Monday, November 26, 2012

The Story of My Life as told by Jesus Christ

(Seed Sowers Christian Book Publishing House. http://www.seedsowers.com/)

Monday, November 26, 2012       I Met a Man with True Faith        

Page 100-101         Matthew 8:1, 5-13; Luke 7:1-10

Jesus’ comments to the people in Capernaum may be quite chilling to people in our culture. We live in an age where everyone is a winner, everyone gets a trophy, no one is left out. But Jesus is very clear that not every person will be included in God’s Kingdom. This exclusion is every bit a measure of God’s grace and love, as it is by God’s grace alone that people can be included in His Kingdom. God honors the choices we make. We can choose to live by faith that Jesus is God’s Messiah, or not. Choosing the faith of the Centurion will take the chill off of Jesus’ warning.

Capernaum was Peter’s hometown and is on the western side of the Sea of Galilee, just a short distance north of Tiberias. Jesus spent most of his ministry in this region, and the Roman officer in today’s reading, through his close friendship with the people, had heard of Jesus’ teachings and the miracles associated with his ministry. The Centurion had concluded that the God of Israel was the God of creation, the one, true living God. He also concluded that this God was present in Jesus. As one very familiar with the chain of command, the Centurion expresses simple faith: if Jesus says someone will be healed, they will be healed! The Centurion’s faith was completely centered in Jesus, not on whether he deserved God’s favor because of the good works he had done for the people. The Centurion simply believed that Jesus was the Lord over all creation, and in humility asked Jesus for help.

Jesus is the Lord of the universe.

If, by faith, I really believe that Jesus is the Lord of the universe, then how do my prayers change?

If, by faith, I really believe that Jesus is the Lord of the universe, then how will I live my life differently?

Sē’lah

<><  <><  <><  <><

What word or phrase in today’s reading attracts your attention?

Reflect on that word or phrase.

What insights come to you?

How does this passage touch your life today?

<><  <><  <><  <><

(Selah is a word that appears in the Book of Psalms that I often use as the Complimentary Closing in my correspondence. Its meaning, as I use the word, is to pause and think about these things.)

These meditations are available by email. Contact me at Amkrom812@gmail.com to be added to the email list.

This BLOG is also available on Amazon Kindle, by subscription

The Story of My Life as told by Jesus Christ

(Seed Sowers Christian Book Publishing House. http://www.seedsowers.com/)

Tuesday, November 27, 2012      I Raise a Child from the Dead     

Page 101      Luke 7:11-17

Friday, November 23, 2012

The Story of My Life as told by Jesus Christ

(Seed Sowers Christian Book Publishing House. http://www.seedsowers.com/)

Friday, November 23, 2012          Ask, Look, Knock   

Page 99-100           Matthew 7:7-29; Luke 6:43-49

Today we conclude our reading of the Sermon on the Mount. Jesus invites all people to come to him and receive eternal life. Jesus has painted a beautiful picture of the Kingdom of God. He has described a way of living that I want to be my way of life. However, Jesus is telling his followers there is no cheap grace. There is a cost to discipleship. Jesus wants to be clear so that people know that while they have been invited to come as they are and live under the reign of God, when they come in, they will want to change the way they are living.

“Don't look for shortcuts to God. The market is flooded with surefire, easygoing formulas for a successful life that can be practiced in your spare time. Don't fall for that stuff, even though crowds of people do. The way to life—to God!—is vigorous and requires total attention” (Matthew 7:13-14 The Message).

In this digital age, where we can be overwhelmed with information and misinformation, finding our way to the life in Christ can seem quite daunting. However daunting the task may be, it is not impossible to find the truth, “For everyone who asks, receives. Everyone who seeks, finds. And to everyone who knocks, the door will be opened (Matthew 7:8). Twenty-six times in the Gospel of Matthew Jesus says, “I tell you the truth.” In John 14:6 Jesus says, “I am the way, the truth, and the life.” We CAN find the truth, God’s truth, in the issues of our times.

So persevere in asking, seeking and knocking as you “Keep your eyes on Jesus, who both began and finished this race we’re in. Study how he did it. Because he never lost sight of where he was headed—that exhilarating finish in and with God—he could put up with anything along the way: Cross, shame, whatever. And now he’s there, in the place of honor, right alongside God. When you find yourselves flagging in your faith, go over that story again, item by item, that long litany of hostility he plowed through. That will shoot adrenaline into your souls!” (Hebrews 12:1-3 The Message).

Sē’lah

<><  <><  <><  <><

What word or phrase in today’s reading attracts your attention?

Reflect on that word or phrase.

What insights come to you?

How does this passage touch your life today?

<><  <><  <><  <><

(Selah is a word that appears in the Book of Psalms that I often use as the Complimentary Closing in my correspondence. Its meaning, as I use the word, is to pause and think about these things.)

These meditations are available by email. Contact me at Amkrom812@gmail.com to be added to the email list.

This BLOG is also available on Amazon Kindle, by subscription

The Story of My Life as told by Jesus Christ

(Seed Sowers Christian Book Publishing House. http://www.seedsowers.com/)

Monday, November 26, 2012       I Met a Man with True Faith        

Page 100-101         Matthew 8:1, 5-13; Luke 7:1-10

Thursday, November 22, 2012

The Story of My Life as told by Jesus Christ

(Seed Sowers Christian Book Publishing House. http://www.seedsowers.com/)

Thursday, November 22, 2012     The Cares of Life   

Page 98-99   Matthew 6:25 - 7:6; Luke 6:37-42

Sometimes Jesus doesn’t seem very realistic. Just because he didn’t turn the stones into bread when he was in the wilderness, didn’t mean he couldn’t if he had wanted to. He fed 5,000 people with 5 loaves of bread and 2 fish. When you have that going for you, it’s pretty easy to tell other people not to worry. For people with real life worries about bills, jobs, families and their future, Jesus can sound a bit condescending.

But I know Jesus well enough to know that he couldn’t be condescending if he wanted to. That’s just not in him. What then does Jesus want us to see in his radical statements?

I hear him continuing the theme from the beginning of the Sermon on the Mount. Jesus is showing us that our relationship with God is all about trust. Can I trust God with all of my life? It is one thing to serve a god that only gives me a list of moral and ethical standards to obey. It is an altogether different thing to trust God with my life, my wife, my children, my job, my retirement and my future. This difference causes many people to hear Jesus’ command to “love the Lord your God with all your heart, all your soul, and all your mind and love your neighbor as yourself,” as a thirty second sound bite; but it is not a realistic way to live life unless you live in a monastery and don’t have jobs, bills and family to worry over.

But Jesus wasn’t into sound bites; he was very serious in His call for me to enter into a trusting, loving relationship with God the Father. Because such a relationship is so out of the realm of anything I have experienced in my life, Jesus gives me concrete examples of what my life will look like when I live my life by trusting in God who loved me and gave himself for me. I made these examples into a little check list to help me stay focused of what is really important to me:

Do I give more time and attention to my retirement accounts than I do to investing in the Kingdom of God?

What do I invite into my mind the most: mystery novels and nonsense TV shows? Or do I read Scripture, good literature and other materials that help me contemplate the richness and beauty of God’s Kingdom?

Am I anxious about meeting my needs? Or do I trust God to meet my needs out of the abundance of His riches and glory in Christ Jesus?

Am I anxious about tomorrow? Or do I remember that God’s mercies never end; they are new each morning?

Sē’lah

<><  <><  <><  <><

What word or phrase in today’s reading attracts your attention?

Reflect on that word or phrase.

What insights come to you?

How does this passage touch your life today?

<><  <><  <><  <><

(Selah is a word that appears in the Book of Psalms that I often use as the Complimentary Closing in my correspondence. Its meaning, as I use the word, is to pause and think about these things.)

These meditations are available by email. Contact me at Amkrom812@gmail.com to be added to the email list.

This BLOG is also available on Amazon Kindle, by subscription

The Story of My Life as told by Jesus Christ

(Seed Sowers Christian Book Publishing House. http://www.seedsowers.com/)

Friday, November 23, 2012          Ask, Look, Knock   

Page 99-100           Matthew 7:7-29; Luke 6:43-49

Wednesday, November 21, 2012

The Story of My Life as told by Jesus Christ

(Seed Sowers Christian Book Publishing House. http://www.seedsowers.com/)

Wednesday, November 21, 2012           I Taught About Prayer and Fasting        

Page 97-98   Matthew 6:5-24

In this portion of the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus is identifying a very important principle as he discusses three basic practices of all Christians: giving to the poor, prayer, and fasting. (Jesus discussed giving to the poor in yesterday’s reading.)

Did you observe what is intrinsic to each of these? Each of these constitutes a private transaction between the Christian and our Heavenly Father. I see this as the underlying theme to everything in the Sermon on the Mount thus far.

God, the Father Almighty loves you. God invites you to be reconciled to Him, through faith in Jesus who loved you and gave himself for you. Because you are reconciled to God, your needs for love, acceptance and a sense of self-worth can be fulfilled in ways you never dreamed were possible. Is that enough for you?

By faith in Jesus you can experience God’s complete love and acceptance of you as His beloved child. Is that enough for you?

Can you be satisfied plumbing the depths of how wide, how long, how high, and how deep God’s love is for you?  Are you satisfied knowing you will be made complete with all the fullness of life and power that comes from God? (Ephesians 3:18-19)

Simply put, Jesus is asking: “Is it enough that your Father knows that you give to the poor, pray and fast? Or do you need the praise and adoration of the world around you in order to feel whole and fulfilled?” (Seeking to be fulfilled through the praise of the world is like trying to quench your thirst by drinking sea water.)

Because the Sermon on the Mount is so familiar to most Christians, it may not seem to be as offensive as Jesus first intended. Offensive? Yes, Jesus thoroughly intended to offend our sensibilities.

“Wherever your treasure is, there the desires of your heart will also be . . . And if the light you think you have is actually darkness, how deep that darkness is! No one can serve two masters . . . You cannot serve both God and money” (Matthew 6:21-24).

It is so easy to deceive ourselves into thinking we are fully devoted followers of Jesus by sprinkling some of Jesus’ teaching on our lives. However, God doesn’t want us to take a little of this and a dab of that; He wants us to feast on the entire Sermon on the Mount. God sacrificed Jesus for the sins of the world because God wants every morsel of your life!

Sē’lah

<><  <><  <><  <><

What word or phrase in today’s reading attracts your attention?

Reflect on that word or phrase.

What insights come to you?

How does this passage touch your life today?

<><  <><  <><  <><

(Selah is a word that appears in the Book of Psalms that I often use as the Complimentary Closing in my correspondence. Its meaning, as I use the word, is to pause and think about these things.)

These meditations are available by email. Contact me at Amkrom812@gmail.com to be added to the email list.

This BLOG is also available on Amazon Kindle, by subscription

The Story of My Life as told by Jesus Christ

(Seed Sowers Christian Book Publishing House. http://www.seedsowers.com/)

Thursday, November 22, 2012     The Cares of Life   

Page 98-99   Matthew 6:25 - 7:6; Luke 6:37-42