Pop Quiz

You neglected the courtesy of olive oil to anoint my head, but she has anointed my feet with rare perfume. (Luke 7:46 New Living Translation)

One of my psychology professors shared this story with us in class. A professor teaching a course in human relations was waiting as his students came in and sat down awaiting their final exam. He stood up and told them they would have only one question on their exam. The question was; “What is the name of the lady janitor that you pass in the hallway each evening as you come to class?” To their embarrassment they could only guess what it might be as not one of them had taken the time to ask her name. They had greeted her and were polite to her, some even made small talk but not any of them asked her name.

Jesus is just as concerned with the small things as He is with the big ones. The custom of putting oil on the head of a guest signified you were honored to have them in your home. Perhaps the man forgot in his excitement because Jesus had come to his house in the first place. It was not until the Pharisee had a doubt if Jesus truly was a Prophet that Jesus brought it up. He talked about forgiveness, using a story about men owing money and He asked the fellow one question after He finished it. The Pharisee answered the question correctly and it was then that Jesus turned the tables on him.

If Jesus were to ask you one question today, what might it be? How about, “Why didn’t you greet Me when you awoke this morning?” Maybe He might ask, “Why haven’t you told Me you loved Me today?” He might even go as far as to ask, “Why have you ignored Me since Sunday?”

Forgiveness Assured

(Judges 16:22 NKJV)  (If you are not familiar with the story read the entire Chapter).      

However, the hair of his head began to grow again after it had been shaven.      

A friend and I were fishing on the New River one morning when a sudden rain storm came down the river. I maneuvered our boat under a railroad trestle in hopes of finding some shelter from the deluge. It did not work and we were drenched. The rain only lasted about ten minutes and the clouds began to lighten up and patches of blue sky started to appear. When the sun came through we begin to dry out and continued fishing.

What has this got to do with Samson’s hair growing back out? Samson’s re-growth was a sign of Gods forgiveness and restoration to a man that had broken his covenant with God and surrendered himself by choice into the hands of his enemies. Out of self confidence in his strength that came from God, Samson teased his enemies. During his little game of cat and mouse however he crossed the line and found out the hard way that the grace and mercy of God is not something to be toyed with. Had he failed to remember that his strength came from God to begin with he would have died in vain as an example of one who had enjoyed Gods favor and then forfeited it.

The blue sky, the sun peeking through the clouds, and Samson’s hair growing back are all indications of a God that does not withhold mercy although He may allow us to suffer consequences. The fact that Samson’s hair began to grow back instills in my soul a feeling of assurance in the forgiveness and mercy of God for His children. You and I have at some time or another broken our covenant with God intentionally. We, like Samson, became confident in our relationship with Christ to the point that we teased our human nature by tolerating sin in our lives. Like Samson, we may have gotten to comfortable and went to sleep in the lap of our enemy only to wake up one day and realize we were far from God.

You may be reading this today and say in your heart, “that’s me.” You may know someone who feels that way. Be assured that God has not given up on you, or them, so do not give up on Him! Look back to God, call upon Him as Samson did, ask for His help once more and you will find that the rain has stopped, the clouds are parting, the sun is shining through, and the hair is growing back!                              

The "B" Word

I came so they can have real and eternal life, more and better life than they ever dreamed of.                 (John 10:10  The Message)

I saw a bumper sticker on a car the other day that read, “Life’s A Bitch And Then You Die.” Now before you panic because I used the actual “B” word, understand that I do not sugar coat stuff. If a preacher cannot tell you the truth then who can?

Can you imagine what kind of life the person that had that on their car lives? They may have just put it on there for kicks but more than likely it is their opinion. There are millions of people that would agree with it. There are millions of us that would not.

Some have said life is what you make it. That is not the real truth either. The abused child never chose that life. Life is not made by us but rather given to us; to live. Things that happen during our life are experiences that are unique to some and yet common among others. Instead of thinking that life is what we make it we should actually say, “Life is from God; live it.” Look at the words of Jesus again in our text; Real life, more life, better life, and eternal life. When God gave you life it was forever. Earthly experiences, circumstances and happenings cannot take it from you. Disease or tragedy can kill the physical body you live in but it has no effect on your soul.

Things not going your way today? So what. You have a lot more of life to live than just today. Christ had a bad day once; that you may have a better day forever. Earthly life is temporary. Earthly trials are temporary. Some of them may last for years while others last for days, or hours but all are temporary. The bumper sticker gives you the impression that life does not get any better; but for the Christian it does. Death for the Christian is precious, not devastating. For those who would reject Christ and the eternal life that He offers the bumper sticker should read, “The Bible Was Right; Hell’s A Bitch.”