Bible Through the Year: Episode 50

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Week 50 Devotion

This week we are reading Paul’s second letter to the church at Corinth and if we thought the first one was tough, this second one is at least two times as awkward. In the first letter, Paul was writing to help the church understand their lives as Christians through the lens of the gospel. The church had come to know Christ and had embraced the gospel in their minds but they compartmentalized how that gospel affected their day to day lives. So, for 16 chapters we read along as Paul defined the problem that the church was dealing with and he showed them how the gospel helped them to address those problems.

But here in the second letter, we come to understand that some people didn’t care for what Paul had to say in the first. It’s almost as if a number of people in the church at Corinth read Paul’s letter and decided that he just didn’t know what he was talking about and these folks made the situation in the church even worse than it was before. So, Paul decided to come and visit them in person and it wasn’t pretty. In 2 Corinthians 2:1, Paul refers to this as “The Painful Visit” because apparently, he had to address the sins in the church again.

Now, you would think that the first letter coupled with the face to face visit would be enough to get things on track, but it wasn’t. Paul wrote a second letter to the church that was painful for him to write but he wrote it to make clear to the church that Paul truly loved them as brothers and sister in Christ, but we do not have a copy of this second letter.

The only additional letter that we have is what we call 2 Corinthians which is actually Paul’s third letter to the church and in this letter, Paul is still trying to help the church sort through their lack of understanding the gospel. They still don’t understand the role of the gospel in the world and in their lives. They are still struggling with what amounts to a popularity contest among their church leaders and they have allowed all of their problems keep them from engaging in the mission of the church. We will talk about this in a minute.

The other book we will be reading in this week is the book of Romans and this is perhaps the most important letter in the entire world. Ray Ortlund writes,

What is the most important book in the universe? The Bible. Which is the most important part of the Bible? The New Testament. Which is the most important document within that New Testament? Paul’s letter to the Romans. Therefore, Paul’s letter to the Romans is the most important document in the universe. And we have it here in our hands, and in good English translation too! Amazing.

I don’t think this is an overstatement. Paul’s letter to the Romans is the clearest and most thorough explanation of the gospel of Jesus Christ in the New Testament, in the world and this week we are going to read chapters 1-10.

Something to meditate on…

Here are the opening lines of this incredible book…

Romans 1:1 Paul, a servant of Christ Jesus, called to be an apostle, set apart for the gospel of God,  2 which he promised beforehand through his prophets in the holy Scriptures,  3 concerning his Son

There are three things in these verses that I want us to meditate on this week and the first is that the central message of this letter and of the Christian faith is the Gospel of God. The word gospel simply means good news. It is good in that it communicates to us what God has done to forgive us of sin and to reconcile us to Him. And it is news in that it is not something that everyone intrinsically knows; it must be revealed, proclaimed, preached and shared with one person to another. So, Paul refers to the good news of the Christian faith as the Gospel of God.

Now this phrase, Gospel of God, is in the genitive case, it is a noun of possession, which means that this gospel belongs to God. This is not man’s gospel, this is not Paul’s gospel; it is God’s gospel. He planned it, He promised that it would take place, He carried it out, He accomplishes His purpose in it, and He has preserved it to this day; the gospel belongs to God. For years men have tampered with it, tried to change it, tried to dress it up and improve on it, they have even tried to stamp it out completely; but God has preserved the gospel because it is His, it has a divine author.

The second thing I want us to meditate on this week is that the central message of the Christian faith is the Gospel of God which He promised in the Scriptures.

The gospel message, though a mystery to earlier generations, has not been a secret. God has been pointing to it all along the way. When Adam and Eve sinned in the Garden, God pointed to one who would come in the future and crush the head of the serpent to bring an end to the rebellion and usher in an age of peace between God and man. When the sin of mankind covered the earth bringing about God’s judgment at the time of the flood; God used a boat to point us to the one who would come and carry us safely through judgment and deposit us into a new land of peace.

When God’s people were in captivity in Egypt; God pointed to Christ by showing them that they would be saved and delivered from captivity by the blood of a lamb. Through the prophets, God promised time and again that one would come to suffer in our place so that by his stripes we would be healed of sin. Every prophet throughout all of scripture has been pointing us to the good news of God’s rescue mission. This gospel was promised in the Scriptures.

The third thing I want us to meditate on is that the central message of the Christian faith is the Gospel of God which He promised in the Scriptures concerning His Son.

Ultimately the OT Prophets were not pointing us to a plan; they were pointing us to a person. They weren’t pointing us to a military strategy; they were pointing us to a divine hero. And when the time came the Son of God, Jesus Christ, was born in human flesh. The hero the world had been waiting for came to us through the line of God’s anointed King David.

Galatians 4:4-5 But when the fullness of time had come, God sent forth his Son, born of woman, born under the law,  5 to redeem those who were under the law, so that we might receive adoption as sons.

This is the essence of the Gospel message. This is the central truth of the Christian faith that our salvation does not rest in our performance before God but in the person and work of Jesus Christ. The good news is not that through the law you can free yourself from sin, nor is it that through grace you are free to sin. The good news is that by trusting in Christ you are free from the power of sin and from the guilt of the law. Jesus is the centerpiece of the Christian message, not our goodness. Jesus is the centerpiece because the only way that we can have peace with God through a perfect sacrifice and Jesus is that perfect sacrifice. Our only hope is Him. 

Something to discuss…

In 2 Corinthians, Paul is still working to help the church understand some things about the Christian life and one of them is how Christ calls his people to engage in the mission of making disciples. Our Lord has commissioned us to bear the word/the message of our salvation to all the world.

2 Corinthians 5:17 Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come. 18 All this is from God, who through Christ reconciled us to himself and gave us the ministry of reconciliation; 19 that is, in Christ God was reconciling the world to himself, not counting their trespasses against them, and entrusting to us the message of reconciliation. 20 Therefore, we are ambassadors for Christ, God making his appeal to us. We implore you on behalf of Christ, be reconciled to God.

Paul calls us ambassadors for Christ and this means that we are to live our lives in this world as representatives of Christ, armed with the message of Christ, and imploring/pleading with others through that message to be reconciled to God.

Our mission as the church is to preach Christ crucified. Our mission is not to build giant buildings becoming the biggest church in the city. Our purpose is not to entertain our culture in the hopes that they will like us and join our team. Our mission is not to ensure that we cater to our members by treating them like consumers that we have to please. Our mission is to represent Jesus, the one who gave his life to save us from God’s wrath, by proclaiming the gospel here and wherever we may go in this world.

Like Paul says in 1 Corinthians 1:22-24,

22 For Jews demand signs and Greeks seek wisdom, 23 but we preach Christ crucified, a stumbling block to Jews and folly to Gentiles, 24 but to those who are called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God and the wisdom of God.

Our mission as a church in this stage of redemptive history is, “We preach Christ crucified!” We preach the gospel, we share the gospel, we teach the gospel, we talk about the gospel, we sing the gospel as the only means by which men can be reconciled to God.

The church at Corinth was a church that had lost its grip on this mission. Corinth was a church that tried to make a whole host of secondary issues into the primary mission of the church. They had begun to make it their mission to have the best and most dynamic leader, but in the end, they were making idols out of mere men and the church suffered for it. They wanted to be accepted by the Roman culture so they began to celebrate deviant sexual behavior as though it was praiseworthy, and the result was that Paul rebuked them for celebrating something that even the Roman’s considered immoral.

The Corinthians elevated one issue after another to a position of primacy, saying this is our mission and this is our purpose; but in the end, they were immoral, idolatrous, immature and Paul rebuked them over and over. Why did this happen? Because they had lost sight of their mission? And Paul had to remind them, “We preach Christ crucified!” Don’t spend your energy fighting to look like the world. Don’t waste your time pursuing things that will not last. Spend yourselves in the ministry to which you have been called, “Preach the gospel.”

How many times have we seen this happen in the church? It starts out as a small thing but over time something other than the gospel takes center stage. It may be a new book, or a new teaching, or a ministry opportunity that has grown to the point that the church is defined by it and in the end, you have a church that has lost sight of the mission of making disciples.

Something to pray about…

Is there anything more important for us to pray about as a church than that we are engaged in the mission that God has given to us? Let’s take time this week and do just that. Let’s pray that God would burden us for the lost people in our lives. Let’s pray that God would help us to be bold to speak the truth about man’s sin and Christ’s love to those around us. Let’s pray for God to help us stay focused on our primary mission of making disciples rather than allowing us to spend all of our time on secondary pursuits.

 
 

Bible Through the Year: Episode 49

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Week 49 Devotion

This week we are reading Paul’s second letter to the church at Corinth and if we thought the first one was tough, this second one is at least two times as awkward. In the first letter, Paul was writing to help the church understand their lives as Christians through the lens of the gospel. The church had come to know Christ and had embraced the gospel in their minds but they compartmentalized how that gospel affected their day to day lives. So, for 16 chapters we read along as Paul defined the problem that the church was dealing with and he showed them how the gospel helped them to address those problems.

But here in the second letter, we come to understand that some people didn’t care for what Paul had to say in the first. It’s almost as if a number of people in the church at Corinth read Paul’s letter and decided that he just didn’t know what he was talking about and these folks made the situation in the church even worse than it was before. So, Paul decided to come and visit them in person and it wasn’t pretty. In 2 Corinthians 2:1, Paul refers to this as “The Painful Visit” because apparently, he had to address the sins in the church again.

Now, you would think that the first letter coupled with the face to face visit would be enough to get things on track, but it wasn’t. Paul wrote a second letter to the church that was painful for him to write but he wrote it to make clear to the church that Paul truly loved them as brothers and sister in Christ, but we do not have a copy of this second letter.

The only additional letter that we have is what we call 2 Corinthians which is actually Paul’s third letter to the church and in this letter, Paul is still trying to help the church sort through their lack of understanding the gospel. They still don’t understand the role of the gospel in the world and in their lives. They are still struggling with what amounts to a popularity contest among their church leaders and they have allowed all of their problems keep them from engaging in the mission of the church. We will talk about this in a minute.

The other book we will be reading in this week is the book of Romans and this is perhaps the most important letter in the entire world. Ray Ortlund writes,

What is the most important book in the universe? The Bible. Which is the most important part of the Bible? The New Testament. Which is the most important document within that New Testament? Paul’s letter to the Romans. Therefore, Paul’s letter to the Romans is the most important document in the universe. And we have it here in our hands, and in good English translation too! Amazing.

I don’t think this is an overstatement. Paul’s letter to the Romans is the clearest and most thorough explanation of the gospel of Jesus Christ in the New Testament, in the world and this week we are going to read chapters 1-10.

Something to meditate on…

Here are the opening lines of this incredible book…

Romans 1:1 Paul, a servant of Christ Jesus, called to be an apostle, set apart for the gospel of God,  2 which he promised beforehand through his prophets in the holy Scriptures,  3 concerning his Son

There are three things in these verses that I want us to meditate on this week and the first is that the central message of this letter and of the Christian faith is the Gospel of God. The word gospel simply means good news. It is good in that it communicates to us what God has done to forgive us of sin and to reconcile us to Him. And it is news in that it is not something that everyone intrinsically knows; it must be revealed, proclaimed, preached and shared with one person to another. So, Paul refers to the good news of the Christian faith as the Gospel of God.

Now this phrase, Gospel of God, is in the genitive case, it is a noun of possession, which means that this gospel belongs to God. This is not man’s gospel, this is not Paul’s gospel; it is God’s gospel. He planned it, He promised that it would take place, He carried it out, He accomplishes His purpose in it, and He has preserved it to this day; the gospel belongs to God. For years men have tampered with it, tried to change it, tried to dress it up and improve on it, they have even tried to stamp it out completely; but God has preserved the gospel because it is His, it has a divine author.

The second thing I want us to meditate on this week is that the central message of the Christian faith is the Gospel of God which He promised in the Scriptures.

The gospel message, though a mystery to earlier generations, has not been a secret. God has been pointing to it all along the way. When Adam and Eve sinned in the Garden, God pointed to one who would come in the future and crush the head of the serpent to bring an end to the rebellion and usher in an age of peace between God and man. When the sin of mankind covered the earth bringing about God’s judgment at the time of the flood; God used a boat to point us to the one who would come and carry us safely through judgment and deposit us into a new land of peace.

When God’s people were in captivity in Egypt; God pointed to Christ by showing them that they would be saved and delivered from captivity by the blood of a lamb. Through the prophets, God promised time and again that one would come to suffer in our place so that by his stripes we would be healed of sin. Every prophet throughout all of scripture has been pointing us to the good news of God’s rescue mission. This gospel was promised in the Scriptures.

The third thing I want us to meditate on is that the central message of the Christian faith is the Gospel of God which He promised in the Scriptures concerning His Son.

Ultimately the OT Prophets were not pointing us to a plan; they were pointing us to a person. They weren’t pointing us to a military strategy; they were pointing us to a divine hero. And when the time came the Son of God, Jesus Christ, was born in human flesh. The hero the world had been waiting for came to us through the line of God’s anointed King David.

Galatians 4:4-5 But when the fullness of time had come, God sent forth his Son, born of woman, born under the law,  5 to redeem those who were under the law, so that we might receive adoption as sons.

This is the essence of the Gospel message. This is the central truth of the Christian faith that our salvation does not rest in our performance before God but in the person and work of Jesus Christ. The good news is not that through the law you can free yourself from sin, nor is it that through grace you are free to sin. The good news is that by trusting in Christ you are free from the power of sin and from the guilt of the law. Jesus is the centerpiece of the Christian message, not our goodness. Jesus is the centerpiece because the only way that we can have peace with God through a perfect sacrifice and Jesus is that perfect sacrifice. Our only hope is Him. 

Something to discuss…

In 2 Corinthians, Paul is still working to help the church understand some things about the Christian life and one of them is how Christ calls his people to engage in the mission of making disciples. Our Lord has commissioned us to bear the word/the message of our salvation to all the world.

2 Corinthians 5:17 Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come. 18 All this is from God, who through Christ reconciled us to himself and gave us the ministry of reconciliation; 19 that is, in Christ God was reconciling the world to himself, not counting their trespasses against them, and entrusting to us the message of reconciliation. 20 Therefore, we are ambassadors for Christ, God making his appeal to us. We implore you on behalf of Christ, be reconciled to God.

Paul calls us ambassadors for Christ and this means that we are to live our lives in this world as representatives of Christ, armed with the message of Christ, and imploring/pleading with others through that message to be reconciled to God.

Our mission as the church is to preach Christ crucified. Our mission is not to build giant buildings becoming the biggest church in the city. Our purpose is not to entertain our culture in the hopes that they will like us and join our team. Our mission is not to ensure that we cater to our members by treating them like consumers that we have to please. Our mission is to represent Jesus, the one who gave his life to save us from God’s wrath, by proclaiming the gospel here and wherever we may go in this world.

Like Paul says in 1 Corinthians 1:22-24,

22 For Jews demand signs and Greeks seek wisdom, 23 but we preach Christ crucified, a stumbling block to Jews and folly to Gentiles, 24 but to those who are called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God and the wisdom of God.

Our mission as a church in this stage of redemptive history is, “We preach Christ crucified!” We preach the gospel, we share the gospel, we teach the gospel, we talk about the gospel, we sing the gospel as the only means by which men can be reconciled to God.

The church at Corinth was a church that had lost its grip on this mission. Corinth was a church that tried to make a whole host of secondary issues into the primary mission of the church. They had begun to make it their mission to have the best and most dynamic leader, but in the end, they were making idols out of mere men and the church suffered for it. They wanted to be accepted by the Roman culture so they began to celebrate deviant sexual behavior as though it was praiseworthy, and the result was that Paul rebuked them for celebrating something that even the Roman’s considered immoral.

The Corinthians elevated one issue after another to a position of primacy, saying this is our mission and this is our purpose; but in the end, they were immoral, idolatrous, immature and Paul rebuked them over and over. Why did this happen? Because they had lost sight of their mission? And Paul had to remind them, “We preach Christ crucified!” Don’t spend your energy fighting to look like the world. Don’t waste your time pursuing things that will not last. Spend yourselves in the ministry to which you have been called, “Preach the gospel.”

How many times have we seen this happen in the church? It starts out as a small thing but over time something other than the gospel takes center stage. It may be a new book, or a new teaching, or a ministry opportunity that has grown to the point that the church is defined by it and in the end, you have a church that has lost sight of the mission of making disciples.

Something to pray about…

Is there anything more important for us to pray about as a church than that we are engaged in the mission that God has given to us? Let’s take time this week and do just that. Let’s pray that God would burden us for the lost people in our lives. Let’s pray that God would help us to be bold to speak the truth about man’s sin and Christ’s love to those around us. Let’s pray for God to help us stay focused on our primary mission of making disciples rather than allowing us to spend all of our time on secondary pursuits.

 

 
 

Bible Through the Year: Episode 48

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Week 48 Devotion

This week we will once again be reading in the book of Acts, and this week we are going to see be able to zoom in on one of the cities that Paul and Silas come to as missionaries. As we begin Acts 17 we see Paul and Silas bring the gospel to the city of Thessalonica and while many people believe in Christ there are quite a few others who begin to attack the new believers in that city. The situation gets heated and Paul has to leave the city in the middle of the night.

Now that’s all we see in the book of Acts, but we will also be reading the 2 letters that Paul wrote to the church in that city and this helps us to get a complete picture of how the gospel not only changed the lives of these people but also gave them hope despite the persecution they were experiencing.

Next, we will be reading Paul’s letter to the church in the city of Corinth. In Acts 18 Paul arrived in this city and the same thing happens in this city. Some believed the gospel and some despised the gospel. Persecution broke out, Paul left the city to continue his missionary work and then he wrote several letters back to the church to help them grow in their understanding and application of the gospel.

We will finish our reading in Acts 19 where we see Paul spends some time in the city of Ephesus and you might have guessed that there are two responses to his ministry. Some believed the gospel and others despised the gospel and its messengers. In this case, a riot breaks out and once again Paul is forced to leave the city. But in his letter to the church, we learn more about them and more about the gospel as well.

Something to meditate on…

The city of Corinth was a major port city in the ancient world, which made it a center of both economic and religious influence. Paul came to Corinth in Acts 18 and when he arrived in the city he met Priscilla and Aquila, who not only believed in Jesus but also joined Paul on his later missionary journeys. Paul spent a year and a half in the city of Corinth and during that time He tried to share the gospel with the Jews, but in the end, he spent most of his time evangelizing the Gentiles.

It was great that these Gentiles were coming to trust in Christ but their pagan background proved to be a real problem for them. So after Paul left the city of Corinth he wrote several letters helping them to understand how the gospel of Jesus Christ impacted every part of life from how we view our leaders, to the questions about sex and sexuality, to food and church, and finally how we view the resurrection of Jesus and what life will be like in eternity.

In this letter, Paul follows a very simple pattern of defining the problem that the church has and then responding to how the gospel informs the issue. The main problem the church has is understanding how the gospel shapes every single part of our lives and what Paul does throughout the book is to show how these new Christians need to grow and mature in their faith. Over and over again, Paul uses the metaphor of physical maturity as a way to show the need for Christians to move away from spiritual childhood and into maturity as a follower of Christ.

Here are a few passages that show Paul’s use of this in the book:

1 Corinthians 3:1-2 So, brothers and sisters, I could not speak to you as spiritual people, but instead as people of the flesh, as infants in Christ.  2 I fed you milk, not solid food, for you were not yet ready. In fact, you are still not ready,

1 Corinthians 13:11 When I was a child, I talked like a child, I thought like a child, I reasoned like a child. But when I became an adult, I set aside childish ways.

1 Corinthians 14:20 Brothers and sisters, do not be children in your thinking. Instead, be infants in evil, but in your thinking, be mature.

1 Corinthians 16:13 Be watchful, stand firm in the faith, act like men, be strong.

So what’s the point? Well, I think one point that we can take away from 1 Corinthians is that each believer has the responsibility to grow in our faith. We aren’t called by God to remain like little children. We should have a childlike faith but not a childish faith. We need to grow in our understanding of who Christ is, of what He has done and how we should live in light of His gospel.

The gospel of Jesus is an announcement about Jesus and the new reality that He has opened up to us and we are personally called to trust in Him and to walk in obedience to Him. This means that you must take this responsibility upon yourself and move away from spiritual childhood and into spiritual maturity.

So, ask yourself these questions: What would you identify as areas of your life where you need to grow in your understanding and obedience to Christ? What specific doctrines or issues do you need to study so that you can have a better understanding? Where are you still struggling with sin and how can you equip yourself to address that sin with Scripture and maturity?

Now there are several ways that we can grow and they include things like prayer, Bible study, learning from other more mature Christians, and faithful participation in the local church. Maybe you need or desire more specific discipleship or mentoring. Maybe you should pick up a book on the subject (s) you have identified. Seek help in this task but understand that if you are a child of God, your Lord has called you to pursue growth in your life of faith.

Something to discuss…

There is so much that can be talked about as we read through the book of Acts, but this week I want us to discuss more of what we see taking place from the thousand-foot view. On the ground, we see the gospel spreading into people’s lives. We see Jews and Gentiles coming to faith, we see the church growing and spreading, we see persecution increasing in every city; but if we get up above the day to day movement of the gospel we see something amazing taking place.

We see the message of Jesus spreading throughout the earth. We see the Kingdom of God coming down on earth as it is in heaven. We see Jesus and the spirit and the church grew from a mustard seed into a tree where birds from all over the earth are finding a branch to make a nest. In just a few short years the disciples of Jesus have grown from being a small group of mostly-Jewish followers of Christ in the city of Jerusalem to be a multi-ethnic and international movement…and it is still spreading.

When the disciples were kicked out of Jerusalem they established Antioch as a base of operations and from there Paul and Silas went out on at least 3 missionary journeys. They took the gospel to Asia and Greece and before you know it the gospel will spread all the way to Rome. Christ said this would happen and it has.

The church remains to this day a spreading movement of Christ followers who share the good news in word and deed, who gather into multi-ethnic communities where all people are equal. Men and women, black and white, rich and poor, young and old are all precious in the sight of God and are called brothers and sisters in the family of God. This gospel is incredible and it continues in our own day.

So take some time as you read the details of the book of Acts, to back up and realize that God is changing the world through His gospel. He is creating a diverse community that the world has never seen and still can’t understand. Remember that you are part of this story and God has a chapter to write with your life.

Something to pray about…

One of the interesting things about Paul’s first letter to the church in Thessalonica is that each chapter concludes with the theme of the second coming of Christ (1:10; 2:19; 3:13; 4:17; 5:23). The theme of the Jesus’ return runs throughout this hope-filled letter, and this is an important theme for us as well. Sometimes Christian overemphasize the second coming but we can be just as guilty of under-emphasizing it as well. This letter helps us to remember and stay focused on the fact that Jesus is going to return to this earth one day and this not only gives us hope but also it means that we should live each day like it is our last.

Another theme in this book is that of prayer. In fact, there are three prayers that tie this whole book together. In chapter 1:1-5 we see Paul’s opening prayer of thanks to God for the faith, love and hope that these Christian’s have. Next in chapter 3:11-13 Paul prays that the believers would increase or grow in that love for one another, in their holiness and in their hope in the second coming of Jesus. Finally, in chapter 5:23-28 Paul prays for God to keep the believers blameless in soul and body as they await the coming of the Lord Jesus Christ.

So, here’s what I want to encourage you to pray this week; pray through these passages and give thanks to God for how He has granted you faith in Christ, love for others and hope in Christ’s return. Pray that God would increase your love, your personal holiness and your hope in Christ’s return. Finally pray that God would keep you faithful, preserving your body and soul for the day of Christ’s return.

 

 
 

Bible Through the Year: Episode 47

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Week 47 Devotion

This week we will continue reading the book of Acts, which is a continuation of the gospel of Luke. In fact, the books of Luke and Acts are really two parts of one unified story about what Jesus began to do and to teach (Luke) and what Jesus continued to do through His followers throughout the world (Acts). This is a fascinating book that shows how the gospel of Jesus spread from Jerusalem to Judea, from Judea to Samaria, and then to the very ends of the earth.

Next, we will be reading the book of James, who was the half-brother of Jesus and also the man who became a “pillar” in the church in Jerusalem. If you read the book of Acts chapters 12-15 you will see James in action and you will also read about his death at the hands of persecutors in Jerusalem. This book is heavily influenced by Jesus’ Sermon on the Mount and it serves as a strong encouragement for the followers of Jesus to live out their faith in very practical ways.

Finally, this week we will also be reading the book of Galatians which is one of the Apostles Paul’s letters to a church that is really struggling to keep the gospel of God’s free grace at the center of their faith. A problem has risen in this church and it comes in the form of a group of teachers who are teaching that in order to be the true people of God Gentile Christians must obey the Torah, especially the commands to be circumcised, to eat kosher and to keep the holy days. Paul writes this letter to make it clear that salvation comes to those who trust in Christ by faith and not by works of the law. He then explains one of the purposes of the law and helps the church understand how the Spirit brings transformation in the lives of God’s people

Something to meditate on…

The opening chapter of the book of Acts sets up our expectation of what we will read about in the chapters that follow. In chapter 1, Jesus is still with the Apostles and He has spent the last 40 days teaching them about the Kingdom of God but the time has come for Jesus to go back to the Father. Before He ascends back into Heaven, Jesus tells the apostles that they are about to receive the power that Jesus promised them.

In John 13-16, Jesus promised His friends that the day was coming when they would receive the Holy Spirit who would bring to their memory all the things that Jesus had taught them and would bring conviction of sin and righteousness to the world. But here in Acts 1 Jesus lets them know that the Holy Spirit is also going to give them the power they would need to accomplish their mission. They are going to bear witness to Jesus and His gospel in Jerusalem, then in Judea and Samaria, and finally to the very ends of the earth.

The gospel of the Kingdom is going to spread out and bear fruit in all the world. That’s what we see taking place in this book. The Holy Spirit falls on the day of Pentecost filling the followers of Jesus with power and with miraculous gifts. Those people who are filled with the Spirit begin to bear witness to the gospel and the peoples need of salvation through faith in Christ. When new people believe it not only changes their lives but it begins to also change the city where they live. This change makes some people glad but it also angers others and this leads to the church being persecuted. But this persecution doesn’t stop the preaching of the gospel it only serves to intensify it.

This is the story of the book of Acts and we will see this cycle take place over and over again until the end of the book. What began in Jerusalem with just a handful of Jewish Christians ends in the city of Rome where Paul awaits an audience with the Emperor. The book comes to a close with no real ending because there is no end in sight for the powerful spread of the gospel in the world. Our lives today are a continuation of the story that Luke began in the 1st century and God has called us to live out our part of the story as we allow the gospel to spread in and through us today.

Something to discuss…

The book of James is considered by many to be in the same tradition as the wisdom literature in the Old Testament because at times it reads like the Proverbs. In fact, it seems clear that the two main influences on James’ writings were the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus summary of the Torah, and the book of Proverbs.

But some have also worried that James might not be emphasizing the gospel of grace as clearly as other New Testament authors. Some have even suggested that James contradicts Paul’s message of justification by faith alone. But I don’t think the main burden of James’ letter is to develop our doctrine of sanctification, rather he is emphasizing how the gospel affects our lives. He isn’t focusing on gospel doctrine so much as he is focusing on living a life that bears the fruit of gospel transformation.

His point is not to convince us that we are saved by faith alone, but that real faith will never stand alone. Real faith works. It moves us. It changes us and gets us on our feet to fuel our love for God and for our neighbor. The gospel teaches us how to love others, how to care for the poor, the widows and the orphans. The gospel teaches us to value spiritual wealth more than material wealth. The gospel teaches us to guard our words, to mourn indwelling sin and to live each day like it is our last.

This short book is helping us to understand what it means for us to live as wholehearted, grace transformed followers of Jesus. This book doesn’t contradict the gospel of free grace, it complements it and shows us that true faith in Christ is the root that leads to fruit in our Christian life. Take some time this week to discuss how Jesus teaching in the Sermon on the Mount is influencing James’ writing. Discuss how genuine faith serves to motivate the kind of obedience that James is encouraging in this book.

Something to pray about…

The book of Galatians is the earliest letter of Paul and it shows us that it didn’t take long for legalism to become a real threat to the gospel in the churches. Paul begins this letter by voicing his astonishment that the Christians in Galatia have so quickly abandoned the gospel of salvation by grace alone. He spends the rest of the letter dismantling the legalism that is being promoted by those within the church.

In this book, Paul is going to help us understand one of the purposes of the law and he is going to help us to stop trusting in ourselves for salvation. Jesus alone can save us from sin and keep us in the favor of God.

We may think that we are beyond this kind of legalism but I don’t think we are completely free from it. Legalism lives in our hearts. It shows itself time and again. We are naturally bent toward the belief that in order for others to love us we must do something to earn that love.  We are naturally bent to think that in order for God to love us, we must make ourselves lovable. But the gospel seeks to destroy the natural bent of our hearts.

The gospel teaches us that, “while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.” The gospel tells us that God loved us before the foundation of the world. The gospel is a testimony to the fact that God’s love for us is not a response to our loveliness but is a product of God’s gracious and merciful heart.

As we read through the book of Galatians this week lets pray that God would let the authority, impact, and power of the gospel destroy the roots of legalism that live in us. Let’s pray that the grace of God would overwhelm our hearts again.

 

 
 

Bible Through the Year: Episode 46

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Week 46 Devotion

This week we read the climax of the gospels, which also happens to be the climax of the entire Bible. This week we will look on as Jesus is betrayed, stands trial, receives the sentence of death, and suffers that sentence to finality. But the story of Jesus didn’t begin with His birth in Bethlehem and His story doesn’t end with His burial in Jerusalem. Three days after dying and being placed in a borrowed tomb, Jesus rose from the dead.

This week we are going to read about Jesus crucifixion, His death and burial, His triumphant resurrection and the mission that He has given to His disciples.

Something to meditate on from Luke 23:26-43…

With the trial over the only thing left to do is to carry out Jesus’ punishment and Luke chooses to leave out some of the details in how that took place. For instance, we see nothing about Jesus being scourged in Luke’s account but there is no doubt that it took place. Matthew, Mark, and John tell us that upon Pilate’s orders Jesus was scourged before being crucified.

The scourge was a particularly brutal form of flogging that consisted of a short wooden handled whip to which several leather straps were attached. These straps were often embedded with pieces of lead, brass or even bone so that when the thongs came into contact with the victim these pieces would pierce and grab the flesh and when pulled would cause terrible lacerations.

Scourging was often administered by two men (soldiers) who would stand on either side of the criminal whose hands were tied together and stretched over his head to expose his entire midsection to the abuse of the whip. The effect on the body was horrific and it was common for people to die from the scourge itself.

When Pilate’s soldiers finished scourging Jesus they took him into the Roman military barracks or Praetorium where they proceeded to mock him in front of an entire battalion of soldiers (600). They put a scarlet robe on his back, placed a crown of thorns on his head, and placed a wooden scepter in His hands and then knelt in front of Jesus mocking Him for claiming to be the King of the Jews.

Now that the soldiers have had their fun with Jesus they begin to lead Him away to Calvary’s Hill just outside the city gates. But Jesus weakened by the scourge is unable to carry His cross any further. The Roman practice was to place the crossbeam on the back of condemned criminals, a sign bearing their name and crime was hung around their neck, and they were made to walk to the place of their crucifixion. This was done to increase their humiliation.

 But Jesus is too weak to finish the journey so the Roman soldiers seize Simon and place the cross on him. The fact that the soldiers make Simon finish the task is not a sign of mercy or pity for Jesus, instead, it shows that the Romans themselves wouldn’t think of carrying a criminal’s cross.

Crucifixion was a means of capital punishment used by Romans but they saw it as despicable as well. The very word crucifixion was hardly spoken of in polite Roman society. No one survived crucifixion. The purpose of the cross was a painful, agonizing and humiliating death, which would serve to deter others from committing similar crimes.

So why did Jesus, the Son of God, suffer and die on the cross? Jesus Christ died for our sins. Jesus didn’t die for His sin He died for our sins. He died in the place of sinners to pay the penalty that our sin deserved. He took our place and paid our debt. He became our substitute and the Lord has laid on Him the sin of us all (Is 53:6).

In God’s righteous judgment He has determined that the just penalty for sin is death and that without the shedding of blood there is no forgiveness of sins. And we are all sinners who have fallen short of the glory of God. Sin is any transgression of the law of God and we are guilty because we have sinned times without number. And our dilemma is this; there is no way that we can stop sinning and there is no way that we can possibly atone for our sins. Our sin condemns us before a holy and righteous God.

But Christ’s death upon this horrible cross means life for you and me.

2 Peter 2:24 He himself bore our sins in his body on the tree, that we might die to sin and live to righteousness. By his wounds, you have been healed.

Christ died, not to pay the penalty for his own sin, but to pay the penalty for our sin.

What an end to the life of Christ. This man who turned the world upside down is dying on a Roman cross between two thieves. This man who wielded supernatural power has now yielded up His life to atone for our sin. This man who once debated and silenced the rulers has now refused to answer their insults. Behold, the silent Lamb of God who willingly gave His life and suffered so that we could be set free

Something to discuss from Luke 22:14-23…

Earlier in the week, Jesus made His entry into Jerusalem, not simply to eat the Passover lamb, but to be the True Passover Lamb. He has come into Jerusalem to celebrate the Passover not because He needs to be covered by the blood of a lamb, but because He is the lamb whose blood will save all of God’s people from judgment. But before He gives up His body and blood as a sacrifice He is going to celebrate with His friends one last time.

All the preparations have been made in the days leading up to this meal. The room was secured. The Passover lamb had been selected. The food has been prepared and now Jesus and the 12 have begun to take their seats around the table.

Jesus took the position of host at this table, which means that He is in the one who will lead them through this meal and teach them about the Passover events along the way. The Passover meal was a time when the people of God would look back and remember how God had delivered them from slavery in Egypt. It was a memorial meal designed to remind Israel of God’s mercy, God’s justice and God’s power.

The meal itself would be broken into 7 parts:

An opening prayer of Thanksgiving was offered by the Head of the house (host) and the first cup of wine was offered to those at table. Jesus does this in verses 17.

Bitter herbs were eaten as a reminder of the bitterness of Israel’s slavery in Egypt.

A child would ask, “Why is this night distinguished from all other nights?” and then the father or host would tell the Passover story.

Psalms 113 and 114 would be sung, the first part of the Hallel, and this would be followed by the washing of hands and the second cup would be passed.

The lamb was served together with unleavened bread and the backdrop of this meal was explained through Exodus 12-13, which describes the night of the Passover. The night when God sent the destroyer, the Jews were set apart because their homes were covered by the blood of the lamb. The unleavened bread was a reminder that they had to be ready to leave in haste the next morning.

The last thing to be eaten was the lamb and then the third cup would be passed.

Finally, they would sing again the last part of the Hallel (Psalm 115-118) and the fourth cup was served.

This is what Jesus and His disciples were set to do on this night. He reclined at table on this night after years of waiting and He led His disciples through the Passover meal, following the tradition of the Jews, but at certain points, he changed the script.

V. 19 And he took bread, and when he had given thanks, he broke it and gave it to them, saying, "This is my body, which is given for you. Do this in remembrance of me."  20 And likewise, the cup after they had eaten, saying, "This cup that is poured out for you is the new covenant in my blood…”

Jesus broke script when He picked up a thin slice of unleavened bread and started to break it up and give it to His disciples. He told them that it was His body, a symbol of His body to remind them of His sacrifice. He told them that they were to do this, in the future, and when they do they are to remember Him.

He picked up the cup, the third cup, and he passed it to them telling them that this cup marked the New Covenant sealed by His blood.

 In Matthew 26 we read this, “27 And he took a cup, and when he had given thanks he gave it to them, saying, “Drink of it, all of you, 28 for this is my blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many for the forgiveness of sins.”

Jesus changes everything. Not only has he changed the Passover script; He has forever changed the way we understand the Passover. The lambs used in Egypt and for thousands of years after the Exodus where all pointing to One Final Lamb whose sacrifice would put an end to all sacrifice.

Heb 10:11 And every priest stands daily at his service, offering repeatedly the same sacrifices, which can never take away sins. 12 But when Christ had offered for all time a single sacrifice for sins, he sat down at the right hand of God, 13 waiting from that time until his enemies should be made a footstool for his feet. 14 For by a single offering he has perfected for all time those who are being sanctified.

The Lord ’s Supper is for us a celebration of the completed work of Christ. The Supper is a reminder that a New Covenant has been struck between God and His people and it is secured by blood that cannot fail. The Supper is a memorial of the broken body and the shed blood of Jesus that purchased forgiveness and eternal life for all those who believe. Each time we eat the bread and drink this cup we remember the Lord Jesus Christ and we are reminded again of his sustaining grace.

Something to pray about from Matthew 26:36-46…

Even at the last hour, Jesus is still teaching us and this time He is teaching us how to pray in times of trouble. Here He tells them to pray that they may not enter into temptation. Pray for the enemy to be held at bay. Pray to the Father to keep you strong though temptation is present.

In the immediate context, Jesus is probably warning the disciples, especially Peter, against the coming threat of denying Christ and abandoning Him. If Peter was ever going to be serious about prayer it might be now since Jesus just told him that before the night is over he will deny the Lord three times. But this has little impact on the disciples and before long they fall asleep.

But in the overarching context of the Christian life, there is a need for us to pray to the Father to keep us from temptation. We need help to live by faith and our help comes from the Lord. Yes, there is a need for us to be wise as we face trials. Yes, there is a need for us to have counselors and accountability as we face temptations, but there is an even greater need for us to pray for God to protect us, to help us and to keep us from temptation.

We see an example of this in Jesus’ own prayer.

“Father, if you are willing, remove this cup from me. Nevertheless, not my will, but yours, be done.”

The temptation is to find an easier route. The temptation is to give in to fear and to abandon the cross, but at the same time Jesus asks for the strength to submit Himself to the Father’s will. In this prayer Jesus asks for two things: 1. Remove this cup from me, 2. Let Your will be done. Jesus is open and completely honest with God. He made His desires known, but in the end, He is absolutely committed to the Father’s will.

Oh, that we might grow to such godly confidence and selfless love that we will abandon our own comfort for the sake of God’s will and the good of others. Dear Christian don’t, fall asleep when temptation is crouching at the door, but stay awake and pray. Cry out for God’s protection.

 

 
 
 

Bible Through the Year: Episode 45

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Week 45 Devotion

As we continue reading in the gospels this week we are going to see Jesus closing in on the cross. He has some final instructions to give to the disciples, some final warnings to let them know about, and then the cross will come. This week we will be reading about those last-minute details that Jesus wants his friends to know about. So let’s get right into it.

Something to meditate on…

One of the things that Jesus wants His friends to be prepared for has to do with what is going to happen to the city of Jerusalem and more specifically what is going to happen to the Temple.

For three years the disciples have followed Jesus around in the small towns and villages along the Jordan River valley. They spent one long period of time in the fishing village of Capernaum which sat on the shore of the Sea of Galilee, but most of their time together has been spent on the road marked by small towns filled with hard-working farmers and shepherds. These towns were little more than a well of water surrounded by small stone and mud houses. On the rare occasion, they might come to a small city with a standing market and a well-built synagogue.

But now they have made their way to the city of Jerusalem, which is a feast for the eyes by comparison to the little villages they are accustomed to and at the center of this city stood one of the wonders of the ancient world, the Temple of Yahweh. At this time, the temple is in the process of being rebuilt by Herod the Great who kicked off a temple-rebuilding program that lasted more than 80 years. His plan was to enlarge the temple and to adorn it with such materials that it would become a wonder of the ancient world, and he succeeded.

Herod’s temple was magnificent in every way. It was twice the size of Solomon’s temple and it was arguably more beautiful. The stone Herod used was white marble and some of them could be as large as 67 feet long, 12 feet high and 18 feet wide. These were massive stones and many of them can still be seen today. The visual appeal of the temple was absolutely stunning.

As you approached the outer wall you would see rows of white marble pillars, silver-plated gates, and gold-plated doors. Golden adornments were attached to the structure itself and when the sun shone on these golden plates Josephus said that the temple would flash like a “snow-clad mountain.”

For Jesus disciples, this is easily the most magnificent structure they have ever seen, but Jesus is going to let them know that the size and beauty of this temple will not be enough to keep it from being completely destroyed.

Luke 21:5 And while some were speaking of the temple, how it was adorned with noble stones and offerings, he said, 6 “As for these things that you see, the days will come when there will not be left here one stone upon another that will not be thrown down.”

The temple will stand for less than 40 years before Rome destroys it, the city around it and the nation of Israel as a political unit. To the Jews there was little doubt that the destruction of Jerusalem and the Temple could mean only one thing, the end of the world, but Jesus lets them know that this is just the beginning.

The destruction of the temple was not a mistake. God intended that it be brought down and along with it a shift would take place in how we relate to God. The temple system is no more and this means that the sacrifice for sins, which reconciles us to God has been made. Jesus’ sacrifice means that our debt has been paid, one offering to satisfy the massive debt of sin that is owed by all those who believe.

The Temple system is no more and this means that the priests who mediated between man and God, are no longer necessary. A true and better High Priest has taken up the charge. Jesus stood in the gap between God and man on the cross and He now stands in the gap mediating and giving us access to God.

The Temple itself is no more and in its place, stands the church, the body of Christ, and the Spirit of God dwell in us as the tangible presence of God on earth. 

The Temple is no more; Christ has taken its place. You can’t trust in a system to save you; your salvation is a person. You can’t trust in a priest to bring you to God, unless that priest is Jesus Himself. There is no sacrifice that you can make that will wash away your sin and clothe you with righteousness, only Christ can do that.

Something to discuss from Matthew 23…

A strange thing has happened in our culture and in the church and it has to do with our understanding of the love of Jesus. Some people have assumed that since Jesus loves us that He would never say anything to us that would challenge our way of life. Some people have assumed that because Jesus loves us He will basically turn a blind eye to our sin. They have assumed that since Jesus is love He will not confront us over sin or call us to repentance.

This idea has had a massive negative impact on the church and many of us have seen its effect. Church leaders no longer want to call sin what it is. Pastors and church leaders refuse to practice anything resembling church discipline, or even to offer sound Biblical counsel to their people who are caught up in sin.

What has happened is that instead of viewing the love of Jesus through the lens of Scripture we have begun to view the love of Jesus through our own cultural lens and we have made a god out of love. So people will say things like, “It is not Christ-like to rebuke someone for sin?” The media will seek to defame any Christian who speaks clearly about sin. What has happened is that we have lost any truly Biblical understanding of what the love of Jesus looks like.

According to the Scriptures, Christ-like love doesn’t turn a blind eye to sin but instead it seeks to carefully expose that sin and point the sinner to their redeemer. True love understands the powerful and traumatic effect of being confronted by the holiness of God and then comforted by the liberating power of God’s grace. This type of love is what we are going to see as we read this chapter.

In Matthew 23, Jesus is in the company of Pharisees and Lawyers (Scribes) and rather than to turn a blind eye to their sin He is going to go after them and He does so purposefully. Jesus is confronting them over their hypocrisy, their pride, and the fact that they are leading God’s people away from the truth.

In this chapter, Jesus is confronting sin in these men that no one else could see. He is laying bare the emptiness of their religion so that they would come to understand that they were entrusting their eternity to a foundation that could not hold them. They were trusting in themselves. They were trusting that they didn’t need God at all to save them from sin. They believed that all they needed was a set of rules and the grit to follow them.  They were working to be their own functional savior and they stunk at it.

They didn’t take the holiness of God seriously. They didn’t take their own sin seriously and they thought way to highly of themselves. But, Jesus is working to pull their mask off and show them their sin, and I believe it was a loving thing for Him to do. Sadly, they didn’t seem to take Jesus’ words to hear but instead they hardened their hearts, plugged their ears and refused to let Jesus words affect them. Don’t let that be true of you today.

As you read through Matthew 23, I want you to know that going through the motions of religion cannot save you. Putting on a mask and making everyone think that you have it all figured out will never bring you peace with God. Your attempts at self-salvation will fail. But Christ has come to free us from our self-salvation mission. Jesus died so that our sin would be washed away. He died to cleanse us from within and to give us new hearts. Jesus died so that our debt to God would be paid in full and this can be yours if you will believe.

So let us repent of our own legalism and trust wholly in the work of Christ. Rather than trying to stand before His throne to boast of our goodness, let’s stand before His throne and plead the blood of Christ alone.

Something to pray about from John 17…

John 17 is a wonderful chapter filled with Jesus’ prayer for His disciples and that includes all of us who believe today. This prayer is a humbling look into the mind and heart of Jesus as He seeks to glorify God and He seeks to care for His people.

His first petition to the Father comes in verse 11 where He says,

Holy Father, keep them in your name…

Jesus is asking the Father to sustain us in our faith and in our identity as children of God.

His second petition comes in verse 17 when He prays,

Sanctify them in the truth, your word is truth.

Jesus is asking the Father to grow us in holiness through His Word guiding and influencing our lives.

His third petition comes in verse 22 when He prays,

I ask…that they may be one even as we are one.

Jesus is asking the Father to keep us united to one another as a family with the kind of unity that God Himself enjoys within the Trinity.

These are great things for us to pray for ourselves. Let’s pray that God would strengthen and sustain our faith in the midst of the trials of life. Let’s pray that God would sanctify us through His Word as we read it and hear it taught. Let’s pray that God would give our church, and churches all around us, great unity in our fellowship that centers around the person and work of Jesus Christ.

 

 
 
 

Bible Through the Year: Episode 44

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Week 44 Devotion

As we continue reading in the gospels this week we are going to see Jesus moving closer to the end of His ministry and the fulfillment of His mission. Along the way, we have seen Jesus pointing to the fact that one of His trips into Jerusalem would result in His arrest and suffering. Here it is from Matthew 16:21…

From that time Jesus began to show his disciples that he must go to Jerusalem and suffer many things from the elders and chief priests and scribes, and be killed, and on the third day be raised.

Once Jesus’ identity became clear when Peter confessed Him to be, “The Christ, the Son of the living God” the next big question was about His mission and His mission was to die in Jerusalem.

This week we are going to read about the final stage of His final journey to that city and we are going to read about His triumphal entry into the city. This is a really strange twist to the story of Jesus’ life because He arrives in the city and the people are praising Him but by the end of the week they are cursing Him. So let’s spend some time week looking at this triumphal entry and try to understand what is going on.

Something to meditate on…

The Triumphal Entry is a monumental event in the life of Jesus, but it is also the hinge upon which all of history turns. Jesus has made His way to the city but more importantly, all of history has been leading up to this moment when the Son of God enters the city where He will rescue fallen humanity from sin. God’s promised King is standing on the doorstep of Jerusalem and for this reason; this scene might be the most anticipated event in the Bible. But it is not without irony.

The irony has to do with the fact that Israel’s perfect King has finally come and by the end of the week they will have Him put to death. Israel had been hoping for God to raise up a King to lead them out of oppression and into freedom and prominence. They had prayed for such a king, longed for such a king and God has indeed sent them that king. But his posture is not what they expected. Jesus hasn’t come as a warrior King firing arrows into enemy lines, instead, He has come as a humble prophet whose words pierce people’s hearts. Israel expected a conquering king and God sent them a suffering servant, a sacrificial savior.

Even now as the disciples complete the final leg of their journey to Jerusalem, the city of Kings, they are not prepared for how this journey will end. Their sights are set on a throne but Jesus is focused on the mercy seat. They expect to soon see Jesus wearing a crown of gold but in just a few short days they will see Him crowned with painful thorns. The disciples are filled with hope on Sunday as Passover week is set to get underway, but by the end of the week, they will be filled with grief and fear.

The week kicks off with a very humble version of what you might expect at the coronation of a Hebrew King. Jesus rides in on a donkey to the songs of His people. He rides in over palm branches and shouts of “Hosanna, to the Son of David” and “Blessed is the King who comes in the name of the Lord! Peace in heaven and glory in the highest!”

As a King He shows compassion for His people when he stops to weep over them in Luke 19:41. Then He deals with the corruption in the temple when drives out the money changers and runs off those who used the temple of God as a place to make money. The week gets started on the right foot. Finally, this is a man like the kings of old who can take charge and execute justice but who will also show mercy and compassion.

But this is just the beginning of Jesus’ passion week. The cross is just days away and God's anointed King has come but before He will sit on His throne He will first go to the cross. He comes as the greatest King the world has ever seen, more powerful than any before Him; but He is also humble, gentle riding like a servant because He has come to lay down His life in order to save us from sin and destruction.

Something to discuss…

In John 11 we see what will be the final sign of Jesus ministry and remember there is 7 signs total in John’s gospel and each of them is intended to show the unique power of Jesus over the effects of sin. In this case, we are going to see Jesus overcome the final effect of sin which is death because Jesus is about to raise one of his dead friends from the grave.

This comes at a point in Jesus life when things are really heating up around Him. The more He preaches and makes these “I AM” statements the more attention He gets from guys who want to arrest Him. With every new sign He performs, the leaders of Jerusalem take one step closer to putting their plan in motion to put Him to death. So some might expect Him to try and keep a low profile as He gets nearer to Jerusalem, but that is not Jesus’ plan.

First, of all, He delayed the trip to see Lazarus in the beginning of the chapter and this was by design. He wanted this miracle to take place. So a few days after He heard that Lazarus was sick Jesus begins to make His way to Bethany and He comes to the tomb to find that His friend has been dead for 4 days. Lazarus’ sisters are there and Jesus joins in their grief. Don’t miss the fact that Jesus identifies with us in our pain and loss.

But next, He calls for the stone covering Lazarus’ tomb to be moved and He calls for Lazarus to “Rise and come out.” The people looked on in shock as a man walked out of the tomb still covered in grave clothes. Lazarus was alive. He had been raised from death. This was an amazing day, but it was also a day that set in motion the plan to kill Jesus.

Some of the Jews who had seen what Jesus did, they ran ahead and told the Pharisees and the Chief Priest. They gathered the Jerusalem council together and decided that they could not let Jesus go on like this and so they made plans to put Him to death. The raising of Lazarus was the final straw.

But here are a few questions for you to discuss. Why would these men want to kill a man like Jesus? What was their motivation for wanting Him to put to death? What did they hope to accomplish by their plot against Him?

The raising of Lazarus was an incredible sign of Jesus’ power over death but it was also foreshadowing His own resurrection.

Something to pray about…

In Luke 18 we see Jesus teach a parable about two men and how they prayed when they came into the temple. One prayed with pride in his heart and contempt for others in his mouth. The other man prayed with brokenness in his heart and deep sorrow over sin in his mouth. At the end of the parable, Jesus lets us know that the humble sinner is the one whose sins were forgiven.

As we pray this week, think over Luke 18:9-14 and ask God to give you a heart of humility like that of the Tax Collector. Pray that God would help you know the truth about your sin and that it would produce a God-honoring humility in your life. Start by confessing your sin and your sinfulness. Then ask God to work in your heart and your life and your circumstances.

 

 
 
 

Bible Through the Year: Episode 43

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Week 43 Devotion

This week we are going to focus most of our time reading from the gospels of Luke and John. This will give us an opportunity to focus in on the structure of these books and hopefully, that will help us gain a better understanding of what we are reading.

Now, over the last two weeks, we have been looking at one of the main themes found in all of the gospels and it relates to the identity of Jesus. Everyone wants to know who He is and everyone has an opinion about who He is. Everyone, from peasants to kings is asking this question and last week we finally received our answer. In a conversation with the disciples, it comes out that Jesus is “the Messiah and the Son of the living God.”

Most of us already knew this but in that day and at that time this was incredible news. The Jews had been waiting for Messiah to come for hundreds of years and now He was finally here. So the next question is what will He do? When would He establish His Kingdom? How long before He takes the throne? All these questions are now swirling in the minds of the people, but Jesus’ plan isn’t going to follow theirs.

In fact, Matthew and Luke both show us that right after it comes out in conversation that Jesus is the Messiah, He also revealed this to them:

Matthew 16:21 From that time Jesus began to show his disciples that he must go to Jerusalem and suffer many things from the elders and chief priests and scribes, and be killed, and on the third day be raised. 

This is a huge twist in the expectations of the people, but it is going to begin to make sense as the story continues. So, let’s keep reading and thinking and praying about what God is showing us in His Word.

Something to meditate on…

John’s gospel is laid out differently than the other gospels. Matthew, Mark, and Luke are called the Synoptic Gospels because they include the same stories, in the same sequence, and with the same wording. But John is different. It is organized differently; the wording is quite different and the stories that John uses aren’t always found in the other gospels.

John also tells us the purpose of his book but he puts it at the end. In John 20:31 we read,

These are written so that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God and that by believing you may have life in his name. 

The book begins much the same way that the other gospels begin in that the big question has to do with who is Jesus, but in typical John fashion the wording is unique. John introduces the story of the Word, the divine Word, who has been with God from the beginning and Who became a man in order to reveal the glory of God to us. In the first chapter of John, we see 7 different titles given to Jesus: He is called the Lamb of God, the Son of God, the son of man, rabbi, Messiah, King of Israel and Jesus of Nazareth.

Then in chapters 2-11, we see Jesus perform signs, there will be 7 in total, and all of these signs point to the fact that Jesus is who He claims to be. Speaking of who Jesus claims to be, there are also 7 statements that Jesus makes during His life and we call them the “I AM” statements because each of them starts with the phrase “I AM” which is a reference to the covenant name of God. In other words, Jesus is claiming to be God.

So, the basic pattern of John’s gospel is that a man has come from the very presence of God to tabernacle among the people. He performs 7 signs that all draw attention to His power and He makes 7 claims that point out His unique relationship to God as Father. Now when the book opened, the people were really excited about Jesus and they were hopeful that He would become a great man and great leader for them. But along the way the people got discouraged, they misunderstand Jesus’ claims and by chapter 11 the religious leaders want Him dead.

We saw this begin to happen last week when we looked at John 6, but let’s see that trend continue this week by looking at John 7. The chapter opens with the celebration of the feast of booths or tabernacles and this festival retold the story of Israel’s wilderness wanderings when God led the people as a pillar of cloud and fire and provided them with water in the desert.

Then as that celebration was coming to a close in verse 37, Jesus stood in the temple and said, “If anyone thirsts, let him come to me and drink.” Then in chapter 8:12 Jesus said, “I AM the light of the world.” The people had just finished celebrating the fact that God gave them water in the wilderness and guided them by the light of His presence and here is Jesus making the claim that He is able to give water to the thirsty and is God’s illuminating presence to the entire world.

Some believed but others are offended and they seek to kill Him for making these claims. But what about you? Deep inside each of us, there is an emptiness, a hunger or thirst, that nothing in this world can truly satisfy and Jesus is claiming that He can satisfy that hunger once and for all. Each of us wants to find our way in this world, the right way so that we can live with joy and make a difference. Jesus doesn’t say that He is a light in the world but that He is the light of the world.

Meditate on the claims that Jesus is making as you read. Think about what He is saying and what it means for you today.

Something to discuss…

In Luke 10 we see that Jesus wants more of His followers than for them to simply come to Him, He also wants them to go out into the world. In this chapter, we see Jesus send out 72 of His disciples and they are to prepare the people for Jesus’ coming. From Luke 9 to 19 there is a journey taking place where Jesus is making His way to Jerusalem, and along the way, He is going to stop at all the little towns and villages to preach the good news. But these group of 72 disciples is supposed to go into those towns ahead of Jesus to prepare the people for His coming.

But what are they being sent out to do? Their mission is outlined in verses 9-11 and it is the same instruction that Jesus gave to the 12 in chapter 9 when He sent them out. This new batch of guys is to go out and…

1. They are to heal the sick (10:9 & 9:2)

2. They are to proclaim the Kingdom of God (10:9 & 9:2)

3. They are to warn the people of the Judgment that is to come (10:10-11 & 9:5)

As these guys go they see some amazing things and they even come back to Jesus and celebrate all that they’ve been able to do. But the reason I want us to discuss this passage is so that we can be reminded that this is a crucial pattern within the life of the church, even for us today.

This is the pattern of discipleship and mission that is to mark the church all the time. This pattern of going into the world, preaching the gospel, discipling new believers and sending them out is our firmly established calling as well.

Jesus is a sending savior. He doesn’t simply call us in to receive His blessings/grace; He also sends us out to dispense that grace to others. We preach Christ in the world as ambassadors who have been reconciled to God by faith and we long to see others come to His love and forgiveness as well (2 Cor 5:17-21).

So here are some questions to discuss this week: Are you involved in the work of proclaiming the gospel? Are you involved in the work of training laborers for the world? Are you engaged in evangelism personally? Are you praying for more laborers to be raised up and sent out?

Something to pray about…

Let’s stick with that same theme in our prayers this week.

Luke 10:2 And he said to them, “The harvest is plentiful, but the laborers are few. Therefore pray earnestly to the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into his harvest.

The harvest work will not be accomplished by human effort alone; God must raise up more laborers in order to bring His purpose to completion. A major part of our responsibility is to plead earnestly with God to expand His labor force.

Are you praying for God to bring salvation to those who hear the gospel? Are you pleading with God to usher in a harvest of souls? Are you like the persistent widow, nagging God to save your friends, neighbors, children, co-workers?

Let’s spend some time this week praying for God to raise up more laborers. Let’s also spend time praying for people we know who don’t know the gospel or trust in Christ. Finally, let’s pray for God to use us in His great work of gathering in a harvest of souls.