Women in Warn Out Jeans and Warn Out Faith

Is anyone else tired of seeing women in warn out jeans?

It isn't bad enough that everyone is wearing worn out jeans but that they are wearing them in every venue!

It was bad enough when jeans were just "stone washed" looking a little like they had been washed too many times, but now they have holes in them, the sort of jeans we threw away after working all summer in the berry fields.

Is the world so rebellious that looking ugly is in fashion while dressing neatly is mocked?

There was a day when people wanted to leave their home dressed decently because they were going to be out among people. They respected others so they demonstrated that respect by wearing decent clothing in their presence.

I am convinced that all this laziness about appearance is one cog in the wheel of rebellion against God. In my teens I had a pair of paint jeans that I wore to help my Dad paint the house. I thought they were "cool" because there were color splotches all over them. I wore them to a family picnic one year and my father was aghast. Now we would see brand new jeans with frayed holes all over them, faded and worn out looking, someone paid $50 for these tattered and worn out garments.

Yep, I wore those jeans once to a family picnic but I was young and lacking fashion sense. I was also rebuked for it and embarrassed my parents.

Now we have all ages wearing these terrible torn up $50 jeans and thinking they are special for being in style.

Something is just not right!!! When we are young we do foolish things and then we grow up and do things differently. But now we have many defending everyone's right to be foolish causing most people to avoid growing up.

I do not condemn anyone who wears these jeans because in my opinion they are not necessarily rebelling, they are just caught up in the fashion of the day. What disturbs me is that these jeans that are in such bad taste are all the rage now and are a reflection of the rebellion against all of God's standards.

Those who follow the fashions will often have bad taste. The fashion industry has run wild with rebellion against good sense. It has always been that way to some degree but has escalated in the past 20 years.

The farther the culture gets from God the more extreme will be the fashions. I recall back in the 60's when the bikini bathing suite was first being marketed. The fashion industry had to hire prostitutes to model their bikini line because self respecting models would not do it.

Since the 60's the bathing suits have even gotten worse as well as other style that reveal too much to leave anything to imagination.

So many of the ways in these last days reflect the rebellion against God that would be called just style.

Isaiah 5:20
"20 Woe to those who call evil good, and good evil;
Who substitute darkness for light and light for darkness;
Who substitute bitter for sweet and sweet for bitter!"

I recall looking at a "Picasso" painting in a museum one time thinking that this man was demented. His paintings reflected someone who might be possessed by devils. It struck me that the creations were so ugly, frightening and vulgar that only a tormented soul would paint such course obscene picture.

Nothing is merely just style or personal taste, everything reflects the inner heart.

Mark 7:19-21 "…19 because it does not enter his heart, but it goes into the stomach and then is eliminated.” (Thus all foods are clean.) 20 He continued: “What comes out of a man, that is what defiles him. 21 For from within the hearts of men come evil thoughts, sexual immorality, theft, murder, adultery,…"

When a culture no longer knows what "good taste" and beauty looks like we have lost our moral compass.

Not everyone has the same taste in clothing or painters but most people sure should be able to see beauty as apposed to ugliness. Just makes good horse sense to me.

Inner beauty is reflected in outer actions.

1 Peter 3:3-4
Your beauty should not come from outward adornment, such as braided hair and the wearing of gold jewelry and fine clothes. Instead, it should be that of your inner self, the unfading beauty of a gentle and quiet spirit, which is of great worth in God's sight.

I have noticed that the farther we get from godliness in our culture the worse the clothing styles become as well as other things such as art and architecture.

Born Again Believers Love His Law

Jesus Christ is the essence (being) of His Law. We no longer "follow" the Law when He lives inside of us. We become vessels of the Law.

The Law was given to show unbelievers their sinfulness. The Law was never meant to be "followed." It was given to convict the non-believer and the believer alike of sin. When it has done this it has done its job.

Jesus Christ is the very essence of His own Law, the embodiment of righteousness that produces obedience to His perfect Law.

Because we are trapped in this body of sin we do not do perfectly what we should but we are deeply convicted when we disobey. We hate disappointing the Holy Spirit Who lives in us.

The conviction of the Holy Spirit leads us to confession to be cleansed.

1 John 1:9 "
"9 If we confess our sins, He is faithful and righteous to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness."

When we resist the Holy Spirit we delay spiritual growth and even experience regression until we confess.

Ephesians 4:30-31 "30 And do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, in whom you were sealed for the day of redemption. 31 Get rid of all bitterness, rage and anger, outcry and slander, along with every form of malice.…"

Born again believers are plagued with guilt and lack of peace when they are disobedient.

The non-believer is not bothered by their sin, even justifying it adamantly without remorse.

The Hard Things Only Grow Us

We are living in difficult times but we do not have to become what the culture has become. We can live with joy and praise God every day for the wisdom He gives us.

James 1:4-6 "…4 Allow perseverance to finish its work, so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything. 5 If any of you lacks wisdom, he should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to him. 6 But he must ask in faith, without doubting, because he who doubts is like a wave of the sea, blown and tossed by the wind.…"

We speak of the hard things but they only grow us they do not ruin us.

Pray for the Brokenness

Praying for the blessing of conviction and sorrow over their sin, on those who are in rebellion against God is the kindest thing a born again believer can do for them.

Hebrews 12:11 "11 All discipline for the moment seems not to be joyful, but sorrowful; yet to those who have been trained by it, afterwards it yields the peaceful fruit of righteousness."

Those who have been broken over their sin will see great blessing that comes from that experience. The blessing of forgiveness and the blessing of moving on without residue guilt that plagues those who will not confess to be cleansed.

1 John 1:9 "9 If we confess our sins, He is faithful and righteous to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness."

There can be no cleansing without confession nor can there be freedom from the bondage of sin.

Faith in Faith is not Faith in Christ

The word "faith" in our modern culture means to believe in things we want to believe in but do not actually have to be true.

Today's false apostate churches teach faith in self, faith in faith and faith in whatever you want to place your faith in, but it does not include faith in Jesus Christ. Faith in anything but Christ produces monstrous pride, self righteousness and false judgments of others.

Since our culture cares little about truth and more about feelings no matter their accuracy, we can expect many irrational actions and reactions to normal life.

Those who desire truth will be rejected since truth is an irritant to those who love their dilutions and fantasies.

1 Corinthians 3:18-20 "18 Let no one deceive himself. If any of you thinks he is wise in this age, he should become a fool, so that he may become wise. 19 For the wisdom of this world is foolishness in God’s sight. As it is written: “He catches the wise in their craftiness.” 20 And again, “The Lord knows that the thoughts of the wise are futile.”…"

Those who desire to be "seen" as godly without any real evidence they are such, will become angry when someone points out a chink in their armor. We all have chinks, the blessing is to admit them and carry on to resolve them through seeking Christ. Those who cannot admit their chinks will never grow, they will never change.

The only defense the "feelings" oriented crowd has against truth is to rage, intimidate and mock what exposes their twisted scripture and false doctrine.

1 Peter 1:13-25
"13 Therefore, prepare your minds for action, keep sober in spirit, fix your hope completely on the grace to be brought to you at the revelation of Jesus Christ.
14 As obedient children, do not be conformed to the former lusts which were yours in your ignorance,
15 but like the Holy One who called you, be holy yourselves also in all your behavior;
16 because it is written, “You shall be holy, for I am holy.”
17 If you address as Father the One who impartially judges according to each one’s work, conduct yourselves in fear during the time of your stay on earth;
18 knowing that you were not redeemed with perishable things like silver or gold from your futile way of life inherited from your forefathers,
19 but with precious blood, as of a lamb unblemished and spotless, the blood of Christ.
20 For He was foreknown before the foundation of the world, but has appeared in these 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 Since you have in obedience to the truth purified your souls for a sincere love of the brethren, fervently love one another from the heart,
23 for you have been born again not of seed which is perishable but imperishable, that is, through the living and enduring word of God. 24 For,

“All flesh is like grass,
And all its glory like the flower of grass.
The grass withers,
And the flower falls off,
25 But the word of the Lord endures forever.”

And this is the word which was preached to you."

We want to be believers who seek Christ for everything. We want to be people who are moving forward. Remember, there is no such thing as stagnation, there is either forward or backward. If we are not growing and learning we are regressing.

Let's be people who admit our flaws and continue to grow. May old age not be a time when we stagnate and regress, let it me a time of continual growth in the wisdom of Christ.

Remember the Song?

For the born again believer who loves Jesus Christ we remember through songs what He did for us.

The Song "It is Well with My Soul"

"Tho Satan should buffet"
"and trials should come."

"There hast taught me to blest assurance control."

"That Christ has regarded my helpless estate"

"Is nailed to the cross."

We are helpless without Christ. We have no defenses against the evil one except Christ alone.

"Christ shed His own blood for my soul."

We no longer bear the penalty of our own sin when we have trusted Christ.

Because we have been covered in the blood and He paid the terrible price for us we hate sin, we love righteousness.

Galatians 3:13-15
13 Christ redeemed us from the curse of the Law, having become a curse for us—for it is written, “Cursed is everyone who hangs on a tree”— 14 in order that in Christ Jesus the blessing of Abraham might come to the Gentiles, so that we would receive the promise of the Spirit through faith."

John 19:28-30
"28 After this, Jesus, knowing that all things had already been accomplished, to fulfill the Scripture, *said, “I am thirsty.” 29 A jar full of sour wine was standing there; so they put a sponge full of the sour wine upon a branch of hyssop and brought it up to His mouth. 30 Therefore when Jesus had received the sour wine, He said, “It is finished!” And He bowed His head and gave up His spirit."

When we see what Christ has done we can never take sin so lightly as to justify or excuse it.

When someone has saved our life, and in this case eternal life, we should be so loyal that we do not want to ever offend Him. Every small offense feels like a terrible burden to those who love Christ. They cannot defend or justify sin on any level knowing what He did for them.

I was helpless without Him but am no longer helpless because the Holy Spirit is my helper.

Jesus Christ the Great Healer

Jesus Christ does not heal ALL sickness. The greatest miracle of all with the greatest influence for non-believers is when a believer endures strongly while they go through difficulties.

Matthew 5:45 "that ye may be the children of your Father who is in Heaven. For He maketh His sun to rise on the evil and on the good, and sendeth rain on the just and on the unjust."

James 1:2-8 "2 Consider it all joy, my brethren, when you encounter various trials, 3 knowing that the testing of your faith produces endurance. 4 And let endurance have its perfect result, so that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing."

It is easy to rejoice in the Lord when we are healed, the real test is rejoicing in Him when we are in the middle of a trial.

Jesus Christ is the healer, sometimes physically, but mostly spiritually. Physical healing is good but even greater than that is the spiritual healing and transformation Christ does in us when we become born again and throughout our lives.