Matthew 5:1-12
1 One day as he saw the crowds gathering, Jesus went up on the mountainside and sat down. His disciples gathered around him,
2 and he began to teach them. 3 “God blesses those who are poor and realize their need for him, for the Kingdom of Heaven is theirs. 4 God blesses those who mourn, for they will be comforted. 5 God blesses those who are humble, for they will inherit the whole earth. 6 God blesses those who hunger and thirst for justice, for they will be satisfied. 7 God blesses those who are merciful, for they will be shown mercy. 8 God blesses those whose hearts are pure, for they will see God. 9 God blesses those who work for peace, for they will be called the children of God. 10 God blesses those who are persecuted for doing right, for the Kingdom of Heaven is theirs.
11 “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. 12 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.
Jesus doesn’t say blessed are the rich for they will be famous. He doesn’t say blessed are the popular for they know how to act like the crowd. He says the opposite. He talks about being pure and merciful, about standing up for what is right and going against the crowd.
SO WHAT?
Today you can live for yourself and conform to the crowd, or you can be transformed and live out Matthew 5:1-12. One way pleases the world and the other way pleases Jesus. Who do you want to please today? How will you please them?
Tuesday, November 25, 2008
Monday, November 24, 2008
May You Play Your Part Well
We are now far into this Epic that every great story points to. We have reached the moment where we, too, must find our courage and rise up to recover our hearts and fight for the hearts of others. The hour is late, and much time has been wasted. Aslan is on the move; we must rally to him at the stone table. We must find Geppetto lost at sea. We must ride hard, ride to Minas Tirith and join the last great battle for Middle Earth.
Jesus calls to you to be his intimate ally once more. There are great things to be done and great sacrifices to be made. You won’t lose heart if you know what’s really going on here, where this Story is headed and what your father has promised to you.
It is a world of magic and mystery, of deep darkness and flickering starlight. It is a world where terrible things happen and wonderful things too. It is a world where goodness is pitted against evil, love against hate, order against chaos, in a great struggle where often it is hard to be sure who belongs to which side because appearances are endlessly deceptive. Yet for all its confusion and wildness, it is a world where the battle goes ultimately to the good, who live happily ever after, and where in the long run everybody, good and evil alike, becomes known by his true name . . . That is the fairy tale of the Gospel with, of course, one crucial difference from all other fairy tales, which is that the claim made for it is that it is true, that it not only happened once upon a time but has kept on happening ever since and is happening still. (Telling the Truth)
This is the gospel.
This is the Story we are living in.
May you play your part well.
John Eldredge
(Epic, 103, 104)
So What?
How would you live if you believed this to be true?
Jesus calls to you to be his intimate ally once more. There are great things to be done and great sacrifices to be made. You won’t lose heart if you know what’s really going on here, where this Story is headed and what your father has promised to you.
It is a world of magic and mystery, of deep darkness and flickering starlight. It is a world where terrible things happen and wonderful things too. It is a world where goodness is pitted against evil, love against hate, order against chaos, in a great struggle where often it is hard to be sure who belongs to which side because appearances are endlessly deceptive. Yet for all its confusion and wildness, it is a world where the battle goes ultimately to the good, who live happily ever after, and where in the long run everybody, good and evil alike, becomes known by his true name . . . That is the fairy tale of the Gospel with, of course, one crucial difference from all other fairy tales, which is that the claim made for it is that it is true, that it not only happened once upon a time but has kept on happening ever since and is happening still. (Telling the Truth)
This is the gospel.
This is the Story we are living in.
May you play your part well.
John Eldredge
(Epic, 103, 104)
So What?
How would you live if you believed this to be true?
Sunday, November 23, 2008
Break Out- Don't miss this one!
Ephesians 4:32
Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ, God forgave you.
Lets Break out of our comfort bubble today and do something BOLD and Rash that will shake the foundations of our world....lets ask for forgiveness today! Do you have someone that you know you need to ask forgiveness from? Someone that you snapped at, were rude or mean to, somebody that you might have ignored? Lets ask for forgiveness and not expect anything in return... we are not asking so they apologize for what they might have done because we are not worried about how they react but we are working on humility and compassion for ourselves toward others.
The hardest part of forgiveness is what happens after, you have to forgive them and then forget it in your heart so that you are not keeping a record of wrongs but only a record of love, hope, and faith! It will take practice but that is why we are BREAKING OUT!
IF you truly forgive someone it is forgotten! Walk in his power and strength today!
Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ, God forgave you.
Lets Break out of our comfort bubble today and do something BOLD and Rash that will shake the foundations of our world....lets ask for forgiveness today! Do you have someone that you know you need to ask forgiveness from? Someone that you snapped at, were rude or mean to, somebody that you might have ignored? Lets ask for forgiveness and not expect anything in return... we are not asking so they apologize for what they might have done because we are not worried about how they react but we are working on humility and compassion for ourselves toward others.
The hardest part of forgiveness is what happens after, you have to forgive them and then forget it in your heart so that you are not keeping a record of wrongs but only a record of love, hope, and faith! It will take practice but that is why we are BREAKING OUT!
IF you truly forgive someone it is forgotten! Walk in his power and strength today!
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