One of the key points in the contest between Pharaoh and God was the sixth plague. The plague of boils is often overlooked in the list of the ten plagues, since it’s a more personal and less open attack on Egypt. Yet there are two things that happen with this plague that do not happen in any of the previous ones, and they show the Egyptians that God is definitely in charge in this contest between Himself and the gods of Egypt.

The first change is seen in Exodus 9:11, where the magicians are no longer able to stand before Moses to confront him. They had already been shown to have inferior power when they could not reproduce the plague of gnats and were forced to admit that divine power was at work. Now they could not even show their faces. The power of God exhibited through Moses had rendered Egypt’s miraculous agents helpless, not only unable to defeat God’s power but unable even to confront His agents.

The more significant change is seen in verse 12, where it says “the LORD hardened the heart of Pharaoh.” God had told Moses at the very beginning that He would harden Pharaoh’s heart, but up to this point the Bible tells us either the Pharaoh hardened his own heart or simply that Pharaoh’s heart was hardened. Through five plagues, half of those that would occur, Pharaoh had made his own choice to resist obedience to the God of Moses, even when he had temporarily panicked and promised to do so. Now he had crossed a line, and no longer would have a choice to soften his heart and obey. Pharaoh had made his firm decision and confirmed it, so God let him have his way.

The Bible is clear that human beings are conscious, responsible agents before God. We make our own decisions, and we receive the judgment appropriate to our decisions. At the same time, God is in control, and He knows our choices and arranges all circumstances around them. This interplay between divine sovereignty and human responsibility is one of the thorniest question theologians have wrestled with through the centuries, and I believe that it is at least partly meant to be a mystery to us. We need to know that our choices are our choices, and that we can’t pass that responsibility off on anyone else, even the Lord. At the same time, our choices do not mean that God is unaware of what is happening and will happen, or that our choices cause God to have to scramble to work around our unpredictability. Pharaoh was responsible for the judgment that came on his nation, but God knew all along what would happen.

When we wonder how God could allow someone to become so hardened that they reject Jesus, we must remember that the choice began with them. We are all, in our essential being, sinners by nature and by choice, who would not willingly choose God without His intervention. No matter what position you hold on the role of grace in salvation, all Christians agree that grace is absolutely necessary to bring us to Christ. If we refuse to yield to His grace, we harden ourselves further. Is there a point of no return in salvation, where our choice is confirmed for all eternity? Yes, there is, but I would argue that the Bible puts that absolute point at our death. Pharaoh’s hardening had to do with the circumstances of his enslavement of Israel, not his eternity.

That doesn’t mean that we won’t meet people who are hardened against Christ at the point in their life we meet them. I’ve talked to enough people and seen enough “atheist testimonies” to believe that people can indeed be so opposed to God that they will give Him no consideration. Yet we can’t let that stop us from continuing to pray for them and witnessing to them, because, unlike the Lord, we can’t see the state of their heart. Our role is to be faithful to Jesus and follow the Holy Spirit, and trust that God will take control of each person’s situation and deal with their choices as He sees fit.

Religions seem to thrive on multiplying rules and regulations for their followers. Some of those rules are the fundamental teachings of that religion, and are necessary to truly follow that faith. Some are practical rules that seek to find a way to practice a faith in the societal context in which it is found. Others are well-intentioned hedges designed to protect people from going past the actual boundaries set forth in a religion. Then there are those rules that are designed to make a religion fit our comfort zone, whether or not they are consistent with the core tenets of the religion we claim to follow.

Despite all of the claims that “Christianity isn’t a religion, it’s a relationship,” Christianity is indeed a religion. Our relationship with Jesus is the center and the core of our religion, but you can’t have a right relationship with Christ without also being a religious person. The Bible is full of “rules” that we as Christians need to follow to show our faith, our trust in Jesus, and our belief in the truth that God has revealed to us. If we’re going to use the “relationship not a religion” line, we must ensure that we don’t use it to mean we’ll do what we feel is good to relate to Christ while ignoring His commandments and principles for our lives.

I think, however, that most people who use that line actually mean something like this: Christianity isn’t about all the man-made rules that have been attached to the religion over time, but about those that draw us to Jesus and help us grow closer to Him. I don’t find many genuine believers who want to grow in their faith and become more like Christ who object to being told that they need to be obedient to what God teaches in His Word. What they object to is the many practices that aren’t clearly taught in Scripture, and find a variety of ways to be practically applied or are just put up by churches that want to regulate how Christians ought to live.

Here in Matthew 15:1-9, Jesus has strong words for the Pharisees as they criticize His disciples for breaking the “tradition of the elders.” (Notice that they don’t dare criticize Jesus directly here.) Jesus points out to them that their tradition is used to violate the Law God has given them. They place more value in their rules than in the actual Torah, and as a result Jesus says all they are doing is honoring God in their words but not in their hearts. Their rules have become a way to skirt around the parts of God’s Law that they don’t want to obey.

When we examine the way that our church practices Christianity, we need to carefully see what are true, core beliefs and practices that are rooted in the Bible, what are culturally appropriate ways of expressing those central commitments, and what beliefs and practices actually stand in the way of following Jesus. For example, the ordinances of baptism and the Lord’s Supper are practice that we are commanded to do by Jesus in the Word, and although Christians may disagree on the theological details are central to obedience to Christ. The style of worship music we use in our services is a culturally appropriate expression of the Biblical teaching on worship and the use of music in the service. We have no Biblical mandate for any particular kind of music, so we seek to find music that honors the Lord while speaking to the hearts of the congregation. Teaching that God always wants Christians to be in good health, or that certain behaviors not named in Scripture like going to movies or wearing certain clothes are rules that may seem to be honoring God, but that can get in the way of someone truly pursuing their relationship with Jesus.

I’m not saying that all man-made rules are bad in themselves. When humbly applied and reviewed, they can be useful in helping us in our growth as disciples. (Did you know the Bible doesn’t command you to read through it in a year?) Those practices that draw us closer to Christ and that are consistent with Biblical teaching are not bad or wrong, as long as we don’t elevate them to the level of God’s Word. Those practices that interfere with the genuine teaching of the Bible need to be eliminated from our personal walk and from our churches. The Pharisees mistook their rules for God’s Law, and that is why Jesus came down so hard on them.

It isn’t always easy to determine where to draw every line, and evangelical Christians will disagree on some points. What we as believers need to do is to dig into the Word so that we know its clear teachings, spend time in prayer asking for wisdom in our own practice of “religion” within our relationship, and be careful where we draw lines for others. We don’t need a lot of extra rules; there’s plenty of clear teaching in Scripture to keep us busy until we meet Jesus face to face, and many ways for us to work together with other Christians to honor Jesus through what we say, do, and believe.

Moses and Israel found that when God decided to free His people, He would allow the situation to get worse before it got better. The people’s work was made more arduous, and Moses found himself rejected by the very people he came to help. It seemed like God’s plan was backfiring, but the Lord saw it differently.

In chapter 6, the Lord begins by telling Moses, “Now you shall see what I will do to Pharaoh…” In His eyes, Pharaoh had to exalt himself higher over the Israelites and their God before he was in a position to be humbled by God. The Lord told Moses that not only would the Israelites be allowed to leave Egypt, Pharaoh would actually drive them from his land!

Then God makes a significant statement about His relationship with the Israelites. He reminds Moses that He had made Himself known to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, and they knew Him as God Almighty, the omnipotent one. Now He would be known to Israel by His covenant name. He had used that name with the patriarchs, but they didn’t understand the full significance of it. Israel would learn about the Lord through experience.

This name of God was revealed to Moses at the burning bush, when Moses asked Him what His name was. God stated, “I AM WHO I AM,” and told Moses to tell the people that “I AM” had sent him. The letters of “I AM” became a name known as the Tetragrammaton (“four letters”), which we transliterate into English as YHWH and often pronounce “Yahweh.” In most Bible translations, when YHWH appears in the text it is translated as “the LORD” in all capital letters. That name became so sacred to the Jewish people that they refuse to say it, and will substitute “Adonai” instead. It is considered the covenant name of God with Israel.

Egypt had its gods, whom their mythology said came into existence and who could be killed or otherwise removed from existence. The LORD’s name meant that He “is”- not was, not will be, but always is. As Moses confronted Pharaoh, God “is” with him. As the people prepare to leave Egypt, God “is” with them. As Pharaoh challenges the word of God, God “is” there to overcome him. No matter what the circumstances, God is always there.

That same God who “is” then still “is” today. He is present with His people, and still in a covenant relationship with them. Our covenant is an even firmer one, founded on God the Son’s own sacrifice for us. Our situation may seem bad, and may even seem to get worse, but God is always there and always in control. Trust in the LORD, the God who was with Moses and is with you today, and see what He will do to bring you through your circumstances.

Many Christians have the idea that if they just serve the Lord faithfully, obeying the commandments of the Bible and seeking to fulfill God’s will, they will have a life of blessing. They think that the blessings of God should be what they want them to be, and that pain and suffering should at best be short-lived experiences that bring an even bigger blessing. At the extreme, this leads to ideas like the prosperity gospel, that what God wants for you is what you want for yourself.

I have never figured out how someone can read the Bible carefully and come to this conclusion. We see many who were richly blessed, like Abraham; some who went through suffering but came out on top, like Joseph; others who struggled even as they received great blessing from the Lord, like David. But there are still others in the Bible who served God faithfully, and seemed to be punished for their faithfulness.

When we read an account like the death of John the Baptist, it disrupts our comfortable thoughts of an easy Christianity. John was the forerunner of the Messiah, a man of whom Jesus said no one greater was ever born. Yet he lived an austere life in the wilderness, with rough clothing and food, and while many people received his teaching and his baptism most of the religious leaders opposed him. John wasn’t afraid to go after those in power, whether Pharisees, scribes, or even the king. He faithfully delivered the message God had given him.

Here in Matthew 14:3-12 we see what his reward on earth was. He offended King Herod’s wife, so he had John arrested. Herod would have killed him if he wasn’t afraid of an uprising by the people, who considered John a prophet. A brooding Herodias waited for her moment, and when her daughter’s dance pleased the king and led him to make a rash promise, she told her to ask for John’s head. Herod reluctantly complied, and John, the faithful “voice in the wilderness” was executed to satisfy a royal grudge.

Was John abandoned by God? Had he wasted his life serving faithfully only to have the Lord allow him to suffer and die needlessly? The only way we can come to this conclusion is by looking at this life as the only place that we receive rewards and blessings from God. John may have endured much in his life, and his unjustified imprisonment and brutal death were not what he might have thought would happen to him, but his reward was only beginning at his death. What we have on earth in this life is only a tiny fraction of what lies ahead for us as the children of God.

Suffering isn’t enjoyable, and the fact that it seems as if evil triumphs over good here and now may make us wonder sometimes what God is doing. The clear message of Scripture, however, is that this world is not our permanent home, and that we were created and redeemed for greater things. If we’re honest, sometimes that isn’t going to be a lot of consolation as we go through difficulties, suffering, and loss. There is a bigger story that we are part of, and when we remember that we can put even the worst experiences in an eternal perspective.

God did not abandon John, and He does not abandon us even when we feel like He has. There is a far greater future for all of us, and whether this life is easy or hard, full or empty, we have the promise of an eternity with Jesus that will bless us beyond what we can currently imagine. Hold fast, enjoy the blessings of this life, endure the suffering you are called to bear, and trust in the Lord for a full, blessed, endless future.

Have you ever noticed that people who engage in questionable activities are often the first to accuse others of doing the same things? I don’t know if it’s a guilty conscience, an awareness of how to get away with it, or just an inability to believe that other people aren’t necessarily motivated by the same selfish urges they have. The way we view others is often a reflection of the way we view ourselves.

In Genesis 50:15 Joseph’s brothers assume that, despite all Joseph has done for them, he has been waiting to get them back for selling him into slavery. It had been 17 years since Jacob and his family came down to Egypt, and nearly 40 years since Joseph had been sold to the Ishmaelites. The brothers must have believed that Joseph had allowed their ill-treatment to fester for those decades, and only the presence of their father had kept him from paying them nack. Now Israel was dead, Joseph had incredible power, and there was nothing to stop him.

The story the brothers told Joseph was most likely false, since Jacob had many opportunities to tell Joseph directly. I suspect Joseph knew it was false, and he saw it as a desperate move by his brothers to avoid retribution. His reaction? He wept, overcome with sorrow that his brothers could not see that he had truly forgiven them and cared for them. Joseph’s character was very different from his brothers, yet they could not see that.

Joseph’s perspective on his life and circumstances was dependent on his understanding of what God was doing in his life. While he did not see the purpose in every step at the time, he was able to put all the pieces together as he saw God at work. He recognized that without his coming to Egypt, ending up in prison with the cupbearer, and being brought to the attention of Pharaoh, his own family, including his brothers, and the nation of Egypt may well have perished. God used Joseph’s circumstances to save many.

Joseph also recognized that it was not his place to bring judgment on his brothers. He was a powerful ruler, but he was not God. Joseph left everything in God’s hands, and saw that even evil intentions could be used by the Lord to bring about good. He did not let his brothers off the hook; he did remind them that they intended to harm him. But in the end, God used even the evil intent of Joseph’s brothers to save them and the future nation that would come from them.

When our circumstances seem to fall apart around us, and other people are actively seeking to hurt us, it can be easy to allow ourselves to become bitter and angry. The longer the situation continues, the deeper we can fall into darkness. When this happens, we need to go to the Lord and ask Him what He is planning for us. We may not be told immediately; Joseph spent 13 years as a slave and prisoner. Our goal should be to be where the Lord wants us to be so that we are ready to do His will when He reveals it. That may mean waiting, and it may mean forgiving people who have hurt us. In the end, however, we will find that being in the center of the Lord’s will makes all of the suffering worthwhile when we see what comes from it.   

The parable of the sower (or, more properly, the parable of the soils) is one of Jesus’ best-known parables. We find it in three of the Gospels, Matthew, Mark, and Luke. You’ve probably heard a sermon or two on this parable in church. The picture is vivid, and it is one of the few parables that we have Jesus’ own explanation for what it means.

What I want to focus on here, though, is what Jesus says in Matthew 13:10-17, between the parable and the explanation. He gives His reasons for teaching in parables. We have grown so accustomed to these stories, and to the teaching in them that has been explained to us, that we think the parables are obvious in their application, much like one of Aesop’s fables. Jesus says exactly the opposite; He intended the parables to only teach their lessons to those who had the spiritual sensitivity to seek the truth about His kingdom, and to have a hidden meaning to those who did not.

When we seek to follow Jesus and to learn from Him, He will ensure that we are able to understand what He says. Since He ascended into heaven and sent the Holy Spirit, the Spirit guides us into His teaching. This doesn’t mean we’ll understand everything all at once, or that there won’t be things we don’t understand at all as finite humans, but it does mean that Jesus does not keep a “secret teaching” that is only available to a certain spiritual elite, contrary to what some heretical groups have taught.

This also means that people who do not seek after Jesus, and who do not want to know spiritual truth, can read the Bible or hear Christian teaching and never understand the truth. It shouldn’t surprise us that when we proclaim the truth of God’s Word people who have no connection to the Lord reject what we have to say. It makes no sense to them, and they don’t see why they should accept what the Bible says as true for their lives. Many today believe truth is what you make it, or what you want it to be, and the idea of an absolute truth is totally foreign to their thinking.

That is why we can present the gospel and make creative and winsome apologetic arguments only to see people walk away unconvinced and unimpressed. It is why we must never forget the primary role of the Holy Spirit in convicting and convincing people to turn from their sin to Christ. Even the clear presentation of the the Word is a mystery to the person who does not seek spiritual understanding. To the world, the Bible may be a nice collection of stories, just like Jesus’ parables, but they do not see it as the ultimate source of truth.

The fact that many we meet may not be ready to hear the truth is not an excuse for us not to proclaim it. We don’t know when the Spirit will break through their hearts and bring that message home. We also have a message to teach to those who are seeking to know Jesus and understand His truth. But it should not surprise us when people we speak with don’t get the point of the Biblical message. It is hidden from them until they are prepared by the Spirit to hear. To those who harden themselves against the truth, it may never become apparent, as we saw in our devotional yesterday. Our task still remains: preach and teach the truth of the Bible, so that those we encounter may have the opportunity to hear and to respond through the Holy Spirit.

Few passages in the Bible are more troubling to many people than Matthew 12:31-32. This passage has led many people to talk about the “unforgivable sin,” and some of them to wonder if they have committed it. Certainly if you believe you have committed a sin which cannot be forgiven, and you realize that will keep you out of heaven and send you to hell, you should be disturbed.

When we look at these verses in their context, we see that many of the fears people have about committing such a sin are unnecessary. The first aspect we should notice is that nowhere in this passage does Jesus refer to an “unforgivable sin.” What He does say is that whoever blasphemes or speaks against the Holy Spirit will not be forgiven. This refers to an attitude, not just an action. Those who will not be forgiven are those who look at the work of the Holy Spirit and do not accept it as the work of God. They have seen the Spirit at work, and deliberately choose not to believe in His work.

What specifically are these people accused of? When we look back further in this passage, we see that there are a few elements of the unbelief of those to whom Jesus is referring. First, they attribute the work of Jesus to Satan. They see the supernatural power of God at work, but they do not want to believe that Jesus is God Himself, or even the representative of God. They choose to believe He is empowered by another supernatural source, but one who is evil. This requires an outright rejection of Jesus and, by extension, both the Father and the Spirit. That rejection is the reason they cannot be forgiven, for they refuse the only way God provided to be forgiven.

Jesus also points out that to refuse to come along with Him is to place oneself in opposition to Him. In order to work alongside of Jesus, you must place yourself under His authority and Lordship. You must be willing to obey the commandments that Jesus gives. That’s not something that people want to do naturally. We like to be in control, and to decide for ourselves what we ought to do and what our future ought to be. That kind of desire for self-control is part of the essence of hell, where eternal isolation awaits. Forgiveness requires repentance, and people who don’t want to submit to God see no reason to repent.

So what we see in this passage as unforgiveable is not a specific sin, but an attitude of rebellion, selfishness, sin, and rejection of Christ. A person who has this in his or her heart doesn’t even care about being forgiven by God. They believe they are self-sufficient, and that submitting to Jesus in repentance isn’t needed because they can take care of themselves. They may even see Jesus as evil, repressing the “natural” desires of the human heart.

This is an attitude that not only is widespread in the world, but which we see gaining momentum in our own society. People want to do what they want to do. They don’t care what God says, what science says, or what logic says. What they want to believe is true about themselves is all that matters, and if it defies what the Bible says or what God has made them to be they will simply declare that they won’t submit to any of that anyway. If a person with that kind of attitude becomes hardened in it, they will truly find forgiveness impossible.

Of course, from our perspective we don’t know who has permanently hardened their heart and who is going through the rebellion all of us as sinners go through. We need to continue to present the truth about the love, compassion, and forgiveness of Jesus as long as we can. That “unforgivable” spirit may be confronted by the Holy Spirit, and that person may find forgiveness as they change their heart toward Christ. Don’t ever give up on anyone, even if they believe they can’t be forgiven, and trust the Spirit to do His work in their hearts.

“Lord, give me patience, and give it to me now!” That saying has been around for a long time, but it reflects something that I think we all feel sometimes. We know that patience is needed in many of our life experiences, but we don’t want to go through the process of developing it. Yet the only way to truly learn patience is to go through circumstances that require it, over and over again. It can be frustrating.

Joseph certainly had to learn patience, and he had no choice. Sold into slavery, he worked his way up to his master’s trust in the household of Potiphar, only for a false accusation to land him in prison. In prison, he worked his way into the trust of the keeper of the prison, and had the opportunity to interpret dreams for two prominent prisoners. Having accurately interpreted their fates, he was forgotten by the man who promised to mention him to Pharaoh. By the time our passage begins, Joseph has spent 13 years waiting for his situation to improve, even though he had done nothing to earn his captivity.

The Lord knew when Joseph would be needed, and when the time was ripe for him to gain all that God had planned for him. After all that time, Pharaoh had a dream, and the cupbearer finally remembered Joseph, and everything came together for Joseph to enter the service for which God had prepared him.

While I’m sure the wait from slavery to prisoner to ruler seemed long and unfair to Joseph, he still was a young 30 years old when he entered Pharaoh’ s service. Since we are told he died at 110 years old, Joseph had 80 years as the “prime minister” of Egypt and in a respected retirement. The wait paid off with a long period of service not only to Egypt but to the Lord, and with the saving of Joseph’s family, who would become the chosen nation of Israel.

You may not be asked to wait 13 years for God’s plan to unfold, or you may be asked to wait even longer. The key to learning patience is developing an attitude of submission to God’s will. We may try to make things happen more quickly, or in our own way, but we have many examples in the Bible of how that can backfire. The Lord knows when and where He wants us to be, and He will allow circumstances to unfold in His time so that we have the most impact for His kingdom.

Is your patience being tested today? I work in a job where my patience is tested constantly, and although I see the need for patience it doesn’t make me like the wait. I think seeing how my students develop over time gives me perspective on how I develop in God’s sight. Our testing is designed to make us stronger and, yes, more patient in dealing with what life sends our way. As you face your tests of patience today, remember that God is preparing you to fulfill His will in His time, and wants you to have success is your service.  

I think the most common answer I get to the question “How are you?” after “fine” is probably “tired.” Between work, home, church, kids’ activities, social organizations, volunteering, and all the other demands we have on our time, most of us are very busy. We promise ourselves we’ll catch up on our sleep, stop and read a book, or go out for a relaxing evening sometime, but “sometime” never seems to get here.

Life was equally busy for people in Jesus’ time. They worked hard, often to earn just enough to eat that day. Labor was more physically intense, since they didn’t have the level of technology we have today. Their world was just as emotionally draining as ours. We may have information overload and constant bombardment with urgent issues of the day, but they lived under Roman occupation and a constant threat of life-threatening outbreaks of violence and disease. Even their religious identity was called into question on many occasions, even more seriously than our today.

People need rest. It just seems so hard to find. In Matthew 11:28-30 Jesus tells us where we can find rest. He tells us “Come to Me…and you will find rest for your souls.” We will only find rest when we find Jesus. The world makes promises of rest on its own terms, but that rest never seems to satisfy. We may find temporary respite from our physical tiredness or our emotional distress, but it fails to give us a deep-seated, lasting rest for our inmost being. Jesus promises rest for the soul, and a rest that will last forever.

Notice that Jesus does not promise relief from all labor. In fact, He offers a yoke, which is often used as a symbol of labor and restriction. The difference is that the yoke Jesus offers is His yoke, which He promises is an easy yoke with a light burden. Jesus is not a harsh, cruel master who drives those under His yoke to exhaustion and despair. Rather, He is gentle and humble, and seeks the well-being of those laboring for Him. Although as God He has every right to place any demand on us, He chooses to bring us along in a way that still gives us that deep soul rest we need.

 When our spirit is at peace, much of the weariness is bearable. We’ll still get physically tired, and circumstances may be emotionally taxing. But with faith and trust in Jesus, we will still find rest in Him through all the demands of life. We aren’t free from labor, but we will find rest in that labor as we labor under Jesus.

Many popular teachers today espouse what is called the “prosperity gospel.” This teaches that it is God’s will for Christians to be healthy, wealthy, and blessed at all times, and that when we experience any lack in our life it is due to our lack of faith. If we just believe in Jesus, and claim all of the promises that they see laid out in the Bible, we can have all the blessings we want in this life. Many times this teaching ties in with a call to give to those teaching this “gospel,” so that you can be blessed in the measure with which you bless them.

I don’t suppose that today’s passage in Matthew is very popular with those teachers. It speaks about the persecution that the followers of Jesus can expect. Not only will the world oppose us, but even members of our own families may rise up against us! Jesus tells His follower sto keep fleeing from town to town as they continue to face persecution.

Not only is there no indication that this opposition can be overcome by increasing our faith, we are also told that we should expect it because Jesus went through it as well. Christians should not expect to somehow be spared suffering when our Lord went through it in His earthly life. I don’t think anyone would say Jesus didn’t have enough faith to overcome problems in His life! (OK, maybe somebody would, but I would not want to be in their place when they face Jesus.) Jesus was accused of being empowered by the devil, despite His constant teaching about His relationship to the Father and the evidence of His miracles. If that’s what people said about Him, why should we expect they will treat us better?

Jesus uses this to teach us about whom we ought to fear. There will be persecution for the followers of Jesus, and there will be struggles with people who may be close to us, but we should not be afraid of them. Jesus warns us that we may face opposition from people who can kill our bodies, and we see this kind of persecution happening all over the world today. In fact, more Christians are killed for their faith today than any other religious group. As bad as facing death is, though, facing eternity in hell is worse. Jesus encourages His followers to stand firm for Him, knowing that ten of His disciples would become martyrs.

If we’re honest, the prosperity gospel appeals to our human natures a lot more than Jesus’ warning. It isn’t out of the question that we could live a richly blessed life and never have to face severe opposition for our faith. What Jesus emphasizes here is that we need to be ready to face that opposition if necessary. If we’re only following Jesus for what we can get from Him, we don’t have a genuine saving faith in Him, and we’ll bail out when trouble comes. Even in those moments when we do experience health, wealth, and blessing, we are reminded that we should not depend on those temporal blessings, but on the salvation we have in Jesus. The reward we strive for is not measured in dollars or real estate, but in hearing Jesus tell us “well done” when we meet Him. What is the measure of your faith today?