"No one who puts his hand to the plow and looks back is fit for service in the kingdom of God." (9:62)
Either you're 'in' or you're not.
Don't be half-hearted about following Jesus.
One cannot follow Jesus with a 'foot in both camps'
"If people do not welcome you, shake the dust off your feet when you leave their town, as a testimony against them." (9:5)
Don't waste time on those not open to hearing. Move on without a second thought. Presenting the message in love, without judgement and through acts of kindness and compassion is all we can do. We are not responsible for how it is received. Remember not in our own strength but to be listening for HIS instructions ...... GOD will tell us when to move on ;)
Historically, the act of shaking the dust off your feet was a symbol of disassociation. Let go!
I have wrote something of what this means to me in a comment yesterday.
Have an awesome, spirit-filled day!
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An eight week journey of seeking God as we read.think.pray.live our way through the gospel of John
An Invitation
Please join us during this lead up to Christmas 2009 by doing the four things listed below. Anyone can join at any time throughout this 8 week period although obviously it would be best if you can begin with us on the first of November 2009.
Requirements:
1. Commit to seeking God EVERY DAY in Nov & Dec '09 in a way that is more radical than anything you have ever done before.
2. Read.think.pray.live your way through the Gospel of John in seven weeks (3 chapters each week) and then 1 John, 2 John, 3 John in the final week.
3. Listen to the Holy Spirit and obey whatever he says to do!!
4. Contribute your insights and experiences to this blog.
May we all continue to seek the Kingdom of God before anything else!
Requirements:
1. Commit to seeking God EVERY DAY in Nov & Dec '09 in a way that is more radical than anything you have ever done before.
2. Read.think.pray.live your way through the Gospel of John in seven weeks (3 chapters each week) and then 1 John, 2 John, 3 John in the final week.
3. Listen to the Holy Spirit and obey whatever he says to do!!
4. Contribute your insights and experiences to this blog.
May we all continue to seek the Kingdom of God before anything else!
7 comments:
Up until now, Jesus has been walking in the power of the Spirit, preaching the kingdom of God, healing the sick and driving out demons...and the disciples have been watching and learning.
But now in chapter 9...
"Jesus called the Twelve together and gave them power and authority to drive out all demons and to cure diseases, and he sent them out to preach the kingdom of God and to heal the sick."
Has he given us this same power and authority? If he has, why aren't we using it? If he hasn't, why not?
Sherrie commented yesterday about us being like children in a toy store, always distracted. The shops and the TV etc don't help.
In verse 23 Jesus calls us not to focus on ourselves and what we want but to take up our cross DAILY and follow him. I believe it needs to become a DAILY discipline for us to focus on loving God and loving our neighbour, otherwise our eyes too quickly get disctracted by other things.
We are heading down south for the weekend and won't be near a computer so I thought I would get in two comments this morning :)
Aaah I was convicted by Jesus words this am! Such planks in my eyes - and so quick to comment on the specks! Refer my post on people who are really not interested in God - they will always put up reasons whay they cannot believe... well what about me and all the reasons I have had for the putting off (vs 57 - 62) that I do and have done for years!
Forgive me! If and where there are 'barriers' for me - they do not exist for Him.
Total surrender is all he requires. If barriers exist - he will resolve them. Trust & Obey.
I just came across a scripture from Proverbs that made me stop and think.
If a man shuts his ears to the cry of the poor, he too will cry out and not be answered. Proverbs 21:13
I mean what do I do to help the poor? But God tell’s us that we should (and by Jesus example)-‘Heal the sick, cast out Demon’s in His Name, and proclaim the good news to the poor.’
Gods word is Truth, and if Gods word is Truth then we all need to take careful consideration to what He says. Certainly we can’t just take some parts of scripture and disregard the other parts. I need to think about what this means for me and in my life. Just because the poor in our own land is not as obvious as those in the South African region, it does not mean that they are not there.
Anyway I just thought that I would share that with you because it hit me a little, (and as it so should ). God is so clear.
Your sister in Christ
Sharon Low
It strikes me that a lot of Christian rhetoric (as good as it is) talks about what we need to do (serve the poor, focus on God, not be enraptured with consumerism), but doesn't talk so much about actually doing it (e.g. giving away one of your coats to he who has none, selling all your possessions and giving them to the poor). As Andrew said, Jesus' disciples learnt through first watching, then by having a go themselves. I try hard to keep in mind that the Holy Spirit works in my heart, not only to heal and love me, but also to compel me to costly action. As it says in James, 'Faith without works is dead'. Faith and action working together in the power of the spirit. We need both. Action without meaning is just as useless as meaning without action.
It would be easy to see this blog as just a whole lot more words...which of course it could easily be. But if each of us takes responsibility for action responses (individually and together) to the things we are reading and hearing and discussing I believe these 52 days can be truly life transforming.
This sentence really hit me Chris: "Faith and action working together in the power of the spirit." These words are taking on renewed significance in my life at the moment.
In relation to your first comment Andrew, I believe that Jesus has given us the power and authority to heal the sick. We just need to trust that it can be done in his name; there is no room for doubts. When we are praying for healing we do so in agreement. Not only must the person who is being healed believe, but so must the person who is praying for the healing. What is the point of praying for someone if you don't truly believe in your heart that God is going to heal them?
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