Acts 13:46-48

Jesus is the light of the world!

Paul acknowledges that because the Jews were chosen by Yahweh and had unique promises from Him, they had to be presented the gospel first. Faithlife Bible.

A person who convinces himself that he does not need forgiveness from the Holy One has already condemned himself. NKJ Bible.

Acts 13:46–48 (NKJV)

⁴⁶ Then Paul and Barnabas grew bold and said, “It was necessary that the word of God should be spoken to you first; but since you reject it, and judge yourselves unworthy of everlasting life, behold, we turn to the Gentiles. ⁴⁷ For so the Lord has commanded us:

‘I have set you as a light to the Gentiles,

That you should be for salvation to the ends of the earth.’ ”

⁴⁸ Now when the Gentiles heard this, they were glad and glorified the word of the Lord. And as many as had been appointed to eternal life believed.

Isaiah 49:6 (NKJV)

⁶ Indeed He says,

‘It is too small a thing that You should be My Servant

To raise up the tribes of Jacob,

And to restore the preserved ones of Israel;

I will also give You as a light to the Gentiles,

That You should be My salvation to the ends of the earth.’ ”

Mark 3:23-25

It is time for a new creation in Christ to rise from the ashes. Christ followers need to come together in unity for good and in so doing bring about good for the entire Body of Christ, His Bride, the Church.

No longer can we stand for any act that is immoral and call it good. We need to stand for what Jesus commanded us to do. He did not speak in parables about the evils of society but directly to those who would choose to listen. Hate never comes from Jesus, remember we love because He first loved us! Those who truly love others have passed from death into life. If the world hates us…so it did Jesus and all the prophets and the saints. 

 What is it if you gain the world and lose your soul?

God first country second. God first monetary gain second. God first party lines second. God first period.

  What did He command us to do? To love God above any person, place or thing  and to love our neighbor as ourself. If we obey Him we fulfill all the commandments. Those who do the will of the Father…they are His brothers and sister.

We need to humble ourselves, ask for forgiveness and come to Him as little children…for what we do to the least of them we do to God.

Jesus’ parables contained truths about the kingdom of God. Jesus confronts the religious leaders with the possibility that, by opposing Him, they might be aligning themselves with evil powers. The defining mark of a disciple of God’s kingdom is allegiance to Jesus and His teaching. Faithlife Bible.

Jesus’ reply in parables was actually a threefold message that contrasted unity and disunity. Nothing—including Satan’s kingdom—can stand if it is divided. NKJ Bible.

Mark 3:23–25 (NKJV)

²³ So He called them to Himself and said to them in parables: “How can Satan cast out Satan? ²⁴ If a kingdom is divided against itself, that kingdom cannot stand. ²⁵ And if a house is divided against itself, that house cannot stand.

Matthew 12:25 (NKJV)

²⁵ But Jesus knew their thoughts, and said to them: “Every kingdom divided against itself is brought to desolation, and every city or house divided against itself will not stand.

Matthew and the Body of Christ

The Body of Christ represented on earth is the Church. The first body of Jewish people that embraced Christ formed the Roman Catholic Church. From this group of believers came thousands of denominations that exist under the umbrella of The Protestant Churches. 

 All believers in the salvation of Jesus Christ are  identified today as Christians. 

United in the power of the Holy Spirit we are unstoppable… dividend we are only a small remnant.

A final purpose of Matthew is to instruct the church. An obvious clue to this is in the Great Commission: “teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you”. The discipling process involves instruction in the words of Christ, and the Gospel of Matthew revolves around five of Jesus’ discourses. Instead of emphasizing a narrative of Jesus’ life as Mark does, Matthew uses the narrative elements in his Gospel as a setting for Jesus’ sermons. NKJ Bible.

Jesus is talking to the Chosen People of Israel but all scripture is profitable for believers in Jesus Christ.

Matthew 28:20 (NKJV)

²⁰ teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age.” Amen.

Matthew 5:1–12 (NKJV) 

5 And seeing the multitudes, He went up on a mountain, and when He was seated His disciples came to Him. ² Then He opened His mouth and taught them, saying:

³ “Blessed are the poor in spirit,

For theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

⁴ Blessed are those who mourn,

For they shall be comforted.

⁵ Blessed are the meek,

For they shall inherit the earth.

⁶ Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness,

For they shall be filled.

⁷ Blessed are the merciful,

For they shall obtain mercy.

⁸ Blessed are the pure in heart,

For they shall see God.

⁹ Blessed are the peacemakers,

For they shall be called sons of God.

¹⁰ Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness’ sake,

For theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

¹¹ “Blessed are you when they revile and persecute you, and say all kinds of evil against you falsely for My sake. ¹² Rejoice and be exceedingly glad, for great is your reward in heaven, for so they persecuted the prophets who were before you.

Matthew 7:28 (NKJV)

²⁸ And so it was, when Jesus had ended these sayings, that the people were astonished at His teaching,

Matthew 13:3–9 (NKJV)

³ Then He spoke many things to them in parables, saying: “Behold, a sower went out to sow. ⁴ And as he sowed, some seed fell by the wayside; and the birds came and devoured them. ⁵ Some fell on stony places, where they did not have much earth; and they immediately sprang up because they had no depth of earth. ⁶ But when the sun was up they were scorched, and because they had no root they withered away. ⁷ And some fell among thorns, and the thorns sprang up and choked them. ⁸ But others fell on good ground and yielded a crop: some a hundredfold, some sixty, some thirty. ⁹ He who has ears to hear, let him hear!”

Matthew 18:1–5 (NKJV)

18 At that time the disciples came to Jesus, saying, “Who then is greatest in the kingdom of heaven?”

² Then Jesus called a little child to Him, set him in the midst of them, ³ and said, “Assuredly, I say to you, unless you are converted and become as little children, you will by no means enter the kingdom of heaven. ⁴ Therefore whoever humbles himself as this little child is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven. ⁵ Whoever receives one little child like this in My name receives Me.

Matthew 18:6–7 (NKJV)

⁶ “Whoever causes one of these little ones who believe in Me to sin, it would be better for him if a millstone were hung around his neck, and he were drowned in the depth of the sea. ⁷ Woe to the world because of offenses! For offenses must come, but woe to that man by whom the offense comes!

Matthew 19:16–26 (NKJV)

¹⁶ Now behold, one came and said to Him, “Good Teacher, what good thing shall I do that I may have eternal life?”

¹⁷ So He said to him, “Why do you call Me good? No one is good but One, that is, God. But if you want to enter into life, keep the commandments.”

¹⁸ He said to Him, “Which ones?”

Jesus said, “ ‘You shall not murder,’ ‘You shall not commit adultery,’ ‘You shall not steal,’ ‘You shall not bear false witness,’ ¹⁹ ‘Honor your father and your mother,’ and, ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’ ”

²⁰ The young man said to Him, “All these things I have kept from my youth. What do I still lack?”

²¹ Jesus said to him, “If you want to be perfect, go, sell what you have and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; and come, follow Me.”

²² But when the young man heard that saying, he went away sorrowful, for he had great possessions.

²³ Then Jesus said to His disciples, “Assuredly, I say to you that it is hard for a rich man to enter the kingdom of heaven. ²⁴ And again I say to you, it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God.”

²⁵ When His disciples heard it, they were greatly astonished, saying, “Who then can be saved?”

²⁶ But Jesus looked at them and said to them, “With men this is impossible, but with God all things are possible.”

Romans 5:15-17

It is not about us…it is all about Jesus. He wants no one to perish…no, not one! The door is wide open and His pierced hands are extended to you…salvation, restoration and eternal love await your embrace. 

Let your fruit shine to His glory. Faith without works produces nothing.

 In His birth, death and resurrection Jesus offers   life to all who accept this amazing gift of grace from the Father.

Paul emphasizes that Adam’s trespass brought death to all who belong to him. By contrast, those who belong to Christ receive the free gift of grace. Faithlife Bible.

Through Christ came the free gift that resulted in justification. That is to say, the aim or goal of the gift is justification, or “righteousness.” In other words, the goal of the gift of eternal life is righteous living. This does not refer to justification by faith but to the practical outworking of faith through righteous acts. Thus this verse contrasts the penal servitude of a sinner with the righteous life of a believer. 

Through Christ came justification of life, a justification that produces life. NKJ Bible.

Romans 5:15–17 (NKJV)

¹⁵ But the free gift is not like the offense. For if by the one man’s offense many died, much more the grace of God and the gift by the grace of the one Man, Jesus Christ, abounded to many. ¹⁶ And the gift is not like that which came through the one who sinned. For the judgment which came from one offense resulted in condemnation, but the free gift which came from many offenses resulted in justification. ¹⁷ For if by the one man’s offense death reigned through the one, much more those who receive abundance of grace and of the gift of righteousness will reign in life through the One, Jesus Christ.

Isaiah 53:11 (NKJV)

¹¹ He shall see the labor of His soul, and be satisfied.

By His knowledge My righteous Servant shall justify many,

For He shall bear their iniquities.

Micah 4:3

Psalm 139:23- “Search me, God, and know my heart; test me and know my anxious thoughts. See if there is any offensive way in me and lead me in the way everlasting”

And JESUS who is to rule for eternity came with shouts of Peace, peace to the people of the earth. It is all about Jesus and His commands to love God and others with our whole heart, mind and spirit.

God does not show favoritism and neither should we.

Yahweh will serve as the judge of all nations. Faithlife Bible.

All weapons of destruction will be recycled into tools of production. There will finally be an end to conflict. War will not even be a subject for study anymore. NKJ Bible.

Micah 4:3 (NKJV)

³ He shall judge between many peoples,

And rebuke strong nations afar off;

They shall beat their swords into plowshares,

And their spears into pruning hooks;

Nation shall not lift up sword against nation,

Neither shall they learn war anymore.

Joel 3:10 (NKJV)

¹⁰ Beat your plowshares into swords

And your pruning hooks into spears;

Let the weak say, ‘I am strong.’ ”

Psalm 72:7 (NKJV)

⁷ In His days the righteous shall flourish,

And abundance of peace,

Until the moon is no more.

2 Thessalonians 1:3-8

Thank you father for answering our prayers and petitions to save immigrant children from the separation of their parents! prayers work!

God wants no one to perish…no not one and the Body Of Christ means everything to Him. The two are not unrelated. 

Who are we to care about? ALL of His creation. He shows no partiality whether they accept the truth of the salvation of Jesus as a gift from their loving Father or do not acknowledge He is their Father. He showers His love on the just and the unjust. 

Jesus willingly gave His life for all people. Believers need to show others the love of the One who loves them with an agape love.

Spread the Good News while there is time!

Paul boasts about the Thessalonians because of the flourishing of their faith and love. For this reason, they serve as a model for other churches. God rules as King. The believers suffer persecution because they have declared allegiance to Jesus, a king other than Caesar. Paul encourages them that their response to this persecution—increased faith in God and love for others is proof that they are worthy of God’s kingdom. The title “Lord” (Greek, kyrios) threatened Caesar’s claim to lordship. Faithlife Bible.

The Thessalonians’ steadfast faith not only strengthened them to withstand difficult circumstances, it also motivated them to express genuine love for others. A Christian’s faith in Christ should always culminate in true love for others. Persecution not only tests faith but reveals it and causes it to grow. Continued faith and endurance through persecutions provide a testimony for Christ, of which Paul was boasting to the other churches. NKJ Bible.

2 Thessalonians 1:3–8 (NKJV)

³ We are bound to thank God always for you, brethren, as it is fitting, because your faith grows exceedingly, and the love of every one of you all abounds toward each other, ⁴ so that we ourselves boast of you among the churches of God for your patience and faith in all your persecutions and tribulations that you endure, ⁵ which is manifest evidence of the righteous judgment of God, that you may be counted worthy of the kingdom of God, for which you also suffer; ⁶ since it is a righteous thing with God to repay with tribulation those who trouble you, ⁷ and to give you who are troubled rest with us when the Lord Jesus is revealed from heaven with His mighty angels, ⁸ in flaming fire taking vengeance on those who do not know God, and on those who do not obey the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ.

1 Thessalonians 2:19 (NKJV)

¹⁹ For what is our hope, or joy, or crown of rejoicing? Is it not even you in the presence of our Lord Jesus Christ at His coming?

Matthew 2:18

I would never have believed that in the land of the brave we would see children separated from their parents. This is more than I can bear.

Bring us to our knees Lord, bring us to our knees!

Matthew quotes Jeremiah 31:15; the context of children being slaughtered and Jesus’ family being uprooted parallels the context of Jeremiah’s prophecy. Faithlife Bible

This prophecy comes from Jeremiah 31:15, in which Rachel, who had been entombed near Bethlehem some 13 centuries before the Babylonian captivity, is seen weeping for her children as they were led away to Babylon in 586 b.c. In the slaughter of the male infants at the time of Christ’s birth, Rachel once again is pictured as mourning the violent loss of her sons. NKJ Bible.

Matthew 2:18 (NKJV) 

¹⁸“A voice was heard in Ramah,

Lamentation, weeping, and great mourning,

Rachel weeping for her children,

Refusing to be comforted,

Because they are no more.”

Jeremiah 31:15 (NKJV)

¹⁵ Thus says the Lord:

“A voice was heard in Ramah,

Lamentation and bitter weeping,

Rachel weeping for her children,

Refusing to be comforted for her children,

Because they are no more.”

Nahum 2:10-13

It is terrifying as a Christian to be fighting against God. God always WINS. The Holy Spirit since January 3rd of this year has directed me to these passages almost monthly and sometimes more than once a month. It is better that a millstone be put around our neck than to hurt these little ones!

Wake up America!

What does God require of us?

To love Him above any person, place or thing and to 

love our neighbors as much as we do ourselves!

 Who is our neighbor? everyone in the world that  He  created.

Assyria had despoiled many nations, including Samaria and the cities of Israel. There seemed to be no end to the loot that could be found within its walls. Nonetheless, even Nineveh was exhausted of its treasures. At long last, it was empty. Despite all the horrors that the lion of Nineveh had brought to other nations, it would no longer need to be feared by anyone.

 Although the Babylonians conquered the city, they were only God’s instruments. Nineveh’s greatest foe was the Lord of hosts Himself. NKJ Bible.

Nahum 2:10–13 (NKJV)

¹⁰ She is empty, desolate, and waste!

The heart melts, and the knees shake;

Much pain is in every side,

And all their faces are drained of color.

¹¹ Where is the dwelling of the lions,

And the feeding place of the young lions,

Where the lion walked, the lioness and lion’s cub,

And no one made them afraid?

¹² The lion tore in pieces enough for his cubs,

Killed for his lionesses,

Filled his caves with prey,

And his dens with flesh.

¹³ “Behold, I am against you,” says the Lord of hosts, “I will burn your chariots in smoke, and the sword shall devour your young lions; I will cut off your prey from the earth, and the voice of your messengers shall be heard no more.”

Isaiah 5:29 (NKJV)

²⁹ Their roaring will be like a lion,

They will roar like young lions;

Yes, they will roar

And lay hold of the prey;

They will carry it away safely,

And no one will deliver.