Making the Right Decisions

Posted on October 27, 2014 by Mark Shields

Reading Luke 6:12-38, Jesus reveals a sense of responsibility when He chooses apostles to take on future leadership. His first order of business was to go out to spend an entire night on the mountainside praying (v. 12). When we choose others to take on more leadership responsibilities, praying about the decision should be our top priority too. Our time in prayer should be a time of preparation and planning just as Jesus demonstrates to us in today’s passage when making a decision about who would be His twelve Apostles. We should desire to know the right steps to follow and the right people to get help from.

After Jesus received direction, He called everyone together and chose the twelve Apostles. Then He gave a message on blessings and woes. The specific actions Jesus said we should take are to desire spiritual treasures and not the desires of this world. He tells the people that the poor, the hungry, and the rejected will be blessed. Our reward to look forward to is the reward in heaven (v. 23).

Another great point from this passage is the “Golden Rule”; treat others as we want to be treated (v. 31). We should strive to give to others as though we are giving to God; not just our money, but our encouragement and service to others. We should reap what we sow (vv. 37-38). Give to others encouragement and we will receive encouragement in return.

What God gives in a plan for life is a treasure and the more we lose ourselves in this plan, the more passion we will have. This day with God, we pray for our present attitudes and daily living that might be changed as a result of what has been learned in today’s passage.

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Getting Done What God Wants

Posted on October 24, 2014 by Mark Shields

In the post The Gospel Message Has a Beautiful and Refreshing Simplicity About it that Sets Us Free, I wrote that Jesus knew there would be resistance but He was always prepared to answer questions and teach the new way. There’s a lot of good common sense in the new way Jesus taught and to get done what God wants done, there’s a lot of prayer, listening, and decision making.

Jesus demonstrates an understanding of God’s priorities and He doesn’t care how things are supposed to be done; only that the top priority is to meet the needs of people and doing what the Father wants.

If situations come up and choices have to be made, Jesus is telling us that the choice is made based on if the activity blesses people. It is best to do God’s work rather than live according to a set of burdensome rules that do not bless others.

The Word is living and active like this video points out: Word of God Speak – MercyMe.


For the Lord gives wisdom, and from His mouth come knowledge and understanding. – Proverbs 2:6

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The Gospel Message Has a Beautiful and Refreshing Simplicity About it that Sets Us Free

Posted on October 23, 2014 by Mark Shields

After healing the man with leprosy and the paralytic, Jesus saw a tax collector by the name of Levi (later called Matthew) sitting at his tax booth and Jesus ask him to follow. Levi got up, followed, and then gave a great banquet for Jesus at his house. A large crowd of tax collectors and others came over to eat with them.

Reading Luke 5:27 through 6:1-11, there are three complaints which the Pharisees lodge against Jesus. One is about eating with tax collectors and sinners. Another is about not fasting and the third is about healing or working on the Sabbath.

Jesus then uses parables to teach. The first explains the negative effects of mixing the new with the old. Jesus says it doesn’t work when trying to patch an old garment with a new piece of cloth. In the second parable, Jesus explains that putting new wine in old wine skins does not work (Luke 5:37-39).

The point of these parables is that many think it is best to simply patch up their past because some of the things they did were okay rather than making their way of life completely new. Trusting in the new way of life with Christ should result in completely new attitudes with more humility and gratitude. The Pharisees were criticizing because they thought they were better than Jesus and the people that followed Him.

The Pharisees also objected to Jesus and His doctrine of the Sabbath. Jesus goes to the Word to show them how David who was permitted by the priests to eat the consecrated bread when David and his companions were fleeing from Saul and were hungry. Jesus was explaining to them that God is more concerned about meeting our needs than about sticking to religious rules.

We have to use common sense and know what the priorities should be. God wants what is best for us and sometimes circumstances come up that are more important than religious rules. Jesus demonstrated to the Pharisees that healing the man with the shriveled hand on the Sabbath did not break the law of God. Doing good deeds to help God’s people on the Sabbath is more important than sticking to some religious rule that destroys life.

Sunday is a day of rest and a day of worshiping the Lord. If situations come up and choices have to be made, Jesus is telling us that the choice is made based on if the activity blesses people. It is best to do God’s work rather than live according to a set of burdensome rules that do not bless others.

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This day with You Lord, we pray that our growing faith will continue to give us confidence in knowing what decisions to make. Your people are most important. We know our faith can never be taken away or depleted. We are thankful that the gospel message has a beautiful and refreshing simplicity about it that sets us free and never lets us down. In Jesus name we pray. Amen.

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Faith in Our Lord Provides a Better Future

Posted on October 22, 2014 by Mark Shields

In yesterday’s post Healing the Sick, I wrote about the man with leprosy and the paralytic who were healed because of their faith in Jesus. All can have a better future by receiving Jesus as Lord. Because of Jesus, we are washed in heaven’s healing rain which is the title of today’s inspirational video: Healing Rain – Michael W. Smith. Enjoy!


So then, just as you received Christ Jesus as Lord, continue to live your lives in Him, rooted and built up in Him, strengthened in faith as you were taught, and overflowing with thankfulness. – Colossians 2:6-7

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Healing the Sick

Posted on October 21, 2014 by Mark Shields

A leper and a paralyzed man are healed in Luke 5:12-26. Both are healed based on their faith. They believed in Jesus and knew that He could make their lives better. On the other hand, the Scribes and Pharisees questioned Jesus.

There was no known cure for leprosy. A leper had to go through social and psychological challenges. Since it could be highly contagious, they would have to live alone outside the camp. They had to wear torn clothes, let their hair be unkempt, and cry out “Unclean” as long as they had the infection.

Jesus began to get extremely popular. Many people came to hear Him preach and to be healed of their sickness. The Pharisees and teachers of the law began to question who Jesus was and accused Him of blasphemy because of the statement about forgiving sins (v. 20-21).

The pressure on Jesus began to mount and He often withdrew to be with God in prayer. We can do the same. Life is changed when we believe in Christ; by His Words, our faith, and our actions. Just like the man with leprosy and the paralytic, we can be strengthened in faith and overflow with thankfulness because faith in Jesus makes for a better future.

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