Elizabeth

At that time Mary got ready and hurried to a town in the hill country of Judea, where she entered Zechariah’s home and greeted Elizabeth. 

Luke 1:39-40 (NIV)

The first thing Mary did after the angel Gabriel appeared to her was hurry to see her relative Elizabeth. Why Elizabeth? She didn't hurry to see Joseph or her mother or her best friend. She went to see Elizabeth right off. Why? Because Elizabeth was the only person in the whole world who might understand what she was going through and believe her!

The angel Gabriel had told Mary that her Elizabeth was also experiencing a miracle pregnancy. Elizabeth had long been barren but was now with child. If anyone was going to believe Mary’s miraculous pregnancy it would be Elizabeth who was experiencing a miracle of her own. So, Mary hurried off to see Elizabeth, because she knew she needed that support.

And you do too! We all need someone who understands the crazy things God has called us to do, someone who encourages us and cheers us on as we timidly take those first steps of faith. It can be very scary to trust God at times. It helps to have someone who will support you as you step out in faith. Those kinds of people are very important in our lives. 

Moses had Aaron. Paul had Barnabas. And Mary had Elizabeth. Do you have anyone in your life like that? If God called you to do something crazy today, who would you run to to talk about it? If you don’t know, then you need to cultivate that kind of Christian friendship with someone. You need to find your Elizabeth.

And I also want to encourage to be an Elizabeth for someone else. Find someone whose faith you can strengthen, someone you can pray for as they step out in faith. Find someone you can encourage and support along the road of faith. Be someone’s Elizabeth! You never know how you might impact eternity simply by helping and encouraging someone else that God has called to do amazing things.

The Humility of Mary

Mary was greatly troubled at his words and wondered what kind of greeting this might be.

Luke 1:29

Mary's response to the angel Gabriel appearing to her and announcing God's favor on her shows her humility. It was a wonder to her that she should be chosen for such an honor. She didn’t think, “Well, of course an angel would appear to me. Of course, I am highly favored by God.” No! She was very perplexed, greatly troubled by what the angel Gabriel had said to her. She wondered or pondered what this could possibly mean because she was so humble.

This is another way in which Mary shows us an important qualification for being used by God. One that we often overlook and under appreciate. James 4:6 says, “God opposes the proud but shows favor to the humble.” 

Are you proud? If so, God opposes you. How can He use someone He is actively opposed to? No. If you want to be used by God, then start by humbling yourself. Because “God shows favor to the humble.”

How can you humble yourself this Christmas? Maybe, you can start cultivating humility in your life by focusing more on others this Christmas than you do on yourself. And maybe, you can even go one step further and strive to focus more on God this Christmas then you do on others and yourself. Make your Christmas about Jesus this year.   

The Lord's Servant

"I am the Lord’s servant,” Mary answered. “May it be to me as you have said."

Luke 1:38

Considering all that the angel Gabriel told Mary, she must have known that God was calling her to make a great, personal sacrifice. Gabriel told Mary that God’s plan was for her to get pregnant out of wedlock while engaged to Joseph. Mary had to know that no one would believe this was a miraculous conception… a virgin birth. She had to know that this would bring shame and judgment on her. She had to worry that Joseph wouldn’t believe her and that he would end their engagement, which Matthew’s gospel tells us he very nearly did.

Don't get me wrong. Mary was highly favored. It was a great honor for her to be chosen to bear the Messiah. But at the same time, that calling cost her dearly. It threatened her happiness. It altered the course of her life. And it required great sacrifice of her. As Simeon says in Luke 2:35, a sword would pierce Mary’s own soul too as a result of God’s plan for her life.

Mary surely must have understood at least some of this, but look at how she responds to the angel Gabriel's announcement! She didn’t do what Moses did. She didn’t try to convince God to choose someone else. She didn’t ask God for a sign like Gideon did. She didn’t run away from God’s calling on her life like Jonah did. No, Mary simply said, “I am the Lord’s servant. May it be to me as you have said.”

First, she said, “I am the Lord’s servant (or slave).” Oh, that those five words were the motto of every Christian! How different our world would be if more of us saw ourselves not as free individuals, but as God’s bondservants, created by God for His use for His glory. That’s how May saw herself... as God’s slave. That’s why she didn’t hesitate to say, “May it be to me as you have said.”

Following God, submitting to His will, would cost Mary dearly, but she was willing to risk the life she wanted to obey the God she loved. Are you? What is God calling you to that might mess up all your plans and alter the course of your life? Are you willing to say to Him today, ““I am the Lord’s servant…may it be to me as you have said”?

W.o.W. Rewind: The Providence of Christmas

 This is how the birth of Jesus the Messiah came about: His mother Mary was pledged to be married to Joseph, but before they came together, she was found to be pregnant through the Holy Spirit. 

Matthew 1:18

Over and over again the gospel accounts of Jesus' birth go out of their way to impress upon us that Jesus’ birth happened in the fullness of time, according to plan, to fulfill God’s promises. Nowhere is this more clear than in the gospel of Matthew. From the very first verse, Matthew takes great pains to tie Jesus’ birth back to the ancient promises of God. In the first two chapters of his book, Matthew points to four different Old Testament prophecies to show how God providentially ordered all the details of Jesus’ birth in accord with His plan. 

So when you think of all the details of the Christmas story that God worked out to fulfill prophecy... when you think of Jesus being born of a virgin, in Bethlehem, and of the line of David, be reminded that God is in control and He is working all things out according to His plan.

This is true not only of the big events of human history but also of all the small events of your life. History isn’t careening out of control. The circumstances of your life aren’t wholly random. God is in control and He is directing everything toward His desired end. Isn’t that comforting? 

So, as you celebrate Christmas this year, celebrate that God knows how the story ends. Celebrate that the world isn’t out of control. Celebrate that God is working all things (even your life) out according to His plan and moving us all toward His end for His purposes.

Empty Tombs

He has risen! He is not here. See the place where they laid him.

Mark 16:6b

The angel at the tomb didn’t expect the women to take him at his word that Jesus had been raised from the dead. He offered them proof. He invited them to see the place where Jesus had lain so that they might see that He wasn’t dead anymore.

Sadly, we don’t know for sure where the empty tomb is today. We can’t invite our lost friends and family members to see where Jesus laid to prove to them that Jesus was raised. But I believe there are empty graves we should show them and those are the places in our own lives where sin once utterly defeated us and held us in bondage. Every sin that you have been set free from is an empty tomb you can point to as proof that Jesus really was raised from the dead and that He really has breathed new life into you as well.

Are there empty graves in your life? There should be. The tomb of adultery that ruined your marriage ought to now lay empty. Many of us were once laid up in the tombs of drunkenness, of pornography, of addiction, of love for money, and of living for the approval of others. But when we came to Christ, we were set free from those sins and now they are empty tombs in our lives that show Jesus’ glory and power. They are proof that although at one time we were dead in our sins and we have now come alive in Christ Jesus.

This is why Christians shouldn’t hide from our past. We don’t glory in our past sins, but we do glory in the God who saves sinners like us. And one of the ways we declare His glory to the world is by being honest and open about the tombs He saved us from.

So, tell your testimony. Be honest. Be vulnerable about how bad off you were before you met Jesus. Invite people to come see the place where you lay dead before Jesus gave you new life.

A Secret Disciple No More

Later, Joseph of Arimathea asked Pilate for the body of Jesus. Now Joseph was a disciple of Jesus, but secretly because he feared the Jewish leaders. With Pilate’s permission, he came and took the body away.

John 19:38

Joseph was a member of the Sanhedrin… the very body of religious leaders who had Jesus crucified! But Joseph didn’t agree with their decision. In fact, Joseph had believed that Jesus was the Messiah, but he had been unwilling to openly associate with Him for fear of what it would do to his reputation. He was a man of high rank, and he knew how much he stood to lose if he associated with Jesus. Joseph had been fearful and cowardly, so he kept his faith a secret.

But Good Friday, the day Jesus died, was the day that Joseph of Arimathea stopped being a secret disciple of Jesus. Mark's Gospel says he “went boldly to Pilate and asked for Jesus’ body.” (Mark 15:43) Joseph wasn’t related to Jesus. He wasn’t asking to bury a family member. He was a member of the very ruling body that had accused Jesus of treason against Rome. And now Joseph approaches Rome and asks if he can give Jesus a proper burial?! This was a highly unusual request that was sure to draw attention.

More than that, Joseph likely had to publicly go up to Jesus’ cross and take His body down. Surely, word would get back to the Sanhedrin that he had done this. And then how could Joseph deny what he had done when Jesus was buried in his own new tomb?! (Matthew 27:60) He couldn’t.

As the Bible Knowledge Commentary says, there can be little doubt that Joseph’s actions “amounted to an open confession of personal loyalty to the crucified Jesus... He was a secret disciple no longer.”*

Are you a secret disciple of Jesus? You come to church and you believe... but you don’t tell your family or the people you work with or your friends because you are afraid. You're afraid they won’t understand, afraid they’ll make fun of you, afraid they'll cut you off, afraid it will be social suicide for you. 

Are you keeping Jesus a secret? If so, why not make today the day you follow Joseph’s example and openly follow Jesus no matter the cost. No matter the cost to you personally or professionally, go public with your faith. It’s time. Don’t keep your faith in Jesus a secret any longer.

*John D. Grassmick, “Mark,” in The Bible Knowledge Commentary: An Exposition of the Scriptures, ed. J. F. Walvoord and R. B. Zuck, vol. 2 (Wheaton, IL: Victor Books, 1985), 191.

Peter Wept

Immediately the rooster crowed the second time. Then Peter remembered the word Jesus had spoken to him: “Before the rooster crows twice you will disown me three times.” And he broke down and wept.

Mark 14:72

Peter had big failures, but he also had big regret. He was not blind to his sin, and he wasn’t too proud to grieve over and repent of it. That is why there was hope for Peter. And that is why I fear there may not be hope for some of our churches. 

You see, we have big failures too. Our churches today are full of big failures, major sins. But there is no weeping. No regret. No repentance like this. When was the last time someone came forward in your church and anointed the altar with holy tears? When was the last time someone wept over their sins? When was the last time you wept over your sin?

It’s not that we don’t sin anymore. It’s not that our failures and our sins aren’t that big. That isn’t it. It’s that we just aren’t that moved by them. We explain them away. We think that sex outside of marriage doesn’t really matter, that divorce doesn’t really matter, that greed and all manner of worldliness doesn’t really matter. And, perhaps worst of all, we think that repentance doesn’t really matter. So, we just move on and expect God to forgive us.

But sin that hasn’t been repented of is a hindrance to your intimacy with God. Many of you aren’t as close to God as you used to be and you can’t figure out why. And it’s because of your sin. Sins that you willingly committed against God and haven’t repented of. It is holding you back in your relationship with the Lord.

So, allow yourself to be broken over your sins. Name them before your God and ask for His forgiveness and see if He won’t restore you to close relationship and usefulness to Him, just as Peter was eventually restored and used in amazing ways.

Deserting Jesus

Then everyone deserted him and fled.

Mark 14:50

Jesus went into the Garden of Gethsemane with 11 disciples, but He came out alone.

At first, the disciples tried to resist Jesus’ arrest. One of them drew his sword and attacked a man in the mob. But once it became clear that Jesus wasn’t going to resist, once it became clear that He would surrender, and that He was going to be put on trial…well then…then the disciples all fled.*

In fact, Mark’s gospel tells us that there was a young man who wasn’t one of the 11 disciples who was also there. As the mob tried to seize him and he wriggled away his linen garment was torn. He fled from that place naked, leaving the garment behind. I think that detail is included to show us just how desperate and panicked the disciples felt in that moment.

The old Puritan Pastor Matthew Henry captures the point I want to make here rather succinctly. He says, “It is easier to fight for Christ than [it is] to die for him.”**

Before he was stripped of His clothes and hung on the cross, He was first stripped of all friendly support. It wasn’t just that Judas betrayed Him. It was also that EVERYONE deserted Him. No one was willing to suffer with Jesus in the end.

Are you? Are you willing to suffer with Jesus? Or like the disciples, will you run away when true suffering comes? Will you disappear, go home, or fall silent to avoid suffering for Jesus? Have you already begun to draw back?

Let us learn from the disciple’s mistake. Make up your mind now that you are willing to suffer for your Lord should it ever come to that. That no matter what, you will stand with Jesus even if it means your life.

* John D. Grassmick, “Mark,” in The Bible Knowledge Commentary: An Exposition of the Scriptures, ed. J. F. Walvoord and R. B. Zuck, vol. 2 (Wheaton, IL: Victor Books, 1985), 181.

** Matthew Henry and Thomas Scott, Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary (Oak Harbor, WA: Logos Research Systems, 1997), Mk 14:43.

He Sees Past Your Failures

“You will all fall away,” Jesus told them, “for it is written: “‘I will strike the shepherd, and the sheep will be scattered.’ But after I have risen, I will go ahead of you into Galilee.”

Mark 14:27–28

Jesus knows His disciples will scatter and abandon Him in His hour of greatest need, and He tries to prepare them for it. He tells them they will all fall away, but that He will meet them in Galilee after He has risen.

Notice that even though Jesus knows they will abandon Him and fail Him and prove unfaithful to Him at the worst possible moment, yet He loves them still! Jesus doesn’t cast them out early. He doesn’t say, “You are all gonna fall away, so just go ahead and get out of my sight now." Jesus isn’t speaking to them in anger, but with a sense of sorrow and compassion. He is trying to prepare them for what’s ahead. And He makes a special point to give them hope for reconciliation after their failure. That is why He mentions the resurrection. He wants them to know where they can gather again after they have been scattered so that they will not be lost forever.

What Jesus does is He looks beyond their failure and sees their potential. He sees what they will become. So, He deals gently with their failures in the meantime until they are fully formed into the apostles who will shake the world after His ascension.

I want you to know that Jesus is the same with you. He knows you will fail. And He sees your failures coming, but He loves you still. And He sees past your failures to what you will become, what He is making you into. So, do all you can to avoid failing Him, but when you do fail, know that He isn’t surprised. When you fail, don’t run away from Him for good, but rather go back to the place where you first met Him, at that place called repentance and be reconciled to Him. And let Him keep shaping you through your failures into the mature Christian He wants you to be.

Setting the Table

So he sent two of his disciples, telling them, “Go into the city, and a man carrying a jar of water will meet you. Follow him. Say to the owner of the house he enters, ‘The Teacher asks: Where is my guest room, where I may eat the Passover with my disciples?’ He will show you a large room upstairs, furnished and ready. Make preparations for us there.”

Mark 14:13-15

Mark, the gospel writer, could have jumped straight into the Last Supper but he chooses not to. He takes the time to draw our attention to the fact that without preparation there wouldn’t have been a meal at all. This is true of every meal. Someone has to set the table. Someone has buy and cook the food. Drinks have to be poured. All of this is necessary before there can be a meal.

And in the case of the Last Supper, Jesus sends two disciples to make preparations. Luke’s gospel reveals to us that it was Peter and John whom Jesus sent to make preparation. And since this was a Passover Meal, the preparations would have included making sure the room was in order, gathering the supplies, and finally “preparing the lamb, the bitter herbs, the unleavened bread, the wine, the crushed fruit, etc.”*

Now, I don’t know if preparing the Passover Meal was considered a great honor or if it was something that servants normally did. But I can tell you that without Peter and John prepping the herbs and purchasing the lamb and doing all the work that was required to make that meal possible, without that behind the scenes preparation, there would have been no Lord’s Supper.

And I think this is a good reminder for us that there are a lot of people who do work behind the scenes. And those people and the work they do matter... a lot. Someone cooks the meals and washes the clothes and cleans the toilets in your home. None of those are particularly glamorous jobs, but they are all necessary. And your life, and the lives of your family, are made better by the person or persons who do that work. And at your church, you may not think about who runs sound on Sunday morning, but without them you wouldn’t be able to hear the sermon or the music. You may not know who is on the Building and Grounds Committee, but without them the roof would leak and there would be no working HVAC units. You may not know who works in the preschool and children’s area, but without them your children would be neglected.

So, understand that service matters, because it makes everything else possible. And sometimes, it is the small jobs... the behind the scenes jobs, the jobs that you don’t even think about, that make everything else possible. So, be thankful for those who serve you. And make sure that you find your own way to serve both at home and at church.

*Ross H. McLaren, “Mark,” in CSB Study Bible: Notes, ed. Edwin A. Blum and Trevin Wax (Nashville, TN: Holman Bible Publishers, 2017), 1587.

To Know Him is to Fear Him

The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom, and knowledge of the Holy One is understanding.

Proverbs 9:10

What exactly does it mean to fear the Lord? The word ‘fear’ that is used in this verse (in the original language) means ‘fear, terror, respect, reverence or an attitude of deep respect tinged with awe.’ I think the fear of the Lord is all of these things. I think it is multi-faceted. I think fearing God means that you are filled with “fear, respect and awe” for God in the right proportion at the right time.

Now, I am going to go out on a limb here and guess that you don't have a problem with the ideas that we should respect God or be in awe of Him. But the idea that we should fear Him, at all in any way, is hard for some of you to accept. But the simple truth is that no one who rightly comprehends who God is can help but fear Him. 

There is no way you can encounter a God who is perfectly holy- as pure as raging fire, a God who is all-powerful - not just the most powerful being but the source of all power in the entire universe, a God who is all-knowing - who knows you and sees you like no one else does, the Creator of the Heavens and the earth- a God who made everything that has been made, a God who sustains all life (even your life) by His Word, a God with no beginning and no end, a God who has always existed, a God who hates sin and will one day judge all mankind, a God for whom all things exist and without whom nothing would exist… it’s impossible for any creature to rightly comprehend who that God is and not quake in their boots, not fear Him, not bow in awe before Him.

It reminds me of C.S. Lewis’ book The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe. In the book Lewis pictures Jesus as a lion named Aslan. When one of the children in the book finds out that she is going to meet this powerful lion, she is understandably nervous. She asks, 

“‘Is he — quite safe? I shall feel rather nervous about meeting a lion.’ 

‘That you will, dearie, and no mistake,’ said Mrs. Beaver, ‘if there’s anyone who can appear before Aslan without their knees knocking, they’re either braver than most or else just silly.’ 

‘Then he isn’t safe?’ said Lucy. 

‘Safe?’ said Mr. beaver. ‘Don’t you hear what Mrs. Beaver tells you? Who said anything about safe? ‘Course he isn’t safe. But he’s good. He’s the King, I tell you.” (Lewis, C.S. The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe. (Collier Books: New York) 1970, p75-76.)

The girl in the story wanted to think of Aslan as a tame lion, but a lion who could be tamed wouldn’t be very powerful would He? Often, we make the same mistake with God. We want to think of Him as tame, when in fact He isn’t. You can’t control God. You can’t predict what He will do. And He is more powerful than you can imagine. But He is good! And this verse tells you that the first step to wisdom is understanding that your knees ought to knock a little bit when you stand in His presence.

Do your knees ever knock when you think about God, when you pray, when you worship? I’m not saying that fear is the only emotion you should feel towards God. We know that can’t be true, because the greatest commandment in all Scripture isn’t that you should fear God but that you should love Him. And yet… you are also commanded to fear Him.So, make sure you “Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind,” (Matthew 22:37) but don’t forget to keep that love holy by mixing in a healthy dose of the fear, respect and awe that He deserves as well.

Unrestrained Worship & Extravagant Love

While he was in Bethany, reclining at the table in the home of Simon the Leper, a woman came with an alabaster jar of very expensive perfume, made of pure nard. She broke the jar and poured the perfume on his head.

Mark 14:3

Verse five tells us that this perfume was estimated to be worth a year’s wages for a day laborer. Jesus and His disciples were itinerant preachers. They lived hand to mouth. They had very little money. They lived among and ministered to the poor. And this woman breaks a jar of this extremely expensive perfume and pours it ALL out on Jesus. That is a year’s wages running down Jesus’ head and beard and on His feet. No one can believe what they have just witnessed. It seems a terrible waste to them. So, they rebuke the woman harshly for doing something that frankly seems stupid to them.

But our love and adoration and worship of God shouldn’t be measured or frugal or restrained. They should be extravagant! Love is sometimes wasteful! And some of us are just too functional for our own good. 

Romantic love is often expressed best through generosity and sacrifice and grand gestures… not through careful moderation or restraint or by making sure to avoid waste at all costs. And the same is true of worship. You ought to express your love and adoration and worship of God in big ways as well. There are no prizes in Heaven for making sure you don’t go too far in your love for Jesus. There's no crown for the person who worships God the most moderately and frugally, who manages to avoid extravagance in their worship at every turn.

The greatest commandment isn’t “Love the Lord thy God as responsibly and reasonably as possible. And never do anything out of your love for God that might seem extravagant to the people around you.” No! The Greatest Commandment is “Love the Lord your God with all your heart and all your soul and all your mind and all your strength.” That sounds a bit extravagant by definition to me.

So, don’t be too functional or restrained in your relationship with God. And don’t worry about what other people think about your worship.

The Fear of the Lord Leads to Worship

They were all filled with awe and praised God. “A great prophet has appeared among us,” they said. “God has come to help his people.”

Luke 7:16

In Luke 7 we read about Jesus raising the widow’s son back to life. And Luke 7:16 tells us how the people responded to this amazing miracle. It says, “They were all filled with awe and praised God.” Now the NIV says awe, but most other translations say fear, because the word here, ‘phobos,’ is related to the word phobia. When the people saw that Jesus had the power to raise the dead they were filled with fear and awe, and that drove them to praise the Lord.

When you really get how big and powerful and amazing God is, fear and awe are the only right responses. But fear can push you in two directions. Fear of the LORD can push you away from God, but it can also push you towards Him, especially the kind of fear that includes awe. The awe of the Lord should lead you to worship.

When you see how great God is, you ought to tremble before Him, you ought to stand in awe of Him, and then you ought to fall on your knees and worship Him. It may seem odd at first, but worship is the right response to the fear of the Lord. Why would I worship a God that wasn’t more powerful than I am? Why would I worship a god that I didn’t stand in awe of?

And consider this, Psalm 19:9 says, “The fear of the Lord is pure, enduring forever.” Think about that. The fear of the Lord endures forever? That means that we will still fear the Lord in Heaven for all eternity. And I believe the reason for that is because the fear of the Lord is part of worship. Even in Heaven we will revere the Lord. Even in Heaven we will stand in awe of Him. And yes, even in heaven, our worship will be mixed with the fear of our Holy God.

So, fear God... but draw near to Him. Tremble at His presence… but fall at His feet in worship as you do. And be glad that God is so fearfully powerful and mighty. Because if He weren’t, He wouldn’t be worth worshipping at all.

Not Yet

This is what the Lord Almighty says: “These people say, ‘The time has not yet come to rebuild the Lord’s house.

Haggai 1:2

After their return from exile, God's people had delayed building God's temple for 18 years! While they lived in houses with panelled walls, God's house had a foundation and no walls. And their excuse, was that the time had not yet come to rebuild. They knew it was God’s will for them to rebuild the temple. 

As Matthew Henry points out, “they didn’t say that they would not build a temple, but, not yet.”* And in this way they deceived themselves and lulled themselves into disobedience. I often say to my children, delayed obedience is disobedience, and I believe that applies to these verses. 

This sin isn’t unique to the Jews that lived 2,400 years ago though, is it? We still do this today, don’t we? Most people don’t say that they'll never get saved; just not right now. Christians rarely decide that they'll never get baptized, but they do tell themselves that they just aren’t ready yet. They need to mature more first. Or they would be too nervous to do it right now, maybe later. And we don’t say that we'll never lead a single person to Jesus, or that we'll never share the gospel with our family member or friend or neighbor or co-worker. We don’t do that. We just convince ourselves that now isn’t the right time. Maybe someday soon.

Is there anything you know you ought to do, anything that God has commanded you to do, that you're putting off? Is there anything you are saying “not yet” to or “maybe one day” to or “when the time is right” to? Delayed obedience is disobedience. Don’t deceive yourself! If God has commanded it, then you should obey it... now. Look for opportunities to obey, not reasons to delay.

*Matthew Henry and Thomas Scott, Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary (Oak Harbor, WA: Logos Research Systems, 1997), Hag 1:1.

Fear Not Death

Since the children have flesh and blood, he too shared in their humanity so that by his death he might break the power of him who holds the power of death—that is, the devil—and free those who all their lives were held in slavery by their fear of death.

Hebrews 2:14–15

Alister McGrath, in his wonderful little book entitled What was God doing on the Cross?, has this to say about the fear of death and the believer. McGrath says, “Death has been tamed. John Bunyan makes this point forcefully in Pilgrim’s Progress, using a vivid storyline. Christian is walking down a road, when to his horror he notices a ferocious lion barring his path. There is no way that he can avoid the animal. Terrified, he draws closer. Then, to his delight, he notices that the lion is chained to a post. Someone has been that way before him, and tamed this fearsome beast. Although he must walk that same way, an earlier traveller has made the road safe for him. Someone else met the hostile creature before him, and disarmed it. Although the lion remains, the threat it once posed has been removed.”* 

That image of a lion chained to a post that we must all walk pass, perfectly captures what Christ has done to death. Death has been tamed! Yes, every believer must still pass through death (unless we live until Jesus comes back) but it can no longer hurt us! For the Christian, death is nothing more than a doorway we pass through on our way to Heaven.

Because, if you are a Christian, then Death is not final for you! Death will have no victory over you. It will hold your body captive in the grave for a little while…but not your soul. From the moment of your death your soul will be in the presence of your Savior right up until the moment of your resurrection. And on that day, your body will come up out of the grave again, in victory, and it will be made new and glorious and immortal. And you will live in that body for all eternity on the new heavens and the new earth.

What possible reason, then, could a Christian have to fear death? I understand having some fear of the process of dying. Sometimes dying can be painful and unpleasant. But we have been set free from a fear of death. So, when our time comes, let us seal our lives with one final testimony to our great faith in the gospel, and let us face our death with faith... not fear.   

*McGrath, Alister E. What was God doing on the Cross? (Eugene, OR: Wipf and Stock Publishers) 1992, p112

Fear Not the Persecution of Men

Are not two sparrows sold for a penny? Yet not one of them will fall to the ground outside your Father’s care. And even the very hairs of your head are all numbered. So don’t be afraid; you are worth more than many sparrows.

Matthew 10:29-31

The ESV Study Bible tells us that “sparrows were customarily thought of as the smallest of creatures, and the copper coin that is rendered into English as ‘penny’ here was one of the least valuable Roman coins…”* The point here is that “if God does not overlook the death or injury of even the most insignificant birds,” then surely He does not overlook the suffering or death of His beloved children.** 

I like the way the CSB Study Bible puts it. “The God who has numbered even the hairs of your head has also numbered the days of your life. His plan for his disciples cannot be cut short by persecution.”*** 

If God doesn't let the sparrows fall apart from His will, then neither will He let you fall apart from His will. The Bible doesn’t guarantee that you won’t suffer. It doesn’t even guarantee that you won’t die. In fact, many Christians have died for their faith. But it does promise that God will watch over you and that nothing will happen to you apart from Him.

This is why Christians shouldn’t fear persecution. Because we have nothing to fear from men. They don’t hold our fate in their hands. God the Father does. And God does not forget His children. No harm can befall you apart from His will. You can be in the worst possible situation and not fear, because you know that God’s got you! So, faithful believer, don't live in fear of men!

*Wilkins, Michael J. ESV Study Bible note on Matthew 10:29 (Wheaton, IL: Crossway Bibles, 2001), 1841

** A. Boyd Luter, “Luke,” in CSB Study Bible: Notes, ed. Edwin A. Blum and Trevin Wax (Nashville, TN: Holman Bible Publishers, 2017), 1632

*** Charles L. Quarles, “Matthew,” in CSB Study Bible: Notes, ed. Edwin A. Blum and Trevin Wax (Nashville, TN: Holman Bible Publishers, 2017), 1517.

A God Who Works in Ways You Can't See

When the servant of the man of God got up and went out early the next morning, an army with horses and chariots had surrounded the city. “Oh no, my lord! What shall we do?” the servant asked.

“Don’t be afraid,” the prophet answered. “Those who are with us are more than those who are with them.”

And Elisha prayed, “Open his eyes, Lord, so that he may see.” Then the Lord opened the servant’s eyes, and he looked and saw the hills full of horses and chariots of fire all around Elisha.

2 Kings 6:15–17

Even though their situation looked dire, in truth, Elisha and his servant weren’t in any danger at all! Because “Those who were with them were more than those who were with the Arameans.”

Here is a reason why we shouldn’t fear when wicked men or a wicked world attacks us as Christians. Because the visible world isn’t all there is! There is far more to reality than what you can see. In addition to the physical realm, there is a spiritual realm that you cannot see. But it is just as real and just as relevant to what happens to you.

Don’t fall into the trap of thinking that the visible world is all there is. No matter how powerful your enemy, no matter how many are on his side, don’t forget that your eyes and your ears and your senses aren’t able to give you the full picture.

Remember that you have an ally in the spiritual realm, and He has delivered His children from impossible situations over and over again. God often chooses to work in this spiritual realm, and you will not be able to see all He is doing to fight for and protect you. So, don’t give in to fear. Learn to trust the God who works in ways you can’t see.

I Will Be With You

When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; and when you pass through the rivers, they will not sweep over you. When you walk through the fire, you will not be burned; the flames will not set you ablaze.

Isaiah 43:2

In this passage God is speaking to Judah through the prophet Isaiah. Isaiah has been telling God's people that they will be sent into exile in Babylon because of their sin. Yet, even in captivity, God doesn't want His people to give way to fear. 

And in Isasiah 43:2, God tells Judah that even if they should pass through water and fire, they should not fear. The reason why? God says, "You won’t be swept away by water or burned by fire, because I will be with you.”

The mention of water hearkens back to Israel’s escape from Egypt and the crossing of the Red Sea and later the crossing of the Jordan River to enter the Promised Land. God was with His people on both occasions and made a way for them to "pass through the waters" safely. 

But, this verse also mentions walking through fire and that proved literally true in the case of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego. Do you remember their story? All three were cast into a fiery furnace, but when the king of Babylon looked into the furnace he saw not three but four men walking around in the fire. And one of the men looked like a son of God. And none of the men were harmed by the fire. Why? Because God was with them!

Now, if God brought Israel through the waters of the Red Sea and He brought Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego through the fires of their captivity, then how much more will He do so for His church and for you as a New Testament believer? Of course He will.

At some point in the future, trouble will find you. You can't avoid that. But you do not need to live in fear of it for this very simple reason: whatever trouble might find you, you won't have to face it alone. If you are a believer, God will be with you!

Questioning Reality

Jesse had seven of his sons pass before Samuel, but Samuel said to him, “The Lord has not chosen these.” So he asked Jesse, “Are these all the sons you have?” “There is still the youngest,” Jesse answered. “He is tending the sheep.” Samuel said, “Send for him; we will not sit down until he arrives.”

1 Samuel 16:10–11

All of Jesse’s sons passed before Samuel and God did not indicated that any of them were to be anointed king. This presented Samuel with a bit of a brain teaser. God had told Samuel that He would indicate one of Jesse’s sons to be king. But now God’s Word wasn’t matching up with reality. Jesse had seemingly brought all of his sons before Samuel but none of them were the future king. What is Samuel to make of this?

Let me tell you what Samuel didn’t do. He didn’t doubt God’s Word. So often we make that mistake. If the Bible says that soemthing is true and then we look at the reality of the situation, the evidence around us, and it doesn’t match up with what Scripture said, then so many Christians say "Well, the Bible must be wrong!"

But not Samuel. When God’s Word, when His promise, didn’t match up with Samuel's reality the first thing Samuel did wasn’t to doubt God it was to double check his perception of reality. He turned to Jesse and said “Are you sure these are all your sons?” Imagine how silly he must have felt asking that question! But you know what? God’s Word was proved true! Jesse had excluded one of his own sons. 

Here again Samuel sets an example for us to follow. Your confidence in God’s Word and His promises should be unshakeable. So much so that when God’s promise doesn’t seem to match your reality you are more inclined to doubt your perception of reality than you are to doubt God’s promise. Strive to be like that!

Deceiving Ourselves and No One Else

When Samuel reached him, Saul said, “The Lord bless you! I have carried out the Lord’s instructions.” But Samuel said, “What then is this bleating of sheep in my ears? What is this lowing of cattle that I hear?” Saul answered, “The soldiers brought them from the Amalekites; they spared the best of the sheep and cattle to sacrifice to the Lord your God, but we totally destroyed the rest.”

1 Samuel 15:13-15

The frustrating thing about pretending to be something you aren't is that the evidence of who you truly are is all around you. It cries out against you to betray you like the bleating of these sheep. That's the problem with being a hypocrite or of pretending to follow God when you really aren't, is that everyone around you can see how you are really living your life.

What sound or evidence cries out against you and threatens to reveal the truth about who you really are? Your internet search history? Your Netflix watch history? Your credit card history? Or your social media activity? No one can hide the truth about themselves forever. It always comes out in the end. 

But somehow we always fool ourselves into thinking we will get away with it. No other creature on earth is as skilled in self-deception as man. Even a dog that convinces himself he is chasing something other than his own tail, yelps in pain and admits he was wrong when he finally catches his tail and bites down hard on it. But not man. People will lie to themselves and go one refusing to admit their mistakes long after everyone else knows they were wrong. 

That's what Saul did. He refused to admit his sin. He tried to shift the blame onto his own soldiers. He even tried to claim he disobeyed God in order to worship Him! When all along, he ought to have been honest with himself, admitted his sin and asked God for forgiveness. 

Are you deceiving yourself this morning? Are you shifting the blame? You would be far better off just admitting your sin and seeking God's forgiveness. 

Remember Your God!

After Jacob entered Egypt, they cried to the Lord for help, and the Lord sent Moses and Aaron, who brought your ancestors out of Egypt and settled them in this place. But they forgot the Lord their God;

1 Samuel 12:8–9a

God brought Israel up out of Egypt. The knew Moses and Aaron. They witnessed the 10 Plagues. They saw God turn the Nile to blood. They saw God part the Red Sea for the Israelites and then close it back on their enemies. Then God brought them through the desert and settled them in the Promised Land. They crossed the Jordan River on dry ground. They saw the walls of mighty Jericho fall. God did all of this for them, and still verse 9 says they forgot their God! How is that possible?! 

We learn something about people in these verses. Sadly, the ability to forget God, to grow tired of Him, to ignore Him... is an ability that all mankind shares. We are all only too capable of forgetting God.

Think about a husband who has an affair. Do you think he forgets that he’s married? No. He doesn't forget that he has a wife. But he does forget his wife in the sense that he isn’t thinking about her anymore. When he commits that great sin, he’s thinking about someone else, this object of his desire, instead of his wife.

That’s the sense in which Israel forgot their God. They didn’t forget that God existed, but they weren’t thinking about Him anymore. They had no time for God in their thoughts or their lives because they were too busy running after the gods and the things that they desired more. False idols and fleshly desires had pushed God out of their thinking and out of their lives.

What about you? Did you know that you can go to church every week and still forget God? You can if there is no room for Him in your thoughts or your life once you leave church each Sunday. Has God been pushed out of your thoughts and your life by someone or something that you desire more then you desire Him?

Have you forgotten your God? If so, take a look back at your history and remind yourself of all He has done for you. Remember how He called you to salvation. Remember how He freed you from sin. Remember how He loved you at your worst. Remember how He gave you His Word and His church. Remember how He has met your needs again and again and again. Remember your God!

A True Prayer Warrior

They said to Samuel, “Do not stop crying out to the Lord our God for us, that he may rescue us from the hand of the Philistines.” Then Samuel took a suckling lamb and sacrificed it as a whole burnt offering to the Lord. He cried out to the Lord on Israel’s behalf, and the Lord answered him. While Samuel was sacrificing the burnt offering, the Philistines drew near to engage Israel in battle. But that day the Lord thundered with loud thunder against the Philistines and threw them into such a panic that they were routed before the Israelites.

1 Samuel 7:8-10

As Israel gathers for repentance and revival, their enemies attack. The people of Israel have been fasting, not sharpening their swrords. They aren’t prepared for war, and they aren’t strong enough to defeat the Philistines. But look at what they do.

In verse 8 the Israelites say to Samuel “Do not stop crying out to the Lord our God for us, that he may rescue us from the hand of the Philistines.” In other words, they say, “Samuel, you pray and we’ll fight.” And that’s what they did.

As the Philistines begin to march out against them, Samuel sacrifices a whole burnt offering to the Lord and he prays for the people. And as Israel goes out to meet their enemies, the Lord thunders from on high! The Philistines are thrown into such a panic by this thunder of God that they are routed and Israel wins a great victory over her enemy on that day.

Samuel delivered Israel with his prayers just as surely as Samson delivered them with his jawbone of a donkey or Gideon delivered them with his trumpets and torches. Samuel was a literal prayer warrior. He fought the battle that day from his knees. And he won! And in doing so, Samuel lived up to his name. You see, in Hebrew Samuel’s name sounds like the phrase “heard of God.”* Samuel was heard by God that day.

There are a number of applications here for us. First, don’t underestimate the power of prayer. A believer can win mighty victories from his knees. Second, as Christians we have an even better intercessor than Samuel. Scripture tells us that Jesus sits at the right hand of the Father in Heaven praying for you and me (Hebrews 7:24-25). It’s appropriate then for us to say to Jesus what the Israelites said to Samuel. “Don’t stop praying for me, Jesus, while I fight these battles." Third, we should also strive to be like Samuel for others in our lives. Do people seek out your prayers? When they are hurting, when they are facing a battle, are you the person they come to for prayer? Strive to be known as a person of prayer, a prayer warrior others can turn to when they need someone in their corner praying for them.

*John D. Barry, Douglas Mangum, Derek R. Brown, et al., Faithlife Study Bible (Bellingham, WA: Lexham Press, 2012, 2016), 1 Sa 1:20.

God Came Down to Talk to Samuel

The Lord came and stood there, calling as at the other times, “Samuel! Samuel!”

Then Samuel said, “Speak, for your servant is listening.”

1 Samuel 3:10

This is a familiar passage of Scripture to many of us, but we often read it and miss how God condescended or lowered Himself to call Samuel. Think about this. Entire armies of angels, powerful spiritual beings, stand at God’s command in Heaven ready to be dispatched at a moment’s notice. All of creation knows His voice and bends to His command. Every human on earth is at His disposal. And yet, He chooses Samuel who may have only been 12 years old at this time [Geneva Bible: Notes, vol. 1 (Geneva: Rovland Hall, 1560), 122.] to deliver His message to Eli the priest.

God came down and called not once, not twice, not three times... but four times in 1 Samuel 3 God called to Samuel. God didn’t give up on Samuel when he couldn’t figure out who was calling him. (Samuel thought he was hearing Eli the priest call to him.) No, God waited patiently for Eli and Samuel to figure it out, so He could give His message to His newest prophet.

Let this be a reminder to us that God is patient with His servants and knows how to bring us along at a pace we can understand. And let it be a reminder also that God delights in using the weak, the small and the overlooked to do His will. He could have sent an angel. He could have delivered this message of judgment to Eli Himself. He chose to use Samuel... this young man... for His glory.

But why Samuel? Throughout the Bible, God regularly chooses those who are already serving faithfully where they are for bigger things. Joseph was a faithful and righteous servant in Potiphar’s house, before he was chosen to be second in charge of Pharaoh’s house. Joshua was a faithful soldier, a faithful spy and a faithful assistant to Moses before he became the leader of all Israel. And Samuel was a faithful nazirite and Levite before he became a prophet of God.

Serve faithfully where God has put you. Don’t worry about how much attention or prestige you receive. Don’t worry about credit. Just faithfully serve the Lord with all you have. And God will patiently bring you along and will likely use you in bigger and bigger ways for His glory just like He did with Samuel.

Finding a Way to Serve

But Samuel was ministering before the Lord—a boy wearing a linen ephod.

1 Samuel 2:18

According to Old Testament law, as a Levite, Samuel wasn’t supposed to start serving the Lord until he was 25 yrs old and he was to be released from service at 50 (Numbers 8:24–25). But Samuel’s mother had given him over to the Lord to serve Him "for his whole life" (1 Samuel 1:28). That is why Samuel was "ministering before the Lord—a boy wearing a linen ephod."

What service could Samuel possibly render at the tabernacle as a young boy? Did he sweep up? Did he sing or play an instrument in worship? Did he light the lamps or clean out the ashes or clean up the blood from the offerings? We don’t know. What we do know is that Samuel found some way he could serve even as a young boy, and he put his hand to the work faithfully.

In this way, Samuel reminds us that everyone can serve the Lord in some way. Everyone can do something. Have you found something that you can do at your church? Churches and ministires almost always need volunteers. Don’t wait for someone to ask you. If you want to serve, volunteer. I can almost gurantee that they will find something you can do. It may not be glamorous. It may notbe exactly what you wanted to do. But, it will be ministry.

Find your way to serve.

God is our Family

After he was weaned, she took the boy with her... [and] they brought the boy to Eli, and she said to him, “Pardon me, my lord. As surely as you live, I am the woman who stood here beside you praying to the Lord. I prayed for this child, and the Lord has granted me what I asked of him. So now I give him to the Lord. For his whole life he will be given over to the Lord.” And he worshiped the Lord there.

1 Samuel 1:24–28

Samuel was likely around 3 years old when Hannah made good on her vow and took him to live at the temple. How difficult and heart-breaking that must have been for Hannah! And how difficult it must have been for Samuel. You can imagine his little cries when his mother walked away. We know that Hannah loved her son dearly and continued to visit him and take care of him because 1 Samuel 2:19 tells us that “each year [she] made him a little robe and took it to him when she went up with her husband to offer the annual sacrifice.”

But even though Hannah saw her son at least that one time a year, she didn’t see him every day. He had no mother there to care for him day in and day out. Samuel was alone. Hannah left him under the care of Eli the priest. And more specifically, Hannah gave Samuel over to the care of the LORD.

Hannah was able to do this impossible thing, giving up the child she had so longed for, because she trusted God to watch over Samuel. She trusted the Lord to provide for Samuel and care for Samuel and protect him. She didn’t abandon her son. She gave Him over to the Lord. And the Lord became mother and father and brother and sister to Samuel. God became Samuel’s family.

The same is true of every believer. When you became a Christian you were adopted as God’s child and He became your family. So, even if your earthly family lets you down, or if they are taken from you prematurely, or if you are off all on your own far away from them, know that you are never alone. You are not orphaned or widowed or abandoned in the true sense of the word, because God is with you. He is your family. He is a father to the fatherless, a husband to the widow, and a compassionate friend to those who have lost children.

And that doesn’t just go for yourself, it also goes for your children. It can be so difficult to let our children go… to send them off into the world. But if they are believers, then we have the added comfort of knowing that we are not the only family they have. Even if we cannot watch over them anymore, God is watching over them. And that brings us the same comfort that it brought Hannah.

How to Pray: According to Hannah

And she made a vow, saying, “Lord Almighty, if you will only look on your servant’s misery and remember me, and not forget your servant but give her a son, then I will give him to the Lord for all the days of his life, and no razor will ever be used on his head.”

1 Samuel 1:11

There is much that we can learn from Hannah's prayer in her time of misery. And both her prayer and God's answer to it have been the subject of many sermons. But what is often overlooked is the language of the prayer itself... the specific requests that Hannah makes of the Lord.

Hannah asks God to “look on her misery,” to “remember her” and to “not forget her.” These are all helpful phrases for us to remember and use in our personal prayers, because they capture something that’s common to all human experience.

It is a basic human need to know that someone cares about your pain, that someone is thinking about you, that you are not completely forgotten or overlooked. And it is good and right for you to take that need to God in prayer.

So, the next time you feel like no one sees you or no one cares, don’t sulk. Ask God to “remember you.” The next time you feel like no one understands your pain, don’t get mad at everyone else for not being able to understand your experience. Instead, turn to the one person who can. Pray and ask God to “look on your misery.” And the next time you aren’t invited to something and you feel overlooked and left out, pray and ask the Lord “not to forget you.” And comfort yourself with the knowledge that He never has.

And lastly, but perhaps most important of all. Don't forget to ask God specifically and directly for what you want. Hannah comes right out and asks God for a son. Don't let your prayers be general, fuzzy or unclear. Be specific. Don't be afraid to ask God for exactly what you want and need in prayer.   

Master of the House

Be on guard! Be alert! You do not know when that time will come. It’s like a man going away: He leaves his house and puts his servants in charge, each with their assigned task, and tells the one at the door to keep watch.

“Therefore keep watch because you do not know when the owner of the house will come back—whether in the evening, or at midnight, or when the rooster crows, or at dawn. If he comes suddenly, do not let him find you sleeping. What I say to you, I say to everyone: ‘Watch!’ ”

Mark 13:33–37

Jesus gives us an analogy here for His second coming: that of a master of a house going on a long trip and leaving His servants to work and wait for his return.

The main point of this analogy is simple enough. Since his servants don’t know when their master might return, they must always keep watch to ensure they aren’t caught off guard or found sleeping when he arrives. We see this point illustrated most clearly in the keeper of the door. It’s his job to warn the house of the master’s approach and make sure a suitable welcome is ready when he arrives. So, he keeps watch at the door. It doesn’t matter if the master should come home in the middle of the night or the middle of the day, he must be watching and ready whenever he arrives.

There’s a second point here as well though. Jesus says in verse 34 that the master “puts his servants in charge, each with their assigned task.” It isn’t enough to just watch for the master’s return; you also need to work. You need to faithfully do the task God has given you to do. You have to watch and work.

It reminds me of when I was in middle or high school and would stay home by myself during the summer. My mom would leave a list of jobs for me to do, and, of course, I would put them off until the end of the day. Then, suddenly I would look at the clock and realize that Mom was going to be home in 15 minutes. Then, I would run around like a crazy person trying to get an hour’s worth of work done in 15 minutes so my mom wouldn’t find me out.

I'm convinced that Jesus’ return is going to be like that for some Christians. The time for His coming is going to sneak up on them, and they will be embarrassed when their work is inspected. They will be embarrassed that they didn’t share the gospel with anyone, embarrassed that they didn’t use their spiritual gifts to serve the church, embarrassed that they laid up treasure on earth instead of in Heaven, embarrassed that they didn’t obey the promptings of the Holy Spirit to do those things God had specifically called them to do.

Do you know what your job is in the kingdom? Do you know what He has gifted you to do? What He has commanded you to do? If so, make sure you are working. Make sure you are watching. Make sure you are ready.

Jesus Warned Us

At that time if anyone says to you, ‘Look, here is the Messiah!’ or, ‘Look, there he is!’ do not believe it. For false messiahs and false prophets will appear and perform signs and wonders to deceive, if possible, even the elect. So be on your guard; I have told you everything ahead of time.

Mark 13:21-23

False prophets and false teachers have always been a problem for the people of God. They are still a problem today. And this passage tells us that they will continue to be a problem in the end times.

Are you careful about whose sermons you listen to? Are you careful about whose books you read? Are you careful about what music you listen to? Not every song on Christian radio presents the truth of God’s Word without any mixture of error. Not every song that claims to be Christian is completely free of bad doctrine. Are you careful about what Christian memes or posts on social media you accept as true? Maybe you never gave much thought to all those “Christian” posts and memes, but they can shape your thinking as well. Do you know who wrote that post? Is it really true? Or does it just sound good? So, whether it’s a sermon or a song or a Bible Study or a social media post… you need to ask yourself if it agrees with Scripture? Is it biblically sound?

And that is all the more important because we know that false messiahs and false prophets WILL BE a problem in the end times. That is one major reason why you should be on your guard now. Even if you think that false teaching isn't much of a problem today, you have to admit that there will be false prophets and false messiahs in the end times. And that is why you need to practice identifying and avoiding false teaching now. Otherwise, it may be too late before you start guarding who you listen to and what you accept. So, you need to be on your guard against false teaching now! Jesus warned us about them, so we really have no excuse to fall into their traps.

Just Another Day

As Jesus was leaving the temple, one of his disciples said to him, “Look, Teacher! What massive stones! What magnificent buildings!”

Mark 13:1

Jesus is less then three days out from His crucifixion and this disciple isn’t in the right head space. He doesn’t understand the significance of the moment he’s living in. Something momentous, something of cosmic importance, is about to happen in Jesus' crucifixion. Jesus is about to usher in a new stage of God’s plan to save men from our sins. But this disciple, seems to think it’s just another Tuesday.

If we aren’t careful, we will be just like this disciple. Living in the final stages of human history, but walking around thinking it’s just another day. It’s so easy for us to get distracted by the things of the world and the accomplishments of men. We live our lives talking about whether or not this president is going to get another four years, or how good that movie was, or where we are going on vacation. All the while, there are still entire people groups who haven’t heard the gospel. All the while, there are still languages without a Bible. All the while, there are still people in our world bowing down to idols. All the while, Islam is the world’s fastest growing religion (not Christianity). All the while, we are speeding towards Jesus’ return and more than 5 billion people are not saved!

So, hear me when I say... today is not just another day. Big things, earth shattering things, are headed our way. Maybe sooner… maybe later, but they are coming. If you are a believer then you need to keep your wits about you and you need to make sure you understand the moment you are living in. You need to be ready for Jesus' return.  

And if you have not yet given your life to Christ, then you need to know that "now is the time of God’s favor, now is the day of salvation." (2 Corinthians 6:2). Today could be the day God calls you to salvation. Let this be the day you respond in faith and fulfill that Scripture that says "If you declare with your mouth, 'Jesus is Lord,' and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved." (Romans 10:9)  "For, 'Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.'" (Romans 10:13)

More than a Son of David

While Jesus was teaching in the temple courts, he asked, “Why do the teachers of the law say that the Messiah is the son of David? David himself, speaking by the Holy Spirit, declared:

“ ‘The Lord said to my Lord:

“Sit at my right hand

until I put your enemies

under your feet.” ’

David himself calls him ‘Lord.’ How then can he be his son?”

The large crowd listened to him with delight.

Mark 12:35–37

The Teachers of the Law taught that the Messiah would be a son of David. And in fact, that was true. But the scribes had so over-emphasized this one truth that it had become like that overgrown hedge that is currently obscuring the view of your home. This over-emphasized truth was preventing the Jews from having a clear view of the Messiah. The Messiah was standing right in front of them and they didn’t recognize Him, because they didn’t rightly understand what the Messiah was supposed to be. 

They thought the Messiah was just supposed to be a son of David and nothing more. So, they expected the Messiah to do “David” things. They expected Him to go out to war like David did, to defeat their enemies like David did, to set up an earthly kingdom like David did. In other words, they expected the Messiah to fight the Romans, defeat them, and then establish an earthly kingdom in Jerusalem.

Jesus quotes Psalm 110:1 to show them that the Messiah is much more than just a son of David. King David called the Messiah his lord, so the Messiah must be superior to David. The Messiah would do something different than what David did. He wouldn’t establish an earthly kingdom like David; He'd establish a heavenly kingdom that would surpass David’s. In other words, Jesus didn’t come to fight and defeat Rome. He came to fight and defeat sin.

Many of us make the same mistake today. We invite Jesus into our lives expecting Him to be our earthly king. We expect Him to fight our earthly battles for us and make our everyday lives better. We want Him to make us rich and soothe our aching backs. We want Him to be an earthly king who is going to give us health and wealth right now! And that’s not what Jesus came to do.

Jesus never did that! Jesus healed the sick. But they all eventually got sick again and died. Jesus fed the hungry but He didn’t make any of them rich. Jesus called quite a few of His disciples away from successful businessed to become itinerant preachers. Jesus didn’t make any of His disciples rich. He made them poor! Jesus never preached a health and wealth gospel.

Jesus has always been much more concerned about our eternal circumstances than our current circumstances. He is much more concerned about our eternal prosperity than our earthly prosperity. Jesus came to save us from sin, not from the problems of every day life. He came to make us rich in Heaven, not rich on earth. He came to make sure we live forever in eternity, not to ease our every ache and pain now. Stop trying to turn Jesus into an earthly king! Look for Him to give you Heaven, not an easy life.

The Greatest Command

“The most important [commandment],” answered Jesus, “is this: ‘Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one. Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength.’

Mark 12:29–30

Did you know that God commands you to love Him? Yes, He commands you to obey Him. And He commands you to give to the poor. And He commands you to live a righteous life. But He also commands you to love Him.

In fact, Jesus says this is the greatest command. Think about that. The most important command in all of Scripture isn’t about what you do or don’t do. It’s about what you feel... about God. If God could only have you do one thing your entire life, it would be for you to love God. 

Why is that? Because it’s primary. When you were a kid, did you ever set dominoes up in a long line or maybe even a spiral to create a chain reaction? Do you remember doing that? If you were very careful to line them all up and if they were just the right distance apart and if you managed not to knock them over while you were setting them up, then once they were all set, all you had to do was knock over that first domino and it would create a chain reaction that caused all the other dominoes to fall into place as well.

That’s what loving God is like. It’s the first domino. If you love God, If you get your heart right, then everything else will fall into place. Proverbs 4:23 puts it this way. It says, “Above all else, guard your heart, for everything you do flows from it.” Your heart is the wellspring of your whole life. Everything you do begins and ends there. Your life is directed by what you love and what you hate, what you set your heart on and what you take to heart.

That’s why this is the greatest commandment. It isn’t because God is desperate for love. It’s because He knows that you will follow what you love. If you love God, you will want to read your Bible. If you love God, you will want to pray. If you love God, you will want to obey all His other commands. He knows that if you can get this one thing right, then everything else will fall into place. If you can fall madly, passionately in love with God, then everything else in your spiritual life will eventually work itself out.

So, the question is this… Are you in love with God? God has no interest in being second place in your life. He commands you to love Him with all you’ve got. Return to your first love, today. Ask God to reveal Himself to you and to help you fall in love with Him all over again.

Giving God His Due

But Jesus knew their hypocrisy. “Why are you trying to trap me?” he asked. “Bring me a denarius and let me look at it.” They brought the coin, and he asked them, “Whose image is this? And whose inscription?” “Caesar’s,” they replied. Then Jesus said to them, “Give back to Caesar what is Caesar’s and to God what is God’s.”

Mark 12:15b–17

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Jesus seems to reason that since the denarius bears Caesar’s image it belongs to Caesar. Caesar was the one who minted those coins, so the people ought to give back to him what belongs him…what he has a right to.*

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But then Jesus goes on to make a much bigger point. He not only says “Give back to Caesar what is Caesar’s” but also “and [give] to God what is God’s.” So, the bigger questions is this. Are you giving God His due?

You see, in the same way that the Roman coin bore the image of Caesar, you bear the image of God. You were made in His image, which means that you belong to Him. And going a step farther than that, we know that God is the Creator of all things. Which means that not only your body but your whole life and everything you own belongs to God and should be surrendered to Him.

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Are you living fully surrendered to God? If God were to tell you today to take something that belongs to you and give it to the church, or to missions, or to some needy person... would you do it? If God were to tell you to leave your job, leave your home and your friends and go to the mission field to reach one of the more than 3,000 people groups in the world today who have never heard the gospel, would you go? What if God told you to walk over to the next cubicle or the next farmer’s field or even to your next door neighbor and share the gospel with them, would you do it?

‌Are you giving God His due? Are you giving Him all the obedience you owe Him?

*Ross H. McLaren, “Mark,” in CSB Study Bible: Notes, ed. Edwin A. Blum and Trevin Wax (Nashville, TN: Holman Bible Publishers, 2017), 1582.