Brown's Daily Word 1/6/11

Good morning,
One of the most interesting disciples that I have studied is Matthew, the "Tax Collector", as he is known. Just like the other twelve, Matthew will proved that the Lord can use anybody that He chooses to accomplish His purposes. Jesus, the Son of God, the Creator of the world, wandered off the beaten path to the place where the tax collector's booth was located. As He stood there by the booth, Matthew saw Jesus and their eyes met. When Jesus looked at Matthew, he saw something beyond the tax collector booth because Jesus always sees something beyond what other people could see.
Jesus always sees potential, hope, and a future in our lives. He looks at us in such as a way that He sees things that we cannot see for ourselves. When Matthew got out of bed that morning he would have never dreamed that he would be one to be invited to follow Jesus, but the Bible says that as their eyes met Jesus said the strangest thing. He looked at Matthew and entreated him to "come be my disciple". Jesus looked at Matthew, the low life outcast of Israel, the lost one, and told him that He wanted Matthew to come and be a disciple.
Matthew arose immediately and walked away from his lucrative career (where dozens of people would like to have had his job), and walked away from that table, realizing that he would never go back to that table and that line of work again. He could not return because somebody was waiting in line to get that position. The Bible tells us that Matthew followed Jesus. He had been the lost one, the one that shouldn’t make the cut, but he instantly accepted the invitation and followed the Son of God. Jesus showed up specifically to select Matthew and Matthew then chose to go along with this rag-tag group. It is so amazing because they were so unlike the group he had associated with in the past.
Our Lord, still loves lost people today. He is not here to harass them. The Bible is not a book that assaults people that are outside of the flow and not in the church. We are not called to harass people but to love them and tell them they matter to God. Jesus said He had come with the purpose of seeking and saving that which was lost. Most people that wake up lost do not do it on purpose. They are preoccupied with life. and they may have been misinformed about Jesus. Jesus our Lord is in the business of calling people out of the world and setting them free, washing them clean, and sending them forth into the world to be about His business - the business of the Kingdom.


Blessed be His Name,

Brown
http://http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DSKnkqAOhpA


Saturday evening worship service.
Location: First United Methodist Church. Endicott
53 McKinley Avenue , Endicott.
Sponsored by the Union Center United Methodist Church, 128, Maple Drive, Endicott

Saturday, January 8, 2011
6 PM Coffee Fellowship Gathering
6:30PM Worship Service.
Worship Leader: Rev. Earle Cowden
Worship Music: Aric Phinney and the band.
New Years Greetings by: Pastor Brown Naik
Message By Dave Hettinger

Saturday 15, 2011
6 PM Coffee and Gathering
6:30 PM Worship Service
Worship Music by a local worship Team, and Dave Berry
Speakers: Rev. Bill Turner,
Rev. Brown Naik,
and Dr. Elizabeth Droz, PhD, Dean of Students at Binghamton University