Asides

February 28
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Uncategorized Aside

“If anyone is ashamed of me and my message in these adulterous and sinful days, the Son of Man will be ashamed of that person when he returns in the glory of his Father with the holy angels.” (Mark 8:38, NLT)

Jesus illustrates for us the principal that the relationships that we value in this life are the relationships that we shall inherit in eternity. In other words: If we are ashamed of Him and all that He stands for here in “time”; we shall forfeit Him for all of “eternity” because He will be ashamed of us then as we are ashamed of Him now.

The Christian disciple’s challenge in these “adulterous and sinful days” is to be faithful to Jesus and to His message in all that we say, and in all that we do.

This means that we love our enemies — all of them.  This means that we seek reconciliation — always.  This means that we pray for those who abuse us.  This means that we live each day as if Jesus were returning before the end of it.  – Luther

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February 27
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Uncategorized Aside

“When people commend themselves, it doesn’t count for much. The important thing is for the Lord to commend them.” (2 Corinthians 10:18, NLT)

The current fixation on self-promotion isn’t new. Folks were marketing themselves long before Paul wrote today’s admonition against the self-promotion to the Christian disciples in Corinth — which was the New York City of its day: Populous, cosmopolitan, a crossroads of humanity.

I know, I know. . . We reason that if we’re not for ourselves, then who is? It is a valid question.  The answer for the disciple of Jesus is that it is God who is our champion.  God opens doors that no one can close; and God closes doors that no one can open. 

Be faithful to Him in all things, and he will not only chart the course of your life; but He will ensure that you arrive at all of the correct checkpoints at the right time.  – Luther

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February 26
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Uncategorized Aside

“But we have this treasure in jars of clay to show that this all-surpassing power is from God and not from us.” (2 Corinthians 4:7, NIV)

I arrived at home one day to the lovely scent of one of my wife’s favorite perfumes.  My wife wasn’t at home at the time, so I figured that I had just missed her by a matter of minutes.

When she returned some time later, she told me that she had accidentally knocked to the bathroom’s tile floor a glass perfume bottle, thereby “liberating” its contents. 

As Paul reminds us in today’s scripture, we are like that perfume bottle: Fragile, yet filled with the spirit of God. The bottle’s purpose is to serve as a container of the fragrant treasure that, by its nature, changes the character of its environment whenever (and wherever) it is “liberated” — whether by design or by accident.

As we approach Ash Wednesday, remember that we are dust; clay; ashes; a tent.  But also remember that the spirit of almighty God from within us, and through us, changes the character of whatever environment, or circumstance, we encounter. Our fragile frame reminds us that the power is of God, not of ourselves.   – Luther

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