Tag: christian

The Fate of the Wicked

by Brianboswell

“Therefore the wicked will not stand in the judgment, nor sinners in the congregation of the righteous;” Psalm 1:5

The Psalmist spends the first part of the Psalm comparing two men, a righteous one and a wicked one. The comparison is stark. One way leads to life, the other to death. All men face this choice, either to trust in the Lord for their salvation or to walk a path that leads to death.

The Psalmist is brings the argument to its logical conclusion – the wicked won’t be able to stand with the righteous in God’s assembly. The wicked are blown away as the earlier verse states. This is a key to understanding end times theology. The wicked won’t be around. They will not be an influence in the Lord’s kingdom. They will be gone. The meek shall inherit the earth, as Jesus says.

And this gives us a great sense of hope. Our hope is not in the world being destroyed, but in it being redeemed. The wicked will perish, but the righteous will rule forever with Jesus as our king. He’s preparing us according to the Psalmist in sanctifying us through our walk and in this present age. The instruction in Psalm 1:1 is crucial to our preparation. God wants us ready to rule and reign with Him, so he tells us to rely on him for our counsel and relationship. Don’t rely on the wicked for friendship or advice, David warns.

Continue reading “The Fate of the Wicked” →

Like Chaff in the Wind

by Brianboswell

“The wicked are not so, but are like chaff that the wind drives away.” – Psalm 1:4

Bob Dylan sang a song many years ago and asked a multitude of questions, like how many roads must a man walk down before you can call him a man? Dylan says the answer to life’s questions was blowing in the wind. He evidently realized these were questions that you may ask and never get an answer.

In the Bible, we see lots of wind analogies. God’s spirit, is often described as the wind. Jesus says you don’t know where it comes from or where it’s going, just like the wind. I’ve always found this interesting considering most of us like to have formulas as to how to live our lives, yet the Spirit doesn’t operate by formulas. He just goes where He wishes and where He comes from, no one quite knows. It’s a mystery, which is basically the same realization that Bob Dylan finds.

But the Bible is clear about this, those that are wicked, those that have not put their trust in Jesus do have a clear destination and they will be sifted just like wheat and chaff are winnowed. The heavier wheat is left behind while the chaff blows away with the breeze. The Apostle Paul says something similar in his letter to the church in Ephesus. He says that when we become mature in Christ, “we will no longer be infants, tossed back and forth by the waves, and blown here and there by every wind of teaching and by the cunning and craftiness of people in their deceitful scheming.” (Eph 4:14)

Continue reading “Like Chaff in the Wind” →

Planted By The River Of Life

by Brianboswell

“He is like a tree planted by streams of water that yields its fruit in its season, and its leaf does not wither. In all that he does, he prospers.” Psalm 1:3

Imagine that you were trying to plant something in a desert. Where would you go to start a garden? You most certainly wouldn’t do that on top of a sand dune. No, you would look for a reliable water source. In order for plants to thrive, you must have water and so it is with us. If we are to thrive, we need a spiritual water source.

Throughout Scripture you see the Holy Spirit described in ways involving water. The Holy Spirit in us is like a river welling up inside of us and flowing out of us (John 7:38-39). In other words, you need to be planted, rooted, dug down deep in the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit brings water to your soul. In this life, the world around us is a desert and too many of us plant ourselves somewhere far away from the Holy Spirit.

Most people struggle to see why this is important. We think we get refreshment from a great many things, but most of those things are actually the things that dry us out. We receive true refreshment from being a community of believers, but too many of us are trying to do this alone. We get our true refreshment from being in His Presence, but too many of us find other things to do instead. Our true refreshment can only be found in Him. All other things are simply distractions.

Prayer – Father, thank you for watering my soul in the midst of a dry and weary land. Thank you for sending the Holy Spirit to bring refreshment to me. Please help me to plant myself near your waters so that my life will be fruitful. Amen.

Delighting in the Word

by Brianboswell

“But his delight is in the law of the Lord, and on his law he meditates day and night.” – Psalm 1:2

There are many things that can bring us delight in this life. There are many things that can bring us joy. The law of the Lord is one of those things, although many of us have never looked at the law in this manner.

Too often when we look at the law, all we see is a list of rules that we have to follow. They seem arbitrary and unnecessary to us. The law was given to us as a boundary or a safeguard. It was given so that we would know that healthy relationships should have boundaries. Boundaries are good things.

If I tell my children to not play in the street, then I have set a boundary that is for their protection. I’m not being mean or domineering, I’m loving them well. I’m letting them know that there are places and things that could hurt them and if they want to stay safe, they should abide by my rules.

God’s rules when viewed through the lense of relationship show us that he cares for us. He is saying these rules are meant as loving protection for you and it would be wise for you to meditate or ponder these rules day and night.

Even though God established these rules with a loving relationship in mind, we also know that we have broken these rules. We’ve exceeded the boundaries that he put up to safeguard us. The beautiful story of the gospel is the Jesus came bring us back into relationship with the Father even though we had broken his commands and strayed outside of his boundaries. His grace covers all of our failures to keep his law.

Jesus is the one that truly delights in the law of the Lord. He is the one who meditates on it day and night. Jesus shows us that the basis of the law is love and he modeled how to love perfectly. Our joy is found in walking his path, realizing that he walked it perfectly and that his grace covers our failures.

Prayer: Father, thank you for showing me that boundaries in a relationship are healthy. Thank you for your law and forgive me for the ways I’ve broken it. Thank you for the grace found in Jesus Christ. Help me to walk in his path, following the way of love and grace that leads to right relationship with you. Amen. 

Watching Where You Walk…

by Brianboswell
“Blessed is the man who walks not in the counsel of the wicked, nor stands in the way of sinners, nor sits in the seat of scoffers;” – Psalm 1:1

Throughout the Bible we find the analogy that life is a journey and where you walk matters. Jesus would tell his disciples that they needed to enter into the kingdom by walking the narrow road. There are many times where we believe that we need to worry about the destination. We just want the Lord to teleport us to wherever he wants us, while he is much more concerned about our path to get there.

The Psalmist offers us some good advice – we shouldn’t walk where the world advises us. This world and those in it will most certainly try to get us off the true path. Sometimes it comes as an obvious distraction and other times it comes in a more seductive way, but either way, the enemy is trying to get us off the narrow path.

When we choose to follow Jesus, the only trustworthy counsel is godly counsel. The word of God is called a light to our path. That gives us a beautiful picture of how we should find our path. The word will light our way. The opposite is true as well. When we rely on ungodly counsel, it darkens our path and pretty soon we can’t find the path at all!

Prayer: Father, thank you for your word. It is a light to my path and gives me godly counsel. Help me to follow you and your direction for my life. You have promised to guide my very steps. I put my trust in you. Forgive me for following the ways of this world and help me to enjoy the journey with you. Amen.

To Everything There is a Season

by Brianboswell

A new podcast episode is up. For everything there is a season. During our lives we will go through different seasons. In this episode, I discuss what some of the seasons may look like and what they mean for your life.

For Everything There is a Season – Everyday Jesus

In this podcast, Pastor Brian discusses how in every part of life, there is a season and purpose. Our lives have been designed to mirror the seasons of the earth. We have times in which we plant and times in which we harvest. 
  1. For Everything There is a Season
  2. Ministering From Weakness
  3. You Are Called
  4. Pregnant With The Wind
  5. Having a Revival Mindset

Ministering From Weakness

by Brianboswell

In this episode, we are asking the question, what is better…to minister from a place of strength or a place of weakness? This is an examination of Paul’s encouragement in 2 Corinthians 12. Click on the link below to listen.

For Everything There is a Season – Everyday Jesus

In this podcast, Pastor Brian discusses how in every part of life, there is a season and purpose. Our lives have been designed to mirror the seasons of the earth. We have times in which we plant and times in which we harvest. 
  1. For Everything There is a Season
  2. Ministering From Weakness
  3. You Are Called
  4. Pregnant With The Wind
  5. Having a Revival Mindset

You are called

by Brianboswell

In this episode of the Everyday Jesus podcast, we look at the subject of calling. Is everyone called to do ministry or is it something just for pastors and missionaries?

For Everything There is a Season – Everyday Jesus

In this podcast, Pastor Brian discusses how in every part of life, there is a season and purpose. Our lives have been designed to mirror the seasons of the earth. We have times in which we plant and times in which we harvest. 
  1. For Everything There is a Season
  2. Ministering From Weakness
  3. You Are Called
  4. Pregnant With The Wind
  5. Having a Revival Mindset

The Christian Conscience and Mandates

by Brianboswell

We are living in a time when the government mandates many things – from health insurance to certain shots. And while many may take the stance that Romans 13 addresses how the Christian should respond to such mandates, I believe that is a blanket statement in which the blanket has far too many holes in it to keep anyone warm.

Now, to be clear, most of the people I personally know that have been faced with the more recent mandate, have actually gotten around it by applying for an exemption. Some of the exemptions have been medical and some have been religious. And it seems that there is a controversy as to whether religious exemptions are biblical.

Those in charge in many places were expecting people to apply for religious exemptions, specifically tied to the fetal cell argument, so they sought to obscure the truth, (see link here). My thoughts today are not to talk down that line of thinking for applying for a religious exemption because of the deeply held belief that abortion is wrong, but to also offer another train of thought in regards to exemptions – namely the idea of a Christian conscience.

Many have seemingly forgotten one of Christianity’s deeply held ideas, that every Christian has a conscience and to go against one’s conscience is sinful. On October 31st, the church across the world celebrates Reformation Day, which is the anniversary of the day that Martin Luther nailed his 95 theses to the door of Wittenberg Chapel.

As history taught us, the ruling powers in the church at the time did not take kindly to what Luther thought, so they started persecuting him and asking him to take back what he had said against the pope and the church. It is in that context that he is reportedly to have said: “My conscience is captive to the Word of God. I cannot and will not recant anything, for to go against conscience is neither right nor safe. Here I stand, I cannot do otherwise. God help me. Amen.”

Christians today could learn a lot about the sheer boldness and fortitude possessed by Luther, because the conscience is an important part of how we are to live out our lives as believers. Deep within our souls we know right from wrong and God expects us to do what is right.

“So whoever knows the right thing to do and fails to do it, for him it is sin.” James 4:17

James does not hold back here, it’s sinful to go against your conscience. The Bible doesn’t address every area of sin. It doesn’t mention how much time we should spend on Facebook or in what ways we should use computers, but it does say that the law of God has been written on the hearts of men. And James draws from that, the idea that we know the difference from right and wrong and we must do what is right. Where the Bible is silent, in other words, we must follow what God has put into our hearts.

Now we know according to Jeremiah 17:9 that the heart is exceedingly deceitful, so how does this play into our conscience? Well the Bible answers that in the New Testament. Hebrews 9:14 says, “how much more will the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered himself without blemish to God, purify our conscience from dead works to serve the living God.”

Put simply, because of Jesus and his atoning work on the cross, our conscience is being purified. Now this doesn’t mean it’s perfect and we should certainly pray over our responses in critical situations, but as James said, we can’t go against our conscience as that would be sinful.

Now I’ve said all of that to say this, when it comes to government mandates, the Christian must search his conscience and do what is right to him, for to do anything other would be sinful. The Bible is clear that government has its place and it is to be God’s servant for your good (Romans 13:4). It should be honored and respected. But the Government is not God and when the government tells you to do something that goes against God or your conscience, then you have a duty to do what is right before God.

This line of thought was summed up perfectly in the early church when Peter and the apostles were brought before the local authorities and were instructed to stop preaching the gospel. Now they could have obeyed the principle in Romans 13, but instead, they understood the principle in James 4:17 and chose to stand up for what they believed and said, “We must obey God rather than men.” (Acts 5:29)

So I’d like to encourage you in a couple of areas today. First, if you are facing a mandate and it goes against your conscience, stand strong. Secondly, if you are having discussions with friends and family on this subject, and their conscience is telling them something different than what yours has told you, please love and respect them. We are free to disagree with one another, but we are not free to hate on one another. Christians should be known for their grace, not their vitriol, even in times like these.

WHICH GOD DO YOU SERVE?

by Brianboswell

This is a story almost as old as time. As a people, we were created to worship. Now some, possibly those who are atheist, would say that we are not created to worship and that they are choosing not to worship any god. They would however be wrong.

When we think of worship, a lot of times we think of it as kneeling down before our chosen deity. Yet, worship is more than that. It’s really about what do we give reverence to or to put it another way what do we make the highest authority in our life.

Whatever is our highest authority or whatever we give the most reverence to is what we are worshipping. We may never sing songs to it and we may never physically kneel before it, but make no mistake, we are worshipping it.

At any given times, multiple things or people are vying for our worship. One of these easiest gods to point out is the god of money. Jesus never says that money is evil, it’s fairly neutral, but it’s the “love” of money that is evil. Or to look at it another way, it’s the worshipping of money that is evil. That’s why Jesus also says that you cannot serve two masters – god and money.

That’s a principle worth noting – you cannot worship two gods. You might think you are worshipping God and money or God and popularity, but in truth one will always take the place of the other, meaning you will always hold one in higher esteem and if you are holding one in higher esteem, then the other isn’t really being worshipped. Jesus is essentially saying that if you are choosing between God and anything else, then God is the one who will lose out. You must determine that He alone is God and that nothing else is worthy of your worship.

One of the seemingly shared characteristics of all gods is their ability to save us from hell. I heard a preacher say years ago, that if being poor is hell for us, then of course money will save us. If being being single is hell, then of course a spouse will save us. If being rejected is hell, then you will worship popularity. We worship the god that we think will save us.

This brings us to our current state of affairs. Sometimes you will see that certain entities will create a “hell” so that it can also save you from it. Today governments all across the world are creating a “hell” for people so that it can offer salvation. This hell is the inability to enter restaurants, stores or even work at certain jobs without having the proper “medical credentials”. The government now has the ability to save you from this hell by offering you salvation in the form of a shot and the proper paperwork. The reason for this is simple, the government is demanding your worship.

Some will say that Romans 13 is an open checkbook for us to obey any and all demands of the government, but they fail to take into account several instances in the Bible where people didn’t obey the ludicrous claims of the governing authority, especially when those demands went against their faith. The Apostles never stopped preaching the gospel, even though they were commanded to under the threat of death.

“But Peter and the apostles answered, “We must obey God rather than men.”

Acts 5:29

Look at the stories of the midwives in Exodus 1 or Rahab in the Book of Joshua. Look at the life of Daniel and the three Hebrew boys. There are many examples of defying tyrants in the Bible. In fact, some would say that it’s one of the hallmarks of being a God-fearing person. You fear God more than you fear the government.

“Resistance to tyrants is obedience to God”

John Knox – Scottish Reformer

Again, we worship whatever we hold in the highest regard. If it’s God, we will certainly attempt to live quiet lives, seeking to love others and to love God. But don’t expect the government or money or whatever not to fight for your worship. I believe every Christian will have to face the question, which god do you serve? You can only choose one. Which one do you serve today?