Gospel of Matthew

Eyes

/ The Pastor

“The eye is the lamp of the body. So, if your eye is healthy, your whole body will be full of light,  but if your eye is bad, your whole body will be full of darkness. If then the light in you is darkness, how great is the darkness! [Matthew 6:22-23]

I wanted to share this devotion with you that I read today through my YouVersion Bible app. Check it out:

“The Lamp”

Our natural eyes are given to us to help us function and communicate in the natural world, but they have another purpose; to help us perceive the beauty and glory in the natural world that bear witness to the nature, character and purposes of God the Creator. We all know that natural eyes, if they are blinded or otherwise defective, can block or distort the light that is intended to guide us. This is true in the spiritual world as well.

One way this happens is when, as Romans 1 explains, we exchange divine glory for natural glory, and things such as female beauty, affection and sexuality take on an exaggerated importance to us because they have been separated from other things which are supposed to be part of the male-female relationship, such as genuine love and covenant. Romans 1 goes on to explain how we can even be “given over” (essentially, addicted) to increasingly wicked behavior, because our “bad eye” has distorted our perspective.

The way out is to reverse the exchange we have made through repentance, acknowledging God and making a conscious choice to value divine glory over natural glory. Only then will our “bad eyes” become “good eyes” again, allowing our bodies to be filled with light instead of darkness.

I read this and thought of the song lyric, “Be careful little eyes what you see”. The eyes are indeed the windows to the soul and ones that will pollute your soul in a big hurry. And when we are polluted, we exchange the glory of God for that which is not beautiful. It’s only a false beauty that will wear out and grow dim. Only the glory and beauty of God will never dim and never disappoint. Only the beauty of God will draw us in and hold our affections. Natural beauty begs us to return and through sin we are more than happy to acquiesce.

So…

Keep your eyes fixed on the beauty of God.
~ Running to His Word
~ Dwelling in His promises.
~ Gazing on the cross of Jesus.
~ Reflecting on your sin and God’s forgiveness of said sin.
~ Spending time with other believers in worship.
~ Studying God’s word.
~ Filling your thoughts about the glories of God.

Basically, keep yourself so busy with God that your eyes don’t have time to let in false beauty that is of this world. Look at everything through the lens of faith and give glory to God our Father; beholding His beauty.

Holy God, give me eyes so I can see Your beauty and not exchange Your beauty for that which will fade. And where I have failed; where I have exchanged Your beauty for natural beauty, grant me faith and strength to repent. In Jesus name I pray, Amen.

The Pastor -|—

Change

/ The Pastor

And going into the house they (The magi) saw the child with Mary his mother, and they fell down and worshiped him. Then, opening their treasures, they offered him gifts, gold and frankincense and myrrh. And being warned in a dream not to return to Herod, they departed to their own country by another way. [Matthew 2:11-12]

And the shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all they had heard and seen, as it had been told them. [Luke 2:20]

And Jesus said to him (Bartimaeus, who used to be blind), “Go your way; your faith has made you well.” And immediately he recovered his sight and followed him on the way. [Mark 10:52]

While walking by the Sea of Galilee, he (Jesus) saw two brothers, Simon (who is called Peter) and Andrew his brother, casting a net into the sea, for they were fishermen. And he said to them, “Follow me, and I will make you fishers of men.” Immediately they left their nets and followed Jesus [Matthew 4:18-20]

What do all these texts have in common? It’s OK, you can go back and read them again. I’ll wait…

[Cue Jeopardy theme]

…waiting…

…waiting…

…did you see it?

In all these situations/encounters, the people leave changed. They encountered Jesus and they are changed. The shepherds returned glorifying and praising God. The Magi returned by another way (and I would say figuratively as well; meaning THE Way). Bartimaeus listened to Jesus and went “his way” which happened to be the way of Jesus. Peter and Andrew meet Jesus and when invited/commanded to follow, they dropped everything and followed.

And it makes sense, really. I mean, how does one meet Jesus and not be changed? How does one encounter the Son of God and return to your former way of life? How does one hear, “I love you and I forgive you” and say “That’s nice“? How does one receive the Gospel and not say anything about it?

Jesus changes people.

And so I am lead to conclude that if you are not making your way the way of Jesus then maybe you haven’t met Jesus yet. If you are not proclaiming the Gospel through word and deed then maybe you haven’t received it yet. If you are just going with the flow of culture then maybe you haven’t been confronted by the Son of Man. For you see, when the Good News of Jesus Christ takes hold of you, it takes hold of you. I am not saying that you will be perfect in your following but at least you will know where to turn when you do fall. You will care about the fact that you sinned against God and therefore will seek reconciliation through the blood of the Lamb. Repentance will be your desire. Holiness will be your goal. Worship of God Almighty will be your life.

Jesus changes people.

Therefore I can’t imagine peering into that manger stall without being blown away by the love that had just entered the world through a tiny baby. I can’t imagine standing face to face with Jesus and not dropping everything to be near him. I can’t imagine being powerfully healed by Jesus and not shouting “Alleluia!” for all the world to hear.

Jesus changes people.

I look at what is going on in the world and it saddens me but I am not angry with people. I am not angry with our government. I am not angry with our leaders. I am just saddened because I am part of an institution that has not done enough to introduce people to Jesus. But instead of just sitting here feeling sorry for myself, I need to do a better job of introducing/proclaiming Jesus.

~ Being more bold in my faith
~ Being more bold in practicing forgiveness
~ Being more bold in encouraging people
~ Being more bold in calling people to repentance
~ Being more bold in advocating for the Word of God
~ Being more bold…(God, You fill in the blank)

Change me, oh God, to be who You need me to be for the sake of the Gospel.

Meet Jesus and then “go your way“; following the one who has redeemed you from your sin and show people the love our your Savior. Let the Holy Spirit work through your life and give praise and glory to God our Father.

Let Jesus change you that he may change the world.

Holy Father, send Your Spirit to change people. Send Your Spirit to embolden people. Send Your Spirit to save people. And in the end may Your children praise and worship You. Glory be to You, oh God, through Christ Jesus our Lord, Amen.

The Pastor -|—

The Call to Follow Jesus

/ The Pastor / 1 Comment

[18] While walking by the Sea of Galilee, he saw two brothers, Simon (who is called Peter) and Andrew his brother, casting a net into the sea, for they were fishermen. [19] And he said to them, “Follow me, and I will make you fishers of men.” [20] Immediately they left their nets and followed him. [Matthew 4:18-20 ESV]

The call to follow Jesus is one where you relinquish control of your life and trust the One whom you follow; namely Jesus. It’s not a life where you call the shots. I was recently speaking with a group of young men when one asked me how long do pastor’s stay at churches. I responded, “That depends on God”. He smiled and agreed and that was the end of his inquiry. My guess is that he heard all he needed to know; basically, the call to follow Jesus is not one you get to control.

The call to follow Jesus is one of trust. You may not get the whole picture. Often times God operates on a need to know basis. The call may simply be to go to such and such a country or to such and such a town. God may not lay everything out in black and white but rather in a muddled, garbled mess; one that starts to make sense as you move along God’s path.

The call to follow Jesus is not necessarily one of worldly riches and comforts. And this is the one the gets a lot of people. I need to provide for my family. I have to pay the bills. So you may be hesitant to listen to God’s voice because you are afraid of what it might say (even though deep down inside you have been hearing it already).

The call to follow Jesus is one that may lead to friction in worldly relationships. Family may be upset that you are moving so far away or putting your family in a difficult financial situation or moving to an unsafe part of the world. Close friends may express sadness and maybe a little pressure to stay close. Some may call you crazy and think you have fallen off your rocker for “following Jesus”.

The call to follow Jesus is one of discipline and refining. God may bring a period of darkness in your life in order to draw you deeper in Him. God may be refining out impurities in your faith in order for you to minister in a new way. God may be convicting you of a sin that needs to be addressed in order for you to better glorify Him.

The call to follow Jesus is one of leaving peace of mind in order to bring peace to those in chaos.

The call to follow Jesus is one of Kingdom advancement; not yours, so therefore the hesitation for some.

The call to follow Jesus is one of great joy for those who place their complete faith and trust in God almighty through Christ Jesus our Lord. For when the Jesus follower does this it is because they know it’s not their knowledge or skills or wisdom or strength that will get them by. It’s God and if God is for you then who could possibly be against you?

The call to follow Jesus takes prayer, patience and persistence. Prayer in order to receive your true marching orders; patience to wait on God’s timing; and persistence to keep at it during periods of darkness and difficulties.

The call to follow Jesus is one of fishing for people so the nets of God’s kingdom are filled to overflowing and then some. Those first disciples had no clue what Jesus meant by “fishing for men” or how to go about doing it. They simply responded to the call to follow Jesus and trusted him. And you know something? They did it and the net continues to be filled.

The call to follow Jesus is a call to participate in God’s plan of redemption and God’s plan is NOT going to fail. So drop your nets and go. Follow Jesus wherever HE goes.

Holy Father, You have called me to follow You. You have called me to faith. You have called me to share the Gospel through Word and deed. You have called me to obey. Grant me the faith to listen and follow that you may continue to be glorified. In Jesus name I pray, Amen.

The Pastor -|—

Hungering For Others and For God (Matthew 5:6)

/ The Pastor

image

For the next 30 hours, there is going to be plenty of “hunger” in my life.

You see, there is a group of kids from my confirmation class who will be participating in World Vision’s 30 Hour Famine to raise money and awareness for world hunger. The famine started at 12 noon today (Friday) so there’s not a lot of hunger going on yet, but there will be.

The kids will arrive at church at 6:30 PM for a lock in, where they will doing some activities and Bible studies tonight. Tomorrow (Saturday) they will go on a scavenger hunt for the food shelf in town and then volunteer there for a couple hours. They will do some other services projects along with more activities and Bible study. At 6 PM (Saturday) we will gather for worship and Holy Communion and then break the fast with a bountiful spaghetti dinner.

And even though we will be getting pretty hungry maybe tonight but definitely tomorrow, it will be nothing compared to those who go without food for days or longer. Really, most of us have no idea what real hunger is like. For the most part we have food to eat everyday. And even if you don’t, there are food programs and food shelves and feeding ministries and the like readily available in this country (for the most part). But hopefully these kids get a taste of what hunger is like and feel more empathy for those who go without. Maybe next time they will go the extra mile to help the food shelf in town. Maybe they will notice that classmate who doesn’t get much to eat. Maybe they will reach out even farther to support world hunger initiatives.

But even more than doing the tangible thing of feeding people, my hope and prayer is that their hunger and thirst for God increases and drives them to serve their neighbor, not out of guilt or pity, but out of love for them. For when we hunger and thirsty for the righteousness that only God gives through faith in Jesus, then we will be driven to feed others (physically and spiritually).

So I ask you to be in prayer for these kids for the next 30 hours (and beyond). May God increase their hunger for Him and for their neighbors all over the world.

Father God, may we never lose our hunger for you. May our thirsty for the living water of Jesus never fade. And may we not lose sight of those who hunger and thirst in any way. In Jesus name I pray, Amen.

The Pastor -|—

Whom to Fear (Matthew 10:26-33)

/ The Pastor / 1 Comment

[26] “So have no fear of them, for nothing is covered that will not be revealed, or hidden that will not be known. [27] What I tell you in the dark, say in the light, and what you hear whispered, proclaim on the housetops. [28] And do not fear those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul. Rather fear him who can destroy both soul and body in hell. [29] Are not two sparrows sold for a penny? And not one of them will fall to the ground apart from your Father. [30] But even the hairs of your head are all numbered. [31] Fear not, therefore; you are of more value than many sparrows. [32] So everyone who acknowledges me before men, I also will acknowledge before my Father who is in heaven, [33] but whoever denies me before men, I also will deny before my Father who is in heaven.(Matthew 10:26-33 ESV)

These verses come to mind this morning as I read a story on Twitter about ISIS allegedly killing 30 Ethiopian Christians. And sadly, this is a story that will get very little media attention; 30 Christians (link included) going to their deaths because of their faith. I weep for the families affected and for the Ethiopian people but I also praise God with them that these 30 were found worthy to die for the Way. I probably will never face anything like that in my life time but I hope and pray that my faith would be strong enough to stare death in the face and cling to the hope of the resurrection.

And for this Christian way over here in this country, there is very little I can do to protect Christians way over there. But one thing that we can all do is pray for the Church:

Pray that the Church is faithful to the Word of God.
Pray that the Church is faithful to our Lord Jesus Christ.
Pray that Christians remember what and who Jesus died for.
Pray that the Holy Spirit will convict those who oppose Jesus.

And that last prayer request is not out of line. It’s not a fantasy or dream to think that the Holy Spirit could convict those in ISIS. Saul (later became Paul) was a feared persecutor of the Church; killing and imprisoning many Christians. But then Jesus showed up; blinding him and changed his heart. If Jesus could do that to Saul/Paul then Jesus can do that to anyone.

God willing of course.

But in the mean time, do not fear those who can kill the body, rather…
Fear God
Worship God
Praise God
Glorify God
Run to God
Cling to God

and all through Jesus Christ who died that we may live.

This pastor’s heart is heavy this morning but also very hopeful. God is good and God has already won the victory, no matter how many Christians are killed for the Way.

Praise be to God!

Holy God, grant faith to Your holy Church that it may stand under the threat of those who oppose it. May the Good News of Jesus Christ give hope to many as Your kingdom has been and is being established through Your Son. In Jesus name I pray, Amen.

The Pastor -|—

Opening prayer ~ The Narrow Gate (Matthew 7:13-14)

/ The Pastor

As we prepare for worship this morning, let us first prepare our hearts to praise God and receive His Holy Word. Let us pray…

Father God,

scripture teaches us to “Enter by the narrow gate. For the gate is wide and the way is easy that leads to destruction, and those who enter by it are many. For the gate is narrow and the way is hard that leads to life, and those who find it are few.” (Matthew 7:13-14) May those who are here gathered enter by the narrow gate and deny themselves the easy way through the wide gate. May we enter through

Your Word
Your Promises
Your Grace and,
Your son, Jesus Christ

But we are not so foolish to think that the path through the narrow gate will be easy. It will be hard, so I humbly ask that you may send your Holy Spirit to make us lean; trimming away

the cares of this world
idols
false gods
false doctrine
hypocrisy
gossip
prosperity gospel faith and
anything else that weighs us down.

May we have the faith to deny ourselves, pick up our cross and follow Jesus through the narrow gate.

So make your Word manifest among us as we lift up our prayers, praise and thanksgivings. You are worthy, oh God, You are worthy. So here we come, to worship Your holy name, through Jesus Christ our Lord, Amen.

May you bless God as you worship this morning and may you be blessed by the proclamation of God’s holy Word.

The Pastor -|—

Morning devotions ~ Wait

/ The Pastor

Therefore, stay awake, for you do not know on what day your Lord is coming. [Matthew 24:42]

I can only imagine that when my kids get older and start going out with their friends, I am going to be one of those worrying parents. I imagine that I will be staying up until they get home; and especially if they are past curfew. I can’t imagine that I would fall asleep and not wait anxiously until they are safe and sound in their bed. I am going to want to see them face to face whether they are late or not.

Jesus uses an image, in chapter 24, of a master of a house and if they knew when a thief was coming to break in, they would stay awake and wait. Nobody would be so lazy as to fall asleep, right? I think I would be anxious. I can imagine I would make sure the doors are locked, and then checked again. I would lower the blinds and pull the curtains. I would check on my family and make sure they are safe; and check again and again. I might even call the police and let them know I am afraid something may happen tonight. And then I am going to stand watch and be ready for the thief. I can’t imagine I would become lazy and complacent and be taken by surprise.

And yet, when it comes to Jesus, many people do just that. It has been so long since Jesus walked this earth that many people take Jesus for granted. Oh, he’s not coming in my lifetime. I’ll get ready later. But whose to say that Jesus won’t come before you finish reading this devotion.

stay awake, for you do not know on what day your Lord is coming.

~ Parents anxiously await for their children to return home.
~ Children anxiously await for Santa to bring their presents.
~ Some sit by the phone and anxiously await the arrival of some news.
~ Maybe you sit by the window and wait to the postal worker to deliver a package.
~ A master of a house prepares and waits for a known thief to come.

And so as Christians doesn’t it make sense to wait for Jesus; for he comes to bring the great gift of all: Eternal life for those who place their faith in Jesus. I for one can hardly wait until that day. What will the trumpet blast sound like? Will I fall to my knees? Will I dance for joy? Will I weep tears of happiness? But as the song goes, “I can only imagine”. What a day it will be.

Oh God, may I be “awake” and ready.

Don’t let him find you lazy. May Jesus find you preparing for his arrival. May he find you anxiously awaiting his glorious return. May Jesus find you ready.

My friends, Jesus IS coming. Just wait and see 🙂

Praise be to God and Amen!

The Pastor -|—

Morning devotions ~ What you really need to hear

/ The Pastor

And Jesus answered them, “Truly, I say to you, if you have faith and do not doubt, you will not only do what has been done to the fig tree, but even if you say to this mountain, ‘Be taken up and thrown into the sea,’ it will happen. And whatever you ask in prayer, you will receive, if you have faith.” [Matthew 21:21-22]

Oh how these verses have been misunderstood and misapplied.
Oh how these verses have been abused and therefore have caused many people to go astray.

If you believe right and have enough faith you can get what you want and “live your best life now”. This is the mantra of the prosperity gospel (not THE Gospel of Jesus Christ). The likes of Joel Osteen have championed this theology and have garnered many adherents, thus leading many people astray. And the reason these prosperity theologians are so “successful” is that this message is something people think they need to hear.

Give me the secret to success.
Tell me how I can be happy now.
How can I feel fulfilled?
How can I live my best life now?

Everything is about this life, now, and nothing about the life to come. It’s about manipulating and controlling God to get what you want. Throw in talk of Jesus and faith and you have enough to trick people into thinking this theology is legit; from the Bible.

Lord have mercy.

But what was Jesus really teaching in Matthew 21 about faith and prayer? Was he giving us a magic formula to get what we want out of prayer?

Absolutely not!

Two things are being shown:
(1) You may have faith, but you still doubt.
(2) If you truly know God you will ask according to God’s will, not your own. It’s then that you receive what you pray for.

The big difference here is that it is not about your happiness now (your will) but your eternal joy (God’s will). It’s about aligning your will with God’s will. It’s about humbling yourself and admitting that you are a sinner. It’s about realizing that without Jesus you can not get out of this world alive. It’s about realizing that you are meant to glorify God and enjoy him forever. This life may be crappy but you still can have joy; that is if you believe Jesus is your Lord and Savior.

So don’t be fooled by false prophets and self-serving prosperity theologians by trying to reach for and cling to happiness in this life now but rather place your faith in Jesus Christ and cling to the hope of the resurrection. Don’t be fooled into thinking that it is about how you have faith rather than who you have faith in.

Jesus is life and salvation and therefore the source of true joy. That right there will give you peace. And THAT my friends is what you really need to hear.

Have a blessed day enjoying God through Jesus Christ our Lord.

The Pastor -|—

Morning devotions ~ Don’t be offended

/ The Pastor

And blessed is the one who is not offended by me.” [Matthew 11:6]

What kind of people offend you? Rude people? People who tell racist jokes? Those who gossip about your friends or family? Those who make fun of your looks or heritage or religion? Those who say you are not good enough?

No doubt you have been offended by someone and probably not too long ago. And when someone offends you, what do you do? Run away? Confront them? Go on the offensive trying to offend the offender? Get violent?

Sometimes the offense is unintentional but whatever the case, when we are offended; a wall has been built and a relationship has been cut off. You want nothing more to do with that person since they obviously don’t understand you or care about you.

And then we have Jesus; the great offender. Seems kind of strange to say that but it is true. One of my favorite seminary professors told us early in our seminary education that the Gospel is offensive to some. And how true that is. The Gospel tells you that:

~ YOU are a sinner
~ YOU are worthy of death
~ YOUR good works do nothing to make God love you more
~ ALL your best efforts still fall short of God’s expectations
~ YOUR heart is full of evil and sin
~ YOU will die on your own

A sinner hears statements like that and it’s offensive. People want to hear the “good stuff”; how they can be successful not how bad they are. So it is no wonder why people are offended by the Gospel, especially in a culture where many so-called preachers are saying that everything will be alright if you just believe correctly or think correctly or dream big enough. That’s not the Gospel. And actually, it’s quite offensive to this pastor.

The fact of the matter (the Gospel) is that YOU are not good enough but JESUS is.

YOU fall short but JESUS does not.
YOU displease God but JESUS does not.
YOU are filled with sin but JESUS is not.
YOU are not worthy but JESUS is.

And the Gospel is that through faith in Jesus you are connected to him and thus live. If this offends you then you will be lost forever, but blessed is the one who is not offended by Jesus.

Holy God, grant us the faith to receive this Gospel. Help us to see that we fall short and that our only hope is to run into the arms of Jesus. May we never be offended by you, instead may we see you as our loving Father, wanting us to live with you forever. In Jesus name I pray, Amen.

The Pastor -|—

Morning devotions ~ Unclean and then clean

/ The Pastor

And behold, a leper came to him and knelt before him, saying, “Lord, if you will, you can make me clean.” And Jesus stretched out his hand and touched him, saying, “I will; be clean.” And immediately his leprosy was cleansed. [Matthew 8:2-3]

I love this interaction between this leper and Jesus; for here I see my own sinfulness but also the grace and love of God.

Here we have the unclean; humbly and faithfully and boldly, coming to Jesus even though it was not socially acceptable for him to do so. Actually, it was against the Law. This unclean outcast desperately seeking cleansing, healing and restoration. And he demands nothing but rather throws himself at the mercy of Jesus.

IF you will…

And before Jesus even says a word Jesus lets his actions speak love and mercy by reaching out to touch that which no one would have dreamed of touching. And after the leper feels the touch of Jesus he hears those life giving words:

I will; be clean

And that’s it. This outcast is clean and restored and healed and brought back into communion with God. I imagine there was much joy for the leper following this act of love and mercy…

…and GRACE.

And you too, O sinner, are unclean. That’s right, I’m talking to you; the one reading this.
YOU are unclean.
YOU are a sinner.
YOU are separated from God.
And YOU are in need of healing. If you don’t agree with me then too bad, for you can’t escape this fact. But there is hope for there is Jesus. Just call out to God in the name of Jesus and you too will be cleansed.

So will you, O sinner, join me in calling out to God?

O God, if you will, you can forgive me. I am a sinner. I have hurt others and especially you. And I especially want to confess_________. Have mercy on me. Touch me. Restore me. Make me whole again. In the name of Jesus I pray. Amen.

And now, O sinner, hear the words of God:

My beloved child, I am more than willing, you are forgiven.

O sinner, rejoice and be glad. Through faith in Jesus you are made whole.

Praise be to God and Amen.

The Pastor -|—