January 10, 2013
SCRIPTURE: Matthew 12:30-32
OBSERVATIONS
To claim to follow Jesus, yet not join Him in His mission to restore God’s kingdom (through words and deeds of loveand mercy), is to work against Jesus. To do nothing is not an option, it is to do something in the wrong way. If we are not working with Jesus, we are working against Him. If we are not resisting injustice, we are causing it. If we are not fighting evil, we are promoting it. I am reminded of the quote by Edmund Burke: “The only thing necessary for the triumph of evil is that good men do nothing.”
But what is blasphemy against the Spirit, what does it mean to speak against the Holy Spirit? If speaking against Jesus (the Son of Man) is not unforgivable, then why is speaking against the Spirit? Is this what the religious leaders were doing when they said that Jesus was casting out demons by Beelzebul? Here is a guess. God is reaching out to all people everywhere, but many people resist or reject Him. God comes through Jesus to get our attention, to deal with our sin and to rescue and restore us, yet many people resist or reject Him. God and Jesus send the Spirit into the world and into our lives, to challenge and convict us, to show us our desperate need. Through inner conviction and outward signs, the Spirit works to help us see and repent and believe… but if we resist and reject the Spirit too, it’s our last chance.
God is doing so much to shake us up and wake us up, but if we refuse… then He will not force us.
What do you notice in this passage?
APPLICATION
I believe the evidence for God is clear for everyone. I believe the message of Jesus is compelling for everyone. I believe that the influence of the Spirit is convicting for everyone. At the end of the ‘age’, if we reject all of these attempts of God to help us, we will miss out on His goodness, and we will have no one to blame but ourselves.
What is especially challenging here is that it is not just unbelievers who are being warned, even believers who claim to be “with Jesus” are against Him. “Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only the one who does the will of my Father who is in heaven. Many will say to me on that day, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name and in your name drive out demons and in your name perform many miracles?’ Then I will tell them plainly, ‘I never knew you. Away from me, you evildoers!’ (Matthew 7:21-23)
How do we know if we are “with” or “against” Jesus? Not by our words but by our actions. If we are not resisting injustice, we are causing it. If we are not fighting evil, we are promoting it. The Spirit of Jesus IS working to produce this fruit in us, if we are not producing it, then we are either resisting the Spirit (the unforgiveable sin?) or showing that we have not truly received it. See Galatians 5:13-25.
What do you sense the Lord saying to you?
PRAYER
Lord, You have not saved me to do nothing, You have saved and called me to join You in Your mission. Make me a gospel activist, a radical servant of goodness and justice and mercy. Make me aware of Your Spirit, and help me to not resist but keep in step with You and Your mission.
Observations:
For or against. For Jesus or against Jesus. There are no other choices.
A kingdom builder – either Christ’s or Satan’s.
Al sins can be forgiven except the sin against the Spirit. And remember the sins that were forgiven – that His Word describes. All can be forgiven but if one rejects the Spirit’s working in the heart, there is no hope, no life – for all who come to Jesus have had their hearts prepared/readied by the by the Spirit.
Application:
They will know we are christians by our love. Loving = knowing = doing. It is not by our words we are recognized but by our actions/deeds. But I must be in tune – being SpiritLead, SpiritDriven. We are not our own but belong and since we belong we are also guided and guided in the Way. SpiritPower. Walking with the Master each day.
Prayer:
Help me in my walk with You this day.
O Master, let me walk with Thee,
In lowly paths of service free;
Tell me Thy secret; help me bear
The strain of toil, the fret of care.
Help me the slow of heart to move
By some clear, winning word of love;
Teach me the wayward feet to stay,
And guide them in the homeward way.
O Master, let me walk with Thee,
Before the taunting Pharisee;
Help me to bear the sting of spite,
The hate of men who hide Thy light.
The sore distrust of souls sincere
Who cannot read Thy judgments clear,
The dullness of the multitude,
Who dimly guess that Thou art good.
Teach me Thy patience; still with Thee
In closer, dearer, company,
In work that keeps faith sweet and strong,
In trust that triumphs over wrong.
In hope that sends a shining ray
Far down the future’s broadening way,
In peace that only Thou canst give,
With Thee, O Master, let me live.