22010.030.31 Do Whatever He Tells You!

“Now on the third day there was a wedding at Cana in Galilee. Jesus’ mother was there, and Jesus and his disciples were also invited to the wedding. When the wine ran out, Jesus’ mother said to him, “They have no wine left.”

Jesus replied, “Woman, why are you saying this to me? My time has not yet come.”

His mother told the servants, “Whatever he tells you, do it.” —John 2:1-5

In our verses for today Jesus brings honor to the institution of marriage–first by gracing it with His presence and second by performing His first miracle. Christ begins His miracles in an obscure little corner of the world, Cana in Galilee, at the celebration of a marriage. How desirable for Jesus to be present at this celebration!

All marriages should be so blessed to have the acknowledgment and attendance of Jesus–an honor indeed. His presence elevates the covenant of marriage to its rightful height as two become one flesh–an example of Christ and His bride, the Church.

Mary goes straight to Jesus, the source of all power and strength, when she discovers the problem of the empty wine glasses. It would do us all well to follow Mary’s example of humbly presenting our case to Jesus as a first, rather than last, resort. His response to His dear mother was that the fullness of time had not yet arrived. Jesus was in the center of God’s will and about His Father’s business in His Father’s time–always. He was not in the business of randomly performing miracles for miracles sake. There was purpose behind each miracle as well as purpose behind everything He said and everything He did.

Mary’s response is one of simple trust: “Do whatever he tells you.” She herself modeled this trust when told by the angel Gabriel that she would be the mother of the Messiah:

“The angel replied, “The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you. Therefore the child to be born will be holy; he will be called the Son of God.”

“And look, your relative Elizabeth has also become pregnant with a son in her old age – although she was called barren, she is now in her sixth month! For nothing will be impossible with God.” So Mary said, “Yes, I am a servant of the Lord; let this happen to me according to your word.” Then the angel departed from her.” —Luke 1:35-38

“Do whatever he tells you” … modern day believers are in great need of hearing and applying these five words, are we not? Unfortunately, the god of tolerance coupled with gross Biblical illiteracy has blinded our eyes to the truth, leaving us ignorant of what we are even to be obedient to. We have bought into the relativism of our day. Statistics prove this out: there is very little difference between the behavior of those who claim to be Christians and the actions of the world. This should not be! We are to be different–cities on a hill that cannot be hidden, showing forth good fruit, pointing others to Jesus, bringing God much glory.“Love for God and obedience to God are so completely involved in each other that either one of them implies the other too.” —F. F. Bruce

Take It to Heart

“The person who has my commandments and obeys them is the one who loves me. The one who loves me will be loved by my Father, and I will love him and will reveal myself to him.” —John 14:21

“What good is it, my brothers and sisters, if someone claims to have faith but does not have works? Can this kind of faith save him? If a brother or sister is poorly clothed and lacks daily food, and one of you says to them, “Go in peace, keep warm and eat well,” but you do not give them what the body needs, what good is it? So also faith, if it does not have works, is dead being by itself. But someone will say, “You have faith and I have works.” Show me your faith without works and I will show you faith by my works. You believe that God is one; well and good. Even the demons believe that – and tremble with fear.” —James 2:14-19

“Faith, as Paul saw it, was a living, flaming thing leading to surrender and obedience to the commandments of Christ.” —A.W. Tozer

“Whenever there is a true faith, it must fix on Jesus Christ alone for salvation; that is its principal act. This same faith unites to Christ; and where there is union, there must be love; and where there is love, there must be obedience; and where there is obedience, there will be a reward of grace; and when the reward is acknowledged to be of grace, and not of merit, God will have all the glory in time and eternity.” —K. H. Von Bogatzky

“If you love me, you will obey my commandments.” —John 14:15

“Beware of reasoning about God’s Word–obey it.” —Oswald Chambers

Further Reflections

“Every time we resist the slightest temptation, we honor God. Every time we overcome even the smallest problem by trusting and obeying our Lord Jesus, God is glorified in our lives. Whenever we choose character over convenience, faithfulness over ease, or honesty over deceit, we bring honor to the Lord Himself.” —Robert J. Morgan

22010.011 Proclaiming the Truth

“John testified about him and shouted out, ‘This one was the one about whom I said, “He who comes after me is greater than I am, because he existed before me.”’” —John 1:15

Here we have John the apostle expressing for us the continuous testimony of John the Baptist. The Old Testament prophets constantly cried aloud pointing people to an awareness of their sins, yet John the Baptist came crying aloud pointing people to the awareness of their Savior.

Not at all blending with the world, dining on wild honey and locusts, donned in camel’s hair and leather, John came preaching repentance in the desert, proclaiming the kingdom of heaven was near and baptizing in the Jordan. He was a clarion call to the Lord’s people in the driest desert of life to prepare them for the coming of their Savior. Just as Isaiah the prophet had prophesied:

“A voice cries out, ‘In the wilderness clear a way for the LORD; build a level road through the rift valley for our God.’” —Isaiah 40:3

Are we well assured of the truth to which we bear witness and are we well affected toward it? This is how John the Baptist impacted his world for Jesus. This is how we impact our world for Jesus. We who know the truth must proclaim it to those who may be in the driest desert of life.

John the Baptist constantly pointed to Jesus. Our verse for today marks this truth: “He who comes after is greater than I am.”

John emphasized this truth in John 3:30 when he said: “He must become greater; I must become less.” It is not about us; rather it is all about Jesus. And as he pointed to Jesus, John did not try to blend with the world. He was in the world but the world was not in him. Jesus prays for His disciples in the same way:

“My prayer is not that you take them out of the world but that you protect them from the evil one. They are not of the world, even as I am not of it. Set them apart in the truth; your word is truth. Just as you sent me into the world, so I sent them into the world.” —John 17:15–18

John knew the truth and he was not afraid to speak it.

“Taking a stand for Christ is increasingly unpopular in our pagan and pluralistic society. If you believe that God created the world, that He is a God of both love and holiness, that Jesus died and rose again for our sins and is the only way to heaven, and that we have a responsibility to take that message to a needy world–those beliefs will vilify you in many segments of our society. Our world is determined to intimidate, marginalize, and silence Christians. But our goal isn’t popularity; it’s to know Him and make Him known. We shouldn’t be needlessly offensive, but we shouldn’t be afraid of the ‘offense of the cross.’ These are exciting days in which to bear a witness for our Savior!” —Robert J. Morgan

John the Baptist was zealous, constant, and passionate. We are to be likewise! Paul tells us in Romans 12:11: “Do not lag in zeal, be enthusiastic in spirit, serve the Lord.”

Become More

“If you keep in step with God, be out of step with the world.” —Anonymous

“The true Christian cannot be hid, he cannot escape notice. A man truly living and functioning as a Christian will stand out. He will be like salt; he will be like a city set on a hill, a candle set upon a candlestick. But we can also add this further word. The true Christian does not even desire to hide his light. He sees how ridiculous it is to claim to be a Christian and yet deliberately to try to hide the fact. “Christ has told us He will come, but not when, that we might never put off our clothes, or put out the candle.” —William Gurnall

Proclaim the truth of Jesus today!

Further Reflections

“A man who truly realizes what it means to be a Christian, who realizes all that the grace of God has meant to him and done for him, and understands that, ultimately, God has done this in order that he may influence others, is a man who cannot conceal it.” —Martin Lloyd-Jones, Studies in the Sermon on the Mount

“Our identity as Jesus’ followers should define and dictate our lives.” —Joseph Stowell, III

“We have the truth, and we need not be afraid to say so.” —John Charles Ryle

22010.009 Children of God

“He was in the world, and the world was created by him, but the world did not recognize him. He came to what was his own, but his own people did not receive him. But to all who have received him—those who believe in his name—he has given the right to become God’s children—children not born by human parents or by human desire or a husband’s decision, but by God.” —John 1:10–13

Fully God and fully man silently gracing the world with His presence, the Creator paid a visit to His creation. Taking our nature upon himself, Jesus humbly dwelt among us.

The fullness of God left a throne room and place of glory and bliss to enter into the misery, melancholy, and mayhem of this world brought on by the poor choice of sin—a world where darkness asserts its control and where Satan waves his withered hand promising all, yet delivering none. For a time, Jesus surrendered His glory to manifest himself visibly to a fallen world.

The light came to shine in the darkness! Yet we are told in our verses for today that “the world did not recognize him.” The world and everything in it that He had created! In fact, this world rejected Him. Isaiah had actually prophesized this rejection of Jesus:

“He was despised and rejected by people, one who experienced pain and was acquainted with illness; people hid their faces from him; he was despised, and we considered him insignificant. But he lifted up our illnesses, he carried our pain; even though we thought he was being punished, attacked by God, and afflicted for something he had done.” —Isaiah 53:3–4

And yet, Jesus counters graciously with a loving “all.” “All” is such an inclusive word, is it not? “All” who would receive Jesus; “all” who would believe in Him; “all” who would come to Him. Indeed “all” who would put their faith in Him would become children of the great “I AM”!

What an unspeakable privilege that we, mere flesh and blood, mere dust of the ground, can become children of the King! How lavishly He has loved us! Oh! What great love is this!

“See what sort of love the Father has given to us: that we should be called God’s children—and indeed we are! For this reason, the world does not know us: because it did not know him. Dear friends, we are God’s children now, and what we will be has not yet been revealed. We know that whenever it is revealed we will be like him, because we will see him just as he is. And everyone who has this hope focused on him purifies himself, just as Jesus is pure.” —1 John 3:1–3

Become More

“To those who believed in his name” is far deeper than simply knowing what Jesus is called. The word translated “name” is from the Greek word onoma meaning “title, reputation, fame; implying authority, dignity, used to indicate the character described by the name or identification with the person bearing the name.” —Hebrew Greek Key Words Study Bible New Testament Lexical Aids

Simply put, believers bearing the name of Jesus are to bear His character. Just as we bear resemblance to our earthly families, we, as children of God, are to bear resemblance to our heavenly Father. Paul gives us a glimmer of what this should look like in his letter to the Colossians:

“So put to death whatever in your nature belongs to the earth: sexual immorality, impurity, shameful passion, evil desire, and greed which is idolatry. Because of these things the wrath of God is coming on the sons of disobedience. You also lived your lives in this way at one time, when you used to live among them. But now, put off all such things as anger, rage, malice, slander, abusive language from your mouth. 
“Do not lie to one another since you have put off the old man with its practices and have been clothed with the new man that is being renewed in knowledge according to the image of the one who created it Here there is neither Greek nor Jew, circumcised or uncircumcised, barbarian, Scythian, slave or free, but Christ is all and in all.
“Therefore, as the elect of God, holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves with a heart of mercy, kindness, humility, gentleness, and patience, bearing with one another and forgiving one another, if someone happens to have a complaint against anyone else. Just as the Lord has forgiven you, so you also forgive others. And to all these virtues add love, which is the perfect bond.” —Colossians 3:5–14

God has so much more planned for us when we become His children!

Further Reflections

“Who, being in very nature God, did not consider equality with God something to be used to his own advantage; rather, he made himself nothing, by taking the very nature of a servant, being made in human likeness. And being found in appearance as a man, he humbled himself and became obedient to death—even death on a cross! As a result God highly exalted him and gave him the name that is above every name, so that at the name of Jesus every knee will bow—in heaven and on earth and under the earth—and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord to the glory of God the Father.” —Philippians 2:6–11

“The privilege of adoption is entirely owing to Jesus Christ; he gave this power to those who believe in his name. The Son of God became a Son of man, that the sons and daughters of men might become the sons and daughters of God Almighty.” —Matthew Henry

22010.005 Embracing the Light!

“In him was life, and the life was the light of mankind. And the light shines on in the darkness, but the darkness has not mastered it.” —John 1:4–5

Life effervescent; life overflowing; life enlivened, inspired, encouraged; life burning with passion, enthusiasm and zeal. Life found with Jesus; life held out to those who choose to follow after Jesus. Not too dissimilar to King David’s plea in Psalm 34, we find in verse four of our verses for today the Apostle John dangling this carrot before our eyes in his great desire for us to trust in Jesus—both for God’s glory and for our good. King David encourages us with these words:

“Taste and see that the LORD is good! How blessed is the one who takes shelter in him!” —Psalm 34:8

Those who belong to Jesus are offered abundant life and are given His light within to shine forth in the darkness to a lost and needy world. Jesus transforms us from the inside out, little by little, more and more, until we “… shine as lights in the world by holding on to the word of life” (Philippians 2:15–16).

Jesus said, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me” (John 14:6).

Jesus also said, “The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I have come so that they may have life, and may have it abundantly” (John 10:10).

The false shepherd, the deceiver of men, the thief and killer of souls comes only to destroy, decimate, demolish, and ravage. Conversely, Jesus comes to give us life and to satisfy us with His pleasing and perfect will. He comes to give us more! It is a lie from the pit of hell that Jesus is holding out on us; that He wants to make us miserable and squirm and suffer needlessly; that His way for us is somehow boring, unfulfilling, and unsatisfying compared to what the world entices us with our eyes.

Have you ever followed your own desires and experienced the death that comes from that pursuit? The death of a relationship, the death of trust, the death of character, the death of love—and on and on it goes. If we would only think through our poor choices and actions to the end result and consequences, I doubt seriously very many of us would continue down that path.

“We judge things by their present appearance; but the Lord sees them in their consequences. If we could do the same we would be perfectly of His mind; but since we can’t, it is an unspeakable mercy that He will manage for us, whether we are pleased with His management or not; and it is regarded as one of His heaviest judgments when He gives any person up to the way of their own hearts, and to walk according to their own wisdom.” —John Newton

Defeated Christians are rampant. Defeated Christians do not shed much light. Satan high fives defeated Christians.

And yet, we are called to be the light of the world. I love the quote attributed to D. L. Moody by Henry Varley: “The world has yet to see what God can do through a man or a woman who is fully devoted to Him.” As we experience more of Him, our light shines bright in the world.

Become More

The Apostle Paul gives us insight regarding how we can shine our light in the world:

“Do not be conformed to this present world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, so that you may test and approve what is the will of God—what is good and well-pleasing and perfect.” —Romans 12:2

Each one of us is to be a light for Jesus—shining His light to those who are in darkness. As Billy Graham once said, “The Christian should stand out like a sparkling diamond.”

In what ways would your life reflect more of the light of Jesus if you were to apply some of the principles found in this devotional?

Further Reflections

“Praise the LORD, O my soul! Do not forget all his kind deeds! He is the one who forgives all your sins, who heals all your diseases, who delivers your life from the Pit, who crowns you with his loyal love and compassion, who satisfies your life with good things, so your youth is renewed like an eagle’s.” —Psalm 103:2–5

“I have told you these things so that in me you may have peace. In the world you have trouble and suffering, but take courage—I have conquered the world.” —John 16:33

22010.003 Jesus Is God!

“In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was fully God. The Word was with God in the beginning.” —John 1:1–2

I don’t think John could be any clearer. Jesus was in the beginning! He was with God in the beginning and He was fully God. My husband is always laughing at me because I am constantly following a statement I make with, “Do you know what I mean?” Likewise, I can almost hear John saying after these two verses, “Do you know what I mean?”

In a battle for truth to be known in the hearts and minds of his readers, John starts the onset of his gospel by stating clearly the deity of Jesus Christ. Unlike Matthew, Mark, and Luke, who begin their books by focusing on Jesus as a man through birth and his baptism, John begins his unique gospel with a discussion of the eternal existence of Jesus. John’s goal is to clearly present the signs and wonders performed by Jesus “so that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God” (John 20:31).

Jesus, “the Word”

John begins by referring to Jesus as “the Word.” The Jews used this term to refer to God—they taught that the “Word of God” was the same with God. Interestingly, the Greeks used the term “Logos”—translated here “Word”—in reference to the governing power behind all things. John commences by stating Jesus’ existence “in the beginning”—Jesus existed not only before His incarnation but before all time. He was, and is, and is to come.

Indeed, Jesus tells us the same thing about himself in these verses from Revelation:

“I am the Alpha and the Omega,” says the Lord God—”the one who is, and who was, and who is still to come—the All-Powerful!” —Revelation 1:8

“I am the Alpha and the Omega, the first and the last, the beginning and the end!” —Revelation 22:13

Jesus, “the I AM”

The Word was with God, not from God—He was forever with God. Jesus also gives us information in scripture confirming His eternal existence:

“Then the Judeans replied, ‘You are not yet fifty years old! Have you seen Abraham?’ Jesus said to them, ‘I tell you the solemn truth, before Abraham came into existence, I am!’ Then they picked up stones to throw at him, but Jesus was hidden from them and went out from the temple area.” —John 8:57–59

“I AM” was the title of deity to the Jewish people. The Jews knew very well that in stating this Jesus was equating himself with God hence their desire to stone Him. “I AM” was also the name God used to identify himself to Moses in Exodus:

“Moses said to God, ‘If I go to the Israelites and tell them, “The God of your fathers has sent me to you,” and they ask me, “What is his name?”—what should I say to them?’ God said to Moses, ‘I am that I am.’ And he said, ‘You must say this to the Israelites, “I AM has sent me to you.”’” —Exodus 3:13–14

Become More

It is amazing that the great “I AM,” the One “who is, and who was, and who is to come, the Almighty” chose to remove His cloak of glory to become human, humbling himself, becoming obedient to death, even death on a cross, in order to provide a way for us to be reconciled to God! What great love is this? If He went to such lengths of love to save us, how much more to keep us in this great love?

“By this the love of God is revealed in us: that God has sent his one and only Son into the world so that we may live through him. In this is love: not that we have loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son to be the atoning sacrifice for our sins.” —1 John 4:9–10

What does it mean to you that God sent Jesus so that you can experience His love?

Further Reflections

“The Word had a being before the world had a beginning.” —Matthew Henry

“Now Jesus performed many other miraculous signs in the presence of the disciples, which are not recorded in this book. But these are recorded so that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have life in his name.” —John 20:30–31

“Christ is before all Creation and He will continue to exist after the present creation is destroyed. He is the Eternal One.” —Bible Knowledge Commentary

“We love because he loved us first.” —1 John 4:19

43002 Your First Step

Inviting Jesus into your life is the most important decision you will ever make. Receiving Jesus Christ as your personal Savior and Lord brings immediate benefits and changes.

Jesus has made it possible for you to experience a life of meaning, power and fulfillment. He said, “I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full.” (John 10:10, NIV).

Take your first step of discovery in this new life with Jesus!

Use the JoApp Daily

Make sure to have this JoApp installed in your device. The app provides you with all the resources you need to lay a solid foundation for your spiritual growth. The app is also designed to help you develop a Christ-centered lifestye.

New Life 365

Read the rest of this “Next Steps for New Believers” series. When you are done, subscribe to New Life 365 for daily devotional and Bible study.

Read the Bible

The Bible is the Word of God. Develop a habit to spend time in the Word daily. Read it, meditate on it, memorize it, study it, speak it. Follow New Life 365 for your Bible reading schedule.

Join a Fellowship

You are never meant to walk with God alone. Just as Jesus had twelve disciples, we are meant to be part of a fellowship. If all possible, find and join a group of believers in Christ who love and follow Jesus passionately.

43004 Embrace Your New Identity

Born Again as a New Creation

Have you ever wondered what it takes to become a Christian? Some people believe that they are Christians because they have joined a church. Others think that following certain rules or standards is what’s required. But in reality, Christianity is not about membership, or adopting a code for living, it requires total transformation. Everything must become new.

Jesus explained the process to a religious leader who came to meet with him secretly one night. He told him, “I tell you the solemn truth, unless a person is born from above, he cannot see the kingdom of God” (John 3:3).

“So then, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; what is old has passed away—look, what is new has come!” – 2 Corinthians 5:17

In order for you to begin the journey that leads to heaven you must be born again — this time spiritually. Physical birth produces physical life. Spiritual birth creates spiritual life. Spiritual new birth is the gateway to a new beginning — the start of your journey with God.

When you are born again, all things become new:

New Citizenship

You are transferred out of Satan’s Domain of Darkness into God’s Kingdom of Light. [more]

New Relationship with God

Your heavenly Father adopts you as His child. Then you are also a coheir with Jesus Christ to all Kingdom blessings.  [more]

New Nature

Your old sin nature is crucified with Jesus and you are given a new nature that is clothed in the righteousness of Christ.  [more]

New Family

You become part of God’s heavenly family, brothers, and sisters in Christ, who make up the Body of Christ.  [more]

New Purpose

Your focus for life becomes glorifying God through worship, obedience, and service, rather than pursuing self-centered, worldly interests.  

New Freedom

You are set free from the power of sin so you can live righteously.  [more]

New Hope

Meaningless and futile existence is left behind as your future is filled with promises and blessings. That is because your new life is with God. [more]

New Destiny

You have been on a path that will eventually lead you into the very depths of hell where you would spend a horrific eternity apart from God. But instead, you can look forward to the joys of heaven, living in the presence of God forever.  [more]

New Power

Your capabilities are limited to self-effort, but you will be filled with the resurrection power of Jesus through his indwelling Spirit.  

But this new life all begins with spiritual birth. Have you been “born again?” If not, what are you waiting for? God has an amazing life planned for you — one that will last forever!

22010.077 In the Right Place at the Right Time

“But he had to pass through Samaria. Now he came to a Samaritan town called Sychar, near the plot of land that Jacob had given to his son Joseph. Jacob’s well was there, so Jesus, since he was tired from the journey, sat right down beside the well. It was about noon.
A Samaritan woman came to draw water. Jesus said to her, “Give me some water to drink.” (For his disciples had gone off into the town to buy supplies.) So the Samaritan woman said to him, “How can you – a Jew – ask me, a Samaritan woman, for water to drink?” (For Jews use nothing in common with Samaritans.) — John 4:4–9

While the shortest route from Judea to Galilee was through Samaria, it was not the only way. Many Jews would never have thought of entering into Samaritan territory.

The relationship between the Jews and Samaritans was one of great hostility. The Jews hated the Samaritans who were only half Jew by blood and didn’t worship God in the same way. Indeed, the Jews forbade the Samaritan from the services in the temple and considered their food unclean. Enter Jesus. John says, “he had to go through Samaria.” “Had to”? Jesus had an appointment that he was not about to miss. An appointment that would give us a wonderful example of offering freedom to those in bondage.

Weary from the walk it took to get to the city, Jesus sits down by the well and waits. Ever been weary in the center of God’s will? There is much kingdom work to be done on this side of heaven and oftentimes as modern day disciples we may feel a bit overwhelmed. This is nothing new! From the Old Testament to the New, there is a tendency for those serving God to become weary. However, oftentimes we simply keep moving on. Jesus demonstrates for us an important principle. Rather than run ahead with His disciples as the go about the necessary task of gathering food for them to eat, Jesus shows us discernment by waiting at the well for His next divine appointment.

Jesus tells us in the Sermon on the Mount:

“But above all pursue his kingdom and righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well. So then, do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Today has enough trouble of its own.” —Matthew 6:33–34

Jesus’ mission took him to Samaria where He had an appointment unbeknownst to anyone else. Jesus gives us these words in Matthew which illustrate his perfect focus:

“Then Jesus went throughout all the towns and villages, teaching in their synagogues, preaching the good news of the kingdom, and healing every kind of disease and sickness. When he saw the crowds, he had compassion on them because they were bewildered and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd. Then he said to his disciples, “The harvest is plentiful, but the workers are few. Therefore ask the Lord of the harvest to send out workers into his harvest-ready fields.” —Matthew 9:35-38

Ever about His Father’s business, Jesus forgoes traipsing into the city with His disciples to fetch food in lieu of the good work that must be done at the well. I wonder how many golden opportunities I have forgone in order to quench my earthly appetite.

In this passage, we find Jesus breaking the social norms of His day. He was a Jewish Rabbi speaking to a Samaritan woman, who was also a stranger. This totally caught her off guard, as a rabbi would never have spoken to a Samaritan woman. Shocked and surprised at this encounter with Jesus, the woman at the well certainly is curious.

Taking the time to teach a single person, and a woman at that, Jesus opens the conversation with an everyday request. Amazed at His willingness to cross religious boundaries, Jesus captures her attention and eventually her heart. Are you open to the divine appointments God gives you each day?

Take It to Heart

“We see here how divine Providence brings about glorious purposes by events which seem to us fortuitous and accidental.” —Matthew Henry

Further Reflections

“O My child, do not be overcharged with the cares of everyday living, and do not let your energies be consumed by humdrum tasks. What is needed, must be done; but if you put the ministry of the Kingdom in first place, My strength will be yours for other tasks, and time will be given to you for both. You do not need to respond to every call. Learn to discern when I would use you, and when I would have the other individual lean wholly upon Me. Otherwise, you may restrict the development of the other person’s spiritual ministry, and rather than helping, you may become an actual hindrance. I will not overtax you. I will use you, but I will not destroy you in the using. But you may destroy yourself if you lack this discernment and fail to know when to direct others to look to Me.” —Frances J. Roberts

“Are you willing to sacrifice yourself for the work of another believer–to pour out your life sacrificially for the ministry and faith of others? Or do you say, ‘I am not willing to be poured out right now, and I don’t want God to tell me how to serve Him. I want to choose the place of my own sacrifice. And I want to have certain people watching me and saying, ‘Well done.’’ It is one thing to follow God’s way of service if you are regarded as a hero, but quite another thing if the road marked out for you by God requires becoming a ‘doormat’ under people’s feet. God’s purpose may be to teach you to say, ‘I know how to be abased …’ (Philippians 4:12) … Are you willing to give and be poured out until you are used up and exhausted–not seeking to be ministered to, but to minister?” —Oswald Chambers

22010.173 No Middle Ground

“Enter through the narrow gate, because the gate is wide and the way is spacious that leads to destruction, and there are many who enter through it. How narrow is the gate and difficult the way that leads to life, and there are few who find it!” —Matthew 7:13–14

Jesus is the gate to righteousness and the way of righteousness! He is the entrance through which we may enter into God’s provision. He is also the only way for our access to God the Father:

“Jesus replied, ‘I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.’” —John 14:6

Contrary to what many believe, salvation is not obtained in a myriad of ways. There is no other way by which we are saved, except through the sacrifice of Jesus on the cross. In preaching to the rulers, elders, and teachers of the law, Peter said:

“And there is salvation in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given among people by which we must be saved.” —Acts 4:12

In our verses for today, Jesus sets before us two choices. If you will, curtain A or curtain B. Clearly, the path of destruction or the path of life. There was no middle way then, there is no middle way now, and there will be no middle way in the future.

God has a way of never changing. Jesus did not come saying He wanted just a part of us.

“Then he said to them all, ‘If anyone wants to become my follower, he must deny himself, take up his cross daily, and follow me.’” —Luke 9:23

We do not work to be saved, rather we work because we are saved. We do not have a right to grace but have been given the privilege of grace. This privilege makes us appreciative, humble, and desirous to serve. Grace is not something we deserve; it is a gift. The narrow way will always lead us away from ourselves and straight to Jesus. Everything in the gospel is about our Lord.

We are not to build our hopes of righteousness upon our works. As an old hymn says, “Our hope is built on nothing less than Jesus’ blood and righteousness.” 

Paul tells us our sure foundation is Jesus!

“According to the grace of God given to me, like a skilled master-builder I laid a foundation, but someone else builds on it. And each one must be careful how he builds. For no one can lay any foundation other than what is being laid, which is Jesus Christ. If anyone builds on the foundation with gold, silver, precious stones, wood, hay, or straw, each builder’s work will be plainly seen, for the Day will make it clear, because it will be revealed by fire. And the fire will test what kind of work each has done. If what someone has built survives, he will receive a reward. If someone’s work is burned up, he will suffer loss. He himself will be saved, but only as through fire.” —1 Corinthians 3:10–15

Become More

“We do the works, but God works in us the doing of the works.” —Augustine

“What ultimately keeps our motives biblically prioritized and holy before God is the profound conviction that obeying God will merit us nothing. This is why Jesus tells us that, when we have done all that we should do, we are still unprofitable servants. Jesus does not nullify the value of duty in order to dissuade us from serving God, but to keep is from depending on duty to gain God’s acceptance. When we understand that our works in themselves earn us no merit with God, then the only reason to do those works is love for Him. Thus we learn to serve God not for personal gain but for His glory-not for love of self but for love of the Savior.” —Bryan Chapell

Further Reflections

“So Jesus said again, “I tell you the solemn truth, I am the door for the sheep. All who came before me were thieves and robbers, but the sheep did not listen to them. I am the door. If anyone enters through me, he will be saved, and will come in and go out, and find pasture.” —John 10:7–9

“Our nature struggles fiercely against being saved without our works and tries to deceive us with a grand illusion of our own righteousness. So we may find ourselves attracted to a life that merely appears to be righteous. Or because we know we aren’t righteous, we may be frightened by death or sin. Therefore, we must learn that we should have nothing to do with any other way of becoming righteous, except through Christ alone.” —Martin Luther

22010.172 What Are You Looking For?

“Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened for you. For everyone who asks receives, and the one who seeks finds, and to the one who knocks, the door will be opened. Is there anyone among you who, if his son asks for bread, will give him a stone? Or if he asks for a fish, will give him a snake? If you then, although you are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give good gifts to those who ask him! In everything, treat others as you would want them to treat you, for this fulfills the law and the prophets.” —Matthew 7:7–12

In Matthew 6, Jesus taught us how to bring glory and honor to God through our prayers by giving us the model of the Lord’s Prayer. In our verses for today, He teaches us to pray, pray, and keep on praying!

I am reminded of Paul’s words:

“Constantly pray.” —1 Thessalonians 5:17

Jesus assures us that God welcomes our prayers and urges us to come to Him persistently and continuously. God is discovered by those who earnestly seek Him. Indeed, as our Great High Priest in heaven, Scripture tells us Jesus is at the right hand of God living to intercede on our behalf setting forth for us the perfect example:

“But he holds his priesthood permanently since he lives forever. So he is able to save completely those who come to God through him, because he always lives to intercede for them.” —Hebrews 7:24–25

We must approach God as His children, as we might approach our earthly fathers, expectantly, confidently, and with complete trust that He will never withhold anything from us which will be for our ultimate good. We can be sure He has full knowledge of what is best for us and we can rest securely in what His hand allows in our lives.

Throughout the Bible, God compares His love and concern for His children to both an earthly father and a mother. However, His compassion, tenderness, and goodness far surpass that of any earthly parent. God is infinitely wise in what He bestows. Earthly parents can be foolish, being permissive without having the wisdom to show restraint. This can often lead to the ultimate detriment of the child. God is able to give us anything, yet in His infinite wisdom He withholds anything that He knows will harm us:

“As a father has compassion on his children, so the LORD has compassion on his faithful followers. Can she withhold compassion from the child she has borne?” — Psalm 103:13

“Can a woman forget her baby who nurses at her breast? Can she withhold compassion from the child she has borne? Even if mothers were to forget, I could never forget you! Look, I have inscribed your name on my palms; your walls are constantly before me.” —Isaiah 49:15–16

James tells us:

“All generous giving and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights, with whom there is no variation or the slightest hint of change.” —James 1:17

Become More

“Pleading the promises of God is the whole secret of prayer.” —Martyn Lloyd-Jones

“For the LORD God is our sovereign protector. The LORD bestows favor and honor; he withholds no good thing from those who have integrity.” —Psalm 84:11

Further Reflections

“Prayer is not an exercise, it is the life of the saint. Beware of anything that stops the offering up of prayer … maintain the childlike habit of offering up prayer in your heart to God all the time.” —Oswald Chambers

“When you call out to me and come to me in prayer, I will hear your prayers. When you seek me in prayer and worship, you will find me available to you. If you seek me with all your heart and soul, I will make myself available to you,’ says the LORD. ‘Then I will reverse your plight and will regather you from all the nations and all the places where I have exiled you,’ says the LORD. ‘I will bring you back to the place from which I exiled you.’” —Jeremiah 29:12–14

“You know the value of prayer; it is precious beyond all price. Never, never neglect it.” —Thomas Buxton