John 14

Friday October 2nd-John 14-Total Peace in Jesus!

12:00 PM

 

Friday October 2nd

 Do not grow weary and lose heart!  We can have total peace in Jesus no matter our circumstances!

John 14

Many people today walk around talking about God, but, do they talk about Jesus, do they really know God?   To know Jesus is to know God, the Father.  The Father does His work by abiding in Jesus.



Do not let your heart be troubled.  Believe and trust in Him (God the Father) and believe also in Me. :1

He cares for us.  We can confidently believe in God and Jesus and trust them with a faith that we can hold onto and rely upon, that will keep us going.  Jesus reassures us that He is going to prepare a place for us and that He will come back to get us.  I long for the day of His return.

After a little while the world will no longer see Me, but you will see Me; because I live, you will live also. :19

Did you see that?  The world will no longer physically see Him, but will see Him through us, because He lives in us.

When Jesus goes to the Father He will ask Him to send us a helper….Holy Spirit of Truth!  He will be our comforter, helper, advocate, intercessor, and counselor. He will teach us all things and help us to remember what Jesus says in His Word.

When you are troubled, anxious, worried, where do you go to get peace?  Do your run to a friend or to food or to shopping…?  We should be running first to His Word and let the Holy Spirit comfort us.  We can only find total peace in Him!



Peace I leave with you; My peace I give to you; not as the world gives do I give to you.  Do not let your heart be troubled, nor let it be afraid. :27

Let His perfect peace calm you in every circumstance and give you courage and strength for every challenge.  (Amp.bible)

Lord that we would put on your full armor each day, walking in your truth, righteousness and peace.  Holding up our shield of faith, wearing our helmet of salvation and using our sword which is Your word.  That those around us would see you Jesus in us living a life overflowing with Your love and peace.  Help us to keep our eyes fixed on You Jesus the author and perfecter of our faith, Who for the joy set before You, endured the cross despising the shame and now You are seated at the right hand of the throne of God.  Let us consider You at all times, Who endured much opposition from sinful men, so that we will not grow weary and lose heart.  In Jesus name, Amen

The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ and the love of God, and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit be with you all.  II Cor. 13:14

Lyn

 

 

 

Celebrate

A Bittersweet Celebration {John 14:1-6}

11:00 PM


Monday Sept. 2

Today’s Reading- John 14:1-6

Can it really be September? The months seem to have flown by. Yet I know it must be true, for here we are with another Labor Day upon us. Ah, Labor Day. A bittersweet celebration. On one hand it gives us the chance to send summer off with a bang; a last time to celebrate the festivities that the fading season has to offer. On the other, a bitter reminder of the change to come; shorter days, grey skies, and cold winds that foreshadow the approaching winter.

If there’s anyone who knows about bittersweet celebrations, it’s Jesus. Arriving in Jerusalem to celebrate the Passover, the Lord and His disciples rented an upper room in a guesthouse inside the city walls. Enjoying supper, His heart must have felt the joy, laughter, and fellowship that comes with spending time with those you love. Yet at the same time He must also have felt the bitterness of knowing that in a few short hours, due to the betrayal of one He held dear, He would leave them to be jailed, tried and found guilty, brutally tortured, and nailed to a Cross.  

The disciples were devastated when their Master told them of His soon departure. Yet the Lord comforted them saying, “Do not let your heart be troubled.” (vs. 1) Jesus told His friends that although things might look bleak, keep believing both in God and Him, because wonderful things worthy of great celebrations were going to happen. For He wasn’t just leaving them behind, but rather going to make arrangements for them to all be together forever. “In my Father’s house are many dwelling places; if it were not so, I would have told you; for I go to prepare a place for you. If I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and receive you to Myself, that where I am, there you may be also.” (vs. 2-3)

That last supper celebration with Jesus and His disciples must have been bittersweet of epic proportions. When I think of the pain and suffering Christ endured on our behalf, bitterness fills my heart. Yet with His death and Resurrection, He gave us the gift of eternal life; a gift that is sweet to my soul. So as I mourn the ending of summer, I will celebrate all of the wonderful things Autumn has to offer. And as I anxiously await the return of my Savior I will keep believing both in God and Christ, fending off the bitterness of the world and clinging to the sweetness that awaits me when I dwell with Jesus forever!


Becky Austin

All The Help We Need (John 14: 16-28)

2:02 AM


John 14:16-28 

The Christian life is exhilarating and fulfilling but it certainly is not easy. Knowing that the challenges of being a Christian would be overwhelming and difficult for the early church, Jesus didn’t just disappear from the face of the Earth and leave his followers on their own to struggle and fail. Instead, He promised and provided help in the form of a very special person. 
“And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Helper, to be with you forever,” (v16) 
  
Forever help....how wonderful is that! In the OT, the Holy Spirit was an important helper but He was not always present with man. His influence and presence would come and go. But present He was. He was there in the beginning of Genesis. He was there guiding the words proclaimed and the words penned by the OT prophets and believers. He was there with Christ during His earthly ministry. And now, He is present with you and I.  
  
We have the hope of Christ returning for us someday. ““I will not leave you as orphans; I will come to you.” (V18). But, what about the here and now? How are we supposed to live a victorious Christian life as we battle our flesh and muck our way through the spiritual battles of daily life in a sin-infested world? By recognizing and embracing the ever-present help of the indwelling Spirit of God.  
“But the Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, he will teach you all things and bring to your remembrance all that I have said to you. Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you. Not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your hearts be troubled, neither let them be afraid.”(26-27) 
  
When we become believers, we are given all the help we need. The Holy Spirit indwells us, to convict us, teach us, reveal God’s truth to us, and empower us to apply these truths to our lives.  
“All we need to live the Christian life has been deposited within us. If we are willing to yield ourselves to Him, we may freely draw on the resources of God’s Spirit. Our divine Helper is always there to attend to us in our need. At no point since trusting Jesus as our Savior have we ever been alone or helpless, even if that was how we felt. He is always present and actively working in our lives.”-Charles Stanley 
  
It amazes me to see the Holy Spirit at work in my life. He shows me things daily. He transforms my understanding and my perspective. He molds and shapes me through my experiences and encounters with others. He draws me in, filling my heart with inspiration, wonder, and amazing comfort. I am also amazed when I see Him at work in the gathering of Christians collectively such as in this group. There is such beauty in the unity of believers seeking truth together. I have grown spiritually from each of you being part of my spiritual journey.  
Spurgeon penned a similar experience: ”whenever I find a man in whom there rests the Spirit of God, the spirit within me leaps to hear the spirit within him, and we feel that we are one. The Spirit of God in one Christian soul recognizes the Spirit in another.”  I think that is part of the reason God puts such emphasis on Christians being in fellowship with one another.  
  
Be encouraged today that if you love God, you can count on His help and presence.  “Jesus answered him, “If anyone loves me, he will keep my word, and my Father will love him, and we will come to him and make our home with him.” (V23). We are not alone. We are loved and we are given abundant resources. We are blessed for God has provided us with all the help that we need!