Be With Me: 7 Minutes of Biblical Wonder

IF God makes this cancer go away, THEN I'll believe.
IF my son survives this war, THEN I'll follow.

These are ways we put God to the test.  Jesus says NO. It is not supposed to be like that.  After all, God has already passed the tests of faithfulness.  It is called HESED in the Old Testament.  Unfortunately, people keep getting a D- in the testing of our faithfulness.

Satan makes the mistake of thinking that it is GOD who should be tested, rather than us.  Essentially, he gets wrong the questions of: Who is in charge? Who is Creator? and Who is the Boss?

So, WE are the tested ones.  Let's be faithful when we are.  

Thank you for listening. Share this podcast. bewithme.us is the website or write at [email protected].

Hunger is in God's toolbox.  Jesus has put Himself in the wilderness to show us how it is done.  He is hungry. He is at the limit of human endurance in this particular area, but other areas of temptation/stress are analogous: relational, sexual, honesty, diligence...

Satan tries to shortcut the ways of God.  Hunger is is a tool that God frequently uses to get us to trust Him more and see His provision.  It was the hunger in the desert that allows the Jews to see the "manna of the moment".  It is our hunger, our trials, our temptations, our difficulties that allow us to more clearly see the provisions and presence of God.  

Satan says, "Naw, let's get a snack.  Let's go right to satisfaction and skip the hunger phase.  Let's short-circuit the way that God has worked for generations."  Jesus says, "Nope.  Let's go through the hunger.  Let's trust God through the difficulty."  Listen 7 minutes please.

Jesus goes on vacation to the wilderness.  Just kidding.  It is anything but a vacation.  He goes for a purpose: to be TEMPTED.He puts on His HUMANITY HAT to be tempted.  Why go through all the trouble?  Because it will be worth it.  The trouble will be of great value for you and me, mostly.  The difficulty helps the process.  The travail helps us to the endpoint.

He goes NOT alone.  He's not lost in the wilderness, He's LED in the wilderness; not forsaken but filled; not plopped but powered; not solo but surrounded; not exiled but embraced.  The Trinity pool party we noticed in episode 43 continues.

He's not on vacation, He's on task.  His purpose is not pleasure, it is accomplishment and example for us.  We'll get to that.

Why would you ever do something hard like go on safari or run a marathon or go fight a war?  Because the accomplishment is worth it.  So when we have these challenges, we can confidently say: "I've got a Savior like that, because he did NOT go on vacation." Please share this with anyone who is facing something hard.

Amidst the waters of John's baptism, the Father and the Spirit SHOW UP.  

They are delivered into our world by the renting of the separation between the physical world and the spiritual world.  There is a TEAR between the worlds.  That is a cool start to the moment!

Then Jesus is endorsed, affirmed, encouraged, confirmed and commissioned by the rest of the trinity.  

The Spirit comes PHYSICALLY, bodily "like" a dove with descending and resting.

The Father comes AUDITORIALLY and approvingly.  He says that Jesus is BELOVED.  No kidding.  The Father just came through the worlds to tell him so.  All the love in the world is dependent upon this PRIMARY sourced love.

The Father DELIGHTS in the Son:  I am well-pleased.  I take pleasure in you.  I am happy to see you. You bring me joy.

What a moment in OUR world when THAT world comes to endorse the ONE who will rescue us.  Phew!  Share and spread this podcast.  www.bewithme.us is our website. Write at [email protected]

John the B has a fight with Jesus.  He disagrees with Jesus.  He refuses Jesus with his actions and his words.  

So what exactly were they fighting about? What causes a really holy, spiritually in-tune guy like John to protest against Jesus? It is about righteousness.  John says that "Jesus you are perfectly righteous, and you don't need my baptism of repentance. In fact, I should be the one being baptized by You!"

Jesus tells him to take a chill pill and for us to fulfill righteousness.  IMHO then, it is not retrospective righteousness (fixing past sins) that they are engaged in, for there is no past sin of Jesus. (2 For 5:21 etc.) What they ARE involved in is PROSPECTIVE sin, of you and me,  that can be made righteous.  How, consider, identify, and agree with God about your sin.   Confess, repent and turn from your sin.  Then make it public by baptism.  It is the rescue mission.  If we do it, then indeed are we fulfilling righteousness by proxy.

It is so great that Jesus identifies with sinners; that He is numbered with us.  He counts Himself as identifying Himself with sinful people.  Boy do we need it.  Subscribe on Apple podcasts or Spotify.  

There is some really good news in today's passage about hell.  Yes it says  that it is an unquenchable fire.  That doesn't sound good.  But it is preventable.  God knows His own.  He will gather them into His barn.  

Jesus lays out a dichotomy of HIS fire: the intimacy of the holy spirit, real, ongoing relationship vs. the fire of judgment.

What if you don't like it?  I am pretty sure that is exactly the point.  My snarky question for the day:  If you were in charge of designing hell, how exactly would YOU design it?  No hell?  Wait, then there is no JUSTICE.  I've never seen a group of people with placards outside a contentious courtroom chanting, "We DON'T want Justice!  We want it NEVER!"  No.  That never happens.  We are profoundly not sovereign in this realm.

Jesus is mighty, He is worthy and He favors the fire of baptism of the Holy Spirit.  We should too.  Thanks for listening.  Please share this email, or instagram, or twitter, or post.  

Am I a REPENTFUL person?  Does Repentance CHARACTERIZE my life? John the Baptist encourages such a heart in the strongest possible terms.  

He is confronting a group of people known for their actions; their behaviors.  He lets them have it:  YOU VIPERS!.  He calls the a bunch of snakes. Why the wrath of John?  Because John is afraid of the Wrath of GOD for them.  He's not afraid OF them, he is afraid FOR them.This is serious stuff.

The irony is that he is calling them TO behaviors.  But John wants something more:  he wants the behavior to be started with REPENTANCE.  This is agreeing with God.  It is turning.  This is being more than superficially regretful.  He indeed wants them to BEAR FRUIT, but to have the fruit rooted in REPENTANCE.  The old roots of behavior for show he is cutting down and cutting out the roots with an axe.  Radical surgery is necessary for this soul saving activity.

Please listen for 7 minutes and consider if you are  a REPENTFUL person.  Everything starts with that.  Then, share this on facebook, instagram, linked in, or twitter. I'm so glad you are here!

John would fit in contemporary diet emphasis.  He ate Local.  But, it was LOCUSTS.

We find out some startling details about our friend John.  We find out what he wears.  It is based on where he lives.  Specifically CAMEL hair.  Have you ever been to a location where camels natively live?  It is usually quite harsh.

We find out his insect diet.  There are some societies that still eat bugs .  It is a thing.

We find out his job.  He is a herald with mostly bad news.  You are not OK!  You are not 
OK! You are not OK!He gets his head cut off for such a message.  It all has to do with the pesky SIN issue.  People come with their sins recognized, revealed, hated and then the biggie:  REPENTED of.  It means to turn.  It means agreeing with God that you are not OK.  

If that is you, then this wilderness is the right place.  If it is NOT you, then think again.  Listen to the proddings.  It probably WILL be you soon.  It characterizes BELIEVERS and not-yet-BELIEVERS.  Get with the program of the locust eater.  www.bewithme.us

So the gospel starts with a call to repentance via John the Baptist.  It is a message that has been prepared for a long time externally, but we all have some activity to do to prepare ourselves.  The good news is that it is not impossible.  The term used is "at hand", within reach, you can do it, it is very near.

The bad news is that it is the ever-unpalatable REPENTANCE.  It is the pesky agreeing with God about our short comings.  

Every single believer has stood on the square of repentance.  It is essential.  It is absolutely required.  It is not the only thing about being and becoming a Christian, but it is necessary.  Please listen.

Jesus grew in the favor of God.  Jesus increased in the favor of God.  

It is a godly thing to increase in the favor of God.

It is something you cannot buy or earn.  But it is something that can be done.  We CAN please God in our obedience, listening, agreeing, relating responding and in our reveling a bit. 

I wish from today for me and you that we would live under the favor of God and increase in the favor of God.  Jesus did it, and so can I.  Jesus exampled it.  Luke records it for our benefit.  

Whatever you see today: increase in the favor of God

Whomever you meet today: grow in the favor of God

Whatever difficulty you face: Follow Jesus in favor.

Pin this thought to your shirt today: It is a godly thing to increase in the favor of God.  I want to grow in the favor of God.  Thanks for listening and considering and wondering.  Write at [email protected]