But Jesus answered, “No more of this!” And he touched the man’s ear and healed him.

Luke 22

But Jesus answered, “No more of this!” And he touched the man’s ear and healed him. v51

I have previously posted on hardened hearts, including recently.  I find it striking here that Peter (see John 18) would cut off the ear of one of the high priest's servants and then in response to Jesus' amazing grace - He immediately heals the man even though the mob came to arrest Him - the chief priests, the officers of the temple guard, and the elders' hardness of heart persisted with Jesus' arrest and ultimate crucifixion.  I know Jesus HAD to go to the cross, but I can't help but wonder about the extent to which the Jewish leaders' hearts were pricked even a tiny amount by Jesus, His teachings, and His ministry. Both Nicodemus and Gamaliel strike me as Jewish leaders who both AT LEAST acted in an open-minded manner to Jesus - check out this commentary that discusses the leadership of both these men as models for church leadership.  Also, in poking around, I found that the Catholic church recognizes Gamaliel as a saint, and Gamaliel is portrayed in a very famous painting "Saint Stephen Mourned by Saints Gamaliel and Nicodemus".

For us, we should ALL be mindful to our own hardness of heart, not just about Jesus but also about any hardness of heart that may exist in AREAS of life as even believers can have stubborn pockets of this hardness in our lives.

My Prayer:  Lord Jesus thank You for continuing to prick my heart and working to prevent me from hardness of heart.  Thank You Jesus!  I am not deserving of Your love and grace.  I daily miss the mark and I know I am stubborn and closed minded in at least several areas of my life.  Please forgive me Jesus and help me overcome and turn from my sin towards You.  Help me love You with all of my heart, soul, and mind and love others as You love me.  Help me grow in my faith.  Give Lisa and myself wisdom and strength.  Please heal Lisa of her cancer and from the side effects of chemo.  Help us lead Zach and Dustin to You Jesus and for them to choose You as their Lord and Savior.  Please provide Godly friends and spouse to Zach and Dustin.  Help me serve You, my family, my church, and others.  Help me understand, be obedient to, and apply Your message for me today and every day.

Commit to the Lord whatever you do, and he will establish your plans.

Proverbs 16

Commit to the Lord whatever you do, and he will establish your plans. v3

I have often posted about the folly of our own plans, which put ourselves first - contradicting what God commands us to do (Exodus 20, Matthew 22:37-40).  

Gamaliel, according to this commentary was Paul's teacher, made this statement about the folly of human (vs those of God) plans:

"For if [Jesus' disciples] purpose or activity is of human origin, it will fail. But if it is from God, you will not be able to stop these men; you will only find yourselves fighting against God.” Acts 5:38-39

See also this post.

As I posted a couple of days ago, humility (Matthew 5:3) is core to our journey with Christ.

When we focus on renewing of the mind (Romans 12:2) we can better understand God's will for our lives.

And whatever you do, whether in word or deed, do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him. Colossians 3:17 

My Prayer: Lord Jesus, what an awesome God You are!  You are wisdom, truth and light in a world that is full of lies and darkness.  Apart from You I can do no good things and You are a lamp unto my feet!  Thank You Jesus.  I am not deserving of Your compassion and mercy!  Please forgive me for my sloth and laziness.  Help me be the man You intend for me.  Help me overcome and turn from my sin towards You.  Help me love You with all of my heart, soul, mind and strength. Help me love others as You do.  Help me grow in my faith.  Give me strength.  Give Lisa strength.  Please heal and cure her of her cancer and the side effects from chemo.  Help me lead and serve Lisa, Zach and Dustin...help me lead Zach and Dustin to You and for them to choose You as their Lord and Savior.  Help me understand, be obedient to, and apply Your message for me today and every day.

"For if their purpose or activity is of human origin, it will fail. But if it is from God, you will not be able to stop these men; you will only find yourselves fighting against God.”

Acts 5

"For if their purpose or activity is of human origin, it will fail. But if it is from God, you will not be able to stop these men; you will only find yourselves fighting against God.” v38-39

For believers this is a powerful reminder that God's will is unstoppable - period.  An equally important message is that plans that are of "human origin" (as noted by Gamaliel) will fail...we must seek guidance and validation that our plans are in line with God's purpose and will.  

How can we validate that our plans are in line with God's will for our lives?
- Read the Bible; it is God and it is God's word for us
- Pray
- Seek wise counsel (Exodus 18:13-27)
- Ask yourself if you are at peace; peace is an indicator of the extent to which You are following God (Galatians 5:22)
- Seek confirming circumstances (God is unstoppable and His will should be clear to the extent that you are getting "positive" results).

To be clear, you should probably use ALL five methods to validate God's will for your life as for many of us, myself included, we can can easily use one method or another to validate that our own plans are God's will.

My Prayer: Lord, You are indeed great and Your design and will is perfect.  I have seen Your hand in my life and in the life of others.  Perfect!  I know You have a plan for me and it is not to harm me but to prosper me as You say in Jeremiah.  Thank You Jesus that You love me so much despite my sin.  I am weak, selfish, impatient, I worry too much, I am quick to anger, slow to listen, etc.  Please forgive me for such sin and help me turn from such sin towards You.  Help me love You with all of my heart, soul, mind and strength.  Help me love others as Your do.  Help me grow in my faith.  Help me know and follow Your will for my life.

Day after day, in the temple courts and from house to house, they never stopped teaching and proclaiming the good news that Jesus is the Messiah.

Acts 5

Day after day, in the temple courts and from house to house, they never stopped teaching and proclaiming the good news that Jesus is the Messiah. v42

I've been posting quite a bit about the Holy Spirit, and the power it gave not only Peter, the apostles, and the early church, but also what it gives all believers today.  In today's reading we see more of the Holy Spirit at work as many are healed and the church growth continued apace (v12-16).

The apostles are thrown in jail but an angel released them telling them to continue spreading the Good News of Jesus Christ (v17-20).  Even Gamaliel likely senses the Holy Spirit at work.

The Holy Spirit gives Peter and the other apostles great power to continue preaching - DESPITE suffering and grave threats of physical harm.  THIS is the Holy Spirit at work.  It is something that cannot be stopped by any early power nor can Satan stop it.

As I posted a couple of days ago, we should ask for boldness to continue on with what we are led to do by Jesus as the Holy Spirit WILL be us, equipping us, providing for us, and protecting us - eternally.

My Prayer: Lord Jesus, You are an incredible God who is worthy of my worship and my full devotion.  I know You are with me - always.  Thank You Jesus.  I am not deserving of all the blessings You pour out for me.  I worry and I have much more sin - daily.  Please forgive me Jesus and help me overcome and turn from my sin towards You.  Help me love You with all of my heart, soul, and mind and love others as You love me.  Help me grow in my faith.  Give Lisa and myself wisdom and strength.  Please heal Lisa of her cancer and from the side effects of chemo.  Help us lead Zach and Dustin to You Jesus and for them to choose You as their Lord and Savior.  Please provide Godly friends and spouses to Zach and Dustin.  Help me serve You, my family, my church, and others.  Help me understand, be obedient to, and apply Your message for me today and every day.

For I delivered to you as of first importance what I also received: that Christ died for our sins in accordance with the Scriptures, that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day in accordance with the Scriptures, and that he appeared to Cephas, then to the twelve. Then he appeared to more than five hundred brothers at one time, most of whom are still alive, though some have fallen asleep. Then he appeared to James, then to all the apostles. Last of all, as to one untimely born, he appeared also to me. For I am the least of the apostles, unworthy to be called an apostle, because I persecuted the church of God.

1 Corinthians 15

For I delivered to you as of first importance what I also received: that Christ died for our sins in accordance with the Scriptures, that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day in accordance with the Scriptures, and that he appeared to Cephas, then to the twelve. Then he appeared to more than five hundred brothers at one time, most of whom are still alive, though some have fallen asleep. Then he appeared to James, then to all the apostles. Last of all, as to one untimely born, he appeared also to me. For I am the least of the apostles, unworthy to be called an apostle, because I persecuted the church of God. 1 Corinthians 15:3-9

I continue my study looking at the life of Paul using John Piper's 30 Reasons Why I Love the Apostle Paul.  Today, I move to chapter one - From Angry Killer to Apostle of Christ.  The emphasis in this chapter is the remarkable - and of course, divine - transformation of Paul.  The chapter starts by ensuring we know about Paul as a Jew.  He was born a Pharisee (the strictest sect of Judaism - see Acts 26:5), and studied Jewish law and traditions under Gamaliel (one of the most esteemed teachers among all Jews - see Acts 22:3, 5:34).  Paul was also known for his "radical commitment to the strictest traditions" (see Galatians 1:14, Philippians 3:5-6) - his pedigree was unmatched among his peers and considered advanced. Yet, as he sought to bring followers to Jesus to trial (and ultimately death) (see Acts 9:1-2), Paul encountered the living Christ on the road to Damascus (Acts 9:3-5). Christ gave Paul a mission to preach the Good News to the Gentiles (see Acts 9:15-16). Paul was transformed in an instant and expressed the same zeal he had persecuting Jews to preach to the Gentiles (see Galatians 1:13, 23-24) - it was of course noticeable. Paul's life became a living sacrifice (Romans 12:1) and his testimony was of course compelling. At the end of the chapter, John Piper refers us to 1 Timothy 1:16 where Paul describes his mission:

But I received mercy for this reason, that in me, as the foremost [sinner], Jesus Christ might display his perfect patience as an example to those who were to believe in him for eternal life. 

God wants ALL believers to show how others how His perfect patience lives in us as an example to others....so that they may believe.

Comment and discuss this post.

My Prayer: Lord Jesus, You are SO good and Your Word is perfect in all ways that I may be sanctified by it and made more like You.  Thank You Jesus for the blessing of Your Word.  I am not deserving of such grace.  My sin is great and it continues...daily.  Please forgive me Jesus and help me overcome and turn from my sin towards You.  Help me love You with all of my heart, soul, and mind and love others as You love me.  Help me grow in my faith.  Give Lisa and myself wisdom and strength.  Please heal Lisa of her cancer and from the side effects of chemo.  Help us lead Zach and Dustin to You Jesus and for them to choose You as their Lord and Savior.  Please provide Godly friends and spouses to Zach and Dustin.  Help me serve You, my family, my church, and others.  Help me understand, be obedient to, and apply Your message for me today and every day.