4/6/13

Prayers, Buddy and a smile from God


"Buddy"




Today, I awoke as usual, but before I could have my coffee, the phone rang.  At the other end was a relative worried about my sister-in-law, so I woke my Linda up and we hurried over there to help.  Turns out that she was taken to the hospital for something serious.  So, we took her dog "Buddy" home with us.  Now, Buddy is no stranger here, he has visited many times, but today is different; its just the two of us.  He sticks to me like glue - where I go; so does HE.  I think I am getting more out of this than he is, but, WHO KNOWS???  Anyway, today I am asking for prayers for his owner, Dorothy.  She needs it badly!!! Speaking of prayer, this passage from James came to mind... 

James, Chapter 5
 13  Is any among you suffering? Let him pray. Is any cheerful? Let him sing praises.  14 Is any among you sick? Let him call for the elders of the assembly, and let them pray over him, anointing him with oil in the name of the Lord,  15 and the prayer of faith will heal him who is sick, and the Lord will raise him up. If he has committed sins, he will be forgiven.  16 Confess your offenses to one another, and pray for one another, that you may be healed. The insistent prayer of a righteous person is powerfully effective.  17 Elijah was a man with a nature like ours, and he prayed earnestly that it might not rain, and it didn’t rain on the earth for three years and six months.  18 He prayed again, and the sky gave rain, and the earth produced its fruit. 

Prayer matters, because it works.  God listens and helps.  I have seen it over and over again.  I really don't understand how God will handle this situation, but I know from past experience that some good will come of it.   I know that you don't know Dorothy, but she is one of the kindest people you will ever meet.  Please pray for her!!!  And don't forget Buddy, its obvious that he misses her!!!  Somewhere, God must be smiling!!!!

From Gary V. Womack... OPEN YOUR EYES: Elisha's Plea



OPEN YOUR EYES

Elisha's Plea

2 Kgs. 6:8-12 Syria's king is perplexed by 
                      Israel's ability to know where his 
                      hidden camp was located - thus 
                      avoiding ambush. Elisha reported 
                      to Israel's king the Syrian king's 
                      plans.

2 Kgs. 6:13-15 Syria's army surrounds the city 
                        (Dothan) & Elisha's servant fears 
                        their plight.

2 Kgs. 6:16 "Do not fear, for those who are with 
                     us are more than those who are 
                     with them."

We need to remember this as we face our enemy.

1 Jn. 4:4 "You are of God, little children, and have 
                overcome them (false prophets), because 
                He who is in you is greater than he who is 
                in the world."

Rom. 8:31-ff "If God is for us, who can be 
                      against us?"
                     "We are more than conquerors 
                       through Him who loved us."
                     _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

2 Kgs. 6:17-18 Elisha prayed. "Open his eyes 
                        that he may see." What he saw 
                        was the mountain full of horses & 
                        chariots The Syrians stuck blind.

We need to open our eyes and see that God is near & in charge.

Isa. 40:21-26 The great & powerful are but mere 
                      chaff before God. "Lift up your 
                      eyes on high, and see who has 
                      created these things."
                      _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

2 Kgs. 6:19-20 After Elisha led them into the city 
                        of Samaria he prayed. "Open the 
                        eyes of these men, that they may 
                        see."

How the rest of the world needs to open their eyes to their condition.

Rev. 3:14-19 Like Laodicea, many are deceived 
                     thinking they are rich & powerful. 
                     What they need is eye salve."

Mt. 13:10-17 When asked why He spoke in 
                     parables, Jesus quoted Isaiah's 
                     prophecy about those who would 
                     not understand because they had 
                     no desire to know & understand & 
                     obey.
                     _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

2 Kgs. 6:21-23 Elisha forbids killing them, but 
                        demands they be fed & released

2 Kgs. 6:24-29 Syria, under king Ben-Hadad, 
                        attacked Israel amid great famine.  
                        The cost of food went soaring. 
                        People ate their kids.

2 Kgs. 7:1-2 Elisha foretells the end of the 
                    famine & war - by the next day

IN THE MEAN TIME

2 Kgs. 7:3-8 God made the Syrian army to hear  
                     the sound of horses & chariots - 
                     causing them to flee, leaving 
                     behind everything.

Notice - How God supplied their needs with the supplies of the Syrian army and the famine ended on that day as prophesied by Elisha.

2 Kgs. 7:9-11 The 2 lepers realize they need to 
                      do the right thing.

They practiced the Golden Rule

Mt. 7:12 "Therefore, whatever you want men to do 
               to you, do also to them, for this is the Law 
               and the Prophets."

2 Kgs. 7:12-16 Israel's king sends spies from the 
                        city to go out to see if the

Syrians are plotting to lure them out of the city to attack. The spies find the Syrian camp abandoned. Elisha's prophecy comes to pass on the next day as he said.

We can put our trust in God - He sees & knows - He responds mightily.

Isa. 40:27-ff "Those who wait on the Lord..." He 
                     delivers on eagles' wings

From Jim McGuiggan... It matters to God

It matters to God!

   It makes sense for someone to say it doesn’t matter to God whether we like him or not. But that would only be one more “sensible” thing that’s wrong because it does matter to God whether we like him or not. That’s an astonishing truth about God which, when we think about it in the light of creation and redemption in Christ, becomes obvious. How could he in love create us and not care what we think about him? It's true enough that he can be angry and chastise us but that only proves that it matters to him what we think about him! Revelation 3:19 says he chastises us because he loves us!

   One of the awful lies Job’s friend Eliphaz told was this: “It doesn’t matter to God how you behave or think. It doesn’t affect him one way or another.” (See Job 22:2-3.) As the NIV renders it Eliphaz says, “Can a man be of benefit to God? Can even a wise man benefit him? What pleasure would it give the Almighty if you were righteous? What would he gain if your ways were blameless?” Eliphaz means well. He wants to exalt God far above all the puniness of humanity but in the process he bears false witness against God because the whole book of Job is built on the fact that God is proud of Job (see 1:8 and 2:3 and 42:7-8).

   What pleasure does God get out of us? He loves it when we say no to the God-denying look of the world. It gives him pleasure to see us struggle against great odds, continually lose specific battles and still get back up and into the war. And we do battle against great odds. We’ve been shaped in wickedness, we’ve come to love ease and take great pleasure in feathering our present and post-mortem nests. We’ve been dominated by patterns of behaviour for many years and there’s enough evil in the world to continue to feed those patterns that makes them hard to break.

   Poverty and war, social evils and paramilitaries, entrenched corruption in government, ill-health and depression come at us, wave after wave. Now and then we sense the awful power of the Sin that has the world by the throat and it’s then we see the cross for what it is. All these awful evils that we can see and sense remind us that there is something deeper, more awful than these visible horrors; they’re the tip of the iceberg. So when you stand up, when you shut your mouth to vile speech, when you open your hand in generosity, when you open your heart in forgiveness, when you dismiss the temptation to isolate yourself from the church and the needy world, it matters to God. It pleases him! More than that, it advances his cosmic purposes. You are fighting God's battle for him against all the forces of gloom and cynicism in the world. One day you will see the glory of what you have done!

Believe it: it matters to God!

©2004 Jim McGuiggan. All materials are free to be copied and used as long as money is not being made.

Many thanks to brother Ed Healy for allowing me to post from his website, the abiding word.com.


From Mark Copeland... At The Home Of Simon And Andrew


                          "THE GOSPEL OF MARK"


               At The Home Of Simon And Andrew (1:29-39)
INTRODUCTION

1. Mark's account of the ministry of Christ, like most of his gospel,
   is...
   a. Concise
   b. Fast-paced

2. Even so, Mark does reveal what it must have been like for Jesus...
   a. On a daily basis
   b. In constant demand as a teacher and a healer

[For example, after teaching in the synagogue, casting an unclean spirit
out of man, Jesus retires to the home of two of his disciples, Simon and
Andrew.  In our text (Mk 1:29-39), we read how...]

I. JESUS HEALS SIMON'S WIFE'S MOTHER

   A. THE TEXT...
      1.  Leaving the synagogue, they enter the house - Mk 1:29
         a. The synagogue where Jesus had taught with authority - cf. 
            Mk 1:21-28
         b. The house of Simon and Andrew, whom Jesus had called - cf.
            Mk 1:16-18
      2. Simon's wife's mother lay sick of a fever - Mk 1:30
         a. Her daughter the wife of Simon, better known as the apostle
            Peter - cf. Mk 3:16
         b. About whom (the mother-in-law) they told Jesus immediately
      3. Whom Jesus heals immediately - Mk 1:31
         a. Taking her by the hand and lifting her up
         b. Free of fever, she then served them

   B. OBSERVATIONS...
      1. Note the compassion of our Lord
         a. Whether in the crowded synagogue or the quiet home, Jesus is
            ready to heal - Erdman
         b. The touch of His hand, suggests tenderness and sympathy
            - ibid.
      2. Note that Peter was married
         a. His wife would later join him on his travels - cf. 1Co 9:5
         b. Who according to tradition suffered crucifixion together
            with him
         c. "That Peter had a mother-in-law shows that the idea of a
            celibate priesthood was foreign to that day. It is a
            tradition of men which finds no support in the Word of God
            and which breeds a host of evils." - Believer's Bible
            Commentary
         d. Requisite celibacy is certainly foreign to the Scriptures
            - cf. 1Co 7:2,9; 1Ti 3:2,12
      3. Note the immediate response of the mother-in-law
         a. Restored, she used her health to serve others
         b. When restored from sickness, do we show our gratitude by
            serving others?

[As the day draws to a close, Jesus' work is not yet done.  For we next
read how...]

II. JESUS HEALS MANY AFTER SUNSET

   A. THE TEXT...
      1. At evening many assemble - Mk 1:32-33
         a. After sunset, when the Sabbath was over
         b. All who were sick, and those demon-possessed were brought to
            Him
         c. The whole city gathered at the door of the house
      2. Jesus healed many - Mk 1:34
         a. Mark says "many"
         b. Matthew says "all" - Mt 8:16
      3. He cast out many demons - Mk 1:34
         a. Just as He done with the unclean spirit in the synagogue
            - Mk 1:23-26
         b. Likewise forbidding them to speak, because they knew Him

   B. OBSERVATIONS...
      1. Note the time - at the end of the day
         a. When people would normally retire
         b. Yet Jesus receives all who come to Him
      2. Note the response of the people
         a. Reacting naturally to hearing of one who could really heal
         b. If someone could really heal like Jesus or His apostles,
            crowds could not be kept away - cf. Ac 5:14-16
      3. Note the success of the healer
         a. Jesus healed all who came to Him - cf. Mt 8:16
         b. The apostles had similar success - cf. Ac 5:16
         c. Contrast this with so-called "faith healers" today

[Following such a long day of teaching and healing, even so we find that
early the next morning...]

III. JESUS TAKES TIME TO PRAY

   A. THE TEXT...
      1. Jesus rises early in the morning, long before daylight - Mk 1:35
      2. He departs to a solitary place, and there He prays - Mk 1:35

   B. OBSERVATIONS...
      1. Note that Jesus was a man of prayer
         a. Mark mentions other times that Jesus prayed - Mk 6:46;
            14:32-42
         b. If the Son of God needed to pray, how much more do we!
      2. Note that Jesus preferred places of solitude to pray
         a. Luke says it was a deserted place - cf. Lk 4:42
         b. Jesus would later go to a mountain - cf. Mk 6:46
         c. He prepared for His crucifixion by praying in quiet garden
            - cf. Mk 14:32-42
         d. We do well to seek out quiet places to pray - cf. also Mt 6:
            5-6

[Finally, we observe in our text that...]

IV. JESUS REMAINS TRUE TO HIS PURPOSE

   A. THE TEXT...
      1. Simon and others search for Jesus - Mk 1:36
      2. Finding Him, they tell how everyone is looking for Him - Mk 1:37
      3. He says that His purpose requires that He go to other towns to
         preach - Mk 1:38
      4. Which He does throughout all Galilee, preaching in the
         synagogues and casting out demons - Mk 1:39

   B. OBSERVATIONS...
      1. Note that Jesus' purpose was to preach
         a. To proclaim the coming kingdom of God - cf. Mk 1:14-15
         b. Healing was secondary, to confirm His authority
         c. Likewise our focus should be on what Jesus taught, rather
            than His miracles
      2. Note that Jesus preached and then moved on to the next town
         a. Once people heard the message, He moved on to those who had
            not heard
         b. Might this provide insight into our own evangelistic
            efforts?
         c. Oswald J. Smith said, "No one has the right to hear the
            gospel twice, while there remains someone who has not heard
            it once."
         d. That is not entirely true, for the apostles later stayed in
            the same place for some period of time - cf. Ac 17:2; 18:
            3-4,11; 19:8-10
         e. Even so, the point remains the same:  our purpose is to tell
            as many people as possible about the gospel of Christ! - cf.
            Mk 16:15

CONCLUSION

1. In the short time He was at Simon and Andrew's home, Jesus revealed
   Himself to be a man of...
   a. Compassion
   b. Service
   c. Prayer
   d. Purpose

2. As disciples of Jesus, may we too be people of...
   a. Compassion toward those who are sick
   b. Willing to serve others as we have the ability
   c. Prayer, taking the time and find the place to do
   d. Purpose, especially in regards to fulfilling the Great Commission

Speaking of the Great Commission, have you responded to its message...?
- Mt 28:19-20; Mk 16:15-16


Executable Outlines, Copyright © Mark A. Copeland, 2011

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