The Bible is such a blessing to me. It can be hard work to study it at times, but it is well worth it. There's nothing wrong with hard work, or better said, intense study and meditation of the Scriptures. And at the same time the Scriptures are pure and simple, and quite exhilarating to simply read and ponder.
I was reading the Bible to my Mom yesterday, and it was such a blessing to hear the Words of Jesus from the "Sermon on the Mount", Matthew 5:1-16.
"Seeing the crowds, he went up on the mountain, and when he sat down, his disciples came to him.
And he opened his mouth and taught them, saying:
“Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
“Blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted.
“Blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the earth.
“Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be satisfied.
“Blessed are the merciful, for they shall receive mercy.
“Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God.
“Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called sons of God.
“Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness' sake, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
“Blessed are you when others revile you and persecute you and utter all kinds of evil against you falsely on my account. Rejoice and be glad, for your reward is great in heaven, for so they persecuted the prophets who were before you.
“You are the salt of the earth, but if salt has lost its taste, how shall its saltiness be restored? It is no longer good for anything except to be thrown out and trampled under people's feet.
“You are the light of the world. A city set on a hill cannot be hidden. Nor do people light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on a stand, and it gives light to all in the house. In the same way, let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father who is in heaven." -Jesus
What incredible Words these are. And the other thing that happened yesterday was, as I read, and expounded upon the Word to Mom, (and to myself really), my mind thought of other words in the Bible that Jesus had spoken.
For instance, when I read: "Blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the Earth", I thought of where Jesus said: "Come unto Me, and I will give you rest for your souls. Learn of Me, for I am meek and lowly." I told Mom: "Jesus is the only meek One really. If we want to be meek, we need to be meek in Christ.
And when I read: "Blessed are you who thirst and hunger for righteousness, for you shall be filled", I thought how Jesus cried out to the people: "If anyone is thirsty, let him come to Me for drink. And out of His belly will flow rivers of living waters."
And so it went for each saying of our Lord for me. I pondered the saying, and found a correlating verse would pop into my mind, which to me, enhanced the Words Jesus spoke here, as He sat on a mount teaching the people.
The thing is that nobody is pure in heart, or poor in spirit. No one is meek, nor a peacemaker, unless this same person is in Christ, who is 'The' meek One; 'The' peacemaker (Prince of Peace), 'The' One pure heart, and the One who became poor, so that we could be made rich in His great love, with which He loves us.
And we know He loves us, because God, His Father, so loved us that he gave His Beloved to become a curse and sin, and Jesus loved His Father, and accepted this charge, and laid down His life for us, so that His Father would be glorified, even as the Son would be glorified in His death, and so the Father is glorified in His gracious mercy to sinners like us.
The Gospel is pure and wonderful and amazing! The Gospel is Jesus! It's His death for us! And His resurrection and ascention for us!
Thank you Lord for giving Yourself as a sin offering for us, Your people. (Matthew 1:21)
6 comments:
Hi Don;
I like this post; you always have a lot of good things to say about our wonderful Lord and savior Jesus.
Except the part where you make out that the Lord our God is a couple of people or persons.
Well Don, one day you really have to deal with that problem.
Remember, a little leaven leavens the whole lump.
Lots of love
Paul
Jesus declared, “I thank you, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, that you have hidden these things from the wise and understanding and revealed them to little children; yes, Father, for such was your gracious will. All things have been handed over to me by my Father, and no one knows the Son except the Father, and no one knows the Father except the Son and anyone to whom the Son chooses to reveal him."
"... he[Jesus] asked his disciples, “Who do people say that the Son of Man is?” And they said, “Some say John the Baptist, others say Elijah, and others Jeremiah or one of the prophets.” He said to them, “But who do you say that I am?” Simon Peter replied, “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.” And Jesus answered him, “Blessed are you, Simon Bar-Jonah! For flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but my Father who is in heaven."
There are two persons here in the Holy Writ, perfectly clear, and couldn't be any clearer Paul.
The father is revealed to those whom Christ wills, and the Father draws all His chosen to the Son, His only begotten Beloved Son.
God the Father looks for those who will worship Him in Spirit and truth. Christ is the etrnal Son of God, who is to be honored with the same whorship as the Father.
Thanks for stopping by Paul.
I met a homeless man last night, who could barely carry on an intelligent conversation. If I asked a question, he'd start to answer, but forget my question before ever getting to the point. The reason I bring it up is because when I found him, he was reading his Bible. He did not know some of the words in his Bible, like "commendeth" and "hast," but his face brightened up when he shared three verses he had memorized.
I love the Word, and it is so encouraging to find another who loves it as well.
That's awesome story Craver. Thanks for sharing.
Yes Don, that's right;
The Lord Jesus has hidden that from the wise and the intelligent and gave it to His children to understand.
The Lord Jesus made it very clear that He and the Father are NOT----TWO!
The wise and the intelligent think that they can search the Scripture to know and understand, but are unwilling to come to Jesus and ask him, so that they would really know and understand that Jesus Christ is the Father clothed in flesh.
But do they believe Jesus, to what He said in the book of John? I don't think so.
If they would believe, then they would preach and portray Jesus as the Alpha and Omega, the first and the last, the beginning and the end, or as the only ONE God.
Who do you think was first, the Father or the Son?
Jesus is called the Alpha, the first.
Well brother; I think that a man of God like you would know in your heart that the Lord our God is NOT----TWO!
Those are Catholic (Universal) doctrines and surely you can do better than that.
Kind regards
Paul
"Well brother; I think that a man of God like you would know in your heart that the Lord our God is NOT----TWO!"
No, he is three actually: God the father, God the Son, and God the Holy Ghost.
Paul, the Apostle Paul says: "Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ"
"Then Jesus, calling out with a loud voice, said, “Father, into your hands I commit my spirit!” And having said this he breathed his last."
Paul also said: "Paul, an apostle—not from men nor through man, but through Jesus Christ and God the Father, who raised him from the dead"
The Father raised Jesus, His Son, from the dead.
There's no doubt in my mind there is a father in heaven, who chose me, and gave me to Jesus Christ, who is the Son of God, begotten of Mary.
In one sense the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit are one in the same, but they are unique as well.
The Trinity is an orhtodox doctrine that all Christians love and trust. It's not Cathoilc. It's biblical.
Catholics also believe Jesus rose from the dead. And that He was born of a virgin.
The Bible is crystal clear that Jesus loved the Father, and the Father loved the Son, and gave His Son, because He loved the world.
Paul, we will simply have to disagree. You will never change my heart from knowing the Father and the Son, through the Holy Spirit of God.
And I doubt you will ever chnage as well.
We will stand one day at the Judgment, and see the Lord Jesus Christ, and He that sits upon the throne as well, who is the Father.
"But he [Stephen], full of the Holy Spirit, gazed into heaven and saw the glory of God, and Jesus standing at the right hand of God. And he said, “Behold, I see the heavens opened, and the Son of Man standing at the right hand of God.”"
Jesus will stand at the right hand of God, His Father.
The Father said: “You are my Son,
today I have begotten you”?
Or again,
“I will be to him a father,
and he shall be to me a son”?
And again, when he brings the firstborn into the world, he says,
“Let all God's angels worship him.”
Of the angels he says,
“He makes his angels winds,
and his ministers a flame of fire.”
But of the Son he says,
“Your throne, O God, is forever and ever,
the scepter of uprightness is the scepter of your kingdom.
You have loved righteousness and hated wickedness;
therefore God, your God, has anointed you
with the oil of gladness beyond your companions.”"
And: "Jesus said to her, “Do not cling to me, for I have not yet ascended to the Father; but go to my brothers and say to them, ‘I am ascending to my Father and your Father, to my God and your God.’”"
To not see a Father and a Son here is to twist the Scripture beyond twisting really.
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