For a list of all free video teachings and transcripts in this series, go HERE.
--------------Transcript -------------------------
Welcome back to the Teachings of Jesus
series that we are going through this summer. And yes, look who is
here? Willa the mascot is here, and are you ready for this? Someone
else is here too. (Removes pillow to reveal another dog under it). I
guess this will be our other mascot. This is Romeo. He's my
dachshund. He's a dachshund terrier mix. He will just stay back
there, buried behind the pillow. My dogs, they act like cats, they bury
themselves in pillows (on the back of the sofa.)
Anyway – today we are going to
continue with the last video in which we left off. It is immediately
after. In fact, let's go back and remember what was happening in our
last teaching. The people came over and were criticizing Jesus
because he and his disciples were not fasting. They were not
maintaining this tradition that the Pharisees were maintaining and
that John's disciples were maintaining. And they were saying, “Why
aren't you fasting?” But it was in a critical way.
Immediately after Jesus responded with
the wedding metaphor – the wedding analogy; he then continued, and this
is what he continued to say. I am in Mark 2:21. In the book it is Day
9, in the ebook Day 9 and in the paper book on page 62. Here is what
he said:
“No one sews a piece of unshrunk
cloth on an old garment. If he does, the patch tears away from it,
the new from the old, and a worse tear is made. And no one puts new
wine into old wineskins. If he does, the wine will burst the skins.
But new wine is for fresh wineskins.”
The traditions, the issue with
traditions is we use – we rely on those – to replace our
closeness with God. From the very first video, and if you haven't
watched it, go back and watch it or read the transcript. After
studying the teachings of Jesus – studying them for two years,
deeply researching them - we keep going back to the first thing that Jesus
taught – that God is near, that His kingdom is near. And we
remember the last thing that Jesus taught – he said, “I will be
near, always, to the end of the age.”
Then we see all these examples, like in
our last lesson when he told the Pharisees that it is important that
we enjoy our nearness together, me and my disciples with each other.
We know the story of Mary and Martha where he teaches the same thing
again. God is near – and he wants us to keep that awareness. And
in our busy, busy lives – I call them micro-distractions. Our texts
are chirping, our TVs are running in the background – or
livestreams or whatever, it's not even really TV anymore. We have
this on our schedule or that on our schedule, and we just let the
busyness – and so it is easy then, it is easy to just fit in a
little tradition or a little routine and then to say – “Ok, I
have done my time with God.”
But Jesus said, “No, what I am
teaching – you can't just take my teaching and stick it into your
old ways of thinking. It will burst. If you try to take what I am
teaching you and stick it into your old ways of being, it is going to
ruin your old ways and it is going to ruin the new teachings. It
doesn't work. And the same thing with the cloth. If what I am
teaching you, if you just take it and try to stick it on (what you
are already doing) – no – it won't attach.”
And likewise, if we just try to "tack on a little prayer time," or a "little worship time," or one even a weekly routine of volunteering -- if we just try to "tack on" some religious routines into our busy and distracted schedules -- it does not work that way. The spiritual truths don't just attach by tacking them on. It is necessary to change all of what you are doing, to keep focused on Him.
Ask yourself – What are some
traditions that you are holding on to. Traditions or routines or
activities that you are holding on to? But you are actually letting
those traditions take more precedent in your life than your actual
relationship with God, your actual relationship through Christ?
If you are a church-goer, how many
hours do you spend at church, and then how many hours do you actually
spend one on one with God? Or just even being aware that He is near?
Now this is one for me. I spend a whole lot of time reading other
Christian writers' books and reading commentaries. And that's good;
but I have found that reading Christian genre books – whether it is
Christian fiction or non-fiction – even that does not replace time
in the word. There is just something about reading the word, the raw
word, that inspires and instructs and reveals more to me – than
even reading a great theologian or their take on a passage.
So I say this to you! If you are
watching these videos for 20 minutes a week, I hope you are spending
at least 40 minutes a week – at least twice as much time directly
with God on your own. And in this new wineskin, in this new
container, let's fill this one up with relationship building with
God, with Jesus. Ask yourself, is my relationship with God, through
Jesus – is it really the number one focus in my life? And then ask
yourself – what would my daily routines look like if the
relationship really was number one?
So think about that. How would my day
look? What would I need to do to make the relationship truly first?
Not too long ago I was reading some
things from Billy Graham, some of his life reflections. He was asked
by the interviewer, “Do you have any regrets? Anything you would
change about your life?”
And do you know what he said? He said that if he could go back and change things, or do things over, then he wishes that he had actually spent more one on one time with the Lord.
And do you know what he said? He said that if he could go back and change things, or do things over, then he wishes that he had actually spent more one on one time with the Lord.
I hear a lot of people that are trying
to grow spiritually with Christ and they are often like, “I just
wish I knew what the will of God was. I just wish I knew what the
will of God was. What does he want me to do? What door is he going to
open or close? Should I go this direction or should I go that
direction? What is His will?
The will of God is that you be in
relationship with Him. Everything starts there. That you remember
that He is near. That is His will. And why in our world is that so
HARD to do? Again, go back to the first video and watch it, and get
some practical ideas on how to keep Him at the forefront of your
mind. Not just in the morning or at night, but all throughout the
day. Because if you can keep him there – at the forefront of your
mind throughout the day. If you are able to multi-task and keep Him
there, while you are going throughout your day – you will be in His
will. That is when the promise from Psalms comes, when he says, “I will
guide you, I will show you the way to go.” (from Psalms 32:8)
And that, my friend, that is the new
wineskin. That is the new cloth. Traditions – you can't do anything
to be in His will outside of remembering that He is there, seeking
what He wants, going with Him.
So one more time – if you are not
someone that keeps God in mind all day long – like I wasn't. I was
not! That first video has some practical strategies. Or if you have
some other ideas or strategies – please share them! If you have
some other practical strategies to help us fight the enemy of
distractions and micro-distractions, I would love to hear them.
Until next week, thank you, bye for
now.
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Get the book or e-book to go along with the study. We will be covering 18 teachings this summer by video. The book, however, has nearly all Jesus's teachings in Mark and into Matthew. Get the book or e-book at Amazon by clicking HERE.
For a list of all free video teachings and transcripts in this series, go HERE.