Did Jesus Want to go to the Cross?

It was Jesus' job to go to the cross, right? So does it follow that He wanted to do it? No. Take a look at Matthew 26:38 "My soul is very sorrowful, even to death..." Then later: :39 "He fell on His face and prayed saying, "My Father, if it be possible, let this cup pass from me; nevertheless, not as I will, but as you will."

I don't think Jesus wanted to go to the cross in the sense that it was just something to do. Remember, Jesus was perfect. He had never sinned and didn't have a sin nature. His standing before the Father was pure and perfect. Sin had never touched Him in fact He healed sinners.

But on the cross the full force of the Father's wrath would be poured out on Him. He would suffer all the wrath that should have come our way. You could never endure just your wrath. But imagine enduring the wrath of God for every sin committed by every human throughout history. No wonder Jesus was sorrowful. No wonder He asked the Father that if there was any other way to save man other than the cross to do it.

There was no other way. No, Jesus didn't want to go to the cross but He did. Why? Because He loved you so much. It was love that drove Him there. It was love that kept Him there. It was love for you that allowed Him to give everything so you could have everything. He thought about you on that cross. He wanted to be with you for all of eternity so badly that it was worth it.

That's why the author of Hebrews could write: "who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame." Isn't He wonderful?

Pastor Tom

Does the Law = Rules?

When I say the word "law" what immediately comes to mind? A book of rules that if you don't follow there are punishments? Probably. That's what I think too. I think that even about the Law contained in the Old Testament. You know, the 10 Commandments and all that.

But I want us to consider a little thing that Jesus said about the Law:

Matthew 23:23 "Woe to you scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you tithe mint and dill and cumin, and have neglected the weightier matters of the law: justice mercy and faithfulness."

Now, putting aside the rebuke against the religious leaders for a moment, I thought it interesting that this is how Jesus summed up the law in just three words: justice, mercy, and faithfulness. To me, this doesn't speak of a book of rules but of a life of character. Justice speaks of a pure character, mercy speaks of a loving character, and faithfulness speaks of a person in love with God and wholly devoted to them.

The Law is really nothing more than a partial revelation of God's character. The more we become like God the more we become like what the Law says. How does that happen? Surely not from our own efforts, but from opening up our lives to God Himself who gave His Son to suffer the punishments we deserved (mercy) so that He could place His Holy Spirit inside us to change us into His character (justice) and will hold on to us no matter what and will never stop loving us (faithfulness).

Instead of looking at the Law as a book of rules, think about it as a character sketch of God.

Pastor Tom

Who Do You Think Jesus Is?

Matthew 16:13 "Who do people say that the son of man is?"

It's a fair question for all of us to ask. What are the voices around you saying about Jesus Christ? I hear that he was a good man, a teacher, a guru, a healer, an example. The disciples heard various theories that Jesus was a famous prophet or celebrity.

I think as we make up our minds what we think about Jesus we need to take those opinions into account because they affect our own perception. But I think it is equally important for us to take a serious look at what we think about him.

In verse 15 Jesus says "but who do you say that I am?" Jesus wasn't interested so much in what others thought about him, but what individuals thought. And it wasn't because he was looking for complements or an ego boost. In fact, what you think about Jesus is the single most important opinion you will ever form.

1 John 5:11-12 And this is the testimony, that God gave us eternal life , and this life is in his Son. 12 Whoever has the Son has life; whoever does not have the Son of God does not have life. ESV

Jesus himself said something similar:

John 6:40 For this is the will of my Father, that everyone who looks on the Son and believes in him should have eternal life , and I will raise him up on the last day." ESV

So how do you make up your mind about who you think Jesus is? Don't go by public opinion or what others tell you. Explore it for yourself. Look into his word, the Bible, and make up your own mind.

For those who already belong to Jesus: who is he to you? A big brother, a Lord, a distant and stern father, an insurance policy, an acquaintance? Time to think about it.

Pastor Tom

Judging

Matthew 7:1 "Judge not, that you not be judged. For with the judgment you pronounce you will be judged..."

Maybe I'm just dense or something, but whenever I read this I always thought it meant "Judge not, that God will not judge you."

When I thought about it, though, two things came to mind. First: God judged Jesus so that He didn't have to judge us. In fact, God does not judge us though we deserved it. Second: I realized that Jesus may have been talking more about how we interact with each other.

By "judge not" I do not mean that we simply turn a blind eye to any and every thing that anyone does that is contrary to the character of God. "Judge" in this case means to condemn. That's not our job.

But if we go around passing condemnation on others - first it's not right. We should be praying for them, not judging them. Until they die there is still a chance they will repent and turn to Jesus Christ as their Lord and Savior.

But I was just thinking that if our attitude towards people is condemning, won't their attitude towards us be the same? Sure, we need to encourage each other to let the Holy Spirit transform us into God's image. But Scripture tells us to gently lift someone out of sin. Isn't that how we want to be treated when we fail?

So just don't be too quick on the judgment trigger finger. You may find yourself on the receiving end from others. Instead be like Jesus who was condemned unjustly and responded by praying for the Father to forgive them, and then laying down His life for the very ones who judged Him.

Pastor Tom

Jesus Under Human Care

I was reading the first five chapters of Matthew today and was struck by something. I noticed that God left it up to humans to care for the very fragile existence of His Son Jesus. While in the womb he left it up to Joseph to decide to marry Mary. It was Joseph who took Jesus to Egypt after He was born to escape Herod's plot, and then Joseph moved his family to Nazareth to avoid Herod's son.

Why I think this is interesting is because of what God did not do. God could have just forced Joseph's mind to accept Mary. No, instead Joseph was left to ponder what to do. At first, in fact, he made the wrong decision to divorce her.

God could have killed Herod before he had a chance to carry out his plot against the children of Bethlehem. God could have wiped out the soldiers who came to murder Jesus. God could have simply surrounded the holy family with angels so that they would be bullet proof while Jesus was little and fragile. But He didn't.

What did God do? He sent His word, in the form of angels, dreams, and stars. His Word informed people who had a choice. They listened to what God's Word told them and obeyed Him. That very fragile life was cared for and sustained by people listening to God.

Your life might seem very fragile to you. You might have enemies all around you who want to hurt you physically or emotionally. My advise today: listen to God's Word and trust that He will guide you through the toughest of hours.

I leave you with this quote from the Apostle Paul:

2 Timothy 4:18 "The Lord will rescue me from every evil deed and bring me safely into his heavenly kingdom."

Pastor Tom

As If It Had Never Happened

I ran across this great little verse buried in the prophet Zechariah:

10:6 "...I will bring them back because I have compassion on them, and they shall be as though I had not rejected them."

God here is talking about bringing Judah back from captivity in Babylon, but it made me think about how God also brings us back from captivity to sin through Jesus Christ.

I think sometimes we look around after being washed in Jesus' blood and we think "I really don't belong in God's family. Maybe if I just keep my head down and don't make a lot of noise no one will notice and tell me to get out." We feel as if the sins we did taint us and even their memory is enough to make us feel unworthy to approach God.

But look at what God says - He makes it as if we had never been rejected. God remakes us through Jesus to be as if we had never sinned. As if all that happened in the Garden of Eden never took place. It's a refreshing and comforting thought to know that God looks at you in Christ as if you are perfect, because Jesus is perfect.

Pastor Tom

The Lord Gets Joy from You

Zephaniah 3:17 "The Lord your God is in your midst, a mighty one who will save; he will rejoice over you with gladness; he will quiet you by his love; he will exult over you with loud singing."

If you belong to the family of God through His Son Jesus Christ then you are rejoiced over by the Lord. He is mighty and has saved you. He rejoices over you because He has become your rescuer. No more do you need feel anxious about your future because His love will sustain you and quiet you. God exults over you with loud singing.

Today if you feel heavy of heart or anxious, listen closely for the loud singing of the Lord over your life. If God is singing for joy, then maybe things won't be so bad after all.

Pastor Tom

Glory in the Midst of Darkness

So I'm reading the prophet Habakkuk. Most of it is about judgment and the purity of the Lord. 1:13 says "You who are of purer eyes than to see evil and cannot look at wrong." Habbakkuk is complaining the Lord has taken a long time to bring about justice for the oppressed.

There are plenty of "woes" in this short book. But right in the midst is this wonderful verse:

2:14 "For the earth will be filled with the knowledge of the glory of the Lord as the waters cover the sea."

It's like this incredible promise in the midst of doom and gloom. That the purity of God, the glory of God, will be known by everyone.

I'm going to meditate on this verse today. How about you? Is your day filled with darkness? Know the purity and wonder of God today. Let the knowledge of Him fill your world.

Pastor Tom

What Does God Want Anyway?

"With what shall I come before the Lord and bow myself before God on high? Shall I come before him with burnt offerings, with calves a year old? Will the Lord be pleased with thousands of rams, with ten thousands of rivers of oil? Shall I give my body for the sin of my soul?

He has told you, O man, what is good and what does the Lord require of you but to do justice and to love kindness, and to walk humbly with your God?" Micah 6:6-8

This is really an amazing scripture. As humans we think that the bigger our gift, the bigger our sacrifice, the more God is pleased. We feel guilty for doing and saying things we know aren't right, and we think that if God sees we are really sorry and we do "pennance" then he will be pleased.

But look at what God says He wants from us: be right on the inside (do justice), be love on the outside (love kindness) and have a right attitude towards ourselves and God (walk humbly).

If we would but follow these short principals, through the blood of Christ and by the power of the Holy Spirit, how much better our lives would be.

Pastor Tom

Knowing God Hurts

Hosea 6:1 "Come, let us return to the Lor; for he has torn us, that he may heal us; he has struck us down, and he will bind us up."

This seems like such a strange verse. It almost paints God out to be a double personality--on the one hand healing and the other hurting. How could this be? Isn't God love? Would a God of love actually cause harm to someone?

Look at chapter 10 verse 10: "When I please, I will discipline them." Discipline hurts, no doubt about it. As parents we discipline our children, not to punish them, but to train them. We slap their hand away from a hot stove or yank them back from crossing a busy street. We say "no" to them when they want to follow the crowd to do evil. We withold privileges to teach them the consequences of their actions. God does the same.

Hebrews 12:6 "For the Lord disciplines those he loves."

Our kids sometimes say mean things to us when we discipline them, but they come around and eventually, hopefully, see the good we are trying to do in their lives. That's the way God is times infinity. He tears out the bad in order to instill the good; He hurts by allowing us to feel the consequences of our actions in order to instill His character in us.

So let's do what Hosea says later in chapter 10:12 Sow for yourselves righteousness; reap steadfast love; break up your fallow ground, for it is the time to seek the LORD, that he may come and rain righteousness upon you. ESV

Pastor Tom

Keys to the Successful Prayer

Daniel 9:18-19 For we do not present our pleas before you because of our righteousness, but because of your great mercy. 19 O Lord, hear; O Lord, forgive. O Lord, pay attention and act. Delay not, for your own sake, O my God ESV

I really like Daniel's prayer for several reasons:

1. He hasn't gussied himself up for God so that the Father will look down and think "what a good boy, I've give you a treat." Daniel comes right out and says "I'm not asking this because I deserve it."

2. He asks because of God's mercy. God does desire to give to His children, but it isn't out of obiligation but because of mercy. It's not even out of our mercy, but His. Mercy is basically getting what you don't deserve.

3. Daniel asks God for four things associated with his prayer: "hear, forgive, pay attention, act." I like that. We come to God, who will not even hear our prayers unless we come through the Messiah, we ask for forgiveness because, frankly, we need it, then we ask God to focus on our situation and act. Make your prayers full of requests, not just statements or emotions (though those are good too). James says "You have not because you ask not."

4. Daniel asks God not for something that benefits him but benefits God. "For your own sake" he says. I like that. We should always want to give glory to God and if the thing we ask doesn't do that then maybe it's the wrong thing to ask for in the first place.

Pastor Tom

On Balance

There is a pervasive opinion in our world today that God grades on the curve. We think that when we get to heaven we can make a case to God that all the good I did, and the bad I didn't do should outweigh any sins I've committed.

Some might call it karma-my good karma cancels out my bad karma if I've done enough good in my life. I call it bad information.

Read Ezekiel 33, for instance. Here's a snippet: "12 The righteousness of the righteous shall not deliver him when he transgresses, and as of the wickedness of the wicked, he shall not fall by it when he turns from his wickedness, and the righteous shall not be able to live by his righteousness when he sins."

In other words, any sin cancels out all the good you've done. What is sin? It's anything that is outside the character of God. If you think that's an easy standard, just read Revelation 22:15 (lying, for instance-ever lied, even once?)

The good news is that no matter what bad you have done, if you repent and turn (change your mind) about those things, and seek God's cleansing through His Son Jesus Christ, then no amount of bad will keep you from God's presence. God in affect sees His righteous Son Jesus rather then you when He looks at you. It's a cool deal and one worth pursuing.

Pastor Tom

Does God take pleasure in sending people to hell?

Provocative title, I know. But I have actually heard people conclude that. Since God is all powerful and can do anything He wants, if He chooses to reject a soul and send it to hell then it must please Him. It must be something He wants to do, right?

I don't think so. First realize that God is pure and holy. He is so pure that anything that is not pure doesn't stand a chance in His presence. So not allowing something impure to come near to Him is actually mercy. Second realize that God is just. That's part of His pure character. He won't do anything wrong or unfair.

Now look at this little verse out of Ezekiel 18:32 "For I have no pleasure in the death of anyone, declares the Lord God; so turn and live."

Far from wanting to reject people, God is not pleased when anyone dies. So what is God pleased with?

1 Timothy 2:3-4 "This is good, and it is pleasing in the sight of God our Savior, 4 who desires all people to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth."

What is that truth? That Jesus, God's Son, gave His life-His purity-so that He could give it away to you, if you will repent, which means to change your mind about the evil in you, and grasp on to Him.

That puts a smile on God's face.

Pastor Tom

The Problem of the Familiar

I noticed this verse in Ezekiel:

3:5 "For you are not sent to a people of foreign speech and a hard language, but to the house of Israel ... Surely, If I sent you to such, they would listen to you. But the house of Israel will not be willing to listen to you, for they are not willing to listen to me."

Sometimes it seems that those closest to us are the hardest to reach for the gospel. I think it may be because there is so much of us that they see and hear instead of seeing and hearing God.

Often it is easier to travel thousands of miles to preach to people who don't speak our language than it is to share God's truth with our family and friends.

It was tough for Ezekiel too. I think perhaps our prayer should be "Lord, when I speak for you to those I know, don't let them think about me, but about Your truth."

Pastor Tom

New Every Morning

Do you ever look back at the end of the day and think "man, I blew it today. "I wish I hadn't..." or "I wish I would have..."? I do. Sometimes I feel the weight of my day on my shoulders as I try to go to sleep at night. I feel as if God must know my failings too. He must look down on me with disappointment; shaking His head and saying "if he'd only trusted Me on that."

When those times come remember the morning is coming.

The Israelies had one of those nights of regret. After centuries of going after other gods, Yahweh had finally had enough and He sent them into exile. The reality of that setting in was just too much for them. You read much of the anguish in the book of Lamentations. Most of it is good stuff to get you royally depressed. But there's this little nugget that I just love in chapter 3:

"The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases; his mercies never come to an end; they are new every morning; great is your faithfulness." Lamentations 3:22-23

No matter how much you feel you have blown it and God has turned His back on you and given up - remember the morning is coming.

If you belong to God He NEVER gives up on you. The word "steadfast" is the idea of God's convenant love. He made a covenant with you if you have Jesus Christ as your Lord that will never end. His steadfast love brings with mercy - meaning you don't get what you deserve but get what you don't deserve, and that's a new start!

I'd encourage you to read Lamentations 3. There is a lot of hard stuff but a lot of wonderful stuff too. Search your soul and ask God's help, and whatever you find there:

Remember that the morning is coming.

Pastor Tom

Be Careful What You Ask For

In Jeremiah 42 the people came to the prophet and said "pray to the Lord your God for us ... that the Lord your God may show us the way we should go, and the thing we should do...we will obey the voice of the Lord our God."

It seemed they had had a change of heart and really wanted to repent of their evil and turn again to the Lord. But a funny thing happened. Jeremiah did as they asked and 10 days later the word from God came. That word was to not go down to Egypt.

This wasn't exactly what the people wanted to hear since they had actually already set their hearts toward going there to escape the forces from Babylon. But when Jeremiah told them that the Lord had answered their prayer and that they were not to go they responded this way:

Jeremiah 43:2 "You are telling a lie. The Lord our God did not send you to say, 'Do not go to Egypt to live there.'"

So their response was to attack the messenger. Do you sometimes run into situations where you really ask the Lord for wisdom but have already made up your mind to do something you suspect is wrong? But when you consult God in prayer or seek Him in His Word and that word comes back against what you have in your heart to do - what is your response? Do you think "I guess I was wrong?" or do you say "God can't be speaking because He doesn't agree with me."

Pray and ask for wisdom from God, but be ready for it - knowing it may not be the answer you wished for, though it will be the right answer.

Pastor Tom

Returning From Discipline

The last couple of posts I've talked about discipline: the importance of not being stubborn when the Lord reveals that there is something in your life that He needs to touch and heal, then resting in that discipline to let Him do the work.

This time I want to share some verses in Jeremiah 31 that show what happens when the discipline has done its work.

4 "Again I will build you, and you shall be built O virgin Israel! Again you shall adorn yourself with tambourines."

Israel was promised that God would bring them back to the land after 70 years of discipline in Babylon. Notice how they come back:

:9 "With weeping they shall come, and with pleas for mercy I will lead them back, I will make them walk by brooks of water; in a straight path in which they shall not stumble."

Repentance and discipline brings with it sorrow for walking away from God. I also brings with it cries for God's mercy because we realize how inadequate we are on our own. But returning from that discipline brings with it the refreshment of once again having a close relationship with God-all that crud has been dealth with and done away with.

It also brings a "straight path" which to me indicates that what was stumbling us has been removed, so now our walk with God is much more sure and stable and we less likely to fall into the same thing again.

Pastor Tom

Stubborn or Surrender Part 2

Last time I talked about surrendering to the Lord wanting to bring discipline in your life, rather than stubbornly refusing to admit that its needed.

Today I want to share a little tid bit more about discipline.

Jeremiah 29:4-7 This is what the LORD Almighty, the God of Israel, says to all those I carried into exile from Jerusalem to Babylon: 5 "Build houses and settle down; plant gardens and eat what they produce. 6 Marry and have sons and daughters; find wives for your sons and give your daughters in marriage, so that they too may have sons and daughters. Increase in number there; do not decrease. 7 Also, seek the peace and prosperity of the city to which I have carried you into exile. Pray to the LORD for it, because if it prospers, you too will prosper." NIV

God wanted Israel to settle into the discipline. We should too. We should pray for the place the Lord puts us in, even if that is a difficult place. Pray that we will do well in that discipline until the time the Lord takes us out of it.

For if we are patient while the Lord does surgery on us, as difficult as it is, we reap many benefits.

Just after that section in Jeremiah is a very famous verse:

11 For I know the plans I have for you," declares the LORD, "plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future. NIV

Notice that the plans, hope, future, and prosperity come through discipline.

Pastor Tom

Stubborn or Surrender

Jeremiah 21:8 "Behold I set before you the way of life and the way of death."

When Jeremiah spoke these words, God was telling Israel to surrender to the Babylonians. The reason was that His people had gone into idolatry and had forsaken God, so now God was forsaking them. He was sending them to Babylon as discipline - a discipline that worked. Israel never again served foreign gods like they had prior.

It raises an interesting thought for Christians today. Sometimes we find ourselves serving foreign gods - gods of money or fame or pleasure or many other things that turn our focus away from serving the One True God. So sometimes God brings discipline into our lives. What is our reaction to that discipline? Do we buck up against it, fighting God tooth and nail to avoid repenting or dealing with the sin in our lives?

I think we can learn from Jeremiah's word. The way of surrender to God's discipline is the way of life. It is the way of letting God burn the crud out of you and bringing His life into you afresh. It hurts for a while, but it's worth it.

Pastor Tom

The Unknowable Heart

Jeremiah 17:9 "The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately sick; who can understand it?"

I think the prevailing wisdom among humans today is that the heart is good by and large. We do good when we can or it doesn't violate our self interest. And when we do bad then we should be punished.

The problem with that line of thinking is that we are deluded. Our hearts - and I'm thinking of the "who we are as a person" kind of heart - have fooled us greatly. Instead of good deep down, we are really evil.

I have an apple tree in my backyard. I must confess I didn't do anything for it other than prune this year. Some apples fell off, and others looked really good. I picked one of those great looking apples and took a big bite. Inside it was all eaten away and the worm that had gotten in was still there wiggling around.

For us our hearts are much the same. We surround outselves with a good looking shell of good works and warm feelings. But inside we have a worm - its called "sin." Sin is doing anything outside the character of God. If we look closely at ourselves we do not measure up to God's purity. One example: if you have ever lied then the worm of sin has infected you.

The worm of sin has made our hearts terminal. We have congestive heart failure in our spirits. The only way to save us is to turn to the One - the Great Physician - God Himself - Jesus Christ.

Our hearts are like a really good con man. You think you are good when you really are not. Don't blame God, it is our fault. Look to His Word to find out what we are really supposed to be like, then rely on Him to give you that life and rightness, starting with having a relationship with Him.

Oh - and read the section of Jeremiah just before the verse I shared at the top. It shows what a person is like who trusts in the Lord. No bad apples there!

Pastor Tom