Today He is “with me”. Tomorrow I will be “with Him”.

Sunday  1-24-16 (Home in Modesto, California)     

Scripture reading for today:    Exodus 9 - 11    Luke 24

S=Scripture  O=Observation  A=Application  P=Prayer  SOAP for the soul.

S.  Luke 24:44-45  Then He said to them, "These are the words which I spoke to you while I was still with you, that all things must be fulfilled which were written in the Law of Moses and the Prophets and the Psalms concerning Me."  And He opened their understanding, that they might comprehend the Scriptures.  NKJV

O.  For over three years the disciples had walked with Jesus.  They had been astounded by His miracles of healing, multiplying food and calming the storm.  But at His death the disciples felt abandoned, forsaken, lost and without hope.  Now He appears to them after His resurrection and refers back to His teaching “while I was still with you” clarifying to them that they are entering into a new era, a new beginning.  Now He promises: “And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age." (Matt 28:20 NIV) He will not only be with them as a group or where two or three were gathered together, (Matt 18:20 NIV), but soon these same disciples would separate into teams to carry the Gospel of Jesus to different distant places.  From now on He would be simultaneously “with” each one. 

A.  He came to be Emmanuel, “God with us.”  Is He with me?  Do I sense His divine presence?  Oh yes I do!  What could I do without Him?  When traveling alone across endless deserts, I know that I am not alone.  When in difficult circumstances, He is here “with me.”  When I am weary, He is “with me.”  When others abandon me, He is “with me.”  In the good times He rejoices “with me” and in the bad times He weeps “with me”. 

P.  Lord Jesus, I can feel Your presence here at this very moment.  What a privilege to entertain the presence of my Master, my King!  Sometimes I do not “feel” Your presence, yet I cling to Your promise.  I cannot see You, I cannot always feel You, but I know that You are “with me” until life’s journey comes to an end because You promised.  And then, when I reach the end of my journey... suddenly... I will be “with You” forever.  Amen.

Ralph