Matthew 6:36 ~ He had compassion for them

Matthew 6:36

He had compassion for them, because they were harassed and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd.




I've lived here for 17 years. Chris Tomlin is famous. Ok, yes I've seen him in videos a couple of times.

Chris Tomlin - "Amazing Grace". Oh gosh, that's who this is! Well, that is the extent of I know the songs, I can sing them, but who is the author? Ok, well, that's just me.



Circles - how we get in further with Jesus Christ.

Life circumstance. I know Chris Tomplin's "Amazing Grace" because one of my favorite movies about William Wilberforce and Benedict Cumberland is always, of course, Prime Minister of Good - William Pitt. This movie defines the enduring work of God's ministers. And defines God. When a man loves the Lord, he makes even his enemies at peace with him. The Slave trade ended because big government could make big money on big taxation and keeping slave trade ships - strengthening the navy.

The Slave Trade ended because GOD IS GOD. We all know the bumper sticker saying, "Be Nice or we will bring you Democracy." God definitely proved who is God to end the Slave Trade. Like Zechariah discovered.

I LOVE GOD, man, He is better than the Gipper!!!







Circle?


So we live in the world of what Circle is this? We never, and I mean nevah, evah, thought we'd all live in the age of Jane Jetson. AND we do. We can't relate present circumstance to the past - nope.

YES. WE CAN. This is exactly like being confronted with "He had compassion for them, because they were harassed and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd." And you think - I can't write this Post - how do I do this.

Because God is the same yesterday, today and tomorrow. We are in this circle.




Circle?

Ok. back to the Chris Tomlin reference. You write music (I am told) knowing the notes. The refrain. The melody. We have to see the bigger picture to move through the piece. And the longer the song becomes melody - becomes art - becomes warm - becomes Love.

Seeing the movement. And for our purposes, the Movement of God Himself.







Circle?

These present times are confusing. We don't know what is what and what will develop and the unrest in the news, less NFL, less TV and more complaining. And weird news. And then and the and then Houston is flooded and Louisiana and Texas watch as all people truly love and care. We realize - We have God. We still have something INCREDIBLE.







Circle?

Incredible Times. Every 500 years we have historically something where we all rejoice at a Movement of God Himself. Why do we like God? HE Fathers us. He Loves us.


Incredible Time.
Circa 1500 B.C. The Exodus is the first, fancy word - Domitan Heresy - the Church is only for saints. If you look at the Exodus you find the Children of Israel are - uninformed. They don't know Who is their God. They don't know His Name. They are just having a really pretty lousy life. And God defines a lot of the 5 Books of Moses as - similar to Pharaoh. Ray Vander Laan does an AMAZING job showing - God reached down to pluck up truly miserable people to Help Them. Astonishing. People wandering around sort of grubby in a pretty messed up culture. Sort of like, om, Woodstock om?



1000 B.C. King David. Wow. David primarily believed he was anointed. God told the truth all the time. Be obedient to God. Believe in the compassion, the overwhelming compassion of God. The Nation of the Tribes finally begins.


500 B.C. Second Exile. Jeremiah, with God, pegged this absolutely. And the Babylonian Chronicles = the Bible.  Cuneiforms - Down to the food the imprisoned King of Judea ate with his sons. Why? The people of Judah were having revisionist history times. They were arguing the Exodus didn't and wouldn't occur. Moses and Jeremiah spoke this saying the people said they were from the North, like Abraham. Not from Egypt, like Joseph. Religion was time to show your piety hour.





Incredible Time.

1 A.D. Christian Era. The Church (the Bible does occasionally refer to the Temple in Jerusalem as Church) is running pretty smoothly next door to a Non-Davidic King married to his sister-in-law putting the polish on the Temple as dictating the message. Eeeeeseeenes. The Essenes run out screaming. And with this we have the Dead Sea Scrolls and and and Jesus Himself. Mary says the History of the nation is so far gone that the Davidic Line gets only a glance. And the Historians tell us so much money rolled in to Judea that only the Renaissance of 1400 A.D. compares. We would have seen Rolls Royces riding the Romans and their employees around.

And this is the Time Isaiah told us Jesus would arrive - and He did. The earthquake is reported in 33 A.D. with Passover. The Eclipse is Reported A.D. 33 at the Passover. Gosh, you know, God is so GOD, that probably December 25th could actually be the birth of Jesus Christ. Wow. Imagine. Almost like the calendar bows to Jesus Christ. Of the world. Hummmm.




And following the Early Church of Jesus Christ (He told us about in Caesarea) we find persecution, incredible weather - earthquakes, bad lightning, flooding, incredible trade across the seas for the first time, Plague recorded for the first time, Marriage laws being redefined by Emperor Augustus. The loss of a dependable family. Increasing violence and unrest. Loss of trade and the beginning of the Middle Ages due to huddle up fortress cities behind walls. God was getting the attention of the people. Times begin to Change in the Roman Empire's 600 years.







1000 A.D. Wow, we have more written History from the edges of the world. Due to the Church establishing more order. Widespread Christianity.

And then we get to the Church inventing feeding the poor daily. Teaching Agriculture. Making sure starvation (which is 1 in 3 people die of starvation when the Church doesn't feed the people) and everyone feels very secure.


1500 A.D. About this time Latin is not spoken all that commonly and Church is read in Latin. The Bible is not handed out. And we are recovering from the Plagues which continue to pop up even to 1600 A.D. Out from behind the Middle Ages wall, due to Church demanding 'Just Behavior'. But the Church has 1 out of 2 clerics living some type of sin that is not Chastity. Beginning of the Bible coming into the hands of people to read of the Glory of God themselves. An amazing change.

Glory of God - His Love has no ending and no beginning. Enduring. Eternal.


Circle.

Which brings us to today. Almost all Christians have changed denominations to explore what Father God is to them. How they will relate to the Almighty. What the Word of God brings to their hearts. An amazing time.

Matthew 6:36

He had compassion for them, because they were harassed and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd.


God said that seeing the Light of Christ is being unable to put a flammable basket onto a Candle.


So I'm going to offer up what I see in this, as a parable. From my life. Getting to hear right this minute Depeche Mode in concert about 2 miles away and hearing this now to share with you:

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When I was in my 20's, I worked for Club Corp. I traveled about 4 days a week and we went to a lot of their 290 Country Clubs. We were in poor Florida - in Tampa. Tampa Bay Golf and Country Club. It was 1985 and the drought was terrible. Concerns were raised about the Everglades. All was crunchy brown beige. It was very sad.

We arrived about 2:30, from a glitch in the airport. And we were offered lunch. As we sat down, we were in the room with about 10 or 15 die hard golfers who just were going to play, even if they were describing the brown dead crunch, crunch of every step on the golf course. The manager was standing and talking to them and he, frankly, looked extremely glum. You bet when you are in this kind of drought - people are not strolling about playing golf. One asked the manager how bad this was to him, personally. The Club Manager said it's like you - it's the dried out future of the everglades and hearing about crunch while strolling on what should be the 'greens'. One of the golfers told the manager he looked like he was going to cry. About that time, we all felt incredibly sorry for the manager.

I said, "Ron, it's raining." The manager looked at me and said, "That's drought - always the clouds - never the rain." I said no - I think that is sprinkles. We all turned to watch the beige greens. And one golfer said, "It is Sprinkles." The Club Manager ran to the glass doors and went to the Porch. He bellowed, "It's NOT SPRINKLES, IT"S A DOWNPOUR!!!" And with this, the Club Manager ran out from under the porch and ran screaming and yelling on to the Green. Jumping and Leaping and Praising God. Two of the Golfers ran with him.

The other men said, "We never had a manager like this one. He likes us. He loves the property. I think he loves us."

And the Club Manager ran in soaking wet, jumping and screaming, with the other two golfers.  Running in circles on the golf green. They were all yelling, "It's a MIRACLE. A MIRACLE OF GOD."

I'm pretty sure we all cried. I said, "God is good." And the other table said, "Yes."

To live the Mercy of God unforeseen by forecast - is to know the Compassion of God. To see the dry bones earth - live. To see God's Hand Move. The next day, everyone said they all stood outside in the rain. They told stories like the entire gas station just stood out in the pouring rain. And for two weeks it rained well, off and on raining, gently and steadily.

For two weeks, everyone discussed the Miracle of The End of the Drought. And we went on home to Texas. But I will never forget seeing the Mercy of GOD. Watching the land turn green again.

Let there be Light. Jesus Christ Messiah. The Fire did not consume the bush. And above their heads were flames of fire. Their hearts were suddenly warm and they perceived Jesus, living and breathing.

And once you have Lived the Goodness of God.

You know How Good God is. Yesterday, Today and Tomorrow. This is the Joy of seeing people Nourished by Father God's Love. To see the hungry - filled.

This is the Joy of the Body of Jesus Christ, God's Beloved. To live being Cherished of God. He has compassion for us.




Abba!

We praise You for Antioch Lives. For the bravery of the Robert Eagle, age 22, Ushering at the Burnette Chapel Church of Christ in Antioch, Tenn. near Nashville.
Robert Eagle is as a "hero" for making sure a gunman stopped. "He's amazing," she said. "Without him, I think it could be worse."

For May 19, 2016 A church elder, Tony Williams, 57, is being called a hero for his quick action in grabbing the shooter’s gun hand, pointing the weapon away from the victim and the crowd, and disarming her.

We thank You, Father God, in the midst of great changes, we see Your Holy Spirit Shepherd the Beloved of God.

Blessed be the Name of Jesus Christ.

You hear our prayers, You comfort and strengthen us. You nourish and encourage us. You give us amazing things like using steam for pre-term infants. We live in a time of God's Pleasure. You see the world, mankind - Your response is to Delight to Love and Save.

We thank You God for enfolding the ones we love, the people You have given us. To our Nation and the World calling upon Jesus Christ. For the people who do wonderful goodness like buying and giving a cup of coffee. Joy is Jesus.

Amen and Amen.

♔ Lord Jesus Saves!  †