“What God says is best, is best, though all the men in the world are against it.”
~ John Bunyan
1 SAMUEL 10-12
20“Do not be afraid,” Samuel replied. “You have done all this evil; yet do not turn away from the Lord, but serve the Lord with all your heart. 21Do not turn away after useless idols. They can do you no good, nor can they rescue you, because they are useless. 22For the sake of his great name the Lord will not reject his people, because the Lord was pleased to make you his own. 23As for me, far be it from me that I should sin against the Lord by failing to pray for you. And I will teach you the way that is good and right. 24But be sure to fear the Lord and serve him faithfully with all your heart; consider what great things he has done for you. 25Yet if you persist in doing evil, both you and your king will perish.”
22Then Jesus went through the towns and villages, teaching as he made his way to Jerusalem. 23Someone asked him, “Lord, are only a few people going to be saved?”He said to them, 24“Make every effort to enter through the narrow door, because many, I tell you, will try to enter and will not be able to. 25Once 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.’26“Then you will say, ‘We ate and drank with you, and you taught in our streets.’27“But he will reply, ‘I don’t know you or where you come from. Away from me, all you evildoers!’LUKE 13:22-35
JOURNAL
From Samuel to Christ...the message is crystal clear. Obey God, love him with all your heart and therefore love others. There is no other way. So what is the problem? Obviously the answer is sin, selfishness, greed, laziness, jealousy and all the toxic ways in which we hurt each other and ourselves.
In teaching 7th graders it is easier to see how all of this plays out in our lives. The need to assert identity through comparison and shame is a constant theme that continues into adulthood...just in more sophisticated ways. The ultimate message often is that if we don't stand out and succeed in comparison to our peers then we are somehow less, whereas if we achieve...we are more. Identity seems to inevitably be linked to this message.
Yet the message of scripture and the creator is that none of that really matters. Jesus death and resurrection proved that relationship with the creator through humility, is really the key. Man...that so changes things...if only we really believed it and then lived it!!
In teaching 7th graders it is easier to see how all of this plays out in our lives. The need to assert identity through comparison and shame is a constant theme that continues into adulthood...just in more sophisticated ways. The ultimate message often is that if we don't stand out and succeed in comparison to our peers then we are somehow less, whereas if we achieve...we are more. Identity seems to inevitably be linked to this message.
Yet the message of scripture and the creator is that none of that really matters. Jesus death and resurrection proved that relationship with the creator through humility, is really the key. Man...that so changes things...if only we really believed it and then lived it!!
6And this is love: that we walk in obedience to his commands. As you have heard from the beginning, his command is that you walk in love.
LUKE 14:25-27
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