Monthly Archives: July 2016

Share the good news (Mark 2:17) July 11, 2016

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Today’s Podcast

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Today’s Bible reading plan:

Read it in a year – Leviticus 13-15

see the whole year’s plan [here](http://www.bible-reading.com/bible-plan.pdf)

Today’s Devotional

Mark 2:17
Jesus (to the scribes): People who have their health don’t need to see a doctor. Only those who are sick do. I’m not here to call those already in good standing with God; I’m here to call sinners to turn back to Him.

What do Jesus’ words mean for us today?

You know what they call people who continually draw on the assets of the medical community without reason? Who take up a doctor’s time and energy when there is absolutely nothing wrong with them? Hypochonriacs. Of course, that in itself is a disease. It’s a mental illness that needs attention, but by a different kind of doctor with different skills and a different array of tools.

Our emergency rooms are also full of people without emergencies. It’s not uncommon to go to an ER in the United States and wait for hours before seeing a provider for minor illnesses. Maybe they don’t seem minor to you at the time, but sniffles, bumbs and bruises, even a low grade fever isn’t an emergency. But those folks fill the emergency rooms across the country taking up resources that should be reserved for true life or death emergencies. We got ourselves into this mess with the high cost of medical care, our insurance debacles, and a host of other factors that as a nation we did not control very well. So here we are.

The point is, though, that sick people go to see a doctor. Whether a primary care doctor for those routine illnesses, an emergency room for something severe and urgent, or a specialist for something else, we go to a doctor when we’re sick. And usually, if we’re not sick, we avoid those places. I don’t know anyone that enjoys sitting around in doctors’ offices or emergency rooms or hospitals just for the fun of it. They are not built for fun. I don’t have any hospital addresses on my vacation list. You probably don’t either. But guess what? I also don’t know any doctors that make house calls any more. If you don’t go to the place they practice, you won’t get the care you need. House calls are out of the question now days.

Jesus tells the scribes when they complain about the company He keeps that it’s time to make house calls again. He goes outside the temple and the synagogues and reaches out to the tax collectors, the prostitutes, the thieves, the beggars, the lepers, the outcasts of society. He doesn’t wait for the sick to come to Him, He goes out to the sick to shorten the distance the must go to reach Him.

So what does that tell us today? Too often we get comfortable sitting inside the four walls of our churches, temples, and synagogues waiting for someone to come in to hear the gospel. As we sit in the pew and sing praises, we wonder why the world is in such terrible shape. But we refuse to take a step outside the door to share the message to those who really need to hear the good news that Jesus will forgive them of their sins and live in them to help them live the life for which He created them.

We don’t want to go where the sick are, but expect them to come to us. In medical practice, we have come to believe we need all the equipment and lab tests and support personnel in order to treat patients adequately, so we no longer make house calls. I’m afraid we’ve adopted that same philosophy with our outreach to others spiritually. We have somehow come to believe that without the trappings of the sanctuary, the altars, the pastor, the sermon, worship service, we cannot lead someone to the Savior.

Of course neither is really true. Good doctors generally have a good idea what’s wrong with a patient before all the tests and x-rays and labs are done. Most have honed their skills and use those instruments to confirm what they already suspect from their diagnosis. And good Christians don’t need the trappings of the sanctuary or the grounds of the church to lead someone to Christ. They know the Savior. They know how they came to Him in humility and repentance. And with just that much understanding, we can help someone else find Him. It’s not that hard.

So how do we get our brothers and sisters to start doing what Jesus asked us to do and share the message with those outside the four walls of our place of worship? There’s a really easy way to start. The best way to get people to do something you want them to do is to be an example. So if I start sharing the gospel to those that need to hear it, my co-workers, my neighbors, the cashier at the grocery store, taxi drivers, just anyone I happen to meet. If I start sharing the gospel, and my brothers and sisters see me sharing the gospel and see the fruit of my labor by the new Christians I invite to join me in fellowship in small group studies, maybe they will follow my example.

Actions always speak louder that words. So why don’t you be an example today and share the good news of salvation with someone who needs it?

The Voice Bible Copyright © 2012 Thomas Nelson, Inc. The Voice™ translation © 2012 Ecclesia Bible Society All rights reserved.
In accordance with the requirements for FTC full disclosure, I may have affiliate relationships with some or all of the producers of the items mentioned in this post who may provide a small commission to me when purchased through this site.

Should we vote at all? (Mark 2:14) July 10, 2016

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Today’s Podcast

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Today’s Bible reading plan:

Read it in a year – Colossians 1-2

see the whole year’s plan [here](http://www.bible-reading.com/bible-plan.pdf)

Today’s Devotional

Mark 2:14
Jesus (calling out to him): Follow Me.

What do Jesus’ words mean for us today?

We heard these words in Matthew, and most of the time, I won’t repeat the same words we’ve talked about in another gospel, but every once in a while I will. This is one of those times because I think these words are so important to us, especially at this particular time in our history.

As I write these words, the past week has been filled with suicide bombings, mass shootings, parents killing their kids, both accidentally and intentionally, one of the largest drug busts recorded happened, the Britains voted themselves out of the European Union, but protests and riots might force Parliament to reverse the decision of the people. The world has gone absolutely crazy.

In the middle of all this turmoil, we stand in the middle of one of the ugliest, vilest, most juvinile presidential campaigns I’ve witnessed in my 62 years of life. The two candidates we are asked to follow both act like junior high schoolers with their smear campaigns and neither can came clean about themselves or their opponent. Both will cheat, lie, steal, twist the facts, degrade their opponent, do anything necessary to win the position of power as president. And both ask us to follow them into the future of our country.

I’m sorry, but neither have shown character worthy to be followed. No, this is not a political post, so don’t turn off the podcast yet. It’s to make a point. As Christians, we should be following the life of One person – Jesus. He is the One will the character to emulate. He is the One with the right agenda. He is the One with the platform that makes sense. He is the One that can lift our nation out of the terrible predicament in which we find ourselves. No one else can.

The question is will we follow Him? The answer is, some individuals will. Unfortunately, the nation will not. I was reminded, as I celebrated our 240th birthday as a nation, why those first shipload of passengers braved the treacherous journey across the ocean to settle this land 450 years ago and why we fought that war 200 years later to gain our independence from England. Those brave men and women wanted freedom to worship in the way they saw fit. They didn’t want to be bound by the King’s religious practices, so they fled persecution and came to this country. Two-hundred years later, our forefathers fought to maintain that freedom and start an experiment in democracy, a representative government in which the people determined their own fate by electing statesmen who would represent their opinions in the affairs of the nation.

Many no longer feel free given the burdensome regulations we face, the heavy taxation many carry, the stranglehold the government has on our people today in almost every area of life. Healthcare, education, transportation, housing, food, hiring and firing practices in business, monetary systems and banking, the government looks over our shoulder into almost everything. Not long ago, one mayor demanded to see every preacher’s sermon before delivery to see if it presented any negative connotations about homosexuals. If so, the sermon would be banned. Fortunately, the first amendment stopped the practice before it started, but for how long?

You see, we, the people, are electing individuals across our land who do not follow Jesus. Many say they do, because it’s still the right thing to say to draw votes and get elected in the United States. But I predict it won’t be long with the direction we’re headed that naming yourself as a Christian will no longer help a candidate, but will the death-nail in a candidate’s election coffin.

So how should we view elections? Who should we vote for in these important races? What should we do as Christians as the din of the rhetoric rises around us?

I’m not sure the answer is easy, but it is simple. We need to get on our knees and pray. Ask God for His guidance. Be good citizens and explore the character of the candidates long before going to the poll. Don’t listen to the media. Depending on whether you listen to CNN or Fox, you get a different slant that bends toward the candidate their executives want in office. News networks sell advertisements and entertainment. They are businesses, just like the grocery store down the street. If they can’t sell advertisements, they go out of business. If they can’t lure listeners with the best entertainment, juicy gossip, or twist of the news to what you want to hear, the way you want to hear it, you’ll turn to another station. So research candidates on your own. Search every source you can find to figure out what kind of character they have.

Pray a lot and vote for the person who follows Jesus. But most importantly, you follow Jesus. He tells us to. And when we follow Him, we can’t go wrong. This world is coming to an end. His book tells us it’s coming. Whoever sits in the office next, God allows it to happen. When he or she is God-fearing or God-serving or not, doesn’t matter. It’s still God who allows that person to serve for His purposes. Perhaps our next president will be part of the events that usher in the end of the world. It’s pretty exciting to think we’re voting for that person, isn’t it? So who do you think that might be? 

The Voice Bible Copyright © 2012 Thomas Nelson, Inc. The Voice™ translation © 2012 Ecclesia Bible Society All rights reserved.
In accordance with the requirements for FTC full disclosure, I may have affiliate relationships with some or all of the producers of the items mentioned in this post who may provide a small commission to me when purchased through this site.

Is it blasphemy? (Mark 2:5-11) July 9, 2016

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Today’s Podcast

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Today’s Bible reading plan:

Read it in a year – Luke 19-20

see the whole year’s plan [here](http://www.bible-reading.com/bible-plan.pdf)

Today’s Devotional

Mark 2:5-11
5Jesus recognized the faith of these men.
Jesus (to the paralyzed man): Son, your sins are forgiven.
Some scribes were sitting in the crowd, and they didn’t like what they were hearing.
Scribes (reasoning to themselves): What does this Jesus think He is doing? This kind of talk is blasphemy, an offense against the Most High! Only God can forgive sins.
At once Jesus realized what they were thinking. He turned to them.
Jesus: Why do My words trouble you so? Think about this: is it easier to tell this paralyzed man, “Your sins are forgiven,” or to tell him, “Get up, pick up your mat, and walk”? Still, I want to show you that the Son of Man has been given the authority on earth to forgive sins. (to the paralytic) Get up, pick up your mat, and go home.

What do Jesus’ words mean for us today?

The scribes were the authorities on scripture. They not only preserved them by coping them from one scroll to another, but they also spent years learning them. They learned what their forefathers thought about their interpretation and carried those interpretations from generation to generation. The scribes did the research on topics when the priests wanted to know something. They could find whatever subjects someone was looking for, which was a minor miracle in Jesus day. Remember, chapters and verses didn’t appear in scriptures until the Geneva Bible translation in 1599. So these guys were the PhDs of biblical knowledge.

Then Jesus comes on the scene. He’s pulling out information that confounds the scribes. They have to search deeper and find passages He quotes that they haven’t used because they’re not very familiar to them. His teaching doesn’t fit the normal pattern and they have to brush off their books and find what He’s talking about. But it’s there. He’s using scripture, but He’s using it in ways they’ve never heard before.

Now He’s talking to this paralytic who wants help with His disease and instead of healing him, this Man says his sins are forgiven. “Who do you think you are? What do you think you’re doing? No one can forgive sins but God and there’s a ritual you have to go through before that can happen. He has to make an offering in the temple. Payment must be made to the priest so a sacrifice can be made. It’s God’s way to ensure the priests make a living, after all. Why would He think He can side-step the temple and take away the priests’ livelihood? This is blasphemy!”

Now, maybe there’s the rest of the story. But maybe not. These scribes couldn’t see how God could come to earth in the likeness of sinful man. They couldn’t believe that God would wrap Himself in human flesh and live among us. So Jesus could not be the Son of God and so couldn’t forgive sins.

But the words are easy to say. Jesus knew that. The scribes knew that. Everyone in the room knew that. Even the paralytic knew that even though he immediately felt the guilt from his past lift from his heart as the words left Jesus’ lips. But to show Jesus had power over the hearts of men, He show those present He also had power over the physical bodies of men. He told the paralytic to get up, roll up the mat he was lying on and walk out the door. Then Jesus reached out His hand and help the man stand to his feet. I expect Jesus only watched as the man rolled up his mat and danced around the room on his way to the door, shouting praise and thanksgiving to the Lord of lords.

What do we need to learn from this scene?

Some have a hard time believing Jesus can forgive. They recognize Jesus as a good man, even a prophet connected to God and able to use that connection to do good things, even miraculous things for people. But God? Some have a hard time with that and so go through life like the scribes questioning His ability to rid them of the guilt that weighs them down. Some just can’t see past their own intellectual understanding of the universe, as finite as it is, to see that there are so many things that can only be explained by putting faith in God, the creator of all things. Some just can’t believe the Bible is not just a collection of stories, but the record of God’s love for humankind and His plan for our redemption.

Is the Bible accurate? Yes. Every time someone tries to prove something doesn’t fit historic facts, archeologists seem to uncover evidence that the Bible, not the historic facts are true. Is it scientific? No. It’s not meant to be. It’s the story of what God does for us and why, not how. Our finite minds can never wrap around the infinite wisdom of God. Just one simple thought to consider to boggle our finite mind: Scientists tell us everything is made of atoms. And atoms are mostly empty space. So much so that scientist tell us that if all the empty space in the universe could be removed and the solid mass of the universe condensed into a single object, some say it would take up the space of a house and some say as small as a basketball. So why can’t we just walk through walls? I know the quantum physics answer, but it does make you wonder about God’s design in it all, doesn’t it? After all, where did those, electrons and protons come from to repel each other in the first place to form those atoms we’re talking about?

So when the Bible tells us proves to be true, then when it says Jesus is God in the flesh, that must be true, too. And we exercise just a little faith in that truth, scripture opens up to us in incredible ways. Just try it. You’ll find He really can forgive sins. He forgave mine and He can forgive yours, too. 

The Voice Bible Copyright © 2012 Thomas Nelson, Inc. The Voice™ translation © 2012 Ecclesia Bible Society All rights reserved.
In accordance with the requirements for FTC full disclosure, I may have affiliate relationships with some or all of the producers of the items mentioned in this post who may provide a small commission to me when purchased through this site.

Breaking the rules (Mark 1:41-44) July 8, 2016

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Today’s Podcast

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Today’s Bible reading plan:

Read it in a year – Ezekiel 25-30

see the whole year’s plan [here](http://www.bible-reading.com/bible-plan.pdf)

Today’s Devotional

Mark 1:41-44
Jesus was powerfully moved. He reached out and actually touched the leper.
Jesus: I do want to. Be clean.
And at that very moment, the disease left him; the leper was cleansed and made whole once again. Jesus sent him away, but first He warned him strongly.
Jesus: Don’t tell anybody how this happened. Just go and show yourself to the priest so that he can certify you’re clean. Perform the ceremony prescribed by Moses as proof of your cleansing, and then you may return home.

What do Jesus’ words mean for us today?

Have you ever run into one of those guys? You desperately need something done. He knows how to do it and can do it well, but refuses to help. Maybe he wants more credit than you want to give him. Maybe he wants you to beg and plead some more. Maybe he wants to sabotage the project. It’s that feeling from him, “I can, but I just don’t want to.” Infuriating, isn’t it? I really don’t like to come across those kinds of folks.

I understand if they don’t have the time because of busy schedules. I understand if there are trade secrets involved. I understand if they are in the middle of something and to take care of my need would disrupt their activities significantly. I understand those issues. But when the answer is, “I can, but I just don’t want to.” Those, I just don’t like. I’m sure you don’t either.

That’s what I like about this story. The leper came to Jesus. He broke all the rules to do so. In Jesus day, lepers lived outside of the towns and villages in the wilderness, banned from contact with the communities. They were contagious and no one could come near them. In fact, if the leper saw anyone, the law required him to yell, “Unclean! Unclean!” to ward off the unsuspecting traveler and avoid any contamination.

But this man pushes through the crowd surrounding Jesus. See, once His ministry began, He never traveled alone. Someone was always with Him on those roads. In fact, there were always crowds around Him looking to see what would happen next. Dozens of people crowded the dusty road as this leper came pushing through crowd and walked right up to Jesus.

“If you want to, you can heal me of my disease. Help me, please.”

I like Jesus’ answer. “I do want to.”

But Jesus didn’t just say the words. He reached out and touched the leper. He did something no one else would do. Jesus felt such compassion for this lonely, forsaken man that He broke all the rules, too. I can picture Jesus reaching out putting His hands on the man’s shoulders gently lifting him to his feet. I see Him looking into the leper’s eyes and speaking those words, “I do want to,” then embracing him in His strong arms. Then Jesus says, “Be clean.” and continues His embrace as He whispers into His ear, “Don’t tell anyone how this happened. Just go show yourself to the priest and offer the sacrifice Moses required. Then go home. Everyone wants to see you again.”

The man broke all the rules to get to Jesus. Jesus broke all the rules in sharing and showing compassion to him. But then, if the man is clean in the end, did Jesus and the man break any rules? The man was clean, not diseased in the end. Whose to say either did a bad thing? Who can condemn either one if the man went home to his family healed of the disease?

Do we get so tangled up in our taboos that we forget the people inside them? I sometimes think that’s what Jesus tries to tells us. The leper He healed that day had only other lepers as friends. Drug addicts end up with drug addicts and dealers as their only friends. The homeless end up with only the homeless as friends. The down-and-out end up with the down-and-out as their only friends. Maybe part of the less Jesus wants us to learn is that we need to break the rules every once in a while and break through with compassion to those who need someone else in their circle of friends.

Before we can be healed of any of those maladies above, we must want to be healed, just like the leper in the scene Mark gives us. But how many of the addicts, homeless, down-and-out finally come to realize they need help, only to find that when they get to the edge of the crowd, no one will reach out and touch them. No one on our side of the divide will dare to break the rules as Jesus did.

To find healing from the diseases the sin this world brings upon us, it takes two willing to break the rules. God in His holiness, willing to reach out to a sinful man and forgive him of the wrongs committed. And this sinful man recognizing the pitiful state I’m in and reaching out to a holy God in whose presence I am not worthy to stand.

When both of us break the rules, healing takes place. He makes me clean and invites me into His kingdom. What a marvelous God we serve. Have the two of you broken the rules yet?

The Voice Bible Copyright © 2012 Thomas Nelson, Inc. The Voice™ translation © 2012 Ecclesia Bible Society All rights reserved.
In accordance with the requirements for FTC full disclosure, I may have affiliate relationships with some or all of the producers of the items mentioned in this post who may provide a small commission to me when purchased through this site.

How to make friends (Mark 1:38) July 7, 2016

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Today’s Podcast

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Today’s Bible reading plan:

Read it in a year – Proverbs 8-9

see the whole year’s plan [here](http://www.bible-reading.com/bible-plan.pdf)

Today’s Devotional

Mark 1:38
Jesus: It’s time we went somewhere else—the next village, maybe—so I can tell more people the good news about the kingdom of God. After all, that’s the reason I’m here.

What do Jesus’ words mean for us today?

Carole and I are living in our twenty-fourth home since we’ve been married. That’s a lot of moves in just under forty years. But I’ve discovered a few perks to moving that often compared to living in the house we’re in now for the last nine. When you move that often you don’t have to spring clean, you just move. When you move that often, you don’t stash away a lot of stuff you’ll never find again because you put every thing in boxes that you open on the other end of the move. Boxes are never labeled the way they should be, of course, so every box is opened to find the stuff you thought you had, right? When you move so often, it’s like Christmas because you find things you didn’t know you had when you open some of those boxes and see treasures you’d forgotten about in the business of life.

And when you move so often, you make friends in new places. And I think that’s the best part. But moving so often also means you leave friends behind and that’s never an easy thing to do. I think it’s this friends part that Jesus and His disciples faced as He told them it’s time to move on. They wanted to stay. Incredible things were happening right there. Lots of people were hearing the good news. People were learning about the kingdom and the message God had for them. People found healing for their bodies and for their souls when they came to Jesus. But I think Jesus began to see the problem that Carole and I have often seen in even great churches because of our many moves.

Especially now in our mobile societies, an interesting phenomenon takes place in our churches that’s hard to avoid, but we really must if we really carry out the mission God wants us to carry out. Carole and I have found that almost every church has walls. Not just physical walls that hold the roof up, but invisible walls that keep newcomers from joining in. No one really means for those walls to be there and most churches think they don’t have them. But they exist, nonetheless. Here’s why.

Because we don’t have real community churches anymore in which people walk to their church and meet each other across their fence every day during the week, for most parishioners, the only time they see each other is at church. So what happens? Before services, between services, after services friends catch up on the latest news. So what do the newcomers do? They slip in and out of the building because they don’t want to interupt ongoing conversations. They hear the laughter and see the smiles. Everyone knows it’s a friendly church except the newcomers because they’ve gone unnoticed except by the person who handed them a bulletin at the door.

We don’t mean to be unfriendly as churches. We don’t think we exclude people from our fellowship. But most churches actually do a very poor job of assimilating new people into their congregation. There are some giant churches in which people come and enjoy the music and the sermons and like to worship together, but even in those mega-churches, you’ll find hundreds of people who have worshiped there for months who no one knows and they don’t know anyone there. They’re still newcomers, really.

The only way Carole and I broke the code to force ourselves into churches quickly was to join the choir. Music is one of her gifts. I mostly tagged along as her driver and to make friends. But that’s how we made friends fast in the churches we attended as we moved from place to place. We, as newcomers, kind of boldly went where others might not. We never waited for someone to ask us, we asked to join. That made us strange birds, because no one volunteers at church as soon as they walk in the door, right? Well, we did and it’s how we made friends in every church we attended through our many moves.

Why did I tell you about our experiences? Because if you’ve attended a church for a while, I’m sure you have friends there you talk with before, between, and after services. Be careful not to exclude the newcomers. Look for them and invite them into your circle. Make them part of your congregation. You never know who you might see and what you might learn along the way if you’ll just stop and pay attention. You might even see me someday!

And if you’re a newcomer, understand the dynamics of a church. People don’t purposely exclude you or shun you. Expect to have to push your way into those groups. The best way to make friends in a new place is to volunteer in an activity that meets often. For us it was the choir. If you don’t sing, volunteer in a women or men’s group. Get into a vibrant Sunday School class and participate, but don’t just sit and do nothing in that class. Join whatever group or class or activity interests you that causes people to talk to you and you to them. That’s how friendships are built.

Jesus told His disciples it was time to move on. He had a message to spread, but maybe He wanted to make sure He disciples also learned to make new friends in strange places. It’s a thought!

The Voice Bible Copyright © 2012 Thomas Nelson, Inc. The Voice™ translation © 2012 Ecclesia Bible Society All rights reserved.
In accordance with the requirements for FTC full disclosure, I may have affiliate relationships with some or all of the producers of the items mentioned in this post who may provide a small commission to me when purchased through this site.

Don’t you love the power in His simple words? (Mark 1:25) July 6, 2016

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Today’s Podcast

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Today’s Bible reading plan:

Read it in a year – Psalms 78-80

see the whole year’s plan [here](http://www.bible-reading.com/bible-plan.pdf)

Today’s Devotional

Mark 1:25
Jesus (rebuking him): Be quiet, and come out of him now!

What do Jesus’ words mean for us today?

Jesus starts His ministry with a bang. He teaches and people listen. They are in awe of His understanding of the scriptures. They like what He says. He speaks with authority and the way He shares the Law and the Prophets with such intimate knowledge but as an uneducated carpenter from the village of Nazareth just blows them away. This just shouldn’t be happening. Nazareth was a dean of thieves and robbers. It was the bad side of the tracks for the bad side of the tracks. Nothing good came out of Nazareth and yet here is this Man with such a wonderful gift of teaching God’s message.

Then a man bursts through the crowd screaming out above the sound of His teaching, “I know who you are! You are the Son of the Holy God! What are you doing here? Have you come to destroy us?” It was the demons inside the man screaming out, evaluating the presence of this teacher. They knew exactly who the Man was. And they were afraid. They knew His power. They knew His holiness. They knew He could destroy them with just a single word.

But Jesus’ ministry was just beginning. He didn’t want people to believe because of the testimony of demons. He wanted people to believe in Him because of their faith. He didn’t want His demonstrations to sway them. He wanted them to exercise their faith to realize He was the Son of God. So Jesus stopped the demon from saying anything else.

“Be quiet. Come out of him now!” Jesus demanded silence from the demon that announced who He was. We probably can’t understand why other than what scripture tells us. The timing wasn’t right. He didn’t want to be found out and made king or priest or ruler because people found out too early who He really was. He didn’t come to hold any of those earthly positions. Jesus came to conquer sin. He knew the best way for Him to do that was to live a sinless life and die as the perfect sacrifice for our atonement.

So what can we learn from this exchange between Jesus and this demon He exorcised from this tormented man?

First, we find without a doubt that Jesus is God incarnate. He is the Son of the living God. The second person of the triune Godhead. We don’t understand how all that works, but we can trust that God’s words is true and Jesus, by declaration of the those who walked with Him and the demon’s who feared Him recognized He is God.

The second thing we learn from this exchange is the demons lived among the people of Judea. They inhabited some and did all sorts of dispicable things in and through them. Sometimes it was one demon and sometimes it was many that invaded the life of a single person as we discover in scripture. The Bible doesn’t tell us how demons came to possess this man or others in scripture, but we know they did so to a violent end in most instances. And often the individual had little control over their behavior when the demons decided to take control. No sane person without that influence would throw themselves into the fire, throw themselves on the ground injuring themselves, require chains outside the city because of their violent behavior. But all these describe the activities we read about in God’s word among the demon possessed.

The third thing we learn about this exchange is the demons feared the Son of God. They thought He came to destroy them when they saw Him among the crowd. They feared for their very existence when He approached. They assumed their time had come to an end and judgment day had dawned because Jesus appeared on the scene. They knew they could not defeat Him and bowed in cowardice in His presence.

Next, we learn Jesus had complete and total control over these demons. He told them to be quiet and they spoke no more. He told them to get out of the man and they left. He told the demons to leave immediately and no sooner had Jesus spoken the words than the demons fled. He showed complete and total mastery over the minions of Satan. They could not stand in His presence and power and all He did was speak the words. They could do nothing but obey Him.

Finally, I think we learn that Jesus wants to bring freedom to any of us who want freedom from the sin and evil that is resident within us. We may not be possessed by demons, but we all have sinned and harbor that dark place that needs His light shined upon it so the darkness is dispelled. He wants to do that for us if we will let Him. He is anxious to do the work and all it takes is the sound of His voice. Come out and leave him. For Jesus, it’s that simple. Where no one else can soothe the guilt and turmoil in our soul, Jesus can with just a few simple words. You are forgiven. Enter in. Faithful servant. Child of God. Simple words with great impact.

Don’t you love the power in His simple words?

The Voice Bible Copyright © 2012 Thomas Nelson, Inc. The Voice™ translation © 2012 Ecclesia Bible Society All rights reserved.
In accordance with the requirements for FTC full disclosure, I may have affiliate relationships with some or all of the producers of the items mentioned in this post who may provide a small commission to me when purchased through this site.

But I don’t like to fish! (Mark 1:17) July 5, 2016

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Today’s Podcast

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Today’s Bible reading plan:

Read it in a year – 2 Kings 1-5

see the whole year’s plan [here](http://www.bible-reading.com/bible-plan.pdf)

Today’s Devotional

Mark 1:17
Jesus: Come and follow Me, and I’ll send you to catch people instead of fish.

What do Jesus’ words mean for us today?

Several years ago I had a couple of fishing poles. They sat in my garage. I think I used them twice in the years I owned them. I finally threw them away after they were broken in one of my several moves. I wasn’t sad. I might have been fishing twice in the last forty years. I’m not a fisherman. I really don’t much enjoy fishing.

Fishing isn’t a very exciting sport to me. I suppose if I was good at it and could catch fish easily and it didn’t take much time to get my limit I might enjoy it, but it never happens that way for me. The last time I went fishing I spent a lot of time baiting lines and hooks and caught…nothing. I saw a lot of water. Got a pretty good sunburn. And got pretty bored with the whole thing. Like I said, I’m not a fisherman. If I never wet another line, it wouldn’t break my heart. Fishing again is not on my bucket list.

So when I read in Mark that Jesus tells Simon and Andrew, “Follow Me and I’ll send you to catch people instead of fish.” I wasn’t so impressed. These were fishermen and I didn’t belong with them. They knew how to catch fish and probably enjoyed their jobs. Jesus was pulling them away from their livelihood, one in which they prospered. He was going to let them keep their jobs but change their catch. If I had been there, I would have been a visitor and frankly His appeal to fishermen would not have impressed Me. I would have just gone home.

Have you ever thought about that? Would you have jumped at the chance to follow if Jesus asked you to go fishing? Now, knowing what I know about Him, my answer would be a resounding yes, but before I knew Him? I doubt it. So where am I going with all this? What’s the point?

I think it’s important to understand who Jesus is talking to as He asks Simon and Andrew to follow Him. These two men are fishermen. They love to fish. They know just about everything there is to know about fishing. It’s their livelihood. They own multiple boats. They hire others to help in their business. These guys love fishing! Jesus uses their love to explain what He wants them to do.

If Jesus came to me to invite me to join Him the same way He came to Simon and Andrew, I think He would appeal to my love of teaching or my love of technology or my love of strategic planning. He would pick something I do that I’m currently engaged in and enjoy. I think He would invite me to do those things for Him and use those skills to bring others into His kingdom.

Jesus talked about agrarian things in His parables, fig trees, olive branches, sheep, harvests, because the people around Him lived in an agrarian society. They understood His metaphors. They knew the language and signs and symbols because they lived with these things every day. They grew gardens in their yards because that’s how they got their food. They had sheep in their fields because that’s how they got their meat. They lived the parables Jesus used to teach the people around Him.

Today, I think Jesus would use traffic jams and unions strikes and political campaigns and pollution generators and wind and solar powered generators and all sorts of things we see and hear every day to explain the kingdom of heaven at hand and God’s desire to show us His grace and mercy. I think Jesus would share with us in ways that speak to our hearts using tools that help us clearly understand just how He wants us to live and share the message with others.

He would call us to follow Him just as He called Simon and Andrew. But He might not ask us to be fishers of men. He might ask us to follow Him to be taxi drivers and carry people to the kingdom or pilots to fly them away to heaven or who knows what occupation He might use to help you or me better understand He has a specific role in mind for us. He created each of us with a purpose. God’s plan will be fulfilled and we can choose to be part of it or not. But if we choose to follow Him, He has a plan for us, too. He has work for us to do in His plan. We can be part of the good work He does.

I will bring others into the kingdom, but not as a fisherman. I just don’t like to fish. That’s not what I do. Jesus knows that about me. But He does know what I like and what I do best. That’s where He calls me and that’s where He uses me in His great plan. What a Savior, Master, and Lord we serve!

The Voice Bible Copyright © 2012 Thomas Nelson, Inc. The Voice™ translation © 2012 Ecclesia Bible Society All rights reserved.
In accordance with the requirements for FTC full disclosure, I may have affiliate relationships with some or all of the producers of the items mentioned in this post who may provide a small commission to me when purchased through this site.

It’s time! (Mark 1:15) July 4, 2016

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Today’s Podcast

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Today’s Bible reading plan:

Read it in a year – Leviticus 10-12

see the whole year’s plan [here](http://www.bible-reading.com/bible-plan.pdf)

Today’s Devotional

Mark 1:15
Jesus: It’s time! The kingdom of God is near! Seek forgiveness, change your actions, and believe this good news!

What do Jesus’ words mean for us today?

It’s time! It was true when Jesus first came to earth in the likeness of sinful man to tell us the good news about redemption. It is still true today. It is time! But time for what? That is the question people seem to miss as we go about our busy days.

I saw an article the other day about a new clock developed in a crowd funded firm that will be interesting if it takes root. The premise of the company is that we have changed the way we measure almost everything in our society except time. All our instruments have become more exact, measured in different ways and by different methods, but time is stuck in seconds, minutes, and hours. We watched the hands on the clock spin around every day monotonously the same way for centuries.

This company decided to take a new view of time. The clock has a single hand that takes twenty-four hours to sweep around the dial and that is only for those that must have some link back to the old way of telling time. The real time keeper is a band of yellow light that moves across the face the clock as the face changes from blue during the day to purple at night. Sounds like the sun moving across the sky during the daylight hours and the moon transiting the sky at night, doesn’t it?

The premise of the company is we need to stop being so bound by the ticks the sweep by on the timepiece on our wrist and wall and start enjoying each day. We need to breathe a little and not let time enslave us. It is time we not be slaves to time.

It sounds good, but how do you stop a world driven by calendars and clocks? My last position in the Army certainly required good time management when every day was packed with meeting from 7 am to 6 pm with no breaks in between. Plus social events, inboxes, email, church, and family. The calendar was overflowing every day of the week from before sunup to after sundown. But that pace seems to be more and more common these days for the up and coming, the entrepreneurs, and those struggling to get by. Everyone is busier than they should be.

It’s time! But that’s not what Jesus is talking about, is it? He had a very simple but very important message tied to the clock. It’s time to do three things He says. Seek forgiveness, change your actions, and believe this good news.

The first, seek forgiveness, requires us to first recognize we are sinners, apart from God, in violation of His laws, disobedient and unworthy of His grace. Until we see ourselves in light of His holiness and understand just how sinful we are compared to Him, not someone else, but Him, we will not seek forgiveness. We might be sorry we get caught at something, but we won’t seek real forgiveness. Seeking forgiveness takes more than just saying I’m sorry. It means contrition. It means repentance, which leads to Jesus’ second point.

Change your actions. You can’t remain in God’s favor doing the sinful things you’ve always done. Repentance means turning away from the evil and turning toward God. It means turning your back on the past and turning toward a different future. It means letting go of those things you wanted before and grabbing hold of God and the things He has in store for you. Repentance is so much more than just crying a few tears and saying I’m sorry. It means, as Jesus says, changing your actions.

The third thing Jesus tells us to do is believe this good news. What news is that? The kingdom of God is near. So often we think we must die and move on the the next life before we can experience heaven, the kingdom of God. But we don’t. Jesus tells us the kingdom of heaven is near. In fact, when He came to earth, the kingdom of heaven came to earth. It is where He is. We can enjoy a piece of heaven here, in this place, right now.

How is this possible in the middle of all the evil around us? Where Jesus is, heaven is. If He lives in you, heaven is in you. We can experience the peace and joy of heaven even in the middle of all the evil that takes place around us. We are not dependent on the external circumstance we face for the peace and joy we have in our lives. It comes from within and when Jesus is Lord of our lives, He brings that peace. He gives joy. He makes heaven possible for us now, in this place, when we put our trust in Him.

It is time! The kingdom of heaven is near. Seek forgiveness, change your actions, and believe this good news!

The Voice Bible Copyright © 2012 Thomas Nelson, Inc. The Voice™ translation © 2012 Ecclesia Bible Society All rights reserved.
In accordance with the requirements for FTC full disclosure, I may have affiliate relationships with some or all of the producers of the items mentioned in this post who may provide a small commission to me when purchased through this site.

Are you ready for Him to see your results? (Matthew 28:18-20) July 3, 2016

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Today’s Podcast

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Today’s Bible reading plan:

Read it in a year – Philippians 3-4

see the whole year’s plan [here](http://www.bible-reading.com/bible-plan.pdf)

Today’s Devotional

Matthew 28:18-20
Jesus: I am here speaking with all the authority of God, who has commanded Me to give you this commission: Go out and make disciples in all the nations. Ceremonially wash them through baptism in the name of the triune God: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. Then disciple them. Form them in the practices and postures that I have taught you, and show them how to follow the commands I have laid down for you. And I will be with you, day after day, to the end of the age.

What do Jesus’ words mean for us today?

Gathered on the hilltop surrounding Jesus on this last day He would appear to them, His disciples watched and listened to Him for some departing words of comfort and direction. For forty days after His death, Jesus popped in and out of their lives at unexpected times and places to give them instructions and reassurance that He really was alive and would always be alive. Death could not hold Him even though it tried its best.

But now it was time for Him to leave. Unusually clouds were building in the sky. Maybe they were like those the Israelites saw surrounding Mt Sinai when God gave the tables to Moses. Maybe they were like the clouds from which the voice spoke at Jesus’ baptism. Whatever they were like, those gathered there knew something was about to happen.

They looked to their Master and listened to Him give one more command, a commission for those on the hillside and for all who would call themselves His follower: “Go out and make disciples… .” It’s a simple command. Easy to decipher. It’s not difficult to understand. There’s no hidden message in there. It’s very straight forward so there will be no misunderstanding between Jesus and all those who will come after those gathered that day. Go out and make disciples. So let’s look at those simple words and see what we should do.

Go. That means don’t stay put. You can’t do what Jesus told us to do by standing still. You have to get up off your good intentions and move. Go has both transitive and intransitive verb meanings. The two most apropos for this command are: to move on a course; and, to proceed without delay. He gave those assembled a course to follow and He intended they carry out His directions beginning immediately. He commands us to do the same.

Out. I’m glad He added that word. I think Jesus knew if He didn’t stick that word in there, we might get stuck inside the four walls of our nice edifices for worship and forget the majority of the people that need the message are outside those walls. We must get out into the world and share the message of the good news if we fulfill His command. So first we move on a course and that course takes us outside the walls of the buildings where we worship.

And. So know we’re out in the world. We didn’t stay stuck inside our churches and temples and synagogues, but we’re not through. Too often, we who call ourselves Christian stop right there. We go out, but that’s as much of Jesus’ commission as we’re willing to do. We don’t want to offend anyone. We don’t want anyone to think we’re intolerant of others religion. We don’t want anyone to think we’re prudish or holier than thou. So we go out but we forget the “and” and everything that comes after it.

Make. Again, two of the many definitions in the Merriam-Webster unabridged dictionary fit best: to cause to exist, occur, or appear; and, to develop into. Both require change. The first implies creating something new and for Christians we understand this well in the experience of being born again by the power of God’s Spirit in us. The second implies growth as we become more like Him through transforming our thoughts and actions to mirror His.

Disciples. A disciple is one who accepts and assists in spreading the doctrines of another. In Jesus’ day, all the good rabbis had disciples. John had disciples. Gamaliel had disciples. Good rabbis had disciples. And disciples worked hard to become just like their teacher. They studied everything they did. How they ate, dressed, studied, worked, interpreted scriptures and other literature. Disciples worked hard to be like their teacher. To be like their rabbi was the greatest mark of excellence and form of flattery for these renowned educators of the faith. So to be a disciple of Jesus means to be like Him in thought, word, and deed.

There it is. Our simple, clear directive from the King of kings on the day His feet last touched the earth. We don’t know when He will come back, but when He does, He will undoubtedly ask us an important question as His followers. “How did you do? You say you are My followers, My disciples. So how did you do? I told you to go out and make disciples, so show Me what you’ve done.”

Are you ready for Him to see your results? 

The Voice Bible Copyright © 2012 Thomas Nelson, Inc. The Voice™ translation © 2012 Ecclesia Bible Society All rights reserved.
In accordance with the requirements for FTC full disclosure, I may have affiliate relationships with some or all of the producers of the items mentioned in this post who may provide a small commission to me when purchased through this site.

What would you do? (Matthew 28:9-10) July 2, 2016

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Today’s Podcast

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Today’s Bible reading plan:

Read it in a year – Luke 17-18

see the whole year’s plan [here](http://www.bible-reading.com/bible-plan.pdf)

Today’s Devotional

Matthew 28:9-10
Jesus (greeting the women): Rejoice.
The women fell down before Him, kissing His feet and worshiping Him.
Jesus: Don’t be afraid. Go and tell My brothers to go to Galilee. Tell them I will meet them there.

What do Jesus’ words mean for us today?

You’ve probably seen the popular TV show, actors portray different scenes in public and hidden cameras watch unsuspecting bystanders to see what happens as the action plays out before them. You know the punch line – “What would you do?” Sometimes the actions are pretty bizarre and we would like to think we know how we would react when put in those situations. But do we?

Put yourself in the cemetery on that first Easter morning. You go to the tomb to finish preparing the body of the man you thought would lead your country to freedom. You listened to His words and just knew He was must be the Messiah, but then He was arrested and killed like a common criminal. All your dreams are dashed. But you still want to carry out this last act of respect.

The guards are laying around the tomb either unconscious or so terrified they just can’t move. The stone is rolled away from the entrance. You see an angel sitting on top of the stone. The tomb is empty. Then the angel talks to you and tells you not to be afraid. What would you do? I’d probably be scared out of my gord no matter what the angel said. He just took on a whole Roman squad by himself and rolled away a stone too massive to for any man to move alone. And did it all without getting a speck of dirt on him.

I bet I’d fall on my face in fear. But then Jesus appears, but His skin is no longer ripped to sheds by the thirty-nine lashes He took. His brow shows no sign of the crown of thorns that pierced it. The bruises are gone. The blood that covered His body when you laid Him in the tomb is gone. The almost unrecognizable figure of a man that went into the tomb three days ago is not the same figure that stands before you now.

No, this is the same Jesus you walked with and talked with every day. This is the One who sat with you and explained the scriptures so perfectly. This is the man who loved everyone and taught you to love even your enemies. This is the man you thought you’d never see again until the final resurrection. What would you do?

I would probably faint dead away. I’d probably just fall on my face and pass out cold from the instant fear that ran through my whole body. That’s what I’d probably do. I’ve seen some really strange things in my life and been in some pretty scary situations, but to see Jesus resurrected on that first Easter mornining? Not sure I’d be standing up.

But Jesus says, “Rejoice!” “Tell my brothers to go and meet me in Galilee.”

Wow! I don’t think John Quiñones could put anything like that together. But if he did, I wonder what kind of response He would get? I’m afraid today he wouldn’t get much of one. People would assume it’s some sort of Hollywood special affects or slight of hand. Folks would look for those hidden cameras thinking that since this couldn’t be real, there must be some wizard behind the curtain and start looking for him. I’m not sure with all the SciFi and fantasy worlds we create for ourselves as entertainment, many would even see this scene as the incredible, historic, supernatural, spiritually awakening invitation for all mankind it really was.

But it happened. Jesus spent enough time in the grave to assure everyone in Jerusalem He was really dead. The Roman soldiers who crucified Him testified to it and they knew their job. They had no doubt about His condition when they took His lifeless corpse from that cross. When Joseph of Arimethea put Jesus in his tomb, no one doubted He was dead. No pulse. No heartbeat. No breath. Bled out. Dead. And even if He was alive, He certainly couldn’t have move that stone and walked around three days later after the physical ordeal He went through. Even with our modern medicine, He would spend months, maybe a year or more in the hospital recovering from His wounds. Walking around talking in three days? Healed? No way. Alive? Impossible.

Jesus told the women who came to finish their burial ritual to rejoice. And they did. They fell at His feet and kissed His feet and worshiped Him. Any question they had about His being the Son of God disappeared in that encounter. He was God incarnate.

Then Jesus gave them a job to do. Go tell My brothers I’m alive and I want to meet them. You know He gives us the same message to tell others when we recognize the incarnate, resurrected God of the universe in Jesus, the Christ, the Anointed One. When we finally figure out who He is and let Him be Lord of our life, He tells us to rejoice. Then He tells us to go and tell His brothers He wants to meet them.

Have you told anyone lately that Jesus wants to meet them? He has risen. He is alive. The message is clear. So what will you do? 

The Voice Bible Copyright © 2012 Thomas Nelson, Inc. The Voice™ translation © 2012 Ecclesia Bible Society All rights reserved.
In accordance with the requirements for FTC full disclosure, I may have affiliate relationships with some or all of the producers of the items mentioned in this post who may provide a small commission to me when purchased through this site.