PRAYER FOR YOUR FRUITFULNESS The LORD bless you and keep you; the LORD make his face to shine upon you and be gracious to you; the LORD lift up his countenance upon you and give you peace. —Numbers 6:24-26 The sower sows the word. And these are the ones along the path, where the word is sown: when they hear, Satan immediately comes and takes away the word that is sown in them. And these are the ones sown on rocky ground: the ones who, when they hear the word, immediately receive it with joy. And they have no root in themselves, but endure for a while; then, when tribulation or persecution arises on account…

PROOF OF CLOSE RELATIONSHIP— DOING GOD’S WILL Then Jesus’ mother and brothers arrived. Standing outside, they sent someone in to call him. A crowd was sitting around him, and they told him, “Your mother and brothers are outside looking for you.”  “Who are my mother and my brothers?” he asked.  Then he looked at those seated in a circle around him and said, “Here are my mother and my brothers! Whoever does God’s will is my brother and sister and mother.” —Mark 3:31-35             Who does Jesus consider His close family members?  It is those who do God’s will.  They are what He considers family.  Doing God’s will is the highest priority and His…

DO WHAT IS RIGHT EVEN WHEN OPPOSED Again he entered the synagogue, and a man was there with a withered hand. And they watched Jesus, to see whether he would heal him on the Sabbath, so that they might accuse him. And he said to the man with the withered hand, “Come here.” And he said to them, “Is it lawful on the Sabbath to do good or to do harm, to save life or to kill?” But they were silent. And he looked around at them with anger, grieved at their hardness of heart, and said to the man, “Stretch out your hand.” He stretched it out, and his hand was restored. The Pharisees…

FORGIVEN! And they came, bringing to him a paralytic carried by four men. And when they could not get near him because of the crowd, they removed the roof above him, and when they had made an opening, they let down the bed on which the paralytic lay. And when Jesus saw their faith, he said to the paralytic, “Son, your sins are forgiven.” Now some of the scribes were sitting there, questioning in their hearts, “Why does this man speak like that? He is blaspheming! Who can forgive sins but God alone?” And immediately Jesus, perceiving in his spirit that they thus questioned within themselves, said to them, “Why do you question these things…

HONOR HIS NAME! Now an Israelite woman’s son, whose father was an Egyptian, went out among the people of Israel. And the Israelite woman’s son and a man of Israel fought in the camp, and the Israelite woman’s son blasphemed the Name, and cursed…. Whoever blasphemes the name of the LORD shall surely be put to death. —Leviticus 24;10-11, 16              How many people would be executed today if this was enforced as it was under the Israelite Theocracy?  People blaspheme the Name of Jesus constantly in our culture.  And why do people do this?  It is rebellion against God— “You shall not misuse the name of the Lord your God, for…

HELP THOSE WHO TRULY NEED HELP “And when you reap the harvest of your land, you shall not reap your field right up to its edge, nor shall you gather the gleanings after your harvest. You shall leave them for the poor and for the sojourner: I am the LORD your God.” —Leviticus 23:22                Jesus had said, “The poor you will always have with you, and you can help them any time you want.”  There was an expectation that we would help the poor.  In the verse above we see that during harvest the land owners were not to harvest along the edge of their fields or gather the…

DON’T BE SWAYED WITH MONEY! So the soldiers took the money and did as they were instructed. And this story has been widely circulated among the Jews to this very day. —Matthew 28:15             The soldiers knew exactly what happened. “There was a violent earthquake, for an angel of the Lord came down from heaven and, going to the tomb, rolled back the stone and sat on it. His appearance was like lightning, and his clothes were white as snow. The guards were so afraid of him that they shook and became like dead men.” —Matthew 28:2-4             This supernatural event caused the soldiers to “shake in their boots” (sandals).  The glorious…

THE WICKED SEX TRAFFICKING OF OUR YOUTH! Do not do anything that endangers your neighbor’s life. I am the Lord. —Leviticus 19:16 Do not degrade your daughter by making her a prostitute, or the land will turn to prostitution and be filled with wickedness. —Leviticus 19:29             The people of the nation of Israel were not to “do anything that endangers your neighbor’s life. I am the Lord.”  They were not to “degrade your daughter by making her a prostitute, or the land will turn to prostitution and be filled with wickedness.”  Surely these were good directives then and now.             As individuals or a nation, we are not to endanger our…

SPEAK TRUTH, LIVE TRUTHFULLY Then Pilate said to him, “Do you not hear how many things they testify against you?” But he gave him no answer, not even to a single charge, so that the governor was greatly amazed. —Matthew 27:13-14 So when they had gathered, Pilate said to them, “Whom do you want me to release for you: Barabbas, or Jesus who is called Christ?” For he knew that it was out of envy that they had delivered him up. Besides, while he was sitting on the judgment seat, his wife sent word to him, “Have nothing to do with that righteous man, for I have suffered much because of him today…

KNOW YOURSELF AND BE READY Then he began to call down curses, and he swore to them, “I don’t know the man!”  Immediately a rooster crowed. Then Peter remembered the word Jesus had spoken: “Before the rooster crows, you will disown me three times.” And he went outside and wept bitterly. —Matthew 26:74-75 It was not much earlier that “Peter declared, ‘Even if I have to die with you, I will never disown you.’  And all the other disciples said the same” (Matthew 26:35).  How well do we know ourselves?  Do we project that we will do so and so or act so and so in a situation, but will we? Let us…