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Feb 18, 2012    |      1 comment

HYDRATE — WINNING FROM THE INSIDE 15 (Mt.5:27) “Adultery/Lust”


“You have heard that it was said, ‘Do not commit adultery.’ 28 But I tell you that anyone who looks at a woman lustfully has already committed adultery with her in his heart.” Matthew 5:27

DRINK IT IN:
I think Jesus had the gift of being direct. Wouldn’t you agree? It doesn’t seem like Jesus’ listeners ever had to wonder what He was thinking, because He just said it. I find this trait refreshing about people. Oh, it can be irritating, but to me, its better to know what’s going on inside the head of someone, than to wonder. Which do you prefer and why?

Jesus was being very direct here. He was leaving nothing up in the air for interpretation alterations. He made it very clear that Adultery is sin and He took it one step further. He said to even look lustfully upon a person is adultery as well. We should all be in agreement that “Actions speak louder than words.” The action of adultery is sin and evil. But Jesus takes this issue deeper. I think Jesus loved to talk about foundations and origins. In my opinion, Jesus was warning us about the dangers of what goes unspoken in our lives yet impacts us. The thoughts, feelings, emotions, mental images, that are alive inside our brains and hearts, are just as serious to God as real actions. In my Hydrate post #12 titled “Words,” I wrote about how Jesus says that the WORD itself is not where the evil resides. The evil resides inside the heart and becomes evident through the spoken word. Jesus is saying that what is in the heart ends up being spoken as words. So it is in this case with adultery. It starts in the heart. It starts internally. Its starts as a secret. I don’t know who originally said it, but someone once said, “a secret is the beginning of sin.”

Jesus doesn’t give us any “wiggle room” here. (As I typed the word wiggle, my mind just sang the lyrics “wiggle, wiggle, wiggle, wiggle, wiggle…Yeah” to the popularly funny and inappropriate song sung by LMFAO) And that just proves a point I am trying to make. When we see and hear and think about things it is a natural thing to internalize them. It just happens. I have only heard that song on the radio a few times, but its inside my head now and probably always will be. And this brings me right to the point I want us to have great clarity about. Before I go there, let me pause and ask…Do I have to go any further about Adultery being wrong? Just in case you are trying justify any sexually deviant behavior outside your relationship with your spouse, as non-adulterous, I want to clarify. Sex with another person, who is not your spouse of the opposite sex, is adulterous. It is Adultery. Period. The End. Done. If you desire to argue that…there is something deeply wrong in you. Stop it.

Let’s get to clarity as we go through this writing. I have a question for you. Just because I thought about the inappropriate song by LMFAO, did I sin? The answer is no. Because to have an initial thought about something is not sin. You would have to remove your brain to not have this happen. To have an initial thought about something like this, is called temptation. TEMPTATION IS NOT SIN. Temptation to sin, is not sin. Let’s make this practical to the subject at hand, adultery.

Jesus says that if we even look upon a person with lust in our heart, we have committed adultery. So what does it mean to “look upon a person with lust in our heart?” Have you noticed that Jesus never says it is a sin to lust? Go back and look up the verses. Lust, by itself is not sin. For if this is the case, then Lusting for Life would be sin. Lusting for Holiness would be sin. According to Wikipedia, “Lust is an emotional force that is directly associated with the thinking or fantasizing about one’s desire.” Did you get that? Please read it one more time. I can lust for God and other things. Its fascinating to me that we link lust with sex, but lust can be linked to anything holy OR unholy. Lust, in and of itself is simply a desire that God created us to have. It’s closely linked with passion and drive. So, here is the deal. WHAT we lust upon makes it holy or not. Please agree with me on this. I know its a different kind of thinking, but its important to have clarity on this. I speak with men, frequently, who feel like they are cursed, because of the strong desire that they have inside of them. When I explain to them that they have the gift of lust inside of them, and every person does, and that they need to manage and guide that lust, IT FREES THEM! There is a popular book out called “Every man’s battle.” I know the premise of the book and how its about helping men conquer sexual temptation. I would just prefer that the book be titled, “Every man’s Gift!” Desire is a gift! Desire is a synonym of lust. To call this desire, a battle, is to set a premise that there is something wrong with the way God created man. I know the authors did not intend this reality, but I have visited with many men who believe they have a curse, and it is titles like this book that instigate such feelings. So, does it bother you that I say that, “lust is a gift that we must manage…not a battle that we fight.” Do you sense the difference? Its a little tweak with a big difference. My definition gives a man an adventure to live, the standard definition gives a man a “disease” that he hopes he can survive with.

To remove lust/desire from a man would be to remove the engine from a Corvette. The engine is the power that drives the corvette to achieve the great feats that it can. To remove the engine from a corvette, because it’s too dangerous…now that would be a sad day! Do not forget that God created man with feelings, emotions, strengths, desire and then He created woman to compliment and team with man. God then created this incredible thing called sex for us to enjoy and to use as a form of creation that gives us little people that grow into big people and the cycle continues! Managed in a holy and honorable way and It remains exciting and thrilling. It most definitely is not a curse. Sin is the curse, not desire/lust. Lust unmanaged and focused on ungodly things is sin, but not lust itself. Again, we can lust for God and life! Let me create a hypothetical situation. Its not really hypothetical, because every man and maybe every woman has experienced it. I am going to make this hypothetical situation about a man who sees a beautiful woman walk by. Does the man notice that the she walked by? The only way he didn’t notice, is if this hypothetical situation happened in a hospital room and the man is in a coma! But I think He still would notice! LOL. Let’s imagine that this beautiful woman walked by, as the man was sitting in an outdoor patio by himself, having lunch. Once the man notices that she walks by, what happens next is critical, when it comes to spiritual health. If the man begins to mentally undress her and think of doing sexual acts with her, then he has taken his lust and turned it into adultery. But, if the man, as he notices her, takes his eyes off of her and says a prayer like this, “Lord, you are a wonderful creator, please help me to appreciate you by giving you thanks for how you have created woman, I do not want to dishonor you by worshipping the created, but you the creator,” now, he has not committed adultery and he has actually turned a sexually tempting scenario into a form of worshipping to God. There is no doubt that God was honored in that hypothetical situation.

The man managed his desire/lust. This management is a holy thing that honors God. Lust for the Creator, not the created. Big difference. Let me reinforce it this way. Thoughts aren’t sin, evil thoughts are. Sex isn’t sin, sexual immorality is. Testimony isn’t sin, false testimony is. Alcohol is not sin, drunkenness is. Money is not evil, love of money is. Taking naps is not evil, slothfulness is. Actions are not sin, evil actions are. Material goods are not sin, greed is. Anger is not sin, anger out of control is sin. I could go on and on. Please understand this, and if you do, it will free you to live like you’ve always dreamed as a Christian.

Jesus obviously hates sin. I also think that Jesus’ greatest focus was on the origins of sin. It is simple wisdom to want to prevent the action of sin by managing the seed of internal thoughts. Thoughts are the seeds that grow into a full fledged plants that produce fruit. Jesus is challenging us to focus on the seed and the plant will grow from there. He says, adultery is sin, but even thinking lustfully upon a person is sin as well. Be careful what you do with the God created lust that lives inside of you. Manage it well.

SWEAT IT OUT:
Do you have any Secrets that left unchecked can become sin?

What did you wake up thinking about this morning?

If you continue to dwell on what you woke up thinking about, will it lead to holiness or evil?
What “controversial” things do you have in your life that if taken too far become evil? (Things that tend to “stir” up controversy are Alcohol, sex, power, money, tattoos, materialism, _______________________, __________________________. (What am I leaving out?)

Today, I challenge you to guard your thoughts. They are the origins of Holy or Evil behavior. A great passage of Scripture to help you do this is

Philippians 4:8-9…
“8 And now, dear brothers and sisters, one final thing. Fix your THOUGHTS on what is true, and honorable, and right, and pure, and lovely, and admirable. THINK about things that are excellent and worthy of praise. 9 Keep putting into practice all you learned and received from me—everything you heard from me and saw me doing. THEN the God of peace will be with you.”

What a challenge!
Lust for it.

Feb 14, 2012    |      Comments Off on HYDRATE — WINNING FROM THE INSIDE 11 (Mt.5:17-20) “Law”

HYDRATE — WINNING FROM THE INSIDE 11 (Mt.5:17-20) “Law”


17 “Do not think that I have come to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I have not come to abolish them but to fulfill them. 18 For truly I tell you, until heaven and earth disappear, not the smallest letter, not the least stroke of a pen, will by any means disappear from the Law until everything is accomplished. 19 Therefore anyone who sets aside one of the least of these commands and teaches others accordingly will be called least in the kingdom of heaven, but whoever practices and teaches these commands will be called great in the kingdom of heaven. 20 For I tell you that unless your righteousness surpasses that of the Pharisees and the teachers of the law, you will certainly not enter the kingdom of heaven.”
Matthew 5:17-20 (NLT)

DRINK IT IN:
Do you ever get confused when you read the Bible? You don’t have to answer that, because we all know the answer is, “Of Course I do.”

This passage can be deeply confusing if we do not understand timing. In fact, timing is everything when it comes to understanding the Bible. If you understand WHEN Jesus said this teaching, then it really becomes easier to understand.

The timing of Jesus’ speaking this statement is still in the Old Testament Law’s timeframe. Remember that Jesus doesn’t initiate the New Testament “law” until he dies on the cross and raises from the dead. Just before He dies on the cross, He says to His mother, “Look, I make all things new.”

So…while Jesus is alive and is teaching this passage, early on in His ministry, He is obviously right in saying that His purpose is not to get rid of the Old Testament Law. We know, because of 20/20 hindsight, that Jesus’ purpose for coming was to pay the price for all of mankind’s sins. Period.

So…when Jesus says that He didn’t come to abolish the Law, He meant it literally. That is the Father’s job, not Jesus’. Jesus is comforting the Jew’s in this teaching because they truly rely on the Law. I’m sure, as Jesus shows up on the scene with such a different kind of teaching, that He caused them to fear that He might be trying to erase the Old Testament Law, which is everything their lives had been based on up to this point. When Jesus says to them, “I assure you that not ever the smallest stroke of a pen will be abolished from the Law until everything is accomplished”….Did you notice that He sneaks in an “UNTIL.” (Don’t forget that Jesus is the one who taught that we all should be “sly as a snake and innocent as a dove.” I think He is practicing that philosophy in this teaching! I love that.

He basically is saying in this teaching, “Nothing changes until everything is accomplished.” So…nearly 3 years after Jesus says this…He is on the Crucifixion Cross and He says, “IT IS FINISHED!” Finished is another word for accomplished. Accomplished/Finished/Complete does not mean annihilated/erased/forgotten. It means COMPLETE. When runners cross the finish line, it doesn’t erase the race. It simply means the race is finished. The history of that race will never be forgotten. The winner of the race has a trophy that has his/her name engraved in it. Nobody can take that race away from the runners. The race was real, it existed, it had a serious purpose, but it is finished, not erased.

So when Jesus says this teaching, the race is still being run. The race hasn’t finished yet and in three short years, the race will have been finished and Jesus is the one who crossed the finish line first and is the Champion of “the race.” Then…3 days later, as He conquers death through His resurrection, He creates a new law. Again…what a champ! This new law is what we will be talking about through the rest of this Hydrate series, so I don’t want to spend any more time on it during this devotion. I want to finish out what Jesus was specifically saying to the people who physically heard Him teach this.

As the Old Testament “race” was still on when Jesus said this, he was telling the crowd that the 613 current Israelite laws were still in affect. He was saying that they should follow the laws and do their very best to obey every detail.

He then said something that would have scared them deeply. He said…”if you want to enter the Kingdom of Heaven you are going to have to BE MORE RIGHTEOUS than the pharisees. Please understand that what the listeners would have heard when Jesus said this is very different than what He meant. Righteousness to a Jewish person in this timeframe means OBEY THE LAW. DO MORE. DON’T BREAK A SINGLE LAW. And, to top it all off, Jesus said they had to do it better than the Pharisees. A Pharisee was a teacher of the religious law back in Jesus’ day. A pharisee is someone who basically went to school to memorize all 613 Laws of the Old Testament and then strive to live them perfectly everyday. Can you imagine the fear it would have caused you to hear Jesus say, “if you want to go to Heaven, you have to be more righteous than the Pharisees?’ I’m sure Jesus really caught their attention and had them sitting on the edge of their seats.

But really…if they understood what Jesus was really saying…and many may have understood…then they would have taken a deep sigh of relief and been encouraged, instead of scared. You see the Pharisees were excellent at obeying all the laws of the Old Testament. They were so good at obeying every law that they didn’t worry about themselves, as much as, they focused on pointing out where other people were failing in obeying every 613 laws. So…Jesus did to them what they were doing to others. He pointed out where they were failing. Jesus was good at giving the righteous bullies of the world, a taste of their own medicine. In fact, here is one of Jesus’ “medicine moments.” Its found in Matthew 23:27-28…
“Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You are like whitewashed tombs, which look beautiful on the outside but on the inside are full of dead men’s bones and everything unclean. 28 In the same way, on the outside you appear to people as righteous but on the inside you are full of hypocrisy and wickedness.” Ouch! Nailed them, didn’t He?

So what did Jesus mean, as He taught the crowd by saying to them, ‘Your righteousness must surpass that of the Pharisees or you will not enter the Kingdom of Heaven?” He was saying that the Pharisees were good but they were lacking the one thing that would make them great. LOVE. (I am a firm believer that the enemy of the great is just the good.)

The Pharisees walked around demanding and pointing out where everybody was failing in obeying the law…and we all know that nobody can follow every law perfectly all day every day…so the Pharisees were failing in areas too. But they took it upon themselves to point out other peoples failures and were ignoring their own. They lacked humility and love. They were true hypocrites. Before you start shaking your finger at the Pharisees maybe you should think of this example. Have you ever noticed that when people drive slower than you, they are “idiots,” and when they drive faster than you, they are “maniacs.” If you are like this…then you might be like a Pharisee.

In my opinion, Jesus was saying to His listeners, “keep following the law, there is a good purpose in every law that the Father has given us, but what is more important than following every detail of the law, is being a person who obeys the law AND….IS LOVE.”

SWEAT IT OUT:

Do you have areas in your life where you are adamant about telling others to do what you say, but you don’t do very well at it yourself? A fun example from me about this would be how I tend to let my bedroom be messy, but I continually ‘ride’ my kids about cleaning up their rooms.

Can you and I think of other areas in our lives, more important than cleaning rooms, where we get upset at how “laws” are broken but we ourselves tend to break them too? I was at my daughters soccer game recently and after our team scored, we as the parents went crazy, hooping and hollering and I admit that I did a little extra to try to get “under the skin” of the parents on the other team. In a sick way, it made me feel powerful. (Don’t look down on me, at least I am confessing it! LOL) Then, a little later in the game, the opposing team scored on us and I noticed that the parents of this team returned some ‘extra’ hooping and hollering to give us a taste of our own medicine. I confess, again, that I was upset at them for their immature behavior…but I am the one who did it first! (How silly and stupid of me.) I caught my behavior and I began to cheer at the great plays and goals of both teams. It felt good to do what was right.

Can you think of bigger or smaller examples in your own life where you are causing darkness to prevail and yet you get angry at others for doing the same thing?

Do you have a “secret-tendency” to celebrate internally or out loud when other people fail at something. (If you do, surely you are not proud of this are you?)

Are you demanding of things from others and at the same time not willing to do as you demand?

Are there areas in your life where you come across judgmental or hypocritical? (Its very hard to be “self-aware” about this. Maybe you would have the courage to ask a trusted person in your life this question. Yes? ) Who are you going to ask? Do it soon.

Today, live your life being an encourager. When you see people fail be the one to forgive first and show them grace.

I think, in this one teaching, that Jesus is simply saying, “Focus on your own mistakes, not on the mistakes of others.”
Its very easy to get judgmental when all you do is focus on other people’s sins. Next time somebody sins against you and you find yourself struggling to let it go…just ask yourself if you have ever sinned against anybody. It will put things in perspective very quickly.

So…again…be an encourager today. Give some extra grace to others.
When you and I do this very thing. It helps us be people of kindness and understanding.
It helps us to be people of love.
I hope that you and I will live this way from now on.
Work on honoring the things Christ asks of us AND being a person of love.
You’ll look a lot like Jesus if you do.

Feb 11, 2012    |       2 comments

HYDRATE –WINNING FROM THE INSIDE 8 (Mt.5:10-12) “Persecution”


“God blesses those who are persecuted for doing right, for the Kingdom of Heaven is theirs. God blesses you when people mock you and persecute you and lie about you and say all sorts of evil things against you because you are my followers. Be happy about it! Be very glad! For a great reward awaits you in Heaven. And remember, the ancient prophets were persecuted in the same way.”
Matthew 5:10-12

DRINK IT IN:
When was the last time you were persecuted for being a follower of Jesus Christ?

Now…don’t misunderstand me here. Please don’t be like the people who stand out on street corners and yell from their megaphones, spew hate by picketing military funerals, or demand that people follow Jesus. These groups of people think they are honoring Jesus. They get more ‘pumped up’ when they get arrested, make the news and stir up controversy, because they think they are facing persecution on behalf of Jesus for doing good. This is not a biblical thing. This is not a holy thing. This is not something that Jesus did. These groups or individuals will state that their 1st Amendment rights give them the right to behave the way they do. They are right in the fact that legally, their 1st Amendment rights allow them to behave this way. However, the “laws” of God take priority over the “laws” of the land. In this case, they honor their 1st Amendment rights and dishonor their Lord and Savior. Jesus was always very kind and gentle to the people who were far from Him. I think that Jesus would use a mega-phone to let these kinds of people, who are behaving this way on street corners, know that they are actually doing harm to the Kingdom of Heaven…but I think He would “one-up” them…He would use a whip!

So, back to my question. When has your holy behavior landed you in “hot-water?” When have you been demoted for standing for Jesus in a gentle way? When did you not get the promotion because you refused to do things “under the table?” When were you left out of the circle of friends because you keep the “bar” to high? When were you last seen carrying your Bible to a lunch break to spend time with God? When was the last time you actually had to pay more taxes because you refused to lie about your income? When was the last time you dropped your ego and actually agreed to go to marital counseling with your spouse? When was the last time you got flipped off because you simply refused to drive ‘that’ fast? When was the last time people rolled their eyes at you for leading your family in prayer before your meal at a nice restaurant? When was the last time you gently spoke your biblical opinion about a hot “political” topic during a discussion about abortion, illegal immigration, same-sex marriage, homosexuality, or other “hot” topics? When was the last time you took one of your Saturday’s off and helped a neighbor in need? When was the last time you “persecuted” your bank account and personal lifestyle because you chose to give 10% of your income to the Lord’s work? The questions could go on for miles, but I think we get the idea.

Persecution comes in many forms. I’m simply asking when was the last time you faced any on behalf of Jesus Christ?

The following is a passage in Scripture that explains what happened to some Christians a long time ago for taking a stand, in love, for Jesus Christ.
“But others were tortured, refusing to turn from God in order to be set free. They placed their hope in a better life after the resurrection. 36 Some were jeered at, and their backs were cut open with whips. Others were chained in prisons. 37 Some died by stoning, some were sawed in half, and others were killed with the sword. Some went about wearing skins of sheep and goats, destitute and oppressed and mistreated. 38 They were too good for this world, wandering over deserts and mountains, hiding in caves and holes in the ground.
39 All these people earned a good reputation because of their faith, yet none of them received all that God had promised. 40 For God had something better in mind for us, so that they would not reach perfection without us.” (Hebrews 11:35-40, NLT)

SWEAT IT OUT:
Would you take 30 seconds and sit quietly and see if God would remind you of an area(s) in your life where you could take a gentle, stronger stand for Him? And If you do, take a gentle stronger stand for Him, it might have you being a bit persecuted?

I pray for you that you will take that gentle strong stand. I pray that you will be persecuted for doing it. I pray that you will be happy about it. I pray you will be glad about it.

For if you do…You know that the Kingdom of Heaven is Yours.
Well…that is what Jesus says.

Feb 6, 2012    |      Comments Off on HYDRATE — WINNING FROM THE INSIDE 3 (Mt.5:5) “Meek”

HYDRATE — WINNING FROM THE INSIDE 3 (Mt.5:5) “Meek”


“Blessed are the meek, for they will inherit the earth.”
Matthew 5:5

DRINK IT IN:
Are you meek? The average person might respond, when asked this question, with, “heck no…I’m not meek!” This character trait, called meekness, is not one that the world determines to be of value. In fact, I would say, that the world believes that if you are meek you are weak. The world would continue to say, ‘If you are meek, then you are weak, which means you are going to get your butt kicked over and over and finish last.” Jesus would push back on this argument by saying, “The last shall be first.” Jesus also would say, “whoever exalts himself will be humbled and whoever humbles himself shall be exalted.”

So, I suppose the big question is this. Who’s right? Jesus, or the world? When “its” all said and done…does Jesus win? When the world is finished as we know it today, will Jesus have been right? I’m not a betting man…but this one is worth betting on! This is one bet I’m willing to go, “All In!”

Let’s get right to it. What is MEEKNESS?

Maybe a better way to understand what being meek is, is to first understand what it is not. An easy way to understand meekness, is to first admit, that JESUS IS MEEK. We know that Jesus was strong and had all the power of God, the Father. We know that Jesus got angry and made a whip and used it to whip people out of the Temple. We know that Jesus called the Religious leaders bad names. So meek does not mean weak. Meek does not mean, to remain quiet. It most definitely does not mean timid. Meek does not mean, never get angry. Meek does not mean to think poorly of yourself. It does not mean that you should think of yourself as of little worth.

Meekness does not demand to think poorly of yourself, I think meek simply means that you do not think about yourself much at all.

A meek person is a secure person. A meek person accepts that they, in the big picture of life, are small and do not have real control. A meek person knows that their Creator is great and totally in control. A meek person knows that they have been made in the likeness of their Creator. A meek person knows that they are a child of Almighty God and that cannot be taken away. A meek person knows that God doesn’t NEED them, but wants to know them and work together with them to bring a touch of Heaven to earth. A meek person does not have to defend themselves, because they are already secure in who God made them to be. A meek person believes in what God says about them and ignores what other people say about them.

A meek person can have unbelievable power and strength and could dominate any situation they wanted to control. But a meek person doesn’t have to control and they acknowledge this fact and are okay with it. A meek person understands the Bible passage that says, “Where I am weak, God is strong.” A meek person’s major goal is to do his/her very best to behave like Jesus Christ and leave the results up to God. To the meek, ALL CONTROL belongs to God.

I think that is a solid idea of what MEEK is.

Now what does Jesus mean when He says that the meek shall inherit the earth?

Some people are confused about what Heaven is going to be like. Some people are confused about what the end times are really going to be like. Now, the reality, is that none of us knows every detail, but the Bible does paint a strong picture of what Heaven is going to be like. Its pretty clear in the Scriptures, that when Jesus returns to settle the score once and for all with the devil, that everything on the earth is going to be destroyed. It doesn’t necessarily say that the Earth is going to be destroyed. Everything is going to be destroyed by fire. That means that God is going to rebuild. Re-new and re-do. Maybe its kind of like when God “destroyed” everything with the great flood. God started over. The Bible says that a New Jerusalem will be built and placed on earth. Sin will be destroyed. Our earthly bodies will be destroyed and we will be given new bodies for our souls to live in. The Bible talks about relationships, food, worship, no more pain, etc. etc. when it explains Heaven.

Its very easy for me to read the Bible, and be able to say, that Heaven is going to be just as physical and real as our lives are today. Heaven is earth renewed to what God intended when He first created it all from the very beginning. If you would like to do a very technical study on Heaven, then I would highly recommend Randy Alcorn’s book titled, “Heaven.” It will excite you about the realities of Heaven. Your expanded understanding of Heaven will encourage you to work on your meekness…because the meek will inherit the earth!

Be meek. It will be worth it. It might make you finish last here on earth…but…the promise is…the meek shall be first in eternity! Hmmm…not a bad deal. Call it delayed gratification. The average life span is about 85 years. Eternity is forever. I’ll trade 85 years of potential last places for an eternity of Champion.

Have you ever said this phrase…”Your day is coming?” That phrase can be spoken to both the non-meek and the meek. Which ever one you are or choose to be…Your Day is Coming!

Its your choice which one you want to be.

SWEAT IT OUT:

Are there areas in your life where you are not meek? Maybe ask a trusted person in your life to help you notice areas.
Are there things you are trying to control and/or force to happen?
Who have you been “dominating” lately in life? What can you do today to elevate them and show more meekness?

How would your day look today, if you chose to let God have all the control and you focused only on behaving in a way that honors God?

Maybe, an easy way to remember how to live today as a person of meekness, is to remember these two words.

HONOR & DELIGHT.

What if all day…you focused on “honoring” the Lord of Lords and King of Kings, Jesus Christ & worked on “delighting” the people that God puts in your circle of influence?

Think that would make your day a good one? Ultimately it won’t matter if your day is a good one or not…what will matter is that you will be a person of Meekness.

If you are meek, then Jesus says you are Blessed!

Have a meek day.

Feb 5, 2012    |       2 comments

HYDRATE — WINNING FROM THE INSIDE 2 (Mt.5:4) “Mourn”

“Those who mourn are blessed, for they will be comforted.”
Matthew 5:4 (HCSB)

DRINK IT IN:

Have you ever truly mourned? It usually takes the loss of something in our lives to cause us to mourn. So, it’s fair for me to say that EVERYBODY at one point or another has mourned, right? I do not think this is what Jesus was talking about when He said, “Those who mourn are blessed.” If that is the case, Jesus would have just said…”Blessed is Everybody!” Because everybody, sooner or later mourns. So what did Jesus mean when He said, “Those who mourn are blessed?”
Put on your thinking caps with me here.

Remember that BLESSED, in this instance, does not mean happy. It means, ACCEPTED. This passage could be translated, “God accepts into Heaven those who mourn…for they will be comforted.” The hard truth in this teaching of Jesus is the fact that God LOVES everyone, but He only ACCEPTS into Heaven those who have accepted Jesus as Lord and Savior into their personal lives AND mourn. Big difference.

So what does Jesus mean in this passage? “Those who Mourn will be blessed, for they will be comforted.”

I think the best way to fully grasp what Jesus meant here, is to understand what I like to call, origins. In order to understand the origins of God, then we need to reexamine the very beginning of time. We do this by asking this question…what did God intend for mankind from the very beginning? When I say beginning, I mean, Adam and Eve. The Beginning! What did God intend for the world to be like? Let’s go to the beginning.

And so, God created Adam. He put Adam in charge over everything on the planet to manage and steward. Adam got to spend “face-time” with The Father, Son and Holy Spirit. God’s intent from the very beginning is for mankind to be up-close and personal with God all the time! Adam got to do some pretty cool things under the leadership of God. Adam actually got to name all the animals. I like to have fun thinking about how Adam started naming all the animals…one by one he got started on naming the animals with great creativity and energy. This early and energetic start allowed Adam to come up with names like, Hippopotamus, Duck-billed platypus, Giraffe, Elephant, Tyrannosaurus, Barracuda, Flamingo, Orangutang, Alligator, chimpanzee, and salamander. My opinion…about this naming task that Adam was given to do…it began to tire him, and much like any person, his patience grew thin as he looked down the long line of animals yet to be named. So instead of being creative, because creativity takes a lot of energy, Adam turned into, “Mr. Obvious.” He started naming the animals based off what they obviously did or at least what they looked like. Hummingbird, Road Runner, Grasshopper, Jellyfish, Red Deer, Stinkbug, and Woodpecker. So as the day wore on, and it is obvious that Adam got tired and grouchy and names began to shorten and we ended up with dog, pig, cat, rat, yak, Bee, Ant, Ox and in a grouchy last minute decision he named one an Ass! LOL

But…as the story moves forward…Adam, after naming all the creatures is still alone. God said at this moment, “Its not good for man to be alone!” And so he put Adam to sleep and in a miraculous move of creation, God creates someone just like Adam, but “better.” This new “creature” is a total compliment to Adam and is very similar but also different. She has “curves” that he doesn’t have. He is immediately very “impressed” and says out-loud to God…”WO–Man!” And God said…that works! Let’s call her Woman!

Sorry. Can we get back to the point please?

What I’m really trying to point out here is this. God was with Adam and Eve, face to face! Adam and Eve had no shame or embarrassment of any kind. There was no competition, no comparisons, no jealousy, no revenge, no hurt, no anger, etc. Animals and people were not afraid of each other. Perfect Community. No, greed, weeds, dirty deeds, or plastic surgeries.

God meant for it all to be perfect. Perfect community. Perfect relationships. Perfect life! That was God’s intent for the origin.

AND THEN CAME SIN. Freedom of choice turned selfish. Deception grew, jealousy and scarcity began to breed. Hurt…anger…murder…revenge. People taking advantage of each other. Sharing began to dissipate. Greed. In the lost face-time and community with God, people began to “re-group.” Racism formed, superiority complexes, gangs formed, cliques. Instead of share and love it became take and separate. Instead of give and share, it turned to keep and protect. Instead of work together, it became monopolize and dominate.

Every year that has passed since that first sin, it grows worse. Nearly 2000 years ago, the Apostle Paul warned of what times would be like as it grows closer to Jesus returning to break this world’s curse. Paul wrote in the letter of the Bible called 2 Timothy 2:3-4, “For a time is coming when people will no longer listen to sound and wholesome teaching. They will follow their own desires and will look for teachers who will tell them whatever their itching ears want to hear. They will reject the truth and chase after myths.”

As Christians, we understand what God intended our lives to be, starting with creation. We also know what has happened to our world. We understand that each of us have contributed to the problem. All this causes us to MOURN. We long for the day that Jesus will return and make all things new. He will RE-new all things to the original intent when He returns. Until then, we watch the 10 O’clock News and it causes us to Mourn. We see infants born with unbelievable mal-formities and we see the curse of sin growing through disease and disorders of every kind…and it causes us to MOURN. We see a child being bullied because he is different, and it causes us to MOURN. We study our history and read about people who, under the name of Christianity, marched forth to rape, kill and murder muslims in the Crusades of old…and it causes us to MOURN. We see Muslims Extremists fly airplanes into buildings…and it causes us to MOURN. Lying, cheating, stealing, sexual deviation, and every other form of self-serving action…growing, and growing out of control and it all causes true understanders of the origins of God to MOURN.

Its almost maddening to simply read the paragraph we just read above. Its really out of control. How long will Jesus wait?

If you want to read a passage in scripture, only 11 verses long, that perfectly talks about what I mean by, “Blessed are those who mourn for they will be comforted,” then read Ezekiel Chapter 9 in the Old Testament. Notice what happens to those who are in the city who are “mourning.” How do the angels know which ones are mourning? It says they are the ones, “weeping and sighing because of all the detestable sins that are happening in their city.” The Lord commands the angels to put a mark on these people’s heads. Go and read what happens to the people who DO NOT have the “mark.” What happens to the people with the “mark?” (Grab a Bible and read it.)

There is something deeply inspiring about this story of Ezekiel 9. The “Mark” that is given to those who are “MOURNING” is written on their foreheads. The people with the mark written on their foreheads are promised that they will be saved/comforted while everybody else is annihilated. The cool part of this story is the actual “mark.” The mark is the Hebrew alphabet letter called the Tav. The Tav…in Ezekiel’s time…when drawn on the foreheads of the people who were mourning…is this. Here is the “Tav” as it was written on the foreheads of the people in Ezekiel’s time. Today we know this symbol to be the sign of the CROSS!! This story happened nearly 600 years before Jesus dies on the cross. The sign of the cross that was written on the people’s heads, because they were mourning, “saves” them and comforts them from the wrath. (Do you see the prophecy in this story?)

So…eventually Jesus shows up on the scene and teaches about those who mourn and how they will be blessed. The people who mourn today, do it because they know what the world SHOULD be if it weren’t for sin. Those who mourn have a deep desire to live in the “God intended world.” Those who mourn understand this. Those who mourn will be comforted. Those who mourn will be the ones accepted into God’s Kingdom of Heaven where they will live just as physically as we do today, but in a renewed world. The world renewed as God had originally planned it to be. That is something worth mourning for!

“Blessed are those who Mourn, for they will be comforted.”

SWEAT IT OUT:
As you dwell on the depth of this one sentence that Jesus said, I hope you will focus on what ultimately has caused those who do mourn, to mourn. It is sin. So in this short devotion, I hope you will do some practical things to help you be in a better “up-close and personal” relationship with God, right now. We don’t have to wait until Heaven to have some up close and personal time with God. Your relationship with God won’t fully be what you would like it to be until eternity in the Kingdom of Heaven begins. Don’t forget, though, that God wants us to bring some Heaven to earth right now. If He didn’t, He would not have taught us to pray, “Thy Kingdom come, thy will be done ON EARTH…AS it is in Heaven! So here are a few things to do, to bring a taste of Heaven to earth right now.

First of all…are there any sins that you are continually practicing that are causing you extra pain and regret in your life? 1 John 1:9 says, “If we confess our sins, He (God) is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and cleanse us from all unrighteousness.”
Are you being Greedy, arrogant, rude, selfish, drunk, sexual deviation, continual overeating, jealous, revengeful, judgmental, etc? If so, confess them and stop committing them.

You should be mourning this world right now, and wishing it were what it is supposed to be. So why don’t you contribute to the “what it is supposed to be?” There are a lot of people who suffer extra because of this “fallen” world. Jesus tells us what to do for these people. Feed them, clothe them, visit them, give water to the thirsty, care for the orphan, etc. Join a local church that is actively doing these things and participate yourself. Find somebody in your circle of influence who is struggling because of our world’s condition. Help them in anyway they need help.

If you have secrets in your life…those secrets are the beginning to sin and destruction. Admit the truth and accept the consequences and be free in the eyes of God. Forgiveness is real. Its not easy, but it is real.

Something to think about…Do you MOURN the current status of our earthly condition? If you do not…are you okay with that? Have you become hardened and cynical and sarcastic? I struggle with having a hard heart sometimes and also with sarcasm and cynicism. Those are not traits we should be proud of. Practice what Philippians 4:4-8 says. “Rejoice in the Lord always. Think about those things that are lovely, admirable and worthy of praise. Then the God of peace will be with you.” This world SHOULD make you mourn. If you do not, something is not right with you and your walk with Christ. Until Jesus returns there should be at least a little mourning going on in your life…an ache for what life is supposed to be.

The world we live in right now…was not meant to be this way. Someday Jesus will return to restore it to its intended condition. Make sure you are ready. What a world its going to be! I am hoping to see you there and spend eternity with you. If you don’t know for sure that you are going to spend eternity in the Kingdom of Heaven, then we need to talk. Contact me and we’ll get this all straightened out. It will be more than worth it.

“Those who Mourn are blessed, for they will be comforted.”

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