Bible Doctrine Series-Jehovah-M'Kaddesh

Jehovah-M’Kaddesh. The Hebrew word m’kaddesh means “to purify, cleanse, set apart as sacred; to declare holy and consecrated to God.” Jehovah-M’kaddesh is the Lord who makes us holy. Repeatedly in Scripture we are reminded of the awesomeness of our God. Moses was instructed to remove his shoes in the presence of a holy God. Only the high priest could enter into God’s holy presence once as year, and then, he was required to be covered with a blood sacrifice for his sin. David declares the holiness of his God. Psalm 103:1 “Bless the Lord, O my soul; and all that is within me, bless His holy name.” Merrill C. Tenney says this about holiness: “Holiness is first applied to God, and is early associated with ideas of purity and righteousness….Holiness means the pure, loving nature of God, separate from evil.” In the Old Testament, people were instructed to offer something to God. In the New Testament, we are to be that living, holy, and acceptable sacrifice offered to God. Paul concluded that such action on the part of a believer was reasonable. In Christ we were not only accepted, but made acceptable. We were made the very righteousness of God in Him, born-again as a new species with the character and nature of God’s holiness. We are now to work out what is true within. Note: In many cases the Jehovah of the Old Testament is none other than the Jesus of the New Testament. Cf. Isaiah 40:3 with Matthew 3:5; Numbers 21:5-6 with 1 Corinthians 10:9. Dr. Ken Copley is available for counseling, conferences, and local church meetings.

The Need for Personal Holiness

I peter 1:14-16. "As obedient children, not fashioning yourselves according to the former lusts in your ignorance. But as he which has called you is hold, so be holy in all manner of conversation. Because it is written, be holy for I am holy." As the Apostle is writing the Holy Spirit draws his attention to Leviticus 11:44 and he writes on holiness. Yet there is a difference. Guided by the Holy Spirit he changed the imperative command "You shall be holy" into a loving appealing exhortation "Be holy." God is holy and He has made holiness the moral condition necessary to the health of his universe. Whatever is holy is healthy; evil is a moral sickness that must end ultimately in death. Note eight aspects of holiness. First, the dislike of holiness. A man once said "I do not believe in all this teaching abut holiness and Christ conformity. I am quite content to know that I am saved and on my way to Heaven." Dr. Stuart Holden answered the man in the following way "My friend that is hardly the proper criteria of judgment. You are satisfied to know that you are saved and going to Heaven. But is God satisfied? Is that what Christ died for?" The man was silent. Bishop Moule declared "The fully pardoned must long to be fully holy." I Thess. 4:3 "For this is the will of God, even your sanctification." Second. The need of holiness. Owen said "I do not understand how a man can be a true believer unto whom sin is not the greatest burden, sorrow, and trouble." The very fact that we are sinners shows a need for holiness. A Spirit filled believer will desire to be holy because God is holy. This is proof that we love the Lord Jesus Christ. The fruit of the Spirit is character, conduct and converts. Third, The definition of holiness. Holiness is the habit of being of one mind with God. The holy person will endeavor to shun every known sin and to keep every Biblical commandment. A holy man will strive to be like the Lord Jesus Christ. It is complete conformity in all things great and small to the Holy will of God. Holiness us being one mind with God in all the judgments of the mind, in the feelings of the heart, and in all the outworking of life. Holiness is agreeing with God's estimate of things. Holiness is to have a conscience clean through the blood, and life guided by the Spirit through the Word. It is to have the power of Christ resting upon you, and to experience joy through the freedom He gives. Forth, the condition of holiness. Bishop Ryle said "We must be holy, because this is the only sound evidence that we have saving faith in our Lord Jesus Christ. The condition of holiness is found in obedience to all known commands and desires of our Lord and obedience to God always leads to the blood of Christ (see I John 1:7). Fifth, the pattern of holiness. "As He" God the Father and the Lord Jesus Christ are the true pattern of Holiness. We are in the process of becoming. The Christian seeking holiness will become more and more like Jesus. Sixth, The imperative of holiness. There are many things in life which we can choose to do. God's wisdom leads us to devote ourselves to God in holiness. Without holiness on earth we shall never be prepared to enjoy heaven. Heaven is a holy place. Seventh, the field of holiness. We must be holy in conversation and conduct. Those who do not have a Christianity that sanctifies the small things in life do not have a Christianity that will sanctify the crises of life. Eight, the possibility of holiness. The very fact that God urges us to holiness is sufficient to settle the possibility of holiness. Holiness is wrapped up in Christ. Holiness is a gift and a process. It as a gift from God, in Christ, it is also a process to be worked out in daily life. God is holy with an absolute holiness that knows no degrees, this He cannot impart to His creatures. But there is a relative and contingent holiness which He shares with angels and seraphim in heaven and with redeemed men on earth as their preparation for heaven. This holiness God can and does impart to His children. Above all we must believe that God sees us perfect in His Son while He disciplines and chastens and purges us that we may be partakers of His holiness. Dr. Ken Copley is available for counseling, conferences, and local church meetings.

Building Endurance

"And you shall be hated of all men for my name's sake: but he that endures to the end shall be saved" (Matthew 10:22). Have you noticed Christianity is not going to be the dominant culture in America. Jesus gave us the instruction in the verse above because true discipleship can be hard and very demanding. We live in a culture where most folks, believers included want things as to be as simple and easy as possible. Christian values are not going to be dominate our culture. The Lord Jesus is telling us to be ready to face unfair criticism and rejection. It has always been an uphill battle to change the hearts and minds of men and women in any society. We as God's children are the very tools God uses to be a blessing to others. We have been entrusted with the Gospel of Jesus Christ, which is the "Power of God unto salvation for those who believe." We are like beggars telling other beggars where we found bread. Nothing satisfies the starving soul like the "Bread of Life", our Lord Jesus. The ones who "Endure until the end" are believers. Nothing shows what we are made of like persecution. In centuries past it was the blood of the martyrs that became the seed of the church. The Christian life is not a play ground but a battle ground. The hope of America and our world is the Lord Jesus Christ. When I was in Bible College one of my professors had a check up at the Mayo Clinic. The professor was witnessing to the Doctor and the Doctor asked "Do you believe in the literal return of Jesus Christ?" My professor assured the Physician he did. To which the Doctor responded "People like you ought to be locked away." I believe this was a taste of things to come in the way our culture will view believers. I am pleased to proclaim our God will sustain us. Remember the three men in the fiery Furnace. The Son of God walked in with them. The only thing they lost were the bonds that held them. They walked out free men. Let's determine in our hearts that as we walk in union with Christ, we will endure to the end. Dr. Ken Copley is available for counseling, conferences, and local church meetings.

What Do You Reflect

"John was a lamp that burned and gave light, and you chose for a time to enjoy his light" (John 5:35). The beauty of the moon on a clear night is a beautiful sight to behold. Yet the moon is only a reflection of the sun. The moon in and of itself has no light, it can only reflect light. Take away the sun and we would never see the moon. The moon would simply be an dark object in the sky. Like wise a diamond only reflects light. A fine cut diamond does a very good job of reflecting light, yet is bears no light of itself. I have been told there is no cut that measures the quality of a diamond, but rather there are a number of measurements taken as to how it reflects light. How well it reflects light, (as well as size) determines its value. Much like the moon our lives are dark until we meet Jesus. With out Him our lives are dulled by the sin created by Adam and passed on to us. Paul said "For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God" (Romans 3:23-24). Our Lord contrasted in many parables those who allow His life to live in them to those who choose to live amidst darkness. Jesus in the heart is the Light that is shining upon our life in order to reflect the glory of God's Son through us. The workplace is a really good place to reflect His glory. We must ask ourselves how well are we reflecting the Light of His glory and grace into a dark and fallen world. Its always proper to ask the Lord to make your life a continual reflection of His light to others. DR. Ken Copley is available for counseling, conferences, and local church meetings.

Kingdom Living

"Surely you desire truth in the inner parts; you teach me wisdom in the inmost place" (Psalm 51:6). In this Psalm David came under powerful conviction of sin. As a result he poured out his soul to God in prayer pleading for mercy and grace. David's sin of adultery and murder had been weighing heavily on his soul. True repentance of sin leads one to healing and restored fellowship with the Lord. He realized that only God could restore him. God heard his cry for pardon and granted him forgiveness and reconciliation. David realized his sin was committed against God. This realization brought great sorrow and shame. To sin willfully is to deny the Lord, for one must push Him out of their mind in order to do evil. Every sinner who returns to the Lord desires God's truth in their inner man. God gives wisdom and discernment to the repentant. Only the Lord can give grace to overcome the power of our old corrupt nature. Then we can "Walk in the Spirit and not fulfill the lusts of the flesh." In 1923 the following individuals were the most powerful men in the world. They ruled the world of finance and money. Please take special note of the end of their lives. Charles Schwab, president of the largest steel company in America. Samuel Insull, president of the largest utility company. Howard Hopson, president of the largest gas company. Arthur Cutten, the great wheat speculator. Richard Whitney, president of the New York Stock Exchange. Albert Fall, Secretary of Interior in President Harding's cabinet. Jesse Livermore, the great "bear" on Wall Street. Ivan Krueger, head of the world's greatest monopoly. Leon Fraser, president of the Bank of International Settlements. These men were "movers and shakers," of their day, the kind many people envy and wish to emulate. Yet something went terribly wrong with these men's lives. Twenty-five years later: Charles Schwab, went bankrupt. Samuel Insull, died in foreign land penniless and a fugitive from justice. Howard Hopson was insane. Arthur Cutten, was insolvent and died abroad. Richard Whitney had just been released from Sing-Sing prison. Albert Fall had just been pardoned from prison and died at home, broke. Jesse Livermore committed suicide. Ivan Krueger committed suicide. Leon Fraser committed suicide. Each of these individuals had a melt down in their inner lives. It began in their minds and hearts. "As a man thinks in his heart so is he." The inner man is where life's battles are won or lost. "Keep your heart with all diligence for out of it flow the issues of life." Ask the Lord daily to give you the strength to live a life of integrity and honesty. He is the source of strength for Kingdom living. Dr. Ken Copley is available for counseling, conferences, and local church meetings.

The True and Living God

“I, even I, am the LORD, and apart from me there is no savior. I have revealed and saved and proclaimed I, and not some foreign god among you. You are my witnesses," declares the LORD, "that I am God” (Isaiah 43:11-12). I remember as a freshman in Bible College reading an article, written by an ungodly individual, that was critical of the Christian faith. He said the Christian faith is "Nothing more than a psychological crutch." My response was how dare he attack my God and my faith. Then it dawned on me, he had not experienced the power and grace of God that comes through the new birth. The above verse does bring to mind the question, Is belief in God something for the weak, a childish gullibility, a way of side stepping reality? From [Freud’s] perspective, God is merely a creation of the human mind, a projection emanating from human need and desire rather than a distinct reality or being that exists independently of the human mind. Freud’s notion of God acting as an idealized father figure for humans, providing a cushion from the harshness of the real world and a comforting friend in the midst of life’s troubles, reduces God to a human construct. Indeed, for Freud, God is made in humanity’s own image and is the “ultimate wish-fulfillment”; God does not actually exist but is merely the creation of humanity’s imagination and desire for a loving father figure. Can we as believers respond to this? Is God really able to be explained away so easily by one aspect of psychology? The answer is a resounding no. As the song writer stated "He lives, He lives, I know my Savior lives, for He lives within my heart." Our verses for today reminds us we are here as witnesses to "Declare the praises of him who has called us out of darkness into his marvelous light" (I Peter 2). Unlike the blind unbeliever we are recipients of God's blessings. We are the people who anticipate His mighty deliverance yet to come. How dare we remain silent? There is no place for discouragement or retreat in our lives. To be discouraged is to lack courage. No believer has the luxury of discouragement, for we are in a battle for truth. Jesus Christ is our Commander and Chief, and He won the battle for us back at Calvary. Thus we fight from victory, rather than for victory. The same God who made the corpse of Jesus our living Lord is the same God Who is mighty to save. Being a witness of the living God, ought to humble us. Jacob was humbled when God touched his thigh, he was renamed Israel and walked with a limp the rest of his life. We ought to beware of any Christian leader who does not walk with a limp. Sometimes God orders circumstances into our lives to develop humility and create greater dependence upon Him. It is because God works greater through weakness than strength. The truth is we can get humility voluntarily or involuntarily. Its much easier if we get it voluntarily. "God gives more grace to the humble" one way or the other we'll get it. For God commissions humble, trusting, witnesses to do His Kingdom work. Dr. Ken Copley is available for counseling, conferences, and local church meetings.

Cheap Grace

“My dear children, I write this to you so that you will not sin. But if anybody does sin, we have one who speaks to the Father in our defense—Jesus Christ, the Righteous One” (I John 2:1) Have you ever met a "Christian" who claimed they didn't sin? I know a fellow who said he had not sinned in 20 years. One day he backed into a persons' car in a parking lot. He drove away from the damaged vehicle without leaving a note. Several days later, he admitted to himself "That was sin." He blew a 20 year no sinning streak. The truth is this gentleman had been very boastful and arrogant about his "Sinlessness". He constantly ridiculed his wife and was critical of his children. He was living in a fantasy world and the only person he was fooling was himself. Many believer practice "Cheap grace" this means they live as though God ignores or condones their sins. However Scriptural forgiveness is real, that means our sin is real and must be dealt with. We can't ignore it, we can't deny it, that's not grace, its a lie. Cheap grace means living without the demand of obedience upon us. When we disregard obedience to God then nothing can be labeled as "Sinful". No act is clearly right or wrong, this means there is no need of forgiveness. In the verse above John reminds us that we fall short of keeping God's commands. He also reminds us that where there is forgiveness available, it follows that certain actions whether thoughts, words or deeds, can be dealt with only when one confesses and is forgiven (I John 1:9-10). Cheap grace is grace minus obedience, which in essence is no grace at all. In this passage John is casting a glance at those who have left the church, for they undoubtedly claimed to know God. He is saying here that obedience is the manifestation or evidence of knowing God. Obeying God's commands does not require perfect obedience, if by perfect we mean living without sinning. Obedience points to the consistency of our discipleship, not to individual acts taken in isolation. Obedience is our response to a living God and not a check list of rules. God gives us the direction of obedience, its "Walking in the light," as striving to conform our character to that of God. Knowledge of God always expresses itself in obedience, and obedience is always measured by concrete actions. Jesus' obedience was made manifest in the ultimate sacrifice of His life on the cross. The child who knows his parents well also knows their expectations well. The child who loves and respects her parents, honors their expectations. The idea that knowledge of God expresses itself in obedience has its roots in the Old Testament. The prophets especially spoke of knowing God, though more often they rebuked the people for not knowing God (Jer. 9:6). A lack of knowing God did not imply intellectual inadequacy, but rather moral failure to a lack of faithfulness and obedience. Are you walking with the Lord in the light of His Word? Are you obeying the light He gives you? In discipleship nearness is likeness, are you walking close enough to Him that His character is beginning to rub off on you? Have you learned that grace isn't cheap? Dr. Ken Copley is available for counseling, conferences, and local church meetings.

Soap for a Dirty Mouth

I grew up in a culture where any good mother fixed the problem of a dirty mouth with soap. Several of my grade school friends experienced a good mouth washing. They related to me that a mouthful of soap really doesn't taste all that great. The problem of a dirty mouth goes a little deeper than the tongue. The battle for a pure mouth starts at the heart. A godly man was helping shingle the roof on a church. He hit his thumb squarely with the hammer. As blood squirted from the wound he said "This is going to really be inconvenient." "Out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaks." Paul challenged the believers at Emphasis with the following. “Do not let any unwholesome talk come out of your mouths, but only what is helpful for building others up according to their needs, that it may benefit those who listen.” (Ephesians 4:29). As believers we are ambassadors of Christ. A faithful ambassadors is on duty 24/7. Every conversation we engage in gives opportunity to impart grace to those who might be in desperate need of it. We must be careful to not waste such an opportunity by means of frivolous, meaningless conversation, or even worse speech that is vulgar or obscene. Every believer is given opportunity to point lost, hopeless, people to the Lamb of God, who takes away sin. When Paul wrote about "Unwholesome talk" I believe he had several things in mind. The first thing would be taking the Name of the Lord in vain. This would be a great contradiction of who we are as Christians. No one in a good marriage would stomp on his marriage license or wedding ring to express anger, they stand for that which is holy and pure. So does the Name of our God and our Lord Jesus Christ. Second, trivializing the terrible. Things like hell, damnation and holiness. These are all realities. It is a travesty to use the reality of hell like a punctuation mark for emphasis when talking about sports or politics. The same holds true for damnation. The divine command "Be holy as I am holy," carries for us the same weight it carried for Moses, Jesus and the apostles. To use the expression "Holy cow or holy anything ought to smite our hearts, because it treats something infinitely precious as trifle. Third, referencing sex and the body in vulgar ways. The whole assumption behind the use of vulgar four-letter words is that they communicate scorn, disdain or hate. How does the act of sexual relations, created by God as good to be fulfilled in marriage get translated into a four letter word and carry the meaning of hate and scorn? The answer is simple, first one has to get God out of their mind. When God is pushed out of a persons thoughts, they are then "Free" to become "Slaves to sin." (Romans 6:20). And fourth, speaking in mean spirited ways. This reflects the attitude behind the words. Castigating a person, besmirching or putting others down, indicating they are stupid, worthless, drawing attention to their shortcomings, mocking another. This all relates to unwholesome talk which ought not characterize a believer. We can talk ourselves out of a good testimony. Some questions to ask about our use of words. Do they nourish? Do they heal? Do they lift up and encourage? Are your words coming from a healthy heart? Jesus said, "Out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaks. The good man out of his good treasure brings forth good, and the evil man out of his evil treasure brings forth evil. I tell you, on the day of judgment men will render account for every careless word they utter; for by your words you will be justified and by your words you will be condemned" (Matthew 12:34-37). This might be a good time to ask the Lord to use some divine soap on your heart.

Do You Love Life

In our Western culture you frequently hear people talk about living the “good life.” If you were to ask these people to define their idea of this life, you’d hear a multitude of answers. Most of them would involve the indulgence of a particular appetite or taste for pleasure. Years ago this was summed up with a bumper sticker on an expensive motor home or other recreational vehicle, “He who dies with the most toys wins.” Sadly, many people define the “good life” in terms of a toy, not in terms of a godly lifestyle. Note what the Lord has to say about the "Good Life." "Whoever would love life and see good days must keep his tongue from evil and his lips from deceitful speech." (I Peter 3:10). Peter is saying whoever "Wishes to love" life, present and eternal will not involve himself in those things that make this life a burden. He goes on to tell us that we must curb, or cause to cease, using our tongues for evil and deceitful purposes. He is implying that our natural inclination is to speak evil. The Holy Spirit promises a blessed life to those who show patience toward those who are evil. That is why we are to love and pray for our enemies. This takes the wisdom of God being operative in our lives. James 3:17 says "But the wisdom from above is first pure, then peaceable, gentle, open to reason, full of mercy and good fruits, impartial and sincere." A growing Christian will show this kind of fruit in their lives for they depend on God for everything. Depending on God will deliver you from evil for the Lord will be attentive to your prayers. Living the life of Christ is dependent on staying connected to Christ. He is the Vine, we are the branches. Our very life comes from Him. We live the life of Christ, through the power of the Holy Spirit. We learn the wisdom of God as we saturate our heart and minds with the Scriptures. Part of loving life is walking out of the way to avoid evil. We will not experience the good life by walking blindly into evil, and then pretending we could do nothing to avoid it. We are to discern the difference between good and evil and take specific steps to avoid evil. The other side of this coin appears when we purposefully determine to do good. There is no need to fret about what is good and what is not. God doesn't leave us to on our own to figure it out. This is one reason He gave us the Bible. That is why we read the Scriptures as God's relevant message to us. Loving life and seeing good days has a lot to do with the use of our tongues. The Bible tells us "Out of the heart the mouth speaks." Our heart feeds our tongue. How is your heart doing? Are you feeding from the Word of God? If you wish to love life, the Lord through the Scriptures will show you the way. Dr. Ken Copley is available for counseling, conferences, and local church meetings.

The Problem With the Familar

In the book of Exodus 33:7-8, we learn that "Moses took the tabernacle and pitched it without the camp, far off from the camp and called it the Tabernacle of the congregation. And it came to pass, that every one who sought the Lord went out to the tabernacle of the congregation which was without the camp." We also must pitch our tent a good distance from the camp, the camp of familiarity. When Jesus told His disciples to follow Him, He called them to leave the familiar pattern of their lives for extended periods and be alone with Him (Matthew 19:27; Luke 14:33). The Lord knows that men, by nature are unconsciously governed by the familiar. In I Corinthians 3:3, Paul rebuked the church at Corinth because they walked "like mere men." Most people pass through life umbilically tied to the familiar. Where have you pitched your spiritual tent? Hebrews 13:12-13 says "Wherefore Jesus also, that he might sanctify the people with his own blood, suffered without the gate. Let us go forth therefore unto him without the camp, bearing his reproach." If we are going live holy, productive, spiritual lives, we must sever the chains and restraints of the bondage of desiring just an average life. We must choose to leave the camp of familiarity and place our tent in the Presence of God. The will of God will never lead you where the grace of God cannot keep you. We serve Adonai, He is the one who must be obeyed. The name implies that all those who submit to Him can enter Christ's perfect rest, expecting to receive God's direction, supervision, and provision. Walking with Him will take you outside the camp of the familiar. Dr. Ken Copley is available for counseling, conferences, and local church meetings.

Living a Vertical Life

Every cross is made up of a horizontal and a vertical beam. Both are needed to make a cross, but the vertical beam is the most important, since it always supports the horizontal beam. If the vertical is defective, then the horizontal will collapse. This same principle holds true for the Christian life. Just as the vertical beam of a cross holds up the horizontal beam, so the vertical dimension of our lives (our personal relationship with God) holds up the horizontal dimension (our relationship with others and our daily walk in the world). If I'm not living as a servant to the Master, if my passion for Christ has eroded, if I'm not glorifying God in word and deed, then the rest of my life is placed in enormous jeopardy. Here is where our personal prayer life comes into the picture. Prayer becomes a source of power for victorious living. This truth is expressed in the following acrostic: P-rayer R-eases A-ll our E-ternal R-esources. God has a "warehouse" in the heavenlies for every believer. Out of these designated warehouses, with our names inscribed on them, flow all of His eternal resources, everything we need for life and godliness, but only if we become faithful practitioners of prayer. Wouldn't it be awful to arrive in heaven and find we used very few of the resources God provided for us while we were on earth. When we begin to develop our prayer life, our enemy Satan will respond. His principal mission is to attempt to neutralize the power, peace and purposes of God by preventing them from becoming reality within our lives. How does he do this? Invariably, Satan's first point of attack is directed at the "life-support system" the power of prayer. He does everything possible to sever this "supply line" in order to render us ineffective and defeated. We must grasp and maintain a high and holy view of life. If we don't Satan will be able to neutralize the power of prayer by smothering ones biblical vision for life. Jesus taught us in (John 16:33) "In this world you will have trouble, But take heart. I have overcome the world." When trouble comes, go vertical, "Look to Jesus the Author and finisher of our faith." We are to gaze on Jesus and glance at our circumstances, if we gaze on our circumstances they will obscure our vision of life and we will stop praying. Prayerlessness always leads to defeat. Are you feeling defeated today? Go vertical, cry out to God, look up in prayer and grasp God's view of life. Nothing dispels defeat like spending time at the throne of God. Dr. Ken Copley is available for counseling, conferences, and local church meetings.

Seaching the Heart

Searching the heart is exclusively the work of the Holy Spirit. J. Edwin Orr taught, "It is to the Holy Spirit that the Christian must look if he is to find a measure of revival for his searching soul". Spiritual blessing for believers is dependent on cleansing, which in turn depends upon confession that is dependent on conviction; and conviction comes from a searching of heart by God's own Spirit. Therefore, each of us needs to get alone with God regularly and allow Him to search our hearts, to plumb the deepest crevices of our soul, for anything contrary to His character. In addition to using the Word, a great aid for facilitating this process is the popular prayer-hymn written by Orr in 1936 during the New Zealand revival. He was in line at a local post office, he penned the following lyrics in just eighteen minutes: "Search me, O God, and know my heart today. Try me, O Savior, know my thoughts, I pray. See if there be some wicked way in me: Cleanse me from every sin and set me free. I praise Thee, Lord, for cleansing me from sin: Fulfill Thy Word and make me pure within. Fill me with fire where once I burned with shame, Grant my desire to magnify Thy name. Lord, take my life and make it wholly Thine: Fill my poor heart with Thy great love divine. Take all my will, my passion, self and pride; I now surrender, Lord, in me abide. O Holy Ghost, revival comes from Thee; Send a revival--start the work in me. Thy Word declares Thou wilt supply our need; For blessings now, O Lord, I humbly plead." This Spirit-inspired hymn give the essentials for getting right with God--searching, convicting, confessing, cleansing and surrendering--all of which precede revival. Notice how he closes by stating his need for personal revival: "Start the work in me." This should be the cry of every Christian. Dr. Ken Copley is available for counseling, conferances, and local church meetings.

Living a Pure Life

The Scriptures make much application of the truths they teach. Paul's Epistles give us the teaching in the first half of the book and the task in the second half. Christian duty always follows Biblical Doctrine. In II Corinthians Paul tells us to separate ourselves from evil, and He will be a Father to us and we will be His sons and daughters. Then He says “since we have these promises, dear friends, let us purify ourselves from everything that contaminates body and spirit, perfecting holiness out of reverence for God.”- 2 Corinthians 7:1. When we accepted Christ He declared us to be holy and righteous before Him. He put on shoulders the robe of His Righteousness. At Calvary all our sins were washed away. On the basis of this truth we can "purify ourselves from everything that contaminates body and spirit." How do we do that? By our choosing to walk in the Word, and live out the truth of the Word. The Word takes root in our hearts and is manifested in our walk. Continually drinking from the Water of Life will produce Christ likeness as we "Work out what the Holy Spirit through the Word works in. An experiential knowledge of the Word gives us the power to "Prefect holiness out of reverence for God." How can we live a holy life in a polluted world? By taking Jesus words seriously when He said "You are clean through the Word's I have spoken to you." As the old Hymn writer said "When we walk with the Lord in the Light of His Word, what glory He sheds on our way." How are you and the Scriptures getting along? Are they close friends or distant relatives. Dr. Ken Copley is available for counseling, conferences, and local church meetings.

Wisdom and the Christian

We learn in the Bible that wisdom is to be sought after with diligence. In contrast we hear worldly wisdom (the Devil's thinking) from many sources. Television programing glorifies sin and mocks righteousness. The daily news hardly sees life through God's eyes. Righteous people are frequently scorned and openly slandered. Immoral people grace the front pages of our magazines. Those who love life are called evil, those who hate life are called "Good". However God offers us another way. He says concerning wisdom "For whoever finds me finds life and receives favor from the LORD. But whoever fails to find me harms himself; all who hate me love death." (Proverbs 35-36). This brings us to the subject of meditating on the Scriptures. King David would wake up at 3:00 AM to delight in the Word of God. He gave the Scriptures priority over sleep. He wrote "Oh, how I love Your Law, it is my meditation all the day." (Psalm 119:97). Note David loved the Law, and he spent his day in meditation on it. As the most powerful king on earth he was a busy man. However the Scriptures were always on his mind. They were his constant companion. How about you, what voices are you listening to, what are you going to choose to meditate on today? Dr. Ken Copley is available for counseling, conferences, and local church meetings.

Spiritual warfare and the crucified life

Because Satan is a master at deceit and counterfeiting, we must encounter or confront him, rather than simply ignoring him. And we know as we confront him that greater is he who is in us than he who is in the world (I John 4:4), and we thank God that Jesus has "stripped the spiritual rulers and authorities of their power" (Col.2:15). This happened at the cross. But we are still at war and we are commanded to put on armor and fight against the "wicked spiritual forces in the heavenly world" (Eph. 6:11-12). So, although we know how this war will end, many battles remain and we need to know our enemy and how to fight him. This battle begins with the crucified life. " ... come down from the cross and save yourself!" (Mark 15:30). Our common enemy says the same thing to us today. Living the crucified life is not popular in a self centered world. The cross is an instrument of death. God calls us to the cross in order that all the things that are alive in our flesh might die. Daily we are invited by the enemy of our souls to indulge the flesh and come away from the cross. The Apostle Paul stated "I die daily." I woke up one morning feeling overwhelmed with problems. It wasn't long before I discovered I had come down from the cross. The Holy Spirit gently invited me back to the cross. Here are some signs that we have come down from the cross. When you are overly concerned with appearance, you have come off the cross. When the words of others cause you to react and defend yourself, you have come off the cross. When you strive to have your world in manageable order, you have come off the cross. When you complain about circumstances, you have come off the cross. Statement like "I just had life where I could manage it and this happened" is a good sign you have stepped away from the cross. The way of the cross means placing your life in God's hands and letting Him have His way in every matter, every relationship, every outcome. The Lord will often do the unexpected in order to develop His character in our lives. Peter went from denying Christ to boldly proclaiming Him, stating "The Lord who you denied." Our Good Shepherd knows how to take care of His sheep. "When God starts to deal with the old nature He heads straight for the center of all that you hold most dear. Allow Him to bring you to the cross in the very center of who you are. Don't grumble and become agitated when the process starts. Silence and peace will help you much more than being upset. To bear the cross simply, without letting your self-love add all sorts of dilemmas to it, will make your life easier. When you accept the cross simply allow it to do the work God intended, you will be happy because you will see what good fruit is produced in you." Those were the words of Francois de Fenelon, a man who lived in the 1600s and was considered one of the most godly men of his time. The apostle Paul sums up the way of the cross: "For, as I have often told you before and now say again even with tears, many live as enemies of the cross of Christ. Their destiny is destruction, their god is their stomach, and their glory is in their shame. Their mind is on earthly things. But our citizenship is in heaven. And we eagerly await a Savior from there, the Lord Jesus Christ, who, by the power that enables him to bring everything under his control, will transform our lowly bodies so that they will be like his glorious body" (Phil 3:18-21). Let the cross have its way in you. The cross is where Satan was defeated. The power of the cross is operative in those who "Are crucified with Christ" (Galatians 2:20).

Spiritual Warfare and Holiness

In our day there has been a movement away from holiness. Certainly our culture promotes such a movement but I believe in some ways the church does also. There are a few, (thankfully), modern writers who proclaim that a believer does not need to confess their sins because the sin issue was taken care of at the Cross. That is a half truth, the sin issue was taken care of at Calvary, however the Scriptures are clear on the subject of repentance and confession of sin. The issue of sin is of great importance in the life of a believer. We know that plants grow where conditions are favorable. The same is true of the evil in us. The more we indulge in evil, the more powerful the evil becomes. Eventually, we may reach the point where evil controls us. There are many myths concerning holiness. Myth 1: I could never be holy. Response: You already are. Myth 2: Being holy means that I will be so heavenly minded that I will not be any earthly good. Response: Jesus was so heavenly minded that he did the most earthly good. A genuine "heavenly mindedness" will enable us to overcome earthly circumstances and fears. Myth 3: Being holy involves a complete denial of all of my own personal desires and hopes. Response: Those hopes and desires are submitted to the Lordship of Christ. He returns a thousand-fold on them by molding them in a way that glorifies Him and then meeting them beyond our wildest expectations. Myth 4: Since all my sins are forgiven in Christ, holiness is not an important issue for me. Response: God grants us holiness in Christ, but calls us to a lifestyle that expresses what we are. Why should those who are holy return to unholy living, unless they are deceived that such living is of greater significance (or fun) than righteous living. We must come to grips with the "beast in the basement" of our own house. Two passages in Romans are significant in this regard: Romans 6:12-14: "Therefore do not let sin reign in your mortal bodies that you should obey its lusts, and do not go on presenting the members of your body to sin as instruments of unrighteousness; but present yourselves to God as those alive from the dead, and your members as instruments of righteousness to God. For sin shall not be master over you, for you are not under law, but under grace. Paul exhort us to to let sin reign in our bodies. As people, we have two options: 1. Place the parts of our bodies (i.e. any natural capacity we have) as weapons or instruments of sin. Sin is a General that uses our natural capacities as weapons in the battle it fights. Paul exhorts us to stop placing ourselves at sin's disposal in this war. 2. Offer ourselves to God and our "members as weapons in the service of righteousness". The "war" vocabulary is a reminder that this is as genuine battle that we face. Romans 7:14-25 tells us of the reality of the Christian's struggle. 1. Paul's central idea is that this passage refers to mature Christians. 2. Paul addresses whether the law is evil. He concludes that is is not, but that sin utilized the law to work its evil in man. Indeed, that is why the law was given-to show sin for what it is. 3. The believer exists in tension-(s)he is a saint who still wrestles with sin. Hendriksen remarks: "For the present, the Christian is living in an era in which two stages, the old and the new, overlap. There was a time when Paul was exclusively a sinner. There will be a time when he will be exclusively a saint. Right now, as he is dictating this letter, he is a sinner-saint. A "saint", to be sure; but also still a "sinner", hence the tension, the inner conflict. It is a struggle which every true believer experiences" (Hendriksen, Romans, p232). Let's examine Satan's enticement to evil. Satan is not so much creative as discreative-he takes the good that God has created and perverts it (e.g., love turns to lust or protectionism or control over another). There are several sources of enticement to evil which include the world (or domination system), the flesh, and the devil. While Satan may use a "back door" approach (by enticing us through the world or our flesh; we must recognize that he is not the only source of the temptations we face. Our own former participation in the ways of the world serves as a constant drawing force against which we must fight. There are three major sources of sin: 1. Pride. "There is one vice of which no man in the world is free; which everyone in the world loathes when he sees it in someone else; and of which hardly any people, except Christians, ever imagine that they are guilty" C.S. Lewis Mere Christianity pp 108-9. Pride: the attitude that says we can do it on our own. Ultimately it is a denial of our dependence on God for life itself. Proverbs warns against pride. Proverbs 8:13 "To fear the Lord is to hate evil; I hate pride and arrogance, evil behavior and perverse speech." Proverbs 29:23 "A man's pride brings him low, but a man of lowly spirit gains honor." Pride is woven into the very fabric of our culture. Few of us ever realize its existence, let alone its extent. Curiously, pride is the very quality we try to inculcate into our children for their good. We define it, to be sure, as self-respect. In other words we teach our children as we were taught ourselves-to overcome weaknesses and vices by pride. Pride is at heart competitive-it gets no pleasure out of something, only out of having more of it than the next man. Ultimately, to be fulfilled, pride must even look down at God. Thus it is viewed as the core of sin and at the heartbeat of evil. 2. Anger: (linked to pride) the emotional response to dealing with someone who has blocked me in my pursuits. All of us have experienced anger, and anger that is left unresolved over past hurts forms a motivational core that drives the way we live our day to day lives. 3. Lust: All of us want to avoid emptiness and find satisfaction. Often we think of earthly things as essential to meeting this need. Lust is when we allow these desires to control us and lead us away from God's provisions. In I John 2:16, two types of lust are noted: 1. Lust of the flesh: the appetites of the flesh (physical needs including food, drink, sex, sleep). 2. Lust of the eyes: the things of life that we do not need yet want (greed or coveting things aroused by seeing them-materialism is a basic idea). This form of lust is aroused by visual stimuli-such as advertisements that entice us pictorially to purchase a product. Most generally speaking, lust is essentially unbridled appetite or desire. It is not ever really conquered for all time. Rather, it is held in check on a moment-by-moment basis. For example, we do not conquer hunger by stuffing ourselves once-as soon as the food is digested we are ready for (and in need of) more. Maintaining holiness: Confession and repentance. "Mercy is persistently meaningful only to the degree I am silenced by the enormity of my refusal to love God and others with my whole heart, soul, strength, and mind" Allender and Longman, Bold Love, pp. 80-81. Confession: We cannot deny our own sin and have fellowship with God (I John 1:8-9). Sin here probably refers to our nature and not just our individual sins. Those who make this claim deceive themselves and the truth is not in them-they have lied even to themselves. Those who confess their sins, however, are assured of God's forgiveness. Confess their sins (note the plural), not just their sin nature but the sins themselves. To "confess" (to say the same) is simply to agree with God concerning our sin. The present tense indicates that it is a continuous process. The promised result is a sure cleansing, because God is faithful to do as He promised. He is faithful to His covenant promise to forgive. He is just-He forgives us on the basis of Christ's death (a judicial act). This does not demand moment-by-moment introspection based on the idea that every single sin breaks fellowship. The focus of the perfect tense is a continual problem, i.e., giving into sin. This could be individual sin or it may be a series of sins leading to a continual defeat. In light of the promise given here, the sense is to admit our sins to God and to rest in the assurance of His promised forgiveness. God will never, ever refuse to forgive us when we repent of, and confess our sins. We can be confident that our confession will be heard and we will be cleansed as a result. Repentance: Repentance is intimately intertwined with confession. It is the act of turning away from sin. Genuine confession cannot be separated from repentance. We not only repent before God, we must also be willing to repent before the other who has been sinned against. Unholy living gives our common enemy an opportunity to influence our lives. We need a revival of holiness starting in our lives and spreading to our churches.

Paul's thorn in the flesh

Please read II Corinthians 12:1-10. God is sovereign in all his dealings. Satan is God's Satan and the Lord uses him for His kingdom purposes as He sees fit. We see Satan's involvement in church discipline. "Turn such a one over to Satan for the destruction of his flesh" In the following we will see Satan's work in the Apostle Paul's life. We are to fear the Lord and Him only. The evil one is never to be a fear object. In this passage of Scripture the Lord pulls back the curtain and shows us His purposes for enemy activity in His servants life.Paul was 'caught up' (i.e., raptured) in a vision of the third heaven (the same as "Paradise." The fact that Paul was not permitted to speak further and that such things were incommunicable in human terms shows that a more detailed knowledge is not of significant importance either to his argument or to the church as a whole.To keep Paul from becoming conceited over his vision, he was given a thorn in the flesh. Over the centuries many ideas have been purposed for the "thorn in the flesh" from human opponents to temptations to physical problems. God purposely left it ambiguous because the ambiguity of Paul's problem makes it easier for us to relate our own "thorns" to it. I believe every Christian I have ever met could point to their own "Thorn in the flesh." To some it was poor health, or a wayward child, perhaps continuing financial struggles, or an unsaved mate, etc. How was it a 'messenger (lit. 'angel') of Satan? It need indicate not more, than that his stake through the flesh was Satanic in origin, attributable to demonic agency, though permitted by God and overruled by Him for His servant's good. Whatever it was, Paul was not given victory over it, though he prayed three times for its removal. God's purpose was greater than mere removal of the thorn. Rather, He used it as His sovereign tool to shape Paul into a humble servant, totally dependent on God's grace in all he did. Do you realized God is giving you sufficient grace for your "thorn?" Have you thanked Him for the work that is being accomplished in your life because of it? The will of God is always good.