Mccordmatt’s Weblog

I’ve been studying through the Gospel of Matthew for the past couple of weeks.  I can’t tell you how many times I’ve read this one passage or heard people quote it. Most of the time you hear this set of verses quoted to people hurting or needing lifting up but I have never heard one particular part of the verse mentioned or preached on. Why? I’m not sure because I think the part we leave out some many times is even cooler or more awesome than the other. 

Drum Role Please for the passage I am referring to:

Matthew 28-30 “Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. ²⁹Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. ³⁰For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.”

Why do I say we’ve missed something with this passage?  Well, we quote and preach on verses 28, 29a, 29c, 30.  For some reason I have never heard that message on “and learn from me.”  The reason this is so important is that all the comfort and support from God can only happen with we “Come to me (Jesus),” which refers to salvation through Christ and Christ alone.  But the picture we miss is that of the when Jesus says “Take my yoke upon you” is the key to the whole passage.  Before I give us the answer to this riddle let me make sure we understand what the yoke is and the purpose of the yoke.  What people might not know is that the farmers would team an old cow/bull with a young cow/bull so that the older cow could teach the younger cow how to plow or pull.  This same picture is used for us when we come to Christ for salvation, Jesus teams up with us in the yoke so that we can “learn from Him.”  This is the ultimate accountability partner or mentor. 

Yes, when we go through struggles Christ is with us and he will comfort us and guide us. But! We can only get this “help” if we come to Him for salvation, and understand that we go through nothing by ourselves because when we accept Christ he partners with us and we join his training program and learn how to plow the fields. 

So the next time want to quote this verse to someone we must:

1. Someone to get this light yoke they must be a Christ Follower (Christian).

2. But when they get that light yoke, it is because we have a “partner” on the other side of the yoke and he is the Holy Spirit (Christ) who is teaching us and helping us learn.

 James 1:22-25 (NIV)²²Do not merely listen to the word, and so deceive yourselves. Do what it says. ²³Anyone who listens to the word but does not do what it says is like a man who looks at his face in a mirror ²⁴and, after looking at himself, goes away and immediately forgets what he looks like. ²⁵But the man who looks intently into the perfect law that gives freedom, and continues to do this, not forgetting what he has heard, but doing it—he will be blessed in what he does.

The day starts, you jump out of bed realizing the alarm did not go off at the correct time due to the fact that someone else had to messed it up. You finish the dressing process and sit down to enjoy a quick breakfast bar as you look in the mirror on the way out the door.  You notice that you forgot to do anything with your hair because of the great rush.  You tell yourself as you notice your hair that you fix it on the way to work at every red light.  But, because of the great rush you drive into work hop out run to your desk and let out a big sigh becauseyou make it one minute early. People walk by your desk throughout the day and give you very funny looks. You ask yourself “why is everyone looking at me funny this morning?”  Then your first bathroom break comes, you head to bathroom and as you are washing your hands (hopefully) you look and suddenly realize why the looks were coming your way.  As the screech comes out of your mouth you realize that you never fixed your hair.

This silly example is excatly what we do as Christians when we do our quite time and rush out our spiritual door into  a world where specifices are very important.  Verse 22 sets the group of verses off to a great start because it’s not just telling us to read and rush but read and do.  by reading and doing sets what is read into motion or into practice.  This is called application.  See when you look into the mirror and do nothing about what you see, you do not apply what you see to reality.  James is telling reading God’s word does not stop at reading but a combination of reading and applying God’s word. 

Verses 23-24 is telling us that many are going into this world not applying God’s word to our lives.  Instead we are suppose to take that word apply it and not forget it.  If we do walk away from the mirror of God’s word and do nothing with it then we are not using God’s word as a mirror. Instead of God’s mirror we use “our own” mirror or the world’s mirror to see the problems that need to be fixed or changed.  This does not at all fit what scripture is telling us. Instead, scripture is telling us that as we use God’s word as that mirror we will see God working in our lives and blessing us because of our love for Him through our obedience to Him (v 25). 

I would like to encourage you as you read this passage and realize that God is looking for His people to read His word and then do something with it.

I Corinthians 6:18 “Flee from sexualimmorality. All other sins a man commits are outside his body, but he who sins sexually sins against his own body.” (NIV)

I am not speaking as a parent who has a student in middle school or high school because I do not have children that old yet.  But, I do get to hear and see with my own eyes some of the struggles our students are having in their relationships with the opposite sex.  I took a pole the past two Wednesday nights as we continue our Sex and Sunday School series.  I was shocked but on the other hand not surprised by the results of the pole.  Keep in mind this pole was not taken in a scientific manner or even in the ideal setting, but it was taken the best way I thought we could take it.  In the pole taken I asked two questions 1) mark yes if you have had sex (which includes oral sex), 2) Mark yes if you are currently sexually active (which includes oral sex), I defined currently sexually active, “within the last month.”  This is what the pole concluded, 54% of both the girls (32 took the pole) and guys (31 took the pole) marked they have had sex/oral sex; out of that same number 19% of the girls were currently sexually active and 21% of the guys were currently sexually active.  Like I said earlier this shocked me by the high number but yet not surprised by the fact that our students are sexually active.  Why does this not surprise me?  As a parent have you spent time listening to the music your students are listening to?  Have you as a parent took the time to look at some of the magazine your students are looking at and reading?  Take a moment and look into these, not to mention the TV shows that are your students favorites.  When you spend a little time looking into this you will see why our students are having such a hard time with being sexually pure!  TV, music, Internet, magazines, movies and fashion are full of sex and wanting your student to be active in what “every other student is doing.” 

I would like to give just some suggestions on dating to both you as parents and you as students.  Looking back at I Corinthians 6:18 we are told to “Flee sexual immorality,” but when the student puts themselves into situations that opens the floodgates of hormones and emotions that is not fleeing that is running to.  When we keep a barrier between opportunity and desire it is much harder to fall into the trap that our flesh and Satan wants us to fall in to. 

So here are just a few suggestions I would like to offer:

1.  Limit Time Alone

     a.  In a car

     b. In a home

     c. Even In Public

2. When parents go to bed you go home

    a.  Never go into the opposite sex’s bedroom.

3. Date in groups (you can have private conversations in a large group)

4. Never lay down with each other

5. Limit close physical contact

Once again these are only suggestions to help you or your student “Flee from immorality.”

If we are going to help our students when the battle of being sexually active before marriage we must teach sex is for the marriage bed and the marriage bed alone.  Not only that, we must help our students set up avenues of not even being put into these types of situations.

As a student minister I stand back and watch many students who in many areas of their life can stand “on thier own two feet.”  When it comes to fighting for their teams they can stand.  Standing for their “girlfriend” they can stand.  Having a break and running for the border they can stand. But that one stand many of the students can not make is for their faith.  As the Aaron Tippin song went “If you don’t stand for something or you’ll fall for anything.”  Students are falling for anything! Why are they falling for anything? Well because they are not being shown (by parents) nor or they doing what I Peter 3:13-17 says, “Who is there to harm you if you prove zealous for what is good? But even if you should suffer for the sake of righteousness, you are blessed. AND DO NOT FEAR THEIR INTIMIDATION, AND DO NOT BE TROUBLED, but sanctify Christ as Lord in your hearts, always {being} ready to make a defense to everyone who asks you to give an account for the hope that is in you, yet with gentleness and reverence; and keep a good conscience so that in the thing in which you are slandered, those who revile your good behavior in Christ will be put to shame. For it is better, if God should will it so, that you suffer for doing what is right rather than for doing what is wrong.” 

We look at al the troubles around us and we ask how did we get into so much trouble, politically, spiritually and morally?  We go back to this same passage and can look into ourselves and ask, have we been ready to give an account for what we believe?  Have we as Christians given up all “HOPE” in what we believe so we lay down and not say anthing?  We have to make that stand both in the political realm and in the realm of sharing our HOPE with others.

We as a student ministry have started a series of messages on “Building Our House on the Rock Solid Foundation of Christ.”  This series we are going to be going through the elements of building a house.  This series is based off of Hebrews 6:1 “Therefore let us leave the elementary teachings about Christ and go on to maturity, not laying again the foundation of repentance from acts that lead to death, and of faith in God,” (NIV).  At some point in time we as Christ Followers we have to move from the foundational teachings to more of a mature learning/teaching.  Who, What and How are we building our house or “Christianity” on/in?

The foundations are a very important key to our walk with Christ, but, it should not be our goal to stay on the foundational aspects of faith.  Paul writes in I Corinthians 3:2 “I gave you milk, not solid food, for you were not yet ready for it.  Indeed, you are still not ready” (NIV).  I believe as Christians we believe that after “praying a prayer” we have arrived.  But as I related this thought to building our house this our laying of the foundation.  As we accept Christ we have put that foundation down, but we do not live in a house of just a foundation.  We live in houses with walls, a roof, insulation, wiring, decoration, etc.  But so many times in our Christian walk we lay the foundation (salvation) and then live on the foundation.  What happens when the weather changes it becomes cold/hot, windy and rainy?  Once again the foundation is key but we continue to build on that foundation.

As we look at the house we are building we have the blue prints (Hebrews 6:1), the foundation– Salvation in and through Christ ALONE (John 14:6 “I am the way, the truth, and the life no one come to the father except through me.”).  As we build our house together and we take each part of the house and apply it to building or maturing our faith in Christ we will see the importance of continuingly reinfocing it.

My prayer for our student ministry is to have students that fall into I Corinthians 3:2-3 “You yourselves are our letter, written on our hearts, known and read by everybody.  You show that you are a letter from Christ, the result of our ministry, written not with ink but with the Spirit of the living God, not on tablets of stone but on tables of human hearts.”

As the new year begins we all sit down and start to think about the past year and all the great things that has happened, or maybe the not so great things.  But we also look ahead at the upcoming year and make those resolutions that will last the first 4-6 weeks of 2009 and we decide losing 100lbs in the first months can’t be done so we give up and just continue our lifestyle the way it was last year. But what if we instead of making “new years resolution’s” why don’t we make realistic commitments to our relationship to God and others? 

I think about all the things I would like to see happen in  my life this upcoming year, physical, mental, relationship, and spiritual.  But why am I setting these goals and commitments?  Is it to make people see me or see the “big” change? or is it so that I can see new ways to become more mature in my walk with Christ as I lead others?

As I have been reading through the book of Hebrews I have noticed something as a common thread, that is “maturity.”  I have not necessarily noticed this in the reading but through the application in my own life.  The key verse is Hebrews 6:1 “Therefore leaving the elementary teaching about the Christ, let us press on to maturity, not laying again a foundation of repentance from dead works and of faith toward God.”  This verse mentions maturity but it has been the overarching theme God has been showing me in my life.  This maturity must be there in my life before I can lead others into maturity.  But, what would happen if we all set that realistic g0al of wanting to grow in Christ and become more like Him?  What could or would happen if we took this commitment serious?  Would our personal lives be changed? Would the circle of family and friends around us start to accept Christ? or we see Christ Followers growing stronger and maturer in HIM? My prayer for my life this year is that I would mature in Christ and become more like HIM everyday. 

HOW ABOUT YOU? THE TIME IS NOW FOR US TO GROW AND REACH THOSE AROUND US!!

I stand back and look at student and adults and wonder what does it take for us to “GET IT.” Get what you might ask yourself, well what it really means to be a Christ Follower or Christian.  I talk to students and adults alike and get the same answer or the same attitude about what it takes to be that Christ Follower.  That answer does not surprise me because pastors, “church people,” older Christan’s all say the same thing to that question, a prayer is what it takes to be a Christian. Is this entirely true? With this attitude or belief we are teaching and holding to a view that Christ Himself did not hold to.  Let me explain before everyone hangs me as a heretic.  We look at the calling of the disciples.  Christ never asked His disciples to pray a prayer before they followed Him.  Christ basically said drop what your doing because it is not as important than what I’m doing.  He said said to Peter, “hey peter you like to fish, come fish with me, become a professional angler for other people.”  Looking at scripture we only see in Roman 10:9-10 “That if you confess with your mouth, “Jesus is Lord,” and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved.  For it is with your heart that you believe and are justified, and it is with your mouth that you confess and are saved.”  So yes, confession with your mouth is a part or the starting point of salvation, but is that salvation?  So many times we stop there and never continue reading the verse.  Not only do you confess with our mouths but we believe in our heart.  With that in mind lets go to Matthew 12:34b “For out of the overflow of the heart the mouth speaks.”  So if we confess with our mouth and believe in our hearts, there should be something coming out of our mouths right?  Is there a connection between our confessing and heart.  Well lets look at James what does it say, in a nut shell it says that the faith we have should be backed with stuff or things we do that show the faith in our lives? If that’s not enough what about Titus 1:16, “They claim to know God, but by their actions they deny him. They are detestable, disobedient and unfit for doing anything good.”  So I guess the question is, “is it either a prayer or a belief that saves you?” We would have to say and agree with scripture that it is both but I would say that the aftermath of the prayer will be seen by everyone we come into contact with on a daily basis or in our circles of influence.

Well, we’ve been back from Venezuela for a couple of days now and God is still working in my life and among those who went on the trip.  You know we Americans have so much and not even realize it until we go somewhere else like Venezuela.  Many of us or maybe I should say none of us can be content with where we are or what we have.  But yet so many people around the world are very content and happy with all they have.  But this is not the only thing God showed me or spoke to me about.  The second thing he reminded me or maybe even shown me for the first time is that we as Christians have a “great power” within us.  We hold a very strong key or power and so many times we do not use it or we use this power in the wrong ways. This power we hold or have is the fact that we have Christ.  If we stand back and think about it we have the power for so many things if what we are using it for is of God’s will for our lives.  As we were in Venezuela I saw much of the power I posses in Christ.  We would walk up to a door and say “Burenas” and a person would come to the door.  We were able to see the power we have by watching people weep over the fact that they prayed for someone to come and share Christ with them or how to have what some others had. Or even say “I was hoping someone would bring me a bible, I’ve never had one.”  But to see this power of the Holy Spirit working in lives was amazing.  We see this same power in Moses’ life in Exodus 4:2 when God askes Moses, “What is that in your hand?” and Moses replied “a staff,” this staff Moses had in his hands is a tool God used to free the Israelites from the Egyptians.  We have a tool we can use if only we would use it and that is the Holy Spirit and God’s word.  It was amazing to see people start crying as they realized through the Holy Spirit that the witch craft they were following was not right or the fact that they were separated from God and needed Him for that relationship.  We hold a staff in our hands, the staff of God’s word and the Holy Spirit, and yet we do nothing with it on a daily basis or even a lifetime.  At some point in time we have to realize this “power” we hold as we live our lives for Christ and see other lives changed because of us “using that power” for God’s glory and seeing people come to know Christ as their personal Lord and Savior.

So, one question for you. . . . .

Are you using the “power” God has given you to share with others?

Have you ever put something in the wrong place and then it took you forever to find it?  Or maybe you get that new something that you could not live without and in a few short weeks or months you realize you haven’t been using it and think of the fun times you’ve missed not having it?  Well these are some of the questions that come to mind as I was doing my quite time and studying for the message for the students Wed. night.  How many times do we misplace or mishandle our walk with Christ or “misplace” Him and then figure out that we’ve missed out on so much that God’s had for us. 

We look at David’s life and see that he does all of this after conquering the Philistines and getting the Ark of God back.  He puts the Ark in another mans land or house because he is mad at God for killing Uzzah for touching the Ark (II Samuel 6:1-11).  But, David realizes that he has been missing out on all the blessing of God because he does not take care of it himself.  David mishandles his relationship with God by the way he allows the men to carry the Ark even though God was very clear through Moses and Aaron how to handle the Ark.  God is very clear in Exodus and in Numbers on the way the Ark was to be built and handled.  So, what was the big problem?  David mishandles his relationship with God and does not allow it to stay top priority in his life and also he misses out on blessing God could of had for him. 

So I ask again how have we “mishandled our Christianity or our walk with Christ” lately?   From this point on we see that David begins a slight down hill run with the people around him and also with his relationship with God.  And this is usually how it all begins on that slippery icy bunny slope.

Well the week is over, we’ve had our last worship service, and the fun begins.  The fun of getting students to pack and be on time for the bus. . . . Just kidding, I know they will be on time so that we can leave on time, I am sure of it.  Last nights service was very good, Ryan (the camp pastor) spoke on getting out of the cheap seats and getting into life.  His offical title of the message was “God created us to be in the game of life.”  With this title and main point he is saying hey God wants us to be a part of life and this is how we know we are created to be in the game:  Jeremiah 1:4-8

We were:

1. Created by God to be in the Game (Ps. 130:13-14)

2. Considered by God (Ps. 139:16)

3. Chosen by God (Jn. 6:44; II Peter 2:9)

4. Called by God (I Peter 2:9)

5. Covered by God or God says I’VE GOT YOU!!!!!!!

This week has been a good week, yes we’ve had our difficulties, our struggles, our problems but overall God has shown up and shown off this week.  We had 2 students accpet Christ (Chloe Simmons, Emilee Sasser), and we had 4 students say they feel they are called to fulltime ministry (Katina Piland, Heather Simmons, Jackie Simmons, Rick Johnson), plus many other decisions.  But God has also allowed me as a student minister to have to deal with things and adjust to problems in the moment, but not allow Satan to take that moment and use it for himself.  Yes this happened once this week as I shared earlier but God also has allowed growth both in me and the students that I had to go to. 

You know that in just a year we’ve had many adjustments and the adjustments will continue to come for a while to come as we grow and both in numbers and spiritually. 

Well, I guess the next time I talk with you all it will be in Ino, Alabama, so until then keep us in your prayers as we travel today adn also that God will continue to grow us and bring us closer to Himself.