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3rd November 2024
SundayReflection
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'Lord's Guidance shares'
'We are a Christian store with a purpose'
"The Bible has some interesting and power-packed verses"
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Matthew gave an account of the life and teachings of Jesus.
Matthew 19:26 says,
"Jesus looked at them and said, 'With man this is impossible, but with God all things are possible.'"
To understand what Jesus meant, we have to go back to the story of the rich young ruler.
This man wanted to know how to have eternal life.
Jesus told him to keep the commandments, which he said he had done.
He asked Jesus what he was lacking and Jesus told him to sell his possessions, give to the poor and follow him.
The man went away sad because he was rich.
Jesus then spoke to his disciples to show them that it's only through God that man can be saved.
Keeping the law will not grant anyone eternal life.
This verse has a context that begins in Matthew 19:16
Christians have misunderstood it and taken its meaning independent of the preceding verses.
Just then a man came up to Jesus and asked,
"Teacher, what good thing must I do to get eternal life?"
Man cannot save himself and his works amount to self-righteousness.
One does not gain salvation by being good.
In fact, Jesus said it is only God who is good.
"Why do you ask me about what is good?" Jesus replied. "There is only One who is good.
If you want to enter life, keep the commandments."
Our righteousness comes from God through Christ and not our "good works."
Ephesians 4:24 tells us:
"And to put on the new self, created to be like God in true righteousness and holiness."
"Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new."
..... 2 Corinthians 5:17
This part of the verse is often taken out of context.
Many people believe that you can ask God for anything because he can do it.
This is incorrect because God cannot do what is outside of his will.
The meaning of this part is that God is powerful and there is nothing impossible with him.
However, he won't do what is evil or contrary to his word.
Taken together with the first part, it means that salvation is only possible by the power of God
Salvation is by grace and has nothing to do with man in any way.
"For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith - and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God - not by works, so that no one can boast."
..... Ephesians 2:8-9
Salvation is a gift from God.
The things that are possible with God are those that concern his kingdom.
"With God all things are possible" is the motto of the U.S. state of Ohio.
It is the only state motto quoted from the Bible.
The motto was adopted in 1959 and survived a federal constitutional challenge in 2001.
It sometimes appears beneath the Seal of Ohio on the official letterhead of some state and county agencies.
A large-scale version is displayed in a plaza near the Ohio statehouse.
The state motto appears on the flag of Franklin County, beneath the county seal, which is based on the state seal.
School districts in Ohio are required to accept and display any donated copy of the motto that meets certain criteria.
When you read Matthew 19:26 within the context of the story of the young rich ruler, you will understand what Jesus meant.
This way you will get the full benefit of the verse by first understanding it then applying it in your life.
Read next:
Meaning of Romans 12:12.
"Be joyful in hope, patient in affliction, faithful in prayer."
When facing troubles, patience will prevent us from giving up before seeing our victory.
Prayer is something we do always, and in every situation knowing God will answer our prayers.
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This is an edited version.
The full article and Bible references are avaiable on request
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