–A.K. Vyas (Dodge City)
“Gather to me my consecrated ones, who made a covenant with me by sacrifice.”
–Psalm 50:5 (NIV)
———————————–
Consecration, holiness, sanctification–preach on any one of these and the cry will come forth, “legalism”. Shall we forget that we are to be consecrated to the Lord? Shall we deny that He says, “be holy, because I am holy”? How can we deny the doctrine of sanctification? Yet, for so many and for some reason these terms, these concepts are an anathema. We are to grow in grace, we are to be holy, we are to work out our salvation with fear and trembling. Justification–no, that is taken care of at the cross, but now we seek, being led by the Holy Spirit and the Word of God to be more conformed to the image of Christ.
The little hymn by Frances R. Havergal has been on my mind lately. I would ask you, to whom do you belong? To whom do you work? To whom do you serve?
“Take my life, and let it be
Consecrated, Lord, to Thee;
Take my hands, and let them move
At the impulse of Thy love,
At the impulse of Thy love.”
Our life–it is to belong to Him. We serve Him in the workplace, the school, the highways and byways, the ballfield, the fishing hole, and of course the local church. Consecration takes effort, will, and I will add, time. All that we have is to be dedicated to the Lord–the gifts and talents He has given us, the work we do, the possessions we have, our daily walk is all to be consecrated to Him. Paul reminds us that we are to be a “living sacrifice.”
“Take my feet, and let them be
Swift and beautiful for Thee;
Take my voice, and let me sing
Always, only, for my King,
Always, only, for my King.
What comes out of your mouth? James asked this question. Is it blessings or cursings? One or the other. Where do your feet take you and what do you do at the destination? Do you let your light shine for the Lord? Are you a living letter, a testimony for him? Questions that need to be asked until we no longer need to ask them for they always come out with the same answer–only for my King.
“Take my silver and my gold,
Not a mite would I withhold;
Take my moments and my days,
Let them flow in ceaseless praise,
Let them flow in ceaseless praise.”
Ah, a great reminder of proper stewardship. Money, talents, time, they all belong to the Lord. The breath you take, is it dedicated to the Lord? Oh, come on now, Ira, you’re getting too frivolous. Am I? Are we not to be good stewards of every breath we take? We read, “For in Him we live and move and exist…”(Acts 17:28, HCSB) I like the way the CEV translates this, “He gives us the power to live, to move, and to be who we are.” Stewardship of all we are and of all we possess. Imagine what it would be like if every Christian would purposely adhere to this great teaching.
“Take my will and make it Thine,
It shall be no longer mine;
Take my heart, it is Thine own,
It shall be Thy royal throne,
It shall be Thy royal throne.”
“Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.” (Matthew 22:37, NIV) The heart, the soul (will, emotions), the mind (intellect) are all to belong to the Lord. No, He does not want first place. If there is a first place, there will be a second place trying to take over. He wants it all! I have heard many people at the altar and in testimonies say that they love the Lord with all their heart. I have yet to hear, “Lord, I love you with all my will,” or “Lord, I love you with all my mind: thoughts, intellect, and knowledge.” “Lord, I love with all my feelings, my emotions, my desires.” No, we cannot do that for it is sanctification and consecration. It is something with do with the aid of the Holy Spirit and the Word of God.
“Gather to me my consecrated ones, who made a covenant with me by sacrifice.”
–Psalm 50:5 (NIV)
———————————–
Consecration, holiness, sanctification–preach on any one of these and the cry will come forth, “legalism”. Shall we forget that we are to be consecrated to the Lord? Shall we deny that He says, “be holy, because I am holy”? How can we deny the doctrine of sanctification? Yet, for so many and for some reason these terms, these concepts are an anathema. We are to grow in grace, we are to be holy, we are to work out our salvation with fear and trembling. Justification–no, that is taken care of at the cross, but now we seek, being led by the Holy Spirit and the Word of God to be more conformed to the image of Christ.
The little hymn by Frances R. Havergal has been on my mind lately. I would ask you, to whom do you belong? To whom do you work? To whom do you serve?
“Take my life, and let it be
Consecrated, Lord, to Thee;
Take my hands, and let them move
At the impulse of Thy love,
At the impulse of Thy love.”
Our life–it is to belong to Him. We serve Him in the workplace, the school, the highways and byways, the ballfield, the fishing hole, and of course the local church. Consecration takes effort, will, and I will add, time. All that we have is to be dedicated to the Lord–the gifts and talents He has given us, the work we do, the possessions we have, our daily walk is all to be consecrated to Him. Paul reminds us that we are to be a “living sacrifice.”
“Take my feet, and let them be
Swift and beautiful for Thee;
Take my voice, and let me sing
Always, only, for my King,
Always, only, for my King.
What comes out of your mouth? James asked this question. Is it blessings or cursings? One or the other. Where do your feet take you and what do you do at the destination? Do you let your light shine for the Lord? Are you a living letter, a testimony for him? Questions that need to be asked until we no longer need to ask them for they always come out with the same answer–only for my King.
“Take my silver and my gold,
Not a mite would I withhold;
Take my moments and my days,
Let them flow in ceaseless praise,
Let them flow in ceaseless praise.”
Ah, a great reminder of proper stewardship. Money, talents, time, they all belong to the Lord. The breath you take, is it dedicated to the Lord? Oh, come on now, Ira, you’re getting too frivolous. Am I? Are we not to be good stewards of every breath we take? We read, “For in Him we live and move and exist…”(Acts 17:28, HCSB) I like the way the CEV translates this, “He gives us the power to live, to move, and to be who we are.” Stewardship of all we are and of all we possess. Imagine what it would be like if every Christian would purposely adhere to this great teaching.
“Take my will and make it Thine,
It shall be no longer mine;
Take my heart, it is Thine own,
It shall be Thy royal throne,
It shall be Thy royal throne.”
“Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.” (Matthew 22:37, NIV) The heart, the soul (will, emotions), the mind (intellect) are all to belong to the Lord. No, He does not want first place. If there is a first place, there will be a second place trying to take over. He wants it all! I have heard many people at the altar and in testimonies say that they love the Lord with all their heart. I have yet to hear, “Lord, I love you with all my will,” or “Lord, I love you with all my mind: thoughts, intellect, and knowledge.” “Lord, I love with all my feelings, my emotions, my desires.” No, we cannot do that for it is sanctification and consecration. It is something with do with the aid of the Holy Spirit and the Word of God.