March 1, 2001
The Oscar Outlook
John 5:6
Our kids were part of the Sesame Street generation. They grew up watching what was then the most creative, ground breaking children's program of its time. And Sesame Street has always had an interesting cast of Muppet characters to make learning more interesting. Who can forget Bert and Ernie, and Mr. Snuffaluffagus, and Big Bird (who looks sort of like a canary on steroids)? And, of course, that epitome of poor hygiene, Oscar the Grouch. In case you've been culturally deprived, Oscar is this hairy creature with big eyes and a bad attitude who lives in a garbage can. He even sings a song called, "I Love Trash." Oscar doesn't have to live in a garbage can. He chooses to. No wonder he's got a bad attitude!
Well, I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A WORD WITH YOU today about "The Oscar Outlook."
No one would choose to live in the garbage, would they? Well, in a way, a lot of people do just that. Which leads us to what I consider the most curious question Jesus ever asked. He is at the pool of Bethesda, which many in that day believed had healing powers when it was stirred by an angel. Jesus sees a paralyzed man lying there who had been an invalid for 38 years. In our word for today from the Word of God, beginning in John 5:6, "Jesus asked him, 'Do you want to get well?'" There's that curious question.
"'Sir,' the invalid replied, 'I have no one to help me into the pool when the water is stirred. While I am trying to get in, someone else goes down ahead of me.' Jesus said to him, 'Get up! Pick up your mat and walk.' At once the man was cured; he picked up his mat and walked."
Now why would Jesus ask a paralyzed man if he wants to get well? The Bible doesn't tell us, but I have a guess. He had been in his paralyzed condition so long that he might have almost been afraid to be well. Which is like a lot of us when it comes to the baggage - let's call it the "garbage" - of our lives. When you've experienced pain in your past - maybe abuse . . . betrayal . . . tragedy - it's easy to begin to define your role in life as "victim." You may very well have been the victim of some person or situations that hurt you very much and over which you had no control.
But continuing to dwell on the pain of your past - continuing to define yourself by the pain of your past - is, in some ways, it's like following the Oscar approach to life . . . sort of living in the trash can, dwelling on - or dwelling in - the garbage of your life. You hate it, but you keep returning to it mentally and emotionally. And you start to get an Oscar outlook on life - negative, grouchy, thin-skinned, pitying yourself too much, and spilling garbage on other people.
And Jesus comes along and asks the question - "Do you want to get well?" Living amidst the garbage of your past is a choice. Jesus has been setting people free from their emotional trash cans for 2,000 years! It will mean facing your issues instead of running from them . . . maybe working through them with a trained counselor . . . it may mean doing some forgiving, a lot of praying, and letting Jesus be Lord of corners of your heart that have been off limits to Him before.
The trash of your past is very real - but you don't have to live there any longer! Jesus has come and summoned you to "Get up! Pick up your mat and walk!" Leave the past in the garbage can - and follow Jesus to a new beginning!
Copyright 2001, Ron Hutchcraft Ministries, Inc.
Used by permission.
Written by Ron Hutchcraft.
www.hutchcraft.com contains practical answers to real life issues.
Ron Hutchcraft Ministries, Inc.
PO Box 400
Harrison, AR 72602
March 2, 2001
No Castaways
John 14:18
It's hard to imagine a movie that gets rave reviews when there's about 45 minutes during which there is just one man on screen - and he doesn't even talk that whole time! But Tom Hanks pulled it off in his blockbuster movie, "Cast Away." It's the story of the lone survivor of a Federal Express plane crash who ends up totally alone on an island - well alone, that is, except for his one friend - a volleyball that he names Wilson. Tom Hanks' character is on that island, marooned and alone, for four years. He's the castaway.
Well, I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A WORD WITH YOU today about "No Castaways."
You've probably never been marooned on a desert island. But you may know very well how it feels. In a world of bad relationships and superficial relationships and broken relationships, a lot of people know the feeling of being emotionally marooned . . . abandoned . . . maybe even discarded. Because of some of what you've been through, you may feel like you're the castaway.
But your days on that island may be almost over. In fact, it could be that all your failed or frustrating relationships have actually been preparing you to experience the central relationship you were made for. The one relationship that is so permanent, so secure that it even redefines your need for love - and it sets you free for healthier relationships all around.
Anyone who has ever felt like an emotional castaway needs to hear the fabulous promise of Jesus Christ in our word for today from the Word of God. In John 14:18, Jesus says to all those who belong to Him, "I will not leave you as orphans. I will come to you." This is the same Savior who says, "Never will I leave you; never will I forsake you" (Hebrews 13:5). He's the One who promised in John 6:37, "The one that comes to me, I will certainly not cast out."
That's it - unconditional love, unconditionally guaranteed by the One with more love to give than anyone in the world. And that's the kind of anchor love your heart is so ready for . . . a kind of dependable love you may have almost given up on . . . but a love that is guaranteed by the Man who loved you enough to die for you.
The Bible actually says that you and I were created by Jesus and for Jesus (Colossians 1:16). But maybe you've never given yourself to Jesus - until now. It's all the hurt of the other relationships that has softened your heart and made you realize how much you need the One who died to pay for all the wrong things you've ever done. We're not talking about a Christian religion here - no religion can love you, forgive you, be with you every moment of every day, or take you to Heaven when you die. Only Jesus can do that.
So this is all about a relationship - a relationship that begins when you respond to the awesome love of Jesus. It begins when you welcome Him into your life, counting on Him and Him alone to remove the wall between you and God. When you do that, the relationship you were created for has begun. And from now on, that promise of Jesus is all about you - "The one that comes to Me I will certainly not cast out."
Why don't you tell Jesus right now that the door on your heart is wide open - that you want to begin your personal relationship with Him. If you do, I hope you'll let me send you the booklet I wrote about this relationship called "Yours For Life." Just let me know you want it.
You have lived long enough on that lonely island. It's time to meet the one Person who will never, never leave you. If you do, you have just spent your last day alone.
Copyright 2001, Ron Hutchcraft Ministries, Inc.
Used by permission.
Written by Ron Hutchcraft.
www.hutchcraft.com contains practical answers to real life issues.
Ron Hutchcraft Ministries, Inc.
PO Box 400
Harrison, AR 72602
March 3, 2001
Getting Out Of The Valley
Psalm 8:1
My friend Andy used to pastor in West Virginia. The little town they lived in was situated in a long, narrow valley - a pretty dark valley, according to Andy. The sun didn't rise high enough to shine on that town until mid-morning - so it was dark for quite a while each day. My friend said the town itself was kind of a dingy, dirty place - it's the kind of place where you often battle feeling down. But Andy used to love to go up on the mountain that overlooked the valley, and from up there, he said, the view was beautiful. Even the town looked nice from up there!
Well, I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A WORD WITH YOU today about "Getting Out Of The Valley."
When you can get above the valley, that panoramic view makes everything look different. If you're spending some time in your own valley right now, that may be something you need to remember. And there's a simple six-letter word that represents that view from the mountain that changes how everything looks.
It's found in our word for today from the Word of God in Psalm chapter 8 beginning in verse 1. "O Lord, our Lord, how majestic is Your name in all the earth. You have set Your glory above the heavens. From the lips of children and infants you have ordained praise because of your enemies, to silence the foe and the avenger. When I consider Your heavens, the work of Your fingers, the moon and the stars, which You have set in place, what is man that You are mindful of him?"
Did you catch the word that changes the view? "Praise" - that's focusing on the size of your God instead of the size of your problems, reminding yourself of the great things God is to you and the great things He has done for you, and celebrating Who is really in charge of these circumstances. Praise actually has the power to "silence the foe and the avenger." If that refers to Satan, you need to know that Satan can't stand to be around you when you're praising your Lord. And praise takes away the negative attitudes and the discouragement that he loves to work with.
Discouragement and depression, they themselves are "foes" and "avengers" in our lives. And the darkness of the valley often causes us to succumb to our dark side, to emotional paralysis, or to giving up, until we make the choice to climb up on the mountain that takes us above all that - Praise Mountain. You may not feel like praising God, you probably don't - that's when you need to praise God the most. It's a conscious choice to begin saying and singing God's praises instead of your complaints.
Start celebrating the many ways God has worked over the months and the years. Look at the progress you've made - at how far you've come, not just how far you still have to go. Thank God for the things that didn't happen that could have happened. Praise Him for places you can see Him working in just the last 24 hours in spite of your difficulties. Start talking up the qualities you love about your Lord, the qualities that you're counting on to get you through right now.
When you're in the valley, and you're looking only at what's right in front of you, you're going to just get overwhelmed and discouraged. But as you start to look at your valley from the mountain of praising God, everything is going to look different. And you can have that awesome view anytime you choose to go there.
Copyright 2000, Ron Hutchcraft Ministries, Inc.
Used by permission.
Written by Ron Hutchcraft.
www.hutchcraft.com contains practical answers to real life issues.
Ron Hutchcraft Ministries, Inc.
PO Box 400
Harrison, AR 72602
March 4, 2001
Called To Greatness
Daniel 12:3
Anyone who has taken their child to Disney World has almost surely been required by Junior or Junioretta to ride "the ride." It�s this little boat you take along the winding path of a brightly colored canal. You�re surrounded on all sides by singing dolls representing children from every part of the world. And they�re all singing the same song with the same refrain: "It�s a small world after all." Over and over again, they sing, "It�s a small world after all . . . It�s a small, small world." And it�s cute - for a while. But after the 93rd chorus of that little song, you�re ready to swim the rest of the way just to get out of that tunnel. Inside you�re screaming, "I�m sick of a small, small world!" Actually, that�s how a lot of us are feeling about our life.
Well, I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A WORD WITH YOU today about "Called To Greatness."
There�s a reason you may be tired of your small, small world. It�s because you�ve been called to greatness by Jesus Christ - and you know you�re supposed to make a bigger difference with the rest of your life than you�ve made until now. As full as your life is, it may not be fulfilling - even though you�re loving Jesus and trying to live for Him.
If you�re ready to break out into a larger, more significant future, then you�re ready for the magnificent obsession that comes from the heart of God and into your heart. Our "sick and tired of the status quo" feelings are actually a magnet drawing us toward the greater greatness for which we were created. Our restlessness is a holy discontentment, planted in our heart by God Himself. In fact, if you�re one of God�s spiritually restless ones right now, there�s great news for you: Restlessness usually precedes a powerful touch of God on a person�s life.
According to Ecclesiastes 3:11, you and I have "eternity in our hearts." There�s a dimension of you that cannot be fulfilled by anything that will end. So a life that is filled mostly with earth-stuff and earth-pursuits is going to be patently unsatisfying. Your "small world" restlessness may be your heart�s warning light that you have an "eternity deficit." Sure, you have eternity after you die, but you�re hungry for some eternity in the years between now and then.
God has made you restless for more because He wants to eternalize your life - to make it count for that which will last forever. And you�ll never be satisfied with less - no job accomplishment, no home, no bank account, no sport, no earth-stuff - and how do you "eternalize" the rest of the days of your life? You pursue the destiny God describes so vividly in our word for today from the Word of God in Daniel 12:3 - "Those who lead many to righteousness will shine like the stars forever and ever." There it is - the destiny for which your heart is hungry - leading many to righteousness!
In other words, God wants you to take some people to heaven with you! To join Jesus in the rescue mission for which He died - "to seek and to save what was lost" (Luke 19:10). There is nothing more eternal you can do with your life and your influence than to help someone be with you forever in heaven - because you committed yourself to telling the people in your world about a personal relationship with Jesus Christ.
Maybe you�ve been settling for less than that, but you�re tired of that "small, small world," aren�t you? It�s time for you to answer Jesus� call to greatness . . . to commit yourself to rescuing spiritually dying people, whatever it takes. Talk about greatness - you will "shine like the stars forever and ever."
Copyright 2000, Ron Hutchcraft Ministries, Inc.
Used by permission.
Written by Ron Hutchcraft.
www.hutchcraft.com contains practical answers to real life issues.
Ron Hutchcraft Ministries, Inc.
PO Box 400
Harrison, AR 72602
March 5, 2001
The Making Of A Hero
Exodus 3:7
Lenny Skutnik was just one of thousands of federal workers heading home from work that January night - the night Air Florida�s Flight 90 crashed into the Potomac River near the Pentagon. The plane had failed to clear the 14th Street Bridge, and it fell into the frigid waters of the Potomac. A few passengers who had managed to get out before the plane sank were in the icy river, crying for help.
Lenny Skutnik saw the plane go down . . . he heard the cries of the passengers in the water . . . and he jumped into the river to try to help. He actually managed to save the life of a woman who otherwise would have almost surely died in the Potomac that night. A couple of weeks later, during President Reagan�s State of the Union address, Lenny Skutnik, everyday guy, was introduced as a real American hero on national television by the President of the United States.
Well, I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A WORD WITH YOU today about "The Making Of A Hero."
In a few moments of courage and self-sacrifice, a man did something that suddenly gave his life dramatically greater significance. He became a rescuer - and a hero. That�s how an everyday Christian becomes a hero - by becoming a rescuer of someone who is spiritually dying.
A rescuer is what God summoned Moses to be. It�s what He�s summoning you to be. In our word for today from the Word of God in Exodus 3:7, we read about the day God announced that Moses would be a hero - a rescuer. "The Lord said, �I have seen the misery of My people in Egypt. I have heard them crying out . . . I am concerned about their suffering. So I have come down to rescue them.�" God, the ultimate Rescuer, hears the cries of enslaved and hurting people. That�s why He sent Moses to the Jews. It�s why He sent His "one and only Son" to a world He so loves, to sin-slaves like us who, in the Bible�s words, were "without hope and without God in the world." (Ephesians 2:12)
I�m sure Moses was excited about God coming down to rescue His people - until he heard those shocking words that would change his life forever - "So now go. I am sending you." God was planning an incredible rescue mission, and He was summoning Moses to join Him in it. The Lord was asking Moses - and He�s asking you - to do what an everyday guy named Lenny did by the Potomac River the day of that awful crash - to hear the cries of dying people, abandon your personal safety, and rescue people who would die if you stay where you are.
It�s a sobering picture of the crossroads at which you may be standing. The Lord has heard the cries of people around you who are trying to make life work without a Savior. He has seen their lostness. He knows the awful eternity awaiting them without Christ. And He has come down to rescue them. But God will rescue the people in your personal world through a personal representative - through His "Moses." Through you.
His promises to you are the same as they were to Moses - "I will be with you" (Exodus 3:12) . . . "I will help you speak and will teach you what to say" (Exodus 4:12). When you rescue a dying person, your life takes on a greater significance than you could have ever imagined. And God is summoning you by name, like Moses of old. He has heard the cries of the dying people near you. Will you listen to His call?
"So now, go . . . I am sending you."
Copyright 2000, Ron Hutchcraft Ministries, Inc.
Used by permission.
Written by Ron Hutchcraft.
www.hutchcraft.com contains practical answers to real life issues.
Ron Hutchcraft Ministries, Inc.
PO Box 400
Harrison, AR 72602
March 6, 2001
The Most Important Title You Will Ever Have
2 Corinthians 5:18
I was the Boone County Spelling Bee champion once. Aren�t you impressed? I held the title for a little while. That was soon forgotten, and someone else held the title. I�ve been chairman of some things, president of some things - but the titles come and go. You can be captain, most valuable player, director, or Woman of the Year - nice titles, but they don�t really have any lasting significance. There�s one that does . . . and you�re a candidate.
Well, I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A WORD WITH YOU today about "The Most Important Title You Will Ever Have."
There is one title, conferred by God, that has incredible eternal significance. It�s a title that forever enlarges the significance of the one who carries it. The title doesn�t require a degree, a vote, personal wealth, or friends in high places. It belongs to many people who have never held any other title in their lives. And if you belong to Jesus Christ, you have already been given this powerful title - and the sobering responsibility that accompanies it.
The announcement of this important position is made in our word for today from the Word of God in 2 Corinthians 5:18, "God has reconciled is to Himself through Christ and gave us the ministry of reconciliation; that God was reconciling the world to Himself in Christ, not counting men�s sins against them. And He has committed to us the message of reconciliation. We are, therefore, Christ�s ambassadors, as though God were making His appeal through us . . . �Be reconciled to God.�"
Ambassador - there�s the title that comes with a personal relationship with Jesus Christ. In presidential campaigns, people donate big money, hoping to be rewarded with that title. It is a high honor to be trusted by the government of your nation to be the face and the voice of your nation somewhere in the world. By definition, an ambassador is a person assigned by the highest authority there is to represent him in a specific place. The impression people in that place have of the ambassador�s country depends on how the ambassador lives. Whether or not they understand the mind and heart of the one who assigned them depends on how clearly they communicate it by their words and their deeds.
And we are "Christ�s ambassadors" - appointed by the highest authority in the universe to represent Him! Talk about significance! In the Bible�s words, "He has committed to us the message" of what He did on the cross. He is counting on you to represent what He is like by the way you live. He is counting on you to communicate clearly the message He gave His life for. How are you doing?
And you have been assigned to represent Jesus in a specific place. The neighborhood you live in, the school you go to, the place where you work, the team you�re on, or the store where you shop. You are Christ�s ambassador right where you are. Just as a country�s ambassador is somewhere in the world, standing in for his president, you are assigned to your circle of influence to be there "on Christ�s behalf." In essence, you know in your heart that �Jesus isn�t physically here right now - He sent me to represent Him."
You may be an effective ambassador for Jesus or you may be a disastrous one - but you are Christ�s ambassador. Someone�s eternity may depend on what kind of ambassador you turn out to be.
Copyright 2000, Ron Hutchcraft Ministries, Inc.
Used by permission.
Written by Ron Hutchcraft.
www.hutchcraft.com contains practical answers to real life issues.
Ron Hutchcraft Ministries, Inc.
PO Box 400
Harrison, AR 72602
March 7, 2001
Sincerely Wrong
John 5:39-40
"They were our pilots. It was our aircraft. The aircraft should not have been on that runway." That�s what an executive of Singapore Airlines told reporters after their Los Angeles-bound jumbo jet crashed on takeoff from Taipei, Taiwan. It snapped into three pieces and burst into flames. Eighty-one of the 179 passengers aboard died in that crash. It was a crash that never should have happened. The pilot somehow ended up on a runway full of construction equipment - the resulting collision was deadly. The pilot had warnings - preflight briefing papers, two big signs indicating the number of the runway he mistakenly went down - but it didn�t matter. He was on the wrong runway.
Well, I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A WORD WITH YOU today about "Sincerely Wrong."
That pilot must have thought he was going the right way. But sincere belief didn�t change the fact that he was going the wrong way. It was still fatal. Just like it is when it comes to the road that will get us to God - that will get us to heaven when we die. The Bible warns us that "there is a way that seems right to a man, but in the end it leads to death" (Proverbs 16:25). Apparently, there are people who are deeply sincere about the spiritual road they�re on . . . they�re sure it�s the right way . . . but that won�t change the fact that it will end in death.
God and eternity are things you don�t want to be wrong about. There were people in Jesus� day who thought they were doing OK spiritually, but Jesus didn�t think so. And they were apparently very religious people - maybe like you. In our word for today from the Word of God in John 5:39-40, Jesus said, "You diligently study the Scriptures because you think that by them you possess eternal life. These are the Scriptures that testify about Me, yet you refuse to come to Me to have life."
These are people who thought they had eternal life. They thought they were doing great with God. They were actually Bible students! Maybe even Bible experts. Sure felt like the right runway to be on. But Jesus pointed out a sobering reality - you can know the words and miss the Lord! Jesus was saying here, "It�s what you do with Me that determines whether or not you have eternal life. And you�ve missed Me!"
It could be He wants to say that to you today. The reason it�s all about Jesus is explained in 1 Timothy 2:5 - "There is one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus, who gave Himself as a ransom for all men." You see, Jesus is the only Person who ever even claimed to have died for our sins. He paid the "ransom" - the price it takes to get someone back. So only the One who died for your sins can forgive your sins. There are other religions, other teachers, other prophets - but only one Savior.
So the key to being rescued by the only Rescuer God sent, is to grab Him like a drowning person would grab a lifeguard. You may be sincerely devoted to your church, your religion, or your spirituality � but sincerity in the wrong way is still fatal. The way to life is to abandon all other hopes of getting to God and putting all your trust in Jesus to forgive you and take you to Heaven. Anything else, anything less, is a road to death.
It may be that God is giving you this warning today to allow you to ask His Son into your life. If you�ve never really begun your personal relationship with Jesus - and you want to today - tell Him right now. And I'd love to send you a book I wrote about this, called "Yours for Life." Just let me know you want it.
The way that gets you home safe is the one that�s marked "Belonging to Jesus."
Copyright 2000, Ron Hutchcraft Ministries, Inc.
Used by permission.
Written by Ron Hutchcraft.
www.hutchcraft.com contains practical answers to real life issues.
Ron Hutchcraft Ministries, Inc.
PO Box 400
Harrison, AR 72602
March 8, 2001
Fighting The Cold
Matthew 24:12
It's amazing how you can go outside on a brutally cold winter day, and you go from shivering to sweating in a few minutes. If you just stand around in the cold or just move around a little bit, you're not going to stay outside for long. It's just too frigid out there! But in a very short time you can get to where you barely even notice the cold - just start shoveling snow, or some other vigorous activity. Not long ago my wife was out in the middle of a snowstorm, working on some outside chores, and she told me, "It is amazing how you can work up a sweat on a day like this!"
Well, I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A WORD WITH YOU today about "Fighting The Cold."
When you're exercising, the cold really doesn't affect you much. That's a very important equation for Christians living in times like these - because Jesus said it was going to get really chilly among His children.
In our word for today from the Word of God, Jesus is describing the days that will precede His return. Now, I can't tell when those "last days" are going to be, but I can tell that the world has never looked so much like the kind of world Jesus said He would return to than our world looks today. As time runs shorter for Planet Earth, Jesus' prediction of how His followers would live seems to be more and more true.
Notice: two groups of believers in these important times. Pick your group - you are in one of them. In Matthew 24, beginning in verse 12, Jesus says, "Because of the increase of wickedness, the love of most (that's most believers, by the way) will grow cold." Alright, there's group one - the cold. That's the group Jesus said most believers would be in. Living in a world where sin is permeating everything, in a world where sin becomes everyday stuff, most Christians will just turn spiritually cold. Amazing! At the time when Jesus needs them to be fully engaged in the decisive spiritual battles going on around them, they go cold.
But some believers are going to be fighting the cold - with some important spiritual exercise, and they are group two. Jesus says that at the same time sin is exploding across the world and into people's lives, "This Gospel of the Kingdom will be preached in the whole world as a testimony to all nations, and then the end will come." Okay, there they are - the bold! These are the believers who have checked the stadium clock, they can tell it's late in the game - and they're going for broke to get the Good News about Jesus to as many people as possible.
So where are you in this picture? Are you getting colder - or bolder? Are you pursuing your Kingdom or Jesus' Kingdom? Living in a sin-saturated world, it's easy to grow numb - especially numb to the lostness, the dyingness of the people around us. To care only about that which affects your personal world - and not much about the world for whom Jesus gave His life.
I believe Jesus is summoning many of us to join Him in an all-out effort to rescue as many dying people as possible in the time we've got left. He's asking you to throw yourself totally - your influence, your money, your home, your talents, and your time - into the greatest cause in the universe.
If you're not in the bold, you're part of the cold. But your heart and your life will warm up fast with some exercise - fighting for the eternal souls of people that Jesus thought were worth dying for.
Copyright 2000, Ron Hutchcraft Ministries, Inc.
Used by permission.
Written by Ron Hutchcraft.
www.hutchcraft.com contains practical answers to real life issues.
Ron Hutchcraft Ministries, Inc.
PO Box 400
Harrison, AR 72602
March 9, 2001
When The Captain Is Not On The Bridge
Isaiah 8:18
The Greek ferry boat was loaded with more than 500 passengers - many were visitors from other countries. Suddenly, that ship plowed into a rocky outcropping - and in minutes the ferry went down two miles from shore, claiming the lives of 66 people. But it was a tragedy that never had to happen. Those rock outcroppings are clearly marked on navigational charts, the ferry had passed by them countless times, and there is a light atop them that is visible for seven miles. But the captain and three key crew members were not at their posts that night - they were reportedly down below watching a soccer match on television. A Greek newspaper headline proclaimed - "A Blind Course On Autopilot." As his ship was on a collision course, the captain was not on the bridge.
Well, I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A WORD WITH YOU today about "When The Captain Is Not On The Bridge."
Families can go aground the same way that Greek ferry did. Children can crash for the same reason that ship did. The people who should be at the helm are not where they should be.
If you're a Mom or Dad, it's important to look in the mirror and take inventory every once in a while. God has given you the most important command of all - lives created in His image, each one a divinely designed original. And He's trusting you to give them the love, the attention, the discipline, and the spiritual direction they need to make them all God created them to be.
But there are a lot of people and pressures pulling on us parents, many of them screaming for our attention while our children just whisper. Could it be you've become preoccupied with less important things? Actually, almost everything is a less important thing than your priceless trust from God.
The stewardship God has given us when He gave us our children is expressed in some beautiful words in our word for today from the Word of God. When you apply them to your son or daughter, they are a wonderful expression of this holy stewardship. Isaiah 8:18 simply says, "Here am I, and the children the Lord has given me." Now, there is the highest and holiest assignment a man or woman can be given!
Tragically, some of us may have left the bridge. We're preoccupied with other priorities. We may be abandoning the leadership our child needs on a daily basis - the life lessons that we explain from that day's events . . . the loving reinforcement of consistent boundaries . . . the godly discipline for going out of bounds . . . the daily listening we need to do to just keep up with this constantly growing and changing little person . . . the praying they need us to do with them in situation after situation. Are you there for that?
Remember, the captain of the ship that went down did not commit any overt crime - his deadly mistake was one of neglect. It's what he didn't do. That is what did so much damage, and that could be what's happening in your home, with your family.
It could just be that with all the pressures and all the demands on you, the priorities of your life have gotten somewhat inverted recently. It's time for you, if you're a Mom or Dad, to recommit yourself to the central, non-negotiable priority of steering your family in the right direction. Listen, you don't have to leave the bridge for very long for someone you love to crash.
Copyright 2000, Ron Hutchcraft Ministries, Inc.
Used by permission.
Written by Ron Hutchcraft.
www.hutchcraft.com contains practical answers to real life issues.
Ron Hutchcraft Ministries, Inc.
PO Box 400
Harrison, AR 72602
March 10, 2001
The Power Of The Storm
2 Corinthians 12:9-10
Most of the top-selling Christian videos in America have the same name on them - Bill Gaither. He has assembled some of Gospel music's legends for what he calls "homecoming" musical gatherings. And as the videos have grown in popularity, some of yesterday's Gospel legends have become legends to a new generation. One of those is a pillar of Gospel music, Vestal Goodman. Belting out her songs with her trademark hankie in her hand, she uses one of the most powerful voices in her field.
But, according to her husband Howard, it wasn't always that way. In fact, he said that when they were first traveling together from revival to revival, Vestal had just this quiet little voice, which is pretty hard to imagine. But he said something happened the day a storm blew through the camper park where they were staying and that storm destroyed most of what they owned. That night, at the revival service, Vestal got up to sing as usual - except it wasn't usual. Suddenly, for some unexplainable reason - no doubt, supernatural - she belted out her song with a power and authority neither she nor her husband had ever heard - and that has been her trademark ever since.
Well, I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A WORD WITH YOU today about "The Power Of The Storm."
What Vestal Goodman experienced the day the storm wiped out much of her world is exactly what millions of believers have experienced in their lives. It may be what God is up to in your life right now. Here's God's modus operandi - He uses the storm in your life to bring out something more powerful than you've ever experienced before.
It happened to the Apostle Paul, as explained in 2 Corinthians 12:9-10, our word for today from the Word of God. He's talking about the upheaval, the torment in his life from what he refers to as his "thorn in the flesh." Three times Paul begged God to move this storm out of his life. Scripture goes on to say, "But God said to me, 'My grace is sufficient for you, for My power is made perfect in weakness.' Therefore, I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ's power may rest on me . . . For when I am weak, then I am strong."
Paul said it was in his times of struggle and loss and frustration that God's power was unleashed the most dramatically in his life. That is the repeated experience of God's children through the years. If a storm is blowing through your life right now, if it's doing a lot of damage, God wants to use this upheaval to unleash His power in your life, perhaps as never before. So often in the ways of God, the breaking of His child is actually the making of His child.
Why? Because when the bottom drops out, you have perhaps your greatest opportunity to really find out what God can do . . . to clean out your spiritual closets of the junk that's been holding back God's blessing . . . to develop a new compassion, a new tenderness . . . and to have the kind of platform for representing Jesus that only suffering can give you.
The storm that seems to be costing you so much right now - it may very well be God's means of bringing out something more powerful than you've ever experienced before. And here's the good news - long after the storm is gone, you are going to be singing one incredibly powerful song!
Copyright 2000, Ron Hutchcraft Ministries, Inc.
Used by permission.
Written by Ron Hutchcraft.
www.hutchcraft.com contains practical answers to real life issues.
Ron Hutchcraft Ministries, Inc.
PO Box 400
Harrison, AR 72602
March 11, 2001
The Highest Wall In The World
Isaiah 59:2
Something you may not realize about my past - I spent some time in Alcatraz. About a half a day, to be exact. By the time I got inside that infamous prison in San Francisco Bay, there was nobody home. It was a museum! And it's a fascinating place to tour. I took a group of teenagers to Alcatraz one day to tape a radio program there. We spent some time in the area that was used for solitary confinement . . . they even locked up the teenagers in the main cell block. Frankly, it's a dismal, depressing environment, even when you're just visiting it as a museum. As our tour ended, we were led through a gate and into a scenic area just outside the wall. It was a beautiful day, and we had a fantastic view of the bay, the Golden Gate Bridge, and the San Francisco skyline. One of the teenagers looked back and mumbled three words - "Only a wall." When I asked what he meant, he said, "Just think . . . only a wall separated them from all this!"
Well, I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A WORD WITH YOU today about "The Highest Wall In The World."
It was sad when you looked at it that way - a beautiful world to enjoy - but it was on the other side of a wall. It's even sadder when you consider that many folks who have never been in prison are in that same situation. Missing some beautiful things they were created for because of the wall that keeps them from it, because of the wall that keeps them from the One who has so much they spent their whole life looking for.
Our word for today from the Word of God pointedly describes the spiritual condition many of us are in. Isaiah 59:2 bluntly says, "Your sins have separated you from your God." There's the wall. It's there because we have taken a life that our Creator was supposed to run and run it ourselves. Even the most religious people have this sin wall - in God's own words, "There is no one righteous, not even one" (Romans 3:10) -that's how our best spiritual shot compares with God's perfection.
God is the relationship we've been missing and looking for our whole lives. We're lonely because we don't have His love . . . we're empty because only He can fill the hole in our heart . . . we're wondering what the meaning of our life is, but we can't get to the only One who knows. The wall is there. If we die with that wall still there between us and God, it will be there forever. The Bible has a word for that - hell. Even the heaven we want to go to is on the other side of that wall.
The most critical issue in your life is somehow getting the wall down between you and the One who made you. Here's the only way that can happen in God's own words - "God our Savior wants all men to be saved . . . there is one God and one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus, who gave Himself as a ransom for all men" (1 Timothy 2:4, 5). A ransom is the price you pay to get someone back. Jesus paid that for you when He paid the death penalty for your sin on the cross. The day you take what He paid for with His life is the day the wall comes down.
The wall is keeping you from so much only God can give you. And one day it will keep you from heaven. But Jesus, who died for you, stands ready this moment to tear down that wall. This is your day to have it come down.
Copyright 2001, Ron Hutchcraft Ministries, Inc.
Used by permission.
Written by Ron Hutchcraft.
www.hutchcraft.com contains practical answers to real life issues.
Ron Hutchcraft Ministries, Inc.
PO Box 400
Harrison, AR 72602
March 12, 2001
Immovable Boundaries
Nehemiah 5:14
The men in our family are avid football fans. It is not an uncommon malady in the American male. And no matter how many games you�ve watched, there is one highlight that never ceases to be exciting - when the quarterback lofts a long pass downfield to a receiver who leaps into the air to catch it. Unfortunately, as dramatic as those catches are, they don�t all count. Because sometimes the pass receiver steps out of bounds in the process of bringing in that pass. That�s why those players try every kind of twisting and turning imaginable to stay in bounds. Because it doesn�t matter how impressive the play is if you�re out of bounds, it just doesn�t count.
Well, I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A WORD WITH YOU today about "Immovable Boundaries."
Staying "in bounds" at all costs - that�s not just good football... that�s integrity - refusing to go out of bounds morally, no matter what. Because as far as God is concerned, it doesn�t matter how impressive the play is - if you go out of His bounds, it just doesn�t count.
Unless you�ve been living in a cave recently, you�re probably faced with temptations to compromise your integrity over and over again. To tell something less than the truth , to cut corners ethically, to do something financially that is less than honest, to compromise your purity for someone you care about, or to watch or listen to or laugh at things Jesus would never be a part of. For all of us who feel that pull to make the play by going out of bounds, there is some powerful encouragement in the life of Nehemiah, the man God chose to lead His people in the amazing rebuilding of Jerusalem�s walls and gates.
In our word for today from the Word of God, Nehemiah is now the governor of the city. He has an opportunity to use his position to his own advantage, but against a background of people who are exploiting their own people, Nehemiah is a glowing model of integrity. In Nehemiah 5:14, he says, "Neither I nor my brothers ate the food allotted to the governor. But the earlier governors - those preceding me - placed a heavy burden on the people and took forty shekels of silver from them in addition to food and wine. Their assistants lorded it over the people. But out of reverence for God, I did not act like that. Instead, I devoted myself to the work on this wall . . . we did not acquire any land."
Nehemiah�s predecessors had done it; many of the people he governed had done it; but Nehemiah refused to exploit his position. He had immovable boundaries, even when it would have benefited him greatly to compromise them just a little.
On the job application of one of our new Team members, I was impressed with three little words that described his "reason for leaving" his last job. His department insisted on continuing some unethical practices to which he had objected - but, in his character-revealing words, "I could not." While this man has an impressive resume and some great abilities, that integrity was what impressed me most. It�s what impresses God the most - and qualifies you for His greatest blessings.
Compromise may be the order of the day around you - but, in reverence for God, will you say, "I cannot." Compromise might get you ahead, maybe give you something you really want � will you, for God�s sake, say, "But I cannot."
Immoveable boundaries - the heart of a man or woman God can trust, God can bless. As far as your Lord is concerned, if it isn�t inside His boundaries, it just doesn�t count.
Copyright 2001, Ron Hutchcraft Ministries, Inc.
Used by permission.
Written by Ron Hutchcraft.
www.hutchcraft.comcontains practical answers to real life issues.
Ron Hutchcraft Ministries, Inc.
PO Box 400
Harrison, AR 72602
March 13, 2001
Manageable Mandates
1 Thessalonians 5:24
A friend of mine has served on his local school board for many years. And the more demands that have been placed on schools in recent years, the more complicated the work of school boards and school officials has become. The other day one of those frustrations surfaced in our conversation. My friend said, "You know, our state keeps passing on mandates to us for things our school system has to do - but lots of times, they give us the mandate without any money. They decide what we have to do, and we have to figure out how to pay for it."
Well, I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A WORD WITH YOU today about "Manageable Mandates."
Mandates without resources - that's got to be frustrating. Thankfully, God never gives a mandate without providing the resources to carry out the mandate! That's important for you to know right now - especially if you sense that He's leading you to do something where you have no clue where the resources are going to come from.
Over and over our many years of serving Him, we've made 1 Thessalonians 5:24 our bottom line, and we've never been disappointed. It's our word for today from the Word of God. It simply makes this promise: "The One who calls you is faithful, and He will do it." To put it simply, God will never abandon you in the middle of something He's told you to do.
Right now your Lord may be leading you into some uncharted territory. You're being asked to shoulder a responsibility, a burden, or a challenge that you're not sure you can handle. Good! That sounds like one of those exciting times when it will be just a little bit of you and a whole lot of God. Your promise is that if He is calling you to do something, He will actually do it - through you. Your job is to stay pure and show up!
God's plan will not take you where His grace will not keep you. Maybe you can't see where the money would possibly come from to carry out what God is mandating - but God's Word teaches us that what God orders, God pays for! Or as one missionary pioneer said, "If it's God's will, it's God's bill!"
Or you may just feel personally inadequate for what God is leading you to do. Good! That gets you out of the way and insures that God will get all the glory. The great Apostle Paul put it this way: "Not that we are competent in ourselves . . . but our competence comes from God. He has made us competent" (2 Corinthians 3:5). God is glorified when people who don't have what it takes are the ones He uses. We're talking a divine takeover of you, filling you with His strength, His ideas, His wisdom, His love.
He will provide the emotional resources you need, the human resources, and the financial resources. Remember, God's promise is that "my God will meet all your needs, according to His glorious riches in Christ Jesus" (Philippians 4:19). Not according to your measly resources, but according to His unlimited resources!
So that's all you need to know, really, as you're facing a challenge that's a lot bigger than you are - or maybe you're even considering giving up on a calling that God has given you. Well, what you need to know is that your Lord will never abandon you in the middle of what He's told you to do. What God mandates, God provides for!
Copyright 2001, Ron Hutchcraft Ministries, Inc.
Used by permission.
Written by Ron Hutchcraft.
www.hutchcraft.com contains practical answers to real life issues.
Ron Hutchcraft Ministries, Inc.
PO Box 400
Harrison, AR 72602
March 14, 2001
The Shape Of Hope
Ephesians 2:12
There�s a church on an Indian reservation in the Southwest that makes the most of decorating for Christmas. They�re in a remote area, and they�re in a village where you don�t see a lot of lights at night. So you can imagine what the church there looks like when they outline the entire church building and its outbuildings with Christmas lights - with a cross covered with lights on top of the church�s steeple. Last Christmas I had a chance to visit there and see the lights of the church and the cross standing out against the darkness. And I met Rose, a Native woman who attends that church. Those lights are an important part of her story. She said, "I have struggled with alcohol for many years. And one night, during the Christmas season, I hit bottom. I was in the pit. I wandered outside and there it was - the cross all lit up in front of me. I came to where the cross was - and with the help of the pastor�s wife, I finally found hope that night."
Well, I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A WORD WITH YOU today about "The Shape Of Hope."
As that Native woman discovered that night when it was especially dark for her, the shape of hope is the Cross of Jesus. For her . . . and maybe for you right now.
In our word for today from the Word of God in Ephesians 2:12, the Bible describes in eight little words how so many people feel. It talks about being "without hope and without God in the world." "Without hope" describes that feeling that things are always going to be like they always have been. I�m never going to change . . . my life is never going to change . . . I�ll always come up empty . . . or lonely . . . or confused . . . or feeling worthless. The habits, the failures, the weaknesses that have always brought me down always will bring me down. Rose, the woman I met at that reservation church, said it was like being "in the pit."
And the Bible suggests that the ultimate reason we are "without hope" is because we are "without God." That doesn�t mean you don�t believe in God or even know a lot about God. It means you don�t have the personal love relationship with God that you were made for. We�re without God because we�ve chosen to turn our backs on Him and run our own lives instead of letting Him run them. So the One who has all the meaning, all the love, and all the answers we�ve looked for our whole life is on the other side of a wall called sin.
Thankfully, this "without hope" statement in the Bible is followed by that hopeful word "but." "But now in Christ Jesus you who once were far away have been brought near" How? "Through the blood of Christ." So we find ourselves at the same place Rose found herself that night she found hope - at the foot of the cross of Jesus Christ. Why is this shedding of His blood on the cross so important? Because, as the Bible says, "Without the shedding of blood, there is no forgiveness" (Hebrews 9:22). Sin has a death penalty, a death penalty can only be paid by someone dying. And Jesus did so you don�t have to.
When you put your total trust in Jesus to be your personal Savior from your personal Savior, you are forgiven. You are guaranteed heaven when you die. You receive His power to change what you�ve never been able to change. It doesn�t have to be the way it always has been. Hope is born when you follow the light of God to the cross of Jesus.
Hope is in the shape of a cross. And hope is born for you when you come to that cross and say those two words that change everything - "For me." It was for me.
Copyright 2001, Ron Hutchcraft Ministries, Inc.
Used by permission.
Written by Ron Hutchcraft.
www.hutchcraft.com contains practical answers to real life issues.
Ron Hutchcraft Ministries, Inc.
PO Box 400
Harrison, AR 72602
March 15, 2001
Your Total Upgrade
Romans 12:1-2
OK, it's no secret - I am tech-challenged. So when it comes to computers, I know just the basics. But even I know enough to appreciate some things God provided for our ministry over the past couple of years. Like some new computers, that work much faster than our old ones. And we were able to upgrade some of our software. And the new software has capabilities that make a lot of things possible that weren't possible before. When it comes to the computers that make such a difference in our lives, a software upgrade can take you to a whole new level.
Well, I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A WORD WITH YOU today about "Your Total Upgrade."
Long before computers and software and hardware, God has been in the business of upgrading the central processing system of people's lives. It's called your mind. He talks about it in our word for today from the Word of God in the familiar - and defining - words of Romans 12:1-2. "Therefore, I urge you, brothers, in view of God's mercy, to offer your bodies as living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to God - this is your spiritual act of worship. Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God's will is - His good, pleasing, and perfect will."
God calls us here to surrender ourselves completely to the One who gave Himself completely for us. That commitment is going to mean marching to the beat of a different drummer from the one we have marched to all our lives. Without surrendering to Jesus, we follow "the pattern of this world," basing our choices and our values on what our culture says, what our family says, what our environment says, or what our feelings tell us. But God wants to "transform" us - liberate us from being puppets of our culture and our surroundings.
We're not just talking about keeping a few rules or some superficial transformation on the outside. God doesn't just shave caterpillars - He transforms them into butterflies! Substantial transformation, not just superficial change. God literally wants to upgrade your whole outlook on life by a process He calls "the renewing of your mind."
In a way, it's like upgrading your computer or your software. Now that Christ is in your life, He wants to install new attitudes about who you are, who He is, who you can be because you belong to Jesus. He wants to enable you to see your family as He sees them, the problem people in your life as He sees them, and the events of your life as He sees them. This is the exciting process that takes you from the old you to being what the Bible calls "a new creation in Christ" (2 Corinthians 5:17). If you'll work with Him on this "computer upgrade" in your mind, you'll find yourself instinctively choosing His will each new day - which puts you right in the middle of the plans for which you were created.
Pretty exciting, isn't it? How does it happen? By immersing yourself in God's way of thinking - it's called the Bible! If you want your mind renewed, you need to be in His Word every opportunity you get. You need to make opportunities to be in His Word! And make your time with Him in His book the non-negotiable of your personal schedule. Each new day is a new challenge to live His way and to think His way. So each new day, you need to begin by installing His software, by bathing your mind with His thoughts and His perspective.
Commit yourself to the aggressive study of God's words in the Bible. Examine every situation, every relationship, and every decision in light of what God says. Day by day, you will experience that awesome miracle that God describes as "the renewing of your mind."
Copyright 2001, Ron Hutchcraft Ministries, Inc.
Used by permission.
Written by Ron Hutchcraft.
www.hutchcraft.com contains practical answers to real life issues.
Ron Hutchcraft Ministries, Inc.
PO Box 400
Harrison, AR 72602
March 16, 2001
Treasure In The Trash
Matthew 13:44
My Mom didn't know it - but, man, did she make a mistake! I know that now because of my son's long-time interest in baseball card collecting . . . actually, baseball card investing. He knows what those cards are worth - especially the rare ones. One card can be worth many hundreds - even thousands - of dollars. I think I had some of those valuable cards when I was a kid with players like Mickey Mantle and Ted Williams. Cards like that are worth big bucks today! Of course, I don't have them anymore. Sometime when she was moving, my mother threw them away!
Well, I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A WORD WITH YOU today about "Treasure In The Trash."
My mother had no idea of the value of what she was throwing away. A lot of people make that same mistake - because they don't know how much they're worth. When you've been put down, left out, mistreated, or abandoned - you can battle feelings of worthlessness your whole life - no matter how successful you may be. Maybe it's a feeling you may know all too well. And, tragically, those of us who don't know what we're worth have a tendency to throw ourselves away - on bad relationships, low goals and self-destructive choices.
But this very day, the Person who created you wants to remind you how much you're worth. In Matthew 13:44, our word for today from the Word of God, Jesus is telling one of His parables. He says, "The kingdom of heaven is like treasure hidden in a field. When a man found it, he hid it again, and then in his joy went and sold all he had and bought that field." The parable right before this indicates that the field is this world we live in and the man in the field is Jesus. And the buried treasure? That's you and me.
It's very possible you've been such a buried treasure that you don't even know you're a treasure! But Jesus thinks so! I love one thought George W. Bush expressed in his Inaugural Address. He said, "No insignificant person was ever born." God would agree with that! He says in Ephesians 2:10 that "we are God's workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works which God prepared in advance for us to do." So all those people who have treated you like you're worthless didn't know who you really are - God's workmanship!
And here's the ultimate proof of how much Jesus values you. In the words of His parable, "He went out and sold all He had" so you could belong to Him. The reason we feel like we're worth so little is ultimately because we're away from the One who gave us our worth. The Bible describes us being "without God" (Ephesians 2:12) because we've taken over the running of our own lives. Notice - the middle letter of sin is "I." All of our sinning has put a wall between us and the God who made us for Himself.
But when Jesus died on the cross, He was giving "all He had" to pay the price for all the wrong things you've ever done. In your heart, for just a moment, would you walk up that hill the Bible calls Skull Hill and stand quietly at the foot of that cross where the Son of God is pouring out His life for you. Look at Him dying for you! You are not worthless! But you'll never know how valuable you are until you give yourself to the One who died to buy you back. Which you could do right now, right where you are. Tell Jesus you want to belong to Him, that the rest of your life is His.
Jesus doesn't want to lose you - that's why He paid for you with His life. This could be the day you finally belong to the One who loves you like you've never been loved before.
Copyright 2001, Ron Hutchcraft Ministries, Inc.
Used by permission.
Written by Ron Hutchcraft.
www.hutchcraft.com contains practical answers to real life issues.
Ron Hutchcraft Ministries, Inc.
PO Box 400
Harrison, AR 72602
March 17, 2001
Going Where They Moved To
Luke 19:10
Jason wasn't part of our family, but he always made himself right at home. He was one of those teenagers who felt free to drop by anytime, and, if the front door was unlocked, come right in and sit right down on the living room couch. So I'd walk in and say something like, "Oh hi, Jason. Excuse me while I get my robe." Well, he eventually went away for a hitch in the Army and shortly after his return, he dropped by the house - and walked right in and sat right down. A woman that he didn't recognize walked into the living room, looked surprised, and asked, "Who are you?" He asked, "Well, who are you? And where are Ron and Karen?" Small problem - we had moved! Someone just forgot to tell Jason.
Well, I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A WORD WITH YOU today about "Going Where They Moved To."
Poor Jason. He made an honest mistake: he went to the place where we had always been, and we weren't there anymore. Tragically, followers of Jesus Christ are making that same mistake - when it comes to rescuing the spiritually dying people around them. We're going to where they used to be - but they've moved!
We are living in the middle of a massive "culture-quake" - and the thinking and attitudes of people without Christ have changed dramatically in our lifetime! Unfortunately, our approaches to telling them about Jesus are geared to where they were, instead of where they are. If we continue to do that, the people around us will live and die without Christ - without ever understanding the terminal spiritual cancer of their sin, and that the cure that Jesus has was paid for with His life.
In a culture that has been predominantly post-Christian - where most of the people around us don't understand even the basic teachings and assumptions of the Bible - the world of the church and the world of the lost have never been farther apart. Which brings us to our word for today from the Word of God. Luke 19:10 clearly describes the modus operandi of the Savior we follow: "The Son of Man came to seek and to save what was lost." The entire lifestyle of Jesus was one of going where the lost people were, not setting up shop and expecting them to come to Him. If you don't seek them, you'll never save them!
That's pretty consistent with the spiritual situation you and I live in. Most lost people today don't ever plan to go to a religious meeting to hear a religious speaker talk on a religious subject in a religious place. The tragedy is, I just described a large percentage of the outreach strategy of God's people today! To reach the lost, we set up religious meetings in a religious place and expect unreached people to come hear a religious speaker talk on a religious subject! And they go on dying!
If we truly care about taking the people around us to Heaven with us, we need to step back and take a courageous look at how we're approaching our rescue efforts. It's time that we start taking the Gospel to places where the spiritually dying people are comfortable, not where we're comfortable - non-religious events, held in a non-religious place, where someone addresses a human need that is not particularly religious. And like good missionaries to a lost tribe, we need to work on our language. They don't speak our "Christianese." Our challenge is to present the most important message in the world in words they understand - non-religious words.
The Lord we follow went to lost people and met them where they were. We can do no less. And they've moved! Whatever it takes, whatever we have to change, whatever we have to risk, we cannot let them live and die without Christ!
Copyright 2001, Ron Hutchcraft Ministries, Inc.
Used by permission.
Written by Ron Hutchcraft.
www.hutchcraft.com contains practical answers to real life issues.
Ron Hutchcraft Ministries, Inc.
PO Box 400
Harrison, AR 72602
March 18, 2001
Indisputable Orders
Luke 7:2
If you're an older "Star Trek" fan, your guy was Captain Kirk. If you're a younger "Star Trek" fan, as in "Star Trek - The Next Generation," then your guy was Captain Picard. And if you've never watched "Star Trek" in any generation, you could care less. Kirk and Picard were the captains of the Starship Enterprise. And no matter what conflict or calamity they encountered, those guys were in charge. I've been told that Captain Picard would speak three words after he gave an order - and you knew who was in charge. With this commanding tone, he would simply say - "Make it so."
Well, I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A WORD WITH YOU today about "Indisputable Orders."
The issue of authority was very clear on the fictional Starship Enterprise. The issue of authority is even clearer in your non-fictional Starship Life. And authority is the defining issue in every situation you face that is beyond your control - maybe like the one you're in right now. And there is no question about who's in charge.
In Luke 7 beginning in verse 2, our word for today from the Word of God, there's a dramatic story that spells this all out in flesh-and-blood. "A centurion's servant, whom his master valued highly, was sick and about to die. The centurion heard of Jesus and sent some elders of the Jews to Him, asking Him to come and heal his servant." Jesus is on His way when actually the friends of this Roman commander come with a message from him - "Don't bother coming. I'm unworthy to have you here."
His message went on to say, according to the Bible, "'But say the word, and my servant will be healed. For I myself am a man under authority, with soldiers under me. I tell this one, 'Go,' and he goes; and that one, 'Come,' and he comes. I say to my servant, 'Do this,' and he does it.' When Jesus heard this, He was amazed at him . . . He said, 'I have not found such great faith even in Israel.' Then the men who had been sent returned to the house and found that servant well."
As far as I know, this is the only record we have of Jesus ever being amazed by someone's faith. And while He chastised His disciples for having "little faith," He said this man with no Biblical background had "such great faith." Why? If we can understand what impresses Jesus about this man's faith, we can begin to exercise that kind of faith to get miraculous results.
This man understood the connection between faith and authority. Even though he spent his life being in charge, he now faced a situation that was totally beyond his control - his dear servant's illness. You may be facing one of those "totally beyond my control" things right now. But this man realized that Jesus had total authority over this situation as surely as this commander had total authority over his servants. So, "Jesus, if you tell this disease to go, it's gone. If you say to this illness, 'Do this,' it will do it!"
So "great faith" trusts completely in Jesus' total authority over that which is totally beyond my control. I don't know what you're facing right now, but I do know who's in charge. If Jesus says, "Go" or "Come" or "Do this" to your impossibility, it must obey. So your company isn't going to decide the outcome - Jesus is. Your condition isn't going to decide the outcome - Jesus is. The economy isn't going to decide it . . . the person standing in the way isn't going to decide it . . . your capabilities aren't going to decide it - Jesus is going to decide it!
So pray boldly, worry less, rest more, and proceed courageously. Pray and act as if Jesus is in charge - He is! He will speak His will to your storm, your situation, or your struggle and say, in essence, "Make it so!"
And so it will be!
Copyright 2001, Ron Hutchcraft Ministries, Inc.
Used by permission.
Written by Ron Hutchcraft.
www.hutchcraft.com contains practical answers to real life issues.
Ron Hutchcraft Ministries, Inc.
PO Box 400
Harrison, AR 72602
March 19, 2001
Boomeranging Satan
Luke 4:1
When I came home from my first trip to Australia, my kids were eager to see what souvenirs I might have brought back for them. I couldn't fit that kangaroo in my suitcase, but there was one very Australian item I did bring back - a boomerang. Those things are amazing. If you throw it right, that boomerang will go out, make a U-turn, and come right back to you. It's probably a good idea, then, to pay attention after you throw your boomerang. I can just see a klutz like me throwing it, turning my back, and getting boomed with my own boomerang!
Well, I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A WORD WITH YOU today about "Boomeranging Satan."
If you're trying to live for Jesus Christ, I can guarantee you Satan is throwing things at you, trying his best to bring you down. You may be dodging some of those missiles from hell right now, and you're feeling the pressure. Here's the good news - when the devil throws his boomerang to take you down, you can duck and send it right back to hit him in the head - thus making him wish he'd never thrown it. Would you like to do that with the stuff he's been throwing at you?
Then you'll be interested in our word for today from the Word of God. In Luke 4 beginning in verse 1, the Bible tells us that "Jesus, full of the Holy Spirit . . . was led by the Spirit in the desert, where for forty days He was tempted by the devil. He ate nothing during those days, and at the end, He was hungry. The devil said to Him, 'If you are the Son of God, tell this stone to become bread.' Jesus answered, 'It is written, 'Man does not live on bread alone.'"
Three boomerangs from Satan are thrown at Jesus - each time Jesus makes His choice by stubbornly standing on what the Bible says instead of falling for what Satan says. Notice the outcome a few verses later: "When the devil had finished this tempting, he left Him until an opportune time. Jesus returned to Galilee in the power of the Spirit, and the news about Him spread throughout the whole countryside." This is awesome - the temptations that were intended to bring Jesus down only made Him stronger and more powerful in the Holy Spirit. And Satan skulks away muttering, "I blew it!" Hit by his own boomerang! I love it!
That's exactly what can happen to you as the devil throws his temptations at you. Probably he does to you what he did to your Lord - he waits until you're in a "wilderness" time, until you're vulnerable. He pushes the buttons that appeal to some deep need you have - to be loved, to be noticed, to be accepted, to be successful, to stop hurting, or to get some relief. Your enemy, of course, is expecting you to fall for what he's throwing at you. He can use this to get you discouraged, to get you to compromise, to make you focus on yourself, to mess up your priorities, to lash out, to turn back, or to give up.
But God says if you "resist the devil," he will "flee from you" (James 4:7). First, you have to recognize who these feelings, who this pressure is coming from. Then, you have to make a conscious choice that says, "I know who this is, and I'm not falling for it! I am taking my stand against the devil's schemes!" (Ephesians 6:10) Finally, you stand stubbornly on what God says and you make your choice based on God's Word, not Satan's lies or your feelings. What will Satan do? Is he going to fight you? Nope - the Bible says he will flee from you. Every time you pass the test like this, you become stronger and more confident in Christ.
The thing that was supposed to bring you down just made your more powerful spiritually than you were before! And Satan is going to wish he never threw his boomerang your direction - it misses you and hits him!
Copyright 2001, Ron Hutchcraft Ministries, Inc.
Used by permission.
Written by Ron Hutchcraft.
www.hutchcraft.com contains practical answers to real life issues.
Ron Hutchcraft Ministries, Inc.
PO Box 400
Harrison, AR 72602
March 20, 2001
When Your Work Is Done
Acts 13:36
I got a winner when I got my wife Karen! And one of the many reasons that she is a woman of such great character is that she grew up on a farm! Her dad had two "sons" to help him run the farm - they were named Karen and Valerie. So one thing they learned to do was to work hard. Because they lived several miles outside of town, it was often challenging for Karen to get back into town for extracurricular activities in high school. Like playing in the pep band for Friday night football games. My little farm girl understood what she had to do - as soon as she got home from school, she tore into her chores. There was milking that had to be done, pigs and chickens that had to be fed - all before her father would take her into town. The governing principle was very clear: Father says you can't leave until your work is done.
Well, I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A WORD WITH YOU today about "When Your Work Is Done."
Actually, your Heavenly Father operates on a similar principle - you can't leave until your work is done. In fact, that's how He has planned your life - including when you can leave for Heaven.
There's some enlightening insight in a short summary of David's life that's given to us in Acts 13:36, our word for today from the Word of God. It simply says: "When David had served God's purpose in his own generation, he fell asleep." In other words, David was placed here to carry out certain assignments for the Lord - and then he died. But not until his work was done. I remember hearing a chapel speaker in college who said, "A man is immortal until his work is done." It was true for David . . . I believe it's true for every child of God.
Many of us have been moved by these familiar words from David's prayer in Psalm 139 - "You created my inmost being; You knit me together in my mother's womb. I praise You because I am fearfully and wonderfully made; Your works are wonderful." A powerful description of the beginning of our life. But just three verses later - in a less familiar verse - God gives us a very revealing insight related to the end of our life. "All the days ordained for me were written in Your book before one of them came to be" (Psalm 139:16).
Now, did you get that? God decided the number of days you would live before there was a you! You are, as Ephesians 2:10 makes clear, here to "do good works which God prepared in advance" for you to do. And you can't leave until your work is done! Neither can anyone you love. But neither can any of us stay one more day after our work is done. And we don't decide, we don't know when someone's work is done - God does.
My baby brother's work took six months. His infant death ultimately brought me and my family to Jesus Christ. My wife's grandma's work took 99 years - even if she thought it should have been done sooner! If you love a person, of course, you feel like whenever God takes them is too soon. But it's right on time.
When you understand that we're here until our work is done, it takes away so much fear of the future. It tempers our grief when we lose someone we love and it helps us relax in the security of a flawless, perfectly timed divine plan.
See, we get so focused on the circumstances of how someone died - and all the "mights" and "what ifs" - and we miss what's really happened. When we see life from the perspective of the One who gave us our life, where it says, "cause of death," we might just write - "His work was done" . . . "Her work was done."
Copyright 2001, Ron Hutchcraft Ministries, Inc.
Used by permission.
Written by Ron Hutchcraft.
www.hutchcraft.com contains practical answers to real life issues.
Ron Hutchcraft Ministries, Inc.
PO Box 400
Harrison, AR 72602
March 21, 2001
Leaving Your Dirt At The Door
Joshua 5:13
We have some wonderful Native American friends in the Northwest, and during last summer's reservation outreaches, they honored us by inviting us to stay in their home. We had a great stay, but I did have to learn a custom that was new to me. When you walk in their front door, you are greeted with a pile of shoes. Now, in many Native American homes in that area, it's expected that your shoes won't make it past the door. Which makes you think about what socks you're going to wear that day - probably not the ones that look like Swiss cheese, you know. Actually, to come into the house with your shoes on is really to dishonor your hosts. And anyone who has had to sweep or vacuum the trail left behind by dirty shoes knows this is not just about honor - it makes sense to not track dirt into a clean house!
Well, I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A WORD WITH YOU today about "Leaving Your Dirt At The Door."
The idea of taking off your shoes before you come in actually has a long history. Take Joshua, for example, on the eve of leading the Jewish people against Jericho. Our word for today from the Word of God begins in Joshua 5:13. "Now when Joshua was near Jericho, he looked up and saw a man standing in front of him with a drawn sword in his hand. Joshua went up to him and asked, 'Are you for us or for our enemies?' 'Neither,' he replied, 'but as commander of the army of the Lord I have now come.' Then Joshua fell face down to the ground in reverence and asked him, 'What message does my Lord have for His servant?' The commander of the Lord's army replied, 'Take off your sandals, for the place where you are standing is holy.' And Joshua did so."
Now, Joshua is at a critical moment here. There are some major battles and obstacles ahead of him, as well as some major victories. And the Lord has important information to give him. But first, the shoes. After Joshua shucks his sandals, God gives him the battle plan he needs for the challenge he's facing. But first, the shoes.
Remember, Moses had the same experience at the burning bush. Before he could get the Lord's message for him, he had to take off his shoes. Now our friends in the Northwest don't want dirt brought into their house, so they expect people to remove the things that carry the dirt. And that seems to be God's message to Joshua, to Moses, to you and me. Before you can hear from His heart, before you can get His word for the challenge you're facing, you have to remove your shoes, you have to get rid of the dirty stuff at the door of His Throne Room.
And that may be why your answer hasn't come - you've dishonored the Lord by entering His Throne Room, still hanging onto the dirty stuff. David learned, as he recorded in Psalm 66:18, "If I had cherished sin in my heart, the Lord would not have listened." Now, there are many reasons why God delays His answers to His children's prayers: It just isn't His time yet, He knows it wouldn't be good for you right now, or He's building faith and patience in you. But sometimes the reason God doesn't answer is the dirt.
Remember, God is the One the angels call, "Holy, holy, holy." And the thrice-holy God cannot bless you while you are hanging onto some sin that killed His Son. You can't work hard enough, pray hard enough, or cry hard enough to move the hand of God if you haven't repented of the dirty stuff. Maybe it's a habit or a wrong attitude, a wrong relationship, a compromise, some self-centeredness or deceitfulness. But like our friends in the Northwest, God is saying, "Don't come in here with THAT." So before our prayers of "please" and "help me," we need to have our prayers of "I'm sorry - I want to be clean."
You don't walk into God's presence, tracking in with you something dirty He cannot tolerate. You honor your Lord when you take off your spiritual shoes before you enter His presence, when you leave your dirt at the door.
Copyright 2001, Ron Hutchcraft Ministries, Inc.
Used by permission.
Written by Ron Hutchcraft.
www.hutchcraft.com contains practical answers to real life issues.
Ron Hutchcraft Ministries, Inc.
PO Box 400
Harrison, AR 72602
March 22, 2001
Play-Doh People
Daniel 3:5-6
A lot of toys come and go with this year's fads. But there are a few classic toys that just keep showing up in generation after generation - like Play-Doh, for example. I mean, who hasn't either owned some Play-Doh or bought some for a child? It's great stuff. You take it out of its can and it's in the shape of the can it came in. But that changes quickly, depending on what you want to make of it. You can make that colored clay round like a ball. Or you can make it into a pancake. Or you can make it into two or three objects with different shapes. Play-Doh takes on whatever shape you want it to be.
Well, I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A WORD WITH YOU today about "Play-Doh People."
Play-Doh toy is good. Play-Doh people are not good. And a lot of people are; their shape is determined by the people they're with at that time.
Our word for today gives us an unforgettable example of some people who rose above the "Play-Dohness" that most folks have. Daniel 3 is where we find it. The pagan King Nebuchadnezzar builds a ninety-foot, gold image of himself and gives this command to everyone in his kingdom: "You must fall down and worship the image . . . whoever does not . . . will immediately be thrown into a blazing furnace." (Daniel 3:5-6) That turned out to be a great motivation to conform. The Bible says, "All the peoples . . . fell down and worshipped the image." (Daniel 3:7)
That is "all" except for three Jewish, young men whose loyalty to Jehovah God would not let them bow down. In Daniel 3:17, they tell the king, "If we are thrown into the blazing furnace, the God we serve is able to save us from it, and He will rescue us from your hand, O king. But even if He does not . . . we will not serve your gods." Everybody else was Play-Doh, squeezed into the shape that their culture said they had to be in.
You remember that God sends a fourth man into that fire with these three men, who the soldiers said looked like the Son of God. "Then Nebuchadnezzar said, 'Praise be to the God of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego . . . They trusted in Him and defied the king's command and were willing to give up their lives rather than serve or worship any god except their own God.'" The king then decreed that anyone who spoke against Jehovah would be executed. Oh, and by the way, the Bible says, "The king promoted Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego."
Heavy pressure to compromise what they believed. Sound familiar? But these three guys refused to be Play-Doh . . . they were ROCKS. Folks squeeze Play-Doh people into the shape they want them to be. But not the Rock People - they are solid all the way through, and no one can change their shape. It's set. So which one are you? At school, at work, out for a good time, in the way you do business, in your love life?
No matter who you are, you are part of some culture or subculture, and that culture has its definition of what is cool and acceptable and expected. If you're part of some corporate culture, for example, you know there are things they expect of people that are a betrayal of Jesus. Or the culture of your family, or the youth culture, or academic culture. In academia, there is always the temptation to compromise Biblical standards to do what your discipline says is intellectually or artistically or scientifically respectable.
Have you been too much like Play-Doh? Have you compromised things that really matter to your Savior so you could fit in to the mold of other people? That's a price too high to pay. Listen to your Lord: "Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind." Romans 12:2. You've been Play-Doh long enough - too pliable. Let Jesus make you a ROCK - solid all the way to the center - too strong for anyone to squeeze into another shape.
Copyright 2001, Ron Hutchcraft Ministries, Inc.
Used by permission.
Written by Ron Hutchcraft.
www.hutchcraft.com contains practical answers to real life issues.
Ron Hutchcraft Ministries, Inc.
PO Box 400
Harrison, AR 72602
March 23, 2001
Holding Onto Your Child In The Storm
2 Timothy 1:7
Kissimmee, Florida, is right in the middle of some of Florida's most exciting tourist attractions. So, it's usually associated with happy times. But in February of 1998 the headlines were about tragedy in Kissimmee, with 38 people killed in the deadliest tornado outbreak in the state's history. In its lead front page story, USA Today told about Manuel and Judy Rincon who "cowered in horror early Monday as the house they had saved 10 years to buy literally broke apart around them. Then it got worse. The garage door blew open and tore away. The door into the kitchen opened, and the wind sucked like a vacuum cleaner, pulling their 5-year old daughter, Elissa, away. Her dad said, 'She was horizontal, and my wife was holding onto her legs. There was all this glass and everything started to disappear, all the furniture, and the insides of the walls. If my wife had let go of Elissa, we wouldn't have been able to find her." USA Today says, "But Judy's grip held. And in a few moments, the tornado had passed and Elissa was safe in her arms."
Well, I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A WORD WITH YOU today about "Holding On To Your Child In The Storm."
If you're a parent, you may know that feeling because these are unusually stormy times in which to be raising a son or daughter. And sometimes you feel like all that's swirling around them threatens to take them away. There are so many mistakes they can make . . . so many mistakes we can make. There may be days when you feel like you're hanging on for dear life.
Well, our word for today from the Word of God, though it isn't addressed specifically to parents, is a great parent scripture. It's found in 2 Timothy 1:7 - "God did not give us a spirit of fear, but a spirit of power, of love, and of self-discipline." You see, God doesn't want your parent-heart to be a fearful heart. In fact, He has made this strong promise to parents in Isaiah 54:13 - "All your children will be taught of the Lord; and great will be the peace of your children."
You can keep your child from being torn away by the storm. Take time to casually debrief each day with them . . . helping them interpret what they have experienced that day . . . give them boundaries with positive reasons - not just boundaries. Focus on today - not the problems of yesterday or the prospects of tomorrow. Make your home an island of sanity in an otherwise insane world. And each new day, give that child back to the God who gave you that child in the first place.
The ultimate secret of holding onto your child in the storm is - in a sense - letting go of the child. After the writer talked about having a spirit of power and love instead of a spirit of fear, he tells how that's possible with so much at stake. Speaking of his personal relationship with Jesus Christ, he says, "I know whom I have believed, and am convinced that He is able to guard what (or who) I have entrusted to Him." That's 2 Timothy 1:12. There is a relationship that provides a life-anchor for anyone, but especially for parents raising children in stormy times. If you have begun that personal love-relationship with the Savior, you can commit your precious child to Him and He will hang onto them as you never could.
But first Jesus has to be hanging onto you. There is nothing like being a parent to make you aware of your own need for help . . . for the power to change . . . for forgiveness . . . and for inner healing. And Jesus is a Mom's Savior . . . a Dad's Savior. He died on the cross to pay for all the sinning you and I have ever done . . . to tear down the wall between God and us . . . and to open up all of God's love and all God's power to you.
If you've never put your personal trust in Jesus Christ to be your Savior, I would encourage you to not wait another day. For your sake. For the sake of the child you love. If you'd like to begin that relationship, I want to send you a booklet I wrote about it called "Yours For Life." Just let me know you want it.
In a world that's so dangerous and so confusing, it isn't easy to keep your child from being taken away by the storm. But you can hang on to your son or daughter . . . if you have the Son of God hanging on to you.
Copyright 2001, Ron Hutchcraft Ministries, Inc.
Used by permission.
Written by Ron Hutchcraft.
www.hutchcraft.com contains practical answers to real life issues.
Ron Hutchcraft Ministries, Inc.
PO Box 400
Harrison, AR 72602
March 24, 2001
What You Replay
Ephesians 4:29
Apparently, the airlines know you have to keep us Americans amused. They try to keep something happening on those video screens during much of the flight. If it's a long flight, you get a movie. If it's a shorter flight, you get shorts - not to wear, I mean, the kind you watch on the screen. And I'm usually so busy amusing myself with all the work I have to do, I don't pay much attention to the screen. But on this one flight, I did occasionally glance up at the girls' gymnastics competitions they were showing in the sports highlights. The big competition was between the United States and Russia, so my star-spangled blood was pulling for you-know-who. After each girl performed, they would do this little replay. I never saw a replay of anything that she did RIGHT. They insisted on showing two or three times where she messed up. "Look, everybody - see the one thing she did wrong." That bothers me.
Well, I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A WORD WITH YOU today about "What You Replay."
Now, our word for today from the Word of God is one of my favorite relationship verses in all the Bible. It's a great verse to memorize because it is one of the keys to Christlike, loving relationships. It's also hard to do sometimes. Here's our word for today . . . Ephesians 4:29 - "Do not let any unwholesome talk come out of your mouths, but only what is helpful for building others up according to their needs."
God says, "Lose the talk that tears people down . . . stick to saying things that will build people up." It might be interesting to play back a tape of your conversations the last couple of days - what you said to your kids, your mate, your co-workers, maybe your parents, or your employees. Social researchers tell us that for every one negative input we get, we need seven positives to bring us back to zero. Seven to one - the recommended ratio of "build them up" comments to "tear them down" comments. If we played back that tape of you, I wonder what the ratio would be?
All too often, we tend to be like that gymnastics video I saw: replaying not what people do right, but replaying their mistakes . . . their failures . . . their shortcomings . . . where they messed up. Those gymnastics athletes had done so much RIGHT, but the commentator insisted on focusing on what they did wrong. Could that be you sometimes? Could it be hurting people you care about . . . or ought to care about? It's that "unwholesome talk" God says we should not let come out of our mouth.
I saw a plaque in a bookstore once. It was a cartoon of this little dog, and the inscription said, "My name is 'No-No, Bad Dog.' What's yours?" I wonder if any folks around you may think their name is something like "No-No, Bad Dog"? Most of what they hear from you is about the bad stuff. And people eventually tend to become the names that they're called.
Maybe it's time to clean up your speech. Not from profanity or dirty talk - you probably don't do a lot of that. But from the negative talk, the destructive talk, the talk that's tearing down the joy and confidence of people around you. Maybe people you love very much. They need for you to replay the GOOD things about them . . . the things they're doing RIGHT . . . the things you want them to do more of. Water what you want to grow. If you see someone improving or trying even a little, make a big deal of it! They'll want to do it some more.
The world is filled with people who will keep replaying your mistakes. But the followers of Jesus are called to something better, judging their input by this question: "Will this build that person up?" Then, when you do have to deal with something they've done wrong, it won't destroy them and they'll know it's coming from someone who really appreciates them.
You can change the course of someone's day . . . maybe even the course of their life, by choosing to replay the things they do right.
Copyright 2001, Ron Hutchcraft Ministries, Inc.
Used by permission.
Written by Ron Hutchcraft.
www.hutchcraft.com contains practical answers to real life issues.
Ron Hutchcraft Ministries, Inc.
PO Box 400
Harrison, AR 72602
March 25, 2001
You're In The Picture!
Luke 23:39
If you were a firstborn, or even a second born child, you may not understand this. But if you came after that in your family, you'll be able to empathize with our third - and final - born child, Brad. His frustration probably came to a head every Christmas when I'd pull out the old family movies�most of which he wasn't in. He's later observed that the number of photographs taken of a child seems to go down exponentially after the firstborn. It's like for every ten pictures of the first child, there are maybe five of the second, and, if you're lucky, one of the third. I can remember Brad sometimes leaving the room for a little while during family movies - after patiently watching his older sister and brother's infant antics. When I'd ask him where he was going, he would reply matter-of-factly, "Call me when there's something I'm in."
Well, I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A WORD WITH YOU today about "You're In The Picture!"
If we're honest, we know that we are most interested in the pictures that we're in! A lot of people have never taken a deeply personal look at the most important picture in history. Until they realize that they are in the picture. I hope you'll be able to see yourself in this picture today as you've never seen it before.
The scene is the brutal death of Jesus Christ on a Roman cross. You can probably bring up a mental image of that scene in your mind. The old spiritual asks the question, "Were you there when they crucified my Lord?" Actually, you were - all of us were. Represented by one of two men. If you can figure out which one is you, you can figure out whether you're going to Heaven when you die.
Jesus is crucified between two hardened criminals. In Luke 23 beginning in verse 39, our word for today from the Word of God, the Bible says, '"One of the criminals who hung there hurled insults at Him: "Aren't you the Christ? Save yourself and us!" But the other criminal rebuked Him. "Don't you fear God", he said, "since you are under the same sentence? We are getting what our deeds deserve. But this man has done nothing." Then he said, "Jesus, remember me when You come into Your kingdom." Jesus answered him, "Today you will be with Me in paradise.'"
There's the picture. Those two criminals represent all the human race. And spiritually, one or the other represents you. Like them, we have all sinned. Our sins may not have been as dramatic, but all of us are rebels against God, running our own lives, doing all kinds of things our way instead of His way. And like those two men, we all deserve the death penalty for what we've done. The Bible clearly states that the penalty for our sin is spiritual death - being separated from God forever (Romans 6:23).
And like one of them, many people see Jesus dying on that cross but do not reach out to Him to be their Savior from their sin. You can reject Him aggressively like that one man, or passively by simply failing to grab the Rescuer who came for you. And that may be you at Jesus' cross. You've never really placed your trust in Him as your only hope for getting to Heaven.
At the moment you open your heart to Jesus, the promise He made on that cross becomes your promise - "You will be with Me in Paradise." I pray that you will join the other man on the other cross, crying out to Jesus to be your personal Savior. If you want this amazing relationship with this amazing Savior, would you tell Him that right now?
Copyright 2001, Ron Hutchcraft Ministries, Inc.
Used by permission.
Written by Ron Hutchcraft.
www.hutchcraft.com contains practical answers to real life issues.
Ron Hutchcraft Ministries, Inc.
PO Box 400
Harrison, AR 72602
March 26, 2001
The Twelve Voices Of Easter
Judas - Voice Of Betrayal
Matthew 26:14-16
Matthew 26:47-50
Matthew 27:3-5
I stand at the edge of a cliff, a rope around my neck; the other end tied to a limb on that tree. Dark thoughts fill my mind. I wonder what's come over me.
I should have been a leader. I was named Judas after the great patriarch Judah, first among the 12 tribes of Israel. I should have been first among the 12, not Peter. But there is no other way. I have done unspeakable things. I betrayed my master. I am the voice of betrayal. I deserve to die. Yes, that will be the end.
At least then no one will be able to use me, ever again. I hate it when people use me. The religious leaders tried to use me. All they wanted was an opportunity to arrest Jesus without creating a riot. I gave them that opportunity. They used me. They paid me off.
I thought Jesus wanted to use me too. He wanted to use me to build His kingdom. And He wanted to change me. I could see it in His eyes every time the money box came up short. Jesus knew I was stealing. He knew all about me and should have hated me. I could fool everyone except Him. I grew to hate Him. This tree and this cliff will put an end to all of their plans. He wanted me, but only on His terms. I will not belong to another. I will not be the possession of anyone. Well, I shall be no use to Him now. No more errand boy. No more teacher's helper. No one can help Him now. They have Him.
It all came to me at the Passover meal. We gathered in an upper room with Jesus to celebrate the feast. I was overwhelmed with a sudden clarity of purpose; an amazing strength of resolve. I could see it all coming together. It would be easy. I knew what I had been made for.
It was all too perfect. The conversation around the table was about the week's festival. One or two had something to say about the interfering Romans. But most of the talk was about the faithfulness of God, who redeemed Israel from Egypt long ago. I was silent. Jesus caught my eye a few times, but I looked away.
Then Jesus interrupted the conversation by announcing that one of us would soon betray Him. The room was instantly still. The faces around the table all showed stunned amazement. Of course, everyone had heard talk that the leaders of the council would pay for information leading to Jesus' arrest, but none of them imagined that anyone would ever betray the Master. One by one each disciple asked if he were the one. I asked, too, of course. Low voices ringed the table in worried discussion. The meal progressed. As I dipped my hand in the dish, Jesus said something to the two next to Him, Peter and John. They looked at me, wariness on their faces, and I knew He had told them. I don't know how He knew, but I had already been to the chief priests and offered to betray Jesus. Somehow He must have known about it.
I had to get out of there. I stood and rushed out of the room. It was time. I expected them to go to the Garden in Gethsemane after dinner. Whenever we visited Jerusalem, that was His favorite place. He loved the solitude for prayer. I went straight to the chief priests and told them to hurry. If the other disciples guessed my plans, they might spoil everything. "We must act now," I said. They agreed. Some went to get the temple police. The rest of us went to the Roman garrison, where the priests requested a contingent of soldiers to accompany us.
I led the way. It was exhilarating. I was in command. No one using me. Everyone following me. I had the power. When we got to the Garden, as I expected, Jesus was praying. The others had fallen asleep. Jesus heard us coming and roused the disciples. I stepped forward from the shadows. It was dark and the torches did not provide much light. I had arranged a signal to identify Jesus in the darkness. I kissed Him on the cheek and greeted Him, "Rabbi." I had greeted Him that way a hundred times; we all had. With a simple daily habit, an innocent token of greeting, I betrayed the Master.
He always wanted to be the Master, to be served. For all His talk about serving others, He always was the Master. As though He had been born king or something! Well, now that they have Him, what kind of kingdom do you think He'll inherit? It's one thing to lead a few disciples and country peasants when the sun shines on the hillside. But see if anyone follows Him when night is come and all is darkness. Nobody can rule from a cross. Well, I will not serve. I am no one's fool. Now finally, in this act, I am free, not being used by anyone. Free. A rope around my neck, standing at the edge of this cliff. Soon I'll be free.
And yet, I wonder. Can a man's death solve anything? I mean, if a man gives himself to death, freely, no one taking it from him, can one who gives himself to death accomplish anything? Can a dead man hanging on a tree serve any purpose? I'm going to find out. I am just one step from freedom.
Written by Dr. Woodrow Kroll and Keith Ghormley
www.backtothebible.org
Copyright �1996-2001 The Good News Broadcasting Association, Inc.
All rights reserved.
March 27, 2001
The Twelve Voices Of Easter
Peter - Voice Of Denial
Matthew 26:32-35
Matthew 26:57-58
Matthew 26:69-75
Did you hear it? That rooster. Did it wake you? That rooster! I can still hear it. There! Is that it again? No, no, no. I'm fine. I guess it just startled me. I've been up all night. I didn't realize the morning was so near. But it's dark. What hour is it? So late. It's cold out here. What are you doing in the street? Yes, I'm from Galilee. Why does everyone have to make such a big deal out of the obvious? I'm sorry. It's not your fault.
I'm a fisherman. I've heard roosters crow before, as far back as I can remember. We would fish all night. We would hear the roosters at daybreak when it was time to bring our catch to shore. When I was just a boy and had fallen asleep in the boat, I would hear the roosters crowing and wake to hear the far-off voices of my father and the others discussing the night's catch. He would look across to me in the gray light and our eyes would meet.
Rooster music meant an end to the night and cold. It meant home and warmth and food. But not after tonight. I have been with Jesus. They have Him now in Caiaphas' dungeon, I suppose. I'm afraid. Now the Romans are in with them.
The Master warned me. He said Satan would sift me like a farmer sifting wheat. But Jesus said He prayed for me that my faith would not completely fail. He told us He was going to die. I said, "No, I would die for Him." What brave words. Now I am the voice of denial.
Earlier tonight I tried to defend Him in the Garden of Gethsemane. We awoke suddenly. There were torches, soldiers, a mob with clubs. I had a short sword and I jumped to my feet swinging. I had a fair shot at one of them, too, but he moved his head at the last instant and all I got was his ear. Jesus rebuked me, told me to put up the sword. The soldier who grabbed me from behind made sure I did. Then it was all noise and confusion. They took Him and nearly trampled us. Even a garden doesn't offer many soft places to land in the dark. By the time we collected ourselves, they were gone.
John and I followed, a ways back. They brought Him into the city. We made our way through the dark streets, staying a safe distance behind the soldiers. All the way across town. We soon guessed they were bringing Him here to the palace of the high priest. But for what? The council couldn't meet at night. The priests and scribes and temple guard went through the gate into the courtyard. The Roman centurion posted a guard and led away the rest of the soldiers.
We were stopped just inside the arched passage at the outside gate. But the portress knew John. I could tell she had her doubts about me, but she let us in through the outer gate and then into the inner courtyard. We were inside the high priest's house. John made his way into the hall where a large crowd was assembled. I had never been in a house like that before. I stayed in the courtyard with the servants. I hoped no one would question me. I did not know what I should be doing or how to answer. And there was a chance that someone might recognize me. What if one of the temple guards identified me as the man with the sword? What if the servant whose ear I cut off saw me and accused me?
Then my heart froze. There he was! My victim! But he turned his head, and I saw a healthy ear, right where it should be. I must have mistaken him in the firelight. Perhaps I would be safe if I stayed in the shadows. Everything was fine until the young portress came over from the gate to the fire. Her eye picked me out of the shadows and she said, "You're one of this man's disciples, aren't you?" Everyone in the circle looked at me. I just couldn't say yes. "Not me! I'm not a follower of Jesus."
I turned away from her, wishing she would disappear. She stayed a while, speaking in a low voice to one of her friends and pointing at me. The portress left the fire, but soon her friend spoke up. "This fellow is one of them. He was with Jesus the Nazarene." Other voices rose to agree, accusing me of being one of Jesus' followers. Anger and shame rose in me like hot poison. I said, "Man, I don't know what you're talking about." Maybe that satisfied them. They fell back to their gossip, buzzing about the events of the night. Things settled down. I hoped I was finished with them. Two denials surely would be enough to save my neck.
The night dragged on. What was happening in the hall? I strained to hear. Evidently the council had convened after all. What were they doing? I moved closer to the hall, shifting for a position where I could see. I had no idea where John was. I finally found a place where I could see Jesus Himself, standing before the council, His head bowed, completely still, surrounded by noise and confusion.
I asked the man next to me what was happening. He turned and said, "So, you're a Galilean, too, aren't you?" Several faces turned our way. I recognized two or three who had been standing at the fire. "Man, I don't know what you're talking about." Angry and excited, I began to call curses down on myself. I swore that I never knew Jesus.
The words caught in my throat. From where Jesus stood before the council, He looked out into the courtyard and in the yellow light our eyes met. It was just as He predicted. He told me that I would deny Him three times. I said it would never happen. Peter, the rock. The Master's faithful follower and chief defender. I had become the voice of denial. The crowing of the cock told me what I really was. I am disgraced. The others will despise me. My name will become a curse.
I stumbled to the gate. The portress let me out, all the warmth, company and light behind me. So late. It is so cold out here. I failed Him. I was chief among the Twelve, and I failed Him. Three times over I failed Him. How could I fail one whom I have loved so? Now I wonder do I really love Him? Can real love produce this kind of failure? But I do love Him. Don't I? If I loved Him, I would keep His word. I would not fail. Do I even love Him? The voice of the rooster testifies against me. My own words testify against me. My own heart condemns me. I was a leader among the Twelve. I confessed Him on the mountain, but I denied Him in the night. Hereafter I will be known only as the voice of denial.
Written by Dr. Woodrow Kroll and Keith Ghormley
www.backtothebible.org
Copyright �1996-2001 The Good News Broadcasting Association, Inc.
All rights reserved.
March 28, 2001
The Twelve Voices Of Easter
Chief Priests - Voices of Deception
Matthew 27:62-66
Matthew 28:11-15
My name is Abishua. I am one of the chief priests in Jerusalem. We have charge over all the functions of the temple. It is our sacred office to offer sacrifices in the temple for the glory of God and the redemption of His people. It is the highest office in the land, and with the scribes, we are the most powerful religious leaders in Israel.
Our authority is unquestioned. Everyone knows our lineage. From the time of Aaron, we have been God's chosen vessels, His official ministers. So it has always been. So it shall always be. We view any circumstance which might upset this order with profound concern.
The recent case of the troublemaker from Galilee illustrates my point. You understand, His teachings have disturbed the people and have even called our temple practices into question. A dangerous extremist. He has challenged an authority and practice that transcends our time, one established and approved by longstanding tradition.
Certainly we have encountered similar challenges before; those who would destroy, cloaking themselves in the disguise of reform. But none as dangerous as this Jesus of Nazareth. His followers and sympathizers have numbered in the thousands. Some even dare to claim that He may be the long-awaited Messiah. But surely if that were so, we in the priesthood should have been among the first to acclaim and honor Him. No, I am afraid the people are too easily deluded. You see, we have been aware of this man for quite some time. And none of our information substantiates these irresponsible claims.
We first took notice of Him in connection with the affairs of John the Baptist, so-called. Our informants tell us that when Jesus was baptized, some who were there reported a miraculous sign from heaven as He came up from the water. If you believe such things, perhaps you would be interested in some beachfront property I have on the Dead Sea.
But rumors spread quickly and are believed too easily among the common folk, and the small crowds became larger. He became decidedly dangerous. You may have heard, for example, that He healed a man with a withered hand on the Sabbath, a clear violation of the observance. But when His error was called to His attention, He actually claimed to be Lord of the Sabbath! And when He came to Jerusalem, He made a terrible scene right in the temple. He drove out those who changed money and overturned their tables. You must excuse me, I do not like to raise my voice, but some things cannot be tolerated. The temple and its precincts are our responsibility. And to attempt reform without going through the proper authority is nothing short of criminal.
He knew we were angry and so He tried to disguise His purposes. He stayed away from Jerusalem and taught the country people, using parables to hide His malice. We did not wait idly. We attempted on several occasions to discredit Him before the people He misled. And we have considered a long series of plans to remove Him.
Our opportunity presented itself at the time just before Passover, when one of His followers came to us and offered to betray Him. He was a dreadful fellow named Judas, a common man of Cheroth. But one must take one's opportunities where one finds them. And he came for a modest price. For just thirty pieces of silver, he agreed to hand Him over to us. This was our time.
It was the night of the Passover. We were still reclining at table when Judas knocked. He had come directly from the house where Jesus and His followers gathered. Judas told us that soon they would make their way out of the city by the Eastern Gate and cross the Kidron to the Garden of Gethsemane. It was their customary practice. And it fit our purpose exactly. An escort was arranged. Some men with arms was deemed prudent.
Judas led us to the garden and he kissed his "master" in familiar greeting. That was our sign. His arrest was effected and He was taken directly to the house of the high priest. There He received a pre-trial hearing by Annas and subsequently He stood before Caiaphas to answer our charges.
The trial was critical. We had to work quickly and carefully. Our charges against Jesus had to be substantiated by witnesses. Regrettably, we were forced to pay certain witnesses for their testimony. Their testimony was not as compelling as one would wish, but it did open the way for direct examination, and soon He was condemned by His own lips. He blasphemed openly before the council.
Having gained Caiaphas' sentence, all we needed was the Roman governor, Pontius Pilate. We are not allowed to carry out capital punishment without the approval of the empire's occupation force. We have learned how to play our cases before the Romans. All the governor cares about is the authority of Rome. All we had to do was convince him that this Jesus was a dangerous rebel.
It was daybreak. We arrived at the governor's residence and called for a hearing. Sleepy-eyed and disinterested, Pilate heard our charges. We suffered some anxious moments as Pilate played the stupid Roman, adopting the position that Jesus had done nothing wrong. Clearly this would not do. We were so close to the final solution. We had paid a disciple to betray Him. We had paid witnesses for their testimony. We could not be stopped just one step short of the goal.
As Pilate interviewed the Nazarene, we worked our way through the crowd, arranging for a convincing solidarity. So when Pilate stood Him before us, the crowd answered with one voice. Ours. "Crucify Him." The chant surged through the crowd like the undulations of an angry serpent. The governor took our message. Jesus must die.
Pilate was in no mood for a fight. He released Jesus to the crowd and He was taken out of the city to the place of the skull, and crucified as a common criminal. Our work was finished.
Pilate made one final gesture, a sign placed above the head of Jesus as He hung on the cross. The words were written in Aramaic, Latin and Greek for all the world to read. "Jesus of Nazareth, King of the Jews."
We objected. "Don't write 'King of the Jews.' Write instead, 'He said, I am King of the Jews.'" But Pilate refused. Stubborn Roman fool. Small matter. Jesus died on the cross. Terrible, in a way, of course, without question. But we look at it as a great triumph. The threat to God's appointed priesthood had failed. Our place and office had been secured. The priesthood continues to offer sacrifice for the glory of God and the redemption of His people. So it shall ever be.
Written by Dr. Woodrow Kroll and Keith Ghormley
www.backtothebible.org
Copyright �1996-2001 The Good News Broadcasting Association, Inc.
All rights reserved.
March 29, 2001
The Twelve Voices Of Easter
Caiaphus - Voice of Condemnation
Matthew 26: 59-68
Some call me a puppet. But I am not. Those who see me as a puppet obviously know nothing about the strength of family ties. They have no understanding of my loyalty to my father, or actually my father-in-law, as you would call him. He has a strength of influence over me as though he were my father. Annas is a powerful man, perhaps the most powerful Jew in Palestine. He was appointed high priest by the governor Quirinius 25 years ago. During his term, the Sanhedrin was little more than his personal judicial body. And even though he was deposed more than 15 years ago, he still dominates the council and the priesthood. Always a manipulator, enforcing his will. He had his successor removed from office so that his son, Eleazer, could serve as high priest. And then, he worked things so that I received the title. And his purposes do not end with me. There are still four other sons and a grandson to follow.
My father is a powerful man. I do not doubt that each one in turn will serve as high priest. Our father gets his way. And now, although Annas is the power, I have the office. I do pretty much what he wants me to do, and he makes sure I know what he wants done.
So you see, the events of that night were not entirely my doing. A mob burst into the courtyard of our home, dragging a bound prisoner. They took Him first to my father-in-law. I am used to being second. Whenever there is a quarrel for the high priest to decide, the matter is brought to me for a hearing, but only after Annas has heard it.
It was late, midnight or after. I had already gone to bed. Apparently Annas was still up. He interviewed their prisoner while I dressed. I came down to the hall and greeted the chief priests. By that time some of the elders of the city and many members of the Sanhedrin had arrived. The man with the mob was Jesus of Nazareth.
They presented their accusation. He was a blasphemer and His case must be decided immediately. Blasphemy. A capitol offense. I have to tell you, I wasn't much interested in this business, but I caught a look from my father. He was.
I hastily convened a meeting of the Sanhedrin, since many were at hand. We heard the evidence. Frankly, there was not much of a case. The preliminary interview with Annas had turned up nothing we could use. It was clear that we would need more evidence if we hoped to make any charges stick. I did not like hearing a capital case without the full council.
So I adjourned the council so we might renew the inquisition later when more could be there. I commanded the officers to take Jesus down to the dungeon in the lowest level of my house, there to be held behind bars in chains until the evidence was gathered and the full council convened. I didn't know what else to do with Him.
In the morning just before dawn, we reconvened. Most of the council members were present, along with the elders of the people, both the chief priests and the scribes. And there were some witnesses, those who claimed to have heard Jesus make blasphemous statements. But the witnesses could not agree. There weren't two stories that matched in the whole lot. If we could not get some real evidence, we would have to dismiss the case.
Finally, one member of the Sanhedrin asked Him directly, "If you are the Christ, tell us."
That was something. Maybe the prisoner would supply His own evidence. But His response was not as direct. He said, "If I tell you, you will not believe Me." Then He said something about the Son of Man being seated at the right hand of the power of God. That enraged the council. One of them asked, "So you are the Son of God." To this, His reply was direct: "I am."
The room erupted. Voices shouted, "Blasphemer! Traitor! Pagan!" The Sanhedrin was in a frenzy. But He stood silent.
Of course it was all wrong. How did we expect to get away with this? This was no trial. In the first place, our law does not permit a trial to be held at night, and yet we had been up all night long. And then we had the man before us only because of a blood-money bribe paid to one of His followers. Plus, we had asked the defendant to incriminate Himself. That was excluded from our law as well. And there I was, about to pronounce a capital sentence, even though our law does not permit a sentence to be pronounced until the day after a conviction. What were we thinking?
It was the kind of thing you hope nobody ever hears about. I could feel my father's eyes upon me. It crossed my mind that I had an opportunity to step out of his shadow, to rise to a higher level of justice and throw out this case. But there was Annas. His will beat on me like a hot summer sun. I really had no choice but to follow his wishes and please the chief priest. I knew what I ought to do, but I also knew what I had to do.
I am one of the twelve voices of Easter. Mine is the voice of condemnation. It was my voice that proclaimed the innocent Nazarene guilty of blasphemy. What else could I do? Don't you understand the power of our family? Or don't you understand the significance of the office of high priest? I am not a puppet. I am a dutiful son. In that room that morning, a simple man submitted himself to the will of his father. That's all.
Written by Dr. Woodrow Kroll and Keith Ghormley
www.backtothebible.org
Copyright �1996-2001 The Good News Broadcasting Association, Inc.
All rights reserved.
March 30, 2001
The Twelve Voices Of Easter
Pilate - Voice of Evasion
Matthew 27: 11-26
This is not the life I hoped for. I am a Roman citizen; my family is wealthy. Our name is held in honor and respect. For all of my adult life I have carefully made my way among the powerful elite of Rome. I positioned myself to receive a prestigious appointment from Caesar. My glory would be to do his bidding, to be part of the greatest empire the world would ever know. Kings and kingdoms pass away, but Rome endures. The glory of my name--to serve Caesar.
But the emperor sent me here, to Judea. What glory or prestige can there be in governing this mad race? The Jews are subject to Roman power, but they are not of the Roman mind. In Rome, we cultivate common sense, peace and ordered prosperity. But these people--they are impossible. They are unreasonable, rebellious, restless, fanatics. There is nothing to love or admire among them. Nothing noble, no honor. Rome does not govern here, she baby-sits.
They have incomprehensible religious convictions. They stubbornly hold antique traditions that no one can explain sensibly, and they automatically hate me. Not that it worries me. If I were loved by this mad race, that would worry me. They have no notion of Rome and her empire.
They must be taught, but they will not learn. I have done things for the very purpose of angering them. I took their temple treasure to pay for an aqueduct I was building. Another time I brought the Roman standard into Jerusalem to their temple. All the golden shields inscribed with the images and names of our gods. How they screamed about defilement and desecration. They make my service here miserable. I make their subjection to Rome miserable.
It was springtime, and I breathed deeply the sea air wafting in from the Mediterranean to my palace in Caesarea. But the spring is always spoiled by the Passover festival. I hoped the Jews would cause me no problems during their week of celebration. Perhaps this spring would be different from the others. That's what I hoped.
I journeyed to Jerusalem so I would be at hand in case of trouble. You see, their feast commemorates some deliverance in their ancient history, and their nation still hatches the occasional desert deliverer who would overcome the empire of Rome. Prudence requires a watchful eye at seasons when national spirit runs high.
I was awakened early in the morning, just after sunrise, by the noise of their council, the Sanhedrin, the chief priests and elders, and an angry crowd at my gate. I recognized the mob spirit, dangerous and difficult to turn aside. They would be trying to lynch someone. I would have to play for time and let their passion cool before we could settle the business.
The gate was opened and they burst into my courtyard. I walked slowly to my place. The moment needed calm. It was easy to spot their victim. He stood out, their target, the object of their concentrated fury. He was bound. I asked their leader what they wanted. He said this man was misleading the Jewish people, telling them not to pay taxes to Caesar and claiming to be their Messiah.
How ironic to hear these Jews, who so hated paying taxes to Rome, charging one of their own with speaking against Roman taxes. Surely their real grievance lay elsewhere. Well, he might be trying to raise some money for his own treasury if he thought himself to be their Messiah King. I asked Him directly. "Are you really the King of the Jews?" I wanted everyone to hear the sarcasm in my voice. It was a ridiculous charge; this Jesus of Nazareth, King of the Jews.
The Sanhedrin and the chief priests were blind to their folly. I could tell this man had committed no serious crime and I told the Jewish leaders so. No, they insisted, He causes unrest everywhere, from Galilee to Jerusalem.
"Is He a Galilean?" I asked. I saw an opportunity to divert them. Galilee was under the jurisdiction of Herod Antipas, who just happened to be visiting Jerusalem. Herod was as close as they would ever come to having a king of the Jews. He was incompetent, but he was ethnic aristocracy of a sort, and Rome uses his type when possible.
I sent this angry band to Herod. And I sent along an assistant to observe, just so I would know. I was glad to be rid of my problem while creating one for dear Antipas.
But before long they returned. It seems that Herod, drawing from his deep wisdom and exercising his keen political mind, had mocked Jesus and taunted Him, asking Him to perform miracles. When the prisoner would not perform, Herod wearied of his sport. So he dressed Jesus in a gorgeous robe and sent Him back to my judgment hall.
I must say the robe looked better on Jesus than it ever did on Herod. King of the Jews, indeed. Again, the chief priests and rulers of the people demanded a judgment. Their hatred for this man had not cooled.
Again, I did what I could to put them off. I examined the prisoner again. You know, it is not easy, this business of judgment. The law is not always adequate for the case. It is no fun dealing with someone like Jesus at the judgment seat. I was too conscious of my own failures. What is it they say? "An innocent prisoner convicts a guilty judge." Well, I suppose it won't be the last time.
To complicate matters, my wife interrupted. She called me aside urgently. She frightened me. She looked like the walking dead. She said she had dreamed about this man and told me to have nothing to do with Him. She was terrified. I confess, it unnerved me. But one cannot run an empire on dreams and visions.
I could put it off no longer. I told them I found no fault in the prisoner. "He is no threat to Rome." Oh, it's not just the taxes, they said. Jesus had transgressed some provisions of their religious law. Fine, I said. Try Him in your council. Don't bring Jewish religious law into a Roman court. They were furious. They said their law required death.
I was running out of diversions. Herod would not take the case. Their council would not take the case. I had raised my voice twice in evasion, but some things just will not go away.
I did not think they really would insist on crucifixion. Rome crucifies Jews to make sure everyone understands who rules the world. Jews would not crucify a Jew. Every cross reminded them of a king they did not want and could never defeat. I just needed to give them a way out. I felt sure they would back down. So I proposed a compromise.
I had followed the custom of releasing a prisoner to them each year at this time. I did so to demonstrate Roman kindness and to generate good will. I thought perhaps I could release Jesus to them as that prisoner.
The chief priests would have none of it. The crowd cried for Barabbas, a thoroughly nasty sort, to be released instead of Jesus. I couldn't believe my ears. How they must have hated this Nazarene. I could not escape. I would have to release Barabbas. And still I had to deal with Jesus.
My next thought was to have Jesus scourged. Perhaps some blood would satisfy them. The soldiers of Rome use a whip of several thongs with pieces of lead or brass or sharp bits of bone in the ends. They laid His back bare. In short order the flesh hung from His back in strips, deep veins and arteries exposed. I brought Jesus to the mob. Surely His blood would satisfy their thirst.
But again I was wrong. They screamed for His death. A third time I told them He was innocent. But the crowd began to yell, "Crucify, crucify, crucify Him!" They would be satisfied with nothing less than His execution. There was no room for evasion.
I finally realized that the only way to be done with the matter was to release Jesus to the crowd. I called for my basin and washed my hands of His guilt or innocence for all to see. Then I turned Him over to the mob. He was crucified.
Nothing I tried would make it go away. The problem of Jesus always came back to me. It is not a thing to be proud of. Not the way I hoped my service to Caesar would go. But I do not see what I could have done differently. Just bad luck, I guess. I console myself with the thought that few will ever know of this matter; a minor affair of a mad race in a backwater province. My name, when remembered, will be remembered with the glory and honor of Caesar, ruler of all the earth, and Rome, the kingdom that will endure. My voice, a voice of evasion, will grow silent, but my name will be remembered in honor, and not because of some unfortunate man who suffered under Pontius Pilate.
Written by Dr. Woodrow Kroll and Keith Ghormley
www.backtothebible.org
Copyright �1996-2001 The Good News Broadcasting Association, Inc.
All rights reserved.
March 31, 2001
The Twelve Voices Of Easter
The Mob - Voices of Hatred
Matthew 27:15-26
Jerusalem is our capital, the major city in our land. It teems with people at any time of the year, but especially at festival time. Jews from everywhere converge on Jerusalem to observe the appointed feasts. Our city is filled with crowds. And it doesn't take much to turn a crowd into a mob. A throng is a crowd in love. A mob is a crowd in hate. I've been in a mob or two. I was there when the mob raised its voice in hate.
The city was packed with Jews here to celebrate the Passover. I was in the street late on the night of the feast when I saw a group of the priests and members of the Sanhedrin making their way towards the Roman fortress of Antonio. They went past us in a cold rush. A number of people followed along, curious and excited. Something big was up.
I fell in step and from snatches of conversation, I soon learned there was to be an arrest, and a trial. Someone was going to die.
We stopped at the gate and waited while the priests went into the fortress. Some of the temple police were there. Torches and clubs appeared and were passed through the crowd. A crowd draws a crowd, you know, and soon there were scores of us, eager, energized, expectant.
The priests banged out through the fortress gate with a contingent of soldiers and led us out of the city to the east. Our torches made little light in the heavy blackness. We were swallowed up in the cool rush of darkness, and stumbling, hurried excitement. We came to a garden and found the one they wanted.
I was disappointed. I thought with the soldiers and the mob, we might be there to surprise some outlaws. I was ready for a fight. But they were after one man who looked completely unremarkable. Evidently He was a rabbi who had been praying there in the garden with His disciples.
He came to us with a greeting of peace. The man next to me pointed and said that was Jesus the Nazarene. I recognized the name. He had caused some kind of trouble in the temple and the religious leaders were determined to silence Him.
Jesus was bound and dragged from the garden back into the city to the palace of the high priest. Several of us got into the courtyard at Caiaphas' house. We grouped around the fires, trading guesses about what was happening to the prisoner inside.
As the night grew old, I found a corner and sat watching the fire. I must have dozed. Suddenly I was awake. Noise and confusion, pushing and shoving. We were on our way. Pressing through the narrow streets, bumped against stone walls, we were heading for the fortress again.
We stopped outside the governor's judgment hall and shouted for Pilate. The council had condemned Jesus for blasphemy. They wanted an execution. We had to make sure the governor would hand down a death sentence. Jesus stood before the governor, beaten and bloodied. But Pilate was being difficult. That ignited our rage.
Pilate challenged us. "I find no fault in this man. What do you want me to do with Him?" The chief priests led the chant, "Crucify Him! Crucify Him!" We picked it up quickly. Perhaps you have never been swept up in a pure hatred. Rage has a mindless strength that no power can resist. I shouted with the others. "Crucify Him! Crucify Him! Kill Him! He deserves to die." All this for a man I did not even know.
Pilate had the Roman soldiers scourge Him. When Pilate stood Him before us and showed us the result, we flew into a blind frenzy. I could see that Pilate was shaken. He was ours.
He delivered Jesus to us to bear His cross out of the city to Golgotha. Crowds lined the streets, mocking and jeering. Every hateful and spiteful emotion anyone had was spent on that man. He bled. He stumbled. He fell. Finally, the Roman centurion commanded a man coming in from the country to bear the cross for Him. All the while, we cursed and railed against this Jesus.
We finally made our way through the gate of the city and out to the place the Romans call Calvary, where common criminals were crucified, raised on a cross barely off the ground and left to die. The Roman soldiers nailed Him in place and uprighted the cross, dropping it into a hole in the ground with a jolt. You could hear the Nazarene groan as the weight of His body pulled against the nails in His hands and feet.
The mob spread across the hillside to watch. Most were men like myself, cursing the one on the cross. He had claimed to be a savior. We taunted Him, calling Him to come down from the cross and save Himself.
But there were women there, too, beating their breasts and lamenting Him. You could tell from the agony in their cries that some were His followers. But our jeers drowned out their voices.
The Jewish religious leaders were there, mocking Him. The Roman soldiers ridiculed Him. We wanted Him to die. We relished His pain and suffering. A strange thing it is, to watch a man die. A fascinating horror. There is no dignity on a cross, hanging there in public view. The mob feeling drained from me, and I was just one man, watching another man die. He was covered with blood and sweat.
The other two whimpered and cursed and pleaded for mercy, but this man was different. He spoke from the cross, but not in anger nor in bitterness. He spoke in compassion to one of the thieves hanging next to Him. He spoke to a woman I guessed to be His mother. There were words to a man with her. There were requests to the soldiers. And as He hung there near death, He spoke toward heaven. I heard Him call on His Father to forgive us, those assembled in the mob. But how could He pray for our forgiveness after what we had done to Him? How could He answer our hatred with love?
Yes, I was in that crowd. Part of that angry mob. We raised our voices in hatred. But the one on the cross answered our hatred with love and forgiveness. I don't understand it. He did not live long enough to remember my voice, but as long as I live, I'll never forget His.
Written by Dr. Woodrow Kroll and Keith Ghormley
www.backtothebible.org
Copyright �1996-2001 The Good News Broadcasting Association, Inc.
All rights reserved.