28

Jump Start # 3035

Posted on February 28, 2022 by Jump Starts Daily in Jump Starts Daily | Tagged | Leave a comment

Jump Start # 3035

Galatians 5:18 “But if you are led by the Spirit, you are not under the Law.”

Our verse today comes from a section that has much to say about the Holy Spirit. In verse 16, we find, “…walk by the Spirit, and you will not carry out the desire of the flesh.” Our verse today, verse 18, says if you are “led by the Spirit.” Then we come to the fruit of the Spirit. At the bottom of the chapter, we find, “If we live by the Spirit, let us also walk by the Spirit.”

Here in this one section we find, walk by the Spirit, led by the Spirit, and live by the Spirit. Mention the topic of the Holy Spirit, and many folks get real excited and jittery. The indwelling of the Spirit has led some to all kinds of ideas, even though many forget that God dwells in us and we dwell in God. Christ dwells in us and we dwell in Christ. But, it’s that mystical Spirit that seems to get everyone in a fog.

There are those who claim that the Spirit leads them directly to certain passages, certain people and to certain conclusions. Modern authors, nearly claiming inspiration, declare that the Spirit of God told them to write what they authored in books. Strangely, though, these writers seem to keep any proceeds from book sales for themselves, and even proudly display their names on the cover of the books. If God is telling them what to write, you’d think that God ought to get the credit.

Indiana preacher, Z.T. Sweeney wrote a long time ago, “The writer has known many good, honest people that claimed to have an inward monitor to lead them, who at the same time would reject the clear teaching of God’s word. The Spirit of God never led any man to contradict the Word which He has so clearly revealed. The whole Christian life is a life of faith. It begins, continues and ends in faith.”

The Holy Spirit debate and turmoil for decades is whether God does all of His work exclusively through His word or is there a way the Spirit leads us apart from God’s word. This discussion needs to be hammered out in a Bible class and not in a devotional Jump Start. However, there are several things that we ought to recognize and be helped through these words.

First, God will not lead a person away from His word. That simply won’t happen. A person may be lead in a different direction, but it’s not God who is doing that. Our lives are to be consistent with the Word of God. Keeping the commandments is stressed throughout the N.T. Five different times in 1 John the expression, “keep His commandments” is stressed. Ignoring the Bible will not bring a person closer to God.

Second, Paul put the word of God above that of the voice of angels and apostles. The first chapter of Galatians stresses that. God doesn’t whisper new messages to you. If it’s not in the Bible, walk away from it.

Third, it is the Spirit that gave us God’s word. So as you and I follow that word, we are being led by the Spirit. We are going the direction and in the manner that the Spirit wants us to travel. Led by the Spirit is not some hard to describe feeling or sensation that comes upon us. When our conscience is saturated with God’s word, verses will come to our mind, we’ll recall sermons that mirror the choices or situations that we are in, and we can see what God wants us to do. When we don’t follow the Spirit, guilt, shame and consequences are the result. Are we led today by the Spirit? Absolutely. It’s what our passage says. Are we led independently or even differently than what the Bible says? No.

Fourth, far too many put more faith and hope in feelings and what they call ‘divine nudges’ than they do the word of God. The Holy Spirit is God. He is a divine person. He is not a feeling. Feelings were never used as indications of salvation, or which direction a person ought to take in life. Paul told the Corinthians that no one knows the thoughts of God expect what has been revealed. For someone to say, “I think God would like this,” or, “I believe God doesn’t have a problem with this,” is all guess work. Many think that if they like something then God does. We must remember that the Lord’s thoughts are higher than our thoughts and His ways are much greater than our ways. To walk by faith is to walk by the revealed word of God. To walk by faith is to be led by the Spirit as we follow the Spirit given word.

Fruit of the Spirit. Holy Spirit baptism. Spiritual gifts. The indwelling of the Spirit. The blasphemy of the Spirit. There’s enough here to fill several weeks of deep study and looking into the Bible. And, the more one does that, the more answers he will find, and the more assurance he will have of what God wants Him to do.

God led me…be sure you understand what that means. The Lord said, “seek and you will find.” Stick with what you read in the Bible. Be careful of moderns who claim that God is telling them specifically what to do, say and write. You’d think, if indeed God was leading some of these current writers to specific passages, as they are claiming, then God would once in a while lead them to Ephesians 4 or Acts 2 or Galatians 1. We’d think God would lead them to understand the nature of worship, the purpose of the church, and what is involved with salvation. Those are all “Biggies.” Interesting, that they don’t claim that God leads them towards those things.

Are we walking by the Spirit? I hope so. Are we led by the Spirit? We should be. Are we living in the Spirit? Yes. Don’t be afraid of Biblical expressions just because others abuse them, misuse them and do not understand them. We speak as the Bible speaks!

Roger

25

Jump Start # 3034

Posted on February 25, 2022 by Jump Starts Daily in Jump Starts Daily | Tagged | Leave a comment

Jump Start # 3034

Judges 15:7 “Samson said to them, ‘Since you act like this, I will surely take revenge on you, but after that I will quit.’”

Our verse today comes from the troublesome and violent period of the Judges. Israel and the Philistines were constantly bothering one another. Like a gnat that won’t go away, so these two nations acted.

Samson married a Philistine woman. Mistake number one. While away, his Philistine father-in-law, gave Samson’s wife to someone else. Angry, Samson caught three hundred foxes, tied their tails together and put a torch in the middle of the tails. He released these foxes and the Philistine fields and vineyards were destroyed. In retaliation, the Philistines killed his wife and father-in-law.

Now, comes our verse. It’s Samson’s time to strike back. As one reads these verses, it’s hard not to yell, “STOP.” The Philistines and Samson keep slugging each other, like an old Rocky movie.

Now, some thoughts:

First, no one ever “gets even.” Killing two people is not equal to burning the fields. And, that’s the problem with revenge. We never get even. The score is never fully settled. We tend to strike back harder than the way we were hit. Revenge is wrapped around a heart that is angry, full of hatred and unwilling to let go and forgive. That spirit will kill a person’s soul. Before the chapter ends, Samson is still killing more Philistines. With the jawbone of a donkey, he kills a thousand. That’s still within this chapter. Tic for tat never ends.

Second, Samson declared in our verse, after one more vengeful strike, he would quit. He doesn’t. It’s easy to make promises. It’s hard to keep them. It’s better not to say something than to break our promises. We make promises when we get married. Those are called “vows.” Easy to say to each other. Do we keep them? We make promises to our kids. Sometimes that is done just to get them to quiet down. When we become a disciple of Jesus, we are promising Him our allegiance, love and trust. Do we keep that promise and commitment? Jesus said let your yes be yes and your no be no. Keep your word. If you have trouble with that, then speak fewer words.

Third, Samson said, “I will quit.” Many of us have quit jobs, bad habits and eating certain foods. But there are greater things that we need to quit. Here’s my list:

  • Quit trying to manage the universe. It’s not your job and you can’t do it. I find it amazing how many people in a protest mode will “DEMAND.” They demand as if they are in control. They are not. You might ask. You might seek permission. But to “demand?” No, you are not sitting on top of the world. And, what comes with trying to manage the universe is a load of stress and worry that our hearts cannot bear. You can I can’t do anything about Russia. Those early saints couldn’t do anything about Rome. The economy. Gas prices. Short supplies. We can talk about these things. We can complain about these things. We can get upset about these things. Or, we can pray to the One who can actually do something. God is the Lord of Heaven and Earth.
  • Quit trying to run the church. That’s not our job, either. Even if you are one of the shepherds, it’s not your job. Jesus runs the church. We are to function humbly under Him. Far too many are looking for a power control of the church. They like bossing others. Many can’t be the boss at work. And, they can’t be the boss at home. So, they try to be the boss at church. There isn’t much difference between someone who is bossy and someone who is a bully. We need to honor Christ through the church. We need to encourage the church. We need to equip and help the church. But running it? No, we need to quit that.
  • Quit trying to figure out why everything happens. Solomon says time and chance happens. Somethings we may never know. We are forever looking in the wrong direction. Trying to find the cause, the blame, the reason is looking backwards. We ought to be looking forwards. Why did that person have cancer? Why did that person die? Why did that marriage end? Oh, we want to know all the reasons. Maybe it makes us feel good if we knew. Maybe we think that there is something wrong and that’s why those people got what they got. It may be we will never know. Why was James the first apostle to die and his brother John the last to die? Why did God allow Antipas to die? Why, why why? Instead of asking a hurting heart a thousand questions, why not try to comfort, encourage and support. Why not try to take some food to them. Why not lift their burden some.
  • Quit finding excuses for not doing what you ought to do. We pull those ole’ excuses out faster than a gunfighter pulls his six gun. We cover all of our bases with a quick and easy excuse. It gets us out of trouble, obligations and doing whatever we don’t feel like, even attending services. Can’t be there, we say. Here comes the excuse. Stop that. Quit. Instead, step up and do what you ought to do. Be honest and confess your failings.

There are a lot of things we ought to quit. Samson is a good reminder for us.

Roger

24

Jump Start # 3033

Posted on February 24, 2022 by Jump Starts Daily in Jump Starts Daily | Tagged | Leave a comment

Jump Start # 3033

Luke 19:5 “And when Jesus came to the place, He looked up and said to him, ‘Zaccheus, hurry and come down, for today I must stay at your house.’”

Our verse comes from the brief encounter between our Lord and little Zaccheus. There are several things that stand out about Zaccheus. He was a tax collector and more than that, he was a chief tax collector. He has risen to the top. I wonder if he knew Matthew, who was also a tax collector, or might he have been Matthew’s boss? He wasn’t only at the top of his profession, he was rich. Rich, powerful, he had what many people are looking for.

He had heard about Jesus and he wanted to see for himself. His job, his status, his wealth, wasn’t enough to keep him home. This prophet of God, the amazing miracle worker, and one who had chosen a tax collector to be one of the apostles, was something that Zaccheus just had to see. We know the story. We know the song, about the wee-little man, who climbed up in a Sycamore tree.

Jesus was on His way to Jerusalem. This trip would end in His death. So many things would be swirling around in the head of our Savior. The apostles will abandon Him. The process of His death would be extremely painful. Judas would betray. Peter would deny. So much would happen in such a short span of time. But as Jesus walks towards this fate, He comes to Zaccheus.

Four things Jesus does demands our attention:

First, Jesus stopped. He could have kept on walking. He had so much on His mind. He stopped.

Second, Jesus looked up. He knew Zaccheus was in that tree.

Third, Jesus calls the taxman by his name. How that must have shocked and surprised Zaccheus. “How does He know me?” he must have thought? We have never met, yet, He knows my name.

Fourth: Jesus invited Himself to Zaccheus’ home. He didn’t wait for an invitation. That may not have come from Zaccheus.

Jesus looked up, is what our verse says. He looked. He saw. How similar this is to the story of the bent over woman in the synagogue. Jesus saw her and called her to come to Him. Jesus looked. Jesus saw.

Some lessons for us:

First, did you see that visitor last Sunday? Some might say, ‘No, I was busy talking to someone else.’ And, if everyone was doing that, the visitor must have felt that he is not important enough to be included. Jesus looked. Jesus saw.

Second, did you see that member who has not been there in many months. Some are making their way back to the church house after a long stay out because of Covid. Some are just now coming back. Did you see them? Did you let them know how great it was to see them face to face? Jesus looked. Jesus saw.

Third, did you see that elderly man eating by himself in a restaurant. He has a story. Maybe we don’t want to intrude. Maybe we just want to mind our own business. Maybe we want to let him eat in peace and quiet. Jesus looked. Jesus saw.

We have things to do, so did Jesus. What Jesus had to do was much more important than anything we have to do. Yet, Jesus looked. Jesus saw. Our minds were somewhere else. Don’t you think, Jesus’ mind could have been somewhere else. Jesus looked. Jesus saw.

In times when our culture is so fixated upon self, let us have eyes like Jesus. All around us are opportunities to encourage, invite, and help. Some of these we walk right on by and never notice. It’s the open eyes and those who are looking that see. Within our homes and our congregations are needs that we can make a difference.

In the section about parables, Jesus said, “Blessed are your eyes because they see.” Zaccheus climbed a tree with the hopes of seeing Jesus. He never dreamed that the Lord would see him. He had a personal conversation with Jesus because the Lord looked. Jesus saw.

Roger

23

Jump Start # 3032

Posted on February 23, 2022 by Jump Starts Daily in Jump Starts Daily | Tagged | Leave a comment

Jump Start # 3032

Matthew 14:30 “But seeing the wind, he became frightened, and when he began to sink, he cried out, saying, ‘Lord, save me!”

Our verse comes from the time Peter walked on water. That seems like such an elementary statement. PETER WALKED ON WATER. You have never done that. I never did that. John never did. Thomas never did. Only Peter. And, we all have heard so many wonderful sermons about Peter taking his eyes off the Lord and looking at wind and the waves, parallel to us taking our eyes off of Jesus and focusing upon our troubles. When that happens, we sink. We need help.

The Lord was there and the Lord rescued Peter. This wasn’t the only time Jesus saved Peter’s life.

Another occasion, on the sea, in a storm, and Jesus was sleeping in the boat. The waves were above the boat. The boat was filling with water. Finally, the disciples awaken Jesus and said, we are perishing. This comes from several of them who lived on that water. They knew storms. They understood boats. They knew this was serious. We are going down with the ship and it looks like we are not going to make it. Jesus calmed the storm and then calmed the disciples. Once again, the Lord saved Peter’s life.

In the garden, moments before the Lord’s arrest, Peter swung a sword and cut off the right ear of Malchus. Immediately, Jesus told Peter to stop. He healed the severed ear. Jesus defused a very tense moment. Acting without thinking, Peter nearly died. John tells us that Judas led a Roman cohort with clubs and swords to the garden to arrest Jesus. A cohort is made up of many, many soldiers. Trained, armed and experienced, is what they were. Peter was a fisherman. Peter had no armor. There was not enough swords among the disciples for each to have one. In a matter of seconds, the Roman soldiers would have their swords drawn and in an instant all of the apostles would be on the ground dying. This could have turned very ugly, very quickly. Jesus saved their lives. Once again, Jesus saved Peter’s life.

At the tomb of Jesus, women had gathered that early Sunday morning to anoint His dead body. They fully anticipated seeing the lifeless Jesus in the grave. They brought spices, intending to use them. They wondered how they were going to move the stone blocking the entrance into the grave. What they saw amazed them. The stone was moved. The tomb was open. An angel sat there. It was this angel that told the women to “go tell the disciples and PETER…” Go tell Peter. Go tell Peter that the Lord is alive. Go tell Peter that Jesus is waiting for him. Full of remorse, guilt and sorrow, Peter easily could have followed the same route that Judas took, and that was suicide. Peter could have gone home, believing that he was a complete failure and no longer useful nor worthy to be among the disciples. So many things could have happened. “Go tell Peter,” is significant. The Lord wasn’t done with Peter. There would be powerful things he would do for the kingdom. In many ways, “Go tell Peter,” was a call to save his life. The Lord is alive. The Lord wants you. Go tell Peter.

Then, the most significant way that Jesus saved Peter’s life was the salvation that he offered through the cross. Sins forgiven, hope renewed, and a purpose and a promise to be fulfilled, Peter had a mission. God did what no one else could do.

Now some thoughts:

First, it’s hard to know how many times the Lord has protected us and saved our lives. Near car accidents, cancer scares, injuries that could have been much more serious, these are the things of life, but how many of them did the Lord have His hand in? We may never know. We may never know that we are alive today because God kept us from sinking or being destroyed by our enemies. And, why? Why has the Lord kept us alive? Like Peter, the Lord may well have a purpose and a plan for you. Today, you may serve as a shepherd in the church. Or, you may preach. Or, you may be the spiritual backbone of your family. Or, through you, someone else is doing those things. I expect if we were to know all the things that happened behind the scene, that we do not see, we’d be amazed at how often God was in our lives. The dumb and risky things we did as teens easily could have ended our lives. But here we are.

I remember my dear dad telling me a time when he was a Marine in WW II fighting the Japanese on the Marshall Islands.  He was the ammo carrier for the machine gunner. Dad was running ahead, bullets were hitting the dirt all around him. Dad had two belts of machine gun bullets crisscrossing his chest. He was carrying two ammo boxes that were full. Strapped everywhere possible on his chest and belt were multiple grenades. He was running so fast that his helmet came over his eyes and he couldn’t see. In an instant he could have become a human torch. He made it. Did he? Or did the Lord save him?

Second, Peter used his life for the Lord. The saving of Peter was an opportunity for Peter to give his heart and life for the kingdom. And, that he did. He understood that he was blessed, saved and now had a purpose. And, aren’t we the same? We have been blessed. We have been saved. We have a purpose. We must do our part in the Kingdom. Strengthen it up. Fortify the kingdom. Defend the Lord. Spread the borders of the kingdom. It is tragic to see people given a second chance only to witness them wasting that one just like they did the first one. One day they will run out of chances and all they have ever accomplished is throwing those opportunities away.

Third, running through all of this is a thread that says the Lord loves us. The Lord sure loved Peter. We get on Peter for looking at the waves and sinking, but he was the only one to get out of the boat. It sure is easy to talk about walking on the water while you stay in the boat. It took courage, and we must remember this wasn’t a calm lake on a sunny afternoon. There was a storm, it was in the darkness of night and all the elements to tell one to keep both feet in the boat. Peter asked the Lord. Peter was courageous. The Lord wasn’t about to let Peter drown. The Lord cared.

The saving of Peter—it happened over and over. It very well could be our story as well. The Lord loves you.

Roger

22

Jump Start # 3031

Posted on February 22, 2022 by Jump Starts Daily in Jump Starts Daily | Tagged | Leave a comment

Jump Start # 3031

Romans 14:12 “So then each one of us shall give account of himself to God.”

Well the Winter Olympics are over. I didn’t watch very much this year. I did catch some of the ski jump and a little curling. It seems nearly every Olympic year a controversy arises about “doping” and cheating. It has made it necessary for the athletics to be tested. It’s sad commentary on our times, but here in area of the greatest horse race in the world, the same thing is necessary. The horses must be tested and a recent winner of the Derby is under investigation for having an illegal enhancing drug. Those who play by the rules have nothing to fear. It’s those who try to bend the rules, break the rules and avoid the rules that makes all of this necessary.

And, that leads us to our verse today. In a two chapter discussion about eating meats and the way we look at each other and treat each other, Paul reminds us that we are accountable to God. The Lord’s parable about the talents is built upon each servant giving an account of what he did to the master. Within the idea of accountability is responsibility. God has a series of levels of accountability. This is not to catch us cheating, but to keep us faithful. From where I live to the church building, there is a stretch of highway that in the morning, drivers love to fly fast. But about every morning, there is a state police car sitting, engine running, just watching. And, the cars hit their brakes. They slow way down. Accountability.

Let’s consider the different accountability mechanisms that God has established to help us remain where we should.

First, is the Bible itself. It’s living, active and sharper than a sword. When one has an honest and good heart, and he intersects that with the word of God, he’ll take a serious look at himself. He’ll recognize that his attitudes have not been right He’ll recognize that he has not been spiritual as he should have been. Staying in the Bible, will make a person step up his game with the Lord. An open Bible and an open heart are great accountability measures.

Second, the family. Our family is a great accountability system that God has developed. When the family is walking with the Lord, the pleas, concerns and rebukes that come from the family leads us to doing better. Maybe the dad has been neglecting the kids. Maybe he’s been spending too much time in front of the TV. When his sweet wife talks to him about that, a godly heart will realize she is right and change. Children are accountable to parents. This is something that many of them do not appreciate. Parents have a right to parent. They set the time for bed. They give duties for the kids to do around the house. And, when the rules are not followed, discipline will. Our families are a great system of accountability.

Third, the congregation is. This is why we place membership or join a fellowship. They help us and we help them. There is a “togetherness” in our worship, work and journey. They can count upon us and we are there for them. Support, love, help and accountability is part of this. Within the N.T. God allows a congregation to practice discipline upon someone who is not walking with the Lord. This is not to chase someone off, but to keep them here. It is a form of accountability. Now and then, we find someone who doesn’t like that. They want to worship when they feel like it, do what they want with friends, even if it is ungodly, and have no one say anything. That doesn’t happen when one is a Christian. You belong to Jesus now and there are expectations that come with that. Some will leave a congregation with elders, knowing that they could be disciplined, and look for a small church without elders so they can come and go as they please. A person can’t say anything they want. Not when that person becomes a Christian. A person can’t do what the world does. Not when they become a Christian. Our fellowship is to remind us and keep us going strong with the Lord.

Fourth, the Lord Himself. That’s the heart of our passage today. We shall stand before the Lord and give an account of ourselves. We are not going to be giving an account of how the government fails. We are not giving a report about the church. We are not even looking at our family. Just self. Individuals. Why did you not believe? Why did you teach something that was not true? Why did you fear? Why did you not worship? Alone. Raw. No one else to hide behind. Just self. Accountable. Responsible. God has expectations for us.

I have wondered about where some of these conclusions take us. I’m still rolling some thoughts around in my head about where the system of accountability is for those who do things independently. For instance, these Jump Starts are part of the congregation I am a member of. If I was to write something that was out in left field, make some statements that are just not true, the shepherds of this congregation would have the right to talk to me about this and if necessary, pull the plug on this project. I am accountable to them. I am concerned about the “lone wolfs” who are writing and saying things without any system of accountability to keep them faithful to the Lord. By the time one stands before the Lord, it’s too late to make adjustments and changes. We need the accountability now. We need to be reminded now. And, just who am I accountable to when I am on my own, doing my own thing? Something I’ve been thinking about lately.

Cheaters in Olympics, speeders on the highway, and you and I. Without accountability, most don’t do what they should. We need help. God has provided that. May we be thankful for that.

Roger