Good People Die Every Day

May 2

(Acts 9:36-39 NIV) ““In Joppa there was a disciple named Tabitha (which, when translated, is Dorcas ), who was always doing good and helping the poor. {37} About that time she became sick and died, and her body was washed and placed in an upstairs room. {38} Lydda was near Joppa; so when the disciples heard that Peter was in Lydda, they sent two men to him and urged him, "Please come at once!" {39} Peter went with them, and when he arrived he was taken upstairs to the room. All the widows stood around him, crying and showing him the robes and other clothing that Dorcas had made while she was still with them.””

(John 11:23-27 NIV) ““Jesus said to her, "Your brother will rise again." {24} Martha answered, "I know he will rise again in the resurrection at the last day." {25} Jesus said to her, "I am the resurrection and the life. He who believes in me will live, even though he dies; {26} and whoever lives and believes in me will never die. Do you believe this?" {27} "Yes, Lord," she told him, "I believe that you are the Christ, the Son of God, who was to come into the world.””

(John 11:38-45 NIV)  ““Jesus, once more deeply moved, came to the tomb. It was a cave with a stone laid across the entrance. {39} "Take away the stone," he said. "But, Lord," said Martha, the sister of the dead man, "by this time there is a bad odor, for he has been there four days." {40} Then Jesus said, "Did I not tell you that if you believed, you would see the glory of God?" {41} So they took away the stone. Then Jesus looked up and said, "Father, I thank you that you have heard me. {42} I knew that you always hear me, but I said this for the benefit of the people standing here, that they may believe that you sent me." {43} When he had said this, Jesus called in a loud voice, "Lazarus, come out!" {44} The dead man came out, his hands and feet wrapped with strips of linen, and a cloth around his face. Jesus said to them, "Take off the grave clothes and let him go." {45} Therefore many of the Jews who had come to visit Mary, and had seen what Jesus did, put their faith in him.””

Dorcas and Lazarus were kind and generous people who put others ahead of themselves, but they got sick and died. Good people get sick and die every day. Being sick and dying has little to do with how good you are. Many good people got sick and died while Jesus and his disciples walked this earth. Healing and raising the dead were indeed miraculous, but they were not the high water mark of Christ’s or Peter’s ministries. They were not the end game. There came a day when Dorcas and Lazarus died again, and their decayed bodies await the final resurrection. Their healings were temporary miracles that did not exempt them from eventual death and judgment. The same is true for us. The only lasting miracles are Christ’s resurrection and ascension, and His promised return for those who belong to Him. These miracles top them all, and provide our only real hope for eternal life. -- Friar Tuck’s Word of the Day 

Miracle Grow

May 1

(Acts 9:34-35 NIV) ““Aeneas," Peter said to him, "Jesus Christ heals you. Get up and take care of your mat." Immediately Aeneas got up. {35} All those who lived in Lydda and Sharon saw him and turned to the Lord.””

(Acts 9:41-42 NIV) “He took her by the hand and helped her to her feet. Then he called the believers and the widows and presented her to them alive. {42} This became known all over Joppa, and many people believed in the Lord.”

(John 10:25 NIV) “I did tell you, but you do not believe. The miracles I do in my Father's name speak for me,”

(John 10:37-38 NIV) “Do not believe me unless I do what my Father does. {38} But if I do it, even though you do not believe me, believe the miracles, that you may know and understand that the Father is in me, and I in the Father.”

The miracles done by the apostles were done to glorify Christ and grow His Kingdom. When we read in Scripture about someone being healed or raised from the dead, the next thing we usually read is that many people believed and turned to the Lord. Miracles demonstrated the Lordship of Jesus. Today, when we see someone healed on a television ministry, the next thing we usually see is a toll-free number where we can send money, or buy some holy trinket that will heal us too -- if we have enough faith. The disciples did miracles that grew God’s Kingdom. Today, miracles are often done to grow someone’s bank account. Miracles done in Christ’s name should glorify His name. That’s something we should remember in this guru- seeking, celebrity-worshipping culture. The miraculous should grow God’s Kingdom, not increase someone’s bottom line. -- Friar Tuck’s Word of the Day

Waiting on the Lord

April 30

(Acts 9:32-43 NIV) “As Peter traveled about the country, he went to visit the saints in Lydda. {33} There he found a man named Aeneas, a paralytic who had been bedridden for eight years.”

(Matthew 9:20-22 NIV) ““Just then a woman who had been subject to bleeding for twelve years came up behind him and touched the edge of his cloak. {21} She said to herself, "If I only touch his cloak, I will be healed." {22} Jesus turned and saw her. "Take heart, daughter," he said, "your faith has healed you." And the woman was healed from that moment.””

(Luke 13:10-13 NIV) ““On a Sabbath Jesus was teaching in one of the synagogues, {11} and a woman was there who had been crippled by a spirit for eighteen years. She was bent over and could not straighten up at all. {12} When Jesus saw her, he called her forward and said to her, "Woman, you are set free from your infirmity." {13} Then he put his hands on her, and immediately she straightened up and praised God.””

(John 5:5-9 NIV) ““One who was there had been an invalid for thirty-eight years. {6} When Jesus saw him lying there and learned that he had been in this condition for a long time, he asked him, "Do you want to get well?" {7} "Sir," the invalid replied, "I have no one to help me into the pool when the water is stirred. While I am trying to get in, someone else goes down ahead of me." {8} Then Jesus said to him, "Get up! Pick up your mat and walk." {9} At once the man was cured; he picked up his mat and walked.””

In this day of instant everything, it is difficult for us to wait. The man Peter healed had been confined to a bed for eight years. The other Scriptures today listed people who had been waiting for healing even longer. But when these verses are preached today, it’s usually the instant healing that gets the attention and emphasis. That’s what most of us want. We want that moment of healing… but what about the years of waiting? Is that time not also under God’s sovereign hand? Is God just sleeping during those times? We must accept the waiting in order to get to the holy moment of healing. We must learn to wait upon the Lord. Suffering while we wait may be one of our most difficult tasks as disciples of Jesus, but there are great things to be learned in the wilderness of pain. Wait upon the Lord. You won’t be sorry you did. -- Friar Tuck’s Word of the Day

The Advocate

April 29

Acts 9:27-28 NIV) “But Barnabas took him and brought him to the apostles. He told them how Saul on his journey had seen the Lord and that the Lord had spoken to him, and how in Damascus he had preached fearlessly in the name of Jesus. {28} So Saul stayed with them and moved about freely in Jerusalem, speaking boldly in the name of the Lord.”

(Job 16:19-21 NIV) “Even now my witness is in heaven; my advocate is on high. {20} My intercessor is my friend as my eyes pour out tears to God; {21} on behalf of a man he pleads with God as a man pleads for his friend.”

(1 John 2:1-2 ESV) “My little children, I am writing these things to you so that you may not sin. But if anyone does sin, we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous. {2} He is the propitiation for our sins, and not for ours only but also for the sins of the whole world.”

Some wanted nothing to do with this new convert named Saul. They didn’t trust him, or want him in their church. But Saul had an advocate in Barnabas. Barnabas got to know Saul. He listened to his heart, and realized that Saul was genuine. So he took the risk of being an advocate for Saul. He stood up for Saul among the church leaders and encouraged them to open their hearts to the miracle of conversion. He called on them to welcome this new face into the church. All of us need an advocate at times -- here on earth, and again when we stand before God. Who will be your advocate when you stand before God? There is only one who has enough influence with the Father to successfully advocate on our behalf. His name is Jesus. He wants to get to know you. He has a heart for you. Do you know Jesus well enough to count on Him as an advocate? -- Friar Tuck’s Word of the Day