June 1, 2014 Really?

Really?

Matthew 7:7-9 Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you. 8 For everyone who asks receives; he who seeks finds; and to him who knocks, the door will be opened. 9 Which of you, if his son asks for bread, will give him a stone?  

I don’t like this scripture. “But,” you say, “it is a great promise from Jesus that he will answer our prayers. He will open the door of blessing and truth if we but knock. We will find him if we seek him.” Actually, that’s the problem. I can’t stand it when Jesus offers all of himself so easily to me.

     By now, you may think I’m denying my faith or even worse denying Jesus’ promise. But my point is to point out that we are unwilling to believe and trust Jesus. At least that’s the way most of us act. We seem to often pray with the expectation that Jesus will deny our prayers. We dare not seek him in our sin and misery because we actually might fine him—and then what? Do we have to listen to his words of blessing and take steps out of our broken lives? We like to be where we are. We don’t want to hear, “Repent and believe.”

     Sadly it’s true that in our weak humanity asking, knocking and seeking is more than most of the world wants to do. That’s why the pews are empty on Sunday. That’s why people don’t return my calls when I want to help them. That’s why Bibles are left closed in the drawer. That’s why we need Jesus.

LIFE Link: Jesus really desires to bless you into his rich, abundant life.

May 31, 2014 Judge Well

Judge Well

Matthew 7:6 “Do not give dogs what is sacred; do not throw your pearls to pigs. If you do, they may trample them under their feet, and then turn and tear you to pieces.”  

JESUS has preached in the previous verses that we are not to judge. Now he preaches, “Do not give dogs what is sacred; do not throw your pearls to pigs.” to illustrate we are to refrain from giving material possessions and even the word of God to irresponsible, unrepentant people. Do we violate Jesus’ “Do not judge.” command if we judge people to be “dogs” and “pigs”, wasting God’s provisions?

     The first reason to study scripture is to know God’s Word. As we learn His truths, we will more readily be able to judge our own and others’ lives in view of God’s Word. This kind of judging, though, is not the condemning judgment Jesus preached against. But it is judging as in discerning God’s truth. Christ’s followers judge and adjust their actions in accordance with Christ’s words.

     But we all know there are people who refuse to adjust to what’s right. They negate and neglect God’s good Word. One can repeatedly rebuke and teach them, but they continue to sin, and even “turn and tear you to pieces”. Some are lazy and make a living by living off “the system”. They speak lies and excuses regarding their inability to work, to seek God and to do what’s right.

     These are the “dogs” and “pigs” of Jesus’ sermon. They trample the good things of God, disregarding the Lord and his people who want to teach and to help them. Jesus’ words here tell us it is appropriate to discern when it’s time to stop helping those who waste your help.

LIFE Link: Judge well with Jesus’ discerning love.

May 30, 2014 See the Log?

See the Log?

Matthew 7:3-5 “Why do you look at the speck of sawdust in your brother’s eye and pay no attention to the plank in your own eye? 4 How can you say to your brother, ‘Let me take the speck out of your eye,’ when all the time there is a plank in your own eye? 5 You hypocrite, first take the plank out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to remove the speck from your brother's eye.”

THE overall meaning of this passage continues on from yesterday’s “do not judge” rebuke from Jesus in verses 1-2. Jesus’ masterful preaching uses a log in the eye (ouch!) as the metaphor of how we are often too focused on others’ sins to see the size and burden of our own sins.  

     He chooses the eye because the eye gazes on others. You look to see what someone else is doing or not doing. Worse, our sinful hearts often tell the eye, “Look and mark the wrongs you see.” We do this with our driving, our coworkers, our spouse, and everyone else. Our desire is to measure everyone else a little lower than ourselves so that we can feel higher in some way. Gazing intently into others lives, we focus on a weakness, and it becomes our means of feeling whole and justified in connection to “that sinner”.

     Jesus knew the gaze of judgment from the Pharisees and teachers of the law. He knew the gaze of judgment from unbelieving listeners. He knew their eyes were laced with logs, judging his every word, stopping their hearing and blinding them to their own sin. Jesus preached to turn their eyes to see their sin, then to look and see the sin forgiver.

       

LIFE Link: Let the “living water” wash your eyes.

May 29, 2014

Discipline

Matthew 7:1-2 “Do not judge, or you too will be judged. 2 For in the same way you judge others, you will be judged, and with the measure you use, it will be measured to you.”

THERE is a common statement I hear in the Christian community as it relates to how we deal with sin. When people talk of a person who is doing wrong, we often say, “We are not to judge.” Right on. That is Jesus’ teaching here.

     But there is often something basically wrong with why we say this.

     We speak such words in order to remove our responsibility to correct and rebuke. Too often we equate Jesus’ grace and love with ignoring the sin as we often add to, “We are not to judge.” with “Jesus loved everyone, even the sinners.”

     Yes, we all believe that Jesus loved everyone. So now let’s look at Jesus’ loving words to the church in Laodicea found in Revelation 3:19 Those whom I love I rebuke and discipline. So be earnest, and repent.

      You and I know how important loving discipline is to a family structure. Why, then, are we so reluctant to discipline someone who sins against us, our family or our church? Yes, we bear the scars of sin in our lives. But we should not refrain from proper discipline to correct people who harm themselves or others.

     The imperfect Apostle Paul wrote often of having to correct people in the church who attempted to destroy the church with their sin. (Read 1 Corinthians.) He had to rebuke some men by separating them from the church to protect the whole church. Indeed, we have a “love one another” responsibility to rebuke sin.  

     Discipline is not judging. Discipline comes out of loving someone enough to say, “Jesus loves you. Stop your sin.”

LIFE Link: Discipline can keep one from judgment.

May 27, 2014 Letting it Go?

Letting It Go?

Matthew 6:31-34 “So do not worry, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ 32 For the pagans run after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them. 33 But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well. 34 Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.” 

AMID the “do not worry” sermon point, Jesus says this: “But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well.”

     Righteousness defines all things that are right in God’s sight. Your best relationships occur when you and another do what’s right in each other’s sight.

     God is righteous-perfect, holy. The more we speak, act and think as God’s words tell us, the more righteous we are. The more righteous we are, the closer we are to God. Jesus again emphasizes how harmful worry is by contrasting it with righteousness. Don’t put your mind to the work of seeking worry. Use your mind to seek God’s true ways.

     Jesus knew how desperate his people were. They lived impoverished lives imprisoned by Rome and Herod’s iron rule. Their religious system bound them even further. There was also a deep sense of unrest in the nation as people expected militant Jews to rebel against Rome. It seemed to the Jews they were standing on the brink of destruction. Where was the promised Messiah?

     Thus, Jesus words are radical and profound. His commands were, as they always had been, to point his people to the righteous God. He loved his people so much he constantly preached to them, “You’re safe with me.”  

LIFE Link: On the edge? Turn and see Jesus.