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Don’t Make a Resolution: Be Resolute!
res·o·lute
Determined, unwavering, purposeful, resolved, adamant, single-minded, firm, unswerving, steadfast, staunch, stalwart, unfaltering, unhesitating, persistent, indefatigable, tenacious, strong-willed, unshakable.
“But Daniel resolved not to defile himself with the royal food and wine, and he asked the chief official for permission not to defile himself this way.”
Daniel 1:8 True Resolve
Daniel had resolved (past tense) to keep the ways of God as he had been instructed. Daniel was part of the upper echelon of exiles taken from Jerusalem during its initial siege by Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon in 605 BC. Daniel was only a teenager at this time, but belonged to the families of royalty and priests that best represented the Jewish nation.
On the long road to Babylon, nearly 900 miles, there would have been sufficient conversations among them to establish how they must behave to ensure the success of their people among a foreign nation. They did not travel directly east to Babylon from Jerusalem, because the trip would have been impossible across the desert. Instead, they headed north along the fertile crescent and then south along the Euphrates River. (In Ezra 7:8-9, the return trip took 4 months.)
He was already part of an upbringing that built a character of perseverance. When he was younger, of course, he probably didn’t see the long-term importance of obedience. Did it really matter? But now, on this long trip, it would become clear that the life-and-death importance of obedience would keep themselves from disappearing into the Babylonian lifestyle.
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Merry Christmas!
So I really have to admit, I just don’t understand this whole “political correctness” thing in regards to the traditional Christmas greeting.
For 30 years I lived in a world of non-Christians who cheerfully celebrated this holiday with open arms. Nobody I knew really professed any great faith, but we all looked forward to this time of year, giving and accepting gifts, and enjoying the time off from school and from work.
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Going Your Own Way
We often wonder as kids that, if I’m obedient to my parents, if I actually do what they tell me to do – if I take their advice, am I really leading my own life? Am I making my own decisions? And it’s a hard question. And ultimately we rebel because we want to be able to show that we can do our own thing. We believe that doing our own thing means just doing everything the hard way.
Tragically though, when we get through it we find that our parents were right. We didn’t realize that our parents had already gone through those same things. They tried to tell us, but we didn’t want to hear it because we needed to carve our own way. And we rejected those things that we knew to be true. Because we just needed to test them ourselves, we needed to find out. And we went through those hardships; we made the wrong decisions; we did the things that seemed right or were at least in opposition to what we’d been told in order to find out if what we were taught was true.
We ultimately come to find that “yep”, those things were true, and I made the wrong choices.
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The Little Things
“Whoever can be trusted with very little can also be trusted with much, and whoever is dishonest with very little will also be dishonest with much.”
Luke 16:10 While Jesus spoke these words to admonish us to take care in handling what’s been entrusted to us, it’s interesting to see how this truth applies to us in the way in which we deal with our relationships; especially the one we have with Him.
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My Own Worst Enemy
Am I so concerned with my own rights and happiness that I trod on all others? Am I living as though the “ends justify the means?” Who am I that I deserve more than the next? Do I feel like I deserve something better? Perhaps the world owes me something? Maybe God owes me something! Since I got short-changed earlier in life, now that I am in Christ, do I feel He owes me a better life now?
Do I resent God for not providing it to me? And does that mean that I must accomplish it on my own? Because I deserve it, and if nobody else will give it to me, I guess I need to take it myself!
Am I constantly trying to make “my” world better so that I can be happier or more comfortable in my world? And what about everyone who gets to be part of my world? Do they deserve any of these same rights, or is it just me? Was I uniquely wronged or wounded in my past that I should get a free-pass and not be required to live out Jesus’ commands?
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I Am Free!
I am free.
I have been freed from the chains of the law. When I try to uphold the law and live according to the law—for the purposes of accomplishing the law—it leads to death
Romans 6:23 . The Apostle Paul spoke of this, and explained that it is through knowing the law that we are aware of our sinRomans 7:7 . But as it happened in the first century church, the moment that we attempt to live according to the law, we become bound to it. And once we are bound to the law, we are no longer free!Jesus has saved me and freed me from the law. While this does not make me lawless, it has given me the freedom to live a new life apart from the law. This is the very nature of the things that Paul taught. Jesus says that only through following his teachings—by obeying his commands—can I know the truth
John 8:31-32 . And only then can I truly be free from the very law that condemns me.Psalm 119 says,
“I run in the path of your commands, for you have broadened my understanding.”
Psalm 119:32 God revealed to me the plainness of the fact that, with God’s commands, I have boundaries. But these boundaries mark off a very large path! And within those boundaries, the path is leading on without obstacle, and I can run freely in it. The laws are the boundaries, not chains; not burdens. Only because the boundaries are visible, am I given the freedom to live, to work, to love, and to play within that space.
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Approaching the Throne
I approached God this morning on my knees. As my king, I approach the throne as his servant. Humbly requesting attendance with him. And I asked him to hold his blessings and his instructions for me until I confessed my sins to him.
I had to explain that I had sinned against him and his kingdom, and as a result he may need to reconsider his position. These very sins prevent me from being an effective servant in his kingdom, and before I continue to serve he must know of my transgressions so that he may judge me and determine my usefulness.
My greatest sin is pride. I so often see myself as more important than I am, and in a position of authority greater than I have been given.
By nature, I am a sluggard. I do not want to do anything, especially those things that are difficult. I have been given a responsibility to care for my body, and even have a gym membership that would allow me opportunity to better myself for his glory. But because I am lazy and selfish, I find it very difficult to adhere to any regular program.
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Convinced Our Words Can Change
We so often believe that if we could only say the right thing, we could change others’ hearts, minds, or attitudes. How arrogant we are!
Did not Jesus walk the earth? Did he not speak the words of truth to everyone? If, then, his direct words of love and truth did not always affect a change, why are we so convinced that our words can do more?
This is true for us whether we are sharing the gospel with a non-Christian or trying to convince a loved-one of our position, regardless of how “right” we believe we are, or what truth we are attempting to communicate.
Today we are challenged with this question when engaged in a discussion with a loved one:
Why am I trying to convince them? What is my motivation here?
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Seeing Myself as God Sees Me
I often wrestle with accepting my identity in Christ. While many characteristics have been given to me, and have transformed me into a new creation, I often find myself “held back” by seeing me as I have always been: broken and defective.
And while I have often considered the need to purposefully look at others through the eyes of God—so that I can more fully apply my Christ-like qualities toward them—I have discovered that I’ve never really thought of applying that logic to me directly.
Until recently, it never occurred to me to see myself as God sees me. But indeed, this is the key.
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Why Can’t God Abolish Evil?
Mankind was charged with leadership and dominion of all the animal kingdom. He was not just given authority and power, but responsibility. Many may mention, if not too casually, that freewill—the human ability to choose right and wrong—was part of the package.
I agree, it sounds too “convenient” for Christians to simply say that freewill is the reason for evil and suffering. But more importantly, that’s not really the question. The question many ask is, “In the face of evil, oppression and suffering, torture, mayhem, human trafficking, child molestation, murder, terrorism, etc., how could such a “loving God” allow all this evil to exist? Why doesn’t he raise a hand against it? Why doesn’t he just “fix it” all?”
