"It’s Your Thang--Do What You Wanna Do"--huh?

“It’s your thang; do what you wanna do!”  That was the music of my generation.  It was radical, it was hip, new and cool for us teenagers.  It was a cry of rebellion against the older generation, and we loved it.

But as a new Christian at age 15, I couldn’t help having this nagging question – “How does this fit with the Scriptures?”

I was all for independence, and I did move far away from home, go to places my parents had never gone, and followed a career path they did not forge.  However, I was never “on board” with the current culture’s “Do your own thing” protest.  It was mixed with something foul, though I couldn’t put my finger on what.

This morning, the day before Easter Sunday, I read this verse:

But he was pierced for our transgressions, he was crushed for our iniquities; the punishment that brought us peace was on him, and by his wounds we are healed. We all, like sheep, have gone astray, each of us has turned to our own way; and the Lord has laid on him the iniquity of us all.  Isaiah 53:5-6

There is the answer to my question. “Each of us has turned to our own way” sounds awfully close to “Do your own thing,” don’t you think?

What’s wrong with that?  What is wrong is in the meaning of the word “iniquity.”  Iniquity is not innocent independence, as of a young person reaching maturity, but it means being a law unto yourself.  It is an attitude before it is an action.  In ancient Hebrew times it meant to “go astray” or “deviate from the right path.”  In Jesus’ time it meant “the condition of one without law” or “lawlessness.”

I was right to reject this attitude.  This was the very attitude which caused Jesus to die on the cross.  The attitude of “lawlessness” – an extreme version of “do your own thing” – is the root of all sin, and it carries a steep penalty.  Praise God that Jesus chose to take that penalty himself.

This is what Easter weekend is all about – we human beings went astray but then Jesus stepped in and took the punishment.

But the weekend is not over yet!  Sunday’s coming!

Do You Own a Bible?

Do you own a Bible?  Have you ever read the Bible?  This is not a religious question, just a fact-finding one.

If you haven’t read it, there are a couple things you should know before starting:              

1.      The Bible is a special book.  It’s not magic, but it’s the next best thing.

2.      It was written by only One author, who used over 50 different voices.

3.      The Bible is self-correcting.  If you have a question about one part, you will find the answer in other parts.

4.      It promises to slay dragons, protect the weak, and completely transform your life.

Now, suppose you have read the Bible, perhaps in the past, and perhaps only in part, but you don’t care much about it right now.  There are several specific reasons for disinterest in the Bible:

1.      The Bible is a bright light which shows up all the stains in human nature, and all the purity in God’s nature.  That’s uncomfortable.

2.      It can’t be truly understood by just the mind; it is only understood by something in us called the “spirit.”  This part of the human being is not active until that person is touched and revived by God’s Spirit.

3.      If you have any pet addictions or any wrong behaviors you don’t want to give up – you will reject and run away from the Bible, because reading the Bible will prick your conscience.

4.      Worldly human thinking is at odds with the thinking you will find in the Bible.  You will be drawn to one and dismiss the other.

Which way of thinking will you choose?  You’ll never even know there is a choice until you have read the Bible.  Don’t reject it until you’ve tried it.  Chances are you will be very glad.

The Sermon That's Not For Everyone

The Sermon on the Mount 

Matthew 5-7

Jesus’ popular teachings that are often called “the sermon on the mount” are not for everyone.  And yet, of course, they are for everyone.  Let me explain.

In Matthew chapter 4 we read that Jesus had been supernaturally healing everyone who came to him.  Naturally, this stirred a lot of interest!  More and more people began to follow him.  Such a huge crowd of people followed him that he went up on a mountainside to teach them.  It’s as if he was saying: “So you are looking for physical healing from God – let me show you how to find true and complete healing from God – a life transformation.”

I’m sure many books have been written on the teachings in this sermon of Jesus’, but I want to focus on his one simple message –

Here’s how a person who wants to follow God

 can line up his behavior with what God is really like.

I see three truths that Jesus revealed about God:

• God is holy – no fudging it.
• God is genuine – no faking it.
• God is generous – no worries.

Here’s where I explain why this sermon is not directed at “everyone” – Jesus was talking to those who were “following” him, those who were seeking God.

So when he talks about divorce, murder, adultery – he tells them that their cultural morality they have grown up with won’t do.  If you’re seeking after God, God is holy – you will have to set the bar higher.  You think that a good person is kind?  God is even kind to his enemies.  You think that you’re OK in your marriage if you stop short of sex with others, but where is your head?  You think it’s natural to want revenge for a wrong, but God is forgiving and compassionate.

Next he kind of addresses the “religious” crowd – those who have been faithful to go to synagogue and obey the Mosaic law all their life.  Praying, fasting, and tithing, these people “seem” to be seeking God.  But you can’t fake God out – you will have to really mean your prayers and do your service to others from the heart if you want to follow God.  God entertains no fakers.  Get real.

And then there are his encouraging words to the normal, hard-working people – don’t be discouraged, because God is way more generous than you think and he’s got your back.  So you work 9 to 5 and take a second job to support the family and still you worry that you can’t make ends meet?  Look around you!  Even flowers and birds get their needs met by this caring Father, and you have the privilege and ability to ask when you need something!  Don’t worry about it.

So, you see, Jesus was not talking to people who want to be good, he was talking to people who want to have God.  You can be good by the world’s standards and miss God’s completely.  How badly do you want God himself?  It’s up to you.

4 TIPS FOR UNDERSTANDING ANY BIBLE PASSAGE

1. Pray before you read. In 1 Corinthians 2, Paul tells us that we can only understand the things of God through the power of the Spirit. We can read and read and read the Bible all day long, but only the Spirit can reveal to us the wisdom and truth that God has for us.

2. Read more than a few verses at a time. Applying isolated verses or passages to our lives is a modern concept. Books of the Bible were often read in large chunks. Paul’s letters, for example, were read aloud in their entirety to churches. It is always beneficial to read at least the chapter before or after the passage to help you understand the broader idea.

3. Use a study Bible. Study Bibles contain tons of notes that help explain each passage of the Bible. Not only that, but they offer cross-references to help you see other passages that relate to or are the foundation for the passage you’re reading. This will help you better understand confusing passages and words.

4. Read in community. The original audiences both heard and read the Scriptures in group settings as communities. There is no such thing as solo Christianity, and therefore there is no such thing as solo Bible reading. Yes, we should read alone and in private prayer, but we should also read with others, soaking in the wisdom and encouragement God has given them through the same Word.

These tips were posted by Christian Standard Bible on Facebook.  They really speak to me and challenge me.  Are there any of these you have applied?  

What results did you have?

The Lesson of Love -- Sandy Winn

Yesterday I lost a dear friend.  This special woman was in my life for 28 years.  Death tends to make us reflect on life.  What was this person's life all about?  What did they mean to me?  Are there any lessons, any takeaways, for me to apply?

My special friend had many talents, but her best talent was loving people well.  She made me feel I was worth her time.  She made herself available when I needed counsel or just needed a smile and a hug.  And what's more -- she did this for everyone she knew.  Imagine it -- a person who makes every other person feel they are her favorite!

Today there are thousands of people grieving because she is suddenly gone from us.  They are posting amazing tributes on her Facebook page.  There are dozens of pictures of her standing next to a friend and smiling -- as if each friend now treasures the fact that she especially loved them.

But amidst this grief there is also joy.  Feeling loved makes our hearts rejoice. The Scripture instructs us to "love each other deeply."  When we do that, opening our hearts and homes -- as Sandy did -- we empower others to love as well.

Sandy Winn has helped each of us to love well.  

Lorraine Mahan
10-28-2016

"Above all, love each other deeply, because love covers over a multitude of sins.  Offer hospitality to one another without grumbling.  Each of you should use whatever gift you have received to serve others, as faithful stewards of God’s grace in its various forms."
1 Peter 4:8-10

GOD, I NEED HELP!

The Helper

Read the story here:John 16:5-15

  Listen to story here: John 16:5-15 

The words, “God, I need help!” have come from the lips of every Christian at some point in life.  The wonderful thing about this short prayer is that God provided the help we need long ago—at Pentecost.  Inside every believer dwells an intimate, all-sufficient Helper with one goal: to ensure we grow in Christlikeness.

Even before we become believers, the Holy Spirit starts working to reveal the character of Jesus.  Remember the vivid story of scales falling from the eyes of Saul (later known as Paul) to end his blindness? (Acts 9:18)  A similar thing happens as we receive the Spirit’s instruction.  He pulls away our scales of unbelief and manifests the true nature of Jesus Christ.  First, God’s Spirit testifies to the saving power of Jesus; then, after we have become believers, He acquaints us with the Lord’s character through Bible reading and observation of God’s work in our daily life.

Our dependence upon the Holy Spirit should grow in tandem with our understanding of God.  As we learn of the Christ to whom we are being conformed, the Holy Spirit at the same time reveals our inadequacy to appropriate such divine attributes without His coping so that He may live out Christ’s character through us.  We trade frustration for peace, anger for patience, and shallow happiness for pure joy as we become more like the Lord we serve.  With the aid of our divine Helper, our old existence of lonely desolation is pushed away in favor of a triumphant Christian life.

-Author unknown

EYES ON THE PRIZE

It’s so easy to get tangled up in worries or even pleasures and get off the track in life, but we have a race to run!  

God has already marked out the course for us, so we just have to keep on keeping on. Keep your eyes on the prize.  Here’s how: FOCUS your eyes on Jesus.  Don’t take your eyes off him for a second, because he is the Only One who won this race and got the gold.  He’s the only perfect example of a faith that pleases God. 

He got to the joy God promised him, but he had to endure a cross of pain and suffering first, as shameful as it was.  Now that he’s gone through that, he’s been given a Throne of Glory in Heaven.  That’s got to be the ultimate medal.  He rules!

Think about it – every ambitious and ungodly force was arrayed against him, but he got through it.  He didn’t give up, he didn’t get discouraged, and we shouldn’t either!  Our pain isn’t half as bad as his was because we’ve still got our lives.

Don’t forget – God is like a father who only disciplines his sons for their own good.  Take heart! – your troubles are actually evidence that God loves you like a son.  

You can do this.

Hebrews 12: 1-13 paraphrased by ldm

THE SEVENTH WORD FROM THE CROSS

THE SEVENTH WORD
Jesus cried out in a loud voice,
"Father, into your hands I commend my spirit." Gospel of Luke 23:46

The seventh word of Jesus is from the Gospel of Luke, and is directed to the Father in heaven, just before He dies. Jesus recalls Psalm 31:5 - "Into thy hands I commend my spirit; thou hast redeemed me, O Lord, faithful God." Luke repeatedly pleads Jesus' innocence: with Pilate (Luke 23:4, 14-15, 22), through Dismas (by legend), the criminal (Luke 23:41), and immediately after His death with the centurion" "Now when the centurion saw what had taken place, he praised God and said, "Certainly this man was innocent" (Luke 23:47).

Jesus was obedient to His Father to the end, and his final word before his death on the Cross was a prayer to His Father.

The relationship of Jesus to the Father is revealed in the Gospel of John, for He remarked, "The Father and I are one" (10:30), and again, at the Last Supper: "Do you not believe I am in the Father and the Father is in me? The words that I speak to you I do not speak on my own. The Father who dwells in me is doing his works" (14:10). And He can return: "I came from the Father and have come into the world; again, I am leaving the world and going to the Father" (16:28). Jesus fulfills His own mission and that of His Father on the Cross:

"For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son,
So that everyone who believes in him
may not perish but have eternal life.
John 3:16

Source: http://www.jesuschristsavior.net/Words.html

THE SIXTH WORD FROM THE CROSS

THE SIXTH WORD
They put a sponge soaked in wine on a sprig of hyssop and put it up to his mouth.
When Jesus had received the wine, he said, 

"It is finished;" and he bowed his head and handed over the spirit. Gospel of John 19:29-30

John recalls the sacrifice of the Passover Lamb in Exodus 12 in this passage. Hyssop is a small plant that was used to sprinkle the blood of the Passover Lamb on the doorposts of the Hebrews. John's Gospel related that it was the Day of Preparation, the day before the actual Passover  that Jesus was sentenced to death  and sacrificed on the Cross. John continues: "But when they came to Jesus and saw he was already dead, they did not break his legs," recalling the instruction in Exodus 12:46 concerning the Passover Lamb. He died at three o'clock in the afternoon, about the same time as the Passover lambs were slaughtered in the Temple. Christ became the Passover Lamb, as noted by St. Paul: "For Christ our Passover lamb has been sacrificed". The innocent Lamb was slain for our sins, so that we might be forgiven.  The sixth word is Jesus' recognition that his suffering is over and his task is completed. Jesus is obedient to the Father and gives his love for mankind by redeeming us with His death on the Cross. 

When Jesus died, He "handed over" the Spirit. Jesus remained in control to the end, and it is He who handed over his Spirit.  

The above painting is meant to capture the moment.
What is the darkest day of mankind becomes the brightest day for mankind.

Source: http://www.jesuschristsavior.net/Words.html

THE FIFTH WORD FROM THE CROSS

THE FIFTH WORD
"I thirst." Gospel of John 19:28

"The fifth word of Jesus is His only human expression of His physical suffering. Jesus is now in shock. The wounds inflicted upon him in the scourging, the crowning with thorns, and the nailing upon the cross are now taking their toll, especially after losing blood on the three-hour walk through the city of Jerusalem to Golgotha on the Way of the Cross."   Source: http://www.jesuschristsavior.net/Words.html

Jesus is fully a human being.  When he was on earth, before his resurrection, he had all the same needs that you and I do.  How else could he convince us that he understands our pain and has walked where we walk?  How else could he “learn obedience from the things he suffered”?  How else could he take our place and take our punishment?  And so he became the only human being worthy to stand before God:

 Then I saw in the right hand of him who sat on the throne a scroll with writing on both sides and sealed with seven seals.  And I saw a mighty angel proclaiming in a loud voice, “Who is worthy to break the seals and open the scroll?”  But no one in heaven or on earth or under the earth could open the scroll or even look inside it.  I wept and wept because no one was found who was worthy to open the scroll or look inside.  Then one of the elders said to me, “Do not weep! See, the Lion of the tribe of Judah, the Root of David, has triumphed. He is able to open the scroll and its seven seals.”  …

 “You are worthy to take the scroll
    and to open its seals,
because you were slain,
    and with your blood you purchased for God
    persons from every tribe and language and people and nation.
You have made them to be a kingdom and priests to serve our God,
    and they will reign on the earth.”   Revelation 5:1-10

THE FOURTH WORD FROM THE CROSS

THE FOURTH WORD
"My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?" Matthew 27:46 and Mark 15:34

This was the only expression of Jesus in the Gospels of Matthew and Mark. Both Gospels related that it was in the ninth hour, after 3 hours of darkness, that Jesus cried out this fourth word. The ninth hour was three o'clock in Judea. After the fourth Word, Mark related with a horrible sense of finality, "And Jesus uttered a loud cry, and breathed his last" (Mark 15:37).

One is struck by the anguished tone of this expression in contrast to the first three words of Jesus. This cry is from the painful heart of the human Jesus who must feel deserted by His Father and the Holy Spirit, not to mention his earthly companions the Apostles. As if to emphasize his loneliness, Mark even has his loved ones "looking from afar," not close to him as in the Gospel of John. Jesus feels separated from his Father. He is now all alone, and he must face death by himself.

But is not this exactly what happens to all of us when we die? We too are all alone at the time of death! Jesus completely lives the human experience as we do, and by doing so, frees us from the clutches of sin.

His fourth Word is the opening line of Psalm 22, and thus his cry from the Cross recalls the cry of Israel, and of all innocent persons who suffer. Psalm 22 of David makes a striking prophecy of the crucifixion of the Messiah at a time when crucifixion was not known to exist: "They have pierced my hands and my feet, they have numbered all my bones" (22:16-17). The Psalm continues: "They divide my garments among them, and for my vesture they cast lots" (22:18).

There can not be a more dreadful moment in the history of man as this moment. Jesus who came to save us is crucified, and He realizes the horror of what is happening and what He now is enduring. He is about to be engulfed in the raging sea of sin. Evil triumphs, as Jesus admits: "But this is your hour" (Luke 22:53). But it is only for a moment. The burden of all the sins of humanity for a moment overwhelm the humanity of our Savior.

But does this not have to happen? Does this not have to occur if Jesus is to save us? It is in defeat of his humanity that the Divine plan of His Father will be completed. It is by His death that we are redeemed. "For there is one God. There is also one mediator between God and the human race, Christ Jesus, himself human, who gave himself as ransom for all" (I Timothy 2:5-6).

"He himself bore our sins in his body upon the cross,
so that, free from sin, we might live for righteousness.
By his wounds you have been healed."
I Peter 2:24

Source: http://www.jesuschristsavior.net/Words.html

THE THIRD WORD FROM THE CROSS

THE THIRD WORD
"Jesus said to his mother: "Woman, this is your son."
Then he said to the disciple: "This is your mother." Gospel of John 19:26-27

Jesus and Mary are together again, at the beginning of his ministry in Cana and now at the end of his public ministry at the foot of the Cross. The Lord refers to his mother as woman at the Wedding Feast of Cana (John 2:1-11) and in this passage, recalling the woman in Genesis 3:15, the first Messianic prophecy of the Redeemer, and anticipating the woman clothed with the sun in Revelation 12.

What sorrow must fill Mary's heart, to see her Son mocked, tortured, and crucified. Once again, a sword pierces Mary's soul: we are reminded of the prediction of Simeon at the Temple (Luke 2:35) . There are four at the foot of the cross, Mary his Mother, John, the disciple whom he loved, Mary of Cleopas, his mother's sister, and Mary Magdalene. He addresses his third word to Mary and John, the only eye-witness of the Gospel writers.

But again Jesus rises above the occasion, and his concerns are for the ones that love him. The good son that He is, Jesus is concerned about taking care of his mother. 

Source: http://www.jesuschristsavior.net/Words.html

THE SECOND WORD FROM THE CROSS

THE SECOND WORD
"Truly, I say to you, today you will be with me in Paradise." Gospel of Luke 23:43

Now it is not just the religious leaders or the soldiers that mock Jesus, but even one of the criminals, a downward progression of mockery. But the criminal on the right speaks up for Jesus, explaining the two criminals are receiving their just due, whereas "this man has done nothing wrong." Then, turning to Jesus, he asks, "Jesus, remember me when you come in your kingdom" (Luke 23:42). What wonderful faith this repentant sinner has in Jesus - far more than the doubting Thomas, one of his own Apostles. Ignoring his own suffering, Jesus responds with love and mercy in His second word.

The second word again is about forgiveness, this time directed to a sinner. Just as the first word, this Biblical expression is found only in the Gospel of Luke. Jesus shows his Divinity by opening heaven for a repentant sinner - such generosity to a man that only asked to be remembered!

This expression offers us hope for salvation, for if we turn our hearts and prayers to Him, we will also be with Jesus Christ at the end of our lives.

Source: http://www.jesuschristsavior.net/Words.html 

THE SEVEN WORDS OF JESUS ON THE CROSS

Christ Jesus died on the Cross to redeem mankind, to save us from our sins because of his love for us. As recorded in the Gospels of Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John in the Holy Bible, Jesus Christ was mocked, scorned, and tortured in the praetorium. He carried his cross up the Via Dolorosa in Jerusalem to Calvary, was nailed to the Cross and hung between two common criminals, and suffered an indescribable end, recalled by the Church on Good Friday of Holy Week.

One may meditate on the Passion of Christ by reflecting on his Seven Words on the Cross or by a devotion known as the Way of the Cross.

Here are his Seven Words, the last seven expressions of Jesus Christ on the Cross recorded in Scripture.

THE FIRST WORD
"Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they do." Gospel of Luke 23:34

Jesus is looking down from the cross just after he was crucified between two criminals. He sees the soldiers who have mocked him, scourged him and tortured him, and who have just nailed him to the cross. He probably remembers those who have sentenced him - Caiaphas and the high priests of the Sanhedrin. Pilate realized it was out of envy that they handed him over (Matthew 27:18, Mark 15:10). But is Jesus not also thinking of his Apostles and companions who have deserted him, to Peter who has denied him three times, to the fickle crowd, who only days before praised him on his entrance to Jerusalem, and then days later chose him over Barabbas to be crucified?

Is he also thinking of us, who daily forget him in our lives?

Does he react angrily? No! At the height of his physical suffering, his love prevails and He asks His Father to forgive! Could there ever be greater irony? Jesus asks his Father to forgive, but it is by His very Sacrifice on the Cross that mankind is able to be forgiven!

Right up to his final hours on earth, Jesus preaches forgiveness. He teaches forgiveness in the Lord's prayer: "Forgive us our trespasses, as we forgive those who trespass against us" (Matthew 6:12). When asked by Peter, how many times should we forgive someone, Jesus answers seventy times seven (Matthew 18:21-22). At the Last Supper, Jesus explains his crucifixion to his Apostles when he tells them to drink of the cup: "Drink of it, all of you; for this is my blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many for the forgiveness of sins" (Matthew 26:27-28). He forgives the paralytic at Capernaum (Mark 2:5), and the adulteress caught in the act and about to be stoned (John 8:1-11). And even following his Resurrection, his first act is to commission his disciples to forgive: "Receive the Holy Spirit. If you forgive the sins of any, they are forgiven; if you retain the sins of any, they are retained" (John 20:22-23). 

Source: http://www.jesuschristsavior.net/Words.html   

SPIRITUAL GOOD EATS

You, God, are my God,
    earnestly I seek you;
I thirst for you,
    my whole being longs for you,
in a dry and parched land
    where there is no water.

 I have seen you in the sanctuary
    and beheld your power and your glory.
 Because your love is better than life,
    my lips will glorify you.
I will praise you as long as I live,
    and in your name I will lift up my hands.
I will be fully satisfied as with the richest of foods;
    with singing lips my mouth will praise you.  

   Listen here >>>

Psalm 63:1-5

Do you know where your food comes from? 

Is it Organic?

Is it Pesticide-free?

Is it Non-GMO

Is it Whole Grain?

Is it Free-Range?

Is it Farm-Raised?

Is it Spring-Fed?

We read the labels on what we buy, but sometimes pay no attention to what our eyes, ears and heart ingest.

So if we’re feeling Anemic, maybe we should check the source and the contents of our “spiritual eats.”

The prophet Isaiah asks:

Why spend money on what is not bread, and your labor on what does not satisfy?

Listen, listen to me, and eat what is good, and you will delight in the richest of fare.*

David answers, from the Desert of Judah:

God, you are my God …

I thirst for you,
    my whole being longs for you,
in a dry and parched land
    where there is no water.**

Like a starving man, he seeks after the One True God, the God of power and glory, whose love is better than life.

And the result:

He is full.  He is completely satisfied.  As if he has eaten the richest, most nutritious food the world has to offer.

Good spiritual eats.

*Isaiah 55:2

**Psalm 63:1-5