LUKE 1:46-56
Mary and Elizabeth were cousins. Elizabeth knew that Mary was engaged but not yet married. Mary was just a teenager, as Elizabeth prophesied about her giving birth with the Messiah. That didn't come out of her mind, she would never have said it because it was illogical.
Elizabeth referred to Jesus as her Lord and Savior, having just been conceived. Many others proclaimed Him Lord at His birth and after His birth.
John the Baptist, who was just six months older at the time, leapt for joy in his mother's womb. It was when he was filled with the Holy Spirit. God considered him a person and filled him with His Spirit.
Elizabeth placed a blessing on Mary for believing what the Lord had told her and assured her it would come to pass. It was encouragement and confirmation to Mary.
Mary and Elizabeth were cousins. Elizabeth knew that Mary was engaged but not yet married. Mary was just a teenager, as Elizabeth prophesied about her giving birth with the Messiah. That didn't come out of her mind, she would never have said it because it was illogical.
Elizabeth referred to Jesus as her Lord and Savior, having just been conceived. Many others proclaimed Him Lord at His birth and after His birth.
John the Baptist, who was just six months older at the time, leapt for joy in his mother's womb. It was when he was filled with the Holy Spirit. God considered him a person and filled him with His Spirit.
Elizabeth placed a blessing on Mary for believing what the Lord had told her and assured her it would come to pass. It was encouragement and confirmation to Mary.
LUKE 1:46-56
Gabriel told Mary that her cousin Elizabeth was in the sixth month of a miraculous pregnancy also. She, no doubt, hoped Elizabeth might understand her condition without the natural help of Joseph. How could she expect anyone to believe her. But Mary felt absolute joy when her cousin confirmed all that had happened before she told her anything.
Mary had already rejoiced in her spirit. She believed Gabriel and experienced the Holy Spirit overshadowing her, now she rejoiced with her soul also.
Sometimes others criticize believers for an outward display of emotion to the Lord. The truth is that rejoicing in the spirit and rejoicing in the soul are two different things. The born-again believer's spirit always have the fruit of joy, but the soul only rejoices when the believer chooses. It is actually insincere not to magnify the Lord with our soul when our spirit is already rejoicing.
Our spirits are always rejoicing and praising God, and we can praise Him with our soul and body whenever we choose to. We can rejoice and magnify Him with our whole being.
Gabriel told Mary that her cousin Elizabeth was in the sixth month of a miraculous pregnancy also. She, no doubt, hoped Elizabeth might understand her condition without the natural help of Joseph. How could she expect anyone to believe her. But Mary felt absolute joy when her cousin confirmed all that had happened before she told her anything.
Mary had already rejoiced in her spirit. She believed Gabriel and experienced the Holy Spirit overshadowing her, now she rejoiced with her soul also.
Sometimes others criticize believers for an outward display of emotion to the Lord. The truth is that rejoicing in the spirit and rejoicing in the soul are two different things. The born-again believer's spirit always have the fruit of joy, but the soul only rejoices when the believer chooses. It is actually insincere not to magnify the Lord with our soul when our spirit is already rejoicing.
Our spirits are always rejoicing and praising God, and we can praise Him with our soul and body whenever we choose to. We can rejoice and magnify Him with our whole being.
LUKE 1:26-38
Everything about Jesus' birth was natural and normal except that a man didn't provide the seed; it came from the Holy Spirit. God's Word is called the incorruptible seed,1 Peter 1:23.
Gabriel took the Word of God that had been spoken through prophecy about the Messiah, bringing it to Mary. Then the Holy Spirit moved over her like He did over the waters of the earth in Genesis 1:2. And the Word was made flesh, John 1:14.
Ever miracle we experience is similar because we must receive God's Words into our hearts and take care of it for a while by meditating on it, before it can come to pass.
Mary is the only person that has ever had a baby that was produced by the Word of God and it took God's supernatural seed to do so.
We must receive and believe God's Word in our heart in order to give birth to our dreams in reality!
Everything about Jesus' birth was natural and normal except that a man didn't provide the seed; it came from the Holy Spirit. God's Word is called the incorruptible seed,1 Peter 1:23.
Gabriel took the Word of God that had been spoken through prophecy about the Messiah, bringing it to Mary. Then the Holy Spirit moved over her like He did over the waters of the earth in Genesis 1:2. And the Word was made flesh, John 1:14.
Ever miracle we experience is similar because we must receive God's Words into our hearts and take care of it for a while by meditating on it, before it can come to pass.
Mary is the only person that has ever had a baby that was produced by the Word of God and it took God's supernatural seed to do so.
We must receive and believe God's Word in our heart in order to give birth to our dreams in reality!
LUKE 1:26-38
The virgin birth is unexplainable except as a miracle. There is no way possible for a virgin to have a baby, but with God all things are possible.
The Bible reveals that there are some things that are impossible: Hebrews 6:18 says that it is impossible for God to lie; it was impossible for satan to keep Jesus in the grave, Acts 2:24; and it is impossible to please God without faith, Hebrews 11:6.
Anything that God has promised in His Word is possible. His Word not only proclaims what He's willing and able to do, but it also carries His power to accomplish it.
The word of the Lord Gabriel brought to Mary had the power to produce the virgin birth. When she believed it, her faith set God's Word into motion.
It doesn't matter how impossible it may look, if we pray according to His Word, then the power it takes to accomplish the answer is contained in it. Mixed with faith, nothing that God has promised is impossible
The virgin birth is unexplainable except as a miracle. There is no way possible for a virgin to have a baby, but with God all things are possible.
The Bible reveals that there are some things that are impossible: Hebrews 6:18 says that it is impossible for God to lie; it was impossible for satan to keep Jesus in the grave, Acts 2:24; and it is impossible to please God without faith, Hebrews 11:6.
Anything that God has promised in His Word is possible. His Word not only proclaims what He's willing and able to do, but it also carries His power to accomplish it.
The word of the Lord Gabriel brought to Mary had the power to produce the virgin birth. When she believed it, her faith set God's Word into motion.
It doesn't matter how impossible it may look, if we pray according to His Word, then the power it takes to accomplish the answer is contained in it. Mixed with faith, nothing that God has promised is impossible
LUKE 1:26-38
Compare Mary's visit by the angel to Zacharias' just six months before.
Gabriel told Zacharias he would have a son by a miraculous birth and he asked how a thing like that could be, since both he and his wife were beyond childbearing age. Zacharias' unbelief angered Gabriel and he struck him dumb until the boy was born, Luke 1:18-20.
Mary asked a similar question, but Gabriel's response was much kinder. Since God is no respecter of persons, Romans 2:11, we assume the heart motivations behind their questions were different.
Zacharias asked in unbelief, a statement of scorn rather than an inquiry. Mary asked to gain information not because she didn't believe what she was being told.
When God tells us something in His Word, by His Spirit or even by a messenger, there is nothing wrong with asking questions if it is with a right heart attitude. If she hadn't asked, she may have assumed He would come through the natural way between Joseph and herself.
We need wisdom that only God can give us, but it must be asked with a right heart.
Compare Mary's visit by the angel to Zacharias' just six months before.
Gabriel told Zacharias he would have a son by a miraculous birth and he asked how a thing like that could be, since both he and his wife were beyond childbearing age. Zacharias' unbelief angered Gabriel and he struck him dumb until the boy was born, Luke 1:18-20.
Mary asked a similar question, but Gabriel's response was much kinder. Since God is no respecter of persons, Romans 2:11, we assume the heart motivations behind their questions were different.
Zacharias asked in unbelief, a statement of scorn rather than an inquiry. Mary asked to gain information not because she didn't believe what she was being told.
When God tells us something in His Word, by His Spirit or even by a messenger, there is nothing wrong with asking questions if it is with a right heart attitude. If she hadn't asked, she may have assumed He would come through the natural way between Joseph and herself.
We need wisdom that only God can give us, but it must be asked with a right heart.
LUKE 1:26-38
The angel Gabriel didn't say anything Mary other than she was to rejoice because she was highly favored of God, the Lord was with her and she was blessed. His praise made her uncomfortable and it was frightening.
We know that God is love (1 John 4:8). That doesn't mean He overlooks sin, but as His children, He forgives us and inspires us not to sin. We don't see ourselves as God see us.
Gabriel praised Mary and in the end she received all God had for her. All believers are blessed and highly favored of the Lord!
The angel Gabriel didn't say anything Mary other than she was to rejoice because she was highly favored of God, the Lord was with her and she was blessed. His praise made her uncomfortable and it was frightening.
We know that God is love (1 John 4:8). That doesn't mean He overlooks sin, but as His children, He forgives us and inspires us not to sin. We don't see ourselves as God see us.
Gabriel praised Mary and in the end she received all God had for her. All believers are blessed and highly favored of the Lord!
LUKE 1:26-38
The virgin birth of Jesus is so difficult to imagine that it has always been one of Christianity's main targets. Skeptics cite the impossibility of such a thing as proof that the Bible can't be true.
The virgin birth of Jesus is one of the cornerstones of the Christian faith. If He had been the natural product of a man and woman, He would have had a sinful nature. (Romans 5:12) He wouldn't have qualified to take our sin upon Himself on the Cross because He would have had to be the debt of His own sin.
Isaiah prophesied that the Messiah would be born of a virgin, (Isaiah 7:14), which means that God would be His Father. This was necessary to give Him sinless blood.
The Messiah also had to be born without sin for God to legally raise Him from the dead. Our faith trusts on the resurrection (Romans 10:9) because the only legal way God could raise Him from the dead was if He Himself was without sin. Once He died for our sins, God was legally bound to resurrect Him (Romans 1:4) because He was sinless.
There can be no compromise on this issue! If Jesus wasn't born of a virgin and the sinless sacrifice for our sins, we are lost and going to hell.
The virgin birth of Jesus is so difficult to imagine that it has always been one of Christianity's main targets. Skeptics cite the impossibility of such a thing as proof that the Bible can't be true.
The virgin birth of Jesus is one of the cornerstones of the Christian faith. If He had been the natural product of a man and woman, He would have had a sinful nature. (Romans 5:12) He wouldn't have qualified to take our sin upon Himself on the Cross because He would have had to be the debt of His own sin.
Isaiah prophesied that the Messiah would be born of a virgin, (Isaiah 7:14), which means that God would be His Father. This was necessary to give Him sinless blood.
The Messiah also had to be born without sin for God to legally raise Him from the dead. Our faith trusts on the resurrection (Romans 10:9) because the only legal way God could raise Him from the dead was if He Himself was without sin. Once He died for our sins, God was legally bound to resurrect Him (Romans 1:4) because He was sinless.
There can be no compromise on this issue! If Jesus wasn't born of a virgin and the sinless sacrifice for our sins, we are lost and going to hell.
LUKE 1:5-25
Zacharias and Elisabeth were righteous people who prayed for a child for many years. The Lord answered their prayers and sent and angel to announce the good news.
Zacharias couldn't believe it. He was getting the very thing they had been praying for, but he doubted that it was true. He received his miracle anyway. Maybe his wife's faith pulled them through.
We may be praying for the right things and we may be sincere, but would we be shocked if our prayers were to suddenly be answered?
Before the children of Israel were actually delivered from Egypt, they ate the Passover meal by faith. Their bags were packed and ready to go.
We need to anticipate our prayers being answered also. If we can imagine how we would feel or what we would do if the answer to our prayer manifested this very moment, we must begin to think and act that way. It would change our whole perspective on how our day will go.
Zacharias and Elisabeth were righteous people who prayed for a child for many years. The Lord answered their prayers and sent and angel to announce the good news.
Zacharias couldn't believe it. He was getting the very thing they had been praying for, but he doubted that it was true. He received his miracle anyway. Maybe his wife's faith pulled them through.
We may be praying for the right things and we may be sincere, but would we be shocked if our prayers were to suddenly be answered?
Before the children of Israel were actually delivered from Egypt, they ate the Passover meal by faith. Their bags were packed and ready to go.
We need to anticipate our prayers being answered also. If we can imagine how we would feel or what we would do if the answer to our prayer manifested this very moment, we must begin to think and act that way. It would change our whole perspective on how our day will go.
MATTHEW 9:18-20; MARK 5:21-34; LUKE 8:40-48
The multitudes were thronging Jesus. That is, they were pressing, and crowding in on all sides, so it seems strange that He would ask, "Who touched me?" Many people were physically touching Jesus, but this woman touched His power by faith. Many people in the crowd probably needed healing, but this person is the only one mentioned who received. The difference was the touch of faith.
If it was simply Jesus' willingness to heal that determined whether or not the healing took place, then all of the sick in this multitude would have been healed. This instance illustrates that it's not prayer that saves the sick, but rather the prayer of faith that saves the sick (James 5:15).
Healing is governed by law and not by a case by case decision from God based on His feelings toward us.
This woman received her healing by the law of faith before Jesus knew anything about her. Passionate pleas to God will not obtain the miracle we seek. Jesus is touched by our feelings, but it requires faith. It's not because Jesus doesn't know our needs or hear our cries that miracles don't happen, but rather it's because very few know how the law of faith works.
One of the main differences between a God-kind of faith and a natural, human faith, which everyone has, is that human faith believes only what it can see, taste, hear, smell, or feel. God's kind of faith believes in things that cannot be seen. We must believe that we receive our answer "when we pray" - not when we see the thing we've desired. Simply put, faith is our response to God's ability, made complete by our actions.
Trust Him completely, because when we believe, our actions will follow.
MATTHEW 9:18-19
Jesus could have healed this girl by His spoken word, but He did as He was requested to do. This illustrates how the Lord ministers to us according to our faith. Jesus ministered to him at the level where his faith was and didn't rebuke his little faith (James 1:5).
There is a human faith which is limited to believing only what we can perceive through our five senses. But the supernatural, God kind of faith goes beyond what we can see, taste, hear, smell, and feel. God's kind of faith calls those things which be not as though they already were.
We exercise faith almost daily in such things as sitting on a chair and driving a car. But our faith is no better than the object in which it is placed. Hebrews 12:2, tells us that we are to be "looking unto Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith." We must transfer our faith from human self reliance and independence, to reliance upon, adherence to, and trust upon Jesus Christ in all areas of our lives. Faith, in its simplest definition, is to trust, to rely, and to depend upon the resource of another. God's Word declares that the object of our faith, Jesus Christ, can never fail or disappoint us.
Love produces faith, or is what makes faith work. We naturally trust those who we know truly love us. A revelation of God's unconditional love for us will make faith just naturally abound in us. If we are struggling with faith, we have a deficiency in understanding how much God loves us.
Lord, reveal Your love to us today.
MARK 5:18-20
One of the ways God's goodness is revealed is through His mercy. We may describe mercy as "the readiness of God to relieve the misery of fallen creatures." Many times, mercy is called compassion or lovingkindness. It is expressed toward the sinner because of the misery that sin has brought upon him.
God's mercy to the believer is revealed by His taking away the misery of sin's consequences through the New Covenant of our Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ. Mercy is not something merited or earned, but as the Apostle Paul states, "Not by works of righteousness which we have done, but according to HIS MERCY He saved us."
Our Heavenly Father is the author, originator, and source of all mercy.
"Mercy is love, reaching out to meet a need without considering the merit of the person who receives the aid" [EDBW].
Even when we were spiritually dead because of our sins, God's forbearance was working on our behalf. He was tolerant, patient and kind towards us. God abounded in excessive good will, compassion, and desire to help us. His disposition was kind, compassionate, and forgiving in His treatment of us. He wanted to alleviate our distress and bring relief from our sins. He did this by giving us life in place of death. It was with Christ that this salvation was secured. By grace, kindness, and favor we are saved. All of this was the result of God's love wherewith He loved us, always seeking the welfare and betterment of us. God likes us.
MATTHEW 8:28-34; MARK 5:1-17; LUKE 8:27-39
The word "worshipped" is taken from the Greek word which means "to prostrate oneself in homage to; do reverence to; adore." The fact that this tormented man ran to Jesus, and not away from Him, indicates that even "demon-possessed" people have a free will and Satan cannot control an individual without his consent.
Many battles have been fought over whether or not a Christian can be demon possessed. The Greek word for "possessed" literally means "to be demonized." The Bible makes no clear distinction between degrees of demon activity (such as oppressed, depressed, possessed, etc.), but simply refers to people as being "demonized." All Christians are fighting against spiritual powers. If we don't put on the whole armor of God, Satan can certainly affect us or even control us.
The best way to administer deliverance is through God's Word. As a person receives the Word, it will set him free and also help guard against this situation when the demon tries to come back in with seven other spirits. In severe cases of being demonized, the individual clearly needs the help of a believer, and that's the reason why Jesus equipped all believers with authority over evil spirits.
Anointed praise and worship will also drive off evil spirits. One thing reserved for God alone is worship, and the devil has always desired that. If he can't be the one to receive worship, then he tries to turn others away from giving true worship to the most High God. Praise and worship to the Lord is such a powerful tool against Satan. He can't stand to see God worshipped. Worship God in spirit and in truth. The Father seeks those who will worship Him this way. He's waiting for us.
MARK 4:35-41
When God created this physical world and all of its inhabitants, He gave mankind authority to rule and subdue His creation. Although God still owned the universe and all that was in it, He gave control of the earth to man.
When man sinned, he began to use this power against God's wishes. God did not ordain all the terrible things that have happened throughout history, and yet He did not take back man's right to dominate the earth. Instead, He became a man and took back that authority to Himself by conquest. After Jesus' resurrection, He said in Matthew 28:18, "...All power is given unto me in heaven and in earth," and then He gave the great commission to His disciples, thereby conferring that authority upon them, also. Jesus becoming flesh was absolutely essential for gaining all power (or authority) in heaven and in earth. Jesus was a "God-man." As said in 1 Timothy 3:16, He was God manifested in the flesh, which is a great mystery.
Jesus came in the power and authority of His Father to point men to the Father God. Jesus existed before He came on this earth in the form of God and was equal with God; yet, He humbled Himself and became a servant while here on earth. He did not come to promote Himself but to give Himself as the way unto the Father.
This is quite different from the way some called "great men" present themselves. The Roman Caesar of Jesus' day proclaimed that he was God and demanded worship. Lesser leaders ruled by exalting themselves over the people they governed. But, Jesus showed us that "whosoever will be great among you, let him be your minister; and whosoever will be chief among you, let him be your servant: even as the Son of man came not to be ministered unto, but to minister, and to give his life a ransom for many" (Matthew 20:26-28).
MATTHEW 12:46-50; 8:23-27;
MARK 3:31-35; 4:35-41; LUKE 8:19-26
Considering the fact that the boat was filled with water, it is amazing that the disciples had to awaken Jesus. This was not a large ship with cabins below deck but rather a small, open boat and Jesus was, no doubt, "soaked to the bone." This shows Jesus' humanity and how tired He must have been. It also shows that Jesus must have been in a very deep sleep. Medical science has discovered that the deeper we sleep, the more rest our bodies get. This is a clue as to how Jesus could maintain the grueling pace He kept, along with an occasional all-night prayer time. He was receiving the maximum benefit from His sleep.
Jesus did not say "Let us go out into the midst of the sea and drown in a storm." He was going to the other side. This shows that the disciples still didn't understand Jesus' authority. They were committed to Him as their Messiah, but they hadn't yet realized that Jesus was Lord even over the physical elements.
Many Christians still do this. They receive the spiritual benefits of salvation but have not reaped the physical benefits of health and prosperity, which are also part of our salvation.
Whichever we focus upon - the storm, or the Lord in the midst of our storm - will determine how we manage the storms we face in life. He is not asleep concerning the things we face in this life, He's right there in us "ship," resting, because He knows we will both get to the "other side." His peace is ours. Believe His Word. Rest in His love.
MATTHEW 12:46-50
We are not just heirs, we are joint-heirs with Jesus. It would be wonderful to inherit any amount of God's glory and power. But, the idea that we share equally share with the one who has inherited everything God is and has is beyond understanding. This is an awesome blessing, but it also places a tremendous responsibility on us.
In the same way in which a check made out to two people cannot be cashed without the signatures of both people, our joint-heirship with Jesus cannot be taken advantage of without His cooperation. Not knowing this, many Christians are just trusting that the Lord will produce the benefits of salvation for them. They are slightly aware that they can do nothing without Him, but don't realize that He will do nothing without us (Ephesians 3:20).
The idea that God will do exceeding abundantly above all that we ask or think, PERIOD, is not true. He has power, but it is the use of His ability combined with the power that works in us. "No power working in us" means no power of God will come through us. The exceeding greatness of His power that is to us-ward who believe is power that is not external, but is internal, within the believer. It is working according to the faith that we exercise in the Him that is living in us. It was this principle that Paul was stating when he declared, "I can do all things through Christ which strengtheneth me."
The way we place our signature on the check is to believe what God promised in His Word and act on it as if it were true. IT IS! Jesus has already signed His name to every promise in the Word. We aren't waiting for Him. He is waiting for us.
MATTHEW 13:44-50
The interpretation of this parable is this: the field is the world, the man buying the treasure is God, the treasure is the true believers in Christ. The price that was paid was the very life of Jesus on the cross. Jesus saw, through His foreknowledge, a number of people who would receive Him as Lord, and "for the joy that was set before him," He endured the cross (Hebrews 12:2) and purchased us unto Himself with His own blood (Acts 20:28). He purchased the whole world, but not everyone will receive what He did. Therefore, the Church is hidden (scattered among the world) today.
Father God had the plan of salvation worked out before He even created the world. Most of us would not have created the world and mankind if we had known the heartache and terrible sacrifice this act would cost. But God is not man. In His judgment (which is correct and just) the prize was worth the cost.
God knows in advance those who will accept His offer of salvation. The Scriptures teach that we (believers) were chosen in Christ before the foundation of the world (Ephesians 1:4). That's how infinite God's ability is. We were chosen in Christ before the world began. We are holy and without blame because God sees us through Jesus. It was predetermined that we would be God's children. We have been accepted by God. The Father would no more reject us than He would reject Jesus, because we are accepted by the Father through Him. We are redeemed and forgiven. We are truly blessed!
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