difference Archives – Heart of Grace Ministries

Luke 10:25-37

25 And, behold, a certain lawyer stood up, and tempted him, saying, Master, what shall I do to inherit eternal life?

26 He said unto him, What is written in the law? how readest thou?

27 And he answering said, Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy strength, and with all thy mind; and thy neighbour as thyself.

28 And he said unto him, Thou hast answered right: this do, and thou shalt live.

29 But he, willing to justify himself, said unto Jesus, And who is my neighbour?

30 And Jesus answering said, A certain man went down from Jerusalem to Jericho, and fell among thieves, which stripped him of his raiment, and wounded him, and departed, leaving him half dead.

31 And by chance there came down a certain priest that way: and when he saw him, he passed by on the other side.

32 And likewise a Levite, when he was at the place, came and looked on him, and passed by on the other side.

33 But a certain Samaritan, as he journeyed, came where he was: and when he saw him, he had compassion on him,

34 And went to him, and bound up his wounds, pouring in oil and wine, and set him on his own beast, and brought him to an inn, and took care of him.

35 And on the morrow when he departed, he took out two pence, and gave them to the host, and said unto him, Take care of him; and whatsoever thou spendest more, when I come again, I will repay thee.

36 Which now of these three, thinkest thou, was neighbour unto him that fell among the thieves?

37 And he said, He that shewed mercy on him. Then said Jesus unto him, Go, and do thou likewise.

We all are longing for change, for better, for the good in the world to come. But what will bring that change? Some say God and some say Jesus. Some say being born again and others say being filled more with the Holy Spirit. Some say praying more, studying more, attending church daily. Some would say to have more passion in worship and others would say the bible. Others say more teaching, more preaching, more singing, bigger churches, bigger budgets, more programs and more structure.

In this continual search and discovery for the meaning of our purpose there are a few in life that stumble into the revelation that God meant for us to hear. Some have their eyes opened to see what God wanted us to envision (even without our natural sight).

I have been searching in my own life to find where it all changed for me. I am only but beginning to open my eyes to understand what God wanted me to see and understand about my Heavenly purpose on earth. The turning point in my life was between my destruction and my brand new life; the point between having no hope and living by faith. This point was between me being a hopeless, busted up lifeless drug addict with no solution and now knowing that I can do all things through Christ.

The change that brought my life to new meaning was inspired by a love that was shown to me that I did not ask for, was not looking for nor knew could deliver me from the life I was in. The turning point of this parable is when we find what begins to make things better. This certain man had no neighbors before yet he found one when he could not look for himself.

Compassion is the catalyst for the good that can be done in someones life. Although we in our judgments, opinions and ideals can fall short of this Jesus reminds us by our very salvation that without compassion we could not be new creatures.

Without compassion the world would be lost. Without making the conscious decision to show compassion and make a difference the world will suffer.

Compassion defies logic, normal thinking and looks only at the need in front of it. I would not be standing here today unless someone had shown compassion on me.

While we all cannot be the catalyst in every situation around us we can easily identify the good that we could do by the blessings God has given us to use. It is easy for me to see that by being blessed to play music and sing that I should encourage others by giving of my own time and effort. I am standing here to day to give you encouragement to continue in the good that you can give for others. The sad truth of it all is that people are being overlooked, walked away from, ignored, bullied and made to feel worthless.

Jesus Christ came into our lives so that we would never feel that way again. And as we live our lives we must learn to be the catalyst for change. We are the compassion that this broken world needs. We are the arms to hold the hurting. We are the thoughts to inspire new hope and greatness in others. We are the love to lead people from suicide and despair. We are the patience to help people like the person I used to be continue to strive for the best with purpose. So as we conclude in this moment, be reminded that you are wonderfully created with the compassion that Christ showed to you so that you can be the catalyst for change in others!

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1 Thessalonians 4:13-18

[13] But I would not have you to be ignorant, brethren, concerning them which are asleep, that ye sorrow not, even as others which have no hope.
[14] For if we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so them also which sleep in Jesus will God bring with him.
[15] For this we say unto you by the word of the Lord, that we which are alive and remain unto the coming of the Lord shall not prevent them which are asleep.
[16] For the Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God: and the dead in Christ shall rise first:
[17] Then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air: and so shall we ever be with the Lord.
[18] Wherefore comfort one another with these words.

What makes you different? What separates you from others? What breaks the mold of the world? Some are going to go to Heaven when they die and some will not. Some will be ready for Christ’s return and some will not. To better know who you are that makes you unique in this world you have to realize the difference that lives inside of you. Jesus Christ has made the difference in all of our lives.

Philippians 1:21-23

[21] For to me to live is Christ, and to die is gain.
[22] But if I live in the flesh, this is the fruit of my labour: yet what I shall choose I wot not.
[23] For I am in a strait betwixt two, having a desire to depart, and to be with Christ; which is far better:

We recognize that there are two different perspectives between the flesh that wants to work in this world for gain and the spirit that desires to depart this world and to be with Jesus. So we know that if we know Jesus then we are going to have a better place to go and not have to stay in this world.

II Corinthians 5:8-10

[8] We are confident, I say, and willing rather to be absent from the body, and to be present with the Lord.
[9] Wherefore we labour, that, whether present or absent, we may be accepted of him.
[10] For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ; that every one may receive the things done in his body, according to that he hath done, whether it be good or bad.

We also know that when we go to appear before Christ that the things that were once our hindrances will no longer hold us. We will appear so that we may be accepted. So what makes you different?

“If we believe that Jesus died and rose again”

The key to this is faith. We must believe by faith. To believe is to trust.

Acts 16:31

[31] And they said, Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved, and thy house.

As we believe we are saved. We believe and are then made sure by our confidence of Heaven. When people do not believe they do not possess that hope of Heaven; lost forever. To grow in God and be a witness for others you must learn to see and recognize the difference that has been made in you by God.

difference

Compassion: The Catalyst for Change

The Difference