King James Bible Study – [Mark 8:34 And when he had called the people unto him with his disciples also, he said unto them, Whosoever will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow me.]
Date: Friday, October 14, 2022
Chapters: LUKE 8
Study: Fear Not, Only Trust Jesus
Hello My Friend,
I was singing this all day yesterday in my head at work as I was trying to get my huge list done within a certain amount of time, [Nothing is impossible when you put your trust in God, Nothing is impossible when you’re trusting in his word; Hearken to the voice of God to thee, “Is there anything too hard to me?” Then put your trust in God alone and rest upon his word, For ev’rything, O ev’rything! Yes every thing is possible with God!]
Well, it did not get done in the time that I wanted because I seemed to have been the only agent receiving the escalation calls. Every time one comes in and a task happens to be on the patient’s file that has not been worked we need to stop what we are doing and work on that first. Well, that my whole day. Sometimes I feel like everything I do is sitting on this edge, with all these other things that keep pushing it further away until it eventually gets knocked off. What do you do then? And I tell you what, it does not go away, it will resurface, along with some additional things added to it. I will tell you something else, there is a reason why a thousand years is as one with God, He has a lot of patience with us, [2 Peter 3:8-9 But, beloved, be not ignorant of this one thing, that one day is with the Lord as a thousand years, and a thousand years as one day. 9 The Lord is not slack concerning his promise, as some men count slackness; but is longsuffering to us-ward, not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance.]
As we continue in the reading of the Gospels, Luke, gives his account of some of the things that we had already learned of in previous chapters. First, when Jesus tells the parable of the sower to the crowd of people. Notice what Luke adds to his account, Jesus, had more than the twelve disciples who had walked with Him daily.
[Luke 8:1-5,8 And it came to pass afterward, that he went throughout every city and village, preaching and shewing the glad tidings of the kingdom of God: and the twelve were with him, 2 And certain women, which had been healed of evil spirits and infirmities, Mary called Magdalene, out of whom went seven devils, 3 And Joanna the wife of Chuza Herod’s steward, and Susanna, and many others, which ministered unto him of their substance. 4 And when much people were gathered together, and were come to him out of every city, he spake by a parable: 5 A sower went out to sow his seed: and as he sowed, some fell by the way side; and it was trodden down, and the fowls of the air devoured it. 8 And other fell on good ground, and sprang up, and bare fruit an hundredfold. And when he had said these things, he cried, He that hath ears to hear, let him hear.]
[which ministered unto him of their substance.] There were several ladies as well as children who not only accompanied them as they traveled throughout Israel, they ministered to them. I use to thing that a minister was referring to a preacher, but a minister more than that, it is a person who assists others. These people brought food, water, blankets, whatever they had that they thought would help Jesus in His ministry. Do you realize that even though Jesus is not here in the flesh that He still has His ministry and we who walk with Him are His ministers? That means that Jesus becomes our priority over everything else that we do. When He asks us to do something, then we need to put aside everything else that we were doing and take care of His need first. Remember when God had sent a drought on the Northern side of Israel because of Ahab? There was no rain for three years, Elijah, was on his own, and God sent him to this widow woman, who was not a Jew.
[1 Kings 17:9-13 Arise, get thee to Zarephath, which belongeth to Zidon, and dwell there: behold, I have commanded a widow woman there to sustain thee. 10 So he arose and went to Zarephath. And when he came to the gate of the city, behold, the widow woman was there gathering of sticks: and he called to her, and said, Fetch me, I pray thee, a little water in a vessel, that I may drink. 11 And as she was going to fetch it, he called to her, and said, Bring me, I pray thee, a morsel of bread in thine hand. 12 And she said, As the LORD thy God liveth, I have not a cake, but an handful of meal in a barrel, and a little oil in a cruse: and, behold, I am gathering two sticks, that I may go in and dress it for me and my son, that we may eat it, and die. 13 And Elijah said unto her, Fear not; go and do as thou hast said: but make me thereof a little cake first, and bring it unto me, and after make for thee and for thy son.]
What is God doing when He asks us to minister to His Son or His under-shepherds first? Well, the answer is right there within in the Scripture, [Fear not; go and do as thou hast said:]. There are two types of fear, there is that dreadful fear that overcomes people to the point that they never make an effort to do anything, including receive Christ. Then there is that Godly fear, the one where we reverence God, trust God, respect God, and love God with all our heart. When we love God with all our being, then we do not mind the sacrifice, and He does become priority over everything else. Now, that is not to say that we have not all been like Jonah a time of two, but it does say that when we do get our priorities in order, it is smooth sailing from there, well, at least, for a little while. Sometimes God will place those dreadful fears in our lives even when we do have our priorities in order. Luke, also gives the account of their being on a ship, with Jesus asleep.
[Luke 8:22-25 Now it came to pass on a certain day, that he went into a ship with his disciples: and he said unto them, Let us go over unto the other side of the lake. And they launched forth. 23 But as they sailed he fell asleep: and there came down a storm of wind on the lake; and they were filled with water, and were in jeopardy. 24 And they came to him, and awoke him, saying, Master, master, we perish. Then he arose, and rebuked the wind and the raging of the water: and they ceased, and there was a calm. 25 And he said unto them, Where is your faith? And they being afraid wondered, saying one to another, What manner of man is this! for he commandeth even the winds and water, and they obey him.]
[And they being afraid wondered,] They were more fearful of Him controlling the storm than the storm itself. Sometimes it is a lack of faith that does keep us from doing what is priority first. Sadly, our faith in God is often dependent upon our circumstances. Oh yes, we know that we can do anything through Christ, but the more difficult things get the harder it is to accept that, especially when we are dealing with things that are out of our control. And while we are all given the freewill to choose, we must understand that God will always be in control, everyone and everything He created is subject to Him, even Satan himself. We learn of this when a man possessed by the devil came up to Him and He commanded him to come out of the man.
[Luke 8:27-31 And when he went forth to land, there met him out of the city a certain man, which had devils long time, and ware no clothes, neither abode in any house, but in the tombs. 28 When he saw Jesus, he cried out, and fell down before him, and with a loud voice said, What have I to do with thee, Jesus, thou Son of God most high? I beseech thee, torment me not. 29 (For he had commanded the unclean spirit to come out of the man. For oftentimes it had caught him: and he was kept bound with chains and in fetters; and he brake the bands, and was driven of the devil into the wilderness.) 30 And Jesus asked him, saying, What is thy name? And he said, Legion: because many devils were entered into him. 31 And they besought him that he would not command them to go out into the deep.]
[And they besought him that he would not command them] Here are these evil spirits possessing this man, making him miserable, and they are begging Jesus not to condemn them to hell. Did you notice that several spirits can enter into the soul of an unsaved person? It only takes one Spirit to give us the power to command Satan to get lost. Well, Jesus, did grant their request and allowed them to enter into a herd of pigs, but something rather interesting happened when they did. The entire herd went crazy running themselves right off a cliff, and when the people saw it they freaked out.
[Luke 8:33-37 Then went the devils out of the man, and entered into the swine: and the herd ran violently down a steep place into the lake, and were choked. 34 When they that fed them saw what was done, they fled, and went and told it in the city and in the country. 35 Then they went out to see what was done; and came to Jesus, and found the man, out of whom the devils were departed, sitting at the feet of Jesus, clothed, and in his right mind: and they were afraid. 36 They also which saw it told them by what means he that was possessed of the devils was healed. 37 Then the whole multitude of the country of the Gadarenes round about besought him to depart from them; for they were taken with great fear: and he went up into the ship, and returned back again.]
[and in his right mind: and they were afraid.] What were they more afraid of, the fact that the man was of a sound mind or that Jesus cast the devils out of him? These people did not want Jesus around because of what they saw Him do for the man. God, has so much more in store for us, it is our fear that keeps Him from doing it. I am going to cry having seen all the opportunities I missed because I trusted in my own understanding instead of God’s, but I know one thing is sure, at least I will be with Jesus. The man wanted to follow Jesus wherever He went, but Jesus knew he would be better off telling the people about Him there rather than come with Him. This is why Jesus has not returned yet and also why He has His faithful living among the world, if just one gets saved, then we have made a difference. Now, we come to one of my favorite accounts of Jesus, Luke, also gives the woman with the issue of blood, and goes into a little more detail about it.
[Luke 8:40-44 And it came to pass, that, when Jesus was returned, the people gladly received him: for they were all waiting for him. 41 And, behold, there came a man named Jairus, and he was a ruler of the synagogue: and he fell down at Jesus’ feet, and besought him that he would come into his house: 42 For he had one only daughter, about twelve years of age, and she lay a dying. But as he went the people thronged him. 43 And a woman having an issue of blood twelve years, which had spent all her living upon physicians, neither could be healed of any, 44 Came behind him, and touched the border of his garment: and immediately her issue of blood stanched.]
[for they were all waiting for him.] So many people seek Jesus for healing, and here is the thing, He heals many of them in hopes that that they will believe in the Gospel and be saved, but sadly, very few do. You see, we are given the freewill to choose what we believe and accept, and Jesus knows who will receive Him and who will not no matter how many times they reject Him. There is something else that happens when He heals the unsaved, it brings believers to Him. That woman felt her body being healed and Jesus felt her faith.
[Luke 8:45-50 And Jesus said, Who touched me? When all denied, Peter and they that were with him said, Master, the multitude throng thee and press thee, and sayest thou, Who touched me? 46 And Jesus said, Somebody hath touched me: for I perceive that virtue is gone out of me. 47 And when the woman saw that she was not hid, she came trembling, and falling down before him, she declared unto him before all the people for what cause she had touched him, and how she was healed immediately. 48 And he said unto her, Daughter, be of good comfort: thy faith hath made thee whole; go in peace. 49 While he yet spake, there cometh one from the ruler of the synagogue’s house, saying to him, Thy daughter is dead; trouble not the Master. 50 But when Jesus heard it, he answered him, saying, Fear not: believe only, and she shall be made whole.]
[and sayest thou, Who touched me?] Of course, Jesus knew who she was, He just wanted her to come forward and admit her faith. I love this story because it reminds me of me, and the constant struggles I have had with my own health from the time I hit puberty. How much faith this woman must have had that just the mere touch of a piece of the clothing He was wearing was all she needed to be healed? Do you know what gets Christ’s attention more? It is that fact that we believe that He can touch us by merely giving Him our heart and soul for that matter, [1 Peter 1:7-9 That the trial of your faith, being much more precious than of gold that perisheth, though it be tried with fire, might be found unto praise and honour and glory at the appearing of Jesus Christ: 8 Whom having not seen, ye love; in whom, though now ye see him not, yet believing, ye rejoice with joy unspeakable and full of glory: 9 Receiving the end of your faith, even the salvation of your souls.]
[Fear not: believe only, and she shall be made whole.] There is no room for fear when we are trusting in Jesus Christ. Our faith in Jesus Christ completes us, it makes us whole, meaning our body now has within our soul the Spirit of God. When Jesus arrives at Jairus’, they were mourning the loss of their daughter, but Jesus said something to cause quite a bit of a stir, [Luke 8:51-56 And when he came into the house, he suffered no man to go in, save Peter, and James, and John, and the father and the mother of the maiden. 52 And all wept, and bewailed her: but he said, Weep not; she is not dead, but sleepeth. 53 And they laughed him to scorn, knowing that she was dead. 54 And he put them all out, and took her by the hand, and called, saying, Maid, arise. 55 And her spirit came again, and she arose straightway: and he commanded to give her meat. 56 And her parents were astonished: but he charged them that they should tell no man what was done.]
[but he charged them that they should tell no man what was done.] So, why did Jesus not want them to tell anyone what He had done? Well, they would all know that she was raised from the dead because they all knew she died, but He did not want them to tell what He did, by just say, [Maid, arise.] just yet anyway. The world will always put miracles such as these on public display, not acknowledging that it is Jesus, rather some illusion to get people to believe that it is Jesus. And now we know why Jesus spoke in parables. Why did Jesus tell them not to tell everyone what He had done? It was not time for it to be known that He could raise someone from the dead. Had they known that the Pharisees might have stopped pursuing after Him. Every, born again believer has a living soul filled with the Spirit of God in it, and while the physical body will die, unless Jesus returns before then, the soul is alive and well with Him in heaven. We need not fear death or anyone else who died that accepted Jesus as their Saviour, their bodies are merely sleeping as they await for Jesus ti return, and yes, that means more patience.
[1 Thessalonians 4:13-16 But I would not have you to be ignorant, brethren, concerning them which are asleep, that ye sorrow not, even as others which have no hope. 14 For if we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so them also which sleep in Jesus will God bring with him. 15 For this we say unto you by the word of the Lord, that we which are alive and remain unto the coming of the Lord shall not prevent them which are asleep. 16 For the Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God: and the dead in Christ shall rise first:]
Today’s Prayer: Jesus, Thank You for the great sacrifice You made so that I can be made whole. I do not have to do anything to save my soul because You did it for me, You saved me simply by my faith in You. Lord, teach me how to have the relationship that You have with our Father, to talk to Him about everything, to trust His reasoning and will for my life. Lead me and guide me, fill me with the power of the Holy Spirit that is within me to enable me to not only walk with You, and talk with You, but be a reflection of You. I do want to be fruitful, and know that with constant communication, faith, and patience You will produce the fruit in me that others will eat. I love You, and pray in Your name, Jesus. Amen.
God Bless You, I am praying for you,
Christina
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