Light of The World

If you abide in Me, and My words abide in you, you will ask what you desire, and it shall be done for you. —John 15:7 How often have you felt that your prayers were hitting a glass ceiling — as though the Lord were saying no? Maybe it is because you were praying outside of His will. Maybe it's because you were praying for something that God didn't want you to have. We need to remember the promise Jesus spoke of in John 15:7, which says, "If you abide in Me, and My words abide in you, you will ask what you desire, and it shall be done for you." Another version puts it this way: "But if you live your life in me, and my words live in your hearts, you can ask for whatever you like and it will come true for you" (PH). I really like that version — especially the part that tells us to ask for whatever we like. But let's also remember the condition: "If you live your life in me, and my words live in your hearts. . . ." If you are maintaining a livi...

If you abide in Me, and My words abide in you, you will ask what you desire, and it shall be done for you. —John 15:7 How often have you felt that your prayers were hitting a glass ceiling — as though the Lord were saying no? Maybe it is because you were praying outside of His will. Maybe it's because you were praying for something that God didn't want you to have. We need to remember the promise Jesus spoke of in John 15:7, which says, "If you abide in Me, and My words abide in you, you will ask what you desire, and it shall be done for you." Another version puts it this way: "But if you live your life in me, and my words live in your hearts, you can ask for whatever you like and it will come true for you" (PH). I really like that version — especially the part that tells us to ask for whatever we like. But let's also remember the condition: "If you live your life in me, and my words live in your hearts. . . ." If you are maintaining a livi...

Mark 14:1-11 “She did what she could. She poured perfume on my body beforehand to prepare for my burial.” (Mark 14:8) In the midst of the chaotic plot to arrest and kill Jesus comes a beautiful break in the Holy Week story. Here we see Jesus anointed by a woman during His visit to the home of Simon the Leper, in Bethany. Jesus was often misunderstood by the people around Him, even by His own disciples (in the days to follow, both Peter and Judas will betray their rabbi). But this unnamed woman—who comes in off the street and pours her most expensive perfume over Jesus’ head—understands the significance of this moment entirely. It’s ironic that every friend of Jesus seated inside Simon’s home thinks the woman is being irrational— surely she is out of her mind for wasting a bottle of perfume that costs so much! For us, this act of worship doesn't translate well because the ritual this woman performed isn't something we practice today. But in the proper context, it was expected an...

Read Luke 19:28-44 Hindsight is always 20/20. Yet while we are in a particular situation, we tend to make things out to be what they aren’t and infer wrong meanings. We kick ourselves, thinking, If only I had known then what I know now! Jesus’ triumphal entry into Jerusalem must have been one of those moments for His disciples. It had appeared to be such a wonderful day for them—and it was, but for different reasons than they realized. They thought the Messiah had come to reestablish Israel’s power in the world. But God had something else in mind. The disciples weren’t the only ones who had misconceptions about the Messiah. Many Jews of the day expected Him to be an earthly king. When the crowds heard Jesus was coming to Jerusalem, they cheered, “Hosanna! ” which means, “Save now!” They saw Him as their new King, come to bring salvation from political and societal oppression. He raised the dead—no doubt he could a...

Jehoshaphat feared, and set himself to seek the Lord, and proclaimed a fast throughout all Judah. So Judah gathered together to ask help from the Lord; and from all the cities of Judah they came to seek the Lord. —2 Chronicles 20:3–4 Jehoshaphat, King of Judah, faced a dilemma. His enemies greatly outnumbered him. To make matters worse, his enemies had joined forces with the other enemies of Israel and were coming to destroy him. One day, someone came to King Jehoshaphat and warned him that a gigantic army was headed his way, bent on his destruction. It was hopeless. There was no way that he could meet this army with what he had. He was going to be destroyed. What did Jehoshaphat do? The Bible says that he "set himself to seek the Lord." He prayed, "O our God, will You not judge them? For we have no power against this great multitude that is coming against us; nor do we know what to do, but our eyes are upon You" (2 Chronicles 20:12). The Lord told Jehoshaphat, ...

Remember therefore from where you have fallen; repent and do the first works. —Revelation 2:5 When Jesus found a fatal flaw in the church at Ephesus — that they were leaving their first love — He also gave His prescription for renewal and revival. They are the three Rs of returning to our first love: remember, repent, and repeat. First, you need to remember. This word could be translated, "Keep on remembering." What should you remember? You should remember where you were when Jesus Christ first found you. You were separated from Him by sin and on your way to a certain judgment. But He graciously and lovingly reached out to you and forgave you. All of us were separated from God and facing judgment. The essential thing Christ did for you is the same that He did for every person. The psalmist described it this way: "He also brought me up out of a horrible pit, out of the miry clay, and set my feet upon a rock, and established my steps. He has put a new song in my mout...