Grace and peace to you from our Lord Jesus Christ.
And he sent them out to preach the kingdom of God and to heal the sick. This call of Jesus is not just for the twelve disciples. All who follow Christ are called disciples, and all disciples are called to go forth and proclaim the good news to the people, as well as to heal the sick. As an extension of healing the sick I would think Jesus would add onto that for all of us to take care of all those in need. Not all of us are called to write sermons and deliver them on Sunday morning. And not all of us are called to be doctors and nurses. But we are all called by Christ to go out and preach the good news of Jesus Christ, as well as to care for those who are in need. Jesus is speaking, even today in Mt. Lebanon Christian Church. Listen to the words of Jesus and discern what he is calling you to do. God bless,
Pastor Josh
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Thursday, February 7, 2008
Wednesday, February 6, 2008
Luke 8: 40-55; A Dead Girl and a Sick Woman
Grace and peace to you from our Lord Jesus Christ.
Eternal life is something we don't talk about all that much. Salvation is, and should be, preached all the time, but we don't spend that much time talking about the eternal life we have through Jesus. This little girl being raised from the dead shows us that Jesus has power over death; it shows us that we will never die. Now, as does happen with all humans, our earthly bodies will expire someday. But we will be raised to a new life in Christ. When, and I stress when, we are raised we will go and live with Christ for all eternity in the kingdom he was prepared for us. As those who belong to Christ we need not fear death, for through Christ we will live forever in the glorious kingdom of Heaven. God bless,
Pastor Josh
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Eternal life is something we don't talk about all that much. Salvation is, and should be, preached all the time, but we don't spend that much time talking about the eternal life we have through Jesus. This little girl being raised from the dead shows us that Jesus has power over death; it shows us that we will never die. Now, as does happen with all humans, our earthly bodies will expire someday. But we will be raised to a new life in Christ. When, and I stress when, we are raised we will go and live with Christ for all eternity in the kingdom he was prepared for us. As those who belong to Christ we need not fear death, for through Christ we will live forever in the glorious kingdom of Heaven. God bless,
Pastor Josh
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Tuesday, February 5, 2008
Luke 8: 26-39; The Healing of a Demon-possessed Man
Grace and peace to you from our Lord Jesus Christ.
There is some historical context that helps a lot with what this passage means for us. The man who is possessed by a demon calls himself Legion. A 'legion' is a Roman military unit which usually had about 3000 to 6000 soldiers. The presence of pigs, and the demon's request to be thrown into the pigs, is also significant because the 'mascot' of the Roman Tenth Legion was the swine, or a pig. It is very likely that this man was member of the Roman Tenth Legion and that he witnessed many horrible things. This man is most likely suffering from post-traumatic-stress disorder. What does this mean for us? It means that Jesus heals even the hurts that we have on the inside. We all have emotional pain and sorrow. Jesus takes that away. The healings of Jesus are not specific to physical injuries; they also include how we feel inside. God bless,
Pastor Josh
<><
There is some historical context that helps a lot with what this passage means for us. The man who is possessed by a demon calls himself Legion. A 'legion' is a Roman military unit which usually had about 3000 to 6000 soldiers. The presence of pigs, and the demon's request to be thrown into the pigs, is also significant because the 'mascot' of the Roman Tenth Legion was the swine, or a pig. It is very likely that this man was member of the Roman Tenth Legion and that he witnessed many horrible things. This man is most likely suffering from post-traumatic-stress disorder. What does this mean for us? It means that Jesus heals even the hurts that we have on the inside. We all have emotional pain and sorrow. Jesus takes that away. The healings of Jesus are not specific to physical injuries; they also include how we feel inside. God bless,
Pastor Josh
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Monday, February 4, 2008
Luke 8: 22-25; Jesus Calms a Storm
Grace and peace to you from our Lord Jesus Christ.
I've never been sailing myself, but the television shows and movies that depict a boat in a storm have been enough to keep me off of the water. I can think of a lot of other places I would rather be than out on the water in the middle of a storm. I can imagine the disciples were thinking the same thing. This would have been a terrifying event, and I can certainly understand their fear. Jesus kind of gives the disciples a hard time here, but he also calms the storm. We may not be out in a boat right now, out in the middle of the sea. But in one way or another we all face storms in our lives. The waves come up, and the rains pour down, and the boat rocks back and forth. There are times when we all shout 'Master, Master, we are going to drown!' And Jesus always reaches in and calms the storm. Whatever kind of difficult time we may be going through we can rest easy in knowing that Jesus is going to calm the storm. God bless,
Pastor Josh
<><
I've never been sailing myself, but the television shows and movies that depict a boat in a storm have been enough to keep me off of the water. I can think of a lot of other places I would rather be than out on the water in the middle of a storm. I can imagine the disciples were thinking the same thing. This would have been a terrifying event, and I can certainly understand their fear. Jesus kind of gives the disciples a hard time here, but he also calms the storm. We may not be out in a boat right now, out in the middle of the sea. But in one way or another we all face storms in our lives. The waves come up, and the rains pour down, and the boat rocks back and forth. There are times when we all shout 'Master, Master, we are going to drown!' And Jesus always reaches in and calms the storm. Whatever kind of difficult time we may be going through we can rest easy in knowing that Jesus is going to calm the storm. God bless,
Pastor Josh
<><
Sunday, February 3, 2008
Luke 8: 19-21; Jesus' Mother and Brothers
Grace and peace to you from our Lord Jesus Christ.
What is God's will for you today. Paul writes that God calls some to be preachers, some to be teachers, etc. We are all called by God to do something; God has a will for each of us. This is more than a passing fancy, or a simple desire. God's will for us is a call, a divine appointment to do his work in this world. Part of our job, on our journey of faith, is to discern what God is calling us to do. As you go throughout your life and faith journey, I invite and encourage you to take time to listen to God and hear what he is calling you to do. God bless,
Pastor Josh
<><
What is God's will for you today. Paul writes that God calls some to be preachers, some to be teachers, etc. We are all called by God to do something; God has a will for each of us. This is more than a passing fancy, or a simple desire. God's will for us is a call, a divine appointment to do his work in this world. Part of our job, on our journey of faith, is to discern what God is calling us to do. As you go throughout your life and faith journey, I invite and encourage you to take time to listen to God and hear what he is calling you to do. God bless,
Pastor Josh
<><
Saturday, February 2, 2008
Luke 8: 16-18; A Lamp on a Stand
Grace and peace to you from our Lord Jesus Christ.
In today's world we are sometimes told to hide our faith. Political correctness dictates that we cannot always tell pepole about Jesus to make sure we don't offend anyone. I certainly wouldn't want to make anyone terribly upset, but I would want to do everything I can to make sure the name of Jesus is preached, and that everyone accepts Jesus as their personal Lord and savior. We have seen the great light, the light of Jesus, and we should share that light with everyone. In Matthew Jesus talks about a city on a hill, which is how we should be. We should let our shine to all those around us, sharing the light with people that they may come to a new life in Jesus. Share your light with those around you. God bless,
Pastor Josh
<><
In today's world we are sometimes told to hide our faith. Political correctness dictates that we cannot always tell pepole about Jesus to make sure we don't offend anyone. I certainly wouldn't want to make anyone terribly upset, but I would want to do everything I can to make sure the name of Jesus is preached, and that everyone accepts Jesus as their personal Lord and savior. We have seen the great light, the light of Jesus, and we should share that light with everyone. In Matthew Jesus talks about a city on a hill, which is how we should be. We should let our shine to all those around us, sharing the light with people that they may come to a new life in Jesus. Share your light with those around you. God bless,
Pastor Josh
<><
Friday, February 1, 2008
Luke 8: 1-15; The Parable of the Sower
Grace and peace to you from our Lord Jesus Christ.
This parable of the sower is very straightforward, even without Jesus' explanation in verses 11-15. And since we pretty well know what it means one of the questions we can ask ourselves is 'what kind of seed are we sowing?' When we share our faith with others, when we witness to them the good news of Jesus Christ, are we giving them words that will get washed away, blown away, or otherwise destroyed? Or are we giving them the words that will stay with them all of their days; words that will bring them to a life of faith; words that will encourage them to accept Jesus as their personal Lord and savior? The next time you reach out and share with someone the good news of Jesus Christ, be sure to give them words that will take root and yield a good crop; words what will sink in and lead them to Jesus Christ. God bless,
Pastor Josh
<><
This parable of the sower is very straightforward, even without Jesus' explanation in verses 11-15. And since we pretty well know what it means one of the questions we can ask ourselves is 'what kind of seed are we sowing?' When we share our faith with others, when we witness to them the good news of Jesus Christ, are we giving them words that will get washed away, blown away, or otherwise destroyed? Or are we giving them the words that will stay with them all of their days; words that will bring them to a life of faith; words that will encourage them to accept Jesus as their personal Lord and savior? The next time you reach out and share with someone the good news of Jesus Christ, be sure to give them words that will take root and yield a good crop; words what will sink in and lead them to Jesus Christ. God bless,
Pastor Josh
<><
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