Sincere Faith

Greg recently shared with me that he was enjoying the fact that Jesus referenced two stories from the OT when He was giving a sermon. We were discussing the implications of sharing a story with in a story. I got all excited! I asked Greg to learn all three stories so I can post them, but then this sent me on a search to know more about this moment and it's significance. Oh boy, was I ever so richly blessed.

First, this was Jesus' first sermon written about by Luke and it happened when He visited His hometown. 

I love that Jesus stood to read and sat to explain the Scripture.

In this short passage, Jesus quotes three different OT passages and one proverb (not in OT). He quotes a prophecy about Him by Isaiah, and references the ministry of two respected prophets (Elijah and Elisha).

The people at first celebrated His graciousness, but they quickly turned fickle and sought to throw Him off a cliff. They liked Him until He pointed out that they needed to have a sincere faith and that God uses unlikely people. He wasn't going to do miracles for them because their focus wasn't in the right place or rather person. 

There are habits we need to recognize about Jesus that we should also live by.

1. It was His habit to go church on the Sabbath even while traveling. 

2. It was His habit to read, share and explain the Scriptures.

3. It was His habit to quote the OT. He knew it well.

4. It was His habit to preach the truth.

5. It was His habit to seek people of sincere faith. 

Notice how He calmly walked away when they tried to throw Him off the cliff.

Please understand that the people would have known well the story of Naaman and the widow of Zarephath. 

Jesus' one sentence reference would have conjured in their minds quickly the story and how in both cases the prophet of God ministered to the person that showed sincere faith. All of them would known immediately that both Naaman and the widow of Zarephath were NOT JEWS! The prophets were ministering to non-Jews or Gentiles because they were who showed sincere faith.

Jesus was declaring that He was taking the GOOD NEWS to the Gentiles. This is why they were mad! 

Jesus wanted to reach you and me! Now that is GOOD NEWS! 

Oh, there is always so much more in the story than we realize. 

It is so important to be in the Word so we can be with Jesus and be transformed. 

Shalom y'all.

Winsome Courage

What is courage? 

At the heart of it, courage is the willingness to move forward when great risks are involved. For a follower of Jesus, true courage is trusting that God will be your strength as you move forward.

I have been pondering courage, ALOT. I am wondering if I should pray for more courage.

The other word that has captivated me lately is WINSOME.

To be winsome is to be attractive or charming with an open and delightful childlike innocence while demonstrating genuine love. It is socially attractive and inoffensive. 

How do I live a life that is both courageous and winsome?  Or should I say winsome and courageous?

Genuine love has both. It is attractive enough to be in the conversation, but risky enough that it is mindful of the risks and moves forward anyhow. 

Sometimes, I am too courageous, and I speak before I should. Sometimes, I am so worried about being offensive that I back off when I should allow the beauty of pure love to show its glory.

When I see courage I want to follow. When I observe a winsome spirit, my heart is drawn in. 

I want both. Don't you? 

Father, will you please create in me a courageous heart that is winsome for Your glory and for others blessing. In Jesus name amen

A more noble way... a Living Sacrifice

Do you ever just long for a nobler way? Do you ever just wish for a list you can follow? Do you ever wonder if you can be so noble? 

I know I do! I long for the more noble in me and in others!  I grieve when I do not see them in my community and Oh how I struggle when I do not live up to them. 

Maybe this is why I love Romans 12 so much. The other day as I read it, again I felt the urge to really know it. So for several days I am just sitting in it. I am listening to it from different translations. I am reading it in different translations. I found the Message fun and the Amplified Bible even more challenging as I ponder the beauty of this chapter. 

I love that God welcomes our living sacrifice and that Paul just says to use your gifts according to your measure of faith. It gives me permission to not worry about what others might say about my gifts and how I use them. They are my grace gifts and I just need to offer them up. What peace this gives. 

Oh but the reminder to not think so highly of oneself. Pride and insecurity are such ugly little beasts. Well, actually, they are huge obnoxious beasts that I absolutely hate when I recognize them in me. Maybe this is why we are called to celebrate the gifts of others and recognize that they have been given a measure of grace to use them. I find when I am celebrating another it leaves little room for the elevating of me. 

As if learning to celebrate a brother or sister's gift is not enough in our living sacrifice Paul then challenges us to genuine love. Genuine love will laugh and cry with another. Genuine love will overcome evil with good. It isn't enough for me to celebrate a brother or sisters gifts and measure of faith, but I am to love and serve the one who harms me. 

I wonder, "Do I really have that kind of love?"  I have friends that know what it is really like to live with evil slaying those you love. I wonder, "LORD, do I have that measure of faith to love persecutors?" 

Maybe, this is why Paul said that we should be in constant prayer. Maybe this is why we should be serving and opening our homes. It sure is hard to be angry at the one you eat and drink with.

God has me sitting in Romans 12. I truly have a heart that wants to do that which is honorable to all and be at peace as much as it depends on me. But, sometimes I confess I still need to be in constant prayer to truly live out genuine love. 

I imagine you struggle with this, too. Beloved, let's be patient in our tribulations. Let's bless and not curse. Let's be fervent in spirit and serve the LORD in genuine love as living sacrifices. AMEN

What does it mean to have manifold wisdom?

Manifold... 

What does it mean to have manifold wisdom?

First, I thought, "Well, there is many in the fold!" I visualized the deep folds of a warm velvety blanket covering several family members on a cold night while watching TV.

Then I looked it up and discovered that the original Greek for manifold was used to describe the variety of colorful flowers in an embroidery. 

God's variety of flowers are so glorious that artisans have wanted to capture the beauty for centuries. There is much to discover of their variety and beauty as well as the richness of their color. There are many yet to be seen and discovered.

This is also true of God's wisdom. God's gift to the rulers and authorities is the church making known to them the mystery of God's manifold wisdom revealed through Jesus. It is full of mystery and so much for us to discover. He is unsearchable and yet in the great mystery, He delights in allowing us to know Him and be known.

Through Jesus, we can approach God boldly with confidence. Through the love of Jesus and His sacrifice, we can be rooted, grounded, and strengthened. Through Jesus, we find hope, healing, belonging, oneness... 

Faith in Him helps us to not lose heart in our suffering, but to find hope that is full of unsearchable riches in Christ. The manifold or variety of His riches is so worthy of discovering.

In His manifold wisdom, He has always sought to have many in the family of God covered in His warmth of mercy and grace. Consider covering yourself in His grace and mercy through Jesus.

What is the Kingdom of God?

What is the kingdom of God? What does it mean to pray for the kingdom of God to come? How do I become a part of the kingdom of God? How can I see the kingdom of God? 

These were a few of tge questions rolling in my head and then I thought how would I share with someone about the kingdom of God? 

I just started jotting my notes. Some of these are found in Luke 9 but not all.

Kingdom of God...

1. Come to Jesus like a child.

2. The kingdom of God is something we receive. It is a gift of God. 

3. It starts as a small seed that blooms into a full blown tree.

4. God is the rule/monarch.

5. It is a spiritual rule. All will submit to Him.

6. All authorities were created by God.

7. Repentance of sins and turning from them is necessary to be a part of it.

8. New birth or a spiritual rebirth will be a part of it. Peace comes with it and it surprisingly beautiful. 

9. It cannot be destroyed but the enemy of God will keep trying. 

10. His fullness is revealed in it.

11. When you seek Him and His kingdom you gain everything eternal.

12. Those who serve in the kingdom of God serve as the least of these. 

So when Jesus says, "Follow me" the kingdom of God is what you are joining. Jesus told His disciples to go and proclaim the kingdom of God.

You will be My Witnesses!

Do you remember the first time you heard, "You will be my witnessess?" Or maybe the first time you actually understood what it meant? To be a witness you must share what you see and hear. 

When we have perceived something deep or profound, no one needs to tell us we should go share it. First, they will observe it and if they are close enough they will hear about it. 

On the day of Jesus' ascension, we can discover many things about what makes a good witness or evangelist. An evangelist is someone who tells good news. A good Bible story teller is both.

As I reflect on Acts 1:1-14, I discover so many things. I wonder if you see other things. Share them if you do. 

I noticed that Luke presents to us simply about what Jesus did and taught. He tells us about the work of the Holy Spirit in Jesus' life.

Luke tells us about Jesus' appearances after His Resurrection/time of suffering. Jesus visited people for 40 days and spoke to those He met with about the kingdom of God.

He reminds the hearer or reader that Jesus promised the Holy Spirit would come and that He would baptize them with the Holy Spirit. We must remember and share that the Holy Spirit comes with power and authority. But, only God, the Father knows the seasons and times of things to be. 

One of the key things we must understand about being a witness is that it is not just about us and only our immediate group. If we are true witnesses it will go beyond us. Luke points out to us that Jesus tells the disciples that they will be His witness in Jerusalem, Judea, Samaria, and to the outermost parts of the world. 

Jerusalem is your hometown.

Judea is your region.

Samaria is the people you don't like or want to share good news with so get rid of your prejudices.

And to the end of the earth. 

A true witness is in community communicating beyond their comfort zone in places beyond their expectations or perceptions.

This was so profound they found themselves gathering to meet in one accord with a spirit of unity to pray with both men and women. I love how Luke is pretty faithful in pointing out the women leaders. 

So while we gather, pray, and wait on the Holy Spirit to move, we must know that Jesus will return.Until then, we must prove ourselves faithful to share what we have seen and heard about Jesus. 

It is important to be in the Word, be with Jesus, so we can be transformed.

Shalom y'all!

Jesus Sent the Disciples to Tell His Story (Witness)

While on a trip in Brazil a long time ago, my interpreter said, "Here, Tara, here!" When I asked him later why he chose those three women for me to share the story of Jesus he said to me, "They were people of peace."

This was the first time in my life I heard about seeking the people of peace. I had read the passage numerous times, but in this moment I caught the truth found in Matthew 10:13.

It's been a couple of days since I had time to do an evangelism Story so, today, I wanted us to turn to Jesus and see what He expected of the disciples. Remember, we want to examine the action words that we are able to do today. 

As I read Matthew 10:5-13, I circled the action words that Jesus commaned the disciples to do when they went to go share the good knows about Jesus.

Please keep in mind in verse 1 it says that Jesus gave them all authority to go and do the miraculous.

1. Go in Jesus' authority not your own.

2. Go.

3. Proclaim the kingdom of heaven. 

What is the kingdom of heaven? 

It is God 's dwelling place. 

You are invited to join Him through Jesus. 

Believe in Jesus and you are a part of the kingdom of heaven.

 

This means you will repent of yours sins and move from darkness to light.

4. Heal the sick. This is God's work. Our role is pray for it in faith. 

5. Raise people up from spiritual death.

6. Cleanse those that are ostracized and bring them back into community. 

7. Give freely the truths you have been given.

8. Find worthy people. These are tge people of peace that are willing to let you share about Jesus.

9. Stay with the worthy people and disciple them.

10. Greet with a spirit of welcome.

11. Give your peace to those that are ready to receive.

12. Hold your peace and move on if a person is not open to receiving the truth about Jesus.

In all of this know that you will have those that want to stop you as you go.