Being Grateful For Our Church With A Capitol “C”!

What brings a tear of joy to your eye?
And they continued stedfastly in the apostles’ doctrine and fellowship, and in breaking of bread, and in prayers. Act 2:42

Diligence: Commitment & Hard Work
1 Timothy 4:15-16 (NIV®)
Be diligent in these matters; give yourself wholly to them, so that everyone may see your progress. Watch your life and doctrine closely. Persevere in them, because if you do, you will save both yourself and your hearers.

Paul invested himself in many people, and here we get to listen in on some of his advice to his protégé, Timothy. He is coaching Timothy about setting goals and what he needs to do to achieve them. He wants this young man to understand a successful spiritual life will not be easy; it will require commitment and hard work. “Be diligent,” he says. “Give yourself completely. Guard your life and doctrine. Persevere.” I think if Paul were to walk into one of our church meetings today, he would tell us the time for a casual faith, a faith we can fit in around our hobbies and other interests, is gone. If we’re going to make spiritual progress and bring other people along with us, we’re going to have to be focused on the things of God—so much so that the changes in us are obvious to everyone around us.

THINK ABOUT IT
“But without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is, and that He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him.” (Hebrews 11:6, NKJV®)

PRAYER
Heavenly Father, I want to be pleasing in Your sight and cultivate an intentional faith that activates spiritual growth and a God-awareness in those around me. Help me seek You with diligent commitment and the hard work necessary to fulfill Your purposes. In Jesus’ name, amen.

The apostles dropped everything and followed Jesus even though they felt that they were sinners. I’m sure they didn’t have a clue what would be expected of them, but they still said yes. We are called by Jesus to follow him. So what is holding us back? Are we afraid of what others may think of us? Do we just not want to do what we are being called to do? Are we more like Jonah than the apostles? There have been times in my life when I felt God calling me and I walked – no ran – in the opposite direction. You have to understand that the ONE thing I never wanted to do in life was teach! Given how I have spent the last 40 years, you might find that surprising, but it’s true. However, when I was in college my father suggested that I take some courses that I could fall back on if my life’s direction changed. So, I took some ed courses. Then in grad school I was assigned the task of helping out in the education department and discovered not only that teaching wasn’t that bad, but that I had been a teacher right along without even being aware of it! Now, if I had been like Peter, Andrew, James and John, I would have studied to become a teacher right away, but I’m not sure it would have been the right decision at the time. Jonah had to learn a few things before he set off for Nineveh. Maybe he wouldn’t have been as successful if he hadn’t experienced God’s power. There are others who know right away that God is calling them in a particular way and trust that God knows best. There are also those who reject God’s call – like the rich young man in another Gospel story – because they don’t want to give up whatever plans, possessions or habits they have that they feel are more important. If you are like me and Jonah, then know that God keeps calling us and when the time is right we follow his directions. If you are like the apostles, I congratulate you on your faithfulness. If you feel as though you fall in the third category, please know that with God all things are possible and trust that the path he has chosen for you will far outweigh any plans you have made for yourself.

People of the early church were devoted to the apostle’s teachings and fellowship. Fellowship encourages unity and growth along with spiritual friendships. These friendships are treasures when we feel alone or need encouragement and guidance while carrying a heavy burden. We enjoy being unified with our church family and are thankful for the opportunity to praise the Lord together.

Dear Lord, we are grateful for our church family and the precious friends You’ve gifted us for good works and fellowship. We will continue to establish and maintain these treasured relationships. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.

“I will raise up for them a prophet like you from among their fellow Israelites, and I will put My words in His mouth.” (Deuteronomy 18:18)

Fifty days after the Israelites were redeemed from Egypt, they met God as a nation at the foot of Mount Sinai.

The LORD descended on the mountain in fire, and it smoked like a furnace. A dense cloud wrapped the mountain and it trembled violently. Lightning flashed and thunder erupted. The sound of the Shofar of God grew louder and louder as Moses spoke to the LORD and He answered. (Exodus 19)

Think about it—the entire community heard God speak! It was a national revelation, an experience that is unique in the history of religion.

This is no mere legend passed down through the centuries. It was an awe-inspiring, terrifying time that all the Israelites experienced.

A Prophet Like Moses

“The Lord said to Moses, ‘I will come to you in a thick cloud and let the people hear Me speak to you. Then they will always trust you.’” (Exodus 19:9)

The scene was so intense and frightening that after hearing the LORD speak, the people feared for their lives and begged Moses to mediate between them and God.

“They stayed at a distance and said to Moses, ‘Speak to us yourself and we will listen. But do not have God speak to us or we will die.’” (Exodus 20:18–19)

In other words, they were not just following Moses blindly. They had their own experience with God.

Later, when Moses recounted this terrifying meeting with the LORD at Sinai, he reminded them that they had asked for an intermediary to speak directly to God on their behalf and convey God’s words to them.

Moses did not rebuke the children of Israel for asking for a mediator. Instead, the LORD said that the people had spoken well. Moses then imparted to them the great Messianic hope—that a Prophet like him would come.

The Lord promised Moses:

“I will raise up for them a prophet like you from among their fellow Israelites, and I will put My words in His mouth. He will tell them everything I command Him. I myself will call to account anyone who does not listen to My words that the prophet speaks in My name.” (Deuteronomy 18:18–19)

That Prophet is the Messiah.

This passage in Deuteronomy is the only place in the Torah where Moses explicitly identifies a singular “prophet” like him.

Nevertheless, it remains an important prophecy.

During the time before the birth of Yeshua (Jesus) and throughout His life and ministry, Israel was characterized by an expectation that this Prophet was about to be revealed.

Yochanan (John the Immerser or Baptist) heralded the coming of Messiah.

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Messianic Expectations in Second Temple Times

John the Baptist’s ministry was so powerful and effective that the Pharisees sent Priests (Cohanim) and Levites (Leviim) to him, wondering if, perhaps, John himself might be the long-awaited Prophet. (John 1:21)

John indicated that the one who came after him was the Messiah, the Prophet like Moses for whom they were waiting. (John 1:15)

Soon after, John revealed Him:

“The next day John saw Yeshua coming toward him and said, ‘Look, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world! This is the one I meant when I said, ‘A man who comes after me has surpassed me because He was before me.’” (John 1:29–30)

In Acts 3, Peter also tells the men of Israel in no uncertain terms that Yeshua (Jesus) is this long-awaited prophet.

“Repent, then, and turn to God, so that your sins may be wiped out, that times of refreshing may come from the Lord, and that He may send the Messiah, who has been appointed for you—even Yeshua.

“Heaven must receive Him until the time comes for God to restore everything, as He promised long ago through His holy prophets. For Moses said, ‘The Lord your God will raise up for you a prophet like me from among your own people; you must listen to everything He tells you. Anyone who does not listen to Him will be completely cut off from their people.’” (Acts 3:19–23)

And in Acts 7, Stephen also associates Yeshua with this same prophecy when he proclaims Yeshua as Messiah prior to being stoned by the council members.

Still many may wonder: how is Yeshua a prophet like Moses?

There are actually many ways, but let’s look at seven:


1) Bread from Heaven

God used both Moses and Yeshua to miraculously feed Israel.

Moses fed the Israelites with manna in the wilderness. (Exodus 16:14–17)

Twice, Yeshua miraculously fed the people: once He fed five thousand with five loaves and two fish, and another time he fed four thousand with seven loaves and a few fish. (Matthew 14:19–21 and 15:36)

Moreover, Yeshua, referring to the manna that sustained Israel in the wilderness, said that He was the True Manna that came from Heaven:

“Very truly I tell you, it is not Moses who has given you the bread from heaven, but it is My Father who gives you the true bread from heaven…. I am the Bread of Life. Your ancestors ate the manna in the wilderness, yet they died. But here is the bread that comes down from heaven, which anyone may eat and not die. I am the living bread that came down from heaven. Whoever eats this bread will live forever.” (John 6:32–51)

The challah that is served on Shabbat (the Sabbath) is a traditional representation of the manna that fell from the heavens when the Israelites wandered in the wilderness.