SECRET #67 OF FOLLOWING JESUS

FOR AUDIO VERSION CLICK HERE.

Living in Newport Beach, California, a place I have dubbed the "holy coast" area of the United States, it's easy to forget how needy some people really are. We live in such gorgeous surroundings, one of the most beautiful parts of the world. From the very first day we moved here it was clear that we had to make it our goal to expose our children to other parts of the world-to give them a wider perspective on the rest of the world. In other words, it was important to communicate to them that this is not how it is all over the world. So, we did our best to expose our kids to as many other cultures as possible as they grew up in paradise. This not only taught them that there are lots of needy people around the world, but it also gave them a sense of gratefulness that they possess today.
Over the years the many travels to see how the rest of the world lives have also taught us to look around, even in paradise, for the needy right here at home. Although the needs around the world are much more intense than they are here, there are so many real needs here in Orange County and growing by the day in this economic scene. Locally we do all we can do to support the Orange County Food Bank, one of the finest charities ever!

Every month we also feed the homeless who gather at a local church facility. It's a different kind of serving. There are no food lines. The people gather, are seated and then they are served a wonderful meal. We sing together, celebrate any birthdays and I share something about Jesus and His teachings with them. The rewards of serving the homeless in this way are enormous. This brings me to SECRET #67: The follower of Jesus shares the message of the Master by meeting the needs of the needy.

You see, when you do your best to meet the needs of the needy, you are doing something that is at the heart and core of Jesus and His message to the world. This act of service will have a most definite impact on the world; it will demonstrate Jesus to the world. Jesus taught this when He said: "Then the King will say to those on his right, 'Come, you who are blessed by my Father; take your inheritance, the kingdom prepared for you since the creation of the world. For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in, I needed clothes and you clothed me, I was sick and you looked after me, I was in prison and you came to visit me.' Then the righteous will answer him, 'Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you something to drink? When did we see you a stranger and invite you in, or needing clothes and clothe you? When did we see you sick or in prison and go to visit you?' The King will reply, 'Truly I tell you, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me.'" (Matthew 25)

Here the sacrificial love message of Jesus is spread by being aware of Jesus' heart and that Jesus can be found in those in need in our world-the hungry, the thirsty, the naked, the stranger, the sick, and those in prison. Jesus also spoke directly to those who didn't notice Jesus in the midst of the needy. "He will reply, 'Truly I tell you, whatever you did not do for one of the least of these, you did not do for me.'" When we are aware of the poor and needy around us, we are demonstrating the heart of Jesus in our world. Jesus always sought them out and so should we. And when we do, the attractiveness of the sacrificial love of Jesus shines through.

NOTE two things here: FIRST-Those in need are at the heart of God-hungry, thirsty, a stranger, naked, sick and imprisoned. Human nature is to take care of those who can do something for us. Therefore, we look to treat those who are important from an earthly perspective-the athlete, the musician, the highly positioned person in society. BUT Jesus points us in another direction entirely!

SECOND-Ministering to the needy is in fact ministering to Jesus, Himself. So, if you want to find and interact with Jesus, He is right there in the midst of those in need.

Do you want to see Jesus? Serve those in need in your world. And, when you serve the needy, the love message of Jesus will shine through. This is SECRET #67: The follower of Jesus shares the message of the Master by meeting the needs of the needy.

SECRET #66 OF FOLLOWING JESUS

FOR AUDIO VERSION CLICK HERE.

Jesus says, "A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another, even as I have loved you. By this all men will know that you are My disciples." (John 13:34-35) There is something so attractive about a group of people-a family, a fellowship-where they love one another that stands out. It's a badge of distinction that Jesus says will get the world's attention. You will not be known by peculiar rites or habits; not by a peculiar form of dress or manner of speech; not by peculiar do's and don'ts, like the Pharisees or the scribes, but by deep, genuine, and tender affection for one another. This is SECRET #66: The follower of Jesus shares the message of the Master by loving one another.
Each of the disciples had signed on to loving Jesus, but not loving one another. I mean, a few fishermen loving their nemesis, the tax gatherer or the political radical, the zealot, or the disciple who had a question mark for a brain-always doubting and questioning? Jesus wasn't suggesting it, but commanding that they, in the midst of their great diversity, must learn to love one another. Now, how can you love one another without spending more quality time together than sitting beside one another in a spectator-driven religious service or by greeting one another after the announcements for 15 seconds? It takes time to learn to love one another, so take the time!

The Kingdom principles are practiced anywhere and everywhere, because it's a movement. BUT how is the Kingdom practiced? The Kingdom is practiced by participation in a community of followers of Jesus. We are to live our lives in relationship with Jesus and in fellowship with one another.

Practicing the presence of the Kingdom requires fellowship. The term fellowship is widely known, but even more widely misunderstood. It's more than a pot-luck dinner. It's not a room called the "fellowship" hall. It's more than a group of friends watching football or hunting together. The fellowship may be the most important concept you will ever learn. However, this concept is not just to be learned; it must be lived! I call this kind of fellowship a verb. This kind of healthy fellowship is held together by the proactive expression of love for one another.

Jesus' strategic approach to spreading His Good News message throughout the world never involved "putting up another church", but practicing their relationship with Jesus and with one another in the Kingdom. This is what the fellowship is all about!

The fellowship operates on the principle of attraction, not promotion. This goes against the grain of most every religious program in our world. The fellowship is not an organization, an institution or a denomination. Fellowship is a verb that, when properly activated, has the power to change the world-one person at a time! In order to use the fellowship as a verb you must learn the fellowship principle of loving one another.

The primary term for fellowship in the New Testament is koinonia. The word has the idea of communion or sharing in common with another. It's the perfect word to describe the relationship we are to have with God and with one another-a partnership. This partnership is to be entered into-to join one's self to a friend or friends in order to become a sharer. The designated partners within the fellowship include Jesus, Jesus' followers and you. The fellowship is with God Himself and with His people.

Jesus introduced an entirely new dynamic into the teaching process. Let's call it "table fellowship". Instead of one person teaching a class, Jesus spent lots of significant time around the table with food. The gospel of Luke records ten meals with Jesus. Eight of them are eaten in the flow of Jesus' ministry activity and two are eaten with the disciples after the resurrection. In other words, Jesus uses fellowship around the table to bring everyone together and to demonstrate Kingdom living at its simple, tangible best-all wrapped around learning to love one another.

As these many meals with Jesus are examined closely, it's helpful to pay special attention to the settings. The settings vary from the homes of the highly religious to special friends and even in two tax-collector homes. Most of the time Jesus is invited and in the case of Zacheus Jesus invited Himself to lunch at Zach's place. The guest list is always fascinating-priests, sinners, prostitutes and a variety of broken people and those who are looking for that special touch from Jesus.

The simple program of Jesus for changing the whole world is to make each person He touches magnetic enough with love to draw others to love God and to love one another. This transformation happens within the relational community of a few. Are you in that kind of relationship? SECRET #66: The follower of Jesus shares the message of the Master by loving one another.

SECRET #65 OF FOLLOWING JESUS

FOR AUDIO VERSION CLICK HERE.

Jesus gives a revolutionary plan for killing off all of your enemies by loving them. Let's check it out: "But to you who are listening I say: Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, bless those who curse you, pray for those who mistreat you. Do to others as you would have them do to you. If you love those who love you, what credit is that to you? Even sinners love those who love them. And if you do good to those who are good to you, what credit is that to you? Even sinners do that. And if you lend to those from whom you expect repayment, what credit is that to you? Even sinners lend to sinners, expecting to be repaid in full. But love your enemies, do good to them, and lend to them without expecting to get anything back." (Luke 6) This is SECRET #65: The follower of Jesus shares the message of the Master by giving a blessing when insulted.
The revolutionary principle is found in: "Do unto others as you would have them do unto you." It's the golden rule, quoted by nearly all religions and recognized as the most fundamental way of living ever. This is at the foundation of what Jesus is saying when He says to love your enemies. Do unto others as you would have them do unto you.

The key to loving your enemies can only be found in the dynamic of forgiveness. Jesus says, "For if you forgive others for their transgressions, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. But if you do not forgive others, then your Father will not forgive your transgressions." (Matthew 6:14-15)
I don't think there is a more penetrating statement in all of scripture! If you don't forgive others, God will not forgive you! Your relationship with God is integrally part of your relationship with others and vice versa.

We are all desperate for it, but we are also confused with what true forgiveness really is. First, it's important to understand what forgiving is not: Forgiving doesn't mean you must go back or reunite. Forgiving doesn't mean we tolerate the wrong he did. Forgiving doesn't mean we want to forget what happened. Forgiving doesn't mean we excuse the person who did it. Forgiving doesn't mean we take the edge off the evil done. Forgiving doesn't mean we surrender our right to justice. Forgiving doesn't mean to invite someone to hurt us again.

This brings us to what forgiveness actually is. It's the ultimate form of love. It's being willing to pay for the offense yourself and not get even with the one who hurt you. When you forgive, you take the pain yourself! There are five steps in forgiving another person: 1. Remind yourself that this person is only human! 2. Relinquish your right to get even! The truth of the matter is that it is impossible to get (exactly) even. You will either not get back at them enough or you will overdo it. There is just no way to get even! 3. Be ready to hurt in order to heal!
You must take the pain all by yourself! This is the real secret to the dynamic of forgiving someone. You must pay for and not demand that they do! 4. Wish them well! This could be the best real evidence that forgiveness has taken place. Try praying for them-for their success! 5. You may have to repeat the process! Jesus was asked how many times a person ought to forgive another. His answer was 70 X 7 or 490! By the way, this doesn't mean that at 491, you can go get even with them!

This is all well and good, but what is the primary motivation to forgive anyone-especially your enemy? The answer is FREEDOM! As long as you refuse to forgive, you are in bondage to this person who hurt you! In bondage! You are his/her slave for as long as you don't forgive!

Years after her concentration camp experiences in Nazi Germany, Corrie ten Boom met face to face one of the most cruel and heartless German guards that she had ever contacted. He had humiliated and degraded her and her sister. He had jeered and visually raped them as they stood in the delousing shower. Now he stood before her with his hand outstretched and said, "Will you forgive me?"

She writes: "I stood there with coldness clutching at my heart, but I know that the will can function regardless of the temperature of the heart. I prayed, Jesus, help me! Woodenly, mechanically I thrust my hand into the one stretched out to me and I experienced an incredible thing. The current started in my shoulder, raced down into my arms and sprang into our clutched hands. Then this warm reconciliation seemed to flood my whole being, bringing tears to my eyes. 'I forgive you, brother,' I cried with my whole heart. For a long moment we grasped each other's hands, the former guard and the former prisoner. I have never known the love of God so intensely as I did in that moment!" To forgive is to set a prisoner free and discover the prisoner was you! This is SECRET #65: The follower of Jesus shares the message of the Master by giving a blessing when insulted.

SECRET #64 OF FOLLOWING JESUS

FOR AUDIO VERSION CLICK HERE.

When you are a follower of Jesus, so much of what you do is a matter of the heart. In other words, you want to spend lots of energy and focus on the invisible matters of the heart. Although these invisible matters of the heart are not overtly seen, they still shine through in such a way so as to communicate a most meaningful quality of life and the distinctive characteristic of wholeness. This is SECRET #64: The follower of Jesus shares the message of the Master by embracing His lifestyle.
This comes from the words of Jesus in the well-known "sermon on the mount": "You are the salt of the earth; but if the salt has become tasteless, how can it be made salty again? It is no longer good for anything, except to be thrown out and trampled under foot by men. You are the light of the world. A city set on a hill cannot be hidden; nor does anyone light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on the lampstand, and it gives light to all who are in the house. Let your light shine before men in such a way that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father who is in heaven." (Matthew 5:13-16)

When you are a follower of Jesus, you are continually faced with a value system-a set of principles that demonstrate Jesus and His Kingdom. These are His teachings. I like to think of these principles and teachings as what the Kingdom of God is all about. Practicing the principles and teachings of Jesus is practicing the Kingdom of God in your life.

The Kingdom of God is primarily invisible, like the wind, but with some visible results. The Kingdom principles will move you to emphasize the internals over the externals. You will practice such invisible things as forgiving that person who has really hurt you. You will learn to practice such invisible Kingdom principles as dying in order to live, as losing yourself to really find yourself, as celebrating the act of mourning over that which keeps you from God, and as finding pure satisfaction from hungering and thirsting after the right things in Jesus.

The visible dimension of the Kingdom must be seen. Because of the invisible flow of the Kingdom principles, you will learn to practice some visible dimensions of the Kingdom-the dimension of light. Jesus said to His disciples: "You are the light of the world."

So, the Kingdom is demonstrated through your lifestyle-inside out. It's learning to embrace the preeminence of Jesus and the presence of His Kingdom as a lifestyle. You can live the Kingdom, revolutionary lifestyle right now and it will go against the grain of what the herd is doing and where the herd is going. The Kingdom doesn't need to be proved; it needs to be practiced!

If you are a follower of Jesus, you are a citizen of the Kingdom of God. Whatever you do for a living, you are being paid to do a certain work. However, you have a much greater calling to pattern yourself after Jesus and practice the Kingdom of God every day, all while you are being paid.

So, what does the Kingdom look like and what does the message sound like? It looks and sounds like Jesus embraced by His followers. SECRET #64 is: The follower of Jesus shares the message of the Master by embracing His lifestyle. You live your life before a watching world. For some, your life is the only picture they will ever see of Jesus. So, let your light shine through.

SECRET #63 OF FOLLOWING JESUS

FOR AUDIO VERSION CLICK HERE.

Secret #63 can best be summed up with the words of Jesus: "For John came neither eating nor drinking, and they say, 'He has a demon!' The Son of Man came eating and drinking, and they say, 'Behold, a gluttonous man and a drunkard, a friend of tax collectors and sinners!'" (Matthew 11:18-19) This was his reputation. He was known as a friend to the disenfranchised. And those who became followers of Jesus were to be just like their Master. SECRET #63: The follower of Jesus stands with the broken, abused, addicted and the poor, imitating the Master.
Immediately after Jesus called Matthew, the tax collector, to follow Him, Matthew threw a party. Naturally, Matthew invited His family and friends to this party and this was quite a gathering of other tax collectors and sinners or the non-religious. Matthew records it in this way: When the Pharisees saw this, they said to His disciples, "Why is your Teacher eating with the tax collectors and sinners?" But when Jesus heard this, He said, "It is not those who are healthy who need a physician, but those who are sick. But go and learn what this means: 'I DESIRE COMPASSION, AND NOT SACRIFICE,' for I did not come to call the righteous, but sinners." (Matthew 9:11-13)

In the synagogue, even today, there is a weekly reading of the Scriptures. When Jesus showed up at the synagogue in His home town of Nazareth, He read the weekly reading that was really about Him from the prophet Isaiah: And Jesus returned to Galilee in the power of the Spirit, and news about Him spread through all the surrounding district. And He began teaching in their synagogues and was praised by all. And He came to Nazareth, where He had been brought up; and as was His custom, He entered the synagogue on the Sabbath, and stood up to read. And the book of the prophet Isaiah was handed to Him. And He opened the book and found the place where it was written, "THE SPIRIT OF THE LORD IS UPON ME, BECAUSE HE ANOINTED ME TO PREACH THE GOSPEL TO THE POOR. HE HAS SENT ME TO PROCLAIM RELEASE TO THE CAPTIVES, AND RECOVERY OF SIGHT TO THE BLIND, TO SET FREE THOSE WHO ARE OPPRESSED, TO PROCLAIM THE FAVORABLE YEAR OF THE LORD." (Luke 4:14-19)

When John's disciples were sent to question Jesus about His credentials, Jesus articulated the same Messianic theme: At that very time He cured many people of diseases and afflictions and evil spirits; and He gave sight to many who were blind. And He answered and said to them, "Go and report to John what you have seen and heard: the BLIND RECEIVE SIGHT, the lame walk, the lepers are cleansed, and the deaf hear, the dead are raised up, the POOR HAVE THE GOSPEL PREACHED TO THEM. Blessed is he who does not take offense at Me." (Luke 7:21-23)

Later, Jesus said to a person who had invited Him to dinner, "When you give a luncheon or a dinner, do not invite your friends or your brothers or your relatives or rich neighbors, otherwise they may also invite you in return and that will be your repayment. But when you give a reception, invite the poor, the crippled, the lame, the blind, and you will be blessed, since they do not have the means to repay you; for you will be repaid at the resurrection of the righteous." (Luke 14:12-14) Jesus was all about working with and hanging out with the broken, abused, addicted and poor-the disenfranchised of society-and wants His followers to do the same.

One more observation here is Jesus chose as His key followers a group of men from the non-religious world. He chose men who were just ordinary and uneducated men, teenagers, in fact, to lead the most revolutionary movement ever. As the most popular spiritual leader during that time, Jesus didn't stand with other spiritual or religious leaders in the community. In fact, He put them down and embarrassed them time and time again. He seemed to be bent on humbling them, because they loved being in such exalted positions. Believe me, they didn't have much to do with the non-religious. They stood far away from them. On the other hand, Jesus not only stood with them and hung out with them; He also touched them. And when Jesus touched someone, they were encouraged, healed, and empowered! SECRET #63: The follower of Jesus stands with the broken, abused, addicted and the poor, imitating the Master.