Meditate.
God has put all things under the authority of Christ and has made him head over all things for the benefit of the church. And the church is his body; it is made full and complete by Christ, who fills all things everywhere with himself. Ephesians 1:22-23 (Underlined for emphasis.)
Even from His vantage place in
Heaven, Christ is still the Head Guy—the ruler…the one in authority over the
church. It takes a whole group of people working together to serve the Lord—to be
His church. I’m not talking about a building where people meet to worship the
Lord…but people around the world who are being the hands, feet, eyes, ears and
even the mouth of Jesus, serving Him in all they do.
Then we will no longer be immature like children. We won't
be tossed and blown about by every wind of new teaching. We will not be
influenced when people try to trick us with lies so clever they sound like the
truth. Instead, we will speak the truth in love, growing in every way more and
more like Christ, who is the head of his body, the church. He makes the whole
body fit together perfectly. As each part does its own special work, it helps
the other parts grow, so that the whole body is healthy and growing and full of
love. Ephesians 4:14-16
Christ is the head…and we are the
body that is fit together perfectly…working together perfectly for His
service. He is the Head…the big honcho…and yet servant to His servants. He gave
the greatest gift…His very life.
Christ is also the head of the church, which is his body.
He is the beginning, supreme over all who rise from the dead. So he is first in
everything. For God in all his fullness was pleased to live in Christ, and
through him God reconciled everything to himself. He made peace with everything
in heaven and on earth by means of Christ's blood on the cross. ... So we tell
others about Christ, warning everyone and teaching everyone with all the wisdom
God has given us. We want to present them to God, perfect in their relationship
to Christ. That's why I work and struggle so hard, depending on Christ's mighty
power that works within me. Colossians 1:18-20, 28-29
No one hates his own body but feeds and cares for it, just
as Christ cares for the church. Ephesians 5:29
Perfect in their relationship to
Christ. Relationship is the key. We can have knowledge in our head…but it is
important to have a connection with the Lord in our heart to truly know Him and
not be deceived.
I say this because many deceivers have gone out into the
world. They deny that Jesus Christ came in a real body. Such a person is a
deceiver and an antichrist. Watch out that you do not lose what we have worked
so hard to achieve. Be diligent so that you receive your full reward. Anyone
who wanders away from this teaching has no relationship with God. But anyone
who remains in the teaching of Christ has a relationship with both the Father
and the Son. 2 John 1:7-9
It is up to us to build that relationship with the Lord--to desire it and and to be dedicated to Jesus and our relationship with Him. How are you doing with that today?
Prayer ~ Lord God…You united me with Christ Jesus. For my benefit You, God, made Christ to be wisdom itself. Christ made me right with You, God; He made me pure and holy, and He freed me from sin. Therefore, as the Scriptures say, "If you want to boast, boast only about the LORD." From 1 Corinthians 1:30-31. Lord God, You are the light of my life and I am complete only in You.
Verse of Salvation ~ The
message of the cross is foolish to those who are headed for destruction! But we
who are being saved know it is the very power of God. As the Scriptures say,
"I will destroy the wisdom of the wise and discard the intelligence of the
intelligent." So where does this leave the philosophers, the scholars, and
the world's brilliant debaters? God has made the wisdom of this world look
foolish. Since God in his wisdom saw to it that the world would never know him
through human wisdom, he has used our foolish preaching to save those who
believe. It is foolish to the Jews, who ask for signs from heaven. And it is
foolish to the Greeks, who seek human wisdom. So when we preach that Christ was
crucified, the Jews are offended and the Gentiles say it's all nonsense. But to
those called by God to salvation, both Jews and Gentiles, Christ is the power
of God and the wisdom of God. This foolish plan of God is wiser than the wisest
of human plans, and God's weakness is stronger than the greatest of human
strength. 1 Corinthians 1:18-25
Bible Trivia Answer for last week ~ What is Pentecost?
Feast of Weeks or in
Hebrew—Shavuot. It is a festival seven weeks (50 days) after Passover and is one of three
festivals that required Jewish men to go to the Temple in Jerusalem.
Count off seven weeks from when you first begin to cut the
grain at the time of harvest. Then celebrate the Festival of Harvest to honor
the LORD your God. Bring him a voluntary offering in proportion to the
blessings you have received from him. This is a time to celebrate before the
LORD your God at the designated place of worship he will choose for his name to
be honored. Celebrate with your sons and daughters, your male and female
servants, the Levites from your towns, and the foreigners, orphans, and widows
who live among you. Deuteronomy 16:9-11
Each year every man in Israel must celebrate these three
festivals: the Festival of Unleavened Bread, the Festival of Harvest,
and the Festival of Shelters. On each of these occasions, all men must appear
before the LORD your God at the place he chooses, but they must not appear
before the LORD without a gift for him. Deuteronomy 16:16 (Underlined for
emphasis.)
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| Wheat Harvest in Israel a few years ago. Modern technology. Swinging the sickle of a combine. |
Then I saw a white cloud, and seated on the cloud was
someone like the Son of Man. He had a gold crown on his head and a sharp sickle
in his hand. Then another angel came from the Temple and shouted to the one
sitting on the cloud, "Swing the sickle, for the time of harvest has come;
the crop on earth is ripe." So the one sitting on the cloud swung his
sickle over the earth, and the whole earth was harvested. Revelation
14:14-16 (Underlined for emphasis.)
Bible Trivia Question for next week ~ Where did Jesus make His home when He was here on earth?
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