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Following in the footsteps of the Acts of the
Apostles, written by St. Luke, Shepherd's Cross Christian Helps Ministry
exists by the grace of God to further the first century Apostolic tradition
serving in the Great Commission. |
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Patience
One may ask the question why they have wanderlust when their married partner is away. The answer may be as simple as this. They may have a lack of patience spirited by selfishness. Members of the body of Christ are betrothed to their bridegroom, the Lord Jesus. “For I am jealous for you with godly jealousy, because I promised you in marriage to one husband, to present you as a pure virgin to Christ But I am afraid that just as the serpent deceived Eve by his treachery, your minds may be led astray from a sincere and pure devotion to Christ.” 2 Corinthians 11:2-3 Imagine, O Lord Jesus, anticipating Your impending death, You share comforting words of assurance to Your disciples. “Let not your heart be troubled” … “Do not let your hearts be distressed. You believe in God; believe also in me. There are many dwelling places in my Father’s house. Otherwise, I would have told you, because I am going away to make ready a place for you. And if I go and make ready a place for you, I will come again and take you to be with me, so that where I am you may be too.” St. John 14:1-3 Let not your heart be troubled Imagine, You, Lord Jesus, the Bright and Morning Star, was about to follow in the footsteps of Your Prophet Daniel who was placed within a den of Lions. You are about to face Roman soldiers destined to savagely mar Your visage by all manner of physical torture. O Lamb of God, You opened not your mouth. You sweat Divine blood in the garden of Gethsemane. You offered Your back to those who attacked, “Your jaws to those who tore out Your beard; You did not hide Your face.” Isaiah 50:6 and later You stretched out Your loving arms yet You found no embrace. The last affectionate gesture You experienced was a kiss, a kiss of betrayal and here with arms outstretched You found no physical solace, You found No shoulder to rest Your head upon, only a horizontal wood beam. You have only allowed two people to experience Paradise. Likewise, you have only showed an elect few gleanings of your sufferings. O that through Thy grace, I may be granted to see through spiritual eyes Thy tender mercy, to glimpse within times past the passion of Thy Divine Son, Holy Father, Thy only begotten Son of God, The truly faithful One, obedient to death and yet living ever to make intercession for us His beloved, His betrothed bride, the Body of His Divine Majesty, Israel’s Messiah, The Holy One of Israel, David’s Son. The patience to endure all for the elect’s sake, Isaiah 53:10-11, St. John 10:15, “For this is the way 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. “For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world should be saved through him. The one who believes in him is not condemned. The one who does not believe has been condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the one and only Son of God.” St. John 3:16-18 Lord Jesus, three days later You experienced resurrection and forty days later the accession. “After he had said this, while they were watching, he was lifted up and a cloud hid him from their sight. As they were still staring into the sky while he was going, suddenly two men in white clothing stood near them and said, “Men of Galilee, why do you stand here looking up into the sky? This same Jesus who has been taken up from you into heaven will come back in the same way you saw him go into heaven.” Acts of the Apostles 1:9-11 Now the bridegroom’s work begins to prepare a place for his betrothed. Now the betrothed’s work begins preparing for her bridegroom. God sanctifies the Body of Christ “Now may the God of peace himself make you completely holy and may your spirit and soul and body be kept entirely blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. He who calls you is trustworthy, and he will in fact do this.” 2Thessalonians 5:23-24 Bridegroom’s Responsibility God has provided for us His lesson plan as it were, the Holy Bible. “Every scripture is inspired by God and useful for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness, that the person dedicated to God may be capable and equipped for every good work.” 2 Timothy 3:16-17 Betroths Responsibility St Augustine writes regarding the event that lead to his ultimate Christian conversion in Confessions Book VIII 29, he heard in the voice of a young child saying, “pick up and read, prick up and read,” The Holy One of Israel’s betrothed, having been presented God’s word is exhorted in the words of St Paul to “Study to show thyself approved unto God, a workman that needs not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth.” 2 Timothy 2:15 Bridegrooms Responsibility “I can pray this because his divine power has bestowed on us everything necessary for life and godliness through the rich knowledge of the one who called us by his own glory and excellence. Through these things he has bestowed on us his precious and most magnificent promises, so that by means of what was promised you may become partakers of the divine nature, after escaping the worldly corruption that is produced by evil desire.” 2 Peter 1:3-4 The Betrothed Responsibility Continuing, “For this very reason, make every effort to add to your faith excellence, to excellence, knowledge; to knowledge, self-control; to self-control, perseverance; to perseverance, godliness; to godliness, brotherly affection; to brotherly affection, unselfish love.” 2 Peter 1:5-7 St. Paul’s Prayer “For this reason I kneel before the Father, from whom every family in heaven and on the earth is named. I pray that according to the wealth of His glory he may grant you to be strengthened with power through His Spirit in the inner person, that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith, so that, because you have been rooted and grounded in love, you may be able to comprehend with all the saints what is the breadth and length and height and depth, and thus to know the love of Christ that surpasses knowledge, so that you may be filled up to all the fullness of God. Now to Him, who by the power that is working within us is able to do far beyond all that we ask or think, to him be the glory in the church and in Christ Jesus to all generations, forever and ever. Amen.” Ephesians 3:14-21 Accolades To God The Blessed Trinity “Now to the one who is able to keep you from falling, and to cause you to stand, rejoicing, without blemish before his glorious presence, to the only God our Savior through Jesus Christ our Lord, be glory, majesty, power, and authority, before all time, and now, and for all eternity. Amen.” St. Jude 1:24-25 “Now may the God of peace who by the blood of the eternal covenant brought back from the dead the great shepherd of the sheep, our Lord Jesus Christ, equip you with every good thing to do his will, working in us what is pleasing before him through Jesus Christ, to whom be glory forever. Amen.” Hebrews 13:20-21 |
