Two things impressed me today, so I'll talk about one right now and the other for my SOAP.
Jesus is telling his disciples that he must go down to Jerusalem and be killed, but would rise on the third day.
Now if "I" was one of the disciples, "I" would have waited till Jesus talked about his resurrection, right? Well, I don't know. Perhaps the disciples were so overwhelmed by the "death" part that they didn't hear the "risen" part. My point is that perhaps the disciples could have saved themselves a lot of grief if they had finished listening to Jesus. Anyway, as Jesus is talking about all this....
"Peter took him aside and began to rebuke him. "Never, Lord!" he said. "This shall never happen to you!"
Jesus turned and said to Peter, "Get behind me, Satan! You are a stumbling block to me; you do not have in mind the things of God, but the things of men." ~Matthew 16:22,23
Wow. Now that's harsh! Jesus was still human, and he had fears about what was going to happen. But he couldn't let his fears get the upper hand. That's why I think Jesus was so harsh here. Anyway, as I was reading this passage, I couldn't help but think of a lesson....
Could the things we do sometimes hinder God? Of course, we can't physically grapple him like Peter did, but are there ways that we hinder God? Perhaps when we exhibit a non-Christian behavior in front of someone who knows we are a Christian, their idea of Jesus goes down. As Christians, we are to represent Christ....do we really do that all the time? Or do we hinder God's work going forward?? That was just a thought I had, something to chew on for a while....
OK. Now onto our SOAP for the day!
Scripture:
""Be careful," Jesus said to them. "Be on your guard against the yeast of the Pharisees and the Sadducees."" ~Matthew 16:6
Observation:
Jesus and his disciples had just set out to go to the other side of the lake, and the disciples had forgotten to buy bread. Then Jesus says this! Naturally, they thought that Jesus was rebuking them for not bringing the bread. Jesus saw what the disciples were mumbling about, and then clarified that he was talking about the teachings of the Pharisees and the Sadducees. Just a little of their teachings--good, mixed with bad tradition--would go a long way, in the case in the wrong direction. Just like a little yeast spreads throughout the whole dough glob, a little of the Pharisees and Saducees' teachings would spread a long ways through a lot.
Application:
Hmmmm. A little in a lot. In my life, your life, what does this mean? For me, this passage is a reminder and a warning that a little can do a lot of damage. It may just be one impure thought, but that one will lead to others. It may just be going to a certain place once, but that experience will have a sequel. Fill in the blank with what have you, but doing a certain cherished sin "just once" doesn't make it less sinful. And from personal experience I've found that "just once" is a total lie. Unless you work with God and ask him to help you get away from a sin, you'll go back again and again. Even just the first time, one impure thought, has its effects throughout your whole entire life. That impure thought will make it easier for you to think another impure thought, and then another, and then another.....
Prayer:
Dear God, thank you so much for giving me the opportunity to read this Bible passage today. Thank you for warning me on how a little can do a lot of damage. Please come into my life, take it over, and help me to not only refrain from the "big sins", but also from the "little" ones too. Amen.
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This is so true. Just a little step at a time ends up leading us in a direction that we do not want to go.
ReplyDeleteThanks for the reminder--and I LOVE your waterfall picture! :)