Jesus Took His Time To Serve.

A rich man heard of a village short on food and water. This village was isolated, high in the mountains. He decided they needed a vehicle to transport their supplies so he purchased a brand new truck and had it helicoptered into the middle of the village. To the surprise of the villagers, they celebrated as they had never seen a vehicle before. Unfortunately, the rich man didn’t leave instructions for the villagers so the truck sat in the middle of the village for nearly a year. The people of the village treated the truck like a statue in the park and eventually, the tires went flat and dust covered the vehicle.

Fortunately, a small group on a mission trip heard of this village. They arrived and asked the villagers what was needed? The villagers said “new tires”, which was true as the tires had completely deflated and rotted in the mud. The mission trip leader asked, “What if we cleaned the truck?” This really got the villagers excited because they remembered how sparkly and shiny the truck looked when it arrived. It wasn’t long before the entire group of foreigners was inviting the villagers around the truck for taking selfies after cleaning and replacing the tires. The mission trip was out of time, said their goodbyes and went home. The villagers were happy but the truck sat again for more than a year. They still struggled to bring in food and water, yet had the answer right in the middle of their town.

An old man was retired, hiking by himself, and happened to come upon the village. The villagers and children were excited to see a foreigner, it wasn’t long before the villagers asked, “Can you help us with our tires and wash our truck?” The old man was wise enough to ask, “Has anyone taught you how to drive and maintain the vehicle?” To his surprise, the answer was “no”. No one had been willing to invest that kind of time. The old man decided to stay a few years and teach a few men how to drive and do maintenance so then they could share with others. It wasn’t long before the village had several vehicles and well-trained men who could help supply plenty of food and water to help other villages as well.

We know from the Bible that Jesus was a foreigner on the earth and spent more than 1,000 consecutive days training twelve young men what He knew about the kingdom of Heaven. He understood it would take time as He layed down His life for them to do greater things than Him. Jesus is empowering us today to be faithful and take the time to serve others! Don’t be discouraged if you are not seeing results or even gratefulness. Jesus is always grateful and the one we are ultimately serving unto!

Mark 10:42-45

 And Jesus called them to him and said to them, “You know that those who are considered rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them, and their great ones exercise authority over them. 43 But it shall not be so among you. But whoever would be great among you must be your servant,44 and whoever would be first among you must be slave of all. 45 For even the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.”

 

Born for generosity?

No one was born for generosity, we all were born for selfishness. Then some of us put our faith in Jesus and were born again in generosity. Generosity is God’s character. For God so loved the world that He gave… This kind of love is always generous and never changing. When we were born again we took on this kind of character and DNA from God.

1 John 4:16-17 (ESV)

¹⁶ So we have come to know and to believe the love that God has for us. God is love, and whoever abides in love abides in God, and God abides in him. ¹⁷ By this is love perfected with us, so that we may have confidence for the day of judgment, because as he is so also are we in this world.

Generosity is a fruit of being intimate with Jesus and can mature. Are you curious why some Christians choose to not be generous? Jesus answered why some fruit never matures in believers.

Luke 8:14-15 (ESV)

14 And as for what fell among the thorns, they are those who hear, but as they go on their way they are choked by the cares and riches and pleasures of life, and their fruit does not mature. 15 As for that in the good soil, they are those who, hearing the word, hold it fast in an honest and good heart, and bear fruit with patience.

Riches and pleasures of life are dangerous when put before the kingdom of God. The Lord desires his children to be free from poverty and enjoy life, however, His kingdom is to be the priority. When we are honestly holding fast the word and hearing the word with a good heart all His fruit will eventually come, so can we be patient? What does the fruit look like? It looks like love. It looks like Jesus for those around you and I to enjoy!

Feel free to visit us online at http://www.graceforeternity.com

 

 

 

 

Is Gossip Just as Destructive As Pornography?

I once overheard a stranger boasting he took a different route to work down the freeway. The billboards down the main freeway to work had him take his attention to lust, he now avoided it. In this close-spaced coffee shop, he spoke of his freedom from pornography but after listening curiously I wasn’t so convinced that is what freedom looked like.

Years ago, a woman once boasted that the Lord freed her from gossip, she then went on to explain that is why she had avoided church for weeks so she wouldn’t fall back into temptation. Again, I wasn’t sure that was a freedom moment. It was during that conversation my thoughts asked if I had ever seen a woman stand before a congregation and confess freedom from gossip in church? The answer? I couldn’t recall a time, but it doesn’t mean it hasn’t happened.

Let me begin by saying how incredibly destructive pornography is to our health and marriage. Because I am a man who is writing this, people can immediately assume that I am downplaying the impact of pornography. Not just men are tempted in the area of pornography, nor can we assess that women are the only ones who gossip. My goal in this blog is to see the destruction in both pornography and gossip and for the reader to rely on Jesus for freedom from both.

In our home, we talk openly with our children about the destruction of porn and we discuss the topic of “gossip” with our children being just as harmful and destructive. Don’t believe that gossip is just as harmful? Well let’s take a look at scripture:

Proverbs 6:16-19 (KJV)

¹⁶ These six things doth the Lord hate: yea, seven are an abomination unto him:

¹⁷ A proud look, a lying tongue, and hands that shed innocent blood,

¹⁸ An heart that deviseth wicked imaginations, feet that be swift in running to mischief,

¹⁹ A false witness that speaketh lies, and he that soweth discord among brethren.

Let me explain that God doesn’t hate the sinner but does hate the impact of our sin, because it hurts people. Jesus became our sin on the cross for the believer, so we have been set free from the power of sin. Can believers still choose to be disobedient and hurt themselves and others? The answer is yes and God hates it.

Zechariah 8:16-17

¹⁶ These are the things that you shall do: Speak the truth to one another; render in your gates judgments that are true and make for peace;¹⁷ do not devise evil in your hearts against one another, and love no false oath, for all these things I hate, declares the Lord.”

Matthew 5:28  (ESV)

²⁸ But I say to you that everyone who looks at a woman with lustful intent has already committed adultery with her in his heart.

The self-righteous never knew they were sick in the days of Jesus and it still happens today. How can Jesus heal us when we don’t believe we need a physician? In the same way that pornography can destroy intimacy in marriage, gossip can destroy relationships and churches. Both are sin and destructive. The answer is to repent and receive from Jesus His supply of righteousness.

For more on this subject and more, you can watch the video below or visit us online at http://www.graceforeternity.com