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Discerning This Time

22 Jul
Discerning This Time

Continuing through Luke’s Gospel, we see Jesus speaking to His disciples with the crowds listening. Now He directly addresses the people following.

He said to the crowd: “When you see a cloud rising in the west, immediately you say, ‘It’s going to rain,’ and it does. And when the south wind blows, you say, ‘It’s going to be hot,’ and it is. Hypocrites! You know how to interpret the appearance of the earth and the sky. How is it that you don’t know how to interpret this present time?

Luke 12:54-56 NIV

It’s interesting to see Jesus talking about the weather. In a society where most of the activity took place outdoors, everyone could predict the weather. Most people could look at the sky, feel the direction of the wind, and could guess pretty accurately what was coming.

We like to know the weather as well. There are whole cable channels dedicated to forecasting the weather.

In this verse, the Lord rebukes the people because they can tell the weather by looking at the signs. On the other hand, they could see everything happening around them in Israel, and not discern that Messiah had come.

They should have been looking to Him as the leader of a new movement. They should have been changing their lifestyles to conform to His Word.

Instead, they treated Christ as if He were a religious entertainer. He was someone they were excited to see come to their town. But when He left, it was back to business as usual.

But that begs the question, are we able to discern the times we’re living in? Do we know what’s coming and how we should prepare ourselves?

But mark this: There will be terrible times in the last days. People will be lovers of themselves, lovers of money, boastful, proud, abusive, disobedient to their parents, ungrateful, unholy, without love, unforgiving, slanderous, without self-control, brutal, not lovers of the good, treacherous, rash, conceited, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God – having a form of godliness but denying its power. Have nothing to do with them.

2 Timothy 3:1-5 NIV

This is one of many verses that gives us the “weather report” for the last days. I don’t think you need a seminary degree to understand what it’s saying. I also think that you would have to have your head buried in the sand to not see it as a description of the society we live in, at least in the USA.

Over the last few posts, I’ve been going through Luke, chapter 12. Jesus has been teaching about what it means to have a last day’s mindset. We need to be preparing our hearts and minds for the days ahead.

I don’t know everything that’s ahead of us, but I do know this…Jesus said we need to be spiritually awake and alert. We must have our spiritual lamps burning. We should be building our faith in God’s Word. Along with that, we must be fulfilling our calling in Christ.

That being said, I look around me in the body of Christ. In many areas I see business as usual. I see believers on social media with the same attitudes as the world. I see Christians afraid of the same things the world is afraid of.

I just want to yell out, “Hey people, read God’s weather report! The storm is coming. We need to be building on the rock. It’s time to stop building on the sand.”

A few days ago, in my post, The Last Days Mindset 3, I talked about the need to beware of dissipation, spiritual drunkenness, and anxieties. That’s the trap the world is falling into. We have no business falling victim to the loss these things bring.

We need to be watching and prepared for the Lord’s return. If needed, wake up, turn around, and get back on track with the Lord. Spend time in the Holy Spirit, strengthening your life for the days ahead.

Question: How prepared are you for the living in the Last Days?

© 2022 Nick Zaccardi

 
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Posted by on July 22, 2022 in Encouragement, Faith, Return of Christ, Revival, Spiritual Walk

 

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Divine Interruptions

06 Dec
Divine Interruptions

In my last post, we saw the angel appearing to some shepherds who were up all night watching their sheep. (Luke 2:8-12) They were given the sign of Christ. They were to look for a baby, wrapped like a corpse, laying in a feeding trough.

This is an important picture for us. We should be just like those shepherds. It’s the middle of the night. Everyone else is asleep. But they have a job to do. They are to stay awake and watch.

Look at what Paul says about our Last-Days attitudes.

So then, let us not be like others, who are asleep, but let us be alert and self-controlled.

1 Thessalonians 5:6

Jesus Christ is coming soon. This is not the time to be spiritually sleeping. That means falling victim to the distractions of the world.

There’s a large percentage of the church that’s fast asleep right now. They have no clue how close to the end we are. It’s time to wake up and live out loud for Christ.

It’s easy to sleep in the dark. But, there’s a call going out through the earth for those who are listening. God is calling His people to a new level of action in His Spirit.

Suddenly a great company of the heavenly host appeared with the angel, praising God and saying, “Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace to men on whom his favor rests.”

When the angels had left them and gone into heaven, the shepherds said to one another, “Let’s go to Bethlehem and see this thing that has happened, which the Lord has told us about.”

Luke 2:13-15

All of heaven was mobilized during this time. That was true even though from a natural view, there was not much taking place. From the outside it merely looked like a poor, traveling, family, was camping out for the night.

However, what you see with your eyes is not all that’s taking place. There was an event of major importance taking place in the spirit. How would the shepherds respond? Would they view it as just another normal birth?

Absolutely not! They understood the importance of what they were told. We’re told to watch and be spiritually alert and self-controlled. Do we understand the importance of what we’re being told?

So they hurried off and found Mary and Joseph, and the baby, who was lying in the manger. When they had seen him, they spread the word concerning what had been told them about this child, and all who heard it were amazed at what the shepherds said to them.

Luke 2:16-19

I like the fact that they didn’t stand around discussing it for hours. They immediately, with speed and urgency, went off to find the child. How urgent do we consider God’s commands to us?

Once they obeyed, they had a message to bring to anyone who would listen to them. It’s time for us to accomplish great things for the Lord. On the flip side, we’ll see and experience the miraculous from His hand. That’s the time in history we’re living in.

But Mary treasured up all these things and pondered them in her heart. The shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all the things they had heard and seen, which were just as they had been told.

Luke 2:19-20

The good news is that everyone involved received something from the Lord. Mary got encouragement and a confirmation that God was at work in them. The shepherds received a calling to spread the word about the coming of the Messiah.

The fact is that God will use anyone who’s available. The shepherds happened to be the only ones awake at the time. We need to make ourselves available to God in order for Him to use us.

We can’t crowd our schedules so full that there’s no room for a “midnight call”. We need to be ready for a divine interruption. Then, we’ll see the glory of God at work in our lives.

Question: What does it take to be spiritually awake and available to God?

© 2021 Nick Zaccardi

 
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Posted by on December 6, 2021 in Ministry, Return of Christ, Revival, Spiritual Walk

 

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Ministry Qualities Part 2

15 Jun

We’re continuing to look at the qualities of a true ministry according to Paul in his second letter to the Corinthian church.

…in beatings, imprisonments and riots; in hard work, sleepless nights and hunger; in purity, understanding, patience and kindness; in the Holy Spirit and in sincere love…
2 Corinthians 6:5-6

In my last post, I talked about hard work, now we’ll go on from there.

Sleepless Nights – The Greek word used here literally means awake.  In the New Testament, it’s normally used to mean keep watch.  The Scripture teaches that church leaders keep watch over the souls in their care (Hebrews 13:17).

Those who are in leadership can’t afford the luxury of falling asleep spiritually.  We need to stay alert as to what’s happening in society around us.  We also need to be listening to what the Holy Spirit would have us speak.

Hunger – This is not the normal word for being hungry.  It’s a choice to abstain from eating food.  I believe that it should rightly be translated fasting, as it is in the KJV.

If you read my blog regularly, you know that I think fasting should be a normal part of any Christian’s life.  So for those who are following the call of God in their life, it’s a necessity.

Purity – this literally means cleanness in the original.  We need to keep ourselves spiritually clean.

Does that mean we need to live a perfect life?  Absolutely not.  What it does mean, is that we’re always quick to repent when we realize that we’ve missed the mark.  Don’t let a day go by without confessing your sin to the Lord.

Understanding – In the above verse, this word simply means knowledge.  I believe that we need to constantly be learning and growing in our knowledge.  That not only includes Scripture but also the world around us.

Technology is changing so rapidly, and we need to be aware of these things.  Each day brings new advantages to how we present the Gospel of Jesus Christ.  Always stay teachable and open.

Patience – In the Greek, this is a compound word.  It means long tempered.  A true minister doesn’t get immediately angry in a bad situation.  They don’t let their emotions carry them away.

We have to be careful to always be led by the Holy Spirit.  We can’t afford to do or say something that we’ll end up regretting later.

If you have an anger problem, it will help if you spend time in the Lord’s presence.  Intimacy with the Holy Spirit brings great changes in our lives.

We’ve covered a lot of ground in these last two posts and we’re not finished yet.  Don’t get discouraged.  None of us are perfect, but this gives us something to strive for.  I’ll continue this in my next post.

Question: How do you see these qualities at work in your ministry?

© 2020 Nick Zaccardi

 
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Posted by on June 15, 2020 in Fasting, Leadership, Ministry, Spiritual Walk

 

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The Spiritual Battle – Pressing In

20 Jan

Do you know where you are in the history of the church?  This question isn’t about a place, but time.

I’m posting about the spiritual battle that’s going on around us.  It’s vital that we know the times we live in.

And do this, understanding the present time. The hour has come for you to wake up from your slumber, because our salvation is nearer now than when we first believed.
Romans 13:11

We need to know where we are on God’s timetable. I don’t like saying it, but the truth is that past generations of believers could “sleep” through their Christian walk. Not us. We live in dangerous times.

The Apostle Paul continues talking about this.

The night is nearly over; the day is almost here. So let us put aside the deeds of darkness and put on the armor of light. Let us behave decently, as in the daytime, not in orgies and drunkenness, not in sexual immorality and debauchery, not in dissension and jealousy. Rather, clothe yourselves with the Lord Jesus Christ, and do not think about how to gratify the desires of the sinful nature.
Romans 13:12-14

In this generation, we need to lay aside the things that are a part of the darkness. In their place, we must put on the armor of God.

We must live carefully and clothe ourselves with Christ. And as I focused on in my last post, we need to watch and pray. That’s how we keep alert spiritually.

And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the saints.
Ephesians 6:18

This verse literally says that we must keep watch with all persistency. That word persistency means to be strong toward, to be diligent. We must be diligent in the battle zone.

When we say that we need to be strong toward something, it speaks about a goal, a direction. We sometimes use the term “press in.”

In battle, there are places that are hard to get to. There are houses you can’t enter until you bind the strong man. It isn’t easy to press into the miraculous. If it was – everyone, every church would have it.

They devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching and to the fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer. Everyone was filled with awe, and many wonders and miraculous signs were done by the apostles.
Acts 2:42-43

Was it any easier back then, in the early church? Did those believers have all the time in the world to do all these things? I don’t think they were any different from us. It was as hard for them as it is for this generation.

If we want God’s best, it takes diligence. It will cause us to leave our comfort zone. But the spiritual rewards will be worth it.

Question: What do you find to be the most difficult about pressing into God’s presence?

© 2020 Nick Zaccardi

 
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Posted by on January 20, 2020 in Prayer, Revival, Spiritual Walk, Spiritual Warfare

 

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Prepared to Wait

13 Jul

As we continue our study of the Gospel of Mark, Jesus is closing His End-Times teaching with His disciples.  These are His concluding statements.  They’re important for us to hear and understand.

“No one knows about that day or hour, not even the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father.  Be on guard!  Be alert!  You do not know when that time will come.  It’s like a man going away: He leaves his house and puts his servants in charge, each with his assigned task, and tells the one at the door to keep watch.”
Mark 13:32-34

He starts by saying that the exact day and hour will be a mystery.  Even Christ, when He took on our humanity, did not retain that knowledge of when that day would be.  Of course, now in His glorified state, Jesus knows when He will return.

His first command to the disciples and us is to watch.  The word literally means to be sleepless.  I don’t believe that the Lord means physical sleep in this verse.  It’s our spiritual eyes that we must keep open.

Too many of God’s people seem to be blind to what’s happening in the spirit.  They go to church for an hour or two a week and expect that this will provide them with everything they need to know.  I wish that were true.

We need intimacy with the Holy Spirit on a daily basis.  That’s the only way to remain spiritually alert and vigilant in these Last Days.

 “Therefore keep watch because you do not know when the owner of the house will come back — whether in the evening, or at midnight, or when the rooster crows, or at dawn.  If he comes suddenly, do not let him find you sleeping.  What I say to you, I say to everyone: ‘Watch!’”
Mark 13:35-37

Jesus is explaining to us a little bit of His time frame here.  Even though He never tells us exactly when He’ll return, He gives us some hints to help us be ready.  He doesn’t want us to be taken by surprise.

Jesus tells us the most important hint as we wait for His return.  He says that He will come when you don’t expect it.  Please be careful when reading the words of Jesus here.  Many miss the whole point of what He says.

Notice that it will not be a surprise because He comes before you expect Him.  What’s going to throw people off is that He’ll arrive later than they thought it would be.  That’s what He’s emphasizing in this verse.  The Lord said that it could be as late as midnight, the early hours of the morning, or even dawn.

What if I said to you, “Can I come over to your house tonight?”?

“Sure,” you reply and you wait for me to show up.  7 o’clock, 8 o’clock and 9 o’clock go by.  At that point, you’ll probably shut the porch light off.  At 10 o’clock you might be in bed.  At 11 o’clock you’ll definitely be in bed.  If I then bang on your door at 3 o’clock in the morning, I’m sure you wouldn’t even get out of bed to answer the door, even though I told you I was coming.

That’s what Jesus is saying.  He’s telling us that He’s coming later than we think.  There will be a time when people think that Jesus should be here by now, but He’s not.  We could call that “prophetic midnight”.

If you’re one of the people who believe that He’s going to be here at this prophetic midnight, you might be disappointed.  We’ve got to be careful.  Most of Christianity is expecting Him to come before certain prophetic events occur.  Jesus said, “I’m going to come later than you think.”

As a matter of fact, what you’re going to find, is that whenever Christ warns us about being ready, He always qualifies it by saying that He’ll come later than we’re expecting.  Jesus said that if the servant knew when the owner was coming he’d be ready.  We need to be spiritually awake and alert no matter what the future holds.

Question: What do you do to remain spiritually alert?

© 2018 Nick Zaccardi

 
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Posted by on July 13, 2018 in Prayer, Return of Christ, Spiritual Walk

 

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Watching for the Signs

11 Dec

WorkI’m posting about supernatural signs. Specifically, we’re looking at the sign of the virgin birth of Christ.

Therefore the Lord himself will give you a sign: The virgin will be with child and will give birth to a son, and will call him Immanuel.
Isaiah 7:14

In my last post we saw that the Lord was dealing with an evil king of Judah named Ahaz. He refused to ask God for a sign when asked to by the prophet Isaiah.

Because of this act of disobedience, God Himself would choose the sign. This would be the sign that the Lord is victorious. You can do your own thing. But God will accomplish his will though you…or around you.

This sign was what God was going to accomplish. Basically what God said was, “You don’t want to know what I’m doing now so I’ll tell you something you’ll never see.”

Someday there will be a virgin. She will not be married and never had sex. Yet, miraculously, she will conceive and bear a son. His name – the designation of who He is – will be Immanuel. The Hebrew word Immanuel literally means with us is God.

Now let’s fast forward to the New Testament. A young woman named Mary is found to be with child. She’s a virgin. Her fiancé, Joseph, is confused. Then he’s visited by an angel with a message, exhorting him to marry her, because this is no ordinary child.

All this took place to fulfill what the Lord had said through the prophet: “The virgin will be with child and will give birth to a son, and they will call him Immanuel” – which means, “God with us.”
Matthew 1:22-23

Years of waiting were now fulfilled. The Messiah was soon to be born.

A supernatural sign brings hope to those trusting God. I’m waiting for a sign. The Bible says that when you see the sign of the Son of Man in the sky, stand to your feet and lift up your head for your redemption is here. That gives me hope.

I know that God is going to step into our world one day. Things aren’t going to go on like this forever.

There was a day when many were waiting expectantly for the Messiah. There were shepherds in the field watching their sheep. They heard the angelic announcement.

“Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace to men on whom his favor rests.”
Luke 2:14

These angels were giving glory to God in the highest place. On earth, they proclaimed peace, shalom to men of good-will. That literally means to those who have a will to do good. This message was to people who have God’s good (pleasing and perfect) will resting in them.

This is because; ultimately a supernatural sign brings glory to God. When I see the sign come to pass, I give God glory.

I want God’s will. He wants to show signs and wonders as He brings forth His will. Therefore, we need to work with Him. Expect God to speak. Expect Him to show up. Expect a miracle each day.

Question: What signs have you seen of the Lord working in and through you?

© Nick Zaccardi 2015

 
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Posted by on December 11, 2015 in Faith, Power of God, Spiritual Walk, The Church

 

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