Jesus Affirms His Deity—John 10:22-39

  This is a blog I wrote for my church for an up coming Sunday. I had Megan, the Women's Minister and who I work for, check it out and critique it for me and then I made some changes. Then I thought to go ahead and post it here as some food for thought. :)

     

   During the Feast of Dedication, which was observed during the winter, Jesus was in the temple and the Jews asked Jesus to tell them if he was the Christ. Jesus has already tried doing this by healings, miracles, and sermons, which had been met with skepticism, accusation and unbelief from the Jews. The Jews mentioned here are most likely the Jewish Leaders, Pharisees. Imagine trying over and over to prove to someone that you are who you say you are, but the person keeps saying, “Nope, your actions are not good enough. Tell me again who you are.” Jesus explains that his sheep, meaning believers, know his voice and follow Him and they know his identity. Jesus protects his sheep. This is linked back to the first section of this chapter where Jesus describes himself as the “Good Shepherd” (John 10:1-21). Jesus has an identity, as God’s Son, and his sheep know that and understand his identity as God’s Son and that he and God are one. 

   Because Jesus said that he was God’s Son and that he and God were one, the Jews wanted to kill him because he was speaking blasphemy (slander, denigration) by saying he was “God”. Jesus quotes Psalm 82:6, which called the Israelites “gods” and they received the word from the Father, and asked why they were accusing him of blaspheming as he was blessed and sent from God. The Jews were correct in not believing him if his works are not God’s; however, if he does works of the Father, Jesus encourages them to believe the miracles even though they do not believe him. By doing this, the Jews will know and understand that the Father and Jesus are the same. 

What is the Message about God? 

   The message of God is stunning. He will never allow someone to take you from his hand. Jesus and the Father are one. God will never let us…never let me, go. Because Jesus was sent from God, he ended up telling the Jews to believe his works because they were God’s, even if they did not believe Jesus himself. Satan wants to steal a hope we have that God cares and loves us. In chapter 10, Jesus calls himself the Shepherd and Satan the thief that wants to kill and steal the sheep. Satan wants to take us out of God’s hand, yet Jesus says because the sheep hear his voice and follow and he knows them, Jesus gives them eternal life and says no one will take them from his hand or the Father’s hand! We are in Him, and Satan cannot take us from his hand! 

What is the Message about Me? 

  The message about me is to the point; do I have faith and believe that Jesus is God’s Son and that he and the Father are one? “Never perish or taken out of his hand” what thought provoking words. The Good Shepherd and God’s Son, Jesus has me in his hand and because he and God are one, God also has me in his hand and He will never let anyone take us from his hand. Sheep are known as being “dumb animals” but really they pose as such wonderful examples. A sheep really does know his master’s voice. A sheep will run away at the sight and sound of anyone other than his master, he will not follow anyone else and when a ewe or ram is missing from the flock, the shepherd will go searching for it. Sheep trust their Shepherd. Am I sheep or like the Jews, just waiting to find out who Jesus really is? Do I hear the shepherd’s voice? Do I trust and follow him, like sheep would follow his shepherd? 

What is the Message about our World? 

   There are so many around us on a daily basis that do not know or hear the Shepherd’s voice. Some of them are waiting for a huge revelation that Jesus was God’s son and all he said he was, and still are lost or confused in unbelief. Others have stopped listening and following Jesus as life and priorities or circumstances pull us from Jesus and we want to be in control. Others are waiting for more proof to counter their disbelief. Others are striving to follow Christ and listen. The message to the world that needs to be communicated is that Jesus is real and that in a world that does not make sense, his voice is one that can be trusted, believed, and counted on. Jesus offers eternal life and a promise that no one will take us from his very own palm because he loves and cares for us and we are his sheep. A flock wants a shepherd. Without a shepherd, the sheep get into crevices, thorns, and wire, predators attack, they drink bad water or plants, they will die without the loving care and attention of a Shepherd. The world, like the flock, want a shepherd. Ask God today to speak to you, and then listen to his voice.

May the Lord richly bless you and keep you. 

Crock Pot Cooking!!!!

   I made this last week in my crockpot I got for Christmas, compliments of my parents! :-) I found the recipe on Pinterest and have been wanting to try it and several more lately. Last week I made it for my boyfriend and I and we had enough for two separate meals later! While cooking, we went to Starbucks and worked on completing designs for a twin sized bed frame for me that we are building. Later, we returned to eat dinner with my roommates and then went and watched "Doctor Who" and "Boy Meets World" with his roommate. Wonderful evening and delicious food, if I don't say so myself!

Crockpot Honey Sesame Chicken

2 1/2 lb. boneless, skinless chicken breasts 

Salt and pepper

1 cup honey

1/2 cup soy sauce

4 Tbl diced onion

4 Tbl ketchup

2 Tbl canola oil

2 cloves garlic, minced

1/2 tsp red pepper flakes (optional)

4 tsp cornstarch dissolved in 6 Tablespoons water

Sesame seeds (Optional)

 

   Season both sides of chicken with lightly with salt and pepper, put into crock pot. In a small bowl, combine honey, soy sauce, onion, ketchup, oil, garlic and pepper flakes. Pour over chicken.
   Cook on low for 3-4 hours or on high 1 1/2 – 2 1/2 hours, or just until chicken is cooked through.
   Remove chicken from crock pot, leave sauce. Dissolve 4 teaspoons of cornstarch in 6 tablespoons of water and pour into crock pot. Stir to combine with sauce.
   Replace lid and cook sauce on high for ten more minutes or until slightly thickened. Cut chicken into bite size pieces, then return to pot and toss with sauce before serving.
   Sprinkle with sesame seeds and serve over rice or noodles.

享受

Xiǎngshòu!!!!

Smoky Mountains and Adventure

   This morning I woke up and really just want to be hiking and backpacking. A huge part of me just wants to go spend a weekend somewhere doing this and hanging out in God's creation. At Ozark, we have many people from Colorado so I'm always hearing about the Rockies, which I've seen. But I still love the the Smoky Mountains more. Every since I was a kid, I wanted to hike the Appalachian Trail (secretly still hope to accomplish that!). Sigh...

So, instead of wishing I was there, I've decided the ending thought is...where will God take me this semester and what has he in store for me? It shall be an adventure for sure! 

Now to take a Breath....

    The Christmas Tree and finals are finally over!!! What a great, crazy, busy semester on reflection. As I am sitting it Starbucks drinking a peppermint tea, I am smiling as I think over the semester, what I just read in Scripture, and the fact I am writing again. God is so good and has blessed me in so many ways. I often wonder if I pay Him His due in thankfulness and gratefulness.
    First of all, I was a chimney sweep in the Living Christmas Tree at school. It was a blast! The first night, I went looking for makeup to use as soot, and wonderfully, the drama director and friend, Mary, had black make up! So Ben, my good friend and dance partner, and I applied the make up and costumes and here is the result...

   We had so much fun and the second photograph is from our opening number. The entire choir, about 45 students, were paired up and the other couples were in the three aisles in the audience. We had a choreographed number to a Christmas medley and Ben and I were one of four couples on the stage. This was my third Christmas tree, but the first time to ever be on the stage, terrifying but a blast. :) The Tree ran from Nov. 29-Dec 3 and we had 9 performances. A lot of work, but worth every bit to bring love and Christmas spirit to others. 

   Now, I am done with finals. Only a year left of school and I scarcely can believe that's true! But I am totally welcoming the break and am looking forward to it! I am heading home tomorrow for break and Christmas and time spent with my family. I'm very excited. :)

  

   Then as I sat down to read my Bible today, the passage was 1 Corinthians 13. I decided it would be wonderful to update my blog and to share this passage with my friends and readers as we enter the holiday season. Have a very Merry Christmas! 

"If I speak with the tongues of men and of angels, but do not have love, I have become a noisy gong or a clanging cymbal. If I have the gift of prophecy, and know all mysteries and all knowledge; and if I have all faith, so as to remove mountains, but do not have love, I am nothing. And if I give all my possessions to feed the poor, and if I surrender my body to be burned, but do not have love, it profits me nothing. Love is patient, love is kind and is not jealous; love does not brag and is not arrogant, does not act unbecomingly; it does not seek its own, is not provoked, does not take into account a wrong suffered, does not rejoice in unrighteousness, but rejoices with the truth; bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things. Love never fails; but if there are gifts of prophecy, they will be done away; if there are tongues, they will cease; if there is knowledge, it will be done away. For we know in part and we prophesy in part; but when the perfect comes, the partial will be done away. When I was a child, I used to speak like a child, think like a child, reason like a child; when I became a man, I did away with childish things. For now we see in a mirror dimly, but then face to face; now I know in part, but then I will know fully just as I also have been fully known. But now faith, hope, love, abide these three; but the greatest of these is love."

1 Corinthians 13

It's the Holiday Season...

   It's that time of year again. The time of the year when we completely skip Thanksgiving and Christmas decorations already cram the shelves at stores. Christmas music is already playing. Christmas lists are already being scribbled down. Plans for the holidays are floating around. You know the time of year it is...
   For me, it's felt like the Christmas season since August 23rd. Why? Well, I am in the Living Christmas Tree at Ozark Christian College this year. August 23rd, we started singing Christmas selections for the Tree. What is the Living Christmas Tree? It's a 32 foot, ten row high metal frame to which greenery, lights, bulbs and ribbon and the like will be adorned. We have eight performances starting November 29-December 3. It's a play intertwined with choral music. A volunteer orchestra comes together during the last week of October to start learning the music. Each year the play and music differ, this year the whole thing is called "Salute to Christmas" based in a little town in Germany during World War II, and has a slight taste of White Christmas in it's makeup. This is my third Christmas tree at Ozark. I am a senior at Ozark and am looking forward to this being my last tree, as I graduate next December, I doubt I'll be in 2013's Tree. However, I will be there in spirit!

   So I am not writing out of exhaustion of Christmas, Thanksgiving and Christmas are my two favorite holidays. I am writing out of appreciation. Tonight after dinner with friends, I walked through the park next to campus and while it was cold out and I dislike cold, winter has always been my favorite time for walking. The air is crisp, the lights are sharper, the stars are brighter, and honestly, there is a deeper stillness to the whole night. I look forward to doing the Living Christmas Tree. It's exhausting and time consuming. And because of the extreme stage makeup required, breakouts and a dry face is expected. LOL! But it's honestly all worth it. The orchestra, the acting, the time put into the decorations, the time spent on learning music, everything...is well worth it when the audience's faces light up and smiles are seen from stage at the drama or the choral piece. It brings joy and happiness and makes every bit of the hard work worth it when we, the choir, know we touch someone's heart and warm it with a smile or encouragement. We don't get to hear the stories or the misfortune going on in the individual lives of the audience. But we get to help bring a message of hope at the beginning of the Christmas season and I for one, am so thankful I get the opportunity. Jesus' birth is the beginning of our hope and each year I am so thankful that God sent his Son to be born for humanity. Christmas is a celebration and a holiday that is dear to me. I love Jesus Christ and the message of Him, is the message we get to share through day to day living and interaction with everyone--Christian and non-Christian!

   haha This post developed out of realizing I get an extra hour of sleep tonight. Haha, so I decided to post and share a little of my heart for this season. So next time you start thinking about the upcoming season, remember to spread some "Christmas cheer" but also remember Jesus' love is to be shared all year!

 

An Offering of Thanksgiving?

   God is so good. He is faithful, and his love and mercy is unfailing. Have your ever wondered if God cares about the little things in life? I have a lot actually. I know beyond a shadow of doubt that he cares about everything. IF he knows when a sparrow falls and how many hairs I have on my head, why would he not care about a small, insignificant things? This post, is random...lol...I am thankful, very thankful today. I don't always articulate the best what I'm thinking, but there are a couple things I'm excited about and thankful for. Last night I was reading a book called "Kitchen Table Counseling" and the author quoted the following verse:  

What shall I render to the Lord

For all His benefits toward me? 

I shall lift up the cup of salvation 

And call upon the name of the Lord. 

I shall pay my vows to the Lord, 

Oh may it be in the presence of all His people. 

Precious in the sight of the Lord 

Is the death of His godly ones. 

O Lord, surely I am Your servant, 

I am Your servant, the son of Your handmaid, 

You have loosed my bonds. 

To You I shall offer a sacrifice of thanksgiving, 

And call upon the name of the Lord. 

(Ps. 116:12-17)

Hmmm...read it again.

     For all the benefits of God towards me, I will give You a sacrifice of Thanksgiving. Benefits? Yeah, the good deeds or whatever enhances well-being. But you know, sometimes the circumstances we don't ask for, can be enhancing moments too. Thanksgiving, by definition, is: the act of giving thanks, a prayer expressing gratitude and a public acknowledgment or celebration of divine goodness. There are no "buts" in thanksgiving. We don't just thank God for the things that are good and praiseworthy in our lives, we should thank God across the board for what he's done with our lives, through our lives and in our lives.

    God understands our hearts, he understands our hurts, and disappointments, he understands our joys, and our trials and temptations. When we offer thanksgiving to God, we aren't just thanking a spiritual being or someone that gives us everything we want or, haha, sometimes don't want. We are thanking and expressing gratitude to God, the Father, the Almighty, maker of heaven and earth, of all that is seen and unseen. God formed the universe! He carved mountains and valleys, splashed the milkway into existence, showered a cliff with a waterfall, lit the night skies with stars, and warmed the earth with the sun.

 He designed the human body and he intricately made each and every plant and flower. He crafted birds with wings and animals with fur and hair. He made the universe and cares about each and every worry or joy of his children. He hears us and answers us, every single time we talk to him, God hears us and listens. Walk through the Bible this week and look for instances where God interacted with someone's life, Old and New Testament. Make a list...and I can promise you, it will continue to grow and grow, especially if you continue walking up through history, past Bible times and up to the present.

 He cares. He will always care. He will always love and show mercy and justice. He is the Good shepherd, he is the Ransomed of Heaven, he is the suffering servant, He is I AM, He is bigger than any problem and cares about a simple sparrow falling to the ground. There are moments to be angry, joyful, penitential, praising, and etc in talking to God, be thankful today. :)

  Thank God today. Start with praising him for WHO He is, thank Him for Jesus and Jesus in your life. Then thank him for the benefits and for the things you don't understand. Give those things up to Him and let him turn them into enhancing moments too.

May the grace and love of God be with you all.

A Taste of Art

The Starry Night by Vincent van Gogh 1889. 

Current Location: The Museum of Modern Art in New York City.