Kick it Into High Gear. Matthew 17:21.

Vehicles move faster as you switch to higher gears. First gear is slow, but strong enough to tow you up a mountain. Second is a little faster, third faster still, and so on. If you need to go faster, you move to a higher gear.

But you know what vehicle has a really high gear? Han Solo’s Millenium Falcon in STAR WARS.  Each time Han Solo and Chewbacca are in peril, speeding through space at top speed, they push the hyperdrive button and the vehicle suddenly leaps forward to light speed. I’ll never forget when I was a little boy watching through the cockpit windows and seeing all the stars slide into a blur like white skid marks on the black velvet of space. Talk about kicking it into high gear. Hyperdrive saves the day!

After watching STAR WARS, I would go home and ride bikes and run races and do all the things kids do, and I did them all as fast as I could. But if I were losing a bike race, I needed a higher gear. If I were running a touchdown and someone was gaining on me, I needed a hyperdrive button. How could I kick things into high gear? The physical life has limitations that are difficult to overcome.

What about your spiritual life? Is there a higher gear? Is there a hyperdrive button you can press when you need to outrun Darth Vader? Yes.

When the disciples encountered a demon-possessed man, they were unable to heal him. After Jesus easily cast out the demon, the disciples asked why they were so limited. First, Jesus mentioned their lack of faith. “If you have faith the size of a mustard seed … nothing will be impossible for you” Matthew 17:20.  But then Jesus added something else, almost as an after-thought: “However, this kind does not come out except by prayer and fasting” Matthew 17:21.

I think the disciples were praying men. We all pray. But what about FASTING? Jesus walked right up and cast out this demon. There was no time to stop and spend a day or two fasting. Jesus must have been fasting regularly. We know He fasted for forty days to begin His ministry. But perhaps He was fasting often, knowing it to be a powerful part of a deep spiritual life.

Jesus said that there are some problems that can only be solved BY FASTING.

You might look at this statement as putting limits on your spiritual power: you won’t have power unless you fast. Don’t look at it that way—after all, you probably already believe there are limits on your spiritual power. (Who among us expects to work miracles regularly?)

Instead, this statement is not negative, but positive: when you face something critical, there is a higher gear.

There is a hyperdrive button: FASTING. I don’t fast often. I don’t expect you to fast often. But keep that tool in your tool box.

Never forget: when you face life’s toughest challenges, fasting can kick your spiritual life into high gear.

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Deny Himself. Mark 8:34.

A woman once brought her little boy to Robert E. Lee. She asked the West Point graduate and Civil War general to bless her son. He gave an interesting answer:

“Teach him that he must deny himself.”

Did anyone teach you to deny yourself? When did you last tell yourself No? When was the last time you denied yourself?

Do you agree with Lee? Is self-denial important? It is an essential part of leadership, because self-denial builds the character and integrity that inspires others to follow you. But self-denial is also critical to those who are not in obvious leadership roles. In other words, it is not only generals who must deny themselves, but privates. Centurions should deny themselves, but so should the one hundred men in their charge.

Most Americans do not deny themselves. We indulge. We eat too much, sleep too late, drive too fast, work too little, watch too much TV or sports, scroll too much, read too little, and serve others almost never.

Most people never master self-denial, and as a result, most people never achieve big goals or accomplish great things. Most people take the path of least resistance, choose the most comfortable life possible, and life rewards them with mediocrity.

But what did Jesus say?

“If anyone wants to be My disciple, he must DENY HIMSELF, take up his cross, and follow Me” Mark 8:34.

What does self-denial look like for a Christ-follower? What do you think Jesus is really talking about, in practical terms? First, notice Jesus connected self-denial with the cross: deny himself, take up his cross, and follow Me. That’s extreme: this is a call to the death of all our self-centeredness, the death of our selfishness, the death of putting our own desires first.

Jesus calls us to turn our backs on our own desires and follow Him. Place your wishes, your future, your plans on the altar. Not only your big plan for your life, but your small plan for today. Give Jesus your small plans and big plans. Because every little decision leads to the next, each day’s choices create your life. Deny yourself a few minutes more sleep and spend time reading the Bible. Deny yourself food and other habits that are bad for your health. Deny yourself that grudge and choose to forgive. Deny yourself the “self-care” you were hoping for and handle your job, your children, your bills, your responsibilities.  Deny yourself.

“When Jesus Christ calls a man, He bids him: Come and die.” Dietrich Bonhoeffer.

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YOUR BEST LIFE NOW? Matthew 16:24-26.

Crucifixion was common. In 4 B.C., the Roman General Varus crucified 2,000 Jews in Palestine, the first of many mass crucifixions. The Romans perfected crucifixion, including the whippings, beatings, and placement of the body on the cross. The hands were nailed through a wrist bone, and one skeleton has been found with a wooden board on either side of the hand acting as a washer so the nail would not rip loose. Archaeologists have found evidence the feet were nailed with the heels on either side of the cross, nails driven through ankle bones.

Because victims were naked and nailed up like a bug pinned in a display case, crucifixion was a shameful way to die. Rome reserved this ignoble death for enemies of the state: rebels, revolutionaries, terrorists. Jesus was accused of no such thing.

Finally, Rome forced the victim to carry the cross beam, often by tying it across his shoulders. This was such a common sight, Jesus spoke of it long before it happened to Him:

“If anyone wants to follow Me, let him deny himself, take up his cross, and follow Me. For whoever tries to save his life will lose it, but whoever is willing to lose his life because of Me will save it. For what good is it if a man gains the whole world, yet loses his soul?” Matthew 16:24-26.

What does Jesus mean when He says take up a cross? It sounds a bit … unpleasant. A CROSS? Didn’t Joel Osteen write a book promising, YOUR BEST LIFE NOW?

On the other hand, Dietrich Bonhoeffer, the German theologian who stood up to Hitler, said: “When Jesus Christ calls a man, He bids him ‘COME and DIE.’”

You may never face death for Jesus. But will you die to your own wishes? Die to your selfishness? Crucify your wrong desires? Lay wrong beliefs on the altar? Surrender control of your own future? Can you give Jesus EVERYTHING?

Because that is what He requires.

Pray with me: God, show us areas we need to surrender to you.

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GET THEE BEHIND ME. Matthew 16:23

I have said a lot of harsh things over the years. But I have never seen anyone turn pale the way my friend Robb once did. In high school, we used to go to Pappy’s for a meal after church every Sunday night. There might be five of us—or there might be fifty. One night, I was concerned about my homework, and said NO. I’m sure my girlfriend (your mother) wanted me there, and Chris and others. But for some reason, it was Robb who tried to persuade me. –And the actor could be very persuasive! I must have told him NO and told him why a dozen times. Finally, I stopped. I looked at Robb and said:

“Get thee behind me, Satan, for you are not setting your mind on God’s interests, but on man’s.” (I was quoting Matthew 16:23)

He was stricken. His eyes went wide and he turned pale as if he had been slapped by Jesus Himself. His entire countenance changed from happy and eager to remorseful and rebuked. Humbled even. I immediately regretted it. (Why would I say something like that?) I apologized, and we soon laughed about it, and all was well. But I did not go to Pappy’s. Valentine’s came along a few weeks later and he gave me a tiny card on which he had scribbled “Get thee behind me.” I still have that card in the old Bible I used to read in those days.

Here’s why I said it: I had been a D-student throughout high school. Now, I was serious about doing my best. I knew God had called me to make straight As. I believed that was God’s desire. Man’s desire—my desire—was to go to Pappy’s the way I did every Sunday night. But this time I had too much homework. I needed to get home and get serious, and at that moment Robb was creating a difficult temptation for me (as Peter did for Jesus by trying to convince him He did not need to die on the cross).

What do you do in the face of temptation? How strong is your resolve? Have you ever risked offending a friend?

Temptation is serious. Fight it boldly, with all that you have. Even strong words, if necessary.

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The Best “Self-love” is Serving Others. Matthew 16:24

A friend of mine was a member of the crew team at Rutgers University. That is the team of eight men rowing a long, narrow boat called a “skull.” The eight sit facing backwards, and a ninth man, the “coxswain,” sits at the back facing forward, guiding and coaching the other eight. (Can you imagine nine men in one of those boats? That’s an entire baseball team.)

Anyway, Jeff used to tell me stories about how hard they worked out on the crew team. Getting on the team was hard enough, then the hours and hours of rowing would just wear the young students out. Everything was sore—hands, arms, shoulders, back—and the physical exhaustion was overwhelming. Then after rowing for hours, they would run and lift weights. Everyone threw up regularly, so often that it became a joke among the teammates. And they would collapse into bed at night wondering how they would ever get their studies done—Rutgers can be a tough school.

So being “on crew” was exhausting. It was grueling and painful and the absolute hardest thing Jeff had ever done in his life. He was sore all the time. In pain every day and every night. Hungry and tired and nauseated and weak and exhausted.

But you know what? He loved it. One day he realized how crazy it was: here he was dying, every day—and he knew that he had never been happier in his life.

Is that crazy? It sounds crazy, but it’s true—and many people can tell similar stories about many other pursuits. Sometimes it is not until you are dying that you discover how to really live. Think about that. The closer you get to death, the better you understand life—and happiness.

Jesus said as much in Matthew 16:24:

If anyone wishes to come after Me, he must deny himself, and take up his cross and follow Me. For whoever wishes to save his life will lose it; but whoever loses his life for My sake will find it.

This is backwards: if you struggle to save your life, you will lose it, but if you are willing to lose your life for Jesus, then you will find it. It’s backwards—but it’s true.

When your goal is to make yourself happy, you often end up unfulfilled and miserable, like a crying child on Christmas day. In the morning, he is thrilled, but by the afternoon, he is bored and overwhelmed by everything and none of the toys are fun anymore and suddenly all the anticipation is over and Christmas is a bust. But the parents—who have done nothing but give and serve their children—are happy. Because Jesus created a principle that never changes:

When you pursue your own happiness, you will not find it. But when you pursue the happiness of others, you will make yourself happy.

In other words, seek to lose your life for the sake of Jesus and others, and you will find it. But if you are seeking to save your life, you will lose it.

It’s a riddle: try to grasp happiness and you lose it, but if you are willing to let it go, and you just might manage to hold on to it. It may not make sense, but it is true.

Jesus knew He would die, but He was willing to lose His life for others. And Hebrews explains, “Because of the joy that was coming, He endured the cross” Hebrews 12:2. That is, Jesus would lose His life, but He would be rewarded with incredible joy as a result. The same is true for us: when we put aside our wishes and SERVE others, God blesses us with great joy.

Have you served others lately? A teacher? Your friends? Your family? Or can you remember times in the past when you served greatly? It was a pleasure wasn’t it? It always feels good.

That is the Biblical principle: you make yourself happy by serving others.

Merriam-Webster defines the trendy term “self-love” as “regard for one’s own happiness or advantage.” The irony is, your Savior has established a simple rule: dying to your own selfish desires and serving others is the quickest way to achieve “one’s own happiness or advantage.”

Of course, such service has to come from a place of strength. You have to be strong enough to actually make a choice. A slave who serves under duress will not experience any joy. But a slave who chooses to forgive and humbly serve a hated master, so that he can point that master to Jesus—that slave is going to experience great joy as he puts aside his selfish desire for revenge and serves a higher purpose. To put it another way, serving others should come from a place of dignity and strength—you must believe that you have AGENCY or the power to make choices about your own life, and that you have CHOSEN to serve. And knowing Jesus will give you that strength—because He gives you choices. Choose humility, forgiveness, and service.

And that is the key: you will not find much happiness in Psychology Today’s list of “prototypical acts of self-soothing” (a slow, hot bath, eating a little cake, taking a walk with no destination, dancing alone, or telling yourself that you are ‘enough’). None of these things are bad, necessarily. But when you realize you have choices—and you take FULL RESPONSIBILITY for your choices—and then you choose to forgive, to be humble, and to serve others, happiness will follow.

When you deny yourself, take up your cross daily, and follow Christ—then you will find your life; then you will find your happiness.

Dear God, show us that we have no one to blame—that we have the power within ourselves to own our choices. Give my two kids that powerful sense of maturity that comes from taking FULL responsibility for every choice they make. And once they have that sense of dignity and autonomy, help them to choose to take up a cross and “die daily.” Help all of us to put aside our selfish desires and choose to serve Jesus in all that we do. Thank you that when we serve you, you bless us with such great joy. Remind us each day that the harder we try to “save our lives” or seek our own happiness, the less we will find it. Remind us to choose to deny our lives, take up your cross and serve you—knowing that you will reward us with joy when we sacrifice things for you. Give us the maturity to the be the “parents” on Christmas day, exhausted and delighted by serving, rather than the children, so often spoiled and discontent after thinking of no one but themselves all day. Teach us that the best “self-love” is serving others.

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Whose Concerns Matter Most? Matthew 16:23.

When Jesus spoke of His imminent death, Peter interrupted: “Oh no, Master! This will never happen to you!”

Jesus looked at him, shaking his head, maybe, and said:

“Get thee behind me, Satan, for you are not setting your mind on the things of God but of man” Matthew 16:23.

How’s that for a stinging rebuke? Can you imagine that? It’s worse than a belt, a spanking stick, having to pull your color, an infraction, a trip to the office, getting suspended, arrested even…. He is the Creator of the universe, the Redeemer of all mankind, the Rescuer, the Ransom, the Guardian of our souls—and He looks at you and calls you ‘Satan’? Wow.

I mean, Jesus just called Peter ‘Satan.’ And that’s right after He said “Blessed are you, God revealed to you the truth that I am the anointed one, and because of your faith, I will now call you ‘ROCK’” Matthew 16:18. –And five verses later Jesus calls him Satan?

Talk about humble pie. Jesus builds you up, then He has to knock you down a peg….

But why? Why was He so hard on Peter? Did Peter do wrong? What Peter did was TEMPT Jesus. Jesus was struggling with His future. He knew how hard and scary it would be. Later He would say “My soul is deeply grieved, even to the point of death” Matthew 26:38. And Satan was there ready to offer Jesus any number of shortcuts that would ruin God’s plan. Jesus wrestled in the garden, sweating blood. That’s a heavy burden. THAT is anxiety! And Peter, so ignorant and unaware of what is really going on, speaks up voicing exactly the ideas that tempt Jesus so much.

So Jesus rebukes him strongly: “Get thee behind me, Satan…” That’s stunning.

How good are you at rejecting temptations? Do you fight back as strongly as Jesus did? Do you give a strong rebuke? Do you hate evil, or are you wishy- washy about it? Can you REJECT temptations when they come, shutting them down, once and for all? Or do you toy with them, window shopping and considering your options? You need to slam the temptations. Reject them, put them away, and fix it so they cannot bother you any more. It’s like handling a noisy phone. Turn the phone off and put it in a drawer. Don’t pull it back out for hours.

(Can you do that with your phone? –Can you do it with temptations?)

Ask Jesus to help you reject temptations with a powerful, no-going-back answer. Ask Him to help you put your foot down and reject temptations the way Jesus rejected Peter at that moment. When you say no, be sure that you mean it—and never go back on it, never question it. Say ‘no’ and move on. Turn off the temptations and bury them in the drawer.

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COUNTING LAWS. Matthew 16:6.

Have you ever wondered how many laws there are in the United States? The number is incredibly high—but more importantly, it is UNKNOWN. The Congressional Research Service, a government office filled with professors, researchers, and librarian-types, was once asked to determine the number of laws in America. Their eventual report basically said, “it cannot be determined.”

Can you believe that? A child can count the ten commandments. And the number of laws in the Old Testament is known: 613.

But according to the U.S. Library of Congress, no one can count the laws in America. “Trying to tally this number is nearly impossible.”[1] The task is complicated because in addition to the thousands of federal statutes spanning decades, there are rules created by court opinions and worse, the rule-generating machinery of federal agencies with the power to expand a single federal Act into thousands of rules implementing that act.  I would sum it up this way:

Man’s ability to break laws is exceeded only by his ability to make laws.

We do it too. What parent has not reacted to a challenging child by creating pointless rules? My mom used to make posters with stickers for good behavior and bad—she would try anything. Every teacher does the same at least once in a career: driven to extremes by an unruly class, you show up with some complex behavior-management plan that is ambitious but unworkable. We do it to ourselves too. We attack our bad habits by making up rules. Nothing wrong with that—some rules are healthy and appropriate. But be aware of man’s obsession with crafting rules for every situation. Rules may create structure and security, but they can also create problems.

Jesus obeyed and honored rules. But He also broke them—the sacrosanct Sabbath rules especially.  And He warned the disciples not to become rule-makers like the Pharisees.

“Watch out and beware of the yeast of the Pharisees and Sadducees” Matthew 16:6.

Yeast is an essential part of bread. It is a tiny bit of healthy bacteria that can quickly spread through an entire lump of dough, causing the bread to rise when it is baked. When Jesus mentioned yeast, He was talking about the teachings of the Pharisees—legalistic teachings that can spread like wildfire through a community, Matthew 16:12.

To be more specific, the Pharisees loved to make up rules. As do we all. But Jesus warned us to keep that impulse in check.

He is not suggesting we live without rules or boundaries. But be aware that we humans love to take rule-making way too far. You cannot walk by the spirit if you are bound by law.

“You have been severed from Christ, you who are seeking to be justified by the law. YOU HAVE FALLEN FROM GRACE … a little yeast leavens the whole lump of dough” Galatians 5:4, 9.

Paul affirms the words of Christ: man’s contagious rule-making distracts us from walking in grace.

Grace is better than law because grace gives us freedom to follow the Spirit and bear the fruit of love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, gentleness, and self-control, Galatians 5:13, 16-23.

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[1] See https://blogs.loc.gov/law/2013/03/frequent-reference-question-how-many-federal-laws-are-there/

DON’T DEMAND PROOF. Matthew 16:16-18.

The Pharisees demanded a miracle. How did Jesus react? HE SIGHED DEEPLY, and said, “Why does this generation demand a sign? I assure you, no sign will be given!” Mark 8:12.

That sounds like our generation. We have elevated science to the level of scripture and refuse to believe anything we cannot prove. Although God may give small signs to genuine seekers, He will usually not prove Himself to skeptics looking for excuses NOT to believe.

Jesus asked the disciples about rumors: “Who do men say that I am?” Various answers were offered. Then Simon spoke up.

“Thou art the Christ, the Son of the Living God!” And Jesus responded, ‘Blessed are you, Simon, son of Jonah, for flesh and blood [proof] did not reveal this to you, but it comes from My Father in heaven” Matthew 16:16-18.

Simon KNEW Christ. He KNEW to Whom he was speaking. No one proved it to him. No one persuaded him. Jesus had probably never stated it clearly. But when the question was asked, Simon just knew: “Thou art the Christ.”

And Jesus tells Simon that the Father gave him that knowledge. While the Pharisees, with their education and experience, were demanding proof, Simon Peter, a fisherman, found the truth in his heart, placed there by God the Father. Sometimes that is where you will find the answers you seek. When you pray, God speaks to your heart. When you need guidance about a decision, God will often nudge your heart.

Sometimes it is wise to be discerning and question your heart. Other times, faith will call you to simply accept the truth God has spoken. Accept it and stop doubting. (How do you know whether to question your heart or simply accept God’s answer? Pray a lot. Keep asking for guidance. Be patient and pray—but be willing to accept the word God has spoken inside you.)

“Thomas, you see and you believe. But BLESSED ARE THOSE WHO HAVE NOT SEEN AND YET BELIEVE” John 20:29.

God, teach us to recognize Your Voice and never doubt.

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THE BLIND LEADING THE BLIND. Matthew 15:11,14,19-20.

What sins does our culture condemn?

Sometimes “cancelled” celebrities deserve it, having committed violent assaults—they are predators and pedophiles: R. Kelly, Matt Lauer, Harvey Weinstein, Michael Jackson. But others facing “cancellation” did things so trivial that to receive the same punishment as a sexual predator is ridiculous. But that’s exactly what happens to celebrities who speak the wrong WORDS about race, sex, gender, sexual preference, nation of origin, or anything else our culture reveres as “IDENTITY.”

(Who you are is NOT your race, sex, or any of those things—your identity is that you are MADE IN THE IMAGE OF GOD. Race, sex, and the rest are trivial features.)

But our world elevates trivial traits, exaggerating the harm when those traits are insulted, while ignoring more damaging vices—just like the Pharisees of old.[1] The Pharisees exaggerated the trivial, including the ritual washing of hands before eating. They asked Jesus why His disciples did not wash.

“It’s not what goes into the mouth that defiles a man, but what comes out of the mouth.” Jesus condemned the Pharisees: “They are blind guides. And IF THE BLIND GUIDE THE BLIND, BOTH WILL FALL INTO THE PIT…. For from the heart come evil thoughts, murders, adulteries, sexual immoralities, thefts, blasphemies. These are the things that defile a man; eating with unwashed hands does not defile a man” Matthew 15:11,14,19-20.

The people of the world are BLIND GUIDES. Why do we listen to them? The creative work of the lost remains the blind leading the blind, and the same is true of their activism. Some of their views are correct, but some of their views are ignorant and deceptive.

We are called to step out: “Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind” Romans 12:2.

God, we want to follow YOU, not the blind.

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[1] And what virtues does our mixed-up culture honor? What actions make you a good person? Well, first of all, actions don’t matter (unless you’re a pedophile). What matters in our culture are PROPER BELIEFS. You can be a rich celebrity with a fleet of cars and a carbon footprint the size of a small town, but if you BELIEVE in the right things—global warming, recycling, electric cars, legal abortions, not smoking (unless it’s pot), then you are a good person.

HOW HARD ARE YOU PRAYING? Matthew 15:22-28.

What do you need from the Lord? How hard are you praying for it? I bet you could pray harder. Are you praying the Word, using scripture to “prove your point” to God, to show Him why He should say ‘YES’ to your request? Are you praying out loud, having a conversation with Him?

Once Jesus was approached by a Canaanite woman—a Gentile and a pagan—and He ignored her pleas.

“But she kept crying out, ‘Have mercy on me, Lord, Son of David! My daughter is cruelly tormented by a demon!’

He did not say a word to her and His disciples urged him, ‘Send her away because she cries out after us.’

He replied, ‘I was sent only to the lost sheep of the house of Israel…. It isn’t right to take the children’s bread and throw it to their dogs.’

‘Yes, Lord,’ she said, ‘but even the dogs eat the crumbs that fall from their masters’ table!’” Matthew 15:22-27.

How do you suppose Jesus reacted to that? Was this godless pagan arguing with the Messiah?

If she was, then may God help us ALL to argue as effectively as she did!

“Then Jesus replied to her, ‘Woman, your faith is great. Let it be done for you as you have spoken it.’ And from that moment her daughter was healed” v.28.

This woman had begged, pleaded, and cried out to Jesus, and He said nothing and did nothing, even told her He was only here to help Jewish people. But she kept insisting, arguing that He should help her, that even if pagans like her are dogs, Jesus can spare a few crumbs for them. And He decided to do exactly that.

“And from that moment her daughter was healed.”

Do you need help, healing, or wisdom from the Lord? PRAY THE WORD! Find scriptures on the subject and talk to God about those verses. And don’t be afraid to argue, to ENGAGE. God can handle your emotions.

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