Saturday, July 20, 2024

Out of the Control Room

 


In the book of Daniel there is a scene that portrays God in the throne room in heaven.

 

Daniel Chapter Seven Verses Nine through Fourteen.

 

The Ancient of Days Reigns

 

9“I kept looking

Until thrones were set up,

And the Ancient of Days (God) took His seat;

His garment was white as snow

And the hair of His head like pure wool.

His throne was flames of fire;

Its wheels were a burning fire.

10“A river of fire was flowing

And coming out from before Him;

A thousand thousands were attending Him,

And ten thousand times ten thousand were standing before Him;

The court was seated,

And the books were opened. 11Then I kept looking because of the sound of the great and boastful words which the horn was speaking. I kept looking until the beast was slain, and its body destroyed and given to be burned with fire. 12As for the rest of the beasts, their power was taken away; yet their lives were prolonged [for the length of their lives was fixed] for a predetermined time.

The Son of Man Presented

13“I kept looking in the night visions,

And behold, [c]on the clouds of heaven

One like a Son of Man was coming,

And He came up to the Ancient of Days

And was presented before Him.

14“And to Him (the Messiah) was given dominion (supreme authority),

Glory and a kingdom,

That all the peoples, nations, and speakers of every language

Should serve and worship Him.

His dominion is an everlasting dominion

Which will not pass away;

And His kingdom is one

Which will not be destroyed.

From <https://biblehub.com/amp/daniel/7.htm>

 

This scene is very similar to the scene in the book of Revelation Chapter One Verses Seven through Sixteen. There is a statement in the Revelation verses that Jesus will come on the clouds and all will see Him come and the description of the Father, the Ancient of Days, in Daniel Seven is almost identical to the description of the Messiah in Revelation One. Hence as Jesus said "When you see me you see the Father."

 

However, what I wanted to say today is how when we see Christ Jesus in Heaven. We see Him in a position of power and glory. Whereas, when we see him during the time of His ministry on Earth. He is very definitely out of the control room. He is a simple human being without the trappings of divinity.

His mission was to live a sinless life and to become a divine sacrifice for the sins of human kind. Yes, he had all of the resources of Heaven an instant away but to achieve the mission he could never call on them. His was to be a life of love in the power of the Holy Spirit. A life of humility and poverty. Not for Jesus the comforts of an Earthly kingdom. No, nary a place to lay His poor head.

 

As mere mortals, we can barely understand the heavenly realm. I wonder if being human it was the same for our beloved Lord and Savior. That His vision though much greater than ours was also as limited as our view is in many ways. Did he miss the heavenly control room? Where His divine abilities could change in seconds what would take months of human endeavor on Earth.

 

Imagine the scope of His mission as the resurrected Lord in Heaven now. I know, we have no idea what God and His angels are capable of and what His missions could encompass. 

 

Think Isaiah chapter 55 Verse Six through Seven.

8“For My thoughts are not your thoughts,

Nor are your ways My ways,” declares the LORD.

 9“For as the heavens are higher than the earth,

So are My ways higher than your ways

And My thoughts higher than your thoughts.

 

 From <https://biblehub.com/amp/isaiah/55.htm>

 

I guess the question that I am asking is this. How hard it must have been for Christ Jesus to go through a human life alone. To resist temptation. To deal with the fleshly needs of a human body. How strong our King, that he walked our road and paid the price of our debt of sin. How bold our Lord that he took our scourging, and on our Cross, He shed His sinless blood. And yet out of the Control Room of Heaven, all on His own. He lived a sinless human life and paid our price for admittance into Eternal Life.

Monday, July 15, 2024

Walking With Jesus: Matthew Chapter Five Verses One to Eleven

 


The Sermon on the Mount

Seeing the crowds, he went up on the mountain, and when he sat down, his disciples came to him.

Jesus looked for an elevated site where he could sit and teach the crowd.

The Beatitudes

The Beatitudes is one of Jesus most profound teachings which emphasizes the attitudes which characterizes the nature of God's thinking on values and morality and the impact of the Kingdom of Heaven on those who believe on the redemptive work of Jesus Christ on the Cross at Calvary.

And he opened his mouth and taught them, saying:

Jesus began to speak to the crowd sharing His wisdom as a Rabbi and the Son of God.

“Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

The poor in spirit acknowledge their spiritual need and shows their humility and acceptance of God's grace in the process of salvation.

“Blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted.

These are those who mourn over sin and their own brokenness and the depravity of this world. Jesus says they shall be comforted.

5 “Blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the earth.

The meek are those who have strength but choose to be humble and gentle rather than use their strength to force their way on others. This is the Christian way, and Jesus says that the meek will inherit the Earth

“Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be satisfied.

Those who hunger and thirst for righteousness desire justice and moral decency. Jesus says they will be satisfied. 

“Blessed are the merciful, for they shall receive mercy.

Jesus says that those who show mercy shall receive mercy. So, by showing mercy to others and forgiving their debts against you. Jesus says that you also will be shown mercy in the debts you owe God and others. 

“Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God.

The pure in heart have a steadfast love for God. They seek to be obedient to His will and to keep His commandments, the Law of God. In desiring to be like God they will see God.

“Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called sons of God.

Those who seek peace seek to reconcile those around them. This is a part of the character of God and those who display it are known as the children of Yahweh.

10 “Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness’ sake, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

Those who adhere to the Law of God and follow the path of righteousness. Those who are persecuted for doing what is right, theirs is the Kingdom of Heaven.

11 “Blessed are you when others revile you and persecute you and utter all kinds of evil against you falsely on my account. 12 Rejoice and be glad, for your reward is great in heaven, for so they persecuted the prophets who were before you.

Persecution in the name of Jesus Christ should lead to great rejoicing. Be glad, for your reward is great in Heaven. As you are persecuted the prophets were persecuted before you.

Verse Analysis

Verse One: Verbs in this verse- Seeing, went, when, came.  Seeing the crowds, went to higher ground, sat to indicate to the crowd that He was going to speak to them, the disciples arrived.

Verse Two: Verbs in this verse - opened, taught. Jesus opened His mouth to speak. He began to teach them of His wisdom.

Verse Three: Verbs in this verse - blessed. Preposition- for. Jesus said 'Blessed are the poor in spirit, the humble and those who understand that the need God's Grace, for theirs is the Kingdom of Heaven.'

Verse Four: Verbs in this verse - blessed. Preposition- for. Jesus said 'Blessed are those who mourn for they shall be comforted.' 

Verse Five: Verbs in this verse - blessed. Preposition- for. Jesus said 'Blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the Earth.' The meek are not the weak but those who could act violently but choose to be patient and to wait on God.

Verse Six: Verbs in this verse - blessed, hunger, thirst. Adjective - satisfied. Jesus says 'Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness shall be satisfied.

Verse Seven: Verbs in this verse - blessed. Preposition- for. Jesus said 'Blessed are the merciful for they shall receive mercy. Do unto others as you would have them do unto you. Give mercy, receive mercy.

Verse Eight: Verbs in this verse - blessed. Preposition- for. Jesus said 'Blessed are the pure in heart for they shall see God.' To be pure in heart is to be without sin, single minded in the pursuit of God's will and only those without sin shall see God.

Verse Nine: Verbs in this verse - blessed. Preposition- for. Jesus said blessed are the peacemakers for they shall be called the Sons of God. This verse indicates that God seeks to make peace and to restore relationships to the extent that those who are peacemakers are considered the children of God.

Verse Ten: Verbs in this verse - blessed. Preposition- for. Jesus said 'Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness sake for theirs is the Kingdom of Heaven.' Those who work righteousness and keep the commands of God will gain the Kingdom of Heaven.

Verse Eleven: Verbs in this verse - blessed, revile, persecute and utter. Jesus said 'Blessed are you when the revile and persecute you and utter all kinds of evil against you, falsely, on my account. 

Verse Twelve: Verbs in this verse - rejoice, be glad, persecuted. Jesus said 'Rejoice and be glad for your reward will be great in Heaven, for so they persecuted the prophets who went before you.' Be honored to suffer in the service of Yahweh Elohim for it is an honor to suffer in His service.

Summary



 

Tuesday, July 9, 2024

Walking with Jesus: Matthew Chapter Four Verses Twelve To Twenty Three

 



 Matthew Chapter 4 verses 12 -23

Jesus Begins His Ministry

12 Now when he heard that John had been arrested, he withdrew into Galilee. 13 And leaving Nazareth he went and lived in Capernaum by the sea, in the territory of Zebulun and Naphtali, 14 so that what was spoken by the prophet Isaiah might be fulfilled:

15 “The land of Zebulun and the land of Naphtali,

the way of the sea, beyond the Jordan, Galilee of the Gentiles—

16 the people dwelling in darkness

have seen a great light,

and for those dwelling in the region and shadow of death,

on them a light has dawned.”

17 From that time Jesus began to preach, saying, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.”

Jesus Calls the First Disciples

18 While walking by the Sea of Galilee, he saw two brothers, Simon (who is called Peter) and Andrew his brother, casting a net into the sea, for they were fishermen. 19 And he said to them, “Follow me, and I will make you fishers of men.”[ 20 Immediately they left their nets and followed him. 21 And going on from there he saw two other brothers, James the son of Zebedee and John his brother, in the boat with Zebedee their father, mending their nets, and he called them. 22 Immediately they left the boat and their father and followed him.

Jesus Ministers to Great Crowds

23 And he went throughout all Galilee, teaching in their synagogues and proclaiming the gospel of the kingdom and healing every disease and every affliction among the people. 24 So his fame spread throughout all Syria, and they brought him all the sick, those afflicted with various diseases and pains, those oppressed by demons, those having seizures, and paralytics, and he healed them. 25 And great crowds followed him from Galilee and the Decapolis, and from Jerusalem and Judea, and from beyond the Jordan.

^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

Jesus Begins His Ministry

Verse 12: When Jesus heard that John had been arrested he drew back into Galilee away from Judea. 

Verse13: Leaving Nazareth He went  and lived in Capernaum - Galilee.

Verse 14:What was spoken by the prophet Isaiah was fulfilled.

Verse 15-16: The land of Zebulun and Naphtali by way of the sea (Galilee) have seen a great light. Dwelling in the shadows a light has dawned (Messiah).

Verse 17: Jesus began to preach, saying repent for the Kingdom of God is at hand.

Summary:

When Jesus heard John had been arrested he moved away to the relative safety of Galilee living in Capernaum. This was in accordance with the prophecies of Isaiah that the people of Zebulun and Naphtali would see a great light has dawned. The Messiah has come and He is Jesus of Nazareth..

Jesus Calls the First Disciples

Verse 18: Walking by the Sea he saw two brothers,  Simon Peter and Andrew casting a net.

Verse 19: Jesus said "Follow me I will make you fishers of men.

Verse 20: Immediately, they left their nets and followed Him.

Verse 21: Going from there He saw two other brothers, James and John the sons of Zebedee, mending nets in the boat with their father.

Verse 22: Immediately, they left the boat with their father and followed Jesus.

Summary.

 Walking by the Sea of Galilee, Jesus began to call His disciples. First he called Simon Peter and Andrew and then James and John. Both sets of brothers were fishermen and told them to come and follow Him and He would make them "Fishers of Men." Immediately both sets of brothers left their boats and followed Jesus of Nazareth.

Jesus Ministers to Great Crowds

 Verse 23: Jesus went throughout Galilee teaching in the synagogues, proclaiming the gospel and healing every affliction.

Verse 24: His fame spread through all Syria and the brought Him all the sick, afflicted with various diseases, demon possessed and paralytics.

Verse 25 Great Crowds followed him from Galilee and Decopolis, Jerusalem and Judea and beyond the Jordan

Summary

Jesus began His ministry by going throughout the region of Galilee and preaching in all of the synagogues. He proclaimed the gospel and healed all of the afflictions.  His fame spread throughout Syria and people brought him all of the sick and afflicted including  the demon possessed and the paralytics. Great crowds followed him from Judea, Galilee and across the Jordan into Syria. That He was able to deliver the demon possessed indicated a shift of the balance of power from Satan back to Yahweh Elohim on the Earth.

The Gospel of the Kingdom was the Good News that the Messiah had arrived with Jesus of Nazareth the Son of God. It pointed to the redemptive work of Jesus Christ on the Cross and ultimately the changes that would be wrought by, the Holy Spirit, in the hearts of believers and through the formation of the Church in the Age of Grace.



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