Journey 2016 - Concentrate

Luke 9:51 (NLT):
As the time drew near for him to ascend to heaven, Jesus resolutely set out for Jerusalem.

To concentrate is to focus with intensity.

Jesus' ministry was around the Sea of Galilee with Capernaum being His home base.  The last six to seven months of his ministry He had the goal to go to Jerusalem.  He was preparing to face the cross, but His gaze was set on returning to His Father in heaven.  He knew He must go to Jerusalem to fulfill His Father's will.  

There are five things we must know in order to concentrate on our journey.

1.  Be clear about God's will for your life.  If you do not know, pray through until God reveals it to you.

2.  Be willing to pay the price to do God's will.  There are no discounts or bargain sales in choosing to follow His will.

3.  Mark 8:33 - Jesus turned around and looked at his disciples, then reprimanded Peter. “Get away from me, Satan!” he said. “You are seeing things merely from a human point of view, not from God’s.  Just like Jesus had to rebuke Peter, we will also face discouragement along the way.  We cannot allow opinions of others to distract us or sway us away from what God has called us to do.  

4.  Do not allow a bad attitude or spirit to get in the way.  We must not be ready to "zap" others with a critical spirit, or be filled with pride.  You must have the same attitude that Christ Jesus had. (Philippians 2:5)

5.  Know Whose you are and where you are going, keeping your eyes on Jesus.  James 4:13-16:  Look here, you who say, “Today or tomorrow we are going to a certain town and will stay there a year. We will do business there and make a profit.” How do you know what your life will be like tomorrow? Your life is like the morning fog—it’s here a little while, then it’s gone. What you ought to say is, “If the Lord wants us to, we will live and do this or that.” Otherwise you are boasting about your own pretentious plans, and all such boasting is evil.

Next week the Pastor's sermons will start focusing on the Easter events.  We will be heading to Jerusalem in our Journey 2016.