Luke Chapter 1

 Luke was an outsider himself, so he is showing us how God uses outsiders to change the world.

Luke wrote this book to show us that what we were taught was really true, that it really happened, and it's so important that he wrote it all out in chronological order.

When the angel told Zechariah that his wife was pregnant, he thought it was impossible. He had probably become so bitter and hopeless that he couldn't believe it. So the angel probably wouldn't let him speak because he didn't want him to spread around his doubt and negativity around such an amazing miracle so that God would get the glory. And when Zechariah could finally speak, I love that the first thing he says is praising God!

In contrast to Zechariah's disbelief, when Elizabeth realized she was pregnant, she felt incredibly honored by God, that God actually saw her! 

Isn't that what any human being wants... is to just be seen.

Elizabeth felt honored by God when He took away her reproach from the people.

We discussed this at length in our ladies' meeting: Reproach is such a harsh word. Why do people judge you so badly about not having kids?

-if you're not married, when are you going to finally settle down?

-if you don't have any kids, when are you going to start a family? 

-if you only have one child, when are you going to have another?

These questions can be very hurtful... just by asking the question can hurt their feelings for so many reasons, especially when everyone is asking the same question over and over... some are just not physically able to have children, some don't want any children at all, etc. You never know what situation someone is struggling with and those questions can be like rubbing salt in a wound. 

Zechariah and Elizabeth did absolutely nothing wrong but they were not able to have any children... until it was IMPOSSIBLE! 

UNTIL GOD AND HIS PERFECT TIMING!

God made the impossible possible! 

Moreover, God made it so that Mary and Elizabeth, two outliers in society, could have a special connection for 3 months, a special bond that no one else could possibly understand. 

We learned that Mary is blessed and Elizabeth is favored. 

But aren't blessed and favored the same?

Blessed and Favored are similar, but Favored is more specific.

Like fingers and a thumb... you have 5 fingers, but the thumb is more specific.

Blessed - received positive things

Favored - specifically chosen as a favorite for a purpose or a sense of special treatment

Mary was blessed with being the mother of Jesus.

Elizabeth was given the privilege of being visited by Mary, the mother of Jesus who traveled such a long way just to see her. Elizabeth was favored by God when He saw her and took away her reproach from the people. 

Bible Study Guide: "Luke: Gut Level Compassion" by Lisa Harper

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Monday Memory Verse

And my spirit rejoices in God my Savior for He has been mindful of the humble state of His servant. From now on, all generations will call me blessed.  Luke 1:47-48

Tip on how to memorize:

Put the words to an easy tune to help you remember your Bible verse. Here’s the tune that I came up with for our Monday Memory Verse:

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Jesus Loves Losers

My ladies Bible study group watched the first video of Lisa Harper's "Luke: Gut Level Compassion" and we all enjoyed it. 

Lisa Harper is compassionate, easy to understand, very relatable, and she's just so cool. 

What struck me the most:

Someone mentioned to Lisa that the Gospel is like the Cinderella story. That made sense to me because it's like a rags to riches story. But Lisa didn't see it that way. 

Lisa described the Gospel as Jesus choosing the ugly wallflower stepsister to be His beloved bride and made her beautiful. 

We don't have to be perfect!

The Gospel is the Good News!

Jesus is perfect for us! Thank you Jesus!

I'm really looking forward to starting this new Bible study. I hope you get this Bible study guide "Luke: Gut Level Compassion" by Lisa Harper. We're going to learn about Jesus' gut-level compassion. When you get the book, you'll get access to her 8 teaching videos on Study Gateway. 

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Homework:

My next post will be about this week's memory verse.

Perfection Not Required

I'm getting ready to start studying the book of Luke using the Bible study guide "Luke: Gut level compassion" by Lisa Harper. I love how she starts off by saying that I don't have to be perfect!  Lord knows I am not perfect, so this is definitely for me!

If you are not perfect either, then I hope you will join me with this Bible study. You'll need to get the book as it has the access code for Lisa's 8 teaching videos. 

I got my book from Amazon for $11. 

I'll talk about what I'm learning here in my blog, as well as the following:

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They warned him not to go but he went anyway

Scripture: "Let the will of the Lord be done." Acts 21:14

Observation:

They knew in their spirit that something was going to happen to Paul and kept urging him not to go to Jerusalem. (Acts 21:4 and 12) They were afraid for Paul, but he wasn't.

Paul had already been warned many times by the Holy Spirit that "imprisonment and afflictions await me," (Acts 20:23) so he had already prepared his heart for the inevitable. (Acts 21:14) Paul trusted the Lord with his life.

So them telling him not to go was breaking his heart. Once they realized that they were hurting him because he had already made up his mind, they finally stopped and surrendered to the Lord's will.

 Paul's tenacity helped them to trust God too.

One person's conviction, confidence, and obedience can inspire others.

Application:

We have to prepare our hearts for what is coming. The Bible says many times to not be afraid because the Lord is with you. We have to accept that God is in control. The Bible also tells us not to worry about tomorrow. When the time comes, He will carry us through. The Holy Spirit will guide us and give us the words to speak. God will do His work through us. 

Prayer:

Dear Lord, please help me to not be afraid, to not worry, and to be confident in my faith and belief. Thank you God that I can trust you. Please fill me with your Holy Spirit. 

Your will be done Lord. Amen.

Hired Hands

 For I know this, that after my departure, savage wolves will come in among you not sparing the flock. Also from among yourselves, men will rise up speaking perverse things to draw away the disciples. Acts 20:29-30

wait... even from among ourselves? so who can we trust? can we trust no one?

The wolves seek to steal, kill, and destroy the sheep. (John 10:10-13) 

This verse in Acts makes me look closer at John 10:7-15 because I remembered about the wolves seeking out their prey, but I didn't remember about the hired hand who is supposed to be taking care of the sheep but runs in fear at the mere sight of a wolf because they do not care about the sheep, so the wolves snatch the sheep and scatter them. 

So does this mean we can't trust our brothers and sisters in Christ? our fellow believers? the people who go to the same church? the people who say they are Christians?

So does this mean we can't even trust our pastors? our teachers? our leaders? 

A hired hand could also be a metaphor for a caretaker, a parent, a spouse.

If you can't trust your own father, your own husband, or your own pastor, then who can you trust?

The people who were the closest to me were the ones who hurt me the most, which devastated me and made me question my faith and beliefs. 

But these hard truths forced me to look to the scriptures and learn for myself.

It took a long time for me to grow and mature in my faith to realize that absolutely no one is perfect and all have fallen short of the glory of God. I am not perfect...I am a sinner saved by grace through faith in Jesus. We have been forgiven of all our sins, and that means all... past, present, and future. We still sin, but as believers in Christ, we strive not to sin. Which means we have to give grace to others because we are all only human.  We are each on our own spiritual journey, which is a long process. 

It could be that Paul is saying here to not put all your hope and trust into Paul, but into God, because there will be those that will try to scatter the flock and hurt the weak, especially once the hired hand is no longer there, for whatever reason. 

We just have to remember that we don't put all our faith, hope, and trust in men, but in God. We put our faith in Jesus, our Lord and Savior. We put our trust in God the Father because He is in control. We look for guidance from the Holy Spirit. 

We need to be careful, be mindful, and to walk in the spirit. We are to be wise about the schemes of the enemy. Let the Holy Spirit be our guide. 

Jesus is our Good Shepherd. Jesus is the door of the sheep. Jesus knows His sheep and His sheep know His voice. There is only one Shepherd. (John 10:7-18)

In this world you will have trouble, but take heart, I have overcome the world. -John 16:33

God said many times in the Bible, "Do not fear, for I am with you."

Put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the schemes of the devil. (Ephesians 6:10-18)

Looking at the context of this verse...

Pay careful attention to yourselves and to all the flock, in which the Holy Spirit has made you overseers to care for the church of God...therefore, be alert...we must help the weak. (Acts 20:28-35)

We ourselves are also the hired hands!!!!!

Dear Lord, help me to discern, to be mindful, and fill me with your Holy Spirit daily. Help me Lord to study your word every day, help me to put on the full armor and to stand firm. You are my strength when I am weak. Thank you Lord that I can trust you. You are my provider, my protector, and You are in control. Thank you Lord for taking care of me as your child. As your hired hand, help me to do your will and to help others. 

Do you know what you believe?

 This trade of ours is in danger of falling into disrepute. Acts 19:23-41

One man who was worried about losing his livelihood riled up several others in his trade, who then riled up the whole city in confusion, and it says "most of them didn't know why they had come together." (Acts 19:32) 

Do you know what you believe?

The crowd that gathered didn't know what they believed, so then were easily led astray by the unbelievers who were threatened by the way of the believers to drop everything and follow Jesus. 

We are no longer in need of certain things and this threatens the economy of society. We don't need to worry because God is our Provider. 

You can only have one Master. (Matt 6:24) 

Seek first the Kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added to you. (Matthew 6:25-34)

The Bereans knew what they believed because they studied it for themselves.

I need to pray and study God's Word daily like the Bereans. 

These Jews were more noble than those in Thessalonica, they received the word with all eagerness, examining the scriptures daily to see if these things were so. (Acts 17:11) 

But when the Jews of Thessalonica learned that the word of God was proclaimed by Paul at Berea also, they came there too, agitating and stirring up the crowds. (Acts 17:13)

It's easy to get caught up in the things of this world, especially when we are hurting, struggling, grieving, lonely, depressed, desperate just to survive and put food on the table for our families. The wolves are targeting the weak sheep, especially when they are separated from the herd. Satan tempted Jesus when he was alone, tired, and hungry. But the things of this world are only temporary.  

So we do not lose heart, though our outer self is wasting away, our inner self is being renewed day by day. For this momentary affliction is preparing for us an eternal weight of glory beyond all comparison, as we look not to the things that are seen but to the things that are unseen. For the things that are seen are transient, but the things that are unseen are eternal. (2 Cor 4:16-18)

Paul said, I have learned in whatever situation I am to be content. (Phil 4:11-13)

Rejoice in the Lord always. Let your reasonableness be known to everyone. The Lord is at hand; do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God and the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. (Phil 7:4:7)

Pray without ceasing, give thanks in all circumstances. (1 Thess 5:17-18) 

Praying continually doesn't mean you're always on your knees 24/7/365, it just means you realize that God is a part of your day, He knows your heart and your thoughts, and He is speaking to you whether you realize it or not, you just have to listen and stay in tune to Him. 

The world is like a radio, it has many radio stations and lots of static in between but then you finally find the right station that speaks directly to your heart. So I try to stay in tune with God so I can hear Him when He is trying to tell me something. 

I can be praying even when I'm talking with someone, especially when I need Him to give me the right words or help me to be silent and listen. I can be praying while I'm doing my work as unto the Lord. Praying continually helps me to not worry.

Dear Lord, I know your word says not to worry, several times even, so you must know that we as humans do worry or you wouldn't tell us so many times. I heard a pastor say that he repeats himself whenever it is something that he really wants us to hear and understand. Lord, please help me not to worry. It's so easy to get busy, distracted, and then I get anxious because I'm not focused on You. Help me to focus on you Lord.  Help me to study your word every day. You are my Provider and You are in control Lord. Thank you Lord for all your many blessings.