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Matt.10:1-4 - Jesus summoned His twelve disciples and gave them authority over unclean spirits, to cast them out, and to heal every kind of disease and every kind of sickness. Now the names of the twelve apostles are these…and Judas Iscariot, the one who betrayed Him. NASU
Judas was a popular name in the first century. Judas means "he shall be praised." I guess it is fair to say he didn't live up to his name. His last name isn't "Iscariot" as many people seem to think. Iscariot means "man of Kerioth." Therefore, Judas Iscariot was actually Judas the man of Kerioth.
As any athlete can tell you having the right coach is very important. As any coach can tell you having an athlete who will not only listen but they will also apply what is being taught is vitally important. Judas was associating with the right teacher and students so where did he go wrong? He was given the same power and authority over unclean spirits as the other disciples. He was able to heal every kind of disease and sickness the text says. Imagine all the good he could have done. He could have totally eliminated every leper camp he approached because he was given the power to heal every sickness and disease. How many people do you know that have many God given talents, have associated with the right people and yet, they have wasted these talents?
WOW! Why wasn't the perfume sold and the money given to the poor? Those words sound spiritual. How noble of Judas to think of all the poor people in the world. This proves that what a person says doesn't always reveal the contents of their heart. A person's actions will tell you more about them than their words. I am pretty sure we are in contact with people on a daily basis who say one thing and do another.
He could have given the money to Matthew to watch over it since he was accustomed to collecting money, but He didn't. The only way you and I are going to get spiritually stronger is when we face our temptations and conquer them. If you are facing temptations today don't pray that the LORD remove them. Pray that He will strengthen you to overcome them, to defeat and destroy them once and for all. Judas started out traveling on the right road, but some where along the way he took a wrong turn. It doesn't matter how you start it is how you finish. Think About This: A hypocrite never intends to be what he pretends to be. Stay Pumped, Gary A. Serago Minister of God's Word
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Luke 5:3-6 - And He got into one of the boats, which was Simon's,… And He sat down and began teaching the people from the boat. 4 When He had finished speaking, He said to Simon, "Put out into the deep water and let down your nets for a catch." 5 Simon answered and said, "Master, we worked hard all night and caught nothing, but I will do as You say and let down the nets." 6 When they had done this, they enclosed a great quantity of fish, and their nets began to break;…" NASU
Then failure comes crashing through our life and we are bewildered. We are perplexed and we sit in unbelief that this has happened to us. How could this happen to me? I was prepared. I had all the answers. I like what R. C. Foster said, "Their fruitless toil through the night gave Jesus His opportunity." Did you hear that? Their "fruitless toil" gave Jesus His opportunity. Your fruitless toil will give Jesus an opportunity to work with you like never before. It is always easier to work with some one who believes he needs help. At first, Peter didn't believe he needed any help. After all he was the fisherman. Jesus was a carpenter in Peter's mind. After Jesus performs the miracle and their boats are loaded with fish Jesus goes from being "Master" which also could be interpreted "teacher" to LORD (vs.8). When we do things the Lord's way like Peter and his crew did there will be success.
Then why not try doing it the Lord's Way?
You ask for His blessing on your endeavors. You ask Him to keep you from all evil and to protect you. You read His Word and in so doing you are searching for answers to your life. You have to understand that some times He may even protect you from yourself by not allowing you to accomplish some things that would bring great harm into your life. When Jesus sees that you are able to handle the successes that can come in life He will give them to you.
Think About These: Most failures are experts at making excuses. Failure is a better teacher than success, but seldom finds an apple on her desk. Failures are divided into those who thought and never did, and those who did and never thought. Stay Pumped, Gary A. Serago Minister of God's Word Matt. 18:10 - "See that you do not despise one of these little ones, for I say to you that their angels in heaven continually see the face of My Father who is in heaven." NASU
First, who is the "you" Jesus is referring to? The "you" is a reference to His 12 disciples (see vs.1). The disciples were discussing with themselves "who is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven." They present this question to Jesus and here is how He answers it. Jesus calls a child to His side and informs His disciples that if they don't become like this child they will not be entering into the kingdom of heaven (vs.2-6). Second, who is the "little ones" Jesus is referring to in verse 10? When He says, "See that you do not despise one of these little ones…"? The "little ones" is a reference to "little children" mentioned in verse 2 and 3 and to "young or new believers" in Jesus mentioned in verse 6. We are told not to despise or "think down upon" these little ones. Matt.18:1-14 uses the phrase "one of these little ones" three times (verses 6, 10 and 14). Matt. 18:6 - "…whoever causes one of these little ones who believe in Me to stumble,…" Matt. 18:14 - "So it is not the will of your Father who is in heaven that one of these little ones perish."
The disciples were discussing who was the greatest in the kingdom of God. You can be sure at the top of their list would not have been a little child nor a new believer in Christ. Yet, Jesus says, "…their (the little children and new believers) angels in heaven continually see the face of My Father who is in heaven." We never want to forget this: God is interested in children and new believers in Christ. In fact, He is interested in them so much that He has assigned an angel to them and the angels have immediate access to Him to inform Him of what is happening in their lives. So what do Guardian Angels do? They report to God what is happening in the lives of the "little ones."
"SIT AT MY RIGHT HAND, UNTIL I MAKE YOUR ENEMIES A FOOTSTOOL FOR YOUR FEET"? Are they not all ministering spirits, sent out to render service for the sake of those who will inherit salvation? NASU Angels are ministering spirits sent out by God to render service to those who will inherit salvation or Christians. Yes, Christians have angels helping them during their life. In fact, Jesus even told this story about what happened to a man named Lazarus after he died: Lk 16:22 - "Now the poor man (Lazarus) died and was carried away by the angels to Abraham's bosom;…" The angels carried him away after he died. I believe you and I have angels helping us. We might not be able to see them, but that doesn't mean they are not there. Ps 91:11 - "For He will give His angels charge concerning you, To guard you in all your ways." Now would probably be a great time to say, "Thanks" to the Lord for the angel who ministers to you. Think About This: When you believe in angels, you have friends in High Places. Stay Pumped, Gary A. Serago Minister of God's Word John 2:10 - "…and said, "Everyone brings out the choice wine first and then the cheaper wine after the guests have had too much to drink; but you have saved the best till now." NIV
The reason for this Pump Up is not about Jesus turning water into wine and saving this family from a life time of awkwardness. This Pump Up is about those last 7 words I have underlined above for us. The words I want us to consider are "you have saved the best till now."
As we continue to get older day after day we have the opportunity to give God our best. When we read the Bible we find servants of God who gave God their best.
Isaiah was ready to go and go he did and the ironic thing is Isaiah knew the Israelites were not going to listen to his preaching. Yet that didn't stop him from doing what the Lord asked. The second servant that came to my mind was Daniel. Daniel is an old man, most likely in his mid 80's, when he is cast into the lions den. King Darius comes to the den where Daniel had been cast early in the morning after Daniel had been cast into it and this is the conversation between them: Dan. 6:20-22 - The king spoke and said to Daniel, "Daniel, servant of the living God, has your God, whom you constantly serve, been able to deliver you from the lions?" 21 Then Daniel spoke to the king, "O king, live forever! 22 "My God sent His angel and shut the lions ' mouths and they have not harmed me, inasmuch as I was found innocent before Him;…" These two servants of God continued to give God their best till the very end of their lives. What better statement could be made about us that we had saved our best for God to the very end of our lives. Think About These: You can give without loving, but you can't love without giving. The measure of life, after all, is not its duration, but its donation. It's what you sow that multiplies, not what you keep in the barn. Stay Pumped, Gary A. Serago Minister of God's Word Nehemiah 6:1-4 - Now when it was reported to Sanballat, Tobiah, to Geshem the Arab and to the rest of our enemies that I had rebuilt the wall, and that no breach remained in it,.... 2 then Sanballat and Geshem sent a message to me, saying, "Come, let us meet together ...." But they were planning to harm me. 3 So I sent messengers to them, saying, "I am doing a great work and I cannot come down. Why should the work stop while I leave it and come down to you?" 4 They sent messages to me four times in this manner, and I answered them in the same way. NASU
What is a leader to do when confronted with this type of situation? Leaders will follow in the footsteps of Nehemiah by refusing to associate with the wrong people. If you are going to be a leader you need to realize there are certain people with whom you will not associate. "Bad company corrupts good morals," the apostle Paul said. Nehemiah had three powerful enemies who were trying to get him to stop building the wall and meet with them. They wanted to kill him. Your enemies may not want to kill you but they would like to kill your influence. Stop for a moment and think back over the last five to ten years of all the business, sports or political people who have lost their influence. The cause of their loss of influence may have been they succumb to drugs, fraud, greed or sexual promiscuity. The wise leader will avoid people who would introduce them to these types of temptations and so should you.
Nehemiah said, "NO. I can't come down. I am doing a great work." He didn't say this just once he had to say it over and over again. When your enemy attacks you better be prepared to fight more than one battle. You better be focused on your goal and your God. There are going to be times in your life where you are either going to take a stand and say, "NO" or give in and live with the regret. The choice is yours.
It has been said, "Trust takes years to build, seconds to break and forever to repair." Once again the choice is yours. There is no doubt in my mind that the reason Nehemiah said, "NO" was he never lost focus of rebuilding the wall and his God. He was not interested in losing his reputation and the trust that he had built. These meant more to him than any thing in his life at that time. By rebuilding the wall he was going to once again bring honor and glory to the city of Jerusalem, his people and his God. Jerusalem, the city of David, was the city that God chose for the Israelites and he wanted it to be held in high esteem once again. What is it that you need to reevaluate at this time? What has been tempting you? What is it that you need to say, "No" too? Are there some people with whom you should not be associating? Think About This: It is easier to judge people by what they fall for than by what they stand for. Stay Pumped, Gary A. Serago Minister of God's Word |
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