Thursday, March 25, 2010

Judas Makes His Plans

Journey To The Cross Series


Luke 22:1-6  The Festival of Unleavened Bread, which is also called Passover, was approaching. 2 The leading priests and teachers of religious law were plotting how to kill Jesus, but they were afraid of the people's reaction. 3 Then Satan entered into Judas Iscariot, who was one of the twelve disciples, 4 and he went to the leading priests and captains of the Temple guard to discuss the best way to betray Jesus to them. 5 They were delighted, and they promised to give him money. 6 So he agreed and began looking for an opportunity to betray Jesus so they could arrest Him when the crowds weren't around.

Judas was around for all the debates and the set-up questions that the religious leaders were using to try and create a charge that could be used to arrest Jesus. Over and over Judas saw Jesus turn the questions that were thrown at him into an opportunity to speak out against his accusers. Judas couldn't stand it, he wanted Jesus to overthrow the people that were trying to kill him, Judas decided that he had invested enough of his time in Jesus and that it was time for action.

The religious leaders needed Jesus arrested away from the crowds, and if they were to go identify the man that they wanted arrested it would probably create a scene, they needed to be able to send the guards out to arrest Jesus quietly. But in order to do so they needed to be certain that the guards would arrest the correct man, they couldn't take a chance on the wrong man being arrested, that would only make them look bad.

Judas knew that he could be of service to the religious leaders and he was ready to help, Jesus hadn't turned out to be the leader that Judas thought that he should be, Jesus didn't use his popularity to over-throw  the Roman government.

Thank you Jesus for your gift of salvation.

Tuesday, March 23, 2010

God's Way

It doesn't always make sense to me.


Deuteronomy 7:16-21 "You must destroy all the nations the LORD your God hands over to you. Show them no mercy, and do not worship their gods, or they will trap you.

17 Perhaps you will think to yourselves, 'How can we ever conquer these nations that are so much more powerful than we are?' 18 But don't be afraid of them! Just remember what the LORD your God did to Pharaoh and to all the land of Egypt.

19 Remember the great terrors the LORD your God sent against them. You saw it all with your own eyes! And remember the miraculous signs and wonders, and the strong hand and powerful arm with which He brought you out of Egypt. The LORD your God will use this same power against all the people you fear. 20 And then the LORD your God will send terror to drive out the few survivors still hiding from you! 21 "No, do not be afraid of those nations, for the LORD your God is among you, and He is a great and awesome God.

The Mission


Through all the difficult times that Israel has had to endure, I bet they never looked at their circumstances and thought to themselves that they were being prepared for God's mission. They couldn't see how they were a part of a really big plan that God had in motion.

God is judging the nations that Israel is being told to destroy, nations that had rejected the Lord and worshiped anything else that they could find instead of the living God, the time for mercy was over (Deut 9:4-5). The Israelites didn't have the right to show mercy to these nations that God was judging by signing a treaty with these people that would forfeit God's will (Deut 7:16).

The Power


You have the Lord and he is great and awesome, why should you be afraid to do the Lord's will? Didn't you see the power that your God had? (Deut 7:17-19)

Remember the awesome things that God did to the Egyptians, how you were able to walk away from such a powerful nation and to receive gifts as you were on your way out. Remember how he fed you and gave you water, he kept your clothes and your feet from wearing out (Deut 8:3-4).

God displayed his power to them back in Egypt so that they would know for sure that God was in control and he has the power to accomplish his will. God sustained his people out in the wilderness so that they would be humbled and have their faith tested before they went to battle so that they could exercise their faith and know his ability to provide for their needs when the going gets tough.

Sometimes we go through things that we cannot comprehend, but there is a bigger picture than what we can see, thats the perspective that God is working from, he sees the whole picture and he has a plan that makes no sense to us.

No matter what happens I will trust you Lord for everything, even when things do not make sense I need to be faithful and know that you are in control and I am a part of your bigger picture.

Monday, March 22, 2010

Choices

It's our decision 


 Luke 1:38 Mary responded, "I am the Lord's servant. May everything you have said about me come true." And then the angel left her.

The Son of God is coming (Luke 1:32) isn't that great news! What would you think about the news if you were an unwed Jewish girl and the penalty for sexual relations before marriage could mean death? How does that make you "blessed among women?"

Mary submitted her future completely and voluntarily over to God, she chose to be God's servant, unlike a slave that doesn't have a choice. Mary submitted herself to God be used however he chose to use her, this was a painful sacrifice, her life was in danger, her reputation was ruined, her fiancé could reject her, we don't even know how her parents reacted.

Mary was willing to give up all of her security and make painful sacrifices to be used by God. Her choice to be a servant is a choice that we can all make but we aren't forced to make, none of us are slaves to God and we have to decide for ourselves who is going to be in control.

I have to decide everyday in every situation who is going to be in charge, I get to decide my fate, am I going to submit to God and live for something bigger than myself?

Thank you Lord that you have awesome plans that you want to accomplish through simple little people like me. I want to give into your will every day.

Saturday, March 20, 2010

Fill-up On Truth

Get filled up on the good stuff.


Psalms 36:1-4 Sin whispers to the wicked, deep within their hearts. They have no fear of God at all. 

In their blind conceit, they cannot see how wicked they really are. Everything they say is crooked and deceitful. They refuse to act wisely or do good. They lie awake at night, hatching sinful plots. Their actions are never good. They make no attempt to turn from evil.

Sin is so deceiving, we must be careful, you can be right in the middle of it and not have a clue. Sin can setup a place to live in our hearts and we will hardly know it, it doesn't shout at us and get in our face and look so obviously wrong, instead it comes on slowly and just slightly a little bit out of whack. 

We have to be careful that we fill our hearts with good things, sin is waiting and so eager to get in our hearts, the best way to keep sin out of there is to constantly fill our hearts with the truth.

I must continue to fill my heart with truth, through daily Bible study and prayer, Christian music and literature, getting my news from a Christian news organization are all great ways to fill up on truth and keep from falling for lies. It is wise to fill up on these things and listen to what God is telling me instead of what sin wants me to do.

Thank you for the wisdom found in your word Lord, I pray that I will always fill my heart with the good things that come from you and keep myself from falling for sins trap.

Wednesday, March 17, 2010

Broken

It can be a good thing.


Psalms 34:18-22 The LORD is close to the brokenhearted; He rescues those whose spirits are crushed. 19 The righteous person faces many troubles, but the LORD comes to the rescue each time.

20 For the LORD protects the bones of the righteous; not one of them is broken! 21 Calamity will surely overtake the wicked, and those who hate the righteous will be punished. 22 But the LORD will redeem those who serve Him. No one who takes refuge in Him will be condemned.

Mark 14:32-34 They went to the olive grove called Gethsemane, and Jesus said, "Sit here while I go and pray." 33 He took Peter, James, and John with Him, and He became deeply troubled and distressed. 34 He told them, "My soul is crushed with grief to the point of death. Stay here and keep watch with Me."

It is human nature to not like broken, broken to us means useless, broken usually means "headed to the garbage can." We don't like our stuff to be broken, we don't want our heart broken and we definitely don't like for our body to be broken.

But there is something about broken that God likes. He chooses to use a lot of broken things, sometimes he is the one that does the breaking, it is just like God to see things from a complete opposite perspective as we do.

Jesus was broken, he was "crushed with grief," his heart was broken, he had the power, he could have dodged being broken he wasn't forced and yet he actually chose broken for our benefit.

1Pe 2:24  He personally carried our sins in His body on the cross so that we can be dead to sin and live for what is right. By His wounds you are healed.

Broken is almost never the choice that we would make but sometimes we don't get to decide, sometimes God plan is to decide that broken is what we are going to do. Sometimes he breaks our will or our attitude, sometimes it is our pride that he breaks.

But from all that breaking comes nothing but good. Jesus was broken for our good, our will, our attitude and our pride are broken for our good and yet we fight against being broken. Could it be that we need to be just as broken and just as willing to do God's will and be broken as Jesus was? Should our response to broken be the same as his?

Jesus response was prayer, a simple humble prayer that told God how he felt and yet he didn't take control of the situation, he simply told his father "My Father! I want Your will to be done, not Mine." (Matthew 26:39)

Help me Lord to allow your will to rule in my life, sometimes you break us down and I pray that I have learned everything that I needed to learn from the broken times in life.

Psalms 51:17 The sacrifice You desire is a broken spirit. You will not reject a broken and repentant heart, O God.

Psalms 147:3 He heals the brokenhearted and bandages their wounds.

Monday, March 15, 2010

Surprise!

Jesus wasn't shocked.


Mark 14:10-16 Then Judas Iscariot, one of the twelve disciples, went to the leading priests to arrange to betray Jesus to them. 11 They were delighted when they heard why he had come, and they promised to give him money. So he began looking for an opportunity to betray Jesus. 

12 On the first day of the Festival of Unleavened Bread, when the Passover lamb is sacrificed, Jesus' disciples asked Him, "Where do You want us to go to prepare the Passover meal for You?" 

13 So Jesus sent two of them into Jerusalem with these instructions: "As you go into the city, a man carrying a pitcher of water will meet you. Follow him. 14 At the house he enters, say to the owner, 'The Teacher asks: Where is the guest room where I can eat the Passover meal with My disciples?' 15 He will take you upstairs to a large room that is already set up. That is where you should prepare our meal." 

16 So the two disciples went into the city and found everything just as Jesus had said, and they prepared the Passover meal there.

A few days ago, Jesus was approaching Jerusalem and he told the disciples where to go to get the donkey that he would ride (Mark 11:6) and now he is telling the disciples the signs that will let them know where they were going to stay for Passover. 

Just in case you might get the idea that things are happening to Jesus that are out of his control or taking him by surprise, he tells the disciples to go and follow a man, probably a servant carrying a pitcher of water. When he gets home, ask the owner of the house for the use of his guest room which will be upstairs. 

No doubt, the residents of Jerusalem had rooms fitted up to be used, for this occasion, to those that came out of the country to keep the Passover. It appears that Jesus was to have Passover at a stranger's house, otherwise he would probably have told the disciples to return to the friend's house by name or he would tell them "You know where we used to go." 

Probably he went where he was not known, so that he might be undisturbed with his disciples and perhaps he concealed the location by giving a sign so that the location would not be known to his betrayer Judas, yes Jesus was still in control, he isn't surprised at anything that is happening.

There are a lot of examples in the gospels, times that Jesus was a few steps ahead of the rest of the people around him, he made it clear that he knew the sequence of events and he knew his purpose for being here. 

I have to know that God will supply every need, he knows what the needs are way before I do and he has the solution already prepared.

It is very assuring and comforting to know that you are in control Lord, I want to rely on you in every situation.

Thursday, March 11, 2010

Give Generously

God's Economics 101 class


Proverbs 11:24 Give freely and become more wealthy; be stingy and lose everything.

Proverbs 19:17 If you help the poor, you are lending to the LORD--and He will repay you!

Deuteronomy 15:10 Give generously to the poor, not grudgingly, for the LORD your God will bless you in everything you do.

God's ways are beyond logic sometimes, his economic principles are totally opposite what the world tells me to do with my money, check out Economics 101 at any school and you will see how God's ways are different from our ways.

God says to be generous, give it away and do it with a good attitude, I can go through the motions and lay the money out there but if my attitude stinks then it doesn't matter what my actions were. Anybody can do the right thing with a little bit of effort but my attitude proves the condition of my heart and shows how much I am like my Savior.

Jesus gave it all away for me, he left his home in heaven and even gave up his life, certainly I can give of my time, talent and resources to help somebody in need and do it without complaining.

Lord, help me to always be a cheerful giver. I want to give you my money, my time and my talents to you so that I can be a part of the work that you are doing.

Wednesday, March 10, 2010

Rebellious Living Is Dangerous

It is a good thing that the children of Israel had Moses on their side


Numbers 16:1-3 One day Korah son of Izhar, a descendant of Kohath son of Levi, conspired with Dathan and Abiram, the sons of Eliab, and On son of Peleth, from the tribe of Reuben. 2 They incited a rebellion against Moses, along with 250 other leaders of the community, all prominent members of the assembly. 3 They united against Moses and Aaron and said, "You have gone too far! The whole community of Israel has been set apart by the LORD, and He is with all of us. What right do you have to act as though you are greater than the rest of the LORD's people?"

Numbers 16:13-14 Isn't it enough that you brought us out of Egypt, a land flowing with milk and honey, to kill us here in this wilderness, and that you now treat us like your subjects? 14 What's more, you haven't brought us into another land flowing with milk and honey. You haven't given us a new homeland with fields and vineyards. Are you trying to fool these men? We will not come."

Numbers 16:41-50 But the very next morning the whole community of Israel began muttering again against Moses and Aaron, saying, "You have killed the LORD's people!" 42 As the community gathered to protest against Moses and Aaron, they turned toward the Tabernacle and saw that the cloud had covered it, and the glorious presence of the LORD appeared. 43 Moses and Aaron came and stood in front of the Tabernacle, 44 and the LORD said to Moses, 45 "Get away from all these people so that I can instantly destroy them!"

This story sounds like some church business meetings that I have seen. It's the pastor against the deacons or the congregation against the pastor, God's people can sure be selfish.

The people failed to measure up to God's requirements, they get punished and then they cop an attitude, poor thing, God didn't give them everything that they want. They rebelled and didn't exercise faith to go against the odds and fight against the people of the Promised Land and now they are angry with God and Moses, the guy that God provided as their leader.

God didn't do what his people thought that he should do, even though the people didn't come through and let God be in charge, instead they chose to do things their own way. You know, the way that makes sense by human logic, the way that looks like we can control the variables and were we are pretty sure we can decide the outcome.

Problem is we cannot determine and control all the variables and be certain that we can provide the best outcome for ourselves. God is in control and he determines the course of our life, sometimes its not logical to do what God asks of us, it doesn't always make sense but following his will is the only way to receive his blessings.

I don't want to miss the best that God has for me because of my disobedience but if i am disobedient I will be much better off admitting it and accepting whatever consequence their is for my poor choices. It is better to accept God's punishment than to live in my rebellion and complain that he isn't treating me right.

Thank you Lord for your patience, I pray that I will trust you and be obedient even when your way doesn't seem logical to me, I want to follow you daily.

Saturday, March 06, 2010

What’s My Status?

There isn't any ranking or class in the kingdom.


Mark 9:30-41  Leaving that region, they traveled through Galilee. Jesus didn't want anyone to know He was there, 31 for He wanted to spend more time with His disciples and teach them.

He said to them, "The Son of Man is going to be betrayed into the hands of His enemies. He will be killed, but three days later He will rise from the dead." 32 They didn't understand what He was saying, however, and they were afraid to ask Him what He meant.

33 After they arrived at Capernaum and settled in a house, Jesus asked His disciples, "What were you discussing out on the road?" 34 But they didn't answer, because they had been arguing about which of them was the greatest.

35 He sat down, called the twelve disciples over to Him, and said, "Whoever wants to be first must take last place and be the servant of everyone else." 36 Then He put a little child among them. Taking the child in His arms, He said to them, 37 "Anyone who welcomes a little child like this on My behalf welcomes Me, and anyone who welcomes Me welcomes not only Me but also My Father who sent Me." 38 John said to Jesus, "Teacher, we saw someone using Your name to cast out demons, but we told him to stop because he wasn't in our group." 39 "Don't stop him!" Jesus said. "No one who performs a miracle in My name will soon be able to speak evil of Me. 40 Anyone who is not against us is for us. 41 If anyone gives you even a cup of water because you belong to the Messiah, I tell you the truth, that person will surely be rewarded.

Ever since the beginning of time people have had a difficult time with status. Adam and Eve tried to be like God, Cain didn't want Abel to be better at giving offerings, Lot chose to have the best real estate for his own and left Abram with the leftovers.

Even Jesus disciples struggled with the concept of looking at themselves and others without placing a ranking on them. They argued about which one of the twelve was number one and they probably thought that they out classed the people around them because they were the chosen ones. Those guys even stopped a "competitor" that was doing kingdom work just because he wasn't one of them.

I need to work for Jesus without any concern for how great my ministry may be or how popular it is. Jesus said that even if I just pass out water to help those that are spreading the gospel then I am doing work that is worthy of being rewarded.

Help me to always be ready to serve, no matter how lowly the job may seem to be, I want to walk humbly and with meekness so that you are glorified through my good works.

Friday, March 05, 2010

Top Ten Songs Of The Lukewarm Christian

"Ladies and gentlemen, I have in my hands a copy of today's top ten list."


"Today's list is the top ten songs of the lukewarm church."

1. Blest Be The Tie That Doesn't Cramp My Style
2. Pillow of Ages, Fluffed for Me
3. I Surrender Some
4. I'm Fairly Certain That My Redeemer Lives
5. Sit Up, Sit Up For Jesus
6. What An Acquaintance We Have In Jesus
7. Where He Leads Me, I Will Consider Following
8. He's Quite a Bit To Me
9. Oh, How I Like Jesus
10. It Is My Secret What God Can Do

Let's be fired up this Sunday when we sing. Our Savior was passionate for us and we need to be equally as passionate for him.

Taken from "Way of the Master"

RELATED ARTICLES
The Foolish Church (diggingtheword.blogspot.com)

Thursday, March 04, 2010

They Gave Me A Badge For Humility

And then they took it away because I wore it.


Proverbs 11:2  Pride leads to disgrace, but with humility comes wisdom.

Micah 6:8  No, O people, the LORD has told you what is good, and this is what He requires of you: to do what is right, to love mercy, and to walk humbly with your God.

Pride is one of the last things that a Christ follower should have in their life, pride causes us to focus on ourselves, as if we were anything great.

Our focus is very important, if we focus on ourselves then we will see ourselves as greater than we really are and we will see God as less than he really is.

Psalm 105:1 Give thanks to the Lord and proclaim his greatness. Let the whole world know what he has done.

If I want to be God's man on a mission then I need to be humble in all of my ministry opportunities and keep my focus on God. I need to proclaim God's greatness and keep people from seeing me being busy for God and have them think that I am doing it on my own, I want them to realize that I am just another sinner that God has decided that he can use for his purposes.

Help me to be a humble man Lord, don't ever let me take the credit for all that you have done.

You might like to read:
Humility Is More Important Than You Think  //  Are You Looking Good  //  Greatness Redefined

Wednesday, March 03, 2010

God Does It And I Should Too

Slow to anger, quick to forgive


Psalm 30:5 For His anger lasts only a moment, but His favor lasts a lifetime! Weeping may last through the night, but joy comes with the morning.

Psalms 103:8-10 The LORD is compassionate and merciful, slow to get angry and filled with unfailing love. 9 He will not constantly accuse us, nor remain angry forever. 10 He does not punish us for all our sins; He does not deal harshly with us, as we deserve.

My God is an emotional being and one of those emotions is anger, God has been wronged more than any of us, and he has every right to be angry but instead of keeping score he shows us a better way.

God is slow to anger and his anger last for a brief time, look at his patience with people throughout the Bible and through all of time. God's first reaction is to show compassion and mercy, he deals with us in kindness that is undeserved, and when he does get angry it is for our own good. So many times we decide that we are going to stay mad and we are certainly not going to show any love to the person that has hurt us, but God has set an example that we must follow, if he can forgive for the huge things that we have done then certainly we need to forgive for the little things that happen to us.

Even with all the wrong that I have done my God deals with me with compassion and mercy, I deserve to be treated harshly but God shows me a better way, his anger last for only a moment and then it is gone.

Thank you Lord for the gift of forgiveness, it is a gift that needs to be regifted to those around me, help me to give it out generously.