Category: Devotional

Mark 9: who is the greatest?

On By pastorjonathanIn Devotional1 Comment

In the middle of the passage the disciple begin to argue about who will be the greatest in the coming kingdom. Jesus knowing their hearts pulls up a small child and reminds the disciples that his kingdom is made of such. We are not to be fervent self-seekers, but rather ardent givers. We are to put others ahead of ourselves. In this way the first will be last and the last will be first. In essence everyone serves and gives to their ability, for God is not interested in what we have to bring him, but what he has to give us.

Sometimes we can fall into the pit of bitterness by thinking God owes us favor or respect over others. The truth is that we owe God more than we could ever pay for our salvation. To be part of hHis kingdom is reward in itself and to see others come into the kingdom and encourage one another along the way ought to be enough.

Mark 8: Don’t You Know Me By Now?

On By pastorjonathanIn Devotional1 Comment

Mark 8 begins with Jesus feeding the 4000 with a few loaves and fish. He did a similar thing with a crowd of 5000 back in Mark 6. Soon after feeding the crowd he gets in a boat with His disciples and heads across the lake. They land and are immediately met with a group of religious leaders demanding a sign. It’s important that we pause here and reflect. For anyone serious about seeing If Jesus were the messiah or not, there were already plenty of signs. Jesus had fulfilled prophecy, healed people, fed massive crowds on a few loaves and some fish, and even taught in the synagogues. But still these leaders were looking for a sign. A sign not to believe him, not to follow him, but a sign to test him.

Jesus responds that their won’t be a sign and hops back in the boat with the disciples and they head off on the lake again. While in transit Jesus mutters, “beware the leaven of the Pharisees” (religious leaders). The disciples think it’s a backhanded rebuke for forgetting to bring the bread. Jesus reminds the that he fed the 5000 and 4000 with just a few loaves of bread and fish. He doesn’t want bread, he wants them to be aware that the kind of doubt that is constantly looking for a sign (though plenty are evident) is both dangerous and contagious.

The point: When you already know the will of God follow it with obedience, don’t keep testing. If God has called you to ministry, go. If You know Gods will but refuse to follow for the sake of testing, isn’t that disobedience? I’ve heard other pastors tell stories of how they put the fleece out before God wanting Him to confirm something in their life (the fleece story comes from judges 6:36-40 where Gideon, knowing the will of the Lord (v36), puts out a fleece to confirm what he already knows). I can understand this if they are uncertain about an issue and want to know that God is in it or if they doubt their own heart and wonder if their motives might be mixed and need clarity. But to know the will of God, or in the case of Jesus, to know by signs, wonders, and prophecy that Jesus is the Messiah and to still demand a sign is flat out disobedience.

This kind of disobedience is contagious and dangerous. Whole congregations can be lead astray by doubting the will of God and refusing to follow on faith in His promises.

Mark 7: keep the main thing the main thing

On By pastorjonathanIn Devotional1 Comment

At the beginning of this chapter, Jesus’ disciples are taken to task by some of the religious leaders for not washing their hands. To be honest, washing your hands is very wise behavior. I was taught to wash my hands before meals as a child and still do on most occasions, even if I have to use hand sanitizer. I wash though to keep germs somewhat at bay and prevent disease. Again… Washing hands is very wise behavior. However, the issue arrises when the religious leaders raised the wise behavior to the level of the law and imposed it on the disciples.

Jesus immediately corrects the situation and calls the leaders on their hardness of heart. They were more concerned with what went in a person than what came out. Jesus declared that the heart was the issue. The disciples could have a right heart and practice some unwise behavior by not washing their hands. However, the religious leaders were in the habit of washing hands, but were far from God in their hearts as they were actually finding ways to dishonor heir parents while still appearing right with God.

The point is that God is most concerned with our actual obedience, not just the appearance of obedience. It’s easy to elevate wise behavior to the level of law and think that we are okay before God because we wash our hands, rinse our vegetables, and put a thermometer in our meat, but the real issue is are we testing God in obedience?

An Open Letter to all My Legalistic Friends

Mark 5: where are you going?

On By pastorjonathanIn Devotional1 Comment

Mark 5:19 – “Go Home to your friends and tell them how much the Lord has done for you, and how he has had mercy on you.”

I used to beg God to send me as a missionary to one of the darkest places on earth. I’ve heard that some people dread that God might call them to Africa, that wasn’t me. I have several friends who are now on or headed to the mission field, some of them from my own ministry. I have to admit sometimes I wish it were me. Who knows maybe one day God will call me to leave my country and go.

However, the last time God said “Go” it was just an hour away. So we sold our house, uprooted our family and moved an hour away; still in the South, still on the gulf coast, and in a town very much like the one we left. In a sense, we are still home.

I used to think that perhaps we were second rate Christians just trying to reach our neighbors and teenagers and stuff. After all we didn’t have to learn a new language or customs or anything. We just had to find a way past the fence.

I’ve come to find that by comparison it isn’t the darkest place on earth. There are a lot of churches that talk about the gospel here. (note: Have you ever tried to attend one as a guest? I’ve been to various churches my whole life. When we are on vacation it’s still one of the most intimidating things to walk into a new church as a visitor.) But I’ve come to find that there is still a lot of darkness here. There are actually still a lot of people who have never heard the gospel on the gulf coast. I know because I’ve shared with dozens who profess that they have never heard it before.

I used to ask God if I was missing his call. I used to wonder if I was a second rate Christian for going “home” with the gospel. I heard a missionary once say the question isn’t weather or not God is asking us to go, but if He is asking us to stay. I know he was well intended, but even if God calls us to “stay” home with the gospel, He is telling us to “go home” with the gospel. We should always be going with the gospel, even when we are going home.

The demon possessed man at the beginning of Mark 5 found freedom in Jesus and wanted to follow Jesus wherever he went, Jesus instead commissioned the man to “go” home with the gospel. If you are a believer the question isn’t, “should I stay or should I go?” It is, “where has God called me to go with the gospel?” are you sharing the gospel where you are?

Mark 4: Can you hear me now?

On By pastorjonathanIn Devotional1 Comment

Mark 4 opens with Jesus telling a parable. Most often this parable is called the parable of the “Sower,” however, the real action in this parable takes place in the soil.

At first the disciples don’t get it. They later ask Jesus what it means. Jesus responds that this was his plan… Those inside the Kingdom would know the meaning and those outside wouldn’t. Jesus had spoken this parable to a great crowd, but only a few wanted to really know what it meant. And this was exactly the meaning of the parable. I fear that many Sunday sermons in many churches are the same way. The pastor preaches, the word goes out just like the parable. Some hear, but their hardness of heart blocks them from really understanding the message perhaps they are bitter or angry and even though they receive the same “seed’ as everyone else Satan is able to immediately make sure that message is not understood or applied.

Others hear and are immediately excited about the implications of the message, but they are shallow and beneath the surface their is a hardness that won’t let the seed really take root. Satan doesn’t have to take this seed away their shallowness ensures that it will never come to anything.

The next group hears the word, and produce a plant, but at the same time other “weeds” are being cultivated in their life. These ones hear the word, practically understand it, but are unwilling to remove the competition from their lives. This is the rich young ruler who walked away from Jesus sorrowful because he had great possessions.

All of these soil/ heart types hear the same message, but it is obscured for various reasons. The word of God is unable to be cultivated because of the condition of the soil/ heart. So “they may indeed see but not perceive, and may indeed hear, but not understand, lest they should turn and be forgiven” (mark 4:12).

Those who actually receive the message without hardness, shallowness, or competition truly hear the word and run to Christ for forgiveness. They have a soil/ heart that produces fruit (evidence of the work of God in your life).

The point: are you actually hearing the word of God and letting have full effect in your life or are you dangerously hearing the word with no real fruit?

Take time today to examine your heart. What kind of response have you been giving to His word? Are you willing to confess a hard heart and ask God to break you? Will you confess shallowness, remove pride and ask God to take you deep? Will you take the idols in your life, the things that compete with with God’s word and remove them allowing God to truly reign in your life? Will you simply hear the word or will you truly seek to understand?

Mark 3: its your hard heart stupid

On By pastorjonathanIn DevotionalLeave a comment

We pick up in chapter 3 with the religious leaders of the day staring at Jesus all through jewish church (synagogue) wondering if He’s going to help the guy with the gimpy hand. They really don’t care about the guys gimpy hand, they just want to see if Jesus will break one of their rules (don’t work on the Sabbath, because I’m pretty sure no one thought of the “don’t heal on the Sabbath” rule till Jesus came along so they tried to slide it under, “don’t work” which was really just a rule to help them “rest” and worship God.)

When did your relationship become all about rules anyway? I’m not saying ditch the rules, but have we gone out of our way to make things sin that aren’t really sin at all? Then do we get mad when other people cross our imaginary boundaries built on preference? Jesus was mad and grieved because the religious guys had perverted the grace and provision of God to keep their brothers from God.

Mark 2: its not what you want, it’s what you need

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The chapter begins with the account of the how Jesus heals a paralytic man. The man’s friends show amazing faith by tearing up the roof and dropping the man in above Jesus. Jesus sees their great faith and forgives the man’s sin. This stuns the crowd. They expect a healing, many are doubtful that Jesus can even forgive sin. Jesus sees their doubt and authenticates his statement by healing the man.

It is apparent that the man needed healing, but his greater need was the forgiveness of his sins. I wonder if his friends knew this? I wonder if they would have been as aggressive to get him to Jesus if Jesus would have forgiven his sins, but left him a Paralytic? I wonder if we look at our neighbors, coworkers, and friends and don’t really see their greatest need is to trust in Christ for the forgiveness and remission of their sins? The good news is that Jesus forgives the sins of those who repent and turn to him. Who are you telling today?

Then Jesus calls Levi the tax collector to follow him. This outrages some of the religious people of the day. Tax collectors were considered to be great sinners. Jesus quickly shares his impression that just as sick people need a doctor, sinners need a savior and he has come to save.

Have you considered that Jesus came not to judge but to save? Great sinners need a great savior. When you see people apart from Christ living in great sin, do not be afraid. Jesus came to save sinners! You have great news to share. (Some people in my town are confused on this they think the gospel is shouting at people, “You’re going to Hell!” what they should really be telling people is that, “Jesus came to save you from Ever having to go to Hell.”)

Next the religious leaders come to Jesus because his disciples aren’t conforming to the religious pattern of the day by fasting. Jesus responds that when it’s time for them to fast, they will fast. There is a huge difference between conforming to tradition and genuine fasting. Genuine fasting will be wrought in the lives of the disciples over the next few years as they experience life with Jesus, witness his death and resurrection.

The religious leaders again approach Jesus over the issue of the Sabbath. Religious tradition had added so many rules to the Sabbath that they had obscured the real meaning. God made the Sabbath day as a gift for men, but the leaders had made it into a cumbersome burden for men to keep. People took great pride in being Sabbath keepers, but had lost the meaning.

Question: are more concerned with the appearance of righteousness than actually trusting God? Sometimes it’s easy for us to fall into the trap of trying to make ourselves look good by the things we do or no longer do. Jesus makes it clear that he didn’t come to help people who think they are doing well, but those who know that they aren’t.

Mark 1: this is just the beginning

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I was struck this morning with the words,”the beginning of the gospel.” As if to say, “This is just the beginning.” Though the work of Christ in saving sinners is finished and complete, sinners are still hearing the gospel, repenting of sin and believing on Jesus Christ. The gospel moves forward. Though we rely on the historical realities of Jesus’ death, burial, and resurrection… The good news is still heard today and believed for the first time. Jesus still delivers people from sin and shame to hope and freedom! The good news is still good news long after this gospel was written. Though it appears ancient, it is still fresh! This is just the beginning of how God made the way for men to come to Him. He is still delivering people from their sin today! Have you ever considered the gospel and trusted Christ to remove all your guilt and shame? Is the gospel still good news to you? Have you been actively taking up your part in the gospel and been sharing it with others? (Colossians 1:24).

I also saw the word “immediately” was used several times to describe the actions that were taking place. It was a time to move with great sobriety and urgency. Jesus had come to save all those who would ultimately trust him. When he called his disciples would leave everything with urgency and sobriety. What is God calling you to do that requires you to act today with great urgency and sobriety? Are you being immediately obedient to him?

If you hang out long enough at my house you will hear the phrase, “delayed obedience is disobedience.” when leading my children it’s important for them to act swiftly on my commands, not because I am a cruel dictator, but because I love my kids and I really only offer the commands for their safety and ultimate joy. I know a penny in the power outlet can earn a child a trip to the emergency room. So when I say, “put the penny down.” I’m not trying to steal my Kids joy, I’m actually acting to preserve her safety. A delay on her part can lead her to great pain and harm. She may rationalize that it’s just a penny and she really wants to put it in the wall. She may even be committed to putting the penny down after she trys this one thing.

Delayed obedience is really at it’s core disobedience. It’s saying, “I know better than you how things will work out for me.” It is a subtle attack on the character of God when we delay with our obedience to his call or command. We doubt His goodness, we doubt His ability to see what we can’t see, we doubt his love. Delayed obedience can be costly

Last, at the end of the chapter Jesus heals a man and urges him not to tell others, but rather go fulfill the customs and obligations of the day. The man ends up telling people and Jesus becomes famous. Jesus wasn’t looking for fame, Jesus was looking to honor the father. I’m sure to this one so miraculously healed it seemed contrary not to tell the whole town, he went with his gut instead. Sometimes if we aren’t careful we will follow our gut rather than obeying the Lord. How about you? Are you trusting the Lord? Are you trusting what God says about relationships? Money? Work? Etc…

The family tree changes here with me (1 Kings 15)

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My family tree changed the day my dad became a follower of Jesus Christ. I have no doubt about it. The legacy given me by my father is different than the one he received from his dad.

The same thing seems to happen here in 1 kings 15 when Asa reigns. He is 3 generations removed from David. The Nation has been divided. Both parts are slipping deeper and deeper into idolitry. Yet here Asa makes strong advances towards a resurgence of true worship. He removes idols and gets the perverts (the ones practicing a hyper-sexual form of worship dedicated to false gods). He even removes his grandmother from being the queen mother because of her idolitry and cuts her obscene idol into pieces and has it burnt.

The only thing he doesn’t do is remove the alters at the high places.

Application: we are not destined to repeat the sins of our fathers. Each person is responsible for their own relationship with the Lord.

Truth and Lies (1 Kings 13)

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1 Kings 13 tells the interesting story of an unnamed prophet. He speaks a prophecy against the false alter that Jereboam has set up. His prophecy is spectacular in that he calls the name of a future king who will as end to the throne some 300 years later.

Jereboam is angry at the prophet and reaches out to cause him harm, but God controls Jereboams hand and the prophet must pray for Jereboam to get the use of his hand back. The king Jereboam then tries a different tactic and tries to persuade the prophet to come over for a meal. The nameless prophet insists he must not stop for food and return home… For this was the command of the LORD.

Note: the message is clear. God’s prophets are not to be swayed… Either by force or by money, the word of the Lord is the word of the Lord.

At this point the story gets interesting as an older prophet enters the scene and persuades the nameless prophet to turn aside and done with him. Obviously he lies to the nameless prophet, but the apparent younger prophet is pursuaded to join the older in a meal (in opposition to the earlier revelation he had from God).

At the meal the older prophet rightly prophesies the death of the nameless prophet and it shortly comes to pass.

Application: the nameless prophetess used by God to utter one of the most spectacular prophecies, yet was easily decieved into not believing what the Lord told him, because of a lie told him by another prophet. How often are we like the nameless prophet? We will believe and know something is true, yet when confronted with our own tender areas of sinfulness we will be quick to make excuses as to why God would allow our particular version of sin.

This man would not be persuaded by a king, but would trust the advice of an old prophet over the Word of God.