January 30: Jesus Started Teaching

Affirmation: Peace and happiness are inside me.

“And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.”‭‭Philippians‬ ‭4:7‬ ‭NIV‬‬
~~~~~~~
Ponder: Continue to memorize Psalm 121. Read over line by line. Copy into your journal or onto a notecard to carry with you. Make it personal.*I chose this Psalm because Douglas memorized it when he was 8 years old, hospitalized with rheumatic fever for 28 days. Parents were not allowed to stay overnight with their children…nights were long and very dark. This Psalm was Douglas’s prayer each night as a reminder that he was not alone in that dark hospital room…
”I lift up my eyes to the mountains— where does my help come from? My help comes from the Lord, the Maker of heaven and earth. He will not let your (my) foot slip— he who watches over you (me) will not slumber; indeed, he who watches over Israel will neither slumber nor sleep. The Lord watches over you (me)— the Lord is your (my) shade at your (my) right hand; the sun will not harm you (me) by day, nor the moon by night. The Lord will keep you (me) from all harm— he will watch over your (my) life; the Lord will watch over your (my) coming and going both now and forevermore.“‭‭Psalms‬ ‭121‬:‭1‬-‭8‬ ‭NIV‬‬

~~~~~~~
Praying the Message of Jesus: A Year of Thoughts and Prayers
by Eugene Peterson

                     Jan 30


Jesus Started Preaching

The Test was over. The Devil left. And in his place, angels! Angels came and took care of Jesus' needs. When Jesus got word that John had been arrested, he returned to Galilee. He moved from his hometown, Nazareth, to the lakeside village Capernaum, nestled at the base of the Zebulun and Naphtali hills. This move completed Isaiah's sermon: "Land of Zebulun, land of Naphtali, road to the sea, over Jordan, Galilee, crossroads for the nations. People sitting out their lives in the dark saw a huge light; sitting in that dark, dark country of death, they watched the sun come up." This Isaiah­ prophesied sermon came to life in Galilee the moment Jesus started preaching. He picked up where John left off: "Change your life. God's kingdom is here."

MATTHEW 4:11-17 

Thoroughly prepared by the temptations, Jesus began his ministry. Isaiah provided the text, Capernaum the pulpit. The message called everyone to alert response: God was at hand doing the work of making his will a pres­ent reality in salvation. 


Compare Jesus' sermon with John the Baptist's (in Matthew 3). 


What power, God, in these words! What life-changing truth, what mercy­ releasing grace. I live in your presence, not in the hope of your presence; I participate in what is happening even now, not in what I wish would happen. Amen. 

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