There's No Balancing This

The symbol of the religion of Jesus is the cross, not the scales. – J. Stott

In Luke 18 the Pharisee wanted God to see how well balanced and pious his life was by his acts of service. God was not impressed. Hmm!

All too often we’re like the Pharisee, we’ll do just enough to balance things out, give God just enough time, offering, praise, etc. to cover the blessings He gives. But we miss the boat. The cross represents the symbol of our Lord’s suffering. It is where He was hung and crucified with OUR sins. Nothing we do can atone for His sacrifice or “balance out” the deed. We are forever in His debt. Jesus did not call us to balance the books but to “take up our cross daily” and follow Him.

Until tomorrow…

Pastor Botts

“Suppose one of you had a servant plowing or looking after the sheep. Would he say to the servant when he comes in from the field, ‘Come along now and sit down to eat?’ Would he not rather say, ‘Prepare my supper, get yourself ready and wait on me while I eat and drink…So you also, when you have done everything you were told to do, should say, ‘We are unworthy servants, we have only done our duty,” – Luke 17:7-10

True Value Discrepancies

Price is not the same as value! - Anon

Don't ask Esau the value of a birthright. OUCH!

Price! So many different terms (wholesale, retail, discount, sales, MSRP, etc.) it's hard to truly determine worth. And worth itself is somewhat subjective depending on the individual. And what's worse is we've confused all of this with value. Example, we'll pay a star athlete or top-movie star millions a year to excite or entertain us for a few hours, but teachers and educators almost pennies on the dollar (comparatively) to educate us and help prepare us for life. Go figure! God referred to Esau as 'godless' for selling his birthright for a bowl of stew; meaning he did not know the true value of what he possessed. As a society often we're not far behind. God is not against fame or fortune, He just wants us to realize in the grand scheme of life they are not that important. What we add to life by way of the blessings He gives to us is the key. Don't miscalculate the value of your life or your contribution to God's work. We will all give an account one day.

Until Monday...

Pastor Botts

",,,.the Lord abhors dishonest scales, but accurate weights are His delight." - Proverbs 11:1

No Balance Here

The symbol of the religion of Jesus is the cross, not the scales. – J. Stott

In Luke 18 the Pharisee wanted God to see how well balanced and pious his life was by his acts of service. God was not impressed. Hmm!

All too often we’re like the Pharisee, we’ll do just enough to balance things out, give God just enough time, offering, praise, etc. to cover the blessings He gives. But we miss the boat. The cross represents the symbol of our Lord’s suffering. It is where He was hung and crucified with OUR sins. Nothing we do can atone for His sacrifice or “balance out” the deed. We are forever in His debt. Jesus did not call us to balance the books but to “take up our cross daily” and follow Him.

Until tomorrow…

Pastor Botts

“Suppose one of you had a servant plowing or looking after the sheep. Would he say to the servant when he comes in from the field, ‘Come along now and sit down to eat?’ Would he not rather say, ‘Prepare my supper, get yourself ready and wait on me while I eat and drink…So you also, when you have done everything you were told to do, should say, ‘We are unworthy servants, we have only done our duty,” – Luke 17:7-10

Price Value Worth

Price is not the same as value! - Anon

Don't ask Esau the value of a birthright. OUCH!

Price! So many different terms (wholesale, retail, discount, sales, etc.) it's hard to truly determine worth. And worth itself is somewhat objective depending on the individual. And what's worse is we've confused all of this with value. Example, we'll pay a star athlete or top-movie star millions a year to excite or entertain us for a few hours, but teachers and educators almost pennies on the dollar (comparatively) to educate us and help prepare us for life. Go figure! God referred to Esau as 'godless' for selling his birthright for a bowl of stew; meaning he did not know the true value of what he possessed. As a society often we're not far behind. God is not against fame or fortune, he just wants us to realize in the grand scheme of life they are not that important. What we add to life by way of the blessings He gives to us is the key. Don't miscalculate the value of your life or your contribution to God's work. We will all give an account one day.

Until tomorrow......

Pastor Botts

"...the Lord abhors dishonest scales, but accurate weights are His delight." - Proverbs 11:1

Measure Up to The Word

Self delusion is sucking in your stomach when you step on the scales. – P. Sweeney

The Pharisees smugly thought the law of Moses was all they needed when the Living Word (Jesus) was right in front of them. They missed the point. Hmm!

It's so easy to overlook the obvious, when you don't want to make any changes or remain complacent in life. The things we know we need to do we often don't, telling ourselves we're really not that bad off. Openly, many of us would not dare admit that we take opportunity to keep up with the Jones', but secretly we do. Often, we keep tabs on those a little more sinful than us, or even those a little more holier than us, often measuring ourselves and our lives by them. When we do this we’re giving ourselves a false sense of security that everything is alright. We can look elsewhere, we can even convince ourselves the standard measure has changed. But God has given us a standard, His. And it is unchanging, in the end He will be the final judge, so our measure should not be one another, but His Word.

Until tomorrow……

Pastor Botts

“We do not dare to classify or compare ourselves with some who commend themselves. When they measure themselves by themselves and compare themselves with themselves, they are not wise….For it is not the one who commends himself who is approved, but the one whom the Lord commends.” – II Corinthians 10:12, 18

Calculating Life

Price is not the same as value! - Anon

Don't ask Esau the value of a birthright. OUCH!

Price! So many different terms (wholesale, retail, discount, sales, etc.) it's hard to truly determine worth. And worth itself is somewhat objective depending on the individual. And what's worse is we've confused all of this with value. Example, we'll pay a star athlete or top-movie star millions a year to excite or entertain us for a few hours, but teachers and educators almost pennies on the dollar (comparatively) to educate us and help prepare us for life. Go figure! God referred to Esau as 'godless' for selling his birthright for a bowl of stew; meaning he did not know the true value of what he possessed. As a society often we're not far behind. God is not against fame or fortune, he just wants us to realize in the grand scheme of life they are not that important. What we add to life by way of the blessings He gives to us is the key. Don't miscalculate the value of your life or your contribution to God's work. We will all give an account one day.

Until Monday......

Pastor Botts

",,,.the Lord abhors dishonest scales, but accurate weights are His delight." - Proverbs 11:1

The Scales don't Balance

The symbol of the religion of Jesus is the cross, not the scales. – J. Stott

In Luke 18 the Pharisee wanted God to see how well balanced and pious his life was by his acts of service. God was not impressed. Hmm!

All too often we’re like the Pharisee, we’ll do just enough to balance things out, give God just enough time, offering, praise, etc. to cover the blessings He gives. But we miss the boat. The cross represents the symbol of our Lord’s suffering. It is where He was hung and crucified with OUR sins. Nothing we do can atone for His sacrifice or “balance out” the deed. We are forever in His debt. Jesus did not call us to balance the books but to “take up our cross daily” and follow Him.

Until tomorrow…..

Pastor Botts

“Suppose one of you had a servant plowing or looking after the sheep. Would he say to the servant when he comes in from the field, ‘Come along now and sit down to eat?’ Would he not rather say, ‘Prepare my supper, get yourself ready and wait on me while I eat and drink…So you also, when you have done everything you were told to do, should say, ‘We are unworthy servants, we have only done our duty,” – Luke 17:7-10