The Rich Young Man; Look Again

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He came to Jesus professing he had kept all the commandments from his youth.  After Jesus told him to sell all he had and give to the poor, the man left very sad for he had great possessions.  We all know this story, there’s nothing else to learn from it right?  (It’s a trick question, don’t answer.)

The story of the Rich Young Man (or Ruler, historically) is accounted in Mark 10:17-22.  He asks Jesus what he must do in order to have eternal life.  Perhaps you’ve heard religion is what we do, the gospel is what Jesus does for us.  But Jesus tells him to keep the commandments.  The man replies he has kept all of the from his youth.  Now we know that he is either lying or more likely has deceived himself.  He thinks he is good, bound by the notion that what he does will earn him salvation.  For those of us that know this story, the way I thought I knew this story, look again at verse 21:

And Jesus, looking at him, loved him, and said to him, “You lack one thing: go, sell all that you have and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; and come, follow me.”

Jesus looked at him, loved him, and then responded.  Jesus was actually listening to him, not just waiting for his turn to speak.  This man left sorrowful because he had many possession.  The scriptures do not say that Jesus was sorrowful, but we know that it is God’s will that no one should perish.  Jesus wept over Jerusalem and prayed for the ones that hung him on the cross.  Jesus loved the rich young man.  This was a good person that was tragically attached to his worldly possessions.  Jesus loved him.  But this person, like so many others, found something else that he loved more than Jesus.  He went away sad that day.

Every single person you met today: Jesus loves them.  There is a lesson to be learned about how to receive eternal life, but look at the lessons here for Christians.  Look at people.  Listen to them.  Love the way that Jesus loves.  And remember that there are no Super Christians.  Every person that Jesus witnessed to did not get saved either.

Welcome to the World

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A straw man is an argument set up by one’s opponent that can easily be defeated.  This video is quite condemning of Christianity as an organized religion.  If all these things were true I probably wouldn’t be a Christian either.  Watch the video a couple of times, and perhaps take a minute to calm down.  You may need a dose of Maalox, then consider these counter points:

  • You WERE NOT born worthless.  If Christians are teaching this as doctrine they need to be slapped, not the makers of this film.  You are fearfully and wonderfully made in the image of God.  There is no person without worth, regardless of the judgements passed by the world or by Christians. Continue reading →

From the Mouths of Babes

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Our daughter Johannah is 26 months.  This past Sunday she looks at the mural behind our baptistry and says “Jesus is taking a bubble bath.”

It was adorable at the time, perhaps because a bubble bath is the only kind of bath she knows about.  It took me three days to realize she can recognize pictures of Jesus when she sees them.  Wow.

Moses vs. God

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God speaks to Moses through the burning bush in Exodus 3.  God has heard the cry of the Hebrews slaves, and remembers his covenant with Abraham, Isaac and Jacob.  The affliction and time table described in Genesis 15 has been accomplished, and God is ready to lead his people out of Egypt and to the promised land.  The only thing standing in the way of Moses leading them is out is… Moses.  He goes point/counterpoint with God, listing new objections as God responds to each. Continue reading →

What About Ghosts?

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Halloween is coming up.  You can read my obigatory Halloween rant here; I want this post to be something else.  Let’s examine the reality of witches, demons, evil spirts and ghosts.  Let’s separate literal truth from literary fiction, because in this life “We do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorites, against the cosmic powers over this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places.”  Eph 6: 12

In Matthew 14, Jesus comes to the disciples walking on water.   Continue reading →

Lessons from Jonah

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There is old saying about quality over quantity.  The old testament book of Jonah is only 4 chapters long, but it has much to teach us.

Lesson #1: Listen to God

Many people spend a lifetime “searching” for God.  Even those who know God still spend much time seeking his will.  God plainly speaks to Jonah, telling him exactly what he wants done.  God has ordained the events of history.  Paul says we see through a glass darkly, so it makes sense to listen to the one who sees all things clearly.  Consider Genesis 50 and Acts 2 when pondering free will.  Man does what he wants, God always gets what he wants.  God had plans for Nineveh, and Jonah was to be the instrument God used.  We could save ourselves a lot of pain (and wasted time, energy and effort) if we would just listen to God in the first place, especially when he makes it that clear. Continue reading →

What About the Sailors?

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UPDATE: This post was my first impression while reading Jonah.  My 3-point sermon, after revising this post, is called Lessons from Jonah.

So I was reading Jonah yesterday.  Despite Veggie Tales getting a 2-hour feature film out it, there’s actually very little material.  The entire book is only four chapters, and one of those is really short.  Okay, here’s what I noticed. Continue reading →

Christmas Creep

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Have you seen it yet?  Most retailers are geared up for Halloween, but you get the distinct feeling that Christmas isn’t too far behind.  Except for the fact that it’s still three months away.

I’m not referring to your weird uncle (everybody has a weird uncle).  Christmas creep refers to the gradual tendency for Christmas celebration (retailing) to start a little earlier each year.   Continue reading →

Recommended: Alltop

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If you’ve never heard of Alltop, it is an aggregator of sorts.  It is actually a collection aggrgators, and they can be arranged by the user depending on what it is you want to find.  The Christianity page at Alltop is a collection of RSS feeds from a wide variety of Christian blogs and websites.  Tall Skinny Kiwi and Internet Monk are there, for example.  You will also find dozens of others that you may never have stumbled across otherwise.

I may add the page to the Useful Resources list on my sidebar in the near future.  Go explore, you may find yourself with a new blog friend or two soon.  Just don’t forget to come back sometime (seeing as how I’m not on it).

ABS Survey on Bible Reading

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The American Bible Society is collecting a suvey to see how people use the Bible.  It takes only a few minutes to comple, click here to participate.