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SCRIPTURE:
“During
those days another large crowd gathered.!" (Mark 8:1a, NIV)
Observations:
I asked myself what was happening
around Jesus?
Another large crowd gathered!
Interpretation:
I asked myself the significance of the
phrase ‘another large crowd gathered’?
Jesus kept attracting crowds to Him because of the impact Jesus
made on people’s lives that they cannot help gather around Jesus.
Implications:
I saw important implications for my own life. Jesus was attracting large
crowds because of what Jesus was doing in the lives of the crowds that
were with Him whether it be TEACHING TRUTH, HEALING, FEEDING, etc. Jesus
was MEETING THEM WHERE THEY ARE AT that others were now excited to
gather around Jesus. I can gather around Jesus too and the way I gather
around Jesus is through HIS WORD & PRAYER.
Jesus can TEACH TRUTH through His Word to me, Jesus can HEAL through
His Word to me, and Jesus can FEED me through His Word. His Word has the
power to impact my life and spending time in God's Word is like
gathering around Jesus. That is so exciting to know. He can do that for
you too!
When we gather around Jesus, He does amazing things in our lives.
This same Jesus who will speak to us and minister to us, is the same
Jesus of 2000 years ago. What Jesus did then, Jesus can even do now.
Yes, He can! Jesus is the same yesterday, today,
and tomorrow! Praise the Lord!
I ask you now dear friend, why won't we
G.A.T.H.E.R around Jesus always?
Dear friend, we choose to gather in so many places, for reasons
that will be listed below this paragraph, but not all places we choose
to gather are good for the heart, mind, body, and soul. But there is a
place that will always be good for us and it is at the feet of Jesus. We
can gather at home in our private seclusion to spend time with Jesus
through PRAYER as we hear from Him and learn from Him, for He wants to
teach us the Gospel and let it take fruit in our lives through His WORD
and SPIRIT. We can gather at church and small groups to let the Lord
speak to us through His servants. The Gospel involves what Jesus
did for you and me at the Cross of Calvary. The crowds kept
gathering around Jesus for a reason! Another large crowd gathered around
Jesus because of what Jesus was doing for their lives. This same Jesus
wants to impact our lives too right this moment. Yes, He does friend
through HIS WORD. He wants to impact our lives powerfully through His
Word.
But, we won't always receive His Word or spend solitary time in His
Word to gather around Jesus.
Why friend?
There are different reasons people don't want to gather around Jesus.
These questions assess some of the reasons but are not exhaustive:
Is it because, we are so busy with everything
else that is happening in our lives in a 168 hour week, that we just
DON'T HAVE TIME FOR JESUS?
Is it because, we don't BELIEVE this same Jesus
can make an impact in our own lives but only in the lives of others?
Is it because, we are not a follower of Christ
so what's the point of gathering around Jesus?
Friend, the large crowds that gathered around Jesus did not make
excuses but came to Jesus to be impacted by Jesus and so can we.
All the excuses we make will not change the fact that JESUS MAKES AN
IMPACT and wants to IMPACT YOUR LIFE TOO.
If Jesus makes an impact, we can be assured Jesus will make an impact
in our lives too. It is okay to gather around Jesus so He can make an
impact in our lives. He created us and wired us so He knows everything
about us even before we know ourselves well. Yes, He does. He wants us
to gather around Him daily.
We should not let TIME stop us from SPENDING TIME WITH JESUS in His
Word and Prayer.
We should not let FEELING stop us from SPENDING TIME WITH JESUS in
His Word and Prayer.
We should not let DOUBT stop us from SPENDING TIME WITH JESUS in His
Word and Prayer.
When I don't gather around Jesus daily, I have
to ask myself why I have not?
If I am honest, I would realize it is because of these reasons:
I THINK I CAN DO IT ON MY OWN.
I HAVE NOT UNDERSTOOD THE POWER OF THE WORD TO TRANSFORM MY LIFE SO I
RELY ON MYSELF.
I DON'T WANT TO MAKE THE TIME. (There will always be time in 168 hrs
but the question becomes where do our priorities lie?)
I DON'T BELIEVE IN HIS WORD FOR MY LIFE.
These are issues I have had to deal with and can tell you the more I
spend time with Jesus, the more I realize how much I need Jesus in my
life.
Gathering around Jesus becomes that much more powerful when things
are not going well in our lives, when we are distressed and distraught,
when we feel hopeless, etc. It is especially in these times, the LIGHT
OF CHRIST shines.
I can speak from experience. You see friend when my dad was in the
hospital before being with the Lord, it is spending time in God's Word
claiming His promises and prayer is what got me through and our family
through. It is amazing to see the POWER OF GOD'S WORD impacting our
family during that agonizing times. The promises of God's Word were
claimed and experienced. Praise the Lord. It is still spending time with
Jesus that gives me peace.
No matter what you are going through, you should gather around Jesus.
Now is the time to gather around Jesus when things are not well so He
can make things well in His timing. At other times He will give you the
strength to bear through it.
I thank my Lord Jesus how my mom's daily reading of God's Word aloud
from Gospel of Matthew- Revelation each day for my dad, eventually
brought him to Christ. My mom read through the entire New Testament more
than once for my dad and read through the Psalms too.
It is God's Word and the power of God's Word that transforms and
changes. It changed my dad and it can change you and I too.
Gathering around Jesus should not just be subjected to our INDIVIDUAL
TIME WITH JESUS reading, studying, and praying His Word but it should be
CORPORATE TIME WITH JESUS too.
What I mean by that is BEING PART OF A LOCAL CHURCH THAT PROCLAIMS
THE WORD OF GOD AS IS and BEING PART OF A SMALL GROUP COMMUNITY.
I would encourage you all to come to Pittsburgh Chinese
Church-Oakland and be part of our Oakland International Fellowship, if
you are searching for a church to go to. I can tell you the impact the
community has made in my own life.
More than anything, I can tell you the emphasis that is put on BEING
WITH JESUS and BECOMING LIKE JESUS while we PRAY, READ HIS WORD, and
APPLY.
Our churches' vision for 2009 is: DEEPER FAITH, STRONGER
COMMUNITY, AND GREATER IMPACT.
We are located on North Dithridge Street in the heart of Oakland next
to St. Paul's Cathedral and meet at 9:00 a.m. for prayer, 10:00 a.m. for
worship, 11:30 a.m. for Sunday School, and 12:30 p.m. for fellowship
lunch.
I would also encourage any of you if you are looking for a small
group Bible study where we worship together, are nurtured together by
God's Word, have community together, and pray together this summer, to
come join LIVING ACTS Small Group where three of us lead that
small group with the help of Jesus of course :)
If you want to join Living Acts, please email me or call me at
412-720-4579. We meet on Friday nights.
More than anything the reason we gather around Jesus is because of
who Jesus is. Jesus is the Lamb of God who came to take away the sin of
the world. This means Jesus came to take your sin and my sin away. Jesus
went to the cross for you and me to set us free from the bondage of sin
and the baggage we all carry.
For each of us the baggage can be different but when it comes to sin
all of us carry the same baggage. The baggage is stuck to us like crazy
glue and will not come of no matter how much we TRY TO GET IT OFF we
cannot. That baggage is called SIN which is the cause of the ill effects
we see in our lives.
The Good News is that Jesus came to give us something to get rid of
this baggage. This something is priceless and can never be diminished.
It is the POWER OF THE CLEANSING BLOOD OF JESUS CHRIST.
When we gather around Jesus, we can receive His BLOOD which will
loosen the CRAZY GLUE OF SIN BAGGAGE and free us.
But that baggage has to go somewhere and it went upon Jesus. All of
our baggage went upon Jesus and Jesus released His BLOOD into our lives
to set us free and remove the load of us when we turn to Him.
This means Jesus cleaned you out, all of your dirty laundry of sin,
all of your shortcomings, etc has been cleaned and now you are SIN FREE
when seen through the eyes of the Lord. That means no matter what we do
now or what we have done or what we will do, Jesus' blood has cleansed
us all of it.
If Jesus went through so much for you
especially dying an excruciating death on the cross of Calvary for your
redemption, what should be your response?
Will you be excited enough to gather around
Jesus today and forever because He set you free and has given His Word
and promises to you?
I hope you will friend because the impact Jesus made 2000 years ago,
that impact can still be made today in our own lives.
Take your issues to the Lord and gather around Jesus. Let Him free
you and give you the abundant life promised to all those who turn to
Him.
May you gather around today hearing Everlasting Redeemer!
God's Word will speak to us whether we feel like reading it or not,
when we do read it. His promises will make an impact in our lives. When
we think about promises it is important not to always expect those
promises to bear fruit in our lives right away. Many times it can be
day, months, or even years but God's Word and promises will come through
in this life or the life to come.
I have experienced His promises multiple times in this life alone
while I have spent time with Him in His Word.
Friend, you and I can believe the BIBLE IS THE WORD OF GOD because it
is. This devotional is not the time for me to give evidence for the Word
of God or the REALITY OF JESUS BEING GOD AND CREATOR OF THE UNIVERSE but
both are real and everything in God's Word has come true and will come
true.
I can tell you that my life is so different when I GATHER AROUND
JESUS through PRAYER and HIS WORD compared to when I don't.
Eventually, as the days go by we will experience the joy of spending
time with Jesus in His Word and Prayer. When we GATHER around Jesus,
even when things don't go well for the time being, we can be confident
that Christ is looking after us and everything has a wonderful purpose
since His Hand is on it. Praise the Lord!
Whatever reasons are keeping you from GATHERING AROUND JESUS, talk to
someone about it. You can even email me or talk to me about it. My
number is 412-720-4579. We can meet in person or talk over the phone.
There is so much I can learn about Jesus but I need to gather around
Him and let Him teach me. He is willing to if I am faithful, available,
and teachable to the lessons He wants me to learn. In His grace and
mercy, even when I am faithless, He is so faithful. That is so awesome
to know! Crowds gathered around Jesus because of what He has done for
people. Jesus can do the same for you.
Where the crowds gathered impacted their lives and where we gather
can impact our lives too. The question is whether the impact is a good
impact or a bad impact!
Jesus wants you to gather near Him friend so He can make a good
impact in your lives! Yes, He does! No matter what you have done or
where you have been, you are never out of His love, never out of His
reach.
Hear him speaking to you these words: "I love you, I love you, I love
you! You are precious and special in my sight. I have called you by
Name. I am here to redeem you and take all your baggage upon myself so
your load can be off. I want to replace that baggage with my love. Take
my love in. My blood I am shedding for you to wash away all your sin no
matter what it is. In me you will find redemption and hope. You have
come to the right place where my precious cleansing blood flows for you
who are
so precious. Give me your issues and let me make you well. I will in my
timing. Rest in me and know you have been redeemed forever"
"As we gather, may your Spirit work in us! As
we gather, may we glorify your Name, knowing well as our hearts begin to
worship, we will be blessed because we came. We will be blessed because
we came!" Amen!
"Gather Around Today Hearing Everlasting
Redeemer!” (G.A.T.H.E.R)/”Why won't you G.A.T.H.E.R around Jesus?”
Prayer:
Dear Jesus, thank you so much for this time. Thank you for the impact
you make in people’s lives that at the sound of your Name people have
gathered. When they see you, they gather around you. You are such a
positive influence Jesus. I want to be a positive influence for those
around me where you place me at. Oh Lord Jesus, you have convicted me of
the importance of gathering around you Jesus. I do love to gather around
you always and spend time in your Word because your Word speaks to me
always. I pray that others would see the power of your Word and gather
daily around you. I pray that our time spent with you will become a
priority over everything else because we are nothing without you Jesus.
We need you in our lives. Thanks so much for the comfort, healing, and
peace you give when we gather around you. Please help me Jesus. May what
I do bring you honor and glory and help me rest in you! Thank you Jesus!
Thank you Jesus for dying for our sin and coming back to life to save us
because of your love for us! We are so sorry for our sin and ask you to
please forgive us our sin. Cleanse us with your cleansing blood and we
will be clean again. Wash us and we will be whiter than snow. Thank you
Jesus for the new life you give us. Come into our heart Jesus and make
our heart your home. Live in us Jesus and help us to live for you and
serve you the rest of the days of our lives. Thank you Jesus! Help us as
we live for you and go out into the world to bring you honor and glory
by our actions. Thank you for being our Lord and Personal Savior! Thank
you Jesus you have heard us and answered us. In Your Name I Pray Jesus!
Amen!!
May
you experience the POWER OF CHRIST'S RESURRECTION this day, and give Him
the LOCKED areas of your life too so you can experience His PEACE as you
become an ACTOR in the film called LIFE being directed by your DIRECTOR,
JESUS CHRIST who comes to give JOY and PEACE.
You
don't have to be locked away anymore for Christ is here to free you and
give you peace to live out your actions.
How
do you look at GODISNOWHERE?
One
of my pastors, Pastor Hugo shared this example this past Sunday at the
RESURRECTION DAY SERVICE in the combined worship service of Pittsburgh
Chinese Church-Oakland & Oakland International Fellowship:
If
you look at it as GOD IS NO WHERE, you will still be lost in your sin
and be in bondage locked away in your sins and problems finding no
peace.
But
as my pastor spoke to the congregation and spoke to me, I am here to
tell you that GOD IS NOW HERE.
Yes,
friend God is alive and wants to bring a transformation in your life
through the Grace of our Lord Jesus Christ for He paid the penalty on
the cross to rescue you and me and came back to life to save us and live
with us.
Yes,
friend that is exciting to know that we can experience HIS SAVING GRACE
& LIVING GRACE.
When
we mess up, we can go to Jesus with our shortcomings and He will forgive
us and restore us to Him and we will find peace in Him.
"Therefore, if
anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has
come! All this is from God, who reconciled us to himself through Christ
and gave us the ministry of reconciliation: that God was reconciling the
world to himself in Christ, not counting men's sins against them. And he
has committed to us the message of reconciliation. We are therefore
Christ's ambassadors, as though God were making his appeal through us.
We implore you on Christ's behalf: Be reconciled to God. God made him
who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the
righteousness of God." (Colossians 5:17-21, NIV)
"For the wages
of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our
Lord." (Romans 6:23, NIV)
"But if we walk in the light, as he is in the
light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus, his
Son, purifies us from all sin. If we claim to be without sin, we deceive
ourselves and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, he is
faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all
unrighteousness." (1 John 1:7-9, NIV)
Friend, we need Jesus because we have been separated from God due to our
sin. Because of our sin, Jesus had to pay the price to become our bridge
so we can reach God now not of our own good works but because of the
finished work of Christ, the Lord on the cross.
"For it is by grace you have been saved,
through faith—and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God— not
by works, so that no one can boast." (Ephesians 2:8-9, NIV)
May
you come to know Jesus Christ as your Lord and Personal Savior becoming
His offspring so you can spend Eternity with Him. He is waiting for you.
Come as you are. Please do not reject the gift of God.
If
you would like to invite Jesus Christ into your heart and make Him a
daily part of your life, you can this very moment. You will never be
alone. You can claim God's promises for you in the Bible and see them
come true, before your eyes, in His wonderful timing. You don't have to
wait for a special time to come to the Lord. You can come right now as
you pray this prayer, meaning it in your heart and finding your new
identity in Christ Jesus.
Make this your prayer. Don’t let
the enemy deceive you into thinking you need all the answers before
coming to Christ. Let me just assure you though you may not have all the
answers right now before coming to Jesus, He will answer them slowly.
Yes, He will for I know our Redeemer will! Amen!
Make this your prayer. Don’t let the enemy deceive you into thinking
you need all the answers before coming to Christ. Let me just assure you
though you may not have all the answers right now before coming to
Jesus, He will answer them slowly. Yes, He will for I know our Redeemer
will! Amen!
Prayer:
Jesus, I thank you for being the Bread of Life. You are the Living Bread
of my life. Thank you for coming from Heaven and giving your life for
the life of the world. You sacrificed yourself for humanity. Thank you
Lord when we eat of you symbolically making you part of our life,
digesting what you teach us by following you, we can be living
Eternally, and the fruit that comes will reflect and resemble your life.
I want that Father God. I want that Lord Jesus! I want that Holy Spirit!
I know of a lot of people who partake of Holy Communion where the bread
represents your body broken for their sin and the juice represents your
blood shed for their sin. When we partake of Holy Communion, we are
reminded that we are remembering you. I want to remember you always Lord
Jesus. But for me to remember you always, I need to know you and
acknowledge everything you said you are. So right now I acknowledge that
you are my Lord and Personal Savior who died and rose again to give me
life from sin. So right now, I come to you and say how sorry I am for my
sin and living a life on my own. I repent of my sin and ask you to
forgive me of my sin with your cleansing blood which I accept. Wash me
and I will be clean from this infection of sin. Come Lord Jesus and
please become part of my life as you live in me and I will live for you.
I thank you Jesus for coming into my heart and making my heart your
home. Thank you for living in me Jesus and I will live for you and serve
you the rest of the days of my life. I do need your Spirit to reside in
me and work in me and through me so I surrender all that I am and will
be to you. Whatever your will is for me, please give me the strength and
willingness to bear it and rejoice in you. Thank you so much Jesus. I
thank you Jesus for becoming my Lord and Personal Savior. I thank you
Jesus you have heard my prayer and have answered me. I thank you that I
am your child Oh God. I thank you for becoming my only Way to Eternal
Life. In Your Name I Pray Jesus! Amen!
