Today’s Podcast
Today’s Bible reading plan:
Read it in a year – Psalms 21-23
see the whole year’s plan [here](http://www.bible-reading.com/bible-plan.pdf)
Today’s Devotional
Matthew 10:7-8
Jesus: As you go, preach this message: “The kingdom of heaven is at hand.” Heal the sick, raise the dead, and cleanse those who have leprosy. Drive out demons from the possessed. You received these gifts freely, so you should give them to others freely.
What do Jesus’ words mean for us today?
What message do you share with others when you tell them about Jesus? He sent His disciples out with a pretty short and sweet message. “The kingdom of heaven is at hand.” Then He gave them a few other things to do to demonstrate the fact of the kingdom’s arrival: heal the sick; raise the dead; cleanse the lepers; drive out demons. A pretty short list. But the list would keep them busy for a while and help show those they met that the Messiah and God’s Kingdom had arrived.
I’m afraid we don’t think too much about the message we share when we go out into the world every day. But if we take Jesus’ words to heart, we are supposed to share His message, aren’t we? Do we think about what we should say? Do we think about what those around us need to hear from God? Do we understand ourselves that the kingdom of heaven is at hand? What does that mean, anyway?
I’m afraid we sometimes get so enamored with our future in heaven that we forget we can and should enjoy a piece of it now. When Christ came to live among us and then sent His Spirit at Pentecost to remain with us until He comes again bodily, the kingdom is here. It resides wherever He lives. If He lives in you, a part of heaven and His kingdom is in you. Have you ever thought about that?
He overcame sin, death, and hell to live in us and give us a taste of heaven now. So even more so than the disciples, we can proclaim, “The kingdom of heaven is at hand.” And what does that mean? The good news for us is that because of God’s grace, He holds back the wrath that should come pouring down on us because of our past sinful actions. It doesn’t mean those consequences won’t come. There is a judgment day and there is a harvest for each of those seeds we plant. But God’s prevenient grace and mercy holds back His wrath.
Remember the stories of the Old Testament and the early church when His presence entered the camp? People died when they disobeyed. Those who opposed Moses and the commands God uttered through him died. Some were swallowed up by the earth. Some died by snake bite. Some died of plagues in the desert. Most died from the hardships, struggles, and consequences of their disobedience. None of the adults who left Egypt except Caleb and Joshua lived to see the promised land. And in the early church, there were Ananias and Saphira, Silas, the sorceress, and others who found out pretty quickly about God’s wrath when they opposed His preachers.
Do we talk about that when we talk about the kingdom of heaven being at hand? His wrath is as real as His love, you know. Sometimes I’m afraid we water down the words into a feel-good, do whatever you want because God is love, message. That’s not what Jesus sent His disciples to say. His message was the same as John the Baptist. “Repent, the kingdom of heaven is at hand.” Did you notice that?
Jesus called people to repent. Turn around and walk away from sin and walk to God. You can’t have it both ways. He talks about dying to self. He talks about taking up your cross. He talks about making a complete break from what this world offers or thinks is important and listening to what God tells you is important. Jesus’ message is not for the faint of heart. It is not for the coward. It is not for the wishy-washy, in and out, fence-walker.
With Jesus, the message is “the kingdom of heaven is at hand.” It’s here. God has burst on the scene. Time is short. Do something about who you will serve. You only have two choices. You can serve God or you can serve self. One leads to life, the other leads to death. One is a gift of grace from God, the other receives the wages of our sins, death. You would think it would be an easy choice. Why would anyone choose death over life? Sin over obedience? Hell over heaven? Why would anyone run away from the One who loves us more than we can begin to imagine?
Maybe people run because our behavior doesn’t match our words. So what goes with the words? Jesus said His disciples received gifts from Him. They were to use those gifts for others. Heal the sick, raise the dead, cleanse those with leprosy, drive out demons. What gifts has God given you? Do you use them for those around you as you share the message that the kingdom of heaven is at hand? Does your behavior match your message? Maybe if we share the gifts He’s given us and the message He’s given us we might see more results around us. Maybe we would see our churches full. Maybe we would see the miracles the disciples saw. Maybe we would rejoice in the fact that “the kingdom of heaven is at hand.”
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