Episodes
Sunday Aug 29, 2021
Sunday Aug 29, 2021
Eternal Life Is Offered Through God’s Grace but We Only Receive Eternal Life Through Our Personal Faith and Belief
MESSAGE SUMMARY: A Yale Pediatric Oncologist’s (A Window to Heaven: When Children See Life and Death) experienced a life transformation from being an Atheist to an Agnostic and then becoming a Christian because of her involvement with the death and near-death experiences of young children with cancer. These children had no predisposed reason to understand God or Heaven; however, their verbalized near-death experiences are compelling. In Luke 13:22-30, Jesus gives us a glimpse of Heaven because He does not want us to miss out on Paradise: “He went on his way through towns and villages, teaching and journeying toward Jerusalem. And someone said to him, ‘Lord, will those who are saved be few?’ And he said to them, ‘Strive to enter through the narrow door. For many, I tell you, will seek to enter and will not be able. When once the master of the house has risen and shut the door, and you begin to stand outside and to knock at the door, saying, ‘Lord, open to us,’ then he will answer you, ‘I do not know where you come from.’ Then you will begin to say, ‘We ate and drank in your presence, and you taught in our streets.’ But he will say, ‘I tell you, I do not know where you come from. Depart from me, all you workers of evil!’ In that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth, when you see Abraham and Isaac and Jacob and all the prophets in the kingdom of God but you yourselves cast out. And people will come from east and west, and from north and south, and recline at table in the kingdom of God. And behold, some are last who will be first, and some are first who will be last.’”.
Are you going to be saved? Before presenting His Parable of the Narrow Door, Jesus sets up this Parable in Luke 13:24: “Strive to enter through the narrow door. For many, I tell you, will seek to enter and will not be able.". in John 10:7-9, Jesus tells us that He is the door: “So Jesus again said to them, ‘Truly, truly, I say to you, I am the door of the sheep. All who came before me are thieves and robbers, but the sheep did not listen to them. I am the door. If anyone enters by me, he will be saved and will go in and out and find pasture.". Also, Jesus paints the picture, in Luke 13:24, of a feast in Paradise: “And people will come from east and west, and from north and south, and recline at table in the kingdom of God.”. In this Parable in Luke 13:25, Jesus expresses how difficult it will be to get into Heaven: “When once the master of the house has risen and shut the door, and you begin to stand outside and to knock at the door, saying, ‘Lord, open to us,’ then he will answer you, ‘I do not know where you come from.’". After the door is inaccessible, Jesus tells us in Luke 13:27: “But he will say, ‘I tell you, I do not know where you come from. Depart from me, all you workers of evil!’".
Knowing God personally and His Grace, through Jesus on the cross and Jesus’ Resurrection, is what enables us to have eternal life – Jesus the Christ is the door, as Jesus tells us in John 14:6 that He is the only way to eternal life: “Jesus said to him, ‘I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.’". Eternal life is offered to us through God’s grace, but we can only receive eternal life through our personal faith and our knowing God through a personal relationship with Him.
TODAY’S PRAYER: Lord, Sabbath rest is truly an unbelievable gift! Thank you that there is nothing I can do to earn your love; it comes without any strings attached. As I close my eyes for these few minutes before you, all I can say is, thank you! In Jesus’ name, amen. Scazzero, Peter. Emotionally Healthy Spirituality Day by Day (p. 133). Zondervan. Kindle Edition.
TODAY’S AFFIRMATION: Today, I affirm that because of what God has done for me in His Son, Jesus, I AM FILLED WITH THE HOLY SPIRIT. If you then, though you are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him! (Luke 11:13).
SCRIPTURE REFERENCE (ESV): Luke 13:22-30; Luke 23:43; Revelation 2:7; John 3:16; John 10:7-9; John 17:3; Matthew 7:21-23; John 14:6.
A WORD FROM THE LORD WEBSITE: www.AWFTL.org.
WEBSITE LINK TO DR. BEACH’S DAILY DEVOTIONAL – Jesus Followers Should Fear, Respect, and Praise God’s Power, Sovereignty, and Holiness; but in Life’s Trials They Should ‘fear not for I {Jesus} am with you always’”: https://awordfromthelord.org/devotional/
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Sunday Aug 22, 2021
Sunday Aug 22, 2021
If You Knew You Would Die in the Near-Term, Would You, Like Tim McGraw Advises, “live like you were dying” or Would You Live Like “the Rich Fool”?
MESSAGE SUMMARY: Jesus tells us in today’s Lessons from the Gospel of Luke, that acquiring wealth is not, per se, wrong; however, Luke’s Lesson is that we are a fool if we center our life around accumulating wealth. It is difficult for us to have many possessions without these possessions “possessing us”. In Luke 12:15, Jesus says that: “. . . Take care, and be on your guard against all covetousness, for one's life does not consist in the abundance of his possessions." Jesus is telling the brothers in Luke 12:13-14 that covetousness (i.e. greed) will wreck all aspects of our lives. In Ephesians 5:3, Paul classifies the sin of covetousness (i.e. greed) with other sins such as “sexual immorality: “But sexual immorality and all impurity or covetousness must not even be named among you, as is proper among saints.".
Jesus illustrates His position regarding covetousness (i.e. greed) with Parable of the Rich Fool, beginning with Luke 12:16-21: “And he told them a parable, saying, ‘The land of a rich man produced plentifully, and he thought to himself, ‘What shall I do, for I have nowhere to store my crops?’ And he said, ‘I will do this: I will tear down my barns and build larger ones, and there I will store all my grain and my goods. And I will say to my soul, Soul, you have ample goods laid up for many years; relax, eat, drink, be merry.’ But God said to him, ‘Fool! This night your soul is required of you, and the things you have prepared, whose will they be?’ So is the one who lays up treasure for himself and is not rich toward God.’”. The “Rich Fool’s” life was all about himself and his possessions and without a consideration of God or the needs of others. Therefore, in this parable, God took the life of the greedy “Rich Fool”.
If you knew that, in the near-term, you would die, how would you spend the remainder of your life? Would you focus on the assimilation of new possessions and experiences; or would you reaffirm your commitment, as a Jesus Follower, to Jesus’ Great Commandment and His Great Commission? Would we, like the country singer Tim McGraw says in his song, “live like we were dying”?
Beginning in Luke 12:22-27, Jesus tells His Apostles about the prioritization of their lives’ focus, especially as their focus relates to their “anxieties”: “And he said to his disciples, ‘Therefore I tell you, do not be anxious about your life, what you will eat, nor about your body, what you will put on. For life is more than food, and the body more than clothing. Consider the ravens: they neither sow nor reap, they have neither storehouse nor barn, and yet God feeds them. Of how much more value are you than the birds! And which of you by being anxious can add a single hour to his span of life? If then you are not able to do as small a thing as that, why are you anxious about the rest?’”.
In Luke 12:29-31, Jesus summarizes His teaching to His Apostles with a model for our life focus: “And do not seek what you are to eat and what you are to drink, nor be worried. For all the nations of the world seek after these things, and your Father knows that you need them. Instead, seek his kingdom, and these things will be added to you.".
If our lives are centered on greed and the accumulation of passions and wealth, our lives will not be rich in and toward God.
TODAY’S PRAYER: Keeping the Sabbath, Lord, will require a lot of changes in the way I am living life. Teach me, Lord, how to take the next step with this in a way that fits my unique personality and situation. Help me to trust you with all that will remain unfinished and to enjoy my humble place in your very large world. In Jesus’ name, amen. Scazzero, Peter. Emotionally Healthy Spirituality Day by Day (p. 129). Zondervan. Kindle Edition.
TODAY’S AFFIRMATION: Today, I affirm that because of what God has done for me in His Son, Jesus, I AM FORGIVEN. If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness. (1 John 1:9).
SCRIPTURE REFERENCE (ESV): Luke 12:13-34; Mark 7:21; Ephesians 5:3; Colossians 3:5; Philippines 4:19; 1 King’s 10:4.
A WORD FROM THE LORD WEBSITE: www.AWFTL.org.
WEBSITE LINK TO DR. BEACH’S DAILY DEVOTIONAL – “At Jesus’ Crucifixion and Death, the “Temple Vail” Was Torn; After Jesus Easter Resurrection, You Now Pray Directly with God”: https://awordfromthelord.org/devotional/
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Sunday Aug 15, 2021
Sunday Aug 15, 2021
Jesus Tells Jesus Followers in Luke 10:2: “The harvest is plentiful, but the laborers are few”; Therefore, Jesus Followers Are His Laborers for His Gospel Harvest
MESSAGE SUMMARY:
Introduction from Luke’s Life Lessons on Prayer: Jesus, in Luke 11:11-13, compares asking God versus an earthly father being asked by his son: “What father among you, if his son asks for a fish, will instead of a fish give him a serpent; or if he asks for an egg, will give him a scorpion? If you then, who are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will the heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him!”. God desires to give to us before we even ask Him, but ask we must. Since we must ask for the Holy Spirit, it is good to begin our daily prayers with: “Lord, fill me with the Holy Spirit.”.
Today’s Message from Luke -- Life Laborers Are Few: As Jesus sends the Seventy-two out on a mission trip (Luke 10:1-20), He tells them, in Luke 10:2: “And he said to them, ‘The harvest is plentiful, but the laborers are few. Therefore pray earnestly to the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into his harvest.’". Today, as in the First Century, we can make the same observation as Jesus: “The harvest is plentiful, but the laborers are few” – where are the laborers for His Kingdom today? People all around us are in need.
These passages from Luke 10:1-20 reveal God’s plan and model for our evangelism – the ministry of the Gospel. Jesus instructs His initial “seventy-two” and us to perform God’s “plentiful” harvest: “pray earnestly to the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into his harvest. Go your way; behold, I am sending you out as lambs in the midst of wolves . . . The one who hears you hears me, and the one who rejects you rejects me, and the one who rejects me rejects him who sent me.”.
This model for the ministry of the Gospel is not just for Clergy, this model is for all followers of Jesus. To meet the needs of today’s plentiful harvest, the Christians in the Church must become the Christian in the marketplace. To be effective in this plentiful marketplace, we must be ourselves and a willing vessel for God’s will. To be successful in the marketplace, we must ask for God to fill us with the Holy Spirit as we enter the harvest. However, we must be a willing laborer for the ministry of the Gospel – the harvest is plentiful. Be God’s hands and feet in His harvest for the Gospel!
TODAY’S PRAYER: Father, to you I acknowledge that I don’t want to go the way of powerlessness and humility. Like Peter, I want to know what you are doing with those around me. I love you. Help me to trust you with this day, with tomorrow, and with my whole life. In Jesus’ name, amen. Scazzero, Peter. Emotionally Healthy Spirituality Day by Day (p. 92). Zondervan. Kindle Edition.
TODAY’S AFFIRMATION: Today, I affirm that because of what God has done for me in His Son, Jesus, I AM A CHILD OF GOD. Yet to all who received Him, to those who believed in His Name, He gave the right to become children of God-- children born not of natural descent, nor of human decision or a husband's will, but born of God. (John 1:12f).
SCRIPTURE REFERENCE (ESV): Luke 11:1-13; Luke 10:1-20; Matthew 28:18-20; Isaiah 6:8.
A WORD FROM THE LORD WEBSITE: www.AWFTL.org.
WEBSITE LINK TO DR. BEACH’S DAILY DEVOTIONAL – “When Jesus Asked You: ‘Whom do you say that I am?’, Did You Answer Jesus: ‘You are my God and the Lord of my Life!’?”: https://awordfromthelord.org/devotional/
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Sunday Aug 08, 2021
“Lord, Teach Us to Pray” – A Life Lesson for Jesus Followers
Sunday Aug 08, 2021
Sunday Aug 08, 2021
“Lord, Teach Us to Pray” – A Life Lesson for Jesus Followers
MESSAGE SUMMARY: Luke emphasizes Jesus’ prayer life. The disciples, including Luke, would have seen Jesus pray every day and night, over three years, as they followed Him. In Luke 11:1, the disciples asked Jesus: “Now Jesus was praying in a certain place, and when he finished, one of his disciples said to him, ‘Lord, teach us to pray, as John taught his disciples.’”. Ask Jesus both to teach you to pray and lead you to a person that can teach you to pray. Then in 11:2-13, Jesus taught His disciples how to pray – The Lord’s Prayer. From Luke 11:2-13, we can envision God standing, with His hands wide open, to bless us; but we must pray and ask: “And he said to them, “When you pray, say: ‘Father, hallowed be your name. Your kingdom come. Give us each day our daily bread, and forgive us our sins, for we ourselves forgive everyone who is indebted to us. And lead us not into temptation.’ And he said to them, ‘Which of you who has a friend will go to him at midnight and say to him, ‘Friend, lend me three loaves, for a friend of mine has arrived on a journey, and I have nothing to set before him’; and he will answer from within, ‘Do not bother me; the door is now shut, and my children are with me in bed. I cannot get up and give you anything’? I tell you, though he will not get up and give him anything because he is his friend, yet because of his impudence he will rise and give him whatever he needs. And I tell you, ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives, and the one who seeks finds, and to the one who knocks it will be opened. What father among you, if his son asks for a fish, will instead of a fish give him a serpent; or if he asks for an egg, will give him a scorpion? If you then, who are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will the heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him!’.”
Be persistent in praying to the Lord and asking, as Jesus has instructed us through the Gospel of Luke and, indeed, like we are consistently instructed throughout the New Testament. For example, James, in James 4:2-3 implores Jesus Followers: “You desire and do not have, so you murder. You covet and cannot obtain, so you fight and quarrel. You do not have, because you do not ask. You ask and do not receive, because you ask wrongly, to spend it on your passions.".
In summary, prayer is a fundamental attribute of a Jesus Follower; and to this end, Jesus Followers must first ask God to “tech me to pray” and then seek the example of Paul in 1 Thessalonians 5:16-18: “Rejoice always, pray without ceasing, give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.”.
TODAY’S PRAYER: Father, I confess that when difficulties and trials come into my life, large or small, I mostly grumble and complain. I realize the trials James talks about are not necessarily “walls,” but they are difficult to bear, nonetheless. Fill me with such a vision of a transformed life, O God, that I might actually consider it “pure joy” when you bring trials my way. I believe, Lord. Help my unbelief. In Jesus’ name, amen. Scazzero, Peter. Emotionally Healthy Spirituality Day by Day (p. 94). Zondervan. Kindle Edition.
TODAY’S AFFIRMATION: Today, I affirm that because of what God has done for me in His Son, Jesus, I AM RIGHTEOUS IN GOD’S EYES. God made Him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in Him we might become the righteousness of God. (2 Corinthians 5:21).
SCRIPTURE REFERENCE (ESV): Luke 11:1-13; Luke 15:16; Luke 6:12; Luke 9:29; Luke 22:31-32; Luke 22:41; Luke 23:34; 1 Chronicles 4:10; 1 Corinthians 10:13-14; James 4:2-3; 1 Thessalonians 5:16-18.
A WORD FROM THE LORD WEBSITE: www.AWFTL.org.
WEBSITE LINK TO DR. BEACH’S DAILY DEVOTIONAL – “For a Jesus Follower in Difficult Circumstances, God: ‘is gracious and merciful, slow to anger, and abounding in steadfast love; and he relents over disaster’”: https://awordfromthelord.org/devotional/
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Sunday Aug 01, 2021
Sunday Aug 01, 2021
Jesus WILL Call You to Follow Him Without Reservations While You Incur Earthly Cost Inherent in Being a Jesus Follower
MESSAGE SUMMARY: Jesus asks us to follow Him, but it’s not like He is physically here on earth with us to show us the way. We must discern His intended way for us by listening to His voice and reading His Word and by aligning ourselves with the Holy Spirit who is leading us. Part of what Jesus is teaching us in Luke 9:51-60 is to stop making excuses and reasons for not following Him. Jesus calls us to follow Him now and without reservations and incurring those earthly cost inherent in being a Jesus Follower: “When the days drew near for him to be taken up, he set his face to go to Jerusalem. And he sent messengers ahead of him, who went and entered a village of the Samaritans, to make preparations for him. But the people did not receive him, because his face was set toward Jerusalem. And when his disciples James and John saw it, they said, ‘Lord, do you want us to tell fire to come down from heaven and consume them?’ But he turned and rebuked them. And they went on to another village. As they were going along the road, someone said to him, ‘I will follow you wherever you go.’ And Jesus said to him, ‘Foxes have holes, and birds of the air have nests, but the Son of Man has nowhere to lay his head.’ To another he said, ‘Follow me.’ But he said, ‘Lord, let me first go and bury my father.’ And Jesus said to him, ‘Leave the dead to bury their own dead. But as for you, go and proclaim the kingdom of God.’”.
Christians are not just believers in Jesus; Christians are followers of Jesus. In Matthew 10:37-39, Jesus significantly refines the context and implications of His call to us as His followers: “Whoever loves father or mother more than me is not worthy of me, and whoever loves son or daughter more than me is not worthy of me. And whoever does not take his worthy of me. Whoever finds his life will lose it, and whoever loses his life for my sake will find it.". Our calls from Jesus to follow Him may, often, be moment by moment. As Jesus said to the First Century Christians: follow me today! Is Jesus the Lord, or is Jesus your Lord? You must consciously make the decision to follow Jesus because He will call you.
Jesus said: “Follow me.”. Who and what are you following?
TODAY’S PRAYER: Lord, fill me with the simple trust that even out of the most awful evil around me, you are able to bring great good — for me, for others, and for your great glory. In Jesus’ name, amen. Scazzero, Peter. Emotionally Healthy Spirituality Day by Day (p. 91). Zondervan. Kindle Edition.
Today’s Affirmation: Today, I affirm that because of what God has done for me in His Son, Jesus, I AM FILLED WITH THE HOLY SPIRIT. If you then, though you are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him! (Luke 11:13).
SCRIPTURE REFERENCE (ESV): Luke 9:51-60; Matthew 10:34-42.
A WORD FROM THE LORD WEBSITE: www.AWFTL.org.
WEBSITE LINK TO DR. BEACH’S DAILY DEVOTIONAL – “Jesus Followers Are Given the Incredible Gift of the Holy Spirit - “your ears shall hear a word behind you, saying, ‘This is the way’”: https://awordfromthelord.org/devotional/
DONATE TO AWFTL: https://mygiving.secure.force.com/GXDonateNow?id=a0Ui000000DglsqEAB