R.S.V.P

Have you ever received an invitation to a birthday, anniversary, or graduation party and at the bottom there are the letters R. S. V. P.? R. S. V. P. is a French phrase that means “please respond.” To us, it means “let us know if y’all are coming so we can make sure we have enough for everyone.” Have you ever R. S. V. P.ed? Maybe you had to make a call or nowadays send a text. How nice to think someone cares enough about you to make sure there is enough for you.

Jesus sends us an invitation in Matthew 11:28. Jesus invites all those who are weary and heavy-laden to come to Him, and He will give them rest. This world is full of trials and tribulations. There are the everyday stresses of surviving, aging, and sin always being near. What a wonderful thought to know that Jesus has overcome the world and He offers us rest. That is an invitation worth R. S. V. P.ing. Because this world is not my home, I believe an even greater invitation is found in Revelation 22:17. That is an invitation to heaven. Because of what Jesus has done on the cross, no one has to suffer hell and can spend eternity with God in heaven. The water of life is without cost, but we must take it. What a beautiful invitation to the greatest place ever. Have you R. S. V. P.ed?

You might be asking, “How do I R. S. V.  P.?” Usually on those earthly invitations, there are instructions on how to R. S. V. P. This R. S. V. P. has instructions as well. We must hear what God has said and decide if we believe it. If we do believe, are we willing to repent of our sins and confess Jesus as Lord? Finally we are called to give our life to him in the watery grave of baptism and arise to take up our cross daily to follow Him. Have you R. S. V. P.ed?

Happy Mother's Day

Where Is the Bread?

In Matthew 16:1 the Pharisees and Sadducees are testing Jesus, asking Him for a sign. That is crazy to me because Jesus had done many signs; in fact, in chapter fifteen, He had just fed the four thousand. They were not interested in following Jesus but trying to condemn Him. After this incident Jesus warned His disciples to beware of the leaven of the Pharisees and Sadducees. The problem was they had forgotten to bring any bread and thought they were in trouble for not bringing any. In verse twelve Jesus clarifies that He is talking about the teachings of the Pharisees and Sadducees. Two questions come to my mind. What is Jesus telling us through His word that we are totally missing, and who is influencing us?

The first of those questions is a sobering thought. Could the Bible be teaching me something, and I am totally missing it? These guys had just finished picking up from the feeding of the five thousand and the four thousand where Jesus had multiplied food from very small beginnings, and yet they were concerned they had not brought any bread. How could they have missed the teaching? The same might be asked of us. Someone sees the teaching very plainly and wonders how we can miss it. I have seen it in studying  with others and in studying myself. I wonder, how have I missed that? There could be a lot of reasons, but I want to challenge us to keep studying and learning.

The next question is a serious question, also. Who is influencing us? Everyone and everything we come in contact with is influencing us. That influence might come from television, radio, social media, books etc. That influence could also come from family, friends, co-workers, teachers, strangers, etc. The question is not so much are we being influenced, but whose influence are we allowing to shape our thoughts and lives? Not every influence out there is good. We have to use the word of God to filter those influences. This is what the internet or my dad says, but what does the Bible say? Are we letting the Bible dictate who or what influences us?