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ISN'T IT GREAT TO KNOW THAT THE LORD HAS THOUGHT OF PEACE TOWARD US? THAT IS WHAT JEREMIAH 29:11 SAYS "For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, saith the Lord, thoughts of peace, and not of evil, to give you an expected end." JUST TO THINK THAT THE LORD WHO CREATED THIS WHOLE UNIVERSE, THINKS ABOUT US. WHEN READING THIS, WE HAVE TO REALIZE THIS WAS HUNDREDS OF YEARS BEFORE JESUS, OUR LORD, WAS EVEN BORN. I WOULD ASSUME THAT THE "EXPECTED END" WOULD BE OUR SALVATION AND OUR BEING ABLE TO LIVE WITH HIM THROUGHOUT ETERNITY. THAT IS AN "expected end" I AM ENJOYING NOW. YOU ASK HOW I CAN SAY I AM ENJOYING THE "EXPECTED END" NOW? THE DICTIONARY SAYS THAT ETERNITY MEANS "infinite time; duration without beginning or end." WE ARE LIVING IN ETERNITY NOW.
Just a few days before this instance, hardened hearts caused Jesus' disciples to be amazed when they saw Jesus walk on the water to them. Here, Jesus' statements reveal some of the characteristics of someone with a hardened heart.
First, a hard heart keeps us from perceiving spiritual truths. This is why everyone in a church service hears exactly the same message yet, some will receive while others won't. It's not the Word that is the variable, but rather the condition of the hearts. A hard heart stops spiritual perception.
Second, a hardened heart stops us from understanding spiritual truth. When a person doesn't understand God's Word, Satan finds no resistance when he...
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The Sadducees were a Jewish sect (Acts 5:17), of both a political and religious nature, that was best known for its opposition to the more popular party (the Pharisees), because of differences in various doctrinal and political questions. Sadducees rejected the oral tradition of the Pharisees who made a "mountain" of burdensome legislation and accepted only the written law. We are told they believed there is "no resurrection, nor angel, nor spirit" (Acts 23:8). From Josephus, we learn that the Sadducees believed that the soul perishes with the body (Antiq. XVIII. 1.4) and, therefore, can receive neither penalties nor rewards in an afterlife (War II. 8.14).
The most significant mention of the Sadducees in the Gospels concerns their...
The Greek word used here for "sighed deeply" means an intense grieving, inaudible prayer, or groan. This is intercession of the Holy Spirit, with groanings that cannot be uttered. Some Spirit-filled Christians believe this means groanings that cannot be uttered in normal speech and that this refers to speaking in tongues. However, this actually refers to a type of intercession different than speaking in tongues.
In John 11:33 and 38, Jesus groaned in the Spirit twice, and in those cases there were no words uttered. It was exactly as the Scripture states, a groaning in the Spirit. Everyone who has the indwelling presence of the Holy Spirit has or will have this happen to them. Paul was...
It is very clear in scripture that Jesus was sent to fulfill God's covenant to the Jews. However, it was equally clear that Jesus would open up faith unto the Gentiles. Jesus certainly knew this, and had already ministered to numerous Gentiles without the apparent disdain that we see here with the Syro-Phoenician woman. Jesus could not have been forced into ministering to this woman's daughter if it was not His will to do so. Therefore, His silence and rough answer to this woman must have been designed to accomplish a positive result.
Humility is an important ingredient of faith. This woman was a stranger to the covenants of promise and had no right to demand anything. Jesus' silence and then...
These verses (21-23) further establish the fact that our heart includes more than just our spirit. Even Christians still struggle with things like pride and foolishness, which Jesus said comes out of our heart. It's certain that our born again spirit is not the source of these sins; therefore, the heart encompasses more than our spirit.
The word "spirit" is used in different ways in scripture. The most frequent usage refers to either the Spirit of God or the spirit of man. In that context, it denotes the person of the Holy Spirit or identifies a part of our three-part being (1 Th. 5:23). But the word "spirit" can also describe a mental disposition (Strong).
In Ephesians 1:17, Paul is praying that what is already true in our spirit will become our...
