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Jump Start # 349

Posted on May 16, 2011 by Jump Starts Daily in Jump Starts Daily | Tagged | Leave a comment

Jump Start # 349

Ecclesiastes 3:11 “He has made everything appropriate in its time. He has also set eternity in their heart, yet so that man will not find out the work which God has done from the beginning even to the end.”

  Solomon who wrote this is discussing God’s relationship with man and how God made man. The expression, “He has also set eternity in their heart,” is what I want to focus upon today. Eternity in our hearts. What a wonderful expression.

  There is something within us that knows that there is something out there—and I’m not talking about aliens, but God. Nearly every civilization struggled with this but understood that some form of God was out there. This is why we find examples of people worshipping the sun or a river or in the Old Testament, the god Baal. It was Freud who claimed that man invented God, like a mental crutch, to help carry us through. But his theories don’t stand. As man advanced and technology developed, and life shifted from survival and rural, to urban and productivity, the inner thought of God has always been there. You see this in emergency rooms of hospitals. You see this in funeral homes. People, once too busy to think such things, suddenly are reaching out and grasping for what they know is there, and that is God. We have eternity placed in our hearts. We just know that we are different than animals. We treat the death of humans and the death of animals differently. We know that death isn’t the end of the road for us.

  The concept of eternity within us also leads to a sense of right and wrong within us. We know that there is a line, and once that line has been crossed, what was done is wrong. Now, where did that sense of right and wrong come from? It was placed within us. It is part of that eternity in our hearts.

  Psalms 19 states that the heavens declare the handiwork of God. Paul, in describing the Gentile people said, “For since the creation of the world His invisible attributes, His eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly seen, being understood through what has been made, so that they are without excuse” (Romans 1:20). Within us and around us, we know there is God. Denying that, is denying what is within us and it is denying the obvious. Many places, our country included, are quickly moving to being a secular society by removing all references to God. This may be a public policy, but it will never totally work, and the reason is because of what God has placed within us, eternity. We know deep down that there is a God.

  It takes the Bible, the divine revelation, to know who this God is and what He is like. Without the Bible, we are likely to worship the sun, sacrifice our children upon an altar and pray to a river. Without the Bible, we don’t know God’s name, His nature, nor His will. But with the Bible, we have come to know, understand and love God. We know what He wants and we know His character.

  Eternity within us—it’s in our DNA. It’s in our inner being. We long for a better place. We need help from someone greater than us. We have been created in the image of God.

  What a blessing that is! God wants you to find Him. God wants you to come to know Him. God has left His fingerprint upon your soul. Trying to live without God, just leaves us in a mess. We are not made that way.  Folks who try, substitute something else for God. They don’t realize it, but that’s what they are doing. It may be status, it may be wealth, it may be fame, it may be relationships, it may be sports—but there’s something driving them, something missing on the insides. They are looking. They are trying to find it. They don’t realize that it’s eternity that God has placed in their hearts. It is that fingerprint of God.

  God wants you with Him—now and forever. That’s just the way we’re made. We do our best when we walk with God. It gives us an inner peace, a confidence and a purpose. Success is finding God.

  That’s just the way we are…because that’s just the way He made us.

Roger

13

Jump Start # 348

Posted on May 13, 2011 by Jump Starts Daily in Jump Starts Daily | Tagged | Leave a comment

Jump Start # 348

2 Corinthians 2:0-11 “But one whom you forgive anything, I forgave also; for indeed what I have forgiven, if I have forgiven anything, I did it for our sakes in the presence of Christ, so that no advantage would be taken of us by Satan, for we are not ignorant of his schemes.”

  Satan is wicked to the core. He will use anything, anyone, and any time to try to trip us up. Paul knew that. He wanted the Corinthians to get that. This chapter of Corinthians is a follow up to something that happened in first Corinthians. There we learn that one of the Christians was living immorally. He was having sexual relations with “his father’s wife,” which either means his mother or step-mother. Even the pagans knew that was wrong. The church did nothing. Paul led the church to disciplining this man. Church discipline—now that’s something you don’t hear churches practicing these days. It seems like churches are so happy to get people that they don’t care—they don’t care how you live or what you do. That’s not the message of the N.T. Before we belong to a congregation, we belong to Jesus. He expects us to the lights of the world. We are to be holy as he is holy. We are to walk in a manner worthy of our calling. Not all do this. Not all want to do this. Just like kids at home, sometimes folks act up. Any home that doesn’t have some discipline is going to crash.

  The Corinthian church withdrew fellowship from this man. The social contact was restricted. It was a serious step to awaken this man from his sinful lifestyle. His soul was more important than their social interaction. It worked. The man changed. He repented. He returned to his walk with the Lord.

  Our verse, about forgiveness, is written about this situation. The church has made the hard decision to stand up to this man, now it’s time to show love, acceptance and forgiveness. This is as important as the other. Discipline without forgiveness can make a person, or a church, hard, mean and cold. That’s not the way of Christ.

  Paul’s message is that if you don’t forgive you give the Devil an advantage. Satan will use that opportunity to chip away at faith, to make some bitter and to cause some to quit walking with Jesus.

  I love Paul’s expression, “We are not ignorant of his schemes.” Satan has plans. He has ways. He intends to work his way into homes, congregations and hearts. We know that. We know how he works.

  I wonder if today we are not as street smart about Satan as the early Christians were. I hear folks going to questionable places, hanging around people with not the best character and saying, “It’s ok.” Is it? Are you aware of Satan’s schemes? Getting you away from other Christians is a powerful plan of Satan. Rarely does the lion take a flying leap into a herd of antelope, instead, he waits until one isn’t paying attention and is grazing alone, then, suddenly, without notice, the lion leaps and has antelope lunch. That’s what he does to us.

  Ignorance isn’t bliss, as the saying goes. It’s dangerous. It gets you into trouble. Before our Navy Seals went in and got Bin Laden, they studied and learned and prepared. They were not ignorant. Do you know your enemy? He knows you. He knows which buttons to push. He knows which temptations, tempt you the most. He knows when you are weak. He knows what gets you down. He knows your strong points. Satan knows you. Do you know him?

  James said resist, and he will flee from you. Jesus told Peter to pray that he would not enter into temptation. Do you know what works against Satan.

  Paul especially knew that the lack of forgiveness will open the door to Satan. To the person who needs forgiveness, he is left alone in his guilt and remorse. Regret will eat him up. The lack of acceptance will keep him away from other Christians. Eventually, he’ll quit. Judas did. He tried to return the money he got for betraying Jesus. He had a change of heart. The Jews didn’t care. No one was there to forgive Judas. Eaten with guilt he hung himself.

   The Corinthians need to forgive as well. Not just for the sake of the brother who had done wrong, but for their own sake. Failing to forgive keeps them from moving on. The hurt caused by this man remains. It’s like picking a scab. As long as you keep doing that, the wound won’t heal. Bitterness and gossip fill the heart when forgiveness is not extended.

  Satan was hoping. He wanted bitterness and guilt to fill the Corinthian skies. This is the very thing that could begin to undo the entire church. Paul knew that. Satan knew that. There was but one thing to do—do the right thing and forgive.

  Now, how about you? Are you aware that even today, Satan has you in this sights. He is looking for ways to get you. It may be at work…it may be at home. Get you alone…get you with the wrong people…hit your weak spots. He’s there. He’s lurking. He’s watching. He sees what you are doing. He’s planning.

  Enough, already. Resist. Be strong in your faith. Bring God into the equation by praying to Him. Do the right thing. Don’t be ignorant of your enemy…he’s certainly not ignorant of you.

  May God help each of us, starting with just today!

 Roger

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Jump Start # 347

Posted on May 12, 2011 by Jump Starts Daily in Jump Starts Daily | Tagged | Leave a comment

Jump Start # 347 

2 Thessalonians 3:1a, 2-3 “Finally, brethren, pray for us…and that we will be rescued from perverse and evil men; for not all have faith. But the Lord is faithful, and He will strengthen and protect you from the evil one.” 

  Yesterday in our Jump Start, we look at the first verse of this chapter. Paul asks for prayers from the brethren. He wants prayers that the word of God will spread rapidly. He wanted other prayers. His thought continues. He wants prayers for his safety. His preaching had taken him to many cities and before many people. Not everyone received it well. Paul had been arrested many times and in trouble often for defending Jesus Christ. It is these thoughts that bring us to our verse today.

  Paul prayed that he would be rescued. His rescuers would not be a covert military operation that would break him out of prison in the middle of the night. Paul was not asking for that. He wanted brethren to pray to God. It would be God that rescued him. When Paul wrote 2 Timothy, he had already stood before the Roman Emperor once. He said that all deserted me, but the Lord stood with me and strengthened me.

  Paul states three characteristics of the enemy he faced. They were perverse. They were evil. They did not have faith. What a telling description of these wicked people. Without faith, without conscience, without God governing their lives, these corrupt people were likely to do anything. Paul knew that.

  The same spirit of people exists today. They don’t care, especially about others. They can be mean, rude, offensive, and especially make sport of those who have faith. It is difficult to work with such. They will take credit for things they did not do and they will blame the innocent for the wrong they do. They can make life miserable. What is a person to do? Quit? Many finally do. They get to a point where they can’t take it any longer. With this economy, quitting isn’t an option for many people. So everyday you walk into work feeling like you have a target on your back.

  What did Paul do? He prayed. He asked others to pray. He prayed that God would rescue him. He may have drawn from some of the Psalms when David was being chased by King Saul. David referred to God as a refuge and a shelter. Paul told the Thessalonians that God will strengthen and protect you from the evil one. “The evil one” is Satan who is working through these wicked people. Notice, Paul did not promise that the abuse would be removed nor stopped. Instead God will strengthen you. It’s like a form of insulation. We like ISOLATION—remove us from the problem. Instead, God shelters us by keeping the evil from reaching within.

  This takes faith and trust in God. Seeing what the prophets did. Seeing what our Lord did. These thoughts bring several ideas to our mind. Why are people like this? The answer is because this isn’t Heaven and people are broken and corrupt in heart. They need Jesus. Surrounding yourself with God– His words, your prayers, and His people, can and is a shelter and a refuge for you. The tendency is to get back, and get even. But in doing that we become as they are. Don’t go there. It’s not the place for a disciple of Jesus. Let the Lord handle it. Take it to the Lord in prayer.

  God strengthens. God won’t leave you alone. God will help you. Tough times tend to make us tough. They call upon a character and a faith that we didn’t know we had.

  Hang in there. You’re not the first to go through things like this. Sometimes the problem is not at work, but in the family. That’s harder. Same steps. Same solutions. Turn to the Lord. Some day all this will end. There will be no evil men in Heaven. Those who do not believe will not make it. The perverse will face God for all the trouble they caused. God will deal with them, not us. Our job is to remain faithful, obedient, and stay busy in the kingdom. Years ago, there was a cop show on TV in which the sergeant would tell the policemen “It’s tough out there.” Yes it is, but as John wrote in his epistles, “Greater is He who is in you, than he who is in the world.”

Roger

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Jump Start # 346

Posted on May 11, 2011 by Jump Starts Daily in Jump Starts Daily | Tagged | Leave a comment

Jump Start # 346

2 Thessalonians 3:1 “Finally, brethren, pray for us that the word of the Lord will spread rapidly and be glorified, just as it did also with you” 

  Our passage today shows us what is within the heart of the apostle Paul. This is what he longed for and what he wanted. It is a beautiful prayer that we ought to pray as well. The apostles and others were busily preaching and teaching the word of God. In many places they found great results. People were listening, changing and becoming obedient to the will of God. Churches were being established, elders appointed and the kingdom of Christ was getting a toe hold in pagan communities. Other times, it was more difficult. They met resistance, especially from Jewish communities. People argued. What the apostles were saying was misquoted, riots took place. In some communities they were driven out of town.

  Paul’s prayer was that the word of the Lord would spread rapidly. Growth. Increase. This is takes place as people become disciples of Jesus. The word spreading meant more souls being saved. Paul understood the direct link between the preached word, the word being obeyed and growth. He didn’t stoop to side show carnival approaches to attract people. He preached the word of God. He didn’t have to persuade people through games, activities, food or other means. He preached the word. It worked. It worked then and it will work today. The reason for that, this is God’s way.

  Have we given up on God’s way? Are we so convinced that this generation simply isn’t interested in preaching, that we no longer try. In far too many places, the Bible isn’t preached. A verse or two may be read between jokes, skits, drama, but it’s not preached. Folks today don’t know the Bible. Watch a show of Jeopardy when one of the categories is the Bible. The contestants will stay away from that until there are no other options. They can get the answer to Russian poets or chemistry equations, but they can’t tell which books belong in the Bible. Sad.

  The first prayer that we ought to pray is that the word of God would grow rapidly and be glorified within my heart. That’s where this must start, with each of us. By glorifying, we esteem the Bible. It is the final answer. I have my thoughts and you have your thoughts, but once the Bible is opened and understood, that settles it. That is the answer. The word of God growing rapidly within each of us will change us. We become a people of the book. We know what God wants. We know what Jesus would do. Confidence grows, doubts disappear when the word is growing within us. Many of our issues and problems come from lives that are not anchored in the word of God. We allow worry and fear to dominate us and control us. Faith, based upon the word of God will settle those things.

  Then, we need to pray that the word of God spreads rapidly within our church. We need to be a people of the book as a church. As Jesus tossed out the money changers in his time, we’d start tossing out the clowns, the entertainers, the plays, the food, and all the stuff that fills our belly, and our time but not our souls. Back to the book is what we need. Bible classes where we sit around, with the Bible opened in our laps, pens in our hands for notes and we discuss and learn the words, the thoughts, the context, the meanings of passages. Our eyes become amazed at the Jesus we find in the gospels.

  Now here’s a thought for you: God’s smart. Smarter than any of us. He knows the best way to communicate. He could have told us to act out the stories in the Bible. He didn’t. He could have sent us pictures, even videos, so we could watch His message. He didn’t. He told the disciples to go and PREACH the gospel. Words. Words have meanings. Words can be understood, translated, copied, memorized, studied and repeated. It is through words that God’s saving message would be told. “Go tell it on the mountain,” is an old hymn that shares this concept.

  Finally, we need to pray that God’s word spreads rapidly throughout the world. And it is. In fact, in many third world countries, the word is spreading faster than it is here. Amazing stories of people walking for miles and miles to hear the gospel preached. Some going without food, others trading what little they have just to own a copy of the Bible.

  It starts with each of us. When is the last time you opened your Bible? Church on Sunday? When is the last time you memorized a passage or used a verse in an email or conversation with someone? Is the word growing rapidly within you? Gotta make room for it in your heart. Gotta set aside some time for it. Then watch great things as your attitude, character, hope, desire, marriage, friendship, devotion all soar because the word of God richly dwells within you.

Roger

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Jump Start # 345

Posted on May 10, 2011 by Jump Starts Daily in Jump Starts Daily | Tagged | Leave a comment

Jump Start # 345 

Matthew 13:44 “The kingdom of Heaven is like a treasure hidden in the field, which a man found and hid again; and from joy over it he goes and sells all that he has and buys the field.” 

  Our passage today is found in the section of illustrations or parables defining what the kingdom of Heaven is like. Jesus tells us that the kingdom of Heaven is like the sower who threw the seed out upon the land, but at night his enemy came and sowed weeds into the field. He then tells us that the kingdom of Heaven is like a mustard seed. Then, the kingdom of Heaven is like leaven that was placed inside dough. After our passage, Jesus continues with the kingdom of Heaven is like a pearl merchant who found a pearl of great price. Then the kingdom of Heaven is like a giant fish net that caught all kinds of fish. The good were kept and the bad were thrown out.

  Many parables throughout this chapter to teach what the kingdom is like and to show that God’s kingdom is not like the kingdoms of the world.

  Our passage today is about a man who stumbles upon a treasure that was hidden in the field. It was not uncommon for people living in the time of without safety deposit boxes, to hide valuables in a field. If they were robbed or more likely, invaded by another nation, their valuables would be safe. Here is a man who finds such. He doesn’t steal them or even take them. He buys the field so he can get the treasure. The cost of the field was expensive. It cost him all that he had. But it was worth it because of the treasure he found.

  That’s the story. Now what’s the point? What’s the spiritual lesson here? The treasure is salvation, God’s will, all that Jesus stands for. Salvation is free, yet it costs. It costs us our all. We are to love the Lord our God with all of our heart, mind and soul. We are to deny our self, take up our cross and follow Him. To say that it costs nothing really isn’t so. We can’t buy salvation, but it costs us complete and total commitment on our part.

  This man in the story realized what he found. It saw it’s value. He knew what it was and what it was worth. How about us? It’s not just having a place to go to on Sunday, church. It’s a new way of life. It’s a different way of thinking. It’s seeing life and all that there is through the eyes of God. Wrong looks differently from God’s perspective. Doing things for others is different when you bring God into the picture.

  This man in the story wasn’t given the treasure, he had to do something to obtain it. So do we. We are saved by grace, yet we have responsibility. Those two thoughts are not opposite. Jesus said in Luke 13 to “strive to enter the narrow door.” That word carries the idea of agony and effort. Without our responsibility, grace would save everyone, even those who didn’t want to be saved. Striving, effort, “purchasing the field” still doesn’t earn Heaven for us. We can never earn it, but we must want it. We must be willing to change our lives, our hearts, and our attitudes for God.

  How excited this man in the story seems to be. He found something great. We hear stories similar to that. Someone in a garage sale makes a rare find and buys a painting that is worth thousands of dollars. Heaven is worth it. Heaven is all the world to me, as the hymn goes.

  Where do we find that treasure? It’s in the Bible. It’s Jesus Christ. It is what He offers you. A better way than the direction you have been going. A better heart…a better hope. What’s it worth to you? Are you willing to give up everything for it, or more accurately, for HIM!

  I think the reason some don’t is that they just haven’t realized the value. Sure they want to go to Heaven when they die, who doesn’t, but every Sunday in church? Change my habits? Read the Bible? Help others? Follow Christ? They begin thinking, that’s too much or I really don’t want to do all that, or worse, it’s not worth it to me. And so they walk on, leaving a rare and valuable treasure in a field. They remain poor and broken on the inside when they could have Jesus. They continue going down a dead end road that leads to no where when they could follow Christ. They continue to fill their hearts and mind with senseless and empty things, talking about others, complaining about everything, and denying how miserable and stuck they really are. You might think, boy, he’s really slamming people today. No. I’m remembering how I once lived before I found a treasure in the field. That treasure changed my life. It changed my values and what I was after. That treasure is Jesus.

  He became mine after I sold everything. How about you? Are you ready to try it His way? It’ll cost you, but it’s so worth it.

Roger