JESUS ASSUMED HIS DISCIPLES WOULD GIVE, PRAY & FAST Notice the way Jesus introduced these three areas of spiritual discipline: Giving to the Poor: In Matthew 6:1-4 Jesus assumes that they would be giving to the needy. It was His expectation that any disciple of His would be concerned and engaged in giving to the poor and needy. Follow along as I read His words, and notice how He describes the giving of alms or gifts to the poor. Matthew 6:1-4 (NKJV) “Take heed that you do not do your charitable deeds before men, to be seen by them. Otherwise you have no reward from your Father in heaven. 2 Therefore, when you do a charitable deed, do not sound a trumpet before you as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and in the streets, that they may have glory from men. Assuredly, I say to you, they have their reward. 3 But when you do a charitable deed, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing, 4 that your charitable deed may be in secret; and your Father who sees in secret will Himself reward you openly. Praying: In Matthew 6:5-14 Jesus assumes that they would be praying. It was His expectation that any disciple of His would be concerned and engaged in staying closely connected to God the Father by prayer. Follow along as I read His words, and notice how He describes the praying. Matthew 6:5-9 (NKJV) “And when you pray, you shall not be like the hypocrites. For they love to pray standing in the synagogues and on the corners of the streets, that they may be seen by men. Assuredly, I say to you, they have their reward. 6 But you, when you pray, go into your room, and when you have shut your door, pray to your Father who is in the secret place; and your Father who sees in secret will reward you openly. 7 And when you pray, do not use vain repetitions as the heathen do. For they think that they will be heard for their many words. 8 “Therefore do not be like them. For your Father knows the things you have need of before you ask Him. 9 In this manner, therefore, pray: Fasting: In Matthew 6:16-18 Jesus assumes that they would be fasting. It was His expectation that any disciple of His would be concerned and engaged in some form of fasting. Follow along as I read His words, and notice how He describes the fasting. Matthew 6:16-18 (NKJV) “Moreover, when you fast, do not be like the hypocrites, with a sad countenance. For they disfigure their faces that they may appear to men to be fasting. Assuredly, I say to you, they have their reward. 17 But you, when you fast, anoint your head and wash your face, 18 so that you do not appear to men to be fasting, but to your Father who is in the secret place; and your Father who sees in secret will reward you openly. So basically we can say that we are looking right in the middle of this teaching lesson with His first disciples. Jesus expresses some simple disciplines that He assumed they would be already doing, just as a part of their walk with God. Then, Jesus amplifies each discipline with further teaching, correctively showing what God desires in each of these disciplines. GIVE TO THE POOR, PRAY, & FAST Those seem to be so unconnected, yet in the mind of God they are not. This middle petition about God supplying our needs on a daily basis, actually ties into perhaps one of the most neglected topics among all of the spiritual disciplines that believers have practiced over the centuries. So first, we can say with much confidence from the text of Scriptures that Jesus assumed that His first disciples would be giving to the poor, praying to their father, and fasting. Now Pause for a moment. ARE WE GIVING, PRAYING & FASTING (HFG-02) Join the LAND OF THE BOOK channel to get access to weekly video releases over the next year totaling 50+ EXCLUSIVE VIDEOS that feature weekly in-depth Bible Study lessons with John & Bonnie. Clips are taken at just one of the places where we are taking our virtual journey through all the Lands of the Bible & Great Museums of the Bible on the Paul's Life & Letters Course. Plus all the assigned HOLY LAND, Paul's Life & Letters Course STUDY RESOURCES, and John's two most loved books--David's Spiritual Secret & Living Hope for the End of Days at: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCVK6dN-9kLDnQhYBFuES09A/join Follow Discover the Book Ministries to stay up to date: Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/discoverthebook/ DTBM Academy Courses: https://dtbmonline.org/all-video-courses/ Purchase John's Books, Mp3 & DVD resources: E-Books: https://tinyurl.com/y3wbhlxy Here are links to our Amazon Pages-- https://www.amazon.com/shop/dtbm Donate to the ministry: https://dtbm.org/donations/partnership/ For more of Dr. John Barnett's Bible teaching messages go to: https://dtbm.org/ https://youtu.be/lnCu2LYnEng ... https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lnCu2LYnEng

WHAT DOES GOD WANT US TO DO WHEN WE HAVE UNEXPECTED DELAYS IN LIFE? We have learned that the theme of this book is EXPECTANT LIVING - A life awaiting Christ that pleases Him. In 5 chapters Paul gives the five aspects of this kind of living. 1. Ch. 1 - It starts by being BORN RIGHT and thus he teaches there are those elements of true saving faith. 2. Ch. 2 focuses on being NURTURED or DISCIPLED RIGHT. 3. Now our text this evening bridges the nurturing and leads us to the 3rd chapter’s theme, BEING ANCHORED RIGHT. Paul wants to teach nurturing by example and to help the saints to be firmly grounded or anchored. The Apostle gives us a slice out of his very personal life and shows us his activities while on standby - what he did while he was WAITING. Have you ever thought of how valuable those unplanned times of unexpected waiting can become? -It's when someone doesn’t show up for the appointment times. -When your car isn’t repaired by when you were told. - It's those layovers at airport times. - Sometimes it's a Hospital and doctor's waiting room times. - It's waiting to get picked up at work or school times. - Or, Just plain old waiting time that Paul models the best use of. Now let's set the scene. In I Th. 2:17, it says Paul was bereft awhile, then in 3:1, he was left at Athens alone. So as we start this section remember, Paul left Thessalonica and was in Athens alone. Turn to Acts 17 and let’s see the big picture of I Thessalonians and Acts. (WFJ-18) Join the LAND OF THE BOOK channel to get access to weekly video releases over the next year totaling 50+ EXCLUSIVE VIDEOS that feature weekly in-depth Bible Study lessons with John & Bonnie. Clips are taken at just one of the places where we are taking our virtual journey through all the Lands of the Bible & Great Museums of the Bible on the Paul's Life & Letters Course. Plus all the assigned HOLY LAND, Paul's Life & Letters Course STUDY RESOURCES, and John's two most loved books--David's Spiritual Secret & Living Hope for the End of Days at: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCVK6dN-9kLDnQhYBFuES09A/join Follow Discover the Book Ministries to stay up to date: Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/discoverthebook/ DTBM Academy Courses: https://dtbmonline.org/all-video-courses/ Purchase John's Books, Mp3 & DVD resources: E-Books: https://tinyurl.com/y3wbhlxy Here are links to our Amazon Pages-- https://www.amazon.com/shop/dtbm Donate to the ministry: https://discoverthebook.org/donations/partnership/ For more of Dr. John Barnett's Bible teaching messages go to: https://discoverthebook.org/ https://youtu.be/IPnN7pEeQyE ... https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IPnN7pEeQyE