Nick Poindexter

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Tag: Jesus (Page 5 of 9)

In Jesus’ Name

October 18, 2010 / / 0 Comments

And I will do whatever you ask in my name, so that the Son may bring glory to the Father. You may ask me for anything in my name, and I will do it.
-John 14:13-14 (NIV)

Your head is bowed, your eyes are closed, and you are listening as someone leads in prayer. And then you hear the usual closing words: “We ask all these things in Jesus’ name. Amen.” The prayer is officially complete.

But why do we close our audible prayers to God in this way?

The idea is taught in these verses from the Gospel of John. At first glance it might seem that you can simply tag this line to the end of any prayer and get what you want, but that’s not the case at all. Does Jesus want to do whatever we ask of him? Yes, but with a caveat… He will do anything we ask that brings glory to God.

In Jesus’ day, a person’s name embodied what they were like. So to pray in the name of Jesus simply meant you were asking for something consistent with his character. Jesus will gladly answer those requests because through them his Father will be glorified.

Many people unfortunately view prayer as a magic formula where we list our selfish cravings. But if what we ask for clearly isn’t in line with God’s will, then those words are vain and meaningless.

Using “in Jesus’ name” in a prayer isn’t necessarily right nor wrong. But it is absolutely not a secret password that gets you an all-access pass to God. It’s not about the words we use; it’s about our intent.

So ask yourself this question: If all your prayers were answered, who would get the credit? You, someone else, or God the Father?

Ask Jesus for anything that brings God glory and he will do it.

Who Do You Say I Am?

October 1, 2010 / / 0 Comments

Jesus and his disciples went on to the villages around Caesarea Philippi. On the way he asked them, “Who do people say I am?”

They replied, “Some say John the Baptist; others say Elijah; and still others, one of the prophets.”

“But what about you?” he asked. “Who do you say I am?”
Peter answered, “You are the Christ.”
-Mark 8:27-29 (NIV)

Jesus is walking with his disciples around Caesarea Philippi, a pagan city known for its worship of many gods. Fittingly, he asks them, “Who do people say I am?” They reply back with the big names — John the Baptist, Elijah, a prophet. All of which are very flattering comparisons.

Then, when the question is directed at Peter, he answers more specifically — You are the Christ.

It’s really not much different than the thoughts of people today. Ask the question of “Who is Jesus?” and you’ll get a plethora of answers… Jesus is the Savior, the Son of God, a wise teacher, revolutionary leader, a unique prophet, a ground-breaking rabbi, a good role model, a myth, a legend.

Unfortunately, simply believing in Jesus isn’t enough. We must also believe Jesus. The former is head knowledge; the latter is heart knowledge. Jesus came to thoroughly change our lives, not just our brains.

At lot of people admire Jesus, but don’t believe him. A lot of people are inquisitive toward Jesus, but don’t follow him. A lot of people like the idea of Jesus, but don’t trust him.

Was Jesus a teacher, leader, prophet, rabbi and role model? Yes. But those titles don’t do him justice. Jesus is also so much more. He is the Christ. The Messiah. The King of all kings. The Lord of all lords. The Savior of you and I.

So the question remains just as crucial and heart-piercing as it was 2,000 years ago… Who do you say that Jesus is?

Without Excuse

September 21, 2010 / / 0 Comments

For since the creation of the world God’s invisible qualities—his eternal power and divine nature—have been clearly seen, being understood from what has been made, so that men are without excuse. For although they knew God, they neither glorified him as God nor gave thanks to him…
-Romans 1:20-21 (NIV)

Here in the book of Romans, Paul is addressing the an age-old conundrum: What about people who never hear about Jesus? He declares that God has revealed himself to everyone through his creation, specifically his intelligence, power, beauty, and transcendence. This is often referred to as general revelation.

But Paul then goes on to say that despite the evidence right before our eyes, in our pride, we all still reject that basic knowledge of him. Therefore, no one is innocent, everyone needs to be saved through faith in Jesus Christ, and his disciples today are charged to spread that message to the ends of the earth.

There’s also another way called special revelation. That’s when God uses miraculous means to show himself. The Bible and Jesus himself fall into this category.

But here’s the thing: If you are a Christian, then YOU are the living, breathing manifestation of the miraculous, life-changing power of Jesus, the Son of God. You’re also part of the special revelation.

So I must ask… What kind of evidence are you? What is your life testifying to?

Paul says that the general revelation of God can be seen through nature. His creation is always pointing others back to God. But for God’s special revelation? That’s you. As a new creation, are you always pointing others back to Christ?

Everyday, people who have responded to God though general revelation are looking at us for the special revelation — Jesus. And it’s our job to be his testimonial. It’s our job to go and tell them about him. That’s the Great Commission.

So Paul says that men are without excuse. And so are we.

Is your life evidence of a Savior who totally, completely, unequivocally transformed you inside-out? Or does your life testify to something else?

You might be the only proof of Jesus that someone ever sees.

$9 Billion In Debt

August 18, 2010 / / 0 Comments

“Therefore the kingdom of heaven may be compared to a king who wished to settle accounts with his servants. When he began to settle, one was brought to him who owed him ten thousand talents. And out of pity for him, the master of that servant released him and forgave him the debt… But when that same servant went out, he found one of his fellow servants who owed him a hundred denarii, and seizing him, he began to choke him, saying, ‘Pay what you owe.’
-Matthew 18:23-24, 27-28 (ESV)

In Matthew 18, we find Jesus telling a story often referred to as The Parable of the Unmerciful Servant. The servant has a debt to the king of 10,000 talents, which is generously pardoned. That same servant, who was just freed from his bondage of debt, immediately tracks down another servant who owed him money, specifically 100 denarii.

The true essence of this parable can be lost if you don’t understand the significance of those two amounts.

First of all, a talent wasn’t a physical coin, but was considered to be 20 years worth of wages. For example, in the United States today, the average person makes $46,000 per year, which is $920,000 over 20 years. And this servant owed 10,000 times that amount… $9.2 BILLION! As for the 100 denarii, 1 denarius was equal 1 day’s wages, so that was equivalent to about 20 weeks worth of wages. Using the same $46,000 average would come out to about $18,000.

Look at it this way: the servant was over $9 billion in debt. That’s more than the gross domestic product of Madagascar! Or let me do the math for you: $18,000 is less than 0.000002% (2 millionths) of what he owned the king.

I know, I know… $18,000 is still a lot of money. When someone does you wrong, it hurts. No doubt about it. But it’s nothing compared to $9 billion.

Like the servant to the king, we were so far in the red to God that there was no way we could ever pay it back.  But he has wiped clean our insurmountable debt. Amazingly, instead of vengeance, God chose forgiveness.

So we must have that same attitude of mercy and grace toward others who are indebted to us. Because God has already done it for us on a much larger scale.

It’s the least we can do.

Act Like A Child

August 13, 2010 / / 0 Comments

People were bringing little children to Jesus to have him touch them, but the disciples rebuked them. When Jesus saw this, he was indignant. He said to them, “Let the little children come to me, and do not hinder them, for the kingdom of God belongs to such as these. I tell you the truth, anyone who will not receive the kingdom of God like a little child will never enter it.” And he took the children in his arms, put his hands on them and blessed them.
-Mark 10:13-16 (NIV)

Ever been told you were “acting like a child”? I have. The phrase implies that a person is not seeing or responding to the world through the viewpoint of a mature adult. Generally, it’s considered an insult.

In this story, we find the disciples trying to prevent kids from “bothering” Jesus. They apparently think he’s too busy, too important for people of such lower stature. This upsets Jesus, and he quickly turns the situation into a teaching opportunity. His point: anyone who wants to be part of God’s kingdom must be more childlike.

But why would Jesus tell his disciples that they need to act like a child? That’s a bad thing, right?

When it comes down to it, children are the epitome of humility. Why? Because it’s never been all about them. All they’ve ever known is a life of desperate dependency on someone greater than themselves for provision. It’s clear to them that they can’t do it all on their own. Someone else has to intervene on their behalf, and they’ve accepted that. They have no choice.

So when it comes to our relationship with our Father, Jesus says that we must approach him with the same attitude of trust, humility, and dependency that a little child would have for their parent.

Sometimes, we need to act like a child. It isn’t always a bad thing.

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About Nick

// Disciple of Jesus

// Husband of Twinkle

// Daddy of Blaise, Justice & Trinity

// Teaching Pastor of Collide Church (Yadkinville, NC)

// Lover of 90s music/television, useless trivia, Cheerwine, Krispy Kreme & Chick-fil-A

// Fan of the Tar Heels, Panthers, Hornets & Braves

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