Jon Harris

Before and After

Today’s reading link: Genesis 27; Matthew 26; Esther 3; Acts 26

One of our readers (Jane Harris who happens to be my loving mom) rightfully commented on Growing Leaders that Paul was the “before and after”. Thanks mom for your engagement on Bible Journal, we appreciate you!!!

In Acts 26 Paul describes his before and after. Paul’s before included imprisoning Christ followers as well as voting to put them to death. He punished them, tried to get them to curse (blaspheme) Jesus, was full of rage, and forced them to flee to foreign cities. In 1 Timothy 1:15 Paul even refers to himself as the chief or foremost sinner. These attributes come to mind in describing Paul’s prior life: full of anger, hatred, rage, abusive, murderous thoughts, and pride. Then he met Jesus, literally – he met him, and chose to trust and follow him with all his heart, and everything changed. The before attributes transformed into a beautiful after: fully recognizable “fruit of the Spirit”.

“But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law.” – Galatians 5:22-23

There’s another before example in today’s reading in Matthew 26. Jesus’ disciples hung out with him, listened to his teaching, witnessed his miracles, and even declared that he was the Son of God. They were scared when Jesus was arrested, and instead of staying beside their teacher and proving their love, they left him. Peter (the same guy whose faith enabled him to walk on water) denies Jesus verbally, three times.

This behavior is evidence of a before situation; lives not yet filled with the Holy Spirit, and very similar to my life for many years. I had attended church as a kid, heard the teachings of Jesus, professed to follow him, professed verbally that he was the Son of God, and had been voluntarily baptized. The problem was that when it came down to it, I basically either ignored Jesus or left him out of fear, and denied him far more than three times (not verbally, but with my heart and life choices). I was dead in my sin, but God is rich in mercy…

“And you were dead in the trespasses and sins in which you once walked, following the course of this world, following the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that is now at work in the sons of disobedience—among whom we all once lived in the passions of our flesh, carrying out the desires of the body and the mind, and were by nature children of wrath, like the rest of mankind. But God, being rich in mercy, because of the great love with which he loved us,even when we were dead in our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ—by grace you have been saved” – Ephesians 2:1-5

One key difference between my before and after is my relationship with God. I had always had some belief that there was a God, but I couldn’t say I loved God or Jesus because we didn’t have a relationship. Can we love someone we don’t know? I don’t think so. The more I get to know God through a real relationship (for example: prayer, studying scripture, writing these journal entries) the more I realize how deeply he loves all of us, and I grow in my love for Him.

Considering these before and after situations, the word “unlikely” keeps coming to mind. God, through his love, mercy, and grace makes the seemingly impossible possible. It seemed unlikely that Saul (Paul) would become a Christ follower, but God had a different plan. It seemed unlikely the disciples would turn back to Jesus, but they did.

If you knew me in high school or college it would have seemed unlikely that I would get married and be a faithful husband, but I did get married and have remained faithful to the most amazing woman I have ever met. Thank you God. It seemed unlikely that I’d join a small group, fall in love with God’s word, or share my faith publicly on the internet, but I did. I say these things not to convince anyone that I’m a good person; I am a sinner and actually have wondered if I might be in competition with Paul for “chief sinner”. The thing is that I now see my sin as sin, and the more I realize how big and wrong sin is, the greater I see the magnitude of what Jesus did on the cross so that I can be forgiven.

This is my before and after. What’s yours?

Growing Leaders

Today’s reading link: Genesis 21; Matthew 20; Nehemiah 10; Acts 20

Jesus, although having all authority over heaven and earth reminds us that he came to serve.

For even the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve others and to give his life as a ransom for many. Matthew 20:28

Jesus set the greatest example of servant leadership and Paul sought to live it out. Today’s reading in Acts 20 provides numerous examples as to how Paul lived the servant-leader lifestyle. From this chapter we could perhaps summarize all of the (good) leadership books ever written!

Before diving into the leadership attributes, there is some background on Paul that should be noted. Paul (formerly Saul) had some serious training. He studied and memorized Jewish law and scripture for many years. He was trained to become a Pharisee; the highest in order within the ruling class of Israel. Paul was chosen by Jesus to take his message to Gentiles, kings, and the people of Israel (see Acts 9:15). In summary: Paul was educated, trained, and appointed. He didn’t just show up on the scene taking over the leadership reigns.

Here are the leadership attributes that I’ve noticed in Acts 20 along with the verse number for reference. Perhaps I’ve missed some… Can you identify more in this chapter?

Leaders “are” and/or “do” the following:

Encourage; Paul “encourages them”. Encouragement helps give us meaning to our work and can also help get us through rough times. (1-2)
Engage; they meet with people in their environment; they’re visible; Paul spends much of his time traveling to be with those who need him (2-3) and “lived among them”. (18)
In-sync; leaders surround themselves with team-members for assistance and mentoring. They know what is going on with their team and vice-versa. Paul was accompanied by several people, he wasn’t going at it alone. (4)
Tireless; leaders selflessly invest hours and make many sacrifices where and when appropriate. Prior to departing, Paul preaches and teaches “until daybreak”. (7, 11)
Compassionate, merciful; Paul shows kindness to the young man who fell out of the window. Reading this I also sense a calm confidence from Paul as he embraces the injured young man who was believed to be dead. (10)
Intimate; they broke bread together. Some commentary suggests verse 11 was a meal, some suggest the Lord’s Supper, and some suggest both. Regardless, breaking bread equates to “doing life” with people and this kind of environment can open doors to deep conversation and build bonds among peers. (11)
Humble, passionate; Paul served with all humility and with tears due to the trials he was put through. (19)
Direct; Paul tells it like it is, without holding back; “didn’t shrink” (20, 27)
Devoted; Paul led and taught publicly and privately for the benefit of others, he taught in public and from house to house. (20)
Focused; leaders know the mission statement and act on the mission; Paul firmly led and taught: “testify of repentance” and faith in Jesus. (21)
Inclusive; Paul made it clear that the mission and message were for all, both Jews and Greeks. (21)
Faithful; Paul didn’t know exactly what would happen but faithfully presses on for the cause. (22)
Fearless; jail and suffering lie ahead and Paul is committed to facing both. (23)
Relentless; finishing the work means everything; considers his life worthless unless he finishes his course. (24)
In touch; Prepare others as leaders to take over, giving instruction; Paul has been watching over these people and is getting them ready, and is in touch with them as well as in touch with the knowledge of hardships yet to come. (28-29)
Truthful; warns them of liars coming to distract and destroy. Paul cherished the truth. (30)
Invest; Paul spent three years, night and day, instructing. (31)
Commend, pass the baton; turning over leadership position at the right time, to those who are ready. (32)
Noble, they do not seek wealth for themselves; Paul didn’t seek after money or things such as clothing. (33)
Preserve; they are good stewards of their resources, not burdening others; Paul supplied for his own needs, he didn’t ask for much from a material standpoint. (34)
Helpful, hard-working, with the focus on helping others. (35)
Prayerful; Paul prayed with others. I’ve spent time with executives and leaders whom I highly respected and nothing touched me more than when they prayed with and for me, humbly bowing down and seeking council from God Almighty. (36)
We can also tell that Paul was a real leader because he was respected and admired by those whom he impacted. They even wept when he departed. (37-38)

These leadership attributes hadn’t ever popped out to me in the past, even after reading the chapter several times. Then after taking some time reading it over again slowly, and prayerfully considering what to write, it became so clear and I wondered how I missed it before. I’m so thankful that the Bible is relevant and that God uses it to speak to us when we take the time to read it with the intent to seek and do his will.

For the word of God is living and active, sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing to the division of soul and of spirit, of joints and of marrow, and discerning the thoughts and intentions of the heart. Hebrews 4:12

Son of God

Jesus walking on water.

Today’s reading link: Genesis 15; Matthew 14; Nehemiah 4; Acts 14

Either this man was, and is, the Son of God, or else a madman or something worse. You can shut him up for a fool, you can spit at him and kill him as a demon or you can fall at his feet and call him Lord and God, but let us not come with any patronizing nonsense about his being a great human teacher. – C.S. Lewis, Mere Christianity

In 2005, I felt God challenging me to come to terms with the fact that I claimed to be a Christian but I was living indifferently, without demonstrating any faith and without any action that might remotely resemble someone who loved, trusted, or followed Jesus. I was lukewarm on God.

The way C.S. Lewis boiled it down was the turning point. Those words spoke to me saying: decide for yourself, man up. It was time to get rid of my bad assumptions as to what Christians believed or how they behaved. It was time to act: read, seek, pray, get real and come to a final answer for these two very important questions. Was Jesus who he said he was? And if so, what did he say?

I had previously dabbled in Bible reading but it was mostly half-hearted. This time I approached the Bible with reverence because I was actually afraid of coming to the conclusion that Jesus was perhaps a madman, and then I’d be left lost and empty. Then I read the book of Matthew and it spoke to me like it had never done before.

Matthew documents how Jesus faced opposition even though over and over he proved his love for people, he wisely taught them, and performed numerous miracles for the benefit of those he loved and to give glory to God. Jesus healed every disease and became famous:

And he went throughout all Galilee, teaching in their synagogues and proclaiming the gospel of the kingdom and healing every disease and every affliction among the people. So his fame spread throughout all Syria, and they brought him all the sick, those afflicted with various diseases and pains,those oppressed by demons, epileptics, and paralytics, and he healed them. Matthew 4:23-24

People were going crazy for Jesus and his fame was spreading like wildfire but, in his hometown of Nazareth he was rejected. They had heard about his miracles but they didn’t believe, and this disbelief was why he didn’t perform any miracles in Nazareth. Isn’t this how we treat Jesus sometimes? Show me a sign, then I’ll believe.

Matthew 11 tells us that after a long day of teaching, Jesus’ disciples hop into a boat and after dismissing the massive crowd (of 5,000 who Jesus just miraculously fed), Jesus went up the mountain to pray. I’m thinking Jesus had a good heart-to-heart with his Heavenly Father and spent some time mourning the loss of John the Baptist. This John, whom Jesus referred to in Matthew 11:11 as “among those born of women there has arisen no one greater”. John was a relative of Jesus, he prepared the way for Jesus, he baptized Jesus. John served him through imprisonment and a brutal death so Jesus must have been in deep sorrow.

Faith saves, doubt destroys.

When Jesus returns from praying, he finds that the boat had drifted and he performs another miracle: He walks on water to meet his disciples. They see someone coming; they were frightened and thought he was a ghost. Jesus tries to calm them but Peter wants proof of who he is. Peter shows some faith by telling Jesus to “command him” to walk on water. Peter then miraculously walks on water, but even with this he starts to doubt and he begins to sink. Again, like us, we want a sign, we get a sign, but we end up doubting and sinking.

Before closing, I want to take the time to say happy birthday to Rick Jebb. Rick is one of our authors, a close friend, a mentor, a leader, a brother who cannot stop talking about Jesus (seriously, I don’t think it is in his power to stop). Rick is the person who was integral in my own in-depth study of the Sermon on the Mount – which I am eternally grateful for. Rick, you’re a difference maker and a wonderful human being, I thank God for all that He has shaped you to become!

With that, we’ll close today with some questions to measure ourselves as we consider the Matthew readings thus far. First, please meditate on this verse for a moment:

And those in the boat worshiped him, saying, “Truly you are the Son of God.” – Matthew 14:33

Finally, let’s ask ourselves:

Do I believe that Jesus is the son of God?
Do I live like I believe Jesus is the son of God?
Would my friends, family, and co-workers agree with my answer to question two? What actions should I take to reconcile any differences?

Astonished

Concept for procrastination and urgency with torn newspaper head

Today’s reading link: Genesis 8; Matthew 8; Ezra 8; Acts 8

The Sermon on the Mount (Matthew 5-7) closes with two of my favorite verses:

And when Jesus finished these sayings, the crowds were astonished at his teaching, for he was teaching them as one who had authority, and not as their scribes. (Matthew 7:5-7)

Have you ever been astonished at someone’s teaching? I am picturing jaws dropping, minds blown, tears of joy as well as tears of remorse due to hearts being convicted from this sermon. They recognized Jesus’ authority and they were astonished because there had never been anyone like him. Still today there is no one like him, and there will never be anyone like him!

In Matthew Chapter 8, Jesus puts his authority into action and performs various miracles where he demonstrates his authority over:

Disease (v. 3, 13, 15-16) – healed leprosy and other diseases
Winds and sea (v. 26) – calms the storm
Demons (v. 16, 32) – cast out demons

Matthew tells the story of the centurion who demonstrated great faith. Centurions were captains in the Roman army and had authority over many soldiers. We can learn from the centurion as a model for our own faith and prayer life (humble ourselves, honor Him, believe). This high-powered centurion humbles himself and defines the relationship with Jesus addressing him as “Lord” and further states “I am not worthy” – and he trusts and believes that Jesus can heal from afar. Then the best part: kudos from Jesus. Jesus recognizes the centurion’s approach as an act of great faith and is “marveled” by it.

I’d love to marvel Jesus today, how about you? How about right now? Today’s reading has a couple examples of urgency.

The first example is directly from Jesus and he makes it clear that following him must be on his terms, without delay:

Another of the disciples said to him, “Lord, let me first go and bury my father.” And Jesus said to him, “Follow me, and leave the dead to bury their own dead.” (Matthew 8:21-22)

The level of urgency in our response to the good news should match how good the news is. Our outward response indicates our true inward feeling. We’re talking about some seriously good news here – eternal life. The eunuch in Acts 8:34-39 gets it right when his immediate response to hearing the Good News is to become baptized in some water along the road and went on his way rejoicing!

And Jesus came and said to them, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. (Matthew 28:18)

None of us knows what tomorrow will bring so the time to respond is now. Jesus has all authority. Authority over our past and future, our illnesses, ups, downs, jobs, relationships, needs, addictions, failures, fears, families, and most importantly, our eternity. He’s proven it and has promised it for you and for me. We just need to trust and follow him.

Lord, I am not worthy. Forgive me for not marveling enough at your greatness and your authority. Forgive my lack of urgency in following you wholeheartedly. Thank you for this new day and the opportunity to follow you. Amen.

Cut to the Heart

Genesis 2; Matthew 2; Ezra 2; Acts 2

Pocket Sermon from Peter
Peter gives us what I refer to as a “pocket sermon” (something to keep closely with us for reuse at any given moment) and summarizes the Gospels in Acts 2:22-24.

²²“Men of Israel, hear these words: Jesus of Nazareth, a man attested to you by God with mighty works and wonders and signs that God did through him in your midst, as you yourselves know— ²³this Jesus, delivered up according to the definite plan and foreknowledge of God, you crucified and killed by the hands of lawless men. ²⁴God raised him up, loosing the pangs of death, because it was not possible for him to be held by it.

The Gospel summary:

God endorses Jesus through his ability to perform miracles
Jesus is crucified
Jesus conquers death, thus proving his deity

These are the kind of verses that succinctly tell the story of Jesus as the messiah from his earthly miracles through death, burial, and resurrection. Memorizing verses like this are a great way to be ready to share Biblical truth with those who do not yet believe, as well as a great reminder as to why we follow this man Jesus, God in the flesh.

After Peter’s sermon, we’re told that those who heard it were “cut to the heart” and they asked “What shall we do?” (Acts 2:37). Why were they cut to the heart? Because that’s what God’s word does:

“For the word of God is living and active, sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing to the division of soul and of spirit, of joints and of marrow, and discerning the thoughts and intentions of the heart.” (Hebrews 4:12)

When we hear the word of God through the Bible something supernatural occurs and God is literally speaking to us. How great it is that our creator cares enough to communicate with us today!

As for Peter’s audience and me as well, sin deems us “guilty” for crucifying Jesus. What shall we do then?

“Repent and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins, and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.” (Acts 2:38)

Would you consider praying for an opportunity to share the Gospel story with someone today so that they too may be forgiven, and their souls saved for an eternity?