Faith isn't a conclusion you reach... its a journey you LIVE
“Is it because we’re having so much fun at home we’ve forgotten the world? Is it because we’re so rich and the rest of the world’s so poor and we just don’t care if they are? I’ve heard rumors; the world is starving, but we’re well fed. Is it true, the world works hard and we play? Is that why we’re hated so much?”
this poem is not for ordinary men.
In the midst of the darkest night is when a light shines its brightest. And Jesus, the light of the world, came into His full shining glory on the cross.
At our most evil, most sinful, most selfish and weakest moments is when Christ was most loving, most holy, most selfless and strongest.
He was the exact opposite.
Jesus spoke to the people once more and said, “I am the light of the world. If you follow me, you won’t have to walk in darkness, because you will have the light that leads to life.”
John 8:12 (NLT)
God is passionate about you.
Not the type of passion we talk about today, that speaks of romantic love, or sexual desire, or emotional enthusiasm.
The kind of passion that says I’d rather be tortured and die the most humiliating form of death available than be without YOU.
so which sort of passion do you have for God?
Our buddies in Finland loving the hell out of people.
I love this so much.
In Genesis, Jesus Christ is the seed of the woman.
In Exodus, He is the passover lamb.
In Leviticus, He is our high priest.
In Numbers, He is the pillar of cloud by day and the pillar of fire by night.
In Deuteronomy, He is the prophet like unto Moses.
In Joshua, He is the captain of our salvation.
In Judges, He is our judge and lawgiver.
In Ruth, He is our kinsman redeemer.
In 1st and 2nd Samuel, He is our trusted prophet.
In Kings and Chronicles, He is our reigning king.
In Ezra, He is the rebuilder of the broken down walls of human life.
In Esther, He is our Mordecai.
In Job, He is our ever-living redeemer.
In Psalms, He is our shepherd.
In Proverbs and Ecclesiastes, He is our wisdom.
In the Song of Solomon, He is the loving bridegroom.
In Isaiah, He is the prince of peace.
In Jeremiah, He is the righteous branch.
In Lamentations, He is our weeping prophet.
In Ezekiel, He is the wonderful four-faced man.
In Daniel, He is the forth man in life’s “fiery furnace.”
In Hosea, He is the faithful husband, forever married to the backslider.
In Joel, He is the baptizer with the Holy Ghost and fire.
In Amos, He is our burden-bearer.
In Obadiah, He is the mighty to save.
In Jonah, He is our great foreign missionary.
In Micah, He is the messenger of beautiful feet.
In Nahum, He is the avenger of God’s elect.
In Habakkuk, he is God’s evangelist, crying , “revive thy work in the midst of the years.”
In Zephaniah, He is our Saviour.
In Haggai, He is the restorer of God’s lost heritage.
In Zechariah, He is the fountain opened up in the house of David for sin and uncleanness.
In Malachi, He is the Sun of Righteousness, rising with healing in His wings.
In Matthew, He is King of the Jews.
In Mark, He is the Servant.
In Luke, He is the Son of Man, feeling what you feel.
In John, He is the Son of God.
In Acts, He is the Savior of the world.
In Romans, He is the righteousness of God.
In I Corinthians, He is the Rock that followed Israel.
In II Corinthians, He is the Triumphant One, giving victory.
In Galatians, He is your liberty; He sets you free.
In Ephesians, He is Head of the Church.
In Philippians, He is your joy.
In Colossians, He is your completeness.
In 1st and 2nd Thessalonians, He is your hope.
In I Timothy, He is your faith.
In II Timothy, He is your stability.
In Philemon, He is your Benefactor.
In Titus, He is truth.
In Hebrews, He is your perfection.
In James, he is the Power behind your faith.
In I Peter, He is your example.
In II Peter, He is your purity.
In I John, He is your life.
In II John, He is your pattern.
In III John, He is your motivation.
In Jude, He is the foundation of your faith.
In Revelation, He is your coming King.
zjschmidt-deactivated20101019 asked: Your post "How Deep is Your Love?" rocked me to the core. I have been thinking about it non-stop ever since I read it. Thank you for posting! Praise God!
God bless,
Zach Schmidt
Zach, thank you so much for your kind words… I pray we would encourage each other to a greater love of God and each other.. be blessed brother. much love x
I will make my home among them. I will be their God, and they will be my people.
Ezekiel 37:27
beautiful
(Source: whysofew)
I’m currently doing a study through Matthew and as I read through the teachings of Jesus’ life in this gospel, one thing has stood out to me as apparent; that wherever Jesus went he performed great works. In fact, Jesus could barely move without doing something for whoever he encountered.
In Luke 4:14-21 Jesus proclaimed that it was he that the prophet Isaiah had spoken of in Isaiah 61 which says:
“The Spirit of the Lord is on me, because he has anointed me to preach good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim freedom for the prisoners and recovery of sight for the blind, to release the oppressed, to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favour.”
Jesus’ anointing was not only to proclaim the Kingdom, but to release the oppressed and give sight to the blind. He was called to DO as well as speak. And this is what Jesus did. In fact there is a section in the gospel of Matthew that could almost be called “the works of Jesus” because one after another it lists Jesus’ movements and the things he did for people. Here is a list of some of them:
1. Jesus heals the afflictions of all who are brought to him
matthew 4: 23- 25
2. Jesus cleanses a leaper
matthew 8:1-4
3. Jesus heals in response to the faith of the centurion
matthew 8:5-13
4. Jesus heals Peter’s mother in law and many others who were brought to him
Matthew 8:14-17
5. Jesus heals a demon possessed man
matthew 8:28-34
6. Jesus heals a paralytic
matthew 9:1-8
7. Jesus restores a girl to life and heals a woman with a bleeding disorder
matthew 9:18-26
8. Jesus heals two blind men
matthew 9:27-31
9. Jesus heals a man unable to speak
matthew 9:32- 34
Each of these episodes of healing were either before Jesus preached, after he preached, or on his way somewhere. Jesus ALWAYS DID. And not only that he urged us to act as well. In Matthew 23:2-3 Jesus says:
“The scribes and the Pharisees sit on Moses’ seat, so practice and observe what they tell you- but not what they do. For they preach, but do not practice”
(emphasis added by me)
This section of Jesus’ works ends with the following powerful statement in Matthew 9:37-38:
“The harvest is plentiful, but the labourers are few; therefore pray earnestly to the Lord of harvest to send out labourers into his harvest”
WE are the labourers for the Kingdom, also called according to Isaiah 61. Our anointing from God is not only to proclaim the Kingdom but to set people free for oppression, captivity, and every other injustice that exists in this world. Let our compassion move us to act in every sphere of our lives.
I pray that we would come to a greater realisation of this and be as enthusiastic in eradicating poverty and reaching out to the needy as we about leading people to Jesus. It may be our very compassion that leads to their salvation.
God bless
