Luke 20:34-40 ~ He is not God of the dead, but of the living, for all live to Him

The magnitude of this cloud over Lake Texhoma was amazing. Even more amazing, the cloud stood there for about two hours. We decided this was an Archangel. Suddenly the cloud was gone. A few clouds remained, none in the shape of an angel.

Luke 20:34-40

And Jesus said to them, “The sons of this age marry and are given in marriage, 35 but those who are considered worthy to attain to that age and to the resurrection from the dead neither marry nor are given in marriage, 36 for they cannot die anymore, because they are equal to angels and are sons of God, being sons of the resurrection. 

37 But that the dead are raised, even Moses showed, in the passage about the bush, where he calls the Lord the God of Abraham and the God of Isaac and the God of Jacob. 38 Now he is not God of the dead, but of the living, for all live to him.” 39 Then some of the scribes answered, “Teacher, you have spoken well.” 40 For they no longer dared to ask him any question.

Perhaps this photo is an analogy, Jesus said bring Heaven to earth. And be a tree where the birds of the forest can dwell among the branches and in this striving - we all have one Angel  -Matthew 18:10 

Angels are part of God's Heavenly Host. When you have Jesus, He covers all of the Heavenly Host.

The New Testament and the Gospels have many references to Angels. There are 60% more references to Angels in the New Testament.






Because Jesus says this:

Matthew 18:10
See that you do not despise one of these little ones.
 For I tell you that in heaven their angels always see the face of my Father who is in heaven.

Father God boldly tells of balance. God - Himself - is our worship.

Colossians 2:18
Don't let anyone condemn you by insisting on pious self-denial 
or the worship of angels, saying they have had visions about these things. Their sinful minds have made them proud

Angels have been in eternal life a long time - they fully understand who God is.
Seeing His Kingdom and some sing to Father God day and night.

 

Revelation 19
6 Then I heard what seemed to be the voice of a great multitude, like the roar of many waters and like the sound of mighty peals of thunder, crying out,

“Hallelujah!
For the Lord our God
the Almighty reigns.

Let us rejoice and exult
and give him the glory

Jesus says the position of Heaven to earth is quite different.

Matthew 11:11
Truly I tell you, among those born of women there has not risen anyone greater than John the Baptist; yet whoever is least in the kingdom of heaven is greater than he.

Psalm 8 and Hebrews 2

4 what is man that you are mindful of him,
and the son of man that you care for him?

5 Yet you have made him a little lower than the heavenly beings
and crowned him with glory and honor.
6 You have given him dominion over the works of your hands;
you have put all things under his feet

Hebrews 2:9
But we do see Jesus, who was made lower than the angels for a little while, now crowned with glory and honor because he suffered death, so that by the grace of God he might taste death for everyone.

1 Corinthians 6:3
Do you not know that we will judge angels?

And who would do this and where?

Daniel 7:22
Until the Ancient of Days came and pronounced judgment in favor of the holy people of the Most High, and the time came when they possessed the kingdom.








For millenniums prophets of God have told of so great a Salvation - searching, inquiring carefully, predictions about the sufferings of our Jesus and the subsequent glories Jesus would give us -

What did the angels do?

1 Peter 1
12 It was revealed to them that they were serving not themselves but you, in the things that have now been announced to you through those who preached the good news to you by the Holy Spirit sent from heaven, things into which angels long to look.

How shall we, the children of God respond?

1 Peter 1
13 So think clearly and exercise self-control. 
Look forward to the gracious salvation that will come to you when Jesus Christ is revealed to the world. 

14 So you must live as God’s obedient children. Don’t slip back into your old ways of living to satisfy your own desires. You didn’t know any better then. 1 But now you must be holy in everything you do, just as God who chose you is holy. 16 For the Scriptures say, “You must be holy because I am holy.”

17 And remember that the heavenly Father to whom you pray has no favorites. He will judge or reward you according to what you do. So you must live in reverent fear of him during your time as “foreigners in the land.” 

18 For you know that God paid a ransom to save you from the empty life you inherited from your ancestors. And the ransom he paid was not mere gold or silver. 19 It was the precious blood of Christ, the sinless, spotless Lamb of God.

20 God chose him as your ransom long before the world began, but he has now revealed him to you in these last days.

21 Through Christ you have come to trust in God. 
And you have placed your faith and hope in God because he raised Christ from the dead and gave him great glory.



Matthew 16:27

For the Son of Man is going to come 
with his angels 
in the glory of his Father, 
and then he will repay each person 
according to what he has done.

Father God, as Your children fled from Romans - the children hearing of the Good News of Jesus Christ for the first time were in awe to learn that God would just "give." You have given to us by choosing Your Plan for us long before time began. You have given us a Hope and a Future for those who have called upon Your Son Jesus earnestly.

Angels have seen for millenniums the amazing wonders and signs of God. We will live to see 75 references to Angels in Your Book of Revelation. We have been born again, but not to a life that will quickly end. Our new life will last forever because it comes from the eternal, living Word of God.

Night will be no more. We will need no light of lamp or sun, for the Lord God will be our light, and Jesus will reign forever and ever. These words are trustworthy and true. And the Lord, the God of the Spirits of the prophets, has sent His angel to show His servants - Jesus will be coming soon. Blessed is the one who keeps the Words of God. We thank You, God, you are the fulfillment of the Law.

Father God, even the darkness is not dark to You; You formed my inward parts and You knitted me together in my mother's womb. My frame was not hidden from You, when I was being made in secret, intricately woven in the depths of the earth. Your eyes saw my unformed substance.

Your love had You write my name, in your book were written, every one of them, the days that were formed for me, when as yet there was none of them.

How precious to me are your thoughts, O God! How vast is the sum of them! Your Love is higher than all the heavens, in order to fill the whole universe. This is the Fullness of You, Father God. Open the eyes of all people. We pray for unborn baby Jackson - his chin has now profoundly grown. We pray for his eye to form and his face and mouth to receive the blessing and joy of the healing of Jesus Christ the Lord, with earnestness.

I am still with you. Upon Your mercy and grace, in Jesus, we hold fast and ask Your favor for us and for the ones we Love. You have blessed us. Amen.

♔ Lord Jesus Saves †

 

Psalm 18:1-20 ~ The LORD has dealt with me according to my righteousness;according to the cleanness of my hands he has rewarded me.

Psalm 18:1-20

1 I love you, O LORD, my strength.
2 The LORD is my rock, my fortress and my deliverer;
my God is my rock, in whom I take refuge.
He is my shield and the horn of my salvation, my stronghold.

Earthquake painted at the foot of the Cross, James Tissot

3 I call to the LORD, who is worthy of praise,
and I am saved from my enemies.

Calvary Rock of the Earthquake geologist forensically say occurred in 33 A,D. Jerusalem

4 The cords of death entangled me;
the torrents of destruction overwhelmed me.
5 The cords of the grave coiled around me;
the snares of death confronted me.
6 In my distress I called to the LORD;
I cried to my God for help.
From his temple he heard my voice;
my cry came before him, into his ears.

7 The earth trembled and quaked,
and the foundations of the mountains shook;
they trembled because he was angry.

8 Smoke rose from his nostrils;
consuming fire came from his mouth,
burning coals blazed out of it.

9 He parted the heavens and came down;
dark clouds were under his feet.

10 He mounted the cherubim and flew;
he soared on the wings of the wind.

11 He made darkness his covering, his canopy around him—
the dark rain clouds of the sky.

12 Out of the brightness of his presence clouds advanced,
with hailstones and bolts of lightning.

13 The LORD thundered from heaven;
the voice of the Most High resounded.

14 He shot his arrows and scattered the enemies ,
great bolts of lightning and routed them.

15 The valleys of the sea were exposed
and the foundations of the earth laid bare
at your rebuke, O LORD,
at the blast of breath from your nostrils.

16 He reached down from on high and took hold of me;
he drew me out of deep waters.
 

17 He rescued me from my powerful enemy,
from my foes, who were too strong for me.

18 They confronted me in the day of my disaster,
but the LORD was my support.

19 He brought me out into a spacious place;
he rescued me because he delighted in me.

20 The LORD has dealt with me according to my righteousness;
according to the cleanness of my hands he has rewarded me.

This Psalm of David is rejoicing with an overflowing heart in the mercy of God.

 Prophetic David is telling of events of Jesus Christ before the Temple is built and before the birth of Jesus our Lord a thousand years before Jesus.

The earthquake & events after Jesus forgave us and dismissed His Spirit. 

Because Jesus gave us His Holy Spirit, the Psalm is about us, individually. In our day of trouble, we call out to Him and He saves us forever.


Father God, We call out to You when we have circumstances to call upon You. We pray for the people in low lying areas of Tropical Storm Bill. And our roofs to hold well all over the area.

I pray for my loved one's employment opportunity, to go be blessed by You, to walk with Your People. Thank You for this opportunity and the name given to me with great care 23 years ago. You give us Hope in our lives. Thank You, Father God.

I pray for the communication in our family to be complete and in Your mercy.

Your great Love assures us that Your Plan in us enables us to do our lives learning how high, how wide, how deep is the Love You have for us. I lift up all of this week to You in expectation of Your goodness.

Thank You, Father for Jesus. Amen.


 

♔ Lord Jesus Saves †

 

Luke 6 ~ He said to him, “Stretch out your hand.”

Luke 6:1-16

On a Sabbath, while he was going through the grainfields, his disciples plucked and ate some heads of grain, rubbing them in their hands. 2 But some of the Pharisees said, “Why are you doing what is not lawful to do on the Sabbath?” 

3 And Jesus answered them, “Have you not read what David did when he was hungry, he and those who were with him: 4 how he entered the house of God and took and ate the bread of the Presence, which is not lawful for any but the priests to eat, and also gave it to those with him?” 5 And he said to them, “The Son of Man is lord of the Sabbath.”

6 On another Sabbath, he entered the synagogue and was teaching, and a man was there whose right hand was withered. 7 And the scribes and the Pharisees watched him, to see whether he would heal on the Sabbath, so that they might find a reason to accuse him. 

8 But he knew their thoughts, and he said to the man with the withered hand, “Come and stand here.” And he rose and stood there. 9 And Jesus said to them, “I ask you, is it lawful on the Sabbath to do good or to do harm, to save life or to destroy it?” 10 And after looking around at them all he said to him, “Stretch out your hand.” And he did so, and his hand was restored. 

11 But they were filled with fury and discussed with one another what they might do to Jesus.

12 In these days he went out to the mountain to pray, and all night he continued in prayer to God. 13 And when day came, he called his disciples and chose from them twelve, whom he named apostles: 14 Simon, whom he named Peter, and Andrew his brother, and James and John, and Philip, and Bartholomew, 15 and Matthew, and Thomas, and James the son of Alphaeus, and Simon who was called the Zealot, 16 and Judas the son of James, and Judas Iscariot, who became a traitor.

19 And all the crowd sought to touch him, for power came out from him and healed them all.

The best place for our cares is in the hands of Jesus, our hero.

Proverbs 3:26-28
26 For the LORD shall be thy confidence, and shall keep thy foot from being taken.
27 Withhold not good from them to whom it is due, when it is in the power of thine hand to do it.
28 Say not unto thy neighbor, Go, and come again, and tomorrow I will give; when thou hast it by thee.

Jesus is the Word of God fulfilled. Proverbs of Solomon is from 9 B.C. and, a millennium later, Jesus fulfills what Solomon explains.


Father God, You have already done an engraving on Your hand of our name. You have remembered us with compassion. Your lives, our words, our heart is always in Your thoughts. Psalm 139 assures us. Your hand, Father God, is for good on all who seek You. Your right hand assures us not to fear You because You listen earnestly.

No one is able to take us from Your hand, Father. We always want to know, Father, Your hand is upon us.

Father, Your hand laid the foundation of the earth, and Your right hand spread out the heavens; when You call to them, they stand forth together.

We pray for Your comfort, beauty from ashes,the oil of gladness instead of mourning, the garment of praise instead of a faint spirit; that we may be called oaks of righteousness, the planting of the Lord, that our Father God may be glorified. We shall call upon You to build up the ancient ruins; and they shall raise up from former devastations; In You we shall repair the ruined cities, the devastations of generations.

We Will set You, Father God, always before us! Because You Are at my right hand, we shall not be shaken. Our hearts will be glad, and our whole being rejoices! We will dwell secure.

Father God will not abandon us, we will not see corruption. We will live. Father God in you are the paths of life. Because of You, Jesus, there is fullness of joy! Because being at Your right hand is always a pleasure. Thank You God. Amen.

♔ Lord Jesus Saves †

 

Romans 16 ~ To the only wise God be glory forevermore through Jesus Christ! Amen.

Romans 16

I commend to you our sister Phoebe, a servant of the church at Cenchreae, 2 that you may welcome her in the Lord in a way worthy of the saints, and help her in whatever she may need from you, for she has been a patron of many and of myself as well.

3 Greet Prisca and Aquila, my fellow workers in Christ Jesus, 4 who risked their necks for my life, to whom not only I give thanks but all the churches of the Gentiles give thanks as well. 

5 Greet also the church in their house.

 Greet my beloved Epaenetus, who was the first convert to Christ in Asia.

6 Greet Mary, who has worked hard for you. 

7 Greet Andronicus and Junia, my kinsmen and my fellow prisoners. They are well known to the apostles, and they were in Christ before me. 

8 Greet Ampliatus, my beloved in the Lord. 

9 Greet Urbanus, our fellow worker in Christ, and my beloved Stachys. 

10 Greet Apelles, who is approved in Christ. Greet those who belong to the family of Aristobulus. 

11 Greet my kinsman Herodion. Greet those in the Lord who belong to the family of Narcissus. 

12 Greet those workers in the Lord, Tryphaena and Tryphosa. Greet the beloved Persis, who has worked hard in the Lord. 

13 Greet Rufus, chosen in the Lord; also his mother, who has been a mother to me as well. (Simon of Cyrene who carried the cross?)

14 Greet Asyncritus, Phlegon, Hermes, Patrobas, Hermas, and the brothers who are with them. 

15 Greet Philologus, Julia, Nereus and his sister, and Olympas, and all the saints who are with them. 

16 Greet one another with a holy kiss. All the churches of Christ greet you.

17 I appeal to you, brothers, to watch out for those who cause divisions and create obstacles contrary to the doctrine that you have been taught; avoid them. 18 For such persons do not serve our Lord Christ, but their own appetites, and by smooth talk and flattery they deceive the hearts of the naive. 19 For your obedience is known to all, so that I rejoice over you, but I want you to be wise as to what is good and innocent as to what is evil. 20 The God of peace will soon crush Satan under your feet. The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you.

21 Timothy, my fellow worker, greets you; so do Lucius and Jason and Sosipater, my kinsmen.

22 I Tertius, who wrote this letter, greet you in the Lord.

23 Gaius, who is host to me and to the whole church, greets you. Erastus, the city treasurer, and our brother Quartus, greet you.

25 Now to him who is able to strengthen you according to my gospel and the preaching of Jesus Christ, according to the revelation of the mystery that was kept secret for long ages 26 but has now been disclosed and through the prophetic writings has been made known to all nations, according to the command of the eternal God, to bring about the obedience of faith— 27 to the only wise God be glory forevermore through Jesus Christ! Amen.

Have you stopped lately to think about Christianity from the 1970s and today?

A gentle time. People made a lot of handcrafts. Housing was pretty affordable - Congress had not yet passed legislation that two incomes could apply for a house - then housing sky-rocketed. Our Dallas home increased in value by doubling. This is forty years after the idea of mortgages came to being in the world - before this people paid cash for affordable homes they owned for generations. 1930s - Started out innocently enough - oh no - sheer horrors a 2% note...

Ok, back to the 1970s, it was a gentle time. The Vietnam War was ending - people held love ins and sat holding hands. Mostly the USA was married. TV was gentle. Laugh tracks were loud.

Christianity? That's nice. We all should love the Lord. Not get too pushy with that - all you need to do to understand where that person stood was the perfectly acceptable, "What denomination are you?" Then mostly all your questions were answered because people were generally going to throw out how many times they went.

There were definite perks to this - if you watch the movies from the 1950 Academy Award Winners - you are seeing some of the finest movies - and send someone to view those movies - Like "Marty" and "Mrs. Miniver" "Roman Holiday" - they return seriously impressed with good cinema.

Yes, I'm staying in this era - by saying - the entertainment had "topics" but usually we were warned of the consequences of being not so nice. TV was not so entertaining us that the agenda needed babysitting.

And now we have none of the peace and quiet PTA meetings of post era - gum chewing, talking, homework loss of the past eras. We face far more significant situations now.



HOWEVER, we are not going to do the waaa waaas. Just as Roman influenced housing has swept in and in - we see we have a parallel to the Roman Empire again.

And how are we handling this new world? The Acts of the Apostles really had people seeing love given. Two cloaks? No, we are not talking about donating to someone through The Salvation Army. We are talking about a cloak is given to someone in need that we know their name and their father drinks. Or the heat isn't afforded. The World changed for believing Christians offering Love and Prayer and not judgments. People who put themselves out to help others.

All of Life is a Balance God tells Joshua - Weep with those who Weep, Rejoice with those who Rejoice.
But in as much as is it up to you get along with others. I.E. Don't lead the band wagon on why the world is sooo awful.

What do we do with this at  Church ?

For one thing - we have people - Who have made themselves Encouragers = Barnabas. They go forth to smile, to hug and to ENCOURAGE. Just like this very passage. Kirk, Cindy, Disala, Sharon, Justina, Hillary, Jack, and the multitude of people we all have named Lewis - like Dee. Our hallways and Atrium are as friendly as Romans 16.

 This is the Exact Look Cindy Beaumont is going to wear when she Goes Home, Years from Now, To her HOME with Jesus! If you see Cindy weep during the Service - that's the Holy Spirit - Touching her Heart.

So how is Church reacting to the World at Large? 

We have events like the Apartment Outreach.

Our rather - on the smaller side Congregation - is one of the largest Volunteer bases at PACN - where parents are helped to parent their kids in really effective outreach.

We have people involved in Redeemed Ministries - because Houston is the 4th Largest City in the USA and one of the USA's largest provider of the sex trades, about 20 minutes from our Church. Slavery still exists.

We have people who go to the schools to find children who need tutoring and Speech Therapy. Donating their time to the Public School System we feel is really a good System due to wonderful Dr. Don Stockton and Principals who stay up all night to look for missing students - Dr. Mark Murrell. Unsung, but highly appreciated for what doesn't show up in the day to day knowledge. We have Hometown Heroes.

We have people who go to shopping malls to pray for people. We have huge groups of people who show up to move single moms with hurt children. We helped feed the Katrina Refugees for 2 months.

This is not the typical busy - this is useful.



Keys to a Useful Life
By Ward Williams


· Illustration: Thomas Huxley said, “A feeling of uselessness is the severest shock that a human system can endure.”

· The secret to a happy life is not in keeping busy, but in being useful.

· The Good Samaritan is a good representation of what it means to be a useful, caring person.

· Big Idea: The ultimate standard of a useful life is not what you think and expect of yourself as much as what you are willing to do for those around you.

Transition: Applying this story to our lives requires concentration on three keys to a useful life.

Avoid the danger of generalities.

· Christianity is not a philosophy; its approach to life is concrete.

· The gospel calls us to test our belief by acting upon it.

- Illustration: A cemetery headstone in England reads, “Here lies Thomas Cobb, who mended shoes in this village for 40 years to the glory of God.”

· Neighborliness is not a generality; it is serving the needs of individuals.

Be aware of what is important.

· Jesus implied that all the religious rituals in the world were not as important as the fellow who lay bleeding beside the road.

· Jesus’ choices were always made in terms of people and their needs.

· The Samaritan did not act out of an expectation for reward or thanks. The Good Samaritan was motivated by a good conscience, a sense of satisfaction, and a desire to be able to say he had led a useful life.

Help others help themselves.

· The Samaritan’s intentions were to get the wounded man on his feet, not to make him dependent upon charity.

· Illustration: Williams works with a nonprofit organization that finances cottage industries in Venezuela to teach skills leading to financial independence.

Conclusion

· Jesus lived the model of usefulness.

- Philippians 2:7;
but made himself nothing, taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men.

- Acts 10:38
how God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Spirit and with power. He went about doing good and healing all who were oppressed by the devil, for God was with him.

· A useful life is not defined by knowing who our neighbors are, but in demonstrating neighborliness. An Example of this is Sharon. No program at Church asked her to have an Open House  for her very quiet street, but she did and the neighbors were a little stunned. And Grateful.

And Lorraine and Henry who brought "Alpha"  to their neighborhood and 6 peoples showed up. They were very disappointed. Three people only remained. And two learned Jesus is their Savior.  In the movie "It's A Wonderful Life" - Henry and Lorraine get to ring the bell - they earned their wings.

  

He said, “The one who showed him mercy.” And Jesus said to him, “You go, and do likewise.”

Luke 10:37

Help, us Father God to prepare the way to Your Plan of a Hope and Future You have given us. Where our talents and gifts making us the unique people we are further the High Path for Jesus Christ the Lord. 

We will weep with those in the valley and encourage them toward better seasons.  We put aside the ideas bringing God's Path of Wonderous Love to a baser knowledge.  We put aside barriers to the real Joy of Jesus proclaiming Jesus is Love, Joy, Truth, Comfort, Peace.  To know Jesus is to know Peace. Where reality is acknowledged and not glossed over - the good fight is fought to real Truth. Where Joy and Love call for Fruitfulness and Kindness blesses those we love, to open all eyes to see the Salvation,

 Such A Great Salvation, We Shall Not Overlook! Jesus Has Won Us the Greatest Victory and We Blaze the Light of Jesus Christ Forth! 

Lord Jesus Only In Your High Name. AMEN!




 ♔ Lord Jesus Saves †