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Jump Start # 661

Posted on August 3, 2012 by Jump Starts Daily in Jump Starts Daily | Tagged | Leave a comment

 

Jump start # 661

Amos 8:11-12 “Behold, days are coming,’ declares the Lord God, when I shall send a famine on the land, not a famine for bread for a thirst for water, but rather for hearing the words of the Lord. People will stagger from sea to sea and from north even to the east; they will go to and from to seek the word of the Lord, but they will not find it.’”

 

The days of Amos were tough times spiritually. The people of God were not committed and dedicated to God. Sacrifices became meaningless and the people didn’t seem interested. God would not tolerate such lifeless worship. One of the things God was going to do was remove His word from the land. There would be a famine for the word. Times would come when people would seek the ways of God but not be able to find them.

In many ways we witness a famine of Biblical knowledge in the land today. People just do not understand the Bible, yet they speak as if they are experts. The lack of fundamental basics is disturbing and worse when folks state things so proudly that illustrate this ignorance of the word.

The recent controversy concerning Chic-fil-a is a great example of this. From the talk shows to national columnists, people of knowledge are showing that they have no knowledge of God’s word. It is embarrassing to hear of such wild statements that cannot be supported by the Bible.

For instance, in the past few days, I have found these:

  • “Jesus Christ never said anything about marriage.” False. Try Matthew 5 or 19 to start with.

 

  • “Jesus never defined a marriage.” False. He did. Read Matthew 19 where He quotes Genesis 2 and states a man and his wife.

 

  • “Jesus never said anything about homosexuality.” False. He did. The apostles wrote the commandments of Jesus (1 Cor 14:37). In Romans, homosexuality is called unnatural.

 

  • “If we use the Bible, then we must bring back slavery.” False. I don’t know where this is coming from. Every society that has had the Bible taught has ended slavery.

 

  • “Using the Bible makes women second class people.” False. I expect this is a misunderstanding of what “submission” is. The New Testament gave women privileges that they never had before.

 

  • “God doesn’t care, He just wants us to be happy.” False. He does care, and He wants us to be holy before happy. 1 Peter 1:16 says to be holy as He is holy.

 

  • “Jesus is compassionate and loving. He would never reject anyone.” False. His parables show people being cast out for not wearing wedding attire or for burying money in the ground or for showing up late to the wedding. He taught that if a person rejected His word, they rejected Him. He said if we love Him, we will keep His commandments.

 

  • “If we are going to start turning to the Bible, then we can’t eat certain foods.” False. The Old Testament food restrictions that applied to Israel are not part of the New Testament. This is a misunderstanding of the Old Testament and the New Testament.

It is disturbing to hear people claiming to know the Bible, misuse it so much. The knowledge is often superficial and shallow. Now all of this leads to a consideration of us.

We need to know the Bible. Not a second-hand, I heard a preacher say once, type of knowledge. We need to grasp what the writers are saying. We need to understand the circumstances and we need to be able to teach people the correct knowledge of God’s word.

Shallow knowledge will produce only a shallow faith. Shallow knowledge is dangerous because it doesn’t ward off Satan nor protect a person against error. There is just enough knowledge to make a person think he is right, but not enough to really grasp the message. The Bible ought to move us to God and change us. It is powerful when used correctly.

Liberal theology today teaches that the sin at Sodom was not homosexuality but a lack of hospitality. That doesn’t fit the story nor what God actually said. With just a little Bible and a huge agenda people can move God to supporting the very things He is against. They have changed the Bible instead of changing themselves. By doing this, they have taken the holiness out of the word, they have deflated it’s power, they have watered down it’s promises and they have made the Book of very little value.

How well do you know the Bible? How well is the Book transforming your life? Jesus said that man shall live on every word that proceeds from the mouth of God. Every word…important…powerful…life changing.

We may be in a spiritual famine right now. Will you survive? It’s been said, ‘the Bible that is falling apart belongs to a person who is not falling apart.”

Roger

02

Jump Start # 660

Posted on August 2, 2012 by Jump Starts Daily in Jump Starts Daily | Tagged | Leave a comment

 

Jump Start # 660

Acts 4:18-20 “And when they had summoned them, they commanded them not to speak or teach at all in the name of Jesus. But Peter and John answered and said to them, “ Whether it is right in the sight of God to give heed to you rather than to God, you be the judge; for we cannot stop speaking about what we have seen and heard.”

I love the passion and courage of Peter in these verses. Arrested. Released. Arrested. Released. This seems to be a pattern in these early chapters of Acts. The officials thought a night in prison and a threat would make the apostles cower in fear. They were so wrong. Their actions seemed to stoke the fire within the hearts of his brave disciples.

There are three lessons to be learned here.

First, people change, don’t give up on them. Just a few months before all of this, we find Peter in the courtyard as Jesus is being interrogated by the Jewish hierarchy. Three times he denies knowing Jesus. What is so incredible about that is it wasn’t Roman soldiers who made Peter crack. It wasn’t intense death threats that scared him. A servant girl challenged him and he crumbled. A servant girl. Now, in Acts, he has been in prison and city officials are demanding that he be quiet. Peter refuses. He stands up to their threats. Peter has changed. The resurrected Christ did it. He grew from a timid disciple to a bold apostle. People will do that. Often, we remember the Peter who denied. We forever peg him as a coward. We won’t accept that he may have changed. I have known men who have walked away from the Lord, later in life serve as elders. They changed. People did not give up on them. Most of us have changed as we journeyed with Christ. We tend to get tougher, more confident, less caring what the godless write or say.

Second, the world is opposed to Christ. Jesus warned about this. They hated Jesus and they will hate his disciples. Peter was threatened. Peter was only preaching Jesus. Peter was offering what these people needed—salvation through the precious blood of the Savior. They would have nothing to do with that. They wanted to stamp the message out and quit the voice of those who stood with Christ. Those threats linger today. The innocent disciple will face threats. It may come from work. It may come from family members. Mostly, it comes from a world that wants to bathe in sin and become drunken with immorality. Don’t turn on the light, they love darkness. Don’t tell of consequences, they don’t care. The disciple in a dark world is a reminder to people who don’t want to be reminded. The disciple shames guilty people. The disciple stands for something that the godless world wants to go away and that is God.

Thirdly, we cannot stop speaking. That should be our motto. We sing, “I love to tell the story,” and so we should. Now there are ways to do this. This is not a cause to be rude, mean spirited, causing trouble, getting in fights or things like that. You don’t find Jesus or the apostles in bars, brothels, or in the mud with sinners. They were in market places, synagogues, the Temple, the streets. They found audiences that would listen. When told not to speak, they continued to speak. They put God before a city ordinance. The media has sold out to the voice of the godless. The media gives the impression that nearly everyone embraces wrong. The media would have us to think that God is on the way out. The media is so wrong. Events like yesterday’s turn out nationwide at Chick-fil-a’s illustrate how wrong the media is. Many stand with God. May that event spark us to continue to stand with God.

When someone says something that is not right, kindly correct them. When someone makes bold and unscriptural claims about God or His word, speak out. Don’t be afraid to stand alone. Don’t be afraid to say, “That’s not what the Bible says.” The voice of Peter could not be silenced. It’s time to awaken our voices and let the world know that we stand with God, in all things. The courage of one may rally others who believe but are afraid. The courage of one may convince those who are riding the fence. The courage of one spreads to others. The courageous soldier inspires the rest of the troops in battle. The courageous “win one for the Gipper,” inspired a team to win a game. The courage of an apostle inspires us to not be afraid, nor ashamed. Don’t be afraid to bow your head in public and pray before you eat. So others see you. Maybe they wished they had the faith to do that as well. Don’t be afraid to carry your Bible in places where people will see it—on airplanes, at work, in doctor’s offices. Don’t be afraid to admit to others that “Yes, I am a Christian.” Or, “Yes, I go to church services every week.”

We cannot stop speaking…we will only stop when the Lord stops us. Tax us, imprison us, mock us, make fun of us, threat us, boycott us, ridicule us, we will not stop speaking. Jesus is Lord. More than that, Jesus is my Lord!

Say that…share that…speak that…and finally, live that. Our voices may tire, but we must keep speaking. Our voices may be drowned out by opposition, yet we must still speak. We will only stop when the Lord stops us. That was Peter…and that must be us.

Roger

 

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Jump Start # 659

Posted on August 1, 2012 by Jump Starts Daily in Jump Starts Daily | Tagged | Leave a comment

 

Jump Start # 659

Romans 12:11 “Not lagging behind in diligence, fervent in spirit, serving the Lord.”

The Summer Olympics are on. Do you watch any of the games and do you get caught up in cheering for Team U.S.A.? I do. I love the Olympics. They are amazing. The world’s best going against one another. The skill level is unbelievable. Many of the athletes were in the last Olympics and a few competed in the one before that. Full time athletes. They train year round. When I hear that I ask, “don’t they have jobs?” I found out that they are funded and training and competing basically are their jobs.

When Olympians win there is a smile on their faces that is so genuine. When they fail, especially when they faltered, the tears are hard to watch. Olympians represent their country. They are sent not to compete but to win. They are all expected to win.

Today, shocking news from the Olympic badminton court. Two sets of teams are being investigated for not trying. Apparently one team from China did not want to face another team from China, so they hit the birdie into the net so often that an official warned them. A team from Korea did the same thing. Not trying at the Olympics?  Not giving your best? That’s not the Olympic spirit.

Our verse today takes us to the spiritual level of this—”Not lagging behind in diligence.” Lagging behind is the idea of falling off the pace. The group of runners are pulling away and one person is getting farther and farther behind. Lagging and diligence do not go together. Diligence is the idea of taking things seriously. Seeing to something, and getting about it. Lagging is just the opposite. It’s putting things off. It’s not giving 100%.

Our verse leads us to ask, “How hard are you trying?” We know that salvation is not based upon performance. God will not judge us as Olympian judges do. God’s grace and mercy is what saves us. Yet with that comes the spirit of trying. It is God’s apostle who wrote, “Not lagging behind in diligence…” God wants us to put forth our best effort. Give it all you have. Give 100%.

There may be reasons a person lags behind.

  • Possibly it’s harder than what a person first thought. Christianity involves our all. It’s more than making it to the church building on Sunday morning—it defines and describes us. Attitudes, choices, language, clothing, are all affected by Christ. Thinking of others, putting others first is part of being a Christian. Some lag because it’s almost overwhelming to them. They go through life like a freshman on his first day of high school. His arms are full of books, he has his class schedule in hand, he’s trying to work the combination on the locker and overall he feels lost, overwhelmed and nearly defeated. The key is putting your mind to it. Think first. Pray. Get your order in order and then fill your heart with the word of God. The more you do that, the more your choices will reflect the spiritual. You can do it because God said so.
  • Others lag because they have never made their faith a priority. Sure it’s important and they certainly want to go to Heaven but it’s not something that they think about every day. It’s there and they know they need to do something about it, but right now there are other things. This is lagging at its best! What else could be more important? The solution is simply put Christ first and seek the things above.

 

  • Others lag because they compare themselves with others and feel hopelessly defeated. They tell themselves that they could never know the Bible like others. They could never do this and never do that. They feel outclassed and in way over their heads so they compete but not with heart and spirit. They lag. They defeat themselves. The solution is to not compare yourself with others. Do the best that you can do. Do what you have talents for. This is not a competition against others. This is all about glorifying God.
  • Still others lag because they have not prepared themselves. They started out fine, but soon ran out of steam. Christianity isn’t something for a day, or even a week, but for a lifetime. Goals and plans are part of this race. Knowledge is important. Connection with others is important. Like a meteor that flashes across the sky and then is gone, so are some Christians. Their passion fades. Their commitment dies out. They settled into a lukewarm pace and are set on idle. They lag behind.

A person hurts themselves when they lag. They also hurt the church. A lagging church is made up of lagging members. We see this in some places. Putting off the things that ought to be done. Not trying very hard. Settled down. Comfortable. Not wanting to do much more. Those things just want to make me scream. GET UP! GET AT IT! There are things to do—even today. There are people who need you—even today. There are things to pray about—even today. There are things to be studied—even today. There are things to be taught—even today. Satan is knocking on your door—be diligent in resisting him. There are others who are dropping out because they are lagging behind—pick them up and help them. There is much to do. The race is not the time for sight seeing. The race is not the time to wave to the crowds. The race is not the time to admire your uniform. It’s time to get at it.

 

Sadly, those that lag, will soon be left behind. They will be caught in a real pickle—do they stay in Christ at their slow snail pace, barely hanging on, or do they drop out and join the world? Too much Christ to quit and too much world to make a difference. The life of one who lags is miserable. They miss the great marriage they could have. They miss the difference they could make in the lives of others. They are on the outside looking through the window. They need to come in and join the others. They need to be diligent.

The  Olympics ought to remind us that medals are not given to those who lag behind.

It’s time to let your light shine and get busy. Keep up with others. Set the pace for the rest of us. Be a front runner, not one who lags.

 

Roger