Storing Up--Mt 12:35

"A good man brings good things out of the good stored up in him, and an evil man brings evil things out of the evil stored up in him."

I want to be someone who brings good things up.  But I find myself bringing up the opposite.  It seems like a lot of bad things surface quite easily.   It's not the way I want to live.  But am I not a Christian?  Does He himself not make me good?

Yes.  He does.

But  I read a word and it makes me pause.  It's "stored up."  Ok.  Two words.   I am reminded with these words that no one stores up anything on accident or even in small measure.  When I go to store up something, it's a lot of work.  A lot. 

When we store jars of food it means gathering the food, preparing it and canning it (no small process).

When we store up money in a savings account.  It is the bi-monthly discipline of setting funds aside.  That's not an easy process on a not-so-lavish income.

When we store up goods for an emergency or inclement weather approaching, it means going to the store, buying goods, making sure we have candles and more.  

Storing up is not even close to a passive process.  It doesn't just "happen."  And it just isn't an occurrence that is accomplished in one or two attempts of effort.  It is a repeated process of gathering, assembling and putting away.  Sometimes it even means creating a storage room.

The same is true for this verse.  

"A good man brings good things out of the good stored up in him."

To bring forth goodness I must be intentional about the storing up of that which is good.  It means storing up acts of forgiveness instead of acts of offense, storing up thoughts of hope instead of thoughts of despair, it means storing up His Word more than the words of Facebook or the latest news.   In essence it is the storing up of hope, faith and love.  

Only when I "store" these things in my mind, heart and life can I take from those stores in an hour of need.  It doesn't happen quickly.  It doesn't happen occasionally.  But storing up does happen when we take action.  Intentionally. 

Blessed are the Peacemakers--Mt 5:9

I once read an article about the big difference between peacemakers and peacekeepers.  Peace keepers try to keep the peace at any cost, glossing over important issues.  But peacemakers delve into the hard issues.  I'm not sure if this is entirely accurate but it has underscored an important truth that I have captured in 2016:

Truth is a necessary part of the peace process.

Once Upon a Time

Copyright-James Morrison/Getty

Once upon a time there was a people who for the most part knew what was right and did so because it was the loving thing to do.  Eventually it became less about loving and more about what was legally right and what was legally wrong.   Soon it was just about following the rules.  Perhaps they were afraid of lawsuits.  Or afraid of people.  Even the "church" people did the same thing.   The people forgot about compassion, love, justice and mercy and came all about doing something to avoid getting in trouble with "the law."  Then Jesus showed up.  You can read about it here:  The Gospel of Matthew (esp Mt 23).

The Lord's Prayer Re-Examined

If we were to write the Lord's prayer according to what we really pray (including me), it would probably read like the following:

"Father, give me today my daily bread and tomorrow's bread too. 
Deliver me from evil people.
In Jesus' name Amen."

Then if we pulled out our Greek geek selves we might do a word study on "father" and delve deeper into this intimate meaning of "Daddy" or "Abba."

It's a good start.  But we all must grow from there.

The first thing I'm struck with about the Lord's prayer is it's corporate nature.  When we think of prayer, we almost always tend to think of it in terms of our individual relationship with the Father.  But this isn't the Lord's prayer.  Read it again noticing the words of community:

"Our Father in heaven,
hallowed be your name,
your kingdom come,
your will be done
on earth as it is in heaven.
Give us today our daily bread.
Forgive us our debts,
as we also forgive our debtors.
And lead us not into temptation,
but deliver us from the evil one.'

For if you (plural) forgive men when they sin against you, your heavenly father will forgive you.  But if you do not forgive men their sins, your Father will not forgive your sins."  Mt 6:9-14

Now it could be that as he was addressing the group, he meant the corporate teaching to be individualized.  But consider that Middle Eastern culture is a relationship, group-centered culture, I'm not so certain.

So with that I wondered what it would be like for me not to pray "My Father" or just "Father" but to begin praying "Our Father."  Just trying this once and immediately perspective changed.  As I say "our" I think of my brothers and sisters who are being killed for their faith right now.  I also think of the people in my life that I like and don't like.  I think of the nation I live in. 

It means my prayers I am praying are greater than myself.  The answers God gives are not just about me.  It is about the "we" and the "our" and the "us."  It creates sense of corporate responsibility with corporate blessings.  Maybe a new way of praying could actually be rediscovering the old.






 

God, My Protector

I've been thinking off and on over the years of God being my protector.   I know He has protected me countless times.  It really is the question, how does he protect my heart?  Not that life is not full of hardships.  In fact we know it is.  "In this world you have many troubles," he says.  I've experience my truckloads of challenges.  But how does he protect my heart?

In thinking tonight of Jesus as a male/as a man, I was thinking through how he protected while he was on earth:

• When the children came to him and the disciples were trying to shoo those annoying kids out of the way, Jesus invited them to them and elevated them, saying the kingdom belonged to such as these (Mt 19)
• When they were stoning the woman caught in adultery, he asked a question that was really a rebuke.  They dropped their stands. (Jn 8)
• When the Roman soldiers came to arrest him, he stepped forward and told them it was him they were looking for, and to let the disciples go (Jn 18)

Jesus was their protector, even on this earth.  It didn't mean they weren't exposed to hardship, but they knew he was in their corner.  There is so much more to understand and know.

A-salted--Mt 5:13

"You are the salt of the earth.  If salt loses its saltiness, how can it be made salty again?"

In a land of refrigeration, we fully underestimate the value of salt.  It meant life.  I preserved food which was essential and was so valuable that it was often used to pay wages.  Pliny the Elder (1st century guy) stated that the word "salary" came from the word "salt" as the Roman soldiers were often paid in salt.  It's where we get the expression, "worth their salt."  Ancient Chinese considered salt second only to gold in value.

The question that often arises is the chemist's question.  How can salt lose its saltiness?  Hyrdrochloride (salt) is one of the 3-4 most strongest compounds in the world.  So did Jesus not pass chemistry class?

Indeed in the context of the day, he did know.   Salt cannot be broken down and separated except from water that would cause dilution but this isn't necessarily something you can "toss out and trample by men..  Yet there was in a sense a way salt could "lose its saltiness."  The Dead Sea is very mineral rich and also has so much salt one can literally sit in the water.  The problem was that
other minerals could adhere to salt molecules--nasty ones like boron, magnesium and bromides.  When salt became overloaded with other minerals, the salt with its attachments became useless and worthy of being "tossed out"and "trampled by men."   It was an illustration that an entire crowd of people could relate to as they needed good salt to preserve their food.

But we must be careful to not get so caught up in the science that we lose Jesus' point.  If salt loses its ability to be useful because it has adhered to other things, it is worthless.  There is a warning in this text.

So what does this all mean?   There are seemingly endless applications.  One needs to read the Scripture more or be careful of attachments or not get diluted by the world.  All good.  What we do know Jesus was saying that salt had a capacity to have a form that was not useful if it became compromised.  In the context of pressure, persecution and just life in general, this is readily understandable.  Something that is compromised is almost never beneficial, be it a trust, a relationship, or one's life in Christ.

His hands

I like hands.  They say a lot about a person.  Are they smooth or calloused?  Perfectly painted or chipped from work?  Are they wrinkled and tanned or smooth and white?

So I looked at hands in Scripture.  In particular the hands of Jesus.  Perhaps in his earlier days the hands of Jesus were rough and calloused from hard labor.  We tend to think of Jesus as a carpenter but from what I understand, the word can also be translated "stone-worker" (just google it if you have any doubt).    When you go to Israel, you notice that there are stones everywhere and for every building.  Carpentry work was for the rich people.  We know for sure Jesus wasn't from a rich family.   They couldn't even afford the obligatory lamb sacrifice for when Jesus was born.  Instead they had to go with the two young pigeons or a pair of doves, a concession for poor people (Lev 12:8).  So for me  I'm quite sure it wasn't trees Jesus was working with in his job.  Rather he was blue collar factory worker that did the grinding work of stones.  So his hands.  Calloused and rough.  And strong.  Very strong.

At 30 his hands changed.  Because at 30 the first thing we read about his hands is that they were washed.  Washed in the waters of baptism.  From there he would begin his life of ministry and I'm sure his hands began to heal from their callouses.  Not totally but they would be growing smooth again.

But now his hands took on a different role.  Instead of receiving the smashing and scraping and bruising from hard work, his hands would now be the conduit of healing for the smashed and scraped and bruised bodies and hearts and lives of others.  Because now Jesus began to touch people.  Holy touch.  Life-giving touch.

Lepers.  You kept your distance.  You made sure you drove those people-turned monsters  away and made them shout "unclean" so you could keep your distance.  You drove them away when they came near.  Jesus went to them.  He touched them.  And the people recoiled in horror.  Luke 5:13

Dead people.  They are cold.  They are stiff.  They stink.  And they are unclean.  A widow whose only hope was her son had just lost him, perhaps in a tragic accident.  It was her death sentence as well as his.  The funeral was in place when Jesus met them.  Keep your distance and let the people grieve, they said.  Jesus aproached the funeral procession.  Then the coffin.  Then he reached out his hands and touched it.  And the people recoiled.  But the young man was brought to life.  Luke 7:4

God's Presence.  For all people who seek it they forget that it is scary.  Very scary.  Peter, James and John saw their rabbi transfigured before them.  Then Moses and Elijah appeared.  Then the Lord spoke to them telling them the Father loved his son and they were to listen to him.  A bright cloud enveloped them. They fell facedown to the ground, terrified.  But Jesus.  He came and touched them.  He knelt down, touched his friends and told the to not be afraid.  He touched them.  Mt 16:7

Jesus touched eyes and they were healed (Mt 20:34).  He actually put his fingers in someone's ears to heal them (Mk 7:33).  He even spit and touched a man's tongue ((Mk 7:33).   Something about touch made broken people whole, lonely people loved, and rejected people and even more ostracized.  Somehow people didn't it when hurting people were helped.

Out of Jesus' hands come life, healing, deliverance, acceptance and love.   Bold hands that were not afraid of anything.

Then I look at my hands.  Hands that have not always been holy.  It's interesting that the holiness of the heart is connected to the hands (Ps 24:4).

But then there's one other thing I remember about Jesus hands.  I am there. 

"Can a mother forget the baby at her breast and have no compassion on the child she has borne?  Though she may forget, I will not forget you!  See, I have engraved you on the palms of my hands" (Is 49:6).  

 Engraved..  On the palms.  The most painful part.  Permanent. Bloody.  And forever his.

Every Woman's Dream Man--Mt 1:18-25

He's truly an unsung hero.  I've also thought if there ever was a husband in Scripture that a man could model it would be him.  You've heard of him.  He's famous because his wife came to him pregnant out of wedlock.  The love of his life.  The one he was engaged to.  Pregnant.  And it wasn't his.  Thoughts of betrayal typically enrage.

But Joseph was a different kind of man.  He most certainly was devastated but even in his profound shame and hurt, he decided he would handle things quietly with the divorce.  He could've made it public so the whole town would know the baby wasn't his, but he knew this would bring dishonor to Mary.  She had probably already suffered a lot as her name meant "bitter."

The Lord tested Joseph.  It was only AFTER he made the decision to divorce her quietly that he had an angelic counter.  Then he proved himself again.  He entered into her shame.

Who in their right mind would believe this baby was from the Spirit of God? No one.  By marrying her he was claiming the baby as his own, and thus bringing disgrace to himself and his family.  It would've been so much easier to choose a different path.  But he embraced disgrace for her and for the God he served.

And then it got worse.  Not only did he continue to stay with her through this trial by fire, but a census was mandated and he had to return to the small-town village of his birth with his pregnant fiance.  This was the ultimate of shame.  There was no room in the inn "for them"  says the Scriptures.  How could you bring home your tramp girlfriend pregnant? 

From day one Joseph honored Mary.  He also embraced profound disgrace for the cause of the gospel.  Truly this man was a hero among men.  And women.   Oh that a generation of Joseph's would rise up on the earth.

A Severe Mercy--Mt 5:7

There can be no mercy without an offense.  Great mercy can only come with a severe offense. 

You are the Light of the World--Mt 5:14

The nature of light is boldness.

The Law and the Life--Mt 5:17-20

I was watching Food, Inc the other day it was profoundly disturbing about how our food is produced.  So.  Many.  Chemicals.  So.  Little.  Integrity.  One of the more dangerous problems is E.  Coli contaminating the meat.  To remedy the problem, it only takes 4 days in a pasture for the cows to cleanse 80% of their system from E. Coli.  But if you're into making money, not food, what do you do?  You add another process--a chemical bath of ammonia.

I have met many ex-convicts in my life.  One in particular stands out as one who obeyed the law--barely.  His only goal was not to go back to the penitentiary again.  His heart was no different.

I have seen a husband who did all the "right" things.  Home by 5:30.  Did his part of the housework.  And did everything to be the "good" husband.  But his heart wasn't there.  He really didn't care.  Old injury never healed so he kept up the pretense of a good husband but there was no affection, intimacy or warmth.  Just a husband who did all the right things.  He wanted people to know he was the good husband and it was his wife who had the problem.   I'm sure many a wife has done the same for her husband.

Unless the heart changes, nothing changes.

"Unless your righteousness surpasses that of the Pharisees and teachers of the law you will certainly not enter the kingdom of heaven."

This would've have been shocking to the ears.  I once had an ultra-orthodox rabbinic Jewish friend and for him the Pharisees were the ultimate of righteousness that none could attain to.   For Jesus' listeners it would have had a similar emotive impact for us if he would've said something akin to "Unless your righteousness surpasses that of Mother Teresa and Billy Graham, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven."

What?!  No way.  Guess I'm out.

At the same time what Jesus was driving home was that life in Him was above doing the "right" thing and following all the right rules.  The people saw he didn't play precisely by the book and were thinking he was throwing the law out the window.  He emphatically says "No!"  He did not come to abolish the Law or the Prophets.   So how does he reconcile his behavior?  Picking grain heads on the day of rest?   Healing on the Sabbath?  These were clear violations and wouldn't stand up in any court of law.   Just ask the teachers of the Law right ehre.  So how can you say "anyone who breaks one of the least of these commandments will be called least in the kingdom of heaven," yet break the rules and consider yourself a righteous man?

But they thought the law was enough, complete in itself.  They thought the Law was about rules.  And in reality in every culture in mankind there are never enough rules to handle every situation.
What the didn't want to hear was that the Law was incomplete.  Gasp!  Jesus says he didn't come to abolish the Law but to fulfill it.  Righteousness was not about keeping the laws and beyond, but about the heart and the spirit of the Law.

Oh, I wish that our judicial system understood this! When a thief is caught red-handed stealing but is not prosecuted because the police slipped up on some technicality of the Law, this is absurd!  When a man unknowingly bribes an undercover police officer to kill his wife but only gets a year but someone for the smallest of crimes gets five, this is absurd!  When a young girl has to get permission from her parents to pierce her ears but needs no permission to have an abortion, this is absurd!  When the letter of the Law becomes the Law and the spirit of the Law does not, cultures crumble.

Jesus was later to teach that fulfillment of the Law was about what went on in the heart.  "Woe to you teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites!   You give a tenth of your spices--mint, dill and cummin.  But you have neglected the more important matters of the law--justice, mercy and faithfulness.  You should have practiced the latter, without neglecting the former.  You blind guides!  You strain out a gnat but swallow a camel."  Mt 23:23-24

Living from the heart and reflecting the spirit of the Law is much different.  Do I have a forgiving heart?  Am I merciful?  Am I respectful?  Am I submitted?    If these are a part of who I am, then these will be the things I do.  These are the basis of law.  These are the basis of life.

And it has no end.  We don't arrive if we show one act of mercy.  We don't arrive when we show an act of forgiveness.  Unless we become as holy as God himself, we never arrive and therefore can never pat ourselves on the back.   No room for boasting. Except in Jesus.  So with this understanding, the one who shows mercy and love is honoring the law more than the one who obeys it to the letter.   As Jesus says, righteousness must surpass that of the Pharisees and Teachers of the Law or we will most certainly not enter the kingdom of heaven.

You, the Light--Mt 5:14-16

Why do you turn a light on?  To drive out darkness so that you can see.  If someone switched on a light bulb and then covered it completely with something so that no light was visible, why would they turn on the light in the first place?  Perhaps to make them feel better that the light is actually on?

What causes one to try to hide or cover light?  Fear mainly.  Fear of what others may think.  Fear of someone who hates light trying to destroy the light.  And why this seems perhaps silly, in the face of genuine persecution those fears may be realized.

But what good is light if it is hidden?  Darkness is present only because light isn't.

You are the light of the world.  Yes you.  Let your let shine that others may see your good deeds and give your Father praise in heaven.

This isn't the light that stands on the street corners and boasts that it gave thousands to charity.   This is the kind of light that isn't afraid to do the right thing even if you might get sued, even by the person you're trying to help.

If light hides, darkness is inevitable.

You are the Salt of the Earth--Mt 5

Jesus on the heels of the beatitudes emphasizes a righteous perspective on persecution.  Then he speaks about salt and light, which I have come to believe is a continuation of his teaching on handling the temptations association with persecution.

Salt has a strong chemical bond and is broken down only by dilution with water.

This video is a perfect illustration.

A Curious Switch--Mt 5:11-12

'Blessed are those,' 'blessed are they,' 'blessed are the ones'... This is how 8/9 beatitudes begin.  But on the tenth one he switches to a different pronoun. 

"Blessed are you..."

He then begins to expand one more time on the blessing of suffering.  Perhaps it was here that he was turning to his beloved disciples and preparing them for the terrible deaths they would die.  Perhaps he was encouraging them and reiterating that suffering was a blessing, not a curse.  But whatever his intentions, it is clear that this point was an important one for him.

In a Wrestling Match with the Beatitudes--Mt 5:3-12

If you were to have a snapshot of someone who "hungers and thirst for righteousness," what would that picture look like?

This is a picture I posed on Facebook recently and had such rich discussion.  As I'm coming up with training videos on how to memorize the Sermon on the Mount, it has compelled me to think through what the beatitudes really mean, and what they look like in a concrete, non-ethereal form.  Not as easy as it sounds.   What does it look like for someone who hungers and thirst for righteousness to be filled?

I think too that every beatitude was  a slap in the face to a common, cultural norm that said that this condition was anything but blessed.

Blessed are the poor in spirit--The poor in spirit is someone who is humble before God and has a clear recognition of who he is.  And yet every culture on earth admires the man who pretends he has no weakness and is tough, self-made and able to handle himself in all situations.  Jesus said that he came for the sick, not the healthy.  He came for those who knew their spiritual poverty, not those who don't think they have such a condition.

Blessed are those who mourn--Contextually I am coming to believe that this isn't just about loss of a loved one and the grief of natural mourning, but a grief that recognizes my own unrighteousness and the unrighteousness of the world around me.  This isn't the pessimistic, cynical person that is wowed by evil and always want to tell you 'how terrible it's getting in the world.'  This is the person who see that evil and genuinely grieves it and how it is effecting people.  Culturally there have always been the people who have shouted, 'Peace, peace' when peace was a facade for cancer.  "Blessed" are those with a righteous grief for Christ will deal with this at the cross.  At the cross is justice and righteousness that bears fruit for eternity.

Blessed are the meek--Meekness is 'bridled strength' or 'strength under control.'  People who have power but don't use it are often considered weak.  Self-control isn't exactly a marketable tool.  Power.  Indulgence.  Gain.  This is the mantra.  Yet those with great power who retrain themselves until the proper time are actually more powerful.  Jesus says they will "inherit the earth."  THEY are the ones who are blessed.

Blessed are the merciful--How many sports movies have we seen where someone one on the team cries out "No Mercy!"  Or when there's been a crime the victim is said to "go for the jugular."  Merciful people aren't always seen as strong.  Yet mercy requires more strength than judgment.  Judgment comes easily.  Blessed are the merciful.

Blessed are the pure in heart--Try to live any form of purity and right away you will be called "naive."  Purity being not so much staying from evil but rather having a heart that has no guile.   'If your eyes are good, your whole body will be full of light.'  And they will see God because they already see God in every child and in every act of kindness.  They aren't naive as culture would call them.  They are pure in heart and God calls that "blessed."

Blessed are the peacemakers--War is often on the plate of many.  It might not be war with guns but war with words and war in relationships that keep score of right and wrong and war with how we think towards others.  Peace-makers not peace-keepers.  Peacekeepers want no conflict whatever the cost.  Peace-makers are unafraid to confront in order to bring reconciliation.  Peace-keeping shushes both sides.  Peace-makers deal with the issues.  The world says, 'make your enemy fear you.'  Jesus says, 'love your enemies.'

Blessed are those who are persecuted because of righteousness--When someone is being "persecuted" it is usually because something they're doing is unacceptable socially.  There is a lot of shame for the person, for the families and for those around them.  Jesus called them blessed who stood for righteousness.

Jesus turned the world upside down and began with blessing people who society treated anything but blessed.  As Paul writes, 'they belong to a country not their own....therefore God is not ashamed to be called their God.'

 

Livin' Like a Refugee--Matt 2:13-23

Naked Jesus.  It's very much a likely reality that at the ultimate humiliation of the cross Jesus was naked.  In fact, after walking through what felt like miles to get to the Sistine Chapel, I rounded a corner and averted my eyes.  Michaelangelo had a painting of Jesus, naked on the cross.  It was shameful and horrifying.  Jesus knew what it was to be sexually humilated.

And again as I read through the gospel story of Jesus birth, I'm amazed at yet another event that help many identify with Jesus--He was a refugee.  Along with about a million other Jews.  He was a child, and his time in Egypt was uncertain but perhaps a couple of years.  But Jesus' family was a refugee family.   I can't relate to much of the refugee kind of life but there are millions of refugees, Syrian, Sudanese and otherwise who may find this tidbit of Jesus' life encouraging.   He indeed not only understood, but he lived it.

Jesus Who Prays

By Robert Velarde

Jesus and Prayer

Jesus prayed for others. In Matthew 19:13, we read, "Then little children were brought to Jesus for him to place his hands on them and pray for them." Despite the fact that "the disciples rebuked those who brought them," Jesus said the children should not be hindered "for the kingdom of heaven belongs to such as these" (v. 14). In John 17:9 we read, "I [Jesus] pray for them. I am not praying for the world, but for those you have given Me, for they are Yours." This underscores the need for intercessory prayer.

Jesus prayed with others. Luke 9:28 reads, "[Jesus] took Peter, John and James with Him and went up onto a mountain to pray." Jesus prayed alone, as we'll read below, but He also knew the value of praying with others. Acts 1:14 underscores the importance of Christians praying with one another: "They all joined together constantly in prayer …"

Jesus prayed alone. Luke 5:16 reads, "But Jesus often withdrew to lonely places and prayed." As much as Jesus understood the value of praying with and for others, He also understood the need to pray alone. Psalm 46:10 reads, "Be still, and know that I am God." Sometimes it's important for us to "be still" before God, but the only way to do this, especially in our hectic culture, is to do so alone with God.

Jesus prayed in nature. Psalm 19:1 reads, "The heavens declare the glory of God; the skies proclaim the work of his hands." What better place to commune with our Creator than among the wonders of nature? Luke 6:12 says, "One of those days Jesus went out to a mountainside to pray ..." He could have gone to a home, a synagogue or if He were near Jerusalem he could have gone to the temple to pray. But there were times when Jesus made the decision to pray where He was, which often happened to be in nature. We are surrounded by so much that is "man made" that sometimes it's difficult for us to remember that this is not our world, but God's world (Genesis 1:1, Psalm 24:1) full of wonders for us to enjoy.

Jesus could pray as a sprinter or a marathon runner. The Lord's Prayer is full of wisdom, but it is short enough to be easily memorized and serve as an example of a sprint rather than a marathon prayer. But Jesus also knew how to dedicate long periods of time to prayer. As we read in Luke 6:12, Jesus "spent the night praying to God." We, too, need to be able to offer short prayers, as well dedicate long periods of our lives to prayer.

Jesus prayed regularly. This insight is gleaned from a passage cited earlier, Luke 5:16: "Jesus often withdrew to lonely places and prayed." The word "often" is not hidden, but makes it obvious that Jesus prayed regularly. Throughout the Gospels whenever we read of Jesus and prayer, it comes up regularly and naturally. It was simply a part of His worldview, integrated into every aspect of Christ's life. Can we say the same about prayer in our life?

The prayers of Jesus were heartfelt. Jesus did not pray in a cold, distant manner, but in heartfelt supplication, demonstrating empathy and a genuine love for God. This is demonstrated clearly in John 17, where Jesus prays for Himself, His immediate disciples, as well as for all believers.

Jesus prayed based on His knowledge of God and His truths. The prayers of Jesus were based on God's revealed truths and, as such, were in line with a solid biblical worldview. In John 4:24 Jesus said, "God is spirit, and His worshipers must worship in spirit and in truth." He also said, "the truth will set you free" (John 8:32), underscoring the importance of truth in the life of Jesus and, in turn, our lives. Proper prayer requires us to have a truthful understanding of God and what He has revealed to us through His Word.

Jesus taught persistence in prayer. "Then Jesus told his disciples a parable to show them that they should always pray and not give up" (Luke 18:1). The parable Jesus shared is not meant to depict a pestering disciple who finally bugs God enough that He chooses to respond, but about persistence in prayer and waiting on God and His timing.

Jesus knew that not all his prayers would be answered as expected. This is a difficult prayer lesson to learn, but the fact of the matter is that not all our prayers are answered in ways we expect. Even Jesus knew this hard lesson as he cried out to God the Father from Gethsemane (Matthew 26:36-44). Three times Jesus prayed for God to allow an easier path, but Jesus knew, "Yet not as I will, but as You will" (26:39). Unanswered prayer is such a challenge to the Christian life that we'll address the matter in more detail in another article in this series.

As You Will

When Jesus prayed in Gethsemane, "Yet not as I will, but as You will," He offered a tremendous but seemingly simple insight into prayer: God is in charge. As we learn from the prayer life of Jesus – and there is much to learn – we need to keep this overarching principle in mind. A disciple asked Jesus, "Lord, teach us to pray," (Luke 11:1) and in response was taught the Lord's Prayer. But by studying the prayer life of Jesus, we can learn not only the important truths of the Lord's Prayer, but so much more.

Robert Velarde is author of Conversations with C.S. Lewis (InterVarsity Press), The Heart of Narnia (NavPress), and primary author of The Power of Family Prayer (National Day of Prayer Task Force). He studied philosophy of religion and apologetics at Denver Seminary and is pursuing graduate studies in philosophy at Southern Evangelical Seminary.

[1] Unless otherwise noted all Scripture quotations are from the New International Version of the Bible.

Copyright 2008 Robert Velarde. Used with permission. All rights reserved.

 http://www.focusonthefamily.com/faith/faith_in_life/prayer/learning_from_the_prayer_life_of_jesus.aspx

What are we teaching? Mat 28:20

After Jesus told them to go and make disciples, baptizing them in the name of the Father, Son and Holy Spirit, he then told them to teach Bible stories.  Actually, this is the truth.  We are told repeatedly to tell the stories of God's faithfulness from one generation to the next (Ps 71:18).  But this Scripture takes it a step beyond and gives the focus of our teaching:  we teach others to obey.

We don't just teach so that there is increased knowledge.  We don't teach so that folks can pass the Bible knowledge test.  We teach obedience.  But how do we do this and not become some control freak church or ministry?  Or a college that teaches knowledge but not obedience?

The only true way to approach this is to ask, "How did Jesus teach obedience?"

The Great Commission and a Great Big Mirror

We've heard it so many times we probably have stopped to ponder it:

"Go into all the world and preach the gospel, making disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, Son and Holy Spirit."  Mat 28:18-20

This has been something I've been pondering a lot lately as I'm relooking at how we do things(future posts probably to come).

When we think of the word "Go" we tend to think of missionaries in Africa or in the jungles of Papua New Guinea.  This is a valid form of "Go" but may I also add that I think the best place to go is the living room?

Traditional church structure is based very much on an attractional model.  Being a beautiful building in the city (tends to be more in the Catholic realm) or if you have a functional building, make your service attractive--good music, good dramas, good preaching, video clips, etc...  (Protestant realm).  Then be really nice to visitors and have a shake-hands time in your church to meet them in hopes they'll come back.  There's been a real trend lately to establish "churches for those who don't like church" but their methods are generally the same, just different attraction points for different people.  And honestly, if it brings people into the kingdom, I'm good with that.  Although I'm pondering if there is a better way for a different season of our country.  The attractional model isn't working well.  Church is good for churched people but unchurched people aren't coming.

The heart of the Great Commission is to go.  It doesn't say to invite people to come (although this has borne some fruit).  When I travel and have gone into new churches, it's like entering a foreign country where I've invaded a person's social club.  I don't know the rules nor the people and it is just at times awkward.  If I'm uncomfortable, are we asking seekers and unbelievers to do the same?  Come into our strange world vs. entering into theirs?  This isn't just about having "church" at the local bar.  It's deeper than that.  It's "going" to where they are at and meeting others on their turf in their culture with their questions.

When we look at Jesus this is exactly what he was doing.  He was in the Pharisees's house, at the tax-collector's party, in the home of Lazarus, etc...  Over and over he met people where they were at, even inviting himself into their homes (Zacchaeus).  It wasn't about them coming to the synagogue service, it was about him going to their living room.

The word "disciple" is another one, probably even moreso that I've been percolating on.  Interesting that Jesus nowhere says to make "converts" or to "plant churches."   With converts and church plants we have something we measure and can pat ourself on the back as we carve another notch in our evangelism belt.  But with discipleship and "making disicples"?  It never ends.  There is always room to grow. And the reality is that there are a lot of people in church who are attenders.  Wouldn't you love to see a lot more disciples? Perhaps the reason is our methods.  We make converts, plant churchs, feel good about ourselves and move on.  But have we made disciples?

Baptism.  It was the way people responded to the gospel and in Scripture it was almost all very public.  It wasn't raise your hand, ask Jesus into your heart, fill out a card, or say the sinner's prayer.  (All of which are very good.)  But the entry point of a person coming to Christ was baptism.  John 4 opening verses say that an accusation was brought against Jesus that he was "making and baptizing" more disciples than John, although it was his disciples doing the baptizing.  But clearly in so many scriptures baptism is where people said "I do."  Perhaps we should use Acts 2:38 in our gospel presentation in addition to Romans 10:9. 

So where is this going?  These are observations that are based on wanting to see a change that changes a nation. It's a reality that our country needs Jesus desperately and we must pray for it daily, but like Issachar we need to be wise to the times.  I believe to do this it begins with us "going" and not expecting that they "come,"  that we make disciples and not just converts, and that people understand obedience and being fulfilled with the Holy Spirit (Acts 2:38) that they can be empowered to live His life and do so with His power.  But to do so we need to be intentional.  And it isn't just about creating another method to fill the church buildings.

Triumphal Entry In all Four Gospels

Matthew 21:1-17; Mark 11:1-10; Luke 19:28-38; and John 12:12-18

Summary: 

1.   Jesus had been the day before with Martha and Lazarus at Bethany where Mary broke the bottle of perfume and it put it on his feet.  Judas was upset.  Many Jews were there to see Jesus and also to Lazarus who had been risen from the dead.  The chief priests were plotting to kill Lazarus because on account of him many of the Jews were going over to Jesus and putting their faith in him. 
2.  After Jesus told the parable of the 10 Minas, he went on ahead, going up to Jerusalem.
3. Jesus & his disciples approached Jerusalem and came to Bethphage (Mk; Lk adds “and Bethany”) on the hill called Mt of Olives
4. Jesus sent 2 disciples to the village ahead of him
5. They would find a donkey and a colt, untie them, tell them the Lord needs them and he will send them right away.  Mk, Lk add a “colt that has never been ridden.”
6.  Mk:   “Went and found a colt outside in the street, tied at a doorway.” 
7.  Mk:  As they untied it, some people standing there asked, “What you doing, untying that colt?"
8.   Lk:  The owners asked them why they were untying the colt 
9. They told them what Jesus said and the people let them go.
10. This fulfilled Zech 9:9—“Say to the Daughter of Zion, Do not be afraid, O Daughter of Zion, See, your king comes to you, gentle and riding/seated on a donkey, on a colt/young donkey, the foal of a donkey. 
11. At first his disciples did not understand all this.  Only after Jesus was glorified did they realize that these things had been written about him and that they had done these things to him.
12. The disciples brought the donkey, placed their cloaks on them and Jesus sat on them 
13.  Threw their cloaks on the colt and put Jesus on it. 
14. Now the crowd that was with him when he called Lazarus from the tomb and raised him from the dead continued to spread the word.  Many people, because they had heard that he had given this miraculous sign, went out to meet him.  So the Pharisees said to one another, “See, this is getting us nowhere.  Look how the whole world has gone after him!” 
15. The next day the great crowd that had come for the Feast heard that Jesus was on his way to Jerusalem.  They took palm branches and went out to meet him 
16. A very large crowd [Mk—“many people”] spread their cloaks on the road as he went alone
17.  Others cut branches [Mk:  “cut in the fields.] from the trees and spread them on the road 
18. When he came near the place where the road goes down to the Mount of Olives, the whole crowd of disciples began joyfully to praise God in loud voices for all the miracles they had seen.  
19.  The crowds that went ahead of him and those that following him.

20. They shouted, “Hosanna!  Blessed is he/the king who comes in the name of the Lord!  Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord.  Blessed is the coming kingdom of our father David!  Peace in heaven and glory in the highest.  Blessed is the King of Israel! Hosanna in the highest!”

21. Some of the Pharisees in the crows said to Jesus, “Teach, rebuke your disciples!” “I tell you,” he replided, “if they keep quiet, the stones will cry out.”

22. As he approached Jerusalem and saw the city, he wept over it and said, “If you, even you had only known on this day what would bring you peace—but now it is hidden from your eyes.  The days will come upon you when your enemies will build an embankment against you and encircle you and hem you in on every side.  They will dash you to the ground, you and the children within your walls.  They will not leave one stone on another, because you did not recognize the time of God’s coming to you.”

23. When Jesus entered Jerusalem, the whole city was stirred.

24. They (?) asked “Who is this?”

25.  The crowds answered, “This is Jesus, the prophet from Nazareth in Galiliee.”

26.  Jesus entered Jerusalem and went to the temple. 

27. Jesus entered the temple area and drove out all who were buying and selling there.  He overturned the tables of the money changes and the benches of those selling doves.  “It is written,” he said to them,” ‘My house will be called a house of prayer,’ but you are making it a ‘den of robbers.’”

28. The blind and the lame came to him at the temple, and he healed them.  But when the chief priests and the teachers of the law saw the wonderful things he did and the children shouting in the temple area, “Hosanna to the Son of David,” they were indignant.

29. “Do you hear what these children are saying?” they asked him.  “Yes,” replied Jesus, “have you never read, “’From the lips of children and infants you have ordained praise’?”

30. And he left them and went out of the city to Bethany, where he spent the night.

He looked at everything but since it was already late, he went out to Bethany with the Twelve.

31. Every day he was teaching at the temple.  But the chief priests, the teachers of the law and the leaders among the people were trying to kill him.  Yet they could not find any way to do it, because all the people on his words.”
  
 Triumphal Entry in Short:

Jesus has been staying at Lazarus' house.  Word had gotten out locally and even to Jerusalem about the resurrection.

Jesus goes to the hill of the Mt. of Olives and sends the two to get the donkey& colt.  They return and lay their cloaks on the donkey and on the road.

Meanwhile back in Jerusalem people hear Jesus is coming and run out to the field and cut palm branches and spread them on the road along with more cloaks.

As Jesus was descending the hill of the Mount of Olives there was exceeding joy of the disciples.  

But as Jesus began to draw near to Jerusalem he began to weep, not for the cross he would face but for the lostness of this beloved people.

Upon entering the temple he saw all the money-changers and over-turned their tables.  Joy and praise at Mt of Olives, turned to sorrow and sadness upon entering Jerusalem,  changed to temple chaos and anger at business being set up in the temple..  A wild day.

Jews were turning to the faith and the chief priests and Pharisees were jealous and with violent intent.

Jesus returns to Bethany for the night with the Twelve.