FINAL THOUGHTS ON THE OLD MAN

Here is the last installment of observations of this “old man” That Paul
instructs us to PUT OFF. I need to clarify that Ruth Paxson actually
wrote this stuff in 1928 not 1945.

SELF- CONSCIOUSNESS – “the old man never forgets himself; wherever he
goes he casts a shadow of himself before. He is constantly occupied with
photographing himself and developing the plates. He is chained to
himself and as he walks one hears the clank of the chains. He is often
morbidly self-introspective.

SELF-EXALTATION – “the old man” is absorbed in his own excellencies; he
overestimates himself and his abilities; he thirsts for admiration and
praise and he drives on flattery. He secretly worships at the shrine of
“self” and he wishes others to do so publicly.

SELF-RIGHTEOUSNESS – “the old man” loves to dress himself in the
garments of morality, benevolence and public-spiritedness. He even
patronizes the church and often assists in drives for raising money for
philanthropic and religious purposes, heading the list of donors with a
handsome gift. He keeps a double entry account book both with the church
and with the world and expects a reward both on earth and in heaven.

SELF-GLORYING – perhaps “the old man” resents this plain delineation of
himself as he really is and thinks the condemnation too sweeping.
Immediately he begins to enumerate his good qualities, his amiableness,
geniality, tolerance, self-control, sacrificial spirit and other
virtues. In do so he takes all the credit to himself for what he is,
exhibiting ill-concealed pride and vanity.

Is this delineation of self true or untrue? You have three ways by which
you may judge and decide:

1. What God’s Word says of Him
2. What you have seen of his manifestation in other lives
3. What you know to be true of YOURSELF!!!

In light of our own experience is there one of us who would not have to
confess to everyone of these hateful manifestations of self at some
moment in a greater or less degree? We each of us know what a
hydra-headed monster that old “I” is. Luther knew it and said “I am more
afraid of my own heart than of the Pope and all his cardinals. I have
within me that great Pope SELF!” adapted from LIFE ON THE HIGHEST PLANE,
by Ruth Paxson.

The value of this exercise is not on option #2 above. The value of this
exercise is allowing God to show you from His Word (#1) what you know to
be true of YOURSELF (#3). PUT OFF THE OLD MAN – BECASUSE HE WAS
CRUCIFIED WITH CHRIST AT THE CROSS!!!! More on the good news throughout
this week.

I am going to format this past three days into a resource that you can
download from our website. Watch for details.

Great Quote: It takes less time to do something right than it does to
explain why you did it wrong.

MORE ON THE OLD MAN …

I want to continue where I left off yesterday on the picture of the “old
man” written by Ruth Paxson in her classic work LIFE ON THE HIGHEST
PLANE. What intrigued me was that she wrote this in 1945 and yet its
words are as fresh and update as if she just wrote it … As a reminder
from yesterday, she wrote: “The foundation of life in the NATURAL MAN is
foursquare: self-will, self-love, self-trust, and self-exaltation, and
upon this foundation is reared a superstructure that is one HUGE capital
“I.” Self-will is the cornerstone and self-exaltation is the capstone.”

SELF-SEEKING – “the old man: is on a quest: he is after whatever will
advance the cause of self. He seeks with feverish ambition and activity,
praise, position, power, prominence, and anything that checks his
gaining them is attributed to others.

SELF-PITY – his love for HIMSELF often creates within “the old man”
rebellion against his circumstances or relationships; he exaggerates his
own possible suffering, discomfort or sorrow and makes himself and
others miserable by his habitual murmuring.

SELF-SENSITIVENESS – “the old man” is extremely hard to live with
because he is covered with wounds and is continually being hurt afresh.
He is not very companionable because usually he is dissolved in tears,
shrouded in silence, or enjoying a pout.

SELF-DEFENSE – “the old man” is very jealous of his rights and busy
avenging his wrongs. He indulges freely in lawsuits. In his pursuit of
his own vindication and justification in cases of disagreement and
estrangement with others, he is blinded by his own sin.

SELF-TRUST – “the old man” is very self-confident and feels no need of
one wiser and stronger than himself. Trusting in his own powers and
resources he is prone to say, “Though all me shall deny You, I will
not.”

SELF-SUFFICIENCY – the self-confidence of “the old man” fosters an
egotistical, smug, self-satisfaction which leaves him stagnant. He has
neither desire nor sense of need for anything beyond what he already
possesses.

More tomorrow … but this is the “old man” that Paul instructs us to
“PUT OFF!” Do a self-examination this morning. Who is reigning in your
life today?

Great Quote: Happy is the person who not only sings, but feels God’s eye
is on the sparrow, and knows He watches over me. To be simply ensconced
in God is true joy. How small a portion of our life it is that we really
enjoy! In youth we are looking forward to things that are to come; in
old age we are looking backward to things that are gone past; in
manhood, although we appear indeed to be more occupied in things that
are present, yet even that is too often absorbed in vague determinations
to be vastly happy on some future day when we have time. — C. C. Colton

PUTTING OFF THE OLD MAN …

” … that you put off, concerning your former conduct,
the old man which grows corrupt according to the deceitful lusts.”
Colossian 3:9

Who is the “old man” that the Apostle Paul instructs us to “put off?”
For the next several days, I want to help you understand who the old man
is – you are probably extremely familiar with him, more so than you want
to admit.

I want to share this picture through the eyes of Ruth Paxson whose
classic work on victorious Christian living has been a blessing to so
many over the years:

“”Let us take a full-length portrait of this hideous, heinous self; let
us face honestly his manifold operations and see if we are not forced to
accept GOD’S estimation of him and to acquiesce in the method of
deliverance from his sovereignty. The foundation of life in the NATURAL
MAN is foursquare: self-will, self-love, self-trust, and
self-exaltation, and upon this foundation is reared a superstructure
that is one HUGE capital “I.” Self-will is the cornerstone and
self-exaltation is the capstone.”

“SELF-WILL” – “We have turned every one to his own way.” The flesh wants
its OWN way and is determined to have it even if it defies and disobeys
God and overrides others.”I WILL” is the alphabet out of which self
fashions its language of life.

“SELF-CENTEREDNESS” – “the old man” feeds upon himself. He is the
beginning and the end. Life presents little that interests or affects
him except as it relates to HIMSELF. He is the center of the world in
which he lives and moves and he always looks out for number one.

“SELF-ASSERTION” – “the old man” believes that everyone is as interested
in him and as fascinated by him as he himself is, so he protrudes and
projects himself into the sight, hearing, and the notice of others
continually. He monopolizes conversations and the theme is always “I,”
“my” and “mine.” He walks with a swagger and expects the world to stop
work and look at him. And he never dreams how offensive his
self-importance is to others.

“SELF-DEPRECIATION” – “the old man” is very versatile and sometimes it
suits his purpose better to clothe his pride in a false humility. He
curls up in his self-depreciation and shirks a lot of hard work which
other people have to do. He magnifies his littleness and feebleness to
his own advantage, yet with strange inconsistency he resents others’
taking his professed estimate of himself and treating him accordingly.

‘SELF-CONCEIT” – “the old man” lives so much in himself that he does not
know how big the world is in which he lives and how many other really
intelligent people there are in it, so he has little regard for the
opinions of others, especially if contrary to his own. He looks with
proud and supercilious pity upon those less favored and gifted than
himself.

“SELF-LOVE” – “the old man” loves HIMSELF supremely, one might say
almost exclusively. He loves God not at all and his human love for
others is tainted more or less with selfishness, jealousy, envy or
impurity. Indeed, “the old man” makes an idol of HIMSELF which he not
only loves but worships.

“SELF-INDULGENT” – “the old man” eats, drinks, and is merry. For him to
want anything is equivalent to having it. He pampers and coddles
himself; he can even indulge his extravagant, fleshly appetites while
others starve to death before his eyes.

“SELF-PLEASING” – “the old man” chafes under discomfort and deprivation
and is grumpy and peevish unless EVERYTHING in the life of HIS day
ministers to real or imagined needs. He lives unto only ONE person whose
name is SELF! (Adapted from LIFE ON THE HIGHEST PLANE by Ruth Paxson.)

Will share more over the next several days. No wonder Paul said, “O
wretched man that I am!”

Great Quote: When you become consumed by God’s call on your life,
everything will take on new meaning and significance. You will begin to
see every facet of your life – including your pain – as a means through
which God can work to bring others to Himself. Charles Stanley

QUESTIONS REGARDING MY PRAYER LIFE

Here is another list of questions to help determine your spiritual
health. These questions will be helpful in analyzing your prayer life.

1. Has my prayer life been POWERLESS because of some besetting sin?

2. Has my prayer life been HINDERED by haste, irregularity,
indefiniteness, insufficient preparation, unbelief, neglect of Bible
study?

3. Has my prayer life been FRUITLESS? Have I had such power with
God that I have had power with people? Have I had definite answers to
prayer week by week?

4. Has my prayer life been RESTRICTED merely to short, stated
seasons of prayer or have I come to know what it is to ‘pray without
ceasing?’

5. Has my prayer life been LIMITED to prayer for myself? My family?
My work? My church? My mission? Or have I taken the world into my heart
and into my prayers?

6. Has my prayer life been STARVED? Or have I devoted time to the
study of God’s Word about prayer? Do I know His precepts and promises?

7. Has my prayer life been JOYLESS? Do I love to pray? Or is prayer
more of a duty than a delight?

8. Has my prayer life been GROWING? Do I daily know more of the
meaning and power of prayer?

9. Has my prayer life been sacrificial? Has it cost me anything in
time, strength, vitality, love?

“Lord, teach us to pray!” adapted from a KESWICK CLASSIC on
the victorious Christian life … LIFE ON THE HIGHEST PLANE by Ruth
Paxson

Great Quote: Do you wish to be great? Then begin by being. Do
you desire to construct a vast and lofty fabric? Think first about the
foundations of humility. The higher your structure is to be, the deeper
must be its foundations. Augustine

REVIVEHER NIGHT … Guys – want a great way to encourage your
wife? Send her to the monthly ReviveHER Night at America’s KESWICK.
Tomorrow night is our next one. See the website for details. It is a
great investment into the life of your spouse! See:
http://www.americaskeswick.org

If you have been blessed by the ministry of Freedom Fighters, we
encourage you to share it with others. If you would like to get the men
in your church interested in this daily publication, email me and we can
send you sign-up cards.

Additional Accountability Questions

I read these great questions in a newsletter from the ministry of
Blazing Grace. They come from speaker and author of prayer, Evelyn
Christenson.

1. Do you worry about anything? Have you failed to thank God for all
things, the seemingly bad as well as the good? Do you neglect to give
thanks at mealtime?

2. Do you fail to attempt things for God because you are not talented
enough? Do feelings of inferiority keep you from trying to serve God?
When you do accomplish something for Christ, do you fail to give Him all
the glory?

3. Have you failed to be a witness with your life for Christ? Have you
felt it was enough to just live your Christianity and not witness with
your mouth to the lost?

4. Are you proud of your accomplishments, your talents, your family? Do
you fail to see others as better than yourself, more important than
yourself in the body of Christ? Do you think as a Christian you are
doing quite well? Do you rebel at God wanting to change you?

5. Do you complain, find fault, argue? Do you have a critical spirit? Do
you carry a grudge against Christians of another group because they
don’t see eye to eye with you on all things? Do you speak unkindly about
people when they are not present? Are you angry with yourself? Others?
God?

6. Are you careless with your body? Are you guilty of not caring for it
as the temple of the Holy Spirit in eating and exercise habits? Do you
defile your body with unholy sex acts?

7. Do you ever use filthy language, tell slightly off-color jokes? Do
you condone others doing so in your presence, in your home?

8. Do you fail to see that you are a landing strip for Satan when you
open your mind to him through transcendental meditation, yoga, psychic
predictions, occult literature, and violent, sex-driven movies? Do you
let Satan use you to thwart the cause of Christ in your church through
criticism, gossip and non-support?

9. Do you fail to pay your debts on time? Avoid paying them altogether?
Do you charge more on credit cards that you can pay when due? Do you
neglect to keep honest income tax records? Do you engage in any shady
business deals?

10. Are you irregular or spasmodic in church attendance? Do you attend
preaching services in body only, whispering, reading or planning while
God’s Word is being preached? Are you skipping prayer meetings? Have you
neglected family devotions?

11. Do you ever lie? Exaggerate? Do you fail to see “little white lies”
as sin? Do you tell things the way you want them rather than the way
they really are?

12. Are you guilty of a lustful eye towards the opposite sex? Do you
fill your mind with sex-orientated TV programs, movies, books or
magazines? Their covers? Centerfolds? Do you indulge in any lustful
activity that God’s Word condemns-fornication, adultery, perversion?

13. Are you guilty of being a part of factions or divisions in your
church? Would you rather add fuel to a misunderstanding than help
correct it? Have you loved only the ones in your own church, feeling
those of other denominations are not worthy of the body of Christ? Are
you secretly pleased over the misfortunes of another? Annoyed by their
successes?

14. Have you failed to forgive anybody anything they might have said or
done against you? Have you turned certain people off? Are you holding
grudges?

15. Do you steal from your employer by doing less work, staying on the
job less time than you are paid for? Do you pad your expense account?

16. Is your goal in life to make as much money as possible? Accumulate
things? Have you withheld God’s share of your income from Him? Is money
your god?

17. Do you know in your heart that you are a fake, just pretending to be
a real Christian? Are you hiding behind church membership to cover a
life still full of sin? Are you faking Christianity for social status,
acceptance in your church, community? Do you smile piously during the
Sunday sermon but live in your sin all week? Are you the person in your
home that you are trying to impress people you are?

18. Do you enjoy listening to gossip? Passing it on? Do you believe
rumors or partial truths about an enemy of your competitor? Do you fail
to spend time every day reading the Bible? Do you fail to think on the
things of God-only good and true and pure things-always?

So how did you fare? Good questions to consider today and in the days
ahead.

“Until now you have not asked for anything in my name. Ask and you will
receive, and your joy will be complete.” John 16:24

“During the American Civil War, a certain man had a son who had enlisted
in the Union army. The father was a banker, and although he gave his
consent to his son, it seemed as if it would break his heart to let him
go.

Once his son had left, he became deeply interested in the plight if the
soldiers, and whenever he saw one in uniform, his heart went out to him
as he thought of his own dear boy. Often to the neglect of his business,
he began spending his time and money to care for the soldiers who came
home disabled. His friends pleaded with him not to neglect his business
in this way, by spending so much time and energy on the soldiers. So he
decided to give it all up, taking his friends’ advice.

After he had made the decision, however, a young private in a faded,
worn uniform stepped into the bank. It was easy to discern from the
wounds on his face and hands that he had been in the army field
hospital. The poor young man was fumbling in his pocket to find
something, when the banker saw him. Perceiving his purpose for coming
into the bank, he said to the soldier, ‘My dear man, I cannot help you
today. I am extremely busy. You will have to go to the army
headquarters, where the officers will take care of you.’

The poor wounded soldier still stood there, not seeming to fully
understand what was being said to him. He continued to fumble in his
pockets and finally pulled out a scrap of dirty paper. He laid the
filthy page before the banker, who read the following words written in
pencil:

Dear Father:

This is one of my friends, who was wounded in the last battle and is
coming to you directly from the hospital. Please receive him as you
would me.

Charlie

All the banker’s previous resolve to focus solely on his business
instead of the soldiers quickly flew away. He took the young man to his
own magnificent home and gave him Charlie’s room and seat at the dinner
table. He cared for him until the food, rest, and love had returned him
to health, and then sent him back to his place of service to again risk
his life for his country’s flag.” From STREAMS IN THE DESERT

Good thoughts to ponder today.

Great quote: If we can, by God’s grace, turn ourselves entirely to Him,
and put aside everything else in order to speak with Him and worship
Him, this does not mean that we can always imagine Him or feel His
presence. Neither imagination nor feeling are required for a full
conversion of our whole being to God. Nor is intense concentration on an
idea of God especially desirable. Hard as it is to convey in human
language, there is a very real and very recognizable (but almost
entirely indefinable) Presence of God, in which we confront Him in
prayer knowing Him by Whom we are known, aware of Him Who is aware of
us, loving Him by Whom we know ourselves to be loved. — Thomas Merton

DON’T MISS THE OBVIOUS …

Worship is all about HIM – not about YOU! I was reading through Psalm
150 this morning and two things jumped off the page. Read it for
yourself:

1 Praise the Lord! Praise God in His sanctuary; Praise Him in His mighty
firmament! 2 Praise Him for His mighty acts; Praise Him according to His
excellent greatness! 3 Praise Him with the sound of the trumpet; Praise
Him with the lute and harp! 4 Praise Him with the timbrel and dance;
Praise Him with stringed instruments and flutes! 5 Praise Him with loud
cymbals; Praise Him with clashing cymbals! 6 Let everything that has
breath praise the Lord. Praise the Lord!

Unfortunately worship divides rather than pulls us together. We get hung
up on what WE will get out of worship. We forget that the object of our
worship is not us – it’s all about Him. Every phrase in this Psalm
instructs us to praise HIM! He is the FOCUS of our praise. We are
directed to use our particular instruments of worship not for ourselves
but for Him. From trumpets to cymbals! Wow. Can it be? And it says that
the clashing of cymbals are to be loud! (We’ll just ignore the “d” word
…)

Worship is a blending of our individual personalities, likes and
dislikes, preferences and convictions to focus in on our great God! It
is the body of Christ coming together with a common purpose – Praise the
Lord! Someone said that if I am looking up in worship of Him I won’t
have time to be looking around to see what’s going on around me …

This morning remember that worship is not about You! It’s all about Him.
Praise the Lord! And do it with everything you’ve got! Let EVERYTHING
that has breath – praise the Lord.

ACCOUNTABILITY

From time to time guys ask me for questions that they can ask for
accountability purposes. This is a list of questions that I have shared
before with my Freedom Fighter guys, but here it is again. I trust it
will be helpful.

ACCOUNTABILITY QUESTIONS
1. Where are you presently in your personal relationship with God?
2. What have you been reading in your daily devotions this week?
3. What has God been saying to you during those readings?
4. Are you making notes of what God has been saying to you?
5. Have you been consistent in your times of prayer?
6. Which areas of your relationship with God do you experience
resistance? Are there any unresolved issues in your life?
7. What are the general and specific things that you are praying about?
8. What habits are you struggling with as a Christian at time in your
walk with God?
9. How are you going with regards to your spouse and children?
10. What general reading are you doing these days?
11. If Satan where to try to invalidate you as a person or as a servant,
how might he do it?
12. What is the state of your sexual perspective? Are you tempted, are
you struggling with fantasies? Are you entertaining evil thoughts?
13. Where are you financially right now? Are things under control?
14. Do you have someone to whom you are accountable, and do you meet on
a weekly or monthly basis with that person?
15. Have you spent time with a non- Christian this last month?
16. Do you have a prayer list where you pray for non- Christians?
17. What kind of challenges are you facing right now?
18. What is your greatest desire at this point?
19. What are the three things that you are most thankful for?
20. What areas of your life is the Holy Spirit working in?
21. Of the 20 questions you just answered, have you lied to us?
Adapted from a list of probing questions from my good friend and brother
in Christ, Dr. Gerard DuToit.

Great quote: When you become consumed by God’s call on your life,
everything will take on new meaning and significance. You will begin to
see every facet of your life – including your pain – as a means through
which God can work to bring others to Himself. Charles Stanley

ADD TO YOUR FAITH …

Sorry I am late in getting this out this morning, but we are in New
Hampshire to visit our kids and grandkids and will be ministering with
Robert and Joyce Hayes in Springfield, Mass on Saturday and Sunday. The
fall foliage on the way up was just spectacular.

Our grandson, Tanner, just turned two and we are amazed at his
vocabulary at his age. He is using some pretty big words and knows
exactly where to put them in a sentence. He absolutely adores our son,
Zach. You should have seen his face when we pulled into the driveway and
he spied Zach! I was afraid he would jump right through the picture
window.

What was amazing to me is that in just a few hours, he was observing
Zach and picking up words that Zach was saying adding them to his
vocabulary. It brought to my mind a some verses from Peter’s epistle of
the qualities that we are to add to our lives:

5 For this very reason, make every effort to add to your faith goodness;
and to goodness, knowledge; 6 and to knowledge, self-control; and to
self-control, perseverance; and to perseverance, godliness; 7 and to
godliness, brotherly kindness; and to brotherly kindness, love. 8 For if
you possess these qualities in increasing measure, they will keep you
from being ineffective and unproductive in your knowledge of our Lord
Jesus Christ. 9 But if anyone does not have them, he is nearsighted and
blind, and has forgotten that he has been cleansed from his past sins.
(1 Peter 1:5-9)

My friend, and Bible teacher/speaker, Dr. Ron Blue taught us that one
way we can add these necessary qualities to our faith is to pray and ask
the Holy Spirit to do build them into our lives. He prays for a
different quality each day. There are seven of them – one for each day!
Good practice.

So what are you adding to your faith today? Enjoy your day.

Great quote: God wisely designed the human body so that we neither pat
our own backs nor kick ourselves to easily. Anonymous

THE GREAT LIBERATOR

“If the Son therefore shall make you free, ye shall be free indeed.”
John 8:36

“To those who are imprisoned in their sin, the world IF rings a sweet
silver bell of hope. No matter WHO you are or WHAT you are or how many
years you may have remained a slave of Satan, “IF THE SON THEREFORE
SHALL MAKE YOU FREE,’ the glorious Liberator CAN make you free.
‘Wherefore he is able to also save them to the uttermost that come unto
God by him.’ (Hebrews 7:25)

Perhaps that which weighs upon you most heavily is a sense of your PAST
GUILT – you have offended God often, willfully, atrociously, with many
aggravations. You feel that God’s Word says against you is deserved and
every threatening that His book utters is your just due. Can so foul a
sinner be made clean?

I know that the leopard cannot lose its spots nor the Ethiopian change
his skin by HIS OWN EFFORTS. Is there a power divine that can take away
the spots and change your nature? Surely, it already has happened. No
sin that you have committed need shut you out of heaven. However
damnable your iniquities may have been, there is forgiveness with God
that He may be feared.

You may have gone to the very edge of hell, but the arms of God’s grace
is long enough to reach you. You may feel that your tongue is padlocked
with blasphemy, your hands bound by acts of atrocious violence, your
heart fettered with corruption, your feet chained fasts to the satanic
blocks of unbelief, your whole self locked up in the bondage of
corruption, but there is ONE so mighty to save that He can set even YOU
free. ‘The blood of Jesus Christ his Son cleanses us from ALL sin.’ (1
John 1:7) from the pen of Dr. Charles Haddon Spurgeon (The Power of
Christ the Warrior)

Listen to the words of this powerful hymn …

And can it be that I should gain
An interest in the Savior’s blood?
Died He for ME, who caused HIS pain?
For ME, who Him to death pursued.

He left HIS Father’s throne above!
So free, so infinite His grace!
Emptied Himself of all but love,
And bled for Adam’s helpless race!
‘Tis mercy all, immense and free,
For, O my God, it found out me.

‘Tis mystery all! The Immortal dies!
Who can explore His strange design?
In vain the firstborn seraph tries
To sound the depths of love divine.
‘Tis mercy all! Let earth adore;
Let angel minds inquire no more.

Long my imprisoned spirit lay
Fast bound in sin and nature’s night.
Thine eye diffused a quickening ray;
I woke – the dungeon flamed with light!
MY CHAINS FELL OFF, MY HEART WAS FREE!
I rose, went forth, and followed THEE.

NO CONDEMNATION now I dread;
Jesus, and all in HIM is mine!
Alive in Him, my living Head,
And clothed in righteousness divine.
Bold I approach the eternal throne,
And CLAIM THE CROWN, THROUGH CHRIST MY OWN.

Amazing love! How can it be
That Thou, my God shouldst die for ME!

Powerful words this morning. I have one Freedom Fighter friend that this
is for. You know who you are today. May this truth burn into your heart.