Is This Fair? Does It Matter?

2 Chronicles 21:12-15(NKJV)

12And a letter came to him from Elijah the prophet, saying,          Thus says the Lord God of your father David:         Because you have not walked in the ways of Jehoshaphat your father, or in the ways of Asa king of Judah, 

13but have walked in the way of the kings of Israel, and have made Judah and the inhabitants of Jerusalem to play the harlot like the harlotry of the house of Ahab, and also have killed your brothers, those of your father’s household, who were better than yourself, 

14behold, the Lord will strike your people with a serious affliction—your children, your wives, and all your possessions; 

15and you will become very sick with a disease of your intestines, until your intestines come out by reason of the sickness, day by day.

Here we have an example of the people being held responsible and punished for the actions of their leader. 

Does that seem fair?  Could they stop their leader from acting?  Not very easily.  Did they have the right to fire their king and elect another one?  Nope.  And yet this Scripture clearly tells us that the people were being punished for the actions of their leader.  Does that seem fair? 

And more importantly, does it matter?  If God says that is the way it is, does it matter whether it is fair or not?  I would suggest that it does matter and it is fair.  Here is my reasoning.

One of God's attributes is that He is a God of justice.  Therefore it would be inconsistent with God's character for it not to be fair (just).  Here is my take on it.  The reason it is fair is that it was the people that asked for a king to begin with.  Therefore they have a responsibility to see that the king acts responsibly on their behalf.  It seems to me that this verse is saying that ultimately the people are responsible and they need to rise up and deal with a leader that has gone so far from God's Word.

You Shall Warn Them!

Here is another "the Bible is a book of balance" illustration. 

We often here people tell us not to judge others.  Fair enough.  How do you explain this?

2 Chronicles 19:10(NKJV)

10Whatever case comes to you from your brethren who dwell in their cities, whether of bloodshed or offenses against law or commandment, against statutes or ordinances, you shall warn them, lest they trespass against the Lord and wrath come upon you and your brethren. Do this, and you will not be guilty. 

Here it says that if we see our brother going astray we should warn them.  To not warn them makes us guilty as well according to this Scripture.  Now how are we to determine if our brother is going astray unless we make a judgment?

Interesting conundrum isn't it?

Just Because You Repent Doesn’t Mean You Always Get A Free Pass

I love reading the Old Testament and the New Testament together.  I read one chapter from each section each day.  I think it gives me a more balanced view of the Bible.  I think it gives me more insight into God's true and total character. 

I think just reading the New Testament gives us too much Kumbaya while reading just the Old Testament misses the saving grace of Jesus Christ.

Here is my OT reading from a couple of days ago.  Take a look and then I'll tell what lesson I take from it.

2 Chronicles 12:5-8(NKJV)

5Then Shemaiah the prophet came to Rehoboam and the leaders of Judah, who were gathered together in Jerusalem because of Shishak, and said to them, “Thus says the Lord: ‘You have forsaken Me, and therefore I also have left you in the hand of Shishak.’”

6So the leaders of Israel and the king humbled themselves; and they said, “The Lord is righteous.”

7Now when the Lord saw that they humbled themselves, the word of the Lord came to Shemaiah, saying, “They have humbled themselves; therefore I will not destroy them, but I will grant them some deliverance. My wrath shall not be poured out on Jerusalem by the hand of Shishak. 

8Nevertheless they will be his servants, that they may distinguish My service from the service of the kingdoms of the nations.”

In the NT one gets the feeling that as long as you apologize then everything is hunky dory.  Not so in the OT.  The first part is where God says you guys left me so you are on your own.  Sucks to be you.  Remember, when you reject God, He isn't all Kumbaya, you are now an enemy of God.

When God's people see the trouble they are in all of a sudden they come flocking back to Him.  God acknowledges that they have come back so He isn't going to destroy them.  God in effect accepts their apology.  But that doesn't mean they get a free pass.

Even though they came back and apologized, God still made them pay a price for their rejection of Him.  While God didn't wipe them out, God let them become servants to Shishak.  God was basically saying you think it's tough serving Me?  Go serve this guy and learn how good you had it!

Now how does this apply to our lives today?  At church this weekend Pastor Beth was talking about the kinds of people we don't need in our lives.  To some people that probably seems un-Christian.  I think the above passage offers some guidance. 

It is perfectly OK and acceptable to forgive someone and yet still not want to associate with them any longer.  Forgiveness doesn't mean that you have to accept and or even condone bad behavior. 

Hope that makes sense! 

The Never Ending Battle

We face a never ending battle and we have to prepare ourselves for that battle.  What am I talking about?  Read this.

Luke 4:13(NKJV)

13Now when the devil had ended every temptation, he departed from Him until an opportune time.

This verse is from Luke's description of the temptation of Jesus by the devil.  The last part is what caught my eye.  After tempting Jesus without success the devil left Jesus but was waiting for a more opportune time.  He didn't give up.  He never gives up!

Is it any different for us?  I don't think so.  When we are strong in our faith, while the devil may tempt us, it is more of a probing temptation vs. a full on frontal assault.  What the devil is looking for is a "more opportune time" for that full on attack. 

We all go through ups and downs in life.  Generally the devil is going to see his best opportunities during those down times when our faith is being tested.  How do we guard against that?  Couple things.

First accept Jesus as the Lord of your Life.  Let Jesus be your personal bodyguard.  Have you asked Jesus into your life yet?  Why not do it right now?  Just have a conversation with Jesus.  Share with Him what you are looking for or needing.  "Dear Jesus….".

The next thing you can do is stay in the Word and pray on a daily basis.  I know life gets busy but you have to be disciplined.  Are you going to be able to be in the Word every single day?  Of course not.  We are all human and life happens.  The thing you have to guard against is letting one missed day lead to two missed days, and pretty soon it's been a week since you opened your Bible.  Don't let that happen.

The Bible speaks of putting on the armor of God.  Just think of the time you spend with God each day as the time you are putting on that armor!

Perplexed and Bewildered

Ran across something in 2 Chronicles that has me perplexed and bewildered.

2 Chronicles 18:18-22(NKJV)

18Then Micaiah said, “Therefore hear the word of the Lord: I saw the Lord sitting on His throne, and all the host of heaven standing on His right hand and His left. 

19And the Lord said, ‘Who will persuade Ahab king of Israel to go up, that he may fall at Ramoth Gilead?’ So one spoke in this manner, and another spoke in that manner. 

20Then a spirit came forward and stood before the Lord, and said, ‘I will persuade him.’ The Lord said to him, ‘In what way?’ 

21So he said, ‘I will go out and be a lying spirit in the mouth of all his prophets.’ And the Lord said, ‘You shall persuade him and also prevail; go out and do so.’ 

22Therefore look! The Lord has put a lying spirit in the mouth of these prophets of yours, and the Lord has declared disaster against you.”

First let me be very clear.  I'm not questioning God.  He's way smarter than I am.  I'm simply saying I don't get this.  This doesn't make sense to me.  What am I missing.

Here is what has me confused.  We serve a just God.  One of God's 10 commandments is "Thou shalt not lie".  I would expect a just God to follow His own commandments, wouldn't you? 

But in this case God asks for ideas on how to get Ahab to do something stupid.  A spirit tells God how he would do it.  I'm not sure what the term spirit means but because they are in Heaven talking with God I tend to think of them as angels. 
 

The spirit says something to the effect of "that's simple, I'll just lie".  Here's what I don't understand.  God says in effect "lying sounds like a great idea".  Excuse me? 

And then verse 22.  God didn't simply say "good idea spirit, go ahead and do it".  No.  Verse 22 tells us that "The Lord has put a lying spirit in the mouths…".  So God didn't just let the spirit do it.  God took an active part in making it happen.

So how is it that a just God can use lying as a tool for implementing His will when it violates His own commandment? 

That is a puzzle for me.  Whenever I run into a situation like this I remember a quote from Ayn Rand (and yes I get the irony). 
 

Contradictions do not exist. Whenever you think you are facing a contradiction, check your premises. You will find that one of them is wrong.

I will be prayerfully considering what I am missing.  I have a hunch but I'm not sure I am comfortable discussing it yet.  Let me know if any of you out there have any ideas?

Thanks!

There's Always A Catch

One of the things that men are always teased about is not reading directions or if we do read, we read just enough to get ourselves into trouble.  Let me give you an example.

Last year the pump on my swimming pool was leaking.  I found a video on Youtube that told how to fix it.  I watched the first half of the video, thought to myself, "Got it!", and headed out to make the repair.

When I turned the pump on after the repair it leaked as bad as it did before I fixed it.  I went back and watched the second half of the video.  Should have done that to begin with.  There was some very important info in the second half that I didn't have when I made my repair.  Too bad for me!

So where am I going with this?  I think we can sometimes let this affect our understanding of Scripture.  The are many sayings and conventional wisdoms in the church that are just accepted without much thought because we have heard them so often.  But if we took the time to look for the Scripture that backs those things up we find that we have only gotten part of the story.  Let me give you an example. 

As Christians we are taught that the Lord is always with us.

Really?  Did you know that isn't necessarily true?  Take a look.

2 Chronicles 15:1-2(NKJV)

1Now the Spirit of God came upon Azariah the son of Oded. 

2And he went out to meet Asa, and said to him: “Hear me, Asa, and all Judah and Benjamin. The Lord is with you while you are with Him. If you seek Him, He will be found by you; but if you forsake Him, He will forsake you. 

How about that.  There is a catch.  Just like salvation, there is a condition attached.  While salvation is free to every single person on earth the condition is that you have to believe that Jesus is the Son of God, that he was crucified for our sins, and that on the third day God raised Jesus from the dead.

Do you believe that?  Have you let Jesus know that?  If not why not let Jesus know right now.  Just have a simple conversation with Jesus.  "Dear Jesus…."

Once we have accepted Jesus, God will always be with us…...provided we are always with Him.  Provided we are always seeking Him.  So while having God always with us is conditional, the condition is totally within our control.

How do we make sure we are always seeking Him?  My suggestion is to set aside time each and every day to read your Bible and pray.  Doesn't have to be  long and drawn out.  Fifteen to thirty minutes may be all you need. 

Will you do it everyday?  Of course not.  Life happens.  What I mean by that is sometimes your day will just get away from you.  However if you at least make an effort more days than you don't you will have a much better chance of having God with you than if you don't.  Make sense?

God Doesn't Expect Perfection, But What Does He Expect?

While we are to strive for perfection, we don't fail if we don't achieve it.  I believe what God expects of us is a good honest heartfelt effort.  Here is some Scripture to back up my belief.

2 Chronicles 15:15-17(NKJV)

15And all Judah rejoiced at the oath, for they had sworn with all their heart and sought Him with all their soul; and He was found by them, and the Lord gave them rest all around.

16Also he removed Maachah, the mother of Asa the king, from being queen mother, because she had made an obscene image of £Asherah; and Asa cut down her obscene image, then crushed and burned it by the Brook Kidron. 

17But the high places were not removed from Israel. Nevertheless the heart of Asa was loyal all his days.

The preceding verses told of all the good things Asa did.  Then Scripture notes that he fell short in this area but all in all Asa's heart was loyal. 

OK, but how do we know what is important to God and what things He will let slide.  Let's read these next to sections for guidance.

2 Chronicles 16:1-3(NKJV)

1In the thirty-sixth year of the reign of Asa, Baasha king of Israel came up against Judah and built Ramah, that he might let none go out or come in to Asa king of Judah. 

2Then Asa brought silver and gold from the treasuries of the house of the Lord and of the king’s house, and sent to Ben-Hadad king of Syria, who dwelt in Damascus, saying, 

3“Let there be a treaty between you and me, as there was between my father and your father. See, I have sent you silver and gold; come, break your treaty with Baasha king of Israel, so that he will withdraw from me.”

So Asa forms an alliance with the king of Syria to help provide for the safety of Judah.  And it is successful.  But then we come to this section.

2 Chronicles 16:7-9(NKJV)

7And at that time Hanani the seer came to Asa king of Judah, and said to him: “Because you have relied on the king of Syria, and have not relied on the Lord your God, therefore the army of the king of Syria has escaped from your hand. 

8Were the Ethiopians and the Lubim not a huge army with very many chariots and horsemen? Yet, because you relied on the Lord, He delivered them into your hand. 

9For the eyes of the Lord run to and fro throughout the whole earth, to show Himself strong on behalf of those whose heart is loyal to Him. In this you have done foolishly; therefore from now on you shall have wars.” 

Interesting isn't it?  Do you see the difference?  It's a heart issue.  And rest assured, God knows your heart.  There is no faking it.  Let's look at the difference. 

In the first case God can sense that Asa's heart is with Him.  So even though Asa leaves the high places (where they worship other gods by the way) God makes the judgment that in the greater scheme of things Asa is doing his best and his heart is in the right place, so God let's some of it slide.

Now let's look at the second example.  Asa never even inquires of God.  Asa goes right to taking care of it himself by seeking the help of another human.  Isn't that the inclination of many of us?  We want to handle things?  And what is it that makes God angry?  It is that Asa didn't look to God first.  That is something that God wasn't willing to overlook.  Why?  Because it revealed a heart issue in my opinion.

I think the lesson to be learned here is that if we always seek God's guidance before acting, we will come out OK in the long run.  Does seeking God's guidance first guarantee success?  Nope!  But at least how ever it turns out, you will know that you continue to live in God's favor.

Say What???

For those of you who have been reading my musings for a while, hopefully you have picked up on the fact that my faith is pretty strong and unshakeable.  You will have also noticed that on occasion I will share with you something that just doesn't make sense to me in the Bible.  Today I am going to join those to themes. 

Mark 16:15-18(NKJV)

15And He said to them, “Go into all the world and preach the gospel to every creature. 

16He who believes and is baptized will be saved; but he who does not believe will be condemned. 

17And these signs will follow those who believe: In My name they will cast out demons; they will speak with new tongues; 

18they£ will take up serpents; and if they drink anything deadly, it will by no means hurt them; they will lay hands on the sick, and they will recover.”

Wow.  Now some of them I have no problem with.  The two that get me are handling snakes and drinking poison.  Excuse Me? 

I'm sorry but I'm not going to try either one!  But wait a minute.  Isn't that a lack of faith on my part?  After all the words above are a quote from Jesus Himself at the end of the Book of Mark. 

This is one of those things in the Bible that just leaves me shaking my head.  There are congregations down south that actually practice this stuff but it just seems weird to me.  The story from the Bible that comes to mind when I see this is Jesus being tempted by Satan.  Jesus said something to the effect of do not put God to the test.  Playing with snakes and drinking poison would seem to fit that description pretty good in my opinion. 

But Jesus said it! 

I know and that is what confuses me.  Does it challenge my faith?  Not at all.  I think in the greater scheme of things it is relatively minor.  But you can be sure it is going on my list of things to ask God to explain to me some day!

Always!

I may have written about this before but I can't remember for sure.  We see a lot of charitable organizations, both religious and other wise, state that their goal is to wipe out poverty.

Mark 14:7(NKJV)

7For you have the poor with you always, and whenever you wish you may do them good; but Me you do not have always. 

The phrase tilting at windmills comes to mind.  Jesus has flat out said that it will never happen. 

Now don't get me wrong, I'm not against helping the poor.  I think we should do that.  I just don't think it is helpful to set goals that Jesus has said will never be achieved. 

Just a thought.

We Don't Have To Play Their Game

 

Mark 11:28-33(NKJV)

28And they said to Him, “By what authority are You doing these things? And who gave You this authority to do these things?”

29But Jesus answered and said to them, “I also will ask you one question; then answer Me, and I will tell you by what authority I do these things: 

30The baptism of John—was it from heaven or from men? Answer Me.”

31And they reasoned among themselves, saying, “If we say, ‘From heaven,’ He will say, ‘Why then did you not believe him?’ 

32But if we say, ‘From men’”—they feared the people, for all counted John to have been a prophet indeed. 

33So they answered and said to Jesus, “We do not know.” And Jesus answered and said to them, “Neither will I tell you by what authority I do these things.”

I find this exchange interesting and it gives some good guidance.

We are supposed to spread the Word of God and it can be scary to share your testimony.  Especially if you come up against someone who doesn't truly want to know God, they just want to play Bible Battle with you.  What would Jesus do?  The above Scripture shows us.

There is a reason that Jesus told us not to cast our pearls before swine!

And He Did Evil Because….

I've been reading about Rehoboam, Solomon's son, who succeeded Solomon as king.  He did a lot of evil things.  That got me to wondering, how does someone who has seen all that God can do, then turn away from that and commit evil.  

I mean think about it.  Rehoboam grew up in Solomon's household.  He got to witness and experience all of the blessings that God bestowed on Solomon.  Why would he deviate from that?

Well thankfully the Bible   tells us exactly why.

2 Chronicles 12:14(NKJV)

14And he did evil, because he did not prepare his heart to seek the Lord.

How do we prepare our hearts to seek the Lord?  Or do we even prepare our hearts to seek the Lord?  How many times do we rush into and through our Bible study, more as just one more thing to mark done on our daily checklist, than actually approaching God with an open heart seeking His wisdom?  I know I am guilty of that at times.

My suggestion is to start with prayer.  Sometimes I'll jump right in to reading without even taking time to stop and say Hi to God.  How rude!  This is a relationship.  We have to stop and take the time to build it. 

So I always try to start my Bible time with prayer.  And not a quick, rote prayer either.  Something heartfelt.  Even if it is just praising God.  Thanking Him for all that He does for us.  If you feel yourself trying to hurry than just close your eyes again, relax, and ask God to help you focus on Him. 

I think that is what Scripture is talking about when it says we need to prepare our hearts to seek the Lord.  And what is the benefit of doing that?  It helps us guard against committing evil!

Why Do We Get To Just Ignore Parts Of the Bible?

Just one of those things that I don't understand.  We say that the Bible is the inspired Word of God but then we just flat out ignore parts of it.  Now let me be very clear up front that in the case of divorce, I am glad we ignore it.  I truly think that is the more compassionate,  Christian thing to do but still it is hard to reconcile that with what is in the Bible.

Mark 10:2-12(NKJV)

2The Pharisees came and asked Him, “Is it lawful for a man to divorce his wife?” testing Him.

3And He answered and said to them, “What did Moses command you?”

4They said, “Moses permitted a man to write a certificate of divorce, and to dismiss her.”

5And Jesus answered and said to them, “Because of the hardness of your heart he wrote you this precept. 

6But from the beginning of the creation, God ‘made them male and female.’ £ 

7‘For this reason a man shall leave his father and mother and be joined to his wife, 

8and the two shall become one flesh’;£ so then they are no longer two, but one flesh. 

9Therefore what God has joined together, let not man separate.”

10In the house His disciples also asked Him again about the same matter. 

11So He said to them, “Whoever divorces his wife and marries another commits adultery against her. 

12And if a woman divorces her husband and marries another, she commits adultery.”

I mean come on, it's Jesus speaking.  What He says seems pretty clear to me.  And yet it is hard for me to apply this to people I know that have gotten a divorce.  They are not bad evil people.  I just don't get it.

But that is part of what faith is about isn't it?  I don't junk the whole thing just because there are a few issues that I have questions about.  Just one of those things to ask Gods to explain to me someday!

When Is It Literal and When Is It Allegorical?

One of the hardest things for me to discern in the Bible is when should we take things literally and when is the saying or story allegorical?  Jesus often spoke in parables instead of being direct so we know that we have to do some reading between the lines.   

Here is an example of what I mean.

Mark 11:22-24(NKJV)

22So Jesus answered and said to them, “Have faith in God. 

23For assuredly, I say to you, whoever says to this mountain, ‘Be removed and be cast into the sea,’ and does not doubt in his heart, but believes that those things he says will be done, he will have whatever he says. 

24Therefore I say to you, whatever things you ask when you pray, believe that you receive them, and you will have them.

Does Jesus really mean we can cast mountains into the sea?  I don't think so.  I do however think this is a great allegory about the fact that faith and belief can get us over many of the huge insurmountable obstacles that we face in life. 

One of my favorite sayings is that the facts don't count when you have a dream.  Meaning God can change the facts and circumstances when no one else can.  God can take what appears to be a hopeless situation and change it, if you have faith and believe.  And let me add one more thing.  If what you desire or are looking for is within God's will.

I know it sounds simplistic but give it a try!

Is Rich Christian an Oxymoron?

There are many Christian that believe that it is bad, or a sin, or evil to be rich.  This is one of the verses in the Bible that they base that belief on.  And because it is Jesus saying it they think that gives it extra weight that it is bad to be rich.

Mark 10:23-25(NKJV)

23Then Jesus looked around and said to His disciples, “How hard it is for those who have riches to enter the kingdom of God!” 

24And the disciples were astonished at His words. But Jesus answered again and said to them, “Children, how hard it is £for those who trust in riches to enter the kingdom of God! 

25It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God.”

This was said by Jesus just after he told one young man to go sell all of his possessions and the young man didn't want to do that. 

Well as I have written many times, the Bible is a book of balance.  Here are some Biblical principals that I believe and that I rely on as I try to discern that balance.

God and Jesus are always in agreement.  The God of the Old Testament is the same as the God of the New Testament.  Therefor there should be no contradictions. 

So if being rich is so bad and evil, how do you explain this?

2 Chronicles 9:13-22(NKJV)

13The weight of gold that came to Solomon yearly was six hundred and sixty-six talents of gold, 

14besides what the traveling merchants and traders brought. And all the kings of Arabia and governors of the country brought gold and silver to Solomon. 

15And King Solomon made two hundred large shields of hammered gold; six hundred shekels of hammered gold went into each shield. 

16He also made three hundred shields of hammered gold; £three hundred shekels of gold went into each shield. The king put them in the House of the Forest of Lebanon.

17Moreover the king made a great throne of ivory, and overlaid it with pure gold. 

18The throne had six steps, with a footstool of gold, which were fastened to the throne; there were armrests on either side of the place of the seat, and two lions stood beside the armrests. 

19Twelve lions stood there, one on each side of the six steps; nothing like this had been made for any other kingdom.

20All King Solomon’s drinking vessels were gold, and all the vessels of the House of the Forest of Lebanon were pure gold. Not one was silver, for this was accounted as nothing in the days of Solomon. 

21For the king’s ships went to Tarshish with the servants of £Hiram. Once every three years the £merchant ships came, bringing gold, silver, ivory, apes, and £monkeys.

22So King Solomon surpassed all the kings of the earth in riches and wisdom. 

Wow!  The Bible goes to great lengths to detail just how massively rich Solomon was.  Not only was he rich but he engaged in ostentatious displays of his wealth like the ivory throne. 

So if being rich is evil then Solomon sure fit the bill.  But what does the Bible go on to tell us about Solomon?

2 Chronicles 9:23(NKJV)

23And all the kings of the earth sought the presence of Solomon to hear his wisdom, which God had put in his heart. 

All the kings of the earth wanted to hear what Solomon had to say because they believed God had put that wisdom in Solomon's heart.  In fact God put so much wisdom in Solomon's heart that Solomon helped write at least three books of the Bible.  Part of Psalms, part of Proverbs, and all of Ecclesiastes I think. 

Now does that sound like something God, who is a just and consistent God, would do?  Let an evil person author part of what is known as God's word?

Yeah but……….

Mark 10:23-25(NKJV)

23Then Jesus looked around and said to His disciples, “How hard it is for those who have riches to enter the kingdom of God!” 

24And the disciples were astonished at His words. But Jesus answered again and said to them, “Children, how hard it is £for those who trust in riches to enter the kingdom of God! 

25It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God.”

Seems contradictory doesn't it?  Let me throw one more at you.  This is just four verses after the "eye of the needle" verse.

Mark 10:29-31(NKJV)

29So Jesus answered and said, “Assuredly, I say to you, there is no one who has left house or brothers or sisters or father or mother £or wife or children or lands, for My sake and the gospel’s, 

30who shall not receive a hundredfold now in this time—houses and brothers and sisters and mothers and children and lands, with persecutions—and in the age to come, eternal life. 

31But many who are first will be last, and the last first.”

Now let me wrap this up.  Notice that Jesus explains that if you are willing to give up all you have, your life, you will get back many fold of exactly what you gave up to begin with. 

It's not the wealth that is the problem, it is where your heart is focused that is important.  I believe that what Scripture is telling us is that if we use all that we have in the service of God, we will be richly rewarded now and in the future; and that includes rewarded with more wealth if we are using our wealth for God. 

Recognizing Your Circumstances And Take Responsibility

A lot of people live their lives just totally trusting in God.  Now don't get me wrong, I think that is a good thing.  But even a good thing can be taken too far.  I think we need to take as much responsibility for ourselves as we can, and then leave the rest up to God.  In my opinion too many people abdicate their own responsibilities when they leave it "all" up to God.

Here is just one Scripture to back up this point of view.

Mark 3:9(NKJV)

9So He told His disciples that a small boat should be kept ready for Him because of the multitude, lest they should crush Him. 

Here is my point.  We know that God isn't going to let anything happen to Jesus until the appointed time, right?  Jesus knows that as well, or at least He is probably pretty sure of it.  And yet as Jesus looked around He could see that He was in a situation that could turn or get out of control quickly.  So what did he do?

Did He just figure God would take care of it?  No.  Jesus made contingency plans.  I think we can take this as an example to follow.  God's got better things to do than take care of every little thing for us.  Let's do more of what we can for ourselves so that God has more time to focus on others who really need Him.  We can rest assured that He will be there for us when we really need him as well! 

If At First You Don't Succeed….

The "Him" being referred to here is Jesus.

Mark 8:22-26(NKJV)

22Then He came to Bethsaida; and they brought a blind man to Him, and begged Him to touch him. 

23So He took the blind man by the hand and led him out of the town. And when He had spit on his eyes and put His hands on him, He asked him if he saw anything.

24And he looked up and said, “I see men like trees, walking.”

25Then He put His hands on his eyes again and made him look up. And he was restored and saw everyone clearly. 

26Then He sent him away to his house, saying, £“Neither go into the town, nor tell anyone in the town.”

One of the saddest things for me to witness is people who give up because they have failed. 

Success is 99% failure.  Soichiro Honda

Life is full of failure.  The key is to never give up.  Keep trying.  Not everything works out perfectly all the time.  Sometimes you have to try again.  And again. And again, if that is what it takes.  Isn't it nice to know that God understands this because it even happened to Jesus. 

Think of the scene above.  I can't think of a single other instance in the Bible where Jesus went to work a miracle and He had to do it twice.  That is what makes this exchange unique.  Can't you just imagine Jesus doing a bit of a double take when He realizes the guy can't see clearly? 

What happened?  Who knows?  Maybe Jesus was distracted.  Maybe his mind wandered and He was wondering what was for dinner.  Who knows.  But what is important is that He didn't give up.  When it didn't work the first time He didn't just automatically assume that He just wasn't meant to heal that guy.  Heck no.  Jesus gave it another try.  Why?  Because He expected to heal the guy completely.

So if Jesus doesn't give up after a setback, why should we?  After all, we can do all things through Christ who strengthens us!

The Commandments of Men

I have always been very independent and rebellious.  One of the consequences of that is that I have a tendency to be skeptical and ask a lot of questions.  Maybe that is why these Scriptures seem to resonate with me.  What all three show is that man has a tendency to twist words to his advantage. 

Mark 7:5(NKJV)

5Then the Pharisees and scribes asked Him, “Why do Your disciples not walk according to the tradition of the elders, but eat bread with unwashed hands?”

Mark 7:6-7(NKJV)

6He answered and said to them, “Well did Isaiah prophesy of you hypocrites, as it is written:      ‘This people honors Me with their lips,     But their heart is far from Me.

7    And in vain they worship Me,      Teaching as doctrines the commandments of men.’ £

Mark 7:9-13(NKJV)

9He said to them, “All too well you reject the commandment of God, that you may keep your tradition. 

10For Moses said, ‘Honor your father and your mother’;£ and, ‘He who curses father or mother, let him be put to death.’ £ 

11But you say, ‘If a man says to his father or mother, “Whatever profit you might have received from me is Corban”—’ (that is, a gift to God), 

12then you no longer let him do anything for his father or his mother, 

13making the word of God of no effect through your tradition which you have handed down. And many such things you do.”

The first two Scriptures warn us that man will have a tendency to try and substitute his word and traditions for God's Word.  As you can see this was something that was written about both in the Old Testament and the New Testament.

The last Scripture goes more in depth and shows just how man will rationalize ungodly actions and try to wrap them in a fake cloak of Godliness. 

So how do we guard against being deceived by the "traditions of the elders" and the "doctrines of men"?  By being in God's Word daily!  If you are in God's Word reading it for yourself it is a lot harder to be deceived and led astray.

Personal request:  I had an old friend contact me yesterday.  This friend is experiencing a lot of tribulation in his life and is in a lot of emotional pain.  Please pray for my friend that God will comfort him and that my friend will begin to feel God working in his life and that my friend will begin to feel hope again.  Thanks!

How Powerful Is Faith????

Lack of it can stop Jesus in His tracks!  Take a look.

Mark 6:4-6(NKJV)

4But Jesus said to them, “A prophet is not without honor except in his own country, among his own relatives, and in his own house.” 

5Now He could do no mighty work there, except that He laid His hands on a few sick people and healed them. 

6And He marveled because of their unbelief. Then He went about the villages in a circuit, teaching.

I had never noticed this before.  Notice that it doesn't say he chose not to do mighty works there.   It says He couldn't.  What this seems to be saying is that even Jesus can't work miracles on or for people unless they have faith and believe.  Or maybe another way to say it is that even Jesus can't force a miracle on someone who doesn't want it. 

Kind of a weird concept isn't it?  Jesus and God are one.  God is all powerful.  He can do anything He wants, whenever He wants although I believe we can always expect God to act within His character.  So why would God put limits on Himself as Jesus when He was here on earth?

I don't know if this was God's reason or not but here is what it says to me.  This is just another way of illustrating the fact that a real relationship with Jesus can not be passive.  We have to want, seek, and desire that relationship. 

The more we want, seek, and desire that relationship by reading/studying our Bible, praying, and seeking God's guidance; the more miracles Jesus can work in our lives.  Why?  Because doing those things and experiencing what a relationship with Jesus is like are what build our faith and belief. 

Just like salvation, it requires an active response on our part.  Does that make sense? 

Speaking of salvation, have you ever made an active response to Jesus?  Have you ever asked Him to come into your life and guide you?  If not, why not do it right now.  Put the miraculous power of Jesus to work in your life today. 

It's simple.  Just have a conversation with Jesus.  Let Him know what you need.  "Dear Jesus…."