extraordinary

1 Corinthians 2 9 That is what the Scriptures mean when they say,

“No eye has seen, no ear has heard,
    and no mind has imagined
what God has prepared
    for those who love him.”

10 But it was to us that God revealed these things by his Spirit. For his Spirit searches out everything and shows us God’s deep secrets. 11 No one can know a person’s thoughts except that person’s own spirit, and no one can know God’s thoughts except God’s own Spirit. 12 And we have received God’s Spirit (not the world’s spirit), so we can know the wonderful things God has freely given us.

13 When we tell you these things, we do not use words that come from human wisdom. Instead, we speak words given to us by the Spirit, using the Spirit’s words to explain spiritual truths. 14 But people who aren’t spiritual can’t receive these truths from God’s Spirit. It all sounds foolish to them and they can’t understand it, for only those who are spiritual can understand what the Spirit means. 15 Those who are spiritual can evaluate all things, but they themselves cannot be evaluated by others. 16 For,

“Who can know the Lord’s thoughts?
    Who knows enough to teach him?”

But we understand these things, for we have the mind of Christ.

2 passages

 I couldn't decide which of these 2 passages I should share, so I'm sharing both ;-)

 Corinthians 1

17 Now you have every spiritual gift you need 

as you eagerly wait for the return of our Lord Jesus Christ. 

8 He will keep you strong to the end 

so that you will be free from all blame 

on the day when our Lord Jesus Christ returns. 

9 God will do this, 

for he is faithful to do what he says, 

and he has invited you into partnership with his Son, Jesus Christ our Lord.

1 Corinthians 1

27 Instead, God chose things the world considers foolish 

in order to shame those who think they are wise. 

And he chose things that are powerless 

to shame those who are powerful. 

28 God chose things despised by the world, 

things counted as nothing at all, 

and used them to bring to nothing what the world considers important. 

29 As a result, no one can ever boast in the presence of God.

who do you hang with?

Mark 2 

13 Then Jesus went out to the lakeshore again 

and taught the crowds that were coming to him. 

14 As he walked along, he saw Levi son of Alphaeus sitting at his tax collector’s booth. 

“Follow me and be my disciple,” Jesus said to him. 

So Levi got up and followed him.

15 Later, Levi invited Jesus and his disciples to his home as dinner guests, along with many tax collectors and other disreputable sinners. (There were many people of this kind among Jesus’ followers.) 16 But when the teachers of religious law who were Pharisees saw him eating with tax collectors and other sinners, they asked his disciples, “Why does he eat with such scum”

17 When Jesus heard this, he told them, “Healthy people don’t need a doctor—sick people do. I have come to call not those who think they are righteous, but those who know they are sinners.”

There is a reason I almost always share these fews every time my daily reading takes me through them.

I share it to challenge us with the thought that not only did JESUS want to hang with "disreputable sinners" or "scum" but these people who were considered outcasts & moral degenerate WANTED to hang around Jesus.

And if we claim to be followers of Jesus, then we should ask ourselves continually 2 things:

Do WE have enough of Jesus love in us that WANT to hang out with "scum"?

And have we allowed ourselves to be so transformed by Jesus love in us that people we know who are considered "scum" WANT to hang with us?

If the answers to those 2 questions is "yes", then it would be interesting to figure out why.

And if the answers to either of those questions is "no", then it too would be interesting to know why.

onefive

 

Psalm 15

1 Who may worship in your sanctuary, Lord?
    Who may enter your presence on your holy hill?
2 Those who lead blameless lives and do what is right,
    speaking the truth from sincere hearts.
3 Those who refuse to gossip
    or harm their neighbors
    or speak evil of their friends.
4 Those who despise flagrant sinners,
    and honor the faithful followers of the Lord,
    and keep their promises even when it hurts.
5 Those who lend money without charging interest,
    and who cannot be bribed to lie about the innocent.
Such people will stand firm forever.

end of life issues?

Romans 14 

7 For we don’t live for ourselves 

or die for ourselves. 

8 If we live, 

it’s to honor the Lord. 

And if we die, 

it’s to honor the Lord. 

So whether we live or die, 

we belong to the Lord. 

9 Christ died and rose again for this very purpose—

to be Lord both of the living and of the dead.

the least of these

Matthew 25 

31 “But when the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, then he will sit upon his glorious throne. 32 All the nations will be gathered in his presence, and he will separate the people as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats. 33 He will place the sheep at his right hand and the goats at his left.

34 “Then the King will say to those on his right, ‘Come, you who are blessed by my Father, inherit the Kingdom prepared for you from the creation of the world. 35 For I was hungry, and you fed me. I was thirsty, and you gave me a drink. I was a stranger, and you invited me into your home. 36 I was naked, and you gave me clothing. I was sick, and you cared for me. I was in prison, and you visited me.’

37 “Then these righteous ones will reply, ‘Lord, when did we ever see you hungry and feed you? Or thirsty and give you something to drink? 38 Or a stranger and show you hospitality? Or naked and give you clothing? 39 When did we ever see you sick or in prison and visit you?’

40 “And the King will say, ‘I tell you the truth, when you did it to one of the least of these my brothers and sisters, you were doing it to me!’

41 “Then the King will turn to those on the left and say, ‘Away with you, you cursed ones, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his demons. 42 For I was hungry, and you didn’t feed me. I was thirsty, and you didn’t give me a drink. 43 I was a stranger, and you didn’t invite me into your home. I was naked, and you didn’t give me clothing. I was sick and in prison, and you didn’t visit me.’

44 “Then they will reply, ‘Lord, when did we ever see you hungry or thirsty or a stranger or naked or sick or in prison, and not help you?’

45 “And he will answer, ‘I tell you the truth, when you refused to help the least of these my brothers and sisters, you were refusing to help me.’

46 “And they will go away into eternal punishment, but the righteous will go into eternal life.”

living sacrifice

Romans 12 

1 And so, dear brothers and sisters, I plead with you to give your bodies to God

 because of all he has done for you. 

Let them be a living and holy sacrifice—

the kind he will find acceptable. 

This is truly the way to worship him. 

2 Don’t copy the behavior and customs of this world, 

but let God transform you into a new person 

by changing the way you think. 

Then you will learn to know God’s will for you, 

which is good 

and pleasing 

and perfect.

3 Because of the privilege and authority God has given me, I give each of you this warning: 

Don’t think you are better than you really are. 

Be honest in your evaluation of yourselves, 

measuring yourselves by the faith God has given us. 

4 Just as our bodies have many parts and each part has a special function, 

5 so it is with Christ’s body. 

We are many parts of one body, 

and we all belong to each other.

6 In his grace, God has given us different gifts for doing certain things well. 

So if God has given you the ability to prophesy, 

speak out with as much faith as God has given you. 

7 If your gift is serving others, 

serve them well. 

If you are a teacher, 

teach well. 

8 If your gift is to encourage others, 

be encouraging. 

If it is giving, 

give generously. 

If God has given you leadership ability, 

take the responsibility seriously. 

And if you have a gift for showing kindness to others, 

do it gladly.

9 Don’t just pretend to love others. 

Really love them. 

Hate what is wrong. 

Hold tightly to what is good. 

10 Love each other with genuine affection, 

and take delight in honoring each other. 

11 Never be lazy, 

but work hard 

and serve the Lord enthusiastically. 

12 Rejoice in our confident hope. 

Be patient in trouble, 

and keep on praying. 

13 When God’s people are in need, 

be ready to help them. 

Always be eager to practice hospitality.

14 Bless those who persecute you. 

Don’t curse them; 

pray that God will bless them. 

15 Be happy with those who are happy, 

and weep with those who weep. 

16 Live in harmony with each other. 

Don’t be too proud to enjoy the company of ordinary people. 

And don’t think you know it all!

17 Never pay back evil with more evil. 

Do things in such a way that everyone can see you are honorable. 

18 Do all that you can to live in peace with everyone.

19 Dear friends, never take revenge. 

Leave that to the righteous anger of God. 

For the Scriptures say,

“I will take revenge;
    I will pay them back,”
    says the Lord.

20 Instead,

“If your enemies are hungry, feed them.
    If they are thirsty, give them something to drink.
In doing this, you will heap
    burning coals of shame on their heads.”

21 Don’t let evil conquer you, 

but conquer evil by doing good.