Confessions of a Single Guy
“When I was a child, I saw adults dating. When I became an adult, I saw children dating.” I laughed when I saw these words on a meme while scrolling through Instagram.
Wholehearted!
Caleb was a “wholehearted” person. He and Joshua were part of a twelve-man reconnaissance team that explored the Promised Land and gave a report to Moses and the people. Caleb said, “We should go up and take possession of the land, for we can certainly do it” (Num. 13:30). But ten members of the team said they couldn’t possibly succeed. In spite of God’s promises, they saw only obstacles (Num. 13:31–33).
Ten men caused the people to lose heart and grumble against God, which led to forty years of wandering in the desert. But Caleb never quit. The Lord said, “Because…
Finding common ground
Have you ever gotten caught in a dispute between two friends? It’s tough to be in the middle, and hard to avoid the pressure to take a side. But as we’ll see today on Discover the Word, when the apostle Paul was stuck in the middle of a situation like that, he focused on common […]
Finding common ground
Have you ever gotten caught in a dispute between two friends? It’s tough to be in the middle, and hard to avoid the pressure to take a side. But as we’ll see today on Discover the Word, when the apostle Paul was stuck in the middle of a situation like that, he focused on common […]
The Delight of Sacrifice
Once “the love of God has been poured out in our hearts by the Holy Spirit,” we deliberately begin to identify ourselves with Jesus Christ’s interests and purposes in others’ lives (Romans 5:5). And Jesus has an interest in every individual person. We have no right in Christian service to be guided by our own interests and desires. In fact, this is one of the greatest tests of our relationship with Jesus Christ. The delight of sacrifice is that I lay down my life for my Friend, Jesus (see John 15:13). I don’t throw my life away, but I willingly and deliberately lay it down for Him and His interests in other people. And I do this for no cause or purpose of my own.
When Will It Be My Turn?
You meet him—you know who I’m talking about. He’s the guy you’ve been dreaming of, the one you thought you’d never even talk to . . . and then he asks you on a date, a real date!
The Land of “What Is”
Even all these years after losing our seventeen-year-old daughter Melissa in a car accident in 2002, I sometimes find myself entering the world of “What If.” It’s easy, in grief, to reimagine the events of that tragic June evening and think of factors that—if rearranged—would have had Mell arriving safely home.
In reality, though, the land of “What If” is not a good place to be for any of us. It is a place of regret, second-guessing, and hopelessness. While the grief is real and the sadness endures, life is better and God is honored if we dwell in the world…
Growing Strong in Christ 2017
We certainly look forward to seeing you there! Here's a quick reminder of the details of our Bible Conference. Be sure to save…
The Determination to Serve
Jesus also said, “Yet I am among you as the One who serves” (Luke 22:27). Paul’s idea of service was the same as our Lord’s— “. . . ourselves your bondservants for Jesus’ sake” (2 Corinthians 4:5). We somehow have the idea that a person called to the ministry is called to be different and above other people. But according to Jesus Christ, he is called to be a “doormat” for others— called to be their spiritual leader, but never their superior. Paul said, “I know how to be abased . . .” (Philippians 4:12). Paul’s idea of service was to pour his life out to the last drop for others. And whether he received praise or blame made no difference.
A heart for prayer
What’s the point of prayer? Today on Discover the Word, we will discuss Paul’s heart for prayer and how it fueled his heart for others. It’s a conversation that comes out of our look at Paul’s letter to his friend Philemon—a short note, with a big message. Don’t miss a second of the conversation that […]
When My Spouse Couldn’t Read My Mind
“People think a soul mate is your perfect fit, and that’s what everyone wants. But a true soul mate is a mirror, the person who shows you everything that is holding you back, the person who brings you to your own attention so you can change your life.”
Press On
One of my favorite television programs is The Amazing Race. In this reality show, 10 couples are sent to a foreign country where they must race, via trains, buses, cabs, bikes, and feet, from one point to another to get their instructions for the next challenge. The goal is for one couple to get to a designated finishing point before everyone else, and the prize is a million dollars.
The apostle Paul compared the Christian life to a race and admitted that he had not yet arrived at the finish line. “Brothers and sisters,” he said, “I do not consider myself yet…
In our daily conversational language, we hardly use this word, "Appropriate".
So, to some of us, its meaning might not be very clear.
The Webster Handy College Dictionary gives the word, "appropriate" as a verb, meaning:
(1) allot (money) for a specific use [such as for, tithing, emergency days, etc.]
(2) take possession of. [citizenship granted to immigrants]
And as an adjective, the meaning is "suitable, applicable".
The subject that I wish to share with you all is, "how to take possession of someone's love for you".
Let me start with a reference to the gospel according to John. In passages of 13:23, 19:26; 20:2; 21:7, 20, we read a common refrain, "the disciple Jesus loved".
This is an adjective clause of himself, John, the author of the book, Gospel of John.
You would be forgiven, if you were to secretly say to yourself, "Wasn't John a bit thick skinned to self-claim as "...the other disciple, the one whom Jesus loved". (John 20:2a)
Some preachers would even emphasize that among the 12 disciples, indeed, John must have been the most loved by Jesus, for that is what the Bible recorded in prints.
I have mulled over this expression, "the disciple Jesus loved ".
Actually, the writer, John could have just written, "myself or I" in those instances. But, no, he wrote 4 words instead of just one word to refer himself to the readers of the book.
Why? Let us find out.
The following are the resultant thoughts of my deliberations.
Firstly, it is erroneous to believe and worse still, to teach an erroneous application that Jesus had loved John more than the other disciples because the Bible has categorically
stated that "For God does not show favoritism." (Romans 2:11).
Therefore, it is very safe to believe and teach that Jesus loved all the disciples equally, even, the very one, who would betray Him with a kiss in the garden of Gethsemane, for the reward of mere thirty pieces of silver.
Secondly, this unique reference of "the disciple Jesus loved" is found only in the gospel of John and not in all the other books.
This shows us that the allusion of John being the especially loved disciple of Jesus, was of his own citation /authority, and not a perception upheld by the other disciples.
In other words, the other disciples did not sense or feel it that way (that Jesus loved John more than others).
Therefore, it has to do with how John appropriated Jesus' love for him, in order, for him to come forth to declare himself as, "the one whom Jesus loved".
Herein is a precious lesson for all of us - how to take possession of love from another person?
Needless to say, John would have known, realized and sensed keenly that Jesus loved equally everybody else. Yet, at the same time, he had felt the full force/weight of Jesus' love, as if, intentionally /calculated just for him alone /solely.
I am inclined to believe that whenever John interacted with Jesus, he must have savored the preciousness and greatness of Jesus' love for him.
John had, in essence, tasted and enjoyed Jesus' love as an invaluable /costly, beyond any price commodity; and the converse consequence was being humbled and felt very undeserving.
[I reckon, when John wrote the book, he had already known that Jesus was the Son of God, sent to be The Sacrificial Lamb for the sins of the world. In the same way as declared by Peter, "It was the precious blood of Christ, the sinless, spotless Lamb of God." (1Peter 1:19)]
And as he grew in appreciation for Jesus' love, he had not for a moment felt that he was a recipient of only a shadow fraction of love from Jesus.
I would not be surprised at all that his experience was similar to the multiplication of the 5 loaves and 2 fish that finally fed over 5,000 men (not counting the women and children).
Or, he could have felt Jesus' love oozing and filling him all over him with warmth, much like the froth that overflows from a mug of beer /lager.
You could be like me, if you give careful thoughts to identify /determine the underlying factors for John to appropriate /take possession of Jesus' love in such awesome manner.
I have no shadow of a doubt that John,
never looked /compared himself with others; for if Jesus were to love someone else more, what is that to him?
would not begrudge Jesus, the benefactor for what He would endow on others; and may even rejoice for them;
was grateful for whatever that was on the receiving end with which he was landed with;
that comes with an attitude/ true sense of being undeserving of Jesus' love; after all, he was just a mere fisherman, while Jesus was Son of God;
probably he would be telling his own soul, that in reality, Jesus did not need to love him, if He does not want to; such a stance would orientate him to appreciate hugely whatever love he could receive from Jesus;
was able to look out, recognize and note tokens of love from every word /action from Jesus in his every day's occurrences.
must have felt so special and exceptional, much akin to what my 2+-year-old granddaughter, Isabelle, who told off her young girl, who came visiting and was coming close to me, she stood and said, "this is my grandma" (with increased tone emphasizing on "my". Implying that I was her grandma and not anybody else's, much less for that girl; and after her declaration, she validated with a gesture. She moved from where she was sitting, walked passed that little girl to where I was sitting on the floor, and took a seat on my lap with her back leaning very close to my chest, much like settling a territorial dispute ritual!
Yes, we ought to feel possessive of Jesus' love for us to the extent that we would declare to the world that "I am the One whom Jesus loved".
God Bless You All!
Best Regards,
mary
The Discipline of Spiritual Perseverance
Perseverance is more than endurance. It is endurance combined with absolute assurance and certainty that what we are looking for is going to happen. Perseverance means more than just hanging on, which may be only exposing our fear of letting go and falling. Perseverance is our supreme effort of refusing to believe that our hero is going to be conquered. Our greatest fear is not that we will be damned, but that somehow Jesus Christ will be defeated. Also, our fear is that the very things our Lord stood for— love, justice, forgiveness, and kindness among men— will not win out in the end and will represent an unattainable goal for us.
A letter from Paul
Don’t you love getting mail from a friend? When you see a loved one’s name on the return address, or in your e-mail inbox, you’re filled with joy and anticipation. And today on Discover the Word, we’ll hear about a personal letter the apostle Paul wrote to Philemon—from one friend to another. But it was […]
