Tag Archives: C.S. Lewis

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Love—But Keep One Eye Open

Read II John

“I ask that we love one another. And this is love: that we walk in
obedience to his commands. As you have heard from the
beginning, his command is that you walk in love.”
(II John 1:5-6)

Thoughts… Love is more than just a feeling, although feelings of love are quite nice. The emotion of love is only a small part of the love equation. If you base your love on feelings and emotions, your love will be inconsistent and unpredictable—there one day and gone the next.

True love is much more than that. The highest expression of love is to obey the commands of God. And the commands of God are best summed up in the great commandment: To love God with all your heart, mind, soul and strength…and to love your neighbor as yourself. (Mathew 22:36-40)

True love means to put God first. True love means to give your heart and soul in full devotion to the Heavenly Father. True love means to accept his Son, Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior. True love means to fully commit your life to God’s purposes. True love means to lay down your life for other believers. True love means to share your faith with lost people. True love means to care about the things that God cares about. True love is all of those things, and more.

But true love is not naïve. True love does not mean accepting all things and all people. True love does not mean blind tolerance and unlimited inclusiveness. The truth is, there is evil in the world, and true love hates that evil. And since evil is at its best when it masquerades as good, true love requires great discernment and constant alertness. True love is required to oppose those who worm their way into the church with deceptive doctrines that have the potential to lead people away from the truth and thus destroy their souls.

That’s what John’s second epistle is all about. Though very brief, his letter is powerful and pointed. He is writing to the leader of the church, exhorting them to continue to love, but to love with an eye out for ravenous wolves in sheep’s clothing that are penetrating the fellowship, seeking to devour the flock.

God’s call to love is the same for you and me as it was for these people to whom John wrote. We are to invest our lives in loving. But our love isn’t true unless it is willing to reject falsehood and oppose evil people, especially when both try to pass themselves off as good.

By all means, love—but keep one eye open!

Prayer… Father, give me a discerning love!

One More Thing… “The safest road to hell is the gradual one—the gentle slope, soft underfoot, without sudden turnings, without milestones, without signposts.” —C.S. Lewis

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Now Listen Up!

Read Hebrews 2

“We must pay more careful attention, therefore, to what
we have heard, so that we do not drift away.”
(Hebrews 2:1)

Thoughts… I flew to Chicago yesterday. Our takeoff was uneventful—thank the Lord. So was the landing. In fact, I would have to say that both takeoff and landing were quite boring, which, unless you are an adrenaline junkie, is the way sane people like them to be. I’m sure you would agree: Nobody wants an eventful experience on a flight!

I noticed that during preparation for takeoff, the flight attendant was dutifully calling us to pay attention to the safety instructions for enjoying a safe and pleasurable trip. She gave some warnings of what might happen if we neglected her directions and what we could do to survive if, perish the thought, disaster should strike. She didn’t actually use the word “disaster”, but I knew what she meant. “In case of a water landing” sounds so much more comforting than “in case we crash and burn!”

Any guesses on how many people were listening to her little speech? Zero, to be exact, except for me. I was taking copious notes of everything she said—not! Truth is, she might as well have been invisible as far as the passengers were concerned.

With such vital life-saving information being disseminated, why wouldn’t everybody be listening as if their very existence hung in the balance? Over-exposure to the message, I think, was the culprit in this case. Airline apathy has set in, and people just don’t pay attention anymore to these basic instructions before leaving earth.

Now here’s the deal: What we might get away with on an airplane, we must not be guilty of on the most important trip of our lives—our journey from here to eternity. That’s why the writer of Hebrews is pleading with us to pay attention! He is saying, “don’t you dare neglect so great a salvation!”

Are you paying close attention in your spiritual journey to the clear instructions and warnings that God has graciously provided for you in his Word, the Bible (Basic Instruction Before Leaving Earth)? Maybe you have heard those instructions so often that they no longer cause you to sit up and take notice. If you were honest, perhaps you would have to admit that apathy has set in, dulling your spiritual acuity and taking the sharp edge off your discernment toward the temptations and trials that can derail you on along the way.

If that is you, our verse today is calling you to not only pay attention, and not just to pay careful attention, but to “pay more careful attention.” Have you ever said to your child, or perhaps your parent said to you, “Now listen up…look at me when I’m saying this…repeat back what I’ve just told you…are we clear on this?” That’s what we’re being told here: “Let me have your undivided attention please…there will be a test…your spiritual life depends on this!”

Take a moment to go through your “takeoff instructions” today, being careful to pay very close attention. Check to see if there are any sins that need to be confessed, any promises that need to be claimed, any commands that need to be obeyed, any ministry assignment that needs attention, any person who needs your witness, or any relationship that needs to be healed.

Our plane is taking off soon, bound for heaven. So pay attention. Read and know your Basic Instructions Before Leaving Earth—especially as it relates to your salvation. And make sure your seat belt is buckled, your tray table is in the upright and locked position, your seat back is forward…

And enjoy your flight!

Prayer… Lord, show me every area that needs attention for the flight home. On that day when we take off and reach our destination, I don’t want be unprepared in one single aspect of my life. Make me ready for the trip Lord, ‘cause one of these days soon, I’m coming home.

One More Thing… “If you continue to love Jesus, nothing much can go wrong with you, and I hope you may always do so.” — C.S. Lewis (one month before his death)

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Thinking On Your Feet

Read Colossians 4

“Be wise in the way you act toward outsiders; make the most
of every opportunity. Let your conversation be always full
of grace, seasoned with salt, so that you may
know how to answer everyone.”
(Colossians 4:5-6)

Thoughts… Are you ready to share you faith at a moment’s notice? Many Christians would freeze up if that “moment” ever happened. The truth is, I have been there and done that—I had the perfect opportunity to share Christ, but I pulled my punches and missed a perfect opening to put in a good word for Jesus.

Paul is reminding us that we must stay alert to our main mission in this world, and that is to serve as ambassadors of Jesus Christ (cf. II Corinthians 5:17-21). We are not on this planet just to get a good education, find a good spouse, make a good living, live in a good neighborhood, drive a good car, have good friends, and go on good vacations every year. We have been put here to point people to a good God by telling them the Good News that they can be made right with God through his Son, Jesus Christ, live a life of purpose and when life is done, enjoy an eternal life that is light years ahead of being just merely a good life.

That is our mission. That is our main focus—or at least it should be. And we are to “make the most” of every situation in order to strategically align ourselves to get in a word with “outsiders” — since in reality, they unknowingly and subconsciously are looking for what we have already found. The Greek phrase for “making the most of every opportunity” literally means to buy up an opportunity for one’s self; to use everything and everyone as an advantageous opportunity; to see each moment as a strategic, crucial God-moment to extend his kingdom.

How can you do that? Paul gives several ways in the surrounding verses. First of all, ask God for opportunities. Verse 2 says, “Devote yourselves to prayer, being watchful and thankful.” Being and staying on mission requires being and staying on alert in prayer. Second, develop a kingdom mindset. How? Again, it involves prayer; specifically, prayer for kingdom advancement through the lives and ministries of others. Doing keeps your mind on the main reason you on are this earth. Verse 3 says, “And pray for us, too, that God may open a door for our message, so that we may proclaim the mystery of Christ, for which I am in chains.” And third, make sure your message matches your mouth. A lot of believers blow any chance at an effective witness because their behavior has sabotaged the beliefs they are trying to share. Paul says things like “be wise in the way you act toward outsiders…let your conversation be seasoned with salt”, which represents purity of speech, and “full of grace”, which means full of God’s loving, redemptive truth.

“Make the most of every opportunity!” Paul is pleading with us to take advantage of every situation. We are to capture each moment. We are to be opportunistic for the kingdom’s sake every chance we get.

Whatever the Lord has planned for you today, it will include opportunities to advance his kingdom.

So be ready to think on your feet, and when there is an opening, put a good word in for Jesus!

Prayer… Father, keep me in a kingdom mindset all day long. And enable me to make the most of each opportunity to speak up for you!

One More Thing… “Jesus Christ did not say, ‘Go into the world and tell the world that it is quite right.’” —C.S. Lewis

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Sweet Sorrow

Read II Corinthians 7

“I am happy, not because you were made sorry, but because your sorrow led you to repentance. For you became sorrowful as God intended and so were not harmed in any way by us. Godly sorrow brings repentance that leads to salvation and leaves no regret, but worldly sorrow brings death.”
(II Corinthians 7:9-10)

Thoughts… Thank God for pain. If we didn’t have it, we’d be in a world of hurts!

Pain is a gift from God, a gift nobody wants, but a sweet gift nonetheless. Why, because as Paul says, it leads us to sorrow. And Godly sorrow leads to repentance, and true repentance leads us to life.

Years ago there used to be a corny TV program called “Hee Haw”. I hate to admit it, but it was a family favorite—which tells you a lot about my family of origin. One of the skits in this show had a person come into the doctor’s office and describe to the doctor a place on their body that was hurting. They would say, “Doctor, it hurts when I do this.” Then the doctor would whack them upside the head and say, “Well, don’t do that!”

Dumb skit, great point! That’s what God says, “Don’t do that!” God in his grace has allowed us to experience pain, and our pain is meant to bring us to God. It is meant to cause us to look within and see where we have made missteps. It is meant to cause us to look without and see where we need to initiate change in our circumstances. It is meant to lead us look ahead and evaluate how we can steer our life in a more God-honoring direction.

If you are going through a painful episode right now, I would suggest that you thank God for it. Famed Scottish theologian and hymn-writer George Matheson once prayed,

“My God, I have never thanked Thee for my thorns. I have thanked Thee a thousand times for my roses, but not once for my thorns. I have been looking forward to a world where I shall get compensation for my cross: but I have never thought of my cross as itself a present glory. Teach me the glory of my cross: teach me the value of my thorns. Show me that I have climbed to Thee by the path of pain. Show me that my tears have made my rainbow.”

By the way, Matheson went totally blind when he was twenty years old.

Pain is the gift nobody wants, but it is still a gift. It will open your eyes to the real and lasting beauty that awaits you in God. So thank God for your pain, it may just turn out to be the best gift He has ever given you.

Prayer… Father, I have been guilty of rejecting the thorns in my life as contrary to your will for me. Sometimes I whine and complain about the discomfort they bring. Lord, help me to endure discipline as a soldier of the cross. Help me to embrace my enemies as gifts disguised. Use every discomfort, every blow, every disappointment, every difficult person as your divine chisel to make me into the image of your Son. There is no higher purpose for me than to be like Jesus. Do what it takes to conform me to his likeness.

One More Thing… “[Pain] plants the flag of truth within the fortress of a rebel soul. —C.S. Lewis

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Love, And Do What You Want

Read Romans 13

“These—and other such commands—are summed up in this one
commandment: “Love your neighbor as yourself.’ Love
does no wrong to others, so love fulfills the
requirements of God’s law.”
(Romans 13:9-10)

Food For Thought…God’s requirements for us are pretty simple really—just love everybody like we would want to be loved. That means we would love them when they deserved it, and even when they didn’t. We would love them when we felt like it, and even when we didn’t. We would love them not just in word, but we would love them in action. We would love them like they needed to be loved, like God loves them, like the creatures of a Creator who created them inherently worthy of love.

If we would just do what God created us to do—love—I have a feeling that 99% of the issues we wrestle with, the relationships we struggle over, and the trouble we find ourselves in would be taken care of. Love—that’s the cure for what ails you!

So where and how are we supposed to live out this life of love? Paul gives us three relational arenas in Romans 13. The first area has to do with our relationship to the government—what you might call the civil arena (verses 1-7).

Here Paul says God expects us to respect our government and its leaders—something that we often find hard to do. We are to observe the laws they establish; view them as God-ordained instruments for order; submit to them not only as an act of civic duty, but as that which is necessary for a clear conscience; pay our taxes; and give them honor and respect. In fact, over in I Timothy 2:2-3, Paul takes it a step further and says that we are even to pray for our governmental leaders,

“Pray for kings and all who are in authority so that we can live peaceful and quiet lives marked by godliness and dignity. This is good and pleases God our savior…”

When I think of some of the government administrations and leaders that I’ve endured during my lifetime, what Paul is asking seems like a tall order. But keep in mind that Paul wrote to the Roman believers about respecting and obeying government under some pretty awful leaders like Emperor Nero and his evil, profane, murderous ilk. If Paul could see these Roman Emperors as God’s instruments in his life, then I will have no excuse when I stand before God some day for my attitude toward my leaders.

The second area has to do with our relationship with our neighbors—what you might call the social arena (verses 8-10). Here Paul simply calls for loving actions toward those with whom we are in some kind of daily interaction—the people we live by, work with and sit next to in the pews at church. We should do nothing that would provoke anything other than a loving response from them back toward us.

The third has to do with our relationship to God—what you might call the salvation arena (verses 11-14). Here Paul reminds us that one of the leading motives, if not the only motive, for living a life of love in all the arenas of our life is for the simple reason that Jesus is coming back soon, and we will then have to give an account for how we have behaved in relation to our government and its leaders, our neighbors and our God. Because of the soon return of Jesus and the revealing of our full and final salvation, we must be continually alert to living in purity and holiness. In short, we are to “clothe ourselves with the presence of the Lord Jesus Christ (verse 14), which is Paul’s way of saying that we ought to live each moment as if it might be the last one before we find ourselves standing before Christ. Love would demand no less in light of what he did to secure our salvation!

Love! Do that and you’ll be just fine—in this life and in the one to come. Just love God with all your heart, and when you do, you cannot help but love everybody else. Do that and you’ll fulfill all God’s requirements.

One month before his death at age 65, C.S. Lewis wrote in a letter addressed to a child, “If you continue to love Jesus, nothing much can go wrong with you, and I hope you may always do so.”

That’s great advice!

So here’s a thought for you: If you knew Jesus would come back 24 hours from now, and knowing that love is the ultimate requirement of God’s law, who and how would you love?

Why not love like that anyway—you never know, this might be you last opportunity!

Prayer… Father, thank you for loving me, even when I didn’t deserve it and in spite of the fact that I didn’t love you. But your love won me over! Now I ask that you would help me to love everybody else like you loved me. Make me aware of attitudes that do not reflect your love, and alert to opportunities to express your love in tangible ways to people that cross my pass. Help me today to fulfill your requirements to love!

One more thing… “Love, and do what you want.” —Augustine

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A God Created In Our Image

Read Romans 11

“Consider therefore the kindness and sternness of God”
(Romans 11:22)

Food For Thought… American culture isn’t too thrilled with this verse! We don’t want a God who is stern; we want a God who is only kind—all the time. We want a God who is more like an easygoing grandfather than a strong father. We want nurture, not discipline. We prefer love without truth if the truth is going to hurt. We want a God who makes us feel good and who will guarantee our comfort and success.

This kinder, gentler theology has even invaded the church. A lot of people now go to church not to be engaged by truth, but to get a certain feeling—the warm fuzzies. That’s why a lot of people evaluate their church experience or even choose their church based on if it will make them feel good.

I suppose what we really want is a God created in our image!

I don’t know about you, but I don’t want to follow a God like that. I want a God who will give me a dose of tough love when I need it. I want a God who knows what is right for me, because I certainly don’t always know what is right for me. I want a God who is my loving Father, which means that he will sometimes discipline me out of love. I want a God who is more committed to my holiness than my happiness, because I will never truly be happy, not in this life or the life to come, until I get the holiness thing right.

The writer of Hebrews talked about this when he wrote,

“Endure hardship as discipline; God is treating you as sons. For what son is not disciplined by his father? If you are not disciplined (and everyone undergoes discipline), then you are illegitimate children and not true sons. Moreover, we have all had human fathers who disciplined us and we respected them for it. How much more should we submit to the Father of our spirits and live! Our fathers disciplined us for a little while as they thought best; but God disciplines us for our good, that we may share in his holiness. No discipline seems pleasant at the time, but painful. Later on, however, it produces a harvest of righteousness and peace for those who have been trained by it.” (Hebrews 12:7-11)

That’s the God I want, and I need. I want a God who created me in his image; a God who will recreate me in the image of his Son.

I want a God who is kind when I need kindness, and stern when I need sternness.

A God who will give me both is a God who really loves me!

Prayer… Dear Lord, though it is not always pleasant, let your rod and your staff guide me. Do what you must to bring me back when I wander. Do whatever it takes to keep me from evil. Do whatever it takes to conform me to the image of your dear Son. Do what it takes to make me holy, even though my flesh cries out to be happy. Lord, do whatever you see fit to present me holy and without fault on that great day when I stand in your presence. And dear Father, thank you for loving me this way.

One more thing… “If you look for truth, you may find comfort in the end; if you look for comfort you will not get either comfort or truth…” —C.S. Lewis

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Sin Doesn’t Stand A Chance

Read Romans 8

“If the Spirit of Him who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you,
He who raised Christ from the dead will also give life to your
mortal bodies through His Spirit who dwells in you.”
(Romans 8:11)

Food For Thought… I have heard this particular verse quoted most of my life—usually in the context of praying for the healing power of the Holy Spirit for a physical malady. I have received prayers, and I have offered prayers using this verse as a faith builder—that the same Spirit of God who raised the body of Jesus from death is dwelling in us, and we can expect that same resurrection power to bring divine life to our physical bodies as well. And to be sure, I believe that to be true.

What never hit me until this moment is the larger context in which we find this verse. Up to this point in Romans, Paul has been extensively contrasting the bondage to sin we experienced while living under the law with the freedom from sin we have living under the lordship of the resurrected Christ. He has shared his own struggle with sin—of doing what he shouldn’t and not doing what he should. He has been quite realistic about this back-and-forth wrestling match that goes on in our lives between sin-bondage and Spirit-freedom.

And then he drops this truth on us: We are not alone in this struggle with sin. We do not have to be disheartened by the overwhelming nature of the spiritual contest we are in. For sure, we experience a strong pull back into the slavery from which our sinful natures were freed. But praise God, we have an infinitely stronger, incomparably more powerful, indefatigable Person who is dwelling within us and is fighting for us, helping us to overcome sin—and that Person is the Holy Spirit. With him in us and for us, we cannot lose—if we will cooperate with him.

If we work with and walk with the Holy Spirit, we then can tap into the same force he exerted in the lifeless body of Jesus to reconstitute each dead cell and catalyze his breathless spirit to produce something that had never happened before, something that the master of sin, the devil, never counted on: The first fully resurrected man.

Not only that, this first fully resurrected man was just the beginning. Now, all who accept Jesus by faith enter into that same resurrection life by that same indwelling resurrection Spirit. And the indwelling Spirit enables them to live in that same resurrection power that will not only heal their sick bodies, and not only guarantee their immortality, but will empower them each and every day to resist the pull of sin and live the victorious, overcoming Christian life.

Think about that! On this day, at this very moment, the same Holy Spirit that coursed through the body of our Lord and brought him back to life again is coursing through you.

Wow! Suffering, sickness and sin—especially sin—doesn’t stand a chance!

Prayer… Holy Spirit, quicken my mortal body today so that I may live above sin, be healed from all my diseases, and face every circumstance, good or bad, with the knowledge that victory is mine through the resurrection reality of my risen Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.

One more thing… “We are to be re-made. All the rabbit in us is to disappear—the worried, conscientious, ethical rabbit as well as the cowardly and sensual rabbit. We shall bleed and squeal as the handfuls of fur come out; and then, surprisingly, we shall find underneath it all a thing we have never yet imagined: a real Man, an ageless god, a son of God, strong, radiant, wise, beautiful, and drenched in joy.” —C.S. Lewis