IF IT WERE NOT FOR THIS, AND THAT, AND THE OTHER

IF IT WERE NOT FOR THIS, AND THAT, AND THE OTHER..

AND THEY ALL WITH ONE CONSENT BEGAN TO MAKE EXCUSES  LUKE 14:18

In Luke 14: 16-24 our Lord tells us a story.   In these scriptures we see an invitation from a very good, kind, and generous man to all his friends.  Instead of being grateful for this invitation to come to a great supper, they all rejected his offer by giving excuses.  It could be a story about you and me.

Today, that invitation is given to many by the Holy Spirit to come to the Lord Jesus Christ for salvation, refreshment, and fellowship.  And the Spirit and the bride says come.  And let Him that hears say come.  And let him who is thirsty come.  And whosoever will let him take of the waters of life freely. (Revelation 22:17).  But many people respond as the people in this story did by saying I would come if it were not for this, and that, and the other..

This is certainly a message to all those who have not received the Lord Jesus Christ as their personal Savior, to come.  But it is also an invitation to those who call themselves friends of His.  In this story these people knew the man very well.  This rich and generous man sent His servants to deliver the invitation to specific people who He knew well.  You and I are the people of this message.

The message for you and me is come, for all things are now ready (Luke 14:17).  The Lord Jesus has done everything necessary to provide you the opportunity to come and fellowship with Him and use your gifts and abilities to serve Him.

The Lord wants you to come and have some great fellowship with Him.  But many are saying not now.  They are saying If it were not for this, and that, and the other.. I would read my Bible more, and pray more, and be faithful to come the worship services.

As you listen to the excuses in this story, you will see that they are very weak.  One man bought some land that he had not even looked at.  After he paid for it, he decided to go see it instead of going to the great supper of his friend.  Another bought some animals to plow his field that he had not looked at or tested to see if they were able to do the necessary work he needed done.  He decided to go see them after he bought them instead of going to the great supper of his friend.  The third man used the excuse of his family for the reason he could not come.  He could have brought his wife to the great supper, but instead, he used her as an excuse.

After this generous and kind man had received all these excuses, he became angry.  Have you ever put in a lot of work and effort into something, and no one appreciated it?  How did that make you feel? 

The Lord Jesus Christ has given you an invitation to come to His house at least three times a week to have fellowship with Him and His other children.  He has given you the Bible to study, He has given you open access to Him in prayer, and He has given you many blessings because He loves us.  What has been your response to His invitation to Come, for all things are now ready.

The Lord is also giving you an invitation to receive His blessings by living a life that would be pleasing to Him and a blessing to others.  Depart from evil, and do good, seek peace, and pursue it. The eyes of he Lord are upon the righteous, and His ears are upon their cry.  The face of the Lord is against them that do evil... (Psalm 34: 14-16).

Now you and I have a choice.  We can follow the Lord and live a life of purpose and blessing to ourselves and others, or we can make excuses.  You are invited to produce good works through the power of the Holy Spirit that the Lord has put into your life. I am the true vine, and my Father is the husbandman.  Every branch in me that does not produce fruit, He takes it away.  Every branch that produces fruit, He purges it (makes it better), so that it may bring forth more fruit.....I am the vine, you are the branches.  He that abides in me and I in him, the same brings forth much fruit,  for without me you can do nothing.  (John 15: 1-5).

The sad news of this story is that those who made excuses would no longer have an opportunity to enter the house of this loving and generous man.  The excuses they gave kept them from receiving many blessings.  For I say unto you.  That none of those who were asked to come shall taste of my supper (Luke 14:24).

The good news of this story is that the invitation became open to others.  

If you feel unworthy today to serve the Lord Jesus Christ, He wants you to know you are invited to His Heavenly Home for a great supper.  The invitation has been extended to whosoever will.  Then the master of the house said to his servant, Go out quickly into the streets and lanes of the city, and bring in the poor, and the crippled, and the disabled, and the blind.  And the servant said, Lord, it is done as you have commanded and yet there is still room.  And the lord said unto the servant, Go out into the highways and hedges, and compel them to come in, that my house may be filled.  (Luke 14:21-23).

The invitation to be a part of God's work is not an open invitation so that you may come when you are ready.  And the LORD said, My Spirit shall not always strive with man (Genesis 6:3).  No one can come to me, except the Father, which has sent me draw him...  (John 6:44).

Today the Lord Jesus is giving you an invitation to accept Him, to serve Him, and to love Him.  Will you say yes?  Or will you say I would, if it were not for this, and that, and the other?

DO YOU WANT TO GET WELL?

DO YOU WANT TO GET WELL?

DO YOU WANT TO GET WELL?

“Now a certain man was there who had a sickness thirty-eight years.  When Jesus saw him lying there, and knew that he already had been in that condition a long time, He said to him,  ”Do you want to be made well?”  John 5:5-6

The most prevalent topic of the Lord Jesus Christ in the New Testament was health!   "...God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Spirit and power, and ...he went around doing good and healing all who were under the power of the devil, because God was with Him.” Acts 10:38

Before I speak about the the healing power of the Lord Jesus, I want to qualify what the Lord wants you to hear today with a couple of statements.  Everyone that Jesus touched in His ministry and healed eventually died of some other disease.  So physical healing is often temporary.  The Lord provides food for us to cure our hunger, but eventually we get hungry again.  Because of sin, these bodies will not last forever or even stay in a healthy state continually. I know many wonderful Christians today who are sick, disabled, and suffering some type of pain in their bodies. That is why the Lord has prepared a new body for us when we leave planet Earth and enter into Heaven.

There is at least one other thing the  Lord Jesus would like for you to know about His healing you.  When it happens it is a gift from Him.  When it does not happen like you pray, it is not a matter of His not loving you.  He heals you because He loves you, but when He does not heal you, He still loves you.  “My grace is sufficient for you, for My strength is make perfect in weakness....” (2 Corinthians 12:9).

The question of this message is about you and not about the ability of the Lord Jesus to heal you.  He has demonstrated His healing power over and over, and will continue to do so.  The question is “Do You Want To Get Well?”.  I would guess in almost all cases that your answer would be “yes”.  

I have prayed in “Jesus’ name” for many people to be healed as many pastors and men and women of God have done for others, and many were healed.  I have also prayed for many in “Jesus’ name” and they did not get healed.  So what should we do? “Confess your sins to one another, and pray for one another, that you may be healed.  The effective, fervent (sincere) prayer of a righteous person accomplishes much” James 5:16

Healing is about listening and obeying the voice of the Lord Jesus Christ.  Many people were at the same place where this man was healed and were not healed, but He heard the voice of Jesus and obeyed Him.

The first thing this man did was to make an excuse of why He had not been healed for the past 38 years.  “Sir, I have no man to put me into the pool when the water is stirred up; but while I am coming, another steps down before me.” 

The Lord Jesus did not discuss his excuse, but gave him a new way to be healed.  The man’s own efforts and methods had not worked for 38 years.  But when he listened to Jesus, he was healed.

Your Health and Healing Is a Partnership Between You and God

The Lord Jesus told this sick man to do something about His own healing.  “Rise, take up your bed and walk.  And immediately the man was made well, took up his bed and walked.  And that day was the Sabbath.”  (John 5:8).

He had to take charge of his own life and health.  He had to make a decision to accept the healing by getting up and walking.  This method Jesus was telling him was something new and different  Had he not gotten up and walked, Jesus’ words of healing would not have been effective.  “Do You Want to Get Well?”  It may require that you do something or change your habits to get your healing.  You may have to “Rise, take up your bed and walk.”  

He had to do it in at an inconvenient time.  It was considered socially and spiritually unacceptable for a doctor to treat someone on the “sabbath” day or for a patient to go to the doctor for treatment on that day.  The Lord Jesus’ healing power is not restricted by man’s rules, methods, or political correctness. When are you going to start receiving your healing?

Physical healing is certainly not the only kind of healing or even the most important. Spiritual healing is more important than physical healing.  Physical healing is temporary, Spiritual healing is eternal.

“Bless the Lord, O my Soul, And forget not all His benefits: Who forgives all your sins, Who heals all your diseases...”  (Psalm 103 2-3).  Without a personal relationship with the Lord Jesus Christ, you can only live a few  years.  With it, you can live forever.

When the Lord forgives you and heals you, you have a personal responsibility to take care of your own health.  “Afterward, Jesus found him in the temple, and said to him, See, you have been made well.  Sin no more, lest a worse thing come upon you.” (John 5:14).  We do not need better healthcare, we need to take better care of the health the Lord Jesus has given us.

When the Lord heals you, it is the right thing to thank Him and tell others of His goodness.  “The man departed and told the Jews that it was Jesus who had made him well.” ( John 5: 15).  

Has the Lord healed you physically, emotionally, spiritually, or your marriage, your relationship with your children, or in other ways? He wants to do it again.  I am sure He has.  I want to thank God for the many times He has healed me.  “Oh, that men would give thanks to the LORD for His goodness, And for His wonderful works to the children of men!”  (Psalm 107:8).

If you do not receive your healing now, there is a reason.  God loves you just as much as He does others.  But remember it is not God’s fault when you are not healed.  “You ask and do not receive, because you ask for the wrong reason, that you may use it for your own pleasures.”  (James 4:3).  I do not believe that the Lord Jesus is going to heal you so you can go out and continue a life of sin and dishonor  His name.  I would encourage you today to listen and obey the voice of Jesus as He passes by you.  He is asking you a simple question.  “Do You Want To Get Well?” 

A COMMANDMENT WITH PROMISE

A Commandment With Promise.

“'Honor your father and your mother, as the LORD your God has commanded you, that your days may be long, and that it may be well with you in the land which the LORD your God is giving you.”(Deuteronomy 5:16).

Because of the many years the Lord has given me, I have been able to observe many interactions between “mothers” and their children.  I have seen many happy families and many dysfunctional families.  The key person in the “happy” and successful homes has always been the mother.  We cannot go back in our past to correct any mistakes we have made or that our mother’s made as they were raising us.  But, there are some basic principles from the Bible we can learn on how to treat our mothers and on how mothers should live within the home.

To Children – Young and Old

For those “blessed” children who have grown up in a home with that special mother who loved and nurtured them, I would encourage you to follow God’s Word.  For those of you who did not experience a close relationship with your mother, I would also encourage you to follow God’s Word about honoring your mother.  This is the only commandment that has a promise of blessing with it.  

God has given us Mothers to provide faithful and caring supervision.  He has given them to us to love us when everyone else has forsaken us.  He has given us Mothers to show us what love is really all about.  It seems strange that God would have to command us to honor our mothers.  But as human nature has it, we usually take for granted those who do the most for us.  So God has reminded us that our Mothers have a place of honor in our lives.  This honor demands respect, courtesy, and purposeful displays of affection.  Today is a day to demonstrate that honor and love.

God has promised to add more years to your life if you honor your Mother.  You may exercise, eat right, and do all the healthy things required to live longer.  All of these things are good, but this is a promise from God, and He always keeps His promises.  When we honor others, especially our parents, God honors us. This is not a command for just one day a year, but for a life time.

God has promised that if you would honor your Mother, things would go well with you.  Do you want your career to be successful?  Do you want your children to grow up and be successful?  God has given us a formula for success and that formula is to honor your Mother.

“By this all shall know that you are My disciples, if you have love toward one another” (John 13:35).  This is especially true of loving your mother.

To Our Mothers

Mothers, your family is depending on you for love and care.  Regardless if you are a working mom, a stay at home mom, a wife with no children, a step mother, or a grandmother, you are the key person who will determine if your family is successful.

Mothers your family is depending on you for prayer.  Mothers are our intercessors.  When most of us want something, the first parent we usually ask is our Mother.  Our Mothers will usually be able to convince our Dads to give us our request.  When we get into trouble our Mothers are usually the first person who comes to our defense.  They will usually defend us even when we are in the wrong.  This is the nature that God has given them.  The Holy Spirit is our intercessor to our Heavenly Father.  “Likewise the Spirit also helps our infirmities: for we know not what we should pray for as we ought: but the Spirit itself makes intercession for us with groanings which cannot be uttered” (Romans 8:26).

Mothers, the first and the best thing you can do is to be a Godly, Bible believing mother. If a mother believes and follows God’s Word, she can be a good influence with her children. God says this of a Godly mother: "Her children arise up, and call her blessed; her husband also, and gives her praise." (Proverbs 31:28).  If you are not a mother, then insert the word, grandmother, aunt, teacher, friend, or father.  Your children will not remember many things about your achievements in life, but they will never forget your influence in bringing them to a saving knowledge of the Lord Jesus Christ.

To those of us who have been temporally separated from our mothers or from our children, by death, distance, or a dysfunctional relationship, God wants you to know that is why He has prepared Heaven. “"And God will wipe away every tear from their eyes; there shall be no more death, nor sorrow, nor crying. There shall be no more pain, for the former things have passed away." Then He who sat on the throne said, "Behold, I make all things new." And He said to me, "Write, for these words are true and faithful." (Revelation 21:4-5).

To All of Us

If your Mother is not alive today or if she lives far away, how can you celebrate this day.  It is a difficult day for many of us who have lost our mothers, or who cannot be with them today..  But today, there are many Mothers who do not have children to share their love with.  There are many wonderful Ladies who do not have any children who would love to receive a call, visit, or a card from someone.  You may have an Aunt or there may be someone in a nursing home today, that would love to hear “Happy Mother’s Day”.  Take a flower to your Mother’s grave site, say a prayer for her, tell her how much you miss her, and then transfer that love to someone who needs it today.  Even if your Mother is close by, share your love with other’s who will not be honored today, unless you do it!!

“Pure religion and undefiled before God and the Father is this, to visit orphans and widows in their afflictions, and to keep oneself unspotted from the world” (James 1:27).

HOW COULD I NOT SAY "THANK YOU" FOR ALL YOU HAVE DONE FOR ME?

HOW COULD I NOT SAY "THANK YOU" FOR ALL YOU HAVE DONE FOR ME?

IT IS A GOOD THING TO GIVE THANKS UNTO YOU LORD AND TO SING PRAISES UNTO YOUR NAME 

                                                                                                                                          

            PSALM 92:1

My wife and I just celebrated our 40th wedding anniversary.  I did not wait until yesterday to tell her that I love her and appreciated all the things she has done for me during these past 40 years.  I cannot help but be thankful for this blessing in my life.  How could I have not said Thank you.

Fifty years ago the Lord Jesus Christ reached out and forgave me of all my sins, and invited me to become a child of God.  I accepted His forgiveness and became a child of God.  I do not wait until a special day like Sunday to thank Him and remind Him how much I appreciate His love for me.  I cannot help but say Thank You to the Lord for this wonderful gift.  How could I have not said Thank you.

This month is Pastor's Appreciation Month and I have received many thanks by the loving people of this Church. I want to give thanks unto the Lord today for you, as I do many times during the week.  After I heard of your faith in the Lord Jesus, and love unto all Christians, I cease not to give thanks for you, making mention of you in my prayers (Ephesians 1:15-16).  I cannot help but say Thank You to the Lord for you.  How could I not take the time to say to each of you today, Thank you.

I thank the Lord Jesus Christ, God the Father, and the Holy Spirit for their presence in my life. I want to take this day to just say thanks for all they have done for me.  How could I not stop and take the time to say Thank You to my Heavenly Family.

I want to thank God for the wonderful things He has done for me. Many O LORD my God are Your wonderful works.  Which You have done.  And Your thoughts toward us Cannot be recounted to You in order.  If I would declare and speak of them.  They are more than can be numbered.  (Psalms 40:5).

Today, I would like to number a few of the things I am thankful for.  Bless the LORD, O my soul; And all that is within me, bless His holy name!  Bless the LORD, O my soul.  And forget not all His benefits:  Who forgives all your iniquities, Who heals all our disease.  Who redeems your life from destruction.  Who crowns you with loving kindness and tender mercies.  (Psalms 103:1-4).  

There are many more blessings He gives to you and me every day and we need to be more thankful and show the Lord how much we appreciate His goodness to us.  How could you not say thank you for the things He has done for you?

Thank You God for your gift of eternal life.  Thanks be unto God for His unspeakable gift.  (2 Corinthians 9:15).  If you have received the Lord Jesus as your Savior, you have received a gift so great and wonderful; you will never understand how valuable it is until you step into Heaven.  How could you not say thank You, to God for giving you the only gift that could pay for your sins and give you the opportunity to go to Heaven?  For God so loved the world (YOU), that He gave His only Son, that whoever would believe on Him, would not perish, but have everlasting life  (John 3:16).

Thank You Lord Jesus for leaving Heaven and coming to Earth to die for my sins.  For Christ also has once suffered for sins, the Just for he unjust, that He might bring us to God, being put to death in the flesh, but brought back to life by the Spirit. (I Peter 3:18).  He cares about you more than you know.  He puts it this way:  As the Father knows me, even so I know the Father; and I lay down My life for the sheep.  And other sheep I have which are not of this fold; them also I must bring, and they will hear My voice; and there will be one flock and one shepherd.  Therefore My Father loves Me, because I lay down My life that I may take it again. (John 10:15-17).  How could i not say Thank You for doing this for me?

Thank You Holy Spirit for teaching me about the Love of God and the Lord Jesus Christ.  The Comforter, which is the Holy Ghost, whom the Father will send in my name, He shall teach you all things, and bring all things to your remembrance, whatsoever I have said unto you. (John 14:26).  God lives inside of our lives through the Holy Spirit and we should always be thankful of His presence.  Do you not know that your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit who is in you, whom you have from God, and you are not your own?  For you were bought at a price: therefore glorify God in your body and in your spirit, which are God's.  (I Corinthians 6:19-20).  God cares enough for you to live with you through the Holy Spirit until He sees you face to face in Heaven.  How could I not say Thank You to the Holy Spirit for His presence in my life?

There are many ways to say thank You to the Lord.  

We can start with our lips.  By Him, then let us offer the sacrifice of praise to God continually that is with the fruit of our lips, giving thanks to His name. (Hebrews 13: 15).

How can we not be thankful for:

All the things He has and is doing for us.

We give thanks to You O God, we give thanks!  For Your wondrous works that declare that Your name is near (Psalm 75:1)

For His forgiveness and mercy toward us:

O give thanks to the LORD, for He is good!  For His mercy endures forever (Psalm 107:1)

For answered Prayer.

Jesus lifted up His eyes and said, Father, I thank You, that You have heard Me. John 11:41).

MY GOD SHALL SUPPLY ALL YOU NEED

And my God shall supply all your need according to His riches in glory by Christ Jesus.  Philippians 4:19

Today, as in other uncertain times, we may wonder how we are going to make it.  For Christians, we have a God who cares about us and is able to meet all of our needs.

God has been given many names given to describe Him in the Old Testament.  One of them is Jehovah-Jireh - The Lord Who Provides

The name is literally, The Lord Who Sees, or The Lord Who Will See To It. This is what we long for when we have a need that is personal and special; One who will see to our needs and provide for us. This is what Jehovah-Jireh means; the Lord Who will see to it that my every need is met. One Who knows my need because He sees. One Who is able to meet my need in just the right time as He did for Abraham, and One Who can meet it fully. For Abraham, it was the ram caught in the thicket that was offered in Isaac's place. For us it is whatever we need.  The eyes of the LORD are on the righteous, And His ears are open to their cry. The face of the LORD is against those who do evil (Psalms 34:15-16).  

The righteous are those who love God and demonstrate that love in their actions toward Him and toward others.

In Genesis 22 we have the account of God telling Abraham to take his only son and offer him as a sacrifice and burnt offering.   

When Abraham’s adult son asked him, where was the sacrifice, he said: My son, God (Jehovah-Jireh), will provide  himself a lamb for a burnt offering.(Genesis 22: 6-8).  God always shows up on time, not our time, but His time.

At the time Isaac was going to be offered up, God provided a ram.  And Abraham stretched out his hand and took the knife to slay his son. But the Angel of the LORD called to him from heaven and said, "Abraham, Abraham!" So he said, "Here I am." And He said, "Do not lay your hand on the lad, or do anything to him; for now I know that you fear God, since you have not withheld your son, your only son, from Me." (Genesis 22:10-12).

Abraham believe that even if he had offered Isaac, God was able to raise him from the dead.  By faith Abraham, when he was tested, offered up Isaac, and he who had received the promises offered up his only begotten son, of whom it was said, "In Isaac your seed shall be called," concluding that God was able to raise him up, even from the dead(Hebrews 11:17-19). And Abraham called the name of that place Jehovah-Jireh  (Genesis 22:14)

God provided His Son as a sacrifice for you and me, and raised Him from the dead as he will you and me one day.  Christ has already made provision for your salvation: But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us (Romans 5:8).  

From these scriptures and others we can learn several things.  We can learn that God’s provision will come in the time of our greatest need.  Where will He provide?  He will provide for us in the mount, that is the place of our trial.  When you cannot see the answer to your need, the Lord will see you and see to your need.  He will be your Jehovah-Jireh.  The eyes of the LORD are on the righteous, And His ears are open to their cry. The face of the LORD is against those who do evil.  (Psalms 34:15-16).

When we have needs, God is Jehovah-Jireh for us.  He can and will provide. Delight yourself also in the LORD, And He shall give you the desires of your heart. Commit your way to the LORD, Trust also in Him, And He shall bring it to pass (Psalms 37:4-5).

We can learn that the provision was made by God Himself. This is a provision that guarantees all other provisions you need. We do not have to interfere with the provision of God.  Do you think that after He gave His only Son, Jesus Christ, that you need to try to manipulate circumstances for God to work?  He who did not spare His own Son, but delivered Him up for us all, how shall He not with Him also freely give us all things? (Romans 8:32).  Jehovah-Jireh is concerned about your needs: Therefore humble yourselves under the mighty hand of God, that He may exalt you in due time, casting all your care upon Him, for He cares for you (1 Peter 5:6-7).

It is not God’s will for you to walk around feeling like a victim.  It is time to quit blaming others for where you are in your life.  If there is a need in your life that has gone unmet, it is time to ask God to help you, and then get busy with the gifts and talents that God has given you to meet that need.  It may take some sacrifice on your part in time and energy for God to give you what you need.   Every one of us shall give an account of himself to God  Romans 14:12

 The supply is there for your need. My God shall supply all your need according to His riches in glory by Christ Jesus.  This does not say wants.  God will give you what you need.   You have to go to the right source and believe that He is able to help you.  This is called faith.

Without faith it is impossible to please Him, for He that comes to God must believe that He is (real), and that He rewards them that diligently seek Him. (Hebrews 11:6).

These needs include more than things.  God can meet your emotional and spiritual needs as well. Identify those things you really need. He can send people into our life to help you meet those needs.  The Holy Spirit is in you to help you, and teach you, how to handle the things that you lack in your life.

It is God’s desire to help you today.

Beloved, I wish above all things that you may prosper and be in good health, even as your soul prospers  (3 John 2).