MARCH 15 THE JESUS QUESTIONS JQ#10 “Are not two sparrows sold for a copper coin?” (Matthew 10:29)

 

MARCH 15  THE JESUS QUESTIONS   

JQ#10 “Are not two sparrows sold for a copper coin?” (Matthew 10:29)

LIVING FOR JESUS Daily Prayer    

JESUS, thank You Lord for answering our prayers, but even more, thank You Lord that You Taught us the necessity of praying every day and how to be successful in our prayer life, and the blessings that flow down from the Father because of our prayers.

 Prayer is a miracle of God that is available to everyone 24/7/365 and has no physical limitations, no age limits, and is not restricted to race, color, or nationality — there are no gender restrictions, nothing exists to prevent anyone of any age, of any culture, of any social status to talk directly to God! Prayer is a miracle and I thank You Lord for the answered prayer that You gave me yesterday as I was allowed to serve and to witness to Your Mercy and Grace that You have bestowed on my family. 

Forgive me all my iniquities and guide me deeper into Your Truth and to share Your Love with those You have allowed me to serve in Your Name!    

AMEN

THE JESUS QUESTIONS

Jesus has indeed been asking “simple” Questions yet the “simple” is “profound” when it is a Truth of God Taught by the Master Teacher. The individual Question/Lesson with their mere simplicity but deep “Truth of God” is a Lesson in itself. 

As I reflect on the Lessons learned from JQ#1-9, the additional Lesson that I have learned is that Jesus takes us a step at a time with simple Questions that we can easily answer even with our finite and limited intellect. Yet, when put together, as only the Master can, each Lesson builds upon the previous to coalesce into deep Spiritual Truths that give us guidance how to live successful Spiritual Lives and these Question/Lessons brings peace to our physical trials we all face during our worldly journey. As we seek to learn these Spiritual Truths we must focus on what the Master has asked us to focus on for the individual Lesson before us and Trust Him to put it together with the previous Lessons so that we will exclaim “…all things work together for good…” (Romans 8:28) and watch as our “Faith in the Rock” grows stronger as we learn “precept upon precept” (Isaiah 28:13). 

JQ#10 is found in the middle of a tremendous chapter in Matthew therefore we will use the whole of Matthew Chapter 10 as the context for 

JQ#10 “Are not two sparrows sold for a copper coin?” (Matthew 10:29)

 which Jesus uses to encourage us

 “Do not fear therefore; you are of more value than many sparrows.”

 (Matthew 10:31)  

Jesus first asked the Question 

“Are not two sparrows sold for a copper coin?” (Matthew 10:29a) 

and then Jesus followed the Question with this encouragement immediately after 

“… And not one of them falls to the ground apart from your Father’s will.” 

(Matthew 10:29b) 

Jesus is a Master Teacher because He asks a Question that can always be easily answered by every individual just by observing the world around us.  

Also Jesus assures us that none of these Lessons are beyond anyone’s intellect, all we have to do is to look at our world and observe the “Truth of God”. Jesus then Teaches us how to apply the “Truth of God” that we observe in our day-to-day world to living a successful life in the world created by the “God of Truth”! 

Again we see that the “Question/Lesson” is simple in nature — JQ#10 is about 2 sparrows — everyone knows a sparrow when they see one and a sparrow is a common bird everyone is familiar with and everyone is also familiar with a simple copper coin, but then look at the great “Truth of God” that Jesus Teaches with these everyday items! Though they are simple and everyday items everyone is familiar with, the Lesson Jesus Teaches with them is about our

 “great individual value” to “our Father in heaven”! 

Jesus always encourages us if we will listen, for Jesus never lets us take off on a tangent with some wild answer for He immediately directs our attention to the “good” we will find with an “honest” open answer to His Divine Questions, such as is the case with JQ#10. For as soon as Jesus asks the Question, Jesus immediately assures us that our Abba Father values us and that the Father’s will for us is as Jeremiah states:

 “… plans for good and not for disaster, to give [us] a future and a hope…” 

(Jeremiah 29:11).

 Matthew Chapter 10 is a great insider’s look at what are the expectations and “Truth of God” about being a “follower of Jesus” and Matthew Chapter 10 includes the “costs of discipleship” and the “rewards of faithful service” — and like 

everything in God’s Economy, the ROI (Return On Investment) 

is out of this world, in fact it is HEAVENLY !!!

MARCH 14 THE JESUS QUESTIONS JQ#10 “Are not two sparrows sold for a copper coin?” (Matthew 10:29)

 MARCH 14  THE JESUS QUESTIONS  

JQ#10 “Are not two sparrows sold for a copper coin?” (Matthew 10:29)

LIVING FOR JESUS  Daily Prayer    

JESUS, thank You Lord for this life You have given me, for the tribulation and the strength to endure while in the valley, for the darkness that Your Light has dispelled so that I can see to walk Your Path to the Narrow Gate. Lord I give You Praise for the answered prayer of “family” that has been my greatest blessing and Lord I can clearly see Your Hand in my life and Lord I can truly say, I would change nothing! 

If I had not known I was lost, 

I could not have experienced the “joy of my salvation” 

and if it had not been for heavy burdens,

 I would not know the “peace that passes all understanding”,

 because of Your Grace, 

and Lord, had I not known “despair” I would not appreciate the “Hope” 

that comes from “Trusting God” and declaring to Him, “Abba Father”!

 Lord, because of my trials and

 Your Faithfulness to carry me when I can’t carry myself, 

I surrender all to Your Glory

 for I see my righteousness as nothing but “filthy rags”

 and Lord, I beg for the crumbs of Your Infinite Mercy. 

Jesus, thank You for this new journey You are leading me on - I do not know the twists and turns it will take but I “Trust” in Your Leading and the “Final Destination”. I have Supreme Confidence that You will finish the Good Work You have started and one day I will hear Your Still Small Voice in the depth of my soul saying, 

“Son, it is finished, well done — come on Home, I’m waiting for you at the Narrow Gate!”    

AMEN

THE JESUS QUESTIONS

JESUS has given us the “Introduction to Discipleship” with JQ#1-9 and now Jesus is going to start us on a series of “Spiritual Introspections” as He Teaches us how to “evaluate our Spiritual Worth”. 

The context for JQ#10 is actually JQ#1-9 and the entire chapter 10 of the Gospel that Matthew has written declaring Jesus the “King of kings” and giving us glimpses of the “kingdom of [our Father] in heaven” and more importantly we are building our “Faith in God” on the firm foundation of the “Rock-Solid Truth of God”.  

Jesus has now personally called each of His disciples and they have been observing Jesus as He Teaches them through His Perfect Example what their “Kingdom work” will be like. Jesus lists the necessary pre-requisites for discipleship in the Lessons Taught in JQ#1-8 and summarized in JQ#09 and now He starts His “commissioning” of the “twelve disciples” in Chapter 10 as we read,

 “And when He had called His twelve disciples to Him, He gave them power over unclean spirits, to cast them out, and to heal all kinds of sickness and all kinds of disease.” (Matthew 10:1)  

It is important that we walk both “daily with Jesus” and “step-by-step with Him”. These “Question/Lessons” point to Jesus being the Messiah 

as we read from the book of  the prophet Isaiah,

“But the word of the Lord was to them …precept upon precept, line upon line, here a little, there a little …” and confirmed by John 1:1 “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.”

Isaiah 28:13

God demonstrated the Significance and Power of His Word as He dispelled the darkness, the emptiness, and the lack of purpose of the world when God spoke these words in Genesis 1:3 “Let there be light”. 

We read that as soon as God Spoke the words that there “was light”. 

All the Power of God is in His Word.  The Power over all creation and all that is in it is The Word of God and all creation is subject to The Word. 

If we who have been created want to navigate the stormy seas of life we must learn to listen to the Word of the CREATOR and not run ahead of Him because if we are to be “perfect” we can only learn from a “perfect” God — 

Psalm 18:10 “As for God, His way is perfect…”  

so to “learn from the Master” we must listen and learn each Lesson so as we embark on JQ#10 you are strongly encouraged to build your foundation 

 “precept upon precept upon the Rock”, 

and read again Matthew Chapters 5-9 as an “Intro” and 

Matthew 10 as a “Spiritual Job Description of Discipleship” — 

if we are to “labor” in His harvest, 

we should know our tools and learn from the “Lord of the Harvest” 

before we enter into His Fields that are “white unto harvest” (John 4:35) 

“ARISE” and let us “GO”.

MARCH 13 THE JESUS QUESTIONS JQ#09 “Do you believe that I am able to do this?” (Matthew 9:28)

 MARCH 13  THE JESUS QUESTIONS  JQ#09 “Do you believe that I am able to do this?” (Matthew 9:28)

LIVING FOR JESUS  Daily Prayer    

JESUS, a new day — thanks to You — and a new opportunity to live as You intended — full of Mercy and Grace.

 Lord Jesus, each day as I think about Your Sacrifice for my sake I am overwhelmed that God “so loved the world” that He would do such a great  thing as Sacrifice His Only Begotten Son as “The Atonement” for the sins of a world that thinks so much “evil” in our hearts! Lord forgive me daily of my transgressions and let me walk in newness of life in the Power and Strength of Jesus Christ.    

AMEN

THE JESUS QUESTIONS

JESUS, through the Holy Spirit, pointed out in my reading today the “Summary” of JQ#1-8. “You are the salt…and…light of the world…” (Matthew 5:13-14) gives us a realization of what our purpose is if we listen to Jesus. 

Jesus next calls His listeners to “…be perfect, just as your Father in heaven is perfect…” (Matthew 5:46) and Jesus tells us that we will attain this “perfection” only by loving the world, the whole world: “But I say to you, love your enemies, bless those who curse you, do good to those who hate you, and pray for those who spitefully use you and persecute you.”

 (Matthew 5:44) 

Jesus immediately says that the reward for living our lives as He commands is great: [that] “you may be sons [and daughters] of your Father in heaven…” 

(Matthew 5:45) 

Jesus is both instructing us how we should “Choose” to live our lives [“love your enemies”] and declaring the “Consequence of our Choice” [we become “heirs” to our “Father’s {kingdom} in heaven”] and THE HOLY SPIRT reminds us that these scriptures are the introduction to the

 “Law of Choice and Consequences” ——— God’s Law in which He reserves the Supreme Authority to declare the “outcome” of the “actions” we “Choose” to make with our Freewill. 

Jesus teaches us that we can “choose” our action with our Free Will Gift from God but the “results” of each “action” that we “choose with God’s Free Will Gift”,

 we must “accept God’s predetermined “Consequence for the action” that we have just “Chosen” to do ——— for God has established the “DIVINE Laws” by which all of creation must abide by! 

Jesus follows the command to “Love” with instructions how to “pray” [see Matthew 6:9-13]. 

In succession Jesus has Taught that for us to be the “light of the world” (which was God’s original solution to darkness [see Genesis 1-5 key verse: Genesis 1:3] that we will need to be “perfect” like the Father and “love” like the Father and to be successful in being like God we must “pray” to “Our Father in heaven” 

(Matthew 6:9). 

Jesus continues His “Questions/Lessons” with instructions 

“not to worry” (Matthew 6:25) 

and throws into the Lesson that the focal point of our success will be when we 

“seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness…” (Matthew 6:33).

 Jesus adds a companion to “do not worry” with “do not judge” (Matthew 7:1). 

It is interesting to note that Jesus says the “Consequence” of our “Choice” to “Worry” is completely futile and will gain us nothing because we have no “power” to change anything that we worry about because God has it already figured out (Matthew 6:32) but the “Consequence” of our “judging” will be measured out to us as we measure out judgement to others! (Matthew 7:2) 

Jesus continues by assuring us that our Good Father will treat us as sons and daughters and to trust that our 

“Father who is in heaven [will] give good things to those who ask Him!” (Matthew 7:11). 

Jesus adds that we will be known not by our words but by our actions:

 “Therefore by their fruits you will know them.” (Matthew 7:20) 

The key to bearing good fruit is to plant ourselves in God and to build our “foundation of Faith in God” on the “solid rock” (Matthew 7:23), for the Son was sent to reveal the Father to us. Jesus demonstrates His Power given to Him by the Father by not only healing the “physical” problems such as the woman with a flow of blood which Jesus made well as soon as she touched the hem of His garment and Jesus said,

 

“Be of good cheer, daughter, your faith has made you well” 

(Matthew 9:20-22) 

and this “Divine Power” was further demonstrated when a young girl was raised from the dead as Jesus responded to a request from her father, 

“But when the crowd was put outside, [Jesus] went in and took her by the hand, and the [dead] girl arose.” 

(Matthew 9:25)

 Jesus also healed “spiritual” problems and showed He has power over creation when He calmed the “winds and the waves” (Matthew 8:26) and encourages us to “believe that [Jesus] is able to do [these things]” (Matthew 9:28). 

Jesus concludes the introduction (JQ#1-8) by telling us that He is recruiting “laborers” to send “into the Father’s harvest.” (Matthew 9:38). 

Are you ready to learn “how” to labor in the “Father’s Harvest”?