Strong Family, Strong Nation

Psalm 128

Imagine the horror of a homeowner if he went down into his basement, or underneath the crawl space beneath his house, and as he looks at the support beams and cross beams he discovers that there is a terrible termite infestation.  The formerly strong and sturdy beams have been eaten away, and crumble in his hand.  If enough termite damage is done, the whole structure could be in serious danger.  That is why it is important to be sure that one never allows termites to get in, as the house, the structure’s stability, strength, and safety depend on it.  Our psalm for today speaks of the family, and by extension of the family, the nation.  It speaks of the importance it is to have a good, strong, god-fearing family, and the blessings that will bring.

Our psalm this week, Psalm 128, is a short one, whose author is unknown.  It is also one of the Songs of Ascent, which are a group of fifteen psalms (Psalms 120 - 134), which Jewish pilgrims would recite or sing on their way to Jerusalem for the holy days.  The six verses of this psalm speak of the blessings that one who fears God will receive from Him.

To be called a “God-fearing” person used to be considered a compliment.  That’s what most people would have aspired to be.  That was what every father and mother wanted to raise their children to be.  Today few people have any fear of the Lord or of the coming Judgment Day.  Today people would wonder which god should be the one which people should show “fear” or show reverence to, and they would question why anyone should show any fear of God, anyway.  Fearing God has been displaced by modern human reason.

The author of this psalm speaks about families, possibly thinking about his own wife and children, or remembering back to his childhood with his own mother, father, and siblings.  The psalmist in a poetic style, describes the parents and children as two different types of plants (vs. 3).  He calls the wife a fruitful vine.  When we think of vines, especially in the Holy Land, we might think of grape vines.  At this time of year here in the U.S. we might think of pumpkins.  Tomatoes and beans also grow on vines.  Then the psalmist calls the children olive plants.  Olives are the fruit from an olive tree.  Vines and trees, two different types of plants.  Children are not little identical clones of their parents.  They are uniquely created individuals.  Just because the father is an athlete doesn’t mean that his son will be, too.  And just because the mother is artistic doesn’t mean her daughter should be, as well.  Parents need to let their children blossom with whatever talents and abilities the Lord has blessed them with.   As parents, we should direct our children to faith in the Lord Jesus Christ, and give training in the principles of Scripture, to raise them to become God-fearing people.

Continuing our thoughts about families, we can see that strong, stable families make for a strong and stable community.  And strong communities help to build a good, strong, and safe country.  When the family unit breaks down, when there is not a good and godly father or mother in the home, when there is fighting or indifference between the two, or one or the other has walked out, or when the parents are never there and the child is basically raised by sitters or caregivers because the parents are too busy at their jobs or their own social activities, the family will inevitably suffer and it will crumble like a termite-infested building.  And like a pebble tossed on the water, the ripples will be felt all over.  The communities will start to deteriorate and become crime-ridden, and eventually the nation will start to crumble.  A nation remains only as strong as its families.  A crumbling family life is one of the signs of a crumbling culture.  The breaking up of a home eats like termites at the structure of a nation.

Our psalmist wanted to see God’s blessing upon both his family and his nation, in particular the capital city of Jerusalem.  He knew that would only come when his family feared, obeyed, and worshiped Yahweh.  The same is true today.  Do we want God’s blessing upon our family and upon our nation?  As our psalm instructs us, let’s fear the Lord and walk in His ways.

Sin Crouching By Our Door

Genesis 4:1-16

If you leave your house one day, and notice some animal crouching outside your door, what would you do?  If it is a small, harmless critter, you might feed it, possibly even take it into your house.  However, if it is dangerous you will want to do whatever you can to get it away.  You don’t want anything dangerous and harmful around.  It’s good to be warned, as such things left crouching near us are never good.  Our Scripture today tells of someone who did not heed such a warning, and what it led to.  Let’s take a look at the narrative of this person from the Book of Genesis.

As our Scripture opens, we read of the birth of Cain, and then his brother Abel.  The Lord tells us that Abel tended sheep while Cain grew crops, both respectable jobs (vs. 1-2).  Then one day the two brothers bring an offering to the Lord.  Abel brought the firstborn of his flock, while Cain brought some fruit and/or vegetables.  As we read, God accepted Abel’s offering, but not that of Cain’s (vs. 3-5).

The Scripture here doesn’t tell us specifically why God accepted the one but not the other, but there had to be a reason.  We do have a few clues, though.  In the Book of Hebrews we read that Abel offered his offering in faith, which Cain did not (Hebrews 11:4).  Everything we bring to God must be done through faith.  Another reason could possibly be that Abel offered the firstborn of his flock.  He offered his best.  Cain, though, just brought whatever he gathered.  The Scripture does not say that he picked and brought anything special, that he looked over and brought the choicest and best-looking fruit or vegetables.  It is possible that his basket contained bruised, withered, and otherwise fruit that was less than the best.

A third reason could be depending on what type of offering this was.  If this was a sin offering, then it needed the shedding of blood for it to be accepted.  Scripture teaches that without the shedding of blood there is no forgiveness (Hebrews 9:22).  If it was a sin offering, then Cain would have needed to trade some of his crops to Abel for one from his flocks.

Whatever the reason, Cain knew of it and instead of telling God he was sorry and would do better next time, Cain just got angry and sullen (vs. 5-6).  God told him that if he did well, he would be accepted, but he needed to be alert for sin, which was crouching at his door.  Sin wanted dominance, but God said he could rule over it if he wanted and tried (vs. 7).  The word “lies” in verse 7 in Hebrew is “rabas”, which suggests an animal which is hunting, crouching as he closes in on its prey, ready to pounce on it.  That is a great picture of what sin is like, ready to pounce on us, overpower us, and bring us down.  Rather than heed God’s warning, though, Cain let his anger boil over into a murderous rage, and shortly afterwards he killed his brother (vs. 8).

Uncontrolled and lingering anger is sin.  We must master it, otherwise it will rule over us, leading to serious consequences just as with Cain.  Sin is a contaminate, like a biohazard, that needs to be kept away and removed before it destroys us.  Sin is a grave and dangerous enemy.  In life we have a choice - to do or not to do what is right.  When we choose to do what is right we choose life and master sin.  When we choose to do what is wrong, we open the door to sin, which leads to disaster.

Just like Cain did, we love to make excuses (vs. 9-15).  We love to blame others - our parents, teachers, leaders.  We cry “injustice”, and never feel sorry for those we have hurt, but only for ourselves.  We demand things we don’t deserve, just as Cain did to God.  Cain was totally self-focused, while God was gracious.  He gave Cain every opportunity to repent.  However, Cain was so full of himself, that instead of confessing his sin and seeing the pain that he caused, he complained that things were unfair for him!

In closing we read that God asked Cain where his brother was, though He knew all along what had happened to Abel.  Cain dared to give God a very sassy, smart-aleck response, and asked Him a question back (vs. 9).  He asks God if he is his brother’s keeper.  He implies that he is not, that he is not responsible to watch over, keep track of, or care for his brother.  The answer, though, is Yes!  We are our brother’s keeper.  In a world of danger, we are called to watch out for others.  Just as Adam was to care for the garden, Cain was to care for Abel.  Throughout the Bible God tells us that we are to keep watch over the vulnerable, and care for the needy.  Unlike Cain, we need to be on the lookout for sin crouching at our door, and we need to care for our brothers and sisters in this world.

Are You One Of Us?

Mark 9:38-48

I love watching old-time TV shows from the 50s and 60s, and on one show I recently watched, the main character, a young boy, joined a club with some neighborhood boys.  However, when they wouldn’t let one of his friends join, this boy quit the club.  One of the other boys said that part of the fun of having a club is keeping other kids out.   Is it really fun to hurt others by keeping them out of clubs?  Many think so, as even adults frequently take part in such behavior, as we see in their own clubs and organizations.  Unfortunately we sometimes even see this behavior in churches.  In today’s reading from the Gospel of Mark we see Jesus address this, along with another topic, both of which we’ll look into this morning.

As our Scripture opens, the Apostle John speaks to Jesus, telling him about an incident that had recently happened with him and some of the other apostles.  He somewhat proudly tells the Lord that he and some others had stopped some other men from casting out demons in the Name of Jesus because they were not part of their group (vs. 38-41).  Just like the little kids in the club, if you’re not one of us, you can’t do this or that, and we’ll run you off if you try.  The disciples did not like it when others, those not in “their group” were preaching, teaching, and healing in Jesus’ Name.  They tried to stop them.  However, Jesus had to stop His disciples from their behavior.

There are some in the Church who do the same.  If a different denomination, one that is authentically preaching the Gospel truthfully, but has a different name on the door, some people will shun them, maybe even speak spitefully about their group.  Maybe we reject other Christians because they look or act differently from us.  Maybe their hair is a different color, or maybe they have tattoos and we think they can’t possibly honestly be following Jesus, so we doubt their faith.  Or maybe it’s the reverse, the younger group scorns the faith of those older and more traditional.  Jesus said in essence that if they are truly doing righteous things in His Name we should not vilify, censure, or revile them.  If they love Jesus and hold to His Word, we should not reject them.

Jesus proceeds with another teaching, one that has caused some puzzlement and even concern over the years.  He told His audience that if someone causes a believer and follower of His to stumble, to fall into sin, it would be better for them to have a millstone, a large heavy weight, tied around their neck and be drowned (vs. 42).   Jesus continued, that if one’s hand, foot, or eye caused them to sin, it is better to cut them off than to keep them and then burn in hell in the afterlife (vs. 43-48).  If we reach for something we shouldn’t, if we walk somewhere we shouldn’t, or we look at something we shouldn’t, are we supposed to take out the ax and start chopping off hands, feet, and eyes?

I don’t believe that Jesus was telling His followers to maim and disfigure their bodies, especially when such drastic action could possibly lead to death if the wound got infected or they bled to death.  There is more than one way to “cut off” something.   In addition to meaning literally chopping something off, we can cut something off by putting an end to it.  Sometimes certain things need to be cut off or ended in order to preserve us from going deep into sin in our life.  It may be a relationship, a job, a hobby, our TV, or computer, etc.  It likely will hurt, perhaps a lot, but it is necessary.   If a relationship is leading you away from Jesus, cut it off, end it right away.  If something we are doing on the internet or watching on TV is leading to sin, pull the plug, perhaps get rid of it altogether.  If your job has sinful elements to it, quit.  Jesus is saying to take the drastic step, whatever it is, to keep you from sin.  Run from the temptation, just as Joseph did (Genesis 39:7-12).  Run to Jesus and He will strengthen you.

Jesus spoke very clearly here about hell, and some of the aspects of that very literal place.  He spoke of hell as being a place of unquenchable fire, and where the worm does not die.  The Greek word that Mark used here is “skolex” which is defined as a worm which preys upon dead bodies, like a maggot.  Jesus might have meant a literal worm or maggot chewing away at the people for all eternity in hell, or perhaps He might have meant the “worm” of memory that will eat away at one for all eternity.  In hell one will remember all the wicked and evil things they did, and especially the times that they had the opportunity to receive Jesus as Savior, but turned Him away.  Either one will be awful, along with burning forever.

Some people believe that if there is a hell, it will only be for a while, and then you no longer exist.  That is not what Jesus teaches here.  The fire is never quenched.  It does not end.  I am sure that you do not want to ever go there.  There is only one way to be certain of that, and that is by confessing you are a sinner, acknowledging that Jesus died to pay the penalty of your sins, and calling upon Him as your Savior.  Do not delay, as no one is guaranteed tomorrow.  Turn to Jesus today!

Resist The Adversary

James 4:7-16

If you had an enemy who was always attacking you, bullying you, and making your life miserable, and then was told of a way to be free from your enemy and their attacks, wouldn’t you listen and follow what they said?   As believers, we have an enemy, one who is out to totally destroy us.  In our Scripture today we are given one clear and concise answer for this battle, along with other valuable instructions and help for our Christian life.  Let’s see what James has to teach us.

As most of us know, the fierce enemy in our Christian life is Satan, the devil.  His attacks against us are relentless, and can quickly bring us down if we do not use what we have available to counteract those attacks.  Our Scripture opens with James telling us from God’s Word that we need to both submit to God and to resist the devil.  When we do that, he will flee from us (vs. 7).   The word “resist” from the original Greek means to withstand, to oppose.  When we resist someone, we don’t let them get the advantage over us.  When Satan knows that someone is a spiritually weak Christian, he knows that he and his demon hordes have the advantage, and they are an easy target.  When we submit to God, He promises us that the devil will flee.

Satan is a powerful enemy, that is for sure, and many Christians want to just back away and be the one to flee.  We need to remember that Satan is a defeated adversary.   He was defeated by the Lord Jesus Christ through His sacrificial death at Calvary.  While he is a powerful foe, those who are protected by salvation, and through prayer and the Word of God, need not be paralyzed in fear at this roaring lion (I Peter 5:8-9).  We are kept by the power of God (I Peter 1:5).  No evil can penetrate the armor of God when we put it on (Ephesians 6:10-18).

Satan dangles temptations right in front of us.  But his power stops there.  He can’t force us to succumb to temptation.  When we are warned by the Holy Spirit, and decide to say no to the temptations, Satan can do no more.  He runs away.  We need to be careful, though, when old sins resurface in our lives.  We cannot allow them back in. We must submit to God, resisting, withstanding, and opposing the devil.  We have a Savior who doesn’t treat us as our sins deserve, but grants us grace and power for a new start of service for Him.

We are to imitate Jesus in resisting temptation, which requires submission to God’s will, and is the key to staying on God’s side and not the devil’s.  Submission means obedience, which in turn means resisting the devil and his temptations.  Resisting the devil will move us in the direction of drawing nearer to God, and reciprocates the move towards a closer relationship with Him.  This requires confession and repentance.  The mourning in verse 9 is grief over our sins.  The laughter and joy in those verses would be showing a casual attitude towards sin.  When we humble ourselves before God, He is faithful to lift us up, forgive us, and restore our relationship with Him (vs. 10).  We become better people by humbly admitting our sins, asking for God’s help, and being honest about our weaknesses.

Our Scripture passage closes with James instructing us to put our whole life, all of our plans and dreams, into the hands of the Lord (vs. 13-16).  Mature faith makes plans but remains in a posture of humility and submission to the sovereignty of God.  We are not in control of the variables.  When we assume that our plans will dictate future events, we ignore the fact that it is God who rules over everything.  Planning is necessary in life, but the sin of presumption is the assumption that we are in control.  Life here on earth can end in a split second.  We don’t know the day or the hour when the Lord will return, nor when our life on earth will end.  The day will come when each of us will have to leave this life.  All that will matter is whether we have been prepared by believing in Jesus, and by serving Him here on earth.

The events of our lives may be uncertain, but one thing is sure - through all of life’s unexpected moments, our God will never leave us.  He is our one constant throughout life.

Don't Topple Off The Edge

Psalm 19:7-14

How close to the edge of a deep cliff or drop-off do you like to get?  Are you a daring one who likes to get right up to the edge, believing that you have steady balance and footing, and nothing will happen?  Or are you a more hesitant person who stays way back?  I have a terrible fear of heights, so I never get near the edge of anything, even when the height isn’t so much.  We occasionally hear of someone who fell off the edge of a cliff, and we might wonder why they didn’t take proper precautions, as one slip can mean serious injury or even death.  Our psalm for this week warns us about getting too close to something else that is even more dangerous than a deep cliff.

Psalm 19, written by King David, can be divided into two parts.  The first part briefly describes God’s revelation in nature, specifically with the heavens and particularly the sun.  The second part is God’s revelation to us through His Word, His Law.  Even though most of the Bible had not been written yet, basically only the first five Books of Moses, David loved God’s Word, as he expresses here.  He knows that God’s Word, what he had and what was yet to come, is perfect, sure, pure, true, and righteous (vs. 7-9).

As king, David could have anything that he wanted.  He had plenty of gold and riches, and the choicest of food, and yet what did he want and think was more desirable than that?  David proclaimed that God’s Word was more desirable than gold, and sweeter than honey (vs. 10).  Honey is sweeter than cane sugar, and can give one energy.  Honey is sometimes added to skin lotions because it is a natural humectant.  It is also a probiotic, and has other healthful properties, being used for when one has a cold or sore throat.  Because it also has antibacterial and anti-inflammatory properties, honey is used in treating wounds and burns.  With all of these benefits, honey was very valuable, especially in the days of the past.  Yet David valued the Word of God even more, as we should, too.

One reason David valued God’s Word was that as long as he read and studied it, God’s Word kept him from sin (vs. 11-13).  When we follow and obey the Bible, it will keep us from harm.  It is like a guide-line that one can follow to know the way to go.  Living in the Midwest part of the United States there are many farms, and one can visit some old, historic farms that show us the farming practices of the past.  Many parts of the Midwest are prone to strong and blinding blizzards in the winter.  Even during these dangerous storms farmers in the past needed to get to the barns to take care of the livestock.  In the old historic farms one can sometimes see ropes or cords strung between the house and the barns which were used as guidelines to help the farmer go safely from his house to the barn in a blinding snowstorm.  As long as he held onto the cord with one hand he knew he would be safe and not wander off course into danger.  We, too, can use the lines of God’s Word to guide and guard us through life.

David also prayed that God would keep him back from getting too close to sin (vs. 13).  Like those daring souls who try to get right up to the edge, sometimes we try to see how close we can get to sin and wrong actions before we fall headlong into behavior that will leave our life shipwrecked.  Curiosity can draw us toward the darkness of sin.. We think we can flirt with temptation, get very close to the edge, and safely walk away. But that is impossible.  We know an action is wrong, and yet we toy with it, and then we are drawn into deeper and darker perversions.  We need to pray to the Lord to help us before we get that far, just as David did.

Each of us has hidden faults, those we deliberately try to hide from others and even from God, and also those that we are unaware of.  We need to repent of our sins, the sins we know, and the sins of which we are unaware (vs. 12-13).  When we do, God will declare us innocent for the sake of His Son, Jesus.

In closing his psalm, King David prayed that his prayers, and all the words of his mouth would be acceptable to the Lord (vs. 14).  We need to make sure that the words that come out of our mouth are pleasing to God (Ephesians 4:29; Ephesians 5:4).  Not only do we need to be careful not to curse, we need to watch that we don’t always speak doom and gloom.

Let’s be sure to follow David’s example here, valuing God’s Word above all else.  Let’s cling to it like that guideline in the storm, and allow it to keep us back, way back from the edges of sin, before we topple in to our destruction.

Those Complainers And Whiners!

Numbers 11:4-23, 31-34

We all know at least one, possibly more of them - the chronic complainer, the whiner, someone who always has to find fault with just about everything.  Perhaps you work with someone like that.  Maybe you have one in your family, your mother, an elderly uncle, a sibling.  We can even find them in our churches.  Being around constant complainers is very irritating, tiring, and can even get stressful.  Unfortunately it is also contagious.  The more we are around a group of whiners, the more likely we are to start joining in.  Our Scripture today tells of an incident when the Israelites started to complain to God about His provisions.  Let’s look into this episode of whining and complaining.

As our Scripture opens, we read about a mixed multitude of people who started to complain that they wanted a more varied diet, one with more meat in it, along with other foods they had back when they were in Egypt (vs. 4-6).  First, we might wonder who this “mixed multitude” is.  When Moses led the people of Israel out of slavery in Egypt, some others left with them.  Some would have been from intermarriage between the Hebrews and Egyptians, along with people from other nations that came with them during the exodus.  They started complaining about the manna, and wanted other food, including meat, and pretty soon many of the Israelites started to join in with the complaining.  It is important to be careful with whom we associate with, as listening to complaining will often rub off onto us, and before we know it, we are joining in.  We also need to watch our own complaining, as we can soon drag others into that sinful behavior with us.

Manna was a gift to the people from God.  It was a gift of food that the people didn’t have to work for to get, a free gift from God.  All they had to do was to go out every morning and gather it.  It was there every day for them, except on the Sabbath.  The day before the Sabbath God provided them with enough manna to last them through the Sabbath, each and every week.  The people didn’t have to plant and care for it in order to get manna.  They didn’t have to hunt it down, either.  They could eat it plain, or they could make it into recipes.  It was always there for them, no work involved, so why the complaints?!

The people’s complaining was very wearing and stressful on Moses.  He came to the Lord in prayer, turning to Him with the burden of the people.  He wanted out from the position of leading the people.  They were too much for him, with all their complaints and whining, so much so that he was beginning to wish he were dead (vs. 10-15).  The next time we begin with the moaning and groaning about our life, let’s consider what that is doing to those who have to listen to us!

God heard Moses’ prayer, and He certainly had heard the people’s murmuring, and He promised to give them meat, so much meat that it would make them sick! (vs. 18-20).  When Moses questioned just how much meat that would take, God challenged him by saying that He was certainly up to the task!  (vs. 21-23).  The Lord proceeded to bring a miracle, by sending millions of quail into the area, enough to feed the multitudes (vs. 31-34).  However He also punished those who complained, as many of them died.

Complaining poisons the heart with ingratitude, and can be a contagion.  God has to judge it.  By listening too long to complaints one can start to agree with them.  Even Moses was beginning to be dragged in.  However, rather than moaning to others and hoping for their agreement, as the people did, Moses took his complaints to God.  We need to take our needs to the Lord, knowing that He loves us enough to help us, and even puts up with us when we sin.

If our faith is worth anything, it will stand a test.  Poor faith can only trust God when things are going well.  However, when our suffering produces endurance, and endurance produces character, and then character produces hope, the Lord will be honored (Romans 5:3-4).  Our present afflictions will lead to future joy.

When you hear complaining coming from others, or when you feel it welling up inside of you, the best way to combat it is to count God’s many blessings in your life.  Proclaiming God’s faithfulness silences discontentment!

God's View Of Greatness

Mark 9:30-37

When we think of successful people, people who have accomplished their specific goals, we don’t usually think of or include those who died as a result of trying to achieve their goals.  We also think of those who are on top, those who are top achievers, the “go-getters”, those who seek to be number one.  We don’t typically think of the fellow with the lowest position as being too successful.  This is the world’s view, but how about Jesus’ view?  Our Scripture today from the Gospel of Mark gives us a different picture of success, one from God’s view rather than the world’s.

As we open our Scripture passage today Jesus had just come down from the mountain top where He had been transfigured, and then He had cast the demon out of a man’s son.  He and His disciples now headed out of that village, and along the way Jesus spoke again about His approaching betrayal and death (vs. 30-32).  This is something that He had spoken with them about before, including the time that Peter had tried to dissuade Him from this path.  Yet this time, like the others, Jesus’ words did not seem to be comprehended by the disciples.  They not only did not understand, they seemed to not remember these words, as they all seemed taken by surprise when Jesus was arrested and crucified, and did not seem to remember anything about His promise of rising again from the dead.

Mark records that Jesus spoke about His betrayal into the hands of His enemies, His execution, and then His resurrection on the third day.  As the twelve heard this, we read that they were afraid to ask Him exactly what He meant.  Why would they be afraid?  Did they feel that they should understand everything by now?  Were they afraid that if they spoke further about Jesus being crucified, that it might mean that it definitely would happen?  Sometimes some people feel that if they don’t talk about something, it just doesn’t exist.  For example some people won’t talk about, or even acknowledge a negative medical report, that if they just ignore it, it will go away.  So maybe if they don’t talk about Jesus’ crucifixion, it won’t happen.  In addition, sometimes we don’t ask questions if we really don’t want to know the answers that will be given.

As Jesus and His disciples continued to walk, they came back to Capernaum, the village where He frequently visited and taught.  Once there, Jesus asked the disciples what they had been talking, and even arguing about (vs. 33).  Again, they kept quiet and didn’t answer, as they were probably embarrassed and ashamed of what they had argued among each other about.  The twelve, having been together for a couple of years, had gotten into an argument as to which of them was the greatest among the others (vs. 34).  Was it Peter, the first one to openly acknowledge Jesus as the Messiah, the Son of God?  Was it either James or John, who along with Peter, were part of the inner group of three, closest to Jesus?  Was it Simon, who was nicknamed the zealous one, or Matthew, possibly the one who had the greatest change in his life, turning away from a life of corruption?

Jesus proceeded to settle that argument by saying the greatest one is actually the one who has genuine humility and acts as a servant to the others, not the one wanting to be served (vs. 35).   One sign of humility and having an attitude that isn’t so wrapped in pride is welcoming children, and treating them with love, interest, and concern.  Jesus took a little child and put him in their midst, saying that if they receive a child in His Name, they receive Him (vs. 36-37).

What Jesus taught about greatness is the exact opposite of what the world thinks.  He taught that to be great we need to become a servant to others.  Jesus, the Lord of all, gave us an example to follow when He washed the disciples feet (John 13:1-17).  Can you picture the heads of multi-billion dollar corporations getting on their knees and washing the feet of the janitors and cafeteria ladies?!  Humility is essential for leaders and all followers of Jesus Christ.

We also look at leaders having successfully achieved their goals, yet as we look at Jesus, we see Him being taken by His enemies and executed on the cross.  The world would not call that successful, they would call that losing.  However, what happened on the third day??  Jesus rose triumphantly from the dead!!  Jesus has power over death.  He has conquered death, and He could fulfill His own resurrection prophecies.  Contrary to what the world would say, that is success!  Jesus gave, in this Scripture, the picture of a successful man or woman in God’s Kingdom.