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Wisdom Where Are You?

Posted on by marcelinoacastro

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Does anyone ever use a make anymore? And I don’t mean Google Maps or Apple Maps. I mean the old school paper maps! Or how about a Thomas Guide! Remember those. Well, whatever you use to get directions, we use these tools so that we can find the place we want to go. With modern day GPS devices its easier (in theory) to not get lost and to actually find your way.

Life is full of decisions, some big and some small.  Some can change the course of our lives. We look for wisdom. We look for advice. We want to find our way. We don’t want to end up somewhere we don’t want to go. So we search for wisdom. Where can we find it? Is it hard to find? Are we like those old school people with their Thomas Guides trying to match the letter to the number hoping to find our way? Or do we have the confidence to find wisdom with our modern day GPS? (I know some would say the Thomas Guide was like today’s GPS.)

Check out what Proverbs 2:1-5 says about wisdom

My son, if you accept my words
and store up my commands within you,
turning your ear to wisdom
and applying your heart to understanding—
indeed, if you call out for insight
and cry aloud for understanding,
and if you look for it as for silver
and search for it as for hidden treasure,
then you will understand the fear of the Lord
and find the knowledge of God.
If I am trying to find my way to let’s say Disneyland, you better believe I am going to figure it out. If someone says there is $1,000 hidden somewhere in your backyard, you will find it somehow. If you search for wisdom with that kind of motivation, you will find it. But we must go to the source. What or better who is the source?
For the Lord gives wisdom;
from his mouth come knowledge and understanding. Proverbs 6:6
The Lord is the source of wisdom. We find knowledge and understanding by pursuing him and then actually doing what he says. Accept his words and store up his commands.
If we don’t want to end up in a place we didn’t intend, then accept the words of wisdom. If we do this, it will actually save us.
Wisdom will save you from the ways of wicked men,
from men whose words are perverse,
who have left the straight paths
to walk in dark ways. Proverbs 6:12-13
Wisdom will save you also from the adulterous woman,
from the wayward woman with her seductive words. Proverbs 6:16
We live in a dark world. There are many ways that we could go that are dark. People are selfish. They try and get what they can while they can. Is this the path you want to go? Many don’t always intend to go down these dark ways. They just don’t have their GPS on. Or they are deciding to not use their GPS.
Who are you listening to? Will you accept the words of wisdom? This isn’t easy, but when you seek for wisdom from the Lord, you will find it.
Thanks for reading.

Good News for Yesterday, Today and Forever

Posted on by marcelinoacastro

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Good News

We have all gotten good news before. We got a letter in the mail that we were accepted to that college we were hoping to get into.

When my girl friend at the time said YES to my proposal! That’s great news!

Your team won the championship! That’s good news! We receive all kinds of news some good and some bad. I am a Lakers fan and it was good news when they won their championship in 2010. That was good news. It now seems like a distant memory as they have not even made the playoffs the last few years.

News can some times become outdated. With the advent of the 24 hour news cycle news can change quickly. Yesterdays news can seem like a lifetime away.

However, there is news, good news, that is relevant yesterday, today and forever.

Check out what Paul says in his letter to the churches in Roman about this good news.

Paul, a servant of Christ Jesus, called to be an apostle and set apart for the gospel of God—2 the gospel he promised beforehand through his prophets in the Holy Scriptures 3 regarding his Son, who as to his earthly life g was a descendant of David, 4 and who through the Spirit of holiness was appointed the Son of God in power i by his resurrection from the dead: Jesus Christ our Lord. 5 Through him we received grace and apostleship to call all the Gentiles to the obedience that comes from faith for his name’s sake. 6 And you also are among those Gentiles who are called to belong to Jesus Christ.

7 To all in Rome who are loved by God and called to be his holy people:

Grace and peace to you from God our Father and from the Lord Jesus Christ. Romans 1:1-7

Good News for Yesterday

The gospel is the good news that he is talking about. Paul refers back to yesterday. He is saying that the good news was spoken about in the prophets and the holy scriptures. This is referring back to the Old Testament or Hebrew Bible. The good news was talked about in the past. Paul gets specific here he says “a descendant of David” and Jesus is Christ our Lord.

Jesus is a descendant of the greatest king of Ancient Israel’s history. And he is the “Christ” or Messiah and king.

Paul says this in the book of Acts when referring to Jesus as a descendant of David

“We tell you the good news: What God promised our ancestors 33 he has fulfilled for us, their children, by raising up Jesus. As it is written in the second Psalm:
“ ‘You are my son;
today I have become your father.’
34 God raised him from the dead so that he will never be subject to decay. As God has said,
“ ‘I will give you the holy and sure blessings promised to David.’
35 So it is also stated elsewhere: “ ‘You will not let your holy one see decay.’ Acts 13:32-35

This is good news was relevant yesterday and it is relevant for today.

Good News for Today

The good news that Paul spoke was good news for today. It clearly spoke of good news that was relevant for their today, and for our today as well.

It was good news for today because it brings salvation.

For I am not ashamed of the gospel, because it is the power of God that brings salvation to everyone who believes: first to the Jew, then to the Gentile. 17 For in the gospel the righteousness of God is revealed—a righteousness that is by faith from first to last, just as it is written: “The righteous will live by faith.” Romans 1:16-17

We are saved from our sins. We have eternal life. We are made right and have a relationship with God forever. This is for those of us who put their trust in Jesus.

This is also good news for today because it engages culture. The words “Good News,” “King,” and “Lord” were all also in reference to Caesar. His birthday was even called “Good News.” He was king and Lord. The early church new that this could create tension with the culture. And yet they were to proclaim that Jesus the King is Lord!

Paul’s good news is good news for yesterday, today and forever.

Good News for Forever

Paul’s good news is for forever.  Paul says this later on in Romans

And if the Spirit of him who raised Jesus from the dead is living in you, he who raised Christ from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies because of his Spirit who lives in you. Romans 8:11

Jesus our king was raised, so we too will be raised. What happened to Jesus will happen to us. He give us life now and forever. This is good news for yesterday, today and forever.

Conclusion

I think it is easy for us to get bogged down with the issues of life. Even for those who work in the church. We can forget “the why.” Why do we do what we do? Why do we follow Jesus? Why do we serve in the church? It is because the Good News is always good news.

The good news is always good news

This news never goes out of style or becomes outdate. What would happen if we lived our lives day in and day out like the Good News is still good today? What if we realized that the Good news engages culture today? What would happen if we lived like “The gospel” was relevant to our lives today? What if we lived like the good news is not yesterday’s news?

I believe we would not grow weary in doing good. I believe we would engage culture instead of isolating ourselves. I believe we would live out this good news and share it with others.

What do you think? How would treating the Good News like its still good news change how we live? Thanks for reading!