Out With The Old, In With The New

Posted on by

“No one tears a piece from a new garment and puts it on an old garment. If he does, he will tear the new, and the piece from the new will not match the old.” Luke 5:36 ESV1

Read Matthew 9:9-17, Mark 2:13-22 & Luke 5:27:39

The idiom, out with the old, in with the new means to leave old ideas or things behind so that one is free to embrace new views or objects. To move forward, one must get rid of the old to make room for the new. There are a number of possible scenarios for the use of this phrase. And there are a variety of opinions on who came up with the expression. But the idea of setting aside the old to take hold of the new originated with God. God consistently chooses the second over the first and prefers the new over the old.

Continue reading →

Location, Location, Location

Posted on by

“Everyone who comes to Me and hears My words and does them … is like a man building a house, who dug deep and laid the foundation on the rock … But the one who hears and does not do them is like a man who built a house on the ground without a foundation” Luke 6:47-49 ESV1

Read Matthew 7:21-27 & Luke 6:46-49

Have you heard it said that the three most important things to consider in real estate are location, location, and location? As it turns out, location is pretty important in the spiritual realm as well. As Jesus concluded one of His training seminars for a group of committed followers who had climbed a mountain to hear what He had to say, He chose a powerful cohering illustration that involved real estate to cement His teaching in the minds of His students. The real estate, a house, to which Jesus is referring in His illustration is a metaphor for one’s life.

Continue reading →

Spiritual Genetics

Posted on by

“You are the salt of the earth … You are the light of the world.”                    Matthew 5:13a &14a ESV1

Read Matthew 5:13-16, Mark 4:21-25, Luke 8:16-17 & 11:33-36

I was first introduced to contemporary Christian music in the late 1980s when a friend gave me Amy Grant’s album, The Collection.2 I was so excited to have “cool” music that glorified God I listened to that tape over and over again until I had all the words to all of the songs memorized. On that album was the song, “Father’s Eyes.” The chorus to that song contained these words: “She’s got her Father’s eyes, her Father’s eyes; Eyes that find the good in things, when good is not around; Eyes that find the source of help, when help just can’t be found; Eyes full of compassion, seeing every pain; Knowing what you’re going through and feeling it the same. Just like my Father’s eyes.”3

I was so touched by those words I prayed that God would help me emulate His character by making me a woman who had her Father’s eyes. I remember exactly where I was when I prayed that prayer because it was one of those times when I felt like God answered me with, “Yes! That I will do.” At the time, if I had known through how much darkness I would need to walk to encourage others that there is hope on the horizon; how much struggle I would be required to endure to meaningfully help others; or how much hurt I would have to experience to identify with others in pain, I am not sure I would have prayed that prayer.

Continue reading →

I Hear You

Posted on by

“He who has ears, let him hear.” Matthew 13:9 ESV1

Read Matthew 13:10-17, Mark 4:9-13 & Luke 8:9-10

When you explain something to someone and he/she responds, “I see,” you know that person comprehends. When you share something from your heart and another says, “I hear you,” you feel understood. To see means more than having eyes that can visually discern something. To hear means more than perceiving with one’s ears a sound which is being made. When another seeks to understand or makes an effort to give us his/her full attention, we feel honored, appreciated, even loved. Eagerness to be understood isn’t a longing merely of humans; it is also a desire of the Divine.

Continue reading →

The Head and Feet of Jesus

Posted on by

But Jesus said, “Leave her alone. Why do you trouble her? She has done a beautiful thing for Me … She has done what she could; she has anointed My Body beforehand for burial. And truly, I say to you, wherever the Gospel is proclaimed in the whole world, what she has done will be told in memory of her.”  Mark 14:6-9 ESV1

Read Matthew 26:6-13, Mark 14:3-9 & John 12:1-8

“Six days before the Passover, Jesus, therefore, came to Bethany, where Lazarus was, whom Jesus had raised from the dead. So, they gave a dinner for Him there” (John 12:1-2a) “in the house of Simon the leper” (Matthew 26:6b). “Martha served, and Lazarus was one of those reclining with Him at the table. Mary, therefore” (John 12:3a) “came up to Him with an alabaster flask” (Matthew 26:7a) containing “a pound of expensive ointment made from pure nard” (John 12:3b), “and she broke the flask and poured it over [Jesus’] head” (Mark 14:3b) “and anointed the feet of Jesus and wiped His feet with her hair. The house was filled with the fragrance of the perfume” (John 12:3c). What a touching scene—Jesus spending time with His dearest friends, celebrating a miracle, being emotionally encouraged as He prepared for the future, soaking up the personalized way each of those in attendance shared his/her adoration of Him, all while a beautiful fragrance filled the air. But not everyone was feeling the love.

Continue reading →

Seeker Friendly

Posted on by

 “For the Son of Man came to seek and to save the Lost.” Luke 19:10 ESV1

Read Luke 19:1-10

Only heartless Christians don’t care about lost souls. Only narcissistic Christ-followers want to keep the Good News to themselves. Only selfish Believers don’t want to create welcoming opportunities for those desiring to get closer to Jesus. But gearing church services and activities to reach those who don’t yet know Christ is easier said than done. Contemporary music can initiate intimate times of worship, but it can also become pure performance. Casual attire can promote humility as easily as it can unholiness. Sermons intended to be relevant can meet people where they are but often don’t lift up them to where they should be. Limiting religious decor can remove distraction or it can take the focus entirely off of Christ. Seeker-friendly services can become fabulous shows of what man can do instead of what God can do–if they are missing one crucial ingredient. Looking more closely at a familiar Scriptural account can help us discover what that often-lacking element is.

Continue reading →

What to Do with This?

Posted on by

And Jesus said, “Neither do I condemn you; go, and from now on sin no more.” John 8:11b ESV1

Read John 7:53-8:11

There is an account in our translations of The Holy Bible which most of the earliest manuscripts do not include. And those that do contain it, don’t always have it placed where we find it in our Bibles. Those who study language, word usage, and writing styles don’t know for sure who recorded this event or why it was placed where it now appears when the Canon of Scripture was compiled. It seems as if some really religious and learned individuals don’t know what to do with this passage. But I assure you, the most common sinner who understands the meaning of this portion of Scripture will know exactly what to do with it.

Continue reading →

Fully Emancipated

Posted on by

Jesus said to them, “Truly, truly, I say to you, unless you eat the Flesh of the Son of Man and drink His Blood, you have no life in you.” John 6:53 ESV1

Read John 6:29-67

As recorded in the latter half of John 6, Jesus, in some manner, repeatedly referred to Himself as the Bread of Life. He claimed to be “‘the Living Bread that came down from Heaven [and explained that] if anyone [ate] of this Bread, he [would] live forever … [He clarified] the Bread that [He gave] for the life of the World [was His] Flesh’” (John 6:51). Jesus insisted, “‘Whoever feeds on My Flesh and drinks My Blood has eternal life, and I will raise him up on the last day’” (John 6:54). Why did Jesus push the issue of consuming both His Body and His Blood though it offended the religious and secular, the seeker and the devoted alike?

If Jesus’ Blood was shed for our sins, why did Jesus say we must partake of both His Blood and His Flesh? And why did “Jesus on the night when He was betrayed [take] bread, and when He had given thanks, … [break] it, and [say], ‘This is My Body, which is for you. Do this in remembrance of Me.’ [And] in the same way, also … [take] the cup, after supper, [and say], ‘This cup is the new covenant in My Blood. Do this, as often as you drink it, in remembrance of Me’” (1 Corinthians 11:23-25)? Why the emphasis on remembering both His sacrificed Body and His spilled Blood? Are they not for the same thing?

Continue reading →

A Team Effort

Posted on by

“I can do nothing on My own. As I hear, I judge, and My judgment is just because I seek not My own will but the will of Him who sent Me … I have come in My Father’s name, and you do not receive Me.” John 5:30 & 43 ESV1

Read John 5:17-47

It has been a sad week for me. I found out that two well-known, influential, Christian leaders are not getting along. This disharmony pains me because I greatly respect both of them, and I have learned much from each of them. Their books sit side by side on my bookshelf. Apparently, that is the only place where they can be in such proximity to one another. The one has publicly, pridefully, and unlovingly condemned the other. Is the berated one off-base? Possibly. Has she been fraternizing with others who, in some areas, are even more mistaken than she? Probably. But is she any more in error than one rebuking her? I don’t think so. His faults are just in different areas than hers.

Continue reading →

You Might As Well Ask

Posted on by

And James and John, the sons of Zebedee, came up to Him and said to Him, “Teacher, we want You to do for us whatever we ask of You.” Mark 10:35 ESV1

Read Matthew 20:20-28 & Mark 10:35-45

When my children were small, I used to get together with my sister frequently. My sister also had small children, and the cousins enjoyed having playdates together. Once, when we came to visit my sister’s family at her home, we found her standing at her kitchen counter, eating a piece of candy. The other children ran off to play, but my son recognized what his aunt was doing. My son watched my sister nibble and said to her, “That piece of candy looks really good.” My sister continued to enjoy her piece of candy. My son noticed a bag of like candy lying open on the counter and stated, “Wow, I could really use a piece of candy.” My sister smiled and took another bite. My son, a little louder, exclaimed, “A piece of candy would really hit the spot for me right now.” My sister popped the remaining bits of her piece of candy into her mouth, closed up the bag, and placed it on top of her refrigerator. My son was shocked, but saying no more, he walked away saddened. My sister then turned to me and said, “You know, I would have given him a piece if he had just asked.”

I have the feeling God could say the same thing about us from time to time; He probably wonders why we don’t just ask. We spend a lot of time meditating on our problems. We mull over in our minds what we think we may need. We go to God and worry before Him, but do we really end up asking for anything? In the passage we will consider today, some people came to Jesus, and they audaciously asked for something they desired. They were surprisingly bold and asked for a grand thing. Let’s look at Jesus’ response?

Continue reading →