Tag: Jesus Speaks

Serpents and Doves

~ servantone1

JESUS SPEAKING

                “Behold, I send you out as sheep in the midst of wolves.  Therefore be wise as serpents and as harmless (innocent) as doves” (Mathew 10: 16.)

INSPIRED THOUGHTS

                Those who accept the Holy Spirit and forsake evil are cleansed of all unrighteousness.  They are made pure; the innocence that was lost through sin is finally restored (the sons and daughters of God are reborn as doves; lacking evil intentions and immoral hearts.)  Unlike natural born children whose innocence is accompanied by ignorance, the ‘reborn’ child of God retains the knowledge of good and evil.  In the heart of every believer, innocence and wisdom exist in harmony.  The serpent is a creature that symbolizes wisdom.  In Genesis, God created the serpent to be the wisest of all the animals (Satan himself took the form of a serpent when he cleverly convinced Adam and Eve to disobey God.)  Characteristically, snakes are rarely caught off guard; they patiently wait for opportunities to strike; and they always keep their eyes on potential predators.  In a world filled with evil, God’s eternal offspring must apply comparable wisdom to avoid destruction. Like the serpent, believers must see hungry predators as they approach and turn to face them.  How can we be kind and loving toward these predators while at the same time making sure we don’t get eaten by them?  To be both a dove and a serpent can be a difficult task that demands discipline and divine guidance.

                A couple of years ago a man entered the coffee shop I frequent; it was late in the evening and there were very few customers; he was a peculiar man dressed in work out clothing.  He spoke in broken English and began to draw attention to himself by flirting with the workers behind the register.  When the workers were distracted, the man leaned over the counter and pulled some money out of the tip jar (quickly concealing it.)  Immediately I rose up and approached the counter.  The man turned around and was greeted with a stern look.  “Put it back,” I said.  “I’m so sorry” he replied; admitting to his devious actions, he returned the money and begged for forgiveness.  He claimed to be starving and in desperate need of money (possibly true; possibly a lie.)  I told him that what he really needed was Jesus.  I offered to help him so he didn’t have to steal.  I gave him money from my ATM and a bible from my car; he gratefully received them and went his way.  God had given me the wisdom to recognize evil in action.  Like a serpent I was able to expose and oppose a predator.  Like a dove I avoided harming the man; instead I loved and cared for him according to the will of God.

                God has called every follower to be wise; the child of God is able to recognize and oppose evil. The believer must also be harmless; showing love and kindness to those who oppose what is good.  The wicked despise God’s children; they seek to destroy, to pervert, and to devour the faithful; but the faithful seek to build up, to love, and to convert the wicked.  Walk wisely in the ways of God, and reach out to the lost; His Spirit will shine through you; you will bring hope to the hopeless; you will lead the blind to freedom; submit yourself to the call of God, and become a messenger of light in a very dark world.

                “Lord Heavenly Father, give us the wisdom to avoid being harmed by evil while also opposing it.  May we be kind to those who walk in darkness; employ us to love the wicked.  May Your light shine brightly through us in this dark world.  Use us to direct others away from destruction and toward eternal life.  We love You Father, we praise You, and we thank You, and we ask and pray all of these things, according to Your will, in Jesus Christ’s name, Amen.”  God bless all of you.

Moving Mountains

~ servantone1

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.)

INSPIRED 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 Father, we praise You, and we thank You, and we ask and pray all of these things, according to Your will, in Jesus Christ’s name.  Amen.”  God bless all of you. 

A Finished Work

~ servantone1

JESUS SPEAKING

                 After this, Jesus, knowing that all things were now accomplished, that the scripture might be fulfilled, said, “I thirst.”  Now a vessel full of sour wine was sitting there; and they filled a sponge with sour wine, put it on hyssop, and put it to his mouth.  So when Jesus had received the sour wine, he said, “It is finished!”  And bowing his head, he gave up his spirit (John 19: 28-30.)

INSPIRED THOUGHTS

                Jesus had come to the end of his suffering on the cross.  He was betrayed, arrested, abandoned, beaten, humiliated, falsely accused, interrogated, publicly ridiculed and teased, spit on, and pierced by thorns; he was maimed by a whip about the neck, back and legs (the whip contained sharp shards which tore open his flesh;) a bag was placed over his head and he was struck in the face; Jesus carried a cross through mobs of people who hurled insults at him.  Spikes were driven through his hands and feet.  Despite the long list of pains he endured, thirst was one of the greatest agonies of the cross.  The condemned were denied water; Jesus had lost huge amounts of blood and was exposed to the heat of the day; his body desperately sought water to repair itself.  Near death, he said, “I thirst.”  The soldiers responded to his thirst by raising a vinegar soaked sponge to his lips (vinegar is an extremely bitter tasting liquid—even the Romans mercy seemed cruel.)  In his last moments, Jesus tasted the bitterness of man’s sin.  He then said, “it is finished,” and he died.  In a single day he had finished his greatest work; the salvation of mankind.  He took the penalty of man’s sin upon himself.  He suffered God’s wrath, so that those who would believe in him could avoid destruction. 

                The following is a fictitious story which illustrates the work of Jesus on the cross:  A girl and her mother lived next to a snake farm in India.  From the time of her youth, the girl was told not to wander near the snake pits.  One evening the girl began to argue with her mother; frustrated and filled with anger, she struck her mother; in shock the girl ran from her home; because it was evening she didn’t realize she was running toward the snake farm.  Suddenly she plummeted into one of the pits.  Seeing a single cobra staring her in the face, she screamed.  Hearing the scream, her mother came running and looked down into the pit and saw her daughter’s distress.  The woman jumped into the pit, and lunged toward the cobra to save her daughter.  The mother was bitten.  The young girl reached forward to pull her mother away from danger, and the cobra also bit her.  The owners of the snake farm heard the commotion and came running.  They pulled the women from the pit and rushed them to the hospital.  The mother went in to cardiac arrest, but the young girl showed no symptoms.  After a half an hour, the girl’s mother was pronounced dead.  The girl began to sob uncontrollably.  The Doctor approached her with a somber look on his face.  The girl asked him, “How could this have happened?  I’m completely fine; we were bitten by the same snake; why is it I am healthy and my mother is dead?”  The Doctor compassionately replied, “Well, your mother was bitten first; and the snake used all of its venom on her.  When it bit you, it had nothing left to inject.  Your mother saved your life.”

                Similarly, Jesus Christ has placed himself between God’s wrath and those who deserve to experience it.  He has taken the full penalty for sin upon himself; he has paid the price; he has suffered death so others may live.  As Jesus endured suffering he thought of you, and he thought of me.  He thought of us.  Have you accepted his sacrifice?  Have you allowed him to take your place?  Give Jesus Christ the opportunity to heal your spirit and to wash your sins away.  If you have never accepted Jesus Christ as your Lord and savior, you can do that today.  Contact me and we can talk about how you can partake in Christ’s offering and know the true peace of God within your heart.

                “Lord Heavenly Father, we come before You and thank Your Son for his suffering.  We thank You for allowing him to take our place on the cross.  Thank You Jesus, for enduring God’s wrath so we can escape His punishment and be forgiven for our sins.  Father, be our God; be our salvation; be the center of our lives; fill us up with Your Spirit, and help us to sacrifice our lives for others (as You have done for us.)  We love You, we praise You, and we thank You, and we ask and pray all of these things, according to Your will, in Jesus Christ’s name, Amen.”  God bless all of you.