He Came; We Go

HE CAME; WE GO

John 20:19-23

John 20:21:  “Again Jesus said, ‘Peace be with you!  As the Father has sent Me, I am sending you.’”

            The Great Commission always sets people on edge.  Me?  I can’t go out into the world and preach the Gospel, baptizing people in the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit! we protest.  That’s for preachers and missionaries! 

            Let’s break down The Great Commission, from Matthew 28:19-20.  “Therefore, go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you.  And surely I am with you always, to the end of the age.”

            “Make disciples,” Jesus commands.  This is not done by preaching.  Make disciples is done by living the Christian life.  Believers SHOW victorious lives through speech and conduct, since everyone lives on the world’s stage.  People watch others and judge for themselves what kind of person they are.  

            “Baptizing” and “teaching” are verbs that indicate ongoing effort.  Any Christian may baptize another, and often do in extraordinary circumstances.  Believers teach by showing kind actions and speak encouraging words.  It’s all about showing Christian attitude in every situation, every day.  How would you guess others judge you by what they hear you say and watching the things you do?

            Jesus’ command is overwhelming, to be sure.  We imagine how proud His disciples must have been following Jesus around for three years.  They got to hear Him speak and watch healing miracles. They were known as “His” among the people.  They were Jesus’ inner circle.  They were the “in” crowd.

            Suddenly, Jesus’ disciples were in the “hot” seat.  Jesus didn’t choose them to be admired; He chose them to learn, then go.

            According to 2 Corinthians 5:20: “We are…Christ’s ambassadors, as though God were making His appeal through us.”  When we show others Christian living, they notice that we’re different from everyone else.  Ambassadors are representatives of a person or a nation.  Ambassadors show others who or what they represent.   Does your speech and conduct represent Jesus?

            Some ten year old girls were whispering and laughing.  When their classmate Cassie approached, they shut up.  Has this ever happened to you?  Don’t be sad, be glad.  They understood that Cassie would have stood up for the one they were gossiping about.

Take Home Nugget

            You are in the hot seat.  The Great Commission is too large a command for twelve disciples to fulfill; Jesus meant it for the entire body of believers.  Check the lesson linked below to see how.

It’s a privilege to be singled out as being a part of the body of Christ in the world.

J.D. Griffith

                                                                                                                           

Click here for Interactive-Online-Lesson for He Came; We Go

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Good-bye for Now

GOOD-BYE FOR NOW

Third of three in Ascension Series

Luke 24:50-51

“When He [Jesus] had led them [disciples] out to the vicinity of Bethany, He lifted up His hands and blessed them.  While He was blessing them, He left them and was taken up into heaven.”

 

             Saying good-bye to people is hard.  People cling to loved ones who’re leaving.  We throw “Going Away” parties.  We invite them to dinner.  We give people gifts when they leave us.  Why do we do this?

               Loved ones make us feel valued.  Loved ones make us glad to be alive.  We never want them to forget us.  Throwing parties and eating one last meal together seals our bond before parting ways.  Sometimes life circumstances demand people relocate to a different city.  Sometimes college separates hometown friends.  However people walk away from our lives, it’s never easy to say, “Good-bye.”

            One question that’s never answered to one’s satisfaction:  Will we meet again?  One day believers will meet again—and meet Jesus, too.  We can imagine the disciples’ anguish watching Jesus disappear into the sky.  What now?  Luke 24:52-53 says that “they worshipped Jesus and remained in Jerusalem with great joy.  And they stayed continually at the temple praising God.”

            Jesus promised His disciples power from on high (the Holy Spirit in Acts 1:8).  He also comforted them when He said that He’d not leave them as orphans; He’d come to them in John 14:18.  He surely had their attention now after they watched Him ascend beyond their sight!  Believers today have these same promises.

            The book of Acts tells how the disciples received this power, and what He enabled them to do.  Matthew 28:16-20 tells Jesus last command (that’s for you and me) that we call “The Great Commission.”  (See Take Home Nugget).  

            Jesus tells all His siblings in God’s family that He will never leave nor forsake us.  We never had to say, “Good-bye” to Jesus.  But won’t it be so great when we get to meet Him face-to-face and say, “Hello?"  

            We know how hard it is to say, “Good-bye.”  (See the lesson linked below for Jesus comforting promises for all His disciples).

 Take Home Nugget

            Matthew 28:18: “Then Jesus came to them and said, ‘All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to Me.”  This is one of the most awesome power statements in the Bible!  Jesus told us that He’s boss…before He continues with verses 19-20a:  “Therefore, go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you.’”

“And surely I am with you to the very end of the age.” Matthew 28:20b

J.D. Griffith

                                                                                                                           

Click here for Interactive-Online-Lesson for Good-Bye For Now

 

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No Ghost

            NO GHOST

Second of three in Ascension Series

Luke 24:36-48

Luke 24:39: “Look at My hands and My feet.  It is I Myself!  Touch Me and see; a ghost does not have flesh and bones, as you see I have.”

            Sometimes people say, “Pinch me,” when something awes them—just to make sure that they’re not dreaming.  That’s pretty much what Jesus’ disciples said when they saw Him after His death.  But we can’t be too hard on them.  After all, Luke 24:36 says, “While they were still talking about this [Emmaus story], Jesus Himself stood among them and said, “Peace be with you.”  The doors were locked. 

            Naturally, the disciples were frightened.  When people think they see a dead person, the first way they explain it is to call it a ghost.  So the first thing Jesus wanted for them was peace.  Then He patiently proved that He was really the same man who was crucified by showing them His hands and feet.  

            While the disciples were trying to believe their eyes, shrieking joy and amazement, Jesus abruptly changed the subject.  “Do you have anything here to eat?”  He asked in Luke 24:41.  Notice what happened next.

            “We have a broiled fish, Jesus,” one probably said, and handed it to Him.  They watched Jesus eat the fish.  Then, Jesus got down to business.  He wanted to make sure His disciples understood everything that had just happened.  “This is what I told you when I was still with you:  Everything must be fulfilled that is written about Me in the Law of Moses, the Prophets and the Psalms.”

            Emmaus devotion probably troubled some people to learn that yeah, we—even very smart people—can be slow to understand.  Notice that it takes divine intervention for people to believe what doesn’t make human sense.  Jesus had to “open their minds” so they could understand Scriptures in verse 45.  “The Christ will suffer and rise from the dead on the third day, and repentance and forgiveness of sins will be preached in his name to all nations, beginning in Jerusalem.” 

 Take Home Nugget

  

            Luke’s Gospel tells that Jesus first “appeared” to two men walking to Emmaus, after His resurrection from the dead in Emmaus devotion.  Next, He “appeared” to His disciples in a room behind locked doors.  Freaky, huh?  The two men had just returned from Emmaus to tell the rest of the disciples their tale when Jesus simply stood among them.  There are things we can’t explain about glorious risen bodies.  Will ours be like Jesus’ when we go to heaven?  See the lesson linked below for fascinating Scripture passages before making up your mind.

Believers’ bodies will be resurrected like Jesus’ body.  How will our glorified bodies surprise us?

J.D. Griffith

Clickhere for Interactive-Online-Lesson for No Ghost

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Emmaus

            EMMAUS

First of three in Ascension Series

Luke 24:1-35

Luke 24:30-31: “When He was at the table with them, He took the bread, gave thanks, broke it and began to give it to them.  Then their eyes were opened and they recognized Him, and he disappeared from their sight.”

 

            Jesus’ resurrection was too weird for people to believe.  But at least His disciples   should have believed what Jesus told them was going to happen.  (Matthew 16:21).  This three devotional series comes after the parallel Bible studies we finished through Lent to Easter.  The last five devotional series was to teach why wholesome speech is so important. 

            Spoken words are so powerful that they create blessings or bring harm.  Either believers affirm God’s life-giving positive, or drain life force with negativity.  In the beginning of Luke 24, three women went to Jesus’ tomb only to discover that He had risen.  But when they gave this good news to the apostles, they refused to believe it was true (Luke 24:11).  We see both life-giving and life-stealing words here with their encounter:

            “Nonsense!”  The disciples refused to believe...except Peter.  Verse twelve says that Peter checked it out for himself—then went away wondering about the empty tomb.  So he went with Cleopas to Emmaus, about seven miles from Jerusalem.  Along the walk, they discussed everything that had happened recently.  Jesus joined them.

            But they didn’t recognize Jesus.  Jesus innocently asked what they were talking about.  They wondered if Jesus came from another planet.  Everybody knew what had happened!  So they told Jesus the story (Luke 24:19-24).

            “How foolish you are, and how slow of heart to believe all that the prophets have spoken!  Did not the Christ have to suffer these things and then enter His glory?” Jesus scolded them.  Then He began with Moses, through the prophets, explaining what all the Scriptures had said about Him.

            When they came to Emmaus, Jesus acted as though He was going farther.  Saddened, they urged Jesus to stay with them.  That’s when the opening scripture happened, and they realized it was Jesus all along.  They hurried back to Jerusalem to assure the disciples, “It’s true!  The Lord has risen and appeared to Simon.”  (Luke 24:34).

            Some things are too awesome for humans to accept.  After one person tells what can’t possibly be true, then another confirms that it is true, people cave into believing.  Yes, we are that slow!

Take Home Nugget

            Aren’t you glad that Jesus knows this, and leads us to understanding when we’re too slow to “get it” immediately?  Can you remember when you finally “got” Jesus’ point?

Holy Father, thank You for patiently leading us where we’re often too slow, or stubborn, to accept truth from You. 

                                                                                                                              J.D. Griffith

Click here for Interactive-Online-Lesson for Emmaus

                          Written for http://www.Biblestudyforkids.com

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Abracadabra!

ABRACADABRA!

Fifth of five in Wholesome Series

Leviticus 13:20

“The priest is to examine it [a boil], and if it appears to be more than skin deep and the hair in it has turned white, the priest is to pronounce him unclean.  It is an infectious skin disease that has broken out where the boil was.”

 

            Every kid has grabbed a stick and waved it over something, commanding, “Abracadabra!” to make magic.  Abracadabra is maybe the world’s most famous incantation; [in-kan-TA-shon] is a (magic) chant that orders something to happen.  While it’s a fun child’s play, “Abracadabra! is really God speak.

            Historians believe the chant originated from two Hebrew words, abra kdabra.  These two words mean “I will create as I speak.”  If spoken words truly create, this is not child’s play.

            This five part Wholesome Series is all about the consequences of spoken powerful words.  We learned that gossip in the Old Testament was speaking harmful words about someone about what was only seen on the surface.  So a skin disease was God’s punishment for gossip. 

            Gossip can be seen as coming from a bad tongue.  The Hebrew language for “bad tongue” is lashon hara.  Lashon hara includes any negative speech that brings harm or draws negativity into the world.  This negativity reflects back on the speaker—who suddenly comes down with a skin disease.  Biblical skin disease, tzara’at, is usually called leprosy.. 

            Skin disease has spiritual roots.  God commanded a priest, not a doctor, to assess the ailment and prescribe the treatment for it.  Whenever a bad thing was spoken about another, is as though God’s positive life-force was withdrawn.  So it was fitting that the speaker developed something opposite to life—a disease that leads to death.  The area of skin affected with tzara’at was white—devoid of color—as though all life was drained from it.

            The priest would prescribe the diseased person a week of isolation from people.  God did this so that person would think about the poisonous words said, and repent for saying them against another child of God.  If repenting was sincere, the person’s skin disease healed.  Healed to wholeness.  We learned from this series the seriousness of the spoken word.  Now we learned that spoken words actually do create!  It’s not magic; it’s God!     

Take Home Nugget

            If negative words create suffering, the good news is that positive words can create blessings!  God spoke the world into existence (Genesis 1).  God spoke the words and creation happened.  People’s spoken words have power too: We can create good things in our lives.  Encouraging words create positive people.  Every spoken life-enforcing word brings blessings into the world.                                                                  

Wholesome speech from wholesome people is where the real magic is found!

J.D. Griffith

 

Click here for Interactive-Online-Lesson for Abracadabra!

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                                          For FREE Online Bible Study Resources click here.

Surprise Treasure

SURPRISE TREASURE

Fourth of five in Wholeness Series

Leviticus 14:43-45

Leviticus 14:43-45:  “If the mildew reappears in the house after the stones have been torn out and the house scraped and plastered, the priest is to go and examine it and, if the mildew has spread in the house, it is a destructive mildew; the house is unclean.  It must be torn down—its stones, timbers, and all the plaster—and taken out of the town to an unclean place.”

           

            Amorites lived in Canaan, (the country that Moses led the Israelites to live).  They hid their gold and valuables in the walls of their homes.  If the Israelites would conquer their land, the Amorites didn’t want them to have their treasures.  But God had another plan.

            The Israelites did conquer their land, and moved into these homes that had treasures stowed behind the building stones for safe keeping.   

            Israelite new home owners only discovered surprise treasures if the priest ordered moldy stones to be torn out and replaced by new ones. Old Testament homes were built like today’s bank safety deposit boxes.  People secure treasures of delightful keepsakes or even money in them for safe keeping.

            Leviticus 14:39: “On the seventh day the priest shall return to inspect the house.  If the mildew has spread on the walls, he is to order that the contaminated stones be torn out and thrown into an unclean place outside the town.”  What surprise treasures new homeowners found after replacing contaminated stones!   

            Before people believe in Jesus, they are alienated from God and are evil.   But believers of Jesus are made holy day after day.  The Holy Spirit’s job is to sanctify [SANK-ti-fy], or make believers holy.  Colossians 1:22 says, “But now He [God] has reconciled you by Christ’s physical body through death to present you holy in His sight, without blemish and free from accusation.” 

            Wholeness is a trait that often brings believers who cooperate with the Holy Spirit     pleasant surprises.   Believers are the righteousness of God in Christ (2 Corinthians 5:21).  Christians are conscious of being different from the world—surprised by the different way we think, speak and act.  

            We’ve learned about unwholesome speech, and how God often brought diseased skin to those who gossip—and other evil speech.  After repenting of speech sin, a priest could proclaimed a person clean.  It’s not magic; it’s God’s justice.

             

Take Home Nugget

            Let’s cooperate with God’s Spirit who lives inside believers, until His job is complete.  By tossing out contaminated building stones in our character, believers are   often surprised by the treasure we’re becoming to God.  Our holiness was hidden behind the stones of sin that the Holy Spirit tossed away. 

Sinful stones are tossed out to reveal holy treasures.

                                                                                                                              J.D. Griffith

Click here for Interactive-Online-Lesson for Surprise Treasure

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                                          For FREE Online Bible Study Resources click here.

Measure Each Word

MEASURE EACH WORD

Fourth of five in Wholeness Series

Leviticus 14:36

Leviticus 14:36:  “The priest is to order the house to be emptied before he goes in to examine the mold, so that nothing in the house will be pronounced unclean.  After this the priest is to go in and inspect the house.”

 

            Mold, or mildew, is a creeping fungus that causes breathing and lung problems for those who are allergic to it.  It usually forms in moist places, where things don’t dry out well.  Once mold is inside a house, it’s very hard to get rid of.  The lesson linked after the ending of this devotion shows how the priest would go about making the mold-infected house safe to live in.

            First, everything is to be removed from the house.  Since the house is proclaimed to be unclean, taking everything out protects them from also having to be destroyed.   Proper speech is so dangerous because it infects a person’s heart and contaminates the mind.   Before long—others are infected with the poison that spews from unchecked speech—destroying as it spreads.

            This Wholeness series is designed to remind people to measure every word before unwholesome speech becomes habit.  When believers in Christ realize that they now possess renewed minds, they can choose wholesome words on purpose.  The Holy Spirit helps us towards God-pleasing speech (2 Corinthians 4:16, 5:17).

            Proper and positive speech isn’t normal human behavior.  Believers battle with overhearing gossip every day.  Some things we can do to change wrong speech into right is listed here:  We can change the subject.  We can also say something nice about the person that would negate the trash being said.  We can also suggest why the person has done whatever is the subject of that gossip.  Understanding why people do things often leads to compassion.

            Years ago, people could send a telegram anywhere in the world.  The messages sent were short and to the point.  People began to dread telegrams because they usually brought bad news.  Often, telegrams were misunderstood because too few words were used to relay a message.  The person sending a telegram was charged a fee for each word used.  “New baby arrived,” could mean that a baby was just born, or an adopted baby was delivered to someone.

Take Home Nugget

            So, with words having this importance, shouldn’t we choose every spoken word carefully?  Jesus warns that there are consequences to improper speech.  Matthew 12:36-37 says, “But I tell you that men will have to give account on the day of judgment for every careless word they have spoken.  For by your words you will be acquitted, and by your words you will be condemned.”

One word—huge consequences                    

                                                                                                                              J.D. Griffith

Click here for Interactive-Online-Lesson for Measure Each Word

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Power of Positive Speech

            POWER OF POSITIVE SPEECH

Second of five in Wholeness Series

Leviticus 14:4

Leviticus 14:4:  “…the priest shall order that two live clean birds and some cedar wood, scarlet yarn and hyssop be brought to the one to be cleansed.”

            We saw how Naaman was cured of his skin disease by obeying Elisha’s command to wash seven times in the Jordan River in Dis-ease devotion.  Naaman had trouble with the sin of pride which caused his skin disease.  The priest’s next business is to purify the person he just declared “clean.” 

            Why two birds in the opening Scripture?  One bird was to be slaughtered.  (God commands that only blood sacrifice forgives sin).  The second bird was set free in this ritual, or rite of purification.  Birds were chosen for purification of this sin because they are creatures that constantly chirp and chatter.  The person’s sin that caused the skin disease was inappropriate speech.  Skin diseases made people “unclean” in Old Testament times.  They were not welcome in the company of others. 

            Why was the second bird set free?  Since the one chattering bird was sacrificed for forgiving wrong talk, the second bird is to teach that speech wasn’t the problem at all.  God blessed people with speech.  Speech is an asset.  Speech is the quality that allows people to care for and love one another.  The second bird represents wonderful things, powerful things that are achieved with the spoken word.  The second bird flew away chattering happily.

            See the lesson linked below for the priest’s ritual for cleansing and purification.

            If there were only one bird that was killed, people would get the mistaken idea that all speech is wrong.  That’s not true at all.  The lesson this bird purification teaches is that it’s the words we choose and how they affect others that matter to God.   Right words=right speech=righteousness.  Positive speech is power.

            Here are examples of positive speech that bring God’s light:  1) Prayer of thanks and praise to God,  2) Sharing Scripture,  3) I love you,  4) I’m sorry,  5) Thank you,  6) How are you?,  7) You look great!,  8) God bless you,  9) You can do this!,  10) “Amen” shows agreement to shared speech.   Let’s sprinkle a dose of powerful positive speech into our daily lives.

            Chattering positive speech replaces gossip and negativity.                       

Take Home Nugget

            Mother Teresa once said, “every word that doesn’t increase the light of God adds to the darkness.”  If only people were as careful as what spews out of their mouths as what they put into the mouths!  We just learned powerful positive speech that increases God’s light; let’s speak them!

Not every thought is worthy to be said.

                                                  Send light into another’s head.           

                                                                                                                              J.D. Griffith

Click here for Interactive-Online-Lesson for Power of Positive Speech

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