Nick Poindexter

My style's like a chemical spill

Category: The Bible (Page 3 of 22)

Let Love Rule

July 30, 2012 / / 0 Comments

One of the teachers of the law came and heard them debating. Noticing that Jesus had given them a good answer, he asked him, “Of all the commandments, which is the most important?” “The most important one,” answered Jesus, “is this: ‘Hear, O Israel, the Lord our God, the Lord is one. Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength.’ The second is this: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’ There is no commandment greater than these.”
-Mark 12:28-31 (NIV)

Jewish law in a nutshell: 248 commands of things to do, 365 commands of things not to do, for a total of 613 rules, all of which are covered in the first 5 books of the Old Testament (a.k.a. the Pentateuch/Torah). The “thou shalts” require action to bring you closer to God, and the “thou shalt nots” forbid action that creates a distance from God.

With that in mind, a scribe walks in on Jesus debating scripture with others in Chapter 12 of Mark. A scribe’s purpose is to interpret the meaning of scripture and its commands, so of course his interest is piqued. Whether to settle the question once and for all or to drag Jesus into it, I don’t know. But the Scribe asks Jesus the loaded question: What is the most important commandment? 1 out of 613. Nice odds, huh? As if there were a “right” answer anyhow.

Jesus responds however by quoting the Shema, a traditional Jewish confession of faith (“Hear, O Israel…”). Why? Probably to demonstrate his knowledge of tradition and scripture. In other words, he was setting up his answer by showing he had the authority to answer the question in the first place.

Then, he let his wisdom shine – all 613 rules, all of the 10 Commandments, all that jazz – are boiled down to one principle, one simple word: Love.

Instead of focusing all of one’s heart, soul, mind and strength on rules, Jesus says to focus them on relationships – your relationship with the Father, and your relationship with every, single person He surrounds you with. Simply put, when you love God and love others, every one of God’s rules is fulfilled. Love covers them all.

If you’re like me you probably know how hard it is to love people. Loving God (to me) is not so difficult most of the time, but loving everyone pretty much seems infeasible. But there’s a reason why Jesus says that loving the Lord is the most important, and loving people is second. When your love for Him is poured out from everything you do – your emotions, your intellect, your energy – it gives you the desire and wisdom you need to love others.

Want to know the secret to living a life God would be proud of? Base everything you think, everything you say, and everything you do on one question: Am I loving God and loving others?

To quote the great theologian Lenny Kravitz, you got to let love rule.

What The Locust Has Eaten

June 23, 2012 / / 0 Comments

I will restore to you the years that the swarming locust has eaten, the hopper, the destroyer, and the cutter, my great army, which I sent among you. “You shall eat in plenty and be satisfied, and praise the name of the Lord your God, who has dealt wondrously with you. And my people shall never again be put to shame. You shall know that I am in the midst of Israel, and that I am the Lord your God and there is none else. And my people shall never again be put to shame.
-Joel 2:25-27 (ESV)

On the television show American Restoration, we get a firsthand view into the business of Rick’s Restoration, a Las Vegas shop that cleans up, repairs and revives antiques. It’s pretty amazing to see a ratty, beat-up gas pump that’s been slowly decomposing in an old barn brought back to life. The rust is gone… The glass is replaced… The paint is fresh… It is literally like new again. Matter of fact, it’s now better than new. What was trash days ago is suddenly now worth thousands of dollars.

Joel’s book of prophecy details an incoming locust infestation to Judah in response to the people’s sinfulness toward God. The specifics of the event are horrific… The locusts will cover anything in their path. All vegetation will be consumed and devoured. There will be so many it will seems as though the sun is darkened. To their culture, a plague of this sorts was disastrous. Nothing could be done to defend themselves from this, so therefore all animal and human life was at risk. On the surface there appeared to be no hope whatsoever.

Nevertheless, in the middle of a world that appeared diseased, destitute and left for dead, God promises restoration. If the people of Judah would humbly return to the Lord and fully give him their hearts, then there is still time for renewal.

And the same assurance holds true today. When the infestations of life overwhelm us, we must never forget that the possibility of a comeback still exists.

I don’t know what you are going through right now… I don’t know the brokenness that you feel… I don’t know what part of your life appears to be beyond repair… But I do know that God promises to restore, provide and protect those whose hearts are his own. It may not be when and how we want it, but it shouldn’t matter if we fully trust that his presence is in the midst of it all. And by the grace of God that is enough for us to cling to with confidence regardless of our circumstances.

So we too must return to the ultimate Restorer, the only one who brings all things back to like-new condition.

Because no matter what the locust has eaten, there is always hope in the Lord.

Why Do We Fall?

May 28, 2012 / / 0 Comments

Though a righteous man falls seven times, he will get up, but the wicked will stumble into ruin.
-Proverbs 24:16 (HCSB)

Near the beginning of the movie Batman Begins, a young Bruce Wayne breaks his leg when he accidentally falls into the opening of a cave. Using the situation as a teaching moment, Bruce’s father calmly says to his injured son, “Why do we fall, Bruce? So we can learn to pick ourselves up.”

Mr. Wayne asks a great question: Why do we fall? Or, another way to ask it… Can there actually be a purpose from a fall?

Proverbs 24:16 tells us that even righteous, godly people fall and sin. And matter of fact, it says they will fall many times (that’s the symbolism of the “seven”). However, on first glance we almost have to re-read the verse because our natural thought is that a righteous man never falls. But is that fair or even reasonable? According to this proverb, the biblical expectation of one that is righteous seems be more concerned about the response to sin, more so than the sin itself.

Our righteousness before God is not determined by whether or not we fall. We all fall. That’s why we need a savior. Therefore, now our righteousness before God is determined by what is done after we fall.

I personally feel that our true belief and appreciation of the sacrifice of Jesus is demonstrated most by how we respond to our sins, shortcomings and wrongs.

For example, when you fall, do you make up excuses or rationalize your behavior? Do you wallow in your shame and throw a pity-party? Do you abuse the grace of God and continue to do what caused you to fall in the first place? Or do you run to Jesus, acknowledge the transgression, take responsibility, pick yourself up, and learn from the offense?

Those who understand the seriousness of sin and of Christ’s forgiveness react in the latter.

So the question is not if we fall, but rather when we fall, how do we respond? Sure, it’s just a comic, but what does Batman do after he falls? He rises. And so should we. The godly will get back up.

Righteousness is the goal. Falling is the stimulus.

That is why we fall.

You Don’t Pet A Lion

April 26, 2012 / / 0 Comments

Be self-controlled and alert. Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour. Resist him, standing firm in the faith, because you know that your brothers throughout the world are undergoing the same kind of sufferings.
-1 Peter 5:8-9 (NIV)

The apostle Peter’s audience in the early Christian church had suffered through very difficult times. They had been mocked, criticized, and slandered by their culture. Because of the persecution they were facing, the people were inevitably feeling alone and helpless, especially if they focused solely on their troubles.

So as Peter is writing to them, he compares the devil to a lion, something they certainly would have understood due to their geography. Lions weren’t just observed at a zoo or circus… Lions were literally living in their backyards, and therefore they knew the animal’s habits. Specifically they knew that when a lion is looking for a victim to attack, they seek out the weakest — those who are young, sick or dragging behind.

That’s why its important to know the specifics about the people Peter is writing to. Just like a baby wildebeest on the African plains, these young Christians were vulnerable for attack.

So let me ask this… If I told you there was a lion hiding somewhere outside your doors, crouched and ready to devour you, would that instantly change your actions, decisions and priorities? I would hope so! Suddenly checking the mailbox isn’t as important.

You’d probably even go to extreme lengths to make sure you and those you care about were protected the lion’s attacks… For example, if you found out that giraffe pee was a natural lion repellent, I doubt you’d think twice about carrying a vile of the stuff around with you whenever you stepped outside.

Sure, it sounds excessive. Sure, others won’t get it. Sure, you may get ridiculed. But it’s a whole lot better than getting devoured by a lion, right?!

I firmly believe if we treated Peter’s statement like we really believed it, our lives would look a lot differently. But instead of taking the proper precautions, we snuggle up close to sin and temptation. Despite the obvious dangers, we think we can handle it.

Folks, you don’t pet a lion! Instead you do whatever it takes to safeguard yourself from them, no questions asked.

Once again, we’ve got to take what Peter said seriously… There is a lion on the prowl out there waiting to tear you limb from limb. So be self-controlled, be alert, and resist him by standing firm in the faith.

If not, the next to be devoured might be you.

Haters Gonna Hate

March 16, 2012 / / 0 Comments

When Sanballat, Tobiah, Geshem the Arab, and the rest of our enemies heard that I had rebuilt the wall and that no gap was left in it—though at that time I had not installed the doors in the gates— Sanballat and Geshem sent me a message: “Come, let’s meet together in the villages of the Ono Valley.” But they were planning to harm me. So I sent messengers to them, saying, “I am doing a great work and cannot come down. Why should the work cease while I leave it and go down to you?”
-Nehemiah 6:1-3 (HCSB)

When the Israelites returned to Jerusalem after being exiled in Babylon, they found the wall of their great city in shambles. Nehemiah, the Persian king’s cup bearer, immediately feels lead by God to do something about it when this news reaches his ears. Leaving his cushy job behind, Nehemiah decides it’s time to rebuild the wall.

Now one would think that there wouldn’t be any opposition to this idea. Without a wall, Jerusalem was defenseless and open to attack from outsiders. So rebuilding the wall is a no-brainer, right?

Nonetheless, some of the local elite who had benefited from the Israelites’ absence — Sanballat, Tobiah and Geshem — felt threatened by Nehemiah’s arrival. So they resisted the plan for a new wall.

Unfortunately, not much has changed. Still today, when you get involved with what God is doing, other people will complain, grumble and oppose it. You can pretty much guarantee it, because some people are just haters. And haters gonna hate.

It’s important to realize that truth because when you are obedient to God, you will undoubtedly find yourself in that situation. You are doing something you sincerely believe God wants, yet there is still conflict. So you naturally begin to question things… Am I outside God’s will with this? Do I have it all wrong? Is this opposition a sign I should give up?

Sadly there is a twisted idea out there that if we do something for God, then it shouldn’t face any opposition. But let me ask this… Was the criticism Nehemiah faced a sign he was doing something God didn’t want? Apparently not. Like Nehemiah’s naysayers, some critics only have intent to harm.

The fact of the matter is when you are obedient to God’s calling, when you are wrapped up in his work, when progress is being made for God’s glory… Guess where Satan wants to be? Right in the middle of it. He loves to create problems where God is moving. And what is one of Satan’s favorite tools to accomplish just that? Haters.

So maybe conflict can be a sign that you are exactly where you’re supposed to be. And when the cynics start rearing their heads (and they will), we have two options. We can halt God’s work, come down to their level, and accomplish nothing. Or, we can have the perspective of Nehemiah, who simply silenced his skeptics by saying, “I am doing a great work and cannot come down.”

Who will you choose to listen to? Ultimately we only answer to God. So sometimes the critics must be ignored. Just because they’re the loudest, doesn’t mean they are the majority. They may just be haters.

And haters gonna hate.

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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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