“For you first, God raised up His Servant and sent Him to bless you by turning every one of you from your wicked ways.”

(Acts 3:26)

Jesus was sent to the Jewish nation first, a blessing who came in an unexpected package.  Jesus’ life didn’t embody the power and prestige that the average Hebrew expected.  They were looking for a king, and Jesus arrived a carpenter.  The appearance of Jesus wasn’t the only thing they struggled with – they also had a hard time stomaching the message.  The message was that He would bless them by turning them from their wickedness.  They didn’t think they needed to change, and they didn’t think they were wicked.

We struggle with the same thing.  The blessing of “turning” is the blessing of the opportunity to repent and be transformed into what God intends for us to be.  However, we often are less excited about Him remodeling our lives than we ought to be.  We want God to make some minor adjustments and tweaks to our life and then shower us with blessings for our limited alterations.  But that really isn’t what God is planning for our lives.  He turns fishermen into evangelists and shepherds into national leaders.  God rarely makes small moves.  He is interested in a full rebuild of your life, not a tiny facelift on Sundays.

It is a blessing that God sent His son to turn us from our wicked ways to a new path, but we must be open to that new path and recognize it as the gift it is.  Your work in the kingdom will likely require you to dump your dreams so that He can implement His.

Matthew 4:4 #Biblebites

“Brethren, what shall we do?”

(Acts 2:37)

Peter had just told his fellow countrymen what God had done.  God had sent His Son.  God had sacrificed His Son for them.  God had made a plan for grace, mercy, and forgiveness.  God had done the unthinkable act of love.

So, they asked what they should do… and that is the logical response.  God has done what we cannot, but now we must respond.  We have sinned and fallen short.  We are in need of His grace and compassion.  He has offered it, and we must do something about it.

What did Peter tell them was the appropriate response?  “Repent and be baptized each and every one of you for the remission of your sins.” (Acts 2:38)

What will your response be?

Matthew 4:4 #Biblebites

“These all with one mind were continually devoting themselves to prayer…”

(Acts 1:14a)

Prayer is a unifying practice.  It unifies our minds with God as we share with Him our struggles, joys, thanks, and petitions.  It unifies our minds with others when we seek Him as a group and devote ourselves to the common cause of intercession through prayer.  When heads are bowed together, hearts are knit together.  It is a beautiful and sacred thing to share in prayer with one mind.

We ought to do it more often.  When God’s people gather together for the purpose of prayer, we do heavenly work by wielding a spiritual weapon.  We put on the shoes of prayerful preparation together (see Eph 6:15) and leave the time of shared petition ready to do more for Him whom we sought together with like minds.

We need to pray more together.  Independent prayer is no replacement for the fellowship of prayerful saints.  The marriage that kneels together by their bed each night is not quickly torn asunder by the devil’s temptations.  The brethren who devote themselves to pray from house to house will find themselves of one mind in other things, too.  Prayer binds us to each other as it binds us to Him.  I suspect that churches, families, and marriages which suffer great division do not often pray together as they ought.

Matthew 4:4 #Biblebites

“He has risen; He is not here…”

(Mark 16:6)

The most important event in the history of mankind was announced with only seven words.  There are many things about Christianity that have been contested, many doctrines people take umbrage with, but the empty tomb remains.

The most powerful evidence of the empty tomb is that those closest to the tomb, and therefore most likely to be skeptical of the resurrection, were the ones to first convert.  Christianity spread from Jerusalem within weeks of Jesus’ crucifixion and resurrection.  The folks who could have easily investigated the claims of the empty tomb by taking a short stroll outside their own city’s walls instead accepted it as a reality.  The spread of Jesus’ gospel came with conviction and force from the epicenter of the resurrection events.  Skeptics of the Bible must grapple with the fact that those in the best position to squash His teachings and with a clear reason to do so (Jews didn’t want to accept Jesus as the Messiah) instead accepted and spread the message of Jesus throughout the world.

He has risen – He is not here.  Seven words that changed the world.

Matthew 4:4 #Biblebites

“For he [Pilate] was aware that the chief priests had handed Him over because of envy.”

(Mark 15:10)

Envy is an ugly thing, and it will make people do ugly things.  Sometimes, it even contorts people’s faces in a way which makes them look ugly, too!

Envy is a feeling of discontent or resentment at the success, abilities, or good fortune of others.  Envy is nasty, and other people can often see it on you.  Pilate saw the chief priests envy Jesus, and he knew that was the real reason behind their vendetta with Him.  It had nothing to do with justice and everything to do with the fact that Jesus was the kind of leader they weren’t.

It can be hard to rejoice in the success of others, especially if they are doing similar jobs as you.  I have no problem rejoicing when someone succeeds in an entirely different field than me, but it is hard to feel good about the guy who gets the promotion when I applied for it, too.

We must fight envy because it harms our character.  It also harms the church.  When men who don’t become elders become envious of those who do, that leads to problems and hurt.  When we count the successes of others (a new baby, a new job, a happy marriage, etc.) as reasons to dislike them, we take the blessings God is giving to others and use them as a weapon to sever our hearts from theirs.  That’s just wrong.  It’s also sad.

Envy is hurtful, and it can only be driven away by contentment and gratitude.  When I’m happy with who I am and where God is using me, there is no room for the green-eyed monster of jealousy to whisper into my heart.  Next time you start feeling envy, I recommend a hearty dose of grateful prayer in your inner room.  It will drive that beast away in no time.

Matthew 4:4 #Biblebites

“For you always have the poor with you, and whenever you wish, you can do good to them…”

(Mark 14:7)

Right in the midst of preparing the disciples for the fact that He is soon to be killed, Jesus throws in this little tidbit about helping the poor.  He says two very powerful things:

“You always have the poor” – poverty is a constant universal problem, but that doesn’t mean Christians shouldn’t try and solve it SPECIFICALLY.  Yes, we will always have the poor with us, but Jesus fed the poor, cared for them, and His disciples were used to seeing Him do so.  Jesus didn’t throw up His hands because the problem was so big; He teaches us to get our hands dirty and serve where we can to alleviate the problem for someone… even if we can’t do it for everyone.

“Whenever you wish” – the problem with doing good is rarely that there aren’t enough opportunities.  The problem is a shortage of volunteers.  If we wish to do good, there are lots of ways to do so all around us.  Widows who need help, young families who could use babysitters, food kitchens to volunteer at, and neighbors’ lawns to mow.  Thousands of little everyday acts of help and service are available all the time.

The two ideas Jesus brings together is that there ALWAYS will be a need for us to DO something about.

Matthew 4:4 #Biblebites

“…for false Christs and false prophets will arise and will show signs and wonders in order to lead astray, if possible, the elect.”

(Mark 13:22)

Lions hunt gazelles.  They’re what they like to eat, and they are good at catching them.

Bears hunt salmon.  Thy’re what they like to eat, and they are good at catching them.

False teachers hunt Christians.  They’re what they like to eat, and they are good at catching them.

Lions and bears will eat other things, but gazelles and salmons are top of their menu.  False teachers are the same way – they’ll collect just about anyone they can, but if possible, Satan really likes to use them to devour Christians.

Nothing makes the ol’ serpent more pleased than to try and take a bite out of the body of Christ.  He knows he can’t destroy the head (Jesus), but if he can snatch some precious lamb from Jesus’ flock, he’s pretty pleased with his meal for the day.

You are on the menu.  Don’t forget it.  Gazelles stick close to the herd for a reason, and everyone watches out for danger together.  We need to be the same.  Jesus reminds us of the value of staying alert just a few verses down.

“What I say to you, I say to all, ‘Be on the alert!’” (Mark 13:37)

Keep your head on a swivel for temptation and never forget that evil is always hungry.  Solomon, David, and Peter are all reminders that temptation comes even for the strong ones.  You aren’t immune, and neither am I.

Matthew 4:4 #Biblebites

“Teacher, we know that You are truthful and defer to no one, for You are not partial to any but teach the way of God in truth.”

(Mark 12:14)

A partial person is someone who only does part of a thing.  We can be partial in our treatment of others when we show a kindness to one group, like our friends, but withhold kindness from others – we are only being partially kind.

We can be partial in our effort.  Perhaps we show great energy when pursuing our hobbies or doing tasks we find enjoyable, but we put off doing the jobs we dislike even if they are our duty to do them.  It’s amazing how much energy we have for a round of golf but how tired we are when it comes time to do tasks around the home!  Inequality of effort is a type of partiality.

And we also can find that we can be partial in matters of truth.  We listen to the ‘yes men’ of our lives who tell us what we want to hear but avoid any advice or evidence which would shake our world view.  Rehoboam had this problem – so did Saul.  I worry that, somedays, so do I.

But not Jesus.  No, our Lord wasn’t a partial Man.  He was as whole as they come.  He treated everyone the same, did every task with His full effort, and He never shirked from the truth even if it lost Him friends or made Him unpopular.  Jesus is all God, but He is also, most definitely, a whole Man, too.

Matthew 4:4 #Biblebites 

“Whenever you stand praying, forgive, if you have anything against anyone, so that your Father who is in heaven will also forgive you your transgressions.”

(Mark 11:25)

The first command before praying is ‘forgive’.  Forgiving others is the preparatory act before prayer.  Like sharpening an axe before cutting down a tree or stretching before an athletic competition – these acts of preparation save us time, injury, and can make the difference between success and failure.  If you want your prayers to be heard, you best take a long look at whether or not you have forgiven those who have wronged you.

And as a reminder – this is a command from Jesus, not a suggestion.  A command can’t be dismissed simply because we don’t feel like following it.  We can’t rationalize away Jesus’ command by saying that the hurt is too deep or that the person is undeserving because there are no deeper wounds than the ones we inflicted in Him, and there is none more undeserving of His mercy than the person you see in the mirror.

Whenever you stand praying – forgive.  Check your heart for weights before you jump into the deep water of conversing with the Father.  And if you are having a hard time forgiving… pray about that first.

Matthew 4:4 #Biblebites

“Throwing aside his cloak, he jumped up and came to Jesus.”

(Mark 10:50)

Oh, that all of us would love Jesus this much!  Blind Bartimaeus was a beggar.  His outer garment was likely the most precious valuable he had in all the world.  For the poor and homeless, their outer cloak was their only protection against the elements, the sting of the rain and the chill of the night air… and he was blind – how was he to find it again after having cast it off amongst the throngs of people on the highway that day?!  To cast aside his cloak was akin to losing it altogether.

Yet, Bartimaeus did not hesitate to risk total loss if it meant he might be granted an audience with Jesus.  What a stark contrast he is to the rich young ruler who went away sad when confronted with personal sacrifice to follow Jesus.  Bartimaeus is the model for our hearts.  May we unhesitatingly cast off all, so we might be closer to Jesus.

Matthew 4:4 #Biblebites