Matt 14:24-25 - But the boat was already a long distance from the land, battered by the waves; for the wind was contrary. And in the fourth watch of the night He came to them, walking on the sea. NASU
Mark 6:47-48 - When it was evening, the boat was in the middle of the sea, and He was alone on the land. Seeing them straining at the oars, for the wind was against them, at about the fourth watch of the night He came to them, walking on the sea;… John 6:17-19 - It had already become dark, and Jesus had not yet come to them. The sea began to be stirred up because a strong wind was blowing. Then, when they had rowed about three or four miles, they saw Jesus walking on the sea and drawing near to the boat; and they were frightened.
In fact, this is the first lesson that I have ever taught on this miracle. Let's look at this miracle. Matthew says, "the boat was already a long distance from the land,…" and Mark says, "the boat was in the middle of the sea,…" and John says, "…when they had rowed about three or four miles…" Now let me share this with you. It is NIGHT TIME! Matt and Mark say, "…in the fourth watch of the night…" What does that mean? The night was broken into four groups of time. The 1st watch was from 6 pm - 9 pm, 2nd watch was from 9 pm - midnight, 3rd watch was from midnight - 3 am and the 4th watch is from 3 am - 6 am. John says, "It had already become dark…" Do you have the picture now? It is dark and it is between 3 am - 6 am and the boat with the disciples is 3 or 4 miles away and Jesus according to Mark sees them straining at the oars. Seriously! I live on a lake and it isn't even a mile from one side to other and I can tell you right now I would never be able to tell what was going on with a boat that was 500 yards from shore. I don't know about you but I would call that a miracle. I would call that night vision par excellence.
Whatever the obstacles that are beating down on you Jesus can see them today as clear as He saw them in the middle of the night with His disciples. The disciples cried out in fear when they saw Jesus walking on the water towards them and He said, "Take courage, it is I; do not be afraid." You need to hear Jesus telling you take courage and not be afraid of your situation.
Look at what happened to Peter when he called out to Jesus: Matt 14:28-29 - Peter said to Him, "Lord, if it is You, command me to come to You on the water." And He said, "Come!" And Peter got out of the boat, and walked on the water and came toward Jesus. Get out of your boat and walk towards Jesus is the best advice I can give you. Think On These: The world would be improved with less television and more vision. It is when we forget ourselves that we do things that are most likely to be remembered. Stay Pumped, Gary A. Serago Minister of God's Word Share this Pump Up with others by Sharing on Your Facebook Page, Twitter or Forwarding to a friend.
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John 6:5-6 - Therefore Jesus, lifting up His eyes and seeing that a large crowd was coming to Him, said to Philip, "Where are we to buy bread, so that these may eat?"
This He was saying to test him, for He Himself knew what He was intending to do. NASU
Jesus was testing Philip and all the disciples who were there. Philip does a quick head count and tabulation and his answer is "200 denarii worth of bread is not sufficient…" I find that Andrew gives the most amusing answer when he says, "There is a lad here who has five barley loaves and two fish, but what are these for so many people." If the other disciples have any suggestions they are not recorded for us. There is a lot to be said for not opening your mouth. One thing for sure you can't stick your foot in your mouth if you don't open it.
Why is it so hard for us to trust in God? I have been associated with college wrestlers for 29 years. Here is my observation: the wrestlers depend on their training partners and their coaches. If some of the toughest guys on earth display for us how to trust others then why won't we display trust in God. Jesus trusted God and that is the example we are to follow today. Trust God. It is not a sign of weakness. It is a sign of faith and intelligence. Jesus' question about how to feed the 5,000 was to strengthen the disciple's faith.
You find yourself in an impossible situation and the next thing you know, you're out of it. It then dawns on you: God was involved in your situation. I saw a saying online that goes like this: I asked God, "Why are you taking me through rough waters? He replied, "Because your enemies can't swim." Trust God even when it doesn't make sense.
The friend's son and daughter-in-law were trying to have a baby for a couple of years. I will not go into all of the details but there were lots of obstacles in their way. Finally, the son said to his wife, "We will turn it over to God and accept His will." She is now pregnant and due any day. What is your situation? Here is a solution: "Turn it over to God, and then wait patiently." Think On This: It is not the load that breaks you down, it's the way you carry it. Stay Pumped, Gary A. Serago Minister of God's Word Share this Pump Up with others by Sharing on Your Facebook Page, Twitter or Forwarding to a friend. Heb 8:12 - "FOR I WILL BE MERCIFUL TO THEIR INIQUITIES,
AND I WILL REMEMBER THEIR SINS NO MORE."
This is probably the greatest piece of news any forgiven person has ever received. When God says, "I will not remember your sins." It doesn't get any better than that my friends. One of my favorite preachers was a man named Don DeWelt. I remember one of his illustrations about when he would visit his elderly mother in a nursing home. Don said, "Every time he visited her she would ask him the same thing. It was if he would pray for the Lord to forgive her of her sins?" Don said, "At first I said, 'Yes' and would ask the Lord to forgive her." Finally, he said, "I couldn't take it any more and the next time he visited her and she asked him, he said, "No. I am not going to ask God to do something He has already done." This is a great lesson for all of us. When God has forgiven us of our sins and we remain in Christ, the blood of Christ continually cleanses us. In other words, God doesn't remember our sins. 1 Jn 1:7 - "...if we walk in the Light as He Himself is in the Light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus His Son cleanses us from all sin." We all have sinned and fall short of God's glory, but we can have our sins forgiven by accepting the atoning sacrifice of Jesus Christ. 1 Jn 2:1-2 - And if anyone sins, we have an Advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous; and He Himself is the propitiation for our sins; and not for ours only, but also for those of the whole world. The word "propitiation" means "to appease." Jesus' sacrifice of Himself appeased God's holy demand from His creation. I like how the Psalmist has written it. Ps 32:1-2- "How blessed is he whose transgression is forgiven, Whose sin is covered! How blessed is the man to whom the LORD does not impute iniquity,…" Have you ever taken the time to sit and ponder how blessed you are because God has forgiven you of your sins? If not lately, now would probably be a great time to take inventory of this tremendous blessing.
The second thing God can't do is break His promises. God not only makes promises He keeps them. One of my favorite promises from God is found in Psalms 34:19 - "Many are the afflictions of the righteous, But the LORD delivers him out of them all." You will notice it says the righteous are going to have many afflictions, BUT the LORD will deliver us out of them ALL. I found that in 32 years of ministry a lot of Christians believed they weren't supposed to have any troubles. Yet, it is plain to see God's Word says the opposite. The good news as I see it is God is going to deliver the righteous from ALL their afflictions. What better way to build trust then to be there to help someone in their time of need. God is there for us and that is a promise. Think On These: God makes a promise - Faith believes it, Hope anticipates it, Patience quietly awaits for it. Promises are only as dependable as the individuals who make them. Stay Pumped, Gary A. Serago Minister of God's Word Share this Pump Up with others by Sharing on Your Facebook Page, Twitter or Forwarding to a friend. James 1:2-3 - Consider it all joy, my brethren, when you encounter various trials, 3 knowing that the testing of your faith produces endurance. NASU
There are many different ways for our faith to be tested and I will not even try to give a list. What I want you to do is identify the type of tests you have encountered or are encountering now and ask yourself this question: Did my faith help me to "stay calm or remain cheerful" while I was being tested? James is saying we are to "stay calm or be cheerful" while this test or trial is taking place.
I was going through the test in my mind after it was over and wondered, "How could I even call myself a Christian? I totally bombed this test. This is horrible." I needed to take a "Mulligan" on this one. If you are a golfer you know what a "Mulligan" is. If you are not a golfer it simply means you get a do over without being penalized. The Lord knows I needed a "Mulligan" on this one.
I couldn't live with this failure. I needed a chance to redeem myself. I needed another chance to build up my faith. I needed to be retested and I had to "stay calm or be cheerful" while going through this next one. I highly recommend this pathway. If you have flunked a faith test in the past that isn't the end of the story. Ask God for another chance. He wants you to grow in your faith and He will help you. Notice again what James says: "knowing that the testing of your faith produces endurance." The only way you are going to have a stronger faith is to continue to overcome the trials you face. We have to endure gladly while being tested.
I hope you ask God for a retest the next time you flunk the first one. Think On These: Gladness is in the heart, not the circumstances. Gladness doesn't come from what you have, but from what you are. Stay Pumped, Gary A. Serago Minister of God's Word Share this Pump Up with others by Sharing on Your Facebook Page, Twitter or Forwarding to a friend. Ezekiel 29:16 - "And it will never again be the confidence of the house of Israel, bringing to mind the iniquity of their having turned to Egypt. Then they will know that I am the Lord GOD." NASU
He was confident Egypt would protect Israel from Nebuchadnezzar and the Babylonians. He was so wrong. As Ezekiel is penning down his book he is a captive in Babylon. The Babylonians under the leadership of Nebuchadnezzar had conquered Israel around 600 BC. Ezekiel is being told by God to pen down these words: "And it will never again be the confidence of the house of Israel, bringing to mind the iniquity of their having turned to Egypt…" The king had placed his faith in Egypt for protection and assistance. Instead, his faith should have been in the Creator of heaven and earth.
I was so blessed to be introduced to Jesus Christ through the preaching of God's Word. On March 2, 1975 I began putting my faith and trust (or confidence) in Jesus Christ as my Lord and Savior. My life has been changed for the better and it is all because I realigned my faith. My faith is no longer in things or me. My faith is in Jesus Christ.
Seriously! Neither one of these two people are fit to be the President of the USA. American's are on the wrong track exactly like Israel of the Old Testament. Israel believed the Egyptian Government was going to help them. They were WRONG! Egypt didn't help Israel in 600 BC. Donald and Hillary are not going to help America. The American Government is not going to help Christianity. The Christian's faith should not be in their Government to save them. The Christian's faith needs to be in the Creator and not the creature. I hope and pray that you know Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior. If you know Him you will be Okay. Think On These: Giving help to the enemy used to be called treason. Now it is called "foreign aid." The people who look to the government to bring them security and prosperity ought to remember what happened to the American Indians. Stay Pumped, Gary A. Serago Minister of God's Word Share this Pump Up with others by Sharing on Your Facebook Page, Twitter or Forwarding to a friend. |
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