selfishness – Be Still…

Mark 8:34-9:1 – How to Follow Jesus

Read Mark 8:34-9:1

Do you think the crowds showing up to see Jesus wondered how they could become followers like the chosen twelve? Jesus’ magnetic character automatically drew people to him. I’m guessing many of those people wanted more. We often find ourselves wanting more, too.

In this passage, Jesus lets us all know how we can be his followers. Jesus told them, “you must give up your own way, take up your cross, and follow me.” Would that statement have made sense to those hungry for more? Does it make sense to you?

Zechariah 11:4-17 – Good Shepherd

Read Zechariah 11:4-17

Another shift just happened. The voice and writing style here don’t seem to be the same as Zechariah in the first portion of the book. But this passage has been inspirationally placed exactly where it is. We can trust God for that.

That’s one of those Bible secrets people often never experience. As it says in 2 Timothy 3:16, “All Scripture is inspired by God and is useful to teach us what is true and to make us realize what is wrong in our lives. It corrects us when we are wrong and teaches us to do what is right.” The secret is, all Scripture, the whole Bible, is true because it’s inspired by God.

Luke 20:1-19 – Jesus Teaches Us

Read Luke 20:1-19

Jesus final days were spent teaching in the Temple. There were so many lessons left to share; Jesus had to be wondering how he could fit them all in. These teachable moments were often interrupted by confrontation.

Today we see how the religious leaders were trying to trip up Jesus and interrupt the flow of his teaching. Because they were so offended by his popularity, they had to know who had given Jesus the authority to speak and preach as he had been. What other motives may they have had? We see how brilliantly Jesus turns the inquisition around so the leaders are left speechless. But they didn’t walk away. They stayed and listened.

James 3:13-18 – True Wisdom

Read James 3:13-18

We can tell a lot about James’ audience by what he teaches them. It seems they may have had a lot of similar faults to people we may recognize. Jealousy, selfishness, boasting, and lying are not uncommon in our culture today and might even be running rampant. What does James say about that? “Such things are earthly, unspiritual, and demonic.”

Take a moment to let that sink in. Demonic. It makes sense. Those attributes are certainly distasteful when you have experienced the Holy Spirit living inside you. James warns us to stay away from such things, for in them evil resides. Clearly his readers are having a hard time trading in their worldly habits and ideas in exchange for God’s viewpoint. Thankfully, James gives us a solution.

Philippians 2:1-11 – What is Being Christ-like?

Read Philippians 2:1-11

petals of a flower opening with the words Jesus Beautiful Savior

Yes. Yes. Yes. And, yes! I would say those are my answers to Paul’s first four questions. He seems to be urging his friends into spiritual unity. When we can all work together, caring for others and putting others first, we move closer to becoming more like Jesus. Selfish behavior can ruin a church while humility can restore and rebuild. Think about a situation in your church or community where grace and respect would have been the better answer.

Read these “warning” words from Paul again, “Don’t be selfish; don’t try to impress others. Be humble, thinking of others as better than yourselves. Don’t look out only for your own interests, but take an interest in others, too.” If you’re like me, you immediately pictured yourself in the “reprimand.” Now read this message again and picture Jesus and how he lived and interacted with others. How cool is that? Jesus totally lived out these words!