Gospel of Luke | Craig T. Owens

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Asyougo

February 8, 2016 — Craig T. Owens

Listen to the podcast of this post by clicking on the player below, and you can also subscribe on Apple, Spotify, or Audible.

A little habit started for me as a kid. I’d put things on the bottom steps of the stairway, so I’d be sure to see them and grab them as I went upstairs to my bedroom. After a while, everyone in our family had his or her own “step.” I called these asyougos: as you go upstairs, please take these with you. The principle was pretty simple, as I would naturally see these things going about my regular route.

Jesus had a similar idea for His followers: Go into all the world and preach the Good News to all creation (Mark 16:15). The verb tense and definition of the word go literally means that Jesus said, “Asyougo into all the world, preach the Good News.”

In fact, this is exactly how Jesus lived His life. As He went about His normal life, His life intersected with people who needed Good News (check out Mark 10:17, 46; Luke 8:4, 42; 17:11; and John 9:1 as examples).

Peter summed up all of Christ’s life like this: God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Spirit and power, and how He went around doing good and healing all who were under the power of the devil, because God was with Him (Acts 10:38).

Jesus lived an asyougo lifestyle, He called us to do the same, and He empowered us to live our asyougo lifestyle with the same power He had (Matthew 28:18-19; Acts 1:8).

Here’s the big idea—We don’t need to go anywhere special to find people who need Good News…

…asyougo to school, you will attend class with them
…asyougo to work, you will work alongside them
…asyougo to the grocery store, you will interact with them
…asyougo to do yard work, you will talk over the backyard fence with them
…asyougo out to eat, you will sit next to them

People who need the life-changing, disease-healing, sin-forgiving power of Jesus are all around you. ASYOUGO share the Good News of Jesus Christ with them!

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Posted in Uncategorized. Tags: apostle Peter, Book of Acts, Calvary Assembly of God, Good News, Gospel of Luke, Gospel of Mark, Gospel of Matthew, Jesus Christ, lifestyle, sermon, video, Vimeo, witness. 1 Comment »

4 Thoughts To Help Prayer Become A Daily Habit

February 1, 2016 — Craig T. Owens

I have shared several strategies about prayer throughout this series (you can read them here, here, here, and here). One danger in putting these steps into practice in our life is what I would call one-and-done. We do it once and think we’ve done all we need to do.

Scientists tell us at a minimum it takes 21 days in a row to make a habit. Jesus went even farther than that in talking about prayer in Matthew 7:7. When we look at the three aspects of the verbs ask, seek, and knock in this verse, it would be better stated like this—

You need to keep on asking, and keep on seeking, and keep on knocking. This is not good advice or a helpful suggestion, but it is vital for your spiritual life. So after you have asked, sought, and knocked, then do it again, and again, and AGAIN.

Matthew Henry said it this way: “Here is a precept in three words to the same purport, Ask, Seek, Knock; that is, in one word, ‘Pray; pray often; pray with sincerity and seriousness; pray, and pray again; make conscience of prayer, and be constant in it; make a business of prayer, and be earnest in it.’”

In the English language the dictionary has a word for this: importunity. This means being urgent and persistent, sometimes annoyingly so!

I believe importunity requires these four characteristics:

Trust. Remember Jesus taught us to begin our prayer with, “Our Father.” We have to come to Him again and again and again trusting that He loves us, that He alone is the Source of our help, and that He wants to help us. We also have to trust that our Father wants to give us the very best (Matthew 6:8, 7:7-11).
Perseverance. I love the story of the persistent widow in Luke 18:1-5. This determined lady kept coming back again and again. Henry Ward Beecher said, “The difference between perseverance and obstinacy is, that one often comes from a strong will, and the other from a strong won’t.”
Creativity. One of my favorite New Testament stories is about a mother who is not only as persistent as the widow in Luke 18, but she is creative in her prayer as well (Mark 7:24-30). This lady bantered with Jesus in a way that I believe caused Christ to throw back His head and laugh! This is not bargaining with God, as Oswald Chambers wrote, “Repetition in intercessory importunity is not bargaining, but the joyous insistence of prayer.”
Action. Paul was looking for an open door to preach the Gospel, but he didn’t sit still while he waited for God to say “yes” (Acts 16:6-10).

Keep these in mind as you make importunity a key part of your prayer life. And check out the full video of my message on importunity in prayer.

Confession: I Struggle With Being An Atheist

January 25, 2016 — Craig T. Owens

You see, I love my day to be highly organized. I like to get to all my meetings on time, and then have them run smoothly and efficiently. I like to setup my To Do list, and then methodically check off each item as I go through my day. I like to be in charge of my day.

I am an atheist.

I’m the one calling the shots. I set my agenda. I determine my day. I decide who to see and what project to accept.

There was a guy that Jesus talked about who did the exact same thing. This guy thought to himself and talked to himself all about his plans. Seriously, in just three verses he says me/I/my a dozen times (Luke 12:17-19)!

But God said, “You fool!” The word for fool means without mind. He didn’t mind his mind. He thought the thoughts he wanted to think, without ever consulting anyone else. Not even God.

Jesus made prayer a priority every day (Mark 1:35). What do you think He prayed? Do you think He said, “Here’s what I’m going to do today, and I want You to bless it, Father”? No way!

When Jesus taught us to pray He said, “Your kingdom come, Your will be done” (Matthew 6:9-13). Not only did Jesus pray this way, He lived this way too. He didn’t do a single thing unless His Father directed Him to do it (John 6:38), and He didn’t say a single word unless His Father directed Him to say it (John 12:49).

The problem is not going into my prayer closet to meet with God in the morning, the problem is thinking I can leave God in the closet as I go about my day! That is atheism!

The Apostle James gave us this sound counsel: Instead of making my plans all on my own, I should say, “If the Lord wills, this is what I will do today” (James 4:13-17). And wise King Solomon said I shouldn’t lean on my own thoughts when planning my days, but lean onto God, and then watch to see how He will direct my life in the right way (Proverbs 3:5-6).

I’ve begun writing I.T.L.W. on the top of my daily calendar. It’s my reminder to say, “If The Lord Wills” this is what I will do today. And if something else comes up, I quickly acknowledge that God is directing my path where He needs me to go.

Your Kingdom come means my kingdom has to go. Your will be done means my agenda takes a distant second.

If you’re feeling stressed about your schedule, that should be your reminder to pray: “God, what do you want to have done here.” Silence the atheistic thoughts that sound like, “I have to get my list done.” Stop and pray right there on the spot.

Here’s the full video of my message on this topic—

We will be continuing our series called Practical Prayer this Sunday. If you don’t have a home church in Cedar Springs, please come be our guest. Or you can tune into our live broadcast via Periscope.

Posted in Uncategorized. Tags: agenda, apostle James, atheism, atheist, calendar, God's will, Gospel of John, Gospel of Luke, Gospel of Mark, Gospel of Matthew, Jesus Christ, prayer, proverbs, schedule, Solomon, stress, thought life, to do lists, video, Vimeo. 4 Comments »

Week Of Prayer—Monday

January 4, 2016 — Craig T. Owens

Our week of prayer continues today with this prayer focus—

Pray that in the midst of impossible circumstances, doubt will be replaced by absolute trust in God’s promise to intervene in your need or circumstance.

When I pray, I love to pray God’s Word. Perhaps on Monday you could pray something like this:

Jesus, You said if I have faith as small as a mustard seed, I can say to this mountain—this “impossible thing” in my life—“Move from here to there,” and it will move. Nothing will be impossible [Matthew 17:20]. It was impossible for death to hold You, Jesus, so I know that no word from You will ever fail [Acts 2:24; Luke 1:37].

I have some seemingly “impossible” situations in my life. There is a relationship that seems beyond repair … there is a doctor’s diagnosis that seems terminal … there is a financial debt that seems like a bottomless pit … there is a situation that seems hopeless. But things that seem like they’re terminal, impossible and hopeless to man are perfect opportunities for You to do what only You can do. I put my absolute trust in You. I believe that You are going to do what others say is impossible, so that all will see Your unequaled greatness. In Jesus’ mighty name I pray, Amen.

Posted in Uncategorized. Tags: Book of Acts, God's power, Gospel of Luke, Gospel of Matthew, miracles, prayer, week of prayer. Leave a Comment »

2 Quotes From Jack Hayford On God’s Favor

December 24, 2015 — Craig T. Owens

I really enjoyed On This Holy Night! The unique perspective from six talented authors gives a freshness to the Christmas story. Jack Hayford wrote a very intriguing chapter called “I Wish You A ‘Mary’ Christmas,” and I have shared two of his quotes for you.

“We tend to think of virginity only in terms of innocence and purity. Of course those terms are appropriate, but Mary’s virginity did not provide an earned holiness to which God might respond with a miracle. If we think the Mary Miracle can only work in us if we are innocent, pure, and untouched, then most of us will give up and go home. I’m not talking about whether you have been tarnished or sullied in the sexual dimension. That’s not the point. All of us have been marred in numerous ways by our sin and weakness. Mary’s virginity is telling us this today: we don’t have to be pure, innocent, or untarnished to receive the miracle. Mary’s virginity represents the impossibility, humanly speaking, of life coming forth. We need to see her virginity as a picture of the hopelessness of the situation.”

“I discovered that the verb translated ‘highly favored’ [Luke 1:28] is only used two times in the whole New Testament. It’s used for Mary: ‘You are highly favored.’ … But it’s also in Ephesians 1:6, which says you are ‘accepted in the Beloved.’ … The same thing that was said of Mary is also said of us. And that brings with it the same possibilities and the same miracle presence, because the same degree of favor is present. You and I are highly favored!”

You can also read other quotes I’ve shared from On This Holy Night from John Maxwell, Bill Hybels, Max Lucado, and David Jeremiah, and you can read my book review here.

Posted in Uncategorized. Tags: Advent, Bill Hybels, book review, Christmas, David Jeremiah, Ephesians, First Advent, God's favor, Gospel of Luke, Jack Hayford, John Maxwell, Mary, Max Lucado, miracles, quotes, virgin. Leave a Comment »

Peace On Earth! Really?

December 22, 2015 — Craig T. Owens

For some people, “peace on earth” is just a wish. Perhaps all of this talk of peace and goodwill during the buildup to Christmas is doing just the opposite, and you’re feeling a bit stressed out.

How do you think Joseph felt on the night of his first son’s birth? Do you think he was peaceful, or do you think things weren’t going as he had planned, and his stress level was through the roof? We can learn a very valuable lesson from his life.

Please gather your family and friends around to watch this short 10-minute video before you begin your Christmas celebration. This encouraging word may be just what you need to have a peaceful and joyous Christmas.

(If you have any trouble with the above video, here’s another link to try.)

I encourage you to read the Scriptures I mention in this video. They are:

And the quote from Max Lucado I shared:

“You’ve stood where Joseph stood. Caught between what God says and what makes sense. You’ve done what He told you to do only to wonder if it was Him speaking in the first place. You stared into a sky blackened with doubt. And you’ve asked what Joseph asked. You’ve asked if you’re still on the right road. You’ve asked if you were supposed to turn left when you turned right. And you’ve asked if there is a plan behind the scheme. Things haven’t turned out like you thought they would. Each of us knows what it’s like to search the night for light. Not outside a stable, but perhaps outside an emergency room. On the gravel of a roadside. On the manicured grass of the cemetery. We’ve asked our questions. We’ve questioned God’s plan. And we’ve wondered why God does what He does. The Bethlehem sky is not the first to hear the pleading of a confused pilgrim. If you are asking what Joseph asked, let me urge you to do what Joseph did. Obey.”

Merry Christmas!

Posted in Uncategorized. Tags: Advent, Christmas, Ephesians, favor, First Advent, God's Word, Gospel of Luke, Jeremiah, Jesus Christ, Joseph, Mary, Max Lucado, peace, Psalm, quotes, Romans, video, Vimeo, YouTube. 4 Comments »

6 Facts About Angels

December 7, 2015 — Craig T. Owens

Angels play a fairly visible role in the First Advent story. As a result, we can begin to piece together some facts about angels from the biblical accounts. In my series on The Carols Of Christmas, I was looking at Angels From The Realms Of Glory, and there is information about the angels in this carol that is well-support from the Scripture.

Angels were created before the Earth was created, and they celebrated as God created our universe (Job 38:4-7). The Christmas carol says, “ye who sang Creation’s story now proclaim Messiah’s birth,” which we see in Luke 2:8-14.
Angels are messengers sent from God, and they carry a message from God to turn people toward God (Daniel 10:12; Matthew 1:20-23; Luke 1:11-20, 26-38). In the Christmas carol they remind us to leave our contemplations and “seek the great Desire of nations.”
Angels are not to be worshiped, because they are created beings. Lucifer’s desire to be worshipped is what led to his rebellion against God and expulsion from Heaven (Isaiah 14:13-14). And he still tries to appear today as an angel of light (2 Corinthians 11:14).
Angels long to look into the Gospel that humans can know by personal experience (1 Peter 1:12).
Angels know that Christ’s First Advent is a reminder of His Second Advent (Acts 1:10-11; see also 1 Thessalonians 4:13-18).
We have been given an angelic responsibility to tell others about Christ’s First and Second Advents (notice that the messengers in the churches are called angels in Revelation 2:1, 8, 12, 18; 3:1, 7, 14; 22:16). The carol reminds us that it’s “all creation” (that includes us!) that joins the angels in praising God.

One of the biggest lessons we need to learn from this Christmas carol, and the corresponding verses about angels, is that we aren’t just celebrating the First Advent. We are anticipating and looking forward to the Second Advent as well!

Next Sunday we will be continuing our look at the rich messages in the familiar Christmas carols. Please join me!

In the video below, we had some slight technical difficulties. But it clears up about the 5-minute mark, so hang in there!

If you have missed any of the messages in our series The Carols Of Christmas, you can find the full list by clicking here.

Posted in Uncategorized. Tags: 1 Peter, 1 Thessalonians, 2 Corinthians, Advent, angels, Book of Acts, Calvary Assembly of God, Christmas, Christmas carols, church, Creation, Daniel, First Advent, Gospel of Luke, Gospel of Matthew, Isaiah, job, lucifer, Messiah, rapture, Revelation, satan, Second Advent, video, Vimeo. 4 Comments »

Links & Quotes

December 4, 2015 — Craig T. Owens

“Build God-centered anticipation and expectancy and excitement into your home—especially for the children. If you are excited about Christ, they will be too. If you can only make Christmas exciting with material things, how will the children get a thirst for God? Bend the efforts of your imagination to make the wonder of the King’s arrival visible for the children.” —John Piper

“The only people whose soul can truly magnify the Lord are people like Elizabeth and Mary—people who acknowledge their lowly estate [Luke 1:43, 48] and are overwhelmed by the condescension of the magnificent God.” —John Piper

“I try to read every book—Christian and secular—touted as ground-breaking. None of them are. We are driven by a reality placed in us by the Creator God with legitimate ways, context, and relationship to express our sexuality. If we don’t find those legitimate outlets, we will spend our lives searching for fulfillment in self-destructive ways to fill that God-given need for community, intimacy, relationship, and meaning. We cannot live without intimacy, and here I don’t mean sex. Sex is simply one of the most powerful forms of intimacy. We are not asexual beings. Being Christ-followers, striving for integrity in all things, doesn’t neuter us.” —Becky McDonald, founder and president of Women At Risk (WAR) International

“We must discipline our minds in all things to submit to the Word of God. We have the mind of Christ (1 Corinthians 2:16), and we are commanded to let His mind hold sway in all our thinking (Philippians 2:5). What the Scripture teaches concerning the disciplined life may not always seem the reasonable thing to do—because we cannot square its teaching with our experience or logic—but it is always the Word of God. Our duty is to get behind it and order all our steps accordingly.” —T.M. Moore

“Life is better when we act like we might see someone again soon, isn’t it?” —Seth Godin

This is scary (but typical of how abortion providers operate): a 911 call reveals that a teenager is held against her will and is being forced to have an abortion!

BREAKING NEWS: The US Senate has voted to repeal Obamacare, and defund Planned Parenthood!

Guillaume Bignon, a former atheist, has become a Christian. Here is Sean McDowell’s interview with him.

Archeologists in Israel have found a seal purported to belong to King Hezekiah. You can read about other verified archeological finds every day in the Archeological Study Bible.

[VIDEO] John Maxwell on the value of imagination—

Is “Christian” Just A Label?

November 30, 2015 — Craig T. Owens

Our youth pastor, Josh Schram, shared a message yesterday which really convicted me. Here are my notes just as I took them Sunday morning.

Some stereotypes of Christians aren’t very flattering. If we ask someone to think of a farmer or a plumber, we probably all get the same sorts of images in our minds. But when we say “Christian,” there are a lot of images that come to mind. And many of them aren’t very flattering.

The word Christian only appears three times in New Testament (in the NIV)—Acts 11:26; Acts 26:28; 1 Peter 4:16.

The followers of Jesus preferred to call themselves disciples (see Acts 26:11). That signals a lifestyle, not just a label.

Does my lifestyle reflect the fact that I’m a follower of Jesus, or am I just happy with the title “Christian”? Am I trying to justify not doing the discipleship work that Jesus commanded me to do, namely loving God and loving others (Luke 10:25-37)? Notice especially this verse: But he wanted to justify himself, so he asked Jesus, “And who is my neighbor?” (Luke 10:29).

Why don’t Christians want to put their love into action? They say they’re busy, or don’t have enough resources, or don’t want to get involved, or they think helping may be a trap. But the priest and Levite who didn’t stop to help may have saved the injured man’s life! How much so the Christian of today!

Does my faith in Jesus change the way I live, or is “Christian” just a title I’m happy to live with?

Do I try to justify myself, or do I simply obey what Jesus says? (Acts 10:29). @schram77 has me thinking…

— Craig T. Owens (@craigtowens) November 29, 2015

As kids, when we play “follower the leader” we follow all the actions of the leader. But Christians seem to change the rules: “I just need to believe what He says, but I don’t have to do what He says.”

To truly be called a “Christian”—a disciple of Jesus—my LOVE should be in action, just like Jesus (Luke 10:27-28; c.f. Acts 10:38).

If you’re ready to be challenged, check out Josh’s message for yourself—

Posted in Uncategorized. Tags: 1 Peter, Book of Acts, Calvary Assembly of God, Christian, discipleship, Good Samaritan, Gospel of Luke, Jesus Christ, lifestyle, love, love others, sermon, Twitter, video, Vimeo. Leave a Comment »

Links & Quotes

November 19, 2015 — Craig T. Owens

“No man can murder his brother who has not first murdered God in himself.” —Oswald Chambers

“We love our neighbors when, like Jesus, we seek them out to love them (cf. Luke 19:1-10). Jesus did not wait for lost or hurting people to find their way to Him. He went looking for them. He learned the names of many of them, and used their names freely. He took the initiative in making certain contacts, some of which He repeated many times during His earthly sojourn. Jesus started conversations with people and was doubtless a good listener. And He prayed often for others, seeking their wellbeing before the Father. We can know that we love our neighbors when, like Jesus, we go seeking them, in order to touch them with His love.” —T.M. Moore

“The Word of God is our only hope. The good news of God’s promises and the warnings of His judgment are sharp enough and living enough and active enough to penetrate to the bottom of my heart and show me that the lies of sin are indeed lies. Abortion will not create a wonderful future for me. Neither will cheating, or dressing provocatively, or throwing away my sexual purity, or keeping quiet about dishonesty at work, or divorce, or vengeance. And what rescues me from this deception is the Word of God.” —John Piper

“If you spend too much time looking for your next big break, you’ll be stealing your opportunity to do your best work. Which is the the most important break of all.” —Seth Godin

“God’s definition of promotion isn’t a move up the ladder, it is a move toward your call. Don’t let someone ‘promote’ you out of your call!” —Max Lucado

“In the parable of Matthew 18:23-27 did the king overlook his servant’s sin? Did he wink at his debt and merely excuse it? No, not at all. The fact is, by forgiving him, the king placed upon this man a weighty responsibility, a responsibility even greater than the burden of his debt. Indeed, this servant now owed his master more than ever. How? He was responsible to forgive and love others, just as the king had done for him.” —David Wilkerson

If you don’t think Planned Parenthood’s business of abortion is a huge money-maker for them, why are they spending $20 million in 2016 to elect pro-abortion candidates?

For Detroit Red Wings fan, here is a nice mini-biography of Mr. Hockey: Gordie Howe.

[VIDEO] Barbabas Piper and Bobby Conway on the difference between knowing and believing—