Fifteenth Sunday After Pentecost

Bottom Line Spirituality: Worldly and Godly Thinking

Click here to go to the Bottom Line Meditations for Fifteenth Sunday after Pentecost

Godly Abiding Spiritually in Jesus Changes the Meaning of What we See Worldly When Not Abiding in Jesus.

Spirituality is our innate ability to feel the difference worldly or godly thinking makes to the way scripture translates to our daily life and relationships.

Remember: The DISCIPLE-SHIFT

(see Pentecost Sunday Meditation by Clicking Here)

The Virtual Small Group

Members share once a week with their group through the internet when a shift from being out to being in the Presence made a difference.

All Scripture is a testimony to Jesus Christ, who is the Word of God. He is the complete revelation of God’s will of grace for salvation. Grace is the only unfailing rule of faith and practice for the Christian life.

The Gospel of grace is: rather than doing it right to become right with God, to be right with God to do what is right.

The War on Legalism

God declared War on Legalism when He sent His Word into the World. The Word became flesh and dwelt among us … full of grace and truth. John 1:14 Legalism fought back against grace believing the Bible, not Jesus, is the word of God. Grace is based on the Two Great Love Commandments. All the Law and the Prophets have now been changed into “do the loving thing.” Matthew 22:37-40 The New Command is to be in His Presence in order to Love one another. John 13:34 “Apart from me you can do nothing.” John 15:5

Galatians 5:4 “You who are trying to be justified by the law have been alienated from Christ; you have fallen away from grace.”

If you are not committing any sins, you are probably are a legalist who is not having a lot of fun.

Luke 14:1, 7-14 "Be humble”

“Be Humble,” is an interesting command. Did you ever try to do it? Jesus says, “All who exalt themselves will be humbled, and those who humble themselves will be exalted.” If you faked your humbleness by sitting at the end of the table, would you be exalted?

As an aside, an interesting part to the story is why is Jesus in the house of a Pharisee? One reason could have to do with His Father, Joseph. Joseph was a carpenter. In those days there was no middle class only upper and lower. He may have had a lot of contacts with Pharisees or perhaps been one, nothing wrong with that. Joseph was not in the mix anymore; He probably had died. Here was Jesus acting like some sort of hippie. One of his best friends may have tried to straighten him out by inviting him to dine with a few Pharisees to see that they were not so bad.

We must realize this is a novel we are reading, not a set of teachings. They have to have continuity if they are to make sense. Luke 14:1 tells us Jesus is at the home of a Pharisee.   The selected verses leave out the argument about Jesus healing a man (detailed in Luke 14:2-6).

On this occasion Jesus was going to the house of a leader of the Pharisees to eat a meal on the Sabbath and they were watching him closely. A man with a disease is there and Jesus heals him. He asks if it is right to heal on the Sabbath. They are angrily silent.

What happens then is the host, trying to keep things calmed down, rings the dinner bell. The Pharisee who is most critical of Jesus rushes to get the top seat at the table. Jesus is talking with a few others and by the time he arrives there is only one seat left and that is at the end of the table.

The Host, not happy with the self-righteous Pharisee, takes Jesus by the hand and puts him at the head of the table. He sends the self-righteous Pharisee down to the very end. Jesus is embarrassed but out of politeness He must go along. So he makes a joke of it. “When you are invited, go and sit down at the lowest place, so that when your host comes, he may say to you, 'Friend, move up higher'; then you will be honored in the presence of all who sit at the table with you.” They all laugh.

The Gospel of grace is: rather than trying to be humble to be in God’s grace, by consciously feeling His grace we become humble. The real laugh is the impossibility of being humble. You might as well write a book, “My humility and how I earned it”. Humility is a fruit, not a work. You don’t do it, you become it. When we are out of the Presence, no matter how hard we try we cannot become humble, think humble or feel humble. We become humble in the Presence of God’s Love, Joy, Peace and Wisdom.  Humility is a gift to us from God.

THE DISCIPLE-SHIFT: The Virtual Small Group:  Members share once a week with their group through the internet when a shift from being out to being in the Presence made a difference.