This is a long meditation but so worth it...God bless! Meditation: Do you want to know the mind and heart of God? Jesus thanks the Father in heaven for revealing to his followers the wisdom and knowledge of God. What does Jesus prayer tell us about God and about ourselves? First, it tells us that God is both Father and Lord of the earth as well as heaven. He is both the Creator and Author of all that he has made, the first origin of everything. His authority, wisdom, and gracious care extends to every living thing, and his boundless love and goodness is directed to the welfare of each person made in his image and likeness. All fatherhood and motherhood is derived from him (Ephesians 3:14-15). Pride - the root of sin Jesus prayer also contains a warning that pride can keep us from the love and knowledge of God. What makes us ignorant and blind to the things of God? Certainly intellectual pride, coldness of heart, and stubbornness of will shut out God and his fatherly care for our persoal lives. Pride is the root of all vice and evil and the strongest influence propelling us to sin against God and to do wrong to our neighbor. Sinful pride first vanquishes the heart, making it cold and indifferent towards God. It also closes the mind to Gods truth and wisdom for our lives. What is prides flaw? It is the inordinate love of oneself at the expense of others and the exaggerated estimation of ones own knowledge, power, importance and position over others. Simplicity of heart Jesus contrasts pride with child-like simplicity and humility. The simple of heart are like little children in the sense that they see purely and simply without any pretense or falsehood. They instinctlively recognize their utter dependence and reliance on others - especially those who can teach and form them to live strong, healthy, mature lives. No one can grow in wisdom and maturity unless they are willing to be taught and formed in how to live wisely and to distinguish between good and evil, truth and falsehood. The greatest reward for those who seek the summum bonum or greatest good is God himself. He alone is the true source of joy and abundant life which he shares with us through the gift of his Holy Spirit who dwells within us Simplicity of heart is wedded with humility, the queen of virtues, because humility inclines the heart towards truth and grace - the favor and help freely given by God the Father who is generous, gracious, and kind towards us. Just as pride is the root or every sin and evil, so humility is the only soil in which the grace and favor of God can take root. Humility alone takes the right attitude and posture before God - our true and Everlasting Father who sustains us every moment of our lifes and who freely gives us every gift and help we need to live as his sons and daughters. Why is humilty the first step for receiving help from God? Scripture tells us that God opposes the proud, but gives grace to the humble (Proverbs 3:34, James 4:6). Only the humble in heart can receive the wisdom which comes from God and the understanding of Gods perfect goodness and plan for our lives. Do you acknowledge your utter dependence on God and trust him with your whole heart and mind? Knowing God personally Jesus makes a claim which no one would have dared to make - he is the perfect revelation of God because he has been with the Father before all creation and time existed. He and the Father are united in an inseparable bond of love and unity. That is why Jesus alone can truly reveal the fulness of Gods mind and heart and purpose for our lives. One of the greatest truths of Gods revelation and our Christian faith is that we can know the one true and living God. Our knowledge of God is not simply limited to knowing some things about God and his nature, but we can know God personally because God desires to be closely united with each one of us in a bond of love through his Son, Jesus Christ. The essence of Christianity, and what makes it distinct from Judaism and all other religions, is the personal knowledge of God as our Father - the one, true and eternal Father who knew us before we were knitted in our mothers womb. Jesus makes it possible for each one of us to have a personal direct relationship and experiential knowledge of God as our loving and gracious Father. Through Jesus we have access to God the Father To see Jesus is to see what God is like. In Jesus we see the perfect love of God - a God who cares intensely and who yearns over men and women, loving them to the point of offering us his Only Begotten Son who freely gave up his life for us on the cross as an atoning sacrifice for our sins. Paul the Apostle tells us that Jesus is the image of God (Colossians 1:15). He is the perfect revelation of God - a God who loves us totally, unconditionally, and without reservation. What can separate us from the love of God? Only our own stubborn pride, willfulness, and rebellious attitude towards God and his will for our lives. Jesus makes an incredible promise to those who acknowledge him as their Lord and Savior. If we pray in his name - the name Jesus means God saves - then the Father in heaven will hear us as if his only begotten Son was speaking to him directly. That is the unity, blessing, and promise he wishes for each one of us. And that is why we have the confidence and boldness to pray as Jesus taught his disciples, Our Father who art in heaven... give us this day our daily bread, and deliver us from temptation. Do you pray to your Father in heaven with joy and confidence in his perfect love and care for you? The sweet yoke of Jesus What does the yoke of Jesus refer to in the Gospel (Matthew 11:29)? The Jews used the image of a yoke to express submission to God. They spoke of the yoke of the law, the yoke of the commandments, the yoke of the kingdom, the yoke of God. Jesus says his yoke is easy. The Greek word for easy can also mean well-fitting. Yokes were tailor-made to fit the oxen well. We are commanded to put on the sweet yoke of Jesus and to live the heavenly way of life and happiness. Jesus also says his burden is light. Theres a story of a man who once met a boy carrying a smaller crippled lad on his back. Thats a heavy load you are carrying there, exclaimed the man. He aint heavy; hes my brother! responded the boy. No burden is too heavy when its given in love and carried in love. Jesus offers us a new kingdom of righteousness, peace, and joy. In his kingdom sins are not only forgiven but removed, and eternal life is poured out for all its citizens. This is not a political kingdom, but a spiritual one. The yoke of freedom The yoke of Christs kingdom, his kingly rule and way of life, liberates us from the burden of guilt and from the oppression of sinful habits and hurtful desires. Only Jesus can lift the burden of sin and the weight of hopelessness from us - and give us a weight of love and glory in exchange. Jesus used the analogy of a yoke to explain how we can exchange the burden of sin and despair for a burden of glory and yoke of freedom from sin. The yoke which Jesus invites us to embrace is his way of grace and freedom from the power of sin. Do you trust in Gods love and submit to his will and plan for your life? Lord Jesus, give me the child-like simplicity and purity of faith to gaze upon your face with joy and confidence in your all-merciful love. Remove every doubt, fear, and proud thought which would hinder me from receiving your word with trust and humble submission. The following reflection is courtesy of Presentation Ministries (c) 2014. Their website is located at presentationministries TOTAL HUMILITY Learn from Me, for I am gentle and humble of heart. Matthew 11:29 Jesus is gentle and humble of heart (compare Zec 9:9). Jesus humbled Himself, obediently accepting even death, death on a cross! (Phil 2:8) Jesus humbled Himself and washed the feet of the apostles. Then He commanded: What I just did was to give you an example: as I have done, so you must do (Jn 13:15). Jesus has promised: Whoever humbles himself shall be exalted (Mt 23:12). The Lord commands us to be humble in personal relationships. This is called submission (see Eph 5:21). We are to be humble in managing finances and possessions. This is called stewardship. The Lord commands us to be humble in obeying His Word through the teachings of the Church and her Bible. This humility in receiving teaching is called docility. In effect, the Lord wants our lives to be permeated with humility. The Lord has promised: I will leave as a remnant in your midst a people humble and lowly (Zep 3:12). Be humbled in the sight of the Lord (Jas 4:10). Prayer: Jesus, gentle and humble of heart, make my heart like Yours. Promise: If you live according to the flesh, you will die; but if by the Spirit you put to death the evil deeds of the body, you will live. Rm 8:13 Praise: I will extol you, O my God and King, and I will bless Your name forever and ever. Every day will I bless You (Ps 145:1-2).
Posted on: Sun, 06 Jul 2014 11:18:00 +0000
Trending Topics
Recently Viewed Topics
© 2015