Tag: jesus

Matthew 4:1-11

On By Tim EhrhardtIn Daily Bible Reading Blog, Year BLeave a comment
            Let’s think about the season of Lent for a moment.  It is not a time for unhealthy introspection that seeks to rally all our willpower in order to have success over temptation and sin, thus proving how either strong or weak we are.  Lent is, however, an opportunity to give a forty day focus to the truth that overcoming temptation and achieving victory does not come from within, but only through Jesus.  In other words, no one can earn a right standing or even right feelings or right behavior – I must have the grace of Christ’s cross.
 
            Satan’s sly temptations were, at their core, attempts to try and get Jesus to circumvent the cross.  Satan wanted to see Jesus bring in God’s kingdom by another means, thereby destroying the kingdom all together.  An appeal to miracles for personal gain; popularity; accolades and recognition; proper branding of the Jesus phenomena; and, of course, avoiding the suffering of the cross completely were all ways of subtly trying to get Jesus to veer off the path toward the cross.
 
            We all desperately need to rely solely, completely, and totally on the grace of God in Christ through the cross.  Any attempts to seek holiness in our own ability to perform will only result in shame for not measuring up.  The greatest temptation of all is the belief that the cross is not enough; I must myself supplement the work of Christ with my own effort, ability, and willpower.  The true work of Lent is having all that useless striving broken down and done away with, so that the cleansing and healing of the cross will do the real work.  We are, then, set up for the pinnacle of Easter and new life.
            Gracious God, thank you for sending you Son, the Lord Jesus, to endure the cross.  I choose today to get off the performance treadmill and receive your grace as my only sure hope and salvation.  Amen.

Luke 19:41-44

On By Tim EhrhardtIn Daily Bible Reading Blog, Year BLeave a comment
             Soon Ash Wednesday and the six weeks of Lent will be upon us.  It is a season of understanding our mortality, eschewing our pride, and repentance through fasting and spiritual disciplines.  If we care to walk in the way of Jesus, we will be attentive to how he responded to sin and degradation around him.  When he first entered Jerusalem after his “triumphal entry” Jesus did not exult in his kingly status, but broke down and wept.
             There is not any more peace today than there was in the days Christ walked the earth.  While we take triumphal stances and proclaim biblical authority against all the perceived evils of the world (and they seem to shift with whatever particular Christian group you are in) there remains a profound lack of lament in the tradition of Jesus.  Indeed, there is so little grieving over the fact that Christians do not grieve that perhaps our doom looms larger and closer than we think.
             Until we can weep with Jesus over the things in the church and the world that divide us and bring animosity, we can expect only the judgment to come.  Until grace becomes the word and the practice that truly characterizes our identity and permeates everything we do, there will be a Christ who stands and sheds tears, grieving over our lost condition.
             Grieving God, I stand with you in your concern for the church and the world.  Open my eyes and ears to my own pride and selfishness so that I might turn from sin and move toward grace.  Create revival among your people, and may it begin with me.  Amen.

The Rhythm of Jesus

On By Tim EhrhardtIn Exploring Church Ministry BlogLeave a comment
 
 
            Rhythm is more than enjoying a B.B. King blues song; everything in life is done with rhythm.  Our hearts beat in rhythm.  When we walk, our gait is in a distinct rhythm.  We cannot survive without healthy rhythms of waking and sleeping.  And, of course, we could not sing or have music without rhythm.  Indeed, we cannot survive without healthy rhythms of life.
 
            Yet, there is something off with our rhythm.  Our busy lifestyles can insidiously drag us away from God and his ways.  The spiritual rhythms we need for healthy living have been disrupted and we may not have noticed.  Someone has said, “Normal is getting dressed in clothes that you buy for work, driving through traffic in a car you are still paying for, in order to get to the job that you need so you can pay for the clothes, car, and the house that you leave empty all day in order to afford to live in it.”  Our lives are often fashioned more by shopping for the super sale, by sporting events, or by the demands of work than by our connection to Jesus.
 
            We seem to have bought into the lie that we can never slow down or take a break.  Many of us know we are out of sync with God and his ways.  We intuit that there is something amiss between our lives and the priorities of God. But we are not sure how to change our situation.  I would implore us to imitate Jesus in his way of life.
 
            Jesus had a rhythm in his life of outward ministry with people and inward time alone with the Father.  If Jesus needed regular, dedicated time for solitude and prayer, then how much more do we!?  (Mark 1:35-39).
 
            Let’s not think that we know better than Jesus on this.  If we persist in continually putting off spending generous portions of time with God, he has his ways of getting our attention and putting us in the place of solitude.  And we may not like it, which is why sometimes God is not so quick to heal us or answer our prayers because he has some things to say to us.  We might be so stinking stubborn that we refuse to slow down long enough to listen to Jesus.  For such people, human suffering is a great way to meet Jesus.  We simply cannot rush from task to task and expect to live a healthy spiritual life.  We absolutely need time with Jesus.
 
            Only through a healthy rhythm of life that includes solitude and prayer will we have clear direction for our daily lives, and wisdom for sound decision-making, not to mention being more relaxed and happy.  Jesus came away from his times of solitude re-connected with his purpose for being on earth.
 
            Both overwork and prolonged withdrawal from others is unhealthy.  To always be working and serving eventually leads to bitterness, exhaustion, and burn-out.  Conversely, to always be alone (and one can be alone even in a crowd of people) and not serving leads to a kind of spiritual constipation that makes us sick.  It might be counter-intuitive for us to break away from work, but solitude and prayer will actually help us be productive.
 

 

            What is the kind of healing and restoration you need in your life?  How might you be a part of fostering healing in another and in your church?  Do you need to make a plan for solitude and prayer?  Do you need to make a plan for ministry and service?  Let your rhythm of life be consistent with Jesus and his ways.

Dealing with the Demonic

On By Tim EhrhardtIn Exploring Church Ministry BlogLeave a comment
 
 
When I was in college I drove a big Oldsmobile Delta 88.  Because I had the largest car around, I could fit a lot of people into my car to drive to church on Sundays.  Since I often gave rides to people I did not know very well, one Sunday I picked up two sisters who had never been to my church before.
 
            Everything went like a typical Sunday morning, until toward the end of the pastor’s sermon one of the sisters began yelling and crying out in the service, maybe like the guy in the synagogue who cried out to Jesus when he was just beginning his ministry (Mark 1:21-28).  The pastor quickly brought an end to the worship service and the congregation quickly filed out of the building.  I stayed behind because, well, I was her ride.
 
            What happened next is a story in itself for another time.  I will just say that I saw some crazy things and that there was a deliverance that day from whatever or whomever was influencing that young lady.  Let’s just say it was an awkward ride back to the dorms afterwards.
 
            In think this begs the questions:  What are our expectations when we come to a worship service?  Do we anticipate that Jesus will be present via the Holy Spirit, and that he will confront demons and bring deliverance to people?  Perhaps there is so little deliverance from evil in the church today because we simply do not expect it to happen.  Maybe the demons just sleep through the service knowing that their influence is not being threatened.
 
            I also think there are some presuppositions or assumptions that we need to take for granted when it comes to the subject of evil:
 
Demons are real.  The Gospels are filled with accounts of Jesus confronting demonized people.  There is no evidence that they existed only in the ancient world; they are present in this time in this world.
 
Jesus has authority over demons.  Jesus took charge of situations with demons because he had the authority to do so.  Throughout the Gospels Jesus is portrayed as one who came in order to decisively deal with the powers of evil.
 
Demons could be in our churches.  I do not mean to be creepy; I simply intend to point out that if demons are real, they are not just out there somewhere in the world.  Jesus encountered the demonic when he was teaching in synagogues.  Although we encounter dramatic stories in Scripture (because Jesus seemed to bring it to the forefront), much demonic activity goes unaware because demons do not like to be recognized; they like the anonymity of the shadows and to operate in the dark where no one can detect them.  If we knew they were around we would likely do something about it!  Just because church buildings are dedicated to the worship of God does not mean that they magically keep evil out.  We, as God’s people, must be savvy to demonic ways and take charge to use our authority in Christ through truth, justice, peace, faith, and the message of the gospel in order to live wisely and shoo the devil away.
 
            Jesus directly dealt with evil because he was interested in bringing freedom to people, of confronting the spiritual roots of human suffering, and giving grace to those in bondage.  We all need the deliverance that Christ provides through faith in his person and work.  Being amazed or impressed with stories of the demonic and deliverance ministry is not the same as exercising faith ourselves in Jesus.
 

 

            Whenever the church celebrates at the Table together, they are to do so with the cognizance that Jesus has won a tremendous victory over the devil and his demons.  Only Christ can give us the confidence and hope we need to confront all that ails us.  Let us personally and corporately implement that victory daily through the grace given us by faith in love.