“If anyone is ashamed of me and my words, the Son of Man will be ashamed of him when he comes in his glory and in the glory of the Father and of the holy angels.”
~ Luke 9:26
Hi James and Ellen,
After a guy, gal or kid has been led by God – as God the Spirit, to and then through the faith/grace door as a Christ-follower, what do you think that God – as God the Father, expects from His specially elected and adopted kid as he or she joins His constantly growing Christ-follower family of guys, gals and kids? Luke – in Luke 9, quotes what Jesus told His disciples what His expectation is of the kind of attitude that Christ-follower guys, gals or kids are to have towards believing in Him and in the Good News message. Verse 26 says, “If anyone is ashamed of me and my words, the Son of Man will be ashamed of him when he comes in his glory and in the glory of the Father and of the holy angels.” A guy, gal or kid who is a Christ-follower is expected to never be ashamed of his or her belief and faith in God – as God the Son (Jesus), and in what is written in the Bible. A guy, gal or kid who is a Christ-follower is expected to give up once and for all his or her carnal thinking, temporal pursuits and personal desires to follow his or her belief and faith in Jesus and what is written in the Bible. A guy, gal or kid who is a Christ-follower is expected to as an adopted kid of God – as God the Father, permanently leave what had been once important to him or her – such as his or her dad and ma, home and self, and to be a willing, undying ambassador of the Good News message wherever God – as God the Spirit, divinely leads and directs him or her. At the moment that a guy, gal or kid ‘arrives at’ the cross on which God – as God the Son (Jesus), was brutally nailed to so that His horrific suffering and degrading humiliation would become a ransom payment for the sins of the guys, gals and kids who God – as God the Father, specially elected and adopted for Himself, he or she is cleansed and sanctified by the blood of God – as God the Son (Jesus), and is given power and authority. God expects Christ-follower guys and gals to use in the name of God – as God the Son (Jesus), the power and authority that they have to drive out demonic spirits, heal the sick and clearly articulate the Good News message.
Your grandmaa and grandpaa for three days and an evening last week sat through a series of teachings that focused on what demonic spirits have done and are doing in the lives of Christ-follower guys, gals and kids. The teachings began with family ‘curses’ that are being passed on from one generation to the next generation – ‘curses’ such as alcoholism, violence, compromising relationships, gambling, overeating, etc. The teachings then focused on false self-beliefs – false self-beliefs such as ‘I can never be the kind of Christ-follower that God – as God the Father, would like me to be’ or ‘I am not good enough to be a good Christ-follower’ or . . . the teachings then focused on soul hearts – soul hearts that come from being falsely accused or demeaned by something that a dad, ma or respected other has said or . . . the final teaching was on demonic oppression and how evil spirits – evil spirits such as fear, control, anger, rejection, etc. need to be removed in order for a Christ-follower guy, gal or kid to live his or her life as a victorious Christ-follower. Because of having God – as God the Son, living in Him, your grandpaa does not believe that he can be inhabited by an oppressing evil spirit. Your grandpaa does believe though that evil spirits are being sent by Satan through his minion, gofer, subordinate, etc. hanger-ons to do whatever they can do to oppress through illnesses, finances, relationships, thoughts, etc. Christ-follower guys, gals and kids. Even though your grandmaa and grandpaa learned a lot from last week’s sessions, your grandmaa and grandpaa remain convinced that enabling guys and gals by helping them to identify their gifting and hardwiring and encouraging these guys and gals to use the gifting and hardwiring that God – as God the Father, has embedded in them to the best of their ability for God’s kingdom’s sake is the call that God – as God the Father, has mandated them to do.
Luke reports on disciple experiential learning activities in today’s chapter. One of these experiential learning events has Jesus sending his twelve disciples two by two to communities of guys and gals. Jesus had the six pairs of disciples go with just what they were wearing and without money, staffs and food. Jesus wanted his twelve disciples to learn what it was like to have to trust in the power and authority that He had given to them to use – which was to give a testimonial demonstration of their faith in Him by teaching the Good News message wherever they went, healing the sick and casting out demons. When the twelve disciples returned to Jesus after doing what He had told them to do, they gave personal testimonials that what Jesus had told them would happen really did happen. After He finished debriefing His twelve disciples and celebrating with them what they had done, Jesus and the twelve guys headed for the town of Bethsaida to do downtime. When word got out that Jesus was near the town of Bethsaida, a large crowd that included 5000 guys – plus who knows how many gals and kids there were, encircled Jesus to hear Jesus’ teaching. When it was time to eat, Jesus used five loaves of bread and two fish to give another experiential learning lesson to His twelve disciples. After Jesus had the five loaves and two fish feed every guy, gal and kid who showed up to hear Him teach, Jesus had all the bread scraps collected. Your grandpaa’s take on the bread scraps that filled the twelve baskets as being blessings that faithful Christ-follower guys, gals and kids will receive if . . . as faithful Christ-follower kids, how have you been blessed today? Your grandpaa would like to encourage you to begin to record in journals the different ways that God has and is blessing you. You will be very glad that you did.
Luke 9 (856)