“Therefore, whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God.” Did you get that? In whatever you do … we may need to reiterate that before the next church dinner stampede. Do you consciously think about honoring God in everything you do? Are you doing all to the glory of God when you speed around and cut off that idiot driver in front of you or when you eat a whole pizza by yourself or when you drink too much wine in a public place or when you do a shoddy job at work? Do you honor God with your actions and interactions with people? Hey, it’s not easy being a Christian. If you tell people you serve the risen Savior, then you need to live up to the high standards He expects. You’re an ambassador for Him and are being scrutinized in all that you do. To do all to the glory of a God that is so glorious that no one can see His face and live can be a daunting task, but it is what He calls us to do. As a body of believers, let us encourage one another to fulfill that high calling in all we do!
“Render to Caesar the things that are Caesar’s and to God the things that are God’s.” ~ Mark 12:17
Some of the wisest words ever spoken, well, considering the source, of course they are! Obviously, the Pharisees and Herodians had no idea who they were dealing with, thinking they could out wit Jesus, but those words have been echoing down the halls of the ages ever since. Like it or not, everyone has to pay taxes, they are a part of life, do it, and move on. What Jesus said that is really important is “render to God the things that are God’s.” So, what does that entail? Pretty much everything. He has loaned you all your “stuff” to use for the furtherance of His kingdom, but it’s you not your “stuff” He really wants rendered, your heart, your soul, and your body. He wants you to be His child, to trust Him, to live in His mansion forever. If you go to a church that is more concerned with what you put in the offering plate than Who you have in your heart, time to find a new church! Jesus already put all He could in the offering plate so you wouldn’t have to! As you render your taxes this year, do a little self-examining and see how much you are truly rendering to God.
“I am the greatest,” Ali told everyone and anyone who would listen, though Frazier, Norton, Spinks, and Holmes seemed to disagree.What is it with man’s fascination with being the greatest? In every venue, sports, science, literature, etc, people want to know who is the greatest. How do you define the greatest anyway? Besides, you’re only the greatest until someone greater comes along. But there is someone who is “the greatest” because there will never be one greater. Jesus, the Son of God, co-creator of all things, emptied Himself to become a man and to serve and sacrifice for us all. When His Apostles were arguing about which one would be the greatest in heaven, Jesus showed them how to be great. He took a bowl and a towel and washed their feet, one of the lowliest things to do in their culture. The King of Kings and Lord of Lords washing their feet! You want to be great in heaven? Quietly and humbly serve others here on earth. Think of others more highly than yourself, teach children about the Lord and be an example for them to follow. Then with a child like faith, follow the footsteps Jesus left behind.
Man makes things complicated, God makes things simple. God says do something this way and man says, yeah, but let’s add a bunch of stuff to that to make it confusing and hard to do. When the Pharisees and some scribes tried to intimidate Jesus because His disciples were not strictly following the traditions of the elders, He quickly put them in their place, showing how they were more concerned with man made rules instead of God’s. What about you? Are you more concerned with what your parents, priest, pastor, great aunt once told you than you are with what the Word of God says? Don’t get sidetracked into following man or holier than thou types that tell you they have all the answers. Some people love to hear themselves talk and many words do not necessarily make for much knowledge or wisdom. You want to be holy? Study and know God’s Word for yourself. Know what you believe and why and how to back it up with Scripture. Seek His guidance daily, obey His Word, and continually pray, “Create a clean heart in me oh Lord!”
“For what is your life? It is even a vapor that appears for a little time and then vanishes away,” James tells us in his letter. “And what is the measure of my days.That I may know how frail I am. Indeed, You have made my days a handbreath,” writes David in Psalm 39. They are emphasizing something we already know all too well … life is short. So, what do we do? Pillage & plunder, consume & collect, achieve & amass, scrimp & save, or graciously give? Do we live to self or live to serve? Do we leave behind sunshine or shadows? What will be our legacy? Will we have made a difference for the better in the world around us? These are questions each individual must answer for themselves. Personally, I like what Joshua chose. As the Hebrews were finally getting ready to settle in the Promise Land, he stood up to the congregation and said, “And if it seems evil to you to serve the Lord, choose for yourselves this day whom you will serve .. BUT, for me and my house, we will serve the Lord!” Wise man that Joshua.
Ray Bradbury’s “Something Evil This Way Comes” is a chilling tale of a traveling carnival’s visit to a small mid west town. Good book, turned into a movie, to give you nightmares. People love to be frightened, but the problem is they don’t realize something evil is always coming this way, waiting, watching, ready to tempt, deceive, destroy. While we don’t like to talk about it, there is spiritual warfare going on around us all the time. But … we have a rescuer, a deliverer, a conqueror! Jesus is Lord, He is our Savior, and at His word the demons flee. Just as the demons fled from the wildly possessed man from the tombs in the Gadarenes 2000 years ago, they flee from Jesus today. They know His power, they know His truth, and they tremble. As a believer, one of the most comforting verses to me is 1 John 4:4. “Greater is He that is in you than he who is in the world.” If Jesus isn’t your Lord and Savior, don’t wait another day! You really don’t want to face what is coming without Him!
