Day 60 "Signs and wonders are often soon forgotten, yet truth never fails."

Day 60

Matthew 7:28-29 And so it was, when Jesus had ended these sayings, that the people were astonished at His teaching, for He taught them as one having authority, and not as the scribes.

The word authority here has the following meaning (as taken from Logos Bible Software): "the source from which the citation or belief is drawn from." In other words, Jesus spoke to the people as the source of the truth, or as John 1:1 says, "In the beginning was the Word, and the word was with God, and the Word was God." Many years ago, a pastor friend of mine was asked what it was that our Church believed about the Bible regarding its inspiration and translation. I very much enjoyed and immediately adopted his response, "God said it, I believe it, and that's all I really need." You see, no matter how hard we as a society attempt to dilute or nullify the Word of God, the truths of the Word remain strong: the anchors upon which our society and beliefs are built. So-called experts have attempted in every way to nullify the true reason for Jesus’ life; they have made him everything from a political rebel to just another charismatic man with great knowledge, yet no matter how hard they try, they cannot remove His authority.

I remember as a child living under the golden rule of our home, "children are to be seen and not heard." My Dad was the supreme authority in my home, and everyone knew it. We dare not question him (even jokingly): we simply acknowledged it and lived our lives accordingly, for the consequences of disobedience far outweighed the temporary joy. This authority controlled every aspect of our lives: what we ate, what we did in our free time, the classes we took, instruments we played, and yes, even our hobbies were selected for us. Needless to say, when we became old enough and Mom and Dad finally divorced, my sister, Mother, and I all rebelled against any form of authority, for once in our lives, we were free! However, our joy became short-lived, because, after all, we knew the truth and there was no denying it. While the type of control we had experienced in our lives was over the top, in that time we had all come to know Jesus. Jesus has a way of messing with you, exposing you to the truth, revealing the hidden things. He causes you to question everything and test your beliefs with the truth of the Word. As we finish chapter seven, I think we can all agree upon one thing: "Jesus is the supreme authority," the one upon whom we build our entire beliefs. He is our cornerstone.

As I see the return of Jesus growing closer every day, I am reminded of what Jesus said in Matthew 24:24 ‘even the elect will be deceived;’ people will be deceived by the pursuit of signs and wonders, they will be deceived by the charisma of men, and they will be led away by earthly and fleshly desires, but they will never be deceived by the Word! Be wary of anything or anyone who dilutes in any way the power of the Word, the message of Jesus, or places more emphasis upon miracles or people. After all, there is only one authority in your life, isn't there? Remember, the manifestation of the power of God is not to be avoided, but rather the pursuit of it over the pursuit of Christ and His truths.

Daily Prayer: Father, protect us from deception I pray. Keep us, Lord, close to you, hearing the truth and avoiding the things that draw us away. In Jesus’ name I pray, Amen.

"Signs and wonders are often soon forgotten, yet truth never fails."

Pastor Gene Burroughs