Accepted

Ephesians 1:6 To the praise of the glory of his grace, wherein he hath made us accepted in the beloved.

To be accepted, that is what we all look for to one degree or another. We want to belong. We wear certain clothes, get hair styles (or colors), say and do things that violate our own sense of being just to be accepted by another group of people. Some even will join a church to have this acceptance, this sense of belonging, we attend, join groups, and learn the lingo just to fit in but even that falls short.

Look at what it really says here: we are not acceptable. He makes us accepted in the beloved. Who is this He? Why it I Jesus Christ of course!

Jest think of the story of Levi, also called Matthew. He was a dreaded tax collector for the hated Roman government. The name of Levi means “joined to” and the tribe of Levi was reserved to the service of God. Yet here he was, considered at least a traitor, at worse a thief. He was alone and shunned by his countrymen. Every time someone called his name Levi, it must have mocked him. He was alone, an outcast, not a part of or joined to anybody (except other publicns and sinners).

What did Jesus say to this man? “Follow Me.” He was not acceptable but was made him accepted. And that is what Jesus is doing today. Making those who will follow Him accepted in the beloved, His beloved, His church.

John 3:16-17 For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life. (17) For God sent not his Son into the world to condemn the world; but that the world through him might be saved.

We do all kinds of things to be accepted of man and they always let us down. God did the hard part for us. If we believe we are made accepted by Jesus in His beloved.

 

On Mother’s Day

Ephesian 6:2 Honour thy father and mother; (which is the first commandment with promise;)

What promise? Exodus 20:12 tells us that “thy days may be long,” and Deuteronomy 5:16 says “that thy days may be prolonged and it may go well with thee.”

It reminds me of something I heard in a comedy routine, I think it was Bill Cosby said “boy, I brought you into this world, and I can take you out and make another that looks just like you.” Funny yes but not the reason we choose today to honor our mothers.

I am blesse in life. I have a Mom. When I was young she made sure I got to school and did my homework. She was there when I lost my first pet (an injured sparrow I called Birdie) who I nursed back to health. One day I came home from school and he was dead in the bottom of the cage. It was Mom who gave me a hug and said it was OK to cry.

Mom was the nurse, cook (and still is, oh what a cook! I remember a time when two ladies were using the kitchen in the Circle of Love for their cooking show on PBS in Georgia. They made meatloaf one day and this nice lady asked me how I liked.it. I gave it an A-. She asked what was wrong. Nothing, it just isn’t as good as Mom’s. She accepted that.) And bookkeeper in our house. Dad said many times it did not matter how much money he made, if it was not for Mom paying the bills we would be out in the street.

So honor Mom this Mother’s Day. Give her a call, a hug, a bouquet of flowers. Show honor to who honor is due. God bless you Mom.

Will You Be My Neighbor?

Jesus was talking to a lawyer, and he asked Jesus what must he do to inherit eternal life. When questioned about the law, the lawyer replied: Love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, soul, mind and strength and to love thy neighbor as thyself. (read Luke 10:25-29)

The lawyer really did not understand the concept of what an inheritance is, you really cannot do anything to earn it, you get it because of the fact you are part of a family. You are loved. The thing is, I can identify with the lawyer’s next question: who then is my neighbor?

I can get the fact about loving God. He had agape for me. That is one of the four Greek words for love and it means “a love feast.” Think about what a feast is, and I imagine an abundance of food of all kinds, being able to eat my fill and there is still food left over. People misinterpret this as a special divine love attributed only to God but the Bible does not say that. The Bible speaks of the fact that even sinners agape those who agape them (see Luke 6:32) but God perfectly has agape love, He loved us so much He sent Jesus to die for our sacrifice (see John 3:16-18). This is the love we should have for each other (see John 13:34-35), which the Holy Spirit shines abroad in our hearts for others to see (Romans 5:5).

This is the love we need to have for my neighbor. I understand his apprehension as this is one of the things that I struggle with daily. I have friends who have the ability to have mercy, be generous, and not worry about it. I admire them but I am not there yet. I worry about things like having enough money to get to the doctors or pay for my needs like food. I am not working right now due to health issues and money is hard to come by but I want to be obedient. So I understand why the lawyer would ask this question, though I would ask it for a different reason, not to justify myself.

So Jesus tells a story about a man mugged and left for dead. A pastor comes by and he passes by, “I am too busy I have a conference to go to.” Then comes the deacon, who passes by saying, “I cannot stop, I have to get to the benevolence board meeting.” But the one who stopped was his mortal enemy and what happened? He had compassion and we see that love cost. (Please excuse the updated paraphrase.)

• It cost him time: he had to stop and care for him
• It cost him resources. He used his own oil, wine, and bandages to treat the man.
• It inconvenienced him: He allowed the injured man to ride his donkey while he walked.
• It cost him money: he paid for the innkeeper to care for him.

Real love is messy. It cannot be done through third parties like the government, homeless shelters, food pantries, and clothes closets. It is really one man showing the love of Jesus to another man (see Matthew 25:32-46). There is no escaping this, Jesus asked the lawyer who was the neighbor. The lawyer answered the one who showed mercy. Jesus told him to go and do thou likewise (Luke 10:30-37). It is not easy, it is not convenient, but if we are going to be called Christians, it is necessary.