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Go to Church, April 8, 2019

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Thanks for joining me today for “A Little Walk with God.” I’m your host Richard Agee.

Here we are in the middle of Lent. In just a couple of weeks we will gather together to celebrate Easter. The day we set aside on the Christian calendar marking the day Jesus burst out of his grave to show us his power over death. During this season, I’ve been drawing my devotions from a book titled “For God So Loved”. The scripture I read today happens to come from Hebrews chapter 10. The author of that book writes to the Hebrew people of his day to explain in scholarly terms the proofs that Jesus is the long awaited Messiah and in the last several chapters, including chapter 10, how we should live in community with each other as his followers.

Now in this tenth chapter, beginning in verse 19 we find this admonition:

19 So, my friends, Jesus by His blood gives us courage to enter the most holy place. 20 He has created for us a new and living way through the curtain, that is, through His flesh. 21 Since we have a great High Priest who presides over the house of God, 22 let us draw near with true hearts full of faith, with hearts rinsed clean of any evil conscience, and with bodies cleansed with pure water. 23 Let us hold strong to the confession of our hope, never wavering, since the One who promised it to us is faithful. 24 Let us consider how to inspire each other to greater love and to righteous deeds, 25 not forgetting to gather as a community, as some have forgotten, but encouraging each other, especially as the day of His return approaches.

The author of the devotional I read today, Tara Beth Leach, gives some thoughts about the verses that could be summed up with an opening statement, “Don’t attend church, if…” She then fills in the blanks with several reasons why we should not go to church using a bit of sarcasm in her writing, such as, don’t attend church if you expect everyone to be just like you. Or don’t attend church if you expect easy answers. Or don’t attend church if you don’t want to be stretched and pushed.

So why should we go to church? Isn’t it supposed to be a safe haven for us so we can feel good about ourselves and find joy and peace and happiness? Isn’t church the place to find friendship and a common bond with those around you? Isn’t church the place to find that legacy of peace Jesus leaves us?

Church is all of that and more, but joy and peace and happiness and friendship and togetherness doesn’t mean it is easy or that everyone is or should be just like me. It doesn’t mean everything should be all soft and cushy and rosey. It doesn’t even mean I really want to be there sometimes. But I know I need to be there. Hebrews tells us we need to meet together. We need to support and learn from each other. We know that God doesn’t change, but I have to be honest, there is much about the Bible I just do not understand.

I believe the Bible is true and I believe is spans generations and gives light and life to us as we follow its teachings. I also believe there are some things written in it that apply to the particular culture in which it was written. For instance, Paul speaks out about women speaking in the church, yet he praises Lydia an obvious leader in the church. Jesus had no problem breaking the cultural rules as he spoke to the Samaritan woman at the well. Yet his actions were strictly forbidden and he never told anyone those forbidden rules were wrong. He just reached out to people.

So, I believe there are some things in the Bible that must be interpreted in the light of the culture of Biblical times. Often the principle of what was spoken can be picked out of the words and apply equally to us, but some things are just different in our culture. My wife only walks behind me when my pace gets faster than hers, not because I mean for her to be anywhere other than beside me. But not in some other culture even today and certainly not in Jesus’ day when cattle were more valuable than women.

So how best do we learn what scripture means? How can we interpret the words? We get together and we discuss what we read and how God’s spirit speaks to us individually and collectively and we begin to discern what God is trying to tell us. We should not depend on the pastor to do all of our study or all of our thinking for us. We should be an active part in that gathering to learn.

We should go to church to worship together. There is something about worship in community with other believers that elevates our spirit as we do so. God created us to be in community with him and with others. Yes, we can and should worship alone, but we should also worship with other believers. We can learn from them as they also learn from us in our prayers, our singing, our devotion, our approach to a holy God.

We should go to church to share each others burdens. I know you’ve seen those boxes that recommend a two man lift. Often one person can pick them up, but the movement of the load is so much easier and safer when two people work together to lift it. It’s the same with many of the difficulties we face in life. When we share each others burdens and support each other in times of trial, it just makes life easier. Not necessarily easy, but easier. That 100 pound box still weighs 100 pounds, but when two people lift it, you are less likely to break your back in the process.

We should go to church to share with other believers what we have learned through our own life experiences. I can seldom pass by someone who comments “I just wasn’t fed by the service today.” I can’t help remark, “It’s because you didn’t bring a spoon!” We don’t gather to be fed. We come to share. We come to worship. We come to experience God’s spirit in community. If you want to be fed every time you walk through the door, there are a lot of restaurants in the world that will be happy to feed you. And they supply the utensils. When we come expecting God to touch us because we have reached out to him all week long and worshipped all week long, that gathering in the church is just another opportunity to share that same worship with others who are doing the same.

So when you think about gathering together for worship, don’t think about what you get, but what you give. Do you want your spirit touched? Then reach out and touch someone’s heart with your love. Do you want peace? Then exude peace to those who enter the door and need it. Do you want fellowship? Then be a friend to those who look lonely. Do you need to feel joy? Then surround yourself with those with smiles on their faces, wear a smile yourself and feel it move from your face to your heart.

If church were like the social clubs in the community, it would fail as a place to serve God. Those social clubs provide just what the world asks for. Sameness. Emptiness. Hopelessness. You can pay a healthy price to belong to one of those social clubs, but they won’t provide the eternal answers you long to find. I don’t want to go to a church like that.

I want to go to a church that steps on my toes. I want to hear sermons that challenge me and forces me to become more Christlike. I want to surround myself with people who are like me in that they want to follow in Jesus, but I also want the church to be filled with those who are not very Christlike. I want to see people there who are hungry to find something the world can’t offer. And I want to see them there because they have seen something in me and others in my church that they just can’t explain. I want them to question why we are like we are and want the same kind of peace and joy and contentment in life that we enjoy because of our fellowship with God and one another.

Does every church look like that? I’m afraid not. Does my church look like that? Not all the time. But sometimes. And why is it that churches today aren’t as inviting and create as much curiosity for outsiders as we would like? Well, to be honest, it’s my fault…and your fault. Unless we live that life that cause others to see Christ in us every day outside the church, we can’t expect them to want to see what is going on inside the church. Think about it. It wasn’t Jesus’ actions in the temple or the synagog that caused people to follow him. It was his life outside those institutions. People flocked to him because of his everyday actions that showed his love for others. So during this season of Lent, think about your life. Do your actions cause those around you to want to follow you? Do you generate curiosity among those that know you as they watch you live your life for God? Do you have to tell them you are a Christian for them to know it? Lent is the time for preparation. It’s time to examine ourselves and know we are right with him. Take some time this week and do just that.

You can find me at richardagee.com. I also invite you to join us at San Antonio First Church of the Nazarene on West Avenue in San Antonio to hear more Bible based teaching. You can find out more about my church at SAF.church. Thanks for listening. If you enjoyed it, tell a friend. If you didn’t, send me an email and let me know how better to reach out to those around you. Until next week, may God richly bless you as you venture into His story each day.

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 face Goliath alone, May 28, 2018

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What kind of Goliath do you face in your life? For the next few weeks i want us to explore some ways to defeat that giant that seems so indestructible.

Everyone has a Goliath or two in their life. Something that just looks bigger than life and an obstacle to that life of peace and internal freedom they seek. Maybe it’s a job that seems overwhelming or a boss that stays on your case every single day. Or maybe it’s a coworker that just bugs the daylights out of you and won’t take the hint to stay away. Maybe it’s a growing debt and it seems the light at the end of the tunnel is just the light from an on rushing freight train. Maybe your Goliath is some health issue that doesn’t go away. Constant pain, the big “C” word, cancer, or some other disease that limits your activity in some way. Maybe you have relationship problems in your home that you just can’t solve and your Goliath stands in that valley taunting you to no end.

There exists another Goliath that most people have, too, that we don’t readily acknowledge. We all have habits, addictions, that plague us. Things we can’t seem to stop no matter how hard we try. Your addiction may not be alcohol or drugs or pornography or one of those top five destructive things we talk about. But your addiction might be something as simple, but subtly destructive like television or some sport or eating certain foods or frequenting certain places. Things you know are harmful to your wellbeing, but you just can’t stop. You want to get away from the habit that you know drives a wedge between you and those you love and a wedge between you and God.

Everyone has something. None of us are exempt because we all inherited Adam’s seed. If nothing else, we all inherited that sin habit. We are born addicted to sin just like those babies you hear about who are addicted to drugs because of their mothers drug habits during her pregnancy. The poor kids need their fix as soon as they take their first breath and require the same rehab other users require.

So now that we recognize the problem that we all have addictive behaviors that we need to rid ourselves, what do we do about it? How do we defeat those Goliaths in our life? What can we do to overcome and stay “clean” of the things that just seem impossible to control.

We’ll look at several things to consider in the next few podcasts. But first things first. You cannot defeat your Goliath alone. You need others to help you conquer that thing slapping you in the face. The first one in your list of helpers is God.

Go back to the story of David and Goliath and listen to David’s words to Saul and Goliath. Saul questioned David’s ability to fight Goliath and David answered, “…The Lord who rescued me from the paw of the lion and paw of the bear will rescue me from the hand of this Philistine.” Then when he faced Goliath and his taunting, David answered with these words, “…This day the Lord will deliver you into my hands, and i’ll strike you down and cut off your head.”

David knew in all those situations he wasn’t the one winning the battle. It was God who protected him and defeated the lion and the bear. And David knew God would defeat this giant of a man. The same is true of your Goliath. You cannot stand against that giant alone, but no one and no thing is bigger, better, stronger than God. When he is in the battle, he wins. Period.

So first, go wherever God is. Make sure you keep him close and ask for his help when facing your giants. The is the first source of strength and can help rid you of the thing that holds you back from the life he wants you to enjoy.

Next, you need a mentor who can help you through those tough times. Someone you can trust to pour your heart out and admit you have the habit, the addiction you need to shed. That mentor may have gone through the same thing you are facing, but at least has gone through some troubled times and can give sage advice on how to deal with your Goliath. A good mentor will also hold you accountable for your behavior, actions, and attitude. He will ask pointed questions and watch your life to keep you on a steady road.

A good mentor will help guide you through the seasons of life and challenge you to grow in all areas of life. As such, you will probably have more than one mentor. Each might be better equipped for a particular area in your life. Physical. Spiritual. Family relationships. Financial accountability. Everything where a giant resides needs someone who can help you through the pitfalls without being judgmental but rather being helpful and not afraid to point out your weaknesses in those areas.

It is also important to have a partner travel along the journey with you. This person will probably not be your mentor. You need someone who is struggling with habits and addictions just like you are. Someone you can challenge in a friendly competition to keep each other on track and grow together in your success.

Finally, you need a church. A Bible believing, scripture teaching congregation with small groups that study God’s word to apply its principles and precepts to daily living. Each of us need those small groups to grow. We need help in interpreting God’s word and applying it in today’s culture. Not to change it or assume some of God’s commands no longer apply to us, but some of the commands God gave were for a specific time and a specific purpose as he used his chosen people and some of the characters in it to show us who he is. Some of the scriptures, written in a specific culture must be applied in our culture in different ways. For instance, the laws concerning mold in a house no longer applies. We have other means to deal with mold because of the knowledge God has allowed us to gain through the centuries.

A church will help you grow and keep you accountable. It will help you in relationships and give you more relationships through brothers and sisters in Christ. It will help you know you are not alone in your struggles on this journey, but rather you will find that every church is filled with people addicted to sins of one sort or another who have been helped rid themselves of those addictions by the help of God’s spirit in them and the accountability to and encouragement others in the congregation of the church.

There you have the first keys to overcoming your Goliath. Never face him alone. Take with you God who will fight the battle with you. A mentor. A friend. A Christian congregation. These first tools will take you a long way in overcoming whatever stands in your way to defeating that giant that blocks your way to the fulfilling life God wants you to enjoy.

Anticipation, April 2, 2018

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Bible Reading Plan – www.Bible-Reading.com; The Story, Chapter 28; You Version Bible app Engaging God’s Story Reading Plan Days 190 through 196

Anticipation. Sometimes it feels good doesn’t it. Sometimes it just tears at us. Let me give you a couple of examples. Kids anticipate Christmas. They are excited about the approach of the day and what they might find under the tree. They might have climbed into Santa’s lap and told him and no doubt they dropped hints around the house about what they really wanted. As the day approaches, so does their anticipation. It goes and grows and feels pretty good as the day gets closer.

But then there is the other side of anticipation. Some friends of mine built a house a few years ago that their contract said would be done in about five months with a guarantee to be finished before Thanksgiving. Five months came and went. Halloween found them without a home. Thanksgiving passed them by without a place to call their own. Christmas. New Year’s Day. The five months of construction and a seven month guarantee ended up being more than a year and still took them to court because the construction was of such poor quality.

Their anticipation brought nothing but more pain and heartache and bills and living on the edge waiting for their house to become at least habitable, though never as complete as they dreamed.

Jesus stood on a hillside the last time his disciples saw him and told them he would be back. He told them he’d come to take his bride to a place he was building for her. A new heaven and new earth. Then he told them to go to Jerusalem and wait for power to carry out the mission he gave them until he returned.

Now if you heard his words that day, wouldn’t you expect him to come back in a few days or weeks? If your boss said, “I’ll be back soon.” Wouldn’t you think that meant he took a short vacation or had a business meeting somewhere and would be back in the office before you had a chance to retire…or die! That’s what the disciples thought. They anticipated his return. Soon. But they also had a task to do before he came back.

Remember his mission for them and us? “Go into your neighborhood [Jerusalem], go to those that live near you and are somewhat like you [Judea], go to those that you don’t like very much [Samaria], and go to places and people you don’t even know [the uttermost parts of the world] and make disciples. Teach them everything I have taught you. Baptize them into the same faith into which you have been baptized, the one that proclaims the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.”

They went to Jerusalem. They went to a room they had met in before. All day and night, without a break, they took shifts praying, asking for something they didn’t understand. Jesus told them to wait for power and they asked for direction, for Jesus’ return, for power. Finally, they quit asking for Jesus to return. They quit asking for the Romans to be defeated. They quit asking for the pockets to get full. They quit asking for the Sanhedrin to stop looking for them or harassing them. They stopped asking for health. They stopped asking for everything…except the power to do the mission Jesus gave them to do. They didn’t know what they were asking for but finally all of them agreed what they needed was the power to carry out the job.

120 of them. All in one accord. All praying for one thing. To receive the promised power to do the work God asked them to do. Then it happened. God’s Spirit came and rested on, and filled each of them. They went out into the crowd that had gathered for the annual celebration of Pentecost, the first harvest. 120 mingled through the crowd telling them what had happened over the last seven weeks and the message that Jesus left us. Repent. The kingdom of heaven is at hand. Believe in him and have everlasting life.

Peter preached that morning and the number of converts grew from 120 to 3,000. A pretty good evangelistic sermon that morning. Read it in Acts Chapter 2. They didn’t have any fine churches with steeples and fancy altars. They didn’t have praise teams and bands or choirs and orchestras. They didn’t have pulpits or lobbies with café’s and doughnuts. What they did have was the power of God’s spirit living in them.

Have you ever thought about that? When God’s spirit takes hold of us and we let him take charge of us, we have the same power in us that raised Jesus from the dead. We have resurrection power in us. You’ve probably heard a song like that. But it’s absolutely true.

There is one catch, though. Remember the disciples spent 40 days and nights waiting and praying for the promised power. They didn’t know exactly what they were praying for, but quite frankly, until God’s spirit lives in us, we don’t know what we are praying for either. It’s indescribable. It’s something that can only be experienced.

I’m afraid too many today don’t do the waiting and praying necessary to really know what it means to have God’s spirit in their life. I don’t see his power in the lives of his people much despite the words said. It’s easy for us to make church more like a concert than a time of giving ourselves to God’s will. We rush in, find a seat, listen to great music and 20 minute sermon, rush out the door and pretend our lives are God’s.

That’s not the mission Jesus gave his disciples and that’s not the mission he gives us. If my math is right, those 3,000 people won to the church on that first day, met together in groups of about 30 in a hundred different homes. They ate meals together. They prayed together. They shared each other’s praises and each other’s hurts. They believed who Jesus was and what he could do for them. They experienced peace and joy because they waited on the promised power and they didn’t accept a McDonald’s kind of religion. They prayed until the promise came through. And the promise didn’t come through until their heart and mission and vision changed to align with God’s heart.

As we look at the early church, they didn’t play games with words. They were much like the Christian churches in Syria or Somalia today. They risked life and death by proclaiming Jesus name. They often met in secret because death was around the corner at the hands of the Romans or the hands of the priests. Their faith meant they lost jobs. They lost property. They lost their children and families. They lost their lives. Being Christian meant real commitment and real faith, not just words to them or to those in nations today with severe persecution of those who follow Christ.

So how about you? Are you ready to take up the mission Jesus has given all who claim his name? The great commission is for all of us. But we cannot carry it out without the power he promised them and us. The question is, am I willing to pay the price to receive that power? Am I willing to wait on God and lose myself in him so that I can gain all he has for me and complete the mission he has prepared for me in this place?

It took forty days for the 120 disciples to get past themselves to find the promised power of God. Are you willing to spend the time necessary to get past yourself to find the resurrection he has for you? You won’t regret it.

You can find me at richardagee.com. I also invite you to join us at San Antonio First Church of the Nazarene on West Avenue in San Antonio to hear more about The Story and our part in it. You can find out more about my church at SAF.church. Thanks for listening. If you enjoyed it, tell a friend. If you didn’t, send me an email and let me know how better to reach out to those around you. Until next week, may God richly bless you as you venture into His story each day.

Don’t worry about trifles (Luke 12:8-12) November 14, 2016

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Today’s Bible reading plan:

Read it in a year – Deuteronomy 13-15

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

Today’s Devotional

Luke 12:8-12
Jesus: That’s why I keep telling you not to be intimidated. If you identify unashamedly with Me before others, I, the Son of Man, will affirm you before God and all the heavenly messengers. But if you deny Me before others, you will be denied before God and all the heavenly messengers. People can speak a word against Me, the Son of Man, and the sin is forgivable. But they can go too far, slandering the testimony of the Holy Spirit by rejecting His message about Me, and they won’t be forgiven for that.
So you can anticipate that you will be put on trial before the synagogues and religious officials. Don’t worry how you’ll respond, and don’t worry what you should say. The Holy Spirit will give you the words to say at the moment when you need them.

What do Jesus’ words mean for us today?

If you haven’t noticed, the freedom we had as Christians in this country has changed significantly over the last twenty years. Where we had complete freedom to express our faith openly in public twenty years ago, we can no longer do that today. We might offend our non-believing neighbors if we put a nativity in the public square or pray at a ball game or mention the name of Jesus during the holiday for which Christmas was named. It’s incredible how much we have fallen in such a short time.

But as Jesus says, we should not be intimidated. We have not yet been executed in public arenas as the early Christians were. We have not yet been blocked from buying food in the market place as the early Christians were. We have not yet had our children ripped out of our homes as the early Christians did. Our freedoms have been degraded here, but they have not fallen as far as they were in early Christendom or as they are in many other parts of the world today. So don’t be intimidated.

Besides, as we talked yesterday, even facing death, those here can only kill the body. Fear the One who can send you to an eternal hell. Fear God.

With the direction the country and the world is going, though, I think we can anticipate Jesus prophecy to His disciples, not just to the first century church, but throughout the ages until His return. Every generation has experienced ever increasing violence against the church. We brought some of it on ourselves when we did stupid things like launch the Crusades in the name of Christ, but the church has always been persecuted. Satan just doesn’t like the church to gain ground against his control over people.

Satan wants to be like old-time radio hero, the Shadow and cloud the minds of men so they cannot see him or the truth. Except he doesn’t want to be the good guy. He wants to keep us from God. He wants to keep us trapped in our selfish desires instead of going after the things of God and His will for us and this planet. He even hides behind the appearance of good things to keep us from doing the things God wants. It might sound a little crazy, but it’s true. We can be totally lost doing good things. Because it’s not good things that get us to heaven. It’s believing in His Son and doing His will. We may sacrifice the best by doing the good.

So we can expect the world, at least as long as Satan is loose in it, to do what it can to disrupt the church. To stand in its way of evangelism. To persecute it and try to persuade believers that God’s way is not the way to find peace and joy. We can expect Satan to continue his lies to extend to us in as many ways as he can to try to get us away from God and win us over to his side. He does not want the church to triumph.

But we know the church will triumph because Jesus has already won the war. His death on the cross and resurrection from the grave demonstrated once and for all His victory over Satan and evil. Satan just doesn’t realize it yet. Satan thinks he still has a chance. He doesn’t. The battle’s been won. Jesus is the victor.

Until Satan figures it out at the end, though, expect to be called into court, ridiculed, persecuted, even executed. We can expect to feel the brunt of Satan’s schemes because he just doesn’t like Jesus’ followers. With the power of God’s spirit in us, we stand against him and he can’t stand it. Despite his best efforts, he can’t win and he hates to lose. So he does his best to try and try and try again. But God will give us the words to say in court. He will give us the grace sufficient to withstand the suffering of persecution. He will help us through the valley of the shadow of death. God will be with us through the end of this life and usher us into eternity with Him when we side with Him.

The church will prevail. God promised and His promises are true. So don’t worry about the trifle things the world may throw your way. God is still in charge.

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.

The house of prayer (Matthew 21:13) May 13, 2016

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Today’s Bible reading plan:

Read it in a year – Jeremiah 37-41

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

Today’s Devotional

Matthew 21:13
Jesus: It is written, “My house will be a house of prayer for all people,” but you have turned this house of prayer into a den of robbers.

What do Jesus’ words mean for us today?

I wonder what Jesus would say if He went into my church or your church today. Herod’s Temple was certainly an impressive place. It didn’t have the gold in it that Solomon’s Temple had. It didn’t have the Arc of the Covenant that housed the tablets on which God wrote the Ten Commandments or Aaron’s staff that bloomed with fig leaves and figs when the other tribal leaders laid their staffs beside his signifying that Aaron was God’s chosen priest.

But Herod’s Temple was certainly massive and awe inspiring. It towered over the city and visitors came from all over the world just to see it. The Jews came to worship and the massive size and splendor of the temple helped them realize the enormity of their God. Then they came to the outer courts. Vendors made sacrifices easier for them by selling animals at the gates so you didn’t have to bring your own. Of course, the vendors made a good profit on the best of the lambs and bulls and pigeons and doves. After all, God wanted unblemished sacrifices.

And since only the temple coinage could be used inside the temple, someone had to exchange whatever currency the pilgrims brought with them so they could give their offerings to God. And God wouldn’t mind if those moneychangers made a little profit for their trouble, would He? Then there were those who sold food and drinks because after a long journey in the hot sun, people were hungry and thirsty. And the prayer shawls were a big hit. They came from Jerusalem, the city of God, so they would be good souvenirs of the pilgrimage, right?

No wonder Jesus was furious at what He saw. But then let’s move forward a couple thousand years. Some of our churches and cathedrals are pretty impressive. Maybe not on the scale of Herod’s Temple, but then, we didn’t have a king trying to impress a whole nation when those churches and cathedrals were built. Do we make it too easy for people to provide their reasonable sacrifice for God? Do we let people come in and assume that a few dollars in the offering plate is all that is needed to take care of their obligations to God?

And do we then take that money as a church and act as money changers turning it into a profit to add to the magnificence of the edifice instead of reaching out to help others? Do we get more concerned about the place than we do the people around us? I’m not saying it’s not important to take care of the place we worship. God deserves our best. But I think He is more pleased with what we do for others than He is in gaudy palaces built in His name.

God told us He was not as interested in sacrifice as in a contrite heart our willingness to obey Him. So what does that mean as we consider the actions Jesus took at the temple with what we do in our churches. Would He be pleased with what we do there? He called the temple a house of prayer. Do we make sure our churches are houses of prayer? Places where we commune with the Almighty?

What differences would you make in your church if your focus was making your church a house of prayer. The other programs and processes and services you provide are not necessarily unimportant, but what if you made your focus for everything center on your church being a house of prayer. How would that change things around your facilities?

Does your church, like most churches, let itself get caught up in the activities you plan and the programs you put on your calendars until you forget the most important thing about what you are really about? The church, the temple, the synagogue was always the place where Jesus went each week to worship in community with others to renew His strength in worship with others. This was a place of prayer and worship. It was the place where He joined His voice with those with like faith and prayed for the deliverance of Israel from their bondage from evil, not from Rome, but from evil. For Jesus it was a house of prayer.

I’m afraid, too many of us have made the church a place where we meet the friends we haven’t seen for the last week or too often the last month or two. It’s the place we go to play games with Christian friends or sing songs that we like or maybe even have a Bible study or two. It’s the place we go to talk about how we will work to win the lost or start a revival in the community. It’s the place where we make great plans. But is it a house of prayer? Is our focus in our churches the place where we lift our voices together in community to touch the heart of God? Do we come to this place with the purpose of having a conversation with the Creator of the universe?

Jesus called the temple His Father’s home and a house of prayer and the people there turned it into a den of thieves. How would He describe your church? If you choose, you can make it your house of prayer by your individual action as you step in the door by not letting all the other things distract you, but focusing on making it your house of prayer. Try it this week.

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.

Do you follow or pretend? (Matthew 18:18-20) April 27, 2016

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Today’s Bible reading plan:

Read it in a year – Psalms 48-50

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

Today’s Devotional

Matthew 18:18-20
Jesus: Remember this: whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven. And this: if two or three of you come together as a community and discern clearly about anything, My Father in heaven will bless that discernment. For when two or three gather together in My name, I am there in the midst of them.

What do Jesus’ words mean for us today?

We quote the last sentence of this paragraph often. “When two or three gather together in My name, I am there in the midst of them.” We talk about it when there are small numbers gathered for prayer. We use it when small numbers gather to worship. We use it to motivate small numbers that come together for a task that needs larger numbers. We use these words to remind us that when God is with us we always have a majority. Using these words in this way does motivate us and they are true, but…

Look again at these words in context. Jesus just talked about the way we should approach a brother or sister who wronged us. He just talked about how we should first go to that person in private and if that doesn’t work, go to the person with one or two others, and if that fails to remedy the situation, then take the matter to the congregation. If the sinner remains unrepentant, then Jesus says remove the person from the fellowship in hopes the harsh punishment will wake them up and bring them to their knees in repentance at some point. But in the meantime, their actions will not pollute the church, the bride of Christ.

So, just after giving the instructions on how to deal with the wrongs of a fellow member in our congregation, He gives these words. “What you bind on earth will be bound in heaven and what you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven.” He refers back to the resolution of issues in the church he’s just been discussing. He hasn’t broken His chain of thought. He’s still in the middle of this fourth sermon and continuing to expound on His instructions to His bride, the church.

He tells us two or three or four heads are better than one in discerning the right course of action to take when issues come up in the church. And He says we should pray and talk with each other when He says, “if two or three of you come together as a community and discern clearly about anything…” It’s important that we get the perspective of others when issues pop up in the church, and they will, before we damage the reputation or character of another member. When we deal with relationship issues with brothers and sisters in the body of Christ, they get messy. Discerning the right path, the right actions, often takes two or three heads.

When those two or three people earnestly seek God’s counsel, His will, and find consensus in the right path to take in a particular issue with their brother or sister who has strayed and needs correction from the body of Christ. When those two or three find agreement in God’s presence. Jesus says, “the Father in heaven will bless that discernment.” What does that mean? Does it mean they will be happy with the decision and no tears will be shed when they mete out some punishment on a friend? No. Does it mean everything will go back to the way it was before the incident? No. Does it mean God will be present as you carry out His will and ensure the results work for the good of His church? Absolutely!

Why is this true? Because Jesus gave us the promise we quote so often. “When two or three are gathered together in My name, I am there in the midst of them.” What a powerful promise. We can know the actions to take when difficult issues arise in the church. We can take the appropriate actions to keep the name of Christ clean and pure. But today, there is a difference between being the member of Christ’s body, His church, and being the member of an earthly denomination.

My daughter told me recently of a young woman who sincerely announced that she was a Christian, but followed the ways of Buddha because he was such an enlightened teacher. I would invite her to attend my church, the building where I worship and teach, but I would not let her become a member of my church. At least not until she stopped following anything or anyone but Jesus. But that’s the problem in many of our congregations today. We fail to confront the false teaching and wayward living that exists within the four walls of the institutions we call the church and let outsiders think we are Christian when we clearly are not. When we allow individuals like this young woman to come into our institutions and truly believe they are right with God, there is something wrong with our teaching.

There is but one way to heaven and that is through Jesus, the Son of God. There is but one Savior, Jesus. There is but one Redeemer, Jesus. There is but one perfect sacrifice for our sins, Jesus. There is only One capable of forgiving our sins, Jesus. There is only One who will plead for us at the final judgment, Jesus, the Son of the living God. Following after, worshiping, obeying, focusing your devotion on anything or anyone other than Him is idolatry and violates His commands. If you violate His commands, you cannot call yourself a Christian. Well, you can call yourself a Christian, but I can call myself a martian, too, but that doesn’t make me one.

Do you do more than just believe in Jesus? Remember, He said even the demons do that. You must truly follow Him if you desire to carry His name.

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 helping that sheep? (Matthew 18:10-14) April 25, 2016

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Today’s Podcast

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Today’s Bible reading plan:

Read it in a year – Exodus 13-16

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

Today’s Devotional

Matthew 18:10-14
Jesus: Make sure that you do not look down on the little ones, on those who are further behind you on the path of righteousness. For I tell you: they are watched over by those most beloved messengers who are always in the company of My Father in heaven. The Son of Man has come to save all those who are lost. A shepherd in charge of 100 sheep notices that one of his sheep has gone astray. What do you think he should do? Should the shepherd leave the flock on the hills unguarded to search for the lost sheep? God’s shepherd goes to look for that one lost sheep, and when he finds her, he is happier about her return than he is about the 99 who stayed put. Your Father in heaven does not want a single one of the tripped, waylaid, stumbling little ones to be lost.

What do Jesus’ words mean for us today?

When I read Jesus’ words today, a familiar quote came to mind. “Christians are the only Army that shoot their wounded.” That’s not really true. We’re not the only ones. If you’ve worked in the big corporate world, you know that as soon as you’re wounded you’re left behind to die. Nurses will tell you their profession shoots their wounded and eat their young. Or how about politics? One false move there,…well, maybe not. We seem to thrive on dirt these days and no one seems to care when our politicians falter.

What is it about us that sometimes causes us to forget about that one lost sheep out there that so desperately needs our help? Why don’t we seek out that single tripped, waylaid, stumbling little one and bring them back to the fold? Instead, we seem to leave them in the cold to fend for themselves and maybe they will come back, or better yet, we pray they will get back, but in another church.

What is it that causes us to shy away from those within our own ranks when they falter?

I think there are probably several things that we could mention. First, we often don’t know what to say. It’s easy for us to pull out the 4 Spiritual Laws or the Road to Redemption or any number of pamphlets and hawk them to complete strangers, but when our brothers and sisters fall within our community, it’s not so easy to wrap our arms around them and use those same words. Inside, we sometimes think they feel harsh or cold. They are not. We sometimes forget we need to share the good news inside our house just as much as we do outside. Because those inside the house grew up with us, we become familiar with them, they are close friends, we forget all of us are sinners and must be saved through God’s grace.

Second, I think sometimes we think, like leprosy, their fall to temptation is contagious. We’re afraid if we get too close, we might end up doing the same things, falling into the same traps. So we shy away not knowing that God will protect us from the evil one when we ask Him and keep our eyes focused on Him instead of the world’s treasures.

Third, I think sometimes we don’t want to spend the time and energy it takes to bring someone back into the fold. Remember Jesus illustration about the lost sheep? That takes tremendous effort to go out into the dark where bandits, wild animals, stumbling blocks, cliffs, rivers, mountains, and all sorts of other things you can begin to name get in the way of finding and helping that lost sheep. We know it will take effort and sometimes we’re just plain too lazy to put out the effort needed to go out and help that lost one.

Fourth, I think we sometimes take sides and push one side away. We forget that both the victim and the perpetrator are souls Jesus died to redeem. Is it easy to love them both? Not always, but Jesus did. And if we are going to be like Him, we must love both side, forgive both side, restore both sides. Sometimes that’s really hard to do in small churches and large churches. But that’s the message Jesus gives us.

Fifth, I think sometimes we look at the fallen and say to ourselves, I’m worse than he is. We look inside our own heart and find that we are not where we should be in our relationship with God. We find we too have fallen, but perhaps not in such a public, outward display as the one who others have pushed aside. We are far from God, but our pride keeps us from falling on our face before Him and begging for His forgiveness and getting our relationship right with Him so that we can then help others to come to Him.

I know there are more than these five reasons why we are timid in reconciling and restoring our fallen Christian brothers and sisters. My prayer is that we will soon throw off the label the outside world has given us. As I said at the first, we really are not the only organization that shoots its wounded, but shouldn’t the church, of all places, be the place to find restoration and hope when we fail. Pray that God will make you and your church a place of redemption and restoration for all.

Remember Jesus forgave those Roman soldiers who flogged Him, put a crown of thorns on His head, crucified Him, and pierced His side with a spear. Can’t we help our brothers and sisters find their way back to Him?

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.

The keys to heaven! (Matthew 16:17-19) April 15, 2016

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Today’s Podcast

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Today’s Bible reading plan:

Read it in a year – Job 29-30

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

Today’s Devotional

Matthew 16:17-19
Jesus: Simon, son of Jonah, your knowledge is a mark of blessing. For you didn’t learn this truth from your friends or from teachers or from sages you’ve met on the way. You learned it from My Father in heaven. This is why I have called you Peter (rock): for on this rock I will build My church. The church will reign triumphant even at the gates of hell. Peter, I give you the keys to the kingdom of heaven. Whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven.

What do Jesus’ words mean for us today?

Have you thought much about Jesus’ words to Peter? I have. From the very first sentence, Jesus gives Peter and us a tremendous blessing and responsibility. First, He says if we really know Him, we are blessed. And if we really know Him, it is because we learned about Him from our heavenly Father, the Creator of all things. We come to know Him because of God’s Spirit teaching us from the inside out.

We can know about Him from sages and teachers we’ve met on the way, but to really know the truth about Jesus, we must get that from God’s Spirit living in us. That comes from faith and letting Him rule our lives. We have that intimate knowledge the Bible talks about by letting His Spirit in us control our lives. We must focus on His Spirit in us rather than the desires of the flesh, Paul would say. Then we, like Peter, can declare, “You are the Son of the living God.”

Second, Simon is called Peter or rock because of what he knows. And Jesus says on this rock, some will say on Peter, most will say (and I agree with them) on the knowledge Peter holds, He will build His church. On the truth we can hold within us by the knowledge we can gain only from the Father, Jesus will build His church. His church will grow. He will build it. The solid foundation of His church will be the truth that Jesus IS the Son of the living God. If we ever falter on our belief in this single truth, the very foundation of the church begins to crumble. This statement, this fact, this knowledge of Jesus from the Creator forms the bedrock of the church.

Third, the church will march on. Satan can try to defend against it, but he cannot prevail. Satan has tried his best to turn this verse around in our thought process and put us on the defense saying that hell cannot break down the church. But read the verse carefully. The church reigns triumphant even at the gates of hell. That sounds to me like heaven marches to hell’s gates, not the opposite. Jesus burst through hell’s formidable doors, they couldn’t hold Him. His church can march triumphant on the offensive against evil in this world. We do not need to defend ourselves against evil. Evil must defend itself against righteousness, but Jesus says, evil will lose.

Finally, Jesus tells Peter and the church, he holds the keys to heaven in his hands. Whatever he binds on earth will be bound in heaven and whatever he looses on earth will be loosed in heaven. Does that mean we have the power to damn people to eternal punishment? In some sense, and I’ll explain. Does that mean we have the power to forgive sins? In some sense, and I’ll explain.

I must make clear we are not God and do not have the capacity or the perfect judgment ability to forgive sins for eternal judgment for the day of reckoning all of us will face. But consider this from Ezekiel 3:18, God says to Ezekiel “If I send this message to a wicked person – ”You will die“ – but then you fail to warn him or help him to reconsider his wickedness so that he may not die, then he will die as a result of his evil deeds. It will be your fault for not warning him. His blood will be on your hands. But if you do forewarn a wicked person and give him My message, and yet he does not change his wicked thoughts and actions, then he will die as a result of his evil deeds. But you will have saved your own life by doing what I directed.”

God’s message to Ezekiel fits Jesus’ message to Peter and to those disciples who come after him in the church. We hold the keys to heaven in our hands. We know how to get there. We know Jesus and know that He is the way to heaven. We know because His Spirit testifies with our spirit that this message is truth. Like God’s message to Ezekiel, if we fail to share that message and shut the door on people by failing to share the message with them, we potentially close an opportunity to find the path we have found to heaven. We ‘bind’ the keys and so ‘bind’ them in our efforts. When we let loose the keys, the message, the good news that Jesus is Lord, the truth, the way, the Light, and Life and others find Him through that message. We loose on the earth and into heaven the opportunity for others to find and believe in Him. We become keys, instruments, tools, to open the door of opportunity to find salvation. We can’t save, but we can be instruments to introduce people to the One who can.

So what is Jesus’ message to Peter and to us, His disciples following after Him? You are blessed if you know Him. Knowledge of the truth of His Sonship to the Father comes from the Father Himself and this knowledge is the bedrock, the foundation of the church. Because of that solid foundation, we, the church can march against evil knowing it cannot defeat us. God has already won the war. It’s just a matter of time until Satan figures it out. In fact, it is our responsibility to share the message of this great truth because we will be held accountable for the use of those keys to heaven we hold in our hands.

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.

Read and pray (1 Timothy 4:1-16) December 8, 2015

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Today’s Podcast

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Today’s Scriptures

Today’s Bible reading plans include:

Ready – 1 Timothy 4:6-16

Set – 1 Timothy 3-4

Go! – 1 Timothy 1-4

1 Timothy 4:6-16
⁶ Place these truths before the brothers and sisters. If you do, you will be a good servant of Jesus the Anointed, raised and fed on words of true belief, trained in the good instruction you have so clearly followed. ⁷ Reject worldly fables. Refuse old wives’ tales. Instead, train yourself toward godliness. ⁸ Although training your body has certain payoffs, godliness benefits all things—holding promise for life here and now and promise for the life that is coming. ⁹ This statement is worthy of trust and our full acceptance. ¹⁰ This is what we work so hard for! This is why we are constantly struggling: because we have an assured hope fixed upon a living God who is the Savior of all humankind—especially all of us who believe.
¹¹ So go out and insist on these things. Teach them. ¹² Don’t let anyone belittle you because you are young. Instead, show the faithful, young and old, an example of how to live: set the standard for how to talk, act, love, and be faithful and pure. ¹³ Until I get there, make sure to devote yourself to the public reading of Scripture, to exhortation, and to teaching. ¹⁴ Don’t neglect the gift that was given to you through the prophecy spoken when the company of the elders laid their hands on you. ¹⁵ Cultivate all these practices; live by them so that all will see how you are advancing and growing. ¹⁶ Take care of yourself, concentrate on your teaching, and stick with these things. If you do, then you will be effective in bringing salvation to yourself and all who hear you.

Today’s Devotional

From today’s background scripture God might say:

You hear all kinds of churches coming into existence today. They share all kinds of messages. Many give you messages you like to hear so you’ll feel good about yourself. In some instances, you should feel good about yourself, but only after you acknowledge that everyone is first and foremost a sinner, lost and separated from Me unless they repent of their sins.

I don’t like the fact that everyone has sinned, but it began with Adam and Eve. They taught their children selfish instincts and those lessons have passed through the generations without interruption. Everyone wants their own way until they finally come to the realization that their way doesn’t work. You can’t find the peace you’re looking for until you abandon yourself and let Me take control of your life. That’s the way I created the world.

You might not like that I created it that way, but it’s My world and that’s how it is. Hey, I’m God. I can do what I want with My world. And what I did was make a way for you to get over your selfish desires. I made a way for you to come back to Me. I became like you so you would know I understand what it’s like to live in your shoes and then I died for you to pay the penalty for your sins. That wasn’t fair either, but it’s My world and I can do what I want. I’m God. And I want you back.

But I want you to want to come back to Me. I won’t make you. And therein lies the rub. There are too many today who way they want to come back to Me, but don’t like the rules I make. They don’t like the fact that I am holy. They want to preach the grace and mercy side of Me, but want to wish away the wrath that comes from My holiness in supressing evil in the world. There is that side of Me, too, if I am to remain a holy God. I cannot be only grace and mercy if I remain holy. I must also pour out wrath on wickedness.

So how do you know if the church you attend is in line with Me? How do you know if they just teach what you want to hear or really teach My word? How can you guard yourself against the false prophets My representatives always warn about in their writings?

It’s really pretty simple. Do two things consistently and you’ll figure out the counterfeits. You’ll know whether your church is sound in doctrine if you do these two things. Ready? First, read and study My word every day. Read it from cover to cover. Don’t just pick your favorite verses and pull them out of context. Read chapters and books at a time. Get the story I’m trying to tell you through My prophets and apostles. My word does not contradict itself. The theme is the same from Genesis 1 to Revelation 22. The Bible is My story of redemption for you (insert your name in that pronoun).

Second, pray. As you read My word again and again, you will begin to pray fervently. Your prayers may begin for yourself, but as My word is absorbed into your life you’ll begin to pray My will for your life and for the lives of others. You’ll find yourself absorbed by the concepts in My word and as they transform your mind, your prayers will help you discern truth from falsehood.

Do those two things faithfully, read My word and pray, and you’ll know if your church is true to Me and My word. You’ll know if it’s a place that will feed your soul or take you to troubled waters. Be careful in these last days. It’s important to you, your family, and friends. Know you can trust the leaders where you worship.

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.

Encourage each other (Hebrews 3), July 6, 2015

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Today’s Podcast

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Today’s Scriptures

Today’s Bible reading plans include:

Ready – Hebrews 3

Set – Hosea 6; Hebrews 3

Go! – Hosea 6–9; Hebrews 3

Hebrews 3
¹ So all of you who are holy partners in a heavenly calling, let’s turn our attention to Jesus, the Emissary of God and High Priest, who brought us the faith we profess; ² and compare Him to Moses, who also brought words from God. Both of them were faithful to their missions, to the One who called them. ³ But we value Jesus more than Moses, in the same way that we value a builder more than the house he builds. ⁴ Every house is built by someone, but the builder of all things is God. ⁵ Moses brought healing and redemption to his people as a faithful servant in God’s house, and he was a witness to the things that would be spoken later. ⁶ But Jesus the Anointed was faithful as a Son of that house. (We become that house, if we’re able to hold on to the confident hope we have in God until the end.)

⁷ Listen now, to the voice of the Holy Spirit through what the psalmist wrote:
Today, if you listen to His voice,
⁸ Don’t harden your hearts the way they did
in the bitter uprising at Meribah
⁹ Where your ancestors tested Me
though they had seen My marvelous power.
¹⁰ For the 40 years they traveled on
to the land that I had promised them,
That generation broke My heart.
Grieving and angry, I said, “Their hearts are unfaithful;
they don’t know what I want from them.”
¹¹ That is why I swore in anger
they would never enter salvation’s rest.
¹² Brothers and sisters, pay close attention so you won’t develop an evil and unbelieving heart that causes you to abandon the living God. ¹³ Encourage each other every day—for as long as we can still say “today”—so none of you let the deceitfulness of sin harden your hearts. ¹⁴ For we have become partners with the Anointed One—if we can just hold on to our confidence until the end.
¹⁵ Look at the lines from the psalm again:
Today, if you listen to His voice,
Don’t harden your hearts the way they did
in the bitter uprising at Meribah.
¹⁶ Now who, exactly, was God talking to then? Who heard and rebelled? Wasn’t it all of those whom Moses led out of Egypt? ¹⁷ And who made God angry for an entire generation? Wasn’t it those who sinned against Him, those whose bodies are still buried in the wilderness, the site of that uprising? ¹⁸ It was those disobedient ones who God swore would never enter into salvation’s rest. ¹⁹ And we can see that they couldn’t enter because they did not believe.

Today’s Devotional

From today’s background scripture God might say:

Some say they can serve Me apart from a community of believers. That’s not how I intend you to serve Me. You’ll find life much easier to contend with when you bind together in fellowship and travel through it together than if you try to face it alone. That’s why the writer of Hebrews says to encourage each other every day.

Meeting together and encouraging each other in the face of adversity and persecution helps you know you are not alone in the troubles you face from the world. The world will always tell you that following Me is not worth the effort. Those who oppose Me will always try to block your path and lure you away from Me in a variety of ways. But being a part of a fellowship of believers will strengthen you and encourage you along your journey.

Solomon’s proverb reminds you that two are stronger than one and a rope of three strands is not easily broken. The same is true when applied to groups of believers. When you meet together, you have the strength to stand up to whatever the world might throw your way. You can lean on each other and help carry each others burdens.

I made you to want to have meaningful relationships with other people, not just with Me. That’s why I told you it is impossible to love Me and hate your brothers and sisters. How can you hate your brother who you see and love Me who you cannot see? It just isn’t possible. You need each other and meeting together to worship Me is a great place to start that bonding in fellowship.

It’s also especially helpful and important to encourage each other in these times. You can see the pressure increasing on those who really stand for Me. As long as you move along with the ideas of those who just call themselves Christians but bow to the whims and ways of the world, you don’t have problems. But stand for Me and My word and you will face ridicule, slander, insult, and persecution. Expect it. Embrace it. Encourage each other in the face of it.

As the end of times approach, persecution against the church and My people will increase. The rise in violence against you will become increasingly severe as My return approaches. Be ready. Lean on each other. Encourage each other every day – while “today” is still around. I’m coming back to take you with Me. Persevere until the end. It’s worth 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.