How can we be people of peace? What does being a peacemaker bring about in our lives?

As followers of Jesus we are called to be people of peace. We are to be peacemakers.

When we are people of peace we are blessed and the people around us are blessed and God considers us his children.

In the Sermon on the Mount in Matthew’s Gospel, Jesus proclaimed, “Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called sons of God.” (Matthew 5:9, ESV).

What makes someone untouchable?

Is it their personal hygiene that makes them untouchable? Is it their social status? Is it their religious observation or lack thereof?

When we think of the untouchable, we may think of someone with a communicable disease. We may think of how we just spent the last two years trying not to touch one another due to the pandemic. We may even consider someone untouchable because of something they did.

In the first century, leprosy was the number one condition that made someone untouchable. There were other issues that rendered someone ritually impure, but leprosy was one of the worst, because the diagnosis would often be a death sentence. This is why when Jesus reached out his hand and touched a man with leprosy, it shocked those who witnessed it.

Why were seventy people sent out to prepare the way for Jesus as laborers into the harvest? Why were they sent two by two? Why do some translations tell us that seventy-two were sent?

In the tenth chapter of Luke’s gospel account, Jesus sends out seventy or seventy-two people into the towns and villages, depending upon the translation. The English Standard Version records seventy-two people being sent, while the New King James Version records seventy people. Both translations have the people being sent two by two.

Sending the people two by two to bear witness, gave credibility to the people’s witness and their testimony upon their return. In the Law of Moses, God’s word instructs us, “Only on the evidence of two witnesses or of three witnesses shall a charge be established.” (Deuteronomy 19:15, ESV).

What are the responsibilities that we have because of our freedoms? How should we use our privileges, freedoms, and independence?

With great gifts come great responsibility. We should never take our privileges, freedoms, and independence for granted. Freedom is never free, it was bought with a price. The liberties we have were fought for and hard-won. Therefore, we should never use our privileges, freedoms, and independence for our own selfish gain, or keep the benefits of these blessings to ourselves.

The Apostle Paul wrote the church in Galatia and instructed them concerning their gospel freedom, saying, “For you were called to freedom, brothers. Only do not use your freedom as an opportunity for the flesh, but through love serve one another.” (Galatians 5:13, ESV).

Are you more reliant on your own strength or are you most reliant on God’s strength?

Our strength and ability is limited, but God’s strength knows no limits. Our strength is finite, but God’s strength is infinite.

The Prophet Isaiah wrote, “But I will sing of your strength; I will sing aloud of your steadfast love in the morning. For you have been to me a fortress and a refuge in the day of my distress.” (Psalm 59:16, ESV).

How does God prepare us for mission? What are the challenges to the mission of God? What are the provisions of God to do the work God has called us to do?

When Jesus sent out the seventy-two on mission to prepare the way for his visitation, he warned them of the difficulties ahead of them. Jesus said, “Go your way; behold, I am sending you out as lambs in the midst of wolves.” (Luke 10:3, ESV).

Jesus wanted his followers to trust his provision for them and to count on the provision and hospitality of others. He requested that they “Carry no moneybag, no knapsack, no sandals, and greet no one on the road.“ (Luke 10:4, ESV).

Is your life filled with God’s mission? Are you seeing the work that needs to be done? Are you actively praying for the work that needs to be done and for workers to do the work?

The gospel of Luke tells us the Lord Jesus appointed seventy-two and sent them on ahead of him, two by two, into every town and place where he was about to go. He said to his disciples, “The harvest is plentiful, but the laborers are few. Therefore pray earnestly to the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into his harvest.” (Luke 10:1-3, ESV).

God’s work is plentiful. We are called into the mission of God, to prepare his way, and to make him known. We are called to pray into the mission of God. We are called to pray for laborers to do the work of God—to reap a harvest of fruitful kingdom growth.

How is it that we are children of God? What is the process of God making us his children? What are the benefits of being God’s children?

As followers of Jesus who have received Jesus and believe in his name, we are children of God, with all the rights and privileges.

The Apostle John wrote this about becoming children of God through Jesus, saying, “But to all who did receive him, who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God.” (John 1:12, ESV).

When you are afraid, where do you find the help you need to have courage to continue on?

We all need help and courage in the face of our fear.

God spoke through the Prophet Isaiah, encouraging people in the face of fear, saying, “For I, the LORD your God, hold your right hand; it is I who say to you, ‘Fear not, I am the one who helps you.’” (Isaiah 41:13, ESV).

Whose life are you living? Are you living your life, are you living someone else’s life, or are you living Jesus’ life for you?

We can live life according to our own standard and design. We can live life according to other peoples standards and design. Or, we can live life according to God’s standard and design.

The Apostle Paul wrote the church in Galatia, saying, “I have been crucified with Christ. It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me. And the life I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me.” (Galatians 2:20, ESV).

How do you find the care you need in the face of all your anxieties?

We live in anxious times. At baseline, life is filled with anxieties that can cause us deep distress and can bring out the worst in us.

When we are crippled by anxieties, we need a place to offload our troubles. We need to be able to place our anxieties at the feet of the one who cares deeply for us.

In his first letter, the Apostle Peter encouraged suffering believers, saying, “casting all your anxieties on him, because he cares for you.” (1 Peter 5:7, ESV).

How good is God? What is the extent of God’s love for us? Is there a limit to God’s faithfulness?

The very nature of God is goodness. God is good. God’s love for us is steady and firm. God’s love for us has no end. God’s love endures. God is faithful. God’s faithfulness continues from generation to generation.

The Psalmist writes of God’s goodness, love, and faithfulness, saying, “For the LORD is good; his steadfast love endures forever, and his faithfulness to all generations.” (Psalm 100:5, ESV).

What do you receive from God? What are you asking from God?

Prayer is asking God for what we need and hope to receive. Prayer is seeking God and finding him. Prayer is knocking on doors that we hope will be opened to us.

In the gospel of Matthew, Jesus said this about prayer, “For everyone who asks receives, and the one who seeks finds, and to the one who knocks it will be opened.” (Matthew 7:8, ESV).

Who do you respect the most? What is your level of fear, or reverence, for those you respect the most? Does your fear of God exceed the reverence you have for everyone else in your life?

Revering God is the beginning of insight, knowledge, and wisdom. To fear God is to respect God for who he is.

The wisdom of the Proverbs tells us, “The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom, and the knowledge of the Holy One is insight.” (Proverbs 9:10, ESV).

How vigilant are you over your life? How vigilant are you over your heart? Are you keeping watch over your heart with vigilance? Are you flowing with life?

We must be watchful over our lives. We must be watchful over our heart. It is from our heart that our lives flow. To be vigilant of our heart is to have a wellspring of life.

The wisdom of the Proverbs tells us, “Keep your heart with all vigilance, for from it flow the springs of life.” (Proverbs 4:23, ESV).

How often do you take the time to worship God? How often do you give thanks to the LORD and give God praise?

There is never a bad time to give thanks and to worship to God? We cannot give thanks to God too much. We cannot over do praising God. There is never a bad time to give thanks to God and to praise his name.

Concerning when to give praise to God, the Psalmist writes, “From the rising of the sun to its setting, the name of the LORD is to be praised!” (Psalm 113:3, ESV).

How does God care for his people? To what extent does God show us his compassion?

God cares for his people as a loving father cares for his children. God shows compassion towards his children who revere him, as a father shows his loving compassion to his own beloved children.

The Psalmist writes, “As a father shows compassion to his children, so the LORD shows compassion to those who fear him.” (Psalm 103:13, ESV).

Is it easier to remember the bad things or the good things in life? What takes up most of your thinking and attention, the good or the bad, or what you have or what you do not have?

We can remember the deficits in life or we can remember the blessings. We can remember what we have lost or we can remember what we have been given.

The Psalmist writes, “Bless the LORD, O my soul, and forget not all his benefits.” (Psalm 103:2, ESV).

Have you ever been out of your mind? Have you ever been in your right mind? Have you ever experienced the mind of God?

We all have a mind and are called to be of sound mind. As followers of Jesus we are called to have the mind of Jesus.

The Apostle Paul wrote the church in Philippi, encouraging them to have the mind of Jesus, saying, “Have this mind among yourselves, which is yours in Christ Jesus.” (Philippians 2:5, ESV).

Where do you look for salvation? Where do you place your trust? How do you summon courage in the face of fear? Where do you get your strength?

There are many times when we need salvation in this broken and sin-filled world. We need the trustworthiness of God in the face of our uncertainty and the unreliability of a broken and sinful world. We need courage in the face of our fears. We need God and his strength and salvation.

The Prophet Isaiah prophesied of his trust in God, saying, “Behold, God is my salvation; I will trust, and will not be afraid; for the LORD GOD is my strength and my song, and he has become my salvation.” (Isaiah 12:2, ESV).