Mission Faithwalk

      Mt 5:22 But I tell you that anyone who is angry with his brother will be subject to judgment. Again, anyone who says to his brother, ‘Raca,’ is answerable to the Sanhedrin. But anyone who says, ‘You fool!’ will be in danger of the fire of hell. (Matthew 5:22) But I tell you: Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, that you may be sons of your Father in heaven. He causes his sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous. If you love those who love you, what reward will you get? Are not even the tax collectors doing that? (Matthew 5:44-46)           You mean, love the Conservatives or Liberals or the extremists of some other category who "are determined to destroy our country"? You mean, love those abusive, angry, egotistical, entitled, hateful, hypocritical, intolerant, lazy, murderous, narcissistic, oppressive, self-righteous, selfish, violen...

Live in harmony with one another. Do not be proud, but be willing to associate with people of low position. (Romans 12:16)           Have you ever gone to a concert at which every singer and every instrument played middle C, only middle C? If they did so, the concert could be described as monotonous. It would be lacking in harmony. Harmony requires more than one note. When today's passage was written social stratification was much simpler than it is today. You were a citizen or you were not. You were wealthy or you were poor. You were Greco-Roman or you were either Barbarian or Jew. You were free or you were slave. You were male or you were female. In every case, you were stuck there for life and those in the "or" category were treated poorly.             Now, there are lots more ways to be in the "or" category. Many of the earlier standards are there, but partly because some people...

But I tell you: Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, that you may be sons of your Father in heaven . (Matthew 5:44) Therefore confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous man is powerful and effective . (James 5:16)          So, along comes one of those people who makes your skin crawl, or who makes you want to hide until they're gone, or who you think deserves to be shamed or otherwise mistreated. Imagine coming face to face with someone who abused and contributed to the death of your sister. Corrie and Betsy TenBoom were sent to a concentration camp for helping Jews escape the Nazis. Betsy died there. After the war, Corrie tried to help people who had suffered like she had. One day, a man walked up and reintroduced himself. He had been one of the guards at her camp, but had since become a Christian. What do you do in a situation like that?    ...

Therefore, as we have opportunity, let us do good to all people, especially to those who belong to the family of believers. (Gal 6:10)   “A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another.   By this all men will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another.” (John 13:34-35)           Joshua grinned when he saw Rex standing by the door, studying something on the ground. "Hey, man! Are we ready to do this thing?"          Rex looked up. "Josh, I can't do it. We're still best buds, but I can't stand your fiancée."           I've met "Rex" many times. I've been Rex. Joshua (Jesus) loves the Church. He's not a fool. He knows the Church is far from perfect, but she is His chosen bride. The Rexes of this world, who think themselves His friend, turn away from her. "You don't need the Church to...

  And the second is like it: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’ (Matthew 22:39)            God's second "Greatest Commandment."   Have you considered the possibility that you can't not love your neighbor as yourself, or that your love for your neighbor might be a reflection of your love for yourself? There are probably exceptions, but I know I tend to do a poor job of loving myself. I baby myself more often than I should. Oh, I can be disciplined when it pleases me, when it makes me look good, but I'd rather hide from truths I don't want to face, hide from the world because I don't want to change in the ways I need to change. I "forgive" my faults rather than do anything about them. I'm the same way with my neighbors. I seem to have two ways of loving: giving information and keeping my distance.            Agape love , the sort of love we are to show ourselves and our neighbors ...

Jesus replied, "Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind." (Matthew 22:37)             If you're constructing a building, you lay the foundation first. If you're like me, you want to say "Yeah, yeah, yeah... can we start talking about the Palladian windows and the color of paint for the walls? Let's get to the 'good stuff.'" The foundation is key. Without it, the rest is a waste of time. God created the universe. He designed how it functions. To reject Him, to ignore Him, to pretend there is no connection between the universe and Him requires that the foundation of anything we build is built on a lie. It is doomed to failure. "Yeah, yeah, yeah," you might say. "We've got that. We're Christians." Even Christians miss this. We miss it by miles. The moment we say, "Yeah, yeah, yeah," we've missed it. I'm not belaboring the point just to use words. Thi...

If I speak in the tongues of men and of angels, but have not love, I am only a resounding gong or a clanging cymbal.   If I have the gift of prophecy and can fathom all mysteries and all knowledge, and if I have a faith that can move mountains, but have not love, I am nothing. If I give all I possess to the poor and surrender my body to the flames, but have not love, I gain nothing. (I Corinthians 13:1-4)             "Oh God, do I have to go there?"   It would seem that's where I'm going, and I don't know how long I'll be there, but I'm inviting you to go with me. The subject of community building isn't one with which I can claim any real knowledge. I'm deliberately and purposely ignorant. If it has to do with people, well, I have a list of people you can call. They like people. They know what to do with "strays." Give them thirty minutes and they can have a party or a meeting put together. At least, that's the way i...