Category: Jesus Speaks

True Fellowship

~ servantone1

JESUS SPEAKING

                Then he said to him, “A certain man gave a great supper and invited many, and sent his servant at supper time to say to those who were invited, ‘Come, for all things are now ready.’  But they all with one accord began to make excuses.  The first said to him, ‘I have bought a piece of ground, and I must go and see it.  I ask you to have me excused.’  And another said, ‘I have bought five yoke of oxen, and I am going to test them.  I ask you to have me excused.’  Still another said, ‘I have married a wife, and therefore I cannot come.’  So that servant came and reported these things to his master.  Then the master of the house, being angry, sad to his servant, ‘Go out quickly in to the streets and lanes of the city, and bring in here the poor and the maimed and the lame and the blind.’  And the servant said, ‘Master, it is done as you commanded, and still there is room.’  Then the master said to the servant, ‘Go out into the highways and hedges, and compel them to come in, that my house may be filled.  For I say to you that none of those men who were invited shall taste my supper’” (Luke Chapter 14: 16 – 24.)

INSPIRED THOUGHTS   

                In this parable the man hosting the feast represents God.  The servant sent out to invite others to join in fellowship is Jesus Christ; and the great supper represents God’s eternal kingdom and the body of Christ as a whole.  Many who heard the Lord speak received the message, and with it salvation.  Most however rejected the gospel; inventing any number of excuses that would enable them to continue pursuing worldly pleasures.

                Some time ago I got involved in a weekly fellowship through a local church.  The church was filled with people who appeared to be affluent and well educated.  After a short time, it became clear that many were not fully committed to the group, let alone to God Himself.  They enjoyed drinking and frequenting bars and clubs; many did not see fornication as an act of extreme evil either.  Not surprisingly, every week we would hear a list of excuses as to why these individuals would not be able to attend the bible study.  One girl often missed group because her favorite basketball team played on Thursday nights.  Unfortunately many do not take their relationship with God seriously (or they deny it entirely.)  Some will come up with any excuse to avoid fellowship, bible reading, and service work.

                Today, the message is still being preached.  God continues to invite the masses to join Him in fellowship.  Those who heed the call integrate themselves into the body of Christ and begin to serve and love others.  Get involved at your local church and abandon the excuses and worldly pleasures that separate you from your fellows.  Attend a bible study, and get to know your true brothers and sisters.  Build friendships with other believers and read the bible.  If you obey the Lord’s commands and love unconditionally, then you will have entered in to God’s kingdom, and you will live forever in His presence.

                “Lord Heavenly Father, we desire to know You and to love You.  If we have not fully accepted your message then may we eagerly receive it today.  May we enter Your eternal kingdom and may we hunger for genuine fellowship with other believers.  Eliminate our excuses that we might serve our brothers and sisters in love.  We love You Father, we praise You and we thank You, and we ask and pray all of these things in Jesus Christ’s name.  Amen.” God bless all of you.

The Journey

~ servantone1

JESUS SPEAKING

And when Jesus saw great multitudes about him, he gave a command to depart to the other side.  Then a certain scribe came and said to him, “Teacher, I will follow you wherever you go.”  And Jesus spoke to him saying, “Foxes have holes and birds of the air have nests, but the Son of man has nowhere to rest his head” (Mathew 8: 18 – 20.)

INSPIRED THOUGHTS

                Jesus Christ was born in human form and raised in the house of Mary and Joseph.  Yet his true home was with God in heaven.  He was a temporary traveler who was ever mindful of his eventual destination.  He had no earthly residence; no permanent place to dwell; every miracle, every profession of truth, every act of love, brought him one step closer to home.  As he traveled, he made every effort to persuade others to join him in journeying toward the Kingdom of God; a mission that presently continues.  Thankfully many today receive the message and begin traveling; sadly however, many do not.  The road to heaven is long and the way is not easy, but the destination is more wonderful than anything we could have ever imagined.

In the Old Testament, Moses led millions of Israelites out of slavery and bondage in Egypt.  After crossing through the Red Sea, they began wandering in the desert for 40 years.  During that time, God provided them with food to eat and water to drink.  They lived in tents with no stable place to call home.  Yet the Lord had sworn an oath to eventually lead them in to a permanent land of their own; it was this promise that kept them alive as they embraced a life of hardship.  After many years of sacrifice, God fulfilled His pledge, and safely guided them in to the land of Israel.

Similarly, those who place their faith in Jesus Christ are led out of slavery and bondage to sin; they become travelers in this life, relying upon the Lord to provide for all of their needs.  Each one clings to the promise of God; the promise that they will one day enter his permanent dwelling place.  As we journey toward the Kingdom of God, we must embrace a life of sacrifice, humility, and service.  Only in denying our love of this world, do we truly embrace our love of the world to come.

“Lord Heavenly Father, may we cling tightly to Your promises.  May we deny ourselves and live lives of loving sacrifice.  Strengthen us, and enable us to continue journeying toward Your kingdom.  May we never forget that we are but travelers in this place, and that our true home is with You.  Give us the courage to reach out to the lost; that we might continually convince others to join us on our journey.  We love You Father, we praise You, and we thank You, and we ask and pray all of these things in Jesus Christ’s name.  Amen.”  God bless all of you.

What is ‘the thing you want the most?’

~ servantone1

JESUS SPEAKING

            And he said to them, “Which of you shall have a friend, and go to him at midnight and say to him, ‘Friend, lend me three loaves; ‘for a friend of mine has come to me on his journey, and I have nothing to set before him’; and he will answer from within and say, ‘Do not trouble me; the door is shut, and my children are with me in bed; I cannot rise and give to you’?  I say to you, though he will not rise and give to him because he is his friend, yet because of his persistence he will rise and give him as many as he needs.  So I say to you ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and the door will be opened to you.  For everyone who seeks finds, and to him who knocks it will be opened” (Luke 11: 5-10.)

 

INSPIRED THOUGHTS

            During the days of our Lord, there were no phones, no text messages, and no emails; there weren’t even telegraph machines.  Scary, isn’t it?  This made it impossible to prepare for someone’s arrival from a distant place.  There was no way to call your family or friends in a different town to let them know you would be dropping by.  Many guests and visitors simply showed up unannounced.  First century Middle Eastern culture was one of extreme hospitality.  There were very few ‘hotels’ because it was desirable to take guests and strangers in to one’s home.  Commonly, travelers would simply go to a public place, and wait until someone invited them in to their home for the evening.  If you were lucky enough to have a guest in your home, you were required to take care of them like they were your own family.  A visitor was the responsibility of those who were hosting them; they provided food, shelter, and protection.  To be without food to set before a guest was a very serious dishonor.

            The average first century Jew was not wealthy.  A Jewish home consisted of one main room, in which everyone in the household slept.  Fathers, children, in-laws, and even important livestock were gathered together in this room, and the door was locked until morning.  To knock at a man’s door at midnight would rouse an entire household from a previously settled state of sleep.  This was no minor inconvenience, which is why the man refused the initial request for bread.  The one knocking received the bread he asked for, simply because he refused to take ‘no for an answer.’  Jesus is using this illustration to bring to light the necessity for persistence in prayer, and diligence in tirelessly seeking God.  The Lord is also drawing a parallel between Godly desires and worldly desires.  A man sought after bread with such fervor he was willing to forgo manners and etiquette and wake up an entire household to get it; he ‘refused to take no for an answer.’  This is paralleled with the hunger to satisfy the need for God’s Spirit in the lives of those who desire it.  How many people seek after God Zealously?  How many people would put the need to satisfy their hearts with God above the need to satisfy their stomachs with food?  Those who seek God are seeking what is most important. 

            In the movie, ‘The Pirates of the Caribbean,’ there is an interesting Pirate named ‘Captain Jack Sparrow;’ this captain possesses what appears to be a broken compass.  The compass doesn’t point North, South, East or West, but instead point’s to the thing the person holding it wants the most.  For instance, a pirate holding the compass might be lead toward some buried treasure, if that is what they desired the most.  A person who desired property might be lead to a new home.  A person who desired beauty might be lead to a beautiful man or woman to marry.  The number of things to desire and seek after is seemingly endless.  How many though, would hold the compass and be pointed toward God?  How many would find that in their hearts God was ‘the thing they wanted most’?

            Today, the majority of people in this world are not seeking God first; most don’t even have God on their ‘top ten list of things to chase after.’  If they were holding ‘Jack’s magic compass’ it would point them to a woman or man; a job; a car; a drug; a home; a family; the list could go on forever.  What is God’s greatest desire?  God desires to be the number one thing in each person’s heart.  He wants to be ‘the thing you want the most.’  He gave His only Son on a cross to make that possible.  Commonly, many people profess to be seeking God, but are more concerned with a job, or a relationship, or a lifestyle.  Many start off seeking God, but after the road becomes difficult, they replace their want for Him with a want for something fleshly.  The question is, to what length are you willing to go?  Are you a person who would knock on your neighbor’s door, but who has stopped knocking on God’s door?  Are worldly things more important to you than Godly things, or are you willing to make God ‘the thing you want the most’?  Today, you have the chance to search your heart, and to make sure that your compass is leading you toward eternal life with Christ.  May the Lord help you in your search?     

            “Lord Heavenly Father, we ask and pray that You would open Your door to us and give us Your Holy Spirit.  Father we’re standing at the door and we’re not walking away, not until You give us what we ask for.  Give us patience, endurance, and persistence to follow Your Son, and to finish the race that we have started.  Help us to not be divided, and help us to search our hearts, so that we may see and know what we are truly seeking.  We love You Father, we praise You, and we thank You, and we ask and pray all of these things in Jesus Christ’s name.  Amen.”  God bless all of you.