5 Ways Jesus Valued Women

The life and teachings of Christ and the Bible laid the foundations for the advancement and ethical treatment of women across the globe today. - Clint Decker

Long before Mother Theresa, was Mother Cabrini. She built 67 hospitals, schools and orphanages in the United States and around the world while facing immense obstacles. She was a small of stature Italian immigrant Catholic nun that turned the world upside down, and one of those obstacles was being a woman. One church leader questioned whether she was able to lead a mission and urged her to go home. Another pointed out that missionaries were typically men, to which Cabrini responded, “If the mission of announcing the Lord’s resurrection to his apostles had been entrusted to Mary Magdalene, it would seem a very good thing to confide to other women an evangelizing mission.” (Image by magnific)

Though challenges still exist for woman, much has changed for the better. Who is the cause for many of these positive changes? Jesus. The life and teachings of Christ and the Bible laid the foundations for the advancement and ethical treatment of women across the globe today. We see that in Jesus’ conversation with the Samaritan woman at the well. (John 4) Jesus’ encounter with the woman caught in adultery. (John 8) The women Jesus invited to follow Him. (Mark 15) The women He ministered to. (Luke 8) And the women who ministered to Him. (Jn. 11-2)

Here are five ways in which Jesus gave value and purpose to all women.

1. Defense. Jesus had celebrity status gathering crowds in the thousands around Him. They hung on His every word. Through His platform of influence, He defended women when society tried to demean and dismiss them.

2. Challenging the status quo. Jesus put His life and reputation on the line challenging the unjust ways in which women were treated during His day. Though knowingly opposing cultural rules He became a voice for the voiceless.

3. Equality. Jesus demonstrated that women were as equally valuable as men. He saw no difference in a man’s worth over a woman. Both were created in God’s image.

4. Compassion. Jesus showed kindness toward women of all ranks in society - upper, middle and lower classes. He offered peace, hope and freedom to all women who would choose to believe in Him with all their heart.

5. Accountability. Even though Jesus offered promise to women, He also called them to repentance. He realized true freedom is not just found in changing laws or cultural ideals in how women are treated. He provided the liberation of the soul through forgiveness of sin. When women are delivered from their sin, they receive a new mind and heart and a new future that lasts for eternity.

Jesus and those who follow His example offer a message to women around the world. Those in abusive relationships, oppressive cultures and feeling on the fringe of society, can find worth in Christ. While publicly standing against one woman’s accusers Jesus said to her “‘Woman, where are they? Has no one condemned you?’ She said, ‘No one, Lord.’ And Jesus said, ‘Neither do I condemn you; go, and from now on sin no more.’” (John 8:10-11) That day, the unknown woman discovered her value in Christ. She was so valuable, that He died and rose again that she might be free from her greatest enemy, not men or systems, but her inward sin.

A prayer for a woman – Lord God, You created every woman in Your image. We are all beautiful in your sight. May we find our worth in You and forgiveness through Christ. In Jesus’ name. Amen.

God Can Deliver You from Smoking

Smoking causes severe health damage to nearly every organ, resulting in roughly 480,000 U.S. deaths annually. - Center for Disease Control

As I was concluding my sermon on Sunday morning and invited people to respond to God’s leading, Henry stepped out and started walking down the aisle. As he came near to the front, he reached into his shirt pocket and pulled out a pack of cigarettes. I watched and wondered what was going to come next. Then he tossed them up in the air toward me, and fortunately, I caught them. Everyone’s eyes in the church were on Henry as he knelt down in prayer, seeking God to deliver him from smoking. And he did for a little while, then Henry caved to the temptation of those cigarettes once again. (Image by Pixabay)

Henry is just one story of millions. Among U.S. adults, 11% smoke, which is nearly 30 million people. And of those who go to church, 12% struggle with the addiction. I say struggle, because a Gallup survey found that 60% of Americans would like to quit. The great Christian theologian, R.C. Sproul, was among those. After 40 years, he walked away from cigarettes, but said of his battle, “I struggled with my own spiritual state because I had an addiction to the flesh, and I simply could not get rid of it.”

The health impact of this addiction is deadly. One report says, “Smoking causes severe health damage to nearly every organ, resulting in roughly 480,000 U.S. deaths annually, with smokers dying about 10 years earlier on average than non-smokers.” On top of that, second-hand smoke is deadly for family and friends of smokers, killing 40,000 people annually, not to mention the health complications among children. Of course, all this costs money. Smokers spend nearly $3,500 a year on their habit, and is money that does not go toward groceries, retirement, healthcare, gas, or toward their children’s or grandchildren’s needs.

Smoking is a terrible addiction, and smokers know it. They know it is not good for their health, finances, and family but struggle to give it up.

Is God okay with this? It is written, “…whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God.” (1 Corinthians 10:31) Does spending $3,500 each year on smoking glorify God? He once said, “…you shall love your neighbor as yourself:” (Leviticus 19:5) Do the risks of secondhand smoke to those around you, along with the example you are providing, demonstrate a genuine love for them?

Here are six questions to help you kick the habit.

1. The question. Do you want to quit? If you want to stop this habit, it starts with that simple ask.

2. The truth. Do you believe your addiction to smoking is morally wrong and displeasing to God? If you want God’s power to help you stop, you need to wrestle with that.

3. The choice. Are you willing to make a deliberate and thoughtful decision to turn from your addiction and to Jesus for His supernatural help? And your first step, throw away all your cigarette and vaping paraphernalia.

4. The battle. Are you willing to face the great challenges in quitting? It will be a long hard struggle. The Devil and his demons do not want you to quit. Your body and mind, and how you have trained them, will fight to keep the habit.

5. The desperation. Are you willing to throw yourself at the feet of God, and plead desperately for His mercy to deliver you? The Bible says, “In your righteousness deliver me and rescue me; incline your ear to me, and save me!” (Psalm 71:2)

6. The help. Are you willing to seek the assistance of others? The Scriptures declare, “And though a man might prevail against one who is alone, two will withstand him⁠—a threefold cord is not quickly broken.” (Ecclesiastes 4:12) Do not fight this addiction alone. Ask others for advice, for pray and be accountable to them.

The Jesus who conquered death, can deliver you from smoking. Nothing is impossible with Him.

A prayer for you – Lord God, I pray for the many who are battling this awful addiction. Make them desperate for your help and set them free! You are the God of the resurrection. Do miracles, O Lord! In Jesus’ name. Amen.

Who is God?

The Bible does not argue for, but rather, presumes the existence of God, and it communicates that God is real and knowable. - Clint Decker

As I walked through the Hindu temple in Tamil Nadu, India I observed person after person as they worshiped their Hindu gods. I came to learn that Hinduism has over 300,000 different gods. This contrasts with my Christian faith, which is the belief there is only one true God. In our climate of religious tolerance and pluralism, who is right? And what about the atheist, agnostic and those of other religions like Islam, Mormonism, Jehovah’s Witnesses, Buddhism and Judaism? Logically speaking, not everyone can be correct, so this leads to the valid question, “Who is God?” (Image by NASA)

Sometime around 1200 B.C. when the Egyptian empire was the greatest nation on earth, the God of the Jewish people appointed a man named Moses to go to Pharaoh, Egypt’s king, to command him to let God’s people go. For 400 years the Jews had been enslaved by Egypt.

Moses was a Jew but was raised in Pharaoh's household. He knew that Egyptian’s had over 2,000 gods, like Ra (the sun god) and Horus (the sky god) and how Pharaoh himself was considered a god. Knowing all that, Moses came before Pharaoh and said to him, “Thus says the Lord, the God of Israel, ‘Let my people go, that they may hold a feast to me in the wilderness.’ But Pharaoh said, ‘Who is the Lord, that I should obey his voice and let Israel go? I do not know the Lord, and moreover, I will not let Israel go.’” (Exodus 5:1-2)

In many ways, our world is the same, where we have Christians talking about God like Moses, but people of other religions or no religions are saying like Pharaoh, “Who is the Lord, that I should obey his voice?” We also have Christians wondering, “Is it fair and loving for people of other faiths, to be told that the God of the Bible is the only true God?”

The Bible starts with Genesis 1:1, “In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth.” This does not argue for, but rather, presumes the existence of God, where He is immediately known as the Creator. We also see God creating humankind and beginning a relationship with them. All this communicates that God is real and knowable. In Genesis 3, humankind eventually rebelled against God, but that did not change who God is. Then when people were fashioning and worshiping other gods, the Lord responded, “For the Lord your God is God of gods and Lord of lords, the great, the mighty, and the awesome God…” (Deuteronomy 10:17) He once identified Himself to help people know Him saying, “I am who I am.” (Ex. 3:14) This is a statement categorizing God as self-existent and self-sufficient not dependent on anyone or anything else.

A few thousand years after God described Himself that way, He took His greatest step to reveal who He was. He sent His only Son from heaven to earth. Jesus once said, “Whoever has seen me has seen the Father.” (John 14:9) And the “Father” is the Lord God. Jesus became the visible image of the invisible God. Jesus spoke about Himself, saying “I am the resurrection and the life.” (John 11:25) “I am the bread of life.” (Jn. 6:35) “I am the light of the world.” (Jn. 8:12) “I am the good shepherd.” (Jn. 10:11)

Do you have questions? God invites you to come and ask. In the end though, remember that no one will be able to say, “I did not know.” It is written, “…what can be known about God is plain to them, because God has shown it to them. For his invisible attributes, namely, his eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly perceived, ever since the creation of the world, in the things that have been made. So they are without excuse.” (Romans 1:19-20)

If you wonder or have doubts about God, get yourself a Bible and begin reading the book of Mark today.

A prayer for you – Lord God, are You real? Do you exist? I bring my questions and doubts before You. Help me to know who You truly are. In Jesus’ name. Amen.