We Must Hang On His Word!

Every day he was teaching at the temple. But the chief priests, the teachers of the law and the leaders among the people were trying to kill him. Yet they could not find any way to do it, because all the people hung on his words.
Luke 19:47-48

A few thoughts:

1. Jesus was always about his Father's business, it wasn't a Sunday morning and Wednesday night deal! And it wasn't just something he did either, it was who he was! He poured out his life in service for the Father - ought not we do the same? Ought not we pour out our lives in the service of the One who loved us to death, even death on a cross? Can we say as Him, "My Father is always at his work to this very day, and I, too, am working."

2. His words broke the proud of heart, and bound the broken hearted. Brought sinners to repentance and condemned the self righteous! His words were full of authority, truth and life. Wisdom poured forth in his speech. The people hung on his every word - ought not we do the same? One greater than Solomon has come, who's words are full of grace and truth, yet do we hear him? Do we heed him? Do not merely listen to the Word and so deceive yourselves, do what it says... Listen to what He says so that it would never be said about you - "Why do you call me Lord, Lord and do not do what I say?"

3. The truth will anger the proud hearted, self righteous individual. Anyone who thinks he is something, when he is nothing, will hate those who point that out to him! They hate the truth because it contradicts what they do, say and think, and like an axe to the root it cuts them down. The Pharisees prided themselves in their ability to see, but Christ showed them they were blind. They prided themselves in their keeping of the law, but Christ showed them that not only did they break the law, but they neglected the weightier matters - love, justice, mercy. They hated Christ because He was full of truth and life, and they were hypocrites, full of darkness and death! Ought not we speak the truth as Christ? Yes! God has commanded us to speak the truth! Whatever light you have received from Him, whatever revelation of the truth, let it shine from a stand so that those around may see His goodness, and turn and seek His face!

4. While we are hanging onto the Words of Christ the enemy has a difficult time finding a way to shipwreck our faith. His goal is to destroy Christ (if that were possible!) and cause as many as could be deceived into crucifying for themselves the Son of God! He will do all he can to tempt them away from the Word - and those he cannot draw away from it's hearing, he will blind them to its understanding!

We must lash ourselves to the Word of God! Meditate on it day and night! Get it deep down into our hearts, think much upon it and never let it depart from our lips!

The man who spends his time in the water of God's Word will be like a tree planted by streams of water which yields its fruit in season and who's leaf does not wither. When the hot noon day sun of tribulation beats down upon his back he will not wither and fall, on the contrary, he will experience great growth and bring forth much fruit to the Father's glory!

5. In order for the deceiver, the antichrist, to appear and deceive many, the many must lose sight of the true Christ! There are many in this day and age who are not hanging on the Words of Christ! They know not his voice, they know not the Truth! No one who knows the genuine article will trade it for a cheap imitation! No one who knows the true Shepherd will follow the voice of a stranger - his speech will sound strange and foreign to them. His philosophies vain and shallow! He will be as one from the world and speak to them from the viewpoint of the world and the world will listen to him, but it will strike a discord with the living Word that lives inside every true believer. His words are Truth and they are life! We must hang onto the Words of Christ like a man in a swollen river hangs onto the rope of his rescuers!