TLP Living: July 9, 2018

Posted on July 9, 2018 by Don Merritt

Attitude is a Powerful Thing

Years ago, I had a management job in a company that had some issues.  There were things about the company that I didn’t much like, and things that were a lot of fun, so I suppose that like most jobs there were ups and downs.  One of the things that I didn’t much care for was that the highest level of management had a way of keeping people on edge, which quite frankly made my job a lot more difficult than it needed to be.  The man who started the company years before was a mixed bag, one might say, in that he was a really great guy when you got to know him, but a jerk until you did.  He seemed to love stirring the pot!

He did this by scaring people; that seemed to be almost a pastime for him.  He liked to yell and scream and intimidate, when all that was really necessary was for someone to explain something, and the result was that he was generally feared and his presence in the office was dreaded by most people who worked there; turnover was high as you might expect.

A person would get the idea that the “Big Guy” had noticed a mistake on their part, and paranoia would set in.  They would expect trouble, and sooner or later they would find it.  So many times, people would come to me and say that they were sure they were going to be fired for something because Mr. Big was ‘after’ them.  I knew when Mr. Big was unhappy with someone, and most of the time the people who came to me weren’t even on his radar, yet they were certain that they were going to be fired, and they began to act badly at work.

This kind of thing was so frustrating for me because no matter what I said or did, the people believed they were going to be fired and their attitudes would be in the dumpster, which altered their behavior and their work and eventually they would be fired.  Their belief became a self-fulfilling prophecy.  It was entirely unnecessary.

Now there are certainly lessons for managers here; don’t act like a jerk just because you can.  There is a larger lesson for the rest of us: Watch out what you let yourself believe, for your beliefs will shape your attitude, your attitude will shape your behavior, and your behavior will cause a lie to come to pass.

I wonder how many believers in Christ allow a lie to creep into their minds and spiral down this cliff.  Let’s say they allow themselves to think that nobody likes them, and then the spiral begins and before long they are just too difficult to be around.  How many allow a lie to creep into to their thinking like, say… “I don’t think I’m really saved.”

I’ve seen people turn their backs on Jesus because of this one; maybe you have too.

This principle applies to so many thoughts and attitudes that originated with a little lie…  Faith destroyed, marriages destroyed, relationships broken; how often did it all start with a lie?

The New Testament teaches us to hold fast to the truth; to hold fast to our faith in Jesus Christ no matter what, in fact the whole book of Hebrews is written on this theme.

Yet we don’t always listen, for the little lie in the back of our minds seems more attractive, or more real than the reality right in front of our faces.

How tragic is that?  What needless misery…

It might interest you to know that Mr. Big was aware that people feared him, and he didn’t like it.  One day when we were alone and I was arguing with him about something or other, he asked me why I could talk to him “like a man” and everyone else was afraid of him.  I told him the truth, that I did not depend upon him for my job.  He seemed irritated by that, and in a rough tone of voice asked me how that could be.  My reply was that I didn’t depend on him because I believed that Jesus Christ was the source of my living and that if one job didn’t work out, there would be another one for me. Can you guess what Mr. Big (tough guy) said to that?

He said that he wished everyone else saw it that way because all he ever wanted was for them to just talk to him like I did…

Go figure?

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TLP Inspiration: July 9, 2018

Posted on July 9, 2018 by Don Merritt

Good Monday Morning from the Heartland.

Some time back I came upon a scene; this tree grabbed my attention because it was unusual…

The unusual thing about the tree isn’t the scar, but how well it has done in spite of the injury it sustained.  I’m not sure exactly what happened to the tree, my first thought was a lightning strike, but who knows.  It seems likely that whatever happened was storm related in some form…

We all deal with storms in our lives, sometimes literally, other times the storms are of a different sort.  Many of these are caused by our own actions and choices, many are not.  More important than anything else is how we respond to them.

When times are tough, do we let the circumstances keep us down; do we let circumstances defeat us?  When we are hurt by life’s storms will we dwell in our pain or rise again from it?  One of the most difficult lessons in life, at least in my life, was learning that we do have this choice.

Even more important than learning that we have a choice in how we respond to damaging storms in life is learning that we need not try to recover all on our own.  It may sound overly simplistic to some, but we can turn much of this over to our Lord, for His strength is greater than ours. We can rely on Him, we can lean on Him, we can trust in Him.   Living a Christian life is a life of setting self aside and serving the Lord Jesus Christ, and dealing with times of trouble is no different, so it stands to reason that He will sustain us all the more when we put our trust in Him and keep on serving others instead of serving ourselves.

Some may question all of this, but all I can say to them is “Come and see”

Incidentally, isn’t it interesting that medical science has noticed that people of faith have much greater survival rates from injuries and traumas than those who are not of faith?  It seems the same is true for heart attacks and strokes; where do we place our trust?

 

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Sunday Sermon Notes: July 8, 2018

Posted on July 8, 2018 by Don Merritt

Title: Jesus Runs into Controversies

Text: Mark 2:18-28

You Should be Fasting!

Mark 2:18-22

Parallel Texts: Matthew 9:14-17; Luke 5:33-39

The next scene Mark jumps to is one in which we find both John’s disciples and the Pharisees fasting, while Jesus and His disciples are going on as normal. Curious about this, one of John’s disciples asks about it; why aren’t you fasting? There is a fairly clear implication that they should be, at least in this man’s mind, but Jesus doesn’t think so.

Jesus gives the man three answers to one question, beginning in verse 19. Likening Himself to a bridegroom, and His disciples to guests of the bridegroom, Jesus indicates to the man that fasting is not appropriate at that current time, for they are in a mood of celebration, yet the day will come when the bridegroom is no longer with His guests, and they will have occasion to fast then.

The second and third answers to the question begin at verse 21:

“No one sews a patch of unshrunk cloth on an old garment. Otherwise, the new piece will pull away from the old, making the tear worse. And no one pours new wine into old wineskins. Otherwise, the wine will burst the skins, and both the wine and the wineskins will be ruined. No, they pour new wine into new wineskins.”

Mark 2:21-22

In essence, Jesus gives two short parables that are designed to draw a profound distinction between the ministry of John, the Law and the ministry and purpose of Christ. John’s ministry was limited to prepare the way for Jesus, it was really a transitional ministry, under the Law. Jesus, on the other hand, had an entirely different purpose, for His was the purpose of fulfilling the Law and ushering in an entirely new order; the New Covenant. There was nothing about the ministry of Jesus that would serve to patch the old garment of the Law, He was not there to refill an old wineskin; the old garment and the old wineskin had served their purpose and Jesus would replace them both.

There would be no fasting! The Kingdom was at hand in the Person of Jesus Himself. While He was on the scene, fasting was not appropriate.

I often wonder if I harp on this point too much, the point being that the New Covenant has entirely replaced the Old. Am I simply riding a “hobby-horse”?

I think not: This is a key point in the Christian faith; the Law is over. Just as John’s ministry was transitional in nature, preparing the way for the ministry of Jesus, the Law was transitional in nature, illustrating the reality that was to come through Christ in the New Covenant; that is what Jesus is telling this man in the story, and it is the point we need to comprehend as well.

 

Lord of the Sabbath

Mark 2:23-28

Parallel Texts: Matthew 8:1-8; Luke 6:1-5

Mark has shifted the scene to the countryside. Jesus and the disciples, and apparently some Pharisees, are walking through grain fields on the Sabbath. They are hungry and the disciples pluck a few heads of grain to eat as they go along, and the Pharisees object, for it is unlawful to harvest a field on the Sabbath. The law on this point is contained in Exodus 20:10 if you’d like to read it just to bring in a little context. By the way, if you do look it up, you will notice that the law doesn’t say this. It says you shall do no work. Were the disciples actually working? Well, that is the real question.

As the years went by, it became apparent that Exodus 20:10 was subject to interpretation, and many well-intentioned leaders believed that there was a great potential for misunderstanding Exodus 20:10, so they adopted a very long list of additional rules to help people avoid an unintentional violation of the Sabbath. This list of rules is not actually part of the law, but as more time went by, it was treated as if it were the law itself; this is what the Pharisees were actually referring to.

In verses 25-26, Jesus cites a well-known example of David feeding his men food reserved by the law for the exclusive use of the priests when necessity required it, with the implication that necessity required the disciples’ actions that the Pharisees were objecting to. He concludes His answer in the following verses:

Then he said to them, “The Sabbath was made for man, not man for the Sabbath. So the Son of Man is Lord even of the Sabbath.”

Mark 2:27-28

I wish I could have been there to see the look on the faces of those poor Pharisees when they heard that!

As you know, there are those critics out there who claim that Jesus never said He was divine. Even if that were true, He sure implied it strongly on many occasions, and this is another of those.  If the Sabbath was made for man, and that makes the Son of Man the lord over the Sabbath, then it is because He’s also the Lord over Man.

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TLP Inspiration: July 7, 2018

Posted on July 7, 2018 by Don Merritt

“You must follow me”

The other day I was reading John 21 which is really a simple story of the resurrected Christ appearing to seven disciples at the Sea of Galilee; it’s a story that is very familiar to everyone, and contains a passage that the preachers preach often (John 21:15-19).  In this passage, Jesus asks Peter three times if he loves him, and each time Peter says that he does, followed by Jesus saying either ‘feed my sheep’ or ‘feed my lambs’.  The third time Jesus asks, Peter’s feelings are hurt because Jesus keeps on asking…At the end of the passage Jesus tells Peter to “follow me.”

What really struck me was the part that came right after this usual passage.

Peter looks back and sees John trailing behind them and says to Jesus, “What about him?”  I wonder how many of us have done this sort of thing:  We know that we have been called to follow Jesus, and instead of quickly answering that call, we look at someone else and ask, “What about him?”  Now in Peter’s defense, Jesus has just indicated the manner of his death (v. 18) and maybe Peter understood this, the text doesn’t quite make that clear.  Maybe Peter was very sensitive at that moment because he felt guilty when it hit him that Jesus has just asked him if he loves Jesus the same number of times that Peter denied Jesus… The fact remains that Peter looked away from his call and tried to put the spotlight on someone else.

Answering a calling isn’t always convenient; it isn’t always what we want to do.  It may involve giving up a great deal to follow Jesus, a career, a great income, possessions, position and so on, and yet it is our call.  What must we do?

Jesus’ answer is classic: He tells Peter essentially that John’s relationship with Him is none of Peter’s business: “You must follow me.” (emphasis added)

Peter did.

What will we do?

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1 & 2 Thessalonians Released Today

Posted on July 6, 2018 by Don Merritt

Today I’ve released our study of 1 ^ 2 Thessalonians as a complete document for anyone who desired to have it for personal study, reflection or use as a teaching or small group resource. As always, you may feel free to use it, share it or make it your own, as long as you do not sell it. To download, please click

HERE

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Naked Before God and the Wonder of it All

Posted on July 6, 2018 by Don Merritt

Last time, we ended with my saying that in this next post, it would be time to look at the concept of naked before God in a practical rather than an abstract way, so it might seem odd to begin with the wonder of relationship with God. Yet I think you’ll see that this is exactly the right place to begin.

Small children view the world around them quite differently that we adults do; they can still see their worlds with a sense of wonder. When I was a small child, my Mom was proud of her roses; she had roses in bloom year-round. I remember that as a small child, I loved the smell of her roses and it never even occurred to me that boys would be thought weird for smelling them. However, I grew up, and now I am not really sure what they smell like. As a small child I could lay in the grass on a warm summer day and watch the clouds in the sky as they floated along; I was filled with wonder… but I grew up, and I can’t remember how long it’s been since I’ve really noticed a cloud.

When I was seven years old, my family drove from Los Angeles to Wichita Falls, Texas on vacation to see my grandparents. I remember how many hours I spent looking out the window of the car at all of the strange sights along the way; desert, mountains, grasslands, rivers… all so much different than the suburbs where we lived, and I was filled with wonder at how big the world seemed to me. I remember how amazed I was at how different Texas felt; the air was heavier than California, the sun wasn’t as hot, but I always seemed to feel wet; amazing, fascinating, wonders never before experienced, but then I grew up; it was humid and miserable in Texas!

When I was a “new” Christian, the whole idea of “talking to God” was a matter of wonder for me; that God, the very One who created everything, would actually notice me… Wonder is the only word for it.

But then I “grew up” so to speak, and relationship with God became the norm, something I “do” and I lost track of the wonder of it all. In truth, it became more like a ritual or a practice than something so incredibly awesome and amazing as it seemed at first; I began to take it for granted.

I was a busy man with an important job. I had worries, concerns, responsibilities; time with God was at a premium, and my concerns became the subject of my prayers; OK God, here’s what I need from you…

A corporate relationship with God can become like that as well; there’s a certain order of things, you stand up here, and now you sit down. I like that song, but not this one (looking at watch) come on, let’s get down to business; time is money…

Being naked before God is all about being real, about taking all of the games, self-importance, pride, and selfishness away; it’s about surrendering to Him. So, you want a practical first step?

Find the wonder again.

We can find the wonder of being in God’s presence again by slowing down, smelling roses, watching the clouds roll by, feeling a warm breeze and actually taking notice of the wondrous little things that we haven’t paid attention to in years. We must reclaim the wonder we had at first at the very thought that the God who created the universe would even notice that we exist, the wonder of knowing that He cares about us, the wonder of knowing that God Himself loves ME and YOU.

We reclaim that wonder by never taking Him for granted; that’s where humility can be found, because wonder requires humility and being naked before God requires both.

Step one is slow down and bask in His glory, sing praises to His glory, thank Him for loving you, marvel in His presence and stay there for a while and ask Him to bring the wonder back into your life. Be sure, you wait for His reply, since He isn’t normally in a big rush to end a conversation.

That’s enough for today, I think. There is so much more to say, but for now, I look forward to your observations.

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Everything will be Different

Posted on July 6, 2018 by Don Merritt

Hosea 2: 16-23

“In that day” everything will change, for out of her despondency, Israel will once again be the Bride of God. God will woo His people, He will show His unfailing love to them in a variety of ways, and out of captivity and return, they will once again return to Him.

Yet we need to bear in mind that this is a prophecy to the Northern Kingdom, Israel. Their return wasn’t as clear as that of the Southern Kingdom, Judah. There were no more recognizable tribes there, they were never again accepted as being Jews, but instead were rejected and scorned as the Samaritans. Some might try to dispute this, but this prophecy did not find its real fulfillment in the remnant that returned to Samaria but is instead found only in Christ.

Our text here describes in highly figurative language the establishment of a New Covenant, called here a new “betrothal” between God and His people (2:19).  Notice the language of love that the Lord uses here and we can see how difficult it must have been for Him to have had need to execute judgment upon them. So many people read the Old Testament and think they see an angry God who is anxious to smite somebody. Yet reading these verses, we can see that such a view is miles from the real story.

In the last three verses, once again in highly figurative language, we see that the entirety of Creation will rejoice when that day comes, the day of the New Covenant in Christ’s blood, the covenant that made everything New again.

In the next chapter, a very short one, we see this same story in a different light. We will see that chapter two actually links together the story of Hosea’s marriage, the adultery of Gomer and then their reconciliation. As we read it, we may even come to realize that the first three chapters of this book actually tell the very same story, but that will have to wait for next time.

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Reflections on 2 Corinthians Released

Posted on July 5, 2018 by Don Merritt

Today I’ve released our study of 2 Corinthians as a complete document for anyone who desired to have it for personal study, reflection or use as a teaching or small group resource. As always, you may feel free to use it, share it or make it your own, as long as you do not sell it. To download, please click

HERE

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Intimacy, Relationships and God

Posted on July 5, 2018 by Don Merritt

Last time we came to an important understanding in this study of the metaphor that is nakedness before God and that understanding is that we are always naked before Him, for none of us has or ever will have secrets from Him, for He knows all.

A sobering thought for anyone.

Yet when we voluntarily bare all before God, when we take away our pretense, our pride and our coverings and come into His presence in humble submission, holding nothing back, amazing things happen, and we become “naked and unashamed”.

There is a very fundamental reason for this; actually, it is a theological reason that is elegant in its simplicity: we were created for the purpose of intimate relationship with our Creator. What is all the more amazing is the fact that this is true of us both individually and collectively, and it is why marriage between a man and woman is used in Scripture as a metaphor to illustrate the relationship between Christ and His Church: It is the most intimate of all relationships.

Many times over the years, I have had the opportunity to speak with Christian leaders in academia, in well-known ministries and in local churches, and I have often been surprised that these leaders, as amazing as many of them are, focus on all of the wrong things. They focus on doctrinal points, which may or may not be important, or they may focus on traditions of corporate worship or worship style or preaching style… or they may debate the best kind of microphone to use in preaching.

Yet none of these things bring about an intimate relationship.

To be naked before God means that these kinds of things fall into their proper places, that we gain better perspective on what our priorities should be, for the highest priority of any Christian should be their relationship with our Lord, their intimate, bare-all-in-humility relationship with our Lord.

I’ve worked with a fair number of married couples who have marital difficulties, and almost without exception the ones who couldn’t resolve their issues failed for one of two reasons: Either they did not trust one another, or one or both of them lacked humility in some way. Of course, this should surprise no one, for marriage is the most intimate of human relationships; it is physically intimate, emotionally intimate and it is mentally intimate. Intimacy of this kind requires complete trust, and complete trust requires a fair degree of humility, for one does not gain the trust of another by setting him or herself above the other. God created humanity for an intimate relationship, and when things went south, He was willing to go to extreme measures to redeem us; there He stands, arms wide open. Do we trust Him enough to run to Him and have a “naked and unashamed” relationship?

When all is said and done in this life, and we are on our deathbeds, the only thing that really counts is our answer to that last question.

Next time, I’d like to expand the scope of this discussion and transition from the abstract into the practical. In the meantime, please share your comments, observations and insight…

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The Other Side of the Coin

Posted on July 5, 2018 by Don Merritt

“Therefore I am now going to allure her;
    I will lead her into the wilderness
    and speak tenderly to her.
There I will give her back her vineyards,
    and will make the Valley of Achor a door of hope.
There she will respond as in the days of her youth,
    as in the day she came up out of Egypt.

Hosea 2: 14-15

There will be difficult days ahead for Israel because she has turned away from her covenant relationship with the true God, the God of their ancestors and gone after other gods in unfaithfulness to the God who has brought them prosperity as He had promised. Even so, God will make overtures “in the Valley of Achor” which means “troubles”. To put it very simply, God’ judgment will be executed against Israel, but even His judgment will be used to call Israel back into relationship with God.

God will use this process as a door of hope to offer His people one more chance to repent out of their distress.

You’ll recall I mentioned this pattern when discussing the first chapter, a pattern repeated often in the Old Testament prophets: The people rebel against God who sends multiple warnings to them to repent. They scoff at the warnings and treat the messengers badly. Then God is forced to execute His judgment and extends a ray of hope to them that a better day is coming.

As we will see, this ray of hope extends through the rest of this chapter and the next…

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