WORD - Matthew 13

Today our word comes from the allegory in Matthew 13 talking about the scattering of the seed. I’ve heard this parable a number of times in my life as I’m sure you have but I have a different take on it in this episode.

WEAPON - Securing Your Online Seeds 

When we think of keeping ourselves safe in public spaces, we typically think of tangible tools such as a gun or knife. We might think of situational awareness or, if you’ve been listening to me for than a minute, you know I always promote the necessity for risk assessments. 

But today I’m going to talk about another way to keep yourself safe and secure in the public space – the online public space.

The Word

In Luke 10, Jesus is asked "what is the most important commandment?"

He responds that the greatest commandment is to "love the Lord your

God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind"

and the second to "love your neighbor as yourself". Jesus was then

immediately asked who counts as a neighbor and he responds with a

parable or a story lesson that is an example for everyday life.

This Parable of course tells the tale of the Good Samaritan

Luke 10:25-37 ESV

25 And behold, a lawyer stood up to put him to the test, saying,

"Teacher, what shall I do to inherit eternal life?" 26 He said to him,

"What is written in the Law? How do you read it?" 27 And he answered,

"You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your

soul and with all your strength and with all your mind, and your

neighbor as yourself." 28 And he said to him, "You have answered

correctly; do this, and you will live." 29 But he, desiring to justify

himself, said to Jesus, "And who is my neighbor?" 30 Jesus replied, "A

man was going down from Jerusalem to Jericho, and he fell among

robbers, who stripped him and beat him and departed, leaving him half

dead. 31 Now by chance a priest was going down that road, and when

he saw him he passed by on the other side. 32 So likewise a Levite,

when he came to the place and saw him, passed by on the other side.

33 But a Samaritan, as he journeyed, came to where he was, and when

he saw him, he had compassion. 34 He went to him and bound up his

wounds, pouring on oil and wine. Then he set him on his own animal

and brought him to an inn and took care of him. 35 And the next day he

took out two denarii and gave them to the innkeeper, saying, 'Take care

of him, and whatever more you spend, I will repay you when I come

back.' 36 Which of these three, do you think, proved to be a neighbor

to the man who fell among the robbers?" 37 He said, "The one who

showed him mercy." And Jesus said to him, "You go, and do likewise."

The Weapon

Emergency situations and disasters can take many forms. Hurricanes,

floods, fires, earthquakes, car accidents and missing persons situations

are not just the makings of television news stories. These events can

occur at any time. The first responders to an accident or emergency

often are not trained professionals but citizens and community

members who are already on the scene.

No matter where or what kind of incident it is, paramedics and police

officers tend to always use the term "bystander."

But bystander is a passive word. It means what it says; that the person

is standing by—simply near what is happening. A bystander doesn't

help. He watches. A bystander isn't useful. She just gets in the way.

The thing is: most people don't really act that way. They jump in and

help when the going gets tough. A witness comes forward and tells the

authorities what he saw. A Good Samaritan pulls the injured to safety

or tries to stop the bleeding. Whatever needs to be done usually gets

done by the person on the street or the patient's coworkers. Most

people don't just stand by.

Your life and the lives of others may depend on your ability to respond

during an emergency situation. As a first responder to an emergency or

accident scene, you may be the only one to provide information and

assistance until the authorities arrive.

If you’ve followed me for any amount of time, you’re very familiar with

the idea of two kinds of first responders. The first is the Professional

First Responders: These are the folks who come to our aid when we

need help. We’re talking about, police officers, firefighters, emergency

medical

The Word – Setting Goals 

It's typical in this season, this New Year that we have resolutions. We have  resolutions for health – for wealth or some other important milestone in our  life. 

In a survey by people that survey such things … 31% of survey participants  plan on making resolutions for 2021 while 19% are still undecided. Seems like  they should resolve to make up their minds. 

Of those that made a resolution in 2020, 35% kept all their resolutions, 49%  kept some of their resolutions, and only 16% failed at keeping any of their  resolutions. 

According to an Inc. study of 2,000 people, these are the 5 most common  resolutions that were made in 2019. 

1. Exercise more 

2. Eat healthier 

3. Save Money 

4. Learn a new skill 

5. Quit smoking 

Every year the number one resolution stays the same – Exercise more.  According to statistics, more than 12% of new gym memberships start in  January. During January, Google searches for health and fitness peak. That’s  fantastic – that’s awesome right? 

Well not so fast – statistics also say that out of those new January-joining  members, 80% will quit within five months and 14% quit before the end of 

February. Yikes – that’s crazy if you’re a gym owner and even worse if you are  one of the ones that quit.  

But take heart - this isn’t a podcast on joining gyms or making new year’s resolutions – This is a podcast about real change – from a biblical  perspective…. Think of it this way resolutions are things you tell yourself – and work on for yourself with little to no help from anyone. Goals on the other  hand are things you commit to. I think as Christians we sometimes fail at our  resolutions because we have the wrong perspective on this tradition. You see,  resolutions are statements of intention, while goals are statements of  commitment. Resolutions are often vague like “I will get in shape” or “I will be  more productive.” Resolutions also tend to aim for extreme changes—I will  stop overspending— or I will lose 30lbs by April – this creates an intimidating  gap between where you are and where you want to be with no actionable  steps. This is like having two pieces of bread with nothing in the middle and  trying to call it a sandwich -- This is also why 80% of New Year’s resolutions  fail. I like to think of it as resolutions being secular while Goals are something  God desires of us. Resolutions are great intentions, but goal setting is biblical. 

Just Listen to some of what the Bible has to say on Setting Goals:  Proverbs 21:5  

The plans of the diligent lead surely to abundance, but everyone who is hasty  comes only to poverty. 

Philippians 3:14 – In Paul’s letter to the church at Philippi, he wrote:  I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus. Luke 13:32 

He replied, “Go tell that fox, ‘I will drive out demons and heal people today and  tomorrow, and on the third day I will reach my goal.’ In this Christ is referring  to Herod as a fox. 

Goal setting was a part of Christ’s thinking. First and foremost, His goal was to  do the will of His heavenly Father. This is the goal that got Him out of bed in  the morning. It was a joint mission with the Holy Spirit. His goal was also to  serve the people. He cast out demons, healed, and taught. Jesus was a focused  individual with specific goals in mind.

God has a lot to say about goals and...

The Word 

Stewardship 

This is something that has been on my heart and mind lately. I don’t know if  it’s the holidays or the fact that I steward Protector’s Toolkit or that I steward  my house. While thinking about stewardship I also heard in in a message recently from one of my pastors – it was the story of Elisha and the Widow’s  Olive Oil from 2 Kings 4 – in which the widow tells the Prophet I have nothing  – “I have nothing in the house except a jar of olive oil.” 

When she says she “has nothing” that is not entirely true. No matter what we  have, how little it may seem in our hands, there a couple facts that hold true: 

• What you do have comes from God 

• God gives in abundance 

• And, there is nothing so little that God can’t do big things with it.  

CS Lewis said this: Every faculty you have, your power of thinking or of moving  your limbs from moment to moment, is given you by God. If you devoted every  moment of your whole life exclusively to His service, you could not give Him  anything that was not in a sense His own already. 

We are to be stewards of everything that God gives is – so the word  stewardship has been on my heart lately. Maybe it’s my 2021 word for the  year – I’m not sure but, I am certainly going to pray on that more.  Unfortunately, many Christians today only associate the idea of stewardship  with sermons they have heard about church budgets so let’s get aligned on  what stewardship is. 

Contrary to worldly thinking, the Bible tells us that we are not the ultimate  owners of physical possessions or financial assets. We are to operate as  managers of our time, energy, money, and talents. God is ruler over  all…period. 

There are three clear aspects of stewardship:  

• Oversees what belongs to another. 

• Carries authority to manage what has been entrusted. 

• Is responsible—he or she will give an account to the owner. 

At the core of stewardship is cultivating a cheerful generosity toward God, His  Kingdom, and others (see 2 Corinthians 9:6-7). 

Responsibility is part of what it means to be created in the image of God  (Genesis 1). As image bearers of God, we exercise limited dominion and  authority… the Bible tells us that we are not the ultimate owners of physical  possessions or financial assets. We are to operate as managers of our time,  energy, money, and talents. God is ruler over all…period. As mid-level  managers within God’s great creation each of us are given the same general  responsibilities—caring for God’s creation, caring for ourselves, etc.—and we  receive specific areas of oversight and dominion as well—ministry, vocation,  family, etc. 

With this in mind, Paul wrote that he was to be considered a steward of the  mysteries of God (1 Corinthians 4:1). One translation says he was “put in  charge of explaining God’s mysteries.” One of the gifts on Paul’s life was  revelation; to communicate mysteries—hidden truths that had not yet been  revealed.  

Therefore, the exact stewardship he refers to is not managing money, time, or  resources (all valid stewardships), but rather managing the gift on his life. 

The great thing about our responsibilities is that God created us in such a way  that He provides for us through the work of our hands. When we are lazy,  disobedient, or otherwise irresponsible with our various responsibilities, we  often suffer the consequences of “lack” by our own hands. 

In the Bible, stewardship is the inherent standard to which God calls leaders— whether we’re leading a country, business, church committee, community ...

The Word

According to the My Faith Votes website - 90 million Christians in America are eligible to vote, but as many as 40 million fail to vote in Presidential election cycles. And 15 million are not even registered to vote.

I want to talk a little today about TIME – and specifically tell you that it is Time

If I can put it more simply – It’s time for us as Christians to stop being marginalized, ...pushed back, ....pushed around, ........ silenced, and disregarded

God has told us time and time again to Not be stupid – its in the bible – well maybe the

Message translation –I’m paraphrasing of course ... but it’s in there

Hosea 4:6 NKJV

My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge. Because you have rejected knowledge, I also will reject you from being priest for Me; because you have forgotten the law of your God, I also will forget your children.

It’s not lack of:

Prayer – not lack of giving – of worship – of serving or even a lack of attending church

When things aren’t going the way I think they should be, as a Christian I think that means – I need to pray more, I need to serve more, I need to do more But that’s not how God wants us to be with Him

I don’t have a relationship with God because of the things I do, I have a relationship with Him because of Who He is

I want you to focus on two words: DESTROYED and KNOWLDEGE

DESTROYED from the Hebrew – to be dumb – nothing to do with how smart you are – it means you can’t speak or you’re silent (to not speak); to fail or perish; be brought to silence – in other words you can speak but you’ve been brought to silence.

KNOWLEDGE (Hebrew) – perception, discernment, understanding, wisdom; to discern and to recognize

So understanding this I want to convert that passage to today’s language – or the Guy Beveridge version based on the days and times that we are currently living in:

Hosea 4:6

My people are failing because they have been brought to silence (we can speak, we just don’t speak) from (or because of) a lack of discernment and an ability to recognize, understand and see with their spiritual eyes ..... (bring in Ecclesiastes 3:1) ...the season and time they are living in.

So, as Christians we are choosing or allowing ourselves to be marginalized and pushed back and

silenced because of our lack of knowledge – and our unwillingness to speak up.

We must guard against falling into the devil's trap and stop being the leaders we are called to be just because we get some resistance

And we need to make sure we are using the gifts and talents that He gave us to combat evil and unrighteousness.

Our treasures are a trust given to us from God to give Him a return on His investment – Our TIME is also a trust from God to give ROI – our talents our abilities are also a trust from God.

As Christians We must guard against falling into the devil's trap and stop being the world changers we are called to be just because we get some resistance

And we need to make sure we are using the gifts and talents that He gave us to combat evil and unrighteousness.

Listen to what the Bible tells us about talents .... Matthew 25:14-19 " For the kingdom of heaven is like a man traveling to a far country, who called his own servants and delivered his goods to them. 15 "And to one he gave five talents, to another two, and to another one, to each according to his own ability; and immediately he went on a journey. 16 "Then he who had received the five talents went and traded with them, and made another five talents. 17 "And likewise he who had received two gained two more also. 18 "But he who had received one went and dug in the ground, and hid his lord's money. 19 "After a long time the lord of those servants came and settled accounts with them.

Now in this passage a talent was a form of currency – something valuable. Monetary value based on the type of metal...

A word - Isaiah 54:17

New International Version

no weapon forged against you will prevail, and you will refute every tongue that accuses you. This is the heritage of the servants of the LORD, and this is their vindication from me," declares the LORD.

Good News Translation

But no weapon will be able to hurt you; you will have an answer for all who accuse you. I will defend my servants and give them victory." The LORD has spoken.

Elevation Worship – See a Victory

The weapon may be formed, but it won't prosper

When the darkness falls, it won't prevail

'Cause the God I serve knows only how to triumph

My God will never fail

Oh, my God will never fail

When I first heard this passage as a Christian, I really focused on the first part and I don’t know about you, but I took it to mean nothing that comes against me will harm me. Sure – that’s the guarantee but It wasn’t until later in my walk with Christ that I started to understand that part about the weapon being formed. This sentence assures us of a couple things: Weapons will be formed, and they will not have their intended outcome or produce any results. Then as we look deeper into the whole passage, we can start to understand that it is much more than the first sentence, there is so much more than protection against attacks.

The promise here is clear it will NOT PROSPER. Meaning that you will be able to rely on God’s hand to lift you up out of the trouble that you are in, or He will cause the trouble to turn around for good (Rom 8:28).

‘And every tongue which rises against you in judgment You shall condemn’ – Now doesn’t that just sound great? You will be able to protest those that have caused you problems in the past. All of those that have slandered or caused grief and sorrow by what they have said, you will be able to turn the tables on them and condemn them. But notice the words ‘in judgment’, meaning at the end times when we ALL have our mistakes aired, so make sure that there is no plank in your own eye and here Forgiveness is always the best policy.

‘This is the heritage of the servants of the Lord’ – A heritage is something given as a birthright, meaning that you did not obtain it by anything you did, but just by who gave birth to you. If you were born in Jesus, then our heritage is from Him, and we will receive all of the promises and blessings of that birthright.

‘And their righteousness or from the NIV “and this is their vindication from me," declares the LORD.”– Another acknowledgement of our lack of ability to obtain righteousness for ourselves –Vindication means: the action of clearing someone of blame or suspicion – we want to make sure we aren’t translating that word to mean vengeance – because that belongs only to the Lord.

A weapon

I wonder if you’re listening to this in your car or if you will drive a car after listening to this? There are a lot of stats that support that one of those ideas are an almost certainty – you will either be listening to this while driving or you will drive sometime after you listen to this

Here in America we spend an average of more than 17,600 minutes behind the wheel each year, according to a new survey from the AAA Foundation for Traffic Safety.

Also during the study they found that drivers travelled nearly 10,900 miles on average and spent more than 290 hours on the road.

“The amount of time the average driver spends behind the wheel each year is equivalent to seven 40-hour weeks at the office,”

So naturally, let’s talk about some vehicle safety ideas. Ideas for you to put into action right away!

1. Visually Inspect Your...

Welcome to the first episode of A Word and Weapon podcast which will bring you biblically guided safety and security, tips, techniques and tactics for everyday Christian warriors.

0:29 Introducing the podcast

1:53 Today’s word

4:41 God’s training on how to overcome this season

5:04 Giving thanks during challenges

6:30 Today’s weapon

7:29 Getting distracted

7:47 Paying attention

14:21 Situational awareness

15:12 Conclusion

Podcast Summary

This episode of A Word and A Weapon podcast will teach you how to be situational aware and also give you an insight on how to overcome this season and keeping a heart of praise in every season of struggle and trial

Quotes from episode

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