Introduction to Romans

Ah... Here is the first of many letters written by the Apostle Paul to the fledgling regional churches.

Let me start by venting a bit about bias, it will make more sense here in a second. I have never understood why Paul's writings are not talked about with the same awe and poured over in academia with the writings of Socrates and Plato. I truly believe God has blessed Paul with this level of intellect. But, as a Christian, Paul's works have largely been relegated to study by theologians.

Now that that is out of the way, I challenge you to consider looking at this letter to Roman Christians in the light that Paul is not only instructing, but trying to spark conversation, and the desire for further study. After all, as Paul laments, Paul is unable to be in Rome to teach personally.

Sorry for the long introduction, but I wanted to sync our perspectives a bit.

Romans 1-2

Paul begins with a brief introduction, then moves on to a theme he will revisit with other churches. Paul is pointing out that society (earthly, flesh driven, whatever term you prefer) has fallen because individuals decided to worship cheap man made trinkets instead of the one true God. This resulted in God allowing people to live their lives without divine intervention, but also to feel the pain of such a godless life, resulting in a type of hell on earth.

Chapter two begins by admonishing Christians that the wanton sins of the non-believer is not an excuse for Christian judgment. Each time we judge, we call judgment on ourselves. The Message Bible translation brings it down to the third grade for us.. “It takes one to know one.” (Sidebar: why have I not ever read this … unique translation of the Bible before?).

This next section of chapter two has helped me with an issue I have had has a maturing Christian. Why are most non-believers generally good people. Paul points out that God's law is written on the hearts of all (it is innate for my fellow science geeks). Paul wants us to look at the good of non-believers as further evidence of the existence of God and the perfectness of His Law.

To conclude chapter two Paul chastises Jews for being a hindrance to the conversion of non-believers, by being marked as Jews, but failing to live lives in accordance to God's Law. Turn off Paul... and my opinion on for a moment. In the spirit of starting a conversation, I will attempt to end these blogs with a bit of controversy. I believe that Paul is saying that it may be better to hide our faith if the alternative is wearing our faith on our sleeve and living sinful lives that drive the unbeliever further from God's truth. Comments?

Acts 28

Here is the infamous snake bite that some people want to base their whole religion off of.  Myself I’m not into playing with snakes and think thats leaning towards putting God to the test (just my opinion).  What I see here is God working every vantage point for his glory.  Only God knew how the islanders would react to seeing Paul shake off the snake and even though they were already friendly with everyone after this act they were very nice and extra hospitable.  

As I read Paul's exert from Isaiah I make it my prayer to not be the one who doesn't hear or see.  I want to be able to see and hear the changing world around me so that I can be a good witness for Christ and be flexible enough to reach an ever-changing lost world.  

Acts 26-27

We’ve all been told at one time or another that we need to keep the I told you so to ourselves.  This is one that I struggle with.  At first glance it looks like Paul gets to throw out a great big I told you so as their trapped in a terrible storm.  As I study this a bit though I can’t help but think its not an I told you so as much as it is a reminder.  By this time I’m sure that some of the 276 people on board this ship are getting scared (I would be) so I think that what Paul does here is remind everyone that he was right about the storm so that they would believe him to also be right about everyone living threw it. 

Acts 24-25

I’ll tell you what, if you really want to get my goat accuse me of something I didn’t do.  I think its fair to say that we are all in the same boat on that one.  So here is Paul in prison and know body can manage to prove that he’s done anything wrong, and we’re not just talking about a night jail this has been years now.  Looking back at Paul's ministry though this has probably been the better two years of it since he is safe and not being beat up.  I think Paul is a lot like most of us, he’s not going to roll over for something he didn’t do and is willing to take his case all the way to the top.  Just as Paul is doing we too should always petition to talk to the highest authority that we can, and we do this every time we pray.

Acts 22-23

Paul takes an opportunity in front of everyone that is accusing him and wanting him dead to share his testimony.  We know that our testimony is a very powerful tool in  spreading our belief in Jesus.  The text doesn’t tell us that anyone in the audience on this day was saved but I’d like to believe that their were some that heard Paul testimony and accepted Christ into their hearts.  

Membership had its privileges, American express has had that tag line for a long time.  Paul really does make out well here that he is  a roman citizen.  I’ve little doubt that were he not a Roman citizen he would have been killed their in the street.  Its incredible how much of a difference their is with the jailers when the find out he’s a Roman.  When we are out an about and get into any trouble if we mention that we’re from Guthrie, Ok. that doesn’t carry any weight, fortunately we can say that we are the children of the all mighty God that created this entire universe and that taking up arms against is like taking up arms against God himself.  God is a good father and like any good father he hates to see his kids hurt.  We can rest in peace knowing that God is on our side and looking out for our best interest.

Acts 20-21

Everyone hates to say goodbye.  Paul has to say goodbye for the final time to the people in Ephesus.  everyone really seemed to want him to stay and he didn’t really seam as if he wanted to go.  He had a real concern for the life of the church after he left.  He turned them over to God and moved on.  Sometimes thats what we’ve all got to do.  Whether its letting go of someone or having to leave.  All we can do is follow where God leads us and trust him and his provisions.

(side bar for pastor)  If anyone falls asleep in service don’t feel bad, even Paul had one.  However if anyone dies you better be able to pray ‘em back.

How many licks does it take to get to the center of a tootsie-roll pop?  The world may never know.  Paul says God told him to go to Jerusalem, yet everywhere he stopped along the way the people their had also had visions from God telling him not go.  Should he or should he not have gone?  One thing is for certain as we read on Paul offers us a wealth of knowledge even though he goes to Jerusalem and is arrested and put in prison.  I can also say with a certain degree of certainty that if he hadn’t gone into Jerusalem gods knowledge for us would have still made it to us.  So how many licks it, doesn’t really matter.  The only thing that matters is that in the middle we get to enjoy the tootsie-roll (God).  No matter how we get their the prize is the same.

Acts 18-19

We saw that early on in acts mass conversions seamed to come easily.  Now that we are at corinth it seems to be a bit more difficult.  Paul is extremely frustrated and ready to move on, but God tells him to stick it out he’ll be safe from harm.  Paul is a great example of obedience and patience as he sticks it out another year and a half their.  How many of us would continue on for that long with no obvious forward momentum?  

Its also great to see that Paul does all he can to go back to churches that he’d been at before to continue to support and encourage them.  Good lesson to learn their, just cause it may look like someone is up on their feet it doesn’t hurt to continue to let them know your their for them.

In Ephesus the gospel is received well as the people begin to realize that it not about Paul it God.  The opposition that came against Paul here didn’t come from a group of people that believed differently it was purely a group concerned with their idol making business. 

Acts 16-17

We see here that as Paul has a dream that he is to go to macedonia, but it isn’t until all the pieces of the trip just fall into place perfectly that he knows for sure.  I really wish that it were always this way.  Their are times that all the pieces go together so perfectly and you get excited thinking, wow this has to be what God wants or it wouldn’t be so perfect.  Thats not always the case, but I don’t think that we should ever get discouraged when a seemingly perfect plan fails.  We only get discouraged because we don’t know Gods plan.  We just have to keep reminding ourselves of that, and give God praise and glory what things do go together so perfectly.  Let us not forget the small things in that either.  If your day is going well, thank God for it.

So here are Paul and Silas, beaten and siting in jail.  I just can’t help but think at some point Silas turned to Paul and said “Was she really bothering you that much.”  One of the things that I find so remarkable about the early apostles is they managed to be so close to Jesus and so far from their own flesh.  Paul had been broken out of jail by an angel before so if I were him and an earthquake hit and the doors flew open I’d accept that as Gods way of springing me out again and i’d be gone.  The cool thing here is that none of the prisoners tried to leave.  My best bet on that is since right before the earthquake Paul and Silas were singing and worshiping God thus inviting him into the deepest darkest place that they were at and with God present the other prisoners didn’t want to leave.  Even jail isn’t all that bad as long as you’ve got God with you.  I love that Paul with all he’s been threw up to this point finally gets one in, when he sends word up the chain that the judges had two roman citizens beat and thrown in jail.  So embarrassing this had to be for them.

Now we have two more instances of Paul and Silas having mobs angry at them and leaving town prior to Paul getting to Athens.  Now in Athens Paul is alone, and deeply disturbed by all the idols that he sees everywhere.  I noticed a huge difference in his style in Athens as he begins to share the gospel.  I’m thinking that he’s been learning from all the beatings and jails to adjust his tactics a bit.  I pulls things from the surrounding that the people are already comfortable with and uses them to show them God.  He spent some time to find out where their coming from with all their ideas on idols instead of just coming in heavy handed and telling them their all wrong.  He was able to make a case for Christ in a peaceful manner without drawing an angry mob.

Acts 14-15

Can you imagine the since of panic that Paul and Barnabas must have had when they realized that the people started worshiping them as gods.  Talk about the whole, wow! I think they may have gotten the wrong message here.  Very humbling of them to quickly stop them.  I would have had to wait and break the news to them after dinner.  I’ll say that it amazes me but in all actuality its just the world we live in, but its amazing how these people turned on Paul and Barnabas so easily.  Just a few words from some Jews from Antioch and they crowed stoned Paul drug him out of town and left him for dead.  To us we like to believe that this is just something that could happen so long ago and we live in a much more civilized society now.  I hate to break it to you but we’re no more civilized now then they were then.  Their are still countries around the world were you can still be stoned, beaten and left for dead in the street.  The likely hood of that happening here are much slimmer, but it doesn’t have to be a physical beating.  A mental beating can be a lot harder to get over than some physical wounds.  I’ve been beaten both physically and mentally, I’d choose the physical.  I ask you all this.  Be aware of those around you.  You would be surprised how many people you are in contact with that are right on the edge of that mental beat down, and you may inadvertently be the one who delivers that final blow.  Walk in Love and bring peace with you everywhere you go.  These two chapters reiterate that the gospel is for everyone, so lets treat others with love.  We’ve all been beaten down at one time or another lets treat everyone we come in contact with like the disciples did the morning after Paul was beaten and left for dead, they gathered around him, he got up and went back into the city.  We have the ability to pick each other up, lets do it.

Acts 12-13

So we have a prayer chain that is delivered through e-mail or different people asking you to pray for them.  These things are great and powerful and very important.  I like what we see here though, while Peter was in prison the church took it upon themselves to pray for him.  It doesn’t say that he sent word out for prayer, and (depending on what bible version your reading) it says they prayed most strenuously.  So this church new of a need and took it upon themselves to meet that need.  They couldn’t go and fight Herod’s army and get Peter out of jail so they did what they could and prayed.  Lets try to live our lives in this manner of meeting needs.  A lot times we get overwhelmed by everything we see in the world and think that their is nothing we can do to help, you can always pray.  

Acts 10-11

Everyone loves watching a good demolition.  So here we get to see God tear down some walls.  So thankfully for us the good news of Jesus isn’t just for the Jewish people but its for everyone, no matter where you came from you can be assured of where your going by accepting Christ into your heart.  

One thing that always gets me as I’m reading here in acts, when the early Christians go out the only thing they really seem to do is tell the story of Jesus’s death and resurrection and thats all it takes.  It seems that everyone who hears the story is instantly filled with the Holly Spirit and begging to be baptized.  Has the message been put out their in such a way now that people are desensitized to it.  It seems like it takes so much more now to convert someone.  Its very frustrating at times, its like having a million dollars to give away and know one wants it.

Acts 8-9

Now we are getting to the point where the hardest thing for me to do is stop reading and write the blog.  Even though I know the story its still just as exciting as the first time I read it.  We start of with Saul beginning his rampage agains the Christians.  While at the same time we learn a valuable lesson in you can’t put a price on God, he cannot be bought or sold.  We don’t get to use God to make money (sorry prosperity gospel, kingdom first) 

Now we’ve got a few folks that are avid listeners and doers.  First we have Philip.  Told to get into a chariot of someone he didn’t know, so he ran along side till he was invited in.  Lets think about that a second, what it it take for you to run alongside a car going down division trying to get in?  Thankfully Philip did and the end result is he sent the gospel with the eunuch to Ethiopia, and not just any eunuch but one that had direct contact with the Queen.  

Now back to Saul as he’s on his way to Damascus.  Bang! blind just like that, heres the voice of Jesus and goes to town.  Know body told him to fast and pray he he sought these things out on his own.  Jesus didn’t tell him that his sight would be restored in three days so I imagine in his mind, with all he’s done to the Christians, that he will never see again.  Now we have Ananias, we don’t really talk much about him.  Lets put yourself in his shoes for a minute I imagine it sound something like this. Hey, Their is a guy in town right now that is persecuting Christians so I would like for you to go to him and pray for him.  I think most of us would lean towards, did you just say get away from him and pray for our safety?  Thankfully Ananias was another good and faithful servant that answered Gods call.  Due to Ananias being faithful at this time Saul was able to see Jesus for who he really is and then went onto be the writer of the majority of the New Testament.  Never think that just because someone is a new Christian they don’t know much and don’t have much to offer.  At this time we still had the apostles that walked with Jesus and new him personally and yet God Choose Paul to be his ambassador.  Paul never saw Jesus while he was here, he was blinded on the road and only heard his voice, the newest of all the apostles.  The other thing that I find so great about Paul is that while Ananias was on his way to him God gave him a vision of what his future looked like.  So as we continue reading in Acts about all the horrible suffering that Paul goes threw keep in mind he knew it was all going to happen and he choose to accept it.  I also love that if the look at the full view, God was using Paul to spread his message even while we was still known as Saul and persecuting Christians.  Up to this point they were just working on getting all of Jerusalem converted and then heading out to the next town.  As soon as Saul started hunting them down that sent them out into the other cities and towns like water on a grease fire.  Further proof that what god wants God gets.

Acts 6-7

So its pretty safe at this point to say that bickering in the church isn’t something new.  What I like to take away from this is that the disciples made a decision to delegate others to take care of the problem and the people were pleased by this.  How often have you seen directive given from authority and people still aren’t happy and still fight over not getting their way.  Romans 13:1 everyone must submit himself to the governing authorities, for there is no authority except that which God has established.  The authorities that exist have been established by God.  This isn’t the easiest pill to swallow but it is pretty clear.  God has the wisdom and the plan and we can only pretend to know what it is and undermining the authority that God has established (all authority) is undermining God.

Stephens only visible fault was loving God and Loving his fellow man.  For this he was lied about and eventually drug out in the street and stoned to death, all the while we prayed for those who were killing him.  This is a level of forgiveness that I don’t yet comprehend I pray that some day I can get their.  They say Christians are the only ones who shoot their wounded or even in this case their healthy,  I can’t really argue that based on what we know of the past.  What can do is begin learning from the past couple thousands of years worth of mistakes and work harder towards upholding the namesake of Christian “Christ like”

Acts 4-5

I can’t speak for you but as for myself the threat of jail is good enough to keep me from wanting to break the law.  We are fortunate in the fact that we live in a country where we are free to speak about Jesus.  Hopefully we will always have that right and not have to worry about being imprisoned for speaking the name of Jesus.  Now back to the Idea of the New Testament church,  the idea of on heart is awesome but that does come with sacrifice we read here of selling personal things to help your brother in need so that nobody goes without.  Sounds great but yet todays church often bickers amongst each other over the color of carpet while families do without.  This isn’t saying that we all need to sell everything we own and move into a compound together its just the simple principle of if you have the means to help someone than do it.  

We agree that God wants us all to be obedient to what he calls on us to do and I think that Peter sets the bar pretty high.  After an Angel leads them out of jail God tells them to go to the very place they were arrested and continue doing what they got arrested for.  They didn’t question the word or even their personal safety they just obeyed God.  Complete trust is how they lived their life with God, and he took care of them.  If God places something on your heart don’t question it, God has already got the details taken care of.  Prayer, fasting, and seeking God  all your answers are their.

Acts 2-3

Acts 2-3

I couldn’t even begin to imagine what it was like that day in the upper room.  A day that I’m sure started like many before it and then as sudden as someone kicking in the door the Holy Spirit filled the room and then filled everyone their.  As people began to hear them they started coming over to see what was going on and some began to mock and then Peter stood up and delivered his first sermon.  I’ve heard lots of people say they want to be a new testament church, beware that means that you'll have to get out of your comfort zone.  Peter wasn’t a preacher before this day, he didn’t have time to study and prep what he was going to say he simply stood up in front of thousands and told the story of Jesus and about 3000 people were saved that day.  So are you ready to be the new testament church?  

Peter and John just as humble as can be as the crowd gathered at the temple looking at them as the ones who healed the cripple man simply turn the praise and glory straight to God.  Then taking advantage of the gathering begin to preach the story of Jesus and starts off very boldly telling everyone that they killed the messiah that they had been waiting for.  At this time saying something like that could have easily gotten them both killed.  This is the kind of boldness and humility that we need to embrace, I pray for this kind of fearless boldness to go out amongst the world and spread the gospel wherever I go without fear or prejudice. 

Acts 1

Our blogger for Acts is Mark Wright. Take it away, Mark!

Acts is my personal favorite book of the Bible, its where we learn that following Jesus isn’t a spectator sport.  Its an all or nothing journey that  involves us as believers to take action and not just ooh and ah over they greatness of Jesus.

    Acts begins with Jesus heading back to heaven and the disciples going to Jerusalem to wait for the Holy Spirit to come.  I can’t imagine what this wait was like for them.  If you think the anticipation for Christmas morning was bad when you were a kid this tops that by a mile.  With most things that we’ve gotten in our lives we’ve had some sort of expectation of what we were getting. Even if we didn’t know exactly we had a good idea, but the disciples had no idea what to expect or even exactly when to expect it.  Yet they all stayed loyal and made a decision to stay the course.

John 21 & Acts 1

So we come to the end of the gospels and enter the story of the first century church. The Acts of the Apostles is the official name of the book, but it is really a story of the acts of the Holy Spirit through the Apostles. Before the Holy Spirit came, the acts of the apostles were to hide in fear, run from conflict and sleep through prayer meetings. But after the Holy Spirit came on the day of Pentecost, these same guys were preaching the gospel to hostile crowds, seeing multitudes coming to Christ, seeing miracles on a regular basis, traveling all over the world to spread the gospel, and willingly submitting themselves to beatings, imprisonments and death. And that same Holy Spirit that transformed them is in us today. Are we receiving it in the same way the apostles did? Could there be a book written someday about the Acts of the Guthrie Believers?

John 19 & 20

I love that when Jesus appeared after his resurrection, he returned to reaffirm his commitment to those who had bailed on him during his trial and crucifixion. Rather than getting on them for their lack of faith, he showed that his love for them and his plan for them had not changed. He left the gospel in the hands of those same dysfunctional, messed up people who he had spent his time with during his ministry. None of them were well-connected or influential apart from their relationship with Jesus. Sounds like us, doesn't it? It is regular people like us that Jesus chooses to use to do amazing miracles in his name. And here we are, two thousand years later, still dysfunctional, still messed up, still being loved by God, still being charged with telling the old story of new life in Jesus.

I love to tell the story; 
'tis pleasant to repeat 
what seems, each time I tell it, 
more wonderfully sweet.  
I love to tell the story, 
for some have never heard 
the message of salvation 
from God's own holy Word.  

I love to tell the story,

'twill be my theme in glory,

to tell the old, old story

of Jesus and his love.

John 17 & 18

John 17 is a chapter anyone should read if they doubt that Jesus cares about them. When I read this chapter I usually read it two or three times. It reassures me that even now, in 2012, we are connected to those first believers through a chain of redemption, beginning at Calvary. vs. 20&21 say, "I do not ask for these only, but also for those who will believe in me through their word, that they may all be one, just as you, Father, are in me, and I in you, that they also may be in us, so that the world may believe that you have sent me." How wonderful to think that Jesus was praying for you and me on that night before he gave his life as a perfect sacrifice for our sins.

After reading this, knowing that everything he suffered was suffered for me, it makes reading the crucifixion story so much more personal. Then when he is betrayed and abused, he is betrayed and abused for me. And for you. And for everyone who calls on his name, now and forever until he returns. What a Savior. Or as the hymn says, "Such love, such wondrous love. Such love, such wondrous love. That God should love a sinner such as I, how wonderful is love like this."

John 15 & 16

It is amazing that Jesus doesn't give up on us. Jesus Himself was talking to his disciples. These were the guys he had traveled with. They had seen his miracles. They had seen his disputes with the religious leaders. They knew that he preferred the company of children and hurting, hopeless people. They had their feet washed by him. He told them that unless they, the branches, abode in him, the vine, that they had no future. He prepared them that the world would hate them because, as followers of Jesus, they were no longer of this world. He promised them that the Holy Spirit would come and guide them into all truth. The disciples say that finally they are convinced that Jesus has been sent from God, but Jesus knows better. He knows that at crunch time they will scatter. But even knowing this about them, he is concerned about them. He finishes up chapter 16 by saying, "I have told you these tings, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world."

John 13 & 14

Chapters 13-17 are powerful chapters that warrant reading and re-reading because they reveal the nature of Jesus and his great love for us. He takes the position of the most humiliating servant posture to wash the feet of his disciples; even the one who had turned against him. In a world that strives for position and control, Jesus goes against the grain. Jesus was very aware of his position as Son of God. Yet he didn't find it necessary to continually state his position to get what he wanted. He came to serve. I'm in a leadership position and there are situations where it is my responsibility to set agendas and make hard decisions, but I have to remember that I am called to lead sheep; not drive cattle.

Jesus, knowing what the next hours would bring, still ministered comfort to those who were near to him. John 14 is one of my favorite chapters of the entire Bible as he speaks comfort and encouragement to his disciples. They hadn't shown much to this point, but Jesus told them that they would do more than he had done when his Holy Spirit came to them. And you know what? He was right.

John 11 & 12

It's a little unfair to know the ending of the story while you are reading it. Then tension builds between Jesus and established religion. As Jesus loves and heals people, even bringing his friend Lazarus back to life, the religious authorities try more desperately to hold on to power. They call Jesus to account over tiny matters of the law, and plot to murder him to maintain their position. Lazarus is resurrected, so they plot to kill him. But Jesus is not threatened by the end of his earthly life, because he is eternal. It is almost funny that those who received life by the creation power of Jesus are threatening him with death.

Jesus said in 11:25 "I am the resurrection and the life."  Not "I have access to resurrection and life". I Am. That's the name God gave Moses when he asked for a name to tell Pharaoh. At the burning bush, God is I Am. While he walked on earth, Jesus is I Am. And today, in the difficulties we face, he is still I Am. Not I was, not I'm gonna be, not I'll be if I can get you on my side. I Am. Past. Present. Future.

"I am the resurrection and the life. Whoever believes in me though he die, yet shall he live. and everyone who lives and believes in me shall never die."

John 9 & 10

It is amazing what can be overlooked if something doesn't fit within our agenda. No one was happy that a guy who was blind could now see except for the guy who is seeing for the first time. The Pharisees were afraid that Jesus would get more powerful than they were. The parents were afraid that they would be put out of the church if they acted excited about their son being healed.

Those who had their minds set on protecting their turf were never happy when Jesus, who didn't show them the fear and respect they felt they deserved, did something miraculous. They heard the explanation of Jesus' divinity many more times than those who were converted. And their judgment will be much more severe than for those who have never heard.

Jesus is that keeper of the sheep who is willing to die for the sheep. Many want to have a lot of sheep for the status they bring, but when trouble hits, it's "bye bye sheep".  But Jesus said, "My sheep listen to my voice; I know them, and they follow me. I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish; no one can snatch them out of my hand." (Jn.10:27-28)

John 7 & 8

I get frustrated when I read these chapters. Educated people who have dedicated their lives to the service of God are speaking to God in human form but they don't recognize Him. As a matter of fact, they see Jesus as the enemy. The people who need healing and restoration need no deep theological discussion; they believe in Jesus because of who they see Him to be. The Pharisees spent so much of their time studying and discussing the expected Messiah that they failed to recognize Him when He stood right in front of them. But Jesus kept on healing and delivering between fruitless verbal exchanges with those who were not interested in a Messiah that didn't look or act like they wanted him to. But He promised that "If you abide in my word, you are truly my disciples, and you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free." (Jn. 8:31-32)

John 5 & 6

When someone has brings about changes to the status quo, it is not uncommon for it to cause opposition to arise. Those who were invested in the way things have always been chose to focus on small violations instead of big miracles. Jesus taught about his divinity and his mission to complete the plan of the ages to bring the perfect suffering savior to the world so that it could be saved, but I find no record that any of his adversaries were convinced and converted. That is a shame, because Jesus was very clear that "the will of my Father; that everyone who looks on the Son and believes in him should have eternal life, and I will raise him up on the last day."(Jn. 6:40)

Jesus' words can seem difficult to grasp sometimes, but those who believe in Him will never regret it.

John 3 & 4

I love how the gospel of John slows down and spends quality time in the conversations Jesus has with people in these two chapters. Beginning with Nicodemus, Jesus patiently explains the plan of salvation. Visiting with the Samaritan woman at the well, He lovingly explains the kind of worshiper He looks for. The official whose son was at the point of death learned that having Jesus' word carried the same authority as His presence. Jesus told him that his son would live. The man believed His word and headed home. His son was healed.

These conversations teach us a lot about the way that Jesus interacted with people. He sees no difference between a high ranking Jewish rabbi, a woman with a sketchy past, or a government official if he saw that they were seeking Truth.

I've got a long way to go to get there.

John 1 & 2

John 1 goes to great lengths to identify Jesus as the Son of God, the Word, the Light, and the Lamb of God. The entire ministry of John the Baptist was to announce the coming of Jesus. Jesus begins to assemble his ministry team. But then in chapter 2, Jesus' first miracle occurs at a nameless couple's wedding where he miraculously supplies refreshments. It seems like a big under utilization of a miraculous ability. But maybe it speaks to the nature of Jesus that he began his public ministry by taking care of a small thing that helped spare a party planner some embarrassment. Most of the miracles we encounter are not of the dramatic mountain variety. Most of them are small things that reconfirm to us that Jesus is interested and involved in the normal, mundane aspects of our everyday lives. Our lives are mostly normal and a Savior that is involved in normal is a greater blessing than one who only gets involved in crises. How encouraging to think that a Jesus who can create the universe and raise people from the dead isn't too big to help us through the day by day issues that make up our lives.  It reminds me of the old song, "How Big Is God":

How big is God? How big and wide His vast domain.
To try to tell, these lips can only start.
He's big enough to rule His mighty universe,
Yet small enough to live within my heart.

Luke 23 and 24

The last two chapters of Luke have been covered many times throughout the years. And with us being so close to Easter, we'll be hearing this wonderful story again soon.

So, I'm leaving you with a song.  The link below is to the video on GodTube. (http://www.godtube.com/watch/?v=GYYGGNNX) I've also included the lyrics of this song that has had a special place in my heart since an Easter Sunrise service so many years ago.

Enjoy!

DOLLY PARTON
"He's Alive"

(Don Francisco)

The gates and doors were barred
And all the windows fastened down
I spent the night in sleeplessness
And rose at every sound
Half in hope of sorrow
And half in fear the day
Would find the soldiers breakin' through
To drag us all away

And just before the sunrise
I heard something at the wall
The gate began to rattle
And a voice began to call
I hurried to the window
Looked down into the street
Expecting swords and torches
And the sound of soldiers' feet

But there was no one there but Mary
So I went down to let her in
John stood there beside me
As she told me where she'd been
She said they've moved Him in the night
And none of us know where
The stone's been rolled away
And now His body isn't there

We both ran towards the garden
Then John ran on ahead
We found the stone and empty tomb
Just the way that Mary said
But the winding sheet they wrapped Him in
Was just an empty shell
And how or where they'd taken Him
Was more than I could tell

Oh something strange had happened there
Just what I did not know
John believed a miracle
But I just turned to go
Circumstance and speculation
Couldn't lift me very high
'Cause I'd seen them crucify Him
Then I saw Him die

Back inside the house again
The guilt and anguish came
Everything I'd promised Him
Just added to my shame
When at last it came to choices
I denied I knew His name
And even if He was alive
It wouldn't be the same

But suddenly the air was filled
With a strange and sweet perfume
Light that came from everywhere
Drove shadows from the room
And Jesus stood before me
With His arms held open wide
And I fell down on my knees
And I just clung to Him and cried

Then He raised me to my feet
And as I looked into His eyes
The love was shining out from Him
Like sunlight from the skies
Guilt in my confusion
Disappeared in sweet release
And every fear I ever had
Just melted into peace

He's alive yes He's alive
Yes He's alive and I'm forgiven
Heaven's gates are open wide
He's alive yes He's alive
Oh He's alive and I'm forgiven
Heaven's gates are open wide
He's alive He's alive
Hallelujah He's alive
He's alive and I'm forgiven
Heaven's gates are open wide
He's alive He's alive He's alive
I believe it He's alive
Sweet Jesus

Thanks, Beth!

Wow, I hate for the book of Luke to come to an end. Beth's comments each day were a devotion in themselves. Thanks, Beth, and we look forward to hearing from you on a future book.

I'll be blogging the gospel of John. This fourth gospel is different from the other three in that it focuses more on the humanity of Jesus.

Hang on and get ready for our final gospel.

P. Randy

Luke 21 and 22

As we read the last four chapters of Luke, we're reminded that Jesus' time on earth is growing to a close.  Just days before he had made his triumphant ride into Jerusalem as a hero.  Now he knows that within the next few days he will be betrayed by one of his own.  That had to be absolutely heart breaking.  Knowing how events were going to unfold, a lesser man would have run for the hills.  And in the Garden of Gethsemane, we do learn that Jesus asked his Father to let this cup pass from him.  But then he adds on those little words that we sometimes forget to include in our prayers.   "Thy will be done."

I'm getting ahead of myself though.  When reading the story about the widow who gives her last coin, I'm always left with a sense of admiration, and a feeling of comfort and contentedness.  There may be others in my life that are able to give much more - monetarily speaking -  to God's family than I am.  And I have to admit, that sometimes I feel a little bad that I'm not able to give more.  But then I'm reminded that God looks not only to the value of the objects we're giving him, but the value of our attitude as we're giving them to him.

I'm reminded of a story that I've heard many times over the year.  It's about a little girl who has a beautiful set of artificial pearls.  She loves that necklace and wears it every day.  At night, when it's time for bed, her daddy comes in to say good night and tuck her in.  They talk about the day, say their prayers together, and share "I love yous" as the day draws to a close.  But every night daddy ends by asking the same question "Pumkin, would you give me your pearls? I know you love them, but I'd like to have them.".   The little girl always answers the same way. "Daddy, you know I love you, but I really love my pearls too.  Wouldn't you like to have my teddy bear or my dolly instead?".  Daddy just pasts her hands and says, "No honey, that's alright, I'll just keep a picture of you in my heart.".  With that he turns off the light, and leaves the room.

What the little girl doesn't know is that Daddy has seen how she is with her friends and the rest of the family when it comes to those pearls.  She won't share with anyone, and will even keep herself off to the side of things when the other kids are playing.  When she does take those pearls off, they go in a very special place - only after a very involved ritual of polishing and admiration.

As the days and weeks go on, the little girl begins to see how her actions are affecting her family - especially her daddy.  Finally one cold, snowy, winter day, she decides that she is ready to give up her pearls for her Daddy.  She carefully takes them from around her neck, puts them in a blue velvet pouch and then carries them towards where her Daddy is sitting on the couch.  Her eyes are brimming with tears, and if her brothers say one word, she's sure she'll lose her resolve and run back to her room.  Thankfully, her brothers are in the other room finishing up their homework.

She crawls up on her Daddy's lap, gives him a big hug and says, "Daddy, you know how much I love my pearls.  But I've decided that they are not nearly as lovely as you.  I love you very much.  I don't know what you want with my pearls, but because you want them so badly, I'm ready to give them to you.".

For a moment, all Daddy can do is look into her eyes and hold back tears.  He gives her a great big hug and says, "My daughter, I love you more than you can ever imagine.  And I have a surprise for you."  With that, he sets her feet on the floor, gets to his feet and walks to his desk in the corner.  Out of the top desk drawer, he pulls a purple velvet bag.  He walks back to the couch, gathers her on his lap and hands her the pouch.  "Darling, I want you to have the gift inside this pouch.  I've been trying so long to give it to you, but you've had both hands full with your pearls.  Now that you have let go, your hands are ready for this new gift."

He encouraged her to open the bag, and when she opened it, she found a strand of real pearls.  The little girl is a little confused, and asks "Daddy, why did you wait so long?  Why didn't you give up?  You could have taken them from me long ago for being so selfish."

Her Daddy replied, "Honey, I wanted you to be ready to give them to me from your heart.  I could have made you give them up. But now that you have willingly given them to me, I know that you truly are giving them up for the right reason."

What kind of pearls are we holding on to?  Are we willing to give to Jesus with the right attitude?

Luke 19 & 20

Zacchaeus was a wee little man, and a wee little man was he. 

He climbed up in the sycamore tree for the Lord he wanted to see. 

And as the Savior passed that way, he looked up in that tree.  

And he said....Zacchaeus you come down! 

For I'm coming to your house today. For I'm coming to your house today.

I remember well this song from my childhood days in Sunday School.  I even remember the hand motions. We've talked about this story recently at Living Water Church.  And I'm always reminded that Zacchaeus did not let his vertically challenged status keep him away from seeing Jesus.  And when Jesus saw him and said "Let's grab lunch at your house", Zacchaeus didn't bat an eye.  He didn't make up excuses like, "I haven't been to the store and I have nothing fit to feed a King." or "Wow - my cleaning lady hasn't been in yet this week and there is dust all over the place."  Nope - he was ready to go! Besides the people in the crowd, astonished that Jesus was again hanging out with a tax collector, took care of the excuses for him. 

Upon hearing the scathing things that the people said about him, Zacchaeus immediately repented and promised that from that day on he would be fair in his dealings and would repay those he had over charged. Four times the amount he over charged. And -by the way, he gave half of his earnings away to the poor.

Jesus was ecstatic and celebrated the fact that this son of Abraham, had been found and welcomed into the family of God.

Investing 101

In the next section, we learn about the ten servants who are watching over their master's estate while he is gone.  Each of the ten servants were given an equal amount of money and charged with taking care of it.  The first servant had doubled the man's money, and was rewarded by given ten towns to rule as governor.  The second servant made a 50% profit on the original amount and was rewarded with five towns to govern.

The last servant had buried the money in a hole to protect it. He didn't want to risk losing any of the money.  The master was very  unhappy, and asked why the servant hadn't at least deposited the money in a bank to earn interest?  He took the money away from the third servant, and gave it to the first servant who had doubled his seed money.

In years past, I've heard this story but with the word talents instead of money.  To be precise, talents in this case referred to a type of currency and not skills that a person may have.  But....what if we run with that idea of talents being certain skills that we each bring to our church family?  

There are so many talents available to us. Among them: computer and other technology know how, musical instruments, singing, greeting, cooking, baking, listening, praying, caring for our children during service, driving people to and from church and other appointments, and of course letting God's love shine through our lives every day in what ever we're doing.  And we're not limited to just one talent. We have a mish-mash of talents that we carry with us.  There is also varying degrees of mastery to each talent as well.  

Just as in the story of the monetary talents, if we don't use our talents, then they go stale.  If we kinda, sorta, half-heartedly use our talents once in awhile, then we'll do okay with them. But if we train ourselves on a daily basis, and share those talents with others, then we gain experience and expertise. 

Jesus enters into Jerusalem

Growing up, our church used to celebrate Palm Sunday by giving everyone a palm frond on the way out of the sanctuary.  By and large, the adults were pretty calm about the gift.  A few would wave the palm frond gently to and fro. Others would just hold on tight and wonder where they were going to place it while they got their post-service coffee and cookie.  But us kids - woooooooooeeeeeee.  Those palm fronds were waving like over sized fly swatters as we chased each other around the building.  Until we discovered that those individual "leaves" would slice your finger just like a paper-cut.

As Jesus entered Jerusalem on the back of a donkey, he knew what was happening. He knew that these very people who were celebrating him, were going to turn on him and ask for a criminal's release instead of his own. He knew all about the beatings, the name calling, the trek to Skull Hill, and of course his impending death.  He knew that those closest to him were going to deny him.  But he also knew that by accepting his task, he would make it so much easier for us to join Him and his Father in an even greater celebration in heaven.

The conclusion of the chapter has Jesus throwing  the money changers, vendors and others out of the temple.  The house of worship had become much like a bazaar with some pretty iffy characters swindling people out of their money.  

By Chapter 20, I kind of get the feeling that Jesus has had E-N-O-U-G-H of the doubters, and nay-sayers and he was just ready to prove who he was and usher in God's plan of salvation and forgiveness.

The religious scholars start the chapter by asking him where he got his authority to speak and act this way.  He does a quick double take on them and asks them where John got the authority to be baptised?  They knew that if they answered "heaven" then Jesus could claim a "gotcha" moment. If they answered "humans" then their students and followers would revolt.  So just like a child when asked "Who put the cat in the dryer?" the answer was "I don't know!" (I always imagine Bill Cosby's voice saying this and get the giggles.) Jesus, knowing that this was going to be their answer, said that he wouldn't answer their question either.

The next story reminds me of the old Dragnet series with Harry Morgan and Jack Webb.  The story you are about to hear is true, only the names have been changed to protect the innocent.  Or in this case, the story is a bit of an embellishment, but the plot line and end result are the same.

Imagine if you will, a man who has planted a vineyard.  For some reason, he needs to leave the vineyard and be away for a long time.  Perhaps he needs to travel to the capitol to campaign for irrigation rights or lower employment taxes.  While he's gone, the farmhands who have worked with him continue to take care of the grounds. The capitol trip takes longer than expected, and the owner sends a servant to collect the income from the vineyard.  The farmhands beat him and sent him on his way.  The owner, then sends another servant (no way was the 1st servant going back), and the same thing happens.  

A-ha! says the owner, I'll send my own son.  The farmhands know him, and they will give him the money and send him on his way.  Nice thought, but the farmhands see this as a way to get control of the vineyard. Without the son, the owner will not have an heir, and the vineyard will go to them upon the owners death.  So when the son arrives, they not only beat him up, but throw him over the cliff.  The owner, by this time is pretty fed-up and enraged that the farmhands had killed his son.  He returns to the vineyard and does a little cleaning himself.

I'll say this for the Pharisees, they were firing on all cylinders when they figured out the story was about them and their rejection of Jesus.  Their egos must have taken a nose dive when Jesus reminded them that the owner of the vineyard would appoint new farmhands to take care of the vineyard.  In other words, the Pharisees were on their way out, whether they liked it or not.  The new church was going to be built on the cornerstone of Jesus.

The last two sections of chapter 20 has to do with taxes and marriage.  The tax section basically sums up to "Give Caesar what is his and give God what is his".  In the interest of time on a Saturday morning, I'll let you read more about that section on your own.  The next section kind of dove-tails in with a conversation we had at our Women's Bible study on Thursday night.

In the Jewish culture, if a married man passed away before he and his wife had children, the man's next oldest brother was to marry the wife and have kids.  If that second brother passed away without any children in the picture, then the next brother was to marry the wife and so on and so on.  Once the woman had a son (yep had to be a son), then there was no need for another brother to marry her.  This tradition is also called redemption.

In chapter 20, the example above is given, but with seven brothers and no children along the way.  The question that the "teachers" had for Jesus was "Which husband will the wife be with in heaven?"  

The answer?  Basically Jesus said that as part of our resurrected life, we won't be concerned with death, life or marriage.  We are going to be so busy praising, singing and worshiping that we won't care about where or who our spouse is. In fact, even Moses knew that a life with God meant no more death.  He didn't say "Oh God of our dearly departed Abraham" or "God of Jacob - rest his soul".  He knew that Abraham, Jacob and Issac were alive and well and with God.

Luke 17 & 18

Luke 17 kind of reminds me of a Reader's Digest version of things Jesus is trying to tell the disciples as his time grows short.  Or if not Reader's Digest, then a great Power Point presentation.  I can imagine a big screen with a lake shore background and the following bullet points flowing in...

• Trials and Temptations are bound to happen - but woe to those who cause them
• Better to swim with a weight around your neck than to give these "dear little ones" a hard time
• Tell you friend when you see them doing wrong. If they reject you several times during the day, keep forgiving them.
• There is no such thing as "more faith"  You either have it or you don't.
• If you have faith, you can tell a tree to jump in the lake
• Don't expect lavish praise for doing what you're supposed to be doing (OUCH!)
• Do your job well, put in the hours you've agreed to and then leave it for the day (Not directly written, but makes sense to me)

After this collection of to-do's, Jesus is called to by ten lepers. They don't approach him, but call to him from a distance to have mercy.  He heals all ten of them and tells them to go show themselves to the priest. (This was an important step in proving their health and being allowed back into daily society.)  Only one of them comes to Jesus to thank him and kneel at his feet. This does not go un-noticed.  Jesus tells him to get up and go on his way. His faith has not only healed him - but saved him as well.  I don't know how many times I've read that sentence and always glided over that "saved him" portion.  This man that remembered to say thanks was not only healed and would be accepted to society, but was saved and will be with Jesus in heaven.  A double blessing for doing so simple as remembering to show his thanks.  Wonder how many double blessings I could have had if I had remembered to thank God for the small blessings he gives me each day?

The last section is Jesus trying to explain to the Pharisees and others gathered when the Kingdom of God was going to arrive.  We don't have a Google Calendar to mark the arrival.  We won't have an early detection system that will go off and tell us to prepare.  Gary England won't be on News 9 tracking his arrival.  But when he does arrive, we need to be ready to drop everything and go with him.  No running back into the house for our cell phone or our camera.  No stopping by our friend's house one last time to try and save them.  

In Luke 18, Jesus encourages us to be persistent in our prayers. He uses the story of a widow who continues to ask a judge for favor in a situation, until he relents and gives her what she's asking for.  I equate this to our fuzzy dog Anders.  When he wants outside, he will walk to the door, walk back to you, do a complete circle around you and then starts all over again.  After a few circuits, I get dizzy watching him and let him out to bark at what ever he's watching.

Later in the chapter we're reminded to pray with our hearts and not with an outward show.  The purpose of prayer is to have a heart to heart chat with our Father. If I was to make a show of talking to my dad, with big words, big gestures and melodramatic inflection, he'd tell me to straighten up and fly right. He much prefers having a nice long conversation over a cup of coffee or tea.

Jesus again makes it plain to the disciples that he has a special place in his heart for children.  If we can't believe in him like a child believes in him, then we're missing out.  It may go against our nature, but I think if we picture ourselves wrapped in Jesus's embrace and tackling the day together, then things won't seem so bad.

Next in the chapter, a rich official asks Jesus what he needs to do to get into the kingdom of heaven.  Jesus replies that he needs to give everything away and follow him.  This is pretty painful for the rich man as he is very rich and very happy with his life.  Jesus then says that it will be easier for a camel to get through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to get into heaven.  I've heard a story in the past that this story was a little more true to reality than we may think.  From what I can remember, there is/was a pass in the middle east that locals called "the eye of the needle".  It was along a caravan route, and when the loaded camels neared this pass, the caravan leaders had to unpack the camels, lead them without their load through the pass and then reload them on the other side.  That means that the materials the camels had been carrying had to be moved by human power though the pass.  That's a lot of work!

The last section reminds us again to be persistent when asking God for what we want - and to not be shy about it.  As Jesus is nearing Jericho a blind man hears the commotion and calls out from where he is, "Son of David - Mercy, have mercy on me!"  The people around him try to shush him, but he calls out even louder "Son of David - Mercy, have mercy on me!".   Not only is this man calling from where he is, but he's calling out to the Son of David.  The blind man knows exactly who Jesus is - the Son of Man who is our Lord and Master.  

Jesus asked that the man be brought over to him.  I'm sure that this meant that friends of the blind man had to help him up and guide him to Jesus.  I wonder what they were thinking?  "Oh wow - now he's done it. This Jesus is going to strike him for being obnoxious".  Or perhaps "Why didn't I stay in bed longer today?  Then I wouldn't be mixed up in this."  I'm hoping that there was at least one friend who thought "This is the day that my friend will be able to see. I'm so blessed to be part of this!"

As the man is brought close, Jesus asks him what he wants.  He replies that he wants to see and Jesus tells him that his faith has saved and healed him - go on about your life.  There's that "saved" word again.  A spiritual two for one!  Everyone in the street saw the miracle and began praising.  My guess is that the crowd was quite a bit louder than the lone blind man had been just moments before.  

So....when we receive our heart's desire from Jesus, what do we do? Nothing? Tell a few select friends how we have been blessed?  Or....do we share the good news with many people - giving them hope that our Father knows each and every one of our needs and is just waiting for the right time to bless us?

Chapter 11 - update

I know, I know...I already have a post today, but wanted to follow up on a conversation a few of us had about Luke 11: 5-13.  It's a section that I neglected in my first post.  Not really sure why that happened, but it wasn't on purpose.

In this section, Jesus starts with a story about a man who knocks on his friend's door in the middle of the night. Apparently, the man received some unexpected company, and is asking his friend for three loaves of bread to help feed his visitors.  The friend, already snug and warm in his bed calls out "Go away! My children are already sleeping, I'm snug and warm and I'm not opening the door."  The first man, continues knocking and calling out until his friend gets up from bed, unlocks the door and gives him the bread.

I've heard some folks say that the "friend" in the passage refers to God the Father.  But reading on further, I personally don't think that's the case. Verse 9 in the Message Bible says: "Here's what I'm saying: Ask and you'll get; Seek and you'll find; Knock and the door will open."

I don't think that this means God is going to give us a blank check either.  Remember, he wants what's best for us, and sometimes that means not giving us what we ask for.  But in those cases, I think he also passes on a little wisdom and shows why the thing we thought we really wanted and needed, is something that we don't want and/or need.  It brings to mind a kiddo who wants to eat nothing but chocolate, candy, cake, donuts, brownies and other sugary treats.  To paraphrase Violet from Charlie and the Chocolate Factory "They want it and they want it NOW!"  In their minds, they want that sugary goodness. They need that sugar high. But we as adults (usually) know that with every sugar high, comes a pretty drastic sugar low.

The last four verses in the Message Bible are pretty helpful as well.
10 "Don't bargain with God. Be direct. Ask for what you need. This is not a cat-and-mouse, hide-and-seek game we're in.11 If your little boy asks for a serving of fish, do you scare him with a live snake on his plate?12 If your little girl asks for an egg, do you trick her with a spider?13 As bad as you are, you wouldn't think of such a thing-you're at least decent to your own children. And don't you think the Father who conceived you in love will give the Holy Spirit when you ask him?"


I love how it tells us to be direct with God.  Those of you who have spent any time around children of any age, know when they are beating around the bush.  They kind of do that hover thing - wandering around the house with you - talking about things you like to talk about - doing chores without being asked.  And then finally, once they have their courage built up, and they think they're going to get the answer their looking for, they ask their question.  As a parent, this can be a bit aggravating. Although, having those chores done without badgering them is a pretty good trade off.  But God doesn't want to play that game.  He wants us to  ask him for what we want.  But above that, I think he wants us to trust him for the best answer for us.

I'm also pretty glad that God is not going to give me a snake or a spider when I ask for fish or an egg. (Snakes are an enigma to me. How do they move without feet?"

Luke Chapters 15 & 16

The majority of Luke's 15th chapter is spent on telling the story of the prodigal son. And because we've recently heard this story excellently retold by our recent guest speaker, I'm going to leave that portion of the chapter to you to ponder.

The rest of the chapter tells how Jesus has been attracting all sorts of attention for hanging out with those less "perfect" and "worthy" than the religious leaders of the day.  This grumbling prompted the story of the missing lamb and the missing coin.

Both stories have been made real in our household over the last few weeks.  A missing coin, doesn't cause much anxiety for us adults. Unless of course it's a rare gold coin found on a sunken pirate ship.  But kids have this fascination with those shiny pieces of currency.  And trust me when I say that if a kiddo starts off the day with six shiny quarters, and then winds up with only five, there is going to be an intense search until that sixth coin is found. (Note that names have been omitted and coin counts have been altered to protect the youngster's ego.) When that sixth coin was found, there was a definite sigh of relief and an exuberance of joy!

And then there's the case of the missing pony.  We currently have five miniature horses as part of our animal menagerie.  The youngest, not quite a year old yet, is pretty good at finding her way to the "wrong side" of the fence. I think it's a mix of her small size, her curiosity and her very independent nature. But if there is someway to get to that greener grass on the other side of the fence, then she is going to find it.  Most days she doesn't wander to far off from the rest of the family on the "right side" of the fence.  However, every once in awhile, she'll hide herself in a grove of trees.  Some folks would say this is because she'd hiding from the wind or the rain.  I think it's because she enjoys her games of hide and seek with her human parents. And even though we're used to these games of hide and seek, I'm always relieved and happy to find her.

If we as humans can get so excited about coins and horses, how much more excited does Jesus get when that person he's been searching for comes home. He loves his saints who have been with him for years. Much like the found coins and horses above are loved and appreciated.  But when that soul that Jesus has been chasing for years finally comes home, how sweet that feeling must be.  I imagine it to be a million times our feelings when a loved one makes a decision for Christ.

Jesus continues to surprise me with just how unique he is in chapter 16, but at the same time reminds me just how unchanging he will always be.

The chapter begins with the story of a crooked manager.  Long story short, a manager is caught running up personal expenses via his job with the owner.  The owner calls for a complete audit of the books and fires the manager.  The manager, quite accustomed to the life he is leading, figures out a way to cook the books and avoid being tossed into the street as a homeless person.  In today's society the manager would be subject to trial and punishment.  But in this story the owner is impressed with the manager's ingenuity.

Jesus wants us to be like this manager.  He wants us to look for new angles and methods to accomplish what needs to be done. He wants us to find new ways to handle the adversity that comes our way.  Many times, the existing ways will work just fine.  However, sometimes we need to think outside of the box and come up with a new way to solve a problem. Much like many animals will look for alternative ways to solve problems based on the tools and things around them. For instance, a certain species of bird will pickup a twig in his beak to reach ants and bugs inside a narrow crevice.  The bird doesn't have hands, but by using the twig as an extension of his beak, he's able to reach that tasty snack.

The second section reminds us that even though we may do a really good job of acting the part of Chisttian, Jesus knows our heart and how we truly live. Whether it be as a Christian doing their best to honor him, or as a Christian actor trying to pull a fast one.

The last section of chapter 16 is the story of  the rich man and a poor man named Lazarus. (I find it interesting that the rich man is not named....)  Lazarus was not only poor, but had been afflicted with sores all over his body.  His best friends were the dogs that would join him at the city gate and lick his sores. Both men pass away. Lazarus goes to heaven and the rich man is sent to hell.  As part of his punishment, the rich man is able to look up and see Lazarus reclining with Abraham.  The rich man begs for Lazarus to dip his hand in water and then let him lick the cool water off of his finger tips.  No go.  Then the rich man begs for Lazarus to be raised from the dead so that he can go to the house of the rich man and warn his relatives.  Again a negative response.

Abraham's explanation to the rich man is that for years, people have been blessed with visits by prophets and teacher sharing the word of God's kingdom. And for years people have refused to listen.  Even if Lazarus was to be given life again, chances are the rich man's family wouldn't believe it.

Hmmmmm.....sounds a  little bit like how we treat Jesus.  We didn't listen while he was here.  He died and came back from the dead, and we still don't listen.  I don't know about you, but I'm pretty grateful that our Father in Heaven is a bit more loving and forgiving than we are in our day to day lives.  He doesn't give up on us, and keeps sending those messengers to our lives that remind us of his love for us.

Maybe we should be looking at how we can be a messenger for others.