September 27 - Mark 1:12-13, Matthew 4:1-11, Luke 4:1-15, John 1:19-2:25

Good morning everyone,

Today we begin with the Spirit leading Jesus into the wilderness where he would spend forty days be tempted by the devil with the same temptations we face today, namely physical needs, possessions, power and the killer of them all, pride. It is import to see here that, first off Jesus did not give into the temptations, but equally important is that it was not when Jesus was in the temple or surrounded by his friends that the enemy attacked him, oh no, it was when he was in the wilderness, alone and tired. The enemy looks for opportunity to knock us off, one at a time. He is relentless, he prowls around searching for the ones most vulnerable. That is why it is so important to be a part of a church body, there is safety in numbers. Also it is vitally important to be in God’s Word, Jesus was able to resist all of the enemy’s temptations because He not only knew Scripture He obeyed it. You have got to be able to know God’s promises to be able to instantly claim them in time of need. Right?

In John chapter 2 we read that Jesus attended a wedding ceremony with his mom, I like that. It is here Jesus performed the first miracle recorded, water into wine. Weddings in antiquity were week-long festivals. Food was prepared for often the whole town who would then take time out from “life” to celebrate the the couple’s vows. What’s nice to see here is that even Jesus stopped to “smell the roses” as my grandmother would have said. He was on a mission to literally save all of mankind and still He took a time out to enjoy life. Sometimes in our busy schedules we feel like we don’t have the time or the money to take a day or two to just relax and have fun, but balance is important. I would encourage you, and remind myself, to bring balance into our lives by inviting Jesus into our time at work as well as play. Make sense?

In verse 13 we read where Jesus got angry and made a whip from cords then drove the money changers from the temple courts. Here we need to know and understand that the anger that festered in Jesus was not an out of control rage but a righteous anger. The Jews were required to sacrifice an unblemished animal and there were some crooks in the temple who, no matter how awesome the animal was that the Jew brought in, they would reject it and make them buy one of theirs at an incredibly ridiculous inflated price. Jesus did not like the greedy, dishonest practice and He did not like them on the Temple grounds. They'd forgotten or no longer cared the Temple was a house of worship. 

That can happen in our churches today where they get used as merely a business contact for some who attend. People selling Avon, new cars, real estate (I am not singling any one out, I have no one in mind, those are just the first three that popped into my head) or maybe using the church as a social base to help a fund raiser from the kid’s school. I am not suggesting you should not sell to your friends only that there is a time and place. So while it is very import that as a church body we connect with one another by perhaps having potlucks and church functions it is much more important to remember the church building is a house of God and it is God’s business that should be conducted there, keeping the Main Thing the main thing. Amen?

Have a great day and to God be the glory.

God bless you all …..