no longer

26 If we make the decision to sin after we receive the knowledge of the truth, there isn’t a sacrifice for sins left any longer. 27 There’s only a scary expectation of judgment and of a burning fire that’s going to devour God’s opponents. 28 When someone rejected the Law from Moses, they were put to death without mercy on the basis of the testimony of two or three witnesses. 29 How much worse punishment do you think is deserved by the person who walks all over God’s Son, who acts as if the blood of the covenant that made us holy is just ordinary blood, and who insults the Spirit of grace? 30 We know the one who said, Judgment is mine; I will pay people back. And he also said, The Lord will judge his people. 31 It’s scary to fall into the hands of the living God! (Hebrews 10:26-31, CEB)

This is a little scary to read. If we who have received the knowledge of what Christ did for us sin, then there isn’t anything to make us right again!

There is only expectation of judgment and fire that will devour us.

When the Law was disobeyed the people were killed with no exception.

How will we escape the rather that is to come for those of us who walk all over the blood of Christ as if it is our own?

But what is sin? Sin is that which keeps us from God.

Are you connected to God? then maybe what someone is telling you is sinful really isn’t.

Take heart and know that you are safe in God’s hands

Loving People. Loving God.

No one knows…

As Jesus left the temple, one of his disciples said to him, “Teacher, look! What awesome stones and buildings!” 2 Jesus responded, “Do you see these enormous buildings? Not even one stone will be left upon another. All will be demolished.” 3 Jesus was sitting on the Mount of Olives across from the temple. Peter, James, John, and Andrew asked him privately, 4 “Tell us, when will these things happen? What sign will show that all these things are about to come to an end?” 5 Jesus said, “Watch out that no one deceives you. 6 Many people will come in my name, saying, ‘I’m the one!’ They will deceive many people. 7 When you hear of wars and reports of wars, don’t be alarmed. These things must happen, but this isn’t the end yet. 8 Nations and kingdoms will fight against each other, and there will be earthquakes and famines in all sorts of places. These things are just the beginning of the sufferings associated with the end. (Mark 13:1-8, CEB)

Why are we obsessed with knowing when things will happen, how things will happen, and details around things that are not our concern?

Sometimes we need to just be in life and participate. Sometimes we need to not worry about the details and just be in the moment.

I’ve been on several spiritual retreats where they ask you to not wear a watch or have your phone. You are told to not anticipate but participate. And when you let go of trying to control the things you can’t control and just be in the moment, that is where the spiritual connection happens.

So don’t anticipate but participate and live in the moment.

Loving People. Loving God.

Seriously?!?!

Jesus spoke to them in parables. “A man planted a vineyard, put a fence around it, dug a pit for the winepress, and built a tower. Then he rented it to tenant farmers and took a trip. 2 When it was time, he sent a servant to collect from the tenants his share of the fruit of the vineyard. 3 But they grabbed the servant, beat him, and sent him away empty-handed. 4 Again the landowner sent another servant to them, but they struck him on the head and treated him disgracefully. 5 He sent another one; that one they killed. The landlord sent many other servants, but the tenants beat some and killed others. 6 Now the landowner had one son whom he loved dearly. He sent him last, thinking, They will respect my son. 7 But those tenant farmers said to each other, ‘This is the heir. Let’s kill him, and the inheritance will be ours.’ 8 They grabbed him, killed him, and threw him out of the vineyard. 9 “So what will the owner of the vineyard do? He will come and destroy those tenants and give the vineyard to others. 10 Haven’t you read this scripture, The stone that the builders rejected has become the cornerstone. 11 The Lord has done this, and it’s amazing in our eyes?” 12 They wanted to arrest Jesus because they knew that he had told the parable against them. But they were afraid of the crowd, so they left him and went away. (Mark 12:1-12, CEB)

This parable always makes me shake my head and wonder just what the people were thinking.

The tenants take the land owner’s servants and beat them, killing some and sending others back injured. So the land owner sends his son, and the tenants think, “oh if we kill this guy we can just live here as it is ours.” How does that even work? In what fairy tale do they think they are living? This is not how inheritance works.

But the tenants kill the son. And the owner will come and kill the tenants and give the vineyard to others.

The one thing about this parable that is striking is the people Jesus is telling it to are atleast able to discern it is really about them, and they are the ones that have killed the slaves and workers of the owner, and that they will be killing the son.

What do we get that we are doing that God doesn’t want us to?

How can we not be the tenants?

Loving People. Loving God.

Be Christ

6 So live in Christ Jesus the Lord in the same way as you received him. 7 Be rooted and built up in him, be established in faith, and overflow with thanksgiving just as you were taught. 8 See to it that nobody enslaves you with philosophy and foolish deception, which conform to human traditions and the way the world thinks and acts rather than Christ. 9 All the fullness of deity lives in Christ’s body. 10 And you have been filled by him, who is the head of every ruler and authority. 11 In him you were also circumcised with a circumcision not administered by human hands. The circumcision of Christ is realized in the stripping away of the whole self dominated by sin. 12 You were buried with him through baptism and raised with him through faith in the power of God, who raised him from the dead. 13 When you were dead because of the things you had done wrong and because your body wasn’t circumcised, God made you alive with Christ and forgave all the things you had done wrong. 14 He destroyed the record of the debt we owed, with its requirements that worked against us. He canceled it by nailing it to the cross. 15 When he disarmed the rulers and authorities, he exposed them to public disgrace by leading them in a triumphal parade. (Colossians 2:6-15, CEB)

Live your life in such a way that everything you do and everything you say is honest and trustworthy. Love everyone as God has loved us all. Accepting them where they are and loving them as a child of God.

When we say what we mean and mean what we say and act in the same fashion as our words display the world will not know what to do with us. That is why they didn’t get Jesus.

Love like you are loved.

Loving People. Loving God.

Run?

11 But as for you, man of God, run away from all these things. Instead, pursue righteousness, holy living, faithfulness, love, endurance, and gentleness. 12 Compete in the good fight of faith. Grab hold of eternal life—you were called to it, and you made a good confession of it in the presence of many witnesses. 13 I command you in the presence of God, who gives life to all things, and Christ Jesus, who made the good confession when testifying before Pontius Pilate. 14 Obey this order without fault or failure until the appearance of our Lord Jesus Christ. 15 The timing of this appearance is revealed by God alone, who is the blessed and only master, the King of kings and Lord of lords. 16 He alone has immortality and lives in light that no one can come near. No human being has ever seen or is able to see him. Honor and eternal power belong to him. Amen. 17 Tell people who are rich at this time not to become egotistical and not to place their hope on their finances, which are uncertain. Instead, they need to hope in God, who richly provides everything for our enjoyment. 18 Tell them to do good, to be rich in the good things they do, to be generous, and to share with others. 19 When they do these things, they will save a treasure for themselves that is a good foundation for the future. That way they can take hold of what is truly life. 20 Timothy, protect what has been given to you in trust. Avoid godless and pointless discussions and the contradictory claims of so-called “knowledge.” 21 When some people adopted this false knowledge, they missed the goal of faith. May grace be with you all. (1 Timothy 6:11-21, CEB)

What are these things the man of God is supposed to run away from?

The love of money is the root of all evil is verse 10. So do not love money or work towards getting riches. DO not be conceited.

You need to look out for the other, and not build up riches for yourself.

Pursue righteousness, holy living, faithfulness, love, endurance, and gentleness. All of these things will help you to love the world as God loves it.

And that will change the world around us.

Loving People. Loving God.

what do you need?

16 Jesus went to Nazareth, where he had been raised. On the Sabbath he went to the synagogue as he normally did and stood up to read. 17 The synagogue assistant gave him the scroll from the prophet Isaiah. He unrolled the scroll and found the place where it was written: 18 The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because the Lord has anointed me. He has sent me to preach good news to the poor, to proclaim release to the prisoners and recovery of sight to the blind, to liberate the oppressed, 19 and to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor. 20 He rolled up the scroll, gave it back to the synagogue assistant, and sat down. Every eye in the synagogue was fixed on him. 21 He began to explain to them, “Today, this scripture has been fulfilled just as you heard it.” 22 Everyone was raving about Jesus, so impressed were they by the gracious words flowing from his lips. They said, “This is Joseph’s son, isn’t it?” 23 Then Jesus said to them, “Undoubtedly, you will quote this saying to me: ‘Doctor, heal yourself. Do here in your hometown what we’ve heard you did in Capernaum.’” 24 He said, “I assure you that no prophet is welcome in the prophet’s hometown. 25 And I can assure you that there were many widows in Israel during Elijah’s time, when it didn’t rain for three and a half years and there was a great food shortage in the land. 26 Yet Elijah was sent to none of them but only to a widow in the city of Zarephath in the region of Sidon. 27 There were also many persons with skin diseases in Israel during the time of the prophet Elisha, but none of them were cleansed. Instead, Naaman the Syrian was cleansed.” 28 When they heard this, everyone in the synagogue was filled with anger. 29 They rose up and ran him out of town. They led him to the crest of the hill on which their town had been built so that they could throw him off the cliff. 30 But he passed through the crowd and went on his way. (Luke 4:16-30, CEB)

They rose up and ran him out of town, up the hill the town was built on to throw him off a cliff, but he passed through them and went away…

Jesus read a passage and told them it had been fulfilled, and then they wanted proof. As if Jesus’ word is not enough.

What do we want from Jesus?

What does God have to do to make us believe?

What do you need to see or hear in order to trust?

Time and time again the promises have been fulfilled, yet we still want more.

Just trust and know God will be there and the promises will be fulfilled.

Loving People. Loving God.

isms

9 Put a widow on the list who is older than 60 years old and who was faithful to her husband. 10 She should have a reputation for doing good: raising children, providing hospitality to strangers, washing the feet of the saints, helping those in distress, and dedicating herself to every kind of good thing. 11 But don’t accept younger widows for the list. When their physical desires distract them from Christ, they will want to get married. 12 Then they will be judged for setting aside their earlier commitment. 13 Also, they learn to be lazy by going from house to house. They are not only lazy, but they also become gossips and busybodies, talking about things they shouldn’t. 14 So I want younger widows to marry, have children, and manage their homes so that they won’t give the enemy any reason to slander us. (15 Some have already turned away to follow Satan.) 16 If any woman who is a believer has widows in her family, she should take care of them and not burden the church, so that it can help other widows who are truly needy. (1 Timothy 5:9-16, CEB)

So if a woman is over 60 she is ok to be a widow, but if she is under 60 she needs to marry again?

We can not control another person or make them do things they are not desiring or looking for. We can guide them to the love of God and show them they are a child of God and they are loved. Beyond that, they control what happens.

We can not allow our preferences to control anothers life.

This passage has the part of looking out for those who need help, but it also pushes isms that are not cool. The Bible is the story of how we are loved by God, written by people who sometimes include their own agendas. We need to pull out the love and let the agendas go.

Loving People. Loving God.

Provide

Don’t correct an older man, but encourage him like he’s your father; treat younger men like your brothers, 2 treat older women like your mother, and treat younger women like your sisters with appropriate respect. 3 Take care of widows who are truly needy. 4 But if a particular widow has children or grandchildren, they should first learn to respect their own family and repay their parents, because this pleases God. 5 A widow who is truly needy and all alone puts her hope in God and keeps on going with requests and prayers, night and day. 6 But a widow who tries to live a life of luxury is dead even while she is alive. 7 Teach these things so that the families will be without fault. 8 But if someone doesn’t provide for their own family, and especially for a member of their household, they have denied the faith. They are worse than those who have no faith. (1 Timothy 5:1-8, CEB)

We are called here to make sure our family is taken care of. We need to provide for the care of our family especially of our household. If you do not we do not believe in God, and we have denied our faith.

And we are to provide for those who can not provide for themselves.

God calls us to take care of the other, and when we do this, we will be taken care of.

Loving People. Loving God.

Not stewardship

38 As he was teaching, he said, “Watch out for the legal experts. They like to walk around in long robes. They want to be greeted with honor in the markets. 39 They long for places of honor in the synagogues and at banquets. 40 They are the ones who cheat widows out of their homes, and to show off they say long prayers. They will be judged most harshly.” 41 Jesus sat across from the collection box for the temple treasury and observed how the crowd gave their money. Many rich people were throwing in lots of money. 42 One poor widow came forward and put in two small copper coins worth a penny. 43 Jesus called his disciples to him and said, “I assure you that this poor widow has put in more than everyone who’s been putting money in the treasury. 44 All of them are giving out of their spare change. But she from her hopeless poverty has given everything she had, even what she needed to live on.” (Mark 12:38-44, CEB)

This verse comes out ob Stewardship Sunday where pastors say how great this woman is for understanding and placing her life in the hands of God. And excuse my French but that is bullshit.

Jesus starts this passage by saying to beware of the legal experts, the people who are in power in the religious center. And says how they will cheat widows out of their homes. Then he comments on a poor woman who puts into the collection box her last two coins, the money she needed to live, because the religious center has convinced her if she doesn’t God won’t love her.

She needed that to live on but has been tricked into giving more than she needs to. It should be the religious center that is giving to her to help her.

Do not call her a model of stewardship, call the leaders out who oppress those who should be lifted up.

Loving People. Loving God.

Does it work that way?

12 The next day, after leaving Bethany, Jesus was hungry. 13 From far away, he noticed a fig tree in leaf, so he went to see if he could find anything on it. When he came to it, he found nothing except leaves, since it wasn’t the season for figs. 14 So he said to it, “No one will ever again eat your fruit!” His disciples heard this. 20 Early in the morning, as Jesus and his disciples were walking along, they saw the fig tree withered from the root up. 21 Peter remembered and said to Jesus, “Rabbi, look how the fig tree you cursed has dried up.” 22 Jesus responded to them, “Have faith in God! 23 I assure you that whoever says to this mountain, ‘Be lifted up and thrown into the sea’—and doesn’t waver but believes that what is said will really happen—it will happen. 24 Therefore I say to you, whatever you pray and ask for, believe that you will receive it, and it will be so for you. (Mark 11:12-14, 20-24, CEB)

“Therefore I say to you, whatever you pray and ask for, believe that you will receive it, and it will be so for you.” So if you don’t get what you pray and ask for it’s because you didn’t believe?

Jesus curses a fig tree, and some say that the fig tree wasn’t old enough to have figs even though it was in leaf. So it was cursed to never have figs and the disciples were amazed. We have the ability to move mountains but I can honestly say I have never moved a mountain. And I have prayed for and believed I would receive it and I didn’t get it.

Sometimes we just have to say, this doesn’t make sense or I don’t understand it. But never lose faith in the promises we have seen will be ours.

Loving People. Loving God.