Christian Daily Word (5)
[b]Daily Word for Christians...Here's the scripture to meditate on![/b]
[b]John 15:15 (NLT)[/b]
"I no longer call you slaves, because a master doesn't confide in his slaves. Now you are my friends, since I have told you everything the Father has told me."
[b]Analysis of the Daily Word[/b]
The Bible clearly teaches us that we must love Jesus if we want to please God. One thing we can do to be friends with Jesus is to get to know him. As we reflect on these stories about the life of Jesus and see that he treated people with kindness, we will feel love and respect for him. For example, he did not treat his disciples as if they were slaves, even though he was their Master. Rather, he treated them like friends and revealed his deepest thoughts and feelings to them. He felt their pain and wept with them. [b](John 11:32-36)[/b] Even his enemies realized that he was a friend to those who accepted his message. [b](Matthew 11:19)[/b] If we treat others as he treated his disciples, we will get along with them better, be happier, and love and respect Christ even more.
Why else should we be friends with Jesus?
We must be friends of Jesus for our prayers to be answered. This means that is not enough to mechanically say [b]"in the name of Jesus"[/b] or [b]"in your son's name Jesus Christ"[/b] when we finish a prayer. We must understand how God uses Jesus to answer our prayers. Jesus told his apostles, [b]"Whatever you ask in my name, I will do it."[/b] [b](John 14:13)[/b] God is the one who hears and answers our prayers, but he has given his Son the authority to carry out what he decides. [b](Matthew 28:18)[/b] Before answering us, he looks at whether we have obeyed the advice of Jesus. For example, he said: "If you forgive others their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. But if you do not forgive others your trespasses, your heavenly Father will not forgive your trespasses either." [b](Matthew 6:14, and 15)[/b]
What must we do to benefit from Jesus' rescue?
Only those who are good friends of Jesus will fully benefit from the ransom. How do we know? Jesus said that he would give [b]"his life for his friends."[/b] [b](John 15:13)[/b] God's faithful servants who lived before Jesus came to earth will have to learn from him and come to love him. [b](John 17:3 | Acts 24:15)[/b] Righteous men and women like Abraham, Sarah, Moses, or Rahab will live again, but even they will have to become friends with Jesus to receive eternal life. [b](Hebrew 11:8-12 | 11:24-26)[/b]
[b]John 15:15 (NLT)[/b]
"I no longer call you slaves, because a master doesn't confide in his slaves. Now you are my friends, since I have told you everything the Father has told me."
[b]Analysis of the Daily Word[/b]
The Bible clearly teaches us that we must love Jesus if we want to please God. One thing we can do to be friends with Jesus is to get to know him. As we reflect on these stories about the life of Jesus and see that he treated people with kindness, we will feel love and respect for him. For example, he did not treat his disciples as if they were slaves, even though he was their Master. Rather, he treated them like friends and revealed his deepest thoughts and feelings to them. He felt their pain and wept with them. [b](John 11:32-36)[/b] Even his enemies realized that he was a friend to those who accepted his message. [b](Matthew 11:19)[/b] If we treat others as he treated his disciples, we will get along with them better, be happier, and love and respect Christ even more.
Why else should we be friends with Jesus?
We must be friends of Jesus for our prayers to be answered. This means that is not enough to mechanically say [b]"in the name of Jesus"[/b] or [b]"in your son's name Jesus Christ"[/b] when we finish a prayer. We must understand how God uses Jesus to answer our prayers. Jesus told his apostles, [b]"Whatever you ask in my name, I will do it."[/b] [b](John 14:13)[/b] God is the one who hears and answers our prayers, but he has given his Son the authority to carry out what he decides. [b](Matthew 28:18)[/b] Before answering us, he looks at whether we have obeyed the advice of Jesus. For example, he said: "If you forgive others their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. But if you do not forgive others your trespasses, your heavenly Father will not forgive your trespasses either." [b](Matthew 6:14, and 15)[/b]
What must we do to benefit from Jesus' rescue?
Only those who are good friends of Jesus will fully benefit from the ransom. How do we know? Jesus said that he would give [b]"his life for his friends."[/b] [b](John 15:13)[/b] God's faithful servants who lived before Jesus came to earth will have to learn from him and come to love him. [b](John 17:3 | Acts 24:15)[/b] Righteous men and women like Abraham, Sarah, Moses, or Rahab will live again, but even they will have to become friends with Jesus to receive eternal life. [b](Hebrew 11:8-12 | 11:24-26)[/b]
22-25, M