Persevering Through Trials (Part 2)

Yesterday I mentioned that I was sharing some verses that I read last week while on vacation. They were put together in a powerful devotional tool, All I Need – Meditations on the Master. You can order it from Amazon by clicking on the link.

As I read these verses, I thought of several friends who have been persevering through their trials:

Keep up the good work and don’t get discouraged, for you will be rewarded. 2 Chronicles 15:7 (TLB)

Be strong and courageous! Do not tremble or be dismayed, for the Lord your God is with you wherever you go. Joshua 1:9 (NASB)

I will look unto the Lord; I will wait for the God of my salvation: my God will hear me. Micah 7:7

These things I have spoken to you, that in Me you may have peace. In the world you will have tribulation; but be of good cheer, I have overcome the world. John 16:33 (NKJV)

After you have suffered for a little while, the God of all grace, who has called you to his eternal glory in Christ, will HIMSELF restore, support, strengthen, and establish you. 1 Peter 5:10 (SRSV)

I can think of some pretty neat people right now who are going through intense trials: Doug & Ellen, Joe, Liz, Ron & Diane! And possibly you! Let the Word of God speak to your heart today. – Bill Welte is President & CEO of America’s Keswick

Team YOU: Isaiah 31-32; Proverbs 2; Ephesians 5:1-16

Motivations: May we learn to mature all graces in us; fearing and trembling, watching and repenting, because Christ is coming, joyful, thankful, and careless of the future, because He is come.

Practice to Remember: Level 1: James 1:5-6; Level 2: James 1:9-18

Powered Up:  “ … our prayers are heard, not because we are in earnest, not because we suffer, but because Jesus suffered.” Oswald Chambers

Persevering Through Trials

I am privileged that you have chosen to partner with me as we encourage each other through the ministry of Freedom Fighters. Most of our conversations are one-sided in that me or one of my team are writing to you. But know that your feedback as well as what God is teaching you is important for us too. So please feel free to submit your comments.

Last week when I was on vacation, there were several days when my reading of the Word was just too powerful to pass by not sharing with you. One of my devotional tools is All I Need – Meditations on the Master available from Amazon. It is laid out just like Daily Light in that it is just Scriptures with a couple of quotes for each day.

Here were the verses for September 28^th. I will share a couple today and then some tomorrow. I can’t help but think that one of you may need these timely verses:

For to you it has been granted on behalf of Christ, not only to believe in Him, but also to suffer for His sake. Philippians 1:29 (NKJV)

We must through much tribulation enter into the kingdom of God. Acts 14:22

Jesus told the people who had faith in Him, “If you keep on obeying what I have said, you truly are My disciples. You will know the truth and the truth with set you free.” John 8:31-32 (CEV)

Knowing God leads to self-control. Self-control leads to patient endurance, and patient endurance leads to godliness. Godliness leads to love for other Christians, and finally you will grow to have genuine love for everyone. The more you grow like this, the more you will become productive and useful in your knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. – 2 Peter 1:6-8 (NLT)

Wow! That is a powerful word! Maybe you are going through a tough time right now. If so, I trust that these verses from God Himself, will help you to persevere through your trial. If you would like prayer, send me an email, and we will pray for you.

Do I appreciate you? I sure do! – Bill Welte is President & CEO of America’s Keswick

Team YOU: Isaiah 29-30; Proverbs 1; Ephesians 4

Motivations: We enforce ourselves to follow the way that holy saints have gone before us, but when any little adversity cometh to us we be anon cast down therein and turn us over – soon to seek man’s comfort. Thomas `A Kempis

Practice to Remember: Level 1: James 1:5-6; Level 2: James 1:9-18

Powered Up:  All work takes time. When it becomes clear to us that prayer is a part of our daily program of work, it will also become clear to us that we must arrange our daily program in such a way that there is time also for this work, just as we set aside time for other necessary things, such as eating and dressing. Ole Kristian O. Hallesby

Purification

On Friday’s I have been sharing prayers with you that have touched my heart. Today’s prayer comes from The Valley of Vision (Banner of Truth) and is very powerful:

Lord Jesus,

I sin – grant that I may never cease grieving because of it, never be content with myself, never think I can reach the point of perfection.

Kill envy, command my tongue, trample down self.
Give me grace to be holy, kind, gentle, pure, peaceable – to live for You and not for self, to copy Your words, acts, spirit,
to be transformed into Your likeness,
to be consecrated holy to You,
to live entirely to Your glory.

Deliver me from attachment to things unclean, from wrong associations, from the predominance of evil passions, from the sugar of sin as well as its gall, that with self-loathing, deep contrition, earnest heart searching I may come to You, cast myself on You, trust in You, cry to You, be delivered by You.

O God, the Eternal All, help me to know that
all things are shadows but You are substance,
all things are quicksands – but You are mountain,
all things are shifting – but You are anchor,
all things are ignorance – but You are wisdom.

If my life is to be a crucible amid burning heat, so be it, but do sit at the furnace mouth to watch the ore that nothing be lost.

If I sin willfully, grievously, tormentedly, in grace take away my mourning and give me music; remove my sackcloth and clothe me with beauty; still my sighs and fill my mouth with song, then give me summer weather as a Christian. Amen

Wow – that is one powerful prayer. Take some time a pray it through with YOUR heavenly Father. Have a blessed weekend, my brothers. – Bill Welte is President & CEO of America’s Keswick

Team YOU: Isaiah 23-24; Proverbs 28; Ephesians 1

Motivations: It’s not great gifts God uses, but great likeness to Christ. William H. Smith

Practice to Remember: Level 1:James 1:2-3; Level 2: James 1:1-8

Powered Up:  God brings His marvels to pass in lives by means of prayer, and the prayers of the saints are part of God’s program. – Oswald Chambers

Prepare Your Mind

Therefore gird up the loins of your mind, be sober, and rest your hope fully upon the grace that is to be brought to you at the revelation of Jesus Christ. 1 Peter 1:13

We all know it – we are kidding ourselves if we think this is a new revelation. The battles we wage with the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes and the pride of life all begin in our minds.

But sometimes we do need those reminders – nudges from Holy Spirit in order that we might not be ignorant of the schemes of the enemy. Drs. Henry and Richard Blackaby remind us of this truth in their practical devotional, Experiencing God – The Devotional:

Your mind is a wonderful thing! You can memorize life-changing passages of Scripture that can undergird you in your daily life; you can meditate upon God’s Word, discovering His magnificent truths; you can discern between truth and falsehood; you can recall God’s past blessings.

Some of God’s most effective servants were those who disciplined their minds for His service. Moses, educated in the best schools of Egypt, assembled the Books of the Law for the Israelites. Isaiah used his scholarly mind to write an exalted prophetic book in Scripture. Paul learned under Gamaliel, the outstanding teacher of his day, and it was through Paul that God presented much of the theology found in the New Testament.

Sadly, many Christians today do not exercise their minds to be of service to God. They allow others to do their spiritual thinking for them. If they can find their theology from a book, they will not bother to study God’s Word themselves. If a speaker makes an authoritative statement, they readily accept it without verifying whether it is biblical.

Paul urged Christians to strive for maturity in their thinking (1 Cor. 14:20). He said there was a time when his spiritual thinking was immature, but he had prepared his mind to know and understand the great truths of God (1 Cor. 13:11). He had not allowed others to do his thinking for him. When you became a Christian, God renewed your mind (Rom. 12:2). Be certain to use your mind in a way that brings glory to God.

Blackaby, Richard (2006-12-01). Experiencing God Day By Day (Kindle Locations 4618-4632). B&H Publishing Group. Kindle Edition.

Good reminder, brothers. How are you preparing YOUR mind today? – Bill Welte is President & CEO of America’s Keswick

Team YOU: Isaiah 21-22; Proverbs 27; Galatians 6

Motivations: The beginning of anxiety is the end of faith; and the beginning of true faith is the end of anxiety. George Muller

Practice to Remember: Level 1:James 1:2-3; Level 2: James 1:1-8

Powered Up:  Prayer is not only to be about big things, but talking to God about EVERYTHING – “let your requests be made known to God.” – Oswald Chambers

The I Am’s of John — “I AM WHO I AM”

“Then Moses said to God, “Indeed, when I come to the children of Israel and say to them, ‘The God of your fathers has sent me to you,’ and they say to me, ‘What is His name?’ what shall I say to them?” And God said to Moses, “I AM WHO I AM.” And He said, “Thus you shall say to the children of Israel, ‘I AM has sent me to you.’ ” Exodus 3:13-14 (NKJV)

I have been covering the metaphorical “I Am’s” in John’s Gospel. Now it is time to cover those moments where Jesus comes close to saying, “I AM WHO I AM”. Now we need to go back to when He called Moses and cover a small bit of ground. There were two names YHVH used while speaking to Moses during that moment while the bush was on fire. “I AM WHO I AM” denotes what He is in Himself and comes in four different facets.

1. That He is self-existent: He has His being of Himself.

2. That He is eternal, unchangeable, always the same, yesterday, today and forever.

3. That He is incomprehensible; we cannot by searching find Him out: this name checks all bold and curious inquiries concerning God.

4. That He is faithful and true to all His promises, unchangeable in His word as well as in His nature.

Then YHVH simply says to Moses to tell the Nation of Israel, “I AM has sent me to you.” I AM…here is a name that denotes what God is to his people. He wants them to know that He is the same Lord God of their fathers and Moses was sent to revive among them the religion of their fathers, which was almost lost. Then, once delivered, they might expect the speedy performance of the promises made unto their fathers. Travel forward down our Deuteronomical road and come to Jesus.

Eight times in John’s Gospel Jesus says, “I AM”. To the woman at the well, after the woman accused of adultery, after He washed the disciple’s feet and three times during His arrest in Gethsemane Jesus would say “I am He”. It was when He said to The Jews, “Most assuredly, I say to you, before Abraham was, I AM.” that He steps over the line with the Pharisees, Sadducees and just about anyone else that had an “ees” at the end of their title. They all get really mad at Him and they pick up stones to throw at Him, but Jesus hid Himself and went out of the Temple.

The thing that got the best of these religious leaders was anytime they would try to catch the Savior in one of their traps where they could find Jesus being self-contradictory, like in the case of the woman accused of adultery; Jesus would be the One who would snare them in their own trap. So it is with us in those times where we think we are smarter than I AM and try to go on with our Christian walk under our own strength. Like it really matters to those around that we can really do it anyway. On the contrary, we need to show those around us that without I AM we are nothing and apart from I AM we remain nothing. Then, and only then, does that Christian walk really matter!! – Chris Hughes is a graduate of the Colony of Mercy and a regular Freedom Fighter blogger

Team YOU: Isaiah 19-20; Proverbs 26; Galatians 5

Motivations: “God felt no different toward us after Christ had died for us, for in the mind of God Christ had already died before the foundation of the world. God never saw us except through atonement…All God’s dealings with man have been conditioned upon the Cross.”—A.W.Tozer

Practice to Remember: Level 1:James 1:2-3; Level 2: James 1:1-8

Powered Up:  Our highest calling in life is not in serving Jesus, but in being with Him. – Hope MacDonald

THE RIPPLE EFFECT OF A CHANGED LIFE

September 25, 1897

“Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new.” (2 Corinthians 5:17)

            Someone once said to Dwight L. Moody “that the world has yet to see what God will do with and for, through and around the man who is fully and wholly consecrated to Him.”  That statement is certainly true of the life of William Raws, founder of the Colony of Mercy.

William Raws’ life was radically changed on February 17, 1886 when he trusted Christ as his personal Savior in the Germantown section of Philadelphia. His bondage to alcohol was broken and Raws was gloriously saved. In his own words William Raws said, “One day, fairly dying from the effects of rum, unable even to keep hot rum brandy on my stomach, I staggered penniless too my room and fell against an old arm chair…Although under the influence of drink, a poor dying drunkard, a swearing, lustful, sinful man, I cried unto God. He heard my cry and save me. For days and nights thereafter I could neither eat nor sleep. I was on the verge of delirium tremens…But peace came at last and victory through our Lord and Savior.”

Raws went on to begin the Whosoever Gospel Rescue Mission in Philadelphia but was burdened years later to begin a work in the country for men to escape city life and get alone with God. On September 25, 1897, the family and some friends met around an old pump organ and sang ALL HAIL THE POWER OF JESUS’ NAME. The crowd pooled their resources of $1.87 and claimed the promise from Philippians 4:19 — But my God shall supply all your need according to his riches in glory by Christ Jesus.” God birthed the ministry of THE COLONY OF MERCY. And the rest is history.

Thousands of lives have been transformed by the power of the gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ because of the transformed life of William Raws. The ministry continues over a hundred years later with the good news that Christ can set men and women in bondage to sinful addictions and through Christ, can live victoriously.

God used the ordinary life of William Raws to impact thousands. He wants to take your ordinary life and doing extraordinary things. Are you willing to allow your life to have a ripple effect on others? Surrender you ALL to Him today. – Today is the 115^th anniversary of the Colony of Mercy and the 13^th anniversary of the founding of the Women of Character program. – Bill Welte is President and CEO of America’s Keswick

Team YOU: Isaiah 17-18; Proverbs 25; Galatians 4

Motivations: If God did not bless, not one hair, not a solitary wisp of straw, would grow; but there would be an end of everything. At the same time God wants me to take this stance: I would have nothing whatever if I did not plow and sow. God does not want to have success come without work, and yet I am not to achieve it by my work. He does not want me to sit at home, to loaf, to commit matters to God, and to wait till a fried chicken flies into my mouth. That would be tempting God. Martin Luther

Practice to Remember: Level 1:James 1:2-3; Level 2: James 1:1-8

Powered Up:  I have lived to thank God that all my prayers have not been answered. Jean Ingelow

The I Am’s of John “THE TRUE VINE”

^“I am the true vine, and my Father is the husbandman.  Every branch in me that beareth not fruit he taketh away: and every branch that beareth fruit, he purgeth it, that it may bring forth more fruit. Now ye are clean through the word which I have spoken unto you.” John 15:1-3 (KJV)

The grapevine was an everyday sight in Israel so much that the vine became the national symbol of Israel. There were times where those vineyards had been fruitful (Isaiah 27:2-6) and there were times that it wasn’t (Jeremiah 5:10-11). When we come to this part in the Gospel of John we are in the Upper Room, there has been a foot washing and much truth is being spoken. Jesus has pretty much declared that He is the true redemption of Israel…”In days to come Jacob shall take root, Israel shall blossom and put forth shoots and fill the whole world with fruit.”

This metaphorical “I Am” is followed by a very clear explanation by Jesus. We can’t just rest on John 15:1 without a further reading of this passage of Scripture. Jesus is the true vine, letting us know that our fruit bearing rests on His truth. With His Father being the husbandman we can’t go wrong. Even though The Father may have talked often of Israel as a vine in the Old Testament, Jesus is the genuine article. A vine that is consistently and carefully pruned by the husbandman will bear much fruit. The whole nation of Israel was never a vine like Jesus Christ.

All of the past, present and future believers are branches of this Vine. Keep in mind that the root is unseen because our life is hid with Christ. The branches of the vine are many, yet, meeting in the root, are all but one vine; thus all true Christians, meet in Christ. His Father is the Ultimate Husbandman. My main man, Matt Henry says that “Never was any husbandman so wise, so watchful, about his vineyard, as God is about his church, which therefore must prosper. We must be fruitful.” Yeah…but it’s funny about being fruitful ain’t it?

Ya know from a grapevine, we look for grapes. One very simple fruit, BUT the fruit we look for from a Christian are many. Love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control…nine different varieties of fruit that need to blossom on your branch there Christian. And if your branch beareth any of these fruit they shall be purgeth but if it ain’t bearing any fruit The Husbandman will prune you and take your branch away. It would seem that a fire would be the fittest place for withered branches. Hope that wouldn’t be a lake of fire ‘cos that means eternal separation from the Vine, very uncool.

When we have our noses in our Bibles, the Word of Christ is spoken to all of us. As it works out any corruption with the renewing of our minds it will also work God’s grace into our transforming lives. It helps us stay attach to the vine or as I’ve heard it said we will ABIDE in HIM!! It will also help us be better fruit bearers because the more fruit we bear the more our Lord is glorified and that is a good thing. Jesus wants all His disciples to understand that apart from Him we can do NOTHING. It’s just up to us to keep that faith muscle exercised so we have the strength to stay on the Vine. – Chris Hughes is a graduate of the Colony of Mercy and contributes regularly to Freedom Fighter 

Team YOU: Isaiah 15-16; Proverbs 24; Galatians 3

Motivations: “Let us seek to live more simply on the fullness of Christ, and to grow more fruitful in every good word and work, so may our joy in Him and in His salvation be full.”—Matthew Henry

Practice to Remember: Level 1:James 1:2-3; Level 2: James 1:1-8

Powered Up: Prayer is other than meditation; it is that which develops the life of God in us. – Oswald Chambers

The I Am’s of John “WAY/TRUTH/LIFE”

“Thomas said to him, “Lord, we do not know where You are going. How can we know the way?” Jesus said to him, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me.” John 14:5-6 (ESV)

The sixth metaphorical “I am” that we find in the Gospel of John ( John 14:5) comes to us trinity style. It comes at time in this Gospel where Jesus is comforting His disciples. “Let not your heart be troubled; you believe in God, believe also in Me.” He goes on by giving them the lay out of the mansion and letting them know that He is preparing a room for each of them. I am sure that the disciples are hanging on to every word. Hanging on so dearly that Thomas has to ask where is The Master going and how can they know the way. And then here it comes, probably the clearest cut “I am” in this Gospel…”I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me.”

So since this comes at us in three parts lets break it down…

The Way—and not merely the way, as if He were going before people as an example. Or maybe as a prophet who would point out the way by some doctrinal teaching of salvation. Nope not any of these, Jesus IS the way of salvation itself by His obedience and sacrifice. He is the way of all the blessings of the covenant of grace, the way into a Gospel church and most importantly, THE way to heaven.

The Truth—this has many layers to it. Jesus is the truth of all types, shadows, promises and prophecies of the Old Testament. All of them had been accomplished in Him. He is not only true but truth itself regarding His person and character. He taught and still teaches the way of God in truth. The King of kings is the sum and substances of all the truths of the Gospels for they are full in Him. Pilate was looking at TRUTH when he asked Jesus Christ what is truth.

The Life—how about we rephrase this to say “the living way”? Jesus Christ is the author and giver of natural, spiritual and eternal life. All who come onto His path to live in His ways are never the same again. Being in this way of life no longer allows the burden of law to bring on its condemnation and death. The believer/follower or doer of His way are truly set free to live life and to have it abundantly.

If we have these three aspects of this passage to our understanding we truly realize that no one can go to the Father unless it is through Him. Jesus is clear in this in that He is the only way of access to the Father. You cannot go into the presence of a holy and absolute God with covenant of works…not without the Mediator. Even then, those works have to stand their test of fire to see what are precious metals and true gems anyway so don’t count on those good deeds. We might spend a lot of time feeding the homeless but if we aren’t pointing them to The Way, The Truth and the life we are denying these people the very bread of life that Jesus says he is. It would be a shame for those works to burn up just because we think we are doing good and showing them the why we are doing the good. Amen? Chris Hughes is a graduate of the Colony of Mercy and a regular blogger on Freedom Fighter 

Team YOU: Isaiah 9-10; Proverbs 21; 2 Corinthians 13

Motivations: “When we quietly consider and meditate upon the life of the Lord Jesus during the three and half years of His walk in the midst of men, there are certain things about Him which are quite evident and quite impressive. Those things are the things which must be carried over into our own lives if others are to have indicated to them the way to God.”—T. Austin-Sparks

Practice to Remember: Level 1:Philippians 4:8; Level 2: Philippians 4:25-23

Powered Up:  ‘Asking’ in prayer is at once the test of three things – simplicity, stupidity, and certainty of God. – Oswald Chambers

The I Am’s of John –“RESURRECTION”

“Jesus said to her, “I am the resurrection and the life. Whoever believes in me, though he die, yet shall he live, and everyone who lives and believes in me shall never die. Do you believe this?” She said to him, “Yes, Lord; I believe that you are the Christ, the Son of God, who is coming into the world.”  John 11:25-27 (ESV)

The fifth time Jesus uses the “Ego Eimi” (I AM) formula to reveal Himself it is when He said “I am the resurrection and the life” to Martha (John 11:25-27). It has been four days since Lazarus lain in the grave and it could be that Jewish leadership from Jerusalem came to Martha and Mary to comfort them. Martha is the first to be able to speak with Jesus and I would venture that in her faith she was able to feel confidence in the healing power of Jesus. “Lord, if You had been here, my brother would not have died. But even now I know that whatever You ask from God, God will give You.”

This moment in the times of Jesus ministry is considered to be the seventh sign proving that Jesus Christ IS the Son of God. There is so much to glean from this proclamation of “I am” that I don’t think I can fit it into this Freedom Fighter.  Even after this moment Caiaphas, the Roman appointed High Priest, condemns Jesus to death because he thinks he is saving the nation of Israel. All he did was in essence was to give his blessing for the lamb to be slain…powerful stuff found in this 11^th chapter of John. But I think I better get back to just the “Ego Eimi” that Jesus shares with Martha.

What has to come out here is in what expression of faith Martha does share with Jesus. That would be her faith in the resurrection is being one of principle and it would be Jesus revealing the resurrection as a person. “I am the resurrection and the life. Whoever believes in Me, though he die, yet shall he live, and everyone who lives and believes in Me shall never die. Do you believe this?” Now Martha had faith in her brother rising again in the resurrection in the last day and In Christ as the Son of God but couldn’t say she believed Lazarus could be raised before the resurrection.

Jesus didn’t rebuke Martha for any of this uncertainty in her beliefs but used this moment in His ministry to help her grow in her faith. We are also not able to grasp all of God’s truths at one time and really need to grow from faith to faith (Romans 1:17). And like in Martha’s case The Lord can overlook our weak faith (Romans14:1) ,still see that our hearts are right and still is willing to receive us…”Therefore welcome one another as Christ has welcomed you, for the glory of God” (Romans15:7).

How about us? Do we believe this truth about Jesus? The dis-comforts and the very comforts of this present day may not be able to make the impressions that they do if we really believed the eternal things like we ought to. Matt Henry puts it like this, “When Christ our Master comes, He calls for us. He comes in His word and ordinances, and calls us to them, calls us by them, calls us to Himself. Those who, in a day of peace, set themselves at Christ’s feet to be taught by Him, may with comfort, in a day of trouble, cast themselves at His feet, to find favour with Him. Amen… 

Team YOU: Isaiah 7-8; Proverbs 20; 2 Corinthians 12

Motivations: “No matter how difficult or uncomfortable your circumstances become, you are free because you have come to accept them all from the hand of God. The greatest thing is to suffer without being discouraged.”—Fenelon

Practice to Remember: Level 1:Philippians 4:8; Level 2: Philippians 4:25-23

Powered Up:  Remember, you have to ask things which are in keeping with the God whom Jesus Christ reveals. Oswald Chambers

The I Am’s of John –“GOOD SHEPHERD”

“I am the door. If anyone enters by me, he will be saved and will go in and out and find pasture. The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy. I came that they may have life and have it abundantly. I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep.” John 10:9-11 (ESV)

Going from announcing that he is the light of the world we find Jesus making two “I Am” statements in the same conversation (John 10:9-11). “I am the door” along with “I am the good shepherd” pretty much are covering ground on how The Savior feels about our protection. This protection is from those who would be false teachers when we look in terms of Jesus being the door. You see Jesus is letting us know that He IS the Watchman. In Ezekiel 33:2-9 YHVH is quite specific to in assigning Ezekiel as being not just a spiritual watchman but one who has to be very vocal. If he doesn’t blow the trumpet or speak a warning from the Lord, the blood of those who perish shall be on Ezekiel. If they choose not heed what he speaks then they shall die in their iniquity.

This is the same vein Jesus tells how He is the gatekeeper for the sheepfold. When we hear His voice we should be herding ourselves together so that we may find safety in His pen. We could say that by way of application…Jesus is the door to salvation.  He is the guardian against the thieves and robbers who come in to lead the sheep to stray. Back then it was the Pharisees and today it ain’t much different. Jesus knows who is His own and that they recognize His voice but we do have some who just want an ear tickling and they leave the pen.

But then Jesus goes one step farther in this discourse and states “I am the good shepherd.” It’s in here that Jesus will state, four times, that He will lay His life down for His sheep. It may not have been in God’s primary plan for the Pharisees to be the hireling for Israel because they ended up feeling indifferent to their position with YHVH. It was all about paying Temple tax and buying sacrifices for the ceremonies they paid tax towards.  Jesus sets the position of shepherd straight. For Jesus it is about taking a stand and being ready to suffer the wrath of a wolf in order to save the sheep.

The important thing to note here is that this taking a stand and being ready is voluntary. And we need to know that much of the ministry of Christ was geared towards saving the lost sheep of Israel (Matt 10:5-6). But the faith of the Canaanite woman (Matt 15:21-28) serves as a great reminder that even the dogs have their place in the flock. As some of you sheep herders may already know a dog is a useful animal to have when it comes to gathering sheep to go through the gate.

And as I go through these seven “I Am’s” that Jesus proclaimed, the more I am seeing that the response to the proclamations He made came with divisions in a crowd. It was mentioned that He must be a Looney Tune or was demon possessed. One thing was for certain, the erroneous babblings of those Pharisees were reaching an un-acceptance among the masses and they were ready for some Good News. Like the Watchman appointed to the walls of the city, Jesus proclaims Good News. And we should be like sheep, letting the dogs round us up, getting’ us through the door into the safety of the Good Shepherd’s salvation. – Chris Hughes is a graduate of the Colony of Mercy and a regular blogger on Freedom Fighter

Team YOU: Isaiah 5-6; Proverbs 19; 2 Corinthians 11:16-33

Motivations: “Another thing Jesus did that drove religious leaders nuts was tell people their sins were forgiven. Think about that. The only person who can forgive someone is the one who was offended or wronged. You wouldn’t ask me to forgive you for something you did to your mother. You would ask your mother to forgive you. Jesus told people their sins were forgiven when he wasn’t involved in the conflict. Makes no sense.”—Andy Stanley

Practice to Remember: Level 1:Philippians 4:8; Level 2: Philippians 4:25-23

Powered Up:  Prayer means I come in contact with an Almighty Christ, and almighty results happen along the lines He laid down. – Oswald Chambers