Scripture
“Salt is good; but if salt has lost its saltiness, how can you season it? Have salt in yourselves and be at peace with one another.”

Observation
John tells Jesus that they saw someone who was not of their group casting out demons in Jesus’ name. Jesus tells them that anyone doing a deed of power in His name will not be able to then speak evil about Him.

Jesus goes on to tell the disciples that they must not cause a “little one” to stumble in their faith. It is better to cut off parts of our body that cause us to sin than to be whole and cast into hell.

Everyone will be salted with fire. Jesus’ followers must allow the salt of the Holy Spirit to be always present.

Application
Jesus is very liberal in His grace- far more so than we are. He doesn’t require us to be on His team to minister His power. Sometimes we hear of evangelists who aren’t themselves born again yet they effectively preach the gospel. People who aren’t believers find themselves praying for healing for others, and God responds.

God delights for His grace to be manifest in the world so that as many as possible can be saved.

This does not mean that judgement will not come. Everyone will be salted with fire, and it is better to enter life maimed than to be whole in hell.

The eternal question is not “What did you do for Christ?” but “Is Christ in your heart?”

Prayer
Lord you are good in all of your ways. Thank you for setting me free from sin in the death of Jesus. Amen.

Scripture
“Whoever welcomes one of these little children in my name welcomes me; and whoever welcomes me does not welcome me but the one who sent me.”

Observation
Jesus and His disciples walk through Galilee. Jesus teaches them along the way. He tells them He will be betrayed and killed but will rise in three days. They do not understand this.

In Capernaum Jesus asks the disciples what they were arguing about on the road. They don’t want to tell Him because the argument was about who was the greatest. Jesus tells them that to be first they must be servants of all. He tells them whoever welcomes a little child welcomes both Him and the Father.

Application
Everyone wants to be the greatest, most important, best… The church is not exempt from this. It is called pride or the need for significance.

Our real significance comes not from our own importance but from the fact that Jesus counts us worth dying for. When we really understand in our hearts that our Father loves us so much, then all unhealthy forms of pride just melt away.

We have to see this in the way we treat other people. If you want to meet Jesus and the Father then show hospitality to the least important people- children, people with disabilities, refugees, the uneducated. They are the people who in some way carry the presence of Jesus. When we serve them we serve Jesus.

Prayer
Lord Jesus you came to serve, not to be served. Please help me to have the same ambition. Amen

Scripture
Jesus saw the huge crowd as he stepped from the boat, and he had compassion on them because they were like sheep without a shepherd. So he began teaching them many things.

Observation
The apostles return from their ministry tour and begin to tell Jesus all they have done. Jesus takes them away to a quiet place because the crowds a pressing in. The people follow them, and Jesus has compassion on them so He starts teaching them.

They cross the lake, and people instantly recognise Jesus. They run to bring the sick to be healed. All who touch Him are healed.

Application
Jesus is motivated by compassion for the people who seem to Him to be like lost sheep, All that He did in His earthly ministry was motivated by this deep love- whether He was healing, teaching or performing miracles.

Even His death on the cross was a result of His love for people who have lost the way to the Father. His love for me caused Him to lay down His life for me so that I can have eternal life.

What an awesome thought this is.

Prayer
Lord Jesus, thank you for your great love for me. Amen.

Scripture
The king deeply regretted what he had said; but because of the vow he had made in front of his guests he couldn’t refuse her.

Observation
Everyone is talking about Jesus and speculating about his true identity. Herod believes that Jesus is John the Baptist resurrected.

Some time before this, Herod had John the Baptist imprisoned because John had criticised Herod’s marriage to Herodias. Herodias’ daughter had danced before Herod’s dinner guests, and he had vowed to give her whatever she asked for. At her mother’s instigation, she asked for the head of John the Baptist.

Application
Speaking up for righteousness can still be punished severely in a world that is opposed to the gospel.

The current flash point for christians in the West is same sex “marriage”. Where christians in good conscience cannot comply with the demands of the dominant culture they are imprisoned, fined or forced out of their job or business.

When confronting a sinful society we need to be aware of our ultimate destiny. We are people who live and die for eternity and not just for this life.

Our words and actions always have to be measured by the requirements of our Lord and not by the approval of the world.

Prayer
Father please help em to stand firm in you, even when the cost is high. Amen.

Scripture
They went out and preached that people should repent. They drove out many demons and anointed many sick people with oil and healed them.

Observation
Jesus returns to Nazareth and teaches in the synagogue. The amazement of the townspeople turns to resentment and anger. Consequently Jesus is not able to do many miracles there except to heal a few people.

Jesus then moves from village to village. He sends out the Twelve in pairs. They are not to take any extra clothes. When they go to a house they are to stay there until they leave that town.

The disciples go out and preach a gospel of repentance. They heal many sick people and drive out demons.

Application
Armed with only a partial understanding of the gospel, the disciples were effective in telling people about the kingdom. Although they were not yet filled with the Holy Spirit, they carried the authority and grace of Jesus to expel demons and heal the sick.

If they could do so much with so little, what can we do who know about the cross and resurrection, and who have been baptised in the Holy Spirit?

What is holding me back?

Prayer
Make me bold, Lord, in telling others about you and in healing the sick. I renounce all fear today in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.

Scripture
And he said to her, “Daughter, your faith has made you well. Go in peace. Your suffering is over.”

Observation
Jairus, a leader of a local synagogue, comes to Jesus and asks Him to come and heal his dying daughter.

As Jesus goes with Jairus, the crowd pushes in around Him. A woman in the crowd who had suffered bleeding for over 12 years, comes and touches the hem of His robe. She thought to herself that just to touch the hem of His garment would be enough to heal her. The bleeding stops and she knows that she is healed.

Jesus turns around and asks who touched Him. Trembling in fear, the woman tells Him what she has done. He says, “Your faith has healed you.”

Meanwhile Jairus’ daughter has died. Jesus goes anyway, taking Peter, James and John with the child’s parents. He commands her to get up. Immediately she stands up and walks around.

Application
Faith in Jesus changes everything. For the nameless woman it brought healing, relief from physical weakness and an end to social and religious exclusion. For Jairus, faith restored his daughter, binging life from death.

Faith is reaching out to Jesus, knowing that if we can just touch the hem of His garment, things will change- salvation, healing, restoration, resurrection.

It’s in the darkest times when God seems distant that we need to reach out more urgently, trusting Him to bring His light.

Prayer
Help me Lord to trust you, to reach out to you and touch you. Bring light into my darkness. I trust you to do this. Amen.

Scripture
He did not say anything without using a parable. But when he was alone with his own disciples, he explained everything.

Observation
The kingdom of God is like a seed scattered on the ground. The seed sprouts and grows by itself- first the stalk, the the head and then the kernel.

The kingdom of God is like a mustard seed which is tiny, but when planted it becomes the largest of garden plants so that the birds shelter in it.

Jesus taught the word with many parables, but when He was alone with the disciples, He explained their meaning.

Application
God’s kingdom is something that grows without human understanding. Starting with just the seed of God’s word, it grows without restraint.

We can have all the church growth, church planting, evangelisation strategies the human mind can invent, but it is God who causes the kingdom to grow.

From the beginning, the church started with a handful of people and grew to cover the whole earth. Even today, the fastest expansion is taking place in countries considered untouched just a decade ago.

We don’t need to fear the darkness because the light is in the world and has overcome the darkness.

Prayer
How does your kingdom grow Lord? It seems like a mystery. Help me to live in obedience to you every day so that I do my part in your world-changing plans. Amen.