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Surrender Day 10 True Joy

February 3, 2023 by Sara Cissell Leave a Comment

Surrender Day 10 True Joy

Sara Cissell

February 3, 2023

Faith,Future,Giving,Greed

Read His Words Before Ours!

1 Corinthians 9:19-27
Matthew 6:16-24
Hebrews 12:1-3
Daniel 1:8-21
Psalm 16:7-11

At my daughter’s baby shower, we received a pink ceramic piggy bank inscribed with the word joy. A crisp two-dollar bill flared from the slit in the top, the first investment deposited.

As I write this Journey Study, the significance of that piece of pottery, and its message resonate with me.

In our western culture (and likely in many others as well), an emphasis is placed on money and the future from an early age. How many commercials or ads are there for financial planners, banks, money-saving apps, ways to make money, or ways to save money?

At the same time, we are bombarded with messages encouraging us to indulge ourselves, to spend that money on what brings us pleasure.

Yet the Bible challenges us, “Don’t store up treasures for yourself on earth, where moth and rust destroy and where thieves break in and steal. But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, for where your treasure is, there your heart will also be.” (Matthew 6:19-20)

What exactly does that mean?
The Lord calls us to invest intentionally with our eyes towards heaven and our hearts bent on joy, rather than pleasure.

But what does this look like in ordinary life?

Let’s start with the reality we will not live on this earth forever. (Thankfully!) We are here for an appointed time and our lives are like vanishing vapors (James 4:14) in the timeline of this planet.

The common phrase regarding material possessions, “you can’t take it with you”, is acutely accurate! In the piggy bank analogy, investing solely for the sake of storing up money on earth will result in a full piggy bank, but it will be left behind when I pass away.

Alternatively, suppose I take Jesus’ words to heart and spend my time on earth intentionally investing in the eternal life still to come? The guaranteed result is true joy now and unimaginable rewards later!

…But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, for where your treasure is, there your heart (read: deepest joy and delight) will also be.”

Joy is a naturally produced “fruit” of the Holy Spirit living, working, and breathing inside our surrendered souls. (Galatians 5:22-23) Therefore, true joy is a result of an ever-deepening walk with the Lord, one which grows over time with dedicated discipline to focus or hearts on the unseen and eternal.

Conversely, what enemy deadens our sensitivity to the Holy Spirit’s voice?
A heart and mind satiated with the pleasures of this world.

How quickly our hearts are cut with this realization!

Pleasure is not inherently negative but putting it before our relationship with the Lord is a pattern for destruction of true joy.

One of my pleasures is reading and watching movies. Being caught up in a storyline and learning from the characters is one of my favorite ways to relax. However, I allow this pleasure to hinder my walk with the Lord when I use it to avoid processing my emotions with Him. Rather than taking my thoughts to the Lord in prayer, I sometimes pick up a book or hit play on a movie in order to disconnect, effectively barricading my passageway to true joy.

Surrendering earthly pleasure to the Lord in those moments would enable me to gain the Lord’s wisdom, comfort, and perspective. Additionally, I may gain time to further His kingdom because I am more aware of my surroundings, rather than lost in the midst of a good story. Regardless of our individual lusts to satisfy ourselves with personal pleasure, the clarion call remains for every heart to draw near to the Lord, finding Him to be our fullest Sustainer and Satisfier!

Daniel knew the value of looking to the Lord to fulfill him in the face of pleasures. Instead of eating the rich food the king provided, Daniel ate what the Lord had outlined as valuable. (Daniel 1) His surrender of fleeting, vapor-like pleasures resulted in far weightier benefits and favor from the Lord God.

When the Lord asks us to trust Him and forego pleasure, His benefits always outweigh the cost, even if we don’t see immediate results.

With stunning beauty, Jesus demonstrated this as He surrendered Himself to death in our place. He denied Himself the pleasure of commanding His authority in the situation and allowed Himself to be crucified because of the joy set before Him: eternity with us.

Mind blown.

Jesus knew the value of investing in what was eternal, in what would bring true joy.
And it was anchored in His humble surrender.

May we each be quick to surrender temporary pleasure for enduring joy!

“You reveal the path of life to me; in your presence is abundant joy; at your right hand are eternal pleasures.” (Psalm 16:11)

Tags :

eternal,hope,invest,patience,perspective,wait

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It is okay to spend your money on earthly treasures like antiques and vacations, but it is not okay to make them your heart’s treasure. Can you live without them? How much would it hurt your heart if you couldn’t have those things anymore? Our hearts should treasure heavenly things, that which impacts the Kingdom of God, the most.

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Waiting Day 14 Not Yet, Not Now, No: Digging Deeper

October 21, 2021 by Shannon Vicker Leave a Comment

Digging Deeper Days

Finding the original intent of Scripture and making good application to our everyday lives as we become equipped to correctly handle the Word of Truth!

Yesterday’s Journey Study connects with today’s!
Check out Not Yet, Not Now, No!

The Questions

1) Who is Theophilus and what is the first narrative referred to in verse 1?

2) Why were the apostles told to wait in Jerusalem? (verse 4)

3) What do the men in verse 11 mean in saying, “This same Jesus, who has been taken from you into heaven, will come in the same way that you have seen him going into heaven”?

Acts 1:1-14

I wrote the first narrative, Theophilus, about all that Jesus began to do and teach ²until the day he was taken up, after he had given instructions through the Holy Spirit to the apostles he had chosen. ³After he had suffered, he also presented himself alive to them by many convincing proofs, appearing to them over a period of forty days and speaking about the kingdom of God.

⁴While he was with them, he commanded them not to leave Jerusalem, but to wait for the Father’s promise. “Which,” he said, “you have heard me speak about; ⁵for John baptized with water, but you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit in a few days.”

⁶So when they had come together, they asked him, “Lord, are you restoring the kingdom to Israel at this time?”

⁷He said to them, “It is not for you to know times or periods that the Father has set by his own authority. ⁸But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come on you, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.”

⁹After he had said this, he was taken up as they were watching, and a cloud took him out of their sight. ¹⁰While he was going, they were gazing into heaven, and suddenly two men in white clothes stood by them. ¹¹They said, “Men of Galilee, why do you stand looking up into heaven? This same Jesus, who has been taken from you into heaven, will come in the same way that you have seen him going into heaven.”

¹²Then they returned to Jerusalem from the Mount of Olives, which is near Jerusalem—a Sabbath day’s journey away. ¹³When they arrived, they went to the room upstairs where they were staying: Peter, John, James, Andrew, Philip, Thomas, Bartholomew, Matthew, James the son of Alphaeus, Simon the Zealot, and Judas the son of James. ¹⁴They all were continually united in prayer, along with the women, including Mary the mother of Jesus, and his brothers.

Original Intent

1) Who is Theophilus and what is the first narrative referred to in verse 1?
Luke, the author of Acts, addresses his letter to Theophilus. The first narrative referred to is the Gospel of Luke, which was also addressed to Theophilus. (Luke 1:1-4) Luke’s purpose was to provide Theophilus with a brief summary of what Jesus did when He came to earth (verses 1-3) before beginning the account of what happened following Jesus’ death and resurrection. Luke wants his friend to bring to mind all he had written in his first gospel account, which had been thoroughly investigated (Luke 1:3), in order to provide a background for all that comes next as the Holy Spirit fueled the early believers with His power and the Church was birthed!

2) Why were the apostles told to wait in Jerusalem? (verse 4)
The apostles, or disciples, had been with Jesus in Jerusalem at the end of His life when He was crucified just outside of the city. They celebrated the Passover with Jesus in Jerusalem (Matthew 26:17-30, Mark 14:12-26, Luke 22:7-22) and watched as Jesus was betrayed by Judas, arrested, tried, and sentenced to crucifixion (Matthew 26:47-27:26, Mark 14:43-15:15, Luke 22:47-23:25, John 18:1-19:16). While many of them were not present at His crucifixion they knew He had died, been buried, and physically seen Him after His resurrection. (Matthew 27:32-28:8, Mark 15:20-16:8, Luke 23:26-24:49, John 19:16-21:19) Jerusalem was not a friendly environment for the followers of Jesus and they likely were afraid of meeting a similar fate to Jesus, yet He told them to wait in Jerusalem. Jesus knew the Holy Spirit was coming, and He knew God’s plan was for the disciples to spread the Good News of the Gospel beginning right at the epicenter of Jerusalem where He had been crucified and risen. (Matthew 28:18-20 and Acts 1:8) Jesus knew the gift of the Holy Spirit was coming soon and the disciples needed to stay together in Jerusalem so God’s plan would be fulfilled.

3) What do the men in verse 11 mean in saying, “This same Jesus, who has been taken from you into heaven, will come in the same way that you have seen him going into heaven”?
This is the second time Luke records the ascension of Jesus back to Heaven. (Luke 24:50-53) However, this time Luke provides more detail to Theophilus about what occurred after Jesus’ ascension. Luke tells of the disciples standing on the mountain and looking into Heaven, waiting for Jesus to return. Suddenly, men appear, wondering why they are still standing around staring into heaven. They inform the disciples that Jesus will return just as He left them. These angelic men assure the disciples He will return, but they don’t give a specific time of return. They are, in their own way, encouraging the disciples to not stand around waiting doing nothing, instead they motivate them to action, reminding them to return to Jerusalem and wait as Jesus had instructed. Only when they were obedient to wait would they receive the Holy Spirit and begin the work of sharing the Good News.

Everyday Application

1) Who is Theophilus and what is the first narrative referred to in verse 1?
Just as Theophilus needed to be reminded of Luke’s first narrative, the Gospel of Luke, we need the same reminder. What Luke recorded in Acts happened after Jesus’ time on earth and after His death and resurrection. Without understanding all that had taken place while Jesus was on earth, it’s difficult to understand Acts. We can only begin to understand the decisions of the apostles throughout the book of Acts when we understand the relationship and time they spent with Jesus as first-hand eye witnesses to His life. Remembering that Scripture was originally written with varying timelines and purposes is important for us to keep in mind as we read and study. What we read in the pages of God’s Word isn’t a letter written directly to us, rather it is God’s Word revealing Who He is, who we are as sinful humans, and what great Hope we have because of His lavish love for us. Reading Scripture through the proper lens is imperative to proper understanding and good application to our everyday lives. If you’re new to studying the Bible like this, there are many excellent study tools available for free online to help us understand passages in their original context and language. Check out www.studylight.org or www.blueletterbible.org for great resources!

2) Why were the apostles told to wait in Jerusalem? (verse 4)
Jerusalem would have been hostile territory to the disciples. They had just seen their Rabbi teacher, whom they had closely followed, be arrested, beaten, tried, crucified, and buried within a matter of hours. They knew Jesus was no longer dead and had seen Him resurrected, yet they knew those who had killed Jesus would likely be after His followers as well. Yet, Jesus instructs them to stay in Jerusalem and wait for the Holy Spirit to be given. God had a plan, and the disciples trusted it, even when they were likely terrified. As believers today, God still has a plan to continue building His kingdom through us. It doesn’t mean the plan will always make sense when God calls us to action. However, just as the disciples trusted Jesus and waited, we need to be just as obedient when God calls us. God has proven over and again He is trustworthy; our job as believers is to obey just as the first disciples did. We can rest in the knowledge that God’s plan is best, and He will use us as we surrender to Him just as He used the men who had physically walked with Jesus.

3) What do the men in verse 11 mean in saying, “This same Jesus, who has been taken from you into heaven, will come in the same way that you have seen him going into heaven”?
The words in verse 11 that guarantee Jesus’ return in the same way He left seem cryptic. They don’t provide a time frame, or answer any other questions, instead they point to a singular assurance, He will return. Today, more than 2,000 years later, we still wait for the fulfillment of those long-ago words. However, we are blessed with the entirety of Scripture the original disciples didn’t have the benefit of accessing as a whole. We can read of the promise of Jesus’ return in Revelation 19:11-16 and can read of the guarantee of a New Creation in Revelation 21. We can see the faithfulness of God from Genesis to Revelation and we can note His plan to rescue us from our sin woven into the fabric of Scripture from beginning to end. We rest in the assurance that while we still wait for the fulfillment of the promise of Christ’s return, He is indeed coming, and when He does, it will be more than worth the wait. “For our momentary light affliction is producing for us an absolutely incomparable eternal weight of glory. So we do not focus on what is seen, but on what is unseen. For what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal.” (2 Corinthians 4:17-18) In the meantime, there is work to be done as the Gospel still needs to be shared to the ends of the earth. We each play a role in the ongoing work of the Lord while we await His glorious return.

What do YOU think?! Share Here!
Missing the connection to our other Journey Study?
Catch up with Not Yet, Not Now, No!

Digging Deeper is for Everyone!

1) Take this passage (or any other passage).
2) Read it, and the verses around it,
several times
3) Write down your questions
as you think of them.
4) Ask specific culture related questions and be ready to dig around for your answers. Google them, use www.studylight.org, or look them up in a study Bible and read the footnotes (click on the little letters next to a word and it will show you
other related verses!). (www.esvbible.org)
5) Check your applications with other trusted Christians that you are in community with and embrace the fullness of God
in your everyday!

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Why Dig Deeper?

Finding the original meaning is a huge deal when we study Scripture and can make all the difference in our understanding as we apply God’s truths to our everyday lives.

In our modern-day relationships, we want people to understand our original intention as we communicate; how much more so between God and humanity?!

Here’s a little bit more on why we take Digging Deeper so seriously.

Study Tools

We love getting help while we study and www.studylight.org is one of many excellent resources, providing the original Hebrew (Old Testament) or Greek (New Testament) with an English translation.

Want to know more about a specific word in a verse? Click on “Strong’s Interlinear Bible” then click the word you’d like to study. Discover “origin”, “definition” and hear the original pronunciation – That Is Awesome!

Want more background? Click “Study Tools”, then pick a few commentaries to read their scholarly approach, keeping in mind that just because a commentary says it, doesn’t mean it’s true. (just like the internet :-))

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Waiting Day 10 Once Upon God’s Kairos

October 15, 2021 by Sarah Young Leave a Comment

Waiting Day 10 Once Upon God’s Kairos

Sarah Young

October 15, 2021

God,Holy Spirit,Jesus,Life,Perfect,Promises,Redemption,Rescue,Sacrifice,Salvation,Scripture,Waiting

Read His Words Before Ours!

Ecclesiastes 3:1-15
1 Peter 1:13-25
1 John 3:1-3
1 Thessalonians 5:1-11
Isaiah 40

Almost a decade ago, I was introduced to the concept of KAIROS time.
Did you know ancient Greeks used two words, chronos and kairos to describe time?

Chronos time is linear and sequential, the timeline in which we live.

Kairos is a time when conditions are right for the accomplishment of a crucial action; the opportune and decisive moment. Throughout Scripture, kairos describes the time in which God exists and moves.

I was profoundly impacted by the reality that God is not limited by chronos time, yet He created a world functioning within it. From the very beginning, He established minutes, hours, days, weeks, months, and years. (Genesis 1) But we are told in 2 Peter 3:8, “With the Lord one day is like a thousand years, and a thousand years like one day.” God sees the past, present, and future simultaneously. He has orchestrated how ALLLLL the millions of puzzle pieces of history will come together; He is weaving a beautiful tapestry, a breathtaking masterpiece.

WE, however, see the back of the tapestry with strings tangled and knotted. WE get confused and frustrated, not understanding what is happening or why. Meanwhile, God confidently weaves away, working in His KAIROS time, to bring about plans He established BEFORE the creation of the world. (Titus 1:3)

Today, we have the advantage of looking BACK through the Bible and see all the clues God was providing as people looked FORWARD to Jesus, who would ONE DAY deliver us ALL from sin and death.

One of the most beautiful pictures of this promised redemption was when God rescued His people from Egypt after 400 years of slavery! Leading up to their miraculous exit, God sent 9 plagues to convince Pharaoh to free the Israelites; in the midst of the chaos and confusion of the final plague, the death of the firstborn sons, God foreshadowed what JESUS would one day do as the FINAL Passover Lamb. You see, God had told His people to sacrifice their best lambs and put the blood on the top and sides of their doors (forming a CROSS). As the angel of death went throughout the land, God would PASS OVER those covered in lamb’s blood. The sacrificed lamb would die in their place, and they would be saved. (Exodus 11-13)

Fast forward hundreds of years to another Passover festival. That night, Jesus was arrested and beaten, and mocked. (Luke 22:1-23:25) Yet, He remained silent, like a lamb led to slaughter. Jesus, the SACRIFICIAL LAMB, was nailed to a cross, dying in OUR place and paying the price for OUR sins. (Luke 23:26-56) Jesus’ death, precisely on Passover, was no coincidence. God was fulfilling generations of prophecies and orchestrating the tiniest of details at just the right time, His kairos time.

Right before Jesus breathed His last on the cross, He cried, “It is finished!”. (John 19:30) At that moment in the temple, the centerplace of Jewish worship, the curtain separating delineating the inner sanctuary, the Holy of Holies where God’s presence dwelled, split from TOP to bottom. (Luke 23:44-49) No longer was there a separation between God and people. Anyone could now enter God’s presence, because of JESUS.

For thousands of years, ONLY the High Priest could enter the Holy of Holies, and ONLY on the Day of Atonement. On that day, Israel gathered together and the High Priest offered a sacrifice to pay for the sins of the entire nation. (Leviticus 16) On THIS Day of Atonement, Jesus became the FINAL sacrifice, paying for ALL sins for ALL time. (Hebrews 10:11-12)

Looking back through history all the way to the Old Testament Tabernacle (check out the Tabernacle Journey Theme!)God was giving us glimpses of His Son and the relationship we can now have with Him because of Jesus.

The tabernacle had ONE entrance, where people accessed an Outer Courtyard.
Jesus is THE DOOR, the ONLY way to God.
“I am the Way, the Truth, and the Life. No one comes to the Father but through Me.” (John 14:6)

In the Outer Courtyard was the bronze basin, where priests would wash before approaching God’s presence.
Jesus declared He is the Living Water (John 7:37-39); His blood cleanses us from sin. (1 John 1:7-9)

Within the tabernacle was a smaller tent divided into two sections, the Holy Place and the Holy of Holies. Only priests could enter the Holy Place, which housed 3 items made of pure gold: a table, a lampstand, and incense altar.

On the table was the Bread of Presence.
During His ministry, Jesus revealed He was the Bread of Life. (John 6:35)
During the Passover meal with His disciples on the night of His arrest, Jesus broke bread and announced, “This is My body, which is given for you.” (Luke 22:19)

The lampstand lit the Holy Place.
Jesus is the LIGHT of the world. (John 8:12)
He has called us out of darkness into His marvelous light. (Colossians 1:13; 1 Peter 2:9-10)

Incense was to be continually burning, symbolizing the prayers of the priest, on behalf of God’s people, rising to the Lord.
Today, we have direct access to God, while Jesus, and the Holy Spirit within us, intercede for us! (Romans 8:26-27; Romans 8:34)

Every aspect of the tabernacle points to Jesus.
Glimpses of Jesus are revealed through the ENTIRE Old Testament.
Even during His silence from Malachi to the birth of Jesus, He was STILL working out His purposes in His KAIROS time.

Finally, “When the time came to completion, God sent his son, born of a woman, born under the law, to redeem those under the law, so that we might receive adoption as sons.” (Galatians 4:4-5, emphasis mine)

God’s timing was PERFECT in sending Jesus to be born in Bethlehem.
His timing was PERFECT in having Him crucified in Jerusalem.

His timing WILL BE perfect once more when He sends Jesus to establish His eternal kingdom. He will make all things new again, restoring the perfection that was broken and lost when sin entered the world in the Garden. (Revelation 21:5)

We may feel God is slow in answering prayers, be it physical healing, adoption paperwork, financial provision, or His final return.

We may grow impatient as we wait.
When waiting seems too much to bear, we can look back through the Bible and see God at work, masterfully weaving a beautiful tapestry to bring about His plans at JUST THE RIGHT TIME.

Maybe not according to OUR chronos way of thinking, but rather in His sovereign, divine, PERFECT kairos timing!

So, as we watch and wait, may we trust and confidently declare with the Apostle John, “Amen! Come, Lord Jesus!” (Revelation 22:20)