JoanG

Paul made a personal choice to listen to God on the road to Damascus. He could have ignored his calling, but he did not. He turned his life over to God and followed on the path that God wanted him on. I have a hard time answering the second part of this question. I really do not want to try to guess what God and Jesus will do when we get to heaven. I feel that volunteer and bi-vocational Christian workers do things for the love of it. However, I can not agree that their hearts are in the right place all the time. And why would God not give paid pastors the same rewards in heaven for the same work done here on earth. I find that I have far more questions that answers.

Other shepherds would try to steal the sheep of people to grow their own herds. There would also be people who wanted to slaughter the sheep for food or sacrifice in the temple. Evil entities would try to "snatch" the Christian. The Pharisees would want to keep them under their Jewish rule. Today, people who worship material objects are the ones that we have to worry about. Jesus told us that we belong to him. We were given to him by God the Father. There is no one above the Father. Jesus and the Father are one. So nobody can take us away from him. That is one strong statement. And I know that no matter what trials and tribulations I face, Jesus is there for me. He loves me. He actually gave up his life to get me.

Jesus did not want his disciples to have to take time from their teaching of the word of Christ to find a way to support themselves. He wanted them to spend each possible moment on the work of God. Christian Congregations are to make sure that the pastor is well taken care of. They are to support those that do the work of God. The pastor that serves them should not have to do another job to support themselves. I feel that the board members will be judged more harshly if they withheld payments to pastors when the money is clearly at hand. They would be punished just as the servants with the talents were put to shame for not growing their talents but by burying them.

The good shepherd is always willing to die to protect his sheep. They mean that much to him. However, a hired hand does not have an invested interest in the sheep. He will disappear as soon as there is any danger. Jesus actually died to bring us back into the protective shelter of God's good graces. He died for our sins. He put his life on the line to protect us.

From the beginning of the Jewish civilization, God has proposed that the religious leaders were to be supported by the faithful. Paul is stating that just because they are following Christ now as converts, they still need to follow the old rules. But now, the teachings stress more about love than the law. If all missionaries wanted to be supported all the time, the poor would not be able to have them stay. People had and still have problems feeding themselves. It would be impossible to feed another person. Paul was being very considerate of the people he was dealing with. He did not personally want to cause them any discomfort.

The abundant life of a sheep is when all of their needs are fulfilled by the shepherd. The shepherd makes sure that there is a lot of food, water and shelter. He will protect them at all cost. As Christians, we are to trust that God will provide for all our needs. Maybe not our wants, but definitely our needs. He knows what we need as humans. As long as we believe in Christ, he will answer our prayers. People who do not have the same beliefs as us, try to condemn us for what we have. God can not protect us from all evil that is in the world. But, he will give us grace if we are persecuted for our faith. We will be given a special place in heaven. Unbelievers can at times appear to have more abundance than others. They seem to be free to have more fun than those who follow the Christian faith. However, this usually comes at cost eventually. But, because of not believing in God, they have no safety net to catch them when they fall.

Those that follow Jesus knows his voice. They know his words. They feel as one with him. I find that I can discern the voice of Jesus versus myself or others by weighing my thoughts against the teachings of the bible. I realize that God and Jesus will not only talk through my thoughts, but they will also put things into my heart and soul. The feeling to what they are saying take up more than one feeling in me. There will also be external signals to lead me to make the right decision.

The Pharisees were very much responsible for their hard hearts and their spiritual blindness. They had all the knowledge needed to know that Jesus actually came from God. However, they refused to believe what was before their eyes. They were more concerned about their own powers to enslave the Jewish people. They would have lost all of their ability to rule the lesser Jews in harsh ways. They would have had to admit that they were all equal. God actually hardened the heart of the Pharaoh during the time of Moses leaving Egypt. He needed to show the power he had through Moses. he had to build up Moses as the leader from God so that the Israelites would follow and listen to him.

The man never saw Jesus. He only knew his name and would recognize his voice. However, the man actually defended Jesus as coming from God. He tried to get the Pharisees to see the truth about Jesus. The man probably only heard the word of God in the temple. He would never have been able to got to school. But he was able to use common sense to know who Jesus really was. he was very logical in his basic knowledge of the word of God. At this point, of now being able to see, the man needed to be able to praise Jesus and to thank him. He needed guidance on how to build on the faith that he already had. Jesus was ready, willing and able to teach him how to live a life that is ready to serve God. I feel that my community is ready to start to hear the word of God. They just need someone to approach them on their level. They need to be heard on their problems. They do not need to feel like an outsider in an established church. They need someone to teach them on their own level.

I think Jesus used different ways of healing to teach the disciples that they have the power to do this within themselves. Also by changing his ways, no one could consider him a magician using the same magic trick each time. Jesus was always in communication with his Father. I feel that he was always doing the work of the Father with all of his thoughts, words and actions. I feel that we need to have open communication with God in all that we do. I feel that we need to pray for God's guidance when we talk to people so that we are giving them the right messages and advice.

I do not believe that sin in the cause of all sickness and affliction. I believe that God uses people to spread his miracles, his love and his teachings. These can bring a group of people to God. They can be used to bring people back on the right path that God wants them on. They can be used to help people learn what they need to for success in this life. And to obtain life eternal in heaven.

This passage seems to suggest that idols represent demonic entities. It also suggests that if we participate in anything like this we are prone to have spiritual contamination within ourselves.

The Old Testament sacrifices were used to feed the priests and their families. However, the food was also eaten as a way to share in the sacrifice with God. The priests and God would come together and commune together over the sacrifice in order that God would forgive and return grace to the people. When we participate in the Lord's Supper, we are remembering the sacrifice that Christ made on our behalf. However, we are also coming together to renew our commitment to Christ. We are building our relationship with him stronger.

Koinonia means to share or participate together on common ground. To share in the blood of Christ is to remember together that Christ's blood was shed for us on the cross. As his blood poured out of his body, all of our sins were washed cleaned. The body of Christ is a reference to the new church that was established by his death and resurrection. He is the head of the church but we as a collective make up the body.

I feel that old habits are hard to break. I find myself actually thinking about and falling into old habits at times. I remember how much fun they were or how much I gave up to follow Christ and I find myself wanting to go back to them. I realize that God is not testing me but it is actually the devil. And I also realize that God it there with a way our of the temptation if we are willing to listen and follow his advice. We need to be honest in our prayers and thoughts and feelings.

People do not want to surrender control of their life to anyone. We are afraid of what would happen to us. We fear the unknown. We are afraid of what would be requested of us. We are afraid that we would be hurt. I think that I asked God to take over my life after my head injury. I did not know where to go or how to do it myself. I was devastated. God did try to guide me. And most of the time, I did listen. But I found that when I did not pay attention to the nagging voice in my head, my life would end in chaos. But somehow, God used the chaos to push me back on the path that he wanted me on to begin with. God has some ideas that he wants us to with our lives. And I have personally found out that you can not do it yourself. You need to give control of your life to God. You need to stay on the path no matter what happens or what the tests are. Because, God needs us to learn some hard lessons so we can be the best we are to be.

God has been with us right from the start. he has never left us alone. He is very much aware of us. We are under his care. A young woman might find relief during the hard times of her pregnancy. She might realize that God is taking care of the infant even if something goes wrong. It can be a comfort for her if she loses the baby before it is born. A young father- to - be can actually find some relief in this concept. He can maybe put some of the worry onto God. He can turn to God to handle things for him.

God puts his hand on the psalmist. He holds his fast with his right hand. I felt God put his arm around me one day while I was at Sunday worship. I was feeling very low, somewhat alone. There was a feeling of devastation in my spiritual life. I was trying to find hope in what I felt a hopeless situation. I felt an arm going across my shoulder holding me firmly. I was startled and looked around but there was no person around me. But the feeling stayed there and I felt an instant calmness in my hear. I no longer felt hopeless but I had an answer to my prayer. I was given a new way of thinking about the situation and I was given the answers. I still remember the feeling and I have listened and I have grown in my personal spiritual life.

The embassy and it's property is under the rule of the government of the embassy, not the government of the country where it is located. It is considered an oasis in the foreign land. The ambassador is actually a representative of the government or ruling person at that time. This person is responsible for trying to keep peace with the hosting country. They make sure that the citizens visiting the hosting country are treated fairly. They are to keep lines of communication open between both countries. When we are ambassadors of Christ, we need to share the word of Christ to those that we live among. We need to stand as a beacon. People need to know that they can come to us to be safe.

There is a light at the end of the tunnel. It tells that no matter what we go through, we will have a great ending. God has not left us. We still belong to him. He will be there for us. I feel that God gave to Isaiah visions that he would be able to understand. These were visions that he would be able to describe to others. It will be a highway where only the people of the Lord will walk. Those that were wicked and those that never loved God will be left behind. We are redeemed by the Blood of the Lord. Our sins were washed clean.

Paul is telling them that knowledge is great but they need to be more loving in their approach to their fellow man. They needed to show the new Christians how to tell the difference not only by words but my actions as well. I believe that we have to hold our excuses up to the standards that were taught in the New Testament by Jesus and the disciples. I feel that I would be a pretty good influence on a New Christian. I have become addicted to reading the bible daily. I have changed a few of my bad habits and I try my best to do good and to help others.

People want to hide from God. They do not want God to see what they are doing or hear what they say. They feel that they can still be God's chosen no matter what they do in private. They forget that he is able to be out of the church building and he is here always not just on Sundays. I don't remember any time when I tried to hide from God. I have felt that God was away for a while. I have felt at times during my life that God was on vacation and that I was on my own.

Paul wanted to be able to face whatever his enemies threw at him. He felt that he needed all the help that he could get to fight the battle that God has put before him. He wanted to be the warrior of the Lord. he did not want to fail in his mission. In this situation, the opposite of boldness would be a coward. We need to be able to take a stand for what is right. We can not sit back and expect everyone else to do the work.

When we are ethical we have a sense of fairness, righteousness and honor. We live in a way that is pleasing to God. We treat everyone equally. We care about others. We look out for others well being. But once a person starts to take bribes, they no longer do what is fair. They do what they are paid to do. They only serve the interests of the rich. They destroy the poor and helpless. There is a lot of abuse of power and money and laws when bribes are taken. The whole integrity of the government and individuals are in question. Nobody feels like they can trust them anymore. The government becomes the enemy of the people.

I feel that people only look on the outside of themselves for help during a crisis. They do not look within. They only look to what they can see. What they can physically touch becomes the ropes that they reach for. This can become idol worship. They will think more about material objects than the grace that God can give us when we need it. Jesus reinforced in Matthew 6:31-33 that God does provide for us. We just have to acknowledge our needs not wants and to lay them before God.