Tag: Christian

Day 17: Rejoice/Don’t Rejoice–An Example
28 Day Love Challenge · Christian. · February · Love

Day 17: Rejoice/Don’t Rejoice–An Example

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Luke 19:19 And Jesus entered and passed through Jericho.

2 And, behold, there was a man named Zacchaeus, which was the chief among the publicans, and he was rich.

Zacchaeus represents our unrighteous one. As the chief tax collector Zacchaeus worked for the Romans to gather taxes.  His income came from the additional money he charged above the money actually owed to the Romans.We see he was rich.This implies he charged quite a bit above the required tax.

We should not rejoice in the sins of Zacchaeus, but what does that look like:

Luke 19:3 And he sought to see Jesus who he was; and could not for the press, because he was little of stature.

4 And he ran before, and climbed up into a sycomore tree to see him: for he was to pass that way.

5 And when Jesus came to the place, he looked up, and saw him, and said unto him, Zacchaeus, make haste, and come down; for to day I must abide at thy house.

6 And he made haste, and came down, and received him joyfully.

7 And when they saw it, they all murmured, saying, That he was gone to be guest with a man that is a sinner.

Jesus tells Zacchaeus that he will dine with him.  We never see Jesus condoning the actions of the man, but we see him still caring and loving the man.

Then we see Zacchaeus moving to the truth.  He makes a commitment to change his life.  He seeks righteousness.

Luke 19:8 And Zacchaeus stood, and said unto the Lord: Behold, Lord, the half of my goods I give to the poor; and if I have taken any thing from any man by false accusation, I restore him fourfold.

And Jesus rejoices in the man finding the righteousness and the truth.

9 And Jesus said unto him, This day is salvation come to this house, forsomuch as he also is a son of Abraham.

10 For the Son of man is come to seek and to save that which was lost.

But those in the crowd do not rejoice that a man who had been walking in unrighteousness might discover the truth if he speaks with Jesus.
Luke 19:7 And when they saw it, they all murmured, saying, That he was gone to be guest with a man that is a sinner.
They have no Agape love for this sinner.  They hold it agains Jesus for being with this man who is a sinner.  A common used phrase these days is “hate the sin and love the sinner”.  I think this is what is meant here.
While they are yet a sinner, we should love them like Jesus did.  And like he still does.
Day 11:Do Bragging, Proud, Puffed Up People Know They Are?
28 Day Love Challenge · Christian. · February · Love

Day 11:Do Bragging, Proud, Puffed Up People Know They Are?

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I almost never do this.  I know the following verses are about confession, forgiveness and prayer.  But we are told Agape love does not brag and is not puffed up with pride.  Take a look at these two men.  If you were suffering, which one would you ask for help?

Luke 18:9 And he spake this parable unto certain which trusted in themselves that they were righteous, and despised others:

10 Two men went up into the temple to pray; the one a Pharisee, and the other a publican.

11 The Pharisee stood and prayed thus with himself, God, I thank thee, that I am not as other men are, extortioners, unjust, adulterers, or even as this publican.

12 I fast twice in the week, I give tithes of all that I possess.

13 And the publican, standing afar off, would not lift up so much as his eyes unto heaven, but smote upon his breast, saying, God be merciful to me a sinner.

14 I tell you, this man went down to his house justified rather than the other: for every one that exalteth himself shall be abased; and he that humbleth himself shall be exalted.

A few experiences in my life make me believe that our churches are getting the reputation of being more like the first man than the latter.

Sitting in a small group bible study, we went around “discussing” the prepared questions.  People answered with the proper answers to all the questions then we moved to the next question.  One person, not even upset, suddenly answered a question with an answer not expected.  They spoke about an issue with a grown kid who was headed down a bad path.
The group came alive, people started sharing similar experiences from their lives.  It was a very honest moment.  People took off the “I am a perfect” Christian with perfect kids costume and let others see them vulnerable.  This group grew close and the people never played the perfect answer game again.

Move forward a few years, I found myself sitting in a room of mothers whose teens were struggling with issues.  Each woman in the room shared their feelings, discussed what had happened and confided their fears.  Love was real between them.  Most were Christians and Church goers.  Or had been regular attenders, but slipped aways as this group became their family.

I asked why they had not found the supported they needed in the Church.  They all said (even the ones still going to church multiple times a week) they could not tell the people at church about what was happening.  They believed they would be judged or their kids would be judged.  A couple of women said that the church did know and had never came to visit the teen or shown them any love.  They felt the people in the church would never understand.

Years ago people use to stand up in church services and tell their testimonies.  I remember as a teen, people describing hard times and how God provided.  Most Christians never tell their stories.  We pretend to be perfect people when we are forgiven people trying to follow our savior.  When we fall, he reaches down and lifts us up.  Maybe we should not be too proud to tell people about our falls, our pain and God’s mercy.

Day 10: No Sibling Rivalry in the Family of God
28 Day Love Challenge · Christian. · February · Love · Valentines

Day 10: No Sibling Rivalry in the Family of God

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Still on envy, but focusing more on our desire to have what other’s have.  Their possessions; their talents, their relationships, their everything. But Paul says love does not envy.

You know the story of the Prodigal Son.  Father has two boys.  One of the sons, decides he wants all of his inheritance before his father dies.  He takes the money and goes off to live a wild life.  The money runs out and the boy ends up working in a pig pen.  Eventually, he realizes that he would be better of as a slave in his father’s house than living the life he is living.

He heads home. The father sees him and runs to him.  The boy says he is sorry, but the father has already forgiven him.  He is putting good cloths on him, a ring and planning a party. He is so happy to have the son he thought was lost back home.

Let’s look at the other son.

Luke 15:25 Now his elder son was in the field: and as he came and drew nigh to the house, he heard music and dancing.

26 And he called one of the servants, and asked what these things meant.

27 And he said unto him, Thy brother is come; and thy father hath killed the fatted calf, because he hath received him safe and sound.

28 And he was angry, and would not go in: therefore came his father out, and intreated him.

29 And he answering said to his father, Lo, these many years do I serve thee, neither transgressed I at any time thy commandment: and yet thou never gavest me a kid, that I might make merry with my friends:

30 But as soon as this thy son was come, which hath devoured thy living with harlots, thou hast killed for him the fatted calf.

31 And he said unto him, Son, thou art ever with me, and all that I have is thine.

32 It was meet that we should make merry, and be glad: for this thy brother was dead, and is alive again; and was lost, and is found.

The elder son can not love the father or the brother.  Envy acts as a fertilizer for anger.  He can not love his brother because he is filled with so much rage.

Another example of envy in the bible and how it strips people of love is Cain and Able.  Take a look at Genesis 4.  Major sibling rivalry going on there.  Very little love.

Envy is the result of your taking your eye off the blessings God has given you, and loosing focus of His purpose for your life.   Envy centers your thoughts on self and not on others.  Love dies when our focus is on ourselves.

We see what Jesus had to say in a specific instance of envy between Peter and John.

John 21:18 Verily, verily, I say unto thee, When thou wast young, thou girdest thyself, and walkedst whither thou wouldest: but when thou shalt be old, thou shalt stretch forth thy hands, and another shall gird thee, and carry thee whither thou wouldest not.

19 This spake he, signifying by what death he should glorify God. And when he had spoken this, he saith unto him, Follow me.

20 Then Peter, turning about, seeth the disciple whom Jesus loved following; which also leaned on his breast at supper, and said, Lord, which is he that betrayeth thee?

21 Peter seeing him saith to Jesus, Lord, and what shall this man do?

22 Jesus saith unto him, If I will that he tarry till I come, what is that to thee? follow thou me.

23 Then went this saying abroad among the brethren, that that disciple should not die: yet Jesus said not unto him, He shall not die; but, If I will that he tarry till I come, what is that to thee?

Isn’t that really the answer to envy.  What is that to you?  Jesus is telling Peter what he will face in the future and Peter’s focus goes to what will John face.  Does it matter?

The path Christ laid out for me.  God designed me in the womb; God has a purpose for my life.  Just as Peter and John walked different paths and served different roles in the early church.  The church did not need two Peters or two Johns.  And the body of Christ needs me and it needs you to fill the roles God plans for us.  If God choses for another member of the church to have more talent, or money, or family, what is it to you.

Don’t let envy steal your love for others.  Follow Jesus.

Day 7: Anger, Caution: Use Only with Holy Spirit Supervision
28 Day Love Challenge · Christian. · February · Love · Valentines

Day 7: Anger, Caution: Use Only with Holy Spirit Supervision

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Anger means a strong feeling of displeasure or hostility 

Ephesians 4:26 be angry and do not sin; let not the sun go down upon your wrath,

27 neither give place to the devil;

28 whoso is stealing let him no more steal, but rather let him labour, working the thing that is good with the hands, that he may have to impart to him having need.

29 Let no corrupt word out of your mouth go forth, but what is good unto the needful building up, that it may give grace to the hearers;

30 and make not sorrowful the Holy Spirit of God, in which ye were sealed to a day of redemption.

31 Let all bitterness, and wrath, and anger, and clamor, and evil-speaking, be put away from you, with all malice,

32 and become one to another kind, tender-hearted, forgiving one another, according as also God in Christ did forgive you.

 Be angry and do not sin.  The verse tells us to deal with the issue immediately and to not sin while dealing with it.
So let’s look at the perfect life to decide about anger.
First Jesus and the Pharisees:

Mark 3:3 And he entered again into the synagogue; and there was a man there which had a withered hand.

2 And they watched him, whether he would heal him on the sabbath day; that they might accuse him.

3 And he saith unto the man which had the withered hand, Stand forth.

4 And he saith unto them, Is it lawful to do good on the sabbath days, or to do evil? to save life, or to kill? But they held their peace.

5 And when he had looked round about on them with anger, being grieved for the hardness of their hearts, he saith unto the man, Stretch forth thine hand. And he stretched it out: and his hand was restored whole as the other.

6 And the Pharisees went forth, and straightway took counsel with the Herodians against him, how they might destroy him.

7 But Jesus withdrew himself with his disciples to the sea: and a great multitude from Galilee followed him, and from Judaea,

 Jesus felt strong displeasure at the attitude of these men.  They worried more about accusing Jesus than loving the man.  His displeasure at their attitude is described as anger.  He dealt with the anger immediately by explaining to them why they were wrong. He healed the man and reprimanded them.  He handled the situation immediately, but that does not mean people with ill intent won’t respond in a negative manner.
Another example:

Matthew 21:12 And Jesus went into the temple of God, and cast out all them that sold and bought in the temple, and overthrew the tables of the moneychangers, and the seats of them that sold doves,13 And said unto them, It is written, My house shall be called the house of prayer; but ye have made it a den of thieves.

Here anger had a little more hostility involved.  These people harmed other people.  They were cheating and forcing people to buy items in order to worship God.  They were disgracing God’s temple.  Jesus ran them out.

I think, and this is just me thinking, that some times we may have to resort to strong action.  When we are called on to to protect someone.

Anger is not wrong, but as a person, I am not capable of knowing when to act or how to act without the direction of the Holy Spirit.  We need to slow down the minute anger arrives and ask God to guide us with His Spirit.  I personally am more likely to be angry for selfish reasons and to act in unchristian ways.  I even can find myself proud of the harm I cause when I act in anger.  No, I am not capable of responding properly when anger is involved.  I have to have guidance.

Anger needs to come with a big label.

Caution Pray before Acting and Handle only with Holy Spirit supervision.

Day 4: Not Just Love But Agape
28 Day Love Challenge · Christian. · February · Love · Valentines

Day 4: Not Just Love But Agape

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When we say love we think of romantic love or the surface love we feel for friends. The Greeks used the word Agape for a special level of love.  The highest standard of love.  1 Corinthians 13 lays out just what is expected when we say Agape.

Paul discribes this loves by stating what Agape does not do and what Agape does.

1) Patient

2) Kind

3) Does not envy

4) Does not boast

5) Not proud

6) Does not dishonor others

7) Not self seeking

8) Not easily angered

9) Keeps no record of wrongs

10) Does not delight in evil

11) Rejoices in truth

12) Always protects

13) Always trusts

14) Always hopes

15) Always perseveres

Journal

On a scale of 1-5 where 1 equals “this is a problem for me” and 5 means “I can honestly say this describes me”  give a rating to each of the characteristics of Agape Love.

We will go over each one in detail later, but for today just think about the words in general.

Example Patience: 2   I lose my patience.  I try not to, but I get so frustrated.

Day 3: Step One
28 Day Love Challenge · February · Love · Uncategorized · Valentines

Day 3: Step One

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Love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul and with all mind.

Jesus says this is the most important commandment.

When God means everything to you, when you love him more than anything else in your life then He can use you to serve others.  We say we love God, but is He honestly first in our lives.  We tend to think about God’s love for us.  “God give me what I want.” or “God will understand” or “God would want me happy”.  We spend much less time asking what does God want.  Will I understand if God does not give me what I want?   Will I live a life that brings honor to God even if it means I cannot do the things I want to do?

We know we have moved in the correct direction when our thoughts seek God’s desire.  Do we long to make Him happy?  Think about it.

Heart:     Who is your first love?  Where are your priorities?  Do you find yourself pushing God aside for other people and things?

Mind:     Do you meditate on God’s word?  Are your thoughts centered on God or on the distractions of the world?

Soul:   Is your spirit one with the Holy Spirit?  When a decision arises do you seek direction from Christ?  Do you seek to be one with Christ through the Spirit–like the vine and branch? Are you walking through the day with Him as your guide.

Journal

Do you have the kind of relationship with Christ that can be described as with all you heart, soul and mind?  How would you describe your day to day relationship with God?

Agape Love requires you to be willing to follow the Holy Spirit’s guidance. You must love God more than the pleasures and comforts of this world.

Activity

Read Matthew 19:16-29 The story of the rich young ruler.  In this story, Jesus asks the young man to sell all he has, give the money to the poor and to follow Jesus.

As you moved through the day, think about what you have.  What would your answer be if Jesus said quit your job, sell your house, give away your retirement?  What do you love more that Jesus? What do you fear losing?

Day 1 –To Love or Not to Love
28 Day Love Challenge · February · Love · Valentines

Day 1 –To Love or Not to Love

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Jesus when asked what the most important commandment was said.

Matthew 22:37 “‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.’ 38 This is the first and greatest commandment. 39 And the second is like it: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’ 40 All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments.”

And Jesus said if you love him than

John 15: 12 My command is this: Love each other as I have loved you. 13 Greater love has no one than this: to lay down one’s life for one’s friends. 14 You are my friends if you do what I command.  15 I no longer call you servants, because a servant does not know his master’s business. Instead, I have called you friends, for everything that I learned from my Father I have made known to you. 16 You did not choose me, but I chose you and appointed you so that you might go and bear fruit—fruit that will last—and so that whatever you ask in my name the Father will give you. 17 This is my command: Love each other.

And John tells us in his first letter

1 John 4:7 Dear friends, let us love one another, for love comes from God. Everyone who loves has been born of God and knows God. 8 Whoever does not love does not know God, because God is love. 9 This is how God showed his love among us: He sent his one and only Son into the world that we might live through him. 10 This is love: not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as an atoning sacrifice for our sins. 11 Dear friends, since God so loved us, we also ought to love one another. 12 No one has ever seen God; but if we love one another, God lives in us and his love is made complete in us.

 

This 28 Day Challenge is for Christians, those who have accepted the sacrifice of Christ and have asked Him to be Lord of their lives.  We love God because He first loved us and what He asks from us is that we love others as he loved us.

Journal

  1. Are you a Christian?  Have you asked Christ for forgiveness of your sins and to be Lord of your life?  If not you can do so now.  It is not complicated, but you have to be sincere.  Christianity is about faith or trust.  You trust that Christ’s sacrifice removes your sin, you trust that Christ loves you and that He will guide you through the Holy Spirit.
  2. Write a statement of commitment that for the next 28 days you will be open to God filling you with His love for others.

Activity

Keep a small notebook with you during the next 28 days.  As you interact with people who you know are Christians, do you see examples of Christian love?  Make a quick note of what you see.

Also note moments when you could have shown Christ’s love but didn’t.

 

 

 

 

12 Day of Christmas Eve of Epiphany
12 Days of Christmas · Christian. · Christmas · Christmas Traditions

12 Day of Christmas Eve of Epiphany

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Time for the tree to be cleared of all its treasures.

The red symbolic of the fall of man in the Garden of Eden; the white the salvation of Christ.

Take the star off of the top. Tomorrow we celebrate the wise men reaching the baby.  They followed a star.

Place the Angels back in a secure spot.  And think about the Angel’s Hymn

Put the stockings in a box.  But never forget the example of St Nicholas and his concern for the well being of others.  And if you have a plate for cookies think about St Lucia and the traditions associated with this woman’s saint day.

Place the nativity scene in its container wrapping each piece in tissue.  The shepherds who were in the fields watching over the lambs that would become the passover sacrifice.  These shepherds who were the ones to hear the Angels announce the Messiah was born. Carefully put away the wise men from the East who followed a star to find the King.  The stable where the Inn Keeper put the expectant family when there was no room for them anywhere else.  And the manger where animals had once ate, but that night so long ago the King of Kings and Lord of Lords was placed in as a baby.

Journal Exercise

Write all your favorite memories of this Christmas season