The Real Thing

 About 50 years ago, when many other colas were entering the soft drink market, Coca Cola™ advertised with this slogan, “It’s the Real Thing.” Coke’s brand manager said that the company was responding to “research which shows that young people seek the real, the original and the natural as an escape from phoniness.”  Later, when Coke was marketed in cans, the company kept the swirl design to remind consumers of the iconic Coke bottle that had defined the brand for many years.  

People still respond to the real, the authentic, don’t they?  In a world full of image-making and imitation, the quality of the real thing – beverage, product, or person – is still admired.

Are you the real thing, Christian? Does your life reflect a depth of commitment to Christ that goes beyond Sunday morning songs and half-hearted prayers?

In his letter to the Believers in Thessalonica, Paul praises their authentic Christianity, which was more than words and ideas.  "For we know, brothers loved by God, that he has chosen you, because our gospel came to you not simply with words, but also with power, with the Holy Spirit and with deep conviction. You know how we lived among you for your sake. You became imitators of us and of the Lord; in spite of severe suffering, you welcomed the message with the joy given by the Holy Spirit." (1 Thessalonians 1:4-6, NIV)

Note the words he uses to describe their faith:  power, conviction, joy! He twice refers to the Holy Spirit, for it is He that makes Christians, then and now, “The real thing!” We cannot do this on our own, with motivational speeches, behavior modification techniques, or determination of the will.  Oh yes, there is a pale imitation of Christianity that can be lived that way. But, the life-changing experience of the Presence of God that saves those who are lost, that turns sinners into saints, that frees addicts, that transforms hate to love – is found in the Person of the Spirit.

From the beginning, Christians were taught to seek and rely on the Holy Spirit. Jesus told that first band of followers - “Do not leave Jerusalem until the Father sends you what he promised. Remember, I have told you about this before. … when the Holy Spirit has come upon you, you will receive power and will tell people about me everywhere—in Jerusalem, throughout Judea, in Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.” (Acts 1:8, NLT)

Paul reminds us that God will "strengthen you with power through his Spirit in your inner being, so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith." (Ephesians 3:16-17, NIV)

Do not confuse the power of the Spirit with some esoteric experience offered only to an elite group. Nor must we run to a revival somewhere far away, led by a charismatic preacher, to find that power. He is the Third Person of the Trinity, God, here now.  He is received, by faith, into open hearts that hunger for the real thing!  Some will know Him noisily and with great emotion; others as the still small voice of conviction. But, all who are alive in Him will become people of power to deal with evil, people of deep conviction that do not waver in the face of temptation, and people of profound joy in the middle of the messes that life brings to us all.

Pray to be the ‘real thing.’  Reflect on this word from the Word today.  Paul says that no matter what has happened to him, the work of God continues because the Spirit makes him authentically powerful. "But thanks be to God, who always leads us in triumphal procession in Christ and through us spreads everywhere the fragrance of the knowledge of him. For we are to God the aroma of Christ among those who are being saved and those who are perishing. To the one we are the smell of death; to the other, the fragrance of life. And who is equal to such a task?" (2 Corinthians 2:14-16, NIV)

"Such confidence as this is ours through Christ before God. Not that we are competent in ourselves to claim anything for ourselves, but our competence comes from God. He has made us competent as ministers of a new covenant—not of the letter but of the Spirit; for the letter kills, but the Spirit gives life." (2 Corinthians 3:4-6, NIV)

Lord, work in us and through us, for the glory of Your Name. Amen

_________

Who You Say I Am

(Worship with this song that invites to know the Real)

Who am I that the highest King

Would welcome me

I was lost but He brought me in

Oh His love for me  Oh His love for me

Who the Son sets free

Oh is free indeed

I'm a child of God

Yes I am

Free at last

He has ransomed me

His grace runs deep

While I was a slave to sin

Jesus died for me, Yes He died for me

In my Father's house

There's a place for me

I'm a child of God

Yes I am

I am chosen not forsaken

I am who You say I am

You are for me not against me

I am who You say I am

(Oh) (Yes) I am who You say I am

Ben Fielding | Reuben Morgan

© 2017 Hillsong Music Publishing Australia (Admin. by Capitol CMG Publishing)

CCLI License # 810055

Memorable

Memories, what powerful things they are. I drove past an old church yesterday and a memory from an event at least a decade past surfaced about an evening concert I attended there with Bev. Details about our time together that day, about the music, the décor of the sanctuary all came flooding back.  I am fascinated by the way the brain stores those experiences and allows recall when a sight, sound, or smell triggers them. While visiting an old friend yesterday, a man in his late 90’s, we took a trip back in times to his Army service during the Second World War!  He was in the “D+7” wave of Americans to enter Europe. When the war in Europe ended, he was sent to the Philippines. It is all written into his mind, ready for recall.  

What kind of memories are you creating?

Specifically, in terms of your faith, what are you writing into the hearts and minds of others?

Paul, according to Acts 17, visited the city of Thessalonica with Silas, and preached for 3 Sabbaths in the local synagogue, before agitators stirred up a mob, leading to his arrest and expulsion from the city. Several converts remained and a church was born.  Paul stayed in touch and later encouraged the believers. In the opening of his letter to them he writes, "We continually remember before our God and Father your work produced by faith, your labor prompted by love, and your endurance inspired by hope in our Lord Jesus Christ." (1 Thessalonians 1:3, NIV)  Of interest to me is Paul’s recall, not of great church suppers or wonderful worship music or even stirring sermons.

He remembers their WORK.  Their faith was not anchored to emotions, nor was it reserved for special days. Their faith worked. Does yours? Real faith, according to James, has a demonstrable quality. It isn’t just an inner conviction about some truth. Genuine faith moves us to serve, to care, to spiritual disciplines. There are memorable things accomplished by those of faith.

He remembers their LABOR. How is this different from ‘work?’ This is sustained effort, even when situations are difficult. And what does Paul point to as the motivating factor for their ongoing efforts to serve God in a city that made being a disciple a costly and difficult choice? Love! Their lives were deeply changed by the love of God that they reciprocated in their labor.

He remembers their ENDURANCE.  Paul uses a word in the first language of the Bible that means to ‘stand up under the weight.’  Their steadfastness was memorable. They did not quit when thing were not going as they thought they should. They did not walk off when their family and friends criticized their new-found relationship with Christ. They endured. Why? Because they grasped the eternal promise, the hope of life in the presence of God that was assured them through Christ Jesus.

Paul says "As we talk to our God and Father about you, we think of your faithful work, your loving deeds, and your continual anticipation of the return of our Lord Jesus Christ." (1 Thessalonians 1:3, NLT) That inspires me. How about you?

Let’s create some great memories as we work in faith, labor in love, and endure in hope. So many around us are waiting for life, the eternal life available through Christ Jesus. Will our words and actions point them to Him today? 

Here is a word from the Word. They are Paul’s reflection on his life as he is days from dying. Lord, use these thoughts to keep us on course with You. Amen.

"As for me, my life has already been poured out as an offering to God. The time of my death is near. I have fought a good fight, I have finished the race, and I have remained faithful. And now the prize awaits me—the crown of righteousness that the Lord, the righteous Judge, will give me on that great day of his return. And the prize is not just for me but for all who eagerly look forward to his glorious return." (2 Timothy 4:6-8, NLT)

Be memorable today, for all the right reasons.

________

Be Enthroned
(An amazingly inspiring song of worship)

We've come to join the song

Sung long before our lives

To raise our voice along

Heaven and earth alike

We've seen Your faithful hand

Your mercy without end

The King who bled and died

A God who sacrificed

Be enthroned upon the praises

Of a thousand generations

You are worthy Lord of all

And unto You the slain and risen King

We lift our voice with heaven

Singing worthy Lord of all

(Lord of all)

All through this life we lead

And on to eternity

Our endless praise we cry

Jesus be glorified

(Jesus be glorified)

Brian Johnson | Hunter Thompson | Jeremy Riddle | Kalley Heiligenthal

© 2015 Bethel Music Publishing

CCLI License # 810055

"Half-Christian?"

“I guess I’m kinda half a Christian.” Her admission caught me by surprise. I had met the woman only a few moments before, as we both were traveling. We started talking about my vocation and it led to her admission of her non-involvement with her church. She went on to say, “I guess it’s time to make a confession …” and then spilled some of her story which included choices she knew were wrong. I tried to help her understand that one cannot be ‘half a Christian’ though it is possible to miss the best that Christ offers by living cross purposes with God and His will. 

Are you living a ‘half Christian’ kind of life, professing faith, wanting, at some level, to be a loving, whole person; full of joy, generous, pure, and holy; yet unwilling to make Jesus your Lord as well as your Savior? Do you feel the tug of the Spirit of God, but excuse yourself from doing what He asks? Having one foot in the world and one in the realm of the Spirit creates a special kind of misery. When how we act and what we say don’t line up, it creates pain – in us and for those around us.  James tells us, a ‘double-minded man becomes unstable in all his ways!’  If we ignore the Word, refuse the Spirit, blur the lines with compromise – we lose clarity and can no longer know where pretense ends and reality begins.

The women who told me she was ‘half a Christian’ admitted that she had stopped going to worship, but quickly followed up by pointing out that she ‘just didn’t get much out of going to church anymore.’  No wonder, honestly. How could she experience the joy of being in God’s Presence when she was doing things she knew, full well, were outside of His will for her? How could she expect to know the uplift of turning her heart towards the Spirit when she would not respond to His leading about her day to day choices?

There is a way of wholeness. The Bible says, "It is with your heart that you believe and are justified, and it is with your mouth that you confess and are saved." (Romans 10:10, NIV) In other words, a person right with God has heart and mouth aligned, belief and action unified. They will not be imposters, simply acting like a Christian, nor will they delude themselves with the lie that being a Christ-follower is just a matter of knowing a few right things about theology. Do not misunderstand me and read that we can somehow ‘save ourselves’ through efforts at goodness.  Salvation is a gift of God, by faith through grace, given us freely in Christ Jesus.

However, there are choices to be made, if we want to know the fullness of that life, if we desire to become a whole person;  spiritually, emotionally, and relationally. When we believe God’s promises and act, in faith, on them, we are ‘saved!’  Salvation is not just a change of eternal destination! God wants to transform us, inside out, starting with our most basic values. That inner realignment leads to a visible change in both our words and actions. Jesus calls it being 'born again of the Spirit.' Paul calls it 'renewal.' "Jesus Christ," he writes, "saved us, not because of the righteous things we had done, but because of his mercy. He washed away our sins, giving us a new birth and new life through the Holy Spirit." (Titus 3:5, NLT)

Are you, like my friend on that airplane, feeling like a ‘half Christian?’ 

Are you rejecting the call to discipleship, refusing the leading of the Holy Spirit?

Are you trying to keep your ‘faith’ separate from your actions?
Are you able to do theology, but keep it disconnected from how you live?

That is an awful way to live, one that makes pain and problems for you, that brings dishonor on Christ. Do not stay there for another moment. Invite the Spirit to begin a truly transformational work and become authentic – no more than you are, no less than God purposes you to be. Your life will become a thing of true beauty. Your mind will be at peace. The world around you will be influenced by your real faith! “Believe and speak!”

Here is a word from the Word that points the way to wholeness. "Say the welcoming word to God—“Jesus is my Master”—embracing, body and soul, God’s work of doing in us what he did in raising Jesus from the dead. That’s it. You’re not “doing” anything; you’re simply calling out to God, trusting him to do it for you. That’s salvation. With your whole being you embrace God setting things right, and then you say it, right out loud: “God has set everything right between him and me!” (Romans 10:9-10, The Message)

Praise God! Amen.

_____________

Take Time To Be Holy (Slane)

Take time to be holy

Speak often with God

Find rest in Him always

And feed on His Word

Make friends of God's children

Help those who are weak

Forgetting in nothing

His blessing to seek

Take time to be holy

The world rushes on

Much time spend in secret

With Jesus alone

By looking to Jesus

Like Him thou shalt be

Thy friends in thy conduct

His likeness shall see

Take time to be holy

Let Him be thy guide

And run not before Him

Whatever betide

In joy or in sorrow

Still follow thy Lord

And looking to Jesus

Still trust in His Word

Amen

Ronn Huff | William Dunn Longstaff

© Words: Public Domain