Serve One Another in Love no. 20

“This is why he had to become like his brothers in every respect — so that he might become a merciful and faithful cohen gadol in the service of God, making a kapparah for the sins of the people. For since he himself suffered death when he was put to the test, he is able to help those who are being tested now” (Messianic Jews (Heb) 2:17-18). Jesus had to become like His brothers. He had to become humans like us in every way. Becoming one of us and walking this life made Him a merciful and faithful high priest for us. Being a human allowed Jesus to be a role model for us. He was tested in order to help those of us undergoing challenges and problems and situations and struggles. He is our role model.

I am not saying you need a poster of Jesus hanging on your bedroom wall like a teenager BUT there ought to be a sign that Jesus is your role model. And being your role model should shape how you go about your life. We all probably had a role model in whatever activity we pursued in our youth and we may even have role models today. We tried to do anything we could to be like those people so we could have the worldly success and honor and glory they had achieved. How much more should we want to have the spiritual success and honor and glory that follows in service to Jesus?

Too often we do things that are very un-Jesus and that is sometimes because we are surrounded by broken people doing very worldly things in the name of Jesus. Sometimes it is just because we choose to be very un-Jesus. Sometimes it is because we don’t know how to be more like Jesus. So, if I want to be like Jesus, if I want Him to be my role model, I kind of have to learn more about Him. When I had my role models, I wasn’t taking the word of other people what they were like. I was watching and reading interviews and studying what they did to make them a success. I apply those same skills to Jesus. And The Bible is a great place to start. And right now is a great time to start. 

We can’t be like someone we know very little about. And with folks fighting over putting Christ into Christmas like they do every year in the past nearly five decades of my life, instead let’s put Christ into us. How about a plan to read The Bible? And I mean all of it. Start a book at a time. Read the New Testament first? Read the shorter books? BUT make a plan to read the whole Bible? Maybe even read some of those apocrypha because that’s edgy and spooky and scares some folks? You do you on that. 

How about spend some time meditating on what you read? Think about how what you are reading applied to the people inside The Bible. Think about how that reading applies to your life today. How does The Bible teach you wisdom? Look at how the stories help shape a bigger view of the world for then and now.

How about spend some time in prayer? Make a little time to talk to God about what you are learning. Ask Him for guidance and help in your walk. He is there to help because He was one of us. And He is able to help.

How about spend some time in communion? Find some folks that are also learning about Jesus and hang out with them. Talk about what you are learning and bounce some ideas off them. A lot of folks like to do this in the safety of churches BUT there are plenty of folks out there that are understanding and struggling with these same issues of how to live an honest and virtuous life. Some of them are doing this and are totally oblivious to how much Jesus can help. 

It doesn’t take much to take Jesus as a role model seriously. BUT it does take changing your way of thinking. And that is what repentance is all about. Changing your mind. Courage is choosing to change and I pray we all find the courage to be more like Jesus. And that all starts with knowing Him better.    

Serve His Kingdom by serving one another in love.

Grace and Shalom to your home. The Kingdom of God is now!

I love you. I forgive you. Have a blessed and abundant day!

#ThinkBetter #BeBetter #NoKingButChrist #EmbraceTheWithin #SeekFirstTheKingdom #ServeOneAnotherIn Love #NotMyWayYHWH

Serve One Another in Love no. 19

“Using the grace God gave me, I laid a foundation, like a skilled master-builder; and another man is building on it. But let each one be careful how he builds. For no one can lay any foundation other than the one already laid, which is Yeshua the Messiah. Some will use gold, silver or precious stones in building on this foundation; while others will use wood, grass or straw. But each one’s work will be shown for what it is; the Day will disclose it, because it will be revealed by fire — the fire will test the quality of each one’s work. If the work someone has built on the foundation survives, he will receive a reward; if it is burned up, he will have to bear the loss: he will still escape with his life, but it will be like escaping through a fire” (1 Corinthians (1 Co) 3:10-15). Folks ask me all kinds of questions about The Bible and God. Folks have a lot of motivation for those questions, however, I think most are honestly seeking truth. One of the things I am focused about doing in this current walk with Jesus is to not be a stumbling block. I do not want to be a hypocrite or a problem for folks honestly seeking truth and answers. Now, I know not every question is asked in the spirit of truth and honesty. I am aware that some folks are trying to be adversarial and twist my words just like they twist His Truth. BUT that should not prevent me from being honest just like it does not keep God from being honest about Himself. He is wh He says He is.

So, back to the scripture from today and how that relates to honesty. I think about this idea of going through the fire a lot when I talk about death and the inevitable judgment all must face. Some of us have taken the call to follow Him to heart. Some of us are out there changing our hearts and minds. Some of us are taking up our crosses and following wherever and whenever He leads. Some of us are out there with a partial heart for Jesus and His commandments. Some of us have a warped understanding of God and the Truth. No matter our dedication to Him, we build upon His foundation with the materials we have at hand. His foundation is not going to catch fire BUT what we build upon that foundation is definitely going to burn. Or, at least, something is going to burn because what we build is not going to be perfect. And some of our building projects are going to be singed, some scorched, and some burnt to the ground. BUT that foundation is still going to be there. And I think that foundation is important to understand.

Some of us have foundations that need examination. There are cracks and places where the foundation hasn’t settled correctly. There are, as Jesus said, some problems with our structural integrity, “So, everyone who hears these words of mine and acts on them will be like a sensible man who built his house on bedrock. The rain fell, the rivers flooded, the winds blew and beat against that house, but it didn’t collapse, because its foundation was on rock. But everyone who hears these words of mine and does not act on them will be like a stupid man who built his house on sand. The rain fell, the rivers flooded, the wind blew and beat against that house, and it collapsed — and its collapse was horrendous” (Mattityahu (Mat) 7:24-27)! That is the end of the Sermon on the Mount, in case you didn’t know. Those three chapters in Matthew are a great place to start working on our foundation in Jesus. 

I get asked a lot of questions about The Bible and about truth. And quite often I am pulling directly from Matthew chapters 5, 6, and 7 to guide my understanding of what Jesus reveals about God. He is the best representation of what God is like, “Yeshua said, ‘I AM the Way — and the Truth and the Life; no one comes to the Father except through me. Because you have known me, you will also know my Father; from now on, you do know him — in fact, you have seen him’” (Yochanan (Jhn) 14:6-7). So the stories about Jesus reveal God because those folks have seen Him. And when folks see me they should also see Him. And what should they see? That’s your foundation.

Serve His Kingdom by serving one another in love.

Grace and Shalom to your home. The Kingdom of God is now!

I love you. I forgive you. Have a blessed and abundant day!

#ThinkBetter #BeBetter #NoKingButChrist #EmbraceTheWithin #SeekFirstTheKingdom #ServeOneAnotherIn Love #NotMyWayYHWH