Lifegroup Study, November 7, 2014

This is the study I wrote for the small group Bible study group I lead.  I'm leading a discussion through the book of James, verse by verse.  This week, we're covering James 1:13-15.

When tempted, no one should say, “God is tempting me.” For God cannot be tempted by evil, nor does he tempt anyone; but each person is tempted when they are dragged away by their own evil desire and enticed. Then, after desire has conceived, it gives birth to sin; and sin, when it is full-grown, gives birth to death.
James 1:13-15

Who is responsible for my struggles with temptation?
The blame lies partially with satan, partially with me; I am responsible to turn away and not dwell on the temptation.  If you continually struggle with the same sins, check your thought life.

“We demolish arguments and every pretension that sets itself up against the knowledge of God, and we take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ.”
2 Corinthians 10:5

“Finally, brothers and sisters, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things.”
Philippians 4:8

Is it sinful to be tempted?  What if I continually struggle with the same temptations?
It is not sinful to be tempted; Jesus was tempted during his time on earth.

“...and he was in the wilderness forty days, being tempted by Satan. He was with the wild animals, and angels attended him.”
Mark 1:13

“Jesus, full of the Holy Spirit, left the Jordan and was led by the Spirit into the wilderness, where for forty days he was tempted by the devil.”
Luke 4:1-2

“For we do not have a high priest who is unable to empathize with our weaknesses, but we have one who has been tempted in every way, just as we are—yet he did not sin.”
Hebrews 4:15

What is the proper response to temptation; how did Jesus respond?
You have a choice.  God will always provide a way out if you will choose it.
Respond with scripture.  Jesus always responds to satan by quoting scripture.
If you don’t know the Bible, this will be very difficult; memorizing scripture is key, and you can do it.

“No temptation has overtaken you except what is common to mankind. And God is faithful; he will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear. But when you are tempted, he will also provide a way out so that you can endure it.”
1 Corinthians 10:13

Re-read verse 15, is there a progression here?  Notice that sin “gives birth to death” only once it is “full-grown.”  Does this mean that we can sin without it leading to death?
The Bible seems to say yes, though we could spend an entire semester on this topic.  Discuss this until closing.

“If you see any brother or sister commit a sin that does not lead to death, you should pray and God will give them life. I refer to those whose sin does not lead to death. There is a sin that leads to death. I am not saying that you should pray about that.  All wrongdoing is sin, and there is a sin that does not lead to death.”
1 John 5:16-17

Signed, Sealed, Delivered

Recently, someone asked me to “educate them on the Holy Spirit.”  This seemingly simple question is actually a topic that I could spend months or years researching and writing about without explaining it fully.  This is what I wrote to this individual, submitted here for your edification.

The Holy Spirit is one of the beings that make up the trinity of God.  Along with the Father, and Jesus, the Holy Spirit is one of the three distinct personalities of God.  The Holy Spirit has many purposes or functions that are found throughout the Bible.  Here are three functions, with the appropriate Scriptures.

The Holy Spirit Points Out Our Sin (Convicts Us)
“When he comes, he will prove the world to be in the wrong about sin and righteousness and judgment: about sin, because people do not believe in me; about righteousness, because I am going to the Father, where you can see me no longer; and about judgment, because the prince of this world now stands condemned.”
John 16:8-11

When we do something wrong, as all of us do, the Holy Spirit points out our error.  Once we know that we have done something wrong, we know that we need to ask God to forgive us.  We know that when we ask Him, He will do it.

The Holy Spirit Helps Us Pray
“In the same way, the Spirit helps us in our weakness. We do not know what we ought to pray for, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us through wordless groans. And he who searches our hearts knows the mind of the Spirit because the Spirit intercedes for God’s people in accordance with the will of God.”
Romans 8:26-27

Quite often, we truly don't know how to pray.  When we can't find the words, the Holy Spirit expresses our struggles.

The Holy Spirit Cleanses / Purifies Us
“But we ought always to thank God for you, brothers and sisters loved by the Lord, because God chose you as firstfruits to be saved through the sanctifying work of the Spirit and through belief in the truth.  He called you to this through our gospel, that you might share in the glory of our Lord Jesus Christ.”
2 Thessalonians 2:13-14

The Holy Spirit dwells inside of us.  Because of this power, we do not have to be slaves to sin any longer.  It is quite likely that we will still fail and sin from time to time, but this does not have to be our normal state of being anymore.

Just as I said to this other individual, please don't just take my word for what the Holy Spirit is and does.  Rather, I encourage you to be just like the Jews that Paul encountered in Berea who are described in the 17th chapter of Acts.

“Now the Berean Jews were of more noble character than those in Thessalonica, for they received the message with great eagerness and examined the Scriptures every day to see if what Paul said was true.  As a result, many of them believed, as did also a number of prominent Greek women and many Greek men.”
Acts 17:11-12

These Dreams

I just finished reading the book of Daniel.  A recurring theme throughout the book is dreams, visions, and their interpretation.  My head is practically spinning from all the imagery, metaphor and symbolism.  Between all the kings and kingdoms represented by beasts, stars and horns and the visions of the short term mixed with visions of the end times, it's difficult to absorb it, let alone correctly interpret it.  Like most Biblical prophecy, I believe Daniel has multiple layers of meaning.  Some prophecies that were understood and recognized as being fulfilled by the contemporary readers may yet have meaning for readers of today.  When I read passages like this, I remember these words from Isaiah:

“Be ever hearing, but never understanding; be ever seeing, but never perceiving.  Make the heart of this people calloused; make their ears dull and close their eyes.  Otherwise, they might see with their eyes, hear with their ears, understand with their hearts, and turn and be healed.”
Isaiah 6:9-10

This is what the Lord decreed for His faithless people when the vast majority of them had abandoned Him to pursue other deities.  The words of warning spoken by Isaiah were apparently intended for the few remaining faithful, who would become the stump of God's chosen people, but I'm confident that they have meaning still for us today.  Why?

“All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, so that the servant of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work.”
2 Timothy 3:16-17

Don't You (Forget About Me)

And will not God bring about justice for His chosen ones, who cry out to Him day and night? Will He keep putting them off?
Luke 18:7

What is justice?  This parable does not go into detail regarding what receiving justice meant for the widow who was pestering the “Unjust Judge”, only that he would make certain that she received it.  To answer my previous question, to receive justice is to receive that which is rightfully yours.  Given this definition, as a child of God what is rightfully yours?  Do You have the right to ask God to act as a genie, ready to do your bidding?  Do you have the right to be delivered from the hands of your enemies?  Do you have the right to live a long and fulfilling life on this earth?  No, you don't have the right to any of these things.  You do however have a right to receive one thing, death.

Suddenly, this verse does not sound so great.  In fact, I would just as soon not avail myself of this right any time soon.  As I have alluded to before, God's justice is not one of His attributes that is pleasant to dwell on.  Incredibly, God gives us a choice.  We can choose to be judged on our own merits, taking the consequences of our actions on ourselves or, option 2, we can choose to be judged on the merits of Jesus Christ, God's own beloved son.  Even more difficult to believe is the fact that though He was innocent, Jesus has already borne the consequences of our sin and lawlessness by dying a cruel death.

Clearly, demanding and receiving “Justice” is not the central point of this verse.  The most important point seems to be the fact that we are “His chosen ones” and that we should be calling on God at all times.  Though it is not necessarily just from His point of view, God wants us to bring our requests to Him.  God wants to hear so much more than just requests though.  If we correctly recognize our relationship to God, we should bring to Him not just our requests, but also our praise, thanksgiving and worship.

I may be wrong, but I believe that many of those who call themselves Christians, like me, possess prayer lives that are heavily biased towards requests.  This is not an unexpected state of affairs, as our problems often seem immediate while we are tempted to think of God as something that is remote.  This could not be further from the truth; the moment you truly seek Him, God is there.  God promises us that we will find Him when we see Him with all our hearts.  I pray that everyone who reads these words, myself included will seek God in this way.

Who are You?

Three people came to the tomb of Jesus.  Out of all of the disciples, all the followers, all the curious crowd, just three people came to the tomb and that most blessed morning.  They were, Mary Magdalene, Simon Peter, and “the disciple Jesus loved”, presumably John.  Which of these characters do you identify most with?  If you had been there, how would you have responded?

Mary arrived first at the tomb, saw that it was empty and went to tell the disciples.  When she came back later, she was so consumed by her grief that she did not realize that Jesus was right there beside her.  Have you ever been that way, so absorbed in your own life that you find yourself closing God out?

Maybe you are more like Peter, running to see for yourself what happened.  I always wondered what Peter thought about standing there in the empty tomb; how long did he stand there before turning to leave, disillusioned and disappointed?  Perhaps you are like him, standing in the last place you saw Jesus, unsure of what to do.  If you don't find Jesus waiting, what is your reaction?  Will you like Peter go home dejected?

John had perhaps the most interesting reaction.  He was in such a hurry to get to the to that he outran Peter, but then hesitated to go into the tomb.  Finally he went in, after Peter.  When he saw the empty tomb, without its missing body, he simply believed.  When God does something that you don't understand, are you willing to simply accept it and believe?  That is so not my personality, but that is the type of childlike faith that God wants from us.  Did John have questions?  I'm certain he did.  Did he understand what had just happened?  Doubtful.

When you are looking for Jesus, which of these characters do you most identify with?


*Based on John 20:1-10

Don't Bring Me Down

When He walked the Earth, Jesus was always accepting of sinners; but he was never apologetic about calling sin sin.  Listen to what Jesus says.


“Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You are like whitewashed tombs, which look beautiful on the outside but on the inside are full of the bones of the dead and everything unclean.  In the same way, on the outside you appear to people as righteous but on the inside you are full of hypocrisy and wickedness.”
Matthew 23:27-28


As for those who would say that pointing out hypocrisy is being judgmental, look at what Paul says in first Corinthians.


Or do you not know that the Lord’s people will judge the world? And if you are to judge the world, are you not competent to judge trivial cases?  Do you not know that we will judge angels? How much more the things of this life!
1 Corinthians 6:2-4


There is absolutely nothing wrong with asking people who call themselves Christians to behave in a way that reflects Christ.  Not in an angry manner that drives people away from Christ, but in a loving manner.


Preach the word; be prepared in season and out of season; correct, rebuke and encourage—with great patience and careful instruction.
2 Timothy 4:2


My dear brothers and sisters, take note of this: Everyone should be quick to listen, slow to speak and slow to become angry, because human anger does not produce the righteousness that God desires.
James 1:19-20


The number one priority is to see others as Christ sees them.  This can only happen through faithful study, prayer and worship.  Be certain that if you call someone on their sin that you are not guilty yourself.


How can you say to your brother, ‘Let me take the speck out of your eye,’ when all the time there is a plank in your own eye?
Matthew 7:4


To serve God, we should act as He did on earth, speaking the truth while remaining loving at all times.

Against the World

Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted.
Blessed are the meek, for they will inherit the earth.
Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be filled.
Blessed are the merciful, for they will be shown mercy.
Blessed are the pure in heart, for they will see God.
Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called children of God.
Blessed are those who are persecuted because of righteousness, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
Matthew 5:3-10

The Beatitudes are one of the most well-known passages in the entire Bible.  Each of these eight statements represent a pattern of behavior that Christians should strive to emulate.  Something especially worth noting is that the inverse of each statement represent the values of this world.

Blessed are the poor in spirit.  Who is poor in spirit?  The person who considers that their earthly treasures are worthless.  Whether they have much or little, they have little concern for their possessions, choosing instead to find their worth in Jesus.  The way of the world is to gather as many possessions as you can to make yourself better than those around you.

Blessed are those who mourn.  If someone is in mourning, it is because he or she has lost something.  What we have lost is our close relationship with God.  We were designed to be much closer to God than we are.  Adam and Eve literally walked with God on the Earth.  While we should always strive to have the closest relationship with God that we can, we must realize that, in this life, we will never achieve the ideal.  The powers of this world do not admit to needing God, much less having lost anything.

Blessed are the meek.  Meekness is not a quality that is admired by the world.  The way the world is to demand what you feel you are entitled to and fight anyone or anything that stands between you and what you desire.  To the world, meek means weak.  This is certainly not always true.  When Jesus was being flogged and crucified, He could have put a stop to it with a word.  He did not, instead choosing to take the full measure of punishment for your sin and mine.  Even though He had the power, He chose through strength of will not to exercise His authority.

Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness.  Human selfishness knows no bounds.  No matter how much a person attains, there will always be a hunger for more.  Hunger and thirst are uncomfortable; if you have become comfortable without a daily feeding from God's word, a reevaluation of your priorities is in order.

Blessed are those who are merciful.  By not punishing us for our sin, God is being more merciful than we can possibly comprehend.  If we do not show mercy to those around us, we should not expect the same treatment from God.

Blessed are the pure in heart.  When something is pure, gold for instance, it contains no impurities.  The more other stuff that is mixed in, the less pure the substance is.  To be pure of heart means to be singly motivated; no matter what you do, it stems from a single desire, the desire to please God.

Blessed are the peacemakers.  It is one thing to live in peace.  It is quite another to actively bring peace to those who are experiencing strife.  True peacemakers are often not found near quiet streams, but rather in the midst of battle.  In the world, peace is most often achieved through the use of force.  True peacemakers offer peace, they do not impose it on others.

Blessed are those who are persecuted.  If you live in the United States as I do, it is likely that you have not experienced true persecution.  Perhaps this is a mixed blessing.  Perhaps it is truly through persecution that we realize how precious our faith is.

To live up to the example of the Beatitudes is impossible without God.  Fortunately, we are not required to.  If we hope to achieve this goal, it must be with God's assistance.

I can do all this through Him who gives me strength.
Philippians 4:13

How Deep Is Your Love?

Now He had to go through Samaria.  So He came to a town in Samaria called Sychar, near the plot of ground Jacob had given to his son Joseph.  Jacob’s well was there, and Jesus, tired as He was from the journey, sat down by the well. It was about noon.

When a Samaritan woman came to draw water, Jesus said to her, “Will you give me a drink?”  (His disciples had gone into the town to buy food.)

The Samaritan woman said to Him, “You are a Jew and I am a Samaritan woman. How can You ask me for a drink?” (For Jews do not associate with Samaritans.)

Jesus answered her, “If you knew the gift of God and who it is that asks you for a drink, you would have asked Him and He would have given you living water.”

“Sir,” the woman said, “You have nothing to draw with and the well is deep. Where can You get this living water?  Are You greater than our father Jacob, who gave us the well and drank from it himself, as did also his sons and his livestock?”

Jesus answered, “Everyone who drinks this water will be thirsty again, but whoever drinks the water I give them will never thirst. Indeed, the water I give them will become in them a spring of water welling up to eternal life.”

The woman said to him, “Sir, give me this water so that I won’t get thirsty and have to keep coming here to draw water.”

He told her, “Go, call your husband and come back.”

“I have no husband,” she replied.

   Jesus said to her, “You are right when you say you have no husband.  The fact is, you have had five husbands, and the man you now have is not your husband. What you have just said is quite true.”

“Sir,” the woman said, “I can see that You are a prophet.  Our ancestors worshiped on this mountain, but you Jews claim that the place where we must worship is in Jerusalem.”

“Woman,” Jesus replied, “believe me, a time is coming when you will worship the Father neither on this mountain nor in Jerusalem.  You Samaritans worship what you do not know; we worship what we do know, for salvation is from the Jews.  Yet a time is coming and has now come when the true worshipers will worship the Father in the Spirit and in truth, for they are the kind of worshipers the Father seeks.  God is spirit, and his worshipers must worship in the Spirit and in truth.”

The woman said, “I know that Messiah” (called Christ) “is coming. When He comes, He will explain everything to us.”

Then Jesus declared, “I, the one speaking to you—I am he.”

John 4:4-26

This, to me is a great example of what our lives should be like.  If we call ourselves Christians, we should be seeking to emulate the life of Jesus.  Jesus, in plain and simple language, starts with a simple question, “Will you give me a drink?”  and ends up revealing to this unlikely character that He is the long-awaited Messiah.  What He chose not to make public knowledge in Israel, He told to a woman that His culture said He should despise.

I have heard it said by many people that it is important for the modern Christian to be relevant in today's society.  To this end, many Christians behave much the same way as non-Christians so as not to make Jesus seem uncool.  Jesus stands this notion on its ear; He acts in a manner that was completely inconsistent with His culture and would cause many of His contemporaries to dismiss Him.  It is indeed important that Christians not remove themselves from society; our society could definitely use a big dose of God.

I have given them your word and the world has hated them, for they are not of the world any more than I am of the world.  My prayer is not that you take them out of the world but that you protect them from the evil one.  They are not of the world, even as I am not of it.

John 17:14-16

Unfortunately, some Christians go to far in the other direction.  If a person so chooses, there is the so-called Christian media, supplying music, literature, movies, even education and dating websites completely insulated from the secular world.  As Jesus prays, He does not ask that we be taken from the world, rather that we will be protected from the influence of the devil; who is the de facto ruler of the world.

As I have stated before and will likely state again, the real trick is to find a balance between the two extremes.  I have found that the best way to do this is to constantly be searching for opportunities to let the light that is within you, the light of Jesus' love, shine into a dark world.

Preach the word; be prepared in season and out of season; correct, rebuke and encourage—with great patience and careful instruction.

2 Timothy 4:2

If nothing else, let me encourage you to be in God's word each day.  If you are just starting out, let me recommend the book of John.  The more familiar you are with the Bible, the more prepared you will be when you have the opportunity to speak.

Ebony and Ivory

“Don’t give me anything,” Jacob replied. “But if you will do this one thing for me, I will go on tending your flocks and watching over them:  Let me go through all your flocks today and remove from them every speckled or spotted sheep, every dark-colored lamb and every spotted or speckled goat. They will be my wages.  And my honesty will testify for me in the future, whenever you check on the wages you have paid me. Any goat in my possession that is not speckled or spotted, or any lamb that is not dark-colored, will be considered stolen.”


“Agreed,” said Laban. “Let it be as you have said.”  That same day he removed all the male goats that were streaked or spotted, and all the speckled or spotted female goats (all that had white on them) and all the dark-colored lambs, and he placed them in the care of his sons.  Then he put a three-day journey between himself and Jacob, while Jacob continued to tend the rest of Laban’s flocks.


Jacob, however, took fresh-cut branches from poplar, almond and plane trees and made white stripes on them by peeling the bark and exposing the white inner wood of the branches.  Then he placed the peeled branches in all the watering troughs, so that they would be directly in front of the flocks when they came to drink. When the flocks were in heat and came to drink,  they mated in front of the branches. And they bore young that were streaked or speckled or spotted.  Jacob set apart the young of the flock by themselves, but made the rest face the streaked and dark-colored animals that belonged to Laban. Thus he made separate flocks for himself and did not put them with Laban’s animals.  Whenever the stronger females were in heat, Jacob would place the branches in the troughs in front of the animals so they would mate near the branches,  but if the animals were weak, he would not place them there. So the weak animals went to Laban and the strong ones to Jacob.  In this way the man grew exceedingly prosperous and came to own large flocks, and female and male servants, and camels and donkeys.
Genesis 30:31-43

Jacob is one of the most intriguing characters of the Bible to me.  Trying to balance the demands of two wives while working for his father-in-law must have been awkward to say the least.  And yet, as we have seen before, Jacob experienced God is an incredible way.

I'm not a geneticist, but I am nearly certain that this trick of using the striped branches to make the livestock turn out striped or streaked would not really work, and that the it was the Lord who was actually blessing Jacob's herds.  It seems that the fact that Jacob was trying to cheat Laban by ensuring that the strong animals would go to him says something about Jacob as a person.  Some might argue that Laban was trying to cheat Jacob, so that made it okay, but even children can understand that "Two wrongs don't make a right."  The fact that is actually highlighted here though, is that there is no one that the Lord cannot use to accomplish His purpose.  Doesn't that give hope to us?  However, there is a challenge inherent in this point.  We are living after the Cross, after Jesus has made a way for us to be reconciled to God.  The fact that we used to be evil people will not hinder the Lord's efforts to reach us or use us.

Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, the new creation has come: The old has gone, the new is here!
2 Corinthians 5:17

We are a new creation, and we are called to leave our sinful lives behind us.  When Zacchaeus came to Jesus, he committed to pay back anyone he had cheated four times over.  Even though we have forgiveness for us, we must always strive to live lives that mirror the life of Jesus on Earth as closely as possible.  Even if you are a streaked or spotted sheep, God can use you to accomplish great things.

A Horse with No Name

Balaam got up in the morning, saddled his donkey and went with the Moabite officials.  But God was very angry when he went, and the angel of the LORD stood in the road to oppose him. Balaam was riding on his donkey, and his two servants were with him.  When the donkey saw the angel of the LORD standing in the road with a drawn sword in his hand, it turned off the road into a field. Balaam beat it to get it back on the road.

Then the angel of the LORD stood in a narrow path through the vineyards, with walls on both sides.  When the donkey saw the angel of the LORD, it pressed close to the wall, crushing Balaam’s foot against it. So he beat the donkey again.

Then the angel of the LORD moved on ahead and stood in a narrow place where there was no room to turn, either to the right or to the left.  When the donkey saw the angel of the LORD, it lay down under Balaam, and he was angry and beat it with his staff.  Then the LORD opened the donkey’s mouth, and it said to Balaam, “What have I done to you to make you beat me these three times?”

Balaam answered the donkey, “You have made a fool of me! If only I had a sword in my hand, I would kill you right now.”

The donkey said to Balaam, “Am I not your own donkey, which you have always ridden, to this day? Have I been in the habit of doing this to you?”

“No,” he said.

Then the LORD opened Balaam’s eyes, and he saw the angel of the LORD standing in the road with his sword drawn. So he bowed low and fell facedown.

The angel of the LORD asked him, “Why have you beaten your donkey these three times? I have come here to oppose you because your path is a reckless one before me.  The donkey saw me and turned away from me these three times. If it had not turned away, I would certainly have killed you by now, but I would have spared it.”
Numbers 22:21-33

Balaam and his talking donkey is one of my favorite Bible stories.  I first read this story in the King James Bible when I was in junior high.  At that time I found it amusing, mostly due to the archaic language.  In my early 20s, I had a band named after Balaams "Donkey".  I have matured somewhat since then, but I still appreciate this story.  I always imagine how strange it must have seemed to the people with Balaam.  In my mind, he is the only one who can hear the donkey speaking; everyone else sees him arguing with the donkey, who is making only normal donkey noises.  I especially enjoy the fact that Balaam doesn't even lose a beat when his donkey starts to talk; he talks right back to her.

This is another example of God using unlikely characters to accomplish His purposes.  Balaam is a lot like many of us.  We are, in general, well-educated, intelligent people; we certainly think we're capable of making plans and carrying them out, well aware of the dangers we may face.  The donkey on the other hand is dumb.  And yet, if not for the donkey, Balaam would have been dead.

Perhaps this is why Jesus instructs us to receive his kingdom like children (Mark 10:15).  Children have a knack for stating the obvious, even when the truth may be embarrassing or uncomfortable.  Another characteristic of children is trust.  Most small children have not yet learned that the world can be a cruel place, and that people will not always do what they say they will.  Perhaps you know someone who was hurt as a child by an adult who should have been caring for them.  If so, you are certainly aware of how difficult it is for them to trust others now.

Since our perception of God is so often altered by our experiences with people, it may be very difficult for you to trust God.  Maybe you feel like God is standing in your path, ready to strike you down.  Or maybe you feel like God will leave you when you need Him the most.  Let me assure you that this will never happen.  God loves you, and wants you to know Him.  (1 Timothy 2:3-4)

God is capable of using just about anything to get your attention.  A good rule to remember is that God will never say anything that contradicts His word.  Keep this in mind as you go on your way, and watch for talking donkeys.

Weekend Fiction - Peter

This is a story I wrote in 2007; it's based on the last three chapters of the gospel of John.

Cold: That's what I remember most. It was bitter cold that day. It seems that I've been cold all my life. I remember the day I met Him. I was completely incredulous. This guy was the Messiah!? Yeah right. But then, as I was around Him more, I began to notice. No one could do the things He did. Who else but the Messiah could speak like this? As the weeks and months went by, my heart began to soften. It was true! This man from Nazareth was the Son of God! At least, that's what I believed at the time. Now I don't know what to believe. For three long years, I followed Him. What a fool I feel like now. Back here fishing, in this accursed boat!

They killed Him, they killed the supposed Son of God! Judas, He was the only one of us who wised up, there at the end. When the Pharisees decided to kill Jesus, he was the only one smart enough to get in on it. When it happened, I was ready to kill him. In fact, I drew my sword and attacked someone. But then He said, "Put that away! Don't you know that he who lives by the sword will also die by it?" I wish that I had been killed that night. When I look back at it now, I wish that I had taken the generous offer of Caiphas. 50 silver pieces! Do you know what I could have done with that kind of money? I'll say one thing; I sure wouldn't be out here in this stinking boat! I wonder what Judas did? I would have taken the money and got out of this stupid country. Three long years I wasted! It was just last week. Judas led them to the Garden, and then they hauled Him off. There was some stupid fake trial, and then, those 'righteous' camels turned Him over to the Romans. He was crucified. I was so angry, sad and upset all at once, I didn't know what to do. I just wanted to go to sleep and never wake up.

Three days later, we were all hiding out when Mary came and said "The Lord is risen! Come and see!" I don't even know why I went to look. Morbid curiosity, I guess. The body was gone, but I wasn't about to believe anything about rising from the dead, though. I bet they were hauling the corpse off to Rome. In my mind, I could just see some big parade. They'd put the body on a wagon with a sign reading; "The King of the Jews" and marched it through the streets with some centurion proclaiming "This is how we treat the enemies of the Emperor!" Then, I snapped out of it. Some madman had stolen the body; probably Simon or one of his crazies. We dragged ourselves back to the house, and crashed. Suddenly, He was there! "Peace, be still" He said. I wanted to believe; there was a part of me that longed to bow down and worship Him. But no, I wouldn't be pulled in again. It must have been some kind of dream or something. I decided to pack up my stuff and go home. I mumbled some kind of goodbye, and a half-hearted offer to let anyone else that wanted stay with me for a while, until this whole thing blew over. John went with me, and a couple of the other guys from the area left with us. So, here I am again. I swore I would never go back, but here I am fishing.

Slow night. We hadn't caught a thing. As we were heading back in, I saw someone on shore. "Hey! You guys caught anything yet?" He yelled. "Why don't you try putting your nets out on your right side?!" I was going to just ignore it, but then John started struggling with the nets, and put them over the side. I knew he would never be able to get them back in the boat without my help, so I swore and started pulling them back in. It was like a dream, there must have been 150 fish in there. Then, I had a sense of deja-vu. I remembered Jesus saying something a lot like that. Then John said it. "It is the Lord." I snapped. Whoever this joker was, He'd just gone too far. I was going to teach him a lesson he wouldn't ever forget. I jumped over the side of the boat and swam to shore. "Come and have breakfast." He said. Who did this guy think he was? Oh well, I suppose I could let him have a last meal. I could always kill him later. Then, with a shock of realization, I saw it was Jesus. This time, I knew it really was Him. I stood there, speechless, all the events of the past weeks racing through my mind. What would He say? He knew that I had betrayed Him, He had to. We just sat there, in silence.

Then, He spoke. "Peter, do you love me?" I mumbled something and He replied; "Feed my sheep." Then, He said it again, and a third time. I was mad then. I swore and spat. "You know everything. You know that I love You." Again came His calm reply. "Feed my sheep." I sat there and stared at Him. Then, He went on. "When you were young, you dressed yourself, and went where you wanted to go. When you are old, someone else will dress you, and take you where you don't want to go. Follow me." It slowly sank in, He'd taken me back. Then I looked at John. "Lord, what about him?" He smiled. "What about him? If I want him to stay alive 'til I come back, what does it matter to you?" I smiled back, embraced Him and said simply; "Lord." Wiping a sudden tear from my eye, I sat down to eat. 

Weird Science

On the day the LORD gave the Amorites over to Israel, Joshua said to the LORD in the presence of Israel: “Sun, stand still over Gibeon, and you, moon, over the Valley of Aijalon.”

So the sun stood still, and the moon stopped, till the nation avenged itself on its enemies, as it is written in the Book of Jashar.

The sun stopped in the middle of the sky and delayed going down about a full day.
Joshua 10:12-13

Isaiah answered, “This is the LORD’s sign to you that the LORD will do what he has promised: Shall the shadow go forward ten steps, or shall it go back ten steps?”

“It is a simple matter for the shadow to go forward ten steps,” said Hezekiah. “Rather, have it go back ten steps.”

Then the prophet Isaiah called on the LORD, and the LORD made the shadow go back the ten steps it had gone down on the stairway of Ahaz.
2 Kings 20:9-11

If you've had access to e-mail and the Internet for any length of time, I am certain you have seen the recurring story of the NASA computers that found the missing day in history.  I'm not going to retell the story to you however; unfortunately, it's just not true.

What I'm interested in today is the story of Galileo.  In 1633, Galileo was imprisoned for daring to say that the earth revolves around the sun.  This view was contrary to the commonly held view of the time, the Earth-centered universe.  That got me thinking, does the Bible really contradict Galileo; does the Bible actually say the earth is the center of the universe?

The two Scriptures I have quoted commonly used by skeptics to "prove" that the Bible is not accurate.  After all, we know that for the length of the day to be extended, it would be the Earth that had to stop moving, not the Sun.  What is apparently forgotten is that the book of Joshua is the book of history, written for its contemporary audience.  If the Bible had said that the Earth had stopped rotating on its axis for about a day, it would have sounded like nonsense to them.

As I have stated before, I believe God gave us our brains for a reason.  To the people of the Bible, the idea of the earth moving was nonsense.  It is only through careful observation of the movements of the planets and the moon that the true nature of the solar system has come to be understood.

The universe is so vast and manner in which it operates are so complex that modern science has barely scratched the surface.  It is amazing for me to realize that God could have designed all of it.

Do you have an opinion on the matter?  Feel free to comment.  I'll close with this Scripture from Job.

He spreads out the northern skies over empty space; He suspends the earth over nothing.
Job 26:7

One for You; 19 for Me

Like many people, I have a list of things that I would like to do before I die.  One of those things is to witness a biblical style miracle.  Considering that tax season is now upon us, I'd like to relate one of my favorite miracles; how Jesus pays taxes.

After Jesus and his disciples arrived in Capernaum, the collectors of the two-drachma temple tax came to Peter and asked, “Doesn’t your teacher pay the temple tax?”
“Yes, he does,” he replied.

When Peter came into the house, Jesus was the first to speak. “What do you think, Simon?” he asked. “From whom do the kings of the earth collect duty and taxes—from their own children or from others?”

From others,” Peter answered.

“Then the children are exempt,” Jesus said to him. “But so that we may not cause offense, go to the lake and throw out your line. Take the first fish you catch; open its mouth and you will find a four drachma coin. Take it and give it to them for my tax and yours.”
Matthew 17:24-27

The most basic definition of the word miracle is, 'an extraordinary event manifesting divine intervention in human affairs'.  However, there is nothing extraordinary about a fish swallowing a shiny coin.  For a man to catch a fish, divine intervention is usually not required.  Though it is certainly possible, I do not believe that God caused the fish to miraculously materialize at just the right place and time.  What I firmly believe happened is, not long before this conversation Peter has with the tax collectors, a coin fell into the water and was snapped up by a passing fish.  Then, for a reason it could not comprehend, the fish swam to the appropriate spot to wait for Peter's fishing line.

One of the central themes I have written on in this blog so far is the fact that God can use anyone to accomplish his purpose.  To accomplish the purpose of this passage, God even uses a fish.  If a fish can be used by God simply by being at a specific place and time, any human certainly can as well.  God did not expect the fish to do some incredibly difficult task.  All of that God required of the fish was to be at a particular place at a given time.

Have you ever felt a strange urge to walk down a particular aisle at Walmart?  Perhaps God had a purpose for your being there.  Maybe you gave up your spot in line at the grocery store or you accidentally ordered five hamburgers instead of just four at the drive-through window.  The point is, we simply cannot know what seemingly insignificant actions of ours could be used by God.  All that God requires of us that we are willing to listen when He prompts us.  If we are willing to do this, we can leave the rest up to Him.

Was Cain Able?

Now Abel kept flocks, and Cain worked the soil. In the course of time Cain brought some of the fruits of the soil as an offering to the LORD. And Abel also brought an offering—fat portions from some of the firstborn of his flock. The LORD looked with favor on Abel and his offering, but on Cain and his offering he did not look with favor. So Cain was very angry, and his face was downcast.
Genesis 4:2-5


The most obvious question from the story of Cain and Abel might seem to be "Who did Cain marry?".  (The answer that question is simple; he married his sister, who else?)  What is of more interest to me is the fact that the Lord looked favorably on Abel's offering but not on Cain's.  I've heard more than one speaker claim that Cain should have offered an animal sacrifice, not produce.  To me, this is an absurd position.  A simple keyword search of the Bible results in over 100 references to grain offerings.  The real issue here is not what was sacrificed, but the attitude of the person giving the offering.  The text says that Cain offered "some of the fruits of the soil" while Abel brought "fat portions from some of the firstborn of his flock".  The type of offering made no difference, the quality did; if Cain had offered his best produce, with the right attitude, the Lord would have accepted it.

I am very conscious of the fact that I do not have much to offer God.  Other people have more financial resources, musical talent, amazing ability to share God's word with everyone they meet.  In comparison, I can offer very little.  I can write, I have a good memory and I'm good at solving problems.  As I've found out in my years of job searching, my particular combination of skills and attributes is practically worthless from a secular point of view.  How amazing is it that the God of the universe would choose to accomplish anything through me?  I can only pray that these words I'm writing will find their way to someone who can be encouraged by them.

Can Mountains Really Be Moved?

“Have faith in God,” Jesus answered.  “Truly I tell you, if anyone says to this mountain, ‘Go, throw yourself into the sea,’ and does not doubt in their heart but believes that what they say will happen, it will be done for them.  Therefore I tell you, whatever you ask for in prayer, believe that you have received it, and it will be yours.  And when you stand praying, if you hold anything against anyone, forgive them, so that your Father in heaven may forgive you your sins.”

Mark 11:22-26

For nearly 30 years I've wrestled with this Scripture.  I came across it as a child.  I prayed that God would take away my disability; fully expecting and believing that He would.  He did not.

I'm not sure what the meaning of these verses is.  My own experience and the experiences of every human being I know of indicate that this passage is not literally true.  All the same, I believe that prayer is effective.  In 2006 when I was comatose, all of the doctors expected that I would not survive.  Given my condition, there is no way I should have recovered from the severe pneumonia I had.  And yet I did recover, quickly.  In a 24-hour period, I went from barely conscious critical condition to fully awake, aware and on the road to recovery.

It seems like I am a living contradiction; believing in the power of prayer while doubting the seemingly very clear and direct statements Jesus makes.

Jesus replied, “Truly I tell you, if you have faith and do not doubt, not only can you do what was done to the fig tree, but also you can say to this mountain, ‘Go, throw yourself into the sea,’ and it will be done.  If you believe, you will receive whatever you ask for in prayer.”

Matthew 20:21-22

“This is a hard teaching. Who can accept it?”

John 6:60

It is likely that I will have my disability the entire time I live on this earth.  If this is what God has for me, I can accept it.  However, according to Scripture, we are instructed to never stop asking God for what we want.

Then Jesus told his disciples a parable to show them that they should always pray and not give up.  He said: “In a certain town there was a judge who neither feared God nor cared what people thought.  And there was a widow in that town who kept coming to him with the plea, ‘Grant me justice against my adversary.’

“For some time he refused. But finally he said to himself, ‘Even though I don’t fear God or care what people think, yet because this widow keeps bothering me, I will see that she gets justice, so that she won’t eventually come and attack me!’”

And the Lord said, “Listen to what the unjust judge says.  And will not God bring about justice for his chosen ones, who cry out to him day and night? Will he keep putting them off?  I tell you, he will see that they get justice, and quickly. However, when the Son of Man comes, will he find faith on the earth?”

Luke 18:1-8.

I hope and pray that if I am alive when Jesus returns that he will find me still faithful.