Monthly Archives: August 2022

THE SAFEST BANK

Christian Life, ,

THE SAFEST BANK

“Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth where moth and rust destroy and where thieves break in and steal. Bot store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where moth and rust do not destroy, and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.” Matthew 6:19-21.

Jesus had a lot to say about money and possessions. He knew that money plays a very big part in our lives. He also knew that people find it very difficult to part with their money. We are naturally selfish and greedy. This is the nature we have inherited from Adam. Only Jesus can change our hearts. One of the evidences of a changed heart is our willingness to share with others.

What did He mean when He said we must store up treasure in heaven? When we share our money and possessions with people in need, we create a heavenly bank account into which we make deposits every time we give. When we are in need, we are free to ask the Lord for help because we have a bank account from which we can make withdrawals.

Now we are not speaking literally. There is no “Bank of Heaven” in the heavenly Jerusalem but what Jesus was saying was that when we share with others we create a current which keeps money circulating. We give to others in need so that the money will come back to us to meet our needs. If we hoard our money or spend it all, it will never become more.

Another way that the Bible talks about money is “sowing and reaping.” Our money is also a seed. When we plant a seed, we don’t only expect a plant to grow. We also expect it to produce more seeds so that we can plant again. How silly a farmer would be if he ate his seed instead of keeping some to sow again!

In the same way, God gives us seed to eat and seed to plant so that we will have a harvest next year. If we use all our money selfishly and never give any of it away, we will have no harvest next year. It doesn’t matter how much or how little you have to begin with, you can only reap more if you sow some.

Now he who supplies seed to the sower and bread for food will also supply and increase your store of seed and will enlarge the harvest of your righteousness. 11 You will be enriched in every way so that you can be generous on every occasion, and through us your generosity will result in thanksgiving to God. 2 Corinthians 9:10-11

People who are greedy are said to have “an evil eye”. They never see beyond themselves. They are only concerned with their own needs. If your eye is “good”, Jesus said, your whole body will be full of light. You will be able to look beyond yourself and be generous to people in need.

It impossible to serve God and money. Money will either be your servant or your master. It cannot be both. If money is your servant, you will be free to tell is what to do. If money is your master, you will be a slave to money. It will tell you what to do. A person is only free when he can tell his money what to do. Eventually, Jesus said, you will serve the one you love the most.

When Jesus lives in us, and we learn to be givers, not takers, we will be set free from slavery to money. We will have a bank account in heaven which will always have something in it to draw from when we are in need if we continually make deposits to give to others who need our help.

“Give and it will be given to you. A good measure, pressed down, shaken together and running over, will be poured into your lap. For with the measure you use it will be measured to you.” Luke 6:38.

Scripture taken from THE HOLY BIBLE, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION®, NIV® Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.

WHEN YOU FAST

Christian Life, ,

WHEN YOU FAST

“When you fast, do not look sombre like the hypocrites do, for they disfigure their faces to show men they are fasting. I tell you the truth, they have received their reward in full. But when you fast, put oil on your head and wash your face so that it will not be obvious to men that you are fasting, but only to your Father, who is unseen; and your Father who sees in secret, will reward you.” Matthew 6:16-18.

Fasting is not practised in many parts of the church today. Those who fast, do it for many different reasons; for self-discipline, to focus on God, for guidance, to get answers to prayer, or even to get God to do what they want.

In the Old Testament, the practice of fasting was often connected to a call to repentance.

“Put on sackcloth, O priests, and mourn; wail, you who minister before the altar. Come, spend the night in sackcloth, you who minister before my God; for the grain offerings and drink offerings are withheld from the house of your God. Declare a holy fast, call a sacred assembly. Summon the elders and all who live in the land to the house of the Lord your God, and cry out before the Lord.” Joel 1:13, 14.

When God turned His back on His people and refused to listen to them because of their idolatry, they fasted and cried out to the Lord when things went badly for them. Even this was abhorrent to God if they failed to obey His basic requirements.

“’Why have we fasted?’ they say, ‘and you have not seen it? Why have we humbled ourselves and you have not noticed?’ Yet on the day of your fasting, you do as you please and exploit your workers. Your fasting ends in quarrelling and strife, and in striking each other with wicked fists. You cannot fast as you do today and expect your voice to be heard on high. Is this the kind of fast I have chosen, only a day for a man to humble himself? Is it only for bowing one’s head like a reed and for lying in sackcloth and ashes? Is that what you call a fast, a day acceptable to the Lord?

“Is not this the kind of fasting I have chosen: to loose the chains of injustice and untie the cords of the yoke, to set the oppressed free and break every yoke? Is it not to share your food with the hungry and to provide the poor wanderer with shelter – when you see the naked, to clothe him, and not to turn away from your own flesh and blood?” Isaiah 58:3-7.

God hated fasting when people did it to get His attention when their lives were full of selfishness and sin.

“When you spread out your hands in prayer, I will hide my eyes from you; even if you offer many prayers, I will not listen. Your hands are full of blood; wash and make yourselves clean. Take your evil deeds out of my sight! Stop doing wrong, learn to do right! Seek justice, encourage the oppressed. Defend the cause of the fatherless, plead the case of the widow.” Isaiah 1:15-17.

In Jesus’ day, many of the religious people fasted regularly, some of them twice a week, but for a different reason. Like their praying and giving, they wanted recognition and praise from people. Jesus said that they would get their reward, but not from God.

Jesus was not against fasting. He was against the wrong reason for fasting and the way people fasted. The hypocrites fasted because they wanted to be praised and known as very religious people. Fasting is not to impress people. It is not even to impress God. Fasting is to deny yourself food or some other right so that you can humble yourself before God.

Fasting is worthless if it is not accompanied by right living. If God does not hear your prayers because you are holding on to your sin, why should He listen to you just because you fast? For whatever reason you fast, it must always be in an attitude of humility and dependence on God, not for show, but out of a submissive and obedient heart.

Scripture taken from THE HOLY BIBLE, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION®, NIV® Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.

WHEN YOU PRAY

Christian Life, ,

WHEN YOU PRAY

‘When you pray, do not be like the hypocrites, for they love to pray standing in the synagogues and on the street corners to be seen by men… And when you pray, do not keep on babbling like pagans, for they think they will be heard because of their many words…” Matthew 6:5, 7.

“When you pray…” Once again Jesus assumed that His disciples would pray. As children of God and followers of Jesus, it is impossible to live our lives as He intends if we do not communicate regularly with Him. Unfortunately many of us have degraded prayer to nothing more than asking God for things or telling Him what to do, but that is not what prayer is about!

Firstly, we must understand that prayer is the privilege of God’s sons and daughters. In the model prayer Jesus taught His disciples, we are to address God as Father. That means that, unlike people who worship idols, we have a unique relationship with Him. Fathers care for and protect their children, and children submit to, obey and serve their fathers in preparation for their role as adults.

Jesus said we are not to use prayer to show off how “religious” we are. If all we want is people’s admiration, that’s all we will get.

Secondly, prayer is not about informing God, instructing Him or making demands of Him. God is God and we are not. He knows everything about us far better than we do. When we focus only on our needs and wants, we feed our selfishness. God wants us to be involved in much bigger things than our own little lives.  

If prayer is not about wants and needs, what is prayer?

  1. Prayer is worship.

Worship is about putting God where He belongs, in the centre of our lives. Instead of looking at God through all our issues and problems, we must stop and gaze at God first, who He is and where He is. Prayer is not about getting God to come into our world. It’s about stepping in His world where He is God Almighty, All-knowing, All-powerful, All-wise and All-loving. When we look at Him first, everything else will assume its right perspective.

  • Prayer is recognising our role in God’s kingdom.

God wants to rule over people’s hearts so that He can put righteousness and truth back where they belong in the world. He does it through us when we live in obedience to Him and share His message of love with the world. We are not here to get what we want and live for ourselves. We are here to show the world what God is like and to invite people back into His family as His dearly loved children.

  • Prayer is submitting ourselves to God to be changed into the likeness of Jesus.

We still have a long way to go before we resemble Jesus, our elder brother. Two things get in the way; our unwillingness to forgive and our selfishness and greed. Jesus knew that it is not the devil who is our real problem. We are. He taught us to pray that God would save us from ourselves. When we look at the things people do to offend us, we only see how big their offences are. He wants us to see how big God’s mercy is. Then we will forgive the little that people do against us because we have been forgiven much that we have done against God.

Do you pray? As a disciple of Jesus is it an honour and privilege to be intimate with God.

Scripture taken from THE HOLY BIBLE, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION®, NIV® Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.

WHEN YOU GIVE

Christian Life, ,

WHEN YOU GIVE

“Be careful not to do your ‘acts of righteousness’ before men, to be seen by them. If you do, you will have no reward from your Father in heaven. So when you give to the needy, do not announce it with trumpets as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and on the streets to be honoured by men. …But when you give to the needy, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing so that your giving may be in secret. Then your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you.” Matthew 6:1-4.

Now that’s strange! Jesus did not say, “If you give to the needy…” as though giving were optional. He said, “When you give to the needy…” That means that He expects His disciples to be generous to people in need. “But,” He said, “it’s not only important to be generous but it’s also important to know how Jesus wants us to give.”

The Pharisees loved to do ‘righteous’ acts so that people would see how “holy” they were and praise them. They were more interested in being rewarded by people’s praise than by God. The pottery offering boxes were wide at the top and narrow at the bottom so that thieves could not put their hands is and steal. The Pharisees loved to throw their coins in so that the pottery made a noise. The people would know that they were giving money to the poor.  

Again Jesus said, “Don’t do that because, if you want to be rewarded by men’s praise, that’s all the reward you will get.”

Why is it important that we help people in need? First of all, we give out of gratitude to God because He gave His only Son for us. We also give out of compassion for suffering people because Jesus is our model and we are His disciples who are to do what He did. Then we give because our money and possessions are like seed. Just as seeds grow and produce a harvest, so our money will grow if we sow it into someone else’s need.

“Anyone who receives instruction in the word must share all good things with his instructor. Do not be deceived. God cannot be mocked. A man reaps what he sows.” Galatians 6:6, 7.

That’s how God works in His kingdom. Jesus said that we must give away whatever we need and it will come back to us in abundant measure.

“Give, and it will be given to you. A good measure, pressed down, shaken together and running over, will be poured into your lap. For with the measure you use, it will be measured to you.” Luke 6:38.

In the world’s system, we have to buy and sell to make money. We either buy and sell products or we sell our time and our skills to earn a salary. If we have extra money, we put it in the bank or invest it in some way so that we can earn interest, but in God’s kingdom our money grows when we give it away. It’s like putting it in the bank of heaven where it is safe. When we need it, God will supply our need because we have supplied someone else’s need.

Jesus said that giving is a part of our ‘acts of righteousness.’ When He saved us from sin, He also saved us from being selfish and greedy, but we must become what He said we are, His children who are just like our Father.

It is not wrong if people know we are generous if we don’t do it to get their praise. Our giving is to God and to His children because we love Jesus and want to show our love by obeying His commands. Then God will get the praise for what we have done.

“The service you perform is not only supplying the needs of God’s people but is also overflowing in many expressions of thanks to God.” 2 Corinthians 9:12.

Scripture taken from THE HOLY BIBLE, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION®, NIV® Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.

PAY BACK GOOD FOR EVIL

Christian Life, ,

PAY BACK GOOD FOR EVIL

“You have heard that it was said, ‘Eye for eye and tooth for tooth.’ But I tell you, do not resist an evil person…” Matthew 5:38, 39a.

Now that’s very different from the way people behave, isn’t it! We believe we have the right to pay someone back for hurting us, whether it be with words or deeds.

But Jesus taught something different. He not only taught His disciples not to take revenge, but He also taught us how to make people who hurt us treat us with dignity. Let me explain.

To understand what Jesus meant by “turning the other cheek” and “going the second mile”, we have to understand the culture of His day. In Israel then and even in Muslim culture today, the left hand was regarded as “unclean” because it was used for toilet purposes. If you struck someone on the right cheek, you had to use your left hand to do it. That was considered an insult because you were degrading the person by using your “unclean” hand to strike him.

Jesus said, “Turn the other cheek.” That meant not only that you were not resisting the one who struck you but you were also inviting him to strike you with his right hand. That meant that you were forcing him to treat you as an equal. Jesus taught His disciples that we must not retaliate when someone harms us. We must also expect people to treat us with dignity because no one is better than anyone else.

“Going the second mile” also means two things. Roman soldiers on duty in Israel carried heavy packs when they moved from place to place. A soldier was permitted to force a Jew to carry his pack for one mile but no further. If you continued on after one mile instead of returning his pack to him, you showed him that you were willing to help him without being forced. You also forced him to run after you and take his pack back because he was not permitted to make you carry his pack further than one mile. To do that was considered cruelty and the penalty was a day’s pay.

In this little lesson, Jesus taught us two things.

Firstly, He taught us that we must not pay back evil for evil. That’s not the way to show God’s love to people. The way of love is the way of forgiveness. Cancel the debt because Jesus has already paid for it.

“Do not take revenge, my friends, but leave room for God’s wrath, for it is written: ‘It is mine to avenge; I will repay,’ says the Lord. On the contrary: “If your enemy is hungry, feed him; if he is thirsty, give him something to drink. In doing this, you will heap burning coals on his head.” Do not be overcome by evil but overcome evil with good.” Romans 12:19-21.

Secondly, He taught us that we must treat everyone with dignity and respect because we have all been created in the image of God. We must also expect other people to treat us with dignity as well. We do not need to be anyone’s “doormat”.

Scripture taken from THE HOLY BIBLE, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION®, NIV® Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.