Monthly Archives: June 2021

discipleship, Finding Answers to Stuff Churches Don't Discuss, Uncategorized

Dealing with Temptation

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We’re often tempted to do or say unhealthy things. The temptation alone isn’t an issue. However, losing the battle in our mind by sinning or at least intending to sin (rebel against God’s ways) IS! Here’s what Jesus’ half-brother James had to say about this:

But each one is tempted when he is carried away and enticed by his own lust. Then when lust has conceived, it gives birth to sin; and when sin is accomplished, it brings forth death. —James 1:14-15.

So, we must learn to squash temptations before they become intentions and sinful actions. But, what is temptation? It’s a strong desire, but still in the mind. So, it isn’t a problem as long as it stays there. By the way: temptation is common.

No temptation has overtaken you but such as is common to man; and God is faithful, who will not allow you to be tempted beyond what you are able, but with the temptation will provide the way of escape also, so that you will be able to endure it. —1Corinthians 10:13.

We have the freedom to do what we ought—choose the right path and not let temptation lead to sin. We who have the Spirit of God can walk by that Spirit to ensure we don’t sin.

But I say, walk by the Spirit, and you will not carry out the desire of the flesh. For the flesh sets its desire against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh; for these are in opposition to one another, so that you may not do the things that you please. —Galatians 5:16-17.

Reading the Bible daily and praying and meditating all the while can help us imitate Christ as we walk in His ways and away from temptations to do bad things.

Let us behave properly as in the day, not in carousing and drunkenness, not in sexual promiscuity and sensuality, not in strife and jealousy. But put on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make no provision for the flesh in regard to its lusts. —Romans 13:13-14.

And, we should avoid temptations we can’t control. For instance, anyone with a weakness to gamble should stay away from places that host gaming. Have a weakness for alcohol? Stay away from friends who drink and places that sell or serve alcohol. Tempted by sexual misconduct? Stay away from media that show nudity and sex.

Finally, pray, pray, pray!

Keep watching and praying that you may not enter into temptation; the spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak. —Matthew 26:41.

Next week, we’ll look at the concept of judgment by Christians.

Blessings and peace,

Ron Braley

discipleship, Finding Answers to Stuff Churches Don't Discuss, Uncategorized

The Ghost Pepper That Wasn’t!

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Knowing that I like hot foods and peppers, my son challenged me one day: “Dad – I’m going to send you a scorching hot ghost pepper my friend grew in his garden. Take a video of you eating it and send it to me!” Not always the ‘sharpest knife in the drawer,’ nor one to back down from a challenge quickly, I replied, “Sure, son – bring it on!”

The day of the digestive inferno to be recorded for posterity finally came. Gingerly unwrapping the package and removing the potent fellow from its baggy with plastic-covered hands, I steeled myself for pain. Then, just when the little bugger was about to fly down the hatch, I thought, “Hey! What if I cut a little piece off the end first and taste it to see just how hot this thing is?” Emboldened by the epiphany, I chopped off an ever-so-slightly visible end and stuck it in my mouth, again, anticipating pain.

And then . . . nothing. The thing was a dud. But my son didn’t know that! So, I turned on the recorder and filmed myself bravely munching and swallowing the supposed death-pepper. My son and his friend were astonished, and I was once again the hero of the day—that is until I finally manned up and told them the truth, that the pepper was a fraud. A fake. A phony. A faux pepper. A decidedly dead dud of a dangling wanna-be. The experience did make me wonder, though, how this could happen.

As it turns out, cool peppers may be caused by a “combination of improper soil and site situations, variety, or even poor cultivation practices” (https://www.gardeningknowhow.com/edible/vegetables/pepper/chili-peppers-not-hot.htm). In other words, my son’s friend didn’t know what he was doing (lucky for me!). Believe it or not, there’s a good lesson here for those of us who desire to be disciples of Jesus and repeat the process in others.

Jesus taught us that good soil is critical for accepting the gospel of God’s Kingdom and growing in faith and spirit (Matthew 13:1-9 & 18-23). And without the root of the Holy Spirit, there can be no fruit (Matthew 13:20-21; Galatians 5:16-26). A fruitless, actionless faith will bring spiritual death (James 2:14-26).

So, what’s my point? The dud-of-a-ghost pepper was fruitless and impotent because it had a bad start and improper care and feeding. So likewise, we can be fruitless self-proclaimed Christians headed for spiritual death without the good soil of God’s Kingdom brought by word and deed, the Spirit of God to keep us grounded, and discipleship to aid in our growth. Next week, we’ll check out how to effectively deal with temptation before it becomes rebellion or death.

Blessings and peace,

Ron Braley

discipleship, Finding Answers to Stuff Churches Don't Discuss, Finding the End of the World, Uncategorized

John the Revelator – a Timeline

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John, the son of Zebedee, was a disciple who humbly proclaimed Jesus’ love for him (John 13:23; 19:26; 20:2; 21:7 & 20). He was an obedient apostle and a caring surrogate son to Mary, Jesus’ mother. He penned his own gospel account, several letters to the early Church, and unveiled things to come. But when and where did he do all this??

First, John lived during Jesus’ time. Biblical scholars agree that Jesus was born in approximately 4 BCE. So, it stands to reason that John would’ve been born near this time, although we don’t know precisely when. Second, Jesus was 29 years old (about 30 (Luke 3:23)) when He called John to discipleship. John partnered with Jesus during his one-year ministry from just before Passover until the following Passover (see my article “Why so Long??” from August 12, 2020).

He then became an apostle when Jesus sent him and the other disciples to make more disciples (Matthew 28:18-20). Let’s assume this was about 26-27 AD. It would also be the year when Jesus charged John with caring for Mary (John 19:26-27), was crucified, and then raised by the Father.

Apostle John then went beyond Jerusalem to spread the good news of God’s Kingdom. He started the church in Ephesus (in modern-day Western Turkey) and likely started, or was instrumental in creating, others he would later oversee: Smyrna, Pergamum, Thyatira, Sardis, Philadelphia, and Laodicea. John and Mary settled in Ephesus until he was exiled to the Island of Patmos, where he continued to oversee the other churches and received his revelation from Jesus.

Emperor Domitian, who hated Christianity, exiled John to Patmos (a prison colony) in 94 AD, where he stayed for two years until freed by Emperor Nerva in 96 AD. Early Church Father Eusebius, who defers to Irenaeus, confirms this. John then returned to Ephesus, where he continued to care for Mary until her passing. John lived to be just over 100 years old. We know much about his life because of Prochorus, one of the 70 disciples Jesus sent out who later became John’s scribe.

So, what about his gospel account and three letters to the early Church? He wrote the gospel between 90 – 100 AD in Ephesus before being exiled to Patmos or immediately afterward. The same holds for his three epistles, although he most likely wrote them after returning from exile. What follows is an abbreviated and approximate timeline:

  • 4 BC: John’s birth
  • 26 AD: Called to discipleship
  • 27 AD: Charged with caring for Mary; becomes an apostle
  • 94 AD: Exiled to Patmos
  • 94-96 AD: Receives Jesus’ revelation
  • 96 AD: Freed; Returns to Ephesus
  • 90 – 100 AD: Writes, from Ephesus, his gospel and three letters to the Church

What about next week? I’ll tell you the woeful tale of “the Ghost Pepper that wasn’t!”

Blessings and peace,

Ron Braley

discipleship, Finding Answers to Stuff Churches Don't Discuss, Uncategorized

Just Who Did Jesus Tick off, Anyway??

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Politics and religion often polarize us. Recently, I’ve heard some people say Jesus was very political and enraged his culture. I disagree. Had He done that, He would’ve kept the unsaved—the ‘unholy’—from the Kingdom of God just as the Pharisees had. A holy war against the unreligious would’ve placed the Kingdom so far out of reach and unattractive (as is often the case today) that it would’ve been unattainable to those who needed to enter. But, in reality, the political background of the Pharisees just didn’t seem to matter to Jesus (nothing in the Bible suggests that it did). The only thing that He ‘raged’ against was the religious nature of some of the Pharisees—a force that kept people from the Kingdom of God. Let’s look at a few examples.

Jesus explained that the Pharisees in their religiosity kept people from His Father’s Kingdom:  But woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites, because you shut off the kingdom of heaven from people … (Matthew 23:13). Considering that Jesus came to introduce the Kingdom to humankind, this makes sense.

Jesus also overturned the money changers’ tables during Passover at the beginning and end of His ministry (John 2:13-22 & Mark 11:15-19). Why? They had commercialized the things of God—not unlike what we often see today in our consumeristic Christianity.

He also verbally attacked Pharisaical attitudes and behaviors in Matthew chapter 23 by pointing out their hypocritical nature (1-4). He calls them “blind guides” (23:16) and a “Brood of vipers” (23:33). Finally, He asks them, “How will you escape being condemned to hell?” (23:33). As I mentioned earlier, He challenged the forces that restricted access to His Father’s Kingdom while tending to teach the non-religious sinners patiently. Perhaps the religious Pharisees were unteachable whereas the nonreligious were.

Just to be clear: we must stand firm when confronting the immoralities of the day. But we must do it gently and lovingly as a witness to the unbelieving world. So, what’s my point, then? Don’t use Jesus as a fall guy for violent or subversive rhetoric, speech, or behavior. Instead, have compassion on the lost, don’t wage holy wars against the unholy, and focus on reforming unhealthy religious behavior starting with ourselves. Only then will we be godly models others will trust and listen to and mimic as we shine the light of Christ and shape cultures.

Next week, I’ll share with you the life and times of John Bar Zebedee – John ‘the Revelator,’ who was the only apostle not to be martyred as he honored Christ’s charge to care for Mary, fostered the church in Ephesus, and warned of things to come.

Blessings and peace,

Ron Braley

discipleship, Finding Answers to Stuff Churches Don't Discuss, Uncategorized

Love Yourself, Love Your Neighbor

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Lately, I’ve been blabbing about loving yourself. So this week, we’ll go back to the Why and How?? so that you can love your ‘neighbor’ as you love yourself.

As we’ve learned, loving yourself positions you to love others. With healthy relationships (especially with God), finances, mind, emotions, and spirit, you’re armed to help others do the same. But, how does that look? We’ll learn that our love falls into similar categories as the spiritual formation I recently addressed. So, let’s frame my input like that.

Relationships. Our connections are vital! The Bible says much about interacting with others in a godly way to maintain and deepen those connections used to present God’s Kingdom to others. Here are several biblical tips for keeping those connections alive:

  • … be quick to hear, slow to speak and slow to anger —James 1:19.
  • BE ANGRY, AND yet DO NOT SIN; do not let the sun go down on your anger —Ephesians 4:26.
  • … but whoever slaps you on your right cheek, turn the other to him also. If anyone wants to sue you and take your shirt, let him have your coat also. Whoever forces you to go one mile, go with him two. Give to him who asks of you, and do not turn away from him who wants to borrow from you. —Matthew 5:39-42.

Finances. You cannot help others financially without money! But, once you get your finances under control, you may have resources with which to help clothe, feed, or house others—things on which Jesus said He’ll judge us (Matthew 25:31-46).

Physical health. Jesus told us to ‘go.’ The ‘going’ is necessary to establish new relationships with which to be and make disciples (Matthew 28:18-20). Our healthy relationships also allow us to ‘go’ and help others.

Emotional and mental health. This area affects relationships. When we’re healthy emotionally and mentally, we’ll be positioned to mentor others, listen to them in their pain, aid in healing, etc.

Spiritual. Once healthy, we can be godly models of spiritual practices, including Bible study, prayer, accountability, and discipleship. That’s how others can grow spiritually; spiritual growth positively affects all others!

In summary, loving your neighbor can happen when we love ourselves. Being healthy relationally, spiritually, financially, etc., sets us up to aid others by being godly models, helping physically, ‘being there’ emotionally, and assisting in feeding, housing, and clothing the less fortunate. Here’s the good news: you can still love others even while you’re becoming healthy. Just do what you can, give to others as you can.

Next week’s topic will be Just Who Did Jesus Tick off, Anyway?? To support our passivity, we sometimes make Jesus passive. To support our angry, polarizing, and political rhetoric, we often make Jesus political. You’ll discover that the answer is somewhere in between, but always in God’s framework and mission, not ours.

Questions or comments? Email publisher@taylorpress.net.

Blessings and peace,

Pastor Ron Braley, Northview Christian Church