We are a people who do not read more than five words in a row! Is this too harsh? For some of you reading this, I have already lost you. Some of you will just look at the pictures. Laughing, because I catch myself doing the same!
We are too busy, too distracted, too this and too that today. Guess what, Jesus points out that the Sadducees were indeed, “sad-you-see” because they didn’t read God’s Word to understand Truth. They read only enough to form an opinion of God while forming a whole tribal religion (denomination) that did not know the power of God to resurrect the dead to life with Him forever. Sad-you-see. They also didn’t realize the relationship with God they could have had by knowing Him. We must ask ourselves;
Do we really believe God?
Do we really know the power of God?
Do we know Him from reading about God?
Do we believe in the resurrection of our souls, who we are in Christ, after these temporary bodies wear out?
Do we truly believe what Jesus teaches? Do we live it?
Do we let others tell us what to believe without reading and studying for ourselves? How’s that going for us? Usually, not well. This is why Jesus tells our sad little selves, “Your mistake is that you don’t know the Scriptures, and you don’t know the power of God.”
“YOU DON’T KNOW THE SCRIPTURES OR THE POWER OF GOD” –JESUS
These words of Jesus jump off the page to me this morning. We don’t know Him because we don’t read. We miss knowing about God and who He is when we don’t read His Word! Talk about FOMO! (Fear of Missing Out)
We could be reading about the Peace that comes from knowing God. We could be reading about how Love overwhelms us when we realize the depth of His love for us. Anxieties and fears dissipate, like fog when the sun rises, when we read that God’s power fights all our battles from the inside out and outside in! We read Truth that God is FOR us, not against us. We read that God is ALWAYS with us. Always. Let this Truth sink in and settle our souls today. Read Truth for yourselves! To read His Word is like reading a love letter from God to us! How much we love God and want to hear from Him might be the measure of our love for Him and for others.
“In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. 2 He was with God in the beginning. 3 Through him all things were made; without him nothing was made that has been made. 4 In him was life, and that life was the light of all mankind. 5 The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it.” John 1:1-5, NIV
Jesus is the walking Word of God who is teaching the world that the religious have made mistakes because they don’t know The Word. I wonder how many mistakes we make in our walk and speech because we don’t really know what The Word says. I wonder how many times I have fallen in my faith because I didn’t know or tap into the power of God? Too many times, my friends, way too many!
I was blessed by mentors who encouraged me to not only read but to memorize! Right now, I’m recalling many passages of God’s strength and power against worldview thinking prompted by the enemy of God. Here is a favorite of mine that restores the power of God in me. Take a look at 1 John 4:4-6;
“You, dear children, are from God and have overcome them, because the one who is in you is greater than the one who is in the world. 5 They are from the world and therefore speak from the viewpoint of the world, and the world listens to them. 6 We are from God, and whoever knows God listens to us; but whoever is not from God does not listen to us. This is how we recognize the Spirit of truth and the spirit of falsehood.”
WE are not great but God who lives in us IS the great one who alerts and delivers us from worldview thinking that is not Truth and protects us from the enemy’s lies. When we read His Word prayerfully asking for clarity, His Holy Spirit living in us gives us greater understanding of Truth. Those not from God do not know God because they choose to not read about Him. This is their mistake—not knowing because they didn’t read to know Truth.
Matthew—God’s Word Fulfilled
Matthew 22:23-33, NLT
Discussion about Resurrection
23 That same day Jesus was approached by some Sadducees—religious leaders who say there is no resurrection from the dead. They posed this question: 24 “Teacher, Moses said, ‘If a man dies without children, his brother should marry the widow and have a child who will carry on the brother’s name.’ 25 Well, suppose there were seven brothers. The oldest one married and then died without children, so his brother married the widow. 26 But the second brother also died, and the third brother married her. This continued with all seven of them. 27 Last of all, the woman also died. 28 So tell us, whose wife will she be in the resurrection? For all seven were married to her.”
29 Jesus replied, “Your mistake is that you don’t know the Scriptures, and you don’t know the power of God. 30 For when the dead rise, they will neither marry nor be given in marriage. In this respect they will be like the angels in heaven.
31 “But now, as to whether there will be a resurrection of the dead—haven’t you ever read about this in the Scriptures? Long after Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob had died, God said, 32 ‘I am the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob.’ So he is the God of the living, not the dead.”
33 When the crowds heard him, they were astounded at his teaching.
THINK ABOUT IT—
We, too, can be “astounded” by reading Jesus’ teaching about the Truth of God.
“Thy word have I hid in my heart, that I might not sin against thee.” Psalm 119:11
Lord, God of all,
Thank you for your Word that speaks of you, telling us how much we are loved and showing us the way to life forever with you. Thank you for helping us see and understand the power that is available to us merely by asking. Lord, today we ask for wisdom, clarity, insight and understanding so that we may know you more and more. Teach me, for I am your servant, student, friend, as well as your child. I love you, Lord with all that is in me.
In Jesus Name, Amen
Daily Manna (Coffee with Jesus) 