(January 5, 2010)
Prayer House News!
Our ladies PUSH & Praise prayer meeting is taking place at 9:00am this morning! All ladies are welcome to be a part of this.
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Our Pastoral Staff will begin the new year praying for our congregation today also. Just think - we might even be praying for you.
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This Friday our men's breakfast starts up again at Bonnie's Diner at 7:00am.
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On our way to Rwanda when the Toyota broke down. Missionary Murray Jackson and his son Bryan (the white guys) got us there safely - later that night.
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The Prophet's Reward
continued from yesterday
Right after stating in verse 22 that the words of the prophet had to be fulfilled, Matthew refers to one of the most significant prophesies in the Old Testament.
Matthew 1:23 "The virgin will be with child and will give birth to a son, and they will call him Immanuel"-which means, "God with us."
That is taken directly from Isaiah 7:14. This is one of the most significant prophesies because it deals with the fact that the Messiah must be born a righteous man. He could not have been born of a man because then the sin of Adam would have been passed on to him. He was born of a virgin, conceived of the Holy Spirit. And He had to come from an extremely rare bloodline which would include many of the Fathers of Israel.
The prophet Micah proclaimed that the Messiah would be born in Bethlehem. Isaiah and Malachi both predicted that the Messiah would be preceded by a forerunner, John the Baptist. The Psalmist said that he would be betrayed by a friend. Zechariah predicted he would be betrayed for 30 pieces of silver, which is exactly what Judas was paid. The Psalmist goes on to predict that they would divide his garments among them by casting lots for them, which of course the guards at the foot of the cross did.
One of the greatest prophets of all, Daniel, predicted that there would be exactly 483 years between the decree to rebuild the wall and the city of Jerusalem before the Messiah would be cut off, killed. Interestingly enough, exactly 483 years after the rebuilding of Jerusalem and its walls, Jesus Christ came into Jerusalem riding on a donkey and offered himself as a sacrifice for the sins of Israel and the world, fulfilling the prophesy of Zechariah 9:9.
So in this first chapter of Matthew we see a little into what his purpose is. It’s to convince everyone who reads these words that Jesus Christ is indeed the promised Messiah and that the Old Testament prophesies bear witness to the truth of the New Testament. Now we come to what I believe is the greater issue at hand. And that is the receiving of the Christ into our hearts. The rest of the first Chapter goes into more detail about the birth of Christ.
I’m going to divert from an expository look at this chapter into more of a topical look at the subject of the prophet’s reward and the power prophets have. I have titled this message, The Prophet’s Reward, for a reason which I hope to bring out.
We are going to go over to the tenth chapter of Matthew to key in on one particular verse.
Matthew 10:41 Anyone who receives a prophet because he is a prophet will receive a prophet's reward, and anyone who receives a righteous man because he is a righteous man will receive a righteous man's reward.
As I was studying this whole idea of the role and power of the prophet I came upon this verse and it intrigued me. If a person receives a prophet he will receive a prophet’s reward.
Earlier I sighted many of the prophecies concerning the coming Messiah but the one prophecy the Jews struggle with the most is one of the most significant ones.
Isaiah 53:3 He was despised and rejected by men, a man of sorrows, and familiar with suffering.
This is Isaiah the prophet’s prophetic declaration that Israel will reject the Messiah when He comes.
The way the Apostle John says it is that Jesus came upon his own but his own did not receive him. God’s own people have rejected their Messiah. Maybe we should say, they rejected the idea that Jesus could be the Messiah, even though He has fulfilled every prophecy about the coming anointed one. Subsequently, they did not receive him as a prophet or even a teacher while on earth. This goes back to the second point of Matthews gospel which encourages us to receive the Christ into our hearts. It’s the word “receive” I want to focus on. Once we see its full meaning we begin to catch the significance of Matthew 10:41 which spoke of receiving a prophet. What does it mean to receive a prophet and what is the prophet’s reward?
It’s pretty much accepted that Matthew is the gospel to and for Israel. It is written for the Jews. Many of the Jewish believers had been persecuted for their faith, subsequently; Matthew tries to reassure them that there will be rewards for their faith – as long as they hang in there. He wants them to know that having received Christ into their lives is worthwhile.
The whole proof that Jesus is the Messiah comes through prophetic words, spoken through men of God, which were ultimately fulfilled. This whole thing has to do with the power of the prophet and the prophetic word subsequently, he advices others that it is always beneficial to receive a prophet because those who receive a prophet receive a prophet’s reward.
continued tomorrow
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Medication: A Merry Heart
Being Creative With Troublesome Kin
You are working on your family genealogy and for sake of example, let's say that your great-great uncle, Remus Starr, a fellow lacking in character, was hanged for horse stealing and train robbery in Montana in 1889.
A cousin has supplied you with the only known photograph of Remus, showing him standing on the gallows. On the back of the picture are the words:"Remus Starr: Horse thief, sent to Montana Territorial Prison, 1885.
Escaped 1887, robbed the Montana Flyer six times. Caught by Pinkerton detectives, convicted and hanged,1889."
Pretty grim situation, right? But let's revise things a bit. We simply crop the picture, scan in an enlarged image, and edit it with image processing software so that all that is seen is a head shot. Next, we rewrite the text:"Remus Starr was a famous cowboy in the Montana Territory. His business empire grew to include acquisition of valuable equestrian assets and intimate dealings with the Montana railroad."
Beginning in 1885, he devoted several years of his life to service at a government facility, finally taking leave to resume his dealings with the railroad. In 1887, he was a key player in a vital investigation run by the renowned Pinkerton Detective Agency.
In 1889, Remus passed away during an important civic function held in his honor when the platform upon which he was standing collapsed."
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