Get busy before it’s too late!

Luke 12:35-48

Sometimes we look around at things going on in the world and we expect Jesus to return soon. I think we should indeed have this expectation. Unfortunately is seems like many people who I hear say this seem to use it as an excuse to just sit around and wait for Him to return. Jesus himself warns us against this kind of attitude. He did not save us to wait for Him, He saved us to serve others. He led by example and expects us to follow in His footsteps.

So what are you doing to be busy about building the Kingdom now? How are you serving? What are you working toward? If you really believed that when Jesus comes back that He will separate those who will go to heaven or hell and if you believed that He could come back at any moment, wouldn't you have some urgency to tell your friends, co-workers, classmates? If you thought that He was coming soon wouldn't you be less worried about what people might think of you and more likely to step out and be bold? This is the kind of life Jesus wants us to live. So often, however, we live like we really don't believe like He's coming back soon, if at all. We do our own thing and don't worry about doing the Master's work at all. May we all get busy before it's too late. We need to get busy and follow Jesus, He doesn't get lost.

If you can’t take it with you why is it so important?

Luke 12:16-34

It's so important because it feels good and we doubt what the afterlife will really be like. We would rather take pleasure for ourselves now because we really don't believe that building for pleasure to come will be worth it. We hold on to wealth and power because we think that they will give us security, influence and pleasure. Jesus tells us that he cares about all our needs but somehow we are too afraid to really test Him to see if He really means it. Would you sacrifice popularity for Jesus? Would you take "your" time to help someone in need? Would you give of "your" resources to help get someone back on their feet? Do you think you have a right to use "your" resources how you want to?

Jesus says we are fools if we think we own and control wealth and comfort in this life. It can all be taken from us in an instant. Instead of worrying about protecting ourselves we should be busy helping others in need and building the Kingdom. These are the only things that have lasting value. Are you lost in your wealth/position/comfort? You need to ask yourself if you really believe Jesus, if you will follow Him, if Jesus really doesn't get lost.

Don’t just pretend like you're all that, Jesus knows and cares for all.

Luke 12:1-15

Playing a little catch up here but here is yesterday's QT.

Going straight from his "woes" to the Pharisees and Lawyers Jesus continues to talk about the heart. One day the secrets of men will be revealed and Jesus says that the Pharisees will be exposed to be hypocrites. We too need to worship and live for God from the heart. This doesn't mean that we only live for God when we feel like it, but it does mean that we live for Him with right motives, not for self-promoting or dishonest ones. Jesus knows it all, even the hairs on our heads and we will all, believers or non-believes stand before Him and be judged. Some to heaven and others to hell.

We should trust God and be guided by the Holy Spirit. When we reject Him and live our own way, trusting in others, our wealth or ourselves, we will not be forgiven. God is enough and should be in first position always in our lives. No security in this life will be enough to protect you in the next. We should all be living now for the next. It the best and most secure investment of all time. We can trust Jesus when he says this, because He doesn't get lost.

Jesus Pokes the Bear, “Religious People”

Luke 11:42-54

The "woes" that Jesus pronounces on the Pharisees and Lawyers in this passage are a combination of condemnation, regret and sorrow. The Pharisees were so careful to do everything right and look the part of the most pious of people yet their actions caused other to think that they could attain the needed requirements of heaven on their own. In reality they were all hopelessly defiled and headed to hell.

The Lawyers, experts in the Jewish scriptures, added all kinds of rules and regulations not in the scriptures themselves and made them a burden for anyone who would try to follow them. Even they themselves could not possibly do so. These kind of religious people would even kill those who did not fit their particular kind of devotion, the many Prophets before and ultimately Jesus Himself. How dare Jesus, God Himself, tell them how to follow God's laws. They are so caught up in their own system that they no longer can distinguish their laws from God's and lead others to do the same. In essence they now worship their own created religion and no longer God at all.

None of us should ever let our preferences or cultural customs elevate over scripture. We see this happen so often, over and over again whether it's over music, or dress, or strategy. Let us not crucify Jesus all over gain but let us always go back to His words and follow Him where ever He leads, after all, He never gets lost.

Second Stringer Filling In…

So, This past week I filled in for Pastor Phil and preached on the Spiritual Discipline of Church Attendance. I won't belabor you with the full manuscript here but you can follow this link and take a listen. I would very much appreciate your feedback if you are patient enough to listen to it. Pastor Phil would never call me the "second stringer" just so you know. I very much appreciate his desire to help me develop into a better pastor whether in leadership, preaching, teaching, counseling etc.

Jesus is Greater

Luke 11:29-41

Jesus is greater and therefore He deserves all of our obedience both from the outside but even more importantly from this inside. That is the main point of this triplet of paragraphs that we are looking today. Much could be said but I'm going to keep this brief in the hope that someone might actually read it and find it helpful…and…just maybe I'll make more frequent posts. I'd like to post everyday about our Quite Time for the day but we'll see how that goes. Anyway, today is off to a good start.

Luke 11:29-32

Jesus is greater than both Jonah the prophet and Solomon the wisest king of all time. People listened to what they said, even repented without anything close to the kinds of signs and wonders that Jesus has been doing. Yet, the generation Jesus is speaking to still will not listen to and obey Jesus. "The sign of Jonah" here alludes to his fast approaching death and resurrection three days later which will be His ultimate sign. So, will you listen and obey? Do you keep needing more evidence or are you going to follow now?

Luke 11:33-36

If you are filled with the light Christ then it will affect your whole being. This certainly includes the inside but also includes your outward actions and attitudes. If you claim to be a follower of Jesus but don't live like it, then you need to reexamine yourself and see what kind of "light" you really are. This doesn't mean that followers of Jesus are perfect but what are you characterized by? What would people in your various circles say about you? Would they characterize you as a follower of Jesus?

Luke 11:37-41

Again Jesus is illustrating that He wants all of our lives, not just the outside or the inside, all of it. The Pharisees were good at their ritualistic law keeping but it so often did nothing to actually make them humble or repentant on the inside. Instead it made them feel proud and justified when they really were not. Jesus tells them to first take care of the inside and then the outside stuff will take care of itself. So how much are you giving Jesus? Do you do and say the right things when you're around your Christian friends but are really something else at other times? Jesus wants the whole you. We all need to follow Jesus all the way, because Jesus never gets lost.

Luke 9:23

Luke 9:23 was in our reading of God's word this week and I'll be using to speak about in Youth Group as well: Here are a few thoughts as its broken down: 

Those who want to come after Jesus must:

Deny self: Don’t do what you would naturally want to do. The heart is desperately wicked and deceitful above all things. Left to ourselves we do not want to follow God we want what is temporary, what feels good right now, what brings us fame and popularity and influence, comfort or wealth. 

Take up Your Cross: active participation, knowing that its going to cost you but you do it anyway. You know that it will be worth it. You know that Jesus has authority over all things and so you will follow him anywhere even if it will mean sacrifice and pain in this life. 

Daily: most of us can imagine ourselves having a onetime great moment of passion where we pledge our lives to Christ and will do whatever it takes to follow Him. Many of us have made these kind of pledges at a camp or youth rally or other event but how many of us begin each day with this kind of commitment. How many of us get comfortable or distracted or weighed down with the daily stuff in our lives and we take a day off which leads to two, then three, four…  How often in that moment when it might cost us a moment of secret pleasure when watching a T.V. show or joking with friends at school, or befriending someone unpopular or hard do love, do we take the day off and tell ourselves that this one little moment wont make that much difference in the long run…

Follow Me: Do we really know what we are saying when we say that we will, or that we want to follow Jesus? Being a disciple of Christ requires the whole being. It pervades every aspect of life from family, to community, to personal relationships and even personal attitudes and thoughts. We can’t do this on our own. we need the help of the Holy Spirit, we need God’s word that he has given us. We need each other to encourage, counsel, challenge and pray for us. We need to follow Jesus all the way to the Cross and find that he has saved us there from death and that he has paid for our lives. They are no longer our own. We can and should trust him with them no matter the cost, no matter the direction. In this life, there is nothing worth trading for Jesus. There is no moment, there is no pleasure, there is no wealth or security.