16

Jump Start # 4158

Posted on September 16, 2026 by Jump Starts Daily in Jump Starts Daily | Tagged | Leave a comment

Jump Start # 4158

 

Romans 8:29 “ For those whom He foreknew, He also predestined to become conformed to the image of His Son, so that He would be the firstborn among many brethren”

 

It is one of the most perplexing concepts that a disciple of the Lord faces. It is a question that most don’t want to find the answer to, for fear that the answer will be a harsh reality that they don’t want to admit. We are talking about being like Jesus. Our verse today is one of many that reminds us that we are to be like Jesus. We are to have the mind of Christ in us. Paul said that Christ lives in him. Our hymns remind us of this: O to be like Thee, Blessed Redeemer; Christ liveth in me; Let the beauty of Jesus be seen in me.

 

And, running through all of this is the deep question, “Is it even possible to be like Jesus?” Or, more honestly, “Is it even possible for ME to be like Jesus?” Are we fooling ourselves? Are we pretending? Like a child at Halloween, who puts on a mask and cape and for a couple of hours believes he is an Avenger, do we for a couple of hours on Sunday morning believe we are like Jesus, until we get back home and the truth sinks in?

 

Be holy as He is, Peter writes. Imitate Christ, the Corinthians were told. But, how can we? He was always right. He was always perfect. No once in His life did He have to apologize for doing something wrong. Not once in His life did He have a sinful thought racing through His mind. Not once in His life did He gossip. Not once in His life did He tell a lie. Not once in His life did He have to say, “Will you forgive Me?” He never stole. He never cheated. He never cussed. He never got drunk. He never made fun of someone. Never. Not once. And, yet we are to be like Him? Can we? Is it even possible? How? We stumble and fumble through life, making mistakes, hurting others, messing up, and breaking God’s law. How can we possibly be like Him?

 

Here are some thoughts:

 

First, we can’t do it on our own. We’ve proven that. Our way is how we got into the mess we were in. In the Lord’s wonderful invitation, Mt 11:28-30, He invites us to come to Him (the source); take His yoke (Heaven’s direction); learn from Him (the divine example). Less of self and more of Him is the beginning step in becoming like Jesus. What did Jesus do? That’s what we must do. How did Jesus respond? That’s our cue.

 

Second, we must stop settling into the comfortable excuse that “nobody’s perfect.” That idea soothes a guilty conscience. It allows us to be satisfied with substandard service. It convinces us we can never be like Jesus. And, that leaves a huge dilemma in our hearts and minds. Does God know what He is talking when He wants us to be like Jesus? And, as long as we keep saying, “No one is perfect,” we stop trying to be perfect. Our mindset must change. If the Lord says we can be like Jesus, we must believe.

 

Third, it will take constant commitment, effort, zeal and dedication to become like Jesus. No one walks into this accidently. No one gets there without that being a fervent goal in their heart and mind. And, maybe, just maybe, this is the root of why we struggle. We’d like to be like Jesus. It would be nice to be like Jesus. But, who wants to put in the work to do that? Like the Friday night high school quarterback. Every kid in the stands wants to be like him, but no one wants to be in the hot August sun practicing as he has done. No one wants to give up the video games to be dedicated as he is. Like a guy who bought trophies at a garage sale, they looked good on his shelf but he didn’t earn them. They weren’t really his. So, we want the glory, but who wants to do the work?

 

Being like Jesus means saying “No” to self. It means saying “no” to others. It means making wise choices. It means being consistent and dedicated.

 

Oh to be like Thee blessed Redeemer, this is my constant longing and prayer. Constant…

 

 

Is it even possible? Yes, is the answer.

 

Roger

 

14

Jump Start # 4156

Posted on September 14, 2026 by Jump Starts Daily in Jump Starts Daily | Tagged | Leave a comment

Jump Start # 4156

 

2 Timothy 3:1 “But realize this, that in the last days difficult times will come.”

 

The setting of our passage today is troubling. Instead of the glowing, happily ever after, optimism that we’d like to believe, Paul paints a dark picture about the future. Difficult times will come. Realize this. Know this. Understand this. What follows are nineteen reasons why the last days will be difficult. Many of this are character flaws that spill over into relationship issues. Running through this list is misguided love. Loving self. Loving money. Unloving. Loving pleasure. Not loving God.

 

Dark times. Narrow attitudes. Causing trouble. Paul’s words to Timothy were to “avoid such men as these” (5).

 

Some lessons need to arise from this:

 

First, some people cannot be changed. It is not that the Gospel is not powerful enough. For the good seed to take hold and do some good, it must intersect with a honest and good heart. These people have demonstrated that their heart is neither good nor honest.

 

We want to save everyone. We want everyone to come to Christ. However, there comes a time when some people must be avoided. We must avoid them so they won’t change us. We must avoid them because they are not interested in honest discussions. We must avoid them because they are hurtful and dangerous. We must avoid them because the Lord said to.

 

Second, we must maintain the course set by the Lord. Later in the chapter we find, “You, however, continue in the things you have learned and become convinced of” (14). There is a separation taking place even before the judgment. The evil are descending in a direction of destruction and the righteous are ascending towards the Lord. Less and less in common. Fewer and fewer things to talk about. Don’t allow them to change you. Don’t meet them half way. Don’t look the other way and pretend things are better than what they are. There comes a time with some people that you must put some distance between them.

 

Third, some simply do not get what the Lord is about. The people Paul describes in this letter were not atheists who denied God’s existence. Instead, the language shows that they had some conscience about them. Paul says that they were “holding to a form of godliness” (5); “always learning and never able to come to the knowledge of truth” (7); “enter into households and captivate weak women” (6). They had an exterior of religion but there was nothing on the inside. The first principle in discipleship is to “deny self”. That comes before taking up the cross. That comes before following Jesus.

 

As long as these people were “lovers of self” they would never become disciples of Jesus.

 

Now, why was Paul telling Timothy these things? This wasn’t to scare him off. Instead, it was a reminder that not everyone is genuine. Not everyone is following the Lord. Not everyone cares. Not everyone can be trusted. Some are not interested in the saving message of Jesus. Some do not want to change their ways. Some are happy just where they are. It’s not the failure of the messenger. It’s not a failure of the message. It’s hearts that are closed and selfish.

 

We can beat ourselves up, thinking we are failures because some people walk away from the message we have for them. It’s not us. It’s not the message. It’s the hearts of some people. Jesus tells us that men love darkness rather than the light because their deeds are evil.

 

There will be some in your family that are not interested in Jesus. There will be people you know that do not want to hear what you have to say. This breaks our hearts. This makes us want to find better ways of presenting things to them. But as long as their hearts are closed to Jesus, there is no method that will work.

 

Blessed be the ones who hear. Blessed be the ones who are seeking. Blessed be the ones who follow the Lord.

 

Tough words for tough times.

 

Roger

 

11

Jump Start # 4155

Posted on September 11, 2026 by Jump Starts Daily in Jump Starts Daily | Tagged | Leave a comment

Jump Start # 4155

 

John 18:5 “They answered Him, ‘Jesus the Nazarene.’ He said to them, ‘I am He.’ and Judas also, who was betraying Him, was standing with them.”

 

John’s account of the arrest of Jesus is most interesting. The chapter opens with Jesus crossing over the ravine of the Kidron and entering the garden (18:1). Down the valley and back up the other side is what this literally looks like. I’ve been there. Coming out of the city gates of Jerusalem, carrying torches at night, it would be easy to see the coming mob. Jesus had plenty of time to escape into the darkness and get away. He stayed. He could watch them coming.

 

Most of the mob did not know Jesus and it was dark. Rather than stepping back into the shadows or standing behind some of the disciples, Jesus sets forward and asks, “Who are you looking for?” The reply was, “Jesus the Nazarene?” Most desperate criminals would have hidden their identity or lied. Not Jesus. He wasn’t a desperate criminal. He was a willing sacrifice. Jesus identified Himself as the one they were looking for.

 

And, as our verse today ends, Judas is standing with “them” and not the Lord. Later Peter would be found sitting with the wrong crowd. Most times when we are with the wrong group, we get pinned in a corner, and find our faith on shaky ground. Judas was in the group around Jesus, but he was not standing with Jesus. He was standing with the enemy. He was standing with “them.”

 

This is a great lesson for all of us. How is it that we are standing with “them” and not the Lord?

 

First, the heart of Judas wasn’t with Jesus. This is how it always begins. Much like the prodigal, whose heart was in the far country long before he pack his bags and left the house, when our hearts are not with Jesus, we will soon be standing with “them.” We can sit through a worship service and our hearts are not with Jesus. Wandering minds, restless souls, worried hearts, and lives filled with the here and now, we’ve gone to church, but we haven’t worshipped the Lord.

 

Judas heard the very words of Jesus. Judas saw the miracles. Judas helped feed the five thousand. Judas was in the boat when Jesus calmed the storm. Judas witnessed the Lord walking on water. He saw the demons flee into the pigs and then the pigs rushed into the sea and drowned. Yet, after all that, the heart of Judas was not with Jesus.

 

Is it any different for you and I? We’ve read the pages detailing these miracles. We’ve read through the sermon on the mount dozens of times, reading the words of our Lord. We’ve been given an eyewitness glimpse into the transfiguration, which most of the others did not see. We’ve been invited into the home of Jairus and saw his little daughter come back to life. Through the pages of the Scriptures and through faith, we were there. Yet, is our heart with Jesus?

 

Second, Judas had a love for this life and especially money. He kept the money bags. He helped himself by stealing. And, now, there was a quick way to make more money, just sell out to the enemy. When we keep one foot in the world, we will always be pulled that direction. It might be money and materialism. It might be an addiction to gambling, the bottle, drugs or porn. It might be power. It might be honor and fame. A love for this life will keep us with “them,” because that’s where you find those kind of things that interests us.

 

Third, loved by Jesus, chosen by Jesus, and with Jesus, Judas had more in common with “them” than he did the Lord. That’s hard for us to understand, yet it is no different for us. We are loved by the Lord. We are chosen by the Lord. We have the opportunity to be with the Lord and yet our language, our likes, our attitudes, our dress, our motives reveal that we have more in common with ‘them’ than we do the Lord.

 

Judas came with them because he was like them. Judas was standing with them because he was one of them. In contrast, the early disciples were called “Christian” at Antioch. They were like Christ. They were standing with Jesus. They were one of them.

 

Standing…with “them” or with the Lord?

 

Roger

 

10

Jump Start# 4154

Posted on September 10, 2026 by Jump Starts Daily in Jump Starts Daily | Tagged | Leave a comment

Jump Start # 4154

 

Romans 14:19 “So then we pursue the things which make for peace and the building up of one another.”

 

Throwback Thursday: an article written from the past

 

Church Fightin’

 

A cartoon showed two boys walking down the street together. One said, “So, when we get home, d’ya want to play church?” He continued, “I’ll be the preacher, and you can be the deacon. Bobby can play too, if he wants.” The other boy added, “Yeah…he can be the one that gets mad and starts his own church.”

 

Why is it that some congregations seem to fight so much? You hear of brethren getting mad at each other. Accusations are made. Services end with shouts and finger pointing. Men boil in their anger. Women cry. Kids are confused. Gossip fills the telephone lines. People start lining up which side of the fight they are on. And before too long, another congregation starts. Those that left, claim it is a faithful congregation being established. Those that stayed, claim it was a church split and that they are the faithful. Certain things happen in just about every church fight.

 

In Church Fights…

 

  • The work of converting the lost stops. Everyone is too caught up in the church problems.
  • Brethren who once pooled their money, their voices and their hearts together to make a difference, now can’t stand each other. All is forgotten.
  • Visitors are ignored during church fights.
  • Children are innocent victims in church fights. They see first hand how unChristian some Christians are. Their image of Christianity is tarnished and often ruined by those who are bent on fighting.
  • Twenty-five years of preaching can be ruined in one good church fight

 

Why are church fights so common? Let’s look into a few reasons why.

 

  1. Different attitudes about the truth. In a congregation there is always a mixture of attitudes, opinions, knowledge and faith. Some are serious about the Lord and others are playing church. Some are consistent in their beliefs and practices and others are inconsistent. In such a mixture, friction will arise. When some want change even at the cost of the convictions of others and the result is a direction that leads away from the Bible pattern, a fight will take place. This does not call for ungodliness, name calling, shouting, or hot heads. Paul was “set for the defense of the gospel,” and so should all Christians (Phil. 1:7). A line must be drawn in the sand where Christ has drawn it, and all brethren make their stand, either with Christ or against Him.

 

  1. Pride, jealously and a heart that is not willing to submit to others will provoke church fights. God wants us to get along. We cannot have things OUR way. This is not OUR church – it is God’s. Peace is destroyed by stubborn hearts that will not bend for others. God wants us to submit first to Him and then to each other (Eph. 5:21). Selfishness and unity do not go together.

 

Church fights cease when brethren are set on following the Lord in all things and maintaining a heart and attitude like Jesus had.

 

Roger

April, 2002

 

09

Jump Start # 4153

Posted on September 9, 2026 by Jump Starts Daily in Jump Starts Daily | Tagged | Leave a comment

Jump Start # 4153

 

1 Corinthians 15:58 Therefore, my beloved brethren, be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, knowing that your toil is not in vain in the Lord.

 

I’ve spent the past few days in Ohio’s Amish country. There is something fascinating about the Amish. I have studied them historically, doctrinally and more than once have had the opportunity to preach while some were in the audience.

 

Indiana has several Amish communities. Pennsylvania has a large Amish community. And, Ohio has major pockets of Amish. And, each Amish community seems to have its own flavor and culture. While driving around Berlin, Ohio I was surprised to see so many Amish on electric bikes. It was a sight seeing Amish grandmas flying down crowded streets on those electric bicycles. There was still plenty of buggies and horses, but the most popular mode of transportation was those electric bikes. They were everywhere.

 

The puzzling thing to me was how would those Amish recharge those electric bikes? They are battery operated and must be charged almost daily. And, Amish do not use electricity in their homes. No lights that plug in. No dishwashers, fridges, freezers, coffee makers and all the things that the rest of us have. Many convert those appliances to propane and they skirt around the “electric” issue that way. Someone told me that they likely had gas powered generators in the barn that charged the bikes. If these Ohio Amish could have electric bikes, could they not have an electric car?

 

In the Amish way, each community is governed by a bishop. That bishop sets the rules for his community. A neighboring bishop may have different rules and what often happens is that when an Amish family doesn’t like the rules of their bishop, they move into another community where a bishop may be more favorable to their liking.

 

All of this leads to a valuable lesson about consistency. From where I see things, electric bikes seem inconsistent to the Amish ways. If you can have an electric bike why can’t you have an air conditioner? Why not any other electric appliance?

 

Consistency is hard. And, it is one of the stumbling blocks of error. And, even among us, we must learn to walk like we talk and talk like we walk. It’s a matter of consistency. Being holy is great. If we are that way on Sunday in the church building and Monday at work it’s dog eat dog, then our message becomes cloudy and watered down and inconsistent. The same is true when it comes to selling things. Hiding or even lying about the condition of things just to make a few more dollars, not only reveals inconsistency, it also shows our true colors.

 

Here are some thoughts:

 

First, consistency is hard. It just is. Being the same at the ballgame, the concert, the movie, and in the church building is something many forget about. Our language. Our attitudes. Our kindness. Our words of the Lord. They need to be the same. Many restaurant servers hate the Sunday after church crowd. They stay long, they are loud and they leave lousy tips. Not good light shining when we do that.

 

Second, consistency often hurts. The rules apply to all. There can be no double standards. The preacher’s kids, the elder’s grandchildren do not get a pass because of who they are related to. Congregations struggle and suffer when they must practice discipline but don’t want to because it involves a family that has done so much. And, people notice if the church is being consistent or not. Our loyalty must be with the Lord. When we start playing favorites and looking the other way for certain people, then our fellowship turns into a “good ole’ boy club” and those that are in are in and those who are not are not. It’s hard being consistent.

 

Third, God shows that with His grace and justice that He is consistent. If anyone should have been given a pass, it would have been Moses. But, he wasn’t. He broke God’s rules and he was not allowed to lead Israel into the land of promise. He saw the land, but the consequences of his disobedience meant he would not be among those who came into that land. We have seen far too many times that those who have money or political status seem to get their hands slapped when they are in trouble and others who did far less were tossed into jail. That inconsistency has led to a bitter and sour taste in many citizens mouths. God is not that way. Paul realized this when he told the Corinthians, “but I discipline my body and make it my slave, so that, after I have preached to others, I myself will not be disqualified” (1 Cor 9:27). Wasn’t he a shoe in because he was an apostle? Wasn’t he guaranteed Heaven? No. Just like you and just like me, Paul had to walk by faith, make wise choices and serve the Lord. No one is such a favorite that they don’t have to do what God says. God is consistent.

 

Amish on electric bikes. Hard for me to figure…but being consistent, day in and day out, is even harder.

 

Roger