mondayschoolblog

We like revenge. Taking revenge or seeing revenge taking place makes us feel good.

How did you feel when the van rammed the motorcycle? Most of us said yessssss!!!! He deserved it. (watch 2 min. video here)

We love to see someone get what they deserve.  We  like it when the guy goes speeding past us and in few miles down the road you see a state trooper has pulled them over. There is this feeling that justice was served.  We like to see people get what they deserve. Especially when they have done something to us or someone they love. When we do get them back. Or when something happens to them that gets them we rejoice in that they got what they deserved.

Leonardo Da Vinci, just before he commenced work on his “last supper” painting had a violent argument with a fellow painter.  Leonardo was so bitter that he determined to paint the face of his enemy, the other artist, into the face of Judas, and thus take revenge by handing the man down in infamy and scorn to succeeding generations. The face of Judas was, therefore, one of the first he finished.  And everyone could easily recognize it as the face of the painter with whom he had quarreled.

But when it came to paint the face of Christ, he could make no progress. Something seemed to be baffling him, holding him back, frustrating his best efforts. Finally he came to the conclusion that the thing that was frustrating him was that he had painted the face of his enemy onto the face of Judas.  He painted out the face of Judas and was then able to resume his work on the face of Jesus and this time he did it with success that the ages have acclaimed.

When Davinci moved past his right to take revenge and made the right response instead, he broke the power of hatred and allowed the love of Christ to have the last word. As Christ followers, we are to let the love of Christ have the last word. When it comes to revenge  we Christ followers have no rights. We are not entitled to do anything. So what do you if someone has wronged you?  Or you happened to be the victim of an injustice? Do you just have to sit and take it?

No. You don’t.

Look at what God is asking us to do:

• “If your enemies are hungry feed them.”
• “If your enemies are thirsty give them something to drink. In doing this, you will heap     burning coals of shame on their heads.”
• “Don’t let evil conquer you, but conquer evil by doing good.”

As a Christ follower  this what you are entitled to do. That is humanly impossible!! You are absolutely right. God is asking us to allow the supernatural to happen but we must be willing to give up the need for revenge. Revenge just makes us feel good but it accomplishes absolutely nothing.

Over the last couple of years there has been a man from Idaho whose name is Saeed Abini who has been in one of the worse prisons in Iran.  He was put in prison because he was a Christian who wanted to start an orphanage in Iran. He got government approval but the government changed their mind and put in prison. While he has been in prison he got to write this letter to his wife:

Dear Naghmeh, I have been stung so many times that I have become full of poison. This is an Iranian saying. A lot of people say that they have been stung by so many people who their whole being is full of poison like a poisonous snake. It means that we have been bitten by the snakes of this world so many times that, that all of the poison has collected in us and that we are like the poisonous snake. But if we sting anyone, we will die. This Iranian saying is full of spirit of revenge and unforgiveness and every time I would hear this in Iran, I would get very sick hearing it.

A few days ago they brought a young war veteran who was disabled in 80% of his body in my cell. He had been put in solitary confinement with his horrific condition. And this had made him very mad and he kept saying “why did they do this to me? I gave my whole life for their sake. See what they have done to me!!!” And when he would get very mad he would say “I will take my revenge!”

I spoke to this young man until 4 in the morning. I spent time with him and spoke to him to forgive. When we don’t forgive, we drink the poison ourselves and then wait for the other person to die. And we take the knife that has hurt us and we stab ourselves with it again! And this is the will of the evil one who wants to destroy us.

But when we forgive, we pour out the poison of the enemy and of the devil and we don’t let the poison stay in us and we don’t let the poison make us into poisonous snakes! So that we don’t become like the person we despised and who persecuted and tortured us.

If we don’t forgive we take revenge. We might not run over motorcycles or physically hurt someone. We can also be silent or give someone the cold shoulder. We can talk about them behind their back. We can throw knives at them in our dream. We can wish they would have justice serve to them.

We can’t change what people have done to us. We can’t change their attitude toward us. We can’t change what our enemies think of us. What we can do when people do evil against us is to love them sacrificially. We do that by serving them instead of hurting them.  To love someone sacrificially who has hurt you, one must give up the need for personal revenge.  By personal revenge I mean giving someone the cold shoulder, or hurt them physically, emotionally, or just talk about how awful they are behind their back. If we do those things then we are no different from the person who has hurt us.

Look at the evil they did to Jesus. Did Jesus just sit around and do nothing?  NO. He loved them sacrificially. He said, “Father forgive them because they don’t  know what they are doing.”

Look at Joseph in the OT (Genesis 50)

• They threw him a sewage pit.
• They sold him as a slave
• He was framed for rape
• Thrown into prison
• Forgotten about.

He had every reason to grow bitter. He had every reason to retaliate. When he was put into power he could have easily destroyed his brothers.  But what did he do? He first had a little fun with them. What he decided to do was love them sacrificially.

Look at what he says to his brothers in Genesis 50:19

¹⁹ But Joseph replied, “Don’t be afraid of me. Am I God, that I can punish you? ²⁰ You intended to harm me, but God intended it all for good. He brought me to this position so I could save the lives of many people.

Did you hear what Joseph said?  AM I GOD THAT I CAN PUNISH YOU?

When we take revenge – whatever kind of revenge it is – we are making our self, God. Keep in mind, if you want revenge, if you want to hold a grudge, if you want to give a cold shoulder, God is not going to stop you. He is not a God who manipulates and controls his people. God even allows us to play His role. Early in Romans he tells us that he will let us pursue the lust of the flesh. As Christ followers we are to let the love of Christ have the final word.  Like Davinci we are to move past our right to take revenge and do the right thing.

Joseph didn’t take revenge. What did Joseph do? Who moved his whole family closer and he took care of them.  Joseph did the right thing – he gave his family food, something to drink, and a place to stay. What was Joseph able to do?  Despite the evil his brothers  did to him, he forgave them. Forgiving someone is loving someone sacrificially who doesn’t deserve it. When you do this you are letting the love of Christ have the last word. When you love them sacrificially you move past your right to take revenge and you do the right thing.

Jesus makes forgiveness a pretty big deal. Look at what he says:

Matthew 5:43-45

“You have heard the law that says, ‘Love your neighbor’  and hate your enemy. ⁴⁴ But I say, love your enemies!  Pray for those who persecute you! ⁴⁵ In that way, you will be acting as true children of your Father in heaven.

Matthew 6:12

¹² and forgive us our sins,     as we have forgiven those who sin against us.

How do you forgive those who have betrayed  you, abused you, or done you wrong in some way!

To forgive is a willful choice. It is a point in time decision. To forgive isn’t a feeling. It is a willful decision you have to make in your mind. Forgiveness is not going to happen just because you say “I forgive you.” It is a decision you make. Its changing the way you think.

Forgiveness is a process. It is a journey of aligning  our will and emotions. We might have made the conscious decision to forgive but our emotions don’t always go with our decision. Past memories still hurt. When you see them or have to deal with them or the issue – emotions are going to come.

How do you align your emotions up with what you have decided to do?

• Pray for yourself
• Then Bless them by doing good to them for the evil they have done to you.

How do you know when your emotions have caught up with your decision?  When you are able to rejoice with them when something good happens to them and mourn with them when something bad happens to them.

Forgiveness allows Christ to have the last word. When Christ has the last word – something supernatural happens.

Romans 12: 9-12  (NLT)

⁹ Don’t just pretend to love others. Really love them. Hate what is wrong. Hold tightly to what is good. ¹⁰ Love each other with genuine affection, and take delight in honoring each other. ¹¹ Never be lazy, but work hard and serve the Lord enthusiastically. ¹² Rejoice in our confident hope. Be patient in trouble, and keep on praying.

^9-10 Love from the center of who you are; don’t fake it. Run for dear life from evil; hold on for dear life to good. Be good friends who love deeply; practice playing second fiddle.

^11-13 Don’t burn out; keep yourselves fueled and aflame. Be alert servants of the Master, cheerfully expectant. Don’t quit in hard times; pray all the harder. Help needy Christians; be inventive in hospitality.                                                                         –The Message

His name was Bud. He was a factory worker with more than a slight resemblance to Archie Bunker. Every single day he’d come home sweaty and dirty. He’d go in the back door, grab an alcoholic beverage of choice from the frig, and plop himself down in front of the TV until his wife brought him supper.

One day as he was driving to work he happened to come across a Christian psychologist on the radio – kinda’ of a local version of James Dobson. And something the commentator said  stuck in his mind that love and marriage are about sacrifice. And it hit him – no, convicted him – that he’d been expecting his wife to sacrifice for him but he’d never really sacrificed for her. It was though a relational light bulb came on and he knew that he had to do something about it. So he decided that he was going to surprise her the next day. Before coming home he showered and shaved. He went to the florist and bought flowers and instead of going in the back door he went to the front door he went to the front and rang the bell.

When he answered the door he held out the flowers and said – “Honey, they’re for you. I love you!”

She looked at him, her mouth dropped open. Tears filled her eyes.

And she said, “I’ve had a terrible day. Billy broke his leg and I had to take him to the hospital. No sooner had I got home then the phone rang. It was your mother and she’s coming  to visit for two weeks. I tried to do the wash but the machine broke and there’s water all over the basement floor. And now, you come home drunk!”

But …….. let’s give Bud credit; he’d finally got the right idea! Love manifests itself in sacrificial action. Love and sacrifice go hand in hand with husband’s and wives, brother’s and sisters, with team mates, with business partners, with God and humanity.

Bud had the right idea – genuinely loving someone cost you something.

• You change the way you think about them.
• You change the way you relate to them.

When loving others you mature. You put their interest before yours. You serve them more than they serve you. When I meet with engaged couples I always ask this question, ” Why do you want to get married?” 9 times out of 10 the answer is, “Because we are in __________.” I respond by saying, “that it is not really love. It’s an erotic feeling and they really turn you on. Once you are married you learn to love one another. It just doesn’t come naturally. It is something that is learned and experienced.” Over the years you change the way you think about them and you change the way you relate to them. Over the years you stop trying to impress them and you serve them.

Paul challenges us to love without pretending.  I am suggesting  if your love doesn’t cost you something then you are just pretending.

• You can figure out when others are pretending to love you.
  • They promise something and they never follow through
  • They say stuff just to get  you to like them.
• You can figure out when you are pretending to love others.
  • You have no intention of doing anything for them
  • We say certain stuff to get people to like you.

We know when we are pretending and we know when others are pretending. Don’t we? Loving without pretending is a major key in being the light of the world and the salt of the earth.

How do you love without pretending?

• First of all we need to look at why we pretend.  The reason we pretend is because we have an inaccurate view of ourselves. We either think too highly of ourselves which affects how we love others. Or with think too lowly of ourselves which affects how we love others. So we pretend. If we think too highly of ourselves we become  spiritual snobs. So we try to prove to others that we can be humble. If we think to lowly of ourselves we become a spiritual doormat and become people with no spiritual back bone. So we try to prove to others that we have some spiritual backbone.

When we try to prove others anything – we just become pretenders.  You don’t have to prove anything to anybody. You are already God’s greatest joy and greatest asset.  How do you love without pretending? Stop trying to prove yourself to others. Let God transform the way you think.

Those who are being transformed (like Bud here) don’t pretend. Bud wasn’t pretending. He had a God moment. A Damascus road experience.  He was humbled by God. Bud began to think in a different way. Bud began to think of his wife more than himself. His motives became genuine.

If you want a great relationship with anyone a person needs to learn to be a living sacrifice.

When loving others you are the one who matures. Not because you have to. Not because you want to impress others or pretend to be someone you are not. It’s because you want to sacrifice for them. When you genuinely love someone you are willing to sacrifice for them. If you are not willing to sacrifice then you are just pretending.

None of you parents, grandparents, aunts, and uncles  are forced to love your kids. It is something you willfully do. You make adjustments in your schedules to love them. You make adjustments in your life to make time for them. It is not something you HAVE to do – it is something you want to willfully do. This is what it means to be a living sacrifice.

I will never forget the lady who tried to make my oldest daughter Lyndsay love her. Lyndsay was about 4 or 5 years old and this lady came up to me and said, “I’m going to make your daughter love me.”  I said to her, “good luck!” This lady tried for years. But she never succeeded. That is because you can’t make anyone love you nor can you make yourself love someone. When you genuinely love them you willfully do it. It takes a change inside of you.

Genuine love is demonstrated in becoming a living sacrifice. In other words, when you want to personally impact another person’s life – you give up something personal. Here is a little one minute on Team Hoyt that will give you a great picture of being a living sacrifice looks like. (click here to watch). Genuine love is sacrificing for others whether they love us back or not.

John 15:13  “There is no greater love than to lay down one’s life for one’s friends.” You can’t fake sacrifice. When you do sacrifice it affects someone else’s life and it make an impact. They are forever changed.

The first disciples in the book of Acts got it. When a plague would come to an area, all of the religious leaders would leave and let the people die. Christians saw this as an opportunity to love other sacrificially. This is one of the reasons the church grew so rapidly – the early follower became living sacrifices. The risked their health by going and caring for these people who their religious leaders left behind. They just didn’t simply pray for the pagan nations to know Christ – they sacrificed themselves. Some to the point of death. When you love someone to the point of sacrificing yourself, you know it is real love. When you love sacrificially, it becomes addicting. You go from having to do it to wanting to do it.

God needs us to love others. Not everyone knows they are loved by God. This is a gross misconception. When we love others sacrificially  it will soften their hearts toward God. We are not necessarily called to do great things for them ; we are called to do small things with great love.

Genuine love is action. We can say we love each other and we can say we love others but if it is not followed up with action it is not love. I can say I love my kids all I want but if is not following up with action – it is not love. I can say I love my wife all I want but if it is not followed up with action – it is not love. I can say I love  my church all I want but it if it not followed up with action – it is not love. I can say I love my neighbor all I want but if it is not followed up with action – it is not love. I can say I love Jesus all I want but if is not followed up with action – it is not love. It is something you do.

How do we make this personal?

We need to do something practical and intentional.

Take on Project 360

 

 

 

Romans 12

3 Because of the privilege and authority God has given me, I give each of you this warning: Don’t think you are better than you really are. Be honest in your evaluation of yourselves, measuring yourselves by the faith God has given us. 4 Just as our bodies have many parts and each part has a special function, 5 so it is with Christ’s body. We are many parts of one body, and we all belong to each other.

6 In his grace, God has given us different gifts for doing certain things well. So if God has given you the ability to prophesy, speak out with as much faith as God has given you. 7 If your gift is serving others, serve them well. If you are a teacher, teach well. 8 If your gift is to encourage others, be encouraging. If it is giving, give generously. If God has given you leadership ability, take the responsibility seriously. And if you have a gift for showing kindness to others, do it gladly.

If you are going to take your faith to a personal level we need to understand that others are better than you.  Not in a “woes is me – sadistic way “ – but in a “Jesus- loves- you -as -much –as- he -loves -me way.”

Following Christ doesn’t make you a better person. This is one of those things we need to rethink. Many Christ followers believe that they are better people than those who don’t follow Christ. We may not say the words but our body language and our verbal comments totally give it away.  Many Christ followers are what I call spiritual bullies. If you are on Facebook just read some of the comments on controversial moral issues from some of the Christ followers. Some are down-right mean and many times  scripture is used out of context to prove a point. Many Christ followers act superior and are spiritually haughty.

I heard the story this past week on a podcast. The pastor was sharing about evangelicals and how we are to be the bearers of the Good News. He moved into house in Kansas City, Mo. When his family moved in, his neighbor decided to move out – why? – because he was an evangelical and the neighbor was a liberal. The neighbor immediately put their house up for sale.  After a few neighborly conversations, they became friends and they took their house off the market.  The evangelical loved the liberal and the liberal loved the evangelical. Evangelicals aren’t any better than liberals and liberals aren’t any better than evangelicals.

Following Christ is not about becoming a better person or proving the scriptures are right and true or being spiritually haughty. It is about becoming a living sacrifice. It’s about allowing God to change the way we think.  It’s about being the light of the world. It’s about being the salt of the earth. It’s about spiritually maturing and learning to love our enemy, love those who persecute us. It’s about understanding that we are called to love and not to judge. Mother Theresa once said, “if you judge people you have no time to love them.”

This is important. Because when you judge someone  you are saying that you are better than them.  When you love them you are saying they are important to God. Isn’t that the message we want to communicate? Those evangelicals who think they are better than the rest of the world get in their own  religious silos and totally miss the opportunity to be the light of the world or the salt of the earth. Their sole focus is making sure they get themselves  to heaven. In fact for many, that is their only agenda.

As Christ followers it is not about being better than anybody. Jesus never consider himself to be better than anybody. Look at Philippians 2. He said that he made himself lower than the lowest servant. He gave up a lot. Vs. 7 says, “he gave up his divine privileges;  he took the humble position of a slave.” ^. Jesus didn’t think he was better than anyone.  Anybody can better themselves. Anybody  can behave well in public. Anybody can have good morals. You don’t need to be a follower of Christ to accomplish those things. Following Christ  has never  been about becoming a better person, Getting to heaven, or being socially isolated from the world.  Following Christ is about how well you love the person who cuts you off while driving. Following Christ is about how well you serve others. Following Christ is about how well you love your enemies. Following Christ is about understanding that the other person is just as important to God as you are and making yourself their servant.

Not only are we not to think we are better than everyone – we are not to think too lowly of ourselves.

Luke 14:11 teaches us, “those you exalt themselves will be humbled, and those who humble themselves will be exalted.” In other words if you think you are better than everyone else, you will be  humbled. If you think to lowly of yourself – you will be humbled. Being humble (according to the scriptures) is not thinking about yourself at all. A few entries ago  I shared with you the story of the ant and the grasshopper. According to Mark (the little boy in the story), the ant didn’t think of himself at all. He simply gave it all to the grasshopper.

Paul says, “Be honest in your evaluation of yourselves, measuring yourselves by the faith God has given us.” Or as the NIV puts it, “ think of yourself with sober judgment.” In other words, Don’t get drunk on yourself. How do you know if you are drunk on yourself?

• You complain about life a lot. Life is never fair.
• You have the attitude that you are always right.
• You think of yourself as better than a person or certain group of people.
• You think only about how the certain circumstance is going to benefit you.
• You think of yourself as the worse person in the world.
• You think perfection is possible.

Who can give you this evaluation  of yourself?

• Others can’t
• The media can’t
• Parent’s can’t
• Coaches can’t
• Your spouse can’t
• Your significant other can’t

No one can give you an honest evaluation.  Some of these people think too highly of you and some of these people will tell you, you can never measure up. Only God can give you an honest evaluation. Genesis tells  us that you are “very good” and that you are created in the image of God. Romans tells us that you are his chosen one. Hebrews tell us that we are part of his priesthood. The psalmist teaches us that you are created by God. All of scripture teaches that you are God’s greatest asset.

There are some people who think that there is no way they can be God’s greatest asset. How can I be God’s greatest asset? I have messed my life up. I have made too many mistakes. I have sinned against him. Many have this attitude that there is no way I can be God’s greatest asset. You don’t have to do anything to be God’s greatest asset. You simply need to be in relationship with Him. The doing will come later. While being in relationship with him you will discover that you are his greatest asset.

• The woman at the well discovered it and went and told her whole village about Jesus.
• Zaccheus discovered it and gave back 4x’s more than what he stole from people.
• The woman who washed Jesus’s feet with tears and her hair discovered it. She couldn’t stop kissing his feet.
• Peter, who denied he knew Jesus 3x’s, discovered it and thousands came to know Christ because of his ministry.
• Paul, who persecuted the church, discovered it and he spread the Good News.

God doesn’t base what kind of asset we are by what we do for Him. In other words, Billy Graham is no more important than you and you are no more important than Billy Graham. In the kingdom of God, there is not a spiritual  hierarchy. By being in relationship  with him you discover that you are His greatest asset. This is the best thing about being a Christ follower – you discover that you are the greatest person ever created by God. You discover that God puts his confidence and trust in you. You discover that God is not against you but He is very much for you. You discover that there is nothing that can stop God from loving you.

You discover that God has so much confidence and trust in you that he says,

1. If I gave you the ability to prophesy then go and speak out as much faith as God has given you.
2. If I gave you the gift to serve others – then serve others well.
3. If I gave you the gift to teach others – then teach well.
4. If I gave you the gift to encourage others – be encouraging.
5. If I gave you the gift of giving – then give well.
6. If I have given you leadership ability – then lead well
7. If I have given you the gift for showing kindness to others – do it gladly.

You are the greatest person that God has ever created. He has given you gifts and abilities to help others. Despite what you think of yourself. Despite your hang-ups. Despite your shortcomings, and your insecurities. God loves you. When you love him back, you will discover His mercy, His forgiveness, His grace, His compassion. They are all new every morning. You will discover the trust and confidence He has in you.

Not everybody knows this.

Many evangelicals are really good at finding the faults in other people. We are good at looking at the splinters in everyone else’s eye but we can’t see the log in our own eye. In other words we see ourselves as better than everyone else. I believe this is one of the reasons why people don’t like to be a part of a church or Christianity

JE’s story:

“J.E.”,  was a very angry man. In fact, at age 54 he’d been an angry person for many years. In a Bible study one night, many questions had been raised in his mind. Talking with the leader afterward, J.E. said, “I asked Jesus to be my Savior when I was 9 years old. But nobody ever taught me about who I am in Christ, that I’m accepted by God or that Christ lives in me.”

“What were you taught?” the Bible study leader asked.” “Where I grew up, we heard all the time about how perfect Christ was and about how we should learn to live like Him – if we didn’t, God would judge us.” J.E. went on, “It didn’t take me long, I’d say in my teen years, to figure out that I was never going to cut it. So I gave up trying. I guess I’ve been living in guilt and running from God ever since. Off and on through the years I tried to go back to church, but I just got more guilt piled on top of me. I’ve sat under so many teachers who made me fearful that I was afraid to turn in any direction because God was going to get me. This is the first Bible study I’ve ever attended that gave me any hope” J.E. concluded.

Make this personal

Don’t get  drunk yourself. Don’t think too highly of yourself or think too lowly of yourself. In fact, don’t think of  yourself at all. Always think of others as better than yourself. Not in a sadistic, self righteous way but in a “Jesus- loves- you -as -much –as- he -loves -me way.”

Not everyone knows that they are God’s greatest asset.

Not everyone knows that they are unconditionally loved by God.

Somebody needs to tell them.

 

 

 

 

 

Romans 12:2

² Don’t copy the behavior and customs of this world, but let God transform you into a new person by changing the way you think. Then you will learn to know God’s will for you, which is good and pleasing and perfect. (NLT)

Don’t become so well-adjusted to your culture that you fit into it without even thinking. Instead, fix your attention on God. You’ll be changed from the inside out. Readily recognize what he wants from you, and quickly respond to it. Unlike the culture around you, always dragging you down to its level of immaturity, God brings the best out of you, develops well-formed maturity in you. (The Message)

Back in the late 90’s, Steve Jobs (Apple) challenged his employees to think different.

• If his employees said it was impossible – he said make it possible
• If his board members said it was impossible – he said I can make it possible
• They ended up doing what was deemed impossible – possible

Back in 1994  he did an interview with PBS and was asked about his success. (click here and watch the first minute)

If you don’t want to watch the video – read the transcript below:

“When you grow up you  tend to get told the world is the way it is  and your life is just to your is just your life inside the world. Try not to bash the walls too much. Try to have a nice family, have fun, save a little money.

That’s a very limited life. Like can be much broader once you discover one simple fact, and that is – everything around you that you call life, was made up by people who were no smarter than you. And you can can’t change it. You can influence it, you can build your own thing that other people can use.

The minute you understand that you can poke life and actually something will, you know if you push in, something will pop out on the other side, that you can never change it , mold it. That’s maybe the most important thing. It’s to shake off the erroneous notion that life is there and you’re just gonna live it, verses embrace it, change it, improve it, make your mark upon it.

It think that’s it very important and however you learn that, once you learn it, you’ll want to change life and make it better, cause it’s kind of messed up, in a lot of ways. Once you learn that, you’ll never be the same again.”   – Steve Jobs

As I translate what Mr. Jobs, he is saying, “don’t allow the things of this world form you into its image. Be transformed by the way you think!” As Christ followers we need to shake off this erroneous notion that life is there and you’re just going to live it vs. embracing it, changing it, improving it, and making your mark on it. If we are going to make this personal then our thinking needs to change. It doesn’t HAVE to change it needs to change. The average Christ follower is just “living for Jesus.” Generally, what that means is that we go to church, we tithe, we do our Christian thing. In other words we love to be in a Christian bubblehood kingdom and we are formed in our churches image.

As Mr. Jobs said our world is messed up. This is not a Christ follower saying this – everyone, even non-Christ followers, know our world is messed up. Read the newspapers, read on the internet, and watch the news.

Jobs idea of changing the world was creating gadgets that we didn’t know we needed.

Jesus idea of changing the world begins with you and me changing the way we think.

Steve Jobs is right when he said, “everything around you that you call life was made up by people no smarter than you.” Everything you see around you, all the customs and behaviors of this world are made up by people and they are designed to drag you down to its level of immaturity. As Christ followers we are not called to reflect the immaturity of the world nor are we to pretend we have it all together.

Can you think of ways that Christ followers reflect the immaturity of the world?

I got asked frequently to speak at this one particular Christian school. The last time I was invited to speak at this Christian school, I was talking about what it meant to be a real Christ follower. I said it doesn’t make a difference if you were home schooled, private schooled, Christian schooled, public schooled one needs to follow Christ in all those settings. I didn’t say one was better than the other. In fact I praised the teachers for the quality education they give.  It was a beautiful service and kids made commitments to follow Christ at a higher level. By the time I got back to the church (within eight minutes) my “pastor-boss” was called and informed of what I shared.  He simply said they are probably not going to ask you back. They didn’t.

It alarms me of the spiritual immaturity I see in so many Christ followers. Feelings get hurt because certain people don’t get their way.  Some Christ followers stop tithing because their feelings were hurt.  Some Christ followers don’t support any ministry in the church because they don’t have the time.As Christ followers we are called to spiritually grow up and not give into the patterns of this world.

I read a story of high school coach in Utah who suspended his 80-player team to help them begin thinking differently. He got tired of the immaturity that his team was displaying off the field. He collected equipment from the players and explained that the team would not be permitted to play until they “proved themselves as human beings.” Coach Labrum said, “we felt like everything was going in the direction that we didn’t want our young mean going.” The suspension only lasted one day, The team did performed community service instead of practicing for their upcoming came against another high school.

Do you think his team began thinking differently?

Some of you reading this are thinking, “What a great lesson to teach young people.” Adults we need to listen up because of many of us have fell into the trap of just living life instead of embracing it, changing it, improving it, and making your mark on it. The pattern of this world is to become successful, financially secure, comfortable, self-centered, have a nice family, have fun, and save a little money. This is a limited life. There is nothing wrong with any of those things but if that is all you want then you are caught up in the patterns of this world. Because all of those things I just listed reflect the patterns of this world.

As you read the scriptures, you will discover that Jesus is challenging us to think differently. Throughout the Old and New testament God has been changing the way people think:

• God changed Abraham’s way of thinking. His dad, Terah, made and sold idols to worship for a living. Abraham worshipped only one God.
• God changed Moses way of thinking. Moses outburst of anger and bitterness lead to him killing an Egyptian. Moses came back to Egypt and peacefully lead 2 million plus people out of Egypt.
• Jonah ran away from. Got swallowed up by a big fish. Jonah had some time to think inside the fish. He was spit out and he preached the shortest sermon is history and a nation was saved.
• Gideon a famer became Gideon the army leader
• Mary, the virgin, became Mary the mother of the son of God.
• Disciples who were fisherman became fishers of men.
• Disciples who were tax collectors began collecting people
• Nicodemus was a Pharisee became Nicodemus the follower.
• Paul the persecutor became Paul the church planter.
• Peter the denier became Peter the disciple-maker.
• The list goes on. Zacheus, the woman at the well, the woman caught in adultery, the Roman centurion.

If we are going to make it personal and live a transformed life one must be willing to surrender their thinking process to God.

This is where the real battle is. We give our hearts but not many people give God their mind. In other words, we want the lovey-dovey, warm n’ fuzzy, feel good part of the relationship with God. We don’t want to discipline our mind. We don’t want to practice loving our neighbor or enemy. We don’t want to practice serving others. We don’t want to be a living sacrifice.

Why? Because we are not convinced in our mind that following Christ is really worth it. Think about that for a moment. The only  things we do in life are the things we are convinced are worth doing.

Paul was convinced

Nicodemus was convinced

Mary was convinced

The disciples were convinced

Moses, Abraham, Gideon, and all the others were convinced.

How do we know they were convinced – they became a living sacrifice. They sacrificed something personal to make it personal. In other words something happened in their mind as well as their heart.

I can’t help but think that many Christ followers have an emotional attachment to Jesus – meaning they like the fact that Jesus died on the cross and rose on the third day but not many are convinced to the point of making a commitment to love and serve others.

My wife won my heart when she walked through the church doors in Springfield, Illinois on August 11^th, 1985. I asked her to marry me in February 14^th, 1986. (yes 4 months later). My heart was into to it. Little did I understand the commitment involved in this kind of relationship. I had to learn how to be a husband. I learned quickly that marriage wasn’t about the lovey-dovey, warm fuzzy, feel good all the time kind of relationship. It was an all in commitment. If I was going to be a good husband I was going to need to learn how. I was going to have to learn to think differently. I was going to need to learn to love and serve her.

I think this describes many Christ followers. Our heart is into it but our minds aren’t.  I don’t think we understand the kind of commitment God is asking of us.  I don’t  think many of us are convinced that Jesus is the Way, The Truth, and the Life. We believe in our heart but if we were convinced then we would want to convince others. Right? When someone is convinced something is right – commitment soon follows.

Many of us have  become so well-adjusted to our culture that we fit into it without even thinking. God wants us to stop and think and listen. God wants us to use the brain he has given us.  We really don’t know how to be Christ followers, we think we know. Some people think they got it all figured out. That’s a dangerous place to be because you are endangered of becoming a legalistic, you-think-you-know -it all -believer. I thought I knew how to be a husband. I soon realized I didn’t have a clue.

 

 

 

 

Many people think they know how to be a Christian but all they really know is how to behave in church or in public. We know how to judge others. We know how to act religious.  We even know the Christian language. An observation I have made is that many of us were raised in church but not in Christ. In other words for many of us we have never really allowed God’s truths to change the way we think. We get sucked into pattern of this world thinking it is the gospel because it’s the way we have done it or believed it  all these years. God doesn’t just want us to change the way we behave in public – He wants to change the way you think. If we are going to take following Christ personally, then we need to allow God to change the way we think.

If we are going to change the way we think – we need to fix our attention upon God. Because he will change you from the inside out.

If we are going to impact our culture we need to allow God to bring the best out of you. Our best comes when we are convinced (our mind  has been renewed) because when we are convinced commitment soon follows. God gets our best when we are convinced that His truths are real.

 

How convinced are you? The more convinced you are produces a stronger commitment to embracing, changing, improving and making your mark on this world.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The mother of a 9 year old bold named Mark received a phone call in the middle of the afternoon.

It was the teacher from her son’s school.

“Mrs. Smith, something unusual happened today in your son’s third grade class. Your son did something that surprised me so much that I thought you should know about it immediately.”

The mother began to grow worried.

The teacher continued, “nothing like this has happened in all my ears of teaching. This morning I was teaching a lesson on creative writing. And as I always do, I tell the story of the ant and the grasshopper;

“The ant works hard all summer and stores up plenty of food. But the grasshopper plays all summer and does no work.

Then winter comes. The grasshopper begins to starve because he has no food. So he begins to beg, “Please Mr. Ant, you have so much food. Please let me eat, too?” then I said, “Boys and girls, your job is to write the ending of the story.”

Your son, Mark, raised his hand. “Teacher, may I draw a picture?”

“Well yes, Mark, if you like, you may draw a picture. But first you must write the ending to the story.”

“As in all the  years past, most of the students said the ant shared his food through the winter, and both the ant and the grasshopper lived.

A few children wrote, “No, Mr. Grasshopper, you should have worked in the summer. Now, I have just enough food for myself.” So the ant lived and the grasshopper died.”

But your son ended the story in a different way from any other child, ever.

He wrote, “So the ant gave all of his food to the grasshopper; the grasshopper lived through the winter. But the ant died.”

“And the picture? At the bottom of the page, Mark had drawn three crosses.”

Scripture:

Romans 12:1 And so, dear brothers and sisters, I plead with you to give your bodies to God because of all he has done for you. Let them be a living and holy sacrifice—the kind he will find acceptable. This is truly the way to worship him. (NLT)

Romans 12 ^1-2 So here’s what I want you to do, God helping you: Take your everyday, ordinary life—your sleeping, eating, going-to-work, and walking-around life—and place it before God as an offering. Embracing what God does for you is the best thing you can do for him. (The Message)

Make it personal. But not about you.

Make what personal? Being a living sacrifice.

The ant, according to little Mark, was willing to make it personal. He willingly gave up everything he had worked for and generously gave it away so that the grasshopper could live. That’s a beautiful of picture of what it means to be a living sacrifice. If we are going to have an impact in anyone’s life – we need to make it personal but not about ourselves. We need to take on the attitude of the ant.

When you make something personal – if affects you. If affects the decisions you make. It affects the way you do your life. If affects the way you live your life.  When you make something personal –you sacrifice something personal. God set the standard for us:  John 3:16  “For this is how God loved the world: He gave his one and only Son, so that everyone who believes in him will not perish but have eternal life. God made it personal. He gave his one and only Son.

When you think about it so much about our walk with God is about how much WE love God. This is why I believe that being a living sacrifice is such a chore for many believers. We see it as something that needs to be done in order to show God or prove to God that we love Him. We have to go to church. We have to read our Bibles. We have to pray. We have to serve others. We have to love others. We have to love our enemies.  Most of what we do in Christian faith is out of obligation.  When you do something out of obligation – there is not much, if any, joy in it.

Throughout scripture you read about men/women willing to be living sacrifices. They didn’t do what they did out of obligation. They did it because they were willing to be a living sacrifice.

Noah built an ark when it had never rained before

Abraham led his family to an unknown place

Moses led 2 million plus people out of Egypt only to hear them whine and complain about it.

Shadrach Meschach and Abendego were willing to get burned in the fire because they refused to bow down.

Mary, the mother of Jesus, dealt with ridicule and scorn.

The disciples dropped everything and followed Jesus

Paul lost his job and reputation for the sake of talking about Jesus.

They were living sacrifices. They all sacrificed  something personal.

Why were they so willing to put life and reputations on the line? I believe they understood that they were a part of something much bigger than themselves. I believe they understood how much God loved them. Their mission wasn’t so much a chore but a  challenge. What they did wasn’t a burden but they willingly gave their best to continue God’s story.

When it comes to be a living sacrifice we make it about work instead of worship. We make it hard instead of relying on the Holy Spirit. We make it a burden instead of giving God our best.  We make it an obligation when God just asks us to be obedient. Obedience is easy when you love the person. Jesus was obedient and went to the cross out of love for you and I and his heavenly father. I am sure he didn’t feel obligated to go to the cross. But because he loved you and me he was willing to become a living sacrifice.

Let’s put this in perspective. Parents do you feel forced to love your kids? Do you feel obligated when your child is born to make sacrifices of sleep, feed them, and give them a safe place to live? Of course not! Why do you do it? Because you love them.  You are willing to make a personal sacrifices to give them a chance at life. Now …. Think of how much God loves you! God was willing to make the ultimate sacrifice to demonstrate to us that He loves us. He was not obligated to do it – He did it because he loved us.

When you do something out of love:

• It becomes an act of worship.
• Your burden becomes an opportunity to bless someone.
• Your attitude changes from having to serve someone to getting to serve.
• You become a living sacrifice.
• When you love what you are doing – You find joy in what you are doing. Its not a chore.

Let me give you a personal example. I understand, God gave me a great dad. His example was second to none when it came to living out his faith in the church and the community. He gave sacrificially of himself. He did the stuff he did because he enjoyed doing it. He didn’t have to do anything but he generously gave his time to his family and the community. He was a living sacrifice because of his generosity of time, energy, and personal sacrifice to those around them. He wanted to give them a chance at life. God used him to give hope through  to a generation of kids who were growing up without dads. Understanding how much my Heavenly Father and my earthly father loved me, understanding the sacrifices that they made for me, and understanding that what they did gave them joy because they loved me, causes me to want to give of myself generously and sacrificially. I don’t have to be a living sacrifice. I want to be a living sacrifice.  I want to give myself to others to give them a chance at life.  That’s what my dad did for me. And that is what God did (and does)  for everybody.

Being a living sacrifice is about loving and serving others who you think don’t deserve to be loved or served.

Romans 5:8 says But God showed his great love for us by sending Christ to die for us while we were still sinners.

I John 4:11 says, “Beloved, if God so loved us, we ought also to love one another.”

There is a little song that reminds us that they will know we are Christians by the way we love. When you love others who you don’t think deserve it   – something changes inside of you. Your love might not affect them at all but it will affect you. You will be changed. For those who follow Christ, loving and serving others is an act of worship not an act of obligation. When it is an act of worship – you are the one who is changed. According to Paul worship doesn’t just happen when we gather at the church, sing a bunch of songs, have communion, and talk to our friends. Worship also happens when you are willing to be a living sacrifice by loving and serving others generously.

If you are a Christ follower, we are to be a living sacrifice.

I Peter 4:10 tells us “God has given each of you the  you a gift from his great variety of spiritual gifts. Use them well to serve one another.

Philippians 2:3-4  tells us, “Don’t be selfish; don’t try to impress others. Be humble , thinking of others as better than yourselves. Don’t look out only for your own interests, but take an interest in others, too.

Being a living sacrifice is not easy. It is not something you can do. It is something that you desire. How do you get this desire?  How do you get anything that you desire?  You ask for it. Being a living a sacrifice is not about what you can do for God it is an act of worshipping God. It is about taking your everyday, ordinary life—your sleeping, your eating, your going-to-work, and walking-around life—and placing it before God as an offering. Then ….. the desire comes.

 

Make this personal – but not about you.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

(click on pic to listen) On the night of November 16, 1930, Mrs. Henrietta Garret, a lonely 81-year-old widow died in her home in Philadelphia, and, unwillingly, started the most fantastic case of inheritance litigation in history. She had failed to leave a will, or no will was found to her $17,000,000 estate; a mystery still unsolved. She had expertly handled her financial affairs since her husband’s death in 1895 and therefore many felt that she must have realized that without a will, her fortune would become involved in legal battles.

Although, Mrs. Garret, at the time of her death, had only one known relative, a second cousin, and less than a dozen friends; attempts to prove relationship to her and claim a part of her estate was made by more than 26,000 persons from 47 states and 29 foreign countries, represented by more than 3,000 lawyers. In their efforts to obtain her estate, there were those that committed perjury, faked family records, changed their own names, altered data in Family Bibles and concocted absurd tales of illegitimacy. As result, 12 were confined, 10 received jail sentences, 2 committed suicide, and 3 were murdered. I wonder how many would have admitted they were guilty of covetousness?”

Covetousness is known as the sin that nobody will admit to.  Covetousness is at the root of all evil. It causes us to do things, manipulate people. Spend more than we should.  Covetousness causes us to max out credit cards by buying things that we just have to have. Covetousness has at its root the unquenchable desire that I am entitled to all the stuff that I own. I am also entitled to things that I deserve to own. Covetousness is at the root of why we break the other nine commandments.

The things we covet become idols we worship.

• We lie to get what we want.
• We steal to get what we want

Coveting causes us to misuse the name of God to manipulate situations and people .

Coveting causes us to overwork and never take Sabbath day – let alone make it holy.

Coveting causes others to murder others to get what they want.

When we covet something or someone they become the object of our affection.

• We just have to have it (him/her) to be happy.
• We just have to have it (him/her) to be content.
• We just have to have it (him/her) because – well – we are going to die if don’t get it or the person.

Covetousness  at its root  is the worship of self. A covetous heart can never be content! It looks at another man’s wife and says, “Oh, if I had one like her.” You’d better be content with what God has given you; the grass always looks greener on the other side of the fence. The grass is never greener on the other side. “Oh, if I could only get this or that job, then I’d be satisfied.” No, you wouldn’t! If God gave you a thousand dollars a day, you wouldn’t be satisfied! Your heart goes after exactly what you covet.

The question that begs to be asked is if I am not feeling content if I am not feeling satisfied with my life – “what am I coveting?”

Scripture:

Exodus 20:17  Living Translation (NLT)

“You must not covet your neighbor’s house. You must not covet your neighbor’s wife, male or female servant, ox or donkey, or anything else that belongs to your neighbor.”

Luke 12

“Beware! Guard against every kind of greed. Life is not measured by how much you own.”

Then he told them a story: “A rich man had a fertile farm that produced fine crops.  He said to himself, ‘What should I do? I don’t have room for all my crops.’  Then he said, ‘I know! I’ll tear down my barns and build bigger ones. Then I’ll have room enough to store all my wheat and other goods. And I’ll sit back and say to myself, “My friend, you have enough stored away for years to come. Now take it easy! Eat, drink, and be merry!”’

“But God said to him, ‘You fool! You will die this very night. Then who will get everything you worked for?’

“Yes, a person is a fool to store up earthly wealth but not have a rich relationship with God.”

The word “covet” is translated most frequently in the New Testament as James calls it, “LUST.” It means to desire inordinately or without due regard to the rights of others, to desire wrongfully. In the OT when it is used it is defined as desire greatly something or someone who so captivates you that you will do anything to get it/them.

Here are some of the examples that scripture gives us:

• David desired Bathsheeba greatly and had her husband killed.
• Esau desired food greatly and he gave up his birth right.
• Abraham desired his life greatly and was willing to give up his wife Sarah to protect his own life.
• Judas desired money greatly and betrayed Jesus for 30 pieces of silver

James 1:14-15 from The Message paints a great picture of the word covet – “The temptation to give in to evil comes from us and only us. We have no one to blame but the leering, seducing flare-up of our own lust (or the person or thing we covet) Lust gets pregnant, and has a baby: sin! Sin grows up to adulthood, and becomes a real killer.”

Coveting is pregnant lust.  And when it gives birth it could destroy your life.

So what’s the difference between coveting and desire? The parable in Luke 12 that I read earlier gives you an idea.

When you look at the parable – What was wrong with this farmer? Was it the fact that he was successful? Of course not! Nowhere does Scripture condemn success or riches as such. God never rejected Abraham or Solomon, Job or Joseph of Arimathaea for being rich and successful. What was wrong then with this rich man? Had he acquired his wealth by dishonest means? There is nothing in this parable that points in that direction. On the contrary, we are given the impression that the man had become rich because of God’s blessing the labor of his hands, causing the soil to be so fruitful that it produced bountiful crops.

Jesus is teaching us there is nothing wrong with the desire to be successful. There is nothing wrong  with the desire to be rich. There is nothing wrong with the desire to improve your way of life.

So … what went wrong? His heart was no longer rich toward God – meaning – His desire for God (the one who had blessed  his labor) became less and his desire for success, being rich, and improving his life became greater.

The one thing I have learned about following God is that when your desire for him grows stronger –  humility, servant hood, and loving others becomes stronger. Generosity rules your life. Contentment governs your soul. You are aware that you are a part of something much greater than yourself.  You are aware that your purpose is not just to make money, accumulate wealth, or build bigger barns.

The opposite is true – when your desire for God lessens – pride sets in and you begin to pursue those desires of the flesh. You begin to serve only yourself and loving others becomes an after-thought. . You become stingy with your stuff. You can’t get no satisfaction. You are never satisfied. The farmer wasn’t satisfied with the size of his barns.  When his barns got bigger – God got smaller. That’s the way it works. There is no way you can love and serve both. It is impossible. One of the two will rule.

Covetousness ruins your relationship with Christ.

Let me put this is in perspective. If I were to covet some other woman other than my wife – that would really mess up my relationship with my wife.  Trust would be destroyed. Our love for each other would be ruined. When we are not satisfied with God alone – our desires run quickly to the nearest thing or person that make us feel good. That will make us feel loved. That will make us feel happy. When we allow other people or things to become our first love it will destroy your relationship.

I loved the story that Bill Fulda shared about Ray and Jeannie Bullock at Ray’s funeral.  Bill shared the story about when he and Ray were here working at the church, Ray shared that Jeannie wanted him to understand that she only loved two men her life. He was not the #1 person in her life. He would need okay with being the #2 man in his life.  If he wasn’t okay with that then they can’t get married. This is a beautiful picture of what it means to love God first.

So what do we do?

Ask the tough question: What (who)  is it that I love move than God?  Or have someone ask you the tough question

For Paul,  he loved the church more than loved God. For Peter, he loved himself more than he loved God. For Judas, he loved money more than he loved God. For the rich young ruler, he loved his stuff more than he loved God. Two out of four humbled themselves and admitted their shortcomings.

We need to be honest with God. I believe that is the key to any great relationship. He knows our thoughts. He knows when we rise and when sit down. We don’t have to hide. We can’t hide. When we humble ourselves his Spirit (the Holy Spirit) is allowed to work in us and change the way we  think, change our desires, and change who we love.

Covetousness keeps us from being faithful to him.

Living only for a bigger and better salary, home, car, or vacation doesn’t satisfy the deepest needs of our hearts. It may seem as if happiness and satisfaction will increase as we gain more and more possessions, but it doesn’t work that way. When we are guilty of possessing a covetous heart, we can be sure that the level of our devotion to Jesus Christ will suffer. “Pastor Tom, you don’t  understand me. I can control myself. I’m not like the others. My stuff doesn’t quench my desire for God. My stuff doesn’t affect my relationship with God.” Are  you sure about that? because if you are not content with your life and your stuff then why aren’t you satisfy with your life.

According to zoo keepers, two snakes will sometimes grab different ends of the same piece of food. Sooner or later their struggle for that last bite brings them nose to nose. But then comes the surprise. The snake with the widest bite will keep right on going and actually swallow the other. Man may think that he can control his covetous urges, but he will quickly find that they will swallow him alive and will destroy his relationship with God.

So what do you do?

Again, ask the tough question: What keeps me from being faithful to him? What is getting in the way of our relationship?

• For some of us it could be the need for more stuff.

 

Our problem is not that we have too little, nor is it that we possess too much. Our problem is that we want more than we need. Epicurus has written, “If you want to make a man happy, add not to his possessions, but take away from his desires.”

• For some of us it could a lack of desire.

 

Scripture tells us that what our heart desires is what we seek after.  None of the things we desire are wrong. But when our desire for stuff or another person becomes greater than our desire for God then you have a problem. God helps us put our desires in perspective. God allows death, tragedy, trials  and tribulation (the stuff we don’t like to go through) in our life to help us put or desires in the right order. The things that happen to us help us realize that there is a God who is much bigger than us.

The question I get sometimes is – how do you get that kind of desire? You ask God for it. 

The practical thing you can do about covetousness is to:

Beware of how your stuff is controlling you by asking these questions.

How do you know if your stuff is controlling you?

1. The desire is so great you are willing to go into debt for it.
2. If you have credit cards that you can’t pay off.
3. When you don’t ask the question, “Do I really need this?”
4. When you can’t give anything to help further the Kingdom of God. If you can’t tithe or give generously to help ministry happen your stuff is controlling you

Be reminded:

• Life is not measured by how much you own. It is measured by how rich your relationship with God is.
• If you can’t any satisfaction perhaps you need to revisit your relationship with God.

(click on the pic to listen)

A woman gets pulled over by a police officer and….

Woman: “Is there a problem, Officer?”

Officer: “Ma’am, you were speeding.”

Woman: “Oh, I see.”

Officer: “Can I see your license please?”

Woman: “I’d give it to you but I don’t have one.”

Officer: “Don’t have one?”

Woman: “Lost it 4 times for drunk driving.”

Officer: “I see…Can I see your vehicle registration papers please.”

Woman: “I can’t do that.”

Officer: “Why not?”

Woman: “I stole this car.”

Officer: “Stole it?”

Woman: “Yes, and I killed and hacked up the owner.”

Officer: “You what?”

Woman: “His body parts are in plastic bags in the trunk if you want to see.”

The officer looks at the woman and slowly backs away to his car and calls for

back up. Within minutes 5 police cars circle the car. A senior officer slowly

approaches the car, clasping his half drawn gun.

Officer 2: “Ma’am, could you step out of your vehicle please!”

The woman steps out of her vehicle.

Woman: “Is there a problem, sir?”

Officer 2: “One of my officers told me that you have stolen this car and

murdered the owner.”

Woman: “Murdered the owner?”

Officer 2: “Yes, could you please open the trunk of your car, please. ”

The woman opens the trunk, revealing nothing but an empty trunk.

Officer 2: “Is this your car, ma’am?”

Woman: “Yes, here are the registration papers.”

The officer is quite stunned.

Officer 2: “One of my officers claims that you do not have a driver’s license.”

The woman digs into her handbag and pulls out a clutch purse and hands it to the

officer. The officer snaps open the clutch purse and examines the license. He

looks quite puzzled.

Officer 2: “Thank you ma’am, one of my officers told me you didn’t have a

license, that you stole this car, and that you murdered and hacked up the

owner.”

Woman: “Bet you the lying son of a gun told you I was speeding too.”

Scripture:

Exodus 20:16  “You must not testify falsely against your neighbor.  Some translations say, “bare false witness.” And some translations say “lie”

Matthew 5:33-37 (NLT)

“You have also heard that our ancestors were told, ‘You must not break your vows (OR SWEAR FALSELY); you must carry out the vows (YOU MUST CARRY OUT YOUR PROMISE) you make to the Lord. But I say, do not make any vows! Do not say, ‘By heaven!’ because heaven is God’s throne. And do not say, ‘By the earth!’ because the earth is his footstool. And do not say, ‘By Jerusalem!’ for Jerusalem is the city of the great King. Do not even say, ‘By my head!’ for you can’t turn one hair white or black. Just say a simple, ‘Yes, I will,’ or ‘No, I won’t.’ Anything beyond this is from the evil one. (the italicized words are my additions)

What is lying?

Webster gives us this definition:

1. To make a statement that one knows is false, especially with the intent to deceive.
2. To give a false impression or action or false statement, especially with the intent to deceive.
3. To make a false statement in order to evade the truth.
4. The invention of a false story or excuse in order to deceive

The greatest of men have lied. Abraham lied about Sarah being his sister. Jacob lied to his father Isaac to get Esau’s birth right. Annanias and Sapphira in Acts 5 lied about the money the amount of money they kept.

I tried to lie to my parents once. I learned rather quickly that lying gets you nowhere. Lying hurts other people. It destroys relationships. It starts rumors and other false stories. It could cost you your job. Lying hurts your credibility. If you can’t answer honestly – it destroys  trust and the faith others might have in you.  Lying cost you energy. If you lie you’ve got  to remember what you said.  Lying takes too much energy.

I have observed people over the past 40 some years of my life that people only lie when they want to hide something. The something we try to hide is the truth. A number of months ago a couple wanted me to marry them. They didn’t really want me to marry them they just wanted to go through the ceremony and pretend to be married. I told them I would do the ceremony for them but I wouldn’t lie to anyone who asked me and say they were married. I guess they just wanted to feel good about living together.  They cancelled their ceremony.

Once again, even if this wasn’t one of the ten commandments I believe we all would still agree that this is wrong.  It is never right to bear false witness about our neighbor.  (not just our next door neighbor but others we know).

In Matthew 5, Jesus takes this a little farther. Jesus says,  “you must not break your vow or swear falsely ( or speak falsely).” He goes a little further and says, if you have no intention of keeping your promise or you have no intention of following through on what you say – don’t say it all.’ Especially to God and to others.

One might get away with the lie but you know in your heart when you have exaggerated the truth to protect whatever you are hiding. You know in your heart when you haven’t kept a promise to a certain someone. You know in your heart when you haven’t followed through on a commitment. Jesus is telling us whether it is in your relationship with God or with others – Let your yes be yes and your no be no. Don’t lie – the consequences and the hurt it causes isn’t worth it.

What is the truth?

Truth, when it is an object, is relative.

This is why we have lawyers and judges to help us to discover what the truth is. What I see as truth is not necessarily what you see as truth. We agree on some truths but others … well ….we argue about and we discover a deeper truth. Even pastors can’t agree on the truths that are stated in the scriptures. How I see how scripture relates to a certain issue is more than likely different from some of my other pastor friends. Everyone wants to know what the truth is. Even when we hear the truth – we still question it.

Wouldn’t It would be great if everything was black and white? It would make life a whole lot simpler.  But ….  To some people everything is black and white. To others everything is in color. What I mean by this is that we all see and experience truth in a different way.  We all have our own versions of the truth. Don’t we?  This is why we have debates and discussions to figure out what the truth is .

I am glad my mom and dad taught me what they believed was right and wrong. I am glad I had a Sunday school teacher who taught me the scriptures. I am glad I had bosses who helped me learn to be a good pastor.  I am glad I have a wife and family that holds me accountable to telling the truth. I believe the Bible tells the truth. They have all helped me be a man and a pastor of integrity.

But do you see what we have done to truth? We have done something that Jesus never intended us to do with it.  We have turned it into an object. Jesus never intended for us to turn it into an object.

Look at John 18

³³ Then Pilate went back into his headquarters and called for Jesus to be brought to him. “Are you the king of the Jews?” he asked him.

³⁴ Jesus replied, “Is this your own question, or did others tell you about me?”

³⁵ “Am I a Jew?” Pilate retorted. “Your own people and their leading priests brought you to me for trial. Why? What have you done?”

³⁶ Jesus answered, “My Kingdom is not an earthly kingdom. If it were, my followers would fight to keep me from being handed over to the Jewish leaders. But my Kingdom is not of this world.”

³⁷ Pilate said, “So you are a king?”

Jesus responded, “You say I am a king. Actually, I was born and came into the world to testify to the truth. All who love the truth recognize that what I say is true.”

³⁸ “What is truth?” Pilate asked.

In God’s kingdom,  truth is not a what, truth is not even fact.

Pilate wanted him (Jesus) to state some facts about himself. Pilate wanted Jesus to say something that was true about himself.  Jesus says, “you say that I am king. Actually I was born and came into the world to testify to the truth.  All who love the truth recognize that what I say is true.”Then Pilate asked that famous question that everyone asks at some point in their life, “What is truth?”

Who doesn’t want to know what the truth is? Do you see what is wrong with the question that Pilate asks? He says, “what is the truth?” Pilate is treating the truth like is an object or a fact. He wanted the facts! He wanted Jesus to say something about himself that was true. Whenever you are dealing with an issue we want to know the truth. We want to have the facts. There is nothing wrong with wanting the facts and wanting to know what the truth is.  Pilate didn’t want to kill Jesus but Jesus wouldn’t admit to anything.  He didn’t have anything to admit to – He was the truth. The right question to ask is “Who is the truth?”  If Pilate would have asked that question I am sure Jesus would have answered it by saying “I AM”. He says in John 14:6,  “I am the way, the truth, and the life.”

Truth is not an object …. It is a person!

The absolute truth is a person – not a statement! Jesus never sinned. Jesus never lied.  Jesus loved the world. Jesus never favored one person over the other. Jesus was perfect in every way. He healed the sick, gave sight to the blind, help the lame man walk, helped the mute man speak.  Gave hope to the hopeless. Gave strength to the weak. Gave life to the dead.

Jesus didn’t list a bunch of facts about himself to the woman at the well, or Zacheus or Paul,  to the prostitute, to the tax collector or his disciples. He simply said follow me.  For Jesus it wasn’t about whose lying and who is telling the truth. It was about who is going to follow me and who isn’t?

Many Christians have turned the Word of God into a bunch of statements and facts. We use the Word of God to prove someone everyone else wrong.  We use the word of God to prove that homosexuality is wrong, We use the Word of God to prove that abortion is wrong. We use the Word of God as an excuse to not hang around “those” kind of people.  We use the word of God to prove our point of view. This whole book, which I believe is the truth, is about having a relationship with God not a statement of facts we use to prove others wrong.  People are constantly messing up from Genesis to Revelation. God is constantly reminding that He is with them.

Here are the facts the things we are sure of:

People are going to lie to you

You are going to lie to people

People are going to disappoint you

You are going to disappoint people.

We have been doing this since time on earth began.

But if you know the TRUTH – The Truth will set you free. The TRUTH went to the cross. The TRUTH died on a tree. The TRUTH rose on the 3^rd day. The TRUTH ascended into heaven.

Do  you know THE TRUTH? Not facts. The person.

How can you make this personal?

First of all, lying might protect you but it hurts others. Telling the truth is always the best option. It hurts in the moment but in the long run it doesn’t hurt as much. Always tell the truth.

Secondly, Understand that truth is found in a person. He is the only absolute truth. This is why a relationship with Christ is so important. We all think we know the truth but until we know Christ it is just something, an object to be debated. One will never discover the truth without knowing Christ. When you KNOW  The TRUTH – the truth will set you free.

 

(click on the pic to listen to it)

Have you been stolen from? You know what that feels like? You go out to your car, somebody broke into it. You come home and your home is totally trashed, you feel violated. You realize somebody took your identity. All of a sudden ,you’re getting bills for things that you didn’t buy, and you’ve got to negotiate and explain all of that.

There are two incidents that stick out vividly in my mind. When we lived in Sidney, our house was broken into. I don’t remember them taking much. They just left our house a complete mess. Things were thrown everywhere. What I remember most is  feeling like I was violated. The worst part of them being in our house was that they peed in our toilet and didn’t flush it. It was disgusting.

The second time was when we lived in Anderson.  Someone had stolen my blue Mazda truck. I had made it pretty easy on them by leaving a spare key in a little compartment. Below the key was a credit card that I had forgotten about.  On this occasion I was hoping they would not find my truck. We had it fully insured and I was looking forward to getting a newer one. They found it a few weeks later abandoned out in the country by a bar.

As far as me stealing anything, I stole money from my brothers. I stole candy from the Pink Store. I stole shoe strings from a JC Penney just because I could.  I stole time from first employer by quitting early and going to play video games. I only did it a couple of times. I was always afraid I would get caught. So, I stopped. This employer was extremely kind. They paid all my fees for going through a temp agency. Needless to say I felt terrible when I stole that time from them.

When I stole those things – I felt tremendous guilt. I knew in my heart and head that I was doing something wrong.  When I stole the .30 cent shoe strings. My heart was beating fast. My mind was wandering, “am I going to get caught.” It was so traumatic I remember that they were brown shoe strings which I didn’t need and that they cost .30 cents.

Look at these scriptures:

Exodus 20:15 says, You must not steal.

Leviticus 19:11 says, You must not steal.

Exodus 4:28  says, If you are a thief, quit stealing. Instead, use your hands for good hard work, and then give generously to others.

Do not steal is one of the obvious commandments. But it is a commandment many break more often than we think. In the Old and New Testament you read accounts of people stealing. Jacob stole Esau’s blessing and birthright in Genesis 25 and 27. In Gen. 25 Esau was hungry and he “sold” his birthright for a bowl of stew. In reality Jacob stole Esau’s birthright. He took what really wasn’t his. In Gen 27 Jacob then stole Esau’s blessing (with the help of his mother) by pretending to be Esau. They deceived Isaac by putting goat hair on Jacob’s smooth skin and Jacob served him a hot meal prepared by his mother. In the New Testament in Acts 5 you have the story of Ananias and Sapphira. They sold some property. They didn’t have to but they did. The agreement was to give the full amount of the money from selling the property to the cause of the disciples. Both of them lied and said they gave the full amount. Both of them “embezzled” some money off the top. They kept the money they promised to give. They both died before they reached the exit door. You have Judas, one of the 12 disciples, who is claimed to had stolen from the money Jesus and the disciples used to live off of.

Stealing is a big deal. It is sometimes passed off as cheating, deceit, or manipulation – but whatever you call it, when you end up with something that is not rightfully yours –  you have stolen it.

Stealing also comes in other forms……

According to a report in US News that was conducted by Hayes International Consultants, the average employee steals 5.5 times more than the average shoplifter. It’s almost impossible to calculate the total loss, but the estimates are that companies lose $200 billion a year through employee theft of stock or supplies. In addition to stealing items, employees are guilty of stealing time. Have you ever wasted time at work? According to a report on Salary.com, the average employee wastes a little over two hours a day. OK, eight-hour workday, one-hour lunch, two hours wasted, 2.09 hours wasted. Some people look and say, “What’s the big deal? That doesn’t bother me.” It would if it was your company. It is not a big deal to us if we don’t own it or we are not the manager.

In 2008, the USA today had a story that church giving, congregants give an average of 2.58% of their income to their churches. That’s down from 3.11% of their income in 1968, according to studies published by Empty Tomb, a ministry that studies church finances. Most people don’t think that not giving 10% to the church is stealing. We say our money and stuff are ours. Let me correct this myth. Everything you have has been given to you by God.  Your job, your money, and all your other stuff, the air you breathe, the heart beat you have, the arms, feet, hands, and brain that you have has all been given to you by God. The Scriptures continue to teach us that God gives us everything and he also allows it to be taken away.  If you don’t believe it – read the story of Job. He controls everything.  God is simply very generous in giving us the responsibility of taking care of 90%. Since the beginning of time,  mankind has been asked but not forced to give 10% back to God.  God gives the opportunity to continue the work of the church through sacrificial giving. Since we don’t use bulls, goats, and birds anymore for payment, we are called to use the current currency. The minor prophet Malachi tells the nation of Israel you are robbing God if you are not tithing. Whether you believe in tithing or not is not the issue because God asks us to always go the second mile any way and be generous with our resources.

Many Christ followers are like Ananias and Sapphira when it comes to this issue.  Tithing and giving back to God is not a requirement for salvation, but because of God’s generosity towards us why wouldn’t we want to be generous in helping advance the Kingdom of God. We are like Ananias and Sapphira in the sense that we say we are a part of the community of believers but we give what WE feel right to give and we keep the rest for ourselves. Aren’t you glad that God doesn’t do stuff to people  anymore like what he did to Ananais and Sappira? Statistics tells me that most of us wouldn’t make it out the door.

The bottom line is this there are many forms of stealing.  And whatever it is in we are not to do it. Why? Because stealing destroys trust.  We don’t trust God to provide what we need so we give our self permission to take it because we need it more than they do. It is also difficult to trust the person who has done the stealing.

There are still a number of other ways that we steal. There is also embezzling, unreasonably high interest rates, unfair payday loans, rigged gambling, break-ins, unjust taxation, burglary, larceny, hijacking, shoplifting, extortion, racketeering, underpaying your taxes, filing false insurance claims, governmental waste, excessive national debt, falsely billing clients and/or falsely billing an employer, misappropriating company funds, killing time at work, not paying your employees, taking supplies and/or stocks, stocked goods and items from your employer, taking intellectual property, plagiarism, illegal downloads, identity theft, etc. It’s a lot, right? Technology has opened a new opportunity for thievery.

We are stealing from each other all the time! Even Christians are stealing from one another.

So what does all this mean for those who are Christ followers? Most of us work for someone else. We are what the scriptures refer to as someone’s “bondservant”. Some translations use the word slave.

Titus 2:9–10, “Slaves are to be submissive to their own masters in everything.” In our culture, the equivalent is not identical, but the closest we can get is employers and employees—those in authority, those under authority.

“They are to be well-pleasing”—have a good attitude, do a good job—“not argumentative”—don’t fight all the time and be the source of trouble and conflict at your place of employment—“not pilfering”—there’s the eighth commandment: no stealing—“but showing all good faith, so that in everything they may adorn the doctrine of God our Savior.”

Here’s the big idea, Paul is saying: Your work is your witness.  Some people say, “I don’t know how to be a good witness at work.” Start by doing good work, doing a good job, having a good attitude, performing well, submitting, respecting the authority that is over you, following through with the things that they delegate to you. That’s where it begins. I read a story this past week of two young Christian men. They were both  new in the faith and new to the job. They were hired by the Marriott Hotel. They both were hired in as bell hops. One of the young men liked to read his Bible while he was standing at the bell stand. The guests were walking by and needing help with their bags or trying to get a car or load stuff in or out of their vehicle, and he would just sit there reading his Bible. One of the employees came over and confronted him and said, “Hey, you need to pay more attention to the guests.” He’s said, “Hey, God is my first priority and nothing is more important than studying the Bible.” Needless to say, Bible reading,  was not a part of his job description. An older gentleman of the faith who had worked there for a number of years and was a fellow believer sat the young man down and told him he needed to do his reading on  his break time not company time.

To put this in simple terms: we are not to steal from our employers.

As Christ followers we need to work hard. We need to be the example. Even Jesus submitted himself to the authority of men. (Philippians 2) and became a servant with no pay! Even if you don’t like your job – we need to be the example. We are called to be the light of the world and the salt of the earth. The way you do that is not being part of the statistic I shared earlier where the average American worker waste 2.09 hours a day doing stuff other than what we are hired to do.

As Christ followers we need to do our job well. We need to do it ethically and we need to honor our employer. Whether we like it or not our work ethic is part of our witness. To work poorly is a poor witness. It robs God of the opportunity of softening people’s heart towards him. When you work poorly it convinces those outside of the faith that they were right about Christians. They are just a bunch of hypocrites who use Jesus as a crutch.

As I mentioned earlier in this blog entry when you end up with something that is not rightfully yours –  you have stolen it. The most obvious form of stealing is taking someone’s stuff.  Even if there wasn’t a commandment that said not do it – there is still something not right about it. Stealing is an incredibly selfish act that does an immense amount of damage to everyone involved. Some people think that stealing is a victimless crime, because it’s just things. Yet, stealing not only means taking something you didn’t earn, but it also can cause people to feel vulnerable and less safe, even if they weren’t physically harmed in the theft.

How we can make this personal?

To put it simply, if the stuff doesn’t belong to you don’t take it. Know in your heart it is wrong and never convince yourself it is right at any time. I love the ending of Willie Wonka and the Chocolate Factory. Charlie has the everlasting gob stopper in his pocket and was treated very harshly by Mr. Wonka and was asked to leave the factory. Willie was asked earlier by a “competitor” to share that secrets of the gob stopper. Willie did the right thing and returned the gob stopper. If you haven’t seen it take some time to watch the ending.

If you are an employee – give your employer your best. Work hard. Work honestly. Work unselfishly. Employers have enough whiners and complainers. As Christ followers I don’t think we need to be a part of the problem. We need to be a part of the solution and honor our employers. After all, we are called to be the light of the world and the salt of the earth. Our work places are a great place to be the salt of the earth and light of the world.

If you are a Christ follower give to God what is Gods and give to Caesar what is Caesars and keep the rest and do with it what you want. The philosophy of the world is “Get all you can, can all you get, and then sit on the can!” John Wesley put a Christian twist on that philosophy and it set him free. He taught, “Earn all you can, save all you can, and give all you can.” This is what we are called to do as Christ followers. Don’t rob others of being blessed. Don’t rob yourself of being a blessing. Don’t rob God of the opportunity of using you and your resources.

What if someone steals your stuff? Forgive them because they don’t know what they are doing. They are never going to steal the old stuff that means nothing to you. That’s the stuff we sale at garage sales or give to Salvation Army, Goodwill, etc….

To sum all of this is simple terms:

• Be witness in your work place by being a person of integrity.
• Be generous with the stuff you have – you don’t own it any way
• Don’t take stuff that doesn’t belong to you.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

This story seems so bizarre it’s hard to believe it’s true. Back in 1982 Tony Toto, of Allentown, PA.  survived at least 5 attempts on his life, all arranged for or carried out by his dear wife, Frances, & her lover. Twice she arranged for assailants to beat him over the head with baseball bats. On one occasion she put a tripwire across the basement stairs in their house, hoping that he would trip over it & plummet to his death. Twice she arranged for him to be shot. The first time she drugged his chicken soup so he would sleep soundly, & he was shot in the head, but miraculously survived. The 2nd time he was shot in the chest, but only sustained minor injuries. Now this is a picture of a real happy couple, isn’t it? Even more miraculous than Tony’s survival was his attitude toward his wife once he found out she was responsible for all of this. Tony, a self – confessed lady’s man himself, said that he held his wife blameless. When she was found guilty & sent to prison for arranging for his murder, he took their 4 children & visited her every week – every single week. Then when she was released from prison, she went back to their red brick home to resume her married life with Tony. With his arm around her, Tony said, “We’re more in love now than ever before. I don’t understand why people break up over silly little things.”

Adultery really messes life up

Anything that really messes life up – God has a commandment for.

Exodus 20: 14 – You must not commit adultery

Matthew 5: 27-28 –You have heard the commandment that says, ‘You must not commit adultery. But I say, anyone who even looks at a woman with lust has already committed adultery with her in his heart. So if your eye—even your good eye—causes you to lust, gouge it out and throw it away. It is better for you to lose one part of your body than for your whole body to be thrown into hell.And if your hand—even your stronger hand—causes you to sin, cut it off and throw it away. It is better for you to lose one part of your body than for your whole body to be thrown into hell.

Adultery, plain and simple, is a man sleeping with another man’s wife or a woman sleeping with another woman’s husband. I believe all of us in here would agree that it is wrong.  But once again, Jesus goes a little further into the issue.  Jesus says anyone who looks at a woman with lust has already committed adultery with her in his heart.

Most of us are familiar with what happened with David and Bathsheba.  David was out on his roof top. Bathsheba was out on her roof taking a bath. Not too many people take a bath with their clothes on. Bathsheeba was another man’s wife.  This man was one of the leaders in his army. David was another woman’s husband. The act created a mess for David and it nearly ruined Bathsheeba’s life. It wasn’t the fact that he simply looked. Women took baths on top of the rooftops pretty frequently. That’s how they got a warm or hot bath. When he looked, something happened inside of him. He became a different person.  He became consumed with Bathsheeba. He didn’t see Bathsheeba as a person who was married to another man – he saw her as an object. He saw her as a toy that he just had to have. He lusted after her. Lust is something that happens inside of you when you desire something or someone who can’t be yours.  Lust for another woman or another man always leads to adultery. If not physical adultery – which is sex with a person that doesn’t belong to you – or the adultery that happens in one’s heart by fantasizing about how that other person can make you happy.

Adultery really messes life up .  Even if you didn’t know this was a story was in the Bible you can see the damage that the act of adultery can have. Adultery starts with a sexual desire for someone who can’t be yours. It starts with a fantasy that a sexual relationship whether in the context of marriage or out of the context of marriage will fulfill the deepest longing in our heart.

Sex in marital or non-marital relationship cannot fill the deepest longing in your heart.

Most guys want sex to satisfy a desire – you could say we are wired for it.  A pastor of a 8000 member church was diagnosed as clinically depressed. He had to go to a local pharmacy to get the pills. Being the pastor of a 8,000 member church, the chances of someone from  his church seeing him was great. As he was waiting in pharmacy waiting area an 80-year-old came in. As he approached the counter he said loudly, “what do you mean my Viagra is not in it yet?” The desire is always there no matter what your age.

Most women want sex to feel loved, adored, wanted, or they just simply want a family.

For men or women sex does not have the ability to satisfy the deepest longing in our heart. It satisfies a temporary longing in our heart. Sex within the context of marriage is not just the joining of two bodies, it is joining of two lives. You are giving that person your heart, mind, and soul. This covenant relationship called marriage changes everything. You are giving that person your heart, mind, and soul. This covenant relationship changes everything.  In a covenant relationship (marriage) you are not only just joining physically, but in the context of marriage you are joining all aspects of your life:

• Socially
• Emotionally
• Personally
• Spiritually

You can’t have just the one in marriage. You get it all.

Those of you who are in a covenant agreement (married),  let me give you a bit of marital advice. when you let God satisfy the deepest longing in your heart – which only He can do – the physical, social, emotional, and personal needs will also be met. In others words, the most important relationship you can work on is your relationship with Christ. When you do that, God will take care of the other details of your life.

Roger Powell alluded to this last week. (he has given me permission to share his story). When he met His wife, he had plans to get her drunk and take advantage of her. But she felt uncomfortable being in a bar. So, he suggested they go to Steak and Shake. At Steak and Shake she shared with him how God had changed her life. That night, instead of sleeping with her, he fell flat on his face in his dorm room and asked God to change his life.

Do you see how a relationship with God changes everything? 

When entering into a covenant agreement which we call marriage – you are not just opening  yourself  up physically to that other person you are also opening yourself up socially, emotionally,personally, spirituality.  This covenant relationship changes everything.  I say to couples when you get married you get the good,bad, and the ugly. You learn to go from selfish to selfless. You learn to go from self-centered to other-centered. You learn to go from serving your own needs to serving another person needs. Marriage is not just about meeting each other’s physical needs – it’s about helping each other personally, emotionally, and spiritually.

Sex outside of a covenant agreement  simply, according to the scriptures, is  illegal sex. What you are saying to that other person is that I want you physically but I don’t want the emotional, social, personal, and spiritual part of you. In other words, they don’t want the good, bad, and ugly things about you.  They only want that part of you that makes them happy. Sex outside of a covenant agreement says, “I want to be united with your body but not with your life.” Sex outside of a covenant agreement says, “you have a very low view of your body.”  In other words you don’t think very highly of yourself and you are willing to do anything that will make you feel loved, adored, or satisfied. Sex outside of marriage says, “I want to sleep with you but I don’t want to commit to you emotionally, socially, spiritually, and personally.”

Jesus is making this a pretty big deal.  It is such a big deal he goes on to say, “So if your eye—even your good eye—causes you to lust, gouge it out and throw it away. It is better for you to lose one part of your body than for your whole body to be thrown into hell. And if your hand—even your stronger hand—causes you to sin, cut it off and throw it away. It is better for you to lose one part of your body than for your whole body to be thrown into hell.”

He is not saying we need to literally gouge out our eye or cut off a hand. He is saying, whatever is causing you to lust cut it out of your life because you are in danger of selling yourself out to someone who never will never satisfy you.  Whoever you are lusting after cannot satisfy your deepest desires. Whoever you are sleeping with can’t satisfy the deepest desire of your heart. No human being is capable of satisfying the deepest need in your life. Jesus says it is better for you to lose a part of your life than to lose your whole life. The world for hell in this passage is Gehenna. Gehenna was originally the valley of Hinnom, south of Jerusalem, where the filth and dead animals of the city were cast out and burned.  It was a garbage heap. Who wants to live in a garbage heap?  Jesus is saying, if you don’t cut it out of your life –it is going to destroy you physically and spiritually.

David discovered this. He repented in Psalm 51. He found peace with God

Roger Powell discovered this and he fell flat on his face in his dorm room. He found God.

The woman at the well discovered this in John 4. She tried five different men. These men just saw her as a toy.  She discovered that only God offers the living water that could satisfy her deepest thirst.  She became the first woman prophet and a whole village was saved from the garbage heap.

How do you make this personal?

1. Husbands, don’t sleep with another man’s wife. Wives, don’t sleep with another woman’s husband.

If you are in an adulterous relationship, I recommend you do what King David, Roger, and the woman of John 4 did. They turned away from what was destroying them and began to seek after God.

2. Understand that nothing and no one can satisfy the lust of the heart.

All of us are born with a sexual appetite. There is nothing wrong with that. Even Jimmy Carter, our 39^th president, born again believer, Sunday school teacher, admitted in an interview that he at times had lust in his heart. Christian or not, we are born with this appetite. Only a repentant and humble heart that comes from having a relationship with Christ can satisfy the longing in your heart.

3. Cut out those things in your life that are causing the lust in your life.

This could be anything from pornography or anything that causes you to desire something or someone else other than God. Jesus says to cut it out. Jesus also says to die to self in order that you might live.

Adultery messes your life up. It’s not worth it.

 

 

 

 

(click on pic to listen to sermon) In June of 2012, Carl Ericsson, a 73-year-old South Dakota man, was sentenced to life in prison after admitting to the murder of a former high school classmate. Friends and family members were shocked that the once-successful insurance salesman seemed to snap. Ericsson had been married to his wife for over 44 years.

But after the murder, Ericsson’s secret finally came out. For over 50 years he had simmered with a belated grudge: He was still mad about a classmate who had once pulled a jock strap over his head during a high school locker room prank. Norman Johnson, the classmate and murder victim, was a star athlete on the track team. Ericsson was a student sports manager. According to Ericsson’s confession, on one occasion Johnson put a jock strap on Ericsson’s head, humiliating him and planting the seed of resentment that would continue to grow for over half a century. Apparently, throughout their lives, Norman Johnson continued to outshine Ericsson. Prior to his murder, Johnson had competed in college football, earned a degree, and then taught and coached at his alma mater for more than three decades.

After holding the grudge for over 50 years, Carl Ericsson rang Johnson’s doorbell and shot him dead. Ericsson told a judge, “I guess it was from something that happened over 50 years ago. It was apparently in my subconscious.” During his sentencing, Ericsson turned to Johnson’s widow and apologized, saying, “I just wish I could turn the calendar back.”

Our scriptures:

Exodus 20    ¹³ You must not murder.

Matthew 5     “You have heard that our ancestors were told, ‘You must not murder. If you commit murder, you are subject to judgment.’  But I say, if you are even angry with someone,you are subject to judgment! If you call someone an idiot,you are in danger of being brought before the court. And if you curse someone,you are in danger of the fires of hell.

Probably none of us have physically murdered in anyone. But all of us are capable of murdering someone. Jesus takes a little deeper. He says, if you are even angry with someone, you are subject to judgment! That is a scary thought. We might not physically murder someone but when you get angry at someone you are spiritually destroying them.

When you are angry:

• You say things you don’t mean.
• You do things that you regret later.
• You act in ways that make you look foolish.

Not only are you destroying the other person by downgrading their humanity – you are destroying the opportunity to exercise your faith. In other words, if anger controls you – that person never gets to see Christ in you.

Anger is a killer

• It can kill relationships
• It can kill a person faith.
• It can kill you.

The scripture also say in Ephesians 4:26 – And “don’t sin by letting anger control you.” Don’t let the sun go down while you are still angry,

In other words, deal with it on the same day. Don’t let it grow. Don’t let is destroy others. Don’t let it destroy your relationships.

I don’t know about you but I don’t like to be around angry people.  They are just not fun people to be around. They are constantly critical, overbearingly vocal, never satisfied, and they are not happy until they make everyone angry at them.

Whenever I am angry,  especially when someone does my wife or kids wrong, I asked them if they want me to say anything to the people, usually adults. I don’t want to embarrass them. I did pretty well this last week. When I was knocking on doors, I ran into 4 atheists at the same house. They took my invitation to the block party. I explained to them what was going on. They snickered at me and/or laughed at me. One of them said, “you know, I AM an atheist. I said that’s okay. Which I responded, “Do atheists like to have fun?” and I walked away There were a whole lot more things I wanted to say but did not let anger control me.

Jesus goes on a little further to say, “If you call someone an idiot you are in danger of being brought before the court.” Idiot was term of reproach used among the Jews in the time of Christ.  The term was used to put somebody in their place. Telling somebody they are wrong. It was also  a way of destroying another person on the inside. Think of the worst put down you can think of today and it has the same effect as the word idiot to a fellow Jew or gentile.  I am sure most of us remember  the movie, “Forrest Gump” . Most people would have called him and idiot until you got to know Him. Idiot is such a degrading term. I think it is worse than using the Lord’s name in vain. In 2014, Idiot is not the only degrading term. That old adage, “Sticks and stones may break my bones But names will never hurt me.” We have all learned that is a lie.

I am not talking about political correctness. I am talking about using degrading terms to verbally destroy another person. Saying hateful things in hateful ways with the intention of making  yourself feel superior to them.

Jesus is telling us to stop destroying other people with degrading terms. When Jesus was standing in front of the religious leaders the night before his crucifixion,  He was called every  name in the book.  I am sure some used even the word idiot. They were degrading him, they were verbally destroying him in an attempt to kill his human spirit, destroy his hope,  and defeat him. What were his words of response. “Father forgive them because they don’t know what they are doing.”

Jesus is teaching us  not to use certain words to make us feel superior. If you do you have a spiritual problem.  When we say things like, “boy I am sure glad I am not like them”. You are destroying them. Maybe not physically. You are destroying any opportunity to influence them in Kingdom things.

Still, Jesus goes even a little further….

If you curse someone, you are in dangers of the fires of hell.

The word for curse is “moros”. This is  where we get our word for moron. If you think of them as a fool,  you are in danger of the fires of hell. Once again that is a scary thought. You don’t have to say the words to curse someone. You just have to have the attitude that they are the greater fool than you.

Many people thought Jesus was a moron. In fact, the atheist  I met last week thought I was moron. I could tell because they were snickering at me while I shared. As Christ followers, we have no rights to curse anyone.

This is impossible to do!

• It’s impossible not get angry at others when they wrong us.
• It’s impossible not call out people who are idiots.
• It’s impossible not call other morons who are really morons.

You are absolutely right. It’s impossible for you to do. Carl Ericson held a grudge for 50 years. It ate at him so much that he went over to this guys house, the guy  opened the door, and Carl shot him in the head. We can’t control anger – it controls us.

This is why Jesus makes this a big deal.  Jesus is saying that it is just not about physically murdering someone. That is bad. It is such a big deal to Jesus that he tells us in Ephesians that we must deal with it the same day. Otherwise it will grow into a grudge. Which will grow into saying, doing, and acting out stupid things.

How do you make this personal?

If someone hurts you – forgive them. Forgiveness is an act of the will. You make a conscious decision to forgive them. For Christ followers this is mandatory if you want the other person to find Christ someday.

If someone says bad things about you – well – you keep your mouth shut about them. Our mouths get us in a lot of trouble. When someone says something bad about us it’s hard not to say something bad about them. Our human nature wants to and it feels good for a moment. But only for a moment. If you follow Jesus example  he didn’t say anything at all. Just remember, They are the ones who looked like the fool – not Him.

If someone laughs at you because they see you as a fool – well – you walk away and you pray for them. Pray this: “God they don’t know what they are saying.” These people are not really worth your time of day. Jesus told his disciples, if they don’t accept you in their town, shake the dust of your sandals and leave Don’t say anything good about them and leave them.  Abraham Lincoln said, “Better to remain silent and be thought a fool than to speak out and remove all doubt.”

Jesus tells us that you don’t have to physically murder someone to destroy them.  We must be kind, forgiving, and look to the interest of others. When you do that, you might not get what you want, but it is not about getting what you want  it is about letting the light of Christ shine through  you.

This all begins with a relationship with Christ. Interested?