Monday, March 21, 2005

Giving

LUKE 7

37When a woman who had lived a sinful life in that town learned that Jesus was eating at the Pharisee's house, she brought an alabaster jar of perfume, 38and as she stood behind him at his feet weeping, she began to wet his feet with her tears. Then she wiped them with her hair, kissed them and poured perfume on them.

39When the Pharisee who had invited him saw this, he said to himself, “If this man were a prophet, he would know who is touching him and what kind of woman she is–that she is a sinner.”

40Jesus answered him, “Simon, I have something to tell you.”

“Tell me, teacher,” he said.

41“Two men owed money to a certain moneylender. One owed him five hundred denarii,[d] and the other fifty. 42Neither of them had the money to pay him back, so he cancelled the debts of both. Now which of them will love him more?”

43Simon replied, “I suppose the one who had the bigger debt cancelled.”

“You have judged correctly,” Jesus said.

44Then he turned toward the woman and said to Simon, “Do you see this woman? I came into your house. You did not give me any water for my feet, but she wet my feet with her tears and wiped them with her hair. 45You did not give me a kiss, but this woman, from the time I entered, has not stopped kissing my feet. 46You did not put oil on my head, but she has poured perfume on my feet. 47Therefore, I tell you, her many sins have been forgiven–for she loved much. But he who has been forgiven little loves little.”

48Then Jesus said to her, “Your sins are forgiven.”

49The other guests began to say among themselves, “Who is this who even forgives sins?”

50Jesus said to the woman, “Your faith has saved you; go in peace.”

We can come to Jesus with so many requests, In the Bible, some people came for healing (Luke 7:1-9), while others came for knowledge (Matthew 23:34-35), some for food (John 6:26), others, to watch a miracle (Matthew 12:38)

But in Luke 7 we see a different image. What was the very first thing the women did when she came to Jesus? She didn’t ask for healing. She didn’t ask for a miracle. She didn’t ask for anything. She came with one desire and that was to GIVE.

She poured out her tears on his feet of all places. Our feet are not like other parts of the body. They are in the dirt all day stepping on who knows what and smelling like… You get the picture.

And with what did she use to dry her feet? She used her very hair off all things. Most people treat their hair better than the poor, (notice it said poor and not lazy). Do you know how many millions are spent on hair products? It’s a multi million-dollar industry. We spend money on things that we consider of great value. She would use her precious hair to wipe the feet of Jesus.

This was her initial response to Jesus. What is our response to Jesus? Sometimes we can be quite shallow with our relationship with him. We can go to Jesus with one desire and that is only to TAKE. I can hear it now, “Lord I need my nails clipped,” “Lord I need a bigger SUV and not the Escalade!” “Lord I need a prettier wife.” “Lord I need the latest IPOD” and so on….

This woman was far different! She GAVE and what was Jesus’ response? She was a giver and not a TAKER.

And God used the situation as and example to teach Peter,

“Do you see this woman? I came into your house. You did not give me any water for my feet, but she wet my feet with her tears and wiped them with her hair…” (v44-47)

Do we have that attitude as well? Or are we just hollow takers? Are we willing to give to Jesus? Well the choice is ours…

Friday, March 04, 2005

When things go wrong...

Don't you hate it when things go wrong? I do. It hurts to see a son or daughter not following God or find out that we are sicker than we think or the vacation plans go sour. I hate it when things go wrong.

How do you react? Do you get mad? Do you get angry? Do you want to screaaam? There are many different reactions we can take. Some are carnal and some are guided by the Holy Spirit.

We can react by placing blame on others. This is really tragic when we blame people who don't really deserve it. We are angry and in the heat of the moment we want to take out all our rage on some innocent person. They are not responcible but we want justice to be served. Someone must pay the price. Someone must be responcible! Someone must take the fall and the blame. So we may take it out on a friend or our children or a parent or a leader when they might not deserve it.

But the Bible says that our battle is not against flesh and blood but principalities and powers. We should be taking our rage out on the unseen dark forces working against us. We use weapons of warfare that are not carnal but can take down strongholds. We put on the whole armor of God and fight the good fight.

We also need to react in the fruits of the Holy Spirit when flesh and blood that might look like the opposition. Love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, and self control is how we need to react. Remember Jesus hated the sin but not the sinner.

And sure we might blunder here or there but we must be aware that God will finish the good work he started in us. We must be aware that if we can confess our sins, He is the faithful and just to forgive us our sins and cleanse us of all unrighteousness. We must remember the story of the prodigal son and how he was restored after repentance. We must remember to forgive 70 *7 or wholly. We must bear with one another and forgive one another even as Christ forgave you? We are all a work and progress.

So let's put off the sin that hinders and let us run the race marked out for us setting our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfector of our faith! Let us press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God called us heavenward in Christ Jesus! Are you in? Will you fight the good fight and finish the race? What do you have to lose?