Acts 15- Men Who Will Risk Their Lives

After reading through this portion of scripture I want to ask, "what kind of man or woman are you?" In the text the disciples were sending a hand written letter crafted during the council of Jerusalem that was to be delivered to the Gentiles to encourage them... In addition to the letter they wanted to send some worthy men that would be faithful to deliver it and encourage the believers. What was the description of these men? Verse 26 tells us; "men who have risked their lives for the name of our Lord Jesus Christ."

The early church was persecuted and they knew that it was costly to follow Christ... But, do you know that? Do you know that it is still costly to follow Jesus. That it will potentially cost you your reputation, your acceptance, your comforts? Or have you made yourselves a hybrid faith that is easy going and lukewarm? The gospel makes people uncomfortable and uneasy. It is not a set of morals. It does not say you need to be a bible-belt christian that attends church functions and does certain christian things. Following Christ costs you something. At very least it cost you your will. Remember how we lay down our lives to follow Jesus and we don't look back? Many of us have become way too comfortable with casually following Christ. What I want to ask is; would you risk your life for our Lord Jesus Christ? Are you willing to go all out even at the expense of your life? Would you be willing to set a course that says you will take the gospel to the ends of the earth no matter the cost?

Memoirs

Memoirs of an Ordinary Pastor by D.A. Carson

This is a superb book that I almost forgot to recommend and that would have been a mistake on my part and if you didn't hear about it from anywhere else you would be robbed of a great read. Well, the timing of reading this book was priceless for me. I have been on a Spurgeon kick lately. He is a hero of mine and his counsel to the students at his pastors college which can be found in All Around Ministry, Lectures to My Students, or the first six chapters of The Soul Winner, is incredible! I just finished a biography on him and it was superb but I couldn't help but feel like Spurgeon is a little too good. He is one of a kind and God's anointing on him was special. So, for an ordinary youth pastor it was refreshing to read about an ordinary pastor! 

This leads me to an observation that I have been aware of since my last trip to Africa; most faithful ministers go unnoticed. They don't write books, they don't pastor mega churches, and they don't have the glitz and glamour that draws attention to them. They are faithful gospel ministers. And for the most part they are ordinary. So, it was a breath of fresh air for me to read about Tom Carson. He is spectacular in his own right but it wasn't because he marketed himself or pastored a big church or even saw lots of conversions every year. In fact, his ministry might appear depressing. But, he was faithful and I know he has a bigger reward than most now that he is in glory. So read and be blessed. Not everyone lives a missionary life or a mega church pastor life, but we are all called to lead a faithful life.

What others are saying:

“How can the application of a Bible-saturated mind (Don’s) to a Bible-saturated life (Tom’s) produce an even more helpful story to encourage pastors? Let the ‘mind’ be carried on a river of love because the ‘life’ is his father’s. Then add a kind of narrative creativity. That’s how.”
John Piper, Pastor for Preaching and Vision, Bethlehem Baptist Church, Minneapolis

“A rare and precious gift from one of evangelicalism’s greatest scholars. How generous of Dr. Carson to bequeath his father’s quiet legacy to us all.”
C. J. Mahaney, Sovereign Grace Ministries

“Carson strikes at the heart of what’s wrong when we forget that, as servants, we were meant to live ordinarily under the gospel of grace. Read this book. You will be deeply encouraged in your life and ministry.”
Michel Lemaire, Pastor of Eglise Baptiste de la Foi, Drummondville, 1984-2005

“This personal testimony is a healthy reminder of heavenly priorities in the pastorate and Christian ministry.”
Pierre Constant, Associate Pastor, Eglise Baptiste Montclair de Hull, 1982-1997

“Read this book and be strengthened. You hold in your hands history, humor, and an amazing amount of wisdom for the Christian life (especially for pastors!).”
Mark Dever, Pastor, Capitol Hill Baptist Church

Progressing in the Faith

Most times the bible will answer questions I put to it... It does a pretty good job of defending itself. 

The other night I was tired of doing homework. I was trying desperately to finish my assignments for an Old Testament Survey class that only lasted eight weeks (so much material in such a short amount of time). I was also thinking about the fact that over the past year and a half I have read shelves of books. I feel like my understanding of God is deeper than it has ever been and I feel like it has been a year or so of intense learning and refining for me.

So, I asked the question of whether or not the progress ever plateaus. Maybe someday I will have grey hair and I will sit back and look at the things that I have taught to younger generations, and look at how God has used me and how He sharpened my understanding, and my hope is that it will be easier times?But then the Bible exposed that even though that sounds good, even though it would be good to have sound doctrine and a life to match it, there is never a time to coast. Paul instructs his protege Timothy to progress in the faith so that others can see (1 Timothy 4:15). In context, Paul was talking about living as an example, in faith, in life, in love, and in purity(vs. 12). It also had to do with doctrine (vs. 16). So, the answer to my question is a resounding "NO." I don't ever settle in. I don't coast. Keep progressing in the faith so that others can see and glorify God. 

I hope that over the last year people can notice the ways that I have changed. I hope that people can see the ways that I have increased in godliness and love. And, that is the plan for you also if you call yourself a Christ follower, a life that is progressing in the faith.

Is 2009 your best year yet for displaying Christ? Are you more like Him today then ever before? Let us press on to know Christ more and to display Him to the world.

Let me add a note that this is not something that you achieve on your own accord. You can try all you want to become more like Jesus and think that by your works you are saved. That is not the case. You are not earning favor with God... you already have it. You are not achieving righteousness... Jesus freely gave it to you 2000 years ago. I am talking about 'living up to what we have been called to.' I am talking about the sanctification that God is putting us through to make us more like His Son. It is a process and we do progress. It is described beautifully in 2 Cor 3:18, "And we all, with unveiled faces, beholding the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from one degree of glory to another. For this comes from the Lord who is the Spirit." This is the process that we go through. First off, we see with our spiritual eyes the beauty of Christ, "with unveiled faces beholding the glory of the Lord." Secondly, we are being changed to be made like Jesus, "we are being transformed into the same image [of Jesus whom we are beholding]." Furthermore, it is a process, "from one degree of glory to another." Finally, this transformation is not credited to us, as if we could achieve it on our own, but it is credited to God Himself, "for this comes from the Lord who is the Spirit." 

We are being changed to be more like Jesus as we see and love Jesus. And this should be evidenced in our lives by noticeable progress. I will never coast. Not if I keep my eyes on Jesus and resist the schemes of Satan. I will always be progressing in godliness and understanding.

Acts 5- Getting Whooped On

The apostles had already been arrested and divinely busted out of prison. Now the religious officials decided to flog them and ordered them not to speak in the name of Jesus. Then this happened, "the apostles went away rejoicing that they had been counted worthy to suffer disgrace for the Name" (Acts 5:41).

What is with that? The closest thing that I can think of to an experience that I have had like that is fighting my brothers when I was younger. We would hit each other and if you wanted to make the other one mad you would giggle when they hit you and tell them that it tickled... We were faking it. But, something about this biblical account tells me that these guys weren't faking it. 

So how did they rejoice when they suffered? I will offer a couple suggestions that I draw from scripture.

First, I think they looked forward to the reward. Their king Jesus who they were suffering for taught them that they would be seen and rewarded. Matthew 6 says your Father in heaven sees and rewards. So, they had to believe that their whooping was being looked down on and even commended by their Father. These guys wanted nothing more than to make their heavenly father pleased. So, they gladly accepted getting beat up to stand up for his glory. 

Secondly, I think they thought about the effect that their beating had on people. When a christian suffers for the sake of their faith it has a transforming effect on onlookers. Imagine the effect that this would have on you? If someone got beat up because they wouldn't stop preaching in the name of Jesus then you would realize that Jesus must be worth it and there must be a reward that you can't see. I think Paul puts it best, "now I rejoice in what was suffered for you. I fill up what is lacking in Christ's afflictions, for the sake of the body, which is the church" (Colossians 1:24). What he is saying is that people that didn't witness Jesus on the cross and see how he was willing to suffer for people, can now see that physically manifest in the life of Christ's followers. Meaning, that when Christ followers suffer for Christ it shows the world the willingness of Christ to suffer for them. 

So my question to you this morning is are you willing to suffer for Christ? If your answer is no, is it because you don' t love Christ enough to suffer or is it because you don't think you will be repaid? An African missionary who suffered immensely on the mission field famously said, "I never sacrificed anything." What he meant is that being sick, and losing friends, and not having his comforts isn't a sacrifice when compared to the sacrifice of Christ and the reward that we get. You cannot out give God. He gives you Himself and even if following Him costs you everything your reward far outweighs your earthly discomforts. 

My challenge for all of us is to pray that we would treasure Christ. We should love Him so much that momentary discomforts get swallowed up into the thoughts of our eternal rewards. Then we will be freed to live courageously. We will become passionate evangelists and we will become courageous missionaries and the Gospel will spread and our faith will grow. Suffering is the mark of passionate Christ followers. 

Acts 2- Get Over Yourself

"Some, however, made fun of them and said, 'they have had too much wine.'" (vs. 13)

The Holy Spirit descended on the believers at Pentecost and filled the disciples with power and supernatural abilities. They proclaimed the gospel in different tongues and astonished the masses that were in town. It was a distinguished event in history where believers were marked with supernatural power from on high... And it is from this foundation that the early church got their steam. In fact we could talk and talk and talk about the early church and their explosive beginnings found in Acts 2 but the thing that is gripping my heart and mind this morning is that even though this event was so profound and unique it still is ridiculed by onlookers.

Imagine for a moment what it would be like to be one of these disciples!? I mean, this would be an event in your life that would be so profound to you! More profound than your graduation, or the day you got your first car, or even your first love... A tongue of fire descended from heaven and touched your head!? Then you spoke a language that you have never studied or read or even cared to know!? I didn't even finish a semester of Spanish! Now I am speaking some crazy language... God is so stinkin' cool!

Not only did the amazing happen but also the routine. The disciples got made fun of. Not only did they speak in other languages (totally unique), they also got made fun of (totally routine). It makes me extremely aware of how much I hate being made fun of. Think through how much of your life you avoid ridicule. We will naturally do almost anything to avoid being deemed weird or over the top or ridiculous. We avoid it. We flee from it. I can think of so many times when I 'hid' my Christianity so others didn't think I was weird. But, the reality of being a Christ-follower is that you will be a little ridiculous. Others aren't going to grasp you commitment. It will look weird. In fact, real Christianity should be met with a little ridicule. I love the way Paul puts it, 'if only for this life we have hope in Christ, we are to be pitied more than all men' (1 Cor 15:19). Meaning that our lives should be so focused on eternity that if there isn't one, we should look really stupid. Does that define your life though? For most of us I think the opposite is true. We actually look like our lives are all about here. And, we want God to bless this life so that we can keep up with the world because we really don't want to be the silly Christians on the block. We just want to fit in. We aren't being ridiculed for our faith because most people don't even know that we are. 

So, this morning I want to challenge you to be a little weird. Pray in public. Tell people the reason why you hope in God. Sing worship in your car so that even with your windows up you can be heard. Walk out of sticky situations that are morally questionable like movies or what not, tell others how much you love Jesus and don't be afraid to take a little ridicule for the King of the World. We too often hide our light under a bowl. Take it out. Get made fun of. The believers in Acts 2 did it. So should we. 

Acts 1- Welcome to Acts

In my former book Theophilus, I wrote about all that Jesus began to do a to teach until the day he was taken up into heaven- Acts 1:1-2

Our faith is founded on the fact that we are following a God-man named Jesus. So, you can imagine what sort of impact it had on his immediate followers when He died, rose again, hung out, then peaced-out... Their heads were spinning. And I'm sure the thoughts, 'what do we do now?' raced through their brains over and over again. 

Well, the show must go on. Jesus knew from the outset what would happen and he chose humble men like you and I to propel his kingdom message to the ends of the earth. The book of Acts is the documented happenings of the early church... It is exciting start to finish. And, in a way it continues to answer that question that the early followers posed, 'what do we do now?' In Acts I believe Luke, inspired by the holy Spirit, draws a blueprint for the lives of followers. When I studied Acts with my family we kept saying over and over again, "I'm not like that, I wish I was like that." Acts sets the bar pretty high for followers. Really high. So, buckle in because I am sure this book will shake you to your core and challenge your commitment and inspire you to live more radically for the Kingdom.

John 19- Knowing But Not Submitting

Pilate had a notice prepared and fastened to the cross. It read: JESUS OF NAZARETH, KING OF THE JEWS. (vs. 19)

The Jews were furious saying, "do not write 'the king of the Jews' but that this man claimed to be king of the Jews." (vs. 21)

The danger of decision... It is scary to me that it is so easy to carve a sign stating 'King of the Jews.' I am not saying that it is literally easy to carve a sign (I grew up on a tree farm with wood and knives but I would probably cut myself again if I tried to do this now). Instead, I think it is easy to say that, 'Jesus is king' figuratively speaking. 

Imagine a church service where you are compelled to name Jesus as lord (AKA king). Much is made of him in an hour worship service and it culminates with a pastor pleading for you to 'decide' for Christ. He even has you close your eyes and repeat after him. You think to yourself, 'why not? I've tried everything else.' Easy right? Like posting a notice. Jesus is king. Fact. Declared. Amen. The end.

My cautious warning to all 'professing' believers that have 'decided' for Christ is be careful that you don't end up in the 'Lord Lord' group(Matthew 7). They claimed to know him but he considered them strangers. They witnessed his ministry in action but they didn't have fellowship with Him. It is important that you take your relationship with him further than Pilate did. Pilate simply acknowledged, Jesus disciples lived for him with a passion. There is a difference. You can see it played out. Nominal christianity is a statement of a fact, 'Jesus is king'. Authentic Christianity is a glad submission to his kingship. Are you a patriotic citizen of Jesus' Kingdom or do you simply acknowledge his kingship but do little to support the advancement of the Kingdom? 

Friend, if you are uncertain then plead for a passion. Just simply ask God to do a miraculous work of making you fall in love with his Glory. Ask him to rescue you from the pitfall of false conversion found in Matthew 7 and Acts 5. What could possibly be worse than standing before the King of Kings and finding out that you might have posted a sign about him declaring your christianity but he calls you out on the insignificance of a sign.

John 19- Mocking Jesus

There is something in us that knows that we should honor Jesus... When the soldiers who were responsible for Jesus had a free minute they twist together a crown of thorns and put it on Jesus head. They also clothed him in a purple robe(the color of royalty) and then began to mockingly shout, "Hail, king of the Jews!" and then they struck him on the face.(John 19: 2-4)

We all know that Jesus deserves some credit. We hear him talked about at church and even the history channel makes a fuss about him because they don't know what to do with this God man? So, we make petty allegiances to him. How many of us have walked an isle at a church? How many of us have slipped a hand up to profess his kingship? How many of us have prayed that Jesus would be lord of our lives as a minister led us? But then we walk away from his lordship. In the emotional moment of a well planned church service or summer camp it is easy to place a crown on Jesus head and to put him in royal garments in your mind's eye. But then it is just as easy to walk out of the church into the church's parking lot, or van ride home if you made a decision at camp, and start to think about your desires. Maybe you start thinking of what you will have for lunch or something like that. Or maybe what you will do with the rest of your day... Because in reality you are still your own king.

Dear friend, I am hoping that God would cure us of a half-hearted commitment to him. It is time to surrender all. If you hold back but make small claims about who Jesus is, then I think that you are playing the role of the mocking soldiers. Dressing Jesus up to be king but mocking him openly.

My suggestion for you is to completely surrender. Take an afternoon and just spend it with Jesus telling him that you want him to be your Lord. Ask him to reveal to you his Kingship. Ask him to show you the desire of the king's heart and the laws of his kingdom. Ask him to show you his plans for your every decision. Then obey. This is what it means to come under his lordship... to know and obey King Jesus' every desire. Then you will be a true citizen of the kingdom.

You've Got Balance Brah!

So about a year ago I was hanging out in a pub with some friends. (You can read as hanging with sinners and tax collectors but be careful that you don't become like the ones that first coined that phrase) I ran into a kid from highschool that became an Alaskan fisherman, like the guys on "Deadliest Catch" and then took the money from his few months of nonstop work and traveled all over the globe trying to surf and soak up the vibes of different cultures.

Apparently, he had seen my myspace with pictures of me wakeboarding, skateboarding, surfing, and hanging with orphans on missions trips so he said to me, "you've got balance brah!" I don't even know if I can help you hear him say those words like he did. He was a little impaired and he put a ton of emphasis on the word "balance." I honestly didn't know how to respond, so I told him it was years and years of practice. Then he kinda grabbed my arm and said, "no man... you've got balance brah" putting more of an emphasis on the word balance. I guess he was talking about the mission work that I've done and that I make it very apparent that I am a sold out Christ follower so he was saying balance inferring that it was "gnarly that I answer to a higher power."

I am trying to figure out this whole balance thing. Lately I've been wrestling with what it means to have balance. How can you hold two seemingly different views in the balance? Think about this... the apostle Paul said "...besides everything else, I face daily the pressure of my concern for all the churches. Who is weak, and I do not feel weak? Who is led into sin, and I do not inwardly burn? (2 Corinthians 11:28-29)" Sounds like a pretty intense burden? I know the feeling too... obviously not to the extent that Paul did, but I can feel the pain of looking at churches and have a concern for their spiritual well being. I know how he feels about feeling weak and I know how he feels when he speaks of sin and the inward burn. But in another place Paul writes these words, "Rejoice in the Lord! I say it again Rejoice! (Philippians 4:4)" Be glad I command you. How does Paul hold in the balance these two seemingly opposing views?! How is it possible to be joyful when you are concerned about the health of churches or the fight of sin in your life or even the seeming victories Satan has in your friends or families lives? How can you be joyful then?

In my opinion it is only a work of God to have Joy when things are hard. We need to cry out that God would pour the oil of joy on our lives. We need to look at the majesty of the One on the throne and recognize, "He is enough."

Let me swing the other way for a moment... are you unconcerned? I think it is possible to be naive of what the Spirit is doing. And I think it is at your own detriment. Proverbs 1:32 says, "the waywardness of the simple will kill them, and the complacency of fools will destroy them." I think it is possible to be ignorant of the fact that the world is perishing around us and we simply attend church and feel pretty good about life. In fact Ezekiel describes the sin of Sodom as this (by the way we don't want to be like Sodom . God poured his wrath out on and consumed her with fire), "she was arrogant, overfed and unconcerned." Sodom was arrogant, overfed and unconcerned. Sounds deadly close to a description of my life.

So, I guess the crux of the matter is this... are you heavy on one side or the other? Do you have balance today? Or are you operating on one end of the spectrum? Because both ends are unhealthy and we need to find a way to be somewhere in the middle. Somehow concerned about the world around us, and the state of the churches, and the wages of sin, and weakness of our faith.... but also rejoicing and joyful in the fact that "the enemy has been defeated, and death couldn't hold Him down. So lift your voice in victory and make Your praises loud (Hillsong United lyrics paraphrased)."

Let's have some balance brahs!

Luke 7- Wisdom is Proved Right by her Children

Last night I was telling several students how I am so blessed and have gotten to do so many cool things with my life. Jordan's response was a sarcastic, "yeah, and now your stuck here." To which I said, "it is good to be here and now I get to live through you guys. You are my glory(somewhat jokingly)." Danny said, "I am going to have a t-shirt made that says 'Cory's Glory.'" ... That would be funny but please don't do that. I will be struck down in my arrogance. Here is the concept behind this though... what you guys do with your lives shows how well I did my job as a pastor. If after high school all of the students go to college and forget their convictions and beliefs and fall away, then I suck. I did a bad job at shepherding you to respond to the voice of the King. But, on the other hand, I can live through each of you with how well you follow Christ for the rest of your lives. You are my glory. Even writing that makes me smile. It is such a funny way of thinking. But, you are my spiritual sons and daughters and my goal is to raise you in righteousness. I need to use every thing I possibly can to help you to become a mature believer and the way I do it might be different than other youth pastors. In fact some might say, "He has a demon (vs. 33)" and others might even say, "Here is a glutton and a drunkard, a friend of tax collectors and 'sinners' (vs. 34)."

This is a concept that I have been wrestling with lately. I feel like the trend with youth ministry is to provide a fun program to get people into the church (as if a building can save?!?). I believe this is the strategy that a pharisee from verse 30 would buy into. However, my strategy is to simply get students to Christ, to disciple them, to help them walk with Him, and to even put them in situations that will stretch their faith and prove their commitment. And, it might be frowned upon. Here is my argument though... "wisdom is proved right by all her children." This may not seem like the most logical strategy in the eyes of men, but I am OK with that because I am focused on ..."the things of God (Matthew 16: 23)." My wisdom will be shown by a small amount of students that actually live their lives for God. Some will be missionaries, some will be pastors, some will be worship leaders, and a bunch of them will actually change whole companies because of their faith. They will be passionate Christ followers and they are my glory! And to make my argument a little more pointed I firmly believe the current American youth ministry system is broke. If 80 percent of students after finishing youth ministry fall away from their "faith" (quotations added to emphasize that it is an illusion of faith), then what is the point of groveling to provide fun activities for the 80 out of 100 students that will stand at the gates and hear the words, "I never knew you?"

Here is my proposal... let's focus on discipleship and make sure that we are making passionate followers of Christ. When someone totally gets that Christ is the greatest treasure ever, they can't help but to share that with others! I have done evangelism ministry for the past 5 years and I totally see the value in it... God desires that none should perish and we need to be telling others all about Him and His benefits. But, as a ministry we are committed to making disciples and not just having a fun program. I am not the first to feel this way; check out what Oswald Chambers, a minister of Christ from the early 1900's, has to say on April 24th.
http://www.myutmost.org/04/0424.html
and if you want to read more his book is available for online viewing
http://www.rbc.org/utmost/index.php

Mark 3 -Out of Your Mind

Mark 3: 21 "When his family heard about this, they went to take charge of him, for they said, 'He is out of his mind.'"

Serving God is crazy. It comes at a cost: ...everything. When Jesus entered a house and was swarmed by the people, his family said, "He is out of his mind." They were concerned about his health, his well being, his sanity, his rest, there are too many people trying to be with our son. He needs his personal space. He needs his own life. He can't always fix everyone elses'. From a family's stand point, those are all very loving, caring, responsible responses to what Jesus is going through. But, it is not the will of the father. Jesus recognizes that sometimes doing the will of the Father is taxing, exhausting, seemingly unreasonable, but it is always the best way. So when his mother and brother stand out side calling him, he simple says, "whoever does God's will is my brother and sister and mother." (vs 35) Do you have that sort of commitment to God's will? Would you be willing to pursue what God wants over what your parents think is best for you? This is tough because your parents want good things for you. But God wants something better. And, he has an eternal perspective that might not make sense in this world. Many Christians across the world could be put to death today for their beliefs. Do you have that sort of allegiance? Where you wouldn't deny the name of Christ even if it cost your life? What about everyday? Do you live your life for the will of God, or do you deny him in the little things? I am praying that we as a church would have an unswerving allegiance to the King of Kings at any cost! Even if other churches and family and friends say, "They are out of their minds!?" Then, we can answer them soberly, "No, we are in the perfect frame of mind. We are commited to doing the will of Him who called us."

Vision Part 3

Last night we just finished up our third part of the series called Vision. The purpose of the series was to give you a feel for the CSM leadership and to let you know what we feel like God is up to. I am very careful to say, "this is what God is doing." Because, his ways are beyond my ways and I promise that most days I am completely clueless. But, as Lana and myself have prayed for the future of CSM and our individual involvements, we are super excited! I think we are on the cusp of something huge! That God is going to do some incredible things with our group of students. I pray that we fully grasp that concept of servant hood that the apostle Paul talked about in Romans 1:1. If we all agreed to that sort of commitment I wonder what our youthgroup would look like? If we all called Jesus lord, master, rabbi, what would God do with our group. It is that total commitment that God is looking for in each of us. He wants us to name Jesus as Lord. It is not enough to just know about him. "Even the demons believe and shutter." (James 2:19) He is master! Whatever he says, we do. Complete submission to the will of God at any cost. Imagine with me, what would a group of rowdy highschoolers look like, that is totally committed to the ways of God? Think about it?!? Even if one person took Jesus as serious as Paul, what that one person could do?! If God has complete control over your life I wonder what that would look like? What would he have you do today? Right now as you finish reading this article, what would he have you do after you got up from the computer? That sort commitment is exactly what we are going for at CSM and I am completely confident that God is going to do amazing things with our group as we lay down our lives and the King of Kings picks them up!

Matthew 24 -Stand Firm

Photo on right:
The Unknown Rebel - This famous photo, taken on 5 June 1989 by photographer Jeff Widener, depicts a lone protester who tried to stop the PLA's advancing tanks until he was pulled into the crowd by several onlookers.

Matthew 24 and 25 is Jesus's comments and teachings on the end of the age. He is telling the disciples and us to be prepared. There are a ton of amazing things in these two chapters but I don't want to overwhelm you with too much info. So, we will look at a couple key texts that are jumping out at me this morning. First, let me premise this chapter and chapter 25 with the fact that we have to understand this teaching fully! Jesus is preparing his disciples for how to live when the bridegroom(Jesus) is no longer around. If you haven't noticed Jesus peaced out a lil' while ago. So we are in a waiting period for his return and this teaching is important for us to get.

Jesus wants us to know that things will not be easy... as you read through chapter 24 there is very little comforting that Jesus is doing. He simply says, "You will be handed over to be persecuted and put to death, and you will be hated because of me.... many will decieve people... there will be false teaching... there will be earthquakes and famines... how dreadful it will be for pregnant women and nursing mothers, pray that it doesn't take place in the winter." When I read all that, I don't look forward to dealing with the end of the age. But, Jesus is preparing us for the difficulties so we don't "[act] surpised at the painful trials we are suffering, as though something strange were happening to you." (1 Peter 4:12) He is telling us that in the last days we can expect hell on earth. Christians being persecuted, false teachers leading many astray, natural disasters, wars and rumors of wars, increase of wickedness, and the love of most will grow cold. "But he who stands firm to the end will be saved." (vs 13) This is the picture that God is painting for us: STAND FIRM! Like the man in Tiananmen Square!(pictured at the top right) As true followers of Christ we are to stand firm in the faith even when the armies of the world are mounted against us and we are facing persecution and impending death! We are soldiers of the Most High and our treasure is in heaven giving us the freedom to live couragiously showing our families and friends that God is our everything and our allegiance is to Him alone and no matter what opposition comes our way we will endure to the end. Recieving our reward from the One who has all authority and power. That is the couragious lifestyle we are to live for the Kingdom and Jesus goes on to tell us in verses 36 and following. No one knows when the Lord will come so you better be ready. Don't settle in. Don't be found sitting on your hands or swinging your feet, like a child on a tall chair. "Be ready! because the Son of Man will come at an hour when you do not expect him." (vs. 44) You should be like the good servant who is found working when the master returns. And then you will be placed in charge of all the masters possesions. But, you better not be the lazy servant who thinks the master is never coming!? Jesus is letting us know that he is coming! He is Close! He is in Charge! And you better be ready to answer to him when he arrives! Verse 32 says that his sign will appear in the sky announcing his arrival and ALL nations will mourn. I think the idea is of deep regret. All nations, many people will feel the pains of realizing they have lived wasted lives. When you stand in the Glory of Son of Man and all his angels I pray that you have a bitter sweet feeling. One of deep regret for all those who didn't come to know him but also one of greatest Joy because you know that you are called and confirmed in the faith and you will spend eternity with Him! So friends, STAND FIRM! Live your lives passionately for the King! Prepare for his return. Work diligently at the tasks he has placed before you because you will be accountable! We serve a Mighty God!