|
MONDAY…”On the ROAD Again…” (Matthew 10:1-15…the Team Roster & Guidelines) Hope you had a great Thanksgiving weekend! And I hope you avoided Veterans Parkway last Friday, but still got some significant Christmas shopping done safely! I’m guessing many of you are doing what my organized wife, Sue Linn is…going thru the names & trying to pick the right gift for family. That’s what Jesus did in our passage today. The disciples are formally mentioned & listed & given specific directions. They were “summoned”, which means you better show up. They were given “authority over unclean spirits” to cast them out and heal every disease and sickness. What a mission! What a privilege! Their purpose was clear & their boundaries in accomplishing this was about to get even clearer. Here are some of the “highlights “ Jesus covered… Who do we go to and who do we avoid? Avoid the Gentiles and Samaritans because it’s not their turn yet…this mission is to the “confused Jews” (lost sheep of Israel). What’s the message again? The Kingdom of Heaven is coming near! (they hadn’t heard anything from God until John the Baptist and now the opening act is over and the Messianic message needs to be belted out! What else do we do besides preach? Oh, yeah…heal, raise, cleanse, cast out! Just like You did, Lord! Sure…piece of cake! Anything we SHOULDN’T DO? Yes. Don’t charge anything. This was free for you and it’s free for them! Less is more….you know, pack light, not even 2 jackets, just the shoe4s you’ve got on and no staff appear you’re impersonating Moses. And when you come to a town, stay with someone who appears worthy of this mission….you know…someone who gets that this is a big spiritual deal! And don’t hop from house to house because some family over there has a pool in their backyard! Give your blessing on them. You’re “representing ME’ and your blessing on them is actually MY blessing on them”! And if some folks are hostile to My message thru you, TTFN, “ta ta for now”! Kinda My way of pronouncing judgment on them because, like I said…..this is serious! Thanks for being gracious in allowing me to paraphrase a little. Ok, a lot. But what a thrill to be sent out on the INITIAL trip representing Jesus declaring the Kingdom of God is at hand! When they get back together they’re gonna have some stories! Just like you and I have some stories of seeing God touch people’s heart with the gospel! Today’s thought is we really are “on the road again”, but in quite a different way that the Willie Nelson song. You and I are “out and about” this holiday season. Ok, Amazon has cut down our “social shopping” to quite an extent, but now is the time, tis the season, this is the ACCEPTABLE MOMENT” to be kind and loving and what an opportunity to direct a conversations with people BEYOND the “holiday spirit” to the SOURCE from whom all blessings flow! May this season be a WORSHIPFUL one. May today start another good week of devotionally focusing on the Lord as we try to get done all that’s on our & make sure He’s at the TOP of every list you and I have! Love you guys & looking forward to seeing you Dec 10th at the GRAND. Make sure & get tickets if you haven’t yet. Not sure there’s many left. Let me leave you with one of the songs you’ll hear that night COME NOW IS THE TIME TO WORSHIP….VINEYARD LINK Talk to you tomorrow as we hit the “hard road” with Jesus…. TUESDAY…”And a HARD ROAD it is!” (Matthew 10:16-23…”When you can’t find the words, the words will be given!) Growing up farming, yet living in a small town, we had all kinds of roads….dirt roads, field roads, gravel roads, asphalt roads, and one road Mom & Dad called the “hard road”. It was concrete Hwy 111 running from Bethalto, IL to Waverly IL and went right thru our little town of 800. We weren’t allowed to ride our bikes on the “hard road” until a certain age. It was different from the others in that you don’t get stuck in the mud, or swerve in the gravel, or get fresh oil stains from the “hard road” like you might on the others. But there was “DANGER” at least potentially on the “hard road”. That’s where the fast cars & big trucks travelled. So we were warned as kids about it. Jesus, in the passage today “warns” his followers about the “hard road” they would travel as they followed Him. Let’s note a few things He mentions. They’re being sent as sheep / among wolves / so be wise as serpents / and as innocent as doves. I love the way Jesus uses every animal reference as possible to make a point and connect their thinking to what they’d be in for! It’s not a dirt or gravel road on this mission. They’re on the “hard road”. And they had better travel with “eyes wide open”. He said they’d be up against adversity in the courts, in synagogues, before governors and even kings because of their faith in Him. Now notice in verse 18, Jesus says it would be “as a testimony to them” (meaning the persecutors) and “as a testimony to the Gentiles”. Now I’m thinking the disciples wondered why is there a need to be a testimony to the Gentiles? You see, Jesus was planting seeds in His disciples’ minds about the Gentiles “mattering”. They weren’t the primary target, but they would observe the behavior of these men Jesus was sending out. That’s what a “testimony” is for. It’s for the benefit of those who hear & see how we talk & act. How we behave. How we live out our faith. How our words and deeds align. And in the next verse, Jesus turns a corner in saying that in the midst of this persecution for following Him, they would have to speak….verbalize….declare….give account for their faith with what sounds like maybe not a the pressure of a “gun to their head”, but at least a “microphone in their face.” And Jesus doesn’t give them “talking points” or a script, but rather promises them they’d be “given the words to say at the time”. He says that for them, there would be a “holy teleprompter”. No one would “text” them their intended reply. He didn’t say to use A.I. (artificial intelligence) for the answers, but rather “be used” by the Holy Spirit as He would be source of their response “in that moment”. So that phrase of “God gave me the words” is very true, if we’re relying on Him! He does and He will if we remain dependent on Him and “abide in Him”! And in the next three verses, Jesus paints a very divisive picture. Remember this is the “hard road”, of fast cars and big trucks. Mad Jewish leaders, skeptical Gentiles & resentful religious people will be travelling at them head on not staying in their lanes! Jesus said brothers will “betray” one another. Fathers will “forsake” their kids and children will “revolt violently” against their parents. And amidst this “cultural chaos”, these disciples will be hated because of Jesus. Believers get blamed. Always have and apparently always will until the Lord returns. And Jesus tells them to “endure”. Stick it out. Don’t let them intimidate you. Don’t pick a fight, but don’t fail to stand for Me! Endure to the end and you’ll be saved! But part of their strategy in getting the word out about the Kingdom of God was not to run and hide, but to relocate on occasion to a more “receptive crowd” or at least a different place. In other words, join the Doobie Brothers spiritually and be “Takin’ it to the Streets”! His message is very simple, yet very hard….. Preach & heal…. Cast out evil….. Do it for free…. Travel light….. Find a faithful spiritual friend….. Don’t waste your time if they’re not receptive…. Be on your guard with eyes wide open….. Wait for My word when the time comes…. Expect resistance….. Go to the next place when they turn up the heat…. Yep, those would be the 10 things every disciple/missionary needs to hear…. Jesus was clear about the mission He was sending them (and us) on….it’s hard! And it’s necessary. For a testimony to be given to them. And for endurance to be developed in us. Others need the opportunity to HEAR and we need the opportunity to GROW! May we indeed faithfully grow ….humbly serve…. passionately share….and joyfully FINISH WELL the mission He has put us on…..together! WEDNESDAY…”the HIGH COST of Following Jesus…” (Matthew 10:24-39…”this HARD ROAD just Added a Few Lanes”) Chuck Swindoll says in his study Bible that in this passage, Jesus helps His followers be prepared for everything they’d most likely encounter. He says that’s the need of every believer, so we should, encourage, encourage, encourage! Kind of like the realtors all feel about “location”. And Jesus does encourage in this passage today. These 16 verses (some sweet, some sour) warn & affirm over and over. That’s what a good spiritual director or coach does. They give both sides with intensity. Let’s look at a few of some of the memorable RED LETTERS of Jesus and allow them to guide our thought today. Verses 24-25….a disciple won’t be ABOVE his teacher but he will become LIKE his teacher (the power of modeling). He then lets them know if they insult Me, they’ll insult you on my behalf. Verses 26-27….don’t fear the wrong people because the truth will all come out, so shout from the rooftops what I whisper in your ear! Verse 28…and don’t be intimidated by those who threaten you with physical violence, but rather always fear God who determines where you spend eternity, in heaven or in hell! Verses 29-31…and know how much you matter to God! More than sparrows (with all due respect). And He knows you specifically….even the decreasing number of hairs on your receding hairline or male pattern baldness. You matter more than you can imagine to God. We all do! Verses 32-33…(and this is a big one). If we acknowledge Him before people, He’ll acknowledge us before His Father in heaven. But if we don’t then neither will He. OK, take this one in for a moment. At a baptism, I always like to quote this passage, because presenting ourselves in baptism is simply acknowledging Jesus as our Lord and Savior and our desperate need for Him. Notice Jesus doesn’t say faith a very private and personal matter. It’s not. It is a deep conviction we hold dear in our heart, but it can’t remain private. Jesus isn’t being offended and taking things too personal like we might sometimes. But He is saying while God’s LOVE is “unconditional”, our salvation isn’t. There are conditions. He doesn’t demand blameless perfection, which we could never accomplish, but He does require faith & loyalty of heart. It’s not just a “nod to God”, but rather a surrendered grateful heart He asks for! And He fulfills His promises….every one of them. But let’s not take Him lightly, nor should we indicate to others that He just needs a “high 5”. Verses 34-36…now it’s heating up. Jesus doesn’t want us to assume that everyone will get on the bus. Every person in our ancestry.com will not have an immediate receptivity to Jesus. He brings peace to those who believe, but our acceptance or rejection of Him will divide friends and families. Jesus is equipping His disciples for a painful reality in this “just so you know” passage today. Verses 37-39….and then He takes it one step farther. Again, Jesus talks to His followers prepare them for the harsh reality of their ministries. He basically says if parents love their kids more than Him….or kids love their parents more than Him, then neither are worthy of Him. I know that sounds counterintuitive, but it’s just a simple matter of “levels of loyalty”. Taking up our “cross” indicates loyalty. Preferring to “sacrifice rather than preserve” our life indicates loyalty. And Jesus points out that only in that act of “letting go” of our lives do we truly “grab hold” of real life. Wow. Sometimes these RED LETTERS are disturbing. But embracing Jesus or refusing Him will take us in 2 totally different directions. And it will cause division. Relational division is painful. It’s heartbreaking. And the Lord wants us to be prepared. Doctors lose patients sometimes. Our job is to live, love and tell….and His job is to draw people in His way and in His time to Himself. I hope you can join us tomorrow as we head further into December and more RED LETTERS in Matthew’s gospel. It lightens up a bit. But Jesus had to say some hard things to His disciples. May we let His world prepare us for what comes in our lives today as well! Bless you Finishing Well Family! THURSDAY…”But WORTH it All” (Matthew 10:40-42….we’re all in “customer service”) One of the things I’ve noticed thru the years in the life of a ministry called Blessing Ranch, founded by Dr. John & Deanna Walker, was the powerful role of “customer or guest services” if you will. In their week-long, intensive-on-location counselling ministry thru the years they had incredible meals, lodging facilities and beautiful surroundings of the rolling hills area of northern Colorado. Their guests were not pampered, but honored, appreciated and given incredible respect by the way they were treated during their “very vulnerable & transforming” week-long stay. It made a potentially difficult experience seem like a privilege and God touched and changed their lives literally 10 out of 10 times. I was blessed to be on their board for nearly 25 years and got to see the impact up close. I remember in my deeply appreciated time at Northside, a lady on our staff serving as our receptionist had such an attentive heart for every call she received! She was known to take extra time helping anyone with any type of question that would pupt them on an “on ramp” to get involved in the life of the church. We wound up adding another lady covering phones with her just to keep that personal DNA of our culture. In one specific instance, she stayed on the phone for 20 minutes simply helping a lady who didn’t even go to our church…..yet. The lady who had called in just had a question about an upcoming baptism of one of her friends who had invited her, but after talking to our receptionist began asking all sorts of theological questions. The lady calling in told us later that she had a background in Customer Services and when she experienced such personal care, she knew that if they ever would attend a church, this would be it! And she and her husband did….and became great servant/leaders in the following years to come. Mostly, because of someone caring & taking time, though they had never even met. Jesus tells His disciples in this very short passage today that if some receives you, they are receiving Me. Then He talks about different types of rewards, which there will be in heaven. You don’t “earn salvation”, but you will be “rewarded for your deeds”. Just making sure we understand that distinction. And He ends this passage with a simple reminder that if we even give a cup of cold water to (what the NIV calls) “a little one who follows Me”, that person will certainly not lose their reward. It sounds to me like Jesus is saying if you work in the Children’s Ministry at church, you’re in for a blessing….if not now, then eventually! You’d think that verse would be used more in volunteer recruitment! It's guest services. It’s caring about people and taking initiative. It’s about honoring someone (in this case a younger someone although I think us older ones count as well) and realizing that this honors God very much! So do we have hearts that are quick to encourage & spend time to help someone in the name of the Lord? Or do we get caught with an overloaded schedule that pushes moments of compassion to the “back burner”? I struggle as much as anyone with this. “Having margin” is difficult for me, even in my “retired” life. The theme of our Event this Christmas at the Grand is “Make Room”. It’s mostly remembered by the Innkeeper who indicated to Mary & Joseph there was “no room at the Inn”, while she was probably having labor pains. But God, in His providence, provided a place. There were some animals nearby. There was no “room service”. But shepherds were allowed visitation privileges. And the star in the eastern sky shone brightly above so they had no trouble getting there. (Even the angels had customer service sensitivity in their directions). So as we end today and you prayerfully get ready for, end, or interrupt your day with this devotional reading…take a moment to hear this song that will say much more succinctly what I’ve been trying to for a couple of pages. Love you guys, Gr MAKE ROOM by CASTING CROWNS LINK FRIDAY…”Now Let Me Get This Straight…” (Matthew 11”1-6…John the Baptist has some Questions”) Ahhhh….Fridays are always good. And we end our devotional week with one of my favorite encounters with Jesus….the moment He had to clarify for John the Baptist (while in prison) that He didn’t miss a thing….He is the Messiah….you did your job right, my good cousin, John! And you’ll be blessed if you don’t let your “misperception” of Me offend you or in any way make you stumble a bit! Just 6 verses. Make sure you read them. Jesus and the 12 are rocking city after city. He’s teachin’… He’s preachin’… He’s doin’ some late night beseechin’! Sorry….caught up in the moment… And John the Baptist has a very brief moment of doubt. Did I miss something? Maybe he thought he’d kind of come alongside Jesus in this “tour of duty”? Maybe he couldn’t imagine he’d end up in prison? Or maybe he just needed to hear the words of Jesus…..one more time! I think all of the above might be true. A Christian singer by the name of Carmen (back in the 80’s & 90’s primarily) had a song depicting this exchange between John the Baptist’s disciples and Jesus….and of course I remember the lyrics…can’t remember what I had for breakfast yesterday but I remember this! Well John the Baptist He’s stuck in prison And he felt discouraged So you know what? He sent his disciples On over to Jesus To ask Him Are You the Messiah, or not? Well they found the Master Down by the river Preachin’ the Kingdom Has come at last And they said, “Sir… Please excuse us But there’s one question We’d like to ask Are You the One Or shall we look For another Are You the One? Are You the One Or shall we look For another Are You the One? Well Jesus turned To those disciples And He said, “Boys, Just watch Me now!” And He performed Some mighty wonders And amazed & awed The crowd Well, those disciples Shook in His presence And they were nearly Turnin’ green! Jesus said, “Boys, You go tell John Not only what you’ve heard But what you’ve seen!” He must be the One He must be the One He must be the One Yes, He must be the One! Well those disciples They flew back to That dirty prison To John the Baptist And they said John Put down those locusts And hey brother, Listen to this! We’ve seen some things I said seen some things! And John, we’ve heard Even more So just sit back & listen For just a moment, John About this man They call the LORD! There’s a man there vexed w/demons That made him scream & shout Just one touch of Jesus’ hand Those demons came right out! He healed a girl that was crippled Her back was bent & sore You remember that old blind man? Well, he ain’t blind no more! Now hold on for this one Just sit back on your bed We’ve seen it with our own 2 eyes This man raises the dead! John jumped up and said “Brothers…. Don’t look another further HE IS THE ONE!” Now I love the way Jesus patiently works with John’s moment of doubt. We’re always in isolation (as John was) when the devil hits us with doubt. And Jesus graciously reminds John with an update of his own ministry….the blind can see / the lame walk / lepers are cleansed / the deaf hear / and last but not least, the good news if preached to the poor! In other words, John, know you’re on the bench right now but the Kingdom is coming! You kicked it off brother, but I’m doing what I’m called to do now….just as you did when you were on the “outside”! And Jesus ends this moment by sending a blessing to those who “don’t take offense at Me”. John, you ushered Me in and I about to do the work of what you, yourself described about Me….I’m about to become the “Lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world”! Now the disciples, even at the Ascension in Acts 1, were asking Jesus if it was time to overpower the Romans now? But it wasn’t. Nor was it the time for John to be released from prison and take a victory lap. It was time for Jesus to bring the Kingdom about in the hearts of the people. As it is today. With our assistance. We’re just His representatives. We’ve been given the “ministry of reconciliation”, Paul told the Corinthians. Don’t ever think God is done with you! It’s just a new season. We’re still in the game, on the field, we just might be “working remotely” it seems like compared to what we used to, but EVERYBODY seems to be going remotely today! Let this Christmas be a great Christmas! Let it be another special holiday that you reach out and touch a life and heart helping someone come to a saving faith in Jesus Christ! Bless you this weekend…..and talk to you Monday!
|
