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: 1109 Published: 16 Jan 2023
THINKING GREEK OR HEBREW
LOVE AND HATE
Greek (Western) In Greek thought, love and hate are primarily based on emotion.
Generally, love is initiated by feelings or emotion before a commitment is made. Thus we 'fall in love' before making the commitment to get married. (In societies where marriages are arranged, the reverse is the case.) If we then have a negative experience, love can so easily turn into hate, another emotional reaction. In a Christian setting, the evangelist will elicit an emotional response from people before calling them to a commitment to the Lord. Emotional response comes before commitment.
Eastern (Hebrew) In Hebrew thought, ahav is based on a conscious preference or choice.
Love and hate are not emotional concepts in scriptural thought. With this understanding of love being choice, the Scripture about God loving Jacob and hating Esau can be viewed completely differently.
An oracle: The word of the LORD to Israel through Malachi.
Jacob Loved, Esau Hated
2 “I have loved you,” says the LORD. “But you ask, ‘How have you loved us?’ “Was not Esau Jacob’s brother?” the LORD says. “Yet I have loved Jacob, 3 but Esau I have hated, and I have turned his mountains into a wasteland and left his inheritance to the desert jackals.” (Malachi 1:1-3)
The Lord did not 'hate' Esau in an emotional fashion, but rather, he 'chose' Jacob over him.
Similarly, when Jesus said.....
15 “If you love me, you will obey what I command. (John 14:15)
If you make a conscious choice to follow me, then you will choose to obey my instructions to you.
Again, when Jesus spoke about mankind loving darkness, He really meant that we make a conscious choice of evil over good.
19 This is the verdict: Light has come into the world, but men loved darkness instead of light because their deeds were evil. (John 3:19)
The concept of Jesus coming for His bride is now even more interesting. In a traditional Hebrew situation, the father chooses the son's bride. When the vows are made, the bride and groom choose each other. What an amazing analogy! God chooses us for His son Jesus, which we confirm by then choosing to follow Jesus. Take the analogy for the beautiful picture it is, and do not get all confused by arguments of predestination versus freewill. As you can, see both apply here!
So we, the bride then, have chosen to make ourselves ready to receive our groom, Jesus, by living holy and righteous lives.
7 Let us rejoice and be glad and give him glory! For the wedding of the Lamb has come, and his bride has made herself ready. 8 Fine linen, bright and clean, was given her to wear.” (Fine linen stands for the righteous acts of the saints.) (Revelation 19:7-8)
Come Jesus, come.
SOME SPIRITUAL IMPLICATIONS FOR TODAY
1. Jesus requires disciples who have chosen to be fully sold out to Him, not those who have simply made an emotional or mind decision without also living the life of what they supposedly believe.
2. True followers of Jesus are more likely to arise through the example of our actions rather than our words.
3. To reach the Jewish and other Mid-Eastern people particularly, love reflected through action, is essential.
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FROM THE WORD
THE WORDS OF JESUS
Jesus Talks With a Samaritan Woman (John 4:1-26)
Jesus talks to the woman
“Please could you give me a drink?”
“If you only recognized God’s gift, and who is asking you, ‘Please could you give me a drink?’ you would have asked him and he would have given you the water of life.”
“Everyone who drinks water from this well will become thirsty again. But those who drink the water I give won’t ever be thirsty again. The water I give becomes a bubbling spring of water inside them, bringing them eternal life.”
Upon requesting the water of life.
“Go and call your husband, and come back here,”
“You’re right in saying you don’t have a husband,” Jesus told her. You’ve had five husbands, and the one you’re living with now is not your husband. So what you say is true!”
About worshipping in Jerusalem.
“Believe me the time is coming when you won’t worship the Father either on this mountain or in Jerusalem. You really don’t know the God you’re worshiping, while we worship the God we know, for salvation comes from the Jews. But the time is coming—and in fact it’s here already—when true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and in truth, for these are the kind of worshipers the Father wants. 24God is Spirit, so worshipers must worship in spirit and in truth.”
Talking about the Messiah.
“I AM—the one who is speaking to you.”
The Disciples Question Jesus (John 4:27-42)
About whether he has had food to eat.
“I have food to eat that you know nothing about.”
“My food is to do the will of the One who sent me, and to complete his work. Don’t you have a saying, ‘four more months until harvest?’ Open your eyes and look around! The crops in the fields are ripe, ready for harvest. The reaper is being paid and harvesting a crop for eternal life so that both the sower and the reaper can celebrate. So the proverb ‘one sows, another reaps,’ is true. I sent you to reap what you didn’t work for. Others did the hard work and you have reaped the benefits of what they did.”
Jesus Rejected at Nazareth (Luke 4:14-30)
His home town. Reading from the scroll of Isaiah.
“The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, for he has anointed me to announce good news to the destitute. He has sent me to proclaim that prisoners will be released, the blind will see, the oppressed will be freed, and to proclaim the time of the Lord’s favor.”
“This Scripture you’ve just heard has been fulfilled today!”
“I’m sure you’ll repeat this proverb to me, ‘Physician, heal yourself!’ and ask, “Why don’t you do here in your own hometown what we heard you did in Capernaum?” But I tell you the truth, no prophet is accepted in his hometown. I guarantee that there were many widows in Israel during the time of Elijah when there was a drought for three and a half years, causing a great famine throughout the country. Yet Elijah wasn’t sent to any of them. He was sent to a widow in Zarephath in the region of Sidon! Even though there were many lepers in Israel in the time of Elisha, the only one who was healed was Naaman the Syrian!”
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'THE WORDS OF JESUS' REMAIN AVAILABLE FOR PDF DOWNLOAD
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
A MATTER OF TIME
64. The most precious gift I can give is my time.
65. In youth, time is measured as the grains of sand on the beach;
In middle age, by the thinning hairs on our head;
But in old age, each day is as precious as they all really were.
66. Be honoured when one gives you of their time, for it is an irreplaceable gift.
67. Time is more precious than gold, for it cannot be bought at any price.
206. We must remember that the past is gone, the future is yet to come, but what I am doing now is the reality of today.
207. The only stride in the race of life that we can instantly change, is the one we are now taking.
68. If I was given a dollar for every minute I have wasted in my life, I would be able to waste the rest of it in absolute luxury.
69. Time is not valued until it is running out.
70. Time is like any other commodity. When you have plenty of it, it is valueless but when it is short, it is priceless.
CARTOONS FROM TOON FEVER
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TUESDAY TEACHINGS
NEXT WEEK: ‘THE RAPTURE’ - SATAN’S PLAN OF DECEPTION WITHIN TODAY’S CHURCH .....
.....continues
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LAUGHING AT OURSELVES
***Blessed are those who can laugh at themselves for they shall never cease to be amused***
295. Baby Picture?
After making a few calls at the local hospital, the pastor got on the crowded elevator to head for the lobby. A young man, grinning broadly, was passing around a photograph. Amid appreciative smiles, someone asked for the weight. "Six-and-a-half pounds," the young man exclaimed.
"Congratulations," the pastor interjected. "Boy or girl?"
His grin spread even farther. "Bass," he said.
296. Religious Symbols
A kindergarten teacher gave her class a "show and tell" assignment of bringing something to represent their religion.
The first boy got in front of the class and said, "My name is Benjamin and I am Jewish and this is the Star of David."
The second boy got in front of the class and said, "My name is Thomas and I am Catholic and this is the Crucifix."
The third boy got in front of the class and said, " My name is Johnny and I am Baptist and this is a casserole."
A rabbi said to a precocious six-year-old boy: "So your mother says your prayers for you each night Very commendable. What does she say?"
The little boy replied, "Thank God he's in bed!"
QWIK QWIP: “If God is your co-pilot - Swap seats!"
98. A Choice of Hymns
One Sunday a pastor told his congregation that the church needed some extra money and asked the people to prayerfully consider giving a little extra in the offering plate.
He said that whoever gave the most would be able to pick out three hymns.
After the offering plates were passed, the pastor glanced down and noticed that someone had placed a $1,000 bill in offering. He was so excited that he immediately shared his joy with his congregation and said he'd like to personally thank the person who placed the money in the plate.
A very quiet, elderly, saintly lady all the way in the back shyly raised her hand. The pastor asked her to come to the front. Slowly she made her way to the pastor. He told her how wonderful it was that she gave so much and in thanksgiving asked her to pick out three hymns.
Her eyes brightened as she looked over the congregation, pointed to the three handsomest men in the building and said, "I'll take him and him and him."
QWIK QWIP: “We don't change God's message - His message changes us.”
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
Sorting out between Jesus, the Holy Spirit, and God the Father is nsomething that even Christians get confused about, let alone non-Christians. For Muslims, it is completely irrational!
But that is what we have.....
God the Father
God the Son and
God the Holy Spirit.
Jesus saves us, the Holy Spirit is our teacher and guide (if we will let Him be!) and we are to pray to the Father, listening to Him in sillence to hear do His will for us., and then do it.
The best illustration I know of 1 in 3 and 3 in 1 is water. For we have rhe water we drink, we have ice and we have steam when water is boiled. Each of the 3 are 1 in a different form.
Such is God.
Until next time
His servant and yours
David Tait
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ABOUT US
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
wwj.org.nz or by contacting us as follows.
Walking With Jesus Ministries
P O Box 2
Webuye 50205
Kenya
Email: enquiries@wwj.org.nz
Web: wwj.org.nz
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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