My Daily Pause

The four had a decision to make. They could take their friend, laid out on a stretcher, back home or they could get drastic. Jesus was right through that door, but the crowd was so thick they would never be able to get to him with the load they were carrying. Jesus could heal their friend, but only if they could get to him. (Mark 2:1-12)

The Critical Decision

Christ Heals a Man Paralyzed by the Gout. Mark 2:4. Engraving by Bernhard Rode, 1780.

When I read Mark 2:4, I think of the number of ways a different decision would have changed the way that sentence ended. “And when they could not get near him because of the crowd…”

• …they went home, planning to return another day…
• …they milled about in the rear hoping they would be noticed…
• …they decided they had more important things to do with their time and left their friend to fend for himself …

In the post Time for a Decision, we thought about decision making from the standpoint of failing to act at all. In this event, the four friends highlight a totally different kind of decision. How many choices do we make on a monthly basis that could have a life changing impact on ourselves or others?

• “I could go back to school, but I will be x years old before I get out”
• “I would love to give that person a ride to the doctor, but I already have plans for today”
• “I would love to be a part of that project, but I need to work on Saturday”

From Good to Best

Obviously, there are legitimate tough decisions we have to make sometimes. Being honest with ourselves, how often do our decisions really fit into that category?

And more importantly, how often do we let the “crowd around Jesus” stop us from getting to him?

What if we attacked the things that keep us from making the best decision the same way the four friends did? What if we took on a “tear off the roof” attitude every day?

And when we do, whose life can we change?

Bonus: More I have written on Mark 2:1-12

Most people consider themselves good. The question becomes then, “By what standard do I consider myself good or righteous?” Perhaps before I can even settle on a standard, I have to ask myself “What is righteousness?”

Setting the Standard of Righteousness

The opening line of Psalm 4 (Psalm 4:1) will give you the answer. David calls on the “God of his righteousness.” What an excellent acknowledgement of the Father! Unfortunately, when we are not careful, we can place our measuring stick against nearly anything and come up with a way to call ourselves good.

By what measurement do we consider our righteousness?

We attend fund raisers, help the needy, volunteer for the PTA or any list of “good” things in the world. This is usually an effort to tip the scales in balance to the sins we have. When we do this, we are settling on the approval of people rather than God.

The truth is, anything other than God is a poor substitute for goodness. In fact, when God is not the standard, there is no righteousness at all. James 1:17 says that God is the only thing good.

Seek Righteousness Diligently

Jesus promised that those who hunger and thirst after righteousness will be filled. (Matthew 5:6) This gives us our direction. There is no purpose or meaning in our lives if we are not seeking something – as Christians, that something is righteousness. (Matthew 6:33)

• We find righteousness in the Gospel (Romans 1:16-17)
• We give ourselves to God to be used for righteousness (Romans 6:13)
• Being in his kingdom is all about righteousness (Romans 14:17)

The world is doing a good job in tricking people into believing goodness and righteousness is something far different than what God told us. Our job is to seek his kingdom and righteousness.

Daily Bible reading for August 6

Psalm 4
Judges 16
Jeremiah 32
Mark 1

It is nothing new for Christians to feel alone in the world. When we are at our lowest point, the light seems to become too dim to see beyond our sorrow and worry. As the world becomes bold against followers of God today, we can look back through history to see some of God’s most trusted people challenged by the same feelings.

• Lot fled Sodom and watched his wife turn to salt.
• Noah building an ark for a hundred years
• Habakkuk, Jeremiah, Hosea, Ezekiel … all charged with warning a sinful nation
• Elijah fled Jezebel
• The first century Christians under attack in Rome

As David was fleeing his own son, we get a look at how that felt in Psalm 3:1-2. We also see that he knew God’s track record for protecting his children. God is and always has been there as a shield and as a shoulder to cry on. (Psalm 3:3-4) He delivers those who use him this way – those who awaken in his sustaining light to turn the tables on the darkness out there. (Psalm 3:5-6)

Walk in the Light, Carry Your Sword

God’s Light prevails against all

John spoke to this too. Those in true fellowship with God are walking in the light. (1 John 1:5-7) Light swallows the darkness or makes it shrink into the corners. Like those mentioned above, if we can remember to use the light and use our shield we can turn the tables on the many. True children of God are easy to spot, and they make the others uncomfortable. (1 John 3:7-10)

God has given us what we need for strength, comfort and protection. God will light our way. The challenge is to become so good with God’s word that it becomes second nature to turn to it as a guide.

Daily Bible reading for August 5

Psalm 3
Judges 15
Jeremiah 31
Hebrews 13:20-25

In the Post 6 Ways Christ Was Better than the Law, the third bullet was that he was a priest like Melchizedek. How does that make him better than the Levitical priesthood and why would that argument have been convincing to the Jews?

An image of Melchizedek painted onto the altar side near the Royal Doors at Libotin wooden church, Maramure? County, Romania

Here are some interesting things we can know about Melchizedek from Hebrews 7:

• Melchizedek means king of righteousness
• King of Salem means king of peace
• Melchizedek was both a king and priest
• Melchizedek received tithes from Abraham
• Melchizedek brought forth bread and wine
• He blessed Abraham
• Melchizedek’s service included the Gentiles
• Melchizedek’s birth, death, ancestry and descendants has no Scriptural record.

As the writer pointed out in Hebrews 5:6 (and quoting Psalm 110:4) the expectation by the Jews was for one like Melchizedek to come. Since a main argument in the book of Hebrews is that Christ is the Most High Priest, these points would not have been missed by the Christians considering backsliding into Judaism.

Daily Bible reading for July 29, 2013

Song 6:4-12
Judges 8
Jeremiah 24
Hebrews 7

Hebrews 5:11-6:20 was listed as one of the 5 Warnings to Christians given in Hebrews. One of the reasons I called it a warning of lethargy is because of the tendency for people to forget the basics of Christianity – the so-called “milk” of the word. It is ironic that this warning was given in a time when the gospel was given by inspiration. They were so close to the source, yet they were urged to get a solid grip on the basics so they could move on to deeper things.

The Basics of Christianity

The Hebrews writer listed off 6 items that Christians need to insure they have a firm grasp on. The proof that we don’t is in the sheer number of religious denominations out there. This is the opposite of the “one body” that Paul taught about. (Ephesians 4:4-5) Here they are given by the writer in no particular order:

The basics of Christianity are critical to a firm foundation of deeper study

• Repentance from dead works – Changing our ways from the world is an essential step in salvation (Luke 13:3) Hebrews makes a case that all works are dead unless they are motivated by faith and love of God
• Faith toward God – A fundamental. (Hebrews 11:6) In fact it is so fundamental that many quit reading their Bibles when they see faith is a requirement to salvation.
• Teaching of baptisms – There are around seven contexts of the word baptism discussed in the New Testament, including the one baptism of Ephesians 4:4-5. This is the gateway act of salvation. (Mark 16:16-16, Acts 2:38) It is crucial to understand how this fits into God’s plan
• Laying on of hands – Since the printed and leather bound Bible didn’t just fall out of the sky, God had other means to get his word out there. 1 Corinthians 12-14 is a discussion of the spiritual gifts the first century Christians were given to help spread the gospel.
• Resurrection of the dead – I don’t know that we can ever spend enough time on this. The empty tomb is the foundation of Christianity. Paul spent his entire career on this teaching
• The eternal judgment – Sadly, many sinners think they are “ok.” There is a very big surprise waiting for those who haven’t given enough time to the idea that they will be held accountable on judgment day. (Hebrews 9:27)

Not being well grounded in these principles, these Basics of Christianity,  is dangerous to our salvation. Without them we cannot go on to deeper understanding. Without them we will fall short.

Daily Bible reading for July 28^th

Song 5:10-6:3
Judges 7
Jeremiah 23:9-40
Hebrews 5:11-6:20