She was a roller derby professional who would not listen to God. Her first injury was to her
finger, her next a concussion, and her last was a torn ACL. Using her left foot, Adrienne drove herself to the hospital and hobbled into the ER on crutches. The doctor told her it was a tornACL and would need an operation. Because her insurance would run out in two days, Adrienne needed an operation quickly. The doctor informed her that her knee would not be ready for an operation by then. However, she needed to have an MRI. As she sat in the waiting room, she called her friend to ask for prayer, and the interceding began. After the MRI was completed,Adrienne sat waiting for the results. The technician entered the waiting room with a strange look on his face, and he told her that her knee in tact. He could not explain why that was. But Adrienne could. While holding her crutches up, Adrienne rushed over to the doctor, and she told him that she was healed. He replied that sometimes that happens, miracles.
Pastor Josiah invited Adrienne to share her miraculous healing. He reminded us that God is
good and that He is in the job of miracles. Our Wednesday night studies focus on the Holy
Spirit’s work, and Adrienne’s miracle is another example of our miracle working Father. Our lives are proof of God’s work.
Our mission is to culture like Christ. Our vision is Jesus. The last time Pastor Josiah preached,
he shared about Jesus’ teaching using the parables. The question was why did some people
understand the parables and others not. The answer was/is that God opens the door to seekers. If you want to know God better, you spend time with Him, and He will bless you with more knowledge of Him and a deeper relationship with Him. God seeks seekers seeking Him.
Jesus taught about the Kingdom of God. In Mark 4:21, Jesus spoke about the lit lamp. No one puts a lit lamp under cover. Then Jesus said,
“To those who listen to my teaching, more understanding will be
given. But those who are not listening, even what little understanding
they have will be taken away from them.” Mark 4:25 (NLT)
The one who seeks to understand will receive even more. Staying in constant teachability is
a priority; having a seeking heart and mind will pay off. We need to ask the Lord what we are to do with the little we have; then we can steward what we learn. If you listen with an open heart, you will receive more. Pastor Josiah cited a familiar saying,”Give a man a fish, and he eats for a day. Teach a man to fish, and he eats for a life time.” Jesus is teaching the people to learn to fish-for Kingdom salmon.
The next parable dealt with the farmer and the seed.
“Jesus also said, ’The Kingdom of God is like a farmer who scatters
seed on the ground. Night and day, while he’s sleeping or awake,
the seed sprouts and grows, but he does not understand why it
happens.’” Mark 4:26-27 (NLT)
We do not have to understand in order to use it. Pastor cited several examples, and the clearest was “I do not understand women, but I married one.” Operational faith means I do not get it but I believe God. We have to relinquish our right to know everything. For instance, the farmer does not know how growing works, but he believes it because he has seen it happen over and over again. What do you know to do that you can leverage today? You know that prayer works. You have seen that the Lord answer prayers. If you do not pray because you do not know all the intricacies of prayer, what have you lost? Head knowledge without heart input is empty. Operational faith is acting without full knowledge. Didn’t Paul say that faith without works is dead? Living generously is an example of faith in action. Let nothing hinder you in your living generously. Share it and live it.
Another parable dealt again with a farmer. He planted good seed, but that night his enemy went to his fields and planted weeds among the good seeds, and they grew. The farmer's workers told the farmer that weeds were growing among the wheat seeds, and they wondered if they should pull out the weeds.
“‘No,’ he replied, ’you’ll uproot the wheat if you do. Let both
grow together until the harvest. Then I will tell the harvesters to
sort out the weeds, tie them into bundles, and burn them, and
to put the wheat in the barn.’” Matthew 13:29-30 (NLT)
The workers suggested one way to handle the weeds, but the experienced farmer suggested another way.
Continuing on with the parable, Jesus left the crowd and “went into the house. His disciples
said,’Please explain to us the story of the weeds in the field.” Matthew 13:36 (NLT) Not all
of the crowd were allowed to follow Jesus into the house, but his disciples were committed to Him. The disciples could ask for clarity because of their decisions to be His followers.
Just as they asked the Lord to clarify the parable, we Christ followers are free and encouraged to ask the Holy Spirit to clarify a passage in the Word. He will open our eyes. We are free to ask God about circumstances that confuse us. He will answer. The problem is we don’t ask Him. We need to get information form the Source. The mysteries of the Kingdom are reserved for the family of God. What a privilege we have as believers and Christ followers. The fact is we are His beloved, and because we are, we are free and encouraged to ask Him, talk to Him and sit at His feet. Don’t spend more time with TikTok, Facebook, social media and have them disciple
you.
A significant point in this parable is that details matter. Every detail has a purpose. He who
seeks to understand gets more. In the passage of Matthew 13:37-43, the details are
The farmer-Jesus
The field-The world
The good seed-The Kingdom people
The weeds-wicked people
The enemy-The devil
The harvest-The end of the world
The harvesters-The angels
When God speaks to you, steward it. Ask the Holy Spirit to help you understand and apply what He is telling you. Being a disciple greatly contrasts being a church attender. Just mechanically going through the motions of being a Christian is shallow and limiting. But being a God seeker means you can honestly ask Him for direction, vision, clarity, and He will give it to you through His word, wise counsel, prayer, and circumstances.
In the Kingdom a little can be a lot. Jesus told the parable of the mustard seed. The Kingdom of heaven is also like yeast where a little can change the whole outcome. Let’s change the world as people of God. You are not insignificant. You are a remnant in the city, in your school, work, neighborhood. Jesus changed the world with twelve.
“Again the Kingdom of Heaven is like a merchant on the look out
for choice pearls. When he discovered a pearl of great value, he
sold everything he owned and bought it!” Matthew 13:45 (NLT)
The Paramount Point is You are the precious pearl. He did everything He could to get you. We did not find Jesus. He found us. He gave His life to save you and redeem you. It was important for the Father to let us know how important we are to Him. Step into everything He’s done for us so that more people can treasure Him. He sold everything to get us back. Let us be salt and light in this broken and dark world.
Calendar:
10/16-Midweek Encounter-6:30
10/18-LBs potluck, worship, and speakers Pastors Tim and Maria Maxwell
10/25-Men’s CORE
Submitted by
Larry and Annette Linthicum
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