Luke 23:39-43 - Confession Is Vital

Luke 23:39-43
One of the criminals who hung there hurled insults at him: "Aren't you the Messiah? Save yourself and us!"
But the other criminal rebuked him. "Don't you fear God," he said, "since you are under the same sentence? We are punished justly, for we are getting what our deeds deserve. But this man has done nothing wrong."
Then he said, "Jesus, remember me when you come into your kingdom."
Jesus answered him, "Truly I tell you, today you will be with me in paradise."

Enduring the pain of his own crucifixion, and knowing his life was speeding to an end -- this criminal understood his place in the big picture. The lifestyle he led, and the actions he had taken, had brought a ripe harvest of pain, suffering, and death.

He knew he deserved it, but Christ did not! And -- when he heard his fellow criminal insulting Christ, he became indignant and told him to stop.

He understood justice. Seeing this righteous man hang on the cross next to his, and suffer the same punishment as his own, was not justice -- it was just wrong!

He said, "Jesus, remember me when you come into your kingdom."

He had faith in Christ -- and was willing, even as he hung on his own cross -- to make it be known.

And, Jesus replied, "Truly, I tell you, today you will be with me in paradise."

And -- there it was -- the basis of our salvation:

Luke 21:2-4 - Even the Smallest Amount

Luke 21:2-4
He also saw a poor widow put in two very small copper coins. “Truly I tell you,” he said, “this poor widow has put in more than all the others. All these people gave their gifts out of their wealth; but she out of her poverty put in all she had to live on.”

He had been watching. Each one would come up and drop their gift into the collection box. A great deal was made about the sound each coin made as it hit bottom . . . a slight pause passed between each coin.

When a poor widow got her turn, the two coins she dropped in made very little noise -- and then she was gone.

Luke 18:22 - What Is Holding You Back?

Luke 18:22
When Jesus heard this, he said to him, “You still lack one thing. Sell everything you have and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come, follow me.” 

The man had asked Jesus how he could have eternal life. Jesus had even agreed with him -- he had been living a pretty clean life . . .

Adultery?   -- Never!

Murder?   -- Hadn't crossed his mind.

Stealing?   -- Wouldn't dream of it.

False testimony?   -- No way!

Honor his parents?   -- Since his birth.

The other five of the Big Ten?   -- Not a blemish on his record.

So? What was the problem?

Luke 16:10 - It's Just A Small Thing

Luke 16:10
“Whoever can be trusted with very little can also be trusted with much, and whoever is dishonest with very little will also be dishonest with much."

Is it important that a bank manager is focused on details? Would you trust a man to keep your finances if he couldn't remember where he parked his car at the end of each day?

Or, how about a cashier who just gave back paper bills instead of bothering with coins -- two dollars instead of $2.05? Even though it is a small thing -- you would feel cheated.

Luke 13:24-25 - The Party Is Inside!

Luke 13:24-25
“Make every effort to enter through the narrow door, because many, I tell you, will try to enter and will not be able to. Once the owner of the house gets up and closes the door, you will stand outside knocking and pleading, ‘Sir, open the door for us.'
“But he will answer, ‘I don’t know you or where you come from.’"

When people get together, it can be enjoyable. A large group of people?  -- That’s called a party!

No one wants to be left out of the party. You don’t even have to know what the celebration is about to have fun! Some of us just want to be “where the action is” . . . whether we know what the "action" is or not.

Here, Jesus urged His followers to do all they could to enter through the narrow door. It would not be easy to pass through -- and once the door was closed -- it would stay closed.

Jesus used this story to suggest that heaven would not be an easy place to enter. It had only one door in . . . a narrow one at that!

Luke 12:15 - Guard Against Greed

Luke 12:15
Then he said to them, “Watch out! Be on your guard against all kinds of greed; life does not consist in an abundance of possessions.”

"The one who dies with the most toys wins!" That is what it said on the bumper sticker. That seems to sum up the way the world measures a successful life.

Jesus said this way of looking at life is all wrong, and we need to guard against this way of thinking!

That is easier said than done . . .  Our peers remind us of this measuring standard every day. It takes just a few minutes of watching television, reading a newspaper or magazine, listening to the radio, or viewing almost any webpage, to have the world hold up what it says we should see as our ultimate goal:  Wealth. Beauty. Stuff!

Job 9:33 - It's Who You Know That Counts

Job 9:33
If only there were someone to mediate between us, someone to bring us together...

Sometimes it truly is "Who you know" that counts. Knowing the right person can open doors for you that you thought were closed forever.

Job knew that he was innocent of whatever it was that had caused him all the grief, pain and suffering he had been experiencing. But, he also knew that because God was so powerful, so just, so wise, so mighty, that if he approached God to plead his case, God would have had no reason to hear him.

And -- if somehow God did listen to him, Job said, "Even my own mouth would pronounce me guilty. Though I am blameless, it would prove me wicked."

Luke 9:20 - "Who Do YOU Say I Am?"

Luke 9:20
“But what about you?” he asked. “Who do you say I am?”

Have you ever had your ear to the grapevine to catch the latest news?  The grapevine-style of news gathering is full of speculation, has lots of ideas, lots of partial truths, lots of opinion, lots of gossip -- but is short on accuracy.

One day when Jesus was finally able to have a few private moments with His disciples, He asked them who people were saying He was. After hearing them talk a lot about the speculation of the crowd, He asked them, “But who do you say I am?”

That was -- and is -- a chilling question.

Luke 8:18 - Paddle On!

Luke 8:18
Therefore consider carefully how you listen. Whoever has will be given more; whoever does not have, even what they think they have will be taken from them.”

Have you ever tried to paddle upstream, or go against the current? It is difficult because for every couple of feet you make going upstream, the flow brings you back one.

In this verse, and the ones before it, Jesus was saying to His followers that they need to be diligent and pay attention - and use their understanding. If they did not, what they have would just go away, or be taken from them.

Luke 6:31 - "The Golden Rule"

Luke 6:31
Do to others as you would have them do to you.

Often called, "The Golden Rule", these words of Jesus really form the basis of our interaction with those around us. We are not to "look out for Number One," or see to our own best interest. A Christian should really never have, "What's in it for me?", cross his mind.

If we can focus on the needs of others around us, and meet those needs to our best ability, then our life will be a good life. If everyone did that -- then it would be a truly wonderful life for all.

Revelation 2:5 - It's Head - And Heart!

Revelation 2:5
Consider how far you have fallen! Repent and do the things you did at first. If you do not repent, I will come to you and remove your lampstand from its place.

What would it be like if the one you married lost their interest in you? That's not a condition that makes for a strong marriage.

Sometimes when I look at those in the church, and even myself, I wonder if we are guilty of being so busy at being "church members" that we lose our interest in the Lord. Not that we don't have a love for Him, but we just sort of let our attention drift away.

Luke 5:11 - Worth More Than Fish

Luke 5:11
So they pulled their boats up on shore, left everything and followed him.

What is your life's material dream? Is it more money? A bigger house? A better job?

A dream of Simon's, I'm sure, was a load of fish so large that the nets would be at risk . . .

After speaking to the crowds from a boat, Jesus asked Simon to take the boat on out to deeper water and cast out his nets. Simon, having fished all night and bringing in little, was a little hesitant to do it, but out of respect for Jesus he went ahead and did as he was asked.

Luke 4:12 - Testing God

Luke 4:12
Jesus answered, “It is said: ‘Do not put the Lord your God to the test.'"

How often have we been tempted to say things like, "God, if I will do this, then You do that . . .", or "If You will do that, then Lord, I will do this . . ."

We tend to want to put God to the test, when it is usually something we need to do. Maybe we need to change the way we are leading our lives; addictions, bad habits, lifestyles, etc. But, instead, we test God, as if it is something He needs to correct, and not our own fault.

Jesus was not tempted, or at least was able to overcome the temptation because He was fully confident in God's ability, without the need to test it. We need to have such faith.

Instead of testing God, we need to trust God. And, instead of getting ourselves into situations where only God can remove us, we need to be careful about the way we lead our lives, and at the same time, have the confidence that God can remove us from the bad situations.

Our faith is based on a quiet confidence, not a showy exhibition.

Hebrews 11:1:  Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.

Jude 1:3 - Beware of Change

Jude 1:3
Dear friends, although I was very eager to write to you about the salvation we share, I felt compelled to write and urge you to contend for the faith that was once for all entrusted to God’s holy people.

Isn't it strange how things often never change? Jude's warning is as vital today as it was 2000 years ago. There is always a need to defend against change. Some areas of life need change . . .  Worshiping God needs no change. God wants us to worship Him as He directs.

Sometimes we step beyond our authority and try to make changes that make sense to us . . .  However, if the changes are not in line with what God wants, no matter what we might think, they will not be acceptable, or do us any good.

Jude's use of the word, "defend," also gives an insight into change . . .  It is something we must actively watch for and guard against. We sometimes make changes that we don't even realize we are making -- even those changes will not be acceptable.

Luke 2:5 - Joseph: A Good Father

Luke 2:5
He went there to register with Mary, who was pledged to be married to him and was expecting a child.

How little credit we give to Joseph. He had to be a man of great faith, discipline and love. In a time when such things were not acceptable, he was seen as a man who had had sex with a woman before they were married.