JANUARY 29 THE JESUS QUESTIONS JQ#02 “For if you love those who love you, what reward have you… and if you greet your brethren only, what do you do more than others?” (Matthew 5:46-47)

 

JANUARY  29  THE JESUS QUESTIONS

    JQ#02  

“For if you love those who love you, what reward have you…

and if you greet your brethren only, what do you do more than others?” 

(Matthew 5:46-47)

LIVING FOR JESUS  Daily Prayer

JESUS, each day is a special day if we start that day with You!

 Lord my prayer as I awake and start planning my day is that I 

“seek first the kingdom of God” and allow Your Holy Spirit to direct me

 down paths of righteousness and then teach me Your Ways as only 

the Holy Spirit can! Lord, what a privilege to sit under Your Teaching 

and open Your Holy Bible and let Your Holy Spirit guide us through

 Your Holy Word — 

Your Eternal, Matchless, Life-giving Word! 

Lord, I pray now for all parents to see the importance of living their 

day-to-day lives in Christ and the impact and influence that living for Christ

 has in the lives of their children. Parents themselves living for Christ will

 be the greatest step they can take as parents to bring their children

 to a saving knowledge of Jesus Christ!  

Holy, Holy, Holy, is the LORD GOD ALMIGHTY!!!   

AMEN

THE JESUS QUESTIONS

JESUS used JQ#01 to get us to thinking about our responsibility

 towards others by using “salt” which must give up its “essence” to be

 flavor to the world, and “salt” is also universally known to contain healing

 properties as well but regardless of its use, it must be applied to the

 circumstance and in each case, the “salt” is consumed. Jesus used “salt” 

to focus our attention not on ourselves but on our responsibility to others!  

As we move from JQ#01 to JQ#02 please remember that “Context is king”.

 JQ#01 context for being “salt” & “light” is Matthew 5:1-16. The context

 for JQ#02 is Matthew 5:18 - 6:24 and Jesus continues His Lesson on looking

 first at ourselves to make sure that we are prepared to take care of others,

 this is what the airlines advise when they tell parents to first put on their

 oxygen mask in order to be able to assist others! It is imperative that we

 read the context around each question and in doing so it becomes obvious

 to even the most casual reader that Jesus is The Master Teacher and as

 such we must understand that when Jesus asks a Question He is not 

looking for knowledge for Himself but His Intent is to impart knowledge 

to the student.  When Jesus asks His Question, He is making a

 common sense statement that if one really wants to learn the 

TRUTH of GOD 

then one must answer honestly within themselves the Questions that are

 asked to see if we are seeking the TRUTH of GOD and are willing to listen

 to the Answer! Jesus never spoke without Teaching, His every breath, 

every step, every moment of silence — every action Jesus made were

 Lessons Jesus uses to Teach us how we are to live our lives by following 

His Perfect Example! Jesus became flesh and dwelt among us for a 

Divine Reason, and He had a Divine Purpose for being born in a manger

 and growing up as “one of us” yet 

He lived His Life without sin! How did He do it? 

Jesus accomplished this Miraculous Feat because He knew 

the Father’s Will for His Life and was Obedient to do that 

which the Father had Taught Him. 

Jesus told this to His disciples just before going into the upper room for His

 final earthly Passover with His disciples,

 

“For I have not spoken on My own authority; but the Father who

 sent Me gave Me a command, what I should say and what I should

 speak. And I know that His command is everlasting life. 

Therefore, whatever I speak, just as the Father has told Me,

 so I speak.” (John 12:49-50). 

Our study of the Questions that Jesus asked 

should be studied from this specific viewpoint:

 

“Therefore if Jesus asks a Question then He 

is engaging us to dig deeper to learn the TRUTH of GOD because

 He is trying to Teach us what the Father Taught Him, and the result 

of our efforts will be everlasting life!!!”  

We should never take anything

 Jesus said lightly because in His own Words, Jesus is speaking only

 the Words that the Father God in Heaven spoke to Him 

and then sent Him to earth to speak God’s Words to us! 

We should be in AWE of these Words spoken by Jesus 

and exclaim as even His enemies did who heard Him: 

“The officers answered, 

“No man ever spoke like this Man!” 

(John 7:46)

 Let us then consider the next Lesson/Question: 

JQ#02: 

“For if you love those who love you, 

what reward have you …

and if you greet your brethren only, 

what do you do more than others?”   

(Matthew 5:46-47) 

The context in which Jesus asked JQ#02 is in Matthew 5:43-48

 and 

we should dig deep because every Word 

spoken by Jesus

 is a Kingdom Treasure!!!

JANUARY 28 THE JESUS QUESTIONS JQ#01 “You are the salt of the earth; but if the salt loses its flavor, how shall it be seasoned?” (Matthew 5:13)

 

JANUARY  28  THE JESUS QUESTIONS

   JQ#01  

“You are the salt of the earth; but if the salt loses its flavor,

 how shall it be seasoned?” 

(Matthew 5:13)

LIVING FOR JESUS  Daily Prayer    

JESUS, what a joy it is to look back to the day that You first got my full

 attention and Your Holy Spirit first led me to write and to see the simple

 Divine Truth of God — we in our daily struggle with the world are in a

 constant state of change but Your Love is Eternal 

and Your Peace Everlasting— 

Your Holy Spirit reminded me today that as I awoke on that morning many

 years ago (2003) that the Spirit had led me write in my first Spiritual journal:

 “Jesus, Lord, my soul is joyful for Your Love is changing my life! 

I can see a good man at the end of the tunnel. 

Lord I will continue to pray for a repentant heart for that is 

the first step in my turning from the world and all its many lusts.” 

Jesus, I pray again today many years later that I will abide completely

 in YOUR TRUTH. I accept my unworthiness as a sinner and put my 

hope in Your Salvation through calling on Your Name, the Precious Name

 of JESUS! 

Lord, without the Cross and Your Shed Blood upon it, my life would have

 no real meaning. I pray today to be immersed totally in Your Blood, 

I beg for Mercy for my many sins as only the God against Whom I have

 transgressed can Forgive my iniquities and cleanse my unrighteousness. 

Lord Jesus, today I praise You for You have answered my prayers

 and have led me through sin’s dark tunnel into the Light of Your Grace,

 I beg for Your continued Mercy on me a sinner.     

AMEN

THE JESUS QUESTIONS

JESUS was shown to be the Messiah through circumstances beyond His control

 and now by His Teaching and His Lifestyle, Jesus is demonstrating that He

 is both the Messiah and the Master Teacher. Jesus started His Teaching

 of the multitudes after He had allowed John to Baptize the Lamb of God

 in the Jordan River. John the Baptist had the attention of all Israel 

for he had been declaring the arrival of the Messiah and preaching 

in the wilderness,

 “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.” 

(Matthew 3:2) 

 God declared from heaven when Jesus rose out of the baptismal waters, 

“This is My beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased.” 

(Matthew 3:17) 

After Jesus was baptized by John in the Jordan and a great multitude

 of witnesses heard God Speak from heaven giving His Approval to what

 Jesus was doing, we begin to read about the Lifestyle and Lessons

 that Jesus lived to establish beyond any reasonable doubt that 

JESUS IS the Son of God, 

God’s Anointed One, the Messiah! 

Matthew also documents that 

Jesus IS the Master Teacher 

and has the

 Authority of God  

because Jesus proved Himself to be the Master Student

 when the devil himself tempted Jesus immediately after Jesus had been

 fasting forty days and forty nights. Jesus used the Holy Scriptures to

 address the devil’s 3 temptations that is common to all mankind; 

lust of the flesh, 

lust of the eyes, 

and the boastful pride of life. 

With each temptation the devil presented to Jesus, Jesus declared,

 “It is written…” (Matthew 4:4,7,10)

 Matthew records that after Jesus

 demonstrated His Master Knowledge of God’s written Word that

 “Then the devil left Him…” 

(Matthew 4:11) 

thereby establishing Jesus

 as the Master Student of God and God’s Holy Scriptures 

which are the best credentials for Jesus being the Master Teacher. 

After Jesus established 

His Credentials as the Messiah and the Master Teacher, 

Matthew records that

 “…Jesus went about all Galilee, teaching in their synagogues,

 preaching the gospel of the kingdom, AND healing all kinds 

of sickness and all kinds of disease among the people.” 

(Matthew 4:23) 

By the time Jesus gave His 

“Sermon on the Mount” (Matthew 5:3-12)

 His “fame” had already traveled throughout the land and people were 

coming from everywhere just to be in the presence of the Messiah for His

 “fame” was the result of the “Work of God”  that Jesus had be doing

 “among the people”. So when Jesus addresses the multitude that had

 heard Jesus Teach His “Sermon on the Mount” Lesson, they were

 convinced that Jesus was the Messiah and the Master Teacher 

because of His “Example” 

and the Lessons He had been Teaching God’s people

 on how to live their day-to-day lives. 

The fact that Jesus was not taking anything material from the people

 demonstrated that the Messiah had come to “Serve” the people for Jesus

 was preaching the same MESSAGE that had been preached by His 

forerunner John the Baptist,

 “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.” 

(Matthew 4:17) 

It is significant that after Jesus Taught the Divine Lessons in the 

“Sermon on the Mount” 

that 

JESUS immediately ASKED A QUESTION —

 which itself begs the question,

 

“If Jesus is the Master Teacher why is He asking questions?

” Secondly, “Why would Jesus in His first Question ask about salt?” 

As soon as these two questions are “honestly” asked, the Holy Spirit 

will give us an understanding that will lead to an “honest” answer if we 

will seek the Truth of God that Jesus is putting forth with His Questions. 

 Jesus does not ask His Questions because of a lack of knowledge on 

His part, the Holy Spirit reveals to those who seek

 to give Jesus an “honest” answer 

that Jesus uses His Questions to focus our attention on the 

Truth of God 

and by giving Jesus an “honest” answer,

 we will be speaking a Truth of God!   — 

Therefore, let us consider: 

JQ#01  

“You are the salt of the earth; but if the salt loses its flavor,

 how shall it be seasoned?” 

(Matthew 5:13) 

and honestly answer the specific Question Jesus asked, 

“…if salt loses its flavor, how shall it be seasoned?” — 

The “honest Spiritual” answer to JQ#01 is twofold:

 

(Answer JQ#1A) 

First, salt gets its flavor from the Creator;

 there is nothing man can do

 to create the flavor of salt, the flavor of salt is 

proprietary with the Creator, and

 

(Answer JQ#1B) 

This FIRST JESUS Question is rhetorical for Jesus

 immediately after asking the

 Question declares the Divine Truth 

that salt without flavor is “good for nothing”. 

The Holy Spirit leads us to this conclusion: 

Jesus says we “are salt” and we should always strive to attain 

to being like Jesus as stated in His Beatitudes in Matthew 5:3-12. 

Sharon Anderson sent in these “honest” comments on the Beatitudes which

 will post today as a summary for the conclusion to JQ#01. 

On February 29, 2016 Sharon posted:

 “(1) Jesus teaches that those who are poor in spirit are deeply humble. 

They recognize their own spiritual bankruptcy before God . They accept 

there is nothing in and of themselves 

to commend them to God to merit salvation.  

(2) Those who mourn have a godly sorrow over their sin…

a sorrow that produces repentance leading to salvation without regret. 

They are genuinely sorry for sin as they know they have offended a 

holy God. (3) Gentleness (or meekness) is the opposite of being out

 of control. Meekness is supreme self control that must be empowered 

by the Holy Spirit. (4) Those who hunger and thirst after righteousness

 seek God’s righteousness (through Jesus Christ) rather than 

attempting to establish a righteousness of their own. They have a deep

 craving to please God that produces a desire with all their entire 

being to live and walk the way God instructs us. (5) The merciful person

 is a person who exemplifies God’s characteristic of mercy…

God is Mercy. (6) Purity of heart is a purity of thoughts, purity of actions,

 purity of desires and motivations, a purity of proper reasoning

 based on Scripture and God’s ways. This requires continual 

examination of our lives and a continuous going before God

 in confession seeking cleansing.” 

So the next time you see a salt shaker let it remind you that

 you are  “the salt of the earth” 

and we should continuously

 strive to be the Christian flavor to a tasteless world.