You must fight if you are to win

(By Rick Lambert)

(Ephesians 6:13 – Therefore take up the whole armor of God, that you may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand firm).

When it comes to resisting temptation, most of us don’t desire to yield to sin, but often find ourselves unprepared to truly resist, fight against the tempter and hold our ground.   The reality of spiritual warfare according to Ephesians 6:13 is that we are actually to prepare ourselves to engage the enemy in battle over our souls. 

The evil one, the tempter, the accuser, comes in full battle array and will through everything, and use anyone to bring about an all-out defeat, or a breakthrough that leads to a defeat.  He is vilely persistent.

Part of a Christian’s strategy is to flee, but that won’t do all the time.  Eventually, we will have to face the enemy, and in that day, armed with the spiritual armor, you will not only be ready, but you will win.  Trust the promises of our Lord, trust your protection and go forth to engage and conquer.   This is why we are ordered to “fight the good fight of faith.”  We are ordered to “resist the devil,” and is doing this, he will flee from battle.  He cannot defeat obedient Christians, though he fires countless false propaganda into our thinking that this is not the case.

The Word commands us to be sober (not disoriented), and watchful as ones who are planning to be engaged at any moment.  We are to be circumspect regarding how he may attack our emotions, seek hijack our will or capture our thoughts.  He is the one that lays the ambush of temptation that entices our lusts.  He longs to see his ally of sin triumphing in our actions, and the discouragement and evidence of death contaminate our miserable lives.

The word “withstand” means to set one’s self against the foe.  There is no easy way, though the way has been made easier.  We are free from the dominion of sin, which means the enemy has no more right or claim over us.  Not only are we free to fight, but we are commanded to so by the protector of our souls, and we are told we cannot lose.  An enemy who is in retreat is hardly the winner. 

It all comes down to our preparation.  The battle and our weapons are spiritual in nature, and that implies our preparation must be spiritual as well.  According to Ephesians 6:10, our strength is “in the Lord.”  We are to be strong in him!  He should be our consuming thought, the delight of our emotions and the standard to which we submit our will. 

Every day we guides us through the discipline of training in order to prepare us for the real battle.  And be assured, that if you find yourself facing the enemy, it’s because your commander in chief knows you are ready.  That almost appears to us as a trite thought, but it is designed to provoke our faith.  When you encounter that evil day, hold your ground!

Colossians 2:15 – He disarmed the rulers and authorities and put them to open shame, by triumphing over them in him.  This is what Jesus did to empower us to do the same. 

Cultivating efficiency

(By Rick Lambert)

One of the greatest hindrances to our work is our inattention to what makes us efficient.  The dictionary defines efficient as “performing or functioning in the best possible manner with the least waste of time and effort.”  We function, but is it the best possible manner?  Efficiency in daily work, whether you work in a cubicle, shop, store or home office is vital not only to our success but even more to our happiness and fulfillment.

There are six fundamental principles to being efficient.  They are not complex at all, but they do require a degree of self-discipline. However, once begun, they are easy to maintain.

1.       Eliminate nagging items first.  There is nothing worse than trying to get through a work day with a ball and chain around your ankle.  Deal with the aggravations first.  It’s like running with weights on your ankles, but when you take them off you feel like you could jump up and touch the sky.  You want to be energized for your day?  Knock out the weighty issues first.

2.      Plan a time for creativity and the development of ideas.  Coffee breaks, coffee shops and a cup of coffee are good ways to step out of the encumbrances of the day.  Ideas give us hope and energy; they charge our ambition. To neglect this is to train your emotional batteries and to become a working zombie.

3.      Find energy in the form of another person.  This may be a person or reading something inspirational like the Bible, a biography or your favorite book on leadership.  Fellowship with a friend or an author can bring healing to your perspective and eliminate the excuses that trip you up.

4.      Keep you work area clear.  It sounds simple, but for most folks clutter clings to us.  Everything that piles up on our desks or work area screams that it is important, and that being out of our sight jeopardizes it being out of our minds.  The problem is that clutter does drive us out of our minds.  I once worked for a large non-profit organization that required desks to be cleared each night.  If you had left over work, you had to make a nice, neat pile and place in your office chair out of sight.  Each morning you could walk in to a clean work center and daily organize the pile and work required for the day.

5.      Re calibrate between projects.  Clean your mental palate for the next round of work.  A quick walk, reading a few pages in a current novel or just getting up from the desk and looking out the window for a few moments will help you prepare for the next project with refreshed focus.

6.      Prepare a doable checklist of things to do THE NIGHT BEFORE you come back to work.  Many of us prepare checklists the morning of work.  But it’s at those times we are fresh, and we often end up packing the list and making it anything but doable.  Try preparing it the night before when you are tired, but realistic.  You can leave your work area, uncluttered and already prepared in mind for what you need to accomplish tomorrow.

I need book reviews…good ones, preferably

(By Rick Lambert)

I love to read!  I enjoy conversing with authors through their books whether it is John Piper, Elizabeth Elliot, John Owen or Polycarp.  Of course, enjoying the fellowship of the Bible with its Divine Author is a reader’s greatest privilege.  But when it comes to buying books, and deciding on which to read, it can often be difficult when considering an unfamiliar author.  Even in Solomon’s day, there seemed to be an over-abundance of books as he stated in Ecclesiastes 12:12 – Of making many books there is no end…  

What makes the difference?  The reviews!   I’m not necessarily looking for the big name reviews, though that couldn't hurt.  I’m looking for the average reader.  I've lost count of the number of purchases I have made (beyond books) based on the thoughts and opinions of others regarding a product.

I have a large personal library, and I can tell you that most of my books were bought and read based upon the recommendation of a friend or some type of review.  That is why I need your help.  New books like mine may as well be named Discoveries In Obscurity, by I.M. Nobody.

Your reviews will help draw the attention of others who don’t know me, but are curious as to what others thought of the book.

If you leave a review on my website or my Amazon site, for example, people will be inclined to consider it.  I suppose that no review is better than a bad review, but a bad review reveals that someone actually read the book; that is the hope of every author.  Even if you read it and don’t like it, you can review it as a great, moisture-absorbent coaster, a door stop, or even a fire starter log.  

The book market is competitive, and I need an edge, and reviews help provide it.  If you need some prompting to aid you in writing a review, let me give you a few suggestions.  You don’t have to address them all, for short recommendations tend to be read over long ones.

How to give a review (good or not so good)

·         Provide adjectives that describe the reading experience (energizing, sad, boring…)

·         What were some aspects about the story that you really liked

·         What event or character impacted you?  How did it affect you?  Did you cry, laugh; did it make you think?

·         In very small letters, if the story had a problem, what was it?  How can your opinions help me with my next book (which I have already begun).

·         Be honest!  And, don’t mention in the review that you know me (if you do).  No one wants to hear what a great person you think I am (well, except my mom, of course).

·         Don’t give up the book’s secrets.  No spoiler alerts, even though the hero does die in the end of my book.

·         Rate it.  If on Amazon, one star is very poor and not recommended.  Five stars is an excellent rating, and highly recommended.  On other websites, simply state whether you think others will like it or not.

·         What if you hated the book?  Don’t hate me in your review; tell us why you disliked the story, or how I told it.  And then don’t let my mom see it. 

The just shall live by faith

(By Rick Lambert)

Romans 1:16 – For in it the righteousness of God is revealed from faith for faith, as it is written, "The righteous shall live by faith." While there are many profound passages in Scripture, I believe this one is ranks among the highest.  The thought that imperfect man could not only stand before God as truly just/righteous, but that God would make it possible and declare to be a fact is beyond comprehension. This is the verdict of God upon the redeemed.  What a staggering thought!  It is a repeated theme in the Scriptures, first used in Habakkuk 2:4, and used by Paul in Galatians3:11 as well as Hebrews 10:38.

It must be pointed out that this condition is quite the opposite of those who think they are now free to live as they choose.  It’s the righteous that live by faith.  It is the righteous who live constantly being persuaded by the Word and Spirit of God to live defying the flesh in its temptations to live as it desires or to produce its own form of self-righteousness. Faith leads us to obey, and therefore the righteous are learning to obey righteously. 

God has declared us to be righteous and now through his great work of sanctification wills to make us live as righteous ones.  It’s God growing us to be as he sees us to be.  It’s spiritually maturing to live in the reality of what God making us to be.  The just or righteous will live…, but this life is in the context of faith.  If we are not living in the reality of faith, if our sight is not through spiritual eyes whereby we are trusting God to guide us, then we are not living.  If we are not following the course of faith then we must conclude that we either are or are striving to follow the path that leads to death.  This path is based upon our own understanding and perspective of life.  It’s the opposite of wisdom and the true embrace of folly.

The exciting element in this is that we are being led by God.  That’s the meaning of faith.  While to our flesh it may appear as a blind leap in the dark, this could hardly be true, for faith is walking in the light.  Since we are righteous before God, and since we are following his leadership, then I John 1:7 becomes very clear to us in the sense that we are having rich fellowship with God.  I can’t think of a stronger picture of the practice of faith than the constant and ever-growing joy of fellowship with God.  This is the fellowship of obedience on the positive side, and the fellowship of forgiveness when we stop walking by faith and fall into sinful snares and temptations.  Even in this negative condition we are still righteous before God.  Our lives are not defined by the sins that trip us up, but by the mercy and loving-kindness of God that declares us to be, and makes us to be righteous.

Logos – The Word of God in the form of man 

(John 1:1-5) – Part 2

(By Rick Lambert)

He is the truth of God’s intentions – In being called the “Word”, He is not simply revealing what God’s intentions will be, but that He Himself is the expressed image of those Divine intentions.  He is the message and messenger; indeed, He IS the plan!  It’s a plan of intervention where God fulfills His own standard that man was commanded to live by, not as a proof that it could be done and therefore man should be able to do it on His own, but because man could have never done it on His own.  In addition to this, is wasn’t simply fulfilling the Law for man, but making us righteous and holy before God as he is righteous and holy before the Heavenly Father (II Corinthians 5:21 – For he hath made him to be sin for us, who knew no sin; that we might be made the righteousness of God in him.  Philippians 3:9 – …and be found in him, not having mine own righteousness, which is of the law, but that which is through the faith of Christ, the righteousness which is of God by faith). 

What this section reveals is truly remarkable, and a powerful distinctive which separates true Christianity from any other religion; we are given insight into the intentions of God.  It’s not enough that He created mankind, gave him guidelines, orders and laws to follow, but knowing the weakness of man, He came to live a perfect life only God could live, and die a death only man would be worthy of dying.

He is God who has come to live in human form –  The Word of God personified in Jesus is the action story of God; the revealing of a great mystery; a profound love story; a suspenseful drama; an adventure of an epochal, universal war unlike Hollywood could ever replicate on the big screen. It is a record of redemption; a description of a true hero.  It is a historic documentary and an inexhaustible “how-to” lesson.  It is a vast and deep research resource, yet the words that require the faith of a child to understand.  The Word is a crime story where the innocent claims the indictment and penalty of the guilty.  The Word is the complete encyclopedia of wisdom and understanding.  He’s the final word on the way to the truth about life.  To ignore the Word from God, Jesus Christ, is the equivalent to hating your life.

Let’s establish the fact right off then, when God speaks, it’s not enough for everyone just to listen.  God is not speaking to be heard, God is speaking to reveal His intentions…His plan.   The “Word” doesn’t simply tell man what to do, but tells man what God is doing, and how man is or can participate. The question to ask yourself is “What is God accomplishing in my life today, and how is he equipping me to participate? 

Logos – The Word of God in the form of man 

(John 1:1-5) – Part 1

(By Rick Lambert)

He is the living instructions of God – The Logos = the message of God was introduced in human form.  Jesus Christ was the language (a message from God) that transcends all language barriers.  He was God’s plan and the evidence of truth of God’s claim.  He was to be the living expression of God’s will being done in both salvation and judgment.  He came as the visual representation on God in both message and life (see Hebrews 1:1-4).

Logos is defined a collection of words that describe purpose; instructions; plans; a treatise.  Logos goes beyond a collection of words, for it is not just a speech, content, or words in a book, but in a greater sense it implies what is meant by the speech, content or words; it implies what the message is to accomplish.  This explains why the Scriptures don’t isolate only the spoken words of Jesus, for the Bible is God’s words about the One who was the final Word on all that could be said to mankind. He is the content of all words; all languages with all their tenses, moods, genders and dialects.  Even Revelation 1:8 indicates that he is also the letters to every word from God (I am the Alpha and the Omega, says the Lord God, who is and who was and who is to come, the Almighty).

He is the visual representation of God – The life of Jesus Christ, the Word, was the bridge between the language of Heaven and the language of Earth.  A mere written document could not suffice, and God gave us both.  When God sent man His will in man’s own words, it was called “The Law”; the holy standard of God that defined how mankind was to live in order to escape the judgment of sin.  But even the law was a tool, a school master to introduce us to the true message of God (Galatians 3:24 – …the law was our schoolmaster to bring us unto Christ, that we might be justified by faith). His message was so powerful, that it could not be expressed in the language of men, but rather it was to be communicated through the actions of the life of Jesus.

Why is justification important to my daily happiness?  

(By Rick Lambert)

As a follower of Christ, I understand that it is important, but on an experiential level, do I comprehend the vital role it plays in my relationship with God and the power it provides over sinful desires and actions?

The first thing that comes to mind is that in Scripture the word justification and righteousness share the same Greek word.  The word means to render perfect and therefore sinless. Obviously one must conclude that as far as this life is concerned, it is an imputed justification/righteousness and not imparted.  Our fragile desire to obey is indication enough that we don’t live perfect as Jesus did.

The idea that it is imputed reveals to us that in God’s eyes, our sins will not be held against us.  We have not been simply acquitted before God’s throne of judgment, but the violations against his righteous law, and the penalty demanded by it has been satisfied.  This describes the substitutionary atonement of Christ. In exchange for our sins, we were covered with his robe of righteousness so that as far as our standing before God is concerned, his righteousness has been imputed on our behalf. 

This means that we no longer live under the condemnation of God, nor does this imply that God has been merely pacified.  The truth of the matter is that the imputing of his righteousness pleases him.  It’s the fulfillment of a redemptive plan that was laid out before the world was ever brought into existence.  The plan of justification predates time.  This is the relationship all believers have with God.  But how does this help us in our daily struggle?  We love the thought of our righteous standing before God, but tend to crumble under the load of temptations and commit unrighteous acts.  As the Apostle Paul lamented, “O wretched man that I am…”

I believe that the first principle to note is that the work of justification was first a work of grace.  God lavishes us with his favor, making us what all along had been his plan.  Therefore, it is the same grace that continues to bring out the work of righteousness through us.  It is to be our pursuit on the one hand, but it is God that guides us in that pursuit.  What most fail to realize is his creative use of our temptations and even sinful failures.

A troubled conscience or inner grief is the first sign of his righteousness at work.  The tragedy is that many Christians never make it out of sin’s frustrations, and spend their lives fighting against sin instead of racing towards righteousness.  We fail to realize that the great work of Justification has not only liberated us to be forever with God, but also broke the chains of bondage to sin.  We are free to discover righteousness each day we live.  Our sins have been dealt with and forgiven, therefore freeing us up to explore the realm of righteous living. 

The best place to begin in this exploration is to start with what amazes you about Christ.  This answer to this will lead you in the daily pursuit of righteousness, and the joy of living in the reality of in your eternal security before God and your joy while living on Earth.

Romans 5:1-5, sums it up beautifully: Therefore, since we have been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ.  Through him we have also obtained access by faith into this grace in which we stand, and we rejoice in hope of the glory of God.  Not only that, 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.

Why read this novel? 

Polycarp - a destroyer of our gods

(By Rick Lambert)

We live in a culture that likes to be governed by the “how to’s of life,” when we should be more inclined to learn by “observing how.”    Learning by seeing and participating tends to cultivate a desire to learn and lends itself to the discovery of new approaches and methods.  I’m not undermining book learning, but more, focusing on the creative use of facts.  You know what I mean; the difference between knowing something and using what you know or are learning.

Novels are often an overlooked means of combining learning with observation.  We understand the importance of a good biography, why can’t we see a novel in the same light?  Of course, some novels are equivalent to mental cotton candy, and serve no real purpose but to bring their readers into a fairy-tale life.  That being said, even in those, principles of right and wrong can be identified, as are the rewards or consequences of decisions.

A recent study from Emory University concluded that reading novels can help boost brain power.  “The neural changes that we found associated with physical sensation and movement systems suggest that reading a novel can transport you into the body of the protagonist,” says neuroscientist Gregory Berns, the study's lead author. “We already knew that good stories can put you in someone else’s shoes in a figurative sense. Now we’re seeing that something may also be happening biologically.”

For most of my life, I have loved reading, but resisted reading novels.  “They’re a perfectly good waste of time,” I often thought to myself.  But a few years ago, during my consulting days, a close friend recommended that I read the book “The Goal; a management-oriented novel by Dr. Eliyahu M. Goldratt.  It was great, and let me see how principles of leadership dovetail with the real issues of everyday life. 

That book sparked the thought for my novel – Polycarp, a destroyer of our gods.  I wanted to help and edify others in their spiritual growth, and this seemed like a great avenue.  I desire to help Christians know more than just theology.  My passion is for the follower of Christ to live in the reality of how God trains and disciples us in living out the theology of His truth.  He wastes no moments, no trials, no blessings or people.  Everything fits our lives to draw our focus to Him and his work in our lives. 

Polycarp was born into slavery, was mentored by the Apostle John, and provided stable leadership in the church when the apostles died.  How could God take a boy from slavery and make him a champion of truth?  History reveals that such men are not made out of an easy life, but as trained and disciplined soldiers of the cross.  They are made to make in impact on their generation and generations to follow.  It’s the experience of God’s guiding grace in the face of trials and the cruelty of life that prove the greatness of God in our lives.

Guy de Maupassant a nineteenth-century French writer and considered by many the father of the short story said: “The public is composed of numerous groups whose cry to us writers is: ‘Comfort me.’ ‘Amuse me.’ ‘Touch my sympathies.’  ‘Make me sad.’  ‘Make me dream.’  ‘Make me laugh.’ ‘Make me shiver.’  ‘Make me weep.’ ‘Make me think.’” 

This is what I have strived to do in Polycarp, a destroyer of our gods.  When you are finished reading it, I hope you see yourself as one being trained and formed by the one true God to have a life that destroys the gods of men.   

Take a look at my novel.  Enjoy it, and let it challenge you by waking spiritual desires and stirring godly passion. Ultimately, let it serve as comfort and as a comparison as you look at your life in light of the life of Polycarp, a destroyer of the gods of mighty Rome.

Read it!  Give it a review!  And please, recommend it!