11
Feb '22
Get Off Your High Horse
11
Feb '22
February 11, 2022
“Do not judge, or you too will be judged.” (Matthew 7:1)
What’s the context?
This is actually part of Jesus’ famous Sermon on the Mount. And, in this section, He’s actually teaching us not to act like hypocrites. He says, “Don’t be a show-off. Don’t act you’re better than other people. Don’t think you can get up on your high horse, and look down on everyone else, and judge them.”
And that’s when Jesus says, “Do not judge, or you too will be judged. For in the same way you judge others, you will be judged, and with the measure you use, it will be measured to you.” (Matthew 7:1-2)
But wait. Hold on! Slow down for a minute. Later on in the same chapter, Jesus says, “Be on your guard! Watch out for false prophets.” So, wait. If I’m going to deem someone a false prophet, what do I have to make? A judgement!
So, what I want to show you is that clearly Jesus was not telling us that we have to live without discernment and sound judgement. What He’s telling us is that we should be very, very careful to not judge hypocritically.
You can see this clearly when you read the very next words. Because then Jesus goes on to say: “Why do you look at the speck of sawdust in your brother’s eye and pay no attention to the plank in your own eye? How can you say to your brother, ‘Let me take that speck out of your eye,’ when all the time there is a plank in your own eye? You hypocrite! First take the plank out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to remove the speck from your brother’s eye.” (Matthew 7:3-5)
In other words, look in the mirror first. Don’t pick apart the little faults in other people’s lives when you’ve got some big issues in your life. He’s saying, “Don’t judge hypocritically.”
Let’s pray.
Jesus, I picture You right now … not as a character in a dusty old book or a figure in a stained-glass window … but as You really were. A young man, full of life, full of love. Your smile is bright. A crowd is gathered around You. But You focus on one person in that crowd … one person who’s lived a very messy life – a life out of bounds. But you don’t judge them, You just love them. A love that changes them. Now, Lord, look at me like that. Because I also have lived a life out of bounds, for I am a sinner. I’ve messed up. And I need Your forgiveness. I need Your mercy and grace for all the times I have done deeds worthy of judgement.
Jesus, I give My life to You. I surrender.
In Your Name I pray, Amen.
05
Jan '22
It’s an Honor
05
Jan '22
God, we honor You this January. We honor You with our lives, we express our love, we worship You.
Help us also honor You by honoring the people You love – the people you thought were worth dying for.
Starting today, help us outdo one another in showing honor. Let it start in our homes, as we try to out-love, out-encourage, out-compliment each other. Then, let it flow into our community, as we change the whole feel of our workplace, our school, our circle of friends.
Finally, I honor Jesus, my Savior. I honor His love, His courage, His commitment. I am forever grateful, and I stand in awe of Him. In His Name we pray, Amen.
03
Dec '21
God is For Me!
03
Dec '21
God is For Me!
I don’t live for His approval, I live from His approval.
The Bible says this: God demonstrated His own love for us in this: While we were still sinners … Long before we ever did anything right, long before we ever tried to serve God … Christ died for us. He was so much for us, and loved us so much, He showed us His love by sending His Son to die for us. (Romans 5:8)
So, that means you never have to say, “Well, I did good. Does God love me now?”
“Oops! I did bad, is God upset at me?”
“Oh, I helped somebody out. Does God love me now?”
“Oops! I did a double take when that good looking woman walked by – but I told God He did a good job when He made her – but I shouldn’t have done that, right? Now, God doesn’t love me – because I’m bad.”
No, now you know that God always, always loves you and God is always, always on your side. You don’t have to live for His approval, you live from His approval – like a little child who recognizes that the parents love the child just for who they are, not for what they do.
When you realize that God is for you, you won’t hide from Him, you’ll run to Him. You’re not going to live for His approval, you’re going to live from His approval.
05
Nov '21
The Key to a Blessed Life
05
Nov '21
November 5, 2021
The key to a blessed life is a heart of generosity. If you want to be more blessed and less stressed, you will become more blessed when you become more generous.
Look at what the Bible tells us: “One man gives freely.” Okay, so he gives … so, you would think he doesn’t have as much after that. But what happens? “Yet he gains even more. Another man is stingy, yet he comes to poverty.” How? How can that be? Folks, it’s a Law of the universe: “A generous person will prosper; he who refreshes others will himself be refreshed.” (Proverbs 11:24-25)
The Bible says it loud and clear! A generous person will prosper. So, the key to a blessed life is a generous heart.
08
Oct '21
Tap Into His Power
08
Oct '21
October 8, 2021
You are responsible for your own happiness.
You say, “Well, Jeff, I would stay in peace, but these people – these people really get on my nerves.”
You can’t control what other people do, but you can control what you do. If you let them upset you, you’re giving away your power and letting them control you.
Jesus said, “Peace I leave with you; My peace I give to you. Not as the world gives do I give to you. Don’t let you heart be troubled or afraid.” (John 14:27)
In other words, it’s not all up to you. Your patience. Your peace. Jesus is giving you His peace, His patience. So, He says, “Don’t let your heart become troubled. Don’t let it happen. Use My power to remain calm in times of trouble.”
Do you know what? You don’t have to let the same old things keep upsetting you. Quit telling yourself, “I can’t help it. They just know how to push my buttons.” Try a new approach. Decide ahead of time that you’re going to stay in peace, and you’re going to tap into that power – that Jesus Power – to remain calm.
A man was walking down the street with his friend to get a coffee. They went into the corner coffee shop where the man stopped every morning. The barista behind the counter was as unfriendly as could be. He acted like the man was bothering him!
The man paid for the coffee, smiled, and said, “I hope you have a great day.”
The barista didn’t even acknowledge what he said.
His friend said, “What was wrong with him? Is he always that rude?”
The man said, “Every morning.”
His friend said, “Are you always that nice?”
He said, “Every morning.”
The friend looked puzzled and said, “Why?”
The man replied, “I’ve made up my mind that I’m not going to let another person ruin my day.”
He was saying, “I have my spare tire. I’m not going to allow one pothole to ruin my day. And I’m not going to get stuck in an argument, or be rude back to him, and let him ruin my morning.”
There may be people you see every day who have the gift of getting on your nerves. It feels like they think it’s their calling in life to make you miserable.
The good news is, you’re in control. They can’t make you unhappy unless you allow it. Jesus said, “Don’t let ‘em.” They can’t make you frustrated; it’s your choice. Jesus has already offered to let you tap into His power. He will give you His peace.
Tap into His power to retain your peace.
03
Sep '21
You Matter to Jesus
03
Sep '21
You matter to Jesus.
Every single one of you is important. You matter. You matter to God.
The Bible says: “A vast crowd was there as He stepped from the boat, and He had compassion on them.” “Compassion.” That word means a strong, physical, gut feeling. That’s what it means in the original language of the Bible. It means you’re moved to the very core of your being.
That’s how Jesus feels about you: When Jesus sees you, when He hears your prayers, when He counts your tears, He is moved to the very core of His being.
Compassion. There is a school in England that has a course that tries to teach compassion. Over the term every student has one blind day, one disabled day, one deaf day.
And so, for example, the night before he is to spend his “blind” day, the student’s eyes are bandaged. The next morning, he wakes up and he is completely blind. He is completely helpless. He has to totally depend on others to guide him through the day.
The students don’t need to ask, “What does it feel like to be blind … what does it feel like to be deaf, or disabled?” They know. They know because they’ve been there. They’ve experienced it for themselves.
And, Ladies and gentlemen, Jesus knows exactly what you’re going through, because He’s been there. He knows what it is to be human.
- When you are hurt by someone, and your feelings are hurt, He understands – because He has been hurt too.
- When you are tired of everything, and weary to the bone, He understands – because He’s had days like that too.
- When a friend betrays you, and talks behind your back, He understands – because He had a friend do that to Him too.
I don’t know what you’re going through today, but He does. And He cares about what you’re going through. Because you matter to Him.
Two-thousand years ago, Jesus looked at that crowd with compassion. Today, Jesus looks at you with compassion.
13
Aug '21
Obstacle Illusions
13
Aug '21
August 13, 2021
You’ve heard of “optical” illusions, right? An optical illusion is something that isn’t really what it appears to be. For example, if you stand on railroad tracks and look down that track as far as you can see toward the horizon, what do your eyes tell you the tracks are doing? Our eyes tell us those tracks are getting closer together, until they finally converge. But if you walk down that track, would you ever find a point where they actually converge? No. It’s an optical illusion. What you see doesn’t equal what is real.
In the same way, you may be staring at some obstacle in your life, you may be staring at some difficulty in your life, and you’re thinking, I can never change. I can never get past that. But that’s an illusion! Because: You plus God are bigger than any obstacle.
What obstacle illusions are holding you down? For the guy in the Bible story, it was blindness. He thought, “I was born blind, I’ll live my life blind, I’ll die blind, I’ll always be blind.”
What is it for you?
• Maybe you hate your job, but you don’t even look for another, because you keep telling yourself you’ll never get a good job; you’ve gone as far as you can go with your qualifications.
• Maybe you’re single and you’re telling yourself you’ll never meet the right person, the person you can spend your life with. If it hasn’t happened yet, it’s never going to happen.
• Maybe you’ve had some bad breaks and you’ve given up, you’ve settled, because you’re convinced you just have bad luck and it’s too hard to change.
My friend, those are obstacle illusions. You plus God are bigger than any obstacle.
I heard about a woman named Phyllis. When Phyllis was a sixteen-year-old, she got pregnant and dropped out of high school. She rented a small, cramped apartment and went on welfare. Eventually Phyllis got a job working at a school cafeteria collecting meal tickets. The job paid minimal wage, and Phyllis was thankful for it. But she knew God had better things in store for her. She said, “I’m going to go back to school and get my high school diploma.”
All her friends said, “Phyllis, you can’t do that. It’s too hard.” Her parents said, “Phyllis, you’re no good at school. Nobody in our family graduates from school. It’s too hard.”
Phyllis thought, Who says it’s too hard? That’s an obstacle illusion. Who says I can’t go back to school if I put my mind to it?
Well, Phyllis not only got her high school diploma, she went to night school and got her Master’s Degree. Today, she’s not on welfare anymore. No, in fact, she’s a principal in the same school district where she used to collect meal tickets. Phyllis likes to say, “I went from welfare … to faring well!”
You can do something similar. Don’t be blinded by obstacle illusions. Don’t listen to people who tell you it’s too hard. Don’t listen to people who tell you that you can’t do it. Don’t listen to people who tell you don’t have what it takes.
You can go from welfare to faring well. You can go from being the victim to being the victor. You can overcome any obstacle. Why? Because: You plus God are bigger than any obstacle.
30
Jul '21
By His Permission
30
Jul '21
Weathering the Storm
You are in the storm …by His permission.
God knew before you were even born what was going to be happening during this season of your life.
Look at what the Bible says: “That day when evening came, Jesus said to His disciples …” Now, wait. Who said it to the disciples? Say it out loud. Jesus! “Jesus said to His disciples, ‘Let us go over to the other side of the lake.’”
Now check this out. The trip was Jesus’ idea. And being the Son of God and knowing all things, He knew the storm was coming.
The disciples were in the storm not because they were outside the will of God, they were in the storm because they were in the will of God, following Jesus’ direction.
And so, you’re in a storm, and you’re saying, “God, I wish I wasn’t here.” God knew you were going to be here. You wouldn’t be here without His permission.
You might say, “Well, where did this storm come from? Jeff, are you saying – are you telling me – God did this to me?”
No. Let me give you three possibilities.
Possible storm sources …
1. There are a lot of storms that come from bad decisions. Maybe you made a poor choice. Maybe it led to unintended consequences. You feel like blaming God, but God didn’t stick the cigarette in your mouth or the needle in your arm. God didn’t make you hire that problem employee or cut corners on your taxes. You made the decision! Some storms you bring upon yourself.
2. Some storms are from the enemy. Satan wants to mess you up. Let me tell you something. Satan is not playing games. He wants you broke, he wants you busted, he wants you bitter, he wants you bankrupt, he wants you addicted, he wants you divorced, he wants you ineffective. He will find any area where you are vulnerable, and he will exploit that. Because he hates what God loves – and God loves you.
3. Some storms are experienced simply because we live in a broken world, a world shattered by sin, a world that just doesn’t function the way the Creator originally intended. So, you get a world with disease, and dysfunction, and disasters.
I think of Tom … A young guy, still in his twenties, very active in our church. One day he’s getting up, going to work, living his life. The next, the doctor says, “You’ve got cancer.” One day the sun is shining, the next he’s in the storm.
Maybe you’re like Tom … You’re in the storm right now. You might be someplace you wish you weren’t, and God may be taking you someplace you don’t really want to go. When that happens, remember that God knew this was going to happen, and He is good enough to bring about good out of all things – all things – for those who love Him.
You are in the storm by His permission.
02
Jul '21
Do it for God
02
Jul '21
July 2, 2021
Sometimes you have to say, “God, I don’t feel like doing this, but I will do it for You.” Or: “I think my boss is being unfair in telling me to do this, but, Lord, I’ll do it for You.” Or: “Somebody else made this mess and I shouldn’t have to clean it up, but, Lord, I will do it for You.”
The Bible puts it this way: “Whatever you do, do it with your whole heart – not as if you’re doing it only for people, but as if you’re doing it for the Lord.” (Colossians 3:23) And Jesus added this thought: “Pass the small tests. How will God be able to trust you with bigger things if you can’t handle the small things?” (See Luke 16:11)
Back to our favorite book: The Bible. I want to introduce you to a young man named Daniel …
When I think of someone with that spirit of excellence, I think of Daniel. As a teenager, he was taken from his home and brought to Babylon. The king had a youth leadership development program, and he had all these young people in training. The best of them – the sharpest, the brightest, and the most talented – were groomed to be the next generation of leaders.
They had to take special classes. They had a certain diet to eat and certain programs to follow. Now, the Babylonians worshipped idols. But Daniel made a vow to always honor God. Daniel was respectful, but he didn’t go along with what everyone else was doing. Maybe it seemed like a small thing – just a small test – but he always tried to honor God and do his best in everything.
Daniel 6:3 says, “Daniel so distinguished himself by his exceptional qualities that the king planned to put him over the whole kingdom.” Notice it doesn’t say: “Daniel was so mediocre he got promoted.” It says Daniel so distinguished himself by being exceptional. The Message translation put it like this: “Daniel completely outclassed the others.”
That’s what happens when, number one, you honor God and, number two, you have a spirit of excellence.
Even if everyone else does sloppy work, even if everyone else cuts corners, even if everyone else is undisciplined, you do like Daniel. You do like Daniel and make the choice to be excellent.
My question for you today is this: Are you distinguishing yourself and getting noticed? Are you going the extra mile? Are you doing more than you have to? Are you improving your skills?
Examine your life. We all have areas in which we can strive for excellence, whether it’s how we treat people, how we present ourselves, or how we develop our skills. Don’t let something small keep you from the big things God wants for you.
19
May '21
The Journey Begins with Doubt
19
May '21
May 19, 2021
There are casual believers. Convenient believers. But there is a third type of believer – and, honestly, this is what Jesus is calling you to be. And that is …
Committed in every way. This is the lifestyle of following Jesus. It’s when I say, “I’m all in.” And my heart’s cry becomes, “Not my will; Your will be done in my life, Lord Jesus. My life’s goal is to bring glory to Your Name and joy to Your heart.”
And let me just say it. My goal is turn you into this kind of believer. If you’re not sure you’re all the way there yet, I’m going to tell you something you probably never heard before. For many of us, the journey starts with doubts.
Let me show you. For this first session of Doubters Anonymous, let me show you a man who is world famous for his doubts: Doubting Thomas. In the beginning, from Day One, Thomas bought into the whole Jesus-thing. He left his business. He left his home. He left everything. He became one of the disciples and traveled everywhere with Jesus. For three years, he never left His side.
So, when Jesus died on the cross, Thomas lost it. Thomas had a psychological melt down. If you read the Gospels carefully, you discover that after the death of Jesus, all the other disciples gathered together. Not Thomas. Thomas was A.W.O.L. For seven days, Thomas was missing in action. No one could find him. I am going to argue that he was completely destroyed – devastated – because with everything in him, he wanted to believe that Jesus was the Messiah. But he couldn’t believe in a dead Messiah. So, his world fell apart.
Then Thomas uttered some words that would forever brand him as “Doubting Thomas.” To this day – “Doubting Thomas.” But I’m going to show you today that if you struggle with doubts, you can still become one of the greatest people of faith you would ever imagine.
The Road to Committed Belief
The road to committed belief often starts with …
• Doubts.
In John, Chapter 20, the disciples locate Thomas and they say, “We’ve seen Jesus! We’ve talked to Him! He’s alive!” But Thomas said to them, “Unless I see the nail marks in His hands and put my finger where the nails were, and put my hand into his side, (where the spear pierced his heart) I will not believe it.” (John 20:25)
What was he saying? “I have to know for myself. If He is risen from dead, that changes everything I know about life. Everything. If He’s dead, I’ve got no hope at all. We’re just playing church.”
That’s where some of you are right now. You’ve got doubts and that’s okay. Since when have hard questions been bad? Even Jesus on the cross cried out a hard question: “My God, My God, why have you forsaken Me?”
I’m going to tell you what. God may allow you to have some doubts so you will seek Him. And when you find Him, like Thomas, you’re going to say, “This changes everything. This changes the way I see my whole world.”