Tag: thenotesaregood

21 BSF Matthew Week 21, Day 3

Today’s Scriptures

My Daily Journal:

It is often helpful to put ourselves into the biblical story.  By immersing ourselves into character, we not only get a deeper sense of the message but we are better able to see how we should apply the truth and change our daily walk.

In the story of the land owner and workers found in Matthew 20, our first inclination is to put ourselves in the position of the worker and Jesus as the land owner.

But, let’s take a different view point.  What if you take on the character of the landowner.  This isn’t a stretch.  Romans 8 says we are heirs with Christ.  Jesus himself refers to his followers as stewards.  What if we are the stewards of this land?  What is the message to us?

I see several:

1. Be relentless in calling others into the harvest.  Jesus said the harvest is plentiful, but the workers are few.  How much of that is because we aren’t repeatedly showing up to find people waiting to be called?

2. Give each worker a full measure of God’s word and grace.  Some of the workers were doing a lot of different things with their life before they were convicted to show up at the street corner.  How often do we tend to hold that against them?  The landowner gave the first workers a full measure.  He did not give the later workers any less.

3. Don’t negotiate.  The bible says what the bible says.  How often are we tempted to water it down to fit the views and opinions of others.  We fall into a trap of the world’s view of “fair”.  God is just and He doesn’t hold back His grace.

4. Expect persecution but watch for the joy.  What did the landowner hear about when he passed out the wages?  Did he hear the joy of those called late in the day?  Maybe a little, but it was mostly drowned out by the grumbles of those called early.  It is easy to focus on the grumbling, the persecutions in life, so much so that we sometimes miss the joy.

My Answers:

7.
a.
Eternal life is the denarius – but it isn’t earned nor is more earned by longer work or greater deeds

b.
He calls the workers.  He has the work and the pay.  He provides grace and love and complete reward

c.
They have an entitlement attitude.  They judge themselves based on other men (not a sign of humility) and find themselves more deserving then are upset at rewards given to those who have worked less

d.
At any point I am called to work it is a blessing – Thankful for the reward I am given, not jealous or self-righteous, but be humble

e.
That He would work so hard to call us to work – He doesn’t need us, we need Him, but He pursues us over and over again.

21 BSF Matthew Week 21, Day 5

Today’s Scriptures

My Daily Journal:

Blindness:

I recently finished reading the book Cross Roads by Wm. Paul Young.  Many of you may know Young as the author of The Shack.

One of the things the book reminded me of is that God is always present.  When we don’t see God it isn’t because God isn’t there, God is everywhere, OmniPresent.  Instead it is because our vision is veiled by our own sin.

The past few weeks lessons have been lessons in what it means to be a Christ Follower.  We are called to be humble, unselfish, compassionate and serving others.  The opposites of those, prideful, selfish, uncaring and either self-serving or desiring to be served by others are all too “natural” characteristics in a fallen world.  Each of these things in our lives is like a blindfold causing us to fail to see God in His full presence and glory.

In my divisions I included the story of the 2 blind men in this section because I think the whole message of the entrance into Jerusalem was about Jesus coming to heal the blind and lame.

The blindfolds of blindness have different characteristics in the story.  Some are physically blind, but clearly see the character of Jesus.  Some see Jesus triumphant entry into the city, but are blind to His real mission and message of salvation,  Some see Him healing others but refuse to accept they themselves are blind.

Notice in both situations of Jesus healing physical blindness, there was another component.  In the temple He healed the blind and lame.  See, seeing is not enough, it is just the first part.  Getting up and following Him is the only proper response to having the blindfolds removed.

How is sin clouding your vision of God?  Are you asking for your blindness to be removed?  If you have seen the light, are you still lying on your mat?

My Answers:

11.
a.
Jesus wouldn’t steal, so it must have been arranged.  It wasn’t just that Jesus knew the owner, but that the owner knew Jesus!

b.
A very large crowd

c.
Pharisees Luke 19:39

d.
Zach 9:9 – See, your king comes to you,
righteous and victorious,
lowly and riding on a donkey,
on a colt, the foal of a donkey.

Psalm 118:26 Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord

13.
a.
House of prayer

b.
John: Destroy temple and raise it up in 3 days
1 Cor: Bodies are temple of H/S
Eph 2: In him the whole building is raised, body of Christ = the church

c.
forgives sin, purifies us of all unrighteousness, thoroughly washed and renewed through Holy Spirit

20 BSF Matthew Week 20, Day 4

Today’s Scriptures

My Daily Journal:

What does a christian look like?  When we think about it, our immediate thoughts turn to outward appearances and probably someone who looks a lot like us.

But Jesus looks at the heart.  A Christ-Follower is someone who has given their heart over to the indwelling of the Holy Spirit.

A christian may be male or female.  A christian may be married or single.  If someone is single, they don’t have to marry to be a christian nor does marrying make them more of a christian.  God is in control.  Being married is a gift.  But being single is also a gift.  They are different gifts, but one is not better than the other (OK, the Apostle Paul had a bias for being single, but you understand my point).  Both are gifts.  The key is to use the gift for the glory of God.

The same is true of age.  A christian may be young or old.  There is no minimum age for asking Jesus into your life.  Young christians (I’m talking age not maturity of faith) are amazing examples of unconditional love, both giving and receiving.  I am very proud to call these children, brothers and sisters in Christ.

My Answers:

8.
a.
Intimacy is a part of marriage.  Some can’t.  Some choose to forgo it for the sake of the kingdom of heaven.  Those who can should accept it

b.
He saw a life of celibacy as a gift from God.  But for those who don’t have this gift to remain celibate/chaste, they should marry and for those who marry they should live as a married couple, sharing in intimacy with each other.

9.
a.
1 john 2:15-17… for all that is in the world, lust of flesh, eyes, pride of life, is not of the Father.  Rom 12:2, Do not be conformed to this world but be transformed by the renewing of your mind

b.
By demonstrating the love I have for my wife and model the respect and appreciation I have for her in ways that others can see

10.
a.
For Him to pray for them and for Him to place his hands on them

b.
They may have felt He had more important matters to attend.  They were operating as gatekeepers, only allowing through those “worthy” of an appointment

c.
Failure to acknowledge them as faithful followers, brothers and sisters.  Failure to address them at their level.  Failure to pray for them and bless them.  Failure to be humble.

d.
Be on their level and welcome them.  Encourage them.  Not talk down to them.  Show them the love of Christ – take time for them!

 

19 BSF Matthew Week 19, Day 2

Today’s Scriptures

My Daily Journal:

I spend a lot of time with children and they are not always humble.  I see plenty of kids acting out to get attention.  I see many children who are very focused on themselves.  I see children who have no issue being disruptive if it brings them joy or raises their social standing.  I don’t read today’s verses with rose colored glasses.  And, I don’t think acting childish is what the Lord is trying to tell us.

But there are also some traits I see in the children I work with that I think are at the root of today’s scriptures.

The first is love.  Children are amazing at giving and accepting love.  They make friends without hesitation.  They show kindness and compassion for those around them.  I think this is in part because they readily accept love as well.  They don’t question the love of their parents and family and plug into that to have joy with others.

The second is innocence and acceptance.  I am constantly amazed at the conviction these young believers have.  Not because they have a depth of knowledge and study to prove something, but simply because they accept it as the truth.  They know that God loves them because He does, not because they read 16 commentaries that help them work it out in their head.

I don’t think it is an accident that these verses come directly on the heels of the encounter with the father of the demon possessed son whom the disciples could not heal.  I think this is the answer to his prayer to Jesus, “help me with my unbelief.”

The answer to that prayer is not going to come from some outside sign or proof or miracle (even though all of those things are present).  The answer to the prayer is to just accept belief as fact.  To be totally open to it, not because it is the only thing left standing after exhaustive examination (which it would be), but because it comes from God.  To a child this is easy.  Jesus loves me, this I know…

As maturing christians we sometimes make things so complicated.  We hold on to our doubts until they are proven wrong.  But, Jesus teaches us to simply let them go.  It is called faith and belief for a reason.

My Answers:

3.
a.
become like little children

b.
Matt: blessed: poor in spirit: kingdom of heaven, those who mourn: be comforted
John 1: those who receive him, believe, become children of God (born of God)
John 3: must be born again (nicodemus) born of water and spirit, flesh to flesh, spirit birth to spirit

4.
a.
Anyone who wants to be first must be the very last, and the servant of all

b.
Humility and repentance

5.
a.
Not proud or concerned with “great matters”, Hidden things from wise and learned and revealed them to children, “My dear children, I write this to you…”   Those entering the faith – those seeking to believe and grow in Christ, humble

b.
Those who serve, those who pray, those who put others first, teachers, preachers, missionaries, the little children – I can teach, I can pray and I can humble myself to not rely on my own knowledge or skill but to rely fully on the Holy Spirit.  To be bold and step forward in the ways God is calling me that brings glory to him not gain for me.

c.
Jesus

18 BSF Matthew Week 18, Day 5

Today’s Scriptures

My Daily Journal:

I am always amazed at the way that God chooses to provide for our needs.  This story of the sheckle and the fish is amazing in that regard.  First, let’s look at some other ways this could have happened:

1. Jesus could have used a coin from the money the apostles had.  It probably wasn’t much money, but we know from other scriptures that Judas was the keeper of their coins.

2. Peter could have been sent out fishing and harvested a number of fish to be sold for the money.

3. A coin could have appeared in Peter’s or Jesus’ hand or pocket.

I believe the way it did happen reveals much about God’s provision.

1. He does not take away from our work and focus on His ministry to answer our prayers.  Our God is not a God of limited resources, where one side of the ledger is debited for the other to be credited.  He provides out of His riches and plenty, not in a rob Peter to pay Paul fashion.

2. We are called to work, but God’s exceptional provision for our lives and His majesty is not wages for our work.  We, like Peter, have to cast the line into the water.  We have to take the step of faith and be a part, but we are not earning our provision.

3. God does not do magic tricks. Could the creator of everything, the one who multiplied the baskets of fish and bread, simply made a coin appear or adjusted the ledger to make it appear the payment was made?  Of course.  But that normally is not His approach.  He can heal with a touch or a word, but He more often provides healing more in keeping with this event.

I think one of the key messages is that God provided for this far in advance of our awareness of the need.  At some point God provided a coin to someone at the lake.  At some point that coin was dropped.  At some point a type of fish became native to that lake which gathers pebbles into its mouth to dig a safe breeding spot for its young.  At some point a fish was born who, at some point, gathered the coin into its mouth.  At some point that fish proceeded to the area where Peter cast his hook and, without dropping the coin, bit the hook and was reeled in.

More often than not, my experience of miracles in my life resemble this.  Far before I knew I would have the need, God set things in motion to provide for that need.  It is only by looking back, that I see the way He had been working for days, weeks, months and years, to bring what I needed, exactly in the portion needed, to me exactly when I needed it.

What comfort this should bring us.  When we pray to God, we aren’t asking Him to leap into action.  We aren’t asking Him to perform some magic.  We simply need to ask Him to show us where to cast the line to reel in the miracle that He started far before we asked.

 

My Answers:

12.
a.
The transfiguration.  The words and image of Moses and Elijah on the mountain

b.
they were filled with grief  –  they understood and accepted that He would die

c.
They were filled with grief – they did not understand and accept that He will be raised back to life on the 3rd day

13.
a.
Annual census tax.  1/2 sheckle = 2 drachma = “ransom for his life”

b.
His willingness to pay the price for life as a Jew, even though He was above the law (the son of the King) and He would give up His own life to pay the ransom for ours that we could not pay

17 BSF Matthew Week 17, Day 3

Today’s Scriptures

My Daily Journal:

The crowd can (and often is) wrong.  Many of us have a bias to popular opinion.  The majority rules.  The individual people has a say in the direction of things.

I believe this comes not so much in the faith of the populace, but in a lack of faith and trust in tyrannical rulers.  But, in the same way that we can yield too much to power in the hands of a few, we can also yield too much power to the many.

There is a growing trend in churches to want to be “culturally relevant.”  We need to be more accepting.  We need to open the church up to a dialogue and allow people to shape what works for them.  We need to be accepting of popular opinion.

But that is not how Christianity works.  Jesus tells Peter, you didn’t get your statement of faith from a book or from listening to the crowd.  You got your faith from God.  That is where faith in Jesus comes from.  “No one can say, Jesus is Lord, except by the Holy Spirit.”

Jesus Christ is a rock, not a willow tree.  He is the same yesterday, today and tomorrow.  He doesn’t yield to who people want Him to be or who they would like for Him to be, He is who He is: The Messiah, The Son of the living God.

Emphasis is on the word “the”.  There is only one Messiah, there is only one Son, there is only one living God.  Jesus says “I am the way, the truth and the life.”  Again.,  THE.  The only way, the only truth, the only life.  There are no other paths.

Some may look at that and say, “how arrogant.  Every other path is wrong and Jesus is the only way?”  It is not a boast.  It is a fact.  If there is only one path, shouldn’t we tell people that are heading the wrong direction.  That isn’t condemning them.  It  isn’t judging them or putting them down.  It isn’t excluding them.  It is trying to love them and save them.

Don’t pay attention to my words.  I could be wrong.  Don’t pay attention to the words of our culture, to popular opinion.  It is normally wrong. Pay attention to what the bible says.  It is never wrong.

 

My Answers:

4.
a.
Elijah, John the Baptist, Jeremiah

b.
the Messiah, the Son of the living God

c.
Both

d.
Yes – affects everything

5.
a.
by my Father in heaven

b.
John: children born not of natural descent, nor of human decision or a husband’s will, but born of God
1 Cor 2: not in words taught us by human wisdom but in words taught by the Spirit, explaining spiritual realities with Spirit-taught words
1:Cor 12: no one can say, “Jesus is Lord,” except by the Holy Spirit.

13.2 BSF Matthew Week 13, Day 2

Today’s Scriptures

My Daily Journal:

I got caught up in Matthew 13:23 today.  “But the seed falling on good soil refers to someone who hears the word and understands it. This is the one who produces a crop, yielding a hundred, sixty or thirty times what was sown.”

There are three responses we are called to make:

  1. Hear
  2. Understand
  3. Produce

But responses to what?  This took me back to Matthew 7:7, “Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you.”

  1. Ask
  2. Seek
  3. Knock

I thought it was interesting how these parallel each other.  When we ask, our required response is to hear.  When we seek, our required action is to understand and when we knock on the door and it is open, our job is not done – we are called to produce fruit.

But how often are we like the religious leaders of this time.  They asked lots of questions.  Every week of our study we see then asking more challenging questions, but they did not hear – they already made up their mind.  In the same way, we cry out to God for direction, for a sign, for His intervention in our lives, but then we don’t read the book He gave us and we fight His calling if it doesn’t match our wants and desires.

The religious leaders sought wisdom, they sought approval from God by obeying His laws (and additional ones), they sought a Messiah, but when all of this was in their face, they didn’t understand.  Their mind and hearts were closed off.  How often do we do the same – asking God to answer a prayer, but only in a specific way that suits our thinking about what is best?

Finally, the shepherds of the time were more interested in beating their flocks into submission than in producing fruit.  When the door is open to help bring someone closer to the Lord, do we step through and do the hard work required?

My Answers:

3.
a.
Earthly story with a heavenly meaning

b.
Yes, Matt 11:25 – Jesus praised God “because you have hidden these things from the wise and learned, and revealed them to little children.

c.
The word of God (Luke)  The good news of salvation, the origin of faith

4.
These phrases are in Luke only:
were coming to Jesus from town after town,
His disciples asked him
The knowledge of God has been given to you, but to others I speak in parables, so that, “‘though seeing, they may not see; though hearing, they may not understand.”
“This is the meaning of the parable: The seed is the word of God.

5.
a.
He, Jesus, is the farmer (or more appropriately, the seed company – the producer of the seed)

b.
path; hears does not understand (devil snatches away); rocky ground: hears, receives w/joy, no root, at trouble fall away; thorns: hears, worry and wickedness choke it; good soil: hears, understnd, produce

6.
14: If you love me, keep my commands (love/obedience)
15: I am the voice; you are the branches, remain in me, bear fruit (God’s strength)
5: Peter & apostles, “we must obey God rather than human beings” (obedience)
2: work out salvation w/fear/trembling, God who works in you: His good purposes (by God/for God)

12.3 BSF Matthew Week 12, Day 3

Today’s Scriptures

My Daily Journal:

I slipped in the garage the other day.  I didn’t fall, but, the floor was dusty and my shoes were not giving me the traction I needed for the work I was doing.  I had been out in the yard previously and when I looked at the soles of my shoes they had become caked in dirt, with the grooves filled in so the surface lacked texture.

That is how our heart and soul can become in the muck of this world.  We can become calloused.  We can become caked over.  We can see the word of the gospel but it does not have traction in our lives.

Jesus tells us to achieve true rest first requires real work.  We have to re-cut the furrows, the grooves, in the field of our life.  We have to dig out the weeds and stones and replace them with living seeds.  We have to prepare our heart to receive peace and rest.

But Jesus also tells us that this work is not for us to do alone.  He calls us to yoke to Him.  To ask Him to work along side of us and, when we do, we will find rest in Him.

My Answers:

6.
a.
Chorizin/Bethsaida to Tyre/Sidon (they would have been in sackcloth and ashes, more bearable for them than you; Capernaum to Hades. If miracles in you in Sodom, it would have remained, more bearable for Sodom @ Judgment

b.
They witnessed the promised one.  They saw first hand the miracles.  And, they still chose to turn away from Jesus.

c.
We have the full bible.  We have the full record of Jesus’ saving act, the old and new testaments

7.
Revelation of God is only through God, not to be “deduced” by the logic of man.  While we have free will, that does not usurp God’s control and His desire to show Himself only through Jesus, His son.

8.
a. all who are weary and burdened
b. I will give you rest
c. take my yoke upon you and learn from me
d. To be co-yoked with Christ is to be the apprentice with the master, doing His work with Him.  Through this we find rest.

09.5 BSF Matthew Week 9, Day 5

Today’s Scriptures

My Daily Journal:

Pop-Quiz Time for the Apostles.

Let’s review.

They heard the sermon on the mount where Jesus told them not to worry.

They heard Him teach them how to pray.  They also heard the promise that God will answer those prayers.

They heard Him speak with authority, above that of any one in the temple.

They heard Him speak of coming to fulfill prophecy.

They saw His authority over all forms of infirmities and His ability to heal.

They heard Him say to leave your old life behind, don’t rely on what you used to know and do but follow Him first and only.

So, here comes the pop-quiz.  Where should you test a bunch of fishermen?  How about, on a boat?!?

How should the test be conducted?  How about a storm?  Something along the lines of, “The rain came down, the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat…” (see Matthew 7:25)  What, oh what, would a wise man do???

What did they do?  Pray or panic?  They panicked.  Oh, you of little faith.  C- grade at best!  (get it? “below “c” level”…sorry, bad storm on the sea pun!)

I don’t mean to be hard on the apostles.  How often do we do the same thing?  How often do I?  I hear the words, I understand them and I want to apply them, but when storms come up, I go blank, I rely on myself, I show my “little faith.”

But, like the apostles, Jesus saves me.  And, let’s be clear, this must have been a major storm… these were guys who made their living on the water… they knew a deadly storm.  But, Jesus tells us we don’t need to fear even the deadly storms.

We don’t even need to fear the demon possessed.

I thought it interesting that the demons are aware of their ultimate outcome.  “Did you come to torture us before the appointed time?”  They know what is ahead.  They know who is in control and who is the judge, the administrator of justice.

But how often do we fail the test, too?  Do we put worry about livelihood over faith in eternal life?  Do we put profit concerns over prophecy fulfilled.  What is eternal life and salvation worth?  2000 pigs?  I would hope so.

Finally, when we are called to follow Jesus, we are also appointed a place for that calling.  The demon possessed man wanted to get out of town.  He wanted to start anew.  But Jesus had a special mission field for him and it was in his own backyard.  This may have been the hardest mission field imaginable – but he obeyed.  What an amazing transformation.  From living in the tombs of the dead to being the one inviting others to eternal life!

My Answers:

12.
a.
Jesus was sleeping, he got up and rebuked the storm

b.
Authority over nature

c.
They had heard Him call Himself Lord, they had seen others put their faith in Him – would he then die in a storm?  Did they trust the power of the storm over the power of God

d.
Heart issues – Ezek 36:26

13.
a.
lived in the tombs – so violent that no one could pass that way

b.
The demons identified Jesus for whom He is, the Son of God.  They identified that there was an appointed time at which the demons would be tortured

c.
Asked to come with Jesus but Jeses did not let him and told him to stay and witness

d.
To leave – they loved their livelihood more than their lives.  Swines over Salvation.  Profit over Prophecy Fulfilled.

e.
“keep faith under wraps – it may offend someone and lose a sale”  We don’t want our faith to interfere with our livelihood

07.5 BSF Matthew Week 7, Day 5

Today’s Scriptures

My Daily Journal:

“Each day has enough trouble of its own.”  This line from Matt 6:34 made me laugh out loud because it is so true and so ridiculously shows my approach to life.  I worry.  I get stressed about the balls I’m dropping, the things I’m leaving undone.  I worry about the things I have forgotten or not done fully.

But it is like looking at the calendar and going, “Oh, a week from Tuesday, hmmmm, it doesn’t look there is going to be enough trouble on that day… I should probably find something to worry about so I can add some much needed stress and trouble to that day.”   I know, ridiculous, right?  But that is what I’m doing when I worry.  And, what does my worry gain – not a single positive thing.  Lot’s of negative things (health, hair, happiness), but nothing positive.

The lessons over the past couple of weeks have been very convicting to me.  Let me use an analogy to explain.  My kids participate in the county fair and take a number of entries, particularly in the foods category.  In the baked goods area there are basically two types of entries, decorated cakes and then things like breads and pies and cookies.  Cake decorating is all about the outside appearance: icing, fondant, piping, decorating.  When a loaf of bread comes in, however, one of the first things the judge does is to take a knife and cut it right down the middle.  They are looking for consistency, doneness, texture, smell, etc.  While I would prefer to be a decorated cake, in God’s judgment, I am a loaf of bread.  The way I live and act among other believers at Church and BSF, how much I pray or listen to Christian radio, all of that is icing.  The pharisees and hypocrites were masters at icing.  We try to use icing to cover up flaws over here and redirect attention over there.  But God slices right down the middle and his expectation is that my faith permeates my life consistently.  If my interactions with co-workers or my family or difficult people (other drivers on the road) doesn’t reflect His mercy and bring honor to Him, then I have opportunity for improvement.  The answer isn’t more icing.  The answer is to continue to ask the Holy Spirit to permeate every minute of my day.  When I hold back things from Him, when I continue to think I need to come up with the answer and/or do it on my own, I show that I don’t trust Him with that part of my life.  That is a ridiculous thing to do.  Am I not more valuable than a bird.  Do I not have more worth to God than a flower in the field.  Put righteousness first, not just at church and bsf, but in everything.

My Answers:

12.
a.
life, what you will eat or drink, about your body, what you will wear

b.
26: birds eat, you are more valuable, 28-30 clothing = flower, 31-33 eat, drink, wear – trust God and put righteousness first and all will be provided 25 is not life more than food, body more than clothes, 27 life: can worry add 1 more hour?

c.
All of them.  Not so much for self but for loved ones.