The Simple Life

Afterward he appeared to the eleven themselves as they were reclining at table, and he rebuked them for their unbelief and hardness of heart, because they had not believed those who saw him after he had risen. And he said to them, “Go into all the world and proclaim the gospel to the whole creation. Whoever believes and is baptized will be saved, but whoever does not believe will be condemned."   Mark  16:14-16  (ESV) All honest people need to ask themselves this question: “Who was Jesus?” Without a doubt He existed. He was born to Mary, lived, and died on a cross. His death was “unusual” and the amount of witnesses to both His death and resurrection were substantial. It is easy to dismiss Him and His miracles as folklore, yet the dismissal does ignore the recorded and witnessed facts. As C.S. Lewis once wrote, Jesus was either a liar, a lunatic, or God. There were many who could not figure out who He was and who ignored Him throughout their lives. That may work for ...

And Jesus uttered a loud cry and breathed his last. And the curtain of the temple was torn in two, from top to bottom. And when the centurion, who stood facing him, saw that in this way he breathed his last, he said, “Truly this man was the Son of God!”    Mark 15:37-39 (ESV) Jesus Christ existed. He was born, lived, and died as the Scriptures say. If anyone were to deny that Christ lived, they would be foolish. Those who were innocently on the scene were in the best position to see what was actually happening, and to them, the very death of Jesus was enough to prove that He was the Messiah. We often look at the resurrection as proof, and rightfully so, however to this soldier, it was what happened at His death. While on the cross, Jesus forgave his accusers rather than curse them. He submitted to human leaders even though he could have destroyed them. He prayed rather than complained. The universe responded to His death as the sky went dark. Then the curtain, the curtain...

And they brought him to the place called Golgotha (which means Place of a Skull). And they offered him wine mixed with myrrh, but he did not take it. And they crucified him and divided his garments among them, casting lots for them, to decide what each should take. And it was the third hour when they crucified him. And the inscription of the charge against him read, “The King of the Jews.”  Mark 15:22-26 (ESV) I wonder what the angels were thinking. I wonder if the Heavenly hosts were remembering the time they watched Job travel down his tough road. Did they think about Noah and the year of abuse he must have taken as he built the ark? I wonder if they thought of Daniel and “the boys” and the efforts to destroy them, and about David and Goliath, and Elijah on Mt. Carmel. The Heavenly hosts got front row seats for the major events in history, and there is no more major event than this. I wonder if there was a strange silence or a muted excitement for what was actually accomplis...

And as Peter was below in the courtyard, one of the servant girls of the high priest came, and seeing Peter warming himself, she looked at him and said, “You also were with the Nazarene, Jesus.” But he denied it, saying, “I neither know nor understand what you mean.” And he went out into the gateway and the rooster crowed. And the servant girl saw him and began again to say to the bystanders, “This man is one of them.” But again he denied it. And after a little while the bystanders again said to Peter, “Certainly you are one of them, for you are a Galilean.” But he began to invoke a curse on himself and to swear, “I do not know this man of whom you speak.” And immediately the rooster crowed a second time. And Peter remembered how Jesus had said to him, “Before the rooster crows twice, you will deny me three times.” And he broke down and wept.  Mark 14:66-72 (ESV) Peter was confused. His friend, mentor, and the one he declared as the Christ, the very son of God, was being manha...

And as they were eating, he took bread, and after blessing it broke it and gave it to them, and said, “Take; this is my body.” And he took a cup, and when he had given thanks he gave it to them, and they all drank of it. And he said to them, “This is my blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many."   Mark 14:22-24 (ESV) “The reality and character of the life beyond death. Christ speaks of it as “the kingdom of God.” This is not the idea of mere existence, but of being in the highest form of organization. The Father-King will pervade all life with His own spirit. The law will be the Father’s rule, which is love.” (The Preacher’s Monthly) Christ freely gave His body and His blood in order to allow us to enter the Kingdom of God. All enter the same way, through His death. All are secure the same way, through His death. Satan can do nothing to prohibit a payment that has already been made. He can work towards making the payment somehow unavailable to those who need it. One...

And while he was at Bethany in the house of Simon the leper, as he was reclining at table, a woman came with an alabaster flask of ointment of pure nard, very costly, and she broke the flask and poured it over his head. There were some who said to themselves indignantly, “Why was the ointment wasted like that? For this ointment could have been sold for more than three hundred denarii and given to the poor.” And they scolded her. But Jesus said, “Leave her alone. Why do you trouble her? She has done a beautiful thing to me. For you always have the poor with you, and whenever you want, you can do good for them. But you will not always have me. She has done what she could; she has anointed my body beforehand for burial. And truly, I say to you, wherever the gospel is proclaimed in the whole world, what she has done will be told in memory of her.”   Mark 14:3-9 (ESV) It is so easy to miss the “focus” of life. It is even easier to criticize those who consistently demonstrate this “...

“But concerning that day or that hour, no one knows, not even the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father. Be on guard, keep awake. For you do not know when the time will come. It is like a man going on a journey, when he leaves home and puts his servants in charge, each with his work, and commands the doorkeeper to stay awake. Therefore stay awake—for you do not know when the master of the house will come, in the evening, or  at midnight , or when the rooster crows, or in the morning— lest he come suddenly and find you asleep. And what I say to you I say to all: Stay awake.”   Mark 13:32-37 (ESV) One of the oldest tactics of a formidable enemy is to lull the opposition asleep, for sleeping people are easy to defeat. Therefore, since Satan is a formidable enemy, he is waiting for us to relax our thoughts and standards. He awaits our distance from the Shepherd and focuses on easy prey. Those who stay awake, who are aware of his schemes, are impossible to success...

“But in those days, after that tribulation, the sun will be darkened, and the moon will not give its light, and the stars will be falling from heaven, and the powers in the heavens will be shaken. And then they will see the Son of Man coming in clouds with great power and glory. And then he will send out the angels and gather his elect from the four winds, from the ends of the earth to the ends of heaven."   Mark 13:24-27 (ESV) There will come a time when all those who have denied Christ will profoundly regret that decision. There will come a time when all men will see themselves as they are, helpless, small, inadequate, weak, and hopeless, without God. In contrast, there will come a time where all those who have placed their hope in God, and God alone, will rejoice and enjoy Him and others for eternity. God powers the universe, and without Him there is an existence but no life. Jesus came to this earth to give us life, yet so often we choose existence over living. We should a...

"And if the Lord had not cut short the days, no human being would be saved. But for the sake of the elect, whom he chose, he shortened the days. And then if anyone says to you, ‘Look, here is the Christ!’ or ‘Look, there he is!’ do not believe it. For false christs and false prophets will arise and perform signs and wonders, to lead astray, if possible, the elect. But be on guard; I have told you all things beforehand."  Mark  13:20-23  (ESV) When Jesus tells us to be on guard, there is good reason to be on guard. An enemy is stifled when those they want to attack are watching for them to attack. Even worse, is when they know the various methods of the attack and have prepared for them. Satan attacks those whom God loves. People are compared to sheep in that we have enemies we never asked for and cannot adequately protect ourselves against on our own. We must be on guard. Satan’s only tactic is to remove us from the presence of the Shepherd. If he is able to do that,...

“But when you see the abomination of desolation standing where he ought not to be (let the reader understand), then let those who are in Judea flee to the mountains. Let the one who is on the housetop not go down, nor enter his house, to take anything out, and let the one who is in the field not turn back to take his cloak. And alas for women who are pregnant and for those who are nursing infants in those days! Pray that it may not happen in winter. For in those days there will be such tribulation as has not been from the beginning of the creation that God created until now, and never will be."   Mark  13:14-19  (ESV) We think we can handle any crisis that comes our way. We make shirts with slogans declaring our cause with the word “strong” after it to show our resiliency. We are beginning to believe that we can face any challenge that comes our way and be victorious. Jesus makes it clear that there will come a time when the self-inflicted problems on this earth, wil...

"For nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. There will be earthquakes in various places; there will be famines. These are but the beginning of the birth pains. “But be on your guard. For they will deliver you over to councils, and you will be beaten in synagogues, and you will stand before governors and kings for my sake, to bear witness before them. And the gospel must first be proclaimed to all nations. And when they bring you to trial and deliver you over, do not be anxious beforehand what you are to say, but say whatever is given you in that hour, for it is not you who speak, but the Holy Spirit. And brother will deliver brother over to death, and the father his child, and children will rise against parents and have them put to death. And you will be hated by all for my name's sake. But the one who endures to the end will be saved."   Mark 13:8-13 (ESV) The end is messy. However, those who have trusted and waited upon the Lord can take courage, ...

When Ronald Reagan was president, the nation’s debt was less than $1 trillion. When Barack Obama was president, the debt was $10.6 trillion. In 2010, the debt was about $14 trillion, and now the debt is about $25 trillion, and climbing.  We have been  stealing money from future generations at the rate of more than $100 million an hour, and yet most of us don't seem to care. How could an individual, community, and nation ignore such an evident problem? Sometimes we ignore the obvious for the more urgent obvious. If I am hungry today, my hunger is the urgent obvious problem that can be solved if I obtain the resources to solve problem. In solving my urgent problem, I am creating a long-term problem from which, at some time, there is no solution.  Urgent situations are not new and will always arise and be urgent. We should not be surprised when they come even though we might be surprised by their timing.  For example, we all know that we will one day die. The ide...

And as he sat on the Mount of Olives opposite the temple, Peter and James and John and Andrew asked him privately, “Tell us, when will these things be, and what will be the sign when all these things are about to be accomplished?” And Jesus began to say to them, “See that no one leads you astray. Many will come in my name, saying, ‘I am he!’ and they will lead many astray. And when you hear of wars and rumors of wars, do not be alarmed. This must take place, but the end is not yet."    Mark 13:3-7 (ESV) God has a plan that will be accomplished regardless of our participation or agreement. Other than the few bits of information God has revealed, we know little as to exactly when or how the culmination of events will happen. The parts we do know has caused great debates throughout the evangelical world because, as do those who love God today, the disciples were interested in a specific timeline. We often treat the details of the end times like the deadline for a term paper ...

And as he came out of the temple, one of his disciples said to him, “Look, Teacher, what wonderful stones and what wonderful buildings!” And Jesus said to him, “Do you see these great buildings? There will not be left here one stone upon another that will not be thrown down.”  Mark 13:1-2 (ESV)     There are wonders of the world, designed and built by the hands of man. We see them often, marvel at how we accomplished such feats, and celebrate ourselves with vigor. We make certain that others realize how wonderful we are, and how fortunate they are to be associated with us. Our myopic enjoyment is comparable to a small child’s fascination with a cardboard box. The man-made physical creations that awe us and point to man or this life will one day be in the trash heap of history. Chariots, stagecoaches and steam engines were marvels of their time and are now useless, other than collector items today. When Jesus looked at something, He saw it through the correct len...

And he sat down opposite the treasury and watched the people putting money into the offering box. Many rich people put in large sums. And a poor widow came and put in two small copper coins, which make a penny. And he called his disciples to him and said to them, “Truly, I say to you, this poor widow has put in more than all those who are contributing to the offering box. For they all contributed out of their abundance, but she out of her poverty has put in everything she had, all she had to live on.”    Mark 12:41-44 (ESV) God does not need our help to accomplish His purposes. Sometimes we think that we have an obligation to personally be involved in preventing or solving the problems of the world. Yet, we understand that with or without us, God can achieve victory. If for some reason God chooses to use us, we should consider that a privilege, and not a burden or sacrifice. It is not that God does not use people. It is that He does not  need  people. He ...

Equality is often the cry of the masses, yet is equality really what anyone is hoping for? Equality is something that we all find as an acceptable goal, so we use that “term” to fight for something upon which the majority can agree.  It is obvious that a feeling of “well-being” is often subject to one’s position in society, not necessarily one’s income. If everyone in society is treated equally, or if all of society’s standard of living rises the same, we would still be angry because our position when compared to others has not changed, and that seems to be what really matters. We really are not interested in the tide of fortune rising all the lifeboats, just ours. and when that does not happen, we become an angry, bitter, and depressed people.  The Scriptures give us a healthy way to view people where all people are equal in importance, yet unique in purpose. God uses the illustration of a body, and compares each member of His family to being a part of this body ...

And one of the scribes came up and heard them disputing with one another, and seeing that he answered them well, asked him, “Which commandment is the most important of all?” Jesus answered, “The most important is, ‘Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one. And you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength.’ The second is this: ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’ There is no other commandment greater than these.” And the scribe said to him, “You are right, Teacher. You have truly said that he is one, and there is no other besides him."   Mark 12:28-32 (ESV) What is important in life? Can it really be stated as simply as Jesus stated it? God created the universe and all it contains so He certainly understands complex ideas, yet when asked a question that could be complicated to answer, He remains simple. Perhaps He did so because it is simple. We are to focus on two areas in l...

Jesus said to them, “Is this not the reason you are wrong, because you know neither the Scriptures nor the power of God?"  Mark 12:24 (ESV) If we do not know the Scriptures or the power of God, we will be wrong in many areas in life. God is the creator and sustainer of life, and thereby holds the keys to understanding what life is about. Since all things need a contextual concept to make sense, mankind needs to know God and the purpose of His creation in order to make sense of life and death. We have often heard people say that this life does not make sense, or that they feel or think their life is meaningless, and they could be right. If we choose to live life apart from God, we lose the context of life, making life meaningless, and death just becomes the end of a meaningless existence. The answer for those who seek meaning in this life is found in God alone. When we keep Him at a distance, we can, for moments at a time, find a fleeting fulfillment. However, God did ...

Jesus said to them, “I will ask you one question; answer me, and I will tell you by what authority I do these things. Was the baptism of John from heaven or from man? Answer me.” And they discussed it with one another, saying, “If we say, ‘From heaven,’ he will say, ‘Why then did you not believe him?’ But shall we say, ‘From man’?”—they were afraid of the people, for they all held that John really was a prophet. So they answered Jesus, “We do not know.” And Jesus said to them, “Neither will I tell you by what authority I do these things.”  Mark 11:29-33 (ESV) When we become more concerned with what those around us think of us than what the truth is, we disqualify ourselves as leaders. Leadership, first and foremost, works at knowing and following the truth in their own lives. Leaders do not coerce, connive, or manipulate the masses; rather, they demonstrate truth to the masses. We have been taught that in order to be a leader you need to have someone follow you. This idea...