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Luke 11 27-28 Hearing God's word and keeping it Keeping God's word 1
📖 Luke 11:27-28
*Values of life that please God* _Luke 11:27-28_
Blessed are those that hear God’s word and keep it. This is what Jesus said in _Luke 11:28._ As God’s people, the one focus that we need to persist after is to appropriate God’s word into our lives. By the enablement of His Holy Spirit, we need to put aside every other distraction and seek to bring God’s word into application into our lives.
People were praising Jesus and one, from the crowd was even calling Mary, blessed for giving birth to Jesus _Luke 11:27._ What are the lessons that we can learn from Mary’s life? As we began by saying, it is not only good enough to know the lessons of life but to bring those lessons into application.
The first lesson that we can learn from the life of Mary, is from the greetings given by the angel to her. _And having come in, the angel said to her, "Rejoice, highly favoured one, the Lord is with you; blessed are you among women!" Luke 1:28._ “…The Lord is with you… Mary” is what the angel said to her.
The Lord was with Mary because Mary chose to be with the Lord. She chose to be in the protection, care and keeping of the Lord. She made the Lord her refuge and her strength. This was and is the vital first value that we need to internalise into our lives. _Have we chosen the Lord?_
We may immediately answer, “yes” to that question but is God the one, whom we have truly chosen or do we come to God as a means to attain some other end, which in our mind is our safety, security, refuge, comfort and our strength? God knows us completely. We cannot hide our intentions and motives and try to prove our spirituality before God by engaging in spiritual activities. God is not impressed with our outward show of spirituality _I Samuel 16:7/ Ezekiel 33:31/Isaiah 29:13._ God knows what we have chosen, in life.
God sees that we have committed two evils. We have forsaken God, which is the first evil and in His place have chosen alternatives that can never be our refuge and our strength, which is the second evil _Jeremiah 2:13. Will we, the church, repent before God?_ Repentance will require that we completely return to God and even be willing to do those things that are needed to be done as a fruit of our repentance, as Zacchaeus did _Luke 19:8._ The fruit of repentance is the proof of repentance.
_Psalm 20:7 Some trust in chariots, and some in horses; But we will remember the name of the LORD our God. What are our chariots and horses that we are trusting on?_
_Isaiah 31:1 Woe to those who go down to Egypt for help, And rely on horses, Who trust in chariots because they are many, And in horsemen because they are very strong, But who do not look to the Holy One of Israel, Nor seek the LORD! Have we fled to our ‘Egypt’ thinking that Egypt will take care of us and provide us our safety, security, comfort and well being?_
_John 6:27 Do not labor for the food which perishes, but for the food which endures to everlasting life, which the Son of Man will give you, because God the Father has set His seal on Him." Are we busy labouring for the food that perishes?_ Many in the church have no proper understanding for the purpose of work. We do not work for our bread and butter but we work because we are executive stewards of God over all of creation. He knows and He meets our needs _Matthew 6:31-33._
*Thought to ponder*
...Under His wings you shall take refuge... Psalm 91:4
2. The humility of Mary - Luk 1:29 But when she saw him, she was troubled at his saying, and considered what manner of greeting this was - She was troubled at this saying - She was truly a humble person for she was never promoting herself, even in her heart - Isa 57:15 For thus says the High and Lofty One Who inhabits eternity, whose name is Holy: "I dwell in the high and holy place, With him who has a contrite and humble spirit, To revive the spirit of the humble, And to revive the heart of the contrite ones.