Sell It All

Would you sell everything you had to get something you really wanted? Have you sold things you like so you can get something you want more? Have you been satisfied with your decision? Would you do it again? What are you giving up now to get something you desire?

We all make tradeoffs. None of us can have everything we want. At the very least, we choose to give our time to work our jobs so we can purchase a place to live, purchase a vehicle, have clothing, food, and some of the things we want. Tradeoffs or exchanges happen every day.

Jesus tells a very short parable about a man who found a hidden treasure in a field. The man quickly reburies it so that it stays hidden from anyone else. He then goes to sell everything he has so he can buy the field. Jesus says the kingdom of heaven is like the hidden treasure in the field. When we discover what the kingdom of heaven is really like, we will be willing to give up everything else for it. What is Jesus telling us?

The kingdom of heaven is worth us giving up ourselves and all we have. It is worth giving up our selfish ways, our personal desires, our prejudices, our hatred toward others, our long-held grudges, our stinginess, our desire to hold onto this world. The freedom, beauty, joy, and being in the presence of God are worth ridding ourselves of all our baggage. When we understand the promise of the kingdom, we realize the treasure of it far outweighs any treasure we may have in this life.

I pray we all realize the wonderful treasure of the kingdom of heaven. I pray we give up ourselves to receive it. I pray each one of us believe Jesus and choose to follow Him. Understand the treasure of heaven. Give yourself up for it. Believe Jesus. Follow Jesus.

Matthew 13:44 “The kingdom of heaven is like treasure hidden in a field, which a man found and reburied; then in his joy he goes and sells all that he has and buys that field.”

Yeast Over Apple

Have you heard the saying, “One bad apple can spoil the whole bunch?” Have you said it yourself? What if the opposite was true? What if one good apple could make the whole bunch good? Would you believe me if I told you it was true? What if I told you Jesus said it?

Okay. So…Jesus didn’t use apples. But the meaning is the same. A small amount can permeate a large amount for good. The good of the gospel can be injected into a group of people (or the whole world) and bring about the goodness of God through them.

The parable Jesus tells of the yeast is more amazing than we give it credit for in today’s culture. At the time Jesus told this parable, a Jewish woman would keep a piece of “seed” bread that contained yeast. She would then add more flower to it to make her bread, always keep a small piece to be the starter for the next loaf. I can remember my grandma doing this for yeast rolls.

The amazing part about the parable is Jesus says “three measures of flour” were added. When we do the conversion, this is nearly fifteen gallons, or about fifty pounds, of flour. Can you imagine?! With just a small starter piece of yeast dough, about the size of your fist, and add fifty pounds of flour to it. This isn’t merely making another loaf of bread to feed your family. This is making enough bread for a very large celebration feeding a few hundred people. Jesus is pointing the yeast of the gospel spreading through the world for the celebration of His kingdom.

We don’t always give the gospel enough credit for how life-changing it can be. Speaking the gospel of Jesus can permeate throughout our friend group and our community. Not only can it spread but it can change the lives of many people for the good. It has the opposite effect of the rotten apple.

I pray we all see the effect the gospel can have on people. I pray we know the good the gospel can do. I pray each one of us will speak the gospel so that it will change the lives of many people. See the effect of the gospel. Speak the gospel. The gospel will change lives for the good.

Matthew 13:33 He told them another parable: “The kingdom of heaven is like yeast that a woman took and mixed in with three measures of flour until all of it was leavened.”

Pride or Humility

How often are we filled with pride? Do we become prideful when we have accomplished something of significance? Do we pat ourselves on the back? Do we desire to be in the spotlight? What is our motivation for being put in the spotlight? To give glory to God or to puff ourselves up?

Pride can be a terrible thing. It can cause us to be rude and crude to others. We can become so filled with ourselves that we believe everyone else is beneath us. Our pride can not only be the reason for us being offensive to others but also the reason for our downfall.

On the other hand, humility can bring us wisdom. You might wonder how that can be. It is the humble person who asks questions, for they know they do not know everything. They know they can continue to learn, and they seek to learn from everyone, even those who would seem to be less intelligent. It is the humble person who glorifies God, for they know all that they have, including their abilities, comes from God.

Jesus is our perfect example of what humility looks like. He took time to explain things to His disciples. He asked questions of the destitute, struggling, and every day laborers. He served those in need. We are more like Jesus when we seek to learn and understand from those we would serve. This is important. Without listening to them we cannot fully understand their needs, which results in not serving them as they need. Humility does, in fact, bring forth wisdom. It brings forth the wisdom of God.

I pray we all cast away are prideful attitudes and behavior. I pray we humble ourselves before our mighty God. I pray each one of us seeks to learn and understand from many others through the humility that will bring wisdom. Cast away pride. Humble yourself before God. Seek wisdom through humility.

Proverbs 11:2: 

When pride comes, then comes disgrace, 

but wisdom is with the humble.

The Harvest

Do you wonder how everything will end? Have you been curious and pondered what will happen when time stops ticking? Do you wonder where you will be when everything is done? Where do you stand today? Have you accepted Jesus as Lord and Savior?

Depending on who we decide to believe, the world as we know it will come to an end and be made new, or it will slowly be destroyed by humans. Some may even propose alien attacks. There is only one truth, and that truth comes from the Word of God.

Of course, those who do not believe in God, or do not want to, will oppose any truth in God’s Word. They will do so in a myriad of ways. They will science. They will use philosophy. They will even simply deny it with no reasonable explanation. For those of us who believe God’s Word, we may be confused by the numerous interpretations. Let’s simply look at what Jesus said.

Jesus says there will be a day when evil will be removed from the world. Only the righteous will remain. Though all people are children of God in respect to God being the Creator who created all things. However, when Jesus speaks of the children of the kingdom, He is speaking to those who have accepted Jesus as Lord and Savior. His legions of angels will be the harvesters.

Let’s not kid ourselves. When the time comes, there will nothing we can do about it. When the divine acts, no human can withstand it. Let’s also not read more into it than is being said. There are mysteries of God that we are not meant to know in this life. We are to trust God, in this case Jesus, at His Word. It will happen. We don’t know the specifics, but it will happen. Where we will stand on that day depends on whether we accept Jesus as Lord and Savior or we reject Him. Make the wise choice.

I pray we all trust Jesus at His Word. I pray we know that God will eliminate evil and redeem the world. I pray each one of us chooses to accept Jesus as our Lord and Savior, so we are part of His kingdom. Trust Jesus. Know that God will redeem the world. Accept Jesus as Lord. Accept Jesus as Savior.

Matthew 13:37-39 He answered, “The one who sows the good seed is the Son of Man; the field is the world, and the good seed are the children of the kingdom; the weeds are the children of the evil one, and the enemy who sowed them is the devil; the harvest is the end of the age, and the reapers are angels.”

Wayward Souls

Have you made plans, started to execute them, then found flaws in them? Have you had your plans undermined by someone else? Do you pull all the weeds out of your garden and flower beds? Does it frustrate you that they continue to come back? Do you wonder what these things have in common?

Weeds in gardens and plans made don’t appear to have anything in common, but they do. When someone undermines your plans, it’s like the weeds in your flower bed. The beauty you had planned now has ugly spots that need to be attended to or removed.

Jesus tells the parable about weeds being sown in the among the wheat. Our immediate reaction, much like the slaves of the field owner, is to pull them up. We want the weeds out so the grain can grow to its fullest. We want the weeds out, so they do not detract from our flower beds. We want the bad performers or the ones undermining our plans to be removed and cast aside. We believe it is the best for all involved.

We’ve been told that God’s ways are not our ways. This parable demonstrates it with full force. In the parable, the landowner tells his slaves to leave the weeds alone, lest they also pull up the wheat. This is a great demonstration of God’s amazing grace and mercy. God’s desire is to save every person. If he “removed” every teenager who did something they knew they shouldn’t, how would he have an opportunity later in their life to save them? Not only that, imagine how many other lives would be impacted negatively! No, God’s ways are not our ways. His patience, grace, and mercy give the wayward souls an opportunity for many years to change direction and run to him.

I pray we all are thankful for God’s patience with us. I pray we open our eyes and see his amazing grace. I pray each one of us seek opportunities to help a wayward soul turn to God. Thank God for his patience. See God’s amazing grace. Seek opportunities to help a wayward soul.

Matthew 13:24-25 He put before them another parable: “The kingdom of heaven may be compared to someone who sowed good seed in his field, but while everybody was asleep an enemy came and sowed weeds among the wheat and then went away.”

Hold Onto Hope

What does hope mean to you? Is it just another word for wishing? Is it deeper and more meaningful than that? What are you hoping for? Do you hope for meaningful relationships? Do you hope for a new job? Do you hope for material possessions?

Hope, as defined on dictionary.com is, “the feeling that what is wanted can be had or that events will turn out for the best.” However, in today’s vernacular, hope is often used to indicate wishful thinking, rather than being something that we can attain or achieve.

When the Apostle Paul spoke of hope, he kept the original meaning. Biblical hope always speaks to believing we will attain something. Paul always speaks of attaining salvation, eternal life with God. Though Paul speaks of hope as something we cannot see and it may seem as though we have not attained it, his meaning is that we have not reached our final destination yet. Our waiting in patience means that we live this life with the anticipation of the eternal life to come.

As followers of Jesus Christ, we should have this hope. If we do not, we need to talk with a pastor or spiritual guide to help us understand the hope we can have. It is having this hope that can carry us through the toughest of times. It can be the difference between being immobile in despair and stepping out in faith. The hope we have includes trust that God is in control and he will work all things to our good, just as he promised.

I pray we all have hope that believes we have salvation. I pray we hold onto the hope of eternal life with God. I pray each one of us hold onto our hope as we go through our toughest times. Hope in your salvation. Hope in eternal life. Trust God is in control. Hold onto your hope.

Romans 8:24-25 For in hope we were saved. Now hope that is seen is not hope, for who hopes for what one already sees? But if we hope for what we do not see, we wait for it with patience.

Led by the Spirit

What are you living for? Are you living to make another dollar, to get by another day? Do you live in fear, afraid you will lose your job, lose your spouse, lose your children, lose your sense of worth? Are you trapped by fear, anxiety, and worry? Would you like to break free?

Fear runs rampant in today’s society. One of the most prevalent fears is not being accepted by others. We twist, turn, and alter our values so we are accepted. We are pressured in our workplaces, friend groups, and families. The fear of being cast aside is powerful.

We are told that we are not to live in the flesh but to live by the Spirit. We are set free in Jesus Christ. This freedom does mean we can do whatever we want. It means that we do not need to strive to fit into cultural expectations. We do not need to work our fingers to the bone to buy everything we are told we need. After all, we don’t need it. When we take a moment to think deeply about it, all we truly need is a place to live, clothes to wear, and food to eat. Everything else is a luxury.

When we live by the Spirit, we are set free from the world’s concerns. It doesn’t mean we should not pay attention and strive to make our world better. It means we are not slave to the world. We are no longer in bondage. We live in the world but are not of the world. Our faith reminds us that God is in control. Since we belong to him, he will care for us. We can freely ignore the expectations of the world to follow God’s Spirit.

I pray we all know we have been set free in Jesus Christ. I pray we know we have been set free from worldly expectations. I pray each one of us put our faith in Jesus and trust He is in control. You have been set free in Christ. You do not need to live by worldly expectations. Put your faith in Jesus. Trust God is in control.

Romans 8:14-15 For all who are led by the Spirit of God are children of God. For you did not receive a spirit of slavery to fall back into fear, but you received a spirit of adoption.

Dedicate Yourself to God

Have you ever set up a memorial? Have you made something to remember another person? Have you made something special to give to someone? Was there an incident or a reason for you to make it? Have you made or set up something special dedicated to God?

We make a variety things for others. As children, we make valentine’s cards for our parents. As an adult, I have designed my own anniversary card to give my wife. We make things to remember a family member who has passed. But rarely do we make something to commemorate God.

Jacob woke up from his dream of seeing the stairway going from earth to heaven. In his dream, he also interacted with God himself. When we woke up, he was convinced that God was in that place. Jacob decided to commemorate and dedicate the place to God. He took the rock he had laid his head on and poured oil on it, anointing it, likely with olive oil. He called the place Bethel—the house of God.

We may never have a dream like Jacob nor anoint a rock as dedication to God, but we can dedicate ourselves to him. We can dedication our relationships, our family, our work, our worship all to God. Dedicating ourselves to God is more important than an inanimate item. God wants our heart and soul. He wants all of us.

I pray we all dedicate ourselves to God. I pray we dedication our relationships and families to God. I pray each one of us give God our heart and soul, giving him all of who we are. Dedicate yourself to God. Dedicate your family to God. Give God your heart. Give God your soul. Give him all of you.

Genesis 28:18 So Jacob rose early in the morning, and he took the stone that he had put under his head and set it up for a pillar and poured oil on the top of it.

God’s Messages

Have you ever had any vivid dreams? Have any of them been other worldly? Did they feel as though they were a science fiction movie or have a divine nature to them? Do you quickly dismiss the idea of God communicating through dreams? Why or why not?

Dreams can be vivid. They can be very imaginative. We sometimes blame the wilder dreams on having eaten right before going to bed, or we state it is because of something we watched on television. Though it is true these things may affect our dreams, they are not always the cause.

Jacob had a very vivid dream. A dream of a stairway that went from earth up to heaven. On that stairway, there were angels going up and coming down. We might wonder why there would be a stairway for angels to use. The traditional view is that angels, as messengers of God, are constantly going between God and his creation to convey messages from God.

The dream Jacob had, came from God. Though it does not happen often, we, too, can be given dreams from God. It may occur only once in our lifetime, or not at all. But if we do receive a dream from God, we should definitely take it seriously. Jacob took his dream seriously. That dream reaffirmed to him who God was and spurred him to commit himself to God.

Whether in dreams or through other means, God sends us messages. He cares deeply for us and wants us to draw closer to him. His messages are meant to do just that. It is not a matter of whether God is communicating with us but whether we are seeing and listening. We must open our minds to see and hear God’s messages.

I pray we all trust that God is communicating with us. I pray we open our minds to him. I pray each one of us sees and hears God’s messages and commit ourselves to him. God communicates with us. Open your mind to God. See God’s messages. Hear God’s messages.

Genesis 28:12 And he dreamed that there was a stairway set up on the earth, the top of it reaching to heaven, and the angels of God were ascending and descending on it.

Overcome Evil

Do you look down on others? Do you lie, especially when it benefits you? Do you seek revenge? Do you purposely do things you know you shouldn’t? Have you testified falsely against someone? Do you create drama within your family, pitting one person against another?

We may immediately deny all the above. Yet, when we stop to think it over, we may reflect on our past and see that we have done some or all of them. It isn’t something we are proud of. We may feel pangs of guilt when we encounter someone we have offended or connived against.

Proverbs 6:16-19 tells us God hates these things and they are an abomination to him. Not only should we feel guilty but we should repent of these things. We should come before God with a broken and contrite heart, asking him to both forgive us and help us to never do them again. In doing so, we not only admit the wrong we have done but display a spirit that is seeking to follow God’s commands and become more like his Son.

We must first realize that each of the things mentioned in Proverbs 6:16-19 are evil, meaning they come from Satan. It is a spiritual battle going on within each of us. We are not strong enough to win that battle on our own. We can only win by seeking God’s help and asking him to fight the battle for us. The good news is, God is ready and willing to take up the battle for us. The evidence of that is him sending Jesus Christ to be our Savior. Therefore, the only reason for us not to conquer the evil in our lives is that we are not asking God.

I pray we realize the evil that entangles us. I pray we repent of our wrongdoings. I pray each one of us will ask God to help us overcome the evil in our lives so that we can be more like his Son, Jesus Christ. Evil entangles us. Repent of your wrongdoings. Overcome evil with God’s help.

Proverbs 6:16: 

There are six things that the LORD hates, 

seven that are an abomination to him: