Refreshing Our Spirits With Scripture

 12.12- The problem with instruments of violence.  They can be used in ways that do not align with the purposes of God.  Jesus is in the ear healing business, not the ear cutting off business.  Wait a moment some may say.  These people were coming after Jesus. What is wrong with taking a sword to your enemy? Jesus said, "Love your enemies and bless them that insult you." Jesus had a follower who wanted to use violence to solve problems. He used love and healing to solve problems. Luke 22. 35  Then Jesus said, “When I sent you out and told you to travel light, to take only the bare necessities, did you get along all right?” “Certainly,” they said, “we got along just fine.” 36-37  He said, “This is different. Get ready for trouble. Look to what you’ll need; there are difficult times ahead. Pawn your coat and get a sword. What was written in Scripture, ‘He was lumped in with the criminals,’ gets its final meaning in me. Everything written about me is now coming to a conclusion.”

 12.11- We must tell people things they don't want to hear and we don't want to tell them.  This is the loving courage that is needed among people who love each other. I'm sorry to have to tell you this, but here is the truth..... It hurts them. It hurts us. But reality must be faced at times. Luke 22. 31-32  “Simon, stay on your toes. Satan has tried his best to separate all of you from me, like chaff from wheat. Simon, I’ve prayed for you in particular that you not give in or give out. When you have come through the time of testing, turn to your companions and give them a fresh start.” 33  Peter said, “Master, I’m ready for anything with you. I’d go to jail for you. I’d  die  for you!” 34   Jesus said, “I’m sorry to have to tell you this, Peter, but before the rooster crows you will have three times denied that you know me.”

 12.10- Who is the greatest person?  Is it the richest man on earth?  Is it the one with the most friends?   Is it the one who is most popular?   In Jesus way of life He has an answer. Luke 22.   24-26  Within minutes they were bickering over who of them would end up the greatest. But Jesus intervened: “Kings like to throw their weight around and people in authority like to give themselves fancy titles. It’s not going to be that way with you. Let the senior among you become like the junior; let the leader act the part of the servant. 27-30  “Who would you rather be: the one who eats the dinner or the one who serves the dinner? You’d rather eat and be served, right? But I’ve taken my place among you as the one who serves. And you’ve stuck with me through thick and thin. Now I confer on you the royal authority my Father conferred on me so you can eat and drink at my table in my kingdom and be strengthened as you take up responsibilities among the congregations of God’s people.

 12.9- Jesus is the lamb killed on the cross for the blood needed to deliver us as children of God from spiritual death due to our sins.  That is why He was named Jesus, He came to save His people from their sins.  Sins enslave, but they also kill us spiritually and without His blood it would be forever separation from our God who is love. Here is the way the Message describes the Passover. Luke 22. 22  1-2  The Feast of Unleavened Bread, also called Passover, drew near. The high priests and religion scholars were looking for a way to do away with Jesus but, fearful of the people, they were also looking for a way to cover their tracks. 3-6  That’s when Satan entered Judas, the one called Iscariot. He was one of the Twelve. Leaving the others, he conferred with the high priests and the Temple guards about how he might betray Jesus to them. They couldn’t believe their good luck and agreed to pay him well. He gave them his word and started looking for a way to betray Jesus, but out of sig

 12.8- Secret of Forgiveness                      Max Lucado      You will never forgive anyone more than God has already forgiven you. Is it still hard to consider the thought of forgiving the one who hurt you? If so, go one more time to the room. Watch Jesus as he goes from disciple to disciple. Can you see him? Can you hear the water splash? Can you hear him shuffle on the floor to the next person? Keep that image.     John 13:12 says, “When he had finished washing their feet. . .” Please note; Jesus  finished washing their feet. That means he left no one out. Why is that important? Because that means he washed the feet of Judas. Jesus washed the feet of his betrayer. That’s not to say it was easy for Jesus. That’s not to say it’s easy for you. But that is to say, God will never call you to do what he hasn’t already done! Hopefulness Hopefulness is living joyfully in the new freedom God has given me. It is basing my life on my future destiny with Jesus rather tha

 12.7- Present in the Storm                             Psalm 46                                  Arthur Jackson     Fire swept through the home of a family of six from our church. Although the father and son survived, the father was still hospitalized while his wife, mother, and two small children were laid to rest. Unfortunately, heartbreaking events like this continue to happen again and again. When they’re replayed, so is the age-old question: Why do bad things happen to good people? And it doesn’t surprise us that this old question doesn’t have new answers.     Yet the truth that the psalmist puts forth in Psalm 46 has also been replayed and rehearsed and embraced repeatedly. “God is our refuge and strength, and ever present help in trouble” (verse 1). The conditions described in verses 2-3 are catastrophic—earth and mountains moving and sea waters raging. We shudder when we imagine being in the midst of the stormy conditions poetically pictured here. But sometimes we do find our

 12.6= The Savior Who Knows Us                             John 1:43-51                            Adam Holz     “Dad, what time is it?” my son asked from the back seat. “It’s 5:30.” I knew exactly what he’d say next. “No, it’s 5:28!” I watched his face light up. Gotcha! His beaming smile said. I felt delight too – the kind that comes from knowing your child the way only a parent can.     Like any attentive parent, I know my children. I know how they’ll respond when I wake them up. I know what they’ll want in their lunches. I know countless interests, desires, and preferences.     But for all that, I’ll never know them perfectly, inside and out, the way our Lord knows us.     We catch a glimpse of the kind of intimate knowledge Jesus has of His people in John 1. As Nathanael, who Philip had urged to meet Jesus, moved toward Him, Jesus pronounced, “Here truly is an Israelite in whom there is no deceit” (verse 47). Startled, Nathanael responded, “How do you know me?” Somewhat

 12.5- People can be awful.  People can be amazing. People are fearful.  They are trying to catch others doing something wrong.  They watch closely for opportunities to catch others doing something that is politically incorrect for the worldly bad religion culture they are trying to maintain for their own selfish purposes. They send spies to watch what is going on among Jesus followers to cause trouble to them. They pretend to be righteous when they are not. They try to get followers of Jesus off track into political and tax questions that are not really the focus of our work. In the last couple of days I tried to help some people who were in trouble.  One had lost a father and another a husband.  In the effort to comfort them we had some conversation that drifted into some social media matters.  It was acknowledged that a friendship had been broken of a political opinion or a set of them.  It made me sad. Later I called to reach to someone in the hospital by phone.  In the process I w