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"Come follow me and I will make you fishers of men." Matthew 4:19

Tag: Desire

One Thing…

February 24, 2024 /

Matthew Botelho

“Come to Me, all you who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For My yoke is easy and My burden is light.” –Matthew 11:28-30.

In today’s world, my dear friends, we all need rest. I mean a deep rest. We need to shut out the world around us and focus instead on seeking God. For a long while now, I have felt in my spirit that many of us are battle-worn, tired, and needing replenishment. After all, a vessel cannot pour out if it is empty. Something must fill it first. Then, it can be used to pour out. And from what I see, many today are poured out, dry vessels needing a fresh infilling of the Holy Spirit. Needing to cry out to Jesus and pray for His fresh wine, His blessings, and His fullness to come in and fill us—quenching and replenishing our thirsty souls—me included.

And yet, as I am sure you know, shutting down the world around us long enough to hear from God can be difficult.

Why? Because it surrounds us. We walk out our doors, and it is our faces. We turn on our television, tablet, or computer, pick up our phones, and multimedia tries to tell us what to believe or listen to. Some of us have jobs that are void of the Light of Christ. We are the only ones working there who may know or share the Gospel of Christ. All this can be tiring and discouraging. But, my dear brothers and sisters, I have come to remind and encourage you today that despite how you may be feeling, you are the Light of Christ Jesus—a glory carrier.

There is so much noise and distraction in our world and minds that it can often make it nearly impossible to remember this Truth. So, I will remind you instead of what Paul writes: “For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this age, against spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places.” –Ephesians 6:12.

At our church, we are being reminded and encouraged by Psalm 24:7 by our pastors and elders. “Lift up your heads, O you gates! And be lifted up, you everlasting doors! And the King of glory shall come in.”

Friends, you are the gates when you worship the King of Glory!

His Holy Spirit will open wide the gates of your heart to receive the fulness of what Jesus has for you as you worship. Worship is the posture of our hearts as we praise Jesus alone. When you are dry and tired, seek Him. When you need wisdom, seek Him! Come expecting God’s fullness to overtake you, filling you to overflowing whenever you realign your vision and reposition your heart to His—receiving from Him instead of pouring out into others.

In Luke 10, Jesus is at the home of Mary and Martha.

As Jesus is reclining at the table, Martha is preparing and running around getting things organized for dinner. All she wants to be is a good host for her company, which is good, but Martha is very distracted. Her heart is that of a “deliverer.” Being a deliverer means serving with everything in you—giving it your all, but Martha is not taking the time to be replenished. What ends up happening? She gets discouraged.

Her sister Mary, however, is found sitting at the feet of Jesus, listening to Him teach, taking in His every Word. She is having an intimate moment with Jesus. Her heart is far removed from the hustle and bustle of the world around her. All she wants is to be with Jesus. Mary’s heart has taken the posture of a “receiver,” taking in the fullness of what Jesus was teaching and speaking to her, being filled up and readied to pour out.

Friends, if we just stopped and listened, as Mary did, and let God be God. If we would stop and take a knee, I assure you the posture of our hearts will truly change, just as Luke 10 reminds us: “But Martha was distracted with much serving, and she approached Him and said Lord do you not care that my sister has left me to serve alone therefore tell her to help me. And Jesus answered and said to her, “Martha, Martha you are worried and troubled about many things. But one thing is needed, and Mary has chosen that good part, which will not be taken away from her.” –Luke 10:40-42.

Jesus says: “But one thing is needed and Mary has chosen the best part.” Did you catch that?

Jesus requires just one thing from us during our time with Him: To listen and receive. To be intimate and intentional in our time with Him.

Martha got so busy that she may have forgotten who she was serving. Yes, we are to serve in our churches and communities, but we must never forget the One who gave us the gift of servanthood and salvation. Jesus first served us, so we need to follow His example. But we must never forget what Jesus commanded us: “But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added to you.” –Matthew 6:33.

Mary realized that she was in the presence of God and showed humility by placing herself in a posture of worship as she gazed upon the King of Glory. I can only imagine what He must have been teaching at that moment and what it must have felt like to see, hear, and feel the fullness of God. 

My dear friends, as I close, do not harden your heart to what was shared here today, to what the Holy Spirit is saying to you. Your heart is what Jesus requires—service will naturally follow. When you are tired and need to be refreshed, seek Jesus first. When you seek Him, you also receive the fullness of His Kingdom. In Him alone, you will find rest.

Father God, I pray those reading this who have yet to call You Lord will today declare Your son Jesus as Lord over their lives by repenting their sins and asking for their lives to be washed clean by the Blood of our Lord Jesus. Let today be the day of salvation, and heaven rejoice over this one who has come in. Amen. In Jesus, you will find forgiveness and salvation for your souls, and His sinless Blood will wash away your every sin.

Scripture promises this: “If you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. For with the heart one believes and is justified, and with the mouth one confesses and is saved.” –Romans 10:9-10.

And Romans 10:13 makes clear: “Whoever calls on the name of the Lord shall be saved.”

He Wants It All…

August 1, 2020 /
MaryEllen Montville




Then Jesus said to his disciples, “Whoever wants to be my disciple must deny themselves and take up their cross and follow me” –Matthew 16:24.

Have you ever felt led to watch something on television? A movie or some television show perhaps? I have too. Last night I felt led to watch The Passion of the Christ. It was during those first opening moments of the movie when Jesus is in the Garden of Gethsemane with Peter, James, and John that Holy Spirit spoke to me and I began to understand why I was led to watch this particular movie. Knowing I would lead you here tonight, this is why I drew your attention to that Scripture earlier today. I wanted to open-up my Word before you. To show you: This is what it looks like to deny yourself. The standard I had in mind when I inspired Matthew to pen My Words.

Earlier this same day I had been reading Matthew 16. My eyes being repeatedly drawn back to those words “deny themselves.” He also drew my attention back to “take up their cross” too, but that is for another day. I knew Holy Spirit was enlivening His Word as only He can. He was calling us into a greater surrender of ourselves. A greater denial of our wills and wants—into surrendering ourselves to Jesus in these, our final hours. I knew the type of denial He was speaking of was far greater than just giving up coffee for a few days. Greater than sacrificing Netflix or television, sleep, or a meal. Those things a mere training ground for that deeper, more intimate denial.

In part, the Word makes clear we must be willing to give up even our best intentions. Bringing those acts born of love, even our deepest desire of wanting the absolute best for those we love—under the authority of our Father as painful as that may be. We are not God. We do not see all that He sees. Neither do we know a things intended end. And yet, it is so counter to our nature to not simply react without first taking a breath. Not automatically think and feel that we know best. Not defend, block, save from harm those we love. Or at least try to. Just ask Peter. What parent can’t relate to this feeling when left helplessly watching their beloved child headed for a stone wall at full throttle? Making a choice that runs contrary to every fiber of our being. However, this is the exact example of “denying ourselves” Jesus had just taught His beloved Peter, His Rock, a few verses before our own. Don’t take my word. Go and read Matthew 16:21-23 for yourself.

So then, using Jesus’ rebuke of Peter as our guide, we may feel confident in defining this “denying ourselves” to include in part, anything that not only hinders our walk with God, more, as any-thing that stands in the path of God’s perfect will being fully accomplished—period. Regardless of how we may feel about it. “For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, declares the Lord. For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts”–Isaiah 55:8-9.

This “denying” Jesus is speaking of is so much bigger than just the temporary giving up of “stuff”—even that stuff we need to live. Jesus Himself confirms this Truth in Matthew 6:31-33. “Therefore, do not be anxious, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ For the Gentiles seek after all these things, and our heavenly Father knows that you need them all. But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added to you” And yet, it was not until watching that particular scene unfold in the garden during the movie last night, the scene where Jesus pours Himself out to the point of sweating blood before the Father, that I more fully caught what Holy Spirit was pointing me towards earlier in the day…

If we genuinely want to be His disciple, we must be willing to wring-out at the Father’s feet that very last drop of self-left in us. Lovingly, wholeheartedly, willingly, by the power of His Holy Spirit—just as Jesus did.

Using Jesus as our standard then, and by the power of the Holy Spirit at work in us, we must be wholly committed to surrendering every crevice of our lives where self may seek to sneak away and hide. Carving out for itself some little corner in which it may well set up a throne on which to sit, seeking its own will. It is time to let it go. It is time to surrender those habits—those not-so-holy vestiges of ourselves. It is time to “put up or shut up”, as the saying goes. That shaking you have been sensing, that is an inner sifting taking place. A separating of wheat and chaff. Holy Spirit is letting you know you need to dig deeper, ridding yourself, once in for all, of what does not align with God’s will for your life. Complete surrender is the standard our hearts must be willing to reach for. Not perfection. Surrender. Withholding no-thing. This is the mark set before all who will seek to follow Jesus, the will of the Father…

Let me ask you, friend: “What is Satan trying to stop you from laying down? What is he attempting to keep you from fully surrendering to God?” Is it a spirit of religion? Is it drugs? A Savior complex? Are you full of pride? Control perhaps? Is it sex outside of marriage? A homosexual lifestyle maybe? Are you drinking too much? Maybe food has become your god of late? Whatever it is, I encourage you to follow Jesus’ example and pour it out in obedience at the Father’s feet now—don’t sleep on it. “For whoever wants to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for My sake will find it. What will it profit a man if he gains the whole world, yet forfeits his soul? Or what can a man give in exchange for his soul?” –Matthew 16: 25-26.

Friends, remember this as you lay in all down before the Lord, Love has won in every garden He has ever entered. Both in Eden and Gethsemane. Allow this to encourage you. Give you the strength you may be lacking in yourself.

If we were paying attention back in Eden, we would have caught our first glimpse of this moment, of this Living definition of denying oneself unfolding now, in Gethsemane. A foreshadowing of what must unfold, be sacrificed, that God’s plan for His children is fulfilled. Our first glimpse of this final sacrifice then, those bloody skins that were thrown over the naked frames of Adam and Eve back in Eden. “And Jehovah Elohim made Adam and his wife coats of skin, and clothed them” –Genesis 3:21. In each garden, Jesus went before us—our Guide, our Good Shepherd demonstrating just what it is this “denying ourselves” must look like. This all or nothing commitment, even unto death. And in each garden, Love won. Give it all to Him today friends. Jesus demonstrated for us that holding back any-thing, even unto the laying down of our very lives, is as withholding back every-thing.

There is no such thing as halfway in…

I encourage you today brothers and sisters; if you are struggling under the weight of denying your flesh, get up! Try again! Cry out to God again and again and again if need be. He is faithful to respond to the cries of His children. The Israelites will testify to this Truth! Do not allow Satan to use that one thing God is asking you to entrust into His care to stop you from fully surrendering all-of-you to God. Even your love for another. Even your “best” thing. “But we have this treasure in jars of clay to show that this all-surpassing power is from God and not from us. We are hard pressed on every side, but not crushed; perplexed, but not in despair; persecuted, but not abandoned; struck down, but not destroyed” -2 Corinthians 4:7-9.

And know, new friend, that your being here today is not by accident. God has led you here. He is asking you to deny yourself—those feelings, struggles, and situations that have been ruling over you—and follow Him, instead. Won’t you say yes to Him? If you have never asked this Jesus to be Lord of your life, ask Him now. He wants to help you to surrender into His care every-thing that stands in the way of the two of you being as close as He desires to be with you.

Parousia. Luke 12:35-38.

May 30, 2020 /
“Be ready for action, and have your lamps burning. Be like servants waiting to open the door at their master’s knock when he returns from a wedding. Blessed are those servants whom the master finds awake when he comes. I can guarantee this truth: He will change his clothes, make them sit down at the table, and serve them. They will be blessed if he comes in the middle of the night or toward morning and finds them awake.”

The Greek word Parousia (παρουσία) means “presence” or “arrival”. It is used as a technical term to refer to the return of Christ in glory at the end of this world. –Jesse Cragwall.

Words such as union, fusion, and symbiosis hint at the ineffable oneness with Jesus that the apostle Paul experienced: “It is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me” (Gal. 2:20). No human word is even remotely adequate to convey the mysterious and furious longing of Jesus for you and me to live in His smile and hang on His words. But union comes close, very close; it is a word pregnant with a reality that surpasses understanding, the only reality worth yearning for with love and patience, the only reality before which we should stay very quiet. CEASE STRIVING AND KNOW THAT I AM GOD. (PS. 46:10 NASB) ― Brennan Manning.

Just last night I sat staring out of my window. The trees, dark, shadowy figures pressed up against an even darker night. I was calling out to You. “Abba, I’m here”. My face pushed against my window screen (I just wanted to get as close to you as I could) my heart full of longing. My words meant only for Your ears. I poured my heart out, and up to You—like Samuel’s mother did—with yearning. My lips barely moving. Lord, I long for this time with You. These few precious moments when I am not doing anything—nor am I asking you to. When I am not seeking after some-thing. Not asking that you provide this or that or answer this prayer or that one from earlier today. Neither am I bringing my questions—nor my concerns. Rather, I am simply just drinking-in this time of the day when I can just be alone with you. That is it. Just me and you alone in this sacred space. This dent in the screen my forehead made while pressing against it. Pressing into this moment. This deep longing to just be with You. And so, I sit here. Face pressed to the screen, talking to you. The night breeze carrying my every Word to your ears. You smile just to hear them. I can feel Your happiness in my belly. You testifying to Your nearness, Your promise. “…And lo, I am with you always [remaining with you perpetually—regardless of circumstance, and on every occasion], even to the end of the age”. –Matthew 28:20. So, for the moment, I sit here. But not idly my Love. You gave me instructions to follow in your absence. The beginning of that same promise You left me, my charge. “teaching them to observe everything that I have commanded you…” –Matthew 28:20. There is much work to do. I must be about Your business while I await Your return…

Even now, remembering that moment, the feeling of longing, of wanting to be where you are—with you. Equally aware too, that the barrier of this flesh of mine—the temporariness of this tent I am sitting in, prohibits that. Being wholly where You are, I mean. At least for a time. Your timing, not mine… 

Yes, new friend, I am offering you a glimpse of the letter I’ve just written my Lover, my God, my Beginning—and my End. Yes, I have unashamedly invited you into this, our private conversation. An exchange that happens between those who are intimate—or those who genuinely want to be. And not just physically intimate—though we are. We are so much more. We are spiritually One. One, even as He and the Father are One. My God and I. Mind-blowing, right? Him knowing the very number of every hair on my head. Him knowing my words before I speak them, my thoughts before I think them. His Word tells me that it was His hands that knit me together in my mother’s womb. He chose to have this intimacy with me even before the foundation of the world. Before He stood over the dark void and said, “Let there be” and there was. While He was yet covering Adam and Eve in the bloody skins of animals sacrificed to clothe them, His thoughts were on me. Were on the Blood of the One that would one day shed that Blood so that He and I might have this intimacy. Ours is so much more than just a physical knowing. And on my end, He has placed Himself in me. His Holy Spirit alive in me. My Teacher and Counselor and Guide. My guarantee of the future I will have with Him, soon and very soon. As He is, so too will I be. His Peace left as a gift for me now. His strength too. And His ways, should I allow them to overtake me, mine too.

This new lesson of Oneness offered me when I was invited to come into my Love’s presence. Only when, as Esther can testify, the King extended His royal scepter in my direction. To, “come up here”. Up to His Throne room. To sit with Him for even a moment, in heavenly places. And because I was made certain of our love, was I bold enough to share my heart with Him. My deep longing for Him—with Him. “When the king held out the golden scepter to Esther, Esther rose and stood before the king” –Esther 8:4. There is nothing outside this window now that thrills me nearly as much as His presence does.  I choose then, daily, minute by minute often—to die to myself—that I might live with Him and in Him, more and more every day.

And so, as the servant in our Scripture sits, nose pressed to the glass, alert, watchful, waiting for their Master to return from His time away at the wedding feast. I too am waiting for my Lord. The Lover of my soul. Just as the father of the prodigal went out daily and stood to gaze out over the plains. Anticipating that at any moment he would catch a glimpse of his son there, just over that next crest returning home. I too look with longing at this night sky—hope-filled—that I might catch some glimpse of my God. Maybe in the song of the crickets or the verses the wind whistles as it passes through the trees? Will I catch some glimpse of His sweeping Kingly robe in that bold orange and violent pink of the sunset colors? Or perhaps it will be in the blinding gold of the setting sun? His Crown just might be made visible there, If I am watchful…

Remember, Jesus told us to always be ready. Always be on the lookout for His coming. To always be prepared. Wicks trimmed and lamps lit. Having more than enough oil. Staying alert and watchful. Storing up our treasure in places where the moths of this world cannot get it. Where thieves cannot break in and rob what we have been given. These days, I find myself at this window far more than I used to be—just looking up. Waiting. Expecting. Longing to see the face of my Beloved. It’s as if, from somewhere way over there, I can almost hear His footsteps nearing. And I am up and at the door! His promise now fulfilled. That when He returns, He will do again what He did before. Put on His apron and serve—me this time…

Brothers and sisters allow me to encourage you as you wait through this fourth and final watch of the night. I know your eyes are tired. I know the night has been long. I know it seems as though our Master will never return. I know many are whispering in your ear. Urging you to throw in the towel. Taunting you perhaps? Asking, “where is your God?” Remember the Truth now, weary one. What we know about our God. “God is not man, that he should lie, or a son of man, that he should change his mind. Has he said, and will he not do it? Or has he spoken, and will he not fulfill it” –Numbers 23:19? Jesus promised that He would only be gone for a moment. He was going to prepare a place for us so that it would be ready when He returns to bring us home. Hold tight, fellow servants. He will be back any second now…

And you, new friend. You have read a part of my letter, read the rest of what is written here, too. Now you know that this same Jesus who came to earth as a man some two-thousand years ago is due back at any moment. It is not too late to get ready for His arrival. Won’t you keep watch with me too? Ask Him into your heart now, while there’s still time. “Of course, you realize that if the homeowner had known at what hour the thief was coming, he would not have let him break into his house. Be ready because the Son of Man will return when you least expect him”. –Luke 12:39-40.

Because You Knew Him… Matthew 7.

May 2, 2020 /
Matthew 7:21-23
Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only the one who does the will of my Father who is in heaven. Many will say to me on that day, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name and in your name drive out demons and in your name perform many miracles?’. Then I will tell them plainly, ‘I never knew you. Away from me, you evildoers!’

Walking with God is a beautiful lifelong journey that continuously leads us into becoming the person that God created us to be. His leading comes in different ways: for some people, it is a clear cut knowing in the depths of their being; other people require more time to seek out the will of God; others know that His leading is simply a gut feeling of what should be. For all of us, however, there is a deep desire to live rightly. As Jesus concludes His famous Sermon on the Mount in Matthew 7, He gives some extra guidelines on living for God. I, for one, can attest that this chapter isn’t an easy one to get through. Some parts make me feel good, while other parts make me want to turn a blind eye. I believe these uncomfortable passages exist to sharpen us. These words have the power to show us the way that God intended for us to live from the beginning of time. These scriptures lead us to repentance- not because God seeks to make us feel bad about ourselves, but because pride has no place in His presence. We are to live humbly before the Lord. 

Matthew 7:21-23

Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only the one who does the will of my Father who is in heaven. Many will say to me on that day, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name and in your name drive out demons and in your name perform many miracles?’. Then I will tell them plainly, ‘I never knew you. Away from me, you evildoers!’

Ouch. Reading this passage makes me cringe a little bit because I can’t help but think, what if that’s me?! I mean, I’ve never performed miracles, but I have certainly prayed for them and seen them come to pass. I have prayed to God. I’ve both explained prophetic Scripture, and encouraged others. Does this mean that Jesus could turn me away at the pearly gates? Let’s quickly look at the scriptures preceding this one, as they provide some insight into Jesus’ perspective.

At the beginning of Matthew 7, Jesus instructs His listeners to steer clear of judging others. Have you ever heard the saying, “only God can judge me”? Look no further than Matthew 7 for the origin of that statement. This instruction is the beginning of laying down our pride and understanding that every person has their struggles. Judging is not to be mistaken for holding one another accountable for our actions. A judging spirit is a condition of the heart. Looking at someone through the lens of judgment raises contempt within us against our neighbors. Instead, Jesus is calling us to love our neighbors. Within our hearts, judgment and self-righteousness cannot coexist with love. One or the other must prevail. We must be careful to avoid putting ourselves in God’s place by assuming the intentions of others; that’s His job. Jesus is inviting us to a life of living humbly, of searching our hearts before pointing our fingers at others. 

Matthew 7:7 goes on to say “Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you”. Living humbly paves the way for leading a life of repentance before the Lord. Repentance leads to salvation, where we are adopted into the family of God. The rest of this section of Matthew 7, talks about the goodness of God as a Father towards His children. He promises that when we seek Him, we will find Him. When we ask, we will receive it. This is not God surrendering His sovereignty to us, but rather us understanding that God, in all of His sovereignty, can give us what we ask!

As we read through this chapter, Jesus lets us know that in this life there are narrow and broad roads which we can choose to walk. He says to enter through the narrow gate… only a few find it. What this means is that we must be wary of following the ways of the world (the broad road), and instead, hold fast to His teachings (the narrow road). TAKE HEART! We just read that Jesus promised we WILL find Him if we seek Him. If we ask, it WILL BE given to us. If we seek Him with all of our hearts, The Way will be made known to us, and, by the power of the Holy Spirit, we will be able to live rightly. This narrow road He calls us to walk with Him is possible, but it’s not always easy. He warns us in the following passages to beware of false teachers and false disciples. He gives us the wisdom and discernment to know His people by the fruit of their lives. What are they producing? What are you producing? The fruits of the spirit in us (love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control) are all evidence that God is at work in our hearts.

With all of that said, we have made it to Matthew 7:21; the scripture that makes us stop in our tracks and ask ourselves where we fit in the picture of salvation. 

Instead of looking at this passage with dread, I’d like for us to see it as an invitation. As an invitation to know Him more, or at all. An invitation for self-reflection. An invitation for the Spirit of God to search our hearts and uproot anything that may not be pure in His sight. I once saw this passage as a condemnation, but now I see this verse as Jesus’ invitation to knowing Him far more intimately. He says “… I will tell them plainly, ‘I never knew you. Away from me, you evildoers!” When we begin to invite Him into our prayer times and moments of personal reflection, we cultivate a relationship with our creator. Jesus didn’t say “because you messed up you will not enter the Kingdom of God”. He doesn’t say “you didn’t do enough good works”. He says “I never knew you”. He is more moved by our relationship with Him than He is by our good deeds void of Him. How will we know if we are living as close to Him as we’re commanded to be? Well, Jesus said “whatever you did for the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me” (Matt 25:40). What are your actions and attitudes towards those around you? Are you generous towards them? Not just financially, but also generous in love, in kindness, in giving of your time. For everything we do is as unto the Lord. 

In Matt 9:15, Jesus is found eating dinner with sinners. The religious leaders condemned Him for it, but He replied, “… go and learn what this means: I desire mercy, not sacrifice.” Sacrifice often has a self-focus on what we can do, while mercy focuses on others. Mercy is simply when a person is treated better than they deserve. May we never be so self-righteous that we withhold kindness and mercy from those around us. Although someone may “deserve” some kind of treatment, Jesus calls us to extend favor to those who may not have earned it. This kind of love for people can only overflow from a relationship with Love Himself (1 John 4:8). 

We can lead countless people into His presence and/or into a relationship with Him, but if we do not have that relationship ourselves, it means nothing in our eternity. I encourage you to invite Him into your next self-reflection. Invite the Holy Spirit to speak to you when you pray. It’s easy for us to do all the talking, but I challenge you to say your piece, and then, without expecting anything of Him other than what He wants to say, ask Him, “Jesus, what do you want me to know”. I pray your face is a familiar one in the throne room of Heaven. As you get to know Him He will know you. And because He knew you, you will eternally become a part of the Kingdom of God. 

Friends, the Kingdom of Heaven is much bigger than our earthly requests. God still loves us enough to give, but I pray that we all reach a point where our hearts are ok with whatever His will is, apart from our own desires. If you have not begun a relationship with God, I invite you to ask Him for forgiveness of your sins. He loved you enough to come to earth and die for you so that you could be reconciled to His family; a family that sin has kept you separated from. Call on the name of the Lord and you shall be saved. As you make Him a part of your life, He will not only lead you to the straight and narrow road, He will also give you the strength to walk it.

On my next blog post, I am excited to explore what Jesus meant in this passage when He says that only the one who does the will of my Father who is in heaven will enter the Kingdom of God. I can’t help but ask myself, “what is the will of the Father, and how do we know we’re following it?” Join me as I study the teachings of Jesus to better understand what this means. 

See you next time!

“Do Your Part.” John 11:35

May 14, 2017 /

 

“Then Jesus, deeply moved again, came to the tomb. It was a cave, and a stone lay against it. 39 Jesus said, “Take away the stone.” Martha, the sister of the dead man, said to him, “Lord, by this time there will be an odor, for he has been dead four days.” 40 Jesus said to her, “Did I not tell you that if you believed you would see the glory of God?” 41 So they took away the stone. And Jesus lifted up his eyes and said, “Father, I thank you that you have heard me. 42 I knew that you always hear me, but I said this on account of the people standing around, that they may believe that you sent me.” 43 When he had said these things, he cried out with a loud voice, “Lazarus, come out.” 44 The man who had died came out, his hands and feet bound with linen strips, and his face wrapped with a cloth. Jesus said to them, “Unbind him, and let him go.”

This week’s teaching was meant to come out of the first Chapter of Colossians, and was also to be titled, “Doing your part.” That was the plan. And, though the title of this week’s teaching will remain the same, the text, however, was changed.

The Holy Spirit always has the final Word.

As I was preparing to type the original message given me, I went back into my Word for a bit more time with Jesus. And it was at that moment, when I picked-up my now opened Bible, that I began to read what was before me. It was the account of Jesus’s resurrecting of Lazarus. In the margin, I’d made a notation some time ago that reads: Jesus will handle the resurrection, you do your part.

I don’t believe in coincidence. So, that the very same words that were to be the title of this week’s teaching were right in front of me was not lost on me. God was trying to get my attention.

And He had it now…

You see, this, doing your part, has been an ongoing theme for me lately. And, It makes me wonder if perhaps you too aren’t hearing some version of these same words in your Spirit as well? To cooperate, submit maybe? I ask this because this much I know—it has been my experience that: The Word a human vessel receives from the Lord is first meant to minister to them, the hearer, and then flow outwards to those who will receive it…

As I read this Scripture, several points jumped out at me—

 

So, now, the first thing that caught my attention was the opening sentence. It informs us that Jesus was deeply moved— but why? What happened, touched Him so, that Scripture allows us a glimpse into how He’s feeling? I believe that to pr

Before we jump in, my prayer for you, for me, is this: that we will give our will’s, our wants, what may seem ‘right’—sound, to us, over to the will and calling of Jesus. That we will trust Him above all else. Putting to death all the internal chatter that clamors for answers to the life-robbing, peace stealing, why’s. May the exhale of our every breath be, Thy Will be done. Whether we understand it—or not. Whether it makes sense—or not. Even if we must say yes with wobbly knees and trembling voice—yes. We say yes. I say yes, to His will, His way, and, His Divine timing.

Yes Lord…

operly answer this, we must go backward a bit. Towards the beginning of this same chapter, we find the source of His pain. Jesus has informed His disciples that Lazarus, His friend, has died.

At first, they don’t get that he’s dead. Because Jesus had told them that Lazarus had ‘fallen asleep’. Naturally, their minds thought of ordinary sleep–rest. So, Jesus made it plain for them, stating emphatically that Lazarus was dead. He went on to tell them that it was good that He hadn’t been there to intervene. You see, Jesus was about to perform a miracle in the lives of so many through —this, His, one-act of obedience to God.

This is one of the many instances in the Bible, where we witness God’s ways—His thinking and knowledge being far above our own…

Now, standing before the tomb Jesus was also deeply moved by the pain his friends, Mary and Martha, Lazarus’s sisters were feeling. Moved too because he witnessed the outpouring of grief that came from their friends and neighbors. Moved because His act of obedience to the Father to stay put earlier, to not go to Lazarus, His friend—to not intervene, not touch, and heal, as He had for so many, had allowed others to experience so much pain.

And so, “He wept.” He was after all, fully man—too.

But all of this—His pain and theirs, did not stop Jesus’ obedience to the will of The Father. To allowing Lazarus to die. There was a greater good that was about to come of this. Jesus knew obedience to the Will of The Father was more important than all else—obedience is paramount (Micah 6:6-8).

The second point that struck me was that an obstacle blocked Jesus’s way into Lazarus’ tomb. An obstacle blocked His entrance into the very place He needed to go—was required to enter, in order for the miracle He had come to perform to take place. And the Word tells us—makes us see, makes a point of Jesus’s saying, “Take away the stone.”

But why?

Wasn’t He already there—hadn’t He come to do His part? Raise Lazarus from the dead? So why move the stone? After all, He’s God. He could have had Lazarus walk right through it. Move itself, for that matter. So then, maybe moving this stone symbolizes something more? Goes beyond just the moving of an actual stone? Maybe this need to ‘roll a thing away’ points us directly towards our need to obey? Maybe it points us towards seeing the need to do our part—my part, your part, towards our choosing to listen to God’s voice and say yes to His command to roll away the stone that impedes His entrance into our dead places—so that, in His time, new life might come forth.

So, with that in mind, let me ask you, what is there in your life preventing Jesus from entering? And, are you willing to obey His command to roll it away?

Next, what caught my attention, were Martha’s words. When Jesus told those present to move the stone out of His way, Martha’s response was to tell Jesus no—don’t do that. What are you thinking? He’s been dead for days and it stinks in there! Sounds reasonable, right? After all, isn’t that what happens when we hide ‘our flesh’ in places we think no one can see? It festers—and, no good can come of that. It stinks. So, we choose to keep the tomb to our dead—shameful, painful—even prideful, ‘things’ sealed off—safe.

See! No stink here…

Is there something telling you, whispering, to keep things closed off, sealed away—your hurts, the shame, pain, fear, all that dead stuff inside. To keep it from Jesus?

Is it telling you, He won’t love you if He sees.

Beloved, that’s so wrong! It’s a flat-out lie!

See Jesus knows that for us to have True Life, we must let Him into our stinking—rotten fleshly places. We must agree to have the stone, our stone, moved away that He might have full access to us—to every yucky—stinking part of us!

He won’t come in unless He’s invited…

And, so, next we’ll see Jesus praying to The Father. Thanking Him for hearing His prayers. We hear Jesus saying, that it’s for the benefit of those gathered around that He came at all—that The Father had sent Him in the first place. But why?

Because the Truth is this: whatever Jesus is doing to us—in us, through us, it’s not just for or about us…

One part—a piece, of God’s Divine plan,  the moment He chooses to save each of us—was, is, an ability—through partnership with Him, to multiply our capacity to impact this world for the sake of His Kingdom—our home. We are saved, in part, to be used—to be the hands and feet of Jesus in this lost and dying world. To be vessels used by Him—each uniquely gifted and equipped. We know this is Truth because again—as always, The Word confirms The Word made Flesh…

Listen to Jesus speaking to His Disciples—to us of our responsibility: “And He said to them, “Go into all the world and preach the gospel to every creature” (Mark 16:15). Or more, in Acts 1:8: “…. And you will be my witnesses, telling people about me everywhere–in Jerusalem, throughout Judea, in Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.”

And, lastly, after the stone had been rolled away—after He had been granted access, after the shame of the stench of rotten flesh had been exposed, and, after prayer, then, and only then, was the true purpose of His coming accomplished. New Life. All that hear His voice cannot help to respond—not even the grave can hold them back (Colossians 1:18; 1 Corinthians 15:55-57; Rev, 1:18). “Lazarus, come out!” And He did. And we did, and many will continue to—all those that are called by His name must leave their dead things (the flesh) behind to be released into the Light of Life. Their salvation, their new life…

“Take off the grave clothes and let him go.” Jesus will always have the final Word, in His divine time…

Yet, as Peter tells us in 1 Peter 1:13-16, we too, have a part to play. Here, now, listen: “Therefore, prepare your minds for action; be self-controlled; set your hope fully on the grace to be given you when Jesus Christ is revealed. As obedient children, do not conform to the evil desires you had when you lived in ignorance. But just as he who called you is holy, so be holy in all you do; for it is written: ‘”Be holy, because I am holy.’”

Plainly put: We must do our part. After Jesus called Lazarus to come out, Lazarus moved, he acted. And so must we. “Jesus said to her, “Did I not tell you that if you believed you would see the glory of God?”

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