UNITE! Be Part of the Movement!

UNITE!

Be Part of the Movement!

By Daniel Carandang

After 3 months of beaches, island hopping, 24 hours internet surfing and basically the usual R & R, the time has come for us to return to our second home.

Back to school, everybody!

School may not be the first place we want to be but we got to remember that we have roles to fulfill. One, it's being a student whose goal is to finish his/her studies on time! 

What's the other role, you ask?

Always remember that God has a purpose for everything. Therefore, He has a reason why He placed you in your school. That purpose is very special in a way but requires commitment and responsibility.

What is it?

35 Jesus went through all the towns and villages, teaching in their synagogues, proclaiming the good news of the kingdom and healing every disease and sickness. 36 When he saw the crowds, he had compassion on them, because they were harassed and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd. 37 Then he said to his disciples, “The harvest is plentiful but the workers are few. 38 Ask the Lord of the harvest, therefore, to send out workers into his harvest field.”

Matthew 9:35-38

Jesus spoke in a lot of places. He spoke to a society filled with religious laws and rules the citizens must abide in order to find favor in God. The Pharisees were the religious leaders in town. They were respected for they were considered as scholars who memorized the Torah (the first five books of the Bible). They were the so-called 'Holy than thou' people.

But for in Jesus' eyes, they were hypocrites.

So, despite the fact that these Pharisees kept on insisting that the Chosen people were better off without him, Jesus continued to teach and spread the Word of His Father. He didn't just go- He taught and proclaimed, healed those who needed healing.

In Matthew 9:36, Jesus saw the crowds and felt compassion. To Him, they were sheep without a shepherd.

Now, sheep are cuddly and cute no doubt, but did you know that they are also the dumbest animals in the planet?

Sheep cannot take care of themselves. When they slip and fall down, they barely have the ability to rise on their own two feet. They are easily swayed and distracted. They were helpless and they could easily die if there was no one to guide them. 

Jesus saw the condition of the people.

They were empty; starved of what mattered the most. They followed the 600 rules laid out for them in order to find God's favor but they still remain lost. The people were harassed by the lies created by the Pharisees. They got tired, exhausted from abiding in empty rules.

They weren't able to do things by themselves.

That is why Jesus went out to them. 

Have you ever felt helpless? Harassed?

But your iniquities have separated you 

from your God;

your sins have hidden His face

from you,

so that He will not hear

Isaiah 59:2

Our sins have separated us from God. We are helpless; enslaved to the chains of sin. We cannot save ourselves from eternal damnation nor can we even escape the clutches of temptation.

But God has His solution.

8 But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.

Romans 5:8

God sent His son, Jesus, to die in our place. Our sins required payment we cannot pay on our own. God saw this and sacrificed His own Son to die for our sins. As we can read in Isaiah 53:5, Jesus was pierced for our transgressions so by His wounds, we are healed.

In Romans 6:23, it's obvious. Jesus is the only way to freedom. 

If we genuinely believe and accept Him, we are given the freedom found in Him.

So what about the role we were talking about in the first place?

Knowing about Christ, we are to respond in two ways:

Numero uno would be to pray at ALL TIMES. Pray that God will reveal to you His purpose, that you will understand what He wants you to do. Pray that you will live a life dedicated to Him alone.

Second thing would be to DISCIPLE.

As Jesus said in verse 37, the harvest is plenty but the workers are few. Many of our classmates are missing out on the biggest matter of life because they are distracted by the Enemy. As the school term begins, we have the choice to fulfill the second response in our schools. It's never too late to share the gospel to your school friends and pray that the seed you have planted will grow.

God's movement requires great courage and determination to proclaim His name. Persecutions are expected, especially in school where everyone tries so hard to fit in. Your classmates may laugh when you try to expose them to the truth, but if God moves in them, you might as well give it a try!

Jesus wants us to help our classmates also see the light. They too are like sheep without shepherd. 

Seek guidance from the Lord when starting a movement in your campus! It will consume time but it will be well-spent for it is done for HIS glory!

This school year, 

WILL YOU BE A PART OF HIS MOVEMENT?

Step UP! :>

Written by: Ashley Petallano (c) 2013