My soul is well pleased.

Today’s Scripture: Matthew 12:18, KJV- “Behold my servant, whom I have chosen; my beloved, in whom my soul is well pleased: I will put my spirit upon him, and he shall shew judgment to the Gentiles.”

Matthew 12:18, gives us the formula to know and feel God’s love. When we choose to love Jesus and delight in Him, we feel the Spirit of love within us. Isaiah knew it. Matthew knew it and we can know it.

The world today is divided because the hearts of humankind are divided. Matthew 12:25 states “But Jesus knew their thoughts, and said to them: “Every kingdom divided against itself is brought to desolation, and every city or house divided against itself will not stand.” (NKJV), Rarely do people think of seeking their pleasures in Jesus.

From the days of Isaiah, whom Matthew 12:18 was quoting, to today, if we want to be well pleased, we must turn to Jesus. In recovery and in life, most people do not want to hear that they only need Jesus to have their lives straightened out or to stop feeling the pain of living a divided life. Whether we want to hear it or not, the truth is that the pathway to peace is found in Jesus. When we receive the Holy Spirit that Jesus left for us, we experience the pleasures of the kingdom and the love of God.

Jesus told us in Matthew 12:30 that ““Whoever is not with me is against me, and whoever does not gather with me scatters.” We have certainly scattered in a million directions. Jesus also warned us in Matthew 12:32 that “Anyone who speaks a word against the Son of Man will be forgiven, but anyone who speaks against the Holy Spirit will not be forgiven, either in this age or in the age to come.”

We scatter because we do not seek to receive the Holy Spirit. Only in God’s Spirit do we find true pleasure. I find it interesting that only the King James Version of Matthew 12:33 states “a tree is known by his fruit.” All other translations say, “a tree is known by its fruit.” Our focus cannot be the tree but on God and His Spirit.

Matthew 12:34 says that “the mouth speaks what the heart is full of.” (NIV) Unfortunately, most hearts are full of our own ways and not God’s ways. It is also interesting that Jesus went next in Matthew 12:40 to the story of Jonah. Jonah resisted doing what God called him to do too because he just did not want to do it. His running away put him in the belly of a fish.

This story sounds unreal, yet we can witness, in real-time, the results of running away from God. We can run away from God, but true pleasure is found when we receive God’s Spirit into our souls. We do not find freedom by simply cleaning up our act.

My sponsor in recovery opened my eyes to Matthew 12:43-45, ““When an impure spirit comes out of a person, it goes through arid places seeking rest and does not find it. Then it says, ‘I will return to the house I left.’ When it arrives, it finds the house unoccupied, swept clean and put in order. Then it goes and takes with it seven other spirits more wicked than itself, and they go in and live there. And the final condition of that person is worse than the first. That is how it will be with this wicked generation.” (NIV)

When we invite the Spirit of God into our souls, we are well pleased and protected from those things that make us scatter. Where will you seek pleasure today?

Today’s Prayer: Father God, thank You for Your Spirit and for our Savior Jesus Christ. Thank You for creating us to experience Your pleasures. I am welcoming Your Spirit into my soul now and I am grateful to know Your love. Jesus, I accept You as my Lord and Savior and my soul is well pleased. Fill our hearts and souls with Your Spirit of love. Amen.