Who Touched Me? – I'm Following Jesus

King James Bible Study – “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.” – Mark 8:34

Date: Monday, October 14, 2019
Chapters: Luke 8
Message: Who Touched Me?

Hello My Friend,

Can you believe that we are in the middle of October already? I still want to write down June. I guess one of the things about living in the south is that you never see the seasons change so, the months tend to blend together. Last night at church, as the message was preached, I realized something, my lack of just talking to God. I use to start every day with my prayer journal, and just talk to God. Now, it is once a week, if that, and it is usually on Saturday when I do not have to get up super early. Well, I actually did start writing in it daily on Saturday, and let me tell you, the day really does go by a lot better. You know, we can do all these things for God, but unless we are talking to Him, we might as well be trying to fill a bucket with a hole in it. God does not want to just hear our complaints, confessions, and requests, He wants an honest and sincere conversation with us daily.

“And when thou prayest, thou shalt not be as the hypocrites are: for they love to pray standing in the synagogues and in the corners of the streets, that they may be seen of men. Verily I say unto you, They have their reward. But thou, when thou prayest, enter into thy closet, and when thou hast shut thy door, pray to thy Father which is in secret; and thy Father which seeth in secret shall reward thee openly. But when ye pray, use not vain repetitions, as the heathen do: for they think that they shall be heard for their much speaking. Be not ye therefore like unto them: for your Father knoweth what things ye have need of, before ye ask him.” – Matthew 6:5-8.

“for they think that they shall be heard for their much speaking.” I wondered why God had me use this Scripture when we just walked about it a few days ago. There is a difference between talking to God and just using a bunch of words, and God knows whether or not it is just a bunch of noise to make themselves look good. People shout out and proclaim Jesus in some of the biggest crowds, but do they really know Him? Luke gives his testimony of what he heard when Jesus spoke the parable of the sower, note how he describes the sower.

“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, And certain women, which had been healed of evil spirits and infirmities, Mary called Magdalene, out of whom went seven devils, And Joanna the wife of Chuza Herod’s steward, and Susanna, and many others, which ministered unto him of their substance. And when much people were gathered together, and were come to him out of every city, he spake by a parable: 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. And some fell upon a rock; and as soon as it was sprung up, it withered away, because it lacked moisture. And some fell among thorns; and the thorns sprang up with it, and choked it. 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.” – Luke 8:1-8.

“A sower went out to sow his seed:” The Sower, being Jesus, who is the Word made flesh, spread out His seed, which is the Gospel (the Word of God) and it landed on different types of soil, which are the hearts of man. “And certain women,” Many women followed Jesus too, ministering to Him. It is interesting how Luke describes how Jesus spoke the parables to the crowds. Did you know, Jesus can spot who His people are before they do? And it all has to do with how He tells these illustrations. Think about it, how blessed are you to hear Jesus speak, and be able to interpret what He is saying? To the world, the entire Bible is a foreign language, they hear bits and pieces of words they know and think they know the language, but they do not really know anything. Even the disciples had to ask Jesus what the parables were all about.

“And he said, Unto you it is given to know the mysteries of the kingdom of God: but to others in parables; that seeing they might not see, and hearing they might not understand. Now the parable is this: The seed is the word of God. Those by the way side are they that hear; then cometh the devil, and taketh away the word out of their hearts, lest they should believe and be saved. They on the rock are they, which, when they hear, receive the word with joy; and these have no root, which for a while believe, and in time of temptation fall away. And that which fell among thorns are they, which, when they have heard, go forth, and are choked with cares and riches and pleasures of this life, and bring no fruit to perfection. But that on the good ground are they, which in an honest and good heart, having heard the word, keep it, and bring forth fruit with patience.” – Luke 8:10-15.

“and bring forth fruit with patience.” Do you see this? Not everyone we speak to about Christ will receive Him. And not everything we do will be fruitful right away. One thing we learn rather quick is that much of our relationship with God has to do with our patiently doing His work while we are waiting for Him to produce the fruit. And guess what He is looking for? Faith. Of course, He is always looking for faith. And not the faith that just saves our soul from death and hell, the faith that surpasses all understanding, at all times. Jesus was right there in front of their faces, and their faith was just quite sad, even the disciples. Jesus decides one day that He wants to test their faith to see just how much they trust Him.

“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. 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. 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. 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.” – Luke 8:22-25.

“Where is your faith?” Think about the question that Jesus asks His disciples, we may not realize it, but at this point, they were not even saved yet. So, when they saw Jesus do these amazing and incredible things they were just as astounded as the rest of the people. Thomas did not believe until he put his finger through the holes after He arose that were evident of the nails that had been driven through His hands and feet (John 20:24-29). Judas believed after he realized what he did, but never got saved (Matthew 27:3-10). Did you know that Jesus feels our faith? The stronger our faith the more virtue (strength) comes out of Him. We learn this as Jesus heads over to someone’s house to help with his daughter and a woman just touches the hem of His coat.

“And a woman having an issue of blood twelve years, which had spent all her living upon physicians, neither could be healed of any, Came behind him, and touched the border of his garment: and immediately her issue of blood stanched. 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? And Jesus said, Somebody hath touched me: for I perceive that virtue is gone out of me. 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. And he said unto her, Daughter, be of good comfort: thy faith hath made thee whole; go in peace.” – Luke 8:43-48.

“Somebody hath 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 had with my 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? “thy faith hath made thee whole;” Our faith in Jesus completes us, it makes us whole, meaning our body now has within our soul the Spirit of God. When sin entered man, it killed the soul (Genesis 3), it has no life in it because God took His Spirit out of man until that person comes to the knowledge of God and sincerely receives Him in their life. Today, the only way God makes us whole is through our faith, and acceptance of Jesus Christ. “That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved. For with the heart man believeth unto righteousness; and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation.” – Romans 10:9-10.

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

Are You 100% Sure You Are Going To Heaven?: http://readytofollow.com/
Receive The KJB Daily Devotions In Your Email: http://eepurl.com/2WMzT
Missed A Message: https://imfollowingjesus.com/Biblestudy/
Visit I’m Following Jesus Missions: http://imfollowingjesus.com/index.html
I’m Following Jesus On Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/byhisstrength