Walk With Me #Deararn.

He was on His way to the grand finale. This was the mother of all assignments. Jesus was making His way to Jerusalem. He had already spoken about His death and all that would lead to it. But now he needed some vessels. He is always in the know; He knows where the vessels for the very next assignment are located. He was specific. You would find them, by the way, he said.

In waiting to hear how the Lord would have us ride today, judging by the pictures He painted on my mind, it was evident. The asses/colts were ready. They must have been specially taken care of by their owners. How else would they have qualified to carry the Master Himself? Jesus intimated to the special duties officers of the state in which the vehicles would be – they would be tied. They were brand new, never ridden by anyone. They would also have people overseeing them, and these people would undoubtedly query them.

The answer they were to give was simple: the Master needed them. The owners could not argue. The one who dwelt in them recognised the Masters’ authority and let them go. The disciples returned to Jesus with the vehicles, and Jesus was able to enter Jerusalem in pomp and pageantry.

My friend, please indulge me for a moment and let us transpose. Can we bring ourselves to believe that the last couple of days, or for some, the last couple of years, had been spent preparing us for this triumphant ride? Could we have been put on the waiting list or made to sit on the bench because we were on special duty? You see, some colts were used for less honourable assignments.

Is it possible that all that has been happening to you is to prepare you for when the Master wants to arrive in style? What would have been going through the ass’s mind when they were tied, and they would watch others go by them? Has life tied you down? Is anyone laying a claim on you now? When were the disciples told to untie the colts? What do you think they were thinking?

What would you think the disciples were doing when they were untying the asses, and their owners were querying? Did they even doubt their assignment at any time? What makes the ass owners yield so easily? I dare to answer this one, timing. The time was ripe! The answer I find very instructive. The Master was in need.

Is it possible that you are that colt? Know this, my beloved; you may have been wondering when the Lord will send for you. The time is now. Maybe your question is, for how long would I remain tied? The answer is until now! Who owned you until now? Would they ever find you useful? You bet! When will you be decorated? Now Jesus did arrive in style riding on the never before ridden colts.

May I offer a prayer for you: the Master will find you useful for His special assignment. May this be truly the time of your showing forth! May men sing your Master’s praise when they see Him riding you.

Is it looking like this season of your life is about to end? are you sensing a transition?

Walk the days before Jesus heads to Jerusalem. What He said to His followers.

In middle eastern culture, food and feasting is a crucial fixture. Families and friends would come together to feast. It was the symbol of relaxation, fellowship, hospitality and generosity. The story in Luke chapter 7 describes one such occasion. Jesus was present as a guest. Being a desert region, people would trek long distances through hot and dusty roads to reach their destination. The result would be that they arrived with dirty feet and would need that cleaned before entering the house. The feet-washing exercise, though, was the job of the house's servants.

Jesus was already in, and feasting had begun when a twist came in the day's programme. A woman came in, went to Jesus, knelt at His feet, poured the entire content of an alabaster box on His feet and wiped them with her long hair. It was a noble cause considering that the feet-washing ceremony was not done when Jesus entered the house. Did she know that, or was she playing out a script? We do not need to answer the question, but we do have to consider the reactions that trailed the womans' gesture. Someone called her action a waste seeing the perfume was worth a year's salary. Another secretly queried the authenticity of Jesus' ministry. If He was indeed a prophet, He should know that the woman should not come near. But, wait, were they not all in the Pharisee's house? When did he become a saint? Plus, the fellow who thought her generosity was wasteful, we are told, did not care about the poor. It was all a hypocritical outlook.

Follow the sons of thunder and their mother as they lay the request for positions before the Master

Mom Zebedee, on several occasions, was a silent listener to her sons every time they recanted their daily experiences with their new master, the new prophet in town.

As the matriarch, she wondered what their future held, considering they both abandoned the family business to find a much better path to life. To her mind, if they chose the new course, there had to be something in it for them. To be sure, they would not lose at both ends. Moreover, her husband was getting older, and it was only a matter of time before he would be unable to continue to run the business. What would her boys' future be, considering that the prophet was new and had no antecedents? Every parent's dream is to see their children continue their legacy. She decided they had to do something about the matter.

She reasoned that if the prophet was anything near what her sons and the news around town reported, the Rabbi must be an influential person who, in time, would be instituting his kingdom. So there was nothing wrong with her ambition to secure her children's positions in the new arrangement.

Imagine that the plan took a while to assemble; she had to be sure it was foolproof. She presented the same to her sons, and they had no objection. We can only deduce that they were also thinking such thoughts. The Bible does not tell us that the patriarch was involved in their plot, but we can get away with the fact he was in on it too.

"We live life forward and understand it backwards". I heard those words, and a lightning bolt ran through my core. A truth you've always known but never heard put so succinctly.

"What is, has been and will be" The preacher spent most of his ministry delivering messages of doom. All he had to tell the people was the judgement they had coming if they refused to stop their evil ways.

Even when he attempted to deliver messages of hope, it had to come with some pain. Like telling the woman, she would go through the pains of childbirth before experiencing the smile of her newborn. Or telling the nation they would go through slavery before they could experience peace.

Any wonder there were only a handful people in the church? Who wants to keep hearing all gloom and doom? I mean, life is hard enough without the prophet adding such messages.

Papa would hold my tiny hand, and in the best way he could find, reassure me that I was not to fear. My father was near and would protect me. I feared that the dead bones, though trapped beneath the tombstones, might, by some stroke of luck, gain strength and life and make an escape. And because they were afraid of being stopped again, the escape would be swift, and perchance bystanders or wayfarers were in the way, they would get pushed aside. Should there be a search for substitution, how would they find the person? Imagine someone was leaving the tomb on the condition that they brought a replacement, and I happened to be around.

The wild imaginations of a curious little mind. I did not need to worry about pictures playing out in real life. Papa was strong enough to ward them off. But wait, he was human and needed cover from my fears too. No, there is a more significant and more potent answer. Calvary covered it all.

The predictions of a substitutionary death of the sinless lamb of God came eons before the event. The main character came prepared, but no prepping could take away the agony, sorrow, and pain.

The book of Mathew is replete with the phrase 'as the prophets foretold it"; One such was documented in the chapter that can be described as the No 1 chapter in the whole bible. Isaiah 53 trumps every other as it summarizes the essence of Christianity. Jesus left His glory, came to earth, died a shameful death, paid the ultimate price for the sins of humanity, and returned to heaven, where he would come back to judge the living and the dead. When He returns, all eyes will see and acknowledge Him.

To be like Jesus, To be like Jesus

All I ask, to be like Jesus...

A song we used to sing long ago. It came to mind as I waited to hear what God would have me share in today's challenge. What was Jesus like? What kind of a life did He live? How does that affect us? What are we to do with His life? The Man Jesus is our role model. There are many things to note and learn in the pattern of His life here on earth. He was a complete man and God, yet He came to live like us to show us how to live.

Today's walk returns us to one of the most terrible vices that sometimes find their way into our lives as Christians. The Bible refers to it as the root of bitterness. It calls it poison; it spreads, festers and defiles. It is dangerous; it kills the one who lets it in. Don't let it have room in your life. So many have fallen victim to its deadly grip. Run from it with all your might. It requires great effort from us as we live in a world of sin, but Jesus, our elder brother, went through life without bitterness, and so can we.

The reason for the bitterness is often genuine, but can anything be worth such costs? I dare say no. Bitterness brings out the beast in us. It makes a beautiful person ugly. It defaces the owner. Absalom would know. The Bible records that he was a very handsome young man, much loved by everyone. He let bitterness take root, and it destroyed him and caused much harm. What happened? His brother Amnon raped his sister, Tamar. It was disgraceful, annoying, shameful and most uncalled for. He said nothing (bitter people sometimes carry on like nothing's amiss). He was angry with his brother for raping his sister but madder with his father for doing nothing.

Absalom, for two years, did nothing, said neither good nor bad to Amnon. Everyone must have thought it was all good until Absalom plotted to kill his brother Amnon. He did not stop there; he planned to take over his father's throne and win the people's hearts, but bitterness defiles, and its end is always bad. Absalom ended up with his hair caught up on the branch of a tree—the aftermath of trying to go after his father. Bitterness will take the life of its owner. Do not let it in. It is not worth the trouble and pain that accompanies it.

Ahitophel was a good man, a trusted official. He was righteous, and his counsel was sound. He never missed it until one bitter man hooked up with another. He was grandfather to Bathsheba, wife of Uriah, whom David killed. He knew it was a wrong thing David did, and when it was time to advise Absalom against David, what did he recommend? 'Sleep with your father's wives in the open.' In other words, do exactly what your father did to my grandbaby. Notice he started as David's adviser; he never said anything about David's crime, but we find that he was bitter. We learn from the story of his life that the poison of bitterness destroys from the inside. Ahitophel ended up committing suicide because his counsel, which until that point in time had never been rejected, was not taken. Bitterness will hang you if you don't hang it. The account is in 2 Samuel 13, 14 & 15

Beloved, who are you intensely angry with? You were wronged, we agree, but would you let bitterness take your life? It is not worth that trouble. You may have to endure shame, abuse, disgrace, whatever. They may abandon you, leave you alone with the children, or kill your loved ones. Whatever they did, you are the one suffering. Bitterness is like poison. It spreads like wildfire. You may be surrounded by fellow bitter souls who make it sound like you are justified in your anguish. Do not let it. It brings death to the camp.

Jesus came that we may have life. Today, I chose life, and I believe you should too. It is the wisest thing to do. Give the devil a deadly blow. Come out of his employ. Embrace life in Christ. Let all bitterness go.

1.  Take head to yourself. ‘The first shall be the last still exists.” Self-righteousness has never landed anyone a spot in the kingdom of God

2.  Obedience to the Father’s command is proof of love

3.  Repentance is still a pivot to our walk with God.

4.  It does not matter how you start. However, how you end is crucial.

5.  You do not qualify for the kingdom because of your ranking in life and society.

6.  Do not write off anyone.

7.  God will not bend His rules because you are a child of the covenant. What makes you a son is obedience to the Father’s will.

In this episode, we remind ourselves of the reason for the journey, the road to the Cross.