Great Minds and All

“The man without the Spirit does not accept the things that come from the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness to him, and he cannot understand them, because they are spiritually discerned. The spiritual man makes judgments about all things, but he himself is not subject to any of man’s judgment: ‘For who has known the mind of the Lord that he may instruct him?’ But we have the mind of Christ.”
1 Corinthians 2:14-16

Perhaps you have been so in sync with someone - a friend, sibling or spouse - that you think the same things at the same time, or purchase one another matching greeting cards or get matching tattoos without consulting one another. I think this week’s passage is about being in sync with God. The final sentence “But we have the mind of Christ” is a sure statement that we share the great mind of Christ, but what does the mean? What fills the mind of Christ?

Philippians 4:8 tells us some of what should fill our minds - whatever is true, noble, right, pure, lovely, admirable, excellent or praiseworthy. What else filled the mind of Christ? Jesus focused, almost exclusively on others - Widows and orphans (James 1:27), the bereaved (Luke 7:11 and John 11:17-35), the hungry and thirsty (Matthew 14:16-19), sinners and those are the margins of respectable society. These are also the things that should have our attention. 

On occasion Jesus would slip away to have a time of solitude, to talk privately with His Father and to be recharged for the work that was still to be done. This too is something that should fill our minds - the need to get away to talk privately with the Father, to learn from the Son and seek the leading of the Spirit.

I am not saying that having the mind of Christ is easy, because it is not, at least not while we are in this world where we are bombarded with half truths and lies, where few seek to be noble and the definitions of right and pure can change from person to person. Where we can be overwhelmed by the needs and injustices around us and the idea of being alone and quiet can be terrifying. But the effort to fully embrace the mind of Christ that we have already been given will be worth it.

Someday, Lord willing - we will think the same thoughts God thinks at the same time He thinks them - Great minds and all. 

A Prayer
Father, thank you for giving us the mind of Christ. Help us to embrace all that means for us in the here and now. Give us the courage to slip away and be alone and quiet in Your presence. When we feel overwhelmed by the pain and injustice around us, help us to see the one small thing we can do to make a difference. May we become addicted to filling our minds with good thoughts - so that we will be of the same mind with one another and You. In the name of Jesus - Amen.

Breakfast Anyone?

“Jesus said to them, ‘Come and have breakfast.’ None of the disciples dared ask him, ‘Who are you?’ They knew it was the Lord. Jesus came, took the bread and gave it to them, and did the same with the fish.”
John 21:12-13

It seems that the gods of many of the world’s religions are untouchable and not at all practical in dealing with the people who believe in them. But the God of the Bible is touchable and it seems to me that He is also very practical when it comes to dealing with us humans.

In Genesis, after He gave Adam and Eve a good “what for” because they had disobeyed His one command - He made sure they had clothes. For the Israelites wandering in the wilderness, He made sure they had food, and water and that their clothes did not wear out. When the wine ran out at the wedding, He turned ordinary water in wine and not the cheap stuff - the really good stuff. Even when huge crowds were following Him around He was concerned that they had enough food to keep up their strength.

Jesus, fully God and fully man was so touchable and practical in His dealing with us that He allowed himself to be brutally beaten and killed on our behalf. Then on the third day, on the first day of the week, when He had risen from the grave and left behind an empty tomb - instead of becoming like the other gods - untouchable and impractical He remained as He had been since the beginning. He comforted Mary Magdalene near the tomb. He gave peace to the frightened and grieving disciples. He let Thomas touch His wounds. Now days later in today’s verses, He is making breakfast for His friends who had been out fishing. Yes, after breakfast, He would have a rough conversation with Peter, but even that conversation practical in its resolve and result. 

The most practical thing God does for those of us who believe that Jesus is His Son, is to restore the relationship between him and us. Once that restoration has taken place, He will be faithful to teach us His ways and to provide in practical ways all that we need

Breakfast anyone? Jesus is waiting - He has prepared it just for us. Take and eat, then share with those around you. 

A Prayer
Father, thank you for being a touchable and practical God, who is concerned not only with our hearts and souls but with even the simplest things we need. Thank you for teaching us in practical ways what it means to follow Your Son and to serve one another. May we always be reminded that you are nearby, that all we need to do is reach out with our hearts and touch you. In the name of Jesus, our Risen Lord - Amen.

Signs

“From the sixth hour until the ninth hour darkness came over all the land. At that moment the curtain of the temple was torn in two from top to bottom. The earth shook and the rocks split. There was a violent earthquake, for an angel of the Lord came down from heaven and, going to the tomb, rolled back the stone and sat on it.”
Matthew 27: 45, 51 and 28:2

No matter whether you think the world is millions of years old or considerably younger, the planet has seen the beginning and end of many ages. It would seem that each age comes and goes in an environment of great turmoil. 

Jesus had denied the religious leaders of His day any additional signs to prove He was who He claimed to be. In the days following His triumphal entrance into Jerusalem, Jesus spent much of his time trying to prepare His disciples for what was coming. He tried to answer their questions about the end of the age. He warned them about imposters, about war, natural disasters - He warned them of the turmoil, pain and suffering that would come with the end of the age. They did not understand that they would witness some of these things in just a few days.

On Friday the sky went black and the ground shook. The war was won with a rugged Roman cross and an empty tomb - an age ended and another began. Yet, battles still rage for the hearts and souls of mankind. 

We will battle on; we will continue to witness the sorts of things Jesus warned His disciples about. In the midst of all the turmoil of this life, if we dare to keep our focus on our conquering servant King and Savior - we can live the abundant, victorious life He intends for us today and every day. 

A Prayer
Father, help us to be mindful of the signs of times, so we can respond with grace and mercy to the circumstances around us. Above all else help us to focus on the One who has gained the eternal victory for us, using a cross and empty tomb. In the name of Jesus, our Servant King and Savior - Amen.

Not Part of the Plan

“Oh LORD, you are my God; I will exalt you and praise your name, for in perfect faithfulness you have done marvelous things, things planned long ago.”
Isaiah 25:1

Something incomprehensible happens - children are cut down at school, someone opens fire in a movie theater, a plane full of people disappears or a tsunami, tornado or earthquake wipes whole communities and hundreds of people off the face of the planet. Inevitably, someone trying to make sense of the whole mess says something like “guess it’s just part of God’s plan.” What, really? 

When God finished creating this amazing universe and world we live in, He said it was “very good” (Genesis 1:31). The Hebrew word translated very means greatly or exceedingly - we could say it was perfectly perfect. James writes: “Don’t be deceived, my dear brothers. Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights, who does not change like shifting shadows” (James 1:16-17). It is not God’s plan that children should get gunned down. We humans managed to muck up God’s creation and ever since that first bad choice God’s plan has been to restore our world and us to it’s perfectly, perfect state. 

What I do know, is that in the midst of the horrendous things we experience He is there with us. He understands pain and loss. He can, will and does use these kinds of things to draw back to His perfect plan. 

His plan carried Him from the majestic throne room of heaven to a simple manger in Bethlehem to a rugged Roman cross and a cold tomb. His resurrection turned that same rugged cross into a bridge from death back to life. 

We will face terrible things in this life. Some of those things will be the direct result of our own selfish choices. Many others will be simply the results of living on a fallen world. But God’s plan was to create a perfect place for us to live and love in always and His plan will restore us to that perfect place and He will once again say it is very good.

A Prayer
Father, forgive us when we muck up your plan for us. Thank you for being with us in the midst of the hard stuff of life on this planet. Give us the strength we need to lay down our selfish desires so we can cross over the bridge You built as part of your perfect restoration plan. In the name of Jesus who built a perfect bridge from an old rugged cross - Amen.