Inspired by the sermon last Sunday at Baptist Temple lol :)
We are trees in many ways, if you really think about it. We come from seed as trees do. We have our family trees. We put down roots when we are in a new place. We refer to our upbringing as our roots as well. Also Jesus is like the trunk of our tree. As he says, "I am the vine, you are the branches, apart from me you can do nothing." We are to drink his living water as trees need water to survive. Trees draw nourishment from the sun. We need to be nourished by the Son of God. Some trees bear fruit. We are to bear the fruit of love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, gentleness, goodness, faithfulness and self-control. Trees produce many seeds that bear more trees. This could be seen as literal offspring, but we also bear spiritual offspring all the time, well, hopefully. In that we cast the seed of the Word of God, the Gospel, into the world and some receive it and grow into trees themselves, spiritually. We are all meant to be ministers, not just the pastors of churches. Jesus told the disciples, "Go into all the world and make disciples of all nation, baptising them in the name of the Father, Son and the Holy Spirit." We are ALL called to do this. Not just pastors. I actually was the one who baptised my late husband. No I'm not an ordained minister, but I think anyone can make disciples and baptise new believers. We all have the Holy Spirit inside of us do we not? Yes. So go baptise some people today! lol In the name of Jesus! :)
Also birds make nests in trees and biblically birds were an analogy for evil spirits. Evil spirits can make "nests" or create strongholds in our minds. Don't let them. Read the book "The Bondage Breaker" to break any bonds you may have acquired from watching horror movies or doing anything like bloody mary or light as a feather type games as a kid. They seem harmless but you never know what kinds of things open a door for Satan. If you watch horror movies, stop. Be very cautious of any window that Satan might be able to come in through in your life. Looking at pornography opens a huge window to Satan. Unforgiveness is another huge one. Any time we hold a grudge.....what does the Bible say, "Do not let the sun go down on your anger and don't give the devil a foothold." Because when we are bitter towards someone else that gives Satan a foothold. I have also always thought the verse was interesting that says, "If you forgive others' sins against you, I will forgive your sins, but if you do not forgive others' sins, I will not forgive your sins." That's a pretty hard statement. So forgive anyone you haven't already today, from your heart, and break that bond Satan may have in your life, in the name of Jesus. :)
On a side note, if you ever feel a dark presence in your home or around you simply say or think, "By the power and blood of Jesus Satan be gone." And the evil spirit will flee. Scripture says, "Resist the devil and he will flee from you."
Another anaogy that pastor Sam talked about Sunday was about being flexible. Trees are flexible and can bend with the wind. The Holy Spirit is like the wind that moves us. If we are not flexible, when He blows us it may uproot us. We need to able to shift and adapt with changes. God changes things all the time on us, all the time! lol I have noticed in my own life that just when I start to get comfortable somewhere, God takes me on the next crazy and grand adventure. I have told Him many, many times He can lead me wherever He wants to and He has obviously taken me very seriously lol, because He has taken me everywhere it seems. I have had many, many changes in my life but I have stayed flexible. I can adapt easily, because I have learned to. Let the Sprit blow you where He will, but keep your roots. Don't cave, don't compromise, don't forget where you came from. Wherever your branches may sway, don't forget your roots, your spiritual roots. Stay rooted in God, but be flexible to the Holy Spirit at the same time. Know the word, grown strong in wisdom, but don't let it make you become rigid and arrogant. I have seen too many Christians that know the Bible like the back of their hand, but their hearts are rigid and callous. Don't be rigid; be flexible. Let God move you as he will. Learn to follow the Spirit of the law, not the letter of the law. God is a God of grace. Often times life is not black and white, it is grey. Don't be legalistic and rigid about what you think is absolutely right and wrong. Every situation is different. Paul said, "All things are permissible for me but I will not be mastered by anything." Also, "Don't judge lest you too shall be judged." Be flexible and be comfortable with the grey areas of life, and have grace with others and with yourself. :)
Christians need to be like the Evergreen tree. This makes me think of the song "O Christmas Tree," which is practically a worship song of the Christmas tree lol. But if you think about it, evergreen trees really are quite amazing. Their leaves never die. They produce seeds, or cones, year round. They can survive in any temperature or climate almost. They always exhibit life! We as Christians are to be the same. Pastor Sam said, "Don't be a seasonal Christian." Don't follow God when it's cool, and then not when it's not cool. Don't let the seasons of life dictate how much you will follow God. Don't follow him in the fall harvest when things are great abundant but abandon God in the winter when things get hard. Stay green year round; stay plugged into the true vine, Jesus, that gives life year round. He is always there to supply your needs. Keep looking to Him. And continue to shine, show life, be green.
When everyone else might be struggling, in the winter times, we as Christians are to strive and shine! Why? Because God is with us in the fires of life remember? He is there most in the hardest times. That is when He draws the closest to us. I love Epesians 4. It says, "So Christ himself gave the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, the pastors and teachers, 12 to equip his people for works of service, so that the body of Christ may be built up 13 until we all reach unity in the faith and in the knowledge of the Son of God and become mature, attaining to the whole measure of the fullness of Christ.
14 Then 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. 15 Instead, speaking the truth in love, we will grow to become in every respect the mature body of him who is the head, that is, Christ. 16 From him the whole body, joined and held together by every supporting ligament, grows and builds itself up in love, as each part does its work."
Let Christ build you up. Be rooted in Him. He has given pastors to help build us up. Listen to Calvary's web bot radio network. There are always GREAT sermons on that station that I love to listen to in the car. It is so encouraing and such a great way to grow in wisdom daily! We in America have no excuse. We have so many avenues to grow in our spiritual walk. There are millions of books we can buy to help us grow in our walk. We have Christian radio, that other countries don't have. We have, usually, Christian co-workers that we can find to help build us up in our walk. We can get involved in small groups every night of the week if we wanted to. We have no excuse to not be growing. We have a crazy amount of opportunities to do so. And we all are perfectly capable of reading and knowing our Bibles. If we do not, we open ourselves up to be deceived. What did Jesus do when tempted by Satan? He quoted Scripture to him. We need to be filled with Scripture so that we will have this "fullness of Christ."
Pastor Sam had a very cool illustration. He said when winter comes it is because the earth's rotation has fallen away from the sun. That is why things are colder, because we are further from the sun. The further from the Son of God that we get as Christians the colder we get as well. We stop bearing fruit. We judge. We hold grudges. Our hearts become frozen like ice. Don't let this happen to you. Stay warm, stay on fire, stay plugged into the Son. Don't let winter come over your soul. Don't let your heart turn to ice. Don't give other people chills lol. Be a warm beam of sunshine year round. "Apart from me you can do nothing." Stay connected to the Son and you will always be warm.
I just had a bit of a winter after my late husband passed. All the fullness of life I was used to was gone and I was alone again. It was very sad. :( Pastor Sam reminded us in his sermon that God knows what it's like to loose a loved one, because He lost His one and only son for 3 days. Jesus died and when he was hanging on the cross what did he say? He said, "My father, my father, why hast thou forsaken me?" God had to turn His back on his own son, because He could not look at the sin covering Jesus. God lost his son for a moment. He sent his son to die for us. God knows grief. He has been there. But praise God that He has sent me a new life giving person. My grandma said to me after Roger passed, "You know that when God takes something away, it's only so He can give you something better." It helped a lot for her to say that at the time, and it gave me hope. And praise God she was right! Ben is amazing! I love Ben lol :) Though sorrow may last for the night, joy comes with the morning. Amen :) God is so good.
We are supposed to be attractive as Christians. Jesus was attractive. People were drawn to him like a magnet. Granted some wanted to kill him, but the rest could not stay away from Him. Be that kind of person. Be like Jesus. Have compassion for others; stay warm. Stay squishy lol Stay pliable and usable. Amen? Amen :)
Look at Psalms 1, "Blessed is the man that walketh not in the counsel of the ungodly, nor standeth in the way of sinners, nor sitteth in the seat of the scornful.
2 But his delight is in the law of the Lord; and in his law doth he meditate day and night.
3 And he shall be like a tree planted by the rivers of water, that bringeth forth his fruit in his season; his leaf also shall not wither; and whatsoever he doeth shall prosper."
When we are fed by the Living Water, by Jesus and his Word, we will flourish. lol the words of the Bible are like fertilizer. They will make us grow 10 times faster than we would on our own. So fertilize your life today with reading the Bible! And you will grow like crazy! lol :) Amen?
Another good thing to remember is that when God brings you to the end of yourself, or cuts down your tree to a stump, it is so that you can grow back the right way. :) He chastens those He loves. If he can sees that we are going in the wrong direction or growing incorrectly, He just might take us back to square one so we can start all over. Paul says that we are to "walk in a manner worthy of our calling." May we all do so.
Some trees, if you eat their fruit, it can actually kill you. So it is with people we may choose to interact with or hang out with. The fruit of their life may actually be toxic to us. We need to watch out for those who bear bad fruit and steer clear, because "bad company corrupts" yes? We need to find people that will sharpen us "as iron sharpens iron."
What fruit is coming out of your life? Can you see love, joy, peace, patience, goodness, gentleness and self-control in your life? If not, get plugged back into the vine, Jesus, and you will bear much fruit!
Grace and peace be with you all! God bless! :)
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