Be Blessed!

"Where there is no revelation, people cast off restraint; but blessed is the one who heeds wisdom's instruction"- Proverbs 29:18 (NIV).

Wouldn't it be nice to have a renewal of Divine revelation and prophetic vision? Then people would follow the law! Or would they? The Old Testament is full of angels, prophets, and visions in dreams...yet, people were still disobedient. Remember how citizens of Jerusalem reacted on Pentecost (Acts 2:1-12)? Everyone worked together, adding to the number of believers daily, but after awhile some lost their fervor, fell away, and persecutions only multiplied the exodus from faith. Following God requires us to be sure of our faith; to find hope in it and be certain of what we do not see (Hebrews 11:1). Jesus lamented over the people requesting miracles so they could believe (John 4:48). What is Wisdom's instruction? "Believe in the Father, believe also in Me" (John 14:1). Have faith; be blessed! 

Rise! Let us go!

"Returning the third time, He said to them, "Are you still sleeping and resting? Enough! The hour has come. Look, the Son of Man is delivered into the hands of sinners"- Mark 14:41 (NIV).

Jesus had asked these three, Peter, James, and John, to stay and keep watch while He prayed (v.34). The three couldn't keep their eyes open; each time drifting back off to sleep. We can't allow ourselves to think we could have done better than these three! Many of us walk through our days asleep, instead of doing what Jesus has commanded us to do: Watch and pray. Was Jesus' "Enough!" a rebuff? Whether a rebuff or a mention that the time had come, His next directive was, "Rise! Let us go!" (v.42). The events of the Messiah's arrival, crucifixion, and ascension all came in perfect accord. We know that Jesus' return is also forthcoming and Christians will, once more, hear Him say, "Enough!" For we know what our rejoicing hearts will hear next: "Rise! Let us go!" 

Light of the World

"Then came the Festival of Dedication at Jerusalem. It was winter"- John 10:22 (NIV). 

It was winter. Also called the Festival of Lights, the Festival of Dedication was a ceremony marking the restoration, cleansing, and re-dedication of Jerusalem's Temple once the Greco-Syrian oppressors were driven out by the Maccabees. Jews call it Hanukkah. It was a miraculous deliverance provided by God. The symbol of God's presence in the Temple was the eternal flame, but there was only enough purified oil to keep the flame lite for one day. Miraculously, God's Holy presence allowed the flame to burn for eight days, until the supply of sacred oil was replenished. John 10:23 says Jesus was in the Temple courts, walking in Solomon's Colonnade during the Festival of Lights. What better place for the Light of the world to be walking (John 8:12). He is the Eternal Flame, the Miraculous Deliverance provided by God. One other note: Matthew 25:31-46 tells of Jesus sitting on His throne judging the world. Solomon's Colonnade is also called the Porch of Judgment. Jesus takes our scarlet sins and washes us white as snow (Isaiah 1:18). The timing of snow is one more symbolic message in today's Scripture: "It was winter."  

Understanding

"I run in the path of Your commands, for You have broadened my understanding. Teach me, Lord, the way of Your decrees, that I may follow it to the end. Give me understanding, so I may keep Your law and obey it with all my heart"- Psalm 119:32-34 (NIV).

Following Christ is not a passive activity. Paul defined your Christian life as a race, exercising self-control, to be carried out to the finish line (1 Corinthians 9:24-27). The course is to be run with endurance (Hebrew 12:1); forgetting what is behind you and straining forward (Philippians 3:13-14). If you become weary, God will will refresh you and renew your strength (Isaiah 40:31). And if you persevere, fight the good fight, finish the race, you will be rewarded with a crown of righteousness. That finish line moment, when you receive your crown, it will be awarded to you by none other than Jesus the Righteous Judge. (2 Timothy 4:7-9). His congratulatory statement will be, "Well done good and faithful servant" (Matthew 25:21). Give us understanding Lord!

The Source

"[We are] clothed with strength and dignity; [We] can laugh at the days to come"- Proverbs 31:25 (NIV).

What is the source of your countenance? God provides the rich soil, soft rains, and life giving sun for the grass in the field. How much more valuable are you in God's eyes (Matthew 6:30)? So much so, He would send His own Son to suffer and die for you (John 3:16). It is God's good intention that everyone learn of Him and come to believe, to be saved (1 Timothy 2:4). The medical field reports that laughter is good for you; that there are health benefits to laughter. Faith and trust generate strength and dignity; You know Who you belong to and Who delivers you. Yes, laugh at the days to come; who can be against you if God is for you? (Romans 8:31). People will notice the difference in you and doors will be opened for you to share the Source.    

Undeserving

"How can you say to your brother, 'Let me take the speck out of your eye,' when all the time there is a plank in your own eye?"- Matthew 7:4 (NIV).

Jesus was talking to the Pharisees, the teachers of the law, who were so quick to judge, while not acknowledging their own sins, plus heaping additional laws on top. Jesus called them hypocrites in the next passage, instructing them to first check themselves before passing judgment (v.5). There's a little pharisee in all of us, meaning there's a little hypocrite in all of us. You can't acknowledge your need for forgiveness when you deny the very plank in your own eye. Jesus covered even those while on the cross, "Father, forgive them. They don't know what they are doing" (Luke 23:34). We sure don't! Thank you God for Your grace and mercy given to us who neither deserve it, nor have earned it. 

Humble Choice

"He has brought down rulers from their thrones but has lifted up the humble. He has filled the hungry with good things but has sent the rich away empty"- Luke 1:52 (NIV).

Jesus said not to choose the best seat when attending a function, but to take the lesser seat or you may be embarrassed when the host asks you to move: "For all those who exalt themselves will be humbled, and those who humble themselves will be exalted" (Luke 14:8-11). God opposes the proud, but shows favor to the humble (James 4:6). Acts of humility could include taking the lesser seat, offering first choice to another, allowing others to enter first, and in some countries bowing, both your body and your eyes cast down. How about washing someone's feet?...Jesus did. God's mighty hand lifts the humble in due time; being humble is a choice (1 Peter 5:6). These Scriptures are not advocating dismissal of leadership roles. Not all who are exalted lack in humility. You can be a leader, a king, and still remain humble, leading with fairness, mercy, truth, and love. Jesus is our Example. You may be born into leadership or be an exalted humble "Cinderella." Choose to follow the example of our Leader.    

Showing Up

"For you have spent enough time in the past doing what pagans choose to do--living in debauchery, lust, drunkenness, orgies, carousing and detestable idolatry. They are surprised that you do not join them in their reckless, wild living, and they heap abuse on you. But they will have to give account to Him who is ready to judge the living and the dead"- 1 Peter 4:3-5 (NIV).

Peer pressure has been around since sin entered creation. The lost don't want to surround themselves with those who choose righteousness over sinfulness. The presence of goodness exposes their sinfulness; making them look upon their deeds, revealing a life in opposition to God; making them confront their choice of unholy living. Do they blame themselves? No, they were just fine until righteousness showed up. It's a sad day when a believer fails to reap abuse when they encounter evil, indicating righteousness never showed up; instead they blended-in, unnoticed. Count it pure joy to face testings of your faith, thus producing perseverance; perseverance will finish the work, making you mature and complete (James 1:2-4).

Beauty and Majesty

"Who has believed our message and to whom has the arm of the Lord been revealed? He grew up before him like a tender shoot, and like a root out of dry ground, He had no beauty or majesty to attract us to Him, nothing in His appearance that we should desire Him"- Isaiah 53:1-2 (NIV).

We know from prophecy that Jesus held no beauty, nor majesty, in appearance when He walked this earth in human form. People hid their faces from Him, despising and rejecting Him (v.3). John, in his prophetic revelation, gives us a glorious description of the resurrected Christ, returned to His former majestic beauty: dressed in splendor with a white robe and a golden sash, hair white as snow, eyes like blazing fire, feet like bronze glowing in a furnace, a voice like the sound of rushing waters, and His face...like the sun shining in all its brilliance (Revelation 1:13-15). His appearance held such breathtaking beauty and majestic splendor that John, overwhelmed, fell at His feet as if he were dead (v.17). Jesus gave up His beauty, His glory, and His majesty to bear our pain and suffering; He was pierced for our transgressions, crushed for our iniquities, and by His sacrifice we are healed (Isaiah 53:,4-5). You may feel unworthy...but to the Lamb, you were worth it.        

Courage

"The Lord is the strength of my life; of whom shall I be afraid?"- Psalm 27:1.

Star Trek is famous for its visionary statement: "To go where no man has gone before." We all like to think we have a heart for adventure and action, but then the devil begins to pluck the chords of fear. The "what if" thoughts begin to creep into our waning bravado, transforming the original boldness to reconsideration; we might be placing ourselves in harms way...and you very well could be. Search your heart. What are you afraid of: rejection, misfortune, imprisonment, death? You would be joining the ranks of prophets, apostles, and Jesus himself. What sacrifice would you endure to stand with them; with Him? God's word instructs us, "Have I not commanded you to be strong and courageous. Do not be terrified. Do not be discouraged. For the Lord your God will be with you wherever you may go" (Joshua 1:9).

Now!

"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"- James 4:13-15 (NIV).

Our days are numbered before we are born (Psalms 139:16). Even our boundaries are predetermined by our Heavenly Father (Acts 17:26). Our future is not foretold to us and it's a good thing; for then we learn to trust God, knowing that all things are under His authority (Acts 1:7). All we have is now. Now is the time to act. Putting off a deeper relationship with the Lord is like playing Russian Roulette. Tomorrow may be the day you are face-to-face with your Lord. However, for now, today is a day the Lord has made...a gift. Let us rejoice and be glad in it (Psalms 118:24). It is the Lord's will.

Side-by-Side Worship

"During the night the mystery was revealed to Daniel in a vision. Then Daniel praised the God of heaven and said: "Praise be to the name of God for ever and ever; wisdom and power are His. He changes times and seasons; He sets up kings and deposes them. He gives wisdom to the wise and knowledge to the discerning. He reveals deep and hidden things; He knows what lies in darkness, and light dwells with Him. I thank and praise you, O God of my fathers: You have given me wisdom and power, You have made known to me what we asked of You, You have made known to us the dream of the king"- Daniel 2:19-23.

We all need saving. There is nothing hidden from God; nothing out of His reach or power to reveal and control. Today's Scripture is a great example. Daniel and his friends faced possible death multiple times: interpreting kingly dreams, surviving lion filled pits, raging fires. With this evidence, it's shocking that the entire Babylonian Empire didn't convert exclusively to the one true God of Abraham. They did allow the side-by-side worship of Yahweh; making sure they were making all possible gods happy. Daniel, and all believers in God, can praise God for saving us over and over again. The greatest, of which, was Jesus physically coming into creation to suffer and die that we might be saved. With this evidence, it's shocking that the entire world hasn't converted! They do still allow the side-by-side worship though...for now.

Worldlings

"Therefore, my dear brothers and sisters, stay true to the Lord. I love you and long to see you, dear friends, for you are my joy and the crown I receive for my work"- Philippians 4:1 (NLT).

We must remain true to Jesus. Those who endure till the end will be saved (Matthew 24:13). To endure, we must fully give our lives over to Jesus (Matthew 16:25). He is that pearl of great wealth, that treasure found in the field, that requires giving up everything (Matthew 13:44-46). Chasing after and clinging to the treasures of this world transforms us into "worldlings," changing our desired post-world citizenship. The rich young ruler looking for eternal life, who couldn't let go of his wealth (Matthew 19:16-22), had unseen shackles, like Scrooge's ghostly partner, which were link by link weighing him down, keeping him from true freedom, which can only found in One. The young ruler was a "worldling." Paul's plea was out of love and longing to see his brothers and sisters, whether in this world or in heaven, for a glorious reunion and celebration of remaining true to the Lord.