Distractions, Distractions

"And He was giving orders to them, saying, "Watch out! Beware of the leaven of the Pharisees and the leaven of Herod."They began to discuss with one another the fact that they had no bread. And Jesus, aware of this, said to them, "Why do you discuss the fact that you have no bread? Do you not yet see or understand? Do you have a hardened heart?" (Mark 8:15-17)

Jesus was talking to his disciples as they crossed the Sea of Galilee. The disciples, according to Mark's account, had only one loaf of bread between them. Jesus began to talk to them about the leaven of the Pharisees and the leaven of Herod. Leaven was a well known euphemism for sin. While the Pharisees would have been mightily offended at being included in a conversation about sin (they would have understood the reference) that involved them and Herod, in their own way they exhibited a hardness of heart no less than Herod's.

As Jesus was talking his disciples either missed the point or were not paying attention. They missed the point a lot so that would not have been surprising, but it is also possible that they were hungry and forgot to bring bread and were not really paying attention as Jesus was talking. Jesus jars them back to reality by asking, "Do you not yet see or understand? Do you have a hardened heart?" 

It's easy for us to miss the point. Sometimes we do have a hardened heart and just don't want to hear it. We want to be angry or bitter. We don't want to hear about forgiveness. We have a finely tuned theology and we don't want the Word of God to interfere with that. A hardened heart can blind us to a truth that is right in front of us. A truth that will set us free if we will only let it. Selfishness, anger, sin, and pride all contribute to a hardened heart.

But sometimes we are distracted too. Ever been in a conversation and someone was talking and you realized you had zoned out and just missed a big part of what they were saying? It happens to just about everybody at some point. Sometimes we're just distracted. I think the disciples were distracted. They were more focused on the fact that they forgot bread than on Jesus. If they had been paying attention to Jesus they wouldn't have been worrying about bread. Ironically, this was right after Jesus had fed 4000 with seven loaves of bread and a few fish.

The enemy will try to get you into hardness of heart, but he works in distraction too. He has a lot of weapons available.  He'll use life, good things, bad things, fear, worry, resentment, entertainment -- the list could go on and on. He wants to rob us of the powerful and get us hung up on the mundane. I'm reminded of the story of Mary and Martha in Luke 10. Martha was hustling and taking care of everyone while Mary was sitting at Jesus' feet and listening. Martha complained to Jesus that Mary wasn't helping. In Luke 10:41-41 we read Jesus' response, "Martha, Martha, you are worried and bothered about so many things; but only one thing is necessary, for Mary has chosen the good part, which shall not be taken away from her."

Sometimes we do have to get things done. That's obvious, but the dishes and the cleaning and the food or whatever Martha was doing could have waited. She was so focused on the mundane that she was missing a powerful moment.  We're not told Martha's response. I like to think she threw down her dishrags and sat down next to Mary. Hopefully she didn't go off grumbling about how Jesus just doesn't understand.

Life Changing Words

"Let no unwholesome word proceed from your mouth, but only such a word as is good for edification according to the need of the moment, so that it will give grace to those who hear. Do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, by whom you were sealed for the day of redemption. Let all bitterness and wrath and anger and clamor and slander be put away from you, along with all malice. Be kind to one another, tender-hearted, forgiving each other, just as God in Christ also has forgiven you." (Ephesians 4:29-32)

These are life changing words if we could just grab hold of them. What if our mouths were used to build and not destroy? What if we could be encouragers instead of discouragers? How many marriages could be healed? How many broken relationships could be restored? What if we changed our conversation to line up with this admonition?

How would it change your work place? How would it change your conversation at lunch? How would it change your conversation at church? How would it change the words you speak to your children? How about the words you speak in front of them? Would it make you the person who leads the conversation instead of you becoming the follower that allows it to go places you don't like? Could you be the gossip squelcher? 

Since faith comes by hearing and hearing by the Word of God, how would this effect your faith? You will never listen to anyone else as much as you listen to yourself.

Hallelujah by Brian Doerksen

The Heart of Ministry

"But when he saw the multitudes, he was moved with compassion on them, because they fainted, and were scattered abroad, as sheep having no shepherd". (Matthew 9:36)

The compassion Jesus exhibits here is a primary characteristic of God. Jesus came to earth and died and rose again because of the Father's love. In fact 1st John 4:6 tells us that God is love!

The outworking of love ought to be love. As Jesus had compassion so should we. Sometimes, unfortunately, we draw the wrong conclusions. Love is not an acceptance of human narcissism and self involvement. Love is not the setting of humanity on the throne. The outworking of this kind of love ought to be  a heart that wants to love the Lord, even if the struggle to do that is imperfectly carried out. 

The sheep need a shepherd to lead and guide them. Left to their own devices sheep will not last very long. The shepherd cares for the sheep and the sheep follow after him. Jesus said, My sheep hear My voice and I know them and they follow Me" (John 10:27). There lies the troublesome part. Jesus calls us to follow Him by faith. We sometimes fall down and get up and press on. But what about those who resolutely refuse to follow?

God won't make them. Universalists try to deal with this issue by proclaiming that it doesn't matter. Unfortunately, from any honest reading of scripture it does. Judgment for the unbeliever is very real. I think it comes back to love. Love ought to produce love, but what happens if it doesn't? God doesn't force anyone into relationship. If you don't want a relationship with Him He want make you. People get offended when believers talk about judgment, which I find interesting. God loves people so much, and yet, we want to wallow in our own narcissism and rejection of Him until it becomes inconvenient for us. Then we want a free pass. 

My theory is this. If the love of God won't change us now it won't change us then. That kind of rebellion and hatred so permeates our being that even if the Lord were to give a free pass to those who rejected Him in this life that it would rear its ugly head again. He already had one rebellion in the heavens. He doesn't need another one.

As for us. That's why love matters. We need to love the lost and have compassion on them. Love motivated Jesus' earthly walk and ministry and ought to be the prime motivation for each of us every day. It will literally change how we live our lives. It will open doors to share the love of Jesus. As always, they won't always follow after Him, but some will. 

There are people out there who will absolutely fall in love with Jesus because of you. Go out with eyes of compassion and let the Lord use you!

Reconciled Enemies

For if while we were enemies we were reconciled to God through the death of His Son, much more, having been reconciled, we shall be saved by His life. (Romans 5:10)

 The love of God is an incredible thing! It is interesting how two people can look at the same circumstances and come to different conclusions. The atheist looks at the world with all of its suffering and pain and concludes that there cannot be a God. The believer looks at the world with all its suffering and pain and  see the desperate need for God.

We were God's enemies and yet He made it possible for us to enter into His kingdom. The humanist worldview (which has infiltrated the church to some extent) is that man is good. History brutally lays waste to this notion. The reality is that Jesus died for us, not because we are good, but because God is good. That's a truth that will set you free!

Words of Life

"Pleasant words are a honeycomb, Sweet to the soul and healing to the bones." (Proverbs 16:24)

Your words can be powerfully used for ministry. I've always found it interesting how so many people's conversation tends toward the negative.  A little of that goes a long way. It drags on your soul and weighs you down. It's the people who live Proverbs 16:24 that I enjoy being around. We all have people like this in our lives -- those people who, after you have spent some time with them, leave you feeling encouraged and built up. You too can be that person just by making some changes to you conversation and being quick to offer up a word of encouragement.

This is not about vain flattery or an exercise in self-esteem. It's about speaking the truth according to God's Word. We are inundated with negative talkers and naysayers all day long. Don't be one yourself!

Building Together

"For in fact the body is not one member but many. If the foot should say, "Because I am not a hand, I am not of the body," is it therefore not of the body? And if the ear should say, "Because I am not an eye, I am not of the body," is it therefore not of the body? If the whole body were an eye, where would be the hearing? If the whole were hearing, where would be the smelling? But now God has set the members, each one of them, in the body just as He pleased. And if they were all one member, where would the body be?" (1st Corinthians 12:14-19)

In the third chapter of Nehemiah we find an account of the rebuilding of the city walls around Jerusalem. Jerusalem had been destroyed in 586 BC by the Babylonians and the people carried away to Babylon. In 445 BC Nehemiah led a third group of exiles back from the captivity to rebuild the city walls. The Temple had been rebuilt around 516 BC, but the walls and gates remained broken, which left Jerusalem vulnerable to attack. In a culture based upon honor, broken walls were also a blight on the city's reputation. Nehemiah was led by the Lord to see that the walls were restored.

Nehemiah completed the restoration of the walls in under two months. In Nehemiah, chapter three, he records the various people who worked the wall. It was true team effort. Instead of having a select group of wall-builders who did all the work, different groups of people worked on sections of the wall. Nehemiah chronicles the work counter-clockwise around the wall.

Eliashab, the High priest, and some fellow priests rebuilt the sheep gate.
Men of Jericho worked next to them to rebuild their section of the wall.
The sons of Hassenaah rebuilt the fish gate.
Further down, Jehoiada the son of Paseah, and Meshullam the son of Besodeiah, repaired the old gate.
Malchijah the son of Harim, and Hashub the son of Pahathmoab, repaired part of the wall and the tower of the furnaces.
Shallum and his daughters worked on a portion of the wall. His father, Halohesh, ruled half of Jerusalem. While some nobles refused to work, they pitched right in to help.
On the south side of the city we find Shallun, the son Colhehez, the ruler of Mizpah, repairing the fountain gate.
A group of priests lived near the horse gate and each repaired the section near his home.
A group of goldsmiths and merchants fixed the walls from the northwest corner to the sheep gate.

I haven't included everyone listed by Nehemiah but I'm sure you get the point. The wall was a collective effort. People from all walks of life worked on it -- men, women, priests, Levites, merchants and goldsmiths. Sons of rulers worked alongside regular folk.

It took everyone to get the job done. In First Corinthians, chapter 12, Paul compares the church to the human body. He makes the point that every part much do its part for the body to function correctly. Everyone doesn't have the same purpose. It's when everybody is fulfilling their individual part that the whole works the way God would have it to work. We all have something to give and a part to play in what God is doing. Don't sell yourself short. Don't look at your own limitations but at the greatness of God!

An Amazing Rescue

This story is pretty darned incredible and what a great testimony to the Lord and the leading of the Holy Spirit! It's about the little girl who disappeared last week in Florida and how she was found. be sure to watch the video.

The Rescue of Nadia Bloom

They Didn't Believe

"When He had come to His own country, He taught them in their synagogue, so that they were astonished and said, "Where did this Man get this wisdom and these mighty works? Is this not the carpenter's son? Is not His mother called Mary? And His brothers James, Joses, Simon, and Judas? And His sisters, are they not all with us? Where then did this Man get all these things?" So they were offended at Him. But Jesus said to them, "A prophet is not without honor except in his own country and in his own house." Now He did not do many mighty works there because of their unbelief." (Matthew 13:54-58)

These verses open up a conundrum for a lot of believers. Here we have Jesus, back at home, and the outcome of going home is that "He did not do many mighty works there because of their unbelief." There's nothing here about His will or His timing. His will is, pretty obviously from scripture, that people would believe Him. His will is that we would put our faith in Him. What happens when we don't? Now that's a big question with scary ramifications.

Mark 6:5 described the situation this way --"Now He could do no mighty work there, except that He laid His hands on a few sick people and healed them." Mark is pretty definitive.

Here's the conundrum. If God is sovereign why could he do no mighty works there? We have the answer -- because of their unbelief.

In Christianity we have a whole host of beliefs about God and what He actually does. They range from God does everything -- He ordains, arranges, and pulls the string on everything to a tacit deism -- He's out there but He doesn't actually do anything anymore. Most Christian's beliefs fall somewhere on a continuum between these two extremes.

We desperately want to figure out how things work. That includes God. There's nothing particularly wrong with that unless we come to a wrong conclusion and think we have all the answers. Thinking you are right when you are not can have some pretty serious ramifications.

What do we know from the Word? We know that God is sovereign, if the definition is correctly applied. He is in charge. He has plans that will ultimately come to fruition. We also know that faith and unbelief do matter in our individual lives. In His hometown Jesus didn't do much because of their unbelief. People argue this a few ways. Some will say that his power depends on our faith but I think, more likely, the correct answer is that we receive from Him by faith. His power was not the issue. Their unbelief was the issue. We see this all the time. We ask angry questions of God and why he let's things happen the way they do. That's another big theological wringer but the short answer is that we live in a fallen world that we surrendered to Satan. God gave Adam authority and he turned around and gave it away. In Christ we get His authority but we have to exercise it. The responsibility is placed on us. That's a hard truth for us to deal with. It is easier to just blame God.

One of my favorite stories in the Bible is found in Matthew 17. The disciples tried to cast a demon out of a young man and could not. This is an interesting story because of the way it connects illness with the demonic, but what is more interesting (to me anyhow) is how this story plays out. The disciples try to help this boy and fail.

This is where we are so much of the time. We throw a prayer up and see what happens. If something good comes of it we assume God said yes, if not, we assume God said no. But what happened here?

The disciples couldn't help the boy. That's where we invariably say that it must not have been God's will. But what happened when God came down the road?

The boy was healed and delivered.

The disciples asked, "How come we couldn't cast it out?" Jesus did not say that it wasn't His will or it wasn't His timing. He simply said that it was because of their unbelief.

Ouch.

That puts a little pressure on me. In his home country we read in Matthew 13 how "they were offended at Him." They knew Jesus back in the day. It wasn't an easy leap to recognize Him for who He really was. But that's just one of many excuses we can come with.

It doesn't really matter what causes unbelief. What matters is that unbelief will keep you from receiving from God. It will render you powerless and ineffective. God will still love you, That won't change at all. You'll just miss out on so many of the good things He has for you.

"Therefore I say to you, whatever things you ask when you pray, believe that you receive them, and you will have them." (Mark 11:24)

He Will Deliver Me!

"Then David said to the Philistine, "You come to me with a sword, with a spear, and with a javelin. But I come to you in the name of the LORD of hosts, the God of the armies of Israel, whom you have defied." (1st Samuel 17:45)

David's confidence was in the Lord. The quote above is David's response to a threat from Goliath that "I will give your flesh to the birds of the air and the beasts of the field." Goliath was insulted that the Israelites would send such a young man out to challenge him. We know how it ended and there wasn't much to it. David pulled out his sling, slipped in a rock, whirled it around, let it fly and took Goliath down with one shot.

When David volunteered to fight Goliath no one believed he could beat the giant. Saul had tried to talk him out of it but David's response was, "The LORD, who delivered me from the paw of the lion and from the paw of the bear, He will deliver me from the hand of this Philistine" (1st Samuel 17:370). David had experienced God's help before and was confident in it again. David had developed the habit of spending time with God and getting to know Him. In knowing God David learned to trust Him through what would be, for most of us, some pretty trying adventures.

Learning to trust God is a wonderful adventure. God is with you and will be there for you in whatever you are going though. He is your help and your deliverer! Look to Him!

"The LORD is my rock, and my fortress, and my deliverer; my God, my strength, in whom I will trust; my buckler, and the horn of my salvation, and my high tower." (Psalm 18:2)

Pray for One Another

"I thank my God upon every remembrance of you, always in every prayer of mine making request for you all with joy." (Philippians 1:3-4)

Sometimes in the hustle and bustle of life we forget just how important it can be to pray for one another. It is such a blessing when you have been going through a rough time and someone comes to you and says, "I've been praying for you."

Often we are well intentioned but forget. We tell someone at church that we will really be praying for them and then life comes along and we forget. Be like Paul was with the church at Philippi. Be intentional. When you sit down to read the Word or fellowship with the Lord take some time to remember situations that have been brought to your attention. Most churches have a prayer list of some kind. Sometimes just taking a moment to think about it will give the Holy Spirit a chance to jog your memory and remind you of some needs.

Prayer is more than just some psychological exercise. Prayers prayed in faith have power. Prayer is a wonderful ministry that you can do for others in your life!

"Pray without ceasing." (1st Thess. 5:17)

My Rock and My Salvation

"He alone is my rock and my salvation; he is my fortress, I will not be shaken." (Psalm 62:6)

I am so thankful that we have a heavenly Father who loves and cares for us so much! Hebrews 4;16 says that we can "come boldly to the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy and find grace to help in time of need." I have seen the goodness of God manifested in my life over and over again. Not just in emotional help to deal with problems but in real tangible "God episodes" where His provision and help came to bear. God still works in His people just as he always has. When you are in a hard place look to Him. Run into Him.

I love the picture in Hebrews 4:16. We run boldly to the throne of grace. When we do that we find mercy and grace when we most need it -- not when everything is just right and we have it all together but when things are hard and we've made mistakes. That's a verse we can can grasp in the midst of our brokenness and pain. In the throes of our fallen nature we can run boldly into Him because of what Jesus has done for us!

Psalm 46:1 says that "God is is our refuge and strength, A very present help in trouble." Look to Him first. Don't try to fix everything in your own strength and when that doesn't work try God. Run into Him first. Ask Him for wisdom and help. Trust that He is at work in your life. We serve a wonderful God.

"Whosoever hears these sayings of Mine, and does them, I will liken him to a wise man who built his house on the rock: and the rain descended, the floods came, and the winds blew and beat on that house; and it did not fall, for it was founded on the rock" (Matthew 7:24-25).

Our Help in Time of Need

"Look!" he answered, "I see four men loose, walking in the midst of the fire; and they are not hurt, and the form of the fourth is like the Son of God." (Daniel 3:25)

Shadrach, Meshach and Abed-Nego had refused to bow before the idols of Nebuchadnezzar. For this offense they were thrown in a fiery furnace. The fire was so hot it killed the men who threw them in. But then an awesome thing happened. God showed up. Shadrach, Meshach and Abed-Nego walked out of the fire.

We serve an awesome God. When you are going through the fire turn to Him. He will be there for you. Don't just believe for comfort but believe for help. We serve a real God who works in real ways for His children. God is greater than your struggle and difficulty!

"Now to Him who is able to do exceedingly abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that works in us, to Him [be] glory in the church by Christ Jesus to all generations, forever and ever. Amen." (Ephesians 3:20-21)

Full of Compassion

"But You, O Lord, are a God full of compassion, and gracious, longsuffering and abundant in mercy and truth." (Psalm 86:15)

There was a song back in the Nineties called "God is Good." It was pretty popular and had a really good message. Sometimes in our human efforts to "figure out" God we come to faulty conclusions. We have trouble reconciling the God of the Old Testament with the God of the New. But that is usually because we have a superficial view of God and when we read the Word we go looking for Him with major preconceptions and misconceptions. One of these days I'll delve further into that when I have a little more time.

The truth is that God frequently gets a bad rap. We blame Him for our sin, our mistakes, our hurts, our pain, our disappointment or anywhere we've felt let down. We blame God for all the circumstances of life that mostly we cause ourselves. Not all. Sometimes life will deal you a bad hand. We live in a fallen world. Humanity is broken and creation is sundered. Humanity, outside of Jesus, is in a state of rebellion God. God is not the problem. We are.

But there is good news. When we look past our preconceived notions about God and we look a little deeper at the Word one of the common themes that comes out again and again is the Goodness of God. He is merciful and compassionate. Psalm 34:19 tell us that "Many are the afflictions of the righteous: but the LORD deliverers him out of them all." God is not our problem. He is the solution for it. He is our rescuer. The history of God dealings with humanity is a story of God's drawing us to Him. He loves us with such a wonderful love. Jesus laid down His life for that love.

"Beloved, let us love one another, for love is of God; and everyone who loves is born of God and knows God. He who does not love does not know God, for God is love." (1st John 4:7-8)

Receive the Word

"But these are the ones sown on good ground, those who hear the word, accept [it], and bear fruit: some thirtyfold, some sixty, and some a hundred." (Mark 4:20)

In Mark 4 Jesus told a story about a farmer who went out and sowed seed. Some of the seed was eaten by birds, some fell on hard ground and some was choked out by thorns. But some of the seed fell on good ground and produced a good crop for the farmer. When Jesus explained the story to his disciples he told them that the seed was the Word of God and that the good ground was those people who hear the word, accept it and bear good fruit. The difference in how God's work plays out in our lives often hinges on whether we receive what He has said. Too often we are interested in making the Bible say what we want it to say. We try to bend the scripture to our theology instead of submitting our theology to the scripture.

Sometimes the Word of God does test us. It may say things we don't understand or have trouble accepting. We tend to judge the Bible by our experience instead of judging our experience by the scripture. When you run across scripture that challenges you how do you handle it? Maybe it's something about belief? Or faith? Do you let the Word challenge your heart or do you try to explain it away. For example, the Bible is clear that if we will listen God will talk to us. Does that challenge you to want to learn to hear His voice or do you just fall back on your theology that says God doesn't do that anymore? Your answer to that question has very real ramifications for your life and walk with God.

Don't fight against the Word of God. Take Him at His Word and begin to submit your life to it. You will be glad you did.

"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." (Hebrews 11:6)