"And when (Jesus) had come into the ship, he that had been possessed with the devil prayed Him that he might be with Him. 19. Howbeit Jesus suffered him not, but said unto him, Go home to your friends and tell them how great things the Lord has done for you, and has had compassion on you.”
The incident referred to in the text is the encounter that Jesus had with the man who was demon possessed and ran naked and wild among the tombs. After Jesus had rid the man of the demons, it was natural that he would want to follow Jesus, but Jesus did not tell him to follow Him as He did His disciples. He told the man to go back to his home and share with others the miracle that he had experienced. Because of what happened to the man, he was given the responsibility of sharing it. This is a good lesson for us. We need to share with others what Jesus has done for us. Jesus told the man to go home to his friends. Can you imagine the surprise of the man’s friends when they saw him “clothed and in his right mind.” They would obviously be curious about what had happened to return him to sanity. The last time they saw the man he was out of control, now he had been changed. We have heard many stories about people who lived wild lives and were changed by the gospel, and about how surprised the people who knew them were. They noticed the change in him and wondered what had happened. It might be that you did not live a “wild” life before you were saved, but Jesus has done a work in your life, and He wants you to tell people about what He did, and is doing, for you. We are not told how the man’s friends reacted to his new life, but I imagine that, among other things, they wanted to know what happened to bring about this change. Whether the change is dramatic, as in the case of the demoniac, or undramatic, the reason for the change in our lives needs to be shared. Jesus told the man to tell his friends “what great things the Lord had done for (him).” Surely, Jesus has done something in your life that needs to be told. The “great things” that Jesus does for us might not be as dramatic as this story, or the experience of Paul, but He wants us to share them with others. You might not have a sensational story to tell, but you do have a story. We all have a story about what Jesus has done in our lives. We can share how Jesus replaced the depression and fear that we felt and gave us a new outlook on life. We can share how Jesus changed our relationships with people. Before Jesus touched our lives, we might have been afraid of people, felt inferior to them, or just did not like them. But when Jesus touched our lives, He changed our relationships. People will notice a difference in how we relate to them. We can share how Jesus, through the Holy Spirit, helped us begin to understand the scriptures. There is no limit to the things that we can share with others about the “great things” that Jesus has done in our lives. No matter how mundane our “great things” might seem to us as compared to those of the demoniac, the Lord can still use them to lead others to Himself. Jesus has done a work in your life that He wants you to share. Go to people and tell them about what Jesus has done for you, that He loves them and has compassion for them. Bro. Joe
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“A time to build up…”
I could find no better text for what I want to share in this article: “Building Your New Life.” We are always in the process of building, and rebuilding, our lives. Following are some tools for building and rebuilding your life. You need to build your life on faith in Jesus Christ. Faith in Christ does not just save us, but it sustains us in our daily lives. How do we build our lives on faith? Well, we need to read and study the Bible. We do this by meditating on our favorite passages. For example, turn in your Bible to Philippians 4:6-7 and read it, reflect on it and internalize it. (Go ahead. Do it!) Of course you include prayer with this and you shouls also fellowship with your fellow Christians. These are just three simple tools that you can use to build your life. You need to build your life with your eyes on the future. Paul gave some advice in Philippians 3:14 that can help in this endeavor: “Brethren, I count not myself to have apprehended (arrived): but this one thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind, and reaching forth unto those things which are before.” Your future is a blank page on which you will write each day. The decisions that you make will make a difference in the quality of your life. It is important to forget the failures and lapses of the past, and seek the help of the Spirit to walk in God’s will for your life. It’s called “getting up and going again.” Simon Peter had to do this after he denied the Lord, and he emerged victoriously. The Bible tells us that “all have sinned and come short of the glory of God.” (Romans 3:6) It is important for us to learn to live in the reality of God’s forgiveness. “Honest confession is good for the soul.” Confess, repent and accept the forgiveness that God offers. (Turn in your Bible and read 1 John 1:9.) Finally, accept the fact that the Lord will never leave nor forsake you. Yes, that promise is for you too—accept it! (continued tomorrow) Bro. Joe “That which has been is what will be, that which is done is what will be done, and there is nothing new under the sun.”
In Ecclesiastes, Solomon related that he had tried everything, pleasure, wine, work, etc. and it all proved futile. In the final analysis he wrote in Ecclesiastes 12:13-14: “Let us hear the conclusion of the whole matter: Fear God, and keep His commandments: for this is the whole duty of man. For God shall bring every work into judgment, with every secret thing, whether it be good or whether it be evil.” These two verses make the whole book understandable. There is nothing on this earth that can bring the satisfaction to our lives that a relationship with God can bring. This is true of our text as well. In a sense, there is nothing new under the sun. For example, history repeats itself frequently. The settings are different, fashions are different, communication is different, but we human beings keep making the same mistakes over and over again. It is true that “there is nothing new under the sun,” if you remember that this pertains to the things of the earth. But the Bible also deals with that which is new, that does not just have to do with worldly matters, but with our relationship with God. 2 Corinthians 5:17-19 explains what I mean: “Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold all things are become new. 18. And all things are of God, who has reconciled us to Himself by Jesus Christ, and has given to us the ministry of reconciliation. 19. To wit, that God was in Christ, reconciling the world unto Himself, not imputing their trespasses unto them; and has committed unto us the word of reconciliation.” Jesus makes all things new in the life of the Christian, and gives him or her, a new purpose in life. Romans 6:4 reminds us that “we also should walk in newness of life.” Newness comes only in that which is eternal. It is in Christ that we have newness in our lives. God sent His Son, Jesus, to give every person that newness. But most people choose the monotony of the world, and never learn what real newness is. I hope that this is not true of your life. If it is, Jesus is available to you. If you have, rejoice and enjoy the new life that God has given you. Bro. Joe “Be ye strong therefore, and let not your hands be weak: for your work will be rewarded.”
Our text was the advice given to Asa, the king of Judah, by Azariah when the “Spirit of God came upon him.” The occasion was Asa’s accession to the throne of Judah in a time of spiritual drought. Asa heeded this challenge, took courage and was “fully committed to the Lord all his life.” (NIV) We can apply this text to our lives. If we will commit ourselves to the Lord our “work will be rewarded.” In Ephesians 2:10 we are promised that when we are saved we will become “His workmanship created in Christ Jesus unto good works.” If we will commit ourselves to serve God, we will be effective in what we do. This is what it means to be “His workmanship…” This is a promise borne out in the Bible and in Christian history. I want you to get this down: GOD WILL USE YOU!!! Understand, you do not always need to know when God uses you, but take it on faith that He will. I believe that when I preach in the power of the Spirit, someone is touched whether I know it or not. I believe the same thing about my writing. He will use you in what you do for Him. Christ, through the Holy Spirit, will use us in our daily lives. He will use us as His witnesses at home, in our workplaces, at school, and at play. He can use our conversations with people to make a spiritual impression on them. He can use us by the way we act around people. We are Christ's witnesses wherever we are, not just by what we say but also how we act. I don't want to be insipid, but we are more likely to show Christ to people with a smile than with a frown. We are more likely to show Christ to people by a kind word than by an unkind word. Repeat after me: "CHRIST WILL USE ME!" Christ, through the Holy Spirit can use you in your work in the church where you attend and serve. The Holy Spirit has gifted you to serve. If your gift is to be an usher, be the best usher that your church has ever had, and ask God to use you to touch people by the way you usher. If your spiritual gift is teaching, teach under the power of the Spirit, know that what you do can, and will, touch people’s lives. If your spiritual gift is singing, sing to the glory of the Lord, and people will be touched by what you sing. Whatever your spiritual gift is, use it prayerfully and the Lord will reward what you do. TRY IT!!! God wants to use you! Bro. Joe "For God, who commanded the light to shine out of darkness, hath shined in our hearts, to the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ. 7. But we have this treasure in earthen vessels (jars of clay), that the excellency of the power may be of God and not of us.”
This is Paul's unique way of telling us that Christ, through the Holy Spirit, lives within us - within our bodies. It is interesting that our bodies are referred to as earthen vessels, or jars of clay, since God created us from the "dust of the ground." It is also interesting that these jars of clay were fragile, some more fragile than others. The God of the universe has taken abode through His Spirit in our earthen, fragile bodies. That, my friends, is love, grace and mercy. The very Son of God is our treasure. The treasure lives within us. Paul stated it another way in Colossians 1:25-27: "I have become it’s (the church) servant by the commission God gave me to present to you the word of God in its fullness. 26. The mystery that has been kept hidden for ages and generations, but is now disclosed to the saints. 27. To them God has chosen to make known among the Gentiles the glorious riches of this mystery, which is Christ in you, the hope of glory." (NIV) But He is not just dwelling in us. He is at work in us. In Ephesians 2:8-9, Paul writes that we are are saved by grace through faith, and that is not the result of our works, but the result of the mercy and grace of God. But "works" is not a dirty word, because he follows it up with verse 10: "For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus unto good works, which God hath before ordained that we should walk in them." Jesus enters our lives and begins a work in us that leads us to do the works that we have been destined to do since we were born, (At least that's how I interpret it.) We cannot take credit for the good results of the work that we do, for Paul tells us in 2 Corinthians 4:7: "But we have this treasure in jars of clay to show that this all-surpassing power is from God and not from us." (NIV) In all reality, Jesus enters our lives that we might show the power of God at work. That is a grand reason to be alive and walking around on planet earth. We are "earthen vessels" and Jesus is the "treasure." Believers, let's rejoice in that reality, and pray that God's purpose will be realized in our lives. Bro. Joe “Wherefore God also has highly exalted Him, and given Him a name which is above every name: 10. That at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of things in heaven, and things in earth, and things under the earth.” 11. And that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.”
People look at Jesus in different ways. To some people He is merely a good man. To some He is only a prophet. The fact is that Jesus is more than the human mind can conceive, or explain. To put it simply, He is what the New Testament says He is. Philippians 2:9-10 gives a great analysis of who and what Jesus is. The text tells us that the name of Jesus is the highest name. No other name could possibly be higher or better. He came to earth from His high place in heaven and lived a perfect life. The Bible tells us that He never sinned. “(He ) was in all points tempted like we are, yet without sin.” (Hebrews 4:15b) “All points” means that He experienced every type of temptation that we receive on a daily basis, yet He rebuffed all temptations. The name of Jesus is the highest name in every sense of the word. I want to illustrate this from Philippians 2: First, the name of Jesus is the highest name in servanthood: “But (Jesus) made Himself of no reputation , and took upon Him the form of a servant, and was made in the likeness of men. (2:7) Jesus, who reigned over the angels, went about doing good, healing people, feeding people and just generally helping people. The Son of God literally became a servant. Second, the name of Jesus is the highest name in sacrificial obedience: “And being found in fashion as a man, He humbled himself and became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross.” (2:8) A lot of people in the Bible obeyed God, but none as completely as Jesus. John 10:17-18: “Therefore doth my Father love me, because I lay down my life, that I might take it again. 18. No man taketh it from me, but I lay it down of myself. I have power to lay it down, and I have power to take it again. This commandment have I received of my Father.” These verses make the sacrifice of Jesus all the more wonderful, because He willingly did it by His own volition. Third, the name of Jesus is the highest name in Lordship: “That at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of things in heaven, and things in earth, and things under the earth. 11. And that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory God the Father.” Jesus is Lord of all. Think of it, Jesus went from the cross to eternal lordship. He is Lord now, but it will be revealed in a dramatic fashion in time to come. We can look forward to it! Do you? Bro. Joe “If you come across your enemy’s stray ox or donkey, you must return it to him. 5. If you see the donkey on someone who hates you lying helpless under its load, and you want to refrain from helping it, you must help with it."
The text written above shows us that we are not to treat even one that we would consider an enemy badly. There is something in us that says otherwise. If someone hates us it seems that we should have the right to ignore their ox or donkey. In fact, what we would sometimes like to do is to chide them and say that they are getting what they deserve. We might say, “Who cares about your old ox or donkey?” But the Bible does not leave room for that. Let’s see what Jesus, who is always our final authority on any issue, had to say on the issue. A good example is Matthew 5:43-46: “You have heard that it has been said, Thou shalt love thy neighbor, and hate thine enemy, 44. But I say unto you, love your enemies, bless them that curse you, do good to them that hate you, and pray for them which despitefully use you, and persecute you; 45. That you may be the children of your Father which is in heaven: for He makes the sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the just and the unjust. 46. For if you love them which love you, what reward have ye? Do not even the publicans (tax collectors) the same?” Jesus went far beyond returning an enemies stray ox or donkey, and helping an enemy when his donkey is under a load to heavy for it to bear. Jesus said that we are to love our enemies and even bless those who curse us and pray for those who would persecute us. Man, this really goes against our grain doesn’t it? Let’s go a little deeper into what Jesus had to say about our enemies. He said that if we want to be like God, then we will love our enemies and do good to them. I don’t think that Jesus meant that we had to love our enemies in order for God to love us, but I think that He meant that people will know that we belong to God when we treat all people equally, whether they love us or not. In John 13:34-35 Jesus said: “A new commandment I give unto you, that you love one another. 35. By this shall all men (people) know that you are my disciples, if you have love one to another.” The love that we show to one another in the church sets an example for the world, and helps them to know that we belong to Jesus. They might even want to become a part of us if they see such love. What we all need to do right now, if we want to be witnesses to a world in bad need of Jesus, is to love one another and let that love seep over into the world around us. Love is contagious, and if you want your church to grow, let people all around you see the love that you have in your church and they will want to be a part of that love. Is that what they see now? What are you going to do about it? Bro. Joe “And the Lord, He it is that doth go before thee; He will be with thee, He will not fail thee, neither forsake thee; fear not neither be dismayed.”
Moses was preparing the Israelites to go to their new home in Canaan. God was had already given the land to them but they would have to claim the land. He knew that they would have to be prepared to go in and do what God wanted them to in order to take the land. He wanted to build up their confidence in God before they undertook that task. The same thing that Moses told the Israelites is true for us as we make our way through the challenges of this life. He told them that the Lord was going before them. We have to realize that this is true in our lives as well. There is nothing that we face that God has not gone before us. Along the same line, David expressed about God in Psalm 132:1-5: “O Lord, thou hast searched me and known me. 2. Thou knowest my downsitting and my uprising; thou understandest my thought afar off. 3. Thou compassest my path and my lying down, and are acquainted with all my ways. 4. for there is not a word in my tongue, but, lo, O Lord, thou knowest it altogether. 5. Thou hast beset me behind and before, and laid thine hand upon me.” Whenever we get to our destination, God/Jesus has already been there, and He has surrounded us on the way. This is a Biblical fact that we can depend on. Not only will He be there when we get there, we will discover that He was with us while we were on the way. Moses promised the Israelites, “He will be with thee.” This is a great comfort as we face the contingencies of life. Sometimes we do not know which way to turn, but there is One with us at every moment who knows exactly which way we are to turn. In fact, He allows us to fail sometime so that we will lean on Him a little more heavily and know that He will not fail us. God occasionally let Israel fail so that they would learn to depend on Him. What all of this, Moses told the Israelites that God would never forsake them. This is true in our lives as well. Because of all of the above, Moses told the Israelites that they should “not be afraid or dismayed.” After all, it is fear that often makes us feel dismayed. When we are dismayed, we are in despair. This is a place that we do not have to be. We will occasionally go there, but we never need to stay there. Read this and believe it: Everything that Moses told Israel is true for us as well, so we can take heart and live joyful lives. Bro. Joe “This is the day which the Lord hath made; we will rejoice and be glad in it.” Psalm 118:24
“Again, He limits a certain day, saying in David, Today, after so long a time, as it is said, today if you will hear His voice, harden not your hearts.” Hebrews 4:7 Have you ever wished that you lived in another time or another place? I guess we have all wished this at some time or other, but it is a useless exercise. We are living in a certain time at a certain place, and the way I see it, we are living in this time and place because that is where God wants us. I have often said that I would go back to simpler times if I could take air-conditioning and medical science with me. I think you get my point. If we could live in another time and another place, we would still have to face the hardships of each day. I think that the Bible teaches us that we need to live today, because we can’t relive yesterday and we can’t live tomorrow. That’s right, that only leaves today. We should live each day to the fullest, giving our time to the Lord, and following His will for our lives. I want to point out some things about living life to the fullest today It is important that we embrace each day. The psalmist gave us some wise advice: “This is the day that the Lord has made; we will rejoice and be glad in it.” It is worth noting that he did not write: “We should rejoice and be glad in it,” but he wrote “we will rejoice and be glad in it.” The NIV translates it: “Let us rejoice and be glad in it.” Either way it is a positive statement about living each day that God has given us and rejoicing in Him and in the fact that He has given us another day. You can rejoice in the day or bemoan the day, but it is all you have at the moment. We can meet each new day with rejoicing, or we can bemoan each new day, and it will still be all that we have at the moment. Too many people are putting off today what they plan to do tomorrow. We need to take advantage of the fact we are alive today, and that we can live it in a positive way. I have heard it said many times that we can greet the day with “good morning Lord,” or with “good Lord, its morning.” Which do you think will give you a better day? You have today! What are you going to do with it? There are choices before you as you face today. You can spend some time praising God and thanking Him that you have today. You will be surprised at how much difference that will make in the rest of your day. Try it! Bro. Joe “Not everyone that saith unto me, Lord, Lord, shall enter the kingdom of heaven, but he that does the will of my Father which is in heaven. 22. Many shall say to me on that day, Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in thy name? And in thy name have cast out devils? And in thy name done many wonderful works? 23. Then will I profess unto them, I never knew you: depart from me, ye that work iniquity.”
I recently meditated and reflected on this text, not to know how I should interpret it, but to put it into succinct language so you can plainly see my meaning. The issue is that the people who did all of those wonderful works did not do the will of the Father. First, I want to look at the works that these people did. They prophesied, or preached, cast out devils, and did all kinds of wonderful works. I think that you will agree that if doing good works could qualify one to be part of the kingdom of heaven, these works would have qualified. But they did not qualify. The plain teaching of the New Testament is that people do not enter the kingdom of heaven, or are saved, based on works. In John 6:28, a group of people asked Jesus: “What shall we do that we might work the works of God.” In verse 29 Jesus answered their question, and the question that answers the text in Matthew 7: “Jesus answered and said unto them, This is the work of God, that you believe on Him whom He hath sent.” The answer is that there is no work that can save you, but you must put your belief, or faith, in Jesus. If one could do all of the works claimed by those questioning Jesus, they would still not be enough. Second, in Ephesians 2:8-9, Paul explained the process: “For by grace are you saved through faith; and that not of yourselves it is the gift of God: 9. Not of works, lest any man should boast.” Jesus died and rose from the dead that those who would put their faith in Him would be saved. The people in the text by-passed Jesus and depended on what they did to save them, and Jesus said that this cannot work. Our salvation is not a “do it yourself project;” rather it is a gift of God to those who, by His grace, put their faith in Jesus. Jesus did the work on the cross, and in His resurrection, to save us. Third, the next question is how do works enter into the equation? Paul answered the question in Ephesians 2:10: “For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus unto good works, which God hath before ordained that we should walk in them.” Saving faith puts us to work for the kingdom, not to be saved, but because we are saved. Works do not complete our salvation, but they make us effective in our salvation. That’s why James wrote: “Even so, faith, if it has not works, is dead being alone.” We can also say that works without faith are dead, being alone – at least according to our text. If you have not, invite Jesus into your life, having faith in Him to save you. Let Him put you to work in His kingdom. Bro. Joe |
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