Good Morning Friends,
There was a time in Israel’s history when there was no king and everyone did what was right in their own eyes. People felt forsaken because the miracles that had been part of their father’s history were not happening for the next generation. They were wondering why bad things were happening to them if God was so good. They were weak and living in caves for safety. Their crops were destroyed by the Midianites, and then an angel, that seems a lot like Jesus to me, shows up and faces Gideon directly and calls this little frightened man into action to deliver Israel. Gideon called for help and God responded with a sense of peace that was the miracle needed, Friends, all things work together for good for those who love the Lord. So, given the state of the world, Are We Discouraged When We Should Be Thankful?
Scripture: Now the angel of the Lord came and sat under the oak at Ophrah, which belonged to Joash the Abiezrite, as his son Gideon was beating out wheat in the wine press, to hide it from the Midianites. The angel of the Lord appeared to him and said to him, “The Lord is with you, you mighty warrior.” Gideon answered him, “But sir, if the Lord is with us, why then has all this happened to us? And where are all his wonderful deeds that our ancestors recounted to us, saying, ‘Did not the Lord bring us up from Egypt?’ But now the Lord has cast us off, and given us into the hand of Midian.” Then the Lord turned to him and said, “Go in this might of yours and deliver Israel from the hand of Midian; I hereby commission you.” He responded, “But sir, how can I deliver Israel? My clan is the weakest in Manasseh, and I am the least in my family.” The Lord said to him, “But I will be with you, and you shall strike down the Midianites, every one of them.” Then he said to him, “If now I have found favor with you, then show me a sign that it is you who speak with me. Do not depart from here until I come to you, and bring out my present, and set it before you.” And he said, “I will stay until you return.” So Gideon went into his house and prepared a kid, and unleavened cakes from an ephah of flour; the meat he put in a basket, and the broth he put in a pot, and brought them to him under the oak and presented them. The angel of God said to him, “Take the meat and the unleavened cakes, and put them on this rock, and pour out the broth.” And he did so. Then the angel of the Lord reached out the tip of the staff that was in his hand, and touched the meat and the unleavened cakes; and fire sprang up from the rock and consumed the meat and the unleavened cakes; and the angel of the Lord vanished from his sight. Then Gideon perceived that it was the angel of the Lord; and Gideon said, “Help me, Lord God! For I have seen the angel of the Lord face to face.” But the Lord said to him, “Peace be to you; do not fear, you shall not die.” Then Gideon built an altar there to the Lord, and called it, The Lord is peace. To this day it still stands at Ophrah, which belongs to the Abiezrites.
Judges 6:11-24a (NRSV)
Then Jesus said to his disciples, “Truly I tell you, it will be hard for a rich person to enter the kingdom of heaven. Again I tell you, it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for someone who is rich to enter the kingdom of God.” When the disciples heard this, they were greatly astounded and said, “Then who can be saved?” But Jesus looked at them and said, “For mortals it is impossible, but for God all things are possible.” Then Peter said in reply, “Look, we have left everything and followed you. What then will we have?” Jesus said to them, “Truly I tell you, at the renewal of all things, when the Son of Man is seated on the throne of his glory, you who have followed me will also sit on twelve thrones, judging the twelve tribes of Israel. And everyone who has left houses or brothers or sisters or father or mother or children or fields, for my name’s sake, will receive a hundredfold, and will inherit eternal life. But many who are first will be last, and the last will be first.
Matthew 19:23-30 (NRSV)
Message: We Christians here in the United States can do so much more. We can be a generous people and great contributors to charities, but the thing is that today still too many people in the world go to bed hungry every night, and too many go without proper medical care, the world still has about a sixth of the people thirsty for clean water and millions upon millions need to be freed from tyranny. Millions are dying from the pandemic. But being a Christian does not mean we will always be at peace in a worldly sense. However, we can have peace in a spiritual sense. People everywhere need God, and we like the rich young ruler can do more to reject the false dichotomies that tend to rule behavior. Today in America we are considered some of the wealthiest people on the planet. Still there are more millionaires in China than our entire population. That does not mean that all the people have great fortunes but rather that more people each year around the world are developing a better standard of living. But in contrast to all that we have collectively, most Christians are still lacking the passion it requires to share the Gospel with others. We want to keep our wealthy standard of living while others in the world struggle to survive spiritually. We too live in our caves. We avoid the reality that missions take money to implement. And the opportunity for which we should be thankful is that we do not have to go very far in Southwest Florida to engage in missions. We have interesting dynamics of wealth in places like Naples and poverty in places like Immokalee and spiritual development and financial sacrifice in places like Ave Maria. So, a lot of our world is financially poor…a lot of our world is spiritually impoverished…a lot of our world has great wealth and in the experience of this there are examples of love and sacrificial giving that I think honor God but come with a warning that the key is to have a changed heart not just a changed pocketbook. You see, poverty does not mean godliness and wealth does not mean alienation from God. Jesus was not teaching that the way to get to heaven is to live a life of poverty in this world. Scripture is clear that salvation is by grace through faith, not of works. This really is not news to us. Jesus himself told us that we will always have the poor until he returns in glory to set up his kingdom. But until then, there is work we must do. People of wealth are responsible for re-circulation their money back into society where it can be used to support the greater good. Here Earthly financial rank will not automatically translate into an inverse heavenly rank. Something else is at play here and it involves the heart. Scripture is clear that salvation is by grace through faith, not of works and therefore is independent of one’s financial status. Also, Jesus was not teaching an automatic reversal of roles in heaven. There is no heavenly law wherein the poor and oppressed must rule over the rich and powerful. The rich are not always the last in heaven, and the poor are not always the first. Nor will believers who enjoy wealth and prestige on earth be required to somehow be abased in heaven. Jesus made the statement “many who are first will be last, and who are last will be first” in the context of His encounter with the rich young ruler and in connection with the end of the parable of the laborers in the vineyard too. The message here is about the interrelationship between the poor, the wealthy and the spiritually generous. So, friends, sometimes in life we will invest for a financial return and sometimes donating it for a social return, but the best way is to invest it for a spiritual return to glorify not ourselves but God. Like the rich young ruler, we too need to examine our conscience but also our heart.
And So, maybe you have faced a time or experienced a situation that seemed impossible for you to resolve and then God somehow provided a way for you. In this topsy-turvy world of ours there are surprises. People can be empowered to change and think differently. Perhaps Jesus is calling you now to a different life. Perhaps Jesus is calling you now to not make excuses and not worry but act in a way that honors God. And perhaps once we encounter God in this way. We can become qualified for a divine purpose and peace. God intends for us to live in joyful, trusting dependence. Sure, we will be discouraged and fearful and weak, but God has an answer and purpose and mission for us. In the face of defeat God can bring the miracle of wholeness, security, well-being, prosperity, true peace, and friendship. But we must face the sin that imprisons us. Friends, God specializes in the impossible. Perhaps this morning you would like to take what is bothering you and turn it over to God. Know that the story is not over until it is over. Sure, we will have doubts but that is to be expected. If God has called us to a mission, we are to expect a miracle in our lives and the lives of others.
Pray we have a generous heart and spirit. Pray we are thankful we have been blessed to be a blessing. Pray we strive for a perfect love and truly believe that our sacrificial gifts will produce a return that glorifies God. Pray we meet the challenge of the Great Commission for the poor and the lost. Pray we demonstrate our thankfulness through our generous acts. Pray we realize that Christ like love is giving to the needs of others as it relates to their spiritual transformation. Pray we believe in the promises and possibilities of God. Pray we walk in the possibilities of the Holy Spirit. Pray our gifts are multiplied for God’s glory not our own. Pray we are truly thankful for the life we have been given and demonstrate it. Pray we are all in when it comes to our walk with Jesus. Pray we turn to God with a hopeful heart. Pray we realize that God intends for us to live in joyful, trusting dependence on Jesus and not on our own understanding. Pray we share what we learn from our encounters with God.
Blessings,
John Lawson
Daily Devotionals 