Bragging On Jesus

For many years I was plagued with this question: Am I a child of God? If you can identify with me, I think this has the potential to be a great help to you for your peace and joy.

Jesus sees us in our wilderness. He seeks us out and shows his glory to all who turn away from hoping in sin and look to him with delight.

1st Corinthians 13:13 So now faith, hope, and love abide, these three; but the greatest of these is love.

Noble Birth... Shamed!

To Seek After Power... Shamed!

To Treasure Worldly Pleasure... Shamed!

Silver, Gold, Money, Nice Houses and Cars... Shamed!

Obsessions with sex, long life, good looks, TV... Shamed!

1 Corinthians 1:27 But God chose what is foolish in the world to shame the wise; God chose what is weak in the world to shame the strong;

2nd Corinthians 4:6 For God, who said, “Let light shine out of darkness,” has shone in our hearts to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ. 7 But we have this treasure in jars of clay, to show that the surpassing power belongs to God and not to us.

8 We are afflicted in every way, but not crushed; perplexed, but not driven to despair; 9 persecuted, but not forsaken; struck down, but not destroyed; 10 always carrying in the body the death of Jesus, so that the life of Jesus may also be manifested in our bodies. 11 For we who live are always being given over to death for Jesus’ sake, so that the life of Jesus also may be manifested in our mortal flesh. 12 So death is at work in us, but life in you.

Seeing Jesus in the life of Joseph from the Old Testament.

Psalm 119:71 It is good for me that I was afflicted, that I might learn your statutes. 72 The law of your mouth is better to me than thousands of gold and silver pieces.

Awesome truth for a broken world!

Bragging on Jesus, Tag Team Preaching... 4 speakers... Gary Babb, Brad Chase, Robin Aylor and Daniel Castor. John chapter 9 Jesus heals a man born blind.

Solomon gives a straightforward simple truth statement; then, like a professor lecturing his students he seems to give a complex problem for his son to think through where that truth is needed for discerning the proper judgment or action.

Todays devotion answers the question: Where do I go or where should I go to satisfy the various kinds of hunger in this life. We will be looking at Proverbs 27:7-10 and... we'll breifly look at one verse at a time and then a consise summery at the end.

Proverbs 27:7 One who is full loathes honey, but to one who is hungry everything bitter is sweet.

Ok, well... first I'm thinking that in this proverb Solomon is counting honey as something that is good... I think he is using it as a metaphor and holding it up as the “prize” you might say... something we can look forward to and delight in... as the best thing. Truth is... honey is delightfully sweet and we know it is full of nourishing minerals... It's a great gift from God and it makes a wonderful dessert.. better than your typical candy bar. But if we're already stuffed full of other stuff... bad greasy food or we might even be stuffed full of good food... The point I think is that if we're already stuffed we miss out... in Solomons example we miss out on the joys of the amazing, sweet, nourishing honey.

And the application... I think we could say its easy to fill our life up with all kinds of stuff,... junk or even things that have potential benefit to ourselves and others... we can take in all that but if we do not have room throughout the day for what is the sweetest and most nourishing thing in the Universe... That is delighting in Gods word and prayer... even time in fellowship with our family in the Lord... If we put those things last, then... in a sense they are like the honey to a man thats already stuffed full... they become detestable to us. And it may be that the very thing that brings this on... this filling up our life with junk is because our soul is hungry and we see the world as the answer to sweeten our soul instead of Jesus.

8 Like a bird that strays from its nest is a man who strays from his home.

This seems to be speaking of a man who in a way has a hunger sickness as well... and it drives him away from saftey... He goes off into the world looking for satisfaction... away from everything that is good and nourishing... he even leaves the sweetness and goodness of the honey in his home like the man we just read about. So I think this verse syncs nicely with verse 7. Know what is or who is best... Jesus; and fill yourself with his sweetness... Take his mercy and grace.

9 Oil and perfume make the heart glad, and the sweetness of a friend comes from his earnest counsel.

So... the sweetness of a friend, I think is good right? It's like the sweetness and nourishment of the honey from verse 7 and the saftey close to home in verse 8... I mean, look... don't go to the world looking for not only satisfaction like we talked about but also counsel. Discern what is good... Discern who is a good godly friend that can provide sweetness and sincerety and honesty. Don't fill up on the junk counsil of the world so that you loathe what is good... We all need help and we all need accountability. It's not found in the ways of the world. And like perfume that Solomon talks here about or comparably maybe those sented wax melts change the apmosphere in your home... they can encrourage or lighten your spirit... So will good counsil and nourishment from a godly friend encourage your soul.

Here's the last verse in today's passage:

10 Do not forsake your friend and your father’s friend, and do not go to your brother’s house in the day of your calamity. Better is a neighbor who is near than a brother who is far away.

Listen for full transcript

CS Lewis said: If I find in myself a desire which no experience in this world can satisfy, the most probable explanation is that I was made for another world.

In John 6:35 Jesus said this: …“I am the bread of life; whoever comes to me shall not hunger,…

And in John 7:37 he said this: …“If anyone thirsts, let him come to me and drink.

Psalm 119:103 How sweet are Your words to my taste, Sweeter than honey to my mouth!