The Word of Grace Devotion for the Week of November 17, 2014 "Precious"

11/18/2014

Psalm 116:15, “Precious in the sight of the Lord is the death of his saints.”

Beloved, have you ever wondered how God feels when one of His own passes away? Thankfully, Scripture reveals the heart of God in John 11:33-35, “When Jesus saw her weeping, and the Jews who had come with her also weeping, he was deeply moved in his spirit and greatly troubled. 34And he said, “Where have you laid him?” They said to him, “Lord, come and see.” 35Jesus wept.”

John 11:35 is one of the shortest verses in the Bible and yet it reveals so much about our Lord. It shows that He loves us, that He cares for us and that He also is deeply moved at our loss. In fact as Psalm 116:15 says, “Precious in the sight of the Lord is the death of his saints.”

I say this because this past week one of the members of our fellowship, Michael Flores, passed away into glory. Michael knew that his health was in danger and he lived in the expectancy of seeing His Savior heal him. Jesus did heal Michael, just not in the manner in which we would have preferred. Today, Michael is with His Savior! He is no longer suffering; He is no longer in any pain; He is simply in glory!

Please pray for his wife Elizabeth, stepson Miguel and all other members of the family. If you need further information concerning Michael’s funeral you can email me and I’ll provide them for you.

I leave you with some promises from Scripture. 2 Corinthians 5:6-8, “So we are always of good courage. We know that while we are at home in the body we are away from the Lord,7for we walk by faith, not by sight. 8Yes, we are of good courage, and we would rather be away from the body and at home with the Lord.”

I pray that you will have a blessed week! I love you and I will be praying for you!

In Christ-

Pastor Joe

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Senior Pastor
Joe Marquez

Beloved, we are soon to once again celebrate the birth of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Jesus Christ is the human Son of man and the divine Son of God. He is one hundred percent human and one hundred percent God.

While there were many people instrumental in the birth of Christ, this morning we will look at His birth through the eyes of Joseph, His legal father. There is not too much known about the man who would care for Christ as He grew up. We know that Joseph was possibly a carpenter but most importantly we know that he was a righteous man who did the right thing.

When others would have ran away from a responsibility that was not even their own, Joseph stood steadfast and remained faithful to the end. We can learn much from his character and apply his attributes of faithfulness, purity, and perseverance to our own lives.

May you have a Blessed Christmas week and may Christ always be at the center of your lives!

P.S. Come back this evening as we look at the birth of Christ through the Gospel of Luke!