Easter - 2018

Wednesday, August 5, 2009

The Attitude/Mood of God

I was at the Dr.'s office yesterday and there was a Time magazine on the table. It contained an article on "The Moods of God." I am not going to give you the link because it was not worth the read. (If you are that interested, google Time Magazine. It was in the last issue of July. Just remember it is total fiction.) The writer's presupposition is that we have multiple religions because God has mood swings. The God that I serve is more powerful, mighty, and consistent than to be controlled by "moods." The article made it sound as if we could watch God's mood ring and figure it all out...Good grief, people actually believe this.

The one identifying characteristic of the life wholly devoted to Jesus Christ is the attitude of a servant. Jesus was God! Think about that – Jesus was God. He needed nothing. He lacked nothing. He, God the Father and the Holy Spirit lived in perfect harmony and oneness. Jesus had nothing to gain and everything to lose by coming to the earth to redeem humanity from our sin. So what did Jesus do? Paul tells us that Jesus “emptied Himself.” In the New Living Translation we read, “Jesus made himself nothing.” Nothing. He who was everything, became nothing for you and me! Better news has never been heard! Jesus became nothing, so that we could receive everything He came to offer—life, eternal life, in all its abundance!

The Apostle Paul tells us to have this same attitude. When someone offends us, we are called to return love. When someone infringes on our rights, we are called to return love. When we have given everything we have to give—we call on God to give us the power to give more. The attitude of Jesus was humble servanthood. This is the opposite of everything our culture and Time Magazine tells us to be. We’re told to look out for #1 (meaning us) and Jesus says, “I am #1 and you must be willing to give up everything for me. Not only that, but every other person is to be treated as better than we are! The world says the one with the most toys wins! Jesus says, “The one who serves the most people wins!”

The true dividing line between Jesus Christ and the world is an attitude of humble service. Wherever we go as Christians we go as ambassadors for Jesus Christ, which means we go humbly, as servants. If we are to equip others to receive the transformation Jesus offers, the best possible tool for accomplishing that goal is an attitude of humble, submission to the will of God, and to serving others to His glory. In a world where everyone is looking for their rights. Jesus says, “Give up your rights and follow me.”

I am thankful for God's revealed truth in the Scriptures...You know I love ya - Don