Devotion.al

Tag: worthy

  • Faith and Tradition

    Psalm 40:1–16, John 7:21–24, Acts 15:1–21

    To this very day, churches (and thus the ) struggle with what exactly their faith means and its implications. Certain things appear to have been settled, but others haven’t. Although, perhaps it is better to say that when push comes to shove people will finally get to the point where doctrine and orthodoxy are finally separated from tradition.

    In many denominations and churches, tradition has been so wrapped into doctrine and orthodoxy that not following tradition is viewed as dangerous and even non-. As the Church of the Nazarene is rooted in the Wesleyan tradition, we view tradition as a key component to understanding our faith. At the same time, we (as Wesley) are “descendants” of the Reformation, which has as a motto, “Semper Reformanda,” always reforming. In other words, while certain essentials of the faith must be predominately left alone, everything else should be worthy of dispute and .

    If we re-read the passage from John and Acts in the of the above, we see tradition and Semper Reformanda at work. In the Book of John, heals on the , violating tradition, yet reforming the practices to be more aligned with the heart of God.

    In the Book of Acts, traditionalists (honestly believing they are doing the right thing) try to get (non-Jews) to take on the Jewish rite of circumcision. They get into a discussion with Paul and Barnabas, and it gets sent to committee. However, unlike our committees, a decision was made and shared. The message didn’t denigrate tradition, but it reformed it.

    Local churches (i.e., Generations Community Church) often have traditions that had a time and place, but that may no longer be the case. The tradition may be 50 years, 20 years, 5 years, or even 5 months old. Regardless, it should always be viewed as whether it is still effective in sharing the and discipling believers.

    1) is the big of tradition. If we look at how Jesus lived, why should that concern us?

    2) Tradition is neither inherently good nor bad. How do you analyze the why of a tradition? If you don’t analyze a tradition, why not?

    3) Acts 15:2 shows that discussion (even if heated) is good and healthy when it comes to tradition and even theology. Where do you see that respect of discussion happening? Where do you think it needs to happen more?

  • Legacy of Faith

    Psalm 27, Genesis 13:14-18, Philippians 3:2-12

    David was no saint insofar as not always being a good example to follow: thuggery, adultery, murder, failure to lead and/or protect his . On the other hand, David wrote God-inspired psalms, designed the Great , outline the rules and families for worship (who did what), and was—by and large—a follower of and champion for God. When we read Psalm 27, we see a person’s open to God. In the psalm, David declares that God is pretty much everything. David’s statement regarding his parents abandoning him (something that would be especially painful and cruel in a family driven culture), but that God would still be there is also an identifying thing. David was declaring that without his family, his would still be found in God. It was a worthy to pass on, but as noted earlier, David didn’t do so well with his family. Other than Solomon, we know nothing about the faith of David’s children, and Solomon’s faith became troubled as he got older. Is it David’s fault that his legacy was not passed on well? To some degree it was. However, at some point, those who follow have to keep nourishing the flame of faith they were given.

    While even most non-church folks recognize Adam and Eve, and Noah (who are important characters), from a religious standpoint none may be more important than Abram (Abraham). In this passage, Abram gives Lot the choice of direction. Lot chooses what seems to be the better land. Yet, after he made that choice, God tells Abram that his offspring will equal the amount of in the world. Is that an overstatement? Perhaps, however, we have to look at how the Israelites viewed it as a . They would know. Then look and Christianity, a child faith of Abraham. They (we) are also the progeny of Abram. Abram’s legacy of faith has been passed down to us. And it is the legacy of faith that truly matters.

    Paul, until his conversion, had received a legacy of duties, tasks, rituals, that did not give life, or at least no full life. While Christians may be quick to accuse the Jews of lifeless rituals that they though saved them, many of those same rituals developed a deep and ground faith in God. It all really depended on the and what they did with the flame of faith pass on to them.

    1) Who passed on the flame of faith to you? What are you doing to make sure that the flame of faith you pass on will be as strong or stronger?

    2) Paul states that he cares more about knowing Jesus (God) than doing stuff, and relying on stuff. Can you say the same of yourself?

    3) The beauty of David’s life is that it is honest. David’s life was not perfect, just as yours or mine are not. Why does acknowledging not having a perfect life important when passing on the faith?

    FD) Did you know that you have a responsibility to accept faith and nourish (feed) it?

  • For Glory!

    Psalm 115, Judges 5:1-11, 1 Corinthians 10:23-11:1

    Much of the modern world is obsessed with the self. Individualism (rugged or otherwise) is a key feature of (U.S.) American culture. It then becomes ironic when non-believers question why everything should be for God’s . They attribute to God a selfish conceit that has no consideration for others. This is one of the reasons why the doctrine of the Trinity is important to understanding God. God lives in . There is a perpetual and integral consideration of another. We created beings are blessed because God considers us of being related to. This is not a vain conceit of God. It is a reality of a and wholly other being who has created us.

    When it comes to God’s glory versus our glory it is important to not just say it’s God’s glory. God’s glory is eternal. Our glory is temporary. It is that perspective of an abiding glory that remains forever. When we are aware and take this into account, it should affect our decisions and responses.

    The psalmist compares the eternal God to man-made idols that are destroyable. The psalmist then compares the makers and worshippers of idols to the very idols they make. They are the same in that in them is trusting in nothing (or possibly alluding to ). In comparison to the living God whose people are living and plentiful. The legacy is of children, grandchildren, and so on. The legacy is of the living and who live in relationship with God. The legacy needs to be remembered.

    Deborah and Barak were the leaders of Israel, seeking to restore a lost legacy. Even in the midst of celebrating victory over their oppressors, Deborah and Barak gave God praise for the leaders who lead, and the volunteers who stepped up. While they (leaders and volunteers) did as they were called, it was still to God’s glory that they responded and succeeded. Their actions live on in the story of God that God laid out for us to receive. While in this case, it is something that was done that brought God glory, it can also be things not done that brings God glory.

    In his letter to the Corinthians, Paul is confronting the struggles of people trying to conform their lives to a new way of thinking. In their culture, sacrifices to idols are done. It is prevalent. The idols are dead, so why worry about the meat? For the follower of Christ—who knows the freedom in/of Christ—this is just a silly question. However, for those who are not followers of the Way (i.e., Christians) this is an important question, for their perspective is that the believers are worshipping idols when they eat the sacrifices! Thus, not eating it brings glory to God by showing that they do not worship the idols or feel they are paying attention to. It may seem silly to us, but to a culture for whom worship was cultural and religious, this was a huge thing.

    1) What things could the culture view us (i.e., Christians, Christ-Followers) as worshipping, just like the culture?

    2) How can you know when you are doing something for God’s glory rather than your own?

    3) Why do leaders leading and volunteers stepping up God glory?

    FD) What can you not do and give God glory?

  • The Nudging

    Moses is in need of help. He can’t do it all. What’s odd is that it would seem that Moses didn’t maintain the lesson learned from his father-in-law (see Exodus 18). It’s not entirely the same. In Exodus 18, it was the “priestly” judges who were selected. This is more along the lines of a professional judiciary, such as we have from local, to district, to appellate, to supreme judiciaries. We have something different here. What has occurred is the selection of senior spiritual leaders. They are leaders, too, but it is the application of the Holy Spirit that makes this important. There are a couple of story-lines occurring here, and that can lead to some confusion. It is often assumed (and has often been taught) that Eldad and Medad remained in camp because they were disgruntled, putting them with the grumbling people. The text does not make that clear. It is our . We do know that Eldad and Medad were selected by Moses (so, much less likely to be among the disgruntled). What if they just hadn’t made it, yet? Or, what if they did not feel or were scared? Both reasonable based upon experience God’s miracles. They had been chosen…and the Holy Spirit fell on them anyways.‌

    Joshua was offended on Moses’ behalf, but Moses noted that it is God’s spirit, not his. Many, many years later, Jesus has a similar experience with his disciples. Within in the context of arguing which disciple was greater than the other, and Jesus shutting that down well, John ups the game reporting that a man who was not among the disciples are successfully driving out demons. John then states that they (in other words, “I wasn’t the only one, Jesus.”) tried to stop the man, but Jesus stopped even that. The disciples were “offended” by the man driving out demons, but were they upset on Jesus’ behalf or their own. Jesus’ response would indicate that this was about them, not him.‌

    Often we can become overly concerned with the “right” way of doing things. With the Holy Spirit, the right way can often not be our way. This is not to say the God is a god of chaos. God makes and creates order. However, our concept of order and “right” can be at odds with God at times. Joshua and John (yes, with some pride in there) assumed they were doing the right thing by saying “this is wrong.” Yet, God did it, so it wasn’t wrong. It just didn’t fit their idea. Philip may have learned a lesson by the point of this story in Acts. The of the Holy Spirit didn’t hurt either. Philip obeyed and went to the “desert” road for a divine appointment. Nudged further, he approached an important chariot. There is a lot in this story that is missing, but the essentials are there. Philip in obedience approached a chariot that would have been awkward for him normally to approach. Through obedience to the Holy Spirit, Philip then leads the Ethiopian to Christ. After the Ethiopian’s baptism something strange happens, the Holy Spirit “carries” (in Greek, it’s more of snatch) Philip away. The Ethiopian goes on his way rejoicing. The way the journey from Jerusalem to Gaza is written, it sounds immediate, but it was actually quite a journey by foot. We don’t get that from Luke’s words, we just have to know geography. This is important as the way Luke writes this gives us an idea that Philip teleported from Gaza to Azotus (a.k.a., Ashdod). While it is quite possible for God to do such, a better way to think of this is that Philip did what was needed and did not stay there rejoicing in the victory. He continued on the .‌

    Far too often we get comfortable with the and want to “stay” there in the happy time. The Holy Spirit is always calling us on to the next thing. The next thing may not be immediate (and often isn’t). Sitting with our victories and successes, though, makes us stagnant. The same can be said of sticking to the old known formula. It worked for its time. The Holy Spirit may have stamped “expired” on it. We need to be for the Holy Spirit is doing.‌

    • 1) In the last week, how have you seen the Holy Spirit in your life? How about the lives of ?‌
    • 2) What is the Holy Spirit nudging you to do? Who is the Holy Spirit nudging you to speak to?
    • 3) Often times we may think the Holy Spirit is nudging us to talk to someone so that they can be “fixed”. This isn’t always the case. When have you had a Holy Spirit encounter where you were the one that learned rather than being the one who taught?‌
    • FD) Have you ever said something to defend the efforts of others? Why did you do that?

  • Freely Walking

    1 Samuel 2:1–10, John 8:31–36

    Hannah’s joy-filled of praise for her son Samuel is the wonderful response of a woman who had been denied the (cultural) gift children…and then was gifted Samuel. In her case, it was the rival wife (Peninnah) who continually taunted her. Hannah’s (and Peninnah’s) husband, Elkanah, loved her despite her childlessness, and during the special festivals, gave her a double portion, her honor above Peninnah. Elkanah did his best to make Hannah feel worthy and loved, but her heart wasn’t on the same page. She went to the Lord in prayer, and the Lord answered her.

    Samuel was born, and Hannah’s shame was done away with. This prayer is amazing. There is joy, praise, thanksgiving…and bittersweetness.

    In faith and faithfulness, Hannah gave her son to the Lord. There is an echo here of the firstborn belonging to God. Hannah did not perform an animal sacrifice. She gave her son. While her heart was full of finally being a mother, her heart was hurting.

    However, just as she was faithful to God, God was gracious to her. She had more children and was now the mother she longed to be. She had been freed to be who she wanted to be.

    One of the greatest promises of is to be free of the chains that bind us. We can be like Hannah, bound by both societal/cultural chains, by the chains we set upon ourselves, or by the chains that our mistakes become.

    The Jews, for example, had chains of blood. They believed their was tied to their bloodline. By that understanding, they had chained themselves to rigors that God had not intended. Instead of being children of God, they had become “slaves” of the rules in the house of God.

    Jesus wanted to break them free of their chains. The sad truth is that we often become so comfortable in our chains that we do not want them to go away. The weight, while still weighing us down, is comfortable.

    Transformation of our with God is the fulfillment of the life. When we follow our understanding of God’s desires for us, it is not about rules. It is about a loving response to God the who loved us before we knew him.

    When we cannot step beyond the rules to relationship, we do not get the true power of free in Jesus Christ. When we don’t invest in our relationship with God, we are just statues in the house of God that cannot sing the praise and glory of God.

    • 1) What thoughts and habits are still keeping your walk with Christ empty or shallow?
    • 2) Can you relate to Hannah’s ? How is it different than we often think of freedom?
    • 3) We often tie our self-worth to ‘ perceptions and values of us. How does looking at the freedom that Jesus offers challenge that?
    • FD) How do rules create and limit relationships?
  • Beyond Hope

    Beyond Hope

    Luke:1:46b-55, James 5:7-10, Hebrews 12:1-2

    Mary’s song/poem of is often called the Magnificat in the Protestant/Roman Catholic tradition, or the Ode of the Theotokos (Bearer of God) in the Eastern Orthodox tradition. It is a joy-filled response to God by Mary that appears to be a response to Elizabeth’s joy-filled pronouncement of the Sprit-filled joy of John the Baptist (in utero, of all things) to hearing the voice of the Mother of God (Jesus).

    The double-meaning of Mary’s praise of “…my rejoices in God my savior…” is the Jewish understanding of God (the Father) as the savior of their people, along side the coming of Jew and Gentile through the of Jesus (God the ). There is the reality of God as past, present and future savior.

    The Jews knew many experiences of God as savior. The expectation for the coming Messiah was built upon an understanding of a God that was and would fulfill promises made.

    As a Jew, James had the same Jewish understanding as pregnant Mary, and he had seen fulfillment of the Messiah’s coming and salvation. Now James is passing the on. It is the expectation based upon God’s that the Messiah will come again and the hope that remains strong in the face of adversity.

    In Hebrews, the author notes that Jesus went to the cross joyfully, not because Jesus was looking to the pain, anguish, betrayal and death. Jesus was looking beyond the cross, beyond the grave, and even beyond the Resurrection. The author notes that Jesus’ prize was the throne of God. Though the author doesn’t say it here, the other prize was you and me before the throne of God, not in fear of judgement, but as Children of the Most High God.

    Elsewhere, the author of Hebrews notes that Jesus, our Savior, is continually interceding on our behalf and for all eternity. No matter how you feel about yourself being worthy, it doesn’t matter. As shirts and bumper stickers read, “I may not be perfect, but Jesus thinks I’m to die for.” That is our hope and joy.

    1) Are hope and joy the same thing?

    2) Why are having hope and joy important for a Christian?

    3) Why is it important to look at the Old Testament in regards to salvation?

    KD) Why does the author of Hebrews compare faith to running a ?