Can I pray for you in any way? Send any prayer requests to OurChristianWalk.com.
In Christ, Mark
The scriptures. May God bless the reading of His holy word.
While Jesus was still talking to the crowd, his mother and brothers stood outside, wanting to speak to him. Someone told him, "Your mother and brothers are standing outside, wanting to speak to you."
He replied to him, "Who is my mother, and who are my brothers?" Pointing to his disciples, he said, "Here are my mother and my brothers. For whoever does the will of my Father in heaven is my brother and sister and mother."
Matthew 12:46-50
This ends this reading from God's holy word. Thanks be to God.
If you’re like me, you value family.
I’ve been so very blessed to have two wonderful parents who loved me and raised me the right way. But I wasn’t the only one they raised for I had four other siblings, blessed with three sisters and a brother. Then, as if that wasn’t enough, I’ve been blessed to be married and have a family of my own, having raised two beautiful girls into adulthood (now 27 and 23).
Yes…family has been a part of my life from the very beginning whether I was on the receiving or giving end of upbringing.
Well, in keeping with this theme, today’s scripture is centered on family but not just any ordinary family but the family of Jesus.
For we read that as Jesus was “talking to the crowd”, His “mother and brothers stood outside”. They wanted to speak to Jesus so someone went up to Him and said, “Your mother and brothers are standing outside, wanting to speak to you."
Now, if this were you or I, we probably would have politely excused ourselves to go and see what our family members wanted, especially since one of them was our mother. But Jesus isn’t like the rest of us…and as we will see, He has a special point to make about family…family as He sees it.
For the person informing Him of His family’s presence must have been shocked (and maybe just a little bit confused) when Jesus said to him, "Who is my mother, and who are my brothers?"
If the question was just left there without an answer, anyone might have said to Jesus, “Your mother is Mary and she stands outside with your brothers waiting to talk to you Lord. That’s what was just said to you.”
But Jesus quickly gets to His point before anyone can respond, pointing to His disciples and saying, “Here are my mother and my brothers. For whoever does the will of my Father in heaven is my brother and sister and mother."
OK…now I get it Jesus. Your point is well taken.
For we can’t look at the family of Jesus as we do our worldly families…not by a long shot. For Jesus has a family unlike anyone else could ever lay claim to…a family that included everyone who would choose to carry out the will of His Father in heaven, thus making them akin to Him and His life. Matching DNA with Jesus could only happen if we contained likeness to the way He was created...as One who was sent to fully carry out God’s purpose…to give His life to pay the price for the sins of God’s children…for the transgressions of those He could only pray would one day be part of His family.
So where do you stand today? Would the way you live your life allow Jesus to call you His brother or sister?
If you are following the will of God the father who art in heaven, then you can believe in confidence that you are part of Jesus’ family.
And who wouldn’t want to have a brother like that?
Amen.
In Christ,
Mark
PS: Please share this with anyone you feel might be blessed by it.
Send any prayer requests to OurChristianWalk@aol.com
Tuesday, April 13, 2010
Monday, April 12, 2010
IS YOUR HOUSE THE LORD’S HOME?
Can I pray for you in any way? Send any prayer requests to OurChristianWalk.com.
In Christ, Mark
The scriptures. May God bless the reading of His holy word.
"When an evil spirit comes out of a man, it goes through arid places seeking rest and does not find it. Then it says, 'I will return to the house I left.' When it arrives, it finds the house unoccupied, swept clean and put in order. Then it goes and takes with it seven other spirits more wicked than itself, and they go in and live there. And the final condition of that man is worse than the first. That is how it will be with this wicked generation."
Matthew 12:43-45
This ends this reading from God's holy word. Thanks be to God.
I think we all can relate to a time when we lived our lives in a way that was not pleasing to the Lord. It’s bound to happen to even the best person as sin and Satan have a way of exploiting our weaknesses and causing us to act, speak or think in ways contrary to God’s will.
So how does this happen in the first place? How do we fall prey to Satan and end up in the grip of his sinister intent for our lives?
Well, we can start by looking in our “house”…and check out who is living inside.
For if we truly wish to show Satan that the “No Vacancy” sign is up inside our hearts and minds, then we simply must let Satan see that the Light…capital “L”…is always on…that the Lord is always at home inside us.
Jesus touches on this very issue as we draw near to the end of Matthew, Chapter 12. He has been verbally sparring with the Pharisees and teachers of the law, calling out the religious authorities of the day as being not of God as they could not even recognize that God’s Son had indeed come to earth…the Messiah predicted by the prophets of old.
The Pharisees and teachers of the law weren’t as interested in people following God as they were people following them and their legalistic counsel and discipline over anyone who would choose to deny the ways they espoused. For if the religious leaders were fully in tune with God, there would be no questioning of Jesus…no challenging of His ways…no attempts to try and discredit Him. No, the Pharisees and teachers of the law would be exhorting, worshipping and praising Jesus amongst their people. They would be welcoming Him to come and teach in their synagogues. But they didn’t have that mindset…not even close.
And so the religious leaders never truly did anything under God’s authority or validation. His power was not in them because they didn’t really believe in Him. This is why Jesus spoke the following words, painting the work of the Pharisees and the teachers of the law as being fruitless.
He said, “When an evil spirit comes out of a man, it goes through arid places seeking rest and does not find it. Then it says, 'I will return to the house I left.' When it arrives, it finds the house unoccupied, swept clean and put in order. Then it goes and takes with it seven other spirits more wicked than itself, and they go in and live there. And the final condition of that man is worse than the first. That is how it will be with this wicked generation."
Anyone exorcised by the religious leaders of the day was not really healed. For even though an evil spirit might depart a person being treated by a Pharisee or teacher of the law, they wouldn’t be safe because the lack of godliness within the religious authority would lead to the void left by the evil spirit not being filled by God. Instead, the evil spirit would return with some other evil spirit friends and they all would move in, repossessing the man and making him worse than before. So what really got done? Nothing.
Friends, we simply can’t turn from anything we may do that is sinful and expect to remain away from it, unless we fill the void left by the evil spirit inside us with Christ Jesus, the One who makes evil flee just by the mere mention of His name. We simply must make our “house” the home of the Lord…for when He lives within us, Satan and his evil cannot.
Amen.
In Christ,
Mark
PS: Please share this with anyone you feel might be blessed by it.
Send any prayer requests to OurChristianWalk@aol.com
In Christ, Mark
The scriptures. May God bless the reading of His holy word.
"When an evil spirit comes out of a man, it goes through arid places seeking rest and does not find it. Then it says, 'I will return to the house I left.' When it arrives, it finds the house unoccupied, swept clean and put in order. Then it goes and takes with it seven other spirits more wicked than itself, and they go in and live there. And the final condition of that man is worse than the first. That is how it will be with this wicked generation."
Matthew 12:43-45
This ends this reading from God's holy word. Thanks be to God.
I think we all can relate to a time when we lived our lives in a way that was not pleasing to the Lord. It’s bound to happen to even the best person as sin and Satan have a way of exploiting our weaknesses and causing us to act, speak or think in ways contrary to God’s will.
So how does this happen in the first place? How do we fall prey to Satan and end up in the grip of his sinister intent for our lives?
Well, we can start by looking in our “house”…and check out who is living inside.
For if we truly wish to show Satan that the “No Vacancy” sign is up inside our hearts and minds, then we simply must let Satan see that the Light…capital “L”…is always on…that the Lord is always at home inside us.
Jesus touches on this very issue as we draw near to the end of Matthew, Chapter 12. He has been verbally sparring with the Pharisees and teachers of the law, calling out the religious authorities of the day as being not of God as they could not even recognize that God’s Son had indeed come to earth…the Messiah predicted by the prophets of old.
The Pharisees and teachers of the law weren’t as interested in people following God as they were people following them and their legalistic counsel and discipline over anyone who would choose to deny the ways they espoused. For if the religious leaders were fully in tune with God, there would be no questioning of Jesus…no challenging of His ways…no attempts to try and discredit Him. No, the Pharisees and teachers of the law would be exhorting, worshipping and praising Jesus amongst their people. They would be welcoming Him to come and teach in their synagogues. But they didn’t have that mindset…not even close.
And so the religious leaders never truly did anything under God’s authority or validation. His power was not in them because they didn’t really believe in Him. This is why Jesus spoke the following words, painting the work of the Pharisees and the teachers of the law as being fruitless.
He said, “When an evil spirit comes out of a man, it goes through arid places seeking rest and does not find it. Then it says, 'I will return to the house I left.' When it arrives, it finds the house unoccupied, swept clean and put in order. Then it goes and takes with it seven other spirits more wicked than itself, and they go in and live there. And the final condition of that man is worse than the first. That is how it will be with this wicked generation."
Anyone exorcised by the religious leaders of the day was not really healed. For even though an evil spirit might depart a person being treated by a Pharisee or teacher of the law, they wouldn’t be safe because the lack of godliness within the religious authority would lead to the void left by the evil spirit not being filled by God. Instead, the evil spirit would return with some other evil spirit friends and they all would move in, repossessing the man and making him worse than before. So what really got done? Nothing.
Friends, we simply can’t turn from anything we may do that is sinful and expect to remain away from it, unless we fill the void left by the evil spirit inside us with Christ Jesus, the One who makes evil flee just by the mere mention of His name. We simply must make our “house” the home of the Lord…for when He lives within us, Satan and his evil cannot.
Amen.
In Christ,
Mark
PS: Please share this with anyone you feel might be blessed by it.
Send any prayer requests to OurChristianWalk@aol.com
Sunday, April 11, 2010
THE ONE GREATER
Can I pray for you in any way? Send any prayer requests to OurChristianWalk.com.
In Christ, Mark
The scriptures. May God bless the reading of His holy word.
Then some of the Pharisees and teachers of the law said to him, "Teacher, we want to see a miraculous sign from you."
He answered, "A wicked and adulterous generation asks for a miraculous sign! But none will be given it except the sign of the prophet Jonah. For as Jonah was three days and three nights in the belly of a huge fish, so the Son of Man will be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth. The men of Nineveh will stand up at the judgment with this generation and condemn it; for they repented at the preaching of Jonah, and now one greater than Jonah is here. The Queen of the South will rise at the judgment with this generation and condemn it; for she came from the ends of the earth to listen to Solomon's wisdom, and now one greater than Solomon is here.”
Matthew 12:38-42
This ends this reading from God's holy word. Thanks be to God.
Throughout Chapter 12 of Matthew, we have witnessed Jesus in the midst of a showdown with the Pharisees, the Jewish religious authorities of the day. As Jesus came with new teachings and a special power to heal people, he gained a following that disturbed those who were in charge of spiritual matters.
And so we have seen the Pharisees question Jesus on the actions He and His disciples took on the Sabbath, seeking to discredit Him as a leader and even go as far as inferring Jesus was in partnership with the prince of demons. And we have seen in every instance that Jesus had a response for His detractors…responses that only continued to show that He was One who had come that was greater than they were…greater in power and greater in wisdom.
Well, as we continue and look at today’s passage, the Pharisees are not giving up. And amazingly, “some of the Pharisees and teachers of the law” asked Jesus to perform “a miraculous sign”. Now…I’m not sure what driving out demons and healing a man who had been crippled with a shriveled hand would constitute but for me at least those were both miraculous signs.
Jesus full knew that the motive behind the request was to further ridicule or discredit Him and so He had a different response than what the Pharisees and teachers of the law were asking for. For we read where He answered:
“A wicked and adulterous generation asks for a miraculous sign! But none will be given it except the sign of the prophet Jonah. For as Jonah was three days and three nights in the belly of a huge fish, so the Son of Man will be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth. The men of Nineveh will stand up at the judgment with this generation and condemn it; for they repented at the preaching of Jonah, and now one greater than Jonah is here. The Queen of the South will rise at the judgment with this generation and condemn it; for she came from the ends of the earth to listen to Solomon's wisdom, and now one greater than Solomon is here.”
Wow! Now was that an indictment or what?
The Pharisees and teachers of the law had taken their shots at Jesus but One greater than them was now speaking and taking a shot of His own…one that should have shaken His accusers to the core.
For obviously, those religious authorities who claimed to be such men of God could not even recognize and acknowledge when the power of God was being performed right in front of them. How else would Jesus had been able to do the miracles He performed except by a power greater than any man or woman had ever seen on earth. This is because the power that Jesus carried was not of earth but of His Father…our Father in heaven.
So Jesus let the Pharisees and teachers of the law know the extent of His authority through using two very familiar Old Testament figures…and underscoring the pending judgment awaiting anyone who would seek to undermine His work.
First, Jesus uses Jonah.
We’re familiar with Jonah’s story. You’ll recall that he was told by the Lord to go to Nineveh to preach against the city and its people because of their wickedness. But Jonah, afraid of the assignment, ran instead of obeying…boarding a ship that was bound for Tarshish.
As the ship set out, a terrible storm came upon it and everyone onboard was in danger of dying at sea. All the men on the ship were praying to their own gods, hoping for rescue, but Jonah was asleep below decks. Awakened by the ship’s captain, Jonah was summoned on deck where he was questioned by the rest of the men. They wanted to know what God Jonah followed and he replied, “…I worship the Lord, the God of heaven who made the sea and the land”. (Jonah 1:9)
This statement terrified the men more and they were convinced that it was God…the God Jonah followed…who was responsible for their perilous situation. So the men asked Jonah what they should do and he told them to cast him overboard since he was the one who had angered God.
The men were grief-stricken that they had to kill Jonah to save themselves. In fact, they cried out to Jonah’s God saying, “O Lord, please do not let us die for taking this man’s life. Do not hold us accountable for killing an innocent man, for You, O Lord, have done as You pleased”. (Jonah 1:14) And with that, the men threw Jonah overboard and miraculously, the raging sea calmed. Amazed at what they had witnessed, the men left on the ship “greatly feared the Lord” and offered sacrifice and vows to Him. (Jonah 1:16) The men had seen first hand the power of One greater than anything else they had ever seen.
So what happened to Jonah?
We know he was swallowed by a great fish where he remained inside for three days and three nights. During that time, he repented and reaffirmed his loyalty to the Lord…and then was “vomited…onto dry land” (Jonah 2:10) and given a second chance to do as God commanded…to go to Nineveh and present the word of the Lord…a word that the led Nineveh to amazingly repent and find the Lord’s compassion as He spared the city and its people from destruction.
Back to our scripture where e find Jesus telling the Pharisees and teachers of the law that He would eventually be in a place similar to Jonah…except instead of “in the belly of a huge fish”, He would be in the heart of the earth…dead and buried. But, come back alive to earth after his three day stay, so too would Jesus emerge alive from the tomb…defeating death and ascending to His Father in heaven eternally…an act far more greater than Jonah being vomited from a fish.
And so if what happened with Jonah led the people of Nineveh to repent at Jonah’s teaching then how much more should the people during Jesus’ time repent because He was greater than Jonah? That was the question. And if generation of Jesus’ time chose to not repent through the presence of the One who had come to save them, then the very people of Nineveh would “stand up at the judgment…and condemn it”.
What a powerful statement by Jesus! Now you would think that anyone with half a brain would change their mind, repent and flee from the Lord’s judgment. But those who Satan has a grip on will continue to be blind to the cause of Christ…choosing to remain in darkness instead of stepping into the light.
But Jesus doesn’t stop with a comparison to Jonah. He then goes onto another honored member of Jewish religious history, Solomon, who during his reign was visited in Jerusalem by the queen of Sheba, an Arabian kingdom who profited greatly from the sea trade. During her visit, Sheba “talked with him about all she had on her mind” (2 Chronicles 9:1b) and Solomon in turn, “answered all her questions” with “nothing being too hard for him to explain” (2 Chronicles 9:2). Well, the queen was “overwhelmed” by what she heard and said:
“The report I heard in my own country about your achievements and your wisdom is true. But I did not believe what they said until I came and saw with my own eyes. Indeed, not even half the greatness of your wisdom was told me; you have far exceeded the report I heard. How happy your officials, who continually stand before you and hear your wisdom! Praise be to the Lord your God, who has delighted in you and placed you on His throne as king to rule for the Lord your God. Because of the love of your God for Israel and His desire to uphold them forever, He has made you king over them, to maintain justice and righteousness”. (2 Chronicles 9:5-8)
Now, here was a powerful leader who traveled to Jerusalem and was taken to a place of praise and acknowledgement of the Lord through the wisdom the Lord placed on Solomon to express to her. She fully knew that Solomon was where he was because God had put him there…just as Jesus was sent to reign with power and majesty…a power and majesty that far exceeded Solomon’s. And so with that, if the queen of Sheba would acknowledge Solomon, how much more should the people in Jesus’ time acknowledge Him for He was there and greater than Solomon.
OK…so what’s the point for us today?
We need to remember about how great the Lord is…that He is greater than anything.
For in this generation, there are so many who hold up people as being powerful and influential who can’t even scratch the surface on the Lord’s power and majesty. Like the men in the ship heading to Tarshish, people are crying out to gods that don’t exist seeking safety and salvation…and they do it when the One greater than all things is right there ready to give them everything they seek. All they need do is turn to Him, as the men in the ship did after Jonah was cast into the sea and the storm disappeared.
Jesus sacrificed Himself for all mankind…not just for a few men perishing on a ship. He gave Himself up to death on the cross to pay the price for our sins. He perished so we wouldn’t have to if we only believe and trust in Him as our Savior.
Do you fully believe and trust in the One who is greater…greater than anything that life can bring upon you…greater than affliction or hardship?
For through Christ, nothing can separate us from being liberated one day from what this world brings upon us…and in the interim, we know we can cope because He is with us as we seek to carry out His will and way
Indeed, He is the One who is greater. Thanks be to God.
Amen.
In Christ,
Mark
PS: Please share this with anyone you feel might be blessed by it.
Send any prayer requests to OurChristianWalk@aol.com
In Christ, Mark
The scriptures. May God bless the reading of His holy word.
Then some of the Pharisees and teachers of the law said to him, "Teacher, we want to see a miraculous sign from you."
He answered, "A wicked and adulterous generation asks for a miraculous sign! But none will be given it except the sign of the prophet Jonah. For as Jonah was three days and three nights in the belly of a huge fish, so the Son of Man will be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth. The men of Nineveh will stand up at the judgment with this generation and condemn it; for they repented at the preaching of Jonah, and now one greater than Jonah is here. The Queen of the South will rise at the judgment with this generation and condemn it; for she came from the ends of the earth to listen to Solomon's wisdom, and now one greater than Solomon is here.”
Matthew 12:38-42
This ends this reading from God's holy word. Thanks be to God.
Throughout Chapter 12 of Matthew, we have witnessed Jesus in the midst of a showdown with the Pharisees, the Jewish religious authorities of the day. As Jesus came with new teachings and a special power to heal people, he gained a following that disturbed those who were in charge of spiritual matters.
And so we have seen the Pharisees question Jesus on the actions He and His disciples took on the Sabbath, seeking to discredit Him as a leader and even go as far as inferring Jesus was in partnership with the prince of demons. And we have seen in every instance that Jesus had a response for His detractors…responses that only continued to show that He was One who had come that was greater than they were…greater in power and greater in wisdom.
Well, as we continue and look at today’s passage, the Pharisees are not giving up. And amazingly, “some of the Pharisees and teachers of the law” asked Jesus to perform “a miraculous sign”. Now…I’m not sure what driving out demons and healing a man who had been crippled with a shriveled hand would constitute but for me at least those were both miraculous signs.
Jesus full knew that the motive behind the request was to further ridicule or discredit Him and so He had a different response than what the Pharisees and teachers of the law were asking for. For we read where He answered:
“A wicked and adulterous generation asks for a miraculous sign! But none will be given it except the sign of the prophet Jonah. For as Jonah was three days and three nights in the belly of a huge fish, so the Son of Man will be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth. The men of Nineveh will stand up at the judgment with this generation and condemn it; for they repented at the preaching of Jonah, and now one greater than Jonah is here. The Queen of the South will rise at the judgment with this generation and condemn it; for she came from the ends of the earth to listen to Solomon's wisdom, and now one greater than Solomon is here.”
Wow! Now was that an indictment or what?
The Pharisees and teachers of the law had taken their shots at Jesus but One greater than them was now speaking and taking a shot of His own…one that should have shaken His accusers to the core.
For obviously, those religious authorities who claimed to be such men of God could not even recognize and acknowledge when the power of God was being performed right in front of them. How else would Jesus had been able to do the miracles He performed except by a power greater than any man or woman had ever seen on earth. This is because the power that Jesus carried was not of earth but of His Father…our Father in heaven.
So Jesus let the Pharisees and teachers of the law know the extent of His authority through using two very familiar Old Testament figures…and underscoring the pending judgment awaiting anyone who would seek to undermine His work.
First, Jesus uses Jonah.
We’re familiar with Jonah’s story. You’ll recall that he was told by the Lord to go to Nineveh to preach against the city and its people because of their wickedness. But Jonah, afraid of the assignment, ran instead of obeying…boarding a ship that was bound for Tarshish.
As the ship set out, a terrible storm came upon it and everyone onboard was in danger of dying at sea. All the men on the ship were praying to their own gods, hoping for rescue, but Jonah was asleep below decks. Awakened by the ship’s captain, Jonah was summoned on deck where he was questioned by the rest of the men. They wanted to know what God Jonah followed and he replied, “…I worship the Lord, the God of heaven who made the sea and the land”. (Jonah 1:9)
This statement terrified the men more and they were convinced that it was God…the God Jonah followed…who was responsible for their perilous situation. So the men asked Jonah what they should do and he told them to cast him overboard since he was the one who had angered God.
The men were grief-stricken that they had to kill Jonah to save themselves. In fact, they cried out to Jonah’s God saying, “O Lord, please do not let us die for taking this man’s life. Do not hold us accountable for killing an innocent man, for You, O Lord, have done as You pleased”. (Jonah 1:14) And with that, the men threw Jonah overboard and miraculously, the raging sea calmed. Amazed at what they had witnessed, the men left on the ship “greatly feared the Lord” and offered sacrifice and vows to Him. (Jonah 1:16) The men had seen first hand the power of One greater than anything else they had ever seen.
So what happened to Jonah?
We know he was swallowed by a great fish where he remained inside for three days and three nights. During that time, he repented and reaffirmed his loyalty to the Lord…and then was “vomited…onto dry land” (Jonah 2:10) and given a second chance to do as God commanded…to go to Nineveh and present the word of the Lord…a word that the led Nineveh to amazingly repent and find the Lord’s compassion as He spared the city and its people from destruction.
Back to our scripture where e find Jesus telling the Pharisees and teachers of the law that He would eventually be in a place similar to Jonah…except instead of “in the belly of a huge fish”, He would be in the heart of the earth…dead and buried. But, come back alive to earth after his three day stay, so too would Jesus emerge alive from the tomb…defeating death and ascending to His Father in heaven eternally…an act far more greater than Jonah being vomited from a fish.
And so if what happened with Jonah led the people of Nineveh to repent at Jonah’s teaching then how much more should the people during Jesus’ time repent because He was greater than Jonah? That was the question. And if generation of Jesus’ time chose to not repent through the presence of the One who had come to save them, then the very people of Nineveh would “stand up at the judgment…and condemn it”.
What a powerful statement by Jesus! Now you would think that anyone with half a brain would change their mind, repent and flee from the Lord’s judgment. But those who Satan has a grip on will continue to be blind to the cause of Christ…choosing to remain in darkness instead of stepping into the light.
But Jesus doesn’t stop with a comparison to Jonah. He then goes onto another honored member of Jewish religious history, Solomon, who during his reign was visited in Jerusalem by the queen of Sheba, an Arabian kingdom who profited greatly from the sea trade. During her visit, Sheba “talked with him about all she had on her mind” (2 Chronicles 9:1b) and Solomon in turn, “answered all her questions” with “nothing being too hard for him to explain” (2 Chronicles 9:2). Well, the queen was “overwhelmed” by what she heard and said:
“The report I heard in my own country about your achievements and your wisdom is true. But I did not believe what they said until I came and saw with my own eyes. Indeed, not even half the greatness of your wisdom was told me; you have far exceeded the report I heard. How happy your officials, who continually stand before you and hear your wisdom! Praise be to the Lord your God, who has delighted in you and placed you on His throne as king to rule for the Lord your God. Because of the love of your God for Israel and His desire to uphold them forever, He has made you king over them, to maintain justice and righteousness”. (2 Chronicles 9:5-8)
Now, here was a powerful leader who traveled to Jerusalem and was taken to a place of praise and acknowledgement of the Lord through the wisdom the Lord placed on Solomon to express to her. She fully knew that Solomon was where he was because God had put him there…just as Jesus was sent to reign with power and majesty…a power and majesty that far exceeded Solomon’s. And so with that, if the queen of Sheba would acknowledge Solomon, how much more should the people in Jesus’ time acknowledge Him for He was there and greater than Solomon.
OK…so what’s the point for us today?
We need to remember about how great the Lord is…that He is greater than anything.
For in this generation, there are so many who hold up people as being powerful and influential who can’t even scratch the surface on the Lord’s power and majesty. Like the men in the ship heading to Tarshish, people are crying out to gods that don’t exist seeking safety and salvation…and they do it when the One greater than all things is right there ready to give them everything they seek. All they need do is turn to Him, as the men in the ship did after Jonah was cast into the sea and the storm disappeared.
Jesus sacrificed Himself for all mankind…not just for a few men perishing on a ship. He gave Himself up to death on the cross to pay the price for our sins. He perished so we wouldn’t have to if we only believe and trust in Him as our Savior.
Do you fully believe and trust in the One who is greater…greater than anything that life can bring upon you…greater than affliction or hardship?
For through Christ, nothing can separate us from being liberated one day from what this world brings upon us…and in the interim, we know we can cope because He is with us as we seek to carry out His will and way
Indeed, He is the One who is greater. Thanks be to God.
Amen.
In Christ,
Mark
PS: Please share this with anyone you feel might be blessed by it.
Send any prayer requests to OurChristianWalk@aol.com
Saturday, April 10, 2010
WHAT COMES UP OUT OF YOU?
Can I pray for you in any way? Send any prayer requests to OurChristianWalk.com.
In Christ, Mark
The scriptures. May God bless the reading of His holy word.
"Make a tree good and its fruit will be good, or make a tree bad and its fruit will be bad, for a tree is recognized by its fruit. You brood of vipers, how can you who are evil say anything good? For out of the overflow of the heart the mouth speaks. The good man brings good things out of the good stored up in him, and the evil man brings evil things out of the evil stored up in him. But I tell you that men will have to give account on the day of judgment for every careless word they have spoken. For by your words you will be acquitted, and by your words you will be condemned."
Matthew 12:33-37
This ends this reading from God's holy word. Thanks be to God.
As you take account for your actions each day, what do you discover?
Do you find that what you have done is good? Or do you find what you have done is bad? Or maybe, you’re in the middle…finding that you did some good but also opted to act badly as well.
So what does the Lord expect from us?
Well, yesterday we saw Jesus teach that there is no middle ground when it comes to following Him. You’re either with Him or you are against Him. (Matthew 12:30) And so, we are either predisposed to do good and righteous acts if we allow Christ to live and abide in us…or wrong, evil acts if we choose to side with Satan instead.
And so again…when others witness your actions, what do they see? Do they see Jesus in you?
You see, we choose how we live and in turn the fruit we bear through that life. In today’s scripture, Jesus explains that the kind of fruit that a person bears will be determined by how the person (or tree) is made. If a person is made good…and this only will come through a commitment to allow Jesus to be Lord of your life…then the fruit they bear will, in turn, be good. But is a person commits to a life of sin and wrongdoing, then their fruit will be bad. In the end translation, the fruit you bear will always reveal whether you are good or bad…righteous or wicked.
So what fruit do you bear? When people see you, what does your fruit tell them about you?
Jesus uses one other illustration to discuss the good and bad in people. For He proclaims:
“…out of the overflow of the heart the mouth speaks. The good man brings good things out of the good stored up in him, and the evil man brings evil things out of the evil stored up in him.”
What comes out of a person is what they produce from the overflow of their heart. If your heart overflows with goodness, then that’s what you will bring up…good things. But if your heart is dark and overflowing with evil…well…then you will evil will be brought up out of you in the way you act, speak and think.
Keep in mind the words of Jesus during His Sermon on the Mount. For in Matthew 6:21, He said, “For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.” If Jesus is your treasure, then that’s where your heart will be and you can ensure that the overflow of your heart will contain all the goodness found in Christ.
But if you so choose to make something else your treasure, then stand by. Because you are opening up yourself to Satan entering in and turning your heart from good to bad…from right to wrong…from righteousness to evil. And this does not come without consequence.
For as our passage closes today, here these powerful words of warning from Jesus:
“But I tell you that men will have to give account on the day of judgment for every careless word they have spoken. For by your words you will be acquitted, and by your words you will be condemned."
We are not just free to live our lives as we so choose without having to stand and be accountable. No…on the day of judgment, man and woman will be judged for every careless word they've spoken with the penalty, acquittal or condemnation, based on those very words.
So forget about how others see you for a minute. What does the Lord see in you? Would He be pleased or disappointed?
Well, the answer to that question depends on you...on what comes up out of you. Why not make things easy and allow Christ to live inside your heart forever? It’s the only true way you can ensure that anything that you do will be seen as right…by those you associate with on earth and by the Father and Son who are in heaven reigning over us and all creation.
Amen.
In Christ,
Mark
PS: Please share this with anyone you feel might be blessed by it.
Send any prayer requests to OurChristianWalk@aol.com
In Christ, Mark
The scriptures. May God bless the reading of His holy word.
"Make a tree good and its fruit will be good, or make a tree bad and its fruit will be bad, for a tree is recognized by its fruit. You brood of vipers, how can you who are evil say anything good? For out of the overflow of the heart the mouth speaks. The good man brings good things out of the good stored up in him, and the evil man brings evil things out of the evil stored up in him. But I tell you that men will have to give account on the day of judgment for every careless word they have spoken. For by your words you will be acquitted, and by your words you will be condemned."
Matthew 12:33-37
This ends this reading from God's holy word. Thanks be to God.
As you take account for your actions each day, what do you discover?
Do you find that what you have done is good? Or do you find what you have done is bad? Or maybe, you’re in the middle…finding that you did some good but also opted to act badly as well.
So what does the Lord expect from us?
Well, yesterday we saw Jesus teach that there is no middle ground when it comes to following Him. You’re either with Him or you are against Him. (Matthew 12:30) And so, we are either predisposed to do good and righteous acts if we allow Christ to live and abide in us…or wrong, evil acts if we choose to side with Satan instead.
And so again…when others witness your actions, what do they see? Do they see Jesus in you?
You see, we choose how we live and in turn the fruit we bear through that life. In today’s scripture, Jesus explains that the kind of fruit that a person bears will be determined by how the person (or tree) is made. If a person is made good…and this only will come through a commitment to allow Jesus to be Lord of your life…then the fruit they bear will, in turn, be good. But is a person commits to a life of sin and wrongdoing, then their fruit will be bad. In the end translation, the fruit you bear will always reveal whether you are good or bad…righteous or wicked.
So what fruit do you bear? When people see you, what does your fruit tell them about you?
Jesus uses one other illustration to discuss the good and bad in people. For He proclaims:
“…out of the overflow of the heart the mouth speaks. The good man brings good things out of the good stored up in him, and the evil man brings evil things out of the evil stored up in him.”
What comes out of a person is what they produce from the overflow of their heart. If your heart overflows with goodness, then that’s what you will bring up…good things. But if your heart is dark and overflowing with evil…well…then you will evil will be brought up out of you in the way you act, speak and think.
Keep in mind the words of Jesus during His Sermon on the Mount. For in Matthew 6:21, He said, “For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.” If Jesus is your treasure, then that’s where your heart will be and you can ensure that the overflow of your heart will contain all the goodness found in Christ.
But if you so choose to make something else your treasure, then stand by. Because you are opening up yourself to Satan entering in and turning your heart from good to bad…from right to wrong…from righteousness to evil. And this does not come without consequence.
For as our passage closes today, here these powerful words of warning from Jesus:
“But I tell you that men will have to give account on the day of judgment for every careless word they have spoken. For by your words you will be acquitted, and by your words you will be condemned."
We are not just free to live our lives as we so choose without having to stand and be accountable. No…on the day of judgment, man and woman will be judged for every careless word they've spoken with the penalty, acquittal or condemnation, based on those very words.
So forget about how others see you for a minute. What does the Lord see in you? Would He be pleased or disappointed?
Well, the answer to that question depends on you...on what comes up out of you. Why not make things easy and allow Christ to live inside your heart forever? It’s the only true way you can ensure that anything that you do will be seen as right…by those you associate with on earth and by the Father and Son who are in heaven reigning over us and all creation.
Amen.
In Christ,
Mark
PS: Please share this with anyone you feel might be blessed by it.
Send any prayer requests to OurChristianWalk@aol.com
ARE YOU WITH CHRIST?
Can I pray for you in any way? Send any prayer requests to OurChristianWalk.com.
In Christ, Mark
The scriptures. May God bless the reading of His holy word.
"Or again, how can anyone enter a strong man's house and carry off his possessions unless he first ties up the strong man? Then he can rob his house.”
"He who is not with me is against me, and he who does not gather with me scatters. And so I tell you, every sin and blasphemy will be forgiven men, but the blasphemy against the Spirit will not be forgiven. Anyone who speaks a word against the Son of Man will be forgiven, but anyone who speaks against the Holy Spirit will not be forgiven, either in this age or in the age to come.”
Matthew 12:29-32
This ends this reading from God's holy word. Thanks be to God.
As we look at our world today and the people in it, I think you would find three categories when it comes to a relationship with Jesus…and a connection to Christianity.
First, we have those who choose to have no relationship with Jesus and thus choose to have no connection to Christianity. The reasons may vary but the end result is the same. And there is a cross section of this group that chooses to even see Jesus as an evil force in the world, persecuting and even killing those who choose to follow Him…those who would be in the second category.
For there is another significant portion of the world that fully believes, trusts and follows Jesus as their Lord of Lords and King of Kings…the Author of their creation and salvation. They see themselves lost and hopeless in life without Him. They are willing to surrender what the world offers in exchange for what Christ brings to them. And they would be willing to die for Him while carrying out His call to share His gospel with others, just as He was so self sacrificially willing to die for all mankind to pay the price for sin.
So there are those who choose to not believe and those who choose to believe. Who is in the third category?
Those who choose to straddle the line between unbelief and belief.
For there is another section of the world’s population who will only believe in Jesus when it’s convenient or when it suits them. They are unwilling to fully give up what the world offers because their desires, in some instances, still are of greater priority than the desires of Jesus. His calling, if followed, would mean leaving behind worldly pleasures in exchange for service…labor for the Lord to carry out His assignment to make disciples of all nations.
So what category do you find yourself in?
Today’s message tells us there really isn’t a third category.
For Jesus, still addressing the attempt by the Pharisees to discredit Him and compare Him to Satan, sends a clear message regarding service to Him:
"He who is not with me is against me, and he who does not gather with Me scatters.”
Did you get that?
You are either with Jesus or you aren’t.
There is no middle ground.
If you are with Jesus, then you are part of His flock, kept together and protected by the Good Shepherd.
If you choose to not be with Jesus, then you are against Him…choosing to be with the world and Satan who has his way with those in it. Anyone who chooses to not be with Jesus leaves himself or herself vulnerable to attack…like a sheep without a shepherd. No protection. Easy pickings for anyone or anything evil.
Notice that Jesus doesn’t say a word about being with Him sometimes and not with Him others. No...there are two clear choices. You are either with Him or against Him.
And so what about those who choose to not be with Him and then attack Him after witnessing His miraculous works, seeking to discredit Him and paint Him as being partnered with evil like the Pharisees had done while trying to connect Jesus to Beelzebub. Well, those who choose to do that would be committing a sin that is unforgivable…blasphemy against the Holy Spirit.
What? There is a sin that can’t be forgiven?
Yes…and scripture affirms it through the words of Jesus.
Back to today’s passage as Jesus continues saying:
“And so I tell you, every sin and blasphemy will be forgiven men, but the blasphemy against the Spirit will not be forgiven. Anyone who speaks a word against the Son of Man will be forgiven, but anyone who speaks against the Holy Spirit will not be forgiven, either in this age or in the age to come.”
The Pharisees were so adamantly opposed to Jesus that they were willing to egregiously reject His holy works of goodness and love as He healed maladies, exorcised demons and restored others to full health. Instead of praising God for all the powerful acts he was performing by way of His Son and the power of the Holy Spirit, the Pharisees instead tried to wickedly connect what had happened to evil…to the works of demons.
Today, people still refuse to credit the Lord despite the obvious miracles He performs by way of the Holy Spirit each and every day. These people have chosen to fully reject Jesus as well as His will and way for their lives...and in doing so, cut themselves off from the Father in heaven.
For Jesus clearly said, “I am the Way and the Truth and the Life. No one comes unto the Father except through Me.” (John 14:6)
Friends, there’s no gray area there. There’s no middle of the road. There’s no toeing the line.
Jesus expects that we are all in…that we are with Him and with Him fully.
Are you with Him or against Him?
Amen.
In Christ,
Mark
PS: Please share this with anyone you feel might be blessed by it.
Send any prayer requests to OurChristianWalk@aol.com
In Christ, Mark
The scriptures. May God bless the reading of His holy word.
"Or again, how can anyone enter a strong man's house and carry off his possessions unless he first ties up the strong man? Then he can rob his house.”
"He who is not with me is against me, and he who does not gather with me scatters. And so I tell you, every sin and blasphemy will be forgiven men, but the blasphemy against the Spirit will not be forgiven. Anyone who speaks a word against the Son of Man will be forgiven, but anyone who speaks against the Holy Spirit will not be forgiven, either in this age or in the age to come.”
Matthew 12:29-32
This ends this reading from God's holy word. Thanks be to God.
As we look at our world today and the people in it, I think you would find three categories when it comes to a relationship with Jesus…and a connection to Christianity.
First, we have those who choose to have no relationship with Jesus and thus choose to have no connection to Christianity. The reasons may vary but the end result is the same. And there is a cross section of this group that chooses to even see Jesus as an evil force in the world, persecuting and even killing those who choose to follow Him…those who would be in the second category.
For there is another significant portion of the world that fully believes, trusts and follows Jesus as their Lord of Lords and King of Kings…the Author of their creation and salvation. They see themselves lost and hopeless in life without Him. They are willing to surrender what the world offers in exchange for what Christ brings to them. And they would be willing to die for Him while carrying out His call to share His gospel with others, just as He was so self sacrificially willing to die for all mankind to pay the price for sin.
So there are those who choose to not believe and those who choose to believe. Who is in the third category?
Those who choose to straddle the line between unbelief and belief.
For there is another section of the world’s population who will only believe in Jesus when it’s convenient or when it suits them. They are unwilling to fully give up what the world offers because their desires, in some instances, still are of greater priority than the desires of Jesus. His calling, if followed, would mean leaving behind worldly pleasures in exchange for service…labor for the Lord to carry out His assignment to make disciples of all nations.
So what category do you find yourself in?
Today’s message tells us there really isn’t a third category.
For Jesus, still addressing the attempt by the Pharisees to discredit Him and compare Him to Satan, sends a clear message regarding service to Him:
"He who is not with me is against me, and he who does not gather with Me scatters.”
Did you get that?
You are either with Jesus or you aren’t.
There is no middle ground.
If you are with Jesus, then you are part of His flock, kept together and protected by the Good Shepherd.
If you choose to not be with Jesus, then you are against Him…choosing to be with the world and Satan who has his way with those in it. Anyone who chooses to not be with Jesus leaves himself or herself vulnerable to attack…like a sheep without a shepherd. No protection. Easy pickings for anyone or anything evil.
Notice that Jesus doesn’t say a word about being with Him sometimes and not with Him others. No...there are two clear choices. You are either with Him or against Him.
And so what about those who choose to not be with Him and then attack Him after witnessing His miraculous works, seeking to discredit Him and paint Him as being partnered with evil like the Pharisees had done while trying to connect Jesus to Beelzebub. Well, those who choose to do that would be committing a sin that is unforgivable…blasphemy against the Holy Spirit.
What? There is a sin that can’t be forgiven?
Yes…and scripture affirms it through the words of Jesus.
Back to today’s passage as Jesus continues saying:
“And so I tell you, every sin and blasphemy will be forgiven men, but the blasphemy against the Spirit will not be forgiven. Anyone who speaks a word against the Son of Man will be forgiven, but anyone who speaks against the Holy Spirit will not be forgiven, either in this age or in the age to come.”
The Pharisees were so adamantly opposed to Jesus that they were willing to egregiously reject His holy works of goodness and love as He healed maladies, exorcised demons and restored others to full health. Instead of praising God for all the powerful acts he was performing by way of His Son and the power of the Holy Spirit, the Pharisees instead tried to wickedly connect what had happened to evil…to the works of demons.
Today, people still refuse to credit the Lord despite the obvious miracles He performs by way of the Holy Spirit each and every day. These people have chosen to fully reject Jesus as well as His will and way for their lives...and in doing so, cut themselves off from the Father in heaven.
For Jesus clearly said, “I am the Way and the Truth and the Life. No one comes unto the Father except through Me.” (John 14:6)
Friends, there’s no gray area there. There’s no middle of the road. There’s no toeing the line.
Jesus expects that we are all in…that we are with Him and with Him fully.
Are you with Him or against Him?
Amen.
In Christ,
Mark
PS: Please share this with anyone you feel might be blessed by it.
Send any prayer requests to OurChristianWalk@aol.com
Thursday, April 8, 2010
THE KINGDOM OF GOD IS UPON US
Can I pray for you in any way? Send any prayer requests to OurChristianWalk.com.
In Christ, Mark
The scriptures. May God bless the reading of His holy word.
Then they brought him a demon-possessed man who was blind and mute, and Jesus healed him, so that he could both talk and see. All the people were astonished and said, "Could this be the Son of David?"
But when the Pharisees heard this, they said, "It is only by Beelzebub, the prince of demons, that this fellow drives out demons."
Jesus knew their thoughts and said to them, "Every kingdom divided against itself will be ruined, and every city or household divided against itself will not stand. If Satan drives out Satan, he is divided against himself. How then can his kingdom stand? And if I drive out demons by Beelzebub, by whom do your people drive them out? So then, they will be your judges. But if I drive out demons by the Spirit of God, then the kingdom of God has come upon you.
Matthew 12:22-28
This ends this reading from God's holy word. Thanks be to God.
We have seen earlier in the 12th Chapter of Matthew how the Pharisees, the Jewish religious authorities of the day, weren’t exactly pleased that Jesus had come to earth and was doing the work of the Father. In fact, Jesus had gained such a following through His teaching and healing that the Pharisees saw their legalistic approach to ministry threatened. This led them to not only challenge Jesus but also plot to kill Him. Indeed, as godly as the Pharisees advertised themselves, there was little doubt that Satan was working in and through them…a clear warning to any of us that no matter how righteous we think we are, we are still prone to temptation and failure.
In today’s passage, we find the Pharisees continuing to seek to discredit Jesus in His ministry. We read where “a demon-possessed man who was blind and mute” was brought to Him and Jesus “healed him…so that he could both talk and see”. And as we have seen happen at almost every point where Jesus performed a miracle, “all the people were astonished” and amazed…so much so that they asked among themselves, “Could this be the Son of David?" They had certainly witnessed the renewing power of Christ…and could not identify Him with anyone other than the Messiah…the anointed One sent from heaven to earth to reign over mankind in honor.
The Pharisees however saw it differently. For instead of relating Jesus with David, instead they chose to connect Him to “Beelzebub, the prince of demons”. They asserted that the power that Jesus used to drive out demons came from the very prince of the demons.
And with this, Jesus, knowing the thoughts of the Pharisees, took the opportunity to defend Himself saying:
"Every kingdom divided against itself will be ruined, and every city or household divided against itself will not stand. If Satan drives out Satan, he is divided against himself. How then can his kingdom stand? And if I drive out demons by Beelzebub, by whom do your people drive them out? So then, they will be your judges. But if I drive out demons by the Spirit of God, then the kingdom of God has come upon you.”
No power in existence before or after Jesus ever survived if it was not united within. This was true in talking about earthly kingdoms and it was true in talking about spiritual ones. The entire purpose of good was to overcome evil. It would make little sense for anything good to destroy something else good…in fact, anyone saying they were destroying good because they are good is putting on a ruse. Because only evil seeks to destroy what is good.
So what was Jesus…an instrument of God or Beelzebub?
Well, evil would never try to drive out evil and so that ruled out any connection Jesus might have to the prince of demons. Indeed, He was connected to the Father for He could have not received holy, healing power from any other source. And since He was in fact driving out demons “by the Spirit of God”, then indeed, “the kingdom of God had come upon the people of Israel”.
And that kingdom has never departed…even to this day.
Friends, in the midst of those who would want to discredit Jesus today, we need to ever proclaim that He is alive and present…ready to root out and rid evil in and around us as readily as He did back in the days of our scripture.
Yes…the kingdom of God is upon us…and thanks be to God for that.
Amen.
In Christ,
Mark
PS: Please share this with anyone you feel might be blessed by it.
Send any prayer requests to OurChristianWalk@aol.com
In Christ, Mark
The scriptures. May God bless the reading of His holy word.
Then they brought him a demon-possessed man who was blind and mute, and Jesus healed him, so that he could both talk and see. All the people were astonished and said, "Could this be the Son of David?"
But when the Pharisees heard this, they said, "It is only by Beelzebub, the prince of demons, that this fellow drives out demons."
Jesus knew their thoughts and said to them, "Every kingdom divided against itself will be ruined, and every city or household divided against itself will not stand. If Satan drives out Satan, he is divided against himself. How then can his kingdom stand? And if I drive out demons by Beelzebub, by whom do your people drive them out? So then, they will be your judges. But if I drive out demons by the Spirit of God, then the kingdom of God has come upon you.
Matthew 12:22-28
This ends this reading from God's holy word. Thanks be to God.
We have seen earlier in the 12th Chapter of Matthew how the Pharisees, the Jewish religious authorities of the day, weren’t exactly pleased that Jesus had come to earth and was doing the work of the Father. In fact, Jesus had gained such a following through His teaching and healing that the Pharisees saw their legalistic approach to ministry threatened. This led them to not only challenge Jesus but also plot to kill Him. Indeed, as godly as the Pharisees advertised themselves, there was little doubt that Satan was working in and through them…a clear warning to any of us that no matter how righteous we think we are, we are still prone to temptation and failure.
In today’s passage, we find the Pharisees continuing to seek to discredit Jesus in His ministry. We read where “a demon-possessed man who was blind and mute” was brought to Him and Jesus “healed him…so that he could both talk and see”. And as we have seen happen at almost every point where Jesus performed a miracle, “all the people were astonished” and amazed…so much so that they asked among themselves, “Could this be the Son of David?" They had certainly witnessed the renewing power of Christ…and could not identify Him with anyone other than the Messiah…the anointed One sent from heaven to earth to reign over mankind in honor.
The Pharisees however saw it differently. For instead of relating Jesus with David, instead they chose to connect Him to “Beelzebub, the prince of demons”. They asserted that the power that Jesus used to drive out demons came from the very prince of the demons.
And with this, Jesus, knowing the thoughts of the Pharisees, took the opportunity to defend Himself saying:
"Every kingdom divided against itself will be ruined, and every city or household divided against itself will not stand. If Satan drives out Satan, he is divided against himself. How then can his kingdom stand? And if I drive out demons by Beelzebub, by whom do your people drive them out? So then, they will be your judges. But if I drive out demons by the Spirit of God, then the kingdom of God has come upon you.”
No power in existence before or after Jesus ever survived if it was not united within. This was true in talking about earthly kingdoms and it was true in talking about spiritual ones. The entire purpose of good was to overcome evil. It would make little sense for anything good to destroy something else good…in fact, anyone saying they were destroying good because they are good is putting on a ruse. Because only evil seeks to destroy what is good.
So what was Jesus…an instrument of God or Beelzebub?
Well, evil would never try to drive out evil and so that ruled out any connection Jesus might have to the prince of demons. Indeed, He was connected to the Father for He could have not received holy, healing power from any other source. And since He was in fact driving out demons “by the Spirit of God”, then indeed, “the kingdom of God had come upon the people of Israel”.
And that kingdom has never departed…even to this day.
Friends, in the midst of those who would want to discredit Jesus today, we need to ever proclaim that He is alive and present…ready to root out and rid evil in and around us as readily as He did back in the days of our scripture.
Yes…the kingdom of God is upon us…and thanks be to God for that.
Amen.
In Christ,
Mark
PS: Please share this with anyone you feel might be blessed by it.
Send any prayer requests to OurChristianWalk@aol.com
Wednesday, April 7, 2010
HOPE
Can I pray for you in any way? Send any prayer requests to OurChristianWalk.com.
In Christ, Mark
The scriptures. May God bless the reading of His holy word.
Many followed Him, and He healed all their sick, warning them not to tell who He was. This was to fulfill what was spoken through the prophet Isaiah:
"Here is my servant whom I have chosen, the one I love, in whom I delight; I will put my Spirit on him, and he will proclaim justice to the nations.”
“He will not quarrel or cry out; no one will hear his voice in the streets. A bruised reed he will not break, and a smoldering wick he will not snuff out, till he leads justice to victory.”
“In his name the nations will put their hope."
Matthew 12:15b-21
This ends this reading from God's holy word. Thanks be to God.
Do you have hope?
If so, what is the source of your hope?
Is it a sense in confidence in the fact that you are financially well off? Maybe that you have tenure and job security? Or maybe that you feel you are in good health and postured for a long life?
The world certainly offers us no shortage of things to hope for. The problem is that most of what we hope for today could be gone tomorrow…leaving us too often feeling hopeless.
A deep recession could cause our financial status to suffer and fail. Changes in corporate America or the economy can shake even the most stable employers to the core and lead to job cuts or layoffs. And there is any number of afflictions that could strike us, even despite our best efforts to stay in good health.
Yes…place your hope in the world and its ways too often result in disastrous results.
Well, as we look at our passage in Matthew, Chapter 12, we find Jesus having traveled away from the Pharisees who were plotting to kill Him. As He went on, “many followed Him and He healed all their sick”.
Scripture tells us that His actions were “to fulfill what was spoken through the prophet Isaiah” who said (see Isaiah 42:1-4):
"Here is my servant whom I have chosen, the One I love, in whom I delight; I will put my Spirit on him, and he will proclaim justice to the nations.”
“He will not quarrel or cry out; no one will hear his voice in the streets. A bruised reed he will not break, and a smoldering wick he will not snuff out, till he leads justice to victory.”
“In his name the nations will put their hope."
So what do we learn from Isaiah?
We learn the reasons that Israel could not wait to receive their Messiah…and in learning this, we find where their hope was…and where ours should be as well.
One reason that Israel looked forward to Jesus coming was because He would God was sending Him as a servant…and not just any servant…but a servant who was willing to offer up Himself fully and die for those He came to serve. And Jesus did just that…not just for the people of Israel but for us as well.
A second reason that Israel longed for their Messiah was the promise of justice. Jesus would come to ensure that holy justice would reign supreme in the world…a world that was just as full of injustices in biblical times as it is today. We live fully in the hope that when Jesus returns as promised, the world as we know it will become cleansed and purified. Justice will reign supreme and Jesus will bring that justice.
Yet a third and final reason that Isaiah shares as to why Israel anticipated Jesus’ coming is that He would bring peace. And indeed, Isaiah had given the coming Messiah the name. “Prince of Peace” earlier in his book (Isaiah 9:6). The coming hope for all the nations would not quarrel or take advantage of the weak. No…He would give strength to the weary and increase the power of the weak.
And He would bring them hope…just as He still does today…hope that would allow the weak and weary to renew their strength…to soar on wings like eagles…to run and not grow weary…to walk and not be faint. (Isaiah 40:29, 31)
Friends, there’s only one source for true hope in life…and that’s Jesus…the Messiah who came to Israel to bring hope and salvation…the Savior who continues to do so today.
Amen.
In Christ,
Mark
PS: Please share this with anyone you feel might be blessed by it.
Send any prayer requests to OurChristianWalk@aol.com
In Christ, Mark
The scriptures. May God bless the reading of His holy word.
Many followed Him, and He healed all their sick, warning them not to tell who He was. This was to fulfill what was spoken through the prophet Isaiah:
"Here is my servant whom I have chosen, the one I love, in whom I delight; I will put my Spirit on him, and he will proclaim justice to the nations.”
“He will not quarrel or cry out; no one will hear his voice in the streets. A bruised reed he will not break, and a smoldering wick he will not snuff out, till he leads justice to victory.”
“In his name the nations will put their hope."
Matthew 12:15b-21
This ends this reading from God's holy word. Thanks be to God.
Do you have hope?
If so, what is the source of your hope?
Is it a sense in confidence in the fact that you are financially well off? Maybe that you have tenure and job security? Or maybe that you feel you are in good health and postured for a long life?
The world certainly offers us no shortage of things to hope for. The problem is that most of what we hope for today could be gone tomorrow…leaving us too often feeling hopeless.
A deep recession could cause our financial status to suffer and fail. Changes in corporate America or the economy can shake even the most stable employers to the core and lead to job cuts or layoffs. And there is any number of afflictions that could strike us, even despite our best efforts to stay in good health.
Yes…place your hope in the world and its ways too often result in disastrous results.
Well, as we look at our passage in Matthew, Chapter 12, we find Jesus having traveled away from the Pharisees who were plotting to kill Him. As He went on, “many followed Him and He healed all their sick”.
Scripture tells us that His actions were “to fulfill what was spoken through the prophet Isaiah” who said (see Isaiah 42:1-4):
"Here is my servant whom I have chosen, the One I love, in whom I delight; I will put my Spirit on him, and he will proclaim justice to the nations.”
“He will not quarrel or cry out; no one will hear his voice in the streets. A bruised reed he will not break, and a smoldering wick he will not snuff out, till he leads justice to victory.”
“In his name the nations will put their hope."
So what do we learn from Isaiah?
We learn the reasons that Israel could not wait to receive their Messiah…and in learning this, we find where their hope was…and where ours should be as well.
One reason that Israel looked forward to Jesus coming was because He would God was sending Him as a servant…and not just any servant…but a servant who was willing to offer up Himself fully and die for those He came to serve. And Jesus did just that…not just for the people of Israel but for us as well.
A second reason that Israel longed for their Messiah was the promise of justice. Jesus would come to ensure that holy justice would reign supreme in the world…a world that was just as full of injustices in biblical times as it is today. We live fully in the hope that when Jesus returns as promised, the world as we know it will become cleansed and purified. Justice will reign supreme and Jesus will bring that justice.
Yet a third and final reason that Isaiah shares as to why Israel anticipated Jesus’ coming is that He would bring peace. And indeed, Isaiah had given the coming Messiah the name. “Prince of Peace” earlier in his book (Isaiah 9:6). The coming hope for all the nations would not quarrel or take advantage of the weak. No…He would give strength to the weary and increase the power of the weak.
And He would bring them hope…just as He still does today…hope that would allow the weak and weary to renew their strength…to soar on wings like eagles…to run and not grow weary…to walk and not be faint. (Isaiah 40:29, 31)
Friends, there’s only one source for true hope in life…and that’s Jesus…the Messiah who came to Israel to bring hope and salvation…the Savior who continues to do so today.
Amen.
In Christ,
Mark
PS: Please share this with anyone you feel might be blessed by it.
Send any prayer requests to OurChristianWalk@aol.com
Monday, April 5, 2010
THE LORD OF ALL THINGS
Can I pray for you in any way? Send any prayer requests to OurChristianWalk.com.
In Christ, Mark
The scriptures. May God bless the reading of His holy word.
At that time Jesus went through the grainfields on the Sabbath. His disciples were hungry and began to pick some heads of grain and eat them. When the Pharisees saw this, they said to him, "Look! Your disciples are doing what is unlawful on the Sabbath."
He answered, "Haven't you read what David did when he and his companions were hungry? He entered the house of God, and he and his companions ate the consecrated bread—which was not lawful for them to do, but only for the priests. Or haven't you read in the Law that on the Sabbath the priests in the temple desecrate the day and yet are innocent? I tell you that One greater than the temple is here. If you had known what these words mean, 'I desire mercy, not sacrifice,' you would not have condemned the innocent. For the Son of Man is Lord of the Sabbath."
Going on from that place, he went into their synagogue, and a man with a shriveled hand was there. Looking for a reason to accuse Jesus, they asked him, "Is it lawful to heal on the Sabbath?"
He said to them, "If any of you has a sheep and it falls into a pit on the Sabbath, will you not take hold of it and lift it out? How much more valuable is a man than a sheep! Therefore it is lawful to do good on the Sabbath."
Then he said to the man, "Stretch out your hand." So he stretched it out and it was completely restored, just as sound as the other. But the Pharisees went out and plotted how they might kill Jesus.
Aware of this, Jesus withdrew from that place.
Matthew 12:1-15a
This ends this reading from God's holy word. Thanks be to God.
Sometimes we get caught up more in the rules of the world and lose sight of the rules of the Lord…the only true authority in life that matters. Even in the Christian arena, we tend to be more concerned about man made doctrine and beliefs than we are the doctrine given to us within the word of the Lord.
Examples of both can be found in today’s passage. For as Jesus is traveling “through the grainfields” with His disciples “on the Sabbath”, the disciples become hungry and picked “some heads of grain”, eating them. Keep in mind they are with Jesus.
So did Jesus scold His disciples for what they were doing?
No but the good old Pharisees…those “ardent” defenders of “the Law” did. Or at least, as was their motif, defended “the Law” when it suited them…and violated it as well…when it suited them. Indeed, the Pharisees represented all the bad that results from a self-righteous attitude…and we still repeat their mistakes today.
Well, scripture tells us that “when the Pharisees saw” Jesus’ followers feasting on the grain, they brought it to Jesus’ attention saying, “Look! Your disciples are doing what is unlawful on the Sabbath."
This obviously angered Jesus who responded by saying:
"Haven't you read what David did when he and his companions were hungry? He entered the house of God, and he and his companions ate the consecrated bread—which was not lawful for them to do, but only for the priests. Or haven't you read in the Law that on the Sabbath the priests in the temple desecrate the day and yet are innocent?”
In other words, before Jesus and His disciples came along, Jewish history and tradition saw those who were revered as holy violate what was set as standards for the Sabbath as well. And most of the strict standards were actually established by the Pharisees through their interpretation and application of the Law.
So there was an impasse. The Pharisees thought that Jesus’ disciples were in the wrong. Jesus obviously felt differently so He settled the issue by doing what He does best…by exerting His authority.
Back to the scriptures as Jesus said to the disciples, “I tell you that One greater than the temple is here. If you had known what these words mean, 'I desire mercy, not sacrifice,' you would not have condemned the innocent. For the Son of Man is Lord of the Sabbath."
In other words, there is nothing on earth…nothing that man may build…nothing that man might revere and worship…that was or will ever be greater than the Lord…the Lord of the Sabbath…the Lord Jesus.
But Jesus wasn’t about to just let mere words proclaim His authority.
For we read that He next went into the Pharisees’ synagogue where He encountered a “man with a shriveled hand”. The Pharisees, seeking any reason to continue to discredit Jesus and His followers, asked Jesus the following question:
"Is it lawful to heal on the Sabbath?"
Why did they ask?
Because the Pharisees forbade anyone healing on the Sabbath unless a person was dying and the man’s deformed had was not life threatening.
So Jesus, as we see Him do so often, gives them their answer through an illustration. He replied, “If any of you has a sheep and it falls into a pit on the Sabbath, will you not take hold of it and lift it out? How much more valuable is a man than a sheep! Therefore it is lawful to do good on the Sabbath."
Jesus posed a question to the Pharisees that He already knew the answer to. He knew that if a certain circumstance presented itself, like a sheep falling in a pit, the Pharisees would break their own rule to save the sheep. And so why wouldn’t saving a man who was worth more than a sheep be just as right?
This is what Jesus was getting at. And further, if the Sabbath was indeed a holy day, then why wouldn’t someone always want to do something good on it?
And with that, Jesus asked for the man to stretch out his shriveled hand…and when he did, we read that “it was completely restored, just as sound as the other”.
Now you would think that even the legalistic Pharisees would rejoice in the man’s healing but that was not the case. Instead, scripture tells us that they “went out and plotted how they might kill Jesus”. And Jesus…aware of their intentions, “withdrew from that place”.
So what are we to do with this passage today?
We are to remember that no matter how much man might try and establish rules and regulations, those rules and regulations aren’t binding unless validated by the Lord of the rules…the sole true authority…Jesus.
Jesus is the Lord of the Sabbath…He is the Lord of the rules.
He is the Lord over all our days…the Lord of time.
He is the Lord over all provision…the Lord of the harvest.
He is the Lord over all worship…the only Lord deserving of our praise.
He is the Lord over all authorities...the Lord of lords.
He is the Lord over all miracles and healing…the Lord of glory
He is the Lord over all spiritual teaching done in His name…the Lord of the way and the truth.
And He is the Lord over all creation…the Lord of the earth…the Lord of the living and the dead.
Yes…Friends, Jesus is the Lord of all things.
Do you acknowledge Him as such? Is He Lord of your life and everything in it?
In Christ,
Mark
PS: Please share this with anyone you feel might be blessed by it.
Send any prayer requests to OurChristianWalk@aol.com
In Christ, Mark
The scriptures. May God bless the reading of His holy word.
At that time Jesus went through the grainfields on the Sabbath. His disciples were hungry and began to pick some heads of grain and eat them. When the Pharisees saw this, they said to him, "Look! Your disciples are doing what is unlawful on the Sabbath."
He answered, "Haven't you read what David did when he and his companions were hungry? He entered the house of God, and he and his companions ate the consecrated bread—which was not lawful for them to do, but only for the priests. Or haven't you read in the Law that on the Sabbath the priests in the temple desecrate the day and yet are innocent? I tell you that One greater than the temple is here. If you had known what these words mean, 'I desire mercy, not sacrifice,' you would not have condemned the innocent. For the Son of Man is Lord of the Sabbath."
Going on from that place, he went into their synagogue, and a man with a shriveled hand was there. Looking for a reason to accuse Jesus, they asked him, "Is it lawful to heal on the Sabbath?"
He said to them, "If any of you has a sheep and it falls into a pit on the Sabbath, will you not take hold of it and lift it out? How much more valuable is a man than a sheep! Therefore it is lawful to do good on the Sabbath."
Then he said to the man, "Stretch out your hand." So he stretched it out and it was completely restored, just as sound as the other. But the Pharisees went out and plotted how they might kill Jesus.
Aware of this, Jesus withdrew from that place.
Matthew 12:1-15a
This ends this reading from God's holy word. Thanks be to God.
Sometimes we get caught up more in the rules of the world and lose sight of the rules of the Lord…the only true authority in life that matters. Even in the Christian arena, we tend to be more concerned about man made doctrine and beliefs than we are the doctrine given to us within the word of the Lord.
Examples of both can be found in today’s passage. For as Jesus is traveling “through the grainfields” with His disciples “on the Sabbath”, the disciples become hungry and picked “some heads of grain”, eating them. Keep in mind they are with Jesus.
So did Jesus scold His disciples for what they were doing?
No but the good old Pharisees…those “ardent” defenders of “the Law” did. Or at least, as was their motif, defended “the Law” when it suited them…and violated it as well…when it suited them. Indeed, the Pharisees represented all the bad that results from a self-righteous attitude…and we still repeat their mistakes today.
Well, scripture tells us that “when the Pharisees saw” Jesus’ followers feasting on the grain, they brought it to Jesus’ attention saying, “Look! Your disciples are doing what is unlawful on the Sabbath."
This obviously angered Jesus who responded by saying:
"Haven't you read what David did when he and his companions were hungry? He entered the house of God, and he and his companions ate the consecrated bread—which was not lawful for them to do, but only for the priests. Or haven't you read in the Law that on the Sabbath the priests in the temple desecrate the day and yet are innocent?”
In other words, before Jesus and His disciples came along, Jewish history and tradition saw those who were revered as holy violate what was set as standards for the Sabbath as well. And most of the strict standards were actually established by the Pharisees through their interpretation and application of the Law.
So there was an impasse. The Pharisees thought that Jesus’ disciples were in the wrong. Jesus obviously felt differently so He settled the issue by doing what He does best…by exerting His authority.
Back to the scriptures as Jesus said to the disciples, “I tell you that One greater than the temple is here. If you had known what these words mean, 'I desire mercy, not sacrifice,' you would not have condemned the innocent. For the Son of Man is Lord of the Sabbath."
In other words, there is nothing on earth…nothing that man may build…nothing that man might revere and worship…that was or will ever be greater than the Lord…the Lord of the Sabbath…the Lord Jesus.
But Jesus wasn’t about to just let mere words proclaim His authority.
For we read that He next went into the Pharisees’ synagogue where He encountered a “man with a shriveled hand”. The Pharisees, seeking any reason to continue to discredit Jesus and His followers, asked Jesus the following question:
"Is it lawful to heal on the Sabbath?"
Why did they ask?
Because the Pharisees forbade anyone healing on the Sabbath unless a person was dying and the man’s deformed had was not life threatening.
So Jesus, as we see Him do so often, gives them their answer through an illustration. He replied, “If any of you has a sheep and it falls into a pit on the Sabbath, will you not take hold of it and lift it out? How much more valuable is a man than a sheep! Therefore it is lawful to do good on the Sabbath."
Jesus posed a question to the Pharisees that He already knew the answer to. He knew that if a certain circumstance presented itself, like a sheep falling in a pit, the Pharisees would break their own rule to save the sheep. And so why wouldn’t saving a man who was worth more than a sheep be just as right?
This is what Jesus was getting at. And further, if the Sabbath was indeed a holy day, then why wouldn’t someone always want to do something good on it?
And with that, Jesus asked for the man to stretch out his shriveled hand…and when he did, we read that “it was completely restored, just as sound as the other”.
Now you would think that even the legalistic Pharisees would rejoice in the man’s healing but that was not the case. Instead, scripture tells us that they “went out and plotted how they might kill Jesus”. And Jesus…aware of their intentions, “withdrew from that place”.
So what are we to do with this passage today?
We are to remember that no matter how much man might try and establish rules and regulations, those rules and regulations aren’t binding unless validated by the Lord of the rules…the sole true authority…Jesus.
Jesus is the Lord of the Sabbath…He is the Lord of the rules.
He is the Lord over all our days…the Lord of time.
He is the Lord over all provision…the Lord of the harvest.
He is the Lord over all worship…the only Lord deserving of our praise.
He is the Lord over all authorities...the Lord of lords.
He is the Lord over all miracles and healing…the Lord of glory
He is the Lord over all spiritual teaching done in His name…the Lord of the way and the truth.
And He is the Lord over all creation…the Lord of the earth…the Lord of the living and the dead.
Yes…Friends, Jesus is the Lord of all things.
Do you acknowledge Him as such? Is He Lord of your life and everything in it?
In Christ,
Mark
PS: Please share this with anyone you feel might be blessed by it.
Send any prayer requests to OurChristianWalk@aol.com
Sunday, April 4, 2010
FINDING REST
Can I pray for you in any way? Send any prayer requests to OurChristianWalk.com.
In Christ, Mark
The scriptures. May God bless the reading of His holy word.
"All things have been committed to me by my Father. No one knows the Son except the Father, and no one knows the Father except the Son and those to whom the Son chooses to reveal him.”
"Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light."
Matthew 11:27-30
This ends this reading from God's holy word. Thanks be to God.
Easter Sunday. What an awesome day for Christians…a day of celebration and rejoicing…a day when our Savior defeated death and the grave to rejoin His Father in heaven…and in doing so pave the way for us.
Indeed, it’s been a journey over these last 40 days and nights through Lent. It’s been a long trek filled with review...reflection…repentance…recommitment…and renewal. And if we have observed Lent properly, then we’ve traveled a good distance with Jesus and we’re weary as we reach Easter.
For we’ve walked with Jesus through His ministry along with His chosen twelve all the way to Jerusalem and the waving palm branches that greeted Him.
We’ve been with Jesus in the garden of Gethsemane as He prayed and then betrayed and arrested.
We placed ourselves with Jesus as He was taken to trial and wrongly convicted of blasphemy, sentenced to die a criminal’s death through crucifixion.
We imagined walking with Jesus as He carried His cross to Calvary, then witnessed Him nailed to that cross and then hoisted up to hang and suffer for our sins.
We listened as He was mocked and derided by those who gathered to watch Him die and yet asked the Father to forgive His attackers because they weren’t aware of what they were really doing.
We sensed the deep anguish of loss as Jesus gave up His spirit and died.
We then followed Joseph as He asked for and received Jesus’ body, preparing it and placing it in a tomb which was then sealed.
And today, we visit the tomb to find it empty. For Jesus has risen as He said He would on the third day. Those who thought they would rid themselves of Him through death actually were participants in Jesus existing forever…and even more than that, presenting an opportunity of eternal life through resurrection for anyone who would believe in Him (John 3:16) whether Jew or Gentile. The curtain that had separated man and God was now torn in two and replaced by a bridge in the way of Jesus Christ.
Yes…if we have truly walked with Jesus since Ash Wednesday, then we are tired…maybe even exhausted. We could use some timely words from the Lord in a time like this.
Today’s scripture offers just that.
For as the 11th chapter of Matthew closes, Jesus speaks special words to us…words that bring comfort and relief…rest and recuperation. He said:
"All things have been committed to me by my Father. No one knows the Son except the Father, and no one knows the Father except the Son and those to whom the Son chooses to reveal him.”
"Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light."
Through Lent, if we have committed ourselves to walk with Jesus, we can’t help but have received revelation…revelation to help us increase our wisdom and understanding…revelation to help us see where we need to improve our lives to come more in alignment with Christ. We now understand the words of John 14:6 where Jesus reminds us that He is the way and the truth and the life…the only way we can get to the Father…God…His Father and ours. We have received the revelation that in order to be Christian we need to first be Christ-like.
Most of us after the revelations of the season will find ourselves tasked with the Lord’s expectations. For some, the expectations might be very high and challenges may leave us restless and anxious.
But receive comfort in the midst of what Jesus has tasked you to do through His promise…that all who are “weary and burdened” will be given rest for their souls. Walking with Jesus if we may seem like difficult labor but when we realize He is walking with us, we realize as Paul did that there is nothing we can’t do when we have His strength within us (Philippians 4:13). Indeed, Jesus will help lighten our load and empower us to carry out His will and way as e strive to go forth in obedience to His call for our lives.
Friends, on Easter, we again reaffirm that Jesus has claimed victory over the grave and returned to His Father, now communicating with us through the Holy Spirit…the Counselor he promised. And no matter how embattled we may feel after again reliving His ministry, death and resurrection…today, we can rejoice and be glad…and find rest…for Jesus Christ is risen!
Alleluia!
Amen.
In Christ,
Mark
PS: Please share this with anyone you feel might be blessed by it.
Send any prayer requests to OurChristianWalk@aol.com
In Christ, Mark
The scriptures. May God bless the reading of His holy word.
"All things have been committed to me by my Father. No one knows the Son except the Father, and no one knows the Father except the Son and those to whom the Son chooses to reveal him.”
"Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light."
Matthew 11:27-30
This ends this reading from God's holy word. Thanks be to God.
Easter Sunday. What an awesome day for Christians…a day of celebration and rejoicing…a day when our Savior defeated death and the grave to rejoin His Father in heaven…and in doing so pave the way for us.
Indeed, it’s been a journey over these last 40 days and nights through Lent. It’s been a long trek filled with review...reflection…repentance…recommitment…and renewal. And if we have observed Lent properly, then we’ve traveled a good distance with Jesus and we’re weary as we reach Easter.
For we’ve walked with Jesus through His ministry along with His chosen twelve all the way to Jerusalem and the waving palm branches that greeted Him.
We’ve been with Jesus in the garden of Gethsemane as He prayed and then betrayed and arrested.
We placed ourselves with Jesus as He was taken to trial and wrongly convicted of blasphemy, sentenced to die a criminal’s death through crucifixion.
We imagined walking with Jesus as He carried His cross to Calvary, then witnessed Him nailed to that cross and then hoisted up to hang and suffer for our sins.
We listened as He was mocked and derided by those who gathered to watch Him die and yet asked the Father to forgive His attackers because they weren’t aware of what they were really doing.
We sensed the deep anguish of loss as Jesus gave up His spirit and died.
We then followed Joseph as He asked for and received Jesus’ body, preparing it and placing it in a tomb which was then sealed.
And today, we visit the tomb to find it empty. For Jesus has risen as He said He would on the third day. Those who thought they would rid themselves of Him through death actually were participants in Jesus existing forever…and even more than that, presenting an opportunity of eternal life through resurrection for anyone who would believe in Him (John 3:16) whether Jew or Gentile. The curtain that had separated man and God was now torn in two and replaced by a bridge in the way of Jesus Christ.
Yes…if we have truly walked with Jesus since Ash Wednesday, then we are tired…maybe even exhausted. We could use some timely words from the Lord in a time like this.
Today’s scripture offers just that.
For as the 11th chapter of Matthew closes, Jesus speaks special words to us…words that bring comfort and relief…rest and recuperation. He said:
"All things have been committed to me by my Father. No one knows the Son except the Father, and no one knows the Father except the Son and those to whom the Son chooses to reveal him.”
"Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light."
Through Lent, if we have committed ourselves to walk with Jesus, we can’t help but have received revelation…revelation to help us increase our wisdom and understanding…revelation to help us see where we need to improve our lives to come more in alignment with Christ. We now understand the words of John 14:6 where Jesus reminds us that He is the way and the truth and the life…the only way we can get to the Father…God…His Father and ours. We have received the revelation that in order to be Christian we need to first be Christ-like.
Most of us after the revelations of the season will find ourselves tasked with the Lord’s expectations. For some, the expectations might be very high and challenges may leave us restless and anxious.
But receive comfort in the midst of what Jesus has tasked you to do through His promise…that all who are “weary and burdened” will be given rest for their souls. Walking with Jesus if we may seem like difficult labor but when we realize He is walking with us, we realize as Paul did that there is nothing we can’t do when we have His strength within us (Philippians 4:13). Indeed, Jesus will help lighten our load and empower us to carry out His will and way as e strive to go forth in obedience to His call for our lives.
Friends, on Easter, we again reaffirm that Jesus has claimed victory over the grave and returned to His Father, now communicating with us through the Holy Spirit…the Counselor he promised. And no matter how embattled we may feel after again reliving His ministry, death and resurrection…today, we can rejoice and be glad…and find rest…for Jesus Christ is risen!
Alleluia!
Amen.
In Christ,
Mark
PS: Please share this with anyone you feel might be blessed by it.
Send any prayer requests to OurChristianWalk@aol.com
Saturday, April 3, 2010
WHAT MIGHT JESUS SAY ABOUT OUR GENERATION?
Can I pray for you in any way? Send any prayer requests to OurChristianWalk.com.
In Christ, Mark
The scriptures. May God bless the reading of His holy word.
From the days of John the Baptist until now, the kingdom of heaven has been forcefully advancing, and forceful men lay hold of it. For all the Prophets and the Law prophesied until John. And if you are willing to accept it, he is the Elijah who was to come. He who has ears, let him hear.
"To what can I compare this generation? They are like children sitting in the marketplaces and calling out to others: 'We played the flute for you, and you did not dance; we sang a dirge
and you did not mourn.' For John came neither eating nor drinking, and they say, 'He has a demon.' The Son of Man came eating and drinking, and they say, 'Here is a glutton and a drunkard, a friend of tax collectors and "sinners." ' But wisdom is proved right by her actions."
Then Jesus began to denounce the cities in which most of his miracles had been performed, because they did not repent. "Woe to you, Korazin! Woe to you, Bethsaida! If the miracles that were performed in you had been performed in Tyre and Sidon, they would have repented long ago in sackcloth and ashes. But I tell you, it will be more bearable for Tyre and Sidon on the day of judgment than for you. And you, Capernaum, will you be lifted up to the skies? No, you will go down to the depths. If the miracles that were performed in you had been performed in Sodom, it would have remained to this day. But I tell you that it will be more bearable for Sodom on the day of judgment than for you."
At that time Jesus said, "I praise you, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, because you have hidden these things from the wise and learned, and revealed them to little children. Yes, Father, for this was your good pleasure.”
Matthew 11:12-26
This ends this reading from God's holy word. Thanks be to God.
If Jesus were to return today, what would He say about this generation?
It’s a question we should always think about.
Why?
Because if we would consistently think about it, I think we would continuously be reminded of how much we need to be proactive in carrying out our part of the Great Commission. For Jesus does not expect a passive approach taken toward evangelism but a proactive one.
Our scripture today affirms that.
For as Jesus continues to preach and teach in the towns of Galilee, we see Him speak about those who boldly went forth as spokespeople for the Lord. He said, “From the days of John the Baptist until now, the kingdom of heaven has been forcefully advancing, and forceful men lay hold of it. For all the Prophets and the Law prophesied until John. And if you are willing to accept it, he is the Elijah who was to come. He who has ears, let him hear.”
For ages, God had sent special messengers to share His word and will with others. The prophets, including Ejijah, prophesied until John and then John carried on their work until Jesus came at last…the awaited Messiah…the kingdom of heaven now come to earth and forcefully advancing so that forceful men could lay a hold of it.
So how well are we today in laboring for Jesus and the gospel? Could we consider ourselves as forceful men and women who are ensuring the gospel is forcefully advancing whereever the Lord might have us?
What might Jesus say about our generation?
He didn’t think to favorably about the One He was trying so hard to teach. We know this because of His words. Back to the scriptures where we read Jesus saying, "To what can I compare this generation? They are like children sitting in the marketplaces and calling out to others: 'We played the flute for you, and you did not dance; we sang a dirge and you did not mourn.' For John came neither eating nor drinking, and they say, 'He has a demon.' The Son of Man came eating and drinking, and they say, 'Here is a glutton and a drunkard, a friend of tax collectors and "sinners." ' But wisdom is proved right by her actions."
John first had come to announce the pending arrival of Jesus, the One who would “baptize…with the Holy Spirit and with fire.” (Matthew 3:11b) But the Jews for the most part chose to not believe and respond. They thought John was crazy.
Then Jesus did come, just as John has prophesied. And yet, despite His consistent display of holy power, the Jews for the most part rejected Him too, eventually falsely accusing Him of blasphemy and seeing that He was executed.
Indeed, Jesus was not happy with the generation which He entered the world in.
Need further proof of that?
Just read on in this passage. For Jesus “began to denounce the cities in which most of his miracles had been performed, because they did not repent”. Specifically, He said:
"Woe to you, Korazin! Woe to you, Bethsaida! If the miracles that were performed in you had been performed in Tyre and Sidon, they would have repented long ago in sackcloth and ashes. But I tell you, it will be more bearable for Tyre and Sidon on the day of judgment than for you. And you, Capernaum, will you be lifted up to the skies? No, you will go down to the depths. If the miracles that were performed in you had been performed in Sodom, it would have remained to this day. But I tell you that it will be more bearable for Sodom on the day of judgment than for you."
Obviously, the people had made the wrong choice in not accepting Jesus. And obviously, he wasn’t very happy about it.
Again…what would Jesus say about our generation? About our cities? Our communities? Our neighborhoods?
Friends, if Jesus is going to say positive things about our generation…if we want to find ourselves in His favor, then we had better see ourselves as we are…helpless like little children without Him…dependent on Him in every way. For it is the Father’s good pleasure…and accordingly the Son’s pleasure…to reveal to the humble spiritual truths that disclose their will and way for us…a will and way that takes us into their favor.
With Easter about to dawn again, may we resurrect our efforts for Jesus as He lives again…risen from death to life. It will be the right first steps to allowing Him to speak well of us today and avoid repeating the mistakes of the past.
Amen.
In Christ,
Mark
PS: Please share this with anyone you feel might be blessed by it.
Send any prayer requests to OurChristianWalk@aol.com
In Christ, Mark
The scriptures. May God bless the reading of His holy word.
From the days of John the Baptist until now, the kingdom of heaven has been forcefully advancing, and forceful men lay hold of it. For all the Prophets and the Law prophesied until John. And if you are willing to accept it, he is the Elijah who was to come. He who has ears, let him hear.
"To what can I compare this generation? They are like children sitting in the marketplaces and calling out to others: 'We played the flute for you, and you did not dance; we sang a dirge
and you did not mourn.' For John came neither eating nor drinking, and they say, 'He has a demon.' The Son of Man came eating and drinking, and they say, 'Here is a glutton and a drunkard, a friend of tax collectors and "sinners." ' But wisdom is proved right by her actions."
Then Jesus began to denounce the cities in which most of his miracles had been performed, because they did not repent. "Woe to you, Korazin! Woe to you, Bethsaida! If the miracles that were performed in you had been performed in Tyre and Sidon, they would have repented long ago in sackcloth and ashes. But I tell you, it will be more bearable for Tyre and Sidon on the day of judgment than for you. And you, Capernaum, will you be lifted up to the skies? No, you will go down to the depths. If the miracles that were performed in you had been performed in Sodom, it would have remained to this day. But I tell you that it will be more bearable for Sodom on the day of judgment than for you."
At that time Jesus said, "I praise you, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, because you have hidden these things from the wise and learned, and revealed them to little children. Yes, Father, for this was your good pleasure.”
Matthew 11:12-26
This ends this reading from God's holy word. Thanks be to God.
If Jesus were to return today, what would He say about this generation?
It’s a question we should always think about.
Why?
Because if we would consistently think about it, I think we would continuously be reminded of how much we need to be proactive in carrying out our part of the Great Commission. For Jesus does not expect a passive approach taken toward evangelism but a proactive one.
Our scripture today affirms that.
For as Jesus continues to preach and teach in the towns of Galilee, we see Him speak about those who boldly went forth as spokespeople for the Lord. He said, “From the days of John the Baptist until now, the kingdom of heaven has been forcefully advancing, and forceful men lay hold of it. For all the Prophets and the Law prophesied until John. And if you are willing to accept it, he is the Elijah who was to come. He who has ears, let him hear.”
For ages, God had sent special messengers to share His word and will with others. The prophets, including Ejijah, prophesied until John and then John carried on their work until Jesus came at last…the awaited Messiah…the kingdom of heaven now come to earth and forcefully advancing so that forceful men could lay a hold of it.
So how well are we today in laboring for Jesus and the gospel? Could we consider ourselves as forceful men and women who are ensuring the gospel is forcefully advancing whereever the Lord might have us?
What might Jesus say about our generation?
He didn’t think to favorably about the One He was trying so hard to teach. We know this because of His words. Back to the scriptures where we read Jesus saying, "To what can I compare this generation? They are like children sitting in the marketplaces and calling out to others: 'We played the flute for you, and you did not dance; we sang a dirge and you did not mourn.' For John came neither eating nor drinking, and they say, 'He has a demon.' The Son of Man came eating and drinking, and they say, 'Here is a glutton and a drunkard, a friend of tax collectors and "sinners." ' But wisdom is proved right by her actions."
John first had come to announce the pending arrival of Jesus, the One who would “baptize…with the Holy Spirit and with fire.” (Matthew 3:11b) But the Jews for the most part chose to not believe and respond. They thought John was crazy.
Then Jesus did come, just as John has prophesied. And yet, despite His consistent display of holy power, the Jews for the most part rejected Him too, eventually falsely accusing Him of blasphemy and seeing that He was executed.
Indeed, Jesus was not happy with the generation which He entered the world in.
Need further proof of that?
Just read on in this passage. For Jesus “began to denounce the cities in which most of his miracles had been performed, because they did not repent”. Specifically, He said:
"Woe to you, Korazin! Woe to you, Bethsaida! If the miracles that were performed in you had been performed in Tyre and Sidon, they would have repented long ago in sackcloth and ashes. But I tell you, it will be more bearable for Tyre and Sidon on the day of judgment than for you. And you, Capernaum, will you be lifted up to the skies? No, you will go down to the depths. If the miracles that were performed in you had been performed in Sodom, it would have remained to this day. But I tell you that it will be more bearable for Sodom on the day of judgment than for you."
Obviously, the people had made the wrong choice in not accepting Jesus. And obviously, he wasn’t very happy about it.
Again…what would Jesus say about our generation? About our cities? Our communities? Our neighborhoods?
Friends, if Jesus is going to say positive things about our generation…if we want to find ourselves in His favor, then we had better see ourselves as we are…helpless like little children without Him…dependent on Him in every way. For it is the Father’s good pleasure…and accordingly the Son’s pleasure…to reveal to the humble spiritual truths that disclose their will and way for us…a will and way that takes us into their favor.
With Easter about to dawn again, may we resurrect our efforts for Jesus as He lives again…risen from death to life. It will be the right first steps to allowing Him to speak well of us today and avoid repeating the mistakes of the past.
Amen.
In Christ,
Mark
PS: Please share this with anyone you feel might be blessed by it.
Send any prayer requests to OurChristianWalk@aol.com
Friday, April 2, 2010
WHAT IS YOUR REPORT?
Can I pray for you in any way? Send any prayer requests to OurChristianWalk.com.
In Christ, Mark
The scriptures. May God bless the reading of His holy word.
After Jesus had finished instructing his twelve disciples, he went on from there to teach and preach in the towns of Galilee.
When John heard in prison what Christ was doing, he sent his disciples to ask him, "Are you the one who was to come, or should we expect someone else?"
Jesus replied, "Go back and report to John what you hear and see: The blind receive sight, the lame walk, those who have leprosy are cured, the deaf hear, the dead are raised, and the good news is preached to the poor. Blessed is the man who does not fall away on account of me."
As John's disciples were leaving, Jesus began to speak to the crowd about John: "What did you go out into the desert to see? A reed swayed by the wind? If not, what did you go out to see? A man dressed in fine clothes? No, those who wear fine clothes are in kings' palaces. Then what did you go out to see? A prophet? Yes, I tell you, and more than a prophet. This is the one about whom it is written:
" 'I will send my messenger ahead of you, who will prepare your way before you.' I tell you the truth: Among those born of women there has not risen anyone greater than John the Baptist; yet he who is least in the kingdom of heaven is greater than he.”
Matthew 11:1-11
This ends this reading from God's holy word. Thanks be to God.
Are you a Christian? I mean, are you really a Christian?
Why do I ask?
Because I’m afraid that a lot of people who claim to be Christians suffer from an identity crisis. They say they are associated with Christ but their actions say otherwise…to include the discussions they have with others. Unfortunately, many of those discussions fail to mention that there is any affiliation with Jesus to include no mention of Him.
Question: How can we claim to be of Christ and yet not talk about Him at every opportunity we get?
For as Christians, it is to be Christ first in everything…in our actions…in our words…in our thoughts. Saying we are Christians is saying we are all in with Jesus…He is who we yearn to be like…He is who we wish to identified with…He is the One we want others to see when they look at us.
Yet, way too often, we turn into Peter and act like we don’t know Jesus, disowning Him in the midst of those He sent us out to help save.
So when it comes to Jesus and your association with others daily, what do you do that consistently reports on Him and what He means to you in your life?
This matter of proclaiming about Jesus is at the heart of today’s passage as we begin to look at the 11th chapter of Matthew. There, Jesus had just finished “instructing his twelve disciples” before heading to “teach and preach in the towns of Galilee”.
Meanwhile, John the Baptist, the one who announced the coming of Jesus…the one who baptized him in the Jordan River…finds himself in prison but does hear about what Jesus was doing. And so he sent his disciples to Jesus to ask Him a single question:
“Are you the one who was to come, or should we expect someone else?"
Wow! What a question. Didn’t John know already who Jesus was? I mean, as soon as he baptized Jesus scripture tells us that “heaven was opened” and “the Spirit of God” descended “like a dove…lighting on him”. And this was followed by a “voice from heaven” which said, “This is my Son, whom I love; with him I am well pleased." (Matthew 3:16-17) There should have been little to no doubt who Jesus was or what He could do. And yet, John seemed like he was unsure. For why would you ask if you truly knew that Jesus Christ was the very Son of God…the long expected Messiah who had come to save mankind?
And so Jesus, faced with the question, gave John’s disciples the following reply to take back:
“Go back and report to John what you hear and see: The blind receive sight, the lame walk, those who have leprosy are cured, the deaf hear, the dead are raised, and the good news is preached to the poor. Blessed is the man who does not fall away on account of me."
It was a shame that Jesus had to tell John’s disciples what to report. John had surely heard about what Jesus had done and so it should have went without saying but Jesus still had to assist.
Question: Would you have to ask Jesus about who He is or who He was associated with?
If you are truly a Christian, I would hope not…but if you were unsure what to say, I’m sure Jesus would give you the words to speak just as He did with John’s disciples.
Friends, Jesus is truly the One who was sent by our Heavenly Father to save us from our sins but not before suffering a criminal’s death on Calvary’s cross. In a few days, we’ll celebrate His awesome power on display yet once again as He rises from the tomb and defeats death…ascending to assume His place on the right hand of His Father until He returns.
This is the loving Savior we are to identify with as Christians. This is to be our report….the good news…the answer we are to give “everyone who asks” for “the reason for the hope that (we) have”.
Amen.
In Christ,
Mark
PS: Please share this with anyone you feel might be blessed by it.
Send any prayer requests to OurChristianWalk@aol.com
In Christ, Mark
The scriptures. May God bless the reading of His holy word.
After Jesus had finished instructing his twelve disciples, he went on from there to teach and preach in the towns of Galilee.
When John heard in prison what Christ was doing, he sent his disciples to ask him, "Are you the one who was to come, or should we expect someone else?"
Jesus replied, "Go back and report to John what you hear and see: The blind receive sight, the lame walk, those who have leprosy are cured, the deaf hear, the dead are raised, and the good news is preached to the poor. Blessed is the man who does not fall away on account of me."
As John's disciples were leaving, Jesus began to speak to the crowd about John: "What did you go out into the desert to see? A reed swayed by the wind? If not, what did you go out to see? A man dressed in fine clothes? No, those who wear fine clothes are in kings' palaces. Then what did you go out to see? A prophet? Yes, I tell you, and more than a prophet. This is the one about whom it is written:
" 'I will send my messenger ahead of you, who will prepare your way before you.' I tell you the truth: Among those born of women there has not risen anyone greater than John the Baptist; yet he who is least in the kingdom of heaven is greater than he.”
Matthew 11:1-11
This ends this reading from God's holy word. Thanks be to God.
Are you a Christian? I mean, are you really a Christian?
Why do I ask?
Because I’m afraid that a lot of people who claim to be Christians suffer from an identity crisis. They say they are associated with Christ but their actions say otherwise…to include the discussions they have with others. Unfortunately, many of those discussions fail to mention that there is any affiliation with Jesus to include no mention of Him.
Question: How can we claim to be of Christ and yet not talk about Him at every opportunity we get?
For as Christians, it is to be Christ first in everything…in our actions…in our words…in our thoughts. Saying we are Christians is saying we are all in with Jesus…He is who we yearn to be like…He is who we wish to identified with…He is the One we want others to see when they look at us.
Yet, way too often, we turn into Peter and act like we don’t know Jesus, disowning Him in the midst of those He sent us out to help save.
So when it comes to Jesus and your association with others daily, what do you do that consistently reports on Him and what He means to you in your life?
This matter of proclaiming about Jesus is at the heart of today’s passage as we begin to look at the 11th chapter of Matthew. There, Jesus had just finished “instructing his twelve disciples” before heading to “teach and preach in the towns of Galilee”.
Meanwhile, John the Baptist, the one who announced the coming of Jesus…the one who baptized him in the Jordan River…finds himself in prison but does hear about what Jesus was doing. And so he sent his disciples to Jesus to ask Him a single question:
“Are you the one who was to come, or should we expect someone else?"
Wow! What a question. Didn’t John know already who Jesus was? I mean, as soon as he baptized Jesus scripture tells us that “heaven was opened” and “the Spirit of God” descended “like a dove…lighting on him”. And this was followed by a “voice from heaven” which said, “This is my Son, whom I love; with him I am well pleased." (Matthew 3:16-17) There should have been little to no doubt who Jesus was or what He could do. And yet, John seemed like he was unsure. For why would you ask if you truly knew that Jesus Christ was the very Son of God…the long expected Messiah who had come to save mankind?
And so Jesus, faced with the question, gave John’s disciples the following reply to take back:
“Go back and report to John what you hear and see: The blind receive sight, the lame walk, those who have leprosy are cured, the deaf hear, the dead are raised, and the good news is preached to the poor. Blessed is the man who does not fall away on account of me."
It was a shame that Jesus had to tell John’s disciples what to report. John had surely heard about what Jesus had done and so it should have went without saying but Jesus still had to assist.
Question: Would you have to ask Jesus about who He is or who He was associated with?
If you are truly a Christian, I would hope not…but if you were unsure what to say, I’m sure Jesus would give you the words to speak just as He did with John’s disciples.
Friends, Jesus is truly the One who was sent by our Heavenly Father to save us from our sins but not before suffering a criminal’s death on Calvary’s cross. In a few days, we’ll celebrate His awesome power on display yet once again as He rises from the tomb and defeats death…ascending to assume His place on the right hand of His Father until He returns.
This is the loving Savior we are to identify with as Christians. This is to be our report….the good news…the answer we are to give “everyone who asks” for “the reason for the hope that (we) have”.
Amen.
In Christ,
Mark
PS: Please share this with anyone you feel might be blessed by it.
Send any prayer requests to OurChristianWalk@aol.com
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