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Matthew 27:20-25

Now the chief priests and the elders persuaded the crowd to ask for Barabbas and destroy Jesus.
The governor again said to them, "Which of the two do you want me to release for you?" And they said, "Barabbas."
Pilate said the them, "Then what shall I do with Jesus who is called Christ?" The all said, "Let him be crucified!"
And he said, "Why, what evil has he done?" But they shouted all the more, "Let him be crucified!"
So when Pilate saw that he was gaining nothing, but rather that a riot was beginning, he took water and washed his hands before the crowd, saying, "I am innocent of this man's blood; see to it yourselves."
And all the people answered, "His blood be on us and on our children!"

To what extent might a large group be swayed by a select few, that they might deceive even themselves?! To what extent do the immanent convictions and and perceptions of one individual coalesce, knowingly or otherwise, and merge into the ambivalent, instinctual "group mentality" when faced with an imminent decision? How can it be that they who extol at a week's start, become they who execute at its close? _When does Hosanna! become Crucify!_, or praise persecution, or adoration acrimony? How?

Either they do not trust God's power or they do not believe God's word. Or else...they do not know God. If the latter should be true, then the crowd that day was full of *fair weather faith*. Jesus looks alot like God when he is raising dead people to life, granting sight to those who are blind, and feeding many thousands with an extremely limited food selection. When, however, he says nothing and allows himself to be arrested, mocked, and questioned, he becomes the mere scapegoat for our fears and the object of our misguided and groundless blame.

John 10:37-38 If I don't do the works of my Father, don't believe me.
But if I do them, though you don't believe me, believe the works; that you may know and believe that the Father is in me, and I in the Father.

"Believe the works at least," said Jesus. But the statement goes further. The point is knowing Jesus as God. We do not get to stop believing Christ once his works become incongruous with our incomplete images of his motivations. If we are not committed to the person of Jesus, then, well, can we really be sheep? Are we not among the goats? *"And All The People Answered, 'His Blood Be On Us And On Our Children!'"

Ezekiel 8:16-17 He brought me into the inner court of Yahweh's house; and see, at the door of the temple of Yahweh, between the porch and the altar, were about twenty-five men, with their backs toward the temple of Yahweh, and their faces toward the east; and they were worshipping the sun toward the east.
Then he said to me, Have you seen [this], son of man? Is it a light thing to the house of Judah that they commit the abominations which they commit here? for they have filled the land with violence, and have turned again to provoke me to anger: and behold, they put the branch to their nose.

Ezekiel 9:6 kill utterly the old man, the young man and the virgin, and little children and women; but don't come near any man on whom is the mark: and begin at my sanctuary. Then they began at the old men that were before the house.

1 Peter 4:17a For the time has come for judgment to begin with the household of God.

...And you wonder why God will start with his own people.

posted from Bloggeroid

(Re}Cap and Update

I have brief update on the Youth leader search but first, I forgot to fill you in over the weekend, so I offer my apologies. I was focused on a sermon I was preparing for this past Sunday morning. I had the opportunity to preach to high school in the area. The passage was 2 Peter 1:3 & 4, and the focus was on sharing in God's divine nature. I can give you a summary:

2 Peter 1:3-4 ESV

His divine power has granted to us all things that pertain to life and godliness, through the knowledge of him who called us to his own glory and excellence, by which he has granted to us his precious and very great promises, so that through them you may become partakers of the divine nature, having escaped from the corruption that is in the world because of sinful desire.

Echoing the prayer of Jesus Christ for his disciples, "I do not ask that you take them out of the world, but that you keep them from the evil one. They are not of the world, just as I am not of the world. Sanctify them in the truth; your word is truth. As you sent me into the world, so I have sent them into the world. " (John 17:15-18). We have been sent into the world, not to escape the world's corruption, but to fulfill the purposes of God while we are here.

It is necessary, then, to live life in the reality of God's promises, conducting our daily affairs as if everything that God has pledged is true. The problem here is twofold. For one ,we do not know God's promises. God guarantees his people many things, including assurance of his direction for life, peace with him, being accepted by him, and answered prayer according to his will, to list a few. Life in the reality of God's promises is participation in divine nature and made available by his glory and excellence, and is our escape from the corruption that is in the world because of sinful nature.

Counting on those promises as true is the other problem. How do we trust someone we do not consider to be trustworthy? And if we consider God to be worthy of trust, then why do we hesitate to believe his word? Perhaps we need to question how well we know God. The point is to know God personally, rather than only propositionally. Know more than facts; know the person of God through firsthand experience.

All of this, which is summed up in partaking of divine nature, includes all that pertains to life and godliness. You can receive all of this by the divine power of God. However, not all people have access to that power. Though God's power is inexhaustible, it is available for the fulfilment of his purposes, and to strengthen those whose hearts are fully committed to him...which brings us back to the importance of knowing God.

Amen.


An update on getting together with Youth leaders here in Nkwanta: Our first meeting was last Friday! The three Youth leaders (I would be the fourth) and one Youth music director had a very fruitful discussion. I got to hear some of their frustrations as leaders of young people, with issues including mistrust, misunderstanding, disunity, and communication.

We also talked about biblical training!! I brought up my passions for Youth and identity formation, and asked after the leaders' thoughts of letting me teach them the basics of biblical training and/or the implications of having one's identity in Christ. They responded positively, and we all voiced our desire to bring more Youth leaders into the future meetings. We just have to find out where they are....

Live in Love.

posted from Bloggeroid

Then They Went Home While She Saw Angels

Have you read the first ten verses in the Gospel according to John, chapter 20? Feel free to look them over here:

John 20:1-10 ESV

Now on the first day of the week Mary Magdalene came to the tomb early, while it was still dark, and saw that the stone had been taken away from the tomb. So she ran and went to Simon Peter and the other disciple, the one whom Jesus loved, and said to them, "They have taken the Lord out of the tomb, and we do not know where they have laid him." So Peter went out with the other disciple, and they were going toward the tomb. Both of them were running together, but the other disciple outran Peter and reached the tomb first. And stooping to look in, he saw the linen cloths lying there, but he did not go in. Then Simon Peter came, following him, and went into the tomb. He saw the linen cloths lying there, and the face cloth, which had been on Jesus' head, not lying with the linen cloths but folded up in a place by itself. Then the other disciple, who had reached the tomb first, also went in, and he saw and believed; for as yet they did not understand the Scripture, that he must rise from the dead. Then the disciples went back to their homes.

The word of God is beautiful, is it not? Mary comes to get the two disciples and tells them of a grave robbery. John apparently sees fit to add that he is faster than Peter. Still, Peter is the one to go in first; John only peers in. Peter sees linen cloths and a separate face cloth, folded, mind you. John goes in, sees, and believes Scriptures. Finally, the two return to their respective dwelling places. "THEN THE DISCIPLES WENT BACK TO THEIR HOMES"?!? Nonsense. How does it occur to one's mind that, upon reaching an oh-so-belated comprehension of the fact of God's word that the Christ must be handed over, killed, and on the third day rise from the dead, one gives mere mental assent and returns home. How early must Mary Magdalene have gone to wake them up?? What more could a Rabbi ask for, than his disciples remember and process all his words, and when something like this happens (a.k.a. the Resurrection!), they just go back home?

But wait. There is more. Next two verses, please.

John 20:11-12 ESV

But Mary stood weeping outside the tomb, and as she wept she stooped to look into the tomb. And she saw two angels in white, sitting where the body of Jesus had lain, one at the head and one at the feet.

What?! Peter and John race to the tomb, then John believes, so they both come to understand the what the Scriptures say about Jesus' resurrection. BUT BUT BUT!! Mary...stooped to look...and she saw two angels.... How is this so, since Peter and John saw linen cloths when they looked into the tomb? Maybe it is because Jesus had told them what was to happen, so that they did not need angels to confirm the truth of what Jesus had already said. Perhaps Mary needed angelic reassurance, since she might not have followed Jesus during his entire ministry? That is the best shot I can give at the moment.

Two thoughts more. Three, if you would be so kind.
If you believe, do something beyond keeping it to yourself. Something meaningful to someone other than you.
Do not go home to soon.
He is risen. ^__^

posted from Bloggeroid

O'clock Sharp

Acts 9:31-35 ESV

So the church throughout all Judea and Galilee and Samaria had peace and was being built up. And walking in the fear of the Lord and in the comfort of the Holy Spirit, it multiplied.

Now as Peter went here and there among them all, he came down also to the saints who lived at Lydda. There he found a man named Aeneas, bedridden for eight years, who was paralyzed. And Peter said to him, "Aeneas, Jesus Christ heals you; rise and make your bed." And immediately he rose. And all the residents of Lydda and Sharon saw him, and they turned to the Lord.

What if you had an appointment with the Lord?

In this passage, all we are told about Aeneas is that he was bedridden for 8 years, and paralyzed. That is it. As Peter is moving throughout Judea and Galilee and Samaria, he comes to Lydda to visit those who follow Jesus the Christ. Does Aeneas even know anything about Peter's coming? It seems that, all of a sudden, Peter walks up to him and lets him know that Jesus Christ heals him, as if delivering a letter that has already been written.

Aeneas was a saint, a believer of God. To be paralyzed, lying on his bed for 8 years, do you not think that he prayed many times that God would take away his problem? Can you imagine what some people might have said: if he has real faith, then God would have healed him long ago. Or, he has no reason to go on asking God for anything, because God has abandoned him. Now, we all have problems. If you are honest with yourself, then you know that there is something in your life that you wish you could make better. It is something that is very evident to you, even though very few other people may notice it. Think of that issue or situation, the one about which you may have stopped praying by now, having given up hope on that area of life in which you no longer expect anything notably positive to be done. Would it not be quite incredible to have your problem handled? Moreover, what if it is handled quite unexpectedly?

Perhaps you have yet to pray today, at least not about that. You have yet to obsess over it today, at least not as much as you did the last time. Suddenly, it is finished. You sit up, make your bed, and realize your Lordthe Lord--has taken care of you...yet again. I say again because, well, for starters, it is not as if you have been dead since the development of this problem. There is always something for which you can and should thank the Lord. Maybe that is for another time.

My point now is that, at any time, God may send a message of healing your way. You just hold on; keep praying, believing, hoping, trusting God and waiting on His word. The Lord says in 2 Chronicles 7:14 that, if His people, called by His name, would humble themselves and pray, seek His face and turn from their wicked ways, *then* He will hear from heaven, forgive their sins, and heal the land. The Bible tells us that those who wait on the Lord will renew their strength, they will mount up on wings like eagles, they will run and not get weary, they will walk and not faint. What an honor to receive a good word from the Most High God!

Pay attention to what Peter says next, "Rise and make your bed." There is nothing that has begun to affect you that the word of God, once spoken, and spoken once, will not change. God only has to speak to bring about His purpose. The Scriptures do not read that the Lord had made His presence to dwell in Lydda before Aeneas was healed, or that some fire had to rain down from heaven before a healing could come. God did not even mention that Aeneas had to fast or go to any a certain place to have healing. God Almighty sent a message through his servant, Peter, to tell Aeneas of what had already been decided by the throne of God. Aeneas' duty, then, is to live in the restoration of physical abilities, and therefore to be strengthened spiritually to continue following the Lord. If you have waited faithfully for the Lord, when the Lord shows Himself to be ready for you to move, then MOVE!

This could be true for you right now. You are wondering and praying to the Lord to give you direction. When He finally does, you decided to pray even longer for the same thing. But why would you do that?! The time for seeking the Lord on this matter has ended. The time has come to walk with your God. Peter delivers the message to Aeneas that, since Jesus has healed him, he should live according to that word. He had been bedridden for eight years. Peter did not tell Aeneas that the change would be easy. He did mean for Aeneas to start the change immediately. And what was Aeneas' response? The Bible tells us here in Acts chapter 9 that Aeneas rose *immediately*. He believed God and, like Abraham in the book of Genesis, chapter 15, verse 6, "it was put to his account as righteousness."

Do you believe God? Do you believe that God can send a messenger to you, right where you are? Do you believe that just God's word can set you free from your circumstance? Do you believe God enough to deliver His message to someone else?

Consider this: what if you have been given the privilege of being Jesus Christ's messenger?

You are going about your way, impacting the world for the Lord in your spheres of influence, when you reach a certain place. There may or may not be anything special about the place in its own right, except that as you are on the way, you meet someone with an ailment, in whatever form it may be presented. Then, the Lord himself gives you His notice of authority, "This is the one I have a message for at this time. Let them know I heal them, and tell them to live according their healing." What do you do? Your options are there. Will you obey; take glory for what has been done by the Lord's word; continue on your way as if nothing is happening (because who knows if God is even saying anything to that person); or will you falter in your faith because you do not think God would really tell YOU to do something like THISeven though perhaps you of all people would like to believe miracles like this are still alive and well in God's kingdom?

In both of the aforementioned scenarios you are blessed with an appointment with the Lord, whether to . So that means you need to pay attention to what you are doing, and constantly listen for the voice and direction of the Lord. Whether you are giving the message God has given you, or receiving the notice that God has given someone else, is it not a great thing to both relay and perceive that "Jesus Christ heals you"?

Oh and by the way, Jesus Christ sent me to tell you he HAS healed you of your former condition, called death. Accept it. Acknowledge him as Lord. Believe that God raised him from the dead. Rise, then, and make your bed; walk in the healing with which you have been healed.

posted from Bloggeroid