The Word of God 


Luke 23 1-3

Jesus Handed Over to Pontius Pilate

23 Then the whole multitude of them arose and led Him to Pilate. ² And they 
began to accuse Him, saying, “We found this fellow perverting the^[a] nation, 
and forbidding to pay taxes to Caesar, saying that He Himself is Christ, a King.”

³ Then Pilate asked Him, saying, “Are You the King of the Jews?”
He answered him and said, “It is as you say.”




Responding to the Word


There are times when telling the truth may be difficult.  Times when we 
know we're going to get into major trouble.  Jesus is facing a crossroads 
here.  He could have taken the easy road and denied what Pilate said and 
walked away.  He knew that by responding with the truth meant his immanent
beating and crucifixion.  The truth is always important!  So the next time you
are faced with an option to lie, remember what our Savior did.
Jesus said that we would know the truth and the TRUTH would  set us free.




Praying through the Word


Father, Your Word is a lamp to our feet and a light to our path.  Forgive me 
when I have been tempted to not tell the whole truth as I know that You are 
the Father of Lights and there is no darkness in You.  Help all of us to take a 
moment today and thank Jesus for the that very truthful statement, "It is as 
you say.,"  his confession that He was the King of the Jews. 
 In Jesus' Name, Amen and Amen

Don't Forget the Source

Walking in the Word

Feeding the Five Thousand

¹⁰ And the apostles, when they had returned, told Him all that they had done. Then He took them and went aside privately into a deserted place belonging to the city called Bethsaida. ¹¹ But when the multitudes knew it, they followed Him; and He received them and spoke to them about the kingdom of God, and healed those who had need of healing.¹² When the day began to wear away, the twelve came and said to Him, “Send the multitude away, that they may go into the surrounding towns and country, and lodge and get provisions; for we are in a deserted place here.”
¹³ But He said to them, “You give them something to eat.”
And they said, “We have no more than five loaves and two fish, unless we go and buy food for all these people.” ¹⁴ For there were about five thousand men.
Then He said to His disciples, “Make them sit down in groups of fifty.” ¹⁵ And they did so, and made them all sit down.
¹⁶ Then He took the five loaves and the two fish, and looking up to heaven, He blessed and broke them, and gave themto the disciples to set before the multitude. ¹⁷ So they all ate and were filled, and twelve baskets of the leftover fragments were taken up by them

Responding to the Word

I believe we would all think like the apostles.  They looked around and saw thousands of people that needed to eat.  No, they couldn't order pizza or get several $2.00 meal deals at Taco Bell like my family.  They had to count on markets to provide food and a their wasn't money or a market nearby.  What did they forget?  The One that stood beside them.  The One that commanded them to feed the people.  Jesus didn't need a Taco Bell or pizza delivery company.  Jesus needs nothing.  He IS the provider.  He IS the Bread of Life.  So the next time you feel the Lord impressing on your heart to action, remember, The Great I Am is with you.  

Praying in the Word

Marching Orders

1 Corinthians 16:13-14

¹³ Be on your guard; stand firm in the faith; be courageous; be strong. ¹⁴ Do everything in love.

Responding to the Word

Our military is one of the greatest militaries in the world!  We have both defended our land and helped others in their time of need.  Have you ever seen the military march in unison?  What would happen if the "marching orders" were not taken serriously?  The "marching orders" are directions handed down from someone in authority to be carried out to the tee.  When they were supposed to go left, they went right.  When they were supposed to run, they walked.  Things would end up a disaster!  Paul is giving us set of "marching orders" here in first Corinithians.  To be careful (on your guard), grow deeper in our faith, don't be afraid and show everyone you meet love.
  

Praying in the Word

God, Thank you for showing us how to live our life in love.  Thank you for demonstrating that "perfect" love in and through Your Son Jesus Christ.  Please give us ears to hear you, eyes to see you and heart to accept all the Word of God tells us. Help our only response to be, "Yer Sir."  In Jesus' Name, Amen

Short Term Lease

1 Corinthians 6:14-15a

New International Version (NIV)

¹⁴ By his power God raised the Lord from the dead, and he will raise us also. ¹⁵ Do you not know that your bodies are members of Christ himself?

Responding to the Word

When Mrs. Carol and I were first married, we rented an apartment in the basement of my parent's house.  Rent was cheap and mom made great meals as a back up :) (Young married joke)  We tried to fix up the apartment by putting down carpet, painting the walls and even put a new bathroom in the place.  One thing we didn't do was "trash it."   It wasn't ours to trash.  We did our best to leave it better than we found it.  The Bible tells us that our bodies are not ours, but are "members of Christ."  So let's be careful of what we say, what we eat and especially what we see.  In a way, we are in a rental.  We do this especially because we "love the Landlord:)"

  

Praying in the Word

Father, Help us to conduct ourselves with love as we remember that we live for your Son, Jesus.  I pray that others see Jesus in our lives.  Thank you loving us with Your unending love.  In Jesus' Name, Amen

Instructions for our Faith

Walking in the Word

1 Corinthians 1:22-24

New King James Version (NKJV)

²² For Jews request a sign, and Greeks seek after wisdom; ²³ but we preach Christ crucified, to the Jews a stumbling block and to the Greeks foolishness, ²⁴ but to those who are called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God and the wisdom of God.

Responding to the Word

I love getting toys and furniture that has to be assembled.  I open the box, take out every piece and separate them.  I group all screws, nut and bolts together and make sure I have the right tools.  My momentary pause comes only when looking at the directions.  Because the product is sold around the world, the directions are in French, Spanish, Greek, Chinese, Mandarin, Ancient Aztec Symbols (just kidding) and English.  Nothing makes sense to me until I get to the English directions.  Then, and only then does it all come together.  What we see above is a simple truth every Christian should understand.  When we seek truth and love, we must seek Christ crucified.  What He did on the that cross says it all!

  

Praying in the Word

Father, How I pray that our minds would be flooded with gratitude for what Your Son did for us.  May we always cut through the loudness of this world and zero in on Jesus, the Author and Perfector of our faith.  In Jesus' Name, Amen

The Power of God

Walking in the Word

1 Corinthians 1:13-15; 17-18

¹² What I mean is this: One of you says, “I follow Paul”; another, “I follow Apollos”; another, “I follow Cephas”; still another, “I follow Christ.” ¹³ Is Christ divided? Was Paul crucified for you? Were you baptized into the name of Paul? ¹⁴ I am thankful that I did not baptize any of you except Crispus and Gaius, ¹⁵ so no one can say that you were baptized into my name.   ¹⁷ For Christ did not send me to baptize, but to preach the gospel—not with words of human wisdom, lest the cross of Christ be emptied of its power.¹⁸ For the message of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God.

Responding to the Word 

Jesus loves you and I and gave His life for us and did so on the Cross of Calvary.  We rejoice in the fact that even though He died, He arose again on the third day.  That's called the Gospel Message.  Translated - It means "Good News."  However to many, that message is called somewhat "foolish."  They wonder, "Why would God let His one and only Son die?"  It's a stumbling block they cannot get passes.  Isn't it wonderful to know that we know that God so LOVED the world, He gave His son, (John 3:16a) and that is not "foolishness" but the "power of God" for salvation.  Amen!    

Praying in the Word

Father, Please help us to keep our eyes on Jesus.  Thank You for a great first night of Faith Evangelism.  I pray for the Boldness of the Gospel to fill every person attempting to share their faith this semester  It is not foolishness, but the Power of what You have done in our lives and I just want to say, thank you.  In Jesus' Name, Amen

Choose Wisely

Walking in the Word

Romans 16:17

¹⁷ Now I urge you, brethren, note those who cause divisions and offenses, contrary to the doctrine which you learned, and avoid them.

Responding to the Word

We are called to witness to our friends.  I know I often encourage each of you to sit next to or become friends with those who may be shunned away. But that also comes with a warning.  There are those who will cause  "divisions and offenses."  Simply stated, they cause a whole lot of trouble in your life.  They may say that they are Christian, but deep inside they really may not be.  Be careful how you choose your friends because if your not careful, YOU start becoming a lot like them.  

Praying in the Word

Father, We are called to Salt and Light to all of those around us.  Help us to be WISE concerning who we choose as friends.  Protect us from those who would bring trouble into our life and lead us I pray, in Your path of righteousness.      In Jesus' Name, Amen