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Published: 06 February 2014

I think people who love horror movies must have poor imaginations. It seems like the stuff I can make up in my own head is scary enough, I don’t need help! If you have a vivid imagination there is no end to things to be afraid of. Killer bees, giant spiders, land sharks, bombs, bad guys, invading armies, zombies, vampires, earthquakes, fire…see what I mean? You probably have a few things on your list too; if not, you watch horror movies to have the same experience. The truth is, we should fear some things; if we don’t we could be injured…injured bad. But there are many things that we do fear that we should not fear. I know this because Jesus tells us to not be afraid in a variety of contexts. In our text for this Sunday (Matthew 10:24-33) we learn more about the “push-back” that we get when we try to promote the gospel of the Kingdom of God. There is a real temptation to fear people when they do not agree with us but there are some compelling reasons to not yield to this temptation. We’ll go over them in detail this week (Lord willing) but the most encouraging one can also be scary depending on which side of Jesus you are on. If you stand with Him, He promises to stand for you before the Father. If you routinely deny Him by lip and/or life, it isn’t really reasonable to expect Him to stand for you. It is comforting to know we have an Advocate. It is downright scary to know there is an Almighty God who demands righteousness. However, receiving the provision that God has made for our righteousness, in order to be our Father, actually affords great comfort and peace. This is why John the Apostle could write, “perfect love casts out fear.” What are you afraid of?

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Published: 23 January 2014

Virtually everybody has a sign out now either digitally or actually asking for people to “like” them on Facebook and Twitter. It’s quite hilarious when you stop to think about it. Being liked by people we don’t know and never spend time with is a national expectation. I tried to imagine Jesus telling this to the apostles, “Guys, make sure you get all the people in these towns to like us…” When you read the text for Sunday (Matthew 10:16-23) you’ll note that it may have been Jesus’ desire for the apostles to be liked but it wasn’t going to happen. In fact, He actually warned them that they would be hated by all kinds of people! That is not a very encouraging way to start a mission of Kingdom expansion! He even gets specific regarding the people who would reject them for His name’s sake. The leaders of false religion would reject and even torture those who announce the reign of God. Government leaders would see Christ’s lordship as a threat and seek to eliminate them. The worst part of the list in chapter 10 is family. It is easier to handle when we don’t love and expect love but when our own families reject and scorn us for believing the truth that is the worst. This kind of persecution and rejection does not happen to every apprentice of Jesus but it has happened, it does happen and it will happen to all of us to one degree or another. True truth divides people. It simply is not true that “everything is true.” Some things are mutually exclusive, this is not just true in science and history, it is true in morality and spirituality. Announcing God’s Kingdom and extending terms of peace seems like a simple straight-forward act of goodness. Do not be surprised if the world hates you…Jesus was preparing us for the reality of difficulty as we walk with Him.