The Word
(Step 1): Amazed (Astonished)
Definition (Step 2): amazed - greatly
surprised; astonished. Astonished -
greatly surprised or impressed; amazed.
Discover
Bible Usage (Step 3):
o
attached
Scripture verses (Blue Letter Bible) amazed – 13x in 13 verses according
to lexicon; 40x in 40 verses in Blue Letter Bible search; astonished – 19x in
19 verses
o
(topical bible)
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Amazed (astonished) - “ἐκπλήσσω” (ek-place-o)
in Greek (Blue Letter Bible) – Strong’s G1605
o
(Vine Dictionary) Amaze,
Amazement - from ek,
"out of," plesso, "to strike," lit.,
"to strike out," signifies "to be exceedingly struck in mind, to
be astonished" (ek, intensive). The English
"astonish" should be used for this verb, and "amaze"
for existemi, as in the RV; see Mat 19:25; Luk 2:48; 9:43.
o
(Webster 1828 Dictionary) amazed – astonished,
confounded with fear, surprise or wonder.
Summary of
What I Learned (Step 4): Amazement doesn’t always lead to
worship! It sometimes leads to offense
and walking away! What??? When the people questioned, “Where did this
man get these things?’ “What is this
wisdom?” “What are these remarkable miracles He is performing?” Those were not
questions grounded in awe. They were
grounded in a lack of faith. Jesus was
amazed too: at their lack of faith! In
Luke 7:9, Jesus is also amazed at great faith!
Application
(Step 5): I want Jesus to be amazed at my faith, not the lack of it! This means I need to obey right away when He
alerts me to something. Like this
morning when my windshield wiper blade popped off. Instead of continuing to drive and praying
that it would still be there when I arrived at work or that it wouldn’t become
lodged in something that might really have damaged my vehicle, I should have
pulled over and dug it out from where it had fallen. Praise Jesus, it was right there under the
wiper arm! So, when I read something in
His word, or hear a sermon or a convicting song or testimony, I need to act on
it. I need to stop and contemplate and
allow myself “to be exceedingly struck in mind”. Then I need to pray and allow God to show me
how He wants me to implement that conviction!
Also, I want my amazement of Jesus to turn to worship, not
offense! This means I need to become
habitually thankful and praise Jesus for everything!!! I need to pray before reading His word that
He would WOW me! I want to encounter Him
in such a way that my breath is stolen from me!
I’m going to do that right now with my Sunday school lesson!
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