The Daily List Part 2

It's 4 am again and I reviewed the list from yesterday.  The first item did not get done or attempted.  Molly made it to the vet where we learned she was unusual-no surprise to us!  I did get the paint samples and am studying them, as I usually do, to finalize my choice.  I guess the most important got done, the less important is in process.

As I read Mark 12:35-44 it seemed as though Jesus gives me the list of the less important.  The list that the world values in stark contrast to what really defines us and our relationship with God.

Jesus poses a question as He is teaching in the temple court. How can David call his own son Lord?  It was well established that the Messiah would be a descendant of King David. Yet this great King anticipates surrendering his will to the future Messiah.  By the way the crowd was delighted with this teaching.

Then Jesus warns about the teachers of the law who like to act important, receive privileges and show off their wealth.  I imagine the crowd  delighted in this teaching also.  The average of the world can always spot the vain and prideful.

Finally Jesus uses the sacrifice of meaningless copper pennies to demonstrate the true meaning of living for God.  The poor widow gave out of what she had, what she had to live on, everything she had.

I saw a stark contrast between what the world values and what God values in us.

The world values

                                    Ego

                                                Pride

                                                            Wealth

God values love with

                                    heart

                                                soul

                                                            mind

                                                                        strength

Again Jesus contrasts the temporary of this world with the eternal values.  The world strokes your ego, builds your pride and amasses your wealth.  But circumstances can steal those temporary treasures in a nanosecond!

God has given us a heart, a soul, a mind and our strength.  Circumstances may rob us of those but only when we allow it. We can give these treasures to the world and lose them. Or we can give our heart, soul, mind and strength to God and see these eternal treasures grow great and give us the ability to survive in this temporary world.

By the way, I am delighted with this teaching from Jesus.  This will help me make today's list and get through it!  How I live out today may seem meaningless to the world, like two copper pennies but I want to love God with everything that truly is important.

The Daily List

It's 4 am and the daily yellow post-it note has been started:  "Expense report, paint, vet."   We live in such a distracting world with so much to remember I often forget my primary tasks.  At the office I use bullet points on my calendar to focus on the goals for the day. Mark 12: 28-34 gives me my bullet points for every single day of my life!

Jesus was in the midst of a debate with some religious leaders.  One of the teachers of the law noticed how well Jesus was handling the debate and asked  "Of all the commandments which is most important?"  (There were lots of commandments! The religious of Jesus' time were masters at creating lists and rules for daily living just like we are today.)

Jesus quoted Deuteronomy 6:4-5- Love God with all your heart, soul, mind and strength- and Leviticus 19:18 - Love your neighbor as  yourself.   The teacher of the law agreed with Jesus and gave the application as well- Loving God with all your heart, mind and strength and loving your neighbor is more important than burnt offerings and sacrifices.

Later in Deuteronomy God tells the Israelites to write the words in Deuteronomy 6 on their hearts and doorposts and to make sure their kids knew these words.  The people have a practice to have these words written on tiny pieces of paper and placed in a container called a Mezuzah and affixed to their door frames.  Coming and going they will see the reminder of those most important words.

I don't have a Mezuzah on my doorpost although somewhere in a box I have one I bought in Israel!  I do have some reminders hanging on my wall that are more permanent than post-it notes.

I just reread my paragraph and realized I left out the most important point- "Hear O Israel The Lord our God, the Lord is one." 

            God is The One.

                        The One and Only.

                                    The Number One.

                                                The Point.

                                                            The Reason for daily living.  

                                                                        There is No Other so don't get distracted.

Everything after "The Lord is one" is the action plan, how to put this mission statement into practice in daily life and the result.  Loving God with all passion, intelligence and energy (as it says in The Message) or with all my thinking, time and talk as I journaled years ago in my Deuteronomy notebook.  If we love God with everything in  us, we will love our neighbors and others will see the greatness of God.  That's why we're here to show others how great God is!

Loving God completely is more important than deeds and works. Loving God and living for God is more important than rules and lists.  These verses and the stuff on my walls remind me to focus on The Point- God is The One, there is no other.  It's written on my walls so today I strive to write it on my heart.

Today is not about what I do but about what I am because of the I AM.

Prepare to be amazed

"Prepare to be amazed!"  I heard the card player at the next table proclaim.  He had won the bid and was off to win the hand. If I labeled sections in the Bible I might given Mark12: 13-17 the subtitle of "Jesus prepares the Establishment to be amazed."

Some Pharisees and Herodians came to question Jesus on taxation.  They asked Him if it was right to pay taxes to Rome.   The Romans had conquered the Jews so I would imagine they were not popular.  There must have been some rebels, some who protested the Roman government by refusing to subsidize it with their hard earned money.  It was a political question.  Who is the true government?

Jesus knew they were hypocrites.  They complimented His integrity and those He associated with but their true motive was to trick Him so He would violate the Roman law.

He answered to give the government what was due and to give to God what is God's.  Round 1 goes to Jesus!  They were amazed!

Then the Sadducees, who didn't believe in a bodily resurrection, came with a complicated question about marriage.  If a man dies before he has children then the Law says his brother must marry the dead brother's wife and have children for the dead man.  The Sadducees added that 7 brothers married the same woman and died and left no children. So at the resurrection to which brother will this woman be  married?

What a ridiculous question?  Would this really happen?  The poor woman would really go through 7 husbands?  The Sadducees didn't even believe in the resurrection so why were they worried about this rare circumstance?

Jesus pointed out their lack of scriptural basis.  When the dead rise, there will be no marriage.  The Sadducees had missed the power of God to resurrect the dead as demonstrated several times in the Old Testament.  It was a scriptural question.  How powerful is God?  Round 2 also goes to Jesus.

To be amazed by God we have to let loose of our preconceived notions of Heaven and God's power.  I rarely imagine Heaven because I expect it to be beyond my comprehension.  I don't want to limit how great Heaven will be!

God is the absolute power. We can't limit His work with our laws and rules.  He can and will do anything.  Why would I want to limit Him?

I choose to be amazed!

Two worlds

"She knows a lot more about life than I do." We were just leaving juvenile hall. Dick had helped a 15 year old runaway turn herself in.  I had heard some of her stories. Now I was on my way back to my safe Christian world. 

I thought of my brief trip to the other world when I read Mark 11:12-12:12. Jesus draws attention to two worlds.  There is the world of the fig and the world of the temp.

On the way to Jerusalem Jesus saw a fig tree without fruit to satisfy His hunger.  He cursed it.  Twenty-four hours later,  the fig tree was withered away. Peter remembered His curse.  Jesus used this opportunity to teach the disciples about faith.

He told Peter to have faith in God.  Believe in God to throw a mountain into the sea! What is asked in prayer, believe it will be received, don't doubt God and don't let forgiveness come between others and God. The world of the fig, 

Faith

In

God

At the temple Jesus interacted with the religious leaders. He challenged their management of the temple. It had become a commercial enterprise rather than a house of prayer.  So the next day when He returned they challenged His authority.

The corrupt temple and its leaders are examples of the temp world. It includes demands of submission to authority, clinging to power at all costs and fear, of those above and beneath.

The "temp" world:

Trusts in self

Evil leads it

Motivated by fear and

Power rules!

And it is temporary whereas the world of the FIG is everlasting!

I want to live in the FIG world but I am surrounded by the TEMP world. I need to be like the disciples and listen to Jesus (Mark 11:14) and leave to be with Jesus (Mark 11:19).

Why? Because God loves me so much He sent His very own Son to this TEMP world to rescue you and me.

I Know How It Ends

"Today is the day..."  A wise nurse came into the room and saw defeat and discouragement.  I had the  privilege of participation in the arrival of a new baby.  The first day of labor hadn't gone as my friends had  planned.  The nurse woke us to begin day 2.  She knew the mother to be needed an attitude adjustment.  She announced that this was the arrival date.  It became our cheer for the day.  When progress didn't appear to be  made we reminded each other it was going to happen.

Jesus sat astride  His "first timer" colt and  rode into Jerusalem.  A large crowd gathered and put down cloaks and branches on the road.  The crowd shouted "Hosanna" and "Blessed is He who comes in the name of the Lord" and "Blessed is the coming of the Kingdom." (Mark 11: 6-11)

The Gospel of Matthew adds that people in the crowds asked who was on the colt.  The answer was "Jesus, the prophet from Nazareth in Galilee!" The Gospel of Luke adds that the disciples and crowd with Jesus rejoiced for all the miracles they had seen.  John adds that included in Jesus' crowd were those who had seen Lazarus raised from the dead. According to the Gospel of John  the disciples did not realize that all of what happened fulfilled prophecy. Later, when Jesus had come back to life, the importance of the details of the event became clear to them.

The disciples did not know this was the beginning of the most challenging week of their life.  They thought the kingdom they had longed for was about to begin.   They thought they knew it all and had it all.  Then they would seemingly lose it all and be devastated.  Yet the week ends with the event that changed the world as they understood it.

I've had those days, weeks and seasons when I feel like I'm on a roller coaster not under my control.  These verses remind me to adjust my attitude toward my challenges.

Trust Him. Jesus knows The End.  In the end- Jesus wins!  Sometimes to make it through life's challenges we need a glimpse of the end result.  I never read the end of a mystery to see who did it.  But I have read the end of the Bible and guess what?  Jesus wins, vanquishes, rewards and has a place for me!

Proclaim Him. Everything that happens in my roller coaster life is an opportunity to tell people about Jesus so it matters in the "Big Picture"  I don't have to completely understand theology to share Jesus. The crowd thought He was just a great prophet.  Later some of them understood He was The Messiah they needed.

Remember Him. Recall what Jesus has done for me in the past.  He can handle the current challenge. Jesus has The Plan, not me.

It is no coincidence that the chain reference in my Bible mentions Psalm 118.  That psalm is my new favorite read for the challenges of my life.  It has  it all, even "this is the day... rejoice..."

Surprised by the donkey?

Surprised by the photo? Did the photo make you smile?  My folks are photographers and travel to weekend art shows.  They have quite a collection of animals, barns, flowers, scenery and outhouses.  The surprising "big sellers" in the past has been donkeys!

I use this shameless commercial of a photo because as I read Mark 11:1-6 I got into the "hooves" of the colt.  Jesus and the disciples were on approach to Jerusalem.  He sent two of the disciples into the village with  instructions to bring Him the colt tied up at a doorway.  If anyone asked why they were taking the colt who had never been ridden, their response was to be that "The Lord needs it."

The first time this colt was ever ridden was by Jesus and in a huge parade.  I wonder if the colt was nervous about its "first time."  Was it overwhelmed by the spectacle of Jesus entry into Jerusalem?

I admit I give animals more intelligence than most people. But I think I can be reassured from the colt's first time experience.

·         The colt was not alone.  First and foremost, Jesus was literally at the reins.  The other gospels tell me that the colt's mother came along.

·         The colt didn't need to know the purpose of the ride or the end result.  The colt's job was to carry Jesus and obey His hands on the reins.

·         The colt may seem insignificant but had a very important message.  In those days riding into the city on a colt meant victory and peace.  In one article I read the donkey was a symbol of humility, simplicity and long suffering.

·         When Jesus' calls, it may be a surprise.  It may be scary and seem meaningless.  Yet the Lord needs it.

The Lord needs us.  (And if we refuse or neglect His call, He will find someone else.)  We are often called to a job for the Lord.  It may be the first time to do something. But I am not alone.  Jesus is with me, guiding me with His hands on the reins, and maybe someone who has some experience (like the colt's mother) is with me. 

Some think the donkey as stubborn and not a smart animal.  I have loved a few stubborn dogs and I think the stubbornness means they are too smart for their own good.  Their intelligence prevents their obedience.  Will I let Jesus guide and direct me?  Will I follow His lead or try  to have a better idea?

This job for Jesus may seem insignificant but it is critical to the "Big Picture", the greater mission of Jesus in our world.  We have the  privilege to carry the message of peace and victory.  Do I carry the message of God's redeeming love with humility, simplicity and patience?

I have a simple thought for today:  "If the Lord needs me, it's time to get my donkey on!"