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"Come follow me and I will make you fishers of men." Matthew 4:19

Category: Choice (Page 2 of 9)

Skandalon.

August 9, 2025 /

MaryEllen Montville

“And he added, “God blesses those who do not fall away because of me.” –Luke 7:23

Oh! It is a great blessing to be put through the fire, if you come out purified. It is a sweet mercy to have to go through the floods, if some filthiness may thereby be removed. The children of Israel went down to Egypt to sojourn there, but after hard servitude and cruel oppression, they came up out of it with silver and gold, much enriched by their bondage. –Charles H. Spurgeon (MTP 15:657).

Skandalon: A Greek word meaning stumble, trapped, enticed to sin, or be caused to fall away.

In today’s verse, skandalon is used to mean: to be discouraged or put off. In modern speak, then, Jesus might say something to this effect, “God blesses those who don’t walk away from Me because they’re put off, discouraged, or disappointed by something I have or have not done or allowed to touch their life.”

I believe my liberty in paraphrasing to be biblically sound because it echoes back to how Jesus answered those disciples John the Baptist had sent to ask Him this question: “Are you the Messiah we’ve been expecting, or should we keep looking for someone else?” –Luke 7:19

A bit of context: John was locked away in Herod’s prison; this much we know for sure.

But based on the question he sent his disciples to ask Jesus, we can only speculate that he may have been feeling discouraged or disheartened momentarily by the weight of the looming knowledge that he’d likely never see the outside of his prison cell again. Wondering maybe if this was the end of his days of “crying out” in the wilderness?

Perhaps, in succumbing transiently to his frail humanity, John might have started to wonder if someone other than Jesus would come and do even greater works?

John believed Jesus to be the Messiah. Knew He was. He’d confessed Jesus to be the Savior and had told others as much. Telling them that he wasn’t even worthy to untie Jesus’ sandal strap! “Look! The Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world! He is the one I was talking about when I said, ‘A man is coming after me who is far greater than I am, for he existed long before me.’ I did not recognize him as the Messiah, but I have been baptizing with water so that he might be revealed to Israel.” –John 1:29-31

John’s miraculous conception, his life and future calling, had been marked by God; from the womb, John had been anointed and called to prepare the way of the Lord. Listen to what John’s Father, Zechariah, a priest of God, a descendant of Aaron, prophesied over his son on his day of dedication: “And you, my child, will be called a prophet of the Most High; for you will go on before the Lord to prepare the way for him, to give his people the knowledge of salvation through the forgiveness of their sins, because of the tender mercy of our God…” –Luke 1:76-78.

And so this prophecy happened, as all true prophecy will…

“In the time of the high priest Annas and Caiaphas, the word of God came to John the son of Zechariah in the wilderness. And he went into all the surrounding region of the Jordan, preaching a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins, as it is written in the book of the words of the prophet Isaiah, “The voice of one crying out in the wilderness, ‘Prepare the way of the Lord, make his paths straight! Every valley will be filled, and every mountain and hill will be leveled, and the crooked will become straight, and the rough road will become smooth, and all flesh will see the salvation of God.'” –Luke 3:2-6

Yet now, having been locked up in his prison cell, as the days turned into weeks, perhaps John’s mind got the better of him and he began to wonder…

Could someone else be coming? One who looks more like how most think, expect, the Messiah to look, a Warrior King, more like King David before Him? Perhaps he’ll set me free from Herod’s prison? Free me to go back to preparing the way?

Was John’s discouragement, disheartenment, or possible disillusionment the reason Jesus responded to John’s disciples in the way that He did? Being Sovereign, surely Jesus knew John may have dropped a ball or two as he juggled his faith, his knowledge of Jesus, and his faulty, unfulfilled expectations. Hence, Jesus’ Words: “God blesses those who do not fall away because of me.”

In our quest for Truth—for Jesus, to know Him, we must humble ourselves and accept that Jesus may come looking, answering our prayers, or displaying His Sovereignty, differently than how we expect—He is, after all, God and can and often will do or show up—or not, however, whenever, and wherever He so pleases. More, who are we, to expect anything from God at all!

So it is not for God to explain Himself to us; rather, it is up to us to subject our faulty, fear-filled, pride-filled thoughts, feelings, or momentary weakness to Jesus’s Lordship. “I also pray that you will understand the incredible greatness of God’s power for us who believe him. This is the same mighty power that raised Christ from the dead and seated him in the place of honor at God’s right hand in the heavenly realms. Now he is far above any ruler or authority or power or leader or anything else—not only in this world but also in the world to come. God has put all things under the authority of Christ and has made him head over all things for the benefit of the church.” –Ephesians 1:19-22.

Beloved of the Father, let us not fall away, then, due to our immeritorious notions, our brazen expectations of how Jesus ought to show up, do, or not do something, concerning our life or world at large.

Let us take heed instead to what Jesus had to say to another of His servants who came with very human yet faulty questions of his own: read Job, Chapters 38-40, and, as you do, ask God, His Holy Spirit, to bring any correction needed to your heart: “The Lord said to Job: “Will the one who contends with the Almighty correct him? Let him who accuses God answer him! “Where were you when I laid the foundations of the earth? Tell me, if you know so much. Who determined its dimensions and stretched out the surveying line? What supports its foundations, and who laid its cornerstone as the morning stars sang together and all the angels shouted for joy?” –Job 40:1-2; 38:4-7.

Now listen to Job’s response to his Lord’s questioning. “I am unworthy—how can I reply to you? I put my hand over my mouth. I spoke once, but I have no answer—twice, but I will say no more.” –Job 40:4-5. Though Scripture gives us no such exchange ever taking place between John the Baptist and Jesus, I have to wonder if an inner heartfelt confession similar to Job’s bubbled up within John. Surely, as the days clicked past and the oppressive weight of his dank, dark prison cell pressed in on him, because of God’s tender mercy, this crushing produced a precious oil that eased John’s burden and washed away all his questioning.

I can only imagine this man of God began to encourage himself in the Lord, as King David once did, by reminding himself of all he knew, had seen, heard and experienced, of Jesus, the One He once said of: “I saw the Spirit descend from heaven like a dove, and it remained on him. I myself did not know him, but he who sent me to baptize with water said to me, ‘He on whom you see the Spirit descend and remain, this is he who baptizes with the Holy Spirit.’ And I have seen and have borne witness that this is the Son of God.” –John 1: 32–34.

I have no doubt we, too, must humbly and sincerely confess the same statement in our hearts when, in our weak as water flesh, we become disappointed or disillusioned with what Jesus is or is not doing in our lives.

Friend, if you don’t know Jesus as John did and I do, you can. I encourage you to ask Jesus to reveal Himself to you today, believing that He will. “And there is salvation in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved.” –Acts 4:12.

Nikoa: Continously…

July 19, 2025 /

MaryEllen Montville

“For everyone born of God is victorious and overcomes the world; and this is the victory that has conquered and overcome the world—our [continuing, persistent] faith [in Jesus the Son of God].” –1 John 5:4.

What’s with the title of this teaching, MaryEllen? What is Nikoa, and what does it mean? Glad you asked. Nikoa is a present-tense Greek Word that John was led to use in today’s verse. It denotes continuous, ongoing action rather than a one-off event. Now, if you’ve been following us for a while, you’ll have figured out that I’m no English major. I’m sure some of you may have even cringed from time to time while reading some of my blatant linguistic blunders; thank you for your grace and for continuing to follow us despite my glaring grammatical deficiencies.

So, since I have not yet mastered basic English, what’s with my stab at Greek all about?

That’s a question only the Holy Spirit can answer, as it is He who caused today’s Scripture to jump off the page and Him who caused me to ask: “How does this Scripture apply to believers today, Lord. Help me understand better so that I might share your heart.”  

Then, in true Holy Spirit fashion, He used what I do know—to do research—to then lead me to what I did not know: tense usage in the Greek language; hence, Nikoa; the epitome of 1 Corinthians 1:27 on unabashed display, “God uses the foolish things to confound the wise.”

But it wasn’t for a lesson in Greek tense usage that the Holy Spirit chose today’s verse; no, He chose it to encourage you specifically with its life-giving promise and real-time Truth—a solid foundation on which you personally can stand, unmovable. Holy Spirit picked it because He knew that with all the uncertainty swirling around you like some ominous, doom-soaked, dark cloud, you need (present-tense) to be re-minded that God is continually empowering you to overcome this world; re-minding you that you’re in, not of it. “The world would love you as one of its own if you belonged to it, but you are no longer part of the world. I chose you to come out of the world, so it hates you.” –John 15:19.

All that you might overcome your enemy, by taking your God-given authority over every dark, demonic thing that is trying to distract, derail, and discourage you, via God’s Holy Spirit at work in you, right now. Equally, the Holy Spirit lets you know that He’ll do the same again tomorrow and the next day, Nikoa, continually. Jesus will empower you to overcome this world until He returns or takes you home. The rest of today’s verse assures you of this, child of God, listen: “and this is the victory that has conquered and overcome the world—our [continuing, persistent] faith [in Jesus the Son of God].”

You can and will be victorious, but not because you are a super-Christian. Not because you’re sinless or perfect or because you’ve gotten it all right; you never could. That’s why God sent Jesus into the world—and why Jesus came willingly. He alone is Perfect, and He alone is victorious over sin, death, and the grave. “But thanks be to God! He gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.” –1 Corinthians 15:57.

Your victory over whatever may be trying to overtake you, rob, distract, or cause you to give up—is assured, beloved—it is yours, now, Nokia, because of Jesus. Because Jesus has secured it for you—has promised it to you. And God cannot lie. “God is not a man, that he should lie; neither the son of man, that he should repent: hath he said, and shall he not do it? or hath he spoken, and shall he not make it good?” –Numbers 23:19.

The same powerful Spirit that raised Jesus from the grave now lives within you if you are God’s child. “And if the Spirit of him who raised Jesus from the dead is living in you, he who raised Christ from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies because of his Spirit who lives in you.” –Romans 8:11.

Satan knows if you truly belong to God, have confessed and believe in your heart that Jesus is Lord and Savior; he cannot rob you of your salvation. “If you declare with your mouth, ‘Jesus is Lord,’ and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. For it is with your heart that you believe and are justified, and it is with your mouth that you profess your faith and are saved.” –Romans 10:9-10.

Satan also knows that if he can get in your head and cause you to believe, somehow, that God’s Word isn’t True, that your receiving salvation couldn’t possibly be as straightforward as believing God—taking Him at His Word—that He is who He says He is and that He can and will do all that He has promised—then Satan has succeeded in the greatest heist known to mankind, to rob you of salvation; the eternal security and safety Jesus gave His very life to afford you. Jesus paid the ultimate price to ensure your victory over your enemy, beloved.

Your faith in Jesus is a personal, precious, and costly gift.

So don’t you dare give up. Don’t you dare say that you can’t walk this Christian Walk any longer. Don’t you dare be deceived by Satan—that liar and thief who is making one last massive attempt to break into your house, and mine—into the home of any believer he can, with only one thing in mind. To rob us.

You are never alone, never unprotected, beloved. God is always with you, whatever your circumstances. Whether you’re standing beneath swirling, doom-soaked clouds or under the brightest rays of mountain-top sunlight, you are assured victory in every circumstance in this life because of Jesus. Because He has overcome the world (completed action). “I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.” –John 16:33.

That doesn’t mean you should leave your doors unlocked; this world is still under Satan’s influence, so be wise. Partner with God, regardless of the season you’re in, doing your part to protect this mind-blowing victory Jesus has afforded you. “But understand this: If the head of the house had known what time of the night the thief was coming, he would have been on the alert and would not have allowed his house to be broken into.” –Matthew 24:43.

Your victory is assured because of Jesus, beloved. But your hope, your joy, the peace you have as a believer, those things Satan can and will rob you of—if you allow him. How? By leaving your house unguarded. “Stay alert! Watch out for your great enemy, the devil. He prowls around like a roaring lion, looking for someone to devour. Stand firm against him, and be strong in your faith. Remember that your family of believers all over the world is going through the same kind of suffering you are. In his kindness God called you to share in his eternal glory by means of Christ Jesus. So after you have suffered a little while, he will restore, support, and strengthen you, and he will place you on a firm foundation. All power to him forever! Amen.” –1 Peter 5:8-11.

“The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand. Repent, and believe in the gospel.” –Mark 1:15

The Gate That Leads To Life.

May 24, 2025 /

Matthew Botelho

“Enter by the narrow gate; for wide is the gate and broad is the way that leads to destruction, and there are many who go in by it. Because narrow is the gate and difficult is the way which leads to Life, and there are few who find it.” –Matthew 7:13-14

In this opening scripture, Jesus teaches the people what it means to follow Him. I remember reading this passage when I first started walking with our Lord, and it puzzled me. “What gate am I supposed to walk through?” I thought to myself, looking around. I wonder if Jesus saw that same reaction from the people He taught and His disciples.

Now, after maturing some, I see and hear this scripture, and it brings me Life. Jesus is the Gate that leads to Life. He is the Narrow Way, and not many find it. Jesus said, “I am the door. If anyone enters by Me, he will be saved, and will go in and out and find pasture.” –John 10:9

There is a broad path that leads to destruction. I picture it as a bunch of people crammed together, leaping over one another, trying to get ahead of one another, doing whatever it takes to make it or to beat out another person, fueled by a destructive “me first mentality.” Allowing fleshly desires to overtake and consume them; that’s a dark place to be.

The apostle Paul writes to the Church in Galatia about these works of the flesh. What was happening then is still happening today; there’s nothing new. Paul writes, “Now the works of the flesh are evident, which are: adultry, fornication, uncleanness, lewdness, idolatry, sorcery, hatred, contentions, jealousies, outbursts of wrath, selfish ambitions, dissension, heresies, envy, murder, drunkenness, revelries, and the like; of which I tell you beforehand, just as I also told you in time past, that those who practice such things will not inherit the kingdom of God.” –Galatians 5:19-21

When we come to know Jesus, He changes our mindset from darkness into Light, from death to Life. Jesus has made the way! Darkness flees when the Light is present. Jesus says, “He who believes in Me, believes not in Me but in Him who sent Me. And he who sees Me sees Him who sent Me. I have come as a light into the world, that whoever believes in Me should not abide in darkness.” –John 12:44-46

A believer’s lifestyle needs to be one of worship and prayer, not trying to gain an advantage over another to get ahead. Jesus says, “But seek first the Kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you.” –Matthew 6:33. We walk with Jesus down this narrow path, set apart from the “worldly” lifestyle. We are to be transformed into a new way of living.

Jesus even said this to the religious leaders of the day, the Pharisees and Sadducees at the temple, “Woe to you scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you cleanse the outside of the cup and dish, but inside they are full of extortion and self-indulgence. Blind Pharisee, first cleanse the inside of the cup and dish, that the outside of them may be clean also.” –John 23:25-26.

I recall my pastor saying many times, “true salvation is not first seen from the outside. It starts from the inside, then it shows itself outwardly.” Thanks, pastor Lino! He always points us directly to the Word of God. “When God our Savior revealed his kindness and love,  he saved us, not because of the righteous things we had done, but because of his mercy. He washed away our sins, giving us a new birth and new life through the Holy Spirit.” –Titus 3:4-5.

Your salvation is not based on what is on the outside, how good we look on the outside, but rather, salvation starts when you have been washed by the precious blood of Jesus Christ, which leads us to repentance. “Don’t you see how wonderfully kind, tolerant, and patient God is with you? Does this mean nothing to you? Can’t you see that his kindness is intended to turn you from your sin?” –Romans 2:4

You can look all pristine and well put together on the outside, but be a total train wreck on the inside. This is why we must remember that works without faith in Jesus Christ will not save us.

Speaking to His Church, Jesus reminds us: “I am the vine, you are the branches. He who abides in Me, and I in him, bears much fruit; without Me you can do nothing. If anyone does not abide in Me, he is cast out as a branch and withered; and they gather them and throw them into the fire, and they are burned.” –John 15:5-6

Later, Jesus says, “If you abide in Me, and My words abide in you, you will ask what you desire, and it shall be done for you. By this My Father is glorified that you bear much fruit; so you will be my disciples.” –John 15:7-8

Let us abide together, Church. With Jesus as its Head and we as His Body.

There is no Life in the Body without The Head controlling or telling His Body how to move.

According to the Oxford Language Dictionary, to abide means: to accept or act in accordance with (a rule, a decision, or recommendation).

This means that when we decide to follow Jesus, we choose to follow Him fully. We follow Him fully by loving Him and following the statutes He laid down for us, His commandments. “If you love me, obey my commandments.” John 14:15.

Ask yourself, “If I am living for Jesus, am I truly walking this narrow path? Or have some things gotten in the way of my walk?” Did I allow anything to come in, causing me to stumble? Reading Galatians 5:19-21 reminds me to examine my heart and ask our Lord Jesus if anything needs to be repented and thrown away. As David writes in his psalm, “Search me, O Go, and know my heart; Try me, and know my anxieties; And see if there is any wicked way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting.” –Psalm 139:23-24

David knew he was human and susceptible to sin. We are all human, and we all fall short. May I suggest you take a moment today to ask God to examine your heart?

If you were convicted after reading this teaching, I pray the Holy Spirit leads you to repent and ask for forgiveness. Repentance means to turn your mind and your heart away from that sin and worldly desires that lead to death, and ask Jesus to forgive you. “For godly sorrow produces repentance that leads to salvation without regret, but worldly sorrow produces death.” –2 Corinthians 7:10.

Decide today to repent and walk no more in your sin. “If you confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus and believe in your heart that God has raised Him from the dead, you will be saved. For with the heart one believes unto righteousness, and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation.” –Romans 10:9-10

We are praying for you all in Jesus’ name. Amen.

Bread, Not Bunnies.

April 19, 2025 /

MaryEllen Montville

“I alone am this living Bread that has come to you from heaven. Eat this Bread and you will live forever. The living Bread I give you is my body, which I will offer as a sacrifice so that all may live.” –John 6:51

Men might be willing for Christ to save them, but not for Him to reign over them—Charles Spurgeon.

Tomorrow is Resurrection Sunday. A day when some will celebrate with their perhaps bi-yearly visit to church, wearing their new, or new-to-them, Easter outfits. Sadly, they’ll celebrate the day God defeated death and the grave as just a fun-filled day, complete with chocolatey treats instead of what it truly is: A Life-giving day that changed everything! The day Jesus, the sinless Son of God, took their sins and ours upon Himself, His once-for-all sacrifice, dying the criminal’s death we deserve so that all men might have New Life in Him and a restored relationship with the Father. For you know that God paid a ransom to save you from the empty life you inherited from your ancestors. And it was not paid with mere gold or silver, which lose their value. It was the precious blood of Christ, the sinless, spotless Lamb of God.” –1 Peter 1:18-19.

Still, knowing this, many will give Jesus His 45 minutes tomorrow, then consider their duty done; sadly, they will go on to celebrate the Easter bunny’s arrival with their children. Celebrating how he brought them baskets filled with jellybeans, toys, and chocolate bunnies, sometimes real ones—making him the hero of the day. Perishable trinkets will take the place of the Pearl of Great Price. Heaven’s kingdom realm is also like a jewel merchant in search of rare pearls. When he discovered one very precious and exquisite pearl, he immediately gave up all he had in exchange for it” Matthew 13:45-46.

They’ll give their children baskets full of candy but not share the unfathomable sacrifice Jesus made just for them. Instead of telling their children just how much Jesus loves them, or the immeasurable lengths He went to ensure they could be His, instead, they’ll take them on the hunt for that well-hidden golden egg—the prized egg, the reward for all their hunting efforts! The Apostle Paul had something to say about those who write Jesus out, replacing Him with idols, man’s thought-up imaginings, their “Easter best” efforts: “For the message of the cross is foolishness [absurd and illogical] to those who are perishing and spiritually dead [because they reject it], but to us who are being saved [by God’s grace] it is [the manifestation of] the power of God.” –1 Corinthians 1:18.

How thankful we are, dear Christian, that our hunt is over!

Jesus has risen, hallelujah! And so, too, shall we!

Our Prize is One we did not have to go in search of. Instead, He made His presence plain to us using His heavenly host to announce Himself that none could deny the most excellent Gift ever given to mankind: King Jesus, Bread of Life. “Suddenly, an angel of the Lord appeared among them, and the radiance of the Lord’s glory surrounded them. They were terrified, but the angel reassured them. Don’t be afraid!” he said. I bring you good news that will bring great joy to all people. The Savior—yes, the Messiah, the Lord—has been born today in Bethlehem, the city of David! And you will recognize him by this sign: You will find a baby wrapped snugly in strips of cloth, lying in a manger” –Luke 2:9-12.

How fitting, beloved, that our King should be born in Bethlehem, known in Hebrew as the “House of Bread.” Jesus, Living Lechem (bread), declared of Himself: “I am the bread of life; whoever comes to me shall not hunger, and whoever believes in me shall never thirst” –John 6:35.

We see the foreshadowing of Jesus as the Bread of Life in the Book of Exodus.” Make a table of acacia wood—two cubits long, a cubit wide and a cubit and a half high. Overlay it with pure gold and make a gold molding around it. Put the bread of the Presence on this table to be before me at all times.” –Exodus 25:23-24;30.

This bread was a sacred memorial offering, a reminder to God’s people of His Everlasting Covenant, Presence, and continual provision.

From the beginning, God’s heart towards His people has ensured that we are well-fed by His Word, sent first as life-sustaining manna in the wilderness. Our ancestors ate the manna in the wilderness; as it is written: ‘He gave them bread from heaven to eat.’” –John 6:31.

Then, through Moses, God instructed His priests to place actual bread, a placeholder for Jesus, on a sulhan or table inside the Holy Place of the Tabernacle. Twelve loaves were to be baked and then arranged in piles of six each, made from the finest flour and covered with the finest incense laid out weekly before the Lord by His priests. His table and its Old Covenant bread foreshadowed a future table where the New Covenant Bread of Life would sit with His Apostles. And He took the bread, gave thanks and broke it, and gave it to them, saying, ‘This is My body, given for you; do this in remembrance of Me.” In the same way, after supper He took the cup, saying, “This cup is the new covenant in My blood, which is poured out for you.” –Luke 22:19-20.

Bread factored heavily in Israel’s history, including that of the early church.

Bread was a staple, even in the poorest homes. Something that all people, regardless of their wealth, poverty, Jewish or Gentile background, skin color, or background, could relate to. Is it any wonder that Jesus, our humble King, who came so all men might receive His free gift of salvation, likened Himself to such a Life-Giving staple? His Body and Blood, Bread and Wine, Jesus also said: “Truly, truly, I tell you, unless you eat the flesh and drink the blood of the Son of Man, you have no life in you. Whoever eats My flesh and drinks My blood has eternal life, and I will raise him up at the last day. For My flesh is real food, and My blood is real drink” –John 6:53-55.

Jesus is not a man that He can lie, beloved.

Tomorrow is Resurrection Sunday, the day Jesus rose from the grave, defeating sin and death. Let us never forget that the shedding of our Bridegroom’s Blood is what makes us a spotless bride—you were bought at a very high price.

Each of John’s passages assures us that Jesus, the Bread of Life, can and promises to give New Life to all those who come to Him hungry for God’s real Food, sent to us that we might have New Life in Him today and eternal life in the world to come. “This is the bread that came down from heaven, not like the bread the fathers ate, and died. Whoever feeds on this bread will live forever.” –John 6:58

New friends don’t make tomorrow about chocolate bunnies, easter baskets, and a new outfit. Make it about the Bread that came down from heaven. Make it all about Jesus, the Bread of Life. “Jesus said to her, “I am the resurrection and the life. Whoever believes in Me will live, even though he dies. / And everyone who lives and believes in Me will never die. Do you believe this?” –John 11:25-26.

We’re Not So Different.

March 29, 2025 /

MaryEllen Montville

“Then Peter said, “Ananias, why have you let Satan fill your heart? You lied to the Holy Spirit, and you kept some of the money for yourself. The property was yours to sell or not sell, as you wished. And after selling it, the money was also yours to give away. How could you do a thing like this? You weren’t lying to us but to God!” –Acts 5:3-4.

There are many ways in which men try to cover their sin. By pretext and presence, apology and self-vindication, they acquit themselves of all criminality, and put a fine gloss upon every foul delinquency. Excuse-making is the commonest trade under heaven. –Charles H. Spurgeon. (An excerpt from a sermon entitled “Two Coverings and Two Consequences.”)

From the beginning, it has never been about “stuff” or our having it—God loves to bless His children. Instead, it has always been about the condition of our hearts: allowing ourselves to be possessed by our possessions. Our putting created things above the One who created all things; allowing this to happen means we have broken God’s First Commandment. “I am the Lord your God, who rescued you from the land of Egypt, the place of your slavery. “You must not have any other god but me.” –Exodus 20:2-3.

Regarding His 2nd Commandment, God spoke explicitly to Moses about idols of any kind, our not making, possessing, or worshipping any carved or graven images. “You must not make for yourself an idol of any kind or an image of anything in the heavens or on the earth or in the sea. You must not bow down to them or worship them, for I, the Lord your God, am a jealous God who will not tolerate your affection for any other gods. I lay the sins of the parents upon their children; the entire family is affected—even children in the third and fourth generations of those who reject me.” –Exodus 20:4-5.

We can trace these two foundational Truths to the Ten Commandments God gave Moses.

The first, if not heeded and obeyed, leads directly to the breaking of the second.

With this in mind, let’s examine a couple we meet in Acts 5, Ananias and Sapphira. Through their deliberate actions of lying and lack of faith in God, we’ll witness a perfect example of how breaking God’s First Commandment opens us up to breaking His Second Commandment.

How?

When anything other than God is given first place in our hearts—the moment we put anyone or anything above God—that act is the very definition of idolatry. Ananias and his wife were guilty of idolatry and lying to the Holy Spirit. By holding back some of the proceeds they’d received from selling their land “for a rainy day,” Ananias and Sapphira deliberately put faith in money above their faith in God—worshiping the created thing over their Creator. “Now a man named Ananias, with his wife Sapphira, sold a piece of property, and with his wife’s full knowledge [and complicity] he kept back some of the proceeds, bringing only a portion of it, and set it at the apostles’ feet.” –Acts 5:1-2.

With this one duplicitous act, they lied to God. Essentially, they said, “Lord, we’re saying we believe in You and Your ability to care for us and meet our needs, but in case we’re wrong, we’re holding back a bit to look after ourselves.” 

They also lied to Peter and all those within the community of faith by deliberately putting their needs above everyone else’s and the newly agreed-upon ethos established for the benefit of the nascent Church community: “Now the full number of those who believed were of one heart and soul, and no one said that any of the things that belonged to him was his own, but they had everything in common. There were no needy people among them, because those who owned land or houses would sell them and bring the money to the apostles to give to those in need.”  –Acts 4:32;34-35.

Hence, Ananias and Sapphira broke not only the First but also the Second Commandment, demonstrating that money was not only their God but, by definition, their idol. “And Peter said, ‘How could the two of you even think of conspiring to test the Spirit of the Lord like this?” –Acts 5:9.

Some may say, “But wait, money is not a graven image.” Their assertion would be wrong.

Both then and now, currency has borne the engraver’s mark. Whether the face of an animal, the depiction of a city or ruler such as Ceasar, or, in the case of more modern currency, Presidents such as Washington, Lincoln, or Frankin. Each image was carved or etched to produce its ancient or modern likeness. As King Solomon assured us: “The thing that hath been, it is that which shall be; and that which is done is that which shall be done: and there is no new thing under the sun.” –Ecclesiastes 1:9.

Others may say, “But wait, Ananias and Sapphira didn’t have the full council of God like we do. Will God blame us for being prudent?”

Ananias and Sapphira were not prudent. Saving money is not a sin, but that’s a teaching for another day.

They were liars who bet against God. They were part of the New Testament Church and, like the Apostles and all their brothers and sisters within this new community of believers, had heard the Gospel preached. Moreover, the Spirit of the Living God was at work in them. They knew that lying and deceit were wrong. “The apostles testified powerfully to the resurrection of the Lord Jesus, and God’s great blessing was upon them all.” –Acts 4:33.

But let us not think more highly of ourselves than we ought, saying, “That was then and this now, we have God’s Word. We know better!” Unlike Ananias and Sapphira, we would never do such a thing!

Then, let me ask you: When was the last time you held something back from God, or, more to the point, put something or someone ahead of Him? Yourself included?

I ask this not to bring condemnation but rather conviction.

I ask that it might cause you, as it did me, to pause for a moment and seek the Holy Spirit’s answer, not our own. We can’t trust our heart to answer this rightly because it will always oppose God’s Spirit by its very nature. “The sinful nature wants to do evil, which is just the opposite of what the Spirit wants. And the Spirit gives us desires that are the opposite of what the sinful nature desires. These two forces are constantly fighting each other, so you are not free to carry out your good intentions.” –Galatians 5:17.

Truth be told, beloved, we are not so unlike Ananias and Sapphira.

Not fully surrendering to God whatever we have pledged to give Him means that we have robbed God just as surely as they did. Being a covenant people, made one in Jesus in the New Covenant relationship, means we have agreed to put God first in all things. Surrendering even our very lives to Jesus, having claimed they are no longer our own. And the moment we break God’s First Commandment, we also break His Second.

Knowing this about ourselves, that selfishness that lurks within us, has lurked within our brothers and sisters before us, how grateful and thankful we ought to be to our Bridegroom, Jesus, for being the atonement for our sins. And to our Father, who washes us clean of them all, remembering them no more because of Jesus and the Sinless Blood He shed to wash us clean from all our unrighteousness.

And we know and rejoice in the Truth that Jesus’ Blood is no match for our sins, beloved, even when we let Satan into our hearts, breaking God’s Commandments—just as Ananias and Sapphira did. “But God clearly shows and proves His own love for us, by the fact that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us. Therefore, since we have now been justified [declared free of the guilt of sin] by His blood, [how much more certain is it that] we will be saved from the wrath of God through Him.” –Romans 5:8-9.

God’s Word assures us that all men have sinned and fall short of God’s Perfect Standard, but He also assures us that His heart is that none perish—that means you, dear friend. Like me and the rest of those who call Jesus Lord, you too can be saved by repenting your sins and asking Jesus to be the Lord and Savior of your life. Don’t follow Ananias and Sapphira’s example by betting against God; they lost their lives! Today, God asks that you call out to Him that He might save you. “The Lord is not slow to fulfill his promise as some count slowness, but is patient toward you, not wishing that any should perish, but that all should reach repentance.” –2 Peter 3:9.

Is Your Ear Pierced?

February 22, 2025 /

MaryEllen Montville

“But if the servant declares, ‘I love my master and my wife and children and do not want to go free,’ then his master must take him before the judges. He shall take him to the door or the doorpost and pierce his ear with an awl. Then he will be his servant for life.” –Exodus 21:5-6.

I read not only the above verse but the entire chapter, and I remember thinking. “Thank You, Jesus, that because of You, because of grace, we are no longer under the heavy burden of the Law.” Now hear me, I know and believe every Word of God brings Life—it is Life. It was spoken and inspired for a purpose—God’s Holy Spirit enlivens it: yesterday, today, and forever. Logos turned Rhema so that it may continue accomplishing all God sent it to do. On this one Truth, I stand firm. “All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, so that the servant of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work.”  

I should not have been surprised when, while reading the prayer that accompanies my morning devotional, a prayer seemingly unrelated to Exodus 21—some of the very words I had read and foolishly thought so burdensome—”…take him to the door or the doorpost and pierce his ear with an awl…” dropped in my spirit. On their heels, the words, “Is your ear pierced?”

Now, God does not ask us questions because He needs an answer.

So what is Jesus desiring to accomplish by questioning us? And what effect ought such questions have on our hearts? As His children, those who seek greater Oneness with Jesus, we ought to reflect on the reasons behind the more profound implications of His questions.

Being Omniscient (all-knowing), Jesus knows the answer before asking the question. Why, then, does Jesus ask rhetorical questions?

For Correction & Redemption:

“Blessed is the man whom God corrects; so do not despise the discipline of the Almighty. For He wounds, but He also binds up; He injures, God loves us too much to leave us the way we are but His hands also heal” –Job 5:17-18.

 “To redeem them that were under the law, that we might receive the adoption of sons.” –Galatians 4:5.

I am not the only child of God to be asked a question; Scripture assures me of that. A well-recognized example of God asking another of His children a rhetorical question is found in the Book of Genesis. God asked Adam, the first man, “Where are you?” –Genesis 3:9.

God knew precisely where Adam was and why he and Eve hid from Him. “Then the man and his wife heard the sound of the LORD God as he was walking in the garden in the cool of the day, and they hid from the LORD God among the trees of the garden.” –Genesis 3:8.

God asked Adam, “Where are you?” for Adam’s benefit, not His own.

Perhaps in asking Adam this question, God wanted Adam to confess what had just happened to him and Eve, why they were hiding, and how they knew, suddenly, that they were naked. “When the woman saw that the fruit of the tree was good for food and pleasing to the eye, and also desirable for gaining wisdom, she took some and ate it. She also gave some to her husband, who was with her, and he ate it. Then the eyes of both of them were opened, and they realized they were naked; so they sewed fig leaves together and made coverings for themselves.” –Genesis 3:6-7.

The devil, that accuser of God’s children, will use unconfessed sin in our lives, anything we choose to hide from God, against us, accusing us before God night and day. “Then I heard a loud voice in heaven, saying, “Now the salvation, and the power, and the kingdom (dominion, reign) of our God, and the authority of His Christ have come; for the accuser of our [believing] brothers and sisters has been thrown down [at last], he who accuses them and keeps bringing charges [of sinful behavior] against them before our God day and night.” –Revelation 12:10.

God wanted to restore Adam and Eve, forgiving them of their sin.

So, did God ask Adam, “Where are you?”  to bring about Adam’s confession and repentance and usher in God’s redemptive plan? Remember, God had a far-reaching end game in mind, if you will. God was looking past the garden to the Cross and beyond, to a Bridegroom and His bride. Did God desire Adam, one small part in His inscrutable plan, to follow His lead and not miss the eternal lessons repentance and forgiveness teach and the blessings each brings?

Though God foreknew our every sin in His Omniscience, we must still choose to humble ourselves before Him, seeking His forgiveness. “If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness.” –1 John 1:9.

To test us: That we might examine ourselves and know, with decided certainty, in Whom and what we believe. “Examine yourselves, to see whether you are in the faith. Test yourselves. Or do you not realize this about yourselves, that Jesus Christ is in you? —unless indeed you fail to meet the test!” –2 Corinthians 13:5.

Another well-recognized question Jesus asks of His children was once posed to His disciples—and through them, to each of us: “But who do you say that I am?” (Mark 8:29).

There are a plethora of reasons for Jesus to ask this question of those who profess faith in Him, who claim Him to be the One True God—Savior of the world—of their world. Our faith and salvation are nothing if not personal. Amongst the greatest of reasons—being forgiven of our sin and guilt before God, and our ability to have a loving relationship with Jesus here and in the Life to come—in asking this question, was Jesus doing something a loving Father would do: protecting his child?

When asked what the signs of His coming would be, Jesus first tells His followers not to be deceived. Jesus knew how easy it could be to be deceived—swayed, drawn away from faith in the One True and Only God, Jesus Christ—if we do not know for ourselves who He is to us—in us.  Jesus, the Good Father He is, desires His children to know experientially the place He undeniably holds in their lives. “I am the Vine, you are the branches. When you’re joined with me and I with you, the relation intimate and organic, the harvest is sure to be abundant. Separated, you can’t produce a thing. Anyone who separates from me is deadwood, gathered up and thrown on the bonfire. But if you make yourselves at home with me and my words are at home in you, you can be sure that whatever you ask will be listened to and acted upon. This is how my Father shows who he is—when you produce grapes, when you mature as my disciples.” –John 15:5.

Because of Jesus, my Lord and Savior, I can confidently answer the Holy Spirit’s question of me; “Yes, Lord, my ear is pierced!” I love my Master and choose to serve Him freely all the days of my life. “Whom have I in heaven but you? And there is nothing on earth that I desire besides you. My flesh and my heart may fail, but God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever.” –Psalm 73:25-26.

Having chosen me in Himself, God, in His unfathomable love and mercy, nailed my ear to the Door that is His Son, Jesus, “I am the door. If anyone enters by Me, he will be saved, and will go in and out and find pasture.” –John 10:9. God granted me the privilege of calling Him Abba, Father, Lord and Savior, Comforter, Sustainer, my only Hope.

In closing, I’ll follow my Lord’s example in asking you the very question His Holy Spirit asked me: “Is your ear pierced?”

And if not, why not? Friends, today is the day of salvation or rededication, backslider. Invite the One who died that you might live into your heart and life. Today, Jesus is asking you the most important question of your life: “But who do you say that I am?”

“He made Christ who knew no sin to [judicially] be sin on our behalf, so that in Him we would become the righteousness of God [that is, we would be made acceptable to Him and placed in a right relationship with Him by His gracious lovingkindness].” –2  Corinthians 5:21.

Wake Up Call.

February 15, 2025 /

Matthew Botelho

Every morning at 5:30, my very annoying alarm clock goes off, letting me know it’s time to get up! Now, if you’re anything like me, you hit that snooze button and go back to sleep for another 10 minutes. Yet it feels like no sooner I close my eyes, the alarm is going off again. “Seriously, I say to myself as I stumble over to turn off the alarm. 10 minutes, already!?”

Now I have no choice but to get up because my wife will see to it; there’s trouble ahead if I wake her up again! And to all the men reading this, remember this proverb: “He who finds a wife finds a good thing, and obtains favor from the Lord.” –Proverbs 18:22.

Still, it’s good that my alarm clock goes off every morning because if it didn’t, I might miss out on what the day would bring. I could always go back to bed and ignore it, but that would mean my kids and I getting a late start—them to school, me to work—not to mention my wife being unhappy with me. My day would quickly unravel before it fully began, leaving us all a bit frayed—and all because I chose to ignore the alarm!

I don’t think anyone wants to start their day that way, yet it happens daily.

Like with life, for instance. It’s easy to hit the snooze button on life. To become complacent and drift off, thinking all is well and that we have time, even when it comes to our salvation and relationship with God. (And for those who are not followers of Jesus, there’s eternal danger involved in their being complacent, drifting back off).

Yet we are not called to serve God or each other half asleep but fully awake and engaged.  

Like that blessed alarm I was talking about, it’s time for us to wake up, friends, to stop hitting the proverbial snooze button on life and allow the Light of Christ to shine on us, waking us from our slumber! Jesus did not call His disciples or us so we might lay around; He called us all laborers; to rise up and take action. “Then Jesus went about the cities and villages, teaching in their synagogues, preaching the Gospel of the kingdom, and healing every sickness and every disease among the people. But when He saw the multitudes, He was moved with compassion for them, because they were weary and scattered, like sheep having no shepherd. Then He said to His disciples, “The harvest is plentiful, but the laborers are few. Therefore pray the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into His harvest.” –Matthew 9:35-38.

Though Jesus’ disciples were few in number, they were called to spread the Gospel of the Kingdom of God to the ends of the earth. And so are we. People were waiting for Truth and in need of hope and a purpose. If we lie around, assuming we have all the time in the world, then the work we’ve been assigned will not get accomplished.

Our work lives starts with us getting out of bed to answer the alarm clock.

Our Kingdom work starts with our first step of faith and obedience.

“How then shall they call on Him in whom they have not believed? And how shall they believe in Him of whom they have not heard? And how shall they hear without a preacher? And how shall they preach unless they are sent? As it is written: “How beautiful are the feet of those who preach the Gospel of peace, Who bring glad tidings of good things!”  –Romans 10:14-15.

If Jesu has called you, you are His chosen. Called to carry the Light of Jesus Christ, His Holy Spirit, into this dark world. “You are the light of the world, a city that is set on a hill cannot be hidden. Nor do they light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on a lamp stand, and it gives light to all who are in the house. Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works and glorify your Father in heaven.” –Matthew 5:14-16.

Sticking with the alarm clock metaphor, when the Light of Christ, His Holy Spirit, fills you up, it’s time for you to get up and go! “But all things are exposed are made manifest by the light, for whatever makes manifest is light. Therefore He says: “Awake, you who sleep, Arise from the dead, and Christ will give you light.” –Ephesians 5:13-14.

If we are abiding in Jesus, we ought to be fully awake, not living in some half-asleep darkness. ”I have come as light into the world, that whoever believes in Me should not abide in darkness.” –John 12:46.

We are getting closer and closer to the time of Jesus’ soon return, my brothers and sisters.

As He promised, Jesus is coming back.

No one knows when except the Father in Heaven. And so I pray all of us are awake, alert, and paying attention to what is happening in the world around us. In Peter’s Second Epistle, he writes, “The Lord is not slack concerning His promise, as some count slackness, but is long-suffering toward us, not willing that any should perish but that all should come to repentance.” –2 Peter 3:9.

Let’s shake off our slumbering, roll up our sleeves, and run headlong into the harvest.

The alarm is sounding! It’s time to wake up, plant your feet on the floor, and know the salvation of God, which is found only in Jesus Christ. Come, repent, and ask for Jesus to be Lord over your life, then watch how the Lord of the harvest changes your heart so that you can be used to help change others. The alarm is sounding. Will you get up and start after Christ, or will you be the one who hits the snooze button? The choice is yours. Amen. “For He says, “At the acceptable time (the time of grace) I listened to you, And I helped you on the day of salvation.” Behold, now is “the acceptable time,” behold, now is “the day of salvation” –2 Corinthians 6:2.

All, In One.

January 18, 2025 /

MaryEllen Montville

“For Christ’s love compels us, because we are convinced that one died for all, and therefore all died.” –2 Corinthians 5:14.

Reading just one sentence written in a daily devotional and then searching for the Truth of it in God’s inerrant Word can often usher in a whole new level of awe and understanding. It happens the instant His Logos, God’s written Word becomes Rhema, God’s Word made instantly alive and understood. Made personal by His Holy Spirit. If you’ve ever experienced this, you know precisely what I’m talking about.

I quickly recognized I was having an “I prayed, and God answered moment.” 

God responded to my prayer with just one click of His heavenly kaleidoscope, just as He promised us in Jeremiah 33:3.” “Call to me and I will answer you, and will tell you great and hidden things that you have not known.”  You see, just moments before reading an incroyable sentence in my devotional, I had asked God to show me more. More of Him. Deeper things. More of His goodness, character, and heart—supernatural things, all the while knowing such revelation would be far beyond my purblind understanding. Still, I want more of God and fully believe He alone can open our understanding of who He is—His deeper recesses. So I asked. And God answered.

The sentence in the devotional I was reading: “Jesus was all people in one person.”

As I read and reread that one sentence, His Holy Spirit began opening the eyes of my understanding, leading me straight into His Word. “Yet look at you now! Everything is new! Although you were once distant and far away from God, now you have been brought delightfully close to him through the sacred blood of Jesus—you have actually been united to Christ! Our reconciling “Peace” is Jesus! He has made Jew and non-Jew one in Christ. By dying as our sacrifice, he has broken down every wall of prejudice that separated us and has now made us equal through our union with Christ. Ethnic hatred has been dissolved by the crucifixion of his precious body on the cross. The legal code that stood condemning every one of us has now been repealed by his command. His triune essence has made peace between us by starting over—forming one new race of humanity, Jews and non-Jews fused together in himself!” –Ephesians 2:13-15.

At first glance, I got it. Kind of—in part. We were all inside of Christ as He hung on His Cross—before really, in eternity past, while He was waiting to be born and die for us, in our place—so that we might one day live for or reject Him; Jew and Gentile alike, no division between us “For those whom He foreknew [of whom He was aware and loved beforehand], He also destined from the beginning [foreordaining them] to be molded into the image of His Son [and share inwardly His likeness], that He might become the firstborn among many brethren.”  –Romans 8:29.

In the truest sense, Christ hung on His Cross, the Sinless substitute for every guilty man who was, is, or is yet to come; for you, me, Abraham, Moses, and that one who wants nothing to do with Him.

His sacrifice—the innocent in place of the guilty—is world-inclusive.

It’s Jesus’ “I’ll die so that every single one of them will have the opportunity to choose Me—to choose Life,” demonstration of love. According to John 19:30, every soul, saved and unsaved alike, has been caught in God’s eternal “It Is Finished” net.

That we, the guilty, should be offered such a choice as to accept or reject our Creator, our Pure and Sin-less Savior, is mind-boggling to me.

Jesus is the only atonement God would accept for every man’s sins—past, present, and future; His willingness to take upon Himself the sins of the whole world meant Jesus would be brutally beaten, crucified, and die, even for those He foreknew would reject, deny, and despise Him and His offer to experience new life in Him.

This part of the “Jesus was all people in one person.” I understood.

After all, Christ’s substitutionary atonement is a pillar of—a massive chunk of the very bedrock upon which our faith—my faith, is built. The other chunks? The fact that He was born of a Virgin, Fathered by God’s Holy Spirit, born fully God and fully man—sinless. And this same Jesus, Emmanuel, God with us, defeated death and the grave, resurrecting on the third day, are some of the other massive chunks of the bedrock of our faith.

Transfixed, feeling more was yet to come, I sat meditating on that one sentence: “Jesus was all people in one person.”

Then, suddenly, the Holy Spirit opened it up a bit more.

Those seven words put parentheses around the Gospel message. Around those, Jesus foreknew would accept Him and those who never would. It put parentheses around God’s justice and His Love—His judgment and forgiveness.

Being fully God, Jesus is the firstborn of all creation. Yes, the tiny babe the angel Gabriel once proclaimed as the world’s Savior to some shepherds; being one in nature with God—being God, was all men in one man in the sense that Jesus knew those the Father had given Him before the foundation of the world. From eternity past, it has always been about far more than Jews and Gentiles, about there being no division between us. “The Son is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation. For in him all things were created: things in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or powers or rulers or authorities; all things have been created through him and for him. He is before all things, and in him all things hold together. And he is the head of the body, the church; he is the beginning and the firstborn from among the dead, so that in everything he might have the supremacy.” –Colossians 1:15-18.

The “all people” has always been about every man. “All men.” Period. Regardless. All men include the pedophile, the murderer, and rapist, the abortion doctor, the thief, the drug-addicted mom, the sloppy drunk dad, and that homeless guy begging for change on the corner—those “surely not that one, Lord!”

Those the sanctimonious have labeled unworthy and shady; Jesus foreknew each of them in heaven as they awaited their birth, just as He foreknew you.

Jesus foreknew those who would accept Him as Lord and Savior and live—and those who, like Satan, Judas, and countless others, would rebel against Him and die because, like their father, they have chosen to harden their hearts. Refusing to believe that Jesus is the only way to the Father—the only way back to where they came from. “You have never heard, you have never known, from of old your ear has not been opened. For I knew that you would surely deal treacherously, and that from before birth you were called a rebel” –Isaiah 48:8.

Just as surely as God foreknew every lash His only Begotten Son would take upon His sinless body, He also foreknew every soul who would despise and reject Him. He foreknew the very men He was sending Jesus into the world to save would savagely and quite literally beat the flesh off His sinless Body, maliciously press a crown of thorns into His head, spit on him, strike Him with their fist, and then taunt and demean Him. And at any time, God could have stopped it, but He didn’t.

Jesus, at any time, could have said, “Enough,” but He didn’t. Instead, He endured death on His Cross. Why? Because in the truest sense of the word, hanging on His Cross, Jesus was all people in one Person—knowing who will be with Him always and those who would choose to live apart from Him now and forever. And had God loved us so and decided to let the cup of suffering pass Jesus by, Had Jesus not drank that bitter cup down to its dregs, all men would die in their sin, having no righteousness of their own, no Way back to the Father. Jesus answered, “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.” –John 14:6.

What will Jesus say of you, friend? “I never knew you; depart from Me, you who practice lawlessness!” or “Well done, good and faithful servant!”  Concerning these choices, God Himself says this to you: “I call heaven and earth as witnesses against you today, that I have set before you life and death, the blessing and the curse; therefore, you shall choose life in order that you may live, you and your descendants.” –Deuteronomy 30:19. Jesus loves you enough to have left heaven, been born as a man, lived, died, and conquered the grave, the firstborn of the dead so that you might choose Him, belong to Him, and live.

The Good Samaritan: Loving Beyond Boundaries

January 1, 2025 /

Pastor Samuel Cordeiro

“On one occasion an expert in the law stood up to test Jesus. “Teacher,” he asked, “what must I do to inherit eternal life?” “What is written in the Law?” he replied. “How do you read it?” He answered, “‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength and with all your mind’; and, ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.'” “You have answered correctly,” Jesus replied. “Do this and you will live.” But he wanted to justify himself, so he asked Jesus, “And who is my neighbor?” In reply Jesus said: “A man was going down from Jerusalem to Jericho, when he was attacked by robbers. They stripped him of his clothes, beat him and went away, leaving him half dead. A priest happened to be going down the same road, and when he saw the man, he passed by on the other side. So too, a Levite, when he came to the place and saw him, passed by on the other side. But a Samaritan, as he traveled, came where the man was; and when he saw him, he took pity on him. He went to him and bandaged his wounds, pouring on oil and wine. Then he put the man on his own donkey, brought him to an inn and took care of him. The next day he took out two denarii and gave them to the innkeeper. ‘Look after him,’ he said, ‘and when I return, I will reimburse you for any extra expense you may have.’ “Which of these three do you think was a neighbor to the man who fell into the hands of robbers?” The expert in the law replied, “The one who had mercy on him.” Jesus told him, “Go and do likewise.” –Luke 10:25-37.

In this passage of scripture, we encounter a profound and challenging parable that reveals the heart of God’s kingdom—a call to love beyond boundaries. An expert in the law approaches Jesus with a pivotal question: “What must I do to inherit eternal life?”

Jesus, in His wisdom, redirects the question: “What is written in the law? How do you read it?” The expert in the law rightly recites the law: ‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength and with all your mind’; and, ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.'” But then comes the follow-up: “And who is my neighbor?”

The man correctly understood that the law demanded total devotion to God and love for one’s neighbor. But the religious leader’s understanding of “neighbor” was missing. This question, meant to justify himself, sets the stage for one of the most powerful stories Jesus ever told—the parable of the Good Samaritan.

The Radical Love of the Kingdom

The Good Samaritan’s story isn’t just about helping someone in need. It’s a call to break down barriers, love beyond boundaries, and risk our comfort for the sake of Christ-like compassion. Through this parable, Jesus challenges us to redefine who our “neighbor” is and what it means to love them.

Who Is My Neighbor?

The Samaritan’s story begins on a dangerous road from Jerusalem to Jericho, notorious for its robbers. When a man is attacked, left beaten, and half-dead, two individuals—respected in society—walk past him: a priest and a Levite. Both choose to avoid him, prioritizing their own status or safety. But then, a Samaritan—despised by Jews—steps in. Despite centuries of prejudice and hatred between Jews and Samaritans, he chooses compassion.

So, who is our neighbor?

Is it someone who doesn’t look, think, or worship like us?

Is it someone we’ve written off because of their past?

Is it the person who has hurt us or holds different political views? Who have we, perhaps unintentionally, labeled as unworthy of our time, attention, or mercy? The answer is clear:

My neighbor is everyone Jesus valued worth dying for on the cross at Calvary.

EVERYONE, NO EXCLUSIONS. That includes those we may find challenging tolove.

1 John 4: 19-21 19 “We love because he first loved us. Whoever claims to love God yet hates a brother or sister is a liar. For whoever does not love their brother and sister, whom they have seen, cannot love God, whom they have not seen. And he has given us this command: Anyone who loves God must also love their brother and sister.”

While we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.

While we don’t deserve God’s forgiveness, His grace supersedes our sins.

 Compassion Over Status and Self-Preservation

The priest and Levite’s failure to help the wounded man reminds us how easy it is to let status or fear hold us back. The priest likely feared becoming ceremonially unclean. The law required priests to remain ceremonially clean, especially if they were on their way to performing temple duties. In this context, touching a potentially dead body would have made the priest unclean, requiring a lengthy purification process. So, to maintain his religious “purity,” he chose to walk by.

Like the priest, this Levite may have been concerned with ritual cleanliness. Still, perhaps even more so, he might have been worried about his safety or social repercussions. In a sense, his decision to “pass by” may have been rational, but it showed a lack of trust in God’s calling to love others boldly.

Both missed the point of God’s law, which places mercy and justice above ritual or convenience. God emphasized this truth when He said, “For I desire mercy, not sacrifice, and acknowledgment of God rather than burnt offerings.” (Hosea 6:6).

Compassion often costs us something—time, comfort, or resources.

But God calls us to move past our excuses and trust Him to work through our acts of love.

The Aroma of Christ

As followers of Jesus, our lives carry an aroma—a spiritual fragrance that points others to Christ. In 2 Corinthians 2:14-16 (NLT), Paul writes, “But thank God! He has made us his captives and continues to lead us along in Christ’s triumphal procession. Now, he uses us to spread the knowledge of Christ everywhere, like a sweet perfume. Our lives are a Christ-like fragrance

rising up to God. But this fragrance is perceived differently by those who are being saved and those who are perishing. To those who are perishing, we are a dreadful smell of death and doom. But to those who are being saved, we are a life-giving perfume. And who is adequate for such a task as this?”

When you walk into a room, the atmosphere changes.

Not because of you or anything special about you personally, but because the living God, the Holy Spirit, decided to take residence in you; we must remember the authority and privilege we have as believers of Christ Jesus that the same power that raised Jesus from the dead, lives in us! And through the power of the Holy Spirit in us, we can speak life to a dead situation, encourage a depressed soul, and be used to bring healing to a hurting body! God calls us to be the hands and feet of Jesus today in our generation.

What aroma are you spreading?

Does your life reflect the fruit of the Spirit—love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, and self-control? Or does it reflect the world’s tendencies—bitterness, division, and self-interest? Jesus says it this way in John 13:35: “By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another.”

I have heard it said this way… a plum tree doesn’t eat its own plums. A pear tree doesn’t eat its own pears. All it gets is water and sunlight. Because the fruit isn’t for themselves; they are for people who pass by (our neighbors). Why? Because your gifts aren’t for us or our pleasure –they’re for God to use to bless others.

What we need are rivers of Living Water (the Holy Spirit), Sunlight (Christ Jesus, the Son of God), and wisdom!

Be the Neighbor

Jesus ends the parable with a challenge: “Which of these three do you think was a neighbor to the man who fell into the hands of robbers?” The expert in the law replies, “The one who had mercy on him.” Jesus’ response is simple but profound: “Go and do likewise.”

Jesus calls us to not only identify our neighbor but to be a neighbor.

The focus shifts from “Who am I required to love?” to “How can I show God’s love to others?

The Samaritan’s actions went beyond a random act of kindness. He took the wounded man to an inn, paid for his care, and promised to return. His compassion was sacrificial, costing him time, money, and effort.

What does it look like for us to “be the neighbor”?

Helping those in need—from coworkers to strangers on the street.

Serving with humility—whether in our homes, communities, or churches.

Loving sacrificially—even when it’s inconvenient or uncomfortable.

We have the incredible honor of being the hands and feet of Jesus and carrying Christ’s aroma everywhere we go. Let’s be bold enough and humble enough to serve our neighbors around us with Christ’s love, mercy, and compassion.

The Challenge for Us

Confronting the needs of others reveals our attitudes:

 The priest and Levite saw the wounded man as a problem to avoid.

The Samaritan saw him as a person worth loving.

And Jesus? He saw them all—and us—as worth dying for.

This new year, let’s ask God to soften our hearts and open our eyes to the neighbors around us.

Let’s be bold enough to step into uncomfortable places and humble enough to serve with the love, mercy, and compassion of Christ. Because in the end, loving our neighbor isn’t just a command—it’s a reflection of the One who loved us first.

As we reflect on the parable of the Good Samaritan, we see a clear picture of Christ’s love for us—His selfless, sacrificial, and unconditional love for us when we were beaten, broken, and left for dead in our sin, Jesus didn’t pass us by.

He stepped down from heaven, took on the weight of our sin, and paid the ultimate price with His life so that we could be restored and made whole.

But just as the Samaritan’s compassion required a response, so does Christ’s love for us. The Bible says in Romans 10:9, “If you declare with your mouth, ‘Jesus is Lord,’ and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved.”

Perhaps you’ve been walking on the road of life, feeling beaten down by mistakes, guilt, or the weight of the past. Maybe you feel abandoned like no one cares or sees you. Let me assure you today:

Jesus sees you. He loves you. And He’s reaching out to you right now.

Don’t Look Back!

November 30, 2024 /

Pastor Maria Braga

“But Lot’s wife looked back, and she became a pillar of salt.” –Gen 19:26.

The Lord often gets our attention through difficult situations. He uses them, usually, to deliver us from stuff we have yet to learn. Once out of trouble, we quickly need to remember what He’s delivered us from. God knows our nature and how quickly we forget. He instructed us in many parts of Scripture to remember what He has done for his people then and us now!

The Bible mentions 170 women by name, but there is only one Jesus tells us to remember. We find her in Luke 17:32. She’s Lot’s wife. Amidst a speech about the end times, Jesus tells us: “Remember Lot’s wife.” Remember what she did. She looked back, disobeying God’s instructions, and turned into a pillar of salt. Just as the angel of the Lord told her not to look back to what was burning behind her, God also reminds us not to look back to where we’ve come from and what is burning behind us.

God wants us to let go! He doesn’t want us to look back to the things He is freeing us from.

Look ahead because Lot’s wife disobediently looked back and she turned into a pillar of salt in the place where she was only supposed to be passing by, not get stuck in, never going ahead. Looking back implies missing something behind us and the desire /longing to return to it. Our connection to the past must be healed through the Blood of Jesus, the only Blood that covers us—the Blood of the One who sets us free.

When God calls us out of any thing, we must leave it behind without hesitation; if we don’t, our hearts will desire the familiar. We will long for what we know. Even the good moments in Sodom were not worth looking back to. They are often only suitable for that season rather than the seasons ahead. God’s plan for our lives may change just as seasons change, and we must be willing to change with them, not holding tightly onto what is behind us.

Today’s Scripture clearly shows us how important it is to obey such a calling and to not look back.

Genesis 19:27-29 depicts Abraham’s attitude towards what he saw happening as He stood looking out over Sodom and Gomorrah. As he witnessed the smoke of that furnace going up! God had remembered Abraham and saved Lot for Abraham’s sake. “Early the next morning Abraham got up and returned to the place where he had stood before the Lord. He looked down toward Sodom and Gomorrah, toward all the land of the plain, and he saw dense smoke rising from the land, like smoke from a furnace. So when God destroyed the cities of the plain, he remembered Abraham, and he brought Lot out of the catastrophe that overthrew the cities where Lot had lived.”

These exemplary stories are a profound lesson in trusting God with all our hearts and leaning not on our understanding. Proverbs 3:5 advises us wisely to acknowledge God in all our ways. When we do this, we live in obedience, and we open ourselves to God’s divine guidance, direction, and longevity in the promise of our lives. “Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding.”

Genesis 19 is a powerful chapter that serves as a cautionary story, urging us not to follow in the footsteps of Lot’s wife. It vividly illustrates how disobedience can lead to severe consequences. Despite the angel’s warning not to look back, her longing for the past outweighed God’s command. She was given the chance to abandon everything and save her life, to leave and never return. Her refusal to let go of her past is her legacy. A fitting memorial to a rebellious unbeliever for coming generations to sadly witness.

Looking at Jesus’s New Testament stories, we find times when He expresses similar sentiments.

In Luke 9:62, Jesus said, “No one who puts a hand to the plow and looks back is fit for service in the kingdom of God.”  What is Jesus talking about?

Many people want to follow Jesus but are hindered by their concern for what they must leave behind. Not only looking back but also having divided loyalties, like Lot’s wife.

In various verses throughout the Gospels, Jesus says, “Whoever wants to save his life shall lose it.” (Matt 10:39, 16:25; Mark 8:35, Luke 9:24, 17:33.) Although the contexts may vary, one thing remains the same. Following Jesus requires turning our backs on the “life” this world offers, the life we once knew, and fully embracing our new life in Christ. Our attempts at keeping our old life are the same as our “looking back.”

Lot’s wife is an illustration and example that we must remember. In Luke 17:32, Jesus Himself commands us to remember. “Remember Lot’s wife.”

But why?

For the believer, our new life now rules over our old one, and we must remember to obey what Christ tells us. “So if the Son sets you free, you will be free indeed.” –John 8:36. This means that anyone who belongs to Christ has become a new person. The old life is gone; a new life has begun! “Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new” —2 Corinthians 5:17.

Jesus came to set you free. To make His children free indeed. To live in this freedom, we must detach from old memories, emotions, feelings, etc., and we must soar into the future fully sold out. Entirely believing in the commands of God the Father, Jesus the Son, and the Holy Spirit.

Father, in Jesus’ name, I pray for freedom over anyone reading these words. I pray your Holy Spirit loses, binds, and delivers every soul longing to get closer to you. Touch and heal the soul, body, and spirit. Enter in and make this person a new creation in Jesus’ name. “If you acknowledge and confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord [recognizing His power, authority, and majesty as God], and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved.” –Romans 10:9.

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