Proverbs 14:4

Not having an ox makes it very easy to keep the stall clean and neat. You don’t have to do the hard work of cleaning up its crap.

But guess what.

You’re starving to death because you have no ox power to farm with!

When you’re not close to anyone, when you don’t really let anyone in to the deep parts of your life, you can keep everything pretty neat and tidy looking.  But we all know you’re starving.  You’re dying to tell someone what you’re struggling with.  You ache to connect, to know you’re not alone, to know you’re not a total weirdo.

Well, we’re all weirdos. We all struggle with that “one big thing.”  Everyone has it…or you’re lying.  If it’s anything we’ve learned in ministry, it’s that every single person struggles with something, no matter how neat and tidy the barn looks.

So you’re not perfect.  So you don’t have it all together all the time.  Big smelly deal!  Oh wow, like you’re sooooooo unique.  You mean you struggle with something?  Well you weak and pathetic loser, I have conquered all sin and temptation in my life, so I cannot hang out with you or listen to your confessional nonsense.

Right.

One of the greatest things we can offer people as followers of Jesus, is to listen without judgement. To embrace someone in their embarrassment and shame.  To be fully known and fully accepted.  This is the love of Jesus.

So it’s about time you sucked it up and joined the Struggling Weirdos Club, because we’re all members and Jesus knows it already.  It’s just that some of us haven’t applied for our membership card yet.  But oh how liberating it is when you officially sign up!  Your struggles start to lessen.  You go longer in between dark times, you recover more quickly, because you are sharing it, exposing it to the light, receiving support, taking it to the true Source of power and love that conquers all.

Do you want neat and tidy?  Or messy and meaningful?

Matthew 14:29-30

“Yes, come,” Jesus said.  So Peter went over the side of the boat and walked on the water toward Jesus.  But when he saw the strong wind and the waves, he was terrified and began to sink.  “Save me, Lord!” he shouted.

When you look down, you drown.

Looking to Jesus for guidance, inspiration, direction, and strength, you will no doubt do great things.

No matter who you are.

We can accomplish anything in the power of the resurrection.

Looking at the obstacles at our feet, we trip and fall.  Energy flows where direction goes.  Whatever you focus on, you give power to over your life.  Focus on the obstacles in your life, and you empower them to block you more and more from true life.  Focus on Jesus more, and you allow His power more into your life and over all darkness.  All authority has been given to Him.

As someone said,

Stop telling God how big your problems are, and start telling your problems how big your God is!

Proverbs 13:4

A sluggard’s appetite is never filled, but the desires of the diligent are fully satisfied.

One obvious reason the lazy person is not filled, and the determined person is satisfied, is follow thru, or lack thereof.

A sluggard does not finish anything.  He starts many things perhaps, but with no fulfilling of any end goal.  But a determined, diligent person will see something thru to completion.  There is great satisfaction in that, even in the trivial.

Learning the cool parts of songs on guitar is fun, but taking the time to learn a complete song, beginning to end, to the point of playing it with others, in front of people, is extremely satisfying.  It is way more fulfilling than just knowing short parts to a bunch of songs.

Do you finish what you begin?

Do you see things thru to completion?

Do you start many things without following them thru to completion?

Do you have too many irons in the fire, dabbling in much, mastering nothing or very little?

How fulfilled do you think you would be if you spent the bulk of your energy on your relationship with Christ everyday?

Proverbs 13:19

A longing fulfilled is sweet to the soul, but fools detest turning from evil.

One thing that will definitely keep you from a satisfying life is holding on to sin.

And we so hold on.  It has become a part of our very being, our daily functioning.  It is hard to let go.  But it only serves to inhibit us from abundant life, from knowing full fellowship with God thru Christ, empowered by the Holy Spirit.  Perhaps this is why John the Baptist’s message to repent was so vital in order to clear the way for Jesus and His kingdom.  He knew nothing could be fighting for your attention if you are going to live fully under God’s reign.

This is the pruning of John 15.  The gardner would cut away the part of the branch that was inhibiting the sap from getting all the way thru.  And it was not a cutting away from external things, but that which was internal growth.

This is painful.

But the freedom gained and experience of Life far outweigh the painful surgery.

Remember to keep your eyes always on what is gained, not upon that which will be lost.  Count the cost of both cutting something away as well as keeping something toxic in.

Matthew 13:44-46

The kingdom of heaven is like treasure hidden in a field.  When a man found it, he hid it again, and then in his joy went and sold all he had and bought that field.  Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a merchant looking for fine pearls.  When he found one of great value, he went away and sold everything he had and bought it.

Jesus looks to stir His hearers to sacrifice whatever is necessary for treasure that is greater and beyond any here on earth.

A key word in this passage seems to be “found.”  When these peeps found this item of great value, they then acted upon it decisively.

You know when you have found something of great value.  You act upon it, typically without much hesitation or even reservation, proportionately to its value to you.  The more you value something, the more you are willing to give up for it. (Perhaps this is a better way of saying “Whatever something costs you is exactly what it is worth to you.”) Those who have truly found Christ and experienced His immeasurable value, have acted decisively to make Him Lord of their life.  Some things are easier to give up than others, sure, but the more you experience Him, the easier it does become to shed away all that blocks you from Him.

You turn from things because they harm your highly valued relationship with Him, not merely because you’re not suppose to do this or that, or because it is against the rules.  Christ is much deeper than that.

Have you truly found the kingdom of God?

If you can’t say for sure, perhaps you should keep searching, and search diligently.  For all who diligently search, do find. This is promised us.

If you have not found it, perhaps ask yourself, “How hard have I been looking?”

Proverbs 12:5

The thoughts of the righteous are just.

How you think determines how you act, which determines your results, the fruit of your life.

What kind of person you really are is determined by what and how you think–which only God and you know.

How do you think of people?

All people.

When you’re in your coffin, you’ll be judged by how you loved people.

It is time for Christians to cease being selective of who we love.  Jesus’ standards for us in this area are pretty darn high.  He basically told us that if we love those who love us, who are kind to us, who give us a sense of significance and worth, then “la de frickin’ da.”

It is time for us to stop our contemptuous, looking-down-on, secret desire for eugenics, bigotry. It is unhealthy. It is unChristian. It is anti-Christ.

Here is an example of what is heard often: “If you want some entertainment, you should check out the people at the Beech Grove Wal-Mart!”  And this is from Christians.

Really?

Why would that be entertaining?

Are they not made in the image of God?  Or de we subconsciously believe they were made in the image of Trailer Park Satan?

Did Jesus die for them, just as He did for you?

Do you know them? Their stories? Each of them? Do you care for them? Have they harmed you in any way? Do they want and need to be known, cherished, and loved? And who should do that?

Sure, I see the humor. I’ve laughed at it before. And yeah, I get a little nervous at truck stops in small Indiana towns, especially with my Mexican wife. But isn’t there something better? Something higher for we who follow Jesus? As we mature in Christ, should we not start to see all people differently? With more love?

It is the love of God that changes the world and is the healing of the nations.  It is His love thru the church–which is not a building nor a 501-C-3, but it is people.  It is us.  It is you and me, loving the world with the actual love of Jesus thru us.

The greatest gift we can offer the world is to be one with God, so that His love may flow thru us and supernaturally touch all with whom we come into contact with.

What else is there?

Matthew 12:31-32

The “Unpardonable Sin.” Or “Unforgiveable Sin.”

What is it?

Here is some helpful commentary from The Gospel Transformation Bible:

Jesus speaks alarmingly here of a sin that cannot be forgiven (see also 1 John 5:16–17). It is important to consider this statement within its broader context in order to understand what it means. Jesus is responding to the claim of the Pharisees that he casts out demons by means of demonic power instead of the power of God’s Spirit (Matt. 12:24; Mark 3:28–30). This is the second time in the Gospel that the Pharisees have said this (cf. Matt. 9:34; see also 10:25), and between the first and the second occurrences of this verdict on Jesus’ exorcisms, they have hatched a conspiracy to kill him (12:14). Their “blasphemy against the Spirit,” then, is not an impulsive action or statement. It is rather a determined course of godlessness arising from a settled conviction that God’s chosen servant, on whom God has put his Spirit (v. 18), is an agent of the very demonic powers Jesus came to defeat.

Blasphemy against the Holy Spirit is the unchanging conviction that Jesus is evil. In essence, the only “unforgivable” sin is a conclusive rejection of Christ rather than a contrite reception of him.

Matthew 12:33-37

A tree is known by its fruit.

It is interesting to note that whenever final judgement is spoken of in the Bible, it states that we will be judged on our works.  We are saved by faith, but will be judged on our works, and not just in the big, sexy areas, but on how we actually lived the ordinary day to day, how we treated all others–especially those at the Beech Grove Wal-Mart and small town truck stops.

Proverbs 11:6

Caught by their own desires.

This is one of the things Jesus saves us from > our own desires.

Those who we may choose to call “masters” are the ones who are not ruled by their desires or expectations.  They have not ridded themselves of desires, but rather redirected them to more meaningful and satisfying ends.

Whatever you resist, persists.

Whatever you truly look at disappears, for you see it for what it really is…..

Something that is not God.

Matthew 11:11

Jesus said John the Baptist was the creates man born of women.

Quite the lofty pronouncement.

Yet, the person on the bottom rung of the Kingdom ladder is even greater than him.

If we are executing within God’s rule (kingdom), by His power available to us, then we are amazing and awesome. Because He is operating through us.

Proverbs 10:12

LOVE

FORGIVES

ALL

WRONGS.

Matthew 10:29-31

Two sparrows cost only a penny, but not even one of them can die without your Father’s knowing it.  God even knows how many hairs are on your head.  So don’t be afraid.  You are worth much more than many sparrows.

This time 2013, I was returning from my hiking trip to Colorado.  On that trip I was beautifully reminded of the greatness and immensity of YHWH.  One day we saw no other human beings or man-made structures for approximately seven hours while trekking up to somewhere near 12,000 feet.  We only witnessed the beauty of what He created.

Looking around at all that God made, I kept imagining Him saying, “It is good.”  This had a powerful effect on me as I would also notice the little animals scurrying around.  My thoughts can’t help but go to the fact that our Father is aware of every needle of every single evergreen out there, of every little critter running around the deepest part of every woods.  An impossible human task for even one square mile!

How much more He must care for me!  What have I to fear?  What have I to stress over?  “He is infinitely good, and He knows what He is doing,” as Brother Lawrence tells us.

I am so very important to our Father, and so very cared for every moment.  Remembering this and being reminded of it is vital to living  and experiencing Life that really is Life.  And forgetting this, for even one hour, leaves me hopelessly on my own.

Proverbs 9:9

Give to the wise, and they will be still wiser; inform the righteous, and they will add to their teaching.

Be mindful of putting your energy into good soil, even if you believe that that soil is already mature. None of us have fully arrived, and those with hearts of good soil will multiply what you give them.

We should never be intimidated by nor stop pouring into our leaders.

Matthew 9:5

Which is easier: to say, “Your sins are forgiven,” or to tell him, “”Stand up and walk”?

It was one thing to heal, quite another to forgive sins.

Think of what Jesus went through to forgive the world…..

Which was easier?

Proverbs 8:17

I love those who love me, and those who seek me diligently find me.

Wisdom is not hard to find or even attain, but one must pursue her. She loves those who love her and allows those who actually search for her to find her.  As Jesus instructed His followers, “Ask, and it will be given you; search, and you will find; knock, and the door will be opened for you. For everyone who asks receives, and everyone who searches finds, and for everyone who knocks, the door will be opened!”

Jesus does not turn anyone away who is diligently searching for Him. The same goes for wisdom. If you deeply desire it, you will obtain it.

Desire.

So much comes down to desire.

What do you really want?

I believe that if we can ask someone enough questions, they will answer with “Peace” every time. And with this, is love and joy.

A wise friend, I won’t mention his name (Luke Mertes), once said, “Jesus can only work with desire.”

That really stuck with me.  He woos us rather than forces us to love Him. In that way it is true love. Even in His infinitude, He does not violate us, tho it seems if anyone had the right to, it would be the One who gave us life.

Then another anonymous friend (Jenny Mullins) brought up the great point that God is working in you, giving you the desire and the power to do what pleases Him [Phi.2:13].  So there’s that seeming paradox of God choosing us and giving us desire for Him in the first place.  Perhaps you don’t have desire, but desire to have desire. Pray for it! I’d say if you ask, seek, and knock for desire for God, He will kindly grant it to you.

At the end of the day, we do what we want to do. What we’re willing to do. You will work so hard for what you want, whether it be a master’s degree, to run a marathon, to keep isolated from people…What if what you most wanted was to be a sincerely loving person? What would the training for that look like? Where would your time and energy need to go?

Matthew 8:23-27

Jesus calms a storm.

It’s interesting that the account given states that the disciples followed Jesus into the boat. Following Jesus will take us thru storms.  In the previous chapter, Jesus was ending His Sermon on the Mount with the story of the wise man who built his house upon the rock and that his house stood thru the storm because of that foundation. Scripture is clear that the stuff is gonna hit the fan in this life, even for those following Him.

But may we never forget that when these storms hit, Jesus is in the boat with us.  And the fact that He is sleeping in this account speaks to us that He is always calm and at peace, therefore a source of peace, in the middle of these storms.  So, like these disciples, we go to Him first.  Their situation here vividly shows they had nowhere else to go, no one else to turn to.  And that really is our situation all the time, we just don’t see it.  Turning somewhere else in our storms would’ve been like these disciples scrambling to build a storm shield out of pieces of the boat they tore off, or sometimes what we do is the foolish equivalent of these guys  thinking they could somehow construct a laser cannon storm destroyer so they could save themselves. Not gonna happen.

So in the midst of the crapstorm, go immediately to the one who is calm and at rest, for that will also give you peace–when you experience His peace.  We want to go to the calm person when something is hectic. My brother and brother-in-law are both paramedics. I would want them around if someone is choking, passing out, having a heart attack, etc., because they have trained themselves to remain calm in adverse situations such as these, so they can think and act and do what is needed to be done.

We can train ourselves in similar fashion as we go to Jesus every time in every adverse situation. That will become our default setting as our neurons fire accordingly to set these new pathways in the brain. We will blaze that trail.  After a while, we will remain calm and at peace when the stuff of life hits because we know who is in the boat with us, that He is at rest, and that He has power over every single storm. And we can have His peace, as long as we forsake the foolish Storm Destroyer Laser Cannon idea and go to Him.

Matthew 7:21-23

“Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only the one who does the will of my Father in heaven.  On that day many will say to me, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name, and cast out demons in your name, and do many deeds of power in your name?’  Then I will declare to them, ‘I never knew you; go away from me, you evildoers.’

These are some very intense words of Jesus.

People can do great things in the name of Jesus while missing out on the vital participation in covenantal intimacy with Him.

It reminds us of the far too common story of the father who provides for his children, prioritizing “food on the table” and “clothes on their backs” at the expense of a real relationship with them. The harsh determined provision overshadows the intimacy of knowing his children and being known by them.

We can imagine later in life, the dad arguing his case with the exclamatory self-justification, “You always had what you needed!” But the son or daughter replying, “Dad, I don’t even know you! The one thing I needed was you–so I didn’t have what I needed because we never even took the time or made the effort to get to really know each other. All I wanted was you. And I never had you.”

Proverbs 7

In wisdom literature, such as Proverbs here, we get that unique “Wisdom From Below” that is observational more than “God said do or don’t do this.” This is what makes Proverbs such an interesting book of the canon.

We look at the rhythm of life and see what works and what doesn’t. What works for people–brings them happiness and flourishing? And what does not?

Then we can ask ourselves the same thing. Where will what I’m doing lead? Has anyone gone this path before? Where did it take them? Perhaps you have cut someone off from your life, you’ve quit talking to them over some incident, disagreement, dispute. You’re giving the silent treatment. Who has done that before that you’ve observed? How did that go for them? Did it bring what they truly desired?

Matthew 6:7-8

And when you pray, do not keep on babbling like pagans, for they think they will be heard because of their many words.  Do not be like them, for your Father knows what you need before you ask him.

The pagans of Jesus’ day would pray to many gods, trying to invoke them to action through a sort of magical incantation of the right repetition of words.  But Jesus tells us to pray to the one true God from a heart of love for Him.

We don’t need many fancy words, because He already knows what we need.  Our prayers should be more conversational then, than incantational.

So why pray if He already knows what we need?

Well, since prayer is conversation with God, it is vital to our relationship-building with Him.  To know someone well, you spend time conversing with them.  And as we do this more, we also align our desires with God’s.  The more we pray in this manner Jesus shows us, the more we embed His values into our daily ethic.

And yes, as the bumper sticker sates, “Prayer changes Things.”  This is true.  “The biblical facts are clear: God’s changeability, not least of which is to withdraw judgement upon repentance, is far more often part of the biblical narrative than the rather rare comment that God is unchangeable, which pertains to God’s utter faithfulness to promises,” says Scot McKnight.  And if that’s not true, if God has every single minute action set in stone, then there would be no real point in praying in any sort of petitional (made up word) sense at all would there?

It appears from Scripture that God’s overall plan is established and known to God while at the same time He grants us freedom within that plan.  To quote McKnight again, “In this model, prayer changes things, and I believe the biblical models of prayer, from Abraham to David to Elijah to Isaiah to Jesus to Paul and the early churches, affirm this interactive model in which prayer sometimes alters the path of history within the overall plan of God in response to the prayers of God’s people. The upload from this theoretical sketch is that our yearning and our aching for God’s name to be hallowed, for God’s kingdom to come, and for others to experience the blessing of God can prompt God to actions that satisfy those yearnings and aches.”

So, while we do not pray in a wordy, incantational fashion, we do pray, and we ask over and over again for what we need within the realm of God’s kingdom (as we see in other parts of Scripture, namely Luke 11 & 18).

How is this different?

Again, could it be more for us than God? He knows how praying for something good multiple times positively affects our brain, our heart, our soul.  Also, something to ponder is the “test” of desire.  How badly do we want something we ask for only once? Twice even?  When my daughters really want something, you better believe they ask no fewer than twenty-seven times for it within a four minute period. And this does demonstrate to me that this may be something they truly desire.  They also ask for what seems like hundreds of things throughout the day, everyday that they soon forget, which shows me they did not really desire those things hardcore.

If you truly want God’s will to be done in a given situation, chances are you’ll pray more than once for it.

What have you prayed multiple times for and seen come to fruition?

What and who do you pray for daily? weekly? regularly?

Proverbs 6:19

God hates it when you cause conflict in community, when you stir up disunity.

God hates it.

Think about that.

Let this sink in, especially when you are the cause of a rift within God’s community of believers.

Yes, Jesus does drive people apart (Mt.10:34-36), but for those who trust and follow Him, they should be the most unified, peaceable people on the planet.

And yes, I will use this quote for the 100th time:

“Don’t you know that a hundred pianos all tuned to the same fork are automatically in tune with each other?”

-A.W. Tozer

Proverbs 5:3

For the lips of the immoral woman drip honey, and her mouth is smoother than oil;

In Israel, the term “immoral woman” referred to one of three things: (1) idolaters who were outside the covenant, (2) Israelites who had once walked with God but turned aside to worship other gods, (3) those in Israel who were unfaithful to their husbands. Each of these contexts speaks of betrayal and forsaking a covenant.

Proverbs 5:15-20

In this passage, “fountains” and “streams” are images used to illustrate sex and its boundaries of propriety. Pictured here is the foolishness of sexual promiscuity: one should neither seek sex from (5:15), nor offer it to (5:16-17), anyone other than his or her spouse.

Proverbs 5:18-20

In erotic language that is similar to Song of Solomon, these verses describe intimacy between a husband and wife. Sexual expression is given by God for the delight of married couples. When marriage is viewed chiefly as a business arrangement, human passion seeks other outlets.

-from The Jeremiah Study Bible

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Matthew 5:1

Jesus has just called his first disciples to follow him (4:19, 21), and they have enthusiastically responded to his call to join him in gathering people into the kingdom in the same way they once gathered fish from the sea (4:19; 13:47). Now Jesus begins to teach his disciples how their own lives can serve as examples to others of what the kingdom of God will look like when it comes (5:1–7:29).

“The Sermon on the Mount” (chs. 5–7) is structurally similar to the Mosaic law. Like the Mosaic law, it begins with a reminder of God’s blessing and grace. The first five beatitudes (5:3–7) emphasize that God’s blessing comes to those who understand their need of his mercy, just as the Mosaic law begins with a reminder of God’s gracious rescue of his people from slavery in Egypt (Ex. 19:4; 20:2). Also like the Mosaic law, the Sermon on the Mount describes the way of life that God calls his people to display as a means of showing the world the character of its Creator. Israel was to be a kingdom of priests, mediating God’s character and will for the rest of humanity to all the earth (Ex. 19:5–6). Jesus’ followers are to be salt and light in the world so that it might see their good works and glorify God (Matt. 5:13–16). In addition, both the Mosaic law and the Sermon on the Mount end with a description of the blessing that comes to those who follow their teaching and the trouble that comes to those who disobey (Leviticus 26;Deuteronomy 28–30; cf. Matt. 7:24–27).

It is important to avoid two errors in interpreting the “Sermon on the Mount.” First, it is not a description of the requirements for entering the kingdom of God. Jesus taught this material to those who had already responded to his call to follow him (4:18–22; 5:1). Second, it is not an idealistic description of the way life will function after God has fully established his kingdom in the future. In that day, there will be no need to turn the other cheek (5:39). Rather, these teachings are a description of what life looks like for followers of Jesus as they try to be faithful to him and to the values of God’s kingdom in a world that God has not yet fully transformed. They are about living as ambassadors of God’s kingdom in a foreign land. In short, the Sermon shows us what life should look like for a heart that has been melted and transformed by the gospel of grace, while also making clear the true nature of God’s standards of righteousness—high standards which mean that our right standing with God is ultimately dependent on the grace of the One who tells us of them.

Matthew 5:3-7

These first five blessings affirm an important principle for understanding the Sermon on the Mount. The Sermon is not an instruction manual for winning God’s favor. Rather, it describes how God wants those to live who have already been transformed by his grace because they have understood their weakness and need for his mercy. The “poor in spirit” (v. 3) are those who know that they, as sinners, do not have the spiritual resources necessary to carry out God’s demands. “Those who mourn” and who “hunger and thirst for righteousness” (vv. 4, 6) have experienced the disaster that disobedience to God has brought to the world. Because they understand their true position of weakness before God, the “meek” (v. 5) have a humility that translates into treating others with kindness. The “merciful” are those who understand their own need for God’s mercy (v. 7).

Matthew 5:13-16

The Sermon on the Mount describes how those who have already decided to follow Jesus (4:18–22; 5:1) are called to demonstrate the character of God and his kingdom through the character of their lives.

Matthew 5:17-48

The Mosaic law is God’s truthful, eternal word that continues to stand as a witness to his character and his gracious, redemptive work among his people (Ps. 19:7–11; Psalm 119; Rom. 7:12). This does not mean, however, that it is to be observed by God’s people after Jesus’ coming in the same way that it was observed among his people before Jesus came. When Jesus says that he came to “fulfill” the Law and the Prophets (Matt. 5:17), he means that both the Law and the Prophets pointed forward to his teaching. They brought the purposes of God to a certain point in the story of God’s redemptive work among his people, and Jesus’ teaching then picked up their message and completed it.

The Mosaic law was intended to govern Israelite society during the time when it functioned as a nation-state. It had to include legislation for governing all those who lived within the boundaries of political Israel, whether their hearts had been transformed by God or not, and thus whether they were part of the people of God or not (vv. 21, 27, 31, 33, 38). So, for example, on the question of divorce, the Mosaic law had to make provision for people whose hearts were hard and who were unconcerned about God’s original purposes for marriage (19:8).

In contrast, the Sermon on the Mount shows what the eternal principles that undergird the Mosaic law look like in a society of people who have turned away from the attractions of sin and have decided to follow Jesus. The Sermon on the Mount, then, does not describe how governments should seek to establish a just society, but how believers in Jesus Christ should live within a sinful world.

Matthew 5:20

The “scribes and Pharisees” encounter severe criticism from Jesus throughout Matthew’s Gospel (12:38–45; 15:1–14; 23:1–39). Their basic problem lies in the contradiction between the condition of their hearts and their outward professions and acts of piety (15:8; 23:3–7). This contradiction was revealed especially in their neglect of the law’s fundamental concern with justice, mercy, and faithfulness in favor of demonstrating to others their superior expertise in the law’s minutia (23:23).

Exceeding the righteousness of the scribes and the Pharisees, then, is a matter of obeying God from a fundamentally changed heart. This is a heart that reaches beyond the legalistic boundaries of the law to its compassionate purposes, while simultaneously recognizing its own spiritual poverty apart from God’s mercy (5:3, 6–7).