Subscribe

Don’t miss another post.  Subscribe.

No one likes an empty mailbox.

Go to tree63fan.wordpress.com

Click the Sign me up! button on the right.

Parables that can really make you think

Have you ever completely ignored advice or someone’s request?  What was the situation?

In reading Mark 12 today, I came across the parable of the tenants.  This reading made me consider something I’ve never thought about before (imagine that!).

So, here’s the setup.  A man buys, sets up and grows grapes to make a nice vineyard.  He leaves and “rents” it out to some people.  He keeps sending some of his servants back to the vineyard to get some of the grapes to bring back home.  The tenants keep beating or killing the servants and the owner never gets any grapes.  Finally, the owner sends his son thinking the tenants will respect him.  Nope.  They kill his son.  The owner is a bit upset, and the tenants get what they deserve, death.  The owner then gives the vineyard to others.

So, the question, how does this apply to me?

Think about it.  How often have you been approached by someone to give of yourself for some cause?  How often have you been nudged to consider going on a mission trip to help someone or some project?  How often have you been asked to get involved at church?  How often have you been asked to give monetarily to a worthy cause?

God gave us all WORTH, VALUE.  We have godly GIFTS, if we have the Holy Spirit in us.  These gifts are different than our human talents.  God gave us these SPIRITUAL GIFTS and God expects us to use them!  If we choose not to use them, then we choose to beat, kill and kick out the servants of God who come and ask us to give back some of what God gave us.

I’ll repeat that.  When we ignore the requests, the opportunities to use our God given gifts, we spit on God and what he gave us to use.  If you don’t know what SPIRITUAL GIFTS you have been given, then are you truly saved?  Do you even care about the “vineyard” you are renting?  Are you standing knee-deep in the winepress and don’t even know your legs are stained?

What happens to those who ignore the gifts God offers?  Death.

The typical biblical pattern for receiving the Holy Spirit is through Baptism.  Baptism is modeled as something you do when you REPENT and BELIEVE in Christ as your Savior.  Have you been baptized like Jesus was?  Immersed.  Have you been baptized when you had a knowingly repentant heart full of belief in the Savior?  Sorry, as a baby you didn’t repent or believe.  Think about it.  Again, the Holy Spirit is promised at the time of baptism, and the Holy Spirit is what gives you your Spiritual Gift(s).  Yep, it can be complicated, yet it can also be so simple.  Here I go getting into baptism again when this post is really about Spiritual gifts!!!!  Don’t beat and kill the messenger!

One of many surveys that help you pinpoint SPIRITUAL GIFTS. The key is to answer these questions honestly and maybe even ask someone close to you what they think the answer is regarding you.

BLESSINGS!

Yep, that’s controversial…

Watch this and tell me the Pro-Choice crowd that complained “ain’t” completely embarrassed.

http://superbowlads.fanhouse.com/2010/focus-on-family-tebow-and-mom/

Coincidences 5

This example was a fun one for me.  Camden and I went to the YMCA yesterday so he could get in some basketball practice.  I took the opportunity to shoot a bit myself.  Camden wanted to quit since he couldn’t make a bank shot first try.  So, I decided to show him a bit of perseverance and shot half court shots till I made it.  About 10 shots in, Camden was convinced I couldn’t make one.   I admit, I was not feeling good about it… Then I remembered my time of Silence and Solitude with God last weekend.  God spoke to me through this time and made a couple things clear.  One of these things was that I should always “plan with God” first and not talk to God about things after the fact.  It was also laid on my heart to live with a “god-willing” attitude.  So, I proceeded to say a prayer asking God to allow me to make this next shot so Camden could see that not quitting worked…  And I added, “god-willing, Lord, let me make this half court shot”.

Swish.

P.S. Camden ended up making several bank shots.

Parentalrights.org – Protecting Children by Empowering Parents –

Important information for the parent.

via Parentalrights.org – Protecting Children by Empowering Parents –.

Why? What’s the Motivation?

Okay, if you know me, you know I’m vehemently pro-life.  I used to not care at all about abortion, but, as I like to think, I got wiser with age.  Many of you have heard about Tim Tebow, the Florida Gator QB who is a very strong, outspoken Christian.  He believes in life and has helped create a Superbowl ad through Focus on the Family that takes a pro-life stand regarding abortion.  Of course, this move has lit a fire in the pants of everything liberal in this wonderful country.  I love the debate.  I love it that we are free to debate.  Here’s what I find of most interest:

1) Women’s groups are making the push to have CBS “ban” (in essence) this pro-life commercial.  Apparently, using sex to sell cheeseburgers, beer and sports is right up their alley, but taking a stand for the unborn is somehow degrading to women and needs to be stamped out.

2) Last year NBC succumbed to pressure and did not air a pro-life ad.  Why?  Wimps.  NBC simply fell to the wolves of peer-pressure and forgot they had the right to air the ad and instead thought they should angle their view to, “we have the right NOT to air the ad”.  Why?  Was the ad promoting getting drunk, having premarital sex or lying to your friends?  Lust?  Oh, now I get it….the pro-life ad needed some scantilly clad cheerleaders to make the cut.  I bet that would have gotten women’s group REALLY riled up.  Hypocrites!

3) From this article and others I’ve read using the same quote, people just don’t get it.  Read this:

Huffington Post’s own Mark Axelrod wrote last month: “So, am I to believe that Florida beat Oklahoma because Tim Tebow had John 3:16 painted beneath his eyes?”

Think about it?  Why in the world does Tim Tebow put scripture on his face?

a) To win God’s favor.

b) He’s a jerk.

c) He knows his face will be viewed by millions of people and he is following Jesus’ command to “go and make disciples of all nations…”  He’s evangelizing.

Whatcha think?  a, b or c?  I thought it was simple too, but I guess to a non-Christian I was missing the boat big time.  People don’t get it.  CCCCCCCCCCCC!!!!!!!!!!!!!

The world can’t help but view a Christians’ actions through their own eyes!  Selfish eyes!

Back to the ads, those sexy ads on TV don’t tell anyone to NOT do something.  They don’t stand up for a common sense moral conviction.  Those ads serve to feed your selfish desires, and, frankly, they do a pretty good job.  Who wants to be a party-pooper and make us think of something that has meaning?!?!  Drink beer, eat at McDonald’s and find the best way to seduce that chick..!  Don’t make me think about the consequences of unplanned sex!  I could go on and on.  As a Christian this type of persecution is expected and is foretold of in the Bible.  (pick up your cross and follow me….you will be persecuted because of my name…)  It’s funny to think that 50 years ago people would be in jail for TV commercial displays like the images I’ve shown here.  Today?  It’s called progress.

It’s not a surprise, but it sure is amusing!

Working the Fields

Now that we understand the soils, see last post, we have some ideas on how to work in each situation.  Jesus knew there would be all types of people listening to His preaching.  Now we are going to focus a bit.  We will focus on those producing  “a crop—a hundred, sixty or thirty times what was sown.”

Jesus continues his sermon discussing a similar parable about seed and weeds from Matthew 13:

“The kingdom of heaven is like a man who sowed good seed in his field.

Here we see action.  The man had every intention of working for the Kingdom of God.  The seed that was sown could be his work as a caring Christian, missionary or preacher for instance.

But while everyone was sleeping, his enemy came and sowed weeds among the wheat, and went away.

The enemy, Satan, is ALWAYS against ANYONE working for God.  We must EXPECT this kind of deceit.  We MUST expect to find difficulties within any ministry we are called to work.

When the wheat sprouted and formed heads, then the weeds also appeared.

On top of the difficulties, the persecution and battles will get worse!  They WILL grow as the good work increases!  Prepare for it!  Don’t be fatalistic or give up!  “Pray continually” as Jesus taught us, meaning always be in an attitude of prayer and ready to prayer at any moment.

“The owner’s servants came to him and said, ‘Sir, didn’t you sow good seed in your field? Where then did the weeds come from?’

If Jesus were answering this question, he would probably say, “You are so dull, or you of little faith!” but instead we just get the straight answer:

” ‘An enemy did this,’ he replied.

Of course!  The man wasn’t surprised, it almost sounds like he expected it.  Especially since he had already formulated a response (read on).  Do we have a response ready for our own ministry work?  What is your response when Satan sows weeds among your field of Christian action?

“The servants asked him, ‘Do you want us to go and pull them up?’

Now, this response isn’t all bad.  When difficulties arise, get rid of them, right?  Maybe not, wisdom is needed!

” ‘No,’ he answered, ‘because while you are pulling the weeds, you may root up the wheat with them. Let both grow together until the harvest. At that time I will tell the harvesters: First collect the weeds and tie them in bundles to be burned; then gather the wheat and bring it into my barn.’ “

Okay, this wise man realizes that there is not much he can do.  The weeds will be there, and in order to get rid of them it would be detrimental to the whole crop.  In essence, your ministry work, whether it’s helping with communion, greeting people, teaching classes, childcare or working in a mission field, will have difficulties that can only be corrected by quitting!  And…can you guess who would love to see you quit?  Satan, of course.

So, to summarize:

1) EXPECT difficulties in whatever ministry involvement you are active in.

2) Have a RESPONSE ready, have a PLAN for tackling and dealing with these difficulties.

3) Don’t overreact and quit.  Take up your cross and follow Jesus.  Remember that the cross is heavy and splintery, but in the end leads to eternal life for you and those you spread the Gospel message to during your life!

This parable can be used for teaching a variety of topics, and I really find that God’s word speaks to me differently each time I read it.  Blessings to you.  Stay involved and be joyful always in knowing that when you face difficulties it’s because you are most likely doing something right for the Kingdom of God.

The Soils, Down and Dirty…

I’m digging into the Parable of the Soils (or Parable of the Sower as some call it) today.  I’m going deep and plan to get a little dirty.  Wield your shovels with me.  Let’s walk the path together.  From Matthew 13:

“A farmer went out to sow his seed.”

That would be any Christian fulfilling the Great Commission to “GO” and make disciples…

As he was scattering the seed,

I like this analogy to evangelism.  Too often we think too hard about what we are going to do, or what we are going to say, or who we are going to speak to, and we just need to STOP and START SPEAKING!  We need to scatter the seed and let God do the rest!

some fell along the path, and the birds came and ate it up.

Jesus explained that this seed represents those that heard the message but did not understand it.  Satan snatched the seed away and it was not sown into the listeners’ hearts.  Can we do anything about this?  Do we just sit back and let these listeners go to hell?  No!  We repeat ourselves, we ask questions of our families, loved ones and strangers who may be listening or reading, and we offer answers to their questions so they CAN understand!

Some fell on rocky places, where it did not have much soil. It sprang up quickly, because the soil was shallow. But when the sun came up, the plants were scorched, and they withered because they had no root.

These seeds are the most distressing to me.  The listeners who hear, get excited, BELIEVE!  They go home and finds out they lost their job, have cancer or lost a loved one, maybe they get made fun of for being a Christian, next, turn on God and hate Him and are even worse off now than before hearing the message.  How do we combat this scenario?  Easily!  We have to explain the WHOLE message, as well as the CORRECT message!  When you are saved and you place your faith in Jesus Christ, life WILL get harder!  We now have hope though.  We now have an eternal future that isn’t crispy bacon in hell.  The Bible is clear that “picking up your cross” and following Jesus IS difficult.  More importantly, it IS worth it!  Explain the whole message and help get any new Believer plugged into life with other Believers so they can support each other and hold each other accountable!!!  CHALLENGE: Is your life harder now that you are a Christian?  If not, it should be on some levels.  If you truly walk the walk, there will most likely be persecution of some sort.  Look at your life, if you don’t see persecution on some level, then you need to evaluate whether you are truly living for God.  Don’t be a pansy, think about this and be REAL with yourself.

Other seed fell among thorns, which grew up and choked the plants.

These listeners are the worry warts and those that are consumed with wealth, status or getting ahead.  The thorns are the things they can’t seem to let go of because they perceive that they NEED these things.  These people NEED to worry, or NEED to have the next best thing, or NEED to have the best job.  They hear the message, but it isn’t as important as hanging onto these other life goals and problems.  It may sound nuts to some, but it is so true.  I bet we could all think of something that we truly would have difficulty letting go of….can you stop worrying?  Can you stop thinking about buying that new TV?  Is that laundry done?   I bet you just forgot about what I was saying….REREAD this paragraph.  See how easily the worries of life supersede the truth of God?

Still other seed fell on good soil, where it produced a crop—a hundred, sixty or thirty times what was sown.”

Ah, here we are, where the rubber meets the road.  The seed falls, grows and we get a GREAT crop.  You’ve heard of many of these stories.  Billy Graham, Paul (Saul), Jeff Love (haha, just checking to see if you were paying attention).  We must be careful.  Even those producing a good crop can eventually fall to any of the above calamities.  Persevere, seek accountability and, most of all, be sure the seed is sown in your heart!