BOW THE KNEE

Easter Sunday is such an exciting time!  It is a chance to celebrate the resurrection of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ!  But, to really begin thinking about the resurrection, we have to look back in Scripture just a bit.  Looking at Matthew 27:29-31, I noticed a phrase that hasn't really stuck out to me before.  It says that they bowed the knee before Him and mocked Him.  They bowed the knee...not in praise...not in respect...not as King...but to mock Him.  How humiliating and disgraceful!
Isaiah 53 reminds us that Jesus was sacrificed for us - lost, confused, and even disrespectful sheep - US!
They may have bowed the knee then in disgrace - but the 3rd Day would come!!
Matthew 28:1-9 tells us of how the women came to the tomb looking Him.  When they found that He had arisen, they came to Him and held Him by the feet and worshiped Him!  They bowed the knee is adoration.
They bowed the knee is respect.  They bowed the knee in worship.  They bowed the knee to THE KING! 
How about us?  Do we bow the knee?  Do we bow the knee in adoration? In respect? In faith? In worship??
Do we bow the knee to the Savior or do we instead try to live our life our way?
Do we bow the knee to the Savior or do we try to fight our own battles?
Do we bow the knee to the Savior or do we allow this world to consume our lives?
What an awesome privilege to bow the knee to the Lord and to know that He hears us!  Jesus made a way for us to have a relationship!  How can we not bow the knee to the One who deserves all praise and worship?! 

Jesus - not what they thought?

Last Sunday was Palm Sunday.  We looked at John 12:12-27 and read how the people shouted "Hosanna".  In the Scripture, we can also see that they don't seem to know who Jesus really was.  They know who they want Him to be...but that isn't who He was or what He was sent for - at least not in the terms they wanted.  They wanted a military leader.  He was and is a true Savior.  They wanted freedom from oppression.  He brought freedom from sin.  Jesus wasn't what they expected nor was He what they thought they wanted.  We can say they were crazy - but we could easily fall into the same trap...
We think He should give us what we want, when we want it...
We think He should bless us according to the world's standards of "blessings"
We think he should give us an easier life
We think He should answer our prayers the way we want...
BUT, the Lord's standards and ours are NOT the same.  He is so much more than we could imagine!
He is the Alpha and the Omega - the Beginnning and the End - Uncomparable, Unfathomable, and flat out AMAZING! But, He doesn't work according to the world's standards
Jesus was so much more than the people of Israel could have ever imagined.  He is so much more than WE could ever imagine!!  He died on the cross for you and for me.  He loves us with an amazing love that we won't ever fully comprehend.  He has given us an opportunity at a relationship.
What do we do?  The rest of that scripture says we:
Give up all to follow
Work for rewards eternal...not on earth
Serve Him and Him only
Does He deserve praise?  He deserves a thousand "Hosanna In the Highest" and so much more!
Aren't you glad that He is God and we are not?!

You are here

Ever go to a new mall in a big city and have to read the kiosk to find out where the stores are located?  When you do, you will notice a red dot that tells you that "You Are Here".  This lets you know where you are at so that you can find out where you are going. 
Life is often like that.  We have to find out where we are so that we know where we should be heading.  We have to have a relationship with Jesus Christ to start on any real journey, otherwise we are wandering aimlessly in life.  Having a relationship with Jesus is the beginning of our journey - the big red dot!  So, if you have a relationship with Jesus, where are you heading?  Too many Christians get stuck on the red dot and don't know which direction to go - so they don't do anything at all!!!  We get stuck and instead of making a move, we just wait...and wait...and wait.  All the time, Jesus has given us instructions on what we should be doing.  The instructions aren't always easy and sometimes it is just easier to do nothing.  BUT - we are called to do several things.  Read about those in these verses:
Matthew 9:36-38
Matthew 28:18-20
John 13:34-35
Acts 1:8
1 John 3:16-18
All of these (and more) tell you what you should be doing for the Lord.  But how?  Here are a couple of ways to get started on your journey and avoid getting "stuck" doing nothing...
1 - Pray Fervently - that means pray with your everything.  Give God your all.  Let Him know your thoughts, your fears, your questions.  Give Him it all.  He hears your prayers and will lead and guide you.
2 - Follow His commands and His example to love, serve, and give.  He didn't sit around doing nothing and we shouldn't either.  We are to be people of action - of service - following Jesus
3 - Do something.  Don't get so distracted by the world and by all that is out there to do nothing.  It can paralyze us if we think of how many people need help...how many people need Jesus...We have to get out and do what we are called to do from the Lord.

We are called to be the feet and hands of Jesus...not to sit around on ours...
You are here...where are you going???

Daily Decisions

In the Old Testament, Joshua declared, "Choose for yourselves this day whom you will serve....But as for me and my house, we will serve the Lord." (Joshua 24:15).  What do you declare?  Are you going to serve the Lord??  If so, it is something you do every single day.  You serve Him with your life.  You don't serve Him by simply sitting in a pew on Sunday and calling it good.  You don't simply serve Him by praying when you need Him for something.  You serve Him with the choices that you make daily.  The things that you do daily make a difference.  There are consequences to our actions.  We must get up in the mornings and choose to serve the Lord with everything.  We can serve Him at work...We can serve Him at home...We can serve Him at the grocery store...We can serve Him at the doctor's office...We can serve Him wherever we find ourselves every single moment of our lives.  He gave up His life for us - are you willing to surrender your day to Him?

Excuses Excuses

How many excuses can we come up with for not following and serving the Lord??  Criswell Freeman said, "If you are looking for an excuse, you probably won't have much trouble finding it."  Vance Hauvner said, "An excuse is only the skin of a reason stuffed with a lie."  We can come up with many, many excuses for not living the Christian life.  Here are some of the most popular and what the Bible says about those.  You will have to open your Bibles on this one!!

1 – I am a good person…I try… (Matthew 16:24-26)

2 – I come to church on Sunday…isn’t that enough? (Mat 22:37-39)

3 – I just can’t do everything (Matthew 6:33)

4 – This isn’t my thing (Romans 12:6-8)

5 – I don’t have enough time (1 John 2:15)

6 – No one else is doing all this (Matthew 7:13-14)

7 – I am scared (Isaiah 41:10)

8 – This is too hard (James 1:2-4)

9 – Jesus just doesn’t understand all I have to do (Heb 4:15-16)

10- I will do it if I have to (2 Corinthians 9:6-7)

11- I just can’t work with her or him (1 Peter 3:8)

12- I’m just not strong enough (2 Corinthians 12:9)

Maybe, instead of excuses, we just say "YES" to His will and His way...
What's your excuse and have you read what the Word has for your excuse??