1) Jesus again predicts his death and resurrection. But they didn't understand any of this. The significance of his words was HIDDEN from them, and they failed to grasp what he was talking about (vs 31-34).
2) Then Luke describes how a blind beggar gets healed by making a raucous and shouting, “Jesus, SON OF DAVID, have mercy on me!” (vs 34-43).
How is it that a blind beggar could see that Jesus was the promised Son of David, The Messiah, and be healed? And just before, the disciples failed to grasp the significance of his words? Why is it that understanding and revelation hidden within the pages of the Bible are grasped by some and not by others? Sometimes our strengths are our greatest handicaps when it comes to understanding the spiritual things of the Kingdom.
Monday, April 1, 2013
Tuesday, March 26, 2013
A Piece of Heaven
Luke 17:20-21 One day the Pharisees asked Jesus, “When will the Kingdom of God come?” Jesus replied, “The Kingdom of God can’t be detected by visible signs. You won’t be able to say, ‘Here it is!’ or ‘It’s over there!’ For the Kingdom of God is already WITHIN YOU.”
The Pharisees asked when God's Kingdom would come, not knowing that it had already arrived. The Kingdom of God is not like an earthly kingdom with geographical boundaries. Instead, it begins with the work of the HOLY SPIRIT IN PEOPLE'S LIVES and IN RELATIONSHIPS. We must resist looking to institutions or programs for evidence of the progress of God's Kingdom. Instead, we should look for WHAT GOD IS DOING IN PEOPLE'S HEARTS. - from The Life Application Study Bible, emphasis mine :)
So, BELIEVE! because it's written in black and white in your Bible! YOU carry Heaven within you every where you go. You are the gate between the broken world and Heaven. And it is your choice whether to open that gate and allow the love of God to pour through you and onto the people around you. This is what it means to die to yourself and live for Christ. It means you choose to be inconvenienced and you choose to obey the Spirit when he asks you to stop and love someone...to love the unlovable...to love angry people...to love people who think and do things differently...to love your enemies....to love people over stuff...to love people over ministry...
As we approach Good Friday and Easter, may we be again, overwhelmed by His love and allow it to flow freely through us.
The Pharisees asked when God's Kingdom would come, not knowing that it had already arrived. The Kingdom of God is not like an earthly kingdom with geographical boundaries. Instead, it begins with the work of the HOLY SPIRIT IN PEOPLE'S LIVES and IN RELATIONSHIPS. We must resist looking to institutions or programs for evidence of the progress of God's Kingdom. Instead, we should look for WHAT GOD IS DOING IN PEOPLE'S HEARTS. - from The Life Application Study Bible, emphasis mine :)
So, BELIEVE! because it's written in black and white in your Bible! YOU carry Heaven within you every where you go. You are the gate between the broken world and Heaven. And it is your choice whether to open that gate and allow the love of God to pour through you and onto the people around you. This is what it means to die to yourself and live for Christ. It means you choose to be inconvenienced and you choose to obey the Spirit when he asks you to stop and love someone...to love the unlovable...to love angry people...to love people who think and do things differently...to love your enemies....to love people over stuff...to love people over ministry...
As we approach Good Friday and Easter, may we be again, overwhelmed by His love and allow it to flow freely through us.
Friday, March 22, 2013
God Given Power Suits
Last night I was explaining to my kids why we need the baptism of the Holy Spirit. I believe God gave me this analogy, because I don't think I could have come up with it on my own. :)
When you become a Christian God gives you this awesome power suit like Iron Man's red suit. This suit enables you to rescue and help others and fight against Satan's forces. It enables you to do all the things Jesus did when he was on earth. It's an awesome power suit!! In Iron Man's suit, the power source is that blue light - the arc reactor. The power source for the suit God gives us is the Holy Spirit. We need to ask God for the baptism and filling of the Holy Spirit so that we are fully charged and energized. Only then can we fully utilize all the cool things our suit can do. If we aren't fully charged with the Holy Spirit, we only have enough energy to fly home. Like when Iron Man's suit is low on energy, he can't really do much.
So, fellow believers, get powered up and fully charged with the Holy Spirit because God has given you an awesome personalized power suit! It isn't equipped like anyone else's. Everyone's power suit in the body of Christ is different. Which makes it even more important that you power up and get fully charged and learn how to use your suit because this body of Christ is waiting for your specific abilities in order to accomplish God's Great Commission.
Mark 16:15-18 And then he told them, “Go into all the world and preach the Good News to everyone. Anyone who believes and is baptized will be saved. But anyone who refuses to believe will be condemned. These miraculous signs will accompany those who believe: They will cast out demons in my name, and they will speak in new languages. They will be able to handle snakes with safety, and if they drink anything poisonous, it won’t hurt them. They will be able to place their hands on the sick, and they will be healed.”"
When you become a Christian God gives you this awesome power suit like Iron Man's red suit. This suit enables you to rescue and help others and fight against Satan's forces. It enables you to do all the things Jesus did when he was on earth. It's an awesome power suit!! In Iron Man's suit, the power source is that blue light - the arc reactor. The power source for the suit God gives us is the Holy Spirit. We need to ask God for the baptism and filling of the Holy Spirit so that we are fully charged and energized. Only then can we fully utilize all the cool things our suit can do. If we aren't fully charged with the Holy Spirit, we only have enough energy to fly home. Like when Iron Man's suit is low on energy, he can't really do much.
So, fellow believers, get powered up and fully charged with the Holy Spirit because God has given you an awesome personalized power suit! It isn't equipped like anyone else's. Everyone's power suit in the body of Christ is different. Which makes it even more important that you power up and get fully charged and learn how to use your suit because this body of Christ is waiting for your specific abilities in order to accomplish God's Great Commission.
Mark 16:15-18 And then he told them, “Go into all the world and preach the Good News to everyone. Anyone who believes and is baptized will be saved. But anyone who refuses to believe will be condemned. These miraculous signs will accompany those who believe: They will cast out demons in my name, and they will speak in new languages. They will be able to handle snakes with safety, and if they drink anything poisonous, it won’t hurt them. They will be able to place their hands on the sick, and they will be healed.”"
Thursday, March 21, 2013
Always Pressing Toward Heaven
Philippians 3:13-14 "I focus on this one thing: Forgetting the past and looking forward to what lies ahead, I press on to reach the end of the race and receive the heavenly prize for which God, through Christ Jesus, is calling us."
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