There’s nothing like a fresh, hot loaf of homemade bread just out of the oven. The wonderful smell fills the kitchen and my husband is usually there waiting patiently…butter knife in hand. But what happens to that homemade bread in a few days? What satisfies our hunger for a few days suddenly becomes moldy and uneatable. And that’s the biggest difference between natural and spiritual bread. Natural bread has a short shelf-life…but spiritual bread is eternal. Natural bread will never totally fill you up…you’ll keep getting hungry, while spiritual bread lasts forever. That’s why Jesus said, “I am the bread of life. He who comes to Me will never go hungry, and he who believes in Me will never be thirsty.” (John 6:35)
Category: Barnabus Ministry
John 14:1 ” Do not let your hearts be troubled. Trust in God; trust also in Me.”
Later in this same Chapter, Jesus repeats these words again, “Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid.” (John 14:27) In both verses Jesus is telling us that we have control over doubt, fear, and confusion…”Do not allow (or permit) your hearts (or minds) to be troubled. (confused and/or terrified) ” He wouldn’t be telling us to do something if it wasn’t possible for us to achieve it. Now stop and read that last sentence again please! Jesus is telling us that we all have the direct influence within us to rein in and exercise restraint over fear…but it’s contingent on our trust in Him. In other words, a troubled heart is an unbelieving heart. So our success over doubt and fear lies largely in how we build our faith in God. And this confidence in Him only comes by reading the Bible and praying daily…for you can never fully trust a stranger.
John 11:43 ” Jesus called out in a loud voice, ‘Lazarus, come out!’ “
When Jesus shouted into that grave, He was taking divine authority over death. And this wasn’t the only time He did this. In Luke 7:14 He raised back to life the only son of a widow when He touched the coffin and said, “Young man, I say to you, get up!” And when He ordered the dead daughter of Jairus to, “Get up!”… she did. (Luke 8:54) But His disciples were also witnesses to these miracles…and their faith grew with each one. For we find in Acts 9:40, Peter was called to pray for a lovely old woman by the name of Dorcas, a devote Follower, who had died. Under the guidance and power of the Holy Spirit within, Peter repeated the same words of Jesus, “Get up!”…and Dorcas came back to life.
I Corinthians 9:22 ” I have become all things to all men so that by all possible means I might save some.”
The content of the Gospel Message…the Good News of Jesus doesn’t change. What does change when you share it with others is the context and circumstances surrounding it. When people see you going through difficult times with grace and peace…they’ll be very curious. They’ll be watching you and wondering where you get your strength and hope. It’s then that you can share the Gospel Message through your personal struggle… which can only have an tremendously powerful impact on the listener.
Genesis 22:9-10 ” When they reached the place God had told him about, Abraham built an altar there and arranged the wood on it. Then he reached out his hand and took the knife to slay his son. “
Early in this Chapter, God tests Abraham by demanding his son of promise, Issac. God was refining Abraham’s character by commanding his loyalty and charging him to live in obedience. Anytime God tests us it’s for our ultimate benefit and good. Testing and sacrifice are just part of our journey towards self-discipline and holiness. Sacrifice is offering back to God the only thing I have to give… a love-gift of myself…of giving the best I have to the One I love the most.
Genesis 19: 24-26 ” Then the Lord rained down burning sulfur on Sodom and Gomorrah- from the Lord out of the heavens. Thus He overthrew those cities and the entire plain, including all those living in the cities – and also the vegetation in the land. But Lot’s wife looked back, and she became a pillar of salt.”
Angels of the Lord had warned Lot and his family of the impending destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah… and to flee and not look back. But even with the warning…Lot’s wife still turned back towards what once had been her life and lost it. Jesus also reminds us of this in Luke 17:32, when He told His disciples, “Don’t go back.” So why are we so prone to do exactly what the Lord tells us not to? When our fear of the unknown outweighs our faith in God…we go back. And when anxiety supersedes what we know in our heart to be true, our mind goes back to familiar coping mechanisms…allowing fear to crowd out our confidence in God.
Matthew 15:19 ” For out of the heart come evil thoughts, murder, adultery, sexual immorality, theft, false testimony, slander.”
When Jesus spoke of man’s corrupt, sinful nature He always addressed it in its ultimate result. For example, Jesus never warned us that we must not covet because it might lead to stealing…He said rather, You must not covet because it is stealing. The same goes for all the fleshly appetites and passions that come from our human nature. If you think it – Jesus says you’ve already done it in your heart…from lust to murder. For anytime we allow fantasy to fill our mind instead of truth, our flesh is winning.
Matthew 10:27-28 ” What I tell you in the dark, speak in the daylight; what is whispered in your ear, proclaim from the roofs. Do not be afraid of those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul. Rather, be afraid of the one who can destroy both soul and body in Hell.”
The work Jesus Christ did here on earth was not some clandestine secretive mission. Rather, everything He said and did was pretty much done in the public eye. Was He ridiculed and rejected for it…Yes. Was He snubbed and scorned by the people…Yes. Was He misunderstood and mocked often…Yes. But Jesus persevered with boldness and authority…never backing down from fear of man. These Scriptures encourage us to claim that same fearlessness and courage so as to not hide our light under a bushel.
Matthew 10:16 ” Behold, I am sending you out like sheep among wolves. Therefore, be as shrewd as snakes and as innocent as doves.”
To be a Christian in the world today is to be like a lamb among the wolves. We’re bombarded by carnality, violence, and deception everywhere we look. This is why Jesus directed His disciples to go out into the world using practical common sense…and using wisdom to maintain a pure ethical character no matter who or what they encountered. But nor were they to be gullible and naive in their worldly interactions. As Believers, we too are called to a Godly influence in the world…but not be influenced and so seduced by it.
Jeremiah 8:15 ” We hoped for peace but no good has come, for a time of healing but there was only terror.”
In all our lives we will go through darkness…not the kind caused by sin or disobedience…but darkness that comes out of fear and confusion in this broken world. But while we are crouched down in the Valley of Despair, we need to listen…for the Lord will be speaking life-bringing truths into our soul. Precious truths of encouragement, and exhortation that will sustain us during illness, pain, and loss. Isaiah 50:10 tells us, ” Let him who walks in the dark, who has no light, trust in the name of the Lord and rely on his God.”
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