forward and closer to Him.

     I hope this new year will be a blessing for you and you will find yourself totally sold out to Christ.

God Bless You,

Pastor Robert Coutts

If you have a comment, click below or email me at rcoutts60@gmail.com and thanks in advance. If you would like to support this ministry in any way, please click the donate button at the top right of this page. Thank you and the Lord Bless You.

HOW TO SAY THANKS ON THANKSGIVING

    I don't know about you, but I find  Thanksgiving to be one of the most difficult times of the year. I mean, other than saying, "we ought to be thankful," what is there to say?

   That is where the problem is I think. Giving thanks or really, being able to say thanks with a real sense that you are really grateful. It’s not something that you can just conjure up because it is the thing to do, you know, like your mom reminding you to say thank you when someone gives or does something for you. It’s those times when you say thanks that it really does not mean a thing because you were prompted to do it or the occasion called for it so you just did it out of habit.

    So how do we approach Thanksgiving? I can't say I've got the whole thing figured out, but I've found a few clues in Luke's story Luke 17:11-19 of the 10 lepers that's often the story we think about for Thanksgiving.

    Most of us are probably familiar with the story: ten lepers are healed; one returns, and it's a Samaritan no less. Okay, so one way to go is to lift up the Samaritan as an example. Trouble is, most of us hate examples like this, because they just make us feel guilty.

    What's more interesting, I think, is the fact that all ten were healed. All ten, even the nine who didn't return to say "thanks."

    So what made the Samaritan different? He noticed. That's pretty much it. Oh, I know, he returned to say thanks once he noticed. But I think that was kind of inevitable, or even almost involuntary. I mean, once you notice something spectacular, it's hard not to say something like . "I've got good news; the cancer is in remission"  for example.

    I think it was like that for the Samaritan: once he realized he'd been healed, he couldn't help but turn back and share his joy and thanksgiving with Jesus.

    Thanksgiving is like that. When it's genuine, it's spontaneous, even involuntary -- you recognize you've been blessed and can't help but sharing your joy through thanksgiving.

So the Samaritan turns back to say "thanks." He knows he's been given a gift and can't help turning around to saying something. And in doing so he's given a second gift, as he leaves his encounter with Jesus not only healed but also blessed.

    Blessed in his own recognition of healing, blessed at being drawn into deeper relationship with the one he thanks, blessed at hearing himself commended for having great faith.

    Imagine the difference that must have made in his life. He, a Samaritan, being commended by a Jewish rabbi for having great faith, faith sufficient to effect healing.

    That's the way thanksgiving always works -- in giving thanks for a gift given we are blessed again.

    So how does all this help us this thanksgiving?

Two things.

    First, after learning and understanding the teaching about the nature of gratitude and thanksgiving -- which is certainly worth doing, if briefly -- then you need to move to this issue of noticing. For those with eyes to see, God's blessings are all around us. And as we give thanks for them, we notice even more and are blessed yet again. We live in an age governed by a sense of "scarcity" and an ethos of "looking out for number one." A simple word of gratitude opens us up to world of abundance, mercy, and grace. It may seem a small thing -- noticing and thanking -- but it's the first step to setting in motion a cycle of gratitude and grace.

    Second, after we learn this, try modeling. That is, try noticing what God did. . Share  some of the things you're thankful for, some of the places you've encountered God's blessing. Even more, notice what God has done all around you. Tell your loved ones and friends  what you are thankful for about them, about your life together, and the world you share. Having been noticed with gratitude, they will find it easier to gratefully notice in return.

    This Thanksgiving, try some of this and watch the blessings flow, to you, and those around you. Above all…make sure you truthfully  thank God for everything He does.

    Blessed Thanksgiving! 

    

    Pastor Coutts

     If you have a comment, click below or email me at rcoutts60@gmail.com and thanks in advance. If you would like to support this ministry in any way, please click the donate button at the top right of this page. Thank you and the Lord Bless You.

IT'S TIME TO GET STIRRED UP!

Acts 19:21 says, “So mightily grew the Word of God and prevailed.”

            Ephesus was an impressive city that stood proudly on the Crystal River, back in from the coast of the Icarian Sea. It had natural wharfs which made it the commercial centre of Asia for trade.

            It was the crossroads of Asia and the melting pot of mankind. In this city could be found every culture. There were every trade known to man, right down to the sorcerers who filled the people with awe.  Ephesus was called the “First Metropolis of Asia.”

            It was also here that one of the seven wonders of the world existed, “The Temple of Diana” with it’s hundred marble monoliths that displayed the art of Phidas and Scopas and Apeles. Later there was the theater built to seat nearly 25,000 people. Ephesus, city of wealth and culture and power.

            Then one day, into that city came a disciple of Jesus wearing tattered clothes and worn sandals. Paul.

            He found a handful of Christians and persuaded them to make a full surrender of their lives to the Holy Spirit and to deepen their walk with the Lord. Because of his bold delivery of the Gospel there came an awakening to a truth that jarred that great city of Ephesus. Demetrius rose up in defense of Diana and the mobs cried out, but the Gospel was firmly planted in Ephesus!

            The history of Ephesus is great. Countless nationalities walked through it’s streets; kings rode there; soldiers and conquerors and merchants alike all were there. But, nothing ever happened to it that could compare to what happened when the Gospel invaded it.

            Diana is gone, and so are the temples and the commerce. The desert covers  the Ephesian glory; but the Gospel that flowed forth from there still blesses the world!

            It’s big news when Christ’s Word comes in to stir us! Let His Word stir you today.

            Have a great day in the Lord.
            Pastor Coutts 

 If you have a comment, click below or email me at rcoutts60@gmail.com and thanks in advance. If you would like to support this ministry in any way, please click the donate button at the top right of this page. Thank you and the Lord Bless You.

THE SCOURGE OF PREJUDICE

     Prejudice is a stain on society. At one time we thought it was becoming scarce, but it seems to be resurging these days.  The United States and many other nations have a history of upheaval and turmoil as a result of the prejudice of it’s people.  People would justify their prejudice on the basis of race, gender, social class, and a host of other distinctions that make one group of people “different” from another. If you were to study the origins of prejudice you would find that many times these prejudices were enshrined in the civil laws of our country, and were enforced with shameful brutality. Many people in our history were jailed and persecuted because they dared to oppose this social evil. At the very least, whole groups of people endured social and economic discrimination simply because of who they were.
 

     Jesus on the other hand, struggled to overcome the social and religious prejudices of his day. In Scripture we read that while traveling through Samaria, Jesus stopped by a well to rest. A woman of Samaria came to draw water, and Jesus said to her, “Give me a drink”. (John 4:7). He then engaged her in a long conversation. Talking to a woman in public was then considered a serious breach of social and religious custom that could cost a religious teacher his reputation and authority. A rabbi would not even speak to his wife or daughters in public. What is equally important, this woman was a Samaritan for whom Jews felt a longstanding and bitter animosity. Even more striking, she had an immoral past.

      But our Lord was undeterred by these prejudices. He had come to destroy these barriers. He would follow the course of love by breaking down the enormous barrier of sin that separates us not only from God, but from each other.

      We, too, need to ask ourselves—Are there barriers in our hearts that keep us from reaching out to people because of social, racial, and even religious prejudices? If so, we need God’s forgiveness, and the wisdom and strength to begin the process of tearing them down. Breaking down barriers, after all, should be one of the marks of those who choose to follow the example of Christ.

If you have a comment, click below or email me at rcoutts60@gmail.com and thanks in advance. If you would like to support this ministry in any way, please click the donate button at the top right of this page. Thank you and the Lord Bless You.

MEASURING SUCCESS

     If we are to measure success today it would probably be measured by our accomplishments, our wealth, our position in society or our caste. People who fit these categories are usually emulated because of those accomplishments. Now however it is the sports figure or the actor/actress who are the ones we hold up as our role models because we perceive them to have achieved ‘it’. No longer are the role models teachers, or doctors or police who do all the hard stuff. It is the ones we have catapulted to the top by visiting their movies or buying their music. We have definitely got it backwards.
     If you look to the Gospel of Christ, you will see that it is very much different when it comes to God’s judgment. When we all stand before the judgment seat of Christ, our success will not be measured by how much money we have or how popular we are with humanity. Actually it will be based on where we stand in relation to Ephesians 4:13; “until we all reach unity in the faith and in the knowledge of the Son of God and become mature, attaining to the whole measure of the fullness of Christ.” we shall be judged by the standard of whether in life we reached “to the very height of Christ’s full stature.”
     I would think this would be a sobering thought that would inspire us to be concerned about the kind of person we are. It will be the best among us that set the standard of judgment and if we call ourselves followers of Christ then the incentive is already in place to live right.
     Jesus exemplified through every moment of his life the way each of us should act—with great kindness, gentleness, and thoughtfulness. The Gospel witnesses his compassion to the sick; when the leper exclaimed that Jesus could make him well if he wanted to, Jesus answered “I do want to” and the man was made clean. Mark. 1:40-42. It tells us of his gentleness toward the spiritually needy through his words to us. “Come to me all of you who are tired from carrying heavy loads and I will give you rest.” Matthew. 11:28; and of his kindness toward children, “He took the children in his arms, placed his hands on each of them, and blessed them.” Mark. 10:13-16;  The Gospel speaks to each of Christ’s self-sacrifice to the lost “the Son of Man did not come to be served; he came to serve others and to give his life to redeem many people.” Mark. 10:45;

     This glorious example led St. Paul to exhort us. “O man of God … pursue righteousness, godliness, faith, love, patience, gentleness.” I Timothy  6:11; Measured against these standards, how successful have we been?

Pastor Coutts

If you have a comment, click below or email me at rcoutts60@gmail.com and thanks in advance. If you would like to support this ministry in any way, please click the donate button at the top right of this page. Thank you and the Lord Bless You.