Life is unfair but God is not

Photo by Silo Nos, courtesy of
www.freephotoxpress.com

Hello! I am so glad you've come to A Good Bible Study. We are thick in the process of discovering A Passionate Love: The Relationship between God and You!

There are so many examples of God's passion for you and I in the bible, and just as many encouragements for each of us to delight just as passionately in the Lord. Today we are looking at

Psalm 119:139.

Let me ask you: have you ever felt like you have been unfairly punished?

Have you ever felt like you are trying to do the right thing, your heart is right, but someone only wants to misunderstand your intentions?

Have  you ever been ostracized, left-out, ridiculed or criticized because you want to do what's right, or even because you love God and are following what you believe He wants for your life?

If so, then the Psalms are right up your alley.

David had been chosen as the next King of Israel. This didn't go over very well with the current King, unfortunately. Formerly like a son to King Saul, David was now hunted like an animal across the land. He survived in caves, and from the kindness of those in the kingdom who knew David had only tried to serve Saul well. But Saul only saw David as a threat, even though God first chose Saul as King, too.

The problem was that Saul got a taste of power and decided he didn't need God anymore. Saul was going to do things Saul's way. He figured if he got rid of God's next in line, all of his problems would be solved.

Have you ever noticed that when you are trying to live your life to serve God, even if you don't put any expectations on anyone else, there is always someone who tries to tear you down? Part of the reason is that when we change our behavior, it makes others around us uncomfortable. This can be due to a natural human desire to resist change, or it might be because seeking a higher level of behavior just highlights the negativity in someone else. In their eyes, you're making them look bad.

It's hard to continue to pretend your living a life of integrity, when faced with someone who actually is, you know what I mean?

Saul was only pretending to serve God but David was all in. The people were chanting David's name in the streets because David was out there defending the kingdom, while Saul was sitting at home in a terminal bad mood. David sang and played music praising God, and Saul was sneaking off to visit mediums and witches, pretending God didn't know what he was about. As you can expect, Saul didn't much appreciate David highlighting his own sinfulness. He wanted to get rid of David, so he didn't have to face himself, or God.

Read Psalm 119:139 "My zeal has consumed me, because my enemies have forgotten your words." KJV

 David sings of his zeal (passion) having consumed him because of his anguish at the lack of love his enemies have for God. He wants God to renew his spirit and give him fresh hope in spite of the actions of his enemies meant to discourage and dishearten him.

Barnes Notes say, "My zeal hath consumed me - Margin, "cut me off." The word which is here translated "consumed" is rendered "cut off" "vanish," "destroyed." It means here, that he pined away; that his strength was exhausted; that he was sinking under the efforts which he had put forth as expressive of his deep interest in the cause of God and of truth"

It was breaking David's heart that Saul was trying to kill him, and David hadn't done anything wrong to Saul. David was perfectly willing to serve Saul, love him as a son-in-law and best friend to Saul's son, until God saw fit to remove Saul from the throne. David didn't want any part of hurting Saul, but Saul couldn't see past his own jealousy and envy.

Can you relate? Who can you turn to when even the people you thought loved you the most, praised you the highest, claimed to always be your friend, are the very ones talking behind your back and trying to ruin your life?

David turned to God. David reminded himself of God's love for him, God's strength when David had none left, and God's promise to bring good out of everything terrible going on. Let's follow his example:

Lord, there are things happening to people all over this world that are unfair, that don't make sense. How can it be when we are doing our best to serve you, obey you, and love you, that others don't see our hearts are sincere? Help us to remember that when no one else sees, You see. When no one else is my friend, You are. When I think I am alone, I am not for You are there. In His name, Amen.

Love, Karen

A passionate love: the relationship between God and you - The zeal of the Lord



Photo by JS Creatonzs.
Courtesy of www.freedigitalphotos.net

Welcome back to A Good Bible Study. We are passionate here - passionate about a passionate God!

This God of ours loves us with a love like no other. It never ends, it never dissipates, God never tells us "It's not you, it's me," is never too tired, too stressed, too angry to spend time with us, comfort us, listen to us, or advise us. He's passionate for us!

But, sometimes it seems like God is not listening to our prayers, not answering our prayers, not acting on our prayers. Sometimes we believe we are on our own and that we aren't even on God's radar.

This isn't some new phenomenon. People have been looking for the next sign since the beginning of time. Remember Adam and Eve? They had a unique relationship with God. God spent time with them physically in the Garden, walking, talking, and exchanging ideas. Can you imagine hanging out with God and having no doubt He is real? You would think that would make it easier to obey God, right?

God was cool. God was a lot of fun. Adam and God were good friends. In fact, God gave Adam only one rule, just one. Don't eat the fruit of the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil. He didn't say take a little bite. He didn't say eat it if you think you've got a better plan. He didn't say check with the serpent for permission to eat it. He didn't say let your wife get confused about what God said and go along with it. He said, "Don't eat it. Don't. Eat. It. Don't touch it, don't smell it, don't hang around under it's branches, DON'T EAT IT."

Pretty clear, right? So how come it took about 5 minutes for Satan to convince Adam and Eve that God really didn't have their back and they should just go ahead and do whatever seemed right in their eyes? Of anyone in history, Adam and Eve should have been the ones to say, "Uh, I don't think so." Or how about, "I'm gonna double check with God because I know He said don't eat that." Now, I guess it is possible that Adam and Eve had never been exposed to a liar (kind of like that movie The Invention of Lying) so may be they were kind of gullible.

I'd like to let them off the hook like that and say that God sure is harsh. After all, He made them. . . So it's really His fault, right?

God did make them and He doesn't make stupid. So sorry, no dice. Consider this: Adam and Eve were created with the original DNA, uncontaminated and unmutated by chemical damage, environmental pollution, and poor diets. They were the most intelligent beings in the universe second to God. A far second, but still, they rocked.

Let's be honest. They wanted that fruit.

Satan only shows us what is in our own hearts. He dangles the bait, it's called temptation, and we either run to God, or we start trying to justify why we should go ahead and do what we know in our hearts is wrong.

Adam and Eve started playing the justification game. They deserved that fruit. After all, they did all the work in the Garden, Adam named all the animals and he and Eve tended the plants and oversaw the animals. God obviously didn't want what was best for them or He would share His precious Knowledge, right?

They were on their own and they needed to take what they wanted because God was never going to share the good stuff anyway! Besides, God hadn't even been to the Garden that day to talk with them so He probably wasn't even coming back. What happens in Eden stays in Eden . . . wrong.

Like most of our mistakes, the minute that fruit touched their lips, Adam and Eve got a whole lot of knowledge they wish they hadn't. Ever done that? Wished you had minded your own business and found out something you wish you hadn't? Ever wanted to turn back time and take it back? You and me and Adam and Eve and all the rest of us.

So, let's not kid ourselves that we are the first ones to feel like God is ignoring us. Let's not pretend we can take a time out from God and like a little one year-old child say, "If I can't see You, You can't see me." Let's get honest. Let's be real.

Now, about now you might be thinking that since Adam and Eve couldn't cut it, we are all doomed to fail. Let me tell you a story with a different ending.

In the time of Isaiah the prophet of God, there was a King of Assyria, named Sennacherib, who had conquered much of the land around Israel and was after the Israelites next. "The Assyrian Empire extended from Ur of Chaldes, up the Tigress-Euphrates valley toward Baghdad then across to the Mediterranean, taking in modern day Syria. So Assyria in the Bible included modern day Iraq and Syria" (Pat Robertson)

This guy had a lot of reason to be confident. He sent word to the King of Israel, Hezekiah, that he was coming down there to take care of business. Read 2 Kings 18 for the whole speech.

Reading this I had an image of this King's emissary doing a rap before the King of Israel, bragging about his King and talking smack against the God of Israel. Then he goes out and starts rapping to the people outside the palace, telling them in other words, "Who's your daddy?"

This emissary tells the Israelites not to believe their God will save them, because no one else's gods have saved any of the people King Sennacherib has conquered. He literally starts mocking God, saying what is a real insult in that time, "haven't you gotten the news", or "did you not hear", basically meaning, what, you didn't know I'm the biggest stick in the land? He was boasting that he, the King of Assyria was the only one with any power and they better get in line or be destroyed.

As you can imagine, the people of Israel were pretty concerned. I mean, they hadn't had a word from God for a while. May be God was out of the office.

So, King Hezekiah sent for word from Isaiah, the prophet of God.

God says through Isaiah, "Don't be afraid." I got this, God says. Don't you wish we had a prophet nowadays?

King Hezekiah is pretty relieved, and begins praising God. 

¹⁵
And Hezekiah prayed to the LORD: “LORD, the God of Israel, enthroned between the cherubim, you alone are God over all the kingdoms of the earth. You have made heaven and earth. 16 Give ear, LORD, and hear; open your eyes, LORD, and see; listen to the words Sennacherib has sent to ridicule the living God.


17 “It is true, LORD, that the Assyrian kings have laid waste these nations and their lands. 18 They have thrown their gods into the fire and destroyed them, for they were not gods but only wood and stone, fashioned by human hands. 19 Now, LORD our God, deliver us from his hand, so that all the kingdoms of the earth may know that you alone, LORD, are God.”

God answers the King's prayer with a promise, first to King Sennacherib, then to King Hezekiah.

To Sennacherib he says, and I am paraphrasing here, "Who do you think you are talking to? Let me tell you a little bit about the Holy One of Israel, son."

God reminds Sennacherib of all the ways he "reproached the Lord," bragging about how he was going to cut down all the trees and dry up all the waters of defense. Then God uses Sennacherib's own words against him, saying (paraphrase) "Did you not hear that I made this world, and that I allowed you to conquer these lands and made the people defenseless against you?"

God is in Sennacherib's face now, and God tells him He knows alllll about the smack he has been talking.

In fact, God uses Sennacherib's own methods of dealing with prisoner's of war against him, saying in 2 Kings 19:28, "I will put My hook into your nose and My bridle into your lips, and I will turn you back by the way which you came." Oh yeah, Sennacherib knew exactly what God was talking about. I love it. Nothin can set you down like a word from the Lord!

See, sometimes we read the Old Testament without any cultural references and we think, jeepers, God was harsh! We've got to look deeper, search out a study bible (I use the Nelson Study Bible, NKJV) and get the "whys" behind the "whats."

After this, God gives a promise to the Israelites. He says you are going to be fine. You are going to have plenty to eat and drink. You are going to rebuild and it's going to be good. I am going to make sure of this because "the zeal of the Lord of hosts will do this."

Zeal, a synonym of passion.

See, the way in which Adam and Eve responded to temptation and the way in which King Hezekiah responded made all the difference. Adam and Eve assumed God wasn't looking and that God was keeping back something good from them. They went out on their own and we have been feeling alone ever since.

King Hezekiah was tempted to be afraid, to give in to the demands and the promises of the Assyrian King, but instead he went to the Lord. He prayed. He asked God to guide his decisions and believed God wanted the best for him. He waited for God's insight in the face of the taunting, demanding, ridiculing King.

What will you do today in the face of temptation? Will you seek God and believe He loves you passionately? Or will you hide your face and pretend He can't see you?

When I was at probably my lowest point in life, holding my son in my arms as he breathed out his last breath, I knew I had to make a decision. I was on the brink of temptation. My husband and I decided for our household, we would still serve the Lord.

I decided this in spite of the temptation to let my heart grow cold because He didn't answer my prayer to save my baby. I chose to believe God is good, even when my life seemed so bad; to believe in who He is, instead of what I could understand.

Soon after, I discovered I was pregnant again. I couldn't believe God would put me through this when I had just lost my boy. I prayed for a girl. I had a son. What was God thinking?

I will tell you. God is thinking about His zeal for you and me when we are only thinking about what we think we want and need. We are thinking about pain and He is thinking about restoration.

We named our son Joshua. I thank God for him every day. 

Joshua 24:15

New International Version (NIV)

¹⁵ But if serving the LORD seems undesirable to you, then choose for yourselves this day whom you will serve, whether the gods your ancestors served beyond the Euphrates, or the gods of the Amorites, in whose land you are living. But as for me and my household, we will serve the LORD.”

God, help me keep straight who is God and who is not. Amen

Love, Karen









What is the zeal of the Lord?

Good news: the end of the world is just the beginning

Photo by Karsten Fischbach,
courtesy of www.photoxpress.com

Hello again fellow God-lovers (and those who are still a bit unsure!) Are you feeling a little more passionate these days? That's what we are talking about in A Good Bible Study today! It's A Passionate Love: The Relationship Between God and You.

We've talked about many words in scripture that mean "passion." Most of the time the terms have referred to God's love for us, or our emotions or actions; but in 2 Peter 3, Peter describes the Day of the Lord and yes, it's a day reflecting great passion!

"But the day of the Lord will come as a thief in the night, in which the heavens will pass away with a great noise, and the elements will melt with fervent heat; both the earth and the works that are in it will be burned up." 2 Peter 3:10 NKJV

Can you imagine the level of heat required to literally burn up and destroy the earth? Yikes. God says it's a fervent heat, a heat of passion.

What then? The earth is gone. Are you and I gone, as well? The answer for some of us is yes. But, if you are interested in sticking around for what follows, read what Peter says in verses 11-18:

^"11 Since everything will be destroyed in this way, what kind of people ought you to be?"

Good question! I know most of us think we have all the answers. Be more good than bad, right? How's that working for you based on God's definition of good (perfect) and bad (see the 10 commandments, and remember it refers to thoughts as well as actions) Still confident?

Peter continues:

 "You ought to live holy and godly lives ¹² as you look forward to the day of God and speed its coming.^[b] That day will bring about the destruction of the heavens by fire, and the elements will melt in the heat. ¹³ But in keeping with his promise we are looking forward to a new heaven and a new earth, where righteousness dwells."

Peter says there will be a new heaven and a new earth for each of us who love God and accept His forgiveness offered by His Son, Jesus Christ! What a deal!

However, Peter continues to remind us that forewarned is forearmed. We can either plan for this day, or we are planning for our own destruction. Like Benjamin Franklin said: a failure to plan, is a plan to fail.

In other words, you can keep on pretending that everything is going to continue on, business as usual, or you can accept that God has an ultimate plan for your life, and for this earth and all it's imperfections.

Peter agrees, saying, "¹⁴ So then, dear friends, since you are looking forward to this, make every effort to be found spotless, blameless and at peace with him. ¹⁵ Bear in mind that our Lord’s patience means salvation, just as our dear brother Paul also wrote you with the wisdom that God gave him. ¹⁶ He writes the same way in all his letters, speaking in them of these matters. His letters contain some things that are hard to understand, which ignorant and unstable people distort, as they do the other Scriptures, to their own destruction.
¹⁷ Therefore, dear friends, since you have been forewarned, be on your guard so that you may not be carried away by the error of the lawless and fall from your secure position. ¹⁸ But grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. To him be glory both now and forever! Amen." NIV

So there you have it : grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.

Peter isn't suggesting that on our own power and strength we somehow make ourselves perfect, blameless or spotless in God's eyes. It's the sacrifice that Jesus made, that purifies our self-centered hearts.

It comes down to this: do you believe in God, the real God, not one made up for your own convenience? Do you believe God is the ultimate authority on right and wrong?  Do you believe you can ever be good enough, all the time, every day, to earn the badge of perfection?

In that case, do you accept that you need a Savior to pay the price of your imperfection? Do you accept that Jesus in all His perfection paid the price for your lack? Do you gratefully accept His gift?

Yes? Then will you spend the rest of your life loving Him for it? Following His example as best as you can? Seeking a new relationship with God who loves you so much, He sent His willing Son to clean up your sin so you can enjoy an eternity of peace, love, and joy in a new earth and heaven?

The only answers to these questions are Yes, or NO. There is no kind-of. Do you want a passionate love?

Here's how the Merriam-Webster online dictionary defines "fervent" or passion:

Synonyms: ardent, blazing, burning, charged, demonstrative, emotional, fervid, feverish, fiery, flaming, glowing, hot-blooded, impassioned, incandescent, intense, passional, passionate, perfervid, red-hot, religious, superheated, torrid, vehement, warm, warm-blooded, on fire!

Or . . . you can keep living as you have been:

Antonyms: cold, cool, dispassionate, emotionless, impassive, unemotional

Near Antonyms: detached, dry, impersonal, objective; reserved, undemonstrative

You choose.

Let's pray: God I want to be spiritually on fire! There is no middle ground that interests me. Fill me with Your passionate, incandescent, torrid excitement for living a life with You! A servant of Jesus, amen.

Love, Karen

Passion: The greatest commandment

Photo by Arvind Balarman, www.fotoexpress.com

Hello again my friends! Welcome to A Good Bible Study - our current topic is A Passionate Love: the relationship between God and you.

There are so many ways God expresses His passion for us! I love the incredibly expressive and eloquent words used to say "passion." Let's find more synonyms for this wonderful term so we can walk our walk instead of just talking our talk!

Let's read 1 Peter 4:8

New King James Version (NKJV)

⁸ And above all things have fervent love for one another, for “love will cover a multitude of sins.”^[a]

Fervent, zealous, enthusiastic, with-all-that-you-have kind of love. This is a passionate love we are talking about here. Not a romantic passion, but a sincere, active, God-centered love that encompasses your whole heart.

Do you remember what is the greatest commandment? Read Matthew 22:36-40.

The greatest commandment is to love God with all your heart, and the second is to love others as you do yourself. Here Peter reiterates that message, encouraging each of us to have fervent love for one another. A whole heart love. And why? Because it enables us to see the best in others, to assume the best of them, and to overlook one another's less than perfect personalities. Am I talking to anyone out there?

 This specific love word is the Greek "agape." Interestingly, this word was rarely used in Greek literature prior to the New Testament. It refers to showing kindness to strangers without complaining about it, extending hospitality (putting traveling believers up) and being charitable to others. In this verse, it takes on a more special meaning, specifying volitional love versus emotional love. It's active. It's participatory. It's sacrificial.

Peter gets even more specific with the concept of passionate agape love: He says each of us are given gifts from the Holy Spirit. Contrary to popular belief, these gifts are not for our benefit, not for our pleasure or profit, but a tool by which to minister to one another as believers, as good stewards of the manifold grace of God. As stewards, we are trustees of the gifts, not owners. We are managers of God’s gifts, entrusted to use our gifts to honor and glorify God. That’s powerful news because it goes against a lot of today's motivational teaching and even some preaching!

That means we are not blessed with talents and abilities so we can prosper financially, although there is nothing wrong in prospering in and of itself.

We tend to think that gifts and passions are given to us for us alone, to please us and to prosper us, to benefit our lives primarily and others secondarily. We consider our gifts to be our own personal property, meant to gain financial reward and prestige, the “wealth” of our age.

It's a lie. The same lie Satan told Adam and Eve and like us, they bought it! “What’s in it for me? What is God trying to keep back from me? Why shouldn’t I have a share in the glory?”

We forget we are stewards. It wasn’t our sacrifice that brought the Holy Spirit to comfort and bless us, it wasn’t our pain that paid the price of forgiveness on the cross, it wasn’t our power that enables us to do more than we are able. And as managers, we will be held accountable for using our gifts and whether we used it in the best interest of the One who gave it. Think on that for a moment.

So, how do we use our gifts in God's best interest? Peter tells us to use the mindset of a representative of God. He says if we speak and teach others, we need to do it as an oracle of God, with reverence for God’s Word, so our listeners will also respect it. He reminds us that we get into trouble when we start believing our strength comes from the gift itself, instead of the giver.

I know when I get caught up in all I can do, I lose strength and stamina. I lose heart. Paul asserts that by relying on God’s strength and power to minister your gift to others, not only are we honoring God, but we can be sure that when we need a powerful presentation or manifestation of talent, we are connected to the unending Source!

Let's pray:

Father, thank you for all the good gifts you've given me. Help me to remember they are a blessing, not a self-endowed right. Let me honor you with my attitude, as well as my gifts. In your name, amen.

Getting prayers answered

Photo by Jamie Dupluss, courtesy www.photoxpress.com

Hello, my friend. Pull up a chair and warm yourself, it's time to delve into a Passionate Love: the relationship between God and you, and find out how to get prayers answered!

Are you starting to get it that God is passionate about you? Specifically you, not a general "you?"

He wants a relationship with you that is both like, and unlike, any other. Like any other in that He wants a two-way street. Imagine any relationship with someone you love. What do you do to express and increase that love?God wants that, as well.

He wants to spend time together in prayer both talking and listening, for us to make time for Him to read His Word, seeking wisdom and understanding, and to be proud to be with Him versus being a closet believer who acts one way in private and another in church.

He doesn't want us to fake it. He wants us to live it!

Unlike any other in that the subject of our passion is no mere human who can leave us or forsake us, but the Creator of Heaven and Earth who promises He will never leave or forsake us. (Hebrews 13:5)

He wants us to experience the passion and power of a real, living, active, relationship with the Most High.

Now, this is where it gets dicey, because it's so easy for all of us (me included) to slip off into seeing God as a personal genie, there to make our dreams come true regardless of what His vision and plans are for our lives. We too easily take advantage of His loving nature and begin to make demands.

"If you will only do this for me, then I will serve you forever."

"Lord, if you will just help me out of this self-created mess one more time, I promise I will change my ways."

"If you give me one more sign, then I will believe in You."

"If you don't start making things turn out my way, I'm giving up on You."

"If you really loved me, you would not let this happen to me."

It gets dicey because God really does want the best for us. He wants to give us all that we need and even quite a bit of what we desire. He wants to bless us and answer our prayers.

The problem is that sometimes what we pray for is not going to give us what we really need in the long run, or what someone else really needs in the long run. So here is the dilemma.

How does a good parent say, "no," "not now but may be later," or "I know you think this is the best for you, but I am working out something even better," or even, "I know this hurts and doesn't make any sense to you, but it's got to happen this way for a bunch of reasons you just are not going to be able to accept or understand in this lifetime," without incurring the anger, hurt feelings, or even temper, of a child?

It's easier if the child believes the parent is overall good, loving, and would not do anything to intentionally hurt her. That the parent wants the best for that child, and would die for him, if necessary. That like it or not, the right thing to do is obey, and trust that even if she doesn't understand, the parent does, and something good will come from this situation.

Can you, as a parent or as a child, imagine this scenario?

We are the child, and God is the loving parent who is willing to do the job of parent, instead of trying to please us constantly like an over-achieving best friend. Sometimes (often) allowing us to feel disappointment, anger, and anguish for reasons that at times, we just don't understand.

We can choose to believe God is good, that He loves us, that He does have a good plan for us, and even when He does not intervene to prevent what hurts us, that He will bring something good from our pain. We can believe that He will comfort us, even when we don't understand why life does not seem to be working out the way we want it to.

Or, we can choose to stomp our feet and demand "Why isn't what I want happening!?"

I heard a self-defining comment at a sermon Sunday at StoneRidge Community Church in Decorah, IA. The pastor basically said that we want God to change our situation, but He is more interested in changing us.

See, we are interested in what's happening to us, but God is interested in what is happening in us. I think much of what we get so worked up about is keeping us from having what we want: answered prayers. Our focus is off.

According to the Word of God, we can have exactly what we want, as long as we are wanting the right things. What does that mean?

Well, do you really believe God wants you to have an expensive new car? May be He does want to bless you that way, but I bet His first concern is your heart, your intention, your financial behavior, your treatment of your family, and as for having a car, isn't the true need transportation and not an $85,000 trinket? 

Hmm, I am getting in your business now, aren't I?

May be He wants you to get married, but it might not be to that particular man or woman who is going to cause you nothing but heartbreak down the road.

May be He is shutting the door to that job you think is the answer to all of your prayers, because He is creating a situation in which you will become so desperate for His answer and not your own, that He can bring you into a job that will end up being exactly what you need, but one which you would not have even considered on your own.

So, the real answer is when does God answer prayers? Read James 5:16 .

“The effective, fervent prayer of a righteous man avails much.” NKJV

What is effective? A prayer that is answered and is active.

What is fervent? Come on now, you know this one. Passionate, sincere, humble, believing in His ability and desire to answer you.

What is righteous?  "It is living by every word of God (Matthew 4:4)

So the prayer of the righteous is answered . . . the prayer of one living by every word of God is answered.

Living by every word of God is not living perfectly, but living forgiven. It is not living without making mistakes, but living with a heart for God's will in your life. It's seeking His will first thing every morning, and it's living according to that will as you understand it.

Neither does living by the word of God mean living in fear of punishment. It means being truly sorry when you have behaved wrongly, been hurtful to others, or held a grudge, and telling Him so. It means getting to know God and doing your best to show Him love, in return for His. It means wanting what He wants, which is the best for your life.

Let me ask you, if your daily prayer was altered from "Lord, make my plans work out," to "Lord, I trust your plan for me today," do you think your level of satisfaction with your life might change?

Can you imagine praying, "Father, open my eyes to your will in my life, and give me a heart that desires only what is good for me?"

Taking yourself off the throne of your life, and putting God there instead takes a leap of faith. If you want a passionate relationship with the Most High, if you want your prayers answered, if you want to enjoy your life instead of seeing all the ways you are not getting your way, then it's worth it.

Let's pray:

Father, I've often stepped into Your role as King, in my life. I am sorry. I want Your will to rule my desires and my actions from now on. I want my prayers answered. I want to love what You love, and to enjoy the excitement and passion for life that only following You will give me! Take my life and make it Yours from now on. Help me to pray each day, and all day, "Not my will, but Yours." Amen

Love, Karen

What does a passionate love do?

Photo by Andrei Merkulov, courtesy of www.photoexpress.com

Welcome! I am so glad to see you here in A Good Bible Study! We are soaking ourselves in A Passionate Love: the relationship between God and you. But, what does a passionate love do?

We've begun to search the bible for synonyms of the word "passion." They are sprinkled throughout God's Word like an invigorating spring shower.

I love knowing the passion I have for life, for living, and for loving, comes straight from the heart of God! God is passionate and wants to see you express that passion actively!

You know, one of the first books I read as a new Christian was Paul's letter to the Romans. Some people think Paul's letter is a sort of what not to do, for Christians. I disagree! It reads to me more like the way to live passionately for Christ!

Let's read Chapter 12, verses 9-11. I included three translations so you can really get a feel for Paul's message. These passages follow Paul's encouragement to all Christians, to use the gifts given to each of us by the Holy Spirit.

That's right. Gifts. You've got 'em.

Don't you know when you recognize that Jesus is the Son of God, sent to buy you and me out of slavery to sin (redeemed), and that He not only died for our sins but was raised from the dead just as the Scripture foretold - did you know at that point of sincere belief that you receive the Holy Spirit, as a bonus!?

And that's not all! The Holy Spirit doesn't come empty handed - He brings gifts! And it's our job to put them to use! Read Romans 12:6-8 for a listing of some of the gifts later. For now, let's continue with zeal and passion!

What does it mean to love God, and His children, passionately? Romans 12:9-11 describes such a love: it's love in action! (I bolded the words that mean passion.)

Romans 12:9-11 New International Version (NIV)

⁹ Love must be sincere. Hate what is evil; cling to what is good. ¹⁰ Be devoted to one another in love. Honor one another above yourselves. ¹¹ Never be lacking in zeal, but keep your spiritual fervor, serving the Lord.

Romans 12:9-11 New Living Translation (NLT)

⁹ Don’t just pretend to love others. Really love them. Hate what is wrong. Hold tightly to what is good. ¹⁰ Love each other with genuine affection,^[a] and take delight in honoring each other. ¹¹ Never be lazy, but work hard and serve the Lord enthusiastically.^[b]

Romans 12:9-11     The Message (MSG)

^9-10Love from the center of who you are; don't fake it. Run for dear life from evil; hold on for dear life to good. Be good friends who love deeply; practice playing second fiddle.
^11-13Don't burn out; keep yourselves fueled and aflame. Be alert servants of the Master, cheerfully expectant. Don't quit in hard times; pray all the harder. Help needy Christians; be inventive in hospitality.

Paul is talking about really loving passionately, self-sacrificially and without hypocrisy! He wants us to mean it. In Romans 12:12-21 Paul continues to get real specific on this passion thing:

 Romans 12:12-21

New International Version (NIV)

¹² Be joyful in hope, patient in affliction, faithful in prayer. ¹³ Share with the Lord’s people who are in need. Practice hospitality.
¹⁴ Bless those who persecute you; bless and do not curse. ¹⁵ Rejoice with those who rejoice; mourn with those who mourn.
¹⁶ Live in harmony with one another. Do not be proud, but be willing to associate with people of low position.^[a] Do not be conceited.
¹⁷ Do not repay anyone evil for evil. Be careful to do what is right in the eyes of everyone. ¹⁸ If it is possible, as far as it depends on you, live at peace with everyone.
¹⁹ Do not take revenge, my dear friends, but leave room for God’s wrath, for it is written: “It is mine to avenge; I will repay,”^[b] says the Lord.
²⁰ 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.”^[c]
21 Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.

You know, this is kind of a check list:

"What do I do in this situation?" Look in Romans 12!

"How should I respond to this person?" Look in Romans 12!

"What should I do next?" Go to the mattresses! What? No - look in Romans 12! (I admit I have watched You've Got Mail too many times.)

Let's pray: Lord, thank you for giving us something specific to get our teeth into. Sometimes I just want to know what to do! Romans is that answer. Give us insight into our situations today, and into the people we meet. Help us to love passionately, sincerely, and actively, in Your name, as Your representatives. Amen

Passion in action: Apollos, Priscilla, and Aquila in Acts 18

Photo by Arvind Balaraman, courtesy of www.freedigitalphotos.net

Welcome again to A Good Bible Study, where together, we are exploring A Passionate Love: the relationship between God and you!

I can't wait to share with you about a really cool trio of friends: Apollos, Priscilla, and Aquila in Acts 18. It's truly passion in action!

Let's start by reading Acts 18:24-28.

This is one of my favorite passages and if you've got any desire at all to share God's passionate love and grace to anyone, it might soon become a favorite of yours, as well. 

^"24Meanwhile, there was a Jew named Apollos, a native of Alexandria, who came to Ephesus. He was a cultured and eloquent man, well versed and mighty in the Scriptures.

²⁵He had been instructed in the way of the Lord, and burning with spiritual zeal, (the NKJV says fervent in spirit) he spoke and taught diligently and accurately the things concerning Jesus, though he was acquainted only with the baptism of John.
²⁶He began to speak freely (fearlessly and boldly) in the synagogue; but when Priscilla and Aquila heard him, they took him with them and expounded to him the way of God more definitely and accurately.
²⁷And when [Apollos] wished to cross to Achaia (most of Greece), the brethren wrote to the disciples there, urging and encouraging them to accept and welcome him heartily. When he arrived, he proved a great help to those who through grace (God's unmerited favor and mercy) had believed (adhered to, trusted in, and relied on Christ as Lord and Savior).
²⁸For with great power he refuted the Jews in public [discussions], showing and proving by the Scriptures that Jesus is the Christ (the Messiah)." Amplified Bible

So, here's this guy, Apollos. He's grown up in Greece, so he probably looks and sounds like a gentile, though he is a Jewish Christian. Like all Greeks, he is an educated man. As a Jew, he's also well-read in the Scriptures. So, if anyone is going to know what the Old Testament says about the coming Messiah (Jesus), it's Apollos.

Someone had gotten ahold of this guy and shared the truth of Jesus's coming with him, and he was on fire about it! And Apollos knew that any Jewish scholar should be able to review the Scripture and come up with the same inevitable conclusion, that only Jesus could be the Messiah. So, I figure Apollos' opinion was that if knowing all this, you still couldn't put two and two together, you must have been knocked on the head as a child, you know what I mean?

The thing I love about Apollos, was that he hadn't even met Jesus. He didn't even know all that had gone down, he just knew Jesus fulfilled the prophecy and that alone was exciting enough! Peter says Apollos knew only the baptism of John, but so much more happened since!

But, isn't it exciting that not having all the information didn't stop Apollos from sharing what he knew so far? He didn't say, "Well, before I get excited about this and spread the awesome news, I'm going to go back to school and learn everything there is to know about Jesus." Neither did he go ask someone in authority if he should share his good news. Because I think that's what a lot of us do.

We know Jesus is the Messiah, we have had some personal life-changing experience, but we are afraid of what people will think if we share it. We think we need to get a PhD in Scripture before we've got any business sharing what we've learned so far. We think we've got to get someone in authority to give us the thumbs up before we talk about it!

I'm not suggesting any of us, educated or not, proclaim to be the ultimate authority on Jesus. I'm not suggesting you purport yourself as knowing one thing more than you actually do. I'm saying only you can share your personal experience with Jesus Christ; only you can explain the effect He's had on your life, and only you can share your insights gleaned from reading His Word, just as I am doing now, with all of you.

No one can argue that, and you don't have to defend it. It just is. Just like Apollos knowing the Scripture backwards and forwards, and that Scripture could only point to Jesus as Messiah. It was what it was; what it is.

So, Apollos didn't wait around for permission to share what he knew to be true. In fact, Peter says Apollos was fervent in spirit, he was burning with spiritual zeal. He was gonna jump up and shout the news!

Now, Apollos wasn't exactly ignorant, to be sure. He really did have the equivilant of a PhD in Scripture. He knew his stuff. Nothing was getting by this guy.

But he didn't know the rest of the story. He only knew the baptism of John, and nothing about the Holy Spirit or the work of the apostles, or what he should do if he couldn't convince the Jewish leaders of the truth.

He knew the Messiah had come, but he didn't know what that meant for both the Jews and the Gentiles. Luckily for Apollos, he ran into Priscilla and Aquila.

Priscilla and Aquila were prominent leaders in the early church. They were a husband and wife team, and contrary to Jewish tradition, Aquila was not the leader, or Pastor, with Priscilla merely a wife helping out in her husband's ministry.

Scripture mentions the pair 6 times and in four of those instances (Acts 18:18, 26; Rom 16:3; 2 Tim 4:19), Priscilla is mentioned first, followed by Aquila, which bible scholars familiar with the style of Greek writing, suggest indicates an equal role.  It is likely that in some areas Priscilla was in charge, while in other situations, Aquila took the lead.

This is only one of many examples in which God shows us that women are a vital resource in Christian church leadership. So take heart, ladies, you can be an Apollos, too.

Aquila and Priscilla heard Apollos preaching, and they invited him to their home. They recognized the passion he had for Jesus, and realized Apollos was missing some vital information.

Did they contradict him in public? Did they talk about him behind his back? Did they undermine his ministry? Did they pull him aside and let him know he wasn't good enough to preach because he didn't know as much as they? Praise God, no! What a resource that would have been lost had that been the case.

Neither did they say, "Oh well, he doesn't have some vital information, but he is passionate and enthusiastic, so let him do what he's doing." That would have been just as much a diservice to both Apollos and to his listeners, as if they'd ostrasized him.

Instead, Priscilla and Aquila took Apollos home and fed him, then filled in the missing pieces. The Greek says they took him aside to teach him undisturbed. Can you imagine the joy of Apollos when his new friends shared what had all happened after John the Baptist announced the arrival of the Messiah?

Apollos was so excited about this news, so enthusiastic to work with other passionate Christians, he couldn't wait to get back to Greece and get involved. Peter says Priscilla and Aquila sent word to the leaders of the church to welcome Apollos and off he went, becoming "a great help."

Can you imagine the outcome if Apollos had been too full of pride to accept their instruction? What if he had said, "Hey, I know a whole lot more about Scripture than you, and I am doing just fine on my own. I like running my own show, so thanks, but no thanks."

Apollos was fervent, passionate, zealous for the Good News of Jesus Christ and so he wanted to know more. He was willing to be taught, and he was willing to spend time learning and working with those who had the experience he lacked.

I love this story for so many reasons! What about you? What speaks to your heart? Is it the passion for Apollos? Is it his determination to get out there and share the Truth, even though he didn't know everything?

Is it God's example of a women in Christian leadership? Is it the genuine grace and love of God evident in both Priscilla and Aquila, who stoked the fire of Apollos instead of shutting him down? Or is it Apollos' desire to learn, and be useful to God?

Spend some time thinking about where you fit in this story, and what you can do with what you already know. What more do you need to learn?

Let's pray: Father, thank you so much for leaders and teachers who point us to you, who encourage the gift you have placed in us, who share their insight and knowledge without extinguishing our passion to be of service to you. Give us each the courage to share what we do know,  even if we don't have all the answers.

The fervent desire of Jesus

Photo by Gary, courtesy of Photoexpression.com

Hello again - it's so good to spend time with you today in A Good Bible Study! If you are sticking with this study of "A Passionate Love: the relationship between God and you" then you are probably, like me, ready to lighten up a bit!

We've shared quite a bit about the negative side of passion, and how we can get our passion mixed up with ambition, anger, or false spirituality. I'm ready to hear more about the passion of our Lord, for you and for me!

I searched for synonyms for "passion" in my Nelson Study Bible, New King James Version, which is the main resource for this study, and I found the following:  fervent and fervently; delight; delighted; and delights. During the next few lessons, we will delve into the passages containing these passionate terms.

 Now, we've got to start with Jesus! I love this passage, in particular, from Luke 22:15.

"On the night of the Passover Jesus sat down with the apostles and said, 'With fervent desire I have desired to eat this Passover with you before I suffer, for I say to you, I will no longer eat of it until it is fulfilled in the kingdom of God.'”

I love the way the Weymouth New Testament translates it: Earnestly have I longed to eat this Passover with you.

Do you hear the love and yearning in this passage? Fervent desire, desired . . . earnestly, longed. Repeating words to magnify the intensity of the meaning is called an anaphora.  Do you see how each repetition or synonym lends weight to the importance of their relationship? It's like an exclamation point!

Gill's Exposition of the Entire Bible contains one of the most descriptive explanations of why Jesus was so emphatic about eating this particular meal with His disciples. It says, for one, "because he should eat it 'with' his disciples; an emphasis lies on the phrase, 'with you', to whom, and not so much to the passover," itself.

Jesus wasn't just hungry. He wasn't just glad to be participating in one of the most important Jewish traditions. Jesus has a bond with these particular individuals, like to no one else. He is preparing to suffer intense physical and emotional pain for not only their sakes, but for each of us in the world, and like anyone, Jesus wanted to spend his last hours with those he loved, and with those who would carry on His work.

In addition, Jesus knew that this was the Passover, the one that immediately precedes His fulfillment of the promise of the Passover: salvation. Once Jesus left that table, He knew He would be arrested, horrifically tortured, and nailed to a cross until His human body was dead. He was ready to do what it was He came to do: give His life in exchange for ours.

Gill's says it this way: He looked forward to this night "since hereby justice would be satisfied, the law would be fulfilled, sin atoned for, and the salvation of his elect obtained; for whom he bore the strongest affection, and whom he loved with a love of complacency, and whose salvation he most earnestly desired, and even sufferings for the sake of it."

Oh, to be there in the morning of the third day, Sunday, when Mary found the tomb empty and her Lord alive!

Read it for yourself. It's almost like the ending of an incredible movie that gets even better when you discover the story is true!

John 20 New International Version "The Empty Tomb 1Early on the first day of the week, while it was still dark, Mary Magdalene went to the tomb and saw that the stone had been removed from the entrance. 2So she came running to Simon Peter and the other disciple, the one Jesus loved, and said, “They have taken the Lord out of the tomb, and we don’t know where they have put him!” 3So Peter and the other disciple started for the tomb. 4Both were running, but the other disciple outran Peter and reached the tomb first. 5He bent over and looked in at the strips of linen lying there but did not go in. 6Then Simon Peter, who was behind him, arrived and went into the tomb. He saw the strips of linen lying there, 7as well as the burial cloth that had been around Jesus’ head. The cloth was folded up by itself, separate from the linen. 8Finally the other disciple, who had reached the tomb first, also went inside. He saw and believed. 9(They still did not understand from Scripture that Jesus had to rise from the dead.) Jesus Appears to Mary Magdalene 10Then the disciples went back to their homes, 11but Mary stood outside the tomb crying. As she wept, she bent over to look into the tomb 12and saw two angels in white, seated where Jesus’ body had been, one at the head and the other at the foot. 13They asked her, “Woman, why are you crying?” “They have taken my Lord away,” she said, “and I don’t know where they have put him.” 14At this, she turned around and saw Jesus standing there, but she did not realize that it was Jesus. 15“Woman,” he said, “why are you crying? Who is it you are looking for?” Thinking he was the gardener, she said, “Sir, if you have carried him away, tell me where you have put him, and I will get him.” 16Jesus said to her, “Mary.” She turned toward him and cried out in Aramaic, “Rabboni!” (which means Teacher). 17Jesus said, “Do not hold on to me, for I have not yet returned to the Father. Go instead to my brothers and tell them, ‘I am returning to my Father and your Father, to my God and your God.’” 18Mary Magdalene went to the disciples with the news: “I have seen the Lord!” And she told them that he had said these things to her. Jesus Appears to His Disciples 19On the evening of that first day of the week, when the disciples were together, with the doors locked for fear of the Jews, Jesus came and stood among them and said, “Peace be with you!” 20After he said this, he showed them his hands and side. The disciples were overjoyed when they saw the Lord. 21Again Jesus said, “Peace be with you! As the Father has sent me, I am sending you.” 22And with that he breathed on them and said, “Receive the Holy Spirit. 23If you forgive anyone his sins, they are forgiven; if you do not forgive them, they are not forgiven.” Jesus Appears to Thomas 24Now Thomas (called Didymus), one of the Twelve, was not with the disciples when Jesus came. 25So the other disciples told him, “We have seen the Lord!” But he said to them, “Unless I see the nail marks in his hands and put my finger where the nails were, and put my hand into his side, I will not believe it.” 26A week later his disciples were in the house again, and Thomas was with them. Though the doors were locked, Jesus came and stood among them and said, “Peace be with you!” 27Then he said to Thomas, “Put your finger here; see my hands. Reach out your hand and put it into my side. Stop doubting and believe.” 28Thomas said to him, “My Lord and my God!” 29Then Jesus told him, “Because you have seen me, you have believed; blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed.” 30Jesus did many other miraculous signs in the presence of his disciples, which are not recorded in this book. 31But these are written that you maya believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have life in his name."

Lord, thank you for loving us so earnestly, so passionately, so willingly! I pray that each of us reading this study, experiences the depth of your love today! In the name of Jesus, amen

Worshipping the Creator, or the creation?

Photo by Graurraz Vanionut. Courtesy of freedigitalphotos.net

Welcome to A Good Bible Study! Our topic is A Passionate Love: the relationship between God and you.

If you have been reading the New Testament for a while, you've probably noticed that many of Paul’s letters contained some kind of response to the doctrine of false teachers. It seems there is always some new group passionate about a secret way to attain spiritual heights, but having nothing actually to do with the Spirit of God. Paul particularly criticized the Gnostics, who focused on either exploiting the pleasures of the body, or denying them.

Gnostics taught that "special" knowledge was required to break from the physical realm into the spiritual, thereby negating the power of God or the need for Him. Only through their rituals and recitations could you really become spiritual. Sound familiar? And you thought the New Age was new.

Gnostics had two ways of thinking: Those who worshipped pleasure believed that since the body was not spiritual, you could do what you wanted with it and it wouldn’t affect your spirit or salvation. Yet, those who believed the body was evil, punished their bodies with torture and denial of basic comfort in an effort to earn spirituality. Both views are in direct conflict with Scripture, focusing either on earning salvation, or living both carnally and spiritually at once, which is not possible. 

"No one can serve two masters, for either he will hate the one and love the other; or else he will be devoted to one and despise the other." Matthew 6:24

God loves us and what He created is good. He said so. We are body, spirit, and soul and what we do to one intimately affects the other. We cannot earn, or learn, salvation or spirituality. It is a result of our passionate relationship with God through Jesus Christ.

Romans 1:18-32 describes God’s response to those who claim to be wise and sophisticated, who worship God's creation instead of the Creator.

All of creation is not God, but is evidence of God. Since the earliest of times however, there have been those who turn away from our Father who has all the power to help, as well as the love and desire to do so, and instead worship the proof of a Creator, as if it could do one thing to change our lives.

The wrath of God is revealed from heaven, Paul says, against all unrighteousness and ungodliness of those who have had the truth revealed to them, and yet suppress the truth.

“¹⁸ But God shows his anger from heaven against all sinful, wicked people who suppress the truth by their wickedness.^{[i] 19} They know the truth about God because he has made it obvious to them. ²⁰ For ever since the world was created, people have seen the earth and sky. Through everything God made, they can clearly see his invisible qualities—his eternal power and divine nature. So they have no excuse for not knowing God.

²¹ Yes, they knew God, but they wouldn’t worship him as God or even give him thanks. And they began to think up foolish ideas of what God was like. As a result, their minds became dark and confused. ²² Claiming to be wise, they instead became utter fools. ²³ And instead of worshiping the glorious, ever-living God, they worshiped idols made to look like mere people and birds and animals and reptiles.
²⁴ So God abandoned them to do whatever shameful things their hearts desired. As a result, they did vile and degrading things with each other’s bodies. ²⁵ They traded the truth about God for a lie. So they worshiped and served the things God created instead of the Creator himself, who is worthy of eternal praise! Amen. ²⁶ Romans 1:18-26

Now we might say that we are above worshipping and praying to a statue, or a tree, but are we?

There are those who kill people in protest of others who destroy the habitat of the owl or hunt whale; those who blow up abortion clinics (and the people within) to protest the killing of our unborn children; those who lose their health, livelihood, and families in pursuit of drugs; spend hours each day searching for information about their favorite celebrity online, or playing Internet games from the moment they get home till late into the night while their spouse and children live with a virtual ghost; carry on an addicted affair with pornography; or live every moment for the next financial deal.

Are we too sophisticated for our own good?

“Therefore God gave them up to uncleanness, in the lusts of their hearts, to dishonor their bodies among themselves, who exchanged the truth of God for the lie, and worshipped and served the creature rather than the Creator, who is blessed forever, Amen. For this reason, God gave them up to vile passions.” 

Lord, thank you for giving us signs of who You are everywhere we look. From the glory of your design for everything both alive and inanimate, to the beauty and splendor in each day, your creation sings of Your passion for each of us. Help us to be truly wise, and not just wise in our own eyes! Give us a passion for You! In the name of Jesus, amen