My cousin Brian and I got into a fist fight on the bus. We were in third grade and Brian would not stop tickling me and punching him seemed like the most effective way to get him to stop. The bus driver pulled over, made us sit in the front seat and told us we would be reported. Our third grade minds concluded that we would end up spending time in the slammer. We were not sent to prison and we forgave each other the same afternoon. If only our adult conflicts could be resolved as quickly.

 Conflict shows up in your work, church, neighborhood and in your families. Conflict provides an opportunity for followers of Jesus Christ to respond in a way that is markedly different – living out the gospel in those critical moments when conflict and conviction collide. Peacemakers Ministries http://www.peacemaker.net offers the following principles for handling conflict:

Conflict is not necessarily bad or destructive. Even when conflict is caused by sin and causes a great deal of stress, God can use it for good (see Rom. 8:28-29). Conflict actually provides four significant opportunities. By God's grace, you can use conflict to:
1.       Glorify God – Ask: How can I please and honor God in this situation, and how can I give witness to what he has done for me through Christ?
2.       Get the log out of your eye – Ask: How have I contributed to this conflict and what do I need to do to resolve it?
3.       Gently restore – Ask: How can I help others to understand how they have contributed to this conflict?
4.       Go and be reconciled – Ask: How can I demonstrate forgiveness and encourage a reasonable solution to this conflict?

Whether you are a conflict aversive person who avoids conflict at all costs or conflict assertive and run towards conflict, applying these principles will change the way you address conflict.

It finally happened – the church email account was hacked. It was my sister that first alerted me to this problem. She received a suspicious email from the church account that was a reply with “Hi” in the subject line. The body of the email was empty except for a link to an unfamiliar website. A leader in our church sent me a text asking if I had sent him an email at 3:00am. Nope – I am certain on that one.

Hacked.
Nothing showed up indicating that emails had been sent to just about everyone on the church’s contact list. Undeliverable Mail notices showed up in the church’s spam bucket to those contacts who either changed their email or dropped their email account.

Hacked.
We took action: changed passwords, did malware scans, and had all the church computers checked by a professional. This cleared up the problem that had infected and compromised our email account.

Each of us has been hacked from birth.
Romans 5:12
Therefore, just as sin entered the world through one man, and death through sin, and in this way death came to all people, because all sinned--

Some may take the view that humankind is basically good and not bad. Parents raising young children know that they need to teach them to share, say sorry and be nice. They do not need to teach them to be selfish, to lie or to steal. This is the sin stain from Adam and Eve. You and I need to be cleaned of the problem of sin that has infected us from birth.

The good news is that Jesus can completely clean up our sin infection.
Romans 5:17
For if, by the trespass of the one man, death reigned through that one man, how much more will those who receive God’s abundant provision of grace and of the gift of righteousness reign in life through the one man, Jesus Christ!

The computers would not have gotten clean without intentional action taken. You must take intentional action by confessing your infection, your sin, and be hacked no more.
1 John 1:8-9
If we claim to be without sin, we deceive ourselves and the truth is not in us. 9 If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness.

The news is filled with events that are concerning. There is a sunken ferry boat in South Korea that may have a death toll of over 300 persons. Rescue has turned into a recovery. A Malaysian flight is still missing and the global community is trying to find its whereabouts and discover what happened. Concern over the Ukraine/Russia conflict is resulting in U.S. sanctions and the possibility of troops deployed into the area.

Many concerns are distant and our action is minimal. Each of us has concerns that are closer and affect our lives much more emotionally. Those concerns provoke us to action. The Easter story in the Bible tells of two groups of people, their concerns about Jesus following His death on the cross and the actions they took.

The Chief Priest and Pharisees were concerned the disciples would take Jesus’ body and make it look like He had risen from the dead. The action they took was to get a guard posted at the tomb.
Matthew 27:62-64
The next day, the one after Preparation Day, the chief priests and the Pharisees went to Pilate. 63 “Sir,” they said, “we remember that while He was still alive that deceiver said, ‘After three days I will rise again.’ 64 So give the order for the tomb to be made secure until the third day. Otherwise, His disciples may come and steal the body and tell the people that He has been raised from the dead. This last deception will be worse than the first.”

Three women going to the tomb were concerned about who would move the stone so they could get to Jesus’ body.  Their action was talking to one another about this dilemma.
Mark 16:1-3
When the Sabbath was over, Mary Magdalene, Mary the mother of James, and Salome bought spices so that they might go to anoint Jesus’ body. 2 Very early on the first day of the week, just after sunrise, they were on their way to the tomb 3 and they asked each other, “Who will roll the stone away from the entrance of the tomb?”

Their problem was solved when they got to the tomb, but they were faced with a new concern.
John 20:1-2
Early on the first day of the week, while it was still dark, Mary Magdalene went to the tomb and saw that the stone had been removed from the entrance. 2 So she came running to Simon Peter and the other disciple, the one Jesus loved, and said, “They have taken the Lord out of the tomb, and we don’t know where they have put Him!”

The concern was that someone stole Jesus’ body, so Mary’s action took her to the disciples. Her next action was to stay at the place where she saw Jesus last.
John 20:10-16
Then the disciples went back to where they were staying.11 Now Mary stood outside the tomb crying. As she wept, she bent over to look into the tomb 12 and saw two angels in white, seated where Jesus’ body had been, one at the head and the other at the foot.
13 They asked her, “Woman, why are you crying?”
“They have taken my Lord away,” she said, “and I don’t know where they have put Him.” 14 At this, she turned around and saw Jesus standing there, but she did not realize that it was Jesus.
15 He asked her, “Woman, why are you crying? Who is it you are looking for?”
Thinking He was the gardener, she said, “Sir, if you have carried Him away, tell me where you have put him, and I will get Him.”
16 Jesus said to her, “Mary.”

Three concerns people have about Jesus:
1.       People will make Jesus will look real.
     a.       Action: guard – mind, reason, emotions, heart.
2.       Feeling they cannot get to Jesus. Perhaps because of too much sin or something else.
     a.       Action – keep moving toward Jesus.
3.       Jesus is gone, life is not working out.
     a.       Action: Seek help from others and stay at the place you last saw Jesus.

What is your concern about Jesus?
What actions are you taking?

{This is a reposting of my blog from two years ago.} Holy Week or Passion Week is the week from Palm Sunday and all the events leading up to Jesus’ death and resurrection. The Monday following Palm Sunday, Jesus returns to Jerusalem from Bethany and enters the temple. Jesus finds four messes in the temple.

Matthew 21:12-16 Jesus at the Temple
Jesus entered the temple area and drove out all who were buying and selling there. He overturned the tables of the money changers and the benches of those selling doves. 13 “It is written,” He said to them, “‘My house will be called a house of prayer,’ but you are making it a ‘den of robbers.’”
14 The blind and the lame came to Him at the temple, and He healed them. 15 But when the chief priests and the teachers of the law saw the wonderful things He did and the children shouting in the temple area, “Hosanna to the Son of David,” they were indignant.
16 “Do you hear what these children are saying?” they asked Him.
   “Yes,” replied Jesus, “have you never read,
   “‘From the lips of children and infants
   you have ordained praise’?”
                
Mess #1 - the animals. For the convenience of those traveling to the Passover celebration, they could pack light and purchase their sacrificial cattle, sheep or dove at the temple. Cattle, sheep and doves are messy -until Jesus came.

Mess #2 - the money-changers. This mess is bigger and smellier. Each region often minted their own coins and to streamline the temple financial transactions a temple currency was established. Out-of-towners exchanged their coins for the temple’s coins. The problem was the unfair exchange rate and rip-off prices on the animals. The greasy greed made a terrible mess in the temple – until Jesus came.

Mess #3 – the sick. This was an embarrassing mess. There were blind and lame people at the temple. They had been lying around with oozing bed sores, diseased feet, and runny, pussy eyes hoping to get healed. The temple was where God’s presence and God’s people were. It should have been a place of healing and hope, but day after day they came for a touch from God and day after day their condition was unchanged or worsened – until Jesus came.

Mess #4 – the children. The children were running and shouting in the temple! The children were excited about Jesus and shouting out their praises of “Hosanna to the Son of David.” The children were worshiping Jesus in the temple with passionate energy and the religious leaders were angry. Anger is a smoldering mess. Nobody encouraged the children’s praise – until Jesus came.

What messes would Jesus like to clean out at your church?
If you are a believer and follower of Jesus Christ, you a temple.
1 Corinthians 6:18-19 19 Do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit, who is in you, whom you have received from God? You are not your own; 20 you were bought at a price. Therefore honor God with your body.

What messes would Jesus like to clean out of your temple?
Comment below on either of these questions.

Luke 19:37-42
  When he came near the place where the road goes down the Mount of Olives, the whole crowd of disciples began joyfully to praise God in loud voices for all the miracles they had seen:
38 “Blessed is the king who comes in the name of the Lord!”
“Peace in heaven and glory in the highest!”
39 Some of the Pharisees in the crowd said to Jesus, “Teacher, rebuke your disciples!”
40 “I tell you,” he replied, “if they keep quiet, the stones will cry out.”
41 As he approached Jerusalem and saw the city, he wept over it 42 and said, “If you, even you, had only known on this day what would bring you peace—but now it is hidden from your eyes.

Four times the Bible records Jesus cried or wept; one was over His friend Lazarus who had died (only recorded in John) who lived with sisters Mary & Martha in Bethany just 2 miles from Jerusalem. The other three times records that Jesus cried over the city Jerusalem

Why did He have such sadness over Jerusalem?
Jesus, along with the Father & Holy Spirit had destined Jerusalem as a holy city, set apart, the city of David, the city of Zion. There was a destiny given, a heritage lived and a rebellion boiling.
In this city Judas was to betray Jesus – and the city which was praising and shouting Hosanna was going to betray Him before the week was over.

Betrayal is one of the cruelest sins.
A husband who says he is working late at the office and the wife discovers he is with a co-worker. A daughter or son living at home, eating meals and accepting their parent’s care, but inwardly planning to run away. Private struggles are shared with a friend and later discovered on social media.
Betrayal.
Painful. Cruel. Broken.

This city and your city have a destiny, a calling given by the Father, Son and Holy Spirit.
Are we broken when the city betrays its call?
Do we cry over our nation?
It is a better position than blaming the president, congress, media or groups pushing their agenda.

Our city is broken.
Our nation is broken.
It began ages ago in the garden of Eden when sin corrupted this world.
What should we do?
What can we do?
1.       Worship - Romans 12:1Therefore, I urge you, brothers and sisters, in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God—this is your true and proper worship.
2.       Work – we are given work to do until the King returns
a.       Romans 12:2 Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will.

Conforming to the world when betrayed means:
Battle
Fight
Retaliate
Transforming and renewing your mind means:
Forgive
Love
Live out God’s will.
You can make a difference in your family, neighborhood, workplace, and world through your worship and your work.

The Olympic double amputee, Oscar Pistorius is accused of premeditated murder of his girlfriend, Reeva Steenkamp. The sprinter maintains he mistook her for an intruder when he shot through the closed door of the bathroom several times.

Someone is lying and it is the judge’s task to determine whether Pistorius is telling the truth or not. South Africa does not have jury trials, so a judge will decide the verdict in collaboration with two experts called assessors. The court proceedings are making the news around the world. Each of us listening, watching or reading about the trial has a verdict formed, playing judge from a distance.

We do this far more often than we realize. In traffic, we form judgments on other drivers. In our workplaces, schools, and neighborhoods we make judgment calls on people’s motives and actions. In church, you and I form an opinion, a judgment on one another based on information that is objective and subjective.

Jesus tells us not to judge others.
Matthew 7:1-2
“Do not judge, or you too will be judged. 2 For in the same way you judge others, you will be judged, and with the measure you use, it will be measured to you.”

Even those not familiar with the Bible can often quote the first verse. Yet, this passage is often misunderstood. Jesus was warning of being judgmental without an awareness of one’s own behavior.

Jesus tells the Jews to judge well.
John 7:24
“Stop judging by mere appearances, but instead judge correctly.”

The apostle Paul writes that Christ-followers will judge the world.
1 Corinthians 6:1-3
" If any of you has a dispute with another, do you dare to take it before the ungodly for judgment instead of before the Lord’s people? 2 Or do you not know that the Lord’s people will judge the world? And if you are to judge the world, are you not competent to judge trivial cases?"

 I am glad that I am not the judge over Pistorius’ case. Each of us are called to make godly decisions based on beliefs and behaviors.

Rwanda suffered genocide in April of 1994, which saw people killed at a speed and on a scale not seen since WWIII. It remains one of the 20th century’s bloodiest chapters. The global community acknowledges their lack of response over the course of the 100 days during which up to one million people were killed in Rwanda.

During that time, I do not recall being attentive to the scale of violence. My wife and I were aware of and praying for one young boy and his family who were missing. Thousands of people were displaced and were desperately trying to escape with their families to safer places.

Our prayers for Jean, the young boy we had been sponsoring and exchanging letters with over the past year ended with the arrival of a letter saying that Jean’s body was identified. Jean and his family were faces and names that we knew.

We still have a picture of Jean. We still have the letters we exchanged with him. Later, we sponsored another child after peace and stability returned to Rwanda. We supported and exchanged letters with Hishamunda from the end of 1994 until 2006. Hishamunda graduated from school, received job skills and was living independently in a country healing from deep wounds.

 Josephine is our new sponsor child. I had the opportunity of visiting her in Rwanda in 2009 with a group of four men who began a community-wide movement of sponsorship in our county. There are more than 500 children sponsored through Our Response working through World Vision. It is a significant way to make a difference one person at a time. Go to Our-Response.org if you wish to touch child’s life that also benefits their family and community.

The people of Rwanda gathered to mourn those who were missing 20 years ago. Most had been killed, some were identified and others buried in mass graves. We mourn with them and pray for them to look to the LORD for their healing.

Psalms 147:1,3
Praise the Lord.
How good it is to sing praises to our God,
    how pleasant and fitting to praise Him!
3 He heals the brokenhearted
    and binds up their wounds.

While reading the Old Testament account of King David in his early days in Jerusalem, I was struck with this thought of going God stuff without God. David realizes that the ark of the covenant, which represented the presence of God, was blessing the household where it was kept. It ended up there because David had previously attempted to bring the ark to Jerusalem but a man named Uzziah touched the ark and died. This made David afraid of God.

2 Samuel 6:6-7, 9-11
When they came to the threshing floor of Nakon, Uzzah reached out and took hold of the ark of God, because the oxen stumbled. 7 The Lord’s anger burned against Uzzah because of his irreverent act; therefore God struck him down, and he died there beside the ark of God.
   9 David was afraid of the Lord that day and said, “How can the ark of the Lord ever come to me?” 10 He was not willing to take the ark of the Lord to be with him in the City of David. Instead, he took it to the house of Obed-Edom the Gittite. 11 The ark of the Lord remained in the house of Obed-Edom the Gittite for three months, and the Lord blessed him and his entire household.

After three months of watching Obed-Edom getting blessed David sends the Levites, who were responsible to go before God, perform duties for Him and the ones God appointed to carry the ark.
1 Chronicles 15:13
”It was because you, the Levites, did not bring it up the first time that the Lord our God broke out in anger against us. We did not inquire of him about how to do it in the prescribed way.”

The Levites had been doing God stuff without being in the presence of God for three months. Unbelievable, yet every follower of Jesus has done the same. We are living for Jesus, doing stuff for God and have neglected being in God’s presence. It does not work and the blessings of God will go wherever His presence is.

God is omniscient. He is everywhere. There is no place where God is not. God was not confined to the ark. He chose to have the ark be a location where He is honored and worshiped. He is not confined to your location. God does limit His activity when His presence is not actively and intentionally sought.

Make certain that you are in a close relationship to God and you will discover that the stuff you are doing for Him will have His stamp of approval.

The following notes are from a message Jim McCracken gave to our church this past Sunday.

HOW THE TRUTH SETS US FREE
For the people of God, every generation has had unique challenges (to represent God).  In the book of Esther, when God’s people faced extinction, Mordecai spoke the famous words to Esther: “Perhaps you have come to this royal place for such a time as this”.

Christians have always related to that statement knowing we are God’s people representing the Lord in our generation. At this time, one of our greatest challenges is also a great opportunity – a golden opportunity – it is concerning God’s truth.

Jesus said, “The truth will set you free.” How does the truth set us free? This saying of Jesus, “The truth will set you free,” is quoted a lot, even in the secular world – even in Hollywood movies! Unfortunately, this phrase is almost always quoted out of context, which, ironically, makes it no longer the truth, but actually makes it false.  For example: If I commit a crime and the truth comes out about my misdeed, the truth actually puts me in jail! If we modify the truth and change it “to fit our own desires” we cannot expect to be set free by the truth.

 The actual words of Jesus were spoken to a group of Jewish people who believed him and it went like this in John 8:  “If you continue in my word, then are you my disciples indeed. And you shall know the truth and the truth will make you free.”  (KJV) 
“If you hold to my teaching, you are really my disciples. Then you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.”  (NIV)

Jesus, while on trial in John 18 before Pontius Pilate said: “I came to testify to the truth…if you listen to me you are on the side of truth”.  Pontius Pilate replied, “What is truth?”
Jesus doesn’t just tell the truth.
Jesus doesn’t just speak the truth.
JESUS IS THE TRUTH (JOHN 14:6 = “I AM THE TRUTH”)

What does it mean that Jesus IS the truth?

In eternity past, with the Father and Holy Spirit, Jesus CREATED TRUTH.
In heaven, Jesus represents all that is true in past, present, and future.
On earth, Jesus represented everything that was true and right.

Truth is Jesus’ native language. (compared to John 8:44 where Jesus says “when the devil lies he is speaking his native language”)
Jesus is the embodiment of truth.
A.  We are set free by the person of Jesus who is the embodiment of truth.
Grace and truth came in Jesus Christ.
B. Knowledge is not the same as truth. (We are not set free by knowledge)
Knowledge is increasing very fast. Some say human knowledge doubles every five years, others say every seven years – it is very fast.
Daniel 12:4 = “in the last days people will run to and fro and knowledge will increase.” It does not say that truth will increase.
Increase in knowledge does not mean an increase in truth.
In fact, when knowledge increases truth can become SCARCE.
2 Timothy 3:7 = Paul says in the last days people will be “ever learning but never able to come to the knowledge of the truth”.
C. Truth comes from the inside out.
Ephesians 1:18 = Paul’s prayer is that “the eyes of your heart would be opened / enlightened” 
D.  Truth is revealed in slow motion
Much like a replay in slow motion shows whether the pitch was a ball or strike, a catch was completed or trapped – truth is revealed in slow motion.
The truth setting us free is:  A Set of Specific Experiences Happening over Time

Four Things to Remember!
1.       DISCERN – surrounded by knowledge, don’t mistake it for truth
2.       TRUST – Christ in you giving you specific experience over time: Don’t be anxious
3.       PRAY – like Paul: for open eyes, enlightenment of heart
4.       ENJOY – your freedom!!

“In a world ravaged by human sin, Noah is given a divine mission: to build an Ark to save creation from the coming flood.” So reads the description of the newly released movie, Noah, directed by Darren Aronsofsky and stars Russell Crowe as Noah.

Reviews have stated that it does not drift too far from the Bible and others report that it is not biblically accurate. Should a follower of Jesus go to a movie that is from the Bible, but does not accurately represent or interpret the Bible?

I plan on going for a couple of reasons:
>I am curious.
>The movie does not mock or blaspheme the Bible.
>Most importantly, it can be conversation points with those who are far from God that have or have not gone to this movie.

Some of my grown children have seen the movie, Noah. They told me what they liked and did not like about the movie. Without spoiling the movie, they liked that it showed that the world had become very wicked. God was right in judging it with a flood. They noticed that the movie only had one of the son’s wife on the ark instead of all three sons and their wives.

So, I plan on going to the movie, how about you?
Why or why not?