06 Mar 2018
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a child of the king, a thousand times, aches and pains, adversity, against heaven, be miserable, beloved of God, blessings, clasp me, comes against you, complaining, determines my value, determines your love, dwells in you, eat and be merry, ego, enables, enjoy the day, ever-faithful God, ever-LOVING God, every day is a wonderful day, evil living, faithful believers, Father I have sinned, foolish pride, forgiveness, friend of Jesus, friends, gentle smile, going over to the other side, grace, gross unworthiness, handle anything, holy spirit, hurry, hurts, hushes me, in thy sight, is alive, is found, joy in heaven, LOVE, mercy, my value, negative circumstances, new-world society, ninety and nine, no more worthy, one sinner, option, parables of Jesus, Pharisees, Plain Old Me, put a ring on his hand, reaffirm my position, reject, repentance, repents, Ruth Harms Calkin, scribes, share His love, stammering account, surrender, the best robe, the Father's will, the fatted calf, the forefront of our minds, the living God, the Lost Coin, the lost sheep, the Lost Son, the One Year Book of Bible Promises, the son said, to be called your son, tread this evil earth, Tuesday Mantra, unhesitatingly, uplifting, was dead, was lost, waste it, worry, you open your arms, your Father-heart, your love, your response
Luke 15:21. And the son said unto him, Father, I have sinned against heaven, and in thy sight, and am no more worthy to be called thy son.
Tuesday…Oh loverly Tuesday…! (smile) Yeh, I guess not as many of you will disagree with me today as did yesterday, when I called Monday wonderful. Hn!
But friends and faithful believers, every day that our great and ever-LOVING God has granted us on His beautiful planet is a loverly and wonderful day! Doesn’t it feel great just to be alive…despite all our aches and pains, hurts and adversity? It surely does.
And I’m sure that very few of us would take the option of going over to the other side right now, if it was offered. And that’s in spite of all our supposedly terrible negative circumstances. So why be miserable and complaining eh? Just enjoy the day, regardless of the circumstances. It’s the day that our ever-faithful God has made, so why waste it.
Remember the Holy Spirit of the Living God dwells in you, and that enables you to handle ANYTHING that comes against you!
Now here is something from our One Year Book of Bible Promises with writings by Ruth Harms Calkin that seems very appropriate for this morning. It’s something that will help boost our faith. And it’s titled ‘Plain Old Me.‘
Please pray with me. ‘Oh Lord Here I am again Just plain old me Coming to You As I’ve come a thousand times – And this is what always happens: Your response is immediate You open Your arms unhesitatingly You draw me to yourself You clasp me to Your Father-heart. Then you reaffirm my position: I’m a child of the King and all that is Yours is mine.
When I begin my stammering account Of gross unworthiness Your gentle smile hushes me. With endless patience You remind me once more That my value never determines Your LOVE. Rather, Your LOVE determines my value.’
Isn’t that ever so beautiful, touching and true? Yes my fellow believers, that’s exactly how our heavenly Father behaves when we go to Him in humble unworthiness! He reminds us that we are children of the King!
Wow! What could ever be more important and uplifting than that eh? Nothing really! And that’s something we always have to keep in the back…no, the forefront of our minds as we tread this evil earth; who and whom we belong to.
We also need to remember that our value doesn’t lie in how the world sees us, but in the awesome unconditional LOVE that our Creator and heavenly Father lavishes on us.
And that’s fully borne out by our Bit, the words of the parable of the Lost Son that Jesus recounted to the crowd of Pharisees and scribes who gathered around Him doubting His Deity. ‘And the son said unto him, Father, I have sinned against heaven, and in thy sight, and am no more worthy to be called thy son.
But the Father said to his servants, Bring forth the best robe, and put it on him; and put a ring on his hand, and shoes (sandals) on his feet: And bring hither the fatted calf, and kill it, and let us eat, and be merry: for this my son was dead, and is alive again; he was lost, and is found. And they began to be merry.’ (Luke 15:21-24)
Oh friends, oh friends, that’s exactly how our heavenly Father feels when we come running back to Him! Once we’ve become His child, we can NEVER do anything to give up that status, even when we blow all His blessings on evil living.
And Jesus reinforces all of that earlier on in two other parables; the Lost Sheep and the Lost Coin. ‘I say unto you, that likewise joy shall be in heaven over one sinner that repenteth, more than over ninety and nine just (upright) persons, which need no repentance.’ (Luke 15:7)
And then: ‘Likewise, I say unto you, there is joy in the presence of the angels of God over one sinner that repenteth.’ (Luke 15:10) Yes my people, there is total joy in heaven when we surrender to the Father in total humility and submission to His will.
So I don’t know why we continue to foolishly reject His LOVE, grace, mercy and forgiveness, since we don’t deserve them and can’t ever earn them. But with the li’l bit of brain that God gave us, in our foolish pride and unfounded ego, we’ve suddenly become more knowledgeable than Him and don’t need nor have time for Him in our bustling new-world society.
Hn! What a crock my people! But I guess that’s why He gave us free will; so that we could make fools out of ourselves, if we so desire. However, for those of us who know who and whose we are, let’s go home joyfully declaring our Tuesday Mantra, shouting it out to all the world.
In perfect harmony now: ‘I’m not what I do. I’m not what I have. I’m not what people say about me. I am the beloved of God, that’s who I am. No one can take that from me. I don’t have to worry. I don’t have to hurry. I can trust my friend Jesus and share His LOVE with the world. Amen!’
Now it’s time to go out and share that LOVE! Much LOVE!
…once a child of God…ALWAYS a child of God…
03 Mar 2018
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: adulteries, anchor us, anger, Anselm, ask the Lord for help, bamboozled, be at peace, beauty comes from the inside out, blasphemies, Christians, comes from the heart, defiles a man, do great things, eat with unwashed hands, evil thoughts, fall for anything, false witness, flooding, for a better tomorrow, fornications, give account for our words, goes into the belly, harvest you reap, hatred, high winds, hypocritcal things, in a great way, in Jesus' name, inspire us, is emptied in the draught, judge each day, light, lose heart, LOVE your neighbour, love yourself, murders, negative emotions, Pharisees, power, pray for them, rain, reap a good harvest, resentment, scribes, sincere efforts, small things, snow, sow good seeds, stands for nothing, stay positive, that which comes out of the mouth, that which goes in the mouth, the blind leading the blind, the seeds you plant, the state of our hearts, thefts, time of distress, violence, winter storm, wonder of wonders
Matthew 15:11. Not that which goeth into the mouth that defileth a man; but that which cometh out of the mouth, this defileth a man.
Ah Lord eh friends, that winter storm that we talked about yesterday did hit the U.S. North East and Midwest with a vengeance! Rain and snow, high winds and flooding wreaked havoc in several states, including, New York, Massachusetts, and Pennsylvania.
Thankfully though, now it has passed on, leaving the unfortunate victims to pull themselves together as best they can, many without light and power. Please, let’s pray for them in their time of distress and do whatever we can to alleviate their situation, for one day we might find ourselves in the same situation, needing the help of others.
And strangely, we got nothing in my area, but the li’l snow that fell overnight, and wonder of wonders, by mid- afternoon, all traces of snow had disappeared. Thank the Lord! Anyway, it’s Saturday, which means turning our attention to some of the quotes that our friend Anselm sent us this week, in his sincere effort to inspire us for a better tomorrow.
And the first quote says: ‘A man who stands for nothing will fall for anything.’ We all know that. We always need something to believe in, something to anchor us, be it good or bad, right or wrong, otherwise we’ll be easily bamboozled by anything. (smile)
The second one wisely advises: ‘Don’t judge each day by the harvest you reap, but by the seeds you plant.’ And is that ever so true my people! The seeds we plant are always more important than the harvest we reap. That’s because we will only reap what we sow.
As they say, we can’t sow peas and expect to reap corn. Therefore, if you want to reap a good harvest, then it is a necessity to first sow good seeds. Please, let’s all concentrate on sowing good seeds in Jesus name, and leave the harvest to Him.
Now hear this quote: ‘If I cannot do great things, I can do small things in a great way.’ Glory be my fellow believers! Comparatively speaking, very few of us will ever be able to do great things in this world, but ALL of us can do small things in a good and great manner.
Remember, the small things do matter, and when you add up the small things, then you get the big ones. So let’s not lose heart if today we’re not embarked on some project that will become great and also make us great, but sincerely concentrate on the small ones we have going and make them as good as we can. The Lord appreciates ALL sincere efforts, and you don’t have to do something great for Him to be pleased with you, just do His will.
And as always, I’ve left the best for last: ‘LOVE yourself. It is important to stay positive because beauty comes from the inside out.’ Words of immense wisdom and common sense my brethren! Remember one of Jesus’ commands, in fact the second great commandment was to LOVE your neighbour as you LOVED yourself. (Matt.22:39)
That means you have to be at peace with yourself and like yourself, if you are going to have similar emotions for someone else. But unfortunately too many of us, Christians included, don’t seem to like ourselves. Why? I really can’t say nuh. But that’s one of the reasons why there’s so much anger, hatred, violence, resentment and all the other negative emotions floating around in our world today.
If we liked ourselves more than we seem to do, there would be a lot less of that stuff doing the rounds, because we would have more beauty, more good stuff to share. That brings us to our Bit; momentous words of our Lord and Saviour, Jesus Christ. ‘Not that which goeth into the mouth that defileth a man; but that which cometh out of the mouth, this defileth a man.’
Yeh friends, it’s what comes out of our mouths that defiles us, makes us nasty and angry and otherwise negative, not what goes in. As Jesus later on expatiates to the His disciples, when they didn’t understand His parable, re the blind leading the blind (Matt.15:13) ‘Are ye also yet without understanding? Do not ye yet understand, that whatsoever entereth in at the mouth goeth into the belly, and is cast out (eliminated) into the draught?
But those things which proceed out of the mouth come forth from the heart, and they defile the man. For out of the heart proceed evil thoughts, murders, adulteries, fornications, thefts, false witness, blasphemies: These are the things which defile a man: but to eat with unwashed hands defileth not a man.’ (Matt.15:16-20)
Yes my people, the scribes and Pharisees had complained earlier on about the disciples eating with unwashed hands, which was a big thing in Jewish society back then. But Jesus put them in their place by telling them about all the hypocritical things that they did, that came from within them, that were much worse than eating with unwashed hands. (Matt.15:1-11)
So friends, let’s spend some time this weekend pondering the state of our own hearts nuh, to see what’s in there that will tend to defile us when we open our mouths. And whatever we find, please, let’s ask the Lord to help us eradicate it, so that when we speak, only good stuff will come forth. Much LOVE!
…every man…will eventually give account…for every word he has ever spoken…
06 Jun 2016
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: adrenaline, atoning death, aura of love, band our jaw, blessings, Christ-like, christianity, chutzpah, Colossians, complaining, confident, conquerors, cult, deceivers, deceptive teachers, denomination, DNA, dreams, enthusiasm, evil, faith, false teaching, frailties, friends, fun, generous help, glory hallelujah, harmony, heretics, holy spirit, hope, human, humble servants, imagination, invincible, Job, jobs, joy. bless the day, lies, LOVE, Messiah, Monday Morning Battle Hymn, peace, Pharisees, population explosion, proud, rejuvenation of spirit, religion, renewed vitality, rest, righteousness., salvation, scribes, spiritual armour, spunk, steadfastness, surrender, take heed that no man deceive you, take the bad with the good, taunts, the Mount of Olives, the sign of thy coming, trust, truth, ungodly world, warning, wiles, wisdom
Matthew 24:4. And Jesus answered and said unto them, Take heed that no man deceive you.
And then it was Monday – the first day of the new work week. And all the workers joyfully declared: ‘Glory Hallelujah! Thank God for Mondays! We can’t wait to get back out to work. What a joy to be going back out to work today! Bless the day of Monday!’
Awright friends, I know I might never see or rather hear that joyful appreciation of Mondays, but that’s why the Lord built imagination and dreams into our basic DNA. If we couldn’t dream and imagine, then life would be boring and pointless. What I do know is that we should not be as reticent and complaining about going back to work on a Monday as we are.
Oh I know that there is a lot of pressure and unfortunate stuff involved in going out to work, but then if we don’t work, how will we survive eh, how will we provide for our families? Like Job says, we have to learn to take the bad with the good. (Job 2:10) We need to just band our jaw and get to it.
And don’t forget that Jesus is waiting out there at the front line for us to lead us into battle. So if we have the Messiah, the most powerful Field Marshall in the universe as our Leader, then we should be going out confident and proud. But since we are only human with lots of frailties, to aid us in our early week endeavours, let’s sing our Monday Morning Battle Hymn with much spunk, plenty chutzpah and heavenly harmony. (smile)
As one now: ‘Oh Lord God Almighty, Creator of the universe and all therein! We, your humble servants, praise your Holy Name and thank you that this Monday morning we have jobs to go to; jobs we don’t like, jobs that are unfair, difficult and even dangerous, but which serve a useful purpose here on earth; keeping lives and families together.
We also thank you Father for the renewed vitality and enthusiasm you’ve wrought in our weary souls over the last two days. It’s that rejuvenation of Spirit which allows us now to sally forth with confidence into the evil, ungodly world that surrounds us, to begin a new week of work, constantly buffeted and bombarded by the enemy’s wicked taunts, wiles and lies.
But heavenly Father, we’re not afraid, for we know we’re invincible, sure conquerors, once we’re wearing your powerful, protective spiritual armour. We surrender our all to you, and humbly ask that you let your incredible aura of LOVE, the Holy Spirit, lead and guide all your servants as we go out to meet the enemy in battle.
Fill us with steadfast faith, so that we can make worthwhile inroads into the enemy’s ranks, and thereby further your glorious kingdom. We pray this in the Holy Name of your Son, and our Saviour, Jesus Christ. AMEN!’
Now that was a good rendition my brethren. Not the best, but it brought a smile to Jesus’ face, and that’s sufficient. Now let’s try and keep that adrenaline running as we go out into the ungodly world and influence people and win souls for Christ, through our Christ like talk and godly behaviour.
And that brings us to our Bit, a wise word of warning to the disciples from our Lord and Saviour. ‘And Jesus answered and said unto them, Take heed that no man deceive you.’
Oh friends, unfortunately that warning still holds true today, possibly even more so than in Jesus’ time, since there are more deceivers running wild today than in Jesus’ time.
And before we go further, let’s look at when and where Jesus warned them. He had been in the temple talking to His disciples as well as the Scribes and Pharisees re the ill treatment meted out to the prophets at the hands of their forefathers, about His death and resurrection, the destruction of the temple and His Second Coming. (Matt.23:1-39)
Then He left them and went out to the Mount of Olives so He could look down at the temple courtyard. ‘And as he sat upon the Mount of Olives, the disciples came unto him privately, saying, Tell us, when shall these things be? And what shall be the sign of thy coming, and of the end of the world (age)?’ (Matt.24:3)
Then Jesus began with the warning in our Bit, and then continued: ‘For many shall come in my name, saying, I am Christ; and shall deceive many.’(Matt.24:5) And isn’t that the gospel truth my people.
As the scholars explain: ‘Many shall come refers to the parade of false messiahs who have now spanned the centuries of church history and have led many astray into false religious cults.’
And sadly, if only because of the world population explosion in recent times, it’s happening in even greater numbers today. Almost every minute of every day, a new religion, a new cult, a new denomination is born, further fracturing the already fractured movement of Christianity.
Bruh Paul also issued that warning about false teaching to the Colossians. ‘And this I say, lest any man should beguile (deceive) you with enticing (persuasive) words. For though I be absent in the flesh, yet I am with you in the spirit, joying and beholding your (good) order, and the steadfastness of your faith in Christ.
As ye have therefore received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk ye in him. Rooted and built up in him, and stablished in the faith, as ye have been taught, abounding therein with thanksgiving.’ (Col.2:4-7)
Ah friends, what wise and wonderful advice from Bruh Paul. Advice that we badly need in these last days too. Now let’s check out some scholarly explanations.
‘2:6. The verse may be paraphrased thus: “Therefore just as you accepted the teaching that presents Jesus as both Messiah and Lord, so continue to maintain this relationship with Him.” The recipients had been taught that Jesus is (1) Messiah (the One divinely anointed to secure man’s salvation), and (2) Lord (the divine person to whom man submits in obedience).
The heretics denied Jesus’ atoning death and lordship. So the Colossians are urged to keep Him just as they were initially taught – as Messiah and Lord. They are to continue to look to Him for salvation and continue in submission to His authority.’
Well my people, we have been taught the same things as the Colossian’s, so it’s only logical that we also need to keep our relationship with Jesus as Lord and Messiah as strong as possible and don’t bow to any false and deceptive teachers, if we truly desire to see His salvation. Much LOVE!
…the only way to heaven…through Jesus…
23 Apr 2016
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a doer of the work, a follower of Christ, a forgetful hearer, alcoholic beverages, an outward show of self-righteousness, Anselm, be blessed in his deed, change, Christian, contrasts, doing the same thing, healthy lifestyle, hectic week of work, high degree of technology, higher than the price of change, household chores, if you don't use it, inner attitude of the heart, Inspire us for a better tomorrow, it ain't what they call you, it's what you answer to, junk food, lack of exercise, Mosaic Law, most religious, obese, obesity, oodles of truth, Pharisees, playing games, practical application, progress, righteousness., robots, scribes, sedentary, sedentaty posing, selfies, servants, shopping, social media, spiritual living, talkers, texting, the boob tube, the gospel n action, the kingdom of heaven, the perfect law of liberty, the price of, the Then Commandments, the wisdom of heaven, truth, truth often hurts, upsets our comfort level, you lose it
James 1:25. ‘But whoso looketh into the perfect law of liberty, and continueth therein, he being not a forgetful hearer, but a doer of the work, this man shall be blessed in his deed (in what he does).’
And as been happening for thousands of years friends, Saturday comes after Friday, just like night follows day and vice versa. (smile) But Saturday is the day to do the household chores and shopping after a busy week of work. Then, come the evening hours, it’s party time!
Many of us though simply lie on the couch eating junk food, imbibing alcoholic beverages and watching the boob tube all weekend. Now that is certainly not a healthy lifestyle my people. And that is partly why our society is suffering from such a high rate of obesity; lack of exercise, too much sedentary posing and posture and too much junk food.
A lot of that is brought on by our high degree of technology, with the ever- spreading and ever-dangerous tentacles of our social media, where we sit for hours in front of a computer screen or some little hand-held device, texting and playing games and getting ourselves in trouble by posting selfies and other garbage on the media platforms.
And the next big thing will be robots who communicate like men. How much longer do you think we’ll last after that eh my brethren? Not long, for we are already obese and sedentary, and sensible robots will only make us more so, when we can order them around like servants.
Please remember what a wise man once said; ‘if you don’t use it, you will lose it.’ And friends that is exactly where we’re heading. Eventually, when life gets so easy, we’ll lose the use of our brains and our limbs because we won’t have to use them. I’m sure many of you can remember the times when children, and a lot of adults too, spent much more time doing stuff outdoors than happens now. But I guess they call that progress, so who am I to question it eh? (smile)
So let me turn you over to someone else, our friend Anselm, who always tries to inspire us for a better tomorrow. We haven’t heard from him for some time, so we’ll share two of his brilliant insights. And the first quote says: ‘The price of doing the same old thing is far higher than the price of change.’ And the second declares: ‘It ain’t what they call you, it’s what you answer to.’
Ah friends, both of those sayings contain oodles of truth, as many of us can attest from our own experience. But we either try to resist sensible change because it discommodes us, upsets our comfort level, and we’re not willing to pay the higher price either.
And we all had nicknames at some stage in our lives, many of which we never liked and hopefully never responded to. And most of the time, the ones we never responded to seldom stuck.
Now however, we are known by the fabulous name of Christian; a believer in and a follower of Christ! And that is a name to which should always proudly answer to, although many of us are ashamed of it and try to hide our affiliation. But remember friends, Christ said that if you’re ashamed of Him, deny Him and don’t own up to your affiliation with Him, He’ll do the same thing to you. (Matt.10:32-33) So it’s up to each of us to decide our own fate.
And that falls right in line with our Bit. ‘But whoso looketh into the perfect law of liberty, and continueth therein, he being not a forgetful hearer, but a doer of the work, this man shall be blessed in his deed (in what he does).’
Yes my Christian people, as true followers of Christ we must be seen to be not only hearers and talkers, but even more importantly doers! Unfortunately though, the world doesn’t look upon us like that, which brings us to the last verse in Jesus’ monologue on the law.
‘For I say unto you, That except your righteousness shall exceed the righteousness of the scribes and Pharisees, you shall in no case (by no means) enter into the kingdom of heaven.’ (Matt. 5:20)
Now that’s hitting way below the belt my people, but Jesus always spoke truth, and we all know that the truth often hurts quite a bit. And it just goes to show how little He thought of the Jewish rulers.
Let’s hear now what the scholars have to say about that verse. ‘5:20. Because of the necessity of righteousness as a requirement to enter heaven, Jesus then declares that except their righteousness should exceed the righteousness of the scribes and Pharisees they could not enter heaven.
The significance of this is seen in the fact that the Jews of Jesus’ day considered these people to be the most religious in all Israel. However, their religion was largely an outward show of self-righteousness.
In communicating the depth of His message, Jesus used a series of contrasts between outward behaviour demanded by the law and the inner attitude of the heart desired by God. Here we discover the practical application of genuine Christian character to true spiritual living. Here we see the gospel in action:
Law Spirit
No murder No anger
No adultery No lust
No divorce Commitment
No oath taking Speak the truth
No retaliation Forgiveness
Hatred for your enemy LOVE for your enemy
(tradition allowed it) (commanded)
Awright friends, enough for today. I know it’s Saturday and our minds are all played out by the hectic week of work. (smile) However you do see the comparison between the Mosaic Law and what Jesus desired spiritually. All of the old law still stood, except hatred for your enemy, which Jesus changed to LOVE.
He basically refined them, moved them up to a higher, finer, more acute level. But the Ten Commandments still stood as the Basic law, and still do today. So as Jesus said, He didn’t come to destroy the law, but to fulfill it. And as His followers, we ought to do the same in our own little way, and thus promote the wisdom of heaven. Much LOVE!
…the coming of Jesus…didn’t change the basic intent of God’s laws…they just became more refined…moved up to a higher level…
19 Aug 2014
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: adultery, anger, antagonism, ask god for help, be together as one, belief in christ, blame, body of Christ, brothers and sisters, Bruh Paul, Christ is the end of the law, Christian believer, Christian character, Christian friends, Chrsitian life, church leaders, commitment, community, dem's the breaks, die to self, disobedience, divorce, do what's right, empathy, encouragement, family of believers, forgiveness, fostering of true community, friends, God's mercy, God's revelation of himself, gospel truth, grace, hard taskmaster, hatred, heart's desire, heavenly wisdom, ignorant of God's righteousness, In Touch Magazine, inner attitude of the heart, Israel, jealousy, Jesus Christ, Jews, Jim Daly, key element, kingdom of heaven, Know your place, Lord and Saviour, love for your enemy, lust, murder, New Testament, oath taking, outward show of self-righteousness, pay the price, petty things, Pharisees, prayer to God for Israel, purpose of the law, religious achievement, resentment, retaliation, righteousness of God, righteousness., scope of the law, scribes, self-righteousness, selfishness, separate and apart, Spirit of God, spiritual living, spreading the good news of the gospel, the gospel in action, the law, The prodigal God, Timothy Keller, truth, zeal
Matthew 5:20. For I say unto you, That except your righteousness shall exceed the righteousness of the scribes and Pharisees, ye shall in no case (by no means) enter into the kingdom of heaven.
Ah Friends, the ole fella’s paying the price for disobedience this morning, an aching back. Too much rest it would seem. (smile) Apparently I ignored the wake up bell this morning and slept in. But my body was tired, I pleaded! No excuse, I was summarily informed. When the bell goes, you arise. End of story!
Ah what a hard taskmaster. But I guess dem’s the breaks! (smile) I know the rules, so if I don’t abide by them, I’ll just have to pay the price. And that’s the way it is with most things in life my people. If we don’t do right, especially if we know what’s right, then we pay.
Anyway, today I want to share with you a couple of passages from an article in the July issue of In Touch Magazine, titled ‘Know Your Place,’ by Jim Daly. Some of you might have read it already, but didn’t even pay it any real serious attention, but Friends these words and actions are of vital importance in the life of each and every Christian believer.
Mr. Daly quotes Timothy Keller, from his book, ‘The Prodigal God.’ “You can’t live the Christian life without a band of Christian friends, without a family of believers in which you find a place.”
And that’s the gospel truth my brethren! We can’t live a truly Christian life alone, it’s too difficult to do, especially with all the inviting and exciting wrongs the world has to offer nowadays. We need the empathy, encouragement and bolstering that a tightly knit group offers.
And in any case, Jesus didn’t desire and plan for His people to be separate and apart, but be together as one, as one body in His name. It’s all well and good to go to church and participate in the ceremonies and rituals on an individual basis.
But as Mr. Daly later adds: ‘But if we’re not making an effort to connect and engage with our brothers and sisters in Christ, we’re missing out on a key element of the church as described in the New Testament.’ And that’s the fostering of true community amongst the Christian brethren.
Oh Friends, that’s why there is so much resentment, jealousy and antagonism in the church today. We don’t individually nor collectively foster a sense of true community in the body of Christ. We talk it, but don’t actually walk it. Consequently, we’re not able to be as productive in spreading the good news of the gospel, as we ought to be.
We need to put away the selfishness and petty things that keep us apart, die to our own selves, and encourage the things that truly bring us together. And though the leaders in the church might be to blame for some of that, every single believer also has to shoulder some blame too, because it all begins with us as individuals.
And that brings us to this passage from Bruh Paul’s epistle to the Romans, where he talks of the people having zeal but no righteousness. ‘Brethren, my heart’s desire and prayer to God for Israel, is that they might be saved. For I bear them record (witness), that they have a zeal of (for) God, but not according to knowledge.
For they being ignorant of God’s righteousness, and going about to establish their own righteousness, have not submitted themselves unto the righteousness of God. For Christ is the end of the law, for righteousness to every one that believeth.’ (Rom.10:1-4)
And the scholars have a good explanation of that scripture. ‘10:4. Christ is the end of the law. Israel mistook the purpose of the law. The law pointed to the righteousness that is attainable only by belief in Christ. Israel also mistook the scope of the law.
The righteousness to which it pointed was universally available to all who responded to God’s revelation of Himself through the law. But by Paul’s time many had substituted works for faith. Rather than seeking redemption in God’s mercy, they pinned their hopes on their own religious achievement.’
And sadly my people, today too many of us are still doing the same thing; depending on our own religiosity rather than God’s available mercy and grace.
But please note what our Bit says about that behaviour. ‘For I say unto you, That except your righteousness shall exceed the righteousness of the scribes and Pharisees, ye shall in no case (by no means) enter into the kingdom of heaven.’
Those are the words of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ, so obviously there’s no doubting them!
And the scholars provide a wonderful explanation of all that. ‘5:20. Because of the necessity of righteousness as a requirement to enter heaven, Jesus then declares that except their righteousness should exceed the righteousness of the scribes and Pharisees they could not enter heaven.
The significance of this is seen in the fact that the Jews of Jesus’ day considered these people to be the most religious in all Israel. However, their religion was largely an outward show of self-righteousness.
In communicating the depth of His message, Jesus used a series of contrasts between the outward behaviour demanded by the law and the inner attitude of the heart desired by God. Here we discover the practical application of genuine Christian character to true spiritual living. Here we see the gospel in action:’
Sadly Friends, it’s the same thing a lot of us are still doing today, depending on self, rather than God. And the scholars add a very useful list of what the Law required and what the Spirit of God desired.
LAW SPIRIT
No murder No anger
No adultery No lust
No divorce Commitment
No oath-taking Speak the truth
No retaliation Forgiveness
Hatred for your enemy LOVE for your enemy
(tradition allowed it) (commanded)
And there we have it my people, a simple breakdown of the things the religious Law called for and/or allowed, as well as the things that Jesus desired, and still desires, of His true and faithful followers.
So let’s sit down today and consider our own reaction and behaviour to all those things nuh, and then, as always, sincerely ask God to help us improve in whatever way we need to. That’s heavenly wisdom my brethren, for we know He will NEVER refuse any requests to draw closer to Him! Much LOVE!
…to be a true believer…one must lose the self in self-righteousness…
P.S. That makes up for the short Bit yesterday. (smile) Much LOVE!
18 Aug 2014
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: adrenalin, aura of love, blessed to see another day, Christ-like character, Christians, come to know Jesus, confidence, earth shattering, enthusiasm, eternal life, fellow believers, fellowship, friends, further God's glorious kingdom, further Jesus' cause, generous help, give thanks and praise, guidance, heathen, heavy load, holy spirit, honest man, humble servants, hypocrites, I am come to fulfill, I am not come to destroy, indisputable fact, infidel, invincible, Jesus Christ, Law of Moses, legalism, Lord and Saviour, LOVE, LOVE Revolution, man-made laws, Monday Morniing Battle Hymn, neighbours, New Testament, Oh Lord God Almighty, Old Testament, one body in Jesus, one harmonious body, outward show, Pharisees, rejuvenation of spirit, religion, religiosity, reveille, righteous, righteousness., roof of heaven, rules and regulations, scribes, show boaters, small mercies, smile, spiritual armour, spiritual intention of the law, spiritual principles, splendiferous, steadfast faith, superficial religious behaviour, superiority of Jesus' message, the Beatitudes, the clock is ticking, the kingdom of heaven, trust, truth, ungodly world, walk obediently, wisdom
Matthew 5:20. For I say unto you, That except your righteousness shall exceed the righteousness of the scribes and Pharisees, ye shall in no case (by no means) enter into the kingdom of heaven.
Arise oh Friends… arise oh Neighbours… arise oh Fellow Believers… the clock is ticking… Hear ye, hear ye, the bugler’s blowing reveille! That means it’s time to rise and greet this beautiful Monday morn! And remember, before rolling out of bed to give a li’l individual thanks and praise for being blessed to see another day, and ask for guidance to walk obediently on your way.
Now before the whining and complaining begin, (smile) let’s raise the roof of heaven with a miraculous and highly motivated rendition of our Monday Morning Battle Hymn. In full voice, as one harmonious body:
‘Oh Lord God Almighty, Creator of the universe and all therein! We, your humble servants, praise your Holy Name and thank you that this Monday morning we have jobs to go to; jobs we don’t like, jobs that are unfair, difficult and even dangerous, but which serve a useful purpose here on earth; keeping lives and families together.
We also thank you Father for the renewed vitality and enthusiasm you’ve wrought in our weary souls over the last two days. It’s that rejuvenation of Spirit which allows us now to sally forth with confidence into the evil, ungodly world that surrounds us, to begin a new week of work, constantly buffeted and bombarded by the enemy’s wicked taunts, wiles and lies.
But heavenly Father, we’re not afraid, for we know we’re invincible, sure conquerors, once we’re wearing your powerful, protective spiritual armour. We surrender our all to you, and humbly ask that you let your incredible aura of LOVE, the Holy Spirit, lead and guide all your servants as we go out to meet the enemy in battle.
Fill us with steadfast faith, so that we can make worthwhile inroads into the enemy’s ranks, and thereby further your glorious kingdom. We pray this in the Holy Name of your Son, and our Saviour, Jesus Christ. AMEN!’
Splendiferous my brethren! Splendiferous! That rendition was certainly earth shattering, and so powerful that it also raised heaven’s roof, like a hurricane attacking those of our earthly houses. The angels had to be quite quick too and grab it before it blew away. (smile) Yes my brethren, that’s what’s possible when believers get together and act as one true body in Jesus.
Now let’s take all that adrenalin and enthusiasm and energy and get out there and actively use it to further Jesus’ cause; His LOVE Revolution, so that the heathen, the infidel, may see and experience our Christ-like character and desire to come to know Jesus as their Lord and Saviour too.
And our Bit today certainly amplifies that directive: ‘For I say unto you, That except your righteousness shall exceed the righteousness of the scribes and Pharisees, ye shall in no case (by no means) enter into the kingdom of heaven.’
And that’s an indisputable fact Friends! That’s Jesus, during His commenting on the Law of Moses, where he first explained: ‘Think not that I am come to destroy the law, or the prophets: I am not come to destroy, but to fulfill.’ (Matt.5:17)
And the scholars explain that verse thus: ‘5:17. Having laid the foundation of the message in the summary statements of the Beatitudes, Jesus now proceeds to show the superiority of His message to that of the law of Moses. He makes it clear that He had not …come to destroy the law. That is, the New Testament gospel is not contradictory to the Old Testament Law; rather it is the ultimate fulfillment of the spiritual intention of the law.
Where the law had degenerated into legalism among the Pharisees, Jesus now takes the law beyond mere outward observance to the inner spiritual intention of God.’
Oh Friends, unfortunately the same situation still exists today. Religion has built a set of rules and regulations that’s impossible for any human being to follow to the letter. And there are way too many of us making a big outward show of our supposed religiosity, like the Pharisees of old, when inside we’re big time hypocrites.
We don’t do half of what we say or pretend to do. Our actions are based more on superficial religious behaviour than true godly spiritual principles. Too many of us Christians are religious show boaters!
Oh Friends, there’s much more to be said on this topic, but we will leave that for another day, since I don’t want to weary us with too heavy a load today. (smile) But please, in the meantime, let’s ponder all that we’ve said, and try to figure out where we’re at individually, then wisely ask the Lord for His generous help to improve, to become more Christ-like. That’s one request He will NEVER refuse! Much LOVE!
…just like an honest man doesn’t need barriers…fences and doors…to stop him from stealing…likewise, the heart of a righteous man…doesn’t need numerous man-made laws to keep him righteous…
P.S. Does it ever seem short today! (smile) I had to check it twice to see if that was really all. But that’s really all! So please be thankful for small mercies. Much LOVE!
27 Apr 2014
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: Abram, adversity, all things are possible, almighty god, as your heavenly Father is perfect, assurance, be perfect, blameless, child of God, complete, El Shaddai, Epaphras, exhortations, expectant faith, faith, faith and humility, fully assured in God's will, furthering God's kingdom, God uses trouble to mature us, God's glorification, God-like characteristics, godly love, goodness, heavenly presence of God, holy spirit, hungry hope, hypocrites, labouring fervently, lacking nothing, let patience have her perfect work, lukewarm faith, mercy, mirror image of Jesus, morally perfect state, negative assessment, new creation in Christ, perfect in Christ Jesus, Pharisees, progressive maturity, satiate, satisfy, scribes, servant of Christ, sinless, stand perfect and complete, strong, talk our talk, the will of God, triune God-head, true reflection of God, trusting in God's goodness and mercy, vibrant, walk our talk, warning
Matthew 5:48. Be ye therefore perfect, even as your Father which is in heaven is perfect.’
Oh Friends, today is one of those days when I don’t have a clue as to how to get the Bit going. (smile) But nonetheless, trusting in our wonderful God’s goodness and mercy, I am putting pen to paper, believing, having hungry hope and expectant faith that He will lead and guide me by His Holy Spirit to write something worthwhile. Something that will eventually lead to His glorification and the furtherance of His everlasting kingdom.
And if, perchance, He chooses not to run around today in a preamble, (smile) then we’ll just get straight into our Bit, because there are several scriptures which corroborate it, that need to be shared.
Anyway, I just want to say here that I dearly LOVE those two phrases I used above; hungry hope and expectant faith. I don’t remember where I first read them, but they certainly resonated, made a huge impact on me. The imagery seems so perfect – a hope that’s hungry, and a faith that’s expectant. They just seem to be made for each other!
And from here on in, that’s exactly how I want us to feel and behave. Let’s try to have a sense of hope that’s so strong and vibrant, reflecting the way we feel when we are dying from hunger and want food in the worst way, to satisfy and satiate our growling stomachs.
Likewise, with faith, let’s endeavour to have real great expectations of whatsoever we’re believing in and for, because passive, wishy-washy, lukewarm faith just doesn’t cut it. Moreover, if we truly want to attain to the level of our Bit, we desperately need a hope that’s truly hungry and a faith that’s really expectant, for how else can we become perfect like our heavenly Father eh?
‘Be ye therefore perfect, even as your Father which is in heaven is perfect.’
And remember, yesterday the scholars explained being perfect doesn’t mean ‘sinless,’ but rather ‘complete,’ having a passionate, godly LOVE, burning within us for both those who LOVE us and those who don’t. In other words, my people, a true reflection of our Creator.
And in fact Friends, from the earliest days, our God has been trying to get us to be perfect and complete. Listen to the words He spoke to Abram. ‘And when Abram was ninety years old and nine, the Lord appeared unto Abram, and said unto him, I am the Almighty God (El Shaddai), walk before me, and be thou perfect (blameless).’ (Gen.17:1)
Then back in the New Testament, we have Bruh Paul, re his service for Christ, writing thus to the Colossians: ‘(Christ) Whom we preach, warning every man, and teaching every man in all wisdom; that we may present every man perfect in Christ Jesus: whereunto I also labour, striving according to his working, which worketh in me mightily.’ (Col.1:28-29)
Then in his closing exhortations in Chapter 4, he writes: ‘Epaphras, who is one of you, a servant of Christ, saluteth (greets) you, always labouring fervently for you in prayers, that ye may stand perfect and complete (filled) in all the will of God.’ (Col.4:12)
And the scholars explain that verse thus: ‘4:12. That ye may stand perfect and complete in all the will of God means that “you may appear perfect and fully assured in all His will.” Like 1:23, 29, this refers to the Colossians being ushered into God’s heavenly presence in a morally perfect state. When this someday occurs, their experience of progressive maturity and assurance will have preceded it.’
Meanwhile, James, in talking of faith and humility encourages us: ‘But let patience have her perfect work, that ye may be perfect and entire (complete), wanting (lacking) nothing.’ (James 1:4)
And per the scholars: ‘1:4. The natural response to adversity is to escape it. But God uses trouble to mature His people.’
Ah mih people, to be a true child of God, a new creation in Jesus Christ, we definitely do need to improve our God-like characteristics. Otherwise we’ll end up being big hypocrites, just like the scribes and Pharisees in Jesus’ time – looking good on the outside, but terrible on the inside.
So please, let’s talk our talk, and then walk that talk big time, so that that negative assessment Jesus made of the Pharisees and them, will never be made against us.
If we want to walk in Jesus’ footsteps, we have to work at being like Him and our heavenly Father – perfect and complete in every way. It’s not easy to do in this godless and wicked world, but with the help of our triune God-head, remember that ALL THINGS ARE INDEED POSSIBLE!
That’s the wisdom of the ages! Much LOVE!
…as believers…in all our words and deeds…the world ought to see reflected in us…a mirror image of Jesus…so that they can come to know Him too…
13 Apr 2014
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: all knees must bow, all tongues confess, awesome day, beatific greeting, Bethany, bethpage, Blessed is he that comes in the name of the Lord, blessings, cedars of Lebanon, celebrating, Christ's Second Coming, conquering hero, crucifixion, demeaning treatment, eagerly looking forward, emotions run away, expectant faith, exuberance, exuberant crowds, faith, fearful people, fickle, greedy, heralded entrance, hope, Hosanna in the highest, Hosanna to the son of David, humble preacher, hungry hope, hypocrite, Israel, Jerusalem, Jesus Christ, Jesus is Lord indeed, Jesus' exalted position, Jesus' triumphal entry into Jerusalem, Jewish elite, king of glory, King of Kings, kingship, Lord and Saviour, Lord of Lords, loving arms of Jesus, Lucifer, magnificence, Messiah, miraculous doings, Mount of Olives, no reversal of fortunes, nothing compares, Old Testament, Palm Sunday, Pharisees, pleasure, politically corrupt, praise, Praise the Lord, Redeemer, rejection, scribes, Septuagint, son of god, thanksgiving, the Lord's House, the next time, the prophet of Nazareth of Galilee, the trumpet sounds, triumphal entrance, victorious
Matthew 21:9b. Blessed is he that cometh in the name of the Lord: Hosanna in the highest.
The trumpet sounds: Spah na na na na na! The gates open – and the triumphal entry begins: in rides our wonderful Lord and Saviour, Jesus Christ on a magnificent charger, just a prancing and dancing down the paved streets of gold, lined with palms and cedars of Lebanon!
Our conquering hero is dressed in splendid robes befitting His exalted position. A crown of gold and precious jewels sits perfectly on his head, while the scabbard containing His mighty sword dangles from His waist. It’s a picture of pure magnificence, of pure kingship!
A radiant smile spreads across His handsome face as the highly exuberant crowds cry out: ‘All hail the King of Glory! Jesus Christ, the Son of God; before whom all knees must bow and all tongues confess that He is Lord indeed!’
And at that unforgettable greeting, our glorious Redeemer raises His right hand and waves it in a beatific greeting.
The angels have a hard time keeping the crowds at bay, while Jesus and His legions march down the main street of Jerusalem, victorious over the foolish and fallen ingrate Lucifer – forever!
Oh forgive me Friends, in my overwhelming exuberance, I jumped ahead to the Second Coming of our Saviour, arrayed in full splendour and glory as the true King of Kings and Lord of Lords! I’m so excited, looking forward to that day so much, that I let my emotions run away on me. (smile) But it sure is a marvellous picture though my brethren, and one we can definitely look forward to sometime in the not too distant future.
Today though, we’re celebrating His first triumphal entrance into Jerusalem some two thousand years ago, not yet as a conquering hero, but as a lowly and humble preacher on the verge of miraculous doings, to fulfill that ‘which was spoken by the prophet, saying, Tell ye the daughter of Zion, behold, thy King cometh unto thee, meek (lowly), and sitting upon an ass (donkey), and a colt, the foal of an ass.
And the disciples went, and did as Jesus commanded them. And brought the ass, and the colt, and put on them their clothes, and they set him thereon. And a very great multitude spread their garments in the way; others cut down branches from the trees, and strewed (spread) them in the way (road).
And the multitudes that went before, and that followed, cried, saying, Hosanna to the son of David: Blessed is he that cometh in the name of the Lord; Hosanna in the highest. And when he was come into Jerusalem, all the city was moved, saying, Who is this? And the multitude said, This is Jesus, the prophet of Nazareth of Galilee.’ (Matt. 21:4-11)
Yes my brethren, that is how it was on Jesus’ first heralded entrance to Jerusalem, a rather low key affair in comparison to what His Second entrance will be. But it served its purpose, spread His name around some more, got people talking, wondering, filling them with expectant faith and hungry hope, just the way we are today; eagerly looking forward to the next time.
That’s because the next time there will be no reversal of fortunes, there will be no fickle and fearful people to change their minds about Jesus and sit idly by or enjoy His demeaning treatment and eventual crucifixion at the hands of the cruel Roman soldiers, so assiduously engineered by the greedy and politically corrupt Jewish elite. But that first Palm Sunday though was Jesus’ day, when the people really seemed to rally around Him.
However, listen to a couple of interesting points raised by the scholars. ’21:1-9. This event is traditionally known as the triumphal entry, when Jesus officially offers Himself to the nation of Israel as her long-awaited Messiah. However, in many ways it was far from a triumph, for the day ended in Jesus’ public prediction of His rejection by His own people. (See Mark 11:1-10; Luke 19:29-39; John 12:12-15).
Bethpage was a village near Bethany, about a mile east of Jerusalem and apparently hidden from it by the summit of the Mount of Olives, which was the hill on the east of Jerusalem. The quotation in verse 5 is a combination of Isaiah 62:11 and Zechariah 9:9, taken substantially from the Septuagint, the ancient Greek translation of the Old Testament.
Hosanna is the transliteration of a Hebrew term meaning “please save,” and occurs in 2 Samuel 14:4 and Psalm 118:25. From the following verse of this psalm the acclamation Blessed is he that cometh in the name of the Lord is taken, Riding on the colt of an ass marked the official entry of Israel’s kings. Thus Jesus arrives in full declaration of His kingship.’
And all God’s people gave a rousing and joyful shout of ‘Praise the Lord, our King cometh!’
Yes my fellow believers, today is one of the many red letter days in the celebration of our great faith, so please let’s give it the true attention it deserves, by going to the Lord’s House and celebrating it with others of the same ilk.
And we’ll end with an interesting word from Jesus as He denounces the hypocrite scribes and Pharisees. ‘For I say unto you, Ye shall not see me henceforth, till ye shall say, Blessed is he that cometh in the name of the Lord.’ (Matt.23:39)
Yes Friends, we can all look forward with great pleasure to that awesome day! Meanwhile, enjoy today’s blessings with plenty praise and thanksgiving! Much LOVE!
…oh to be wrapped up in the warm and LOVING arms of Jesus…nothing to it compares…
16 Feb 2014
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: avowed purpose, awe, Bible, business dealings, central theme, Christendom, Christian programmes, come to destroy, compassionate, defiling, dwell richly in our souls, exalt, faith, faith comes by hearing, fellowship, fire and brimstone, glorify, glory hallelujah, go in faith, go in love, god will go with you, God will guide you, God's children, good morning, grace, grateful, great importance, healthy, hear the Word, Jerusalem, Jesus, kernel statement, like persuasion, little ones, lost, lost sheep, LOVE, meditate on, never be afraid, one lost sinner, parting blessing, peace, perish, Pharisees, physician, ponder, power of God unto salvation, praise, presence, publican, reach out to others, rebuked, rejoices, repentance, reverence, righteous, sacrifice of praise, salvation, Samaria, Samaritans, save, save sinners, scribes, searching, searching Herdsman, self-righteous, shepherd context, show you believe, sick, sinners, steadfast, strong, Sunday, tax collector, teach, testify, thanksgiving, the Lord's Day, the Lord's goodness, the Son of man, the will of the Father, the Word of god, to seek, true, undeserving sinners, where two or three are gathered, worship, write indelibly in our hearts
Luke 19:10. For the Son of man is come to seek and to save that which was lost.
Well a good Sunday morning to all you Friends and fellow believers out there in Christendom! It is the Lord’s Day, so please let’s treat it as such; with reverence and awe, with praise and thanksgiving, with worship and fellowship.
Let’s get out and fellowship with those of like persuasion… and even with those of a different persuasion, for once Jesus is the focus of our attention, we simply cannot go wrong. Remember He specifically said that wherever two or three are gathered in His Name, that He would certainly grace us with His wonderful presence. (Matt.18:20)
And if by chance, or design, you can’t get out to fellowship with other believers and hear the Word, then turn on your television set and tune in to one of the many Christian programmes where the Word is boldly preached and listen to it attentively. Because to know the Word, you must hear it, and how can you hear it without a preacher? (Rom.10:14-15) For as Bruh Paul proudly proclaims: ‘So then faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the word of God.’ (Rom.10:17)
And just supposing you don’t have a T.V… Well then get out your Bible and read it aloud to yourself, for there’s plenty of power in the spoken Word. Note that God SPOKE the world and all therein into existence. It wasn’t any abracadabra, simi-dimi stuff. The important thing though my brethren, is that the Word of God comes into contact with your very soul, on this, His day.
That brings us to our Bit: ‘For the Son of man is come to seek and to save that which was lost.’
And all God’s children gave out a loud and joyous shout of “Glory Hallelujah! All praise to the Lord for His goodness to us undeserving sinners.’ And well we should all be grateful and offer the sacrifice of praise my brethren, for without Jesus coming to search for and save us, we’d still be lost.
And I like how the scholars explain it. ’19:10. The words, seek, save, and lost all appear elsewhere in Scripture in a shepherd context. This verse may be taken as a kernel statement of the central theme of Luke. Jesus is the compassionate, searching Herdsman who seeks to save those who can by no means save themselves.’
We surely can’t my brethren! Now today I want to share some scriptures where Jesus states His avowed purpose in coming to earth. And He does it several times, in several different ways.
Let’s begin with when He talks about lost sheep. ‘For the Son of man is come to save that which was lost.’ (Matt.18:11) Then He goes on to explain about a shepherd having an hundred sheep, but one gets lost and he leaves the ninety-nine and goes searching long and hard for the ONE LOST SHEEP, and rejoices greatly when he finds it. (Matt.18:12-13) ‘Even so it is not the will of your Father which is in heaven that one of these little ones should perish.’ (Matt.18:14)
Oh Friends, yuh see the great importance the Lord attaches to even ONE LOST SINNER! Consequently, if there had only been one single sinner in the entire world, the Father would still have sent Jesus to save him.
Now let’s turn to a time after Jesus had eaten with a publican (tax collector) called Levi. (Luke 5:27-29) The scribes and Pharisees are questioning Jesus as to: ‘Why do ye eat and drink with publicans (tax collectors) and sinners? (Luke 5:30) That’s because the Pharisees thought it was beneath them, defiling to have business dealings with tax collectors like Levi, much less to eat with them.
‘And Jesus answering said unto them, They that are whole (healthy) need not a physician; but they that are sick. I came not to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance.’ (Luke 5:31-32)
As the scholars explain: ‘5:32. Jesus is of course not dealing with the question of whether there are in fact righteous people who need no repentance. By ‘righteous’ He refers to the Pharisees, who thought they were righteous, and thus felt they had no need to repent. They were truly self-righteous.’
In any case, if you came to save sinners, then you obviously need to hang out with them, otherwise how would you teach and testify and bring them to repentance eh?
And we’ll close with this instance where Jesus is headed for Jerusalem, but while passing through Samaria is rejected by the people there. At this perceived slight, James and John want to call down fire and brimstone on the heads of the Samaritans. (Luke 9:51-54)
‘But he (Jesus) turned and rebuked them, and said, Ye know not what manner of spirit ye are of. For the Son of man is not come to destroy men’s lives, but to save them. And they went to another village.’ (Luke 9:55-56)
Ah mih breddren, that’s enough stuff for us to ponder today, to meditate on and write indelibly in our hearts. Please, let’s allow the Word of God to dwell richly in our souls, for ‘it is the power of God unto salvation.’ (Rom.1:16)
And here’s a parting blessing I got from my church in Tobago. ‘Go now in Peace – Never be Afraid. God will go with you each hour of every day. Go now in faith steadfast and strong and true. Know He will guide you in all you do. Go now in LOVE, and show you believe. Reach out to others, so all the world can see. God will be there watching from above. Go now in Peace, in Faith and in LOVE.’ Much LOVE, my fellow believers!
…once you know Jesus…you can’t help but LOVE and glorify and exalt Him…
SCRIP-BITS 