Unconfigured Ad Widget

**mossy** · 04-29-2016, 4:39 PM

meditation?

**Godbetheglory** · 04-30-2016, 12:58 PM

MORNING MEDITATION

MORNING MEDITATION

Glean the Word: Matthew 10:1-39

Glimpse of Glory: "As you go, preach this message: 'The kingdom of heaven is near.' "(v.7)

We have been given a kingdom to steward and the spiritual tools necessary to equip and empower us for the work. The Lord has commissioned us to go into the world and make disciples, but before we can teach others we must first be taught. Our best preparation for the work of the kingdom is intimate communion with our King. We cannot represent Him in the best possible way if we do not know Him and understand His will. Jesus spent three years teaching His disciples, and chose from among them twelve apostles whom He would use to lay the foundation of the church. He then spent forty days after His resurrection opening their minds to the Scriptures, encouraging and equipping them for carrying on His work when He would no longer be with them in bodily form, and preparing them to receive the gift of the Holy Spirit, who would empower and enable them for the ministry. The success of their work would depend on the time they spent with Him.

When we trusted Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior of our lives we surrendered ourselves to be life-long learners of the kingdom of God. We have entrusted ourselves to the Master Teacher for His instruction and guidance for the rest of our lives. There is not a day that goes by that we should not learn something from our Lord. We have His Word to instruct us, His Holy Spirit indwelling us and guiding us into all truth, the fellowship of other believers to inspire, exhort and encourage us, and seasons of trial and tribulation to test and refine us. Into our hands has been placed the sword that will defeat the enemy and the salve that will heal the world, but it is important that we know how to properly apply the cure. May we, like the first disciples, give our priority attention to the ministry of the Word and prayer. May we be good pupil's in Christ's schoolhouse, willing to be still and listen and learn before we go out and speak. Let us pray and ask the Lord to open our hearts, our minds, and ears to receive His good instruction for our lives; and may we take good notes and learn from them so that on the day of examination we will pass the test. "On My account you will be brought before governors and kings as witnesses to them, and to the Gentiles. But when they arrest you, do not worry about what to say or how to say it. At that time you will be given what to say, for it will not be you speaking, but the Spirit of your Father speaking through you" (vv. 19-20).

**Godbetheglory** · 05-02-2016, 10:32 AM

MORNING MEDITATION

MORNING MEDITATION

Glean the Word:
Matthew 25:14-30

Glimpse of Glory: "For the kingdom of heaven is like a man traveling to a far country, who called his own servants and delivered his goods to them." (v. 14, NKJV)

The Lord appeared to His disciples over a period of forty days to instruct, encourage and embolden them for the work of the kingdom He was entrusting to their hands. The call of the Christian life is a call to work; and not just any work, but the highest and holiest work. This is a sacred trust committed to all God's servants. The disciples were not being left to mourn and return to their regular day jobs; on the contrary, Jesus gave them a special work to do. When Jesus ascended to heaven, He left His church with all that was necessary to carry on in His absence, and with the assurance He would return to check up on how we are doing. "After a long time the master of those servants returned and settled accounts with them" (v. 19).

To each individual believer He gives a special work according to our ability. Everyone is entrusted with at least one gift to use for the benefit of the body. "But to each one of us grace has been given as Christ apportioned it. This is why it says: "When He ascended on high, He led captives in His train and gave gifts to men" (Ephesians 4:7-8). Our duty is to learn the trade we have been given by God and to employ it immediately, so we do not waste any of the precious time that we have been given by being idle and unproductive. We have all received a great honor to be entrusted as stewards of the kingdom of God. "For everyone who has will be given more, and he will have an abundance. Whoever does not have, even what he has will be taken from him" (Matthew 25:29). None of us can afford to lament the distribution of the gifts or question what we have received. We must humbly accept what we have been given from the Sovereign hand of the Lord, and take care to manage our gift(s) wisely so we can bring glory to His name and receive our reward. If we are faithful with the little things, He will be sure to give us more. "Well done, good and faithful servant! You have been faithful with a few things; I will put you in charge of many things. Come and share your Master's happiness!" (Matthew 25:21, 23). May we pray fervently for all of God's servants to wake up from their slumber and return to the sacred work of the kingdom, and not neglect the gifts we have been given, but fan them into flame so we will have all the workers necessary to bring in the harvest.
__________

**Godbetheglory** · 05-03-2016, 11:02 AM

MORNING MEDITATION

MORNING MEDITATION

Glean the Word: Matthew 25:1-13

Glimpse of Glory: "At that time the kingdom of heaven will be like ten virgins who took their lamps and went out to meet the bridegroom." (v.1)

As we wait for the Lord's return we are to invest everything He has entrusted to our care for the profit of the kingdom of God. We are not to be sitting idly by staring up at the sky, while there is still much work to be done on the earth for His kingdom. While we work however we are to remain watchful. We can be so busy that we, like Israel, can actually miss the time of our visitation (see Luke 19:41-44). "Therefore keep watch, because you do not know the day or the hour" (Matthew 25:13).

The chief responsibility of the ten virgins was to have light so that they could welcome their Bridegroom; to receive Him when He came for them, and be prepared to leave their home to go to be at home with Him forever. The light they were expected to carry is the eternal flame of God's love; a holy light that will never go out, nor suffer from a lack of oil to keep it burning. In The Book of Revelation, we read that the church in Ephesus was commended for its hard work and good deeds, but the Lord declared that in all their service they neglected the most important thing: their First Love devotion to God. Because their flame of love for the Lord had gone out, God would remove their light from its stand (see Revelation 2:1-7). The light they were radiating was no longer pure, it was polluted and tainted and casting a dull shadow over all their work. They were no longer presenting an undiminished view of God to those they were serving, and because of that God was about to snuff them out. The five foolish virgins were in the same sad situation. They had been depending on another source to produce their light, but when the Bridegroom returned they found that they were completely depleted inside. They had not given necessary care to the inner life, so that when the appointed time had come, they were not allowed to enter in to the kingdom. They had shut God out of their life, so He closed the door on them. Let us pray this morning that we will be like the five wise virgins who were prepared to go out and receive their Bridegroom when He arrived. Although they were still weary and slumbering like the foolish five, they had become sleepy because of all the preparation and not because they wasted their time. Let us take time now to repent and return to our First Love with a deep longing and desire to experience the fullness of His abiding life, and not wait until the rebuke comes, like it did for the church of Ephesus or the foolish five virgins, when it will be too late to do anything about it.

**Volksgrenadier** · 05-03-2016, 11:40 AM

Morning Viking Meditation

**VAReact** · 05-03-2016, 11:40 AM

Bring your attention to the breath. When you notice your attention has wandered away from the breath, gently return your attention to the breath wiith kindness towards yourself as you do so.

**Godbetheglory** · 05-04-2016, 11:35 AM

MORNING MEDITATION

MORNING MEDITATION

Glean the Word: Matthew 22:1-14

Glimpse of Glory: "The kingdom of heaven is like a king who prepared a wedding banquet for his son. He sent his servants to those who had been invited to the banquet to tell them to come, but they refused to come." (v.2-3)

Jesus performed His first miracle at a wedding feast, and one day we will all celebrate the Wedding Supper of the Lamb (Revelation 19:6-9). In the meantime, the Lord has spread before the world a great gospel feast and He is holding an open house for all to come and partake. The great provision at the feast is Himself - Jesus is the feast for our soul. And His invitation has been extended to the whole world. "For God so loved the world that He gave His one and only Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through Him" (John 3:16-17). Our heavenly Father places the utmost importance upon marriage. He has presented His Son as the Bridegroom and has found the church for His bride, and He has laid before us the richest and most abundant feast, because He is a King and gives out of His infinite supply. He is a loving Father who desires for His children to be filled with all good things, and so He lavishes us with His love and gives us the best of His kingdom, so we will be satisfied and lack nothing. "Come, all you who are thirsty, come to the waters; and you who have no money, come, buy and eat! Come, buy wine and milk without money and without cost. Why spend money on what is not bread, and your labor on what does not satisfy? Listen, listen to Me, and eat what is good, and your soul will delight in the richest of fare" (Isaiah 55:1-2).

Sadly, those who were first invited rejected the King's most gracious offer to attend His great feast. They had been courtiers in the kingdom, but they were too in love with the business of life to give any attention to their soul. So they ignored the invitation of the King. "Tell those who have been invited that I have prepared my dinner...'Come to the wedding banquet.' But they paid no attention and went off - one to his field, another to his business" (Matthew 22:4-5). The Jews rejected God's offer provided in His Son and forfeited all their privileges of the kingdom; and so their riches fell into our laps when God opened up the highway to call the Gentiles in. "We had to speak the word of God to you first. Since you reject it and do not consider yourselves worthy of eternal life, we now turn to the Gentiles. For this is what the Lord has commanded us: " 'I have made you a light for the Gentiles, that you may bring salvation to the ends of the earth.' " (Acts 13:46-47). The door was opened to the Jews, but they excluded themselves. He then graciously sent His messengers and opened the door to the spiritually poor and weakest on the earth who had yet to hear of His kingdom and invited them in, so that the Jew and Gentile would be gathered together (Ephesians 2:11-18). "Go to the street corners and invite to the banquet anyone you can find" (v. 9). How grateful we should be that in His wrath the Lord did not slam the door shut to the entire world, but in love opened the door of His grace wider so that we would have opportunity to enter in in this time of His grace. Let us pray today for the gospel message to continue to go forth around the world and to lift up those who are enduring persecutions as they remain faithful to God's call. Let us take advantage of the open heaven above us and the open field that is before us and intercede for the perishing that are all around us. May we all be sure that we have put on the garment of Jesus Christ and not be found as hypocrites when our Bridegroom returns for His Bride. "For many are invited, but few are chosen" (v.14).

**Godbetheglory** · 05-05-2016, 12:08 PM

MORNING MEDITATION

MORNING MEDITATION

Glean the Word: Revelation 11:15-19

Glimpse of Glory: "The kingdom of the world has become the kingdom of our Lord and of His Christ, and He will reign for ever and ever." (v.15b)

Our Lord's final act and parting words are given to us just as they were given to His first disciples two thousand years ago. "It is not for you to know the times or dates the Father has set by His own authority. But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be My witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth. After He said this, He was taken up before their very eyes, and a cloud hid Him from their sight" (Acts 1:7-9). The torch of truth has been passed down through generation after generation of faithful witnesses, and it now rests in our hands. Throughout history the flame of the gospel has been trampled on, smothered, doussed, and suffered many failed attempts to keep it contained - but the light of Christ has kept on burning just the same. What the evil forces aligned against the kingdom of God fail to recognize, is that oil is produced only when the olive is pressed and crushed (2 Corinthians 4:7-10). It is through persecution that the gospel candle keeps burning brightly. This is why the five wise virgins couldn't share their oil with the foolish five even if they wanted to, because each person must take up their own cross and follow in the footsteps of the crucified Christ, enduring the trials of life which is the fan that stirs the fire of God into full flame (Matthew 10:38; 25:9). The darkest hours of suffering for the church have always been the brightest hours for the spreading of the gospel flame.

When Jesus ascended to heaven, before the disciples eyes, they didn't respond with worry or despair, instead they worshiped their Savior and Lord from that moment on. "When He had led them 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. Then they worshiped Him and returned to Jerusalem with great joy. And they stayed continually at the temple, praising God" (Luke 24:50-53). The ascension of our Lord to the right hand of the Father is a sign of victory painted all across the sky. Every time we look up we are reminded that our Lord is seated on the throne and reigns victoriously. "Christ Jesus, who died - more than that, who was raised to life - is at the right hand of God and is also interceding for us" (Romans 8:34). As the attacks against the kingdom of God continue to intensify, we do not have to despair or worry about defeat. All we have to do is look up and remember that God is in control and Jesus is our King of kings and Lord of lords. "When these things begin to take place, stand up and lift up your heads, because your redemption is drawing near" (Luke 21:28) When the seventh trumpet sounded in heaven all the saints and angels rose from their seats and fell on their faces and worshiped God. They recognized the right of the Savior to rule and reign over all the earth and His reign shall never end. "We give thanks to You, Lord God Almighty, the One who is and who was, because You have taken Your great power and have begun to reign" (Revelation 11:17). Let us lift our voices with praises on high and worship the Lord in the splendor of His holiness. Praise Him "who loves us and has freed us from our sins by His blood, and has made us to be a kingdom and priests to serve His God and Father - to Him be glory and power for ever and ever! Amen." (Revelation 1:5b-6).

_______

**Godbetheglory** · 05-06-2016, 11:54 AM

MORNING MEDITATION

MORNING MEDITATION

Glean the Word:
Luke 12:32-34

Glimpse of Glory: "Do not be afraid, little flock, for your Father has been pleased to give you the kingdom." (v.32)

In the midst of the vast wilderness of the world God has planted His vineyard, His church. And though we are as sheep among wolves, we are divinely protected, and kept safe and secure under the watchful eye of our good Shepherd. Out of His infinite grace our heavenly Father has given us His kingdom. He has stored within the hearts of all who believe His eternal kingdom, and if He has deposited this sacred and holy trust, He will surely give us everything else we need. We have no need to worry that we will lack any good thing. The One who has seen fit to bless us with His own kingdom, will see to it that we will never want for supply, or worry that we will not be satisfied. Our Father has given His people the very best of Himself.

Over and over, in the Word of God, we are told not to fear. Although we may be surrounded by enemies on every side who oppose the work of God, we have no reason to fear, because nothing can separate us from the love of our Father (Romans 8:35-39). We have been richly blessed; the wealth of the kingdom has been deposited into our hands. Therefore we can let go of everything else we are holding on to in this world, and freely give out of the abundance of grace we have been given, trusting that the Lord will never let our oil jar run dry. Our work is multiplied in the giving; and in eternal matters we will never have to worry about a shortage of supply. Our greatest need is that of seeking God - the Source of our supply! As we pray let us ask the Lord to remove from our life those things that are blocking our view of His kingdom, and awaken us to the understanding of the treasure we have been given. We have what the world needs. May we let go of our pursuit of the things of this world which only encumber our walk with the Lord, and instead bring to the world the gifts that we have received so that their heavy burden can be lifted. May our hearts be empty of everything else in this life, so there can be room enough for His amazing love and grace. "For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also" (Luke 12:34).

__________________________________________________ _________________
___

**Godbetheglory** · 05-07-2016, 11:25 AM

MORNING MEDITATION

Glean the Word: John 12:20-33

Glimpse of Glory: "Now My heart is troubled, and what shall I say? 'Father, save Me from this hour'? No, it was for this very reason I cam to this hour. Father, glorify Your name!" (John 12:27-28)

When Jesus was crucified on the cross, died, and was buried, the hope of the world was buried with Him as the stone was rolled in front of the tomb and sealed. It wasn't until three days later, on that glorious morning of the first day of the week, when the women arrived at the tomb and saw the stone rolled away and the empty grave, that the first signs of hope for the church where birthed (Luke 24:1-12).

"The hour has come for the Son of Man to be glorified.
I tell you the truth, unless a kernel of wheat falls to the ground and dies,
it remains only a single seed. But if it dies, it produces many seeds."
(John 12:23-24)

In the tiny, seemingly insignificant example of the seed, Jesus relates a beautiful spiritual truth, as He predicts His death and challenges His followers to walk the path of the crucified life. For a small seed, when planted in the dark recesses of the cold earth, yields itself and dies, and through its' death fulfills its original purpose: which is to produce life. This is the example Jesus provided for the whole world as He laid down His life as a ransom for many, to be buried in the earth, only to rise three days later, and bear the fruit of eternal life to all who would come and eat the fruit of the tree He bled upon.

Jesus is the Savior of the world! No other seed could have suffered the cold, dark grave of the earth and die, only to bring forth the fruit of eternal life, other than the heavenly seed which is Christ Jesus. Out of His death, came the gift of life for many. The resurrection of Jesus Christ, like a shoot coming up from the earth, became the pledge of the full harvest to come. The coming of His glorious kingdom will mean restoration for all. May this be our united and unceasing prayer: "Your kingdom come, Your will be done on earth as it is in heaven" (Matthew 6:10)!

"A shoot will come up from the stump of Jesse;
from his roots a Branch will bear fruit...
In that day the Root of Jesse will stand as a banner for all peoples;
the nations will rally to Him, and His place of rest will be glorious."
(Isaiah 11:1, 10)

As we pour out our hearts in prayer this morning may we lay ourselves on the altar of the Lord as an offering for His holy purposes to be fulfilled in and through us. May we declare our desire in this season of restoration to be for the deeper, abiding, and fruitful life that is ours only as we are willing to surrender our plans to take up the cross of Christ and follow Jesus in His sacrifice, so His greater kingdom purposes will be achieved - which is, above all, for the Glory of God! "Not to us, O LORD, not to us but to Your name be the glory, because of Your love and faithfulness" (Psalm 115:1)
___________

**Godbetheglory** · 05-09-2016, 10:40 AM

Glean the Word: John 20:10-18

Glimpse of Glory: "Woman,' He said, 'Why are you crying? Who is it you are looking for?' " (John 20:15a)

On the day of His resurrection Jesus had scheduled several divine appointments which would provide His followers with ample evidence that He had indeed risen from the dead. These meetings were not arbitrary encounters. Instead, they were divinely planned and purposed to encourage His disciples, and to provide future believers with the concrete evidence needed to make the foundation of faith solid as a Rock!

The first of Jesus' encounters was recorded in all four of the gospels. The NIV study notes suggest that Jesus' meeting with Mary Magdalene was scheduled first because she probably needed Him the most. Mary Magdalene was a woman who had once been possessed by seven demons; that is, until Jesus took possession of her heart (see Luke 8:2). After her deliverance, she became a faithful follower of His; along with the other women who supported Jesus, and His disciples, as they traveled from town to town "proclaiming the good news of the kingdom of God" (Luke 8:1-3).

In the accounts of the crucifixion and resurrection story it is recorded that Mary Magdalene was at the cross and watched as her Lord was crucified; she waited and watched to the very end when they took His body down; and she stayed as they quickly prepared His body for burial (see Matthew 27:55-56; Mark 15:40; Luke 23:49; John 19:25). She didn't leave the Lord's side until she saw with her own eyes that the stone was rolled in front of the tomb (see Matthew 27:61; mark 15:46-47; Luke 23:55); and then she only left to prepare the spices so that she could return in the morning to care for the body of her Lord. She was the first one at the tomb that resurrection morning, and she saw the stone had been rolled away (see Mathew 28:1; mark 16:1-3; Luke 24:1; John 20:1). In all four gospels she is recorded as the one "eye witness" to the crucifixion, death, burial, and resurrection of the Lord, and she was the first one scheduled in His divine appointment book that glorious day (see Mark 16:9-11; John 20:11-18).

Mary Magdalene never left the side of Jesus from the moment she was delivered. She was a fully devoted follower of Jesus Christ. On that resurrection day she was rewarded for her devotion. Jesus was everything to her, and all she wanted was to be near the body of her Lord. When Jesus asked her, "Who is it you are looking for?", all that she had been searching for was answered. Jesus had had never left her, He had never forsaken her. Nothing could separate her from the love of Christ. Mary had found the one her heart loved, and her weeping was turned to joy. "Weeping may remain for a night, but rejoicing comes in the morning" (Psalm 30:5b).

May this divine encounter with the living Lord serve as an encouragement to all who are seeking and searching for their hearts' desire. May the Lord's question to Mary ***** our hearts as we lay them before the Lord in prayer this morning, asking Him to search deep within and find in us the heart of fully devoted follower who wants nothing more than to be by the side of our Lord. May we humbly ask the Lord to reveal anything in our lives that is not fully surrendered to His will, and then ask for forgiveness and yield our hearts to His, that He might fill us with more of Himself.

"...you will call upon Me and come and pray to Me, and I will listen to you.
You will seek Me and find Me when you seek Me with all your heart."
I will be found by you."
(Jeremiah 29:12-14a)
______

**Godbetheglory** · 05-10-2016, 12:23 PM

Glean the Word: Matthew 16:13-20

Glimpse of Glory: "It is true! The Lord has risen and has appeared to Simon." (Luke 24:34)

Jesus' disciples did not rest their faith on an empty tomb alone, but upon their own personal experience of seeing the risen Christ. While Jesus is concerned about the needs of people as a whole, He has particular concern for meeting the needs of His people individually. Our God is a deeply intimate God who desires to have an intimate relationship with each of His children. Our personal confession of Christ is the basis of our salvation. "That if you confess with your mouth, "Jesus is Lord," and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved. For it is with your heart that you believe and are justified, and it is with your mouth that you confess and are saved" (Romans 10:9-10).

As the day of His resurrection wore on Jesus kept to His divine appointment schedule. Earlier in the morning He sent a personal message to Peter, knowing His disciple would need a special word of encouragement. "But go, tell His disciples and Peter" (Mark 16:7, emphasis added). Their final conversation, on the night of the Lord's arrest, was a telling glance from the Lord as Peter had denied his Lord for the third time, just as Jesus had warned (Luke 22:54-62). That night Peter had wept bitterly, but on this day the Lord would turn his weeping into rejoicing. The one who had so confidently confessed that Jesus "is the Christ" earlier in his walk with the Lord, had now failed his Lord so miserably at such a critical hour, because he did not heed Jesus' warning to be watchful unto prayer. Peter had done what most of us do when we walk in the flesh and trust in our own strength and ability, rather than in the Word of God: we leave ourselves exposed to the enemy's attacks and invite failure rather than walking in victory and fullness of life. How grateful we should be that our Lord is there to catch us when we fall, lifting us back up, always willing to restore us to a right relationship with Himself. "If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness" (1 John 1:9). May the Lord's words to Peter serve as encouragement to all believers, that all our trials and temptations are meant to strengthen us and grow us in Christian character so we can be a source of strength to our brothers and sisters in Christ. Praise God that His warnings are framed in promises of restoration: "Simon, Simon, Satan has asked to sift you as wheat. But I have prayed for you, Simon, that your faith may not fail. And when you have turned back, strengthen your brothers" (Luke 22:31-32).

The struggle, trial, and pain that Peter endured in the hours that led up to Jesus' crucifixion, and in the dark hours in the valley of the shadow of death that followed, were a necessary part of the Lord's plan to accomplish His work in shaping Peter into an immovable, solid pillar that would frame the structure of the early church. Let us join our faithful Mediator in His prayers for our fellow believers as they face the hour of trial and temptation, so that they will be transformed into a strong, stable force in God's kingdom building program.

"Those who sow in tears will reap with songs of joy.
he who goes out weeping carrying seed to sow,
will return with songs of joy, carrying sheaves with him."
(Psalm 126:6)
________

**Godbetheglory** · 05-11-2016, 11:58 AM

Glean the Word: Luke 24:13-35

Glimpse of Glory: "A remnant will return, a remnant of Jacob will return to the Mighty God." (Isaiah 10:21)

Sometime around midday on the day of His resurrection, Jesus' joined two of His followers as the were walking on the road to Emmaus. "...for where two or three come together in My name, there am I with them" (Matthew 18:20). Without identifying Himself at first, Jesus joined in on their conversation, asking: "What are you discussing as you walk along?" Jesus knew their hearts were discouraged as they tried, in their limited human understanding, to make sense of all that had just transpired. He just wanted to hear from their own lips what was troubling their hearts. Our Lord wants us to verbalize our concerns to Him. This is part of the great blessing of prayer. For it is in prayer that we can lay our burdens before the Lord and empty our hearts of our troubles. It is in speaking to God that we bring to the surface those places where we need clarity. It is in prayer that we express our belief that our God surely hears us, and reveals our trust that He will indeed answer us. As the two men recounted the events of the past few days, it became evident that they believed that all of their hopes had been buried with Christ. "..but we had hoped that He was the one who was going to redeem Israel" (v.21)

The hearts of these two men were greatly discouraged, and their eyes were blinded to the full message of the Bible. Jesus began to peel back the veil that concealed their understanding as "He explained to them what was said in all the Scriptures concerning Himself" (v.27b). Jesus used the Word to reveal Himself as He spoke to them all that was written about Himself by Moses and the Prophets. The longer He talked the greater their longing became for every word that fell from His lips. As they entered the village they strongly urged Him to stay with them, for they didn't want the conversation to end. They had invited Jesus in, and He came in and ate with them (Revelation 3:20). It was in that deeper place of fellowship that their eyes were open to the risen Christ and their hearts were filled with His divine heat and love. "They asked each other, 'Were not our hearts burning within us while He talked with us on the road and opened the Scriptures to us?' " (Luke 24:32).

This morning, let us pray and ask the Holy Spirit to open our eyes to deep and hidden things as we break open the bread of the Word and feed on the divine manna from heaven. May this season of prayer and fasting open our eyes to see Christ more clearly and open our hearts to receive more of His Word so that we can be filled "with the knowledge of His will through all spiritual wisdom and understanding" (Colossians 1:9b); and overflowing with zeal to share all that we have seen and heard from our time with the Lord. May our hearts burn within us as the Lord speaks to us through His Word, and may we invite Him in to take complete possession of our hearts and lives, so He can accomplish His work and will in and through our lives for the glory of God!

**Godbetheglory** · 05-12-2016, 12:55 PM

Glean the Word: John 20:24-29

Glimpse of Glory: "Because you have seen Me, you have believed; blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed." (v.29)

It was about eight days later that the Lord made another appearance - this time to all the disciples; for Thomas, who had been absent from the room the first time the Lord came to them, had now joined his friends. The other disciples had spent a week rejoicing with happy hearts, having seen with their own eyes that Jesus was risen from the dead. But despite all their jubilation, Thomas refused to believe. "Unless I see the nail marks in His hands and put my finger where the nails were, and put my hand into His side, I will not believe it" (v. 25b). Thomas laid out some strong parameters to guard his unbelieving heart. This seemed a strange response coming from the one who had exhibited such great courage when he urged the other disciples to follow Jesus to the death when the Lord was on His way to Bethany to raise Lazarus from the dead (see John 11:16). Maybe he was just being stubborn and prideful because he had missed such a great opportunity on the day of the resurrection, having sought solitude in the face of despair, rather than drawing strength from being in the company of his friends. Fellowship is so important in times of discouragement and defeat. Praise God that Thomas' friends did not give up speaking about what they had seen and heard, and encouraging Thomas with their joy and confidence in the Lord.

When Jesus entered the room that second time, He singled Thomas out, and willingly gave His doubting disciple the evidence he desired in order to believe. "Put your finger here; see My hands. Reach out your hand and put it in to My side. Stop doubting and believe" (v.27). In that moment Thomas believed. As he looked upon the body of the risen Lord standing right before his eyes, and saw the wounds that Jesus held out for him to touch, Thomas made a bold declaration of faith: "My Lord and My God!" (v.28). Thomas had experienced a week without joy and without hope, because he refused to have faith and believe in the testimony of the resurrection of Jesus Christ. But in that personal encounter with the Lord faith became sight, and Thomas took Christ as his own.

Many people choose not to believe in God, not because of the absence of hard facts, but because of their hard hearts. They have stubbornly made up their minds not to believe, and their asking for evidence only further proves their unbelief. Unbelief is the greatest moral problem in our world today! "Because you have seen Me, you have believed; blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed" (v.29). How critical are our prayers more than ever today, as the world is slipping further and further into spiritual decay, because, we, the believing remnant in this world, do not proclaim the life of Christ with bold lips and victorious lives. May we seek the deeper life with God, and diligently study the Word of God daily, to know and understand what we believe, so we will be able to give testimony of Christ who is alive and lives in us! "But in your hearts set apart Christ as Lord. Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have. But do this with gentleness and respect" (1 Peter 3:15).

__

Unconfigured Ad Widget

MORNING MEDITATION

MORNING MEDITATION

Comment

Comment

Comment

Comment

Comment

Comment

Comment

Comment

Comment

Comment

Comment

Comment

Comment

Comment

Calguns.net Statistics

What's Going On