Matthew 26:47-56
Through history there are a few figures who have come to symbolize the term "betrayal". In Rome, there was Brutus. When Julius Caesar realized Brutus was involved in the assassination plot against him, it resigned him to his fate: Et tu, Brute? Brutus was manipulated to join the plot by his wife and by reading messages that were forged by Caeser's political enemies.
The most famous American incident of betrayal was Benedict Arnold plotting to turn over the fort at West Point to the British during the Revolutionary War. Arnold was a decorated general who had been a war hero, but he felt slighted that he had not been promoted where others had been. Although history recounts there were several men named "Benedict Arnold" with high offices in colonial New England, nobody names their sons "Benedict" anymore. Moreover, although the heroics of Arnold, Gates, Schuyler and Morgan at the Battle of Saratoga are immortalized with granite monuments, there is no mention of the name of Arnold.
The most bittersweet example of betrayal takes place in this passage. Unlike the others, this betrayal was foretold centuries before. Jesus understood that and had even told the group that one of them would betray Him.
Your Reaction is Most Important
Jesus understood that He could not stop what had been prophesied. He even told Judas, "What you do, do quickly." John 13:27 Jesus even mentions in this passage that He could have brought a halt to all of this when He told Peter that He could have called the angels to His side.
Check out how Judas fingered Jesus. Why was this necessary? The soldiers with the arrest warrant knew who Jesus was -- everybody did. If there was a formal need for an identification, why not just stand at a distance and point? Why did Judas approach Jesus, call him "Rabbi" and kiss him on the cheek?
Satan had entered into Judas by this time and what better way for Satan to twist the knife in Jesus' back than to pervert one of the most intimate expressions of fellowship? We don't greet people with a kiss now (unless you're in Europe), but several times in his writings, Paul urged his readers to greet the brethren with a "holy kiss." (Romans 16:16; 1 Cor. 16:20; 2 Cor. 13:12; 1 Thess. 5:26). Therefore, Judas approaches Jesus, in the presence of some of the other disciples after missing the Passover meal, and greets him with the symbol of fellowship. We all know what happened after that.
We've all been betrayed. For some of us, it's our hairline or our stamina that's betrayed us over the years. Others have been betrayed by business partners or friends that have turned against us. Some have even felt the sting of a spouse that has turned away for another. We all know the flood of emotion that accompanies betrayal. Why!!???!!??? That has to be the most common complaint or question followed closely by an intense desire for revenge.
What struck me the most in this passage was Jesus' response to His betrayal. There's no flood of emotion. Jesus wasn't a Vulcan. He had every emotion we did. He cried. He laughed. Well, there were 2 emotions I can think of that he didn't have: guilt and shame. He didn't want to tear Judas limb from limb. Instead, when Judas came forward to kiss Him, He simply called Judas "Friend."
A component to betrayal is that the person putting the knife in your back is someone you have a relationship with. If one of your enemies sticks it to you, that's expected. It still gets your goat, but it doesn't leave you with the intense pain of someone that's close to you. Jesus had selected 12 and Satan selected 1 of the 12. I'm not saying that when a friend, partner or mate throws you under the bus that you have to continue in relationship with them. But look what Jesus did. He called Judas, "Friend."
The lesson I see here is that we can't control what other people do. Some will stand by us forever. Some will say they'll stand by us forever, but when things get tough, they won't know who we are (Peter, but that's another lesson entirely). Some will stab us in the back. We can control how we respond to betrayal.
We can respond with bitterness and anger. That's natural. Jesus wouldn't do that and explicitly told Peter to cease with the anger when Peter struck Malchus the guard. What do we get when we react with bitterness and anger? We get a stomach ache. Like I say, it's natural to respond to this type of betrayal -- especially that of a spouse -- with bitterness and anger. But there's a time to let that go and move on. Imagine what would have happened if Jesus had gone before Ananias, Caiphus and Pilate with bitterness and rage at what Judas had done to Him? Imagine how different the world would be if Peter, James and John had stayed locked up in the room burning with rage at how Judas had ruined everything? If there's to be bitterness, let it be only for a short season.
We can also respond with a desire for revenge. Jesus told Judas that he wouldn't have a good end, but that wasn't a vengeful statement so much as a warning from Old Testament prophecy. However, we know that God reserves revenge and justice to Himself. We are not to seek vengeance on those who have betrayed us. It's OK to be honest with God and tell Him what we'd like to see happen to them, but we've got to leave it to Him.
Why must we avoid these type of human reactions? You can't walk in love if you're holding on to anger and revenge. I think sometimes we forget that the Law of Love supercedes everything else. Remember, after betrayal, you've still got a life. Will it be a life of love that works as a testament to the grace and power of Jesus or will it be a life corroded by the acid of anger flowing through your veins that becomes an example of "what could have been....." That's all your choice. Be defined by God's Love rather than by someone else's treachery.
Sunday, July 26, 2009
Monday, July 20, 2009
Sunday, July 19, 2009
July 19 -- Abiding in Christ
John 15:1-8
When we went through this in class, everyone raised their hand to wanting to abide in Christ. Everyone also raised their hand to wanting to bear fruit for God. However, nobody volunteered to have something they liked in their life taken away.
Pruning
You've heard the saying, "Anything worth having is worth working for." Getting in shape means working out and going through the soreness that follows. Having a nice looking yard means taking the time and money to make it look that way. God says that whenever someone is producing fruit, He'll prune them in order that they can produce more fruit.
Pruning isn't fun. As with our class, it's not something that you just sign up for. However it's also necessary. Look at it this way: no matter where we are in life, there are bound to be parts of our life that aren't bad, but they're not producing anything for God's Kingdom.
For example, many nights after work, I'll come home to sit down and watch television. There's nothing intrinsically wrong with a spy show or a crime show or something like that. But watching TV isn't producing anything for God's Kingdom. God might choose to prune some of that TV out of my life so that in its place there can grow more fruit. It might be as simple as calling to encourage or reach out to someone, get involved in a Bible Study, watch/listen to a teacher of the Word or spending time talking with my wife.
The swap here is interesting. I lose dead wood and gain what God's Word calls "more fruit." Instead of asking, "Would anyone here like to have something you like taken out of your life?" perhaps I would have gotten a different response to, "Would anyone here like to trade in some dead wood and get fruit in exchange?"
Fruit
There are 4 types of people discussed in this passage. One is the person who isn't connected to Jesus. That person is removed from the vine, withers and dies. Obviously, we don't want to be that person.
The second person is one who is bearing fruit. That's the person that gets to stay connected to the vine and gets to be pruned. This leads to the third person. Jesus said that the person who is pruned then produces more fruit.
However, there's a fourth person that we want to aspire to be. This is the person that produces much fruit. That's who we want to be. That's who God wants us to be. Do you know what you have to do to be that person? The same thing a branch of a tree does. Nothing. A branch does nothing to get its nourishment. A branch doesn't do anything except to be there. Jesus said that all we have to do is "abide in Me." We get on the tandem bike with Jesus and follow Him. Now, that doesn't mean you get to just lay back in the recliner and watch it all happen. Part of abiding means that when God leads to you something, you do it.
However, what you don't do in order to produce much fruit is to figure out what to do and put your plans into it. When you set out to do that, you get nothing. Just like the branch of an apple tree can't produce an apple if it's separated from the tree, we can't do anything for God's Kingdom if we disconnect ourselves from Jesus.
The question then becomes, what does it mean to abide? I'm not sure I can give you any pat answer. There's no Seven Steps to Abiding in Christ out there. Besides, if we sit around and go through some kind of checklist, we're doing it ourselves and defeating the purpose.
Instead, I'd offer up the following characteristics of someone who's abiding in Christ. Let these become part of your lifestyle, something that you become rather than something you do, and God's Word says you should start seeing much fruit in your life. This is far from exhaustive.
Abiding in Christ
Romans 12:1-2 TRANSFORM
1 I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that you present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable to God, which is your reasonable service. 2 And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God.
You can't do it like you are. Abiding in Christ means that when junk starts happening around you, you'll not react with anger, fear, worry, frustration or revenge. Instead, you'll have peace and joy. That doesn't happen without a transformation of your mind.
1 Thessalonians 5:16-18 PRAISE
16 Rejoice always, 17 pray without ceasing, 18 in everything give thanks; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.
It's kind of a no-brainer that abiding in Christ means that you're going to do the things that show God you know who He is and praise Him.
Ephesians 4:29 SPEAK
29 Let no corrupt word proceed out of your mouth, but what is good for necessary edification, that it may impart grace to the hearers.
Your grandma taught you that "If you can't say something nice, don't say anything at all." That's good advice and would lead us all to say a lot less. However, God's Word says that if you can't find anything good to say, say something good.
1 John 1:7-9 CONFESS
7 But if we walk in the light as He is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus Christ His Son cleanses us from all sin. 8 If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. 9 If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.
If we wake up in the morning and go through the day, we're going to make mistakes. There's going to be sin. It's part of life, especially if we're interacting with other people. No matter how holy and sanctified we are, it'll be there. The nice thing is, God knows. If we hide it, we're lying to Him and lying to ourseles. God tells us to just go ahead and get it out to Him so He can deal with it. Then we go back to having fellowship with Him and one another. If we have the confidence that God will keep his promise to cleanse us from everything and never turn His back on us, we can enter into a much deeper relationship of abiding with Him.
James 4:2-3 ASK PROPERLY
2 You lust and do not have. You murder and covet and cannot obtain. You fight and war. Yet you do not have because you do not ask. 3 You ask and do not receive, because you ask amiss, that you may spend it on your pleasures.
You're going to have desires and wants. However, if you delight yourself in the Lord, He's promised to put His desires into you. (Psalm 37:4) We end up dissatisfied because in our own power, we sit around and want what we don't have and when we do get around to asking God for something, it's often a selfish request. If we're abiding in Christ, we're going to be asking for the things that He wants anyway and we'll then see him fulfilling our lives in a way that glorifies His Kingdom.
Phillippians 4:6-7 SUBMIT
6 Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God; 7 and the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.
Praying with supplication means we have to put our agenda aside. Submitting isn't something that comes naturally. However, submitting is essential to abiding in Christ and producing much fruit for His Kingdom. Otherwise, the Old Man is still running the show and you'll be advancing your status on earth, but doing nothing for God.
Hebrews 11:6 FAITH
6 But without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is, and that He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him.
Abiding with Christ without pleasing God doesn't fit. You will have to have faith in God in order to abide and be fruitful for Him. Then, what's the reward? Fruit.
1 John 4:7-8 LOVE
7 Beloved, let us love one another, for love is of God; and everyone who loves is born of God and knows God. 8 He who does not love does not know God, for God is love.
God is love. So how could you abide in Him without making love the center of your life? You can't. We can let God's love reign in us and spill over to the world around us and that's the essence of abiding in Christ.
I wish I could tell you there was one of these that was the key. They're interrelated. But don't wake up thinking, "Today, I'm going to speak good things to everyone. " I've done that. Then, I'll sarcastically bite the head off the first person to cross me. It's a matter of deciding to life within Christ and seeing your life start to resemble the characteristics above. Remember, be a branch.
When we went through this in class, everyone raised their hand to wanting to abide in Christ. Everyone also raised their hand to wanting to bear fruit for God. However, nobody volunteered to have something they liked in their life taken away.
Pruning
You've heard the saying, "Anything worth having is worth working for." Getting in shape means working out and going through the soreness that follows. Having a nice looking yard means taking the time and money to make it look that way. God says that whenever someone is producing fruit, He'll prune them in order that they can produce more fruit.
Pruning isn't fun. As with our class, it's not something that you just sign up for. However it's also necessary. Look at it this way: no matter where we are in life, there are bound to be parts of our life that aren't bad, but they're not producing anything for God's Kingdom.
For example, many nights after work, I'll come home to sit down and watch television. There's nothing intrinsically wrong with a spy show or a crime show or something like that. But watching TV isn't producing anything for God's Kingdom. God might choose to prune some of that TV out of my life so that in its place there can grow more fruit. It might be as simple as calling to encourage or reach out to someone, get involved in a Bible Study, watch/listen to a teacher of the Word or spending time talking with my wife.
The swap here is interesting. I lose dead wood and gain what God's Word calls "more fruit." Instead of asking, "Would anyone here like to have something you like taken out of your life?" perhaps I would have gotten a different response to, "Would anyone here like to trade in some dead wood and get fruit in exchange?"
Fruit
There are 4 types of people discussed in this passage. One is the person who isn't connected to Jesus. That person is removed from the vine, withers and dies. Obviously, we don't want to be that person.
The second person is one who is bearing fruit. That's the person that gets to stay connected to the vine and gets to be pruned. This leads to the third person. Jesus said that the person who is pruned then produces more fruit.
However, there's a fourth person that we want to aspire to be. This is the person that produces much fruit. That's who we want to be. That's who God wants us to be. Do you know what you have to do to be that person? The same thing a branch of a tree does. Nothing. A branch does nothing to get its nourishment. A branch doesn't do anything except to be there. Jesus said that all we have to do is "abide in Me." We get on the tandem bike with Jesus and follow Him. Now, that doesn't mean you get to just lay back in the recliner and watch it all happen. Part of abiding means that when God leads to you something, you do it.
However, what you don't do in order to produce much fruit is to figure out what to do and put your plans into it. When you set out to do that, you get nothing. Just like the branch of an apple tree can't produce an apple if it's separated from the tree, we can't do anything for God's Kingdom if we disconnect ourselves from Jesus.
The question then becomes, what does it mean to abide? I'm not sure I can give you any pat answer. There's no Seven Steps to Abiding in Christ out there. Besides, if we sit around and go through some kind of checklist, we're doing it ourselves and defeating the purpose.
Instead, I'd offer up the following characteristics of someone who's abiding in Christ. Let these become part of your lifestyle, something that you become rather than something you do, and God's Word says you should start seeing much fruit in your life. This is far from exhaustive.
Abiding in Christ
Romans 12:1-2 TRANSFORM
1 I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that you present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable to God, which is your reasonable service. 2 And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God.
You can't do it like you are. Abiding in Christ means that when junk starts happening around you, you'll not react with anger, fear, worry, frustration or revenge. Instead, you'll have peace and joy. That doesn't happen without a transformation of your mind.
1 Thessalonians 5:16-18 PRAISE
16 Rejoice always, 17 pray without ceasing, 18 in everything give thanks; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.
It's kind of a no-brainer that abiding in Christ means that you're going to do the things that show God you know who He is and praise Him.
Ephesians 4:29 SPEAK
29 Let no corrupt word proceed out of your mouth, but what is good for necessary edification, that it may impart grace to the hearers.
Your grandma taught you that "If you can't say something nice, don't say anything at all." That's good advice and would lead us all to say a lot less. However, God's Word says that if you can't find anything good to say, say something good.
1 John 1:7-9 CONFESS
7 But if we walk in the light as He is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus Christ His Son cleanses us from all sin. 8 If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. 9 If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.
If we wake up in the morning and go through the day, we're going to make mistakes. There's going to be sin. It's part of life, especially if we're interacting with other people. No matter how holy and sanctified we are, it'll be there. The nice thing is, God knows. If we hide it, we're lying to Him and lying to ourseles. God tells us to just go ahead and get it out to Him so He can deal with it. Then we go back to having fellowship with Him and one another. If we have the confidence that God will keep his promise to cleanse us from everything and never turn His back on us, we can enter into a much deeper relationship of abiding with Him.
James 4:2-3 ASK PROPERLY
2 You lust and do not have. You murder and covet and cannot obtain. You fight and war. Yet you do not have because you do not ask. 3 You ask and do not receive, because you ask amiss, that you may spend it on your pleasures.
You're going to have desires and wants. However, if you delight yourself in the Lord, He's promised to put His desires into you. (Psalm 37:4) We end up dissatisfied because in our own power, we sit around and want what we don't have and when we do get around to asking God for something, it's often a selfish request. If we're abiding in Christ, we're going to be asking for the things that He wants anyway and we'll then see him fulfilling our lives in a way that glorifies His Kingdom.
Phillippians 4:6-7 SUBMIT
6 Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God; 7 and the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.
Praying with supplication means we have to put our agenda aside. Submitting isn't something that comes naturally. However, submitting is essential to abiding in Christ and producing much fruit for His Kingdom. Otherwise, the Old Man is still running the show and you'll be advancing your status on earth, but doing nothing for God.
Hebrews 11:6 FAITH
6 But without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is, and that He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him.
Abiding with Christ without pleasing God doesn't fit. You will have to have faith in God in order to abide and be fruitful for Him. Then, what's the reward? Fruit.
1 John 4:7-8 LOVE
7 Beloved, let us love one another, for love is of God; and everyone who loves is born of God and knows God. 8 He who does not love does not know God, for God is love.
God is love. So how could you abide in Him without making love the center of your life? You can't. We can let God's love reign in us and spill over to the world around us and that's the essence of abiding in Christ.
I wish I could tell you there was one of these that was the key. They're interrelated. But don't wake up thinking, "Today, I'm going to speak good things to everyone. " I've done that. Then, I'll sarcastically bite the head off the first person to cross me. It's a matter of deciding to life within Christ and seeing your life start to resemble the characteristics above. Remember, be a branch.
Sunday, December 14, 2008
December 14 -- Don't Worry, Be Holy
Matthew 6:19-34
In 1988 the song "Don't Worry, Be Happy" was popular. It was song of the year. My law school roommate watched MTV and, because he knew that song grated on me, would give me a less than sincere invitation to come watch my favorite video when it came on.
We have plenty of things to worry about. We can worry about our retirement investments plunging, we can worry about our jobs, we can worry about our health, we can worry about how safe our children are going to be, we can worry about terrorists. We can also worry about less important things. We can worry about what we're going to wear on a date, we can worry about what we're going to give Grandpa for Christmas, I can worry about whether Grandpa is going to get me another dickey for Christmas, we can worry about the weather, I can worry about whether the Duke Blue Devils are going to do well in the NCAA tournament this year.
Where does worry come from? For the most part, fear. Winston Churchill was reminded of the story of the old man on his deathbed who thought about all the trouble he had in his life, most of which never happened.
Jesus was pretty plainspoken about worry. DON'T!! What has worry ever done for you? It'll give you a bellyache. It'll keep you up nights. It'll paralyze you so you don't get anything done. But it won't do anything for you.
But while Jesus said "Don't worry," He didn't just follow up with "Be happy." I think the reason I didn't like that song was in the video you have all these people that are floating around with a completely empty head. I didn't like that and I still don't (even though I may appear that way from time to time).
God Loves You
I don't think Jesus ever got tired of telling people how much God loves them. He looked for all kinds of ways to tell us that. Here, he shows us how God takes care of the flowers and the birds. However, they weren't made in God's image. God didn't breathe life into them. God put them under our dominion. God didn't send His Son to die for them and yet He takes great care of them. How much more will He take care of someone He created in His own image, breathed life into, put in authority over the earth and sent His Son to die for?
The worrier can look around and see things to worry about. The person of faith looks at those same things and sees all kinds of things that scream out "GOD LOVES ME!!" You decide what your perspective will be.
Be Holy
After talking about possessions and worrying, Jesus gets into the heart of it all. "Seek first the Kingdom of God and His righteousness and all these things will follow after you." Once we get the idea that pursuit of stuff is useless -- like chasing after the wind -- and pursuit of God's righteousness is lasting, we can find meaning in our lives.
I like to collect baseball cards. However, 75 years from now, they probably won't do me any good. If we put our investment into pursuing God's righteousness by making an effort to show love to people, etc., we'll see that investment still paying dividends hundreds of years from now. Jesus wasn't saying not to collect baseball cards or to have nice cars and houses. What Jesus was saying is that when we place our priorities on things that are of this world, we're going to find dissatisfaction. When we pursue God's righteousness, He says that "all these things" (what we will wear, what we will eat and even the desires He puts in our hearts) will follow along.
In 1988 the song "Don't Worry, Be Happy" was popular. It was song of the year. My law school roommate watched MTV and, because he knew that song grated on me, would give me a less than sincere invitation to come watch my favorite video when it came on.
We have plenty of things to worry about. We can worry about our retirement investments plunging, we can worry about our jobs, we can worry about our health, we can worry about how safe our children are going to be, we can worry about terrorists. We can also worry about less important things. We can worry about what we're going to wear on a date, we can worry about what we're going to give Grandpa for Christmas, I can worry about whether Grandpa is going to get me another dickey for Christmas, we can worry about the weather, I can worry about whether the Duke Blue Devils are going to do well in the NCAA tournament this year.
Where does worry come from? For the most part, fear. Winston Churchill was reminded of the story of the old man on his deathbed who thought about all the trouble he had in his life, most of which never happened.
Jesus was pretty plainspoken about worry. DON'T!! What has worry ever done for you? It'll give you a bellyache. It'll keep you up nights. It'll paralyze you so you don't get anything done. But it won't do anything for you.
But while Jesus said "Don't worry," He didn't just follow up with "Be happy." I think the reason I didn't like that song was in the video you have all these people that are floating around with a completely empty head. I didn't like that and I still don't (even though I may appear that way from time to time).
God Loves You
I don't think Jesus ever got tired of telling people how much God loves them. He looked for all kinds of ways to tell us that. Here, he shows us how God takes care of the flowers and the birds. However, they weren't made in God's image. God didn't breathe life into them. God put them under our dominion. God didn't send His Son to die for them and yet He takes great care of them. How much more will He take care of someone He created in His own image, breathed life into, put in authority over the earth and sent His Son to die for?
The worrier can look around and see things to worry about. The person of faith looks at those same things and sees all kinds of things that scream out "GOD LOVES ME!!" You decide what your perspective will be.
Be Holy
After talking about possessions and worrying, Jesus gets into the heart of it all. "Seek first the Kingdom of God and His righteousness and all these things will follow after you." Once we get the idea that pursuit of stuff is useless -- like chasing after the wind -- and pursuit of God's righteousness is lasting, we can find meaning in our lives.
I like to collect baseball cards. However, 75 years from now, they probably won't do me any good. If we put our investment into pursuing God's righteousness by making an effort to show love to people, etc., we'll see that investment still paying dividends hundreds of years from now. Jesus wasn't saying not to collect baseball cards or to have nice cars and houses. What Jesus was saying is that when we place our priorities on things that are of this world, we're going to find dissatisfaction. When we pursue God's righteousness, He says that "all these things" (what we will wear, what we will eat and even the desires He puts in our hearts) will follow along.
Sunday, December 7, 2008
December 7 -- Raising the Bar
The Sermon on the Mount is one of the most famous teachings Jesus ever did. However, if you examine what we've just read, I'm surprised anyone stayed around the way He really challenged them......and us. What we're going to see is that Jesus was raising the bar for anyone who thought they could just look at the 10 Commandments and be good. He raised the bar for anyone who would be born again with the Holy Spirit. I hope you stay around.
Light
Light was one of the first things we see in the Bible. In fact, apart from heaven and earth, light was the first thing created and was the first thing spoken into existence. Light gives warmth, but the function Jesus talked about here had to do with enabling people to see.
We have natural light (the sun) and artificial light produced through light bulbs, etc. A light bulb by itself, however, is nothing, much like the believer who is not abiding in Christ. John 15:5 However, when the light bulb is inserted into a lamp, and the lamp plugged into a power source, the bulb will produce light. Likewise, we must make sure we're not only plugged into a power source, but that we're situated in such a place that the light can be seen. If I turn on a lamp, but put it in a closet and shut the door, I'm wasting electricity. What am I doing if I take the light God has given me and hide it somewhere.
This is why verse 16 is so important: Let your light so shine before me that they see your good works and glorify your Father in heaven. "Good works" are not the works that makes God love you, but simply those things that were prepared for you when you were saved. Ephesians 2:8-10 Here's the part that raises the bar. Don't do the right thing because it will cause people to accept you; Do the right thing because it'll make God look good to the world. Talk about something that will cause a civil war between flesh and spirit!
Difficult Challenges
Ask many people on the street about getting into heaven and you'll hear many (too many) justify themselves by saying they're good people that haven't killed anyone, haven't cheated on their spouses and so forth. We know that this type of justification through actions is doomed to failure because no one could keep the law except Jesus.
However, Jesus seemed to not make it easy. Going through life and failing to murder isn't enough; Jesus called people to not even being angry without cause. Jesus taught that not cheating on your spouse was a good thing, but He called people to not even allow yourself to lust after another. Finally, loving your neighbors is ordained by God, but Jesus reminds them that they're also to (gasp) love their enemies.
Tuesday, December 2, 2008
November 30 -- "Peace, Be Still"
Mark 4:35-41
Jesus is preaching all day and in the evening the disciples take the boat across the sea. It's not clear whether the other boats along are part of a floatilla including others that follow Jesus or just some of those He was teaching that wanted to stay with Him. A storm blows up on the sea and threatens the boat. What do we learn from this event?
1. Make sure Jesus is in your boat.
We have a lot going on in our lives. If we’ve got so much going on that there’s no room for Jesus in our boat, it’s going to be more difficult for us to find Him in time of need. The disciples made sure Jesus was close by. There are things we do that crowd Jesus out of our boats. Examine your life and schedule to see if something needs to be thrown overboard or stowed on an accompanying boat so Jesus can be close to you.
2. Storms come at unexpected times.
At least 4 of the disciples were experienced fishermen, which meant they knew how to handle a boat in a storm. This was a fierce storm that hit suddenly and had experienced sailors asking a carpenter for help!
We can't prepare for everything, but we can be as wise as the disciples. When they felt overwhelmed by the storm, they rushed to Jesus. We should still do everything He's taught us to handle the storms of life, but we should also know when to run to Him.
The other thing about storms is that they come into our lives because we live in the world, we make bad choices or because Satan has an evil plan to harm us. We need to learn that we don't have to take any crap off the enemy. Just because a storm blows into our lives doesn't mean we have to take it. There is no storm that is greater than God's grace. Don't just sit there and take it. Approach God and ask for help! Don't take any crap off the Devil.
3. Jesus was dealing with fear more than wind.
After the wind and sea were still, Jesus looked at his disciples and said, “Why are you so fearful? How is it that you have no faith?” Jesus tied the two together. Fearfulness equalled a lack of faith. Conversely a strong faith will minimize fear.
Jesus also spoke what is translated as "Peace, Be still" when talking to the storm. The word translated as "peace" means "an involuntary stillness or inability to speak.” The word translated as “be still” means “muzzle” or “put to silence.” This is more than Jesus just saying “settle down.” The picture here is Jesus getting a hammerlock around fear, clamping His hand over its mouth and forcing it to stop talking. That fear was telling the disciples "You're going to die" and causing them to forget their faith and that was the real problem.
Fear does the same thing to us. It paralyzes us. It tells us lies that we buy into because we forget our faith. I think part of what Jesus was telling the disciples when he asked why they had little faith was "Why didn't you muzzle this fear?" There are times we need the comfort and peace of Jesus and other times that we need to take the faith and spiritual gifts that have been given us and shut up the fear in the storms that ride into our lives. The power of the Holy Spirit gives us this ability as a matter of right.
4. Jesus can calm storms today.
When did Jesus lose His power to make the wind and waves obey Him? When did Jesus lose His power to shut fear up? Perhaps the better question is when did God's people stop trusting Him to help in their everyday lives?
Several years ago my little girl had a stomach ache in the middle of the night. I groggily got up with her in the middle of the night and sat in the bathroom with her. She told me it hurt and she felt like she was going to vomit. This passage came to my spirit, so I got my Bible and read it to her. I asked her if her stomach was churning like the waves on this sea? Yes, she said. I then asked her if she'd like Jesus to say "Peace, Be still" to her belly. Yes, she said. We prayed and asked Jesus to say "Peace, Be still" to her belly. She still had a stomach ache and felt weak (I guess we didn't ask for enough), but she told me her stomach felt calmer and she wasn't going to throw up. She didn't.
God used that to show me something. We still ask Jesus to speak "Peace, Be still" for nausea, but also for other storms. You see, Jesus hasn't lost any power. The Bible says that Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today and forever. (Hebrews 13:8) We need to entrust Him to help us wth our storms.
I like the song below ("The Anchor Holds" by Ray Boltz). Watch it, realizing Jesus is the anchor to hold us steady through storms and our protector to throw fear in a headlock and shut it up.
Jesus is preaching all day and in the evening the disciples take the boat across the sea. It's not clear whether the other boats along are part of a floatilla including others that follow Jesus or just some of those He was teaching that wanted to stay with Him. A storm blows up on the sea and threatens the boat. What do we learn from this event?
1. Make sure Jesus is in your boat.
We have a lot going on in our lives. If we’ve got so much going on that there’s no room for Jesus in our boat, it’s going to be more difficult for us to find Him in time of need. The disciples made sure Jesus was close by. There are things we do that crowd Jesus out of our boats. Examine your life and schedule to see if something needs to be thrown overboard or stowed on an accompanying boat so Jesus can be close to you.
2. Storms come at unexpected times.
At least 4 of the disciples were experienced fishermen, which meant they knew how to handle a boat in a storm. This was a fierce storm that hit suddenly and had experienced sailors asking a carpenter for help!
We can't prepare for everything, but we can be as wise as the disciples. When they felt overwhelmed by the storm, they rushed to Jesus. We should still do everything He's taught us to handle the storms of life, but we should also know when to run to Him.
The other thing about storms is that they come into our lives because we live in the world, we make bad choices or because Satan has an evil plan to harm us. We need to learn that we don't have to take any crap off the enemy. Just because a storm blows into our lives doesn't mean we have to take it. There is no storm that is greater than God's grace. Don't just sit there and take it. Approach God and ask for help! Don't take any crap off the Devil.
3. Jesus was dealing with fear more than wind.
After the wind and sea were still, Jesus looked at his disciples and said, “Why are you so fearful? How is it that you have no faith?” Jesus tied the two together. Fearfulness equalled a lack of faith. Conversely a strong faith will minimize fear.
Jesus also spoke what is translated as "Peace, Be still" when talking to the storm. The word translated as "peace" means "an involuntary stillness or inability to speak.” The word translated as “be still” means “muzzle” or “put to silence.” This is more than Jesus just saying “settle down.” The picture here is Jesus getting a hammerlock around fear, clamping His hand over its mouth and forcing it to stop talking. That fear was telling the disciples "You're going to die" and causing them to forget their faith and that was the real problem.
Fear does the same thing to us. It paralyzes us. It tells us lies that we buy into because we forget our faith. I think part of what Jesus was telling the disciples when he asked why they had little faith was "Why didn't you muzzle this fear?" There are times we need the comfort and peace of Jesus and other times that we need to take the faith and spiritual gifts that have been given us and shut up the fear in the storms that ride into our lives. The power of the Holy Spirit gives us this ability as a matter of right.
4. Jesus can calm storms today.
When did Jesus lose His power to make the wind and waves obey Him? When did Jesus lose His power to shut fear up? Perhaps the better question is when did God's people stop trusting Him to help in their everyday lives?
Several years ago my little girl had a stomach ache in the middle of the night. I groggily got up with her in the middle of the night and sat in the bathroom with her. She told me it hurt and she felt like she was going to vomit. This passage came to my spirit, so I got my Bible and read it to her. I asked her if her stomach was churning like the waves on this sea? Yes, she said. I then asked her if she'd like Jesus to say "Peace, Be still" to her belly. Yes, she said. We prayed and asked Jesus to say "Peace, Be still" to her belly. She still had a stomach ache and felt weak (I guess we didn't ask for enough), but she told me her stomach felt calmer and she wasn't going to throw up. She didn't.
God used that to show me something. We still ask Jesus to speak "Peace, Be still" for nausea, but also for other storms. You see, Jesus hasn't lost any power. The Bible says that Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today and forever. (Hebrews 13:8) We need to entrust Him to help us wth our storms.
I like the song below ("The Anchor Holds" by Ray Boltz). Watch it, realizing Jesus is the anchor to hold us steady through storms and our protector to throw fear in a headlock and shut it up.
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