On the fourteenth of April 70 AD the Roman army captured Jerusalem and destroyed the temple.

 

Not a surprise, if you listen to Jesus words some 40 years earlier:

Mark 13 1 As Jesus was leaving the temple, one of his disciples said to him, “Look, Teacher! What massive stones! What magnificent buildings!”

2 “Do you see all these great buildings?” replied Jesus. “Not one stone here will be left on another; every one will be thrown down.”

 

And, in fact, Jesus makes many predictions in the thirteenth chapter of Mark.

• The end of the temple.
• The deceiving of the saints.
• A corruption of the temple.
• The Son returning.
• The end.

 

Mark 13  32 “No one knows about that day or hour, not even the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father. 33 Be on guard! Be alert! You do not know when that time will come. 34 It’s like a man going away: He leaves his house and puts his servants in charge, each with his assigned task, and tells the one at the door to keep watch.

35 “Therefore keep watch because you do not know when the owner of the house will come back–whether in the evening, or at midnight, or when the rooster crows, or at dawn. 36 If he comes suddenly, do not let him find you sleeping. 37 What I say to you, I say to everyone: ‘Watch!’ “

 

Just as the temple came to be destroyed, all the words of Jesus have or will come to pass.

 

Pray for our country, our world.

Pray that God would end the sickness and return us to life.

Pray that we would return to knowing who the center of the Universe truly is.

 

Above all things, this is what we ALL should be seeking to do…..to return God to the throne.

 

There are many themes of the Bible that I would love to write about.  Prophecy is not one of them. I can not pretend to know what the future holds.  And, Jesus said anyway: “No one knows about that day or hour, not even the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father.  This releases me from having to worry about it.

 

But what I do know is this:

 

Our world is temporary.  God has told us this.

It will not be here forever, and it is not our future home.

Heaven is our home.

So when you pray tonight, remember above all things, the Lord’s prayer:

 

Your Kingdom Come

Your Will Be Done

On Earth As It Is In Heaven

 

Today….Is YOUR Time

It Is Not Your Time To Mandate God

It Is Your Time To Realign With Him

 

It Is YOUR Time

To Find A Savior, A Hope

To Put Your Hope In A Kingdom

A Hope Not In Earth…But In Heaven

A Hope Not In Man…But In Jesus

A Hope Not In The Temporary…But In The Eternal

 

There has never been a better time to pray…….

To pray for our country, our world, our community.

To pray for the hope of the nations.

To pray for the only hope that you can ever have.

 

Who Am I? By Casting Crowns

Who Am I?

That The Lord Of All The Earth

Would Care To Know My Name

Would Care To Feel My Hurt? ………

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hTaYWoHNfRI

 

In The Name of the Father and the 

Son and the Holy Spirit.  Amen.

 

Know anyone who might like these?  Encourage them to jump on to 2minutewarning.blog and hit the FOLLOW button!!!

Coach J

Jesus showed up in the most turbulent of political climates.  The Roman Empire was vast and powerful–one of the largest in world history.  And they ruled over their subjects with an iron fist. In their reign, they executed THOUSANDS of people.

 

So to say that Jesus showed up in difficult political times would be an understatement.  And to take this notion farther, it is quite possible that one of His disciples, Simon the Zealot, had killed Roman Soldiers.

 

So when the Pharisees and Herodians went to trick Jesus, they were hoping to put His life in danger:

Mark 12  13 Later they sent some of the Pharisees and Herodians to Jesus to catch him in his words. 14 They came to him and said, “Teacher, we know you are a man of integrity. You aren’t swayed by men, because you pay no attention to who they are; but you teach the way of God in accordance with the truth. Is it right to pay taxes to Caesar or not? 15 Should we pay or shouldn’t we?”

16 But Jesus knew their hypocrisy. “Why are you trying to trap me?” he asked. “Bring me a denarius and let me look at it.” They brought the coin, and he asked them, “Whose portrait is this? And whose inscription?”

“Caesar’s,” they replied.

17 Then Jesus said to them, “Give to Caesar what is Caesar’s and to God what is God’s.”

And they were amazed at him.

 

Jesus came to be King.

 

But the disciples had expected quite a different means to put Him on the throne.

 

How shocked they must have been when they finally realized that He would truly be crucified.

 

They slept as He prayed.

They betrayed Him (Judas).

They denied knowing Him (Peter).

They ran.

They hid.

And they cowered.

 

Little did they know that the outcome was still as Jesus said it would be.  He….would be King.

 

The world of politics is a tricky one.

 

And I, more than most, have been drawn in.

• It angers me.
• It brings out my worst.
• And it sometimes taints my view on what really matters.

Politics and Political Agendas—do not bring out my best.

 

And as I meditated on what God would have me say regarding this verse, it took several days to even know what to write.

 

But tonight I am convicted.

 

And so I hope that I can communicate what God truly would like to say.

 

Lord, USE my words, my fingers, to spread your gospel in a hostile political time.  USE your Hand on your Heart and your Spirit to change our minds. To change us. That we might be salt and light to the world.  That we might actually fly ABOVE the political climate and be who You’ve called us to be.

 

The reality that I would like to convey is this:

YOU are more powerful than any president.

YOU have a chance to impact cities…..even nations.

YOU are called by the grace of God to enact change in this world that could never be reduced to what the world has limited us to.

YOU.

 

I write this not to influence you to be arrogant OR greedy OR haughty.

 

I write it to remind you that when you receive Jesus and ask—the Holy Spirit lives in you.

 

You see—Kings and Dictators and Prime Ministers and Presidents and Senators and Judges—they all have one thing in common.  Their time to rule is short and will soon be forgotten. They rule over a kingdom that will collapse in the sea and never stand again.  Their power over people can only last a lifetime—if that. They can be wealthy beyond description, but when they expire—that wealth gets divided up among the living.  And their power and popularity and influence will never extend beyond their last breath. They are mortal.

 

Jesus—is a different story.

 

His…Kingdom is eternal.

He…owns the cattle on a thousand hills.

He…is the Lion of the Tribe of Judah.

 

He is the Beginning…And the End.  And His Kingdom will never fail or fall or flinch.

 

It rescues the broken and the weak and the overlooked.  He doesn’t need to conquer anything because EVERY KNEE WILL BOW BEFORE HIM.  He IS His own political party. He IS. And there will be no pandering, no comradery, no lobbyists.

 

We won’t be able to earn His favor or change His mind.  And NO ONE will be able to overthrow His Kingdom—but better than that—NO ONE will want to.

 

Read the aforementioned verse with wisdom.

 

OVER THROW your government.  Give to Caesar what is Caesar’s……And give to God what is God’s.

 

No government can save.

No government can deliver.

No government can bring eternal life…or hope…or peace.

No government can forgive sins…or pay off your debts…or exclude you from breaking the law.

 

No government can do any of that.

 

But you can.

 

You can bring Jesus to the lost and ask the Holy Spirit to deliver.  You can pray that He might heal. You can ask Him to bring peace. And you can share Jesus with the broken.

 

If the government can throw the ball 500 yards, then YOU?  YOU could throw that same ball TO THE MOON.

 

Walk into your calling.

 

Your Love Oh Lord By Third Day

Your Love Oh Lord Reaches To The Heavens

Your Faithfulness Stretches To The Sky

Your Righteousness Is Like The Mighty Mountains

Your Justice Flows Like The Oceans Tides

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0OBRvxrzhqs

 

In The Name of the Father and the 

Son and the Holy Spirit.  Amen.

 

Know anyone who might like these?  Encourage them to jump on to 2minutewarning.blog and hit the FOLLOW button!!!

Coach J

It is normal for us to wonder:  “What is He waiting for?” “Why doesn’t He just show up?”  “Why is He late?” But just because it is normal—it does not make us right.  The reality is simple: God isn’t ON TIME, God IS TIME.

 

Let me prove it to you:

 

Mark 11  1 As they approached Jerusalem and came to Bethphage and Bethany at the Mount of Olives, Jesus sent two of his disciples, 2 saying to them, “Go to the village ahead of you, and just as you enter it, you will find a colt tied there, which no one has ever ridden. Untie it and bring it here. 

3 If anyone asks you, ‘Why are you doing this?’ tell him, ‘The Lord needs it and will send it back here shortly.’ “

4 They went and found a colt outside in the street, tied at a doorway. As they untied it, 5 some people standing there asked, “What are you doing, untying that colt?” 6 They answered as Jesus had told them to, and the people let them go. 7 When they brought the colt to Jesus and threw their cloaks over it, he sat on it. 8 Many people spread their cloaks on the road, while others spread branches they had cut in the fields. 9 Those who went ahead and those who followed shouted,

   “Hosanna!”

   “Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord!”

   10 “Blessed is the coming kingdom of our father David!”

   “Hosanna in the highest!”

11 Jesus entered Jerusalem and went to the temple. He looked around at everything, but since it was already late, he went out to Bethany with the Twelve.

 

This might be the perfect time to mention Zechariah 9:9 (Your King comes riding a donkey), and it is, but that is not where I am going with this.

 

Where I am going is to the book of Daniel:

Daniel 9 25 “Know and understand this: From the issuing of the decree to restore and rebuild Jerusalem until the Anointed One, the ruler, comes, there will be seven ‘sevens,’ and sixty-two ‘sevens.’ It will be rebuilt with streets and a trench, but in times of trouble.

 

This is astounding!  And I am going to borrow from Chuck Missler on this one (If you want to reference, go to Youtube and type:  Chuck Missler Daniel Triumphal Entry–a great teaching!):

From:  The Decree of Artaxerxes Longimanus, March 14, 445 BC

To:  The Triumphal Entry April 6, 32 AD

There is:  173,880 “days” (69x7x360=173,880)

 

It is also worth mentioning that many times in scripture Jesus says something along the lines of:  ”My time has not yet come”.

 

Then, on the day referenced in Mark 10, April 6—Jesus apparently knows that the time HAS come.  And He enters Jerusalem on a Donkey—setting in motion the events leading up to His crucifixion.

 

The point is this:

God had the day picked out.  He ordained it and lived it out.

And He did so knowing that He would soon give His life.

 

This is a staggering concept that we must all come face to face with.

His time is perfect.  It isn’t scattered or random or cruel.  It is PERFECT.

 

I encourage you not to take this in the wrong way.  Many people are hurting. Many things happen that are not of His will.  And there is no depth to the evil that can live in a man’s heart. We have seen it and many have experienced it.

 

But that should not be our reason for pinning the world on God.

 

Just the opposite.

 

After all—He did die to begin His cause.  And His disciples ran and hid and when they did come out—gave their lives to advance His Kingdom.

 

The bottom line is this.

 

• In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word WAS God.  (John 1)
• The Word became flesh.  (John 1)
• He would be crushed for our inequities, but by His wounds we ARE HEALED.  (Isaiah 53)
• He would be pierced on His hands and feet and men would gamble over His clothes.  (Psalm 22)
• His last words on the cross would be “it is paid in full” (John 19).
• He would return in glory to set us free and put us on a course for eternal life.

 

There is no escape from the harsh realities of the world.

But what would it look like if Jesus escaped them and left us to deal with hardship without a model?

 

For as much as God coming to die does not make sense—-think of how He drew us in by doing just that?

 

We can say to Him:  “I reject you.”

 

But we won’t be able to say:  “You have no idea what it’s like to live this life.  Why don’t you come down and feel what this feels like!?  Come and rescue me from this!”

 

He Does.

He Did.

He Will.

 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RwYuKlbk6BQ

 

In The Name of the Father and the 

Son and the Holy Spirit.  Amen.

 

Know anyone who might like these?  Encourage them to jump on to 2minutewarning.blog and hit the FOLLOW button!!!

Coach J

What can I do to be a servant of the

Most High God?

 

Mark 10  42 Jesus called them together and said, “You know that those who are regarded as rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them, and their high officials exercise authority over them. 43 Not so with you. Instead, whoever wants to become great among you must be your servant, 44 and whoever wants to be first must be slave of all. 45 For even the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.”

 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QEF7IoQ3eUk

 

In The Name of the Father and the 

Son and the Holy Spirit.  Amen.

 

Know anyone who might like these?  Encourage them to jump on to 2minutewarning.blog and hit the FOLLOW button!!!

Coach J

The gospel of Mark has one resounding theme:  Being A Servant

 

From beginning to end, the book walks through the life of Jesus and emphasizes servanthood and Jesus’ compelling case for Kingdom Competition.

 

God understands competition.  1 Corinthians 9:24, He tells us to run the race to get the prize.  In 2 Timothy 2:3-7 Paul tells us to act as a Soldier, an athlete, and a farmer.  Both of these verses say God CARES about competition. He cares about us doing our very best and being our very best.

 

Today, I would like to talk about Kingdom Competition.

 

Mark 9  33 They came to Capernaum. When he was in the house, he asked them, “What were you arguing about on the road?” 34 But they kept quiet because on the way they had argued about who was the greatest.

35 Sitting down, Jesus called the Twelve and said, “If anyone wants to be first, he must be the very last, and the servant of all.”

 

Jesus understood the world, but the world could not even fathom Jesus.

 

And after all, none of His plan made sense:

Born in shame, fleeing for His life, tempted in the wilderness to have ALL HE COULD WANT, and on and on and on………

 

He wanted to show us that this side of the Kingdom was not meant for our gain.  And while God understands and encourages being our very best—He also strongly suggests giving up all worldly gain to walk forward in the Kingdom.

 

This culminates in Mark 10:35-45 in what I would refer to as “the servant verse”, as He challenges all of us to be FIRST.  And when He says FIRST, He means: LAST

 

God wants us to SURRENDER and no one “in a worldly mindset” could ever understand this.  But when we SURRENDER to God we are giving up something that is not sustainable in exchange for something INFINITE and PERFECT and BEYOND OUR GREATEST DREAMS.

 

God challenges us to test Him in this.  Now….I know that I am walking on thin ice here.  Because even Jesus says: “We shall not put God to the test” —

And I agree with that.

But this is the gospel of Jesus Christ.  Full of Grace and Truth. Without Fail the Hope of the World.

So—

If you have never committed to Jesus I want to challenge you this very day to TEST HIM.

Ask Him:  “LORD, come and show me that you are real.  SHOW me hope in my soul that I can HAVE ETERNAL LIFE and even HOPE FOR TODAY.  Come and REVEAL YOURSELF TO ME.”

 

And if you have committed to Jesus I want to challenge you to WORSHIP.  To truly ENTER INTO WORSHIP.  To FALL ON YOUR KNEES AND SURRENDER to the One who holds the keys to the kingdom.

 

Victory is in the scarred hands of the Savior.  It is in the hands of the One who defeated death.

 

And you can challenge Him with all the world has—broken financial markets, broken families, Coronavirus, even death…….

But none of those or any other thing that you might bring before Him will even make Him blink an eye.

Because He, and He ALONE, is the King.  The

HOLY

PERFECT

UNDEFEATED

LOVING

FORGIVING

ALL POWERFUL

ALL RECEIVING

KING

And NOTHING in all creation can ever change that.

Forever Reign…One Sonic Society

You are good, You are good, when there’s nothing good in me

You are love, You are love, on display for all to see

You are light, You are light, when the darkness closes in

You are hope, You are hope, You have covered all our sin

You are peace, You are peace, when my fear is crippling

You are truth, You are truth, even in my wandering

You are joy, You are joy, You are the reason that I sing

You are life, You are life, even death has lost its sting

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D19z7wzXAMg

 

In The Name of the Father and the 

Son and the Holy Spirit.  Amen.

 

 

 

Know anyone who might like these?  Encourage them to jump on to 2minutewarning.blog and hit the FOLLOW button!!!

Coach J

I will return to our chapter by chapter walk through the book of Mark.

 

For a week I have been thinking about this verse:

 

Mark 8 14 The disciples had forgotten to bring bread, except for one loaf they had with them in the boat. 15 “Be careful,” Jesus warned them. “Watch out for the yeast of the Pharisees and that of Herod.”

 

What could Jesus have meant by the “Leaven of the Pharisees” and “the Leaven of Herod”?

 

I have a few thoughts on these things as I have meditated on these two ideas for the past couple of days.

 

What if we attached the “Leaven of the Pharisees” to a Religious Mindset and the “Leaven of Herod” to a Political Mindset?

 

We can start by saying—they are not positive.  Jesus is not warning us about things that are good.  He is warning us because it is NOT GOOD.

 

As I sat and prayed and asked God reveal, I began to write about each of these.

 

The Political Mindset

The mindset of Herod was certainly “off”.  His was focused on Power and Control and Popular Opinion.  He set in motion the extermination of children and did all that he could to “protect himself” upon hearing that “a king had been born”.  As we read later in John, we see Pontius Pilate do exactly the same thing. He even says to Jesus “What is truth?” as if the truth is relative or does not matter.

But our reality is this.  The Political Mindset is NOT where we want to live—then or now.  It compromises. It makes deals. It watches out for the group at the expense of doing what is right.  It hinges on–”You do me a favor and support me in this …. And I will support you in that.” When out of control–as it always is–it cares nothing about the right thing and is empowered by the group thing.

 

The Religious Mindset

The Religious Mindset of the Pharisees was just as bad.  It was powered by ‘looking good’ and ‘acting good’ over being Godly.  It was driven by guilt and shame and accusation. And it certainly used the idea of making commoners believe that they could NEVER MEASURE UP—and influenced them to give money and submission from shame as their mechanism to get it right.  It was on full display in the temple as Jesus raged through it and dismantled the plan.

Jesus was most critical of this mindset—calling those who used it vipers and snakes and hypocrites.  He insulted them with a vigor that distanced Himself from the picture of a peaceful man in a white shiny robe that we often see hanging on the wall.   And Isaiah is further descriptive of him in chapter 53—pointing out that he was average and that nothing separated him, physically, from the common man.  He was, simply, an average man on the outside. And Micah 2 describes Him as a “breaker”—a great description of the man in the temple.

 

Jesus’ never preached “outside” thinking.  He was constantly pursuing the heart. He preached about “what things WERE versus what they LOOKED LIKE.

 

I will close this writing today with some encouragement of who we ought to be…..and, in short, we might want to look at being “the opposite” of what might describe the two earlier factions.  What would it look like to be the opposite?

 

Here are a few thoughts:

 

Jesus has called us to live SURRENDERED.  There is no group to please, no people to please.  We are called to live for an audience of one. And He has made it so that IF WE ARE FULLY SURRENDERED we can not fail.  His grace is sufficient to cover us in our failings. And we have all that we need to succeed in being His. Why? Because He MADE US RIGHT with Him.  APART FROM HIM, there is NOTHING that we can do to make ourselves right. So—we don’t have to pretend to be perfect. Because–in Him–we are perfect.

 

Jesus has called us to be VULNERABLE.  The opposite of covering everything up is confessing that we are exposed and ruined on our own accord.  Sometimes I find this EASY. And sometimes I want no one to know how miserable and wretched I truly am. But He knows…and I know that He knows that I know—-so I might as well confess to everyone else that I am not, and never will be, good enough.

 

Jesus has called us to LET GO.  It is the opposite of what Herod did out of fear—-killing babies.  It is understanding that we have ABSOLUTELY ZERO CONTROL of anything.  We can not control and we will not control. Why hold on to something that we won’t be able to hold in our hand anyway?  Jim Elliot said something very wise:  

He is no fool who gives what he cannot keep to gain that which he cannot lose.

To that I say:  AMEN. Jesus wants us to let go of that we can not hold.

 

Jesus has called us to EMPOWER OTHERS.  Not with the fact that they are short, and sinful, and unable…but with the idea that they can be REDEEMED and FORGIVEN and BLESSED.  Those who say yes to Jesus are born into not needing anyone, or anything, but Him.

 

Jesus has called us to WALK IN FAITH.  For though we are in danger, we can walk in the faith that God has us.  As He says in Psalm 23 “Even though I walk in the valley of the shadow of death I will fear no evil…”  We can be assured that He HAS US.

 

As I have repeatedly communicated—I am NOT an expert on scripture.

 

What I am—is SOLD OUT FOR JESUS.  I am buying what He is selling—

 

And I am testifying to you that IF YOU WANT THE SAME DEAL—

     It is FREE

     It is FOREVER

And

     It is the BEST GIFT you could ever have

 

In The Name of the Father and the 

Son and the Holy Spirit.  Amen.

 

I was lost.  I was in chains.  The world had a hold of me.

My heart was a stone.  I was covered in shame.  When He came for me.

I couldn’t run, couldn’t run from His presence, I couldn’t run from His arms.

Jesus, He loves me, He loves me, He is for me.

Jesus, how can it be, He loves me, He is for me………

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=80Ue0w45oGs

 

Know anyone who might like these?  Encourage them to jump on to 2minutewarning.blog and hit the FOLLOW button!!!

Coach J

As I drove into school this morning, a song by the Afters came over my car.

 

I am not worthy to speak of the verse written below as “an expert on scripture”.  

 

I am a common man who found Jesus in a locker room, on a football field, in stressful situations, in my marriage, and in every other area of my life where I was smart enough to invite Him in.

 

That being said, I would like to say this:

Our life is a test.

And it is a test that we can not possibly pass.

 

I mean—think about it.  God shows up as a Jewish carpenter and takes on a brutal and oppressive government while undermining the religion that had partnered with it.  And He does it so that He can be executed and punished as a criminal in between two thieves. Why? So that He can stand before the throne and declare us clean.

 

When I read scripture in the Old and New Testament I am SHOCKED.  A plan is orchestrated by people of different ethnicities, on different continents, of different languages and cultures…..and this plan is centered around this EVENT—-this MAN.

 

All of scripture points to Jesus.

 

Simple.  And yet the most complicated and intricate story that you could write.

 

You can’t make this up……IT’S SO GOOD.

 

Luke 16 1Jesus told his disciples: “There was a rich man whose manager was accused of wasting his possessions. 2So he called him in and asked him, ‘What is this I hear about you? Give an account of your management, because you cannot be manager any longer.’

3“The manager said to himself, ‘What shall I do now? My master is taking away my job. I’m not strong enough to dig, and I’m ashamed to beg– 4I know what I’ll do so that, when I lose my job here, people will welcome me into their houses.’

5“So he called in each one of his master’s debtors. He asked the first, ‘How much do you owe my master?’

6” ‘Eight hundred gallons of olive oil,’ he replied.

“The manager told him, ‘Take your bill, sit down quickly, and make it four hundred.’

7“Then he asked the second, ‘And how much do you owe?’

” ‘A thousand bushels of wheat,’ he replied.

“He told him, ‘Take your bill and make it eight hundred.’

8“The master commended the dishonest manager because he had acted shrewdly. For the people of this world are more shrewd in dealing with their own kind than are the people of the light. 9I tell you, use worldly wealth to gain friends for yourselves, so that when it is gone, you will be welcomed into eternal dwellings.

10“Whoever can be trusted with very little can also be trusted with much, and whoever is dishonest with very little will also be dishonest with much. 11So if you have not been trustworthy in handling worldly wealth, who will trust you with true riches? 12And if you have not been trustworthy with someone else’s property, who will give you property of your own?

13“No servant can serve two masters. Either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and Money.”

14The Pharisees, who loved money, heard all this and were sneering at Jesus. 15He said to them, “You are the ones who justify yourselves in the eyes of men, but God knows your hearts. What is highly valued among men is detestable in God’s sight.

 

What do you choose?

 

You, too, are “too proud to beg and too weak to dig”.  And, even if you were, you can’t get out of this debt. It is too big to carry.

 

And even with all of that, what do you receive?

 

You receive an honorable invitation to the house of the Living God.

 

Well Done? … I don’t deserve Well Done.  But, with Jesus, I am AMAZING.

 

And—hey— I get it.  You can take ANYONE and partner them with Jesus and you end up with a winning team.  ANYONE.

 

And that, my friend, is my point.

 

In The Name of the Father and the 

Son and the Holy Spirit.  Amen.

 

Well Done…The Afters

What Will It Be Like?

When My Pain Is Gone

And All The Worries Of This World Just Fade Away

What Will It Be Like?

When You Call My Name

And That Moment When I See You Face To Face

I Am Waiting My Whole Life To Hear You Say

Well Done Well Done My Good And Faithful One

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-mLLz4LOfIo

 

Know anyone who might like these?  Encourage them to jump on to 2minutewarning.blog and hit the FOLLOW button!!!

Coach J

Mark 7  5 So the Pharisees and teachers of the law asked Jesus, “Why don’t your disciples live according to the tradition of the elders instead of eating their food with ‘unclean’ hands?”

6 He replied, “Isaiah was right when he prophesied about you hypocrites; as it is written:

   ” ‘These people honor me with their lips,

       but their hearts are far from me.

   7 They worship me in vain;

       their teachings are but rules taught by men.’ 

   8 You have let go of the commands of God and are holding on to the traditions of men.”

…………………………………………………………………………………

20 He went on: “What comes out of a man is what makes him ‘unclean.’ 21 For from within, out of men’s hearts, come evil thoughts, sexual immorality, theft, murder, adultery, 22 greed, malice, deceit, lewdness, envy, slander, arrogance and folly. 23 All these evils come from inside and make a man ‘unclean.’ “

 

As I reflected this morning on Jesus’ stand against religiosity–I was touched to the depths of my heart.

 

How many times does He need to stand up for us before we become compelled to truly surrender?

 

He raged at the temple when He saw the injustices of greedy men

 

He walked to the Gates of Hell and cried out His Kingdom

 

He called Lazarus from the dead and put His dignity upon the broken

 

He chose the despised when they were most hated and the unpopular when it bruised His image

 

But He CHOSE US … And He CHOSE US without hesitation or regret or fear.

 

All Praise to the One who stands at the gate and rescues me and protects me from the hands of evil.

 

For He is not the son of a Jewish carpenter

Or the illegitimate child from Bethlehem

Or the child who fled from the assassination plot of Herod

He is the Redeemer

The Savior

The Lion of the Tribe of Judah

 

Jesus Paid It All…Kristian Stanfill

Oh praise the one who paid my debt and raised this life up from the dead.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j_jAbHkGJRE

In The Name of the Father and the 

Son and the Holy Spirit.  Amen.

 

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Coach J

Our destiny is not defined by our earthly connections.

 

All aspects of our lives—who we are, where we were born, what we do for a living, and every other thing that you could say about us DEFINES us.

 

And in the worldly sense—these things OWN us.

 

But with God, NONE of these things own us.

 

Where we were born…

What we do for work…

Who our parents are…

 

None of these things have any bearing on our destiny.

 

The only thing that matters is who we belong to.

 

Mark 6  1 Jesus left there and went to his hometown, accompanied by his disciples. 2 When the Sabbath came, he began to teach in the synagogue, and many who heard him were amazed.

3 “Where did this man get these things?” they asked. “What’s this wisdom that has been given him, that he even does miracles! Isn’t this the carpenter? Isn’t this Mary’s son and the brother of James, Joseph, Judas and Simon? Aren’t his sisters here with us?”  And they took offense at him.

 

 

They took OFFENSE at Him because a “commoner” could not possibly rule or speak greatness into them–or anyone else.  The son of a carpenter, from Nazareth, could have NOTHING great about him in the eyes of the world.

 

The people of Judea and Galilee tried to define Jesus by the same rules that He had come to break off of all man.  They tried to define Him by human rules.

 

We all do.

 

But God…

 

God doesn’t do anything by manmade rules.  He makes His own.

 

And your destiny.  Where you are going and what will become of you—-will be defined by God.

 

God doesn’t play by the world’s rules.  

     The world must play by His.

God doesn’t define people by where they are from.  

     He defines them by where they are going.

God doesn’t elevate some jobs over others

     He uses us to influence WITHIN our jobs.

 

I have a sign that says:  And they shall call His Name Emmanuel, which means:  God with us.

 

Philippians 2 says that Jesus did not consider equality with:

   7 but made himself nothing,

       taking the very nature of a servant,

       being made in human likeness.

   8 And being found in appearance as a man,

       he humbled himself

       and became obedient to death–

          even death on a cross! 

 

Our resumes mean absolutely NOTHING to God.  We are defined by our connection to the man on that cross.

 

You are CALLED.  So:  Do Not ask for a new position…..ask for a New Faith.

 

He…Is Enough

 

In The Name of the Father and the 

Son and the Holy Spirit.  Amen.

 

Casting Crowns:  Nobody

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fY_FdfEmrcM

 

Know anyone who might like these?  Encourage them to jump on to 2minutewarning.blog and hit the FOLLOW button!!!

Coach J