Healing (John 9:1-3)

John 9:1-3

New Living Translation (NLT)

 

 

 

9 As Jesus was walking along, he saw a man who had been blind from birth. ² “Rabbi,” his disciples asked him, “why was this man born blind? Was it because of his own sins or his parents’ sins?”

³ “It was not because of his sins or his parents’ sins,” Jesus answered. “This happened so the power of God could be seen in him.




A common belief in Jewish culture was that calamity or suffering was the result of some great sin. But Christ used this man's suffering to teach about faith and to glorify God. We live in a fallen world where good behavior is not always rewarded and bad behavior not always punished. Therefore, innocent people sometime suffer. If God took suffering away whenever we asked, we would follow Him for comfort and convenience, not out of love and devotion. Regardless of the reasons for our suffering, Jesus has the power to help us deal with it. When you suffer from a disease, tragedy, or disability, try not to ask, "Why did this happen to me?" or "What did I do wrong?" Instead, ask God to give you strength for the trial and a clearer perspective on what is happening.





 
 
Lord, I pray for the "Power of God" to be seen in the healing of my brother.


 
Joe
























 

Healing (Luke 8:42-48)

Luke 8:42-48

New Living Translation (NLT)

 

 

 

...As Jesus went with him, he was surrounded by the crowds. ⁴³ A woman in the crowd had suffered for twelve years with constant bleeding, and she could find no cure. ⁴⁴ Coming up behind Jesus, she touched the fringe of his robe. Immediately, the bleeding stopped.
⁴⁵ “Who touched me?” Jesus asked.
Everyone denied it, and Peter said, “Master, this whole crowd is pressing up against you.”
⁴⁶ But Jesus said, “Someone deliberately touched me, for I felt healing power go out from me.” ⁴⁷ When the woman realized that she could not stay hidden, she began to tremble and fell to her knees in front of him. The whole crowd heard her explain why she had touched him and that she had been immediately healed. ⁴⁸ “Daughter,” he said to her, “your faith has made you well. Go in peace.”




Many people surrounded Jesus as He made His way to Jarius' house. It was virtually impossible to get through the multitude, but one woman fought her way desperately through the crowd in order to touch Jesus. As soon as she did so, she was healed. What a difference there is between the crowds that are curious about Jesus and the few that reach out to touch Him! Today many people are vaguely familiar with Jesus, but nothing in their lives is changed or bettered by this passing acquaintance. It is only faith that releases God's healing power. Are you just curious about God, or do you reach out to Him in faith, knowing that His mercy will bring healing to your body, soul and spirit.






 
Will you join me and reach out to Jesus in faith to heal my brother?


 
Joe















 

Healing (James 5:14-15)

James 5:14-15

New Living Translation (NLT)

 

 

 

¹⁴ Are any of you sick? You should call for the elders of the church to come and pray over you, anointing you with oil in the name of the Lord. ¹⁵ Such a prayer offered in faith will heal the sick, and the Lord will make you well. And if you have committed any sins, you will be forgiven.

 

 

 

 

People in the church are not alone. Members of Christ's body should be able to count on others for support and prayer, especially when they are sick or suffering. The elders should be on call to respond to the illness of any member, and the church should stay alert to pray for the needs of all its members.

"The prayer offered in faith" does not refer to the prayer of the sick person, but to the faith of the person praying. God heals, faith doesn't, and all prayers are subject to God's will. But our prayers are part of God's healing process. That is why God often waits for our prayers of faith before intervening to heal a person.

 

 

 

 

 

Please pray "boldly" and with "authority" for God to heal my brother.

 

Joe

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

1 Kings 14:25-26

1 Kings 14:25-26

New International Version (NIV)

 

 

 

²⁵ In the fifth year of King Rehoboam, Shishak king of Egypt attacked Jerusalem. ²⁶ He carried off the treasures of the temple of the Lord and the treasures of the royal palace. He took everything, including all the gold shields Solomon had made.





Just 5 years after Solomon died, the temple and palace were ransacked by foreign invaders. How quickly the glory, power, and money disappeared! When the people became spiritually corrupt and immoral, it was just a short time until they lost everything. Wealth, idol worship, and immorality had become more important to them than God. When God is gone from our lives, everything else becomes useless, no matter how valuable it seems.




 
Joe










 

1 Kings 12:28

1 Kings 12:28

New Living Translation (NLT)

 

 

 

 

²⁸ So on the advice of his counselors, the king made two gold calves. He said to the people, “It is too much trouble for you to worship in Jerusalem. Look, Israel, these are the gods who brought you out of Egypt!”






All Jewish men were required to travel to the temple three times each year, but King Jeroboam set up his own worship centers and told his people it was too much trouble to travel all the way to Jerusalem. Those who obeyed Jeroboam were disobeying God. Some ideas, though practical, may include suggestions that lead you away from God. Don't let anyone talk you out of doing what is right by telling you that moral actions are not worth the effort. Do what God wants, no matter what the cost in time, energy, reputation, or resources.






Joe





















 

1 Kings 11:9-10

1 Kings 11:9-10

New Living Translation (NLT)

 

 

 

⁹ The Lord was very angry with Solomon, for his heart had turned away from the Lord, the God of Israel, who had appeared to him twice. ¹⁰ He had warned Solomon specifically about worshiping other gods, but Solomon did not listen to the Lord’s command.




Solomon didn't turn away from God all at once or in a brief moment. His spiritual coldness started with a minor departure from God's laws (see 1 Kings 3:1). Over the years, that little sin grew until it resulted in Solomon's downfall. A little sin can be the first step in turning away from God. It is not the sins we don't know about, but the sins we excuse, that cause us the greatest trouble. We must never let any sin go unchallenged. In your life, is an unchallenged sin spreading like a deadly cancer? Don't excuse it. Confess this sin to God and ask Him for strength to resist temptation.






Joe


















 

1 Kings 11:3

New Living Translation (NLT)

 

 

 

³ He had 700 wives of royal birth and 300 concubines. And in fact, they did turn his heart away from the Lord.

 

 

 

 

For all his wisdom, Solomon had some weak spots. He could not say no to compromise or to lustful desires. Whether he married to strengthen political alliances or to gain personal pleasure, these foreign wives led him into idolatry. You may have strong faith, but you also have weak spots - and that is where temptation usually strikes. Strengthen and protect your weaker areas because a chain is only as strong as its weakest link. If Solomon, the wisest man, could fall, so can you.

 

 

 

 

 

Joe

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

1 Kings 8:56-61

1 Kings 8:56-61

New International Version (NIV)

 

 

 

⁵⁶ “Praise be to the Lord, who has given rest to his people Israel just as he promised. Not one word has failed of all the good promises he gave through his servant Moses. ⁵⁷ May the Lord our God be with us as he was with our ancestors; may he never leave us nor forsake us. ⁵⁸ May he turn our hearts to him, to walk in obedience to him and keep the commands, decrees and laws he gave our ancestors. ⁵⁹ And may these words of mine, which I have prayed before the Lord, be near to the Lord our God day and night, that he may uphold the cause of his servant and the cause of his people Israel according to each day’s need, ⁶⁰ so that all the peoples of the earth may know that the Lord is God and that there is no other. ⁶¹ And may your hearts be fully committed to the Lord our God, to live by his decrees and obey his commands, as at this time.”




Solomon praised the Lord and prayed for the people. His prayer can be a pattern for our prayers. He had 5 basic requests; 1.) for God's presence (8:57); 2.) for the desire to do God's will in everything; ("turn our hearts to Him," 8:58); 3.) for help with each day's need (8:59); 4.) for the desire and ability to obey God's decrees and commands (8:58); 5.) for the spread of God's kingdom to the entire world (8:60). These prayer requests are just as important today. When you pray for your church or family, you can make these same requests to God.




Joe






 

1 Kings 8:27

New Living Translation (NLT)

 

 

 

²⁷ “But will God really live on earth? Why, even the highest heavens cannot contain you. How much less this Temple I have built!




In his prayer of dedication, Solomon declare that even the highest heaven cannot contain God. Isn't it amazing that, though the heavens can't contain God, He is willing to live in the hearts of those who love Him? The God of the universe takes up residence in His people.




Joe


















 

The Day the Sun Stood Still

^{Joshua 10:12-14}

 

 

 

^{The Day the Sun Stood Still}

 

 

 

¹² On the day the Lord gave the Amorites over to Israel, Joshua said to the Lord in the presence of Israel:

“Sun, stand still over Gibeon,
    and you, moon, over the Valley of Aijalon."¹³ So the sun stood still,
    and the moon stopped,
    till the nation avenged itself on its enemies,

as it is written in the Book of Jashar.

The sun stopped in the middle of the sky and delayed going down about a full day. ¹⁴ There has never been a day like it before or since, a day when the Lord listened to a human being. Surely the Lord was fighting for Israel!

 

 

 

 

As my family and I were watching the sun go down last night over the Pamlico Sound in North Carolina, I was reminded of the Bible lesson we had the opportunity to teach a few weeks back to our Northlife Community Church's Sunday School class (Kid's Central). Joshua prayed to God during this battle for the Sun to stay out to give the Israelites time to defeat the Amorites before nightfall.

 

 

 

While I was doing some research for this class, I came across a report from NASA that proves to non-believers what us Christians already know, that nothing is impossible for God ! (see below)

 

 

 

An email says that NASA (The U.S. National Aeronautics and Space Administration) has stumbled across some computer generated evidence that the Bible is true.  A man named Harold Hill, a NASA consultant and president of the Curtis engine company, describes how NASA computers were looking back in time when they issued an alert that something was wrong.  There seemed to be a day missing from the calculations.  The scientists puzzled over this a long time until someone in their midst reflected that in the Bible, there's a story about the day the sun stood still for the Hebrew leader Joshua.  This solves the puzzle, almost.  According to the computer, not an entire day was lost, but 23 hours and 20 minutes.  Now there's a new problem.  What about the other 40 minutes?  That's when the same employee remembers that there is another story in the Bible about a day when the sun moved backwards 10 degrees which (see Isaiah 38:8)  , according to the employee, is an arc of 40 minutes...so the entire question of the missing day is solved!      

 

 

 

 

Joe      

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

1 Kings 6:7

New Living Translation (NLT)


 

⁷ The stones used in the construction of the Temple were finished at the quarry, so there was no sound of hammer, ax, or any other iron tool at the building site.




In honor of God, the temple in Jerusalem was built without the sound of a hammer or any other tool at the building site. This meant that the stone had to be "dressed" (cut and shaped) miles away at the quarry. The people's honor and respect for God extended to every aspect of constructing this house of worship. This detail is recorded not to teach us how to build a church, but to show us the importance of demonstrating care, concern, honor, and respect for God and His sanctuary.



Joe
























 

1 Kings 5:13-14

1 Kings 5:13-14

New International Version (NIV)

 

 

 

 

¹³ King Solomon conscripted laborers from all Israel—thirty thousand men. ¹⁴ He sent them off to Lebanon in shifts of ten thousand a month, so that they spent one month in Lebanon and two months at home. Adoniram was in charge of the forced labor.



Solomon drafted three times the number of workers needed for the temple project and then arranged their schedules so they didn't have to be away from home for long periods of time. This showed his concern for the welfare of his workers and the importance he placed on family life. The strength of a nation is in direct proportion to the strength of its families. Solomon wisely recognized that family should always be a top priority. As you structure your own work or arrange the schedules of others, watch for the impact of your plans on families.



Joe

















 

1 Kings 3:12-28

1 Kings 3:12-28

New International Version (NIV)

 

 

 

¹² I will do what you have asked. I will give you a wise and discerning heart, so that there will never have been anyone like you, nor will there ever be. ¹³ Moreover, I will give you what you have not asked for—both wealth and honor—so that in your lifetime you will have no equal among kings. ¹⁴ And if you walk in obedience to me and keep my decrees and commands as David your father did, I will give you a long life.” ¹⁵ Then Solomon awoke—and he realized it had been a dream.
He returned to Jerusalem, stood before the ark of the Lord’s covenant and sacrificed burnt offerings and fellowship offerings. Then he gave a feast for all his court.

A Wise Ruling

¹⁶ Now two prostitutes came to the king and stood before him. ¹⁷ One of them said, “Pardon me, my lord. This woman and I live in the same house, and I had a baby while she was there with me. ¹⁸ The third day after my child was born, this woman also had a baby. We were alone; there was no one in the house but the two of us.
¹⁹ “During the night this woman’s son died because she lay on him. ²⁰ So she got up in the middle of the night and took my son from my side while I your servant was asleep. She put him by her breast and put her dead son by my breast. ²¹ The next morning, I got up to nurse my son—and he was dead! But when I looked at him closely in the morning light, I saw that it wasn’t the son I had borne.”
²² The other woman said, “No! The living one is my son; the dead one is yours.”
But the first one insisted, “No! The dead one is yours; the living one is mine.” And so they argued before the king.
²³ The king said, “This one says, ‘My son is alive and your son is dead,’ while that one says, ‘No! Your son is dead and mine is alive.’”
²⁴ Then the king said, “Bring me a sword.” So they brought a sword for the king. ²⁵ He then gave an order: “Cut the living child in two and give half to one and half to the other.”
²⁶ The woman whose son was alive was deeply moved out of love for her son and said to the king, “Please, my lord, give her the living baby! Don’t kill him!”
But the other said, “Neither I nor you shall have him. Cut him in two!”
²⁷ Then the king gave his ruling: “Give the living baby to the first woman. Do not kill him; she is his mother.”
²⁸ When all Israel heard the verdict the king had given, they held the king in awe, because they saw that he had wisdom from God to administer justice.





Solomon's settlement of this dispute was a classic example of his wisdom. This wise ruling was verification that God had answered Solomon's prayer and given him a discerning heart. We have God's wisdom available to us as we pray and request it. But, like Solomon, we must put it into action. Applying wisdom to life demonstrates our discernment.






Joe
















 

2 Samuel 15:5-6

New International Version (NIV)

 

 

 

⁵ Also, whenever anyone approached him to bow down before him, Absalom would reach out his hand, take hold of him and kiss him. ⁶ Absalom behaved in this way toward all the Israelites who came to the king asking for justice, and so he stole the hearts of the people of Israel.




Absalom's political strategy was to steal the hearts of the people with his good looks, grand entrances, apparent concern for justice, and friendly embraces. Many were fooled and switched their allegiance. Later, however, Absalom proved to be an evil ruler.
We need to evaluate our leaders to make sure their charisma is not a mask covering deception or hunger for power. Make sure that underneath their style and charm , they are able to make good decisions and handle people wisely.






Joe


















 

2 Samuel 12:22-23

New Living Translation (NLT)


 

²² David replied, “I fasted and wept while the child was alive, for I said, ‘Perhaps the Lord will be gracious to me and let the child live.’ ²³ But why should I fast when he is dead? Can I bring him back again? I will go to him one day, but he cannot return to me.”




The most bitter experience in life is the death of one's child. I know exactly how David felt.





Joe

2 Samuel 12:13-14

2 Samuel 12:13-14

New Living Translation (NLT)

 

 

David Confesses His Guilt

 

 

¹³ Then David confessed to Nathan, “I have sinned against the Lord.”

Nathan replied, “Yes, but the Lord has forgiven you, and you won’t die for this sin. ¹⁴ Nevertheless, because you have shown utter contempt for the Lord by doing this, your child will die.”





David confessed and repented of his sin, but God's judgment was that his child would die. The consequences of David's sin were irreversible. Sometimes an apology isn't enough. When God forgives us and restores our relationship with Him, He doesn't eliminate all the consequences of our wrongdoing. We may be tempted to say, "if this is wrong, I can always apologize to God," but we must remember that we may set into motion events with irreversible consequences.




Joe










 

2 Samuel 3:36 & 8:15

 

 

2 Samuel 3:36

New Living Translation (NLT)

 

 

³⁶ This pleased the people very much. In fact, everything the king did pleased them!

 

2 Samuel 8:15

New Living Translation (NLT)


 

¹⁵ So David reigned over all Israel and did what was just and right for all his people.




David pleased the people, not because he tried to please them, but because he tried to please God. Often those who try the hardest to become popular never make it. But the praise of the people is not that important. Don't spend your time devising ways to become accepted in the public eye. Instead strive to do what is right, and both God and people will respect your convictions.






Joe
















 

2 Samuel 5:4-5

New Living Translation (NLT)

 

 

⁴ David was thirty years old when he began to reign, and he reigned forty years in all. ⁵ He had reigned over Judah from Hebron for seven years and six months, and from Jerusalem he reigned over all Israel and Judah for thirty-three years.






David did not become king over all Israel until he was 37 years old, although he was promised the kingdom many years earlier. During those years, David had to wait patiently for the fulfillment of God's promise. If you feel pressured to achieve instant results and success, remember David's patience. Just as his time of waiting prepared him for his important task, a waiting period may help prepare you by strengthening your character.



Joe

























 

1 Samuel 30:24-25

New International Version (NIV)

 

 

 

²⁴ Who will listen to what you say? The share of the man who stayed with the supplies is to be the same as that of him who went down to the battle. All will share alike.” ²⁵ David made this a statute and ordinance for Israel from that day to this.




David made a law that those who stayed with the supplies were to be treated equally with those who fought in battle. Today it takes several people to provide the support services needed for every soldier in battle. In the church and other organizations, we need to treat those who provide support services equally with those on the front lines. Without bookkeepers, secretaries, trainers, and administrators, those with a public ministry would be unable to do their jobs. Are you on the front lines? Don't forget those who are backing you up. Are you in the support group? Realize that your position, although it may be less glamorous or exciting, it is vital to the work of the entire group.






Joe





















 

1 Samuel 28:15

New Living Translation (NLT)

 

 

 

¹⁵ “Why have you disturbed me by calling me back?” Samuel asked Saul.
“Because I am in deep trouble,” Saul replied. “The Philistines are at war with me, and God has left me and won’t reply by prophets or dreams. So I have called for you to tell me what to do.”




God did not answer Saul's appeals because Saul had not followed God's previous directions. Sometimes people wonder why their prayers are not answered. But if they don't fulfill the responsibilities God has already given to them, they should not be surprised when He does not give further guidance.



 
Joe