Matthew 15:7-9

Hypocrites! Well did Isaiah prophesy about you, saying:

‘These people draw near to Me with their mouth,And honor Me with their lips,But their heart is far from Me.And in vain they worship Me.’

Personal Challenge

It is so easy to slip into the mode of telling others to practice what I preach but to not do what I do. This is something that I must fight off so that my actions reflect what my desire is for following Christ. But in order to do this effectively and genuinely, I must bring my heart into alignment with the heart of my Lord. Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me, the sinner!

Matthew 9:24

He said to them, “Make room, for the girl is not dead, but sleeping.” And they ridiculed Him.

Personal Challenge

What a sober challenge this is to us. These throngs of people had been following Jesus, pressing Him to perform one of His miracles in their lives. But look how quickly their tone changes when He steps into a situation that they do not believe He can handle. Not only do the not believe He can do nothing, but they also ridicule Him. How much am I like these crowds? As long as Jesus is doing the things that I expect Him to do my faith is strong and my actions commensurate with that faith. But as soon as He begins to take me into a situation where my faith will be tested and I will be stretched then I forget everything else that He has done and ridicule Him by turning away. Lord, have mercy! Lord, have mercy! Lord, have mercy!

1 Corinthians 3:18

Let no one deceive himself. If anyone among you seems to be wise in this age, let him become a fool that he may become wise.

Personal Challenge

Romans 12:4-5

For as we have many members in one body, but all the members do not have the same function, so we, being many, are one body in Christ, and individually members of one another.

Personal Challenge

Paul seems to be pretty clear here that the body of Christ, the Church, is comprised of many members, many of which exercise their faith differently than I do. He doesn’t tell me to disown them. He doesn’t tell me to go out there and convert them to my way of thinking. He tells me to accept that God has a much bigger plan for saving His creation and that He will be using other Christians in that plan the way that He chooses to. My job is to be available for Him to use me. Glory be to God!

Romans 8:14-15

For as many as are led by the Spirit of God, these are sons of God. For you did not receive the spirit of bondage again to fear, but you received the Spirit of adoption by whom we cry out, “Abba, Father.”

Encouraging Words

Consider two different scenarios. One is where I am a slave to a master and one is where I have been adopted into the family and household of the same master. Would my behavior be different in these two scenarios? Absolutely! In one, I would live in fear and apprehension that I could be punished or sold off. I would do things to beat out the other slaves so that I would appear the best. In the other I would know that I was loved and cared for. I would not have worries of loosing my place in the family or the household and I would do my best to get along with the rest of the family. As a Christian, I am in the second scenario because my God has adopted me into His family. Glory be to God!

Romans 12:14-18

Bless those who persecute you; bless and do not curse. Rejoice with those who rejoice, and weep with those who weep. Be of the same mind toward one another. Do not set your mind on high things, but associate with the humble. Do not be wise in your own opinion.

Repay no one evil for evil. Have regard for good things in the sight of all men. If it is possible, as much as depends on you, live peaceably with all men.

Personal Challenge

So, what is more important? To give my all for the way of life that I have been blessed with or to give my all to follow teaching such as this from Paul? My way of life as a wealthy, pampered American is not what Jesus died for. Therefore, it should not be what I live for. Jesus commanded me to take care of the orphan and the widow, to feed the hungry, and to clothe the poor. He commanded me to not fear or hate my enemy but to love them and to not retaliate against them. So how do I reconcile this with all of the rhetoric from those who claim Christ and call for acts of hatred, violence, vengeance, and judgment? Honestly, it is not my responsibility to reconcile this. For in doing that I end up doing the same thing and the enemy (Satan) has gained more ground. My responsibility is to love even more and to let my God do the reconciliation. Lord, have mercy! Lord, have mercy! Lord, have mercy!

Matthew 8:13

Then Jesus said to the centurion, “Go your way; and as you have believed, so let it be done for you.” And his servant was healed that same hour.

Personal Challenge

So many of the miracles that Jesus performed were dependent upon the faith of the recipient of His blessing. This does not mean that He does not have the power to heal or do other miracles without our faith. God created us with free will. He did not create us to be robots or toys that He controls or manipulates. And just as we have the ability to choose to follow or reject Him, or be obedient to Him or reject His commands, we have the ability to choose whether or not His touching us miraculously takes affect or not. I must ask myself how much do I really believe that He is my Lord and at the same time Lord of all creation? How much do I believe that He will meet my every need and help me to know the difference between needs and wants? How much do I believe that He should be everything in my life and that I should be nothing? This is part of my journey to theosis, learning to shift my dependence from being placed on me and the things of this world to being place on Him. Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me, the sinner.