30

Jump Start # 847

Posted on April 30, 2013 by Jump Starts Daily in Jump Starts Daily | Tagged | Leave a comment

 

Jump Start # 847

1 John 4:19 “We love, because He first loved us.”

God loves us. That thought is the key to the foundation of the Bible story. God loves us. His love is a choice. His love is not based upon us. If it were, we’d be sunk. We forget that sometimes. We think that we are so cute, adorable and irresistible. We’re not. We think we’re big shots. We’re not. We think we are clever. Wrong. We think we are impressive. We’re not. We don’t like to think what we really are. We are broken. We are lost. We are sinful. We are a mess. Most broken things are thrown away. Not us. God loves us even though we are broken.

God loves us and we love God. Our love is not parallel to God’s love. That’s what is so fascinating about our passage today. We love, because He first loved us.

 

  • He had no reason to love us, but He did. We have every reason to love God.
  • He loved us, even though we could not do anything for Him. We love God because He has done so much for us.
  • He loved us at our worst. We love God at His best. He is always best.
  • He loved us when we didn’t love Him. We love God, as our passage states, because He first loved us.
  • He has never stopped loving us. There are periods in our life when we have not love God.
  • He can do nothing to love us more. We can all certainly love God more.
  • He loves us constantly and always. Our love for God can run hot and cold based upon our moods. The church at Ephesus left their first love. The church at Laodicea was lukewarm. God is not like that. We are.
  • He loves based upon a choice. Our love, too often, is emotional and feeling or circumstantial based.

 

God loves us. We love God. The love is not the same. I’m glad God doesn’t love like we do. I wish we could love like He does. The parables of Jesus allows us to visualize this amazing love of God. The compassionate master who was owed 10,000 talents by a servant, forgave him, and released him from his obligation. He loved the servant. The prodigal’s father should have scolded his irresponsible, wasteful, and thoughtless son. Instead, he felt compassion, forgave and embraced him. Those are more than cool stories. Those are windows into the heart of God. We see God in those parables. We see that God loves.

God loves us. That is the first step in getting someone to come home spiritually. We often do not feel loved, wanted or needed. We know we’ve wrecked things. The trail of destruction behind us is pretty obvious. Broken vows, broken marriages, bad habits, bad attitudes, twisted souls and living in the darkness of sin. Guilt, shame, frustration and worry fill our hearts. We know. We’ve been wrong. Yet, and still yet, God loves us. He hasn’t tossed us out with other broken things. He hasn’t given up. He doesn’t cut us from the team. He is patient. He is loving. He has a better way, a better hope and a better use for us. God loves us. We don’t give up because He hasn’t given up. When a jailer in Philippi drew a sword and was ready to take his life, Paul told him of Jesus. He dropped the sword. He listened. He believed. He was baptized. Why? What made his mind go from giving up to accepting God? Suicide to discipleship? It was God’s love. God’s love is Jesus. The dying Savior is God’s love. The resurrection is God’s love. Forgiveness is God’s love.

 

God has not given up. He has not counted you down and out. Things may be a mess, but God can turn them around. God’s love motivates us. It leads us to change. It challenges us to better and nobler things. It opens the door to belief, repentance, baptism and discipleship. God loves you, yes, even you!

 

He wants you to love Him. He wants you to want Him. He wants you to follow Him, not just now and then, but wholly, completely and always. God loves. He always has. He always will. It’s great being loved.

 

God loves you. That’s the best thought of the day.

Roger

 

 

29

Jump Start # 846

Posted on April 29, 2013 by Jump Starts Daily in Jump Starts Daily | Tagged | Leave a comment

 

Jump Start # 846

Matthew 7:15 “Beware of the false prophets, who come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly are ravenous wolves.”

I play music in my office as I work. I have a variety of songs depending upon what I am doing. There is an old song that has resurfaced recently and I play a lot. The song is “Little Red Riding Hood.” I first heard that song in the late ’60’s by the Royal Guardsmen, the group that gave us all those songs about Snoopy and the Red Baron. I had forgotten about that song until it was played recently in the background of a car commercial. Laura Gibson is the singer and she does a great job. The song portrays the big bad wolf singing to little red riding hood. The wolf is trying to con little Red. There are a couple of intriguing lines in the song.

 

  • The wolf tells red riding hood that he is going to keep his sheep suit on until he can be trusted walking with alone with her.
  • The wolf tells Red, “even bad wolves can be good.”

 

Those are disturbing lines. They hide the truth that the wolf is a wolf. Those are the words of the REAL Wolf—Satan. He wants us to trust him. He wants us to think that even he can be good. No way! He’s bad, through and through. He lies. He breaks the rules. He twists. He cheats. He misquotes. He adds words. He deceives. He celebrates when people turn their backs on God.

Peter tells us that Satan is a roaring lion. Jesus said the false prophets are wolves in sheep clothing. Satan is behind false prophets. Lions and wolves—both are very dangerous and cannot be trusted. You wouldn’t stick your hand through the bars of the lion’s cage at the zoo. No way!

The song says, “Even bad wolves can be good.” No, they can’t. A wolf is a wolf. The wolf represents wrong. There is no way that wrong can be right. Dress it up real nice, but a bow on top of it, shine it, sprinkle some glitter all around it, and what do you have? A wolf. Wrong is still wrong. Bad wolves cannot be good. Wolves are not people. People can change. People have a heart. People can be forgiven. Not wolves.

The Holy Spirit didn’t call Satan a bad person. He is called a roaring lion. He appears as a sheep, but he is still a wolf. He looks like sheep, but he doesn’t smell like sheep. He looks like sheep, but he doesn’t walk like sheep. He looks like sheep, but he doesn’t graze in the meadows, like sheep. He looks like sheep, but he doesn’t act like sheep. He is a wolf. He runs in a pack with other wolves. He is dangerous, mean, and aggressive. The sweet talking wolf tries to lure you to trust him. Don’t. He is a wolf. The sweet talking wolf wants you to walk alone with him. Don’t. He wants you to think that he is good. He is not. He wants you to think that he has changed. He hasn’t. He wants to destroy you.

I wonder if we get that spiritually? Maybe we flirt with the world, just a little. Maybe we allow greed and selfishness to drive our hearts, just a bit. Maybe we are reading books that we shouldn’t…watching movies that we shouldn’t…dressing a bit risqué when we ought to be modest…talking a little trashy and immoral. Could it be that we don’t recognize the danger? Could it be that we’ve taken a walk alone with a wolf? Could it be that we are starting to believe that “even bad wolves can be good?”

New and radical ideas taught by popular religious writers are too often accepted as incredible when we ought to see them as the language of wolves. Passages twisted and taken out of context can open our eyes to new thoughts and new ways, but that is an old, old trick of the wolf. Eve fell for it long ago and it’s still working today.

Paul’s words to the Roman Christians reminded them that God’s people are not to be conformed to the world. We are going to be different. We are going a different direction. We are after different things. Our language, attitudes, dress, motives and heart are different. They are of the world and we are of Christ. Don’t try to fit in, you don’t. We are swimming upstream in a downstream world.

 

The only persons who think “bad wolves can be good” are those who are already hanging around wolves. Their eyes are blinded. They don’t want to hear the truth. Sometimes teenagers will say similar things to their parents. They may be hanging out or dating some questionable people. The red flag goes up for the parents. The teenager doesn’t see what mom sees. He tries to defend his friends. He says, “You don’t know him like I do.” Maybe. Or, maybe he’s been singing, “even bad wolves can be good.”

Satan is not good. There is no hope for him. He’s heading to Hell to be tortured by God forever. There is no hope nor salvation for him. He’s toast. He’s a goner. That bad wolf can’t be good. So beware, as Jesus says. The wolf often looks like sheep. Things that may look good, may not be good. Investigate. Study. Think. Check things out. Be careful. Guard your faith. Protect yourself spiritually. Have your spiritual alarms set and realize that we are traveling through lion country. The enemy is watching you. Be alert. It’s time to have both hands on the wheel and our eyes wide open. It’s the careless, the sleepy, the indifferent, the slow, and the lazy that become lunch for the lion. He’s hungry. He’s looking for a meal. Make sure it’s not you!

Roger

 

 

 

 

 

 

26

Jump Start # 845

Posted on April 26, 2013 by Jump Starts Daily in Jump Starts Daily | Tagged | Leave a comment

 

Jump Start  # 845

Proverbs 14:1 “The wise woman builds her house, but the foolish tears it down with her own hands.”

I’ve thought about this passage for some time. Where I live there is a lot of home construction going on. Early in the morning the trucks fly down the street and before long the sound of hammers and saws fill the air. I can see houses in various stages of construction. Our passage today is about building a house. I don’t think the intention is a literal construction with the hammering of nails and sawing boards as it is what takes place within that home. The best constructed house doesn’t mean that the best constructed family will walk out the front door. It’s up to mom and dad to construct the family, the home.

 

Our passage is defining the role of mom in the house. The wise woman builds the house. The N.T. word, “encourage,” or “encouragement,” means to “build up.” Construction of the heart, soul and morals is what we are talking about. A wise woman does much more than feed the family and keep the house clean. She is busy “building a home.” Those little ones will someday move out and be big ones. When that happens, what attitudes, expectations, work ethics, morals will they move out with. This is the type of construction that mom is engaged in.

The wise woman builds. She does that by:

 

  • Setting the tone and the temperature of the home. She can be a nagger and complainer and her kids will grow up being the same or worse. She can be demanding and they will learn from that. She can be mean and negative and the kids will be like that. Or, she can be kind, positive and loving. Home can be the place kids can’t wait to leave or a place they love to come to. The tone and temperature determine that.

 

  • Establishing boundaries, accountability and forgiveness. Kids need rules. Rules serve as boundaries, guidelines. They are like fences. They keep us from crossing into dangerous places. Cows need fences. Without a fence, cows get in the road. Years ago there was a farmer whose cows got out, often. Once, a car hit one of the cows. It wasn’t pretty. Kids need rules. Without rules they ruin themselves. They need bedtimes. They need to do homework. They need to clean up around the house. They need to know how to cut the yard, do laundry, and change a tire. Why? Someday they will be out on their own. Kids like to push buttons. They like to cross the line. Most of us did that. When they do wrong they need to face the consequences. Discipline is part of life. Going by rules is a part of life. They need to know that. Yet, when they have been wrong and are sorry, they need to see forgiveness and love. The prodigal knew he could come home. Some prodigals fear home. Some prodigals would rather stay with the pigs than go home. A wise woman builds her house.

 

  • Showing God. The home is the first place where children learn about God. Home is where the Bible is first talked about. Home is where prayers are offered. Home is where we get ready to go to church services. Home is where hospitality is practiced. Children should have their own Bibles. They should be taught how to use it, take care of it, and to read it. The wise woman is building.

Our passage ends with this sad statement, “…the foolish tears it down with her own hands.” Dysfunction. Destruction. Selfishness. Abuse. Addictions. Neglect. Ungodly. Godless. Do we need any more words to get the ugly picture. It’s all around us. TV shows are raising kids, instead of parents. How sad. No rules. No accountable. No God. No forgiveness. No church. No respect. Is it surprising that we see more and more violence by young people in our country. The fences are torn down and the cows are in the streets. They are doing what they feel like and what they know. And when they are arrested, their moms always say the same thing, “He’s a sweet boy.” No he’s not. He’s a bad boy. He’s broken the law, taken life and this is a result of living in a house that was torn down.

Moms, you are building. Don’t give up. You are doing a great work! Some days you wonder if you are accomplishing anything. You are. Keep at it. You are doing some of the best evangelistic work ever done!

Roger

 

25

Jump Start # 844

Posted on April 25, 2013 by Jump Starts Daily in Jump Starts Daily | Tagged | Leave a comment

 

Jump Start  # 844

2 Timothy 4:5 “But you, be sober in all things, endure hardships, do the work of an evangelist, fulfill your ministry.”

Do the work of an evangelist. Those were the words of the aged, experienced and wise apostle Paul to the young preacher, Timothy. I’ve heard a lot about preachers recently. Some good, some not so good. I had lunch recently with a preacher that baptized me and was the catalyst into my becoming a preacher. Here we sat together at a table and I found myself still asking him questions, still being mentored by him. One of my all time favorite preachers is coming to town this weekend. He’s a dear friend and an amazing preacher. I’m about to bust with excitement. It’s always awesome to be with Dee.

Do the work of an evangelist. A simple statement. I gather that many churches, and from what I’m seeing, many preachers are not sure what that means. Let’s look into this.

To start, consider what the work of the evangelist is not:

  • The preacher is not the guy who is available during the week to do what we can’t. I sure have seen that. Grandma needs to go to the doctor and everyone is working, call the preacher. Now, why would folks do that? It is because they don’t think he’s doing much. Isn’t he working too? Yard work needs to be done during the week, call the preacher. Someone needs a ride to the airport, call the preacher.

 

  • The preacher is not the handyman at the church house. Ask the preacher to pick up trash after services, or cut the lawn at the church building, or fix a leaky facet in the bathroom at the church building…he’s available, have him do it. Some even think that is part of his job description.

 

  • The preacher is not the youth activity director. Most preachers I know will do things with young people because they love people of all ages. But to think that it’s the preachers job to have the kids in his home, to arrange activities for the teens, to keep the kids interested is not correct. Those are the things moms and dads ought to be doing. It’s easy to pass them off to the preacher and then all parents have to do is drop the kids off with a bottle of pop and leave the rest to the preacher. Sorry, not his job.

 

  • The preacher is not to solve all church problems. Some problems are so complex and engrained in the fiber of the people that only the Lord can do something. A young preacher moves into a community to work with a church. Within a few months he finds that the church is fussing and at odds with each other. He is told one side of the story and is expected to make things right. When he fails, because people do not want to admit wrong and apologize or forgive, he is put into the hot seat and before long is asked to leave. Another young preacher is brought into that mess with the same expectations and the same results. Those folks ought to just shut the door and make up their minds if they want to follow Jesus or not. Some problems we must solve ourselves. Some problems are not the preachers job to solve.

 

  • It is not the preacher’s job to run the church. He’s not in charge of the place. He just happens to be the preacher. Some run to him as if he owns the church and pressure him to make decisions that are really not his to make. Because he has keys to the front doors, does not mean that he runs the place. God ought to run the church. When we forget that, bad things usually happen.

Now, what is the preacher’s job? It is to preach and teach God’s word to everyone he can and to use every avenue he can to do that. This means the preacher will teach classes to many and to few. He will teach on Sunday morning and Tuesday afternoon. He will teach in the church building and in someone’s front room. He will teach using email, letter, or phone call. He will preach in a church building or on video. He is to preach and teach God’s word.

That necessitates that he understands God’s word and knows how to teach. It also necessitates that he understands how to connect with people and explain to them what God’s word says. He is a teacher but more, he is a preacher of God’s word. His goal is not just informative, but life changing. He is trying to persuade people to follow Christ. He is using the teachings of Christ to change attitudes, behaviors and thoughts of people. His job is to preach and teach. That means warning when God has warnings. That means showing hope where God has hope. That means instructing when God has instructions. The greatest tool he uses is the Bible. He doesn’t need strong arm tactics, cheap psychological tricks, high pressure gimmicks that force people into doing what they don’t want to do. That is not his way. He wants people to want Jesus. He wants people to choose Jesus because they want Jesus and they see that they need Jesus.

The preacher may not be the smartest in the Bible in a congregation. He may not even be the best public speaker among the congregation. He is the one who has decided to devote his life to pointing people to Heaven. His work involves helping those who have made messes of their lives. Poor choices, sinful habits and broken lives reveal the worst in us. A preacher with loose lips will not do well. A preacher who doesn’t like people, will not do well. A preacher with little patience will not do well.

His work necessitates studying. A person cannot teach what they do not know. He must read. He must like to read. He must think, consider, and get it himself. A man who doesn’t like to read, will struggle as a preacher. A man who can’t think for himself will get in trouble as a preacher. He must do research. He must be able to explain clearly what the Bible says. He doesn’t have to know everything that is false. He simply has to know what is right. The word “gospel” means “good news.” His message, life and attitude ought to reflect that. His work surrounds the good news that the world needs.

One of Jesus’ first parables was about a sower. He threw seed out in the fields. This is similar to the work of the preacher. Often, the preacher never sees the good that he has done. Often, it takes a long time for that seed to spout, grow and become a mighty oak. The preacher doesn’t worry about not seeing the results. He knows they will come. God is good. God gives the increase. His job is to get the word into the honest and good heart.

I have a son who is now preaching. I look at him and see myself more than 30 years ago. I have surrounded myself with some incredible preachers. They are some of my best friends in life. They have helped me so much. Preaching is a work. It’s not for the lazy nor the guy who can’t do anything else. It’s not for the person who is not self driven. I remember a preacher telling me years and years ago, that after ten years he ran out of ideas on what to preach about. He quit preaching. Is it any wonder?

Paul’s words to young Timothy remain the best advice we could tell any preacher today, “Do the work of an evangelist.” Get to it preacher. There are those who need to know Jesus. There are those who need to be encouraged. There are those with doubts who need to be assured. Do the work. There’s not enough time to golf every day. There’s not enough time to play around every day. There’s a work to be done. Do the work! Do it well!

Roger

 

 

 

24

Jump Start # 843

Posted on April 24, 2013 by Jump Starts Daily in Jump Starts Daily | Tagged | Leave a comment

 

Jump Start  # 843

Acts 21:30-31 “Then all the city was provoked, and the people rushed together, and taking hold of Paul they dragged him out of the temple, and immediately the doors were shut. While they were seeking to kill him…”

We continue with our thoughts from yesterday. We are looking at two principles regarding the Boston bombing. First, we looked at the state of tolerance that has taken over most folks. That was our thoughts yesterday.

The second thought we want to consider is the intense religious fervency that is seen among the radicals today. That intensity is not new. Our passage for the day illustrates that feeling among the Jews long ago. As Paul preached Christ, some in the crowd boiled with anger and hatred. The passage says that they rushed the apostle, dragged him out of town and tried to kill him. This wasn’t the only time that happened. It seems that Paul was hunted down continually. At the beginning of Paul’s ministry, he had to be lowered over a wall to escape a plot to kill him. In Acts 23, forty men took a vow not to eat or drink until they had killed Paul. Why such hatred? What had Paul done to them? The answer lies in how these Jews understood the Law of Moses. They could not accept that Jesus was the Messiah. Paul was preaching the death and resurrection of Christ. The Jews viewed that as blasphemy. The law had strict orders what to do with a blasphemer. They were simply following the law. The more Paul preached, the hotter their intensity became. Paul understood where they were coming from. He was one of them a few years earlier. He was holding the coats as others threw rocks and killed Stephen. He dragged others into prison. He was on a journey to further stop the spread of Christianity when Jesus appeared to him in a vision. Paul understood.

From this we ought to see two observations. First, it would be great to see Christians take their faith as serious as some radicals and extremists do today. Not to the point of killing or hurting others, we would never say that. But to see some life in them. To see the needle in their hearts move a bit. To view some zeal and excitement about the dying Jesus. In too many places today, church leaders must beg their own members to come and hear the gospel preached. Shame on us!  Doesn’t the Lord mean any more to us? Do we have to have a guilt trip placed before us before we will attend church services during the week? At a college ballgame we will see fans in the stands with their faces painted, wearing the team colors, jumping up and down and screaming for their team.  Contrast that to church services where people show up late and seem bored. Have we lost the awe and excitement about our faith? Are we simply going through the motions? I see some showing up with no Bible, no concern, and no effort. They will talk about the radical Muslims and what kooks they are, when they could learn something from them about being interested in what we are supposed to believe in. Maybe we have spent far too long in the huddle talking about what can and should be done, when we ought to be out telling our friends about Jesus. Invite. Teach. Show. Answer questions. Defend. Promote. Stand up. Speak out. Those are the marks of someone who believes. I cannot imagine sitting in a jail cell at midnight, as Paul and Silas did and singing praises to God with other prisoners listening. Courage, conviction, not fearing others are the things that move others to act upon their faith. There seems to be two extremes manifested today. The radicals that want to hurt others and on the other side, those complacent, who don’t want to upset anyone. It seems to me that neither one of those are correct. We shouldn’t hurt anyone, yet we can’t sit quietly on the sidelines of life. We are God’s hands, feet, and voice today.

Secondly, being passionate about something doesn’t make it right. The radicals are passionate about their faith, to the point that they will kill those who disagree. Are they right? No. Others are passionate about approving homosexual relationships, allowing abortion if a woman wants it, legalizing certain drugs, and, the promotion of evolutionary theories. People behind these movements will pour tons of hours, dollars and effort to get their agendas recognized and legalized. Their spokesmen travel the country, like preachers. Instead of preaching the Gospel, they push their agendas. They will defend them. They will write scholarly books about their positions. They will debate and defend their points of view. Yet, that does not make them right. Passion alone is not the determining factor in what is right. Now, it can look that way to some, especially when they notice the complacency of sideline Christians. Commitment, courage, passion and fervency are wonderful traits, but they must flow out of and surround that which is right. When they don’t, they are nothing more than wasted energy.

So, there we have it. Those that are excited are often wrong and those that are right are often asleep in their faith. That seems backwards to the way it ought to be. Those that are right ought to be the most excited. I think we can learn something from this. The Boston bombing can make me look at my faith and ask, “How serious am I?” Am I moved to do anything about my faith? Am I moved to try to make the world a better place? Am I moved to defend my Lord?

I taught a class once entitled, “Lifeless sermons preached to cadavers in the pews.” Great title. Sad, but true subject.

The Jews chased Paul all over the place. They tried to kill him. They left him for dead on one occasion. Yet, Paul didn’t stop. He returned and kept preaching. When arrested, he continued to preach. He kept going until death finally stopped him. He was serious. He was passionate. He made a difference.

 

Now, how about you? When was the last time you handed someone a CD with a sermon on it? Or, a written tract? Or forwarded a Jump Start to someone? Or invited someone to worship with you? Or sat down across a table with someone and talked about Jesus? The rock group, Eagles, had a hit song many years ago, “Take it easy.” Maybe we have been doing that for too long. Maybe it’s time to take it seriously and take it passionately and take it like it means something to us.

Roger