Love Has No Agenda

Dr. Mike Life in Christ , , ,
“It(love) does not insist on its own way” I Corinthians 13:5 ESV

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Love is one of those words that has become cheaper through cultural opinion. Ask for a definition, and you will probably receive a multitude of answers. In today’s culture, it means different things for different folks.

For teenagers, it is the emotional tie that binds two people together until the feeling goes away. For newlyweds, it is the blindness that denies the imperfections of the other. For highly testosterone husbands, it is the words for a sexual encounter. For manipulative wives, it is the means to get what they may want.

Yet Paul writes that love is not something we get, but give.

Jesus gives us the perfect example of what love means in a very practical everyday way. To sacrifice the self for the sake of the other is love demonstrated. It is giving the self for the sake of others. It is not giving so others may agree with you. It is not giving so others do something for you. It is not giving so you may benefit from it at all. In fact, it may hurt to give. It may cost you your job. It may cost you a relationship. It may cost you your life.

Your response simply measures the love you have to give. It is what Jesus did for us. He set the example. He chose to empty his eternal habitat so he could walk among us. He gave himself as a sacrifice, so we can enter his eternal home.

We can either love accordingly or deny what it truly means from his context. So the next time you let someone know you love them, are you truly willing to sacrifice your time, money, and life for them without any expectations in return? Whatever your response, you now know what God knows about us. And even knowing this, He still unconditionally loves you and me.

He loves us whether or not we choose to follow him. Yes he wants us to respond to him in a favorable way. Yet if we do not, he still loves us. We may suffer the consequences of our rebellious attitude. Yet our response doesn’t stop Him from loving us. We may suffer from our stupidity. But He remains steadfast in His love for us. Isn’t that the Christ-like love we need to display?

Rooting For You in Christ!

Dr. Mike

Executive Director & Founder
Marketplace Bible Institute
& Resource Center, Inc
Author of e-Books:
 *  Great Business Emulates a Good God
 *  Be Radical…Follow Christ!
 *  Simply The Messenger
 *  Unequally Married

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What Is Real Success?

Dr. Mike Business & Faith, Kingdom Paradigms , , , ,
“Let not steadfast love and faithfulness forsake you; bind them around your neck; write them on the tablet of your heart. So you will find favor and good success in the sight of God and man. Trust in the LORD with all your heart, and do not lean on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make straight your paths. Be not wise in your own eyes; fear the LORD, and turn away from evil. It will be healing to your flesh and refreshment to your bones.” Proverbs 3:3-8 ESV

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What is real success?  Some say the accomplishment of a goal. Others say a healthy life. Others a caring family. Than others add financial independence, recognition from one’s peers, or the power to do whatever you want. Yet what does God say real success is? Is real success something you make happen or is it a gift?

Like teenagers sowing their wild oats is how humanity generally functions with God. We are the prodigal child or the son who remains home (Luke 15:11-32). We believe we need to venture out and satisfy all our internal desires. Or we need to stay home and live by all the rules. In so doing we believe we shall become successful. Yet for most, only through the trials, tests, and challenges that this life takes us through do we eventually realize that Father God has a better way to live. Only then do we repent, return, and seek after God.

Without God, we try to imitate success. We wear high fashion cloths. We sell our soul for work that pays the most money. We buy material goods that we believe will make us more satisfied. We play extreme sports to battle the demons of fear. We hang around people who we label as successful. We more or less pursue the outer trappings of success. But we fail to capture the real success that comes from the inside-out through His grace.

Real success is grace-based. It’s not earned, stolen, or passed on from others. Real success is a gift from God. It is being the recipient of His Grace. As we acknowledge, accept, and act upon His grace, we experience the fruit of real success.

Real success is an inner quality that manifests itself through external showings. We may at times be easily fooled through external showings, but the heart is the foundation of the soul. When the heart is a conduit of God’s Spirit, the fruit is real.

Real success is allowing God to live in you, with you, and through you. It is the result of submitting to Him. It is accepting Jesus as Lord and Savior. It is becoming one with Him. As we become one with Him, we learn to live in Him, with Him, and through Him. It is a personal, covenant marriage relationship between you and the Eternal.

As we walk with Him, we become the recipient of His divine nature. He showers us with His character. The fruit of His Spirit (love, joy, peace, patience, goodness, kindness, gentleness, faithfulness, and self-control: Gal 5:22) empowers us. We become more like Him as a child becomes more like their parent. We learn to live life from a grace-based foundation instead of a performance model. We begin to experience the fruit of salvation. We live in freedom. Instead of trying to make ourselves feel good through our activities, we learn to rest in Christ. Instead of viewing life only through our eyes, we see life also through the heart of our Maker. What we learn by walking with God, we share with others. We want all to experience real success as God intended mankind to have since the beginning of time.

Real success is God’s work, not ours. The earlier we learn that, the quicker we experience the genuine fruit of real success.

Rooting For You in Christ!

Dr. Mike

Executive Director & Founder
Marketplace Bible Institute
& Resource Center, Inc
Author of e-Books:
 *  Great Business Emulates a Good God
 *  Be Radical…Follow Christ!
 *  Simply The Messenger
 *  Unequally Married

Encourage a Friend…Share Today’s Message!

Character Reproduction

Dr. Mike Life in Christ
“…but we rejoice in our sufferings, knowing that suffering produces endurance, and endurance produces character, and character produces hope, and hope does not put us to shame, because God’s love has been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit who has been given to us. Romans 5:3-5 ESV

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Wouldn’t life be great if all we had to do is swallow a pill that would give us the character we desire? No effort required. No work involved. No experience of failure. No frustration to manage. Just immediate, character gratification.

We marvel at the highly discipline athlete. We celebrate the person who sacrifices immediate gratification for long term success. In many cases, we wish we had the same fortitude. Yet, the fact is we all have the opportunity to forgo the temporary pleasure for long term character growth.

The reality is also true; godly character takes time and pain to build. Through suffering we lean more on God. As we hang onto Christ, character is being produced. As we witness the character being produced, our hope in Christ becomes real.

Yes, God is reproducing himself in you. He has adopted you and gave you his personal DNA via the Holy Spirit. As we abide in Christ and rest in him, he works from the inside-out to mold and shape us into his model child. Through the circumstances we find ourselves in, through the people we associate with, and through the challenges & opportunities we face each day, God’s Spirit works to mold and shape the new you.

Some denominations identify a saint as someone who is unique and climbed the ladder of spiritual success. Yet the Bible calls everyone who is a believer a saint. In fact, the Bible calls us all saints in the plural and never in a singular fashion. For the saints of the Bible is another identification for the Body of Christ, the Church.

So maybe it is time that the Church, His saints, set aside immediate gratification and take seriously His objective to prepare His adopted children for more than physical comforts in this life. Maybe for some of us it’s time to get serious with allowing God to complete His work in us.

Rooting For You in Christ!

Dr. Mike

Executive Director & Founder
Marketplace Bible Institute
& Resource Center, Inc
Author of e-Books:
 *  Great Business Emulates a Good God
 *  Be Radical…Follow Christ!
 *  Simply The Messenger
 *  Unequally Married

Encourage a Friend…Share Today’s Message!