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

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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?

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(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.)

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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