We live in a world  filled with abounding knowledge and advice.  With a touch of a button, you find a video explaining how to fix anything around your house or your life.  Because of this plus 24 hour news, thousands of voice books, eBooks, and friends;  we are overwhelmed by knowledge. With so much knowledge; how, can we ever discern what is best or true. How can we find true wisdom to guide our lives or to make a decision?  In a World of Abundant Knowledge; is Wisdom lost to all the rhetoric and ideologies?

Throughout scripture we are told to seek wisdom. All too often, we think that the Bible is referring only to spiritual questions when speaking of wisdom or that perhaps that wisdom is reserved for only a few elite Christian scholars.  Certainly, Paul was not speaking to an elite few when he wrote:

Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly in all wisdom; teaching and admonishing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing with grace in your hearts to the Lord. Colossians 3:16

Continue reading In a World of Abundant Knowledge; Is Wisdom lost? →

How can peace rule in our hearts? All around us there appears to be an angry, chaotic world bent on riots, protests, and war.  We might say that Paul certainly was not speaking to us now!  After all, he wrote this over 2000 years ago, to the early church of Colossae!  Yet, history would tell us that they faced persecution, wars, and constant opposition as well. They faced every bit as much chaos, anger and opposition as we do; only they were fewer in number, and had less support.  They did not have a Bible to comfort them.  Indeed, their lives were more akin to the persecuted Christians in China and the Middle East. Still, Paul commanded them to let the peace of God rule in their hearts, called in one body, and to be Thankful.

Did you gather that? He not only commanded that we were to let the peace of God rule in our hearts; we are to be thankful as well.  As one body, the church standing firm in harmony with peace ruling our hearts.  Peace ruling our hearts means there is no space for anger, jealousy, rage, nor fear.  Because we are in Christ and He indwells us through the Holy Spirit; we put off rage, anger, blasphemy and lies.  We put on love, hope, joy, and a spirit of humble forgiveness with grace. Our hearts are transformed into new hearts; that join as one harmonious body of Christ who proclaim the name of Christ to the world by our deeds more than our words.

Colossians 3:15

let the peace of God rule in your hearts, to the which also ye are called in one body; and be ye thankful.

Stop for a moment and think about that!  Do you feel that calm in the depths of your heart?  A calm assurance that all is well; because, your heart has found peace with God through Jesus Christ!  Faith knows that God is the great I AM and that He rewards those who diligently seek Him.  Ah, I see; you fear that maybe you don’t diligently seek Him, so perhaps; that promise is not yours.  It is not about getting it right all the time; however, anyone who has tasted of the goodness of God will seek Him, desire Him and want Him. It at first may be the smallest of spark; but, it will grow. There may be moments which seem sporadic; but, ultimately, you will discover He is the only treasure that is worthwhile and the only Joy that is everlasting.

Romans 5:1-5

Therefore, being justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ: By whom also we have access by faith into this grace wherein we stand, and rejoice in hope of the glory of God. … not only so, but we glory in tribulations also: knowing that tribulation worketh patience; patience, experience; and experience, hope:   hope maketh not ashamed; because the love of God is shed abroad in our hearts by the Holy Ghost which is given unto us.

Just wait a little while and you will see that all the struggles, trials, and difficulties you are facing right now are preparing your heart to understand the depth, height, and breadth of God’s love for you.  Day by day, He is ever about transforming us, preparing us to know the fullness of joy one day when we see Him face to face.  As time goes by, I have learned to find that calm, restful, peace deep within my heart.  Because of that, when I faced emergency surgery; I could do so without any fear, worry, or frustration.

Certainly, that is not who I use to be, even as a Christian.  It is who I have become; because of  the years of trials, pains, and tribulations.  During the trials, God taught my heart to trust in Him.  Peace came to rule in my heart, as I learned to abide in Jesus Christ.

PEACE THROUGH THE POWER OF THE HOLY GHOST

Christ has sent the Holy Spirit to indwell each believer.  Because of that, Christ lives in us through the Holy Spirit to be our comforter and guide.  He guides us through the tough times; teaching us scripture, sending counselors when we need them, and through the church. There are no mistakes with God.  There are no “oops”! He uses every incident in our lives to guide us to a greater knowledge of Him; because, there is where we will reside in fullness of joy.

Now the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, that ye may abound in hope, through the power of the Holy Ghost. Romans 15:13

PEACE WITH GOD, KNOWING THE VICTORY IS OURS

And the God of peace shall bruise Satan under your feet shortly. The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you. Amen. Romans 16:20

The God of our peace shall bruise Satan under our feet soon.  Christ Jesus crushed Satan’s power of eternal death and destruction for all who accept Jesus Christ as Savior.  Yet, note here; because of that truth; God with whom we have peace, gives us the power to bruise Satan under our feet.  Our power over sin and its desires comes from God.

EVERLASTING PEACE

Remember when Jesus rebuked the wind?  In Mark 4 we are told about a big storm that came and tossed the boat that the apostles and Jesus were in.  Jesus slept calmly, peacefully in the boat; while, the apostles were frantic and worried they might drown. They woke Jesus up, crying for help.

And he arose, and rebuked the wind, and said unto the sea, Peace, be still. And the wind ceased, and there was a great calm. Mark 4:39

Because Jesus Christ lives within us, we too can know that peace which allows us to rest in the middle of the worst storms of life.  He has promised us His peace.  Sometimes, it takes many encounters before we learn to rest in His peace; but, let me assure you that one day you will.  His promise to us is that He will give us His peace.  Not the kind the world gives us.

 Peace I leave with you, my peace I give unto you: not as the world giveth, give I unto you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid John 14:27

CONCLUDING TWEETS

[bctt tweet=”Because Jesus Christ gives us His peace, we can rest secure during the storms of life” username=”effiedarlene”]

[tweetthis]Peace with God, founded in Jesus Christ; gives us a heart of gratitude.[/tweetthis]

[tweetthis]Thanksgiving toward God, equips us to know real peace[/tweetthis]

[bctt tweet=”When peace rules your heart; life is a beautiful place of joy, hope and love” username=”effiedarlene”]

Photo by permission: https://unsplash.com/@kfcrosby

©Effie Darlene Barba, 2017

Disclosure of Material Connection: I have not received any compensation for writing this post.  I have no material connection to the brands, products, or services that I have mentioned.  I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.

Because of who we are in Christ; love should be our beacon of hope lighting the world around us.  We need to be Perfected in Love by God’s love filling and transforming our hearts. Our lives should reflect the same sacrificial, forgiving love that presents Christ to the world.

Paul wrote to the Colossians advising them to put off anger, malice, wrath, vulgar communications, lying, and blasphemous language.  These negative attitudes represent the filthy rags of our sin.  Casting them aside we are to then put on the cloak of righteousness that we are given by Jesus Christ through His redemptive work on the Cross.  When we look at the Grace and love which He provided us; we  recognize how we are supposed to behave toward others. When we remember His love toward us, we are humbled by the magnitude of His love, our unworthiness, and His Grace.  Paul continues as he wrote to the Church of Colossae.

COLOSSIANS 3:12-14

Put on therefore, as the elect of God, holy and beloved, bowels of mercies, kindness, humbleness of mind, meekness, longsuffering; Forbearing one another, and forgiving one another, if any man have a quarrel against any: even as Christ forgave you, so also do ye. And above all these things put on charity, which is the bond of perfectness.

EXAMPLE AND POWER OF CHRIST IN OUR ABILITY TO LOVE

We are to love and forgive others; as Christ did us.  Remember, He gave His life for us while we were yet sinners who despised Him.  It was His Sacrificial love that accepted us as we were; knowing, that overtime He would transform our hearts: if only, we believed and accepted that love.  He saw who we would become in the Light of His love and chose to love us.  Continue reading What Does It Mean To Be Perfected In Love ? →

Anger, wrath, malice, blasphemy, and lies are  a part of our core emotions and actions.   Erupting  suddenly; they are like a volcano spewing forth its lava.  Frequently, we falsely believe that we have these well controlled; because, we have learned how to be civil even when anger or jealousy creeps into our hearts.  Furthermore, we often feel our anger is justified; therefore, we think nothing of the verbal daggers that come from our words; as long as, we don’t raise our voices.

THE HEART OF ANGER

Anger is an emotion that results from a person feeling that they have been “wronged” by another’s actions or by a perceived threat.  Because of the intense discomfort or fear involved with anger, a hormonal physical response also occurs resulting in a rising blood pressure, increase in heart rate, tightening of muscles, and narrowing of focus.  Because of that narrowing of focus, the angry person loses sight of the “bigger picture.”  All too often, we then become obsessed with the anger along with the person we believe has provoked that anger.    This grows into wrath, malice, blasphemy and often filthy communications pouring forth from ours actions and our mouths.

Have you ever noticed that the longer we are angry, the more we want to justify that anger?  Then, we begin the lies to ourselves and to others to fully explain our just reason to remain angry. At some point, we lose sight of what really was the truth; because, we must vindicate our own self. Of Course, I could not have been the one wrong; or could I?

THE ROOT CAUSE OF ANGER

Self-exaltation and pride are the root causes of anger.  Think about it!  We become angry when we believe that we have been attacked; usually, our self-perception has been attacked.  Example: Someone says that you were insensitive or rude.  Well, since you believe yourself to be a kind, loving person; suddenly, you feel injured or hurt by their remark.  On the other end of this scale is the person who lives with a sense of “rejection”.  Because they themselves are constantly in fear of rejection; every word that anyone else says is met with sudden anger.  Walls and barriers rise to protect the delicate psyche. All of this comes from our over indulgence in the theology of “me”.

THE THEOLOGY OF ME

At the very heart of sin is the theology of me; which is an ideology of me first.  We become caught up in “What I think, what I feel, what I believe, and what I want!  All of this comes from our sin filled nature.  “For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh, and the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life, is not of the Father, but is of the world.” I John 2:16.   Because the theology of me is part of my worldly nature, the only hope of release from it is to first recognize where this idea was first born-Satan.

THE NATURE OF EVIL (SATAN)

 How art thou fallen from heaven, O Lucifer, son of the morning! how art thou cut down to the ground, which didst weaken the nations! For thou hast said in thine heart, I will ascend into heaven, I will exalt my throne above the stars of God: I will sit also upon the mount of the congregation, in the sides of the north: I will ascend above the heights of the clouds; I will be like the most High.  Yet thou shalt be brought down to hell, to the sides of the pit. Isaiah 14:13-14

After recognizing the root; we are then ready to repent of our sins, accept the gift of salvation and replace our Theology of Me with faith in God the Father, through Jesus Christ the Son.

NEW LIFE IN CHRIST

As we have been studying, in Christ we have a new life.  That new life replaces our “me theology” with God.  Our new life in Christ places God first and foremost in our hearts and mind.  We then, worship God instead of ourself.  No longer do I need to defend my fragile self-ego; because, my identity is now founded in Christ.   That is why Paul urges these young Christians to:

Colossians 3: 8-15

put off all these; anger, wrath, malice, blasphemy, filthy communication out of your mouth. Lie not one to another, seeing that ye have put off the old man with his deeds; And have put on the new man, which is renewed in knowledge after the image of him that created him: Where there is neither Greek nor Jew, circumcision nor uncircumcision, Barbarian, Scythian, bond nor free: but Christ is all, and in all.

Put on therefore, as the elect of God, holy and beloved, bowels of mercies, kindness, humbleness of mind, meekness, longsuffering; Forbearing one another, and forgiving one another, if any man have a quarrel against any: even as Christ forgave you, so also do ye.  And above all these things put on charity, which is the bond of perfectness.  And let the peace of God rule in your hearts, to the which also ye are called in one body; and be ye thankful.

NO LONGER BOUND BY SIN

Because of Jesus Christ’s redemptive work on Calvary and His resurrection; we are no longer bound by sin’s control.  In order to live the new life we are given; we must first recognize the truth of our Salvation and all its ramifications.  In Christ, we are born spiritually.  The Holy Spirit comes to indwell our hearts and minds.  We become heirs of God and joint heirs with Christ; by God’s Act of Grace through faith.

As God’s Blessed, Redeemed, Beloved Children; our identity is no longer found in ourselves.  Instead our identity is found in God.  No longer are we bound by a Me Theology that requires holding onto self-exalting narratives.  God’s heart of Love in us overpowers our Anger.  Because God is perfect righteousness and perfect justice; there is never a threat that can undermine the Truth of His Being. With God as our foundation; we stand firm even when arrows are cast at us.  Personal anger has no place in God’s Heart of Love that abides in us.

CONCLUDING TWEETS

[bctt tweet=”When the toxic ‘theology of me’ is replaced by God; love overcomes hate and anger” username=”effiedarlene”]

[tweetthis]Anger’s root cause is a heart of pride seeking self-exaltation.[/tweetthis]

[bctt tweet=”In Christ, we have a life of joy, love, and hope which disallows anger and deceit.” username=”effiedarlene”]

Photo by Permission: https://www.shutterstock.com Photo id: 367161935

©Effie Darlene Barba, 2017

Disclosure of Material Connection: I have not received any compensation for writing this post.  I have no material connection to the brands, products, or services that I have mentioned.  I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.