From my Coffee with Jesus this morning....

      I read a couple things today…one was Philippians 2 in the Message paraphrase.  I encourage you to read it in the Message…It shares a part of a very personal letter to a family of believers…read it and hear and feel Paul writing his heart out, passion on a page, Love as its authority and yearning to express insight into their knowledge and relationship with Jesus.  I attach it here if you need to do so.

https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Philippians+2&version=MSG

He had a message to convey and he so wanted it to get into their hearts.  And great messages indeed!  Read and feed Sisters and Brothers.  That got me onto a “rabbit trail” of sorts.  I began to seek Jesus the Teacher and Preacher…and as Paul was a well-educated student of Hebrew History, culture, and relationship with Jehovah God, was also a follower of Jesus he had to ultimately share that message.

      I always respected the “co-writer” of the Message.  Pastor Peterson’s insight and understanding that as a pastor he was doing what all pastors do in sharing the Good News with congregations…taking Biblical text,  and with the aid of inspiration of the Holy Spirit, preparing sermons to indeed express scripture  without the hindrance of language which is  subject to mistranslation, misinterpretation, semantics, syntax, Grammar, and implies a working knowledge of the writer or speaker or preacher*…*(… In a nutshell syntax is structure, and semantics is meaning…all things even many Christian scholars question and argue about. Important especially as these things have tried to express a deeper meaning and even founding doctrines on their interpretation…Amen?)

We all know some of the ways Jesus taught…especially Parables.  We also have to know that Jesus knew intimately the rabbinical methods of instruction as from early on we read of Him in Luke 2:46-48

“The next day they found him in the Temple seated among the teachers, listening to them and asking questions. The teachers were all quite taken with him, impressed with the sharpness of his answers. But his parents were not impressed; they were upset and hurt.”

As He was Son he was obedient to the Wisdom that came from knowing of His Father and learning from those teachers…He must have known He would be a Teacher and that would be an important part of His ministry.

So Sisters and Brothers  all this to say as I have my coffee with Jesus and observe the birds of the air walking about the field before me …looking and eating that which God has provided for them.  That we also must come to our landing place in that place where God has our food ..His word in the good soil…placed there for us…and like these birds  talking and singing and communicating….I imagine them saying  “Taste and see!”   “Eureka here it is!”   Excited as they find it…Rejoicing they also shout “Praise God!”…flying and playing in the sky…Taking my last sip of coffee ( for now anyway)  I see my wife stick her head out of the window and excitedly say “ You have to look at this Word God gave me to share today!” …and so I do…Praying you are blessed as you  seek Him in who He is in All you are….Rock and Roll!

From Cat today( especially as our current Pastor shared a message about the Arc of the covenant):  Joshua 3:3-4 The Message also  GMTA!  God minds think alike?  Holy Spirit does!

“When you see the Covenant-Chest of God, your God, carried by the Levitical priests, start moving. Follow it. Make sure you keep a proper distance between you and it, about half a mile—be sure now to keep your distance!—and you’ll see clearly the route to take. You’ve never been on this road before.”

Pay particular attention to these words in the scripture: "You’ve never been on this road before.” Whether it is a job, a place to live, a relationship, an addition to your family, a position of influence, an exercise program, a church, a hobby, or a way of serving your community--if you have "never been on this road before,” it is new to you. You may not know how to get there or what to do when you arrive, but if you follow God, you will arrive at your destination and He will direct you in everything you need to do. You have no need to be afraid of new things because God is always with you and He will never leave you. Be courageous and trust Him to help you. When God leads you into a new situation, trust Him to provide everything you need.