John 9 recounts a story of Jesus healing a man born blind, and how those in his community respond to his being healed. Through this account, we see not only the heart that Jesus had, but also areas for our own spiritual growth.
As he passed by, he saw a man blind from birth. 9:1
From the start, we can find assurance in the notion that Jesus notices the least of us. We’re later told that this man had been a beggar. He may have been begging as Jesus and the disciples passed by. For anyone who feels overlooked at times, isn’t it comforting to know that Jesus notices us?
So he went and washed and came back seeing. 9:7b
We also see in this man how obedience and faith work together. Believing that Jesus could heal him would not have sealed the deal, action was required. Results are nice. And most often they don’t come without some action on our part. This man could not have been healed without Jesus intervening. But even with Jesus’ intervention, his healing required his own participation.
Some of the Pharisees near him heard these things, and said to him, “Are we also blind?” Jesus said to them, “If you were blind, you would have no guilt; but now that you say, ‘We see,’ your guilt remains. 9:40
Self-righteousness blinds us. And these blind spots are roadblocks on our journey to spiritual maturity.
Have you ever been reading when the light outside is growing dim? You don’t need the lights inside the house on yet and so they are not on. But an hour later, the room is getting darker and darker and you do not even realize it. Someone may come in and ask if you need the light on. Suddenly you look around and realize how dark it is. You didn’t know you needed the light, you hadn’t recognized you were in the dark. This is the problem Jesus is identifying. The light of the world is here for those that know they need it/him. But many think they can see when actually they are sitting in the dark.
And if, when reading that, your mind immediately went to ‘those people’ who are in the dark…you’re missing the point. You’re ‘those people.’ We’re all ‘those people.’
What a great place to start today… asking for him to reveal blind spots we may have, trusting that he sees and cares for us, with a willingness to act on what he reveals in us.
-Susan Landry
Reflection Questions
How do faith and obedience work together? Why are both required? Do you feel stronger in one than the other? How can you work on growing the other?
When have you found yourself sitting in the dark? How can you draw closer to the light of the world to take advantage of the light he gives?
After reading John 9 how would you describe Jesus.
This week at FUEL we focused on the life of Peter. Peter is an amazing character in the Bible. His life was full of ups and downs. His faith was high and it was low. Yet, Peter was used to do great works for God. I find a lot of parallels between Peter’s life and ours as believers. Today’s devotion is not as much focused on Peter’s life, but rather how he uses what he learned from his life experiences.
1 Peter 1 starts by proclaiming the good news and our hope in Christ. He says in verse three, that through mercy we have been given a new birth through the resurrection of Jesus. Now Peter continues this by saying that even though we have our hope in Jesus we will have a lot of grief and many trials. This is true for our lives as well, most of us have gone through something that is incredibly challenging. Life can really beat us down or we build sandcastles on false beliefs. But when you have a living hope through Jesus Christ, you have a strong foundation to rely on during the waves of life.
Peter also faces many trials in his life such as when he was called out on the water by Jesus, he took his eyes off of Jesus and began to sink because of his lack of faith. Peter also denies Jesus three times. He is ashamed and scared because of what might happen to him so he turns his back on Jesus. But even through all of these difficulties and trials Jesus calls him back. I know that I have taken my eyes off from Christ and maybe even have denied my faith. But he continues to call me back and offers grace.
Peter uses his life experiences to help strengthen fellow believers. He says in verse six and seven that trials come and that “these have come so that your faith … may be proved genuine and may result in praise, glory and honor when Jesus Christ is revealed” Even when we face trials and setbacks in our life, we can still return to Christ. Or as Amber shared on Monday night, we all need a comeback. So the next time you find yourself sinking, think about Peter and remember that if he can be pulled out of the water, so can you! Peter reminds us in verse 23 “For you have been born again, not of perishable seed, but of imperishable, through the living and enduring word of God.”
-Camden Bormes
If you would like to hear Amber speaking on comebacks, check out the FUEL 2023 Monday Evening General Session on youtube (where you can also find all the other general sessions as well). Amber starts speaking, with sound, at 36 minutes.
Reflection Questions
What trials have you already been through? Have they helped to prove the worth of your faith? If so, how?
Are you currently in need of a comeback (has a trial beaten you down)? What steps could be useful in the process of a comeback? How might the living and enduring word of God play a part?
What can we learn from Peter about faith? About Jesus? About God?
This morning we read John chapter 18 – an emotional chapter that covers the arrest and trial of our Messiah, the King of the Jews.
While the events we read about in this chapter and the next are completely unjust and cruel, they had to happen. Jesus knew what he was born for; he knew for what purpose he was sent to the world by God. He had already revealed his future several times in the gospels leading up to the crucifixion. Not only did Jesus predict his own death, but his life, ministry, and death was also prophesied in the Old Testament, beginning approximately 2000 years before his birth. This was God’s plan from the very beginning, and it was never supposed to be easy.
God set his perfect plan in place long before Jesus was on earth, and when his time came he knew by whom he was sent and for what purpose, and he was determined to fulfill it, faith unwavering through every trial until death. He had many opportunities to walk away, and we know a part of him wished he could (Matthew 26:39), but our good and perfect Savior put his trust fully in God, and obeyed until the very end. This was no easy task. Though he remained without sin, Jesus of Nazareth was a human, just like us. He encountered countless trials that most anyone else would crumble under the weight of, and ultimately faced a gruesome death that most would run away from.
We needed the sacrifice of a perfect human man to be saved. Through Christ we are redeemed. Without his tragic death, a sacrifice made both by God and by his Son, our fallen world would be doomed to live apart from God in sin and brokenness forever. But because we have a genius God who came up with the most perfect plan on our side, and because one man had unbreakable faith and steadfast love for the God he served and the world he was sent to save, we have the promise of a beautiful future – a kingdom not of this world (John 18:36).
Then Pilate said to him, “So you are a king?” Jesus answered, “You say that I am a king. For this purpose I was born and for this purpose I have come into the world—to bear witness to the truth. Everyone who is of the truth listens to my voice.”
John 18:37
-Isabella Osborn
Reflection Questions
Have there been times in your life that you were scared to do what you knew God was calling you to do?
What can we learn and apply to our own lives from the ultimate display of love and faithfulness in Jesus’ sacrifice?
What are some reasons you think the Jews were so adamant that the savior sent to them by their God should be put to death? What do you think you would have done in that situation? What are some ways we can guard our hearts from the lies of this world that lead us away from God’s will for us?
Today’s passage of Matthew 14 has a lot to unpack. There is much to learn from each story there, but my focus for this passage has always been the last portion: walking on water. Because while John’s death was tragic, and the feeding of the 5,000 is wondrous, the story of Peter stepping out of the boat has always been one of mixed emotions for me.
Starting in verse 22 we read:
22 Immediately Jesus made the disciples get into the boat and go on ahead of him to the other side, while he dismissed the crowd. 23 After he had dismissed them, he went up on a mountainside by himself to pray. Later that night, he was there alone, 24 and the boat was already a considerable distance from land, buffeted by the waves because the wind was against it.
25 Shortly before dawn Jesus went out to them, walking on the lake. 26 When the disciples saw him walking on the lake, they were terrified. “It’s a ghost,” they said, and cried out in fear.
27 But Jesus immediately said to them: “Take courage! It is I. Don’t be afraid.”
28 “Lord, if it’s you,” Peter replied, “tell me to come to you on the water.”
29 “Come,” he said.
Then Peter got down out of the boat, walked on the water and came toward Jesus. 30 But when he saw the wind, he was afraid and, beginning to sink, cried out, “Lord, save me!”
31 Immediately Jesus reached out his hand and caught him. “You of little faith,” he said, “why did you doubt?”
32 And when they climbed into the boat, the wind died down. 33 Then those who were in the boat worshiped him, saying, “Truly you are the Son of God.”
Jesus has performed miracles before this story. It should be no surprise that he could walk on water, but it truly must have been a sight to see. Coming through wind and darkness and waves, it was enough to make the disciples proclaim him to be a ghost. But Jesus calls through the wind and the lapping of the waves and over the creaking of the boat to reassure his followers. And Peter’s immediate response is one that I’ve always found commendable. He asked Jesus to call him out.
He wants Jesus to call him out on to dark water to do something terrifying that he knows he’s completely incapable of doing on his own. He is fully aware that only Jesus, using the power and authority given to him by God alone, can help him do this great thing.
So he asks him to call him out. How often do we ask to be called out into dangerous waters? Usually my request is, “Lord, keep me safe. Keep my family safe. Keep my life simple.” It’s not “Lord, send me out into water well over my head.”
Peter asked to be called out because he knew that Jesus would help him. And I feel like he should get credit for this. And yet as we read further we see Jesus tell him he has little faith.
But Jesus! He was the only disciple who stepped out of the boat!
Poor Peter. He boldly trusts Jesus and goes out on the water but he loses focus. Rather than keeping his eyes on Christ he starts seeing the waves and winds and realizes just the sort of situation he’s in. He’s standing over deep water and the sea is not calm. This is no peaceful frolic. This is scarier and bigger than he expected, and suddenly the danger and the risk is all he can see. Christ is forgotten.
If we are called to do big things for Christ, we cannot expect it to be simple and peaceful. We live in a world of sin, full of wind and waves, and he is calling us into it to do his work. But he’s right there. He is giving us the authority and the power to do great things. Unfortunately, sometimes all we can see is the danger.
It takes great faith to step out onto the water, but having faith for a moment isn’t enough. Continuing on in faith despite obstacles and fear is what we are actually called to do. We cannot just step out of the boat. We must go forth as we are called. Keep your eyes on Jesus.
Some things to think about:
What waters do you feel called on to?
What do your winds and waves look like?
What are some practical things that can help you focus less on your obstacles, and more on Jesus? (Maybe it’s deepening your prayer life. Maybe it’s getting a fellow Christian to go alongside you.)
How can you pray bigger prayers and in what areas of your life can you ask Jesus to call you out over deeper water?
My prayer for you today is that you are bold in your faith. I pray that you are able to see Jesus in areas in your life and that you hear his calling. I pray that you not only step out of the boat but that you also continue on toward him, trusting him to keep you above the water.
During this week’s readings we’ve seen examples of many ways and reasons that people turn away from God. We’ve also seen how people can be a complicated mixture of both faithful and obedient to God but also can lose their grip on faith and obedience through pride or greed and lose their intimate connection to God.
Throughout scripture, God shows himself to be merciful, slow to anger, and abounding in love and forgiveness. He is a God of second chances (and 3rd, 4th, and 5th chances). Yet he is also a holy and just God and brings down the rod of discipline upon the people he loves to correct their corrupt ways when they refuse to repent.
On this final day of the week, these Scriptures show us some pretty remarkable things about God’s patience and mercy, and also the dangers to neglecting the Word of God.
Josiah began to reign as King of Judah at the tender age of 8. When he was a young lad of 16 he began seeking God. He decisively began to rid Judah of idols. He arranged to have the temple repaired. As the workers were working in the temple, cleaning out the relics in the back halls and storage units they came across a dusty old book. It looked old and probably hadn’t been read for centuries. It turns out that the dusty old book was the Bible, as it was constituted at the time of Moses. It contained the teaching and laws that Moses recorded based on what he received from God along with the history of God’s people going back to creation. King Josiah asked that it be read aloud to him. As he listened to God’s word being read, he was overcome with horror. He tore his robes. As he heard God’s word being read he realized how far astray they had gone from doing God’s will.
Josiah called for a prophet of God to come and tell them what God was going to do. He was going to bring his judgment against the people of Judah, there would be a disaster that was unprecedented. However, King Josiah would be spared because of his love and faithful obedience to God. God said: “Tell the king of Judah, who sent you to inquire of the Lord, ‘This is what the Lord, the God of Israel, says concerning the words you heard: Because your heart was responsive and you humbled yourself before God when you heard what he spoke against this place and its people, and because you humbled yourself before me and tore your robes and wept in my presence, I have heard you, declares the Lord. Now I will gather you to your ancestors, and you will be buried in peace. Your eyes will not see all the disaster I am going to bring on this place and on those who live here.’” (2 Chronicles 34:26-28)
Josiah led the people to renew the Covenant. He led them in celebrating the Feast of Passover which had not been celebrated since the time of Samuel. He continued to purge the nation of its idols. Josiah was rewarded for his humility and faithful obedience to God’s covenant. He was permitted to live out his life with the nation in peace. In this instance, God is both gracious to Josiah for his humble and repentant heart, but he is also just and requires that Judah suffer the consequences for their disobedience.
After Josiah died, there was a rapid succession of kings, who each “did evil in the eyes of the Lord.” God continued to send prophets to warn his people to repent, but they would not listen. “Furthermore, all the leaders of the priests and the people became more and more unfaithful, following all the detestable practices of the nations and defiling the temple of the Lord, which he had consecrated in Jerusalem. The Lord, the God of their ancestors, sent word to them through his messengers again and again, because he had pity on his people and on his dwelling place. But they mocked God’s messengers, despised his words and scoffed at his prophets until the wrath of the Lord was aroused against his people and there was no remedy.” (2 Chronicles 36:14-16)
God gave second and third and fourth and fifth chances, but finally they were so hardened and disobedient that he had no choice but to let them be taken away into exile.
Josiah was a man of God living in a broken and sinful world. He did his best to lead others toward faithfulness and trust in God, but ultimately they rejected God and faced the consequences. God showed mercy to Josiah for the sake of his humility and faithfulness.
Like Josiah, we can be men and woman of God living faithfully in a broken and sinful world. We can take heart, God sees our faithfulness and humility as we repent of our sins and turn to Jesus Christ and walk in obedience to Christ. We have no guarantee that life will be easy as we live godly lives in a godless age. In fact, we are warned that it will be hard.
“In fact, everyone who wants to live a godly life in Christ Jesus will be persecuted, while evildoers and impostors will go from bad to worse, deceiving and being deceived. But as for you, continue in what you have learned and have become convinced of, because you know those from whom you learned it, and how from infancy you have known the Holy Scriptures, which are able to make you wise for salvation through faith in Christ Jesus. 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.” -2 Timothy 3:12-17.
Sadly, in Josiah’s day, the Bible was lost for hundreds of years in the back of the temple. We are blessed, we have access to God’s word to read and study and obey…. But do we?
-Jeff Fletcher
Reflection Questions
How do you suppose God’s people completely lost God’s word for hundreds of years? Could that happen again in our age?
Josiah humbled himself and repented. In what areas of your life do you need to humble yourself and repent?
As a result of this week’s devotions, what one change are you committed to making in your life?
It’s Friday. Have you stuck with me so far? We’ve tackled some challenging subjects this week. Most of the subjects have had to do with things that lead us away from God- from fear to pride to greed. So many things have the potential to turn our hearts away from God. It can be disheartening at times.
We talked earlier this week about the fastest growing religious group in America, the nones- those who say they have no religious affiliation or faith. Today, I want to address another group, the Dones. The Dones are people who have been highly committed believers, perhaps very active in Churches and ministries who have gotten to a place in their lives where they are just done. Maybe they are a pastor or Church leader who has poured out their life and energy into helping others and then experienced resistance or mistreatment, or other forms of suffering and they simply said “I’m done” and walked away from their ministry or their church.
I know. If you are a committed leader in the church and you get frustrated by people who treat you badly, it’s tempting to give up and say I’m done. These people aren’t necessarily abandoning their faith in God to pursue a sinful lifestyle of adultery, drunkenness or debauchery. They simply quit gathering with other believers in worship. They might pray and read their Bibles in the comfort of their living room or back porch, but they aren’t in the fray with their sleeves rolled up active in ministry any more. They are frustrated, depleted, disillusioned and disheartened and they are done with ministry or church or religion.
A couple of today’s texts address this. Psalm 11 addresses the challenge of disillusionment in the people of God. It asks the question: “When the foundations are being destroyed, what can the righteous do?” Some Christians have worked hard to help build the Church, make disciples and take a stand against sin and unrighteousness in the world, but as we look at what’s happening, the world seems to be winning and the Church is losing ground. We are seeing some of the foundations of basic morality crumble – basic issues of what is right and wrong, what it means to be a human person as a male or female created in the image of God, the meaning of the covenant or marriage and family – all of these basic elements of faith and life are being contested and undermined. The very foundations of society are being undermined right before our eyes. It’s easy to become disheartened and give up.
Psalm 11 says: “How then can you say to me, ‘Flee like a bird to your mountain.’” In other words, the temptation in the face of all of these attacks against the Church and God and morality and our ministry could be to simply fly away like a bird to the safety of the mountain, far from the battle. Go stick your head in the sand. Give up. Become apathetic about religion or God or the Church and ride the clock out. Or throw yourself headlong into achieving worldly pleasure or success (see yesterday’s devotion on money and happiness.)
Psalm 11 gives this following reminder when the temptation arises to fly away.
“In the Lord I take refuge.” Our refuge is in God, not in running away to safety away from the battle. Remember our reminder from earlier this week when God sent his prophet to Jehoshaphat- “The Battle belongs to the Lord” Let us take refuge in God, but let us not run away from the battle.
“The Lord is in his holy temple; the Lord is on his heavenly throne.” Trust that God is still there. God hasn’t gone anywhere. God hasn’t abandoned us and flown away, he’s there, he’s watching, he’s engaged and he’s working his plan through us, through the church, through the proclamation of the gospel. We can keep doing what we are called to do because we know that God is still on the throne.
“For the Lord is righteous, he loves justice; the upright will see his face.” God cares about what is right and just and good and that day will come when we will be at rest and peace. In the mean time, we may experience our share of suffering while we serve God. But we trust that the day is coming when we will see God’s face and receive our full blessing.
And just a word from the reading in 2 Timothy. Paul uses the word suffering many times in this reading. Paul knew a thing or two about suffering. Much that he wrote came while he was sitting in a prison cell somewhere suffering because of his faith in Jesus Christ. For Paul, suffering was not something to be avoided at all costs but the price of doing business as a disciple of Jesus. Paul wore his suffering as a badge of honor. He considered it a privilege to be able to suffer while serving Jesus in ministry. I admit that I haven’t quite hit that level of faith yet. I’m not a fan of suffering and I don’t like it when my ministry efforts are met with resistance or failure. I don’t like seeing people that I tell about Jesus reject Jesus or see formally faithful FUEL attenders or church members join the ranks of Nones and Dones. But I do recognize that Jesus warned us that being his disciple in this sinful world has costs and challenges and can be painful. After nearly 40 years of ministry, I have a few scars of my own. But I’m not ready to fly away and join the ranks of the Nones and Dones. I share Paul’s faith: “That is why I am suffering as I am. Yet this is no cause for shame, because I know whom I have believed, and am convinced that he is able to guard what I have entrusted to him until that day.” (2 Timothy 1:12) I hope that you know him too and are convinced. Keep yourself in the faith.
-Jeff Fletcher
Reflection Questions
Do you know any Nones or Dones? Have you tried asking them to join you as part of an active faith community? If not, will you?
Have you ever been tempted to join the ranks of the Dones? What has kept you from flying away?
Are you in danger of becoming a Done? What steps do you need to take to stay fully committed and connected to a body of believers?
I love baseball.(If you don’t please hang in there, you’ll still see the value in this illustration) I used to play baseball all the time when I was a child. I went to my first professional baseball game with my Dad when I was just 5 years old- the Seattle Pilots were playing the Washington Senators. (Fun fact, neither of those teams exist anymore and if you do some detective work you can figure out what year this was as the Seattle Pilots only existed for 1 season). I say this because today is the 2023 baseball All-Star game.
When I first discovered baseball, the Washington Senators were the closest team to my Virginia home and my Dad brought me to several games. So I became a Senators fan. But then disaster struck and the unthinkable happened, the owner of the Senators moved the whole team away from Washington to Texas. No more Senators. What would I do with my baseball loyalty? The next closest team was the Baltimore Orioles so we began going to Orioles games and I became a big Orioles fan. This was easy to do because in the 1970’s the Orioles were the best team in baseball. They were in 4 World Series from 1969-1979 and had some of the best players in baseball. They were fun to watch and they won a lot.
Time went on. I moved away from home to attend college and got busy, got married, had children, and moved overseas for a while, I still watched baseball but didn’t have a lot of time to be a fan or follow my team closely or go to many games. During this time the Orioles sadly went from being one of the best teams to one of the worst. They became harder to get excited about. My Orioles fandom began to waiver. Then, a miracle happened. The Montreal Expos moved to Washington DC and became the Washington Nationals. After more than 30 years, DC had a baseball team again. Not long after, I moved back to Virginia to pastor a church and work as a hospital chaplain. Now there were 2 baseball teams nearby, the Nationals and the Orioles and I could watch both games on local tv. I began to follow both. The Nationals kept getting better and better, the Orioles kept getting worse. So by the late 2010’s I was pretty much a Nationals fan and looked upon the Orioles with pity. And then the Nationals had their miracle season and won the World Series in 2019. Life was truly great! And then Covid happened. Even baseball got canceled for most of 2020. After the Covid shortened year the Nationals franchise collapsed and they got rid of all their great players like Max Scherzer and Juan Soto. Meanwhile, the Orioles went through a rebuild and suddenly they were a really good team again, the tables were turned and they were fun to watch while the Nationals were the team to be pitied. As of now, I find myself watching more Orioles games than Nationals. I’m still a Nationals fan, but very half-hearted on most days.
Sorry, that’s a long set up and if you’re not a baseball fan, thank you for hanging in there with me. The point is that my baseball loyalty has gone through periods of waxing and waning, with shifting loyalties. When you have no options, you have to stay with your team through thick and thin, the good times and bad times. (I know some of you are football fans who follow the Lions or the Browns so you’ve had to stay loyal to terrible teams for 50 years… good for you). When you have options- Orioles and Nationals, the temptation is greater to pay more attention to the winner, the more successful team.
What does this have to do with today’s readings? 1 Timothy 4:1 says: “The Spirit clearly says that in later times some will abandon the faith…”. Paul is here warning Timothy that even as followers of Jesus, there is the danger of letting go of our allegiance to Jesus Christ as our Lord. This rarely happens in an instant. Just like with my baseball fandom, where I slowly, gradually shifted my loyalty from the Orioles to the Nationals, it didn’t happen instantly. It was a process that I didn’t really even notice happening, but little by little I found myself caring less about my fan commitment to one team and more to another. Now, in the big picture, baseball doesn’t matter and it makes little difference to my life if I’m an Orioles fan or a Nationals fan (but if I ever cheer for the Yankees, put me in a home because I’ve lost my mind.)
But the danger of losing our loyalty to God our Father and Jesus Christ our savior and the Kingdom of God as being first in our hearts has eternal consequences. I’ve been around long enough to see Paul’s warnings to Timothy actually happen to people I know. I’ve seen students who attended FUEL faithfully, know their Bible, do Bible quizzing, and excel at their knowledge of the scriptures abandon their faith. I’ve even known people who served as leaders of the church, even a few pastors who went from preaching and teaching God’s word every week to walking away from their faith in Jesus Christ.
Sadly, I’ve experienced it even in my own family, people who I love the most, reject the faith of God’s Word. For most, this didn’t happen overnight. A thousand little decisions over time happened until one day they realized that they no longer loved or followed or even believed in God or God’s word or Jesus’ way. Maybe it was making moral compromises and they could no longer sustain the cognitive dissonance of saying one thing but doing another. Maybe it was adopting a worldly ideology of the meaning of persons or identity and finding it incompatible with God’s word and then choosing to reject God’s word instead of their worldly ideology. Maybe it was because they grew bored with God and became captivated by the shining idols of the world.
The Fastest growing religious segment in the United States over the past 20 years is the “Nones”. People who say they have no religious loyalty or affiliation. This is heartbreaking.
Paul warned that people would abandon the faith in large numbers. We see it happening today. I don’t want it to happen to you or any of the people I care about.
Here are a few suggestions I would offer to help you avoid joining the ranks of those who are abandoning the faith.
Remember, no one is immune: “So those who think they are standing need to watch out or else they may fall.” -1 Corinthians 10:12. Never assume that “it could never happen to me.” It can happen to anyone.
“Fix your eyes on Jesus”. Hebrews 12:2. Jesus started his ministry with the words “Follow Me”. Later he said, “I am the way”. If you want to get where you want to go, you need to keep your eyes steady on the one who knows the way and how to get there, Jesus.
“These things happened to them as examples and were written down as warnings for us, on whom the culmination of the ages has come.” 1 Corinthians 10:11. Pay attention to the examples of how it happened in Israel. Remember all these Old Testament passages we are reading, including this week’s stories in 2 Chronicles of how even good people like King Jehoshaphat can make compromises that lead them and their people away from God. Read the Bible and learn from their examples of what NOT to do to stay faithful.
Don’t give up on going to Church. “Let us hold unswervingly to the hope we profess, for he who promised is faithful. And let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds, not giving up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but encouraging one another—and all the more as you see the Day approaching.” Hebrews 10:23-25. The church is not perfect, I get it. Christians aren’t perfect, I get it. Sermons can be boring at times, I get it. Other options for how we spend our time on the weekends can be very attractive, I get it. But don’t give up on Church. Don’t give up meeting with other believers. We need others to help us stay faithful to God and not abandon our faith.
Don’t adjust your faith and beliefs to accommodate the values of the world. “You adulterous people! Do you not know that friendship with the world is enmity with God? Therefore whoever wishes to be a friend of the world makes himself an enemy of God.” James 4:4. As the world is moving further away from a Biblical worldview and God honoring teachings we cannot follow the world, because the world will move us away from loyalty and faithfulness to God.
Who will get my ultimate loyalty, the Nationals or the Orioles? Who cares? In the scope of eternity it doesn’t matter. Who will get YOUR ultimate loyalty, Jesus Christ or The World? That matters more that ANYTHING. Don’t abandon your faith.
-Jeff Fletcher
Reflection Questions
Why do you think, especially among people under 30, so many are abandoning their faith?
What is the biggest temptation/danger area in your life that could lead you toward abandoning your faith?
What positive steps will you begin to take TODAY to make sure that you continue to follow Jesus faithfully?
1 Thessalonians 5 carries on Paul’s discussion from the end of chapter 4 about death and resurrection (13-18). Paul had just said what it meant for a person to be dead (asleep, as a metaphor), awaiting resurrection. He said this instruction was intended to avoid the Thessalonians being “uninformed” and allow them to “comfort” each other (4:13, 18). But it is hard to imagine that Paul had not already told them about these things. We aren’t told that the people received conflicting teachings from another source. Perhaps after members of the congregation died confusion developed about how events were meant to work out. It may be that they asked, through Timothy, for more instruction on the topic of death, resurrection, and the future.
In 5:1 the discussion shifts to when these things could be expected. Paul wrote “you have no need of anything to be written to you” on the subject of “the times and epochs” – a phrase used by Jesus in Acts 1:7 apparently to describe the basic idea of events for the future including his return. When Paul wrote “you have no need” it doesn’t seem like Paul meant that the believers in Thessalonica had a clear understanding of everything related to the future, but rather that they have heard about these things before and should not need to ask for more information on the topic. The essence of the situation, as Paul lays it out, is that believers know about what is coming and non-believers don’t – in the sense of being forewarned. It is not just this awareness that affects their conduct, of course, but they will behave quite differently. One group is in preparation for that time and the other is not (Luke 21:34-36). But the future issue of knowing when that time will come is beyond both groups. Jesus had earlier declared it was even unknown to himself and to the angels in heaven (Matthew 24:36, 43). It is for God to set the schedule, and to declare it.
The events of “the times and epochs” relate to judgment, rewards, resurrection, death, joy, sorrow, renewal, and discovery. There is more tied up in that than I would try to express in one devotional, and I don’t understand it all anyway. But even with the Thessalonians clearly not having understood all that was involved in that, Paul felt that he could write: “Therefore encourage one another and build up one another, just as you also are doing.” (5:11). He felt good about them, and what they were getting done, although they didn’t have their eschatology (ideas about the future) all straightened out. That is comforting. Still, Paul figured they were about to have it cleared up, since he had written his letter. I’m not saying none of this mattered to him (he didn’t want to leave them uninformed and figured it would have made them uncomfortable). But it is nice to think there is some room for uncertainty, while we seek to build each other up.
Lord, thank you for those who have built me up and encouraged me. Help me to accept the strengthening they have offered me, and to not allow myself to be torn back down by the world. Let me use that strength for useful purposes. Help me to encourage and build up others. Please let me take that goal seriously and give me opportunities to do so. Let your Spirit work in your people to draw us closer together and show your love more clearly. Thank you, Amen.
-Daniel Smead
Reflection Questions
We hear a lot about the day of Christ’s return being “like a thief” meaning it will catch people unawares – but it seems like that is meant to emphasize the effect on unbelievers. Do you think the real effect of the metaphor might have been to make us concerned about other people not being ready for that day?
We don’t know what confusion the believers in Thessalonica had about death, we could imagine all kinds of things. Maybe they just assumed that believers weren’t supposed to die before Jesus returned, having heard of believers who were returned to life. What difficulties do you think there were for Christians as they moved into a second generation of believers?
How might things have been changed if God simply told the first generation of disciples exactly when Jesus was going to return? Do you think they might have left that information out of the Bible if they had received it? What if Jesus promised to give the believers a 30-year warning alert of when he would return? Is it better to be left with each generation not aware if it is the generation that will be alive when the trumpet sounds?
Have you even been introduced to someone as God’s fellow worker? It has a nice ring to it, doesn’t it? Paul described Timothy as, “our brother and God’s fellow worker in spreading the gospel of Christ, to strengthen and encourage you (the Thessalonians) in your faith” (1 Thessalonians 3:2). Could you be described as God’s fellow worker?
I am impressed in this chapter (1 Thessalonians 3) with Paul’s obvious heart for his fellow workers (there was a reason they were called brothers even though they had no blood relations) and his heart for the church – some of whom he had not known long and had only spent a short time with. And yet, with the good news Timothy brought of the Thessalonians’ strong faith and love Paul says, “For now we really live, since you are standing firm in the Lord” (1 Thess 3:8). You can hear his heart filled with joy. For now we really live!
Paul had been concerned that when he and his fellow workers moved on to carry the gospel message to other towns the tempter might be successful in tempting the young Thessalonian church away from true faith in God and love for Him and one another. It is a very real and powerful threat that is still active and alive today. It is why the armor of God is so important. Thankfully, the Thessalonians were standing strong.
Another way that Paul shows his heart is through his prayers – night and day – most earnestly – remembering the Thessalonians, praying they might see each other again, and praying that their faith would be strengthened even more. This is an important reminder to keep praying for our brothers and sisters in the church – even if they appear to be doing alright and don’t have any known health problems (often the most common needs on the church prayer list). The tempter is always looking for little cracks in the armor. Prayer is huge. Keep at it. Night and day. Most earnestly. Remember your extended church family in your prayers. Pray for their faith to be strong and growing – with any gaps filled in to present a stronger front against the tempter.
Healthy faith displays action and love. Pray also that love will be increased – love for each other (the church) and also for “everyone else” (vs. 12) including those outside who need to know God and His Son Jesus. Increasing love. Love is a beautiful thing – but increasing love is even so much better. Don’t be content being a loving person – strive and pray to have increasing love. Be a parent, a spouse, a neighbor, a boss, a co-worker, a missionary, one of God’s fellow workers with increasing love. Pray for increasing love for yourself, each other and everyone else.
AND – of course we have to end this devotion as Paul ends every chapter in 1 Thessalonians – REMEMBER – Jesus is coming back!! So live your life preparing for that day! As Paul says so well – “May he strengthen your hearts so that you will be blameless and holy in the presence of our God and Father when our Lord Jesus comes with all his holy ones.” This is my prayer for you – my fellow SeekGrowLove reader. Blameless and holy, I hope to see you there. Come, Lord Jesus, come!
-Marcia Railton
Reflection Questions
Wh0 has been God’s fellow workers with you? What have they done for you and for God? Do they know how much you appreciate them?
How is your faith and love doing – if someone were sent to give Paul a report on you and your church’s faith and love what would Paul hear back? Would he rejoice that you are standing firm? Where can your faith grow, filling in the gaps? How can your love increase?
Pray the prayers of Paul in 1 Thessalonians 3 (for faith filled in, increasing love and blameless/holy people ready to stand/bow before God when Jesus returns) for yourself, and your church family and extended church family. Use specific names God brings to mind. Repeat night and day – most earnestly.
How often does the Lord’s message ring out from you? How often do you mention and talk about the return of Jesus Christ? Have you had the joy of seeing someone you told about Jesus telling others about Jesus even in the midst of trial and persecution?
Before we jump into 1 Thessalonians, let’s back up a minute to consider the city of Thessalonica, its church, and the missionary, Paul , who would be writing this letter to them. We know from Acts 16 that Paul had not necessarily planned to include this Macedonian (northern part of Greece) city in his second missionary trip. He had wanted to go into the province of Asia but was prevented from traveling there by the Holy Spirit. Then Paul received the vision at night of the man from Macedonia calling out for help – and Paul and his companions went right away.
First stop – Philippi, which ended with a jail stay with Silas, complete with a hymn sing, an earthquake and a saved jailer. It was time to move on. Next stop, Thessalonica. When Paul answers the call of the Macedonian man in his vision he answers big. Thesssalonica was the largest city, the capital city of Macedonia. It was known for its seaport as well as its major highway, commerce, wealth, and strong Greek (pagan) character which all combined together to create a booming city of sin. A city of sin in need of the message of Jesus. A city of sin in need of the message of Jesus and needing to know that Jesus is coming back.
Thessalonica did have the benefit of a Jewish synagogue and community with some God-fearing Greeks as well. So as was his custom, that is where Paul would start. Acts 17 tells that Paul spent three Sabbaths in the synagogue teaching about Jesus from the Scriptures. Some believed, others were jealous of this new missionary with a new message about the Messiah who had come once and would come again. They created a mob which you can read about in Acts 17:5-9 but the end result was that Paul and Silas fled from Thessalonica that night (sent by the brothers) and would travel on to meet and minister to the Bereans (who were more noble than the Thessalonians because they examined the Scriptures daily to see if what Paul said was true. Acts 17:11) Perhaps that daily searching in the Scriptures could be one of the reasons why we don’t have a letter or two from Paul to the Bereans in our New Testament?
Anyway, that’s the background information we are given on Paul’s ministry to Thessalonica. He likely hadn’t been there too long – perhaps only 3 weeks, perhaps a little longer -but he spent that time teaching them the Scriptures about Jesus. The newfound Christian church there would definitely see more persecution as those in the city had not only persecuted Paul while he was there but even sent agitators to Berea when they heard Paul was preaching there. They would not stop just because Paul was out of town. It wasn’t an easy town to be a new Christian in – maybe you can relate.
Fast forward a few months and Paul is now in the city of Corinth. In his first letter to them Paul would tell the Thessalonians he had wanted to come see them again and again to see how they were standing up- but Satan had prevented it. So, he did the next best thing – he had sent Timothy to go check things out. Timothy had just returned to Paul with overall good news about the church in Thessalonica, as well as a few things to iron out in their understanding and actions – and so Paul would take the occasion to write a letter to them – and thus we have the the book of 1 Thessalonians. What would he tell them that we should hear, too?
-In prayer, thank God always for those who are standing strong in the faith.
-To be one others will thank God for, your faith must produce work, your love must lead to labor, and your hope in your Lord Jesus Christ must give you endurance. How are you doing in those areas?
-Realize that God’s message is for all those loved and chosen by God – share it, don’t hoard it.
-People are imitating you – make sure you are imitating Jesus.
-Keep doing what Jesus (and Paul) would do – even in the midst of suffering.
-The Holy Spirit wants to see the message spread and gives power and joy when the message is received and welcomed.
-Let the Lord’s message ring out from you! Everywhere! Let your faith in God be known! Everywhere! (Pick a spot to start today – you can’t start with everywhere – but you can start somewhere.)
-Change! Turn away from your idols (self, pride, worldly attitudes and actions, sin) to serve the living and true God.
-God raised Jesus from the dead to rescue us from the coming wrath at the time of judgment. Wait faithfully for God’s Son to return from heaven. He wants to rescue you, but not just you.
It is a great time to note that each of the 5 short chapters in this letter from Paul to the church in Thessalonica will end with teaching and encouragement regarding the return of Jesus Christ – and why it makes a difference in how you live your life today. How will you live your life today because Jesus is coming back?
-Marcia Railton
Reflection Questions
Does the Lord’s message ring out from you? If so, how and when? If not, what can – and will – you do to make it so, how and when?
Who do you know who needs to be saved from wrath? Who may God be calling you to spread the good news to -perhaps its not who you were thinking of first? Ask God to show you who and how and have a stronger passion for sharing the good news. Remember – Jesus is indeed returning and it is closer today than ever before. Why is this important?
How are your work, labor and endurance holding up? Do you need to fine-tune your faith, love and hope in order to see more/better work, labor and endurance?
What do you love about 1 Thessalonians 1? It’s so short re-read it a couple of times today.
Seek Grow Love 