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Category Archives: Faith

Spiritually Selfish

01 Jun
Spiritually Selfish

We’re continuing our walk through the Gospel of Luke. For the last few posts, I’ve been talking about the Lord’s Prayer.

At one point, I talked about our daily bread, and I related it to receiving God’s Word on a daily basis. As we continue in this chapter, Christ now gives a parable concerning bread. I want to continue that discussion.

We’re going to do that by looking at a parable which few ever teach about. We need to see how the bread of the Word applies to our daily lives.

Then he said to them, “Suppose one of you has a friend, and he goes to him at midnight and says, ‘Friend, lend me three loaves of bread, because a friend of mine on a journey has come to me, and I have nothing to set before him.’

Luke 11:5-6 NIV

This parable brings to light an incredible truth. Listen carefully to what the man is asking for. He’s seeking bread. But the important fact is the reason he wants it.

Is he hungry? Does he have no money to buy bread? Absolutely not! These are not the reasons he needs bread so desperately.

According to the man, a friend of his was on a journey and has come near to him. He opened his home to the friend, but has no bread to place before the friend.

According to Scripture, every human is on a journey. We’re all traveling from total spiritual darkness to maturity in Christ. We’re all at different places along this path.

What this man was saying is, “My friend’s path brought him into my sphere of influence. I need to help him become what God wants him to be.”

The man was not seeking the bread of the Word for himself. He was seeking a Word that would meet the need of someone else. This is something the church needs to hear. It seems that much of the time we’re self-absorbed.

Many times we find that we’re seeking things for ourselves. We seem to think it’s all about my healing, my prosperity, and my blessing. What we really need to do is to follow the example of Christ. Most of what He sought the Father for was bread that He could give to others.

Notice the humility. My friend has come to me and I have nothing of my own that could meet his needs. This is an admittance of our total dependency on God.

I’m trusting God to meet someone else’s need. But I want Him to send the supply through me. This requires us to admit our inability apart from the work of the Holy Spirit in us.

I believe this is what James was talking about in his book.

Therefore confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous man is powerful and effective.

James 5:16 NIV

James gives us this exhortation in the context of healing. We need to admit the areas for which we need prayer. But then, we also need to be in prayer for one another.

In the context of the above parable, James is saying that we should be constantly seeking bread for others. Praying for other people is a way of asking God the Father to supply us with the Word needed to bring healing into someone else’s life.

If all I ever pray about is my own needs, then I’m being very spiritually selfish. God wants us to be more than just a Christian organization. He wants us to be an organism – the body of Christ. In that way every part can be a help to all the other parts.

When you spend time in the presence of the Lord, remember to think of others. Listen for a Word that could be a help to them as well as yourself.

Question: How have you helped others along their road to maturity in Christ?

© 2022 Nick Zaccardi

 
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Posted by on June 1, 2022 in Faith, Healing, Ministry, Prayer, The Church

 

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Power Over Temptation

30 May
Power Over Temptation

In this post, I’m continuing with the last line of the Lord’s Prayer as recorded in the Gospel of Luke. This should serve as a guide to our prayer times with the Lord.

“And lead us not into temptation but deliver us from the evil one.”

Luke 11:4 NIV

This line of the prayer is especially important for us to understand. We must first grasp the nature of temptation in the New Testament.

First, we must get rid of the cartoon version of temptation. We don’t have an angel on one shoulder and a demon on the other, trying to get us to obey them. When it comes to temptation, we’re sometimes our own worst enemy.

If you were reading this blog years ago, when I was going through the book of James, you may remember what temptation is. In Scripture, the words temptation, testing, and trial are all the exact same Greek word.

It’s a word that literally means a putting to proof by experiment or experience. Usually, the translators will use the word, temptation, in the context of testing by evil. A trial, on the other hand is a testing to do good by faith.

The fact is, the Lord will never try and test us by putting us in a position to possibly choose evil.

When tempted, no one should say, “God is tempting me.” For God cannot be tempted by evil, nor does he tempt anyone; but each one is tempted when, by his own evil desire, he is dragged away and enticed.

James 1:13-14 NIV

This verse also makes it clear that we blame the devil for too much. It’s the desires of our own flesh that brings us to the point of temptation. Only through fasting and prayer can we turn down the voice of our flesh. But that’s a teaching for another day.

When you look at these two verses, James and Luke, there’s a very interesting contrast. James says that we drag ourselves away toward what our flesh desires. It’s like our flesh is pulling us along to where it wants us to go.

The phrase, deliver us, has a different emphasis. We’re literally asking God to draw us away toward Himself, from the evil. It’s like we’re standing in a fast-flowing river headed toward God’s will for us.

What we have to learn is that praying for God to deliver us from evil is not asking God to stop us. The choice is still ours. We have to decide which “pull” we’ll allow to take us.

No temptation has seized you except what is common to man. And God is faithful; he will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear. But when you are tempted, he will also provide a way out so that you can stand up under it.

1 Corinthians 10:13 NIV

This verse is clear. God will never stop us from sinning. He will provide the exit strategy, but we have to be willing to take it. By the power of the Holy Spirit in us, we should be able to overcome in all situations.

God’s desire for us is that we live a life free from sin. He wants us to live above the dominion of our fleshly desires. But for that to happen, we need to trust Him to do the work in us. I know for a fact that I’m not strong enough on my own to walk in this victory.

It’s when we have a strong prayer life that we see this work being accomplished in us. That will require time.

This is why I went through this prayer of the Lord in great detail. I wanted to show the foundation for a life grounded in the power of God. Don’t neglect this great gift that we’ve been given. The Lord has purchased for us 24/7 access to the throne room of God.

It’s up to us to avail ourselves to the power and blessing that’s being held out to us. Take the time necessary to form an intimate relationship with your heavenly Father.

Question: What is the condition of your prayer life?

© 2022 Nick Zaccardi

 
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Posted by on May 30, 2022 in Faith, Power of God, Prayer, Spiritual Walk

 

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God’s Kingdom and God’s Will

23 May
God’s Kingdom and God’s Will

In my last post I began talking about the Lord’s Prayer as found in the Gospel of Luke. We saw that the foundation was addressed to the Father in Heaven. Now we turn to what should be our greatest desire.

“‘…your kingdom come. May your will be done on earth as it is in heaven.’”

Luke 11:2b NIV

Our highest aim should be the furtherance of God’s kingdom on earth. This is not something to be taken lightly.

That’s because this verb, “come”, is in the imperative. When we pray like this, we’re literally calling for the kingdom of God to manifest on earth. But that begs the question; do we actually want this?

We need to understand this word, kingdom – king-dom. We’re talking about the domain of the king. That means the region in which his rulership and authority is supreme.

Jesus Christ is King of kings. That’s beyond question. But, have I allowed that kingdom to manifest its reign over my entire life?

So often we retain little sections that we want to keep control over. We allow the Lord to rule over most of our life, but not all of it. That creates a big problem in our walk with Him.

The Bible refers to Christ with words such as, Lord, Master, King, and Sovereign. These titles allow no room for our will to take the spotlight.

“No, Lord” is an impossible statement. If He is Lord, then you can’t say “no”. If you can say “no”, then He’s not really your Lord.

That’s why we need to be constantly assessing ourselves. We must desire that the rule and reign of God has first place in us.

Along with this, we must also seek to walk in the will of God. This takes the kingdom of God to a higher level in our lives. That’s because the Lord’s will for my life is something specific.

Here’s our problem…in order for God’s will to be done, I need to first know what that will is. I have to be a person who hears the voice of the Holy Spirit. This requires seeking, and seeking requires time.

Many believers want to know how to find God’s will for their lives. The fact is that it’s not hidden. The Lord wants you to know it, but there is a process.

Therefore, I urge you, brothers, in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to God — this is your spiritual act of worship. Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is — his good, pleasing and perfect will.

Romans 12:1-2 NIV

The key is time. We need to spend quality time in the presence of God, laying down our own agenda for the priorities of the kingdom. Along with that, we spend time in the Word, allowing it to change the way we think – renewing our mind.

As that happens, God’s will becomes second nature. When things come up in my life, I’ll be able to judge what God’s will is in that situation. Then, I can find myself walking in that will.

When it comes to the will of God, the pattern may not seem logical to our human way of thinking. We need to commit to walk in the Lord’s will BEFORE He’ll tell us what that will is. That’s what faith is about. I trust that His way is right before I know which way He’s leading.

That’s how the heavenly beings operate. God speaks and they move. My goal should be that I’ll obey in the same way while I live on the earth.

That’s what it will take to see the blessings of the kingdom of God manifest in my life.

Question: What is God’s will for your life today?

© 2022 Nick Zaccardi

 
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Posted by on May 23, 2022 in Faith, Spiritual Walk, Word of God

 

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Our Father in Heaven

20 May
Our Father in Heaven

We’re now beginning Luke, chapter 11. Jesus and His disciples are in a private setting.

One day Jesus was praying in a certain place. When he finished, one of his disciples said to him, “Lord, teach us to pray, just as John taught his disciples.”

Luke 11:1 NIV

The disciples were finally trying to actively grow in maturity. They were seeing what others were learning, and wanted to follow the same path.

They understood that the power of Christ was based upon His prayer life. They wanted to learn how to walk in that kind of intimacy with God. So, they came to Jesus for His word on the matter.

Of course, the Lord was willing to give them what they needed.

He said to them, “When you pray, say: “‘Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name, your kingdom come. May your will be done on earth as it is in heaven.’”

Luke 11:2 NIV

The Lord was more than willing to show the disciples the starting point for a rich relationship with God. Yes, I said starting point. The so called Lord’s Prayer is not the ultimate prayer we can offer. It’s the first baby step that Christ gave to His followers so that they might walk the path of prayer.

This short glimpse into the realm of prayer is the foundation for all of the things we converse with God about. It’s so rich in truth that I’ll have a few posts dedicated to this teaching of Christ. But for now, I want to talk about the focus of this prayer – the One to whom it’s addressed.

Our Father.

These are some of the most amazing words in Scripture. Jesus didn’t say, “My Father.” He called God “Our Father.” This is something that the people of God need a fresh revelation of. The God of Heaven, Creator of the universe, Savior of all mankind, allows me to call Him “Father.”

There’s a lot of blessing tied up in that name. He’s not a god far off and unconcerned with our needs. Our Father cares about us, no matter how great or small the matter we bring before Him. He’s not a god looking for a reason to destroy us for any little fault. Our Father loves us and wants the best for us – leading us with His hand of mercy and grace.

In Heaven.

This is the acknowledgment that His ways are higher than ours. I think there are times we get too familiar with the Lord. Yes, He’s our friend. But that doesn’t take away from the fact that He is also the supreme ruler of the universe.

I need to come to the Lord with the humility and reverence that He deserves. It’s not up to me to tell Him what He needs to do. All I can do is to agree with what He says about me in His Word. Then, I trust that my Heavenly Father will do what He said He would do in response to my faith in Him.

Hallowed be Your Name.

When we say this, we’re literally saying that we set apart His name as holy. That’s an important truth. The name of Jesus Christ is far removed from any other name. No other name holds the power, authority, or importance that’s contained in that name.

There’s no other name that saves, heals, or restores. It’s important that we pray with the knowledge of this always before us.

Like I said, this is merely the starting point. In our prayer times we need to know the focus of our worship. The more we spend time in the Lord’s presence, the deeper our understanding will become.

After all, that’s what we should be majoring on. Prayer should not be about the list of things I want God to give me. The importance should be about getting to know Him on a more intimate level. That’s the key to a productive and fulfilling prayer life.

Over the next few posts, we’ll be going through more important truths contained in this prayer. Hopefully, it will add an increased blessing to your times with the Lord.

Spend some quality time getting to know our Father today. Meditate upon these all encompassing truths. Let them reshape your prayer life so that it’s something you look forward to each day.

Question: How often and for how long do you spend quality time with the Father?

© 2022 Nick Zaccardi

 
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Posted by on May 20, 2022 in Faith, Prayer, Sonship, Spiritual Walk

 

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You Think You Have Problems

18 May
You Think You Have Problems

As we continue through the book of Luke, we now come to the end of chapter 10. An incident takes place that we usually just quickly gloss over. But I think it holds a truth that we need to take to heart.

As Jesus and his disciples were on their way, he came to a village where a woman named Martha opened her home to him.

Luke 10:38 NIV

If you remember, the 72 disciples were traveling throughout Israel making preparations for Jesus to minister at various towns. One of the towns they prepared was Bethany. A woman named Martha agreed to host the meetings in that town.

Now the day had arrived, and Martha was doing her part. But she wasn’t happy about it.

She had a sister called Mary, who sat at the Lord’s feet listening to what he said. But Martha was distracted by all the preparations that had to be made. She came to him and asked, “Lord, don’t you care that my sister has left me to do the work by myself? Tell her to help me!”

Luke 10:39-40 NIV

Martha began to feel the challenges of all the things that needed to be done. As the pressure built, she had an emotional outburst. We’ve probably all been there.

There are times when we let the challenges of life get to us. We try to bottle it up inside. But, eventually the pressure gets too great and we crack. Many times it gets aimed at the very ones we love and who don’t deserve the scolding.

What you need to understand, is there was more going on here than what we see on the surface. Jesus saw what was actually at work in her life.

“Martha, Martha,” the Lord answered, “you are worried and upset about many things, but only one thing is needed. Mary has chosen what is better, and it will not be taken away from her.”

Luke 10:41-42 NIV

The Lord saw that Martha was “worried and upset”. That’s important to note. These words literally mean that she was distracted and caused to be in turmoil by many things going on in her life. What were those things?

First of all, her sister Mary, was a big problem in itself. For some reason she had a reputation around town as being a very sinful woman (John 11:2; Luke 7:37-38). And yet, she placed herself right at the feet of the visiting preacher.

On top of that, her brother Lazarus, had a very grave illness (John 11:1-14). He was probably bedridden. In all likelihood, Martha was the one caring for him constantly.

I don’t have the space to go into the details, but she had another concern. In my studies, I found that Martha had married a Pharisee who later contracted leprosy. Because of this, he had to leave home. The Law required him to quarantine himself away from society.

So, Martha had to bear all of these things alone. Her mind was distracted and troubled by all of these issues as she tried to host these meetings on her own. It turned out that all these things were more than she could handle. It caused her to break down.

The answer for her dilemma is the same as for us. Although she probably didn’t want to hear it any more than we do. During these times of crisis we have to spend more quality time in the presence of the Lord.

We think that the answer is to keep busy and “do something” to get out of our mess. In reality, the best thing is to simply spend some time listening to the voice of the Spirit. That’s what we really need to get us through the difficult seasons of our lives.

In the above passage, nothing is spoken of what Mary was going through. I’m sure she heard the whispers of those around her. She saw the looks of disgust on the faces of the townspeople.

In spite of all that negativity, she pushed herself to be in the position to receive the only thing that could set her free. She heard a Word from the mouth of God. Her life was changed forever.

We can experience the same thing in the Lord’s presence!

Question: How much quality time do you spend with the Holy Spirit?

© 2022 Nick Zaccardi

 
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Posted by on May 18, 2022 in Encouragement, Faith, Spiritual Walk, Worship

 

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Jesus on the Road

02 May
Jesus on the Road

As we continue to look at the life of Christ through Luke’s eyes, we get a glimpse into journeys that took place in the Lord’s ministry. This post will deal with Luke 9:51-62. You may want to read that before continuing.

In this section of Scripture, we see the Lord attempting to go through the region of the Samaritans on His way to Jerusalem. Many Jews considered them unclean and went miles out of their way to go around this area.

As He was going through, the Lord sent some disciples ahead to make food and sleeping arrangements for the night. They came back with the report that no one in the village wanted Him there.

Some of Jesus’ disciples wanted to call fire down to consume the town. The Lord rebuked their foolishness and they continued to another town where they were welcomed. Along the way, they met some interesting characters.

As they were walking along the road, a man said to him, “I will follow you wherever you go.”
Jesus replied, “Foxes have holes and birds of the air have nests, but the Son of Man has no place to lay his head.”

Luke 9:57-58 NIV

A young man wanted to travel with Jesus. The problem was, the Lord had no corporate office. He had no house in the big city. He traveled almost the whole time during His ministry.

In some ways it’s very difficult to live your life “on the road.” Jesus did it for three years. He understood the stress of always having to be on the move.

Spiritually speaking, if we serve the Lord, we can expect to be just like Him – to be constantly on the go. He doesn’t want us to stagnate, but to press on toward the prize. To do that we must be always willing to change and to try new things as the Lord continues to call us forward.

This kind of life is forever bringing new challenges across our path. Each step of the way we are being drawn to deeper commitment, greater devotion, and higher callings. With each new opportunity for obedience comes a choice – to be satisfied with the old or to move on in Christ to the new. It’s exciting following Jesus – but you have to keep moving.

When they met another person, Jesus told the young man to follow Him. In response, the man said that he had to wait until his parents died.

He didn’t think that the time was right for him to go off with the Lord. Personally, I don’t believe that Jesus would have asked this person if it would have jeopardized his parent’s safety.

Sometimes we respond the same way to the Lord. We tell Him that we’re not ready to follow His leading. Unfortunately, the time will never look perfect to follow the Lord’s plan for your life.

Jesus said to him, “Let the dead bury their own dead, but you go and proclaim the kingdom of God.”

Luke 9:60 NIV

God knows what we need to do. Immediate obedience to the Spirit is the best response.

Still another said, “I will follow you, Lord; but first let me go back and say good-by to my family.”

Jesus replied, “No one who puts his hand to the plow and looks back is fit for service in the kingdom of God.”

Luke 9:61-62 NIV

It seems that there’s always something else we want to do before we get around to obeying God’s will. I’ll be able to serve Christ whole-heartedly next week, next month, next year.

The time is now to put down the excuses. It’s time to wake up and move forward in Christ.

Jesus is always on the move. He wants to take you from where you are now, to your destiny in Him. You just need to make the choice to begin following His leading.

Question: What’s the next thing on God’s agenda for your life?

© 2022 Nick Zaccardi

 
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Posted by on May 2, 2022 in Faith, Ministry, Spiritual Walk

 

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No Place for Competition

29 Apr
No Place for Competition

As we continue through Luke’s Gospel, today’s post will deal with something found in Luke 9:37-50. You may want to look at that passage before reading this article.

As Jesus was coming down from the mountain where was transfigured before a few of His disciples, He was met with a very agitated crowd. It seems that a man had brought his son to the disciples. This child was tormented by a demon.

The disciples had tried to cast the demon out of the boy’s life. Unfortunately, even though they had success in the past, they were unable to prevail in this situation. The people were looking for the Lord’s intervention.

When the father approached Jesus and asked for His help, the Lord had an interesting response.

“O unbelieving and perverse generation,” Jesus replied, “how long shall I stay with you and put up with you? Bring your son here.”

Luke 9:41 NIV

This took place well into Christ’s ministry in Israel. You would think that by now some of His teachings would have taken root in the people, especially His disciples. But, at this point, the Lord’s followers were very inconsistent in their understanding of spiritual principles.

Needless to say, Jesus was well able to rebuke and remove the evil spirit. The boy was returned to his father healed and whole, with no more problems in that area.

When I talked about this verse as I went through the book of Mark, the emphasis was removing unbelief though prayer and fasting. Luke, however, takes us in a different direction.

When the young man was restored, Jesus had an important statement to make.

“Listen carefully to what I am about to tell you: The Son of Man is going to be betrayed into the hands of men.”

Luke 9:44 NIV

Jesus makes it clear that He’s not going to be with them forever. There’s coming a time in the near future, when the disciples will have to stand on their own spiritual feet. They need to be learning and growing with more fervency.

It seems to be the same with us sometimes. We would much rather have someone else do the hard studying, praying, and fasting. We want to live for ourselves, then run to the pastor or spiritual leader when we need serious prayer.

It’s interesting that in the next few verses we see the disciples arguing over which of them was the greatest. The Lord made it clear to them that if they truly wanted to be great, they needed to get back to basics and start with the faith of a little child.

That’s good advice. We get so proud of ourselves sometimes. We need to realize where we actually are in the faith walk. There is no correspondence between physical age and spiritual age. You can be a middle aged adult and yet be an infant, sucking on a bottle, in the spirit.

As Jesus was trying to get this across to them, one of His disciples – John – had a realization dawn on him. The Holy Spirit brought to mind an incident that had recently occurred. Now it was time for him to bring it up.

“Master,” said John, “we saw a man driving out demons in your name and we tried to stop him, because he is not one of us.”

“Do not stop him,” Jesus said, “for whoever is not against you is for you.”

Luke 9:49-50 NIV

Here’s a group of men who followed Jesus as closely as anyone could. Yet, when called upon to cast out a demon, failed to accomplish it. They meet another person who probably only heard Jesus speak a few times, but went out and exemplified His teaching.

We need to learn what they failed to realize. It’s not a competition in the body of Christ. We each need to be running our own race. I must concentrate on what the Spirit is trying to teach me. When I do that, then I’ll see the manifestation of God’s Word in me.

Question: Where are you in your spiritual journey?

© 2022 Nick Zaccardi

 
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Posted by on April 29, 2022 in Faith, Ministry, Power of God, Spiritual Walk

 

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Who Am I?

25 Apr
Who Am I?

As we continue through Luke’s Gospel, we’re seeing how Jesus interacted with His disciples. He asks them some important questions. In this post, I’m talking about Luke 9:18-27. You may want to read through this before continuing.

Jesus had taken His disciples off to a private place to pray. The Lord did that pretty often, and He wanted His disciples to learn this practice. It would become an important part of their ministry someday.

As He was praying, the Holy Spirit prompted Jesus to ask the men who the crowds thought He was. It turned out to be the same as what Herod had thought.

It’s interesting that most of what people thought revolved around dead prophets who had come back to life. This speaks to the miraculous power that was evident in the Lord’s ministry.

After that discussion, Jesus brought the conversation around to the most important question.

“But what about you?” he asked. “Who do you say I am?”

Peter answered, “The Christ of God.”

Luke 9:12

More than what the crowds thought about Him, Jesus wanted to hear what the disciples thought. Peter, as usual, was the spokesman for the group. He immediately answers that Jesus is the Christ – the long awaited Messiah of God.

This statement showed that they were finally starting to understand what was happening. They were witnessing the fulfillment of the entire teaching of Scripture.

Once Peter makes this confession, the Lord is able to take them a little deeper into His confidence. He begins to share about what would take place in the future.

Jesus strictly warned them not to tell this to anyone. And he said, “The Son of Man must suffer many things and be rejected by the elders, chief priests and teachers of the law, and he must be killed and on the third day be raised to life.”

Luke 9:21-22

The first thing He does is to warn them not to tell anyone this truth. That’s because accepting Jesus as Messiah has to be a personal choice made by faith.

This is in stark contrast to the many individuals who have falsely claimed that title down through the years. Most of them publicly declared this claim in an effort to seduce masses of people to follow them – and give financial support.

Also, at this point, Jesus begins to clearly state the fact that He is to die at the hands of the Jewish leadership, and then rise from the dead three days later. I’m sure the disciples had no idea that He was speaking literally. They probably thought the Lord was speaking in parables again.

Then he said to them all: “If anyone would come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me. For whoever wants to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for me will save it. What good is it for a man to gain the whole world, and yet lose or forfeit his very self? If anyone is ashamed of me and my words, the Son of Man will be ashamed of him when he comes in his glory and in the glory of the Father and of the holy angels. I tell you the truth, some who are standing here will not taste death before they see the kingdom of God.”

Luke 9:23-27

But clearly, the most important thing they needed to learn, was now that they knew the truth, they were responsible to live it out. There was no more sitting on the fence. Trusting Christ as Lord is an all or nothing proposition.

The Lord made it clear that this is not a one time thing. It’s a daily decision to follow Christ over and above your own wants and desires. We must identify with Him no matter where that road leads.

That’s the key to seeing the kingdom of God manifest in your life.

Question: Who do you see Jesus Christ as in your life?

© 2022 Nick Zaccardi

 
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Posted by on April 25, 2022 in Faith, Spiritual Walk, Word of God

 

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Commitment

20 Apr
Commitment

In my last post, I started talking about when Jesus sent His disciples out to preach. This required a great amount of trust on their part.

When Jesus had called the Twelve together, he gave them power and authority to drive out all demons and to cure diseases, and he sent them out to preach the kingdom of God and to heal the sick.

Luke 9:1-2

When I think about the way this worked, it amazes me. The verse simply says that He gave them power and authority. I’m sure there was no flash of light or fireworks of any kind.

Jesus spoke a Word to them, and they trusted that it was so. Without any visible confirmation, they believed that they could walk in the same power of the Lord. But, it didn’t end there. Jesus gave more instructions that required faith and obedience.

He told them: “Take nothing for the journey — no staff, no bag, no bread, no money, no extra tunic.”

Luke 9:3

The Lord’s command seems very counter-intuitive. They’re being told to go out on a preaching mission, yet they’re exhorted to take nothing with them.

Then, Jesus lists the things they were not to bring with them. As someone who likes to travel, this sounds to me like a list of essential items you would make a point of taking with you. Yet Christ wanted them to trust that they would not be needed on this journey.

They had to simply believe that everything they needed would be supplied along the way. That’s a big ask – to trust God to work through the people they would meet along their journey.

Whatever house you enter, stay there until you leave that town. If people do not welcome you, shake the dust off your feet when you leave their town, as a testimony against them.”

Luke 9:4-5

Of course, staying in people’s homes was the normal thing to do in those days. There were no hotels or motels. When you were traveling away from home, you would ask around in a town and find out who was willing to let you stay with them for the night.

That’s how traveling worked in the ancient world. However, the hosts would expect a payment of some kind to let you stay with them for the night. Jesus expected the disciples to trust that they would find people who would allow them to stay in their homes and feed them for free.

Like I said, I like to travel. But I’ve never found a free bed and breakfast anywhere. Yet the disciples followed the Lord’s instructions and saw the hand of God at work in them.

So they set out and went from village to village, preaching the gospel and healing people everywhere.

Now Herod the tetrarch heard about all that was going on. And he was perplexed, because some were saying that John had been raised from the dead, others that Elijah had appeared, and still others that one of the prophets of long ago had come back to life. But Herod said, “I beheaded John. Who, then, is this I hear such things about?” And he tried to see him.

Luke 9:6-9

Because of their obedience, the power of God was manifest in a wonderful way through the disciples. It was so great, that word of these things reached the ears of the king.

Herod, who had beheaded John the Baptist, was hearing all these reports. He heard about the miracles and healings being done. It wasn’t accomplished through long dead prophets who came back to life. It was normal people who submitted themselves to Christ.

In our generation, there’s not many believers who are called to the level of commitment these disciples had to follow. But each of us has to follow the commands of Christ in our own way. When we do this in obedience, we’ll see the same outcome. People will want what we have and be attracted to the Gospel of Jesus.

Question: What is God calling you to do at this point?

© 2022 Nick Zaccardi

 
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Posted by on April 20, 2022 in Faith, Ministry, Power of God, The Gospel

 

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Healing Faith

15 Apr
Healing Faith

For the last couple of posts, we’ve been talking about the Synagogue ruler whose daughter was dying and the woman who needed healing from her bleeding. Jesus agreed to go with the ruler to heal his daughter but was interrupted when the woman touched Him and was healed.

This incident is recorded in Luke 8:40-56. It might be helpful to read through that section of Scripture before proceeding with this post.

This passage is a great example of what it takes to have faith for healing. In times past, people were told that if you just had enough faith, you’d be healed. That made it real simple. As a minister, I could blame you if you’re not healed when I pray for you.

“Come back when you really have faith.”

That kind of thinking does great injustice to those who are seeking to be set free from their sickness. The problem is that healing faith is always Word based. It’s not about me summoning up enough belief to be healed.

Consequently, faith comes from hearing the message, and the message is heard through the word of Christ.

Romans 10:17

In order for the sick to be healed, someone has to hear a Word from God. Then, as they move in faith – received from that Word – the healing takes place. Even in the Old Testament this was the case.

He sent forth his word and healed them; he rescued them from the grave.

Psalms 107:20

A Word from God will inspire faith for healing. Once it’s acted upon, the healing takes place. That’s one of the reasons I like this section of Scripture. It shows the power of this truth.

The woman in the above passage heard from the Holy Spirit that if she could just touch the edge of Jesus’ clothes, she would be healed. Jesus confirmed this by saying, “Daughter, your faith has healed you.”

The synagogue ruler is the one who heard from God in that part of the story. He knew in his spirit that if he could get Jesus to come to his house, then his daughter would be healed.

Sometimes it’s the faith of the one praying. Remember the leper who came to Jesus and said, “If you are willing you can make me clean.” It was the Lord’s faith that prompted Him to say, “…be healed.” (Luke 5:12-14)

In another part of the Bible, we read about some men who heard from the Spirit that if they could just get their paralyzed friend in front of Jesus, he’d be healed. They ended up cutting a hole through a roof to fulfill this Word. Scripture records that when the Lord saw their faith, He healed the sick person. (Luke 5:17-25)

In all of these cases, and many more, somebody had to hear from the Father and walk in the faith they received. It could be the sick person, the minister, a friend, or a family member. That’s because healing faith is received through a Word from God.

That’s why it’s so important that we spend time in the Spirit. We need to develop our sensitivity to the voice of the Lord. I believe that only then will we see the power that was manifest in the life of Christ and in the church of the book of Acts.

Hearing from God. That’s where the Lord is bringing His church to in our generation. Let’s walk with His plan and cultivate our intimacy with the Holy Spirit.

Question: How many other Scriptures can you find that show this principle of receiving healing faith through a Word from God?

© 2022 Nick Zaccardi

 
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Posted by on April 15, 2022 in Faith, Healing, Power of God, Word of God

 

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