Skip to main content

It is Time to Get Up!

   

               Patterns in scripture are important. Here is one that I came across in Matthew 9.

                The chapter begins with Jesus healing a paralyzed man.  During this event, the phrase “get up” is used twice (verses 5 and 6) and the story ends by stating, “The man got up and went home” (verse 7).

                Next, Jesus sees Matthew the tax collector and says, “Follow me”.  We are told that “Matthew got up and followed him” (verse 9). 

                Later, a man comes to Jesus because his little girl is sick.  Immediately, “Jesus got up and went with him” (verse 19).  By the time Jesus arrived at the man’s house, the little girl was dead, but Jesus went in, took the girl by the hand and “she got up” (verse 25).

                I do not think that it is a coincidence that the phrase “get up” or “got up” is six times in twenty-five verses.  I believe this pattern is there to remind us that faith is not just about what you believe or think, it is about what you do.  Faith is an action. 

                The chapter concludes with Jesus saying, “The harvest is plentiful, but the workers are few. Ask the Lord of the harvest, therefore, to send out workers into his harvest field” (verse 38).  In other words, the problem is not the field.  The field is ready.  The problem is the lack of harvesters.  Jesus’ point is that someone needs to get up and go.  The next chapter starts with Jesus sending his disciples out to share the good news (Matthew 10:1-42).

                It is easy to feel like we have done something because we have talked about it, but that is only half of the story.  We must go!  We must live and share the good news.  We must get up!

                 “Go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you” (Matthew 28:19).

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

The Art of Noticing.... Seeing what we need to see and what we miss when we don't

 What we focus on in life matters. Here are some scriptural reminders that will help us see correctly.  https://youtu.be/Rn76tV0ZH8s    
Post a Comment
Read more

New Article: A Path Worth Following

  Jehoram was a terrible king.  He reigned in Judah around the year 850 B.C. and he did not care about God or his people.  His first act as king was to assassinate his six brothers so that no one could challenge his authority.  He was brutal and selfish.   Therefore, when the Bible sums up his life, it says, “Jehoram… passed away, to no one’s regret, and was buried in the City of David” (2 Chronicles 21:20).  Did you catch that?  “To no one’s regret!”  What a terrible phrase for your tombstone. On the other hand, consider a lady named Tabitha.  She lived in the city of Joppa in the first century A.D. and we are told, “… she was always doing good and helping the poor” (Acts 9:36).  She became sick and died.  This caused the community so much grief that they called Peter, who was in the nearby town of Lydda, to come and help them.  When Peter arrived, a crowd gathered, bringing all the robes and other clothing that ...
Post a Comment
Read more

Consider This: Press The Button!

  Consider This:  Press the Button! My favourite TV game show is Jeopardy.  I used to like it even more when my kids were younger, because I could easily beat them and look smart.  These days, after they have grown up and gone to university, it is much more difficult.  However, Jeopardy is still the only game show I will watch. In a book I read, a contestant who did very well on the show shared the secret to his success.  He said (and I am paraphrasing here), “You must press the button before you know the answer.  Everyone on Jeopardy is smart. Everyone knows the answer. The key to winning is to act.  You must jump in and press the button, assuming that your brain will catch up and supply the answer.  If you wait until you are sure, you will be too late!” Press the button! Too often, we hesitate, not because we do not know what to do, but because we do not want to do it.  Sometimes, we fail to act because we are not sure how the situatio...
Post a Comment
Read more