Blessed in Persecution: Jesus Series

   "Blessed are you when people insult you, persecute you and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of me.” Matthew 5:11

   Don't you just love the word bless? We like that word because it means good things, right? I mean God promised Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob blessings. They had riches, good family, and perfect lives right? If you know the Bible, you know that's not entirely true. God did bless these men even though the men messed up. When these men had problems it was typically because they sinned. But, they still enjoyed the blessings God promised them (other than the Promised Land).

   Now, we look at today's verse and it's all about blessing. It's in the New Testament so it applies to us. This verse is in the Sermon on the Mount and in the beattitudes. Jesus keeps saying things like blessed are the poor in spirit, those who morn, the meek, those who thirst for righteousness, the merciful, the pure in heart, and the peacemakers. All of those things don't sound like what people were hoping for in a savior. They wanted a savior who would give them power, but what Jesus was saying contradicted that.

   Finally we get to today's verse: we are blessed when we are persecuted because of our belief in Jesus. Wait, why would we want to be persecuted? Many of us don't want to be. When things get rough we run away because we want to be safe. But, that means we are not focused on the right thing.

   Many Christians have asked these questions: "Why did the disciples choose to go through suffering in the name of Jesus? If I was called to go through that kind of suffering would I be able to trust God through it?"

   In America, when we are persecuted we may have someone who makes fun of our faith or argues with us about our faith. But, in other times and places persecution meant being beaten, put in prison, or being killed. We are afraid of that kind of suffering. A few years ago I wrote a fictional blog about a church where some men came in with a gun. They lined everyone up, go down the line, and say to each person "denounce your faith in Jesus Christ today, and you will live." What would you do? How in the world could we be blessed in this instance?

   We need to look at the second half of these verses to find the answer. When these bad things happen or when we are merciful/peaceful ours is the kingdom of heaven, we are comforted, we inherit the earth, we are filled, we are shown mercy, we will see God, we are called children of god, and (from today's verse) we have a great reward in heaven.

   Many times when we are persecuted and go through hard times in life we forget that this isn't the end. If we did here, we have eternal life with our savior in heaven. It doesn’t matter if you lose your house, if you have no food, if you are beaten, or even if you are killed for Christ. You have the greatest gift ever given. This life is temporary. Our persecutions and pain is temporary.

   That's why people think true Christians are crazy. I've heard of stories where a man has murdered a woman's husband and he is later arrested. Then the woman goes to that man in prison and says I forgive you. That man just took the life of the man she loved and she forgave him?! That's what I call turning the other cheek. How could she do that? She knows this life is temporary. She knows that one day she will be with her husband again.

   When bad things happen we need to focus on the next life not this one. If someone falsely accuses you will you fight them, or will you try to peacefully resolve the issue? If someone punches you will you punch back, or will you walk away?

   So, do you focus too much on this life? If you were asked to denounce your faith in Jesus would you do it? Will you follow God no matter the cost?

   Image from here.

Render to Caesar: Jesus Series

   "Then he said to them, 'So give back to Caesar what is Caesar’s, and to God what is God’s.'” Matthew 22:21

   In the passage the Pharisees are once again trying to trap Jesus. The Jews did not like paying taxes to the Romans. They asked Jesus "Is it right to pay the imperial tax to Caesar or not?" (Mat.22.17). Jesus called them "hypocrites" and then asked for a coin used for paying tax. Then he asks the Pharisees, "whose image is this?" (Mat.22.20). The Pharisees say that it's "Caesar's." That's when Jesus says to give what is Caesar's to Caesar.
   Now, this doesn't seem like such a confusing passage but I will tell you when Jesus said this it probably shocked the Pharisees and those who heard it. The Jews believed that they were being oppressed by the Romans and that the savior would relieve them from that oppression. Jeremiah 23:5 says: "'Behold, the days are coming,' declares the LORD, 'When I will raise up for David a righteous Branch; And He will reign as king and act wisely And do justice and righteousness in the land." To the Jews this probably sounded like an end of oppression. Many of them probably thought that the savior would be king on earth. It just goes to show that God's plan is better than our plan, whether we know it or not.

   This verse is also difficult for some people to deal with today. We don't like having to give up our money that we worked hard for. We don't like supporting our leaders if we don't agree with them. I get that, but what does God say about this? Jesus says we are to give what belongs to leaders back to our leaders. Our money isn't ours, besides the fact that everything is created by God and his, we didn't physically make our money the government did. Therefore, we should give back our money to our leaders whether we like our leaders or not.
   And, while on the subject of leaders, do you think God just let's random things happen on earth? No, well good because He put our leaders in place. Romans 13:1 states: "Let every person be subject to the governing authorities. For there is no authority except from God, and those that exist have been instituted by God." God puts our leaders in place for a reason. We may not support every decision they make, but God knew what that leader would do. The leader is above us for a reason. We need to make sure that we follow the laws in our countries, unless those laws go directly against God's laws. That's what being subject means in that verse. If we didn't follow those leaders what kind of message would that be sending about Christians? I know it's hard; God didn't promise our lives would be easy but it will be worth it.
   So, what are your thoughts on following the leaders God puts in place? Are you in God's word enough to know what is right and wrong in his eyes? Will you obey leaders God puts in place, unless the laws those leaders put in place are against God?

   Image from here.

If You Think It: Jesus Series

   "But I tell you that anyone who looks at a woman lustfully has already committed adultery with her in his heart.” Matthew 5:28

   Have you ever thought to yourself: "If people could see, or hear, my thoughts then you wouldn't like me too much." See, the great thing about the human mind is also an annoying thing. We cannot know anyone else's thoughts unless they tell us those thoughts. That's how we can keep secrets, which are important at times. But, at the same time, if people could hear thoughts then communication would be so much easier, and more dangerous.
   Think about some of the thoughts you've had that you wouldn't want others to know about. You know the thoughts like, "I really don't like that person," "I could just punch you now," and "I hate myself now." If those thoughts got out what would happen? How many relationships would you have?
   In this passage Jesus is talking about our thoughts. He uses the example of adultery and says that if we must after someone we've already committed sin. That means that if we think it, it's as bad as doing it. If I think about lying it's as bad as actually lying.
   Now, this gets confusing because of temptation. Being tempted isn't a sin. If you act on the temptation it is a sin (Mat.4.1-11). Let's say you mess up on a big project at work. You could tell the truth or you could lie. The Devil is probably going to tempt you to lie. If you think about lying, you come up with a plan to do it, but you don't actually lie then it's not a sin. But, do you think that's a thought God would want you to have?
   If we think about lying enough more than likely we will lie. In the case of this passage, if we look at someone lustfully long enough more than likely we will act on those thoughts in some way.
   Jesus says this because he wants us to guard our thoughts. We will mess up and have wrong thoughts from time to time. God wants us to grow in him enough that we can push back those sneaky thoughts Satan sends us. One way we can do that is by answering those thoughts with scripture. When Jesus was in the wilderness he answered everything the Devil said with scripture. That's how Jesus avoided temptation and guarded his thoughts. Can't we do the same?
   So, are your thoughts godly ones? What can you do to guard your thoughts when temptation comes? Will you come alongside others to help them grow in God and defeat tempting thoughts?

   Image from here.

Cut Off: Jesus Series

   “If your hand or your foot causes you to stumble, cut it off and throw it away. It is better for you to enter life maimed or crippled than to have two hands or two feet and be thrown into eternal fire.” Matthew 18:8

   In this passage Jesus is talking about things and people who cause others to stumble. It seems odd for someone to say that you should cut off your hand if it causes you to stumble but let's look at this passage a little more in depth.

   Speaking from a teacher's perspective this passage is very scary. In verse 6 it talks about if anyone should cause children to stumble it is better for a millstone to be hung around their neck and be drowned. That seems like a pretty severe punishment to us, but is it really?
   Last week we talked about good leaders and how we need to keep our leaders accountable. The people that you follow: are they free from sin? No, no one is free from sin but we can repent. In order to repent one must ask for forgiveness and stop committing the sin. However, there are those who know they are sinning and yet continue to stay in their sin. Worse still, some of those people lead others into the same sin!

   Isaiah 59:2 says: "But your iniquities have made a separation between you and your God, and your sins have hidden his face from you so that he does not hear." God cannot look upon sin because he is holy. That's why when Adam and Eve sinned they had to leave the Garden and God's presence. That's why God could not look at Jesus when he died on the cross because Jesus took our sins upon him.
   This verse isn't literally talking about cutting off our hand. It's talking about distancing ourselves from people who don't repent. People who do not repent are going to harm the body of Christ by causing others in the body to stumble (1 Cor.12.12-31).
   Now, this is where it gets tricky. Kicking a sinner out of the church doesn't work because then everyone will be kicked out since we are all sinners. Keeping the person in the church in certain roles doesn't work because he/she could influence others to sin. There needs to be some grace and there needs to be some truth and Jesus gives us the answer to this problem in the same chapter.
   In Matthew 18:15-19 Jesus talks about dealing with sin in the church. First we are to talk with the person who sinned about their sin. If they don't listen then we take one or two others along to talk to the person again. Finally, we are to take it to the church. If he/she still doesn't listen then we are to treat them like a pagan.
   What does this mean for us? It means we need to be careful that sin doesn't enter our lives. I want to be in the body of Christ and I hope you do too. I don't want any sin holding me back from being more like Christ and helping him spread his kingdom. It also means we need to hold one another accountable. If we see someone sinning we need to talk to that person about it in a kind way, not in a I'm better than you way. We are to care for each other that way we all will grow in Christ and help the body grow as well.
   So, will you check to make sure there is no sin in your life? Will you help keep others accountable? What can you do to grow in God today?

   Image from here.