Antioch Covenant Church

The Song of Mary

Luke 1:46-56

And Mary said: “My soul glorifies the Lord 

I Want A Hippopotamus For Christmas

(play clip of the song)

One thing that is really cool about the Christmas season is the music. It’s fun to pull out the Christmas CD’s and the music really fills the season with a lot of joy.  I’m pretty sure we all have our favorite Christmas song. I went onto itunes and typed in Christmas songs and found 1000’s of songs. Wow! One song I don’t hear too often but when I do I always smile and sing along: I Want A Hippopotamus For Christmas.  Well, here is a short clip of it.

I just love that song and the tune is so catchy. Out of the 1000’s of Christmas songs I picked that one. My wife thinks I like it just because it is so obnoxious; especially to everyone else.

Today, let’s look at what might be called the 1^st song of Christmas, Mary’s Song.

Read Passage – Luke 1:46-56

⁴⁶ And Mary said: “My soul glorifies the Lord ⁴⁷ and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior,
⁴⁸ for he has been mindful of the humble state of his servant. From now on all generations will call me blessed, ⁴⁹ for the Mighty One has done great things for me— holy is his name. ⁵⁰ His mercy extends to those who fear him, from generation to generation. ⁵¹ He has performed mighty deeds with his arm; he has scattered those who are proud in their inmost thoughts. ⁵² He has brought down rulers from their thrones but has lifted up the humble. ⁵³ He has filled the hungry with good things but has sent the rich away empty. ⁵⁴ He has helped his servant Israel, remembering to be merciful ⁵⁵ to Abraham and his descendants forever, just as he promised our ancestors.” ⁵⁶ Mary stayed with Elizabeth for about three months and then returned home.

Mary the Highly Favored

Many of you might know this song as The Magnificat; which literally means “My soul magnifies.”  This is a story of a young girl in the Bible who had a lot of reasons to be seriously concerned about what lies ahead of her. She is a member of the poorest class of her people having no political power or rights. She is young and female in a culture that treats women as little more than property. She’s an unwed mother, which is often an automatic death sentence in her community. Her fiancée is seriously considering calling the marriage off, which could mean she would never find a husband who would have her.

“The angel went to her and said, “Greetings, you who are highly favored.” Luke 1:28

One thing that is welcomed in life is the assurance of others.  People who will affirm us.  When we get support and encouragement, it just seems easier to get through things.

Ex. Nickels

When Crises Occur

I mentioned this briefly last week and let me repeat it again; you might not be going through a crisis right now but crises will come. We can be sure that life will not be smooth sailing all the time. Going back the nickels, those are reminders of your support for me when I face rough days/times. But here is what is most common in humans: We let the circumstances dictate our joy. That’s where we get off track. It should be:

Circumstances Shouldn’t Dictate Our Joy: God Should

We learn a huge lesson from Mary in that way. In spite of all her problems and concerns…she breaks out in song. I’ve learned that song can be an important part of our dealing with disappointment and struggle and can be a great outlet of praise in our times of joy.

Ex. C. Everett Coop – Going along with a nice life of doctoring and helping others and then thrust into the spotlight.  His biggest supporters, Christians; his biggest opponets; the gay and lesbian community. During his term as Surgeon General, those same Christians became his biggest opponents and the Gay and Lesbian community his biggest advocate. In a few short years in many people’s eyes he went from hero to goat. Life can change in an instant and if our joy is dictated by our circumstances, we will never be happy.

The question might be; How can we move toward walking closer to God and not get caught up in the cycle of letting our circumstances dictate our joy? 

Mary’s Song Of Praise

So let’s look at the song of Mary in Luke 1 and learn from her how song can play an important part in drawing us closer to God.

1. Praise With Humility

First, Mary teaches us that praise includes humility. It’s the recognition that God is God and that we are his people.

“…for he has been mindful of the humble state of his servant. From now on all generations will call me blessed, for the Mighty One has done great things for me— holy is his name.” vss. 47-48

God is working out His plan for this world, and he has a plan for you and I too.  He has chosen a special part for you to play in accomplishing His plan. That being said, we learn humility by submitting our will and circumstances to God’s plan. This reminds me of a passage in 2 Chron.:

“If my people, who are called by my name, will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, and I will forgive their sin and will heal their land.” 2 Chronicles 7:14

Notice the verse says “humble themselves.” In Mary’s song she calls herself a “humble servant.”

2. Praise Recognizes God’s Power

Second, in our praise, we recognize God’s power. We sing of God’s power. We embrace God’s power. We claim God’s power. Verses 51-52:

“He has performed mighty deeds with his arm; he has scattered those who are proud in their inmost thoughts.  He has brought down rulers from their thrones but has lifted up the humble.” vss. 51-52

Part of the reason we allow our circumstances to dictate our joy is because our focus becomes small.  It becomes all about us and we loose sight of the bigger picture. Notice these verses talk the power God has over the proud and those in political power. We focus on why we don’t have (fill in the blank, the 4G phone, the new ipad, the better car, etc.) and our focus is small.  When we look at what we do have and the blessings God has poured out on us, many of our petty issues don’t really have much credence.

Psalm 42 is thought to be written by David in a time where Saul is pursuing David to kill him and he has been cut off from not only his friends and position in Israel’s army, but also cut off from serving and worshipping in the Temple. So in Psalm 42:5 he writes:

“Why, my soul, are you downcast? Why so disturbed within me? Put your hope in God, for I will yet praise him, my Savior and my God.” Psalm 42:5

David realizes that God is bigger and more powerful than any of our circumstances or problems. In fact, the main thing to pull from this verse is that word ‘hope.” There is always hope when we recognize God’s power.

In fact, it maybe that this is a good time for us to remember God’s provision in giving us His Son and now relax and let God lead our life.

3. Praise Expresses God’s Faithfulness

Because of God’s power, we can begin to have hope and trust in God’s faithfulness. Mary says in verses 54-55:

“He has helped his servant Israel, remembering to be merciful to Abraham and his descendants forever, just as he promised our ancestors.” vss. 54-55

Mary in these verse shows us her knowledge of Israel’s history and her understanding of what God has done for her and for her people.  God is powerful enough to do it and he has proven through the years that He is faithful in all things. God has been silent for 400 years at this point in Israel’s history. There have been no prophets, no signs, no anything yet Mary declares His faithfulness. Trusting in God’s faithfulness is something we learn about through Mary’s Song and we claim as well. Remember god’s words in Deut. 31:

“Be strong and courageous…for the LORD your God goes with you; he will never leave you nor forsake you.”  Deut. 31:6

His presence is always there and you can depend and rely upon that.

Ex.

4.  Praise Rises Out Of The Heart

In order to tie this all together let’s look back at the beginning of her song to see where this all comes from and it’s her heart.  Verses 46-47:

“And Mary said: “My soul glorifies the Lord and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior…” vs. 46-47

I think for us that we struggle with the outward and that’s why circumstance may dictate our joy. Mary’s Song comes from her heart and soul, the core of who she is.  I think we can all relate to that on some level. We struggle with the outward. Here is the key: let your praise rise out of your heart and soul.

“My heart, O God, is steadfast; I will sing and make music with all my soul.” Psalm 108:1

Praise is good. Praise is something we were meant to do and created to do.

Here is another thought: You don’t need to write your own songs, many times we can let someone else sing for us.

Ex. My favorite group right now (besides the praise team J); Jesus Culture. I love them in tense times and I love them in joy.

The Song In Our Heart

1^st Service –

2^nd Service

When God Does the Unexpected

Luke 1:26-38

“How will this be,” Mary asked the angel, “since I am a virgin?”  vs. 34

Out For A Walk

On a bright Sunday morning late in 18th century London, Robert Robinson was walking despondently down a busy city street in London. The sound of church bells reminded him of years past when his faith in God was strong and he regularly went to church. It had been years since he set foot in a church-years of wandering, disillusionment, and gradual defection from the God he once loved. That love for God- once fiery and passionate- had slowly burned out within him, leaving him dark and cold inside.

Robinson heard the clip-clop, clip-clop of a horse drawn cab approaching behind him. Turning, he lifted his hand to hail the driver. But then he saw that the cab was occupied by a young woman dressed in finery for the Lord’s Day. He tried to wave the driver on, but the woman in the carriage ordered the carriage to be stopped. “Sir, I’d be happy to share this carriage with you,” she said to Robinson, “Are you going to church?” Robinson was about to decline, but then he paused. “Yes,” he said at last. “I am going to church.” He stepped into the carriage and sat down beside the young woman.

As the carriage rolled forward Robert Robinson and the woman introduced themselves. There was a flash of recognition in her eyes when he stated his name. “That’s an interesting coincidence, she said I was just reading a verse by a poet named Robert Robinson.” He took the book, nodding. “Yes, I wrote these words years ago.” The words would one day be set to music and become a great hymn of the faith, familiar to generations of Christians.

Come, Thou Fount of every blessing
Tune my heart to sing Thy grace’
Streams of mercy, never ceasing,
Call for songs of loudest praise.

His eyes slipped to the bottom of the page where he read:

Prone to wander, Lord, I feel it-
Prone to leave the God I love;
Here’s my heart, O take and seal it,
Seal it for Thy courts above.

He could barely finish reading the words. “I wrote these words – and I’ve lived these words. “Prone to wander….. prone to leave the God I love.” The woman suddenly understood. “You also wrote, “here’s my heart, O take and seal it.” You can offer your heart again to God, Mr. Robinson. It’s not too late. It wasn’t too late for Robert Robinson. In that moment he turned his heart back to God and walked with him for the rest of his days.”

Life can throw a lot of unknowns at us.  Let’s read a story in Luke where that happens.

Luke 1:26-38

²⁶ In the sixth month of Elizabeth’s pregnancy, God sent the angel Gabriel to Nazareth, a town in Galilee, ²⁷ to a virgin pledged to be married to a man named Joseph, a descendant of David. The virgin’s name was Mary. ²⁸ The angel went to her and said, “Greetings, you who are highly favored! The Lord is with you.”  ²⁹ Mary was greatly troubled at his words and wondered what kind of greeting this might be. ³⁰ But the angel said to her, “Do not be afraid, Mary; you have found favor with God. ³¹ You will conceive and give birth to a son, and you are to call him Jesus. ³² He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High. The Lord God will give him the throne of his father David, ³³ and he will reign over Jacob’s descendants forever; his kingdom will never end.”  ³⁴ “How will this be,” Mary asked the angel, “since I am a virgin?”  ³⁵ The angel answered, “The Holy Spirit will come on you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you. So the holy one to be born will be called the Son of God. ³⁶ Even Elizabeth your relative is going to have a child in her old age, and she who was said to be unable to conceive is in her sixth month. ³⁷ For no word from God will ever fail.”  ³⁸ “I am the Lord’s servant,” Mary answered. “May your word to me be fulfilled.” Then the angel left her.

Unpredictable

In that story of Robert Robinson I’m sure he never would have thought that hailing a cab could have changed his life but life is unpredictable.  I doubt when he penned the words of that famous hymn that he would have ever thought he would turn away from God. There are some things in life that you can be pretty sure about; one is that life can be unpredictable.  Sometimes life can throw us lots of curves.  Listen again to verse 26:

“In the sixth month of Elizabeth’s pregnancy, God sent the angel Gabriel to Nazareth…” vs. 26

This story has two big unpredictable things happening in it.

1. Elizabeth, a woman past the age of bearing children is pregnant.
2. Mary, a virgin, is told she is chosen by God and will be pregnant, without sleeping with a man.

Aren’t our lives that way? We go for a check-up at the doctor’s office and news comes back we’re not as healthy as we thought. We go to work and here the bad news that things aren’t as good as we thought and layoffs are coming.

Fear Of the Unknown

A second thing is pretty sure too, that most of us have a fear of the unknown.  We like comfort ability and security. When things are unknown, we tend to lean toward fear. Listen to Mary’s words in verse 29:

“Mary was greatly troubled at his words and wondered what kind of greeting this might be.” vs. 29

Think about what happens here, Mary hears and sees an angel and we tend to think that might be good but then we think what if it’s not. Here’s s good story about that.

Ex. An Arab chief tells the story of a spy captured and sentenced to death by a general in the Persian army. This general had the strange custom of giving condemned criminals a choice between the firing squad and “the big, black door.” The moment for execution drew near, and guards brought the spy to the Persian general, “What will it be,” asked the general, “the firing squad or ‘the big, black door?’”The spy hesitated for a long time. Finally he chose the firing squad.A few minutes later, hearing the shots ring out confirming the spy’s execution, the general turned to his aide and said, ‘They always prefer the known to the unknown. People fear what they don’t know. Yet, we gave him a choice.” “What lies beyond the big door?” asked the aide.“Freedom,” replied the general. “I’ve known only a few brave enough to take that door.”The best opportunities in our lives stand behind the forbidding door of the great unknown.

Don McCullough, Solana Beach, California, quoted in Leadership, Winter Quarter, 1992, p57

Listening/Responding For God

So what are we to do, especially when the unexpected happens and we know that this is God working in our life. I think we learn from Mary.

• Be Open To God’s Call

First, we make sure we are open to God’s call. Verse 28:

The angel went to her and said, “Greetings, you who are highly favored! The Lord is with you.” vs. 28

I think we can make the assumption that Mary lived her life in a way that she walked with God so when He called, she was open to His work in her life. This verse gives us clues to that.

1. God comes to her
2. The angel calls her “highly favored”
3. The angel reassures her that “God is with her.”

There is a key to being open to God’s call; we find it in Psalm 25:

“He guides the humble in what is right and teaches them his way.” Psalm 25:9

The key is humility.  When we are humble, we can be open to God’s way instead of insisting on our way.

• God’s Call Can Be Confusing

When we are open to God’s call, it doesn’t always make a lot of sense to us though. Notice Mary’s  response to the angel telling her about her becoming pregnant, verse 34:

“How will this be,” Mary asked the angel, “since I am a virgin?” vs. 34

We all come to decision points in our life. Those times are when we here the call of God and have to make a decision. What happens is that the reasoning we go through isn’t always ways to understand.  Mary  is open to God’s call but how can this happen? How can a woman be pregnant without having slept with a man? It’s a good question and it makes sense to ask how?

This is the point where some make a decision to believe but it is also the point where some people only want to believe and obey only if they understand it. I don’t believe it’s wrong to question God or even try to understand his ways, but there are many times that in rationale just doesn’t fit God’s plan. So some turn away at this point. Peter says this in 1 Peter 1:14-15:

“As obedient children, do not conform to the evil desires you had when you lived in ignorance. But just as he who called you is holy, so be holy in all you do.” 1 Peter 1:14-15

This goes back to that idea that we fear the unknown. As obedient children, we have to reason that God is bigger than our fear. As Peter says, in obedience, we strive to be holy, which means submitting to God even when it doesn’t make logical sense to us.

• Move Forward In Confidence

If we can trust God, even when it doesn’t seem to make sense to us, that’s where we can begin to move forward in confidence.  That’s what Mary did. Verse 38

“I am the Lord’s servant,” Mary answered. “May your word to me be fulfilled.” Then the angel left her. vs. 38

Her response is to trust God and move forward.  Remember, she is facing public riducle, probably being cast out of her town for being pregnant out of wedlock, disgracing her family, (who would believe her?) and probably even divorce. This will not be an easy road and it isn’t the joy that we usually associate with being pregnant, but Mary is humble, obedient, and willing to trust God and move forward,  I love her response, “I am the Lord’s servant.” She is basically saying, “OK God, I trust you, let’s go!” We can move forward in that same confidence. Here is a good verse to memorize to help you with that, Proverbs 3:5-6:

“Trust in the LORD with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways submit to him, and he will make your paths straight.” Proverbs 3:5-6

God’s desire; God’s nature, is to love us and care for us and give us the strength to get through anything He has called us to. We can trust His love, His nature, and His call, His strength, His wisdom, and His ways.

 Mary, Nazareth Girl 

Mary,

Nazareth girl:

What did you know of ethereal beings

with messages from God?

What did you know of men

when you found yourself with child?

What did you know of babies

you, barely out of childhood yourself?

God-chosen girl:

What did you know of God

that brought you to this stable

blessed among women?

Could it be that you had been ready

waiting

listening

for the footsteps

of an angel?

Could it be there are messages for us

If we have the faith to listen?

-Ann Weems

Jesus’ Garden Prayer

Matthew 26:36-46

“Watch and pray so that you will not fall into temptation.

The spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak.” vs. 41

Look In Your Bible

There was a country preacher whose car broke down on a back country road, but he was able to walk to a nearby roadhouse diner to use the phone. After calling for a tow truck, he spotted his old friend, Frank, drunk and shabbily dressed sitting at the far end of the diner at the bar. “What happened to you, Frank?” asked the good reverend. “You used to be rich.” Frank told this sad tale of bad investments and poor decisions that ultimately ended with him being almost broke and out of a job. “Go home,” the preacher said. Get down on your knees and pray like you’ve never prayed before. Then open your Bible at random, stick your finger on the page that your Bible falls open on, and there God will give you guidance and direction.” Sometime later while he was downtown, the preacher bumped into Frank, who was wearing a Gucci suit, sporting a Rolex watch and had just stepped our of a Mercedes. “Frank.” said the preacher, “I am glad to see things really turned around for you.” “Yes, preacher, and I owe it all to you,” said Frank. “I went home that day, got down on my knees and prayed like I’ve never prayed. Then I opened my Bible, put my finger down on the page and there was the answer—Chapter 11.”

Reader’s Digest, March, 1993, p. 71.

Read Passage – Matthew 26:36-46

³⁶ Then Jesus went with his disciples to a place called Gethsemane, and he said to them, “Sit here while I go over there and pray.” ³⁷ He took Peter and the two sons of Zebedee along with him, and he began to be sorrowful and troubled. ³⁸ Then he said to them, “My soul is overwhelmed with sorrow to the point of death. Stay here and keep watch with me.”  ³⁹ Going a little farther, he fell with his face to the ground and prayed, “My Father, if it is possible, may this cup be taken from me. Yet not as I will, but as you will.”  ⁴⁰ Then he returned to his disciples and found them sleeping. “Couldn’t you men keep watch with me for one hour?” he asked Peter. ⁴¹ “Watch and pray so that you will not fall into temptation. The spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak.”  ⁴² He went away a second time and prayed, “My Father, if it is not possible for this cup to be taken away unless I drink it, may your will be done.”  ⁴³ When he came back, he again found them sleeping, because their eyes were heavy. ⁴⁴ So he left them and went away once more and prayed the third time, saying the same thing.  ⁴⁵ Then he returned to the disciples and said to them, “Are you still sleeping and resting? Look, the hour has come, and the Son of Man is delivered into the hands of sinners. ⁴⁶ Rise! Let us go! Here comes my betrayer!”  

Jesus Struggled

I find the way this passage starts fascinating. It shows us a side of Jesus that we barely get to see. It’s in verse 39: 

“My Father, if it is possible, may this cup be taken from Me…” vs. 39

Here we see that Jesus struggled. The humanity part of Him comes out in a way that we can identify with. The flesh part of Him does not want to go to the cross. He knows he is facing torture, ridicule, and death. He knows what he is called to do but everything in Him struggled to keep His focus and His purpose. In fact, in Luke it says:

“And being in anguish, he prayed more earnestly, and his sweat was like drops of blood falling to the ground.” Luke 22:44

Jesus experienced such a struggle. So he does what He knew He needed to do; pray. He grabs his closest friends and asks them to come along side Him and pray. He needs others around him, supporting Him and pulling for Him. We know that He knew what was going to happen to Him but to what extent we aren’t sure. We can know that from these verses we know that He didn’t really want to go through this.  I mean, who does?

And here is another thing that I really respect; He was honest with God. There was no covering up or acting tough. What we see in Jesus was total honesty. He shares what is really on His heart! And that is our theme for the year; Living With The heart of Jesus.  So if Jesus was open and willing to share His struggles with God, we can share our struggles with God too.

Don’t we have some of that same struggle? We know something is emanate and we struggle with it so we turn to prayer.  Yet, we often know that we will still need to walk through the difficulty.

Ex. e

When God’s Purpose Doesn’t Match Ours

And therein lies the big issue that we deal with and it’s the same one Jesus did, God’s purpose didn’t match what he was feeling. So verse 39 says:

“Going a little farther, he fell with his face to the ground and prayed…” vs. 39a 

Jesus struggle is that his feeling tell Him He doesn’t want ot got through with this but His in His spirit He wants to be obedient to God.. In this He is our greatest example. Remember, he knows God’s will but he really doesn’t want to go through with it. We sometimes feel that we somehow should get a pass; that if we are good enough we won’t have to go through the pain. So we pray but often we pray for the easy way out. For our struggle to be taken away, for the pain to be gone, for the bad times to be better, etc.

Living In God’s Will

But here is the crux of this passage, that we can go through struggles and difficulties and not only know the will of God but be in the will of God. It was important that as we looked this month at some of the prayers of Jesus, that we remember this one because from it we gain a greater understand of living in God’s will.

1.  Jesus Knew Whose He Was

The first thing that Jesus prayer reveals to us it that Jesus knew whose he was. Go back to the beginning of the prayer and look at the first two words, verse 39a:

“My Father…” vs. 39a

In order to move forward he remembered that he was the Son.  God was his Father. That is an important thing for us to remember too, that we are God’s. Jesus knew shoes He was, do you know whose you are? Romans 8:16:

“The Spirit himself testifies with our spirit that we are God’s children.” Romans 8:16

Ex. Let me give you an example of this. My father comes from a large family; 19 kids. My dad is the 19^th. When we go to a family reunion and we see my relatives, we are known as 19. I am my dad’s oldest so I am 19-1. People even say, “Oh you’re 19’s or you’re Doug’s oldest. I am known by that.

Do people know shoes we are? God’s! Very often, the flesh (the old self) will tells us to do things our own way, against God’s will or in some sense, the ways of the world or Satan, but that is not whose we are. Our spirit knows the will of God and we want to do the things of whose we are. Just like I do things to uphold my earthly father’s name, I do things to uphold my heavenly Father’s name and ways. Turning to God in prayer reaffirms that. It reaffirms that to our spirit, to God, and to Satan too! Hey, you can’t have me because I am God’s so I turn to Him.

2.  Jesus Had A Willing Spirit

Because Jesus knew whose he was he could tell God how he felt. Verse 39a:

“My Father, if it is possible, may this cup be taken from me.” vs. 39b

How did Jesus feel? He wasn’t looking forward to what was about to happen. In fact, he’s asking God if this is really what needs to happen.  But take note of this, His struggle here is on the inside. If this were me, I would have prayed, “Father, take this cup from me,” but Jesus says “if it is possible.” In His spirit Jesus was willing to do whatever he was called to do but that didn‘t stop him from asking God if there was any other way; but I think he knew there wasn’t. Sometimes we say things like “If it is God’s will” but inside we are still trying to figure out some way out.  Jesus know God’s will but still expresses his concern without compromising his willing spirit. Peter said in 1 Peter:

“For it is better, if it is God’s will, to suffer for doing good than for doing evil.” 1 Peter 3:17

Are you willing in your spirit to go through the things God has called you to do? Good or bad? The decision starts in your heart.

Ex. At a meeting of the Fellowship of Christian Athletes, Bobby Richardson, the famous former New York Yankee second baseman. He is the only World Series MVP to be selected from the losing team! Richardson made a clutch catch in the 1962 World Series to save the game for the winning Yankees. Anyway, he offered a prayer that is a classic in brevity and poignancy: “Dear God, Your will, nothing more, nothing less, nothing else. Amen.”

3. Jesus Submitted To The Bigger Plan

And…because his spirit was willing, Jesus submitted to the bigger plan. The end of verse 39:

“Yet not as I will, but as you will.” vs. 39c

Jesus, over the next week of His life, went through a terrible time of torture and ultimately death.  He paid a big price for his obedience to God.  But God is a God of big results. His death paved the way for all mankind to have a fully restored relationship with God. God’s plan was for Jeus to through this. And God has plans for you and I too. One of my favorite verse, jeremiah 29:11:

“For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the LORD, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.” Jeremiah 29:11 

God has a purpose and a plan for you and for me.  And God is a God that can be trusted. He is safe. Even when things don’t go our way, when we walk through difficult times that we might not understand, and let’s face it, times we would rather not walk through, just like Jesus) that with God there is hope.  His plans are their to give us hope, that is what the verse says.

Ex. A minister received a call from a church that offered him a salary four times what he was then receiving. Being a devout man, he spent much time in prayer trying to discern what God wanted him to do. One day a friend met the minister’s young son on the street. “Do you know what your dad is going to do?” he asked. “Well,” replied the youngster, “Dad’s praying, but Mom’s packing!” 

Lining Up With God’s Will

Let me wrap this up with an example that might help you.

Bob Mumford in Take Another Look at Guidance, compares discovering God’s will with a sea captain’s docking procedure: A certain harbor in Italy can be reached only by sailing up a narrow channel between dangerous rocks and shoals. Over the years, many ships have been wrecked, and navigation is hazardous. To guide the ships safely into port, three lights have been mounted on three huge poles in the harbor. When the three lights are perfectly lined up and seen as one, the ship can safely proceed up the narrow channel. If the pilot sees two or three lights, he knows he’s off course and in danger.

Here’s the point: line up the three things: prayer, your spirit, and your actions, then you’ll be in the will of God.

Praying Through Difficulties

John 11:38-44

“Then Jesus looked up and said, “Father, I thank you that you have heard me.” vs. 41

Believing In Prayer

A small Oklahoma town that had two churches and one brewery. Members of both churches complained that the distillery was giving the community a bad image. To make matters worse the owner of the distillery was an out spoken atheist. He didn’t believe in God one bit. The church people had tried unsuccessfully for years to shut down the brewery. So finally they decided to hold a joint Saturday night prayer meeting. They were going to ask God to intervene and settle the matter.

The church folks gathered on Saturday night and there was a horrible thunderstorm raging outside and to the delight of the church members lightening hit that old brewery and it burned to the ground.

The next morning the sermons that were preached in both churches were on the power of prayer.  But the insurance adjusters promptly notified the distillery owner that they were not going to pay for the damages because the fire was an act of God and that was an exclusion in their policy. The distillery owner was furious so he sued both churches claiming that they had conspired with God to destroy his business. But the churches denied that they had anything to do with the cause of the fire.

The presiding judge opened the trial with these words: I find one thing in this case most perplexing-we have a situation here where the plaintiff, an atheist is professing his belief in the power of prayer, and the defendants all faithful church members are denying the very same power.

What do we do when prayer works? Let’s look at another prayer of Jesus this morning.

John 11:38-44

³⁸ Jesus, once more deeply moved, came to the tomb. It was a cave with a stone laid across the entrance. ³⁹ “Take away the stone,” he said. “But, Lord,” said Martha, the sister of the dead man, “by this time there is a bad odor, for he has been there four days.”  ⁴⁰ Then Jesus said, “Did I not tell you that if you believe, you will see the glory of God?”  ⁴¹ So they took away the stone. Then Jesus looked up and said, “Father, I thank you that you have heard me. ⁴² I knew that you always hear me, but I said this for the benefit of the people standing here, that they may believe that you sent me.”  ⁴³ When he had said this, Jesus called in a loud voice, “Lazarus, come out!” ⁴⁴ The dead man came out, his hands and feet wrapped with strips of linen, and a cloth around his face. Jesus said to them, “Take off the grave clothes and let him go.”

Jesus Is Moved Death

When it comes to prayer, sometimes we struggle with knowing that God actually hears us and even beyond that, that he understands what we are going through.  In this passage Jesus has been moving about the country, performing miracles, healing the sick, and proclaiming the Good News. He’s a few miles away and the message comes that his good friend, Lazarus, is sick.  He continues on in what he is doing and then when the time is right he goes to visit Mary, Martha, and Lazarus. As he approaches he can hear the wailing and weeping. He had told the disciples earlier that he needed to get here to “wake Lazarus up.” He knew that Lazarus had died.  But look again at verse 38:

“Jesus, once more deeply moved, came to the tomb.” vs. 38

Here’s the great thing about this verse. Jesus already knows what is going to happen yet when he hears and sees the situation, he is moved.  It affects him.  Many times we might think that God doesn’t understand but I believe this shows us he does.  He feels what we feel and it moves him.

Ex. I was moved this week by the death of the Vallejo police officer Capoot. He was a good family man, had 3 daughters, adopted some children whose parents were killed, bought a victim of robbery a new TV, etc.

I was moved this week by the death of a young woman that my daughter played soccer with and was married and had a 7 month old baby.

When we hear and see these situations we are moved and we are created in God’s image, He feels it too.

An Understanding Heart

Even more, he understands too. Jesus is so moved in this situation that it comes out in his actions. Look up a few verses to verse 35:

“Jesus wept.” vs. 35

What a moving picture. Jesus cries the same way those around this situation are crying. I think that is a huge blessing to know that when we hurt, it moves God and He understands, He gets it. One of the most difficult situations of life is death, the death of those we love.  It leaves a void and cuts us to the core. But God feels and understands that we feel. Isn’t it more comforting when someone understand what we are going through? I know it is for me.

Ex. The death or our dog helps us understand what others go through when their pets died. We felt for them before but having gone through it, we have a deeper understanding.

God knows, understands, and feels what we are giong through because He sent His son and watched him be put to death. He can understand our difficulties.

Jesus Prayer In Difficult Times

This month we are looking at the prayers of Jesus. His prayer life gives us insight to living with his heart. They also show us how to act and react in times of difficulty in our lives. So let’s look at the benefits of prayer in difficult times from Jesus perspective.

• Prayer Is An On-Going Process

First, let’s remember that prayer is an on-going process. Notice the words of verse 41:

“Father, I thank you that you have heard me.” vs. 41

When difficulties happen, especially big ones, and let’s face it, death is a big one, we carry it around with us and it is constantly on my mind. Jesus was the same way.  Notice the verb in this verse is in the past tense. God heard, maybe underline or circle that word, his prayer. He had prayer about this before. We know Jesus knew about this situation before he came here and he probably had thought a lot about what he was going to say to Mary and Martha, but he also knew that God was going to raise Lazarus up. He probably prayed about this a few times on the walk from the previous town to this one because he knew the pain his friends were going through.

Prayer is an on-going process. Sometimes we prayer for something once and that’s it but I think this story helps us understand that multiple prayers are right too.  We may have somehow gotten the idea that prayer is or might be a one-time thing.  I remember back to Luke where Jesus is teaching the disciples and he says in verse 1 of that passage:

“Then Jesus told his disciples a parable to show them that they should always pray and not give up.” Luke 18:1

It says always pray.  We get so easily distracted by the events of life. If you are like me and you are going through something, I must think about it a hundred times a day. Why not prayer about it more. Make prayer an on-going process.

Ex. Here are some practical ways to do that; take a verse card from the back and use it as a prayer, take the prayer list and pray through that during the week, memorize verses, or put things in your life to remind you like crosses, angels, etc. anything that will remind you to always pray.

• Prayer Is A Faith Builder

Second, Jesus shows us though his prayer that prayer is a faith builder. Look at verse 42 to understand this:

“I knew that you always hear me…” vs. 42

God wants us to run to Him in times of difficulty and not run from Him. I think it is always more comforting and makes the difficult times easier when you have someone to talk to and know that someone is listening to you. Prayer is inviting God into the situation and God hears us. As Jesus says, “You (God) always hears us.” He wants to be in our situations and it helps to invite Him into those with us; it’s also another way to remind yourself that He is there with you. I know for me, I move more confidently when I have someone with me and God wants to be with you in those times. Plus…and this is a big plus, prayer has power. Look at James 5:16:

“The prayer of a righteous person is powerful and effective.” James 5:16

Our prayers carry power and there are effective. That means they work. They work to give us strength, hope and confidence.

Ex. Recently a friend was having a difficult time in their home life and I spent time in prayer with them and encouraged them to continually lift the situation in prayer. I wasn’t surprised when the situation began gradually improving and his family life getting better. In turn, I think it helped build his faith.  He knew God heard and it increased his faith.

• Prayer Is A Witness

And, third, prayer is a witness as well.  It tells others of our faith and shows God to them. Go back to verse 42:

“I said this for the benefit of the people standing here, that they may believe that you sent me.” vs. 42

When others hear our prayers it gives them hope and points them to God.

Ex. Praying before meals in restaurants. This week, my sense of people watching us pray in the restaurant.

Ex. Praying in Denny’s before breakfast and the lady heard it and picked up our tab.

Ready For Praise

Here is another benefit to prayer and turning our difficulties over to God; it clears our mind and when our minds are cleared and settled we can see more clearly to praise God. This week we are going into one of my favorite times; Thanksgiving. One way to enjoy Thanksgiving and free yourself up to praise God for the things He has blessed you with is to pray, continue to pray, and get ready for praise. Release your difficulties to God and get ready for praise.

Read prayer of G.K. Chesterton

Thoughts

You say grace before meals.

All right.

But I say grace before the play and opera,

And grace before the concert and pantomime,

And grace before I open a book,

And grace before sketching, painting,

Swimming, fencing, boxing, walking, playing, dancing,

And grace before I dip the pen in the ink.

Jesus Teaches Us To Pray

Matthew 6:5-14

“‘Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name, your kingdom come, your will be done…” vs. 9

Thankful for Vegetables?

It was Thanksgiving and the family had gathered for the day. It came time for dinner and the family gathered around the table. It was all decorated leaves and a corn-of-copio. The family all held heands and the father said “Let’s pray.” It was then that the 4-year-old boy spoke up and said “Daddy can I sqay the prayer?” “Of course, go ahead,” the father replied. All the family members bowed their heads in expectation. He began his prayer, thanking God for all his friends, naming them one by one. Then he thanked God for Mommy, Daddy, brother, sister, Grandma, Grandpa, and all his aunts and uncles. Then he began to thank God for the food. He gave thanks for the turkey, the dressing, the fruit salad, the cranberry sauce, the pies, the cakes, even the Cool Whip.  Then he paused, and everyone waited–and waited. After a long silence, the young fellow looked up at his mother and asked, “If I thank God for the broccoli, won’t he know that I’m lying?”

Praying is something we learn to do as we grow in Lord but the prayers of a child are revealing and very honest.  Sometimes it’s hard to know what to pray.  In Matthew chapter 6 Jesus the disciples to pray.

Read Passage – Matthew 6:5-14

⁵ “And when you pray, do not be like the hypocrites, for they love to pray standing in the synagogues and on the street corners to be seen by others. Truly I tell you, they have received their reward in full. ⁶ But when you pray, go into your room, close the door and pray to your Father, who is unseen. Then your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you. ⁷ And when you pray, do not keep on babbling like pagans, for they think they will be heard because of their many words. ⁸ Do not be like them, for your Father knows what you need before you ask him.

⁹“This, then, is how you should pray:“‘Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name, ¹⁰ your kingdom come, your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven. ¹¹ Give us today our daily bread.¹² And forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors. ¹³ And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one.’ ¹⁴ For if you forgive other people when they sin against you, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. ¹⁵ But if you do not forgive others their sins, your Father will not forgive your sins.

Jesus Teaches Us What Not To Do

As we approach Thanksgiving, it seemed appropriate to spend a little time getting to know Jesus heart for prayer a bit more. Our theme this year is Living With The Heart Of Jesus. I love to pray with people because in prayer, you hear their heart. Today we are going to look at probably the most famous of Jesus’ prayers, we call it The Lord’s Prayer. It comes in a passage of Scripture called The Sermon On The Mount.  Jesus desire with this sermon is to give his followers some practical things to put into their life that will help them walk closer with God. The passage we are looking at this morning is meant to guide them in their prayer life.

• Don’t Use Prayer To Be Seen By Others

Jesus starts this passage by teaching them what they should not do in their prayer life.  The first thing comes in verse 5:

“And when you pray, do not be like the hypocrites, for they love to pray standing in the synagogues and on the street corners to be seen by others. Truly I tell you, they have received their reward in full.” vs. 5

Jesus wants his disciples to understand that prayer is between you can God. Now that may sound pretty obvious, but think about it for a moment. When we pray publically there is a tendency to put on a public persona.

Ex. When I am asked to pray in public You thinka bout it, choose your words carefully, etc.  Talk about the guy I know who changed his boice and words when it came time to pray.

This was the Pharisee’s problem. Their prayers were not between themselves and God but about them and what other people heard. That was there reason for praying, to impress others. They were really praying to other people not to God. Basically Jesus is saying “Don’t do that.”

• Don’t Use Prayer To Manipulate God

Secondly, Jesus says that you should not be praying to manipulate God. Verse 7:

“And when you pray, do not keep on babbling like pagans, for they think they will be heard because of their many words.” vs. 7

More is not always better.  In fact, when it com3es to praying, Jesus is saying, “Don’t think saying long, drawn out, and repetitious prayers are going to please God or even change his mind. You can not manipulate God.

Ex. Bob Brown and my baseball cards

Jesus Teaches Us To Pray

What Jesus also does in this passage is teach his disciples how to pray. He gives us a prayer in verse 9-13 that is a great prayer to prayer but also that same prayer gives us a guideline that we can ue in our prayer time.

• Remember Who You Are Talking To

First, he says remember who you are praying to, verse 9

“‘Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name, your kingdom come, your will be done…”  vs. 9

We are talking to God Almighty.  We are coming to His throne and conversing with God. Wow! Even more so, we are reminded that god’s name is special, hallowed, revered, to be held high. WE are to respect God for who He is, God, and to respect his name.

Ill. People use God’s name in vain often (swearing)

Ill. The Israelites not able to say the name of God.

Part of our responsibility is to make sure that God’s name is held high and honored.

• It’s An Invitation To Come Into Our Life

Second, our prayers with God are another way of inviting God into our life. Verse 10:

“…your kingdom come, your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven.” vs. 10

Verse 10 is a reminder to invite God into our daily lives and to that His will be lived out in our life.  Daily we need to be asking God His will for us and how we can live out His kingdom here on earth. We don’t have to wait to experience God’s kingdom. Although we can’t have it as fully as we will one day when we are with Him, we can experience some of it now.

• It’s Praying For Specifics In Your Life

And Third, Jesus encourages us to pray for the specifics of our life.

• Daily Bread (Sustenance)

So he encourages us to pray for the our daily bread, vs. 11:

“Give us today our daily bread.” vs. 11

This is the things we need to sustain ourselves and continue on.

• Forgiveness (As A Way of Life)

Secondly, we are to pray for forgiveness.  Verse 12:

“And forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors.^“ vs. 12

Let me challenge you on this one. Is forgiveness part of your regular prays? Forgiveness in a few ways. First for yourself, forgiveness for your sins. But secondly, forgiveness for and from others. In the way that we are forgiven, Christ calls us to forgive others.

• Aligning Ourselves With God

And third, we should be continually praying that our lives are aligned with God, that we don’t give Satan a foothold on our life.  Verse 13:

“And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one.’” vs. 13

It is so easy to become lost and to let sin enter our lives and take over. But here is where we claim God’s power; not only from the things that so easily entangle us, but also tht we don’t een get put into those situations. The great thing is that when we do get into those situations, God has the power to deliver us from them.  Pray in the difficulty and through the difficuoty.

Communion

This is communion Sunday. I love communion and the idea of remembering what Christ did for us.  We remember that we are asked to come into this time in a pure and holy manner and the only way to do that is through…prayer! You can put into practice right now what Jesus taught us in this prayer.

God’s House

Matthew 21:12-17

“‘My house will be called a house of prayer…” vs. 13

Why Did You Come To Church Today

Why do you think others came to church? Open with this question and make a list of why to put on the Powerpoint

-Spouse made me/mom and dad made me/habit/attracted to someone/felt obligated/nothing else to do or more important/not sure

Follow-up question: What did you plan to do at church today or what were you planning to get out of it?

We (the church and more specifically pastors) try to “encourage” people to come to church. We use all kind of tactics and “encouragements” to get people to be here.

Ex. There was a local church that wanted people at their Easter Service so bad they offered to give away $300.00 to one lucky person that day so everyone who came was given a ticket like this as they walked in.

Let me put a word in your vocabulary for today: Intention

Jesus wants us to go to church but really for the right reasons.  Let’s see what He said in Matthew 21 about that.

Read Passage – Matthew 21:12-17

¹²Jesus entered the temple courts and drove out all who were buying and selling there. He overturned the tables of the money changers and the benches of those selling doves. ¹³ “It is written,” he said to them, “‘My house will be called a house of prayer, but you are making it ‘a den of robbers.’”  ¹⁴ The blind and the lame came to him at the temple, and he healed them. ¹⁵ But when the chief priests and the teachers of the law saw the wonderful things he did and the children shouting in the temple courts, “Hosanna to the Son of David,” they were indignant.  ¹⁶ “Do you hear what these children are saying?” they asked him. “Yes,” replied Jesus, “have you never read, “‘From the lips of children and infants you, Lord, have called forth your praise’?”  ¹⁷ And he left them and went out of the city to Bethany, where he spent the night.

Jesus Starts His Last Week

Jesus has just been through an incredible experience.  He was on his way to Jerusalem just coming down from the Mount of Olives. He sends two disciples ahead to get this donkey that he was going to ride into town on.  This kind of parade unfolds as he begins his ride into town and the people of Jerusalem are so excited to have him coming.  As they see him their excitement builds and they do something to express that by taking off their coats and grabbing some palm branches and they throw them in the streets for Jesus to ride in on.  It’s somewhat equivalent to throwing confetti at a ticker tape parade.  They also begin to shout praises and glorify him in all their excitement.  Now Jesus could have stopped and given a speech and thanks everyone for coming and given them some love back by explaining how much it means to him and he really is grateful for their recognition of him but he doesn’t. He doesn’t stop to take credit or even converse with the people; his intention (there’s that word again) is to go to the Temple to bring glory to His Father.

Den of Robbers

As Jesus walks through the doors of the Temple this is what he sees; a marketplace where buying, selling, and trading are in full swing.  Where’s the worship that is suppose to be taking place?  He walks into the Temple and sees peoples whose intention is to gain money, power, etc. God directed Solomon to build this great Temple for worship and for Him to be praised and look what it is now. It’s a place where the religious leaders have found a way to make money and take advantage of the religious feasts and rituals that were meant to bring glory to God. Verse 13b:

“…but you are making it (the Temple) ‘a den of robbers.’” vs. 13b  

Jesus sees this taking place and begins to go bolistic.  He doesn’t care what day it is, who sees him and what it looks like; he is so outraged that he begins turning over tables and benches and throwing things around. No one tries to stop him either. These religious leaders looked the part, but he knew their hearts. Their intention is to get rich and maintain control and power. What he saw when he walked in was not something to bring glory to God, it was a “den of robbers.”

This year we have focused on the theme “Living With The Heart Of Jesus.”  Listen to Jesus heart through his actions here and try to see if we might just be a little like those religious leaders.  We don’t take the idea of worship and giving God priority in our life seriously and maybe we’ve even lost a little bit of our focus.

Jesus uses some strong language here as well to go with his strong actions. He compares the temple that is suppose to be so sacred to a “robber den.” What is is saying? The idea of “robber” could be thought of as a thief but it also carries the thought of being an insurrectionist; a person who is against the authority; in this case, God’s authority. There are two pictures you can get of this place at this time (and these might be what Jesus felt).

Ex. A Lair, den, etc.  Expand on the idea that this week we saw this played out in the news as Penn. St. Univ. a place of higher learning was used to be a undercover operation for some very sick men who took advantage of young boys.  This place that was suppose to be a respected institution of our society was a cover for some pretty bad behavior and because of money, people who were suppose to uphold integrity were looking the other way and allowing horrible things to be done.  So much so that quite a few people have lost their jobs, their dignity and their reputations. 

• A Place To Gain Illicit Wealth

So what was going on in the temple? First, this sacred place was now a place where it’s a place to gain illicit wealth.  To put it  more plainly, many looked at the Temple as there place of business and more importantly, a place to take advantage of the Jewish customs and get rich. They were overcharging for sheep, doves, etc. Now if you were rich you could afford to bring your sacrifice.  But if you were poor, you didn’t have them to bring so you could buy your sacrifice at the Temple.  Problem: Those selling charged more than was right and basically took advantage of the poor. They even fixed the scales so they wouldn’t be accurate but would tip in their favor and take way more than what they should have gotten.

Many of the common Jews came to worship God; their intention was to worship.  But they are led and taken advantage of by people whose intention is to gain wealth, power and control.

• A Place To Plan Evil Plots

The second way the Temple was seen was as a place to plot evil plans.

Ex. Every evil person has a place to plot their evil deeds.  Think of the movies, like say, Batman. The Joker of the Penguin have a lair, a den to hide out in and plot their strategies.

Jesus recognizes that the temple has become a lair for those in religious power to plot their schemes and vices to get rich, keep power, and maintain control. What better place than right under the noses of those they are trying to take advantage of and this is a great cover. A Temple!

The Cleansing of the Temple

As I said, Jesus goes bolistic and didn’t care what he looked like and He has to do the right thing here which is to turn the tables and make the temple a place of worship and honor for God.  He wanted the Temple to reflect God’s glory. In this story, Jesus gives us some guidelines for us to understand why going to church is so important and what our intention in gong should look like. He does that by getting mad, cleaning the Temple, and then goes about restoring true worship.

1. It’s Restored To A Place For All People

First, his Temple is a place is that to be for all people.  Remember it’s the Sabbath and the ruling religious leaders have established that no work is to be done on the Sabbath and that includes healing. Their thought is if someone wants to be healed, let them do on the other days of the week. I guess you can take that view when you are not the one who is hurting.  But Jesus sees hurting people coming to the Temple, expressing their faith in the only way they know how and by going to the only place they know there is hope and He heals them. Verse 14:

“The blind and the lame came to him at the temple, and he healed them.” vs. 14

I think the implication of this is even bigger than Jesus healing.  He is reminding us that all people are welcomed into God’s house regardless of their social status, race, etc. etc. etc.

Ex. Phillip Yancey book Soul Survivor, (pg. 22) the story of his childhood church and the decree the elders they gave those to stand guard so that blacks would not enter the church

They had a choice, we have a choice. They were being unbiblical. What is our intention? Do we want to bend the Bible to fit our ideals or be true to Him that he came for all people.

1. Prayer Is Restored

Second, He re-establishes that the temple is a place of prayer. Verse 13:

“‘My house will be called a house of prayer…” vs. 13

Don’t miss this second point. Jesus reestablishes that this place is suppose to be a place where you come and pray.  Another reason to show up on Sunday is to pray. The religious leaders made prayer a requirement of repetition while Jesus makes it an issue of our heart-felt love of God

Most of us get the worship in giving, or the idea of coming together to sing, the idea of growing in God’s Word through a sermon, or even to have communion.  But what about prayer?  We should be coming here to pray, to seek God’s face, to be in communication with God and to spend time in prayer. Jesus makes his intention, prayer is talking to God. Don’t limit your prayer to your talking.  Think about this, your singing can be a prayer, your giving can be a prayer (of dependence), etc.

1. The Attitude Of Praise

Finally, Jesus reminds us that our attitude (or you could say your intention)  in coming through these doors is suppose to be one of praise. Verse 15:

“But when the chief priests and the teachers of the law saw the wonderful things he did and the children shouting in the temple courts, “Hosanna to the Son of David,” they were indignant.” vs. 15

See the kids got it. (They understood what church was about and the religious leaders didn’t) They saw what Jesus was doing and they just had to cry out. When do take a break from all the business of the week, the things that keep us running 100 mph and moving in all directions, when we stop and take some time to remember what God has done in our life and continues to do, we cry out in praise. He continues the thought in verse 16:

“Do you hear what these children are saying?” they asked him. “Yes,” replied Jesus, “have you never read, “‘From the lips of children and infants you, Lord, have called forth your praise’?” vs. 16

The leaders were upset they were praising in church.  Remember Jesus just came into town riding on a donkey and they crowds were praising him.  They knew he was something special and that he could do what no man could do.  So often we are so concerned about what we look like; instead, Jesus is saying what matters is what God thinks of you not what man thinks of you. These kids got and didn’t care that they weren’t following the man made laws of the religious leaders, they were going to give God glory.

Ex.  Are we more concerned about what others are thinking or about praising God? i.e raising our hands or standing when sing, the words we are using to pray, etc.

Looking Inward

Read quote from Phillip Yancey Soul Survivor p. 36 As the civil rights of people of color were changed to reflect what was right Yancey talks about how some people refused to change even thought the law had changed.  They were not going to treat people of color the right way. Yancey realized that and wrote this:

“The human heart, not the courtroom, was the supreme battleground.”

Wake up! Be intentional. The battleground is not the church. Your heart is.

7 Things I Wish Jesus Never Said

John 3:1-21

“Unless a man is born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God.” vs. 5

How Do You Get To Heaven?

Show video clip

It is surprising to me that many people really don’t understand how to get to heaven. Jesus discusses this with a man named Nicodemus.  Let’s see what He says.

Read Passage – John 3:1-21

Now there was a Pharisee, a man named Nicodemus who was a member of the Jewish ruling council. ² He came to Jesus at night and said, “Rabbi, we know that you are a teacher who has come from God. For no one could perform the signs you are doing if God were not with him.”  ³ Jesus replied, “Very truly I tell you, no one can see the kingdom of God unless they are born again.”  ⁴ “How can someone be born when they are old?” Nicodemus asked. “Surely they cannot enter a second time into their mother’s womb to be born!”  ⁵ Jesus answered, “Very truly I tell you, no one can enter the kingdom of God unless they are born of water and the Spirit. ⁶ Flesh gives birth to flesh, but the Spirit gives birth to spirit. ⁷ You should not be surprised at my saying, ‘You must be born again.’ ⁸ The wind blows wherever it pleases. You hear its sound, but you cannot tell where it comes from or where it is going. So it is with everyone born of the Spirit.”  ⁹ “How can this be?” Nicodemus asked.  ¹⁰ “You are Israel’s teacher,” said Jesus, “and do you not understand these things? ¹¹ Very truly I tell you, we speak of what we know, and we testify to what we have seen, but still you people do not accept our testimony. ¹² I have spoken to you of earthly things and you do not believe; how then will you believe if I speak of heavenly things? ¹³ No one has ever gone into heaven except the one who came from heaven—the Son of Man. ¹⁴ Just as Moses lifted up the snake in the wilderness, so the Son of Man must be lifted up, ¹⁵ that everyone who believes may have eternal life in him.” ¹⁶ For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. ¹⁷ For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him. ¹⁸ Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe stands condemned already because they have not believed in the name of God’s one and only Son. ¹⁹ This is the verdict: Light has come into the world, but people loved darkness instead of light because their deeds were evil. ²⁰ Everyone who does evil hates the light, and will not come into the light for fear that their deeds will be exposed. ²¹ But whoever lives by the truth comes into the light, so that it may be seen plainly that what they have done has been done in the sight of God.

Continue reading →

7 Things I Wish Jesus Never Said

Luke 6:37-42

“Do not judge, and you will not be judged.” vs. 37

The Gentlemen Bandit

1979 New Jersey –  It happened just a few years ago. The banks in New Jersey had been robbed systematically, one after the other. What made the robber stand out was his politeness. He just gave the tellers a note which said, “Please place your money in this bag. Thank you.” The newspapers called him the GENTLEMAN BANDIT.

The widespread publicity led to a very unlikely arrest – the suspect was a Catholic priestnamed Rabobert Pagnano. His church was appalled but stood beside him, saying they knew he could not be the bandit. They signed petitions, held protest marches and came up with his bail. But the police were certain they had their man. All of the eyewitnesses positively identified him. And the news media dug into his past, to find that in a previous church he had left under a cloud because of financial irregularities in the parish. For a priest he had a pretty expensive lifestyle – his own apartment and a fast car. His church was probably standing up for him because otherwise they looked like dupes.

As people across the country watched the story unfold on the news, they were positive this priest had pulled a fast one. He probably had a sociopath personality so he could rob banks and preach the next Sunday without feeling any guilt. No one outside his congregation was standing up for this guy. But then a funny thing happened. The REAL Gentleman Bandit was caught red-handed. As it turned out, he was the spitting image of the priest. It’s just that he WASN’T the priest. The priest was released, his church threw him a big party, and the news media and those who had prematurely judged him felt a little sheepish.
Source: Rev. David Holwick First Baptist Church Ledgewood, New Jersey

Read Passage – Luke 6:37-42

³⁷“Do not judge, and you will not be judged. Do not condemn, and you will not be condemned. Forgive, and you will be forgiven. ³⁸ Give, and it will be given to you. A good measure, pressed down, shaken together and running over, will be poured into your lap. For with the measure you use, it will be measured to you.”  ³⁹ He also told them this parable: “Can the blind lead the blind? Will they not both fall into a pit? ⁴⁰ The student is not above the teacher, but everyone who is fully trained will be like their teacher. ⁴¹ “Why do you look at the speck of sawdust in your brother’s eye and pay no attention to the plank in your own eye? ⁴² How can you say to your brother, ‘Brother, let me take the speck out of your eye,’ when you yourself fail to see the plank in your own eye? You hypocrite, first take the plank out of your eye, and then you will see clearly to remove the speck from your brother’s eye.

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7 things I Wish Jesus Never Said

Matt. 22:15-22

“Give unto Caesar what is Caesars” vs. 21

Funny Letters

A Little Boy wanted $100.00 badly and prayed to God for a whole week, but nothing happened. So, he decided to write God a letter requesting the $100.00. When the Post Office got the letter addressed to God they forwarded it on to the Whitehouse. The President was very impressed, touched and amused so he instructed his aid to send the boy $5.00. He thought $5.00 would be a lot to the little boy. The boy was, indeed, delighted by the money. He sat down and wrote a thank you note immediately, which read:

Dear God,
Thank you very much for sending the money. However, I noticed that for some reason you had to send it through Washington and, as usual, they kept most of it.
(From bucket of Surprises by John and Mark Stibbe)

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7 Things I Wish Jesus Never Said

Matthew 19:16-30

“It is hard for someone who is rich to enter the kingdom of heaven.” vs. 23

Lifestyles Of The Rich

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