Facing Difficulty God's Way

Facing Difficulty God's Way

• Luke 22:39 (NIV)

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Jesus had a usual spot He went to hear and gain strength from His heavenly Father, the garden of Gethsemane. The key to being a strong Christian is having a secret place, intimacy and Godly authority go hand in hand. 

When you are about to face something real difficult is it much easier having the support of others than being on your own? 

So, Jesus facing his soon coming betrayal, crucifixion, and death brought some of his disciples to pray along with him. Friends and family are not always the best support as would be expected. What we have to face might be beyond what they can handle, and instead of helping the matter they make it worse. Jesus warned His disciples to pray so they don't fall into temptation. When we are tested our flesh will not like it and sin is knocking on the door. Our only hope is prayer for the spirit of God can help us overcome how we feel so we do what is right. 

Have you ever wanted to just go off but something kept you in check?

Jesus went slightly away from the disciples and began to pray. Praying with others is good but somethings can only be said in private, Jesus knowing the limited understanding the disciples had about what was about to happen needed to hear from the Father Himself. 
Jesus here showed how human He really was, He asked the Father that if what was about to be done could be done another way, please do so.

Why do you think we have such a hard time facing difficulties knowing in the end it is for our benefit and the benefit of others?

Feelings and faith collide durring trying times. We know what we should do but we don't feel like doing it. Following our feelings will often lead us away from God's will. When we are young under the care of others we can often get away with being feeling led. As a adult if one can not move beyond their feelings they will be crippled from being responsible and life will not take them far. 

Do you know any adult that still behaves like a child, who cannot hold on to a job, a wife, raising children, simply because they are feeling driven?

Jesus, for the sake of us having eternal salvation, though He wished their was another way, said "nevertheless, not my will, but Yours, be done."

Bottom line: Are we living for ourselves or for Jesus? Jesus did nothing without the Father leading Him. So the question is, who is leading us? Our Feelings or our Heavenly Father?

Have you ever had an unlikely person help you through a difficult time?

God sent an angel to strengthen His Son, while He was in complete anguish to the point of sweating blood. Facing Betrayal, Rejection, and Death is not an easy thing, not even for the Son of God. Some people use Religion as a crutch, another way to Heaven, than through the cross. Where they are justified by their church attendance, tithing, program involvement, etc. Jesus said one must deny themselves in order to follow Him. Jesus is the way, the truth, and the life, only by following Him can we have eternal life. So no matter how we feel we have no other choice, it is either His way or the highway.

Think of a time when you accomplished something great even though you had not felt like it. How did that feel? Now imagine that being your daily lifestyle. That is what it means to be a disciple of Jesus.

When Jesus got up from prayer the disciples were sleeping. Trying times can be the most tiring times, it's called emotional exhaustion. We would love to sleep through our pain hoping that when we wake up and it has disappeared. 

If one stayed home and slept every time their was a test at school, would they ever pass? 

If you don't pass you don't advance, and are held back. Many of us are being held back because we are not willing to face the trials of life, we are spiritually asleep. God is saying wake up, sleepy heads, I want you to experience the abundance of my life, yes it comes with a price, but the reward is so much worth it. Each test passed bring promotion, God wants to promote us but it takes walking by faith, being led by the Spirit, crucifying our flesh.

Jesus warned the disciples for the second time "get up and pray, so that you won't enter into temptation." Falling does not just mean gross sin, it is whenever we choose not to obey God at His word. He told His disciples that they must deny themselves, take up the cross, and follow Him. 

When was the last time we sought the will of God? Do we live for ourselves, while God is just a crutch to lean on when in need of help? Do we acknowledge God in all our ways so that He can direct out path?

Beyond Judgment (Luke 22:7-38)

Passover

• Luke 22:7 (NIV)

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Have you ever experienced a close one, like where you could of, or should of, been hurt, but somehow, someway (God), it didn't happen? 

Yet, sometimes we can't avoid being hurt, but suffering for righteousness compared to wickedness is two different stories.

Communion is the symbolic celebration of the passover, that the body and the blood of the lamb separates those who are in relationship with God from judgment. If we can learn to partake of the Lord daily, we can overcome our sinful nature, and judgment can passover, continually. 

Here in Luke 22:7-38 we have the story of the Last Supper. The passover celebration at this time was going to be seen from another view point, no longer symbolic of what was to come, but experienced in Christ as the fulfillment of what has come. 

Communion is just a religious observance if not experienced in life relationship with God. He is our passover when we abide in Him. How though do we remain in Christ? We see in the passage that Jesus gave the disciples instructions on preparing the way for Him. No matter how small the task is, when we follow through He is present, and His perfect will is the safest place we can be. This again does not mean we are void of suffering, it means we are free from judgment. Meaning we are free from the consequences of our past, generational curses, and judgment on those around us.

Jesus spoke that one of his disciples (Judas) would betray him. It is hard to imagine anyone that close to Jesus betraying him. Yet we are the very body of Christ, His chosen bride, and yet we commune with Him one moment and betray Him the next. How do we betray Him? When we are ashamed of Him before others and compromise our beliefs so not to offend anyone. If someone was married to someone and nobody else knew, what sense does that make, yet who else knows that we are married to Christ. If we are passionately in love with Jesus we should not be able to hold it within. When I feel in love with my wife, everyone knew, ever strangers, for I would tell all my customers at the restaurant I worked. When we make promises to Christ and don't follow through with them that is betrayal. We play the modern role of Judas, thank God for His unconditional love and mercy, that judgment doesn't fall when it should.

We next see in this passage the disciples disputing whom is greatest. Jesus explains that the greatest becomes the least, for a follower of Jesus is humble, and leads through service not by force. When we operate in a worldly manner we can expect worldly results. The way of the Kingdom of God is upside down compared to this world. Only when being separate from the world are we separate from the suffering of the world. We will suffer in this life by the world but not from judgment from being of the world. 

Jesus now tells Peter that he will betray Him by denying Him three times. Fear of rejection and suffering can change a man's path rather quickly. Peter told Jesus He would go to jail and even die for Him, we all say a lot when emotional that we don't have the guts to follow through with.  If I have given my life to Jesus Christ but I am not in communion, I betray Him as Peter did for I deny His existence through the lack of His presence in my life.

As we will soon see Jesus did not forsake Peter, He did not even condemn Him, He restored Him, and so He does with us today, we forsake Him but He never forsakes us. So let us this day commune with Him and let judgment pass over.

From Good To Evil (Luke 22:1-6)

From Good to Evil

• Luke 22:1 (NLT)

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Have you ever known someone who seemed like a good person do something really wrong? How about ourselves, we want to do what is right yet often do the exact opposite. What is wrong? Romans chapter six describes the battle we have with our sinful nature and chapter eight describes the hope we have through the power of the Holy Spirit. So what is wrong is we were born into sin but what is right is that deliverance comes through Jesus Christ 

Here In Luke 22:1-6, we see Judas a disciple being used by Satan to betray Jesus. The bible describes Satan as a "roaring lion seeking whom he can devour." Just like God needs our obedience through the Holy Spirit to accomplish His will so does Satan use people by demonic spirits to accomplish his will. Satan looks for the closest person to us who he can use. It is one thing for a stranger to do me wrong, but when someone whom I thought was a good friend or close family member does me wrong, it hurts much greater. Now if we look at Judas though he was close to Jesus he was disgruntled or had disagreed on a few occasions, such as Jesus allowing a prostitute to pour expensive perfume on his feet or when Jesus said you must "eat his bread and drink his blood to have eternal life," many people stopped following him and some of the disciples themselves and I expect chiefly Judas said "this is hard to understand, how can anyone accept it." (John 6:54-60) Take heed to the reactions of our so called friends around us when we make decisions, they might seem to still be in favor of us, but they might become candidates for the Devil to use to bring harm into our lives.

In this case Satan actually entered into Judas to accomplish His will. How does one come to that state where Satan can actually take full control of them? It doesn't happen all at once, most people don't want to do evil. It is a gradual work of opening the door a little at a time until it is wide open and their is full access to their lives. Many of us struggle with temptation daily but we don't give in, we may sin but it is not part of our lifestyle, it's not habitual sin. Now Judas became possessed with the Devil, but I don't believe Christians can be possessed. This happened before the Holy Spirit indwelling into the heart of believers. The Holy Spirit and Demonic spirit's are not going to be cohabitant, the two don't mix. The bible says we must choose whom we are going to serve, we cannot have it two ways. Now this does not mean the Devil just leaves us alone he will continue to try to harass us and tempt us away from the Holy Spirit, it is a constant tug-a-war. Since Satan does not have direct access into our lives, he will find others whom do to get to us. Often those we would never expect, some people actually believe they are Christians but have never been born-again and are therefore prime target's for Satan and his evil plots.

Life on earth is like one giant chess game, good vs. evil, where we are the pieces used to advance whatever side we are on. In sports some fans are faithful to support their team no matter if they lose or win, not me, I support whatever team I think is really going to win. Call me a traitor but it is more fun to win than to lose. In the end God wins, so no matter how difficult it is to follow Him, I've chosen to leave the losing squad, and be on the winner's squad to the end. I know the eternal reward is worth whatever temporary sacrifice.

True Value!

What determines value? Longevity, how long something lasts, right! We see ancient artifacts that have maintained close to their original appearance are rare and therefore priceless. Many people though are caught up in the temporary, with things that have little significant value. When people have little that is valuable, they feel they have little worth.  When one does not have worth they feel unimportant and make careless destructive decisions.

In Luke 20:46-47 Jesus speaks to His disciples about religious leaders who try so hard to be important by their outward dress and behavior, placing themselves in places of honor.    They do shameless things in private yet make long religious prayers in public.  Positions and titles may impress man but they don't impress God!  What matters to God is the state of our heart.  The bible says what pleases God is our faith.  Faith is the substance of things hoped for the evidence of things not yet seen (Hebrews 11:1)

In Luke 21:1-4 Jesus is at church watching people give financially.  He sees the rich dropping their gifts in the collection box, then a poor widow give two small coins.  Jesus seeing another opportunity to teach the disciples on true value as they probably thought o themselves about the widows offering "what good is that going to do," teaches that the poor widow gave more than the rich because she gave all she had while the rich gave out of their surplus.

To give all that you got takes faith.  This is not a message about giving money, it is about giving your heart.  For many money is their God and whatever you serve is your master.  So if you run out of money all your hope is gone.  Those who trust in the Lord depend on Him and as He takes care of the sparrow, they know He takes care of them.  It is easy to feel good by being religious and helping somebody out but God knows our heart, He knows if we are genuine and truly giving with the right motive.

I just recently loss my mother due to a tragic car accident.  She was riding with her drug providers when they crashed into a car and into the side of a building.  She was in a coma for a month before passing away.  Now my mother had no identification when she was taken out of the car by the jaws of life, she was designated "Mary Doe,"  see she was homeless, Schizophrenic and had full blown aids.  Now despite all these issues as I met her case workers this is what I discovered about her, she cared about people, she had a gentle spirit, and she would give whatever little she had to help someone else.  This is a picture of the widow who gave all she had.  Despite her issues, despite her loss, she put her faith in Christ, which is what Jesus was teaching his disciples on true value.

If our hope is in money no matter how much we have, it's never enough, and we are bound to earth's predicaments.  Meaning if natural disaster comes, and we lose all we have, it is devastating, for our life is based on temporary things . If our hope is in God, our life is based on eternal things, and we are complete in Christ alone.  The Lord gives and the Lord takes away, blessed be the name of the Lord.

The rest of Luke 21 foretells the signs of the times leading to the return of Christ.  What took place with Hurricane Sandy was expected.  Natural disasters, wars and rumors of wars, are taking place all over the world.  I know numerous credible individuals who had dreams and visions of Atlantic Cities streets being flooded with water.  I was part of a movement called God Belongs In My City, we met from May to August praying on the boardwalk every Saturday from 5am to 6am and on August 25th we had a prayer walk with over 300 people marching through the streets of the city, as a warning and preparation for such this time.

God wants to pour out His spirit upon all flesh, not religious hypocrites but on those with sincere hearts whom choose to put their faith in Him.  You might naturally have nothing but if you put your faith in Christ you have everything.  The bible says "you can do all things through Christ,"  It also says that "all your needs are met through Him."

What has value?  That which lasts!  Those whom repent of their sins and put their faith in Christ have eternal life, and therefore are of greatest value.  Choose today eternal life!