Perry’s Scope: Christian sermons, lessons, and resources for teachers

 (MRI = Message of Reconciliation and Imitation)

THE GODS we worship write their names on our faces, be sure of that. And a man will worship something —have no doubt about that, either. He may think that his tribute is paid in secret in the dark recesses of his heart—but it will out. That which dominates will determine his life and character. Therefore, it behooves us to be careful what we worship, for what we are worshiping we are becoming. ~ Ralph Waldo Emerson

Worship is an important aspect to the life of God’s People:

We become like what we worship

James Michener, writing in his book, The Source, tells the story of a man named Urbaal, who, was a farmer living about 2200 B.C. He worshiped two gods, one a god of death, the other a goddess of fertility.

One day, the temple priests tell Urbaal to bring his young son to the temple for sacrifice—if he wants good crops. Urbaal obeys, and on the appointed day drags his wife and boy to the scene of the boy’s “religious execution” by fire to the god of death.

After the sacrifice of Urbaal’s boy, and several others, the priests announce that one of the fathers will spend next week in the temple, with a new temple prostitute. Urbaal’s wife is stunned as she notices a desire written more intensely across his face than she had seen before, and she is overwhelmed to see him eagerly lunge forward when his name is called.

The ceremony over, she walks out of the temple with her head swimming, concluding that “if he had different gods, he would have been a different man.”

Worship was intended to be Radical and Revolutionary in society

Micah 6.6-8

I.          Implications of Worship:

A.  Implication #1 – The COMMITMENT is to GOD, Not Self

1.         Worship works inside – out

2.         Purpose is to honor God, not get something – Health/Wealth/Heaven

Not “Let’s Make a Deal”

3.         Because this is how he treats us – We love him because he first loved us

B.   Implication #2 – CONFORM to the God of Heaven, Not the gods of the World

Too often Christians behave like the motorist at the traffic light that Jay Leno said he stopped behind. On this man’s car was bumper sticker that read “Honk if you love Jesus”

So, Leno lightly tapped the horn on his car.

At this, the man rolled down his window, stuck his head out and yelled back: “The light’s still red, you moron!”

1.         Transformation – Romans 12.1-2

2.         Become like Jesus – 2 Corinthians 3.17-18 ¹⁷ Now the Lord is the Spirit, and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom. ¹⁸ And we all, who with unveiled faces contemplate the Lord’s glory, are being transformed into his image with ever-increasing glory, which comes from the Lord, who is the Spirit.

3.         More than rule-keeping to appease an angry God – it is a transformation process

A missionary in India was once teaching the Bible to a group of Hindu ladies. Halfway through the lesson, one of the women got up and walked out. A short time later, she came back and listened more intently than ever. At the close of the hour the leader inquired, “Why did you leave the meeting? Weren’t you interested?” “O yes,” the Hindu lady replied. “I was so impressed with what you had to say about Christ that I went out to ask your driver whether you really lived the way you talked. When he said you did, I hurried back so I wouldn’t miss out on anything.”

God’s Concern: Isaiah 1.10-17

II. Imitations to Consider:

A.     God is the Ultimate One to Imitate – You shall walk after the LORD your God and fear him and keep his commandments and obey his voice, and you shall serve him and hold fast to him. Deuteronomy 13.4

¹ Therefore be imitators of God, as beloved children. ²And walk in love, as Christ loved us and gave himself up for us, a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God. Ephesians 5.1-2

One Sunday as they drove home from church, a little girl turned to her mother & said, “Mommy, there’s something about the preacher’s message this morning that I don’t understand.”

The mother said, “Oh? What is it?” The little girl replied, “Well, he said that God is bigger than we are. He said God is so big that He could hold the world in His hand. Is that true?” The mother replied, “Yes, that’s true, honey.”

“But Mommy, he also said that God comes to live inside of us when we accept Jesus as our Savior. Is that true, too?” Again, the mother assured the little girl that what the preacher had said was true. With a puzzled look on her face the little girl then asked, “If God is bigger than us & He lives in us, wouldn’t He show through?”

Be People of Holiness – Leviticus 11.44-45

Compassionate:

Clothed the Naked – Genesis 3.21

Visited the Sick – Genesis 18.1

Comforts the Mourner – ¹¹After the death of Abraham, God blessed Isaac his son. And Isaac settled at Beer-lahai-roi. Genesis 25.11

Buried the Dead – Deuteronomy 34.6

For Us:

³¹ “When the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, then he will sit on his glorious throne. ³²Before him will be gathered all the nations, and he will separate people one from another as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats. ³³And he will place the sheep on his right, but the goats on the left. ³⁴Then the King will say to those on his right, ‘Come, you who are blessed by my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world. ³⁵For I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me drink, I was a stranger and you welcomed me, ³⁶ I was naked and you clothed me, I was sick and you visited me, I was in prison and you came to me.’ ³⁷Then the righteous will answer him, saying, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you drink? ³⁸And when did we see you a stranger and welcome you, or naked and clothe you? ³⁹And when did we see you sick or in prison and visit you?’ ⁴⁰And the King will answer them, ‘Truly, I say to you, as you did it to one of the least of these my brothers, you did it to me.’ Matthew 25.31-40

B.     God’s Son Provides the Perfect Example to Imitate – Colossians 1.15

The Son is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation.

Servant – John 13.12-17

The Kingdom of God is Upside Down from the world in which we live

Healed the sick/raised the dead

Sacrificial Spirit – Other-centered

Humble Heart

Obedient Attitude

C.     God’s Servants Are for Imitation

1.      Biblical Heroes – Hebrews 11

2.      NT – Leaders – I urge you, then, be imitators of me. 1 Corinthians 4.16

3.      Our Leaders – Remember your leaders, those who spoke to you the word of God. Consider the outcome of their way of life, and imitate their faith. Hebrews 13.7

D.     We Become the Model for Someone

“In 1926, a wealthy Toronto lawyer named Charles Vance Millar died; leaving behind him a will that amused and electrified the citizens of his Canadian province. Millar, a bachelor with a wicked sense of humor, stated clearly that he intended his last will and testament to be an “uncommon and capricious” document. Because he had no close heirs to inherit his fortune, he divided his money and properties in a way that amused him and aggravated his newly chosen heirs. Here are just a few examples of his strange bequests:

“He left shares in the Ontario Jockey Club to two prominent men who were well known for their opposition to racetrack betting.

“He bequeathed shares in the O’Keefe Brewery Company (a Catholic beer manufacturer) to every Protestant minister in Toronto.

“But his most famous bequest was that he would leave the bulk of his fortune to the Toronto woman who gave birth to the most children in the ten years after his death.

“This clause in his will caught the public imagination. The country was entering the Great Depression. As people struggled to meet even their most basic economic responsibilities, the prospect of an enormous windfall was naturally quite alluring. Newspaper reporters scoured the public records to find likely contenders for what became known as The Great Stork Derby. Nationwide excitement over the Stork Derby built quickly.

“In 1936, four mothers, proud producers of nine children apiece in a ten year time span, divided up the Charles Millar’s bequest, each receiving what was a staggering sum in those days – $125,000.” (From Sermon Central sermon by Joanna Beveridge) – Did they love kids or money?

(MRI = Message of Reconciliation and Imitation)

Open

Leaders – Please lead one of the following exercises with your Group:

My Name Is

Go around the group and ask each person to state his/her name and attach an adjective that not only describes a dominant characteristic, but also starts with the same letter of his name e.g. generous Graham, dynamic Dave. Write them down and refer to them by this for the rest of the evening.

Word Link

This is a word association game. Ask the group to sit in a circle. The first person starts with any word they wish i.e. red. The next person repeats the first word and adds another word which links to the first i.e. tomato. The next person repeats the previous word and add another word link i.e. soup, and so on. To keep this moving, only allow five seconds for each word link.

Study

Read Micah 6.6-8 and discuss the following with your Group

1. Which do you think matters more to God: Making financial sacrifices or having a good attitude?
2. Why do you think God is so concerned with our inner person?
3. When you think about who God is, what descriptive words come to mind?
4. How do you think our worship is connected to our activities outside the worship services? (see also Matthew 25.31ff)
5. How do you think we can better allow God to “show through” in our lives?

Apply

1. What things about God do you want to imitate in your life? How do you think you can achieve this?
2. How does Jesus typify these things for you?
3. Do you think it is good to have heroes?
4. How do other Christians impact you?
5. In what ways are you impacting others by the life you are living? Are you helping people get closer to God or are you leading them away from him?

Have you noticed that we live in a time when people seem to be extremely critical of one another? How often do we see the negative instead of the positive in a person?

Try this little experiment. When you are in a group of your peers, praise an individual who is not among you. Pick out a virtue of this person and brag on him or her to the others. In many (maybe most) cases you will hear something like, “Yeah but . . .” and then the speaker will begin to tear down the individual by pointing out flaws.

The trouble is, we are all flawed. Sin and our sinful tendencies have distorted the image of God in our lives. This is where God, Jesus, the Holy Spirit, and the scriptures come in.

The Bible teaches us to love our neighbors as ourselves (Leviticus 19:18; Matthew 22:39).This includes praising others as we would want to be praised. This would mean protecting the integrity of others as we would want to be protected.

This is not that easy. It takes appreciation for: God’s love for us (by the way, God loves YOU immensely – he told me so in John 3:16); the gift of Jesus – not just on the cross but in showing us how to live out the instructions of God; the Holy Spirit who empowers our lives to follow his inspired scriptures. It comes when we are able to treat others the way God has treated us.

Keep The Light Burning!

Perry Greene

South Yukon Church of Christ

In ancient times, rabbis said, “When two sit together and exchange words of torah, then the divine presence is among them.” Hear it from Jesus’ perspective: “For where two or three are gathered in my name, there am I among them” (Matthew 18:20).

One of the purest forms of worship is study. When we sing or pray, we give God our words. When we study, we receive God’s words. What a great privilege it is to hear, understand, and do the words of God!

It is important to have friends to encourage us along the way. We understand the value of relationships between friends. The wise man said, “A friend loves at all times” (Proverbs 17:17a). But we also have the need to be to become more like Jesus. Again, the writer of Proverbs declares, “Iron sharpens iron, and one man sharpens another” (Proverbs 27:17).

We all need people who will challenge, encourage, and hold us accountable to be better people tomorrow than we are today. We know we need to be godly people. We know we need to be like Jesus and “go about doing good.” Yet how often do good intentions come and go with no results?

I want to encourage you to find friends who will be supportive and challenging to your spiritual life. The disciples did that for each other. We need it, too.

Keep The Light Burning!

Perry Greene

South Yukon Church of Christ

A mild mannered young man came into a counselor’s office ready for a divorce. He complained that his bride was so bossy that she was driving him off the wall. He wanted things to change, immediately.

The counselor told him that he needed to build his self-esteem and that this would take time. Then the counselor gave him a book on assertiveness. He was so desperate to change things that he read the whole book on the way home.

Determined to be a victim no more, he stormed into the house and walked up to his wife. Pointing a finger in her face, he said, “From now on, I want you to know that I am the man of this house, and my word is law!

“I want you to prepare me a gourmet meal tonight, and to finish the meal with a fabulous baked dessert.

“Then, after dinner, you’re going to draw me my bath so I can relax.

And when I’m finished with my bath, guess who’s going to dress me and comb my hair?”

“The funeral director,” said his wife.

Sometimes we get caught up in a battle of self-esteem and the condescension to others.

Yeshua (Jesus) told a story about two men who had self-esteem issues as they approached God

Luke 18.9-14

Two men with things in common and things uncommon:

I.  They Shared a Worship Experience

Francois Fenelon was the court clergy for King Louis XIV of France in the 17^th century. One Sunday when the king and his attendants arrived at the chapel for the regular service, no one else was there but the preacher. King Louis demanded, “What does this mean?” Fenelon replied, “I had published that you would not come to church today, in order that your Majesty might see who serves God in truth and who flatters the king.”

A.     Both were created in the image of God

B.     Both were sinners and in Need of God

C.     Both were Jews – chosen people – entrusted with words of God; chosen to bring the LIGHT to the world

D.     Both worshiped the Same God in the Same Place at the Same Time

•          Going UP to worship – Psalms of Ascent 120-134
•          In the Temple
•          9 AM and 3 PM
•          The God of their Fathers – the call of Abraham – Exodus – Feasts
•          They Gather in a Court in the Temple (Women/Israelites)
•          The Service draws to a climax with singing and instruments; Levitical Choir; chanting Psalms
•          Everyone stands in awe of God
•          Priest takes a lamb – stands with a knife – silence – trumpet blows and the priest cuts the throat of the lamb – catches the blood – takes to the the altar along with pieces of the lamb – burns the meat and sprinkles blood on the altar
•          In essence the priest, by his actions, says, “God, keep your promise that in mercy you will forgive our sins.”
•          This is a picture of the way to God being opened by the blood of the lamb
•          Priest moves from altar to the front of the MHP – stood before altar of incense with a bowl of 21 types of incense and began praying, “God hear us.”
•          As the smoke goes up, the people (standing) begin to verbally pray personal prayers and there is a rumbling of voices – incense is the symbol of prayer and the way has been opened
  •    What if we stood and verbally prayed personal prayers?
  •    It would seem to us like chaos – but God hears each of us!
•          Typically Pharisees were well-respected as teachers of Torah
•          He Uses “I” 4 times in 2 verses

E.     Both incorporated the Same Actions into their Worship – with Different Results

II.                 The Shared Experience Produced a Different Outcome

A.     The Pharisee is Self-Centered

Robert Morley said, “To fall in love with yourself is the first secret of happiness. Then if you’re not a good mixer you can always fall back on your own company.” This fellow enjoys his own company, as a matter of fact, he enjoys it so much that he is praying to himself.

•          He Stands alone – to be seen
•          He Prays with Himself
•          He Exalts Himself
  •    He thinks his external actions produced righteous status
  •    He thinks he has the right to condemn and criticize others
  •    He forgot the gracious nature of God and his condition without it
•          Tax Collectors were NOT respected – resented
•          He Displayed Humility –
  •    Standing away from the crowd
  •    Asks for Mercy/atonement – “Let it be for me.”
  •    For this reason he had to be made like them, fully human in every way, in order that he might become a merciful and faithful high priest in service to God, and that he might make atonement for the sins of the people. Hebrews 2.17

B.     The Tax Collector is God-Centered

•          Beats on his chest as he asks for forgiveness
  •    Usually only women would do such a thing
  •    Happened at the cross – Luke 23.48

And all the crowds that had assembled for this spectacle, when they saw what had taken place, returned home beating their breasts.

•          He Got it Right
  •    He saw himself lacking – went to the temple – judged self, not others
  •    He worshiped in externals because of his relationship to God and place in the community of faith
  •    He went home justified Psalm 34.18 – The LORD is near to the brokenhearted
    and saves the crushed in spirit.

Our Context

What if we were preparing for the Lord’s Supper one Sunday morning and in walked one of these and asked for us to help them have a relationship with God?

• Tattooed person
• Homosexuals
• Immoral Heterosexuals
• Bikers
• Town Drunk
• ETC.

What if some great church personality walked into our assembly expecting some great fanfare?

•          What would we do? – Would we be accepting of the sinner who wanted to repent?
•         Would we be dazzled by the church personality in spite of his arrogance?

     At the height of a political corruption trial, the prosecuting attorney attacked a witness.  “Isn’t it true,” he bellowed, “that you accepted five thousand dollars to compromise this case?”  The witness stared out the window, as though he hadn’t heard the question.

     “Isn’t it true that you accepted five thousand dollars to compromise this case?” the lawyer repeated.  The witness still did not respond.

     Finally, the judge leaned over and said, “Sir, please answer the question.”

     “Oh,” the startled witness said, “I thought he was talking to you.”

It’s easy to listen to a sermon thinking, “Boy, I sure hope so-and-so is listening to this one!” It is crucial, though, that we listen to all messages that come from the word of God with the thought, “What does this have to say to me?” because only when I make personal application can I learn and grow.

“Why do you look at the speck in your brother’s eye, but do not consider the plank in your own eye?  Or how can you say to your brother, ‘Let me remove the speck from your eye’; and look, a plank is in your own eye? Hypocrite!  First remove the plank from your own eye, and then you will see clearly to remove the speck from your brother’s eye.”   (Matthew 7:3-5)

Open

Please share your response to one of the following:

• When you were in school, what did it take to be “in”? “Out”?
• Who is the “greatest” person you have met? What made that person great?

Study

Please read Luke 18.9-14 and discuss the following:

• In what ways did these men have a similar worship experience?
• In what ways was it different?
• What was the significance of the animal sacrifice to the Jews?
• Where does prayer fit into the scene? What do you think the people prayed about?
• How were the Pharisee and Tax Collector different in their approach to God?
• In what ways do you think this parable was a “surprise” to Jesus’ hearers?
• Why do you think God applauds humility?

Apply

• It is easy to hear lessons and think that someone else needs to hear them. Maybe that is true, but how does this parable impact YOU?
• How would you respond if a person who was very different from you (in appearance; lifestyle; religious belief; political philosophy; etc.) wanted to become a member of our church?
• When have you been like the Pharisee in your approach to God?
• When have you been like the Tax Collector?

I heard about a woman who had invited her husband to attend church with her for years. Sunday after Sunday he declined. Finally one day he decided to attend services with her. She hoped that the preacher would have a good sermon to encourage him. To her chagrin the preacher had chosen the fifth chapter of Genesis which is the lineage from Adam to Noah.

At the end of the service when the invitation was given, her husband went forward. He decided to become a follower of Jesus and was baptized (Acts 2.38; Romans 6.1-4; Galatians 3.27). She was shocked and thrilled!

She asked him what made him decide to become a disciple of Jesus after such a sermon. He responded that in the list all but one of the people died. He realized that he, too would die so he needed to prepare himself to meet God.

Recently Steve Jobs, founder of Apple Computers, passed away. I know nothing of his beliefs about God but I do know that unless Jesus tarries we will also pass from this life into eternity. Regardless of our level of financial success we will die. We have that promise (Hebrews 9.27). What we do between now and then is of paramount importance!

Keep The Light Burning!

Perry Greene

One of the interesting things to me about heading into the future is that we have to head into the unknown – backwards. Picture a rowing team in a race. The rowers face the stern of the boat to row the boat forward. They see where they have been but do not see where they are going. They are forced to rely on the Coxswain to steer the boat and keep their timing.

This is exactly how God’s people deal with the future events of life. We are not able to see what is coming, but we can see where we have been. We trust Jesus to direct our “boats.” He will avoid the dangerous waters and keep us headed in the right direction.

Some of the Psalms, such as the 105^th recount the nation’s story in its walk with God. Stephen recounted the story in Acts 7 just before the enemies of the cross killed him.

One of the benefits in retelling the story is that we can remember what God has done for us in the past. If he took care of us then, will he take care of us now? Faith says that he will. It is the assurance of things hoped for and evidence of the unseen (Hebrews 11.1).

Is your faith wavering? Do you have doubts? Get in the boat! Let Jesus guide your life, knowing that he is faithful to his people as he directs their lives.

Keep The Light Burning!

 Perry Greene

South Yukon Church of Christ

Open

Please share your responses to one of the following:

1. How do you feel when you are in a crowd?
2. What three things in your life would you like to send to the recycle bin?

Study

Please read Luke 8.42-48 and discuss:

1. What do you think is significant about the woman’s issue of blood? How has it affected her Socially?; Financially?; Ceremonially?; Emotionally?; Spiritually?
2. What connection do you think there is with the fact that Jairus’ daughter was 12 and the woman had the issue of blood 12 years?
3. What is the role of faith in this story?
4. Why do you think she grabbed the “Tzizit” (fringes) of Jesus’ Tallit (Prayer Shawl/outer garment)? What things was she aware of? (see also Malachi 4.1-3)
5. Why do you think Jesus asked who had touched (literally held on to) him?
6. Do you think she was a “righteous” person? Why or why not?

Apply

1. When are the times you have felt desperate? What role did your faith play in those times?
2. Have you ever been too frightened to bring a problem to God?
3. How does God see our issues?
4. What are some ways you have expressed faith?

Luke 8.42b-48

I.                 The Sequence of a Woman’s Healing

According to one recent survey 74 % of U.S. doctors believe divine miracles of healing have occurred, and 73% believe they can still occur today. Amazingly, 55% say they had personally seen medical results in patients that they could describe only as miracles. (survey conducted by HCD Research and the Louis Finkelstein Institute for Religious and Social Studies at the Jewish Theological Seminary in New York City)

Yeshua (Jesus) was known for his miracles as well as his teachings

The Woman’s Illness Produced:

A.     A Physical Issue of Blood Loss

1.      Duration – 12 Years (same as the age of Jairus’ daughter)
2.      Expensive – She spent her money on doctors – no more options

The Talmud (which is the written record of Jewish oral traditions) tells us that there were 11 different “medical” treatments for an issue of blood. For example:

• · “Take of the gum of Alexandria the weight of a small silver coin; of alum the same; of crocus the same. Let them be bruised together, and given in wine to the woman that has the issue of blood.”
• · “If this does not benefit take three pints of Persian onions; boil them in wine, and give her to drink, and say, ‘Arise from thy flux.’”
• · “If this does not cure her, set her in a place where two ways meet, and let her hold a cup of wine in her right hand, and let someone come behind and frighten her, and say, ’Arise from thy flux.’”

Additional “cures” included carrying the ashes of an ostrich egg in a linen bag in summer and in a cotton bag in winter. Or to carry around a barley corn that was found in dung of white female donkey.

One scholar lists common remedies of that day to include eating grasshopper eggs, carrying around the tooth of a fox, or the fingernail of a person who has been hanged!

Common remedies included cutting and burning of the infected area.

3.      Yeshua (Jesus) healed her physical issue

B.     A Spiritual Issue of Uncleanness — Isolation

In those days of the Old Testament, a woman who had an “issue of blood” was unclean. Anything she touched during that time was unclean. She wasn’t allowed to touch or be touched.

1.      Spiritually Unclean – 12 years

Jason Frazier put it this way: “for 12 years, she was considered unclean and could not be touched by a clean person. She could not go to the assemblies, synagogues, or ceremonies.

•         It has been 12 years since she had enjoyed Passover or Sabbath services.
•         It had been 12 years since she had been able to stand before the High Priest to have her sins forgiven on Yom Kippur.
•          For 12 years, she bore the emotional and psychological baggage of

•         being unclean and untouchable
•         no hugs, kisses, or any type of intimacy with a husband (if she had one)
•         She could not prepare her family’s food (if she even had one)
•         she could not do housework;
•         she couldn’t be a wife;
•         she couldn’t be a mommy;
•          She had sat in an isolated house for 12 years staring at the walls.
• For all intents and purpose, she was as good as dead.

2.      Yeshua (Jesus) Cleansed her

a.       She was desperate and took risks

A young man once lost his job, and growing somewhat desperate about his plight, went to see an old preacher that he knew. As he poured out his heart to the preacher he angrily declared “I’ve begged and begged God to say something to help me, preacher. Why doesn’t God answer?”

The old preacher, who was sitting across the room, spoke a reply so quiet the young man was unable to make it out. The young man stepped across the room. “What did you say?” he asked. The preacher repeated himself, again in a soft tone. So the young man moved closer until he was leaning on the preacher’s chair. “Sorry,” he said. “I still didn’t hear you.” With their heads bent together, the old preacher spoke once more. “God sometimes whispers,” he said, “So we will move closer to hear him.”

b.       She risked being in a crowd (unclean)

c.      She risked touching Yeshua (Jesus) – “Who touched me?” [Literally. “Who held on to me?”]

d.       He announced the healing and her new cleanness – she was now touchable again – “resurrected” – just as he would do for Jairus’ daughter

II.                The Source of a Woman’s Healing – Yeshua (Jesus)

A.     Some Things We Know:

1.      Son of God

2.      Messiah

3.      Miracle-worker

4.      Great Rabbi

B.     Some Things She Knew (Malachi 4.1-3)

¹ “For behold, the day is coming, burning like an oven, when all the arrogant and all evildoers will be stubble. The day that is coming shall set them ablaze, says the LORD of hosts, so that it will leave them neither root nor branch. ²But for you who fear my name, the sun of righteousness shall rise with healing in its wings. You shall go out leaping like calves from the stall. ³And you shall tread down the wicked, for they will be ashes under the soles of your feet, on the day when I act, says the LORD of hosts.

1.      Sun of Righteousness – Messianic term – Healing/Judgment

2.      “Healing in His Wings” –

a.       Sun Rays Spreading from Sky to Earth – Light/Warmth – essential for life

b.      Light of God is Greater than the Darkness below

c.       Tallit: God = sum of his commands

d.      Fringes – 39 windings; 39 diseases; 39 stripes; — Isaiah 53.5/1 Peter 2.24

But he was wounded for our transgressions;
he was crushed for our iniquities;
upon him was the chastisement that brought us peace,
and with his stripes we are healed. 

e.       Corners/Wings

3.      Judgment – Burning Up the Unrighteous

a.       “Immanuel” – God with Us – Good Or Bad (depending on relationship to God – Right one or unrighteous one)

b.      Her FAITH made her whole – she had faith in Messiah; she was not burned up but acclaimed – she was a righteous person

4.      Others knew about the Fringes, too – Matthew 14.34-36

³⁴ And when they had crossed over, they came to land at Gennesaret. ³⁵And when the men of that place recognized him, they sent around to all that region and brought to him all who were sick ³⁶and implored him that they might only touch the fringe of his garment. And as many as touched it were made well.

Conclusion

There is a story about a 6’10″ Texan who walked up to the counter at McDonalds, slammed down his big fist, & said to the girl behind the counter, “I want half a Big Mac.” She said, “What?” He said, “I want half a Big Mac & I want it now.”

Not being sure what to do, she said, “Excuse me for a minute.” And she headed back to her manager without realizing that the man was following right behind her.

She got back to the manager & said, “There’s a big klutz out there who is dumber than lead & he has ordered half a Big Mac.” And just about that moment she suddenly realized that he was standing behind her. Quickly she added, “And this gentleman wants the other half.”

Sometimes you may have to think fast, & what you say is important. But how you say it can be even more important.

While this woman did not have a quick comeback to say when Yeshua (Jesus) asked who had touched him, she did act quickly in reaching out to him.

Sometimes Desperate times require Desperate measures

Some Practical Observations:

1.      Faith Cannot Remain Anonymous
2.      Faith Must Be Expressed
3.      Faith Is Rewarded (Hebrews 11.6)
4.      Faith is Directed at the Sun of Righteousness – Son of God
5.      Faith Sometimes Acts out of Desperation