Treasures in Heaven

Posted on October 21, 2023 by jesustrek

A story is told about a church that needed to make some repairs to their building. The situation had become so desperate that the congregation called a special meeting to address the problem.

During the meeting, one gentleman stood up and said, “I pledge $100 toward the project to repair the church building.” No sooner had the man sat down when a huge section of plaster fell from the ceiling and hit him squarely on the top of his head. Fortunately, he was not hurt badly. He stood up and declared, “I am raising my pledge to $1,000!” Immediately a voice from the back cried out, “Hit him again, Lord! Hit him again!”

We shouldn’t need to be hit over the head to want to give to the Lord’s work. The desire to honor God with our material possessions should be a characteristic of all followers of Jesus Christ.

Jesus teaches a lot about our attitude toward money. Scholars have pointed out that Jesus has more to say about money than he does heaven and hell put together. It is plain to see that Jesus is greatly concerned about how his disciples handle their money. Matt.6:19-24 contain some of Jesus’ core teaching about finances: “Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moths and vermin destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where moths and vermin do not destroy, and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also…No one can serve two masters. Either you will hate the one and love the other, or you will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and money.”

Here Jesus contrasts the temporary nature of earthly treasures with the eternal nature of treasures that are heavenly. Riches on earth are fleeting; they can disappear very quickly. But the treasures we build up in heaven through our work for the Lord will last forever. Therefore, Jesus implores us to store up treasures that are heavenly rather than earthly. Eternal wealth can be built up through holy living, obedience to God’s commands, winning people to Jesus, building other disciples up in their faith and, of course, giving money to the work of the Lord.

A second principle that Jesus teaches here is that the things we treasure determine where our affections reside, whether with worldly riches or with the Lord. Wherever your treasure is, that is where your heart will be also. The way you spend your money shows what you really love. Show me your spending records and I’ll show you what is most important to you. A church member reportedly once confided to his preacher that he didn’t have much interest in the local church. The preacher told him to increase his giving to the church by $10 each week until he reached the point where he truly cared about the church!

A third principle we see in Jesus’ teaching here is that we cannot have divided loyalties. It is not possible to serve both God and money. A person can have two employers, but you cannot have two owners. If we truly belong to God, we cannot live as though our allegiance was to money. As someone once said, “It’s all right to have money, but your money cannot have you.” If your finances have a stranglehold on your life, it is impossible to live for God. We must each decide which master we will serve—God or money.

We must not take lightly what Jesus teaches about money. We cannot ignore what he says about our finances and live a powerful Christian life. Indeed, to disobey Jesus in this matter might cost us our life entirely!

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What Jesus Says About Love

Posted on October 14, 2023 by jesustrek

Someone once collected some advice from young children about love and romance. Here are some of the bits of “wisdom” that were gleaned.

When asked how people in love typically behave, 8-year-old Wendy responded, “When a person gets kissed for the first time, they fall down and don’t get up for at least an hour.”

In answer to the question, “Why do people in love hold hands?” Gavin, age 8, said, “They want to make sure their rings don’t fall off because they paid good money for them.” Nine-year-old Johnny said, “They are just practicing for when they might have to walk down the aisle someday and do the holy matchimony thing.”

Other opinions on love from children include: “Love is foolish…but I still might try it sometime.” “Love will find you even if you’re trying to hide from it. I’ve been trying to hide from it since I was five, but the girls keep finding me.” “I’m not rushing into love. Fourth grade is hard enough.”

In response to the question, “How do you get someone to fall in love with you?” one little boy said, “Tell them that you own a bunch of candy stores.”

When asked about kissing, one child said, “You learn it right on the spot when the gooshy feelings get the best of you.” Another said, “If it’s your mom, you can kiss her anytime. But if it’s a new person, you better ask for permission.”

We might laugh at some of the children’s thoughts about love, but the sad thing is that many adults don’t know much about love either. Someone once said, “We must dare to love in a world that doesn’t know how to love.

If we want to learn about love, we need to listen to Jesus. One of the best-known stories ever told is the parable of the Good Samaritan, found in Luke 10. Here we find what love is truly all about.

To summarize the story, Jesus said that a traveler was attacked by robbers and left half dead along the side of the road. Two religious men passed by without stopping to help. However, a Samaritan, a religious outsider, stopped to help the man, expending much of his time, effort and money to do so.

Here are some important principles about love that we can learn from this story. First, love is not defined by a feeling that you have in your heart; it is defined by our actions. The Samaritan had no special fondness for the beaten traveler, but he did have a desire to help someone who was in need.

Second, love may cost us something. We might have to get involved in someone’s life in such a way that it costs us time, effort and money.

Third, love sometimes comes from unexpected places. It wasn’t the religious people in the story who showed love; love came from the most unlikely character in the story!

Finally, love is not reserved for those who are closest to us. It may be that our loving actions are needed by someone we don’t even know.

There are many people who will offer their advice about love, but so many of them don’t have a clue what they are talking about. Don’t listen to the voices of confusion. Listen to what Jesus says about love.

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How You Should Pray

Posted on September 28, 2023 by jesustrek

A lady had worked frantically to get ready for a dinner party that she was hosting. When the guests had arrived and were seated at the table, she asked her young daughter to say a prayer before the meal. “But I don’t know how to pray!” the girl protested. “Nobody ever taught me!”

“Nonsense,” the mother replied. “Just pray like you have heard me pray.” The little girl sighed, bowed her head and said, “Dear Lord, as busy as I am, why did I invite all these people over!”

I guess we do need someone to teach us how to pray! Thankfully, Jesus does just that. In Matt.7:9-15, we find a model prayer that has long been a pattern for Christians to follow when we talk to God.

It starts out by saying that we can address God as our Father in heaven. Only Christians have this privilege. No other people on the face of the earth can truly refer to God as their Father. When we were baptized into Christ we became part of God’s family, therefore we have benefits that no one outside of Christ can claim. What a blessing it is to address our prayers to such a loving and powerful Father!

Then we should pray for God’s name to be hallowed, that is holy, or set apart. In a world where God’s name is often used as a swear word, we must be careful not to stoop to the behaviors we see all around us. Rather, we should stand out as those who treat the name of God with reverential, awesome respect.

Next, we should ask for God’s kingdom to come, and his will be done, on earth as it is in heaven. We should not view this part of the prayer to be entirely futuristic. Jesus ushered in the kingdom of God during his time on earth, and he and his apostles spent much time teaching believers how to live as citizens of that kingdom. However, the kingdom will not arrive in its fullness until Christ returns to restore all things. In the meantime, we must pray that his kingdom continues to advance now, and that we would be blessed in our efforts to see that God’s will is done on earth as it is in heaven.

As we continue through the prayer, we find that we are to pray for our daily bread. Living in a land of relative plenty, we could possibly take our everyday blessings for granted. May it never be so! We must continually trust God for our provisions, and while giving thanks is not specifically referred to here, it might be implied, and thanksgiving is consistently taught throughout Scripture.

Then comes the request to be forgiven of our debts, which of course means our sins. Attached to this request is the statement that we have already forgiven those who have sinned against us. To withhold forgiveness from those who have done us wrong and then expect God to forgive us is an inconsistent position to hold. God will not allow us to take such a hypocritical stance.

Finally, we are to pray for deliverance from temptation and from the influence of the evil one. God does not tempt us, but he might allow us to experience a time of testing. We should not desire this but should ask for relief from those situations that cause us to be tested.

The reason that we should pray in the way that Jesus prescribes in because it is God’s kingdom and power and glory that we must always lift up, both now and forevermore!

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The Blessings of Generosity

Posted on September 21, 2023 by jesustrek

Rita Price wrote the following in a 1995 issue of the Columbus Dispatch:

Katie Fisher, 17, pulled her unruly lamb into the arena of the Madison County Junior Livestock Sale last July. With luck the lamb would fetch some spending money—and she wouldn’t collapse as she had during another livestock show the day before.

Fisher had been battling Burkitt’s lymphoma, a fast-growing malignancy, since February. She had endured many hospitalizations and months of chemotherapy. “Sometimes, in the beginning, it hurt so bad all she could do was pace,” said her 12-year-old sister Jessica.

Selling the lamb did raise pin money for Fisher.

“We sort of let folks know that Katie had a situation that wasn’t too pleasant,” said auctioneer Roger Wilson, who hoped his introduction would push the price-per-pound above the average of $2. It did—and then some.

The lamb sold for $11.50 per pound. Then the buyer gave it back. That started a chain reaction. Families bought it and gave it back; businesses bought it and gave it back.

“The first sale is the only one I remember. After that, I was crying too hard,” said Katies’s mother, Jayne Fisher. “Everyone kept saying, ‘Re-sell! Re-sell!’”

“We sold that lamb 36 times,” said Wilson. And the last buyer gave back the lamb for good. The effort raised more than $16,000, which went into a fund to help pay Katie’s medical expenses.

The story Price tells in her article is a story of the amazing blessings that transpire when people decide to be generous. Jesus says, “…It is more blessed to give than to receive.” (Acts 20:35). As we can see, in some situations the blessings are experienced by everyone involved. Buyers, sellers and spectators all received a blessing they will never forget!

Let’s always be looking for opportunities to spread the blessings around!

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Faith that Saves

Posted on September 9, 2023 by jesustrek

Luke 7:36-50 records an interesting event in the ministry of Jesus. This story conveys the ability, and willingness, of Jesus to offer salvation to anyone who will humbly come to him in faith and repentance.

Jesus had been invited to dinner at the house of a Pharisee named Simon. A woman who had lived a sinful life heard that Jesus was at Simon’s house, so she came there. It seems odd to us that she would come uninvited, but it was customary for people to show up uninvited for such gatherings. They would normally sit around the walls of the room and observe what was going on. Sometimes they would ask for leftovers after the dinner was over.

The fact that this woman had lived a sinful life no doubt made her an unwanted guest in the home of this self-righteous religious leader. She displayed a lot of courage simply by showing up, but she showed greater courage by refusing to blend into the background. She boldly anointed the feet of Jesus, first with her tears, then with expensive perfume.

At this, Simon thought to himself that Jesus could not be a prophet, or he would know that this woman was a sinner. Jesus proved him wrong by knowing what he was thinking! Then Jesus proceeded to tell a story about two men who owed money to the same moneylender. One of them had been forgiven a huge debt; the other had been forgiven a smaller debt. Then Jesus asked Simon which one of these men will love the moneylender more. Simon grudgingly gave the obvious answer—the one who had the bigger debt forgiven would love him more.

Jesus told Simon that he had given the correct answer. Then he proceeded to give the parable an application. Jesus compared the love that the woman had shown for him with the lack of love that Simon had shown him. The woman had gone to great trouble and expense to honor Jesus with her actions. However, Simon had not even offered Jesus the basic hospitality that the customs of the day called for.

Summing it all up, Jesus said that the woman had shown great love because she had been forgiven much. The implication was that Simon had not shown much love because he had been forgiven little.

Jesus then turned to the woman and told her, “Your sins are forgiven.” This caused a stir among the guests, who naturally questioned the ability of anyone to forgive sins. But Jesus routinely claimed this ability to grant forgiveness to anyone who comes to him in faith, repentance and obedience. Then he assured the woman, “Your faith has saved you; go in peace.”

Only those who come to Jesus for forgiveness can truly experience the peace that Jesus offers. Have you experienced that peace for yourself? And are you telling others of the peace that Jesus promises to them if they will put their trust in him?

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Rest for God’s People

Posted on August 31, 2023 by jesustrek

The subject of rest is an on-going theme in the Bible. Gen.2:2-3 says, “By the seventh day God had finished the work he had been doing; so on the seventh day he rested from all his work. Then God blessed the seventh day and made it holy, because on it he rested from all the work of creating that he had done.”

By resting on the seventh day, God set an example for people to follow. The Lord was so adamant about this principle that he included it in the 10 Commandments that he gave to the Israelites. Ex.20:8-11 says, “Remember the Sabbath day by keeping it holy. Six days you shall labor and do all your work, but the seventh day is a sabbath to the Lord your God. On it you shall not do any work, neither you, nor your son or daughter, nor your male or female servant, nor your animals, nor any foreigner residing in your towns. For in six days the Lord made the heavens and the earth, the sea, and all that is in them, but he rested on the seventh day. Therefore the Lord blessed the Sabbath day and made it holy.”

The writer of Hebrews takes this principle of rest and ties it to our faith in Jesus. Some would not enter God’s rest because of their disbelief (Heb.3:18-19). Yet the promise of God’s rest remains for those who have faith in Jesus and exhibit that faith with their obedience. In chapter four of Hebrews God’s rest is equated to the salvation we have in Jesus Christ. Here the New Testament harkens back to the Old Testament by reminding us of how God rested after creation. Here the readers are exhorted not to fall short of God’s rest by failing to persevere in the faith. 4:11 implores, “Let us, therefore, make every effort to enter that rest, so that no one will perish by following their example of disobedience.”

The next verses are well-known Scriptures— “For the word of God is alive and active. Sharper than any double-edged sword, it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow; it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart. Nothing in all creation is hidden from God’s sight. Everything is uncovered and laid bare before the eyes of him to whom we must give account.” (4:12-13). Taken in context, these verses say that our decision to either accept or reject God’s rest, the salvation offered to us through Jesus, is readily known by God.

The Scripture then urges us to “…hold firmly to the faith we profess. (v.14). V.15 brings us to this conclusion— “Let us then approach God’s throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need.”

To sum up what the Bible says about rest for God’s people, it seems that we could say that there are three levels of rest.

First, there is the physical rest that we all need. Studies show that our bodies need time to recuperate from the work week, and that people who get sufficient sleep each night are much better off than those who don’t.

Second, there is the aspect of spiritual rest, which only comes through the salvation that we have been offered through Jesus. Jesus says, “Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest.” (Matt.11:28).

Finally, there is the ultimate rest we will find in eternity. Let’s enjoy every level of rest that God offers us through his Son Jesus Christ!

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A Program for Church Growth

Posted on August 26, 2023 by jesustrek

Jesus promised that he would build his church, and all his followers should share his zeal for church growth. Many church growth programs have been proposed over the years and most of them have some good suggestions. However, the very best material for evangelism can be found in Scripture. One such text is Acts 6:1-7. Let’s look at this passage and notice some principles for church growth that can be applied today.

The church had been established and was growing in leaps and bounds. Then a problem arose that was so serious that it not only threatened the expansion of the young church, but perhaps its very existence. It seems that some of the widows were being neglected in the daily distribution of food, and this was brought to the attention of the apostles, who decided to address the situation. They proposed that the congregation select seven men who were full of the Spirit and wisdom to take care of the needs of the widows. The apostles would then be able to devote their full attention to their main priorities—prayer and the ministry of the word. This proposal was acceptable to the whole church and the plan was quickly put into place. The crisis was averted and as a result, the word of God spread, and the number of disciples increased rapidly.

The first step in this church growth program was addressing problems in a timely and proper manner. The situation was brought to the attention of the leaders, and they determined that this was a serious matter. Not all complaints are legitimate problems that need to be dealt with. Leaders need to ignore—and perhaps put a stop to—complaints that are trivial in nature. Good church leaders will not hesitate to tackle real problems, and they will propose biblical solutions to those problems.

The second step in the program is to set your priorities. Feeding the widows was an important endeavor, but the apostles’ main task was to lead the way for the congregation in the areas of prayer and ministry of the word. Any other task, even an important one, would only serve to distract the leaders from their most vital responsibilities. Each member of the church, whether in a position of leadership or not, should understand their role in the church and should resist being distracted from their main job in the church.

The third step is to delegate. We are not meant to do the work of the Lord alone. The church is like a body, with its many parts doing various things to help the body function well so that it can stay healthy and grow. We need to recruit others to help us. This will help to ensure that the work of the church gets done and it allows others to get involved, using their gifts and talents for the Lord. Ideally, the people appointed for the tasks will be just like the ones in this passage—full of the Spirit and wisdom.

This 3-step program does not contain everything the Bible says about church growth. However, it is a good basic outline to follow to help ensure that the local congregation stays healthy and continues to grow. In implementing this plan, the early church demonstrated the unity (v.5a) that Jesus desires (John 17:20-23) and obeyed another important biblical principle by taking care of its neediest members (Matt.25:31-46; Gal.6:10). Let’s strive for the word of God to spread and the number of disciples to increase rapidly in our churches today, just as it came to pass in the early church.

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The Gospel in Revelation

Posted on August 19, 2023 by jesustrek

The mere thought of the biblical book of Revelation conjures up feelings of fear, dread, anxiety and apprehension in the minds of many readers. The depictions of apocalyptic plagues, scary beasts and cataclysmic natural disasters tend to frighten a lot of people.

Another reason that some might avoid reading Revelation is that they perceive it as being difficult to understand. Its symbolism can come across as a code that is too hard to decipher, so why even try.

However, the book of Revelation is not intended to scare or confuse people. Its purpose is to provide comfort and encouragement to an embattled church that is always facing extreme hardships and challenges. Its message—both to the original recipients and modern-day readers—promises blessings to those who persevere in their faith in Jesus Christ despite any adversity we may face. Revelation 1:3 promises, “Blessed is the one who reads aloud the words of this prophecy, and blessed are those who hear it and take to heart what is written in it…”

The most comforting part of Revelation is the good news of the salvation that is available to mankind through their faith in the crucified and risen Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. It might surprise some to find that the gospel message is present throughout the book of Revelation, and it is revealed early in the text. Revelation 1:5-6 says, “…Jesus Christ, who is the faithful witness, the firstborn from the dead, and the ruler of the kings of the earth. To him who loves us and has freed us from our sins by his blood, and has made us to be a kingdom and priests to serve his God and Father—to him be glory and power for ever and ever! Amen.”

This is the essence of the gospel message, right here in Revelation! Jesus Christ died to set us free from our sins. He rose from the dead and has enabled us to be a part of his kingdom. Because of that, he deserves our devotion and our worship.

The gospel not only sets us free from our sins, but it also sets us free to live boldly and confidently for the Lord, even in the most trying of circumstances. The gospel message equips us to be witnesses for Jesus, spreading the good news of the salvation that he freely offers to a lost and dying world. The gospel message in Revelation not only gives us hope and comfort, but it also inspires us to be actively sharing our faith with others. Thank God for the gospel in Revelation!

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Set on Fire

Posted on August 11, 2023 by jesustrek

One of the current top news stories concerns the devastating fires in Hawaii that have destroyed much property and have taken the lives of at least 36 people. While fires are relatively common in Hawaii, these recent blazes have been particularly ravaging. Fierce winds have caused the fires to spread at a phenomenal rate, overwhelming any efforts to fight the blazes and forcing people to flee for their lives, many of them jumping into the ocean as a last resort to save themselves.

This tragedy reminds us of what the Bible says about the dangers of the tongue. James 3:5-6 reminds us, “Likewise, the tongue is a small part of the body, but it makes great boasts. Consider what a great forest is set on fire by a small spark. The tongue also is a fire, a world of evil among the parts of the body. It corrupts the whole body, sets the whole course of one’s life on fire, and is itself set on fire by hell.”

A wise old man once tried to teach a young boy about the importance of being careful about what you say. He cut open a feather pillow and told the boy to empty its contents into the air. It was a windy day, and the feathers quickly began to spread across the countryside. Then the old man instructed the boy, “Now go and gather up all the feathers and put them back in the pillow.”

“Why, that’s impossible!”, the boy retorted. “The feathers are so far spread that I could never retrieve them all!”

“That is correct”, the older man replied. “In the same way, every word we speak travels quickly. Once spoken, we cannot take those words back.”

We can apologize for words that we say in haste or in anger. However, they usually have done their damage already, and our efforts to repair the damage done by our careless words are woefully inadequate.

Words spoken in haste or in anger can hurt people far more than we can ever imagine. People tend to dwell on negative comments that others make, and their harmful effect can last for years.  

Rather than try to repair the damage caused by an out-of-control tongue, how much better it is that we constantly strive to guard what we say and try to speak only words that are true, kind and necessary.

“Instead, speaking the truth in love, we will grow to become in every respect the mature body of him who is the head, that is, Christ.”—Eph.4:15.

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Satan’s Top Ten Lies

Posted on August 3, 2023 by jesustrek

Former Cincinnati Reds baseball player Doug Flynn is outspoken about his faith in Jesus Christ. He came up with the following list of Satan’s top ten lies. I modified it just a bit.

TEN—There are many ways to God. Jesus says that he is the only way to God (John 14:6) and his disciples agreed with him, saying in Acts 4:12, “Salvation is found in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given to mankind by which we must be saved.”

NINE—You can never be forgiven for what you have done. The Bible says, ‘“Come now, let us settle the matter”, says the Lord. “Though your sins are like scarlet, they shall be as white as snow, though they are red as crimson, they shall be like wool.”’ (Isa.1:18).

EIGHT—You don’t need the church to live for God. According to Heb.10:24-31, we need to continue to be a part of the church, and those who forsake the assembly risk facing the ultimate wrath of God.

SEVEN—As a Christian it doesn’t really matter how you live. The truth is, we can’t continue to live sinful lives after we come to faith in Christ. Rom.6:1-2 says, “What shall we say, then? Shall we go on sinning so that grace may increase? By no means! We are those who have died to sin: how can we live in it any longer?”

SIX—You can get right with God later. Actually, we all have an appointment with death (Heb.9:27), and we do not know when that day might be. You had better not put off choosing to follow Christ! The risk is simply too great!

FIVE—It is too late for you to be used mightily by God. In fact, Moses was 80 years old when he began his most important act of service for the Lord, leading the Israelites out of Egypt and to the Promised Land. God can still use older people in a mighty way for his service.

FOUR—You can’t change. 1 Cor.6:9-10 lists several terrible kinds of sins. V.11 says, “And that is what some of you were. But you were washed, you were sanctified, you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and by the Spirit of our God.” The truth is you can change.

THREE—Heaven and hell are not real places. In the parable of the sheep and goats (Matt.25:31-46), Jesus says that the saved will be welcomed into God’s eternal kingdom, while those who are not saved will be cast into eternal fire. Jesus believes in heaven and hell, and so should we!

TWO—The Bible cannot be trusted. The Bible has never been proven wrong. It is completely reliable, and it is our standard for testing everything else that claims to be true. 2 Tim.3:16-17 says, “All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, so that the servant of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work.”

ONE—God does not love you. The Bible says otherwise. John 3:16 says, “For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.” That sure sounds like love to me!

Don’t fall for any of Satan’s lies! Believe Jesus when he says, “Then you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.” (John 8:32).

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