Demons

 

For to this you were called, because Christ also suffered for us, leaving us an example, that you should follow His steps.

1 Peter 2: 21 NKJV 

I had a rather short conversation with a coworker this week.  From the moment I saw him, I knew that he was troubled by something.  He said that as he was leaving home that he had been delayed by a over excited wife (Family friendly words used to protect sensitive ears).  He said that I was fortunate not to have to deal with this type of thing.  Honestly, my very first thought was, "Well, everyone has their own demons to deal with."  I might not be privy to the relationship challenges that a marriage will bring, but trust me when I say that I have my own challenges to deal with in my life.  My friends will jokingly tell me that I have never known the meaning of the oft used phrase "Yes, dear."  Well, they may not know the importance of another phrase I deal with quite often...Do it or it will not get done.  See my meaning?  I'm not ashamed of longing for the relationship which a marriage will bring,  However, I'm also not that foolish to believe that I have my own set of challenges in my own life.  Every now and then I look upon the words of Christ when He inclined those who were listening to "follow Me" {Matthew 8:22, Matthew 9:9, Matthew 16:24}.  What was Jesus doing in these situations?  Well, I believe that He was persuading those whom He was speaking with to forget their present situations and set their attention upon Him.  When Jesus invited those fisherman to follow Him, He was inviting them to leave behind them a life they had always known for one that was, I'm sure, uncertain.  In terms of my recent life situations, following in the steps of Jesus would seem much more desirable than remaining smack dab where I am.  Desirable...but not comfortable.  Isn't this why so many of us stay stuck in our ruts in life?  Because it is more comfortable for us?  I have found this to be true in many ways.  One more reason to heed the call of Christ and follow Him.

Then Jesus said to His disciples, "If anyone desires to come after Me, let him deny Himself, and take up his cross, and follow Me.  For whoever desires to save His life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for My sake will find it.  For what profit is it to a man if he gains the whole world, and loses his own soul?  Or what will a man give in exchange for his own soul?"

Matthew 16: 24 - 26 NKJV 

I've heard far too many people speaking on life paths.  Of how one mans life path led him to prosperity while another mans path led him to ruin.  It's all crap in my book.  For what are life paths but those decisions we each ultimately make?  As they say, decisions have consequences.  You might be stuck in a dead end job with no hope for a future, but whose fault is that?  Jesus presented the young fishermen He encountered by the sea with a different path than the one they had always known.  How many of those young men had grumbled about bad fishing days, wishing that they were working somewhere else?  Then, along comes Jesus and shows them a new path.  Coincidence?  

Not long ago I was asked by a friend of mine to speak to his group of youth workers.  These kids were not what you would consider to be honor roll kids, for many of them had their own share of tough breaks in life.  Well, ever since he asked me, I've been struggling with just what it was I might say to a group of kids who have more than likely faced far too many broken promises from adults in their life.  This week that answer was revealed to me.  My task is not to reform these young kids, but to offer them a new and different path.  They've tried the path they're on for awhile, now the Lord has brought them to a place where another will be shown to them.  How will they react?  That I cannot say for certain.  A few centuries ago, Jesus led a group of common fishermen from the shores of the ocean into the greatest ministry of all time.  We all have those demons we deal with...but it is through Christ that we find freedom.  

"For I was hungry and you gave Me food; I was thirsty and you gave Me drink; I was a stranger and you took Me in; I was naked and you clothed Me; I was sick and you visited Me; I was in prison and you came to Me."  "Then the righteous will answer Him, saying, 'Lord, when did we see You hungry and feed You, or thirsty and give You drink?  "When did we see You a stranger and take You in, or naked and clothe You?  'Or when did we see You sick, or in prison, and come to You?'  "And the King will answer and say to them, 'Assuredly, I say to you, inasmuch as you did it to one of the least of these my brethren, you did it to Me.' 

Matthew 25: 35 - 40 NKJV 

~Scott~ 

He Knows Me

 

But if anyone loves God, this one is known by Him.

1 Corinthians 8: 3 NKJV 

I was thinking this week about the story of the man Job.  The servant of the Lord who lost everything and yet in the end gained back more than he had owned before.  Yeah, that guy.  What is interesting about the story of Job is that he did everything right, yet his trials increased.  So much was Job loved by God that he is said to have been "blameless and upright" {Job 1:1}.  This, however, did not save Job from the one who wished him harm.  That being Satan the accuser.  So it was that Satan found the occasion to come before the Lord with his own view of Jobs success {Job 1:10}.  God, however, knew everything there is to know about Job.  He knew his likes and dislikes.  He knew his passions and what he was not fond of.  From the reading of the scriptures in Job, it seems that Satan did not have these intimate details of Job.  For had he known, he may have devised a better plan to shake Jobs devotion to the Lord.  Why is this important?  Because that same knowledge which the Lord had of Job, He has of us as well.  God knows me.  He knows what makes me tick.  I might act out in different ways to hide how I am truly feeling, but it is God who ultimately knows my heart {1 Samuel 16:7}.  It is a very personal relationship that we share when we come to know the Lord.  A good friend of mine related to me years ago that one of the reasons he chose to attend church was that he was searching for a relationship with Jesus.  I'm glad to say that he's found what he was searching for.  Yet, more often than not, we are never told that our goal should be to approach God on a personal level.  I know that I wasn't.  This is part of the mistaken belief that we ourselves are separated from God.  That God sits in heaven while we sinners saved by only by His grace populate His creation.  On simple grounds, this belief is torn to shreds by the very fact that Christ Jesus died to redeem us from our sins.  How can we be sinners if Jesus already erased them?  But, that was only the beginning.  The apostle Paul tells us that it is Jesus Himself who lives in us today {Galatians 2:20}.  How much more personal of a relationship can we have with Jesus than this?  

"And he arose and came to his father.  but when he was still a great way off, his father saw him and had compassion, and ran and fell on his neck and kissed him.  "And the son said to him, 'Father, I have sinned against heaven and in your sight, and am no longer worthy to be called your son.'  "But the father said to his servants, 'bring out the best robe and put it on him, and put a ring on his hand and sandals on his feet.  'And bring the fatted calf here and kill it, and let us eat and be merry; 'for this son was dead and is alive again; he was lost and is found.'  

Luke 15: 20 - 24 NKJV 

I've wondered more than a few times what God would say to Satan were the accuser to approach Him asking about me.  What would the Lord say if Satan asked Him, "do you know this man Scott?"  I know exactly what He would tell him.  Do I know Scott?  Of course I know him...he's Mine!  He is My very child {1 John 3:2}.  I created him in My own image {Genesis 1:27}.  So it is that I am so closely, intimately related to the Lord.  This is the intimate relationship one shares with God when we come to the realization that all the barriers we have been led to believe separate us from Him have been destroyed by Him.  It is not God who tells us that we can never have a relationship with Him.  In fact, the prayer of Jesus in the garden tells us that our personal relationship with Him was His desire {John 17:21}.  To be one with both Jesus and the Father is the relationship we have.  Jesus never mentioned that we could be one with the Father...if.  Indeed, if we have Christ, we have the Father as well.  So it is that I am well known and loved by the Lord God.  Despite what human eyes may see on the outside, it is Christ Himself who looks back upon them.

~Scott~ 

The Running Of The Goats

" Aaron shall offer the bull as a sin offering, which is for himself, and make atonement for himself and for his house.  "He shall take the two goats and present them before the LORD at the door of the tabernacle of meeting.  "Then Aaron shall cast lots for the two goats: one lot for the LORD and the other lot for the scapegoat.  "And Aaron shall bring the goat on which the LORD's lot fell, and offer it as a sin offering.  "But the goat on which the lot fell to be the scapegoat shall be presented alive before the LORD, to make atonement upon it, and to let it go as the scapegoat into the wilderness."

Leviticus 16: 6 - 10 NKJV 

Have you ever felt like a sin offering?  Well, let me put it another way, have you ever felt like a scapegoat?  You know, that person to which all blame is placed?  I've been there more than a few times.  There are indeed times where we might feel as if we were that sin laden goat set free at the door of the tabernacle to run free into the wilderness.  The trouble with that is, the original scapegoat had supposedly been found guilty then set free.  When we feel like a scapegoat, being set free would be considered a good thing.  This was one of the original ways in which the Lords people, the Israelites, dealt with the issue of sin.  Indeed, sin was a ever present reality in their lives.  For anyone who doubts this, just read a bit into the old testament and you will see a nation obsessed not only of being free of sin, but knowing that they couldn't.  I look a the ceremony of the running of the scapegoats and I realize how far we have come in our desire to be free of our sin.  Indeed, there are many out there who continue to hold to the idea that sin is a weight we will always carry with us.  Many of these individuals continue to adhere to the theology of the mainstream church.  However, there is indeed hope out there.  Those of you who have read this page for any length of time know that I am not one to bask in the belief that I am just a sinner saved by grace.   That sin identity which I used to carry with me was put to death upon the cross of Christ.  The apostle Paul assures us of this transformation in Galatians.  It is Paul who assures us that we "Have been crucified with Christ" {Galatians 2:20}.  Now, for those of you, like myself, who cannot recall ever being put to death on a cross, Paul was referring to our old sin nature.  You may have heard some old preacher explain at one time or another that we indeed were born with a sin nature.  Fortunately, Jesus has dealt with that issue.  

Knowing this, that our old man was crucified with Him, that the body of sin might be done away with, that we should no longer be slaves of sin.  For he who has died has been freed from sin.  Now if we died with Christ, we believe that we shall also live with Him, knowing that Christ, having been raised from the dead, dies no more.  Death no longer has dominion over Him.  For the death that He died, He died to sin once for all; but the life that He lives, He lives to God.  Likewise you also, reckon yourselves to be dead indeed to sin, but alive to God in Christ Jesus our Lord.

Romans 6: 6 - 11 NKJV 

When I first read into Leviticus about the scapegoat ceremony I wondered just how many guilty goats there must have been out there in the wilderness.  Indeed, would Jesus have been better off casting those demons into a herd of guilty goats instead of pigs?  One definitely has to wonder.  Would I recognize a goat as guilty if I ever came across it?  What if a scapegoat was slain and used for food by some local farmer?  Would the sins cast upon it then return to the people of Israel?  Can you see how my thoughts are drawn to these conclusions?  This sin of the Israelites had not been permanently removed, for the next year the same ceremony would take place.  This is the way the Israelites interacted with God, through ceremony and traditions.  Remember that it was these Israelites who fearfully told Moses that they could not even speak to God {Exodus 20:19}.  So, it was Moses who the Lord spoke to.  It was indeed Moses whom the Lord developed His relationship with.  This is what the people of Israel were missing out on.  Contrast this with the work which Christ Jesus has accomplished in us.  It was Jesus who literally became that scapegoat in our place.  Yes, Jesus became sin in our place {2 Corinthians 5:21}.  When He did this, we ceased being  sinners and became saved.  This was a one time deal.  Yet, some people treat the forgiveness of sins as if there is a endless supply of Jesus' out there.  The more we keep thinking that we're sinners, we invalidate the work Jesus has done for us.  How many times would you crucify Jesus in order to be satisfied?  As Paul tells us, "He died to sin ONCE for all.  Let the scapegoats rest in peace. 

~Scott~ 

The Hearts Ransom

 

"Indeed the hour is coming, yes, has now come, that you will be scattered, each to his own, and will leave Me alone.  And yet I am not alone, because the Father is with Me.  "These things I have spoken to you, that in Me you may have peace.  In the world you will have tribulation; but be of good cheer, I have overcome the world."

John 16: 32 - 33 NKJV 

Loneliness is a bad thing.  I don't think I'd get too much argument were I to say that we humans were designed to be social beings.  That is, to interact with those around us.  I was painfully reminded of this this week while talking with a friend o mine.  It seems that my friends daughter was having difficulty fitting in with her middle school crowd.  Now, if there is one thing that many parents know it's that fitting in and being popular is a paramount issue with school age kids.  To be accepted.  To be somebody.  These are all things that school aged children seek.  In a way, we all look for that.  Anyway, my friend shared with me that his daughter had come home in tears recently because a good portion of her classmates didn't seem to want to hang out with her.  Even after she brought them treats to somehow win their favor.  So, this girl was told that she could perhaps join the "in" group if she were to do something for them?  I almost jumped out of my shoes in anger upon hearing her father describe this.  I cannot imagine the pain she must have felt after being led to believe that she was indeed important, only to be ignored once the ransom had been delivered.  Now, my friend is a good God fearing man so he was able to assure his little  girl that the love which Christ has for her would never change.   Indeed, I can empathize with this little on because I've been in that same situation before.  Wondering if I would ever be accepted by those around me.  I think that these are fears which we all have at one time or another.  As I said, we were lovingly designed by our heavenly Father to be social creatures.  But, I also believe that there is a reason for that.  I believe that we were created in this way that we would not only have a relationship with God, but with each other as well.  

For I am persuaded that neither life, nor angels nor principalities nor powers, nor things present nor things to come, nor height nor depth, nor any other created thing, shall be able to separate us from the love of God which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.

Romans 8: 38 - 39 NKJV 

I remember watching a documentary not too long ago of a navy pilot who was shot down over North Vietnam in the closing days of the Vietnam war and spent the remainder of the conflict as a prisoner of war.  When asked what the toughest part of his captivity had been he didn't hesitate in his answer...the loneliness of solitary confinement.  Indeed, this man tolerated the beatings and abuse through the training he had received.  However, when it came to the long hours alone in his small cell, he was unprepared for that.  It is no secret, as our heavenly Fathers creation we are meant to interact socially with those around us.  How else can Jesus be known to the world around us?  It was the apostle Paul who assured us of the indwelling Christ in us {Galatians 2:20}.  Could it be that we have been designed as social beings in order that we might introduce the world to Jesus?  It does seem more than possible.  For once the world around us realizes the truth of Christ in us, then seeing Jesus in each and every person will be that much easier.  Unfortunately, we haven't come to that point quite yet.  Of course, that should not discourage us from displaying Christ in all that we do.  In all of our interactions we should take the opportunity to once again introduce someone to the reality of Jesus.  I can honestly say that Jesus isn't some dead guy who sits in heaven waiting for me to screw up once again.  On the contrary, Jesus is alive and well in me.  I can only imagine what the response of my friends daughter would have been had she known in her heart that Jesus is within her.  We will never need to purchase anyone's friendship.  Christ already paid that ransom.

"I have been crucified with Christ; it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself for me."

Galatians 2: 20 NKJV 

~Scott~

For The Birds

 

For I say, through the grace given to me, to everyone who is among you, not to think of himself more highly than he ought to think, but to think soberly, as God has dealt to each one a measure of faith.

Romans 12: 3 NKJV 

I've been amazed lately at the dust up caused by the bans of some top conservatives from certain social media platforms.  Now, were it me I don't think that I would be too outraged as I know the person I am inside.  However, I believe that this goes beyond simple denial of thoughts and speech.  For what we are witnessing now is a generation (s) whose sole social apparatus revolves around their electronic devices.  Believe me, I've known this for awhile.  I see the panic whenever a youngster loses their newest I Phone or somehow forgets their password.  You'd think that the entire world had ended.  Now, I have joined the millions who gather on Facebook as well.  There are times I post my blog page there.  Yet I still have not delved into the Twitter and Instagram world of the internet.  I guess I'm just too old school that way.  Sometimes I wonder, how did we even get to this place?  How did millions of Americans come to the realization that the opinions of so many people who have never met them matter?  I have a co worker whose daughter was somehow deemed not too popular at school and therefore her Facebook page was at  times filled with insults.  Again, how did we get here?  I come from a time where we went out into the world to meet people.  I remember people who gathered at bus stops and checkout lanes would open up in conversation.  Not so much anymore.  With the advent of the coronavirus as a national tragedy, more and more people are turning to the internet for their social needs.  This is wrong in so many ways.  Suddenly we're beset with millions of people online screaming LOOK AT ME!  Like I said, maybe I'm just too old school.  

So He told a parable to those who were invited, when He noted how they chose the best places, saying to them: "When you are invited by anyone to a wedding feast, do not sit down in the best place, lest one more honorable than you be invited by him; "and he who invited you and him come and say to you, 'give place to this man,' and then you begin with shame to take the lowest place.  "But when you are invited, go and sit down in the lowest place, so that when he who invited you comes he may say to you, 'Friend, go up higher.'  Then you will have glory in the presence of those who sit at the table with you.  "For whoever exalts himself will be humbled, and whoever humbles himself will be exalted."

Luke 14: 7 - 11 NKJV 

The other day while at the gym I was surprised to have someone say that they had noticed me coming in quite often and complimented my resolve.  Let me tell you, I value conversations like this more than a like on Facebook.  This is genuine, one on one communication that I feel we are slowly losing in this country.  Yes, I know that there are virus restrictions, I get it.  Yet this shift to a digitized social interaction has been coming for some time now.  Will we finally come to a place where all human social interaction is done over a computer screen?  I fear that day.  Even now, in the midst of nationwide lockdowns, we are hearing stories of the increase in suicide, domestic violence and depression among our population.  The alarm bells are ringing.  Can there be any doubt that people are longing to return once again to conversation and interaction?  Our weekly men's group has now been relegated to some sorry video conference platform.  Where we used to meet every week to catch up with one another, is now simply a video discussion with barely little interaction.  Yeah, that sucks.  Our church services have also been forced to go the online video service route as well.  Which, in my opinion, will lead to a decline in congregation sizes and a rise in more people in need of the Lord.  Indeed, there are plenty of opportunities out there to share the gospel of Christ digitally.  Yet somehow I doubt that this is what Jesus had in mind. 

For do I now persuade men, or God?  Or do I seek to please men?  For if I still pleased men, I would not be a bondservant of Christ.

Galatians 1: 10 NKJV 

~Scott~ 

Happiness Is...

 Rejoice in the Lord always.  Again I will say, Rejoice! 

Philippians 4: 4 NKJV

Back in the day some PR genius discovered a swanky new slogan which became a national rage.  He simply attached the words "Happiness is" to things that seemingly made other people happy.  Soon, there were bumper stickers and T shirts everywhere with phrases from Happiness is a warm puppy to Happiness is finally being divorced.  It seems that everyone was interested in letting others know just what made them happy.  I once had a shirt with the phrase "Happiness is playing hockey," it was great.  I was reminded of those times this week when I saw a young lady at the gym sporting a shirt with a smiley face on the front.  Of course, I wasn't sure if she was trying to let everyone know she was happy or that she simply liked smiling faces.  Personally, I would be all for people to once again start wearing shirts that advertised what made them happy.  Then at least we would know.  If we we were to do such a thing, just how many shirts or bumper stickers would you see out there proclaiming "Happiness is knowing Jesus?"  Now, I don't want to generalize, but I've seen some pretty unhappy Christians in my time.  Hell, I've been unhappy many a time as well.  I would say that knowing Christ, or even Christ in us, does not automatically make us the happiest person in the world.  However, it is definitely a good place to begin.  I think that it is a common misconception that once we become a Christian that we somehow began to walk around with a permanent smile on our faces.  Maybe for some people this might work, but not for me.  For even though we may believe and trust in God, we are still subject to the range of human emotions which our heavenly Father saw fit to create us with.  That's right, everything which we are has been lovingly created by God {Genesis 2:7}.  So, can we therefore theorize that whatever it is that makes God happy will make us happy as well?  Possibly.  Do we not seek justice, fairness and love?  My friends, our heavenly Father adores all of these things.  I would say that many of the very same things which make our own hearts glad also are dear to the Father as well.  I say many of the things because there are still those times where we continue to take joy in what is wrong.  Would the Father celebrate our alcoholism or drug addictions?  Probably not.  Then again, do these things truly make us happy?

"As the Father loved Me, I also have loved you; abide in My love.  "If you keep My commandments, you will abide in My love, just as I have kept My Father's commandments and abide in His love.  "These things I have spoken to you, that My joy may remain in you, and that your joy may be full.  "This is My commandment, that you love one another as I have loved you.  "Greater love has no one than this, than to lay down one's life for his friends.  "You are my friends if you do whatever I command you.  "No longer do I call you servants, for a servant does not know what his master is doing; but I have called you friends, for all things that I have heard from My Father I have made known to you."

John 15: 9 - 15 NKJV 

I can recall more than a few bad behaviors that I've indulged in.  None of them I'm sure made my heavenly Father happy.  But I'm pretty sure I know what it is that makes the Father glad.  Jesus shared this truth with us more than a few times.  We're told that if we keep the commandments of Jesus that we will abide in His love {John 15:9}.  I think we can pretty much guarantee that if we know and follow Christ that God will indeed be happy.  I wouldn't put it past God, were He into such things, to sport a T shirt claiming "Happiness is he who knows my Son".  I was thinking this week of something along those lines.  What is it that makes me happy?  I mean, REALLY makes me happy.  Well, I'm usually happy at my happy place a the local gym.  Writing makes me happy, as if that was not already obvious.  Yet, one thing that makes me happy beyond measure is that I am no longer beholden to those things I dabbled in the past which I thought made me happy.  Many things with which I passed my time which had no benefit to my well being.  I cannot ever get those moments back, but I can realize that God brought me to that place for a reason, and that reason was to show me that those things were not in my best interests.  These days, I can honestly say that Happiness is being Jesus.  The apostle Paul could, and did, proclaim the very same thing {Galatians 2:20}.  Think to yourself that you have a new bright yellow T shirt.  On the front of the shirt is a short phrase that only you can complete.  Happiness is....

Delight yourself in the Lord, And He shall give you the desires of your heart.

Psalm 37: 4 NKJV 

~Scott~ 

Time Sucks

 

Come now, you who say, "Today or tomorrow we will go to such and such a city, spend a year there, buy and sell, and make a profit;" Whereas you do not know what will happen tomorrow.  For what is your life?  It is even a vapor that appears for a little time and then vanishes away.

James 4: 13 -14 NKJV 

I learned a new saying which I have applied to my own life some time back.  I'm not sure if the guy invented it, as it seems like a common knowledge thing.  Anyway, a fitness guy I follow mentioned the term "time sucks."  Time sucks?  Whoever heard of such a thing?  Well, it turns out that when you learn his definition of what he was referencing then you might just be familiar with a few time sucks in your own life.  See, time sucks are those things in life which occupy our time and keep us from the things that are important.  For me, my time sucks were pornography and surfing the internet...for pornography.  I have a coworker who spends a good deal of his time online with sports betting and fantasy football...time suck.  I've been there, we find that place where we feel comfortable and it becomes our go to comfort zone.  I get it.  When we're in our own time suck, the cares of life are of little or no consequence.  That in no way means that they go away, just that our attention is elsewhere.  It might be something as harmless as watching a tv show at night, reading a good magazine or going out for a few drinks.  It's wherever we find the comfort to spend our time.  The larger question is, what are our time sucks keeping us from?  Family time?  Quiet time with the Lord?  Time spent of important projects?  It could be any number of things.  Now, I've heard more than a few people over the years make reference to the phrase "idol worship" when describing these behaviors.  Well, if you can define a idol as anything that keeps our attention away from God then that may be true.  I believe that in our hearts we know what the right things are to engage with our time.  Which is how I overcame a major time suck I had been facing for years.  Read on.  

"I have been crucified with Christ; it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself for me."

Galatians 2: 20 NKJV 

Like I said, for years I had faced my own time suck of dealing with pornography issues.  Much of my time was spent in videos, magazines and online images.  To give you an idea of how far back this went, most of my dabbling into porn was done with videos and magazines as Al Gores internet had not yet been developed!  That was back in the day.  However, slowly I began to see the emergence of God into my life.  Don't get me wrong, I was still into porn, but God was certainly knocking at my door.  I hate to say that my own physical condition had a hand in my emergence from a pornography addiction, but that's exactly what happened.  A pastor friend of mine one day introduced me to a Christian brother who was pretty much into hardcore fitness and activity.  That was HIS time suck so it seems.  Like I said, we all have our own places where we spend our free time.  What my friend showed me was that I was able to do the activities I long ago thought I couldn't.  What was stopping me was...me.  Thus began the slow process of transforming one of my major time sucks from destructive...to constructive.  After all, that is what's all about, right?  Another huge realization came when I discovered the truth of who I was as a man.  I wasn't the out of shape, porn browsing junkie that I for so long thought I was.  For lack of a better explanation...I am Jesus.  The apostle Paul assures us of this reality in Galatians {Galatians 2:20}.  These days my time sucks consists of trips to the local gym at least 4 times a week.  These days my time sucks consist of finding new and healthier ways to nourish myself.  Through it all, Christ Jesus is in me.

~Scott~