Sunday, May 31, 2009

The LORD's Day, May 31,2009

Healing by the LORD

Matthew 8.1-27

I approach this subject with great care and caution and with fear and trembling. More damage has been done to sincere and suffering Christians by the mishandling of this subject than any other in the Bible I believe.

We see Jesus healing people in this portion of Matthew’s Gospel that follows the Sermon on the Mount. In fact it is what took place immediately after Jesus finished that great message. He had taught hearts now He was going to heal bodies.

Much has been written on this subject- Divine Healing. The Word of God is sole authority. Some books are very good and help us but there nothing like the Word of God.

Healing is a gift from the LORD. We don’t buy it or pay for it rather He paid for it as Isaiah is quoted here in verse 17. It is part of His death on the cross for our sins- the healing of bodies from sickness and disease.

It happens...


1. If God Is Willing v.1-4

God is able, more than able. Why He is not always willing to heal is beyond me for the most part. I do not understand.

Sometimes I can understand a little:

Fanny Crosby

Joni Erickson Tada

That scripture in Isaiah 57.1
The righteous perish, and no one ponders it in his heart; devout men are taken away, and no one understands that the righteous are taken away to be spared from evil. This is a comfort when someone we love who loves the LORD and pray for to be healed dies.

We cannot take authority over heaven. God’s will must be that the person is healed and if it is not they will not be. I wish I didn’t have to say that It is hard to hear that, harder still when we are in that situation of praying for a loved one and we are told that. I don’t think telling that to a person who has a loved one suffering is wise. It is better to pray to the LORD and listen. They don’t need your insight or comments. They need your prayers and love.


It is amazing the spiritual perception of this leper. He knew Jesus’ power. He believed Jesus could. He approached Jesus on the basis of His will not His ability. He was further along in his faith and understanding than many Christians today

This leper broke protocol (Leviticus 13-14)- many people who are healed do
Nana

The man who was lowered down from the roof by his friends.
The woman with the issue of blood who touched the hem of Jes Mark 2.1-12 us’ garment. Mt 9.20
The Syro Phonecian woman Mark 7.24-30


Healing occurs if it is God’s will and...

2. If We Have Faith

The scripture in James 5.14 Is any one of you sick? He should call the elders of the church to pray over him and anoint him with oil in the name of the Lord. 15 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.

We have seen that work. We are witnesses.

If we have faith then we will be healed is not always correct. But faith is such a powerful force that we are told that the prayer offered in faith will have profound effects and while it is the LORD Who raises the sick person up it is the prayer offered in faith that makes it possible.

Obviously we can have faith and not be healed however.

Paul did. II Corinthians 12. 7 To keep me from becoming conceited because of these surpassingly great revelations, there was given me a thorn in my flesh, a messenger of Satan, to torment me. 8 Three times I pleaded with the Lord to take it away from me. 9 But he said to me, My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.

Paul left Trophimus sick in Miletus II Timothy 4.20

While Jesus healed many while He was on earth, His ministry was confined to Israel and some of the borders. So many people died while Jesus ministered and healed. Luke 5.15-16 tells us that not everyone who was sick even when Jesus was near was healed. There were times when He was in the mountains in Galilee and in a Garden in Jerusalem.


I remember as young pastor listening to an older minister at a table in a restaurant one day, tell us we better get down what we believe about healing and make sure it lines up with the Bible. He went on to tell of his wife’s illness, which she had for a number of years.

Not long after we had an older couple come to Christ. Shortly after Bernie was diagnosed with a horrible heart problem. There were multiple blockages. On the way home from the cardiologist, she and Pat her husband stopped a the church. They were besides themselves. I said, “Let’s anoint you with oil on Sunday and pray that God will heal you. They came back into my office shortly after. The tests showed no blockage. The doctor was amazed. He said it was like you have a new heart. She told him what happened.

We have been praying for the LORD to heal Alyssa. She also has a new heart in a different way than Bernie got hers. Sometimes He heals through medicine.

3. A Lesson From the Storm

He doesn’t stop every storm.
Life’s storms come (Matthew 7) He had just spoken these words prior to healing bodies.

It is whether we have built our lives on God’s Word or not that determines afterward if we are standing.

If it is not His will to heal then we many times this is a storm that can blow a person apart. Lives come crashing down. People have turned away from the LORD when tragedy comes. Remember Job’s wife

Luke records that the man was covered with leprosy from his head to his toe. Luke, the doctor. Luke was a traveling companion of Paul the apostle. They were ship wrecked on the Island of Malta- sometimes God doesn’t stop the storm. He uses it to get us where He wants so He can work through us. They both worked- Paul’s gift of healing/ Luke’s skill of medicine. Acts 28.9 The Healing Service became a Medical Mission.

Some storms are stopped, others are not.

Yet He did stop this storm And He does miracles. People are healed today.


Sunday, May 24, 2009

The LORD's Day Memorial Day Weekend, May 24, 2009


The Golden Rule

Matthew 7.12

Jesus boiled the Old Testament down to a few sentences:

Matthew 7.12 So in everything, do to others what you would have them do to you, for this sums up the Law and the Prophets. Matthew 22.36 Teacher, which is the greatest commandment in the Law? 37 Jesus replied: “ 'Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.' 38 This is the first and greatest commandment. 39 And the second is like it: 'Love your neighbor as yourself.' 40 All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments.

It is the second half that we are looking at this morning.

Jesus is calling us to treat others as we would like them to treat us.
Love your neighbor as yourself.
in everything, do to others what you would have them do to you.

Cashier at grocery store... “We are just trying to do our job. It isn’t our fault if things are going right for them.”

This message is going to be a series of questions for the most part. It is going to be a personal spiritual inventory on relationships. Colossians 4.5 Be wise in the way you act toward outsiders; make the most of every opportunity. 6 Let your conversation be always full of grace, seasoned with salt

Jesus was and is the Master Teacher. His statements were profound and deep with meaning for life. When He taught there were questions that arose. Doing to others what you would have them do to you raises some interesting questions...

1. How Do You Like To Be Treated?

Kindly Ephesians 4.32
We all like courtesy None of us enjoys to be treated harshly. We don’t like it when people are rude to us.

With Respect
When people are disrespectful we feel it. It is not pleasant. We ought to treat each person with dignity because they have been made in God’s image.
Genesis 1.27 So God created man in His own image, in the image of God He created him

With an Attentiveness to Your Needs
All of us have personal needs. Some of us need to have someone listen, others need to be encouraged. Some of us need to lead, other need to follow.
Philippians 2.4 Each of you should look not only to your own interests, but also to the interests of others

Going Out of the Way to take care of you
We like it when people go the extra mile with us. It is good to be pampered a little. If someone does something they didn’t have to do but that they wanted to do we are touched. I know a waitress who took an order and then brought crayons to kids.

Fairly
When we are buying or selling we only want to be treated fairly.
in everything, do to others what you would have them do to you.

Courteously
Manners bless us. I took two boys out for ice cream the other night who had moved the wood chips in the parking lot to the play area of the nursery school and I heard things like “thank you” and it was so pleasant. Do you like to hear thank you? Then say thank you!

Love=Agape
to welcome, to entertain, to be fond of, to love dearly, to be well pleased, to be contented
So in everything, do to others what you would have them do to you.

Galatians 5.22-23 the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control.
Is there rejoicing in others’ success?

Is there peace between you and others?

Are you patient with people?

Do you seek the good of others?

Are you a faithful person?
You are a rarity.
Proverbs 20.6 Many a man claims to have unfailing love, but a faithful man who can find?

Are you gentle in dealing with others?
Paul wrote to the Thessalonicans: As apostles of Christ we could have been a burden to you, but we were gentle among you, like a mother caring for her little children.I Thessalonians 2.7

Are you under self control in situations with people you have to deal with?

2. How Do You Treat Others?

Don’t Judge. (v.1)

Are you critical? Are you harsh? Do you think you know other people’s motives?

Are you giving grace? Better to ere there than come up short. Is your conversation seasoned with salt and full of grace? Colossians 4.5-6

Is there places where you know you are falling short of God’s love with people?

Jesus is telling here that we to need to think about how we treat others. We should be asking ourselves from time to time how we treat others in reference to how we would like other to treat us
3. What Changes is God speaking to me about right now?

In a message like this people come to mind, situations come the surface. Here is where we need to pray for God to change our hearts.

This is a good time to pray the prayer David prayed in Psalm 139.23 Search me, O God, and know my heart; test me and know my anxious thoughts. 24 See if there is any offensive way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting.

Look deep with in my spirit and my life O God

Show me what I am thinking.

See if in any way I am offending You or others. Lead me in the good path that leads to Life


Help me LORD (and this is not easy ) to make the changes I need to make immediately and to follow You in a selfless life. I am thankful that You have overcome the world and that through You we are made more than conquerors Help me to live like You, to walk in Your steps.
In Your Name, Amen

Sunday, May 17, 2009

The LORD's Day May 17, 2009

Do Not Worry About The Future!
Matthew 6.19-34

Worry is something that can grip our hearts and minds and make us unfruitful in God’s Kingdom as well as life in general.

Worry is really an inward disposition but it flows out into nervous habits and can even cause health problems. It works against our bodies disrupting things inside. The saying worried sick is an accurate one.

Worry is a sin. It misses the mark of trusting in God and puts us in the place- the horrible place of leaning on our own understanding or trying to figure our problems or needs out. Psalm 37.8 do not fret—it leads only to evil. Fretting puts me out of step with God’s Spirit.

It is noteworthy that Jesus is speaking about worrying shortly after He speaks of giving to the needy and right after He talks about laying up treasure in heaven. This is a manifesto of life in Christ: Give, Give and lay up treasure in heaven. Do not worry about your needs. You do these things and work diligently and your needs will be taken care of. He has also spoken to us about prayer in the previous section. You have heard of the saying Why pray when you can worry?

This talk Jesus is giving on worrying really begins with giving and then trusting God. If we serve Him fully we have the right to expect Him to take care of us completely.
HE has promised that He would and He is faithful to all His Promises.

1. Giving to God in Secret Brings Open Rewards. vs.3-4

Not always monetary but sometimes.

There is great joy and peace that come from giving back to God what He has blessed us with. Giving is a way that connects us with God’s Worldwide work... a wonderful way.

Having secrets with God is very cool! Our personal life ought to be full of the LORD!

He recompenses us. He gives back to us.

He blesses us in ways we never dreamed of.

James 1.17 Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights

We need to die to applause and approval of people. We need to be sure we are not addicted to affirmation. When it is just Jesus and you there is a glory and blessing that comes down from heaven.
Perfect gifts include peace. Isaiah 26.3 You will keep in perfect peace him whose mind is steadfast, because he trusts in You.
2. Serving the LORD means all our needs will be met.

Philippians 4.19 And my God will meet all your needs according to his glorious riches in Christ Jesus.

Physical/Material, Emotional, Spiritual
The date May 12th will never be the same for my family... called my Mom that morning... The rainbow Tuesday night - 9 years to the day of Mark’s death, a double one... After my brother died I began making my own cards for family members. My nephew had made a picture for me of a rainbow with the saying, “God Keeps on Working”. He said, “Remember Uncle Larry we heard that when my dad died?” I honestly don’t remember- it could have been an angel! Lucy and I have that little picture of the rainbow hanging up in the kitchen. I put the rainbow on the back of my cards with the verse from Psalm 145.13 The LORD is faithful to all His Promises. This Tuesday God confirmed His Word to me with a double rainbow. Lucy and I were in awe of it.

Think of all the times when Satan told you that you would not make it and you were tempted to agree with him. All of those times, the LORD came through for you!

3. Jesus tell not to worry about what we have need of. vs. 25

Therefore connects the previous section. Jesus is saying some things we may not have heard before:
1. What you serve is your master. Your master determines your life’s thoughts and activities and goals.

2. Worrying about money is not serving God it is serving money. Money has mastered you. It is your master.

3.If I fret over a situation and try to humanly figure it out, money is my master and I am not serving and trusting God over it.

It is significant that this talk on worry comes shortly after prayer. Prayer wards off worrying Philippians 4.6 Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. 7And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.
4. He gives examples from nature vs.26, 28-29

The birds of air
They do not sow.
They do not reap.
God takes care of them.


The LORD cares for them.


The lilies of the field.

They do not labor.
They do not spin.
God clothes the grass with them.


God takes care of all heaven and earth! Even those they will pass away His Words will never pass away!

Great in Thy Faithfulness... The seasons, the planets, Join with all nature in manifold witness! To His great faithfulness, mercy and love.


These examples correspond to our needs.
5. Tomorrow will worry about itself. v.34

I like that! Let tomorrow do the worrying! Leave the heartache and headache of worrying to tomorrow. If you don’t feel right unless someone is worrying (and I have met people who worry when there is nothing to worry about), let tomorrow worry about itself.

Trouble:
malice, ill-will, desire to injure
wickedness, depravity
wickedness that is not ashamed to break laws
evil

There is certainly enough of that around today so let tomorrow have its anxiety - don’t you pick it up!


Do not worry about the future. He is the Alpha and the Omega!

Do not worry about what will happen, it will not be long until traveling days are
over!

Do not worry, do not fret. God has never failed you yet and He never will.


Sunday, May 10, 2009

The LORD's Day, May 10, 2009, Happy Mother's Day!

Due to being at our annual District Assembly this week and not being able to put my message on the computer (I was the photographer for the conference), I will not be posting this morning.

A Blessed Mother's Day to all the Moms! We'll be back next week.

The scripture this morning is Matthew 6.1-8.



Sunday, May 3, 2009

The LORD's Day

Perfect Love

Matthew 5.38-48

I am trembling as I begin this message. This is the meat of the Word of God. This is a subject that is very dangerous to speak about because we could end up putting burdens on people that Jesus never meant for us to bear. On the other hand if we fail to proclaim this then we are not proclaiming the whole counsel of God. We are walking a tight rope this morning as share together in the words of our Master.

The best way to approach this is to go right into God’s Word this morning and look at this truth square in the eye. I love the way God’s Spirit calls us to do just that!

Jesus had been teaching His disciples, His followers on north shore of the Sea of Galilee. So far in this Sermon on the Mount He has turned ideas, religious ideas upside down.

When it comes to this matter of loving like God loves it almost appears that Jesus is giving us something too high to attain to. He finishes with the statement in verse 48 that we are to be perfect as our Father in heaven is perfect. He is talking about loving like God loves.

1. This means that instead of revenge we are going to surrender to the LORD’s Way. v.38-39

This involves yielding to His Spirit. Yielding to the point that we are going the opposite way of our nature, our sinful nature!

We so often want to settle scores. We are to seek justice for others but allow the LORD to be our Counselor and Defender. He has a way of making things right that goes way beyond our ability.

If we are going to be what God wants us to be we can’t be constantly worrying about ourselves and our rights and our needs. There comes a point where we must trust the LORD because of Who He is!

Revenge is horrible for many reasons. Surrender to God’s way is always sweet in the end. In fact with revenge what appears to be sweet turns out to be bitter and with surrender what appears to be bitter turns out to be sweet. Mrs. D’ Nofrio
I John 4.18 There is no fear in love. But perfect love drives out fear, because fear has to do with punishment. The one who fears is not made perfect in love.

Jesus is speaking here of surrendering our rights so we can be about the work of the kingdom. Abraham is such a wonderful example in this: Genesis 13.5-18

Lots chose grass, Abraham chose God.


2. In this Litigation Happy Society We as believers are going to be more concerned about reflecting the love of God. v.40-42

What does the world need more of- lawsuits or God’s love?

I think one of the things Jesus is instructing us in is not to get all caught up with life and it s possessions and problems. We need to hear this today! I need to hear this today- everything we own here on earth is going burn one day. I need to remember that! Luke 12.13-15 Two brothers battling over their father’s inheritance. Jesus was talking about being brought before the courts on account of Him!

We should be much more concerned with people’s eternal souls that winning a lawsuit in a court case! God help us!


3. We are following Jesus in loving our enemies.v.43-48

But first we are loving those closest to us. Are the ones we are closest to believe in our religion the most? Our family and friends and neighbors know us best. What do they think of our faith?

Then we face this impossible (humanly speaking) task of loving those who hate us.
This is a great challenge and requires the work of God’s Spirit. This is not toleration.

He is speaking of surrendering because that will be good for us and provide a witness to others.

We cannot hate them. This is not right. Some us may need to repent this morning of people we secretly hate.

I do not mean to minimize human pain. Man’s inhumanity to man can be emotional abuse. We all have sinned and we all have been sinned against.

Through the power of God’s Spirit and only through His Spirit we will love them.

Love is the fruit of the Spirit. Galatians 5.22 Fruit must develop. Sweetness sometimes is the final thing that happens... the orange, the apple.

Love is the fulfillment of the law and the prophets. Romans 13.10


There are times when we need to pray the LORD’s prayer in asking for forgiveness when we fall short of perfect love. Perhaps this is why that prayer is prayable each day!


Let’s keep loving one another and seeking to be like Jesus!