Tag: the Savior of the world

Wednesday Morning: 16 Jan 2019 – John 4:27-45 ~ Wake up and look around. The fields are already ripe for harvest.

Wednesday Morning

+ In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen

Opening (Collect for Purity)

Almighty God: to you all hearts are open, all desires known, and from you no secrets are hid; cleanse the thoughts of my heart through the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, that I may perfectly love you, and worthily magnify your holy name, through Christ my Lord. Amen.
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Morning Reading – John 4:27-45 (NLT)

Just then his disciples came back. They were shocked to find him talking to a woman, but none of them had the nerve to ask, “What do you want with her?” or “Why are you talking to her?” The woman left her water jar beside the well and ran back to the village, telling everyone, “Come and see a man who told me everything I ever did! Could he possibly be the Messiah?” So the people came streaming from the village to see him.

Meanwhile, the disciples were urging Jesus, “Rabbi, eat something.”

But Jesus replied, “I have a kind of food you know nothing about.”

“Did someone bring him food while we were gone?” the disciples asked each other.

Then Jesus explained: “My nourishment comes from doing the will of God, who sent me, and from finishing his work. You know the saying, ‘Four months between planting and harvest.’ But I say, wake up and look around. The fields are already ripe for harvest. The harvesters are paid good wages, and the fruit they harvest is people brought to eternal life. What joy awaits both the planter and the harvester alike! You know the saying, ‘One plants and another harvests.’ And it’s true. I sent you to harvest where you didn’t plant; others had already done the work, and now you will get to gather the harvest.”

Many Samaritans Believe

Many Samaritans from the village believed in Jesus because the woman had said, “He told me everything I ever did!” When they came out to see him, they begged him to stay in their village. So he stayed for two days, long enough for many more to hear his message and believe. Then they said to the woman, “Now we believe, not just because of what you told us, but because we have heard him ourselves. Now we know that he is indeed the Savior of the world.”

At the end of the two days, Jesus went on to Galilee. He himself had said that a prophet is not honored in his own hometown. Yet the Galileans welcomed him, for they had been in Jerusalem at the Passover celebration and had seen everything he did there.
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Morning Reflection:

Today’s reading is a continuation of Jesus’ encounter with the Samaritan woman. The disciples are shocked; the woman is excited; the villagers see for themselves; and many believe that Jesus truly is “the Savior of the world.”

What speaks to me is Jesus’ response to the disciples –

“Wake up and look around. The fields are already ripe for harvest.” – John 4:35b

God’s word to me is – “I need to develop a harvest mindset.” What might that look like?

  • Look everywhere – including where I might least expect an openness to Jesus’ saving grace.
  • Take joy – in the work God has given me; whether it’s sowing seeds, or reaping a harvest.
  • Remember – God is “Lord of the Harvest” – I may work hard planting without seeing the fruit of my labor, or I may reap someone else’s harvest.

Questions for consideration:

+ Where can I begin looking today for a harvest field around me?
+ What common ground do we share, so that I can begin?
+ What do I expect as a result of my efforts?
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Morning Prayer:

Heavenly Father: Your Spirit is continually moving to renew the face of the earth. Open my eyes to the people and groups you have already prepared to receive the Good News of your love with joy and faith-filled obedience. Show me the part you want me to play, and release the fountain of your Spirit within me, that I might go about my assigned tasks with confidence and enthusiasm. I ask this in Jesus’ name – the Savior of the world. Amen.
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“The Savior of the World Has Come” – The Isaacs

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Closing:

May the peace of the Lord Christ go with you, wherever He may send you. May He guide you through the wilderness, and protect you through the storm. May He bring you home rejoicing at the wonders He has shown you. May He bring you home rejoicing once again into our doors.

+ In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen

Reading, Reflection & Prayer: Fri, 11 Aug – John 3-4 ~ the Savior of the world

Reading, Reflection & Prayer

+ In the name of the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit. Amen!

Opening – (Northumbria Community)

One thing I have asked of the Lord, this is what I seek: that I may dwell in the house of the Lord all the days of my life; to behold the beauty of the Lord and to seek Him in His temple.

Praise to You, Lord Jesus Christ, King of endless glory.

Please Read: John 3-4 (NLT) – click here

Reflection & Prayer –

You must be born again

John 3:3 (NLT) –

Jesus replied, “I tell you the truth, unless you are born again, you cannot see the Kingdom of God.”

John 3:5-8 (NLT) –

Jesus replied, “I assure you, no one can enter the Kingdom of God without being born of water and the Spirit. Humans can reproduce only human life, but the Holy Spirit gives birth to spiritual life. So don’t be surprised when I say, ‘You must be born again.’ The wind blows wherever it wants. Just as you can hear the wind but can’t tell where it comes from or where it is going, so you can’t explain how people are born of the Spirit.”

John 3:16-21 (NLT) –

“For this is how God loved the world: He gave his one and only Son, so that everyone who believes in him will not perish but have eternal life. God sent his Son into the world not to judge the world, but to save the world through him.

“There is no judgment against anyone who believes in him. But anyone who does not believe in him has already been judged for not believing in God’s one and only Son. And the judgment is based on this fact: God’s light came into the world, but people loved the darkness more than the light, for their actions were evil. All who do evil hate the light and refuse to go near it for fear their sins will be exposed. But those who do what is right come to the light so others can see that they are doing what God wants.”

Jesus Messiah: you are the One sent from God to be the Savior of the world. Let your Kingdom come and your will be done in me; reproduce your life in me through the power of your Spirit. Thank you for your sacrificial love for me that overcomes my sins and shines light in my darkness. Teach me right from wrong, that I may live continually in your light.

John the Baptist Exalts Jesus

John 3:27-30 (NLT) –

John replied, “No one can receive anything unless God gives it from heaven. You yourselves know how plainly I told you, ‘I am not the Messiah. I am only here to prepare the way for him.’ It is the bridegroom who marries the bride, and the bridegroom’s friend is simply glad to stand with him and hear his vows. Therefore, I am filled with joy at his success. He must become greater and greater, and I must become less and less.

Jesus Messiah: You are the source of my life and my hope. Continue the good work you have begun in me; more of you, and less of me – that others may come and see that you are the Savior of the world.

Jesus and the Samaritan Woman

John 4:13-14 (NLT) –

Jesus replied, “Anyone who drinks this water will soon become thirsty again. But those who drink the water I give will never be thirsty again. It becomes a fresh, bubbling spring within them, giving them eternal life.”

John 4:23-30 (NLT) –

But the time is coming—indeed it’s here now—when true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and in truth. The Father is looking for those who will worship him that way. For God is Spirit, so those who worship him must worship in spirit and in truth.”

The woman said, “I know the Messiah is coming—the one who is called Christ. When he comes, he will explain everything to us.”

Then Jesus told her, “I am the Messiah!”

The woman left her water jar beside the well and ran back to the village, telling everyone, “Come and see a man who told me everything I ever did! Could he possibly be the Messiah?” So the people came streaming from the village to see him.

Jesus Messiah: you are the long-awaited One; you are the One who gives living water that becomes a fresh, bubbling spring within me, giving me eternal life. May this living water spring up within my soul today, that I may worship you in spirit and in truth.

Many Samaritans Believe

John 4:39-42 (NLT) –

Many Samaritans from the village believed in Jesus because the woman had said, “He told me everything I ever did!” When they came out to see him, they begged him to stay in their village. So he stayed for two days, long enough for many more to hear his message and believe. Then they said to the woman, “Now we believe, not just because of what you told us, but because we have heard him ourselves. Now we know that he is indeed the Savior of the world.”

Jesus Messiah: give me the boldness to tell others what you have done for me; to invite them to come and see for themselves, and believe that truly you are – the Savior of the world.

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“Savior Of The World” – Newsboys


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Blessing – (Northumbrian Community)

May the peace of the Lord Christ go with you, wherever He may send you. May He guide you through the wilderness, protect you through the storm. May He bring you home rejoicing at the wonders He has shown you. May He bring you home rejoicing once again into our doors.
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+ In the name of the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit. Amen!