Live to Love Scripture Encouragement

Norm Wakefield
  • 5.0 (19)
  • Religion & Spirituality
  • Updated Daily

Podcast by Norm Wakefield

  1. 1d ago

    Live to Love Scripture Encouragement John 20.11-13

    John 20:11-13 “But Mary was standing outside the tomb weeping; and so, as she wept, she stooped and looked into the tomb; and she saw two angels in white sitting, one at the head and one at the feet, where the body of Jesus had been lying. And they said to her, "Woman, why are you weeping?" She said to them, "Because they have taken away my Lord, and I do not know where they have laid Him." From John’s account, Peter and John went to their homes with the same conclusion as Mary. Mary was weeping because she thought someone had taken Jesus’ body. However her mistaken conclusion was necessary to have her in the place where God wanted her. Consider how Jesus had already loved Mary Magdalene. She was demonized and delivered. Because she was forgiven much, she loved Jesus much. God chose Mary to be the first eye witness to His resurrection. No offense intended, but I don’t believe this was God’s way of honoring women. I believe it was personal. In Christ, there is no partiality toward any natural class of people. Not only was this for Mary‘s highest good, but it was for the disciples’ highest good and ours. Jesus lived to love whoever God put in His path that morning. He still does! He will do it again today in you and me. Acknowledgment: Music from “Carried by the Father” by Eric Terlizzi. www.ericterlizzi.com

  2. 2d ago

    Live to Love Scripture Encouragement John 20.10

    John 20:10 “So the disciples went away again to their own homes.” Had the disciples believed Jesus rose from the dead, do you think they would have split up and gone to their own homes? The implication is that they didn’t know what to do other for each of them to return to their own homes. This doesn’t seem reasonable if they believed Jesus had risen from the dead. It only makes sense if they believed Jesus’ body had been taken and laid somewhere else. But what would they have done if they believed Jesus had risen from the dead (which they didn’t understand at the time)? We will see later what they did when they did believe He was alive, but from this verse, we can learn that when they didn’t know He was alive, they returned to normalcy—they went home. Have we returned to normalcy? Are we living as if we don’t believe Jesus lives in us to continue glorifying His Father, manifesting the power of God, and pouring out His love in a dark world? Believers in Jesus Christ may have homes to return to, but they don’t live normal lives because Jesus lives in them. John wrote in his first epistle that we are as He is in this world (1 Jo. 4:17). John described what it is to be as He is in this world. “By this the love of God was manifested in us, that God has sent His only begotten Son into the world so that we might live through Him. In this is love, not that we loved God, but that He loved us and sent His Son to be the propitiation for our sins. Beloved, if God so loved us, we also ought to love one another” (1 Jo. 4:9-11). So, have you been loved by God? Then live to love with Him today. Acknowledgment: Music from “Carried by the Father” by Eric Terlizzi. www.ericterlizzi.com 0 Comments

  3. 3d ago

    Live to Love Scripture Encouragement John 20.8-9

    John 20:8-9 “So the other disciple who had first come to the tomb then also entered, and he saw and believed. For as yet they did not understand the Scripture, that He must rise again from the dead.” In these verses, John testified that he entered the tomb and saw the empty grave clothes and the rolled up face cloth. Then he said that they didn’t conclude that Jesus was risen from the dead because they didn’t understand the Scripture yet. What did they believe if they didn’t understand that Jesus was to rise from the dead? If we read these words in the context, they believed what they were told by Mary, namely, that someone had taken His body away. Have you ever drawn a wrong conclusion because you didn’t understand the Scripture? I sure have—more times than I know. For instance, there was a time that I thought because Jesus rose from the dead that the proper response was that I was to live for Him. I have discovered in the Scripture that I drew a wrong conclusion. Jesus doesn’t need me to live for Him, I need Him to live for me! He was raised so that we might live in and through Him and that He might live in and through us. The Scripture, John 15:5, informs us that apart from Him we can do nothing. Jesus lives to change everything in our lives. He lives to love through us, and that purpose changes and affects everything we do. Today, let’s not make the same mistake the disciples made that first Easter morning. They believed the wrong thing. Instead, let’s live to love with Jesus today for His glory. Acknowledgment: Music from “Carried by the Father” by Eric Terlizzi. www.ericterlizzi.com

  4. 4d ago

    Live to Love Scripture Encouragement John 20.3-7

    John 20:3-7 “So Peter and the other disciple went forth, and they were going to the tomb. The two were running together; and the other disciple ran ahead faster than Peter and came to the tomb first; and stooping and looking in, he saw the linen wrappings lying there; but he did not go in. And so Simon Peter also came, following him, and entered the tomb; and he saw the linen wrappings lying there, and the face-cloth which had been on His head, not lying with the linen wrappings, but rolled up in a place by itself.” Do you remember when Lazarus was raised from the dead, that others had to unbind him? Perhaps Mary, Peter, and John assumed the same with Jesus. They may have concluded the grave clothes wouldn’t be there unless someone removed them and took the body. We can understand why they were perplexed. But when Jesus was raised from the dead, He transcended time and space. He was able to move freely through the veil between heaven and earth and could appear anywhere He wanted—in a locked room, on a road with two disciples, or on the beach on the Sea of Galilee. The stone didn’t need to be rolled away so Jesus could walk out, but so the first eye witnesses could see He had risen and was no longer in the grave. Jesus prayed, “I do not ask on behalf of these alone, but for those also who believe in Me through their word; that they may all be one; even as You, Father, are in Me and I in You, that they also may be in Us, so that the world may believe that You sent Me” (John 17:20). In raising Jesus, Peter preached, “Therefore let all the house of Israel know for certain that God has made Him both Lord and Christ—this Jesus whom you crucified” (Acts 2:36). Jesus is Lord of time and space and He lives in us! He is manifesting Himself in our bodies as we live to love with Him so the world may see that Jesus lives and believe in Him. Acknowledgment: Music from “Carried by the Father” by Eric Terlizzi. www.ericterlizzi.com

  5. 5d ago

    Live to Love Scripture Encouragement John 20.2

    John 20:2 “So she ran and came to Simon Peter and to the other disciple whom Jesus loved, and said to them, ‘They have taken away the Lord out of the tomb, and we do not know where they have laid Him.’” Mary did not understand that Jesus had risen from the dead. She testified to John and Peter that “they” had taken Jesus’ body and laid it somewhere else. By “they” she may have had Joseph and Nicodemus in mind, perhaps the guards, or the Jews. All she knew was that Jesus’ body wasn’t where she thought. It’s important to keep this in mind as we read through John’s account. Today, I have a question for us. Do we realize that we also may not know where Jesus’ body is located? I know that sounds strange, but stick with me. Every member of Jesus’ body that comes into our paths is the resurrected body of Jesus Christ. If your husband or wife is a believer, then the body of Jesus is in your presence. If your parents or children are believers then you should treat them as the resurrected Jesus. We are all one body, the body of Jesus. Where do we think the body of Jesus is? Mary and the other women with her didn’t know that morning where His body was. Do we? When we live to love with Jesus, we are loving Him as we love our brothers and sisters in Christ. Acknowledgment: Music from “Carried by the Father” by Eric Terlizzi. www.ericterlizzi.com

  6. 6d ago

    Live to Love Scripture Encouragement John 20.1

    John 20:1 Now on the first day of the week Mary Magdalene came early to the tomb, while it was still dark, and saw the stone already taken away from the tomb. Surely they were surprised and perplexed to find the tomb unguarded, the stone rolled away, and unoccupied. Unknown to them, God had been at work! Jesus had risen! God’s love overcame all of the devil’s work to stop the arrival of the Son of God. Not only did Satan fail to prevent God’s redemptive work, but he had actually facilitated it! Our adversary could not and did not keep Jesus in the grave. What Mary and her friends didn’t know was that she and all who believe in Jesus had risen. When Jesus rose from that sandstone slab, the entire body of Christ rose with Him. They were born again! The apostle Peter wrote, “Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who according to His great mercy has caused us to be born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead” (1 Pet. 1:2). Need I remind you that John got this information from Mary and the other women? This is a firsthand, eye witness account to Jesus’ resurrection. We live today in Christ because Jesus rose from the dead. Rejoice! Let the reality of this truth transport you into the presence of God. I want you to realize that you live in this world with Him (for the time being) to love for God’s glory. Acknowledgment: Music from “Carried by the Father” by Eric Terlizzi. www.ericterlizzi.com

  7. Oct 5

    Live to Love Scripture Encouragement John 19.41

    John 19:41-42 “Now in the place where He was crucified there was a garden, and in the garden a new tomb in which no one had yet been laid. Therefore because of the Jewish day of preparation, since the tomb was nearby, they laid Jesus there.” Apparently Golgatha was not as stark and ugly as many may suppose. There was a garden in the same place and we have learned that Joseph of Arimathea owned it. Since time was of the essence, due to the observance of the Passover Sabbath, Joseph and Nicodemus made the decision to bury Jesus there. What captures my attention is that Jesus was crucified in a garden. Hm. He died in a garden because of choices made in another garden by Adam and Eve. Wouldn’t it be amazing if the garden in which Adam and Eve sinned was in the same location as the garden in which Jesus died and was buried? Wouldn’t it be stunning if the very dust at the foot of the cross was the same dust into which the serpent was thrust by God when he was cursed for tempting Adam and Eve? Even more thought-provoking is the idea that the tree upon which Jesus was hung was the tree of the knowledge of good and evil by which our first parents were tempted? And what if the garden in which Jesus crushed Satan’s head had the very same coordinates as the place where God said, “And I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your seed and her seed; He shall bruise you on the head, and you shall bruise him on the heel.” Yes, this is all speculation, but it is not out of the realm of possibility. For the work accomplished by God in or near the garden where Jesus was buried could easily have been the garden of Eden. The flood would have completely reshaped the landscape. The garden of Eden would look nothing like the garden in Jerusalem. Wouldn’t it be like God to display the redemptive work of the seed of Eve in the same location where the image and blessing of God was lost? The blood of the Passover lamb was prepared and now sacrificed. The carcass has been put out of sight. The Passover may begin that commemorates God delivering His people from slavery in Egypt. It is a shadow of what we have been reading about in John 19. In this garden where Jesus died and was buried, God has delivered His people from slavery to sin and death. Hallelujah! What a steadfast love! Please take a few moments today to visit the two gardens. Drink in the love of God poured out for all heaven and earth to see, be amazed, and be moved to love in reply. Acknowledgment: Music from “Carried by the Father” by Eric Terlizzi. www.ericterlizzi.com

  8. Oct 4

    Live to Love Scripture Encouragement John 19.39

    John 19:39-40 “Nicodemus, who had first come to Him by night, also came, bringing a mixture of myrrh and aloes, about a hundred pounds weight. So they took the body of Jesus and bound it in linen wrappings with the spices, as is the burial custom of the Jews.” Here we have another testimony of love. The Holy Spirit through John wants everyone to know the impact of the meeting between Jesus and Nicodemus recorded in John 3. At that point, Nick was THE teacher in Israel and a ruler of the Jews. He didn’t have an understanding of the work of the Holy Spirit in the kingdom of God or new birth. He knew Jesus had to be from God, but he didn’t know His purpose, His mission. In John 7:51, there’s evidence that Nick had become at least sympathetic to Jesus’ message and ministry. When the chief priests, Annas and Caiphas, and the Pharisees were discussing arresting Jesus, it was Nicodemus who said, “Our Law does not judge a man unless it first hears from him and knows what he is doing, does it?” By the way, that comment was totally ignored. In this verse, we learn the impact of Jesus on Nicodemus. He, like Joseph of Arimathea, overcame fear and risked his reputation and standing with the council of the Jews. So what was the cost to Nicodemus for the extravagant burial spices? Some say in today’s economy, it was $150,000 to $300,000. But the true value of Nick’s honor of Jesus is more realized by what he surely traded in helping bury Jesus, namely, his standing and position with the council. It was a calculated action with known consequences—costly indeed. The amount of Nicodemus’ mixture of myrrh and aloes was shocking. From my research, the usual application of funeral spices was one pound. By the way, this was not for embalming because embalming required cutting of the body. These were spices typically used for healing and to ward off the smells of death and decay. However, we know Jesus was dead, and there was no decay. Ps. 16:10 prophetically stated, “For You will not abandon my soul to Sheol; nor will You allow Your Holy One to undergo decay.” So I don’t think Nick was thinking about overcoming the smells of a decaying body. Rather these spices were an expression of honor, love, and commitment. What can we do today to show honor, love, and commitment to Jesus? We have the body of Jesus available to us. As we care for those who are members of His body, we are displaying honor for Christ, love for His sacrifice, and commitment to Him. Let’s go all out to live to love with Jesus. Acknowledgment: Music from “Carried by the Father” by Eric Terlizzi. www.ericterlizzi.com

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