feb 26 : Matthew 21

Early in the morning, as he was on his way back to the city, he was hungry. Seeing a fig tree by the road, he went up to it but found nothing on it except leaves. Then he said to it, "May you never bear fruit again!" Immediately the tree withered. Why was Jesus so angry at this fig tree? Was it this fig tree's fault that it did not bear fruit? I thought about this. I guess he was just trying to make a point. If Jesus saw me now, I wonder what he would say to me. The Christian is to bear fruits also - that comes from the Spirit. The kind described by Paul: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. I know that I can see a dozen areas right off the bat where I know I lack. I also see a couple areas where I think I am alright at. But I must be sure these fruits are not from legalism that has clouded my faith, but truly God sent through the Spirit. If Jesus were to come to me now, would he saw of me, " may you never bear fruit again!"? I surely hope not. Would he be disappointed in the way I was handling my life? Would I be able to stand firm while Jesus checked me out of my fruits? I hope that we all can. We need to have these kinds of goals set in our minds. God bless!

Feb 24 : Matthew 20

There are many times in my life where I think I deserve something because of what I have done. Especially when I have been serving in Cornerstone for a long time now. I have been a Christian a long part of my life. I have studied too many times by myself while my friends didn't. Sometimes I am a little, whats the word, demanding. In this passage Jesus tells us about a parable of the workers who work for a master, each working a different amount, but receiving the same amount of pay. Have you ever felt like this? Its understandable in the human perspective for us to feel for the guys who worked so hard the whole day. You would think they deserve more right? Jesus is saying, let God do what he deems right and appropriate. God knows when to give and when not to give. There are reasons to why God does the things he does, without mistake and without err. Its hard for me understand why, even though I try hard, I fail. Even though I think it is so right, it never turns out the way it seems. God owns the world - he owns me. It takes a little bit of faith to understand that. "Don't I have the right to do what I want with my own money? Or are you envious because I am generous?"

Feb 23 : Matthew 19:16-30

"Now a man came up to Jesus and asked, "Teacher, what good thing must I do to get eternal life?"

This man apparently did most things directed by the Old Testament - specifically from Exodus 20. Do not have any other Gods, no idols, do not say his name in vain, honor the sabbath, honor your father and mother, do not murder, commit adultery, do not steal, lie, or envy. I think what Jesus was getting at in this passage was this - get away from legalism and run after the love of God. A lot of us Christians live this life thinking that if they don't commit the sins listed above they can go to heaven. Their acts and deeds could be faithful to what the law has commanded, but the state of the heart is what dictates entry into the kingdom of Heaven. Now this rich man, the one thing he couldn't give up was money. He was loaded. Doing things out of love would allow him to fulfill what he already had been doing, but moreover it would have allowed him to give to the poor all his possessions. Now I do not know if Jesus literally meant for the rich man to give everything he owned. I believe Jesus was pointing out the fact that the rich man was living legalistically. He did these things not out of love. I wonder now what Jesus would ask of me. Would he ask me to give up pharmacy school? Give up my car. Give up my girlfriend. Give up my family. Give up my life. Would I be able to do it? I don't know. A part of me says I need these things too much. I know I need to be there, to give anything and everything, not for the sake of heaven, but for the sake of love for God.

Feb 22 : Matthew 18:1-9

What does it mean to 'become like this little child"? Jesus answers a question posed by his disciples again in a confusing manner. So then I began thinking about what it is about a young child that makes him the 'greatest' in the kingdom of heaven. I am assuming that children now are a good representation of the children then. I am just imagining, but I think children are relatively pure around 4 or 5 years of age. I was examining a few children at church today because I read this passage before I came to church and was wondering how they are. They really are pure. Even though they start petty fights with their friends - everyone their age is a friend to them - they are pure in a sense that they are 'real'. They do not because its cool, but because it is fun. They depend on their parents so much. They love em. Parents are always keeping an eye on their young kids, but interestingly the child may be keeping an even closer eye on their parents. Its hard to see a proud kid around that age. You hardly see a boy lusting sexually after a hot woman. And they believe wholeheartedly what their parents and teachers say. But the question is, how do you and I become like a child again? Where do we go to take back our childlike faith? I think this is still so new to me that I just need to pray and examine. I hope you guys would do the same. =]

feb 20 : matthew 17

"There he was transfigured before them. His face shone like the sun, and his clothes became as white as the light. Just then there appeared before them Moses and Elijah, talking with Jesus."

There are a lot of liberal christians in this world. The church today is turning more towards the secular world, and relying more on science to describe a God who is not held down by the laws of nature or culture. Here we see Jesus transfigured. Some christians would say this did not really happen. That everything is figurative. However we know that the Bible is true in everything it says. If this was a metaphor for something else I think Matthew would have written it in a different way. Being a believer in the Scriptures as truth I can understand somewhat the power of Jesus, and ultimately of God. This is amazing! Jesus who was here more than 2000 years ago did this. He was not bound by the laws of pysics, he was truly an amazing God. I was discouraged this week when my dad came back from a presbyterian meeting held in Indiana. A couple big name churches here in Lafayette and West Lafayette left the presbyterian church. They were saying the denomination was turning more and more liberal. Not believing the Bible in its entirety, ordaining homosexual pastors, and the idea of a universal God. What sets us apart from the world our differences with the world, how can we be different when the church is trying to be the same? Lets take the Bible as literal and truly be blessed by the Spirit =]

Feb 18 : Matthew 16

"Then Jesus said to his disciples, "If anyone would come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross and follow me. For whoever wants to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for me will find it. What good will it be for a man if he gains the whole world, yet forfeits his soul? Or what can a man give in exchange for his soul?"
What does that mean to you, to deny yourself? Deny yourself of what? I think the answer is complicated in that there are certain things or ideas you need to deny that is unique to you. Kind of like a tailored suit this passage has a meaning tailored to fit only your size. You have to examine what it is. It cannot be taken lightly. By that I mean you cannot size yourself up to other people and expect there to be a specific standard of guidelines that need to be followed. Your neighbor deals with excessive pride, but you don't. You deal with issues of lust, but he doesn't. None is worse than the other. It doesn't mean you are a better person. It means you have something that you must deny and your neighbor has something else to deny. Both are equal in terms of what Jesus is talking about - both are used as tools by Satan to have you forfeit your soul. Lets think about this =]

Feb 17 : Matthew 15:1-28

"Don't you see that whatever enters the mouth goes into the stomach and then out of the body? But the things that come out of the mouth come from the heart, and these make a man 'unclean.' For out of the heart come evil thoughts, murder, adultery, sexual immorality, theft, false testimony, slander. These are what make a man 'unclean'; but eating with unwashed hands does not make him 'unclean.' "
Eat whatever you like! This is what I learned most from this passage. =] jk, but kind of not. The beginning of this passage we see that the pharisees were asking Jesus why his disciples break the law of not washing their hands before they eat. Jesus says that it is not the rules that matter with faith, but the condition of the heart. He says that what we eat we poo, but what we take into our hearts is what shapes us, emotionally. What makes me clean is not the fact that I go to church every Sunday or write a blog everyday but rather what drives it. The heart is like the engine of a car. You can have a great looking car but if the engine is undependable then the whole car is undependable. A great example of something opposite of that is my 1996 black Honda Civic Hatchback DX. That car is not the greatest looking little bugger on the street, but let me tell you, the engine is remarkable. Not once have I had a major problem with it. A/C still works, single complact disc player, non-smoker, no accidents, >112,000. If you're interested I'm still selling it at $2950, cash only. haha jk. But really though - $2950. Ok ok enough joking. But like our lives, a little dent here and little ding there on the outside may appear 'unclean', but if our source of power comes from Truth and the Spirit we are on the right track to race with the best. Is legalism something you deal with on a day to day basis? Is it something you are yet unaware of and need to address? Let us all deal with it appropriately and fix the condition of the heart, not the appearance of our faith.

feb 16 : matthew 5:21-26

"Anyone who says to his brother, 'Raca,' is answerable to the Sanhedrin. But anyone who says, 'You fool!' will be in danger of the fire of hell."
I think we can all relate to this. In another passage is says:

"Anyone who hates his brother is a murderer, and you know that no murderer has eternal life in him."

There are some people in my immediate life who I dislike. There were times where this dislike of someone would evolve into a bigger and badder dislike - hate. The sad thing is that these times of dislike and immense dislike were not from my childhood, but rather a time not too long ago. Reading these two passages and those like it reminds me of how much higher I need to grow. Sometimes its so easy to hate someone. Do you know what I mean? I think you probably do. Its sad that we are prone to hate so easily. But sometimes I think, well I don't dislike the individual THAT much, or everyone has someone they dislike. But when you look into the passage the words Raca and Fool are used to describe a person of low intelligence and character, defined respectively. These words are not very strong words, there were worse words than those in Hebrew. So, something as trivial as the word fool, could it be something so displeasing to God that Jesus would tell those who commit this sin to watch out for hell? We must heed this passage and go to those who we need to forgive... I got a lot of cleaning to do.

feb 14 : matthew 14

Jesus feeds 5,000 people.
This is probably the amount of people that followed him to hear him, to be healed, and to love feel love. It is amazing that there was such a great following. Its even more amazing how Jesus cared for each one of them. When it was time for dinner Jesus didn't want to send them home because he knew they came to listen and he wanted them to listen. The disciples wanted them to go back into the city to eat. Jesus however insisted that he perform a miracle to feed them there on the spot. Why? Because Jesus wanted to be with them because they wanted to be with him. When we follow Jesus he likes it! He wants us to keep following him. He knows that we have needs, of course we have the fundamental needs as human beings such as eating, but we also have emotional and spiritual needs as well. I believe Jesus will never send you away hungry, weak, or broken, as long as you follow him. The loneliness you feel, could it be that Jesus is not found amongst your common companions? The lust, the hate, the pride, the jealousy, etc., he will replace all those as you follow him. He will fill the void and the hunger. There will be times though in following him where you will feel scared, alone, and even doubtful - its not going to be the most jolliest or carefree of times. After this we see Jesus walk on water. Peter is called out to walk on the water with Jesus. And what happens, he walks on water, but surely doubt gets the best of him and he starts sinking. Remember, its not as though Peter didn't know Jesus' powers; he saw the miracle, he experienced them first hand. We too will fall from what we believe to be our most spiritual peak. But just as Jesus offered his hand to Peter as he was sinking, he too will offer his hand to us who are falling. Be strong!

feb 12 : matthew 5: 17-20

"Do not think that I have come to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I have not come to abolish them but to fulfill them. I tell you the truth, until heaven and earth disappear, not the smallest letter, not the least stroke of a pen, will by any means disappear from the Law until everything is accomplished. Anyone who breaks one of the least of these commandments and teaches others to do the same will be called least in the kingdom of heaven, but whoever practices and teaches these commands will be called great in the kingdom of heaven. For I tell you that unless your righteousness surpasses that of the Pharisees and the teachers of the law, you will certainly not enter the kingdom of heaven."
I've done my qt on this chapter once before, but I wanted to examine these three verses deeper than I had done before. The biggest argument between the Catholic and Protestant church is the issue of works and deeds. The Old Testament was based largely on the Law. You can or cannot do this, you do this and you will die, a lot of them given reason for but some of them not. But protestants focus more heavily on the teachings of the New Testament where grace is what gives salvation. Jesus did not come to this world to take the Law out of our understanding of faith, he came to redefine what they stand for. He came so that we can have eternal life, if following the Law grants eternal life than there would be no need for a savior. There would have already been a way into Heaven. But the rules of the Bible are so strict. Can anyone possibly follow all of them without breaking them? Following only the Law would leave us with guilt and shame. The reason Jesus came down to earth was because he was the only one capable of following such a strict set of rules and laws without once failing. That is what we are to follow, that is who we are to follow. The following of Jesus, not rules, is what gets us to Heaven. Good deeds will then come alive as a response to the grace of Jesus Christ.

Feb 11 : Matthew 13:24-58

"As the weeds are pulled up and burned in the fire, so it will be at the end of the age. The Son of Man will send out his angels, and they will weed out of his kingdom everything that causes sin and all who do evil. They will throw them into the fiery furnace, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth. Then the righteous will shine like the sun in the kingdom of their Father. He who has ears, let him hear."
Scary. Jesus talks in the last half of this chapter about the end days when he comes back to collect his people. He describes us like fish being caught in a net. There will be tons of us who are caught. Not all of them will be saved, only the ones who are handpicked and chosen will be given eternal life. Jesus basically tells us how to escape the "gnashing of teeth." Jesus describes himself and the faith as treasure. If you were walking on some random property and you stumbled upon a pirates treasure chest filled with tons and tons of gold hidden under a tree you would desire it so badly right? So badly to the point where you would sell all you had to get it and hold on to it. So too we must learn to be able to be like that. We need to understand that what we have from Christ is of greater value than anything. We must be keen enough to know when something is simply not worth it if it costs a part of our treasure.

feb 10 : matthew 13: 1-23

"Though seeing, they do not see;
though hearing, they do not hear or understand."

Many people do not understand why we [Christians] do the things we do. When we read the Bible we come across a different kind of message and interpretation than do those who are not of Christ. Even among fellow Christians we may find ourselves unable to simply understand the message in the Scriptures. Its amazing how true this is. Many times we have been presented with a particular message filled with hope, love, encouragement, faith, power, and more but all we see is ink on paper. There is so much, Jesus says, that is meant for us to understand and receive. We are better off than people of no faith because we do understand to a certain extent, but we must be fervent in our attempts to truly understand God's message. Like the parable given in this passage we see what happens to those who struggle with the worries of this world, the pressures of success, the sense of belonging, or even ignorance, they ultimately fail to see the glory of God. Be strong!

feb 8 : matthew 12

Hello.
"Make a tree good and its fruit will be good, or make a tree bad and its fruit will be bad, for a tree is recognized by its fruit."

I feel like I am an in between tree. Sometimes I bear good fruit, but often times I bear not-so-good fruit. Jesus says that whatever is in our heart will be the source of what comes out as words and action. When the Pharisees were constantly trying to corner Jesus he disregarded them because he said that whatever comes out of them is no good because they are no good. It's so important to put what is good into our hearts. In Psalms it tells us to guard our hearts for it is the wellspring of life. Why guard it? Because it is so easily corrupted. As Jesus was explaining in this passage, what goes in comes out and what does not go in does not come out. Simple right? The movies we watch, the friends of influence, church, books, magazines, and much more enters our naive and malleable hearts. A shape is formed, and from it our character and personality are developed. Let us hope that Jesus would look at us and tell us we have goodness coming out of us, not because we are perfect, righteous, or holy, but passionate, hungry, and full of grace.

feb 8 : matthew 11

"Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light."

Have you ever caught yourself complaining about how hard it is to serve in Cornerstone? I find myself complaining quite often actually, and frankly, I hate it when I complain. I feel that leading a small group takes too much time and too much effort when I have other things in my life I am worrying about. I feel like we, myself included, get burned out so early on in the semester that the remaining stretch sucks the life right out of us. But this should not be. This job, though difficult, is not meant to make us grumble, crawl, or loath in discontentment, but rather a hiding place of refuge and rest. Wee need to be recharged. Like a battery out of power seeking a fix of energy so we too should seek rest from our Father. We should avoid the grumbling and fix our eyes on the one who promised a yoke easy and a burden light. Ajah Ajah Fighting!

feb 7 : matthew 10

Hello
Man those disciples whom Jesus sent out had it tough during this chapter of Matthew. Jesus basically said go and preach the gospel, but you can't bring a single thing. Now that is faith and trust in God. When Jesus said, "when they arrest you..." I would have been like what? I'm gonna get arrested? But to have the faith where they believed Jesus when he said, "and when you are arrested do not worry about what to say because it will be given to you at that time," is amazing. Now I question myself with this. Do I have what it takes you know? Jesus sent out these disciples probably because he trusted them to do and faithfully fulfill the work. Would Jesus trust me? Now the disciples were not perfect people, nobody really is. They probably had faith and integrity that was enough for Jesus to use. I think that Jesus can use me and you to complete works like this. We are sinners and broken people, but we look to God for strength right? Lets pray that we can be like the disciples and do His work faithfully. =]

Feb 5 : Mark 9:42-50

Hello.
How bad is sin in the eyes of Jesus? In this chapter passage we find out a little bit about his views on sin. Its hard to read this passage because of how aware you are of your own sins; how aware Jesus is of those same sins. When Jesus says that it would be better for you to enter life crippled than to have two feet and be thrown into hell, its downright scary. For guys, like me, I find it hard to keep my eyes clean of lust and sexual sins. My eyes in all its intricate and wonderful capabilities has the capacity to bring damnation to my whole body. This is where Jesus says, "It is better for you to enter the kingdom of God with one eye than to have two eyes and be thrown into hell." For those of us who have difficulty biting the tongue, is it not better to have your tongue removed if it is going to award you a ticket to hell? Though we know Jesus wasn't speaking literally with these illustrations we need to consider them with a half literal and half symbolic interpretation. Why? Because sometimes we can't control something even if we know it is destroying our lives. For example, the types of friends we have. I'm not talking about the best friend who is not a Christian. I'm talking about the types of friends who have bad morals and who help lead you astray. We need to cut them out of our lives. The t.v., IF it is causing you to sin, get rid of it - or cable. The computer, same thing. The boyfriend, same thing. I am not close to living the kind of life I am explaining, but I am trying. Lets all try!

feb 4 : matthew 9:1-13

Why do we serve? I sometimes ask myself this question. What do I plan to achieve by serving in Cornerstone? I ask myself that at times because I feel like I am not doing what I had planned or imagined I would be doing when I first started serving. As Jesus came to the earth to be with the sick, the poor, the needy, and yes the sinner - the latter being of primary concern. When Jesus chose to hang with Matthew, the tax collector, he knew the imagine that would follow him. And so it was, people began criticizing Jesus for chilling with the "sinners". People began judging Jesus. What Jesus said was this, "It is not the healthy who need a doctor, but the sick. But go and learn what this means: 'I desire mercy, not sacrifice.' For I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners." Now, let me ask myself and you again, "why do you serve?" Do we only like to hang out with those who are more Christian like? If we were to hang out with people who were known as the clubbers or people of bad image we would probably feel uncomfortable. But those are the type of people who we need to hang out with. In the earlier chapters of this book Christ talks about us being the salt of this world. Christians judge the meat of this world so sinful. If we take ourselves out of society how then can we be the salt? Salt needs to be put in the meat to preserve it. We need to engage and dive deep into where preservation is needed - like Christ himself. =]

feb 3 : Matthew 8

Hey guys.
I did my qt today on faith. Faith is something that I, and others, claim to have. But having faith that is 100% is close to impossible. There are moments when doubt seems too strong. But faith always seems to find its way back. But from this passage we see powerful faith, a different kind of faith. Now in this chapter we see that the people with faith are asking for something. These people are in need of something. The leprosy case and the centurion, Jesus says they have such strong faith, but does that mean they have 100% faith? Jesus says, "I have not seen faith this great in all of Jerusalem." I do not know how his faith would have been revealed if in a different circumstance. Something I am wondering about. But when asking for something we need to ask with faith. In James it says that someone who prays without faith is like a mist blown in the sea. So we need to pray with faith!