In Hot Pursuit

Strive for peace with everyone, and for the holiness without which no one will see the Lord. Hebrews 12:14 ESV

The author of Hebrews considers peace and holiness important. In fact, these two nouns are so critical that the writer uses a forceful word of command in connection—strive. Interestingly, many English translations display the Greek word for strive differently. The King James Version uses follow while the New American Standard Bible uses pursue. Thayer’s Greek Lexicon adds it’s insight by defining strive as, “to run swiftly in order to catch a person or thing.” It presents the word as an object running after a target. In my mind I picture a dog chasing after a jackrabbit, the hare just inches ahead of the barking pursuer. There are two things to pursue and strive all out to reach: peace with everyone and holiness.

First: peace with everyone. Is that a vain and empty pursuit? The point of the verse is not to create disillusionment, but urgency. Like the hound that never gives up on chasing the hare, never give up on making peace with everyone. Obnoxious people are easy to quit on. Someone upsets us and we’ll avoid contact with the person. Paul writes in Romans 12, verse 18:

If possible, so far as it depends on you, live peaceably with all.

It’s like Paul expects us to initiate resolutions. He actually seems to believe we ought to at least try to live peaceably with all! Mix that together with Hebrews 12, verse 14 and the idea of pursuing peace sounds like a hound chasing a hare—it’s a real adventure. Strive for peace with everyone means even those we find most disagreeable to be around.

Second: strive after holiness. Initially, you might think of holiness as purity of conduct and righteous living. In the case of Hebrews 12, verse 14, according to Vine’s Expository Dictionary, holiness is most accurately represented by the English word sanctification. It embraces the idea of a person being in separation to God. This is not so much the action of a person’s performance as it is behavior resulting from devotion. It’s the hare inviting the hound to chase so to speak.

Thinking of holiness as activities of “doing good” is easy, natural. But the thought is much deeper. It’s the idea of behavior coming out of devoted pursuit—as the hound focuses on the hare. We chase after holiness out of the pure devotion and focus of discovering the Living God. We know Him personally and that makes a difference in our behavior. F.B. Meyer put it:

“Holy souls see God amid the ordinary commonplaces of earth, and find everywhere an open vision.” – F.B. Meyer

The idea is that holy souls are happening all the time. This is the striving for holiness that finds existence from a 24/7 devotion. According to F.B. Meyer, that devotion is not something tucked away and hidden in seclusion. Holiness is the soul pursuing God amid the ordinary commonplaces of earth! Without pursuing this type of devotion no man will see the Lord.

In conclusion, here are two things to be in hot pursuit of, like a hound running swiftly after the hare: strive for peace with everyone, and holiness!

J. Robert Hanson

More Than a Reset—Finding Hope!

“But in your hearts honor Christ the Lord as holy, always being prepared to make a defense to anyone who asks you for a reason for the hope that is in you; yet do it with gentleness and respect” 1 Peter 3:15

Everyone experiences hopelessness at sometime—it’s inevitable. When lives fall apart through heartbreak or tragedy, finding optimism can seem impossible. How can a person keep from losing hope in trying seasons of life?

We may think that hope is the happy, smiling demeanor that looks at life like a computer reset button with the ability of starting over. Realistically, that’s not always the case. Sometimes tragedies don’t allow a reset to the routine of life. We’re left with a new normal to contend with, an unwanted change forced upon us. Hope’s job is not so much to get us to smile in hard times, as it is to actually look at calamities with confident expectation that somehow difficulties will make us stronger. Maybe hope will lead to a smile, but then again, maybe not. Having hope is something more; it’s the reason to continue on!

In any case, Peter’s focus is to tell others of the “reason for the hope that is in you.” What is it that moves you forward in difficulties? It’s not that Peter didn’t know what he was talking about. The man lived during days of severe Roman oppression. No doubt the “Here I am awake at 2:00am worries,” was something Peter was familiar with. When you think about it, Peter not only faced the dangers of a hostile society, but also saw his own failures as a denier of Jesus. Without and within Peter was no stranger to tragedy—yet somehow he found a reason for sharing hope with others. How did he keep his hope in the face of adversity?

The start of our verse gives a hint, this time reading it from the New American Standard Bible we find:

“…but sanctify Christ as Lord in your hearts, always being ready to make a defense to everyone who asks you to give an account for the hope that is in you, yet with gentleness and reverence…”

That word sanctify is essentially the thought of “dedicating or hallowing” something that’s too important to be ignored.¹ The NASB translation captures the power of the word cluster as, “sanctify Christ as Lord.” The thought is the object not only receives dedication but also domination, meaning Lordship—because it’s too important to be discounted.

And where does this sanctifying need to take place if we’re to experience hope? The answer is “in your hearts.” That’s more than a “once week I visit God” obligation. What “Christ as Lord in your hearts” implies is an around the clock dedication. Peter is essentially saying that the person that puts Christ first in the heart finds hope; now feel free to share that hope with someone else that needs it too! Strength is found in the midst of tragedy as Christ is honored in the heart as holy. Jesus is the confident expectation that somehow we’re made stronger through difficulties. It’s worth it to set Christ apart in dedication and as Lord of all. Instead of trying to hit the reset button of life, see if He can give you hope by putting Him first!

J. Robert Hanson

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¹ Thayer’s Greek Lexicon

 

What’s On Your Mind Lately?

“Therefore, preparing your minds for action, and being sober-minded, set your hope fully on the grace that will be brought to you at the revelation of Jesus Christ.” 1 Peter 1:13 (ESV)

Just how important does the Bible consider your “thinking” to be? In this verse Peter reveals the mind (where your thinking takes place) as something to prepare for action. The King James Version presents the verse as “gird up the loins of your mind.” I’ve always taken that connotation as a woman lifting her long dress before running. We’re called to lift up our minds in careful thought, so as to not get tripped in our reasoning.

However, recently my perspective has expanded by reading the English Standard Version of the verse. Here it’s presented as: “preparing your minds for action.” At first I focused a little too closely on the word, “action.” I took the notion of someone carrying out a plan. But, after looking the verse up in a Greek lexicon I discovered “action” is only implied from the word, “preparing.” It turns out the idea of the verse is actually more focused on priming for some upcoming event.

My youngest daughter competes in Cross Country races. She’ll run these three-mile courses at any given competition. In preparation during the week she jogs at least 6-mile distances almost daily. She’s always exercising and conditioning her body so, when the time comes, she’s prepared physically and mentally for the contest. That’s the thought of this verse. The idea of preparing your legs for a race is an analogy of preparing the mind for action, so, when it becomes real and necessary, clear thinking will prevail.

Recently I had someone tell me “God owns the heart and Satan owns the mind.” If that’s true we’re all in big trouble. The devil can manipulate your thinking, but he can’t take ownership of it! Yes, it can be easy access for Satan to mess with minds and reasoning. The devil has studied deception since the founding of the world and understands the mind all too well. He knows how to impede what people think of things! This is masked in many of today’s freethinking attitudes. But, read how Kenneth Wuest translates 1 Peter 1, verse 13:

Wherefore, having put out of the way, once for all, everything that would impede the free action of your mind…”

Impeding the free action of thinking is a trick that politicians, prominent people and even some preachers use. True manipulation is the game of anyone with a self-gratifying agenda. It’s recognized when the instigator fears other points of view—no matter how slight the variations. Again, Wuest reminds the reader, “having put out of the way, once for all, everything that would impede the free action of your mind.” Put it out of the way—once for all! How do we do that? I think Paul lends a little clarity when He writes in Romans 12, verse 2:

“Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind…”

We put impeding things out of the way by learning what the Bible says about any given topic and believing it for what it is—truth! The strength of the Bible is that it doesn’t tell you what to think so much as transforms the way you’re thinking. That fear of the truth may be why doubters insist the Bible is a bunch of fairy tales and refuse to believe what it says. The mind becomes blinded to the truth (a true manipulation of Satan) until God shines His light into the darkened heart.

You don’t need to fear the Bible; it does not force you into ideas apart from clear reasoning. What God asks of you is reasonable service. The Bible works by renewing your mind into thinking reasonably about things through the act of believing. In fact, Paul goes so far as to suggest a whole new set of values will develop from thinking about the Bible’s message. In Philippians 4, verse 8 he writes of these new values to consider:

Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence, if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things.

What’s on your mind lately! Instead of thinking thoughts resulting in negative brewing anger, let there be positive reflections—thoughts preparing your mind for action!

J. Robert Hanson

Chilling Out Anger

“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.” James 1:19-20

It’s interesting that James adds anger to the short list of communication skills—hearing and speaking. Inevitably there will be moments in every relationship when anger kicks in and good dialog breaks down. James acknowledges this possibility by including the instruction, “slow to anger.” Point being, unrestrained anger ends any useful communication between two people. No amount of quick listening or slow speaking will ever repair dialog when two people are mad at each another.

If left unresolved, the hot emotion of anger can destroy a life in a moment of time. It’s a key ingredient to the downfall of Cain. Just look at Genesis 4, verses 5 and 6: “But for Cain and his offering He [God] had no regard. So Cain was very angry, and his face fell. The LORD said to Cain, ‘Why are you angry, and why has your face fallen?’” In a moment Cain gave place to his anger, acted upon it by murdering his brother, and effectively ruined his future. So to speak, his pressure-cooker overheated and he exploded.

There are a myriad of verses indicating the emotion of anger is not sin until we act upon the passion as Cain’s example portrays. In Ephesians 4, verse 26 we read, “Be angry and do not sin; do not let the sun go down on your anger.” The idea is that anger will happen, but you want to deal with it quickly before it has time to fester into action.

And just so we’re aware, according to James, nothing good can come out of the action of an angry disposition! James tells us straight forwardly in verse 20, “the anger of man does not produce the righteousness of God.” If an individual thinks anger can end in a good thing for God, they’re gravely mistaken. An individual maybe able to manipulate people by using anger, but James makes it clear the anger of man does not produce the righteousness of God!

So, how do I “chill-out” hot anger issues before going nuclear? Paul writes in Ephesians 4, verse 31:

Let all bitterness and wrath and anger and clamor and slander be put away from you, along with all malice.

In short, put away anger. The phrase “put away” is like the idea of telling kids to put away their toys. In other words, stop indulging the thoughts that make you upset. Again, Paul repeats himself in Colossians 3, verse 8: But now you must put them all away: anger, wrath, malice, slander, and obscene talk from your mouth. Simply put, quit thinking about issues that get you mad! It’s nearly impossible to talk reasonably with someone when you’re angry, anyways. Putting away anger means to cease playing-out an issue over-and-over in your mind.

And, once the heat of the moment is cooled, profitable dialog can begin again. Speech seasoned with salt, being quick to hear; these communication skills can resume once anger is put away. And then watch how easy troubling issues between two people can get worked out! This is how you “chill-out” your anger before doing damage to self and others.

J. Robert Hanson

Please Pass the Salt!

Let your speech always be gracious, seasoned with salt, so that you may know how you ought to answer each person.” Colossians 4:6

What the Bible says about speech amazes me. Paul considered the topic so important that he wrote down some specific thoughts on it. Point being, the words we choose to use in everyday conversations do matter! Paul views this concept as, “speech seasoned with salt.” Every once in awhile I hear someone with an attitude that basically says, “If you don’t like what I have to say, you don’t have to be around me.” To lovers of Jesus Christ, I think the above verse gives an answer to that type of insolence. It shows that we all need to ask God to pass the salt to add a little seasoning of grace to our tongues.

Interestingly, Bible translators, in almost every case, decided to begin the sentence structure of verse 6 with the word, “let.” For the most part the idea is that gracious speech is a choice and not something that uncontrollably happens. Yes, people have the capacity to use poor judgment in selecting words. Destitute phrases originate from a careless heart. Jesus is clear in this fact when He notes that our words come out of the abundance of our hearts.¹

I recently read of an individual who believes he can “once in awhile” use the “F-bomb” in conversation and Jesus is okay with that. If this person were listening, Paul would answer him with Ephesians 4, verse 29:

Watch the way you talk. Let nothing foul or dirty come out of your mouth. Say only what helps, each word a gift.²

Apparently the words coming out of our mouths do matter to Jesus! He’s not “cool” with the use of the “F-bomb,” even if it’s used only once in awhile. We can choose to make the habit of gracious speech a pattern of life. I was recently reading F.B. Meyer who made the point: “Nothing so tests the quality of our minds as our use and choice of adjectives.” The man who has control of his adjectives knows the mastery of thought.

Verse 6 from The Message Bible instructs us what this speech seasoned with salt sounds like when heard:

“Be gracious in your speech. The goal is to bring out the best in others in a conversation, not put them down, not cut them out.”

Speech seasoned with salt sounds like conversations that bring out the best in others. It’s easy to add nasty, cutting comments in banter. Caddy words about a person’s dress or snarky remarks toward an individual add nothing. To belittle, or put someone down in the shrewdest of ways does not build up at all. In fact, the only thing a snide comment strengthens is the assurance that the user is a hurtful, caddy, petty person that others will not want to be around. If you enjoy living alone, be a caddy, snarky person. However, please understand that a cutting wit only enhances the conformation of an insecure individual.

The point The Message Bible is making: learn to bring out the best in others in conversation. Speech seasoned with salt enables a person to have a compassionate answer for each life he/she touches. So, for my speech, please pass the salt!

J. Robert Hanson

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1 The good person out of the good treasure of his heart produces good, and the evil person out of his evil treasure produces evil, for out of the abundance of the heart his mouth speaks.

2 The Message Bible

Weaknesses: Our Disappointment, God’s Appointment

“So to keep me from becoming conceited because of the surpassing greatness of the revelations, a thorn was given me in the flesh, a messenger of Satan to harass me, to keep me from becoming conceited. Three times I pleaded with the Lord about this, that it should leave me. But he said to me, ‘My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.’” 2 Corinthians 12:7-9

When reading the Apostle Paul’s writings, one of the first things you notice is how brilliant and astute the man was. Earlier in 2 Corinthians 12 Paul points out that many of the insights he received were direct results of the visions and revelations given to him. It’s those communications that became the focus and passion of his ministry.

However, apparently even the great Apostle Paul was afflicted by humanity. In reading we discover that the insights garnered from those visions had the potential of causing conceit. And so he tells us in verse 7 a thorn in the flesh was pressed upon him reminding him that the revelations were of God’s working and not his own. In fact, this thorn, or messenger of Satan, was so imperative that it remained with him his entire life as a constant source of irritation and humbling.

Throughout history many things have been written as to what this “thorn in the flesh” might be. However, if it were that important for us to know in detail, no doubt the Apostle would have told us what it was in specifics. The one thing we can gather from his experience is a definition of weakness: it’s something in our lives that’s impossible to fix.

Paul’s lack of transparency on the matter was to show us a powerful principle at work. Weaknesses are an opportunity to see God’s strength! We may be disappointed by God’s refusal to remove a weakness. However, our disappointment in God’s rebuff is His appointment for our lives!

Paul’s thorn was a daily reminder of his humanity and without which he would have succumbed to the dangerous arena of conceit. Every time he saw the greatness of the visions and revelations at work, there was that thorn to rediscover just how weak he was. And that weakness led him to one thing every time he saw it—surrender!

The principle that’s working behind weakness is our surrendering completely to God! Let’s read the thought again, beginning with verse 8:

“Three times I pleaded with the Lord about this, that it should leave me. But he said to me, ‘My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.’”

Three times Paul sought the Lord to fix the impossible, but the one time the Apostle surrendered in trust he discovered that through his weakness God would make him strong. The power of Christ rests on those who surrender. Disappointments become His appointment of power. For, as Paul concludes, “when I am weak, then I am strong!”

J. Robert Hanson

And the Winner Is…

“Live as people who are free, not using your freedom as a cover-up for evil, but living as servants of God.” 1 Peter 2:16

How is it we choose to live our lives? Sadly there are people who continually create impossible criteria and live under the delusion righteousness must come out of works. So focused on “doing” they miss that part of “living” for Jesus. Peter’s encouragement to all “doers” is to live as people who are free—“living as servants of God.” Life really doesn’t need to be as complicated as we make it.

In America, June and July are the months we begin to hear a lot about the Emmys. What are the Emmys exactly? It’s the annual events recognizing excellence within the American television industry. Actually, there are several types of Emmy Awards presented throughout the year. However, arguably the most prestigious of these events has become what’s known as the Primetime Emmys! Primetime television shows are programs aired in the evening hours—right after dinner and before 11:00pm. These are the hours Americans glue themselves to their televisions for relaxation.

The Emmys are an unusual competition. Generally, when we think of entering a contest we register, prepare and present our ability or talent before a group of experts. Not so with the Emmys. Nominees come from individuals that have gone about their daily business performing their craft at the highest level possible. Actors function with the mindset of doing a job, not obtaining an Emmy. The award results from doing your profession with excellence. Peers within the industry judge one another with little concern to what the populace may think about any given nominee. Popularity and quantity are not calculated into the results. And so the nominee is free to go about daily business without the bondage and pressure of unrealistic high standards coming from competition.

Too often believers press upon themselves complications in life as if they are trying to win an Emmy. Instead of enjoying the life of Jesus they live under the constant weight of attempting to obtain an award with God through self-righteousness. However, we’re not called to concentrate on producing an award but to live a life of freedom. The Winner has already conquered the prize at the cross. We can now live in the freedom and liberty won at Calvary—only don’t use your freedom as a cover-up for evil. Live as people who are free! Go about daily life in the life of Jesus and let the fruit of that freedom produce anything of honor. In Ephesians 2, verse 10 we read:

For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them.

We’re not called to live the life of Super-Christian with a big “S” on our chests. The activities of living are things God has worked out beforehand and all we need to do is live the life He’s already worked and created for us. Knowing we’re not trying to win an Emmy for Outstanding Performance is a liberating experience. The awards come from God as we choose to live the life He has provided in Christ—that’s true liberty. So, when we hear the phrase, “And the Winner Is…” we can understand the answer is Jesus Christ and we are in Him!

J. Robert Hanson