He’s already lined up what you need for your purpose and been working on what looks impossible to you.

Gospel Corner

04/09/25

Today’s Word
Today’s Scripture
Zacchaeus tried to get a look at Jesus, but he was too short to see over the crowd. So he ran ahead and climbed a sycamore-fig tree beside the road, for Jesus was going to pass that way.
Luke 19:3–4, NLT

Your Tree Is Already Planted
Sycamore trees can live for hundreds of years. Here’s how strategic God is. Long before Zacchaeus was born, God said, “I have to plant a tree here, because in a few hundred years, a crooked tax collector who needs My mercy will come here. This tree is going to be necessary for him to meet My Son who will bring him into his purpose.” That tree didn’t happen overnight. Generations back, God was thinking about Zacchaeus. It was from that vantage point that salvation came to Zacchaeus that very day.

There are blessings you’re going to come into that God has been working on for generations. You don’t have to worry about the right doors opening, the right people showing up, He’s already lined up what you need for your purpose and been working on what looks impossible to you. You’re goingr how you’ll overcome that heartache. God has already planted your tree. to come into something that you couldn’t make happen. It’s the hand of God moving you into your purpose. Rest in faith, knowing that God has it all lined up.

A Prayer for Today
“Father, thank You for the trees You’ve planted for me long ago and the blessings You’ve already lined up. Thank You for the people, the favor, and the promotion You’ve ordained to come across my path. I believe that You are directing my steps and orchestrating everything around me. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.”

The best way to know if you are embroiled in the things of the world is to be objective and ask yourself this: “Is my heart troubled?”

I believe that the number one killer in the modern world is stress. Medical doctors in my church have told me that if a patient has high blood pressure, they can advise the patient to cut down on sodium. They can also advise their patients to cut down on other excesses such as sugar or cholesterol. But as doctors, there is one thing that they cannot control in their patients, and that is their patients’ stress levels.

I personally believe that the physical root cause of many medical conditions today is stress. Stress can produce all kinds of imbalances in your body. It can cause you to age prematurely, give you rashes, cause gastric pains, and even lead to abnormal growths in your body. To put it succinctly, stress kills!

Doctors tell us that certain physical symptoms are “psychosomatic” in nature. That’s because these symptoms are brought about by psychological problems such as stress. Stress is not from God. Peace is from Him!

I trust that you are beginning to understand why Jesus said, “Peace I leave with you, My peace I give to you; not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid” (John 14:27).

Now, Jesus would not have used the word “peace.” The Greek New Testament renders “peace” as eirene, but since Jesus spoke Aramaic-Hebrew, He would have used the word “shalom”—”Shalom I leave with you, My shalom I give to you; not as the world gives do I give to you.”

In the Hebrew vernacular, “shalom” is a very rich and loaded word. There is no English word that can accurately encapsulate the fullness, richness, and power contained in the word “shalom.”

Hence, English Bible translators were only able to translate it as “peace.” But while the word “shalom” includes peace, it means so much more. Let’s look at the Brown Driver & Briggs Hebrew Lexicon to get a better idea of what Jesus meant when He said, “Shalom I leave with you.”

The Hebrew Lexicon describes “shalom” as completeness, safety, soundness (in body), welfare, health, prosperity, peace, quiet, tranquility, contentment, peace used of human relationships, and peace with God especially in our covenant relationship. Wow, what a powerful word!

This is the shalom that Jesus has bequeathed you: His completeness, His safety, His soundness, His welfare, His health, His prosperity, His peace, His quietness, His tranquility, His contentment, His peace in human relationships, as well as His peace with God through the covenant made at the cross. All these, my friend, are part of your inheritance in Christ today!

Can you picture the full implications of what it means to experience Jesus’ shalom in your life? Can you picture your life being free from regrets, anxieties, and worries? How healthy, vibrant, energetic, and strong you will be!

Thank Him for this blessing today and start enjoying Jesus’ shalom in every area of your life.