Which Life is More Important?

KJV - Luke 17:33 Whosoever shall seek to save his life shall lose it; and whosoever shall lose his life shall preserve it.

NIV - Luke 17:33 Whoever tries to keep his life will lose it, and whoever loses his life will preserve it.

When we look at the context of the statement, Jesus is making a comparison between the life that we live in this world (the here and now) and that of eternity.  Think of our lives as two bank accounts.  One is used for immediate expenditures (bills, fun, clothes, cars etc)  and the other is a long term savings account for retirement.   If we give it NO thought, planning or effort to the retirement plan, we may have fun in the present, but the future is bleak and dreadful.  However, with a little bit of planning and a small amount of sacrifice, we can enjoy this life and the life to come.

The real question is:  Which is more important?

Remember, words are cheap.  It is easy to say..Oh sure, eternity is more important.  But our actions say more about what we believe than our words do.  Jesus starts off by saying that if we seek to save (this) life we will lose the Next one.  We do this by spending all of our time in effort pleasing ourselves and not putting any effort into serving God.  The Bible describes Christianity as a service.

Romans 6:16 Know ye not, that to whom ye yield yourselves servants to obey, his servants ye are to whom ye obey; whether of sin unto death, or of obedience unto righteousness? 

Service by its very definition entails a bit of sacrifice.  God requires that we make him first.  Not just give him whatever we have left over from living our life to the fullest.  If we do, then the second part of this verse applies.  

Jesus say that whosoever will lose this live will preserve life for eternity.  A small sacrifice in the here and now will pay huge dividends in the long run (eternity).

Reflecting His SON,  

Dennis Hogan

Minister, North Hardin Church of Christ

dennis.hogan@icloud.com

1804 Sam Stewart Dr.

Radcliff, KY  40160

Questions, comments or  further explanation?  Contact me at:  dennis.hogan@icloud.com

If you have friends, family, or acquaintances that you feel could benefit from RTS, please forward 

their e-mail address to me and I will add them to my mail list.

Remember Lot’s Wife!

KJV - Luke 17:28-32 Likewise also as it was in the days of Lot; they did eat, they drank, they bought, they sold, they planted, they builded; (29) But the same day that Lot went out of Sodom it rained fire and brimstone from heaven, and destroyed them all. (30) Even thus shall it be in the day when the Son of man is revealed. (31) In that day, he which shall be upon the housetop, and his stuff in the house, let him not come down to take it away: and he that is in the field, let him likewise not return back. (32) Remember Lot’s wife.

NIV - Luke 17:28-32 “It was the same in the days of Lot. People were eating and drinking, buying and selling, planting and building. (29) But the day Lot left Sodom, fire and sulfur rained down from heaven and destroyed them all. (30) “It will be just like this on the day the Son of Man is revealed. (31) On that day no one who is on the roof of his house, with his goods inside, should go down to get them. Likewise, no one in the field should go back for anything. (32) Remember Lot’s wife!

We know so little about the wife of Lot, Abraham’s nephew, but she will be remembered for all eternity for this one event and shortcoming.  In its context, Jesus is explaining a general state of things that will bring his last coming.  Jesus compares THE end to the days of Noah and the last days of Sodom & Gomorrah.  Let’s just say that the thoughts and the hearts of the masses were not on God.

Genesis 6:5-7 And GOD saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every imagination of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually. (6) And it repented the LORD that he had made man on the earth, and it grieved him at his heart. (7) And the LORD said, I will destroy man whom I have created from the face of the earth; both man, and beast, and the creeping thing, and the fowls of the air; for it repenteth me that I have made them. 

In a similar manner, Sodom had a similar mindset.

Genesis 13:13 But the men of Sodom were wicked and sinners before the LORD exceedingly. 

In Genesis 19 we can see how that God set forth to destroy Sodom and Gomorrah because of that wickedness.  However, because of Lot’s kinship with Abraham, God decided to spare Lot and his family.  They were told to escape from the city prior to the destruction and do NOT look back.

Genesis 19:26  But his wife looked back from behind him, and she became a pillar of salt. 

We could make all kinds of excuses for her.  In that city to which she looked back, she left a home, friends and even children.  But God gave SPECIFIC orders not to look back.  It was that draw and appeal of the world that had gotten into her and consumed her that caused that great sin. 

That is precisely what Jesus is warning us about.  We can get so close to this world that we take our eyes off of God.  We can get so engrossed with this life that it matters more to us than anything that God says.  That is Jesus’ warning!

Romans 12:1-2 I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service. (2) And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God. 

REMEMBER LOT’S WIFE!

Reflecting His SON,  

Dennis Hogan

Minister, North Hardin Church of Christ

dennis.hogan@icloud.com

1804 Sam Stewart Dr.

Radcliff, KY  40160

Questions, comments or  further explanation?  Contact me at:  dennis.hogan@icloud.com

If you have friends, family, or acquaintances that you feel could benefit from RTS, please forward 

their e-mail address to me and I will add them to my mail list.

Where Are the Nine?

KJV - Luke 17:11-19 And it came to pass, as he went to Jerusalem, that he passed through the midst of Samaria and Galilee. (12) And as he entered into a certain village, there met him ten men that were lepers, which stood afar off: (13) And they lifted up their voices, and said, Jesus, Master, have mercy on us. (14) And when he saw them, he said unto them, Go shew yourselves unto the priests. And it came to pass, that, as they went, they were cleansed. (15) And one of them, when he saw that he was healed, turned back, and with a loud voice glorified God, (16) And fell down on his face at his feet, giving him thanks: and he was a Samaritan. (17) And Jesus answering said, Were there not ten cleansed? but where are the nine? (18) There are not found that returned to give glory to God, save this stranger. (19) And he said unto him, Arise, go thy way: thy faith hath made thee whole.

NIV - Luke 17:11-19 Now on his way to Jerusalem, Jesus traveled along the border between Samaria and Galilee. (12) As he was going into a village, ten men who had leprosy met him. They stood at a distance (13) and called out in a loud voice, “Jesus, Master, have pity on us!” (14)  When he saw them, he said, “Go, show yourselves to the priests.” And as they went, they were cleansed. (15)  One of them, when he saw he was healed, came back, praising God in a loud voice. (16) He threw himself at Jesus’ feet and thanked him—and he was a Samaritan. (17)  Jesus asked, “Were not all ten cleansed? Where are the other nine? (18) Was no one found to return and give praise to God except this foreigner?” (19) Then he said to him, “Rise and go; your faith has made you well.”

From the earliest ages that a child learns to speak, one of the first things that we teach them is to say “please” and “thank-you”.  Without saying please when making a request of someone, makes that request sound like a command or order.  That is not what you want to hear coming from a toddler’s mouth.  For that matter, do you really want to be ordered around by anyone?

Similarly, failing to say “thank-you” after a kind act is not much better. Failing to show appreciation, no matter how big or small the act, can appear arrogant.  There is a subtle feeling of “you owed that to me” when a simple “thank you” goes unsaid.  In short. the lack of proper manners comes across as just plain selfish.

In our text today, Jesus crosses paths with 10 lepers.  Remember, Jesus lived and preached in Israel, so these men would have been guided by the Law of Moses.

Leviticus 13:9 When the plague of leprosy is in a man, then he shall be brought unto the priest; 

It was the priest that had the sole responsibility of looking at the infected site of a skin irritation and declaring if it were leprosy or not.  If the priests declared that one had it, it was official and they were declared unclean and was an outcast to the community.  That is why the 10 lepers were together.  They had suffered as social outcasts together. If after having this ailment, the priest saw that it had healed, they could declare you clean again and you could go back to your life.  This is why, when Jesus healed these 10 men, he told them all to go show themselves to the priest.  It was then and only then that they could be regain the life that they once had.

Once given that order by Jesus, they all went their way to regain their place in society.  Except the one.  The one, single, lonely person turned back to give thanks.  We could make all kinds of excuses and justifications for what they did.  They wanted to see their families.  They left their wives and children in a bind and wanted to assist them.  But when it is said and done, nothing really explains their behavior.  

Even Jesus noted the absence of the other men.  Likewise, I believe God notices every single time that we too receive a blessing from him and do not take but a moment and acknowledge it.  EVERY single blessing we must realize comes from God.

James 1:17 Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, and cometh down from the Father of lights, with whom is no variableness, neither shadow of turning. 

Let us always be mindful of what God does for us and take but a moment to express to him our gratitude!.

Reflecting His SON,  

Dennis Hogan

Minister, North Hardin Church of Christ

dennis.hogan@icloud.com

1804 Sam Stewart Dr.

Radcliff, KY  40160

Questions, comments or  further explanation?  Contact me at:  dennis.hogan@icloud.com

If you have friends, family, or acquaintances that you feel could benefit from RTS, please forward 

their e-mail address to me and I will add them to my mail list.