Scripture for Friday, September 30 (9/30)

The scripture for today, September 30, is Luke 9:30f as found in the New Testament of the Bible:

0-BOOK 7-SHADOW OF DEATH-Cover“Two men, Moses and Elijah, appeared in glorious splendor, talking with Jesus. They spoke about his departure, which he was about to bring to fulfillment at Jerusalem.”

Hebrews 5:7 says something very startling to most people. “During the days of Jesus’ life on earth, he offered up prayers and petitions with loud cries and tears to the one who could save him from death.”

Jesus did not look forward to going to the cross, even though many thousands of others had died that way. Why was it different for him? Because he had to take on all our sins as though he had committed them himself ~ every lie we’ve told, every gain from cheating, every insult, every slander campaign against another, every adultery, every murder ~ everything ~ all our sins! How could he bear it?

Not only that, but he had to experience both physical and spiritual death. Spiritual death means being separated from, being forsaken by God. What a terror to experience!

And so, a few weeks before his crucifixion, as he prayed on the mountain, Moses and Elijah appeared to him and they spoke about his death. They surely gave him courage to do what had to be done to save you and me who deserve hell.

The crowning glory of this conversation with Moses and Elijah is that God reassured him by announcing, “THIS IS MY SON! WHOM I HAVE CHOSEN! LISTEN TO HIM!”

Jesus was to nail the Old Law of Moses to the cross (Colossians 2:14). He had promised people, “Do not think that I have come to abolish the Law and the Prophets: I have not come to abolish them but to fulfill them” (Matthew 5:17).

Indeed, by the time Jesus returned to heaven, he had lived the Old Law introduced by Moses perfectly ~ something no man had ever been able to do. And by the time he returned to heaven, he had fulfilled every prophecy about his birth, life, and death, the first such prophet being represented by Elijah.

Oh the things Jesus went through for us. We fall at his feet and worship him.

#Law, #crucifixion, #hell, #death, #prophecies

Scripture for Thursday, September 30 (9/30)

The scripture for today, September 29, is Matthew 9:29 as found in the New Testament of the Bible:

0-BOOK 3-HEARTS AFIRE-COVER“Then he touched their eyes and said, ‘According to your faith will it be done to you.’ “

Sometimes when we pray for healing during sickness, a well-meaning friend will say, “Well, you haven’t been healed because you didn’t have enough faith.” But Jesus did not heal everyone according to their faith.

The boy in Nain he brought back to life (Luke 7:14-15) did not have any faith at all. The girl in Capernaum he brought back to life (Luke 8:51-56) did not have any faith at all. When Jesus turned water into wine at the wedding feast in Cana (John 2:1-9) the hosts did not have any faith at all.

This is encouraging because often we pray for the healing of non-religious friends. It would be futile to ask God to bring them back to health if it depended on their faith all the time. But he is not a God of futility. He is a God of hope.

#Faith, #Hope

The scripture for today, September 20 (9/20), is Luke 9:20 as found in the New Testament of the Bible:

” ‘But what about you?’ he asked. ‘Who do you say I am?’ “

Jesus is still asking that question today. Who do you say Jesus is? Some people in the world say Jesus was the savior of the Christians, the same person as Moses to the Jews, and Mohammed to the Moslems, and Buddha to the Buddhists. In the name of being fair to everyone, they claim these are all saviors of different religions going by different names but of the same God.

Let us not be caught in the web of the New Age Movement that claims all saviors are the same savior and all gods are the same god.

The Bible ~ the only religious book in the world that can be proven to be divine ~ says regarding our Jesus, “Salvation is found in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given to men by which we must be saved” (Acts 4:12).

So stand up for Jesus, THE Savior! Stand up and be counted!

The scripture for today, May 5 (5/5), is Micah 5:5a as found in the Old Testament of the Bible:

“And he will be their peace.”

The little book of Micah was written during a time when his country was full of prosperity.  But it was also full of abused power.  The lower on the social scale, the more the people suffered at the hands of the powerful few.

In the midst of warning the social elite, Micah offers comfort to their victims.  During times of economic distress such as losing a job or losing a home; or times of social distress such as being passed up for a promotion or losing friends because of your moral code, do not let distress rule you.  Seek peace.  Deep peace.

Sometimes, powerful abusers can only be revealed by revealing to the world their victims.  Or sometimes we miss out in one place because we can do better in another place.  Sometimes our job is to just survive so that a future generation can find justice and acceptance.  Or sometimes we must lose everything so that we can quit worrying about this world and look forward to the next.  Seek peace.  Deep peace.

So when you feel left behind with nothing, look up!  God is still on his throne.  God still holds out his arms.  God still wipes away tears. And it seems at such times that you will feel most warmly God’s love and God’s peace.