Rebel without a brain...

As sinful people we are in constant rebellion against God.  If you stop and think about it, this rebellion often leads to ridiculous and downright stupid behavior.  We are like children rebelling against their parents that refuse to eat the ice cream just to prove a point, or who break their favorite toy because we are mad.  Hello!  Eat the ice cream and keep toy.  I am not saying that all forms of rebellion are bad, for we are told to rebel against the forces of evil and sin in this world, to rebel against our flesh and the temptations of the Devil.  But, to rebel against the Lord?  Stupid!  Read the following passage from the book of Hosea.  God is talking about the Israelites and how they were rebelling against him and yet were clueless as to why they were suffering and how they were refusing to submit and return to Him. 

Hosea 7:1-2, 11-16

When I would heal Israel,
    the iniquity of Ephraim is revealed,
    and the evil deeds of Samaria;
for they deal falsely;
    the thief breaks in,
    and the bandits raid outside.
² But they do not consider
    that I remember all their evil.
Now their deeds surround them;
    they are before my face…

¹¹Ephraim is like a dove,
    silly and without sense,
    calling to Egypt, going to Assyria.
¹² As they go, I will spread over them my net;
    I will bring them down like birds of the heavens;
    I will discipline them according to the report made to their congregation.
¹³ Woe to them, for they have strayed from me!
    Destruction to them, for they have rebelled against me!
I would redeem them,
    but they speak lies against me.

¹⁴ They do not cry to me from the heart,
    but they wail upon their beds;
for grain and wine they gash themselves;
    they rebel against me.
¹⁵ Although I trained and strengthened their arms,
    yet they devise evil against me.
¹⁶ They return, but not upward;
    they are like a treacherous bow;
their princes shall fall by the sword
    because of the insolence of their tongue.
This shall be their derision in the land of Egypt.

Things to think about:

·      Notice God’s attitude throughout this passage…I see at least two themes. 

o       God is judging them for their sin.

o       God wants to heal them and bring them back to give them peace and comfort and love.

·      Notice the dumb things the Israelites do:

o       They seek help from Egypt and Assyria, and not from the Lord.  Who would be better at helping – nations that you have previously been at war with and who would kill you if they had the chance, or the God that has rescued you and protected you for hundreds of years?

o       They lie to God and they lie about God…as if God doesn’t know what is true or false…He is God after all.

o       They refuse to return to God.  God is waiting with open arms and yet the people refuse to return to Him.  Even in their destruction and pain pride and doubt prevent them from finding peace.

o       They cry on their beds, but do not cry out to the Lord…Think about this one for a bit.  Have you ever cried on your bed and forgotten to cry out to the Lord.  Your bed can not help you – But God Can!

·      All of us need to recognize our rebellion against God, even us believers.  All sin is one form of rebellion or another.  May you put the silly was aside and humbly return to the Lord today!  Seek Him, cry to Him, run to Him, pray to Him, and submit to Him.  He loves you and is waiting to redeem you and bring you back into His arms where you belong.  

Swallowed up by life

This past week I attended a funeral for a man that was the father of one of our church members.  I had never met him, but wanted to go to the funeral to show support to the family.  It was a great service and a great testimony to the man’s faith in Jesus Christ and hope for eternal life.  Yes, it was sad for the family to say goodbye, but it was also a time of rejoicing that he was with Jesus in Heaven.  Then, last night for youth group we were looking at a great passage of scripture; 2 Corinthians 5.  Let me share a portion of that with you now and then let’s think through some of what Paul is saying as it relates to dying, death, and life.

2 Corinthians 5:1-10

For we know that if the tent that is our earthly home is destroyed, we have a building from God, a house not made with hands, eternal in the heavens.  ²For in this tent we groan, longing to put on our heavenly dwelling, ³ if indeed by putting it on we may not be found naked. ⁴ For while we are still in this tent, we groan, being burdened—not that we would be unclothed, but that we would be further clothed, so that what is mortal may be swallowed up by life. ⁵ He who has prepared us for this very thing is God, who has given us the Spirit as a guarantee.

⁶ So we are always of good courage. We know that while we are at home in the body we are away from the Lord, ⁷ for we walk by faith, not by sight. ⁸ Yes, we are of good courage, and we would rather be away from the body and at home with the Lord. ⁹ So whether we are at home or away, we make it our aim to please him. ¹⁰ For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, so that each one may receive what is due for what he has done in the body, whether good or evil.

Things to think about:

·      Paul is making a comparison between a tent and a home/house.  What is the metaphor supposed to teach us?  What is the tent?  The home?

·      In verses 2 and 4 he talks about our current situation where we groan and long for something more.  In your life how would you describe these groans and longing?

·      Look at verse 4 again – when we are further clothed what is mortal will be swallowed up by life.  What an amazing phrase.  We often think of death as the end or a tragedy…but for the believer it isn’t the end, it is really the beginning of true life.  If you want to know what living is ask a dead Christian.  They would say that the life we have now in this “tent” is like living in a fog, like seeing things poorly, like living in uncertainty.  Life after “death” is what living is really all about.  That is life!  What an idea to rethink the death of a believer as their life being swallowed up by life; real life.  Abundant life! 

·      We know that we receive this life because of the guarantee of the Holy Spirit so we are in good courage! 

·      We have a mission, we have a purpose – and that purpose is the same purpose that we will have in Heaven!  What is that purpose?...read verse 9 again.

May God give us courage as we wait for the day when we too are “swallowed up by life…”

The Tapestry of Life

What did you do today?  Think about it.  What happened?  For some of you maybe you had a really significant day where you graduated from something, had a child, celebrated a major event, or finished a major project; but for most of us it was probably just a normal day.  On these normal days do you ever stop to think “what’s the point of it all?”  There is a temptation to live from one major event to the next and just try and “get through” or “survive” the days in between.  My prayer for you if you are reading this is to not let that be the case.  You were created by a God of purpose, a God of planning, and a God of wisdom.  No day is a waste for it all shapes us into who God wants us to be.  I was reminded of this simple truth today when I finished a book called The Family Blessing by Rolf Garborg.  In the last chapter the author reflects on his fathers final days here on earth and quotes the last thing his father read – a devotional called Rest a While from Norway, written in 1948.  I thought it was so good I wanted to give it to you in its entirety.  Here it is:

Like a weaver I have rolled up my life;
He cuts me off from the loom;
From day to night Thou dost bring me to an end.
Isaiah 38:12

A human life is likened unto a tapestry that is to be woven.  Day by day the shuttle moves back and forth, and the tapestry grows.  As thread is laid upon thread, the design begins to emerge.  A thread is such a tiny thing.  And yet the whole tapestry is made up of such threads.  If some threads are improperly woven, the whole design will be marred.
A day appears so small and insignificant.  And yet, each day is a part of my whole life.  If each single day is lived improperly and carelessly, what will this do to the design of my life?  When the tapestry is finished, it is rolled up, and the ends of the threads are cut off.  Then it can be woven no more.  It is put away until the day when it is placed on exhibition and judged.
Dear God, grant that the tapestry of my life may be properly wove.  I give Thee the shuttle.  Do with me as Thou wilt, if only Thy image may some day be the design in my tapestry when the threads of my life are cut off, and the tapestry is judged.

Things to think about:
• I love that last line about the image of God being the final design of my tapestry.  Is that your prayer today?  Do you wish that God would make you look more like Himself, that you would more accurately reflect who God is, what He is like, and give Him glory with the finished product of your life?
• When you think about a tapestry or rug made of so many little threads it is hard to picture any kind of finished design when you are just staring at a bunch of colored string.  It is not until the weaver begins his work and color is added to color and patterns are established that we can see purpose and design.  The same is true for our lives.  Every moment is but a thread that alone may seem carelessly chosen – but remember the weaver that designs our lives.  He has a purpose for every string.  Do we trust Him with the design of our lives?

Questions worth asking

I was reading a good book today about raising your kids Biblically which is called The Legacy Path by Brian Hynes.  In the book he asks a series of questions to the parents.  His main point in asking is to get parents to think about their own faith before setting out to influence the faith of their kids.  So, for today’s Bible Time let’s start with an extended quote from this book and then we will turn to the Word of God for encouragement.

How is your relationship with Christ?  Is it superficial and religious lacking a compelling reason for anyone else to want what you have, including you?  Or, is it a relationship with Jesus that directs your steps, influences every decision, is central to every relationship, and sends you on grand adventures?  Is yours a relationship with the King that takes every thought captive and seeks to bring glory to His name?  Not one stooped in legalism but instead defined by love.  Do you go to Him first when times get tough?  Is there any sense of risk involved in your life driven by a zealous love for God?  Do you care more about self, success, and stuff or are you motivated by a passion for the Kingdom of God?  Do other people see your life and want it because of Christ in you or because of what you have accomplished or amassed?  Is the extent of your life in Christ what happens on Sunday morning or is church a biblical community, launching you into the rest of the week?  When did you last pray for more than 3 minutes?  What was the last Scripture you memorized?  What did God say to you from His Word today?

Wow!  What a series of questions that I pray will cause all of us to stop and think.  Being reminded of what is truly important in life is always a good thing.  With that being said let’s read what God says about what is important…

1 Corinthians 15:1-11

 Now I would remind you, brothers, of the gospel I preached to you, which you received, in which you stand, and by which you are being saved, if you hold fast to the word I preached to you—unless you believed in vain.

For I delivered to you as of first importance what I also received: that Christ died for our sins in accordance with the Scriptures, that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day in accordance with the Scriptures, and that he appeared to Cephas, then to the twelve.  Then he appeared to more than five hundred brothers at one time, most of whom are still alive, though some have fallen asleep.  Then he appeared to James, then to all the apostles.  Last of all, as to one untimely born, he appeared also to me.   For I am the least of the apostles, unworthy to be called an apostle, because I persecuted the church of God.  But by the grace of God I am what I am, and his grace toward me was not in vain. On the contrary, I worked harder than any of them, though it was not I, but the grace of God that is with me.   Whether then it was I or they, so we preach and so you believed.

Things to think about:

·      Before you can ever start thinking about how your relationship with Christ is going you must first HAVE a relationship with Christ.  Believe in what He has done and be saved. 

·      Once you have a relationship it needs to be motivated by love, respect, honor, and desire; not guilt, shame, fear, and bribery. 

·      Come to God and say, “I am what I am, but because of your grace you can change me into who I never thought I could be!”  

Enter His Rest

Have you ever been tired?  What a silly question.  Of course you have been tire!  Have you noticed that in our culture we all just operate in a semi-exhausted state?  Nowadays if you are considered lazy if you don’t work so hard and have a thousand things to do all the time.  If you have kids this is especially true of you with all of the sports, school, activities, etc.  We as a society have become so busy, so tired, so burned out, that we often are just trying to keep our heads above water.  Well, Jesus has a message for you today!

Matthew 11:25-30

²⁵ At that time Jesus declared, “I thank you, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, that you have hidden these things from the wise and understanding and revealed them to little children; ²⁶ yes, Father, for such was your gracious will. ²⁷ All things have been handed over to me by my Father, and no one knows the Son except the Father, and no one knows the Father except the Son and anyone to whom the Son chooses to reveal him. ²⁸ Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. ²⁹ Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. ³⁰ For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.”

Things to think about:

·      Read the passage again…where do we find rest for our souls?

·       It is interesting that when Jesus asks, “Are you tired?” his answer for being tired is to have more of Him.  So, are you tired?  Seek after Christ and you will find rest!  Regardless of what is going on in life, regardless of the struggles, the pain, the stress, the anxiety, the worry, you will find rest for your soul in Jesus Christ! 

·      Notice that it isn’t about what you can do to earn a place of rest or how hard you work in order to achieve this light and easy burden…it is about who Jesus is and what he has done!  Praise God that He is so gracious and generous to call us into His rest!  May we go and find satisfaction for our souls…

Grace, grace, and more grace...

Have you ever felt like you just weren't good enough?  Good!  Because you’re not!  That may sound harsh, but it is true.  The grace of God seems small in our eyes when we start thinking we have it all together.  “I am pretty good,” we start to think, “but Jesus just makes up the difference; because nobody can be perfect…right?”  But then it happens.  Maybe on one of those days where things don’t seem to go your way, or a person makes a comment that reminds you of your failures, it all seems to come flying in your face how undeserving you really are.  On those days and at those times the answer is not to remind yourself that there is “always tomorrow” and think of the “good” days.  The answer is to think of the cross!  You did not deserve that!  It was all grace.  We do not meet God half way; He comes to us in our rebellion and depravity to rescue our undeserving, lifeless corps.  It is only by God’s grace that we know life, that we know light, that we know good, that we know love, that we know anything at all.  When we are reminded of God’s grace in daily life, we are reminded of God’s grace for eternal life.  Praise be to God that it does not depend on me, but rests completely on His love, His mercy, His Grace, His death, His will.

Romans 5:1-11
“Therefore, since we have been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ. 2 Through him we have also obtained access by faith into this grace in which we stand, and we rejoice in hope of the glory of God. 3 Not only that, but we rejoice in our sufferings, knowing that suffering produces endurance, 4 and endurance produces character, and character produces hope, 5 and hope does not put us to shame, because God's love has been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit who has been given to us.6 For while we were still weak, at the right time Christ died for the ungodly. 7 For one will scarcely die for a righteous person—though perhaps for a good person one would dare even to die— 8 but God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us. 9 Since, therefore, we have now been justified by his blood, much more shall we be saved by him from the wrath of God. 10 For if while we were enemies we were reconciled to God by the death of his Son, much more, now that we are reconciled, shall we be saved by his life. 11 More than that, we also rejoice in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have now received reconciliation.”

Things to think about:
• The first sentence of this passage blows me away…we have peace with God!  Peace!  No more strife, no more trouble, no more fighting over sin, no more rebellion, but Peace!  And this peace comes not by good works, obedience or anything in me, but by faith.  (And that faith given to me by the grace of God…Eph. 2:8-9)
• If the first verse were not enough we get to verse 2 and Paul says we not only have peace but we have obtained access into God’s unlimited Grace.  You bet we should rejoice in our hope of the glory of God!
• Now comes the hard verses – how do we rejoice in our sufferings?  How does this fit with the theme Paul is explaining in this passage?
• I quote Romans 5:8 all the time because for me it represents God’s grace for us sinners.  But, maybe I should keep going and say verse 9 and 10 as well…We are not only saved from our sin, we are brought into life!  True life with God.  True life in communion with the creator and sustainer of the entire universe.  We have been made right with God through the grace of Jesus Christ.  We believe by faith and wait for the day when our hope becomes reality.

One final passage to think about on your own…or possible to memorize because it is so good.

1 Timothy 1:15-17
“The saying is trustworthy and deserving of full acceptance, that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners, of whom I am the foremost.  But I received mercy for this reason, that in me as the foremost, Jesus Christ might display his perfect patience as an example to those who were to believe in him for eternal life.  To the King of ages, immortal, invisible, the only God, be honor and glory forever and ever.  Amen.”

Holy, Holy, Holy is the Lord God Almighty!

What does it mean for God to be “holy?”  Well, the answer to that question would take longer than I have here, but one simple way to explain it is that God is set-apart, different, perfect, etc.  It is easy to bring God down to our level and see him the way we see other people, or even ourselves; maybe just a little bit more powerful.  But, God is so completely different than you and I it should be shocking to hear that He would come as a man to this earth and die on a cross for our sins.  Following is a fun story out of the book of 1 Samuel that shows us how “Holy” God really is…let’s read it and think about the Holiness of God.

Background – The Ark of the Covenant was a physical box covered in gold that contained Aaron’s staff, the ten commandments, and most importantly was where the glory of the Lord resided among the people of Israel.  God told them that he would be their God and would dwell with them.  The Ark was supposed to be kept in the Holy of Holy’s and only the High priest was supposed to even see it, and that only once a year…There were a lot of rules that the people of God had to follow because God was dwelling with them and He is Holy.  One day in battle the Ark of the covenant was taken by the Philistines.  The whole account can be read in 1 Samuel 4-6, but here are a few key passages.

1 Samuel 5:1-6

When the Philistines captured the ark of God, they brought it from Ebenezer to Ashdod.  Then the Philistines took the ark of God and brought it into the house of Dagon and set it up beside Dagon.  And when the people of Ashdod rose early the next day, behold, Dagon had fallen face downward on the ground before the ark of the Lord. So they took Dagon and put him back in his place.  But when they rose early on the next morning, behold, Dagon had fallen face downward on the ground before the ark of the Lord, and the head of Dagon and both his hands were lying cut off on the threshold. Only the trunk of Dagon was left to him.  This is why the priests of Dagon and all who enter the house of Dagon do not tread on the threshold of Dagon in Ashdod to this day.  The hand of the Lord was heavy against the people of Ashdod, and he terrified and afflicted them with tumors, both Ashdod and its territory.

1 Samuel 5:9

But after they had brought it around, the hand of the Lord was against the city, causing a very great panic, and he afflicted the men of the city, both young and old, so that tumors broke out on them.

1 Samuel 6:1-6

 The ark of the Lord was in the country of the Philistines seven months. ² And the Philistines called for the priests and the diviners and said, “What shall we do with the ark of the Lord? Tell us with what we shall send it to its place.” ³ They said, “If you send away the ark of the God of Israel, do not send it empty, but by all means return him a guilt offering. Then you will be healed, and it will be known to you why his hand does not turn away from you.” ⁴ And they said, “What is the guilt offering that we shall return to him?” They answered, “Five golden tumors and five golden mice, according to the number of the lords of the Philistines, for the same plague was on all of you and on your lords. ⁵ So you must make images of your tumors and images of your mice that ravage the land, and give glory to the God of Israel. Perhaps he will lighten his hand from off you and your gods and your land. ⁶ Why should you harden your hearts as the Egyptians and Pharaoh hardened their hearts? After he had dealt severely with them, did they not send the people away, and they departed?

1 Samuel 6:19-21

And he struck some of the men of Beth-shemesh, because they looked upon the ark of the Lord. He struck seventy men of them, and the people mourned because the Lord had struck the people with a great blow. ²⁰ Then the men of Beth-shemesh said, “Who is able to stand before the Lord, this holy God? And to whom shall he go up away from us?” ²¹ So they sent messengers to the inhabitants of Kiriath-jearim, saying, “The Philistines have returned the ark of the Lord. Come down and take it up to you.”

Things to think about:

·      One thing that sets God apart is that he does not share his glory with anyone or anything!  The false god of the Philistines falls to the ground and breaks apart because God is Holy!

·      Another truth about the Holiness of God is that He is powerful and can take care of Himself.  Our God is not a weak god, a god who needs our help, a god who gets stuck.  He allows things to happen, but he shows his glory and his holiness by inflicting tumors on the Philistines.  God can take care of himself, he does not need us, He is Holy.

·      Notice too that even the people of Israel suffered because they didn’t respect the Holiness of God. 

·      How do you respect the Holiness of God?

·      Think about how Holy God is – then think about what an amazing sacrifice it really was for Him to come to this earth and live as a man, dying on a cross for you and I…

What a hypocrite!

One of the main complaints I hear about Christianity is that it is filled with hypocrites.  Have you ever heard that before?  People say, “I don’t go to church because I found people there that were hypocrites, and I don’t like hypocrites…”  My usual response to this statement is, “I agree that churches are filled with hypocrites, why not come and join us, you’ll fit right inJ.”  Let’s be honest, nobody lives what they say all the time; we all make claims that we can’t live up to, right?  Only Jesus did everything that he said he would do and lived up to his own standard all the time.  The rest of us are officially hypocrites!  If you feel bad about being a hypocrite, that fine you should, but don’t feel too bad because even the disciples were hypocrites on occasion.  Read the following passage from Galatians and see how the apostle Peter was a hypocrite.

Galatians 2:11-14

¹¹ But when Cephas came to Antioch, I opposed him to his face, because he stood condemned. ¹² For before certain men came from James, he was eating with the Gentiles; but when they came he drew back and separated himself, fearing the circumcision party. ¹³ And the rest of the Jews acted hypocritically along with him, so that even Barnabas was led astray by their hypocrisy. ¹⁴ But when I saw that their conduct was not in step with the truth of the gospel, I said to Cephas before them all, “If you, though a Jew, live like a Gentile and not like a Jew, how can you force the Gentiles to live like Jews?”

Background info:

·      “Cephas” is another name for the apostle Peter…

·      A Jew is a person that belongs to the nation of Israel.  They were raised with the Old Testament laws including circumcision which was a sign given to them by God that set them apart from the rest of the world.  It was a huge part of their culture/religion/upbringing to be set apart (holy) for the Lord.  They grew up not eating certain foods, not sitting with certain people, not doing certain things…

·      When Jesus came and offered forgiveness for all people he fulfilled the law.  We are not saved by being a Jew or by living up to any standard that has been set up, we are saved by grace through faith…read the rest of Galatians to get that message.

·      But, what happened in this story is Peter (yes Peter the guy that was with Jesus during his ministry and was called the pillar of the church…etc) came to Antioch where Paul was doing ministry and he started eating with the Gentiles and other believers…but then some different people from Jerusalem came that thought you had to not only believe in Jesus but had to be circumcised and follow the OT laws – so Peter stops eating with the Gentiles because he is embarrassed and feels like he is being judged…

·      Paul calls him a hypocrite to his face!

Things to think about:

·      When was the last time you knew you were being a hypocrite?  Have you ever been called a hypocrite to your face?

·      Have you ever felt peer pressure like Peter felt?  Peer pressure can make us do a lot of things that we feel violates our beliefs. 

·      Notice how quickly things went down hill…first Peter starts to pull away, then Barnabas, and who know how many others…Often when one or two fall into hypocrisy and sin many others fall with them.  Are you pulling others down with your actions?

·      Jesus did not like hypocrites.  He often called them out on their sin.  He calls us out as well…but here is the good news…he loves us so much that in our hypocrisy and sin he died on the cross for our sins and offers us forgiveness and right standing before him…what an amazing gift! 

Have a great week!

Oh, what to do...

As a youth pastor I often get asked spiritual questions.  Duh, it kind of goes with the job.  But, one question I get asked almost on a weekly basis in one form or another is, “what does God want me to do with my life?”  Teenagers are often trying to decide what school to attend, what subject to study, what girl to date, what sport to play, whether to go or not go on a particular mission trip, etc. Whether you are a teenager or not I am sure you ask this question on a regular basis – what does God want me to do with my life?  What does God want me to do today?  What does God want me to do right now?

Here is the problem – I don’t know!  Well, let me take that back, I do know some of what God wants you to do, but not everything he wants you to do in every situation.  Often people are asking for a specific answer (yes or no) to a decision they have to make.  Instead of focusing on those types of questions I think the Bible has a lot to say about the bigger questions of how to live life every day moment by moment.  In my opinion if you live the way God wants you to live it probably doesn’t matter what school you go to or what job you have.  Or, put another way, until you figure out how to live the way God has already clearly told you to live maybe don’t worry so much about all the decisions that God hasn’t said anything about; like school, job, girlfriend, etc.

 Read through this passage and get a sense of what I am talking about.

Romans 12:9-21

^“9 Let love be genuine. Abhor what is evil; hold fast to what is good. ¹⁰ Love one another with brotherly affection. Outdo one another in showing honor. ¹¹ Do not be slothful in zeal, be fervent in spirit, serve the Lord. ¹² Rejoice in hope, be patient in tribulation, be constant in prayer. ¹³ Contribute to the needs of the saints and seek to show hospitality.

¹⁴ Bless those who persecute you; bless and do not curse them. ¹⁵ Rejoice with those who rejoice, weep with those who weep. ¹⁶ Live in harmony with one another. Do not be haughty, but associate with the lowly. Never be wise in your own sight. ¹⁷ Repay no one evil for evil, but give thought to do what is honorable in the sight of all. ¹⁸ If possible, so far as it depends on you, live peaceably with all. ¹⁹ Beloved, never avenge yourselves, but leave it to the wrath of God, for it is written, “Vengeance is mine, I will repay, says the Lord.” ²⁰ To the contrary, “if your enemy is hungry, feed him; if he is thirsty, give him something to drink; for by so doing you will heap burning coals on his head.” ²¹ Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.”

Things to think about:

·      One important note about this passage is that it is talking to believers who have already trusted Christ as their savior and who follow after Him.  We are not saved by obeying this list, nor are we made any more righteous in God’s sight.  We are saved by God’s grace and the gift of salvation because of what Jesus did on the cross, and we are made righteous through Christ and can not be made any more righteous than what He has already done for us. 
·      As believers though this is the way God wants us to live.  This is the type of attitude we should be walking around with.  These are the things we should be striving for in every moment of every day. 
·      Think about a society that lived this way all the time…sounds like heaven doesn’t it?
·      Out of this list what seems most difficult for you?  Why?  Say a prayer right now asking God to help you in this area.  Think of a situation right now that you could do differently if you were to live this way. 
·      As you try and figure out what God’s will is for your life start with what you know…and you know he wants you to live this way in all times and with all people. 

The Roller Coaster of Sin

       So, let’s jump into it…have you ever had a bad day?  Not a bad day where your hair doesn’t look nice, or you get a scratch on your car.  I am talking about a bad day where you and God just don’t seem to get along, or when you just seem to forget all that God has done for you and go your own way?  Stop and think about a time when this phrase could have been said about you, “you forgot about the Lord and did what was evil in the sight of the Lord…”

        As I was reading through Judges this idea of forgetting about God and pursuing evil is a constant theme that is important to catch when understanding God’s interaction with the people of Israel…and us for that matter.  Listen to these verses and see if you can hear the pattern.

Judges 2:10

  ^“And all that generation also were gathered to their fathers. And there arose another generation after them who did not know the Lord or the work that he had done for Israel.”

 Judges 3:7

“And the people of Israel did what was evil in the sight of the Lord. They forgot the Lord their God and served the Baals and the Asheroth.”

Judges 3:12

“And the people of Israel again did what was evil in the sight of the Lord, and the Lord strengthened Eglon the king of Moab against Israel, because they had done what was evil in the sight of the Lord.”

 Judges 4:1

“And the people of Israel again did what was evil in the sight of the Lord after Ehud died.”

Judges 6:1

“The people of Israel did what was evil in the sight of the Lord, and the Lord gave them into the hand of Midian seven years”

 Judges 10:6

^“ The people of Israel again did what was evil in the sight of the Lord and served the Baals and the Ashtaroth, the gods of Syria, the gods of Sidon, the gods of Moab, the gods of the Ammonites, and the gods of the Philistines. And they forsook the Lord and did not serve him.”

 Judges 13:1

“And the people of Israel again did what was evil in the sight of the Lord, so the Lord gave them into the hand of the Philistines for forty years.”

 Judges 21:25

“In those days there was no king in Israel.  Everyone did what was right in his own eyes.”

 Judges 2:1-5

 “Now the angel of the Lord went up from Gilgal to Bochim. And he said, “I brought you up from Egypt and brought you into the land that I swore to give to your fathers. I said, ‘I will never break my covenant with you, ² and you shall make no covenant with the inhabitants of this land; you shall break down their altars.’ But you have not obeyed my voice. What is this you have done? ³ So now I say, I will not drive them out before you, but they shall become thorns in your sides, and their gods shall be a snare to you.” ⁴ As soon as the angel of the Lord spoke these words to all the people of Israel, the people lifted up their voices and wept. ⁵ And they called the name of that place Bochim. And they sacrificed there to the Lord.”

 Things to think about:

·      Do you see the pattern of disobedience and forgetting the Lord?  If you read through the book of Judges you can see a bunch of stories where many people died and many people suffered because they forgot about God, went their own way, worshiped false gods, and did evil in the eyes of the Lord.  You would think they would learn their lesson?  But, then think about your own life – how often do you need to be taught the same lesson?
·      Why is it that people almost always tend to drift away from the Lord during the good times?  The passages above almost always follow a section that describes 10 years, 30 years, 50 years of peace…then evil and destruction.  When things are going well in your life do you tend to pursue God or do you tend to get comfortable in life and become sidetracked – and possibly even worshiping false gods like; money, power, status, stuff, etc. 
·      If we are left to our own devices we would pursue evil all the time, but God in His Grace has loved us – Romans 5:8 “but God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.” And he chose to save us from this back and forth sin – peace – sin – peace rollercoaster that the Israelites were on.  He saves us for all time and give us lasting peace, lasting hope, and eternal security! 

2 Corinthians 5:17-21

“Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come. ¹⁸ All this is from God, who through Christ reconciled us to himself and gave us the ministry of reconciliation; ¹⁹ that is, in Christ God was reconciling the world to himself, not counting their trespasses against them, and entrusting to us the message of reconciliation. ²⁰ Therefore, we are ambassadors for Christ, God making his appeal through us. We implore you on behalf of Christ, be reconciled to God. ²¹ For our sake he made him to be sin who knew no sin, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.”

Is it time to step off the rollercoaster of sin and trust fully in the Lord?!  I think it is.  Have a great week, and don’t be like the Israelites and forget about what God has done.

The Golden Calf and the Cross

        Have you ever read something a bunch of times, but then you read it again and all of a sudden a new kind of understanding strikes you?  There is something there that you didn’t see at first?  That happened to me the other day when I was preparing to teach the story of The Golden Calf out of Exodus.  If you are unfamiliar with that story basically the Israelites have lost faith in Moses and in God because they were taking too long on Mt. Sinai writing down the 10 commandments.  The people pressured Aaron (Moses’ brother) to make an idol that would be their god that could lead them to the promised land.  I don’t think the people stopped believing in God (the real God), since they could see the giant cloud on the mountain and hear the thunder and lightning.  They also just witnessed the 10 plagues and the parting of the red sea…I don’t think anyone doubted God existed and was powerful.  What they had a problem with was the idea that God was on their side, God had their best interests in mind, that God was the one and only God that deserved all praise and worship.  They came out of Egypt with which had multiple gods and prayed to all kinds of things.  The Israelites wanted a god they could carry around, a god they could touch, a god they could see, and a god they could control.  But, as we soon find out in the story God is a jealous God and does not share His glory with anything.  Read the following passage and see if you pick up on some of the specifics.  Can you feel the emotions in the story; both God’s and the people’s?  What details stand out to you?  Why?                                               

Exodus 32

When the people saw that Moses delayed to come down from the mountain, the people gathered themselves together to Aaron and said to him, “Up, make us gods who shall go before us. As for this Moses, the man who brought us up out of the land of Egypt, we do not know what has become of him.” ² So Aaron said to them, “Take off the rings of gold that are in the ears of your wives, your sons, and your daughters, and bring them to me.” ³ So all the people took off the rings of gold that were in their ears and brought them to Aaron. ⁴ And he received the gold from their hand and fashioned it with a graving tool and made a golden calf. And they said, “These are your gods, O Israel, who brought you up out of the land of Egypt!” ⁵ When Aaron saw this, he built an altar before it. And Aaron made a proclamation and said, “Tomorrow shall be a feast to the Lord.” ⁶ And they rose up early the next day and offered burnt offerings and brought peace offerings. And the people sat down to eat and drink and rose up to play.

⁷ And the Lord said to Moses, “Go down, for your people, whom you brought up out of the land of Egypt, have corrupted themselves. ⁸ They have turned aside quickly out of the way that I commanded them. They have made for themselves a golden calf and have worshiped it and sacrificed to it and said, ‘These are your gods, O Israel, who brought you up out of the land of Egypt!’” ⁹ And the Lord said to Moses, “I have seen this people, and behold, it is a stiff-necked people. ¹⁰ Now therefore let me alone, that my wrath may burn hot against them and I may consume them, in order that I may make a great nation of you.”

¹¹ But Moses implored the Lord his God and said, “O Lord, why does your wrath burn hot against your people, whom you have brought out of the land of Egypt with great power and with a mighty hand? ¹² Why should the Egyptians say, ‘With evil intent did he bring them out, to kill them in the mountains and to consume them from the face of the earth’? Turn from your burning anger and relent from this disaster against your people. ¹³ Remember Abraham, Isaac, and Israel, your servants, to whom you swore by your own self, and said to them, ‘I will multiply your offspring as the stars of heaven, and all this land that I have promised I will give to your offspring, and they shall inherit it forever.’” ¹⁴ And the Lord relented from the disaster that he had spoken of bringing on his people.

¹⁵ Then Moses turned and went down from the mountain with the two tablets of the testimony in his hand, tablets that were written on both sides; on the front and on the back they were written. ¹⁶ The tablets were the work of God, and the writing was the writing of God, engraved on the tablets. ¹⁷ When Joshua heard the noise of the people as they shouted, he said to Moses, “There is a noise of war in the camp.” ¹⁸ But he said, “It is not the sound of shouting for victory, or the sound of the cry of defeat, but the sound of singing that I hear.” ¹⁹ And as soon as he came near the camp and saw the calf and the dancing, Moses' anger burned hot, and he threw the tablets out of his hands and broke them at the foot of the mountain. ²⁰ He took the calf that they had made and burned it with fire and ground it to powder and scattered it on the water and made the people of Israel drink it.

²¹ And Moses said to Aaron, “What did this people do to you that you have brought such a great sin upon them?” ²² And Aaron said, “Let not the anger of my lord burn hot. You know the people, that they are set on evil. ²³ For they said to me, ‘Make us gods who shall go before us. As for this Moses, the man who brought us up out of the land of Egypt, we do not know what has become of him.’ ²⁴ So I said to them, ‘Let any who have gold take it off.’ So they gave it to me, and I threw it into the fire, and out came this calf.”

²⁵ And when Moses saw that the people had broken loose (for Aaron had let them break loose, to the derision of their enemies), ²⁶ then Moses stood in the gate of the camp and said, “Who is on the Lord's side? Come to me.” And all the sons of Levi gathered around him. ²⁷ And he said to them, “Thus says the Lord God of Israel, ‘Put your sword on your side each of you, and go to and fro from gate to gate throughout the camp, and each of you kill his brother and his companion and his neighbor.’” ²⁸ And the sons of Levi did according to the word of Moses. And that day about three thousand men of the people fell. ²⁹ And Moses said, “Today you have been ordained for the service of the Lord, each one at the cost of his son and of his brother, so that he might bestow a blessing upon you this day.”

³⁰ The next day Moses said to the people, “You have sinned a great sin. And now I will go up to the Lord; perhaps I can make atonement for your sin.” ³¹ So Moses returned to the Lord and said, “Alas, this people has sinned a great sin. They have made for themselves gods of gold. ³² But now, if you will forgive their sin—but if not, please blot me out of your book that you have written.” ³³ But the Lord said to Moses, “Whoever has sinned against me, I will blot out of my book. ³⁴ But now go, lead the people to the place about which I have spoken to you; behold, my angel shall go before you. Nevertheless, in the day when I visit, I will visit their sin upon them.”

³⁵ Then the Lord sent a plague on the people, because they made the calf, the one that Aaron made.

Things to think about:

·      What would it have been like to be Moses?  You think things are going well and then you hear straight from God that your family, friends, and people have committed a huge sin and God is going to completely wipe them out and kill them all?  Everyone you know – dead.  Read verse 11 again to see Moses’ reaction…you bet he “implored the LORD!” 
·      What kind of prayer is that from Moses?  Do you pray that way?  Read it again…notice that Moses refers to God’s fame, God’s great name, God’s reputation.  “God don’t do this because people will not know the truth about you and will speak poorly of you.  They will say you are an evil God…”  Have you ever prayed that way?
·      Stop and take a moment to consider the punishment that the people did receive…they were all going to die, but because of God’s mercy some survived, but what was that like?  Think of that experience as a Levite.  They took their swords and killed “brothers, companions, neighbors, and sons…”  At the cost of their own son they were given the blessing of the Lord.  Could you imagine killing your own son?  The question is absurd and horrific.  YET!  That is exactly what God did for us! 
·      These people deserved total annihilation and received mercy!  Jesus deserved praise and honor and glory and NO punishment, but he chose to be punished and die in our place.  God the Father killed His Son so that you and I could receive eternal Mercy!  Take the appalling emotions that these Israelites experienced on that day when they killed their loved ones including their son and that comes a step closer to understanding the experience that the Father and Jesus experienced on that day so many years ago.  It was no small thing to die on the cross for our sins.  May we have faith in Him, may we trust in His goodness and not lose hope; for he may be a God of power and authority, he is also a God of Love, Grace, and Mercy!