John 12:44-50

44 Jesus shouted to the crowds, "If you trust me, you are really trusting God who sent me.  45 For when you see me, you are seeing the one who sent me.  46 I have come as a light to shine in this dark world, so that all who put their trust in me will no longer remain in the darkness.  47 If anyone hears me and doesn't obey me, I am not his judge — for I have come to save the world and not to judge it.  48 But all who reject me and my message will be judged at the day of judgment by the truth I have spoken.  49 I don't speak on my own authority. The Father who sent me gave me his own instructions as to what I should say.  50 And I know his instructions lead to eternal life; so I say whatever the Father tells me to say!"  (NLT)

 

Jesus did not come to judge or condemn the world, because it is already condemned. He came to be a shining light unto a dark world. When you receive Jesus you become a light unto his world. You are not to judge or condemn this world, but share the gospel to save those who are lost. Jesus did nothing on His own, but everything He did and said He was instructed to do by His Father. We have the Word of God and the Holy Spirit to instruct us in all that we need to do. You must obey the Spirit and let Him lead you in the path that God has planned for you.

Jesus put His trust in God the Father.

 

John 11:41-42

41 So they rolled the stone aside. Then Jesus looked up to heaven and said, "Father, thank you for hearing me.  42 You always hear me, but I said it out loud for the sake of all these people standing here, so they will believe you sent me." (NLT)

 

Are you thankful? Jesus was thankful. When Jesus prayed He thanked the Father for hearing Him and hearing His prayers. God hears your prayers. He never misses a one. Do you say thank you before you ask something from God? Jesus had a heart attitude of thankfulness. God is very interested in your heart, not lip service but your heart. Thankfulness and gratitude is a key element in the Christian walk. It means to have an open heart, a listening heart and a faith filled heart. Our hearts need to be always in an attitude of thankfulness because God has given us way beyond what we desire – Jesus.

Jesus said thank you.

 

Engage the Present – Create the Future – With Jesus Christ

Matthew 4:17

17 From then on, Jesus began to preach, "Turn from your sins and turn to God, because the Kingdom of Heaven is near." (NLT)

 

Jesus’ mission statement was to preach to people to turn from their sins and to turn to God, because the Kingdom of Heaven is near. What is your mission statement? What is God’s will for your life? Do you know? Have you sought God’s will? Jesus knew exactly what He was supposed to do and He stayed on track. Even in His tempting in the desert by Satan He did not get distracted from His purpose. Do not let Satan distract you from your mission. Yes, part of your mission statement is to also preach to people to turn from their sins and to turn to God, because the Kingdom of Heaven is near, but God also has a very special purpose for you as well. By seeking God the Holy Spirit will guide you into His will. You must pray and you must listen. Jesus’ mission was very specific and so is yours. Seek the Lord your God and find out what it is He wants you to do.

Jesus stuck to His mission.

 

Q: What is your mission? Can you define it in one or two sentences?

 

Q: Do feelings stir inside of you that suggest you might contribute to a better way of life for others?

 

Q: Can you list opportunities currently in your path that might really be distractions? What are they?

 

Engage the Present – Create the Future – With Jesus Christ

Matthew 6:6-9

6 But when you pray, go away by yourself, shut the door behind you, and pray to your Father secretly. Then your Father, who knows all secrets, will reward you. 

7 "When you pray, don't babble on and on as people of other religions do. They think their prayers are answered only by repeating their words again and again.  8 Don't be like them, because your Father knows exactly what you need even before you ask him! (NLT)

 

When you pray, go and find a place that you can go that is quiet and without distractions. Jesus went often to the mountains or to a lonely place to be by Himself with just Him and His Father. Jesus met with His Father every day, usually for hours and nothing could interrupt that time. We too need to do the same. It is vitally important that we keep in touch with our Father on a regular daily basis. Your Father, who knows all secrets and knows all things, will reward you. Satan’s biggest weapon is distraction. He will use anything he can to distract you from your time with the Lord but you need to be strong and consistent in your prayer time. God wants to spend time with you, He loves to spend time with you and He has much to tell you. Chances are that God can provide you with an aerial view that will make your path more clear.

Jesus kept in constant contact with God.

 

Q: How regularly do you communicate with your Heavenly Father?

 

Q: Are you in communication with Him daily?

 

If not take some time to think how you can improve your communication with God so that you can move into a deeper relationship with Him. He will not push you but He is waiting for you because He loves spending time with you.

Engage the Present – Create the Future – With Jesus Christ

Isaiah 55:10-11

10 "The rain and snow come down from the heavens and stay on the ground to water the earth. They cause the grain to grow, producing seed for the farmer and bread for the hungry. 11 It is the same with my word. I send it out, and it always produces fruit. It will accomplish all I want it to, and it will prosper everywhere I send it. (NLT)

 

God’s word does not fail. It goes forth, it produces fruit and it succeeds wherever it goes. God’s word calls us to Him and we come to Him. He says we have victory in Christ therefore we have victory. God’s word does not fail. God says He will not leave us and He doesn’t. We may feel that God is not there or that God does not care. That is Satan lying to us because God is right there next to you. When we follow God’s word and do what He asks us to do we succeed. Why? God’s word does not fail. If we fail it is not because of God it is because we are trying to do things our way or we are not spending time in His word or we are not spending time in prayer talking to God and listening to God. We must set our focus on God’s word, living by God’s word and believing God’s word. God’s word does not fail.

 

Engage the Present – Create the Future – With Jesus Christ

Matthew 4:8-11

8 Next the Devil took him to the peak of a very high mountain and showed him the nations of the world and all their glory.

9 "I will give it all to you," he said, "if you will only kneel down and worship me."

10 "Get out of here, Satan, “Jesus told him. "For the Scriptures say,

'You must worship the Lord your God; serve only him.'   " 

11 Then the Devil went away, and angels came and cared for Jesus. (NLT)

 

Jesus was tempted in three ways and we too are tempted in these three ways as well. .

The last temptation was “the Lust of the Eyes.” Satan took Jesus to a place where he could show Him all the kingdoms of the world, key word here is “the world.” He showed Him all the wealth and splendor of the world and offered it to Him if Jesus would worship him. Even though Jesus was very tired and hungry, God still had first place in His heart. Jesus’ answer was "Get out of here, Satan” and “You must worship the Lord your God; serve only him.”

When we fail it is because we do not put God first in our heart. We put the lust of our eyes for things or ourselves ahead of what God wants for us. We must make a conscience choice to choose God and to deny ourselves. We need to get out of the way and let God lead. Jesus overcame the testing in the wilderness and so can we. By ourselves we cannot but through Christ we have the victory and we can tell Satan “Get out of here” and put God first in our hearts. You must worship the Lord your God and serve only him.

 

Engage the Present – Create the Future – With Jesus Christ

                                            

Matthew 4:1-11

Then Jesus was led out into the wilderness by the Holy Spirit to be tempted there by the Devil. 2 For forty days and forty nights he ate nothing and became very hungry. 3 Then the Devil came and said to him, "If you are the Son of God, change these stones into loaves of bread."

4 But Jesus told him, "No! The Scriptures say,

'People need more than bread for their life;

they must feed on every word of God.'   " 

5 Then the Devil took him to Jerusalem, to the highest point of the Temple, 6 and said, "If you are the Son of God, jump off! For the Scriptures say,

'He orders his angels to protect you.

And they will hold you with their hands

to keep you from striking your foot on a stone.'   " 

7 Jesus responded, "The Scriptures also say, 'Do not test the Lord your God.'   " 

8 Next the Devil took him to the peak of a very high mountain and showed him the nations of the world and all their glory. 9 "I will give it all to you," he said, "if you will only kneel down and worship me."

10 "Get out of here, Satan, “Jesus told him. "For the Scriptures say,

'You must worship the Lord your God; serve only him.'   " 

11 Then the Devil went away, and angels came and cared for Jesus. (NLT)

 

Jesus was tempted in three ways and we too are tempted in these three ways as well.

The first temptation is “the lust of the flesh.” Satan offered Jesus food, food to nourish the fleshly body and to miss use the power given to Him. But Jesus’ response was with the Word of God “they must feed on every word of God.” God already knows what our bodies need for food and He provides that for you, but what you need more than that is Spiritual Food. Spiritual food is more important to you then food for the flesh. Eat up the spiritual food of the word of God for it is good for you and more plentiful than earthly food.

God allows us to go through trials to refine us into who God intended us to be. If we fail a trial God helps us to go through this trail again, as the saying goes “take another lap around Mount Sinai.” It took the Israelites 40 years to learn God’s lessons -- hopefully it does not take us that long.

Satan also asked Christ to use His power to change the rocks into food. We have power in Christ and we are to use this to His Glory. We are not to misuse the power and gifts that God has given us. We are not to use them on ourselves but to use them to point people to Jesus and to Glorify Him.

Feast on the Word of God and it will satisfy you.

 

Engage the Present – Create the Future – With Jesus Christ

                                                                   

Matthew 4:5-11

5 Then the Devil took him to Jerusalem, to the highest point of the Temple, 6 and said, "If you are the Son of God, jump off! For the Scriptures say, 'He orders his angels to protect you. And they will hold you with their hands to keep you from striking your foot on a stone.'   " 

7 Jesus responded, "The Scriptures also say, 'Do not test the Lord your God.'   " 

8 Next the Devil took him to the peak of a very high mountain and showed him the nations of the world and all their glory. 9 "I will give it all to you," he said, "if you will only kneel down and worship me."

10 "Get out of here, Satan, “Jesus told him. "For the Scriptures say,

'You must worship the Lord your God; serve only him.'   " 

11 Then the Devil went away, and angels came and cared for Jesus. (NLT)

 

Jesus was tempted in three ways and we too are tempted in these three ways as well. .

The second temptation is “the boastful pride of life.” Satan took Jesus to the highest point of the Temple and told Him to throw himself down so that the angels would protect Him. But Jesus says “Do not test the Lord your God.” Jesus was more concerned about living for His heavenly Father then about His own life. We are not to test God but to be obedient to Him. God does not need to prove anything to us, all we need to do is look around and we can see the power of God at work each and every day. This life is temporary, not permanent. We need to be living the same way as Jesus by denying ourselves and following Him. Jesus gave us everything and He emptied Himself to become our sacrifice so that we could have true life. Jesus’ goal was for His kingdom in that we are a part of that kingdom. This kingdom is an everlasting kingdom a kingdom without end. This is why we need to not be boastful or prideful of this life but to be living for Jesus’ kingdom.

 

 

Engage the Present – Create the Future – With Jesus Christ