April 17, 2010

I want to challenge you to grapple with those Scriptures that you tend to "gloss over," especially the things that Jesus said in the Gospels.  The Lord delights in explaining Himself to us, all we have to do is ask and listen.  It's right to ask the Lord, "What is it that hinders me from following you?"  He will always answer you, but you have to be willing to receive the answer and let Him help you with it.

Jesus is always going to put His finger on the core issue of our heart.  When He said, "How hard it is for those who have wealth to enter the Kingdom of God," He wasn't just talking about money.  Money is a big issue, but there are many other things that can have a hold on us.  Whatever we value the most is the thing that can keep us from entering in.  Although it's quite impossible for us to let go of our idols by our own willpower, the Lord made it clear that He would help us.  All we have to do is cry out to Him the way the blind beggar did. 

Why is it so hard for us to let go?  Jesus promised to give us "very much more in this age, and in the age to come eternal life."  I can testify that no matter how many times I've laid the things down that my heart clung to, the Lord has more than made up for it.  Our only issue is not seeing Him for who He really is, and not understanding His heart towards us. 

If you really want to follow Jesus into the Kingdom, then go out on a limb and ask Him to help you.  He most certainly will.

January 29,2010

Do you see a correlation between Pharoah receiving God's judgments and Jesus' statement "it will be hard for a rich person to enter the kingdom of heaven"? I do! And I think it's "the little children" that live in Goshen. Matthew 19:23, 14

It seems, from reading the Exodus account, that not having the "fear of the Lord" results in "hardness of heart." These are things that keep us from entering into the kingdom of heaven. We can be as "poor as a churchmouse" and still hold riches in our heart as our god. Poor people can be as hard-hearted as wealthy people if they don't trust God.

If we look around, I think we can see the hand of God revealing hearts, as "hailstones" of one sort or the other pound away at corruption, oppression and idolatry. The sooner we admit that "The earth is the Lord's and all that is in it, the world, and those who live in it" and that we are His stewards, the sooner we can submit to Him and stop resisting His pressure.

I want to have the soft, pliable heart of a child. Jesus laid His hand on them and blessed them. And if His hand is on me, I have nothing at all to fear.