Luke 23

I am amazed at how Jesus responds to the people around him while he is hanging on the cross. He prays for forgiveness for those involved in his crucifixion. To the one criminal he offers eternal life. The events so move one guard that at Jesus' death he says, "Surely this was a righteous man." Jesus' character remained the same through every event of life, even during the worst moment of life.

Jesus models for us a life of consistency. Does your life reflect such consistency? Is your behavior the same in private as it is in public?

Luke 24

"But they were not able to recognize who he was."

On the road to Emmaus two of the disciples are in a very deep conversation about what has happened to Jesus. Their conversation is so intense that when Jesus joins them they don't recognize him. Not until later in the morning when he breaks bread with them do they realize that the stranger is Jesus.

This story begs the question of how often to do we miss Jesus? How many times has Jesus tried to prompt our hearts to action, but we were so involved that we missed the prompting? How often has someone in need been brought directly into our path by God but we missed the moment? The story calls us to pay attention for we never know when or how the Lord might appear to us.

Saturday, November 28

We watched a football game late last night that ended in a disastrous manner. The kicker of the favored team missed a short field goal to win the game and then missed another in overtime. The end result was that his team lost. While I was cheering for the opposing team, I felt incredible sympathy for the young man. It is tough to fail. It is really tough to fail on national television.

We all fail. The issue in life is not whether we will fail or not, rather the issue is how we will respond to failure. Our lives are shaped by how we respond to our failures. Remember Judas, he failed Jesus in his betrayal. Judas' response was to commit suicide. Peter failed Jesus at the same time by denying him three times. Peter's response was being open to Jesus and he ultimately became a great leader in the early church. How about you? How do you respond to your failure?

Read the story in John 21:15-23. The story is of Peter's first encounter with Jesus after denying him three times. Reflect on how Jesus would respond to you regarding your failures.

Friday, November 26

I accidentally deleted the list of scriptures that Cindy chose for this week. So, if you have the scriptures for today and tomorrow, please list them in a comment. Until I have them, let me comment on what I did this morning.

Kenda & I left the house at 2:50 AM to go to Kohl's for their Black Friday specials. I have never gone out early like this before. I took my video camera because I thought it would make good sermon material. I was amazed at what an event it was. The number of people that we talked to that had been out all night shopping, how much of a social occasion it was a family members were out on a shopping adventure. I am amazed at the brilliance of retailers that have turned "Black Friday" into a holiday experience. To top it all off, we saved a lot of money!

The spiritual side of all of this is what has happened to our preparation for Christmas. In the midst of such well thought out shopping experiences, can I still prepare my soul for Christmas? Do I allow the rush of everything to keep me from slowing down enough to see the work of God around me? To remember why there is such a celebration at Christmas, I read Matthew 1:18-25 this morning. I invite you to do the same.

Matthew 24:36-44

Jesus' teaching on the end times is to always be prepared. The teaching is not to figure out the time or to attempt to manipulate people. The teaching is to live our lives in such a manner that we are prepared no matter when he returns.

I pray that you have a great Thanksgiving. Spend time in prayer giving thanks today. Express to those you love how thankful you are for them and your relationship with them.

Isaiah 35

Habakkuk 2:1-4

"but the righteous will live by his faith"

What does it mean to live by faith? Does it mean you blindly believe there is a God? Does it mean that nothing else matters besides faith? Does it mean that faith gives meaning to life? Does it mean that faith is at the center of your life?

Let's consider this from another perspective. We know what it looks like when someone lives by appearance. We know when we see a life driven by greed. We know when a person's life is dominated by sports, career or possessions. We recognize when an individual's life is being driven by these things because of where their lives are centered. A life being lived by faith has the same sort of centering. There will be other activities and interests in life, but it is faith that is at the center. Is your faith at the center of your life?

Isaiah 2:1-5

"And they will hammer their swords into plowshares, and their spears into pruning hooks."

The image of changing their tools of war into tools of farming is very powerful. The image reflects the hope that we have that someday we can live in peace.

While what happens on the national level is beyond of our influence, what happens on the personal level we can influence. What are you doing to bring about peace in your relationships?

Acts 3

The crippled man is healed and Peter preaches his second sermon. In both situations he turns the attention away from himself towards inviting people into relationship with Jesus. When Jesus called Peter, his invitation was "to become fishers of men". Peter is now living out that call.

How has Christ called you? What is it that Christ would have doing?

Acts 2

In my sermon last Sunday, I talked about the transformation of Peter. When Jesus called Peter to follow him, Peter was a hard working fisherman. In this chapter Peter has taken the role as the early leader of the church. We read his first sermon of the emerging church. At the conclusion of his sermon, 3000 people believe.

It amazes me that Jesus could see Peter as he was, a fisherman and see him for what he could become, the leader of the early church. When God looks at us, God sees us in the same way. God clearly understands who we are. But God also knows what we can become. It is to this potential that God calls us to service.

Mark 16

"And they went out and preached everywhere, while the Lord worked with them, and confirmed the word by signs that followed."

The Gospel of Mark concludes by the disciples living out the gospel. We want to know the gospel message, but we are not just to know. We are to live it out through out lives. So that when others see us, they see the work of God in our lives. How are you living out the gospel message?

Mark 15

"Some women were watching from a distance."

The women had to be there. The passage tells us the women had been followers "and cared for his needs". My guess is that their love for him demanded that they be close by as he died. They could not stop his death but they could not abandon him in those terrible hours. Of course, this is just speculation. But what else could be the answer to their presence when the disciple are no where to be seen and his enemies are in control? They loved him and in the final hours of his life they expressed it in the only way possible. They were present.

Mark 14

Why did Judas betray Jesus? This question has led to endless discussions among Christians. From our perspective it is hard to understand. Why would someone betray the one who had come to save him? We know that Judas ends up in despair for his actions. His suicide makes that obvious. But we will never know what drove his actions.

We find ourselves often guessing at the motives of others. We may have been harmed by another or mystified by their actions. Our speculation of the motives of others will never get us very far. What we are called to be responsible for is our own actions. To be constantly reflective and introspective of what is driving us. We want to be certain that our motives are driven by our faith and not our selfish emotions.

Mark 13

"No one knows about that day or hour, not even the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father. Be on Guard! Be alert! You do not know when the time will come."

The chapters is about the return of Christ. Jesus teaches what the signs will be and how to prepare. He concludes with the idea that "No one knows that day or hour". Many like to speculate when the time will be. But it is only speculation. No one knows. What Jesus does tell us to do is to be prepared. That means that we live in constant preparation so that whenever Christ returns, or we die, we are prepared.

Mark 12

This chapter contains some of the more prominent teachings of Jesus:
- "Give to Caesar what is Caesar's and to God what is God's"
-"Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength. The second is to love your neighbor as yourself."
- "They all gave out of their wealth; but she, out of her poverty put in everything -- all that she had."

Our American culture is wrapped around money. Spend a few moments considering how you might tie these three teachings together around how we handle our money.

Mark 11

"Jesus was matter-of-fact: 'Embrace this God-life. Really embrace it, and nothing will be too much for you. This mountain, for instance: Just say, 'Go jump in the lake - no shuffling or shilly-shallying - and it's as good as done.'" (From the Message)

In verse 22 Jesus tells the disciples they can tell a mountain to move. They statement raises questions as to just exactly what does Jesus mean. That is why I appreciate how "The Message" translates this verse. It puts Jesus statement in the context of living in relationship with God. Jesus is not giving us a blank check of power, Jesus is saying when our lives are engaged with God, great things are possible.

Mark 10

"whoever wants to become great among you must be your servant, and whoever wants to be first must be slave of all."

While we may have heard this saying of Jesus many times, it is contrary to how we live. Everything else about life declares to us that to be served is the position in life we want to obtain. To be served means that we are the greatest of all. Yet, Jesus teaches just opposite. Jesus teaches that our place in life is not to be served but to serve. In His kingdom, that is greatness.

Mark 9

"I do believe, help me overcome my unbelief!"

The comment by the boy's father is descriptive of the faith experience. Belief and unbelief exist in this life in the same moment. This is a common experience in the life of faith. Faith & fear, belief & doubt, can co-exist in our lives. The father in this passage sets the example for us. His belief helps him turn to Jesus to ask for assistance with his unbelief. The question is not whether we will have doubts, questions or unbelief, the question is can we turn to God in those moments.

Mark 8

Chapter 8 is considered a turning point in the Gospel of Mark. Jesus asks the disciples who he is and in a moment of clarity Peter declares, "You are the Christ". Peter understands. Jesus then tells the disciples what it means for him to be the "Son of Man". Jesus' definition of the Messiah is not what Peter wants. Therefore, Peter rebukes him. It is fascinating how in one moment Peter sees so clearly and in the next moment he misses it entirely.

Peter is just like us. The honesty of the Bible is so helpful for it does not hide the flaws of the disciples. It allows us to see their greatness and their failures. It makes if clear why we need a savior.

Mark 7

In the midst of the discussion about following the law, Jesus raises the issues of people "setting aside the commands of God in order to observe your own traditions!" While we don't have the law to follow, we do have direction from Jesus about how to live. Teachings on forgiveness, mercy and love. We may not have the law to turn aside but we certainly face the temptation of overlooking the teachings of Jesus when they become difficult or inconvenient. We often find it easy to justify why we shouldn't have to forgive someone who has harmed us deeply. That type of justification is a moment of overlooking the teachings of Jesus.

Mark 6

Jesus sends out the disciples for the first time to act in his name. I wonder how they felt? I imagine they had a sense of excitement mixed with apprehension. The excitement of wondering what could happen and the fear of wondering what could happen. Do you ever feel that way? I think it is a common feeling when we are stepping out in faith to do what God wants. We are excited, yet there is fear. Fear is part of life. In living a life of faith we will have fear. We want to make sure that our faith helps us push past the fear.

Mark 5

Which do you value more, the life of a human being or the economy of your town? The obvious answer would be a human life. That is until the economy is damaged by Jesus casting the demons out of "Legion" and sending the demona to the pigs. The demon possessed herd of pigs raced down the hillside into the lake and were drowned. The livelihood of many people is destroyed and they want Jesus to leave. They see that "Legion" has been healed, but they pigs are dead. Jesus should leave. Do you ever value your possessions over another human being?

Mark 4

Jesus tells the parable of the sower and the seeds. The parable is about us. This parable calls us to reflect on what is happening within us. What type of soil are you? Do you allow space in your life for God's word to grow up in you? When life becomes busy do you unintentionally push God to the side? Has our culture become so deeply embedded in your life that Godly ideas just bounce away? Is there a great harvest of God's work flowing out of your life?

Mark 3

"He looked around at them in anger and, deeply distressed at their stubborn hearts"

Can you imagine the frustration of Jesus? He had come to show the way to God. He was offering new life. The response? They are waiting to see if he will heal a man's hand on the Sabbath so that they can accuse him. The religious leadership does not understand and only a handful of the people barely understand. Ultimately, however, this is not about the people's response. Jesus' actions were about the love of God. A love that wanted to offer a way to life to humanity. That love drove Jesus to a cross for a people who never quite understood.

Mark 2

Tax collectors were despised in Jesus' day. Part of the reason they were despised is that the tax collectors acted on behalf of the Roman Empire, they were collaborating with the oppressing government. A second reason is the tax collector is the one who told the citizens how much their taxes were. Citizens didn't get a bill from the government, like we do, they got the word from the tax collector. That always raised questions of how much went to the government and how much went to the tax collector. Needless to say, tax collectors were not invited to many dinner parties.

The place of tax collectors in the culture makes it astounding that Jesus invited Levi to be his disciple. Levi's calling is a clear indicator of who Jesus wants to follow him. He wants everyone, even the people that we think are the worst in town.

Mark 1

A couple of thoughts as we begin reading Mark.

- Notice how often Mark uses the phrase "immediately" or "at once". There is a constant feel of urgency to this gospel.

- The gospel mentions nothing about the birth of Jesus. The gospel begins with the prophet John speaking in the wilderness and Jesus as an adult. There are questions we have, such as what happened in Jesus' childhood, that the writer of Mark is not interested in discussing. When studying scripture it is important to see what questions the passage is answering, they may not be the same questions we want answered.

- Jesus' first words in Mark are, "The time has come." "The kingdom of God is near. Repent and believe the good news!" What do Jesus' first words tell us is the focus of his message?