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Mark 1:23-25 - Just then there was a man in their synagogue with an unclean spirit; and he cried out, 24 saying, "What business do we have with each other, Jesus of Nazareth? Have You come to destroy us? I know who You are — the Holy One of God!" 25 And Jesus rebuked him, saying, "Be quiet, and come out of him!" NASU
Everyone in town knows he attends there and many of the congregants wish he didn't, but the devil uses this guy to besmirch the church and the name of Jesus. So he has planted him there to do as much harm as possible. This unclean spirit was there for a lot of reasons but certainly one at the top of the list was to make the life of this man miserable. A man or woman with an unclean spirit is capable of all types of evil. When I hear of a person killing other people whether it is 1 or 100 and I get asked, "How could this happen?" My answer is always the same, the person that has committed this heinous act is being controlled by an unclean spirit. Another way of saying this is this person was demon possessed. For some reason a demon possessed person is out to inflict harm upon people who have been created in the "image of God".
Therefore I urge you, brethren, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies a living and holy sacrifice, acceptable to God, which is your spiritual service of worship. 2 And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, so that you may prove what the will of God is, that which is good and acceptable and perfect. NASU We also have the book of Ephesians 4:20-24 - But you did not learn Christ in this way, 21 if indeed you have heard Him and have been taught in Him, just as truth is in Jesus, 22 that, in reference to your former manner of life, you lay aside the old self, which is being corrupted in accordance with the lusts of deceit, 23 and that you be renewed in the spirit of your mind, 24 and put on the new self, which in the likeness of God has been created in righteousness and holiness of the truth. We are to be the real deal. We are to become more like Jesus everyday and less like our old selves. I say this next statement with a lot of fear and trepidation. The only way we want to be like this unclean spirit is to Know Who Jesus Is. The demon possessed man said, "I know who You are - The Holy One Of God!" Yes, Jesus is the Holy One of God and we don't ever want to forget that fact. This is why we worship Him because He is the Holy One of God. He is God. Do yourself a favor and stay away from evil people. "Bad company corrupts good morals", the apostle Paul said. But on the flip side of that hang around as many Christians as you can for they will help you to be a blessing to yourself and others. Think About These: When we die we leave behind all we have and take with us all we are. This will be a better world when the power of love replaces the love of power. Stay Pumped, Gary A. Serago Minister of God's Word
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Luke 1:13 - But the angel said to him: "Do not be afraid, Zechariah, your prayer has been heard..." NIV
He had been praying for a child and now that prayer was going to be answered. Zech and Elizabeth were going to have a son and he will be named John. We will come to know him as John the Baptist. How long had Zechariah and Elizabeth been waiting for their prayer to be answered? We don't know exactly how long it has been but we can come up with some educated guesses. Lets say Zech and Elizabeth got married at 18 years of age. In that day getting married at 18 years old would have been easy to accept. Let's say they were married for 5 years before they started to pray for a child. How old are they now? Luke 1:7 says, "But they had no child, because Elizabeth was barren, and they were both advanced in years. In the book of Num. 8:23-25 - Now the LORD spoke to Moses, saying, 24 "This is what applies to the Levites: from twenty-five years old and upward they shall enter to perform service in the work of the tent of meeting. 25 "But at the age of fifty years they shall retire from service in the work and not work any more. We are informed that all the priests had to retire by the time they were 50 years old. Zechariah was considered "righteous in the sight of God" so he couldn't have been serving past 50 years of age or he would not have been considered "righteous in God's sight". I will say Zechariah is 49 years old and if you subtract 23 years (the age when I hypothetically said they started praying for a child) this will leave us with 26 years that Zechariah and Elizabeth have been praying for a child.
God needed to fulfill His prophecies and Malachi said that there would be a forerunner before Jesus and this forerunner would be John the Baptist. God fulfilled the prophecy by having John born 6 months before Jesus. The apostle Paul says, Jesus was born in the fullness of time. In other words, when everything was just right Jesus was born. Humans have known to be impatient and we want things when we want them and having our prayers answered is no different. As a Christian our faith will always say our prayers will be answered exactly when God wants them answered and the timing will be perfect. Don't give up on your prayers. Remember what the angel said to Zechariah: But the angel said to him: "Do not be afraid, Zechariah; your prayer has been heard…" Your prayers have been heard and God will answer them when the time is right. Think About These: Bending our knees in prayer keeps us from breaking under the load of cares. Prayer doesn't need proof, it needs practiced. He stands best who kneels most. Stay Pumped, Gary A. Serago Minister of God's Word Ps 1:1-3 - How blessed is the man who does not walk in the counsel of the wicked, Nor stand in the path of sinners, nor sit in the seat of scoffers!
2 But his delight is in the law of the LORD, And in His law he meditates day and night. 3 He will be like a tree firmly planted by streams of water, which yields its fruit in its season and its leaf does not wither; and in whatever he does, he prospers. NASU
I remember before I was a Christian listening to a guy about how I could make some real easy money by selling drugs. That bad decision cost me a lot of grief and money. As I look back on my life what I have discovered is the best way to provide for yourself and your family is find a job you love to do and do it. Once you have found that job give it 100% everyday. Paul wrote to Timothy he quoted to him an Old Testament passage when he said, in 1 Tim. 5:18 -For the Scripture says, "YOU SHALL NOT MUZZLE THE OX WHILE HE IS THRESHING," and "The laborer is worthy of his wages." The Psalmist also tells us where we should stand and sit. In other words, he is telling us where to hang out and who to hang out with. Paul said it this way: "Do not be deceived: "Bad company corrupts good morals." (1 Corin. 15:33). As I have said before, "Show me your friends and I will show you your future." The Psalmist's best advice to us is don't stand or sit with the wrong people.
When we give ourselves to helping others is there really any blessing that compares to it. In the book of Acts Luke penned it this way: "In everything I showed you that by working hard in this manner you must help the weak and remember the words of the Lord Jesus, that He Himself said, 'It is more blessed to give than to receive.'" How to guarantee to be blessed in this life is by helping others. Last September I organized a food pack for the people of Ukraine through IDES. My original goal was 50,000 meals. We asked people to make financial contributions. They gave so much money we were able increase our goal to 60,000 meals. Now I needed to recruit a 100 people to give 4 hours of their time. When I thanked everyone for coming to help accomplish this goal they let me know it was a blessing to them to be able to participate in this worthy cause. Find a worthy cause and invest yourself in it and you will be guaranteed a blessing. Think About These: Charity is twice blessed - it blesses the one who gives and the one who receives. This was in a church bulletin: The Lord loves a cheerful giver. He also accepts from a grouch. The best gift we can give some people is a chance. Stay Pumped, Gary A. Serago Minister of God's Word Exodus 16:14-15 - When the layer of dew evaporated, behold, on the surface of the wilderness there was a fine flake-like thing, fine as the frost on the ground. 15 When the sons of Israel saw it, they said to one another, "What is it?" For they did not know what it was. And Moses said to them, "It is the bread which the LORD has given you to eat." NASU
Ex 16:31 - The house of Israel named it manna, and it was like coriander seed, white, and its taste was like wafers with honey. Manna from God was a blessing but the Israelites didn't recognize it as such at the beginning. What blessing have we received from God but at the beginning we didn't recognize it as such?
The mature Christian will always wait on the Lord and allow the situation of life to play itself out and it will be then we recognize the blessing(s) from the Lord. One of my favorite passages of scripture is Genesis 50:20 - "As for you, you meant evil against me, but God meant it for good in order to bring about this present result, to preserve many people alive." In this Genesis passage, Joseph was talking to his brothers who had sold him into slavery. He tells them like it is. You meant evil against me, but God meant it for good. As you travel through this life remember there are evil people and they may do evil things against you. It is then you must give God time to work. Let Him show you that He can take this evil that has been done to you and use it for good. Think About These: We learn some lessons from prosperity, but we learn many more from adversity. Never be afraid to trust your unknown future to God. Stay Pumped, Gary A. Serago Minister of God's Word |
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