Got Change?

This last Thursday we studied Colossians 1:1-14[1], which is the first couple of introductory paragraphs of Paul’s letter to the believers in Colossae. Paul is widely regarded as the greatest biblical “missionary” largely because of all of the churches he planted throughout Greece and Asia Minor. Towards the end of his life, Paul was imprisoned because of his faith, but from prison he still got the chance to write letters to the churches he had planted in order to guide and encourage them in their faith.

Paul starts off with some encouraging words:

                “We always thank God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, when we pray for you, since we heard of your faith in Christ Jesus and the Love that you have for all the saints, because of the hope laid up for you in heaven. Of this you have heard before in the word of truth, the gospel, which has come to you, as indeed in the whole world it is bearing fruit and increasing- as it also does among you…” (v 3-6)

The growth of the Colossian’s faith is probably the most encouraging to Paul, who most likely misses everyone he knew and longs to be there to see people’s faith growing. But what’s really cool is that Paul hears of the change that the gospel has made in these people’s lives, even sitting imprisoned several worlds away! Even though the Colossian testimony is incredibly making its way around the known world, Paul says that it’s kinda normal, because that’s the kind of fruit the gospel causes. Throughout all the world, the love and provision of Jesus is changing people from the inside out, because that’s just what the gospel does!

In light of their growth, Paul prays that the Colossians would keep growing:

“We have not ceased to pray for you, asking that you may be filed with the knowledge of His will in all spiritual wisdom and understanding, so as to walk in a manner worthy of the Lord, fully pleasing to Him, bearing fruit in every good work and increasing in the knowledge of God. May you be strengthened with all power, according to His glorious might, for all endurance and patience with joy, giving thanks to the Father, who has qualified you to share in the inheritance of the saints in light. He has delivered us from the domain of darkness and transferred us to the kingdom of His beloved Son, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins. (v 9-14)

Those who choose to put their faith in Jesus and His sacrificial provision of atonement for their sins, are foundationally, categorically changed by God. The Bible calls it being made into a new creation.[2] You are no longer who you were in your sinfulness, but you have been made new and set free from the old bonds of sin. That’s what Paul is mentioning when he talks about being ‘transferred’ from a domain of darkness to Jesus’ kingdom. We are irrevocably changed and made new from the inside out, which by God’s power and presence, causes unmistakable change in the life of a believer.

Which leads to the question, has the gospel changed you? If you really put your faith in Jesus and call yourself His follower, you’re gonna be changed by Him, and it’s not going to be a change that you can contain or keep hidden. It’s going to come out, and if you continue growing and living faithfully for Jesus, people all over the world are gonna hear about your life, just like the Colossians. But something tells me that most people (myself included sometimes) don’t want the whole world knowing about their faith. So we try to keep the gospel change that’s within them hidden from people’s eyes, and in so doing we limit our relationship with Jesus. I know it can be scary to let people know about your faith, and to let God’s power change you from the inside out. But thankfully, we don’t have to be ashamed of God’s work within us, because He’s gonna take care of us. Paul had the same faith-filled hope even as he sat chained to a Roman guard, still passionately loving and following after God.

So if you don’t see the gospel’s change in your life, here’s some tips straight from Paul Himself! He prayed that the Colossians would grow by

1) Increasing their knowledge of God

2) Walking in a manner that pleases God

3) Bearing fruit, and increasing in knowledge of God.

Paul repeats himself there at the end, but it’s a circle! To be changed by Jesus you have to know Him and apply yourself to know Him well just like you would your best friend. This is done by learning about who they are, and by spending time with them. So we learn about who Jesus is by regularly reading the Bible, and by spending time with Him in prayer! As you do that, you will see change happen in your life that will make you live differently, in a way that is pleasing to God. And as you live in ways that are pleasing to God, you’ll get to see some pretty big accomplishments of growth, or fruit, in your life. And then, you keep learning about Jesus.

Being changed by God is pretty simply really, you just have to spend time with Jesus, be open to be changed by Him, and not be ashamed of it. Got change?

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[1] Colossians 1:1-14, Youth Paperback Bible p. 272.

[2] “New Creation” -2 Corinthians 5:17, YPB p. 562.

The Shepherd and The Lamb, Part 2

As we looked at Jesus being our Good Shepherd and the comfort of intimate satisfaction that He brings, we also looked at Jesus being the Lamb. Now you say, ‘How can He be both the Shepherd and the Lamb?’ Well, because He is God, and they are just analogies of what He is like anyway!

Throughout the Bible, the picture of a lamb has carried with it a picture of sacrifice. This ultimately is because of sin, and the blood atonement that is required after sin in order to restore relationship with God. But specifically in the law of the Old Testament and before, God required sacrifices of worship or of atonement to be of pure, spotless animals from the herd, normally sheep. A lamb given in sacrifice, then, would have been a hand-picked lamb from the flock that had no blemishes in its skin and no deformities. The innocent, undeserving lamb given as a sacrifice stood as a picture of what God would ultimately do for us through Jesus.

One powerful early example of this foreshadowing occurred with Abraham and Isaac. You can read about their story in Genesis 22:1-14.[1] Isaac was the one and only heir that would continue the blessing that God had promised to Abraham, but one day God commanded Abraham to sacrifice Isaac his son in order to test his faith. You would think, ‘How horrific! Why would God make a promise and provide a miracle child, only to have him killed in some sick human sacrifice?’ Well don’t worry, it’s not like that. God often tests His people to see whether or not they will let go of the things that are most important to them in order to cling wholly to God in faith. So Abraham decides to have faith in God’s goodness and faithfulness despite this terrible command, and he prepares to sacrifice his son. When Isaac realizes that they haven’t brought a lamb to sacrifice, he asks, “Behold, the fire and the wood, but where is the lamb for a burnt offering?” Abraham, clinging on to his faith, replies “God will provide for Himself the lamb for a burnt offering, my son.” Abraham carries on with his faith-filled obedience until God stops him right before the sacrifice, and directs him to a ram caught in a thicket nearby.

To me, the coolest part about the story is not necessarily the display of Abraham’s great faith in God’s character, but the faithfulness of God’s character itself. God did provide a lamb to take the place of Isaac. Just like He has provided a lamb to take our place in the death that our sin makes us deserve.

The Bible is pretty clear about the nature of our sinful predicament. In various passages of Romans it says,

“As it is written, ‘None is righteous, no, not one’”[2]

“For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God”[3]

And unfortunately once again, a death sacrifice is required in order for sin to be atoned.

“Therefore just as sin came into the world through one man, and death through sin, and so death spread to all men because all sinned-“[4]

“For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.”[5]

BUT the cool thing is, God has once again provided for himself The Lamb that would take our place in the ultimate atonement offering. And He’s made a way for us to make the same decision of faith that Abraham made, a decision to accept God’s provision.

                “But God shows His love for us in that, while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.”[6]

“Because if you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord, and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved. … For everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.”[7]

But what then? What happens if you decide to make a decision of faith, accepting God’s provision of sacrifice that wipes away all your sinfulness? What do you do now?

Well, we’ve been talking about what it means to be ‘compelled by love’, to worship God, and to live for Him because of what He’s done for us. All of these things are summed up in an exciting analogy that’s given later in Romans. Paul, under the direction of the Holy Spirit, pleads with his audience and with us,

“I appeal to you therefore, brothers, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship. Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect.”[8]

Because of our sin, we were sentenced to die just like Isaac on the altar. And just like Isaac, we have been given a miraculous salvation from death because of God’s provision. The only thing is, we have to make a decision of faith to believe and accept God’s provision for us. We have to choose to accept the atonement that brings us back into unhindered relationship with God, who then becomes our Good Shepherd. And once this decision is made, the privilege of being God’s protected and nourished child, and the privilege of serving Him in a life-long sacrifice or worship, becomes yours forever.

God loves you, enough to take your place and die for you so that you might live.

Will you accept His provision and believe in Him? Will you choose to live with Him and for Him?

“For everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.”

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[1] Genesis 22:1-14, Youth Paperback Bible p. 10.

[2] Romans 3:10, YPB p. 548

[3] Romans 3:23, “.

[4] Romans 5:12, YPB p. 549.

[5] Romans 6:23, “.

[6] Romans 5:8, “.

[7] Romans 10:9,13, YPB p. 551.

[8] Romans 12:1-2, YPB p. 552.

The Shepherd and the Lamb, Part 1

The last two weeks of youth group we’ve covered the topics of God being the Good Shepherd and the Perfect Lamb, and it’s been fun to learn more about Him through these biblical analogies!

We started with the analogy of the Shepherd in Psalm 23[1]. The chapter is a song written by one of the most famous kings of Israel, King David. David went through some difficult times in his life, especially as he waited on God to become King. You see, God had proclaimed David to be king and anointed him with oil by the prophet Samuel as a symbol of this promise, but for several years David lived and served under King Saul, who was David’s enemy and tried to kill him many times. David most likely wrote Psalm 23 during a time in his life when he was on the run from Saul and his armies.

Psalm 23:1 says “The Lord is my Shepherd, I shall not want.”

This is an interesting opening statement to a song. David grew up as a shepherd, so he knew well the “ins and outs” of taking care of sheep, but to say “I shall not want” is definitely a bold statement. Generally, we want things! Whether it’s food, water, shelter, clothing, a new bicycle, video game, or the latest fashion skirt on the market, we want things a lot. But for little sheepies, as I affectionately call them in youth group, life isn’t so glamorous. Sheep aren’t that smart, for starters, and can’t really defend themselves with teeth or claws. They really stand in need of good pasture, protection, personal hygiene attendants, and leadership. Sheepies can’t really give themselves hair-cuts after all, and if left to themselves, they’ll just wander off to some forsaken piece of barren land, and die. That’s why sheep need an able-bodied shepherd who can protect them from predators and lead them to good pastures. In this sense, David compares God to a good shepherd who is fully able and faithful to protect and satisfy all of his sheepie-like needs.

Being on the run, David definitely had his own handful of needs. There was one instance in particular when David and his men were fleeing away from Saul in the valley of one side of a mountain, while Saul’s army searched for him in the valley on the other side of the mountain. God distracted King Saul and saved David that day, who later called the mountain a “Rock of Escape.” You can read about it in 1 Samuel 23:26-28.[2] This instance, and perhaps others, led David to write this line of his song in Psalm 23:4-

“Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for You are with me.”

He also writes in verse 5: “You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies.”

This is interesting because Saul, at the advice of his son, ceased hunting David for a brief period of time and invited him back to his table to partake in a feast. You can read about that in 1 Samuel 18:6-19:7.[3]

David’s comparison of God to a good Shepherd is not that far off. Jesus actually calls Himself  The Good Shepherd twice in John 10:11, 14-15 [4]:

“I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down His life for the sheep.”

“I am the good shepherd. I know my own and my own know me, just as the Father knows me and I know the Father, and I lay down my life for the sheep.”

You would ask, ‘Why does He repeat Himself? And what does He mean about laying down his life… for sheep?!’ You might take a bullet for your best friend, but would you take a bullet for a large cotton ball with a poopy butt? No! But that’s just the reason why it’s awesome that God tells us He’s the Good Shepherd. God is willing to die for dumb, fluffy, messy sheepies, and He did. This is what makes it so good to be a Christian, to be called a child of God: God earnestly loves, protects, and satisfies the needs of His people. He made the way for us to have intimate relationship with Him, so that we might not be afraid of any evil knowing that He is always with us. God leads, protects, supplies, and disciplines those who are His because He loves them and works all things for their ultimate good in Him. There is no greater comfort in the world than to know that your every want is taken care of by a good, all-powerful God who created and loves you for you.

The only thing is, you have to make Him your Shepherd. More on that in our next installment.

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[1] Psalm 23, Youth Paperback Bible p. 261.

[2] 1 Samuel 23:26-28, YPB p. 141.

[3] 1 Samuel 18:6-19:7, YPB p. 138.

[4] John 10:11, 14-15, ,YPB p.523.

Relationships

Catching up on some Youth Group blog summaries! This particular week was the topic of courtship, “dating”, and God’s idea of what relationships should be. It’s a tricky topic because the World’s idea of relationships and dating is so very different from God’s idea for relationships. At a glance, the World’s concept of dating relationships is centered around sex, status, feelings of love, and self-fulfillment. On the other hand, God’s idea of relationships is centered around commitment, sacrifice, humility servant-hood, and waiting.

In our Matthew series, we came across Matthew 19:1-9[1] when the Pharisees, or the religious leaders of Israel, came to test Jesus with a question about divorce. Unfortunately divorce is a common thing in out culture, and it was common in Jesus’ culture as well, but divorce is something that breaks the heart of God. When the Pharisees asked Jesus, “Is it lawful for a man to divorce his wife?” Jesus answered by pointed their attention somewhere deeper than their law-making self-righteousness would let them see; He quotes what God first said when romance began at the beginning of time. When God with love made man, male and female, He said,

“Therefore a man shall leave his father and his mother and hold fast to his wife, and the two shall become one flesh.”

This original quotation, found in Genesis 2:24[2], is significant because it is said at the moment when the first man and the first woman ever created were brought together in marriage. God’s idea of relationships (e.g. marriage) is between one man and one woman. I know there are lots of people today who are drawn towards homosexual relationships, but homosexuality simply isn’t a part of God’s design. In other words, those who partake in a homosexual lifestyle pervert the natural beauty of what God has designed. People who do this are still loved by God and by Christians, but the lifestyle of homosexuality is on that displeases God and ruins the beauty of His design. Genesis 2:24, which was given to the first two human beings ever, is also a guideline to all subsequent generations of human beings. Relationally, God’s design is for men to leave their fathers and mothers in order to commit to one woman as their wife in a new kind of family unit. In this new family unity the husband and wife are no longer two individuals but they are counted in God’s eyes as one. While both husband and wife have individual traits, desires, and needs, their physical, spiritual, and emotional unity represents something that is very special to the heart of God and very much like who God is.

Having seen that marriage between a husband and a wife is something that represents a much bigger truth in God’s eyes, Ephesians 5:22-23[3] is also a key passage that talks about marriage representing God’s relationship with those who believe in Him. Here god calls wives to submit to their husbands in respect and honor for them because they have been placed in leadership by God’s design. God also calls husbands to love, cherish, honor, and serve their wives as if they were their own bodies. The example for this self-sacrificial love is set by God Himself, who through Jesus died for the sake of those who would believe. (e.g. The church) To paraphrase John 15:13[4], there is no greater love than dying to self for the sake of other people, and nothing more godly. God loved us so much that He was willing to die for us in the person of Jesus Christ. In the same way husbands and wives can die for each other by loving their spouse and serving them first above their own wants and desires.

The Bible compares our present “waiting” relationship with God as to a betrothed woman waiting for her bridegroom and the upcoming date of the marriage ceremony. Those who believe in Jesus are all collectively compared to as the Bride, and Jesus is our Bridegroom. One day our God and King Jesus Christ will come back to us bodily and will reign forever, restoring and making all things new. He is committed to us, “engaged” if you will, and He has given us His own Holy Spirit as a guarantee for our future with Him as a Helper while we wait. Because our God dwells with us in this way we are not forsaken, and He has committed to bring us safely home. We can see from God’s example that relationships and marriage is all about commitment, which unfortunately is not a value that our world holds dear when it things about dating. The world things that dating is just supposed to be a fun, carefree, pleasure-filled time period that determines whether or not someone can fulfill your desires; but Jesus has made courtship to be a faith-filled adventure that allows two people to learn whether He is leading them to committedly serve and sacrifice for the other person. See the difference?

So when it comes to that special someone that you find yourself attracted to, ask yourself, why am I wanting to pursue a relationship? And why with this person? Is it because you want relationship for your own happiness? If that’s the case, then you’re not at all ready to love someone selflessly. Is it because you feel a desire to love them committedly for who they are and you think they might be able to love you just as selflessly? If not, then I’d say you’re also not ready for relationship, because relationships are really all about marriage, and marriage is really all about dying. But if you find that you’re not quite ready for relationship because you’re short in one of these categories, don’t freak out. Waiting on relationships allows you to have time to prepare, grow, and align yourself with God’s purpose for your life. Believe me, you want to be where God wants you to be, because it’s only then that all your desires and needs can truly be satisfied, especially when it comes to relationships. For the sake of true satisfaction in God (instead of empty satisfaction in a ‘significant other’ before you’re ready) many decide to wait from pursuing romantic relationships, which allows for more satisfaction, growth, and joy, in a relationship with Jesus that takes first priority, as opposed to the disappointment, hurt, and emptiness that comes from broken relationships without Jesus.

So are you waiting, or dying?

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[1] Matthew 19:1-9, Youth Paperback Bible, p. 481.

[2] Genesis 2:24, YPB p. 2.

[3] Ephesians 5:22-23, YPB p. 569.

[4] John 15:13, YPB p. 526.

Powerful Forgiveness

Hello! A couple weeks ago we covered the parable that Jesus gives about the unforgiving servant in Matthew 18. Forgiveness and conflict resolution can be extremely difficult. Sometimes, the easiest thing would be just to skip this step and move on with life in order to save ourselves the possibility of any extra pain. In reality, unforgiveness is a poisonous thorn that drives people further away from each other and from God.

As Jesus is talking about forgiveness, his disciple Peter brings up a question in Matthew 18:21:[1]

“Lord, how often will my brother sin against me, and I forgive him? As many as seven times?”

The question begs some cultural context. Apparently, the Jewish custom at the time was to allow forgiveness for offenses up to three times. By extending this limit to seven, it would appear that Peter is trying to be extra gracious. But Jesus replies,

“I do not say to you seven times but seventy-seven times.”

This response also begs explanation. According to Jewish culture, the numeric expressions of ‘seventy times’ something, ‘seventy-fold’, or in this case seventy seven, emphasized  an infinite, limitless amount. That is to say, Jesus is not simply raising Peter’s legalistic “forgiveness strike-out” limit from 7 to 77, whereby on the 77^th account of pardon there would be no further forgiveness; rather Jesus is blowing any sense of limitation to forgiveness out of the water. Forgiveness is not supposed to be limited, and just because a person wrongs you, even repeatedly, the necessity of forgiveness is not negated. This response from Jesus is unnatural according to human standards, and terribly difficult to adopt into our lives. But Jesus follows his response with the parable of the unforgiving servant. If you have not read it, please read Matthew 18: 23-35! Long story short, a King forgives a servant of an insurmountable debt (in the million/billion dollar range) and that same forgiven servant wrings the neck of a fellow servant, demanding a much smaller debt (comparable to something trivial in the hundreds of dollars range) that was owed to him, showing no mercy. When the King hears of these actions, he throws the unforgiving servant in jail until his debt is paid off.

The point of the parable is not ultimately one of despair. It may seem so, for the fate of the first, unforgiving servant is terrible and Jesus follows the story with the solemn words, “So also my heavenly Father will do to every one of you, if you do not forgive your brother from your heart.” Rather, the point of the parable is to teach us of the gravity of our debt before God, and to drive us to a place of worship before God under the realization that we have been wondrously forgiven! The glory of forgiveness is in the grace and mercy of God. The kingdom of heaven is, and one day will be like a King who settles accounts with his servants. All people have an account to settle before God, and actually, every single person alive stands facing an insurmountable debt worse than billions of dollars: we cannot escape our sin, the things we say, think, or do that displeases our holy God. At youth group we referenced Ephesians 2:1-10[2] where we are told of sin’s grave chasm of debt that stands between us and God- that there is literally nothing we can do to get out of sin, but God provides merciful salvation for us because of His great love and grace. We are naturally not deserving of forgiveness, but God floods our undeserving state with complete and utter forgiveness, with a future of life and relationship with Him.

So we forgive because we have been forgiven. Because we are flooded with the underserved mercy and love of God, freshly exposed to intimate relationship with Him as the great separating chasm of sin is instantly removed, we are compelled by God’s love to overflow with forgiveness and mercy to the people around us. It will be difficult to forgive others because we will experience offense, hurt, and disappointment… but as we pursue an intimate relationship with our lavishly merciful God, the strength and empowerment to forgive can flow through us as well, bringing with it passion for reconciliation and the restoration of relationships. In youth group I gave a personal definition of forgiveness: a decision to let go of the hurt inside, and restore relationship. Without this desire for restoration, I don’t believe that forgiveness can really be true, because we are not being filled with the relationship-restoring love of God.

The danger of unforgiveness is threefold. First after the offense or hurt is taken, our hearts can become filled with anger, pride, and self-centeredness. All you can think about is how hurt you are, and how dare the other person hurt you! Anger grows steadily and subtly, even making you unconsciously consider hurting the other person in return by shutting them out from relationship.

Second, When pride and anger fester and we cut all bonds of fellowship with one another, the thick pesticides of grudges unarguably exterminates any attempt for new growth or restoration. Grudges effectively kill our relationships with family and friends, hurting them and ourselves in the process.

Finally, as our hearts wall off with pride and we break relational intimacy with each other, our relationship with God becomes strained and is ultimately damaged because of our refusal to accept and take part in God’s love. Our walls of pride shut Him out as well, separating us from the life source and remedy of our unforgiveness. God takes this very seriously, as seen in the parable, and He warns us that our own forgiven state will be removed if we fail to forgive others around us.

Now, unforgiveness is a sin like any other, and can easily be forgiven, but I don’t think that most people understand just what a present menace unforgiveness is in their lives today, the menace it poses to their current relationships, and the danger it poses in their relationship with God.

The good news is that forgiveness is available through Jesus Christ, full and unlimited, conditional only upon our belief in Him. “Though your sins were as scarlet they are made white as snow.”[3] We have cause for great joy in the heart of our God, who is full of mercy and love and who, by Jesus, makes a way for us to be fully forgiven and fully known. Blessed be His Name!

Extras!

·         Need help remembering to forgive? Memorize Ephesians 4:32

“Be kind, tender-hearted, forgiving one another, as God in Christ forgave you.”[4]

·         Need comfort in God’s full and unlimited forgiveness for you? Read 1 John 1:9-2:2

“If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. If we say we have not sinned, we make Him a liar, and His word is not in us. My little children, I am writing these things to you so that you may not sin. But if anyone does sin, we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous. He is the propitiation for our sins, and not for ours only, but also for the sins of the whole world.”[5]

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[1] Matthew 18:21, Youth Paperback Bible p. 481.

[2] Ephesians 2:1-10, YPB p. 568.

[3] Isaiah 1:18, YPB p. 327.

[4] Ephesians 4:32, YPB p. 569.

[5] 1 John 1:9-2:2, YPB p. 591.

Finding the Comforter

This last week at youth group, both high school and junior high covered the same commonly known passages of Matthew 14: the feeding of the 5,000 and Jesus walking on water. Whether these stories come to you as knew or as old, they bring life-changing truth about the person and heart of our God and Savior Jesus Christ.

Sometime after Jesus was baptized by his earthly cousin, John the Baptist, John was imprisoned and later executed at the hands of Herod the tetrarch because of his faithfulness to stand up for the truth. Our study started in Matthew 14:13[1] which tells us that Jesus withdrew to a desolate place by himself after he heard the news of John’s death. This is pretty cool… not because of Jesus’ pain, but because Jesus experienced the pain. Jesus is God, who took on human flesh in order to die and deliver men from their sins. When He took on human flesh, He became limited from some of his divine qualities and He experienced life with human perspectives. This world is messed up with the evils and consequences of sin, which taint every part of life on earth and every person in it; but God is able to understand the pains and hurts we experience because He also experienced the same pains as we have.

Jesus experienced pain and loss, and He knows what we’re going through.

Unfortunately, Jesus didn’t get much time to Himself in the desolate place that He chose to mourn in; great crowds of people followed Him because of His reputation, and verse 14 tells us that He had compassion on the crowds and healed their sick. This is also pretty cool. For most of us who have lost loved ones and are going through times of grief, we just want to be left by ourselves!! I’m sure Jesus did too, it’s why He withdrew to a desolate place after all. But what’s cool is that even in Jesus’ personal time of grief, He has compassion for the hurting, broken people in the crowds, and he goes to heal them. It’s weird to think that, while God is awesome, majestic, holy, and full of glory, He is also humble and selfless. That is to say, humility and selflessness are traits that find their root in the character of God. (Which is what makes humility and selflessness godly traits!) Even though Jesus was mourning, He cared about the sick and injured enough to freely give His time and energy to them.

Jesus cares for us and will always show up in relationship with us when we draw near to Him.

After healing the sick, the crowds become hungry and the need is brought to Jesus. Instead of sending the crowds away to the towns, Jesus tells the disciples to feed them. Dazed at the idea, they report back to Him having only five loaves of bread and two fish. Hardly enough to feed the masses! But Jesus takes the food, prays over it, and starts handing out food, and handing out food…. Until 5,000 men plus a couple thousand women and children were completely filled and satisfied! Crazy! The disciples also gather an extra 12 baskets worth of leftovers, Yum! It’s pretty cool that Jesus was able to miraculously do this with the food, but what’s even cooler is that Jesus is able to meet our needs. When we come to Jesus in prayer presenting our needs before Him, we can do so with confidence because not only does Jesus care about us and our needs, but He also is able to meet the needs and do so lavishly.

Jesus is able to meet our needs when we come to Him, and He will do so lavishly.

After this awesome meal with the crowds, Jesus sends the disciples ahead of him across the Sea of Galilee by boat. He dismisses the crowds, and goes on a mountain by Himself to pray. It’s cool that, even though Jesus was God, being human He lived from a human perspective. Jesus Himself spent time in private prayer, and shows us by example that prayer is vital in having relationship with God, and in receiving encouragement and strength from Him. It’s obviously been a long day for Jesus! But after He prays, He comes down from the mountain and starts walking across the sea of Galilee to meet the disciples. You know, just the Creator of heaven and earth deciding to go on a leisurely stroll across the water that He made… pretty cool! But by the time He reaches the boat, a storm of waves and wind have put the disciples in a fearful frenzy to manage the boat. When they see Him, they freak out thinking that He’s a ghost! But Jesus calls to the men and calms them, maybe except for Peter. Peter calls back to Jesus saying, “Lord, if it is You, command me to come to You on the water.”[2] Jesus tells Peter to come, leading to the next pretty cool scene where Peter walks out on the water to Jesus, but looks away at the storm and starts to sink.

They say that when you’re tight-roping or slack-lining, you want to keep your balance by keeping your eyes set upon a fixed point. This is because generally, you go where your eyes are. It’s also why they tell you to look ahead while driving, because if you stare out the side window while driving you will probably start drifting to the side. It’s the same thing with life. We are able to have a powerful, 2-way relationship with Jesus today. Not just a one-sided relationship where we talk and Jesus never shows up, but a real relationship person to person. It’s a relationship that starts with faith and will one day become face to face, but the relationship with God can thrive only if we put Him as the center focus of our lives. There are evils in the world, fears, pains, worries….. brokenness, and an abundance of causes for despair. Satan wants to overwhelm us with these things to kill faith and hope. Peter naturally was overwhelmed by the shocking fear of standing in the sea amidst turbulent waves, which drew His gaze away from Jesus. Jesus saves Peter and immediately calms the storm, which is cool, but cooler still is the fact that Jesus is able to keep us steady amid the storms of life, and He has power over the greatest of the things which cause us concern. Keeping ourselves focused on relationship with Jesus as the most important thing in life above all else will bring stability, safety, and comfort at the hands of our Creator. I’m not sure why Peter wanted Jesus to call him out on the water, but I think that Peter knew that the safest place He could possibly be in the midst of the storm was with His Lord Jesus.

Fixing our eyes on Jesus, we can have stability, safety, and comfort amidst the evils of life.

When they land in Gennesaret, there are yet more sick and injured people seeking Jesus’ attention. Jesus takes the time to let all come to Him for healing. It is sooo cool that our God who is Creator, Savior, and Shepherd, has a heart for loving and healing us from our brokenness. This world has it’s evils, and plenty of them. But they don’t seem so daunting when you know the One who is seated on the throne and who loves you so. Not to mention the knowledge that He is preparing a place for us to be with Him forever, where there will be no more pain, and all our sorrows will be comforted. Jesus’ disciple John later writes of the coming hope that we have in Jesus:

“And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying,

                ‘Behold, the dwelling place of God is with man. He will dwell with them, and they will be His people, and God Himself will be with them as their God. He will wipe away every tear from their eyes, and death shall be no more, neither shall there be mourning, nor crying, nor pain anymore, for the former things have passed away.’”[3]

Pretty cool.

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[1] Matthew 14:13, Youth Paperback Bible p. 478.

[2] Matthew 14:28, YPB p. 479.

[3] Revelation 21:3-4, YPB p. 603.

Powerful Deeds and Parables

This week in youth group, we covered two different passages for junior high and high school. The high school session finished out Matthew 9, focusing on the mission and miracles of Jesus. The junior high session focused on Matthew 13, looking at two parables of Jesus and their explanations.

In Matthew 9[1], Jesus calls Matthew, (the writer of this gospel) who was a tax collector, to follow Him. Matthew apparently responds in faith, because he gets up and follows Jesus, leaving everything he had. At another time we find Jesus sharing a meal and reclining at a table with “tax collectors and sinners,” which the Pharisees see and rebuke. Tax collectors were naturally not respected by the Jews, because they betrayed their own people for the sake of serving the Roman government and by levying taxes higher than those which Rome required, keeping the extra money. Jesus’ response is quite interesting, however, because it tells us a great deal about God’s heart and personality. He says in verses 12-13, “Those who are well have no need of a physician, but those who are sick. Go and learn what this means, ‘I desire mercy, not sacrifice.’ For I came not to call the righteous, but sinners.” The Pharisees, being the religious leaders of Israel, had grown apathetic and lazy in their heart’s devotion to God and were rather known for their staunch adherence to the Law for the sake of their own pride, making a big deal of their ‘holiness’ and ‘worthiness’. God sees the heart, and Jesus sees through the Pharisees hypocrisy, telling them to meditate on the character of God, who desires the heart affection of a person more than the blood sacrifices or the other cultural works of righteousness that the Pharisees abounded in. God also carries a special love for those who are lost, broken, wounded, and needy. This is because God is good and He is a shepherd. During the JH hour I read a passage from Ezekiel 34 talking about the character of our loving God, who has Himself promised to seek the lost and bring healing and comfort to those who suffer. Here is a short snippet of God’s promise: “I myself will be the shepherd of my sheep, and I myself will make them lie down, declares the Lord God. I will seek the lost, and I will bring back the strayed, and I will bind up the injured, and I will strengthen the weak.”[2]Pretty cool huh? This is why Jesus spent so much time with broken sinful people of his day, because He cared for them even in their broken, sinful conditions.

Back in Matthew 9, Jesus continues to perform healing miracles for lots of people, receiving varying responses of faith, praise, doubt, and mockery. Jesus brings a dead girl back to life at the request of a faith-filled man. On the way there, he heals a woman who had suffered from a blood discharge for 12 years, because she has just enough faith to reach out and touch His garment. As news about Jesus spread out into all the surrounding region, two blind beggars living a life of despondency and dependence on the generosity of other people decide to seek Jesus out and ask for His healing. Jesus asks them, “Do you believe that I am able to do this?” They respond, “Yes, Lord.”  It takes a lot of faith for two blind guys to journey to another region in search of the new, popular healing-man in town! But often times Jesus will not heal or approach us unless we are willing to seek Him by faith. It’s hard to have faith and live by faith, but just the smallest portion of faith in seeking relationship with the Lord will move mountains of power.

Now to the parables… A parable is a story, true or made-up, that illustrates a greater point and gives meaning to life. Jesus give two stories, both centered around farming, seeds, and weeds, which his audience would be familiar with. In Matthew 13:1-9[3], a farmer sows seed out into his fields, and the seeds fall in hard soil, rocky/shallow soil, thorny soil, and good soil, each delivering different results. The hard soil is too hard for the seeds to penetrate, and rocky/shallow soil has no depth or room for seeds to live long in, the thorny soil contains great weeds that choke the seeds of all life and nutrients from the soil; it is only in the good soil that the seeds thrive and grow. Jesus explains this parable in verses18-23,[4] saying that the soils reflect different types of people, and by extension, different types of hearts. You can be a person with a hard, shallow, or occupied heart, and the “seed” of God’s truth will not flourish if it is not heard and accepted, allowed to grow and take depth in your life, or given energy undividedly from the cares of the world. But if you cultivate your heart to a humble and teachable condition, ready and eager to devote yourself to the truth of God, His Word can truly change you and work growth in your life.

The second parable, “The Parable of the Weeds” given and explained in verses 24-30 & 36-43[5] gives us a picture of God’s conclusive and preservative action at the end of days. Frankly, there is not going to be an apocalypse of zombies that ceases the progression of human evolution! The Creator of life on this earth will also be its consummation. Like a farmer who gathers his plants into the storehouses of his barn and gathers the weeds into the fire, so will God gather every cause of evil and sin, and every person who does not believe in Him, to everlasting destruction, and He will gather each and every person who placed faith in Him to everlasting safety and relationship. This is really a comfort and an eagerly-awaited expectation for God’s people! For even though good seeds presently have to endure alongside the evils of draining weeds, there will come a day when God will “wipe away every tear from their eyes, and death shall be no more, neither shall there by mourning nor crying, nor pain anymore, for the former things have passed away.”[6]

Oh for that day!

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[1] Matthew 9:9-38, Youth Paperback Bible p 475.

[2] Ezekiel 34:15-16, YPB p 421.

[3] Matthew 13:1-9, YPB p 477.

[4] Matthew 13:18-23, YPB p 478.

[5] Matthew 13:24-30, 36-43, “.

[6] Revelation 21:4, YPB p 603.

Faith and Healing

Hi there, thanks for reading! This blog is covering the youth group studies of the last two weeks in Matthew 8.[i] Previously we went through the Sermon on the Mount in Matthew chapters 5-7, which I may recap eventually. In these chapters Jesus gave us a lot of words to think about, but as He finished His “sermon” and came down from the mountain, Jesus started doing things that we get to look at now!

I was sick two weeks ago, and my lovely wife Jubilee did an excellent job covering for me and teaching about a leper and a centurion, both of whom encounter Jesus and experience the power of His healing because of their faith. Faith in Jesus is really the key to spiritual life! You will not be able to relationally experience the power of Jesus unless you first place your belief and trust in Him.

In Matthew 8:2-4 a leper (a man with the disease of leprosy) comes to Jesus, acknowledging Jesus’ ability to heal Him, if He willed. This has always stood out to me. I think that a lot of people, when the approach Jesus by faith, doubt or second-guess themselves about whether or not Jesus actually wants to accept them for who they are, or start a relationship with them. But Jesus responds to this leper saying “I will; be clean.” We can take heart knowing that when we approach Jesus by faith carrying our faults and infirmities with us, He does want to accept us and heal us. Don’t let yourself doubt the fact that He wants to love you!

A Centurion was a commander in the Roman army. Apparently, this centurion hears of Jesus, finds him, and asks Him to heal his paralyzed servant back at home. Jesus offers to follow the centurion, but the man stops Him saying that he understands what it is to have authority, and to see given orders completed without actually having personal oversight in the task. The Centurion basically is professing belief that Jesus is God! He shows faith simply in contentment to hear Jesus pronounce words of healing for his servant, believing that God can heal a man without having to physically be there. Jesus marvels at this foreigner’s faith and heals the servant simply by speaking. Jesus goes on to heal Peter’s mother-in-law, cast out demons from men who were possessed, and to calm the wind and waves of the sea during a storm, demonstrating His power and control over physical and spiritual realms. Really, there is no reason for us to fear any harm, because we know that God is in control over both physical and spiritual evils. Sometimes we will still experience harm and evil, because this world is broken by sin, but it is a great comfort to know that God is stronger than all evil, and that He is more than willing to help us should we but come to Him with our infirmities by faith.

Following Jesus will reward healing, and abundant life, both physically and spiritually speaking. But the decision to follow Jesus initially and in every day requires faith. Jesus is willing to heal, bless, and build relationships with us, but He often will wait to do so until we come to Him in humble belief. There are two men described in Matthew 8 that come to Jesus, willing to follow Him, but Jesus makes interesting statements that turn them away. The first man tells Jesus, “Teacher, I will go with you wherever You go.”  Jesus responds, “Foxes have holes, and birds of the air have nests, but the Son of Man has nowhere to lay His head…” and after this statement, we don’t hear from the first man again. Odd! But we don’t always consider that to follow Jesus means to be willing to give up all else in life, possibly even giving up the comfort, security, and familiarity of home. Apparently this first man wasn’t really willing to follow Jesus, not enough to go to the lengths of leaving his home comforts. A second man approaches Jesus saying, “Lord, let me first go and bury my father.”  And Jesus replies, “Follow me, and leave the dead to bury their own dead.” Again, odd reply, but we don’t hear from this man again either. Giving respect to our deceased parents and loved ones when they die is not wrong, but there could be a lot of things in this second man’s heart that prevented him from being willing to let go of everything to follow Jesus, such as the greed of collecting inheritance.

The point we get from the stories of both of these men is that, in order to follow Jesus, you have to be willing to leave everything else that is important to you behind. It doesn’t mean that there can’t be anything else in this life that is important to you; there are definitely good things and relationships that are valuable in God’s sight, and He isn’t asking us to throw those things away. God is asking us, however, to be willing to make following Him & seeking a relationship with Him the most important pursuit of our lives. Jesus is powerful, able to heal us, and He wants to forgive and love us unconditionally! It just takes a little faith.  

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[i] Matthew 8, Youth Paperback Bible p 474.