Unless

Thursday, April 6, 2023

Jesus knew that the Father had given him authority over everything and that he had come from God and would return to God.  So he got up from the table, took off his robe, wrapped a towel around his waist, and poured water into a basin.  Then he began to wash the disciples’ feet, drying them with the towel he had around him.  When Jesus came to Simon Peter, Peter said to him, “Lord, are you going to wash my feet?”  Jesus replied, “You don’t understand now what I am doing, but someday you will.”  “No,” Peter protested, “you will never ever wash my feet!”  Jesus replied, “Unless I wash you, you won’t belong to me.”  Simon Peter exclaimed, “Then wash my hands and head as well, Lord, not just my feet!”  John 13:3-9

Peter’s refusal (at first) wasn’t a matter of control; it was just the opposite.  Peter knew himself to be unworthy to be served by Jesus.  Jesus was holy; Peter was a leather-faced fisherman who knew the fickleness within himself.  He couldn’t fit in anyone’s description of pure.  He wasn’t good enough.  And he was right.

Peter wasn’t just right about himself; he was right about all of us.  He knew what the prophet had said about all humans: 

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.  

Isaiah 64:6

Hence, Jesus’ answer…Simon, buddy…if you won’t take my washing, you won’t have anything from me.  This is the whole issue of salvation God offers.  There is nothing any human being can do to be cleansed from our sin:

For no one can ever be made right with God by doing what the law commands. The law simply shows us how sinful we are.  Romans 3:20

God specifically said no human being still practicing evil, or having refused Christ will be allowed entrance to the New Jerusalem, Heaven:

Nothing evil will be allowed to enter, nor anyone who practices shameful idolatry and dishonesty—but only those whose names are written in the Lamb’s Book of Life.  Revelation 21:27

The Lamb’s Book of Life is the account of everyone who accepts the cleansing from sin which Jesus offered by virtue of His death on the cross.  What Jesus taught his disciples in that upper room, particularly Peter, was a metaphor.  He washed their feet, and it represented the washing of their hearts that he would do the next day.  What looked like the greatest failure in history, a “would-be” Messiah, hanging naked, bloodied, beaten, and stone-cold-dead on a criminal’s cross, would be His offer of eternal, internal cleansing each of us needs to be right with our Creator.  Jesus told Peter (and He tells us) UNLESS I give you this cleansing, you’ll never be mine…you’ll NOT be in the Lamb’s Book of Life.

For You Today 

I have known many people who hesitated to accept Christ as Savior, because, like Peter, they knew how unworthy they were, uncertain they could live-into God’s ways.  And that is the very first step in the process of inking your name in His book.  You must repent of your sins. 

UNLESS you know how bad you are, you’ll never understand how marvelous grace is…and how much God wants to forgive you, and draw you close to Him.

You chew on that as you hit the Rocky Road; have a blessed day!

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There are about 2,500 devotional posts and 400 sermons in the Rocky Road Devotions library.  To dig deeper explore some of these:  So...Then... and  His Way    

Title Image:  Pixabay.com   Images without citation are in public domain.

Unless noted, Scripture quoted from The New Living Translation^©   

Of Colliding and Cooperating

Friday, January 20, 2023

Then fourteen years later I went back to Jerusalem again, this time with Barnabas; and Titus came along, too.  I went there because God revealed to me that I should go.  While I was there I met privately with those considered to be leaders of the church and shared with them the message I had been preaching to the Gentiles.  I wanted to make sure that we were in agreement, for fear that all my efforts had been wasted and I was running the race for nothing.  And they supported me and did not even demand that my companion Titus be circumcised, though he was a Gentile.  Even that question came up only because of some so-called believers there—false ones, really—who were secretly brought in.  They sneaked in to spy on us and take away the freedom we have in Christ Jesus.  They wanted to enslave us and force us to follow their Jewish regulations.  But we refused to give in to them for a single moment.  We wanted to preserve the truth of the gospel message for you.  

Galatians 2:1-5

It is said that opposites attract.  My bride and I would tend to validate that thought.  Invariably we have different tastes, opinions, and ways of completing tasks.  That was certainly true of Peter and Paul.  Peter was driven by his heart, and working with his hands, rough-cut, decisive, and bold.  Paul was (excuse the irreverance) an egghead, the Harvard scholar-type, more prone to be the president of the chess club, more a quarterback than lineman.  Both apostles were more suited to what God had called and gifted them to be and do.  One trait they held in common was their hardliner devotion to Christ’s Kingdom.  Neither of them would back-off an inch on the issue of Jesus being Lord.  Of that, there could be zero-capitulation…end of story.

Among the few similarities of these Christ-servants was their willingness to accept God’s way of doing new things.  Peter, the Jewish believer understood God’s way would include the Gentiles, but it took an extraordinary vision to convince the fisherman.  Paul was also Jewish, and had to be knocked to his knees and blinded – then healed, to be convinced of God’s seriousness about God’s mercy being extended to every human being on earth.[1]  Both Peter and Paul tended towards inflexibility, but once that wall crumbled, they were not likely to rebuild it.  The egghead and the warrior had both been released from their sins and prejudicial ways, and they would not rest until that message was the theme of their lives.

John Wesley was a hybrid Peter and Paul.  He was more than educated, and a superb thinking-leader, committed to the faith, and leading the interested to become faithful.  But Wesley could also see the middle-way, not compromise, but meeting of minds.  He knew there could not be any progress, on any front, when a collision-course is chosen.  But, when hearts are willing to be open there can be cooperation.  Peter, Paul, and John…they all knew Jesus was Lord…they all became excellent models of what it means to serve Christ, and they all had their flaws.  And God used them in magnificent ways they never dreamed to bring about God’s purposes in their days, and God’s ways.

For You Today  

You and I are not Peter, Paul, nor John.  But this is our time, our days, and the Lord God is the same God of the Jews, Gentiles, and whomever else, to the uttermost ends of the universe.  Despite all our differences, God is looking for the high, low, and middle-ways kinds of people, with whom He will bless and proclaim his Good News.  Some ways will be the old ways; some new.  To be God’s servant means learning to cooperate with what He’s doing, not colliding with each other.

You chew on that as you hit the Rocky Road; have a blessed day!

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There are about 2,000 devotional posts and 400 sermons in the Rocky Road Devotions library.  To dig deeper on today’s topic, explore some of these: 

The God of ALL Favorites  and  Hand-Wringing Methodists

Images:  Title Pixabay.com   Images without citation are either personal property of the author, or in public domain.

Unless noted, Scripture quoted from The New Living Translation^©  

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[1] Read Acts 9-11 for both accounts

Peter's Sermon (and a very strange reaction)

Friday, July 22, 2022

“People of Israel, listen!  God publicly endorsed Jesus the Nazarene by doing powerful miracles, wonders, and signs through him, as you well know.  But God knew what would happen, and his prearranged plan was carried out when Jesus was betrayed. With the help of lawless Gentiles, you nailed him to a cross and killed him.  But God released him from the horrors of death and raised him back to life, for death could not keep him in its grip.  King David said this about him:  ‘I see that the Lord is always with me.  I will not be shaken, for he is right beside me.  No wonder my heart is glad, and my tongue shouts his praises!  My body rests in hope.  For you will not leave my soul among the dead or allow your Holy One to rot in the grave.  You have shown me the way of life, and you will fill me with the joy of your presence.’  “Dear brothers, think about this!  You can be sure that the patriarch David wasn’t referring to himself, for he died and was buried, and his tomb is still here among us.  But he was a prophet, and he knew God had promised with an oath that one of David’s own descendants would sit on his throne.  David was looking into the future and speaking of the Messiah’s resurrection.  He was saying that God would not leave him among the dead or allow his body to rot in the grave.  “God raised Jesus from the dead, and we are all witnesses of this.  Now he is exalted to the place of highest honor in heaven, at God’s right hand. And the Father, as he had promised, gave him the Holy Spirit to pour out upon us, just as you see and hear today.  For David himself never ascended into heaven, yet he said, ‘The Lord said to my Lord, “Sit in the place of honor at my right hand until I humble your enemies, making them a footstool under your feet.”’  “So let everyone in Israel know for certain that God has made this Jesus, whom you crucified, to be both Lord and Messiah!”  Peter’s words pierced their hearts, and they said to him and to the other apostles, “Brothers, what should we do?”  Peter replied, “Each of you must repent of your sins and turn to God, and be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins.  Then you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.  This promise is to you, to your children, and to those far away—all who have been called by the Lord our God.”  Then Peter continued preaching for a long time, strongly urging all his listeners, “Save yourselves from this crooked generation!”  Those who believed what Peter said were baptized and added to the church that day—about 3,000 in all.  Acts 2:22-41

This second chapter of Acts always seems to grab the attention of the spectacular; it is the issue of the tongues of fire, speaking in unknown languages.  It centers on the apostles gathered in the upper room.  But that was just the locker room where the team was getting ready for the big game, which takes place in the real arena…the lives and futures of all persons, both in first-century Jerusalem, and all who have ever been born everywhere.  Peter would stand and preach a simple sermon…the Gospel message of Christ’s Lordship, crucifixion, death, and resurrection.  And Dr. Luke records in this text a very strange reaction:  humility!

They didn’t get mad at the sermon.  They didn’t yawn and fall asleep.  They didn’t scowl, fold their arms, and shake their heads in disbelief at Peter’s impertinence.  What they did was repent of their sins, submit to the waters of baptism, and let the fire of God’s Holy Spirit warm their insides, and outwardly spread the joy to everyone they would meet for the rest of their lives.  They became disciples.

I call it a very strange reaction because we’re seeing little of that humble response these days.  The prevailing culture disdains humility, repentance, and faith, as being antiquated and counter-productive.  God is simply not in vogue.

For You Today

Read Peter’s sermon again…then consider what your reaction might be.

You chew on that as you hit the Rocky Road; have a blessed day!

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There are about 2,000 devotional posts in the Rocky Road Devotions library. 

To dig deeper into today’s topic or Scripture text:  Three Conversions at Pentecost and Repent and Be Baptized

[1] Images:  Sharing Your Faith Radio  Unless noted, Scripture quoted from The New Living Translation^©   

Wait...What?

 

 

Wednesday, April 20, 2022

But very early on Sunday morning the women went to the tomb, taking the spices they had prepared.  They found that the stone had been rolled away from the entrance.  So they went in, but they didn’t find the body of the Lord Jesus.  As they stood there puzzled, two men suddenly appeared to them, clothed in dazzling robes.  The women were terrified and bowed with their faces to the ground.  Then the men asked, “Why are you looking among the dead for someone who is alive?  He isn’t here!  He is risen from the dead!  Remember what he told you back in Galilee, that the Son of Man must be betrayed into the hands of sinful men and be crucified, and that he would rise again on the third day.”  Then they remembered that he had said this.  So they rushed back from the tomb to tell his eleven disciples—and everyone else—what had happened.  It was Mary Magdalene, Joanna, Mary the mother of James, and several other women who told the apostles what had happened.   But the story sounded like nonsense to the men, so they didn’t believe it.  However, Peter jumped up and ran to the tomb to look.  Stooping, he peered in and saw the empty linen wrappings; then he went home again, wondering what had happened.  

Luke 24:1-12

Peter had a front row seat to seeing five thousand fed with a boy’s lunch, healings by the truckload, a meeting with long dead prophets Moses and Elijah, and being witness to Lazarus (still wrapped in a death shroud) walking out of a tomb that’d been sealed for four days.  And with all that evidence, the forewarning from Jesus, and the announcement of angels of resurrection, he still went home from the tomb scratching his head in disbelief!  Peter…you gotta love him!

Peter had the Wait….What? syndrome.  It’s what happens when your brain is on vacation and something wonderful happens…and you’ve brain-slept through it all.  Suddenly there is a grand, beautiful, life-changing reality filling your eyes, heart, and soul, and you just can’t get your mind around it…and you go home wondering what in the world just happened.  That was Peter, energetic, enthusiastic, ready to leap over tall buildings or fight an army of soldiers singlehandedly, and often devoid of the ability to connect the dots. 

The dots, in this unique event in human history, were the virgin birth, sinless life, miracles-abounding, prophecy-fulfilling, laughing, loving, dead-man-raising joy of Jesus, the Christ.  But for Peter, Friday afternoon through Sunday morning were nothing but grief, despair, and agony on me.  Peter, the one who could blurt-out the truth, You are the Christ, the Son of the Living God ^{(Matthew 16:16)} heard the women spout (what he thought was) “nonsense” – but went to the grave anyway, saw nothing, left the unoccupied tomb and discarded graveclothes, to go home wondering…Wait….WHAT?

Fast-forward to your life.  And mine.  Can we possibly be as obtuse and brain-detached as Peter?  I can, and have been…often. (Just ask anyone who knows me well).  Has someone ever dropped a big gift in your hand…and you wonder instead of hugging that neck?  Did you ever find something long-lost and begin to take credit for your good sense to look there?  Have you ever seen a sunrise and not thought of those words…and God said, let there be light?

For You Today

The plastic Easter eggs are packed away.  The idea of hitting the beach for one of those memorable sunrise services won’t begin to surface until snow melts again.  Facebook images of empty tombs and other seasonal wonderments will fade until after Santa’s next sleigh ride.

Connecting the dots, as Peter failed to do (again), would mean instead of going back home wondering, that we celebrate and live in the wonder of the Savior’s love.  What will that look like in your life?

You chew on that as you hit the Rocky Road; have a blessed day!  

[1] Title image: Pixabay.com   Unless noted, Scripture quoted from The New Living Translation^©   

The Burden of PRIDE

 

Friday, April 30, 2021

A man named Simon had been a sorcerer there for many years, amazing the people of Samaria and claiming to be someone great.  Everyone, from the least to the greatest, often spoke of him as “the Great One—the Power of God.”  They listened closely to him because for a long time he had astounded them with his magic.  But now the people believed Philip’s message of Good News concerning the Kingdom of God and the name of Jesus Christ.  As a result, many men and women were baptized.  Then Simon himself believed and was baptized.  He began following Philip wherever he went, and he was amazed by the signs and great miracles Philip performed.  When the apostles in Jerusalem heard that the people of Samaria had accepted God’s message, they sent Peter and John there.  As soon as they arrived, they prayed for these new believers to receive the Holy Spirit.  The Holy Spirit had not yet come upon any of them, for they had only been baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus.  Then Peter and John laid their hands upon these believers, and they received the Holy Spirit.  When Simon saw that the Spirit was given when the apostles laid their hands on people, he offered them money to buy this power.  “Let me have this power, too,” he exclaimed, “so that when I lay my hands on people, they will receive the Holy Spirit!”  But Peter replied, “May your money be destroyed with you for thinking God’s gift can be bought!  You can have no part in this, for your heart is not right with God.  Repent of your wickedness and pray to the Lord.  Perhaps he will forgive your evil thoughts, for I can see that you are full of bitter jealousy and are held captive by sin.”  “Pray to the Lord for me,” Simon exclaimed, “that these terrible things you’ve said won’t happen to me!”  Acts 8:9-24

Simon the magician (as he was called) was a very perceptive fellow.  Most magicians are; their so-called magic is a means of deception to distract the audience’s eyes with the right hand, so the left can make stuff appear, change, or disappear. 

But perception is only in the eyes of the beholder (audience); reality is in God’s hands.  And Simon was smart enough to perceive something greater than his sham performances; he saw people turning to God and understood he was witnessing something much greater than himself.  So (as Acts tells us) he also believed, was baptized, and began following to see where it would lead.  When he witnessed the gift of the Holy Spirit being imparted to people, and the change that came over them, the old Simon within recognized a great opportunity to regain his status, and that old Simon tried to buy his way back into the limelight.

Aren’t the names significant here?  It was Peter who told Simon his heart wasn’t right, so his request would wash back the dregs of hell all over it.  Simon was being instructed by Peter, an apostle who used to be Simon, until Jesus renamed him Peter.  Now Peter, (Christ’s little rock) was telling Simon the disingenuous huckster, to get his heart straight before he’d see any blessing from above.

The short answer to the riddle of this account is that Simon the magician couldn’t let go of the old life.  And because of that he would not experience the joy and liberation of the new life in Jesus.  His jealous desire to be in the spotlight made him a captive to his sinful nature. 

The apostle Paul fought this as well; listen to his testimony:

And I know that nothing good lives in me, that is, in my sinful nature.  I want to do what is right, but I can’t.  I want to do what is good, but I don’t.  I don’t want to do what is wrong, but I do it anyway.  But if I do what I don’t want to do, I am not really the one doing wrong; it is sin living in me that does it.  I have discovered this principle of life—that when I want to do what is right, I inevitably do what is wrong.  I love God’s law with all my heart.  But there is another power within me that is at war with my mind.  This power makes me a slave to the sin that is still within me.  Oh, what a miserable person I am! Who will free me from this life that is dominated by sin and death?  Thank God!  The answer is in Jesus Christ our Lord.  So you see how it is:  In my mind I really want to obey God’s law, but because of my sinful nature I am a slave to sin.  Romans 7:18-25

For You Today

If this Simon-in-the-spotlight battle is raging within you, go back and read aloud how Paul found Christ’s solution – until the Holy Spirit starts to burn it within your heart that you won’t be able to do it alone.  And when the burden of self becomes great enough, you’ll know what to do…lay it down…right at the foot of the cross.

You chew on that as you hit the Rocky Road; have a blessed day!  

[1] Title Image: Pixabay.com   Unless noted, Scripture quoted from The New Living Translation^©

Satan or Saint?

 

Peter is the consummate enigma; he is one of the most confusing personalities in Scripture.  With this big fisherman it’s always good news/bad news, hero to zero, feast or famine when it comes to what comes out of his mouth. 

·       He was the great apostle, making the declaration, Thou art the Christ, but outside Pilate's gate he was a wimp, denying he'd ever seen Jesus. 

·       Peter thundered on Pentecost day, seeing thousands added to the church, but he trembled with fear for his reputation when the delegation from Jerusalem found out he'd been eating with Gentiles.             

Why such a roller-coaster spiritual ride?  It's hard to say; perhaps Jesus may have just been revealing something about Peter’s character and future.  Jesus called Peter son of Jonah.  We don’t know if Peter’s father was named Jonah, but Jesus may have been playing on the name, unmasking the character of Peter.  Just like Jonah, Peter was to have a career of incredible failures and unbelievable mountaintops.

Peter became the spokesman for the disciples.  His leadership was not attributed to brains, but heart!  Jesus declared that Peter had a heart in tune with God ^{(verse 17)}.  The other apostles observed what some people thought about Jesus (16:14)...but Jesus needed a leader who wasn't a follower when it counted most.

This text displays great spirituality, human dullness, and God's mercy...all in the same lovable, bumbling, and magnificent apostle, Peter.  And that which makes this incident so truly relevant for you and me is that we see ourselves in the humanity of Peter.  First, we see…

Saint Peter         Matthew 16:13-20 

When Jesus came to the region of Caesarea Philippi, he asked his disciples, “Who do people say that the Son of Man is?”  “Well,” they replied, “some say John the Baptist, some say Elijah, and others say Jeremiah or one of the other prophets.”  Then he asked them, “But who do you say I am?”  Simon Peter answered, “You are the Messiah, the Son of the living God.”  Jesus replied, “You are blessed, Simon son of John, because my Father in heaven has revealed this to you.  You did not learn this from any human being.  Now I say to you that you are Peter (which means ‘rock’), and upon this rock I will build my church, and all the powers of hell will not conquer it.  And I will give you the keys of the Kingdom of Heaven.  Whatever you forbid on earth will be forbidden in heaven, and whatever you permit on earth will be permitted in heaven.”

Jesus searched the hearts of the disciples.  They gave Him an answer about what people were saying, but Jesus probed deeper, who do YOU say I am?  It didn't take Peter long to make his announcement.  Although this was not the first time the subject of Jesus' divinity had come up, this response was the most definitive ever.  Peter said, YOU are THE Christ, THE SON of THE living God.  Friends, that leaves little to the imagination.  There you have the Bible’s main message!

Jesus was not referring to Peter’s character as the foundation for the church; that character was fickle or short-sighted at best!  Rather, Jesus was referring to Peter’s confession – the truth that Jesus was indeed Messiah – THAT would be the bedrock upon which the church would be built and stand!

Now, Peter wasn't always a saint, sometimes he came "crossways" with Jesus' plan, and he was then:

Satan Peter                 Matthew 16:21-23

From that time on, Jesus began to show his disciples that he must go to Jerusalem and undergo great suffering at the hands of the elders and chief priests and scribes, and be killed, and on the third day be raised.  And Peter took him aside and began to rebuke him, saying, “God forbid it, Lord!  This must never happen to you.”  But he turned and said to Peter, “Get behind me, Satan!  You are a stumbling block to me; for you are setting your mind not on divine things but on human things.”  

The name "Satan" literally means "the adversary."  Peter spoke from the heart, but sometimes the Lord just wants us to sit, and listen to Him, and keep our mouths shut.  That was never Peter's strong suit.  Jesus said, "I'm going to be killed, and then raised."  Peter reacted; Jesus rebuked him. 

The why of Jesus’ rebuke of Peter has to do with the mindset of many Jews, who were severely oppressed by the Roman Empire.  Messiah meant political freedom, economic boon.  Jesus did not want anyone getting the idea that His mission was to put a chicken in every pot.  His was not a political mission, but a prison mission.  Jesus came to set the captives free!

The disciples were subject to the same misunderstanding.  Jesus wanted them to clearly see that this mission was to be accomplished by a cross, not a sword.  Peter was no different than James and John.  The “sons of thunder” were already divvying-up the choice positions of authority in the Kingdom.  Peter didn’t want anything to mess-up his calculation of just how much reward was coming his way for leaving the fishing business back home.  This cross thing was a could have severe economic implications!  Peter couldn’t see beyond his own possible losses, and the horror and degradation of a cross, so he wanted to change Jesus’ mind. 

Jesus told Peter to get behind. 

There's an interesting lesson in this exchange.  Peter was interested in keeping Jesus healthy.  He'd left a fishing business and family behind to stake it all on following this carpenter from Galilee.  It just didn't sound like a good thing for the leader to die.  What would happen to the movement then?  What Jesus said to Peter unmasked the fact that Peter was more interested in his own agenda, and what would happen to him, than following Jesus.  Hence the lesson: 

When we leave revealed heavenly truth for the comfort of human reasoning, we become a stumbling block for the kingdom.

You and I do it all the time.  We pray, God, I don't like this thing that is happening to me.  Please change it.  Like Peter, we tend to instruct God rather than listen for the instructions He is trying to give.  Sometimes we just need to hush-up!

There is redemption in this, however.  Jesus said to Peter, get behind.  Like Peter, we need to learn the lesson that Satan has always tried to push God towards HIS planned agenda.  God has always said, NO…following is done from behind; I do the leading here. 

We have a choice in the church.  When we are demanding our rights, our way, our plan, we are not following, we're out front.  Jesus said to Peter, Get behind, get in line; I will lead, you follow.  If we follow as God's children, God will bless.  When we insist on getting our own way, we pay the price, lost spiritual power - lost blessings.

I have become convinced that this mindset is the main reason churches split, preachers get fired, and all human-run organizations shrivel and die…people want what they want; they really don’t want to follow anyone!  Even the Son of God.

We've seen the great spirituality of Peter, as well as his spiritual dullness, but note the mercy of God as Jesus shares the great principle of following...

Changing devils into saints Matthew 16:23-28

Then Jesus said to his disciples, “If any of you wants to be my follower, you must give up your own way, take up your cross, and follow me.  If you try to hang on to your life, you will lose it.  But if you give up your life for my sake, you will save it.  And what do you benefit if you gain the whole world but lose your own soul?  Is anything worth more than your soul?  For the Son of Man will come with his angels in the glory of his Father and will judge all people according to their deeds.  And I tell you the truth, some standing here right now will not die before they see the Son of Man coming in his Kingdom.”

One of the principles of the kingdom is that everything works the opposite of the way the world sees things.  If you want to be first, serve.  If you want life, die to self.  If you wish to receive, give.  We have a God who turns everything on its’ ear!

Peter had made an important connection with heaven in recognizing the divinity of Jesus.  He'd made the incredible blunder of thinking he would change Jesus' mind about the cross.  Now Jesus laid-out for them the one consistent demand of discipleship:

IF YOU WANT TO FOLLOW JESUSYOU HAVE TO FOLLOW JESUS!

There is no such thing as serving two masters.  If you will be a follower of Jesus, you must give up your own life…not necessarily physically, but the emotional, rational, and willful part of self-determination in favor of God’s calling the shots.

The disciples knew what Jesus was saying.  Twenty years before there was a rebellion against Roman authority in a little town called Sepphoris.  It was only about 4 miles from where Jesus lived.  A man named Varus, a farmer of Galilee, organized the farmers of the area into a rebellion army.  They attacked and killed all the Roman soldiers of the garrison at Sepphoris.  Rome sent in the armies, and disbursed the armies of Varus, about 10,000 men.  Most of them went back to farming.  But the Romans captured about 2,000 of them. 

The historian, Josephus, records that they were going to teach the rebels of Galilee a lesson not to be rebels.  They took them, one by one, along the road out of Sepphoris, and crucified them.  They would put one on a cross, and then walk down the road until almost out of sight, and then crucify another.  They went in every direction out of Sepphoris, all over Galilee, until they had each of the 2,000 rebels on crosses. 

As you walked the roads of Galilee you were never out of sight of a crucified rebel.  None could be taken down; they were to rot there on the crosses.  If anyone took one down, another Galilean citizen would take his place.  Jesus was about 10 years old when this happened.  He knew the cost of carrying crosses and still He says it to you and me today:

“If any want to become my followers, let them deny themselves and take up their cross and follow me…”

What does it take to change an adversary to a saint? 

Everything you've got. 

Are you willing for this? 

Are you really willing to step up and offer your life in exchange for His?  That's Jesus’ plan; that’s Jesus’ demand if you would be His follower.

He is coming back.  I pray that you have answered Jesus' question, a most personal question:  Who do YOU say that I am? 

If you haven't answered that question yet in your life, DON'T BE AFRAID...DO IT!      

Our Prayer

Father God, this is indeed a most personal question.  Who do I say YOU are?  It was easier and safer to read how Jesus asked that question to a small band of men back 2,000 years ago.  It’s discomforting and downright scary to hear the words ringing in our ears right here…now…requiring a ‘yes’ or ‘no’.  There’s no room for maybe, or we’ll see, or perhaps tomorrow.  Lord, when You speak to our hearts, there’s an urgency that won’t let this decision be put off; we want time to think about this, and we would rather not be pushed into a corner.  Father, teach us that there is no corner of the earth (or universe) where You’re not asking that question.  Help us to not make Peter’s blunder, when he thought he could change your mind with his better plan.  Help us know beyond doubt that there are only two answers – yes or no.  Help us to make the yes choice…to follow…to leave all the Adversary attitudes behind, all those plans that make us a stumbling block to the kingdom.  Help us to GET BEHIND…and FOLLOW.

For the glory, honor, and praise to which You alone are worthy, o Lord, we pray in the Name of the Son, cooperating with the Spirit, to honor and lift up the Majesty of the Father. 

Let it be so in each of our lives…Amen!

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Title Image:  Pixabay.com  Unless noted, Scripture quoted from The New Living Translation  Matthew 10:24-39©