v.1-11 The Pharisees were holding onto to so much of the old that they could not "see" the new right in front of them! They allowed the old to hold them back...I want the new. I want Jesus. In my WOLQT it said, "There are only 2 kinds of righteousness that a man may possess. One is self-righteousness that comes from human effort and never reaches the glory of God's righteousness. The other is the righteousness graciously offered to us by God Himself. Which one are we holding on to?
v.12-26 The disciples were called and IMMEDIATELY followed. They didn't think about it, put it on a list, or say we will do it on Monday. They made a decision that would change their lives forever! Let this January, this day, January 14, 2011 be the day that you make that decision to not just believe in Jesus, but to get to know Him, to follow him without reservations...In order to participate in the NEW we must break free from the old, the old things that are weighing us down. Each of us have them... Seek righteousness and you will find it, but if you think you already have it... you will never look for it.
v.27- 38 What are some ways to break free from that old bondage weighing you us down? I found a few... 1. Love your enemies... sometimes siblings are enemies :) sometimes parent/child are enemies, even spouses have been known to become enemies... LOVE your enemy! Do good to them. An enemy can become a friend. 2. Bless those who curse you. I am driving along in my car minding my own business singing praise songs and all of a sudden I am honked at and flipped off! This is the picture that comes to mind :) and I have NO clue as to why... Bless that person! Or waiting in a grocery line with my 2 carts of groceries nearing the end and then I pull out my 100+ coupons, the person behind me thought I was almost done :) Needless to say they are not happy. Bless that person :) 3. Pray for those who mistreat you. We all feel mistreated sometimes don't we? There are people that we need to just pray for on the spot. Those people I just mentioned at the grocery store or impatient drivers, but then there are those that we actually know, people we are friends with that may mistreat us sometimes knowingly and at other times unknowingly. Family members can even hurt us. Pray for them. 4. Be merciful, even when your husband is sick :) 5. Be forgiving. We have been shown the ultimate in forgiveness. Christ died for YOU. Why is it so hard to express just a fraction of this forgiveness?
Love, Prayer, and Forgiveness go hand in hand. We can not love someone we are not forgiving. We can not forgive someone we are not praying for... You have all heard it, turn the other cheek, give the shirt off of your back, lend without expecting in return, treat others how you want to be treated. Well, let this January be the year, be the month, be the day, that we put our love in action. May we love Jesus so much that it just spills over to those who come in contact with us! May Love, Prayer, and Forgiveness become the NEW way we respond. Off with the old way of holding onto bitterness, unforgiveness and anger.
v.39-49 "Everyone that has been fully trained will be like his teacher" Who is your teacher? Who are you modeling your life after? Each of us can begin today. Christ is the ultimate example. He is our teacher. "Every tree is known by its fruit" Trees grow fruit so that fruit can grow trees. What kind of fruit is falling off of you? Is it love? joy? peace? patience? kindness? goodness? faithfulness? gentleness? self control? Gal. 5:18/25 When we are led by the Spirit we will live and walk by the Spirit. This is the new, not bound by rules but growing and producing out of a life of love in action.
Luke 6:45 The good man out of the good treasure of his heart brings forth what is good; and the evil man out of the evil treasure brings forth what is evil; for his mouth SPEAKS that which fills his heart. The beginning of a change starts in our hearts. The way to proclaim a new message of a new life is from a transformed heart. The disciples were called to immediate change! and they DID it! Today is the day to make a change! The time is NOW!
