Alive in Me: The Word Is Alive in Me: Galatians 2:20 and Hebrews 4:12

By Rev. Harold E. Petersen

The Word of God, the Bible, has been a part of my life. We had family devotions mornings and evenings, Sunday school, and worship services. These continued to draw me into the Word.

I was in high school when I was led to read the Bible through in a year, which I have continued down to the present time. It was I was in the seminary that I was inspired to mark a special verse in every chapter of the Bible. Some chapters were so full of gems of truth that I chose several.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Christian Faith Publishing, Inc.
• Release date: Oct 20, 2021
• ISBN: 9781638449300

Book preview

A Selection of Verses from Every Chapter of the Bible

When I was in college or seminary, I was inspired to mark a special verse in every chapter in the Bible. Some chapters were so full of gems that there are several. Yet now I would have marked even others. Mine were originally from the Revised Standard Version. My mother had done a similar thing—she wrote each verse in a notebook. I believe hers are originally from the King James Version. Then I came across the book Great Verses through the Bible by F. B. Meyer. He wrote a devotional commentary on key verses.

At some point, I put all three sets into an RSV Bible I had. Then in the early 1980s, I transferred them to the New International Version. In 2011, I was inspired to put them all down on paper and on a floppy disk.

In 2016, I began to write a devotional commentary on each of these verses.

It would be best if one reads the chapter before the devotional commentary.

Matthew

What shall I do with Jesus which is called Christ? (Matthew 27:22)

Days of Preparation (Matt. 1–18)

Arrival of the Messiah (Matt. 1–4)

Teaching of the Messiah (Matt. 5–7)

Healing of the Messiah (Matt. 8–10)

Confrontation of the Messiah (Matt. 11–13)

Disciples of the Messiah (Matt. 14–18)

Days of Accomplishment (Matt. 19–28)

Final Days of the Messiah (Matt. 19–23)

Prophesies of the Messiah (Matt. 24–25)

Finished Work of the Messiah (Matt. 26–28)

Coming of the Messiah (Matt. 1–2)

Jesus’s Background (Matt. 1)

You are to give him the name Jesus, because he will save his people from their sins (Matt. 1:21).

The name Jesus in Hebrew is Joshua, the Lord saves. When we think of that promise in Genesis 3, that he will bruise your head and you will bruise his heel, we are talking about Jesus. Joseph was instructed to take Mary as his wife, and the first child would be called Jesus. Mary was chosen to bear the Son of God! This, I believe, was the hope of every girl in Israel. Mary’s only question was, How can this happen? I wonder how Joseph felt knowing that his Mary was the chosen one, the one who would bring the Father’s plan of salvation to fulfillment. We know that he was troubled when he first heard from Mary. He was prepared to quietly separate himself from her until the angel came and told him what was happening.

One must note that angels are involved, usually Gabriel, when there is a significant development in the Father’s plan. I wonder how Mary felt when she returned from Elizabeth’s home about the time John the Baptist was born. How would she feel returning to her home already showing that she was carrying a child? What did Joseph and Mary talk about? What did they share those first few days being together? When the time was right, God sent his only Son into this world to save us. Oh, to be chosen for that special task! Oh, to be so obedient to the Lord that one shuns the gossip of the community, the scandal in the eyes of many! His name shall be Jesus, for he will save his people from their sins. What a thought! What a plan! God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life (John 3:16). I sense overwhelming gratitude to the Father for this great act of his mercy and grace, his love for us. I sense there is power in the name Jesus, power to save, to heal, to bless, to restore. What a precious name!

Prayer Focus: Father, reveal the power of Jesus’s name to your people.

Jesus’s Birth (Matt. 2)

When they saw the star, they were overjoyed… Out of Egypt I called my son… A voice is heard in Ramah, weeping and great mourning, Rachel weeping for her children and refusing to be comforted, because they are no more… He will be called a Nazarene (Matt. 2:10, 15, 18, 23). The Father pulled all the stops out when his Only Son was born of Mary: the Magi, the prophecies, the comfort of Rachel, the designation of one who is set apart. God arranged the stars so that at this precise time their alignment would signal to the stargazers, astrologers, that a very significant event was taking place. When I consider your heavens, the work of your fingers, the moon and the stars, which you have set in place, what is man that you are mindful of him, the son of man that you care for him? (Ps. 8:3–4). There is no indication other than the hymn We Three Kings that there were only three and that the text says they offered him three types of gifts—gold, frankincense, and myrrh. The Ethiopian tradition has one of the Magi coming from Axum.

After the Magi had left, an angel warned Joseph that Herod wanted to find and kill Jesus. Joseph was told to flee to Egypt. It seems they may have lived there a couple of years. Then the angel told Joseph it was safe to return. It is important to remember what Hosea says in chapter 11, verses 1–2: When Israel was a child, I loved him, and out of Egypt I called my son. But the more I called Israel, the further they went from me. This is also a reminder that Jacob and his family were in Egypt and God used Moses to bring the whole family out. Now here, in this child, was one who heard and obeyed the Father.

Here was one who could quiet the voice of sorrow over the loss of Rachel’s children, when Herod slaughtered the children of Bethlehem. Rachel had died near Bethlehem giving birth to Benjamin (Gen. 35:19). Oh, how the world and its people wish to quiet the voice of God! Joseph, in Egypt, feared Herod’s son, who was ruler in Judah, so he chose to return to Nazareth, where he, Jesus, will be called a Nazarene. Nazareth was a small town in Galilee. Joseph perhaps took up his work as a carpenter and Jesus worked with him. Jesus is called the son of the carpenter (Matt. 13:55). It was here in Nazareth that Jesus grew up, and it was here that he began his ministry, as we find it in Luke 4. Here was one who was set apart to fulfill all that the Father had planned.

If only there were people today who listened. Do we know the Christmas story so well that we no longer hear the Father speaking to us? Do we come to worship him, this Nazarene, who gave his life for us? Are we willing to be set apart, to let Christ so live in us that the love of the Father is shed abroad?

Prayer Focus: Ask the Father to reveal to you the marvelous extravagance that he went through at the birth of Jesus.

Presentation of the Messiah (Matt. 3–4)

John’s Teaching (Matt. 3)

Produce fruit in keeping with repentance (Matt. 3:8).

John the Baptist was the voice of one crying in the wilderness, ‘Prepare the way for the Lord, make straight paths for Him,’ as the prophet Isaiah had foretold in chapter 40, verse 3. Here was a man whose sole purpose in life was to point others to Jesus, a man who hardly knew Jesus, though they were related. It appears that Mary, Jesus’s mother, and Elizabeth, John’s mother, were cousins. The few times he saw Jesus, he encouraged his disciples to join Jesus. The one time he saw Jesus face-to-face was when Jesus came to be baptized in the river Jordan. John tried to switch roles—he wished to be baptized by Jesus. Jesus replied, Let it be so for now; it is proper for us to do this to fulfill all righteousness (Matt. 3:15).

Now, John’s message to the people was to repent, turn around, stop rebelling, stop running from the Father, and return to Him. The religious leaders, he chastised as a brood of vipers! He called for them particularly, but also all the people, to produce fruit in keeping with repentance. Luke records several different people asking what they should be doing. The fruit in keeping with repentance is a life that clearly shows a change of heart. Like a fruit tree that bears its kind of fruit, so a person can bear the characteristics of the Father when one who has repented has turned back. It is impossible to do this turning on one’s own. But the Father has a plan to enable each of us to turn and bear fruit in keeping with repentance, that is, through Jesus and his obedience to the Father. It is on the cross where Jesus died, where he paid the price of our sins, that we find the forgiveness and peace from the Father.

In Isaiah 55:6–7 we read, Seek the Lord while he may be found; call on him while he is near. Let the wicked forsake his way and the evil man his thoughts. Let him turn to the Lord and he will have mercy on him and to our God, for he will freely pardon. St. John tells us in 1 John 1:9, If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness. The Spirit will come to live in each one who accepts the Father’s plan. This Spirit will bear fruit in us to fulfill the gracious and complete will of the Father. The key is the love of the Father. The psalmist in Psalm 51 gives us a couple of results of forgiveness. In verses 12–13, it says, Restore to me the Joy of your salvation and grant me a willing spirit, to sustain me. Then I will teach transgressors your ways, and sinners will turn back to you. Psalm 32:1–2 tells us, Blessed is he whose transgressions are forgiven; whose sins are covered. Blessed is the man whose sin the Lord does not count against him and in whose spirit, there is no deceit." Our response is to love God with all we are and to love our neighbor as much as we love ourselves.

Prayer Focus: Father, nourish our life until we bear the fruit of repentance.

Jesus’s Temptation (Matt. 4)

Come, follow me (Matt. 4:19).

Jesus loved to tell the story for some have never heard the message of salvation from God’s own holy word. Jesus was not afraid to go where there was darkness of sin. As he was walking one day by the Sea of Galilee, he came upon two sets of brothers who were fishermen. Jesus called out to them, Come, follow me, I will make you fishers of men. And they picked up the melody from Jesus. I love to tell the story, how pleasant to repeat, what seems each time I tell it more wonderfully sweet. Peter, Andrew, James, and John were immediately attracted to Jesus. They left their nets, their fellow fishermen, and James and John even left their father—the call was so powerful, the melody so strong. As Jesus went about Galilee, he was harmonizing with these disciples so their teaching, preaching, and healing carried the same message, of unseen things above, of Jesus and his glory, of Jesus and his love. I, too, have been blessed—I have always been around those who have sung and will continue to sing this theme in glory, of Jesus and his love.

As I shared the old, old story with a Native American, he caught the tune and, in his own way, sang it so his people could catch the theme. I remember sharing the gospel with a couple of Americans who were at the Y where I stayed while in language school in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. There were the high school boys I worked with on a soccer team; my heart soared as I saw the sparkle in one boy’s eyes as the melody took hold. I remember a lot of stories of those who had never heard the message of salvation from God’s own holy word. It was thrilling to share this story with adults who came for classes to be baptized in Ethiopia, Madagascar, and here in the USA. The melody hasn’t changed over the years, nor have the words: I love to tell the story for those who know it best, seem hungering and thirsting to hear it like the rest.

Even here in our own country, in our own state, there are those who have never heard the message of salvation from God’s own holy word. What a thrill! What ecstatic joy floods my soul as I witness a person released and brought into the love of God, oh how rich and pure, how measureless and strong. Whether they come to Christ through personal contact, through one-on-one talks, or through counseling, these words are true: I love to tell the story because I know it is true, it satisfies my longing as nothing else would do. I love to tell the story, I’ll sing this theme in glory, and tell the old, old story of Jesus and his love (hymn by A. Catherine Hankey).

To follow Jesus means to be so captivated by Jesus and his love that we sing it like a new, new song and choose the way that will bring in those we serve.

Prayer Focus: Lord, make your voice clear and give us the strength of faith to answer, Yes, Lord, I will follow.

Walking with the King (Matt. 5)—Precepts

Beatitudes Expanded

Matt. 5:3, expanded in Matt. 6:24–34; Matt. 5:4, expanded in Matt. 6:25ff; Matt. 5:5, expanded in Matt. 5:28–42; Matt. 5:6, expanded in Matt. 5:27ff; Matt. 5:7, expanded in Matt. 7; Matt. 5:8, expanded in Matt. 6:1ff; Matt. 5:9, expanded in Matt. 5:23ff; Matt. 5:10, expanded in Matt. 5:43–48; Matt. 5:11–12, expanded in Matt. 5:33–37.

In the same way, let your light shine before men, that they may see your good deeds and praise your Father in heaven (Matt. 5:16).

Let’s look at the Beatitudes. These are the keys to the kingdom of God. The first four be-attitudes deal with those who are aware of their emptiness and that of the world. They are blessed, who live in the attitude of childlike dependence upon God for everything, joyfully receiving all that his bounty provides. They are blessed, who sorrow for all the sin in the world and are distressed because of the malady and misery of the world. They are blessed, who can accept with joy the path God has chosen, bear and forgive all that is done without resentment.

They are blessed, who have that insatiable hunger for the Word of God, who long to keep open to the light of God. The thought that is expressed in this group of Beatitudes focuses on one who believes Jesus is Lord and depends on him. By ourselves we can’t be poor in Spirit, care about the world’s sin, deal with what goes against us, or have an interest in the Word. It is the Spirit of Christ living in us who can transform us by renewing our minds after the thoughts and values of the kingdom. It is when we say, Lord, I cannot be like this, and then ask him to change us. The next three be-attitudes deal with the disciples who show the positive, active qualities of kingdom living.

First, the forgiven—those who display this characteristic of God, who are tender and compassionate in judgment, who discern with the eye of love where help is needed.

Secondly, the single-minded, who are free from mixed motives, who desire with honest and sincere longing to know the will of God, to not only be on one’s family journey but also affirming others on the journey.

Thirdly, the makers of peace are those who help create the conditions in which the kingdom can grow—that is, those who know what real peace is and participate in that peace that passes all understanding, those who by their presence or words can end strife and discord. The thought that is expressed in this group is that one who has confidence and assurance because he/she has given over the controls to the Lord can then, with patience and with deep concern, help others to that same confidence. In the same way, let your light shine before men, that they may see your good deeds and praise your Father in heaven (Matt. 5:16). It is as we let Christ live in us by his Spirit that we can be all that he desires us to be.

Prayer Focus: Lord, show us how to apply these Beatitudes to our life.

*****

Give to the one who asks you, and do not turn away from the one who wants to borrow from you… But I tell you: Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, that you may be sons of your Father in heaven. He causes his sun to rise on the evil and the good and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous (Matt. 5:42, 44–45).

I will, in this devotional, finish looking at the Beatitudes.

The last be-attitudes refer to the suffering that comes because of these revolutionary attitudes, these values of the kingdom—yes, those who even suffer because we want to stay in the family and work toward a unity of faith and knowledge of the Son of God, to mature stature, measured by Christ himself. But the suffering isn’t important in the thinking of one in the kingdom, because the controls belong to another, the Master; the glory belongs to him, and all these servants will say is, I can do only what is asked of me.

The church, when she reads the Beatitudes, see the words that tell of the kind of people who are blessed in the kingdom of God, for here we find words that outshine the values of the world. It is those who share the new standard of values and who suffer for their beliefs who are blessed in the kingdom.

I find, as listed in the previous devotions, that Jesus expands on these Beatitudes in the rest of the Sermon on the Mount. As we learn to live in the kingdom, as we allow the Spirit of the Lord to enrich our lives with the truth of these Beatitudes, we desire to share what we have with others. Jesus tells us, Give to the one who asks you, and do not turn away from the one who wants to borrow from you. And then, But I tell you: Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, that you may be sons of your Father in heaven. He causes his sun to rise on the evil and the good and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous.

The church is the people of God who gather to worship and serve their Lord. They are people on a spiritual journey. It is a slow journey, for we walk together. It tries the patience of some when others become sidetracked with other interests. Yet for us, the people of God, to reach our goal, that New Jerusalem, heaven, we need to encourage and strengthen one another so that we all stay the course. There have been those who have tired of the family of God being one and have gone on ahead alone, only to find they are lost and need to be found. There have been those who have become angry at the family of God and have turned back and are lost. There are those who outwardly appear beautiful in their faith—only inside they chaff at those who are not so mature, who are slow; they seethe with bitterness, resentment, and hatred.

Prayer Focus: As the psalmist writes, Search me, O God and know my heart; test me and know my anxious thoughts. See if there is any offensive way in me and lead me in the way everlasting (Ps. 139:23–24).

Practice: Worship the King (Matt. 6)

But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well. Therefore, do not worry (Matt. 6:33–34). Jesus gave this directive knowing that it is only as we focus on what the Father wants, focus on what he is doing in our midst, that we can know life and peace. Seek first his kingdom and his righteousness. Seeking his kingdom is submitting to his rule in our lives. The kingdom of God indeed comes without our prayer, but we pray that it may come to us—that is, that it may prevail in and among us—so that we may be a part of it. The kingdom of God is not a democracy or a socialist system of government. It is a theocracy, that is, a government that is ruled by God. In the Beatitudes, we have some of the basic conditions for living in this kingdom. When we are in his kingdom, he clothes us with his robe of righteousness. He [Christ] is the head of the body, the church; he is the beginning and the firstborn from among the dead, so that in everything he might have the supremacy (Col. 1:18).

Seeking his righteousness is accepting his gifts of grace and mercy in our lives. Seeking his righteousness is finding how we can stand in the right position before our Father. To do this, we need to be in Christ, and he in us. To be right with God means that our sins are forgiven and we are empowered by his Spirit. St. Paul, in his letter to the Romans, gave us some insight into what a right position before the Father is. Those who live in accordance with the Spirit have their minds set on what the Spirit desires. The mind controlled by the Spirit is life and peace (Rom. 8:5–6). Our world clamors today to divert our attention away from God to the various ways that selfishness exerts itself. We are called to seek first that which makes us happy. Today it is called fanaticism to follow, and, yes, even believe in, an almighty God, a Lord who asks of us total commitment.

But if we seek first his kingdom and his right positioning of ourselves at the feet of Jesus, then all that we need should be supplied to us. Our drive is to draw close to our Lord. Our desire is to trust in the Lord and do good; dwell in the land and enjoy safe pasture. Delight yourself in the Lord and he will give you the desire of your heart. Commit your way to the Lord; trust in him and he will do this: He will make your righteousness shine like the dawn, the justice of your cause like the noonday sun (Ps. 37:3–6). We live according to the Word of God, trusting in the promises that he makes to us. We share the Word with those around us, knowing that it is the Spirit who takes that Word and creates life in others. To those in Christ, there is nothing worth more than a life lived in fellowship with the Lord Jesus.

Prayer Focus: Set your heart to seek the Lord and his ways. Ask the Spirit to guide you.

Priorities: Doing the Will of the King (Matt. 7)

Do not judge, or you too will be judged… By their fruit you will recognize them (Matt. 7:1, 20).

Judging implies that you have a standard of behavior that you use to evaluate the activities of others. Judging is evaluating others against what one thinks of oneself. Do not judge, or you too will be judged. For in the same way you judge others, you will be judged, and with the measure you use, it will be measured to you (Matt. 7:1–2). Our Lord wants us to be so in love with him that we see others through his eyes, by means of his way of life. When I was at the White Earth Indian Mission during my college days, the missionaries there had some harsh words of judgment for the natives. I tried to speak up for this one woman whom I had visited, and I knew she expressed a faith, though much in her life was wrong.

Given the power of the Holy Spirit, I believed she would be freed. What our Lord desires is that you trust him to set the standard for you and the standard for others. For it is by their fruit you will recognize them. There is a clear check when we are tempted to point the finger of judgment at another, and that is, there are three fingers pointing back at us. There are those who are appointed as judges in our world, who are entrusted with the application of the law of the land. The intent of judges in society is not to twist the law to please themselves or to be overly punitive of certain people, but that is what so often happens.

There is this very narrow path that leads to life. One cannot find life with our mind or our will, but only by giving our life over to Jesus as Savior and Lord. We are encouraged in this chapter to ask, seek, and knock—that is, to pray about every situation that we are faced with. For everyone who asks receives; he who seeks finds; and to him who knocks, the door will be opened (Matt. 7:8). There is a great power that can be released by prayer. For in prayer we open the way for the Lord to work through us to bring change in our world. The hymn by Joseph Scriven comes to mind.

What a friend we have in Jesus, / All our sins and griefs to bear! / What a privilege to carry / Ev’rything to God in prayer! / O what peace we often forfeit, / O what needless pain we bear, / All because we do not carry / Ev’rything to God in prayer!

Lastly, we are encouraged to build our house of faith on the solid rock of the Word of God and of our Rock, Jesus. Then no storm of life can shake us. This summary of the Sermon on the Mount is very powerful. We are asked to build our house on the rock of the Word, especially these words of the Sermon. How important is the Word of God in our lives? How often do we ask the Spirit to interpret what we read so that we can apply it to our lives?

Prayer Focus: Lord, give me a heart of mercy in all my dealings with others.

Jesus’s Authority Extended (Matt. 8–10)

Three Healings (Matt. 8:1–17);

Dedication Demanded (Matt. 8:18–27)

Go! It will be done just as you believed it would (Matt. 8:13).

We have faith in the laws of nature like gravity. We have faith in some people in leadership of both our government and business world. There was the story of the man who had a balancing act over Niagara Falls. He would cross, push a wheelbarrow across, empty and filled with bricks. People watching would say that they believed he could do this. Then he would ask if there was anyone who would let him push him across. That is faith in the man. Faith is putting one’s life in the hands of our gracious Lord. Here our Lord demonstrates the grace, mercy, and power of faith. He heals a leper, a Roman’s servant, two demon-possessed men, and many others. He quiets the storm and quiets the fears of the disciples. Faith is being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see (Heb. 11:1). Now, it is amazing that the greatest demonstration of faith in this chapter is that of the Roman soldier. He relates his own position of command to that of Jesus. He trusts because he knows the power Jesus has. And Jesus says, ‘Go! It will be done just as you believed it would.’ And the servant was healed at that very hour.

It is amazing how little faith the disciples have in this one whom they have been called to follow. They see the miracles of healing, but when they are in a boat on a boisterous sea, they panic. Most of them know this sea, because many of them have fished on this, the Sea of Galilee. They know the storms that suddenly spring up, know what would happen. Jesus is asleep. It has not yet sunk in that this Jesus who heals will take care of them. It is as if Jesus is testing them to see if they’ve learned the lesson he has been teaching. The disciples wake him, and he calms the sea.

When we try to walk the line between trusting in our own skills and trusting in Jesus, we often forget the lessons he has been teaching. I once faced a test of faith but I thought more of how I would look in the eyes of others. I had been given the word of knowledge that a certain person would accept healing, but I did not have the courage to go to the person and pray for him. I learned my lesson and, after that, quickly called upon the Lord when in a tight spot. The Lord is patient with us and will carry us along until our faith grows. I also believe that each call I received to a parish was a test of faith in the guidance of our Lord. First, we must believe that what is asked is attainable with the help of the Lord. Second, we must consecrate ourselves to God. Third, we must believe, absolutely, that God does accept the consecration we have made. What challenges of your faith have you been faced with? What promises has the Lord made that you have wrestled with?

Prayer Focus: Lord, increase my faith and grant me grace to meet the tests of life.

Two Healings (Matt. 8:28–9:8)

Discipleship Demanded (Matt. 9:9–17)

Four Healings (Matt. 9:18–38)

Knowing their thoughts, Jesus said (Matt. 9:4).

Many people were excited about the power they saw in Jesus. The people were grateful for the healing Jesus willingly carried out. But Jesus was challenged in this chapter. He was criticized for healing a man who was paralyzed by speaking words of the forgiveness of sins. This was unacceptable to the religious leaders. They were convinced that only God could forgive sins. And they were unwilling to accept that Jesus was the Son of God. Conflict with the leaders of the religion was almost a daily occurrence with Jesus. Yet he was so gentle, kind, and gracious with the people. The leaders could not control him, and I think that was where the rub came in. They could not see beyond their rules and regulations.

Jesus heals in different ways and not always by the same formula. He knew what he wished to say or do; he could sense the heart of those who were opposed to him. Knowing their thoughts, Jesus said, ‘Why do you entertain evil thoughts in your hearts?’ It saddens the heart of Jesus to see those who are so rigid, so lacking in compassion. As St. Paul says in 1 Corinthians 2:10, 12, The Spirit searches all things, even the deep things of God… We have not received the spirit of the world but the Spirit who is from God, that we may understand what God has freely given us. Jesus, by the Spirit of God, could consider the hearts of men and address them by what he saw. The Spirit of God, the Spirit of truth, will do the same for us when we need it in our ministry, for we who are spiritual have the mind of Christ. I have known this discerning spirit when I have ministered to some people. I remember one young man who at the first encounter the Lord said, He is open to healing. And in the Lord’s timing, he was healed. But it is in relationship to Jesus that we receive this gift.

James in his epistle, in chapter 5, verses 14–16, offers this advice for prayers for healing: Is anyone sick? He should call for the elders of the church to pray over him and anoint him with oil in the name of the Lord. And the prayer offered in faith will make the sick person well; the Lord will raise him up. If he has sinned, He will be forgiven. Therefore, confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous man is powerful and effective.

There are many today who do not accept that miracles can happen. Their theology has relegated miracles to the early church only. But I believe that the promise of Jesus in John 14:12 is available to us today: I tell you the truth, anyone who has faith in me will do what I have been doing. He will do even greater things than these, because I am going to the Father.

Prayer Focus: Lord, grant me the spirit of discernment in my ministry to others.

Authority Delegated (Matt. 10)

He who stands firm to the end will be saved (Matt. 10:22).

Chapter 9 ends with this request of Jesus, Ask the Lord of the harvest, therefore, to send out workers into his harvest field. Jesus calls the disciples and us to be witnesses for him. He empowers us to minister in whatever way is needed to bring the gospel to others. He tells us that it will not always be easy. There will be opposition to the truth, and it will come from many different quarters. But he who stands firm to the end will be saved. I am reminded of those who have gone before and even those who, in this day, are faced with persecution for the gospel. In the early church, it was against the law of the state to believe in the Lord Jesus. There are many countries today where it is against the law to profess faith in Jesus. Those who are in countries controlled by Islam, or the Hindu states and other areas, face being cut off from family and community because of their faith in Jesus and may even face death even at the hands of their family. Yet it seems that the more the faithful are persecuted, the more people come to accept Jesus as Savior and Lord.

When the Communists in Ethiopia came to power, one of their first acts was to register the Christians in each village and then proceed to execute the pastors and leaders of the congregations. There are stories that in some villages, when this was done, the unbelieving people saw the faith of the Christians and became Christian. Being challenged in our faith is becoming more common today, especially on college and university campuses. It is sad to hear of our young people who go off to college being challenged about their faith in God’s Word. Sometimes these young people turn away from the faith because the pressure is so strong. Communities are turning against churches who stand firm on the Word of God. To express your belief in the Creator, God, in the God who loved the world enough to send his Son, is considered intolerant in our society. The prevailing sentiment in our society today is to attempt to remove any semblance of Christianity and to silence any expression of faith. Truth is whatever is socially acceptable. There is no adherence to the truth of God’s Word. But to stand firm in our faith, we will be rewarded by the presence of Jesus to strengthen us. Jesus calls us to stand firm and bear witness to him in all that we do. St. Paul tells us in Philippians 3:18–19, I have often told you before and now say again even with tears, many live as enemies of the cross of Christ. Their destiny is destruction, their god is their stomach, and their glory is in their shame. Their mind is on earthly things. And in Ephesians 6:13–14, Put on the full armor of God, so that you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand. Stand firm then.

Prayer Focus: Lord, give us the courage of faith to stand firm in the face of persecution.

Commendation: Comfort from the King (Matt. 11)

Blessed is the man who does not fall away on account of me… Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light (Matt. 11:6, 28–30).

John the Baptist was in prison because he had confronted King Herod. John had heard about the things Jesus had said and had done. But Jesus did not fit the picture he had of the Messiah. John’s concept can be clearly seen in chapter 3, verse 10: The ax is already at the root of the trees, and every tree that does not produce good fruit will be cut down and thrown into the fire. His message was harsh, and he did not see that in Jesus’s message. John sent his disciples to ask Jesus who he was. Jesus replied, Look at my works, tell him to trust me, though I do not deliver him. Assure him of the blessedness which must accrue to those who are not offended at my apparent neglect. Then, Blessed is the man who does not fall away on account of me (v. 6). It is as if Jesus is saying, I will explain all to him someday. Jesus went on to call people to him. He called to those who were burdened by the concerns of their life and country. Now, he calls us to come to him and rest! A call to believe that he is Lord of all and has everything under control even if it doesn’t look like it in our eyes. He calls us to join him in the adventure of his kingdom, the blessing of his ministry. He uses the term yoke, a term that ties us closely to him. A yoke was a wooden bar that hung over the necks of the oxen when they were plowing or pulling a wagon. The yoke enabled the oxen to work in sync with one another and share the load. To be yoked to Jesus is to live in sync with him and to share the load. His load is the ministry he has called us to. Our load, which he shares in, is the burdens we have that we are barely able to lift, much less carry. The lion’s share of the load lies on the shoulders of Jesus. What a blessed thought! Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Jesus calls us to rest in him and not to labor under our own strength. He calls us to follow his lead and offer our burdens to him. What burden do you carry like the pilgrim in The Pilgrim’s Progress that you are uncertain if you want to lay it down at the foot of the cross? I am very glad that I chose to let my burdens go and trust my Lord.

This Gaither song speaks volumes to me:

Shackled by a heavy burden, / ’Neath a load of guilt and shame. / Then the hand of Jesus touched me, / And now I am no longer the same. / He touched me, / Oh He touched me, / And oh the joy that floods my soul! / Something happened and now I know, / He touched me and made me whole.

Prayer Focus: Ask the Lord to reveal the burdens he wishes to carry being yoked with you.

Condemnation: Conflict with the King (Matt. 12)

For the Son of Man is Lord of the Sabbath (Matt. 12:8).

In Genesis 2:2–3 we read, By the seventh day God had finished the work he had been doing; so, on the seventh day he rested from all his work. And God blessed the seventh day and made it holy, because on it he rested from all the work of creating that he had done. This is the inspiration for taking a Sabbath rest. God rested not because he was tired but because the work of creation was done. He took the one day and blessed it, emphasizing how important it is to take time to worship.

The Jews expanded on this concept and added many rules as to what constituted work and what could not be done. And thus, it became more of a burden than a blessing.

Jesus rose from the dead on the first day of the week. Thus, most of the Christian church schedules their worship on Sunday, the way our calendars are set up. There are some countries where what we call Monday is the first day of the week. The day of rest, the Sabbath, does not need to be only the last day of the week, as the Jewish calendar has it. There are people who need to work on Sunday, and they should take another day of the week off. For the Son of Man is Lord of the Sabbath. The disciples were picking heads of grain and eating them. This caused the Pharisees to complain to Jesus that such work was forbidden by their law. Jesus cited the work of the priest on the Sabbath. He cited the rescue of an animal on the Sabbath. Thus, he loosened the stranglehold the Pharisees had placed on the Sabbath.

Any day can be the day of rest. The key is to acknowledge that Jesus is Lord and to allow him to guide us as to which day and how we worship. Perhaps the Lord would guide a person to sit with a person who is dying. That could be a day of worship. Let’s not have just a hard-and-fast rule established. In Madagascar, Sunday was a special day. People gathered, albeit in their own timing, and would take several hours to worship and fellowship. The Orthodox in Ethiopia began their worship about four in the morning so that they could have Communion at sunrise. Then there was a time of fellowship and bread and tea after, at which I was often asked to preach. Sometimes churches will offer alternate days for worship.

To me, Jesus, the Son of Man, is Lord of the day of rest, the Sabbath. To me, that means that there is one day a week when I also rest. As a pastor, I could not take Sunday as a day of rest, though worshipping, preaching, or teaching was often a very rest-giving exercise. But it also means that I would not go shopping on Sunday, that I would not engage in stressful exercise, like golf, on Sunday. To me, Jesus is the Lord of my life and guides me in what activities I participate in.

Prayer Focus: Lord, reveal the areas of my life that are not under the cleansing power of the Holy Spirit.

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And so I tell you, every sin and blasphemy will be forgiven men, but the blasphemy against the Spirit will not be forgiven. Anyone who speaks a word against the Son of Man will be forgiven, but anyone who speaks against the Holy Spirit will not be forgiven, either in this age or in the age to come (Matt. 12:31–32).

There is also in this chapter the challenge to Jesus as to who is behind his healing ministry. He was accused of being in league with the devil, who, in fact, was his archenemy.

Jesus healed a man who was blind and mute because of a demon. The Pharisees were offended, perhaps because they did not believe that this was the cause. The Pharisees most often connected certain diseases or afflictions to certain sins. Jesus countered with the statement that a house divided against itself will not stand. If I drive out demons by the Spirit of God, then the kingdom of God has come upon you (Matt. 12:28). I remember a service I was at in Ethiopia where an Ethiopian pastor was preaching and a woman stood up and shouted at the pastor and contradicted the pastor. He stopped his sermon and spoke to the demon in this woman and set her free right there in the service. I have participated in a prayer service where a person who had a demon was released from the bondage. There are many in the church today that are uncomfortable or even deny that such things can take place. But I believe the Spirit of God is still at work in the world today.

To the disciples, sin and forgiveness were confusing. Because of Jesus our sins are forgiven. It is the work of the Spirit to apply that to our hearts. The sin against the Spirit is a sin that cannot be forgiven. To speak against Jesus is forgivable because there is still an opening for the Spirit to work in the person’s life. But to reject the Spirit, to spurn the work of the Holy Spirit, cannot be forgiven since it is the Holy Spirit who convicts a person of sin and of unbelief. It is very tragic how many who claim to believe in Jesus refuse to allow the Holy Spirit more than minimal access to their life because they are afraid of losing control.

When the Word of God is stripped of its meaning by compromising with concepts of the world, then it is evident that the Spirit of Christ is not welcomed. John 16:8–11 states, When the Spirit comes, he will convict the world of guilt regarding sin and righteousness and judgment: regarding sin because men do not believe in me; regarding righteousness because I am going to the Father where you can see me no longer; and regarding judgment because the prince of this world now stands condemned.

To me, to believe in Jesus as Lord is to know the Holy Spirit’s work in my life. Jesus gives me rest and leads me to confess my sins and then forgives me. I cherish the presence of Jesus, the Spirit, in my life.

Prayer Focus: Pray that the Holy Spirit will resonate with your spirit about the need for forgiveness.

Clarification: Mysteries of the Kingdom (Matt. 13)

Then the righteous will shine like the sun in the kingdom of their Father (Matt. 13:43).

The kingdom of heaven is like, begins this series of parables. The parable of the sower emphasizes the abandonment of the one who sows the Word. Some seed falls on the paths, some among the rocks, some in the thorns, but most of the seed fall on the good soil. The seed sown bears fruit in soil that has been prepared. The kingdom is the reign of God in our lives. His Spirit is the one who prepares our hearts to hear the Word and understand it. The seed (the Word) is watered by the tears of prayer. The Spirit warns us when there are things in our lives that hinder the germination of the Word in our hearts. The Spirit is the one who will guard our hearts, the center of our being, from the assaults of the evil one. We need to be aware that we understand and not just react emotionally to what he suggests.

The parable of the weeds focuses on the evil influences from the world around us. There are cares, there are peer pressure to do our own thing, to look out for number one. Because we still live in this world, it is easy for the weeds of the world to sprout in our lives almost without our being aware of it. The influence of TV, movies, video games has a very subtle effect; it sorts of creeps up on us. It is when the Lord returns that we shall ultimately be free from the influence of the world.

The parable of the mustard seed and yeast speaks of the rapid growth of the kingdom when the Spirit interprets the Word in our lives. The