Who We Need to Reach Out To

 

Jesus’ calling of Levi or Matthew in Luke 5 and the circumstances that follow are a message to the world about why Jesus came and a message to the church about who we are to be in the world.

 

In Luke 5:27 Jesus encounters Levi at his tax booth and He invites Levi to follow Him. Levi left everything and followed Jesus.

 

Levi is one of the most unlikely people for Jesus to invite to follow Him & also one of the most unlikely people to accept the invitation and follow Him.

 

Levi as a tax collector was working for the Roman government and was more focused on material wealth than on God. Jews did not become tax collectors to grow their faith in God. They did it to become wealthy.

 

Tax collectors were hated by other Jews because they were working for the hated Romans and because they tended to cheat their fellow Jews as they collected the taxes.

 

Raise the Roof and Remove the Walls is about not judging who Jesus calls to follow Him but accepting all who do as brothers and sisters in Jesus.

 

In Luke 5:29 Levi hosts a big dinner party for Jesus and his friends. Now, the only friend a Jewish tax collector has are other tax collectors. Jesus was eating and relating to these “sinful” tax collectors.

 

Raise the Roof and Remove the Walls is about letting Jesus use us in unusual circumstances that take us out of our comfort zones and may cause others to look at us strangely.

 

In Luke 5:30 the religious leaders grumbled about Jesus eating and drinking with these tax collectors and sinners.

 

The religious leaders saw these tax collectors as sinners and would not associate with them. The religious leaders were too holy to rub elbows with these kinds of people.

 

Notice that the religious leaders did not go and complain to Jesus but to His disciples. They were religious but lacked compassion and courage.

 

Raise the Roof and Remove the Walls is about going where the lost are and showing compassion and boldness to share the gospel with whoever they are.

 

In Luke 5:31-32 Jesus shares with the religious leaders and His disciples why He came into the world.

 

Jesus says that it is not the well who need a doctor, but those who are sick.

 

When we feel good and don’t have any known health issues, we don’t see the need to go to a doctor. But when we are sick, we feel physically bad or have pain, we seek out a doctor. The more we are aware of our sickness the quicker we want to get to a doctor. If the sickness or pain is very intense, we will go to an emergency room.

 

Jesus is using this illustration to show that only those who are aware of sin and see their need for a Savior would be willing to come to Him, and that is who He came for.

 

In Luke 5:32 Jesus puts it very plainly. He says, “I have not come to call the righteous but sinners to repentance.”

 

Jesus did not come to call the righteous or the self-righteous. Those who do not recognize their sin and don’t see that they have a need for a Savior. Jesus came to call sinners. Those who see their sin and know they are sinners and acknowledge their need for a Savior.

 

In Matthew 5:3 Jesus says, “Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.”

 

When we recognize and acknowledge that we are spiritually bankrupt, we will seek out Jesus as Savior and then we will be part of God’s kingdom.

 

Raise the Roof and Remove the Walls is about acknowledging our sin and turning to Jesus as Savior to receive forgiveness.

 

In another encounter with a tax collector in Luke 19, Jesus says in verse 10 that He came to seek and save the lost. The church is to be about reaching out to the lost, no matter who there are.

 

Acknowledging our sin and our need for Jesus as our Savior and surrendering our lives to Him does not lead to defeat but it leads to victory.

 

Acknowledging My Need for Jesus as my Savior I Will Be

Raising the Roof and Removing the Walls,

Joe

Real Peace: The Peace of God

 

Philippians 2:5-8

Have this mind among yourselves, which is yours in Christ Jesus, who though He was in the form of God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped, but emptied Himself by taking the form of a servant being born in the likeness of men. And being found in human form, He humbled Himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross.

 

Jesus shows us by His life the key to obeying the Father & experiencing the fullness of the Father in our lives. The key is to humble ourselves to the will of the Father and under the authority of the Father.

 

Ephesians 2:11-16

Therefore, remember that at one time you Gentiles in the flesh, called “the uncircumcision” by what is called the circumcision, which is made in the flesh by hands - remember that you were at that time separated from Christ, alienated from the commonwealth of Israel and strangers to the covenants of promise, having no hope and without God in the world. But now in Christ Jesus you who once were far off have been brought near by the blood of Christ. For He Himself is our peace, who has made us both one and has broken down in His flesh the dividing wall of hostility by abolishing the law of commandments expressed in ordinances that He might create in Himself one new man in place of the two, so making peace, and might reconcile us both to God in one body through the cross, thereby killing the hostility.

 

Jesus is also the key to experiencing peace. The peace that Jesus is offering us is not based on the circumstances around us. It is a peace based in Him and knowing that we have a love relationship that will never be broken and security of an eternity with Him.

 

Raise the Roof and Remove the Walls is about knowing that Jesus and only Jesus is the source of real peace.

 

The peace that Jesus offers us is peace in three essential areas of life.

 

Peace with God:

Through Jesus we become children of God with God as our Abba, our dad. And we inherit Jesus’ victory over sin, death, and Satan. It is impossible to have peace with God without a personal relationship with Jesus where He is your Savior and Lord.

 

Raise the Roof and Remove the Walls is about having peace with God through a relationship with Jesus.

 

Galatians 3:28

There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free, there is no male and female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus. 

 

Peace with One Another:

Jesus unites male and female, slave and free, Jew and Gentile. Jesus does this by His all-consuming love for all of His human creation. He breaks down all the barriers that we as humans have used to divide people.

 

Raise the Roof and Remove the Walls is about letting Jesus overcome what separates us and unite us in Himself.

 

Romans 8:28

And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to His purpose.

 

Peace with Circumstances:

People and the rest of creation are still groaning and suffering because we are still in a state of fallenness. But we have a sure hope of the freedom of the glory of the children of God (Romans 8:21-23).

 

John 16:33

I have said these things to you, that in Me you may have peace. In the world you will have tribulation. But take heart; I have overcome the world.

 

Jesus is bigger than any battle we will ever face.

 

Isaiah 9:6

For to us a child is born, to us a son is given; and the government shall be upon His shoulder, and His name shall be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.

 

Jesus is our Prince of Peace.

 

In John 20:19 & 26 Jesus gives peace to His disciples.

 

We need to take courage because Jesus has gone before us, and He has fought and overcome every enemy and He has given us that victory through our faith in Him. Let us with great joy experience His powerful peace.

 

With the Peace of Jesus Raising the Roof and Removing the Walls,

                                                Joe

Avoiding Hypocrisy

 

Jesus taught a lot about hypocrisy and especially about the hypocrisy of the religious leaders. He warned His disciples about not being hypocrites.

 

In Matthew 16:6 Jesus tells His disciples to watch and beware of the leaven of the Pharisees and Sadducees. The disciples were at first not sure what Jesus meant, but in verse 12 they understood that Jesus was talking about what the Pharisees and Sadducees taught.

 

In Matthew 5:20 Jesus tells His disciples that unless their righteousness exceeds the righteousness of the scribes and Pharisees, they will never enter the kingdom of heaven.

 

The religious leaders taught one thing but lived another.

 

Hypocrisy is the practice of claiming to have moral and spiritual standards or beliefs to which one’s own behavior does not conform.

 

Matthew records Jesus’ confrontation and condemnation of the hypocrisy of the religious leaders in chapter 23. These words of Jesus should be taken seriously by us if we claim to be disciples of Jesus.

 

In Matthew 23:1-4, Jesus confronts them over putting spiritual burdens on others but not being willing to carry those same burdens. Disciples of Jesus are to share the truth of the gospel to free them, not burden them down. We as disciples of Jesus enter in with others in life’s struggles.

 

Raise the Roof and Remove the Walls is about freeing people, not burdening them.

 

In Matthew 23:5-7, Jesus confronts them over wanting people to honor them and exalt them. We as disciples of Jesus are to be focused on honoring Jesus, not ourselves. Any honor we receive should be given to Jesus. Jesus will exalt us when we humble ourselves under His authority.

 

Raise the Roof and Remove the Walls is seeking to humble ourselves, not exalt ourselves.

 

In Matthew 23:13 Jesus confronts them about keeping others from knowing God and entering into His kingdom. We as disciples of Jesus are to help people to know Jesus and surrender their lives to Him as Savior and Lord and thus enter into the Kingdom of God. We are not to be a hinderance or an obstacle for people entering into a relationship with Jesus.

 

Raise the Roof and Remove the Walls is about helping others come to know and follow Jesus, not hindering them.

 

In Matthew 23:14, Jesus confronts them over putting religion over people’s needs. Traditions, rituals, and religious rules never came before people with Jesus and, as His disciples, we are to put people’s need ahead of any religious traditions or rituals or rules.

 

Raise the Roof and Remove the Walls is about loving people as we love ourselves and putting their needs before religion.

 

In Matthew 23:16-22, Jesus confronts them about playing religious games. Jesus wants us as His disciples to live with authenticity and love Him and others with a pure heart. He wants us to live with a real righteousness that comes from God’s own righteousness.

 

Raise the Roof and Rise the Roof is about living with authenticity and God-based righteousness.

 

In Matthew 23:23-24, Jesus confronts them because they majored on minors. The weightier things of God like justice, mercy, grace, hope, peace, love, and joy are to be what we focus on without neglecting things like tithing or appropriate dress or appropriate speech. If we focus on the first things, the other things will also be present in our lives.

 

Raise the Roof and Remove the Walls is about focusing our lives on Jesus and what He says is important.

 

In Matthew 23:25-28, Jesus confronts them over being concerned about the outward appearance, not inward character. They did everything so that they would appear to be holy and righteous but were not concerned that inwardly they were full of greed and self-indulgence. Jesus wants our inward character to be transformed and to be conformed to what God wants. When our inward character is conformed to God’s image, then our outward appearance will manifest the presence of God.

 

In Matthew 23:29-36, Jesus confronts them over honoring God’s servants who they or their fathers had harmed or even kill. They were now building structures to honor them so they could look holy and pious. Jesus wants us to listen to God through the servants He sends us. Obedience is better than sacrifice. Our obedience to Jesus shows that we love Him.

 

Raise the Roof and Remove the Walls is about obeying God and not just talking spiritual talk.

 

Jesus never taught something that He did not live out. We as His disciples are to live authentically, not as hypocrites.

 

Living Authentically by Raising the Roof and Removing the Walls,

                                              Joe

Bold Trust

 

Psalm 31:14

But I trust in You, O Lord; I say, “You are my God.”

 

If you are a disciple of Jesus, then you have faith or trust God.

 

Trust that God has forgiven your sin.

Trust that God hears your prayers.

Trust that God loves you.

 

But do we have trust in God that He brings us victory over fear and death and sin?

 

Raise the Roof and Remove the Walls is trusting God for victory in this life and eternal life.

 

In 1 Samuel 17, David is sent by his father to take food to his brothers who were serving in the army of Israel under King Saul. While he is there, he hears the challenge that the Philistine giant Goliath gives to the army of Israel. He also sees the fear in the army of Israel because none of the soldiers will accept the challenge and go and fight Goliath.

 

Raise the Roof and Remove the Walls is trusting God to put you where He wants you to be.

 

In 1 Samuel 17:32 David tells King Saul that he will go and fight Goliath. Saul at first doubts that David has any chance against Goliath, but David convinces Saul that he can defeat Goliath, so Saul agrees to let him go and fight Goliath.

 

Raise the Roof and Remove the Walls is allowing the Holy Spirit to give you a godly boldness so that you can allow God to use you in risky situations.

 

In 1 Samuel 17:38 Saul gives David a suit of armor and a sword, but these are not the weapons David is to use to using. In 1 Samuel 17:40 David uses the weapons he was to use to, a sling and some stones.

 

2 Corinthians 10:3-4 says, “For though we walk in the flesh, we are not waging war according to the flesh. For the weapons of our warfare are not of the flesh but have divine power to destroy strongholds.”

Raise the Roof and Remove the Walls is using the weapons of God, not the weapons of the world.

 

In 1 Samuel 17:45-47 David confronts Goliath and says, “You come to me with a sword and with a spear and javelin, but I come to you in the name of the Lord of hosts, the God of the armies of Israel, whom you have defiled. This day the Lord will deliver you into my hand, and I will strike you down and cut off your head. And I will give the dead bodies of the host of the Philistines this day to the birds of the air and to the wild beasts of the earth, that all the earth may know that there is a God in Israel, and that all this assembly may know that the Lord saves not with the sword and spear. For the battle is the Lord’s and He will give you into our hand.”

 

If David had been operating against Goliath in the flesh, in his own strength and resources and using the weapons of the world, he would have been defeated.

 

Raise the Roof and Remove the Walls is operating in the power of the Holy Spirit.

 

In 1 Samuel 17:49-50 David does exactly what he says he will do. He strikes Goliath with a rock in the forehead and kills him and then cuts off his head.

 

Raise the Roof and Remove the Walls is obeying and trusting God which will always lead to victory.

 

Earlier in 1 Samuel 13:14, David is referred to as a man after God’s own heart. We see the reality of that truth as he faces and defeats Goliath.

 

Raise the Roof and Remove the Walls is trusting God to transforms us into who He created us to be.

 

We need to remember:

God can do the impossible. That is revealed in Matthew 19:26 where Jesus tells His disciples that with humans it is impossible but with God all things are possible.

 

We need to keep our focus on Jesus. In Matthew 14:28-30 Peter walked on the water while he was focused on Jesus but sank when he focused on the storm.

 

We need to use what God gives us. Ephesians 4:7 reveals that God gives to each of us the measure of grace that we need.

 

We trust God for victory. Isaiah 12:2 reminds us that God is our strength and gives us the victory.

 

Following Jesus means that we trust God for everything.

 

Trusting God, Raising the Roof, and Removing the Walls,

Joe

God's New Things

 

We begin a new year today. My wife and I had the joy of worshiping with our son and his family today and listening to our son teach God’s Word. My son taught on the new things God does and is doing and will do. Listening to him teach today reminded me of the new things Jesus is about to do in me and my wife’s lives as we enter retirement. I want to share with you some new things that I am praying Jesus will do in my life this year.

 

Psalm 96:1

Oh, sing to the Lord a new song; sing to the Lord, all the earth!

 

I want to have a new passion to worship Jesus. Jesus has a passion for me and showed it by His death and resurrection. I want to have a new and stronger passion for Him every day.

 

Raise the Roof and Remove the Walls is about passionately worshiping Jesus with all we are every day.

 

Proverbs 27:25

When the grass is gone and the new growth appears and the vegetation of the mountains is gathered…

 

I want to grow in new ways to become more like Jesus. I have always struggled with fear, and I want to have new trust and have a boldness like Jesus had.

 

Raise the Roof and Remove the Walls is allowing Jesus to grow you in new ways and in new areas.

 

Isaiah 43:19

Behold, I am doing a new thing; now it springs forth, do you not perceive it? I will make a way in the wilderness and rivers in the desert.

 

I want Jesus to do a new thing in my life. There are some things that I have never done because, as a fulltime pastor, I did not have the time. Jesus has blessed me with more free time, so I want to allow Him to do new things through my life.

 

Raise the Roof and Remove the Walls is opening our lives to Jesus so He can do new things in and through us.

 

John 13:34

A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another; just as I have loved you, you are to love one another.

 

I want to love with a renewed love.

 

A renewed love for Jesus

A renewed love for my wife

A renewed love for my children and grandchildren

A renewed love for the Body of Christ

A renewed love for those who do not know Jesus

A renewed love for those who do not love me

 

Raise the Roof and Remove the Walls is loving Jesus with all that we are and loving others like we love ourselves.

 

Romans 7:6

But now we are released from the law, having died to that which held us captive, so that we serve in the new way of the Spirit and not in the old way of the written code.

 

I want to serve Jesus in a new way in the power of the Holy Spirit. I want to have a life that is so not understandable. I want to be so different than the things of this world by the work of the Holy Spirit that people look at me and shake their heads in wonderment.

 

Raise the Roof and Remove the Walls is serving Jesus, not resting in our own strength and resources, but by the powerful working of the Holy Spirit.

 

Ephesians 4:24

And put on the new self, created after the likeness of God in true righteousness and holiness.

 

I want to put on the new self and have my life be characterized by righteousness and holiness. I want my life to be free of unrighteousness and lack of holiness.

 

Raise the Roof and Remove the Walls is living a life characterized by righteousness and holiness.

 

I don’t know what the new year will be like or what it will hold but I know Jesus holds me and everything connected with me and the future.

 

I pray that 2023 will be filled with new adventures with Jesus for you!

 

In New Ways Raising the Roof and Removing the Walls,

Joe