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Jump Start # 209

Posted on October 29, 2010 by Jump Starts Daily in Jump Starts Daily | Tagged | Leave a comment

Jump Start # 209

1 Timothy 4:15 “Take pains with these things, be absorbed in them, so that your progress may be evident to all.”

 Paul writes to Timothy about preaching, but more so, about the Christian life. The older preacher and the younger preacher. The apostle and the young disciple. Experienced and inexperience. That is the setting for 1 Timothy. Timothy was preaching at Ephesus. Reading 1 Timothy, tells us that there were all kinds of things going on, good and bad. Young preachers get discouraged. I know, I’ve been one. There is something genuine and honest about the heart of the young preacher. They just love the Lord and want to preach that word with all their heart. I know, I have one in my family. Looking at him reminds me of myself thirty years ago. Sometimes we just don’t listen well to those young preachers. They are so idealistic and young. We don’t want to change, so we don’t. We never realize that our stubbornness can kill the heart of a young preacher. They get discouraged. Some want to quit. Some do. Paul writes to one such preacher. His words are intended to encourage, strengthen and motivate.

  Our passage is found in a series of short instructions to Timothy. Paul writes concerning the things that he can do. Notice these words: “take pains…be absorbed.” Wonderful words. Powerful concepts. People have taken great pains to finish their degree. They’ve worked and gone to school, living on very little sleep. It was hard, very hard. Others have taken great pains to pay off debt. They have sacrificed and done without just so they could pay off the car loan or the mortgage on the house.

  Paul has in mind the spiritual. He always does. Take pains with these things…be absorbed in them are directed toward the spiritual disciplines in life. This is odd for many of us. Taking pains with the spiritual is just taking things a bit too seriously. Paul didn’t seem to think so. Too many are content just to go to church on Sunday and then get back to their life. For Paul, Christ was his life. He said so in Col. 3:2.

  Something special happens when a person becomes absorbed with a subject—they become an expert. Consider the person who has devoted their life to music. He has studied music, taken lessons, read books about music and enjoys it passionately. He is absorbed with it. He talks about it so easily and freely. You will find people coming to him for advice about music. Some will ask if he can give lessons. You find the same thing to someone who has devoted his life to cars. He knows cars. When a friend has a car problem, he knows just who to ask for help. The people you see on the cable channels, such as the cooking shows or the travel shows or the antique shows—how is it that they know so much about their topic? They have absorbed themselves with it. They’ve taken great pains to know it.

  Now, consider what would happen if we became absorbed with the New Testament. What if we took great pains to learn Jesus? Imagine what that would do for us. First, we would feel very sure about God. We would know God, if that is possible. Our confidence would rise because we have become absorbed with it. Then, others would come to us when they wanted to know things. Why? Because they knew that we knew. 

  When those things happen the end of this verse becomes natural. Paul said your progress will be evident to all. How so? Because you have taken pains with these things and have become absorbed with them. Sometimes growth is hard to see in ourselves, but others see it. Absorption with God makes it happen.

  Paul gives us a great thought to end with: what is evident about us? What do folks see? What do they see spiritually? Are you progressing? Paul says you should.

  The word “pains” sound painful—there is no easy shortcuts here. A younger preacher listened to an older preacher preach. He was impressed. He told the older preacher, “I’d give anything to know the Bible like you do.” The older preacher replied, “I gave 40 years of my life.” There is no other way. Soak it up, that’s what absorbed means. Drink deeply of God’s word. Learn, grow, ask questions, seek, listen, read…that is the absorption process.

Roger

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Jump Start # 208

Posted on October 28, 2010 by Jump Starts Daily in Jump Starts Daily | Tagged | Leave a comment

Jump Start # 208 

1 Corinthians 6:18 “Flee fornication. Every other sin that a man commits is outside the body, but the immoral man sins against his own body.” 

  A serious warning—few take the words to heart. God said it in the 10 Commandments, “Thou shalt not commit adultery.” Now, centuries later, God states it through the apostle Paul. As I write these words my heart is heavy. A preacher I know didn’t take this warning seriously. He broke his vows to his wife and his promise to God and committed fornication. It involved a married woman within the congregation. Two families hurt. Two marriages that have taken the most serious hit and may not survive. A church that has let their preacher go. A mess. It is far reaching. Many will be hurt by this. Shame and shock fills the heart of the congregation. People feel betrayed. Trust has been shattered. Young people are confused and disgusted. Other churches that were counting on using this preacher are at a lost as to what to do. Two selfish people that only thought of themselves. And now Satan smiles. Much of the good that was done has suffered. It will take a long while to recover from this.

  I taught a class recently just for preachers. It was based upon a book that has been written by preachers for preachers. The author claimed that he knew of 52 preachers that had been unfaithful to their wives. Now he has another number to add to that list. And Satan smiles.

  This is not about preachers, it’s about us. Paul’s passage was not written to preachers but to us. We simply don’t get it. Preachers don’t get it. Sexual sins are like a drug—it just consumes our thoughts. The movies today are saturated with fornication. TV shows are all about that. Sex before marriage, sex outside of marriage—anyway and everyway a person can imagine, except God’s way! Marriages are crippled because of this. Kids grow up seeing that Dad and Mom can’t keep their promises to each other, so why should they even try. Talented men must step down from the pulpit, others are resigning from the eldership. And Satan smiles.

  The words are not hard to understand—FLEE FORNICATION! Just two words. Joseph got it. He fled. It can be done. It must be done. Don’t argue with fornication. Don’t debate it. Don’t try to convert it. Don’t stick around to see what happens. Get going—get out—get moving. FLEE. Later Paul would tell Timothy, “Flee youthful lusts” (2 Tim 2:22). This isn’t cowardly—it’s God’s way to save you.

  Two thoughts: First, flee before it happens. Fornication starts with flirting with someone you’re not married to. It’s just fun you say. It’s innocent you say. And Satan smiles. It continues by talking too long and revealing too much to the opposite sex that you are not married to. Those conversations belong to your mate, no one else. But my mate doesn’t listen. My mate doesn’t understand. I’m not doing anything wrong, we’re just talking. And Satan smiles. It continues by being alone with the opposite sex you are not married to. Fornication doesn’t take place in crowds, it’s in the dark, out of the way places. Stay out of those places. Don’t be alone with the opposite sex unless it’s your family. We’re just grabbing a bite to eat—that’s all. And Satan smiles. Are we that dumb? Satan thinks so. Are we that naïve? Satan thinks so. Flee. Flee. Flee. We do everything but flee. Why won’t we listen to God? Fornication begins in our heart and mind. What are you putting in it? Be holy like He is Holy is the plea of Peter.

  Second, why are we so reluctant to call for help when things are turning sour in our marriages? We pretend everything is great, when it’s not. We are good at hiding behind masks. Can’t we trust each other enough to get help? Would we rather have a little shame by admitting we need help, rather than the enormous shame that comes after committing adultery? Openness, honesty and godliness is God’s way. Transparency is not a new thing. James said, “confess your faults to one another.” We don’t do that. We are embarrassed. We like pretending all is fine. And Satan smiles.

 I’m getting tired of Satan smiling—how about you? Put on your running shoes—you got some fleeing that needs to be done! Satan will attack your marriage. He’ll try and try until he smiles. But you know what to do. Lace up those shoes and hit the road. It’s time to flee!

Roger

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Jump Start # 207

Posted on October 26, 2010 by Jump Starts Daily in Jump Starts Daily | Tagged | Leave a comment

Jump Start # 207

Mark 11:29-30 “And Jesus said to them, ‘I will ask you one question, and you answer Me, and then I will tell you by what authority I do these things. ‘Was the baptism of John from Heaven , or from men? Answer me.’”

 Our passage for today takes place near the end of Jesus’ ministry. The tide of popularity was turning. Curiosity had been replaced with rage. More and more, especially of the Jewish hierarchy, were becoming disgusted with Jesus. He continued to heal on the Sabbath day. He turned tables over in the Temple. He forgave sins. He went to the home of tax collectors. They had it with Jesus.

 Matthew tells us that the setting for our passage takes place in the Temple. The chief priests demanded to know by what authority Jesus was doing these things and who gave Him that authority. They pressed Jesus for these answers. Authority—it is the right or permission to do something. Society unravels without a sense of order and authority. Can you imagine driving down the highway with every driver doing whatever he wanted to do? Some would be driving way too fast. Some would be driving on the wrong side of the road. Some would not stop when the light turned red. It reminds me of what the streets of India are like—chaos. Authority. When you are at the airport, those in authority have the permission or the right to inspect your luggage. Why do they do this? They have the authority and it was given to them by the Federal Government.

  The Jewish leaders were wanting to know who gave Jesus the permission to do what He was doing. Religious authority—that is one area that many don’t think about. In many circles it is believed that churches are a democracy and whatever the will of the congregation is, that’s what goes. So if a church wants to sell donkey rides it can. If a church wants to run movies it can, as long as the congregation is ok with it. It is fair to ask, “By what authority are you doing these things and who gave you that authority?” Try that one on your preacher sometime and see what he says!

  In a classic Jesus moment, the Lord answered their questions with a question. I will ask you a question, He said. Answer My question and I will answer yours. He had them. He knew they wouldn’t answer. His question, is THE question. He asked about the baptism of John the Baptist. His authority, was it from Heaven or men? The following verses shows the dilemma Jesus put them in. If they said “Heaven,” which meant, John was fulfilling the will of God, then they were in trouble for rejecting him. If they said, as they truly felt, from men, then the crowds would riot against them because they felt John was a prophet. They didn’t answer. What cowards!

  You can put just about anything a church does into that question—”Is it from Heaven or is it from men?” If it is from Heaven, then the Bible proves it by commands and examples. If it is from men, you won’t read anything close to it in the Bible. Heaven or men? That’s what it comes down to. Are we following the Bible, or the wishes of men? Are we doing what God said or what men say? Can you answer that? You better! It’s your right to know. Don’t fall for the slick line that says, “look at all the good we are doing…” that dodges the question. Is it from Heaven or from men? Is it in the Bible or not?

  Jesus’ question wasn’t tough – they just didn’t want to answer. We must ask ourselves, will we answer that question or will we do what those Jewish priests did?

Roger

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Jump Start # 206

Posted on October 25, 2010 by Jump Starts Daily in Jump Starts Daily | Tagged | Leave a comment

Jump Start # 206

Luke 5:19-20 “But not finding any way to bring him in because of the crowd, they went up on the roof and let him down through the tiles with his stretcher, into the middle of the crowd, in front of Jesus. Seeing their faith, He said, ‘Friend, your sins are forgiven you.”

  Our passage today comes from a day in the life of Jesus. What a fantastic example of faith and determination. Jesus is in a house teaching. There is a crowd. It is packed. Four friends bring their crippled friend to see Jesus. They have the hopes of a miracle. Jesus can heal. He’s done that before. They reach the house and there is no way in. Many would have gone home. Many would say, ‘We’ll try another day.’ But not these friends. They are determined. Up on the roof they go. Many houses had flat roofs with straw or tiles that could easily be removed. I expect they went up to check it out first. Then they started removing tiles. As Jesus is teaching, a hole appears in the roof. Dust falls below. Four faces peer down. They spot Jesus. They remove more tiles. They go down and get their friend on the stretcher and lower him down. I expect Jesus stopped teaching. Everyone in the house would have looked up at what was going on. Down, down, down he is lowered. Jesus sees all of this. Everyone else sees this. This is a first. No one has seen anything like this. The people move aside to make room for the stretcher. Jesus’ first words are, “your sins are forgiven…”

  Great story. What incredible faith. What amazing friends.

  Two simple lessons here: First, faith is visible. Jesus saw their faith. What did He see? He saw four friends who believed that Jesus would make a difference. They would not give up. That is the way faith is. Faith is action. Faith is demonstrated. Faith is not passive. Faith is not silent. Faith will move a person. It moved Noah to build the ark. It moved Abraham to move out of Ur and journey to a land God prepared. Faith will move you to obey Jesus. It will move you to walk  in righteousness. When someone says they have faith but you don’t see it and they talk and walk like the world, something is wrong, especially with their faith. It’s simply not working.

  I like the unity of these friends who believed and worked together to lower the crippled before Jesus. One person could not have done this on his own. It took them all. Without all of them believing, the crippled man would have remained on the ground outside the house.

  The second lesson is seen in Jesus forgiving the crippled. His friends brought him to Jesus to be healed, and the Lord healed him in a way they never knew. It does little good to heal crippled legs if the heart and soul remain crippled. A person with crippled legs can go to Heaven. But a person with a crippled heart cannot. Jesus healed the man’s greatest problem. Most of us do not realize this ourselves. We worry when a loved one gets cancer, and we should. We call upon brethren to pray for them. Wonderful thing to do. But what about their spiritual condition? How many have cancer of the soul and we think nothing of that. If the cancer leaves and they die without knowing Jesus, they will be lost.

  Knowing this ought to cause us to be more concerned about the soul than the body.  But we get that backwards. Jesus didn’t. He started with the soul. He cured the soul first and then healed the body.

  May we see this great lesson from our Lord.

  Roger

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Jump Start # 205

Posted on October 23, 2010 by Jump Starts Daily in Jump Starts Daily | Tagged | Leave a comment

Jump Start # 205

Luke 15:4 “What man among you, if he has a hundred sheep and has lost one of them, does not leave the ninety-nine in the open pasture and go after the one which is lost until he finds it?”

  This passage begins the threefold series of parables that define God and illustrate the grace and salvation in Jesus Christ. Lost sheep, lost coin and lost sons—there are some similarities and some differences.

  First, the similarities: in all three parables something of value was lost. Also, there is an effort to find that which was lost. And then there was great rejoicing when the lost was found.

  The differences: sheep tend to wander off on their own. They don’t pay attention to the rest of the flock and through carelessness or unawareness become lost. The coin was lost because of someone else. Coins are lifeless and they remain wherever we put them. The prodigal was lost because of his choice—rebellion. All three were lost, but by different ways. So it is today. Some are lost simply because they have not paid attention to that which will keep them saved. They have wandered off with out realizing it. Others, like the coin, have been hurt by others. The neglect of others have caused them to become estranged from God. I think about the children and young people whose parents give up on God and no longer worship and then they grow up in the wilderness of being lost. Then there are those that just defy God and fight God’s ways and walk away in rebellion. All three were lost. The results are the same.

  In our passage today, as Jesus tells the story of the lost sheep, He begins with a question, “what man among you…” would not leave 99 sheep to find the one lost sheep? Actually, I think most would not. Unless the shepherd had the 99 in safe hands, or other helpers to watch over them, this was a recipe for disaster. If the shepherd worked alone, and left 99 to find the one, when he returned, he may have 99 that are now lost. The clasp of thunder, the howl of a wolf, an uncertain sound could send terror throughout the flock and they could scatter looking for the shepherd. No, most in Jesus’ time, would not leave the 99. They would count their losses and shepherd 99. That happens.

  But in this parable, the shepherd, God, leaves the 99 to look for the one. Each one is of value. Saving the majority at the cost of losing a few is unacceptable to God. God wants all safe and will search until He finds the lost.

  I’m glad God is like this. Churches need to be more like this. It’s not the majority, it’s every soul that counts. Some of us are wanderers and we need constant watching. We don’t pay attention to detail nor where we are, and that gets us in trouble. Thankfully, we have a shepherd who loves us so much.

  Most of Jesus’ parables tend to be upside down an inside out to the thinking of the people. The reason is, God’s kingdom is not like the kingdom of the world, it’s better. God does things differently than we do.

  God is always looking out for you. And when you get too far away, God’s out looking for you.  I’m thankful for that. God never gives up on us.

Roger