Marching Orders

1 Peter 4:7-11

(Use the link below to read the verses.)

https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=1%20Peter%204%3A7-11&version=NIV;NLT

 

 

Back in the day, about 1971, I lived in a house of Christian guys across from the campus of Michigan State University. There were five of us, and each person had their own unique individuality.

 

One of my roommates was kind of an anti-establishment type guy; a bit of a rebel. He had long hair and a bushy beard, but beyond that, he seemed to think of himself as a philosophical and theological thinker.  Someone who thought outside of the box; who marched to the beat of his own drum.

 

He also had a heart for the down and out. As a result, there were a few times when he brought a stranger back to our house to eat a meal, and even to stay overnight. Most of these people were not from the mainstream - if you get my drift.

 

But for him, this was how he reached out to others and shared the Good News of Christ with them. He stretched the faith of all of us in the house, and set an example for us to follow. Maybe not by doing exactly what he did, but to follow the principle of what he did. It’s the same principle that Peter wrote about.

 

⁸ Most important of all, continue to show deep love for each other, for love covers a multitude of sins. ⁹ Cheerfully share your home with those who need a meal or a place to stay. ¹⁰ God has given each of you a gift from his great variety of spiritual gifts. Use them well to serve one another. NLT

 

In reality, my roommate wasn’t marching to the beat of his own drum. He was marching to the beat of his Lord and Savior. That’s the same beat that you and I as followers of Christ need to follow. And when we do, then we will be in line with these words of Peter.

 

… ^11bDo it with all the strength and energy that God supplies. Then everything you do will bring glory to God through Jesus Christ. All glory and power to him forever and ever! Amen.            NLT

 

Do you hear the beat of the drum? Of His drum? Then I guess that means you have your marching orders.

 

 

 

 

Ready, Fire, Aim!

1 Peter 4:7-11

Peter was a “ready, fire, aim” kinda’ guy. He acted before he thought. He spoke before he considered the consequences. After all, he was a man’s man who lived by his actions, not by thoughtful introspection.

 During the three years of Jesus’ ministry, Peter would often say what the other disciples were only thinking. He seemed to have no resistors to prevent whatever thought was going through his mind, from coming out of his mouth. The result was that Peter would find himself sticking his foot in his mouth.

But Peter was also a leader, and he genuinely loved Christ. He had many gifts and Jesus saw this. So as Jesus was preparing for his death and resurrection, he asked Peter, “Do you love me”? Jesus was putting Peter in charge, not that Peter seemed to need this; he took charge regardless. But something changed after this.

Instead of speaking or acting without thinking, he gave thoughtful consideration. Peter wrote this letter to believers who were under great pressure of persecution. They needed every insight, every teaching, every encouragement that they could get.

One thing Peter had learned was, you can’t make it on your own. You need others to support and encourage you. He had lived his life as a self-made man who ran a competitive business that depended on his skills, experience and immediate action. He had relied on himself to survive.

But he had changed. And when he changed, he knew the importance of teamwork; of family; of friendship; of being a body of believers. He knew the importance of trust and faith in others. He knew the importance of relying on others.

 ¹⁰ God has given each of you a gift from his great variety of spiritual gifts. Use them well to serve one another. ¹¹ Do you have the gift of speaking? Then speak as though God himself were speaking through you. Do you have the gift of helping others? Do it with all the strength and energy that God supplies. Then everything you do will bring glory to God through Jesus Christ. All glory and power to him forever and ever! Amen. NLT

“Ready, fire, aim” was the old Peter. The new Peter was all about using his gifts in the service of the Lord, and encouraging others to do the same.

(You might also read Romans 12:4-8 & 1 Corinthians 12:7-11.)

  

THE FIRST RECORDED CHURCH COUNCIL MEETING

Reading: Acts 15: 5-19

In Acts 15, the minutes of a Church Council meeting (the apostles and elders) are recorded:

The meeting was called to order by Peter at the 3^rd hour.  The main order of business: How should Gentiles who were coming to faith be received as full-fledged members of the church? 

One sect of the Pharisees presented the argument that Gentiles should be circumcised, taught the Law of Moses, and receive instruction to follow it. In other words, they were proposing that Gentiles become Jewish and through that means, become church members.

Paul and Barnabas gave a report on their work among the Gentiles and how many were becoming converted to a faith in Jesus.

The apostles and elders then looked into this matter and, after much debate, Peter spoke. He pointed out several similarities between how God worked in the Jewish believers and in the Gentile converts:

 

·         He gave them the Holy Spirit when they believed [vs 8]

·         He made no distinction between Jew and Gentile (no “them and us”) [vs 9]

·         Both groups' hearts were cleansed by faith [vs 9]

 

Peter further urged the Council to not put the burden of the law on the Gentiles, a burden that Jewish people have not been able to bear. He pointed out that “We Jews have been saved by faith just as the Gentiles have [vs 11].”

There followed further examples by Barnabas and Paul of signs and wonders God did among the Gentiles. The final ruling was given by James, “Therefore it is my judgment that we do not trouble those who are turning to God from among the Gentiles [vs 19].”

It was agreed that a letter of welcome and encouragement be drafted and sent to the Gentile churches via Paul and Barnabas and two of the leaders of the Jerusalem church.

The meeting was adjourned with prayer at the 5^th hour.

 

So why should we care about the minutes of a first century Council meeting? This particular gathering gave clarification early in the Church’s history of an essential truth: all are saved by faith, not by keeping the Law or rituals. It is only by God’s grace that any come to this faith [Ephesians 2:8, 9 – “For by grace you have been saved through faith; and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God; not as a result of works, that no one should boast.”].  This teaching, distinctive from all other religions, needed to be understood from the start – and needs to be preserved in the church today.

 

Lord, help us to not get caught up in imposing rules or rituals on others (or ourselves) that we think will meet the requirements for our salvation. Continue to assure us of Your grace in bringing us to faith in Christ alone. Amen.

God’s Grace Changes Lives

2 Thessalonians 2:13-17

(Use the link below to read the verses.)

https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=2%20Thessalonians%202%3A13-17&version=NIV;GNT

 

Jesus told a great story about the unforgiving servant. In it, a servant who owed his master 10,000 talents (over $12 billion in today’s money) begged for grace and mercy. The king forgave the whole debt.

 

The same servant then turned around and demanded that a fellow servant pay back what he was owed – almost $12,000 in today’s money. Instead of showing his fellow servant mercy and grace, he had him thrown in prison.

 

The Thessalonian church was being severely persecuted, so they were dealing with serious struggles. Paul encouraged the Thessalonian believers to first stand firm in the face of their circumstances. Then he reminded them to show God’s grace to others in 
word and deed.

 

¹⁵ So then, our friends, stand firm and hold on to those truths which we taught you, both in our preaching and in our letter. ¹⁶ May our Lord Jesus Christ himself and God our Father, who loved us and in his grace gave us unfailing courage and a firm hope, ¹⁷ encourage you and strengthen you to always do and say what is good.             GNT

 

These words apply to us just the same as they did to the Thessalonian believers. Standing firm in the midst of struggles, temptations, and sinful desires is no less difficult today that it was then.

 

Showing God’s grace in our daily life is also hard. Just try to show God’s grace to the guy who cuts you off in traffic; to the neighbor who yells at you because of your dog; to your spouse or children who don’t meet your expectations; to a co-worker who is annoying. But God’s grace changes lives.

 

John Newton was a slave trader who lived most of his early life at sea. Newton had a reputation for profanity, coarseness, and debauchery. During a fierce storm he had a conversion experience that changed his life. He became a minister and years later wrote the song “Amazing Grace”. He was also very influential in the abolition movement in England.

 

Which character do you identify with in Jesus’ story of the unforgiving servant? Do you find yourself more often judging others like the servant, or showing grace like the master? We are called to become more like the master.

 

God’s grace changes lives. Has it changed yours?

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Who's in? Who's out?

READ: Acts 13:38-47

Who got invited to the party and who didn’t? Who made the team and who got cut? Who got the promotion and who fell short?

People love to ask these questions because if we’re in, we’re superior.

So, naturally, the Jews (who were in as God’s people) felt superior to the Gentiles (who were out).

Yet in Acts 13:39, Paul preaches that through Jesus everyone who believes is justified from everything you could not be justified from by the law of Moses.

We’re all in!

“But that’s not fair!” cries the voice of pride. “It’s because of my superiority and hard work that I got invited to that party, made that team, and earned that promotion! Doesn’t my extra effort count for anything?”

Jesus addresses this complaint in The Parable of the Workers in the Vineyard (Matt 20:1-16). Though many worked different hours, they all received the same wage - the full grace of God.

Again in Luke 7:36-50, a prideful Pharisee is offended by Christ’s association with a sinful woman. Jesus’s response? He commends the woman, for because she was forgiven more, she loved more.

For some, this idea that everyone is invited into the Kingdom of God is such an offense to pride that they join those who in verse 45 speak abusively against the Gospel.

To them Jesus responds, “Truly I tell you, the tax collectors and the prostitutes are entering the Kingdom of God ahead of you.” (Matt 21:31)

Remember His Great Love

Acts 20:22-24, 32

22 “And now, compelled by the Spirit, I am going to Jerusalem, not knowing what will happen to me there. 23 I only know that in every city the Holy Spirit warns me that prison and hardships are facing me. 24 However, I consider my life worth nothing to me; my only aim is to finish the race and complete the task the Lord Jesus has given me—the task of testifying to the good news of God’s grace.

32“Now I commit you to God and to the word of his grace, which can build you up and give you an inheritance among all those who are sanctified.

Paul was a determined man. Once he had his encounter with Christ, on the road to Demascus, there was no stopping him.  In today’s passage we see him following the leading of the Spirit to go to Jerusalem, knowing that hardships and prison are a reality.  But he is determined. Determined to finish the task of testifying to the good news of God’s grace.  

You see, he experienced that grace first hand when God spared him is life. Once a man persecuting the church, hunting down Christians to be stoned to death, he now relentlessly shares the good news of Christ, counting his own life as nothing in comparison.

How passionate are you for Christ?  We, like Paul, have been given the same task.  Take some time today to consider how the grace of God covers you.  How in his mercy he has called you to him.  He does not see your flaws, your failures, your foolish decisions.  He sees someone with hope and a future.  He sees someone worth dying for.  

Do not fall weary. Finish the task set before you, go where the Spirit leads and testify to someone TODAY the good news of the grace of God.

Shocking Grace

Mark 2:13-17

(Use the link below to read the verses.)

https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Mark%202%3A13-17&version=NIV;NLT

 

When was the last time you ate with a bunch of “sinners”? Jesus’ ministry model was to spend time with “sinners” that nice, religious people wouldn’t want to associate with. Jesus looked at people differently.

 

In Matthew 20, Jesus told the parable of the vineyard keeper who paid the men who worked 1 hour the exact same wage as the men who worked 11 hours! It was an illustration of what the Kingdom of Heaven is like. A friend of mine referred to it as “shocking grace”. But that’s what grace is like; it’s shocking!

 

Tax collectors were considered to be the scum of the earth by Pharisees and other righteous Jews. They were thought of as traitors who turned on their own people because they collected taxes on behalf of the Romans. Levi recognizes that he is the recipient of shocking grace.

 

²⁷ Later, as Jesus left the town, he saw a tax collector named Levi sitting at his

tax collector’s booth. “Follow me and be my disciple,” Jesus said to him. ²⁸ So Levi got up, left everything, and followed him.      Luke 5:27-28 NLT

 

Following the pattern of Peter, James and John, who left their fishing business to follow Jesus, Levi left everything to become a disciple of Jesus. And Levi wanted his friends, who also happened to be “sinners”, to hear about this shocking grace; to meet Jesus face to face; to find out what it meant to be a disciple of Jesus.

 

²⁹ Then Levi held a great banquet for Jesus at his house, and a large crowd of tax collectors and others were eating with them.   Luke 5:29 NIV

 

How can we duplicate Levi’s example? With whom has God brought into your life? Placed on your heart? A co-worker or neighbor or friend or someone on the periphery of church life? Jesus was always reaching out to sinners; and those sinners reached out to their friends.

 

That’s called discipleship.

 

That’s called “shocking grace”.

 

 

 

 

The Twitter of Life

 (Resurrection & Judgement)

Revelation 20:11-15

  

Our culture is changing in quantum leaps! Wasn’t it just yesterday that every kindergarten student read “Dick and Jane”? While last year my granddaughter, in her kindergarten class, used Chromebooks – whatever that is.

 

¹² I saw the dead, great and small, standing before God; and The Books were opened, including the Book of Life. And the dead were judged according to the things written in The Books, each according to the deeds he had done. ¹³ The oceans surrendered the bodies buried in them; and the earth and the underworld gave up the dead in them. Each was judged according to his deeds.             TLB

 

Is it possible that the Living Bible, or some other hip modern day translation, might eventually refer to the “Book of Life” as the “Twitter of Life” or “Facebook of Life” or some other social media?

 

At the risk of sounding sacrilegious with this suggestion, just think about it? What is it that people post on social media other than what they’ve been doing? But do they tell everything that is happening; their every action, every thought, every desire, every emotion? No. Because if they did they wouldn’t have any friends left!

 

On the other hand, the Book of Life will. In social media we tell what we want people to know about us. The Book of Life will tell, as Paul Harvey used to say, “The rest of the story”. Or David may have said it better with this abbreviated quote.

 

O Lord, you have examined my heart and know everything about me… You know when I sit or stand; my every thought; where I am; what I am going to say before I even say it.                        Psalm 139:1-4 TLB

 

The Twitter of Life may sound catchy, but final judgment is definitely not. It is a

reality that all of us face, and it is only by God’s grace that we are free from “the lake of fire” as our destiny. Instead, our destiny lies in a “new heaven and a new earth” living in the eternal presence of our loving Holy Father.

 

 https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Revelation%2020%3A11-15&version=NIV;TLB

https://www.biblegateway.com/audio/mclean/niv/Rev.20.11-Rev.20.15

 

 

 

 

 

 

When I Grow Up I Want To Be

 (“Strike the Shepherd…”)

Mark 14:27-42

  

In 2006 Monster.com ran a commercial called, “When I grow up”. It featured a series of children who gave antithetical answers to the same question. See if you can relate to some of their answers.

“When I grow up I want to: file all day; climb my way up to middle management; be replaced on a whim; be underappreciated; be forced into early retirement”.

I don’t imagine that the disciples dreamed of denying Jesus during his most trying time; or to fall asleep when he needed them most; or that Peter hoped one day to deny Jesus not once, but three times just before he was crucified.

Before all of this happened, Jesus quoted a verse from Zechariah which was a prophecy of how the disciples, his closest friends and followers, were going to respond to the series of events that would occur over the following 24 hours.

 ^“Strike the shepherd, and the sheep will be scattered, and I will turn my hand against the little ones.”    Zechariah 13:7 NIV

 Zechariah was a prophet during the time when the Israelites were rebuilding the Temple. The verse Jesus quoted was followed by these verses.

 ^“Two-thirds of all the nation of Israel will be cut off and die, but a third will be left in the land.  I will bring the third that remain through the fire and make them pure, as gold and silver are refined and purified by fire. They will call upon my name and I will hear them; I will say, ‘These are my people,’ and they will say, ‘The Lord is our God.’” Zechariah 13:8-9 TLB

Isn’t this what happened to the disciples. Jesus used these difficult circumstances to refine them; to make them as pure as silver or gold. And doesn’t he do the same thing in our lives? Doesn’t he use those painful experiences, hurtful relationships or catastrophic losses to mold and shape us into the man or woman that He created us to be?

The children in the commercial had only unfulfilled dreams. They didn’t represent faith in the Living God who had a plan for their life. The commercial was selling Monster.com as a means for being a dream maker-come-true; but we know better. There’s only One capable of this, and that is The Shepherd who is always with us.

Jeremiah 31: 31-34

Saved By God’s Grace

They say, “Nothing in life is free.” It is not clear just who “they” are, but they certainly are not in tune with our God. Grace is FREE, and all we have to do is accept it. There are no strings attached and no expectations for perfection. We are not able to earn it and it certainly is not something we deserve. None the less it is ours for the taking.

The basis for calling the second part of the Bible the New Testament is founded on this message from the Lord. He promised a New Covenant unlike the one before. In Jeremiah 31: 32 it is clear God was disappointed, yet ready to once again offer undeserved wings of freedom to His people; “It will not be like the covenant I made with their forefathers when I took them by the hand to lead them out of Egypt, because they broke my covenant though I was husband to them.” In Jeremiah 31: 33 the Lord declared, “I will put my law in their minds, and write it on their hearts. I will be their God and they will be my people.”  This time He was not planning to inscribe His laws onto hard stone as he did the Ten Commandments, but instead to use the soft tissue of the heart to communicate his message of unfailing love, forgiveness, and hope.

Jesus was sent as the sacrificial Lamb to make an impact too incredible to cast aside. Then the Holy Spirit followed, entering the hearts of all, giving them and us the ability to begin anew. Jeremiah 31:34 reminds us; “For I will forgive their wickedness, and will remember their sins no more.”  

The New Testament illustrates a new chance at life, offering another opportunity to live the will of the Lord. We were saved by God’s Grace. It’s up to us to decide what we will do with that gift. Are we going to put it into the closet along side the many other unexciting or minimally useful gifts we have received, or will we wear it proudly, allowing our hearts to feel His Grace and share it with others? Accepting and giving Grace is a very powerful thing!

Listen/Read Jeremiah 31:31-34

John 6:35-40

"Then Jesus declared, "I am the bread of life. He who comes to me will never go hungry, and he who believes in me will never be thirsty."  John 6:35 (NIV)

Sandwiched between these two verses, is our life. Everything we could want or need we find here.  Our hunger is satisfied and our thirst quenched; and all we need to do is LOOK and BELIEVE.  But, how easy is it look to Jesus, especially as a new Believer, for our needs to be met.  I know I was skeptical, thinking that certainly there must be something more substantial I must do.

I am watching a finch, eating from a feeder not 3 feet from where I am sitting.  This creature is cared for by God who has made provisions for the animal's every meal. This bird trusts his natural instinct for food.  We, who have been created in the image of God, should take a lesson from this finch and trust.

Look and Believe - salvation is ours for the taking. We haven't earned it, or worked for it, it is freely given. When God sent His son to be our Bread of Life, everything changed.  No longer could man ask the question "Is this all there is?"  This is only the beginning for those of us who partake of the Bread of Life.  It sounds so easy, simple, and almost too good to be true.  Grace makes it all possible.

"For my Father's will is that everyone who looks to the Son and believes in him shall have eternal life, and I will raise him up at the last day." (John 6:40)

Read John 6:35-40

Listen to John 6:35-40

Matthew 18:23-35

What an interesting parallel appears in the scriptures today.  This is the familiar story of the man who owed his master lots of money and his note was being called in.  There was the threat of imprisonment for him and selling his family into slavery to satisfy the debt.  The story continues with the servant begging his master for time.  The master ended up forgiving the debt - behavior unheard of in that time.

But, as the story goes, the servant did not have the same heart as his master for he turned right around and demanded payment for a debt owed him which was much smaller than the one he was just released from.  Showing no mercy, he had the debtor thrown in prison.

Financial difficulties can make one feel like they are in prison.  Having an unforgiving heart can do the same thing. “This is how my heavenly Father will treat each of you unless you forgive your brother or sister from your heart.” (Matthew 18:35)  It is a very difficult thing to ask for forgiveness; it is most humbling and forces us to admit we were wrong.  It is equally difficult to grant that forgiveness to someone who has wronged us.

The parable Jesus is telling today is confirming how forgiveness goes two ways. It takes courage to beg for someone to give us another chance, to say we are sorry. It requires humility to put ourselves in a position where we might be rejected. On the other side of the coin, to grant forgiveness for an act that compromised our faith in another isn't easy either. But, not to ask forgiveness and not to grant this same forgiveness leaves all parties in a prison of their own making.

This is where God's Grace takes over. Praise God for Grace.

Read the text here.

Listen to the text here.

Acts 15:1-21

A few years ago I was offered a job that was just too good to believe.  I remember feeling inadequate and not up to the par of the others I would be working with. It wasn't that I did not want the job, I was feeling like I wasn't good enough.  It wasn't humility so much as backward pride -- if that makes any sense.

If felt I needed to fulfill some unknown qualifications, that I needed a different pedigree.  God chose to bless me with the job of my dreams, and it ended up giving me everything I needed to face the future.  One moment in time can do this for us.  One moment in time can change us, our outlook and even our personality, for ever.


"No! We believe it is through the grace of our Lord Jesus that we are saved, just as they are.” (Acts 15:11)


We find the disciples trying to iron out the beliefs of the people, to clear up some old customs, ways of thinking, that were keeping the people from hearing the message of Good News.  Paul and Barnabas and the others were teaching about Jesus.  The message they shared was that Jesus came to save everyone, not just the Jews but everyone. 

Just as I didn’t feel position I was worthy of the position offered me, neither are any of us (Jew or Gentile) deserving of God’s grace nor the love of our Savior, Jesus. It is a gift.

Read today's text, Acts 15:1-21, here.

When Opportunity Knocks Acts 9:36-43

Today’s scripture passage is one of the fun ones where God does the unimaginable and raises someone from the dead. Today’s passage tells of a woman in Joppa, named Tabitha, who died. She was a follower of Christ who was also very generous. Some of the people she had served heard Peter was close by and hurried to retrieve him, thinking perhaps he could do something about Tabitha’s situation.

Upon Peter’s arrival he clears the room of the widows and mourners and brings Joppa back to life. Of course everyone who hears is amazed, so Peter stays in Joppa for awhile so that the Gospel message could be told.

Can’t you just see it? With a miracle like this Peter hangs around knowing that there will be many more receptive hearers to the message of God. We as followers can learn from Peter. When God moves in our lives that is the perfect time to stick around and share the story, so others can learn about God.

My father died a little over three months ago. God didn’t raise him from the dead but that doesn’t mean He didn’t perform any miracles. God prepared each of us, in my family, in very personal ways for my father’s passing and I have had so many opportunities since his death to share with others how amazing God was through the seventy-seven days of his illness.

Tabitha coming back to life and my father dying are not the issue here. What really matters is that God moved and because of that others can respond by accepting the saving grace of God.

Read today's passage at Biblegateway.com Acts 9:36-43