HEARTLIGHT — A Year with Jesus

"Unbound" — A Year with Jesus for 03/20/2015

Note from Jesus

Dear Precious One, 

Yesterday I talked to you about the importance of My grace leading you to forgive those who have wounded you. That is hard. Today I want to talk to you about one of My greatest enemies (1 Corinthians 15:24-26) and one of the primary reasons I came to earth and walked as God among you. I came to defeat the power of sin and death and the hold they have over you. 

Please know I hurt when grief rips apart your life and tears huge and gaping holes in your heart. My weeping at Martha's and Mary's pain, detailed in the verses below, is a reminder to you. While you shouldn't "grieve like people who have no hope" (1 Thessalonians 4:13), death still can wound you even when your faith is rich and full. I knew that I was going to raise Lazarus from the dead, yet the grief of his two sisters tore at My heart. I know the great resurrection life I will share with everyone who dies and belongs to Me, yet the grief of each person's family and friends still tears at My heart! 

There are many things about John's account of My raising Lazarus to life that can bless you and challenge you:
The fact that people die doesn't mean I do not love them and those who love them.
People's death is not a sign that I don't care or don't hear their prayers for their loved one.
People who die with faith in Me have not really died as just their bodies die. Their condition is best called being asleep because they are still connected intimately to Me and are with Me until the day of resurrection.
I hurt deeply with the death of those who love Me, and I hurt and I am intensely troubled for their families' pain as well.
There are even more messages for you to hear one clear message from Me to you today: death should not hold you hostage if you and those you love belong to Me! Listen to those last words in the verses below referring to Lazarus, who had been dead, and let them reverberate in your heart:
Untie him, and let him go.
Verses to Live

First, I want to remind you of two passages in your New Testament that speak to the truth that death should not hold you hostage. I want you to hear both of them so that you have their echo of My truth in your heart as you read John's account that follows:
Then, when our dying bodies have been transformed into bodies that will never die, this Scripture will be fulfilled: 

"Death is swallowed up in victory. 

O death, where is your victory? 

O death, where is your sting?" 

For sin is the sting that results in death, and the law gives sin its power. But thank God! He gives us victory over sin and death through our Lord Jesus Christ. 
(1 Corinthians 15:54-57 NLT) 

Since we, the children, are all creatures of flesh and blood, Jesus took on flesh and blood, so that by dying He could destroy the one who held power over death — the devil — and destroy the fear of death that has always held people captive. 
(Hebrews 2:14-15)
I hurt when you hurt because of grief, but please know that all grief for those who belong to Me will ultimately be caught up in glory on the day when the Father will wipe every tear from your eyes (Revelation 7:17; Revelation 21:4):
There was a certain man who was very ill. He was known as Lazarus from Bethany, which is the hometown of Mary and her sister Martha. Mary did a beautiful thing for Jesus. She anointed the Lord with a pleasant-smelling oil and wiped His feet with her hair. Her brother Lazarus became deathly ill, so the sisters immediately sent a message to Jesus which said, "Lord, the one You love is very ill." Jesus heard the message. 

Jesus:
His sickness will not end in his death but will bring great glory to God. As these events unfold, the Son of God will be exalted.
Jesus dearly loved Mary, Martha, and Lazarus. However, after receiving this news, He waited two more days where He was. 

Jesus (speaking to the disciples):
It is time to return to Judea.
Disciples:
Teacher, the last time You were there, some Jews attempted to execute You by crushing You with stones. Why would You go back?
Jesus:
There are 12 hours of daylight, correct? If anyone walks in the day, that person does not stumble because he or she sees the light of the world. If anyone walks at night, he will trip and fall because he does not have the light within. (Jesus briefly pauses.) Our friend Lazarus has gone to sleep, so I will go to awaken him.
Disciples:
Lord, if he is sleeping, then he will be all right.
Jesus used "sleep" as a metaphor for death, but the disciples took Him literally and did not understand. Then Jesus spoke plainly. 

Jesus:
Lazarus is dead, and I am grateful for your sakes that I was not there when he died. Now you will see and believe. Gather yourselves, and let's go to him.
Thomas, the Twin (to the disciples):
Let's go so we can die with Him.
As Jesus was approaching Bethany (which is about two miles east of Jerusalem), He heard that Lazarus had been in the tomb four days. Now many people had come to comfort Mary and Martha as they mourned the loss of their brother. Martha went to meet Jesus when word arrived that He was approaching Bethany, but Mary stayed behind at the house. 

Martha:
Lord, if You had been with us, my brother would not have died. Even so I still believe that anything You ask of God will be done.
Jesus:
Your brother will rise to life.
Martha:
I know. He will rise again when everyone is resurrected on the last day.
Jesus:
I am the resurrection and the source of all life; those who believe in Me will live even in death. Everyone who lives and believes in Me will never truly die. Do you believe this?
Martha:
Yes, Lord, I believe that You are the Anointed, the Liberating King, God's own Son who we have heard is coming into the world.
After this Martha ran home to Mary. 

Martha (whispering to Mary):
Come with me. The Teacher is here, and He has asked for you.
Mary did not waste a minute. She got up and went to the same spot where Martha had found Jesus outside the village. The people gathered in her home offering support and comfort assumed she was going back to the tomb to cry and mourn, so they followed her. Mary approached Jesus, saw Him, and fell at His feet. 

Mary:
Lord, if only You had been here, my brother would still be alive.
When Jesus saw Mary's profound grief and the moaning and weeping of her companions, He was deeply moved by their pain in His spirit and was intensely troubled. 

Jesus:
Where have you laid his body?
Jews:
Come and see, Lord.
As they walked, Jesus wept; and everyone noticed how much Jesus must have loved Lazarus. But others were skeptical. 

Others:
If this man can give sight to the blind, He could have kept him from dying.
Then Jesus, who was intensely troubled by all of this, approached the tomb — a small cave covered by a massive stone. 

Jesus:
Remove the stone.
Martha:
Lord, he has been dead four days; the stench will be unbearable.
Jesus:
Remember, I told you that if you believe, you will see the glory of God.
They removed the stone, and Jesus lifted His eyes toward heaven. 

Jesus:
Father, I am grateful that You have heard Me. I know that You are always listening, but I proclaim it loudly so that everyone here will believe You have sent Me.
After these words, He called out in a thunderous voice. 

Jesus:
Lazarus, come out!
Then, the man who was dead walked out of his tomb bound from head to toe in a burial shroud. 

Jesus:
Untie him, and let him go.
(John 11:1-44)
Response in Prayer

There are no words, dear Father, for the assurance that You care about my grief, heartbreak, and loss. I find myself angry at the emptiness and seemingly incurable wound that grief leaves in me. Yet, dear Father, because of Your grief at the sacrifice of Your Son and because of His power over the grave, I trust that my grief will be absorbed in the victory You have planned for me and those who share My love for Jesus. I just need the comfort and tangible sense of Your presence during times of sorrow to help me hang on to that faith. Please be near, I pray, in Jesus' name. Amen.
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This daily devotional is written to help us all reclaim Jesus as the daily Lord of our lives and to help us realize we are not alone as we seek to live for Him. — Learn More
The Thoughts and Prayers for 'A Year with Jesus' are written by Phil Ware. You can email questions or comments to phil@heartlight.org.
Thanks to our invaluable editors:
Dr. Edward Holley - Executive Editor
Ray Butts - General Editor
Heartlight is proud to promote Compassion International. See children who were sponsored today!
HOW DO I SUBSCRIBE? It's FREE! To subscribe send a blank email to: ayearwithjesus-subscribe@maillists.heartlight.org
All scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from The Voice™. © 2008 by Ecclesia Bible Society. Used by permission. All rights reserved. © 1998-2015, Heartlight, Inc. 'A Year with Jesus' is part of the Heartlight Network.
© 1998-2015, Heartlight Inc.

"One of the Hardest 'Miracles'" — A Year with Jesus for 03/19/2015

Note from Jesus

Dear Disciple, 

What's the hardest miracle to perform? I know many of you would love to see some great miracle of your selection to help you believe. Yet all around you every day some of the most amazingly wondrous transformations happen by divine power at work in My followers. As My disciples show in the verses below, one of the hardest of the wondrous transformations is for the power of grace to lead a wounded heart to forgive. 

This very important reality is the focus of My teaching about prayer and miraculous results. One of the hardest to believe possible is forgiveness. I taught about this repeatedly in My ministry on earth. This teaching is rooted in the two greatest commands — to love the Lord your God with all you are and to love your neighbor as yourself (Matthew 22:36-40). You cannot be wrong with your brother or sister on earth and be right with your Father in heaven. It's that simple to say and yet very hard for the wounded human heart to love as it should. This teaching is also based on another essential reality: you do not truly appreciate the forgiveness you have received if you do not pass along that same grace of forgiveness to others (Matthew 6:14; Matthew 18:23-35; Ephesians 4:32). 

Yes, this is a hard truth. That's why this may be one of the hardest "miracles" to perform. Feeding 5,000? Not hard for Me with 5 loaves and 2 fish. Raising the dead? I have done that. Healing the blind, the lame, the paralyzed, the leprous? I have done that repeatedly. However, changing a wounded heart that has been abused and mistreated is so much harder. It is because it depends on the submission of the person to My will in spite of whatever may have happened to him or her. Grace has to permeate down to a broken and dark place in a person's soul and capture it with the truth of what I did to redeem it. For you to genuinely forgive those who come in repentance and ask for forgiveness is a hard wonder to perform, but not impossible! 

What I want you to realize is that if you can have "faith the size of a single, tiny mustard seed", then that "little faith can accomplish the seemingly impossible" — including turning your wounded heart into a gracious heart like Mine! Watch what I do as I journey toward Jerusalem to take up the cross. Remember My words of forgiveness. Remember why I did what I did — not because I wanted to face suffering and heartbreak, but because those who sinned and rejected Me, both then and in your day, need My forgiveness and grace. 

The same spirit of forgiveness and grace must be true of you as you deal with those who hurt you and sin against you. They need your grace displayed to them to understand the power of My grace. So when you forgive, don't act like you deserve a medal for doing something hard. Yes, it is hard, very hard, and sometimes it feels impossibly hard. Yet you call yourself My disciple! That means you have committed to the lifestyle of the cross. Sometimes that will seem as hard for you to face as it was for Me to face the rejection, mockery, agony, and humiliation of My cross. Forgiving others is not only a sign that you have faith to follow My example of forgiveness. It also means that you realize that you are My servant and "unworthy of extra consideration or thanks" since you were just doing your "duty". I don't say that to be harsh, but to help you realize how important forgiveness is in My family of grace!
Verses to Live

I want you to know, My dear disciple, that much of My teaching during My journey to Jerusalem and the cross will be challenging and sometimes just very hard to accept at a human level. It doesn't make sense. It seems upside down to the way your world works. So I ask you again to watch Me and what I do on the way to My cross and all that goes with My passion. Redeeming a lost world means living a radical discipleship. I wasn't crucified because I was a nice sweet man. I was crucified because I was a loving, kind, gentle, truth-telling world-changer Who lived the character and compassion of God before a world opposed to His ways. I call you to follow Me in this world-changing lifestyle!
Jesus (to His disciples):
You can't stop temptations to do wrong from coming. But how tragic it will be for the person who becomes the source of the temptation! It would be better if a millstone were hung around his neck and he were thrown into the sea, than that he should offend one of these little ones. 

So each of you needs to be careful. If your brother sins against you, confront him about it, and if he has a change of mind and heart, then forgive him. Even if he wrongs you seven times in a single day, if he turns back to you each time and says he's sorry and will change, you must forgive him.
The Lord's Emissaries:
We don't have enough faith for this! Help our faith to grow!
Jesus (pointing to a nearby mulberry tree):
It's not like you need a huge amount of faith. If you just had faith the size of a single, tiny mustard seed, you could say to this huge tree, "Pull up your roots and replant yourself in the sea," and it would fly through the sky and do what you said. So even a little faith can accomplish the seemingly impossible. 

Imagine this scenario. You have a servant — say he's been out plowing a field or taking care of the sheep — and he comes in hot and sweaty from his work. Are you going to say, "You poor thing! Come in and sit down right away"? Of course not! Wouldn't you be more likely to say, "First, cook my supper and set the table, and then after I've eaten, you can get something to eat and drink for yourself"? And after your servant has done everything you told him to do, are you going to make a big deal about it and thank him? I don't think so! Now apply this situation to yourselves. When you've done everything I'm telling you to do, just say, "We're servants, unworthy of extra consideration or thanks; we're just doing our duty."
(Luke 17:1-10)
Response in Prayer

Holy and Almighty God — Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, I confess that there are wounds I carry that weigh me down and burden my soul. I want to believe that I can forgive, but it is hard. Yet I know that I hold myself captive to the offenses committed against me and those I love when I will not forgive. So please, I ask for the help of the Holy Spirit to understand all that You teach about forgiveness and what it means. I also trust the empowering presence of the Holy Spirit to pour Your love into my heart and to give me the strength to believe that I can forgive. I believe, but please help my unbelief. I want the "miracles" of forgiveness and grace to be an essential part of my life's character. In Jesus' name I pray. Amen.
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This daily devotional is written to help us all reclaim Jesus as the daily Lord of our lives and to help us realize we are not alone as we seek to live for Him. — Learn More
The Thoughts and Prayers for 'A Year with Jesus' are written by Phil Ware. You can email questions or comments to phil@heartlight.org.
Thanks to our invaluable editors:
Dr. Edward Holley - Executive Editor
Ray Butts - General Editor
Heartlight is proud to promote Compassion International. See children who were sponsored today!
HOW DO I SUBSCRIBE? It's FREE! To subscribe send a blank email to: ayearwithjesus-subscribe@maillists.heartlight.org
All scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from The Voice™. © 2008 by Ecclesia Bible Society. Used by permission. All rights reserved. © 1998-2015, Heartlight, Inc. 'A Year with Jesus' is part of the Heartlight Network.
© 1998-2015, Heartlight Inc.

"Managing Your Assets Wisely" — A Year with Jesus for 03/17/2015

Note from Jesus

Dear Disciple, 

Over the ages, humans have freely talked with each other about almost everything, except how you spend your money. Once the talk about managing earthly, monetary, physical blessings starts, people tend to get defensive. I appreciate Doctor Luke's account of My life and the way he emphasizes many practical and spiritual things about My ministry — food and feasts, prayer and praise, the work of the Holy Spirit, poor and rich people, and My teaching on the use of money. Below you find one of those sets of verses where Luke records My talking about money and how you should manage your assets for spiritual ends. 

To help you understand the principles below, I want to remind you of something I taught at another place and time:
Some people store up treasures in their homes here on earth. This is a shortsighted practice — don't undertake it. Moths and rust will eat up any treasure you may store here. Thieves may break into your homes and steal your precious trinkets. Instead, put up your treasures in heaven where moths do not attack, where rust does not corrode, and where thieves are barred at the door. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also. 
(Matthew 6:19-21)
Use the money and physical assets that the Father has entrusted to you to store up heavenly treasures. He is going to know how you use your money and where you spend it. Why? Because your heart is always drawn to where your treasure is invested. So use your assets to bless those who cannot repay you, to empower My mission, to redeem the lost, to restore life, to renew opportunity for those who are left out and forgotten, and to give hope to the marginalized. Isn't that what you saw Me invest My life doing? That is where I invested My assets and energy and time; shouldn't you do the same? When you read from the Law, the Prophets, and the Writings — what some of you call the Old Testament — what do you see about the heart of God and where He wants you to invest your assets? His focus and My focus align. Does your focus align with Ours?
Verses to Live

The problem in your life doesn't have to be money if your heart is on the things that matter most to your Father in heaven. This principle is true whether your assets are small or large. However, if the way you use your assets gets out of phase with where I invested Myself, then watch out! You are trying to serve two masters, and the one you end up neglecting will be the only One that matters, your Father in heaven.
Here's a parable He [Jesus] told the disciples: 

Jesus:
Once there was a rich and powerful man who had an asset manager. One day, the man received word that his asset manager was squandering his assets. 

The rich man brought in the asset manager and said, "You've been accused of wrongdoing. I want a full and accurate accounting of all your financial transactions because you are really close to being fired." 

The manager said to himself, "Oh, no! Now what am I going to do? I'm going to lose my job here, and I'm too weak to dig ditches and too proud to beg. I have an idea. This plan will mean that I have a lot of hospitable friends when I get fired." 

So the asset manager set up appointments with each person who owed his master money. He said to the first debtor, "How much do you owe my boss?" The debtor replied, "A hundred barrels of oil." The manager said, "I'm discounting your bill by half. Just write 50 on this contract." Then he said to the second debtor, "How much do you owe?" This fellow said, "A hundred bales of wheat." The manager said, "I'm discounting your debt by 20 percent. Just write down 80 bales on this contract." 

When the manager's boss realized what he had done, he congratulated him for at least being clever. That's how it is: those attuned to this evil age are more clever in dealing with their affairs than the enlightened are in dealing with their affairs! 

Learn some lessons from this crooked but clever asset manager. Realize that the purpose of money is to strengthen friendships, to provide opportunities for being generous and kind. Eventually money will be useless to you — but if you use it generously to serve others, you will be welcomed joyfully into your eternal destination. 

If you're faithful in small-scale matters, you'll be faithful with far bigger responsibilities. If you're crooked in small responsibilities, you'll be no different in bigger things. If you can't even handle a small thing like money, who's going to entrust you with spiritual riches that really matter? If you don't manage well someone else's assets that are entrusted to you, who's going to give over to you important spiritual and personal relationships to manage? 

Imagine you're a servant and you have two masters giving you orders. What are you going to do when they have conflicting demands? You can't serve both, so you'll either hate the first and love the second, or you'll faithfully serve the first and despise the second. One master is God and the other is money. You can't serve them both.
The Pharisees overheard all this, and they started mocking Jesus because they really loved money. 

Jesus (to the Pharisees):
You've made your choice. Your ambition is to look good in front of other people, not God. But God sees through to your hearts. He values things differently from you. The goals you and your peers are reaching for God detests. 

The law and the prophets had their role until the coming of John the Baptist. Since John's arrival, the good news of the kingdom of God has been taught while people are clamoring to enter it. That's not to say that God's rules for living are useless. The stars in the sky and the earth beneath your feet will pass away before one letter of God's rules for living become worthless.
(Luke 16:1-17)
Response in Prayer

Dear Father, I want my heart to value what and who matter to You. I ask for the help of the Holy Spirit and the example and teaching of Jesus to help me use the blessings that You have entrusted to me in ways that align with Your heart. I want my treasure and my heart always to align with You. In Jesus' name I pray. Amen.
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This daily devotional is written to help us all reclaim Jesus as the daily Lord of our lives and to help us realize we are not alone as we seek to live for Him. — Learn More
The Thoughts and Prayers for 'A Year with Jesus' are written by Phil Ware. You can email questions or comments to phil@heartlight.org.
Thanks to our invaluable editors:
Dr. Edward Holley - Executive Editor
Ray Butts - General Editor
Heartlight is proud to promote Compassion International. See children who were sponsored today!
HOW DO I SUBSCRIBE? It's FREE! To subscribe send a blank email to: ayearwithjesus-subscribe@maillists.heartlight.org
All scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from The Voice™. © 2008 by Ecclesia Bible Society. Used by permission. All rights reserved. © 1998-2015, Heartlight, Inc. 'A Year with Jesus' is part of the Heartlight Network.
© 1998-2015, Heartlight Inc.

"A Matter of Obedient Trust" — A Year with Jesus for 03/18/2015

Note from Jesus

Dear Friend, 

I talked to you yesterday about managing your assets wisely — about investing your assets in the places where you saw Me invest My life and in the things the Father talked to you about in the Scriptures (the Law, the Prophets, and the Writings). So this is a good time to build on that principle and add a very important insight. 

In today's parable in the verses below, you meet a foolish rich man who lived only for himself and neglected the people in need around him. This rich man invested his assets in what he wanted and in what made him feel important, secure, and powerful. What he did and how he did it went against the teaching of the Scriptures. These things that he did were clearly out of phase with the people and things in which I invested My life. So the rich man is everything opposite to what I taught you yesterday — he is the anti-hero. This situation is sad. Even sadder is his neglect of a brother in need at his doorstep. The Father dealt with this rich man as He said He would. There are no surprises for anyone who knows the Scriptures. Unfortunately, the rich man didn't realize his foolishness until after his untimely death and because of the punishment he had brought on himself. So I want to remind you to use your blessings to care for your brothers and sisters in need; that's investing in what matters in heaven! 

While that's a very important point and fits perfectly with what I taught yesterday, that's not the main thing that I want you to focus upon today. People want to blame their lack of passion, their lack of focus on godliness, and their lack of living with urgency for God's kingdom on everything but themselves. They say things like:
"I needed it made clearer."
"My church didn't talk about these things."
"I really needed a couple of miracles to show that the teaching was true."
All that is self-delusional rationalization. If folks don't get the truth from Scripture, they are not going to believe it even if it is talked about more frequently or if the teaching is accompanied by a couple of miracles. Getting the message of Scripture is a matter of obedient trust in the truth of Scripture. If folks won't believe the Scriptures, then it won't matter to them even if someone comes back from the dead and shows them that this way of life is true. If you say you believe in God, then value what God values. Miracles won't convince you if your heart chooses to be callous and greedy. Each of you must invest your life in things that align with the heart of God. His will, His character and compassion, must be the passion of each heart — your heart, My friend. 

So where is your heart? What is your focus? Are you listening to what Scripture teaches?
Verses to Live

You are saved by grace through faith — your New Testament makes this clear. Yet grace not only saves you from the consequences of sin and death; grace also saves you for a life of character and compassion as My disciple. Read both from My brother James (James 2:14-22) and also from the apostle Paul (Ephesians 2:1-10). Paul summarized it well when he said, "The only thing that counts is faith expressing itself through love" (Galatians 5:6 NIV). If you listen carefully to what I AM saying to you today and what I teach a little later, you will see that James and Paul were saying essentially the same thing I taught!
Jesus (with another parable):
There was this rich man who had everything — purple clothing of fine quality and high fashion, gourmet meals every day, and a large house. Just outside his front gate lay this poor homeless fellow named Lazarus. Lazarus was covered in ugly skin lesions. He was so hungry he wished he could scavenge scraps from the rich man's trash. Dogs would come and lick the sores on his skin. The poor fellow died and was carried on the arms of the heavenly messengers to the embrace of Abraham. Then the rich fellow died and was buried and found himself in the place of the dead. In his torment, he looked up, and off in the distance he saw Abraham, with Lazarus in his embrace. 

He shouted out, "Father Abraham! Please show me mercy! Would you send that beggar Lazarus to dip his fingertip in water and cool my tongue? These flames are hot, and I'm in agony!" 

But Abraham said, "Son, you seem to be forgetting something: your life was full to overflowing with comforts and pleasures, and the life of Lazarus was just as full with suffering and pain. So now is his time of comfort, and now is your time of agony. Besides, a great canyon separates you and us. Nobody can cross over from our side to yours, or from your side to ours." 

"Please, Father Abraham, I beg you," the formerly rich man continued, "send Lazarus to my father's house. I have five brothers there, and they're on the same path I was on. If Lazarus warns them, they'll choose another path and won't end up here in torment." 

But Abraham said, "Why send Lazarus? They already have the law of Moses and the writings of the prophets to instruct them. Let your brothers hear them." 

"No, Father Abraham," he said, "they're already ignoring the law and the prophets. But if someone came back from the dead, then they'd listen for sure; then they'd change their way of life." 

Abraham answered, "If they're not listening to Moses and the prophets, they won't be convinced even if someone comes back from the dead."
(Luke 16:19-31)
Response in Prayer

Father, thank You for Jesus' resurrection from the dead. The change in the apostles from fear to courage after His resurrection is a powerful testimony to me. Yet as I apply Jesus' teaching today, I know that my heart needs to seek Your will or Jesus' resurrection really won't convince me of anything that requires me to change. So I pray that You use the Spirit to conform me to be like Jesus and transform my heart to care about what matters to You as I open Your Scriptures to hear Your truth. In Jesus' name I pray. Amen.
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This daily devotional is written to help us all reclaim Jesus as the daily Lord of our lives and to help us realize we are not alone as we seek to live for Him. — Learn More
The Thoughts and Prayers for 'A Year with Jesus' are written by Phil Ware. You can email questions or comments to phil@heartlight.org.
Thanks to our invaluable editors:
Dr. Edward Holley - Executive Editor
Ray Butts - General Editor
Heartlight is proud to promote Compassion International. See children who were sponsored today!
HOW DO I SUBSCRIBE? It's FREE! To subscribe send a blank email to: ayearwithjesus-subscribe@maillists.heartlight.org
All scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from The Voice™. © 2008 by Ecclesia Bible Society. Used by permission. All rights reserved. © 1998-2015, Heartlight, Inc. 'A Year with Jesus' is part of the Heartlight Network.
© 1998-2015, Heartlight Inc.

"*The Lost Coin" — A Year with Jesus for 03/15/2015

Note from Jesus

Dear Child of God, 

How precious is a child? What is the value of a human life? What is one person worth? 

If you want to know the true answer to those questions, watch Me in the coming few weeks as you read My story. 

Notice what I'm willing to do — be humiliated and hung on a cross when I had the power to prevent it. 

Notice the price I'm willing to pay — I give up My will in order to honor the will of the Father and pay the price for the sin of all humankind for all of time. 

Notice what I'm willing to bear — being betrayed by one of My own, having one of My great potential leaders deny he even knew Me at all, and being abandoned by My apostles so I had to go to the cross alone. 

So don't miss My key point found in all three of My stories Luke brings together for you (Luke 15:1-32), especially the one I want you to focus upon today, the story of the lost coin. Here's My key point for My disciples who are willing to join Me in searching for those who are lost:
There is joy in the presence of all God's messengers over even one sinner who changes his way of life.
Verses to Live

I don't need to spend many words today to help you see My key point. Don't miss learning it, being moved by it, and putting it into practice. Notice especially a few words that powerfully emphasize this key point of each of My stories: Search! Diligently! Found! Celebrate! Joy! All! Even one!
Jesus (with another parable):
Or imagine a woman who has 10 silver coins. She loses one. Doesn't she light a lamp, sweep the whole house, and search diligently until that coin is found? And when she finds it, doesn't she invite her friends and neighbors and say, "Celebrate with me! I've found that silver coin that I lost"? Can't you understand? There is joy in the presence of all God's messengers over even one sinner who changes his way of life.
(Luke 15:8-10)
Response in Prayer

O Father, thank you for the joy of seeing (please use specific names here) being brought to Christ and being saved. I ask that you use me to be an encouragement and help to others so that they will come to Jesus and we can share in the celebration and joy of heaven together. In Jesus' name I pray. Amen.
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This daily devotional is written to help us all reclaim Jesus as the daily Lord of our lives and to help us realize we are not alone as we seek to live for Him. — Learn More
The Thoughts and Prayers for 'A Year with Jesus' are written by Phil Ware. You can email questions or comments to phil@heartlight.org.
Thanks to our invaluable editors:
Dr. Edward Holley - Executive Editor
Ray Butts - General Editor
Heartlight is proud to promote Compassion International. See children who were sponsored today!
HOW DO I SUBSCRIBE? It's FREE! To subscribe send a blank email to: ayearwithjesus-subscribe@maillists.heartlight.org
All scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from The Voice™. © 2008 by Ecclesia Bible Society. Used by permission. All rights reserved. © 1998-2015, Heartlight, Inc. 'A Year with Jesus' is part of the Heartlight Network.
© 1998-2015, Heartlight Inc.

"A Father with Two Lost Sons" — A Year with Jesus for 03/16/2015

Note from Jesus

Dear Friend, 

Today, we focus on the final story in Luke's collection of three of My parables about finding lost things and lost sons. In today's story that you can read in the verses below, you meet a father who had two lost sons. One son stayed at home and saw himself as working hard for many years for his father — literally, he says to his father, "Listen, all these years I've worked hard for you." The other son told his father that he was as good as dead to him, so the son wanted the inheritance he was owed at his father's death, immediately. 

Both sons were lost. The son who stayed at home and played the game to get what he felt was rightfully his was lost. The son who wanted his inheritance, received it, and then left, was lost. Both sons received their proper share of the inheritance — don't miss that point. Here's the sad part: neither son appreciated the father. Both sons were lost. 

Now remember from Luke's first two verses in the chapter what the situation was that led Me to tell this story:
Jesus became increasingly popular among notorious sinners — tax collectors and other social outcasts.  The Pharisees and religious scholars noticed this. 

Pharisees and Religious Scholars:
This man welcomes immoral people and enjoys their company over a meal.
(Luke 15:1-2)
I wanted the "immoral people" to share My fellowship and come home to the heavenly Father by turning their lives away from sin and rebellion. I wanted the religious folks who thought they were honoring the heavenly Father with their religious games to turn from their self-righteousness and come home to their gracious and generous Father. Both were sinners. Both needed to come home. 

So that leaves Me with two final questions:
Which of these two sons are you more like?
What do you need to do right now to turn your life over to Me and come home to the Father?
Verses to Live

Please hear the words that follow as My invitation to come home to the Father!
Jesus (with another parable):
Once there was this man who had two sons. One day the younger son came to his father and said, "Father, eventually I'm going to inherit my share of your estate. Rather than waiting until you die, I want you to give me my share now." And so the father liquidated assets and divided them. A few days passed and this younger son gathered all his wealth and set off on a journey to a distant land.  Once there he wasted everything he owned on wild living. He was broke, a terrible famine struck that land, and he felt desperately hungry and in need. He got a job with one of the locals, who sent him into the fields to feed the pigs. The young man felt so miserably hungry that he wished he could eat the slop the pigs were eating. Nobody gave him anything. 

So he had this moment of self-reflection: "What am I doing here? Back home, my father's hired servants have plenty of food. Why am I here starving to death? I'll get up and return to my father, and I'll say, 'Father, I have done wrong—wrong against God and against you. I have forfeited any right to be treated like your son, but I'm wondering if you'd treat me as one of your hired servants.'" 

So he got up and returned to his father. The father looked off in the distance and saw the young man returning. He felt compassion for his son and ran out to him, enfolded him in an embrace, and kissed him. 

The son said, "Father, I have done a terrible wrong in God's sight and in your sight too. I have forfeited any right to be treated as your son." 

But the father turned to his servants and said, "Quick! Bring the best robe we have and put it on him. Put a ring on his finger and shoes on his feet. Go get the fattest calf and butcher it. Let's have a feast and celebrate because my son was dead and is alive again. He was lost and has been found." So they had this huge party. 

Now the man's older son was still out in the fields working. He came home at the end of the day and heard music and dancing. He called one of the servants and asked what was going on. The servant said, "Your brother has returned, and your father has butchered the fattest calf to celebrate his safe return." 

The older brother got really angry and refused to come inside, so his father came out and pleaded with him to join the celebration. But he argued back, "Listen, all these years I've worked hard for you. I've never disobeyed one of your orders. But how many times have you even given me a little goat to roast for a party with my friends? Not once! This is not fair! So this son of yours comes, this wasteful delinquent who has spent your hard-earned wealth on loose women, and what do you do? You butcher the fattest calf from our herd!" 

The father replied, "My son, you are always with me, and all I have is yours. Isn't it right to join in the celebration and be happy? This is your brother we're talking about. He was dead and is alive again; he was lost and is found again!"
(Luke 15:11-32)
Response in Prayer

O Father, thank you for Jesus' story of two lost sons. It grabs my heart. As you know, there are some days I am the younger and rebellious son. Please forgive me. I'm coming back home to You today. Some days I am the older brother, full of self-righteousness and the things I feel that I deserve as special treatment. Please forgive me. I'm coming back home to You today. In Jesus' name I confess this. Amen.
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This daily devotional is written to help us all reclaim Jesus as the daily Lord of our lives and to help us realize we are not alone as we seek to live for Him. — Learn More
The Thoughts and Prayers for 'A Year with Jesus' are written by Phil Ware. You can email questions or comments to phil@heartlight.org.
Thanks to our invaluable editors:
Dr. Edward Holley - Executive Editor
Ray Butts - General Editor
Heartlight is proud to promote Compassion International. See children who were sponsored today!
HOW DO I SUBSCRIBE? It's FREE! To subscribe send a blank email to: ayearwithjesus-subscribe@maillists.heartlight.org
All scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from The Voice™. © 2008 by Ecclesia Bible Society. Used by permission. All rights reserved. © 1998-2015, Heartlight, Inc. 'A Year with Jesus' is part of the Heartlight Network.
© 1998-2015, Heartlight Inc.

"The Great Invitation" — A Year with Jesus for 03/13/2015

Note from Jesus

Dear Seeker, 

Yesterday, I warned about one false way to approach My invitation to the table of grace — don't come with a haughty and self-important attitude. You need to come to My Table with humility built into a life of serving others. You need to come looking for others who need to be at My table of grace. 

Today, I am warning you of another false approach. You can take My offer of grace lightly. You can forget how blessed you are to be invited and find other things that feel more important to you at the moment and put off My invitation of grace. 

Please understand, there is nothing more important in your life right now than accepting My invitation to share in the Father's grace. Nothing! Yes, I know there are important things going on in your life right now. I know there are people who may not understand why responding to My invitation is so important. There may even be people who have their feelings hurt when you choose to respond to My invitation. There may be others who ridicule you or reject you completely for your choice to follow Me and accept My invitation. However, I want you to hear Me. I am journeying to Jerusalem when I share the message in the verses below. I know I am going there to die for the sins of the people — including your sins. I am going to sacrifice Myself — My dignity and My life — for you. Once you understand this, you need to respond immediately to My invitation. There is nothing more important. I gave Myself to give you a place at My table of grace; don't spurn My invitation by assuming you have time later to respond. Today is the day of your invitation. Don't reject the grace that is offered you, today!
Verses to Live

I love Doctor Luke because he loves to talk about My ministry around food. The first paragraph in the verses below includes one of these references to table fellowship (Luke 14:1) and serves as an introduction to today's message. I have spent several days in a row teaching you about the grace of joining Me at My table and reminding you of those you should include — friends, critics, opponents, the marginalized, and the lost. Today's message, dear seeker, is especially important for you. Some with whom I share this message have never really accepted the grace I came to share. Others have never really committed themselves to the life of discipleship. Others have treated My invitation of grace with disrespect. Please hear My urgent words to you in the verses that follow!
Another Sabbath Day came and Jesus was invited to an official's home for a meal. This fellow was a leader of the Pharisees, and Jesus was still under close surveillance by them... 

Guest:
Blessed is everyone who will eat bread in the kingdom of God!
Jesus:
A man once hosted a huge banquet and invited many guests. When the time came, he sent his servant to tell the guests who had agreed to come, "We're ready! Come now!" But then every single guest began to make excuses. 

One said, "Oh, I'm sorry. I just bought some land, and I need to go see it. Please excuse me." 

Another said, "So sorry. I just bought five pairs of oxen. I need to go check them out. Please excuse me." 

Another said, "I just got married, so I can't come." 

The servant returned and reported their responses to his master. His master was angry and told the servant, "Go out quickly to the streets and alleys around town and bring the poor, the amputees, the blind, and the cripples." 

The servant came back again: "Sir, I've done as you said, but there is still more room." 

And the host said, "Well then, go out to the highways and hedges and bring in the complete strangers you find there, until my house is completely full. One thing is for sure, not one single person on the original guest list shall enjoy this banquet."
(Luke 14:15-24)
Response in Prayer

Almighty God, I accept the offer of grace You have given Me in Jesus! I believe Jesus is Your Son, the long-promised Christ, the Messiah of Israel, and Lord and Savior of the world. I believe Jesus died for my sins, that He was buried, and that He rose on the third day, defeating the power of sin and death to control me through fear. So I commit to follow Jesus passionately and do what He asks of me and rejoice in His grace shared with me. In Jesus' name I pray. Amen.
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This daily devotional is written to help us all reclaim Jesus as the daily Lord of our lives and to help us realize we are not alone as we seek to live for Him. — Learn More
The Thoughts and Prayers for 'A Year with Jesus' are written by Phil Ware. You can email questions or comments to phil@heartlight.org.
Thanks to our invaluable editors:
Dr. Edward Holley - Executive Editor
Ray Butts - General Editor
Heartlight is proud to promote Compassion International. See children who were sponsored today!
HOW DO I SUBSCRIBE? It's FREE! To subscribe send a blank email to: ayearwithjesus-subscribe@maillists.heartlight.org
All scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from The Voice™. © 2008 by Ecclesia Bible Society. Used by permission. All rights reserved. © 1998-2015, Heartlight, Inc. 'A Year with Jesus' is part of the Heartlight Network.
© 1998-2015, Heartlight Inc.


"Joy at Finding What Is Lost" — A Year with Jesus for 03/14/2015

Note from Jesus

Dear Friend, 

In the verses today and the next two days, you will find three of My stories — often called parables — about lost things and lost people. Luke collects them together and you can find them in one powerful chapter of his gospel (Luke 15:1-32). To understand these stories, you need to notice the situation as Luke describes it in his first two verses (Luke 15:1-2). 

People who were not normally religious were hearing the call of God and following Me — truly following Me by turning their lives to God and living the character and compassion I was calling them to display in their lives. On the other hand, other people who were normally considered to very religious were critical of Me for having fellowship with these sinners and devoting so much of My time and energy to reaching and teaching them and entering into table fellowship with them.

I told these three stories to speak to these issues. I wanted everyone to know that I love all people. That's why you have seen Me in the houses of Pharisees sharing meals with them and also healing a synagogue ruler's daughter and healing a Roman soldier's servant. It is also why you have seen Me welcome outcasts and the unclean into My fellowship and why I called Matthew — considered to be a sinner because he was a tax collector — to be one of My twelve apostles. You also see men and women, young and old, rich and impoverished, well and sick, powerful and powerless, all receive My attention and My grace. 

I have recently reminded you that people count most and that the Father sent Me to give My life on the cross as a ransom for sinners. So as you read My three stories about lost things (a sheep and a coin) and lost people (two sons), remember why I told these three stories. I wanted everyone to know why I joyfully welcomed sinners to repentance and into My fellowship. I also wanted the religious to know that they could be just as lost as those they counted as worse sinners than themselves and that their hard hearts toward the sinners who repent indicated this lostness no matter how religious their lives seemed. But as most folks know, telling the hard truth to your critics seldom gets to their hearts. They tend to raise their defenses and get ready to come back at you rather than listening to you. So I told stories — stories from the way of life these people recognized. These stories remind you that lost people need My grace and when they are found, there is rejoicing in heaven.
Verses to Live

Today you are going to read a simple story about a lost sheep. Yet for a family during My earthly ministry, any lost sheep was a huge loss and could not be allowed. Know that you, dear friend, are much more important to Me and to the Father than any sheep could be to a shepherd. So imagine the joy when the lost sheep was found. That joy pales in comparison to the joy of heaven when any lost person turns to Me.
Jesus became increasingly popular among notorious sinners — tax collectors and other social outcasts. The Pharisees and religious scholars noticed this. 

Pharisees and Religious Scholars:
This man welcomes immoral people and enjoys their company over a meal!
Jesus (with another parable):
Wouldn't every single one of you, if you have 100 sheep and lose one, leave the 99 in their grazing lands and go out searching for the lost sheep until you find it? When you find the lost sheep, wouldn't you hoist it up on your shoulders, feeling wonderful? And when you go home, wouldn't you call together your friends and neighbors? Wouldn't you say, "Come over and celebrate with me, because I've found my lost sheep"? This is how it is in heaven. They're happier over one sinner who changes his way of life than they are over 99 good and just people who don't need to change their ways of life.
(Luke 15:1-7)
Response in Prayer

Father, I am touched by two truths of this simple parable and the reason Jesus told it. First, I am reminded just how precious I am to you and why you paid such a high price to save me. No words are adequate to express my deepest appreciation, but please know that I thank You for welcoming me into Your family and rejoicing with the angels when I came to Jesus. In addition, dear Father, I am convicted of how deeply you care about the lost around me and I know you have placed me in the relationships that I have so that I can help them meet Jesus and follow Him. Please help me, dear Father, to keep my heart open to the lost around me so that I can help them find Jesus, in whose name I pray. Amen.
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This daily devotional is written to help us all reclaim Jesus as the daily Lord of our lives and to help us realize we are not alone as we seek to live for Him. — Learn More
The Thoughts and Prayers for 'A Year with Jesus' are written by Phil Ware. You can email questions or comments to phil@heartlight.org.
Thanks to our invaluable editors:
Dr. Edward Holley - Executive Editor
Ray Butts - General Editor
Heartlight is proud to promote Compassion International. See children who were sponsored today!
HOW DO I SUBSCRIBE? It's FREE! To subscribe send a blank email to: ayearwithjesus-subscribe@maillists.heartlight.org
All scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from The Voice™. © 2008 by Ecclesia Bible Society. Used by permission. All rights reserved. © 1998-2015, Heartlight, Inc. 'A Year with Jesus' is part of the Heartlight Network.
© 1998-2015, Heartlight Inc.

People Count Most!" — A Year with Jesus for 03/11/2015

Note from Jesus

Dear Disciple, 

I want you to see My example and hear My words in the verses below. They coalesce into one, simple, clear message: People count most! 

You find Me at a dinner in the house of a leader of the Pharisees, My most vocal opponents. Why? Why go to a meal with people who are hounding Me and trying to trap Me? Because I love them! They matter to Us — Father, Son, and Spirit. Their hearts need the opportunity to be exposed to My truth, and seeds need to be planted into those hearts, seeds that can blossom into faith and bear fruit after these people see My passion and hear about My resurrection. The Father, the Spirit, and I want all people to have an opportunity to change their hearts and come to faith in Me. I go to the house of this leader and a dinner with his friends, people who hold Me as their enemy, for one simple reason: People count most! 

I challenge this leader and his Pharisee friends to see this same truth in their own religious understanding. They help their children who are in trouble on the Sabbath. They help their animals who are in distress on the Sabbath. They do not see these gracious actions as a violation of their traditions of the Sabbath rest. They must come to see that a person in trouble, a brother or sister in distress, must be helped regardless of the day when they have the ability and opportunity to help, comfort, encourage, or ease that person's distress or trouble. People count most! 

And you, dear disciple, please notice this truth as you seek to apply My teaching — this principle that I taught and lived as an example for you to follow. People count most! I came to seek and to save lost people, to ransom you and others like you from the grip of sin and death on your lives, and to bring My grace to all. That is why I went to the house of those who wanted to get rid of Me. That is why I emphasized the need to help people on the Sabbath even if it violated the tradition of the Pharisees. And most of all, that is why I AM headed to Jerusalem to die as the Lamb of God Who will take away the sins of the world. People count most!
Verses to Live

As you read these verses that follow, ask the Holy Spirit to help you visualize the scene. What are the expressions on the people's faces? What are the smells in the room as we get ready to share this meal? Can you feel the tension between this leader and Me? Can you feel his discomfort? Now join Me in noticing the man with the problem. What is My expression as I see him? What do you think My tone was as I discussed this man with the leader? Was My tone harsh or pleading with this leader as I asked about healing the man? Remember the point: People count most! And after you finish reading, I want you to ask for the Spirit to help you answer the following questions you need to ask yourself:
"What does Jesus want me to know from this event?"
"What does Jesus want me to feel about what happens here?"
"What does Jesus want me to do as a result of experiencing these events from His ministry?"
Another Sabbath Day came and Jesus was invited to an official's home for a meal. This fellow was a leader of the Pharisees, and Jesus was still under close surveillance by them. Jesus noticed a man suffering from a swelling disorder. He questioned the religious scholars and Pharisees. 

Jesus:
Is it permitted by traditions and the Hebrew Scriptures to heal people on the Sabbath, or is it forbidden?
They didn't reply. Then Jesus healed the man and sent him on his way. 

Jesus:
Would any single one of you leave his son or even his ox in a well on the Sabbath if he had fallen into it, or would you pull him out immediately?
They still didn't reply. 
(Luke 14:1-6)
Response in Prayer

Almighty God, I believe Your words of Scripture are true and bring life, but I want to understand and apply those words of truth based on the teaching and example of Your greatest Word, Jesus. Help me filter my application of biblical truth through Jesus' words and actions. Dear Father, I ask for the Spirit to open my heart so that in my words, my thoughts, and my actions I will live out the truth of Jesus as revealed in the verses I have just read. Give me Your heart for people, O God, I pray in Jesus' name. Amen.
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This daily devotional is written to help us all reclaim Jesus as the daily Lord of our lives and to help us realize we are not alone as we seek to live for Him. — Learn More
The Thoughts and Prayers for 'A Year with Jesus' are written by Phil Ware. You can email questions or comments to phil@heartlight.org.
Thanks to our invaluable editors:
Dr. Edward Holley - Executive Editor
Ray Butts - General Editor
Heartlight is proud to promote Compassion International. See children who were sponsored today!
HOW DO I SUBSCRIBE? It's FREE! To subscribe send a blank email to: ayearwithjesus-subscribe@maillists.heartlight.org
All scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from The Voice™. © 2008 by Ecclesia Bible Society. Used by permission. All rights reserved. © 1998-2015, Heartlight, Inc. 'A Year with Jesus' is part of the Heartlight Network.
© 1998-2015, Heartlight Inc.

"Cry for Jerusalem" — A Year with Jesus for 03/10/2015

Note from Jesus

Dear Friend, 

What will you do when you see death closing in on you? 

Will you fight it? 

Will you resent it? 

Will you fear it? 

Will you resign yourself to its inevitability? 

Or, if you are faced with the same circumstances that I am about to face in Jerusalem — rejection, ridicule, abuse, humiliation, and death — will you mourn for those who reject you, grieve for those who want to do you harm, and ask forgiveness for those who will take your life? 

When I was suffering on the cross in Jerusalem, I petitioned: "Father, forgive them, for they don’t know what they’re doing" (Luke 23:34). 

I came for this purpose: to give My life as a ransom for sinners, including those in Jerusalem who rejected Me, who plotted My crucifixion, and who incited the crowd to cry out against Me. 

Jerusalem, the holy city of My great ancestor, King David, will reject Me even though I AM the city's only hope for deliverance. My people will plot against Me, their only source of salvation. As you read the verses below, notice how I speak from My heart, feeling sadness, anguish, and pain as I think of Jerusalem and all that will happen to Me as I go there.

Even before I came to the earth, I longed over the centuries for My people of Jerusalem to give themselves (heart, soul, mind, and strength) to Us — Father, Son, and Spirit. I yearned to gather up Jerusalem's many people under My protection and care, but most of the people of this great city would have none of it. In fact, on this day that you read about below, I know that I AM headed to Jerusalem for the head-on collision with the rulers of the people and My rejection and crucifixion. Yet I do not mourn for Me, but I mourn for My people of My city who reject Me. 

Remember this, dear friend: My heart breaks when you choose to ignore, reject, or turn away from Me. I came and died to win your heart and bring you grace. Please don't lightly treat My love and sacrifice for You!
Verses to Live

Herod and the Pharisees were not friends. They didn't get along. Yet they found common ground on one thing. They both wanted to be rid of Me. The Pharisees' warning to Me about Herod's plot was not to benefit Me, but to let Me know these rival parties were closing in on Me — that the time before they arrested Me was coming to an end. However, their warning, Herod's plot to murder Me, and the Pharisees plans to get rid of Me would not deter Me from My ministry to the people or stop My love for the city of Jerusalem. I know that I go there to bless and redeem even though death awaits Me.
Right then some Pharisees came and warned Him [Jesus]. 

Pharisees:
You'd better get out of here because Herod is plotting Your murder.
Jesus:
You can give that sly fox this message: "Watch as I cast out demons and perform healings today and tomorrow, and on the third day I'll reach My destination. But for today and tomorrow and the next day, I have to continue My journey, for no prophet should perish outside of Jerusalem." 

O Jerusalem! O Jerusalem! You kill the prophets and you stone the messengers who are sent to you. How often I wanted to gather in your children as a hen gathers in her chicks under her wings, but you were not willing to come to Me. Look now, your house is abandoned and empty. You won't see Me until you welcome Me with the words of the psalms, "Anyone who comes in the name of the Eternal One will be blessed!"
(Luke 13:31-35)
Response in Prayer

O God in heaven, my heart is struck with the love of Jesus for these people and for the city of Jerusalem that will reject Him. Part of me is angry at the murderous plans that Herod and the Pharisees and the other religious leaders carry out to kill Jesus. Yet at the same time, I'm convicted that I have often forgotten the cost of my salvation. Temptation has distracted me from the love of the Lord Jesus for me and the sacrifice He made to redeem me. Forgive me for the times I've chosen sin rather than Jesus. In addition, dear Father, I ask for more grace so that I can passionately love the people around me, in my city, who reject Jesus and reject me because of my love for Him. In Jesus' name I pray. Amen.
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This daily devotional is written to help us all reclaim Jesus as the daily Lord of our lives and to help us realize we are not alone as we seek to live for Him. — Learn More
The Thoughts and Prayers for 'A Year with Jesus' are written by Phil Ware. You can email questions or comments to phil@heartlight.org.
Thanks to our invaluable editors:
Dr. Edward Holley - Executive Editor
Ray Butts - General Editor
Heartlight is proud to promote Compassion International. See children who were sponsored today!
HOW DO I SUBSCRIBE? It's FREE! To subscribe send a blank email to: ayearwithjesus-subscribe@maillists.heartlight.org
All scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from The Voice™. © 2008 by Ecclesia Bible Society. Used by permission. All rights reserved. © 1998-2015, Heartlight, Inc. 'A Year with Jesus' is part of the Heartlight Network.
© 1998-2015, Heartlight Inc.

"Don't Miss My Invitation" — A Year with Jesus for 03/09/2015

Note from Jesus

My Dear Disciple, 

Listen to My words for you today. They come out of the crucible of My conflict with the religious leaders and their humiliation with trying to embarrass Me. My words have power. I was heading toward Jerusalem and the horrors that were waiting for Me there. People were fascinated by what I said and they celebrated the wonderful things, the miraculous things that I was doing. 

I planted a promise in their hearts to help them understand that the power they were experiencing with My physical presence was not going to go away after My mission in Jerusalem was accomplished and I returned to the Father. That power was part of a new order of things in the world. It was part of My Father's kingdom — the people, their actions, and their attitudes where God's will reigns over their hearts and they find joy in the Father's presence. The kingdom power available to them might look small at the beginning of things — no bigger than a tiny mustard seed or a little bit of yeast. But, all the great things that the people were experiencing right then with My presence, My miraculous deeds and powerful teaching, were just a small glimpse of the greatness and gloriousness that were to come. Their power may seem small, but it will grow and permeate and bring great blessing to many. 

So don't miss My great offer of the kingdom. When I return, I will bring together all peoples from all places in the world who have come to believe in Me. That, dear friend, is a celebration you definitely don't want to miss!
Verses to Live

While the religious leaders had done all they could to wall off My teaching from others, the sheer power of the kingdom that was behind My words could not be contained. My blessing, My power, My kingdom would not be based on religious pedigree or social acceptance, but upon people surrendering their hearts to Me and giving their lives to be My disciples. The old order of power and position has been reversed, and those who follow Me will be exalted, not mocked, belittled, ridiculed, or persecuted. So don't miss My invitation to follow Me!
As the impact of His [Jesus'] words settled in, His critics were humiliated, but everyone else loved what Jesus said and celebrated everything He was doing. 

Jesus (explaining):
Do you want to understand the kingdom of God? Do you want Me to tell you what it's like? It's like a single mustard seed that someone took and planted in his garden. That tiny seed grew and became a tree so large that the birds could fly in and make their nests in its branches. 

Do you want Me to tell you what the kingdom of God is like? It's like some yeast which a woman hid within a huge quantity of flour; soon the whole batch of dough was rising.
He was pressing toward Jerusalem, His journey taking Him through various towns and villages. In each one, He taught the people. Once a person asked this question: 

Inquiring Individual:
Lord, will only a few people be rescued?
Jesus:
Strive to enter through the narrow door now, because many people — hear Me on this — will try to enter later on and will not be able to. Imagine you want to enter someone's home, but you wait until after the homeowner has shut the door. Then you stand outside and bang on the door, and you say, "Sir, please open the door for us!" But he will answer, "I don't know where you're from." 

Then you'll say, "Just a minute. We ate and drank with you, and you taught in our streets." 

But he'll say, "Sorry, I have no idea where you're from. Leave me, all of you evildoers." 

Then you'll see something that will make you cry and grind your teeth together — you'll see Abraham and Isaac and Jacob and all the prophets in the kingdom of God, but you yourselves will be on the outside looking in. 

And then you'll see people streaming in from east and west, from north and south, gathering around the table in the kingdom of God, but you'll be on the outside looking in. That's how it will be; some are last now who will be first then, and some are first now who will be last then.
(Luke 13:17-30)
Response in Prayer

O Father, there are times when Your kingdom way of life does not seem to get much respect. As I open my heart to Jesus each day, I invite the Holy Spirit to strengthen my faith, my hope, and my desire to live your character and compassion in a world that feels so devoid of both. I believe, but please strengthen my belief. I hope, but stir my heart to a greater anticipation of the day when my faith becomes sight. I trust in your mustard seed promise and the power of your holy work like yeast, but please help me see glimpses of Your coming glory as I serve you in the grittiness of my everyday world. In Jesus' name I pray. Amen.
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This daily devotional is written to help us all reclaim Jesus as the daily Lord of our lives and to help us realize we are not alone as we seek to live for Him. — Learn More
The Thoughts and Prayers for 'A Year with Jesus' are written by Phil Ware. You can email questions or comments to phil@heartlight.org.
Thanks to our invaluable editors:
Dr. Edward Holley - Executive Editor
Ray Butts - General Editor
Heartlight is proud to promote Compassion International. See children who were sponsored today!
to mailmaster@heartlight.org and let us know what list you would like to leave. We'll take care of you.
HOW DO I SUBSCRIBE? It's FREE! To subscribe send a blank email to: ayearwithjesus-subscribe@maillists.heartlight.org
All scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from The Voice™. © 2008 by Ecclesia Bible Society. Used by permission. All rights reserved. © 1998-2015, Heartlight, Inc. 'A Year with Jesus' is part of the Heartlight Network.
© 1998-2015, Heartlight Inc.

"The Good Shepherd" — A Year with Jesus for 03/07/2015

Note from Jesus

Dear Precious One, 

Few passages of Scripture were more beloved in My time on earth than the twenty-third Psalm. Like in your day, many found great comfort knowing that the Great Shepherd was watching over them, caring for them, sustaining them, giving them rest, and bringing them safely home to Him:
The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want. 
He makes me lie down in green pastures. 
He leads me beside still waters. 
He restores my soul. 

He leads me in paths of righteousness 
for his name's sake. 
Even though I walk through the valley 
of the shadow of death, 
I will fear no evil, 
for you are with me; 
your rod and your staff, 
they comfort me. 

You prepare a table before me 
in the presence of my enemies; 
you anoint my head with oil; 
my cup overflows. 

Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me 
all the days of my life, 
and I shall dwell in the house of the Lord 
forever. 
(Psalm 23:1-6 ESV)
So when I claim to be the "good shepherd," my words are heard against the background of the twenty-third Psalm. At the same time, My words about being the "good shepherd" are speaking on several different levels of emphasis. Each level is important. Each conveys a powerful truth about Me — My identity, My power, and My sacrifice. 

First, by claiming to be the "good shepherd," I AM claiming to be God, the Shepherd of the twenty-third Psalm! Clearly this was offensive to many faithful Jews for whom the Shepherd psalm was precious and personal while God was high, exalted, and beyond compare — not some carpenter they thought was from Nazareth. That was why some accused Me of being a "raving maniac"! 

Second, notice the specific personal knowledge that I have of My sheep and they have of Me. I know them. I call them by name. They hear My voice and recognize Me. They follow Me. They don't trust a stranger because they know My voice and I lead by going out ahead of them and calling them by name. 

Third, there were bad shepherds among My people. I called them "hired hands" as well as "thieves and robbers"! They were bad shepherds like the ones described by the prophet Ezekiel (Ezekiel 34:1-31). The religious leaders who were so opposed to Me knew I was talking about them as the bad shepherds. I knew that they were about to completely reject Me. 

Fourth, I laid down My life for the life of My sheep. In going to the cross willingly, I laid down My life to give life to My flock. No one could take My life from Me, but I laid it down because I love My sheep and I want to honor the Father. But, when I laid My life down, I would also "take it up again" — I have the power to rise from the dead! 

A list, however, of the things I taught cannot compare with Who I AM and what it means for Me to be your Shepherd. As wonderful and precious as the words "The Lord is my shepherd..." may be to you, please recognize and feel the great love I have for you as your Shepherd. The twenty-third Psalm takes on so much deeper meaning when you truly understand that I AM your "good shepherd": that I brought you everything promised in the twenty-third psalm and everything promised in My words below. On top of everything else, I offered up My life to show you that My words are true and My love and My shepherding are real.
Verses to Live

Take all the wonderful promises of the twenty-third Psalm and add all the incredible promises you find in My words below and know that these promises, that My comforting and guiding presence, are yours!
Jesus:
I tell you the truth: the man who crawls through the fence of the sheep pen, rather than walking through the gate, is a thief or a vandal. The shepherd walks openly through the entrance. The guard who is posted to protect the sheep opens the gate for the shepherd, and the sheep hear his voice. He calls his own sheep by name and leads them out. When all the sheep have been gathered, he walks on ahead of them; and they follow him because they know his voice. The sheep would not be willing to follow a stranger; they run because they do not know the voice of a stranger.
Jesus explained a profound truth through this metaphor, but they did not understand His teaching. So He explained further. 

Jesus:
I tell you the truth: I am the gate of the sheep. All who approached the sheep before Me came as thieves and robbers, and the sheep did not listen to their voices. I am the gate; whoever enters through Me will be liberated, will go in and go out, and will find pastures. The thief approaches with malicious intent, looking to steal, slaughter, and destroy; I came to give life with joy and abundance. 

I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down His life for the sheep in His care. The hired hand is not like the shepherd caring for His own sheep. When a wolf attacks, snatching and scattering the sheep, he runs for his life, leaving them defenseless. The hired hand runs because he works only for wages and does not care for the sheep. I am the good shepherd; I know My sheep, and My sheep know Me. As the Father knows Me, I know the Father; I will give My life for the sheep. There are many more sheep than you can see here, and I will bring them as well. They will hear My voice, and the flock will be united. One flock. One shepherd. The Father loves Me because I am willing to lay down My life — but I will take it up again. My life cannot be taken away by anybody else; I am giving it of My own free will. My authority allows Me to give My life and to take it again. All this has been commanded by My Father.
When He spoke these words, some of the Jews began to argue. 

Many Jews:
He has a demon and is a raving maniac. Why are you people listening to Him?
Other Jews:
No demon-possessed man ever spoke like this. Do demons give sight to the blind?
(John 10:1-21)
Response in Prayer

O God — Father, Son, and Spirit — shepherd me. I promise to listen for Your voice. I pledge to follow no other spiritual guide but You. In Jesus' name I pray. Amen.
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This daily devotional is written to help us all reclaim Jesus as the daily Lord of our lives and to help us realize we are not alone as we seek to live for Him. — Learn More
The Thoughts and Prayers for 'A Year with Jesus' are written by Phil Ware. You can email questions or comments to phil@heartlight.org.
Thanks to our invaluable editors:
Dr. Edward Holley - Executive Editor
Ray Butts - General Editor
Heartlight is proud to promote Compassion International. See children who were sponsored today!
HOW DO I SUBSCRIBE? It's FREE! To subscribe send a blank email to: ayearwithjesus-subscribe@maillists.heartlight.org
All scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from The Voice™. © 2008 by Ecclesia Bible Society. Used by permission. All rights reserved. © 1998-2015, Heartlight, Inc. 'A Year with Jesus' is part of the Heartlight Network.
© 1998-2015, Heartlight Inc.

"Look Closely at the Evidence!" — A Year with Jesus for 03/08/2015

Note from Jesus

Dear Seeker, 

My words have always provoked strong reactions! I do not leave people any middle ground for their decision about Me. There is no "safe" place they can put Me in the middle as just a good man and a good teacher. In the encounter with the crowd that you read about in today's verses, I AM claiming to be the Son of God. I AM saying that what I do and what I speak, I have received directly from My Father in heaven. I AM claiming that every disciple that I have was given to Me by My Father. 

Every contemporary Jewish person who heard Me in the events recorded below knew that I was claiming to be God walking and teaching among them. They told Me:
We demand Your life because You are a man, yet you claim to be God. This is blasphemy!
As an experienced rabbi familiar with their way of arguing about the meaning of Scripture, I gave them two reasons why I could claim to be God among them. 

First, I used a good rabbinical defense strategy: I quoted a passage that shows that others had been called "sons of God." These people were not punished for their claim, so I shouldn't be punished for My claim. This argument is technically correct for their type of reasoning used in rabbinical discussion. However, most of those listening knew that I was claiming that I AM much more than one of many "sons of God." They knew My claim was that I AM THE Son of the God! 

Second, I could call God My Father because what I claimed about Myself was validated by what I did! When you examine the great things that I did, the authoritative truths that I taught, and the way that I lived, you see that My actions validate My words. Notice what I said to My doubters and My critics:
Examine My actions, and you will see that My work is the work of the Father. Regardless of whether you believe in Me — believe the miracles.
Despite My opponents' anger at these claims, they could not disprove them. They were left to try to kill Me, but they couldn't do so at this time. The time wasn't right. The Father wouldn't let them. I wasn't ready yet to lay My life down, so they couldn't take it. Therefore, I continued with My ministry and many others believed in Me.
Verses to Live

OK What are you going to do with Me? You can choose not to read My story, but My story won't go away. People will keep making movies about Me, they will keep talking about Me, they will be fascinated by Me, and many will come to full faith in Me. 

So what are YOU going to do with Me? My claims are extravagant, even blasphemous if they are not true. But if they are true, then everything rides on your decision about Me! So look closely at the evidence — not just the evidence in the verses that follow, but at everything I said and did. Look at the movement I left behind. Examine the weak and fearful men and women who became bold and were willing to be martyred. What explains it? What was their belief in Me that led them to risk everything to be My disciples?
When He [Jesus] spoke these words, some of the Jews began to argue. 
...

It was winter and time for the Festival of Dedication. While in Jerusalem, Jesus was walking through the temple in an area known as Solomon's porch, and Jews gathered around Him. 

Jews:
How long are You going to keep us guessing? If You are God's Anointed, the Liberating King, announce it clearly.
Jesus:
I have told you, and you do not believe. The works I am doing in My Father's name tell the truth about Me. You do not listen; you lack faith because you are not My sheep. My sheep respond as they hear My voice; I know them intimately, and they follow Me. I give them a life that is unceasing, and death will not have the last word. Nothing or no one can steal them from My hand. My Father has given the flock to Me, and He is superior to all beings and things. No one is powerful enough to snatch the flock from My Father's hand. The Father and I are one.
The Jews gathered stones to execute Jesus right then and there. 

Jesus:
I have performed many beautiful works before you in the name of the Father. Which of these can be judged as an offense that merits My execution?
Jews:
You are not condemned for performing miracles. We demand Your life because You are a man, yet you claim to be God. This is blasphemy!
Jesus:
You know what is written in the Scriptures. Doesn't it read, "I said, you are gods"? If the Scriptures called your ancestors (mere mortals) gods to whom the word of God came — and the Scriptures cannot be set aside — what should you call One who is unique, sanctified by and sent from the Father into the world? I have said, "I am God's Son." How can you call that blasphemy? By all means, do not believe in Me, if I am not doing the things of the Father. But examine My actions, and you will see that My work is the work of the Father. Regardless of whether you believe in Me — believe the miracles. Then you will know that the Father is in Me, and I am in the Father.
Once again, some of the Jews tried to capture Him, but He slipped away, eluding their grasp. Jesus crossed the Jordan River and returned to the place where John was... cleansing the people through baptism in the early days. He lingered in the area, and scores of people gathered around Him. 

Crowds:
John never performed any miracles, but every word he spoke about this man has come to pass. It is all true!
In that place, many believed in Him. 
(John 10:19; John 10:22-42)
Response in Prayer

Holy and righteous Father, I confess that some days the urgency of my faith is simply not there. I feel blah, You seem distant to me, and the Holy Spirit's presence in my life seems to have vanished. I pray that You, O Father, make me thirsty for You. I give You the invitation to make me hungry for Your presence, Your Word, Your Son, and Your Spirit. Bring people into my life to shake me out of my mediocrity and my moments of spiritual lethargy. Restore my passion by reawakening my heart to the voice, the leading, and the lordship of Jesus, in Whose name I pray. Amen.
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This daily devotional is written to help us all reclaim Jesus as the daily Lord of our lives and to help us realize we are not alone as we seek to live for Him. — Learn More
The Thoughts and Prayers for 'A Year with Jesus' are written by Phil Ware. You can email questions or comments to phil@heartlight.org.
Thanks to our invaluable editors:
Dr. Edward Holley - Executive Editor
Ray Butts - General Editor
Heartlight is proud to promote Compassion International. See children who were sponsored today!.
HOW DO I SUBSCRIBE? It's FREE! To subscribe send a blank email to: ayearwithjesus-subscribe@maillists.heartlight.org
All scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from The Voice™. © 2008 by Ecclesia Bible Society. Used by permission. All rights reserved. © 1998-2015, Heartlight, Inc. 'A Year with Jesus' is part of the Heartlight Network.
© 1998-2015, Heartlight Inc.

Opening Blind Eyes #3" — A Year with Jesus for 03/06/2015

Note from Jesus

Dear Disciple, 

On two other days, I have had you look at John's account of the man who was born blind and whom I healed. We've seen how people can willfully be blind to the people in need around them. Instead of viewing each person as someone in whom "the deeds of God may be put on display" (John 9:3), they treat those people as something less than people created in Our image — they treat them as a religious question, a label, a problem, or a biological product. Today, I want you to focus on the journey to faith of the man whom I healed of blindness — both his physical blindness and his spiritual blindness. 

His journey toward faith began as a person in need. I healed his physical blindness and he began his journey toward his spiritual blindness being healed. You can follow this man's journey to faith by watching what he said about me: 
"a man named Jesus" (John 9:11)
"this man is a prophet" (John 9:17)
"I only know one thing: I was blind but now I see" (John 9:25)
"This man must come from God" (John 9:33)
"Lord, I do believe" (that You are the Son of Man — Messiah and Lord — promised to us) (John 9:38)
I want you to look at this man's journey of faith. Many of you have made a similar journey in what you believe about Me. Others whom you are trying to reach with My grace are somewhere on this journey. Use gentle persistence to lead them to a deeper understanding of My identity. 

Notice some things about this man's coming to faith. While I wasn't with him, he was still coming to a deeper understanding of My identity. And even at the end of the journey, he couldn't explain everything about Me, but he had a determined faith in Me. Realize that even when you are not with those you are trying to lead to faith, the Spirit is working in their lives through what others do and say — even if it is hostile. Realize that while your friends may not be able to explain everything about Me, they can point to the clear changes in their lives as rock solid evidence of what they believe about Me. 

You have heard Me tell you that people have to decide whether I am a lunatic who is delusional about His identity or a liar who is trying to take advantage of people for his own good, or whether I AM the Lord. That is ultimately the decision that people have to make about Me. So help your friends stay on the journey of faith and be there to help them come to the full understanding of My identity. As you work in their lives to lead them to faith, know that you are not alone: I AM there with you and them — even when you are not present — helping them journey to full and saving faith.
Verses to Live

Notice how the Pharisees push this man to give up what he knows is true. The man never yields to them. He doesn't back down. The Pharisees cannot defeat his logic nor can they discredit the truth of My miracle. So they end up doing what many do to you today. They ostracize him and call him names. Don't be surprised when people do that to you. Just realize that when they have to resort to belittling you with name-calling they have lost the battle and are left to pettiness and living in their own willful blindness.
Formerly Blind Man:
This man must come from God; otherwise, this miracle would not be possible. Only God can do such things.
Pharisees:
You were born under a cloud of sin. How can you, of all people, lecture us?
The religious leaders banished him from their presence. Jesus heard what had happened and sought out the man. 

Jesus:
Do you believe in the Son of Man?
Formerly Blind Man:
I want to believe, Lord. Who is He?
Jesus:
You have seen His face with your new eyes, and you are talking to Him now.
Formerly Blind Man:
Lord, I do believe.
The man bowed low to worship Jesus. 

Jesus:
I have entered this world to announce a verdict that changes everything. Now those without sight may begin to see, and those who see may become blind.
Some Pharisees (who overheard Jesus):
Surely we are not blind, are we?
Jesus:
If you were blind, you would be without sin. But because you claim you can see, your sin is ever present.
(John 9:33-41)
Response in Prayer

O Father, I thank You for my journey of faith. I ask that You help me as I try to walk with others on their journey toward faith in You. Please be at work in the following people's lives that I want to see come to faith in Jesus as their Savior and Lord and as Your Son. (Think of people who need to know Jesus to bring before the Father and mention them by name.) Help each of these people to come to full and active faith in Jesus. I pray this in His name. Amen.
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This daily devotional is written to help us all reclaim Jesus as the daily Lord of our lives and to help us realize we are not alone as we seek to live for Him. — Learn More
The Thoughts and Prayers for 'A Year with Jesus' are written by Phil Ware. You can email questions or comments to phil@heartlight.org.
Thanks to our invaluable editors:
Dr. Edward Holley - Executive Editor
Ray Butts - General Editor
Heartlight is proud to promote Compassion International. See children who were sponsored today!
HOW DO I SUBSCRIBE? It's FREE! To subscribe send a blank email to: ayearwithjesus-subscribe@maillists.heartlight.org
All scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from The Voice™. © 2008 by Ecclesia Bible Society. Used by permission. All rights reserved. © 1998-2015, Heartlight, Inc. 'A Year with Jesus' is part of the Heartlight Network.
© 1998-2015, Heartlight Inc.

"Truth Brings Celebration and Hostility" — A Year with Jesus for 03/04/2015

Note from Jesus

Dear Beloved, 

We — Father, Son, and Holy Spirit — instituted the Sabbath to be a blessing to Our people and those who lived among them. The Sabbath gave My people a day each week when they, their families, and their workers rested from their labor, remembered the Father who richly provided for them, and were renewed in spirit. The Sabbath was made to bless people and to honor Us. 

This principle doesn't seem so hard to understand, but the religious leaders' practice of it during My time on earth was far from Our plan for the Sabbath and made Me angry. How could the Jewish religious leaders interpret Our principles for the Sabbath and then turn the Sabbath into a day for a sick person to stay sick and a broken person to stay broken? These same religious leaders fed and watered their animals on the Sabbath. They pulled their animals out of a ditch and searched for them when they were lost on the Sabbath. Surely... surely... these religious leaders could see the duplicity in their ways and the errors of their interpretation? 

Unfortunately, they didn't... or wouldn't. They were furious with Me when I healed the woman in the story below on a Sabbath. They felt this act of mercy broke their regulations and went against the Father's will! When I confronted them on their hypocrisy, they were humiliated and infuriated. The people, however, loved what I said and celebrated what I had done when I healed this crippled woman.
Verses to Live

Don't just read the words that follow. Ask the Holy Spirit to help you feel what is happening and visualize the expression on the faces of different people in the story. Look at the broken posture of this woman before I healed her. Imagine her gait as she shuffled toward Me. How could anyone with power to help, not help? How could anyone claim to be religious and refuse this woman a simple but powerful act of kindness?
Around this time, He [Jesus] was teaching in a synagogue on the Sabbath, the Jewish day of rest. A woman there had been sick for 18 years; she was weak, hunched over, and unable to stand up straight. Jesus placed His hands on her and suddenly she could stand straight again. She started praising God, but the synagogue official was indignant because Jesus had not kept their Sabbath regulations by performing this healing. 

Synagogue Official:
Look, there are six other days when it's appropriate to get work done. Come on those days to be healed, not on the Sabbath!
Jesus:
You religious leaders are such hypocrites! Every single one of you unties his ox or donkey from its manger every single Sabbath Day, and then you lead it out to get a drink of water, right? Do you care more about your farm animals than you care about this woman, one of Abraham's daughters, oppressed by Satan for 18 years? Can't we untie her from her oppression on the Sabbath?
As the impact of His words settled in, His critics were humiliated, but everyone else loved what Jesus said and celebrated everything He was doing. 
(Luke 13:10-17)
Response in Prayer

O Father, help me value people the way that Jesus did. Help me draw others into celebrating Your greatness and grace by helping those in need. In Jesus' name I pray. Amen.
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This daily devotional is written to help us all reclaim Jesus as the daily Lord of our lives and to help us realize we are not alone as we seek to live for Him. — Learn More
The Thoughts and Prayers for 'A Year with Jesus' are written by Phil Ware. You can email questions or comments to phil@heartlight.org.
Thanks to our invaluable editors:
Dr. Edward Holley - Executive Editor
Ray Butts - General Editor
Heartlight is proud to promote Compassion International. See children who were sponsored today!
HOW DO I SUBSCRIBE? It's FREE! To subscribe send a blank email to: ayearwithjesus-subscribe@maillists.heartlight.org
All scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from The Voice™. © 2008 by Ecclesia Bible Society. Used by permission. All rights reserved. © 1998-2015, Heartlight, Inc. 'A Year with Jesus' is part of the Heartlight Network.
© 1998-2015, Heartlight Inc.

"One Last Season for Fruit?" — A Year with Jesus for 03/03/2015

Note from Jesus

Dear Believer, 

In your day, people have really toned down some of My message in order to be more politically correct. Remember, however, that the religious leaders of My day killed Me because they knew I was a threat to their ungodly way of doing things. I never taught or preached violence. In fact, My voluntary submission to the cross should tell you a lot about My heart in this matter. When the soldiers came to arrest Me in the Garden of Gethsemane — right before My trials and crucifixion — Peter grabbed a sword and was ready to fight to protect Me. I told him to put away the sword as I would not be using violence as a means of My own protection (John 18:3-11). 

Hypocritical and self-serving Jewish religious leaders considered Me a threat to their power and status because I denounced them and their ungodly approach to religion. In addition, I was transforming lives and gathering devoted disciples who were realizing the errors of the religious leaders, making me an even greater threat. My devoted disciples were interested in My true identity as Son of God, Messiah, and Lord because they had seen My power and also My compassion. The leaders could not deny or explain away My power that made Me even a greater threat. Nor could these leaders deny my compassion that moved people to follow Me which made Me a growing threat. These leaders knew they had to eliminate the threat — to kill Me and to get Me out of the way. My journey to Jerusalem was a purposeful march into their trap. 

Yet hear this with your heart, please: I ached for My people and My country and My city — even the leaders who were about to reject and ridicule Me. I knew they were leading the people of Jerusalem down the path to destruction. I knew the time was short. I knew they could repent — truly change from the inside out — if they would give themselves over to the Father's will and follow Me. For three years, I taught, told stories, preached, counseled, visited, healed, shepherded, and cared for the needy, the broken, the outcast, the sinner, and the commoner. Many were coming to faith in Me. I went to the houses of the rich, I met with powerful religious leaders to discuss truth, and I even healed valued family members of both Jewish and Roman leaders. Some of these came to faith in Me. 

The problem was that I also confronted the religious establishment. I rightly called them hypocrites. I challenged their legalistic answers that departed from the Father's will. Then, I called them to repentance. John the Baptist, My cousin whom Herod executed, spent time warning of the need for repentance and preparing the people for My coming. Many had changed their hearts and their lives to be ready for Me. Not so for most of those in power. 

In the verses that follow, you will read two stories about disasters and then you find a parable about a fig tree. The stories about disasters are reminders that bad things happen to good people. If destruction can befall them and they are undeserving of their hardships, how much more will destruction come to those who ignore, resist, and try to extinguish the Voice of God — Me, Jesus of Nazareth, God come in human flesh! 

In the parable about the fig tree, I shared a not-so-subtle warning: God's people needed to repent or our precious city of Jerusalem would face destruction. Such a thought gave Me great anguish. Salvation was on the doorstep of My people and they chose the power of Rome and the security of the status quo over Me — Rome, that terrible lion of a country that had oppressed them for decades, would tear them apart and leave no stone standing. 

With My heart breaking for such impending disaster, I shared a parable about asking the owner of the vineyard — a reference the people in My time would recognize as God (the Father) — to give the people more time to turn their hearts toward Him. As the "vineyard keeper" in the parable, I asked for one last season for the people of Jerusalem — the "fig tree" — to bear fruit for God. I worked to bring My people to repentance and save the city of David. I gave My people another opportunity to turn their hearts toward Me and find the salvation the Father wanted to bring them. Unfortunately, they would not.
Verses to Live

You face a hard challenge as you read the verses that follow. The warnings that I gave were not heeded and destruction came for Jerusalem. So how do you apply them? 

Let My words fall on your heart and ask the Holy Spirit to use them to speak to those things in your own heart that you have not yet surrendered to Me. Any other sources on which you rely for salvation will prove false. Any other source of ultimate meaning and purpose for your life will prove shallow. So let these words remind you of a previous theme: urgency! Don't put off your commitment to holy transformation that your life needs. Don't waste another day!
As He [Jesus] said this, some people told Him the latest news about a group of Galilean pilgrims in Jerusalem — a group not unlike Jesus' own entourage. Pilate butchered them while they were at worship, their own blood mingling with the blood of their sacrifices. 

Jesus:
Do you think these Galileans were somehow being singled out for their sins, that they were worse than any other Galileans, because they suffered this terrible death? Of course not. But listen, if you do not consider God's ways and truly change, then friends, you should prepare to face His judgment and eternal death. 

Speaking of current events, you've all heard about the 18 people killed in that building accident when the tower in Siloam fell. Were they extraordinarily bad people, worse than anyone else in Jerusalem, so that they would deserve such an untimely death? Of course not. But all the buildings of Jerusalem will come crashing down on you if you don't wake up and change direction now. 

(following up with this parable) A man has a fig tree planted in his vineyard. One day he comes out looking for fruit on it, but there are no figs. He says to the vineyard keeper, "Look at this tree. For three years, I've come hoping to find some fresh figs, but what do I find? Nothing. So just go ahead and cut it down. Why waste the space with a fruitless tree?" 

The vineyard keeper replies, "Give it another chance, sir. Give me one more year working with it. I'll cultivate the soil and heap on some manure to fertilize it. If it surprises us and bears fruit next year, that will be great, but if not, then we'll cut it down."
(Luke 13:1-9)
Response in Prayer

O Father, have Your Spirit use Jesus' words to convict me of any idols that I may have in my heart. I want to have an undivided heart for You. I want to depend solely and confidently on Jesus for my salvation. In You, O God — Father, Son, and Spirit — have I put my trust. In Jesus' name I pray. Amen.
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This daily devotional is written to help us all reclaim Jesus as the daily Lord of our lives and to help us realize we are not alone as we seek to live for Him. — Learn More
The Thoughts and Prayers for 'A Year with Jesus' are written by Phil Ware. You can email questions or comments to phil@heartlight.org.
Thanks to our invaluable editors:
Dr. Edward Holley - Executive Editor
Ray Butts - General Editor
Heartlight is proud to promote Compassion International. See children who were sponsored today!.
HOW DO I SUBSCRIBE? It's FREE! To subscribe send a blank email to: ayearwithjesus-subscribe@maillists.heartlight.org
All scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from The Voice™. © 2008 by Ecclesia Bible Society. Used by permission. All rights reserved. © 1998-2015, Heartlight, Inc. 'A Year with Jesus' is part of the Heartlight Network.
© 1998-2015, Heartlight Inc.

"Opening Blind Eyes" — A Year with Jesus for 03/02/2015

Note from Jesus

Dear Seeker of Truth, 

I was frustrated with the religious leaders who added their own regulations to the commandments of the Law and made those regulations more important than caring for a woman who had been bound by a broken body for 18 years (Luke 13:10-17). As you read the verses below, notice how My disciples come close to doing the same thing. Rather than recognizing the difficulty of being blind and then caring for the blind man, My disciples asked an insensitive religious question about him within his hearing:
Teacher, who sinned? Who is responsible for this man's blindness? Did he commit sins that merited this punishment? If not his sins, is it the sins of his parents?
My disciples did not view this blind-since-birth man as someone in whom the deeds of God's grace needed to be displayed. Instead, they used him as the pretext for a religious discussion. To them, the man and his problems were nothing more than a religious question — a question that cost them nothing. They spent no time ministering to his needs, caring for him as a child of God in need, or compassionately visiting with the man. He was just the object of their religious conversation. Anything that you do to objectify another person and treat that person as less than someone created in Our image is dehumanizing. No one should be reduced to little more than a topic of religious conversation between people who have no real interest in helping them. 

You are placed in the circle of relationships in which you find yourself to make a difference in the lives of the people around you. Listen to the conversations around you. Ask the Spirit to open your eyes to see the "blind men" that other people around you miss, objectify, or turn into nothing more than a matter for discussion. Look for ways to demonstrate My love and grace by serving these people.
Verses to Live

The verses that follow begin a series of events that involved My healing a man who was born blind and that occurred as a result of that healing. We will address more aspects of these events later. Today, notice how I treat this man as someone in whom "the deeds of God may be put on display," yet nearly all the people he meets treat him as less than a person created in the image of God.
While walking along the road, Jesus saw a man who was blind since his birth. 

Disciples:
Teacher, who sinned? Who is responsible for this man's blindness? Did he commit sins that merited this punishment? If not his sins, is it the sins of his parents?
Jesus:
Neither. His blindness cannot be explained or traced to any particular person's sins. He is blind so the deeds of God may be put on display. While it is daytime, we must do the works of the One who sent Me. But when the sun sets and night falls, this work is impossible. Whenever I am in the world, I am the Light of the world.
After He said these things, He spat on the ground and mixed saliva and dirt to form mud, which He smeared across the blind man's eyes. 

Jesus (to the blind man):
Go, wash yourself in the pool of Siloam.
Siloam means "sent," and its name reminded us that his healing was sent by God. The man went, washed, and returned to Jesus, his eyes now alive with sight. Then neighbors and others who knew him were confused to see a man so closely resembling the blind beggar running about. 

Townspeople:
Isn't this the man we see every day sitting and begging in the streets?
Others:
This is the same man.
Still Others:
This cannot be him. But this fellow bears an uncanny resemblance to the blind man.
Formerly Blind Man:
I am the same man. It's me!
Townspeople:
How have your lifeless eyes been opened?
Formerly Blind Man:
A man named Jesus approached me and made mud from the ground and applied it to my eyes. He then said to me, "Go, wash yourself in the pool of Siloam." I went and washed, and suddenly I could see.
Townspeople:
Where is this man who healed you?
Formerly Blind Man:
I don't know.
(John 9:1-12)
Response in Prayer

O God, help me see the people that You place in my path each day — the very people that You placed there so that I can share Your grace with them. Forgive me when I have treated others as little more than a religious or political or social question and have not heard Your call to love them into Your family. Open my eyes and my heart to see the people others neglect and ignore. Please use me to give them hope and to share a touch of Your grace with them. In Jesus' name I pray. Amen.
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This daily devotional is written to help us all reclaim Jesus as the daily Lord of our lives and to help us realize we are not alone as we seek to live for Him. — Learn More
The Thoughts and Prayers for 'A Year with Jesus' are written by Phil Ware. You can email questions or comments to phil@heartlight.org.
Thanks to our invaluable editors:
Dr. Edward Holley - Executive Editor
Ray Butts - General Editor
Heartlight is proud to promote Compassion International. See children who were sponsored today!
HOW DO I SUBSCRIBE? It's FREE! To subscribe send a blank email to: ayearwithjesus-subscribe@maillists.heartlight.org
All scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from The Voice™. © 2008 by Ecclesia Bible Society. Used by permission. All rights reserved. © 1998-2015, Heartlight, Inc. 'A Year with Jesus' is part of the Heartlight Network.
© 1998-2015, Heartlight Inc.

"Can't You See the Urgency?" — A Year with Jesus for 03/01/2015

Note from Jesus

Dear Friend, 

You need to treat the issues of the kingdom with a sense of urgency. There is never a time to be complacent. As you read the verses below, you will see that I emphasized the need for a great sense of urgency. 

For those who first heard My words in the verses below, there was going to be an important moment of decision. My rejection, crucifixion, and resurrection were going to lead to a moment of supreme decision for everyone. This supreme moment of decision for all who knew and heard Me was coming sooner than anyone wanted to recognize. This decision would tear families apart because some would wholly reject Me, considering Me a blasphemer and a troublemaker, while others would see Me as I AM — the Holy One of God sent to save them. 

For you, this must be a decision you make daily: What will you do with Me? Am I a liar and a lunatic or Lord? And if I am Lord, how then will you live differently from those around you? Yes, this is a decision of daily urgency!
Verses to Live

While you don't face the same exact scenario as these first hearers of My message, you are confronted with a challenge by the things I've said. You must feel a sense of urgency about where to invest your life. Your attachment to the world can easily lead you to live in apathy and approach important spiritual matters with complacency. So I'm challenging you today with strong language and strong images, because you must decide what you are going to do with Me. 
Jesus to His disciples:
This is serious business we're involved in. My mission is to send a purging fire on the earth! In fact, I can hardly wait to see the smoke rising. I have a kind of baptism to go through, and I can't relax until My mission is accomplished! Do you think I've come with a nice little message of peace? No way. Believe Me, My message will divide. It will divide a household of five into three against two or two against three. It will divide father against son and son against father; mother against daughter and daughter against mother; mother-in-law against daughter-in-law and daughter-in-law against mother-in-law. 

(speaking to the crowd) You see a cloud arise from the sea in the west, and you can say, "Here comes a shower!" And you're right. Or you feel the hot wind blowing in from the desert in the south and you say, "It's going to be really hot!" And you're right. Listen, hypocrites! You can predict the weather by paying attention to the sky and the earth, but why can't you interpret the urgency of this present moment? Why don't you see it for yourselves? 

Imagine you're being sued. You and your accuser are on your way to court. Wouldn't you do everything in your power to settle out of court before you stand before the magistrate? After all, he might drag you to stand before the judge, and the judge might hand you over to the police, and they might throw you in jail. Once you're in jail, it's too late: you're not going anywhere until you've paid in full.
(Luke 12:49-59)
Response in Prayer

Almighty God, I confess that I can become complacent, even apathetic, about my life as Jesus' disciple. There are so many things crowding into my heart for my attention. So today, I pray the prayer Moses offered many centuries ago: Lord, "teach us to number our days so that we may get a heart of wisdom."* I want to live every moment for Jesus with passion and courage. I don't want to waste any moments You have given me and fritter away my life on what doesn't matter eternally. In Jesus' name I pray. Amen. 

* Psalm 90:12 ESV, a psalm described as "A Prayer of Moses, the Man of God."
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This daily devotional is written to help us all reclaim Jesus as the daily Lord of our lives and to help us realize we are not alone as we seek to live for Him. — Learn More
The Thoughts and Prayers for 'A Year with Jesus' are written by Phil Ware. You can email questions or comments to phil@heartlight.org.
Thanks to our invaluable editors:
Dr. Edward Holley - Executive Editor
Ray Butts - General Editor
Heartlight is proud to promote Compassion International. See children who were sponsored today!
HOW DO I SUBSCRIBE? It's FREE! To subscribe send a blank email to: ayearwithjesus-subscribe@maillists.heartlight.org
All scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from The Voice™. © 2008 by Ecclesia Bible Society. Used by permission. All rights reserved. © 1998-2015, Heartlight, Inc. 'A Year with Jesus' is part of the Heartlight Network.
© 1998-2015, Heartlight Inc.

"Can't You See the Urgency?" — A Year with Jesus for 03/01/2015

Note from Jesus

Dear Friend, 

You need to treat the issues of the kingdom with a sense of urgency. There is never a time to be complacent. As you read the verses below, you will see that I emphasized the need for a great sense of urgency. 

For those who first heard My words in the verses below, there was going to be an important moment of decision. My rejection, crucifixion, and resurrection were going to lead to a moment of supreme decision for everyone. This supreme moment of decision for all who knew and heard Me was coming sooner than anyone wanted to recognize. This decision would tear families apart because some would wholly reject Me, considering Me a blasphemer and a troublemaker, while others would see Me as I AM — the Holy One of God sent to save them. 

For you, this must be a decision you make daily: What will you do with Me? Am I a liar and a lunatic or Lord? And if I am Lord, how then will you live differently from those around you? Yes, this is a decision of daily urgency!
Verses to Live

While you don't face the same exact scenario as these first hearers of My message, you are confronted with a challenge by the things I've said. You must feel a sense of urgency about where to invest your life. Your attachment to the world can easily lead you to live in apathy and approach important spiritual matters with complacency. So I'm challenging you today with strong language and strong images, because you must decide what you are going to do with Me. 
Jesus to His disciples:
This is serious business we're involved in. My mission is to send a purging fire on the earth! In fact, I can hardly wait to see the smoke rising. I have a kind of baptism to go through, and I can't relax until My mission is accomplished! Do you think I've come with a nice little message of peace? No way. Believe Me, My message will divide. It will divide a household of five into three against two or two against three. It will divide father against son and son against father; mother against daughter and daughter against mother; mother-in-law against daughter-in-law and daughter-in-law against mother-in-law. 

(speaking to the crowd) You see a cloud arise from the sea in the west, and you can say, "Here comes a shower!" And you're right. Or you feel the hot wind blowing in from the desert in the south and you say, "It's going to be really hot!" And you're right. Listen, hypocrites! You can predict the weather by paying attention to the sky and the earth, but why can't you interpret the urgency of this present moment? Why don't you see it for yourselves? 

Imagine you're being sued. You and your accuser are on your way to court. Wouldn't you do everything in your power to settle out of court before you stand before the magistrate? After all, he might drag you to stand before the judge, and the judge might hand you over to the police, and they might throw you in jail. Once you're in jail, it's too late: you're not going anywhere until you've paid in full.
(Luke 12:49-59)
Response in Prayer

Almighty God, I confess that I can become complacent, even apathetic, about my life as Jesus' disciple. There are so many things crowding into my heart for my attention. So today, I pray the prayer Moses offered many centuries ago: Lord, "teach us to number our days so that we may get a heart of wisdom."* I want to live every moment for Jesus with passion and courage. I don't want to waste any moments You have given me and fritter away my life on what doesn't matter eternally. In Jesus' name I pray. Amen. 

* Psalm 90:12 ESV, a psalm described as "A Prayer of Moses, the Man of God."
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This daily devotional is written to help us all reclaim Jesus as the daily Lord of our lives and to help us realize we are not alone as we seek to live for Him. — Learn More
The Thoughts and Prayers for 'A Year with Jesus' are written by Phil Ware. You can email questions or comments to phil@heartlight.org.
Thanks to our invaluable editors:
Dr. Edward Holley - Executive Editor
Ray Butts - General Editor
Heartlight is proud to promote Compassion International. See children who were sponsored today!
HOW DO I SUBSCRIBE? It's FREE! To subscribe send a blank email to: ayearwithjesus-subscribe@maillists.heartlight.org
All scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from The Voice™. © 2008 by Ecclesia Bible Society. Used by permission. All rights reserved. © 1998-2015, Heartlight, Inc. 'A Year with Jesus' is part of the Heartlight Network.
© 1998-2015, Heartlight Inc.

"Getting Past Your Worries" — A Year with Jesus for 02/28/2015

Note from Jesus

Dear Precious One, 

Yesterday, I spoke to you about fear. Today I want to talk to you about worry. Actually, I want to talk with you about the sin that lies behind so many of your worries: greed! Listen carefully as I remind you of three key principles you will see in the verses below. I gave these principles to My disciples to help them defeat the power of worry in their lives. Please know that Luke wrote about these three principles to help you defeat worry, too! 

Principle 1:
You'd better be on your guard against any type of greed, for a person's life is not about having a lot of possessions.
Greed is insidious and destructive — in fact, it is a form of idolatry (Colossians 3:5). Greed means the things you have are never enough. Greed opens the door for you to trample all over people to get things. Greed makes you think you deserve and own the things that you have, rather than seeing them as blessings from Us — Father, Son, and Spirit — to be used to bring the influence of Our kingdom into your fallen world. 

Principle 2:
Don't let your mind be filled with anxiety. People of the world who don't know God pursue these things [food and drink], but you have a Father caring for you, a Father who knows all your needs.
When I spoke to you yesterday about fear, I reminded you that you are precious to Us. Please remember that truth. Why would the Father send Me to be sacrificed for you if you were not precious? Why would I pour the Holy Spirit upon you, to live within you, if you are not precious to us? With so many less important things in your world that receive Our gracious provision, why would We ever abandon you when you are so precious to Us? 

Principle 3:
Pursue God's kingdom first and foremost, and these other things will come to you as well. My little flock, don't be afraid. God is your Father, and your Father's great joy is to give you His kingdom.
Worry is often the byproduct of having your focus on the wrong things. If your consuming passion is to follow Me and to bring the gracious benefits of My kingdom to your broken world, then you are not going to have time to focus on temporary stuff that doesn't ultimately matter. Love people as I have loved you. Honor the Father with all of your heart. When you focus on these two important things, all the other things in your life will fall into their proper place.
Verses to Live

Here are My words about worry. Remember My three principles; they are not simply suggestions to you, but they are given to help you find life.
Person in the Crowd:
Teacher, intervene and tell my brother to share the family inheritance with me.
Jesus:
Since when am I your judge or arbitrator?
Then He used that opportunity to speak to the crowd. 

Jesus:
You'd better be on your guard against any type of greed, for a person's life is not about having a lot of possessions. 

(then, beginning another parable) A wealthy man owned some land that produced a huge harvest. He often thought to himself, "I have a problem here. I don't have anywhere to store all my crops. What should I do? I know! I'll tear down my small barns and build even bigger ones, and then I'll have plenty of storage space for my grain and all my other goods. Then I'll be able to say to myself, 'I have it made! I can relax and take it easy for years! So I'll just sit back, eat, drink, and have a good time!'" 

Then God interrupted the man's conversation with himself. "Excuse Me, Mr. Brilliant, but your time has come. Tonight you will die. Now who will enjoy everything you've earned and saved?" 

This is how it will be for people who accumulate huge assets for themselves but have no assets in relation to God. 

(then, to His disciples) This is why I keep telling you not to worry about anything in life — about what you'll eat, about how you'll clothe your body. Life is more than food, and the body is more than fancy clothes. Think about those crows flying over there: do they plant and harvest crops? Do they own silos or barns? Look at them fly. It looks like God is taking pretty good care of them, doesn't it? Remember that you are more precious to God than birds! Which one of you can add a single hour to your life or 18 inches to your height by worrying really hard? If worry can't change anything, why do you do it so much? 

Think about those beautiful wild lilies growing over there. They don't work up a sweat toiling for needs or wants — they don't worry about clothing. Yet the great King Solomon never had an outfit that was half as glorious as theirs! 

Look at the grass growing over there. One day it's thriving in the fields. The next day it's being used as fuel. If God takes such good care of such transient things, how much more you can depend on God to care for you, weak in faith as you are. Don't reduce your life to the pursuit of food and drink; don't let your mind be filled with anxiety. People of the world who don't know God pursue these things, but you have a Father caring for you, a Father who knows all your needs. 

Since you don't need to worry — about security and safety, about food and clothing— then pursue God's kingdom first and foremost, and these other things will come to you as well. 

My little flock, don't be afraid. God is your Father, and your Father's great joy is to give you His kingdom. 

That means you can sell your possessions and give generously to the poor. You can have a different kind of savings plan: one that never depreciates, one that never defaults, one that can't be plundered by crooks or destroyed by natural calamities. Your treasure will be stored in the heavens, and since your treasure is there, your heart will be lodged there as well
(Luke 12:13-34)
Response in Prayer

Holy Spirit, please empower me as I seek to have an undivided heart that is committed to the Father. Lord Jesus, I commit to live Your words as I seek to rid my life of worry and as I remember Your promise that I am precious to You. I confess, Father, that the things of this world are tantalizing to me; they pull at my heart and I sometimes think that they can bring joy to my life. I know from experience and from Your word, dear Father, that these things are shallow and fleeting joys, so forgive me for my greed as I seek to place You and Your kingdom as my highest priorities. In Jesus' name I pray. Amen.
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This daily devotional is written to help us all reclaim Jesus as the daily Lord of our lives and to help us realize we are not alone as we seek to live for Him. — Learn More
The Thoughts and Prayers for 'A Year with Jesus' are written by Phil Ware. You can email questions or comments to phil@heartlight.org.
Thanks to our invaluable editors:
Dr. Edward Holley - Executive Editor
Ray Butts - General Editor
Heartlight is proud to promote Compassion International. See children who were sponsored today!
HOW DO I SUBSCRIBE? It's FREE! To subscribe send a blank email to: ayearwithjesus-subscribe@maillists.heartlight.org
All scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from The Voice™. © 2008 by Ecclesia Bible Society. Used by permission. All rights reserved. © 1998-2015, Heartlight, Inc. 'A Year with Jesus' is part of the Heartlight Network.
© 1998-2015, Heartlight Inc.

Don't Be Intimidated!" — A Year with Jesus for 02/27/2015

Note from Jesus

Dear Faithful Follower, 

People are afraid of many different kinds of things. That's why one of the most frequent commands in the Scriptures is to not be afraid. It is also a command that I gave several times to My disciples. Fear is a real issue for people in your fallen world. 

The Father sent Me to deal with fear, and to defeat the power behind your fears — to defeat the devil who uses sin and death to keep mortals enslaved to fear. The writer of Hebrews describes My role in defeating the devil and his power to use death to enslave you to fear:
Since we, the children, are all creatures of flesh and blood, Jesus took on flesh and blood, so that by dying He could destroy the one who held power over death — the devil — and destroy the fear of death that has always held people captive. 
(Hebrews 2:14-15)
You are journeying with Me to Jerusalem as you read from the Gospels in these devotionals. When My journey to Jerusalem is complete, I will die for your sins, I will be buried, and I will be raised from death to life to conquer hell, giving you glorious life beyond your death. The apostle Paul says it this way:
I am absolutely miserable! Is there anyone who can free me from this body where sin and death reign so supremely? I am thankful to God for the freedom that comes through our Lord Jesus, the Anointed One. 
(Romans 7:24-25) 

Sin came into this world, and death's sting followed. Then sin took aim at the law and gained power over those who follow the law. Thank God, then, for our Lord Jesus, the Anointed, the Liberating King, who brought us victory over the grave. 
(1 Corinthians 15:56-57)
The Father is the only One Who should truly be feared, but only if you are not His child. If you are My disciple, you are the Father's child. Then you don't need to fear Him. You are more precious to Us — Father, Son and Spirit — than you can imagine. The Father sent Me to save you at great cost. I went to the cross to redeem you and destroy the devil's hold on you through fear. The Holy Spirit lives inside you to lead you, comfort you, empower you, and transform you. 

Don't fear what might happen; remember what I accomplished for you. Remind yourself how much the Father loves you and delights in you. Ask the Holy Spirit to reveal His presence to you to calm your heart and strengthen your faith. Then when people ignore, mistreat, ridicule, threaten, or even hurt you, you don't have to be afraid. Remember the promise I make to you as I discuss all of these issues in the verses below:
If you identify unashamedly with Me before others, I, the Son of Man, will affirm you before God and all the heavenly messengers.
Verses to Live

What do you fear? 

Will you let Me help you with that fear? 

Will you let the Holy Spirit empower you and lead you out of your fear? 

Will you let the Father remind you how precious you are to him? 

Listen to My words of promise that Luke gives you to help you overcome your fear in the face of hardship!
The crowds at this time were packed in so tightly that thousands of people were stepping on each other. Jesus spoke to His disciples, knowing that the crowds could overhear. 

Jesus:
Guard yourselves from the yeast that puffs up the Pharisees — hypocrisy, false appearance, trying to look better than you really are. 

Nothing is covered up that won't be discovered; nothing is hidden that won't be exposed. Whatever a person says in the dark will be published in the light of day, and whatever a person whispers in private rooms will be broadcast from the housetops. 

Listen, My friends, if people are trying to kill you, why be afraid? After you're dead, what more can they do? Here's whose opinion you should be concerned about: the One who can take your life and then throw you into hell! He's the only One you should fear! But don't misunderstand: you don't really need to be afraid of God, because God cares for every little sparrow. How much is a sparrow worth — don't five of them sell for a few cents? Since you are so much more precious to God than a thousand flocks of sparrows, and since God knows you in every detail — down to the number of hairs on your head at this moment — you can be secure and unafraid of any person, and you have nothing to fear from God either. 

That's why I keep telling you not to be intimidated. If you identify unashamedly with Me before others, I, the Son of Man, will affirm you before God and all the heavenly messengers. But if you deny Me before others, you will be denied before God and all the heavenly messengers. People can speak a word against Me, the Son of Man, and the sin is forgivable. But they can go too far, slandering the testimony of the Holy Spirit by rejecting His message about Me, and they won't be forgiven for that. 

So you can anticipate that you will be put on trial before the synagogues and religious officials. Don't worry how you'll respond, and don't worry what you should say. The Holy Spirit will give you the words to say at the moment when you need them.
(Luke 12:1-12)
Response in Prayer

O Father, the Almighty and my Abba, there are times when I find it so easy to be afraid. I am not usually a "Woe is me!" kind of person, but there are people I love who have things I cannot fix or change and I fear for their future. I am uncertain about my own days ahead, Father, and I don't want to be afraid of the future. So I ask, Lord Jesus, that You pour out Your Spirit with power into my heart. Please, Holy Spirit within me, bring me comfort and empower me to act courageously in the face of things I could fear. Most of all, O God, help me find my confidence in Your love for me. In Jesus' name I pray. Amen.
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This daily devotional is written to help us all reclaim Jesus as the daily Lord of our lives and to help us realize we are not alone as we seek to live for Him. — Learn More
The Thoughts and Prayers for 'A Year with Jesus' are written by Phil Ware. You can email questions or comments to phil@heartlight.org.
Thanks to our invaluable editors:
Dr. Edward Holley - Executive Editor
Ray Butts - General Editor
Heartlight is proud to promote Compassion International. See children who were sponsored today!
HOW DO I SUBSCRIBE? It's FREE! To subscribe send a blank email to: ayearwithjesus-subscribe@maillists.heartlight.org
All scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from The Voice™. © 2008 by Ecclesia Bible Society. Used by permission. All rights reserved. © 1998-2015, Heartlight, Inc. 'A Year with Jesus' is part of the Heartlight Network.
© 1998-2015, Heartlight Inc.

"Truth with a Bit of Shock" — A Year with Jesus for 02/26/2015

Note from Jesus

Dear Beloved, 

There are so many good things I could share with you about the verses below from Luke's gospel. Here are just a few things that I hope you will spend some time prayerfully considering today. 

In the first encounter, Luke helps you understand the motives of the scholar who comes to question Me. Luke tells you that the scholar was there not to learn from Me, but "to trap" Me! So while he answered My question correctly, he did not answer "rightly." Correct data does not mean you have a right heart. My emphasis was on living the two great love commandments, not just knowing the right answers to them. Right answers without a right heart and right living lead to a foolish waste of one's life — something I emphasized at the end of My Sermon on the Mount (Matthew 7:21-27)! 

Luke also tells you that the scholar was "hoping to make himself appear smarter" than Me. So notice what I ask at the end of the parable of "The Good Samaritan": "Which of these three proved himself a neighbor to the man who had been mugged by the robbers?" I shifted the issue from right interpretation of Scripture into a question about right living and serving those in need. 

In the second encounter, Martha struggles with societal expectations and what is really most important. Jewish society told Martha that her highest obligation was hospitality to the guests in her home. Martha lived up to that expectation beautifully except for one problem: she wanted to impose that obligation on Mary. Mary was sitting at My feet training to know, live, and teach My truth. Mary knew that there was no higher call than to sit at My feet as a disciple learning from Me. Mary chose the one greater thing and I wouldn't let Martha's sense of obligation steal that away from her. 

Now that's quite a bit to absorb for one note, but there are two other points you must not miss:
Samaritans were never supposed to be heroes in any Jewish story. Yet I made the Samaritan a hero to help the scholar see that right religious answers, a proper religious pedigree, and racial purity carry no weight in My kingdom. Character and compassion are what truly matter.
In Martha and Mary's culture, women were not supposed to sit at the feet of a rabbi as Mary did. To sit at the feet of a great rabbi meant that you were his student in training (Acts 22:3 ESV). However, Mary was the hero of this special time because she had "chosen that one thing" that truly mattered: to live as My disciple while preparing to teach others to do the same.
Both of these points would have come as a shock to those who heard them. But as you are finding out in our journey together each day, My truth often comes with a bit of a shock to help you see what truly matters and what does not!
Verses to Live

My encounter with the scholar and My affirmation of Mary demonstrate what the apostle Paul would later write:
For you are all children of God through faith in Christ Jesus. And all who have been united with Christ in baptism have put on Christ, like putting on new clothes. There is no longer Jew or Gentile, slave or free, male and female. For you are all one in Christ Jesus. And now that you belong to Christ, you are the true children of Abraham. You are his heirs, and God's promise to Abraham belongs to you. 
(Galatians 3:26-29 NLT)
Luke gives the following account of the events immediately after the return of the 70 disciples from their mission and My time of rejoicing with them. Notice who and what bring Me joy in the two encounters you are about to read:
Just then a scholar of the Hebrew Scriptures tried to trap Jesus. 

Scholar:
Teacher, what must I do to experience the eternal life?
Jesus (answering with a question):
What is written in the Hebrew Scriptures? How do you interpret their answer to your question?
Scholar:
You shall love — "love the Eternal One your God with everything you have: all your heart, all your soul, all your strength, and all your mind" — and "love your neighbor as yourself."
Jesus:
Perfect. Your answer is correct. Follow these commands and you will live.
The scholar was frustrated by this response because he was hoping to make himself appear smarter than Jesus. 

Scholar:
Ah, but who is my neighbor?
Jesus:
This fellow was traveling down from Jerusalem to Jericho when some robbers mugged him. They took his clothes, beat him to a pulp, and left him naked and bleeding and in critical condition. By chance, a priest was going down that same road, and when he saw the wounded man, he crossed over to the other side and passed by. Then a Levite who was on his way to assist in the temple also came and saw the victim lying there, and he too kept his distance. Then a despised Samaritan journeyed by. When he saw the fellow, he felt compassion for him. The Samaritan went over to him, stopped the bleeding, applied some first aid, and put the poor fellow on his donkey. He brought the man to an inn and cared for him through the night. 

The next day, the Samaritan took out some money — two days' wages to be exact — and paid the innkeeper, saying, "Please take care of this fellow, and if this isn't enough, I'll repay you next time I pass through." 

Which of these three proved himself a neighbor to the man who had been mugged by the robbers?
Scholar:
The one who showed mercy to him.
Jesus:
Well then, go and behave like that Samaritan.
Jesus continued from there toward Jerusalem and came to another village. Martha, a resident of that village, welcomed Jesus into her home. Her sister, Mary, went and sat at Jesus' feet, listening to Him teach. Meanwhile Martha was anxious about all the hospitality arrangements. 

Martha (interrupting Jesus):
Lord, why don't You care that my sister is leaving me to do all the work by myself? Tell her to get over here and help me.
Jesus:
Oh Martha, Martha, you are so anxious and concerned about a million details, but really, only one thing matters. Mary has chosen that one thing, and I won't take it away from her.
(Luke 10:25-42)
Response in Prayer

O God, I want to have a heart that loves and chooses to demonstrate Your righteous character and gracious compassion to others. Fill me, please O God, with Your Holy Spirit to help me as I seek to honor You by loving and serving others as Jesus taught. In Jesus' name I pray. Amen.
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This daily devotional is written to help us all reclaim Jesus as the daily Lord of our lives and to help us realize we are not alone as we seek to live for Him. — Learn More
The Thoughts and Prayers for 'A Year with Jesus' are written by Phil Ware. You can email questions or comments to phil@heartlight.org.
Thanks to our invaluable editors:
Dr. Edward Holley - Executive Editor
Ray Butts - General Editor
Heartlight is proud to promote Compassion International. See children who were sponsored today!
HOW DO I SUBSCRIBE? It's FREE! To subscribe send a blank email to: ayearwithjesus-subscribe@maillists.heartlight.org
All scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from The Voice™. © 2008 by Ecclesia Bible Society. Used by permission. All rights reserved. © 1998-2015, Heartlight, Inc. 'A Year with Jesus' is part of the Heartlight Network.
© 1998-2015, Heartlight Inc.

"What Brings Deep Joy" — A Year with Jesus for 02/25/2015

Note from Jesus

My Dear Little One, 

The world is a big place. I've asked you to step into this big place and make a big difference. I know there will be times when your work seems hopeless and your impact small. So, from the scripture below, I want you to realize several things from what I said to help My original disciples understand. 

First, pray for more workers. The Father is waiting for you to ask for His help in bringing more good workers into the harvest fields. 

Second, not everyone will welcome your efforts. When you find people who do, focus on them. Build relationships with them. 

Third, when you and your message are rejected, don't take it personally. They are not rejecting you but Me and the Father who sent Me. Don't dwell on the rejection and let it defeat you; move on looking for the next person or family longing to find My grace. 

Along the way, as you do My kingdom-bringing work, you will experience the joy of My presence and power. Satan will be dethroned from human hearts and people's lives. This should bring you joy! This does bring Me joy — deep joy and elation! 

So yes, I'm sending you into a world that is vast and challenging with a message that often is not welcomed. But as you go, as you do My will, and as you expose people to the Father's grace, the kingdom comes and you get to experience what even the greatest of the great among the prophets and kings of old never got to glimpse. 

Yes, this is all cause to rejoice. Yes, this brings Me deep joy. But here is a fantastic reason to rejoice: your name is written in heaven. The Father claims you as His own! 

Verses to Live

While the following events and words were written about a specific mission of sending My disciples, listen and look underneath My words to these disciples and find the principles to sustain you and lead you to rejoice in your own work for the Father and for bringing the kingdom!
The Lord then recruited and deployed 70 more disciples. He sent them ahead, in teams of two, to visit all the towns and settlements between them and Jerusalem. This is what He ordered. 

Jesus:
There's a great harvest waiting in the fields, but there aren't many good workers to harvest it. Pray that the Harvest Master will send out good workers to the fields. 

It's time for you 70 to go. I'm sending you out armed with vulnerability, like lambs walking into a pack of wolves. Don't bring a wallet. Don't carry a backpack. I don't even want you to wear sandals. Walk along barefoot, quietly, without stopping for small talk. When you enter a house seeking lodging, say, "Peace on this house!" If a child of peace — one who welcomes God's message of peace — is there, your peace will rest on him. If not, don't worry; nothing is wasted. Stay where you're welcomed. Become part of the family, eating and drinking whatever they give you. You're My workers, and you deserve to be cared for. Again, don't go from house to house, but settle down in a town and eat whatever they serve you. Heal the sick and say to the townspeople, "The kingdom of God has come near to you." 

Of course, not every town will welcome you. If you're rejected, walk through the streets and say, "We're leaving this town. We'll wipe off the dust that clings to our feet in protest against you. But even so, know this: the kingdom of God has come near." I tell you the truth, on judgment day, Sodom will have an easier time of it than the town that rejects My messengers. 

It's going to be bad for you, Chorazin! It's going to be bad for you, Bethsaida! If the mighty works done in your streets had been done in the cities of Tyre and Sidon, they would have been moved to turn to God and cry out in sackcloth and ashes. On judgment day, Tyre and Sidon will have an easier time of it than you. It's going to be bad for you, too, Capernaum! Will you be celebrated to heaven? No, you will go down to the place of the dead. 

Listen, disciples: if people give you a hearing, they're giving Me a hearing. If they reject you, they're rejecting Me. And if they reject Me, they're rejecting the One who sent Me. So — go now!
When the 70 completed their mission and returned to report on their experiences, they were elated. 

Seventy:
It's amazing, Lord! When we use Your name, the demons do what we say!
Jesus:
I know. I saw Satan falling from above like a lightning bolt. I've given you true authority. You can smash vipers and scorpions under your feet. You can walk all over the power of the enemy. You can't be harmed. But listen — that's not the point. Don't be elated that evil spirits leave when you say to leave. Rejoice that your names are written in heaven.
Then Jesus Himself became elated. The Holy Spirit was on Him, and He began to pray with joy. 

Jesus:
Thank You, Father, Lord of heaven and earth. Thank You for hiding Your mysteries from the wise and intellectual, instead revealing them to little children. Your ways are truly gracious. My Father has given Me everything. No one knows the full identity of the Son except the Father, and nobody knows the full identity of the Father except the Son, and the Son fully reveals the Father to whomever He wishes. (then almost in a whisper to the disciples) How blessed are your eyes to see what you see! Many prophets and kings dreamed of seeing what you see, but they never got a glimpse. They dreamed of hearing what you hear, but they never heard it
(Luke 10:1-24)
Response in Prayer

O Father, the challenges are great and my efforts often feel fruitless and ineffective. I pray, dear Father, that You send more workers into the harvest fields to help with Your kingdom-building work. I ask that You help me find joy in the welcome I receive from seeking and welcoming hearts. I ask that You give me courage to trust in Your presence when I feel alone and ineffective. Dear Father, also please send the Holy Spirit to my heart to help me rejoice because I know my efforts defeat Satan in the hearts of good and sweet people and that these same efforts bring the Lord Jesus deep and satisfying joy. It is in His name, the Lord Jesus, that I pray. Amen.
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This daily devotional is written to help us all reclaim Jesus as the daily Lord of our lives and to help us realize we are not alone as we seek to live for Him. — Learn More
The Thoughts and Prayers for 'A Year with Jesus' are written by Phil Ware. You can email questions or comments to phil@heartlight.org.
Thanks to our invaluable editors:
Dr. Edward Holley - Executive Editor
Ray Butts - General Editor
Heartlight is proud to promote Compassion International. See children who were sponsored today!
HOW DO I SUBSCRIBE? It's FREE! To subscribe send a blank email to: ayearwithjesus-subscribe@maillists.heartlight.org
All scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from The Voice™. © 2008 by Ecclesia Bible Society. Used by permission. All rights reserved. © 1998-2015, Heartlight, Inc. 'A Year with Jesus' is part of the Heartlight Network.
© 1998-2015, Heartlight Inc.

"Nuggets of Truth" — A Year with Jesus for 02/23/2015

Note from Jesus

Dear Friend, 

The verses below come from a very contentious time when the religious leaders were trying to trick Me into a religious trap so they could kill Me (John 7:1). There are nuggets of truth that are placed all through this discussion to bless you and give you life. 

Nugget One: If you really want to know the truth about Me, spend time with what I teach and put it into practice. As you do, you will realize the truth of what I say and you will find freedom to live life as the Father intended for you to live it! 

Nugget Two: Sin enslaves you. When you sin, you surrender the power of your life to the evil one who wants to enslave you to the power of sin and death. 

Nugget Three: I came to set you free from the power of sin and death. As you journey with Me in the coming days and join Me on My way to Jerusalem — to My sacrificial death on the cross and My triumphant resurrection from the dead — you will discover that I came to earth because the Father loves you and wants to give you life. 

Nugget Four: The devil is a deceiver. In fact, he is a liar and a killer. He has been up to his deceptive and vile attacks since the beginning of his influence on humanity. So don't trust him. Resist his temptations. Refuse his lies because they lead to death! 

Nugget Five: If you seek the Father's will, if you watch what I do to redeem you, you can know that I speak the truth and that the devil speaks lies. You can recognize that the devil wants to do you harm and that I came to give you freedom and life.
Verses to Live

The following is a tough discussion with tough words. I want you to notice that I do not back down from the truth. I love everyone, even those who hate Me. However, I will not surrender the truth to those who hate Me or to their lies about Me. I know it is not politically correct in your day, just as it was not in My day. But here is the truth: Only I can truly and fully liberate you from the power of sin to enslave you. That is the mission the Father sent Me to fulfill, and I finished My earthly mission for you at great cost to Myself!
Jesus (to the new Jewish believers):
If you hear My voice and abide in My word, you are truly My disciples; you will know the truth, and that truth will give you freedom.
Jewish Believers:
We are Abraham's children, and we have never been enslaved to anyone. How can You say to us, "You will be set free"?
Jesus:
I tell you the truth: everyone who commits sin surrenders his freedom to sin. He is a slave to sin's power. Even a household slave does not live in the home like a member of the family, but a son belongs there forever. So think of it this way: if the Son comes to make you free, you will really be free. 

I know you are descendants of Abraham, but here you are plotting to murder Me because you do not welcome My voice into your lives. As I speak, I am painting you a picture of what I have seen with My Father; here you are repeating the things you have seen from your father.
Jews:
Abraham is our father.
Jesus:
If you are truly Abraham's children, then act like Abraham! From what I see you are trying to kill Me, a man who has told you the truth that comes from the Father. This is not something Abraham would do, but you are doing what you have learned from your father.
Jews:
We were not born from adulterous parents; we have one Father: God.
Jesus:
I come from the one True God, and I'm not here on My own. He sent Me on a mission. If God were your Father, you would know that and would love Me. You don't even understand what I'm saying. Do you? Why not? It is because You cannot stand to hear My voice. You are just like your true father, the devil; and you spend your time pursuing the things your father loves. He started out as a killer, and he cannot tolerate truth because he is void of anything true. At the core of his character, he is a liar; everything he speaks originates in these lies because he is the father of lies. So when I speak truth, you don't believe Me. If I speak the truth, why don't you believe Me? If you belong to God's family, then why can't you hear God speak? The answer is clear; you are not in God's family. I speak truth, and you don't believe Me. Can any of you convict Me of sin?
(John 8:31-47)
Response in Prayer

Lord Jesus, I believe that You came from the Father and accomplished His will, going to the cross for me. I believe, Lord Jesus, that You rose from the dead to liberate me from the power of sin and death. So I choose to follow You, to trust You, and to resist the lies of the devil. Only You, Lord Jesus, have the words of eternal life! To You I offer my deepest thanks and praise. Amen.
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This daily devotional is written to help us all reclaim Jesus as the daily Lord of our lives and to help us realize we are not alone as we seek to live for Him. — Learn More
The Thoughts and Prayers for 'A Year with Jesus' are written by Phil Ware. You can email questions or comments to phil@heartlight.org.
Thanks to our invaluable editors:
Dr. Edward Holley - Executive Editor
Ray Butts - General Editor
Heartlight is proud to promote Compassion International. See children who were sponsored today!
All scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from The Voice™. © 2008 by Ecclesia Bible Society. Used by permission. All rights reserved. © 1998-2015, Heartlight, Inc. 'A Year with Jesus' is part of the Heartlight Network.
© 1998-2015, Heartlight Inc.

"I AM!" — A Year with Jesus for 02/24/2015

Note from Jesus

Dear Disciple, 

In the verses below, I want you to notice a few things about the ongoing contentious dealings I had with the religious leaders. They couldn't make Me back down or compromise the truth that I was speaking to them. They finally did what many folks who are losing an argument sometimes do: they started calling Me names — using ugly, racial and religious slurs. If they couldn't defeat My truth, then they were going to try to discredit Me and beat Me up with vile words intended to brand and shame Me. 

I want you to especially notice two statements that I make. Both of these are astounding claims that I will back up with the cross and the resurrection! 

First, I make you an incredible promise in the middle of all the contentious words:
I tell you the truth, anyone who hears My voice and keeps My word will never experience death.
Yes, I know that your body is going to die, but the real you will not die. The real you will be joined to Me (Colossians 3:1-4) and I will give you a new and glorious body when I return for you in My glory (1 Thessalonians 4:13-18; 1 Corinthians 15:42-44). Because you belong to Me, death cannot have you, claim you, or hold you! 

Second, I claim to be God — the one true and living God, Yahweh, the great I AM who revealed Himself to Moses (Exodus 3:13-15):
I tell you the truth; I AM before Abraham was born.
They did not misunderstand Me. They either had to believe in Me or count Me as a blasphemer. The devil had so blinded them to all the good things that I had done that they could not see that the Father had sent Me. 

So, dear disciple, don't miss either truth. Because I AM God and lived among you as one of you, you can come and live with Me in the presence of the Father and all those who have honored Him with their lives. What John said about Me in the beginning of his gospel is true. If you can't remember it, then go back and read it once again before you read the discussion below. I think you will find it makes the same two points I just shared with you!
Verses to Live

In these verses, you are dropping in on a contentious discussion between the religious leaders and Me. They are determined to label Me as someone evil. I will not let them, but instead make the two incredible claims: those who believe in Me will never die and I not only do the Father's will, but I AM God who walks among them.
Jews:
We were right when we called You a demon-possessed Samaritan.
Jesus:
I'm not taken by demons. You dishonor Me, but I give all glory and honor to the Father. But I am not pursuing My own fame. There is only One who pursues and renders justice. I tell you the truth, anyone who hears My voice and keeps My word will never experience death.
Jews:
We are even more confident now that You are demon-possessed. Just go down the list: Abraham died, the prophets all died. Yet You say, "If you keep My word, you will never taste death." Are you greater than our father Abraham? He died; remember? Prophets — are any of them still alive? No. Who do You think You are?
Jesus:
If I were trying to make Myself somebody important, it would be a waste of time. That kind of fame is worth nothing. It is the Father who is behind Me, urging Me on, giving Me praise. You say, "He is our God," but you are not in relationship with Him. I know Him intimately; even if I said anything other than the truth, I would be a liar, like you. I know Him, and I do as He says. Your father Abraham anticipated the time when I would come, and he celebrated My coming.
Jews:
You aren't even 50 years old, yet You have seen and talked with Abraham?
Jesus:
I tell you the truth; I AM before Abraham was born.
The people picked up stones to hurl at Him, but Jesus slipped out of the temple. Their murderous rage would have to wait. 
(John 8:48-59)
Response in Prayer

God Almighty, the great I AM, Who is and Who was and Who is to come, I thank You for becoming human flesh, defeating sin and death, and giving me new life through my faith in Jesus and His triumph over Satan, sin, and death through the cross and the resurrection. I praise You and thank You in Jesus' name. Amen.
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This daily devotional is written to help us all reclaim Jesus as the daily Lord of our lives and to help us realize we are not alone as we seek to live for Him. — Learn More
The Thoughts and Prayers for 'A Year with Jesus' are written by Phil Ware. You can email questions or comments to phil@heartlight.org.
Thanks to our invaluable editors:
Dr. Edward Holley - Executive Editor
Ray Butts - General Editor
Heartlight is proud to promote Compassion International. See children who were sponsored today!
All scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from The Voice™. © 2008 by Ecclesia Bible Society. Used by permission. All rights reserved. © 1998-2015, Heartlight, Inc. 'A Year with Jesus' is part of the Heartlight Network.
© 1998-2015, Heartlight Inc.

"Down from the Mountain" — A Year with Jesus for 02/19/2015

Note from Jesus

Dear Child of God, 

I know that you love mountain-top experiences. Unfortunately, sooner or later you have to come down from the mountain and face the realities of life on earth. As you read the verses below from Luke the physician, remember that I had to face very similar realities when I came down from My mountain-top experience with the Father and with My disciples (Luke 9:28-36). 

When I came down from the Mount of Transfiguration, I faced several very frustrating realities:
The crowds that swarmed around Me everywhere I went were waiting for Me at the bottom of the mountain. I loved the people, but the crowds were not really interested in Who I AM or in coming to faith. They were mostly interested in what they could get from Me. Dealing with the crowds in My ministry was hard on Me.
There was a man who had a very difficult situation with his son. I hate for Satan to hold anyone in his evil grip or torment any family. This situation needed a remedy, but the man and his son had not received one.
My disciples, who had been given authoritative power and had recently been personally involved in several miraculous experiences, found themselves "incapable" of helping the man and his son. Their lack of faith was frustrating and disappointing to Me.
However, I want you to notice what I did in this situation: 

Rather than getting knocked off track by the crowds and the lack of faithful and decisive action by My disciples, I did what needed to be done for this loving father and his demon-afflicted son. I made the boy whole and freed him from the demonic spirit that troubled him. God was praised by the crowd and a family was restored — full shalom was given in the face of demonic attack!
Verses to Live

So here are several things I hope that you will take away from Luke's telling of this event in My life. 

First, because of deep disappointment with people I knew well and loved, I experienced great frustration in being brought back down to earth after having mountain-top experiences. Please remember you are not alone when you face these kinds of frustrations. I know your hurt and I will never leave you or forsake you. 

Second, good and godly people don't always do the right thing or even realize the power available to them. It is frustrating and they sometimes need to be sternly reminded to expect more, but don't give up on them. 

Third, remember the point in ministering to people: Don't minister to get glory for yourself, but minister to bless those who hurt, to bring praise to the Father, and to bless the Father's children with joy. 

Before the events in the accompanying scripture, Peter, James, and John had just witnessed My transfiguration — they experienced Me in My glory with Moses and Elijah. The Father told them to listen to Me! After this glorious experience, this glimpse of kingdom power, they were soon brought back to earth by what awaited them.
They came down the mountain, and the next day yet another huge crowd gathered around Jesus. There was a man in the crowd who shouted out. 

Man in Crowd:
Teacher! Please come and look at my son here, my only child. From time to time, a demonic spirit seizes him. It makes him scream and go into convulsions. He foams at the mouth. It nearly destroys him and only leaves after causing him great distress. While You were up on the mountain, I begged Your disciples to liberate him from this spirit, but they were incapable of helping us.
Jesus:
O generation faithless, twisted, and crooked, how long can I be with you? How much can I bear? Bring your boy here.
The boy had taken a few steps toward Jesus when suddenly the demon seemed to rip into the boy, throwing him into convulsions. Jesus spoke sternly to the demonic spirit, and the boy was healed. Jesus presented the boy to his father. 

The crowd began cheering and discussing this amazing healing and the power of God... 
(Luke 9:37-43)
Response in Prayer

O Father in heaven, I confess that I get frustrated with Your people who can't seem to get it. I am even more frustrated with myself because I often don't trust that You can use me to do Your great work of blessing others. So today, dear Father, I ask for a holy balance of patience and passion. I pray for personal faith to trust that You, O Father, are the great "Enabler" — that You can make my insufficiencies into effective capabilities! I pray for patience with the spiritual development of others and myself, yet ask for an urgent passion to believe that Jesus can do great things through our efforts to bless others and bring You glory. In Jesus' name I pray. Amen.
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This daily devotional is written to help us all reclaim Jesus as the daily Lord of our lives and to help us realize we are not alone as we seek to live for Him. — Learn More
The Thoughts and Prayers for 'A Year with Jesus' are written by Phil Ware. You can email questions or comments to phil@heartlight.org.
Thanks to our invaluable editors:
Dr. Edward Holley - Executive Editor
Ray Butts - General Editor
Heartlight is proud to promote Compassion International. See children who were sponsored today!
© 1998-2015, Heartlight Inc.

"Caught in the Act" — A Year with Jesus for 02/20/2015

Note from Jesus

Dear Precious Disciple, 

"So what did Jesus write in the dirt with his finger?" 

I know many of you have wondered this about the episode given in the verses below. Don't let your question lead you to miss the message of this intersection of a woman's sin, the religious leaders' misguided zeal to trap Me, and My explicit grace that reaches out to an exploited and embarrassed woman with no place to hide her sin and shame. 

Life is hard. People grow desperate. In order to survive, some resort to things they once thought reprehensible and impossible. I do not condone the sin, but I understand the terrible power that life, culture, religion, and poverty can exert on people to trap them in the cruel grip of evil's hand. If you look at my own list of ancestors, you will find "the prostitute Rahab", who was in the lineage of King David (Matthews 1:5-6). Her faith in the Father's ability to protect her and her family is legendary and earned her a place in My "Faith Hall of Fame" (Hebrews 11:4-38). Rahab trusted that as the Father empowered the people of Israel to be victorious over the mighty walled city of Jericho, he would also care for a desperate woman trying to protect and to provide for her family (Hebrews 11:31). 

The unnamed woman in the story below was "caught in the act" of her sin and shame. She was caught, however, not to prevent evil or to promote righteousness, but to bait me into a religious trap. The Spirit emphasized this point — "caught in the act" — twice to show the scandal, not only the scandal of the woman, but also the scandal of the self-righteous "scribes and Pharisees". 

Where is the man involved in this woman's sin? Where is the righteous indignation of the "scribes and Pharisees" for his sin? How did they know where and how and when to catch this woman in their trap and yet not include him? Why would they choose to humiliate her instead of redeeming her or preventing the sin in the first place? Why place her on the raging fire of their hatred intended for Me, subjecting her to indignity at the cost of her humanity? 

Deep in their souls, they knew that their vile hearts had gotten the better of their desire to be holy and righteous — that their acts were more obscene than hers. My writing in the sand and My words of warning reached the hearts of the most mature, most decent and good, among the mob. 

Thud. Thud. Thud. Thud... The bone-crushing weight of large stones carried by the accusers fell to the dirt. The shuffling of sandaled feet slowly drifted from notice as the woman's accusers turned away, leaving Me alone with this scared and humiliated woman. There, in that sacred moment, I was caught by John's words... "caught in the act" of explicit grace — grace to save this child of God from a mob propelled by hate and grace to save her to live the fresh daily grace of life not in bondage to sin. She would no longer be known as the woman "caught in the act" of sin, but the woman "caught in the act" of My redeeming and explicit grace. So now, as we journey the next several weeks toward My cross and resurrection, as one saved by My grace, what "I ask is that you go and from now on avoid the sins that plague you"!
Verses to Live

As you read John's account of this emotionally-charged moment, think of the shame you carry for the sin that you've hidden and that you hope daily will stay concealed. Now read this story and realize that this woman is you — that you are "caught in the act" of My explicit grace.
The time came for everyone to go home. Jesus went to the Mount of Olives. He awoke early in the morning to return to the temple. When He arrived, the people surrounded Him, so He sat down and began to teach them. While He was teaching, the scribes and Pharisees brought in a woman who was caught in the act of adultery; and they stood her before Jesus. 

Pharisees:
Teacher, this woman was caught in the act of adultery. Moses says in the law that we are to kill such women by stoning. What do You say about it?
This was all set up as a test for Jesus; His answers would give them grounds to accuse Him of crimes against Moses' law. Jesus bent over and wrote something in the dirt with His finger. They persisted in badgering Jesus, so He stood up straight. 

Jesus:
Let the first stone be thrown by the one among you who has not sinned.
Once again Jesus bent down to the ground and resumed writing with His finger. The Pharisees who heard Him stood still for a few moments and then began to leave slowly, one by one, beginning with the older men. Eventually only Jesus and the woman remained, and Jesus looked up. 

Jesus:
Dear woman, where is everyone? Are we alone? Did no one step forward to condemn you?
Woman Caught in Adultery:
Lord, no one has condemned me.
Jesus:
Well, I do not condemn you either; all I ask is that you go and from now on avoid the sins that plague you.
(John 8:1-11)
Response in Prayer

Father, there are no adequate words to say, other than "Thank You!" Thank You for becoming flesh in Jesus. Thank You for Your grace to save me from my sin and for the grace to call me to a greater purpose and life lived for Jesus, in whose name I pray. Amen.
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This daily devotional is written to help us all reclaim Jesus as the daily Lord of our lives and to help us realize we are not alone as we seek to live for Him. — Learn More
The Thoughts and Prayers for 'A Year with Jesus' are written by Phil Ware. You can email questions or comments to phil@heartlight.org.
Thanks to our invaluable editors:
Dr. Edward Holley - Executive Editor
Ray Butts - General Editor
Heartlight is proud to promote Compassion International. See children who were sponsored today!
HOW DO I SUBSCRIBE? It's FREE! To subscribe send a blank email to: ayearwithjesus-subscribe@maillists.heartlight.org
All scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from The Voice™. © 2008 by Ecclesia Bible Society. Used by permission. All rights reserved. © 1998-2015, Heartlight, Inc. 'A Year with Jesus' is part of the Heartlight Network.
© 1998-2015, Heartlight Inc.

"More Than!" — A Year with Jesus for 02/17/2015

Note from Jesus

Dear Believer, 

I know that the religious world has its share of overstatement, hyperbole, and exaggeration. So beware of the person who is trying to get you to buy something to get some favor from Me. Don't trust anyone who teaches you to bargain with God. The mindset of "If I do this then God will do that for me!" is really a form of idolatry. It's based on having a god you can manipulate and control for your own desires. We — Father, Son, and Spirit — can't be fit into a box or forced to jump through a hoop you've made so that you can (try to) control Us and get Us to do what you want! 

On the other hand, as the one true and living God — Father, Son, and Spirit — I AM the God of grace. We can and we will do more than you can ask or imagine through the power of the Holy Spirit at work in you (Ephesians 3:14-21). I am talking about the power of the kingdom — Our power within the hearts and in the people with whom We reign as King. The two little short stories below about a mustard seed and a little bit of yeast are great examples to remind you that I AM at work bringing the kingdom of God to you in mysterious and wonderful ways. 

Here's your part. Submit to My lordship. Ask Me to reign over your heart as King. Now take that kingdom focus — My holy reign over your heart — into every aspect of your life. I taught you to pray, "Your kingdom come, Your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven" (Matthew 6:10 NIV). When you pray this prayer, you are asking for My holy reign over your heart! 

Your commitment to be a person who lives for Me, a person who seeks to bring My kingdom "on earth as it is in heaven," is like planting a tiny seed in the ground or putting a little yeast in a batch of dough. You don't make the seed grow. You don't make the yeast spread. Yet there is a mysterious and wonderful power unleashed when that seed is planted and that yeast is mixed into the dough. 

My kingdom power and grace at work within you and through you are like that seed and that yeast. The seed sprouts and grows. The yeast spreads, penetrates, and permeates. Before long, the impact of your heart-felt commitment to let My "will be done" and to let My "kingdom come" in your life and through your influence begins to change you and the world around you in ways you could never even ask or imagine! 
Verses to Live

I love powerful imagery from everyday life. If I held a mustard seed between My thumb and My finger, no one in the crowd could see it because it is so small. The same is true about a little yeast. But wow! Look at how much they grow, expand, and bless. Such power and grace can flow through you to those around you because of My kingdom power at work in you!
Jesus (explaining):
Do you want to understand the kingdom of God? Do you want Me to tell you what it's like? It's like a single mustard seed that someone took and planted in his garden. That tiny seed grew and became a tree so large that the birds could fly in and make their nests in its branches. 

Do you want Me to tell you what the kingdom of God is like? It's like some yeast which a woman hid within a huge quantity of flour; soon the whole batch of dough was rising.
(Luke 13:18-21)
Response in Prayer

Father in heaven, I want Your name to be reverenced and held as holy and precious. I long for Your kingdom to come fully in my life and through my influence on others. I want the things dear to Your heart to be honored in my life. I want to be fully conformed to the character and compassion of Jesus as I trust in You for everything important, and not so important, in my life. In Jesus' name I pray. Amen.
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This daily devotional is written to help us all reclaim Jesus as the daily Lord of our lives and to help us realize we are not alone as we seek to live for Him. — Learn More
The Thoughts and Prayers for 'A Year with Jesus' are written by Phil Ware. You can email questions or comments to phil@heartlight.org.
Thanks to our invaluable editors:
Dr. Edward Holley - Executive Editor
Ray Butts - General Editor
Heartlight is proud to promote Compassion International. See children who were sponsored today!
© 1998-2015, Heartlight Inc.

"When Life is Hard" — A Year with Jesus for 02/18/2015

Note from Jesus

Dear Beloved, 

There are times when life is very hard. Remember when I fed 5,000 people out of five loaves and two fish (Matthew 14:13-21)? The people were tired, the hour was late, and My disciples were not ready to handle the problem. So I want to remind you where I was emotionally before all of this started. 

Herod had just killed My cousin and great forerunner, John the Baptist (Matthew 14:1-12). I felt both the personal loss of this great servant of God and also the burden of knowing that John's fate would soon be My own (Matthew 17:10-13). I was trying to get away to a quiet place and pray when the crowd found Me. Matthew sensitively describes My situation:
And so he [Herod] sent orders to the prison to have John beheaded, and there was his head, displayed on a platter, given first to Salome and then passed on to her mother. 

John's disciples went to the prison, got John's body, and buried him. Then they went to tell Jesus. 

When Jesus learned what had happened, He got on a boat and went away to spend some time in a private place. The crowds, of course, followed Jesus on foot from their cities. Though Jesus wanted solitude, when He saw the crowds, He had compassion on them, and He healed the sick and the lame. 
(Matthew 14:10-14)
I share this because I want you to realize that I know about life being hard — about needing to grieve and regroup by being alone, yet not being allowed to have that time. So when your life caves in around you, please don't believe the lies of the enemy — that I don't care about your pain and that your pain doesn't matter to the Father. There will be times when you are tempted to feel that the devil's lie is true, but please remember the real truth. I know human anguish. I know it not just because I am God, but because I have been mortal, God who is one of you. I know what it's like to face the storms of life and feel like they are going to swallow you whole. That is why what happens next is so important for you to believe. 

As I tried to be alone with the Father, I sent the disciples away. Soon, they were overwhelmed by a storm. What I was facing emotionally, they were facing physically. So I went to be with them. In the middle of My raging emotional storm, I entered into their own battle with their storm. 

While I was approaching them in the storm, Peter did what early Peter often did: he made a bit of a mess of things by presuming to do something the others would never dream to do. But don't miss this truth: he did it! He walked on the water to Me until he became distracted by the storm. Yet in the roiling power of the storm, this seasoned fisherman — this man so familiar with survival in the sea and her storms — didn't try to save himself. Instead, Peter cried out to Me to save him and I rescued him. 

So here's the deal. When you are going through your own storms, call out to Me. Welcome Me into the middle of your messes, trials, struggles, and storms. When you do, I will join you in them. You will never be alone (Hebrews 13:5-6). When My arrival seems to take forever, don't despair. I will come to you in the storm. You may not recognize My presence at first, but keep looking for me. I will be there. One way or another, I will get you to your true destination. You will find rest, hope, and peace for your soul. 

Don't forget, I know what it's like to face the worst storms of life, and I will not abandon you to fight them alone.
Verses to Live

Please read this account of this important event in My life — taken from both Matthew's account and John's account of these events. It is more than a story; it may just be your story or the story of a friend. Remember, I won't abandon you in the storm. Look for Me when the storm seems most fierce and you can't figure out how to go on — or even better, look for Me when you see the storm approaching and stay with Me.
Immediately [after feeding the 5,000] Jesus made the disciples get into the boat and go on to the other side of the sea while He dismissed the crowd. Then, after the crowd had gone, Jesus went up to a mountaintop alone (as He had intended from the start). As evening descended, He stood alone on the mountain, praying. 

The boat was in the water, some distance from land, buffeted and pushed around by waves and wind. Deep in the night, when He had concluded His prayers, Jesus walked out on the water to His disciples in their boat. 
(Matthew 14:22-25) 

After rowing three or four miles through the stormy seas, they spotted Jesus approaching the boat walking mysteriously upon the deep waters that surrounded them. They panicked. 

Jesus (to the disciples):
I AM the One. Don't be afraid.
(John 6:19-20) 

Peter:
Lord, if it is really You, then command me to meet You on the water.
Jesus:
Indeed, come.
Peter stepped out of the boat onto the water and began walking toward Jesus. But when he remembered how strong the wind was, his courage caught in his throat and he began to sink. 

Peter:
Master, save me!
Immediately Jesus reached for Peter and caught him. 

Jesus:
O you of little faith. Why did you doubt and dance back and forth between following Me and heeding fear?
Then Jesus and Peter climbed in the boat together, and the wind became still. 
(Matthew 14:28-32) 

They welcomed Jesus aboard their small vessel; and when He stepped into the boat, the next thing they knew, they were ashore at their destination. 
(John 6:21) 

And the disciples worshiped Him. 

Disciples:
Truly You are the Son of God.
(Matthew 14:33)
Response in Prayer

O Father, give me courage in my storm to call out to Jesus. Give me courage in my weakness to find Jesus' strength in my storms so that I can welcome Him to me and can find peace, hope, and strength for my soul. In Jesus' name I pray.
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This daily devotional is written to help us all reclaim Jesus as the daily Lord of our lives and to help us realize we are not alone as we seek to live for Him. — Learn More
The Thoughts and Prayers for 'A Year with Jesus' are written by Phil Ware. You can email questions or comments to phil@heartlight.org.
Thanks to our invaluable editors:
Dr. Edward Holley - Executive Editor
Ray Butts - General Editor
Heartlight is proud to promote Compassion International. See children who were sponsored today!
© 1998-2015, Heartlight Inc.

"*The ARC of My Grace" — A Year with Jesus for 02/15/2015

Note from Jesus

Dear Child of God, 

Many people in your world view My ministry as little more than a traveling miracle show. Many people during My time on earth viewed it in the same way. Yet I refused to be a traveling miracle show. I refused to do things simply to impress people or just to prove to them how powerful I could be. If you remember My temptations by Satan in the wilderness, I refused to do miracles for My own good, for My own reputation, and for proof of God's approval and presence in My ministry. I refused these shortcuts to winning people's hearts. Instead, I chose to win the hearts of people through My earthly ministry to them and My going to the cross for them — and that includes you! 

If you look at most of My miracles for people, they follow a similar pattern. You can call it the ARC of grace:
Acceptance of the person with his or her needs.
Relationship established with that person through kind words or physical touch.
Community restored to that person so she or he could re-enter life that is full and good.

Remember yesterday? We looked at the time when I cast many demons out of Battalion. Now compare how I did that miracle with the miracles I do in the verses below. Sure, you can talk about My great power if that is your focus. I have power over demons. I have power over disease. I have power over death. And yes, you can focus on My power — but that is only part of the point I want you to grasp today. 

Today's point is as simple as it is personal; My love and My power are personal. I have the power to restore you! Yes, people — the crowd, the many, the lost — all matter to Me. Each person matters to Me — the hopeless and uncontrollable man called Battalion, the good and influential man named Jairus, and the outcast woman who was considered unclean. Each — let your heart settle on that word — each matters to Me! Each! So My miracle for each of these people follows this ARC of My grace. 

Notice how the woman is healed in the verses below. She was physically healed as soon as she touched me. She could have left with her miracle for her physical condition, but how would she have known she was loved and accepted — that she mattered to God even when she was still sick? How would she have known that what she did was no cause for her to be ashamed and no offense to God? How would the community around her have known she was healed and should be welcomed back into daily fellowship in the neighborhood, the market, and the synagogue? She needed the full ARC of my grace to fully restore her in every way: acceptance, relationship, and community. 

Now notice Jairus and his dying daughter. Here was the moment for Me to capture the goodwill of many people, especially people of position and influence. Jairus, unlike the woman, had many people surrounding him and supporting him. A miracle for his daughter could have raised My standing in the community. But remember, I didn't do miracles for Me! I did them because people needed to experience the ARC of My grace! So notice carefully what I did. 

When Jairus was told that his daughter was dead, I encouraged him to believe. Then I did something that seems crazy to folks who want to make My ministry into a traveling miracle show. I put everyone out of the house so I could go inside and personally minister to Jairus, his wife, and his dead daughter. Notice how personal I was with what I did. I took the little girl's hand — I was willing to become ceremonially unclean when I touched her. I wanted there to be more than just acceptance of Jairus and his family even though he represented a group largely opposed to Me. I wanted to establish physical contact, build true relationship, with this little girl and her family. Finally, after instructing her to get up, I gave the simple command that seems so strangely ordinary: give her something to eat. Let's have table fellowship and re-establish community and restore the life of this family which is now whole. 

Dear child of God, please understand something very important. Miracles are only for a moment. Sooner or later each person on earth will run out of miracles to keep their bodies whole and alive! Yes, miracles are very important to you. I get that. But please understand something even more significant: you are more important to Me than miracles. I want you to experience the ARC of My grace and to pass it along to others: Accept others where they are in their messes, agonies, and problems, but don't leave them there. Establish relationship by being personally involved with them — don't just throw money at their problems and abandon them. Connect with them through talk and touch to help them know they are loved. Help restore them to community — help them reconnect to life with other people who will walk beside them and include them in the life of My family. 

As much as you may want a miracle, I can assure you that a miracle is for just a moment in the grand scheme of time. The ARC of grace gives people true life — life that matters now and life that lasts long after miracles no longer matter.
Verses to Live

Read through this story several times while seeing yourself as different people in the story. Notice how My grace impacts each person in a different way. Now try to share that ARC of grace with others!
When Jesus and His disciples crossed the lake, another crowd was waiting to welcome Him. A man made his way through the crowd. His name was Jairus, and he was a synagogue official. Like the man on the other side of the lake, this dignified man also fell at Jesus' feet, begging Jesus to visit his home where his only daughter, a girl of 12, lay dying. Jesus set out with Jairus. The crowd came along, too, pressing hard against Him. 

In the crowd was a woman. She had suffered from an incurable menstrual disorder for 12 years and had spent her livelihood on doctors with no effect. It had kept her miserable and ritually unclean, unable to participate fully in Jewish life. She followed Jesus, until she could reach Him. She touched the fringe of the robe Jesus wore, and at that moment the bleeding stopped. 

Jesus (stopping and looking about):
Who touched Me?
Some in the Crowd (everyone speaking at once):
Not me.
Another in the Crowd:
It wasn't me either.
Peter [and those with him] (intervening):
Master, what kind of question is that, with this huge crowd all around You and many people touching You on all sides?
Jesus:
I felt something. I felt power going out from Me. I know that somebody touched Me.
The woman now realized her secret was going to come out sooner or later, so she stepped out of the crowd, shaking with fear, and she fell down in front of Jesus. Then she told her story in front of everyone — why she touched Him, what happened as a result. 

Jesus:
Your faith has made you well again, daughter. Go in peace.
Right at that instant, one of Jairus' household servants arrived. 

Servant:
Sir, your daughter is dead. It's no use bothering the Teacher with this anymore.
Jesus (interrupting Jairus before he could speak):
Don't be afraid. Just believe. She'll be well again.
As they approached the house, the whole neighborhood was full of the sound of mourning — weeping, wailing, loud crying. Jesus told everyone to stay outside — everyone except Peter, John, James, and, of course, the girl's father and mother. 

Jesus (to the mourners):
Please stop weeping. The girl isn't dead. She's only asleep.
They knew for certain that she was dead, so their bitter tears now mixed with mocking laughter. 

Meanwhile, inside, Jesus took the girl's hand. 

Jesus:
Child, get up!
She started breathing again, and she sat right up. 

Jesus:
Get her something to eat.
Her parents were amazed, but Jesus sternly told them to keep what had happened a secret. 
(Luke 8:40-56)
Response in Prayer

Almighty God, my Abba Father, thank You for knowing me and loving me and restoring me personally. In a world that makes me little more than a number, thank You for valuing me and leaving the numbering for the hairs on my head. In a world that sees headlines one minute, then forgets them the next, thank You for knowing and calling me by name. Yes, dear Father, I needed Your ARC of grace to reach me. Now, I ask that You will use me to extend that ARC of grace to someone who needs grace, too. In Jesus' name I pray. Amen.
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This daily devotional is written to help us all reclaim Jesus as the daily Lord of our lives and to help us realize we are not alone as we seek to live for Him. — Learn More
The Thoughts and Prayers for 'A Year with Jesus' are written by Phil Ware. You can email questions or comments to phil@heartlight.org.
Thanks to our invaluable editors:
Dr. Edward Holley - Executive Editor
Ray Butts - General Editor
Heartlight is proud to promote Compassion International. See children who were sponsored today!
All scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from The Voice™. © 2008 by Ecclesia Bible Society. Used by permission. All rights reserved. © 1998-2015, Heartlight, Inc. 'A Year with Jesus' is part of the Heartlight Network.
© 1998-2015, Heartlight Inc.

The Greatest Treasure" — A Year with Jesus for 02/16/2015

Note from Jesus

Dear Beloved of the Father, 

As a child of God, I want to open your heart to hear two incredible truths found below in two simple stories that I told long ago. 

Truth One: 

You are the Father's treasure! Yes, I know that is not normally how the two stories below are read, but I want you to think about it for a minute. There is truth that you must not miss behind this understanding of these stories. The Father sent Me, His greatest gift, to pay the price to ransom you back to Us. You are Our treasure — Our discovered treasure and Our searched-for treasure. I was the willing purchase price paid to buy you back from sin and death. 

Truth Two: 

The kingdom is the greatest treasure you can ever find. For some it will seem like an accidental and great discovery as in the first story — almost like the treasure found them! The key, however, is that when you have "accidentally" discovered this treasure, then you should be willing to give up everything else to make it your own! Others, as in the second story, will find the treasure of the kingdom because they have longed to find it and have searched far and wide to find it. Again, the key is that having found it, they rejoice in giving up everything else to make this treasure of the kingdom their own! 

Notice the truth that ties these two understandings together: true treasure is worth any price necessary. That is true with the ultimate price I paid in coming to redeem you. It is also true for the price you must be ready to pay for the kingdom, if you are willing to follow Me!
Verses to Live

What is your greatest treasure? I made clear that you are My treasure when I left the Father's side and came to give My life to buy you out of slavery to sin and death and to reclaim you as a child of God. Will you choose to see My way, My kingdom, as your greatest treasure?
Jesus:
The kingdom of heaven is like a treasure that is hidden in a field. A crafty man found the treasure buried there and buried it again so no one would know where it was. Thrilled, he went off and sold everything he had, and then he came back and bought the field with the hidden treasure part of the bargain. 

Or the kingdom of heaven is like a jeweler on the lookout for the finest pearls. When he found a pearl more beautiful and valuable than any jewel he had ever seen, the jeweler sold all he had and bought that pearl, his pearl of great price.
(Matthew 13:44-46)
Response in Prayer

O Father, all I can think about in response to these stories is Your great love that sent Jesus to ransom me and Jesus' great love to come and pay the price for my sin. The words to the old hymn speak the emotions of my heart in response to this great love:
Love so amazing, so divine, 
Demands my soul, my life, my all.*
May the lordship of Jesus and the kingdom of heaven rule my heart just as the sacrifice of Jesus has captured my heart and made me Your child. In Jesus' name I pray. Amen. 

* From Isaac Watts' hymn, "When I Survey the Wondrous Cross," 1707.
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This daily devotional is written to help us all reclaim Jesus as the daily Lord of our lives and to help us realize we are not alone as we seek to live for Him. — Learn More
The Thoughts and Prayers for 'A Year with Jesus' are written by Phil Ware. You can email questions or comments to phil@heartlight.org.
Thanks to our invaluable editors:
Dr. Edward Holley - Executive Editor
Ray Butts - General Editor
Heartlight is proud to promote Compassion International. See children who were sponsored today!
All scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from The Voice™. © 2008 by Ecclesia Bible Society. Used by permission. All rights reserved. © 1998-2015, Heartlight, Inc. 'A Year with Jesus' is part of the Heartlight Network.
© 1998-2015, Heartlight Inc.

"A Tale of Two Powers" — A Year with Jesus for 02/14/2015

Note from Jesus

Dear Precious Child of God, 

Two powers are at war over your eternal destiny — God and Satan. The story below illustrates the different goals of these two powers. No matter how alluring temptation may seem to you, the ultimate goal of the tempter — Satan the evil deceiver, the devil, the evil one — and all the forces of hell can be seen from the condition of the man called Battalion. 

When you meet the man identified as Battalion, the forces of evil are literally hell-bent on his destruction. This is Satan's intent for you. However, the ultimate goal of your Father in heaven is for you to be in your right mind, for you to be learning from Me how to have purpose for your life, and for you to live out that purpose in your daily life. 

Notice the way Battalion is described at the beginning of this event:
He is isolated — literally driven into isolation by the demonic powers that control him.
He is filled with destructive power.
He is naked.
He lives and sleeps in a cemetery — the place of the dead.
He is uncontrollable.
He has lost his sense of self-identity — he doesn't even know his real name.
He is aware of all of these problems in himself.
Yet as much as this man is in bondage to demonic powers, notice this one truth: he can still come to Me and fall at My feet despite the power of the demons in him wanting to be rid of Me! I AM more powerful than all of these demons. So notice what I do to bless this man despite the demons trying to use My identity to gain power over Me and send Me away.
I deliver him from the demonic powers oppressing him.
I return this man to a normal life and a right mind.
I welcome the man into My fellowship and friendship.
I send the man out on a mission to share his good news and My story of grace.


Satan's goal for you is clear: he wants to do with you what he did with Battalion. He wants to introduce hell on earth into your life. His temptations may look enticing. There may be no apparent signs of Satan's destructive and evil intent in these temptations — at least not at first. Yet behind each temptation there are traps designed to enslave you. I can help you break your bondage to these traps, but you are much better off if you avoid the traps all together! 

I have a goal for you. I want you to be My disciple. I want you to sit by Me and learn the way of true life from Me. I want to defeat the powers that hold you in bondage and enslave you to self-destruction. I want you in your right mind — back in control of your life and your decisions. I want you to find your purpose in Me. I want to bring you back into a positive and influential relationship with your family and friends. But you have to choose Me... you must call out to Me for help... and you must ask Me to take control of your life and be willing for Me to do so! 

Not everyone will be happy if you choose Me. Some prefer to live out-of-control lives rather than to yield their lives to Me. In addition, the lure for you to go back to that old life — to have that uncontrollable power at work in you again — is just as destructive as it is strong. 

You must recognize that you cannot defeat the power of evil on your own. Yet, I can defeat it. In fact, I have defeated it through My death and resurrection. Do not despair in the face of great evil. Cry out to Me. Trust Me. Follow Me. Learn from Me. Share your story about Me with others. And when you do, you can know this: I will never leave you or forsake you.
Verses to Live

Notice how the "friends" of Battalion react when he is set free of the demonic spirits. They order Me to leave after I have liberated him and put him in his right mind. They cannot deal with Me. They don't know what to do with a power they cannot control or understand. So rather than inviting Me into their small little world, they ask Me to leave. What about you? Will you ask Me into your world or order Me to leave?
When they [Jesus and His disciples] get to the other side of the lake, in the Gerasene country opposite Galilee, a man from the city is waiting for Jesus when He steps out of the boat. The man is full of demonic spirits. He's been running around for a long time stark naked, and he's homeless, sleeping among the dead in a cemetery. This man has on many occasions been tied up and chained and kept under guard, but each time he has broken free and the demonic power has driven him back into remote places away from human contact. Jesus commands the demonic force to leave him. The man looks at Jesus and starts screaming. He falls down in front of Jesus. 

Possessed Man (shouting):
Don't torment me, Jesus, Son of the Most High God! Why are You here?
Jesus (calmly and simply):
What's your name?
Possessed Man:
Battalion.
He says this because an army of demons is inside of him. The demons start begging Jesus not to send them into the bottomless pit. They plead instead to enter into a herd of pigs feeding on a steep hillside near the shore. Jesus gives them permission to do so. Suddenly the man is liberated from the demons, but the pigs—they stampede, squealing down the hill and into the lake where they drown themselves. 

The pig owners see all this. They run back to their town and tell everyone in the region about it. Soon a crowd rushes from the town to see what's going on out by the lake. There they find Jesus seated to teach with the newly liberated man sitting at His feet learning in the posture of a disciple. This former madman is now properly dressed and completely sane. This frightens the people. The pig owners tell them the whole story — the healing, the pigs' mass suicide, everything. 

The people are scared to death, and they don't want this scary abnormality happening in their territory. They ask Jesus to leave immediately. Jesus doesn't argue. He prepares to leave, but before they embark, the newly liberated man begs to come along and join the band of disciples. 

Jesus:
No. Go home. Tell your people this amazing story about how much God has done for you.
The man does so. In fact, he tells everyone in the whole city how much Jesus did for him that day on the shore. 
(Luke 8:26-39)
Response in Prayer

Lord Jesus, I know that You stand at the door of my heart and knock. I know You won't break down the door and barge into my life. I know that I must invite You in and welcome You to my table. So Jesus, I ask You to claim me, cleanse me, come to me, care for me and commission me to serve You in a way that brings You glory and brings others to know You and Your saving grace. Amen.
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This daily devotional is written to help us all reclaim Jesus as the daily Lord of our lives and to help us realize we are not alone as we seek to live for Him. — Learn More
The Thoughts and Prayers for 'A Year with Jesus' are written by Phil Ware. You can email questions or comments to phil@heartlight.org.
Thanks to our invaluable editors:
Dr. Edward Holley - Executive Editor
Ray Butts - General Editor
Heartlight is proud to promote Compassion International. See children who were sponsored today!
© 1998-2015, Heartlight Inc.