The Daily Dose

Meek not weak

Blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the earth.  Matthew 5:5

Many people think that the way to be meek is to be weak, but it just isn’t the case.  A meek person honors other above themselves.  They recognize that all people are valuable and they ad value to everyone that they come into contact with.  Meek people can see the big picture and recognize that what is going on around them is temporary and will soon fade away.  Philippians 2:3 says that we are to do nothing out of selfish ambition or vanity, but in humility value others above yourself.  This is a great description of meekness. 

Jesus displayed meekness and everything He did when He was in the world.  He was the ultimate example of putting others first.  He dedicated His life to serving others even unto the end.  At the last supper with His disciples, He demonstrated how they were to serve one another by washing their feet. (The lowest job of a servant in their day.)

There are some things you can do each day to live your life in an attitude of meekness.  First, have a repentant heart.  Each morning before your day begins, get along with your heavenly Father and surrender the intent of your heart for the day.  Don’t keep anything hidden from Him and anything that is trying to stay in the dark places of your life, exposed them by keeping the light of His Word on them.  Be strong enough to say cleanse me from all unrighteousness.

Next, keep your heart open for direction and instruction from the Holy Spirit.  Meekness is a fruit of the Holy Spirit, so be sensitive to His leading you through it.  Lastly, after you know what the Spirit is leading you to, be responsive to the prompts He gives you.

Of course, the reward of living a meek life is an inheritance in the earth.  This doesn’t mean wealth and riches, although you may have those.  What that inheritance is in your life is security/protection, perspective and the supernatural power of the Holy Spirit of God.

Today I want to encourage you to walk out the rest of your days in this world with a meek and submitted heart.  Always be ready to add value to those around you.  Look for every opportunity to serve others and follow every leading of the Spirit of the living God.  Living a meek life means living a life fully surrendered to the Spirit of God and walking out the full plan He leads you to each day.

Today’s scripture reading: Matthew 5:1-12

3 “Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. 4 Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted. 5 Blessed are the meek, for they will inherit the earth. 6 Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be filled. 7 Blessed are the merciful, for they will be shown mercy. 8 Blessed are the pure in heart, for they will see God. 9 Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called children of God. 10 Blessed are those who are persecuted because of righteousness, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. 11 “Blessed are you when people insult you, persecute you and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of me. 12 Rejoice and be glad, because great is your reward in heaven, for in the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you.

When you have a bad day

Blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted. Matthew 5:4

This is a tough one.  Why would Jesus say those who mourn are blessed?  Obviously they are mourning because of a lose or hurt of some kind.  How can we expect to be blessed or happy when we have a bad day?

The answer to these questions is in the second part of the verse.  We are comforted.  When we have bad days, and we all do at times, we are blessed because we know that we can take our grief and sorrow to our Savior, and He has promised to comfort us.  In the presence of His comfort, we can have peace and even contentment. 

In contrast, those who are without a Savior do not know they can go to God when they are hurting.  They do not know that hope is available.  This reminds me of a scripture in 1 Thessalonians 4:13 that says we as children of the King do not sorrow as those who have no hope.  We have the hope of His salvation, and we have the hope of being comforted.

We also know that later on, we will be able to help others who go through similar problems.  We can tell them about the comfort that we received when we were in that situation.  Ultimately, your suffering can result in bringing someone close to God in their suffering. So the next time you are having a bad day, don’t try to figure out where you went wrong, just turn to your Father and let Him comfort you with the comfort with which you can be comforted.

Today I want to encourage you no matter what you are up against.  Whether it is a lose of some kind, a betrayal or maybe something as simple as a missed opportunity, take it to your Savior and be comforted with the comfort that only He can give. Then watch for others that are suffering and offer them the hope that comforted you in your struggle. Jesus said “in the world you will have trouble, but cheer up, I will get you through them all.”

Today’s scripture reading: Matthew 5:1-12

1 And seeing the multitudes, He went up on a mountain, and when He was seated His disciples came to Him. 2 Then He opened His mouth and taught them, saying: 3 “Blessed are the poor in spirit, For theirs is the kingdom of heaven. 4 Blessed are those who mourn, For they shall be comforted. 5 Blessed are the meek, For they shall inherit the earth. 6 Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, For they shall be filled. 7 Blessed are the merciful, For they shall obtain mercy. 8 Blessed are the pure in heart, For they shall see God. 9 Blessed are the peacemakers, For they shall be called sons of God. 10 Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness’ sake, For theirs is the kingdom of heaven. 11 “Blessed are you when they revile and persecute you, and say all kinds of evil against you falsely for My sake. 12 Rejoice and be exceedingly glad, for great is your reward in heaven, for so they persecuted the prophets who were before you.

Poor in spirit

“Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.” Matthew 5:3

This is Jesus first public message.  The passage says that He sat with His disciples to teach them, but it also says there were multitudes close by.  Verses 3-11 are the introduction to His sermon on the mount.  They are commonly known as the Beatitudes, but I believe Jesus was showing His disciples the heart of the coming Kingdom He had been talking about.  These attitudes do not save you, but as a child of God, these are the actions that represent one who is operating in His Kingdom principles.

Each day I will write briefly about the nine attitudes that Jesus explains in this text.  First of all, I want to talk about the word blessed.  It is a word defined as happy, but it is the kind of happiness that comes from the spirit of a person, not from external things or circumstances.  It can also mean successful in attaining wholeness and contentment.

So, now we understand that Jesus was teaching His disciples where true joy and satisfaction come from in life.  By living your life being poor in your spirit, you can walk out your days in peace, joy and contentment.

Jesus starts by saying, the person who is poor in spirit is happy, content and satisfied in life.  He doesn’t say those who are poor in external things and lacking in physical needs.  He is talking about having a bankrupt spirit that recognizes it’s need for a Savior. When you come to the place in life that you recognize all you are and all you have is because of a God and Savior loving you, you become determined to trust Him for every breath you take and every move you make.  You understand that you have been given life to complete an assignment here in this world. You also know that God has given you all the resources you need to fulfill that mission.  You no longer believe that you worked hard all your life to accomplish the things you have done.  You know that all that you are is because of your heavenly Father that loves you and has led you every step of the way.

The verse goes on to say when you are poor in spirit, you belong to the kingdom of Heaven and that is where your citizenship and home truly is.  Even though you are in this world called Earth, you have dual citizenship because you have only been sent here to work for a few years.  Your life is led by the heart of God and His way of living successfully.

Today, I want to encourage you to become poor in spirit.  Take some time to talk to your heavenly Father about what He has brought you through in your life so far.  Thank Him for all He has given you and all He has led you through.  Let Him know that you recognize His hand is the reason for all you have become so far.  Then spend some time talking to Him about what He will lead you to next and thank Him for always being involved in your life even the times when you didn’t realize He was looking.  Take some time to meditate what it means to be a citizen of heaven right now in this world even though you are not there yet. Then, tell Him you trust Him to provide all you need to finish the course He has you on today.

Today’s scripture reading: Matthew 5:1-12

1 And seeing the multitudes, He went up on a mountain, and when He was seated His disciples came to Him. 2 Then He opened His mouth and taught them, saying: 3 “Blessed are the poor in spirit, For theirs is the kingdom of heaven. 4 Blessed are those who mourn, For they shall be comforted. 5 Blessed are the meek, For they shall inherit the earth. 6 Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, For they shall be filled. 7 Blessed are the merciful, For they shall obtain mercy. 8 Blessed are the pure in heart, For they shall see God. 9 Blessed are the peacemakers, For they shall be called sons of God. 10 Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness’ sake, For theirs is the kingdom of heaven. 11 “Blessed are you when they revile and persecute you, and say all kinds of evil against you falsely for My sake. 12 Rejoice and be exceedingly glad, for great is your reward in heaven, for so they persecuted the prophets who were before you.

Follow Me

Then He said to them, “Follow Me, and I will make you fishers of men.”  Matthew 4:19

Can you imagine walking up to someone and saying, “Follow me!”  Forget about the making of fishers of men part for a second and just think about it.  Where would they follow you and what would they learn if they were following you.  Maybe you have some followers if you have a business, lead a team or ministry somewhere.  Are they following your example, or do they only do what you tell them to do regardless of what your behavior?

So, Jesus told Simon and Andrew to follow Him. To them this meant that they would leave their business of fishing, leave their homes to travel with Jesus and leave behind all the relationships they had up until that point.  There is no indication from scripture that they struggled with this calling.  The passage says immediately they left what they were doing to follow Him.  They believed they met the Messiah and that they would be part of His liberation of Israel from Roman oppression.  It didn’t take long, however for them to realize there wasn’t going to be a revolt, Jesus was showing them how to gather up people into the Kingdom of heaven.  He said: Follow Me and I will make you fishers of men.

It is interesting that He said I will MAKE you fishers of men and not I will show you how to be fishers of men.  As we read further down the passage, we see that as they followed Jesus and served in His ministry, they were close to all the miracles and wonders He was doing wherever He went.  It didn’t happen overnight, but the more time they spent with Jesus, the more they became gatherers of people.  Finally, after Jesus’ resurrection, on the day of Pentecost, the disciples gathered more in one day than they had the entire three years that they were with Jesus.  Because of the time they spent with Him and obeying His command to go and wait until the Holy Spirit filled them with His power, they truly became fishers of men and turned the world upside down with their witness. (see Acts 17)

Jesus gives the same call to us today.  He wants us to follow the leading of His Spirit and fill up with His power to gather up the people of our day.  Those that we work with, those in our neighborhoods and those throughout our communities.  The closer we walk with Him the more effective we will be.  It will require setting aside some quiet time with Him each day to press in and grow your relationship with Him.  Learn to hear His voice and direction and He will lead you in demonstration of His power.  Soon you will be gathering up people all over the entire world.

Today I want to encourage you to follow Him.  Press into Him each day and learn what mission He has for you to follow Him in.  Ask Him about who He would have you to reach out to each day.  Whether to encourage, pray with or simply sit with and let them know the love God has for them.  Follow Him in your daily walk and His presence will MAKE you fishers of people.

Today’s scripture reading:  Matthew 4:18-25

18 And Jesus, walking by the Sea of Galilee, saw two brothers, Simon called Peter, and Andrew his brother, casting a net into the sea; for they were fishermen. 19 Then He said to them, “Follow Me, and I will make you fishers of men.” 20 They immediately left their nets and followed Him. 21 Going on from there, He saw two other brothers, James the son of Zebedee, and John his brother, in the boat with Zebedee their father, mending their nets. He called them, 22 and immediately they left the boat and their father, and followed Him. 23 And Jesus went about all Galilee, teaching in their synagogues, preaching the gospel of the kingdom, and healing all kinds of sickness and all kinds of disease among the people. 24 Then His fame went throughout all Syria; and they brought to Him all sick people who were afflicted with various diseases and torments, and those who were demon-possessed, epileptics, and paralytics; and He healed them. 25 Great multitudes followed Him—from Galilee, and from Decapolis, Jerusalem, Judea, and beyond the Jordan.

Who’s next

From that time Jesus began to preach and to say, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.”  Matthew 4:12-17

Here we go!  Jesus begins His public ministry and surprisingly, His message is the same as John the Baptist’s was.  Repent, because the kingdom of heaven is coming.  I like the wording of this scripture in the NJKV because it says the kingdom of heaven is at hand.  Jesus was telling the people of His day that the kingdom of God was within their reach.  When Jesus finished His ministry here in the world, he passed the torch to the disciples who also preached the kingdom of heaven.

So, what exactly is the kingdom of heaven that John, Jesus and those after them were talking about?  Were they talking about the place where God lives in Heaven beyond this world and universe?  Where they talking about when Jesus will set up His kingdom here on the earth?  No, the kingdom of heaven that they were talking about is kingdom principals that govern the life of a person submitted to the power of the Holy Spirit.  This is why they taught the people that kingdom living was available right here in this world.  Sure, sin is still here and will continue, but within the body of Christ, the people of God, there is a different kingdom.  The kingdom of light.  So now we have the light right in the middle of the darkness.  We live in the dark world, but the kingdom of heaven, the Light, lives in us.  When we live our lives the way Jesus lived His life, we are the light that this dark world is desperately needing.

We are the light by loving the lost and hurting people of the world, but we also have the same message that Jesus had.  We tell others about the life of repentance and walking in the kingdom of light so that when we are gone, they can continue the work that Jesus started thousands of years ago.

Today I want to encourage you to be the light wherever you go.  Don’t gossip and complain like those without a Savior do.  Instead, be kind, loving and generous to all who are outside so that they will see your good works and glorify your Father in heaven. (Matthew 5:16)  Then teach them how to share the message of repentance and to love others the kingdom of heaven way, so that they will continue this work long after you are gone from this world.

Today’s scripture reading: Matthew 4:12-17

12 Now when Jesus heard that John had been put in prison, He departed to Galilee. 13 And leaving Nazareth, He came and dwelt in Capernaum, which is by the sea, in the regions of Zebulun and Naphtali, 14 that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by Isaiah the prophet, saying: 15 “The land of Zebulun and the land of Naphtali, by the way of the sea, beyond the Jordan, Galilee of the Gentiles: 16 The people who sat in darkness have seen a great light, and upon those who sat in the region and shadow of death Light has dawned.” 17 From that time Jesus began to preach and to say, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.”

The Sword of the Sprit

“But He answered and said, “It is written, ‘Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God.’ ”  Matthew 4:4 Jesus said to him, “It is written again, ‘You shall not tempt the LORD your God.’  Matthew 4:7  Then Jesus said to him, “Away with you, Satan! For it is written, ‘You shall worship the LORD your God, and Him only you shall serve.’ ” Then the devil left Him, and behold, angels came and ministered to Him.”   Matthew 4:10-11

These verses in Matthew were taken from the passage when Jesus was led into the wilderness to be tempted by Satan.  I wanted to highlight Jesus’ responses because He responded with divine wisdom, but not beyond what we can do.  He is our ultimate example, and if we follow what He did in His life we can be successful in our life.

So, in this passage, He gives us such a clear path to follow when we face temptation.  First of all, if Jesus was tempted, we know it isn’t sinful to be tempted.  It is only sin when you yield to temptation.  Next, Jesus is clear on how to resist it.  He doesn’t argue with Satan, He doesn’t ignore or avoid the temptation.  He pulls out His Sword of the Spirit, which is the Word of God. (Eph. 6) Each response He gives to all of Satan’s temptations are quotes from God’s Word.  That is why the Apostle Paul said in 2 Corinthians 10:13 that with temptation, we always have a “way of escape”.  That “way” is the Word of God!

When you read this passage in full, notice that Satan also quoted Psalms 91 (He will give His angels charge) to Jesus to try to trick Him.  But the power of God’s Word was only released when spoken in faith from the mouth of Him who believed it.  Jesus. God’s Word has that same potential for power when we speak it in faith, but we have to believe it.  We know that faith comes from hearing and hearing the Word of God according to Romans 10:17.  That is why it needs to be spoken out loud.  So, we continually “hear” it to grow our belief and faith.  The verse doesn’t say faith comes from reading and reading the Word of God, we must hear it.

Today I encourage you to start overcoming temptation by speaking God’s Words every day, then believe what you hear.  The difference is speaking in faith and believing, not simply knowing what God said!  Follow the example Jesus gave us and draw your Sword of the Spirit to take down temptation as soon as it comes.  Speak the truth of God’s Word to the enemy’s lies and defeat him every time!

Today’s scripture reading: Matthew 4:1-11

1 Then Jesus was led up by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil. 2 And when He had fasted forty days and forty nights, afterward He was hungry. 3 Now when the tempter came to Him, he said, “If You are the Son of God, command that these stones become bread.” 4 But He answered and said, “It is written, ‘Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God.’ ” 5 Then the devil took Him up into the holy city, set Him on the pinnacle of the temple, 6 and said to Him, “If You are the Son of God, throw Yourself down. For it is written: ‘He shall give His angels charge over you,’ and, ‘In their hands they shall bear you up, lest you dash your foot against a stone.’ ” 7 Jesus said to him, “It is written again, ‘You shall not tempt the Lord your God.’ ” 8 Again, the devil took Him up on an exceedingly high mountain, and showed Him all the kingdoms of the world and their glory. 9 And he said to Him, “All these things I will give You if You will fall down and worship me.” 10 Then Jesus said to him, “Away with you, Satan! For it is written, ‘You shall worship the Lord your God, and Him only you shall serve.’ ” 11 Then the devil left Him, and behold, angels came and ministered to Him.

Well pleased                            

But Jesus said, “It should be done, for we must carry out all that God requires.” So John agreed to baptize him.  Matthew 3:15

John the Baptist objected to baptizing Jesus, but when I think about this I wonder, who else would have done it.   There was no one else around that had the revelation of baptizing people.  At least not that we can see in scripture.  He finally agrees to do it with a little coaxing from Jesus. Jesus told John that this is the way God the Father planned it to work out.  When Jesus came out of the water, there was a voice from heaven saying: “This is my beloved Son, in whom I am very pleased.”

I always thought that God was please with Jesus because He was perfect and was better than everyone else.  However, the real reason Jesus pleased the Father was because He fulfilled His plan and mission in the world.  Yes, He was perfect and never sinned, but God the Father was glorified in Jesus submitting His will to God each day.

Think about it, why did Jesus need to be baptized?  He didn’t have an old sinful nature that needed to be put to death, buried and raise up with Jesus.  Jesus hadn’t even died yet, so He couldn’t be baptized into the body of believers.  Jesus was baptized because it was a step of obedience in the assignment He was given to complete here in the world.

We too have an assignment and mission while we are here in the world.  When we submit to our Father in heaven each day and walk out the plan He made for us, He is well pleased with you and me in the same way.  Psalms 139:16 tells us that God planned every day of our lives before we even took our first breath.  You saw me before I was born. Every day of my life was recorded in your book. Every moment was laid out before a single day had passed.

Today I want to encourage you to submit every area of your life to the plan God has written for you.  Thank Him for His good plans and that He knows you so well to put together such a unique and special assignment.  Then thank Him for making it clear and plain so that you can follow that path and accomplish all that is in His heart for you.  Glorify His name as you reach others and impact your world for the Kingdom of Heaven. Then look forward to the day at the end of you deployment to hearing those word: “This is my precious and love child in whom I am well pleased!  Well done My good and faithful one!”

Today’s scripture reading: Matthew 3:13-17

13 Then Jesus came from Galilee to John at the Jordan to be baptized by him. 14 And John tried to prevent Him, saying, “I need to be baptized by You, and are You coming to me?” 15 But Jesus answered and said to him, “Permit it to be so now, for thus it is fitting for us to fulfill all righteousness.” Then he allowed Him. 16 When He had been baptized, Jesus came up immediately from the water; and behold, the heavens were opened to Him, and He saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and alighting upon Him. 17 And suddenly a voice came from heaven, saying, “This is My beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased.”

 Ministry of baptism

I indeed baptize you with water unto repentance, but He who is coming after me is mightier than I, whose sandals I am not worthy to carry. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire.  Matthew 3:11

John the Baptist was baptizing people to repentance before Jesus stepped out into His public ministry.  These were not believers, but they were people ready to dedicate their life to following the Messiah when He came.  This was a new concept.  There was no one else baptizing at that time.  John was the only one and as He was baptizing people, he told them that the Messiah was coming at any time.  He spoke of the Messiah as if He knew Him personally and He did.  They were actually cousins.

Interestingly enough, John didn’t tell people who the Messiah was before it was the right time.  Even though John had known Jesus for his entire life, he wasn’t going around telling people that his cousin was the Messiah.  He did tell people that he, John was not the coming One and there was One coming after him that was greater than John.  John kept himself in check by remaining humble when he could have been boasting about their connection.  He kept the focus on the one that was coming after him and said he wasn’t even worthy to tie up His sandals.  He also said that when the Messiah comes, He will baptize His followers with the Holy Spirit and fire.

Now this was something that got attention.  Up until that point, only prophets and sometimes kings and priest had the Holy Spirit.  Now they were hearing that they too could get baptized with the Holy Spirit and His fire.  This was something to get excited about back then and it is for us today, too.  As believers and Jesus followers, we sometime forget the supernatural work that He did  when we invited Jesus into our lives and made Him Lord.  We were a walking dead spirit brought to life by the resurrection power of the Holy Spirit of God.  Oh, that we would revel in knowing that God had done an amazing supernatural work and transformed us into a new creation that never existed before.  Think about it.

Today I want to encourage you by first of all saying: Messiah has come and paid the penalty of the sin of the world!  Take some time to think about and cherish the relationship you entered into at the point of your salvation.  Now think about how that relationship has grown over time and you are so much closer to Him today than ever before.  Lastly, share that repentance message with someone today and tell them how they can know Him personally.  Keep yourself humble and submitted to His way and you will see the work of the Lord show up in supernatural ways every day.

Today’s scripture reading: Matthew 3:7-12

7 But when he saw many of the Pharisees and Sadducees coming to his baptism, he said to them, “Brood of vipers! Who warned you to flee from the wrath to come? 8 Therefore bear fruits worthy of repentance, 9 and do not think to say to yourselves, ‘We have Abraham as our father.’ For I say to you that God is able to raise up children to Abraham from these stones. 10 And even now the ax is laid to the root of the trees. Therefore every tree which does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. 11 I indeed baptize you with water unto repentance, but He who is coming after me is mightier than I, whose sandals I am not worthy to carry. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire. 12 His winnowing fan is in His hand, and He will thoroughly clean out His threshing floor, and gather His wheat into the barn; but He will burn up the chaff with unquenchable fire.”

Make a straight path

“The voice of one crying in the wilderness: ‘Prepare the way of the Lord; Make His paths straight.’ Matthew 3:3

This is an Old Testament scripture that prophesied the ministry of John the Baptist. He was Jesus’ forerunner to get people ready for the coming of their Messiah.  However, it is the same thing we are doing today.  Even though Jesus ministry started 2000 years ago, the ministry is still going on today and once again, we are looking for the coming of our Savior.  Many believe that as Christians, we only need to sit back and wait for Him, but I believe there is a work to be completed before He returns.  We are in that time right now and we are preparing the way for our Savior to return.

John’s message was “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is coming.”  We have the same message today.  Now more than ever, the world needs to know that Jesus is coming, and He wants all people to be saved and come to the knowledge of the truth. (see 1 Timothy 2:4) They don’t need to hear a condemning message, they need the message that God loves them and doesn’t want anyone to perish.  2 Peter 3:9 says The Lord is not slack concerning His promise, as some count slackness, but is longsuffering toward us, not willing that any should perish but that all should come to repentance.  God wants all people in the world to know that He has made provision for them to be with Him for all eternity.  He never intended for people to go to hell.  That place was made for Satan and his demons, not for the people that God loved so much that He gave His only Son to connect us back to Himself and save us all.

So, what are we doing about it?  I doubt most of us are as loud as John the Baptist was and quite frankly, I don’t think he had a great revelation of the love of God.  However, He was effective, and many were drawn to him because he had a message of hope.  Hope for a future and hope that their salvation would soon be there.  We too have a message of hope and that is exactly what the lost people of the world need today.  We have the answers to the hurting, depressed, searching and afflicted people of society, now let’s fill up with God’s love and compassion for these people so we can lead them to the answer to all their ailments, that is Jesus.

Today I want to encourage you to take a small step out in faith toward someone who is lost and needs a Savior.  Share the message of salvation by telling how He saved you.  Share a scripture or a prayer with someone who is sick or hurting in some way or invite someone to attend weekend service or a small group with you.  You can even give extra offerings to missions abroad to reach others far away or support a local ministry that helps people get off the streets.  Seek the Lord’s direction and ask Him to send people your way that you can help.  He said: The harvest is plenty, but the laborers are few.  So don’t just sit around waiting for Jesus to come back, become a laborer today and get out there in the fields that are ready to be gathered in.

Today’s scripture reading: Matthew 3:1-6

1 In those days John the Baptist came preaching in the wilderness of Judea, 2 and saying, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand!” 3 For this is he who was spoken of by the prophet Isaiah, saying: “The voice of one crying in the wilderness: ‘Prepare the way of the Lord; Make His paths straight.’ ” 4 Now John himself was clothed in camel’s hair, with a leather belt around his waist; and his food was locusts and wild honey. 5 Then Jerusalem, all Judea, and all the region around the Jordan went out to him 6 and were baptized by him in the Jordan, confessing their sins.

Don’t hesitate

^{Then he arose, took the young Child and His mother, and came into the land of Israel.  Matthew 2:21}

The last verses of Matthew chapter 2 happened after the wise men left and Mary and Joseph fled to Egypt.  The crazed Herod had all the baby boys killed because the wise men did not report back to him who the Christ child was.  Mary and Joseph did not know this was going to happen, but because they were warned to leave, they departed immediately.  Of course, God was protecting His Son in the earth, but why couldn’t He just do it right where they were?  Certainly, He could have sent Angel armies to protect Him, or He could have blinded the soldiers that came to kill Jesus.  He had done such things in the past with prophets and kings. 

We do know that these things happened to fulfill prophecy, but the most important part of this passage is that Mary and Joseph did not rely on their own understanding.  When they were told to leave and where to go, they didn’t hesitate.  God had supplied them with a treasure from the wise men to pay for their expenses along the way and maybe even the whole time they were in Egypt.

This is the message to take from this passage.  When you know that God has called you to something or is leading you away from something, don’t hesitate.  Don’t lean on your own understanding.  Maybe there is a psychotic lunatic ready to inflict harm on you or maybe it is just where God’s blessing for you is located.  Whatever the case, God is smarter, and He can see the big picture.  Trust that He has your best interest in His heart and is leading you in the right path.  He is always leading you to His goodness.

Today I want to encourage you to take time to hear God’s direction to your heart for your life.  Don’t ignore nudges or promptings from the Holy Spirit to lead you away from trouble or problems.  Sure, God can protect you in the middle of things, but if He is trying to steer you away from difficulties, wouldn’t it be better to just avoid them altogether?  God really is out to get His best to you, but He needs your cooperation in order to line you up with it.  Trust Him today and begin listening so much closer than you ever have before.  In that way you will miss out on a lot of traps and struggles that your enemy has planned for you.

Today’s scripture reading: Matthew 2:16-23

16 Then Herod, when he saw that he was deceived by the wise men, was exceedingly angry; and he sent forth and put to death all the male children who were in Bethlehem and in all its districts, from two years old and under, according to the time which he had determined from the wise men. 17 Then was fulfilled what was spoken by Jeremiah the prophet, saying: 18 “A voice was heard in Ramah, lamentation, weeping, and great mourning, Rachel weeping for her children, refusing to be comforted, because they are no more.” 19 Now when Herod was dead, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared in a dream to Joseph in Egypt, 20 saying, “Arise, take the young Child and His mother, and go to the land of Israel, for those who sought the young Child’s life are dead.” 21 Then he arose, took the young Child and His mother, and came into the land of Israel. 22 But when he heard that Archelaus was reigning over Judea instead of his father Herod, he was afraid to go there. And being warned by God in a dream, he turned aside into the region of Galilee. 23 And he came and dwelt in a city called Nazareth, that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the prophets, “He shall be called a Nazarene.”