Tag Archives: Jesus

Devotional

Frankenstorm

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Read Exodus 14; Mark 4:35-41

ALSO IN SCRIPTURE
“Be strong and bold; have no fear or dread of them, because it is the LORD your God who goes with you; he will not fail you nor forsake you.” (Deuteronomy 31:6, NRSV).

Well, for those of us who live along the Northeastern Seaboard of the United States, We can say that Hurricane Sandy arrived with a vengeance. And what a monster of a Storm. It’s around 10 PM on Monday, October 29, and I am writing this in the dark on my iPhone. There’s nothing quite like sitting a house with no power, faced with the sound of perilous wind howling like the hounds of hell outside and the uncertainty of what each moment might bring.

It is understandable how each and everyone of us can get caught in fear of the storms that interfere with our lives and threaten us. It is in moments like this, that I can relate with the disciples who feared for their lives as they were caught in a terrible storm while on the Sea of Galilee. It was not the storm that scared them as much as the thought of being in the storm alone.

The same is true for the Israelites during the exodus from Egypt. It is understandable how fearful they must have been when they were facing the depths of the sea, caught between a watery grave and Pharaoh’s legion fast approaching them. It is understandable how fearful people are when storms, literal or metaphorical, come crashing in with little to know warning.

Yet, Jesus tells us, just as he told the winds and the waves, “Peace! Be Still!” Jesus assures us that no matter how afraid we might be, we are not alone. God is with us and will never forsake us. Even when our lives are threatened, even when we pass from this life to eternity, God is always with us!

And that is reassuring. As I sit here in the dark, I can certainly imagine how much more terrifying it would be if I were here alone. I can hear the voices of my children playing and laughing as if Frankenstorm weren’t out side at all. This is because they are assured, just as I am assured, they are not alone! As a result of that assurance, they have nothing to fear. And that is the common theme through out all of Scripture…”Fear not, for I am with you! I will never leave you, nor forsake you. Peace! Be still, my child,” says the LORD, “for I AM with you always, even until the end of the age!”

THOUGHT OF THE DAY
No one is an island. When God created people, God created community.”

PRAYER
Lord, thank you for always being with me and for creatig me to be present in the lives of others. Amen.

Devotional

What Did Jesus Do?

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What Did Jesus Do?

Read Matthew 5 (through chapter 7 if you have time); 25:31-46; Luke 4:16-21; 6:17-49

ALSO IN SCRIPTURE

“If I am not doing the works of my Father, then do not believe me. But if I do them, even though you do not believe me, believe the works, so that you may know and understand that the Father is in me and I am in the Father.” (John 10:37-38)

Who is Jesus Christ? Is he a prophet who lived in Palestine over 2,000 years ago? Is he the messiah as promised throughout the Torah and the prophets in the Hebrew scriptures?  Is he the true King of Israel, in the line of David? Is he the Son of God, born of a virgin? Is he the Word of God made flesh, the King of Kings and the Lord of Lords? Is Jesus God?  These questions and more are answered in various ways by various different Christians, and depending on where you find yourself in your faith, you may or may not find yourself shouting “heresy” at the answers that different Christians might put forth.

What’s more, not only are there questions regarding Jesus’ divine identity; however, there are questions regarding Jesus’ personality and his mission as well. There are those who would claim Jesus to be a peace-loving guy, while others would claim that Jesus was a no-nonsense guy who flung tables around in order to “cleanse” the temple of corruption.  There are those who would show that Jesus was compassionate and all-accepting, and others who would show that Jesus had little to no tolerance for those who he saw as opposing God.  So, who is this Jesus Christ?

The fact of the matter is that Jesus cannot be easily pinned down. While doctrine states that Jesus was truly divine, it also says that he was truly human as well.  And the range of emotions and actions that come from Jesus in the four Gospels alone is enough to be a thorn in the side to anyone who wants Jesus to completely fit their mold.  We, as Christians, run into problems when we get caught up in debates about who Jesus is all the while ignoring the mission of Christ that was clearly outlined in the Gospels.

But, perhaps we are asking the wrong questions. Rather than trying to get the edge on who Jesus is, perhaps we should focus our search for answers around the question of what Jesus did. We should be asking ourselves, what did Jesus do?  Jesus did teach people, he did heal people, he did accept those who had been rejected. Jesus did stand against religious dogma, he did show compassion to those who were on the fringes of society, and he did preach the imminent arrival of God’s Kingdom, which he saw as being ushered in by God through himself and those who followed him. For Jesus, ushering in the Kingdom of God (through bringing hope, healing, and wholeness) was HIS mission. Nothing shows this more than Matthew’s Sermon on the Mount, Luke’s Sermon on the Plain, Jesus’ mission statement in Luke, and Jesus’ stark illustration given to his disciples (in Matthew 25) of king who separates the sheep from the goats.

When we ask the question of what Jesus did, it gives us a clearer understanding of what we should be doing. If we are to be imitators of Christ, and/or allow Christ to live through us, then we should be engaging and investing in the same mission that Jesus is engaged and invested in. We should be working to usher in the Kingdom of God, bringing hope, healing and wholeness to those of whom God has put all around us. If we invest ourselves in Christ’s mission, then I believe we will find that the answers we have come to through our intellect will fade away and be transcended by the answers that will have risen up out of our faith.

THOUGHT OF THE DAY

“An ounce of love is worth a pound of knowledge.” – John Wesley

PRAYER

Lord, help me to keep my focus on your mission and use me to usher in your Kingdom to my community. Amen.

Devotional

Truly Living

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Read Matthew 16:24-27

ALSO IN SCRIPTURE

“Therefore, brothers and sisters, be all the more eager to confirm your call and election, for if you do this, you will never stumble” (2 Peter 1:10).

One of my favorite films is the movie “Braveheart”, which tells the true story of the Scottish freedom fighter and revolutionary, William Wallace, who lived in the late 13th and early 14th centuries. Wallace was born and lived in a Scotland that was occupied and ruled by the English.  During this time, Wallace witnessed many oppressive things happen to his people.  The English were heavily taxing the Scots, banning them from observing their traditions, raping their women and killing people as they saw fit.

Wallace, who was a landowner and had much to lose, would have none of that. Instead, he rose up and rallied an army of Scots to fight for their freedom against the English. Though he had some decisive victories, including sacking and taking the city of York in Northern England, Wallace was eventually captured, hung, drawn and quartered as a traitor.

In the film, as he was awaiting his death, the princess comes to him and begs him to plead for mercy, to confess in order to be spared a painful death.  Wallace refused and the princess begged him again saying, “But they will kill you, it will be awful.”  It is here that William Wallace looks her in the eyes and says, “Every man dies, not every man truly lives.”

How true is that? Each and every one of us will die, yet many of us go through life without ever truly living. Jesus says similar words in the suggested reading above, but what does it mean to truly live, what does it mean to inherit true life? This is not a question that is easily answered and, for each person, the answer will most definitely be different.

For each of us, there is a divinely ordained purpose. God has a plan for each and every one of us and until we answer the call to pursue God’s will we will not be truly living. Just as both Jesus and William Wallace did, we too will have to make sacrifices to pursue the calling and/or purpose placed on our lives.  The question is, will you make the sacrifices to serve God’s purpose for your life, or will you try to hold on to the “life” you think you have already? What is God calling you to do? What is the purpose God has ordained for you?

I, the writer of this devotional, cannot answer these questions for you; however, God can and will. Remember what Jesus says in Matthew 7:7 “Ask, and it will be given you; search, and you will find; knock, and the door will be opened for you” (NRSV). Be present in the lives of others and seek God’s will in your life. In fact, seek God’s will for your life by being present in the lives of others. If you do so you will most definitely inherit true life.

THOUGHT OF THE DAY

A life without purpose is as good as faith without action.

PRAYER

Gracious God, what is it that you would have me do today and beyond? What purpose are you calling me to? Guide me, O God, toward your will so that I may be a flavorful granule of salt and a light for the world to see.  Guide me toward the true life that you have in store for me. Amen.