Don’t Be a Footstool
Father, thank You for giving me the ability to get through several things today. May our time together be productive as well. Amen.
Luke 22:66-71(<<click here to read the passage)
Some years ago, I was responsible for a few employees in my specific area. Most of them were very hard workers and I really didn’t have problems with any of them. One day I was told that a relative newcomer to our group had decided that they were going to have my job. Supposedly they were going to undermine me by telling higher-ups that I wasn’t doing my job in the best manner. I was hurt but I felt I was doing the job the way it needed to be done and that things would work themselves out without me addressing them myself.
The problem came to nothing in that the employee ended up finding another job…and truthfully a much better job for them in many ways. And best of all for me, what could have been a very messy confrontation never occurred and I feel that we, all these years later, are still on good terms.
For years Jesus and Israel’s religious leaders had been butting heads. And never once had they even come close to getting the best of Him. Time and again they had had to turn around embarrassed and livid at their defeat.
We’ve talked in our Bible studies about the numerous times that Jesus had declared that it just wasn’t the right time for Him…just yet.
And Jesus said to her, “Woman, what does this have to do with me? My hour has not yet come.” John 2:4 ESV
Jesus said to them, “My time has not yet come, but your time is always here. John 7:6 ESV
You go up to the feast. I am not going up to this feast, for my time has not yet fully come.” John 7:8 ESV
So they were seeking to arrest him, but no one laid a hand on him, because his hour had not yet come. John 7:30 ESV
These words he spoke in the treasury, as he taught in the temple; but no one arrested him, because his hour had not yet come. John 8:20 ESV
For years Jesus had countered their every move but now it was time to do what He had come to do…all in God’s perfect timing.
They had a false security that they had Him cornered this time and that He would no longer escape their desperate grasp.
“Tell us, are you the Messiah?”
“If I tell you, you won’t believe me. And if I ask you a question, you won’t answer…But from now on the Son of Man will be seated in the place of power at God’s right hand.”
“So, are you claiming to be the Son of God?”
“You say that I am.”
“Why do we need other witnesses? We ourselves heard him say it.”
Interestingly enough there is a cross-reference to Jesus’ sitting at God’s right hand and it’s found in Psalm 110:1,
The Lord (Father) says to my Lord (the Messiah, His Son),
….“Sit at My right hand
Until I make Your enemies a footstool for Your feet [subjugating them into
….complete submission].”
Their time had come as well as His.
Lord Jesus, may we ever be mindful of who You are and Whose we are. You are our Lord and Savior and we, in every aspect of our lives, should be about being a genuine reflection of Your love and compassion. Enable us to avoid being footstools ourselves. Amen.
Dec 28th, 2020, Mon, 8:44 pm
Hope to Be Had
Father, I give up… I attempted to go one way with this and, well…it’s just not going to suffice. So, at it we go. Help me to communicate what You would have me communicate.
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Why am I here? What am I doing, really, with the minutes I have been allotted? Haven’t we all asked ourselves those questions? There are so many uncertainties in life. Does what we do truly have any genuine long-lasting impact on the world?
Our culture tells us that life just is. It tells us that death just is. We have no control and – poof! – when our number is up that’s it. We die… and many in the world believe that is literally it. We live, we die, we may make a small dent in our world but that quickly fades and in a matter of years, we are forgotten.
The last portion of James 4:14 tells us that we,
“…are merely a vapor [like a puff of smoke or a wisp of steam from a cooking pot] that is visible for a little while and then vanishes [into thin air].” AMP
Hmmm…a wisp of steam from a cooking pot. Hopelessness fits, doesn’t it?
That is what the world spews out…hopelessness. Why bother? No wonder suicide rates are so high. No wonder drug and alcohol abuse is so rampant. Many cannot deal with the realities of life. They cannot deal with all the expectations, so they run…they hide. They avoid. We live…we die. What’s the use?
In John 10:1-10 Jesus shares an illustration about sheep and a shepherd…specifically the Good Shepherd. Jesus is the Good Shepherd and each of us is sheep. For thousands of years, many have tried and still try to be shepherds. Some do so deceptively. They were (and are) after their own gain, caring little for the sheep. But not Jesus, he gave, he sacrificed…he died…so that we could be reunited with Him.
Jesus is the Shepherd, but He is also the Door by which we enter into His eternal blessing. He proclaims in verses 9-10,
I am the Door; anyone who enters through Me will be saved [and will live forever], and will go in and out [freely], and find pasture (spiritual security) …I came that they may have and enjoy life, and have it in abundance [to the full, till it overflows]. NIV
As we enter this last week of 2020, may we not be downtrodden. May we shake off the shackles of hopelessness. Jesus gives us reason to live. James didn’t say we were a wisp of steam to bring us despair but point out the importance of humility.
My sermon today spoke of Jesus’ words that though we may be in the heart of our world’s deep darkness. We may despair, we may ask where is the light for us? But He clearly announces,
“I am the light of the world. If you follow me, you won’t have to walk in darkness, because you will have the light that leads to life.” John 8:12 NLT
He alone gives us the hope that the world cannot give.
The Apostle Paul said in 2 Corinthians 4:4, 6,
“The god of this age has blinded the minds of unbelievers, so that they cannot see the light of the gospel that displays the glory of Christ, who is the image of God…The God who said, ‘Let light shine out of darkness’ made his light to shine in our hearts to give us the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Christ.” NIV
Cling to that hope. See that Light. May we let our light shine out of the darkness! There is hope to be had!
Dec 27th, 2020, Sun, 11:31 pm
LET THE LIGHT IN
As I sit at the dining room table, the expected snow has begun to fall. It is not enough to cover the ground…yet. But it is the beginning of the first white Christmas we have had in 10 years. Amongst all the craziness, Father, thank You for the gift of something special…something out of the norm. For that is what You are all about, things that are special and out of the norm. Praise to You, Heavenly Father.
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This week has not been one of normal writings. Lord Jesus, I have felt drawn to thoughts of You as we once again celebrate Your birth…Your coming to be our Emmanuel, our God with us.
As we do so, I came across a new song. Last spring, when a majority of our country was in some sort of lockdown or another, a father-daughter duo posted a song online as something they could do together. They both had a great love for music and great talent to boot. It quickly went viral and they have gone to share many more songs and have even released a CD.
In one of their latest releases, Mat and Savanna Shaw have joined with Peter Hollens, another online powerhouse to release a Peter Hollens original for this Christmas season.
The song does not name God or Jesus, but They are easily seen in the “love” and the “light”. I am not writing much but letting the song speak for itself. Have a Blessed Christmas for truly “all we need this Christmas is love…more love”.
Dec 24th, 2020, Thurs, 4:02 pm
LET THE LIGHT IN
Verse 1: Verse 2:
Lights aglow What is life
Stockings by the chimney If we don’t have each other
A tree shines in the dark Only living for ourselves
Through a frosty window pane Divided we will fall
We sing of hope So give your heart
The joy of the season Stand with one another
But it’s hard to feel that way Letting go of hate
With the pain of yesterday Don’t repeat our past mistakes
Pre-Chorus: Pre-Chorus:
I look for the answers I hope for all children
When I’m crying on my knees When I’m down on my knees
But I can’t find the reasons why That in the darkness they’ll choose light
Chorus: Chorus
So I don’t have a Christmas List Chorus
All I pray for
All I wish is Outro:
Love
It’s all I’m thinking of If you let the light in
That every girl and every boy Hearts will open
Everyone would know the joy
Of love *Repeat*
All we need this Christmas
Is love, love
More love, love
*mmmm (adlib)*
Do You Hear What I Hear?
Well, our much needed break has begun, Father. As a family, help us to make the most of it. May we take advantage of the time we have and love each other to the fullest. Amen.
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I come from a musically inclined family, especially my dad’s side. As a matter of fact, when he entered college his father, who had served several years as a pastor, took the whole family on the road as an evangelist. He preached, they all sang and played a variety of instruments.
I love music and I don’t remember exactly when; I took piano lessons early on. At some point, I was pretty decent for someone my age – never really good but decent. At that time, I learned to play one of my favorite Christmas songs – Do You Hear What I Hear? I’m pretty sure that I still have the music in a box up in the attic somewhere, but I haven’t seen or played it in forever.
The song itself is older than I am…but just by a smidge. I existed but wasn’t born until a few months later. Interestingly enough, it was written as a plea for peace during the Cuban Missile Crisis toward the end of 1962, often considered the closest the Cold War came to escalating into a full-scale nuclear war. Pray for peace, people everywhere! is a portion of the last stanza.
I know I wrote of peace in yesterday’s post but, though it was not my original intent, here it is again. I least from my end of things, God must be trying to get through to us. Especially as followers of Christ, it is imperative that we be purveyors of peace.
Paul in his letter to the Romans states,
For the Kingdom of God is not a matter of what we eat or drink, but of living a life of goodness and peace and joy in the Holy Spirit. If you serve Christ with this attitude, you will please God, and others will approve of you, too. 14:17-18 NLT (emphasis mine)
Too often, I fear that we do not strive to live righteous lives of goodness, peace, and joy. Quite often the reason we fail is that we don’t take advantage of the Holy Spirit’s presence in our lives.
When someone constantly grates against us, is it a simple task to be a source of peace. No, it’s hard! But…when we call on the Holy Spirit, He is there and he will supply what we cannot. We need but listen to His calling out to us. Do you hear what I hear?
Dec 23rd, 2020, Wed, 2:39 pm
Let There Be Peace
Therefore, let everyone who is godly pray to You [for forgiveness] in a time when You [are near and] may be found;
….Surely when the great waters [of trial and distressing times] overflow they will not reach [the spirit in] him. Psalm 32:6 AMP
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A few years ago, I came across an a cappella ensemble of singers on YouTube whom I have come to love. Their name is Voctave. An older song of theirs that comes to mind is entitled “This Is My Wish / Let There Be Peace on Earth” (click below to listen to it).
Peace…what an elusive thing. Always just out of our reach. We all crave it but struggle, and sometimes we just outright drive it away from possibility by our selfish desires and blindness.
I know Your heart breaks, Lord, as You look across the world You so lovingly created and You see what we do to each other – the anger, the hatred, the violence, the backbiting, the discord – it just never ends. It is rampant. And it is everywhere…even the church…
Every day innocent people fall victim to distorted mindsets. My heart aches for all those whose lives have too quickly come to an end and their families who are left carry their loss for the rest of their lives.
We want peace. We strive for peace…but it is elusive. The enemy of our souls is about division, not unity. And peace will not come until he is vanquished once and for all. Peace in the here and now is found only in You and peace for all eternity is found only in You.
The Apostle Paul admonishes us in Romans 12:18,
If it is possible, as far as it depends on you, live at peace with everyone.
Lord may this be my prayer. May I also pray with St. Francis of Assisi, “Lord, make me an instrument of your peace.” Use me to touch Your world today. Amen.
Core from May 26th, 2017, Fri., 5:06 am