Be Careful What You Think About...

...because it may as well be true.

Jesus addresses our thoughts and attitudes in the second half of Matthew 5. He begins by addressing our anger, more specifically our unjust anger. There is such thing as righteous anger, its just that too many times we get angry with others without cause. Jesus begins to make some pretty difficult statements that will challenge our faith versus our religious actions.

As Christians we enjoy worship and fellowship. We even enjoy taking part in Sunday School, prayer and giving. Jesus tells us though that before we do any of these things we should "First be reconciled to your brother, and then come and offer your gift." 5:24b This is somewhat challenging when we have wronged someone, we probably feel some sense of guilt and know that we should make it right. But what about when someone has wronged us? Its much easier to harbor resentment than guilt and still find a way to worship and praise God. But as we look closer at this word "reconcile" the meaning in this context means to "take the initiative no matter the issue." Not so easy now. It does not matter how the relationship with another is fractured, it is our job to take the initiative to restore and reconcile so that our worship of Jesus Christ will not be hindered.

Jesus continues by giving us the picture of someone thrown into prison. He says that "you by no means will get out until you have paid the last farthing." 5:26 During this time in history people were thrown into debtors prison for debts they owed. The only way they could get out was to pay the debt or they would die there. The only other option would be to have someone come and pay their debt for them. Sort of sounds like what Jesus did for us doesn't it?

Mercy, Mercy Me!

"Blessed are the merciful, for they shall receive mercy." - Matt 5:7

What's in a word? Have you ever pondered the thought of Mercy? What does that word mean? God sent His only son, Jesus, to die a brutal death for us in order to settle a debt we could not pay...Mercy Lord!

As a Christian has God ever taken you to a place where you were utterly and completely amazed by His grace? Maybe for you it was at your conversion, maybe like me, it came later. The price that it cost for us to spend eternity with an almight Creator was too much for us too pay. The penalty for non-payment was death. Romans 6:23 tells us that the payment for our sin is death, BUT the free gift of a King is eternal life because of the blood of Christ Jesus our LORD. Mercy in salvation is evident also in Romans 5:8, it says that even while we were still in sin, Christ died for us. We could not make ourselves good enough to deserve His payment, He did it while were still steeped in our sin...Mercy Lord!

We are merciful to others because of the mercy God has already shown us and because of the mercy that we will still be shown throughout our lives.

Jesus says in Matt 9:13 to fo learn what it means to desire mercy and not sacrifice. Jesus' shed blood on the cross gave us direct access into the throne room of the Almighty God, we do not have to earn it, we don't have to follow rituals or traditions, His mercy alone allows us unrestricted access to Him.

Are you so amazed by mercy and grace that you freely give mercy to those who need it? None of us deserve mercy, the point is to show forgivness with an act of kindness that meets a need. We should show mercy to others because of the mercy we've been shown. With Christ as our example we are to humble ourselves to forgive the debts of others that cannot be paid.

Poor and happy?!?

What did Jesus mean when He said "Blessed are the poor in spirit, for their's is the kingdom of heaven." To be poor in spirit is to understand that without the power of Christ within us we are destitute and poor of anything that can be deemed valuable to the kingdom of God.

We can be both poor and happy because our promise is that we already have the Kingdom of Heaven. It is a real place that Jesus has offered us if we simply acknowledge our need of Him.

Jesus also says that we are happy because we are persecuted and are falsely accused. This is the point where most of us stop and say, "hey, how can I be happy when someone is talking about me or persecuting me?" We tend to make it about us and it is so not about us. Jesus said that we are blessed when we are persecuted for righteousness sake, when we are falsely accused for My sake. This has nothing to do with us. Our sense of entitlement is a lie that satan uses to make us think if we suffer a little bit then we deserve some blessing somewhere down the line.

Our promise from Jesus right now is that we as christians have the kingdom of heaven.

Is that enough?

The promises of Jesus in the rest of the beatitudes are in future tense, they will come, maybe on this earth and maybe not. If all we have until we die is the promise of the kingdom of heaven is that enough to do the things God called us to do and to be the husbands, wives, parents, friends that are a light to a dark world?

Happy are those who understand that they need Jesus to fulfill their spirit. Happy are those who are made fun of for the sake of truth. Happy are those who are gossipped about and slandered because they know Jesus. Those people will spend eternity with their savior in Heaven.

Are you poor? Are you happy? I pray that you are both.

Time, Setting, Characters, Plot...

It kind of sounds like a good book. Well, the book is Matthew and these are just a few of the things we must consider before we can even begin to look at the greatest sermon ever preached. Matthew chapters 5 through 7 give us specific instruction on how to live as followers of Christ. The first 4 chapters give us the background on who Jesus was as a man and as God.

Chapter 1 gives us the lineage of Christ from Abraham through His birth. This is important because it establishes who Jesus was as a man, Abraham was an important figure in the Jewish culture and Jesus' relation to him gave him a certain credibility with those who knew the scriptures and knew God's promises to Abraham. Chapter 1 also tells us of Jesus birth and shows how it perfectly fulfills the prophecy that Isaiah spoke of in Chapter 7, "Behold, the virgin shall be with child, and bear a Son, and they shall call His name Immanuel, which is translated 'God with us.'"

Chapter 2 gives us a little background on King Herod, an evil king whose position was threatened by the birth of Jesus. Herod was used by God to fulfill his promise spoken of in Hosea 11:1 "Out of Egypt I called my Son." Although Jesus was born in Bethlehem just like the prophet Micah said he was taken to Egypt when He was just a baby to avoid Herod's decree to kill all of the male children under 2 years of age. God is big enough to use any means necessary to fulfill His promises, even taking the plans of a wicked king and using them to prove Himself true.

Jesus came to his cousin John in Chapter 3 to be baptized in order to "fulfill all righteousness." We also get the priveledge of seeing the Triune God reveal itself to us for the first time in scripture. God the Son was descended upon by God the Spirit and God the Father spoke in a voice from heaven. Immediately Jesus was led into the Wilderness by the Spirit in order "to be tempted by the devil." Jesus fasted there in the wilderness for 40 days and 40 nights and Matthew 4:2 says, "He was hungry." Ya think? So what was the point?

Jesus was led to the wilderness in order to be tempted. Jesus is referred to as the 2nd Adam. In order to establish his credibility as both God and man this time of temptation was necessary. Satan tempted the flesh by trying to get a hungry Jesus to turn rocks into bread and Jesus responded with scripture from Deuteronomy. Satan also tempts the spirit of Jesus by telling Him to throw Himself down off the temple to prove that God will save Him. Guess what, Satan knows scripture too. He quotes Psalm 91:11, 12. How many times in our own life has Satan tempted us or at the very least made us second guess our call to a particular situation or setting by using the very words of God to convince us to do our own thing. Once our focus turns away from God and toward ourselves it doesn't matter if we think scripture is taking us there, it is a lie from the devil. When God has taken us to a place of barreness and hunger it is for us to focus on His presence. The moment we turn our thoughts to ourselves we miss the point of the trial that God has allowed to come into our lives.

Jesus went to the wilderness for the specific purpose of being tempted. This time of fasting and trial for Jesus deepened His relationship with the Father and equipped Him for His future ministry. How many times do we see ourselves as victims when we are in the midst of our own trials and wildernesses? What if we began to view these times as the opportunity to allow God to take us to a place that we have never been. I can only imagine how our lives would be changed if we would simply allow the spirit to "lead us up into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil." There is no where the Spirit of God can take us that He is not capable of giving us victory, our struggle is to simply trust Him when we don't have the map.

Fellowship - Does it require a covered dish?

What is fellowship? Better yet how do we fellowship? Is it something we do or something we have?

Yes!

Both are correct. Fellowship is something that we have if we are practicing biblical Koinonia, the close association between persons emphasizing what is common between them. As believers we can have and should have a special bond that is emphasized by our common belief. Our faith in Christ allows us an instant bond with other believers in our class, church, workplace and world. We can connect on a spiritual level and begin to grow closer through other areas of our lives. We may share the same interests, hobbies, talents, etc. Think about the closest relationships you have. What brought you together? What has kept you together? The instant connection must be fed over time by sharing life and continuing to grow deeper. If we allow our relationships to stagnate we become disconnected and dissatisfied with the relationship.

Our fellowship with Christ is the same way. Some of us may not have the same excitement and vigor for our faith that we once did. Why not? Is it because Jesus became boring? Did He lose interest in us? Most definately not! We have lost our first love. Other relationships, activities, events began to slowly grab our attention. We tend to place God on a shelf where He is easily accessible but not in the way of the exciting things that we desire. Our fellowship has been broken because it is a two way street. We must seek after Christ the way he pursues us. I John 1:6 says, "If we say that we have fellowship with Him, and walk in darkness, we lie..." A pretty powerful statement.

Fellowship can be an event, we can have a good time fellowshipping with one another. The bible encourages fellowship for many good reasons. Ecclesiastes 4:9 says "Two are better than one, because they have good reward for their labor." Verse 12 says "Though one may be overpowered by another, two can withstand him. And a threefold cord is not quickly broken." Hebrews 10:24-25 tells us "...spur one another along... do not forsake the assembling of ourselves together..." Fellowship is an important aspect of the Christian life. We are first called to have fellowship with Christ, that bond will allow us the avenue to have fellowship with others.

Our fellowship with one anther will allow us to withstand the attacks of the enemy. Remember, the huge redwood trees have very shallow roots but can grow to enormous sizes because they stand close together and bind their roots together to support each other. Christ is our bond and our fellow believers are the support and fellowship that God has blessed us with. So be purposeful in your relationships and stand tall with one another to fight the attacks of the enemy.

Prayer - Its not just for dinner any more

What is Prayer?
Webster’s dictionary says prayer is an address (as a petition) to God in word or thought. Prayer involves all 3 aspects of the Godhead. We pray to the Father, through the Son by the Holy Spirit.
While there are no specific requirements for how we are to pray (see Num 16:22, I Kings 8:22-23, I Chron 21:16, Psa. 28:2 and Luke 22:41) Jesus makes in clear in Matt 6:5-8 on how we are not to pray.

“And when you pray, you shall not be like the hypocrites. For they love to pray standing in the synagogues and on the corners of the streets, that they may be seen by men…And when you pray do not use vain repetitions like the heathen do. For they think they will be heard by their many words. Therefore do not be like them…”
Matt 6:5-8 NKJV

Is it ok to pray in public? Sure, but we don’t do it to draw attention to ourselves. Prayer in a public setting should not be an act that points to us but to God alone. Our public prayer life can be an instrument of evangelism. We must be careful though pray to God and not pray at others around us.
What about vs. 7 where it tells us not to use vain repetitions? We address God as our father. God is referred to as father over 200 times in the New Testament. While we are counted as “friends of God” we still approach His throne with reverence and grace through the mercy of His son Jesus. Many times in prayer this is taken to the extreme. We begin “Dear Father”, and repeat this phrase numerous times before we ever really get into our prayer. Try that the next time you talk with someone. “Hi Tom, how are you Tom? Tom I had a great day today Tom. Wow Tom I like talking to you my friend Tom. Tom it is so nice spending time with you Tom and Tom I like that we are friends Tom oh my friend Tom.” Sound silly doesn’t it? Don’t use vain repetitions in prayer, come humbly before God your Father and make your requests to Him with a pure heart that is motivated by His will, not our own.
Jesus cried out in the Garden of Gethsemane that this cup may pass from Him, however he also said “Not my will but Yours be done.” God wants to hear our hearts, God already knows our heart but there is a certain intimacy that comes with vocalizing our desires to Him. But, we must remember that not our will, but His be done. Are you ok with that? Can you pray in a manner where you are completely open, honest and vulnerable to hear God’s no? Are you patient in prayer and understand that answers sometimes come slowly or seemingly not at all?
I Thess 5:17-18 says “pray without ceasing, in everything give thanks because this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.” We all want to know God’s will for our lives. Pray. Simply pray and you are in God’s will. When we teach our minds to pray without ceasing we will begin to understand God’s thoughts and purposes for our lives and we will have a much easier time distinguishing our own desire from His will.
My prayer for you is that you will be filled with the knowledge of God’s will in all wisdom and spiritual understanding; that you may walk worthy of the Lord fully pleasing Him, being fruitful in every good work and increasing in the knowledge of God.

My challenge for you this week is to pray with your spouse every day. If you already do this then look at scripture on prayer and see how God can take you deeper into your prayer life.

Vision, Purpose, Model.... Its all about God anyway!

Wow, what a great class this morning. Thanks to all of you "pioneers" who joined us. We are excited and humbled to serve along side of you guys as we join together on our marriage journeys. Our focus is to use our marriages to light a lost and dying world and we do that through prayer, fellowship and Bible study.

Please be in prayer as to how you can serve. We have lots of opportunities to get plugged in. Thanks to the Caverlys for heading up the inreach area by doing calls and post cards. The Williams and Vicks are going to work together to plan our social events throughout the year. Theresa Fitzsimons has graciously offered to help out with any medical situtations that may come up. She has been an ER nurse and can use those skills to serve others. She has offered to help out for moms who may have Dr's appts and need some help with kids in waiting rooms or to give rides if there are emergencies that come up.

Please be in prayer about the Engage Day coming up on Sept. 13. We need ideas of a project we can do together as a class and we still need someone to take the reigns and coordinate our project. In the mean time please send me any suggestions you may have for service. Please keep in mind that we want to reach the lost with our love and service and also try to do something that the kids can be involved in as well.

Thanks again for stepping out in faith to come with us. We love each of you guys and we can't wait to grow and deepen those relationships with you even more. As I pray for each of you this week I will be praying that your marriages can be so much one together that you are no threat. Now, go be naked and not ashamed! (you knew it was coming sometime)

Salt and Light,

Billy

Sunday's on the way!

Pray for Sunday. As I sit here and write this there are about 2 1/2 days until we meet together as a brand new class. I am excited about what God is going to do in us and through us as a class. I have been praying for each of you that will be there this week (not even knowing who that may be.) God has an amazing way of taking my own plans and expectations and squashing them only to leave me amazed at what His plans are. I don't know if there will be 2 people there or 20 but I do know this, God has chosen each person that will be in that room Sunday morning and I am excited to see who He has hand picked to serve Him along side Michelle and me.
Come in expectation of the Holy Spirit to do a mighty work in us and through us.
Salt and Light,
Billy

Another Adoption!!!

We are excited to let you all know that I had the incredible privilege of leading our daughter Maddy to Christ tonight. We had the Lord's Supper at church this morning and she was upset because she couldn't take part. I told her that we would talk about it this evening and explain to her what was happening. She had lots of questions but also knew the answers to a lot of them too. God is so good to allow Michelle and I the privilege of leading 2 of our children to Christ at a young age. Please pray for us and for Maddy as she begins her new life in Christ as a fellow heir to the throne of grace.

The Adoption is Complete!

Our class has co-adopted the Millender family as they prepare to head to West Africa to serve for the next 3 years. Although they are not technically coming out of our class they did start with many of us and we wanted to support them as they obey God's call to go and serve.
Ron and Chris, we will miss you guys a ton! You have been, you are, and you will continue to be a tremendous blessing to us by your service. Know that we love you and are excited for you as you make this transition in your lives.



You can keep up with the Millender clan at http://www.millendersinafrica.blogspot.com/

New Class Starts Aug 24!!!

Our new Sunday School class will start Sunday, Aug. 24 at 11:00 in room 3200. We are so excited for those of you who have already committed to come along with us on this new adventure. For those of you who are still praying and searching for God's leading we are excited about your decision as well because no matter where you end up it will be exactly where God wants you to be!



Stay tuned for more posts and class information.