Stir Up The Gift

2 Timothy 1:6, 7

From time to time, it is necessary for us to “stir up” that which is inside of us. Paul tells Timothy to “stir up the gift of God” which is in him. This is the only usage of this phrase in the Greek in the entire New Testament, and it means “to rekindle anew” or “to enflame one’s mind or strength or zeal”. When Peter makes a similar statement in 2 Peter 3:1, he uses a different word in the Greek for “stir up”, meaning “to wake one’s mind”. Peter is saying “wake up”, while Paul is saying, “fire up”!

I believe that the gift or at least a portion of the gift, which Paul is speaking of in this text, is the gift of speaking with other tongues. I lean to this belief because it is the one gift of the gifts of the Spirit that the Bible specifically says can be used whenever you like (1 Corinthians 14:15), and it is the one that is used to build up the speaker (14:2).

The encouragement to use the gift is followed by, “For God hath not given us the spirit of fear; but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind” (2 Timothy 1:7). “For God…” shows us that the previous verse is linked to this one. Whatever the gift is inside of Timothy, it holds the answer that overcomes the spirit of fear. In that gift, is the power and love and sound mind that Paul says that we have received.

When you pray in tongues, you are communicating with God in your prayer language. You are praying in words that you do not know, and it is the Spirit in you that is making intercession (Romans 8:26). These prayers can be long or short, there are no rules that govern how you pray in your own prayer time, but they will always edify and build you up. The reason for that is found in verse 7.

God has not given us the spirit of fear, so any fear that we have cannot be from Him, but must be from the enemy. Instead, He has given us power, love and a sound mind. These three gifts from God are stirred within us every time that we “stir up the gift”.

God’s power begins to move in situations when we pray in the Spirit. That power enables us to do what we could not do on our own, independent of fear of failure. This power overcomes the enemy and glorifies the Father.

The love of God flows outward from us whenever we stir up the gift, for He teaches us to love in ways that we do not know. You cannot love by force, there must be something that motivates you or “turns you on” to love something or someone. Christ is that something and praying in the Spirit stirs His love up in you.

Finally, the sound mind is such a glorious promise, because the battlefield of the mind is where so many saints are losing. The phrase in the Greek actually means “self-control”. Many people have told me, “Pastor, I feel like I am losing control. I can’t even think straight.” This is an attack of the enemy meant to frighten and confuse. Use your prayer language to bring sanity back into your soul, and watch as your mind calms and begins to think on the things of the Spirit.
I pray God’s abundant blessings on you today as you walk in Him.

It's A Brand New Day

Genesis 1:1,2

Both Genesis and John start with, “in the beginning”. Genesis tells of God creating, while John tells us that the Word (Jesus) was present in that creation. Whatever the beginning might be, Christ is there. He said as much of himself, “I am the Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the ending” (Revelation 1:8); and again, “…the first and the last” (Rev. 1:11).

As you begin a brand new year, let The Beginning have all of your heart. If you have never accepted Christ as the price paid for your sins, there is no better way to start this year, than to place your confidence in Jesus and His finished work at the cross. Just accept Him as Savior and believe He will save you.

In this New Year, many shallow resolutions will be made by people hoping to drop those extra holiday pounds, or write their first novel, etc. Nearly just as many of those resolutions will be broken in short order. People often have good intentions, but very little resolve to see these things through.

When Jesus walked the earth, He was the Word that “dwelt among us” (John 1:14). When our beginning is set and established in Christ, it causes us to behold His glory, “as of the only begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth”. Allow Christ, who is grace and truth to establish you and to lead you into paths of righteousness all throughout this year.

Let your sorrows and cares of the previous year vanish with the turn of the calendar. Easier said than done, right? Notice that when Genesis 1:1 ends, the earth is in a chaotic state, but God is not satisfied to leave it there. The earth does not reform itself, but rather it sits and allows the Spirit of God to move on the face of the waters (vs. 2). The Hebrew word for “moved” in that verse is better translated “hovered”. His Holy Spirit loves to hover over your life and bring beauty out of chaos.

It is your Father’s good pleasure to give you the kingdom (Luke 12:32), and it is His New Year’s Resolution to you to provide the gift of righteousness and the abundance of grace.

Go in that knowledge, and abundant grace is yours today!

When God Gives a Gift

Romans 11:29

Have you ever heard anyone say, “The Lord gives and the Lord takes away”? This quote is out of context from the book of Job, where Job says, “The LORD gave, and the LORD hath taken away” (Job 1:21). Since God gives the reader a front row seat into the heavenlies in the preceding verses of that chapter, you and I know that it was not the Lord that took away from Job at all; it was the devil (Job 1:12). However, man has tried to explain why things come and go so God gets the blame.

Believer, remember this, and don’t ever forget it: Whatever God gives, HE CAN NEVER take away! The reason that God’s gifts are eternal is that God gives gifts with no strings attached. In other words, He never changes His mind about what He has given. In this, as well as many other areas, He is completely unlike us.

We might give a gift to someone and then ask for it back for one reason or the other, or perhaps we give a gift and are then unsatisfied with how the recipient is using it. We may have too much integrity to ask for the gift back, but we will make sure that they know how unhappy that we are with what they are doing with the gift that we went to such great lengths to give them.

In my early days of ministry, I heard teachings on this passage from Romans regarding two things in Christianity: the call to ministry and the gifts of the Spirit. That teaching said that if God called you to preach there were two things that you should be sure of: you had to do it or you went to hell and that you were always going to be called, no matter what. I have since learned that the blood of Jesus is the pre-requisite for heaven, not obedience to the field of ministry and if you are called, you won’t have to worry about ever wanting out because God calls us according to our will and good pleasure (Philippians 2:13).

The gifts of the Spirit are also a part of that verse’s interpretation, as they are given by God with no strings attached. Actually, Paul says in the next chapter that these gifts are given to us “according to the grace that is given to us” (Romans 12:6). Note the direct link between the gifts and the grace. That is awesome, but there is more!

When Paul says, “The gifts and calling of God are without repentance”, he is pointed in his use of “gifts” as a plural word and “calling” as a singular word. The gifts vary in that they include not only the gifts of the Spirit but any and all things that God gives us free of charge, such as grace. The calling deals with the call of the Spirit upon men’s hearts, inviting them to come to Jesus. “Repentance” speaks of changing one’s mind; thus when God gives you any gift or calls you to Him, He never changes His mind about selecting you.

What is the ultimate gift that God has given to every single person that believes? Paul answered this for us back in chapter 5: “For if by one man’s offence death reigned by one; much more they which receive abundance of grace and of the gift of righteousness shall reign in life by one, Jesus Christ” (Romans 5:17). Notice that because of the death of Jesus, God’s righteousness is a gift to us through our faith. If God gives righteousness as a gift and then promises that He will never change His mind about giving us a gift, can God see you as anything less than righteous for eternity? You ponder the answer to that one and let the Holy Spirit glorify the beauty of Jesus today!

Stir Up The Gift

2 Timothy 1:6, 7

From time to time, it is necessary for us to “stir up” that which is inside of us. Paul tells Timothy to “stir up the gift of God” which is in him. This is the only usage of this phrase in the Greek in the entire New Testament, and it means “to rekindle anew” or “to enflame one’s mind or strength or zeal”. When Peter makes a similar statement in 2 Peter 3:1, he uses a different word in the Greek for “stir up”, meaning “to wake one’s mind”. Peter is saying “wake up”, while Paul is saying, “fire up”!

I believe that the gift or at least a portion of the gift, which Paul is speaking of in this text, is the gift of speaking with other tongues. I lean to this belief because it is the one gift of the gifts of the Spirit that the Bible specifically says can be used whenever you like (1 Corinthians 14:15), and it is the one that is used to build up the speaker (14:2).

The encouragement to use the gift is followed by, “For God hath not given us the spirit of fear; but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind” (2 Timothy 1:7). “For God…” shows us that the previous verse is linked to this one. Whatever the gift is inside of Timothy, it holds the answer that overcomes the spirit of fear. In that gift, is the power and love and sound mind that Paul says that we have received.

When you pray in tongues, you are communicating with God in your prayer language. You are praying in words that you do not know, and it is the Spirit in you that is making intercession (Romans 8:26). These prayers can be long or short, there are no rules that govern how you pray in your own prayer time, but they will always edify and build you up. The reason for that is found in verse 7.

God has not given us the spirit of fear, so any fear that we have cannot be from Him, but must be from the enemy. Instead, He has given us power, love and a sound mind. These three gifts from God are stirred within us every time that we “stir up the gift”.

God’s power begins to move in situations when we pray in the Spirit. That power enables us to do what we could not do on our own, independent of fear of failure. This power overcomes the enemy and glorifies the Father.

The love of God flows outward from us whenever we stir up the gift, for He teaches us to love in ways that we do not know. You cannot love by force, there must be something that motivates you or “turns you on” to love something or someone. Christ is that something and praying in the Spirit stirs His love up in you.

Finally, the sound mind is such a glorious promise, because the battlefield of the mind is where so many saints are losing. The phrase in the Greek actually means “self-control”. Many people have told me, “Pastor, I feel like I am losing control. I can’t even think straight.” This is an attack of the enemy meant to frighten and confuse. Use your prayer language to bring sanity back into your soul, and watch as your mind calms and begins to think on the things of the Spirit.
I pray God’s abundant blessings on you today as you walk in Him.

When God Gives a Gift

Romans 11:29

Have you ever heard anyone say, “The Lord gives and the Lord takes away”? This quote is out of context from the book of Job, where Job says, “The LORD gave, and the LORD hath taken away” (Job 1:21). Since God gives the reader a front row seat into the heavenlies in the preceding verses of that chapter, you and I know that it was not the Lord that took away from Job at all; it was the devil (Job 1:12). However, man has tried to explain why things come and go so God gets the blame.

Believer, remember this, and don’t ever forget it: Whatever God gives, HE CAN NEVER take away! The reason that God’s gifts are eternal is that God gives gifts with no strings attached. In other words, He never changes His mind about what He has given. In this, as well as many other areas, He is completely unlike us.

We might give a gift to someone and then ask for it back for one reason or the other, or perhaps we give a gift and are then unsatisfied with how the recipient is using it. We may have too much integrity to ask for the gift back, but we will make sure that they know how unhappy that we are with what they are doing with the gift that we went to such great lengths to give them.

In my early days of ministry, I heard teachings on this passage from Romans regarding two things in Christianity: the call to ministry and the gifts of the Spirit. That teaching said that if God called you to preach there were two things that you should be sure of: you had to do it or you went to hell and that you were always going to be called, no matter what. I have since learned that the blood of Jesus is the pre-requisite for heaven, not obedience to the field of ministry and if you are called, you won’t have to worry about ever wanting out because God calls us according to our will and good pleasure (Philippians 2:13).

The gifts of the Spirit are also a part of that verse’s interpretation, as they are given by God with no strings attached. Actually, Paul says in the next chapter that these gifts are given to us “according to the grace that is given to us” (Romans 12:6). Note the direct link between the gifts and the grace. That is awesome, but there is more!

When Paul says, “The gifts and calling of God are without repentance”, he is pointed in his use of “gifts” as a plural word and “calling” as a singular word. The gifts vary in that they include not only the gifts of the Spirit but any and all things that God gives us free of charge, such as grace. The calling deals with the call of the Spirit upon men’s hearts, inviting them to come to Jesus. “Repentance” speaks of changing one’s mind; thus when God gives you any gift or calls you to Him, He never changes His mind about selecting you.

What is the ultimate gift that God has given to every single person that believes? Paul answered this for us back in chapter 5: “For if by one man’s offence death reigned by one; much more they which receive abundance of grace and of the gift of righteousness shall reign in life by one, Jesus Christ” (Romans 5:17). Notice that because of the death of Jesus, God’s righteousness is a gift to us through our faith. If God gives righteousness as a gift and then promises that He will never change His mind about giving us a gift, can God see you as anything less than righteous for eternity? You ponder the answer to that one and let the Holy Spirit glorify the beauty of Jesus today!

Stir Up the Gift

2 Timothy 1:6, 7

From time to time, it is necessary for us to “stir up” that which is inside of us. Paul tells Timothy to “stir up the gift of God” which is in him. This is the only usage of this phrase in the Greek in the entire New Testament, and it means “to rekindle anew” or “to enflame one’s mind or strength or zeal”. When Peter makes a similar statement in 2 Peter 3:1, he uses a different word in the Greek for “stir up”, meaning “to wake one’s mind”. Peter is saying “wake up”, while Paul is saying, “fire up”!

I believe that the gift or at least a portion of the gift, which Paul is speaking of in this text, is the gift of speaking with other tongues. I lean to this belief because it is the one gift of the gifts of the Spirit that the Bible specifically says can be used whenever you like (1 Corinthians 14:15), and it is the one that is used to build up the speaker (14:2).

The encouragement to use the gift is followed by, “For God hath not given us the spirit of fear; but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind” (2 Timothy 1:7). “For God…” shows us that the previous verse is linked to this one. Whatever the gift is inside of Timothy, it holds the answer that overcomes the spirit of fear. In that gift, is the power and love and sound mind that Paul says that we have received.

When you pray in tongues, you are communicating with God in your prayer language. You are praying in words that you do not know, and it is the Spirit in you that is making intercession (Romans 8:26). These prayers can be long or short, there are no rules that govern how you pray in your own prayer time, but they will always edify and build you up. The reason for that is found in verse 7.

God has not given us the spirit of fear, so any fear that we have cannot be from Him, but must be from the enemy. Instead, He has given us power, love and a sound mind. These three gifts from God are stirred within us every time that we “stir up the gift”.

God’s power begins to move in situations when we pray in the Spirit. That power enables us to do what we could not do on our own, independent of fear of failure. This power overcomes the enemy and glorifies the Father.

The love of God flows outward from us whenever we stir up the gift, for He teaches us to love in ways that we do not know. You cannot love by force, there must be something that motivates you or “turns you on” to love something or someone. Christ is that something and praying in the Spirit stirs His love up in you.

Finally, the sound mind is such a glorious promise, because the battlefield of the mind is where so many saints are losing. The phrase in the Greek actually means “self-control”. Many people have told me, “Pastor, I feel like I am losing control. I can’t even think straight.” This is an attack of the enemy meant to frighten and confuse. Use your prayer language to bring sanity back into your soul, and watch as your mind calms and begins to think on the things of the Spirit.
I pray God’s abundant blessings on you today as you walk in Him.

It's A Brand New Day

Genesis 1:1,2

Both Genesis and John start with, “in the beginning”. Genesis tells of God creating, while John tells us that the Word (Jesus) was present in that creation. Whatever the beginning might be, Christ is there. He said as much of himself, “I am the Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the ending” (Revelation 1:8); and again, “…the first and the last” (Rev. 1:11).

As you begin a brand new year, let The Beginning have all of your heart. If you have never accepted Christ as the price paid for your sins, there is no better way to start this year, than to place your confidence in Jesus and His finished work at the cross. Just accept Him as Savior and believe He will save you.

In this New Year, many shallow resolutions will be made by people hoping to drop those extra holiday pounds, or write their first novel, etc. Nearly just as many of those resolutions will be broken in short order. People often have good intentions, but very little resolve to see these things through.

When Jesus walked the earth, He was the Word that “dwelt among us” (John 1:14). When our beginning is set and established in Christ, it causes us to behold His glory, “as of the only begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth”. Allow Christ, who is grace and truth to establish you and to lead you into paths of righteousness all throughout this year.

Let your sorrows and cares of the previous year vanish with the turn of the calendar. Easier said than done, right? Notice that when Genesis 1:1 ends, the earth is in a chaotic state, but God is not satisfied to leave it there. The earth does not reform itself, but rather it sits and allows the Spirit of God to move on the face of the waters (vs. 2). The Hebrew word for “moved” in that verse is better translated “hovered”. His Holy Spirit loves to hover over your life and bring beauty out of chaos.

It is your Father’s good pleasure to give you the kingdom (Luke 12:32), and it is His New Year’s Resolution to you to provide the gift of righteousness and the abundance of grace.

Go in that knowledge, and abundant grace is yours today!