Recent Blog Entries

  • 16 hours ago
    Posted by Dion Todd
    Yahweh said to Joshua, "Get up! Why have you fallen on your face like that?" Joshua 7:10 WEB.Joshua lay prostrate before the ark of the Lord all that evening. Yesterday, he had been a mighty warrior. Now Israel had lost the battle at Ai, all because one of the men with him had become greedy and brok...
  • Wed at 3:01 AM
    Posted by Dion Todd
    Now the king of Syria had commanded the captains of his chariots, saying, "Don't fight with small nor great, except only with the king of Israel." When the captains of the chariots saw Jehoshaphat, they said, "It is the king of Israel!" Therefore they turned around to fight against him. But Jehoshap...
  • Tue at 3:01 AM
    Posted by Dion Todd
    But Naaman was angry, and went away and said, "Behold, I thought, 'He will surely come out to me, and stand, and call on the name of Yahweh his God, and wave his hand over the place, and heal the leper' " 2 Kings 5:11 WEB.Naaman stared at his new skin with amazement when he came up from the muddy wa...
View All
  • March 25, 2022 - led by Lynn Brown
    This is a group for RHM sponsored events like corporate fasts. Everyone is welcome to join and participate in things currently going on in the ministry. We love you and thank you for being a part of Refreshing Hope!
View All

Face Against The Glass

  • When Jesus heard it, he said to them, 'Those who are healthy have no need for a physician, but those who are sick. I came not to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance.' Mark 2:17 WEB

    Jesus walked up to a tax collectors booth and told the man sitting there, 'Follow Me!' and he got up and followed Jesus. Tax collectors were local people who worked with the Roman occupiers to enforce taxes on their subdued lands, and the local people despised them and saw them as traitors. Tax collectors had their own special social status well below prostitutes, thieves, and sinners. They were the lowest of the low.

    The tax collector named 'Levi' became an apostle of Jesus and later wrote the gospel of Matthew (Matthew 9:9). Like Simon was called Peter, Levi was called Matthew. Jesus saw the heart of Matthew beating inside of Levi, while others did not. When Jesus called, Matthew immediately rose up and followed Him, even though he had a lucrative position. He would have been the wealthiest of the disciples.

    Matthew made a great feast for Jesus and invited a large crowd of tax collectors to come as well. While Jesus reclined at the table with them, the Pharisees complained to His disciples saying: 'Why does He eat and drink with tax collectors and sinners? (Luke 5:30). Jesus answered, 'Those who are healthy have no need for a physician, but those who are sick. I came not to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance.'

    The religious shunned such people and avoided them, while Jesus left the religious group and intentionally sought out the lost. Jesus looked forward to spending time with the lowest of the low, the lost, the outcast, the black sheep. He actively sought them out.

    Zacchaeus was another tax collector on another day. He was too short to see Jesus over the crowd, so he climbed up a tree to get a better view. Jesus walked right up to the tree, stopped, and said 'Zacchaeus, hurry and come down, for today I must stay at your house' (Luke 19:5).

    Again the holy onlookers complained. Who does He think He is? Doesn't He know that He should be out here with us? Being that they could not eat with sinners, they stood on the outside, looking in at Jesus and watching Him eat another great meal without them. Instead of God coming back to you, you must return to Him.

    What happened to cause people to look down on God's behavior with disdain? This group of people had become so holy that they felt like the Son of God did not live up to their standards. Jesus was not good enough for them. I am not sure what is wrong there, but something sure ain't right.

    Jesus came to seek and to save the lost, but we sometimes lose sight of this immutable fact. God hates sin, but He loves us sinners and welcomes us with wide open arms. He actively seeks us out. I once was lost, and now I am found because He sought me out one night while playing music at a party.

    Let us welcome everyone and God will wash them as needed. The Holy Spirit will convict the heart of sin when the right time comes, but let us never exclude groups of people from our religion, lest one day we find that God is actually over there eating with them, and it is us on the outside with our face pressed against the glass.

    Prayer: Heavenly Father, please help me see those in my path that I can show Your love to. Protect me, guide me, give me the wisdom and tact to know when and where. Speak to me and through me. Share Your heart with me, in the name of Jesus Christ I pray.

    Note: Happy Sunday, if you are in need of prayer, we are here for you! Just click on the Prayer link on the site menu and send in your request. We and the prayer team will be honored to lift up your needs! Thanks so much to all of you, for your daily encouragement, support, encouragement, and just being here to read!

    > You can subscribe to our daily devotional here <



Tip: You must be logged into the website to leave comments.

 

Social Sharing

12 comments
  • 1
Mari Kaufmann
Mari Kaufmann

Amen

May 28, 2017
  • 1
Twila Stierwalt
Twila Stierwalt

God wants us to show love to the sinner, He wants to speak through us. I pray that those who don't know Christ, will see Jesus through my life and my love for the lost.

May 28, 2017
  • 1
Joseph Adams, Jr.
Joseph Adams, Jr.

Amen

May 28, 2017
  • 1
Carol Pady
Carol Pady

Amen we should always remember how fallen we were when we see others laden with sin. Our hearts should be full of compassion for the lost and the prodigals. We should love them as Jesus loved us.

May 28, 2017
  • 1
Kay Collinsworth
Kay Collinsworth

Amen!

May 28, 2017
  • 1
Kathy Banfield
Kathy Banfield

AMEN! A very meaningful message and it really made me think!

May 28, 2017
  • 1
Schalk  de Beer
Schalk de Beer

Amen. 

May 28, 2017
  • 1
Janet Marsh-Lord
Janet Marsh-Lord

Thank you Pastor Dion for another great devotional. I pray I can show love to those who are in my path and need You. Amen.

May 28, 2017
  • 1
Rachael Burke
Rachael Burke

Amen

May 29, 2017
  • 1
Ticardo Williams
Ticardo Williams

Praise God!  Thanks Pastor Todd!  Heavenly Father, please help me see those in my path that I can show Your love to. Protect me, guide me, give me the wisdom and tact to know when and where. Speak to me and through me. Share Your heart with me, in the Name of Jesus Christ I pray.  Amen.

May 29, 2017
  • 1
Loriann Riley
Loriann Riley

Amen

May 29, 2017
  • 1
Wesley Paulus
Wesley Paulus

Amen! Pastors prayer, Heavenly Father, please help me see those in my path that I can show your love to. Protect Me, Guide Me, give me the wisdom and tact to know when and where. Speak to me and through me. Share your heart with me, in the name of Jesus Christ I pray Amen!!

May 29, 2017