Blog Archives

An Expert Tempter

3/26/2018

After Jesus was baptized (Matthew 3), the Spirit led him into the wilderness to be tempted, not once, but three times (Matthew4). Once when he was hungry, the second time was on a dare, and the third time was offering him the world's riches.
     Jesus was ravenous. He had fasted forty days. His physical body was at its most vulnerable. The devil says, "You can turn these rocks into bread. Why don't you do it?" Yes, Jesus could do that but he didn't. The devil wanted him to cave. He wanted Jesus to zap the rocks and eat like a starved animal. He wanted Jesus to fail in his mission to come and pay the redemption price for mankind's sins.
     The second time he takes Jesus to Jerusalem and sets him on the highest point of the temple. "I dare you to jump. If you're really the Son of God, the angels will catch you." The devil was doing his best to provoke him.
     The third time the devil took Jesus to the top of a mountain where he could see all the kingdoms of the earth. "These kingdoms are yours if you'll kneel and worship me." Now comes the final offering, one of vanity, one of power--it's pretty heady stuff.
     Jesus had to deal with Satan throughout his time on earth. This was just the beginning; but, taking a look at the kinds of temptations and what Jesus had to say about each is the material for Sunday's sermon. Beginning with basic human needs, Jesus said that we don't live by bread alone. He also said that we live by every word that comes from God. Philippians 4:19 says that God will supply all our needs according to his riches in glory by Christ Jesus.
       Temptation is when the desire for something is not in agreement with God and his Word. Here the devil is tempting Jesus to do something that isn't really bad. It's not right but eating isn't wrong either. Satan is adept at convincing people that what they are doing is okay.
     The temptation of throwing himself off the pinnacle of the temple in Jerusalem to be caught by the angels is slick. What a spectacle--all the population seeing Jesus being caught by the angels. Just think of the fame Jesus would have. He would be known and revered by everyone. No need to spread a message of change to the world. No longer would mankind need to decide for himself. Everyone would know this is God. Who else would the angels catch? This whole thing could go sideways. The terse reply is, "Thou shall not tempt the Lord thy God."
     The temptation of power is next. All Jesus has to do is bow down to Satan. But, it'll never end. Power is its' own evil. Satan knows that. There's no end to the lust for power. Jesus is abrupt. "Go away. Worship the Lord your God and serve only him." Aren't we all glad that Jesus didn't fail in these temptations.

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Sin

3/19/2018

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The serpent in Genesis 3 is crafty. In Genesis 2 before Eve was created from Adam's rib, God had told him not to eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. Adam must have told Eve the same thing; for when she replied to the serpent's question, "You can't eat from every tree in the garden?", she said, "All but one and we'll die if we eat from it." This was all the serpent needed to twist what God had told Adam, "You won't die, you'll just be smart like God is."
     This event introduced sin into the world. And, it's been here ever since. Even God's chosen people blew it. They had gone to Egypt to escape a famine. While there, they became slaves (Exodus 1) and God saw to it that they would be rescued. He sends Moses to lead them out of Egypt (Exodus 12). The Israelites were only hours into their exodus when they saw the Egyptian army catching up behind them. This is when the complaining starts (Exodus 14:10-12).
     The Israelites complain so much that God's anger is stirred against them. He decides that everyone over 20 will wander in the desert and die there. Only Caleb and Joshua and the younger ones will enter the promised land. (Numbers 14)
     The enemy of the soul is sin. The opposite of sin is faith. Faith leads us to believe that God does what he says. Not that He CAN do it but that he WILL do it. God has told mankind that he sent his Son, Jesus Christ, to pay the redemption price for sin. Those who believe God will live in eternity with Him (John 14:1-4). Those who don't believe God will spend eternity in the lake of fire (Revelation 20:11-15).
     In the same chapter of Revelation, it states that the sea, hell, and death will give up its dead to be judged. Sin is what gets mankind to those places. Sin is transgression of God's divine law. It is putting something before God. Unfortunately, "...all have sinned and come short of the glory of God." (Romans 3:23). But, mankind has a redeemer, Jesus Christ. (John 3:16-17) The price of sin has been paid. All mankind has to do is believe it. He's made it so simple. Why does mankind make it so hard?

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To the Highest Bidder

3/12/2018

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"Thanks be unto God for his unspeakable gift." (11 Corinthians 9:15)
Missouri knows a lot about auctions because they have a lot of them. Some auctions around here even spill into the next day. Now, that's an auction.
     Pastor Josh told us about an auction he took his daughter to. While they were there, they bid on several things. His daughter would hold up the bidding card when her dad told her to. Finally, they came to something that caught his daughter's eye. Now, you could tell by looking at her face that this was something that was special to her. Dad looked up the item, saw what it was worth and would tell his girl to hold up the card. He wanted it for her because of the look she gave it.
     Someone else was bidding on it too. They would go back and forth, first Pastor Josh and his daughter and then the other person. Finally, they came to the value of this prize. The card went up from the other bidder. Dad looked at his daughter and saw the look in her eyes. He told her to put her card up and they bid over the value. Apparently the other person knew the worth of it and didn't bid again. The smile on his daughter's face was worth more than any price paid.
     Satan has had it in for man since his creation. Every despicable evil has been planted in man's heart to steal his soul from him. God has looked on and seen the evil that man has done. His creation that He breathed the very life into has become wicked. Satan thinks he's got the bid. But then, God steps in. He goes one bid higher, one. One bid more than the prize is really worth. One that Satan cannot pervert. God decides that there will be a redemption price paid for man's soul.
     God, the ruler of the universe, says that all souls are his but that souls that sin must die. (Ezekiel 18:4) It's His will that all souls should be saved. (Ezekiel 13:23) The price He bids is a steep one, the steepest of all--the sacrifice of His only Son.
     We had communion this Sunday. Our dear Pastor wants us to understand and value "the body that was broken for us." He went on to tell us that we should thank God for the old rugged cross. Back in I Corinthians 11, the people had made a mockery out of communion. Pastor Josh said, "Be careful of mixing the things of the world and the things of God. Don't frustrate the grace of God. The world can be proud of a deer head on the wall but not for Christians to be proud of Jesus."

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Sin in the Camp

3/5/2018

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"Examine yourselves, whether ye be in the faith; prove your own selves. Know ye not your own selves, how that Jesus Christ is in you, except ye be reprobates?" (II Corinthians 13:5) It's an old story that's been replayed down through the centuries. Probably, in all fairness, it goes back to the beginning of the ages. God blesses us with abundance and somehow, that just doesn't seem enough.
     Jericho has fallen and is in the hands of the Israelites. God gave them a command that the city was accursed and everyone in it except for Rahab and her household. Everything in the city is to be burnt except the silver, gold, brass and iron which goes into the treasury of the Lord. (Joshua 6:17-19) But, there's always one who just pushes the envelope too far. And there was this time, too.
     Joshua is unaware of what has happened. He summons two spies to go to a little town called Ai to spy it out and return. The spies return and tell Joshua they need only 2-3 thousand men to overcome the city. The opposite happened. When the army marched in to fight, they were whipped. Joshua is stunned. Surely the Lord didn't bring them here to be overcome by the Amorites? (Joshua 7:2-9)
     The Lord tells Joshua that He will not fight for Israel because they have sinned. And, until the deed is undone He, God, will no longer fight for them. Joshua goes through the tribes and all the families of the tribes to find the one who has heaped this evil on them. He comes to Achan and Achan admits what he has done. He spotted a Babylonian garment, in Jericho of all places, and just couldn't destroy it. Everyone knew how precious these garments were. So, he hid it along with some other booty underneath his tent.
     Achan cursed himself the day he took what wasn't his to take. He also cursed all that were with him, all of his belongings, all of his animals, and all of his family. It's a terrible price to be paid for sin. But God does not take sin lightly--just like Adam in the garden, David with the loss of his newborn son, the rich fool who hoarded his bounty with bigger barns, and Judas who betrayed Christ for 30 pieces of silver; there is a day of reckoning.
     Are we any different today? We live in a culture that encourages buyers to get the latest iPhone, the latest Vera Wang coat, the new Chevy truck, and so on. Are any of us immune from the ads? When God supplies our needs, why do we want more? Like Pastor Josh said, "It's no fool that gives up what he cannot keep to have what he cannot lose. We will either pay for our sins or accept that Christ has paid for them for us." Without the love of Christ in our hearts, we really would be reprobates.

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Linda Johnson

Linda Johnson moved to Douglas County with her husband Tom 12 years ago after retiring from teaching. Following Tom's death in 2016, Linda began facilitating a grief support group called GriefShare through Sweden Church. She serves as the Sunday School teacher for our High School class. Her "Layman's Pen" articles are also published in the local paper, The Douglas County Herald.

Andrea Strong

Andrea is Pastor Joshua Strong's wife. She also serves Sweden Church as Church Secretary, website administrator, and Sunday School teacher to the Intermediate Class.