Hello everyone. I am so glad to be back with you. It is an honor and privilege to share God‘s word with you. There is so much in these verses in Matthew, I am sure I am not doing them justice. God’s Word is so rich and so many treasures to be had. I think if God were to unveil them all at once we would be so overwhelmed we couldn’t begin to contain it nor would our minds be able to compute what God wants us to receive. This is why I am grateful for bits and pieces of wonderful nuggets that we are able to dig up at different times, and not all at once. God’s Word is new everyday. Amen!
(I will be using the word “we”, please as you read personalize this for you. I don’t always like to say “I”, yes I take thee things to heart, God is speaking to me first through these things, but I also don’t like using the “I” word as often as we do. Every time you read a scripture take it personally. God is a very personal God.)
Psalms 86:10-12
10 For thou art great, and doest wondrous things: thou art God alone. 11 Teach me thy way, O Lord; I will walk in thy truth: unite my heart to fear thy name. 12 I will praise thee, O Lord my God, with all my heart: and I will glorify thy name for evermore.
To be taught something takes time, David experienced this and so do we. As we are being taught the ways and Word of the Lord we learn to walk in them.
Psalms 25:3-12 (Amplified)
3 Yes, let none who trust and wait hopefully and look for You be put to shame or be disappointed; let them be ashamed who forsake the right or deal treacherously without cause. 4 Show me Your ways, O Lord; teach me Your paths. 5 Guide me in Your truth and faithfulness and teach me, for You are the God of my salvation; for You [You only and altogether] do I wait [expectantly] all the day long. 6 Remember, O Lord, Your tender mercy and loving-kindness; for they have been ever from of old. 7 Remember not the sins (the lapses and frailties) of my youth or my transgressions; according to Your mercy and steadfast love remember me, for Your goodness’ sake, O Lord. 8 Good and upright is the Lord; therefore will He instruct sinners in [His] way. 9 He leads the humble in what is right, and the humble He teaches His way. 10 All the paths of the Lord are mercy and steadfast love, even truth and faithfulness are they for those who keep His covenant and His testimonies. 11 For Your name’s sake, O Lord, pardon my iniquity and my guilt, for [they are] great. 12 Who is the man who reverently fears and worships the Lord? Him shall He teach in the way that he should choose.
The Lord knows our flesh, He does not like it and this why we are being taught, to learn to walk pleasing unto Him. Each day the Lord reveals more of Himself and His word of us as we yield ourselves to him.
As we learn the ways of the Lord, it is a process. The Lord doesn’t zap us and bam-bomb-bang, we have it all revealed unto us. Paul in Phil 3:11-14, says I have not attained, nor apprehended, but I continue to press toward the mark…the high call of Christ Jesus…a continued process.
Matthew 5:4 Blessed are they that mourn: for they shall be comforted.
Why are the ones that morn blessed of the Lord?
The word morn means to grieve, the feeling or act of grieving, wail or to weep. Let’s look at this part for a minute or so.
Why does Jesus say that the person that mourns, grieves, will be blessed… that is to say happy and well off? Why? there are a few reasons for this.
1) We mourn because of sorrow, hurt in our lives.
Isaiah 61:1-3
1 The Spirit of the Lord GOD is upon me; because the Lord hath anointed me to preach good tidings unto the meek; he hath sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives, and the opening of the prison to them that are bound; 2 To proclaim the acceptable year of the Lord, and the day of vengeance of our God; to comfort all that mourn; 3 To appoint unto them that mourn in Zion, to give unto them beauty for ashes, the oil of joy for mourning, the garment of praise for the spirit of heaviness; that they might be called trees of righteousness, the planting of the Lord, that he might be glorified.
Psalms 119:49-50
49 Remember the word unto thy servant, upon which thou hast caused me to hope. 50 This is my comfort in my affliction: for thy word hath quickened me.
Matthew 11:28-30
28 Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. 29 Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls. 30 For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.
The Lord wants to reassure us he is with us. We are able to trust Him in every situation and circumstance. Jesus is alongside us every moment of everyday and there are times I know He carries us. I just as sure of the same experience I am speaking yu have experienced yourself. Be reassured He sis there now with just as he was the time before. He has promised to never leave or forsake us. (Hebrews 13:5; Duet. 31:6-8; Joshua 1:5; Psalm 37:25-28; He is faithful to His promises. (Hebrews 10:23; Hebrews 4:15; Romans 8:26)
2) We mourn over sin. We, even though Christ took all our sin to the cross, we were crucified with Him, our sin was abolished, past, present and future, we still have a free will.
We know what we ought and our hearts desire is to please the Lord…but we want what we want. This is acting in the flesh. This is sin. When there is sin, there needs be repentance. Yes, at salvation repentance God the Father forgave our sin once and for all. But sin that is committed now, our choice hinders our relationship with Jesus. Sin is sin…yet we measure to how big sin might be. A lie is sin and so is taking ones life; also the thought of hate and lusts; then to carry out that thought or lust…no difference. Sin is holding a grudge; not thinking well of someone or yourself. The list can go on and on. It is sin and sin needs to be repented of.
“Oh but He already knows what I have done.” That there in its self is sin. We are choosing to carry “it” instead of the Lord to take possession of “it”. Did we not turn your life over to Jesus at salvation, so why hold on to these things that weigh you down and hinder your relationship with Jesus.
2 Corinthians 7:10
10 For godly sorrow worketh repentance to salvation not to be repented of: but the sorrow of the world worketh death.
Do we feel bad because we got our hand caught in the cookie jar or are we truly sorry and feel bad, to the point of crying over the what we have done to ask forgiveness. do we hate this sin enough to turn away from it and unto the Lord for where our help comes. (Psalm 121:1-3)
Isaiah 50:7 7 For the Lord GOD will help me; therefore shall I not be confounded: therefore have I set my face like a flint, and I know that I shall not be ashamed.
1 Corinthians 10:13
13 There hath no temptation taken you but such as is common to man: but God is faithful, who will not suffer you to be tempted above that ye are able; but will with the temptation also make a way to escape, that ye may be able to bear it.
(1 Corinthians 10:13 the message
13 No test or temptation that comes your way is beyond the course of what others have had to face. All you need to remember is that God will never let you down; he’ll never let you be pushed past your limit; he’ll always be there to help you come through it.)
Jesus is with us no matter what we are going through, having to endure or to stay under, He is our way of help.
1 Peter 4:12-14
12 Beloved, think it not strange concerning the fiery trial which is to try you, as though some strange thing happened unto you: 13 But rejoice, inasmuch as ye are partakers of Christ’s sufferings; that, when his glory shall be revealed, ye may be glad also with exceeding joy. 14 If ye be reproached for the name of Christ, happy are ye; for the spirit of glory and of God resteth upon you: on their part he is evil spoken of, but on your part he is glorified.
What we go through is not weird or uncommon to a Christian that seek the Lord with their whole heart. Jesus said if we are going to follow him we will also suffer with him or as he suffered. But I will tell you I do not believe any of has suffered as Christ suffered.
2 Corinthians 4:6-18 New King James
6 For it is the God who commanded light to shine out of darkness, who has shone in our hearts to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ. 7 But we have this treasure in earthen vessels, that the excellence of the power may be of God and not of us. 8 We are hard pressed on every side, yet not crushed; we are perplexed, but not in despair; 9 persecuted, but not forsaken; struck down, but not destroyed– 10 always carrying about in the body the dying of the Lord Jesus, that the life of Jesus also may be manifested in our body. 11 For we who live are always delivered to death for Jesus’ sake, that the life of Jesus also may be manifested in our mortal flesh. 12 So then death is working in us, but life in you. 13 And since we have the same spirit of faith, according to what is written, “I believed and therefore I spoke,” we also believe and therefore speak, 14 knowing that He who raised up the Lord Jesus will also raise us up with Jesus, and will present us with you. 15 For all things are for your sakes, that grace, having spread through the many, may cause thanksgiving to abound to the glory of God. 16 Therefore we do not lose heart. Even though our outward man is perishing, yet the inward man is being renewed day by day. 17 For our light affliction, which is but for a moment, is working for us a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory, 18 while we do not look at the things which are seen, but at the things which are not seen. For the things which are seen are temporary, but the things which are not seen are eternal.
The Lord has so much mercy for and upon us. He has a grace, love and hope that is so overwhelming. Most of us know the story of Davids sin with Bathsheba (2 Sam. 11:14-2 Sam 12). In Psalm 51, David expresses his sorrow and repentance for his sin. Please take the time to refresh your memory of this passage, this needs to be our hearts cry.
After repentance the Lord is always there to comfort us.
Isaiah 66:13-14
13 As one whom his mother comforteth, so will I comfort you; and ye shall be comforted in Jerusalem. 14 And when ye see this, your heart shall rejoice, and your bones shall flourish like an herb: and the hand of the Lord shall be known toward his servants, and his indignation toward his enemies.
Jesus is the God of all comfort. (2 Cor 1-7)
Let us, allow the Lord to be our comfort so that His grace and hope may be revealed to us as we patiently wait on Him.
*Used by permission. Cartoon by Chris Lambrecht at www.emdoodle.com
**All verses used are from the King James Version unless otherwise noted.
pinchofgrace 