Jesus_is_LORD
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- Nov 10, 2015
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WORD OF THE DAY (— Hebrews 12:2)
KJV: " Looking unto Jesus the author and finisher of our faith; who for the joy that was set
before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is set down at the right hand of the throne of God. "
MEDITATE ON THIS ( Are you focusing on the Joy of Jesus? )
Without debate, the cross most certainly was probably the most intense and terrifying experience that Jesus
had to endure while here on earth. We are told in Luke 22:44 that so intense was this mountain that Jesus faced that the
mere thought of the experience led to Him sweating drops like blood. Yet with this seemingly monstrosity of a barrier to
overcome, we would assume that Jesus would have experienced a major episode of depression; however Jesus pushed
through by keeping His eyes set on joy.
We are told in our verse of the day ( Hebrews 12:2 ) that Jesus was able to endure the cross because of the
joy set before Him. This most certainly begs the question, what was this joy that the scriptures speaks of which allowed
Jesus to look beyond the agony of the cross and into a greater purpose? For Jesus, His joy was the fact that His death on
the cross would be the final nail in the coffin of sin and death. The death and resurrection of Jesus meant that we would
have an opportunity to one day dwell in the presence of God. The knowledge of one day being with us give Jesus great joy
and allowed Him to look beyond the cross and into the greater purpose.
The scripture writers most certainly were aware of this joy set before Jesus and they too claimed this same joy, the
hope of being with Jesus, as their motivation for their Christian walk. 1 Thessalonians 2 : 19 reads, "For what is our hope,
or joy, or crown of rejoicing? Are not even ye in the presence of our Lord Jesus Christ at his coming?". The joy of being with
Jesus allowed Paul who once denied Jesus 3 times to later face his crucifixion without denying Jesus a 4th time. The joy of being
with Jesus the blessed Messiah to come empower Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego to face a hot burning furnace, Daniel to
face the Lions Den, and Moses to face the Pharaoh of Egypt. Yes beloved, this joy give Paul and many other early believers the
strength to face jail and even death in the midst of hard times. Colossians 1:11 tells us, "Strengthened with all might, according
to his glorious power, unto all patience and longsuffering with joyfulness" and Nehemiah 8:10 tells us that "... the joy of the
LORD is your strength".
Similar to early Christians who faced struggles, we too will someday if not already, face persecution and pressure for
bearing the name of Jesus. However, let us look beyond the barrier before us and focus on the joy of Jesus. When you feel
discourage and want to give up, focus on the joy of Jesus. When you are ill in your body with sickness, or money problems are testing
your faith, keep your eyes set on Christ. Yes, when you feel like doing things your own way because God seems to be taking too long,
wait patiently, enduring with long-suffering as you set your eyes on Jesus. Jesus truly will be more than worth it.
--Your Brother in Christ, WNL
Thought of the week:
Jesus endured utter agony because of the joy of being with you someday in paradise. Let us
therefore do our part and keep the faith so that our joy will be made complete in one
day seeing our blessed Savior.
Prayer for the week:
Dear God, it is so amazing to think that your focus on me allow you to go through such suffering.
Please allow me to likewise focus on you so that when my time of persecution comes,
I too will set me eyes on the joy of being with you, just as you focused on the joy
of being with me. In Jesus name we pray, Amen.
KJV: " Looking unto Jesus the author and finisher of our faith; who for the joy that was set
before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is set down at the right hand of the throne of God. "
MEDITATE ON THIS ( Are you focusing on the Joy of Jesus? )
Without debate, the cross most certainly was probably the most intense and terrifying experience that Jesus
had to endure while here on earth. We are told in Luke 22:44 that so intense was this mountain that Jesus faced that the
mere thought of the experience led to Him sweating drops like blood. Yet with this seemingly monstrosity of a barrier to
overcome, we would assume that Jesus would have experienced a major episode of depression; however Jesus pushed
through by keeping His eyes set on joy.
We are told in our verse of the day ( Hebrews 12:2 ) that Jesus was able to endure the cross because of the
joy set before Him. This most certainly begs the question, what was this joy that the scriptures speaks of which allowed
Jesus to look beyond the agony of the cross and into a greater purpose? For Jesus, His joy was the fact that His death on
the cross would be the final nail in the coffin of sin and death. The death and resurrection of Jesus meant that we would
have an opportunity to one day dwell in the presence of God. The knowledge of one day being with us give Jesus great joy
and allowed Him to look beyond the cross and into the greater purpose.
The scripture writers most certainly were aware of this joy set before Jesus and they too claimed this same joy, the
hope of being with Jesus, as their motivation for their Christian walk. 1 Thessalonians 2 : 19 reads, "For what is our hope,
or joy, or crown of rejoicing? Are not even ye in the presence of our Lord Jesus Christ at his coming?". The joy of being with
Jesus allowed Paul who once denied Jesus 3 times to later face his crucifixion without denying Jesus a 4th time. The joy of being
with Jesus the blessed Messiah to come empower Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego to face a hot burning furnace, Daniel to
face the Lions Den, and Moses to face the Pharaoh of Egypt. Yes beloved, this joy give Paul and many other early believers the
strength to face jail and even death in the midst of hard times. Colossians 1:11 tells us, "Strengthened with all might, according
to his glorious power, unto all patience and longsuffering with joyfulness" and Nehemiah 8:10 tells us that "... the joy of the
LORD is your strength".
Similar to early Christians who faced struggles, we too will someday if not already, face persecution and pressure for
bearing the name of Jesus. However, let us look beyond the barrier before us and focus on the joy of Jesus. When you feel
discourage and want to give up, focus on the joy of Jesus. When you are ill in your body with sickness, or money problems are testing
your faith, keep your eyes set on Christ. Yes, when you feel like doing things your own way because God seems to be taking too long,
wait patiently, enduring with long-suffering as you set your eyes on Jesus. Jesus truly will be more than worth it.
--Your Brother in Christ, WNL
Thought of the week:
Jesus endured utter agony because of the joy of being with you someday in paradise. Let us
therefore do our part and keep the faith so that our joy will be made complete in one
day seeing our blessed Savior.
Prayer for the week:
Dear God, it is so amazing to think that your focus on me allow you to go through such suffering.
Please allow me to likewise focus on you so that when my time of persecution comes,
I too will set me eyes on the joy of being with you, just as you focused on the joy
of being with me. In Jesus name we pray, Amen.
