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Matt. 16:21-22 - From that time Jesus began to show His disciples that He must go to Jerusalem, and suffer many things from the elders and chief priests and scribes, and be killed, and be raised up on the third day. 22 Peter took Him aside and began to rebuke Him, saying, "God forbid it, Lord! This shall never happen to You." NASU
I remember looking up into the black sky and crying out "Fine, I will never cry again the rest of my life." I was basically challenging God. He did this and made me cry, and I was saying whatever You do to me from here on out will not make me cry. Please remember this is almost 6 years before I will become a Christian. I can tell you now 54 years later I wish I would not have told God I was never going to do something. Every time some thing happens that makes me cry I hear this voice in my head say, I thought you were never going to cry again. As you can see that hasn't worked out very well for me.
Well, I am sure Peter meant well, but the truth of the matter was this is exactly what was going to happen to Jesus. Peter said, Never, but it did happen.
They would NEVER eat some thing and then they did and now like it. They would NEVER go to that college and they did, or work at that place and they did. Probably the one we all have said is that we would NEVER be like our parents. Yeah, we all know how that one ends.
God is probably the only One who can say NEVER and mean it. In fact, He has said exactly that in Heb.13:5-6 …for He Himself has said, "I WILL NEVER DESERT YOU, NOR WILL I EVER FORSAKE YOU," 6 so that we confidently say, "THE LORD IS MY HELPER, I WILL NOT BE AFRAID. WHAT WILL MAN DO TO ME?" This is one of the greatest promises we have from God. He will NEVER desert us and on that statement you can depend. Think About These: You're Never too old to set another goal or to dream a new dream. The person who Never made a mistake Never tried anything new. Never let it rest. Until your good is better and your better is best. Stay Pumped, Gary A. Serago Minister of God's Word
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Matt. 7:11 -"If you then, being evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father who is in heaven give what is good to those who ask Him!" NASU
I can remember getting plenty of gifts on my birthday and at Christmas time. When I was seven years of age I received my first pony (Trigger), at 10 years of age I received a bicycle and at 15 I would receive an Ithaca 20 gauge shotgun. Yes, my parents knew how to give good gifts. One of the best gifts I received and I didn't know I was getting it at the time was the value of working hard at your job. I worked for my dad from the age of 12 - 18 and anyone that ever worked for him would tell you same thing when you punched the timecard to start work he expected a day's work for a day's pay. I would carry that mindset to every job and in fact it is still with me to this day. I guess you could call that the gift that kept on giving.
The first time the word "gift" is used in the New Testament is in John 4:10 - Jesus answered and said to her, "If you knew the gift of God, and who it is who says to you, 'Give Me a drink,' you would have asked Him, and He would have given you living water." The "gift" that is being referenced here to the woman at the well is Jesus Christ Himself. He is the "gift" of God. Jesus was and is the "gift" that God gave to this world and without Him we would all be in trouble. Acts 2:38 - Peter said to them, "Repent, and each of you be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins; and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. In this passage of scripture we can see the Holy Spirit is the "gift" we are able to receive from our Heavenly Father. Justification is also identified as a "gift" from God and is connected to redemption. What does it mean to be a recipient of the "gift" of Justification? One of my professors Dr. Jack Cottrell said it this way: "The best way for a Christian to understand what it means to be justified is to picture himself as a defendant standing in a courtroom before God as the presiding Judge, and to hear God pronounce His verdict: 'No penalty for you!' … To be justified thus does not mean that God treats me just as if I'd never sinned, but rather just as if I'd already paid my penalty." The apostle Paul said it this in Romans 3:21-24 - But now apart from the Law the righteousness of God has been manifested, being witnessed by the Law and the Prophets, 22 even the righteousness of God through faith in Jesus Christ for all those who believe; for there is no distinction; 23 for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, 24 being justified as a gift by His grace through the redemption which is in Christ Jesus;… Justification is another "gift' from God. One can easily see that our Heavenly Father really does know how to give us awesome gifts. Think About This: Justice is what we get when the decision is in our favor. God cares for people through people. Stay Pumped, Gary A. Serago Minister of God's Word Lk 5:4-7 - When He had finished speaking, He said to Simon, "Put out into the deep water and let down your nets for a catch." 5 Simon answered and said, "Master, we worked hard all night and caught nothing, …" 6 When they had done this, they enclosed a great quantity of fish, and their nets began to break; 7 so they signaled to their partners in the other boat for them to come and help them. NASU
Barry told me he made two mistakes. One was allowing himself to get 11 lbs. over weight and two was not asking for help in cutting his weight. The night before he went missing he had worked out by himself and was able to lose 3.5 of the 11 lbs. He lost hope that he could lose 7.5 more lbs. so he gave into his negative thoughts. Barry will tell you now if he had just asked for help from one of his other teammates or coaches he would not have found himself in this terrible predicament. What about you today? Are you finding yourself in a situation where you need help? Then follow the example of the disciples and ask for help.
When Peter finally obeys the catch is so large he must ask for help from his partners. One of the best lessons we can learn in life is how to ask for help. What makes asking for help so hard to accomplish? It just might be "pride" and we all know letting pride stand in our way can be detrimental in life. Here are two passages about "pride" from the book of Proverbs: Prov. 11:2 - When pride comes, then comes dishonor, but with the humble is wisdom. Prov. 29:23 - A man's pride will bring him low, but a humble spirit will obtain honor.
Prov. 27:9 - Oil and perfume make the heart glad, so a man's counsel is sweet to his friend. Yes, the choice is ours to make. We can listen to wise counsel which is like asking for help or we can go it alone. Had Jesus not asked for the help from Peter by borrowing his boat a lot of people would not have been able to hear Jesus' lesson that day. Had Peter not asked for help they would have lost a lot of fish that day. If Barry would have asked for help he would not have put himself in that dangerous situation. The choice is yours. Choose wisely my friend. Think About This: It's better to keep a friend from falling than to help him up after he falls. It is easier to point a finger than to offer a helping hand. Stay Pumped, Gary A. Serago Minister of God's Word Luke 15:3-7 - So He told them this parable, saying, "What man among you, if he has a hundred sheep and has lost one of them, does not leave the ninety-nine in the open pasture and go after the one which is lost until he finds it?..." NASU
The team was preparing to leave for the 1982 Big 10 Wrestling Championships in Michigan when it was discovered that Barry wasn't going to make the trip because of a weight issue. Dan sent the other coaches and wrestlers on to Michigan. Dan went to search for one missing wrestler. Dan found Barry in a convenience store at 7 am. Dan was able to convince Barry to come with him. Barry went with Coach Gable and lost 8 more pounds in two days, made weight, and won his 2nd of 4 Big Ten Championships. Two weeks later Barry would wrestle and win his 1st of three NCAA Championships. Barry won the Olympic Silver medal in 1984 and was the head coach at the University of Wisconsin for 20+ years. One can only imagine how different Barry's life would be had Coach Gable not left the Nine wrestlers for the One. (Next week's Pump Up will be about what Barry says he did wrong in this situation)
Look at all the lives Jesus has changed while He was on earth. Look at all the lives He is changing now that He is alive in Heaven. I can tell you He has changed my life. I would venture to say I would not be alive now if Jesus hadn't changed my life in 1975. Some of you who are reading my Pump Ups may not be alive today if Jesus hadn't changed your lives also. So, who is that One lost sheep that you want to bring back to the fold?
It says in verse 7 "I tell you that in the same way, there will be more joy in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine righteous persons who need no repentance. In the parable of the lost coin we get a clearer picture of who is rejoicing. Luke 15:10 -"In the same way, I tell you, there is joy in the presence of the angels of God over one sinner who repents." NASU The "joy" is in the presence of the angels. I believe God is the One with the "joy" who is in the presence of the angels. If you ever wanted to bring joy into the life of God here is an opportunity, bring one back who has lost his or her way. Has one of your friends, co-workers, teammates, or Christian brothers or sisters gone AWOL? Here is a chance for you to be a Great Leader like Jesus: go find them and help them return to active duty. Think About These: A fault which humbles a man is of more value than a virtue which puffs him up. Virtue has more admirers than followers. Stay Pumped, Gary A. Serago Minister of God's Word |
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