A Weekly World Wide Word of Encouragement to those in the Ministry
PRAISE GOD IT’S MONDAY!
A WEEKLY ‘WWW (world-wide word) OF ENCOURAGEMENT’
TO THOSE IN MINISTRY
A FREE service, currently connecting with Christian leaders from 3,000 denominations and ministries, in 70 countries.
Issue No: 1012 Published: 08 Mar 2021
THINKING GREEK OR HEBREW
BLESSINGS AND CURSES
Greek (Western) In Greek thought, blessings and curses are related to circumstances.
When something good happens such as a promotion or financial success, a person is blessed. If something bad happens, we consider we are cursed. Adore God more and we will be blessed, on the other hand, ignore him and we will be cursed. Put simply, blessings are when good things happen, curses, when bad things happen.
Eastern (Hebrew) In Hebrew thought however, blessings are related to obedience and curses to disobedience
Good and bad things happen in life, which are totally unrelated to obedience and disobedience. Knowing this, we can better understand the discourse between God, the devil, and Job. God held up Job as an example of one who was willing to suffer for Him, for He knew Job's faith was not dependent upon receiving physical blessings.....
7 The LORD said to Satan, “Where have you come from?” Satan answered the LORD, “From roaming through the earth and going back and forth in it.” 8 Then the LORD said to Satan, “Have you considered my servant Job? There is no one on earth like him; he is blameless and upright, a man who fears God and shuns evil.” (Job 1:7-8)
Satan, took the typical Greek thought attitude that Job's faith was only so high because he was materially blessed.....
9 “Does Job fear God for nothing?” Satan replied. 10 “Have you not put a hedge around him and his household and everything he has? You have blessed the work of his hands, so that his flocks and herds are spread throughout the land. 11 But stretch out your hand and strike everything he has, and he will surely curse you to your face.” (Job 1:99-11)
So God allowed Job to be tested.....
12 The LORD said to Satan, “Very well, then, everything he has is in your hands, but on the man himself do not lay a finger.” Then Satan went out from the presence of the LORD. (Job 1:12)
As we know Job's 3 friends ridiculed him, and Job himself questioned God, but stood firm in his faith. God corrected them.....
7 After the LORD had said these things to Job, he said to Eliphaz the Temanite, “I am angry with you and your two friends, because you have not spoken of me what is right, as my servant Job has. 8 So now take seven bulls and seven rams and go to my servant Job and sacrifice a burnt offering for yourselves. My servant Job will pray for you, and I will accept his prayer and not deal with you according to your folly. You have not spoken of me what is right, as my servant Job has.” 9 So Eliphaz the Temanite, Bildad the Shuhite and Zophar the Naamathite did what the LORD told them; and the LORD accepted Job’s prayer. (Job 42:7-9)
As this is the Old Testament, where the kingdom was primarily expressed in the material as opposed to the spiritual of the New Testament, Job was rewarded with material blessings for his obedience.....
10 After Job had prayed for his friends, the LORD made him prosperous again and gave him twice as much as he had before. (Job 42:10)
We fail to understand, because of our Western way of thinking, that all the promises of God are conditional upon obedience. We all too often take the 'blessings verses' out of context, not looking at the conditions upon which the blessings are based, that precede or follow them. We do not understand that there is a cost to following Jesus.
The classic New Testament example is the Beatitudes, where each of the 9 blessings comes at a cost. For example, if we want mercy, we need to show mercy to others.....
7 Blessed are the merciful, for they will be shown mercy. (Matthew 5:7)
Jesus concludes this teaching with the statement that we must endure persecution in order to receive the blessings.....
12 Rejoice and be glad, because great is your reward in heaven, for in the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you. (Matthew 5:12)
Paul too, understood this principle that he participated in the (spiritual New Testament) blessings, only because he was willing to pay the price of obedience.....
22 To the weak I became weak, to win the weak. I have become all things to all men so that by all possible means I might save some. 23 I do all this for the sake of the gospel, that I may share in its blessings. (1 Corinthians 9:20-21)
This is a profound truth, misunderstood by most believers today.
SOME SPIRITUAL IMPLICATIONS FOR TODAY
1. The 'Father Christmas' Christianity of 'come to God and all will be well with you' that is so often taught today, is both a dangerous and false doctrine which inevitably ends in disappointment and rejection when it proves not to be true in people's life experience.
2. The primarily spiritual blessings of the New Testament are received by those prepared to pay the price of obedience to the Father's will.
3. Wealth, success and failure, expressed in worldly terms, are normally the result of the circumstances of life, rather than the blessing or cursing of God.
4. The spiritual blessings of God can, and often are, experienced by those in the direst physical and material circumstances.
5. God looks to what we are, rather than how we are or how much we have.
(Continues next week)
Acknowledgements: http://www.followtherabbi.com and http://hethathasanear.com and http://www.wildbranch.org
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FROM THE WORD
THE WORDS OF JESUS
May we hear what the Lord is saying to us.....
The Widow’s Mite (Mark 12:41-4, Luke 21:1-4)
Donated to the Temple.
“I tell you the truth: this poor widow has put in more than all the rest together. All of them gave from their wealth what they had, but she gave from her poverty what she didn’t have. She put in all she had to live on.”
Disciples Admire the Temple (Matthew 24:1-2, Mark 13:1-2, Luke 21:5-6)
“You see all these buildings? I tell you the truth: there won’t be one stone left upon another. Every last one will come crashing down!”
The Four Fishermen Disciples Ask Jesus (Matthew 24:3-35, Mark 13:3-31, Luke 21:7-31)
About the signs of the end of the age.
“Make sure no one misleads you,” “Many will come claiming to be me, saying, ‘I’m the Messiah,’ and they will deceive many people. You’ll hear about wars, and rumors about wars, but don’t be anxious. These things have to happen, but this isn’t the end. Nations will attack other nations, and kingdoms will fight against other kingdoms. There will be famines and earthquakes in various places, 8but all these things are just the beginnings of birth pains.
“Then they will arrest you, they will persecute you, and they will kill you. All people will hate you because of me. At that time many believers will give up believing. They will betray one another and hate one another. Many false prophets will come and deceive many people. The increasing evil will lead the love of many to grow cold, but those who hold out to the end will be saved. The good news of the kingdom will be proclaimed around the whole world so everyone will be able to hear it, and then the end will come. So when you see the ‘evil that defiles’ standing in the holy place that the prophet Daniel spoke about (those who read this please consider carefully), then the people living in Judea should run away to the mountains. Anyone who is on the housetop must not go down and fetch what’s in the house. Anyone who is out in the fields must not go back to get a coat. How awful it will be for those who are pregnant, and those who are nursing babies at that time! Pray that you don’t have to run away in winter, or on the Sabbath day. For at that time there will be terrible persecution—more terrible than anything that has happened from the beginning of the world up till now, and won’t ever happen again. Unless those days are cut short, nobody will be saved, but for the sake of the chosen those days will be cut short.
“So if anyone tells you, ‘Look, here’s the Messiah,’ or, ‘There he is,’ don’t believe it. For false messiahs will appear, and false prophets too, and they will perform incredible signs and miracles in order to deceive the chosen, if that were possible. Notice that I’ve told you this before it even happens. So if they tell you, ‘Look, he’s out in the desert,’ don’t go looking there; or if they say, ‘Look, he’s secretly here,’ don’t believe it. For the coming of the Son of man will be like the lightning that flashes brightly from east to west. Vultures gather where the carcass is.’
“But right after those days of persecution the sun will be darkened, the moon will not shine, the stars will fall from heaven, and the powers of heaven will be shaken. Then the sign of the Son of man will appear in heaven, and all the peoples of the earth will mourn. They will see the Son of man coming on the clouds of heaven with power and in brilliant glory. With a blast from a trumpet he will send his angels to gather his chosen ones from every place, from one end of heaven and earth to the other.
“Learn an illustration from the fig tree. When its shoots become tender and leaves begin to sprout, you know that summer is coming. In the same way when you see all these things happening, you know that his coming is near, in fact it’s right at the door! I tell you the truth: this generation won’t pass away until all these things have happened. Heaven and earth may pass away, but my words won’t pass away.
(Continued next week)
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Join the many who have downloaded the 'The Words of Jesus'. I am sure you will be blessed by it, as I have been.
One key element here is the setting out in chronological order (as far as it is possible to do so) our Lord's words drawn from all the Gospels, and the elimination of repetition between Gospels.
You may be surprised by the different perspective this presentation gives you both in understanding of His life and ministry, and in achieving a closer relationship with Him.
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DAVID'S DOODLINGS
429. Our job is 'to be', so that God can use us 'to do'.
550. How is it that those who hate mice can still manage to operate a computer?
551. How is it that 'back seat drivers' usually sit in the front passenger's seat?
552. Heroism is in the eye of the beholder.
553. You may know how to get there but you first have to know where to go!
554. For another to believe you is good, to believe in you, life giving.
555. The quickest way to get feedback is to make a mistake.
556. If you don't think anyone is listening, make a mistake and you will be sure to find out!
557. To be believed pleases the mind, to be believed in, builds up the soul.
CARTOONS FROM TOON FEVER
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TUESDAY TEACHINGS
THIS WEEK:GOD AND MAN continues.....
... as we look at 10 steps towards claiming our inheritance.
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LAUGHING AT OURSELVES
***Blessed are those who can laugh at themselves for they shall never cease to be amused***
*** Those who can't laugh at themselves leave the job to others. ***
20. Signs Outside Churches
YOU ARE NOT TOO BAD TO COME IN
YOU ARE NOT TOO GOOD TO STAY OUT.
COME IN AND LET US PREPARE YOU FOR YOUR FINALS.
A MISER IS A RICH PAUPER.
ASK ABOUT OUR PRAY-AS-YOU-GO PLAN.
WE HOLD SIT-IN DEMONSTRATIONS EVERY SUNDAY.
NO MATTER HOW MUCH YOU NURSE A GRUDGE
IT WON’T GET BETTER.
START LIVING TO BEAT HELL.
QWIK QWIP: “Plan ahead - It wasn't raining when Noah built the ark.”
21. Feed My Cow
One Sunday a cowboy went to church. When he entered, he saw that he and the preacher were the only ones present. The preacher asked the cowboy if he wanted him to go ahead and preach.
The cowboy said, "I'm not too smart, but if I went to feed my cattle and only one showed up, I'd feed him."
So the minister began his sermon.
One hour passed, then two hours, then two-and-a-half hours. The preacher finally finished and came down to ask the cowboy how he had liked the sermon.
The cowboy answered slowly, "Well, I'm not very smart, but if I went to feed my cattle and only one showed up, I sure wouldn't feed him ALL the hay."
QWIK QWIP: “WARNING: “Exposure to the Son may prevent burning.”
22. Heavenly Guidance
A boy was watching his father, a pastor, write his sermon. "How do you know what to say?" he asked.
"Why, God tells me."
"Oh, then why do you keep crossing things out?"
Download the book 'Laughing At Ourselves' in PDF format at LAUGHING AT OURSELVES One of the most comprehensive sources of Christian Humour on the Net with 800 sermon fillers for your entertainment and use at ..... https://www.wwj.org.nz/content/wwj18p47.pdf
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A DAVID MUSING
A great difference between Africans and Europeans is that generally, they see the glass half full, while mostly Westerners see it as half empty. Just a little more........
In spite of having little, African's lives' are mostly happier than those of Westerners, constantly seeking more.
What does it show? First and foremost, possessions are not the source of happiness.
I can personally attest to that. After selling a business when God asked me to go into full time ministry, I invested the profits in building a block of flats, so that we would have an income and not have to rely upon others to support us.
Costs went up and property prices down, so I went bankrupt. God said to me, "Now you will truly rely upon me!" "Yes, Lord!."
Since that time, some 25 years ago, Kathy and I have lived, initially on her wages as a nurse, and now on a Government pension. The only advantage of adding years onto your age! LOL!
For these 25 years, we have not acquired the things our friends have, have been through many experiences and finally, for the past, nearly 4 years, have found ourselves in Kenya.
We have few possessions, but it has been a most satisfying, if frustrating at times, period of my life. A prime example of joy not coming through accumulating possessions.
Most Christian Africans, and there are very many here in Kenya, have to rely upon God, for they have nothing else.
However, as the Western world makes inroads through TV and the internet, Africa will change too. For the pull of possessions, supposedly, according to the advertizing gurus, to make you happier, is starting to take hold here too.
Of course, not all innovation is bad, for the development of cell phones and the availability of vehicles has revolutionized a society where you once lived in your own village environment and told the time by looking at the sun.
Peace and joy though, come through a personal relationship with Jesus. As the song goes, "He is all you need".
What are the priorities in your life?
Until next time.....
MAY GOD BLESS YOU AND YOU BLESS GOD
His servant and yours
David Tait
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WALKING WITH JESUS MINISTRIES is a non-profit, non-denominational, Bible based ministry located in Hastings, New Zealand. A ministry dedicated to developing discipleship, fostering unity amongst God's people to achieve the Great Commission, and in doing so, preparing for Christ's return. It is securely based upon the foundational principles of the Apostles Creed while recognising the wide and rich diversity of beliefs amongst Christians in other areas. In accordance with the Lord's direction, materials produced by the ministry are available, free of charge, to genuine enquirers upon request. The ministry is solely funded by donations, as the Lord provides. A list of materials available (plus some fun!) is obtainable and freely downloadable from our website
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Our role is to bless and encourage those in ministry while promoting co-operation and unity of direction amongst the body of Christ, as emphasised 3 times by Jesus in His longest prayer, immediately prior to His arrest and crucifixion. "... so that they may be one as we are one." (John 17:12, 21, 23-4) Our website is currently being developed to encourage your participation one with another, to share resources, and to enable you to promote events and items of interest to the body as a whole - and have a smile while doing it!
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