Fixing Our Eyes on Jesus

Gonna be real (for really real) with you here... I have struggled with pride a good portion of my life, often disguised as false humility. I think we all do at some point, in some form or fashion.

For me, pride can manifest itself in many ways:

• Shyness: I’m too worried about what people think of me to really be “myself”.
• Hardness of heart: I won't humble myself and be the first to apologize and ask for forgiveness.
• Recovering know-it-all: I pretend to have all the answers.
• Avoiding evangelism: I’m afraid of rejection, what people will say or think, or losing a relationship.
• Avoiding relationships: I’m afraid of gossip, losing a friendship in the future, or not being “good enough” for someone.

First of all, did you notice how many times I mentioned “me, myself, and I”? Did you also notice how many times I used the words “worried”, “afraid”, and “avoiding”?

Have you found that the more you focus on yourself, the more depressed and fearful you get? Why is that? It’s because you are looking in the mirror at someone who fails daily, instead of keeping your gaze fixed on Jesus, the One who is infinitely able to do all things. 

Ephesians 3:20-21 says, “Now to Him who is able to do exceedingly abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that works in us, to Him be glory in the church by Christ Jesus to all generations, forever and ever. Amen.”

Know that Satan's tactic is to stir up pride in us (he is an expert on pride, right?). Pride leads to fear and depression, which will isolate us and make us more vulnerable to his attacks, pushing us further from the Lord. We must recognize pride in our lives and squash it! 

Say I had an old beater car that sometimes started, but usually just smoked, sputtered, and leaked oil everywhere. And say someone gave me a brand new car every morning, guaranteed not to fail. Which car should I hop in? Of COURSE! The brand new car should be my choice EVERY time! But so often, I choose the beater car, and I smoke and sputter down the road of life, attempting to do things on my own. What a waste of time and effort.

There is a better Way -- the ONLY Way.

We are not sufficient on our own. The only One who is absolutely sufficient is Jesus. And if we have given our lives to Jesus Christ as our Lord and Savior, we have HIS very Spirit living within us. We have access to that “brand new car” (the power of the Holy Spirit) that will get us anywhere we need to go, within God’s will, of course. His mercies are new every morning (Lamentations 3:22-23). Why do we so often settle for less and try to do things in our own strength??

The answer to our self-absorbed society really is simple. All we need to do is put our eyes on Jesus and not ourselves. Spend time with Him. Be in His Word. Develop a relationship with the One who created YOU. You are not an accident. You are here by design. You have a purpose, and that purpose is to glorify God and have a relationship with Him. If you are a believer, you have a part in the body of Christ.

As we spend more time with Jesus, we will become more like Him. As we become more like Him, we will seem smaller and smaller compared to His greatness. We will want to put others before ourselves. We will naturally find ourselves wanting to serve others. We won’t get our feelings hurt when someone says something they shouldn’t have. In fact, we won’t even CARE what others think of us, because we will know that our identity is in Christ alone.

All that matters is what He thinks of us -- and guess what?

He loves you so much that He created you for the very purpose of having a relationship with you.

Just like a good father would want to develop a relationship with his child, God wants that with you. You are valued in Christ’s eyes. You are worth Jesus’ own precious blood that He sacrificed for you on the cross.

As we shift our perspectives and realize just how very valuable we are to our Heavenly Father, we should be humbled. That pride -- the thought that I am "something" on my own -- should fall away. Go outside at night and take a few moments to wonder at the greatness of the sky above you. God created the heavens, the universe, and all that is within them. He created billions of stars and galaxies, and yet He chooses to love ME and YOU. Psalm 147:4-5 says, “He counts the number of the stars; ​​He calls them all by name. ​​Great is our Lord, and mighty in power; ​​His understanding is infinite.”

Wow... Why did I think I was so great, again?? My gifts, talents, achievements, personality, possessions -- all those things are not because of me, but because of Him. He is the One who gave me breath, after all.

Let’s not forget our place. He is God. We are not.

Time to Build

The book of Nehemiah is one of my absolute favorites in the Bible.  It is packed full of practical application on leadership, humility, unity, serving, and dealing with opposition.  I would encourage you to study the first few chapters, at least!  God has been showing me how chapters 3-4 are such a wonderful picture of how the body of Christ should function together in unity. 

Follow the leader

Nehemiah was a good (not perfect) leader.  He prayed, fasted, planned, humbly identified himself with and served alongside the people of Israel, watched for the enemy, encouraged the people, and kept reminding them to remember the Lord.  The people of Israel were quick to get behind him and follow his lead because HE was following the Lord.  When he said they should rebuild the wall of Jerusalem, they responded with, “‘Let us rise up and build.’ Then they set their hands to this good work.” (Nehemiah 2:18b)

Are you following the lead that Pastor Matt and the other pastors/leaders set, or are you secretly grumbling about them and trying to stir up division?  If you haven’t figured it out yet, no church is perfect, and no church is going to be in exact alignment with your expectations.  However, God has set leadership over the church body, and we are to “Obey those who rule over (us), and be submissive, for they watch out for (our) souls, as those who must give account. Let them do so with joy and not with grief, for that would be unprofitable for (us).” (Hebrews 13:17)  1 Thessalonians 5:12-13 adds, “And we urge you, brethren, to recognize those who labor among you, and are over you in the Lord and admonish you, and to esteem them very highly in love for their work’s sake. Be at peace among yourselves.”  Isn’t there more peace and unity when we just trust the leadership of the church and submit to their authority?  As long as someone is not asking us to sin, we are to trust that the Lord is leading them in wisdom and prayerfully follow their humble leadership.  When you go to leadership for counsel, go to the Word and see how it lines up, and then do what they say!  God will reward your obedience.  

There will be opposition

I guarantee you will be met with opposition when you actually start doing something for the Lord.  The opposition to rebuilding Jerusalem’s wall did not happen during the praying, the fasting, or the planning (though those were all critical steps, and opposition certainly can come during those times).  The opposition really started when the people came together and began building the wall.  

Satan isn’t afraid of our good intentions.  

He isn’t trembling when we stand around talking about starting up a ministry or how we need to share the gospel with our coworkers.  What makes him start worrying is when we actually unify and DO what God’s Word says!  James 1:22 (NIV) says, “Do not merely listen to the Word, and so deceive yourselves. Do what it says.”  Do not allow the fear of opposition stop you from following God’s Word and doing what He has called you to do!  

When opposition does come, meet it with prayer and confidence in the Lord.  Nehemiah responded to the mockery of Sanballat, Tobiah, and Geshem with amazing boldness: “The God of heaven Himself will prosper us; therefore we His servants will arise and build, but you have no heritage or right or memorial in Jerusalem.” (Nehemiah 2:20)

When doubt, fear, and mocking start creeping in, proclaim who God is.  Proclaim who you are in Christ.  Proclaim that you will complete what God has called you to do.  Proclaim that the enemy has no right or place in God’s work.  And then press on!  God has already given you victory through Jesus Christ!

Do your part!

Nehemiah 3-4 lays out how each person, many times an entire family, worked side by side, rebuilding the gates and the part of the wall in front of their house until it was half done, “for the people had a mind to work” (Nehemiah 4:6).  After 52 days, they had completed the entire wall! 

Not all of these people had experience in construction.  In fact, there were perfumers, goldsmiths, young, old, men, women, priests, and common people who had zero experience.  They knew God wanted them to rebuild the wall, so they took a step of faith and started working on it.  They learned along the way.  God equipped them with the materials and the skills they needed.  Some people stood as watchmen while others continued to build.  But they were all armed and ready for anything, which is great practical application for us-- we need to always have the armor of God on! (Check out Ephesians 6.)

Has God called you to do something outside your comfort zone?  

Go for it!  He will be faithful to equip you as you go.  When I led Children’s Ministry, some of the most amazing teachers/leaders we had for the ministry were those that had zero experience with kids OR teaching and never dreamed they would have ended up there!  God has an amazing way of stretching us and bringing us into situations where we have to completely rely on Him, and that’s when He can truly get all the glory.  Step out in faith and see what God does!

Notice that everyone rebuilt the wall that was in front of their own home.  That’s where it starts-- in our own homes.  If our own homes are falling apart, how can we help others rebuild?  Let’s take a look at our families and seek the Lord as to how we can build them up and lead them in His ways.  Invest in your marriage.  Invest in your kids.  Those things have eternal value.

There is no way this wall would have gotten built if everyone had not done their part.  Romans 12 and 1 Corinthians 12 both talk about how Jesus is the Head of the body of Christ, and we make up all the other parts of the body, each with a different role.  A body will have a very hard time functioning and moving forward if even one part is “asleep” or giving resistance.  Ask God to show you what your part in the body of Christ is, and then move forward with it!  Don’t sit back and watch the rest of the body work.  Join in!  What is holding you back?  Ephesians 4:15-16 says, “Instead, speaking the truth in love, we will grow to become in every respect the mature body of Him who is the head, that is, Christ.  From Him the whole body, joined and held together by every supporting ligament, grows and builds itself up in love, as each part does its work.”  

It’s time to get off the sidelines and join in what the Lord is doing in and through the body of Christ.  Don't leave a gap in the wall! 

Dig deeper

In conclusion, there are a LOT of extras in Nehemiah that I didn’t have the space to get to in this post.  I would again encourage you to study this book for yourself and dig deeper!  For starters, check out Proverbs 25:28, “Whoever has no rule over his own spirit Is like a city broken down, without walls.”  How could the book of Nehemiah apply to your own life?