Christ, the incarnate God-man, in the appointed time of the Father lived with His creation. In Him and through Him the world was forever changed.
Luke 3:38 the son of Enosh, the son of Seth, the son of Adam, the son of God.
The Son of God came from the human experience of Adam. From the beginning, the Godhead planned the end, knowing that man without Him would fail. In the birth, death and resurrection of the Redeemer King of Israel, all God-all man, salvation would be offered to the whole of the human race.
Luke 2241-44 And He was withdrawn from them about a stone’s throw, and He knelt down and prayed, 42 saying, “Father, if it is Your will, take this cup away from Me; nevertheless not My will, but Yours, be done.” 43 Then an angel appeared to Him from heaven, strengthening Him. 44 And being in agony, He prayed more earnestly. Then His sweat became like great drops of blood falling down to the ground.
In His humanity Jesus suffered. He was completely submissive to the Father even in His death.
There were two times in the story of Jesus that everything was perfect. In the Garden of Eden God created His perfect plan for the human race and then He rested. After the finished and complete work of the Cross He sat at the right hand of the majesty on high. Christ was crucified and shed His blood and by His resurrection power He offered salvation to all of humanity. Faith is the only thing required to spend eternity with Him.
Matthew 8:23-27 Now when He got into a boat, His disciples followed Him. 24 And suddenly a great tempest arose on the sea, so that the boat was covered with the waves. But He was asleep. 25 Then His disciples came to Him and awoke Him, saying, “Lord, save us! We are perishing!” 26 But He said to them, “Why are you fearful, O you of little faith?” Then He arose and rebuked the winds and the sea, and there was a great calm. 27 So the men marveled, saying, “Who can this be, that even the winds and the sea obey Him?”
In His humanity Christ slept. In His Godhead He calmed the winds and the seas. Faith in Him is the gift of the Father to all who accept Jesus the Christ as their hope. This was a perfect illustration of Jesus, all God-all man, He came not to condemn the world but that through Him the world could be saved (John 3:17). We are clothed in His righteousness..not our own. Carla
His disciples refers to the Twelve. Jesus uses this phrase, you of little faith, to respond to His disciples’ doubt that God would take care of them (Matthew 14:31; 16:8). Their weak faith contrasts with the great faith of the centurion (verse 10). Since in the ancient Near East the sea represented chaotic forces controllable only by God, Jesus’ command of the waves serves as a sign of His deity. Matthew frequently refers to the astonishment of Jesus’ audience (Matthew 8:27; 9:33; 15:31; 21:20; 22:22; 27:14). His authority over the storm awes His disciples, just as His teaching did the crowd (7:29). Faithlife Study Bible
It is a comfort to those who go down to the sea in ships, and are often in perils there, to reflect that they have a Saviour to trust in and pray to, who knows what it is to be on the water, and to be in storms there. Those who are passing with Christ over the ocean of this world, must expect storms. His human nature, like to ours in every thing but sin, was wearied, and he slept at this time to try the faith of his disciples. They, in their fear, came to their Master. Thus is it in a soul; when lusts and temptations are swelling and raging, and God is, as it were, asleep to it, this brings it to the brink of despair. Then it cries for a word from his mouth, Lord Jesus, keep not silence to me, or I am undone. Many that have true faith, are weak in it. Christ’s disciples are apt to be disquieted with fears in a stormy day; to torment themselves that things are bad with them, and with dismal thoughts that they will be worse. Great storms of doubt and fear in the soul, under the power of the spirit of bondage, sometimes end in a wonderful calm, created and spoken by the Spirit of adoption. They were astonished. They never saw a storm so turned at once into a perfect calm. He that can do this, can do any thing, which encourages confidence and comfort in him, in the most stormy day, within or without, Isaiah 26:4. Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary.
Matthew 6:30 Now if God so clothes the grass of the field, which today is, and tomorrow is thrown into the oven, will He not much more clothe you, O you of little faith?
Psalm 65:7
You who still the noise of the seas,
The noise of their waves,
And the tumult of the peoples.
Psalm 89:9
You rule the raging of the sea;
When its waves rise, You still them
I confess: It’s so easy to close my eyes, and emotionally take a pass, because I know how to do that. And I can let gloom get the best of me because I know how to do that too. But this isn’t the time for any one of us to be trapped by fear and judgment, demonization and division, or to be unsettled by cruelty.
They remind me that… Grace wins. Hope wins. Compassion wins. And none of it is tied to a religion or a political party.
What we do, and who we are, touches lives, plain and simple.
This matters more than ever, in a divisive world, a world on edge, a world where a kind word or gesture makes all the difference. We need a reset on making a difference.
Tomorrow I will wake up with my eyes open.
I will do the good work of loving those whose paths I cross.
I will fight for sanctuary for the broken, the marginalized and the unseen.
I choose to be a voice for compassion and mercy and second chances and healing and hope and grace and inclusiveness and restoration and kindness and bigheartedness.
I want to be a place of sanctuary. Where we say No to cruelty and hatred. And where there is hope for the least of these, for the wounded and marginalized.
Will you join me?
Be a voice where you live.
Be the giver and dispenser of blessings.
Know that deep down there is a light that cannot be extinguished by hatred or judgment or cynicism or fear.
Our hearts and prayers are with Minnesota Melissa Hortman’s family, after the horrific shooting.
And a shoutout to all my friends and colleagues who marched yesterday. I smiled real big. An affirmation, onward together, one step at a time. Excerpt from Sabbath Moments
in Acts 2, God sent His Holy Spirit to dwell within all believers in Jesus.
If we follow Jesus today, Ephesians 1:17 gives us the same assurance: "that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give [us] the Spirit of wisdom and of revelation in the knowledge of him." First5
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