My Words Abide 11/30

John 15:7, KJV
"If you abide in Me, and My words abide in you, ye shall ask what ye will, and it shall be done unto you." 

Reading from John 15:7-11, AMP:
7) If you live in Me [abide vitally united to Me] and My words remain in you and continue to live in your hearts, ask whatever you will, and it shall be done for you. 8) When you bear (produce) much fruit, My Father is honored and glorified, and you show and prove yourselves to be true followers of Mine. 

Inspiration: Produce much fruit? To have a fruit, it must live in the ground. To have a fruit, it must have root. To have a fruit, one must water it. To have a fruit, it must grow. To have a fruit, it must become ripe. To have a fruit, it must become savory, a pleasing to the taste. The Father is honored and glorified when we become fruitful to Him.  

Prayer: Thank you, Jesus for your Words remind me to abide in you and that we can ask you in time of our needs. We keep your Words into our hearts so that we may become fruitful and pleasing to our Heavenly Father. We love you, Jesus. We love you, Father. We love you, Holy Spirit. In Jesus' name, Amen!

 

Do All Things 11/29

Philippians 4:13, KJV
"I can do all things through Christ which strengtheneth me." 

Theme: Paul Thanks the Christians: Reading from Phil. 4:10-20, NCV.
10) I am very happy in the Lord that you have shown your care for me again. You continued to care about me, but there was no way for you to show it. 
11) I am not telling you this because I need anything. I have learned to be satisfied with things I have and have everything that happens.
12) I know how to live when I am poor, and I know how to live when I have plenty. I have learned the secret of being happy at anytime in everything that happens, when I have enough to eat and when I go hungry, when I have more than I need and when I do not have enough.
13) I can do all things through Christ, because he gives me strength.
14) But it was good that you helped me when I needed it.
15) You Philippians remember when I first preached the Good News there. When I left Macedonia, you were the only church that help me. 
16) Several times you sent me things I needed when I was in Thessalonica.
17) Really, it is not that I want to receive gifts from you, but I want you to have that good that comes from giving.
18) And now I have everything, and more. I have all I need, because Epaphroditus brought your gift to me. It is like a sweet-smelling sacrifice offered to God, who accepts that sacrifice and is pleased with it.
19) My God will use his wonderful riches in Christ Jesus to give you everything you need. 20) Glory to our God and Father forever and ever! Amen. 

Inspiration: What impressed me was that when the Holy Spirit guided me to give someone the money in time of need, my giving was "like a sweet-smelling sacrifice offered to God, who accepts that sacrifice and is pleased with it." No wonder I felt good when I gave something. 

Prayer: Thank You, Lord for having me to read this simply from the card verse and to understand why Paul had written Philippians 4:13. Awesome, Lord! Thank You again. May those who read this be blessed. In Jesus' name. Amen!  

Day of Trouble 11/28

Psalm 86:7
"In the day of my trouble I will call upon thee: for thou wilt answer me."

Card Prayer:  Help me, Lord, to act with your love in the seemingly impossible situations of life. My prayer to God: For with God all things are possible. Thank You for reminding me of Jesus' Word, "The things which are impossible with men are possible with God" (Luke 18:27). In Jesus' name, I thank You! Amen!

SONG: GOT ANY RIVERS?
Got any rivers you think are uncrossable?
Got any mountains you can't tunnel through?
God specializes in things thought impossible;
And He will do what no other power can do.
(Inspiring Choruses)

My Presence 11/27

 "And He said, My presence shall go with thee, and I will give thee rest" Exodus 33:14.

Prayer:
Dear God, thank You that You still speak to us. Help us to be still and know that You are God. Show me Thy way that I may know Thee, that I may find grace in Thy sight. You are delighted when we  come to know You through the reading or studying Your Word. Thank You for Your Presence! Thank You for the rest on Thanksgiving Day! In Jesus' name I pray, amen! 

Acknowledge Him 11/26

"In all thy ways acknowledge Him, and He shall direct thy paths" Proverbs 3:6.

Prayer: O God, help me to keep You first in my life. Like Jesus said, "Seek ye first the kingdom of God, and His righteousness; and all those things shall be added unto you" Matt. 6:33. Thank You for reminding me Your Word into my heart. In Jesus' name, I pray. Amen! 

[God said: "I love them that love Me; and those that seek me early shall find me" Prov. 8:17.] 

Acknowledge in ASL means "Get to know Him!" 

God is With You 11/25

"God is with thee in all that thou doest." Gen. 21:22

Prayer:
Thank you, Lord, for leading me this far. Thank You for giving me Your directions for today so that I may walk in Your path. In Jesus' name, amen!

Happy Thanksgiving! 11/24-30

Thanksgiving is a time to thank God for all that He has done for us. I am thankful that God has inspired me to write Manna and verse for the day. I will be taking break for a week until December 1st. So I wish you a good Thanksgiving week in USA. In Canada, they already had Thanksgiving last month. So happy belated Thanksgiving to Canada!

May God bless you,
Dorothy Callies

PS. I may use some varies personal devotions pick up from others articles to share and put into Fresh Manna. 

A Peculiar People 11/23

Others gave comments through emails, but I thought this was too good to pass it up. The reason is because it is original writing and it is a "Fresh Manna."

THE QUESTION WAS: WHY DID GOD SET UP 10 COMMANDMENTS?
In the Old Testament, God wants His people to be a peculiar, one's own, special people, not like the people of other nations. What God has seen the people of other nations had done, He made Ten commandments of eight "DO NOT" be like them and two commandments to "KEEP & HONOR."

I found five verses that talked about "a peculiar people".  Exodus 19:5 "... ye shall be a PECULIAR treasure unto Me above all the people ..." Deut. 14:2 "... a PECULIAR people unto Himself, above all the nations that are upon the earth." Deut. 26:18-19 "... His PECULIAR people, as He hath promised thee, and thou should keep all His commandments; And to make thee high above all nations ..."

[The fact was that the people of Israel broke the laws and had disobeyed God. What the law could not do for them,] Titus 2:14 "Jesus Christ (who) gave himself for us, that he might redeem us from all iniquity, and purify unto himself A PECULIAR people ... "  1 Peter 2:9 "... a royal priesthood, an holy NATION, A PECULIAR PEOPLE ..."

So the answer is: Jesus Christ is the One who redeem us from the law that condemned us, so now Ten Commandment is a reminder how to live for Him, yes! Christ is our Promise Covenant! That's why we have "Passover" Communion, a constant Covenant with Him! Amen!!!

Why 10 Commandments? 11/23-24

Why did God set up 10 commandments? Exodus 20:1; Deuteronomy 5:1

It goes back to the time of Noah’s days, multitude of people were carefree, lived so long as to 900 years. They ate fruits, grains, and ate no meats. They got so bored so they started to have idols to worship to, something they could see. Also for Israelites who had lived in Egypt during 400 years, they saw so many idols and were influenced by it.

#2 There were people who would not be satisfied with just one God so they tend to make any graven image made from wood, metal, and gold. #3. At times people swear using God name in vain. Cursing and swearing were common. #4 People works all the times, any days of the weeks, seven days a week until they became tired, and weary, even families or slaves were forced to work.

#5 There were people who do not show any respect to their aging parents. When they got old, they just simply got rid of them. #6 There were a lot of murders, killings for the sport of it. #7 & 8 Adultery and stealing become common for many generations.  #9 The people in the communities developed a habit of lying against their neighbor simply because they didn’t like them so they would witness against them especially in the court.

#10 In the days of Noah and also in Egypt where the Israelites were living 400 years, common problem with the neighbors’ attitude were: “They have something better than I have so I want that.” They covet so much from their neighbor’s house that was better, wife that was prettier, servants that was better or even covet better animals.

THAT WAS THE REASON GOD SET UP THOSE LAWS:

1. THOU SHALT HAVE NO OTHER GODS BEFORE ME.

2. THOU SHALT NOT MAKE THEE ANY GRAVEN IMAGE.

3. THOU SHALT NOT TO TAKE THE NAME OF THE LORD THY GOD IN VAIN.

4. REMEMBER TO KEEP THE SABBATH DAY HOLY.

5. HONOR THY FATHER AND THY MOTHER.

6. THOU SHALT NOT KILL.

7. THOU SHALT NOT COMMIT ADULTERY.

8. THOU SHALT NOT STEAL.

9. THOU SHALT NOT BEAR FALSE WITNESS AGAINST THY NEIGHBOR.

10. THOU SHALT NOT COVET.  

Did you know that the law already condemned us because we broke one or some of them? We were supposed to be punished, but God send His own Son to be sacrificed upon the cross so we could accept the Lord Jesus Christ as our Savior and be home with God in heaven. I am thankful that Jesus stepped out and said to the laws, “I will take their place.  Do not condemned them.”  [Ref. Romans 8:1-4]

The Lord has put this upon my heart for several days and there must be reason to write this and share them with you. May the Lord bless you.

The Lord is Gracious 11/21

 Verse for the Day by Dorothy Callies

Psalm 145:8 KJV, “The Lord is gracious, and full of compassion; slow to anger, and of great mercy.”

The Lord is gracious is often repeated which expresses God’s delight in showing mercy.  When He sees misery, it moves His heart to compassion. He is slow to become angry at our offenses and quickly show mercy when forgiveness is requested.

1 Peter 2:3 KJV, “If so be if ye have tasted that the Lord is gracious.” Peter explained to those who were babes in Christ and growing in Him, to remember not to take advantages of God’s kindness. It means that when God is gracious, it should encourage us to keep growing in Christ through much prayer and studying His Word.  

Let’s read different verses and get to know more about God’s awesome love. It might cause us to want to love Him even more. Psalms 145:8, 9, 13b, 17, 18 will tell us what the Lord is.

“The Lord is kind and merciful, slow to get angry, full of unfailing love. V.9 The Lord is good to everyone. He showers compassion on all his creation. V. 13b The Lord is faithful in all He says; He is gracious in all He does. V. 17 The Lord is righteous in everything He does; He is filled with kindness. V. 18 The Lord is close to all who call on Him, yes, to all who call on Him sincerely” (NLT).  

Finally, it would causes us to say, “I will praise the Lord, and everyone on earth will bless His holy name forever and forever” Psalm 145:21.

SONG: SURELY GOODNESS AND MERCY

Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me

All the days, all the days of my life;

Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me

All the days, all the days of my life;

And I shall dwell in the house of the Lord forever

And I shall feast at the table spread for me.

Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me

All the days, all the days of my life.

(Inspiring Choruses)

Each Generation Tell 11/20

Verse for the Day by Dorothy Callies

Psalm 145:4 KJV, “One generation shall praise Thy works to another, and shall declare thy mighty acts.” NLT, “Let each generation tell its children of Your mighty acts.”

In our daily worship we are made to remember the continuity of the praise of God that has gone on for three thousand years, with parents telling their children of God’s mighty acts. This is how we got the Bible because the generation pass along to the next generation.  

Psalm 145:5 KJV, “I will speak of the glorious honour of Thy majesty, and of Thy wondrous works.” NLT, “I will mediate on your majestic, glorious splendor and your wonderful miracles.”

So now this individual worshipper, one of the congregation as a body, pauses to mediate in his turn on thy wondrous works, really “thy wondrous words”; for an act of God is first a word He has spoken into space and time. In Genesis 1:3 “And God said, ‘Let there be light’ and there was light.” Then we mediate on God’s wondrous works from His spoken words.

Psalm 145:6-7 NLT, “Your awe-inspiring deeds will be on every tongue; I will proclaim Your greatness. Everyone will share the story of your wonderful goodness; they will sing with joy of Your righteousness.”

Prayer: Every day I will bless You, and I will praise You forever. I thank You for Your blessings and gifts to us. You are our Maker! You are our Redeemer! You are our Provider! We love You! We worship You! We adore You! You are a wonderful God! In Jesus’ name I pray. Amen and Amen!

SONG: HE’S THE ONE I LOVE

He’s the one I love in the morning

He’s the one I love at noon;

He’s the one at evening twilight,

He’s the one at midnight gloom;

He’s the oak and I’m the ivy

He’s the potter, I’m the clay;

For my Lord and me there’ll never

be a parting day.

(Inspiring Choruses)

Song: YOU’RE THE ONE I LOVE

You’re the one I love in the morning

You’re the one I love at noon;

You’re the one at evening twilight,

You’re the one at midnight gloom;

You’re the oak and I’m the ivy

You’re the potter, I’m the clay;

For my Lord and me there’ll never

be a parting day.

(More personal song to God)

Beyond Discovery 11/19

Verse for the Day by Dorothy Callies

Psalm 145:3 KJV, “Great is the Lord, and greatly to be praised; and His greatness is unsearchable.”

Psalm 145:1-3 NTL, “I will praise you, my God and King, and bless your name forever and ever. I will bless you every day, and I will praise you forever. Great is the Lord! He is most worthy of praise! His greatness is beyond discovery!” God is able to lift us because His greatness is beyond discovery.

Beyond discovery means to go to the farther side of and out of reach and to make known as if something is hidden from us. When we search for something, we go through or look very carefully in an effort to find something or to discover something. When we come to the word unsearchable about God Himself, what better words to say, “His greatness is beyond discovery!”

My! What else could we say about Him? Could we ever understand His greatness? NCV tell us that “The Lord is great and worthy of our praise; no one can understand how great He is.” I like to add the Amplified Bible, “Great is the Lord and highly to be praise; and His greatness is [so vast and deep as to be] unsearchable.”

So let us trust God today!

SONG: HOW BIG IS GOD

How big is God: how big and wide His vast domain.

To try to tell these lips can only start.

He’s big enough to rule His mighty universe

Yet small enough to live within my heart.

(Inspiring Choruses)

The Lord Upholds You 11/18

Verse for the Day by Dorothy Callies

Psalm 145:14 KJV, “The Lord upholdeth all that fall, and raiseth all those that be bowed down.” NLT, “The Lord helps the fallen and lifts those bent beneath their loads.”

Sometimes our burdens seem more than we can bear and we wonder how we can go on. David stands at this bleak intersection of life’s road and meditates on the Lord, the great burden bearer.

I like the words, “The Lord upholds you.” The word, upholds means to give support to and to lift up. God is always ready to lift you up and bear your burden. The best way to do this is to sing the songs about lifting. As you sing, you will feel something lifting inside of you.

SONG: HE LIFTED ME

From the sinking sand He lifted me,

With tender hand He lifted me,

From shades of night to planes of light,

O praise His name, He lifted me!

(Charles Hutchinson Gabriel, Sing His Praise)

Generously Provide 11/17

2 Corinthians 9:8a, NLT “And God will generously provide all you need.”

I compare KJV with NLT and I was surprised to see a clear meaning. So I checked the NCV for another translation and it says, “And God can give you more blessings than you need.” KJV says, “And God is able to make all grace abound toward you …” Reading this, I realize that “grace abound toward you” means generously provide and more blessings than you need.

Actually, there’s more to this by reading as whole from 2 Cor. 9:6-8, but for now I just focus on one line on 2 Cor. 9:8a, the verse that impress me the most was about God Himself will generously provide all you need. When I got up in the morning, I notice that I have to keep up with my personal needs. Toilet papers must be there.

To brush my teeth, a toothpaste must be there. Alcohol must be there with cotton pads to wipe off the soil on my face skin. Three eye medicines, two of them must be there for morning drops.  Brushes and hair dryer, must be there. Soap or liquid soaps must be in the shower. Hair shampoo must be there to wash my hair. Wash cloths must be there to wash my face and body. Towels must be there to dry myself. More little things must be there.

Clothes must be there for me to get dressed. Now I realized what this verse meant “And God will generously provide all you need.” Holy Spirit opened my eyes to see every little things, God had already provided for me day by day.  I just need to believe that God will continually and generously provide all that I need. That goes for you, dear friends. God will provide all that you need. Trust Him today!

SONG: JESUS IS ALL I NEED

All that I need He will always be;

All that I need till His face I see;

All that I need thro’ eternity,

Jesus is all I need.

(James Rowe, Sing His Praise)

Tell Me the Story Often 11/16

Verse for the Day by Dorothy Callies

Acts 2:21b “Whosoever shall call on the name of the Lord shall be saved.”

Do you ever become weary and feeling kind of emptiness for no reason at all? It is as if we lost something, but what? I was reading a short story about Catherine Hankey who became very ill and had to stay in bed. While in thoughts, she wrote a poem that later became a hymn, “Tell Me the Old, Old Story”:

Tell me the story slowly, That I may take it in—

That wonderful redemption, God’s remedy for sin.

Tell me the story often, For I forget so soon;

The early dew of morning has passed away at noon.

Tell me the old, old story, Tell me the old, old story;

Tell me the old, old story Of Jesus and His love.

Ah, God’s remedy for sin and I quote this: “I called upon the name of the Lord and he has saved me from that empty feelings.” God reminds me that you are feeling that lost souls and their empty feelings. He put the discerning spirit in you so you could pray for those who are lost and who need to hear the old story of Jesus’ salvation. Pray that they shall call on the name of the Lord and they shall be saved.

We never get tire of hearing the story because of His great love, God sent His one and only Son to this earth (John 3:16). He lived a perfect life, took our sin upon Himself when He was crucified, and 3 days later rose again. When we receive Him as our Savior, we are given eternal life and become His children (John 1:12). Tell someone the old, old story of Jesus and His love. We all need to hear it again. God bless you real good! Amen!

How Wonderful Thou Art! 11/13-15

Psalm 139:6 AMP, “Your [infinite] knowledge is too wonderful for me; it is high above me ...” Ps. 119:129 KJV, “Thy testimonies are wonderful …” Ps. 111:4 “He hath made His wonderful works to be remembered …”

When we want to say something wonderful to God, don’t we often felt limit to know only one word, ‘wonderful’? But if there were more words from ‘wonderful,’ we might want to express other words to Him. So I am using the Scholastic Children’s Dictionary to share in the Manna. I used * as my own illustrations.

The word, WONDERFUL mean: 1. Causing wonder; remarkable, amazing or impressive. [The porpoise is a wonderful and intelligent creature.] 2. Very good; excellent. [In my opinion, she would be a wonderful governor.] Synonyms mean a word that means the same or nearly the same as another word. [The word rapid is a synonym for quick.]

Synonyms: WONDERFUL originally described something that caused someone to be filled with awe or wonder. Now it also refers to anything that is unusually good. *Isn’t the love of Jesus something wonderful? INTERESTING describes something that captures someone’s attention: *God, the universe and galaxy that You made are interesting and awesome!

FASCINATING describes something so interesting that you want to know more about it: *The earth that we live in, hang in the space, the universe, how did You do that? That is so fascinating, Lord! DELIGHTFUL means highly pleasing: *In the multitude of my [anxious] thoughts within me, Your comforts cheer and delight my soul! (Ps. 94:19AMP).

SPECTACULAR means dramatic (attracting attention) and sensational (unexpectedly excellent or great): *Among God’s creatures, the butterfly is one of the most spectacular beautiful! ASTONISHING describes something that causes great wonder or surprise: *God, it is astonishing that 80 percent of all life on Earth is found in the seas.

As we grow to understand the wonder of creation, it will always point us to the Creator Himself and call us to worship our wonderful God. “Let the heaven and earth praise Him, the seas and everything that moves in them” (Ps. 69:34). If creation itself gives praise to the Creator, we can and should certainly join the chorus. What a mighty God we serve!

SONG: ASL: HOW WONDERFUL YOU ARE!

O Lord my God, when I think awesome of You!

Thoughts of all the worlds Your hands bloom!

I see many stars, I see lightning bolt!

All over universe, You showed me Your power!

Chorus:

Your creation made my soul sings to God, my Savior!

Awesome and wonderful You are,

Awesome and wonderful You are!

Your creation made my soul sings to God, my Savior!

Awesome and wonderful You are,

Awesome and wonderful You are!

[Translation from “How Great Thou Art” by Stuart Westley Keene Hine]

The 8th Woes Part 2 (11/10-12)

Matthew 23:14 KJV, “Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For ye devour widows’ houses, and for a pretense make long prayer: therefore ye shall receive the greater damnation.”  NCV, “How terrible for you, teachers of the law and Pharisees. You are hypocrites. You take away widows’ houses, and you say long prayers so that the people will notice you. So you will have a worse punishment.”

I want to mention the 8th woe which was not part of the seven woes. Some manuscripts left out this verse 14 while some Greek copies add verse 14. How do they take away widows’ houses? The widows did not have a law to protect them after the death of their husbands. This made Jesus very angry of what they had done to the widows. Jesus mentioned the worse punishment will come to them who practice this.

When Jesus spoke about the ‘woe,’ all I could think of was sign language meaning, “mercy ‘O’. It means there is no mercy for them. For me as a deaf person, I don’t think I have ever seen anyone uses the word, woe except it comes from the Bible. From the Technology Bible, there were about 107 ‘woes.’ When Jesus used the word, ‘woe’ to the Pharisees, and other religious leaders, what does it really mean?

Until I read the New Century Version translated the woe to “How terrible for you!” The word, woe means great grief, trouble or distress and sometimes even a curse. I translate this ‘woe’ as to mean from Jesus to the religious leaders: ‘There’s no mercy from God for you because God will punish you for doing many harmful things to the innocent people. God was not pleased with all the selfish things you have done only for yourselves. Therefore you will not enter heaven at all.”

From part one, the third woes (3) V. 16-22, “Blindly leading God’s people to follow man-made traditions instead of God’s Word.” Here’s a few examples: you are not a Christian until you join their church and earned grace by using their penace; their law declares the right to kill the Christians if you do not join their organization; you are require to reach so many number of labors in order to get into heaven; there is no such three persons of God only Jesus, Himself; Jesus was never really born of the flesh, He came in the Spirit on earth; the man on the cross was not Jesus, that was someone else and etc. 

Paul who wrote 14 Epistles was the one who had believed the right to kill the Christians until Jesus appeared to Paul to stop this killing. It was Jesus that Paul became a changed man.

In the past, I had often wondered about the today’s organizations that does not follow God’s Word and what Jesus would do about them until I read Matthew 23 the whole chapter several times with different translations. Then I understood the “woes” upon any organizations or any persons who would face greater judgment for not following God’s Word just like it was in Jesus’ time. So when Jesus said, “I never knew you. Depart from me ye that work iniquity” from Matthew 7:22-33. Then I understood what Jesus meant. Work iniquity means not following God’s words.

How important it is to know the Gospel of Jesus Christ and be dedicated to His Word and to remember that “Christ loves righteousness and hates wickedness.” End of “Woes.”

The Seven Woes Part 1 (11/7-9)

Matthew 23:1-3 NLT, “Then Jesus said to the crowds and to his disciples, “The teachers of religious law and the Pharisees are the official interpreters of the Scriptures. So practice and obey whatever they say to you, but don’t follow their example. For they don’t practice what they teach.”

Sometimes ago, when I took a nap, I pondered the Words of Jesus about the sheep and the goats. Especially when He said to the goats about what they did not do to Him. Suddenly, Jesus appeared and He stood beside my bed and raise His hands as if He was scolding in anger and said, “Woe to the Pharisees! Woe! … I have much to say about this ‘woes.’ I want you to study this and share it in Manna.” ‘Wow, Jesus! Okay! And I love You, Jesus.’ Then I fell asleep and when I awoke, I felt refreshed and my strength renewed. God is so good! Soon after, I started the research on “Woes.” (ASL: Mercy, ‘O’)

Matthew 23:1-39 is a long chapter well worth reading. **From Matthew 23:13-36, Jesus mentioned seven ways to guarantee God’s anger, often called the “seven woes.” These seven statements about the religious leaders must have been spoken with a mixed tone of judgment and sorrow. They were strong and unforgettable. They are still applicable anytime we become so involved in perfecting the practice or religion that we forget that God is also concerned with mercy, real love, and forgiveness.

**The Seven Woes from Matthew 23: (1) V. 13 - Not letting others enter the Kingdom of Heaven and not entering themselves. (2) V. 15 - Converting people ways from God to be like yourselves. (3) V. 16-22 - Blindly leading God’s people to follow man-made traditions instead of God’s Word. (4) V. 23, 24 - Involving yourself in every last detail and ignoring what is really important, justice, mercy and faith. (5) V. 25, 26 - Keeping up appearances while your private world is corrupt. (6) V. 27, 28 – Acting spiritual to cover up sin. (7) V. 29, 36 – Pretending to have learned from past history, but your present behavior show you have learned nothing. [**Note from the QVLAB]

Jesus’ words in chapter 23 revealed His most severe denounce which means the act of denouncing; a public charge of wrong doing. Jesus spoke against religious leaders and false teachers who had rejected at least a part of God’s Word and replaced it with their own ideas and interpretations. Jesus does not accept those who is not concerned about being faithful to God and His Word. Jesus was not a weak preacher. Jesus was strong against their sins and corruption in high places (v.23, 25).

Jesus has a great love for the inspired Scriptures of His Father. Jesus was concerned for those people who were being destroyed by their religious leaders for misleading the Word of God. Jesus’ anger was so great that it caused Him to use the words like “hypocrites” (v.15), “child of hell” (v.15), “blind guides” (v.16), “fools” (v.17), “extortion and excess” (v.25), “white sepulchers … unclean” (v.27), “full of … iniquity” (v.28), “serpents,” “generation of vipers” (v.33), and murderers (v.34).

Even though Jesus’ words were severe and condemning to the religious leaders, Jesus spoke with a broken heart over Jerusalem. “O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, the city that kills the prophets and stones those who are sent to it! How often would I have gathered your children together as a hen gathers her brood under her wings, and you were not willing!” (Matt. 23:37 ESV).  

[To be continued]

My Neighbor, Who? (11/4-6)

Luke 10:29 “But he, willing to justify himself, said to Jesus, “And who is my neighbor?”

Who was that person who asked Jesus this question? A man was a lawyer and he was testing Jesus. A lawyer tried to trip Jesus into error of teaching. Imagine that! Another translation stated that he was an expert in religious law.  Who in the world would want to test Jesus? A lawyer did so he asked, “Teacher, what shall I do to inherit eternal life?” [Reading from English Standard Version in Luke 10:25-38]

Was Jesus bothered about that? Not at all. Jesus knew the hearts of men and He was willing to give the answers. Jesus’ attitude was wonderful in spite of that religious leaders tried to do to Him. So Jesus asked a lawyer a question instead of answering him. Jesus asked him, “What is written in the Law? How do you read it?”

A lawyer answered, “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength and with all your mind, and your neighbor as yourself.” Jesus said to the lawyer, “You have answered correctly; do this, and you will live.” Was the lawyer satisfied? No! But the lawyer wants to justify himself or he tried to prove, or show to be just, right, legal, or reasonable himself.

Maybe he was feeling guilty so a lawyer asked Jesus, “Who is my neighbor?” Why a lawyer would asked this question if he was an expert in religious law? Still Jesus gave a story of the Good Samaritan. I will sum up a story. I believe this was written for us to read.

The Jewish man was traveling and the bandits attacked him and left him for dead. The Jewish priest came by and saw him and went the other way. The Levite came by and saw him and left. The Samaritan man saw him and felt sorry that a man lying down was hurt badly. So the Samaritan took the time to treat him and took him to an inn and told the innkeeper to take care of him until he is well. The Samaritan would be back to pay the expenses.  

So Jesus asked the lawyer a question, “Which of these three, (the Jewish priest, the Levite, and the Samaritan), do you think, proved to be a neighbor to the man who was attacked by the robbers?” The lawyer said, “The one who showed him mercy.” Jesus said to him, “You go, and do the same thing.” [Ref. Luke 10:25-38] Notice, he did not say, “Samaritan?”

The New Living Translation stated, “A despised Samaritan.” The notes from Quick Verse Life Application Bible said: There was deep hatred between Jews and Samaritans. The Jews saw themselves as pure descendants of Abraham, while the Samaritans were a mixed race produced when Jews from the northern kingdom intermarried with other peoples after Israel’s exile. To this legal expert (lawyer), the person least likely to act correctly would be the Samaritan. In fact, the lawyer could not bear to say Samaritan in answer to Jesus’ question. This legal expert’s attitude betrayed his lack of the very thing that he had earlier said the law commanded—love. [I believe this cut deep into the lawyer’s heart.]

Jesus gave an example how we could show our love to a neighbor who happened to be in need of help at that moment just like Samaritan did. This should remind us what Jesus said, “Whoever you have done it unto one of the least of these my brother, you have done it unto Me.” [Mat.25:40] Dear Jesus, help us to be like You, to love and to be kind to others.

Sheep from the Goats (11/1-3)

Matthew 25:31-33 KJV, “When the Son of man shall come in his glory, and all the holy angels with him, then shall he sit upon the throne of his glory: And before him shall be gathered all nations: and he shall separate them from one another; as a shepherd divideth his sheep from the goats. And he shall set the sheep on his right hand, but the goats on the left.”

The sheep and goat judgment happen to be after the tribulation and Christ’s return to earth but before the beginning of His earthly reign. At the time of Christ’s coming, the righteous and the wicked who are living on earth and who survived the tribulation are still mingled together. [Ref. Rev. 5:10; 19:11-20:4; Daniel 7:9-14).

The story of the sheep and the goats from Matthew 25:34-46 is well worth reading. Jesus used sheep and the goats to picture the division between righteous on the right side and the wicked on the left side. Sheep and goats often gazed together but were separated when it came time to shear the sheep.

This parable describes acts of mercy we all do every day. These acts do not depend on wealth, ability, or intelligence; they are simply acts freely given and freely received. We have a wonderful opportunity to allow the Holy Spirit to show us who to help those who have deep needs, pray for them, and teaching them the Words of God.  

The real evidence or outward sign of our belief is the way we act. To treat all persons we meet as if they were Jesus is the key to our destiny: sheep, the righteous into life eternal or goats, the wicked into everlasting punishment (Matt. 25:46). What we do for others demonstrates what we really think about Jesus’ words to us. Feed the hungry, give the homeless a place to stay, look after the sick. Such love for others glorifies God by reflecting our love for Him. How well do your actions separate you from pretenders and unbelievers?

Christ loves righteousness and He has already shown us how to keep on being righteous through His Words. If we truly understood this parable about the sheep and the goat, then the Holy Spirit will bring to remembrance, many of Jesus’ teachings of how to stay true to Him. So it is important to study His Words and allow His Words to influence our lives and keep in prayers and to keep in fellowship with Him. So He will not say to us, “I never knew you. Depart from me ye that work iniquity.” [Ref. Matt. 7:22-23]

May the Lord helps us to stay true to our Lord Jesus Christ and be loyal to Him!

SONG: KEEP ME TRUE, LORD JESUS!

Keep me true, Lord Jesus, keep me true;

Keep me true, Lord Jesus, keep me true;

There’s a race that I must run,

There are victories to be won.

Give me power, every hour, to be true.

(Inspiring Choruses)