Earth Shakers - Page 2 of 7 - ...touching heaven, changing earth.

Why The Disciples Abandoned Jesus, And How You May Follow Their Footsteps

Reading Time: 5 minutes

Going over the Account of Jesus’ last moments with His disciples, including the Gethsemane prayer and arrest, I couldn’t help but marvel at how often we make promises we don’t fulfil, or take stands, we don’t sustain simply because those affiliations were made after careful planning rather than sole dependence on the Lord. We start out our God-assigned projects having done the mathematical and economic calculations, but having failed to employ the Almighty formular– divine strategy. The Lord gives us an instruction or an idea, and rather than ask Him who knows the end from the beginning to show us how to navigate through or what to do, we assume we have it all figured out. The end point is usually not pretty or productive.

30 Lessons Drawn from the Miracles of Jesus – #22

Reading Time: 3 minutes

Be Good, even to Your Haters! (Luke 22:47-52)

Do Good even to Your Haters — Photo from sunfiretees

There are so many people who are not happy when they see us succeed in life. We call them haters! In our passage today, we have an account of Jesus’ betrayal and arrest by a detachment of Roman soldiers and some officials from the chief priests and the Pharisees (John 18:3) – His chief haters. Jesus’ disciples requested for His permission to fight back. However, one of His most devoted disciples (John 18:10) who judged His response too late a-coming, pulled his sword, (probably) aimed at the head of one of the attackers but missed his blow (most of His disciples were skilled in the use of nets for fishing, but not in the use of swords for fighting). He, instead, cut off the right ear of the servant of the high priest who was with the retinue. Jesus ordered that disciple of His to sheath his sword, then went the extra mile to heal the victim who had come to arrest and kill Him. Remember, Jesus does not perform any miracle to show off His powers. There is always a reason and a lesson for us in His miracles. So, what lesson is there for us to learn from this particular miracle?

The Wedding Guest List 2: The Gospel of Works

Reading Time: 6 minutes

This post is a sequel based on the parable of the King who had a marriage feast for his son. Click here to read the previous part.

The Church of God is one founded on grace. It is by grace that we are saved. It is by grace that we are enabled and empowered and qualified to take on certain feats and record successes in them. Our Lord Jesus Christ is the embodiment of grace. The only way to truly demonstrate allegiance to the Lord and His gospel, is to do everything on the bedrock of grace.

30 Lessons Drawn from the Miracles of Jesus – #21

Reading Time: 6 minutes

Negative words Can Be Very Effective (Mark 11:12-14, 20-26)

How Exactly Do Negative Words Work and Why?

We’re still looking at the same story from the previous miracle lesson (#20) and the one before it (#19). In this post, we examine the negativity in Jesus’ words when He said, “May no one ever eat fruit from you again,” Mark 11:14, NIV. In ancient times, many children respected their parents out of fear of being cursed. In those days, people understood the effectiveness of negative words coming from an older person, especially from one’s own parents or someone well-advanced in age. In many parts of Africa, that understanding has not been lost to modernization. Now, let’s examine this from a Scriptural point of view.

30 Lessons Drawn from the Miracles of Jesus – #20

Reading Time: 3 minutes

The Prayer that Works Come from Strong Faith and a Heart that Forgives (Mark 11:12-14, 20-26)

This is the same passage we read in lesson #19 where we have Jesus speaking to and cursing a fig tree (Mark 11:12-14, 20-26). This seems like a minor miracle, however, it is recorded in the Bible because of the lessons it contains – a prayer that works. After Jesus had cursed the fig tree, they didn’t sit around there waiting to see what would happen; they continued on their journey.

30 Lessons Drawn from the Miracles of Jesus – #19

Reading Time: 3 minutes

God Expects Us to Bear Fruit — Don’t Be Fruitless! (Mark 11:12-14, 20)

tree bearing fruit — Photo by Kaylie Humphrey on Unsplash

We read in our passage today (Mark 11:12-14, 20) a rather bizarre story but one with a lesson, nonetheless. The lesson is meant to warn us against fruitlessness and challenge us to bear fruit. From the Old Testament laws, the ministry of the prophets, the doctrine of Christ, and the teachings of His Apostles, we can draw one important truth – God does not reward fruitless people; in fact, He curses them in the end. Jesus comes out of Bethany hungry from the long walk. He sees a fig tree green and looking flourishing. He rejoices as He says, “Finally, something to keep this growl in my stomach at bay. I know my disciples must be hungry as well.” He then walks up to the fig tree, probably in the opposite direction to where He initially intended to go. On reaching the fig tree, He discovers that it was a cruel joke, to begin with — this fig tree has beautifully and brightly coloured leaves, but with no fruit hanging from its branches. Annoyed at the deceit plus His wasted time and energy, Jesus curses the fig tree to its root.

30 Lessons Drawn from the Miracles of Jesus – #18

Reading Time: 2 minutes

Are You Facing Oppositions because of Your Gift? (Matthew 9:32-34)

penguins oppositions — Photo by Long Ma on Unsplash

If you are a church leader reading this, this is for you. If God decides, in His infinite wisdom, to use you as an extension of His arm on earth, to carry out diverse, unusual and strange miracles, then you better get ready for some fierce oppositions. Some people, especially the media, are going to take it upon themselves to dig deep into your background for some accusation to level against you and debunk the proofs of what God is doing through you. Now, if this opposition can only come from unbelievers, that would be easier to bear. However, just like those against Jesus, oppositions can, and will also come from those of the same faith as you. The Pharisees knew the Scripture and the power of God in working miracles and casting out devils. Jesus was not the first to be doing that; they had other people who had been doing that probably even before Jesus (see Matthew 12:27). Yet, the Pharisees still accused Him of fraud and put up several oppositions against Him.

The gifts of healing and performing of miracles, however, are not exclusive to church leaders. Jesus said, “These miraculous signs will accompany those who believe: They will cast out demons in my name, and they will speak in new languages. They will be able to handle snakes with safety, and if they drink anything poisonous, it won’t hurt them. They will be able to place their hands on the sick, and they will be healed” (Mark 16:17-18, NLT). So be ready against oppositions when God uses you in one of these ways; for, “Students are to be like their teacher, and slaves are to be like their master. And since I, the master of the household, have been called the prince of demons, the members of my household will be called by even worse names!” (Matt. 10:25, NLT)

Do you hear God speaking to you today through this lesson? Please, leave a comment or question; your comment/question might be a blessing to someone. You could also contact us through our contact page.

For the other miracle lessons, please go to the miracle lessons page.

30 Lessons Drawn from the Miracles of Jesus – #17

Reading Time: 2 minutes

Can You Flatter God into Healing or Blessing You? (Matthew 9:27-31)

In the passage above (Matthew 9:27-31), we read about two blind men who called Jesus by the name, “Son of David”. Their cry to Him by that name was supposed to reveal the deep extent of their faith in Jesus. Let me explain. The name, “Jesus,” (also Joshua) means “God is Salvation.” It was a common name at that time. However, the name “Christ,” means “Messiah,” or “the Anointed One.” From Old-Testament prophecies, the Messiah must come from the line of the great King David, and so, the Jews all expected the Messiah to be born in a palace, not in a manger. For this reason, they didn’t care about the ancestry of Jesus, since He didn’t meet their first expectation of royal heritage. Most of the Jews then did not believe in Jesus (and most of them still do not believe in Him to this day).

The Wedding Guest List 1: Does God Change His Mind?

Reading Time: 4 minutes

The greatest Teacher that ever lived, by way of parable, recounts the ordeals of a King whose son was to be married. Like any proud and excited father, the King took on the task of organizing a grand wedding feast. The ceremony would run on for days. It would feature the best artists and performers in the kingdom. The large dance hall of the palace would honour the presence of the high and mighty in the society. He had also sent words to the kings of neighbouring kingdoms, to invite them and keep them in the know of the biggest event yet… the King’s son was getting married!

The D-day came in with light showers. That was a good sign. Heavy rains would have ruined the celebration, but light rains were symbolic– the union was blessed. As the King made the last rounds, double checking the perfection of previous arrangements, He sent a group of servants to remind the elites of the wedding slated for later in the evening.

Do I Really Need A Mentor?

Reading Time: 7 minutes

Who Is A Mentor?

According to the definition from Oxford Languages, a mentor is “an experienced and trusted adviser.” A mentor nurtures and grooms the people under them, offering them ‘personalized services,’ if you will. In Christendom, these services include, but are not limited to, praying for them, explaining some difficult concepts to them, advising them, giving them tasks to complete. Some of these programs are properly structured, others are not. Also, some are more formal than others.