1 Samuel 15:19-23
Holy Bible. New Living Translation copyright © 1996, 2004 by Tyndale Charitable Trust.
The Lord Rejects Saul
19 Why haven’t you obeyed the Lord? Why did you rush for the plunder and do what was evil in the Lord’s sight?”
20 “But I did obey the Lord,” Saul insisted. “I carried out the mission he gave me. I brought back King Agag, but I destroyed everyone else. 21 Then my troops brought in the best of the sheep, goats, cattle, and plunder to sacrifice to the Lord your God in Gilgal.”
22 But Samuel replied, “What is more pleasing to the Lord: your burnt offerings and sacrifices or your obedience to his voice? Listen! Obedience is better than sacrifice, and submission is better than offering the fat of rams. 23 Rebellion is as sinful as witchcraft, and stubbornness as bad as worshiping idols. So because you have rejected the command of the Lord, he has rejected you as king.”
At what price … at what point … would you compromise your faith?
For Saul, it was the spoils of war … livestock … that was his price. Livestock was the contemporary measure of wealth. For wealth, Saul disobeyed the Lord.
Is your compromise point wealth … unethical business practices … being a work-a-holic … withholding your tithe? Maybe yours is power … misusing your position of authority and leadership. What about sex … a secret affair or any immoral relationship … ‘friends with benefits’ outside of marriage?
At what price will you disobey God and end up like Saul … rejected? Obedience is pleasing to the LORD!
Monday, April 13, 2009
Thursday, April 09, 2009
SEALED WITH A KISS
Mark 14:43-46
Holy Bible. New Living Translation copyright © 1996, 2004 by Tyndale Charitable Trust.
Jesus Is Betrayed and Arrested
43 And immediately, even as Jesus said this, Judas, one of the twelve disciples, arrived with a crowd of men armed with swords and clubs. They had been sent by the leading priests, the teachers of religious law, and the elders. 44 The traitor, Judas, had given them a prearranged signal: “You will know which one to arrest when I greet him with a kiss. Then you can take him away under guard.” 45 As soon as they arrived, Judas walked up to Jesus. “Rabbi!” he exclaimed, and gave him the kiss.
46 Then the others grabbed Jesus and arrested him.
This phrasing … sealed with a kiss … is most often a sentiment of love. After writing the love letter and placing it in the envelope, we seal the envelope with a kiss.
What a contrast we see in Judas. He expresses respect, calling Jesus “Rabbi!” He expresses love, greeting Jesus with a kiss. Yet his motivation is treacherous. The traitor seals the betrayal with a kiss.
The name Judas has become synonymous with a traitor. He was “…one of the twelve disciples…” , right there at the table with Jesus (Mark 14:17-21). We see from this that not everyone who says the right words or passes a loving sentiment is part of the body of believers. These outward expressions don’t necessarily reflect the condition of the heart.
This Holy Week, make sure your heart is right and let you relationship with Jesus be sealed by the Holy Spirit.
Holy Bible. New Living Translation copyright © 1996, 2004 by Tyndale Charitable Trust.
Jesus Is Betrayed and Arrested
43 And immediately, even as Jesus said this, Judas, one of the twelve disciples, arrived with a crowd of men armed with swords and clubs. They had been sent by the leading priests, the teachers of religious law, and the elders. 44 The traitor, Judas, had given them a prearranged signal: “You will know which one to arrest when I greet him with a kiss. Then you can take him away under guard.” 45 As soon as they arrived, Judas walked up to Jesus. “Rabbi!” he exclaimed, and gave him the kiss.
46 Then the others grabbed Jesus and arrested him.
This phrasing … sealed with a kiss … is most often a sentiment of love. After writing the love letter and placing it in the envelope, we seal the envelope with a kiss.
What a contrast we see in Judas. He expresses respect, calling Jesus “Rabbi!” He expresses love, greeting Jesus with a kiss. Yet his motivation is treacherous. The traitor seals the betrayal with a kiss.
The name Judas has become synonymous with a traitor. He was “…one of the twelve disciples…” , right there at the table with Jesus (Mark 14:17-21). We see from this that not everyone who says the right words or passes a loving sentiment is part of the body of believers. These outward expressions don’t necessarily reflect the condition of the heart.
This Holy Week, make sure your heart is right and let you relationship with Jesus be sealed by the Holy Spirit.
Wednesday, April 08, 2009
THE GREAT DEBATE
Mark 11:27-33
Holy Bible. New Living Translation copyright © 1996, 2004 by Tyndale Charitable Trust.
The Authority of Jesus Challenged
27 Again they entered Jerusalem. As Jesus was walking through the Temple area, the leading priests, the teachers of religious law, and the elders came up to him. 28 They demanded, “By what authority are you doing all these things? Who gave you the right to do them?”
29 “I’ll tell you by what authority I do these things if you answer one question,” Jesus replied. 30 “Did John’s authority to baptize come from heaven, or was it merely human? Answer me!”
31 They talked it over among themselves. “If we say it was from heaven, he will ask why we didn’t believe John. 32 But do we dare say it was merely human?” For they were afraid of what the people would do, because everyone believed that John was a prophet. 33 So they finally replied, “We don’t know.”
And Jesus responded, “Then I won’t tell you by what authority I do these things.”
Try as they might, the ‘religious’ leaders could not trip up Jesus. They tried to trap Him … trick Him into saying something they could use to turn the people against Him.
Do we debate with the all-knowing One? Do we challenge His authority trying to get our own way? It is a debate … a challenge we can never win.
Do what you will … He will still be God and He is always right … just … fair!
Holy Bible. New Living Translation copyright © 1996, 2004 by Tyndale Charitable Trust.
The Authority of Jesus Challenged
27 Again they entered Jerusalem. As Jesus was walking through the Temple area, the leading priests, the teachers of religious law, and the elders came up to him. 28 They demanded, “By what authority are you doing all these things? Who gave you the right to do them?”
29 “I’ll tell you by what authority I do these things if you answer one question,” Jesus replied. 30 “Did John’s authority to baptize come from heaven, or was it merely human? Answer me!”
31 They talked it over among themselves. “If we say it was from heaven, he will ask why we didn’t believe John. 32 But do we dare say it was merely human?” For they were afraid of what the people would do, because everyone believed that John was a prophet. 33 So they finally replied, “We don’t know.”
And Jesus responded, “Then I won’t tell you by what authority I do these things.”
Try as they might, the ‘religious’ leaders could not trip up Jesus. They tried to trap Him … trick Him into saying something they could use to turn the people against Him.
Do we debate with the all-knowing One? Do we challenge His authority trying to get our own way? It is a debate … a challenge we can never win.
Do what you will … He will still be God and He is always right … just … fair!
Tuesday, April 07, 2009
IN MY FATHER’S HOUSE
Mark 11:15-17
Holy Bible. New Living Translation copyright © 1996, 2004 by Tyndale Charitable Trust.
Jesus Clears the Temple
15 When they arrived back in Jerusalem, Jesus entered the Temple and began to drive out the people buying and selling animals for sacrifices. He knocked over the tables of the money changers and the chairs of those selling doves, 16 and he stopped everyone from using the Temple as a marketplace. 17 He said to them, “The Scriptures declare, ‘My Temple will be called a house of prayer for all nations,’ but you have turned it into a den of thieves.”
Jesus cared about the Temple. What happened in the Temple mattered to Jesus. The day before (Mark 11:11), Jesus had visited the temple and observed what was going on. Scripture doesn’t say but it must have weighed heavy on His mind because as soon as He returned, He began to clear the Temple of those “… den of thieves.”
Because Jesus cared, we too must care. We must be careful about what we practice in God’s house. It is easy to see that God’s house is not a marketplace. We must also see that it is not a place of exclusion but rather a place “…for all nations…” , open to all people. We must see that it is not a place for entertainment but rather for worship, “…a house of prayer…”. It is not a place to have our emotions whipped up … our ears tickled … or a place to showcase our talents.
This was personal to Jesus. He called it “…My Temple…”. It is the Father’s House (Jesus and the Father are One). We must treat it as such!
Holy Bible. New Living Translation copyright © 1996, 2004 by Tyndale Charitable Trust.
Jesus Clears the Temple
15 When they arrived back in Jerusalem, Jesus entered the Temple and began to drive out the people buying and selling animals for sacrifices. He knocked over the tables of the money changers and the chairs of those selling doves, 16 and he stopped everyone from using the Temple as a marketplace. 17 He said to them, “The Scriptures declare, ‘My Temple will be called a house of prayer for all nations,’ but you have turned it into a den of thieves.”
Jesus cared about the Temple. What happened in the Temple mattered to Jesus. The day before (Mark 11:11), Jesus had visited the temple and observed what was going on. Scripture doesn’t say but it must have weighed heavy on His mind because as soon as He returned, He began to clear the Temple of those “… den of thieves.”
Because Jesus cared, we too must care. We must be careful about what we practice in God’s house. It is easy to see that God’s house is not a marketplace. We must also see that it is not a place of exclusion but rather a place “…for all nations…” , open to all people. We must see that it is not a place for entertainment but rather for worship, “…a house of prayer…”. It is not a place to have our emotions whipped up … our ears tickled … or a place to showcase our talents.
This was personal to Jesus. He called it “…My Temple…”. It is the Father’s House (Jesus and the Father are One). We must treat it as such!
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