Author: Ben Bourland

“But it is from Him that you are in Christ Jesus, who became to us wisdom from God [revealing His plan of salvation], and righteousness [making us acceptable to God], and sanctification [making us holy and setting us apart for God], and redemption [providing our ransom from the penalty for sin], so then, as it is written [in Scripture], “He who boasts and glories, let him boast and glory in the Lord.” 1 Corinthians 1:30-31 ->me: What a culmination of my previous 2 quiet times!  Until you have been called, the gospel is foolishness and a stumbling block (hard to comprehend without faith).  Those who are called are lowly in spirit and not prestigious…so that God will be the One glorified when His work is done.  God CHOOSES the foolish and the weak of this human world to shame the wise and the strong.  It is because of the work on the cross that I am given a place in Jesus, who has become our wisdom through His Spirit, a righteousness we don’t deserve, and given a Holiness in sanctification that would could never achieve ourselves; so we have been saved from God’s wrath at the end of time.  So…where does all of the glory and boasting go? To the One Who works in the smallest and weakest to accomplish His great work.  I must realize that man’s opinion means nothing; God’s opinion is the only that matters.  His Character is spelled out through His word which is entirely sufficient.

“For when the world with all its earthly wisdom failed to perceive and recognize and know God by means of its own philosophy, God in His wisdom was pleased through the foolishness of preaching [salvation, procured by Christ and to be had through Him], to save those who believed (who clung to and trusted in and relied on Him).” 1 Corinthians 1:21 -> me: Earthly wisdom displays the skill of human beings and brings praise to them, which is not the message of the gospel. Those who search for God by applying earthly wisdom will become frustrated. God’s plan for us is that we cannot truly know Him through our own logical thinking. It is only through the denial of ourselves that we can attain the beauty of God’s covering and peace in our lives. One thing I have learned through my own frailty is that the moment I take back control from God, I immediately feel myself moving away from Him…it always presents an opportunity for sin.  Because I have experienced the calling of God on my life and KNOW the peace and love only God can provide, turning away from Him in these moments is shameful. Lord God, give me the strength to say no to my own ‘ways’ and cleave to Your Way in every decision, problem, and joy.

“For Christ did not send me to baptize, but to preach the gospel, not with wisdom of words, lest the cross of Christ should be made of no effect.” 1 Corinthians 1:17 -> me: <Sigh> Today is the first day in 2 weeks that I have chosen to sit down for a dedicated time in God’s word.  Let me be clear – I could have made this happen but my earthly desires to spend every waking moment either focused on my family or on work pushed out this time I have so desperately missed.  What I keep failing to internalize is that when time with God supersedes everything else, the ‘everything else’ becomes more manageable.  How feeble my heart and mind are to this truth. This verse today helps me see how God designed us to fully rely on Him…not just in our earthly lives but in our ministry as well.  ‘not with wisdom words’ speaks to that immediate mindset to take control of things ourselves.  The gospel is most powerful when we let God work through us rather than trying to manipulate the message with our own wordsmithing.  A great reminder to seek His will in every action, moment, conflict, and trial.

“And Pharisees came to Him and put Him to the test by asking, Is it lawful and right to dismiss and repudiate and divorce one’s wife for any and every cause?  He replied, Have you never read that He Who made them from the beginning made them male and female,” Matthew 19:3-4 ->me: When I was reading this passage the other day it struck me what Jesus said here – “Have you never read…?”.  The Pharisees were probably some of the most Bible-Read people on the planet during Jesus time.  What the Pharisees had done was conformed the scripture to their purposes rather than God’s true intention.  This goes to the pride of these very religious men.  The Pharisees were known for dictating law through the interpreted word of God toward their own edification.  I know churches right here in our surrounding area who have spun God’s word in such a way that they claim supports a social issue or cultural shift.  This is so very dangerous…and I have no hill to stand on.  I can think of various passages where I ‘chose’ to take a certain viewpoint because the spirit of the passage felt unfair…well, this is me being no different that these Pharisees.  It is easy to sit back and see Jesus smack down these religious leaders but I better take a step back and make sure the Lord isn’t trying to point to something in His word that I am trying to massage into something more comfortable and fitting to the culture and society I live in.

“And He will establish you to the end [keep you steadfast, give you strength, and guarantee your vindication; He will be your warrant against all accusation or indictment so that you will be] guiltless and irreproachable in the day of our Lord Jesus Christ (the Messiah). God is faithful (reliable, trustworthy, and therefore ever true to His promise, and He can be depended on); by Him you were called into companionship and participation with His Son, Jesus Christ our Lord.” 1 Corinthians 1:8-9 ->me: These verses are so powerful! Last week in our Young Marrieds Life Group, we started a study of 1 Corinthians. This week was spent on the first 9 verses of chapter 1. The amount of theology and significance in the words of Paul and the heart of God is amazing. Just in these first verses, Paul sets the stage for the entire epistle but these 2 verses are just so influential right now. Notice how there are no conditions – God WILL keep us to the end and there, when Jesus returns, we will be without reproach and guiltless! Do I represent in deed, action, and living what I receive in grace? It isn’t just that God is faithful…oh no, He has also called us into fellowship with His only Son…the same one who paid the price for my guiltless, blameless, and shameless status when He returns. I am NOT without sin, no, but I am without the penalty for that sin. Will I be able to look at the face of my returning Savior representing the guiltless life He bought for me?..or will He find me embroiled in a striving for earthly greatness and self-worth?

“And Pharisees came to Him and put Him to the test by asking, Is it lawful and right to dismiss and repudiate and divorce one’s wife for any and every cause? He replied, Have you never read that He Who made them from the beginning made them male and female,” Matthew 19:3-4 ->me: When I was reading this passage the other day it struck me what Jesus said here – “Have you never read…?”. The Pharisees were probably some of the most Bible-Read people on the planet during Jesus time. What the Pharisees had done was conformed the scripture to their purposes rather than God’s true intention. This goes to the pride of these very religious men. The Pharisees were known for dictating law through the interpreted word of God toward their own edification. I know churches right here in our surrounding area who have spun God’s word in such a way that they claim supports a social issue or cultural shift. This is so very dangerous…and I have no hill to stand on. I can think of various passages where I ‘chose’ to take a certain viewpoint because the spirit of the passage felt unfair…well, this is me being no different that these Pharisees. It is easy to sit back and see Jesus smack down these religious leaders but I better take a step back and make sure the Lord isn’t trying to point something in His word that I am trying to massage into something more comfortable and fitting to the culture and society I live in.

“This is how my heavenly Father will treat each of you unless you forgive your brother from your heart.” Matthew 18:35 ->me: Today I finished up the parable of the servant who did not show mercy after receiving mercy himself. The first servant (who received mercy from the master in a cancelation of his enormous debt) sought out someone who owed him and then showed zero mercy and even locking the fellow servant away until the debt was paid. 10,000 Talents is what the first servant had owed and received a cancelation of that debt. 10,000 Talents is roughly $7.5 Billion in today’s dollars (a person who could pay that amount of debt back would be number 101 in the Forbes list of wealthiest people). This servant WENT OUT and FOUND a fellow servant who owed him 100 denarii (Roughly $32,000 which is 1/225,000 of the debt that was canceled by the master) and proceeded to choke him! He had no mercy when the fellow servant pleaded for patience and time to pay him back; and had him thrown into jail. The other servants who witnessed this were super rattled and told the master what this servant had done. The master was furious and threw him into jail until he was able to pay his $7.5 billion dollar debt back. So, how is this me in my daily walk? What are the ways in which I act that would bring about this kind of wrath from my Master? Simple -> any time I fail to forgive a brother or sister in Christ when they have wronged me. I think this can simply happen in my mind; it is a condition of the heart that Jesus is calling out here. The other servants saw the audacity of what he had done, but he didn’t see it. He was consumed with the application of power over another…so much that he was blinded by it…the evil had consumed him. I think this a place I can get when I feel justified in my execution of justice…but justice is not mine to apply, it is the Lord’s I serve. This love of others through understanding what Jesus has done for me is super convicting.

“And now there remain: faith [abiding trust in God and His promises], hope [confident expectation of eternal salvation], love [unselfish love for others growing out of God’s love for me], these three [the choicest graces]; but the greatest of these is love.” 1 Corinthians 13:13 ->me: Today was my time finishing up my week one of the 1 Corinthians study we are starting in our Life Group.  It was an overview section in which you read the entire book and then allow God to reveal to you what He weaves together in your theology just from a quick contextual read through.  For me, this verse has weight.  Multiple times Paul stresses how much more important unselfish love is than even other spiritual gifts.  Transparently, this is also an area that I need to ask God to work on in my life.  According to Paul I need to be ready to suffer with the sufferings of many in order to win a few for the Kingdom.  This is love – a reckless approach to serving others where the earthly return on investment is small but the heavenly return is huge.  This is also where faith and hope come in.  I will be ready to serve with this type of love when I have the faith and hope in what is to come…I will realize that this time under the sun is an opportunity to tear down the greatness I might have here on earth in order to win glory for God the Father and the Lord Jesus Christ in heaven.   I have to ask myself – “Am I ready to seize the greatest of these choicest graces?  Am I ready to sacrifice more earthly gain for the winning of souls to heaven?”

“Be merciful (responsive, compassionate, tender) just as your [heavenly] Father is merciful.” Luke 6:36 ->me: Today my reading was in Matthew 18:21-27 where Jesus is telling Peter the parable of the master who canceled the huge debt owed by his servant. The rest of the story is tomorrow but in this passage, the unforgettable commentary stood out for Luke 6:36. Peter starts out by asking Jesus how many times he should forgive his brother who has sinned against him? “Seven times?” he asks? Then Jesus says, “No, not seven times, but seventy seven times.” and then progresses to tell the parable. Here are the interesting tidbits: 1) Jesus starts the parable by saying “The kingdom in heaven is like a king…”. The moral of Jesus’ parables is to give a glimpse into the economy of justice in the Kingdom of God. 2) The servant owed the King 10,000 Talents. A talent is the highest denomination in Greek currency, and 10,000 was highest Greek numeral, so the point wasn’t that the servant owed the King something, it was that he owed him an ungodly amount of money. 3) The price of our sin, before confessed and repented, can have a profound impact on our family. To reclaim the debt, the king was ready to take the servants wife and children. 4) The king had mercy for the servant with a repentant heart. The servant fell to his knees asking for patience and promised to payback the amount owed. The King was not only merciful but in his wisdom he could see that the servant could never pay him back the amount owed. I am no different – God, through His Son, canceled my debt and placed it upon Jesus. That debt was so overwhelming that there would have been nothing I could have ever done to pay it back. Jesus call on me to be merciful just as my Heavenly Father is merciful. The context here is life changing.