Checkup From The Neck Up

DEVOTION

PROVERBS

CHECKUP FROM THE NECK UP

Prov 16:2

2 All a man's ways seem innocent to him, but motives are weighed by the LORD.

NIV

We might think we are doing the right next thing, but it may not be with the right motive. We make all sorts of plans for our life, and those of us who profess our faith in Jesus Christ are supposed to make our plans based on his will for our lives. Many of us might even say that is exactly what we are doing. We might even say that the Lord has laid this action on our heart and this way we are traveling in life has been directed by him. But if our motives have the slightly degree of self, perhaps we should rethink and spend more time with God to find the true right next thing. That is not to say all of us believers have wrong motives. Many of us are doing what God desires us to do solely with a motive to please him, bringing honor and glory to his name and doing whatever benefits the his kingdom.  The point here in this saying is that we need to acknowledge we might well think our motives are innocent enough, but it is God who truly knows why we do what we do, so we should be very sure we make sure we check with him, allowing the Holy Spirit to search our hearts to see if there is any wrong motives within. We need to allow God to give us a checkup from the neck up. 

Plans

DEVOTION

PROVERBS

PLANS

Prov 16:1

To man belong the plans of the heart, but from the LORD comes the reply of the tongue.

NIV

To us is given the free will to desire anything we can think of. Within each of us is the capacity to plan for all sorts of things. Many of our plans might well be for, what we think to be for our good, but in actuality those plans may not be for our good, nor will they bring glory to God. The Psalmist tells us that if we delight in the Lord he will give us the desires of our heart, and also tells us that God will fulfill the desires of those who fear him. In Addition we are told if we live by the Spirit we will not gratify the desires of the sinful nature. It is up to us what we plan, whether it is to gratify our sinful nature or to delight in the Lord and have him fulfill our desires. We might even come to him with our plans that we have schemed to benefit ourselves, but the answer to our petition is absolutely his. If we Love God with all our heart, our mind, our soul, and our strength then we are extremely content to have his answer no matter what it is, yes or no. If our plans are not for our good, it is far better to accept his answer then reject it. If our plans do not bring glory to God then our plans are useless and have no value and bringing them to God should result in his rejecting them. However, if our plans are for our good, as he sees it, and they will bring honor and glory to him, we should be assured his answer will be yes. The whole point here is that all our plans have to be brought to God. We cannot go about our lives, making plans, buying and selling as if we are living alone. We are told quite plainly through James, “Now listen, you who say, "Today or tomorrow we will go to this or that city, spend a year there, carry on business and make money."  Why, you do not even know what will happen tomorrow. What is your life? You are a mist that appears for a little while and then vanishes. Instead, you ought to say, "If it is the Lord's will, we will live and do this or that." As it is, you boast and brag. All such boasting is evil. Anyone, then, who knows the good he ought to do and doesn't do it, sins.” All our plans need to be brought to God and all our plans need his answer before we do anything. 

Fear, Learn, Be Humble

DEVOTION

PROVERBS

FEAR, LEARN, BE HUMBLE

Prov 15:33

33 The fear of the LORD teaches a man wisdom, and humility comes before honor.

NIV

It is really possible the fear of the Lord teaches us wisdom or that wisdom teaches us the fear of the Lord as the original language could be read both ways. Yet it is right to say that the fear of the Lord does teach a man to be wise, and this is most likely the meaning here. It would surely make sense that if a person does not fear, or reverence the Lord that person would not be wise, but instead would be extremely foolish. We already know that Solomon said that the fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom and one of the Psalms says exactly the same words. When we fear or revere the Lord we spend energies learning his precepts and thus we gain the wisdom of God. When we spend our energy learning the precepts of man, we are only left with the precepts of man, which has no wisdom at all, but when we learn the precepts of God we are enhanced with divine wisdom, which is so far above any man’s attempts at wisdom that it cannot even be compared. Who in their right mind would refuse such wisdom? Yet is appears many are not in their right mind, thus they are in their wrong or own mind and apparently fools, living only in what they think is the wisdom of man. We also must blend this wisdom from God with humility. If we go around claiming to have the wisdom of God, prideful and boasting about how much Godly wisdom we have, then we have lost all the truth here. The person who does learn the wisdom of God will also accept it humbly knowing it is not of self, but from God. There is no honor at all in pride, not an ounce of honor would be given to one who boasts and brags about his own accomplishments, and learning wisdom from God isn't even an accomplishment as  it is a gift. So let us fear God, learn his wisdom in humility. 

Listen and Gain

DEVOTION

PROVERBS

LISTEN AND GAIN

Prov 15:32

32 He who ignores discipline despises himself, but whoever heeds correction gains understanding.

NIV

It is doubtful that any us adults are subjects of parental discipline which is the most common thought of when we here that word, but yet here we are seeing that even us adults should not ignore discipline. Of course we must think the disciple or warning and instruction would be from the Lord. Yet that may not be the case either as friends, fellow believers might well warn or instruct about how we are living. Although there is another view of discipline as being a controlled way of living, such as living a disciplined life, we have to know this is a form of warning or instruction as it is connected with heeding correction and gaining understanding. So we should be open to hearing both from the Lord and from fellow believers if we are in need of some discipline about what we are doing and not only should we be open to hearing it, but we should heed that correction, make the changes needed and ultimately by doing so we gain understanding. This is easier said than done. It might be a whole lot easier to put up our defense mechanism giving an excuse for our bad behavior, trying to justify it and make it seem alright, which is not only ignoring, but refusing the needed disciple. The problem with trying to excuse our bad behavior is that we might begin to believe our own excuses and accept our self, believing we are without error or sin. Then we could certainly say we are not gaining any understanding at all, in fact we could say we would be losing understanding. We do need to listen and gain.

Rooming with the Wise

DEVOTION

PROVERBS

ROOMING WITH THE WISE

Prov 15:31

31 He who listens to a life-giving rebuke will be at home among the wise.

NIV

It is easy to get stuck in doing things our own way and wanting to keep it like that, but this seems to put a monkey wrench in that kind of thinking. There are times when what we are doing is not the best way or the best thing to be doing for our spiritual well-being and someone has to come along and rebuke, chastise or correct us, as the original language implies. It is then we must decide if we are going to be home among the wise, or by extension, home among the fools. Having said that, it is not easy to listen to someone come along with correction, telling us that we are wrong in our thoughts, words or deeds. But this brings us to another point which is that we all as believers have a responsibility to give life-giving rebuke. The focus of rebuke or correction must be life-giving and not simply to prove another person wrong thus making us right. This correction must come in the form of love and compassion, sprinkled with gentleness and goodness, mixed with patience and understanding and humility. There can be not one single ounce of pride or self-righteousness at all, in the one voicing correction. Yet the point of this saying is pointed straight at the listener of this life-giving rebuke and we need to be aware to receive it for what it is thus rooming among the wise. 

Joy and Health

DEVOTION

PROVERBS

JOY AND HEALTH

Prov 15:30

30 A cheerful look brings joy to the heart, and good news gives health to the bones.

NIV

To live life with a good attitude is a great start to having a cheerful look. What we should consider, is to whose heart does our cheerful look bring joy. It would make sense that if we had a cheerful look it would come from having a cheerful heart, or a heart full of joy, so then we would not be the recipient of our cheerful look, but others would derive the benefit of having joy in their heart from our look. Yet we could also see that it is the good things of this earth, which God created for us which bring us a heart full of joy. In the original language it sort of could go both ways, as the light of our eyes bring the heart joy. It could be what we see with our eyes which brings us joy, or it could be the light others see in our eyes bring them joy. Both are a good thing and both are beneficial to everyone, just as good news gives health to the bones. It is known that a bad mental state can have an effect on the physical health of a person. It is also known, at least by God, that a good mental attitude can bring physical health to the body. Stress, worry, anxiety, bitterness, unforgiveness along with a host of other negative thoughts, or attitudes can bring about trouble to both the heart and the body of a person. These attitudes certainly interfere with a cheerful look and thus rule the condition of the heart which in turn rules the condition of the body. Simple truth in God should overcome all those negative attitudes, for we need to consider the ultimate good news which brings health to our bodies and that too should bring a very cheerful look that comes from a complete joy in our hearts. They are like the old saying, Love and marriage; you can’t have one without the other. Joy and health, you can’t have one without the other. 

He Hears Some

DEVOTION

PROVERBS

HE HEARS SOME

Prov 15:29

29 The LORD is far from the wicked but he hears the prayer of the righteous.

NIV

We have read of the times when the Lord turned a deaf ear to the children of Israel because of their disobedience, but this is a different type of deaf ear. We know many people today, people of denominations who profess Christianity but not once ever talk about being born again in order to enter the kingdom of God. We know many of these people who say they attend church, or are at least associated with or known as a particular denominational member such as , “I am a Catholic”, “I am a Lutheran”, “I am a Baptist” or “I am a whatever”, but have not accepted Jesus Christ as their Lord and Savior. It is far from any of us to ever judge who is wicked and who is righteous, however the Lord God has made it quite clear he makes the distinction based on who has accepted Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior and who has not. As not one single human being has any righteousness within, we who have accepted Jesus Christ have him as our righteousness and thus God hears our prayers, for Jesus said that if we ask the Father anything in his name, he will not only hear us, but answer us as well. So that leaves a lot of nice people, good people by human standards being in a position which God is far from, or that in opposition to hearing the prayer of the righteous, he does not hear their prayers, he turns a deaf ear to their prayers. So this sense unless a person is born again, unless a person repents of sin, and accepts Jesus Christ as their personal Lord and Savior, any prayer, other than one of repentance, is completely useless. However, we who have Jesus Christ as our righteousness, who because of Jesus God considers us righteous, have the confidence of coming to him with our prayers knowing full well he listens intently and answers. He desires to spend time in communication with us, listening, but also talking, telling us of his plans for us, telling us of the great things he has in store for us, telling us what he wants us to do in order to bring honor and glory to his name and advance his kingdom, so when we ask for his kingdom to come on earth as it is in heaven he hears us. When we ask for him to give us our daily bread, he hears us. When we ask for him to forgive us our trespasses as we forgive others he hears us. When we ask that he lead us not into temptation but deliver us from evil, he hears and he answers all our prayers. 

Right Words

DEVOTION

PROVERBS

RIGHT WORDS

Prov 15:28

28 The heart of the righteous weighs its answers, but the mouth of the wicked gushes evil.

NIV

There might be nothing wrong with having a quick wit about us but it certainly seems a whole lot better to be a little slow of speech. Sometimes we might get ourselves in a little trouble by being so smart-mouthed or blabber-mouthed about something which requires a bit of thought about before saying something we are sorry we said, or which makes us look a little foolish at the least. But the importance here is about righteousness for it is the heart of the righteous that weights its answer and the opposite is evil. There is many times when discussions center around issues which a righteous person might weight a response which could bring about proper word directing the course of the conversation in the direction toward Godly things which would certainly benefit all who are engaged in this conversation. But it is certain that the mouth of the wicked gushes with either gossip, or dribble about one self which benefits none other than the gusher. It might be that if we take our time to speak we may not have an opportunity to get a word in edge wise, but that is not all bad. We might get a reputation sort of like that old commercial, when Payne Weber talks, people listen. Everyone was chattering about but then when this one person began to speak, everyone stopped and bent an ear in their direction. It is far better to say a few meaningful thoughtful words then simply talk to hear one’s own voice. The more words spoken might indicate just how impressed one is with oneself, especially if they are words which endeavor to impress all others, yet they may serve an evil intent. The righteous will consider carefully how to response lifting others up, placing them before self, speaking words of kindness, gentleness and love, always based upon the truth of God. 

Greed Brings Trouble

DEVOTION

PROVERBS

GREED BRING TROUBLE

Prov 15:27

27 A greedy man brings trouble to his family, but he who hates bribes will live.

NIV

Most sins of the moral nature are shunned by believers due to the horrible stigma associated with such immoral behavior, but greed seems to be a whole different ball game. Under the banner of frugality, greed hides its hideous true nature. When the pursuit of material gain is at the forefront of a person’s life it seems all else takes second and thus so many areas of life suffer. For so many years in the past, a man’s name was his honor, and to bring shame on his family was a disgrace. If a man conducted himself in any other way than honorable to support his family he was seen by the community for what he was. But all that has changed in our times, as we place honor upon being the one to gain as much material goods as possible. True we still consider unlawful means a dishonorable method and that would indeed still bring shame onto the family name, maybe. But greed is greed, and to pursue personal gain because of the lust for more, the insatiable appetite in order to satisfy any need, is certainly a troublesome lifestyle. No real peace or joy can accompany this type of greed, no contentment can exist, not a shred of serenity or compete and total trust on God can co-exist with greed. This is a sin-nature which is for the most part passed by or not dealt with by the body of Christ, but we should take careful stock of our lives in all the areas which God desires to do a work. Greed is one of them. Yes, that word greed sounds sort of nasty, and perhaps frugality fairs far better, in fact this word is even consider holy word, giving those who are frugal an upstanding reputation. But both still are centered in the accumulation and keeping of as much for self as possible. It is s thought, we need to consider well, does greed really bring trouble? 

Within

DEVOTION

PROVERBS

WITHIN

Prov 15:26

26 The LORD detests the thoughts of the wicked, but those of the pure are pleasing to him.

NIV

This seems rather obvious that God detests wicked things, but this is not about the actions or deeds of wicked people, but it is about the thought life if each and every person whether their deeds are wicked or not. It is quite possible to live a life which appears to be free of wicked deeds, but have thoughts which are hidden deep within that are far from pure. This is the ultimate challenge of life, to keep our thoughts from wondering into places they should not travel. Perhaps we should be far more vigilant about what we send into our minds from our eyes which could be the just the stimulus our thoughts needs in order to make that wondering journey down the dark side. Sometimes those visual temptations are not even of our own making, they just appear magically before us without any warning at all. It is at those times we need to know and understand exactly what there are and avert our attention, ignore and think about God, think about a scripture, think about this proverb turning our thoughts to something pure. We know it is our nature to view that which is pleasing to view, whether that be of a moral, sensual nature or a material self-serving nature they are all bent on creating a form of lust or greed which are all wicked thoughts. It is mostly our eyes, but then even with them closed our eyes can betray our thoughts, as some might endeavor to gossip right into them which travels immediately into our thoughts and somehow once again magically transforms into something wicked. At those times maybe we should review a few simply truths with our speaker. Then again we can be the maker of bad sound as well, with our choose of music, radio stations, or even that combination of sight and sound with our movies, or television. All things in whether they product things out may still product thought which are not pleasing to God so on guard we must be. Surely entertainment is not forbidden, but we should be aware as to what we do with it, within. This is not about outward thing, but about within.

Humility

DEVOTION

PROVERBS

HUMILITY

Prov 15:25

25 The LORD tears down the proud man's house but he keeps the widow's boundaries intact.

NIV

The world is full of riches or wealth and many a person spend a great deal of time and effort in the pursuit of gathering as much as possible for their own pleasures. The amount of homes which far exceeds the needs and even staggers the imagination of wants is overwhelming. Certainly a great number of people who live this extravagant lifestyle have made wealth, success and self-gratification their god. Many of their homes are an edifice to themselves. It is true God does bless people with many good things, but this saying is concerned, almost a condemnation against those who have built their very own tower of Babel against the face of God. They claim all the fame and glory for their displays of abundance of wealth, and God will not allow them to keep them forever. This could certainly also apply to the proud man’s life, for God is not going to allow him to keep that forever as well, it will be torn down. But to those who are down cast, the poor of the world, the window who is in fact the victim of the rich, God will lift up. It seems it is not easy to trust God when we can gather things for ourselves, but when needs are in want, and situations of life are not so good, it seems it is easier to seek God for assistance, for sustaining us. Some of the prideful, if not all, refuse to seek God for they are their own god, providing all their every need or desire. Wealth in itself is not a bad thing, as God has blessed many with much of it, but it is the prideful attitude which God hates. He has told us to humble ourselves before him, to submit to his authority in our lives, to seek his face, to acknowledge him as not only our Savior, but our provider, our sustainer, our all in all, that all we are, all we have, all we do is because of him. This is certainly a lesson about humility. 

Two Paths

DEVOTION

PROVERBS

TWO PATHS

Prov 15:24

24 The path of life leads upward for the wise to keep him from going down to the grave.  

NIV

It doesn't appear to be any plainer that this. Of course there is only one path of life which leads upward and that is the path of the one who is wise. This would imply those who travel a path which does not lead upward are not wise, but rather foolish for their path leads them down to the grave. So it would be wise for each of us to ensure our path does indeed lead upward. This saying might imply that we should set our minds on things above, rather than on things of this earth. This could be more difficult then we might think, as it seems we spend an awful amount of our time and energy devoted to our earthly desires, goals or ambitions. We celebrate our accomplishments, our milestones in life here on earth. It seems our minds are almost centered on our life here and what we are doing and what we have, and on those things we still want to do, and still want to have. Sometimes it even seems the things we say we are doing for the kingdom of God are really just things which make us feel good about ourselves, that we are being holy, or righteous, or just being a good Christian. But the lesson for us here is that we truly need to set our minds on things above, that heaven is our goal, heaven is our ambition and heaven is our desire. If we desire to be in heaven at the finish of this life, then we best make sure our path of our life leads to that finish line. Two paths, one which leads to the grave, the other leads to heaven, each path so very different, but are we trying to travel both? 

Right Words

DEVOTION

PROVERBS

RIGHT WORDS

Prov 15:23

23 A man finds joy in giving an apt reply — and how good is a timely word!

NIV

In the course of conversation a well-timed answer that strikes right is a very good thing, yet it seems some spend so many words and saying absolutely nothing at all. Idle chatter just to hear one speak seems to be at the point of this saying. It might be good to be a person of few words but the few spoken are to the benefit of those who are the hearers of such words and spoken at the right time. Perhaps we of today have lost the fine art of public debate. It was quite common in the day of this saying men would sit for hours, perhaps even days in public debate. It was considered honorable to have discourse of disagreements. Men remained friends throughout the debate, giving proper respect to those with opposing views, yet still remained true to they own view, giving a good reply in a timely fashion, able to communicate fully their thoughts without being prideful in their ability to speech well. It may not be like that today.  There are topics which are forbidden to comment on depending on who we are with. Well perhaps topics we are better off not imitating consider the views of our conversational guests. But we still should be ready with a valid and timely response to any conversation in which we are engaged, unless of course that conversation is nothing but gossip, and then perhaps our apt reply should be in some form of rebuke, which would be a timely word. Nevertheless it is a good thing to be able to speak the right words into a conversation. We can always be assured the right words will always line up with the word of God. A few right words are always better than many wrong ones. 

Right Adice

DEVOTION

PROVERBS

RIGHT ADVICE

Prov 15:22

22 Plans fail for lack of counsel, but with many advisers they succeed.

NIV

It might be thought we should gather the best minds of men and seek their advice before we set out on a plan of action, or for that matter a course for our life. Perhaps this may be why so many have financial advisers. But it is clear that any advice of men is clearly just that, advice from men. Yes, there are Godly men who can assist in the exploration of the word of God in our efforts to live in accordance with the will of God. But the counsel who supersedes all counsel is that counsel of God. Yet this proverb seems to point to the counsel of many advisers before setting out on a plan which has been determined by the one seeking the counsel. This may be easy for some and not so easy for others. Those who are not sure as to what they should do might find a certain comfort in having advice from others, while those who are headstrong and what we may consider even a bit stubborn might not seek such advice of men. What we do know is advice is surely just that advice. It is not intended for direction or governance. It is merely counsel to aid the one seeking it in making the final plan of action. Each person must still take the responsibility of their own plan of action, or plan for their life. Each person must account for their own plan of action or plan for their life. We cannot say our plan failed because my advisors told me I should do whatever. We might be able to say our plan was successful because we have great counsel, but yet it was still our plan. It would seem peculiar for a person to live his life always seeking advice at every turn. Perhaps this speaks only to certain plans, special plans, such as a king would make in preparation for war, or a man would make in preparation for marriage, not that the two have anything in common. Yet it does make sense that if we are going to set about making some sort of plan of action to accomplish a certain task, that it would be wise to sit down with others who might have some experience in the matter, or insight into what God’s word has to say about it. But we also must recognize the greatest counsel is within God’s word and all human counsel that is valid should come from that word. This can be the only right advice. 

About His Business

DEVOTION

THE GOSPEL OF MARK

ABOUT HIS BUSINESS

Mark 16:19 - Luke 1:1

19 After the Lord Jesus had spoken to them, he was taken up into heaven and he sat at the right hand of God. 20 Then the disciples went out and preached everywhere, and the Lord worked with them and confirmed his word by the signs that accompanied it.

NIV

This is the conclusion of Mark’s gospel and it is fitting he ends his account of the life of Christ with Jesus ascending into heaven and sitting at the right hand of God. But Mark also includes some facts about those men who followed Jesus those years he was here on earth. They went out and preached everywhere. Now of course Mark does not include the acts of the Apostles which Luke covers quite well, and thus we are not sure if this going out and preaching everywhere was before or after the day of Pentecost. We do know that God confirmed his word which they preached by signs that accompanied their preaching. Are we to assume those signs and the working of the Lord with them stopped at their deaths? Does God still work with those who preach his word and confirm their preaching with signs? It seems that most often there are absolutely no signs whatsoever which accompany those who preach his word today. Could that be due to those preachers are simply paid staff of a church and preach exclusively to the members and attenders, who we would expect to be believers? Could it be due to the fact they only preach how believers should behave, rather than going everywhere and preaching the gospel message, the good news, the fact that people can be saved from death, and experience eternal life through accepting Jesus Christ as their Lord and Savior? Maybe that is why there are no signs which accompany those who preach today. Certainly if we asked them why there are no signs accompanying their preaching, they would say it is because that was only for the disciples, who saw Jesus ascend into heaven. We have to wonder why there are no signs. Is that true, it was only for then and not now? Or is it for now and there are no people really preaching the gospel everywhere? Maybe the right question we should be asking is about the kind of signs that accompanied them. Maybe we should also be asking if those who preach have the Lord working with them. Maybe the church today has made preaching into a business rather than what God intended. Maybe with the requirements denominations have in order for a person to be ordained to preached, to pastor, has overshadowed the call of God on people to go everywhere preaching the good news having the Lord work with them and signs accompanying them. Maybe we just should be about our Fathers business. 

A Question to Ponder

DEVOTION

THE GOSPEL OF MARK

A QUESTION TO PONDER

Mark 16:15-18

15 He said to them, "Go into all the world and preach the good news to all creation. 16 Whoever believes and is baptized will be saved, but whoever does not believe will be condemned. 17 And these signs will accompany those who believe: In my name they will drive out demons; they will speak in new tongues; 18 they will pick up snakes with their hands; and when they drink deadly poison, it will not hurt them at all; they will place their hands on sick people, and they will get well." 

NIV

Here we have one of the most well-known statements of Jesus, well at least the first part of this statement or the one which Matthew recorded, but the rest of this has certainly been put to rest by many believers. Some scholars have justified not paying attention to the rest of what Jesus said by insisting He was only talking about his disciples, and that the signs had been fulfilled on the day of Pentecost, but that would then open all scripture to the same view. The truth here surely surrounds those who believe. Now there is some concern by at least one non-denominational fellowship that uses this to make the point that one must believe and be baptized in order to be saved. But Jesus did not include “not baptized” in the condition of being condemned, in order works if one needs to believe and baptized to be save, it would make sense one needs to refuse to believe and be baptized to be condemned. There are many people who are baptized, more as infants, who never believe and are condemned, thus baptism does not save, only believing in Jesus Christ as the Savior does. We should also note that God does not condemn someone for not believing, but they condemn themselves by their disbelief. Salvation is a free gift of God and is readily available to all who would accept it, thus it is they chose to not be saved and so be condemned.  But what about all this signs that will accompany believers? Do we just ignore them? We might be alright with the driving out demons, maybe. Only a handful of denominations feel right in the speaking in a new tongue, the rest are satisfied with the explanation that it was fulfilled on Pentecost and ended there as well. But few of us would ever handle snakes or drink poison and that is sort of perplexing, almost as much as why most of us are not placing hands of sick people so they will get well. So how do we handle all this, Matthew does not include all these words of Jesus, so we are left with just Marks record, but that should be enough for all the words of the scripture are God-breathed. If these signs are not a part of our lives could or should we question whether we truly believe? Of course the signs alone do not indicate true belief, because it is possible Satan could counterfeit some of those signs in an effort to deceive people into thinking they are saved because they apparently drive out some demons, or speak in an unknown tongue or handle snakes and drink poison and even heal some sick people. So we must first insure that we believe in Jesus Christ as our personal Lord and Savior and it is correct that in our effort to follow him we should be baptized as he was by John, then and only then, knowing in our heart we are following Jesus should we expect to see these signs in our life. But if we do not see these signs, then what do we do? What should we think? Why? A question to ponder on. 

By Faith, not Sight

DEVOTION

THE GOSPEL OF MARK

BY FAITH, NOT SIGHT

Mark 16:9-14

When Jesus rose early on the first day of the week, he appeared first to Mary Magdalene, out of whom he had driven seven demons. 10 She went and told those who had been with him and who were mourning and weeping. 11 When they heard that Jesus was alive and that she had seen him, they did not believe it. 12 Afterward Jesus appeared in a different form to two of them while they were walking in the country. 13 These returned and reported it to the rest; but they did not believe them either. 14 Later Jesus appeared to the Eleven as they were eating; he rebuked them for their lack of faith and their stubborn refusal to believe those who had seen him after he had risen.

NIV

Why would those Eleven refuse to believe that Jesus had rose from the dead? They had been with him for all those years, heard all that he taught, in fact, they had private conversations with him that the crowds did not hear. They had been with him when he raised Lazarus from the dead, they had been with him when he healed all those people, Peter had even had the insight of the Holy Spirit to know that Jesus was the Christ, the Son of God, a deity, an eternal being. Now it may be true that Peter did not understand the part about Jesus being an eternal being, but nevertheless those Eleven knew everything that could be known, for Jesus had told them what to expect. But they could not believe until they actually saw Jesus for themselves, and in other accounts we know that story about Thomas. Mark does not record that Jesus had told Thomas that he believed because he saw, but that all of us are blessed because we believe and have not seen. Surely they are people today we will not believe Jesus came back from the dead unless he performs some miracle, some supernatural miracle, beyond the capability of any human being, without the ability of science to explain it away. That is not to say God or Jesus has not done precisely that in order to bring someone, a total unbeliever to repentance and complete faith in him, even when that person asks God to prove he is real, and this is known from personal experience. Yet many, if not all of us believe by faith, and not by sight. Many of us have experienced divine intervention in our lives, either with a physical healing, a directive as to way to live, work and attend church, or some other supernatural event, but for the most part we have not actually seen Jesus, and know because of sight that he lives. We are blessed because we have not seen Jesus, but we believe by faith, not sight. 

He has Risen

DEVOTION

THE GOSPEL OF MARK

HE HAS RISEN

Mark 16:1-7

16:1 When the Sabbath was over, Mary Magdalene, Mary the mother of James, and Salome bought spices so that they might go to anoint Jesus' body. 2 Very early on the first day of the week, just after sunrise, they were on their way to the tomb 3 and they asked each other, "Who will roll the stone away from the entrance of the tomb?" 4 But when they looked up, they saw that the stone, which was very large, had been rolled away. 5 As they entered the tomb, they saw a young man dressed in a white robe sitting on the right side, and they were alarmed. 6 "Don't be alarmed," he said. "You are looking for Jesus the Nazarene, who was crucified. He has risen! He is not here. See the place where they laid him. 7 But go, tell his disciples and Peter, 'He is going ahead of you into Galilee. There you will see him, just as he told you.'"

NIV

He has risen, He has risen indeed! That is the story. The chief priests, the elders and the teachers of the law may have thought they had put an end to this rebellion against their control over the people, but it is now only the beginning of the true gospel message. Christ rose from the dead, and he is going ahead of us into paradise. Certainly it was of great alarm to these ladies not to find the body of Jesus, and to actually be told by angels that he was alive and well. The truth of the gospel is we serve a risen Savior. All other faiths of the world, all religions that are not based on Jesus Christ serve a dead savior, a dead prophet, a dead god or a dead faith established by a dead man, but those who base their faith on Jesus Christ the living Son of God, the creator of all that was created, the Savior of the world, serve a living God. There is no other but him, who can save man from eternal death. The fact is there are people today who need to have the stone rolled around from their minds, their souls, their spirits, and be allowed to come out from the grave, to be reborn a new creature, to rise from the dead. There are those who need to be told, He has risen!

Waiting for the Kingdom

DEVOTION

THE GOSPEL OF MARK

WAITING FOR THE KINGDOM

Mark 15:42-47

42 It was Preparation Day (that is, the day before the Sabbath). So as evening approached, 43 Joseph of Arimathea, a prominent member of the Council, who was himself waiting for the kingdom of God, went boldly to Pilate and asked for Jesus' body. 44 Pilate was surprised to hear that he was already dead. Summoning the centurion, he asked him if Jesus had already died. 45 When he learned from the centurion that it was so, he gave the body to Joseph. 46 So Joseph bought some linen cloth, took down the body, wrapped it in the linen, and placed it in a tomb cut out of rock. Then he rolled a stone against the entrance of the tomb. 47 Mary Magdalene and Mary the mother of Joses saw where he was laid.

NIV

Of course Pilate was surprised for death by crucifixion took days for the person to final suffocate from hanging on a cross, it was a gruesome long drawn out way to die, but Jesus had given up his spirit, he has chosen the hour of his death, for he was the Christ, the Son of the Living God. But the truth we should see here is not about the death of Christ, but about Joseph of Arimathea. From all the accounts we know he was from the tribe of Benjamin although he lived in Jerusalem, he was a counselor on the great counsel of the Sanhedrin, and he was a secret follower of Jesus because he feared the Jews who were looking for ways to kill Jesus. Nevertheless he, not one of the twelve, went boldly to Pilate seeking the body of Jesus. We would have thought surely Peter after his humiliating experience in the garden would have been seeking the body of Christ. Or perhaps we would have expected John after Jesus had told him to take care of his mother Mary that he would have wanted to care for the body of Christ. Or James the brother of Jesus would have been there wanting to remove his brothers body from the cross. But no, not a one of the twelve were there, but this man who was a secret follower now boldly pronounces his concern for Christ. We do not know exactly how he was waiting for the kingdom of God. We do not know if he actually thought Jesus was going to set himself up as king of Israel and overthrow the Roman rule over Israel. We do not know if Joseph thought Jesus was talking about a real kingdom here on earth, or a heavenly kingdom. But we do know which ever the case was he was waiting for the kingdom of God. He was living his life in expectation of the coming kingdom. Yes he was a prominent person, a wealthy man, a member of the counsel of Sanhedrin, being a part of the social fabric of his society, but he was also waiting for the kingdom of God. He life was not build around all his wealth and prominence, it was built around the kingdom of God. The proof of this is in the action he took. He sacrificed all his position in society by taking this action, by announcing to everyone that he was going to care for the body of Christ that he was going to see to it that Jesus was buried properly, before the Sabbath. He did not want Jesus to be left on that cross. One act which defined who Joseph of Arimathea truly was, a disciple of Christ, a believer, one who was waiting for the kingdom.

Women

DEVOTION

THE GOSPEL OF MARK

WOMEN

Mark 15:40-41

40 Some women were watching from a distance. Among them were Mary Magdalene, Mary the mother of James the younger and of Joses, and Salome. 41 In Galilee these women had followed him and cared for his needs. Many other women who had come up with him to Jerusalem were also there.

NIV

Where would men be if it were not for the women who cared for us? Surely God, himself insisted that it was not good for man to be alone. Yet we know that Jesus did not marry as was the custom established by man in the effort to fulfill the determination of God that man should not be alone and therefor made woman to be his helpmate. Jesus did not cleave to or join,  or be united to any one woman in the sense that God had established, but that did not men Jesus was without the care of women. Some people might think that Jesus and the twelve were simply a tribe of thirteen guys traipsing about the region, camping out, singing Kumbaya at night around the campfire being just a bunch of guys out on their own, but that is the the case. There were woman there caring for the needs of the men. We cannot be certain if any of the wife’s of the disciples traveled with them, or if any woman actually made the journey’s to different regions, but we do know that there were woman who made sure the needs of Jesus were taken care of, whatever those needs were. Some scholars ignore this and go to the place after Jesus body was removed and they brought spices to care for the needs of the body, but that is then and Mark makes a point to tell us these women had followed him and cared, past tense, for his needs. So we are to see that woman placed an important role in the ministry of Jesus. Sure we here about the deeds of the men, the travels and experiences of the twelve, but there were woman who there, doing what needed to be done. Where would men be if it were not for women? 

Invited In

DEVOTION

THE GOSPEL OF MARK

INVITED IN

Mark 15:37-39

37 With a loud cry, Jesus breathed his last. 38 The curtain of the temple was torn in two from top to bottom. 39 And when the centurion, who stood there in front of Jesus, heard his cry and saw how he died, he said, "Surely this man was the Son of God!"

NIV

Much discussion and dispute is surrounding the darkness mentioned at the time of this last breathe of Jesus, although Mark does not include it in his account. We should simply remember that it was darkness, and most likely supernaturally showing once again to those who walked in darkness that Jesus was the light of the world, so when he died, the darkness came. Mark also does not include the fact that at the ninth hour when Jesus gave up his spirit was actually three in the afternoon which is when the paschal lamb was usually sacrificed. Nothing, absolutely nothing regarding the actions of God on behave of his people is by happenstance, it is without question in perfection accordance to his will. Although there was a supernatural darkness that came over the whole region as well as a great earthquake alone with graves being opened and people who had died and were buried coming back to life and walked back into Jerusalem, Mark merely mentioned the event of the curtain, or veil as well as the remarks of a centurion. There is a great important to this veil and surely we have heard sermons about it, but it is a good thing to remember that because of Jesus there is full access to the Father. We are truly now as the high priest and able to enter into the very presence of God. There is a huge difference through. The high priest would be struck down dead if he had not prepared himself correctly with all the right sacrifices and ceremonies while we merely are able to come in the name of Jesus, full of sin and our unrighteousness. What mercy God has shown us. What Charin, grace, that unmerited favor God has bestowed on us, to send his Son to die in our place, to be the true paschal lamb, the sacrifice which completely satisfices the justice God demands for sin. There was no question in the heart and mind of that centurion at this point; he now knew Jesus was indeed the Son of God. What love God has shown us. The veil no longer separates us from him, we are not kept out, but rather we have been invited in. 

What A Savior!

DEVOTION

THE GOSPEL OF MARK

WHAT A SAVIOR

Mark 15:33-36

33 At the sixth hour darkness came over the whole land until the ninth hour. 34 And at the ninth hour Jesus cried out in a loud voice, "Eloi, Eloi, lama sabachthani?"-which means, "My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?"    35 When some of those standing near heard this, they said, "Listen, he's calling Elijah." 36 One man ran, filled a sponge with wine vinegar, put it on a stick, and offered it to Jesus to drink. "Now leave him alone. Let's see if Elijah comes to take him down," he said.

NIV

Some of those people just did not understand what Jesus actually said. They  thought he was calling out for Elijah, but that of course we know is simply not true. It is interesting as those who were insulting Jesus about saving himself were using a verse from the twenty-second Psalm which stated “He trusts in the Lord, let the Lord rescue him, let him deliver him since he delights in him.” It is even more interesting that these words Jesus yelled out were from the first verse of that very same Psalm. It appears Jesus was answering those Jews who were insulting him about being the Christ; about if he was he could rescue himself, as that Psalm was known to be speaking about the Messiah. There has also been much discussion about why Jesus felt God had forsaken him, but again, was Jesus just using that verse of the Psalm to answer back those insults or did he actually fell as though God had forsaken him? Some have said the deity had left Jesus at that moment, but then if that was true there would be no atonement for our sins, for only deity can atone for sin. So much has been said about these words of Jesus, but what we might also see is that they were people who did not understand exactly what he said. Why did they misunderstand and think he was calling for Elijah? The words he spoke had Aramaic and Hebrew roots which the Jews surely understood, but some did not. Is this not the case today? There are people who, not only do not understand what Jesus says, but misinterpret what he says, claiming he said things he did not, and that he did not say what he did. There are also people who are standing around waiting for Jesus to prove he is who he is, let’s see if Elijah comes to take him down. We have all the proof we need, we know Jesus is who he is, and we know that he was fully man and fully deity and we know that God did not forsake him, for he was accomplishing the very plan of God and God would never leave nor forsake him, as God has said many times to his people. That is Gods promise, therefore Jesus knew God would not forsake him, so it has to come back to his answering those who spoke against his deity, proving he was in fact the Messiah and he was about to accomplished the one act that would bring about the atonement of their, and our, sin, bringing salvation to the world. All the teaching, all the truth and wisdom Jesus was full of during those years he walked among his people, did not leave him at this time, he was fully aware, not having taken the mind numbing drink offered before being crucified. He was completely aware of his words, and was still proving his deity. What a Savior!

Insulting Jesus

DEVOTION

THE GOSPEL OF MARK

INSULTING JESUS

Mark 15:25-32

25 It was the third hour when they crucified him. 26 The written notice of the charge against him read: THE KING OF THE JEWS. 27 They crucified two robbers with him, one on his right and one on his left.   29 Those who passed by hurled insults at him, shaking their heads and saying, "So! You who are going to destroy the temple and build it in three days, 30 come down from the cross and save yourself!"   31 In the same way the chief priests and the teachers of the law mocked him among themselves. "He saved others," they said, "but he can't save himself! 32 Let this Christ, this King of Israel, come down now from the cross, that we may see and believe." Those crucified with him also heaped insults on him.

NIV

How cruel people were to Jesus as he hung from that cross, insulting him in such a manner, but then even today, after Jesus did in fact save, not only all of us, but himself by raising from the dead and then in physical form ascend straight up into the clouds and out of sight, returning to the right hand of the Father, people insult him. Some people insult him by using his name in a vain, of course they actually do not believe in him anyway, but they still use his name. That makes no sense at all, why a person who does not believe he is the Son of God, the Savior of the world, the one who was born of a virgin, performed so many healings and miracles, then allowed himself to be hung on a cross and die for their sins, raise from the dead and ascend into heaven, use his name to make a point about something. Some people hurl insults at Jesus by insulting those who follow him. One no so smart ex-wrestler who became a governor insulted Jesus and all of us by indicating anyone who believed were weakened people that needed a religion as a crutch. The amazing thing is that those people insulted him by saving he could not save himself, but also in the same breathe spoke prophetically about him saving others. It is also interesting they said they would believe if he came down from the cross, which of course we know better. Yet today people still use that same excuse not to believe. Many can only believe in what they see, but reality they can only see what they want to. We have to make sure we do not insult Jesus. Maybe we do insult him by putting his name on bumper stickers, of billboards. Maybe we do insult Jesus by having a fish on the back of our car then speed down the road. Maybe we insult Jesus by acting all righteous and pious, but not actually loving people, putting them first, before our own needs. Maybe we are insulting Jesus by claiming to follow him, but chase after the things of the world instead. Are we insulting Jesus by telling him he is the most valued in our life, a great treasure that we are willing to give all we have for, yet store up so much of the world’s wealth to spend on our own self-centered needs. Maybe we insult Jesus by making our sanctuary a theater and our worship into a performance on a stage. Maybe we insult Jesus by our being too casual in our relationship with him. We have to examine ourselves closely on this. What are we doing? How are we living? What kind of relationship do we really have? Let us hope and pray we are not the ones insulting Jesus.