Early in His Ministry, Jesus returned to His home town of Nazareth. There, He practiced the Ministry of Staying Put. Many of us rail at that Ministry, for we’d rather be used in the far-flung reaches of the world than to be utilized by God in the place we were born and raised. Just this past Sunday in Church I heard of an opportunity to go on a short-term mission to Guatemala to work in an orphanage of shunned and outcast children with handicaps and congenital defects…and my heart went out to them and their suffering. Does this mean I will go? That’s entirely up to the Lord, and I leave it in His hands. For my mission may be to remain where I am, touching the people around me… in the town where I was born and raised.
Tag: trusting in Jesus
John 4:4 ” Now He had to go through Samaria.”
Jews didn’t associate with Samaritans, and any self-respecting Jewish man surely wouldn’t make a point of traveling through Samaria…but Jesus did. He didn’t have to plan the trip that way…most would have gone around Samaria…but Jesus didn’t. You see, Jesus had a divine appointment arranged for a woman at Jacob’s well…a meeting that would not only change her, but many of her fellow towns-people. The Lord is ever reaching His saving hand into places we’d probably never go…into prisons, crack houses, seedy motels, or dark alleyways…places where the forgotten, shunned, and hopeless live. But no soul is beyond His reach…no life is beyond His grace and mercy.
I John 5:12 “He who has the Son has life; he who does not have the Son of God does not have life.”
This scripture doesn’t mince words…you either have eternal life, or you don’t. You either claim Jesus Christ as your personal Savior, or you don’t. In this wishy-washy world where no one wants to commit or take a stand, it’s pretty black and white…you either believe in Jesus and have eternal life, or reject Him and have God’s wrath on you.
Jeremiah 9:6 “You live in the midst of deception; in their deceit they refuse to acknowledge Me, declares the Lord.”
The world’s deception isn’t blatant…it’s a sly twisting of the truth that may ring true in parts, but in the whole, is false. For the causal listener, it sounds fine…but is it really? The world wants to mislead, trick, and fool us…to lull us into a false sense of security that a loving God would never send people to hell…never judge people who go against His Laws…never pass sentence on those unwilling to recognize Him as Lord. The world’s deception has been a slow and insidious process…like a slow-growing cancer. What was taboo for our Grandparents is now touted openly…what was considered risqué then, is now in everyday commercials. Our minds have been slowly desensitized and deceived over the years by a twisting of what we should believe today as “normal”. But our God will not be mocked and soon all will stand before Him to be judged.
John 6:44 “Jesus answered, ‘No one can come to Me unless the Father who sent Me draws him and I will raise him up at the last day.’ “
God sent Jesus on a mission of rescue…lovely drawing us to Him and saving our souls. Psalm 91:14 says, ” ‘Because he loves Me,’ says the Lord, ‘I will rescue him; I will protect him, for he acknowledges My name.’ ” Jesus is still on that mission of rescue today…desiring none to perish.
Matthew 3:15 ” Jesus replied, ‘Let it be so now; it is proper for us to do this to fulfill all righteousness.’ Then John consented.”
Why was Jesus so insistent that John the Baptist baptize Him? Why would the Son of God need to submit to it at all? First for credibility…a sinless Jesus could identify with all sinners by humbling Himself to baptism. Secondly for obedience…Jesus demonstrated His total submission to His Heavenly Father in baptism. Finally for new beginnings…for this was the first step in the start of His public ministry here on earth.
Luke 24:18 ” They stood still, their faces downcast, one of them, named Cleopas, asked Him, ‘Are You only a vistor to Jerusalem and do not know the things that have happened there in these days?’ “
It was still on the third day that these two followers of Christ were trudging on the road to Emmaus. Disheartened and disillusioned , they had put their hope in this man named Jesus only to see Him die on a Cross. Yes, some crazy women had tried to convince them that He had risen from the dead, but they weren’t believing any of it. Suddenly, a man was walking along side them, asking what they were talking about. Cleopas was incredulous that this stranger didn’t know the events of the last few days. In more modern language, Cleopas might have exclaimed to Him – “Have you been living under a rock?!” And Jesus could have replied, “As a matter of fact, Yes, I have.”
John 8:42 ” Jesus said to them, ‘ If God were your Father, you would love Me, for I came from God and now am here. I have not come on My own; but He sent Me.’ “
God sent His only Son to earth in order to save us from our sins. Jesus Christ came from God to take our place on that cross. So if you know God…you love Jesus…and if you love Jesus and accept Him as your Savior, your sins are forgiven…and when your sins are forgiven, you receive eternal life.
We’ve got to live: Faithfully in His Word
In James it says to not merely listen to the Word…but do It. In order to put your trust in the Lord, you must take what you hear and apply it to your life. You need to take that head knowledge and internalize it into heart knowledge. The Word of God is powerful and alive, but if it goes in one ear and out the other, it’s of no use to you. For just hearing God’s voice will never cause change within… unless you do something with it.
Hebrews 10: 37-38 ” For in just a very little while, ‘He who is coming will come and will not delay. But my righteous one will live by faith. And if he shrinks back, I will not be pleased with him.’ “
The writer of Hebrews is paraphrasing Habakkuk 2:3-4 in this passage. He’s stressing that our spiritual walk is made up of constant, focused, decisions to trust and obey the Lord…even when we can’t see change. He warns us against retreating or drawing back from trials simply out of fear. If you’re in the middle of a storm today, don’t allow fear to rule your life…don’t hesitate when apprehension rises in your throat…rather make a conscious decision to listen to that still small voice of the Holy Spirit and walk by faith.
Safetypinlove 