Jesus Gives Marching Orders to Special Ops Team

Jesus said “No one lights a lamp and then hides it under a bushel!” and now He puts that concept into action through his disciples. Strangely, however, there is not a single mention of personal sanctification, extreme fasting and prayer, or other common means of attaining spiritual insight before Christ commands his men to go forth.

It is almost as if he thinks being with him is enough to empower them. That they have already seen enough to make them fearless, bold and dedicated to his service. It is almost as if Jesus thinks they need NO training, no special theological framework or ministry supporters, just a relationship with Him!

Well, I know of several well-meaning Christian mission agencies that would argue with that.

But I also know that every apostle sent by God – and His Son – pass with flying colors if all they do is rely on Him and His Word alone.

He meets every need for those men and women.

Amen.

Read in the round

Luke 9:1-9

1 When Jesus had called the Twelve together, he gave them power and authority to drive out all demons and to cure diseases, 2 and he sent them out to proclaim the kingdom of God and to heal the sick.
3 He told them: “Take nothing for the journey—no staff, no bag, no bread, no money, no extra shirt. 4 Whatever house you enter, stay there until you leave that town.
5 “If people do not welcome you, leave their town and shake the dust off your feet as a testimony against them.”
6 So they set out and went from village to village, proclaiming the good news and healing people everywhere.
7 Now Herod the tetrarch heard about all that was going on. And he was perplexed because some were saying that John had been raised from the dead,
8 others that Elijah had appeared, and still others that one of the prophets of long ago had come back to life.
9 But Herod said, “I beheaded John. Who, then, is this I hear such things about?” And he tried to see him.

1) What strikes you as surprising or unusual about the commands of Jesus to His disciples? In another fashion, let’s ask which command would give YOU the most concern? Why?

2) Did Jesus expect the disciples to always live in this fashion, or where these temporary orders?

3) What ‘order’ gave surprise and joy to his disciples as they obeyed [cf. Matthew]?

4) Lastly, who is the most confused in this passage about Jesus and his mission? Why did God thwart his desire, do you think?

Benediction
Acts 4:8-14

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Christian Leaders on Waging War with the World in Christ

• Confronted with a cancer or a slum the Pantheist can say, "If you could only see it from the divine point of view, you would realize that this also is God." The Christian replies, "Don't talk... nonsense." –C.S. Lewis
  
  
• Should all the hosts of death and powers of hell unknown put their most dreadful forms of rage and malice on, I shall be safe, for Christ displays superior power and guardian grace. -Isaac Watt
  
  
• The will of God will never take you to where the grace of God will not protect you. To gain that which is worth having, it may be necessary to lose everything else. -Bernadette Devlin
  
  
• If you... come to Christ, he will appear as a Lion, in his glorious power and dominion, to defend you. All those excellencies of his, in which he appears as a lion, shall be yours, and shall be employed for you in your defense, for your safety, and to promote your glory; he will be as a lion to fight against your enemies. He that touches you, or offends you, will provoke his wrath, as he that stirs up a lion. Unless your enemies can conquer this Lion, they shall not be able to destroy or hurt you. Unless they are stronger than he, they shall not be able to hinder your happiness. -Jonathan Edwards
  
  
• His will is our hiding place. -Corrie Ten Boom

Jesus Brings to Life Women Who Are Dead to the World

Jesus Heals Women Who Are Dead to the World

There’s physical death and there is spiritual death. There is financial death and there is social death. It does not matter to Jesus. He is able to bring life from nothing.

Even when he’s not paying attention!

Amen.

Read in the round: Luke 8:40-56

⁴⁰ Now when Jesus returned, a crowd welcomed him, for they were all expecting him.

⁴¹ Then a man named Jairus, a synagogue leader, came and fell at Jesus’ feet, pleading
with him to come to his house

⁴² because his only daughter, a girl of about twelve, was dying. As Jesus was on his way, the crowds almost crushed him.

⁴³ And a woman was there who had been subject to bleeding for twelve years, but no one could heal her.

⁴⁴ She came up behind him and touched the edge of his cloak, and immediately her bleeding stopped.

⁴⁵ “Who touched me?” Jesus asked. When they all denied it, Peter said, “Master, the people are crowding and pressing against you.”

⁴⁶ But Jesus said, “Someone touched me; I know that power has gone out from me.”

⁴⁷ Then the woman, seeing that she could not go unnoticed, came trembling and fell at his feet. In the presence of all the people, she told why she had touched him and how she had been instantly healed.

⁴⁸ Then he said to her, “Daughter, your faith has healed you. Go in peace.”

⁴⁹ While Jesus was still speaking, someone came from the house of Jairus, the synagogue leader. “Your daughter is dead,” he said. “Don’t bother the teacher anymore.”

⁵⁰ Hearing this, Jesus said to Jairus, “Don’t be afraid; just believe, and she will be healed.”

⁵¹ When he arrived at the house of Jairus, he did not let anyone go in with him except Peter, John and James, and the child’s father and mother.

⁵² Meanwhile, all the people were wailing and mourning for her. “Stop wailing,” Jesus said. “She is not dead but asleep.”

⁵³ They laughed at him, knowing that she was dead.

⁵⁴ But he took her by the hand and said, “My child, get up!”

⁵⁵ Her spirit returned, and at once she stood up. Then Jesus told them to give her something to eat.

⁵⁶ Her parents were astonished, but he ordered them not to tell anyone what had happened.

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1) By this time, is Jesus’ power well known? According to scripture, what needs to happen for it to be effective?

2) Who needs his healing? What number is mentioned in both accounts? What contrast and comparison was Luke trying to show here? Discuss.

3) What is so amazing about Jesus’ final command to the little girl’s parents? Why’d he say that?

Benediction
Romans 8:8-15

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Christian Leaders on Fullness of Life in the Midst of Sorrows

• God cannot give us a happiness and peace apart from Himself, because it is not there. There is no such thing. –C.S. Lewis
• It takes moral courage to grieve; it requires religious courage to rejoice. - Soren Kierkegaard
• God is attracted to weakness. (cf. Psalm 51:17) -Kimber Kaufmann
• Earth has no sorrow that heaven cannot heal. -Thomas Moore
• The ‘problem of evil’ is raised more often by spectators of life than the actual combatants. You will hardly ever find that the great sufferers are the great skeptics. -James Stewart
• Our heavenly father never takes anything from his children unless He means to give them something better. -George Mueller
• Many of us do not realize that pain and joy run together. When we cut ourselves off from pain, we unwittingly cut ourselves off from joy as well. -Clyde Reed
• When I dwell on the goodness God has expressed towards me, my heart rises up like an artesian well, my eyes gush forth joy that waters my face and leaves the observer in wonder. -Gary Amirault
• Health is a good thing; but sickness is far better, if it leads us to God. - J.C. Ryle

Luke 7:11-17

Jesus Brings a Widow’s Son to Life

In the first century, and still in many parts of the world, widows were often overlooked and mistreated. They were essentially unwanted, past childbearing age and “unuseful” in a world that had no modern machines, modern medicine or electronic communication. Their beauty had passed, their years of frailty had begun and there were those who would either take advantage of them or ignore them since they had no man to defend them. Judges would vote in favor of the more ‘economically viable’ and unless there was a family who loved them, they had to survive by whatever meager means they had. They were one step away from being “bag ladies”. And if they were actually hurt or crippled, who could they work for to get needed basic necessities? They were next to nobodies in the eyes of the greedy and selfish in the harsh daily realities of Judea.

Again, no family equaled no aid. So it was no small wonder that Jesus brought back this widow’s ONLY son from the dead. Jesus’ own mother Mary was a widow [Joseph is gone by the time Jesus is grown]; and I perceive that this widow’s plight must have touched our Lord’s heart DEEPLY.

He stepped up and took charge. He told her not to cry, before He did the impossible. He raised her son up from the dead gave him back to her. What does it teach us, besides His great compassion and love for the weak and downtrodden?

When everything looks helpless and desperate, with no one to help you, Jesus is there.

Amen.

Read in the round

Luke 7:11-17

¹¹ Soon afterward, Jesus went to a town called Nain, and his disciples and a large crowd went along with him.

¹² As he approached the town gate, a dead person was being carried out—the only son of his mother, and she was a widow. And a large crowd from the town was with her.

¹³ When the Lord saw her, his heart went out to her and he said, “Don’t cry.”
¹⁴ Then he went up and touched the bier they were carrying him on, and the bearers stood still. He said, “Young man, I say to you, get up!”
¹⁵ The dead man sat up and began to talk, and Jesus gave him back to his mother.
¹⁶ They were all filled with awe and praised God. “A great prophet has appeared among us,” they said. “God has come to help his people.”
¹⁷ This news about Jesus spread throughout Judea and the surrounding country.

1) What do we know about this woman’s life, if at her son’s death, “a large crowd was with her”?

2) What was the first command of Jesus to her? Why? What were her reasons for distress?

3) Since “the dead man sat up and began to talk”, what can we surmise about his demise?
What two things become apparent to these mourners at this event? Are they correct?

Benediction
Psalm 23

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Quotes from Various Christian Leaders on Hope

• "You are never too old to set another goal or to dream a new dream." –C.S. Lewis
• "Hope is a state of mind, not of the world. Hope, in this deep and powerful sense, is not the same as joy that things are going well, or willingness to invest in enterprises that are obviously heading for success, but rather an ability to work for something because it is good." –Vaclav Havel
• Everything that is done in the world is done by hope." –Martin Luther
• We are not necessarily doubting that God will do the best for us; we are wondering how painful the best will turn out to be." –C.S. Lewis
  
• When you say a situation or a person is hopeless, you are slamming the door in the face of God." –Charles L. Allen
• "The Christian’s chief occupational hazards are despair and discouragement." –John R. Stott
• "Pray, and let God worry." –William Law
  
• "I've read the last page of the Bible. It's all going to turn out all right." –Billy Graham

Be blessed!

Luke 7:1-10 [Been a long time but we're still here!]

(Editor: We had stopped putting updates here, but we're going to change that, hoping to bless others who visit this blog.)

Jesus Is Amazed at a Centurion’s Faith

When something goes wrong, we head to the person in authority if we want a quick resolution. If we don’t, what we really want is sympathy for the trial or problem we are experiencing – assuming that there is NO authority to appeal to or to ask aid from - or we assume that the authority is unrelenting and unapproachable.

The faith of this Roman Centurion is not just that God exists and the Roman pantheon is wrong and the Jews are right – his faith has taken such legs that he has become nearly an evangelist by helping get a synagogue built for the Jews. He is definitely in another category altogether.

Somehow, this Roman soldier sought God and began finding him – and then heard about Jesus.

He does not hesitate, this man of action. Luke adds the detail that he refused to dishonor Christ by coming himself – but his need is very great. He absolutely takes it for granted that this godly prophet has the power to do miracles. We have a LOT more information about Jesus – but I must say, even as Christ said, “I have not found such faith in all of ISRAEL!”

Jesus is not trying to condemn our lack of faith, but we should feel pretty bad when those outside the Christian faith believe God is answering our prayers more often than we do!

Amen.

Read in the round

Luke 7:1-10
1 When Jesus had finished saying all this to the people who were listening, he entered Capernaum.
2 There a centurion’s servant, whom his master valued highly, was sick and about to die.
3 The centurion heard of Jesus and sent some elders of the Jews to him, asking him to come and heal his servant.
4 When they came to Jesus, they pleaded earnestly with him, “This man deserves to have you do this,
5 because he loves our nation and has built our synagogue.”
6 So Jesus went with them. He was not far from the house when the centurion sent friends to say to him: “Lord, don’t trouble yourself, for I do not deserve to have you come under my roof.
7 “That is why I did not even consider myself worthy to come to you. But say the word, and my servant will be healed.
8 “For I myself am a man under authority, with soldiers under me. I tell this one, ‘Go,’ and he goes; and that one, ‘Come,’ and he comes. I say to my servant, ‘Do this,’ and he does it.”
9 When Jesus heard this, he was amazed at him, and turning to the crowd following him, he said, “I tell you, I have not found such great faith even in Israel.”
10 Then the men who had been sent returned to the house and found the servant well.

1) Why did the elders think helping this Roman centurion was a good thing? What does that tell you about him?
2) What did this Roman soldier understand about Jesus? Have you yourself learned anything about Jesus because of your profession, job or other daily task?
3) What incredible compliment does Jesus pay this gentile?

Benediction
James 5:16-20
(c) Justice Carmon 2011

Ephesians 4:7-16

A Conquering Christ Gives Ministers with Gifts God answers the prayers of the world first by giving us Himself and then by giving His sons and daughters as ministers of His Spirit. When you think God has not answered your prayers, keep in mind His goal is not to make you comfortable but for you to join Him in the glorious work of ministering to others. You are His gift to the world. We may feel put out, put upon and bewildered at times, but just as Jesus came "to serve, not to be served" we must expect to be called by God to help others whose "faith is weak." Listen to this from St. Francis of Assisi: O Divine Master, grant that I may not so much seek to be consoled as to console; to be understood as to understand; to be loved as to love. For it is in giving that we receive; it is in pardoning that we are pardoned; and it is in dying that we are born to eternal life. God has a purpose for our lives as saints: it is to minister to others with our gifts – and all our talents and abilities are a gift from Him to serve and to enhance the lives of others, and hopefully, grant us great joy as we do it! Our lives have wonderful meaning if we realize that "even a cup of cold water" that is given in Jesus' Name is rewarded by God. If you have a lot of trouble with this concept, I suggest you watch that great theological masterpiece, It's a Wonderful Life and see how blessed George Bailey is, even though he does not get to do what he wants to do so many times. As you may recall, George Bailey is finally shown by Clarence (angel, second-class) how important his life really was – not to the world–at-large perhaps, but to the small town of Bedford Falls, preserving it from being ruined by Old Man Potter's greed. In like fashion, we as ministers and followers of Jesus Christ, have no business dictating to God where we will be placed, but we can quench His work in other's lives if we forget that we are here for His purposes: to make Christ known. As St. Francis said, "Preach the gospel always! And if you must, use words." Amen. Read in the round Ephesians 4:7-16 (NIV)  7 But to each one of us grace has been given as Christ apportioned it. 8 This is why it says: [Psalm 68:18] "When He ascended on high,    He led captives in His train         and gave gifts to men." [variant Targumic reading in Aramaic] 9 (What does "He ascended" mean except that He also descended to the lower, earthly regions? 10 He who descended is the very one who ascended higher than all the heavens, in order to fill the whole universe.) 11 It was He who gave some to be apostles, some to be prophets, some to be evangelists, and some to be pastors and teachers, 12 to prepare God's people for works of service, so that the body of Christ may be built up 13 until we all reach unity in the faith and in the knowledge of the Son of God and become mature, attaining to the whole measure of the fullness of Christ. 14 Then we will no longer be infants, tossed back and forth by the waves, and blown here and there by every wind of teaching and by the cunning and craftiness of men in their deceitful scheming. 15 Instead, speaking the truth in love, we will in all things grow up into Him who is the Head, that is, Christ. 16 From Him the whole body, joined and held together by every supporting ligament, grows and builds itself up in love, as each part does its work. 1) Paul reinterprets Psalm 68:18 here – why? Does he have a authority to do so? [Gal 1:11-12] 2) What does Paul imply being a minister is: a job or a gift? What's the purpose of it? 3) Do you see yourself as aiding the body of Christ, being aided by it, still growing – or all three? Benediction Isaiah 61:1-6

Ephesians 1:1-14

The Apostle Paul Praises God's Amazing Grace & Glory to His Elect Paul introduces himself as an "apostle of Christ Jesus by the will of God" before launching into a paean of praise to God for choosing His saints as a loving God who is in charge of EVERYTHING in the universe.   The verses 3-14 are one long sentence in the Greek and have been referred to in various ways by different commentators. The one I appreciate most is "an operatic overture." For it is clear as day that Paul is excited, exuberant, nearly blasting the Ephesians out of their socks with the joy of God's election while He declares God's power, grace, generosity and love towards them.   For those of us who once lived our lives in darkness, we gladly receive this intro from Paul as confirmation that God loved us enough to come after us and irresistibly draw us to Himself. Our past sins and misdeeds are ALREADY paid for in Christ – there is no barrier to His love for us. As the apostle John later writes: "This is love: not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as an atoning sacrifice for our sins." - I Jn 4:10   God is the Omniscient Lover - and we are the objects of His powerful affection.   Amen.   Read in the round   Ephesians 1:1-14 (NIV) Paul, an apostle of Christ Jesus by the will of God,      To the saints in Ephesus, the faithful in Christ Jesus: Grace and peace to you from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ! Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in the heavenly realms with every spiritual blessing in Christ. For He chose us in Him before the creation of the world to be holy and blameless in His sight. In love He predestined us to be adopted as His sons through Jesus Christ, in accordance with His pleasure and will— to the praise of His glorious grace, which He has freely given us in the One He loves. In Him we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of sins, in accordance with the riches of God's grace that He lavished on us with all wisdom and understanding. And He made known to us the mystery of His will according to His good pleasure, which He purposed in Christ, to be put into effect when the times will have reached their fulfillment—to bring all things in heaven and on earth together under one head, even Christ. In Him we were also chosen, having been predestined according to the plan of Him who works out everything in conformity with the purpose of His will, In order that we, who were the first to hope in Christ, might be for the praise of His glory. And you also were included in Christ when you heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation. Having believed, you were marked in Him with a seal, the promised Holy Spirit, who is a deposit guaranteeing our inheritance until the redemption of those who are God's possession—to the praise of His glory.   1) Who chose us to become Christians? When? Why? How do you feel about that?     Benediction 1 Peter 2:9-10

God Is Faithful!

Good Morning:   Yesterday an old friend called. When I picked up the phone to say hello, she said her name and then said "God is faithful!"  To which I responded, "Yes He is faithful!"   Isn't that a great way to greet each other?   I Corinthians 1:9 says  that "God is faithful, by whom you were called into the fellowship of His Son Jesus Christ, our Lord".   God is faithful!   We are all breathing and reading this email to prove it. Let's continue to study His faithfulness tonight at 7 p.m.   See you then.   I made a special dessert - fresh rhubarb pie - yum!     Love, Nancy