HE SAYS: I am a Skunk in Heaven.

HE SAYS

I am a Skunk in Heaven.

In the 7th chapter of The Gospel of Mathew, Jesus says:

“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 who is in heaven.  Many will say to me on that day, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name and in your name drive out demons and in your name perform many miracles?’  Then I will tell them plainly, ‘I never knew you. Away from me, you evildoers!’

The wonder of wonders is that God knows me.  I know this because he answers my prayers, even little insignificant prayers, but I do not know nor will never know, in this life, why the infinite, self-sufficient, holy creator of the universe pays any attention to me. 

• God does not need me. 
• He does not owe me anything. 
• He cannot stand the stench of my sin.

Yet, He has chosen to love me.  He has given me the ability to do His will.  He has even made me an heir of heaven.  By giving me His Holy Spirit, He has invited me into the eternal relationship of the trinity.

To put this in perspective, I think it is like me inviting a skunk into my home.  No sane person would do this unless they had a way to eliminate the skunk's odor.

Jesus has done this.  His blood has covered my sins and made it possible for me to live in heaven with our Lord.  Alleluia!  He has done it!

Are you willing for your “sin't glands” to be removed?  Will you submit to Christ and allow Him to cover the stench of your sin and bring you into the presence of God?

HE SAYS: WWJD?

The “What Would Jesus Do?” fad is not as popular now as it was a couple of years ago, but I still see some of the bracelets and bumper stickers.  While reading Luke’s gospel today, I noticed some of the things Jesus did and would do still, since he is unchanging.

1.        Stir up an angry mob to the point where they wish to commit murder.

 “All the people in the synagogue were furious when they heard this.  They got up, drove him out of the town, and took him to the brow of the hill on which the town was built, in order to throw him down the cliff.”   Luke 4:28-29  

2.       Hang out with the “wrong crowd”.

”Then Levi held a great banquet for Jesus at his house, and a large crowd of tax collectors and others were eating with them.  But the Pharisees and the teachers of the law who belonged to their sect complained to his disciples, “Why do you eat and drink with tax collectors and ‘sinners’?”   Luke 5:29-30

3.       Disown his family.

”Now Jesus’ mother and brothers came to see him, but they were not able to get near him because of the crowd.  Someone told him, “Your mother and brothers are standing outside, wanting to see you.”  He replied, “My mother and brothers are those who hear God’s word and put it into practice.”   Luke 8:19-22

4.       Tell people if they are not fit for the kingdom of heaven.

”Still another said, “I will follow you, Lord; but first let me go back and say good-by to my family.” Jesus replied, “No one who puts his hand to the plow and looks back is fit for service in the kingdom of God.”   Luke 9: 61-62

5.       Not wash his hands before eating.

“But the Pharisee, noticing that Jesus did not first wash before the meal, was surprised.  Then the Lord said to him, “Now then, you Pharisees clean the outside of the cup and dish, but inside you are full of greed and wickedness.  You foolish people! Did not the one who made the outside make the inside also?”   Luke 11: 38-39

6.       Intentionally insult people with the truth.

“One of the experts in the law answered him, “Teacher, when you say these things, you insult us also.”  Jesus replied, “And you experts in the law, woe to you, because you load people down with burdens they can hardly carry, and you yourselves will not lift one finger to help them.”   Luke 11: 45-46

7.       Call successful people fools.

 “Then he said, ‘This is what I’ll do. I will tear down my barns and build bigger ones, and there I will store all my grain and my goods.  And I’ll say to myself, “You have plenty of good things laid up for many years. Take life easy; eat, drink and be merry.”’  “But God said to him, ‘You fool! This very night your life will be demanded from you. Then who will get what you have prepared for yourself?’   Luke 12: 18-20

What do you think Jesus would do?

I think he would speak truth into people’s lives even when it was insulting, hurtful, or degrading.  He did this because He is truth:

"Jesus answered, “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me."  John 14:6 1984 (NIV1984)

Jesus did this because he came to testify to the truth:

“You are a king, then!” said Pilate.

"Jesus answered, “You are right in saying I am a king. In fact, for this reason I was born, and for this I came into the world, to testify to the truth. Everyone on the side of truth listens to me.”  John 18:37 1984 (NIV1984)

Are you on the side of truth?

HE SAYS: So, You Think You Want to be Like Jesus?

Most nights when we go to the YMCA to exercise, a certain television show is on one of the screens.  It is called “So, You think you can Dance?”  I will reserve my opinion of the show.  Also, we have been studying the book Radical, by David  Platt.  My brain somehow put these two together.

If you want to be like Jesus, please consider the following scripture:

a)      They got up, drove him out of the town, and took him to the brow of the hill on which the town was built, in order to throw him off the cliff.

b)      When his family heard about this, they went to take charge of him, for they said, “He is out of his mind.”

c)       At this, they picked up stones to stone him, but Jesus hid himself, slipping away from the temple grounds.

d)      Again his Jewish opponents picked up stones to stone him,

e)      When they had gone, an angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream. “Get up,” he said, “take the child and his mother and escape to Egypt. Stay there until I tell you, for Herod is going to search for the child to kill him.”

f)       and they schemed to arrest Jesus secretly and kill him.

g)      Every day he was teaching at the temple. But the chief priests, the teachers of the law and the leaders among the people were trying to kill him.

h)      Again and again they struck him on the head with a staff and spit on him.

i)        And the teachers of the law who came down from Jerusalem said, “He is possessed by Beelzebul! By the prince of demons he is driving out demons.”

j)        When they came to the place called the Skull, they crucified him there, along with the criminals—one on his right, the other on his left.

All References are New International Version.

a)      Luke 4:29 (NIV)

b)      Mark 3:21

c)       John 8:59

d)      John 10:31

e)      Matthew 2:13

f)       Matthew 26:4

g)      Luke 19:47

h)      Mark 15:19a

i)        Mark 3:22

j)        Luke 23:33

HE SAYS: Who is Jesus?

This is the question which has troubled humankind for 21 centuries.

I won’t go to the trouble to list all the guesses which have been made in an attempt to answer this question.  I call them guesses for an important reason.  When one reads what the bible says about Jesus, one can only arrive at one answer:

Jesus was God in human flesh.

Sharon spent the better part of last week writing a letter which answered the question “Who is Jesus?”.  She did not spend so much time because she struggled to find evidence.  Her struggle was with what evidence to not mention in order to keep the letter a reasonable length.  She commented in frustration one evening, “I don’t know how I read the bible for so many years and did not understand the deity of Christ.  The bible is full of verses which proclaim Jesus to be God.”

My experience was the same, and only spiritual blindness can explain our inability to see and understand.

This problem is not new, and it is not limited.

I had never heard Billy Graham speak, so I played one of his sermons on YouTube.  The title of the sermon was: Who is Jesus, hence the title of my post.  In his sermon, Billy mentioned some of the common mistaken beliefs about Jesus which were prevalent at that time (1971).  I was struck by the similarities of the confusions about Jesus then and now.

He mentioned the rock opera, Jesus Christ Superstar.  In one of the final songs, the choir sings these lyrics:

Jesus Christ, Jesus Christ

Who are you? What have you sacrificed?

Jesus Christ Superstar

Do you think you're what they say you are?

The real question is not for God.  The question is for humans: “Jesus Christ, do you think he is who he says he is?”

 Jesus was very clear about who he is.  His Jewish opponents had no trouble understanding his claims.  They just could not believe.

John 8:58-59 (NIV) “Very truly I tell you,” Jesus answered, “before Abraham was born, I am!”  At this, they picked up stones to stone him, but Jesus hid himself, slipping away from the temple grounds.

John 10:29-33  (NIV) "My Father, who has given them to me, is greater than all; no one can snatch them out of my Father’s hand.  I and the Father are one.”  Again his Jewish opponents picked up stones to stone him, but Jesus said to them, “I have shown you many good works from the Father. For which of these do you stone me?” “We are not stoning you for any good work,” they replied, “but for blasphemy, because you, a mere man, claim to be God.”