Missionary Renegade: The Daily Guide/Daily Devotion grow. pray. study. from The Resurrection United Methodist Church in Leawood, Kansas, United States for Saturday, 29 August 2015

Saturday, August 29, 2015

The Daily Guide/Daily Devotion grow. pray. study. from The Resurrection United Methodist Church in Leawood, Kansas, United States for Saturday, 29 August 2015 – "We worship Jesus Christ, our Lord"

Daily Scripture: John 1:1 In the beginning was the Word,
and the Word was with God,
and the Word was God.
2 He was with God in the beginning.
3 All things came to be through him,
and without him nothing made had being.
4 In him was life,
and the life was the light of mankind.
5 The light shines in the darkness,
and the darkness has not suppressed it.
Hebrews 1:1 In days gone by, God spoke in many and varied ways to the Fathers through the prophets. 2 But now, in the acharit-hayamim, he has spoken to us through his Son, to whom he has given ownership of everything and through whom he created the universe. 3 This Son is the radiance of the Sh’khinah, the very expression of God’s essence, upholding all that exists by his powerful word; and after he had, through himself, made purification for sins, he sat down at the right hand of HaG’dulah BaM’romim.[Hebrews 1:3 Psalm 110:1]
Philippians 2:5 Let your attitude toward one another be governed by your being in union with the Messiah Yeshua:
6 Though he was in the form of God,
he did not regard equality with God
something to be possessed by force.
7 On the contrary, he emptied himself,
in that he took the form of a slave
by becoming like human beings are.
And when he appeared as a human being,
8 he humbled himself still more
by becoming obedient even to death —
death on a stake as a criminal!
9 Therefore God raised him to the highest place
and gave him the name above every name;
10 that in honor of the name given Yeshua,
every knee will bow —
in heaven, on earth and under the earth —
11 and every tongue will acknowledge[Philippians 2:11 Isaiah 45:23]
that Yeshua the Messiah is Adonai —
to the glory of God the Father.
Reflection Questions:
John 1 brought together Greek and Hebrew thought. Many Greek philosophers identified “the Word” as the great Idea behind the universe. The Hebrew Bible began (like John) with “in the beginning,” and said God spoke all that is into being. The writer of Hebrews said that while God spoke “in many times and many ways,” God’s final word was not a book, but a person: Jesus. And Philippians quoted a Christian hymn from the year 40 A.D. or so which showed that Christians boldly called Jesus “Lord.” That wasn’t just empty “church talk,” because Roman emperors wore the title “Lord,” and clung to it with ruthless violence. But to Christians, Jesus was the true “Lord,” a Lord of love and grace. With Rome’s military might pitted against Jesus' seemingly naïve witnesses, the contest looked ridiculously uneven. It was—but 2,000 years of history show that Caesar, not Jesus, was overmatched.

Jesus' disciples told him people saw him as many great, respected names from history (Matthew 16:13-16). But they saw even more than that in Jesus. Peter said Jesus was “the Christ, the Son of the living God.” Many Jewish political and religious leaders claimed to be the Messiah and challenged Rome (one historian counted 138). The Romans crucified most of them. In EVERY other case, when the leader died, the movement died. Yet Jesus' followers were bolder and more confident than ever after his death. They wrote letters and books saying their leader was alive and guiding them, that he had defeated death. To what extent can you join in Peter’s confession of faith? What factors shape what you believe about Jesus?

Today’s Prayer:
Lord Jesus, you are my Lord and my God. You are my Creator and my Redeemer. Because you live, I too will live forever. I thank you and I praise you today. Amen.
Family Activity:
The Bible teaches us about who Jesus was and all He did to help others. Create a stack of “Jesus Scriptures” for your home. Gather and distribute colorful index cards and pens or pencils along with a Bible to each family member. Ask each person to choose 3-4 favorite Bible verses or stories about Jesus and write one reference on each card. (If you have very young family members, invite them to draw pictures describing the verses or to help other family member with their stacks.) Collect the cards and keep them on the dining table. Before each meal, select a card, read the passage and pray to become more like Jesus. Also, thank God for Jesus. Place that card on the bottom of the stack and repeat each day. Add to your stack during the weeks ahead.
Insights from Rev. Penny Ellwood

Rev. Penny Ellwood is the Campus Pastor at Resurrection Blue Springs.
I was speaking with a church member this week who has been through some really tough times. A few years ago his life bottomed out due to an addiction but in the process of recovery he met Jesus. This relationship with Jesus he credits with turning his whole life around. He said he would never want to go through what he’s been through again– but, if it were the only way to meet Jesus, he would do it. Meeting Jesus has changed his whole life for the better.
It seems that if there is one person we should all take the time to get to know in a personal way, it’s Jesus. Knowing Jesus has made a profound difference in my life too. My relationship with Jesus impacts all the other relationships in my life and is responsible in great part for the happiness I have experienced in my marriage and in my family. It has brought me into community with others, literally, all over the world. Jesus is the link to a great big family.
Yet, in saying this, I know that I don’t know Jesus nearly as well as I’d like to know him. I say this for two reasons. One, the more I get to know Jesus, the more I realize how little I really know him. And two, life has a way of getting in the way. Sometimes I make good progress and other times I don’t. The craziest thing about all this is that when I am working to discover or encounter Jesus, my life tends to makes more sense and I find that I have more desire and ability to be faithful to God and to all the other relationships going on in my life.
So I want to ask you a question–how well do you know Jesus? God the Father wants us to know his Son. Why don’t you think about joining me this fall in rediscovering Jesus or encountering him for the first time? There are many great opportunities to discover Jesus being offered at every campus of Resurrection right now. I encourage you to take a look at the websites for the classes and experiences being offered and join one. I think you’ll be amazed at the difference it makes in your life.