Devotion.al

Tag: Son

  • Chained or Unchained

    Chained or Unchained

    Deuteronomy 27:12–28:1; John 8:31–40; Galatians 3:7–14

    There are many wonderful things in life that begin well and then become dead weight. Buying a house is one of those. We are now in an era when people buy houses and pay against a large debt for 15–30 years. It doesn’t take too long for the joy of home “owning” to be faced with the frustrations of maintenance, flaws, , vision changes, life changes, and so on. It doesn’t have to be a house. It could be a car. It could be student loans. It could be your job.

    The Law wasn’t intended to be life-. It was intended as God-oriented living protection. If you followed the law, there was a framework that guided one into a life.

    Somehow this became twisted, and the Law became life.

    “Whoever does not put this law into practice is cursed.” (Deuteronomy 27:26)

    This does not say that the Law is life. It says that not following the Law results in bad consequences. Within the Law there were “resets” built in. Sins, errors in judgment could be dealt with. Life could on.

    However, there is a difference when it is a lifestyle. This is not about ignorance. This is not about an unbeliever. This is about those who declare God their God and live in such a way that they have not put God first in their lives.

    What becomes the struggle is “proving” that God is first in our lives. Often, we “prove” it by living a more “holy” life. The Church of the Nazarene, for example, was long known for its stances against , smoking, and dancing. Not doing these things was the mark of “holiness” but is what the areas of broken where these things occurred that was the real issue.

    When holiness (or the appearance thereof) become chains rather than freedom, then holiness has become the Law. If that is the case, then that might make a lie out of, “who the sets free is free indeed,” because then, it seems, we want to find new chains to live in.

    ※Questions※

    1) What are some “rules” that you can think of? How do you think they became rules?

    2) What rules can you think of that were intended to “” or “preserve” life, but ended up chaining it? Does that make the rule bad?

    3) What is a family rule that you wish wasn’t a family rule? Why?

    ※Prayer※

    , you called us to a life of following you. Help up discern freedom from chains as we try to follow your way. Amen.

  • Mercifully Faithful

    Mercifully Faithful

    Matthew 9:9–13; Luke 10:25–37; James 2:5–13

    “For I desire faithful and not ,
      the knowledge of God rather than burnt offerings.”
         — Hosea 6:6 (CSB)

    It’s interesting that the same translation, the CSB, translates Hosea 6:6 with faithful love, while in Matthew 9:13 it’s . What makes it even more interesting is that the same used for “faithful love” in Hebrew is also used for “mercy”.

    In the context of Hosea, “faithful love” makes sense for the wayward Israelites. One of the issues, though, for the Israelites was that they did not show mercy to the orphans and widows (or, it seems, anyone else).

    One could then conclude (reasonably) that the issue is that one of the ways that the Israelites did not show “faithful love” by not showing “mercy” to those who desperately needed it. It should not be lost on us that faithful love is mercy, and mercy is faithful love.

    The world could use a lot more mercy. Imagine being merciful to your enemies…any of your enemies. They could be political, , religious, national, tribal, even sports teams. Enemies aren’t just those we perceive as being our opposites.

    Sports teams are the perfect example. Some you know probably like a sports team that you don’t (if you’re into sports). There can be times when sports fan blends into tribal then into gang behavior. Football (i.e., soccer) had “hooligan” troubles for many years. Team fans would riot at games and after games, trying to harm each other. Troubling or harming a fan based on their team is certainly not merciful.

    As we delve into politics, everyone’s favorite topic, being merciful to people who seem to be on the opposite side of you is a Christian . They love their families, too. What if they love ? Then it’s even more important in many ways.

    These days, being merciful means NOT responding to that social media statement, or too snarky comments made in the same tone that it was delivered. If you must (which may be necessary), it should be, “While I love you, we don’t see things in this area the same.” One would that this would be taken well. However, it’s not your responsibility for how they take a lovingly gentle response.

    ※Questions※

    1) What are your thoughts and feelings regarding faithful love as mercy, and mercy as faithful love?

    2) While it sounds strange, how might we show mercy to God?

    3) What are ways that you show and can show mercy to others (hint: think beyond “compassion”)?

    ※Prayer※

    Merciful , we thank you for your mercy, personified by the life, death, and resurrection of Your Son Jesus. May we show that same spirit of mercy to the world through our faithful love. Amen.

  • Graveside Dancing

    Graveside Dancing

    Psalm 30; Hosea 13:4–14

    Yesterday was the birthday of my stepfather. He passed away years ago. For whatever reason, this year his birthday hit me kind of hard. He and I had our good moments. We had our bad moments. Just like any parent-child . I was his only child.

    At his burial, the priest spoke about his baptism sealing him to Christ. This was spoken pastorally to people grieving. However, scripturally it has some weaknesses. His , and to my knowledge, and beliefs were not of Jesus Christ.

    On his death bed, my wife shared the Good News of Jesus Christ. He was in a “non-responsive” state. Yet, she felt a physical response to the invitation to accept Jesus Christ as his Savior. Only in Heaven will I learn if the baptism was “sealing” as the priest said, or whether the physical response truly was an acceptance of Jesus. I can only and trust in God.

    Why the angst? “I cried to you for help, and you healed me.” In our pain and sorrow, God is there to “turn [our] lament in dancing”. Joy in Christ in the midst of the pains of life is the life we are called to.

    In lament and pain, it is easy for our faith in God to be shaken, while at the same time relying more firmly on God will help us through the pain.

    There are many kinds of loss. The verses of Hosea summarize loss. The people lost (walked away from) God. They had experienced , then they lost it. The vision of loss sounds brutal. Think of it though from God’s anguished heart.

    “…like a bear robbed of her cubs.” Have you seen a momma bear (or many human mothers) separated from their children, with the feeling that the kids are threatened? I’ve seen a recorded version of one and lived the other. Don’t be the one that separates momma from the cubs. Just don’t.

    THAT’S GOD! Something is between momma (God) and the cubs (the children of God)! That is just not going to go well! It could be a kingdom that has the name Israel or Judah attached to it.

    THAT is the concept of ransom and . Death and Sheol are not going to be forgiven for taking away the Children of God. The exact mechanism (despite a whole lot of theologians arguing over it for centuries) is unknown. All we know is that heart of God wants to turn our lament into dancing and our sorrow into joy.

    ※Questions※

    1) What’s do you think about dancing at the death of death?

    2) As Christians, why does death still frighten us? If we truly believe that a fellow is in Heaven, why do we ?

    3) “Deathbed Conversions” will continue to decrease, as too many don’t know the basics of Jesus. How will you turn regular conversations into God conversations?

    ※Prayer※

    Father, thank you for redeeming us from death through the death and resurrection of your Son. May the guide our hearts to speak the words of Christ to the world. Amen.

  • Veritas

    Veritas

    Acts 21:34–22:28

    Have there ever been times in your when you knew speaking the would, at best, keep things the way they were? And, at worst, make things horribly wrong? Or, have you had the experience that no matter how much you the truth, others only hear lies?

    These scenarios might seem far-fetched, yet, that was exactly what experienced.

    “You speak Greek?”

    “Aren’t you the Assassin ?”

    “You speak Aramaic?”

    “You’re a Roman citizen?”

    Yes, one the first is a literal question. The other 3 are just summarizations of other verses. Yet, the entirety is that Paul was dismissed. He wasn’t worthy.

    People could plenty of false information (that’s what started the riot, after all). Why bother to inspect the truth?

    We are in a weird time. Truth is questioned. Truth is questionable.

    Before you throw into this, understand that the Truth of our faith remains steadfast. It is the only Truth.

    Paul spoke the Truth. He did not speak the truth that people wanted to hear. This is the same thing that we are seeing now. It is place (schools, homes, churches, governments) agnostic.

    Many of you may have experienced those first questions when you think about spiritual/faith conversations you have had.

    Who are you? A child of God

    What is Truth? That God you so much that he sent his to die to reconcile God’s lost Creation to himself.

    No, the Truth is not comfortable to many, or even most, people. Sharing the Truth will only become harder.

    ※Prayer※

    Father of all Truth, may we have the courage of our faith to share your Truth in with a world that does and doesn’t want to hear it. Amen.

  • See and Be Seen

    See and Be Seen

    Genesis 16:7–14; John 1:47–51

    Have you ever been to a big event? Maybe a concert? Maybe a sports game? And then you spend anywhere from 2 to 4 hours with thousands of your closest friends.

    Most of those people really aren’t your friends. Unless you are ticket holder buddies, you are unlikely to see them again.

    The reality is that a service, even when small, can often feel the same way. You gather with other like-minded (at least somewhat religiously) individuals. You sit, stand, sing, pray, sit, listen, leave.

    You may not feel that way. You may feel like your church is your family. If so, that’s great! It is also as it should be.

    However, there are those that don’t feel that way. They can feel separated, ignored, unknown. They can feel unseen.

    Hagar was cast out. She and her were no longer welcome in the place she called home. She and Ishmael were now in -threatening danger. In that day and , being alone in the wilderness does not bode well for a woman and a boy.

    There are a lot of people inside and out of the “the body of Christ” that are in a place of being alone. survival is far more than food, shelter, and clothing. We need to be known. We need to be seen. We need to be heard.

    Hagar’s story is stronger than the simple story of Nathanael. Yet, Nathanael’s was open to because Jesus saw him. Yes, Jesus saw him from far away. Jesus, though, identified Nathanael’s character, as well. There is more than just . There is of the person.

    Developing those relations is important for human thriving. It is also important for the spiritual growth of the individual and the body of Christ.

    We all have spiritual growth of some sort. However, what sort matters greatly. If your growth is alone, then you can be sharp, but you can also be blunt. Without others to stand beside you, and sometimes in front of you, your growth may be that of a monster not of a believer.

    Only in faithful fellowship are we kept on the narrow path. Only in faithful fellowship can we really be seen by others. Only in faithful fellowship can do more than just survive.

    ※Questions※

    1) Who are you actively walking with to disciple and be discipled by? If no one, who could you see being discipling partners with?

    2) Why do you think so many people do not have healthy discipling relationships?

    3) What will you do to champion healthy discipling in your church?

    ※Prayer※

    Jesus, thank you for your example of walking for years with people as broken as me. Help me see that I still need just like others. Help me be your light to others and help me accept your light from others. Amen.

  • Evangel

    Evangel

    Evangel

    28 September 2020

    Luke 1:68–80; Ephesians 4:7–16

    Many years ago, there was campaign against man-caused forest fires. The campaign “starred” a little bear cub that, while burned, survived a man-caused forest fire. The tagline for the campaign was, “Only YOU can prevent forest fires.”

    From a strict understanding, of course, it’s not just you that can prevent forest fires. It’s you and everyone else around whose behavior contributes to the amount of man-caused forest fires. Of course, you can only prevent forest fires when you are the contributor of the originating fire.

    That was the beauty of the campaign. Ultimately, it was just you that can prevent forest fires, it was you and your friends and everyone else working together to prevent man-caused forest fires.

    What, you may be asking yourself, have to do with Zechariah’s -driven prophetic over an infant John the Baptist? Re-read it, and where it says, “you, child…” say, “me, [your ]…”

    Just like the campaign starring Smokey the Bear, it wasn’t just John the Baptist who was called to go before . Each and every one of us is called to “go before” Jesus in our daily lives.

    How that works in each person’s will, for most, remain a mystery. However, when we live out a faithful life that witnesses to the power, grace, and love of Jesus Christ, we go before Jesus. Once we are asked a why or how question about our lives, then we get to announce Jesus.

    You probably never thought of yourself as John the Baptist. That’s probably a good thing, for none of us can be another person, nor did God call us to be that way. We are not called to be John the Baptist.

    You are probably not called to eat wild locusts and honey. Nor are you probably called to wear a hairy coat. We are called to follow in the “spirit of” John the Baptist by proclaiming salvation through Jesus Christ.

    When we think of evangelism, we generally think about sharing Jesus with people who don’t know Jesus as their Lord and Savior. Perhaps, however, we are just as called to share Jesus with those in the Body of Christ (the church).

    wrote to the Ephesians about the varying roles within the body. The overarching goal is, “… in the and in the of God’s Son…” He wrote that to Christians.

    Our (good) desire to reach people who don’t know Jesus may well have obscured something essential. We need to continue to (i.e., tell the Good News about Jesus) each other.

    ※Questions※

    1) Where and how do you see yourself evangelizing those that do not yet know Jesus? How about those who already declare they know Jesus?

    2) What scares you most evangelizing? Does that fear change depending on whether they are already or not yet believers?

    3) What are some ways evangelizing is (or should be) performed within the body of believers?

    ※Prayer※

    Holy Spirit, guide our hearts to always be evangelizing one another. Amen.

  • Sorté

    Sorté

    “And you continue, so bullheaded! Calluses on your hearts, flaps on your ears! Deliberately ignoring the Holy Spirit, you’re just like your ancestors. Was there ever a prophet who didn’t get the same treatment? Your ancestors killed anyone who dared talk about the coming of the Just One. And you’ve kept up the —traitors and murderers, all of you. You had God’s Law handed to you by angels—-wrapped!—and you squandered it!”

    At that point they went wild, a rioting mob of catcalls and whistles and invective. But Stephen, full of the Holy Spirit, hardly noticed—he only had eyes for God, whom he saw in all his glory with Jesus standing at his side. He said, “Oh! I see heaven wide open and the of Man standing at God’s side!”

    Yelling and hissing, the mob drowned him out. Now in full stampede, they dragged him out of town and pelted him with rocks. The ringleaders took off their coats and asked a young man named Saul to watch them.

    As the rocks rained down, Stephen prayed, “Master Jesus, take my .” Then he knelt down, praying loud enough for everyone to hear, “Master, don’t blame them for this sin”—his last words. Then he died.

    Saul was right there, congratulating the killers.

    That set off a terrific persecution of the church in Jerusalem. The believers were all scattered throughout Judea and Samaria. All, that is, but the apostles. Good and brave men buried Stephen, giving him a solemn funeral—not many dry eyes that day!

    And Saul just went wild, devastating the church, entering house after house after house, dragging men and women off to jail. Forced to leave home base, the followers of Jesus all became missionaries. Wherever they were scattered, they preached the Message about Jesus. Going down to a Samaritan city, Philip proclaimed the Message of the Messiah. When the people heard what he had to say and saw the miracles, the clear signs of God’s , they hung on his every word. Many who could neither stand nor walk were healed that day. The evil spirits protested loudly as they were sent on their way. And what joy in the city!” —Acts 7:54–8:8 (The Message)

    Normally, I would quote a longer piece of the Scriptures, but the way The Message conveys this is too important to leave it to our preferred translations, for it speaks in our everyday language. Two sentences in particular:

    “Forced to leave home base, the followers of Jesus all became missionaries. Wherever they were scattered, they preached the Message about Jesus.”

    This whole COVID/Corona season we’ve had “home base” completely disrupted. Whether it’s working from home, not working, or other “homes”, such as the church building, and the friends’ rooms being prohibited, it has been quite a time.

    As things have progressed, working from home for many became a prison rather than an escape. Not being able to go places became its own struggle. Even those who consider themselves homebodies want to get out.

    The reality is that we all seek a “base”. We want a place to feel safe. We want a place to be “home”. We want a place to be “normal”.

    In this case, however, perhaps “base” is actually what we don’t want. A better way to say it might be that for us to in gifts and graces we need to step off (or out of) the “base”.

    Notice that it was after being cast out from Jerusalem (home base), Jesus was being preached. After leaving the safe confines of “home” they began to preach. Something about being out of their zone caused them to share about Jesus.

    ※Questions※

    1) What might the lesson be for us regarding “home base” and the world in this time we find ourselves in?

    2) Why did losing “home” seem to loosen tongues and hearts for Jesus?

    3) How does comfort or normal inhibit sharing the ?

    ※Prayer※

    Lord Jesus, we offer our comfort to you that we might use it, or lose it, to fulfill your will. Amen.

  • Kinda Stuck

    Kinda Stuck

    Kinda Stuck

    7 September 2020

    Leviticus 4:27–31; Leviticus 5:14–16; 1 John 1:6–10

    When we talk about , we often operate with the presumption of commission of sin. In other words, we did something. There is also the sin of omission. In other words, what we didn’t do.

    The morning confession in the Book of Common Prayer reads
    Most merciful God,
    we that we have sinned against you
    in thought, , and deed,
    by what we have done,
    and by what we have left undone.
    We have not loved you with our whole heart;
    we have not loved our neighbors as ourselves.
    We are truly sorry and we humbly .
    For the sake of your Jesus Christ,
    have mercy on us and forgive us;
    that we may delight in your will,
    and walk in your ways,
    to the glory of your Name. Amen.

    In many respects, this confession is hard, because in it we confess that we are not loving God and as God has called us to do. On the other hand, this confession is freeing, as we aren’t required to go down all the items we messed up on (and some days that can be quite a lot).

    When we read Leviticus, we can often get bogged down in all the rules. Yet, if you read the rules in today’s verses, there is grace in them. In them, while the rules regarding are stringent, at the same time there is the recognition that someone may not recognize the act while in the middle of committing it.

    We all make mistakes. Sometimes those mistakes are sins. Sometimes they aren’t sins, per se, but still hurt others. We aren’t supposed to beat ourselves up about it. We are supposed to confess, repent, and move on.

    Even in Leviticus, barring a few acts, there isn’t a “no repeat” rule. This means that God will gracefully accept our confession and repentance. While we will often continue to sin (sometimes even the same thing), if we are truly repentant in our hearts and confess, God moves on, and so should we.

    Yes, we are called to be better than we were yesterday. Being better than we were yesterday also means better to ourselves than we were yesterday. People will often continually condemn themselves about their failures. When we condemn ourselves, we are often closer to the enemy than God.

    Through the Holy Spirit, God convicts. The purpose of that conviction is to free us from the guilt and reconcile us to God. The enemy condemns. That condemnation will often tear our hearts and souls into pieces, leading us to further separate ourselves from God.

    This is not God’s intent. Yes, we are to be aware of what separates us from God. We are to confess and work on what separates us from God. It’s hard enough to improve our walk with God, let us not help the enemy take us further away from the reconciling heart of God.

    ※Prayer※

    Lord, help us be true to you through our confessions and our to you. Amen.

    ※Questions※

    1) Is there a sin or struggle in your life that you can’t seem to get a handle on, and are concerned that God just won’t let it go? Is it God, or is it you that won’t let it go?

    2) Why do we often let our mistakes and errors bind us?

    3) One aspect of the Good News of the is from chains. How will you with others the chains you have been freed from?