May 23

ROMANS 12

I appeal to you therefore, brothers, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship. ² Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect. ³ For by the grace given to me I say to everyone among you not to think of himself more highly than he ought to think, but to think with sober judgment, each according to the measure of faith that God has assigned. ⁴ For as in one body we have many members, and the members do not all have the same function, ⁵ so we, though many, are one body in Christ, and individually members one of another. ⁶ Having gifts that differ according to the grace given to us, let us use them: if prophecy, in proportion to our faith; ⁷ if service, in our serving; the one who teaches, in his teaching; ⁸ the one who exhorts, in his exhortation; the one who contributes, in generosity; the one who leads, with zeal; the one who does acts of mercy, with cheerfulness. – Romans 12:1-8

ROMANS 12 SPIRITUAL DISCIPLINE

A poem by ILMA inspired by these verses

When we were chosen to be children of God

We were equipped with all that we need to grow

We were given the word of God so we can have a guide

It is a set of instructions to make us see and follow the light

We do not need to conform to all the systems of this world

Instead, we need to be changed by the renewal of our minds

Let us discipline our bodies, hearts, minds, souls and spirits

Let us cling to what is true, what is pure and what is right.

Paul reminds the church about the importance of spiritual discipline in this letter to the Romans. I am sure that even at that time in history, many people focus more on physical training rather than think of the mental and spiritual aspects of life. After all, the Greeks at that time were very concerned with their physical and strength training as they competed in many athletic endeavors. They began the Olympics, always aiming for being the best in their chosen field. Even in our world today, many men and women invest in gym memberships and are conscious about nutrition to keep their bodies in optimum health but neglect the mental and spiritual part of their being. I am not saying that priorities on the physical biological features of their bodies are not important, but in many cases, people neglect the mental and spiritual disciplines needed to live fuller lives.

Paul emphasizes the importance of spiritual discipline in this letter because the unseen parts of our being are usually neglected or forgotten. What many people don’t realize is that if our minds and hearts are not synchronized with God’s design for it, we will surely fail in living a life for the Lord. This is why Paul advises Christians not to conform with the world because it doesn’t account for the mind and spirit.

REFLECTION

·       Share some spiritual disciplines that you follow that have worked for you as a Christian.

May 20

ISAIAH 53

⁷ He was oppressed, and he was afflicted,

  yet he opened not his mouth;
  like a lamb that is led to the slaughter,

  and like a sheep that before its shearers is silent,

  so he opened not his mouth.
⁸ By oppression and judgment he was taken away;

  and as for his generation, who considered
  that he was cut off out of the land of the living,
  stricken for the transgression of my people?

⁹ And they made his grave with the wicked
    and with a rich man in his death,
    although he had done no violence,
    and there was no deceit in his mouth. – Isaiah 53:7-9

ISAIAH 53 TOTAL SELF-CONTROL

A poem by ILMA inspired by these verses

Like a lamb led to be killed and a sheep before its shearers

Jesus didn’t react or opened his mouth before his abusers

Though he was oppressed, laughed at, tortured and mocked

He didn’t wince or complain but obeyed the will of God

Christ bore all the pain and suffering and had total self-control

Let us emulate his example of silence and learn to be humble.

This verse reminded me of someone I knew in my twenties. I couldn’t understand then why he never fought for his rights and allowed people to minimize him. He never reacted to all those who abused him. At that young age, I was taught to always fight for my rights and speak up when I am being mistreated. The trauma of not being cared for also made me fight back and never allowed anyone to oppress or misjudge me. I wasn’t a Christian until in my late fifties, so I didn’t know the concept of humility and total self-control.  The first time I read and studied these verses from Isaiah, I began to hear the Holy Spirit’s conviction on my tendencies to defend and protect myself.

As I studied Psalm 3:3 which says “But you, O Lord, are a shield about me, my glory, and the lifter of my head,” and this verse in Isaiah, I began to see how proud and arrogant I was. I didn’t know God that much at all. Because of trauma and not having someone defend me, I learned to take matters into my hands.

When I became a Christian, the Spirit began humbling me and corrected my tendency to automatically defend myself. I saw how I was following the patterns of the world system rather than the kingdom of God. The world won’t understand how Jesus left everything to his Father’s hands. It doesn’t understand humility and surrender. It is normal to defend oneself in this world system and be dysregulated.

REFLECTION

• Why do you think humility and silence are crucial to have total self-control as Jesus sampled?

May 18

PROVERBS 23

¹⁹ Hear, my son, and be wise, and direct your heart in the way.
²⁰ Be not among drunkards or among gluttonous eaters of meat,
²¹ for the drunkard and the glutton will come to poverty,
     and slumber will clothe them with rags.

²² Listen to your father who gave you life,
    and do not despise your mother when she is old.
²³ Buy truth, and do not sell it; buy wisdom, instruction, and understanding.
²⁴ The father of the righteous will greatly rejoice;

    he who fathers a wise son will be glad in him.
²⁵ Let your father and mother be glad; let her who bore you rejoice.

²⁶ My son, give me your heart, and let your eyes observemy ways.

                                                                             – Proverbs 23:19-26

PROVERBS 23 DIRECT YOUR HEART IN THE WAY

A poem by ILMA inspired by these verses

To all believers, direct your heart in the way of the Lord

If you fail to focus on him, you will be overcome by this world

Study and meditate on his word day and night to discern evil

Be watchful for the devil’s purpose is to destroy, kill and steal

Listen to your father and mother whom God has given you

It is a way of honoring me when you heed their instructions

Do not associate with drunkards and gluttons; they’re bad influence

Stay pure and don’t fail to meet with the communion of saints

Always seek the truth and never compromise it with hedonism

Stand on God’s promises so you won’t be enticed by false teachings.

Solomon emphasizes in these verses the importance of focusing our hearts, minds and souls to the right way. When we remove our attention on the Lord and his word, we become targets to the enemy to devour. It doesn’t need to be big distractions; it could be little things that will remove our eyes on Jesus. An intrusive thought could begin to make us doubt our abilities or the truth. A visual or auditory stimuli can derail us from our time with God as we get dysregulated by such stimuli. When we don’t prioritize God moment by moment, we will be catering to our flesh. This is why the bible calls us to love the Lord with all your heart, mind, soul and strength. We are also called to seek first God’s kingdom and whatever you ask will be given unto you. I find myself spun and dysregulated when I entertain all these distractions instead of pressing on to focus on God’s word. My time gets stolen and I become unproductive for God.

Solomon also stresses the importance of obedience to our parents since they were assigned to us by God as authorities. He also warns us to choose our company well so that we don’t lose self-control.

REFLECTION

·       How do you direct your life in the way of the Lord and why is it important to do it constantly?

May 17

HOSEA 4

⁷ The more they increased, the more they sinned against me;

I will change their glory into shame.⁸ They feed on the sin of my people;

they are greedy for their iniquity.⁹ And it shall be like people, like priest;

I will punish them for their ways and repay them for their deeds.
¹⁰ They shall eat, but not be satisfied; they shall play the whore, but not multiply,
because they have forsaken the Lord to cherish ¹¹ whoredom, wine, and new wine,
which take away the understanding.¹² My people inquire of a piece of wood,

and their walking staff gives them oracles. For a spirit of whoredom has led them astray, 

and they have left their God to play the whore. – Hosea 4:7-12

HOSEA 4 IDOLATRY LEADS TO DEBAUCHERY

A poem by ILMA inspired by these verses

When you turn away from God, you are turning to other idols

Some of these idols could be anything that heightens desires

It could be wine, whoredom, any object, or any substance

It could even be a loved one, work or anything you love much

The path of the selfish is the one that leads to debauchery

While the path of the wise and faithful leads to eternity

The spirit of whoredom will definitely lead you to be lost

While the Holy Spirit leads you to the Lord of lords.

This account of Hosea is God’s response to the ungratefulness of the Israelites. Despite God’s faithfulness in showering them with many blessings, they reciprocated with much idolatry. Instead of staying grateful and loyal to God for all his provisions for them, they abused it and misused and desecrated what God meant holy. They turned their backs on the Lord himself and worshipped other pagan gods. Even the priests who were supposed to be the examples of purity have defiled themselves by consuming what they were not allowed. According to Constable’s commentary “Israel’s priests were feeding on the sin offerings that the people brought to their pagan shrines. Yet since these offerings were to idols it was as though the priests really fed on the people’s sins. The priests desired these offerings, which meant they wanted the people to practice idolatry so they would bring more sacrifices.” Isn’t that a disgrace to God? They were stewards to bring the people to purity and they actually defile their calling.

It is easy to bow down to anything instead of giving God glory, but Hosea’s account gives us a picture of how God reacts to unfaithfulness. He calls it whoredom. It is prostituting our faith and yoking with other little gods that compete with the only One true God. In our world today, idolatry could be very covertly hidden in the things we love like family, spouse, career, food, alcohol, drugs, sex and even hobbies that look good on the surface but consume us. Idolatry always leads to debauchery. Be watchful.

REFLECTION

• Why do we need to be vigilant to identify what kinds of idols we are tempted to bow down to?

May 13

 1 CORINTHIANS 6:19

¹² “All things are lawful for me,” but not all things are helpful. “All things are lawful for me,” but I will not be dominated by anything. ¹³ “Food is meant for the stomach and the stomach for food”—and God will destroy both one and the other. The body is not meant for sexual immorality, but for the Lord, and the Lord for the body. ¹⁴ And God raised the Lord and will also raise us up by his power. ¹⁵ Do you not know that your bodies are members of Christ? Shall I then take the members of Christ and make them members of a prostitute? Never! ¹⁶ Or do you not know that he who is joinedto a prostitute becomes one body with her? For, as it is written, “The two will become one flesh.” ¹⁷ But he who is joined to the Lord becomes one spirit with him. ¹⁸ Flee from sexual immorality. Every other sin a person commits is outside the body, but the sexually immoral person sins against his own body. ¹⁹ Or do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit within you, whom you have from God? You are not your own, ²⁰ for you were bought with a price. So, glorify God in your body. – 1 Corinthians 6:12-20

1 CORINTHIANS 6 HONOR GOD WITH YOUR BODY

A poem by ILMA inspired by these verses

Those who are in Christ Jesus are expected to mature their faith

When the Spirit indwelled us, we became temples of the Lord

We no longer are driven by our appetites but by righteousness

We are careful to keep away from sin and honor God with our bodies

Jesus died on the cross for us so we are not in bondage to sin anymore

We are not to use our bodies for our own cravings and our own pleasures

But we are all called to live for the purpose of glorifying the Almighty God

Let us keep ourselves undefiled and keep our bodies holy and pure.

It is interesting how Paul believed that not all lawful things are not helpful. Remember that the Jews created 613 laws out of the ten commandments given to Moses by God. Paul was a Jew and a Roman as well but he wasn’t a Christian. In fact, in his former life, he persecuted Christians until God called him into his fold. Being Jewish and a Pharisee, we are inclined to believe that he was a law keeper, but when he turned to Jesus, he now lives under the grace of God and no longer under the law (Romans 6:14).

In this letter to the church in Corinth, Paul reminds the believers that their bodies no longer belong to them but to the Lord Jesus Christ. When Jesus died on the cross, the Holy Spirit was indwelled to every believer which makes them the temples of God. What does this mean? It means that they are no longer slaves to their flesh and their sinful inclinations, but are now meant to use their bodies to bring glory to God. He clearly discusses what that looks like now that they are Christians. He tackles food and sexual appetites that are meant to be given up since they no longer are slaves to their cravings and desires, but are now called to righteousness and purity. In verse 14, Paul emphasized that their bodies are now members of Christ, so they have to watch out that they do not yoke with ungodly things so that the body won’t be defiled. They need to discipline themselves and tame their bodies to serve God alone.

REFLECTION

• What does it look like when we do not honor our bodies and give God glory with it?

May 11

TITUS 3

Remind them to be submissive to rulers and authorities, to be obedient, to be ready for every good work, ² to speak evil of no one, to avoid quarreling, to be gentle, and to show perfect courtesy toward all people. ³ For we ourselves were once foolish, disobedient, led astray, slaves to various passions and pleasures, passing our days in malice and envy, hated by others and hating one another. ⁴ But when the goodness and loving kindness of God our Savior appeared, ⁵ he saved us, not because of works done by us in righteousness, but according to his own mercy, by the washing of regeneration and renewal of the Holy Spirit, ⁶ whom he poured out on us richly through Jesus Christ our Savior, ⁷ so that being justified by his grace we might become heirs according to the hope of eternal life. ⁸ The saying is trustworthy, and I want you to insist on these things, so that those who have believed in God may be careful to devote themselves to good works. These things are excellent and profitable for people. ⁹ But avoid foolish controversies, genealogies, dissensions, and quarrels about the law, for they are unprofitable and worthless. ¹⁰ As for a person who stirs up division, after warning him once and then twice, have nothing more to do with him, ¹¹ knowing that such a person is warped and sinful; he is self-condemned.

                                                                                           – Titus 3:1-11

 TITUS 3 DEVOTE & DISCIPLINE YOURSELVES TO DO GOOD

A poem by ILMA inspired by these verses

As servants of the Lord, you are called to devote yourselves to do good

Make it a habit to be mindful by purposely having discipline to do so

When you dedicate a set time to regularly apply the gifts of the Spirit

You are sowing seeds of grace that later on reaps a bounty of riches

So, guard your mouth, mind and heart so that only the truth is revealed

Do away with all malice and envy; start living and glorifying Jesus Christ.

In this letter, Paul reminds Titus of the old nature that was transformed now by the new creation when they believed in the Lord Jesus Christ. He compares the key differences in this transition from old to new. In verse 3, he discusses our old ways from that sinful nature that loves to gratify its flesh, is foolish, disobedient, malicious, quarrelsome, envious and haters. Whereas the new nature in Christ is totally the opposite of those old tendencies. 

Paul encourages them to be obedient and submissive to every authority that Christ has given to them as if it was to Christ that they were actually submitting to. They must be busy and mindful to discipline themselves to do good works at every occasion that they are presented with. Verse 2 presents a key aspect of this charge to the believers: they are not to slander anyone, gossip or quarrel and create division among themselves. Instead, they are to be gentle and compassionate and show kindness to everyone. By being accountable to the Lord, they will devote and discipline themselves to do good at all times and on every occasion.

REFLECTION

• Why must a Christian be purposeful in making a lifestyle or discipline themselves to do good?

May 10

1 PETER 1

¹³ Therefore, preparing your minds for action, and being sober-minded, set your hope fully on the grace that will be brought to you at the revelation of Jesus Christ. ¹⁴ As obedient children, do not be conformed to the passions of your former ignorance, ¹⁵ but as he who called you is holy, you also be holy in all your conduct, ¹⁶ since it is written, “You shall be holy, for I am holy.” ¹⁷ And if you call on him as Father who judges impartially according to each one’s deeds, conduct yourselves with fear throughout the time of your exile, ¹⁸ knowing that you were ransomed from the futile ways inherited from your forefathers, not with perishable things such as silver or gold, ¹⁹ but with the precious blood of Christ, like that of a lamb without blemish or spot. ²⁰ He was foreknown before the foundation of the world but was made manifest in the last times for the sake of you ²¹ who through him are believers in God, who raised him from the dead and gave him glory, so that your faith and hope are in God. ²² Having purified your souls by your obedience to the truth for a sincere brotherly love, love one another earnestly from a pure heart, ²³ since you have been born again, not of perishable seed but of imperishable, through the living and abiding word of God; – 1 Peter 1:13-23

1 PETER 1 CALLED TO SELF-CONTROL & HOLINESS

A poem by ILMA inspired by these verses

A servant of Christ is called to live in self-control and holiness

An unrestrained life will lead to destruction and wickedness

Do not give in to your lusts or conform to the systems of this world

Instead, catch where your mind goes and bring it to obey God’s word

Prepare for spiritual battles that stealthily visits but are not usually seen

Do not ever remove your focus on Jesus; if you do, you will inevitably sin

Be holy for your God himself is holy, embrace a life of restraint and order

But also live in the freedom that Christ has given you so you’ll be the victor.

How would you react or what would you think when you know a believer having explosions of rage and uncontrollable lusts and dependency on substance or someone? Would you not be confused? Yes, it is very perplexing to watch a dysregulated believer explode especially when they are around unbelievers. Why is that? Because as Christians we are supposed to bring the gospel without words to the unbelieving world. What are we telling them when we do not walk our beliefs? We are not going to be witness to who Jesus is and they might think that he is not worth believing or knowing. We are sending the message that Christians are hypocrites. This will give the Christians a bad taste to other unbelievers and we will lose opportunities in bringing the gospel and being light for the Lord. Instead, we are not giving the Lord the glory that he so deserves. Many unbelievers wouldn’t want anything to do with Christianity because of our inconsistencies with practicing our faith.

Peter calls all believers to live a life of discipline and holiness. By holiness, we don’t mean perfection but being pure and undefiled from the world’s corruption so we can live a disciplined life for Jesus.

REFLECTION

• What might be some reasons why some Christians struggle with discipline and holiness?