Exodus 29:13-14 NLT Take all the fat around the internal organs, the long lobe of the liver, and the two kidneys and the fat around them, and burn it all on the altar. [14] Then take the rest of the bull, including its hide, meat, and dung, and burn it outside the camp as a sin offering.
I love considering what the various things symbolize. It is curious to me how the bull and ram sacrifices differ. The bull is a larger animal than the ram & only it’s insides were burned on the altar as an aroma to God. Everything visible was burned outside the camp as a sin offering. This reminds me how it isn’t the outwardly visible acts that are what is pleasing to God, but He wants a humble and surrendered heart.
I’m also reminded of the “Micah Mandate”:
Micah 6:8 NLT [8] No, O people, the Lord has told you what is good, and this is what he requires of you: to do what is right, to love mercy, and to walk humbly with your God.
Act justly: Do what is right and fair, not just what is popular.
Love mercy: Show loyalty and faithfulness to God’s love by loving others.
Walk humbly: Be mindful of how you live before God, without arrogance.
We should look to the example of Christ in his humility and lay aside our own interests for the interests of others. Christ is our “well of goodness and hope and justice and mercy” in us, and we share that with our neighbors.
You know, I don’t have anything worthy to bring to the God of all creation. There is nothing that God needs from little old me or you, and isn’t it obvious that there is nothing we could do to earn a truly righteous and holy God’s favor. We’ve all made mistakes. In fact, we’ve all done things intentionally that we knew were bad, that hurt others, that hurt ourselves, that weren’t good, honest or just.
So no matter how far we’ve fallen our strayed from where we know we should be — it really isn’t about how good or bad we have been. If it was about how good or bad we’ve been, one person would say “but God made me this way” as an excuse for their wickedness — and another person would say “look how much better I am than those sinners” — and neither would know God or understand anything about Him (no matter their choice of religion or tradition).
But God offers an invitation through Jesus Christ to come as you are, to give yourself away, with a promise that He will do the work in and through you — that His grace and mercy and love will be sufficient to endure you through to the end. What a miraculous and very different thing than all of the false religions and checklist laws of mere men! A God who says and proves that He can and will change hearts and lives from the inside out!
This is a worship medley with some impromptu free worship that I encourage you to listen to and join us in from wherever you are — consider the call of the lyrics, look to Jesus personally, and see for yourself that He is good.
When Job talks about the wicked wanting no part in God’s ways:
Job 21:14 NLT And yet they say to God, ‘Go away. We want no part of you and your ways.
I’m reminded of Amos 5 where God says He wants no part of the people who are saying they long for the day of the Lord and who are outwardly religious with the hypocrisy and show:
Amos 5:18, 21-23 NLT What sorrow awaits you who say, “If only the day of the Lord were here!” You have no idea what you are wishing for. That day will bring darkness, not light. “I hate all your show and pretense— the hypocrisy of your religious festivals and solemn assemblies. I will not accept your burnt offerings and grain offerings. I won’t even notice all your choice peace offerings. Away with your noisy hymns of praise! I will not listen to the music of your harps.
And then reminded of Matthew 7:
Matthew 7:21-23 NLT “Not everyone who calls out to me, ‘Lord! Lord!’ will enter the Kingdom of Heaven. Only those who actually do the will of my Father in heaven will enter. On judgment day many will say to me, ‘Lord! Lord! We prophesied in your name and cast out demons in your name and performed many miracles in your name.’ But I will reply, ‘I never knew you. Get away from me, you who break God’s laws.’
In Job 21, Job speaks truths about how God does allow the wicked to prosper in this life, then Eliohaz makes personal accusations of Job. Job doesn’t have to be a prophet to know that these “friends of his” aren’t there to comfort him but to mock him:
Job 21:2-3 NLT “Listen closely to what I am saying. That’s one consolation you can give me. Bear with me, and let me speak. After I have spoken, you may resume mocking me.
And that’s exactly what happens:
Job 22:4-7 NLT Is it because you’re so pious that he accuses you and brings judgment against you? No, it’s because of your wickedness! There’s no limit to your sins. “For example, you must have lent money to your friend and demanded clothing as security. Yes, you stripped him to the bone. You must have refused water for the thirsty and food for the hungry.
Accusations and casting stones at a suffering, grieving and devastated man because he isn’t putting on a show of public religion, offerings, and noisy praise but he’s being real about his situation.
What strikes me as fearful in this whole transaction isn’t anything truthful Job has said about God but how Eliahaz makes the mistake of presuming about God by essentially saying “If you do _____, God WILL do ______.”
Job 22:29 NLT If people are in trouble and you say, ‘Help them,’ God will save them.
This is such a wrong and frightening perspective and misunderstanding of God. We cannot use the Word of God to pin God into doing what we want — He is not our genie to command. It is not us who command things into existence from nothing. We are not witches, trying to figure out the right combination of words, potions, or actions we can take that will give us our intended results. God does as He pleases.
Psalms 115:3 NLT Our God is in the heavens, and he does as he wishes.
Job is clearly aware of this truth, even as he seeks an opportunity to wrestle with God who he loves so deadly and has walked with his whole life:
Job 23:12-14 NLT I have not departed from his commands, but have treasured his words more than daily food. But once he has made his decision, who can change his mind? Whatever he wants to do, he does. So he will do to me whatever he has planned. He controls my destiny.
You see, Job knows that even walking close with God does not guarantee that we will not suffer, that we will not grieve, that we will not face mocking and ridicule. In fact, Jesus tells us that such things in the Kingdom of God are where the blessings are:
Matthew 5:3-12 NLT “God blesses those who are poor and realize their need for him, for the Kingdom of Heaven is theirs. God blesses those who mourn, for they will be comforted. God blesses those who are humble, for they will inherit the whole earth. God blesses those who hunger and thirst for justice, for they will be satisfied. 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. God blesses those who work for peace, for they will be called the children of God. God blesses those who are persecuted for doing right, for the Kingdom of Heaven is theirs. “God blesses you when people mock you and persecute you and lie about you and say all sorts of evil things against you because you are my followers. Be happy about it! Be very glad! For a great reward awaits you in heaven. And remember, the ancient prophets were persecuted in the same way.
Even a child can answer in their heart whether it would be a better to get that you and love their mother or lose the toy but have mother there to hold them and make it better. If we know this to be true about our earthly mother, we should definitely learn this lesson about our heavenly Father as well.
In all of this Job is not turning his back on God and dying (like his foolish wife suggested he do), but He is seeking God. In fact, He knows that God’s testing in this life refines us:
Job 23:2-10 NLT “My complaint today is still a bitter one, and I try hard not to groan aloud. If only I knew where to find God, I would go to his court. I would lay out my case and present my arguments. Then I would listen to his reply and understand what he says to me. Would he use his great power to argue with me? No, he would give me a fair hearing. Honest people can reason with him, so I would be forever acquitted by my judge. I go east, but he is not there. I go west, but I cannot find him. I do not see him in the north, for he is hidden. I look to the south, but he is concealed. “But he knows where I am going. And when he tests me, I will come out as pure as gold.
Isn’t it wild how loud our flesh can scream out at us to avoid the refining fires? Even how strongly Jesus’s flesh cried out to Him in Gethsemane:
Luke 22:41-44 NLT He walked away, about a stone’s throw, and knelt down and prayed, “Father, if you are willing, please take this cup of suffering away from me. Yet I want your will to be done, not mine.” Then an angel from heaven appeared and strengthened him. He prayed more fervently, and he was in such agony of spirit that his sweat fell to the ground like great drops of blood.
When we are at these points of the story, Job arguing with his friends. Jesus in Gethsemane, a mother burying her dead child, a husband and wife hearing the word “cancer” from a doctor, a person dealing with chronic illness, a person struggling deeply with mental illness — do we seek God to wrestle with Him, or do we curse Him and die?
Do we wisely want a part in God’s ways, or do we foolishly expect He will play a part in ours?
In all of Job’s mourning, in his deep suffering — no one would actually listen to him and consider that his words could be true. Not one of them had even considered that God had removed the hedge of protection around Job, or that God might call Satan’s attention to Job to be purified by the refining fires of true, deep suffering.
Look at the examples of so many who walk with God who have faced levels of suffering that would leave those who do not know God saying, “He has sinned and God is punishing him” or similar. But have they not heard Jesus’s preaching from the mount that teaches about what real blessing looks like — do they not hear the call for us to share in the suffering of Christ — so they not know the example Christ and the Apostles and the martyrs have set before us?
Or are everyone’s eyes set upon chasing happiness and fulfillment and being honored in this life?
How often have I foolishly thought easy was best — rather than remembering that broad is the way that leads to real destruction.
I’m grateful for the book of Job and the Psalms of lament like Psalm 6, Psalm 38, Psalm 10, Psalm 42, Psalm 43, and Psalm 130 — and even in Jesus’s words of Matthew 27:46 and Mark 15:34 where He recites the words from Psalm 22: “My God, My God, why have you abandoned me?”
We should not be surprised that suffering and lament are tools the potter uses like sand and grit to polish a fine finish on his vessels.
I have to say that it’s very challenging knowing the hurt and pain and struggle that some are going through and have gone through. It’s hard wanting to make sense of the “why” behind a lovely and kind person ending up with alzheimers and dementia, or a parent losing a child, or a young child with a painful chronic disease, or a brutal and senseless murder, or ongoing child/domestic abuse, a beloved spouse getting a scary diagnosis, etc.
This world can be so ugly and painful in ways where I have no ability to fix it or make sense of it personally. But He encourages me to pray constantly (1 Thess 5:17), and in every situation (Phil 4:6). Jesus modeled intentional prayer for us (Mark 1:35), and promises that the Father gives good gifts to those who ask (Matt 7:11). The best gifts are not shallow or selfish, like money or fulfilled desires — but are things like unexplainable peace that washes over someone in deep turmoil and grief, patience to endure burdens heavier than we could bear on our own, kindness to see others in pain and seek how we might lighten their load or encourage them, faithfulness to hold out hope even when we can’t yet see the victory, self-discipline to stick to it even when it feels like it’s useless and meaningless.
I used to not think much about anybody other than myself (in fact, I’m still like that when I let myself run on “default settings”). But I have made this miraculous claim (that I fully believe, and that I believe my life over time begins to reveal more and more) — that Christ lives in me, and that I am being conformed more and more into His image.
It is such a miraculous claim that seems so egotistical and absurd (that the God of all time and creation would even know of me, care about me, and choose to save and use me) that you would think that I would have to be the biggest narcissist and judgemental religious bigot to make such a wild claim — yet, it instead humbles me horribly.
When I see someone living cleaner than me that makes no such claim of being powered by the Holy Spirit of the Living God — it leads me to deep repentance where I must rely on God as my strength to wash me and to heal yet another part of my heart (that has been working against myself and against yall and against His beautiful will). When I see someone making the same foolish mistakes I have made myself, it inspires me to not just see an enemy who had hurt me or others, but to remember that through the cross and risen Savior I am seeing the same victory that they too need — that we are not at different levels of need or of worthiness or of glory — that we have all fallen short of the glory of God.
Thank you so much when you encourage me, my friends. I just have to say 100% that you seeing any good in me doesn’t make me feel better about me, it just puts me in more awe of how the Father will turn ashes into beauty, mourning into gladness, despair into praise (Isaiah 61:3).
We all need to be prayed for, and we all need the act of prayer to do its work within us — to draw us closer to the Father and to His will. Amen.
If we were only of this world, we might be tempted to talk about measuring our own sin. We might make the discussion about ourselves.
But as a Christian, the answer is ONLY FOUND IN THE GOSPEL.
Righteous = Washed by the Blood of the Lamb.
I have no righteousness of my own because even my best is filthy rags. As a born again, abiding in Christ, follower walking in The Way — any actual good is Christ at work in and through me, not my own striving harder to appear or be seen as good.
The Holy Spirit of God grows in me like a seed taking root in fertile soil and bears the fruit of God’s character and nature. So I can’t boast or take credit or compare myself to others — because it’s isn’t my work. It isn’t something that mere men or women are capable of doing in their own but is a miracle only possible by the hand of God.
This is the gospel — that He has saved us who were not worthy of being saved, and He did it by living the life that we could not, and now we die daily to ourselves as vessels carrying the Holy Spirit that does in and through it what we could not do apart from the power of God at work. If His hand is not doing it, the most white washed, law keeping, pious on the outside is still dead and wicked on the inside, regardless of outward appearance, show and pretense.
He invited even the thief on the cross to come, believe and be made white as snow. He invites even me, and even you to humble yourself and not rely on our own works but to trust in Him alone to do the true work of making us righteous for His name sake and for His own glory — not ours.
Even any decision to surrender, believe, follow and obey is a reaction of gratitude for what He has done for me — something He stirred and wooed and called me into. Thank you Jesus!
Supporting Scripture:
Isaiah 64:6 NLT [6] We are all infected and impure with sin. When we display our righteous deeds, they are nothing but filthy rags. Like autumn leaves, we wither and fall, and our sins sweep us away like the wind.
1 Corinthians 15:3 NLT [3] I passed on to you what was most important and what had also been passed on to me. Christ died for our sins, just as the Scriptures said.
John 3:16-17 NLT [16] “For this is how God loved the world: He gave his one and only Son, so that everyone who believes in him will not perish but have eternal life. [17] God sent his Son into the world not to judge the world, but to save the world through him.
Colossians 1:26-29 NLT [26] This message was kept secret for centuries and generations past, but now it has been revealed to God’s people. [27] For God wanted them to know that the riches and glory of Christ are for you Gentiles, too. And this is the secret: Christ lives in you. This gives you assurance of sharing his glory. [28] So we tell others about Christ, warning everyone and teaching everyone with all the wisdom God has given us. We want to present them to God, perfect in their relationship to Christ. [29] That’s why I work and struggle so hard, depending on Christ’s mighty power that works within me.
Ephesians 2:8-10 NLT [8] God saved you by his grace when you believed. And you can’t take credit for this; it is a gift from God. [9] Salvation is not a reward for the good things we have done, so none of us can boast about it. [10] For we are God’s masterpiece. He has created us anew in Christ Jesus, so we can do the good things he planned for us long ago.
John 20:19-23 NLT [19] That Sunday evening the disciples were meeting behind locked doors because they were afraid of the Jewish leaders. Suddenly, Jesus was standing there among them! “Peace be with you,” he said. [20] As he spoke, he showed them the wounds in his hands and his side. They were filled with joy when they saw the Lord! [21] Again he said, “Peace be with you. As the Father has sent me, so I am sending you.” [22] Then he breathed on them and said, “Receive the Holy Spirit. [23] If you forgive anyone’s sins, they are forgiven. If you do not forgive them, they are not forgiven.”
Acts of the Apostles 19:2-6 NLT [2] “Did you receive the Holy Spirit when you believed?” he asked them. “No,” they replied, “we haven’t even heard that there is a Holy Spirit.” [3] “Then what baptism did you experience?” he asked. And they replied, “The baptism of John.” [4] Paul said, “John’s baptism called for repentance from sin. But John himself told the people to believe in the one who would come later, meaning Jesus.” [5] As soon as they heard this, they were baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus. [6] Then when Paul laid his hands on them, the Holy Spirit came on them, and they spoke in other tongues and prophesied.
Galatians 3:19-27 NLT [19] Why, then, was the law given? It was given alongside the promise to show people their sins. But the law was designed to last only until the coming of the child who was promised. God gave his law through angels to Moses, who was the mediator between God and the people. [20] Now a mediator is helpful if more than one party must reach an agreement. But God, who is one, did not use a mediator when he gave his promise to Abraham. [21] Is there a conflict, then, between God’s law and God’s promises? Absolutely not! If the law could give us new life, we could be made right with God by obeying it. [22] But the Scriptures declare that we are all prisoners of sin, so we receive God’s promise of freedom only by believing in Jesus Christ. [23] Before the way of faith in Christ was available to us, we were placed under guard by the law. We were kept in protective custody, so to speak, until the way of faith was revealed. [24] Let me put it another way. The law was our guardian until Christ came; it protected us until we could be made right with God through faith. [25] And now that the way of faith has come, we no longer need the law as our guardian. [26] For you are all children of God through faith in Christ Jesus. [27] And all who have been united with Christ in baptism have put on Christ, like putting on new clothes.
2 Timothy 1:9-10 NLT [9] For God saved us and called us to live a holy life. He did this, not because we deserved it, but because that was his plan from before the beginning of time—to show us his grace through Christ Jesus. [10] And now he has made all of this plain to us by the appearing of Christ Jesus, our Savior. He broke the power of death and illuminated the way to life and immortality through the Good News.
Luke 18:9-14 NLT [9] Then Jesus told this story to some who had great confidence in their own righteousness and scorned everyone else: [10] “Two men went to the Temple to pray. One was a Pharisee, and the other was a despised tax collector. [11] The Pharisee stood by himself and prayed this prayer: ‘I thank you, God, that I am not like other people—cheaters, sinners, adulterers. I’m certainly not like that tax collector! [12] I fast twice a week, and I give you a tenth of my income.’ [13] “But the tax collector stood at a distance and dared not even lift his eyes to heaven as he prayed. Instead, he beat his chest in sorrow, saying, ‘O God, be merciful to me, for I am a sinner.’ [14] I tell you, this sinner, not the Pharisee, returned home justified before God. For those who exalt themselves will be humbled, and those who humble themselves will be exalted.”
Matthew 25:34-46 NLT [34] “Then the King will say to those on his right, ‘Come, you who are blessed by my Father, inherit the Kingdom prepared for you from the creation of the world. [35] For I was hungry, and you fed me. I was thirsty, and you gave me a drink. I was a stranger, and you invited me into your home. [36] I was naked, and you gave me clothing. I was sick, and you cared for me. I was in prison, and you visited me.’ [37] “Then these righteous ones will reply, ‘Lord, when did we ever see you hungry and feed you? Or thirsty and give you something to drink? [38] Or a stranger and show you hospitality? Or naked and give you clothing? [39] When did we ever see you sick or in prison and visit you?’ [40] “And the King will say, ‘I tell you the truth, when you did it to one of the least of these my brothers and sisters, you were doing it to me!’ [41] “Then the King will turn to those on the left and say, ‘Away with you, you cursed ones, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his demons. [42] For I was hungry, and you didn’t feed me. I was thirsty, and you didn’t give me a drink. [43] I was a stranger, and you didn’t invite me into your home. I was naked, and you didn’t give me clothing. I was sick and in prison, and you didn’t visit me.’ [44] “Then they will reply, ‘Lord, when did we ever see you hungry or thirsty or a stranger or naked or sick or in prison, and not help you?’ [45] “And he will answer, ‘I tell you the truth, when you refused to help the least of these my brothers and sisters, you were refusing to help me.’ [46] “And they will go away into eternal punishment, but the righteous will go into eternal life.”
Revelation 7:13-17 NLT [13] Then one of the twenty-four elders asked me, “Who are these who are clothed in white? Where did they come from?” [14] And I said to him, “Sir, you are the one who knows.” Then he said to me, “These are the ones who died in the great tribulation. They have washed their robes in the blood of the Lamb and made them white. [15] “That is why they stand in front of God’s throne and serve him day and night in his Temple. And he who sits on the throne will give them shelter. [16] They will never again be hungry or thirsty; they will never be scorched by the heat of the sun. [17] For the Lamb on the throne will be their Shepherd. He will lead them to springs of life-giving water. And God will wipe every tear from their eyes.”
One of our security cameras caught a picture of the sunrise as Mandee left to take Mia to school yesterday. I was talking with a vendor at work who commented on how beautiful it is here where we live, and I had to agree. We have beautiful sunrises, beautiful mountain views, and we see surprises of new beauty from nature every day. We also saw a new resident on the farm that we have named “Charlie”, or “Chuck” for short. We were sitting at the kitchen table eating lunch, and Mandee exclaimed, “What is that?! Is that an animal?” So I grabbed my “good camera” and snapped on a zoom lens and was able to get a quick picture of Charlie.
Charlie the Woodchuck
Since my wife was getting ready and putting on her makeup this morning, I read our family devotional with Mia, Olive, Pompom, and I all snuggled up in our bed. And as I began reading, Mandee chuckled to herself about the fact that it started out “Man looks at the outward appearance but I look at the heart” while she was putting on her makeup.
Jesus Always – Feb 26
But this morning’s devotional wasn’t just about the outward display of God’s handiwork, or just about glimpses of His glory in nature, or just about warnings about letting ourselves get hung up on outward appearances.
No, the most important piece of the devotion that we needed to hear was to “Above all else, guard your heart, for it is the wellspring of life.” And in case we were too sleepy eyed, or distracted, or foolish to realize that was the most important thing — like a good teacher laying hints during review for a test — the Word of God clearly emphasizes this by starting out “Above all else”.
A Wellspring in Nature
“Above all else” seems pretty important, don’t you think?
My mom and I talked about the state of the church in America on the phone last night, and how instead of ” guarding their own hearts” and insisting it is a “wellspring of life” — it seems like much of mainstream conservatism has become complacent and primarily focused on telling people what they should be “afraid of”, what they should be “offended by”, what they should be “loudly opposed to”. Outward appearance and loud demonstration “against things” seems to have grown to be the keynote for too many religious discussions — while too few focus on asking:
“What is the source of this fear? What is flooding fear into our hearts, and therefore flooding words of fear from our mouths and fearful posts from our social media influence?”
“What is the source of this offense? What is flooding offense into our hearts, and therefore flooding words of fear from our mouths and offended and offensive posts in our social media influence?”
“What is the source of this opposition and divisiveness? What is flooding divisiveness into our hearts, and therefore flooding words of exclusivity from our mouths and divisive posts in our social media influence?”
Polluted Waters
Some might say with pointed fingers that “What THEY are doing is causing us to act this way!” But Jesus explains how defilement happens quite clearly:
After He called the people to Him again, He began saying to them, “Listen [carefully] to Me, all of you, [hear] and understand [what I am saying]: there is nothing outside a man [such as food] which by going into him can defile him [morally or spiritually]; but the things which come out of [the heart of] a man are what defile and dishonor him. [ If anyone has ears to hear, let him hear.” ] When Jesus had left the crowd and gone into the house, His disciples asked Him about the parable. And He said to them, “Are you, too, so foolish and lacking in understanding? Do you not understand that whatever goes into the man from outside cannot defile and dishonor him, since it does not enter his heart, but [only] his stomach, and [from there it] is eliminated?” ( By this, He declared all foods ceremonially clean.) And He said, “Whatever comes from [the heart of] a man, that is what defiles and dishonors him. For from within, [that is] out the heart of men, come base and malevolent thoughts and schemes, acts of sexual immorality, thefts, murders, adulteries, acts of greed and covetousness, wickedness, deceit, unrestrained conduct, envy and jealousy, slander and profanity, arrogance and self-righteousness and foolishness (poor judgment). All these evil things [schemes and desires] come from within and defile and dishonor the man.” Mark 7:14-23 AMP
Yes, He is talking about physical food not defiling us, but we “consume” more from television and the Internet these days than we could ever consume with our mouths to fill our newly expanded quarantine bellies. Do we fear that TV show or website or vaccine or implant because we think that it might “defile us” and that it is the “mark of the beast”? Or is the real fear that the real source of the “wellspring of our heart” might be those things Jesus described as the true mark of the beast, the true means of discerning whose are children of a very different Father. Those things that rise up from within the ravenous wolves to be visible beyond the white washed outward imitation of sheep.
Let’s contrast what comes out of the heart of men:
“out the heart of men, come base and malevolent thoughts and schemes, acts of sexual immorality, thefts, murders, adulteries, acts of greed and covetousness, wickedness, deceit, unrestrained conduct, envy and jealousy, slander and profanity, arrogance and self-righteousness and foolishness (poor judgment).” – Mark 7:
Now the practices of the sinful nature are clearly evident: they are sexual immorality, impurity, sensuality (total irresponsibility, lack of self-control), idolatry, sorcery, hostility, strife, jealousy, fits of anger, disputes, dissensions, factions [that promote heresies], envy, drunkenness, riotous behavior, and other things like these. I warn you beforehand, just as I did previously, that those who practice such things will not inherit the kingdom of God.” – Galatians 5:19-21 AMP
To what springs forth from the Holy Spirit of God:
But the fruit of the Spirit [the result of His presence within us] is love [unselfish concern for others], joy, [inner] peace, patience [not the ability to wait, but how we act while waiting], kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control. Against such things there is no law. And those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the sinful nature together with its passions and appetites. If we [claim to] live by the [Holy] Spirit, we must also walk by the Spirit [with personal integrity, godly character, and moral courage—our conduct empowered by the Holy Spirit]. We must not become conceited, challenging or provoking one another, envying one another. Galatians 5:22-26 AMP
First, we must ask, “Does His pure life flow through me, or is my wellspring from something polluted and impure?”
If you see the need for change… for a new wellspring inside, beloved…
Do you believe with your heart in Christ as Savior, and confess your faith in Jesus openly with your life?
because if you acknowledge and confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord [recognizing His power, authority, and majesty as God], and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved. For with the heart a person believes [in Christ as Savior] resulting in his justification [that is, being made righteous—being freed of the guilt of sin and made acceptable to God]; and with the mouth he acknowledges and confesses [his faith openly], resulting in and confirming [his] salvation. For the Scripture says, “W hoever believes in H im [whoever adheres to, trusts in, and relies on Him] will not be disappointed [in his expectations].” Romans 10:9-11 AM
Do you ask Him for the Holy Spirit, this wellspring of life, an abundant supply of His character, nature, and presence in your life?
“So I say to you, ask and keep on asking, and it will be given to you; seek and keep on seeking, and you will find; knock and keep on knocking, and the door will be opened to you. For everyone who keeps on asking [persistently], receives; and he who keeps on seeking [persistently], finds; and to him who keeps on knocking [persistently], the door will be opened. What father among you, if his son asks for a fish, will give him a snake instead of a fish? Or if he asks for an egg, will give him a scorpion? If you, then, being evil [that is, sinful by nature], know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to those who ask and continue to ask Him!” Luke 11:9-13 AMP
43 And immediately, even as Jesus said this, Judas, one of the twelve disciples, arrived with a crowd of men armed with swords and clubs. They had been sent by the leading priests, the teachers of religious law, and the elders.44 The traitor, Judas, had given them a prearranged signal: “You will know which one to arrest when I greet him with a kiss. Then you can take him away under guard.”45 As soon as they arrived, Judas walked up to Jesus. “Rabbi!” he exclaimed, and gave him the kiss.
46 Then the others grabbed Jesus and arrested him.47 But one of the men with Jesus pulled out his sword and struck the high priest’s slave, slashing off his ear.
48 Jesus asked them, “Am I some dangerous revolutionary, that you come with swords and clubs to arrest me?49 Why didn’t you arrest me in the Temple? I was there among you teaching every day. But these things are happening to fulfill what the Scriptures say about me.”
50 Then all his disciples deserted him and ran away.51 One young man following behind was clothed only in a long linen shirt. When the mob tried to grab him,52 he slipped out of his shirt and ran away naked.
32 They went to the olive grove called Gethsemane, and Jesus said, “Sit here while I go and pray.”33 He took Peter, James, and John with him, and he became deeply troubled and distressed.34 He told them, “My soul is crushed with grief to the point of death. Stay here and keep watch with me.”
35 He went on a little farther and fell to the ground. He prayed that, if it were possible, the awful hour awaiting him might pass him by.36 “Abba, Father,”[a] he cried out, “everything is possible for you. Please take this cup of suffering away from me. Yet I want your will to be done, not mine.”
37 Then he returned and found the disciples asleep. He said to Peter, “Simon, are you asleep? Couldn’t you watch with me even one hour?38 Keep watch and pray, so that you will not give in to temptation. For the spirit is willing, but the body is weak.”
39 Then Jesus left them again and prayed the same prayer as before.40 When he returned to them again, he found them sleeping, for they couldn’t keep their eyes open. And they didn’t know what to say.
41 When he returned to them the third time, he said, “Go ahead and sleep. Have your rest. But no—the time has come. The Son of Man is betrayed into the hands of sinners.42 Up, let’s be going. Look, my betrayer is here!”
Mia leads us through “Jesus is Annointed at Bethany”, and we look into questions like – What does “annointed” mean? Who annointed him? And how? And – What can we learn from the reactions of the people? And what can we learn from Jesus’ reaction? Come join us as we dig into the Word of God together as a family.
Mark 14 (NLT)
Jesus Anointed at Bethany
14 It was now two days before Passover and the Festival of Unleavened Bread. The leading priests and the teachers of religious law were still looking for an opportunity to capture Jesus secretly and kill him.2 “But not during the Passover celebration,” they agreed, “or the people may riot.”
3 Meanwhile, Jesus was in Bethany at the home of Simon, a man who had previously had leprosy. While he was eating,[a] a woman came in with a beautiful alabaster jar of expensive perfume made from essence of nard. She broke open the jar and poured the perfume over his head.
4 Some of those at the table were indignant. “Why waste such expensive perfume?” they asked.5 “It could have been sold for a year’s wages[b]and the money given to the poor!” So they scolded her harshly.
6 But Jesus replied, “Leave her alone. Why criticize her for doing such a good thing to me?7 You will always have the poor among you, and you can help them whenever you want to. But you will not always have me.8 She has done what she could and has anointed my body for burial ahead of time.9 I tell you the truth, wherever the Good News is preached throughout the world, this woman’s deed will be remembered and discussed.”
Harold J. Ballinger 