March 9th 2025
Maybe During This Lenten Season, We Should Consider “Giving Up” Sinning, And “Taking Up” Working On Trying To Become More Christ-Like!
Acts 4:11-12 (NIV)
He is “the stone you builders rejected, which has become the capstone.’ Salvation is found in no-one else, for there is no other name under heaven given to men by which we must be saved."
We had a very inspirational worship service on Wednesday night to celebrate Ash Wednesday, which included the disposition of ashes in the form of a cross on our forehead at the church we regularly attend. At this service, our Pastor suggested that we should decide what we will “take up” during this Lenten Season, instead of what we will “give up!” What we take up or focus on could be to look at areas of our membership in the family of Jesus Christ with emphasis on becoming more Christ-like leading up to the celebration of Easter.
Following is a description of the meaning of such a service, and the significance of what this service represents. Pulled from the Internet: Ash Wednesday is a day of repentance in the Christian tradition, when Christians confess their sins and profess their devotion to God. It marks the beginning of the holy season of Lent, a time for reflection and repentance in preparation for the celebration of Easter. During a Mass, a priest places the ashes on a worshiper's forehead in the shape of a cross. The 40-day period of Lent represents Christ’s time of temptation in the wilderness, where he fasted and where Satan tempted him.
In the selected verses Peter and John have been required to appear before the Sanhedrin to explain by what power were they able to heal people, as they had just enabled a crippled man and restored his ability to walk. Then Peter is filled with the Holy Spirit, and he tells them how they can heal people. If we are being called to account today for an act of kindness shown to a cripple and are asked how he was healed, then know this, you and all the people of Israel: It is by the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, whom you crucified but whom God raised from the dead, that this man stands before you healed. (Acts 4:9-10). The Jewish religious leaders of that time did not believe that Jesus was the prophesied Messiah, and they still do not believe it!
Jesus began His earthly ministry as the Son of Man, when He asked John the Baptist to baptize Him! As soon as Jesus was baptized, he went up out of the water. At that moment heaven was opened, and he saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and lighting on him. And a voice from heaven said, "This is my Son, whom I love; with him I am well pleased." (Matthew 3:16-17).
Then Jesus was led by the Spirit into the desert to be tempted by the devil. After fasting for forty days and forty nights, he was hungry. The tempter came to him and said, "If you are the Son of God, tell these stones to become bread." Jesus answered, "It is written: ‘Man does not live on bread alone, but on every word that comes from the mouth of God.’" (Matthew 4:1-4). The devil tried to tempt Jesus by making Him other offers to get Jesus to bow down to him, and thus, to give His glory to Satan and for Jesus’ to thus fail in His earthly mission!
Since Jesus is a human being walking this earth the statement “Then Jesus was led by the Spirit into the desert to be tempted by the devil,” made me wonder if normal human beings may also be tempted by the Spirit! James wrote an assurance for us that God would not tempt us. When tempted, no-one should say, "God is tempting me." For God cannot be tempted by evil, nor does he tempt anyone; but each one is tempted when, by his own evil desire, he is dragged away and enticed. Then, after desire has conceived, it gives birth to sin; and sin, when it is full-grown, gives birth to death. (James 1:13-15). Jesus’ earthly brother James did not believe God would or could tempt anyone to have evil thoughts or to do evil deeds.
Paul wrote about the idea that all humans are exposed to similar temptations. So, if you think you are standing firm, be careful that you don’t fall! No temptation has seized you except what is common to man. And God is faithful; he will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear. But when you are tempted, he will also provide a way out so that you can stand up under it. (1 Corinthians 10:12-13). While this is basically true, of course, there are vastly different views developed based on what the person has exposed to by the people who raised the person and what they profess to believe. Some people believe that even murder is okay, and thus, if you have a disagreement with someone then it is okay to murder them!
This control Paul wrote about is based on the people group would be predominantly made up of people who profess Christianity as their belief system. Even when we delimit the controlling group to be comprised of professing Christians, we would still find a range of ideas about what actions would be considered as being sinful, and thus, should be avoided! God gave us the Ten Commandments to teach us what God would consider as sinful there is still a lot of wiggle room possible in discerning what are considered as sinful, and what the importance level would make our list of which sins are most important to avoid.
Maybe during this Lenten Season, we should consider “giving up” sinning, and “taking up” working on trying to become more Christ-like! And stop quibbling over deciding what actions may be sinful by avoiding everything that you believe Jesus did not do, when He still walked this earth as our brother!
Your brother in life through Adam, your brother in eternity through Jesus,
Bob Moak
Acts 4:11-12 (NIV)
He is “the stone you builders rejected, which has become the capstone.’ Salvation is found in no-one else, for there is no other name under heaven given to men by which we must be saved."
We had a very inspirational worship service on Wednesday night to celebrate Ash Wednesday, which included the disposition of ashes in the form of a cross on our forehead at the church we regularly attend. At this service, our Pastor suggested that we should decide what we will “take up” during this Lenten Season, instead of what we will “give up!” What we take up or focus on could be to look at areas of our membership in the family of Jesus Christ with emphasis on becoming more Christ-like leading up to the celebration of Easter.
Following is a description of the meaning of such a service, and the significance of what this service represents. Pulled from the Internet: Ash Wednesday is a day of repentance in the Christian tradition, when Christians confess their sins and profess their devotion to God. It marks the beginning of the holy season of Lent, a time for reflection and repentance in preparation for the celebration of Easter. During a Mass, a priest places the ashes on a worshiper's forehead in the shape of a cross. The 40-day period of Lent represents Christ’s time of temptation in the wilderness, where he fasted and where Satan tempted him.
In the selected verses Peter and John have been required to appear before the Sanhedrin to explain by what power were they able to heal people, as they had just enabled a crippled man and restored his ability to walk. Then Peter is filled with the Holy Spirit, and he tells them how they can heal people. If we are being called to account today for an act of kindness shown to a cripple and are asked how he was healed, then know this, you and all the people of Israel: It is by the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, whom you crucified but whom God raised from the dead, that this man stands before you healed. (Acts 4:9-10). The Jewish religious leaders of that time did not believe that Jesus was the prophesied Messiah, and they still do not believe it!
Jesus began His earthly ministry as the Son of Man, when He asked John the Baptist to baptize Him! As soon as Jesus was baptized, he went up out of the water. At that moment heaven was opened, and he saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and lighting on him. And a voice from heaven said, "This is my Son, whom I love; with him I am well pleased." (Matthew 3:16-17).
Then Jesus was led by the Spirit into the desert to be tempted by the devil. After fasting for forty days and forty nights, he was hungry. The tempter came to him and said, "If you are the Son of God, tell these stones to become bread." Jesus answered, "It is written: ‘Man does not live on bread alone, but on every word that comes from the mouth of God.’" (Matthew 4:1-4). The devil tried to tempt Jesus by making Him other offers to get Jesus to bow down to him, and thus, to give His glory to Satan and for Jesus’ to thus fail in His earthly mission!
Since Jesus is a human being walking this earth the statement “Then Jesus was led by the Spirit into the desert to be tempted by the devil,” made me wonder if normal human beings may also be tempted by the Spirit! James wrote an assurance for us that God would not tempt us. When tempted, no-one should say, "God is tempting me." For God cannot be tempted by evil, nor does he tempt anyone; but each one is tempted when, by his own evil desire, he is dragged away and enticed. Then, after desire has conceived, it gives birth to sin; and sin, when it is full-grown, gives birth to death. (James 1:13-15). Jesus’ earthly brother James did not believe God would or could tempt anyone to have evil thoughts or to do evil deeds.
Paul wrote about the idea that all humans are exposed to similar temptations. So, if you think you are standing firm, be careful that you don’t fall! No temptation has seized you except what is common to man. And God is faithful; he will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear. But when you are tempted, he will also provide a way out so that you can stand up under it. (1 Corinthians 10:12-13). While this is basically true, of course, there are vastly different views developed based on what the person has exposed to by the people who raised the person and what they profess to believe. Some people believe that even murder is okay, and thus, if you have a disagreement with someone then it is okay to murder them!
This control Paul wrote about is based on the people group would be predominantly made up of people who profess Christianity as their belief system. Even when we delimit the controlling group to be comprised of professing Christians, we would still find a range of ideas about what actions would be considered as being sinful, and thus, should be avoided! God gave us the Ten Commandments to teach us what God would consider as sinful there is still a lot of wiggle room possible in discerning what are considered as sinful, and what the importance level would make our list of which sins are most important to avoid.
Maybe during this Lenten Season, we should consider “giving up” sinning, and “taking up” working on trying to become more Christ-like! And stop quibbling over deciding what actions may be sinful by avoiding everything that you believe Jesus did not do, when He still walked this earth as our brother!
Your brother in life through Adam, your brother in eternity through Jesus,
Bob Moak
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