Tag: connect

BE STILL

BE STILL

Still can mean calm, quiet, unmoving, or at rest.  There are passages in the Bible that instruct us to ‘be still’ or to ‘be silent.’

This instruction may have several purposes:  1) to require our silence, so that we will focus upon God, alone; 2) to instruct us to be tranquil and at peace; and 3) to direct us to subdue every instinct to God’s will.

Be still, and know that I am God:  I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth.  (Ps 46:10 ASV)

But the Lord is in his holy temple.  Let all the earth be silent before him.  (Hab 2:20 CEB)

Be silent, all flesh, before the Lord, for he has roused himself from his holy dwelling.  (Zech 2:13 ESV)

Being still, silent, and at peace will bring about a great ability to focus upon the Lord.  It’s a good time for prayer and thanksgiving, as well as for a reverential form of worship.  Obviously, there’s definitely a time for joyful, loud, expressive worship, too.  But when the Holy Spirit leads us into a still and tranquil time of prayer, we should be sensitive and responsive to that leading.

One form of “being still” is to step away from our busy lives in order to connect with God.  This is a time to stay focused on God’s vision for our lives and to listen for His direction and guidance.  The obvious follow-through is our obedience to what we hear the Lord saying to our hearts.

What is the purpose of stillness?  Being still before the Lord brings us clarity.  It draws us into the moment and gives us time to clear the clutter and clamor out of our minds and hearts.  It helps us to hear God’s voice more accurately. Stilling our hearts before the Lord helps us to stop striving and to surrender our circumstances to the Lord.  In whatever situation you find yourself today, take some time alone with the Lord.

The Way, the Truth & the Life

The Way, the Truth & the Life

Why did Jesus connect Himself with these three words and how does it impact a life of faith?

Jesus said to him, “I am the way, the truth, and the life.
No one comes to the Father except through Me.  (Joh 14:6)

Jesus said this to His followers the night before He was crucified.  He was preparing them for the challenging days that were ahead of them.

  • Jesus asserts that He is the Way which suggests that faith in Him is the open door to salvation and to eternal life.  This is the truth that the Good News is based upon, and we need to share it with everyone.  God has made the plan of salvation clear, and we have been given the honor of sharing His Gospel with everyone.

I am the door. If anyone enters by Me, he will be saved, and will go in and out and find pasture.  (Joh 10:9) This is the Lord saying that He is to Door to Salvation and Eternal Life.   “Finding pasture” means that the Lord will supply all of our needs just as a shepherd cares for all of the needs of his sheep.

. . . that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have eternal life.  (Joh 3:15)  Believing in Jesus Christ as our Savior is the only road to God.

  • Jesus says that He is the Life because He is also the author and source of all of life. 

In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. 2 He was in the beginning with God. 3 All things were made through Him, and without Him nothing was made that was made. 4 In Him was life, and the life was the light of men.  (Joh 1:1-4)  Jesus is the Word made flesh and this verse is the foundation for that truth.

Jesus said to her, “I am the resurrection and the life. He who believes in Me, though he may die, he shall live. 26 And whoever lives and believes in Me shall never die. Do you believe this?”  (Joh 11:25-26)  Jesus makes His claim clearly here that He is the resurrection and the life.

For by Him all things were created that are in heaven and that are on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or principalities or powers. All things were created through Him and for Him.   (Col 1:16)  All forms of life were created by the Lord.

  • No one would care about or remember Jesus’ claim to be the Way and the Life if He was not also, in reality, the Truth of God.  Jesus’ actions and entire life demonstrate the love, mercy, forgiveness, and miracle-working power of the Father God.  It is no wonder then, that Jesus prays the following prayer:

I do not pray that You should take them out of the world, but that You should keep them from the evil one. 16 They are not of the world, just as I am not of the world. 17 Sanctify them by Your truth. Your word is truth. 18 As You sent Me into the world, I also have sent them into the world. 19 And for their sakes I sanctify Myself, that they also may be sanctified by the truth.  (Joh 17:15-19, emphasis added)

Jesus prayed, “Your word is truth.”  Jesus is known as the living Word of God.  (John 1:1, 14)

He was clothed with a robe dipped in blood, and His name is called The Word of God.  (Rev 19:13)  This verse is referring to Jesus Christ and says that He is called The Word of God.

Jesus is the living Word of God and God’s Word is truth.  Jesus was speaking the truth about Himself!  Praise the Lord!

The Touch of Faith

The Touch of Faith

. . . and begged Him that they might only touch the hem of His garment.  And as many as touched it were made perfectly well.  (Matt 14:36 NKJV)

She came up behind Jesus and touched the tassel of his garment, and her bleeding stopped at once.  (Lk 8:44 ISV)

As we read these two different reports, you’ll notice that in one “the hem” of Jesus’ garment was mentioned; and in the other, “the tassel” of His garment was touched by the needy, faith-filled woman.

In the Mosaic Law, God instructed His people regarding the corners, or fringes, of their garments. Jews were to “make tassels on the corners of their garments throughout their generations, and to put a “cord of blue on the tassel of each corner” as a reminder that they were God’s people called to keep His commandments (Numbers 15:37-41). It seems like a strange instruction until we learn that in the Ancient Near East, the corner of a person’s garment represented his identity; it was a symbol of who he was and what he stood for.  (Source of above note:  https://biblemesh.com/blog/why-were-people-healed-from-touching-jesus-clothes/)

According to the above historical note about the tassels of a person’s clothing in Bible days, the tassels represented a person’s identity.  So, the woman with the issue of blood would have known that symbolism.

 It helps us to understand that the woman not only reached out in faith and in need, but she also reached out with a desire to identify and connect with Jesus’ identity.  She was humbly connecting with the Son of God, her Messiah.

In the same way, when we have a need, we would do well to follow this woman’s example.  Draw near to Jesus with a humble heart; recognize and appropriate His identity; and reach out and touch Him by faith.  In the biblical account of the woman healed of the issue of blood, Jesus established that He responded to this touch of faith!

He’s never too busy to perform a miracle for you!