Matthew 5:20 - Pray For the Leaders

20For I say to you, that unless your righteousness exceeds the righteousness of the scribes and Pharisees, you will by no means enter the kingdom of heaven.

The Lord while He was here on earth never treated anyone contemptibly except for the religious leaders. He never looked upon an ordinary sinner and rebuked him, never not once. His response to sinners was "your sins are forgiven". It was like He was walking around looking for someone to say that to. That is His attitude toward sinners, loving, forgiving and pity mixed with a willingness to help. Christ Jesus came into this world to save sinners not to condemn them.

The religious leaders are the ones who are in trouble. The Lord does not take kindly to being mis-represented. Remember what happened when Moses struck the rock 2 times? He represented God as being angry with the people when He was not. Moses was angry with the people. I guess he got cranky in his old age... anyway, for that Moses was not allowed to enter the promised land. There is a stricter judgement on those who teach on behalf of God. Always was. 

1 Cor. 4 says "do not go beyond what is written" this is a trustworthy saying. It will keep us from misrepresenting God.

To have my personal righteousness exceed that of the teachers of the law is impossible however I stand not in my own righteousness but that of Jesus who covers me with His atoning blood. The right things I do do are done out of gratitude for His goodness and forgiveness toward me, not an attempt to be right before Him.

APPLICATION

Today I will take some time to specifically pray for the leaders of the Church worldwide, national and local.

1 Cor. 9:25 - Temperance

1 Cor. 9:25 And everyone who competes for the prize is temperate in all things. Now they do it to obtain a perishable crown, but we for an imperishable crown.

TEM'PERATE, a. [L. temperatus.] Moderate; not excessive; as temperate heat; a temperate climate; temperate air.

1. Moderate in the indulgence of the appetites and passions; as temperate in eating and drinking; temperate in pleasures; temperate in speech.

Be sober and temperate, and you will be healthy.

2. Cool; calm; not marked with passion; not violent; as a temperate discourse or address; temperate language.

3. Proceeding from temperance; as temperate sleep.

4. Free from ardent passion.

She is not hot, but temperate as the morn.

Temperate zone, the space on the earth between the tropics and the polar circles, where the heat is less than in the tropics, and the cold less than in the polar circles.

Being temperate is against my human nature I see that it is God's will that I acquire temperance.

APPLICATION

Therefore today I will not make any impulsive decisions whatsoever.

Philippians 3:10 - Die, Die, No really, Die I said.

Phil. 3:10I want to know Christ—yes, to know the power of his resurrection and participation in his sufferings, becoming like him in his death, 

You see no good thing dwells in this flesh, it is only in death to "self" that we finally see the life of Christ in us. In our weakness He is made strong. We have all of the HS we are ever going to get. We have as much of the HS as Billy Graham, Pastor Chuck, Peter, Paul and all the rest. The one main issue that falls into our lap is how much of our "self" are we willing to get out of the way of the HS? 
First we need to identify self in it's many insidious forms.
Then we need to discipline ourself to not conform to the old patterns of thinking or the pattern of the world but to be conformed to the likeness of Christ, in our thoughts, then our intents and then as we get self out of the way consistently enough He will then work His way out in our actions.

APPLICATION
This evening I will begin a fast from TV. I will not watch any at all until the day after Easter. Which will be April 1, 2013

Philippians 3:8 - Press On

Phil. 3:8What 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.

First off, I guess getting knocked off your horse by Jesus Himself and speaking audibly with God can actually go a really long way toward obedience and single minded utter focus on the His will for your life.

Having said that, for the case of Paul he indeed had quite the conversion experience. As for the rest of us mere humans is there really enough about our own walk with the Lord that propels us toward Holy living. Let's face it there are many things that we forsake in our lives because we are His and rightly so we just do not partake of any longer. We even discipline our minds and re-direct our thoughts toward Holy patterns as the Spirit directs. Like Paul we acknowledge the worth of knowing Christ and rightly place him on the throne of our hearts, making Him Lord. We willingly submit as bondservants our will, our flesh and even our intimate thoughts over to His Lordship. He is the King of Kings ruling and reigning not by the might of the sword as earthly kings do, but His army is a vast legion that has spanned the generations and He leads us by the cords of our hearts, gently with the still small voice of His Spirit. We give over our own free will in grateful submission because we know His way for us is right and best. 

APPLICATION
I will memorize the following verse:
Phil. 3:14I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus.

1Cor. 12:4 - Our Gifting in the Body of Christ

1Cor. 12:4There are different kinds of gifts, but the same Spirit distributes them. 

The body of Christ is designed in a certain way according to the wisdom of the Designer.

1 Cor 12:12
Just as a body, though one, has many parts, but all its many parts form one body, so it is with Christ.

The body of Christ is complete, He does not make mistakes, He does not form incomplete works. He has created every member of the body to function a certain way.

Likewise each of us are designed to fulfill a particular part of the body of Christ. Our giftings further direct the purpose we have in His plan.

He has arranged us to work together, just the same as the physical body has differing parts with differing functions. For example how useful would a body be if the kidneys or the knees refuse to function, it would affect the overall ability and potential of that body. In the same way for instance with a group of interns, some are called to lead and others are called to administrate or to give. Each of us needs to step up into our calling wtih our giftings to fulfill the part of the body we are and to do it all out, so as not to hinder the functionality or potential of the body as a whole. The Lord directs our place in the body through our "calling". As we see here in...

^{Eph. 4:1} As a prisoner for the Lord, then, I urge you to live a life worthy of the calling you have received.

There are several callings which I have received. I am first a Christian bearing the name of Christ upon every aspect of my life. I am also a husband, a leader, a teacher and mentor. These are all important roles that are integral to whatever community of believers I find myself blessed to be in.

As Paul wrote these words he was anticipating the further growth of the church which was just beginning to bud at this time. Each of us has a part in the body, that part is our calling, which is refined by our giftings. Paul is urging these first century saints to step up and identify these things and to live them out fully.

The foundation of the Church of Christ was held in the balance of whether these first believers properly fulfilled their functions in the body.

APPLICATION
I need to bear in mind the obligation I have to the body of Christ to walk worthy of the calling I have received. Therefore today I will make a mental inventory of my position and my role and look for ways to be more diligent and organized. I will adopt the practice of spending 15 minutes devoted at the end of each work day to work on my task/todo list.