Tag Archives: devotional

Keeping the Main Thing the Main Thing by Pastor Matt

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Song: Only Wanna Sing

Artist: Young & Free

Purity, but really…

1 Some Pharisees and teachers of religious law now arrived from Jerusalem to see Jesus. They asked him, 2 “Why do your disciples disobey our age-old tradition? For they ignore our tradition of ceremonial hand washing before they eat.” Mt 15:1-2

While they’re talking about purity, they’re not really talking about purity. For the Pharisees, the main thing was their tradition. On the surface, their traditions appeared to be focused on all the right things…like purity. In this case, the purity rite of ceremonially washing before they eat.

I’ll bet the Pharisees would have loved Ikea. There’s a perfectly crafted nook and cranny to meet every conceivable purity need.

They often get a bad rap (Pharisees…and Ikea). But sometimes I think the Pharisees give expression to that little part of me that I’d rather ignore. I mean, if I’m honest, I like traditions too. Especially those traditions that help me parse the difference between right and wrong, pure and impure. It’s just easier when everything has it’s place – even if the instructions are all pictures, no words!

Honoring Parents, but really…

3 Jesus replied, “And why do you, by your traditions, violate the direct commandments of God? 4 For instance, God says, ‘Honor your father and mother,’ and ‘Anyone who speaks disrespectfully of father or mother must be put to death.’ 5 But you say it is all right for people to say to their parents, ‘Sorry, I can’t help you. For I have vowed to give to God what I would have given to you.’6 In this way, you say they don’t need to honor their parents. And so you cancel the word of God for the sake of your own tradition. 7 You hypocrites! … Mt 15:3-7

But Jesus pushes back. And he uses one of the Ten Commandments to make his point. Honor your parents.

While Jesus is talking about honoring parents, he’s not really talking about honoring parents. He’s talking about hypocrisy. About valuing tradition over command. About so emphasizing tradition that you miss the spirit of the command.

It’s about the Heart

And so he says,

16 “Don’t you understand yet?” Jesus asked. 17 “Anything you eat passes through the stomach and then goes into the sewer. 18 But the words you speak come from the heart—that’s what defiles you. 19 For from the heart come evil thoughts, murder, adultery, all sexual immorality, theft, lying, and slander. 20 These are what defile you. Eating with unwashed hands will never defile you.” Mt 15:16-20

If only it were as simple as washing hands! But the heart is hard and messy work.

So, go ahead! Enjoy those delicious Ikea cinnamon rolls…but pay attention to your heart! Especially what’s flowing out of it.

Messy by Pastor Chris

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Matthew 18:10–“Beware that you don’t look down on any of these little ones. For I tell you that in heaven their angels are always in the presence of my heavenly Father.

In this verse, Jesus is commanding us to not look down on “little ones.”  Little ones can be kids or those young in the faith.

The phrase “look down on” is translated in the ESV with the word “despise”.  That word seems to carry more weight.  I despise things like Pepsi, the Denver Broncos, bad coffee.

Despise is such a strong word.  The meaning is to actively insult, and to disregard.

We are not to look down our noses as those we deem to be less than us, kids included.

Kids.  Kids can be messy.  Kids can be difficult.  Kids can be expensive.

I’m thinking of a time recently where one of my boys accidentally fired a Nerf arrow and hit our TV.  And ruined it. My first thought was there is no way a Nerf arrow could do that.  My second was disbelief.  Later that day, my wife told my son how much more important he is than a TV.  Years from now, we will tell this story, and the TV would have been trashed by that time anyway.

And I might actually laugh about it.  Maybe.

Kids.

We can’t disregard children, but the other meaning and point Jesus is making is to not disregard young believers, and those who have wandered away from Jesus.

Doing this can be messy.  Doing this and helping others in this way can be difficult, and can use all of our resources.  But that is what discipleship is.  That is what we as followers of Christ are commanded in the Great Commission that we have heard so often.

What is so neat when we take on this challenge and this command is how it stretches and strengthens our relationship with Christ.  Helping others and obedience to God can do that to a person!!

Only a disciple can make a disciple.  A.W. Tozer

I’ve come to realize that we can stand to learn a lot from kids, and from those young in their relationship with Christ.

Kids have such a faith, and a trust that is untainted by the world.

They also are able to learn and believe God’s Word completely.

As we were leaving Hy Vee the other night, my youngest son, Caleb, noticed that the Powerball Jackpot was $300 million.  He mentioned that could change someone’s life.  He then went on to say what he would do if he won that money.  And the first thing out of his mouth was giving to the church. He asked how much that tithes would be?  When I told him $30 million dollars, he was blown away, and exclaimed how that would help a church!!!

Caleb has heard and knows about tithing.  Even with his imaginary money, he knew the first place to give was to church.

Childlike faith.  Childlike trust.  Childlike obedience.

We can all grow in those areas.  Many times the older we get, the more we get tainted by life, and we lose that ability.

Discipling and helping someone grow in their relationship with Christ can help you grow in these areas.

It doesn’t mean it’s always easy.

Think of the self-control which training children demands. Think of the examples that must be set. Think of the practical wisdom that must be imparted.

Think of the perseverance that is needed!!!

If we “despise them” we fail to observe or meet their individual needs.  We fail to see the areas they may need growth in.  We fail to go after the lost sheep.  We fail to disciple.  We fail to grow.

I don’t get upset when my children have odd questions or thoughts.  No need to overdo it when they fail, like my son and the TV.  I had a choice there.  But I know my son.  And I knew the best way to handle the situation because of that.  It truly was an accident.

That is what discipleship is.  We are helping and training young believers because we have gotten to know them.

As you go today, begin praying and asking God if there is someone you need to be reaching out to, someone who is young in the faith, or you know has wandered from the Truth they once followed.  And let’s not look down on them!!

 

Kingdoms at War by Pastor Andy

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Matthew 18:21-35

Then Peter came to him and asked, “Lord, how often should I forgive someone who sins against me? Seven times?”

“No, not seven times,” Jesus replied, “but seventy times seven!

“Therefore, the Kingdom of Heaven can be compared to a king who decided to bring his accounts up to date with servants who had borrowed money from him. In the process, one of his debtors was brought in who owed him millions of dollars. He couldn’t pay, so his master ordered that he be sold–along with his wife, his children, and everything he owned–to pay the debt.

“But the man fell down before his master and begged him, ‘Please, be patient with me, and I will pay it all.’ Then his master was filled with pity for him, and he released him and forgave his debt.

“But when the man left the king, he went to a fellow servant who owed him a few thousand dollars. He grabbed him by the throat and demanded instant payment.

“His fellow servant fell down before him and begged for a little more time. ‘Be patient with me, and I will pay it,’ he pleaded. But his creditor wouldn’t wait. He had the man arrested and put in prison until the debt could be paid in full.

“When some of the other servants saw this, they were very upset. They went to the king and told him everything that had happened. Then the king called in the man he had forgiven and said, ‘You evil servant! I forgave you that tremendous debt because you pleaded with me. Shouldn’t you have mercy on your fellow servant, just as I had mercy on you?’Then the angry king sent the man to prison to be tortured until he had paid his entire debt.

“That’s what my heavenly Father will do to you if you refuse to forgive your brothers and sisters from your heart.”  

That’s A Lot of Dough!

In 2015, the average salary in the United States was between $23,000 – $48,000. The median would be $30,500 per year. In this story, according to the King James Version, the man owed 10,000 talents. Both words have deep significance.

Ten thousand was the largest numeral in the Greek language, and a talent was the largest unit of currency of the day. In literal terms it meant this man owed 200,000 years worth of an average man’s wage.

In 2015 terms, this man owed $6.1 billion.

One time I was in debt $100,000 from a business deal gone bad. That stung. I thought I would never get out of the pit I dug. It was only 61,000 times less than what this guy faced.

For him, there was no hope. This guy was up a creek with no paddle in a boat full of holes, and a 10,000 foot waterfall was moments away.

Kingdoms at War

The story isn’t about money though. It’s about two kingdoms at war.

The Kingdom of God is in direct opposition to the kingdom(s) of this world. The deeper you dig into the teachings of Jesus, the more obvious this becomes.

God’s Kingdom is about mercy.

“Then his master was filled with pity for him…”

God operates out of a “mercy first” policy. He forgives when we don’t deserve it. He pardons the sins of the worst sinner. God grants grace upon grace to His creation.

This doesn’t match the kingdom of our every day life. That kingdom says, “You owe me.” Period. No debate.

Do you need a more clear an example than this man? He walks out the gate, sees a man who owes him a fraction of this debt, and he assaults the man.

“He grabbed him by the throat and demanded instant payment.”

We read this passage with horror, but why wouldn’t this servant act this way? It’s the culture he lived in (we live in). You owe me! I don’t care what you say. I don’t care what you do. I don’t care about you. You owe me!

Where Do You Live?

Which kingdom are you living in? Are you from the Kingdom of mercy first, or are you dwelling in the kingdom of you owe me?

Forgiveness is releasing the debt owed to you. One of the most difficult challenges in life is truly forgiving someone who has truly hurt you. It’s why Jesus commands Peter to forgive 490 times. I don’t forgive my enemy (or my brother) one time only, but I forgive each time the hurt returns to my heart. That can be over and over and over again.

Search your heart. Are you holding a debt against a friend, a neighbor, a family member? They probably owe you, but will you show mercy anyway? Will you forgive?

Allow the Kingdom of God to enter into that relationship. Forgive.

Lift Your Head Weary Sinner (Chains) | Crowder

Question Behind the Question by Pastor Andy

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Matthew 22:15-22

15Then the Pharisees met together to plot how to trap Jesus into saying something for which he could be arrested. 16They sent some of their disciples, along with the supporters of Herod, to meet with him. “Teacher,” they said, “we know how honest you are. You teach the way of God truthfully. You are impartial and don’t play favorites.17Now tell us what you think about this: Is it right to pay taxes to Caesar or not?”
18But Jesus knew their evil motives. “You hypocrites!” he said. “Why are you trying to trap me? 19Here, show me the coin used for the tax.” When they handed him a Roman coin, 20he asked, “Whose picture and title are stamped on it?”
21“Caesar’s,” they replied.
“Well, then,” he said, “give to Caesar what belongs to Caesar, and give to God what belongs to God.”
22His reply amazed them, and they went away.

What’s the Real Question?

My wife, Kia, is a professional portrait photographer. When it comes time for clients to pay, she occasionally receives some variation of this question,

“Do you offer discounts for orders paid in cash?”

Have you ever noticed how some questions aren’t the real question? The question is meant to ask another question – in a non-direct way.

When a client asks Kia, “Do you offer discounts for orders paid in cash?” they usually mean this,

“Can you remove my sales tax? It is paid in cash, so you won’t claim this income.”

The question is all about deception and integrity.

Deception & Integrity

Which leads to our Scripture passage for the day. Jesus is asked a question by the Pharisees. The question is pretty straight forward, “Should I pay my taxes?” But what was the real question behind their question?

To understand this, we need to take the question in context. Their question is in response to a story Jesus just told about a king and a wedding feast (Matthew 22:1-14). Those invited to the feast blew the king off. Some even killed the king’s servants. Jesus tells of how the king exacts judgement on these people.

The Pharisees know who Jesus is talking about – them! They aren’t very happy about it, so they develop a plan to trick Jesus. They want him to speaking poorly of Caesar, taxes and Rome. This will allow them to present Jesus to the authorities as traitors.

What’s the question behind the question? Deception and Integrity. The Pharisees attempt to deceive Jesus. They try to destroy his integrity.

Commands of Christ

All month we’ve been focusing on the Commands of Christ. This command from Jesus holds true today. Give to the government what belongs to the government. Give to God what belongs to God.

When it comes to us paying our taxes, usually it comes down to this same issue. It’s not about ability, it’s about deception and integrity. Can I deceive the government? Will I keep my integrity?

If you enjoy the rights of citizenship, pay for it. If not, be involved in government. Make a difference. You don’t have to agree. You just have to obey.

Don’t be deceptive. Keep your integrity.

Gracious Temptest | Hillsong Young & Free

We Joined a Zoo by Pastor Andy

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Matthew 10:26-31

26“But don’t be afraid of those who threaten you. For the time is coming when everything that is covered will be revealed, and all that is secret will be made known to all. 27What I tell you now in the darkness, shout abroad when daybreak comes. What I whisper in your ear, shout from the housetops for all to hear! 28“Don’t be afraid of those who want to kill your body; they cannot touch your soul. Fear only God, who can destroy both soul and body in hell. 29What is the price of two sparrows—one copper coin? But not a single sparrow can fall to the ground without your Father knowing it. 30And the very hairs on your head are all numbered. 31So don’t be afraid; you are more valuable to God than a whole flock of sparrows.

Honey, We Joined a Zoo!

This week in our devotions we’ve discussed pigs and sheep and doves and snakes and wolves and sparrows and dogs. Read literally, you might wonder if you’ve joined a zoo. Nope, we’re just a church.

Jesus does refer a lot to nature in making points about God. In this case it’s sparrows. The King James Version translates this as two sparrows sold for a penny. You can do the math, it makes a sparrow basically valueless.

Yet God cares about that sparrow. Now, as we know, we are worth infinitely more than one sparrow. God deeply cares about you. He loves you. You don’t need to fear.

Specifically, you don’t need to fear persecution, slander or hardship in the name of Jesus. Our bodies can be broken, even destroyed, but our soul alone is in the hands of God. Let that be a comfort to you.

Yesterday, Pastor Chris shared from Matthew 10:16. Jesus is sending us out into the world – like sheep among wolves. We are to be “wise as serpents and harmless as doves.” Pastor Chris’ big point was go.

Don’t let fear hold you back. Go because God cares for you, but just as important, God cares for the world.

I know it’s scary. Kind of like buying a zoo. When we go, it puts us out of our league. But God cares. Wow, think about that, God cares. He cares about you – down to the number of hairs on your head.

God loves you, so go.

Open Heaven/River Wild | Hillsong Worship