April 19th 2020
Today, Call Someone And Tell Them Jesus Loves Them!
Matthew 8:26-27 (NIV)
He replied, "You of little faith, why are you so afraid?" Then he got up and rebuked the winds and the waves, and it was completely calm. The men were amazed and asked, "What kind of man is this? Even the winds and the waves obey him!"
We live in a fearful time, as the pandemic has claimed many lives around this world. It is difficult to not be concerned for our safety, and the safety of those people we love. When the apostles faced, what to them seemed to be certain peril, Jesus said to them, "You of little faith, why are you so afraid?" We may currently feel much like His apostles did in that boat. Like them we may feel uncertain of our mortality and be wondering, am I next to contract this potentially fatal virus. Remember, we too are followers of Jesus, and He guarantees us eternal life with Him in the Paradise of God! Hopefully, you have a good mortal life, and you desire to keep on living in this cursed world. Part of the beauty of this earth was formed by the scares left by God’s punishment for the sins committed by mankind. Does this mean this virus is a punishment from God, I believe the answer is NO! It is, however, the result possibly of sinful actions committed by mankind. And is evidence of the fact that this world is running down, so to speak!
The greed of mankind has pushed us to overwhelm the natural resources God has blessed us with on this earth. This over usage and plundering is a possible cause for development of some of the diseases around this world. We can see this too in the breakdown of the human genome, as each generation has more defects, which are then passed on to the next generation. Because of this breakdown we see more new diseases, and maybe the development of more dangerous viruses. This supplies some evidence for the limit of time that this cursed world can continue to exist with the support and upholding of Jesus Christ! I find it is difficult to write about this latest virus invasion in a positive manner, as I always desire that the Verse of the Week commentaries to supply some positive feelings! The only positive result of this virus has been the overwhelming attempts for presenting a “we’re in this together” motto that many ads are being presented on TV and through the social media outlets!
It is a time when believers need to offer encouragement that Jesus always offered hope to individuals who were suffering from a disease or physical malformation that He would heal them, if they just asked Him to cure them, and then He did! Remember, you can still ask Jesus to help you (us), it is called praying, as we are not likely to meet Jesus face-to-face today! This is what Jesus told His disciples when He did walk with them and live with them as a man. His emphasis was always on requiring those He healed to ask Him or tell Him what they wanted. In the selected verses Jesus was telling His disciples that they needed to have faith, and He questioned the strength of their faith. Today maybe He is asking some of us, "You of little faith, why are you so afraid?"
Jesus told some parables about how small our faith can be, yet we can do some seemingly miraculous things. He told them another parable: "The kingdom of heaven is like a mustard seed, which a man took and planted in his field. Though it is the smallest of all your seeds, yet when it grows, it is the largest of garden plants and becomes a tree, so that the birds of the air come and perch in its branches." (Matthew 13:31-32). Here Jesus was telling us how a small seed can become a big tree. Is your faith strong enough to allow you to expect it to grow stronger even though you are still fearful of situations you cannot control? One time His disciples asked Him to increase their faith. The apostles said to the Lord, "Increase our faith!" He replied, "If you have faith as small as a mustard seed, you can say to this mulberry tree, ‘Be uprooted and planted in the sea,’ and it will obey you. (Luke 17:5-6). Here Jesus assured them that their faith was strong enough to allow them to perform a seemingly miraculous task! Jesus was not telling them to literally rip up a tree, but He was letting them know that they had power through their faith to do wondrous tasks.
We are currently being told to separate ourselves from other people in physical distance of six feet, but we are also being told to stay close to each other in our thoughts. This is only possible through a loving feeling toward our fellow man. Now is a time to be very forgiving when we think about other people who may not share the same views of these suggested guidelines. Now is a time when we need to try to serve others in some ways. You, my brothers, were called to be free. But do not use your freedom to indulge the sinful nature; rather, serve one another in love. (Galatians 5:13). Here Paul wrote about freedom to serve others not to try to serve ourselves at the expense of others. If you profess to be a Christian, then you must also know you have been called to work on becoming Christ-like. So, in this time of stress, What Would Jesus Do? With this in mind, we constantly pray for you, that our God may count you worthy of his calling, and that by his power he may fulfil every good purpose of yours and every act prompted by your faith. (2 Thessalonians 1:11). God may count you worthy of his calling!
When you were called to “follow Me” Jesus commissioned you to follow the path, or to get on that narrow road that leads to Him, where He is! You have made known to me the path of life; you will fill me with joy in your presence, with eternal pleasures at your right hand. (Psalm 16:11). Are you on this so called, “path of life?” Jesus prepared the Way to follow Him, especially in these times of stress, and separation from those people you love the most in this world. We must not lose sight of the most important aspect of life, which is the immortal pursuit of Jesus Christ. Therefore, my brothers, be all the more eager to make your calling and election sure. For if you do these things, you will never fall, and you will receive a rich welcome into the eternal kingdom of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. (2 Peter 1:10-11). Now is time when being Christ-like is a stay at home time, but not a stay away from thoughts of love toward those who may need our support. Today, call someone and tell them Jesus loves them, and He died that they may live forever with Him!
Your brother in life through Adam, your brother in eternity through Jesus,
Bob Moak
Matthew 8:26-27 (NIV)
He replied, "You of little faith, why are you so afraid?" Then he got up and rebuked the winds and the waves, and it was completely calm. The men were amazed and asked, "What kind of man is this? Even the winds and the waves obey him!"
We live in a fearful time, as the pandemic has claimed many lives around this world. It is difficult to not be concerned for our safety, and the safety of those people we love. When the apostles faced, what to them seemed to be certain peril, Jesus said to them, "You of little faith, why are you so afraid?" We may currently feel much like His apostles did in that boat. Like them we may feel uncertain of our mortality and be wondering, am I next to contract this potentially fatal virus. Remember, we too are followers of Jesus, and He guarantees us eternal life with Him in the Paradise of God! Hopefully, you have a good mortal life, and you desire to keep on living in this cursed world. Part of the beauty of this earth was formed by the scares left by God’s punishment for the sins committed by mankind. Does this mean this virus is a punishment from God, I believe the answer is NO! It is, however, the result possibly of sinful actions committed by mankind. And is evidence of the fact that this world is running down, so to speak!
The greed of mankind has pushed us to overwhelm the natural resources God has blessed us with on this earth. This over usage and plundering is a possible cause for development of some of the diseases around this world. We can see this too in the breakdown of the human genome, as each generation has more defects, which are then passed on to the next generation. Because of this breakdown we see more new diseases, and maybe the development of more dangerous viruses. This supplies some evidence for the limit of time that this cursed world can continue to exist with the support and upholding of Jesus Christ! I find it is difficult to write about this latest virus invasion in a positive manner, as I always desire that the Verse of the Week commentaries to supply some positive feelings! The only positive result of this virus has been the overwhelming attempts for presenting a “we’re in this together” motto that many ads are being presented on TV and through the social media outlets!
It is a time when believers need to offer encouragement that Jesus always offered hope to individuals who were suffering from a disease or physical malformation that He would heal them, if they just asked Him to cure them, and then He did! Remember, you can still ask Jesus to help you (us), it is called praying, as we are not likely to meet Jesus face-to-face today! This is what Jesus told His disciples when He did walk with them and live with them as a man. His emphasis was always on requiring those He healed to ask Him or tell Him what they wanted. In the selected verses Jesus was telling His disciples that they needed to have faith, and He questioned the strength of their faith. Today maybe He is asking some of us, "You of little faith, why are you so afraid?"
Jesus told some parables about how small our faith can be, yet we can do some seemingly miraculous things. He told them another parable: "The kingdom of heaven is like a mustard seed, which a man took and planted in his field. Though it is the smallest of all your seeds, yet when it grows, it is the largest of garden plants and becomes a tree, so that the birds of the air come and perch in its branches." (Matthew 13:31-32). Here Jesus was telling us how a small seed can become a big tree. Is your faith strong enough to allow you to expect it to grow stronger even though you are still fearful of situations you cannot control? One time His disciples asked Him to increase their faith. The apostles said to the Lord, "Increase our faith!" He replied, "If you have faith as small as a mustard seed, you can say to this mulberry tree, ‘Be uprooted and planted in the sea,’ and it will obey you. (Luke 17:5-6). Here Jesus assured them that their faith was strong enough to allow them to perform a seemingly miraculous task! Jesus was not telling them to literally rip up a tree, but He was letting them know that they had power through their faith to do wondrous tasks.
We are currently being told to separate ourselves from other people in physical distance of six feet, but we are also being told to stay close to each other in our thoughts. This is only possible through a loving feeling toward our fellow man. Now is a time to be very forgiving when we think about other people who may not share the same views of these suggested guidelines. Now is a time when we need to try to serve others in some ways. You, my brothers, were called to be free. But do not use your freedom to indulge the sinful nature; rather, serve one another in love. (Galatians 5:13). Here Paul wrote about freedom to serve others not to try to serve ourselves at the expense of others. If you profess to be a Christian, then you must also know you have been called to work on becoming Christ-like. So, in this time of stress, What Would Jesus Do? With this in mind, we constantly pray for you, that our God may count you worthy of his calling, and that by his power he may fulfil every good purpose of yours and every act prompted by your faith. (2 Thessalonians 1:11). God may count you worthy of his calling!
When you were called to “follow Me” Jesus commissioned you to follow the path, or to get on that narrow road that leads to Him, where He is! You have made known to me the path of life; you will fill me with joy in your presence, with eternal pleasures at your right hand. (Psalm 16:11). Are you on this so called, “path of life?” Jesus prepared the Way to follow Him, especially in these times of stress, and separation from those people you love the most in this world. We must not lose sight of the most important aspect of life, which is the immortal pursuit of Jesus Christ. Therefore, my brothers, be all the more eager to make your calling and election sure. For if you do these things, you will never fall, and you will receive a rich welcome into the eternal kingdom of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. (2 Peter 1:10-11). Now is time when being Christ-like is a stay at home time, but not a stay away from thoughts of love toward those who may need our support. Today, call someone and tell them Jesus loves them, and He died that they may live forever with Him!
Your brother in life through Adam, your brother in eternity through Jesus,
Bob Moak
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