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Luke 2:52

And Jesus increased in wisdom and stature, and in favor with God and men.

Encouraging Words

It is so important for us to remember that Jesus was fully human. He was born as every other infant was born. He was loved and coddled by His parents as all of who have been parents did for our children. He went through all of the stages of life that each of us has gone through to reach adulthood. He was tempted as every other human being has been tempted. He, however, never gave into those Temptations. By His human choice, His human will, He was able to live a pure and innocent life. We can seize this as a blessing for ourselves, for we know that there is nothing in this life that we are experiencing that He does not understand. He can lead us through these challenges and difficulties as one who has been there. This is where we can put our hope, in Jesus who is fully God and fully man. Glory be to God!

Luke 1:50

And His mercy is on those who fear Him
From generation to generation.

Encouraging Words

This verse is taken out of Mary’s proclamation of what was going on within her as she was carrying Jesus before He was born…the Magnificat. This is a repeat of what was proclaimed by prophets many years and times before. The Christ, the Son of God, our Messiah, whose birth was coming, would be the Redeemer of human­kind. He would be the glorious and merciful God of all nations. If we fear him, love Him with our all, respect Him as our God, then He will pour His blessings out upon us and the generations that will follow us. This is a promise from God. Glory be to Him!

Luke 1:37

For with God nothing will be impossible.

Encouraging Words

Why is it important for us to believe that our God can do anything? In order for us to have unlimited faith we need to have an object that is not only worthy of that faith, but fully fulfills it. We cannot believe in something or someone that falls short in any area. Our God existed before anything else. He has always been and always will be. He has no beginning or end. Everything that we can see, feel, smell, hear, or even imagine are created by Him…everything. All life is found in Him. Believing this gives us a foundation in our lives to be able to live lives that grow in Him. Believing this gives us purpose and drive. Believing this sets us free from the limitations of this world that has fallen around us. Glory be to God!

Mark 14:72

A second time the rooster crowed. Then Peter called to mind the word that Jesus had said to him, “Before the rooster crows twice, you will deny Me three times.” And when he thought about it, he wept.

Personal Challenge

Sin. The denial of God in our lives by choosing to do what we want to do rather than what He wants us to do. We all have it. We all do it. Peter shows us what we should do when we sin against our Lord, when we deny Him. He immediately wept and sought repentance. He fled to a place away from the sin so that he could seek his Lords’ forgiveness. We must do the same, over and over again, so that we can stay close to Christ and be kept pure by Him. Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me, the sinner!

Mark 13:31

Heaven and earth will pass away, but My words will by no means pass away.

Encouraging Words

The words of our Lord that will never pass away are comprised of much more than is contained between the covers of our printed Bible. These are what the early church fathers chose to canonize, but there is so much more. Jesus taught His disciples, who then taught the leaders of the early churches, who then continued to pass the teachings on down through the history of the church. there are other early church writings that capture the teachings of Christ, the teachings of the early church fathers, as well as the traditions established that have defined the church for 2,000 years. Jesus did not leave us without the tools to build His church when He ascended into heaven. Glory be to God!

Mark 12:29-31

Jesus answered him, “The first of all the commandments is: ‘Hear, O Israel, the LORD our God, the LORD is one. And you shall love the LORD your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your mind, and with all your strength.’ This is the first commandment. And the second, like it, is this: ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’ There is no other commandment greater than these.”

Personal Challenge

The expectation that Jesus has for His followers can be summed up in this passage. He has given us two commandments to live our lives by. Everything that happens in our daily walk can be addressed with these commandments. If we put God first by loving Him will all our heart, soul, mind, and strength, then we are laying the foundation to live godly and righteous lives. When we follow this one by loving our neighbors as much as we love ourselves, then everything that we do will be encouraging and edifying to those around us. These are two very easy commandments to understand, and yet two very difficult commandments to live out. That is why Jesus gave us the Holy Spirit to lead us through our journey of life, hopefully learning to live these commandments better each day. Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me, the sinner!

Mark 12:27

He is not the God of the dead, but the God of the living. You are therefore greatly mistaken.

Encouraging Words

All of the great men who have formed religions and who still have followers today have died and are laying in the grave, except one. Jesus was executed as an innocent man and rose from the grave on the third day. He is alive as is the Father and the Holy Spirit no matter how much naysayers try to purport otherwise. Beyond this, our God is the God of the living and not the dead. Jesus, in His resurrection, destroyed the bonds that death had on us and has set us free to once again experience eternal life. Glory be to God!

Mark 10:43-45

Yet it shall not be so among you; but whoever desires to become great among you shall be your servant. And whoever of you desires to be first shall be slave of all. For even the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give His life a ransom for many.

Personal challenge

If we are ever given the opportunity to be in a position of authority over other people, we can easily begin to understand what Jesus is saying in this passage. Our world believes that leaders must be strong, overbearing, and expect their contingency to serve them. We often see teachings of servant leadership pop up but they often still teach that it is a practice of getting others to do what you want them to do. God’s concept of leadership, as demonstrated by Jesus, is to truly become a servant to others, especially those whom you have authority over. If we serve them and do what we would want them to do, then they too will go down the path that we are willing to go. Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me, the sinner!

Mark 10:27

But Jesus looked at them and said, “With men it is impossible, but not with God; for with God all things are possible.”

Encouraging Words

As humans we will typically resort to looking at things through our finite, human eyes and understanding and projecting that upon God. Many of the teachings of Jesus make it sound like no person will ever make it into the Kingdom of heaven. Which is true, if we try to do that on our own accord. It is only through God, His grace and mercy, that we will transition that abyss between the temporal and the heavenly. That is why Jesus was incarnate and gave His life for us. Glory be to God!