Oh Martha...

" ...Jesus entered a village. And a woman named Martha welcomed him into her house. And she had a sister called Mary, who sat at the Lord’s feet and listened to his teaching. But Martha was distracted with much serving. And she went up to him and said, 'Lord, do you not care that my sister has left me to serve alone? Tell her then to help me.' But the Lord answered her, 'Martha, Martha, you are anxious and troubled about many things, but one thing is necessary. Mary has chosen the good portion, which will not be taken away from her.'" (Luke 10:38-42, ESV)

Fewer things in my life make me feel like I'm wasting my life more than when welcome God and I'm reading in His Word yet everything within me is reading over the to-do lists, the scripts that I've written in my mind regarding circumstances or relationship issues going on or when I'm thinking to myself, "How can I use this for others in shepherding them in their walk with the Lord?" All of these things are not bad. In fact, it might even be a good thing for me to ask myself how I can be using these things for others.

Yet, living a life of constant service is a life that does not fully recognizing Jesus Christ for Who He is. Living a life of constant service is a lie from the pit of Hell that tells Christians that God wants my service. What a lie! If God wanted man's service, He would not have sent His Son to serve and not be served. A life of constant service that neglects sitting at the feet of Jesus, like Mary, is a life that does not recognize Jesus, the Living Word, as "more to be desired...than gold, even much fine gold; sweeter also than honey and drippings of the honeycomb." (Psalm 19:10-11, ESV)

What is your life's gold rush? What is your life's sweetener? Is your life's gold rush after the Mountain from which all the golden nuggets came from? Or just one golden nugget offspring? Is your life's sweetener the honeycomb from which all the drippings came from? Or just a single dripping?

O God let us not be Marthas who welcome you into our homes but do not recognize Who you are as the Living Word, the One from Whom we all find our life, the One through Whom we live and the One to Whom our lives are lived. May we welcome you in and sit at Your feet. Amen.

Three Times...

"And going a little farther he fell on his face and prayed, saying, 'My Father, if it be possible, let this cup pass from me; nevertheless, not as I will, but as you will.'" (Matthew 26:39, ESV)

"Again, for the second time, he went away and prayed, “My Father, if this cannot pass unless I drink it, your will be done.”" (Matthew 26:42, ESV)

"So, leaving them again, he went away and prayed for the third time, saying the same words again." (Matthew 26:44, ESV)

"Three times I pleaded with the Lord about this, that it [Paul's thorn in the flesh] should leave me." (2 Corinthians 12:8, ESV)

Before Jesus was betrayed by His own disciple, Judas Iscariot, He asked God His Father three times to make another way possible for the forgiveness of sins and the restoration of fellowship between God and all people who trust in Jesus' death and resurrection for that forgiveness. The little that I know about the agonizing, human-apostacizing pain and shame of Roman crucifixion gives me no question as to just why Jesus would ask for His Father to make another way possible this forgiveness and restoration to be possible.

Jesus wasn't stupid. He lived in a Roman Empire-dominated world where Roman soldiers ran the show and if anyone tried to take the stage away from Rome (and there were quite a few of those people in Jesus' day) or any one caused enough stirring drama on the stage, so to speak, among other ways punishment was given out...they were publicly stripped naked, beaten, nailed to a cross and then put on display along the main walk ways in town for everyone going about their business to see. Jesus, the Son of God, the Savior King Who prophets spoke about for the last 1000+ years up until His arival, knew that in order for His Kingdom to be established and for Him to rightly be the exalted Savior King He "must suffer many things and be rejected by the elders and the chief priests and the scribes and be killed, and after three days rise again." (Mark 8:31, ESV) But Jesus still humbly prayed three times for the possibility of another way, if God His Father was willing.

FWD a couple decades after Jesus' death and, yes, resurrection, and ascension back to His throne in Heaven...

Before Paul went on in his service to his Savior King, Jesus Christ, he asked his Savior and King three times to make another way possible for his thorn in the flesh to be removed. Paul knew that he would suffer greatly in being Jesus' primary ambassador and hearald of His Kingdom to the Roman empire. Paul was not stupid. He lived in a Roman colony where Roman soldiers ran the show and zealous Jewish religous leaders hated anyone who believed that Jesus was indeed the Savior King of both Jews and Gentiles. Paul knew that "through many tribulations [he] must enter the kingdom of God." (Acts 14:22, ESV) But Paul still humbly prayed three times for the possibility of another way, if Jesus was willing.

Jesus' empathetic response,“My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” (2 Corinthians 12:9, ESV)

May that be so for you and your thorn in the flesh as you serve the Savior King

In radically following Christ as He calls you and me to do so, there is never promised a life of comfort, approval by the world, or logevity of life. Rather, what is gonna happen is that you'll be faced with a life of persecution, hatred by the world and even death before we would ideally like or hope so. So, when you and I have our moment of persecution, should we follow Christ to such a moment, we will have two natural reactions towards those who and Christ through us...

1) Fight

"...Then they came up and laid hands on Jesus and seized him. And behold, one of those who were with Jesus stretched out his hand and drew his sword and struck the servant of the high priest and cut off his ear." (Matthew 26:50-51, ESV)

2) Flight

"...Then they came up and laid hands on Jesus and seized him...Then all the disciples left him and fled." (Matthew 26:50 & 56, ESV)

Both of these reactions are a reflection of something far deeper than just our humanly natural reaction. These reactions are the fruit of the seeds of distrust in Christ's appealing before the Father as we follow Him, His sovereign purposes' fulfillment and ultimate promise of the resurrection of the dead beyond this present life. You're probably asking me, "Whoa there buddy! Where you getting this?"

Just look @ Jesus' rebuke at the man who drew his sword to try and fight for Him!

"Then Jesus said to him, 'Put your sword back into its place. For all who take the sword will perish by the sword. Do you think that I cannot appeal to my Father, and he will at once send me more than twelve legions of angels? But how then should the Scriptures be fulfilled, that it must be so?'" (Matthew 26:52-54, ESV)

When you and I should ever be so blessed as to suffer for Christ's sake and for His gospel, our natural reaction would, understandably so, be to want nothing more than to fight back and let them have it or to get outta sight and run. But! When we face such persecution and such suffering in our following Christ, let our natural reaction to them be be the evidence of a life transformed by the renewal of the mind according to God's Word. Let our natural reaction to persecution and suffering be like the One Who we are following. Let us trustingly cling on that...

1) Jesus is before the throne of God this very moment making appeals for His people in persecution and suffering:

"...Christ Jesus is the one who died—more than that, who was raised—who is at the right hand of God, who indeed is interceding for us." (Romans 8:34, ESV)

2) God is sovereign over all and any suffering we go through in following Christ:

"I have said these things to you, that in me you may have peace. In the world you will have tribulation. But take heart; I have overcome the world." (John 16:33, ESV)

3) Our suffering testifies to the world that this life is not all there is and that Christ is of greatest worth:

"If in Christ we have hope in this life only, we are of all people most to be pitied." (1 Corinthians 15:19, ESV)

So What?

Christ suffered and died so that He would be raised to life again by the power of the God's Holy Spirit so that the sin that God is so displeased with and hates would lose its' sting and so that death would no longer have the last laugh in the end which is to come. Our suffering and even death for Christ's sake and for the sake of His good news of a message, may we humbly suffer joyfully and cling on to Christ's words...

"Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness’ sake, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. Blessed are you when others revile you and persecute you and utter all kinds of evil against you falsely on my account. Rejoice and be glad, for your reward is great in heaven, for so they persecuted the prophets who were before you." (Matthew 5:10-12, ESV)

It's Been a While

"Though I walk in the midst of trouble, you preserve my life;
you stretch out your hand against the wrath of my enemies,
and your right hand delivers me.
The Lord will fulfill his purpose for me;
your steadfast love, O Lord, endures forever.
Do not forsake the work of your hands." (Psalm 138:7-8, ESV)

This psalm gives me great comfort for all that life's circumstances bring under God's sovereignty. Essentially what David said was that the troubled waters of life and wrath-pouring enemies can only do so much as far as God sees fit.

Let's not take forgranted the simple glories of what is tucked in here. Because we are promised, "the Lord will fulfill his purpose for me," you and I can confidentlty plead with the Lord, "Do not forsake the work of your hands," knowing that He answers the prayers of those that are in line with His good and perfect and pleasing will, as He reveals it from His Word.

Understanding God's Seamless Precepts and Wondrous Works

"Make me understand the way of your precepts..." (Psalm 119:27a, ESV)

As God makes me understand the way of His precepts it is right there that I can see His holy, righteous, just, merciful, gracious, loving-divine ways. I am then exposed and undone, seeing the precepts and the ways of my own life and of my own heart. His making me understand the ways of His precepts are His glorious light shining into the dark, unsearchable, never-before-seen depths of sin in my life, as exposed by the Truth; the Truth that sets me free (John 8:31-32) and the Truth which God, as He makes me understand the way of His precepts, sanctifies me in (John 17:17). It is like a steak that is marinaded over-night in the fridge and all the next day to then be grilled up for dinner. With each bite, the flavor of the marinade oozes from the steak and it is as if the marinade and steak are in seamless connection. As the marinade is so is the steak."

...and I will meditate on your wondrous works." (Psalm 119:27b, ESV)

As God makes me understand the the way of His precepts I can then meditate, or camp out in deep reflection, on His "wondrous works" that are in seamless connection with the way of His precepts.

The ultimate display of the way of His precepts and His wondrous works in seamless connection is in the Incarnate, Word-Become-Man, Jesus Christ. All of God's precepts and wondrous works were 100% embodied through Jesus Christ in His life in accordance with the Scriptures, His death for our sins in accordance with the Scriptures, His burial, His resurrection on the third day in accordance with the Scriptures and His appearing (1 Corinthians 15:3-5). Therefore, it is the Truth, Jesus Christ, by Whom I am set free from the locked-up chains of sin and the prison-cell of death and by Whom I am sanctified in.

"I will run in the way of your commandments for you set my heart free!" (Psalm 119:32, ESV)

Because the Truth sets me free, I will run in the way of God's commandments. These are His commandments for all people to abide, or set up their entire residence, by now...

1. "You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind." (Matthew 22:37)

2. "You shall love your neighbor as yourself." (Matthew 22:39)

Would you just look at what we are commanded to do!? "You shall love God first, supremely and foremost! You shall love people as you love yourself!" Camp out in deep reflection on the seamless connection between the way of God's precepts, or commandments, and God's "wondrous works" which were ultimately worked-out in Jesus Christ; the Incarnate, Word-Became-Man who sets you free!

Grace and peace be with you :)

Actively Passive to God

"Teach me, O Lord, the way of your statutes; and I will keep it to the end.
Give me understanding, that I may keep your law and observe it with my whole heart.
Lead me in the path of your commandments, for I delight in it.
Incline my heart to your testimonies, and not to selfish gain!
Turn my eyes from looking at worthless things; and give me life in your ways.
Confirm to your servant your promise, that you may be feared.
Turn away the reproach that I dread, for your rules are good.
Behold, I long for your precepts; in your righteousness give me life!"

(Psalm 119:33-40, ESV)

This Psalm is an example here of being "actively passive" towards God when praying. I call it "actively passive" because it takes a literal God given desire that His Spirit resuscitates in us to (actively) come to Him with longings for Him teach us, lead us and give us life in the freedom-giving slavery to His Word. It is when He does these things in our life that we are completely passive (not retaliative) to His teachings, wisdom giving and life in His Word.

Look at all the requests! "Teach me!" "Give me!" "Lead me!" "Turn my eyes!" "Give me life!" These are all things that, without God's doing, we cannot have. So even in actively comming to Him, it is ultimately God's drawing us to Him in the first place and our passivity. Either way, there's no room for anyone to get the heavenly kudos but God Himself! Any desire in us to seek Him, to learn from Him and to obey Him is all to His credit.

Let us be a paralytic in the hands of the One who holds us into motion. Let us live in the life His righteousness gives us! (v.40)

Declaration of Dependence

So 4th of July is comming here! Woo! So with that I'm also studying as a Greek minor right now and as I was doing some exercises just now trying to keep my chops up over the summer, I was translating Matthew 17:1-5. Here's how it reads...

"And after six days Jesus took with him Peter and James, and John his brother, and led them up a high mountain by themselves. And he was transfigured before them, and his face shone like the sun, and his clothes became white as light. And behold, there appeared to them Moses and Elijah, talking with him. And Peter said to Jesus, “Lord, it is good that we are here. If you wish, I will make three tents here, one for you and one for Moses and one for Elijah.” He was still speaking when, behold, a bright cloud overshadowed them, and a voice from the cloud said, “This is my beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased; listen to him.” (ESV)

I was looking back on it and I couldn't help but ask God, "How could you love me and call ME your son? I'm not perfect! I'm not good 100% I am BAD in my heart of hearts! There's selfishness, moments where my life doesn't match what I say, pride, impurity..." As I was on this rant to God, it was in an instant that the obvious was made obvious to my dense brain and really Savior-needy heart.

When God said to Peter, James and his brother John, "This is my beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased," and yet (as they would see with their own eyes) a few pages later allowed Him to be crushed and killed through the most shameful of all deaths in the Roman world, a cross there seems to be some SERIOUS contradiction going on here!

Merinading in this and thinking about a few more pages later, this vocal loving-on-Jesus by God showed that the beloved and well-pleasing Son was treated and punished by God, just through humans, as an enemy, unpleasing, sinful object of God's wrath so that those who were not beloved and were not pleasing to God would now be beloved and well-pleasing.

What's even more is that in the sight of God, no one can earn their way to be in a beloved well-pleasing relationship to God. We're not judged by God based on what we do or do not do because one way or another, we just are sinners. It is NOT by our own efforts, or our own charity fund-raisers or own being a good person but by the only man who God ever called, "my beloved Son with whom I am well pleased" yet killed him and slaughtered him like a lamb at the butcher shop.

So with amazed gratitude I believe this and will continue to declare with the grace God gives me my declaration of independence from myself and pethetic desperation and dependence on Jesus the Messiah alone for my true freedom. Through Him alone are we made beloved and well pleasing...it is finished :)