Author: dvcreel

David & Vicki Creel serving with FEBC USA & Asia

Jesus showed respect and honor to John the Baptist!

 Jesus is humble. Day 9_Mat3.21 in PDF

Reading: Matthew 3:1- 17 (NKJV)

v.15 “Permit it to be so now, for thus it is fitting for us to fulfill all righteousness.”

The life of baby Jesus who was born in the manger was protected as His earthly parents, Joseph and Mary, obeyed the leading of God through the angel. (Matthew 2:13-23) From Bethlehem to Egypt and then back to Israel, Joseph and Mary brought up the baby Jesus. And Jesus grew up in Nazareth in the region of Galilee.  V.23 “And he came and dwelt in a city called Nazareth, that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the prophets, “He was called a Nazarene”.

As Jesus grew up as a young man, his cousin John also grew up as a man of God.

Matthew 3:1 “In those days, John the Baptist came preaching in the wilderness of Judea, and saying, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand!”.

John lived a pure life, fully dedicated to the Lord as his parents were instructed by God. “Now John himself was clothed in camel’s hair, with a leather belt around his waist, and his food was locusts and wild honey.”

John may have looked different in physical appearance compared to the people of his generation and culture, yet many respected his message. Many people from Jerusalem, Judea, and all the region around the Jordan went out to him and were baptized by him. (v.5)

Jesus, too, was aware of the ministry of John and respected him for his message.  “Then Jesus came from Galilee to John at the Jordan to be baptized by him.” V.13

John was surprised to see Jesus coming to him. John’s message was primarily to call sinners to repent and return to God. So, John tried to prevent Jesus and said,

“I need to be baptized by You, and are You coming to me?”

But Jesus answered, “Permit it to be so now, for thus it is fitting for us to fulfill all righteousness”.  Then he allowed Him. When He had been baptized, Jesus came up immediately from the water, and behold, the heavens were opened to Him, and He saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and alighting upon Him.  And suddenly a voice came from heaven, saying, ‘This is My beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased.’” (v.15-17)

Jesus showed humility and respect for John by allowing John to baptize Him. Even though Jesus was fully God, and did not need to repent of sins because He was sinless, He still submitted Himself to the baptism of John to fulfill all righteousness. Jesus was still fully human when He was on earth. Thus, He wanted to set an example for those who make a commitment to turn away from sin and follow God fully.

Jesus also honored the ministry of John by allowing Himself to be baptized by John, showing submission and humility. Thus, the Heavenly Father affirmed His love and pleasure for His Son Jesus.

“This is My beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased!”

Reflection:

Jesus my Lord showed humility and submission by allowing John to baptize Him. As His follower, I too would like to be humble and submit to the servants of God.

Prayer:

Dear Lord Jesus, thank You for your humility and respect for the ministry of John. Help me also to be humble and show respect to the ministry of Your servants.

Your Thoughts:

Your Prayer:

Obedience of Joseph & Mary protected the life of Baby Jesus.

Day 8

Reading: Matthew 2:19-23 (NKJV)

v.21 Then he arose, took the young Child and His mother, and came into the land of Israel

Jesus was born in in a manger in Bethlehem. The wise men from the East was guided by the Lord to see the Baby Jesus. As the wise men carefully listened to the leading of the Lord God, they left the country through another road. God knew the wicked plans of King Herod.

v.16 Then Herod, when he saw that he was deceived by the wise men was exceedingly angry; and he sent forth, and put to death all the male children who were in Bethlehem, and all its districts, from two years old and under…

However, the Lord guided Joseph and Mary already before the horrible killings of children happened.  An angel of the Lord spoke to Joseph in his dream again.

v.13 “Arise, take young child and His mother, flee to Egypt…”

And Joseph carefully obeyed the leading of the Lord through the words of the angel in his dream. Joseph did not doubt, and he did not dilly dally. Joseph realized that his obedience was a matter of life and death for his family.

v.14 when he arose, he took the young child and His mother by night and departed for Egypt.

Joseph, Mary and their child Jesus stayed in Egypt until the Lord guided them again through an angel. The angel spoke to Joseph that Herod was dead, and he instructed Joseph to take his wife and child back to Israel.

v.21 Then he arose and took the young Child and His mother, and came to the land of Israel.

The Lord guided Joseph and Mary throughout, since Mary’s delivery of the baby, until the baby grew up. Since Mary’s obedience to God’s call and will, God protected her, kept and guided her, including her husband and baby. Joseph also was obedient to the leading of the Lord, thus the family was protected.

Reflection:

We could trust a faithful and True God, as we obey Him. He will guide and protect us.

Prayer: Dear Lord help me and my family be sensitive to Your leading and guidance. Holy Spirit please help us to carefully obey Your leading in our lives .

Your Thoughts:

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Your Prayer:

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More photos from Mongolia trip.

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The city of Ulaanbaatar- the capital city of Mongolia, with 1.5M people.
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FEBC Mongolia operates Wind FM 104.5 in Ulaanbaatar.
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Baggnur city- one of the 10 stations that FEBC operates in the country.
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David working with the local technician in one of the transmitter’s site.
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Breakfast after a staff devotion in which David shared words of encouragement.
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A Ger in the city. A ger is the traditional dwelling tent of nomads and herders in Mongolia.
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The road trip to Baggnur with lots of herds of animals.
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Giant statue and museum in memory of Mongolia’s greatest leader Genghis Khan.

 

 

 

Day 7 – Jesus and the wise men!

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Day 7

Reading Matthew 2: 7-18

v.12 Then, being divinely warned in a dream that they should not return to Herod, they departed for their own country another way.

In Matthew chapter 2, continues with the account of the events during the birth of Baby Jesus.

 Then Herod, when he had secretly called the [b]wise men, determined from them what time the star appeared. 8 And he sent them to Bethlehem and said, “Go and search carefully for the young Child, and when you have found Him, bring back word to me, that I may come and worship Him also.” V.7-8

At that time Israel was occupied by Rome and as mentioned in the previous passage, King Herod was the appointed governor or ruler in Israel by the Roman government. Herod had heard about the prophecy of the coming Messiah or Deliverer of Israel. And Herod was insecure and afraid to lose his power and authority.  When he heard about the wise men who came from the East, he made plans to meet with them. Herod wanted to know more details about the coming of the Messiah.  He made plans to stop the coming of a new power. He felt threatened so he told the wise men,

“When you have found Him, bring back word to me, that I may come and worship Him also”.

The wise men told Herod about the words of prophecies about the coming of the Messiah, the One who was to Rule Israel as their King forever. Herod did not want that. So, he misled or deceived the wise men and told them, that he want to worship Him too.

The wise men continued their journey following the star they had seen in the East. They rejoiced when they found Baby Jesus, His earthly parents, Mary and Joseph. They worshiped the baby Jesus as they brought their gifts of gold, frankincense and myrrh. V.9-12 They rejoiced gladly that their eyes had seen the fulfillment of the word of the Lord spoken by the old prophets.

v.12 Then, being divinely warned in a dream that they should not return to Herod, they departed for their own country another way.

The Lord God guided the three wise men, because they were truly seeking the Messiah. For many years, the wise men from the East have heard of the coming of Messiah, the Deliverer of the Earth. They had studied the ancient Scriptures and the words of God through the prophets, like Isaiah, Jeremiah, and others. The wise men believed in their hearts for the fulfillment of those Words spoken and written by the men and prophets of God. The wise men carefully watched for the signs in the heaven, such as the moon and the stars.  I guess God knew their hearts, so the Lord guided them throughout their journey and waiting.

Only God can know the hearts of men. King Herod spoke nice words to the wise men about finding Jesus. King Herod told the wise men he wanted to worship Jesus too. And it seemed the wise men took Herod’s words. The wise men did not know the evil plan of Herod. But God knew, so God guided the wise men and spoke to them in their dreams.

Reflection: As we trust our Lord Jesus, God will guide us as we seek Him with all our hearts.

Prayer: Thank you Lord for Your Words and the assurance that You are always guiding me  and taking care of me as I seek You in my life with all my heart.

Your Thoughts:

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Your Prayer:

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Day7 – Matthew 2:7-18 Study guide in PDF.

A road trip, east of UB.

Our second week in UB was another eventful week (November 5-21, 2018).

Road trip to visit stations in two cities, east of UB.

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We enjoyed the landscape, countryside, hills and herds on the road. There are about 3 million people in Mongolia and 60 million plus animals!

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An added bonus to see the Genghis Khan museum on the way. (G.Khan was the great emperor of Mongolia in the 12th century).

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Visiting a station.

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Another station.

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David and Tomroo fixing a transmitter.

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Third Day- Ulan Batar

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Our first day to go out on the street after arriving the city, three days ago. We arrived Wednesday night, (Nov 7th, 2018) after a very long trip from Alabama, Atlanta, Seoul and Mongolia. I didn’t keep the number of hours, it was very long from Monday night flight to Wednesday night. Neither David nor I have been in this country before. Both our first time. We were relieved to meet by our FEBC Mongolia staff at the airport. Tomroo (photo in the red shirt), is the technician that David has been working with the past few months. Now they finally met face to face.

Day 2- Thursday, we were brought to the radio station, Wind FM 104.5 and met the staff. We hit the ground running and started our work right away. David met with the engineering team, and I met with the accounting team.

Day 3 -Friday- David shared his faith journey or testimony during the staff chapel.   We had a very good time of worship and fellowship. We felt the move of the Holy Spirit. I felt the Lord was saying, the Christians in Mongolia has a “pure devotion”.  We continued to work with the staff in the afternoon. And I also met with 5 workers  who are volunteering to do Children’s outreach for the staff. We had a good planning time.

We are thankful to the Lord that the weather is okay, it’s in the 20’s and 30s F, but bearable because it is sunny and not windy. Besides, when we are inside buildings it is usually very warm. Thankful for those who are praying for us. Grateful to the Lord for sustaining us.

Day 6 – Matthew 2:1-6

Day 6

Reading: Matthew 2: 1 – 6

v.6 “But you Bethlehem, in the land of Judah, are not the least among the rulers of Judah; For out of you shall come a Ruler who will shepherd my people Israel”.

Matthew Chapter 2 shares the account of the birth of Jesus in the town of Bethlehem during the days of Herod the king. At that time there were wise men from the East who came to Jerusalem. Those wise men were known in Bible history as men who had heard of the coming of the Messiah in Israel. They may have studied the Scriptures and the wise sayings of the prophets in the Old Testament. They knew the signs to look for and seemed to be aware of the times and the seasons regarding the Messiah that was to come. So, they traveled from afar to Jerusalem to look for the Baby who was born to be the “King of the Jews”.

v.2 “Where is HE who was been born King of the Jews? For we have seen His star in the East and have come to worship Him”.

When King Herod and the people of Israel saw the coming of the wise men who were looking for the Baby Jesus, they were troubled. King Herod called all the chief priests and inquired of them where the Christ was to be born. Since the priests and the scribes knew well their history and the Scriptures, they told king Herod, “in Bethlehem of Judea, for thus it is written by the prophet;

v.6 “But you Bethlehem, in the land of Judah; Are not the least among the rulers of Judah, For out of you shall come a Ruler who will shepherd my people Israel.”

The quote in Matthew 2:6 was written by Micah the prophet. In Micah 5:2 it says:

“But you, Bethlehem Ephrathah, though you are little among the thousands of Judah, Yet, out of you shall come forth to Me the One to be Ruler in Israel, whose goings forth are from of old, from everlasting”.

Reflection:

God chose Bethlehem as the birthplace of Jesus Christ, the true King of Kings. I have not been in Israel nor Bethlehem, but according to the book of Micah, it was a small place compared to the other places in Judah and Israel. God chose the small village of Bethlehem to be the birthplace of the King of Kings to express the humility, humbleness, and meekness of Jesus. God did not choose the mighty and great, but the least, so He could show His power.

Prayer: Dear Lord Jesus, we praise You for your humbleness and meekness when You came here to earth. You chose the small things and the humble because You love humble hearts. Help me to always be humble before You and before others too.

 

Your Thoughts:

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Your Prayers:

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