SHARING BREAD

¹⁹ “There was a rich man who was dressed in purple and fine linen and lived in luxury every day. ²⁰ At his gate was laid a beggar named Lazarus, covered with sores ²¹ and longing to eat what fell from the rich man’s table. Even the dogs came and licked his sores.

²² ”The time came when the beggar died and the angels carried him to Abraham’s side. The rich man also died and was buried. ²³ In hell, where he was in torment, he looked up and saw Abraham far away, with Lazarus by his side. ²⁴ So he called to him, ‘Father Abraham, have pity on me and send Lazarus to dip the tip of his finger in water and cool my tongue, because I am in agony in this fire.’

Luke 16:19-24 (NIV)

At the very least, the beginning of Jesus’ parable in our verses for today places a dark cloud over the “name it and claim it” prosperity doctrine rampantly preached from many of our modern day pulpits.  Like the Pharisees of old, we often confuse prosperity with God’s blessing and poverty with His displeasure.  Wrong assumption!  Neither riches nor poverty are an indication of our standing with God.  Paul tells us in Philippians:

¹¹ I am not saying this because I am in need, for I have learned to be content whatever the circumstances. ¹² I know what it is to be in need, and I know what it is to have plenty. I have learned the secret of being content in any and every situation, whether well fed or hungry, whether living in plenty or in want. ¹³ I can do everything through him who gives me strength. Phil 4:11-13 (NIV)

Jesus portrays abject poverty in the life of Lazarus yet he was God’s child.  Even his name is the Greek form of the Hebrew name meaning “God, the Helper.”  Notice too, that the rich dude is nameless.  Living in luxury, donned in rare purple and fine linen undergarments, concerning himself with only what he was going to eat, he is certainly portrayed as not having a care in this world.  I am reminded of the Psalmist Asaph’s words in Psalm 73:

¹ Surely God is good to Israel, to those who are pure in heart. ² But as for me, my feet had almost slipped; I had nearly lost my foothold. ³ For I envied the arrogant when I saw the prosperity of the wicked. ⁴ They have no struggles; their bodies are healthy and strong. ⁵ They are free from the burdens common to man; they are not plagued by human ills. ⁶ Therefore pride is their necklace; they clothe themselves with violence.   Psalms 73:1-6 (NIV)

Isn’t it easy to envy those who seemingly have it all?  Yet time is ticking away for each one of us and if Jesus should tarry and not return first, we will all die and be face to face with our Maker.

“Death is the common lot of rich and poor, godly and ungodly; there they meet together.  It concerns both rich and poor to prepare for death, for it awaits them both.”  Matthew Henry

What God has bestowed into our hands and into our lives we are to use for His glory and honor.  These things do not belong to us they are His and we will be held accountable for them.    Interestingly, Lazarus was laid at the gate of this wealthy man.  We can suppose that those who brought him there assumed the rich man would show kindness and mercy to the destitute.  They certainly had that pegged wrong.  Lazarus was portrayed as craving the crumbs off the rich man’s table.  He had not even set his sights upon the decadent fare and delicacies that the rich man had sumptuously arrayed.  Longing for the leftover droppings, Lazarus was not given a morsel.

Enter death on the scene – the great equalizer!  Lazarus is immediately taken to Abraham’s side by the ministering angels immediately receiving the comfort that his earthly life lacked.  The rich man finds himself in great agony and torment in hell.  Incredulously, he asks Abraham to send Lazarus to help him.  Now the shoe is seemingly on the other foot and he does not like the way it fits.  Unlike Lazarus, agony and torment caused our rich man to become a vocal beggar – all to no avail.  I am reminded again of Asaph’s words in Psalm 73:

¹⁶ When I tried to understand all this, it was oppressive to me ¹⁷ till I entered the sanctuary of God; then I understood their final destiny. ¹⁸ Surely you place them on slippery ground; you cast them down to ruin. ¹⁹ How suddenly are they destroyed, completely swept away by terrors! ²⁰ As a dream when one awakes, so when you arise, O Lord, you will despise them as fantasies.   Psalms 73:16-20 (NIV)

When God finally sets things straight, the wicked will be like a dream – a counterfeit of reality.  God will set every wrong right.  Paul tells us it is His to avenge:

 ¹⁷ Do not repay anyone evil for evil. Be careful to do what is right in the eyes of everybody. ¹⁸ If it is possible, as far as it depends on you, live at peace with everyone. ¹⁹ Do not take revenge, my friends, but leave room for God’s wrath, for it is written: “It is mine to avenge; I will repay,” says the Lord.   Romans 12:17-19 (NIV)

Concluding as the writer of Hebrews states:

³⁰ For we know him who said, “It is mine to avenge; I will repay,” and again, “The Lord will judge his people.” ³¹ It is a dreadful thing to fall into the hands of the living God.   Heb 10:30-31 (NIV)

What I glean from this:

• I am not to confuse prosperity with being God’s blessings nor poverty with being His displeasure.  His possessions equate to my responsibility and subsequent accountability.
• Unless Jesus returns first, death will occur to us all.  I must be prepared to face my Maker.
• I am not to take revenge but allow God to handle without favoritism.

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SHARING BREAD

¹⁸ ”Anyone who divorces his wife and marries another woman commits adultery, and the man who marries a divorced woman commits adultery.

Luke 16:18 (NIV)

Corruptions often creep into any ordinance of God and must be purged out by bringing them back to the original Truth for comparison.  Isn’t it amazing how we can take any command of God and twist and turn it to justify our own poor behavior “looking for loopholes”?  Seldom considering that the commands we are given  are for our good and for His glory, we go about our own way until the consequences hit us in the face and we then begin to whine and complain.   That is exactly what the Pharisees were doing in Jesus’ day.  To justify themselves in their own minds and in the minds of others they “re-wrote” God’s command regarding marriage.  Jesus addresses this more in depth in Matthew where He takes the Pharisees back to the original command or truth:

³ Some Pharisees came to him to test him. They asked, “Is it lawful for a man to divorce his wife for any and every reason?” ⁴ “Haven’t you read,” he replied, “that at the beginning the Creator ‘made them male and female,’ ⁵ and said, ‘For this reason a man will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife, and the two will become one flesh’ ? ⁶ So they are no longer two, but one. Therefore what God has joined together, let man not separate.” ⁷ ”Why then,” they asked, “did Moses command that a man give his wife a certificate of divorce and send her away?” ⁸ Jesus replied, “Moses permitted you to divorce your wives because your hearts were hard. But it was not this way from the beginning. ⁹ I tell you that anyone who divorces his wife, except for marital unfaithfulness, and marries another woman commits adultery.”   Matt 19:3-9 (NIV)

While adultery (or any other sexual sin for that matter) and divorce are not unpardonable sins, the tentacles of their consequences are far reaching and often effect negatively those whom we love the most.  God does allow provision for divorce in the case of sexual immorality\ marital unfaithfulness\ adultery – yet it certainly was not mandated.  Many a spouse has remained faithful and bestowed forgiveness upon repentance and been blessed by their Christ-like actions.  Our society has made trivial what God deems of utmost importance – namely the preservation marriage unit.  In God’s eyes, those married are of one flesh.  Closer even than the parent child relationship or for that matter, any other relationship on earth between humans.  This is echoed in Malachi:

¹³ Another thing you do: You flood the LORD’s altar with tears. You weep and wail because he no longer pays attention to your offerings or accepts them with pleasure from your hands. ¹⁴ You ask, “Why?” It is because the LORD is acting as the witness between you and the wife of your youth, because you have broken faith with her, though she is your partner, the wife of your marriage covenant. ¹⁵ Has not [the LORD] made them one? In flesh and spirit they are his. And why one? Because he was seeking godly offspring. So guard yourself in your spirit, and do not break faith with the wife of your youth. ¹⁶ ”I hate divorce,” says the LORD God of Israel, “and I hate a man’s covering himself with violence as well as with his garment,” says the LORD Almighty. So guard yourself in your spirit, and do not break faith.   Mal 2:13-16 (NIV)

In His words, Jesus obviously affirmed the permanence of marriage yet He also was very much concerned with the innocent party.  Jesus always concerns Himself with the one wronged.  In that day and time the person “put away” for reasons other than marital unfaithfulness such as incompatibility or unhappiness acquired the false stigma of being guilty of moral misconduct.  According to the Hebrew Greek Key Word Study Bible:

“Jesus apparently accepted that such a person might remarry because He stated in Matthew 5:32 that the spouse who unjustly initiated the divorce caused the innocent one to commit adultery when they married someone else.  For this reason, Jesus insisted that the Old Testament provision (Deuteronomy 24:1-4) be adhered to; someone who unjustly dismissed an innocent mate ought to clear that person of guilt by providing a bill of divorcement.  Jesus concerned Himself only with the innocent party and not with the one who was merely able to secure a legal divorce.”

Lest we become too discouraged if we find ourselves in the wake of such consequences stemming from our own poor choices regarding our subject for today, let’s consider for a moment Rahab.  Once prostitute and adulterer, Rahab makes it to God’s Hall of Fame in Hebrews 11:31.  Rahab was not only pardoned but elevated to a position of honor.  She wed into an Israelite family and was an ancestor of King David placing her, of course, in the line of Jesus our Messiah!  In fact, her name is listed in the genealogy of Jesus in Matthew 1:5!  Now that is certainly making “beauty from ashes”!  God is looking to bestow His mercy and blessings to the repentant heart – always!  Praise Him!

¹ Have mercy on me, O God, according to your unfailing love; according to your great compassion blot out my transgressions. ² Wash away all my iniquity and cleanse me from my sin.   Psalms 51:1-2 (NIV)

¹⁰ Create in me a pure heart, O God, and renew a steadfast spirit within me. ¹¹ Do not cast me from your presence or take your Holy Spirit from me. ¹² Restore to me the joy of your salvation
 and grant me a willing spirit, to sustain me.  Psalms 51:10-12 (NIV)

¹⁶ You do not delight in sacrifice, or I would bring it; you do not take pleasure in burnt offerings.
¹⁷ The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit; a broken and contrite heart, O God, you will not despise.   Psalms 51:16-17 (NIV)

What I glean from this:

• I can corrupt God’s Truth by twisting and turning it to suit my poor behavior.  I must always go back to the full counsel of the Word of God.
• God hates divorce.
• God is looking to bestow mercy and blessings to a heart that turns back to Him.

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SHARING BREAD

¹⁷ It is easier for heaven and earth to disappear than for the least stroke of a pen to drop out of the Law.

Luke 16:17 (NIV)

God’s Word “stands firm in the heavens.”  Scripture tells us:

⁸⁹ Your word, O LORD, is eternal; it stands firm in the heavens.  Psalms 119:89 (NIV)

Matthew presents Jesus addressing this same topic in the Sermon on the Mount:

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 I tell you the truth, 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.   Matt 5:17-18 (NIV)

Jesus was the True fulfillment of the Law and of the Prophets extending to the smallest Hebrew letter and even down to the smallest stroke of a Hebrew letter (the dot of an “I”).  Of this the writer of Hebrews states:

⁵ Therefore, when Christ came into the world, he said: “Sacrifice and offering you did not desire, but a body you prepared for me; ⁶ with burnt offerings and sin offerings you were not pleased. ⁷ Then I said, ‘Here I am–it is written about me in the scroll–I have come to do your will, O God.’” ⁸ First he said, “Sacrifices and offerings, burnt offerings and sin offerings you did not desire, nor were you pleased with them” (although the law required them to be made). ⁹ Then he said, “Here I am, I have come to do your will.” He sets aside the first to establish the second. ¹⁰ And by that will, we have been made holy through the sacrifice of the body of Jesus Christ once for all.  Heb 10:5-10 (NIV)

Praise Jesus we no longer have to sacrifice burnt offerings for our transgressions!  Those who believe in Him have been made holy once and for all through His sacrifice for us upon the cross.  “It is finished” were the appropriate words Jesus uttered as He was dying an indication, among other things, of the fulfillment of the ceremonial law:

²⁸ Later, knowing that all was now completed, and so that the Scripture would be fulfilled, Jesus said, “I am thirsty.” ²⁹ A jar of wine vinegar was there, so they soaked a sponge in it, put the sponge on a stalk of the hyssop plant, and lifted it to Jesus’ lips. ³⁰ When he had received the drink, Jesus said, “It is finished.” With that, he bowed his head and gave up his spirit.  John 19:28-30 (NIV)

Of these verses the Bible Knowledge Commentary states:

“The sixth word or saying that Jesus spoke from the cross was the single Greek work “tetelestai” which means “It is finished”. Papyri receipts for taxes have been recovered with the word tetelestai written across them, meaning “paid in full.” This word on Jesus’ lips was significant. When He said, “It is finished” (not “I am finished”), He meant His redemptive work was completed. He had been made sin for people (2 Cor. 5:21) and had suffered the penalty of God’s justice which sin deserved. Even in the moment of His death, Jesus remained the One who gave up His life (cf. John 10:11, 14, 17-18). He bowed His head (giving His seventh saying, “Father, into Your hands I commit My spirit” [Luke 23:46]) and then dismissed His spirit. This differs from the normal process in death by crucifixion in which the life-spirit would ebb away and then the head would slump forward.”

God’s Word is true and stands firm.  He tells us in Malachi that He does not change:

“I the LORD do not change.”   Mal 3:6 (NIV)

His Word, like Himself, is immutable.  This, of course, is the basis for our confident hope.  Since a believer’s hope is centered on God and His promises we will never be disappointed:

¹ Therefore, since we have been justified through faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, ² through whom we have gained access by faith into this grace in which we now stand. And we rejoice in the hope of the glory of God. ³ Not only so, but we also rejoice in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; ⁴ perseverance, character; and character, hope. ⁵ And hope does not disappoint us, because God has poured out his love into our hearts by the Holy Spirit, whom he has given us.   Romans 5:1-5 (NIV)

What I glean from this:

·       God’s Word is eternal and stands firm in the heavens.

·       Jesus is the fulfillment of the Law and the Prophets.

·        Neither God nor His Word ever changes.

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SHARING BREAD

 ¹⁶ ”The Law and the Prophets were proclaimed until John. Since that time, the good news of the kingdom of God is being preached, and everyone is forcing his way into it.

Luke 16:16 (NIV)

Matthew renders this verse in the following way:

¹¹ I tell you the truth: Among those born of women there has not risen anyone greater than John the Baptist; yet he who is least in the kingdom of heaven is greater than he. ¹² From the days of John the Baptist until now, the kingdom of heaven has been forcefully advancing, and forceful men lay hold of it. ¹³ For all the Prophets and the Law prophesied until John. ¹⁴ And if you are willing to accept it, he is the Elijah who was to come. ¹⁵ He who has ears, let him hear. Matt 11:11-15 (NIV)

Of the above verses Matthew Henry states:

“This violence denotes a strength, and vigour, and earnestness of desire and endeavour, in those who followed John’s ministry.  It shows us also, what fervency and zeal are required of all those who intend to gain heaven through their religion. They who would enter into the kingdom of heaven must strive to enter; that kingdom suffers a holy violence; we must run, and wrestle, and fight, and be in agony, and all little enough to win such a prize, and to get over such opposition from without and from within.  Forceful men lay hold of it.  They who will have an interest in the great salvation are carried out towards it with a strong desire, will have it on any terms, and not think them hard, nor release their hold without a blessing (Genesis 32:26).  The kingdom of heaven was never intended to indulge the ease of triflers, but to be the rest of those who labour.  Oh that we could see a greater number with a holy contention thrusting themselves into it!”

I am reminded of Jesus’ parables of the hidden treasure and the pearl of great value found in Matthew:

 ⁴⁴ “The kingdom of heaven is like treasure hidden in a field. When a man found it, he hid it again, and then in his joy went and sold all he had and bought that field. ⁴⁵ ”Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a merchant looking for fine pearls. ⁴⁶ When he found one of great value, he went away and sold everything he had and bought it.   Matt 13:44-46 (NIV)

Jesus Christ is our Treasure.  He is our Pearl of great value!  Paul’s words in Philippians echo these parables:

⁷ But whatever was to my profit I now consider loss for the sake of Christ. ⁸ What is more, I consider everything a loss compared to the surpassing greatness of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, for whose sake I have lost all things. I consider them rubbish, that I may gain Christ ⁹ and be found in him, not having a righteousness of my own that comes from the law, but that which is through faith in Christ–the righteousness that comes from God and is by faith.  Phil 3:7-9 (NIV)

This “Hebrew of Hebrew’s” had every right to boast in his past spiritual credentials.  He states in the previous verses in Philippians of his birth-right privileges as an Israelite, of his relations to the covenant (circumcision), of his learning as a Pharisee, of his blameless conduct and of his zeal and his earnestness.  Yet all of these wonderful fleshly confidences paled in comparison to knowing Jesus, his Lord.  He would have considered himself an unspeakable loser if he had obtained all of this yet missed Christ. 

“There is an abundant and transcendent greatness in the doctrine of Christ, above all the knowledge of nature, and improvements of human wisdom.”  Matthew Henry

“We are half-hearted creatures, fooling about with drink and sex and ambition when infinite joy is offered us.  We are far too easily pleased.”  C.S. Lewis

“In lurid terms Matthew depicts the kingdom of God as ‘forcefully advancing.’  This advance entails the powerful works performed by Jesus and his dramatic gospel announcing the arrival of the long-awaited Messianic reign and demanding repentance and faith from all.  In keeping with the violent character of its irruption into history, those who enter it are distinguished by that same dead earnestness and lay hold of it as a highly-desired prize.  Entrance into the kingdom is no small matter; it is a life and death issue and is possible only by desperate and radically serious persons who desire it at all costs.”  New Testament Lexical Aids Hebrew Greek Key Word Study Bible

“We must remember that God will never drag us along the path of true-hearted discipleship. This would greatly lack the moral excellency which characterizes all the ways of God. He does not drag, but draws us along the path which leads to ineffable blessedness in Himself; and if we do see that it is for our real advantage to break through all the barriers of nature, in order to respond to Gods’ call, we forsake our own mercies. But alas! our hearts little enter into this. We begin to calculate about the sacrifices, the hindrances, and the difficulties, instead of bounding along the path, in eagerness of soul, as knowing and loving the One whose call has sounded in our ears”. C H Macintosh, Notes on Deuteronomy

What I glean from this:

·       The kingdom of heaven is forcefully advancing and I am to lay hold of it.

·       The kingdom of heaven is a true treasure.

·       All of my “credentials” are rubbish compared with following hard after Jesus.  “All is vanity but to love God and serve Him.”  Thomas a Kempis

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SHARING BREAD

¹⁴ The Pharisees, who loved money, heard all this and were sneering at Jesus. ¹⁵ He 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.

Luke 16:14-15 (NIV)

Ridiculing our Savior’s Words, the Pharisees mistakenly sought to find favor in the eyes of men rather than God.  Wanting to justify their actions, they began to sneer at the Truth.  Isn’t that so human nature?  It is quite easy to ridicule and laugh in an effort to make ourselves look and feel better in front of others particularly if we are guilty and do not want to change. 

“The Pharisees, who loved money, heard all this, and could not contradict him, but they sneered at him.  Let us consider this as their sin, and the fruit of their covetousness, which was their primary sin.  Many who make a great profession of religion and abound in the exercise of devotion, are yet ruined by the love of the world.  These covetous Pharisees could not bear to have that touched, which was their Delilah, their darling lust; for this they derided him, they turned up their noses at him, or blew their noses on him.  It is an expression of the utmost scorn and disdain imaginable.  They laughed at him for going so contrary to the opinion and way of the world.  It is common for those to make a joke of the word of God who are resolved that they will not be ruled by it.”  Matthew Henry

We often are looking to have our poor behavior condoned by men rather than repent and seek God’s pleasure and approval. We desire to turn the gaze off of our own flaws, perhaps making light of them, so that we will look good and be accepted in the eyes of our peers.  Big mistake here!  Scripture tells us God laughs at this silliness:

 ² The kings of the earth take their stand and the rulers gather together against the LORD and against his Anointed One. ³ ”Let us break their chains,” they say, “and throw off their fetters.”
⁴ The One enthroned in heaven laughs; the Lord scoffs at them.   Psalms 2:2-4 (NIV)

I love the way Isaiah puts it:

¹⁷ Before him all the nations are as nothing; they are regarded by him as worthless and less than nothing.   Isaiah 40:17 (NIV)

 How silly of us to care more about what man thinks than what God thinks.  Man’s appropriate position before God is humility not belligerently seeking justification.  We bring nothing to the table but our sinful nature – Jesus brings it all.  We lean solely on His redemptive work on the cross.  God is not impressed by our possessions, skills or status.  In fact, our verse for today states He abhors what man highly values.  How we should seek to emulate Moses’ behavior in regard to this!  Scripture states in Hebrews:

²⁴ By faith Moses, when he had grown up, refused to be known as the son of Pharaoh’s daughter. ²⁵ He chose to be mistreated along with the people of God rather than to enjoy the pleasures of sin for a short time. ²⁶ He regarded disgrace for the sake of Christ as of greater value than the treasures of Egypt, because he was looking ahead to his reward.  Heb 11:24-26 (NIV)

What is it we highly value?  It matters you know.  Our actions will always be effected by what we highly esteem.  Of these verses the Bible Knowledge Commentary states:

“In a classic presentation of the way faith chooses between the attractive but temporary pleasures of sin and the prospect of disgrace for the sake of Christ, the writer showed Moses to be a real hero of faith who had an intelligent regard for the eschatological hopes of the nation of Israel. The readers also were to accept “disgrace” and reject “the pleasures of sin,” and they would do so if they, like Moses, anticipated their reward.”

This is the way Daniel lived out his profitable life.  In fact, he received a heavenly “high-five” from the lips of the angel Gabriel.  We find in the Book of Daniel:

²⁰ While I was speaking and praying, confessing my sin and the sin of my people Israel and making my request to the LORD my God for his holy hill– ²¹ while I was still in prayer, Gabriel, the man I had seen in the earlier vision, came to me in swift flight about the time of the evening sacrifice. ²² He instructed me and said to me, “Daniel, I have now come to give you insight and understanding. ²³ As soon as you began to pray, an answer was given, which I have come to tell you, for you are highly esteemed. Therefore, consider the message and understand the vision: Dan 9:20-23 (NIV)

Oh that we would seek to be “highly esteemed” by God rather than man!

What I glean from this:

·       It is much easier for me to joke and sneer when convicted rather than change.

·       What is highly valued among men is detestable to God.

·       I desire to live out my life seeking to be “highly esteemed” by God and not man.

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SHARING BREAD

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.”

Luke 16:13 (NIV)

Anybody besides me ever tried embracing both the world and God only to find that your arms weren’t quite that big???  God is looking for followers with “wholehearted devotion and a willing mind” not those who give only lip service sans heart.  His desire is for our walk to match our talk.  This, of course, begins from the inside out.  I love King David’s words to his son Solomon before undertaking the building of the glorious Temple:

⁹ ”And you, my son Solomon, acknowledge the God of your father, and serve him with wholehearted devotion and with a willing mind, for the LORD searches every heart and understands every motive behind the thoughts. If you seek him, he will be found by you; but if you forsake him, he will reject you forever. ¹⁰ Consider now, for the LORD has chosen you to build a temple as a sanctuary. Be strong and do the work.”   1 Chron 28:9-10 (NIV)

David knew firsthand what could happen when a heart becomes divided.  His experience with Solomon’s mother Bathsheba and the ensuing consequences was certainly enough to convince him of all the heartache embracing the world entails.  If we were just smart enough to play everything out to its logical conclusion and consequences I believe it would quickly nip a lot of our turning away from the Lord to the folly of our own devices.  Just to be clear, the word “money” used in our verse for today is from the Greek word “Mamonas” which is a comprehensive word for every kind of valuable or material good – wealth, material possession, earthly goods, and property – used only in a derogatory sense (Hebrew-Greek Key Word Study Bible New Testament Lexical Aids). This would, of course, cover any “idols” we would want to place on the throne of our lives over God and serve with our resources, thoughts and actions.

I find the last sentence in the 1 Chronicles passage extremely interesting and relevant to us as well. As believers in Christ, we are now the “temple” that houses the living God.  We are to be in the process of “building” (sanctification) our temples becoming more and more like Christ.  The process is quite simple yet, to our shame, not too often considered.  Perhaps that is why David begins the sentence with the two words – “Consider now”.  Give it some thought.  Think about it.  We have been chosen to build a temple as a sanctuary where God abides.  So how are we doing in this process?  I am reminded of God’s words in Haggai to the Israelites as they were slovenly rebuilding the earthly temple:

³ ’Who of you is left who saw this house in its former glory? How does it look to you now? Does it not seem to you like nothing? ⁴ But now be strong, O Zerubbabel,’ declares the LORD. ‘Be strong, O Joshua son of Jehozadak, the high priest. Be strong, all you people of the land,’ declares the LORD, ‘and work. For I am with you,’ declares the LORD Almighty. Hag 2:3-4 (NIV)

I can’t help but think if that is not what God is saying to us now. In comparing John, Paul, Peter and the likes of all the earlier followers of Christ to the modern day believers “does it not seem to you like nothing?”  Yet, like David’s passage to Solomon, Haggai states the same thing from God; “Be strong and do the work”.  Follow hard after Christ.  Know the truth of His Word.  Apply these truths to our hearts.  Pray continually.  Listen for His still small voice and be obedient to His commands as the Spirit brings them to light in our life.  Repent (turn) quickly from the sins that do not please Him.  He is one that changes us from the inside out yet we are responsible to be willing and obedient.  He forces no one.  We will find obedience to be a sure blessing. It is when we find ourselves yoked to the world that is the curse.  Scripture is replete in backing these statements up for us but a very good summation is found in the Sermon on the Mount through the lips of our Lord:

³³ But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well. Matt 6:33 (NIV)

Seek first to love Him.  Seek first to please Him.  Seek first to follow Him.  By placing Him first we will certainly find the sweet contentment, joy and peace that we falsely believe our “idols” offer us.

“Christians don’t fail to live as they should because they are in the world; they fail because the world has gotten into them.  We don’t fail to produce the fruit of the Holy Spirit because we live in a sea of corruption; we fail because the sea of corruption has gotten into us…..Most ocean-going ships have pumps running constantly, sucking out any water that might have leaked into the hull.  Similarly, we need to keep the ‘pumps’ of repentance running.  We need to plug the holes with the truth of God’s Word.  Don’t let the world sink your ship!”  Billy Graham

What I glean from this:

• I cannot serve God and something else.
• God wants my wholehearted devotion and my willing mind.
• I am to be strong and do the work.

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SHARING BREAD

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. ¹¹ So if you have not been trustworthy in handling worldly wealth, who will trust you with true riches? ¹² And if you have not been trustworthy with someone else’s property, who will give you property of your own?

Luke 16:10-12 (NIV)

So how are we doing with what we have been given?  I am reminded of a verse in Luke regarding our responsibility for what we possess:

From everyone who has been given much, much will be demanded; and from the one who has been entrusted with much, much more will be asked.  Luke 12:48 (NIV)

Paul also gives us the following insights in 1Corinthians:

² Now it is required that those who have been given a trust must prove faithful.   1 Cor 4:2 (NIV)

⁷ For who makes you different from anyone else? What do you have that you did not receive? 1 Cor 4:6-7 (NIV)

God bestows upon His children a variety of gifts based on His grace towards us to be used for His glory and for the furtherance of His kingdom – not, I might add, for strictly self indulgent pleasures.  In all actuality, our possessions, indeed our very lives, do not belong to us. Everything that has been given to us from our material belongings to our personal giftings are God’s and are on loan to us.  We will be held accountable for what we did with what was entrusted.  If we are not found faithful in our handling of God’s worldly wealth and possessions we will certainly not be equipped to handle true riches.  I am reminded of the parable Jesus told of the talents.  Familiar to most and while lengthy, it is worthy of addressing here:

 ¹⁴ “Again, it will be like a man going on a journey, who called his servants and entrusted his property to them. ¹⁵ To one he gave five talents of money, to another two talents, and to another one talent, each according to his ability. Then he went on his journey.  Matt 25:14-15 (NIV)

¹⁹ ”After a long time the master of those servants returned and settled accounts with them. ²⁰ The man who had received the five talents brought the other five. ‘Master,’ he said, ‘you entrusted me with five talents. See, I have gained five more.’ ²¹ ”His master replied, ‘Well done, good and faithful servant! You have been faithful with a few things; I will put you in charge of many things. Come and share your master’s happiness!’ ²² ”The man with the two talents also came. ‘Master,’ he said, ‘you entrusted me with two talents; see, I have gained two more.’ ²³ ”His master replied, ‘Well done, good and faithful servant! You have been faithful with a few things; I will put you in charge of many things. Come and share your master’s happiness!’ ²⁴ ”Then the man who had received the one talent came. ‘Master,’ he said, ‘I knew that you are a hard man, harvesting where you have not sown and gathering where you have not scattered seed. ²⁵ So I was afraid and went out and hid your talent in the ground. See, here is what belongs to you.’ ²⁶ ”His master replied, ‘You wicked, lazy servant! So you knew that I harvest where I have not sown and gather where I have not scattered seed? ²⁷ Well then, you should have put my money on deposit with the bankers, so that when I returned I would have received it back with interest.
²⁸ ”‘Take the talent from him and give it to the one who has the ten talents. ²⁹ For everyone who has will be given more, and he will have an abundance. Whoever does not have, even what he has will be taken from him. ³⁰ And throw that worthless servant outside, into the darkness, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.’   Matt 25:19-30 (NIV)

Doesn’t sound too good for those who do not take God seriously in this!  It is helpful for me to think of our subject for today in the following way.  Everything in my possession and being in the here and now belongs to God – it does not belong to me.  Yet, all that has been given me He graciously allows me to use towards storing up for myself treasures in heaven.  In fact, Jesus bids us all to do this very thing in the Sermon on the Mount:

¹⁹ “Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. ²⁰ But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where moth and rust do not destroy, and where thieves do not break in and steal. ²¹ For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.   Matt 6:19-21 (NIV)

When we build up treasures here for our own sakes and for our own glory, they rot or they are stolen and they certainly will never make it through the fire.  Our treasures in heaven are eternally secure and glorious!

“Knowing that we are fulfilling God’s purpose is the only thing that really gives rest to the restless human heart.”   Chuck Colson

“We may be certain that whatever God has made prominent in His Word, He intended to be conspicuous in our lives.”  Charles Spurgeon

What I glean from this:

·       I am held accountable for what has been entrusted to me by God.

·       I am to use what He has given me to bring Him glory and to further His kingdom.

·       I am to store up for myself treasures in heaven.

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SHARING BREAD

⁹ I tell you, use worldly wealth to gain friends for yourselves, so that when it is gone, you will be welcomed into eternal dwellings.

Luke 16:9 (NIV)

In our verse for today Jesus gives us a use for “our” (His) money – give, share, gain friends – eternally invest.  We are not to hoard it as the Israelites did with their manna turning it into maggots nor are we to be a slave to it consumed with the fear of its loss or greedy for more of its gain rather it is to be our servant using it wisely to invest in the eternal.  Jesus tells us in the Sermon on the Mount:

 ¹⁹ “Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. ²⁰ But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where moth and rust do not destroy, and where thieves do not break in and steal. ²¹ For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.    Matt 6:19-21 (NIV)

²⁴ ”No one 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.  Matt 6:24 (NIV)

Giving is addressed all throughout Scriptures.  One of my favorite verses on this subject is also found in Luke:

 ³⁸ Give, and it will be given to you. A good measure, pressed down, shaken together and running over, will be poured into your lap. For with the measure you use, it will be measured to you.” Luke 6:38 (NIV)

As God’s children we are to be a channel through which His blessings flow to others both in what we give and in what we do.  All things are His and the wealth He allows in our hands and the gifting in our beings are to be used for His glory and honor.  The prophet Haggai tells us:

⁸ ’The silver is mine and the gold is mine,’ declares the LORD Almighty.  Hag 2:7-8 (NIV)

Paul tells us also in Romans 12 how we are to exercise our God given abilities for spiritual service:

⁶ We have different gifts, according to the grace given us. If a man’s gift is prophesying, let him use it in proportion to his faith. ⁷ If it is serving, let him serve; if it is teaching, let him teach; ⁸ if it is encouraging, let him encourage; if it is contributing to the needs of others, let him give generously; if it is leadership, let him govern diligently; if it is showing mercy, let him do it cheerfully.   Romans 12:6-8 (NIV)

In God’s economy our giving equates to our getting.  I love the interaction with Peter and Jesus on this subject.  Peter, who is always asking the things everyone else wants to know but are afraid to ask, poses this question to our Savior:

²⁷ Peter answered him, “We have left everything to follow you! What then will there be for us?” ²⁸ Jesus said to them, “I tell you the truth, at the renewal of all things, when the Son of Man sits on his glorious throne, you who have followed me will also sit on twelve thrones, judging the twelve tribes of Israel. ²⁹ And everyone who has left houses or brothers or sisters or father or mother or children or fields for my sake will receive a hundred times as much and will inherit eternal life. ³⁰ But many who are first will be last, and many who are last will be first. Matt 19:27-30 (NIV)

G.K. Chesterton once wrote, “Nothing taken for granted; everything received with gratitude; everything passed on with grace.”

“Giving is true having.”  Charles Spurgeon

“Nobody made a greater mistake than he who did nothing because he could do only a little.”  Edmund Burke

“There must be a practical outworking of our faith here in this present world, or it will never endure in the world to come.  We need fewer words and more charitable works; less palaver and more pity; less repetition of creed and more compassion.”  Billy Graham

What I glean from this:

• I am to use my worldly wealth for God’s glory.
• I am to be a channel through which God’s blessings flow to others.
• God owns all things.  I am to use what He allows in my life for His honor.

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SHARING BREAD

³¹ ”‘My son,’ the father said, ‘you are always with me, and everything I have is yours. ³² But we had to celebrate and be glad, because this brother of yours was dead and is alive again; he was lost and is found.’”

Luke 15:31-32 (NIV)

In our verses for today we find an unavoidable, urgent, compulsory necessity for celebration – the rebel returns repentant and there is indeed great reason for rejoicing!  Paul tells us in Romans 12:

 ¹⁵ Rejoice with those who rejoice; mourn with those who mourn. ¹⁶ Live in harmony with one another.   Romans 12:15-16 (NIV)

He echoes the exact same sentiment in Philippians:

¹ If you have any encouragement from being united with Christ, if any comfort from his love, if any fellowship with the Spirit, if any tenderness and compassion, ² then make my joy complete by being like-minded, having the same love, being one in spirit and purpose. ³ Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit, but in humility consider others better than yourselves. ⁴ Each of you should look not only to your own interests, but also to the interests of others.   Phil 2:1-4 (NIV)

The Father pleads with the elder son to be glad over the return of his lost but now found brother.  Yet the elder could not justify in his own mind the mercy his Father was now lavishing on his once wayward son.  How like human nature for us to keep score of our works and to grumble when one who has done less receives more.  Basically, the elder was resentful believing his works so greatly outweighed those of his brothers all the while never realizing how his own actions were weighed and found wanting too.  Scripture tells us what God requires of His children:

⁸ He has showed you, O man, what is good. And what does the LORD require of you?  To act justly and to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God.   Micah 6:8 (NIV)

Of these verses the Bible Knowledge Commentary states:

“Micah then told the nation (O man means any person in Israel) exactly what God did desire from them. God did not want them to be related to Him in only a ritualistic way. God wanted them to be related inwardly—to obey Him because they desired to, not because it was a burden on them. That relationship, which is good (beneficial), involves three things: that individuals (a) act justly (be fair in their dealings with others), (b) love mercy (µese¼, “loyal love”; i.e., carry through on their commitments to meet others needs), and (c) walk humbly with… God (fellowship with Him in modesty, without arrogance). “Humbly” translates the verb ƒ¹na± (which occurs only here in the OT); it means to be modest.”

Mercy, we all need it and we all desire to receive it yet many find, like the elder brother, a very difficult blessing to bestow.  As His children, it is God’s desire for us to be merciful.  I am reminded of a passage in Jude:

²⁰ But you, dear friends, build yourselves up in your most holy faith and pray in the Holy Spirit. ²¹ Keep yourselves in God’s love as you wait for the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ to bring you to eternal life. ²² Be merciful to those who doubt; ²³ snatch others from the fire and save them; to others show mercy, mixed with fear–hating even the clothing stained by corrupted flesh.    Jude 1:20-23 (NIV)

“Gratitude is born in hearts that take time to count up past mercies.”  Charles Jefferson 

“Can the elder son in me come home? Can I be found as the younger son was found? How can I return when I am lost in resentment, when I am caught in jealousy, when I am imprisoned in obedience and duty lived out as slavery? It is clear that alone, by myself, I cannot find myself. More daunting than healing myself as the younger son, is healing myself as the elder son. Confronted here with the impossibility of self redemption, I now understand Jesus’ words to Nicodemus: ‘Do not be surprised when I say; ‘You must be born from above.’’ Indeed, something has to happen that I myself cannot cause to happen. I cannot be reborn from below; that is, with my own strength, with my own mind with my own psychological insights…I can only be healed from above, from where God reaches down. What is impossible for me is possible for God. ‘With God, everything is possible’.”    Henri Nouwen, The Return of the Prodigal

What I glean from this:

·       True repentance is a reason for rejoicing!

·       It is God’s desire for me to love mercy – freely I received, freely I must give.

·       I must flee from being self-righteous and humbly seek healing from God.

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SHARING BREAD

²⁸ ”The older brother became angry and refused to go in. So his father went out and pleaded with him. ²⁹ But he answered his father, ‘Look! All these years I’ve been slaving for you and never disobeyed your orders. Yet you never gave me even a young goat so I could celebrate with my friends. ³⁰ But when this son of yours who has squandered your property with prostitutes comes home, you kill the fattened calf for him!’

Luke 15:28-30 (NIV)

It appears that the “perfect” protagonist in our verses for today had a similar problem to the Pharisees and the teachers of the law who were simply not happy about “sinners” and tax collectors receiving mercy or having any part or share in the Kingdom.  Lacking in mercy, motivated wrongly in their work they were stomping their feet at the inclusion of the repentant.  “It’s not fair!” they cry out.  What they didn’t realize is that the fair is in October!  Life is not fair – whatever that means.  How “unfair” it was for Jesus, who being in very nature God, to empty Himself of His glory and come down to earth to live a perfect life and to die on the cross for our scrawny necks – talk about unfair!  Paul tells us in Philippians:

 ⁵ Your attitude should be the same as that of Christ Jesus: ⁶ Who, being in very nature God, did not consider equality with God something to be grasped, 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!   Phil 2:5-8 (NIV)

The older brother here is not too unlike Jonah who became very displeased with God’s mercy towards the lost in Nineveh – it was Jonah’s desire for them to be wiped away.  The Ninevites had been very cruel to the Israelites and Jonah desired their destruction.  He wanted to be spared from calamity but he did not want the Ninevites to be kept from disaster.  Jonah, like the older brother, was an object of God’s compassion yet displayed no compassion for those he deemed not worthy – even when they truly are repentant:

¹ But Jonah was greatly displeased and became angry. ² He prayed to the LORD, “O LORD, is this not what I said when I was still at home? That is why I was so quick to flee to Tarshish. I knew that you are a gracious and compassionate God, slow to anger and abounding in love, a God who relents from sending calamity. ³ Now, O LORD, take away my life, for it is better for me to die than to live.”   Jonah 4:1-3 (NIV)

But God (two of my favorite words in Scripture), who longs to display mercy to the repentant, speaks to Jonah in the following way:

⁴ But the LORD replied, “Have you any right to be angry?”   Jonah 4:4 (NIV)

God begins by asking the sulking prophet if he had any right to be angry certainly implying a negative response.  Perhaps Jonah, who also deserved death for disobedience, forgot that he too had been delivered by God.  Again, God speaks to Jonah and gives the prophet the reason for the stay of His hand:

¹¹ But Nineveh has more than a hundred and twenty thousand people who cannot tell their right hand from their left, and many cattle as well. Should I not be concerned about that great city?” Jonah 4:11 (NIV)

Of these verses the Bible Knowledge Commentary states:

As the book concludes, Jonah was angry, depressed, hot, and faint. And he was left to contemplate God’s words about his own lack of compassion and God’s depth of compassion. The Lord had made His points: (a) He is gracious toward all nations, toward Gentiles as well as Israelites; (b) He is sovereign; (c) He punishes rebellion; and (d) He wants His own people to obey Him, to be rid of religious sham, and to place no limits on His universal love and grace.

We would all do well to contemplate the above points when we are picking up stones to cast. Ever fallen for that wrong attitude?  Me too!  Where in the world do we get off by not bestowing mercy in abundance to those seeking it in true repentance?  If God, the Creator of all things chooses to place no limits on His universal love and grace, how much more should we?

“Gratitude is born in hearts that take time to count up past mercies.”  Charles Jefferson

“Forgiveness save us the expense if anger, the cost of hatred, the waste of spirits.”  Hannah More

“Never cease loving a person, and never give up hope for him, for even the Prodigal Son who had fallen most low could still be saved.”  Seren Kierkegaard

What I glean from this:

• I am commanded to have the same attitude as Jesus.
• God is gracious and longs to display mercy to the repentant.
• God has a depth of love and wisdom that is far above my limited understanding:

³³ Oh, the depth of the riches of the wisdom and knowledge of God!
     How unsearchable his judgments,
     and his paths beyond tracing out!
³⁴ ”Who has known the mind of the Lord?
     Or who has been his counselor?”
³⁵ ”Who has ever given to God,
     that God should repay him?”
³⁶ For from him and through him and to him are all things.
     To him be the glory forever! Amen.   Romans 11:33-36 (NIV)

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