Peace!
Eric

Matthew 5:3-10 (NLT)

3 “God blesses those who are poor and realize their need for him,
      for the Kingdom of Heaven is theirs.
4 God blesses those who mourn,
      for they will be comforted.
5 God blesses those who are humble,
      for they will inherit the whole earth.
6 God blesses those who hunger and thirst for justice,
      for they will be satisfied.
7 God blesses those who are merciful,
      for they will be shown mercy.
8 God blesses those whose hearts are pure,
      for they will see God.
9 God blesses those who work for peace,
      for they will be called the children of God.
10 God blesses those who are persecuted for doing right,
      for the Kingdom of Heaven is theirs.

MY COMMENTARY…

This passage is the opening to Jesus’ Sermon on the Mount.  The statements in each verse are commonly known as The Beatitudes, a list of blessings expressed to his disciples and a massive crowd that assembled. 

Now…we can go through each of these verses, and spend forever just understanding what each one promises and requires.  But two things stuck out to me throughout the entire passage.

One – These verses seem to speak a lot about the importance of our selflessness.  The promises at the end of each statement hinges on our lack, our concern/consideration for others, and our suffering for our belief in God and His values. 

Two – Each verse is such a crucial contrast to the way of thinking that goes with the world.  According to normal thought patterns, the effects from these verses don’t necessarily match the causes.  I’ll inherit a whole kingdom when I realize I’m poor (not when I work for riches).  I’ll get mercy when I show mercy to (not demand mercy from) others.  I’ll make it to the point that I can see God when my heart is pure (not when I work hard to get to that level).

God’s blessing isn’t always dependent on how hard we work…it rests on how well we follow what He says.

NDOM Harrison

 ¹What then shall we say that Abraham, our forefather, discovered in this matter? ²If, in fact, Abraham was justified by works, he had something to boast about—but not before God. ³What does the Scripture say? “Abraham believed God, and it was credited to him as righteousness.”

 ⁴Now when a man works, his wages are not credited to him as a gift, but as an obligation. ⁵However, to the man who does not work but trusts God who justifies the wicked, his faith is credited as righteousness. ⁶David says the same thing when he speaks of the blessedness of the man to whom God credits righteousness apart from works:
 ⁷“Blessed are they
      whose transgressions are forgiven,
      whose sins are covered.
 ⁸Blessed is the man
      whose sin the Lord will never count against him.”

 ⁹Is this blessedness only for the circumcised, or also for the uncircumcised? We have been saying that Abraham’s faith was credited to him as righteousness. ¹⁰Under what circumstances was it credited? Was it after he was circumcised, or before? It was not after, but before! ¹¹And he received the sign of circumcision, a seal of the righteousness that he had by faith while he was still uncircumcised. So then, he is the father of all who believe but have not been circumcised, in order that righteousness might be credited to them. ¹²And he is also the father of the circumcised who not only are circumcised but who also walk in the footsteps of the faith that our father Abraham had before he was circumcised.

 ¹³It was not through law that Abraham and his offspring received the promise that he would be heir of the world, but through the righteousness that comes by faith.

Happy C-Day!!

Eric Borden,
ANQ Nat’l Evangelism Chair

Galatians 5:24 (New Living Translation)
²⁴ Those who belong to Christ Jesus have nailed the passions and desires of their sinful nature to his cross and crucified them there.

MY COMMENTS:
I’ll respond to individual comments later, so make sure you come back to the blog!  This week, we had one verse.  Very simple.  But still very challenging for us to do.

In earlier instructions to the Galatian believers, Paul discusses how he has been crucified with Christ, and now Christ lives in him (Galatians 2:20).  As we believe that Jesus is the Christ, we get that same Crucifixion on our behalf.  Christ died for our sins, paid the debt, and gave us freedom from the death that was waiting for us. 

This verse is a bit different, though.  Here, he tells them/us that a major responsibility of ours is to take all of our needs, wants, and wishes that disagree with God and nail them to the cross to be crucified. 

Think about crucifixion.  Think about the gruesome process that was detailed in the movie The Passion of the Christ (which I still believe is only a fraction of first-hand witnessing).  Think about the beatings, the piercings, the bleeding, the yelling, the cussing, the disrespecting, the spitting, the crying, the crying out to God, the embarassment…ALL of that is in the crucifixion process.  Paul is telling us to allow our sinful desires to endure all of that. 

Think about this question:

“Have I allowed my ________ to stay on the cross until it dies…or do I pull it down before it gives up its spirit?” 
(Fill in the blank: lust, disrespectful attitude, fear, hatred, inappropriate conversation, sex, selfishness, the list can go on…)

Being transparent, I know that I have things in my life that I safety pin to the cross…but I pull down when the pain gets too severe.  Let’s pray for one another that we may all be healed.  Pray that your brothers and sisters commit to leaving our sinful desires on the cross until they die.  The world did it to Jesus; we can do it for Jesus. 

[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iPCbzz5pJzQ]

Happy C-Day!
Eric

Luke 14:7-14

⁷ When Jesus noticed that all who had come to the dinner were trying to sit in the seats of honor near the head of the table, he gave them this advice: ⁸ “When you are invited to a wedding feast, don’t sit in the seat of honor. What if someone who is more distinguished than you has also been invited? ⁹ The host will come and say, ‘Give this person your seat.’ Then you will be embarrassed, and you will have to take whatever seat is left at the foot of the table!

¹⁰ “Instead, take the lowest place at the foot of the table. Then when your host sees you, he will come and say, ‘Friend, we have a better place for you!’ Then you will be honored in front of all the other guests. ¹¹ For those who exalt themselves will be humbled, and those who humble themselves will be exalted.”

¹² Then he turned to his host. “When you put on a luncheon or a banquet,” he said, “don’t invite your friends, brothers, relatives, and rich neighbors. For they will invite you back, and that will be your only reward. ¹³ Instead, invite the poor, the crippled, the lame, and the blind. ¹⁴ Then at the resurrection of the righteous, God will reward you for inviting those who could not repay you.”

My Commentary

In this passage, Jesus is having dinner with one of the Pharisee leaders and a number of additional guests.  Not one to miss an opportunity to open people’s eyes, Jesus decided to impart some wisdom to the folks around the table.  There is a lot of good stuff in this passage, but I got two main points that we can apply to our lives today.

Be humble and let someone else raise you up. 
I thought it was pretty funny to picture these grown men elbowing their way to the “good seat” at the table.  As crazy as it sounds, sometimes we do the same thing.  Sometimes, we break out of Godly character to take advantage of an opportunity that we just can’t let pass us by.  Jesus’ message is pretty clear, and it’s very much the opposite of their actions.  His message is that humility is the key to being properly acknowledged, and not embarrassed (James 4:10). 

Use what you have to make someone else feel like a king/queen, if just for a day.
No matter how much we don’t have, there’s something that we all have in our possession that someone else doesn’t.  What does that mean?  We always have the opportunity to be a life-changing blessing to someone else.  The Message version puts verse 13 like this: “Invite some people who never get invited out…You’ll be—and experience—a blessing.”  Whatever we lose in the sacrifice (money, reputation, etc.), Jesus promises that He’ll ultimately reward it…not just repay it, but reward it. 

NDOM Harrison

¹² Their responsibility is to equip God’s people to do his work and build up the church, the body of Christ. ¹³ This will continue until we all come to such unity in our faith and knowledge of God’s Son that we will be mature in the Lord, measuring up to the full and complete standard of Christ.

¹⁴ Then we will no longer be immature like children. We won’t be tossed and blown about by every wind of new teaching. We will not be influenced when people try to trick us with lies so clever they sound like the truth. ¹⁵ Instead, we will speak the truth in love, growing in every way more and more like Christ, who is the head of his body, the church. ¹⁶ He makes the whole body fit together perfectly. As each part does its own special work, it helps the other parts grow, so that the whole body is healthy and growing and full of love.

NDOM Harrison’s thought:

This popular passage starts right after the five-fold ministry verse. However when I read the passage this time, 3 words really stood out, maturity, faith, and love. These three concepts are really necessary to be considered any type of minister.

Maturity- I find that we go through life sometimes in a stagnant state, never growing wiser or more mature. It’s so easy for us to find ourselves in a spiritual slump. But I have learned that in those times, it is so important to study the Word, and whole-heartedly chase after God. I believe maturity comes in that earnest pursuit after God’s will. If we spent as much time seeking God, as backbiting, we would be so much further along. I believe if we as a body would grow up and grow out of some things we wouldn’t find it so hard to unify. In my recent experiences, I have noticed so many Christians tearing other ministries down, because of a different approach to ministering the same Gospel.

Faith- We have to be faithful and “faithfilled.” On our jobs, at school, and in our communities, we must be the embodiment of faith. Our faith in God should make others believe in Him even more. The challenge to our faith is doubt. Sometimes these two concepts are working at separate ends in our minds. But we are to hold fast to our confidence and faith in God and His Word. Many times we lose faith because we aren’t knowledgeable about what His Word has already said about us. Displaying our faith through our actions is the biggest ministry tool we have, no matter which one of the five-fold ministry gifts you posses. Exercise your faith, use it…or lose it.

And finally…

Love- Just Do IT!!! Show the love of Christ, not through our super judgmental lens, but through the lens of compassion love your neighbor as yourself. It is our greatest and most effective ministry tool.

Happy Fasting!
Eric

2 Peter 1:3-9 (NIV)

³His divine power has given us everything we need for life and godliness through our knowledge of him who called us by his own glory and goodness. ⁴Through these he has given us his very great and precious promises, so that through them you may participate in the divine nature and escape the corruption in the world caused by evil desires.

⁵For this very reason, make every effort to add to your faith goodness; and to goodness, knowledge; ⁶and to knowledge, self-control; and to self-control, perseverance; and to perseverance, godliness; ⁷and to godliness, brotherly kindness; and to brotherly kindness, love. ⁸For if you possess these qualities in increasing measure, they will keep you from being ineffective and unproductive in your knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. ⁹But if anyone does not have them, he is nearsighted and blind, and has forgotten that he has been cleansed from his past sins.

MY COMMENTARY…

In this passage, we see Peter encouraging the believers to know that the power of God and their understanding of Jesus gives them all that they need to live a life that glorifies God.  As much as he’s talking to them…I know he’s also talking to us.

I think this really hits on how critical it is that we continually develop the quality of our character.  Faith, goodness, knowledge, self-control, perseverance, godliness, brotherly kindness, love…these are all things that the world can see or feel from our lives.  But for them to experience those things, we must first have them IN US.

One of the things God has really been showing me lately (as in the past year lol) is the importance of doing great things for God vs. becoming a great man of God.  In the zeal to work and make an impression on the world for God, it can be easy to forget how God wants to work in each of us, and leave His impression on our hearts.  Changing me really makes changing the world a possibility.

For me, verse 8 really drives the point home.  Possessing and continually adding to these qualities = effectiveness and productivity.  Anything else, and we’re wasting some of our knowledge of Christ. 

Pray for one another, that we all would continue the pursuit to be made in Christ’s image.  

Peace!!!

Happy Fasting!
NEC Eric

1 John 3:14-19 (NIV)

¹⁴We know that we have passed from death to life, because we love our brothers. Anyone who does not love remains in death.

¹⁵Anyone who hates his brother is a murderer, and you know that no murderer has eternal life in him.

 ¹⁶This is how we know what love is: Jesus Christ laid down his life for us. And we ought to lay down our lives for our brothers.

¹⁷If anyone has material possessions and sees his brother in need but has no pity on him, how can the love of God be in him?

¹⁸Dear children, let us not love with words or tongue but with actions and in truth.

¹⁹This then is how we know that we belong to the truth, and how we set our hearts at rest in his presence.

My Commentary…

Our love for each other is the most tangible example of God’s love for us.  Verse 14 says that if we do not have genuine love for our brothers and sisters, then we are dead.  Not like the good-type of dead, where we crucify the flesh to live through Christ (Galatians 2:20)…but dead, as in NOT in Christ. 

Jesus Christ represents a lot of things to the believer.  He is King of Kings, Ruler of Nations, Master, the Chief Cornerstone, the Lamb of God, the Payer of Light Bills, the Sleep Multiplier (my personal Jesus). Yes, He is all of these things.  Most importantly, he is our Savior…a title that was only won by being a perfect sacrifice and a perfect example of love.  If we have no love for one another, then we have to question if we really have hold of Him.

We just celebrated the Easter holiday, a season where we remember the way God through Jesus CHOSE to display His love for the world.  Today, I hope this passage is a challenge for you to choose to display His love to the brothers and sisters around you.  Your answer to this challenge just may be the love that your brother, sister, frat, soror, mentor, mentee, or co-worker needs to experience.  Show the love that you say you have. 

 Peace and Blessings!!!

32 Think back on those early days when you first learned about Christ. Remember how you remained faithful even though it meant terrible suffering. 33 Sometimes you were exposed to public ridicule and were beaten, and sometimes you helped others who were suffering the same things. 34 You suffered along with those who were thrown into jail, and when all you owned was taken from you, you accepted it with joy. You knew there were better things waiting for you that will last forever.

35 So do not throw away this confident trust in the Lord. Remember the great reward it brings you! 36 Patient endurance is what you need now, so that you will continue to do God’s will. Then you will receive all that he has promised.

37 “For in just a little while,
the Coming One will come and not delay.
38 And my righteous ones will live by faith.[b]
But I will take no pleasure in anyone who turns away.”[c]

39 But we are not like those who turn away from God to their own destruction. We are the faithful ones, whose souls will be saved.

MY COMMENTARY…
Chapter 10 begins with the author addressing the men and women that have totally abandoned their faith, deliberately sinning against God.  However, we see a shift here; these aren’t the same people. This is a group of believers that have just lost a little bit of heart in their fight to live for God.  If we’re honest, many of us can say that we have been in this group at one point (or a thousand) in our lives…if not at this very moment.

If any journey is worthwhile, it will put us in a place where we lose momentum. We lose the passion, the motivation, the commitment, the energy, the encouragement…whatever the IT is, it gets away from us.  It doesn’t mean that we’ve failed or even missed the mark, but it does show us the frailty of being human. 

Hebrews 10:32-39 gives us some great suggestions to help us persevere through those times when we lose steam.

REMEMBER why you first got in the race.  ALL of us have powerful conversion stories, when the work of Jesus Christ did a complete 180° turn in our hearts.  Remember THAT day.  Reconnect to the passion you had when the race was anything but optional. 

SUFFER with transparency.  When we suffer in the presence of other believers, we create environments that push us forward AND give us mantle-memories to encourage us later.  One reason that quality, medal-winning track and field athletes train with partners is to have constant encouragement at their side.

KNOW that something better is waiting for you to finish.  “Begin with the end in mind” is a phrase I heard a while ago (not sure where it came from) but it really sums this up pretty well.  A child will try their hardest to do well when they know a treat is coming at the end.  Remember that the treat promised to us is better than any sticker, trophy, or free meal coupon that you can think of.    

The author’s encouragement to the Hebrew people is the same encouragement for us today.  DON’T THROW AWAY YOUR CONFIDENCE!  Remember to lift up each other in prayer, that God will prove through and to us that we are the faithful ones.

Love you guys,
NEC Borden

On the 21-day schedule, this day was set aside a day for “Personal Study on Release.” To me, the act of releasing is all about granting and accessing freedom. Releasing works best for the Christian when it guides us in a direction to make the character of God visible and the will of God a reality to the world.

Both NDOM and I thought it would be a good move to dedicate this post to YOUR releasing. Express what things God has shown you during this period of consecration. Whatever it is, feel free to release it HERE.

Have you been blessed ridiculously in your closeness to Christ because of this fast? Do you feel that this fast has been a waste of time? Is the Word of God speaking to you more loudly and clearly than ever? Are you struggling to discipline yourself to the dietary details? Has the Holy Spirit been clarifying some things to you about ANQ?

EB Borden, Nat’l Evangelism Chair

Genesis 37:18-28

¹⁸When they saw him from a distance and before he came close to them, they ^(Q)plotted against him to put him to death.

¹⁹They said to one another, “Here comes this dreamer!

²⁰“Now then, come and let us kill him and throw him into one of the pits; and ^(R)we will say, ‘A wild beast devoured him.’ Then let us see what will become of his dreams!”

²¹But ^(S)Reuben heard this and rescued him out of their hands and said, “Let us not take his life.”

²²Reuben further said to them, “Shed no blood. Throw him into this pit that is in the wilderness, but do not lay hands on him”–that he might rescue him out of their hands, to restore him to his father.

²³So it came about, when Joseph reached his brothers, that they stripped Joseph of his tunic, the varicolored tunic that was on him;

²⁴and they took him and threw him into the pit. Now the pit was empty, without any water in it.

²⁵Then they sat down to eat a meal. And as they raised their eyes and looked, behold, a caravan of ^(T)Ishmaelites was coming from Gilead, with their camels bearing ^(U)aromatic gum and ^(V)balm and myrrh, on their way to bring them down to Egypt.

²⁶Judah said to his brothers, “What profit is it for us to kill our brother and ^(W)cover up his blood?

²⁷“^(X)Come and let us sell him to the Ishmaelites and not lay our hands on him, for he is our brother, our own flesh.” And his brothers listened to him.

²⁸Then some ^(Y)Midianite traders passed by, so they pulled him up and lifted Joseph out of the pit, and ^(Z)sold him to the Ishmaelites for twenty shekels of silver Thus ^(AA)they brought Joseph into Egypt.

Genesis 39: 19-23

¹⁹Now when his master heard the words of his wife, which she spoke to him, saying, “This is what your slave did to me,” ^(P)his anger burned.

²⁰So Joseph’s master took him and ^(Q)put him into the jail, the place where the king’s prisoners were confined; and he was there in the jail.

²¹But ^(R)the LORD was with Joseph and extended kindness to him, and ^(S)gave him favor in the sight of the chief jailer.

²²The chief jailer ^(T)committed to Joseph’s charge all the prisoners who were in the jail; so that whatever was done there, he was responsible for it.

^23(U)The chief jailer did not supervise anything under Joseph’s charge because ^(V)the LORD was with him; and whatever he did, ^(W)the LORD made to prosper.

Genesis 41: 38-42

³⁸Then Pharaoh said to his servants, “Can we find a man like this, ^(AB)in whom is a divine spirit?”

³⁹So Pharaoh said to Joseph, “Since God has informed you of all this, there is no one so ^(AC)discerning and wise as you are.

⁴⁰“^(AD)You shall be over my house, and according to your command all my people shall do homage; only in the throne I will be greater than you.”

⁴¹Pharaoh said to Joseph, “See, I have set you ^(AE)over all the land of Egypt.”

⁴²Then Pharaoh ^(AF)took off his signet ring from his hand and put it on Joseph’s hand, and clothed him in garments of fine linen and ^(AG)put the gold necklace around his neck.

NDOM Harrison’s Thoughts:

Excellent Resilience

In a time when so much appears to have been lost, and we look around and see so much devastation in our world, we can become very discouraged/faithless. Many of us last year and even this year have experienced low times.  There were times when we felt that our closest friends and family members couldn’t relate. In fact, many saw us at our lowest point and didn’t extend a hand to help. In the whole process, we wondered; “Why? What have I done to deserve this? At the time in my life where I have the greatest sense of purpose and self worth, everything around me begins to defy it.”

We can draw so much from the experiences of Joseph. Joseph was at a point in his life where he was dreaming, and was starting to see what destiny held for him.  We see his brothers, betray him, and cast him into a pit, and then sell him into slavery, as a result of these same dreams of destiny. The situations that he was facing, were defying every dream that he had. The circumstances were basically calling his dreams a lie. Everything appeared to be a contradiction. How did Joseph deal with this new revelation of self and the new set of circumstances that plagued him? Did he use his dreams to fuel endurance or fortitude? Did he ever grow discouraged, as it seems that he had regressed and lost everything that he held dearly?

Joseph, throughout all of his trials, exemplified a quality that many of us should desire; excellent resilience. With the understanding that bouncing back is a process, we have to employ patience with prayer and faith in God. Wherever we are in our process, whether the pit, prison, or the palace, we have to believe and hold on to our dreams and gather strength from them. Its important that we not only hold God accountable for our personal goals, or agenda, but to what he said about us through dreams, visions, and His Word.  Joseph as a result of self-realization went through various trials. When we realize who we are in Christ, we recognize that pits, prison, and palaces are apart of our experience. However, it often takes the pit to truly appreciate the palace. We must go through it all with excellent resilience.