Category: Gospel

  • Big Foot and Good People

    At least one and maybe both are mythical

    I did it; I captured Bigfoot on film. Not the Yeti, the American Coot, whose big feet enable it to walk atop water vegetation with ease. Similar terms, but with completely different meanings. 

    That happens all the time in discussions of faith and religion. Someone will say, “I believe in God,” but what God? The God of the Bible or from another faith or even something you’ve crafted in your head? Christians, Muslims, Mormons, Buddhists, Jehovah’s Witnesses, pantheists, and more would give you a different definition of God but use the same word.

    Someone will tell you that they are a good person. What is good? By whose definition are you good? Do you mean you think you aren’t as evil as someone else, or that you make fewer mistakes than someone else? Do you mean you do enough good things to make up for the bad?

    I don’t know if Bigfoot is real or mythical, but most think it’s mythical. If so, it has more in common with good people than you might think.

    The Bible has some hard teaching on that subject.

    And as he was setting out on his journey, a man ran up and knelt before him and asked him, “Good Teacher, what must I do to inherit eternal life?” And Jesus said to him, “Why do you call me good? No one is good except God alone. Mark 10:17-18

    The rich young ruler wasn’t a particularly evil man; in fact, from what follows, most people might say he was good.

    You know the commandments: ‘Do not murder, Do not commit adultery, Do not steal, Do not bear false witness, Do not defraud, Honor your father and mother.’” And he said to him, “Teacher, all these I have kept from my youth.” And Jesus, looking at him, loved him, and said to him, “You lack one thing: go, sell all that you have and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; and come, follow me.” Disheartened by the saying, he went away sorrowful, for he had great possessions. Mark 10:19-22

    He seemed to have at least tried to keep all the rules of the Law. It would have been impossible, but at least he made the effort. Still, he wasn’t a good person.

    Or perhaps you can say, I keep all the commandments, and I don’t love wealth like the ruler, so I’m good. Still, Jesus would say you aren’t good. Only God can say that.

    The bible says we are all sinners (Romans 3:23), and if we say we are without sin we are liars deceiving ourselves (1 John 1:8). That’s totally contrary to what the world teaches. Other than Jesus, God made flesh, no one has ever been good, at least in God’s eyes.

    That doesn’t mean we are without hope. The gospel clearly proclaims that if we trust in Jesus by faith, we will be born again and forgiven. We are covered in the righteousness of Jesus until we get to glory, where we will be without sin.

    If you haven’t come to Christ yet, open your heart today. If you are already His, rejoice that He loved you even when you were far from God and came to set you free.

    Kevin

    SUMMARY

    I finally caught ‘Bigfoot’ on camera, but it was an American Coot, not a legendary creature. That same kind of mix-up happens when someone says they believe in God or that they’re a good person.

    TAKEAWAY

    If you think you’re a good person, ask yourself by what standard you’re measuring “good.”

    You can keep every rule you know and still fall short, because Jesus said only God is truly good.

    If you’ve trusted Jesus, you’re covered by His righteousness, not by how good you’ve managed to be on your own.

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  • Flakes of Mica

    Meaningless flash compared to real treasure

    We sat at a roadside pullout high in a mountain pass in British Columbia (The Messier Summit). We had stopped for breakfast about a half hour before, and here on the mountaintop seemed to be the perfect place to do our morning devotions.

    Kathy grabbed a chair and her Bible and went off in one direction. I grabbed a chair, my Bible and the dog and went a little way off. Genni, the wonder dog, settled at my feet as I read about mountains in the Old Testament, seated and looking across the valley at more rocky mountaintops.


    The setting was ideal for communing with God. When I was done, I set my Bible down and took the dog for a short stroll.


    As we walked, we came across a rock pile that some road crew had cleared from the road after a small rockslide. The pile glistened in the bright morning sunlight as the sun reflected off large flakes of mica and pyrite on the rocks.

    Fascinated, I picked up a large piece of mica and examined it closely. It was made up of many layers, each of which reflected the sun, but each of which peeled away like onion skin, soon leaving me holding but a dull, worthless rock. The pyrites had me dreaming of gold.


    It struck me that much of our lives are spent in chasing flakes of mica or worthless pyrite. We hunt for valuable treasures, shiny bits of precious metals, for little nuggets of knowledge, for possessions, for status and for recognition. They seem so attractive when we have them in our hand, but in the end they all peel away, leaving us empty and holding nothing of more value than a chunk of rock.


    It’s no wonder Scripture admonishes us to look for things of eternal value, things that will hold up and last forever.


    “Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where moth and rust do not destroy, and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.” Matthew 6:19-21 NIV


    What holds up in eternity? A personal relationship with Jesus, sharing His love with others, meeting the needs of those around us, acts of obedience and worship, prayer and praise will all stand the test.

    When you stand in front of Him at the seat of judgment, will you bring an offering of great value from a lifetime of service in His name or stand before Him holding a worthless chunk of stone?

    It’s never too early or too late to begin storing up those treasures in heaven. If you haven’t done so, or you drifted away for a while, it’s time to begin.

    Kevin

    SUMMARY

    I picked up a piece of mica on a BC mountainside and watched it peel apart into nothing in my hand. It’s a picture of how much of life we spend chasing things that dazzle for a moment and leave us empty.

    TAKEAWAY

    What you’re chasing today can look valuable in your hand and still turn out worthless the moment you’re holding it.

    A relationship with Jesus, obedience, and prayer are what actually hold up under eternity.

    You’ll stand before Him holding either something of real value or nothing at all.

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