Losing Life

Jesus fulfills prophecy, bringing forgivenss and peace

JESUS - Week 3, day 4

More words of Jesus:

"Yes, it was written long ago that the Messiah must suffer and die and rise again from the dead on the third day.  With my authority, take this message of repentance to all the nations...There is forgivness of sins for all who turn to me."  Luke 24:46-47

"Peace be with you."  Luke 24:36

There is just nothing more to say about this...FORGIVENESS and PEACE

Words of Jesus

JESUS - Week 3, day 4

"I have food to eat that you know nothing about." John 4:32

"My food is to do the will of him who sent me and so finish his work." John 4:24

I have a Bible that has red lettering everytime Jesus says something.  I like this Bible. When I see that something is written in red, I try to picture Jesus, sitting in front of me, saying these words to me directly.

I remember my friend and mentor Jon Ferguson pointing out John 4:24 to me in a training session.  Jon wanted his food to be doing the will of God.  And to this day, Jon is serving God with this kind of passion. 

What if we could say with sincerity, "My sustanance, my fulfillment, my provision, my food.....is to do the will of God" ?

Losing Life

JESUS - Week 3 - Day 3

"If ayone would come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross and follow me.  For whoever wants to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for me and for the gospel will save it."  Mark 8:35

Aha...the title of this blog.  What does it mean to lose your life for Jesus?

God becomes flesh

JESUS - Week 3, Day 2

"Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; he is Christ the Lord." Luke 2:11

These words, so familiar to our cuture that just reading them brings images of Christmas trees and snow covered front yards.  But today, they sound special to me.  After a week of reading about sin and blood sacrifices...I am releived.  I am releived that the solution has come into the world.

To couple Jesus birth with the birth of John the Baptist, is fun to read as well.  John who came to prepare the people for Jesus coming...here is what his father said about him,

"...to give his people the knowledge of salvation through the forgiveness of their sins, because of the tender mercy of our God, by which the rising sun will come to us from heaven to shine on those living in darkness and in the shadow of death, to guide our feet into the path of peace."

Ahhhh.... relief, peace, joy.

Jesus Coming Foretold

JESUS - Week 3, Day 1

"But he was peirced for our transgressions, he was crushed for our iniquities; the punishment that brought us peace was upon him, and by his wounds we are healed."  Isaiah 53:5

These words written about Jesus, hundreds of years before he was born, announced that his wounds would heal us.

Amazing Love.

Free from Sin

SIN - Week 2, Day 5

"You  have been set free from sin and have become slaves to righteousness."  Romans 6:18

"For what I want to do, I do not do, but what I hate I do." Romans 7:15

"...there is now no condemnation for those wo are in Christ Jesus."  Romans 8:1

I am on a journey with sin.  There are areas I have been set free from sin and I can celebrate when I read Romans 6:18.  Then there are things that sound more like Romans 7:15.  I have recurring habits that seem to control me and I now am saying....that is sin.  Just plain and simple sin.  And like all sin it has the potential to keep me from being as close to God as I want to be...and that's no good.  And I am frustrated that I don't seem to have mastery over it.  And then I feel discouraged.

Ahh...but hope comes in Romans 8:1.  Yes I sin, but thankfully there is no condemnation for me...because I AM in Christ Jesus.

So what to do?  Here is my plan after a week of thinking, reading and praying about sin.  I am going to confess my sin everyday.  I think I will even write my sin down in my journal (which will now be under lock and key).  Then I will see the patterns of sin and I am going to ask God to remove these sins from my life.  I am going to pray that I will be set free.

Reminds me of step 4 and 5 of the 12 steps:

4. Made a searching and fearless moral inventory of ourselves.

5. Admitted to God, to ourselves, and to another human being the exact nature of our wrongs.

Hmmm...I'm scared and excited. 

Lunch with Judiann at the school Cafeteria

 

Grace reigns

SIN - week 2, Day 4

"But where sin increased, grace increased all the more, so that, just as sin reigned in death, so also grace might reign through righteousness to bring eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord."  Romans 5:20b-21.

Several years ago, we used to sing a song in church that had a line like this... "Hallelujah, grace like rain falls down on me..." That's what I am thinking about today.  Grace falling on me like rain, how grateful am I?

Substitutionary Atonement - Jesus

SIN - Week 2, Day 3

"But now he [Jesus] has appeared once for all at then end of the ages to do away with sin by the sacrifice of himself." Hebrews 9:26

"Christ was sacrificed once to take away the sins of many people."  Hebrews 9:28

Jesus dies in our place - he stands in for us - he is the substitue...so that we do not have to take the punishment for our own sin.  Another way to say this, is "substitutionary atonement."  Now you have your theological saying you can use at your next small group meeting to freakout the newcomers who are already convinced that you know more then them....on second thought, go easy on them....

Sin must be atoned for

SIN - Week 2, Day 2

Atonement:  reparation for an offense or injury - websters dictionary

"What has been done today was commanded by the Lord to make atonement for you."  Leviticus 8:34

"...because on this day atonement will be made for you, to cleanse you.  Then, before the Lord, you will be clean from all your sins."  Levititcus 16: 30