September 20, 2026

GOD’S WORD FOR TODAY:

“Abraham replied [to Abimelek], “I said to myself, ‘There is surely no fear of God in this place, and they will kill me because of my wife.’ Besides, she really is my sister, the daughter of my father though not of my mother; and she became my wife. And when God had me wander from my father’s household, I said to her, ‘This is how you can show your love to me: Everywhere we go, say of me, “He is my brother.’‘” (Genesis 20.11-13)

REFLECTION ON GOD’S WORD:

Mighty ones, how many times have you said or have you heard “If you really love me, you will….”? The pressure of conditional love gets expressed from a desire to a demand. It is in the fear of failure, rejection or denial of one’s own hope and feeling which generally leads someone to say, “If you really love me, you will….” We know, or at least can imagine, the many caveats which are suggested by that conditional phrasing when it comes to relationships. They may not be so literal as to say “If you, then you” but it is true nonetheless. Such as the time when the disciples were arguing among themselves as who was the greatest disciple. Even then, in the presence of Jesus, they failed to grasp the importance of humility and service to one another, to God and to all “the others.” The thrill and desire of being, though the term was not used then as it is now, “the G.Q.A.T.” or “The Greatest of All Time” was alive and well. Had they not heard what was said about John the Baptist when he had been arrested and imprisoned? He said, “I must decrease so that He may increase.” He knew his ministry was important as the precursor prophetic voice of the coming of the Kingdom of God on earth through Jesus of Nazareth. He was the watchman over Israel as were all the prophets before him. He was to sound the alarm or the alert. It would be an alarm if the watchman saw the enemy approach. He had to be the most diligent at night because the enemy would hide under the cover of darkness. It would not be only with his eyes that he would keep watch. All of his senses would need to be alert. He would breathe a sigh of relief when the dawn would arrive and the light of the world would illumine the horizon. Still, he had to be diligent to watch for the coming of an enemy who would appear in many forms; not just as an army set against the city. For John the Baptizer, the enemy was within. The chief priest and the elders, the Sanhedrin and the Pharisees, were broken in unrepented sin which they proposed were entitlements from God. It was not Rome that John feared but the “sons of the serpent, a brood of vipers coiling and slithering in their den, the Temple. It was no wonder Jesus was repulsed to see what had taken place there in what was called by God “a house of prayer.” It had been turned into a den of thieves promoting a gospel of repentance for sale and a salvation that was worth less than silver and gold. Yes, John had done his work faithfully announcing the alarm to the enemy and the alert to the people, “Repent, for the Kingdom of God was drawing near; make straight the paths for the King of Righteousness.” But even John knew he was not the greatest. He had not heart, mind nor stomach for such an accolade though the people certainly wanted to put it on him as he stood against their shared enemy. Instead, John knew that there was one coming far greater than he and His name was Jesus, Yeshua, the chosen of God for the salvation of the world. Unfortunately, the disciples did not incorporate such words into their own vocabulary. Riding the crest of popularity which Jesus was given by the people themselves (they were a force to be reckoned with even by the Chief Priests and Elders), the disciples gave way to their ego. Fortunately, they did not seek to replace the “chief” GOAT, Jesus, but they wanted to be one of the billy goats who stood by His side. As we read the scripture, either they (James and John, the sons of Thunder) or their mother (was she the Thunder?) approached Jesus and said, “When You come into your Kingdom let “us or them” sit at your right and left hand.” We might better hear it this way, “Jesus, if you really love me, then you will appoint us to sit at your right and left hand.” Did they really question how much Jesus loved them? Did they still argue between themselves who would take the right and left positions and all that they truly meant? Did they believe they were truly prepared for such duty and responsibility? Or was their ego so needy in competition with each other and the other disciples, they had just wanted the accolade? Imagine how the other disciples’ heads snapped when what was said was said. No, James and John (or their mother) did not say it so that the other disciples could hear them. What the disciples heard was what Jesus said in response. They heard His deferral saying, “It is for God alone to decide who sits on the right and the left.” Trust me on this, Jesus said it loud enough for everyone to hear. I can imagine James and John waving their hands at Jesus to quieten Him saying, “Shhh, Jesus, be quiet. This is a matter just between us and you. They don’t need to know about it. When it happens it will be too late for them!” It was their very lack of true spirit that Jesus knew was in them all. They were human. Moreover, they were men. In truth, they were more like little boys wanting to play “King of the Mountain.” It was Jesus’ response after that which He wanted them all to hear. It was a foretaste of what Jesus knew was the truth. He directed them to an attitude of true service. He asked them, “Are you worthy enough to drink of the cup I must drink?” His ministry and mission was not about ruling over Israel and dethroning both the Temple leadership and Rome. He was their to cast out sin and usher in the Kingdom of Righteousness where “our God reigns.” With the turning of the heads of all the other disciples and seeing James and John, or worse- their mother, with Jesus would have created quite a scene if it had not been for Jesus. He would remind them “the first shall be last and the last shall be first; if any among them desired to be the greatest, he must become the servant of all.” Mighty ones of God, that was the true identity of Jesus. He was the servant of all. Most importantly, He was the servant of God. It was not about sonship or being the Messiah. It certainly wasn’t about robes, crown and thrones either in the Temple or in the palace of Rome or Israel. He would say in the fourteenth chapter of John, the true conditional love statement which applies to us all, “If you love Me, then keep the commandments I have given you. Then the Father who is in Heaven will give you the Holy Spirit.” (John 14.15,16) Jesus didn’t say this out of fear that He wasn’t going to be loved. He wanted the disciples to know that the world needed God’s love and the disciples were the ones to lead, guide and direct them to that understanding.

Such was not the thinking of Abraham who continued to put his wife (who was his sister) in a compromising position. He feared that he would be killed (and unable to fulfill God’s promise for the future) if other men knew she was his wife. She was so desirable, that mighty men would have not thought a moment about Abraham’s welfare. Instead, they would do as David did to Uriah in order to have Bathsheba for himself. Uriah would be killed freeing David’s conscience to keep her all to himself especially since she was with David’s child. So Abraham told Sarah, “If you love me, then tell them I am your brother. Give yourself up to those other men so that I might live. We will work out the details when we get to that point where it is needed.” Really? Did Abraham believe so little in the promise of God to provide and protect his servant by being a servant to Himself, that he would take matters into his own hands and out of God’s? Do we do that? How many times have we done that? How many times have we surrendered our hope of salvation and the promise of eternity with Jesus, for a conditional affirmation? Have we said, “Jesus, I promise to love you if you will only make it possible for a…” fill in the blank… get me a better job, car, house, boat, friends or the winning lottery ticket? Remember, the only condition Jesus placed on love was being a servant to the commands of God which He had given. He showed the path of true love as He taught “No greater love is there than this but that one would lay down his life for the sake of the other.” Oh if Abraham had only stood up to the kings who desired his wife and say “You have to come through me and my God, if you want her! And you better bring some friends along, too, because you can’t do it alone.” Mighty ones of God, isn’t it time we defended the Church and the body of Christ in this way. Should we continue to compromise the gospel of salvation and the promise of eternity for all who will believe by wanting more for ourselves at their expense?

TODAYS’ PRAYER OF THANKSGIVING:

Father, in these days we are finding the need to believe even more than ever before. We all have known trouble, some in greater ways than others, but You are offering us the assurance that we will not be consumed by it forever. Regardless of the “time” we are in and the “time” we have been given, we ask for Your Holy Spirit which Jesus asked You to share with us, to lead and guide and direct us in the paths we should go. Teach us what we still need to learn. Empower us to put that learning into action. Bless our actions not as a works righteousness endeavor, but as righteous works of faith, hope and love in Jesus’ name. AMEN.