When Moses came down from Mount Horeb with the tablets containing the testimony of God, it was time to begin building the tabernacle. "Moses said to all the congregation of the people of Israel, 'This is what the LORD has commanded. Take from among you a contribution to the LORD. Whoever is of a generous heart, let him bring the LORD's contribution: gold, silver, and bronze; blue and purple and scarlet yarns and finely twined linens; goats' hair; tanned rams' skins, and goatskins; acacia wood, oil for the light, spices for the anointing oil and for the fragrant incense, and onyx stones and stones for setting, for the ephod and for the breastpiece.' " (Exodus 35:4-9)
But it wasn't just the materials Moses needed. he also needed people, men and women, to do the work of making everything. God had called out a couple of men by name to lead this project. These men "received from Moses all the contribution that the people of Israel had brought... They still kept bringing him free will offerings every morning..." The people brought more than enough to do the work, so much in fact, that "Moses gave command...and the people were restrained from bringing, for the material they had was sufficient to do all the work and more." (Exodus 36:3-7)
Jesus tells us of another generous heart in the story of the widow's offering. As Jesus sat near the treasury box in the temple, "many rich people put in large sums. And a poor widow came and put in two small copper coins, which make a penny." (Mark 12:41-44) Jesus went on to tell the disciples her gift was more generous than all the rest because she had given all she had to live on.
Americans prove themselves over and over to be a generous people. Just look at all the money given to aid disaster victims. Organizations like the Red Cross do a great job of helping people in times of disaster but what a lot of people don't know is that the Red Cross depends a lot on faith-based disaster relief teams to cook meals and wash clothes and provide shower facilities and just plain labor. (I know because I've been there, done that.) So what would happen if the followers of Jesus were generous year round to their local church AND their local church was willing to support the local pregnancy center and the local food bank and the local homeless shelter and all the other organizations who reach out to "the least of these". Those places should never lack for funds if the church, which is the people, has a generous heart.
Tuesday, November 27, 2012
Saturday, November 24, 2012
Sabbath
After God created everything, He designated a seven day week and specified rest on day seven. (Genesis 2:1-3). When God spoke to Moses in the wilderness and gave Israel the Ten Commandments, He designated the seventh day the Sabbath. (Exodus 20:8-11) The people were to do no work and were to rest and worship on this day, "...a day...of solemn rest, holy to the Lord." (Exodus 31:15)
When the Israelites first came out of Egypt, God gave them food each day, bread in the morning and quail in the evening. He told them to take twice as much on the sixth day so they could rest on the seventh day. In explaining it to the people Moses said, "See! The LORD has given you the Sabbath; therefore on the sixth day He gives you bread for two days." (Exodus 16:22-30)
Later, when the children of Israel were to start making the tent of meeting, Moses told them, "Six days work shall be done, but on the seventh day you shall have a Sabbath of solemn rest, holy to the LORD. Whoever does any work on it shall be put to death. You shall kindle no fire in all your dwelling places on the Sabbath day." (Exodus 35:2-3) In Leviticus we learn that even the land was to be given a Sabbath rest every seven years. (Leviticus 25:1-7)
Isaiah gives us a little more insight into God's heart about the Sabbath, "...[if you] call the Sabbath a delight and the holy day of the LORD honorable; if you honor it, not going your own ways, or seeking your own pleasures, or talking idly, then you shall take delight in the LORD..." (Isaiah 58:13-14) This was a big deal because God says, "Moreover, I gave them my Sabbaths, as a sign between Me and them, that they might know that I am the LORD who sanctifies them." (Ezekiel 20:12)
But somewhere along the way, the scribes began to make the Sabbath less about the Lord and rest and worship and more about keeping the rules, rules they made up about what constituted work and how far you could walk and how much you could carry. Lots and lots of rules. Several of the difficult encounters Jesus had with the the religious leaders of His day concerned the Sabbath and Jesus not keeping their man-made rules. (Matthew 12, Luke 13, John 7)
So what about me today as a follower of Jesus. Does that Old Testament commandment apply to me? The other nine do, so why not this one?
Not long after the resurrection, the Jews who were following Jesus began to worship on the first day of the week, designating it the Lord's Day because Jesus arose from the dead on the first day of the week. As the Gospel spread to the Greeks and Romans the old Jewish rules were no longer observed. (Acts 15:1-21)
However, the law as given by God, not men, was not abolished by Jesus but fulfilled. (Matthew 5:17) For Christians the law about the Sabbath is not about a day of the week but an attitude of the heart and a desire to know and worship God. It is about putting aside all the busyness of the life and spending time with God. It is about reading the Bible and prayer and singing praises to Jesus. It is about knowing God and His son Jesus Christ and refreshing mind and body and spirit.
But wait...that's what it's been about all along!
When the Israelites first came out of Egypt, God gave them food each day, bread in the morning and quail in the evening. He told them to take twice as much on the sixth day so they could rest on the seventh day. In explaining it to the people Moses said, "See! The LORD has given you the Sabbath; therefore on the sixth day He gives you bread for two days." (Exodus 16:22-30)
Later, when the children of Israel were to start making the tent of meeting, Moses told them, "Six days work shall be done, but on the seventh day you shall have a Sabbath of solemn rest, holy to the LORD. Whoever does any work on it shall be put to death. You shall kindle no fire in all your dwelling places on the Sabbath day." (Exodus 35:2-3) In Leviticus we learn that even the land was to be given a Sabbath rest every seven years. (Leviticus 25:1-7)
Isaiah gives us a little more insight into God's heart about the Sabbath, "...[if you] call the Sabbath a delight and the holy day of the LORD honorable; if you honor it, not going your own ways, or seeking your own pleasures, or talking idly, then you shall take delight in the LORD..." (Isaiah 58:13-14) This was a big deal because God says, "Moreover, I gave them my Sabbaths, as a sign between Me and them, that they might know that I am the LORD who sanctifies them." (Ezekiel 20:12)
But somewhere along the way, the scribes began to make the Sabbath less about the Lord and rest and worship and more about keeping the rules, rules they made up about what constituted work and how far you could walk and how much you could carry. Lots and lots of rules. Several of the difficult encounters Jesus had with the the religious leaders of His day concerned the Sabbath and Jesus not keeping their man-made rules. (Matthew 12, Luke 13, John 7)
So what about me today as a follower of Jesus. Does that Old Testament commandment apply to me? The other nine do, so why not this one?
Not long after the resurrection, the Jews who were following Jesus began to worship on the first day of the week, designating it the Lord's Day because Jesus arose from the dead on the first day of the week. As the Gospel spread to the Greeks and Romans the old Jewish rules were no longer observed. (Acts 15:1-21)
However, the law as given by God, not men, was not abolished by Jesus but fulfilled. (Matthew 5:17) For Christians the law about the Sabbath is not about a day of the week but an attitude of the heart and a desire to know and worship God. It is about putting aside all the busyness of the life and spending time with God. It is about reading the Bible and prayer and singing praises to Jesus. It is about knowing God and His son Jesus Christ and refreshing mind and body and spirit.
But wait...that's what it's been about all along!
Wednesday, November 21, 2012
Details
I am so glad God is in the details of life. He is a "big picture" God seeing all creation and all time as a whole. He knows when and how and where things did and will happen and when the universe will reach its conclusion. He is the Alpha and the Omega, the beginning and the end. But He is also a God of incredible detail.
When God gave directions to Moses for the tabernacle and the furnishings, He supplied lots of detail. God didn't just say make some curtains for the walls but told him the material to use, the number of curtains and their size, and how many hanging loops to put on them. He did that for every aspect of the tabernacle.
That's important to me because I am only one person in a world with seven billion or so people. I am a "detail" in a mass of humanity. In Psalm 139, David tells us of God's design and purpose and knowledge of who we are individually. Jesus said, "...the hairs of your head are all numbered" as He is telling His followers how much God cares for them. (Matthew 10:30)
The instructions God gave to Moses for building the temple give me a glimpse of just how much God cares about His dwelling place. As a follower of Jesus Christ, the Spirit of God dwells in me. (1 Corinthians 3:16). If He cared so much about all the little details of this tabernacle of perishable materials made by the hands of men, how much more does He care about the details of my life and this temple fashioned by His own hands?!
When God gave directions to Moses for the tabernacle and the furnishings, He supplied lots of detail. God didn't just say make some curtains for the walls but told him the material to use, the number of curtains and their size, and how many hanging loops to put on them. He did that for every aspect of the tabernacle.
That's important to me because I am only one person in a world with seven billion or so people. I am a "detail" in a mass of humanity. In Psalm 139, David tells us of God's design and purpose and knowledge of who we are individually. Jesus said, "...the hairs of your head are all numbered" as He is telling His followers how much God cares for them. (Matthew 10:30)
The instructions God gave to Moses for building the temple give me a glimpse of just how much God cares about His dwelling place. As a follower of Jesus Christ, the Spirit of God dwells in me. (1 Corinthians 3:16). If He cared so much about all the little details of this tabernacle of perishable materials made by the hands of men, how much more does He care about the details of my life and this temple fashioned by His own hands?!
Thursday, November 15, 2012
Thanksgiving
Way back in time - 3000 or so years ago - God was making a people for Himself. After He brought the Israelites out of their bondage in Egypt, He began to set up rules for them to live by so that these "600,000 men plus women and children" (Exodus 12:37) could be governed rightly by Moses and those he appointed to help settle disputes. God was to be the head of this government and the first rules, or the ten commandments, were a summation of all the details He would later give about how to love God and love your neighbor.
Part of what God instituted were some feasts. One that He established was called the "Feast of Ingathering at the end of the year when you gather in from the field the fruit of your labor." (Exodus 23:16) Our celebration of Thanksgiving is a lot like this feast. The only trouble is we forget to be thankful.
Today we are so far removed from the land and the actual growing of our food, that we forget that it is God that allows us to have food at all. Many farms may be agricultural giants with huge irrigation systems and lots of chemicals to make things grow and giant machines to do the work of planting and harvesting but we must still spend on God to supply rain to fill the irrigation ponds and the sunshine to grow our food. Wind, hail, floods, drought, heat and frost are all beyond our ability to control.
So even though we may depend on Publix or Whole Foods, Aldi's or WalMart for our food, without God's blessing we would have nothing to eat. Because we are so blessed with an abundance we should give God thanks with a grateful heart. It is not "Turkey Day", it is THANKSGIVING! I think a large part of being thankful is giving back to the community. That can be done by giving to a local food bank or helping out at a soup kitchen because there are people even in America who don't get enough to eat.
How could a $20 donation or an extra bag of canned goods or a turkey be used in your community to share the love of Jesus? Jesus was about meeting needs with compassion as He went about speaking truth about the kingdom of God. Now those of us who call ourselves Christians are to be His hands and feet in the communities where He has placed us.
Part of what God instituted were some feasts. One that He established was called the "Feast of Ingathering at the end of the year when you gather in from the field the fruit of your labor." (Exodus 23:16) Our celebration of Thanksgiving is a lot like this feast. The only trouble is we forget to be thankful.
Today we are so far removed from the land and the actual growing of our food, that we forget that it is God that allows us to have food at all. Many farms may be agricultural giants with huge irrigation systems and lots of chemicals to make things grow and giant machines to do the work of planting and harvesting but we must still spend on God to supply rain to fill the irrigation ponds and the sunshine to grow our food. Wind, hail, floods, drought, heat and frost are all beyond our ability to control.
So even though we may depend on Publix or Whole Foods, Aldi's or WalMart for our food, without God's blessing we would have nothing to eat. Because we are so blessed with an abundance we should give God thanks with a grateful heart. It is not "Turkey Day", it is THANKSGIVING! I think a large part of being thankful is giving back to the community. That can be done by giving to a local food bank or helping out at a soup kitchen because there are people even in America who don't get enough to eat.
How could a $20 donation or an extra bag of canned goods or a turkey be used in your community to share the love of Jesus? Jesus was about meeting needs with compassion as He went about speaking truth about the kingdom of God. Now those of us who call ourselves Christians are to be His hands and feet in the communities where He has placed us.
Thursday, November 8, 2012
Maturity
In some ways maturity - as in growing old - is over rated. Some people don't age well and lose all sense of fun in life. Some people forget how to laugh or they forget that life doesn't revolve around them. It can be hard getting older as many older people suffer from hunger and pain and fear of death. I see that first hand as I volunteer with the local Meals on Wheels and with a hospice organization. I'm not thinking of them but of the grumpy old men and women you encounter in various places. Their maturity in age often makes them hard to love.
It is important that we come to a time when we grow up and we put away the childish irresponibilities of youth and begin to take on the responsibilities of adulthood to work and manage our money and take care of our stuff. But we never need to lose the childlike wonder at the magnificence of God's creation. We don't need to lose the childlike faith that trusts completely.
Our walk toward spiritual maturity takes time but we should be showing signs of growing up in our faith. The Israelites had been gone from Egypt only a short time when God decided Pharaoh needed another lesson in who God is. The Israelites felt trapped as they saw the Egyptians bearing down on them. "Is it because there are no graves in Egypt that you have taken us away to die in the wilderness? What have you done to us in bringing us out of Egypt? Is not this what we said to you in Egypt, 'Leave us alone that we may serve the Egyptians'? For it would have been better to serve the Egyptians than to die in the wilderness." (Exodus 14:11-12)
Aren't we all a little like that at the beginning of our walk with Jesus? When times get hard, we question why God is letting this happen to us. We may even say what's the point of following Jesus if He's going let THIS happen to me. Jesus said in the parable of the sower "...the seed is the word of God...what fell among the thorns, they are those who hear, but as they go on their way they are choked by the cares and riches and pleasures of life, and their fruit does not mature..." (Luke 8:9-15) The cares of life...all those tough times and hard decisions with hich we are often confronted.
Part of growing toward maturity in our walk with Jesus is looking at our circumstances through God's eyes. Twice God told Moses, "I shall get glory...and the Egyptians shall know that I am the LORD." (Exodus 14:4; 17-18) And it happened. As the Egyptians realized they were in a bad situation, they said, "Let us flee from before Israel, for the LORD fights for them against the Egyptians." (Exodus 14:25)
God saved Israel with the miraculous parting of the Red Sea and the subsequent drowning of the Egyptian soldiers. "Israel saw the great power that the LORD used against the Egyptians, so the people feared the LORD, and they believed in the LORD and in His servant Moses." (Exodus 14:31) God intended, all along, to save Israel but that is almost a like footnote to God getting glory. That is true in our lives as well. God doesn't rescue us for us but for His glory, so we will believe in Him and have a story to tell of His greatness.
It is important that we come to a time when we grow up and we put away the childish irresponibilities of youth and begin to take on the responsibilities of adulthood to work and manage our money and take care of our stuff. But we never need to lose the childlike wonder at the magnificence of God's creation. We don't need to lose the childlike faith that trusts completely.
Our walk toward spiritual maturity takes time but we should be showing signs of growing up in our faith. The Israelites had been gone from Egypt only a short time when God decided Pharaoh needed another lesson in who God is. The Israelites felt trapped as they saw the Egyptians bearing down on them. "Is it because there are no graves in Egypt that you have taken us away to die in the wilderness? What have you done to us in bringing us out of Egypt? Is not this what we said to you in Egypt, 'Leave us alone that we may serve the Egyptians'? For it would have been better to serve the Egyptians than to die in the wilderness." (Exodus 14:11-12)
Aren't we all a little like that at the beginning of our walk with Jesus? When times get hard, we question why God is letting this happen to us. We may even say what's the point of following Jesus if He's going let THIS happen to me. Jesus said in the parable of the sower "...the seed is the word of God...what fell among the thorns, they are those who hear, but as they go on their way they are choked by the cares and riches and pleasures of life, and their fruit does not mature..." (Luke 8:9-15) The cares of life...all those tough times and hard decisions with hich we are often confronted.
Part of growing toward maturity in our walk with Jesus is looking at our circumstances through God's eyes. Twice God told Moses, "I shall get glory...and the Egyptians shall know that I am the LORD." (Exodus 14:4; 17-18) And it happened. As the Egyptians realized they were in a bad situation, they said, "Let us flee from before Israel, for the LORD fights for them against the Egyptians." (Exodus 14:25)
God saved Israel with the miraculous parting of the Red Sea and the subsequent drowning of the Egyptian soldiers. "Israel saw the great power that the LORD used against the Egyptians, so the people feared the LORD, and they believed in the LORD and in His servant Moses." (Exodus 14:31) God intended, all along, to save Israel but that is almost a like footnote to God getting glory. That is true in our lives as well. God doesn't rescue us for us but for His glory, so we will believe in Him and have a story to tell of His greatness.
Wednesday, November 7, 2012
Plagues
I noticed some interesting things about the plagues God sent through Moses and Aaron onto Pharaoh and the people of Egypt.
First I noticed that God said this isn't going to work, "Pharaoh will not listen to you..." but go do it anyway. (Exodus 7:4) When we are doing what God asks us to do, it just might not end in "success" from our point of view but we never fail when we are obedient.
God was about freeing His people but God's overall purpose was that "the Egyptians will know that I am the LORD". (Exodus 7:5) That is still His purpose today. God is still about the business of revealing Himself to a lost and dying world. How He does that is up to Him but He still uses people to go out and speak to those far from God. Maybe we can't perform miracles like Moses and Aaron but we do have a story to tell of God's work in our lives.
It was not until the fourth plague that God separated His people out so they were no longer affected by the plagues. Followers of Jesus are not immune to the ravages of nature or the hardships of life. Jesus tells us "...in the world you will have tribulation..." (John 16:33) A time will come when followers of Jesus Christ will be separated out but until then we must live in this broken, sinful world. "When the Son of Man comes in His glory, and all the angels with Him, then He will sit on His glorious throne. Before Him will be gathered all the nations, and He will separate people one from another as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats." (Matthew 25:31-32)
The first few plagues were just annoying and could even be replicated by the magicians of Egypt. But they became more and more "God things" as hail rained down from heaven, locusts came in on the wind, and no sun shown in the sky for three days. They also became more serious for the people with sickness and death of livestock and destruction of crops. God always knows what that "final straw" will be that will break our hard hearts. After the seventh plague Pharaoh said, "This time I have sinned; the LORD is in the right and I and my people are in the wrong." (Exodus 9:27) But it was not until the tenth plague that Pharaoh finally surrendered. God told Moses, "Yet one plague more I will bring upon Pharaoh and upon Egypt. Afterward he will let you go out from here." (Exodus 11:1)
When the tenth and final plague was announced, God's people had to do what He commanded of them or they too would become victims of this plague. Death was decreed, death of every firstborn child and animal. In order to have the death angel pass over their house, each Israelite had to kill a spotless lamb, spread the blood on the doorposts, then grill and eat the lamb.
Death is still decreed, "for the wages of sin is death." (Romans 6:23) Fortunately, God has provided our Passover lamb in His son, Jesus Christ. Those who follow God's plan will be saved. Just as the Israelites in Egypt had to put their faith in God and in the blood on their doorposts, we must put our faith in the blood of the cross of Calvary. That cross is our doorpost because Jesus is "...the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world." (John 1:29) He shed His blood so the wrath of God could be satisfied and rose from the dead three days later so those who follow Him can have life too. "For God so loved the world that He gave His only Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have eternal life." (John 3:16)
First I noticed that God said this isn't going to work, "Pharaoh will not listen to you..." but go do it anyway. (Exodus 7:4) When we are doing what God asks us to do, it just might not end in "success" from our point of view but we never fail when we are obedient.
God was about freeing His people but God's overall purpose was that "the Egyptians will know that I am the LORD". (Exodus 7:5) That is still His purpose today. God is still about the business of revealing Himself to a lost and dying world. How He does that is up to Him but He still uses people to go out and speak to those far from God. Maybe we can't perform miracles like Moses and Aaron but we do have a story to tell of God's work in our lives.
It was not until the fourth plague that God separated His people out so they were no longer affected by the plagues. Followers of Jesus are not immune to the ravages of nature or the hardships of life. Jesus tells us "...in the world you will have tribulation..." (John 16:33) A time will come when followers of Jesus Christ will be separated out but until then we must live in this broken, sinful world. "When the Son of Man comes in His glory, and all the angels with Him, then He will sit on His glorious throne. Before Him will be gathered all the nations, and He will separate people one from another as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats." (Matthew 25:31-32)
The first few plagues were just annoying and could even be replicated by the magicians of Egypt. But they became more and more "God things" as hail rained down from heaven, locusts came in on the wind, and no sun shown in the sky for three days. They also became more serious for the people with sickness and death of livestock and destruction of crops. God always knows what that "final straw" will be that will break our hard hearts. After the seventh plague Pharaoh said, "This time I have sinned; the LORD is in the right and I and my people are in the wrong." (Exodus 9:27) But it was not until the tenth plague that Pharaoh finally surrendered. God told Moses, "Yet one plague more I will bring upon Pharaoh and upon Egypt. Afterward he will let you go out from here." (Exodus 11:1)
When the tenth and final plague was announced, God's people had to do what He commanded of them or they too would become victims of this plague. Death was decreed, death of every firstborn child and animal. In order to have the death angel pass over their house, each Israelite had to kill a spotless lamb, spread the blood on the doorposts, then grill and eat the lamb.
Death is still decreed, "for the wages of sin is death." (Romans 6:23) Fortunately, God has provided our Passover lamb in His son, Jesus Christ. Those who follow God's plan will be saved. Just as the Israelites in Egypt had to put their faith in God and in the blood on their doorposts, we must put our faith in the blood of the cross of Calvary. That cross is our doorpost because Jesus is "...the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world." (John 1:29) He shed His blood so the wrath of God could be satisfied and rose from the dead three days later so those who follow Him can have life too. "For God so loved the world that He gave His only Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have eternal life." (John 3:16)
Tuesday, November 6, 2012
Vote
Voting is a privilege that I will exercise today. I am not thrilled with either candidate for President but there is not, for me, a don't vote option. Barack Obama and Mitt Romney are the choices so I will vote for one of them. I will also vote for the local candidates running for office and for the statewide amendment on the ballot for South Carolina.
I don't understand how God's sovereignty and my vote work together because I believe what the Bible says about God placing rulers over us. God will not be surprised or concerned or fretful over the outcome of this election because He has known long before today who the President will be. It bothers me to see all the hateful rhetoric from those who profess to be followers of Jesus Christ. They are not just denigrating the candidate but they are also denigrating God. "Let every person be subject to the ruling authorities. For there is no authority except from God, and those that exist have been instituted by God. Therefore whoever resists the authorities resists what God has appointed, and those that resist will incur judgment." (Romans 13:1-3 ESV)
When Paul wrote this the Jews were under the rule of the Roman Empire. The land God had given to them thousands of years ago was occupied by foreigners who had authority over them. The Christians were under intense persecution by the same Roman authorities as well as the Jewish religious leaders. And yet he tells them, don't resist. We know now that the Roman Empire came crashing down but at that time they could not see the end of it. Today the Jews are living in that same land as a free people.
Our problem is that we are too short-sighted. We only see what is going on right now and how it impacts me today. We live confined by time when God sees everything from beginning to end without that confinement. His plans are perfect even if I don't understand them.
I am making a commitment to pray for the President, whoever he is, and others in authority. That has been a lack in my life over the years and something that God would have me do. "First of all, then, I urge that supplications, prayers, intercessions, and thanksgivings be made for all people, for kings and all who are in high positions, that we may lead a peaceful and quiet life, godly and dignified in every way. This is pleasing in the sight of God our Savior, who desires all people to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth." (1 Timothy 2:1-3 ESV)
I don't understand how God's sovereignty and my vote work together because I believe what the Bible says about God placing rulers over us. God will not be surprised or concerned or fretful over the outcome of this election because He has known long before today who the President will be. It bothers me to see all the hateful rhetoric from those who profess to be followers of Jesus Christ. They are not just denigrating the candidate but they are also denigrating God. "Let every person be subject to the ruling authorities. For there is no authority except from God, and those that exist have been instituted by God. Therefore whoever resists the authorities resists what God has appointed, and those that resist will incur judgment." (Romans 13:1-3 ESV)
When Paul wrote this the Jews were under the rule of the Roman Empire. The land God had given to them thousands of years ago was occupied by foreigners who had authority over them. The Christians were under intense persecution by the same Roman authorities as well as the Jewish religious leaders. And yet he tells them, don't resist. We know now that the Roman Empire came crashing down but at that time they could not see the end of it. Today the Jews are living in that same land as a free people.
Our problem is that we are too short-sighted. We only see what is going on right now and how it impacts me today. We live confined by time when God sees everything from beginning to end without that confinement. His plans are perfect even if I don't understand them.
I am making a commitment to pray for the President, whoever he is, and others in authority. That has been a lack in my life over the years and something that God would have me do. "First of all, then, I urge that supplications, prayers, intercessions, and thanksgivings be made for all people, for kings and all who are in high positions, that we may lead a peaceful and quiet life, godly and dignified in every way. This is pleasing in the sight of God our Savior, who desires all people to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth." (1 Timothy 2:1-3 ESV)
Monday, November 5, 2012
Servants
Saved people serve people. This is one of the core values of NewSpring Church. Just last Sunday I saw a twitter report (and I don't remember the exact numbers) 3,000+ volunteers served 19,000+ people at our campuses on Sunday.
One of the things Jesus said about his followers is that we are no longer servants but friends. "No longer do I call you servants, for the servant does not know what his master is doing; but I have called you friends, for all that I have heard from my Father I have made known to you." (John 15:15)
I know some people who are Christ followers who take this verse and use it to try to make church all about them - feed me, comfort me, meet my needs - when in reality Church really isn't about us (or me) at all. It is about reaching those far from God so they might know Jesus. And I believe to reach them, we need to serve them because serving someone shows them you care about them.
The apostles of the early church most often called themselves servants. Paul, Peter, James, and Jude all open their letters with greetings and designations as servants of God or servants of Jesus Christ. If they were servants, I want to be one too.
So what does it mean to be a servant. The term most often used in the Greek is bond-servant which means a slave. A slave does what he is told without asking questions. I believe that is what the apostles meant when they called themselves servants. They were saying I will go and do and be whatever Jesus Christ asks of me. I will not question his directives, I will do them.
Being a slave meant not bringing anything with you. The slave didn't supply his own tools or money to get the job done. The master supplied all that was needed to do the work and the slave provided the labor. That is also a big part of what the apostles meant. They didn't have resources to do all that was asked of them so they had to depend on their Master to supply it.
In our day, we have plenty of resources. In a way that is sad because we have come to trust in ourselves to provide all we need. I really need more of the servants heart. A heart that submits to the Master not only for direction but for supplying all the resources I need to do all he asks of me. No excuses. No wavering. No whining. Simply obedience.
One of the things Jesus said about his followers is that we are no longer servants but friends. "No longer do I call you servants, for the servant does not know what his master is doing; but I have called you friends, for all that I have heard from my Father I have made known to you." (John 15:15)
I know some people who are Christ followers who take this verse and use it to try to make church all about them - feed me, comfort me, meet my needs - when in reality Church really isn't about us (or me) at all. It is about reaching those far from God so they might know Jesus. And I believe to reach them, we need to serve them because serving someone shows them you care about them.
The apostles of the early church most often called themselves servants. Paul, Peter, James, and Jude all open their letters with greetings and designations as servants of God or servants of Jesus Christ. If they were servants, I want to be one too.
So what does it mean to be a servant. The term most often used in the Greek is bond-servant which means a slave. A slave does what he is told without asking questions. I believe that is what the apostles meant when they called themselves servants. They were saying I will go and do and be whatever Jesus Christ asks of me. I will not question his directives, I will do them.
Being a slave meant not bringing anything with you. The slave didn't supply his own tools or money to get the job done. The master supplied all that was needed to do the work and the slave provided the labor. That is also a big part of what the apostles meant. They didn't have resources to do all that was asked of them so they had to depend on their Master to supply it.
In our day, we have plenty of resources. In a way that is sad because we have come to trust in ourselves to provide all we need. I really need more of the servants heart. A heart that submits to the Master not only for direction but for supplying all the resources I need to do all he asks of me. No excuses. No wavering. No whining. Simply obedience.
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