BBD 08.19.15 Are You Crazy? (New)
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The Burning
Bush Devotional
08.19.15
Are You
Crazy?
When Jesus came into a house, many people gathered around Him again.
Jesus and His followers could not even eat. When His family heard of it, they
went to take Him. They said, “He must be crazy.” - Mark 3:20-21 NKJV.
Now as he thus made his defense, Festus said with a loud voice,
“Paul, you are beside yourself! Much learning is driving you mad!” - Acts 26:24
NKJV. (driving you insane - NIV; crazy
- NLV; mad - KJV – “mad” coming from Greek work mania)
At a
popular tourist spot on a river in Alaska where grizzly bears can be seen
feeding on fish, a man suddenly appeared in a complete bear outfit. Not only
did the man appear, but he ran toward a grizzly and her two cubs, jumping up
and down. There were differing reports as to whether the man approached on two
feet or four. The grizzly man came within ten feet of the cubs before a
wildlife worker took action to scare the actual grizzly and cubs away by
shouting. Carl Koch, the wildlife biologist,
said “As you
can imagine, that's a really dangerous thing for the guy to do.”
What did the grizzly man do? He walked back to his car, got in, and drove away
without removing his costume. The incident took place about 500 miles east of
Anchorage. (Reuters 08.14.15; CBS Seattle 08.17.15)
Most of
us know crazy when we see it. A man running at a grizzly mother bear with cubs
in a bear suit jumping up and down would get you committed to a mental
institution for observation in most states. Maybe not in Alaska, but most
states. Did the man want to commit suicide by bear? Did he want to gain fame?
Or, was he just mentally unbalanced i.e. crazy? I think most of us would go
with crazy, as in insane!
As
Jesus went about doing good and teaching, not only did Jewish leaders think he
was crazy, but his own family, relatives, friends, and everyone in his hometown
thought he was crazy. The apostle Paul encountered the same kind of thing. As
Paul gave his defense before King Agrippa and Governor Festus, Festus thinks
the great learning of Paul has driven him insane. Paul is simply sharing his
testimony of the hope he and the Jewish people have in the resurrection of the
dead, and of how Jesus had worked in his life. The recounting of how the
crucified and resurrected Jesus encountered Paul on the road to Damascus may
have been a bit much for Festus to swallow.
Jesus
and the apostle Paul were both called crazy for proclaiming God's truth and
actually living it. What about you and me? Has anyone ever accused us of being
crazy for being on fire for God? Are you insanely crazy for Jesus? If not, why
not? What has happened to your fire? Has the cares of this world choked out
your fervor? Throw off the chains of this world, and let's all go crazy for
Jesus!
Copyright © 2015. Ed Wrather. The
Burning Bush website has been online since January 31, 1998. On June 8, 1998
the email version of the Burning Bush Devotional was first sent. Ed Wrather
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Please continue to pray
for our friend Michelle who is recovering from surgery for cancer. The latest
update is that she is “half way through Chemo, awaiting results of PET Scan at
end of Chemo.” Thank you for your prayers for Michelle!!!
Please continue to pray for
Michelle, Justin Lewis, Shane Hall, Reta (my sister), and Beverly (Jeanie’s
sister). Jeanie has also been experiencing increased pain in her back and side.
So far tests have not revealed it being caused by cancer, but degenerative disc
disease. It is likely she will need additional intervention for the pain.
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