Tag: reading

Faithful Men and Women (Hebrews 11-13)

On By pastorjonathanIn DevotionalLeave a comment

Hebrews 11:6 ESV And without faith it is impossible to please him, for whoever would draw near to God must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who seek him.

Hebrews 12:2 ESV looking to Jesus, the founder and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is seated at the right hand of the throne of God.

We often learn by following someone else’s example. We need to be shown what something looks like when it is lived out. We might grasp what faith is on an intellectual level, but demonstrating it in our own life in the midst of persecution might be challenging. Especially if we are young in the faith.

Writing to a young church who is experiencing persecution, the writer of Hebrews demonstrates what faith in God looks like. He examines the lives of different individuals throughout the Old Testament. He demonstrates the core aspects of faith (believing that God exists and he rewards those who seek him – 11:6), through the lens of different Old Testament saints.

In chapter twelve we are challenged to not be lazy, but to diligently lay aside the things that would stop us from demonstrating real, biblical faith in our own life. We are reminded that we are not the first to discover faith in the midst of persecution. And we are also reminded that Jesus has blazed the trail ahead of us when it comes to trusting God the Father in the mist of suffering. Indeed He is the, “Founder and Perfecter of our faith” (12:2).

My big takeaways today were two fold. 1. In Preaching and teaching, it doesn’t hurt to use examples and “case studies” to demonstrate doctrine as applied to everyday life. Indeed this might be exactly what a less mature audience (5:12) might need. 2. Am I laying aside the things that hinder me from pursuing God in faith? What “weight” can I lay aside? For me it’s not watching a few hours of TV this week that I might normally watch, so I might have time to study the Word of God more.

Father, thank you for your word. Thank you that you demonstrate what faith looks like. Thank you for the stories we have in the scriptures of so many individual who have walked with you. Thank you that we can learn what faith looks like. Thank you that we can lay aside the things that hinder us from growing in a relationship with you. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.

RESOURCES:

Last Year’s Post

Books:

Join us in reading though the New Testament in 90 Days! You can find the plan and previous posts here.

Consider One Another (Hebrews 9-10)

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Hebrews 10:24-25 ESV And let us consider how to stir up one another to love and good works, (25) not neglecting to meet together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another, and all the more as you see the Day drawing near.

The church is the people, not the place or the programs. Sometimes the church meets in a certain place and has programs, but do not be mistaken, the church is the people. There is something special that happens when we gather together. We come in as individuals with strengths and weaknesses. We come in with different personalities, spiritual gifts and talents. Yet, as we gather together for the purpose of worship, fellowship, discipleship, ministry, and evangelism we find fulfilment in the gospel and in one another. God has given us our brothers and sisters in Christ to aide in our spiritual development.

As a pastor I get a front row seat to see the congregation gathered together each Sunday. I see folks going through trials in life blessed by those who use their talents to sing and introduce a new song or hymn to the congregation. I see those who are discouraged become encouraged by the words of faithful friends. I see the formerly lonely now greeted with handshakes, hugs, and high-fives. I see individuals praying with one another through times of crisis and celebration. I see tears of sorrow made more bearable by those who silently come along side and offer comfort. I see a lot of things.

Sometimes we are tempted to think when we skip out on meeting together that the only things we are missing are the songs and the sermon, but what we really miss is the life of the church. We are told to consider one another. This text was originally written for a church that was suffering persecution. They weren’t able to meet in public places. Yet they are told not to forsake assembling together… because they needed each other. They needed to be there for their brothers/sisters and they needed their brothers/sisters there for them. We are foolish today if we don’t think that we need each other as well. We should strive to meet with our brothers and sisters in Christ whenever we can.

Father, thank you for your church. Thank you that you have given us brothers and sisters in Christ. Give us grace to know how to help, encourage, and strengthen our brothers and sisters in Christ when they need is. May they always be there for us in real and tangible ways. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.

RESOURCES:

Last Year’s Post

Join us in reading though the New Testament in 90 Days! You can find the plan and previous posts here.

There is Mercy! (Hebrews 6-8)

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Hebrews 8:12 ESV For I will be merciful toward their iniquities, and I will remember their sins no more.”

I don’t know where you are in your relationship with the LORD, but how great to know that He is a God of mercy. How good it is to know that my sins are forgiven and indeed forgotten by God. We don’t deserve this kind of mercy. We could never earn it. The only way to receive it is as a gift from God.

Father, thank you for your overwhelming mercy today. There is so much to consider in your word, but I marvel that you should love me like this to forgive my sins. Thank you for your overwhelming goodness that is so evident in my life. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.

RESOURCES:

Last Year’s Post

Join us in reading though the New Testament in 90 Days! You can find the plan and previous posts here.

Milk or Meat? (Hebrews 3-5)

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Hebrews 5:11-14 ESV About this we have much to say, and it is hard to explain, since you have become dull of hearing. (12) For though by this time you ought to be teachers, you need someone to teach you again the basic principles of the oracles of God. You need milk, not solid food, (13) for everyone who lives on milk is unskilled in the word of righteousness, since he is a child. (14) But solid food is for the mature, for those who have their powers of discernment trained by constant practice to distinguish good from evil.

We set different levels of expectations on individuals due to their age or experience. For example we might expect a 1 year old to crawl and start taking first steps. We might expect a 15-16 year old to be interested in driving and learning to drive. We might expect a 2nd grader to tie their shoes. Each of these abilities/ milestones open them up to even more freedom and experiences down the road.

The author of Hebrews has some down the road information the he wants to share with this church, but they are too immature. They won’t be able to stomach it, because they are still dependent on others to spoon feed them the world of God. He wants to give them milk, but they are delayed in their development. They can’t take the next steps, because they haven’t taken the first steps to grow.

So often we look at spiritual giants and imagine that they took a leap to get there. The reality is that they just obeyed the LORD to take the next step in their growth and the next step, and the next step, through to maturity. We can look at the other end of the spectrum and see those who for whatever reason failed to take the next step towards maturity and so languish as spiritual infants. The question before us is what will we do with what we have been given? Will we grow to maturity?

Father, thank you that you give us milk and meat of your word. Thank you that you have given us teachers and pastors to lead us to maturity. We pray for grace to take the next steps to grow in faith that we might not need the milk, but can go straight to the meat. I pray that we would be those who press on and grow to maturity in Jesus Christ. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.

RESOURCES:

Last Year’s Post on Hebrews 3-5

Join us in reading though the New Testament in 90 Days! You can find the plan and previous posts here.

He is Able to Help (Hebrews 1-2)

On By pastorjonathanIn DevotionalLeave a comment

Hebrews 2:18 ESV ) For because he himself has suffered when tempted, he is able to help those who are being tempted.

Pastoring is a difficult calling. It has a tremendously high burnout rate in America. There are many who begin in ministry, but few who end there. There are so many aspects of what a pastor does that are difficult to convey to those who have never done it. It helps to speak to other men who are currently serving or who have served as a pastor before because they can help shed light on some of the challenges you face. Fellow pastors can sympathize and pray with insight because they know the difficulty of the calling.

When it comes to dealing with temptation we have the advantage of being able to talk with Jesus. It’s not as though Jesus doesn’t know the struggle of temptation. When he stepped into humanity he faced temptation, yet was able to resist (Matthew 4). He can intercede for us with insight. He knows what temptation is like. He can also give us grace to prevail as one who has succeed in overcoming temptation.

That’s the point here. Jesus isn’t just a perfect sacrifice for our sins. He also is a perfect priest who offers the sacrifice and stands between us and the Father. We can pray with confidence in Jesus’ name because he has walked in a sinful world and experienced first hand what temptation is like.

In context, the larger point here is that Jesus is better than the angels. He didn’t come as an angel to intercede for fallen angels. He doesn’t need to intercede for those who haven’t fallen. He has come for fallen humanity who trusts in him with simple faith like Abraham. Accept no substitute for the one true mediator between God and man, that is Christ Jesus. No one else has both the divine and human nature. No one else knows both temptation and the victory of a sinless life. There is no other way to God but through Jesus.

Father, thank you that Jesus is my mediator. Thank you that he knows my weakness in temptation but has also overcome temptation. There is salvation in no other name. I’m provoked to praise today when I consider that your love for us is greater than I can imagine as I see a glimpse of just how much Jesus took on that I might come to you in Faith. I rejoice to be able to pray In Jesus’ Name, Amen.

RESOURCES:

2020 Post on Hebrews 1-2

Join us in reading though the New Testament in 90 Days! You can find the plan and previous posts here.

Motives Matter (Philemon)

On By pastorjonathanIn DevotionalLeave a comment

Philemon 1:14 ESV but I preferred to do nothing without your consent in order that your goodness might not be by compulsion but of your own accord.

Motives matter. Paul wrote this letter to Philemon about Onesimus, a slave (indentured servant) that had stolen from Philemon and ran away to Rome. While in Rome Onesimus meets Paul and becomes a Christian. He then begins to help Paul and is being discipled. It’s a great working relationship, Onesimus is growing in the Lord and Paul has an assistant. But there is a problem, Onesimus’ past can’t be left in the past. He is still unreconciled to his former boss and he legally owes him for everything he had stolen. What to do?

Paul had a choice on what to do. He could have sent a letter presuming that it was okay for Onesimus to serve as Paul’s helper in Rome. He was an apostle, the polite thing to do would be to let the matter go. If he did that, Philemon might feel like his hand was forced in the matter and be a little bitter. Onesimus also wouldn’t have an opportunity to really address his past sins and how they affected others. He wouldn’t really be reconciled to Philemon. And Philemon wouldn’t really be given an opportunity to forgive Onesimus and demonstrate grace.

So rather than opting for the practical, ends-justify-the-means, pragmatic logic, Paul goes for the uncomfortable, but right approach. He sends Onesimus back, giving Philemon an opportunity to forgive him and send him of his own free will. It gives Onesimus an opportunity to look his former employer and man he stole from, in the eye and ask for forgiveness. It gives Paul an opportunity to honestly ask for assistance in the form of a helper from Philemon’s estate known as Onesimus.

Motives really matter. Sometimes to grow in our relationship with Christ we need to embrace the difficult steps of doing the less pragmatic, but right thing. We may need to address sin in our lives that has affected others. We may need to ask help and assistance in non-manipulative ways. We may need to simply offer forgiveness and entertain the pleas of those who have hurts us. We don’t really know how the rest of this drama unfolded, but we do know that because Paul didn’t cut corners that He, Philemon and Onesimus all had an opportunity to grow in Christ because of it.

Father, thank you for the grace to address one another. Show us how to handle our past sins and seek repentance and reconciliation. Give us grace to forgive those who have sinned against us. Show us how we can honor you in how we deal with others. Thank you for how the gospel transforms every area of our live. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.

RESOURCES:

Previous Post on Philemon

Join us in reading though the New Testament in 90 Days! You can find the plan and previous posts here.

Teach What Accords with Sound Doctrine? (Titus)

On By pastorjonathanIn DevotionalLeave a comment

Titus 2:1 ESV But as for you, teach what accords with sound doctrine.

Everyone needs a little help and encouragement from time to time. I’m trying to undo years of unhealthy eating habits in my life and start a lifestyle of healthier eating. I’ve known for years about how to eat healthier. My problem was that I wasn’t applying my knowledge to my choices. I was making choice based on other things that what would ultimately be best for me. Since I’ve started changing my lifestyle I’ve enlisted other to help make sure that my actions matched my profession.

What’s at stake with the gospel is infinitely more important than eating habits. Paul charges Titus to teach others not just sound doctrine, but the lifestyle that flows out of sound doctrine. It’s not enough to know the gospel, we must live out the gospel in our daily lives. We need all sorts of folks to help us with that (not just the pastor). We need the body of Christ to help us.

I was so encouraged this week as I heard from one of our members about a time in her life when she was greeted and surrounded with encouragement by several ladies in our church. It was their faithful ministry through dark days that really helped her grow. She learned not only doctrine, but practical application through the loving witness of these ladies.

Father, thank you for your Word that is Truth. Thank you that it has the incredible power to transform our lives. Thank you for the men and women you have put in our lives to help model gospel faithfulness. Give us grace to follow hard after you all of our days. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.

RESOURCES:

Join us in reading though the New Testament in 90 Days! You can find the plan and previous posts here.

Pray for the President (1 Timothy 1-3)

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1Timothy 2:1-3 ESV First of all, then, I urge that supplications, prayers, intercessions, and thanksgivings be made for all people, (2) for kings and all who are in high positions, that we may lead a peaceful and quiet life, godly and dignified in every way. (3) This is good, and it is pleasing in the sight of God our Savior,

We should pray for our rulers, good or bad. We should pray for the peace of our nations. We should pray for good legislation, good laws, good rulings in the courts, etc. We should also pray that we’d be kept from bad legislation, bad laws, and bad court rulings. No matter who is governing and how they are governing, we should be praying for our leaders to lead in a good way and against them ruling in a bad way.

The motivation for praying for our leaders is that we would be able to lead a peaceful and quiet life. Christians should make the best citizens, especially when rulers are seeking the good of their people. There are times where Christians aren’t able to lead quiet lives because of persecution or because of the morally outrageous leadership. Yet even in those times we are praying for our leaders.

One source I looked at this morning seems to indicate that when Paul wrote this that Nero was the emperor and he had already burned Rome. If Paul could suggest that we pray for Nero, we certainly can pray for our presidents regardless of which party they are from. Praying for our leaders doesn’t mean we endorse everything they do. Indeed in some cases it may be praying against their efforts to disrupt our lives with immoral legislation. We may be praying they have a change of heart. Yet, we will be praying for our leaders.

Christianity and Politics can be tough to navigate. In the resource section there are several links provided, including to a few books that I’ve found helpful.

Father, thank you for the privilege of praying for our leaders. We pray for those who have authority over us and ask that they would make good decisions for our country and be kept from making bad ones. We pray that legislation designed to impede religious liberty would be met with frustration and fall apart. We pray that you would protect the weakest members of our society from those who would destroy them. We pray for the spiritual lives or our leaders. We pray for their health and well being. May we be able to lead peaceful and quiet lives. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.

RESOURCES:

Websites

Books

Join us in reading though the New Testament in 90 Days! You can find the plan and previous posts here.

Tough Conversations About Helping Those In Need (2 Thessalonians)

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2Thessalonians 3:13-15 ESV As for you, brothers, do not grow weary in doing good. (14) If anyone does not obey what we say in this letter, take note of that person, and have nothing to do with him, that he may be ashamed. (15) Do not regard him as an enemy, but warn him as a brother.

Sometimes we need to have tough conversations in the church. In this situation there were folks who were taking advantage of the grace and goodness of others. They were able to work, but weren’t working. Instead they were obligating others to feed them. They showed up and implied that a good Christian man or woman would look out for the needs of their neighbors. The problem in this case was that they didn’t have needs, they were able to work and earn for themselves. They were just really lazy.

I’m sure this frustrated those who had been so giving to others, to see their generosity taken for granted. Perhaps it frustrated them to the point that they didn’t want to be generous at all anymore. If people just become entitled, what’s the point? They may have used the entitlement of a few to justify not helping others at all. The problem is that there were some folks who really needed the help and were looking for a hand up and not just a hand out.

So Paul writes that we aren’t to grow weary in doing good. We should still be generous and help those who need it. Yet when we discover someone who is able to work and won’t work, we must stop enabling them. The goal of shutting someone out wasn’t to disfellowship them completely, but to restore them to fellowship. Paul reminds the Thessalonians that these folks hadn’t become enemies, but that they were still brothers. They just really needed to have a tough conversation and a little help to the understand the scripture that says, “If anyone is not willing to work, let him not eat” (2 Thessalonians 3:10).

A Strong work ethic is part of Christian doctrine. I’ve written more on this blog about addressing issues of poverty, moral obligation and generosity. I’ll include the titles and links to those posts at the end of this post under resources.

Father, thank you for the radical generosity we have experience from you. We ask Lord for wisdom in mirroring that generosity to others. We want to demonstrate grace in all that we do, yet we don’t want to encourage idleness, dependency, and entitlement. Give us wisdom on how to not grow weary in doing good, but to also encourage the idle to work and help them come to maturity in Christ. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.

RESOURCES:

Book Resources* on Poverty

Last Year’s Post on 2 Thessalonians

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Are You Ready? (1 Thessalonians 4-5)

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1Thessalonians 5:2-3 ESV For you yourselves are fully aware that the day of the Lord will come like a thief in the night. (3) While people are saying, “There is peace and security,” then sudden destruction will come upon them as labor pains come upon a pregnant woman, and they will not escape.

You’ve heard of the ancient city of Pompeii. The city was located near a volcano named Mount Vesuvius. On the day that Mount Vesuvius erupted, everyone in Pompeii was going through their daily routines. What they didn’t know was that beneath the surface pressure was building, hot molten rock was moving, and the volcano they lived near would soon erupt. Everything was normal that day, until it wasn’t. In a split second everything changed. Hot deadly ash covered the city killing everything and preserving a snapshot of ancient Roman life for future generations to discover.

Paul reminds us that the return of Christ will happen very suddenly. The world won’t be waiting or expecting His return. Many so called Christians may even be lulled to sleep by the lullaby of everyday life. They will miss the signs of His return. In an instant everything will change. There won’t be time on that day to get ready for what is happening. The only way to be ready for that day is to be ready beforehand.

The question we should as ourselves in reflection is, “are you ready?”

Father, thank you for your Word. Thank you that you tell us about the eminent return of Christ. I pray that we’d be ready. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.

RESOURCES:

Last Year’s Post

Join us in reading though the New Testament in 90 Days! You can find the plan and previous posts here.