Boldly Offer To Pray

 Again He went out from the region of Tyre, and came through Sidon to the Sea of Galilee, within the region of Decapolis. 

They brought to Him one who was deaf and spoke with difficulty, and they implored Him to lay His hand on him. 

Jesus took him aside from the crowd, by himself, and put His fingers into his ears, and after spitting, He touched his tongue with the saliva; and looking up to heaven with a deep sigh, He  said to him, “Ephphatha!” that is, “Be opened!” And his ears were opened, and the impediment of his tongue was removed, and he began speaking plainly. 

And He gave them orders not to tell anyone; but the more He ordered them, the more widely they continued to proclaim it. They were utterly astonished, saying, “He has done all things well; He makes even the deaf to hear and the mute to speak.”

Mark 7:31-37 

Everywhere Jesus went He demonstrated that He cared for people.  He ministered to the sick and to those with handicaps.  He did not differentiate based on who the person was or where he/she was from, but with each one demonstrated the power of God to change lives.  

Jesus did this for the man who was deaf and unable to speak clearly, when He healed him, not for His glory but by the power of God.  Afterwards, He ordered the people not to tell anyone what had happened.

But, the people who witnessed the miracle could not contain the news and word of the healing power of God through Jesus spread,  

The lesson here is that we should not lose hope, but to continue to pray for those who are sick or suffering.  Praying with someone gives them hope and improves their outlook on life, both of which help with the healing process.  

Boldly offer to pray for healing with those who are sick or suffering because it is what Jesus would do.

The Money Changers

Then they came to Jerusalem. And He entered the temple area and began to drive out those who were selling and buying on the temple grounds, and He overturned the tables of the money changers and the seats of those who were selling doves; and He would not allow anyone to carry merchandise through the temple grounds.   

And He began to teach and say to them, “Is it not written: ‘My house will be called a house of prayer for all the nations’? But you have made it a den of robbers.” 

Mark 11:15-17

Even today we still see some pastors and churches selling and buying.  They may be promising salvation or healing for a price or  selling faith objects that offer protection to the buyer.  It might be a special "Bible" with extra non-scriptural text which offers information no one else knows.  Or, at its worst, in my opinion, are worship events that require an admission fee.  And, then there is the matter of charging a fee for children to attend summer Bible School.  It is all about the dollars, not about reaching people with the Gospel.

Those who promote buying and selling in the church defend their actions by saying it costs a lot to operate a ministry or a church.  In my opinion, they are out to wring as much cash out of people that they can get.  They are not operating to meet the needs of people or to promote the Gospel. They are operating for profit.

So, what do we do?  We do not lend support to the money changers.  And, given the opportunity, we can call them out.  

Most of all, we can preach the the truth that salvation is the free gift of God through His Son, Jesus, and all anyone has to do to receive this gift is to acknowledge they are a sinner, ask forgiveness and accept Jesus as their Lord, Master and Savior.        

Time To Be Silent

 

Even a fool, when he keeps silent, is considered wise;

When he closes his lips, he is considered prudent.

Proverbs 17:28

I am a person who talks way too much.  Sometimes so much that I am annoying.  I own this, and learning to control it was a hard learned lesson, which I mastered after a couple of smack downs and "shut ups" from people who I respected.  

Then a few years ago, I started a new job and after a week or so, one of the employees commented that I was really quiet.

And, I responded by quoting this scripture.  They said that that was a good one.  

If we don't know what we are talking about, we shouldn't be talking.

Lord help me keep my mouth shut.

Grace Is Not Rationed

 

For I am not ashamed of the Gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes, to the Jew first and also to the Greek.

For in it the righteousness of God is revealed from faith to faith; as it is written, “But the righteous man shall live by faith.”

Romans 1:16-17

God's grace is not rationed, it is available to everyone.  He sent Jesus for the redemption of the world.  And, with redemption comes the power of salvation to everyone who believes.

What is this power?  It is the power that changes us from thinking we are on our own to knowing that God is with us and cares for us.  We are not left unattended, but have God's full attention as we become righteous, that is morally right.  

Righteousness leads us to live by faith, knowing that God will take care of us.

We are not ashamed of the Gospel, for it is the power of God. 

Shine A Light

 

For everyone who does evil hates the Light, and does not come to the Light for fear that his deeds will be exposed.  But he who practices truth comes to the Light, so that his deeds may be manifested as having been wrought in God.

 

John 3:20

Evil people know they are evil and they tend to stay away from the church and from Christians because they don’t want it pointed out to them.  They may speak ill of the church and Christians and point out every possible flaw they can think of to make the Gospel look wrong and themselves look right. 

 

We have tolerated evil people for too long.  We look the other way and try to avoid confronting them about their evil words, ideas and actions.  The truth is that evil people hurt people.  No they may not themselves attack another person, but they will cheer on others who do.  They loose no sleep over causing human beings to suffer.  

 

I think it is time that we shine a light on evil people.  When we see evil, we need to speak up loudly and let them and everyone around them know what is happening.

Once publicly exposed they may think twice about displaying their evil deeds.  And, if they are not "evil" but ignorant of how to treat people, then perhaps they will mend their ways.

 

We have the light of the truth and we need to let it shine.

Take Courage

Immediately afterward He compelled the disciples to get into the boat and to go ahead of Him to the other side, while He sent the crowds away.  After He had sent the crowds away, He went up on the mountain by Himself to pray; and when it was evening, He was there alone.  But the boat was already a long distance from the land, battered by the waves; for the wind was contrary. And in the fourth watch of the night He came to them, walking on the sea. When the disciples saw Him walking on the sea, they were terrified, and said, “It is a ghost!” And they cried out in fear.  

 

But immediately Jesus spoke to them, saying, “Take courage, it is I; do not be afraid.”

 

Matthew 14:22-27

 

There are times when we are frightened by what the future may hold.  Things are not going the way we think they should.  We become paralyzed by fear of what may happen if things do not change.

It is in these times that we need to remember that we may not see the hand of God at work, but it is.  What we see as impending disaster, God sees as an opportunity to reveal His glory. 

We can take courage knowing that God is in control and we have nothing to fear.   

 

Doers Of The Word

But prove yourselves doers of the word, and not just hearers who deceive themselves.  For if anyone is a hearer of the word and not a doer, he is like a man who looks at his natural face in a mirror; for once he has looked at himself and gone away, he has immediately forgotten what kind of person he was.  But one who has looked intently at the perfect law, the law of freedom, and has continued in it, not having become a forgetful hearer but an active doer, this person will be blessed in what he does.

James 1:22-25

When we read the Bible we sometimes do not absorb what is being said.  We miss what God is telling us.  That is how it is when we are hearers of the word and not doers.

Years ago, one Sunday my daughter said, "I don't think I like what the pastor said."

What she did not like was that the pastor said, "The purpose of bad people in your life is to destroy your life.  Get rid of them."  

My daughter had some shady friends and she knew it and she still associated with them and was influenced by them, which caused her a lot of grief. 

This is what happens when we disregard what the Bible tells us about how we should live.  We are easily pulled into things that are not good for us or anyone else. And, our lives are less than the best that God has for us.

When we look intently at what the Bible tells us to do and actively strive to live Christ like lives, we will be blessed.