The Lamb Of God

John 1:29-42a KJV; 2nd Sunday after Epiphany; Jesus is the lamb of God who takes away our sins.

Zaccharias Was Speechless

Luke 1:76-78 KJV; Advent; The Lord took away Zaccharias speech until the day his son John was born. Then he praised the Lord.

Jesus Is The Promised One

3rd Sunday of Advent; Matthew 11:2-15 KJV; Jesus is the one promised to come and make us whole.

Baptized

Matthew 3:1-12 KJV; 2nd Sunday in Advent; Baptized in water; sealed by the Spirit.

Blessed Is Mary; Blessed Are We!

Luke 1:39-45 KJV; 4th Sunday of Advent for Saturday; Blessed are we.

John Proclaimed The Coming Of The Messiah

2nd Sunday in Advent; Luke 3:15-20 KJV; John called for repentance and was imprisoned and beheaded for it.

Good Fruits; Giving To Those In Need

Luke 3:1-14 KJV; 2nd Sunday in Advent; Good fruits; sharing with those in need.

The Prophets Foretold

Matthew 11:2-15 KJV; 3rd Sunday in Advent; The prophets foretold the coming of John the Baptist. They foretold the coming of Jesus the Messiah. Many believed. Many did not then nor do they today..

Attached To The Vine

Matthew 3:5-12 KJV; Attached to the vine, who is Jesus the Christ, we produce good fruits. Without the abiding presence of the Spirit of Christ we can do nothing good.

Shepherds Need Rest

And the apostles gathered themselves together unto Jesus, and told him all things, both what they had done, and what they had taught.

And he said unto them, Come ye yourselves apart into a desert place, and rest a while: for there were many coming and going, and they had no leisure so much as to eat.

And they departed into a desert place by ship privately.

And the people saw them departing, and many knew him, and ran afoot thither out of all cities, and outwent them, and came together unto him.

And Jesus, when he came out, saw much people, and was moved with compassion toward them, because they were as sheep not having a shepherd: and he began to teach them many things. 

                                                                               (Mark 6:30-34 KJV)

The disciples are grieving the beheading of John the Baptist and had just returned from being sent out two by two on a mission journey. The journey and the death would have left them exhausted as it would most of us. Jesus instructed them to go with him to a quiet place so that they could rest. They went by ship; but, people followed them anyway.

It is often this way for shepherds of the flock. Sometimes, there is little time to rest. Sometimes, it is just a matter of completing one thing and jumping immediately into the next.

I will never forget the 4th of July week that I had ten funerals to officiate at. Ten funerals in seven days is a lot. But, during times of epidemics others have had many more. Most of the people I did not know; although, they were all family members of members of the congregation who had moved away and were to be buried from the church they grew up in. I was fried. I did not have time to grieve which was sorely needed as one of the women was also a dear friend. The church ladies were fried as well as they prepared luncheons for all of the families. It took not a little time to be rested and get over the pace of that week. Each morning as I had woke up there was something I needed to get done immediately for the flock.

Jesus' recognized the need for his disciples to have a time of rest. But, when it came to ministering to the flock that took priority.

God give us the wisdom and strength to shepherd your people; to care for them in their times of need.

God's Peace - Pr. J.

Witness To The Light Of Christ

For God, who commanded the light to shine out of darkness, hath shined in our hearts, to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ. (2 Cor 4:6 KJV)

There was a man sent from God, whose name was John.

The same came for a witness, to bear witness of the Light, that all men through him might believe.

He was not that Light, but was sent to bear witness of that Light.

                                                                                      (John 1:6-8 KJV)

John drew in the crowds but he didn't draw them in for his own glory. He drew them in to bear witness to the Light who is Jesus the Christ. He humbled himself and pointed to the one who was coming who was greater than he; greater than all of humankind.

As Christians we are also called and sent to bear witness to the Light who is Christ. But, do we? Is that our true purpose? Are we willing to humble ourselves so that God many get the glory?

The numbers in the flock that come to hear our witness are worthless if we are only bearing witness to ourselves. Our witness, if it is true, will always point to Jesus the Christ.

May God help us all to be faithful witnesses of what Christ has done for us.

God's Peace - Pr. J.