JESUS SPEAKING

            And he said to them, “Take heed and beware of covetousness, for one’s life does not consist in the abundance of things he possesses.”  Then he spoke a parable to them saying, “The ground of a certain rich man yielded plentifully.  And he thought within himself, saying, ‘What shall I do, since I have no room to store my crops?’  So he said, ‘I will do this:  I will pull down my barns and build greater, and there I will store all my crops and my goods.  And I will say to my soul, “Soul, you have many goods laid up for many years; take your ease; eat, drink, and be merry.”’  But God said to him, ‘Fool!  This night your soul will be required of you; then whose things will those things be which you have provided?’  So is he who lays up treasure for himself, and is not rich toward God?” (Luke 12: 13-21.)

INSPIRED THOUGHTS

            Jesus warned his followers to avoid covetousness; covetousness is the “excessive desire to acquire or possess more than one needs or deserves.”  Most people are unsatisfied with the bare necessities.  They, like the wealthy man in this parable, need abundance in order to feel secure.  When the rich man had fully filled his barns, he selfishly sought to keep the additional grain for himself; shamefully, he never considered the needs of the less fortunate.  The man’s plans for a comfortable future were short lived however; for death would visit him that same day.  The man lost his life, his possessions, and because of his greed, he lost his eternal place with God.

            When I was a child, my mother would often bake cookies.  When she had finished using most of the cookie dough, she would give the bowl and spoon to my siblings and I.  We would scrape the bowl and lick the spoon clean.  To us, every crumb was a nugget of sweet golden goodness.  Whatever was not consumed was unfortunately wasted.  God as well is not fond of wastefulness.  Whenever one seeks to possess more than they can use, they engage in a worthless and futile endeavor.  The Lord is greatly pleased when His children utilize their wealth to bless those in need.  Nothing in God’s kingdom ever goes to waste.  When asked how to prepare for the coming of the messiah, John the Baptist said, “He who has two tunics, let him give to him who has none; and he who has food let him do likewise” (Luke 3: 11.) 

            Christians are required to employ their abundant possessions to glorify God, and to bless the needy.  If you are wealthy put your money to work for The Lord.  If you own property and you are not using it, offer it to someone who can.  If your closet is overflowing, gather up the overflow and bring it to the thrift store.  If you have excess time, don’t waste it; instead use it to love those who are hurting.  If God has given you abilities and talents, exercise them constructively; use them to serve your fellows.  No one is guaranteed tomorrow; put whatever you have been given in excess to work for God today.  May His generosity fill your hearts; may the desire to serve and to provide for the needs of others become a newfound principle in your life; and may you find comfort in knowing that your earthly charity will produce eternal riches.

            “Lord Heavenly Father, we come before You and ask that You help us to be generous toward You and toward those who are in need.  Relieve our fears, so we can let go of greed and seek to use our abundance to bless others.  As we become willing to give, may we procure eternal riches; riches without end; riches reserved for us in Your Heavenly Kingdom.  We love You Father, we praise You, and we thank You, and we ask and pray all of these things in Jesus Christ’s name.  Amen.”  God bless all of you.

JESUS SPEAKING

                Now it came to pass, when the time had come for him to be received up, that he steadfastly set his face to go to Jerusalem, and sent messengers before his face.  And as they went, they entered a village of the Samaritans, to prepare for him.  But they did not receive him, because his face was set for the journey to Jerusalem.  And when his disciples James and John saw this, they said, “Lord do you want us to command fire to come down from heaven and consume them just as Elijah did?”  But he turned and rebuked them, and said, “You do not know what manner of spirit you are of.  For the Son of Man did not come to destroy men’s lives but to save them.”  And they went to another village.  (Luke 9: 51-56.)

INSPIRED THOUGHTS

                As Jesus neared Jerusalem, his disciples were sent in to the towns and villages ahead of him to preach the gospel and to prepare for his arrival.  A certain Samaritan village however, rejected the disciples and their message.  James and John felt insulted and dishonored; in turn, they asked if they should destroy the village with fire from heaven, just as Elijah had done centuries earlier [Elijah was a powerful Old Testament prophet; he was hated by Ahab, an evil king who reigned over Israel.  At one point Ahab sent fifty soldiers to arrest Elijah.  When they arrived Elijah called down fire from heaven and they were burned to death.  The king sent another fifty men; the prophet again called down fire from heaven and they too were consumed.  Finally, fifty more men approached Elijah, but the captain of the men immediately dropped down before him and begged for his mercy.  Moved by the plea, Elijah spared their lives.]  The disciples had come under the control of an evil spirit; a spirit which demanded vengeance.  Jesus rebuked them for their wicked aspirations.  If an action or desire is not motivated by God, it is the product of an evil spirit.  Revenge is never a Christian endeavor [On the contrary we read in Romans 12: 20 – 21, “If your enemy is hungry, feed him; if he is thirsty, give him something to drink […] Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.”]

                In 1962, a young black man named Nelson Mandela was fighting to end racial segregation in South Africa.  He gained a great deal of support and power; when he became a military threat the Caucasian lead government had him arrested and put in to prison for 27 years.  While in prison, he was forced to do hard labor in a rock quarry.  Since he was black he received fewer rations than the whites; as a political prisoner, he was denied many privileges; he was only allowed one visitor and one letter every six months (and often the letters were delayed for long periods of time and ‘made unreadable by the prison censors.’)  By the time he was released in 1990 Nelson Mandela was a different man; he was no longer anti-white, but pro-peace.  In 1994, he was elected as the first black president of South Africa.  The day that he took office the world held its breath.  Would he take out his vengeance on those who had put him in to prison?  Would the nation fall in to violence and chaos?   Many expected him to at least dismiss all white people from their government positions and replace them with black counterparts.  But when he took office he displayed a true Spirit of forgiveness.  Most white cabinet members were boxing up their things, preparing for the new administration to take over.  Shockingly, President Mandela called an administrative meeting and asked many of the Caucasian staff members to stay and to help build the New Africa (and many of them did.)  Both black and white South Africans had misjudged the intentions of their leader.  His heart wasn’t filled with hatred; instead it was filled with mercy.  He had forgiven his enemies; and he was ready to love those who had once hated him.

                Many throughout history, and today, misjudge their Creator’s intentions and desires; they mistakenly feel that if they error, God is just waiting to cast them in to hell.  But God is not vengeful; nor is His heart filled with hatred; He is a loving Father, and His Son is the perfect example of mercy and grace.  Jesus Christ did not come to condemn mankind, but to set them free.  He offers forgiveness to all those who crave fellowship with the Almighty.  People need to know that there is a God who loves them; won’t you deliver that message to others today?  May the love of God flow out of you; may you be a messenger of reconciliation and peace; may you proclaim the good news to all those you meet, that many might receive the gift of everlasting life and eternal fellowship with God.  [If any of you have never experienced the love of God, get in touch with me, and we can discuss how you might do that today.]

                “Lord Heavenly Father, we come before You and ask that You help us to share Your heart with others.  May we be confident and bold in preaching Your message of love and reconciliation.  Protect us from evil spirits, that we might do all things by the power of Your Holy Spirit.  Fill us with Your love, Your life, and Your truth.  Give us opportunities to share Your gospel.  Most of all Father, may we resemble Your Son in all that we do.  If there is any selfishness in us, we pray that You would heal our hearts, and bring them in to submission to Your perfect will.  We love You Father, we thank You, and we praise You, and we ask and pray all of these things, in Jesus Christ’s name.  Amen.”  God bless all of you.

JESUS SPEAKING

                “Then Jesus spoke to the crowds and to His disciples, saying: “The scribes and the Pharisees sit in Moses’ seat.  Therefore whatever they tell you to observe, that observe and do, but do not do according to their works; for they say, and do not do.  They bind heavy burdens, hard to bear, and lay them on men’s shoulders; but they will not move them with one of their fingers.  But all their works they do to be seen by men. They make their phylacteries broad and enlarge the borders of their garments.  They love the best places at feasts, the best seats in the synagogues, greetings in the marketplaces, and to be called by men, ‘Rabbi, Rabbi.’  But you, do not be called ‘Rabbi’; for One is your Teacher, the Christ,and you are all brethren.  Do not call anyone on earth your father; for One is your Father, He who is in heaven.  And do not be called teachers; for One is your Teacher, the Christ” (Mathew 23: 1-10.)

INSPIRED THOUGHTS

                Jesus spoke of the religious leaders saying, “For they bind heavy burdens, hard to bear, and lay them on men’s shoulders; but they themselves will not move them with one of their fingers.”  In the Old Testament, God commanded that anyone who passed by a donkey that was straining under the weight of a heavy load was required to take some of that burden off of the donkey’s shoulders and carry it themselves.  God gave Ten Commandments and a number of simple rules by which to live; yet no man was able to completely obey them.  Despite man’s obvious failure, the Pharisees added hundreds of additional rules to the already heavy load.  For instance, God commanded his people to observe the Sabbath day (a day on which no one was allowed to work.)  However, God did not intricately define what constituted work; so the religious leaders decided to do it for Him; they created 39 different categories of work related laws; every distinct category consisted of a long list of prohibitions.  Many regulations were ridiculous; for example they outlawed writing, the tying and the untying of a knot, and the kindling and extinguishing of a fire.  (Carrying anything was also prohibited; when Jesus healed a paralyzed man on the Sabbath, he told him to take up his mat mat and go home.  As the man walked through the crowds, the religious leaders saw him carrying his mat and absurdly accused him of breaking the Sabbath laws.)  Because the Pharisees made following God more difficult, many became resentful; those who needed God the most were being pushed even farther away from Him.  Unlike the Pharisees, Jesus came to help carry mankind’s burdens; not add to them. 

                In 570 A.D., a man named Mohamed was born in the city of Mecca (located in modern day Saudi Arabia.)  As an adult he started a religion known as Islam; a religion that exchanged the grace of God with man-made rules and regulations; to Mohamed, salvation was a wage that could be earned (rather than a free gift of God.)  No one can achieve righteousness through obedience to the law.  Instead, only the blood of Christ can make a man truly clean.  Not only did Mohammed reinstitute many of the Old Testament laws, he also added over 3000 additional ordinances to them.  For example, he said, one should ‘only eat with the right hand, with three fingers.’  A man was not allowed to eat an animal if he had killed it with a rock; water had to be snorted every day to keep the nose clean (free of evil spirits); all Muslims were required to wash their hands first thing in the morning; no one was permitted to enter a house through the back door; people were instructed to wipe off the bed at least three times before getting in to it; followers were to sleep on their right side with their right hand under their right cheek, and their knees slightly bent; a man could only use his left hand while urinating; if a dog drank from a dish, it had to be washed at least seven times; dogs were considered unclean and were therefore not to be owned as household pets; no one was permitted to drink out of a green jar or to eat garlic; women, dogs, and monkeys were not allowed to pass in front of a person praying (or their prayers would be nullified.)  Muslims were also commanded to pray five times a day, and to fast one month out of the year.

                Today many are straining under the burden of Islamic law; whole nations are in bondage and slavery to man-made rules and regulations.  The common man suffers, while the religious leaders reap the rewards of unholy power and prestige.  Empty outward obedience is in no way pleasing to God; instead, He desires inward faith in His only Son, Jesus Christ (in turn, acts of obedience are pleasing to Him.)  Jesus came to relieve man of the heavy burdens of religious rhetoric.  He simplified the law, saying, “Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.  This is the first and greatest commandment.  And the second is like it:  ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’  All of the law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments.”  Love for God and others is the new law; the law of liberty; the law of simplicity; the law of sincerity.  When we love others, we obey God.  As you go about your day, love your fellows with a genuine heart; serve them unconditionally; comfort those who are hurting; give to those in need; reach out to the lost; be a light in the lives of all those you meet, and Christ will be your companion; he will carry your burdens and relieve your sorrows; and “you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free” (note of caution:  God’s laws are still beneficial; Jesus did not come to abolish them entirely.)

                “Lord Heavenly Father, we come before You today, and we lift You up; You are an awesome and amazing God; full of truth, and love and mercy.  Lord, please deliver those who are struggling under the burdens of religious oppression.  Set them free Father, and provide them with the knowledge of Your grace and mercy; may they come to know and love Your Son.  Lord, if we are carrying any unnecessary burdens, we give them to You now; take them from us; relieve us of our afflictions, that we might know what it means to truly be free.  We love You Father, we thank You, and we praise You, and we ask and pray all of these things in Jesus Christ’s name.  Amen.”