Tag: Pondering Discipleship

Our Courage and Our Compassion to Do the Will Of Him Who Sent Us, To Actually Accomplish All of His Work. John 4:34-38

Where do you find the strength to continue your service to the Father?

Clearly, some things in which we invest our time prove futile. Still, others are worse than futile; they are depleting as well as futile.

However, consciously doing what we do to honor the Father, to follow his will, enables us to experience his empowering presence.

Rather than leaving us depleted, we find new strength and vitality.

Accomplishing the will of God and doing the work he created us to do blesses us as we bless others. That’s why Jesus reprimanded the evil one with the truth that God’s word nourishes more than bread.

So we need to ask ourselves each day, “What do I need to obey? What will help me live in God’s will for my life today?”

Then, as we do that, we too can actively versus passively, rejoice in the nourishing presence and thirst quenching power of heaven.

John 4:34-38 The Message

34-35 Jesus said, “The food that keeps me going is that I do the will of the One who sent me, finishing the work he started. As you look around right now, wouldn’t you say that in about four months it will be time to harvest? Well, I’m telling you to open your eyes and take a good look at what’s right in front of you. These Samaritan fields are ripe. It’s harvest time!

36-38 “The Harvester isn’t waiting. He’s taking his pay, gathering in this grain that’s ripe for eternal life. Now the Sower is arm in arm with the Harvester, triumphant. That’s the truth of the saying, ‘This one sows, that one harvests.’ I sent you to harvest a field you never worked. Without lifting a finger, you have walked in on a field worked long and hard by others.”

The Word of God for the Children of God.

Adeste Fideles! Laeti Triumphantes! Venite Adoremus! Dominum.

Gloria! In Excelsis Deo! Alleluia, Alleluia, Alleluia, Amen.

Lift Up Your Eyes and Actually Look to Actually See

John 4:34–35 come at the end of Jesus’ conversation with a Samaritan woman at the well in John 4 and as the disciples come out, she then goes running back into town to talk about who she has met and what he had summarized about her life.

Jesus is having this conversation with the disciples.

They are saying, “Hey, you haven’t eaten.”

He responds, “Oh, I’ve eaten. I have much better food than you’ve eaten. My food is to do the will of him who sent me, to finish his work.”

Basically what sustains Jesus is obeying the Father, accomplishing His will, doing the mission He sent me to do, here in John 4 “to bring living water to a woman who never met or knew me, I had never before met in my life, at a well.”

Then Rabbi Jesus says,

“Open your eyes and look. There’s so much work to do. There are so many people,” the harvest language here, “Who are in need of the grace and mercy and presence of God, the living water that Jesus has come to offer.”

Rabbi, Teacher Jesus says, “This is your food. This is your sustenance. Giving your life, making this living water known to those who are thirsty.”

This Text Wants Us To Spread The Gospel To Others

These Samaritans, they came back to the well with her, they’re ready to hear it.

These verses are a plea for the disciples and us: Open our eyes and actually and authentically look, do not say later, the fields are ripe for harvest and oh, I pray for this perspective maybe one day, maybe some day in the future in my life, in each one of our lives, that we would all have open eyes, that we would realize all around us there are definitely people in definite need of Jesus’ own living water.

There are people in need of salvation in Christ all around us right now today.

We will always be surrounded by people, all of us, in different parts of the world where we live and we work and we carry on with our daily lives, there are people around us who are authentically in need of the grace of Christ, so God, help us to open our eyes, see that they are white for harvest, that they’re ready to hear.

Certainly, not everybody is gonna respond favorably when we share the Gospel but God helps us to believe when we share, many are ready to hear the message, they want to hear God, the Way, the Truth, the Life of God through Christ Jesus.

Rabbi Jesus is saying “the Father in Heaven has already wired their souls to want Him, to need Him, to feed from Him, to drink from Him, to need grace from Him.”

By His courage and compassion Rabbi Jesus, has made that grace authentic, made it available, made it actually drinkable through His death on the cross.

He has made His living water genuine, eternal satisfaction possible, in God.

What of Our 21st Century Courage and Compassion?

Although God has His pulpit in heaven, He also has His “servants” on earth.

It’s clear from Scripture that in the mystery and kindness of His purposes, God has determined to use our feeble voices to enable others to hear His voice.

By the power of the Holy Spirit, our words of witness, our words of testimony about His living Word further His plans and change people’s lives and futures.

The question, then, is this:

Are we (actively versus passively) (authentically versus haphazardly) stepping forward into this privilege, or are we authentically holding back from doing it?

Following His encounter with the woman at the well, Jesus encouraged His disciples to open their eyes and “see that the fields are white for harvest.”

If we, like the disciples, actually look up to see the actual harvest before us, then we too must actually, authentically proclaim the word of Christ, declaring with genuine urgency and joy; “there is salvation in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved” (Acts 4:12).

Our saying this takes authentic courage and genuine confidence in the Gospel.

The gospel message runs completely counter to the prevailing worldviews.

It is the prime “#1 most wanted” enemy of much contemporary thought.

Claims for final truth in Jesus are not simply ignored; they are opposed, they are mocked, they are scorned, giving of the utmost offense and they are destroyed.

Our confidence, however, rests in the fact that the gospel message was given to us by God whose confidence in His Son to accomplish the task was at its utmost.

We did not invent it and by the Word of God we must not modify nor reinvent it.

Instead, look up, to see: “all authority in heaven and on earth” is Christ’s, and He has commanded us to “go … and make disciples of all nations” (Matthew 28:18-19).

While we need confidence in our message, we also need compassion in our tone.

Jesus came as a humble servant.

He rode into town on a lowly donkey and spoke with gentleness and humility.

When He saw the crowds, He was moved with compassion, because He saw them as sheep without a shepherd (Matthew 9:36).

Only by the enabling power of His Holy Spirit, can we ourselves authentically demonstrate the same care, same compassion as we also recall we were once “foolish, disobedient,” “led astray” before Christ sought us out and transformed us (Titus 3:3).

Difficult days and challenging seasons have undeniably created an increased willingness in the hearts of those around us to talk about what weighs them down, what concerns them to the utmost about the brokenness in our world.

These authentically Dangerous and Disconcerting, Uncertain times must move you and me to be ready to seize upon any opportunity to proclaim to our family and friends, and neighbors “Jesus Christ and him crucified” (1 Corinthians 2:2), 100% confident that the Holy Spirit of God can use our efforts for eternal gain.

What About our 21st Century Patience, Forbearance?

1 Timothy 1:15-20 The Message

15-19 Here’s a word you can take to heart and depend on: Jesus Christ came into the world to save sinners. I’m proof—Public Sinner Number One—of someone who could never have made it apart from sheer mercy. And now he shows me off—evidence of his endless patience—to those who are right on the edge of trusting him forever.

Deep honor and bright glory
    to the King of All Time—
One God, Immortal, Invisible,
    ever and always. Oh, yes!

I’m passing this work on to you, my son Timothy. The prophetic word that was directed to you prepared us for this. All those prayers are coming together now so you will do this well, fearless in your struggle, keeping a firm grip on your faith and on yourself. After all, this is a fight we’re in.

19-20 There are some, you know, who by relaxing their grip and thinking anything goes have made a thorough mess of their faith. Hymenaeus and Alexander are two of them. I let them wander off to Satan to be taught a lesson or two about not blaspheming.

When we hear the words patience and forbearance, we probably think of the virtues that enables us to wait.

That’s truly one way of looking at it, but Spirit-led patience is also much more.

Patience is longsuffering.

It involves more than passive waiting; it is active forbearance.

It is a deliberate willingness to put up with disagreeable things in pursuit of higher goals.

The best example of patience in the Bible is God himself.

A number of times, God is described as being “slow to anger” and “abounding in steadfast Love” (see Exodus 34:6; Psalm 103:8).

This phrase captures what true patience is.

Patient people do more than just wait.

They actively restrain their rightful anger and frustration.

For a higher purpose, they put up with things that they know are wrong.

This is the attitude our longsuffering God has toward sinful people.

For Paul, the “immense patience” of Jesus meant that God put up with all his wickedness for a long time before showing mercy to him.

Paul calls himself “the worst of sinners,” reflecting back on the time of his life when he persecuted Christians (see Acts 7:54-8:3).

But God waited Paul out, had other plans for Paul (Acts 9:1-31; 13:1-28:31).

That could easily be the testimony and witness of every single believer.

How wonderful that God’s love rests on his own capacity for goodness, and not our own capacity for intolerance, impatience, divisiveness, and utmost hatred!

Be bold. Be loving. Be active. Be prayerful – for only in Jesus can our darkness be turned to light – only in Jesus is there a true fresh start and a whole new future.

In the name of God, the Father and God the Son and God the Holy Spirit,

Let us Pray,

Almighty God, Everlasting Father, Ultimate Source of all good and perfect gifts, Just like we were surrounded in a desert by people and we have water and we would with urgency say, “Our work is to get this water to as many people as possible. God, help us to live that way. Help us to live today, this week, that way. Help us to live our lives with that kind of urgency for the harvest fields around us and God, just like you worked in that Samaritan woman at the well, we pray that you would work in many hearts, many, many hearts through our lives, that you would draw many hearts to know the life, eternal life, satisfaction, rivers of living water that are found in you. God, may many people … Even today, we pray that people today would drink from that water as a result of our lives living with urgency for the spread of your grace. My true God, may it be so we pray. May that be our food today. In Jesus’ name we pray.

Adeste Fideles! Laeti Triumphantes! Venite Adoremus! Dominum.

Gloria! In Excelsis Deo! Alleluia, Alleluia, Alleluia, Amen.

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Our Love’s for God’s Most Generous Expression: Our Learning, Growing, Living, Doing, in the Family of Faith. Hebrews 13:1-3

Hebrews 13:1-3 Amplified Bible

The Changeless Christ

13 Let love of your fellow believers continue. 2 Do not neglect to extend hospitality to strangers [especially among the family of believers—being friendly, cordial, and gracious, sharing the comforts of your home and doing your part generously], for by this some have entertained angels without knowing it. 3 Remember those who are in prison, as if you were their fellow prisoner, and those who are mistreated, since you also are in the body [and subject to physical suffering].

The Word of God for the Children of God.

Adeste Fidelis! Venite Adoremus! Dominum.

Gloria! In Excelsis Deo! Alleluia! Alleluia! Alleluia! Amen.

Love’s Generous Expression

Hebrews 13:1-3 Common English Bible

Our acts of service and sacrifice

13 Keep loving each other like family. 2 Don’t neglect to open up your homes to guests, because by doing this some have been hosts to angels without knowing it. 3 Remember prisoners as if you were in prison with them, and people who are mistreated as if you were in their place.

Keep Loving each other like family.

Do not neglect to open your homes to guests.

Remember the prisoners as if you were in prison with them.

What an incredibly interesting array of both ancient, contemporary ideas!

Loving each other like family – respecting and honoring one another!

Respecting the home, respecting the life of the family and their belongings.

By showing kindness to strangers, you could be showing kindness to a messenger of God.

Paying it forward, buying an extra burger to share with a homeless person, helping someone change a flat tire on their car, offering a ride to a colleague who needs one—in these ways and countless more, our God often gives us all opportunities to show hospitality and compassion for someone who has a need.

As I encounter people who are not part of a faith community, it saddens me when they describe Christians as less-than-compassionate people.

Words I often hear in these conversations are that Christians are aloof,not friendly or forthcoming; cool and distant. and judgmental and condescending.

Many people see church buildings in their communities as little more than social clubs, entertainment centers or worse, only occupied on any Sunday.

Any other day, the parking lots are 99.99% empty of cars and any activity.

They hear church people speak out mostly about what the members oppose.

Where is that sound of “little children of all ages” glorifying God and Jesus?

The world needs to see the Body of Christians as people of compassion—good-news people who minister and act like Jesus.

That will happen only when we finally nurture a habit of practicing compassion.

It is not by accident that the writer of Hebrews urges readers to love each other and to look out for the needs of strangers.

It’s easy to overlook the unusual or the unfamiliar.

It takes the love of Christ to step out, move out and reach out to the stranger who might just bring a singularly unique blessing that you never saw coming.

Learning, Growing, Living, in the Family of Faith

There’s all the difference in the world between describing what it means to ride a bicycle and actually helping somebody learn to get on the seat and pedal away.

Making a layer cake seems to be fairly straightforward when I look at the recipe books, but I haven’t had much success in making one that actually tastes right!

What I need is hands-on guidance: somebody to actually take the time to teach me to do it in front of me and then patiently allow me to try my hand at it too.

The moral instruction provided for us in Hebrews 13 is to be trained and formed in our lives not by learning to apply abstract principles but as a result of seeing these principles successfully or erroneously worked out in the family of faith.

We can read, for example, about what it means to love one another, but it is far better to observe such love in the lives of loving people.

We can understand that we are supposed to care for strangers, but we can experience it firsthand if we are brought up and raised in a home where such care, consideration and compassion for one another is faithfully practiced.

We can extend ourselves into areas of ministry and mission which are quite challenging – church prison ministry (https://heartprisonministries.org/) or Christian Prison Ministry (Kairos https://www.kairosprisonministry.org/)

We can read the principles and hear sermons, demands for sexual purity, but we will do far better if we are raised in a flourishing home where they are modeled or we are even able to sit in such homes as we visit other families in our church.

Praise God, the list of mission and ministry opportunities goes on and on.

Establishing these ethical norms is demanding.

It takes the first love of God, our time, effort and patience, and involvement.

The miracles wrought through purposeful discipleship, transformation cannot be achieved by searching the internet, watching a video or reading an article.

If information was enough to bring about transformation, then all we would need to do is write it down or say it.

But you can’t learn love, honor, and faithfulness from the content on a screen.

No, if you are to be content, pure, loving, and hospitable, then that is going to have to be proactively discovered and actively worked out in the family of faith.

Look, then, to your brothers and sisters who exemplify Christ-likeness in these ways.

Read Hebrews 13:1-3 again, praise God for those you know who live these verses out, then be sure to learn from them so in these ways you become like them.

Make it your aim to follow their example that you, like Paul, might humbly be able to say to others, “Be imitators of me, as I am of Christ” (1 Corinthians 11:1).

Easter is but a short time away.

Celebrating the ultimate act of agape love and sacrifice and service.

What will your efforts at discipleship and transformation in preparation for this coming Easter look like, sound like, be more Christ like in these coming weeks?

I have heard repeatedly: “it takes an entire community, an entire village.”

According to Wikipedia, the original quote “it takes a village to raise a child” is an African proverb meaning it takes a whole community of people interacting with a child to ensure he or she grows in a healthy and safe environment.

Regardless of which stage of life we are all in: parents raising children, married with no children, single, or late adulthood, even a church, we need community.

In these times of recovery, perhaps we need to go back to the essential basics of the Gospel to learn it all over again – to teach it unto each other all over again?

In the name of God, the Father and God the Son and God the Holy Spirit,

Let us Pray,

Heavenly Father, thank You that while we were yet sinners You loved us and gave Christ to be the propitiation for our sins. Help us in word and deed to increase and abound in brotherly love for one another, just as we also do for You. Give us wisdom as we enter into mission and ministry to our brothers and sisters in Christ and may we speak the truth in love to Your praise and glory. This we ask in Jesus name, AMEN.

Adeste Fidelis! Venite Adoremus! Dominum.

Gloria! In Excelsis Deo! Alleluia, Alleluia, Alleluia, Amen.

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The Ministry and Mission of Jesus Christ Begins. About our Faithful Discipleship, about being able to Identify with Jesus. Mark 1:9-13

Mark 1:9-13 Amplified Bible

The Baptism of Jesus

9 In those days Jesus came from Nazareth of Galilee and was baptized by John in the Jordan. 10 [a]Immediately coming up out of the water, he (John) saw the heavens torn open, and the [b]Spirit like a dove descending on Him (Jesus); 11  and a [c]voice came out of heaven saying: “You are My beloved Son, in You I am well-pleased and delighted!”

12 Immediately the [Holy] Spirit forced Him out into the wilderness. 13 He was in the wilderness forty days being tempted [to do evil] by Satan; and He was with the wild animals, and the angels ministered continually to Him.

The Word of God for the Children of God. Gloria! In Excelsis Deo! Alleluia! Amen.

The first chapter of Mark has it all. God, Jesus, the Holy Spirit, Angels and even Satan are all compacted here in the very same place at seemingly the same time, during the baptism of Jesus by John the Baptist and Jesus’ temptation by Satan.

The presence of John the Baptist arriving on the scene was the sign, the signal, and the moment that told the man Jesus to leave Nazareth, begin his ministry.

So, the Narrator Mark, speaking to his audience of readers, begins to present to them a step by step recitation of first introducing Jesus, then relating to readers a strong recommendation how they are to respond to God and this Good News.

First – Recognize that these Word’s of God are the Truth of God – spoken by God and are therefore trustworthy and true. God is active and attentive to their need.

Second – Recognize that God Himself, through His Son Jesus Christ, through His messengers -God’s Prophets Isaiah and Malachi through John the Baptizer has a prophetic message of promise and fulfillment for them – God needs them!

Third – God through His Son Jesus Christ, through His Messenger Mark, is now in need of their fullest possible attention – begin to shape the Kingdom of God.

The called of God, those children of God, in the first century moment respond – “We hear God – we believe on His Son Jesus Christ, what must we do now?”

A great expression of affirmation of faith followed by and even greater question.

Mark’s response is to follow in the example set by John the Baptist and Jesus:

Mark 1:9Amplified Bible

The Baptism of Jesus

9 In those days Jesus came from Nazareth of Galilee and was baptized by John in the Jordan.

First: Come willingly from wherever you are and recognize the authority of God.

Second: Make a decision to service unto the Kingdom of God and your neighbor.

Third: Recognize the absolute sovereignty of Jesus Christ over your entire life.

Fourth: Fully, Maximally, Utterly, Surrender the entirety of your life unto God.

Fifth: Present your whole body as a living sacrifice unto Christ and get baptized.

God needed His Son, the man, Rabbi Jesus to be “seen of man by man,” baptized as the necessary first step or visual sign of the beginning of his earthly ministry.

As one commentator said: It was a moment of decision; it was a moment of identification; it was a moment of God’s approval; was a moment of equipping.

Mark 1:10-11Amplified Bible

10 [a]Immediately coming up out of the water, he (John) saw the heavens torn open, and the [b]Spirit like a dove descending on Him (Jesus); 11 and a [c]voice came out of heaven saying: “You are My beloved Son, in You I am well-pleased and delighted!”

When he Jesus, came up out of the water, immediately he saw the heavens being torn open and the Spirit descending on him like a dove.

A voice, and a message for the people came from heaven, “You are my beloved Son, whom I am delighted in, in whom I love; with you I am well pleased.”

This is one of the only places in the Bible where all three persons of the Trinity are in the same place at the same time communicating to those who are there!

Immediately Connecting, Immediately Relating, Immediately Identifying with:

The most significant moment of all – the first Moment of “God’s First Contact!”

This makes it one of the more important events in Jesus’ life and the people’s.

By visualizing the moment – the people are visualizing connecting their lives with God in the same way – to hear the exact same words Jesus heard from God.

“You are my beloved children, whom I am delighted in, in whom I love and with whom, by this act, your choice of obedience – to this baptism – I am well pleased!”

The people visualize, gain their most important “first impressions” of the man: why they should sacrificially, willingly, joyfully, utterly graft their lives into his.

The man, just like every other man present in the moment – the man, Jesus is immersed into the every day events of humanity, subjected to all the very worst.

Sixth: Repent and Prepare the entirety of yourself for maximum service by God.

Mark 1:12-13Amplified Bible

12 Immediately the [Holy] Spirit forced Him out into the wilderness. 13 He was in the wilderness forty days being tempted [to do evil] by Satan; and He was with the wild animals, and the angels ministered continually to Him.

The Spirit immediately drove him out into the wilderness. “…and he was in the wilderness forty days, being mercilessly tempted by Satan. He was with the wild animals, and all during that absolute worst misery: “the angels attended him.”

Here we see that Jesus was tempted and triumphed, something humanity could not do because mere man couldn’t overcome the worst of the worst absent God.

The people visualize that despite the worst of the worst – Jesus endured it and did not surrender one ounce of his faith in God – did not yield to Satan 1/8 inch.

The people can visualize for themselves that the worst of the worst is a definite possibility when they are seen as being for Jesus Christ and not for the Emperor.

But we can visualize ourselves enduring that worst of the worst because we can visualize Jesus doing it.

When the worst of the worst arrives, we can identify with it and instead of our submitting to the inevitability of being overcome by it – we identify with Jesus.

We visualize Jesus being continually administered to by the Angels.

We visualize ourselves – during our own worst of the worst – being continually administered to by the Angels also.

We identify with the moment of continuous comfort because it’s God’s promise.

It is God’s faithful promise of His continuous presence and continuous comfort.

Because: “The Word of God for His Beloved Children” is the absolute TRUTH!

We identify with God.

We identify with Jesus.

We identify Jesus with God

We identify Jesus’ victory over the very worst Satan can throw at us.

We identify with Jesus’ victory over the very worst Satan can throw at us.

Through that identification we can endure all things through Christ who is our strength through every single “worst of the worst” circumstance Satan inflicts.

Our faith remains sure and our faith remains strong, steadfast and immovable.

We are united in Christ, so that his victory might be our victory; so that when we are tempted, we can look to him and the living example Jesus first set for us.

Why was it important for Mark to provide these details?

Mark wanted to stress to his readers that Jesus is the only road to salvation.

The Maker of Heaven and earth declared His only begotten Son, Jesus to be his anointed one, His chosen one. He is real; He is credible; He is alive in us today!

Through these four rather short verses from the Gospel of Mark’s narrative ….

First: we can immediately identify with the absolute truth of that reality!

Second: we can immediately identify with the absolute truth of His credibility!

Third: we can immediately testify to the absolute truth of His being 100% alive!

Fourthly: we can immediately identify with the love of God and Jesus’ efforts towards preparing us for our ministry, mission: finish the Great Commission!

In the name of God, the Father and God the Son and God the Holy Spirit,

Let us Pray,

Lord God, Father to my Savior Jesus Christ, my Way-maker, my promise keeper. I know you have a destiny for me to achieve in this life. I want to follow the plan that you have laid out. Help me to understand and follow your call. Show me your will for my life and what I need to do right now to get started. Enable me to know who I am in Christ alone, and the special gifts and abilities you have given me. Give me the spirit of wisdom and revelation as I seek to know you more intimately. Amen.

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