Author: Brian Burdett

“Remove far from me falsehood and lying;
give me neither poverty nor riches;
feed me with the food that is needful for me,
lest I be full and deny you
and say, “Who is the Lord?”
or lest I be poor and steal
and profane the name of my God.”
– Proverbs 30:8-9

There is spiritual danger at every point of the financial spectrum but particularly at each end. Wisdom lies in recognizing the dangers of your situation and preferring the Lord place you somewhere in the middle where you know you must depend on Him but aren’t tempted to “help Him out” in ungodly ways.

In poverty, recognize the temptation to cut moral, ethical, and legal corners in order to survive. The difficulty of the situation and the needs of those you love can be a powerful temptation to rely not just on God’s provision but your own resourcefulness in a way that doesn’t please God. On the other hand, there’s an even greater danger when you’re blessed with so much financially that you forget you need God. When things are good, we easily begin to imagine that we’re the ones who provide for ourselves and our families, that our talents and accomplishments are such that we did it all ourselves. We begin to imagine that we have total control over our lives and that God is no longer necessary. Our faith wanes and we’re distracted by an abundance of stuff. Material comfort has proven to be one of the most serious spiritual hazards facing people today!

The wisdom of this proverb lies in trusting God and asking Him to keep you from either extreme for your own spiritual well-being. Take that prayer seriously. However, that doesn’t mean you’re doomed if you’re very rich or very poor. It simply means that you must be wise to the spiritual hazards of your present situation. Remember to depend on God for your provision rather than yourself. Be faithful in honest work and thank God for the ability to work. Recognize how much of your situation is a result of God’s providence and give thanks for that, whatever that situation may be. Don’t let poverty or riches come between you and storing up immeasurable eternal treasure in heaven as you are faithful in loving and serving God throughout your life. #FollowJesus

“But that the dead are raised, even Moses showed, in the passage about the bush, where he calls the Lord the God of Abraham and the God of Isaac and the God of Jacob. Now he is not God of the dead, but of the living, for all live to him.” – Luke 20:37-38

The question isn’t whether you will rise from death. Every person has an eternal soul and Jesus makes clear the dead are raised. The real question is, what happens when you rise and face the judgement of God in His perfect holiness? Will you be welcomed into God’s presence forever (Heaven) or will you be separated from Him forever and experience the consequences of that (Hell)?

The answer isn’t based on whether you’ve done more good things than bad. God doesn’t judge on a curve! God is perfect, heaven is perfect, and admission to a place of perfection and the presence of perfection requires perfection. The answer to the question is determined by whether you’re perfect or not. Have you only done good and never done evil? Have you always thought, said, and done the right thing? Have you never failed to say or do the right thing? Has there never been a moment of selfishness, cruelty, or injustice toward others in your life? Has there never been a moment of rebellion against God’s will and plan for your life?

Of course not! You aren’t perfect. Nobody walking the earth is perfect. Judged on your own merits, you face the eternal separation from God’s holiness, light, and love that your sin deserves. But you don’t need to despair! Jesus the Son of God WAS perfect and He died on a cross to pay for your sins and rose from the dead to lead you into God’s presence. If you trust in Him as Lord, then His perfection will be credited to you.

God IS the God of the living and He doesn’t want to cast anyone out of His presence. He made you to be in relationship with Him, but that relationship is only possible if you have embraced Jesus and been declared perfect as a gift of grace made possible by His perfect life and sacrificial death. When you rise from death, how will God judge you? Are you perfect because you have a perfect Savior? #FollowJesus

“And said to him, ‘Tell us by what authority you do these things, or who it is that gave you this authority.’” – Luke 20:2

Many people questioned the authority of Jesus 2000 years ago. Many still do today. Back then, they asked who was Jesus to offend the status quo, criticize the religious leaders, and call people to a higher holiness of heart and mind? Who was He to gather followers and require them to obey Him? Today, people question who is Jesus to command how we live our life, express our sexual desires, or approach God?

The authority of Jesus has been questioned for two thousand years and that will continue until the glorious day when He returns. Nonetheless, let’s be clear…. For everyone who is sincerely asking that question, Jesus repeatedly demonstrated His absolute authority as the eternal Son of God. How? By:

• His perfect, sinless life that could not be criticized or condemned for indulging any sin of the flesh
• His unparalleled, world-changing teaching that was perfectly consistent with everything the Old Testament taught yet was also profoundly fresh and heart-penetrating
• His increasingly unprecedented miracles that demonstrated and communicated that He possessed the power of God over sickness, disability, blindness, deafness, death, the elements of nature, weather, and supernatural forces
• His perfect sacrifice on the cross to atone for our sins and His physical resurrection from the dead that was witnessed by hundreds
• His visible ascension into heaven and ongoing rule and reign over the universe
• Jesus has ALL authority in heaven and on earth. One day, every knee will bow and recognize this whether they like it or not. Before that day, each person who hears the Gospel has the opportunity to voluntarily make that choice and be saved from their sins. Have you embraced the authority of Jesus as your Lord? If not, what holds you back? #FollowJesus

“Also that everyone should eat and drink and take pleasure in all his toil—this is God’s gift to man.” – Ecclesiastes 3:13

It’s easy to be unsatisfied all the time. Many of us have a natural bent toward unhappiness with the present. We find fault with today and imagine a better tomorrow. Advertising and social media radically increase this natural dissatisfaction because they’re designed to make us always want more, new, and different. They promise that we’ll be happier, more popular, and better looking if we just keep striving, pursuing, buying, and trying more and different things. That isn’t the road to satisfaction! Generally speaking, that’s the road to greater dissatisfaction.

The writer of Ecclesiastes tried all sorts of things. He realized there’s no lasting satisfaction in material possessions, fleshly passions, or monuments to his own glory. With the benefit of hindsight, he urges us to just keep life simple. Find vocational work, Kingdom work, and hobbies you enjoy. Then do them. Enjoy the simple pleasures of meals with people you care about. Rest in the knowledge of God and His presence with you. Be intentional about focusing on the present and enjoy the moments God blesses you with every day. Recognize that what you have now and the ability to enjoy that is a gift from God.

That isn’t to say you shouldn’t dream about the future or work to improve yourself. That’s good and also a blessing from God. But not when your mind is so completely focused on the imagined joy of the next job, next degree, next vacation, next house, next car, or next phase of your life that you miss the everyday blessings before you. So look around at your life. What should you be thankful for today? What should you enjoy more about what you already have? How can you be more mindful about the moments you’re passing through now? Celebrate God’s blessings in this moment.

“He also told this parable to some who trusted in themselves that they were righteous, and treated others with contempt:” – Luke 18:9

Jesus has very low regard for people who think highly of themselves! He tells the parable of the Pharisee and the Tax Collector to contrast two people whom His culture put at opposite ends of the spectrum of holiness. Pharisees were widely viewed as the best, most religious, and most genuinely holy people of the day. It was assumed that if anyone could be righteous, they were. Tax collectors, on the other hand, were viewed as thieves, swindlers, and collaborators with Israel’s enemies.

Jesus turns these stereotypes on their head to make a powerful point about how we view ourselves. Because the tax collector knew he was a sinner in desperate need of God’s forgiveness, Jesus commends Him as truly forgiven by God. On the other hand, because the Pharisee could only tell God how good he already was, there was nothing God could do to help him spiritually.

As followers of Jesus, our faith always begins with the humble recognition that we can’t save ourselves but need a Savior. We happily embrace the truth that we aren’t saved by our good works but by God’s grace alone. However, it’s very easy, as we mature in our faith and the sins of our past start to fade in our memory, to become like the Pharisee. It’s easy to become proud of the time we spend each day in prayer and Bible study and our faithfulness in attending church. We easily become too pleased with our contributions of time and treasure to God’s Kingdom. Gradually, we can begin to forget our desperate need for a Savior because we think we’ve got it all figured out.

Regularly do a heart check to make sure your heart remains tender and humble, like the tax collector’s. Don’t let contempt work its way into your heart. Make sure you aren’t treating “sinners” with disdain or loathing merely because you’ve been saved by Jesus. Don’t make the mistake of thinking you’re a better sort of person than anyone else. Don’t forget that it’s only by God’s grace and power that the spiritual growth and transformation you’ve been blessed by has taken place. Don’t let self-righteousness replace the blood-bought righteousness that’s truly yours in Jesus Christ. #FollowJesus