JESUS SPEAKING

            Jesus said to her, “Woman, why are you weeping?  Whom are you seeking?”  She, supposing him to be the gardner, said to him, “Sir, if you have carried him away, tell me where you have laid him, and I will take him away.”

            Jesus said to her, “Mary!”  She turned and said to him, “Rabboni!  (which is to say, Teacher).  Jesus said to her, “Do not cling to me, for I have not yet ascended to my Father; but go to my brethren and say to them, ‘I am ascending to my Father and your Father, and to my God and your God.’” (John 20: 15-18.)

INSPIRED THOUGHTS

            Mary arrived at the tomb to find the stone missing along with the body of Jesus.  Immediately she was grieved and began to weep.  She came to the tomb expecting to find the lifeless body of her beloved Lord; instead she encountered the living God.  Upon seeing Jesus, she embraced him tightly as if to never let him go.  He urged her to lighten her grasp (his return was not permanent; he would soon ascend in to heaven.)  His true place was not on earth with them, but with his Father (and their Father.)  Mary was instructed to bring this news to the despondent disciples who were in hiding for fear of being killed themselves.  Having seen the resurrected Lord, she became the very first messenger of the gospel of Jesus Christ.

            Throughout history, many like Mary, have gone to the tomb expecting to find the body of Jesus Christ; and like Mary, they have found the tomb empty.  Every generation has had its share of doubters; people who believed they could do what no one had ever been able to do […] disprove the resurrection of Christ.  In the early 1900’s an English professor and journalist named Frank Ross set out to investigate and refute the claims that Jesus rose from the dead (as a journalist, he was skilled in examining the credibility of sources.)  As the evidence mounted, Frank was faced with the awesome truth; the accounts matched; the archeology was sound, and all of the witnesses were credible; Jesus Christ had in fact risen from the dead.  He had expected to find a dead man, but instead, he discovered the living God. Rather than writing a book that disproved the resurrection, he entitled his book, “Who moved the stone.”  In the book, Frank Ross, the convert and faithful believer, sought to bring what he had found to the rest of the world. 

The work that began with Mary on that third day has continued through the generations, and continues even today.  Anyone who goes looking for Jesus Christ in a dusty tomb is looking in the wrong place.  He is very much alive, and is seated at the right hand of God.  Frank Ross and Mary Magdalene, both set out to find Jesus; and they both found what they were looking for […] have you gone looking for him yet?  Have you made your way to the tomb and looked inside?  You too, will discover that Jesus Christ is not dead, but alive.  When you find him, please let others know that there is a God, and that they can discover him too?

“Lord Heavenly Father, we believe that Your Son rose from the dead.  We believe that he is seated with You in Your Kingdom.  We desire to carry this message to others; give us the strength to bring what we have discovered to the world.  May we be bold in declaring that we have encountered the risen Lord, and the living God.  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.

JESUS SPEAKING

            “Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of God.  Blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted.  Blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the earth.  Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness for they shall be filled.  Blessed are the merciful, for they shall obtain mercy.  Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God.  Blessed are the peacemakers for they shall be called the sons of God.  Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness’ sake, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven” (Mathew 5: 3-10)

INSPIRED THOUGHTS

             Thousands of people had followed Jesus up a mountain to hear him speak.  He began his discourse by pronouncing a blessing over the multitudes (a blessing is a prophetic proclamation regarding some future provision from God.)  The blessing was conditional.  Only those who were humble in life (“poor in Spirit”) would enter God’s kingdom; only those who showed mercy toward others could expect to one day receive mercy from God; only those who hungered for righteousness would find it in the life to come.  For many listening, they heard a message of hope; the outcasts, the infirmed, the poor, the lonely, the weak, the oppressed, the meek, and the suffering could suddenly have victory.  Those whose kindness and innocence had prevented them from achieving worldly rewards (success) were being promised a future reward from God.  At last, everyone who had been persecuted for obeying God could hope for the day when they would triumph over their oppressors.

             I worked in sales for many years.  Through careful observation of my colleagues, I could identify the characteristics of those who would succeed and those who would fail.  When we hired someone who was kind, easygoing, polite, soft-spoken, honest, and morally upstanding, I knew it would only be a matter of time before they were fired (not always.)  Those who succeeded were fast talkers; able to manipulate and influence others.  Kindness was only beneficial if it was beneficial.  The characteristics that made for a poor salesman were the very characteristics that God was looking for in a follower (note: not every successful salesman was ungodly; there were always exceptions.)  I discovered that worldly success and Godly success very rarely overlapped. 

             The hopes (blessings) of the Godly are no longer fulfilled in this life, but in the life to come.  Do you have the characteristics God desires?  Do you desperately desire right living?  Are you repentant, mild-mannered (gentle), compassionate, merciful, inwardly pure, peaceful, and humble?  If you are, then you too have a future and a hope.  You may have been rejected by the world, but God sees your heart, and when the last day comes, you will finally know the eternal blessings of God.  (If you seem to be more worldly than Godly, turn to Him, and ask Him to do a work in your heart, and you too might finally know what it truly means to be ‘blessed.’)

             “Lord Heavenly Father, we come before You today and ask that You help us to be Godly in our character; that we might receive Your blessings.  We look forward to our future time with You, and ask that You give us the strength to endure the trials of this life.  Fill us with Your hope and joy, and may we always be pleasing to You.  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.

JESUS SPEAKING

            “Have faith in God.  For assuredly, I say to you, whoever says to this mountain, ‘Be removed and be cast into the sea,’ and does not doubt in his heart, but believes that those things he says will be done, he will have whatever he says.  Therefore I say to you, whatever things you ask when you pray, believe that you receive them, and you will have them” (Mark 11: 20-24.)

INSIPRED THOUGHTS

            Mountains are large, immovable obstacles; they are symbols of durability and permanence.  A million bulldozers and ten thousand sticks of dynamite would barely put a dent in even the smallest mountain range.  No human effort (no number of people, no quantity of resources) can make a mountain move.  Although no human can accomplish this task, Jesus said that through faith in God, a mountain can be reduced to a pebble that can be tossed into the sea.  A faith in God’s power is expressed in prayer.  The faithful, when faced with something they cannot accomplish, will turn and request that God do for them what they cannot do for themselves.

            Recently I was speaking with an elderly friend of mine.  For many years he and his wife had been pestering their kids to begin having children; they were anxious to be grandparents.  As the years went by and their faith in God grew, they gave up on their efforts and began praying and asking God for grandchildren; which he soon provided in abundance.  Their many years of dissatisfaction were products of their misplaced faith.  When they took the faith they had in themselves and placed it in God, the mountain that separated them from the desires of their heart had finally been removed.

            Today, there are many things in our lives that seem to be permanent fixtures; there are many obstacles that we, through our own efforts, have been powerless to overcome.  Too often we place faith in ourselves instead of God.  We need only turn to Him through prayer and seek His power.  Bring your struggles to the Lord; let Him accomplish what you cannot, and you will experience a very real miracle in your life.

            “Lord Heavenly Father, we come before You today and we ask that You give us the faith to move mountains.  We desire to see You work and to accomplish the impossible.  We admit that apart from You, we are weak and have no hope; but with You Lord, nothing is impossible.  Fill our hearts with true faith; we thank You in advance for what You are going to do in our hearts and in our lives.  We love You, 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.