Baptist City Blog

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How to Hide Sins

James 5:19-20

"Brethren, if any of you do err from the truth, and one convert him; Let him know, that he which converteth the sinner from the error of his way shall save a soul from death, and shall hide a multitude of sins."

Hiding sin is normally not productive. In fact, the Scriptures warn us in Proverbs 28:13 not to cover sin. However, in the verse above God shows us that the proper way to hide sins is not by covering up, but it is by converting the sinner. I want you to notice that this is not simply talking about a lost person, but it is talking about someone who is saved and has fallen into sin. God says when you convert the sinner that you "...hide a multitude of sins." Let me teach you several things about converting the sinner.

First, conversion believes there is good in a person. Whenever you take an old car that needs converting, the person who does the conversion believes that the car still has value if it is converted. Though a Christian may have fallen into sin, let me remind you that there is still good in that person which God can use. If there were no good in them, then God would not leave them on this Earth.

Second, conversion sees what they will be. When a person converts an old car, they must have a vision of what that car will become. Likewise, if you are going to be successful at converting the fallen, then you must look beyond their fallen condition and see a finished product. God did this with several people. He called Jacob Israel, because He didn't see the deceiver, but He saw the prince that Jacob would become. He called Gideon a mighty man of valor because He didn't look at the scared person, but He saw the mighty warrior who fought the Midianite army with 300 men. God looks beyond the fallen condition to see the converted condition. You will only be successful at converting people if you will look beyond their fallen condition and see their converted condition.

Third, conversion takes work. It is never an easy process to convert the sinner from the error of his way. This is why you don't see many Christians involved in the conversion process. Too many Christians want immediate results when true conversion takes time and hard work.

Fourth, conversion takes patience. Whenever you try to convert something, you will always run across unexpected problems that you could not foresee. Likewise, you must be patient with a person if you are going to convert them from their sin. They will have setbacks, but you must not give up on them. Be patient until you see the conversion process completed.

Fifth, conversion causes other to forget what they used to be. This is exciting because when people see the finished product, they don't see the scars under the paint, they only see the finished product. Conversion is like the paint that covers the sins of the fallen so that people only see the finished product. Are the scars still there? Oh yes! However the scars of sin are covered by the finished product.

Last, conversion makes the finished product more valuable than the original price. Many times when a car is converted, the price of that car is far more valuable than what it cost in the first place. Likewise, when a sinner is successfully converted, they will be more valuable after the conversion than before they fell. This is exciting to me because that means everybody still has great value, they just need to be converted.

Let me challenge you to get into the conversion business. Invest your life in converting the fallen and you will find extreme satisfaction in the work God will use you to do.

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There Ariseth Another Priest

Hebrews 7:15

"And it is yet far more evident: for that after the similitude of Melchisedec there ariseth another priest,"

After Adam and Eve sinned, in order for them to be reconciled to God, they needed a sacrifice. However, how could a sinful man come to a holy God and expect Him to accept their sacrifice? When God set up the ordinances of the sacrifice, He ordained the high priest to be the one who would stand between He and man. Though this was an impersonal way, this was the only way that man could be reconciled to God.

In the book of Hebrews, God shows us that Jesus became our High Priest. It says about Jesus in the verse above, "...there ariseth another priest," This priest was Jesus Christ. When Jesus died on the cross, He not only was our sacrifice, but He was our High Priest Who took His own blood and placed it on the mercy seat in Heaven. Because Jesus is our High Priest, we now have direct access to God through Jesus Christ. Jesus being our High Priest means several things to the Christian.

First, because Jesus is our High Priest, He became our eternal sacrifice. Hebrews 9:12 says, "Neither by the blood of goats and calves, but by his own blood he entered in once into the holy place, having obtained eternal redemption for us." Notice that Jesus only had to atone for our sins one time. The reason is because His blood was righteous blood. Only through the precious blood of Jesus Christ can anyone get saved. Yet, when you got saved, you were saved for an eternity. You are not saved one day and lost the next, but when you got saved you were saved forever. What a wonderful thought that because Jesus is our High Priest we are saved for an eternity.

Second, because Jesus is our High Priest, He is our mediator. Hebrews 9:15 says, "And for this cause he is the mediator of the new testament,..." Christian, you can now go directly to Jesus in prayer and know that He will mediate for you to God. Yes, Jesus interceded for our sins, but it means more than that. Every time you go to God in prayer you have Jesus to bargain with the Father to get your prayers answered. Though we don't deserve our prayers to be answered, the Father will accept Jesus, thus our prayers can get answered.

Third, because Jesus is our High Priest, He understands our feelings. Hebrews 4:15 reminds us that Jesus knows what you are going through because He was touched with the "feelings of our infirmities." When no one else understands what we are going through, Jesus understands. Whenever you face the hardships of life, you can rest assured that there is One Who understands how you feel; that One is Jesus Christ.

Last, because Jesus is our High Priest, He is our inheritance. Hebrews 9:16 says, "For where a testament is, there must also of necessity be the death of the testator." There is one thing to which you can look forward and that is that one day we will see Jesus. Because Jesus in our inheritance, that means He is personally yours. I love to think that Jesus is mine. Better yet, not only is Jesus mine, but I belong to Him. What a relationship! Christian, when no one else wants you, there is One Who always wants you and that One is Jesus Christ. He is our inheritance, and one day we have His promise that we can live with Him forever. Because of this, you should purify your life to be ready to meet Him when He comes.

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Overcoming Unbelief

Hebrews 3:19

"So we see that they could not enter in because of unbelief."

One of the greatest sins that a Christian can commit against God is the sin of unbelief. Unbelief is calling God a liar. Unbelief is saying that God's Word is not true. According to the verse above, it was unbelief the kept the Children of Israel from being able to go into the Promised Land. God promised them while they were in Egypt that He would take them into the Promised Land. However, their trust in Egypt's strength sowed unbelief in their hearts concerning whether or not God could actually deliver them. Because of their unbelief, many died in the wilderness, and many were made to wander for forty years in that same wilderness.

Overcoming unbelief is imperative if you are going to experience God's blessings to their fullest. God cannot bless unbelief. In fact, it is unbelief that will keep you from seeing God do great works in your life. It was the unbelief of the people where Jesus was born that kept them from seeing His miracles. Likewise, your unbelief will keep you from seeing God do miraculous things in your life. So how do we overcome unbelief?

First, don't listen to the naysayers. In verse 12, God shows us that the naysayers influenced Israel and kept them from believing. Don't spend time with people who are always negative. Don't spend time with people who always say it can't be done. The naysayers negativity will rub off on you and will keep you from experiencing the great miracles of God.

Second, keep your heart soft. In verse 8, God said that the Children of Israel had hearts that were hardened. That means you must do your best to keep a soft heart so that unbelief will not rule you. In other words, keeping a soft heart implies that your heart is teachable. Never get to the point in your Christianity where you think you know it all and have seen it all. If you get to this point in your Christianity, then your heart will be hardened and you will not see the great works of God.

Third, spend time with people of faith. In verse 13, God says to "exhort one another daily." You need to spend time with people who are not afraid to step out by faith. When you spend time with those who consistently step out by faith, then it will build your faith. When they step out by faith it challenges you to do the same. Find those people who consistently step out by faith and do great things for God, and spend time with them.

Fourth, remember God's past works. In verse 9, we learn that Israel forgot to remember God's works of the past. Likewise, when you experience unbelief, you need to go back to the past and remember what God had done for you. This rebuilds your faith and belief that God can and will work through you.

Last, trust God. The best way to drive away unbelief is to believe. Don't listen to your flesh, but listen to the Spirit of God. Though the voice of unbelief will always be present, you must listen to the silent voice of God and step out. It takes courage, but you will never experience God's great blessings until you trust Him.

What is your unbelief keeping you from doing? There is something in your life right now that you have not done because of your unbelief. I challenge you to step out and trust God in that area. If God laid something on your heart to do, then silence the unbelief by stepping out. God can only work when you stop listening to unbelief and step out by faith on His Word and promises.

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Entangled Affairs

2 Timothy 2:4

"No man that warreth entangleth himself with the affairs of this life; that he may please him who hath chosen him to be a soldier."

We are often reminded in the Scriptures that we are in a war. In 1 Timothy 1:18, we are commanded to "war a good warfare." In Ephesians 6:11, we are commanded to "Put on the whole armour of God..." so that we can properly fight the Devil and avoid his tricks. Until a Christian fully realizes that they are in a war, then they will never be victorious in the Christian life.

However, in the verse above, we are commanded not to entangle ourselves "...with the affairs of this life:..." God said that you will not be a good soldier when your life is entangled in this life's affairs. According to Webster's 1828 dictionary, the word "entangle" means, "To twist or interweave in such a manner as not to be easily separated." In other words, we are to be careful that we don't allow the world's affairs to become so interwoven in our lives that it takes our focus off of what God has left us here to do. God knows that a Christian must stay focused on the spiritual war if they are going to win. To keep from being entangled in worldly affairs, there are some things you will need to do.

First, understand what God's will is for your life. You must realize that God has a will for your life and that is what He left you here to do. If you don't get a grasp of God's will for your life, then you will have a hard time not becoming entangled with worldly affairs.

Second, keep your priorities straight. Your first priority as a Christian is to serve the LORD. Whenever priorities conflict in life, you must determine which priorities are more important. Remember that God commands in Matthew 6:33 to seek Him first. Therefore, when a worldly affair takes you away from doing God's will for your life, then you must follow God's will and forsake the worldly affair. It is easy to allow worldly affairs to become intertwined in our lives because we must live in this world. However, you must always keep your priorities straight by remembering that God ALWAYS comes first.

Third, strive for spiritual rewards and not worldly awards and recognition. In verses 20-21, God reminds us that we are to purge ourselves from the things of this world so that we become a vessel of honor. In other words, to keep from becoming entangled in worldly affairs, you must seek spiritual rewards. Don't do things to get recognized by this world, but only do things to please God. If you always have to get recognition from people to feel satisfied, then you will certainly become entangled in worldly affairs. If you keep your priorities straight, then you will also keep your focus right concerning spiritual rewards.

Last, study the Word of God. In verse 15, God commands us to study the Scriptures. When you daily study the Scriptures, you will understand your orders and what it is that you are to do. The Scriptures are the Christians orders for this war. Daily studying the Scriptures will help to keep your focus on serving God. Those who struggle to daily read the Word of God are those who struggle with being entangled with worldly affairs.

Though you must live in this world, you must be careful about intertwining the world with serving God. Don't tie yourself into too many worldly functions. Only do what you have to do in the world to make it through life. Anchor yourself and your energies in serving God and you will be successful in not becoming entangled in worldly affairs.

Keeping Good Memories

1 Timothy 4:12

"Let no man despise thy youth; but be thou an example of the believers, in word, in conversation, in charity, in spirit, in faith, in purity."

The Book of 1 Timothy was written to a young man who was entering the ministry. Knowing the hardships that Timothy would face in the ministry, Paul challenged him not to despise his youth. After telling him not to despise his youth, he then told him how to live so that he could have good memories of his youth. What a person does in their youth will either haunt them for the rest of their life or will be good memories that they can talk about to their children. The same way a youth should live to keep good memories is the same way everyone can live so that they don't regret or despise any portion of their life.

First, to keep good memories, be careful of what you say. We often hear the statement, "Sticks and stones may break my bones, but words will never harm me." This statement is a lie. Bones heal, but the words we speak will follow us for the rest of our life. Be careful with what you say you will do in life. Don't ever say something that you can't back up. Likewise, be careful with what you say to people. Don't say things in the moment of anger that you will regret later. To keep good memories, watch the words you say.

Second, live a way of life that you won't regret in later years. The word "conversation" is talking about your manner of living. Often people do things that they later regret. I have especially watched singles live certain ways because it is the first time they feel they have freedom. Before you ever choose an action to perform, always consider the ramifications that will follow you for the rest of your life.

Third, love people to keep good memories. One of the things I try to do is love as many people as I can because I know that one day I will get old. Loving people is a choice. Don't be abrasive with people, but love them. Don't ruin every relationship you have, because one day you won't have any relationships if you do this. Simply put, be good to everyone, because everyone is having a tough time. If you will be good to everyone, then you will have good memories.

Fourth, have a good spirit. Having a good spirit is a choice. Don't be grumpy or filled with strife all the time. When a person has a good spirit, it will help them to create good memories. Having a good spirit is a way that you can avoid despising any portion of your life.

Fifth, serve God. Your faith is your service to God. The best memories you'll create will be in your service to God. Don't wait to serve God until you are old. Serve Him while you are young so that you can experience the blessings of serving Him with your whole life.

Last, live a pure life. Christian, it is so important that you keep your mind pure. It is highly important that you avoid the lusts of this world. Lusts and adultery will only leave regrets. Don't think that one act of indiscretion won't follow you for the rest of your life. It will! Living a pure life will help you to have good memories.

Yes, God was talking to the youth and was teaching them how not to despise any portion of their life. However, if these actions will keep a youth from regrets, then it will keep an older person from regrets as well. If you live without regrets, then you'll live with good memories.

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The Key to Victorious Christian Living

Galatians 5:24

"And they that are Christ's have crucified the flesh with the affections and lusts."

Everybody should want to win in life. The purpose for entering a war is to win. No country goes to war with the intention of losing. A country that goes to war goes with the intention of winning. According to the Scriptures, every Christian is in a war. Your desire should be to win in the war against Satan and the flesh.

In the Christian life, you will either fulfill the works of the flesh, or you will walk in the Spirit and exemplify the fruit of the Spirit. We learn from the verse above how to be victorious in walking in the Spirit. The key to being victorious in the Christian life is by having a daily crucifixion. Without crucifying two things on a daily basis, you will fail to be victorious as a Christian.

First, you must crucify your affections. When God says to crucify your affections, He is talking about letting your passions die. In other words, you will never be successful in serving God without letting your goals die. Your affections are the passions that drive you. In other words, they are the things in life that drive you to do what you do.

Christian, though your goals in life may be godly goals, it is not your goals for which you are to live, but you are to live for the goals that God has for you. For instance, a pastor may have goals to build a growing church. Though these are not bad goals, these may not be God's goals for you. Your goal may be to be a great Christian, build the largest bus route, Sunday school class, or be the best soul winner. Though these goals are not bad goals, God is teaching that you have to crucify your affections. Notice that God did not say only the bad affections, but He simply said, "affections." That means that even your good affections must be crucified. Even if your goals in life are good, you are not to pursue your goals, but you are to pursue walking in the Spirit. To crucify your affections or goals means you are to kill your goals and passions for the sake of fulfilling the fruit of the Spirit which is, love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, meekness and temperance. These things are God's affections for which He wants you to live. You will only do these things by crucifying your affections.

The second thing you must do to live a victorious Christian life is to crucify your lusts. Your lusts are your carnal appetites. That means to live victoriously you must control your thought life. You will never live in the flesh and keep a good thought life. Your thought life at the best is corrupt. On a daily basis you need to ask God to help you to control your mind. The best way to control your mind is to live in the Word of God. Meditate throughout the day on what you have read in the morning so that your mind is controlled by Christ. The purpose of crucifying our lusts is so that we can have the mind of Christ.

If you want to be victorious in your Christian life, then you must have a daily crucifixion. You must daily crucify your affections for the fruit of the Spirit, and you must daily crucify your lusts for the mind of Christ. Every morning when you wake up, ask God to help you in crucifying your affections and lusts so that He can live through you. If you are successful in doing these things, then you will be victorious in your Christian life.

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Wearing Out Your Welcome

Proverbs 25:17

"Withdraw thy foot from thy neighbour's house; lest he be weary of thee, and so hate thee."

Have you ever had anyone over to your house for a meal and they didn't know when to leave? There is nothing worse than trying to politely ask someone to go home. When I was a boy it was common for my parents to invite people over to the house for different events. I remember one Thanksgiving Day that we invited a family to the house for the meal. This family had fallen on hard times, and we wanted to be a blessing to them. They arrived before the meal, and for a while we had a wonderful time of fellowship. The problem was they didn't know when to leave. It was well into the night when my dad finally had to tell them to go home because it was time for us to go to bed.

The verse above deals with this very subject. God is teaching us to leave our neighbor's house before they get tired of us. In other words, God is teaching us not to wear our welcome out with those who are being kind to us. He said that if we wear out our welcome, then they will hate us. This is simply teaching that our neighbors will hate having us over to their house. To avoid this from happening, there are a few things you should consider when going to someone's house, or when inviting someone to your house.

First, find out how long the invitation is for. Whenever you invite someone to your house, or you are invited, set a time to arrive and leave. Often people just don't know how long they are supposed to stay. Sometimes people stay too long because they are afraid they will offend you if they leave too early. By setting a time limit on how long you expect them to stay, this will keep them from wearing out their welcome.

Second, if your children are invited, keep your children under control. Whenever someone would invite my family to their home, my parents would threaten us with punishment if we misbehaved. The quickest way to wear out your welcome is to allow your children to wildly run around. Teach your children to behave when visiting the homes of others. Of course, the best way to teach them to behave outside your home is to be sure they behave in your home. If they will behave at home, then they will behave when they are at someone else's home.

Third, plan activities of what you are going to do to keep the time from becoming dull. Don't just invite people over and not have anything to do, but have some things planned that everyone would want to do. It would be good to find out before they come if they would enjoy doing these activities so that they don't feel they have to do what you planned to keep from offending you.

Last, leave before the welcome is worn out. One of the invaluable things I have learned is to leave when they want you to stay. This may sound strange, but if they want you to stay, then they will want you to come back. Learn to evaluate how the situation is going, and if you perceive that things are starting to wind down, then leave. When you leave and they say, "We ought to do this again," then you have been successful at not wearing out your welcome.

I'm all for hospitality and for Christians fellowshipping with each other, but the quickest way to ruin this is to wear out your welcome. Be careful about staying too long. Don't be known as one to avoid having over to the house. Learn how long your welcome is, and leave before it's over.

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Treasure Hunting

2 Corinthians 4:7

"But we have this treasure in earthen vessels, that the excellency of the power may be of God, and not of us."

Do you remember when you were a child how you thought it would be exciting to go on a treasure hunt and discover a treasure? There are people who have given their lives and wealth to discover lost treasures. However, the greatest treasures that have never been discovered are in the lives of people with whom you associate. The verse above teaches us that the greatest treasure you will find is in people. If you ever want to become a treasure hunter and discover the treasures in people, then there are several things that you will have to remember as you search for these hidden treasures.

First, everybody has something that is valuable to God. This is why you should never discard anyone. Every person whom God has placed around you is there for you to discover the treasure inside of them. You may not see the treasure, but there is something very valuable to God inside of every person if you will take the time to search for that treasure.

Second, everyone's treasure is covered by sin. Notice that God said the treasure is "...in earthen vessels,..." The reason why you can't see the treasure in people is because sin has covered it. The worse a person is, the more searching you will have to do to discover that treasure. The only reason why you can't see the treasure in someone is because sin has covered it. Just because sin has "ruined" someone's life does not mean they don't have any value to God. This just means you have to work harder to reveal that treasure.

Third, to discover the treasure in people, someone must be willing to search for it. Are you going to let the treasure in people go undiscovered because you are too wrapped up in your own life? One of the greatest feelings you will ever have is when you uncover a treasure that sin hid. Just because others have given up on someone does not mean that you shouldn't continue to search for the treasure in that person. Don't ever give up on anyone, because they are waiting for you to find the treasure in them. If the truth be known, there are some who don't believe they have any treasure in themselves, so you must be willing to believe there is treasure in them and search for it until you discover it.

Fourth, the treasure will never be discovered while the earthen vessel covers it. To discover the treasure in people's lives, you must remove the sin that covers it. Sin camouflages treasures, so to find that treasure you must help people overcome their sin.

Fifth, it will take time for the treasure to be discovered. Rarely will you have a quick discovery of treasure in someone's life. Most often you will have to be patient with people while you work at discovering the treasure. However, don't give up, because you will discover that treasure if you keep working with them.

Sixth, there will always be liabilities with each treasure. Remember that each treasure is in earthly vessels. Don't let the earthly vessel cause you not to see the treasure inside. Don't focus on someone's liability, but focus instead on their treasure.

Last, only the power of God can reveal the treasure. In the verse above, it is the power of God that revealed the treasure. You will only reveal the treasure in people's lives through God's power. Be sure to yield to the Holy Spirit daily so that God can help you to uncover the treasures in the lives of others.