Whe\u00adre does Jesus want to take me a step fur\u00adther? Whe\u00adre does he want to encou\u00adra\u00adge me to do some\u00adthing in view of him and his king\u00addom that I have never done befo\u00adre! Is it my turn to take a step in faith and extra\u00ador\u00addi\u00adna\u00adry love?<\/p>\n
We were invi\u00adted to a bir\u00adth\u00adday par\u00adty 10 days ago. Toas\u00adting tog\u00ade\u00adther on a beau\u00adtiful sun ter\u00adrace with a view of the moun\u00adta\u00adins \u2013 won\u00adderful! A woman is the\u00adre who is lea\u00adving with her part\u00adner in a few days for a three-month sai\u00adling trip. A cou\u00adple tells us about their plans to tra\u00advel in a cam\u00adper van. The other cou\u00adple raves about their home on Lake Lucer\u00adne\u2026 and we got smal\u00adler and smal\u00adler! A few days ago, I came across a group of men with their motor\u00adbikes in a car park \u2013 each equip\u00adped with a sple\u00adndid BMW<\/span> K 1600 GT<\/span> style! All motor\u00adbikes for which you could have bought a gre\u00adat car for the same pri\u00adce. How do you feel when you are para\u00added like that? Honest\u00adly, how would you have reac\u00adted as a spec\u00adta\u00adtor at this anointing?<\/p>\n Are you at all available for some\u00adthing extra\u00ador\u00addi\u00adna\u00adry? (time, coope\u00adra\u00adti\u00adon, money)<\/p>\n How do you know if I am doing some\u00adthing out of love for Jesus or out of other moti\u00adves? What often slows us down?<\/p>\n Loo\u00adking back on your life, what would you not have done if Jesus had not moved you to do it?<\/p>\n Do you mea\u00adsu\u00adre and compa\u00adre yours\u00adelf with others in com\u00admu\u00adni\u00adty service?<\/p>\n What trig\u00adgers you when church peo\u00adp\u00adle move away to the mission?<\/p>\n Bless one ano\u00adther and pray for extra\u00ador\u00addi\u00adna\u00adry love for wal\u00adking tog\u00ade\u00adther with Jesus!<\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Whe\u00adre does Jesus want to take me a step fur\u00adther? Whe\u00adre does he want to encou\u00adra\u00adge me to do some\u00adthing in view of him and his king\u00addom that I have never done befo\u00adre! Is it my turn to take a step in faith and extra\u00ador\u00addi\u00adna\u00adry love? We were invi\u00adted to a bir\u00adth\u00adday par\u00adty 10 days ago. On a beau\u00adtiful sun ter\u00adrace with a view of the mountains.\u2026<\/p>","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","wpfc_preacher":[35],"wpfc_sermon_series":[72],"wpfc_sermon_topics":[],"wpfc_bible_book":[],"wpfc_service_type":[12],"class_list":{"0":"wpfc_preacher-bernhard-hohl","1":"wpfc_sermon_series-metamorphose","2":"wpfc-sermon-single","3":"post-3491","4":"wpfc_sermon","5":"type-wpfc_sermon","6":"status-publish","7":"hentry","10":"wpfc_service_type-gottesdienst"},"acf":[],"sermons_blog_filters_topics":"\t\t\t\t
\nKeep the\u00adse ques\u00adti\u00adons in mind as we now move to a men\u2019s round in the Bible. They are invi\u00adted to a meal. They have lively con\u00adver\u00adsa\u00adti\u00adons and talk with the host Simon, whom Jesus hea\u00adled of lepro\u00adsy. Then it hap\u00adpens: Sud\u00adden\u00adly a woman comes along, digs out a jar of pre\u00adcious anoin\u00adting oil from her bag and beg\u00adins to anoint Jesus. The open con\u00adver\u00adsa\u00adti\u00adon bet\u00adween the men turns into whis\u00adpe\u00adring behind clo\u00adsed doors. \u00abThis is a was\u00adte bey\u00adond compa\u00adre! This oil could have been sold well. Then the money could be used for poor people.\u00bb
\nWhen Jesus beco\u00admes awa\u00adre of what they are mut\u00adte\u00adring, he addres\u00adses the men: \u00ab \u00abWhy are you giving the woman such a hard time?\u00bb he said to them. \u00abShe has done a good work for me. The\u00adre will always be the poor with you. But me you will not have with you much lon\u00adger. By pou\u00adring this anoin\u00adting oil on me, she has anoin\u00adted my body in advan\u00adce for my buri\u00adal. I tell you: Ever\u00ady\u00adwhe\u00adre in the world whe\u00adre the gos\u00adpel will be pre\u00ada\u00adched, she will also be remem\u00adbe\u00adred and spo\u00adken of for what she did\u00bb \u00bb (Matthew 26:10\u201313 NDA<\/span>).
\nA bra\u00adve woman: she dares to break into this round of men to do some\u00adthing she has never done befo\u00adre. It cer\u00adtain\u00adly was\u00adn\u2019t that easy for her. She jumps over her own shadow. She lives a free\u00addom in deal\u00ading with this pre\u00adcious oil that is astoun\u00adding. What used to be the value of a year\u2019s sala\u00adry, she lets jump on that one evening. Moti\u00adve: love for her mas\u00adter! It is as if this woman had felt that this was the last oppor\u00adtu\u00adni\u00adty for her to give a sign of gra\u00adti\u00adtu\u00adde out of love befo\u00adre the cru\u00adci\u00adfi\u00adxi\u00adon of Jesus. For her, get\u00adting to know Jesus was the grea\u00adtest thing in life. Through faith she has gai\u00adned a clo\u00adse rela\u00adti\u00adonship with Jesus. She is an enthu\u00adsi\u00ada\u00adstic disci\u00adple. Fil\u00adled with her gre\u00adat love for Jesus, she dares to take a cou\u00adra\u00adge\u00adous step. Why does she do this? Her gre\u00adat love for God and Jesus pushes her inward\u00adly to do so.
\nPaul sums it up for us when he wri\u00adtes in 2 Corin\u00adthi\u00adans: \u00abWha\u00adte\u00adver we do, we do becau\u00adse the love of Christ moves us\u00bb (2 Corin\u00adthi\u00adans 5:14 NLB<\/span>). This is some\u00adthing we should all take to heart, per\u00adso\u00adnal\u00adly and as a con\u00adgre\u00adga\u00adti\u00adon. Wha\u00adte\u00adver we do and move in the king\u00addom of God, we do it becau\u00adse the love of God moves us! What then emer\u00adges can be like what the well-hee\u00adled woman did here; or also like what the poor widow did who put her last two coins into the offe\u00adring box in the temp\u00adle. Both acted out of gre\u00adat love for Christ. The one with two five-cent coins, the other with seve\u00adral tens of thou\u00adsands. The faithful men pre\u00adsent here at this ban\u00adquet did not under\u00adstand the gene\u00adrous woman.
\nThe\u00adre are Chris\u00adti\u00adans who pre\u00adfer it quiet; just not to attract atten\u00adti\u00adon, pre\u00adfer\u00ada\u00adb\u00adly as usu\u00adal, pre\u00adfer\u00ada\u00adb\u00adly the same as always. They have their job in the con\u00adgre\u00adga\u00adti\u00adon; they con\u00adtri\u00adbu\u00adte finan\u00adci\u00adal\u00adly, they regu\u00adlar\u00adly attend church ser\u00advices\u2026 Their faith and their love for Jesus is stuck on rails. What they do and don\u2019t do is pious\u00adly stan\u00addar\u00addi\u00adsed. This gives them secu\u00adri\u00adty and a good fee\u00adling. I don\u2019t want to say that this is wrong! Becau\u00adse what is important is not what we do, but how we do it! Is it under the mot\u00adto \u00abEver\u00ady\u00adthing we do, we do becau\u00adse the love of Christ moves us\u00bb?! Or are the\u00adre other moti\u00adves behind it? The ques\u00adti\u00adon, howe\u00adver, is rather whe\u00adther Jesus could also thread some\u00adthing extra\u00ador\u00addi\u00adna\u00adry with my time and my com\u00admit\u00adment? Can he jump over your shadow with you? Or do you say: \u00abNo, I\u2019d rather not! I am now in a good mood in my life and faith! Plea\u00adse don\u2019t chan\u00adge any\u00adthing!\u00bb If Chris\u00adti\u00adans who think like this had lived at the time of Jesus, they would still be fishing as disci\u00adples or in the cus\u00adtom house becau\u00adse you don\u2019t give up your job. The begging widow would not have got her due, becau\u00adse you can\u2019t be so pushy. The para\u00adly\u00adtic would not have found four hel\u00adpers who adven\u00adtur\u00adous\u00adly laid him at Jesus\u00bb feet. The blind man of Jeri\u00adcho would have remain\u00aded blind becau\u00adse one does not shout like that in the street! The daugh\u00adter of Jai\u00adrus would have been buried, becau\u00adse who belie\u00adves that Jesus can rai\u00adse the dead! In this way, we could now brow\u00adse not only the New Tes\u00adta\u00adment, but also the Old Tes\u00adta\u00adment and also modern times and ask our\u00adsel\u00adves: What all would not have hap\u00adpen\u00aded in the King\u00addom of God if faith-fil\u00adled peo\u00adp\u00adle had not cou\u00adra\u00adge\u00adous\u00adly dared some\u00adthing again and again out of love for Jesus; brea\u00adking down boun\u00adda\u00adries, tack\u00adling the unfa\u00admi\u00adli\u00adar and tack\u00adling ama\u00adzing things in faith.
\nMay\u00adbe God has been wan\u00adting to chall\u00adenge you to do some\u00adthing extra\u00ador\u00addi\u00adna\u00adry for a long time! How can you reco\u00adg\u00adni\u00adse a Chris\u00adti\u00adan? By the bum\u00adper sti\u00adcker? By atten\u00adding church? By their pious talk? No. Rather by their free\u00addom to go all out in love with Jesus, with ever\u00ady\u00adthing they are and have. They are in love with Jesus \u2013 what do you do when you are in love! I am hap\u00adpy to belong to a con\u00adgre\u00adga\u00adti\u00adon whe\u00adre peo\u00adp\u00adle, out of an extra\u00ador\u00addi\u00adna\u00adry love for Jesus, dare to do some\u00adthing they have never done befo\u00adre; for exam\u00adp\u00adle, tal\u00adking to someone about Jesus; pray\u00ading aloud in a group; taking a year-long bibli\u00adcal cour\u00adse; get\u00adting invol\u00adved in the con\u00adgre\u00adga\u00adti\u00adon whe\u00adre it is most nee\u00added; taking the leap to go abroad, for exam\u00adp\u00adle to Taji\u00adki\u00adstan; ven\u00adtu\u00adring on a short mis\u00adsi\u00adon with a reli\u00adef orga\u00adni\u00adsa\u00adti\u00adon\u2026 Others, with their enthu\u00adsi\u00adasm for the King\u00addom of God, have dug deep into their wal\u00adlets. And I can only say that all the\u00adse examp\u00adles are inspi\u00adring. They are encou\u00adra\u00adging and chall\u00adenge us as a who\u00adle con\u00adgre\u00adga\u00adti\u00adon to go all out again and again. You can\u2019t do that on your own. You need the gui\u00addance of the Holy Spi\u00adrit, becau\u00adse He gives the will and the accom\u00adplish\u00adment and He dis\u00adtri\u00adbu\u00adtes the tasks.
\nIn 1 Corin\u00adthi\u00adans it says: \u00abBut all the\u00adse things are done by one and the same Holy Spi\u00adrit, who alo\u00adne deci\u00addes which gift each one recei\u00adves\u00bb (1 Corin\u00adthi\u00adans 12:11 NLB<\/span>). God can also trust you with some\u00adthing that goes bey\u00adond your limits! He chan\u00adges you by giving you new tasks and the abili\u00adties to do them. I very much hope that here in the See\u00adtal-Chi\u00adle the love for God will con\u00adti\u00adnue to be actively expres\u00adsed. That is not always easy. The\u00adre can also be cri\u00adti\u00adcism, as in this story.
\n\u00abThe disci\u00adples were very upset when they saw this. \u00abWhat a was\u00adte of money,\u00bb they fret\u00adted. \u00abShe should rather have sold it for a lot of money and given the pro\u00adceeds to the poor.\u00bb \u00bb (Matthew 26:8\u20139 NLB<\/span>). What looks like love for the poor in the disci\u00adples is not love. They resent the money becau\u00adse it is unu\u00adsual\u00adly much. Jesus cor\u00adrects the grumbling disci\u00adples: \u00abShe has done a good work! She is com\u00adple\u00adte\u00adly right. You always have poor peo\u00adp\u00adle around your ears. Caring for them is one of your core tasks. It\u2019s a stan\u00adding order, but you don\u2019t have me with you all the time.\u00bb Jesus says, \u00abWhy are you grie\u00adving this woman?\u00bb And in the basic text, \u00abWhy do you make this woman wea\u00adry?!\u00bb The\u00adre was a time when you did\u00adn\u2019t say to yours\u00adelf, \u00abOh, you\u2019\u00adre giving me a hard time!\u00bb but \u00abYou\u2019\u00adre making me tired\u2026\u00bb! Cri\u00adti\u00adcism takes away all the joy of working tog\u00ade\u00adther. Cri\u00adti\u00adcism makes you tired! Prai\u00adse and admi\u00adra\u00adti\u00adon moti\u00adva\u00adte! \u00abHey, I think it\u2019s gre\u00adat that you are inves\u00adt\u00ading yours\u00adelf the\u00adre. I think you are in the right place the\u00adre! It\u2019s in kee\u00adping with your gifts. Keep up the good work! It\u2019s good that you exist!\u00bb
\nJesus tells the disci\u00adples some\u00adthing else they did not know: the woman is doing the only right thing. Through her and the hosts, Jesus can expe\u00adri\u00adence Psalm 23: \u00abYou prepa\u00adre a table befo\u00adre me in the pre\u00adsence of my enemies. You anoint my head with oil and fill me with drink\u00bb (v.5). For Jesus it is the pre\u00adpa\u00adra\u00adti\u00adon for his death! What mat\u00adters to you is not what is right in the eyes of others at the moment, but your moti\u00adve. Con\u00adti\u00adnue to invest a lot becau\u00adse you have only one thing in mind: to love Jesus and to live for him! It is a gre\u00adat chall\u00adenge for all of us to feel what is right now and what is not. But I am con\u00advin\u00adced that your love for Jesus will move you to do the right thing. It is also good if we help each other to check our moti\u00adves. Becau\u00adse: How clo\u00adse \u00abtotal\u00adly wrong\u00bb and \u00absuper good\u00bb can be next to each other! This is also expres\u00adsed in the Bible. In both Gos\u00adpels (Matthew and Mark), after this sto\u00adry of extra\u00ador\u00addi\u00adna\u00adry love, the betra\u00ady\u00adal of Judas is descri\u00adbed. Both expo\u00adsed them\u00adsel\u00adves! The woman out of love for Jesus; and Judas out of love for money.
\nTog\u00ade\u00adther with you, thanks to Jesus, I always want to take a step for\u00adward! I want to have the desi\u00adre with all of you to move some\u00adthing in God\u2019s king\u00addom that makes God\u2019s love for peo\u00adp\u00adle clear anew! Be it also through a sign of extra\u00ador\u00addi\u00adna\u00adry love!
\nAmen!
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\nPos\u00adsi\u00adble ques\u00adti\u00adons for the small groups
\nRead Bible text: Matthew 26:6\u201313<\/p>\n