Mark 10:13-16   And they were bringing children to him that he might touch them, and the disciples rebuked them.  But when Jesus saw it, he was indignant and said to them, “Let the children come to me; do not hinder them, for to such belongs the kingdom of God.  Truly, I say to you, whoever does not receive the kingdom of God like a child shall not enter it.”  And he took them in his arms and blessed them, laying his hands on them.

The kingdom of God belongs to those who come to it as little children.  Those who are helpless, poor, weak, in need of a loving Father to pick them up and care for them.  Little children like you and me, who come knowing who we are, and that we deserve nothing.  God loves to be the Father to the fatherless, and the Helper to the helpless.

So come to the Father today, crawl up onto His lap, and look into His eyes.  See His love for you.  Then tell Him that you love Him, too.  That is the way to true peace.

Luke 19:41-44   And when he drew near and saw the city, he wept over it, saying, “Would that you, even you, had known on this day the things that make for peace! But now they are hidden from your eyes.  For the days will come upon you, when your enemies will set up a barricade around you and surround you and hem you in on every side and tear you down to the ground, you and your children within you. And they will not leave one stone upon another in you, because you did not know the time of your visitation."

The only crown Jesus was willing to wear during His life on earth was a crown of thorns.  As the people yelled and cheered, as they waved palm branches and laid down their coats, Jesus wept for them.  What an amazing contrast!  They were calling Him the Son of David, meaning He would be the next king.  They shouted, “Hosanna!  Save us, we pray!”  They named Him as the Messiah when they said, “Blessed is He who comes in the name of the Lord!”  But Jesus wept.

When Jesus wept over Jerusalem that Palm Sunday, it wasn’t because He was going to die.  He knew that He would die and rise again.  In fact, He foretold His own death and resurrection 3 times.  Jesus wept for people who were hurting and didn’t even know it.  He wept for those who would never know Him.  He mourned people who would die in their sins.

When is the last time you and I cried for someone because they refused to know Jesus?  Does it mean anything that people are dying without hope, to spend eternity in hell?  Will you tell them the Good News that Jesus died for them, and that He lives today so that we can know Him and live with Him for eternity?

On what should have been the greatest day of His life, coming into Jerusalem, fulfilling Old Testament prophecies, proclaiming Himself to be King, to be the Messiah, to be God Himself, with the crowd shouting and praising Him, Jesus stopped.  And He cried for them.  Because they would never really know Him.

Does it matter to you that someone you know won’t be in heaven?  What better time than this week to share the Good News that Jesus came to save them.  The crowd was shouting “Hosanna”, “save us”.  Jesus wept, knowing that they were unwilling to be truly saved.

What about that person you are thinking of?  Have you told them about Jesus?  This week, pray for them.  If tears come, let them come.  God loves that one.  He or she is worth every tear.

Then, this week, tell them about Jesus, how He loves them, how He came to save them.  Trust God to give you the words.  Then let Him do what He chooses to do.  He loves them even more than you do.  He gave His life for them just as He did for you.  That’s what they need to hear.   And they need to hear it from you.

John 6:35   Jesus said to them, “I am the bread of life; whoever comes to me shall not hunger, and whoever believes in me shall never thirst. 

When those following Jesus walked away because of the words of Jesus, He asked His disciples if they too wanted to walk away.  Peter had the perfect answer in verses 68-69:   Simon Peter answered him, “Lord, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life, and we have believed, and have come to know, that you are the Holy One of God.”

Where would we go?  Your words are the words of life.  You are the only One who gives us eternal life.  It is through your blood sacrifice that we are forgiven.  Peter didn't say all of that, but it was all in that statement of belief.

Do you believe in Jesus?  He is the source of life for all who believe.

Paul said in Philippians 3:7-8:   But whatever gain I had, I counted as loss for the sake of Christ. Indeed, I count everything as loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord. For his sake I have suffered the loss of all things and count them as rubbish, in order that I may gain Christ 

Jesus said in:  Luke 14:33 So therefore, any one of you who does not renounce all that he has cannot be my disciple.

What does Jesus mean to you?  Is He greater than your own hopes and dreams?  He is worthy of all our praise and worship.  Make Him the center of your life, the focus of all your hopes and desires.  He is worth it!

Romans 10:13-14  (NLT)  For “Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.”  But how can they call on him to save them unless they believe in him? And how can they believe in him if they have never heard about him? And how can they hear about him unless someone tells them?

The question is this:  Do I really want to see other people come to Christ?  Not to our church necessarily, but simply do we want them to know Jesus?  Are we willing to do what it takes, loving, praying and sharing the hope of Jesus even with those who irritate us?

Think about this.  Someone in your life took the time & the effort to love you into the kingdom.  Someone was generous with their time, energy & money.  Someone showed you love, maybe when you were unlovable,  & finally you said, I want what you have.

Will you be that one?  Will you show that kind of love to someone who needs Jesus?  It takes time, it takes effort, it is on-going.  Inviting someone to Christ takes a commitment on our part.  But how else will they be saved?

Will you be the someone who tells them?  Will you share with them the incredible, undeserved love that someone shared with you?  Will you share with them the unending love that Jesus gave, poured out on the cross for you?  Will you love them the way somebody loved you?
Maybe you will be the only one to share the love of Jesus with someone who needs Him.  How will they hear unless you tell them?

Mark 8:35-36   For whoever would save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake and the gospel's will save it.  For what does it profit a man to gain the whole world and forfeit his soul?

What are you living for?  Your own comfort and security on earth, or Christ's plan for your life on earth?  It your goal is you, you will lose.  But if your goal is living for Jesus, you will gain your life here and forever.  The choice is yours.  Will you lose your life in Jesus?  He is worth everything you can give!

“The harvest is plentiful, but the laborers are few; therefore pray earnestly to the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into his harvest.”  
 – Matt. 9:37b-38

Do you pray for workers to share Jesus?  Will you pray, and will you also be a worker in God's kingdom?  You just might be the answer to someone else's prayer.

1 Peter 2:4-5   As you come to him, a living stone rejected by men but in the sight of God chosen and precious, you yourselves like living stones are being built up as a spiritual house, to be a holy priesthood, to offer spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ. 

1 Peter 2:9-10   But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for his own possession, that you may proclaim the excellencies of him who called you out of darkness into his marvelous light.  Once you were not a people, but now you are God's people; once you had not received mercy, but now you have received mercy.

God has chosen to make us His very own holy people.  His desire is that we will be built up together in holiness.  It comes down to this question:  Will you and I choose to live and grow together as His holy children?  We can choose to be people who let sin determine who we are, or we can live in the holiness of God.

​Who will you be?

Revelation 21:22-25   And I saw no temple in the city, for its temple is the Lord God the Almighty and the Lamb.  And the city has no need of sun or moon to shine on it, for the glory of God gives it light, and its lamp is the Lamb.  By its light will the nations walk, and the kings of the earth will bring their glory into it, and its gates will never be shut by day—and there will be no night there.

If we live for Jesus, we will live in God's glory forever.  But we can also know His glory today.  Ask the Holy Spirit to fill you.  As the glory of God once filled the temple, He will fill you with Himself.  You will never be the same!

Matthew 16:16-18   He said to them, “But who do you say that I am?” 16 Simon Peter replied, “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.” 17 And Jesus answered him, “Blessed are you, Simon Bar-Jonah! For flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but my Father who is in heaven. 18 And I tell you, you are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church, and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it.”

Jesus said He would build His Church on the bedrock of His people.  He has never stopped building His Church.  But He needs His people to be involved in building with Him.  What is our place in building His Church with Him?
 
1 Peter 2:4-5   As you come to him, a living stone rejected by men but in the sight of God chosen and precious, 5 you yourselves like living stones are being built up as a spiritual house, to be a holy priesthood, to offer spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ. 
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We are His workers, and we are also the Church that Jesus is building.  And as we become more and more like Jesus, we work to build His Church with the joy that He gives us.