FOR THIS VERY PURPOSE

SPECIAL NOTE: Today, March 29, 2024 marks the 25^th anniversary of this SOUND BITES Ministry in memory of our son, Dustin, who had died on this date the previous year (1998) from a brain tumor at the age of 16. Dustin was buried on Good Friday and two celebrations of his life and of God’s love were held on Easter Saturday – one in Green Bay, Wisconsin where I was then serving, and one in Cleveland Heights, Ohio where I had previously served and where Dustin had grown up.

Since SOUND BITES began 5,826 quotes, including today’s, have been sent out to our e-mail subscribers or Facebook followers or Blog readers around the world. As we continue through Lent, let today’s SOUND BITES quote speak to you, and then let it overflow to others everywhere. Please freely share with friends and family, with school and work mates, and with neighbors and fellow church members. We would love to hear from you. Simply send an e-mail to SOUNDBITESMinistry@gmail.com with where you live and how God is using SOUND BITES to minister to you or through you to others. You are welcome to comment below as well. – Rev. Dave Wilkinson

FOR THIS VERY PURPOSE

“One of the criminals who hung there hurled insults at Jesus: ‘Aren’t you the Messiah? Save Yourself and us.’ But the other criminal rebuked him. ‘Don’t you fear God,’ he said, ‘since you are under the same sentence? We are punished justly, for we are getting what our deeds deserve. But this Man has done nothing wrong.’ Then he said, ‘Jesus, remember me when You come into Your Kingdom.’ Jesus answered him, ‘Truly I tell you, today you will be with Me in paradise.’” (Luke 23:39-43 NIV). 

On the day Christ died, the angels must have been struck speechless at God's sacrifice. But perhaps even more amazing to them was the conversation between Christ and a common criminal.

For the condemned thief on the cross, time was running out. Regardless of what he had done before, in the end, he did fear God. He realized that his judgment after death would be totally determined by God.

Like the convict on the far side who insulted Jesus (Luke 23:39), this man must have come to the cross with knowledge of Jesus. He understood Jesus was no criminal. Even more important, he must have realized Jesus was God's Son who was headed back home to the paradise from which He had come.

Believing this, the thief decided to make one last request. He asked Jesus to save him when He arrived back in heaven. What an interesting contrast between the criminal who mocked Jesus to save him physically and this man who sought Jesus to save him spiritually.

Of course, Jesus said yes. He was being crucified for this very purpose -- to save sinners and to promise heaven to all those who ask.

Two thousand years later, the invitation still stands. 

-- Leith Anderson in “Christian Reader” magazine 

#5826

CHRIST IN GETHSEMANE

“Jesus went a little farther and fell on His face, and prayed, saying, ‘O My Father, if it is possible, let this cup pass from Me; nevertheless, not as I will, but as You will.’”  (Matthew 26:29 NKJV)

We all know there is no such thing as a free lunch. Yet the Christian insists that salvation is free. Well, yes and no! It is freely offered to the sinner, but at a tremendous cost to the Savior. Our appreciation of salvation is directly related to our recognition of its cost…

[In the Garden of Gethsemane Jesus prayed an agonizing prayer.] He knew that He would rise again in a matter of days, so death held no fear for Him. It was the uniqueness of His dying that horrified Him. He would become a sin offering (2 Corinthians 5:21), He would carry the responsibility and the penalty for the sins of the entire human race (Isaiah 53:5), and He would experience being forsaken by His Heavenly Father (Matthew 27:46; see Psalm 22:1). In agony Jesus contemplated not so much the physical suffering, although this would be considerable; nor the emotional anguish, although this would be excruciating; but the spiritual dimensions of His death, the likes of which no other human has ever experienced or ever will (see Mark 15:34). Yet He was willing to suffer even to that extent for the salvation of a sinful world -- He was committed to His Father’s will (Matthew 26:29,42). 

-- Excerpted from “Daily Study Bible for Men” with daily studies by Stuart Briscoe

#5825

A TOWEL AND BASIN

“But Jesus called His disciples to Him and said, ‘You know that the rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them, and their great ones are tyrants over them. It will not be so among you; but whoever wishes to be great among you must be your servant, and whoever wishes to be first among you must be your slave; just as the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve, and to give His life a ransom for many.’”  (Matthew 20:25-28 NRSV)

One of the most meaningful and dramatic episodes in the life of Christ came on the eve of His death, in what was to be His last formal meeting with the disciples (John 13). Jesus girded Himself with a towel, took a basin, knelt, and washed the disciples' feet. If ever we who administer need a model for leadership, there it is with Jesus at the disciples' feet. Power is subordinated to service; authority cloaked by humility. The managerial tools are not ROIs (return on investment), MBOs (management by objective), LISs (labor information statistics), or PFRs (project feasibility reports) but a towel and basin -- instruments of service. 

-- Lawrence E. Holst in “Hospital Ministry”

#5824

MARY GETS IT

“Then Jesus came to Bethany, where Lazarus was who had been dead, whom He had raised from the dead. There they made Him a supper; and Martha served, but Lazarus was one of those who sat at the table with Him. Then Mary took a pound of very costly oil of spikenard, anointed the feet of Jesus, and wiped His feet with her hair. And the house was filled with the fragrance of the oil. But one of His disciples, Judas Iscariot, Simon’s son, who would betray Him, said, ‘Why was this fragrant oil not sold for three hundred denarii and given to the poor?’ This he said, not that he cared for the poor, but because he was a thief, and had the money box; and he used to take what was put in it. But Jesus said, ‘Let her alone; she has kept this for the day of My burial. For the poor you have with you always, but Me you do not have always.’”  (John 12:1-8 NKJV)

Jesus was anointed by Mary in Bethany. Think about what a special moment this was for Jesus. In 36 hours, He would be on the cross -- and the only person who figured out the crucifixion and coming resurrection was Mary. The disciples had no idea what was going on! Imagine the understanding looks between Jesus and Mary as she washed His feet with perfume and worshiped Him.

Suddenly, Judas spoiled it all: “What a waste! And she’s spending it on You!” Can you imagine how much that hurt? Jesus said, “Leave her alone. She has done a marvelous thing. She’s anointing My body for burial while I am still alive and can enjoy it.” Frankly, I’d rather have one rose right now while I can enjoy it than 10,000 after I’m dead and gone. I imagine that Jesus felt just like that.

They did not bathe often in those days. I’ve often wondered if Jesus got a whiff of Mary’s perfume as He hung on the cross. Then, He looked down from the cross and there was Mary. He must have thought, “God, bless her, she’s the only one who has figured it out.” 

-- Roger Barrier, excerpted from an article entitled “What Jesus Did Each Day During His Final Week”

#5823

THE MINISTRY OF JESUS

The ministry of Jesus is grounded in personal practices. Jesus' life is marked by prayer, solitude, worship, reflection, the study of Scripture, conversation, community, serving, engagement with suffering, and generosity.  These personal practices sustained a ministry that opened people to God's grace, transformed human hearts, and changed the circumstances of people in need. 

Jesus modeled going away to quiet places, spending time in the Temple, and listening for God.  Jesus spoke to the woman at the well; the tax collector in the tree; the rich young ruler on the road; the paralyzed man beside the pool; to the lepers and the blind and the widowed and the wealthy; to Mary and Martha and Peter and John.  He held a child in His arms, noticed the woman who touched His robe, healed a soldier's servant, ate with sinners, told stories to Pharisees, and blessed the thief beside Him on the cross.  He intervened to challenge unjust systems that abused vulnerable people, overturning the money changers' tables and dispersing those ready to kill a woman accused of adultery. He connected people to God, opened their hearts and minds to God's kingdom, invited them to follow in His steps, and set them on a path toward God.  Jesus knitted them into community, interlaced their lives with one another by the Holy Spirit, and wove them into the body of Christ, the church. 

By example and story, by lessons and parables, and by inviting them into ministry and sending them out in His name, He taught them to practice and live the ways of God.  Jesus made maturing in faith and growth toward God unexpectedly and irresistibly appealing. 

-- Robert Schnase in “Five Practices of Fruitful Living”

#5822

JESUS’ ENTRY INTO JERUSALEM

“The next day a great multitude that had come to the feast, when they heard that Jesus was coming to Jerusalem, took branches of palm trees and went out to meet Him, and cried out: ‘Hosanna!’ ‘Blessed is He who comes in the name of the Lord!’ ‘The King of Israel!’ Then Jesus, when He had found a young donkey, sat on it; as it is written: ‘Fear not, daughter of Zion; behold, your King is coming, sitting on a donkey’s colt.’”  (John 12:12-15 NKJV)

The donkey was the beast on which kings rode when they came in peace; only in war did they ride upon horses. The entry of Jesus was the claim to be King.

But at the same time it was the claim to be the King of peace. It was upon the donkey of peace and not the horse of war that Jesus came.  He came deliberately refusing the role of warrior Messiah and claiming to be the Prince of Peace. He was appealing for a throne, but the throne was in the hearts of men and women. In that entry into Jerusalem Jesus, in a dramatic symbolic action which spoke more loudly than any words, was making one last appeal to the people, and saying to them: “Will you not, even now, even yet, accept Me as your Lord and King, and enthrone Me within your hearts?”

Jesus’ entry into Jerusalem was an action of supreme courage; it was an assertion of royalty and an offer of love; it was at one and the same time royalty’s claim and love’s appeal.  

-- William Barclay in “The Mind of Jesus”

#5821

OUR HOPE IS IN CHRIST

Romans 5 begins with these words: “Therefore, since we have been justified through faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through who we have gained access by faith into this grace in which we now stand” (vv. 1-2). Paul then explains that the result of experiencing the grace of God is that “we rejoice in the hope of the glory God” (v. 2). For a Christian, no situation is completely hopeless. Christians have hope in Christ…

Many people have hope, but they have not based it on anything solid. It is an artificial, pump-yourself-up hope. And many people base their hope on the wrong things: the stock market, their good looks, a big salary, a nice job, a good family, [the next election]. But all those things are temporary and can be taken away. When they disappear, so does hope. And joy is impossible without hope.

By contrast, Christians have a reason to be positive. We can rejoice because we rejoice in hope. In Romans 12:12 Paul reminds us, “Be joyful in hope.” Paul is talking about our hope in Christ. The hope we have in Christ is the reason we can rejoice, even in difficult situations. 

-- Rick Warren in “God’s Power to Change Your Life”

#5820

THE ANSWER TO OUR DEEPEST NEED

If we are honest, we would have to admit that we all do things that we know are wrong.  Sometimes we do things for which we are deeply ashamed.  More than that, there is a self-centeredness about our lives which spoils them.  Jesus said, "What comes out of a man is what makes him 'unclean.' For from within, out of men's hearts, come evil thoughts, sexual immorality, theft, murder, adultery, greed, malice, deceit, lewdness, envy, slander, arrogance and folly.  All these evils come from inside and make a man 'unclean'." (Mark 7:20-23)

Our greatest need is for forgiveness. Just as a man who has cancer needs a doctor whether he realizes it or not, so we need forgiveness whether we realize it or not. Just as with cancer, the man who recognizes his need is far better off than the person who is lulled into a false sense of security.

By His death on the cross Jesus made it possible for us to be forgiven and brought back into a relationship with God.  In this way He supplied the answer to our deepest need. 

-- Nicky Gumble in the Alpha Course booklet "Why Jesus?" 

#5819

FOLLOWING CHRIST

To find and follow Christ and to serve Him -- that is fruitful living…

When Jesus said, "I am the way, and the truth, and the life" (John 14:6), He was not speaking arrogantly, egotistically, or narrow-mindedly. He was expressing a genuine desire to turn us, to redirect us away from things that do not satisfy and toward the things that cause us to come alive. The time given to us on this earth is infinitesimally small compared to time itself, and so He desires for us to live it richly… He invites us. He wants us to flourish.

To be a follower of Jesus is to take this path, to step by step grow into the life that really is life. God through Christ reveals the way, invites us along, and walks with us. Following Christ will change you; and through you, God will change the world. 

-- Robert Schnase in “Five Practices of Fruitful Living”

THE SURPASSING WORTH OF KNOWING CHRIST

“But whatever were gains to me I now consider loss for the sake of Christ. What is more, I consider everything a loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, for whose sake I have lost all things. I consider them garbage, that I may gain Christ and be found in Him, not having a righteousness of my own that comes from the law, but that which is through faith in Christ -- the righteousness that comes from God on the basis of faith.”  (Philippians 3:7-9 NIV)

Our value does not depend on our ability to earn people's acceptance. People change their minds. Instead, true self-worth is God's love and acceptance, which are unchanging. He created us. He alone knows how to fulfill all of our needs.  

-- Robert McGee in "Search for Significance"

#5817

TODAY IS THE DAY

Jesus said to His disciples, "Whoever wants to be My disciple must deny themselves and take up their cross and follow Me.”  (Matthew 16:24 NIV)

Jesus calls us to take up a cross and die. Not someday when we take our last breath, but to die to ourselves today…

Bruce Thielemann is an author, he wrote these words, “Please don’t say anything to me about tomorrow. Tomorrow is a word the Bible does not know. The Holy Spirit’s word is “today.” The Bible says, “Today, if you hear His voice, do not harden your hearts” (Hebrews 3:15). And Paul writes in 2 Corinthians 6:2, “For God says, ‘At just the right time, I heard you. On the day of salvation, I helped you.’ Indeed, the ‘right time’ is now. Today is the day of salvation.”

Today is the day of salvation. Don’t say tomorrow. The word is “today.” 

-- Adapted from “Not a Fan” Study by Kyle Idleman

#5816

HOPE FOR TODAY

“May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, so that by the power of the Holy Spirit you may abound in hope.”  (Romans 15:13)

Yes, there is hope.  There is hope for the present because I believe the stage has already been set for a new spirit in our nation.

One of the things we desperately need is a spiritual renewal in this country.   We need a spiritual revival in America.  And God has told us in His Word, time after time, that we are to repent of our sins and we're to turn to Him and He will bless us in a new way… And from the Cross, God declares, "I love you.  I know the heartaches and the sorrows and the pains that you feel.  But I love you."…

But now we have a choice: whether to implode and disintegrate emotionally and spiritually as a people and a nation -- or, whether to choose to become stronger through all of this struggle -- to rebuild on a solid foundation.  And I believe we're in the process of starting to rebuild on that foundation.  That foundation is our trust in God…

My prayer today is that we will feel the loving arms of God wrapped around us, and will know in our hearts that He will never forsake us as we trust in Him. 

-- Reverend Billy Graham

#5815

TODAY IS GOD’S GIFT TO YOU

“This is the day that the Lord has made; let us rejoice and be glad in it.”  (Psalm 118:24 NRSV)

The greatest moment of your life is now.

Not because it's pleasant or happy or easy, but because this moment is the only moment you've got.  Every past moment is irretrievably gone.  It's never coming back.  If you live there, you lose your life.

And the future is always out there somewhere.  You can spend an eternity waiting for tomorrow, or worrying about tomorrow.  If you live there, you likewise will lose your life.

This moment is God's irreplaceable gift to you.  Most of all, this is the moment that matters because this moment is where God is.  If you are going to be with God at all, you must be with Him now -- in this moment. 

-- John Ortberg in “God Is Closer Than You Think”

#5814

GOD’S HEALING WORD FOR TODAY

“Cause me to understand the way of Your precepts, that I may meditate on Your wonderful deeds. My soul is weary with sorrow; strengthen me according to Your Word.”  (Psalm 119:27,28 NIV)

The Word of God is not a word to apply in our daily lives at some later date; it is a word to heal us through, and in, our listening here and now.

The questions therefore are: How does God come to me as I listen to the Word? Where do I discern the healing hand of God touching me through the Word? How are my sadness, my grief, and my mourning being transformed at this very moment? Do I sense the fire of God’s love purifying my heart and giving me new life? These questions lead me to the sacrament of the Word, the sacred place of God’s real presence. 

-- Henri J. M. Nouwen in “With Burning Hearts”

#5813

OUR CHRISTIAN WITNESS TODAY

“That is why I am so eager to preach the gospel... For I am not ashamed of the gospel, because it is the power of God that brings salvation to everyone who believes…”  (Romans 1:15a,16a NIV)

Our situation today is not as dissimilar from the writing of Paul’s letter to the Romans as we are inclined to think. Make no mistake. The days of casual Christianity are over. The same issue of deep faithfulness is upon us. Once again, we are in a time when to be Christian is to be seen as quaint, backwards, and scientifically ignorant. For some, it is even a sign of being mean spirited and bigoted. And here we must pause for a moment to confess that we have brought some of this on by ourselves through a narrow-minded refusal to love those who disagree and more often than we would like, a coarse indifference to the hurting, hungry, and homeless, both physically and spiritually. Yet surely the response to our appropriate confession is not abject surrender to the whims of our hedonistically saturated civilization. Dean Inge’s famous quote rightly reminds us that “Whoever marries the spirit of this age will find himself [or herself] a widower [or widow] in the next.”

Is it not time to admit that instead of being the transformer of culture we have been transformed by our culture? 

-- Bishop Mike Lowry

#5812

THE NEW SPIRITUAL MAN

“Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new.”  (2 Corinthians 5:17 ESV)

A new spiritual man is emerging in America. He does not confuse faith with politics; he does not require exclusively sports-based metaphors to gain a spiritual yard or two; he is struggling hard to be authentically Christian and countercultural in the workplace; and he understands the language of servant leadership in the home. This man is less confrontational than those who seek to effect change via condemnation and acrimony because he is learning to remember that Christ teaches us to overcome evil with good. “Be imitators of God, as beloved children, and live in love, as Christ loved us and gave Himself up for us, a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God.” (Ephesians 5:1-2)

If he is married, the new spiritual man knows that his wife is his partner, not one more subject for his domain. If anyone asks about the dynamics of power in his family, today’s disciple has learned to share the truth about relationships that are grounded in the security and freedom of God’s invitation to fullness [in Christ].

We live as witnesses to God’s amazing and redemptive love. Relationships experienced in the context of God’s social economy stand as a living testimony to our salvation, and to our independence from the warped values and skewed priorities of this broken and unsatisfying world. 

-- Derek Maul in “Get Real: A Spiritual Journey for Men”

#5811

EMISSARIES OF GRACE

“We’re Christ’s representatives. God uses us to persuade men and women to drop their differences and enter into God’s work of making things right between them. We’re speaking for Christ Himself now: Become friends with God; He’s already a friend with you.”  (2 Corinthians 5:20 MSG)

Christian character reflects our relationship with Christ. We learn and build Christian character as we grow closer to God and follow His directives. We still have our individual personalities, but they develop into a godly version – a better version of ourselves – the person God created us to be. We grow in Christian character as we walk with God, dive into His Word, and spend time with Him in prayer. Christian character should display Christ to those around us – we are His emissaries of grace!

We have to be intentional about developing Christian character. Every day we make choices that will either grow our Christian character or send it into a slump. Our life circumstances are where God builds character, but we have to cooperate with Him in the effort. We are often confronted with issues and situations that tempt us to act out in ways that are the opposite of Christian character – we might want to fight back, get even, use foul language, get angry, and so on. We have to make the conscience choice to respond in a Christlike way. 

-- Author Unknown, from biblereasons.com

#5810

BLESSED TO BE A BLESSING

“I have never coveted anyone’s silver or gold or fine clothes. You know that these hands of mine have worked to supply my own needs and even the needs of those who were with me. And I have been a constant example of how you can help those in need by working hard. You should remember the words of the Lord Jesus: ‘It is more blessed to give than to receive.’”  (Acts 20:33-35 NLT)

The blessings of God are never ends in themselves.  And if we use a blessing selfishly, the blessing actually turns into a curse.  The blessings of God are always a means to an end.  And the end is blessing others.  We are blessed to bless.

One of the turning points of my life came the day I stopped setting income goals and started setting giving goals.  It was a paradigm shift.  I finally came to terms with the fact that making money is the way you make a living and giving it away is the way you make a life.  True joy is found on the giving end of life.  Does that mean I don’t struggle with greed?  Nope.  Greed is a nine-headed monster.  And it has nine lives.  Does that mean I don’t want to make more money?  Nope.  It simple means that on my good days I live to give.  My motivation to make more is so I can give more.  John Wesley may have said it best:  “Gain all you can, save all you can, give all you can.” 

-- Mark Batterson in “PRIMAL: A Quest for the Lost Soul of Christianity”

#5809

THE ROLE OF SCRIPTURE IN SPIRITUAL FORMATION

“All Scripture is inspired by God and is useful for teaching the truth, rebuking error, correcting faults, and giving instruction for right living, so that the person who serves God may be fully qualified and equipped to do every kind of good deed.”  (2 Timothy 3:16-17 GNT)

The how of the role of Scripture in spiritual formation is not so much a body of information, a technique, a method, a model, as it is a mode of being in relationship with God that we bring to the Scripture…

I suggest that your top priority be to listen for God. Seek to allow your attention and focus to be on listening for what God is saying to you as your read [the Scripture]… Listen for God to speak to you in and through, around and within, over and behind and out front of everything that you read. Keep asking yourself, “What is God seeking to say to me in all this?” By adopting this posture toward the text [of God’s Word] you will begin the process of reversing the learning mode that establishes you as the controlling power who seeks to master a body of information. Instead, you will begin to allow the text to become an instrument of God’s grace in your life. You will begin to open yourself to the possibility of God’s setting the agenda for your life through the text. Not only will this exercise begin to transform your approach to reading (and prepare you for the role of Scripture in spiritual formation), it will also begin to transform your whole mode of being in relationship with God in a way that will enhance genuine spiritual formation. 

-- M. Robert Mulholland, Jr. in “Shaped by the Word”

#5808

DWELLING WITH THE WORD

"Let the Word of Christ dwell in you richly as you teach and admonish one another with all wisdom, and as you sing psalms, hymns and spiritual songs with gratitude in your hearts to God." (Colossians 3:16 NIV)

"Let the Word of Christ dwell in you richly." It is very different to read and know the Word than it is to let it "richly dwell" in your very spirit. This means we find the purpose and pleasure of God's Word. It means that God's Word directs our paths and that the very core of our being is filled with the Word. We don't have the Word as a mere visitor to our lives -- Sunday morning Bible readers! Rather we take the Word of God and let it sift through the "stuff" of our lives until it rests richly in our heart. Then we find the Word on our fingertips and tongues in each and every situation we encounter. As God's Word dwells richly we reap the rich rewards.

-- Pastor Gary Stone 

#5807

SPIRITUAL PRIDE

“For by the grace given me I say to every one of you: Do not think of yourself more highly than you ought, but rather think of yourself with sober judgment, in accordance with the faith God has distributed to each of you.”  (Romans 12:3 NIV)

We have an inborn persisting tendency to attribute to ourselves the successes of our spiritual life, the resistance we offer to temptation, the devotion we achieve, the discipline we keep, and the good works we do. Surely we thank God for all of that, but in our heart of hearts we congratulate ourselves on our exploits, and secretly worship our sword and bow. We take as done by us what is done by God in us; even obvious graces from heaven stick to the soul and seem after some time to be connatural to us and springing from us. That is the spiritual pride of the worst kind, and it really takes hold of the soul, it is enough to stop any spiritual progress at all. The disease is as dangerous as it is common. 

-- Carlos G. Valles in “Faith for Justice”

#5806