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In Christ, Mark
In Christ, Mark
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The scriptures. May God bless the reading of His holy word.
The scriptures. May God bless the reading of His holy word.
“But when they arrest you, do not worry about what to say
or how to say it. At that time you will be given what to say, for it will not
be you speaking, but the Spirit of your Father speaking through you. “
Matthew 10:19-20
“Whenever you are arrested and brought to trial, do not worry beforehand about what to say. Just say whatever is given you at the time, for it is not you speaking, but the Holy Spirit.”
Matthew 10:19-20
“Whenever you are arrested and brought to trial, do not worry beforehand about what to say. Just say whatever is given you at the time, for it is not you speaking, but the Holy Spirit.”
Mark 13:11
“But before all this, they will seize you and persecute
you. They will hand you over to synagogues and put you in prison, and you will
be brought before kings and governors, and all on account of My name. And so
you will bear testimony to Me. But make up your mind not to worry beforehand
how you will defend yourselves. For I will give you words and wisdom that none
of your adversaries will be able to resist or contradict.”
Luke 21:12-15
This ends this reading from God's holy word. Thanks be to God.
OK, here I am again. Sitting and staring at a blank Microsoft Word document with only a scripture to work with.
My task?
To write something that will be of substance and meaning to anyone who might read this, something that will help them grow in their knowledge of and relationship with the Lord.
I go through this evolution every day and every day I do, I seem to meet my goal.
This ends this reading from God's holy word. Thanks be to God.
OK, here I am again. Sitting and staring at a blank Microsoft Word document with only a scripture to work with.
My task?
To write something that will be of substance and meaning to anyone who might read this, something that will help them grow in their knowledge of and relationship with the Lord.
I go through this evolution every day and every day I do, I seem to meet my goal.
How does that happen? How do these devotions consistently
hit the mark day after day after day?
One thing is for sure. It has nothing to do with me.
But it has everything to do with the Lord and the power of the Holy Spirit.
One thing is for sure. It has nothing to do with me.
But it has everything to do with the Lord and the power of the Holy Spirit.
You see, it has definitely been me with fingers pressing
keys on keyboards but the words I have been typing have not come from within but
rather what the Lord has spoken to me.
He does the talking and I do the listening and transposing
and sharing, allowing Him to speak through me to others. That’s the way it
works.
It has to be that way because if I tried to sit down and write without the Lord driving my words, the end product would completely lack any power and wisdom because these things in their purest and truest form only come from Him and Him alone. Unless I want to come off as a bumbling idiot and be totally ineffective in ministry, I have to surrender my will, submit my writing to Him, and allow Him to speak through me, His words taking center stage so He and He alone is honored and glorified.
It has to be that way because if I tried to sit down and write without the Lord driving my words, the end product would completely lack any power and wisdom because these things in their purest and truest form only come from Him and Him alone. Unless I want to come off as a bumbling idiot and be totally ineffective in ministry, I have to surrender my will, submit my writing to Him, and allow Him to speak through me, His words taking center stage so He and He alone is honored and glorified.
Indeed, something special happens when we invite the Holy
Spirit into the midst of what we’re doing in the name of the Lord, something
that can pierce the soul and reach right down into the very heart of a reader.
No man or woman can do that. Only the Lord.
This truth is underscored by today’s scripture as Jesus continues to instruct His disciples before sending them out to deliver the gospel to Israel. Look again at His words here from Matthew’s account:
This truth is underscored by today’s scripture as Jesus continues to instruct His disciples before sending them out to deliver the gospel to Israel. Look again at His words here from Matthew’s account:
“But when they
arrest you, do not worry about what to say or how to say it. At that time you
will be given what to say, for it will not be you speaking, but the Spirit of
your Father speaking through you. “ Matthew 10:19-20
Do any studying about Jesus’ messages and you’ll know He never sugar coated things. As He sent the disciples out to carry out His assignments, He knew they faced challenging times. If people hated Jesus, especially the Jewish religious authorities of the day, then anyone associated with Him could expect to be treated likewise. The disciples wouldn’t always be welcome in the towns they would visit and they even could face arrest and trial. Indeed, danger awaited them for the cause of the Gospel and Jesus wanted them to be fully aware of the risk involved with their pending ministry work.
So what could possibly bring the disciples comfort in the midst of all this harrowing prophecy?
It would come from the knowledge and assurance that the Lord was with them, no matter where they were and no matter what they went through.
But how would that be? How could Jesus be with His chosen twelve when they would be dispersed and working distant from Him?
Do any studying about Jesus’ messages and you’ll know He never sugar coated things. As He sent the disciples out to carry out His assignments, He knew they faced challenging times. If people hated Jesus, especially the Jewish religious authorities of the day, then anyone associated with Him could expect to be treated likewise. The disciples wouldn’t always be welcome in the towns they would visit and they even could face arrest and trial. Indeed, danger awaited them for the cause of the Gospel and Jesus wanted them to be fully aware of the risk involved with their pending ministry work.
So what could possibly bring the disciples comfort in the midst of all this harrowing prophecy?
It would come from the knowledge and assurance that the Lord was with them, no matter where they were and no matter what they went through.
But how would that be? How could Jesus be with His chosen twelve when they would be dispersed and working distant from Him?
The answer comes in our passage today.
For Jesus, although not physically with His disciples, would be with them in Spirit and it would be through that Spirit that they wouldn’t need to worry about what to do, what to think or what to say. Jesus said to them:
For Jesus, although not physically with His disciples, would be with them in Spirit and it would be through that Spirit that they wouldn’t need to worry about what to do, what to think or what to say. Jesus said to them:
“But when they
arrest you, do not worry about what to say or how to say it. At that time you
will be given what to say, for it will not be you speaking, but the Spirit of
your Father speaking through you.“
When arrested and expected to explain themselves, the
Spirit would offer the words of defense the disciples needed, imparting
explanation and instruction straight from God the Father to all who heard their
words. Through His words, Jesus was essentially saying to His disciples, “The
pressure is off you. You need not worry about what to do, what to think or what
to say. The Spirit will tell you everything you need to know and say, guiding
you in accordance with the Father’s will.”
Friends, the good news is that the Holy Spirit still does this today and will continue to do it all the days of our lives. For if we fast forward in the Gospel of Matthew to the Great Commission (Matthew 28:18-20), we find Jesus commanding all His followers (then and now) to make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, Son and Holy Spirit, and teaching others to obey what He commanded.
Friends, the good news is that the Holy Spirit still does this today and will continue to do it all the days of our lives. For if we fast forward in the Gospel of Matthew to the Great Commission (Matthew 28:18-20), we find Jesus commanding all His followers (then and now) to make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, Son and Holy Spirit, and teaching others to obey what He commanded.
He called on them to do a lot but note He didn’t send
them out to do it alone.
No, He said, “And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.”
You see, Jesus has not sent us out alone to evangelize and share the gospel anymore than He did His first disciples back in the days of Matthew. Rather, He is walking alongside us every step of the way, telling us what to do, what to think and what to say. All we need to do is surrender ourselves and allow Him to do awesome works in and through us.
No, He said, “And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.”
You see, Jesus has not sent us out alone to evangelize and share the gospel anymore than He did His first disciples back in the days of Matthew. Rather, He is walking alongside us every step of the way, telling us what to do, what to think and what to say. All we need to do is surrender ourselves and allow Him to do awesome works in and through us.
That’s how The Christian Walk operates and I feel so
humbled that the Lord would choose me to carry out His work, speaking through
this willing servant to share His wisdom and truth with others.
Amen.
In Christ,
Mark
PS: Please share this with anyone you feel might be blessed by it.
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