December 2, 2013

Unbelievable Hope

Unbelievable Hope Indeed!

strive4theprize's avatarOne Man's Quest

1st Sunday of Advent. Isaiah 11.1-10.

As I reflected on the passage this week, I thought about how often Israel placed their hope in things other than the LORD. Even though they had seen Him do clearly miraculous things like the ten plagues and parting the sea, of leading them with a pillar of cloud by day and a pillar of fire by night, of providing manna in the wilderness, of conquering enemies more numerous and powerful than them…yet they continually looked to other gods or other kings or to themselves. Running their own universes was leading them to epic failure. That’s what made guys like Abraham, Moses and David so great…their hope was clearly in the LORD, and they trusted Him to deliver them. They knew that only He could save and that only He could bring about all that He had promised concerning them, Israel and the nations.

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November 26, 2013

Give Thanks To The Lord

A Short Thanksgiving Devotional by Ricky Hemme

Give thanks to the LORD, for he is good, for his steadfast love endures forever. (Psalm 136:1 ESV)

Every year, on the fourth Thursday of November, people from all around the U.S. gather together with family and friends to share a meal, and reflect upon God’s provision and loving kindness. It is the one time of year, where we slow down and take a good look at our lives, and remember all the ways that God has richly blessed us.  This holiday is a stunning 392 years old, but this practice of annual thanksgiving is not unique to America.

A Meal of Thanksgiving in the Bible

The people of the Bible had their own annual meal of Thanksgiving. Every year in the month of Nisan, Israelites traveled with friends and family to Jerusalem to worship God and share a meal. This feast of Thanksgiving is called the Passover. The Passover feast commemorated God’s faithfulness over the years and highlighted in particular His act of freeing them from slavery in Egypt. Without God’s hand, they would never be a nation, and most of all, without God’s provision of atonement they would never be forgiven of sin. God’s people were spared the judgment which came upon the land of Egypt only through the substitutionary death of a perfect lamb. There is no doubt this annual feast was a time of serious reflection.

As families from around the country made their journey to Jerusalem, it was tradition to sing songs on the road. Many of these songs are recorded in your Bible in the book of Psalms. Some start with the small caption, “A Song of Ascent.” These songs prepared the hearts of the people for the feast, and they were gladly sung by friends and family on the road up to Jerusalem. No matter from what direction you came, North or South, Jerusalem was an ascent. Hint: “A Song of Ascent”

Take a Moment to Reflect

This year, I encourage you to reflect upon some of these Psalms in preparation for your Thanksgiving meal. Most of these Psalms can be found between Psalm 119 and 136. Like the Israelites, prepare your heart by looking back at God’s faithfulness and loving-kindness over the years. Most of all reflect upon his provision of atonement. God demonstrated his love for you by sending his Son into this world to die as your Passover Lamb. When you trust in Jesus’ finished work on the cross, God’s wrath passes over you, so that instead of judgment, you are received as a beloved child. Give thanks this Thanksgiving. God is worthy of your praise.

Give thanks to the LORD, for he is good, for his steadfast love endures forever. (Psalm 136:1 ESV)

November 18, 2013

A Life Founded on the Rock

Kingdom Life…#cccsotm

strive4theprize's avatarOne Man's Quest

Matthew 7.13-29

As I reflected on this passage, I was struck by Jesus’ straightforward invitation to experience life in His kingdom. The choice is clear. He only presents two kingdoms, two ways, two kinds of fruit, two foundations… So how do we take Jesus up on His invitation? How do we enter into the kingdom life that He invites us to experience?

There of course is the initial entrance that comes when we trust in Him for eternal life. It’s a free gift available to all who believe that Jesus is the Son of God, that He came and lived a perfect life, died a horrible death on our behalf, paying the penalty for our sins, was raised again the third day and ascended to the Father. And that through His death and resurrection we have peace with God, we’ve been reconciled and adopted into His family, becoming sons and…

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November 13, 2013

Help My Unbelief – Ricky Hemme

It is no secret that the Christian life is a life of faith. The Bible defines faith as the assurance of things hoped for, and the conviction of things unseen (Hebrews 11:1). According to this definition, faith is not just a shot in the dark. It is not a, “blind trust in the face of contrary evidence.” Instead, faith is a confident trust in the eternal God.

 

The problem is, sometimes our faith is lacking. I think it is clear in Scripture that every Christian battles with faith. Every Christian is tempted at times to lean on their own devices rather than God.

 

We even see this with Jesus’ disciples. Time and time again Jesus called them out for their lack of faith. It usually came in the convicting and poignant phrase, “O you of little faith!”

 

The words “little faith” come from the greek word “oligopistos” which means, “ineffective,” “defective,” or “deficient” faith.

 

After reading every instance in Matthew where Jesus called people out for their lack of faith, I became convicted! I realized that a lack of faith was always accompanied by at least one of three things… Fear, anxiety, and a missed opportunity for God to display His power.

 

Fear – And behold, there arose a great storm on the sea, so that the boat was being swamped by the waves; but he was asleep. And they went and woke him, saying, “Save us, Lord; we are perishing.” And he said to them, “Why are you afraid, O YOU OF LITTLE FAITH?” (Matthew 8:23-27, ESV)

 

Anxiety – “And which of you by being anxious can add a single hour to his span of life? And why are you anxious about clothing? But if God so clothes the grass of the field, which today is alive and tomorrow is thrown into the oven, will he not much more clothe you, O YOU OF LITTLE FAITH?” (Matthew 6:27-30)

 

Missed Opportunity – He said, “Come.” So Peter got out of the boat and walked on the water and came to Jesus. But when he saw the wind, he was afraid, and beginning to sink he cried out, “Lord, save me.” Jesus immediately reached out his hand and took hold of him, saying to him, “O YOU OF LITTLE FAITH, why did you doubt?” (Matthew 14:25-33, ESV)

 

I know that I am lacking faith when I am afraid of the storm. I know that I am lacking faith when I am anxious about tomorrow. And I know that I am lacking faith when instead of trusting God to do the miraculous, I sink in my doubt. What about you? Where does your faith need to be strengthened?

 

Lord, help our unbelief!

 

November 11, 2013

The Golden Rule

How is your progress in Kingdom living? #cccsotm

strive4theprize's avatarOne Man's Quest

Matthew 7.1-12

As I reflected on this passage, I was struck by the brilliance of Jesus. He is a master Teacher who is able to silence His opponents with a word and expose the futile attempts at a pretend righteousness. How many of us have attempted the Golden Rule, only to find it frustratingly impossible? We’re too busy treating ourselves the way we want to be treated…we don’t have the time or the inclination to treat others that well. That would mean less for me.

The way we judge others is a revealing measure of our progress in kingdom living. It is a good indication of whether or not we are treating others the way we want to be treated. And treating others the way we want to be treated starts with recognizing that they exist and are worthy of the same undeserved love that we have received from the…

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November 4, 2013

A Tale of Two Kingdoms

#cccsotm

strive4theprize's avatarOne Man's Quest

Matthew 6.19-34

As I reflected on this passage, I was struck by the contrast that Jesus makes between the two kingdoms…and the exclusivity of the two. We either pursue an earthly kingdom where we are the hero…everything is geared toward our own glory, or we pursue the kingdom that Jesus came to bring where He is the Hero…everything is geared toward bringing glory to the Father. There is no middle ground. Why are we so stressed out? Because we are busy building a kingdom…running our own universe, and if we are honest, life in the kingdom rarely crosses our minds.

And while Jesus primarily addresses a religious audience, He also mentions the Gentiles, who were running their own kingdoms as well. You don’t have to be religious to court the favor of people. The desire to build our own kingdoms has plagued us since our first parents decided that being…

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October 28, 2013

Through the Lens of Prayer

Sermon on the Mount continues to draw us closer to Him…#cccsotm…

strive4theprize's avatarOne Man's Quest

Matthew 6.1-18

As I reflected on this passage, I was struck by the centrality of prayer to this section. In the middle of these three examples, giving to the poor, praying, and fasting, He stops to give instruction on prayer. But why? What is prayer? How vital would you say it is to your Christian walk? Does your practice of prayer reflect it?

I’m afraid that for most of us, prayer is an optional exercise with no real power. We pray because we feel like we should…or maybe we feel like praying will change God’s mind and get Him to see things our way. But that’s not real prayer. The prayer that Jesus talks about has the power of rending the veil between the temporal and the eternal. It allows us to see more clearly the reality of the kingdom. It is practicing the presence of God…recognizing our Father who…

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October 21, 2013

Beyond the Rules

“Life in the kingdom forces a change in perspective, a renewing of our mind so that we can see the beauty and wonder of our Creator and others as His image-bearers.”

strive4theprize's avatarOne Man's Quest

Matthew 5.17-48

As I reflected on this passage, I was struck by how quickly Jesus dismantles the rule-based system of the Pharisees. To be sure, He doesn’t abolish the Law, but He shows very clearly that keeping the rules, if it doesn’t flow from a transformed character, will never accomplish kingdom righteousness. That is very freeing, and very scary. It’s a life of being first and foremost that then naturally leads to a life of doing.

I was also struck by the fact that the five examples that Jesus uses to illustrate our need for a heart transplant all have to do with interpersonal relationships. That our failure in so many of these areas to “keep the Law”, to even do the externals, is a natural consequence of our failure to love. We expect it of the Pharisees, but what about those of us who claim to be kingdom citizens?…

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October 14, 2013

A Dangerous Idea of Blessedness

#cccsotm

strive4theprize's avatarOne Man's Quest

Matthew 5.1-16

Some friends of mine and I started working our way through the Sermon on the Mount, wanting to see what Jesus had to say about living life in the kingdom. As I reflected on this passage, I was struck by Jesus’ list of kingdom characteristics of those who are citizens of the kingdom, of those who are blessed. It’s probably not the things we would have picked. They are certainly not characteristics that the world values. Those possessing these characteristics would not seem like “winners” from an earthy perspective, or to the spiritually elite, the I’ve-got-it-all-together crowd, the my-universe-is-running-just-fine-thank-you crew. But the kingdom belongs to those who recognize their desperate need for God and long for the reconciliation of heaven and earth.

As I shared on Sunday, the beatitudes are not a “how-to” list of instructions for entrance into the kingdom. They don’t tell you how to get…

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October 7, 2013

Equip the Saints

Hot off the press!!

strive4theprize's avatarOne Man's Quest

Ephesians 4.1-16.

As I reflected on this passage, I was struck by the idea of equipping the saints for the work of service/ministry. Paul makes a big deal about the unity that we have in the body (the church – one body, one Spirit, etc.). Somehow this one body is given gifted leaders and brought together for a purpose…for a mission…and that is the work of service/ministry. So who are the works of service directed toward? And within the body, who is responsible for carrying them out? When we say we are an equipping church, what does that mean?

I shared two tweets this past week about this topic… “Equipping the saints is helping believers see life as ministry” and “Equipping the saints is preparing the troops for warfare in the trenches.” Both tweets are variations on the same theme. You see, Paul says here that gifted leaders equip the…

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