Jump Start Notice:
I will be taking a break from Jump Starts next week. We hope to be back on Sept 9. You can access our many Jump Starts on our website: www.Jumpstartsdaily.com. At our congregation’s website, www.Charlestownroad.org, you can find Jump Starts, Quick Quotes, Friday Fives, sermons and a host of other things that can help you in your daily walk with the Lord.
Thanks,
Roger
Jump Start # 2423
Jude 3 “Beloved, while I was making every effort to write you about our common salvation, I felt the necessity to write to you appealing that you contend earnestly for the faith which was once for all delivered.”
Our verse today is one of the most known verses from the short book of Jude. It reveals a change in direction that has taken place. Rather than writing about the common salvation, there was a more pressing need. Trouble was on the horizon. False teachers and error were creeping in. Dark days were ahead for the church. And, this pressing urgency lead to the change in the tone of this book.
We understand this in other areas of life. You plan to go to a park, do some outside work but storm warnings in your area changes all of that. You adjust your plans. Funerals do that to us, as well. A death in the family and everything changes. Appointments are cancelled. We don’t go in to work. We travel to the funeral home. There has been some adjustments.
From our verse let us consider a couple of ideas:
First, there are times as a church, adjustments must be made. Sadly, some of these come suddenly and surround the death of a member. I’ve seen that a couple of times. On a Saturday, a member passes. Their passing was unexpected. Their lives touched many and many in the congregation would be in a state of shock. Rather than staying with the planned classes, they were cancelled. Everyone was brought in together. Special prayers were offered. Selected passages were read and talked about. It helped the congregation to deal with the loss and offered comfort to them. I remember, the Wednesday evening services after the 9-11 attacks. Services were changed. Special prayers were offered. I find that it is helpful to be somewhat flexible. Some places don’t seem to get this. They are rigid and staying with the plans no matter what. So a Bible class is taught but the mind of the audience is miles away as they think about the person who has just died.
Sometimes it’s not a death, but a matter of what is needed at the moment. Classes may be mapped out for the year and in the course of the year some unplanned things happen. Several are experiencing marriage issues. Several have caught wind of some idea that is pulling the church apart. Rather than staying the course with the plans for the year, it is good to make immediate adjustments. We do that at home. A meal is planned, but suddenly, a couple of the kids get the stomach bug. Plans change.
Sometimes it’s nothing bad, such as a death or marriage troubles, but something good. Several conversions and a new batch of young Christians need to be grounded and taught the word of God. Rather than tossing them into the middle of a current study, adjustments are made. A new class is formed to teach basics.
Adjustments are about seeing and realizing what the people need at the moment. Some things should not be put on the back burner. Some things ought to be addressed at the moment. Momentum can be lost because some are incapable of making adjustments.
Second, Jude was planning on writing about the common salvation. Common—it’s what we all know and what we all believe. There is something good about all of us seeing God’s word the same. The Bible doesn’t read one way for you and a different way for me. Folks have hidden behind the idea of your own interpretation for years. This allows them to do whatever they want. And, in the process, without realizing this, they indict God as a terrible writer. God authors a book in which we cannot agree upon. We can read a college biology book and agree. We can read Harry Potter and agree. But when it comes to the Bible, it means whatever you make of it. That idea screams that God cannot write in a clear and understandable way.
There is a common salvation. That common salvation is built upon the common understanding of Scriptures. That comes from the idea that we all have the same common need, and that is Jesus. Not everyone needs a new roof on their house. Not everyone needs a knee replacement. Not everyone needs to go back to school. Not everyone needs medicine. However, we all need Jesus. From the folks in Washington, to the folks in Hollywood, to the folks in between. The young, the old, the common guy and the sophisticated one, we all need Jesus. The rich guy and the bum, they both need Jesus. Among us, as different as we are, is a common need. And, there is a common solution to that common need, Jesus. And, the way we find forgiveness, grace and hope in Christ is common. It is a common salvation. It is shared universally. It is the same here as it is there. It is the same now as it was back then. It is the same in the states as it is in Europe. It is common. It is universal. We know that because the apostles were commissioned to go into all the world and preach the Gospel. That Gospel, that divine message, was the same. It is a common message. What I have to do is what you have to do. What I have to do is what my father had to do. And what I have to do is what my children have to do. Nothing unique. Nothing one of a kind. No lone wolfs, and, no Lone Rangers. Your circumstances and your background may be very different from mine, however, we stand upon the same ground when it comes to our salvation. It is common. It shared equally. It was the same for the Ethiopian, as it was for Lydia, as it was for Cornelius, as it was for the jailer in Philippi, as it was for the Corinthians, as it was for the Ephesians, as it was for you and as it was for me.
No one gets a special pass. No one gets to be different. No one is unique in this. Common salvation. Different talents. Different opportunities. Different circumstances. Yet, a common salvation. This seems to be so hard for some to get. They want to fly solo and independent from the Scriptures. They think that they are so special that they alone get to be different. Nope. It’s the same for all of us.
And, through this common salvation, we become one family. United. Connected. Speaking one voice. Having one mind. Following the one Savior. Common. We stand together in this common need. We stand together in the common solution, Jesus Christ. We stand together on the common message, the Gospel of Jesus Christ.
You got someone boasting about a unique, special, new way—best steer clear of him. Ours is a common salvation. The new, the different, the unique, the one-of-a-kind, is likely nothing more than Satan trying to pull you away from the common salvation in Christ.
We are all in this together, working the same direction, after the same goal.
Roger
Jump Start # 2422
1 Thessalonians 4:13 But we do not want you to be uninformed, brethren, about those who are asleep, that you may not grieve, as do the rest who have no hope.”
I was at a funeral the other day. The person who died was a Christian. Her family are Christians. Kids, grandkids, and even great grandkids—so many Christians. The audience was packed with folks from our congregation. The message was about hope. I thought of this verse. Some have no hope. Some do. That difference determines how one grieves. That difference determines how dreadful death is. That difference turns what could be the worst day of your life, into a celebration of life. Hope. Some have it and some don’t. And, that difference is Jesus. Jesus is the hope. Jesus is the reason some are not destroyed by death. Jesus is the reason that some can see beyond death. There is hope and there is no hope.
Just what is it that the Christian hopes for? There has been a death. Death hasn’t escaped the Christian. We see that in the Scriptures. Stephen died. James died. Antipas died. All the apostles eventually died. Every name we read about in those early churches died. The hope isn’t in escaping death. The hope isn’t in finding a cure for death.
What is there to hope for:
First, to live on in the joy of the Lord. We cross through that ugly doorway of death and enter a new realm. We are still very much alive. Our bodies are left behind, but not us. Our memories, our feelings, our experiences, all cross through that doorway. The rich man and Lazarus illustrates that for us. The death of a Christian means one has completed what God wanted. He was a light in the world. He was God’s hands and feet. He was walking faithfully with the Lord. As found in the parable of the talents, “enter into the joy of your master,” is the hope that we have. We leave this broken world. We leave temptation and trials. We leave pain and sorrow. We leave heartache, disappointments and sin. We leave the bounds of earthly life, such as growing older, having to eat, dealing with the weather, bugs, sickness, and even the process of going through the doorway of death. For the Christian, things just get better after death.
Second, there is that grand reunion with those who have gone on before. Not with everyone, but with those who belong to Christ. There is that hope of Heaven that we all carry within us. Moms and dads who loved Jesus and followed him closely, won’t it be wonderful to see them again? Beloved brethren that have touched our lives and made us better. Can you imagine seeing them again? Death separates us here. The living must go on and those who have died, have gone through that door of death and they cannot return. Only faded memories and photographs is all that we have. But among the righteous, there is more. There is that hope of seeing them again. Can’t hardly wait to see some again, how about you?
Third, there is that wonderful hope of being with the Lord forever. Here, we must busy ourselves too much with secular things. We have to go to work. The yard needs mowing. The house needs cleaning. There are things that require our time, energy and thoughts. But to be with the Lord and not have those distractions, won’t that be great? To be with the Lord and not to have any other place to go, can you imagine? We always have to go somewhere else. After worship, we have places to go. There is always another place you have to go to. You go to work, but after work, you go home. You go home, but then you have to go back to work. We go to weddings, but after the wedding, we have somewhere we need to go. We go to funerals, and after the funeral, we have some other place that we need to go. But once we cross through that door, there is no other place we have to go. Our tired and weary little hearts will finally be with the Lord and that’s the end of the journey.
The hope of seeing Jesus, the one we have read about, talked about, preached about, sang to, prayed to, thought about, imitated our lives from, we finally get to see. Forgiven. Wrapped in grace. Loved throughout our lives. The Lord welcomes us home. The Lord welcomes us to Him. And in the presence of Jesus, the Lord of Heaven and Earth, everything will be fine. We will have no worries. Oh, we worry now, but we won’t in His presence. We will have no fears. Oh, we have fears now, but we won’t in His presence. At peace. Calm. Not having to try to run the world like we do. Not having to find all the answers, like we do. Not having to make decisions like we do. In the presence of Jesus, that’s where we belong. That’s where all things are right.
Now just about everyone thinks that they have this hope. Just about every funeral you go to, you hear that the deceased is going to Heaven, even those who never believed in Heaven. But that’s not hope, that’s wishful thinking. There is a difference between wishing and hoping. You may wish that you had an unknown uncle out there you left you a million dollars. But you don’t have any hope for that. You know the family tree. You know there are no unknown uncles and no one has that kind of money. Hope is something that is sure. It’s going to happen, you just don’t know when. Hope is built upon evidence, truth and a foundation of faith. Hope stands upon the promises of God. God never lies. If He said it, it will be. The Christian has the assurance, the hope, for Heaven. It’s based upon God’s promises and the walk he continues with the Lord.
Someone who has lived a life ignoring God may want to go to Heaven and his family certainly wishes that he is in Heaven, but there is no hope. He has not sought the forgiveness of Christ. He has not honored God by his life. He has not worshipped God as the Lord wants and has directed. He has not built his life upon the word of God. He has lived a secular life as if there was no God. And, now in death, his family, doesn’t even know a preacher among them. They search and search for anyone to preach dear ole’ daddy into Heaven. So twisted and so confused are these families that they are likely to offer a toast of alcohol at the funeral as they are to pray. But if anyone was to say a word about dear ole’ dad not making it, a real dog fight would take place.
But as our passage reminds us, there are those with hope and those who don’t have hope. At death, it’s too late. That hope was either made or lost during one’s life. The choices, the attitudes, the worship, the kindness, the righteousness, the forgiveness, the grace—all of those things wrapped around the word of God gives real and eternal hope, or they reveal that hope is lost.
Are you living with this hope? Your life will show it and it won’t be a question to those who know you.
Roger
Jump Start # 2421
2 Peter 1:9 “For he who lacks these qualities is blind or short-sighted, having forgotten his purification from his former sins.”
Our verse today is a consequence statement. The Holy Spirit is showing what happens when one doesn’t do what they should do. Prior to this, a series of virtues or qualities of the heart are listed. These were to be added by the Christian. They do not fall from Heaven like manna, the moment one becomes a disciple. Each follower of Christ must be busy in his walk with the Lord by adding these things. Some of these are harder than others. They are all connected. Peter begins with faith, the foundation of all that we do in Christ. From faith one adds moral excellence. From that comes knowledge. From that self control. Then perseverance. Godliness follows. Next is kindness. And at the top, is love. Add these things to your life. Let these things describe you. Become these things. Each of us needs these things. Missing one, not only makes us incomplete, but it causes us to suffer on our journey because we are not what we ought to be. These virtues are not to be picked over and chosen like standing in line at a fast food place. “I’ll have knowledge and a bit of kindness, but leave out the perseverance.” Doesn’t work that way.
Our verse, about lacking these qualities, shows us what happens when we don’t add these things to our character and heart. We become blind and forgetful of where we came from. It’s amazing to read about so many blind people in the Gospels. Jesus healed many of them. Today, we may go a long time without ever meeting a blind person. I’ve known two personally in my life. I had a friend in college who was blind. I used to do mean things to him such as rearranging his furniture without telling him. He always knew that it was me who did that. He’d ask me about things and I found it so difficult to describe what I could see with my eyes. We know what red is. We know the difference between red and green. It’s on stop lights. But for someone who has never seen red or green, it’s hard to put that into words. And, there are so many shades of those colors. Look out your window and you’ll see six or seven different kinds of green. Go to a paint store and you’ll be shown hundreds.
Think about spiritual blindness for a moment. Jesus, in describing parables, said blessed were the disciples because they could see with their eyes. Others couldn’t. It wasn’t a medical problem, but a spiritual problem. Jesus warned, if the blind lead the blind, they will both fall in the ditch. Then neither one could help the other.
There are those who declare, “I don’t see anything wrong with it.” And, they don’t. They can’t. They are spiritually blind. You could tell then what is wrong, but they likely wouldn’t get it. It is hard to explain the Bible to a person who is spiritually blind. To them, the Bible is nothing more than an old book. Why are you shaping your life because of some old book—is what runs through the mind of a spiritually blind person.
There is the old story about the blind men feeling different parts of an elephant. One felt the massive leg and declared it was a tree. Another felt the trunk of the elephant and thought it was a snake. One felt the side and thought it was a wall. Each of them were wrong. They didn’t see the big picture of what they felt. They didn’t see everything.
When a person is spiritually blind they don’t see the damage that their words could do. They say things, often offensive and hurtful, but hide behind the idea that “I only told him the truth.” With spiritual vision, we realize that our words can be remembered for a long time. Mean, hateful, and things not thought out can scar a person for a long, long time. Blindness doesn’t see that.
When a person is spiritually blind they overlook the good that even little deeds can do. Jesus said a cup of cold water given to a disciple is remembered by God. Taking a moment to say something or, better yet, to listen to someone. Taking the time to write a few kind words on a card and mailing them to someone. A home cooked meal taken to someone who is having a hard time means so much. Blindness doesn’t see that. “What good is it going to do? I don’t have time to do that. It won’t matter.” That’s how spiritual blindness sees things.
When a person is spiritually blind they do not see all the hours of work that the shepherds do in the church. There are so many conversations. There are so many things done behind the scenes. Failure to see these things will put a person in the position of taking pot shots at the leaders. He will accuse them of not doing anything when they have been very busy doing things. The blind person just never saw what was being done.
It is the spiritually blind that accuses the preacher of only working one day a week. Now, for some that could be true and they ought to be ashamed of that. But for the most part, preachers are working long and hard and doing things that so few realize. The spiritually blind boasts that he could do the preacher’s job until he begins to see all that is involved with it.
The spiritually blind doesn’t treasure the importance of fellowship and the good that comes from each other’s presence. The hugs, handshakes, smiles and words of encouragement lifts weary souls and keeps so many on the journey. For the spiritually blind, friendships with the world are just as good if not better than those in Christ. The spiritually blind finds himself in compromising situations because he is blind to the different directions the world and Christ are going. He doesn’t get it. He can’t get it. He’s blind.
How do I prevent spiritual blindness? It’s right before us in our context today. Add to your faith. Keep growing your faith. Keep using your faith. Keep protecting your faith. And, in this process, your eyes will be opened and you will begin to see things as God does. And, when that happens, our perspective changes, our heart grows and we become more and more like the Lord.
You don’t have to be blind…
Roger
Jump Start # 2420
1 Corinthians 13:4 “Love is patient, love is kind and is not jealous; love does not brag and is not arrogant.”
I had a birthday last week. It wasn’t one of those milestone ones, but I am creeping closer and closer to the next milestone. All around me, folks my age are retiring. That question is now being asked of me, “How much longer?” I don’t know if that is a reflection of my age or my preaching. I have long shot past the tag of being a “young preacher.” I see many young fireballs who are now preaching. They are good, smart and connecting well with audiences. They are so talented and are finding great ways to reach out to others, especially through videos. Get a few of them together and off they go talking about things I do not understand, books I have never heard of, and wonderful insights into God’s word. What I see in these young preachers is an amazing network that I never had when I was their age. They seem to be connected together and they use each other for ideas and help. When I started preaching, we wrote letters. Mailed them. Then waited and waited for a person to write us back. Most of us were dirt poor, and long distance phone calls was a big deal. I love to see the connections, the interactions and the network of friendships among them.
And, all of this takes us to one of those love expressions in our passage today. Love is not jealous. Jealousy can ruin a good thing. It can make one bitter, sour and just a pain to be around. Some of us as we age we get grumpy. Things are not the same and they are not going to go back that way. They never do. We shop differently today. We bank differently today. We have so many tools that make learning easier, faster and better than ever before. And, among us older preachers, if not careful, we can join the grumpy crowd and complain about all these young preachers. We need to be the ones who are encouraging them, helping them, and getting out of their way so those young talents can soar to the heavens. Our old stories and our old ways sometimes are just that, old. Many do not understand them and telling them over and over leaves the impression that we want to return back to them.
Jealousy can kill any relationship. Put it in a marriage and the fur will fly with accusations, and unkind words. Put it in the midst of siblings, like Joseph’s family, and people will quit talking to each other. Put it in a congregation, and the back biting, gossip and evil suspicions will drive people away. And, sprinkle a little jealousy among preachers and one will find fault where there isn’t any.
Jealousy has led to murder. Jealousy has killed marriages. Jealousy has ruined churches. And, jealousy can keep our souls from Heaven. A person can be jealous of just about anything. Some have better looks. Some have more talent. Some have more money. Some live in bigger homes. Some went to better colleges. Some have better jobs. Jealous is always about someone having something better than I do. And, rather than rejoicing for them, it burns our biscuits. We feel compelled to complain about it. We must tell others about it. We can’t sleep because we are so obsessed with it. We think badly towards the other person. We become bitter, angry and miserable. Jealousy is a terrible place to be in.
So, how does one not be jealous.
First, understand that God has made each of us uniquely individual. Like fingerprints, each of us have different talents, opportunities, and influences in our lives. No two of us are the same, even from the same family. God doesn’t make junk, we do. You are amazing and can do things that others cannot. You have been placed here by God in this generation for His purpose. You can make such a difference and do so much good. My dearest friends are preachers. I love listening to them preach. They can bring such great lessons from even a very simple passage. There was a time in my life when I listened to them and I felt like giving up. Why try? I could never preach like they do. They were hitting home runs and I was still hitting foul balls. I could look at the same verse they did and never see what they saw. But I stayed with it. I found what I was good at. I worked at. I worked hard. I realized that I don’t have to be like them. We are not in a contest. It doesn’t matter who is the best, and that very thought is crushed if we truly are humble. I found what I could do. I found a way that touched lives. I found that I can do what God wants. That took my eyes off trying to be like my friends and simply tried to be the best me that I could be. Some people are gifted just differently than we are. No matter how hard you try, some will never look like others. Some are wired differently than others. Some are quiet by nature. There is nothing wrong with that. But to trying to change that usually backfires and something horrible happens. In baseball, some can hit homeruns more than others. What are the “others” to do? Quit? Complain? Or, be thankful that you have those guys on your team. Part of jealousy is looking too much at the other person. We feel inferior. What helps is realizing that you have talents and you can do things in a special way. Be you and be the best you that you can.
Second, rather than being jealous of others, learn from them. This is why I like being around young preachers. They help me. I listen to them. I find out what they are reading. My way of doing things isn’t always the best, most efficient or even up to date. When this takes place instead of being jealous, you admire someone and you become a pupil and learn from them. The jealous heart will keep that from happening. Jealousy will want to destroy the other and not learn from them. Be thankful that people are in your life that you can imitate, learn from and be better. You don’t have to be like them, but you can see what they are doing and you can improve yourself.
Third, some of the things we are jealous of are vain and do not matter. A bigger house. A newer car. A designer watch. Why be upset over stuff? Why ruin your attitude, your spirit and drown in misery over stuff? Someone will always have the newest, fanciest, and best. Latest Iphone. Newest big screen TV. Robot lawnmower. It’s great that some can have those things, but don’t trash them because they do and you don’t. In the end, it’s just stuff. Stuff that wears out, needs replacing and always needs to be updated. There are many things much more important than all this stuff. Relationships. Friendships. Love. Encouragement. Let’s not forget about those poor, poor disciples in the first century. Many were slaves and servants. But we look to their faith, their convictions and here it is with all of our stuff, and we realize that we need to be more like them. Keep the right perspective. Keep stuff in it’s place.
Fourth, as a child of God you have the greatest gift and blessings of all, forgiveness and a relationship with the Lord. There is no price tag on that. There is nothing that can take that away from you, except you. Jesus became poor that we might become rich. It’s not about 401s, real estate and exotic vacations. It’s about faith, conviction and hope in Christ. We are a people that are headed to Heaven. We are Heaven Bound! Every waking moment of this day, you can talk to God. Anywhere you are, you can talk to God. You can’t do that with the President. You can’t do that with the CEO. You can’t even do that with your family. But God’s there. He’s with you, He’s for you, and He loves you. What have I to be jealous of? What more could I want? We are citizens of Heaven.
Love is not jealous. Paul wrote this to a church that was jealous about spiritual gifts. Paul’s words fit even today. Love and jealousy cannot exist in the same heart. One will drive out the other. So, which will I allow in my heart? Love or jealousy? One is of God (love), and one is of Satan (Jealousy). Both are knocking on the door of your heart, but only one can come in. Your choice. Which will it be?
Roger