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Matthew 7 – Finger Pointing

Mar10

Good Afternoon y’all. Today we are looking at Matthew 7

Be blessed 🙂

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Matthew 7: 1-5 (NLT) :

1 “Do not judge others, and you will not be judged. 2 For you will be treated as you treat others.[a] The standard you use in judging is the standard by which you will be judged.[b] 3 “And why worry about a speck in your friend’s eye[c] when you have a log in your own? 4 How can you think of saying to your friend,[d] ‘Let me help you get rid of that speck in your eye,’ when you can’t see past the log in your own eye?5 Hypocrite! First get rid of the log in your own eye; then you will see well enough to deal with the speck in your friend’s eye”.

As Christians we shouldn’t go around with a judgmental attitude thinking we are better than others, displaying a holier than thou attitude or being quick to condemn others. One tends to find out that those people who are condemning, are also guilty of the same offence! I’m reminded of the story of the women caught in adultery (John 8: 1- 11). The people who were quick to judge her, were no where to be found after Jesus told them if none of them are guilty of an offence, they can cast the first stone. They all disappeared one by one until Jesus was the only one left and He told the woman to go and sin no more. He showed her compassion instead of condemnation. If Jesus had condemned her, perhaps this woman wouldn’t have experienced the love of God and come to know Him. A lot of people have missed out on salvation because of someones judgmental attitude towards them.

Jesus clearly tells us not to judge others because we too will be judged. I often hear people say when you point a finger at someone there are 3 fingers pointing back at you. The Message version of verses 1 – 5, drives home this point about judging others.

“Don’t pick on people, jump on their failures, criticize their faults— unless, of course, you want the same treatment. That critical spirit has a way of boomeranging. It’s easy to see a smudge on your neighbor’s face and be oblivious to the ugly sneer on your own. Do you have the nerve to say, ‘Let me wash your face for you,’ when your own face is distorted by contempt? It’s this whole traveling road-show mentality all over again, playing a holier-than-thou part instead of just living your part. Wipe that ugly sneer off your own face, and you might be fit to offer a washcloth to your neighbor”. (Matthew 7:1-5 MSG)

People will treat us as we treat them. If we want to be treated rightly then we need to make the effort to treat others rightly as well.
If we all treated each other the way we want to be treated, the world we live in today, will be a better place. As Christians we are called to be different and not live as the people of the world do. Jesus has set the standard for us. Yet most Christians are quick to judge and condemn each other 😦 sometimes i find myself doing it without even realizing I am condemning with my words or actions. Church hurt has become really common today because of this attitude. I have had people say to me they would rather stay at home and pray to God in their room than go to church and have someone look down on them because they don’t fit their expectations or not good enough. When i hear statements like this, it breaks my heart because the church should be a place where all are welcome irrespective of color or status.

We are the church of Christ and not the building. If we want to see change, it has to start from us. Each and everyone of us has a part to play as stated in verse 12 of our chapter today. I pray God gives us the grace to carry out this instruction

“Treat others as you want them to treat you. This is what the Law and the Prophets[a] are all about”. (Matthew 7: 12 CEV)

“Here is a simple, rule-of-thumb guide for behavior: Ask yourself what you want people to do for you, then grab the initiative and do it for them. Add up God’s Law and Prophets and this is what you get. (Matthew 7: 12 MSG)

Verse 21 – 23 was a bit scary when I read it. Made me ponder on my obedience to Gods instructions. I don’t want God to reject me on that fateful day due to disobedience

“Knowing the correct password—saying ‘Master, Master,’ for instance—isn’t going to get you anywhere with me. What is required is serious obedience—doing what my Father wills. I can see it now—at the Final Judgment thousands strutting up to me and saying, ‘Master, we preached the Message, we bashed the demons, our God-sponsored projects had everyone talking.’ And do you know what I am going to say? ‘You missed the boat. All you did was use me to make yourselves important. You don’t impress me one bit. You’re out of here.” (Matthew 7: 21 -23 MSG)

I pray God will give us the grace to be obedient to His word.

Prayer:
Dear Lord we thank you for today. Thank you for reminding us of how we should treat each other. We ask for grace to deal with others with compassion, help us not judge and condemn. Give us the grace to fully obey You. Thank you Dear Lord. In Jesus Name we prayed. Amen.

Thanks for joining today.

Have a wonderful evening 🙂

***With God all things are possible***

Matthew 6 – Trusting God in the midst of the storm

Mar9

Hello y’all. Good Evening :). Today we are looking at Matthew 6.

I am going to focus the blog on verses 25 – 34

Be blessed 🙂

Matthew 6: 25- 34 TLB:
25 “So my counsel is: Don’t worry about things—food, drink, and clothes. For you already have life and a body—and they are far more important than what to eat and wear. 26 Look at the birds! They don’t worry about what to eat—they don’t need to sow or reap or store up food—for your heavenly Father feeds them. And you are far more valuable to him than they are. 27 Will all your worries add a single moment to your life?
28 “And why worry about your clothes? Look at the field lilies! They don’t worry about theirs. 29 Yet King Solomon in all his glory was not clothed as beautifully as they. 30 And if God cares so wonderfully for flowers that are here today and gone tomorrow, won’t he more surely care for you, O men of little faith?
31-32 “So don’t worry at all about having enough food and clothing. Why be like the heathen? For they take pride in all these things and are deeply concerned about them. But your heavenly Father already knows perfectly well that you need them, 33 and he will give them to you if you give him first place in your life and live as he wants you to.
34 “So don’t be anxious about tomorrow. God will take care of your tomorrow too. Live one day at a time.[b]

Matthew 6: 25 – 34 CEV:
25 I tell you not to worry about your life. Don’t worry about having something to eat, drink, or wear. Isn’t life more than food or clothing? 26 Look at the birds in the sky! They don’t plant or harvest. They don’t even store grain in barns. Yet your Father in heaven takes care of them. Aren’t you worth more than birds?
27 Can worry make you live longer? Why worry about clothes? Look how the wild flowers grow. They don’t work hard to make their clothes. But I tell you that Solomon with all his wealth wasn’t as well clothed as one of them. God gives such beauty to everything that grows in the fields, even though it is here today and thrown into a firetomorrow. He will surely do even more for you! Why do you have such little faith?
31 Don’t worry and ask yourselves, “Will we have anything to eat? Will we have anything to drink? Will we have any clothes to wear?” Only people who don’t know God are always worrying about such things. Your Father in heaven knows that you need all of these. But more than anything else, put God’s work first and do what he wants. Then the other things will be yours as well.
34 Don’t worry about tomorrow. It will take care of itself. You have enough to worry about today.

These verses talk about worry. This is something I’m sure we all struggle with. At least I know I struggle with it daily and currently facing a challenge that’s threatening to drown me. In as much as I would love to say I don’t worry about the situation, the truth is I do. Even though I know my worrying won’t change the situation, it’s a daily struggle to constantly remind myself not to worry, but rather hand over the challenge to God

It’s easy to do this when everything is going okay but when you are in the midst of a storm that’s threatening to drown you, all of a sudden you realize that not worrying is not as easy as it seems. The bible is right though, even if you worry about the situation from today to tomorrow, it won’t change the situation. Yet our human mind tells us we have to worry about it. I guess it’s that prideful nature in us that wants to be independent and be able to fix all things, yet God is saying, ‘I don’t need you to fix anything, you just trust Me and let Me fix it for you’.

‘Worrying’ is basically us telling God that He is not able to fix our issues; or He is not in control. That in itself is an insult to God and shows that we don’t truly know HIM. Verse 32 in the CEV version says “Only people who don’t know God are always worrying about such things. Your Father in heaven knows that you need all of these”. These makes me ask myself: does that mean I don’t know God when I worry about my problems?
Well according to verse 32 that’s the case. God knows what we need even before we ask and He cares for us more than we can imagine. He already knew about the issues that we are worrying about. They didn’t come as a surprise to Him. He is the Alpha and Omega, the Beginning and the End. He is our Heavenly Father and He loves us with an everlasting unconditional love.

Verse 33 tells us what we should be doing instead of worrying. It tells us to put God’s work first and do what he wants; to give him first place in our lives and live as he wants us to. Then all the things we worry about will be fixed by God. In a nutshell we should focus our attention on God’s business and He in turn will fix ours.

Lately, one of the things I have found effective against ‘worry’ is to focus on God’s greatness and power through praise and worship. I find that when I praise and worship God for who He is and call Him all His many wonderful names, the problem suddenly looks smaller in the light of God’s greatness. God fills me with His peace and gives the strength to carry on, knowing that He is able. But the moment I take my eyes off of God, then I loose sight of His greatness and majesty which then makes my problems and challenges seem bigger than God.

I will leave us with a few verses that I have found encouraging through my current challenge. Hopefully they can encourage someone today :).

“Give your entire attention to what God is doing right now, and don’t get worked up about what may or may not happen tomorrow. God will help you deal with whatever hard things come up when the time comes”. (Matt 6: 34 MSG)

“Let him have all your worries and cares, for he is always thinking about you and watching everything that concerns you” (1 Peter 5:7 TLB)

“Yes, ask anything, using my name, and I will do it!” (John 14:14 TLB)

“Don’t fret or worry. Instead of worrying, pray. Let petitions and praises shape your worries into prayers, letting God know your concerns. Before you know it, a sense of God’s wholeness, everything coming together for good, will come and settle you down. It’s wonderful what happens when Christ displaces worry at the center of your life”. (Philippians 4: 6-7 MSG)

“What can we say about all this? If God is on our side, can anyone be against us? God did not keep back his own Son, but he gave him for us. If God did this, won’t he freely give us everything else?” (Romans 8: 31-32 CEV)

“Encourage those who are afraid. Tell them, “Be strong, fear not, for your God is coming to destroy your enemies. He is coming to save you.” (Isaiah 35: 4 TLB)

“When you go through deep waters and great trouble, I will be with you. When you go through rivers of difficulty, you will not drown! When you walk through the fire of oppression, you will not be burned up—the flames will not consume you. For I am the Lord your God, your Savior, the Holy One of Israel. I gave Egypt and Ethiopia and Seba to Cyrus[a] in exchange for your freedom, as your ransom”. (Isaiah 43: 2-3 TLB)

“Fear not, for I am with you. Do not be dismayed. I am your God. I will strengthen you; I will help you; I will uphold you with my victorious right hand” (Isaiah 41: 10 TLB)

“I am holding you by your right hand—I, the Lord your God—and I say to you, Don’t be afraid; I am here to help you”. (Isaiah 41: 13 TLB)

Prayer:
Dear Lord, we thank You for today. We thank You for your love towards us. We ask for Your forgiveness for all the times we have doubted You and worried about our problems. We ask for the grace to truly trust You and believe in Your ability to meet our needs; no matter how small or big they may seem. Thank you Lord. In Jesus’ Name we pray. Amen

Thanks for joining today.

Have a blessed evening 🙂

***With God all things are possible***