Author: Bert Mendelson

  • Stand

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  • More Than These

    There are always times in our lives when a single decision makes a huge difference in the rest of our lives. I’m sure you can think of some in your life – college, job, spouse, children. We’re going to look at a couple of these times in Peter’s life and see how they apply to us today. The first was when Jesus called Peter to follow Him.

    Peter and Andrew had already met and spoken with Jesus (Jn.1:35-42). They knew that there was something very different, very special, about this man, Jesus. This was probably the biggest decision of their lives.
    We know that Peter had a family that he had to support. If he just walked away from his fishing business, how could he do that? Besides being his job, it seems like he probably enjoyed it, as well.
    Jesus was asking Peter to walk away from his entire life, everything he knew and everything that defined him. Peter weighed the cost and followed Jesus, along with his brother Andrew and two other fisherman brothers, James and John.

    Jesus told a story of a pearl merchant who came upon a once-in-a-lifetime pearl.

    Jesus was saying that the kingdom of heaven is so incredibly valuable that it can’t even be compared with anything else. As a matter of fact, He went even further than that.

    Jesus preached quite often about love. He even said that the greatest commandments were for us to love God with all of our heart, soul, mind, and strength, as well as loving our neighbor as ourselves (Jn.23:37-39). In comparison to our love for God, though, every other relationship should seem like hate. Some people want to simply “add Jesus” to their lives. Jesus is saying that we need to make Him our whole life, not just part of it.

    Everyone wants to live an enjoyable life. The problem is that we think that the things around us can give us an enjoyable life. Joy comes from fulfilling our purpose in the eyes of God, not other people or even ourselves.

    Peter committed everything he had and left everything he had, so he could follow Jesus. He told Jesus that he would even die for Him. When the time came, though, Peter denied that he even knew Jesus. Peter then repented and turned his life back to serving Jesus.
    After Jesus rose from the dead, He appeared a number of times to His disciples, for 40 days. One of those times is recorded in the Gospel of John. Peter was with several of the other disciples when he said he was going fishing. They said that they would go with him. They fished all night, but they caught nothing. Then, the sun was just starting to appear. They saw Jesus on the shore.

    All night long, Peter and the others labored in their own strength, and they caught nothing. Then, Jesus appears and tells them what to do. When God directed their work, it was fruitful. I would imagine that they needed money at that point, and didn’t know where to get it. Now, they could sell these fish and have what they needed.
    Peter jumped in the water and swam to Jesus on the shore. The other men used the boat to drag the nets full of fish to shore, as well.

    Jesus already had fish and bread cooking, waiting for the men.

    Jesus didn’t need their fish, but He wanted to show them again how He provided. He also wanted them to be able to participate in this miracle. They ate together, then Jesus asked Peter something very important.

    Jesus asked Peter if he loved Him. Peter’s mind and emotions were probably on a roller-coaster – up and down, up and down. He had followed Jesus for over three years, then denied that he knew Him. Now he was looking for direction.
    Jesus knew that this was the moment of truth for Peter; he had a decision to make. Once again, Jesus was asking Peter if he was willing to give up all of these things.
    That’s a question that Jesus has for all of us – do we love Him “more than these?”
    Think of all the things in your life. We live in this world, so that is how we probably define ourselves and our place in this world. But do we love Jesus “more than these?”
    After Peter replied, Jesus gave him direction – simply, “Tend My lambs.” Sometimes, we wish that God would be more specific. Peter could have asked, “What does that mean?” Jesus knew that Peter knew what He meant.
    Jesus then asked Peter two more times, and Jesus told him basically the same thing.

    When the Old Testament prophet, Elijah, was old and his time here on earth was up, God told him to go call his replacement.

    Elisha was a farmer. He was probably a very prosperous farmer, because he had 11 other teams of oxen and plowmen who were plowing with him. When Elijah threw his mantle (cloak) on Elijah, he knew that Elijah was calling him to follow him. Elisha knew who Elijah was, and he knew that this meant leaving everything that he had and everything that he knew.

    Elisha wanted to tell his parents good-bye, before he followed Elijah. Everyone knew this was a lifelong calling.

    Elisha sacrificed the oxen and plow that he had. He was saying that his old way of life was over, and he was ready to follow God’s calling. It was like he was burning the bridges behind him. There was no turning back, no retreat. This was his new life.

    Jesus asked Peter, “Do you love Me more than these?” What are we telling Jesus today? Do we love Him more than all of these things around us, or do we love these things?
    A new, wonderful life is waiting for everyone who gives Him the right answer.

    Yes, Lord, we love You more than these!

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  • God of Grace

    Some people think God is an angry judge, waiting to strike us down for every little thing we do. Others think He “understands” us, so He forgives everything we do, no matter what it is. The truth, according to the Bible, is that God does expect us to do what is right and worship Him. It’s also true that we all fail to be perfect.
    What happens when we do fail? God is always anxious and ready to forgive; we just need to come to Him, confess our sins, and He will wash us “white as snow.”

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  • Looking Out For #1

    When I used to play softball, I chose the number 2 for my jersey. I had a good reason for that. Every time that I thought of that number, I reminded myself that in every relationship, I should always consider myself number 2. It doesn’t always work, because the flesh wants to be selfish. Still, it helps to keep reminding ourselves that we need to put others before ourselves.

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  • Investing for the Future

    Are you only investing for your future on this earth? God has our future just waiting for us. Take the long view – the eternal view.

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  • Perfect Love for Imperfect People

    If we want to know love, we need to know God. If we want to love others, we need to emulate how God loves us.

    God showed us His love by Jesus dying on the cross for us. He didn’t have to do that; His love for us drove Him to the cross.
    In verse 7, Paul says that some people might die for someone else who is nice and a really good person. If there were someone who always would make fun of you, steal your things, and say horrible things about you and to you, would you die for them? That’s what we have all done when we were living for ourselves, saying and doing things that we never should have done.
    God didn’t just say He loved us; He showed us.

    God doesn’t just want to show us His love; He wants us to experience it. Paul is saying here that he wants us to be so grounded in God’s love that we would be able to understand, to comprehend just how huge God’s love is, even though it is more than anyone can understand. Imagine a love that is so great that no one can even understand it, much less live it.

    Notice how most natural, human love has conditions. We are willing to love someone if they will do certain things or be a certain way. If they aren’t exactly what we want, we might remove our love. As we just saw, though, that’s not God’s way.

    Why would a husband be bitter against his wife? It could be that he felt disrespected or unloved. Maybe his wife said or did something because she felt disrespected or unloved.
    Many times, couples have marital problems because they misinterpreted what the other person felt or meant to say. It’s impossible to know everything that someone thinks or feels.
    We are all influenced by our own experiences, from childhood to the present. How we choose to react or act based on those experiences also has a great influence on us. No one else could possibly know what you are feeling inside – maybe not even you! Of course, God knows.

    So, thinking about this logically, does it make sense for us to be upset with someone else if we don’t understand what they are going through? I’m not talking about blatant things here. There is never an excuse for hitting or abusing someone else. There’s also no excuse for being unfaithful.
    In most cases, though, big problems start with small misunderstandings or disagreements that lead to bigger things. How can we avoid most of these issues?

    Notice this instruction. It’s not just for husbands and wives; it’s for all of us. First, we need to lay off alcohol and other drugs, instead filling ourselves with the Holy Spirit. Singing, worshiping, and giving thanks to God helps us put things into perspective.
    In verse 21, he combines worshiping God with submitting ourselves to each other. We need to subject ourselves “to one another in the fear of Christ.”
    What does that look like?

    I might think that someone else hurt me in some way; maybe they actually did. Maybe, they even wanted to hurt me. If I choose to love them and submit my own feelings to this relationship, I might be able to avoid things escalating into a major issue.
    We submit our own feelings by giving the other person the benefit of the doubt, even if we think they “don’t deserve it.” We also realize that we could be wrong. It’s even possible that the other person is reacting to something that we did, and we might not even realize we hurt them.
    This is why God tells us to love others. Notice He doesn’t say to love others if they do certain things or act a certain way. This isn’t the typical “human” kind of love that we saw earlier. Whether someone else is “lovable” or “unlovable”, we need to love them.
    Let’s go back to where we started in 1 John, “God is love.”

    John is telling us to love one another, not to love one another if
    He also points out how we can’t fully and truly love others until we know God by living for Him and being born again. If we don’t love, we don’t know God (verse 8).
    Then John gets even more direct.

    I have heard people say, “I love God, but I just can’t love that person.” We see here that that’s not scriptural. John even says that person is a liar.
    Jesus said that the second greatest command was to love our neighbor as ourselves. (Mt.22:39)

    We need to always try to give others the benefit of the doubt, because we probably don’t understand everything that is going on.
    Let’s bring this one step further.

    Bottom line: love others, love God, give everyone the benefit of the doubt. Don’t allow yourself to get angry and bitter.
    Choose love – God’s love.

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  • Doers

    When I was a young boy, there was a children’s TV show called, “Romper Room.”
    The teacher, Miss Linda at the time, used to say, “Do be a Do-bee; don’t be a Don’t-bee.” There was a pretend bumble bee who was “Do-bee.” The show was teaching children good things to do and bad things to not do.
    God gives us similar instructions today. He has given us His Bible, with things to do and things to not do.

    Learning how a radio works won’t do you any good unless you turn it on. We need to do what God says, not just hear it. It’s easy to be lazy and passive; doing takes work. Knowledge is great, but only if it’s put into action. Be a doer, not just a hearer.

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  • Remember

    Suppose you learn how to drive a car. You spend weeks studying the rules of the road. You also spend months practicing, to make sure you knew how to coordinate looking ahead, keeping track of your speed, looking in your mirrors, and many other aspects of driving.
    Then, suppose you never think about it again, until one day, 30 years later, you decide to drive. That probably wouldn’t work out so well.
    In the Old Testament, the book of Deuteronomy documents Moses reminding the Israelites about what God had already told them. The word, “Deuteronomy” means “second law.” Just like with driving, we need to keep reminding ourselves about what God has said. We also need to keep practicing what He has said; otherwise, it will do us no good.

    Jesus said that this was the greatest commandment. That’s because it encapsulates everything else. If you love someone intensely, completely, you won’t intentionally do anything to offend them. God wrote and preserved the Bible, so that we would know His words, and keep them close to our hearts.

    God was telling the people to think and meditate on His commandments all day long, everyday. He also wanted them to teach their children, even in regular conversation. This should be normal. They were to put them on their hands or foreheads. Moses told them to write them on their gates and doorposts, so they would be reminded every time they came home. Why do we need to be reminded so much? Because we forget!

    Jesus taught His disciples that on the day of tribulation, they had to be willing to leave all of their possessions and let them go. Lot’s wife longed for what she had back in her old life, and she was turned into a pillar of salt. We need to learn from her example. We need to be reminded of it.
    All the stories in the Bible were written as examples for us. Jesus wants us to remember all of them.

    After Jesus rose from the dead, two angels talked to the women at the grave.

    Jesus had told His disciples and followers that this was going to happen. At first, they did not understand or believe Him. After it happened, they had to be reminded of His words. Now they understood. They remembered.

    We also need to meet together and encourage each other, using wisdom and encouragement, through spiritual songs. In every conversation, prayer, and song, there should be thankfulness in our hearts to God. In other words, we should remind each other of God’s goodness. This also helps remind us that we’re not alone in this walk with Jesus.

    Of course, the only way we can remember the words of the apostles and Jesus is if we have read them. When I first got saved, I loved reading the Bible so much that I wanted to take my time. I didn’t want to read the whole thing and then be finished; I wanted it to last longer. Now, I understand that it just keeps getting better every time I read it. God speaks to me every day through reading His word, the Bible. It helps me remember Who He is.

    Keep in mind that we need to do the actions, not just hear the words. Walls can hear the words, but they won’t do anything about them.
    God wants us to hear, remember, and do.

    Jesus wants us to remember His sacrifice for us so much that He told us to remember this every time we celebrate with communion. The bread and drink that He gave them symbolized the very real sacrifice that He was about to make. He died so we could be freed from our sins. His body took on our pain, so we would not have to endure it. Through his blood, we are washed clean.

    Encourage others and yourself. Remember all that God has done and given to us.

    Remember Him.

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  • Doing Nothing

    It might sound simplistic, but it’s true: If you do nothing, nothing will get done. What are your goals? What would you like to see happen in your life? Are you doing anything to make it happen, or are you “waiting for the right time?”

    God is telling us to listen to His voice and not harden our hearts. In this section of Hebrews, He uses the word, “today” several times. Waiting on God is important, but here are some things that God does not want us to wait for. Some people say, “One day, I will give my life to Jesus, but not today. I’m not ready yet.” God is saying, “Don’t wait; do it today.”
    If you’re not convinced Jesus is the right way, do your homework. The truth always stands up to scrutiny. We would love to discuss your questions with you, if you like. Whatever you do, don’t put this off.

    If you do nothing, nothing will get done, and you just might realize one day that it’s too late.
    Make this the day you decide to really live for Jesus.

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  • The Sons

    Jesus told a parable that we refer to as, “The Prodigal Son.” In it, He talks about two sons of the same father. It turns out that they both had issues – just different ones.

    This was a pretty amazing request. The younger son didn’t want to wait until his father died. He wanted everything right now. He probably figured he should live it up now, while he was still young enough to enjoy it. Whatever his reasoning, we know what his plan was.

    The younger son was having a great time at first. He had a lot of “friends” who loved helping him spend his money. Spending money like that always runs out, though. He soon found himself without money and without friends.

    The younger son went to work for someone around there, feeding pigs. Keep in mind that this was a Jewish man, who was forbidden to eat (or even touch) pigs, yet, here he was – feeding them. Not only was he feeding these unclean animals; he wanted to eat their food, but he wasn’t even allowed to.
    He had come from his family’s farm, where his father loved him and he always had more than enough food. Now, he had thrown that all away, just because he believed the myth of the “greener grass.” You know — “The grass is always greener on the other side.” In my experience, it usually isn’t.
    That can be hard to believe in this day of social media. It seems that everyone on the Internet is living life so much better than you are. Most of that is probably not true. Yet, we are still plagued by FOMO – Fear Of Missing Out.

    Up until this point, this young man was letting his pride get in the way of wisdom. He was finally ready to humble himself and go back to his father. This man had seen just how bad people can be. He didn’t realize what he had back at home until he had lost it.
    He knew his father was a good man. The younger son also knew that he had destroyed his relationship with his father, taking it for granted. Even though this young man knew he didn’t deserve to be called a son, he just wanted to be a servant to his father. That would be enough for him.
    He went back home.

    When we make mistakes and we sin, God wants us to confess our sins. Confession is simply admitting to God that His way is right. It helps us to understand more clearly, so that we won’t make the same mistakes again.
    The son did not get the reaction he was expecting, though. He was just hoping that his father would hire him to work on his farm, nothing more. Instead, it seems that his father had probably been looking and waiting for his son every day. When he finally came home, he was overjoyed.

    This was more than the son ever dreamed or dared to hope for. He knew his father was a good man, but he didn’t understand this. The son could not understand this kind of forgiveness, because forgiveness was not in his own heart. He couldn’t even forgive himself; he knew he didn’t deserve it.
    Some people think that they have done too much for God to forgive. That’s because they don’t understand just how great God’s love and forgiveness are.
    So, the father told his servants to prepare the best food for a feast and celebration, because in the father’s heart, “this son of mine was dead and has come to life again; he was lost and has been found.” Now, that was the younger son. He found his way back home, back to his father’s love.
    What we might not expect, though, was his brother’s reaction.

    At this point, we might think that the older brother would also be excited, because his younger brother is back home.

    Instead of being happy for his brother, the older brother was angry. It seems that even though he stayed with his father, working the whole time, he also suffered from “greener grass syndrome.” The older brother was upset that it seemed like his brother was getting a free pass – something he never got. He felt that all these years, he never received the reward that he thought he deserved.
    Now, his worthless younger brother simply walks through the door, and he gets treated like a king. In the older brother’s mind, this just wasn’t fair.

    The older brother didn’t realize what he had all those years. He was focusing on the work that he had been doing, instead of the love and security that he had in his father’s house. The father told his older son, “all that is mine is yours.” This is what God, our heavenly Father is telling us today.

    All that He has is ours.
    • Greater love than we could ever fully understand.
    • More security than we can ever find in this world.
    • Forgiveness for all the wrongs that we do every day.
    • A friend Who will never abandon us.

    It doesn’t matter which “son” you are today; God is always calling us to come closer. If you are the younger son who ran from God until he came to his senses, God is saying, “Come home, and I will forgive everything.”
    If you are the older son who thought he was “missing out”, God is saying, “Look at all you have, here in My house. Let’s enjoy it together.”
    God just wants us to live in His love and forgiveness, fellowshipping with Him forever.
    Forget about this world. The grass is always greener in God’s house.

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