Hearing through the eyes of Trust and Faith

Isaiah 42:20 says... “You see and recognize what is right, but refuse to act on it. You hear with your ears, but you don’t really listen.”

The prophet Isaiah is saying to the often wayward people of ancient Israel... You have seen many things, you know what God expects of you... but you pay no attention... your ears are open, yes you can hear, but you’re not really listening. Your behavior and conduct, your attitudes and desires do not match up with what God is saying to you.

Does that description fit your life in Christ? Can you honestly say... “I've seen many things, and always pay attention? I always conform my life to exactly what God requires of me?” This passage should speak powerfully to all of us about how we should approach our lives, always seeking to be in complete harmony with Christ. Are we truly aligned with Him?

Life brings many unexpected things our way, things that vex us and cause us difficulties. These experiences in our lives can and should be opportunities for reflection not despair. We're meant to reflect on our life experiences, our choices and the outcomes of our decisions. We should always be thinking... how is God present in a certain life experience? What might God be teaching me? How might God be changing me? Good questions to ponder.

Yet we're so rushed and busy, that we simply don't pay attention to the details of our experiences. We as a culture, and maybe even as humans are addicted to doing things that bring about amazing experiences. Instead of reflecting and noticing where God was in that experience, we just add them to our big, accumulating pile of life experiences. This is how we can get out-of-sync with God.

Such an attitude towards what’s happening in our lives, taking things for granted, living with a sense of entitlement, can have a negative impact on our spiritual growth. We make the mistake of resorting to a generic formula for spiritual growth. We think things like, "Read your Bible and pray, go to church on Sunday, go on a mission trip, memorize Scripture" . We prescribe these types of spiritual disciplines, believing they are enough to stay in harmony with God. Don’t misunderstand what I am saying here... personal spiritual disciplines are very important, but they must never be practiced generically, as if they are a one-size fits all formula for spiritual growth. Spiritual disciplines are not a pill we can pass out to people and say, "If you do this, you'll feel better and your relationship with God will grow."

We each have a unique relationship with God. Your relationship with God is dynamic, growing, and changing; what you're doing at a certain point in your relationship with Him is most likely different from what someone else is doing in their relationship with God, and that's to be expected, because we are all different. My spiritual practices need to be the ones that bring me closer to God; yours need to be the ones that take you to God. So the way to reflect, is for each person to pay attention, to listen to God and discern what specific practices and disciplines will best allow God to work fully and completely in you.

When we think about reflecting on our experiences and noticing God, we often think of "mountain top" experiences. Those are the times in which we've experienced something amazing or have sensed God's presence in a meaningful way. But then maybe you’ve never had a “mountain top” experience. What about "valley" times, when things are not going so well? We all have periods when God seems anything but close to us. When these times happen... we need to spend time meditating, praying, examining our attitudes and actions to see if we in fact have done something or may be harboring a negative [sinful] attitude that is blunting our intimacy with Him.

Maybe its time for us to see such times in our lives as a gentle warning... "the presence of the absence of God" and search our hearts and minds for why. It’s easy to blame God in these times when we sense God as hiding himself. God does not hide himself from us, unless we’ve done something to breach our relationship with Him. But even then we should not think of God as hiding... think of Him "waiting patiently" for us to figure ourselves out and take steps to get back on track with Him.

So... it may be that when you cannot sense the presence of God or it seems God is distant from you, it may be that you are too immersed in your own agendas, your wants, your desires, and you’ve not been allowing Him to work in you to move you to deeper personal intimacy with Him.

Being aware of that feeling of absence is the first step in examining ourselves and taking the steps to restoring our bond with Him... it is a way of knowing God deeper.

When you find yourself in a condition of profound spiritual desolation, that too is a real place in your spiritual journey with God. God's times of being unresponsiveness to us — is as real and valuable in growing spiritually, as it would be if we saw His handwriting on the wall. Never doubt that He is there... close to you, always aware of your circumstances and needs. Allow your trust and ultimately your faith to grow in these times.

Your Attitude determines your Altitude

According to the dictionary, the word "attitude" means "an internal position or feeling with regard to something else." Other words often used as synonyms are: "disposition, feeling, mood, opinion, sentiment, temper, tone, perspective, frame of mind, outlook, view, or morale."

Airplane pilots often use the word "attitude" to describe the horizontal relationship of an airplane to the runway as the aircraft is positioned for landing. If the airplane’s attitude isn’t aligned properly, in this case “level to the runway surface”, the plane will make contact with the ground at the wrong angle which will cause a crash.

In essence, your attitude is your inward disposition toward other things, such as people or circumstances. As with an airplane, attitude is applied whenever you must deal with something other than yourself. According to God’s Word, when you become a Christian, a part of your new creation is the development of new attitudes — your attitudes about everything and everyone should become like those of Jesus.

The Bible says, "Your attitude should be the same as that of Christ Jesus:" (Philippians 2:5). "You were taught, with regard to your former way of life, to put off the old self, which is being corrupted by its deceitful desires; to be made new in the attitude of your minds." (Ephesians 4:22 NIV)

Most of us can easily identify bad attitudes when they are displayed outwardly in words or actions, such a negativeness, criticalness, rebellion, defiance, impatience, uncooperative, apathy, discouragement, independence, presumption, arrogance, self-centeredness, rudeness and such. These are examples of bad attitudes which Christians should reject.

However, keep in mind, attitudes are inner dispositions of the heart and thoughts — they are the hidden intentions which will eventually serve as the basis for our actions. "For as he thinks in his heart, so is he." (Prov. 23:7). In reality, no one else really knows the thoughts of your heart, except you and God. Consequently, attitude is something that only you and God can work out — a change which must take place inwardly.

No doubt you know someone with a bad attitude and you’ve witnessed the negative outcomes it produces. Consider good ‘ol George. He went to church cheerfully as long as his secular business activities continued to prosper — as long as everything went well for him. He sang joyfully, gave to the needy, he even tithed and he rarely missed a service. But when hard times set in on his business, George began to drop away. He became resentful toward God, even critical of other Christians. When his world began to crumble, so did his attitude toward others.

The right attitude to have when difficulty comes is to persevere in faith and draw nearer to God — to fall in deep humility at the feet of Jesus. The Bible makes it clear that God works all things together for our good when we love Him, and the testing of our faith is for our benefit. Life’s troubles will never defeat the person with a right attitude.

Here’s another scenario to illustrate a bad attitude. Call her Sally. She has been a Christian for only two years and very much a newborn in Christ. She acts like she loves the Lord and is trying to live as a Christian, but has been battling sins of the flesh — she occasionally fell to the temptation of drunkenness. Sally is observed one evening by the preacher of her church and his family at a restaurant, where they see her slouching at the bar, obviously intoxicated. The next Sunday after service, the preacher and his wife took Sally aside privately, and encourage her ever so gently about the sins of drunkenness. They are not harsh or judgmental. He encouraged her to work on changing of this activity [i.e., repentance] and they prayed with her.

The outcome? Sally was offended by the preacher’s forthrightness. She immediately changed churches and would often be heard "bad-mouthing" that church, the preacher and its leaders. How should Sally have reacted? First, she should have had a humble, submissive attitude toward the preacher’s loving counsel about her behavior of sin which was based totally on God’s Word (2 Tim. 4:2, 1 Cor. 5:11-13, Gal. 5:19-21, Gal. 6:1). The counsel provided was “God’s” conveyed by the preacher. She didn’t have the right attitude.

As a general rule, persons who have a bad attitude toward authority figures in the church will almost always have a problem with God.

According to scripture, your attitude toward life, toward your personal circumstances, and toward other people should always be like the Lord’s — as is defined by scripture. Good attitudes are generally demonstrated in being positive, encouraging, loving, humble, teachable, cooperative, considerate, selfless, loyal, persevering... (Galatians 5:22-23).

Bring your attitudes about every aspect of your life into harmonious obedience to God’s Word. Apply discipline to your thought life — harmonize your thoughts to those of Christ’s. Make what you think and how you think about everything, a spot-on match with our Lord’s thoughts. A good attitude is a matter of faith, disregarding your feelings, with a determination to embrace God’s outlook and disposition.

2 Corinthians 10:5 wisely counsels... "casting down arguments and every high thing that exalts itself against the knowledge of God, bringing every thought into captivity to the obedience of Christ..."

Philippians 4:8 says... "Finally, brethren, whatever things are true, whatever things are noble, whatever things are just, whatever things are pure, whatever things are lovely, whatever things are of good report, if there is any virtue and if there is anything praiseworthy; meditate on these things."

Dwell on the things that God’s Word tells us — those good and virtuous things. If you dwell on the negative things of a carnal world, then your attitude will reflect the same.

Dangerous People in the Church

Did you know that church can be a dangerous place? Yes, it can be! It can be dangerous for you and others, if anyone comes to church with a chip on their shoulder and a hardened heart full of bitterness and criticism. The church would seem like the last place you would find danger, but alas, Christians are Satan’s prime target and the assembly of believers is where he works the hardest to cause divisiveness and pervert our faith. That’s why God has placed the health and security of His flock in the care of men appointed to serve as leaders.

Elders, pastors, shepherds... are charged with caring for and nurturing the flock of God. In addition to leading and teaching, elders are charged with protecting and guarding the flock of God under their care (Titus 1:5, 9; 2:15; John 21:15-19). Therefore, it logically follows that it is critically important for leaders to know who is in attendance and membership within the congregation. There are obviously many practical reasons for this, but the most important is to protect the flock from potential spiritual harm. Such danger always starts with one person

So, the logical question that might be discussed among the elders and preacher... “Who is the most dangerous person at your church?” In considering that question, don’t necessarily take aim at a particular individual, but think about a type of person.

Certainly, an unbeliever who doesn’t fluently speak the truth of the Bible, can be quickly known to a congregations leaders. Identifying people from doctrinally anemic backgrounds is fairly easy to do, as they will continue for a time to reference their incomplete and flawed theology in Sunday school classes and general conversation.

These types of people, newcomers, are not the most dangerous people that attend a church. In fact, I would suggest folks like these are seekers searching and need all the love, care and support you can give them as they struggle to unwind what they have been taught and accept the new truths they’re hearing and learning.

The most dangerous person at your church is the apparently “smart guy” who is unteachable.

‘Unteachable,’ means that such a person has it all figured out. He is the classic... “Don’t confuse me with the facts, I know what I believe” sort of person.

This is a person who seems to have a lot of biblical knowledge. He or she can quote scripture, paint the big picture and effectively argue points. Very often, they are quite involved in church fellowship activities and appears to have things together. However, this sort of person is dangerous because of a reason you would not think applies...they are unteachable.

Let me give you some reasons to consider and ponder as to why and how such a person is dangerous to the welfare of the flock. From here through the next "five" points, I will refer to this person in the masculine as “he”.

1. He Is Gospel-Eclipsing. The great commission has learning embedded in it (Matthew 28:18-20). This means that being a disciple is being one who is always learning. Therefore, to have it all figured out is to deny who you are as a life-long disciple of Christ. As Christians, we have to be humble people who are learning... this includes everyone from elders, preachers to our children.

2.  He Is Critical. If this fellow is not being moved, tempered and humbled by the Spirit and the Word, then he is likely gathering “bullets” to shoot at leaders. He sits quietly during the sermons and teachings only to pick apart everything like a Monday morning quarterback. His unteachability looks the exact opposite of what James teaches: Know this, my beloved brothers: let every person be quick to hear, slow to speak, slow to anger;  for the anger of man does not produce the righteousness of God. Therefore, put away all filthiness and rampant wickedness and receive with meekness the implanted word, which is able to save your souls. (James 1:20-21) Don’t misunderstand what I am suggesting... this is not a repudiation of constructive criticism. We all desperately need that from time to time. That being said, the focus here is on the difference between constructive and destructive criticism. One is good and beneficial (2 Timothy 3:16-17) and one is harmful without benefit for the building up of the flock.

3. He Is Divisive. This is dangerous for the church in that such malcontent behaviors and actions will invariably bring division (Titus 3:10). This type of boiling pot eventually spills over, and when he does, the attitudes and actions of such a person hurts congregational unity and jolts the security of the flock.

If you’ve been in the church for any length of time, you’ve seen divisive behaviors cause division in the body, and its usually a result of somebody being unteachable. This type of thing has a long legacy. No one seems to forget such things... grudges are born and nurtured over time... the root of bitterness finds fertile ground in many who are hurt by the actions of one divisive person. Consider how Diotrephes liked to put himself first and stir up division. How did he do this? He did not submit to the teaching of the Apostles (3 John vv. 9-10). He was unteachable. It was “his way” or there would be no peace.

This was obviously dangerous for his own soul but also for the body of believers. Just like Diotrephes had influence in that congregation, so too the unteachable fellow no doubt has influence in the local assembly. The influence of an unteachable person is a recipe for division.

4. He Is Joy-Robbing. A church that is teachable brings its leaders joy. A church or church member who is not... robs them of joy. It’s that simple (Hebrews 13:7, 10). Again, if you’ve been a leader of God’s flock, you can personally attest to the fact that this is true.

5.  He Is a Time-Waster. The unteachable guy is one who takes up pastoral leadership’s time with lengthy discussion and possibly arguments. The unteachable fellow just keeps resetting the same issue over and over again. He can find anything to nitpick and be critical about. So in this sense, he is a waster of time. Or, as Paul might say, the labor is in vain (Philippians 2:16; 2 Thessalonians 3:5).

You know this... we have a mission to accomplish... preaching and teaching the gospel and converting souls to Christ. Elders don’t enjoy fighting the jungle of tangled webs created by such persons. Wasting time dealing with such people in the congregation saps energy and dampens enthusiasm, especially among leaders.

So what do you do with such people?

Pray for them. Forbid it that elders become callous and unmoved themselves as they deal with this person in what seems like an uneanding struggle to help him. The desire is for growth in the gospel. Therefore, pray (Colossians 1:9-14; 2 Peter 3:18).

Minimize their influence. Elders should always be careful about who is appointed to serve in any capacity within the congregation. In this case, it would obviously make sense not to put someone like an “unteachable” person in a teaching or leadership role. His attitude and personal agenda could be devastating to those he could influence.

Watch them and the sheep. If this person is a baptized Christian, then they must be loved and cared for too. The elders must do this while guarding and caring for the flock.

Lovingly aim to teach them. Keep on keeping on... These, then, are the things you should teach. Encourage and rebuke with all authority. Do not let anyone despise you. (Titus 2:15).

Confront when and where necessary.  When there is sin involved, Jesus is clear (Matthew 18:15-18). This type of thing weighs heavy upon elders, preachers and church members alike. Therefore, even mere consideration of such things should cause us to pause, evaluate our own hearts, and pray that the Word of Christ dominate our hearts (James 1:20; Colossians 3:15).  

The heartfelt desire of church leaders, is that all believers and seekers assemble together with a heart that is open to God, with a desire to worship and to pray and to hear the truth of God's Word and apply it in their lives. If you come to church and want to be a part of the body of Christ and want to serve the Lord, then church will be an oasis for you. It will be a place of refreshment. It will be a place of blessing.

The “unteachable” person will always be a challenge, but they need not be debilitating to leaders. Treating such a person in love, setting boundaries defined by the truth of Scripture and protecting the flock will accomplish one of two things: (1) the person will find humility and submission, turning away from their unteachable confrontational ways and submit to Christ and His Truth, becoming a value member of the congregation; (2) or, they will leave and go somewhere else and continue in their attitudes.

In either outcome, leaders will have protected the flock in their care.

Overcoming the Enemies of Faith

In closing this series of articles on FAITH, let me direct your thoughts to some of the main enemies of faith and how they can be overcome.

Ignorance. You cannot believe a promise until you hear it and have time to contemplate it. Much unbelief in the world today rises out of the fact that people just don't know what the Bible says. The remedy for this is study, meditation, prayer and consideration of the Word.

Unbelief. This is an intentional sinful choice to not believe what God has said to mankind. It is usually motivated by pride, rebellion and ignorance. The remedy for this is to humble oneself, change one's mind, to be open minded, to choose to believe. Prayer is very effective in destroying the power of unbelief, because it aids in humbling ourselves and in removing our distractions to hearing the Word of God. Prayer, along with personal study and the right attitude, can help us focus on communicating with God. Prayer will make spiritual things more vital to us, thereby tearing down the barriers of unbelief.

Fear. Fear is a negative emotion based on the real expectation of bad things to come. It is rooted in anxiety and a lack of trust in God's love and care for us. Perfect love casts out fear. (1John 4:18). God is perfect love. Therefore by seeking God, His presence and the fullness of the Holy Spirit we will be set free from debilitating anxiety and fear. When we are conscious of God's power it is very easy to be courageous and bold. We expect success when we are consciously full of God and know that we are doing what He is telling us to do.

To overcome fear we must always focus on God, and not the circumstances and situations of life, which could cause us to be frozen by fears believing that God is not with us. Peter, while walking on the water, began looking to the wind and the waves, and was overcome by fear which paralyzed his faith and caused him to sink. He needed to focus intently on Jesus. God says, "Fear not, FOR I AM WITH YOU." (Isaiah. 43:5). God gives us a reason not to fear, and a commandment. To fear anyone or anything except the Lord is a sin. We can overcome this sin by submitting and yielding to the Holy Spirit’s leading and working in our lives. Also, and very important, we must forgive all men if we want to be delivered from this form of torment. (Matthew 18:34, I John 4:18)

Doubt. Doubt is an enemy of faith because it speaks with a voice that challenges the truth or the reliability of what we should be trusting and believing. To overcome doubt we must immerse ourselves in the Word of God, meditating deeply and repetitively on it. Being in the Word should be a daily practice, the most constant essential habit in our lives. It should be no less important to us than eating physical food to live. The Bible, God’s Word, is the source of our spiritual life. Doubt is pretty clear evidence of an unconsecrated heart and mind. An unchanged heart and mind. Doubt is evidence of a lack of devotion to God, His purposes and His source of instruction... the Bible. Doubt, like fear, torments us at our core. We must forgive others and give our whole hearts to God. We can’t be part of this world and serve God... we can’t serve two masters.

We must stop listening to the voices of our carnal mind, conditioned by the things and desires of the world to resist God. This is a decision, a choice. It helps to hear the testimonies of others to overcome personal doubt. However, doubt will never be fully overcome until we treat the Bible as God's voice TO US, and reject all other murmuring.

Discouragement. Sometimes we feel discouraged because of physical or emotional weakness or tiredness. We may be disappointed by the behavior of other Christians. We may be discouraged by the persecution of others, even from within our own families. Perhaps we have waited, and waited for what may or may not be God's answer to our prayers and pleadings, and we grow impatient. Many Christians at some time in their life become disappointed and frustrated with God. Satan uses discouragement to weaken and if possible, destroy our faith. To overcome discouragement we must make a decision to seek and use God’s strength, to be strong (Hebrews 12:12; Ephesians 6:10) in the Lord.

We must want to be strong and stop making excuses for our weakness and failure. We must consider God's faithfulness to us in the past, even through difficulties (Hebrews 10:32-34). We must rededicate ourselves to God's Word, to thankfulness, to prayer and to the leading by the indwelling Holy Spirit. We need to learn to obey the Spirit in small things. Sometimes even great men of God like Elijah were discouraged. At one time, even after a great victory, he ran away from Jezebel, in fear. God restored Elijah through the ministry of angels, through his voice, and by getting him occupied in new missions for God, restoring his trust, confidence and renewing the promise of hope.

The Love of Praise. When you are more interested in what people - even Christian people - think of you, more than what God thinks of you, according to Jesus, you won’t be able to truly experience a deep, growing and sustaining faith in Him. Why? Because God’s priorities and man’s are different. Jesus said, "How can you believe, who receive honor from one another, and do not seek the honor that comes from the only God?" (John 5:44)

To overcome this, you must cultivate a personal relationship with God through prayer and obedience. You must allow your old nature to be weakened as you say yes to God and no to the desires for seeking praise and recognition from men.  Humble yourselves in every way, every day, before the living God. See the “Cross” in every thing and be reminded of Jesus and what he did for you.

God is invites all of us to put our faith in action in many ways. True sustaining faith will lead us to seek Him, to pray, to love one another and to walk with the Holy Spirit every day of our lives. FAITH conquers all!