Ftiday Thought -- July 22, 2011

Good Morning Friends,

“Jesus took the Twelve aside and told them, ‘We are going up to Jerusalem, and everything that is written by the prophets about the Son of Man will be fulfilled. He will be handed over to the Gentiles. They will mock him, insult him, spit on him, flog him and kill him. On the third day he will rise again.’ The disciples did not understand any of this. Its meaning was hidden from them, and they did not know what he was talking about.” (Luke 18:31-34)

There is one phrase in this passage that stands out for me: “The disciples did not understand any of this.”

That is a comforting phrase for me because there are many things that happen in my life and in the lives of people around me that I do not understand. I don’t understand them from the perspective of what God is trying to accomplish through His people. I don’t understand them from the perspective of God’s love and compassion for His children. I don’t understand them from the perspective of God’s desire to build His children into the image of Jesus. I just plain don’t understand a lot of things that happen.

I have a friend – a teenage boy – who has leukemia. I don’t understand the why of that.

I have another friend who has breast cancer. I don’t understand the why of that.

I have a friend who has ongoing health problems that defy explanation and treatment. I don’t understand the why of that.

I have friends who have lost spouses and children and parents to death. I don’t understand the whys of those things.

I horrendous tornado hit the city in which I went to college – Joplin. It killed hundreds and did unimaginable damage. I don’t understand the why of that.

And I could go on and on with my list. There are many things that I don’t understand. Yet, they seem to be a part of God’s plan. At least God hasn’t prevented any of them.

The story from Jesus’ life comforts me because it shows that the earliest and closest followers of Jesus didn’t understand, either. But here’s something else that becomes evident as the rest of their lives unfolded – though there were many things they didn’t understand, they trusted Jesus and kept following Him.

That’s my decision, too. There are many things I do not understand, but I choose to trust Jesus and keep following Him.

His, by Grace,

Steve

Thursday Thought -- July 21, 2011

Good Morning Friends,

“A certain ruler asked him, ‘Good teacher, what must I do to inherit eternal life?’ ‘Why do you call me good?’ Jesus answered. ‘No one is good — except God alone. You know the commandments: “Do not commit adultery, do not murder, do not steal, do not give false testimony, honor your father and mother.”’ ‘All these I have kept since I was a boy,’ he said. When Jesus heard this, he said to him, ‘You still lack one thing. Sell everything you have and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come, follow me.’ When he heard this, he became very sad, because he was a man of great wealth. Jesus looked at him and said, ‘How hard it is for the rich to enter the kingdom of God! Indeed, it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God.’ Those who heard this asked, ‘Who then can be saved?’ Jesus replied, ‘What is impossible with men is possible with God.’” (Luke 18:18-27)

Here is a young man who had several important problems –

First, he thought there was something he could do to earn eternal life. That was the question that he came to Jesus to ask. Jesus’ answer was aimed at helping the young man come to understand that he couldn’t do anything to earn eternal life. On the other hand, if he would just have acknowledged that he was lost and unable to do anything about it, then Jesus would have freely offered His grace.

Second, he thought he was righteous. When Jesus asked him about the Old Testament commandments, the young man declared that he had kept them all since he was a boy. That’s self-delusion. No one has kept those commandments – except Jesus. The young man was guilty, but he didn’t realize it. He thought he was gaining points with Jesus by declaring his righteousness, but the opposite was true. Jesus was looking for an honest admission of guilt – but it never came. An honest admission of guilt is the first step toward salvation. The realization of our need comes before the acceptance of God’s great solution.

Third, he loved his money and possessions more than he love God and what God was offering him. It’s not the money and possessions are bad – they are often a gift from God. However, nothing can be more important to us than God. God won’t take second place to anything in our lives.

It’s not that Jesus wasn’t willing to save this young man – He was! It’s just that He wasn’t willing to save the young man on his own terms. He could only come to God on God’s terms.

That’s true for us, too.

His, by Grace,

Steve

Wednesday Thought -- July 20, 2011

Good Morning Friends,

“People were also bringing babies to Jesus to have him touch them. When the disciples saw this, they rebuked them. But Jesus called the children to him and said, ‘Let the little children come to me, and do not hinder them, for the kingdom of God belongs to such as these. I tell you the truth; anyone who will not receive the kingdom of God like a little child will never enter it.’" (Luke 18:15-17)

We sang a song at church when I was young: “Jesus loves the little children, all the children of the world.” It’s true. Jesus does love children – all children.

He loves them because they are so honest. When a child doesn’t like something it is fed there is no pretending that they like it. When a child is unhappy, it doesn’t fake happiness in order to keep the mood light. A child will honestly express what it is feeling.

Jesus loves honesty. You can see that is the Psalms. David expressed anger, frustration, disappointment, joy, passion, and every other imaginable emotion. He didn’t hold back. He honestly expressed what he was feeling. And God called David a man after His own heart.

He loves children because they trust. A child will allow his father to toss him into the air and he will laugh with delight. He isn’t afraid because he knows his father won’t hurt him.  He trusts his father.

Jesus loves trust – He calls it faith. He says that without faith a person can’t please God. With faith a man is acceptable to God in spite of his sins.

God loves children – and He longs for children to be brought to Him. So, we should love children too – protect them, teach them, be role models for them, love them – and bring as many of them to Jesus as we can.

And God loves it when we develop the positive characteristics of a child in our own lives – honesty and trust are two of those characteristics.

His, By Grace,

Steve

Tuesday Thought -- July 19, 2011

Good Morning Friends,

"To some who were confident of their own righteousness and looked down on everybody else, Jesus told this parable:  'Two men went up to the temple to pray, one a Pharisee and the other a tax collector.  The Pharisee stood up and prayed about himself:  'God, I thank you that I am not like other men -- robbers, evildoers, adulterers -- or even like this tax collector.  I fast twice a week and give a tenth of all I get.'  But the tax collector stood at a distance.  He would not even look up to heaven, but beat his breast and said, 'God, have mercy on me, a sinner.'  I tell you that this man, rather than the other, went home justified before God.  For everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, and he who humbles himself will be exalted.'" (Luke 18:9-14)

The principle is:  those who are proud of their own righteousness are far from God and those who acknowledge their own sinfulness are closer to Him.

There isn't a man or woman who has ever lived (except Jesus) who could come to God on the basis of his or her own righteousness.  Those who have tried are always turned away.  It isn't until a person understands the depth of his own sin that he is ready to come to God.  The truth is that the way to God is not to seek reward for righteousness, but to seek grace and mercy from Him.

The Pharisees thought they were okay with God, they considered themselves to be doing all they needed to do to please God.  How wrong they were!  No one can make that kind of claim.  All of us fall far short of the standards required to reach God on the basis of what we do.

The tax collector knew very well that he wasn't living up to God's standards.  He knew his own sinfulness.  The only hope he had was in God's forgiveness.  That's the only hope any of us has!

His, by Grace,

Steve

Monday Thought -- July 18, 2011

Good Morning Friends,

“When the Son of Man comes, will he find faith on the earth?” (Luke 18:8)

What does God want from you more than anything else? According to Jesus’ statement above, He wants faith. Faith is what He will look for when Jesus comes again. Faith is what He will examine in your own life when you stand before Him in judgment. Faith matters to God.

“Without faith it is impossible to please God.” (Hebrews 11:6) You can have a life filled with religious ritual and that won’t be enough to please God. You can have perfect purity and that won’t be enough. You can work hard in your church, attend every service, give generously, and none of those things will be enough. Without faith, nothing is enough to please God.

“That which is through faith in Christ – the righteousness that comes from God and is by faith.” (Philippians 3:9) A right standing before God comes by faith.

“For by grace you have been saved through faith.” (Ephesians 2:8) Salvation comes by faith.

Faith seems pretty important – vitally important – so it would be good to know what faith is.

Faith is not a knowledge of a set of facts. Faith is not just believing the right things, the true things about Jesus. Faith is more than those things.

To have faith is to trust in God. Trust has to be based on knowledge – so there are things that we are required to know in order to have faith – like that God exists, that God wants to have a relationship with us, that God did what was required for us to have a relationship with Him. Trust is also based on believing certain things – that Jesus really lived, that He gave His life for our sins, that He came back to live again in the resurrection by which God established that He has accepted His sacrifice.

But to trust also means that on basis of that knowledge and that belief we believe what God has said and follow Him. We surrender to Him because He has proven Himself trustworthy. We respond to Him.

When the Son of man comes, will He find faith on the earth? When the Son of Man comes, will He find faith in you?

His, by Grace,

Steve

Friday Thought -- July 15, 2011

Good Morning Friends,

Have you ever wondered what the Second Coming of Jesus will be like? You aren’t the first one who wondered. Jesus dealt with that question in His day, too, and He provided some hints about what it will be like and some advice about how to approach it.

“The time is coming when you will long to see one of the days of the Son of Man, but you will not see it. Men will tell you, 'There he is!' or 'Here he is!' Do not go running off after them. For the Son of Man in his day will be like the lightning, which flashes and lights up the sky from one end to the other. But first he must suffer many things and be rejected by this generation. Just as it was in the days of Noah, so also will it be in the days of the Son of Man. People were eating, drinking, marrying and being given in marriage up to the day Noah entered the ark. Then the flood came and destroyed them all. It was the same in the days of Lot. People were eating and drinking, buying and selling, planting and building. But the day Lot left Sodom, fire and sulfur rained down from heaven and destroyed them all. It will be just like this on the day the Son of Man is revealed. On that day no one who is on the roof of his house, with his goods inside, should go down to get them. Likewise, no one in the field should go back for anything. Remember Lot's wife! Whoever tries to keep his life will lose it, and whoever loses his life will preserve it. I tell you, on that night two people will be in one bed; one will be taken and the other left. Two women will be grinding grain together; one will be taken and the other left.’” (Luke 17:22-35)

Here are the hints Jesus gave about it …

·         It will be visible; you won’t have wonder whether or not it has happened. It won’t be a secret coming. “Like the lightning, which flashes from one end to the other.”

·         People will be taken by surprise when He comes. “Just as in the days of Noah.”

·         Some will be ready and some will be left behind. “One will be taken and the other left.”

And here is the advice of Jesus about how to approach His coming …

Give your life away to Him – don’t try to hold on to it. “Whoever tries to keep his life will lose it, and whoever loses his life will preserve it.” If you try to keep your life for yourself – doing what you want to do, living for yourself, seeking pleasure, following your will – when Jesus comes again you won’t be ready. If, on the other hand, you give your life to Him, serve Him and His will, follow His instructions – then when He comes you will be ready.

The point is you don’t have to know when He is coming. You don’t have to make any special preparations as the day gets nearer. It’s all about having a right relationship with Him every day. Do that, and you are ready – whatever day He comes.

His, by Grace,

Steve

Thursday Thought -- July 14, 2011

Good Morning Friends,

"As he was going into a village, ten men who had leprosy met him.  They stood at a distance and called out in a loud voice, 'Jesus, Master, have pity on us!'  When he saw them, he said, 'Go, show yourselves to the priests.'  And as they went, they were cleansed.  One of them, when he saw he was healed, came back, praising God in a loud voice.  He threw himself at Jesus' feet and thanked him -- and he was a Samaritan.  Jesus asked, 'Were not all ten cleansed?  Where are the other nine?  Was no one found to return and give praise to God except this foreigner?'" (Luke 17:12-18)

Sometimes saying "thank you" is hard to remember.  I'm sure all ten lepers were thankful.  But they had so much that they needed to do.  They needed to get to the priest and be declared clean by him.  That was required before they could reenter public life.  Once the priest declared them clean there were so many things they had not done for so long and so many people they had not seen or touched for so long.  They probably had wives and children, mothers and fathers, they wanted to see them.  The things that occupied the attention of the nine lepers were not trivial things, they were important things, really important.  It's not that they weren't thankful, they were just preoccupied with important things.

And did the one who came back to say thank you have important things to do, too?  Of course he did.  He needed to get to the priest, too.  He probably had a wife and children, a mother and father that he wanted and needed to see.  It wasn't that he didn't have anything better to do than go back to Jesus and say thank you -- it was that he considered saying thank you important enough to interrupt the other important things.

Most all of us know how important saying thank you is.  Our mothers and fathers taught us that -- and most of us did it easily as children.  But we're not children anymore.  We don't have mothers and fathers to remind us.  We don't have to follow their rules any longer.  And saying thank you is easy to forget and easy to put off till a more convenient time.  One considered it important enough to do right away -- and Jesus was pleased!

I think I'll try to remember to say thank you to the Lord more often!

His, by Grace,

Steve