Hello everyone. If you've been able to stay on track, then you have read through the entire New Testament in just over two months as of Friday. Congratulations!!! Over the weekend we finished off Revelation and read through John's epistles. Today we start John's gospel. Since we've gone over this section last time we read through John, I'm going to comment briefly on a passage I didn't cover last time. The topic I will discuss may seem controversial, but it's biblical.
16 “For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. 17 For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him. 18 Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe stands condemned already because he has not believed in the name of God’s one and only Son. 19 This is the verdict: Light has come into the world, but men loved darkness instead of light because their deeds were evil. 20 Everyone who does evil hates the light, and will not come into the light for fear that his deeds will be exposed. 21 But whoever lives by the truth comes into the light, so that it may be seen plainly that what he has done has been done through God.”
God's love for us is evident in Jesus Christ. Verse 18 transitions us from 16-17 into 19-21. Notice the contrast here in these verses. Saved vs. condemned and light vs. darkness. John uses this illustration frequently. "This is the verdict" in other words: This is the root cause of condemnation. We love darkness when our deeds are evil. That's pretty straight forward. The more complex part is verse 20. Those who do evil will not go into the light because they don't want their evil to be exposed. The Bible teaches that Christians are saved. Here's the question: As Christians, do we ever love evil and hide in the darkness to prevent ourselves from being exposed?
Unfortunately, the answer is yes. Repentance is an on going process. Sure we repent of many things when we're saved. It's a necessary part of salvation, but as Christians we still sin. Because we still sin, though our life is not a life of sin, we need to repent of the sins that we allow in our lives. The problem is, often times we don't want to acknowledge sin when it emerges in our lives. Sometimes we're just ignorant and haven't obtained a level of maturity necessary to understand that what we do is sinful. Sometimes, deep down, we know what we do is wrong and don't do anything about it because we've believed the lie of Satan. "If I am a good person in the majority, then the minority of things I am not good in are not a big deal." Wrong!!!
When we are unwilling to acknowledge our sin, no matter how small it is, we are living in the darkness and not in the light. Even if we live in the light in every area of our lives but one, we still have one area of our lives in the darkness. The Bible calls that evil. When we intentionally allow one speck of evil, evil can drag us body and soul back into the darkness totally. It often happens slowly and softly step by step. Before we know it, we've changed. What's worse is, when that happens, when we reach that point, we no longer care about God or Jesus. The Bible calls that blaspheming the Holy Spirit, the only unforgivable sin.
29 But whoever blasphemes against the Holy Spirit will never be forgiven; he is guilty of an eternal sin.” - Mark 3:29
4 It is impossible for those who have once been enlightened, who have tasted the heavenly gift, who have shared in the Holy Spirit, 5 who have tasted the goodness of the word of God and the powers of the coming age, 6 if they fall away, to be brought back to repentance, because to their loss they are crucifying the Son of God all over again and subjecting him to public disgrace. - Hebrews 6:4-6
That's why it is so important for us to evaluate ourselves regularly. Contrary to popular opinion...you can lose your salvation. Please don't misunderstand me, everyone is able to be saved, but whoever allows themselves to fall away and deny God, and dies without repenting, will not inherit the kingdom. This sounds harsh and discouraging. Please understand that salvation is a work of God. We are saved by grace. But when we have faith, our faith is put to work. It isn't the work that saves us, but it is the out pouring of our faith and salvation. When we allow our faith to die, we too die spiritually. How can we crucify the Son of God again?
If you are still discouraged, remember that God works in ALL THINGS for our good, those who love Him (Romans 8:28). God is mighty and powerful, but also loving. If we choose to remove Him from our lives, He will not stop us. He does love us so much!!! He does not want this for anyone. So, all Christians, take this lesson seriously. Be ever vigilant in your spiritual walk. Rest in God's love, mercy, joy and peace. And know, faithful believer, no one can take your salvation, but you can give it away.
I wish you all a fine week and much blessing in our Lord Jesus Christ. Grace be with you all.
Monday, September 12, 2011
Tuesday, September 6, 2011
Revelation
Hello everyone. I hope you all had a good Labor Day. I hope it was a wonderful day of rest for you. Today we will be looking into the book of Revelation. There is no other book that is regarded with as much caution as Revelation. Many are afraid to read it. Many don't read because they think that they could never understand it. I will not deny that it is difficult to understand at times. The early church found it to be a book of comfort and encouragement during times of persecution.
Revelation is unlike any other work of Scripture. Some things to keep in mind are first, that it consists of many visions that interweave together. Some are literal and some are metaphorical. These images were familiar to the people of this time and come from the Old Testament as well as other sources that we may or may not have at our disposal today.
Second, the style it used is called apocalyptic, and the people were also familiar with this. Things like beasts, dragons, and even dissolving universes were pictorial representation of deep historical and theological realities (Elwell). Sometimes we may have to stop as we read and try to figure out what these things represent. Some of them are obvious, but not all. Perhaps a good solid biblical commentary would be a good companion for your Bible study.
Third, we have to remember that basic Christian doctrine is woven throughout the book (Elwell). Don't get bogged down in the symbolism. Keep a look out for the deep spiritual truths. Jesus is Lord. He died on the cross and rose again on the third day. He ascended into heaven. He will return to claim His people, the Church.
Revelation was written by the apostle John from the island of Patmos, which is a small island off the coast of Asia Minor in the Aegean Sea. If your Bible has a map section, it can probably be found on one of those maps. Though there is some debate as to the date of it's writing, most agree that the date is between 81-96 A.D. during the reign of Roman Emperor Domitian.
I want to talk a moment about interpretations of Revelation. This book, along with tidbits from other books, depicts the event leading up to Christ's return. There are many views on this topic. The Left Behind series is based on just one of many interpretations. If this is a subject of interest for you, there are four major view points: Premillennial, Amillennial, Dispensational Premillenial, and Postmillennial.
With that said, let me warn you. It is dangerous to be too caught up in eschatological (the end times) theology. Some of the best Bible scholars throughout history have not agreed or were unsure as to which interpretation was best. I think we need to hold to the words of Walter Elwell, "It is tragic when the return of Christ becomes a point of controversy. The important thing is that Jesus is coming back, not when or exactly how He will accomplish it." And to quote Martin Luther, "We ought to live as though Christ was crucified yesterday, risen today, and coming tomorrow." If we live these words, we will be ready for when our Lord does return.
I know I've said a lot. With that said, I'm not going to offer commentary on this book. I want you look deeply into this book and find what is important. I wish you good reading and may you get closer to God because of it. I leave you with these words from the chapter 22.
20 He who testifies to these things says, “Yes, I am coming soon.”
Amen. Come, Lord Jesus.
21 The grace of the Lord Jesus be with God’s people. Amen.
Come, Lord Jesus, come!!!
Revelation is unlike any other work of Scripture. Some things to keep in mind are first, that it consists of many visions that interweave together. Some are literal and some are metaphorical. These images were familiar to the people of this time and come from the Old Testament as well as other sources that we may or may not have at our disposal today.
Second, the style it used is called apocalyptic, and the people were also familiar with this. Things like beasts, dragons, and even dissolving universes were pictorial representation of deep historical and theological realities (Elwell). Sometimes we may have to stop as we read and try to figure out what these things represent. Some of them are obvious, but not all. Perhaps a good solid biblical commentary would be a good companion for your Bible study.
Third, we have to remember that basic Christian doctrine is woven throughout the book (Elwell). Don't get bogged down in the symbolism. Keep a look out for the deep spiritual truths. Jesus is Lord. He died on the cross and rose again on the third day. He ascended into heaven. He will return to claim His people, the Church.
Revelation was written by the apostle John from the island of Patmos, which is a small island off the coast of Asia Minor in the Aegean Sea. If your Bible has a map section, it can probably be found on one of those maps. Though there is some debate as to the date of it's writing, most agree that the date is between 81-96 A.D. during the reign of Roman Emperor Domitian.
I want to talk a moment about interpretations of Revelation. This book, along with tidbits from other books, depicts the event leading up to Christ's return. There are many views on this topic. The Left Behind series is based on just one of many interpretations. If this is a subject of interest for you, there are four major view points: Premillennial, Amillennial, Dispensational Premillenial, and Postmillennial.
With that said, let me warn you. It is dangerous to be too caught up in eschatological (the end times) theology. Some of the best Bible scholars throughout history have not agreed or were unsure as to which interpretation was best. I think we need to hold to the words of Walter Elwell, "It is tragic when the return of Christ becomes a point of controversy. The important thing is that Jesus is coming back, not when or exactly how He will accomplish it." And to quote Martin Luther, "We ought to live as though Christ was crucified yesterday, risen today, and coming tomorrow." If we live these words, we will be ready for when our Lord does return.
I know I've said a lot. With that said, I'm not going to offer commentary on this book. I want you look deeply into this book and find what is important. I wish you good reading and may you get closer to God because of it. I leave you with these words from the chapter 22.
20 He who testifies to these things says, “Yes, I am coming soon.”
Amen. Come, Lord Jesus.
21 The grace of the Lord Jesus be with God’s people. Amen.
Come, Lord Jesus, come!!!
Thursday, September 1, 2011
1 Peter
Hello everyone. I am excited for I am finally able to once again write to you twice in one week. Today we start the book of 1 Peter. Like Hebrews, 1 Peter is in a group of books known as the General Epistles. These epistles have a vague or unspecific audience and were widely distributed among the churches.
Together with Silas, Peter wrote this epistle from Rome under the persecution of Nero. We are able to speculate that, for a time, Peter and Paul were in Rome simultaneously. Though not in Scripture, Church historians place their deaths within a relative short time from one another. Tradition states that Paul died first by beheading and Peter second by crucifixion.
In his epistle, Peter discusses such themes as: How to deal with persecution (He mentions Christ's sufferings 5 times), faithfulness (even in a helpless/powerless situations), admonition of elders, preparing your mind for action and some 34 commands. Look for these things as you read through Peter's first epistle.
1:13 Therefore, prepare your minds for action; be self-controlled; set your hope fully on the grace to be given you when Jesus Christ is revealed. 14 As obedient children, do not conform to the evil desires you had when you lived in ignorance. 15 But just as he who called you is holy, so be holy in all you do; 16 for it is written: “Be holy, because I am holy.”
This is one of the themes I mentioned above. Prepare your minds for action has a militaristic feel to it. It's like arming yourself for battle. When going into battle, our minds must be prepared for the evils that we will face. It is much the same in our daily lives in this fallen world. We have to prepare our minds to be obedient in our day to day living or else we may fall victim to our enemies' trappings. Satan and his demons desire for us to give in to our evil desires. They seek to ravage our minds and lives in order to pull us further away from the Lord our God.
We no longer live in ignorance, we are without excuse. God has called us to be holy, though that may be impossible for us, it is possible to do so while we rest and trust in Him that is Christ. In order to fully rely on Christ we must put on the full armor of God (Ephesians 6) and keep our minds prepared. We must think about such things that are true, noble, right, pure, lovely and admirable (Philippians 4). If we have our thoughts focused on whatever is excellent or praiseworthy, then our enemies will have a much harder time penetrating our thoughts.
Let me encourage all of you to continue to fight the good fight. The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ be with your spirit. To our God and Father be glory for ever and ever. Amen.
Together with Silas, Peter wrote this epistle from Rome under the persecution of Nero. We are able to speculate that, for a time, Peter and Paul were in Rome simultaneously. Though not in Scripture, Church historians place their deaths within a relative short time from one another. Tradition states that Paul died first by beheading and Peter second by crucifixion.
In his epistle, Peter discusses such themes as: How to deal with persecution (He mentions Christ's sufferings 5 times), faithfulness (even in a helpless/powerless situations), admonition of elders, preparing your mind for action and some 34 commands. Look for these things as you read through Peter's first epistle.
1:13 Therefore, prepare your minds for action; be self-controlled; set your hope fully on the grace to be given you when Jesus Christ is revealed. 14 As obedient children, do not conform to the evil desires you had when you lived in ignorance. 15 But just as he who called you is holy, so be holy in all you do; 16 for it is written: “Be holy, because I am holy.”
This is one of the themes I mentioned above. Prepare your minds for action has a militaristic feel to it. It's like arming yourself for battle. When going into battle, our minds must be prepared for the evils that we will face. It is much the same in our daily lives in this fallen world. We have to prepare our minds to be obedient in our day to day living or else we may fall victim to our enemies' trappings. Satan and his demons desire for us to give in to our evil desires. They seek to ravage our minds and lives in order to pull us further away from the Lord our God.
We no longer live in ignorance, we are without excuse. God has called us to be holy, though that may be impossible for us, it is possible to do so while we rest and trust in Him that is Christ. In order to fully rely on Christ we must put on the full armor of God (Ephesians 6) and keep our minds prepared. We must think about such things that are true, noble, right, pure, lovely and admirable (Philippians 4). If we have our thoughts focused on whatever is excellent or praiseworthy, then our enemies will have a much harder time penetrating our thoughts.
Let me encourage all of you to continue to fight the good fight. The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ be with your spirit. To our God and Father be glory for ever and ever. Amen.
Monday, August 29, 2011
Hebrews 1-3
Hello everyone. Sorry it has been some time since my last post. Today we start the book of Hebrews. Hebrews finds itself a part of the General Epistles. That is, epistles with a broad or no specific audience. Hence why they are generally named for the author rather than the audience as is the case with Paul's letters. We are unsure who wrote Hebrews. Some suggest Paul, but Hebrews lack certain characteristics that are a part of all Paul's writings. Some also suggest Luke, Barnabas or Apollos.
Though we are unsure who wrote it, we do know based on facts that Hebrews was written sometime between 40 and 70 A.D. The fact that there was no mention of the destruction of the Temple and that Timothy was still alive leads us to this conclusion. Also, Clement of Rome writes about Hebrews in his writings near 95 A.D. which gives us further proof that the book was indeed written before the end of the apostolic age. Our Christian forefathers deemed it to be authoritative on par with the rest of the New Testament. Many Christians still hold to that belief even though we do not not for sure who wrote Hebrews.
As you read through Hebrews pay attention for certain themes. There is much said about Christianity being superior to religion, specifically Judaism. The word "better" is used 13 times in reference to things like: the Old Testament, the Law, the prophets, angels, Moses, and the Aaronic priesthood. This isn't done to denounce these things, but rather to show how Christ is superior to them. Other key themes include: showing how the Old and New Testaments fit together, warning to Christians about immaturity, and pleasing sacrifices to God. Now...onto the text...
2:1 We must pay more careful attention, therefore, to what we have heard, so that we do not drift away. 2 For if the message spoken by angels was binding, and every violation and disobedience received its just punishment, 3 how shall we escape if we ignore such a great salvation? This salvation, which was first announced by the Lord, was confirmed to us by those who heard him. 4 God also testified to it by signs, wonders and various miracles, and gifts of the Holy Spirit distributed according to his will.
The word "therefore" is used here to connect the previous passage to this one. In light to what has just been said we need to be careful to not drift away. By some Christians it's called "Backslide". This message "spoken by angels" implies that the message has authority and gives it another level of depth as to how authoritative it is. The message is binding and of God, not man. We have a duty to follow God's will. God's will is that we be saved, but how are to be saved if we intentionally or unintentionally neglect His message? Remember that faith without deeds is dead. How can we ignore such a great salvation? How can we ignore and not take part in God's word, which helps us to hold fast to Him and His truth? How can we ignore what our responsibility is, which is showing God's word to others that they may hear and be saved (Romans 10:14-17)?
2:17 For this reason he had to be made like his brothers in every way, in order that he might become a merciful and faithful high priest in service to God, and that he might make atonement for the sins of the people. 18 Because he himself suffered when he was tempted, he is able to help those who are being tempted.
People sometimes cannot wrap their minds around that God came down and took on flesh and dwelt among us. Not only did Christ do this in order to be the sacrifice we needed, He also did it to comfort us. He became just like us. He took a flesh and blood body identical to ours. He had real human needs, needs that God does not need, but rather the ones a human needs. Because He did this, He has gone through every spectrum of emotion, temptation and physical suffering imaginable.
He knows what we go through, not only because He's an all-knowing God, but also because He has actually experienced it Himself. He helps those who are suffering and tempted because He has suffered and was tempted. He gives comfort to those in a fallen world because He lived in a fallen world that He created and intended to not be a fallen world. We have a great comforter in Jesus Christ. Let us not forget it and find our rest and satisfaction in Him.
That's all for now. I'll be posting again later this week as we go into the book of 1 Peter, written by the apostle himself. I look forward to talking about this great letter with you and how it impacts us in its relevance today. Until next time...
Grace be with you all!!!
Though we are unsure who wrote it, we do know based on facts that Hebrews was written sometime between 40 and 70 A.D. The fact that there was no mention of the destruction of the Temple and that Timothy was still alive leads us to this conclusion. Also, Clement of Rome writes about Hebrews in his writings near 95 A.D. which gives us further proof that the book was indeed written before the end of the apostolic age. Our Christian forefathers deemed it to be authoritative on par with the rest of the New Testament. Many Christians still hold to that belief even though we do not not for sure who wrote Hebrews.
As you read through Hebrews pay attention for certain themes. There is much said about Christianity being superior to religion, specifically Judaism. The word "better" is used 13 times in reference to things like: the Old Testament, the Law, the prophets, angels, Moses, and the Aaronic priesthood. This isn't done to denounce these things, but rather to show how Christ is superior to them. Other key themes include: showing how the Old and New Testaments fit together, warning to Christians about immaturity, and pleasing sacrifices to God. Now...onto the text...
2:1 We must pay more careful attention, therefore, to what we have heard, so that we do not drift away. 2 For if the message spoken by angels was binding, and every violation and disobedience received its just punishment, 3 how shall we escape if we ignore such a great salvation? This salvation, which was first announced by the Lord, was confirmed to us by those who heard him. 4 God also testified to it by signs, wonders and various miracles, and gifts of the Holy Spirit distributed according to his will.
The word "therefore" is used here to connect the previous passage to this one. In light to what has just been said we need to be careful to not drift away. By some Christians it's called "Backslide". This message "spoken by angels" implies that the message has authority and gives it another level of depth as to how authoritative it is. The message is binding and of God, not man. We have a duty to follow God's will. God's will is that we be saved, but how are to be saved if we intentionally or unintentionally neglect His message? Remember that faith without deeds is dead. How can we ignore such a great salvation? How can we ignore and not take part in God's word, which helps us to hold fast to Him and His truth? How can we ignore what our responsibility is, which is showing God's word to others that they may hear and be saved (Romans 10:14-17)?
2:17 For this reason he had to be made like his brothers in every way, in order that he might become a merciful and faithful high priest in service to God, and that he might make atonement for the sins of the people. 18 Because he himself suffered when he was tempted, he is able to help those who are being tempted.
People sometimes cannot wrap their minds around that God came down and took on flesh and dwelt among us. Not only did Christ do this in order to be the sacrifice we needed, He also did it to comfort us. He became just like us. He took a flesh and blood body identical to ours. He had real human needs, needs that God does not need, but rather the ones a human needs. Because He did this, He has gone through every spectrum of emotion, temptation and physical suffering imaginable.
He knows what we go through, not only because He's an all-knowing God, but also because He has actually experienced it Himself. He helps those who are suffering and tempted because He has suffered and was tempted. He gives comfort to those in a fallen world because He lived in a fallen world that He created and intended to not be a fallen world. We have a great comforter in Jesus Christ. Let us not forget it and find our rest and satisfaction in Him.
That's all for now. I'll be posting again later this week as we go into the book of 1 Peter, written by the apostle himself. I look forward to talking about this great letter with you and how it impacts us in its relevance today. Until next time...
Grace be with you all!!!
Monday, August 15, 2011
1 Corinthians 5-8
Hello everyone. This week we will be looking at the books of 1 & 2 Corinthians. Ancient Corinth was the largest first century Greek city, which served as the Roman capitol of the southern province of Achaia. Corinth was positioned along a narrow isthmus of land (3.5 miles wide) dividing northern and southern Greece. This put the city at an advantage for trading purposes. Almost all Roman trade came through Corinth.
Corinth was also a favorite retirement spot for Roman soldiers. Even though many Roman soldiers retired there, there was a very diverse population. Many Jews lived in Corinth due to being expelled from Rome by Emperor Claudius in A.D. 49. Corinth was also known for it's sexual immorality among an empire where sexual immorality flourished. Temple prostitutes were a regular part of pagan worship, which is a good explanation as to why sexual immorality was such a snare to the Corinthian Christians.
Paul founded the church at Corinth on his second missionary journey after preaching in Philippi, Thessalonica, Berea and Athens. It was during his third missionary journey that Paul wrote extensively to the Corinthians from Ephesus during his 2-3 year ministry there. Paul had received word from Corinth that the congregation there was being torn apart by quarreling. Paul then penned the letters and sent them to Corinth with Timothy.
Paul addresses issues like: in-fighting, sexual immorality, abuse of the poor, gluttony, abuse of spiritual gifts, dissatisfaction with Paul's leadership. The Corinthian church had issues. Paul hit these issues one after another. He brings everything to a climax at chapter 13. If the Corinthians would focus on loving one another, they wouldn't have these problems. So, we'll begin our look into 1 Corinthians 5 were Paul tells the Corinthians to do something that we often hesitate to do and find controversial.
5:1 It is actually reported that there is sexual immorality among you, and of a kind that does not occur even among pagans: A man has his father’s wife. 2 And you are proud! Shouldn’t you rather have been filled with grief and have put out of your fellowship the man who did this?
We have a hard time with this. Expelling anyone from our church is never an easy thing. But if someone is running a muck in the church, and refuses to stop, then they should be asked to leave. We don't want to do it, but we have to. We love them and don't want to imagine church without them, but if they are causing division in the church they should be asked to leave.
5:6 Don’t you know that a little yeast works through the whole batch of dough?
If they are not asked to leave, their behavior will have a negative effect on someone. People will get hurt and leave to get away from this individual or will be encouraged to join in the sinful behavior. It doesn't matter if it's sexual or not. If a member of the church is engaging in sinful behavior, and will not stop, then they need to be asked to leave in order to spare the other members of the flock. If you love everyone in your church, you will do this for what is best for them as a whole.
Next, Paul discusses lawsuits against fellow believers in 6:1-11. Paul is frustrated because they can't settle their own disputes. Disputes are inevitable. How we handle them separates us from the world. We're supposed to love and work tings out. It's difficult and requires us to become vulnerable and invest in others. It's worth it. Having a united church is worth it. A united church gains momentum faster and accomplishes much more for the Kingdom. And as I've said before, you get a return for your investment. Being a part of a united church has a positive affect on your personal life. But that all come crashing down if we don't obey God and love one another.
Over the course of the next couple chapters Paul discusses sexual immorality, marriage, food sacrificed to idols. I'm not going to talk about those. I do want you to look beyond what is on the surface and see what the root cause is for these sinful behaviors that Paul is correcting. In every verse of every passage of every chapter, look for what is behind the sin. When you reach chapter 13 it should all come together.
Again I encourage you to contact me if you have any questions. I would be my pleasure to talk with you and discuss Scripture. So, until next time...
The grace of the Lord Jesus be with you. My love to all of you in Christ Jesus.
Corinth was also a favorite retirement spot for Roman soldiers. Even though many Roman soldiers retired there, there was a very diverse population. Many Jews lived in Corinth due to being expelled from Rome by Emperor Claudius in A.D. 49. Corinth was also known for it's sexual immorality among an empire where sexual immorality flourished. Temple prostitutes were a regular part of pagan worship, which is a good explanation as to why sexual immorality was such a snare to the Corinthian Christians.
Paul founded the church at Corinth on his second missionary journey after preaching in Philippi, Thessalonica, Berea and Athens. It was during his third missionary journey that Paul wrote extensively to the Corinthians from Ephesus during his 2-3 year ministry there. Paul had received word from Corinth that the congregation there was being torn apart by quarreling. Paul then penned the letters and sent them to Corinth with Timothy.
Paul addresses issues like: in-fighting, sexual immorality, abuse of the poor, gluttony, abuse of spiritual gifts, dissatisfaction with Paul's leadership. The Corinthian church had issues. Paul hit these issues one after another. He brings everything to a climax at chapter 13. If the Corinthians would focus on loving one another, they wouldn't have these problems. So, we'll begin our look into 1 Corinthians 5 were Paul tells the Corinthians to do something that we often hesitate to do and find controversial.
5:1 It is actually reported that there is sexual immorality among you, and of a kind that does not occur even among pagans: A man has his father’s wife. 2 And you are proud! Shouldn’t you rather have been filled with grief and have put out of your fellowship the man who did this?
We have a hard time with this. Expelling anyone from our church is never an easy thing. But if someone is running a muck in the church, and refuses to stop, then they should be asked to leave. We don't want to do it, but we have to. We love them and don't want to imagine church without them, but if they are causing division in the church they should be asked to leave.
5:6 Don’t you know that a little yeast works through the whole batch of dough?
If they are not asked to leave, their behavior will have a negative effect on someone. People will get hurt and leave to get away from this individual or will be encouraged to join in the sinful behavior. It doesn't matter if it's sexual or not. If a member of the church is engaging in sinful behavior, and will not stop, then they need to be asked to leave in order to spare the other members of the flock. If you love everyone in your church, you will do this for what is best for them as a whole.
Next, Paul discusses lawsuits against fellow believers in 6:1-11. Paul is frustrated because they can't settle their own disputes. Disputes are inevitable. How we handle them separates us from the world. We're supposed to love and work tings out. It's difficult and requires us to become vulnerable and invest in others. It's worth it. Having a united church is worth it. A united church gains momentum faster and accomplishes much more for the Kingdom. And as I've said before, you get a return for your investment. Being a part of a united church has a positive affect on your personal life. But that all come crashing down if we don't obey God and love one another.
Over the course of the next couple chapters Paul discusses sexual immorality, marriage, food sacrificed to idols. I'm not going to talk about those. I do want you to look beyond what is on the surface and see what the root cause is for these sinful behaviors that Paul is correcting. In every verse of every passage of every chapter, look for what is behind the sin. When you reach chapter 13 it should all come together.
Again I encourage you to contact me if you have any questions. I would be my pleasure to talk with you and discuss Scripture. So, until next time...
The grace of the Lord Jesus be with you. My love to all of you in Christ Jesus.
Wednesday, August 10, 2011
Romans 1-4
Hello everyone. I'm sorry it has been some time since my last blog post. The recent weeks have been busy and some things require my attention more so than others. I hope everyone has been well since last I wrote. Today we begin the book of Romans.
It is widely agreed and accepted that Paul wrote the epistle to the Romans during his three month stay in Greece, toward the end of his third missionary journey. This was about A.D. 57. At this time Paul had yet to visit the church there. This makes sense in reference to the epistle's introduction. It is believed Paul wrote the letter from the vicinity of Corinth due to his mentioning of Phoebe, who carried the letter, from the church of Cenchreae, a small town eight miles from Corinth.
Scholars differ on Paul reasoning for writing to the Romans. Some believe Paul wrote to rally support for a missionary journey to Spain, while others believe his reason was a purely theological one. Still others believe he wrote to appeal to the Jewish population there to convince them to accept Jesus as the promised Messiah. Whatever the view point, it can be surmised that Paul wished to visit Rome and wanted to ready the people there for his visit, after which he hoped he could go to Spain and preach the Good News there.
Paul was not afraid to preach on what we would call "controversial topics". Many people in our society today are pushing forward the homosexual agenda. There are many people out there who claim to be Bible believing Christians who have taken up this cause. They say that God is love. While this is true, we can't forget what the Bible teaches about homosexuality.
1:26 Because of this, God gave them over to shameful lusts. Even their women exchanged natural relations for unnatural ones. 27 In the same way the men also abandoned natural relations with women and were inflamed with lust for one another. Men committed indecent acts with other men, and received in themselves the due penalty for their perversion.
Many people read this passage and believe that God hates homosexuals. There are many Bible believing Christians who believe so. This has put a bad taste in the mouth for many people who do not have a personal relationship with Jesus Christ. The Bible teaches that God is love, but that He hates homosexuality. How can both be true? God is love. He does love all people. But just because He loves us, He does not love all we do. Remember, God loves the sinner but hates their sin. The Bible also teaches that all people are sinners.
3:22 This righteousness from God comes through faith in Jesus Christ to all who believe. There is no difference, 23 for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, 24 and are justified freely by his grace through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus.
We all must remember that we are sinners, just like everyone else. God loves everyone, but hates the sin in our lives. That does not affect or change the truth. Homosexuality is still wrong in the eyes of God. But because God loves all and has commanded that we love all, we too should love homosexuals. They are loved by God and should be extended the grace that was given us in Christ Jesus. Does that mean we should encourage homosexuals to continue in their lifestyle? By no means!
6:1 What shall we say, then? Shall we go on sinning so that grace may increase? 2 By no means! We died to sin; how can we live in it any longer? 3 Or don’t you know that all of us who were baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into his death? 4 We were therefore buried with him through baptism into death in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead through the glory of the Father, we too may live a new life.
Homosexuality flies in the face of everything God created the intimate relationship to be. He created it to be a relationship of intimacy to be shared within marriage between one man and one woman. Homosexuality is not natural and has never been. Homosexuality is a choice, just like every other sin known to man. To condone homosexuality is a denial of God's creation and His power through Christ to loosen the grip of sin.
Society teaches that Christian values are outdated, old fashioned and out of style. Christians are looked down upon as intolerant bigots. Standing up for what you believe in is not wrong. It is not intolerant to stand up against what is wrong. Homosexuality is wrong no matter how you slice it. If any of you who have read this have gay friends or family members please understand that it is not my intention to offend anyone. My intention is to only preach God's truth. Christ came because He loved the world. He still does and always will.
That's why Christians should respond with love toward homosexuals. But Christians should never stand down against a world that is becoming increasingly hostile towards anyone who disagrees with its sinful behavior. This not only includes homosexuality but also heterosexual sin (both being sexual immorality), debauchery, idolatry, witchcraft, hatred, discord, jealousy, fits of rage, selfish ambition, dissensions, factions, envy, drunkeness, and orgies to name a few.
Let me encourage you all to take Paul's quote of the prophet Habakkuk seriously. “The righteous will live by faith.” With much love, until next time...
Grace and peace to you from God our Father and from the Lord Jesus Christ.
It is widely agreed and accepted that Paul wrote the epistle to the Romans during his three month stay in Greece, toward the end of his third missionary journey. This was about A.D. 57. At this time Paul had yet to visit the church there. This makes sense in reference to the epistle's introduction. It is believed Paul wrote the letter from the vicinity of Corinth due to his mentioning of Phoebe, who carried the letter, from the church of Cenchreae, a small town eight miles from Corinth.
Scholars differ on Paul reasoning for writing to the Romans. Some believe Paul wrote to rally support for a missionary journey to Spain, while others believe his reason was a purely theological one. Still others believe he wrote to appeal to the Jewish population there to convince them to accept Jesus as the promised Messiah. Whatever the view point, it can be surmised that Paul wished to visit Rome and wanted to ready the people there for his visit, after which he hoped he could go to Spain and preach the Good News there.
Paul was not afraid to preach on what we would call "controversial topics". Many people in our society today are pushing forward the homosexual agenda. There are many people out there who claim to be Bible believing Christians who have taken up this cause. They say that God is love. While this is true, we can't forget what the Bible teaches about homosexuality.
1:26 Because of this, God gave them over to shameful lusts. Even their women exchanged natural relations for unnatural ones. 27 In the same way the men also abandoned natural relations with women and were inflamed with lust for one another. Men committed indecent acts with other men, and received in themselves the due penalty for their perversion.
Many people read this passage and believe that God hates homosexuals. There are many Bible believing Christians who believe so. This has put a bad taste in the mouth for many people who do not have a personal relationship with Jesus Christ. The Bible teaches that God is love, but that He hates homosexuality. How can both be true? God is love. He does love all people. But just because He loves us, He does not love all we do. Remember, God loves the sinner but hates their sin. The Bible also teaches that all people are sinners.
3:22 This righteousness from God comes through faith in Jesus Christ to all who believe. There is no difference, 23 for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, 24 and are justified freely by his grace through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus.
We all must remember that we are sinners, just like everyone else. God loves everyone, but hates the sin in our lives. That does not affect or change the truth. Homosexuality is still wrong in the eyes of God. But because God loves all and has commanded that we love all, we too should love homosexuals. They are loved by God and should be extended the grace that was given us in Christ Jesus. Does that mean we should encourage homosexuals to continue in their lifestyle? By no means!
6:1 What shall we say, then? Shall we go on sinning so that grace may increase? 2 By no means! We died to sin; how can we live in it any longer? 3 Or don’t you know that all of us who were baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into his death? 4 We were therefore buried with him through baptism into death in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead through the glory of the Father, we too may live a new life.
Homosexuality flies in the face of everything God created the intimate relationship to be. He created it to be a relationship of intimacy to be shared within marriage between one man and one woman. Homosexuality is not natural and has never been. Homosexuality is a choice, just like every other sin known to man. To condone homosexuality is a denial of God's creation and His power through Christ to loosen the grip of sin.
Society teaches that Christian values are outdated, old fashioned and out of style. Christians are looked down upon as intolerant bigots. Standing up for what you believe in is not wrong. It is not intolerant to stand up against what is wrong. Homosexuality is wrong no matter how you slice it. If any of you who have read this have gay friends or family members please understand that it is not my intention to offend anyone. My intention is to only preach God's truth. Christ came because He loved the world. He still does and always will.
That's why Christians should respond with love toward homosexuals. But Christians should never stand down against a world that is becoming increasingly hostile towards anyone who disagrees with its sinful behavior. This not only includes homosexuality but also heterosexual sin (both being sexual immorality), debauchery, idolatry, witchcraft, hatred, discord, jealousy, fits of rage, selfish ambition, dissensions, factions, envy, drunkeness, and orgies to name a few.
Let me encourage you all to take Paul's quote of the prophet Habakkuk seriously. “The righteous will live by faith.” With much love, until next time...
Grace and peace to you from God our Father and from the Lord Jesus Christ.
Monday, August 1, 2011
Luke 17-20
Hello everyone. Today we pick up in Luke, though we've been reading it for a few days now. Luke is interesting in it's structure and the way it was written. Luke was in fact written by Luke who was a first century physician and companion to Paul the apostle. Whenever Paul mentions Luke by name it is in fact this Luke. Luke is credited with not only to have written the gospel, but also the book of Acts. Both the Luke and Acts bear the introduction to a man named Theophilus. Luke adds "most excellent Theophilus" in the gospel Luke. Theophilus was a prominent Roman name. It has been theorized that this Theophilus was in fact a high ranking Roman official who converted to Christianity. The Roman official Theophilus did exist. As to whether that Theophilus and Luke's Theophilus are the same man is uncertain, though it leaves something to think about.
The gospel of John leads the way with the most exclusive material. Luke is second in this regard possessing much exclusive material itself. Luke is known as the gospel of parables. There are some found here in Luke that are not found in the other three. The parable of the lost son, for example, is found only in Luke. Luke is also known for being the best written of the four. This is probably due to Luke's formal education as a physician.
If you read through Luke and see an emphasis given to the poor, you aren't imagining things. Luke gives a special emphasis to caring for the poor. Matthew says, Blessed are the poor in spirit," while Luke says, "Blessed are you who are poor." Jesus is shown by Luke to have cared deeply for the poor, women, children and Gentiles. Which makes sense because Luke's audience to which he wrote was a Gentile. Jesus was constantly on the move in Mark's gospel. Here in Luke, Jesus is always praying.
People have asked, "Why do we need four gospels?" Each gospel reveals more about our Lord. Each gospel tells us something different about Jesus. I'm more than happy to have all four. Though I will caution you to be very careful in reading any extra biblical gospels like Thomas, Judas, Peter and Mary Magdalene. These gospels are not in the Bible for a reason. If you have any questions about biblical and non-biblical books, please ask. For now let's look at Luke gospel.
17:1 Jesus said to his disciples: “Things that cause people to sin are bound to come, but woe to that person through whom they come. 2 It would be better for him to be thrown into the sea with a millstone tied around his neck than for him to cause one of these little ones to sin. 3 So watch yourselves.
“If your brother sins, rebuke him, and if he repents, forgive him. 4 If he sins against you seven times in a day, and seven times comes back to you and says, ‘I repent,’ forgive him.”
Why does Jesus want us to rebuke our brother when he sins? Based on what He said in verses 1-4, we can tell that He is concerned with someone's sinful behavior leading others to accept and engage in the same sinful behavior. "It would be better for him to be thrown into the sea with a millstone tied around his neck." That's harsh!!! Yes, harsh but true. We are always afraid of hurting someone's feelings. Or we are too sensitive and get our feelings hurt. Let me ask you, would it be better to stop sinning or be thrown into the sea with a millstone tied around your neck? In other words, if you are sinning and someone rebukes you, own up to it and stop sinning rather than get offended.
You who are scared to confront someone in their sin, confront them. After all, sin hurts us and those around us. It wouldn't be very loving of you to let your brother continue to live in his sin. We are so afraid of this term "rebuke." We think its a bad thing. Rebuke doesn't mean we have to yell at someone. Rebuke simply means to expose or correct. If you need to expose someone's sin and correct them, do it in love. Love should be your motivation. If you do so without love, you are just as guilty as the person you rebuke.
Read 19:11-27
The parable of the ten minas teaches us a very important lesson. Was the king unfair or unjust towards the servant who did not do anything with his mina? The application is this: We are all entrusted with talents and gifts by God. Some of us are lucky enough to be entrusted with wealth. Though these things can be a benefit to us, we aren't proved trustworthy if we use them only for ourselves. Our gifts, talents and wealth are to be multiplied for the pleasure of our King. That means we have to use our gifts to serve God. How do our gifts serve God? By servicing to others in love. Our gifts and resources are given to us to lead others into a relationship with Jesus Christ. Period. If you are using your gift and it's not leading others to Jesus, then you are not using your gift to the glory of God. Also, we cannot show favoritism towards who we share our gifts with. Gifts are used for everyone, not just to a certain group.
Though I have spent more time giving you background than normal and not as much time on the material as normal, I believe that in our reading today these two passages are important. We have to protect each other from the sin in our lives. We have to keep it from spreading among us. That's also why God has given us gifts. We have gifts to serve God and each other. One way we serve each other is by protecting the church in love. The Church is important to God. After all, Christ died for the Church. If God is serious about the Church, which is made of people and not a building, we too should be serious about the Church. I love you all. Until next time...
Stay continually at the temple praising God. Grace and peace to you all.
The gospel of John leads the way with the most exclusive material. Luke is second in this regard possessing much exclusive material itself. Luke is known as the gospel of parables. There are some found here in Luke that are not found in the other three. The parable of the lost son, for example, is found only in Luke. Luke is also known for being the best written of the four. This is probably due to Luke's formal education as a physician.
If you read through Luke and see an emphasis given to the poor, you aren't imagining things. Luke gives a special emphasis to caring for the poor. Matthew says, Blessed are the poor in spirit," while Luke says, "Blessed are you who are poor." Jesus is shown by Luke to have cared deeply for the poor, women, children and Gentiles. Which makes sense because Luke's audience to which he wrote was a Gentile. Jesus was constantly on the move in Mark's gospel. Here in Luke, Jesus is always praying.
People have asked, "Why do we need four gospels?" Each gospel reveals more about our Lord. Each gospel tells us something different about Jesus. I'm more than happy to have all four. Though I will caution you to be very careful in reading any extra biblical gospels like Thomas, Judas, Peter and Mary Magdalene. These gospels are not in the Bible for a reason. If you have any questions about biblical and non-biblical books, please ask. For now let's look at Luke gospel.
17:1 Jesus said to his disciples: “Things that cause people to sin are bound to come, but woe to that person through whom they come. 2 It would be better for him to be thrown into the sea with a millstone tied around his neck than for him to cause one of these little ones to sin. 3 So watch yourselves.
“If your brother sins, rebuke him, and if he repents, forgive him. 4 If he sins against you seven times in a day, and seven times comes back to you and says, ‘I repent,’ forgive him.”
Why does Jesus want us to rebuke our brother when he sins? Based on what He said in verses 1-4, we can tell that He is concerned with someone's sinful behavior leading others to accept and engage in the same sinful behavior. "It would be better for him to be thrown into the sea with a millstone tied around his neck." That's harsh!!! Yes, harsh but true. We are always afraid of hurting someone's feelings. Or we are too sensitive and get our feelings hurt. Let me ask you, would it be better to stop sinning or be thrown into the sea with a millstone tied around your neck? In other words, if you are sinning and someone rebukes you, own up to it and stop sinning rather than get offended.
You who are scared to confront someone in their sin, confront them. After all, sin hurts us and those around us. It wouldn't be very loving of you to let your brother continue to live in his sin. We are so afraid of this term "rebuke." We think its a bad thing. Rebuke doesn't mean we have to yell at someone. Rebuke simply means to expose or correct. If you need to expose someone's sin and correct them, do it in love. Love should be your motivation. If you do so without love, you are just as guilty as the person you rebuke.
Read 19:11-27
The parable of the ten minas teaches us a very important lesson. Was the king unfair or unjust towards the servant who did not do anything with his mina? The application is this: We are all entrusted with talents and gifts by God. Some of us are lucky enough to be entrusted with wealth. Though these things can be a benefit to us, we aren't proved trustworthy if we use them only for ourselves. Our gifts, talents and wealth are to be multiplied for the pleasure of our King. That means we have to use our gifts to serve God. How do our gifts serve God? By servicing to others in love. Our gifts and resources are given to us to lead others into a relationship with Jesus Christ. Period. If you are using your gift and it's not leading others to Jesus, then you are not using your gift to the glory of God. Also, we cannot show favoritism towards who we share our gifts with. Gifts are used for everyone, not just to a certain group.
Though I have spent more time giving you background than normal and not as much time on the material as normal, I believe that in our reading today these two passages are important. We have to protect each other from the sin in our lives. We have to keep it from spreading among us. That's also why God has given us gifts. We have gifts to serve God and each other. One way we serve each other is by protecting the church in love. The Church is important to God. After all, Christ died for the Church. If God is serious about the Church, which is made of people and not a building, we too should be serious about the Church. I love you all. Until next time...
Stay continually at the temple praising God. Grace and peace to you all.
Monday, July 25, 2011
2 Timothy
Grace, mercy and peace from God the Father and Christ Jesus our Lord. I am very thankful that I get to write to you and share God's word. It is powerful and along with the Spirit transforms lives to the glory of God the Father.
Today we are going to look at 2 Timothy. It may seem out of place to discuss the latter book rather than the former, but that's exactly why we're doing it. We often pay more attention to the former than the latter. 1&2 Timothy are a part of Paul's Pastoral Epistles, which also include Titus. They are thus labeled Pastoral Epistles not only because Paul is pastoring these two men, but also because these two men are themselves pastors. Timothy is regarded as Paul's final written work. Paul wrote to Timothy while in Rome on house arrest. The desperate tone in the final verses of the letter suggest that Paul has little time before his dead sentence is carried out.
Paul was under house arrest and sentenced to death by order of emperor Nero. Nero was a tyrant. He hated Christians and regarded them with contempt as second class citizens. He often blamed them for public issues thus leading to their persecution under his rule. When Nero intentionally burned a portion of Rome to clear land for his new royal palace, he blamed Christians for his crime. He was also known to have Christians tied to stakes and burned alive to serve as lanterns in his gardens while he entertained guests. Paul is in trouble and he knows it. He trusts in God but desires to see his dear friend Timothy before he dies.
1:7 For God did not give us a spirit of timidity, but a spirit of power, of love and of self-discipline.
God did not give us a spirit of fear. Paul wants to remind Timothy of this because of his impending execution. He is not afraid and he is telling Timothy to not be afraid. This serves as a reminder to us all. We have a Spirit inside us, given by God, that has power. We have no need to be afraid of what will happen to us. What's the worse that could happen? We could die? If I die I get to be with Jesus. So I will work to do God's will all the more harder. We have to remember that no matter how hard we work, we must work with love. Love must be the motivator. Why do anything for God if we don't love Him? Why do anything for people if we don't love them? Therefore, we must always work to love God and others. Remember what Paul said in Corinthians...if I have not love, I am nothing!!!
We also have a spirit of self-discipline. Self-discipline is something that has fallen by the way side in our culture. We think about workaholics in their self-discipline forgetting about everyone else except themselves and their career. But self-discipline is a good thing meant to be used in the way God intended.
23 Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for men, 24 since you know that you will receive an inheritance from the Lord as a reward. It is the Lord Christ you are serving.
- Colossians 3:23-24
Whatever we do must be done with our all. After all, who wants someone to do something for them and give a half-hearted effort? Not being self-disciplined is the symptom you are immature and need to grow in some aspect of your life.
2:14 Keep reminding them of these things. Warn them before God against quarreling about words; it is of no value, and only ruins those who listen.
Quarreling about words means quarreling about things that are said and done. How often do we have open quarreling between two people? Open quarreling often comes as a result of someone saying something offensive or unloving about them behind their back.Though open quarreling does happen, it does not happen as much as one-sided quarreling (gossip).We often hold on to things don't we? We hold on to an annoyance or displeasure with someone's behavior. Instead of being honest and talking with them in love...we talk about it with others and gossip. It tears people down. It tears down the ones we talk about and the ones listening. It encourages those listening to join in and they think it is a perfectly acceptable practice.
So let me to continue to encourage you in love. Love is always the best solution. If you care about someone and want them to grow to become a better person...love them!!! Let me remind you of what we read in Ephesians recently.
2 Be completely humble and gentle; be patient, bearing with one another in love. 3 Make every effort to keep the unity of the Spirit through the bond of peace. - Ephesians 4:2-3
Why do I tell you these things? I do for the same reason Paul said the following to Timothy.
3:1 But mark this: There will be terrible times in the last days. 2 People will be lovers of themselves, lovers of money, boastful, proud, abusive, disobedient to their parents, ungrateful, unholy, 3 without love, unforgiving, slanderous, without self-control, brutal, not lovers of the good, 4 treacherous, rash, conceited, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God— 5 having a form of godliness but denying its power. Have nothing to do with them.
Paul says to have nothing to do with them. These aren't the people who have yet to make a decision for Christ. These are those who have already made the choice to deny God. I pray that none of us end up being a part of these people. Unfortunately, there will be some who do. We have a choice to make. Will we love God or evil? Will we love others or ourselves? Remember the Scriptures.
3:16 All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, 17 so that the man of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work.
We have everything we need, in the Bible, so we know what we ought to do and what we ought not to do. Unfortunately, people will know and intentionally turn away from it.
4:3 For the time will come when men will not put up with sound doctrine. Instead, to suit their own desires, they will gather around them a great number of teachers to say what their itching ears want to hear.
This is why I want to encourage you all to be well versed in the Scriptures. It is called the Living Word for a reason. It has the power to lead us into eternal life...after all...the Word became flesh (Jesus) and dwelt among us. And just as Paul encourages Timothy, let me encourage all of you to fight the good fight of faith. I would love to see you all in heaven and have the Lord to say to you, "Well done, good and faithful servant." Until next time...
Grace, mercy and peace be with you all from God the Father and our Lord Jesus Christ.
Today we are going to look at 2 Timothy. It may seem out of place to discuss the latter book rather than the former, but that's exactly why we're doing it. We often pay more attention to the former than the latter. 1&2 Timothy are a part of Paul's Pastoral Epistles, which also include Titus. They are thus labeled Pastoral Epistles not only because Paul is pastoring these two men, but also because these two men are themselves pastors. Timothy is regarded as Paul's final written work. Paul wrote to Timothy while in Rome on house arrest. The desperate tone in the final verses of the letter suggest that Paul has little time before his dead sentence is carried out.
Paul was under house arrest and sentenced to death by order of emperor Nero. Nero was a tyrant. He hated Christians and regarded them with contempt as second class citizens. He often blamed them for public issues thus leading to their persecution under his rule. When Nero intentionally burned a portion of Rome to clear land for his new royal palace, he blamed Christians for his crime. He was also known to have Christians tied to stakes and burned alive to serve as lanterns in his gardens while he entertained guests. Paul is in trouble and he knows it. He trusts in God but desires to see his dear friend Timothy before he dies.
1:7 For God did not give us a spirit of timidity, but a spirit of power, of love and of self-discipline.
God did not give us a spirit of fear. Paul wants to remind Timothy of this because of his impending execution. He is not afraid and he is telling Timothy to not be afraid. This serves as a reminder to us all. We have a Spirit inside us, given by God, that has power. We have no need to be afraid of what will happen to us. What's the worse that could happen? We could die? If I die I get to be with Jesus. So I will work to do God's will all the more harder. We have to remember that no matter how hard we work, we must work with love. Love must be the motivator. Why do anything for God if we don't love Him? Why do anything for people if we don't love them? Therefore, we must always work to love God and others. Remember what Paul said in Corinthians...if I have not love, I am nothing!!!
We also have a spirit of self-discipline. Self-discipline is something that has fallen by the way side in our culture. We think about workaholics in their self-discipline forgetting about everyone else except themselves and their career. But self-discipline is a good thing meant to be used in the way God intended.
23 Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for men, 24 since you know that you will receive an inheritance from the Lord as a reward. It is the Lord Christ you are serving.
- Colossians 3:23-24
Whatever we do must be done with our all. After all, who wants someone to do something for them and give a half-hearted effort? Not being self-disciplined is the symptom you are immature and need to grow in some aspect of your life.
2:14 Keep reminding them of these things. Warn them before God against quarreling about words; it is of no value, and only ruins those who listen.
Quarreling about words means quarreling about things that are said and done. How often do we have open quarreling between two people? Open quarreling often comes as a result of someone saying something offensive or unloving about them behind their back.Though open quarreling does happen, it does not happen as much as one-sided quarreling (gossip).We often hold on to things don't we? We hold on to an annoyance or displeasure with someone's behavior. Instead of being honest and talking with them in love...we talk about it with others and gossip. It tears people down. It tears down the ones we talk about and the ones listening. It encourages those listening to join in and they think it is a perfectly acceptable practice.
So let me to continue to encourage you in love. Love is always the best solution. If you care about someone and want them to grow to become a better person...love them!!! Let me remind you of what we read in Ephesians recently.
2 Be completely humble and gentle; be patient, bearing with one another in love. 3 Make every effort to keep the unity of the Spirit through the bond of peace. - Ephesians 4:2-3
Why do I tell you these things? I do for the same reason Paul said the following to Timothy.
3:1 But mark this: There will be terrible times in the last days. 2 People will be lovers of themselves, lovers of money, boastful, proud, abusive, disobedient to their parents, ungrateful, unholy, 3 without love, unforgiving, slanderous, without self-control, brutal, not lovers of the good, 4 treacherous, rash, conceited, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God— 5 having a form of godliness but denying its power. Have nothing to do with them.
Paul says to have nothing to do with them. These aren't the people who have yet to make a decision for Christ. These are those who have already made the choice to deny God. I pray that none of us end up being a part of these people. Unfortunately, there will be some who do. We have a choice to make. Will we love God or evil? Will we love others or ourselves? Remember the Scriptures.
3:16 All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, 17 so that the man of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work.
We have everything we need, in the Bible, so we know what we ought to do and what we ought not to do. Unfortunately, people will know and intentionally turn away from it.
4:3 For the time will come when men will not put up with sound doctrine. Instead, to suit their own desires, they will gather around them a great number of teachers to say what their itching ears want to hear.
This is why I want to encourage you all to be well versed in the Scriptures. It is called the Living Word for a reason. It has the power to lead us into eternal life...after all...the Word became flesh (Jesus) and dwelt among us. And just as Paul encourages Timothy, let me encourage all of you to fight the good fight of faith. I would love to see you all in heaven and have the Lord to say to you, "Well done, good and faithful servant." Until next time...
Grace, mercy and peace be with you all from God the Father and our Lord Jesus Christ.
Thursday, July 21, 2011
Colossians
Grace and peace to you from God our Father. I hope the Bible reading has been going well for you. It's okay if you miss a reading here or there. And don't worry about playing catch up, resume from the day you start. The point isn't to be legalistic, but to grow in our relationship with Jesus Christ.
Today's reading is through the book of Colossians, which was written by the apostle Paul. Colosse was a city in Asia Minor (Western modern Turkey), which Paul visited on his third missionary journey. Colossians is a letter in the group of Paul's prison epistles. Written from prison in Rome, Paul also wrote Ephesians, Philippians and Philemon while there.
Unfortunately, I have to keep today's blog short. I do however want to focus on three specific areas within Colossians.
19 For God was pleased to have all his fullness dwell in him, 20 and through him to reconcile to himself all things, whether things on earth or things in heaven, by making peace through his blood, shed on the cross.
Jesus was 100% God and 100% man. Sounds crazy, but it's true. Human blood had to be shed, but only a perfect sacrifice from a perfect being would suffice. God had to be the sacrifice. God had to die. Still sounds crazy...I know, but that's how much God love you and me. We always remember that God's Son died on the cross, but do we remember that Jesus was God in the flesh...ergo...God died on the cross. WOW!!! Father God was still in heaven, but the Son God died on the cross. That's why it is important for us to understand the concept of the Trinity. God is one, three in one. Now that this has happened, we are now 100% reconciled to God and brought back to Him by the blood of Christ.
1 Since, then, you have been raised with Christ, set your hearts on things above, where Christ is seated at the right hand of God. 2 Set your minds on things above, not on earthly things. 3 For you died, and your life is now hidden with Christ in God. 4 When Christ, who is your life, appears, then you also will appear with him in glory.
How often have you wanted to know God's will for your life? God where should I go to college? Who should I marry? What job should I take? We all are confronted with heavy life choices that can be scary and overwhelming. Sometimes it seems that God gives us very generic answers to our specific questions. It's hard to find answers to these questions simply by reading Scripture. But by reading Scripture we get closer to God, and its by being close to Him that we start to understand instinctively what His will is.
We first must do a couple things. We must remember that we have to keep our focus where it needs to be. Set your hearts on things above. And we have to remember and keep in perspective who's we are. The first three little words of verse three are so important. For you died. Don't forget that you have died and Christ is the one who now lives in you. Sometimes God doesn't have huge plans for you, He just has plans. His plan involves us being obedient to Him and being trustworthy with a few small things. Then He will entrust us with some BIG things. If we seek after Him and trust in Him and are obedient to Him...then, as time goes on, we will come to understand what His will is in some of the more specific areas of our life.
18 Wives, submit to your husbands, as is fitting in the Lord.
19 Husbands, love your wives and do not be harsh with them.
These two verse get us every time don't they? We hate these verses. Why? Because they smack us in the face of our own sinfulness. Many people read these verses and automatically think that the Bible puts down women and that the Bible teaches that women are second class citizens. That's just not true. God created woman because man was incomplete without her. Women also represent aspects about God that men do not posses.
Why does it say submit then? Does it mean wives have to submit? Yes. We get all flustered about these verses because the full meaning behind them has not been taught to us, and often it has been forgotten. The fall of mankind is not blamed on Eve, it is blamed on Adam. It's unfair to say that wives should submit and not explain everything. You see, Adam was passive in the garden. His job was to cherish and protect his wife and he didn't. So, Eve did what all women today do in this situation. She was forced to take the lead and make the decision herself.
How often, husbands, has your wife asked you to make a decision and you've beat around the bush about it? She wants a clear answer, but don't feel too bad because you're not alone. All husbands struggle with passiveness. What that did for Eve and does for the wives of today is that wives feel like husbands don't love and cherish them when they are passive. Which leads to mistrust. That's why the command to husbands is to love their wives. But because of the mistrust, whether it be large or small, she then feels like you will not take action so she must.
The command for wives to submit does not imply that women are second class. It does not imply that wives are to be under their husbands thumb. That's why the command tells husbands to not be harsh with them. The command to submit is meant to weed out these temptations due to the fall and help us to respond accordingly to each other. Wives...submit means to trust your husband and allow him to do what he needs to do to provide for you and to protect you. It's hard wired into his system, though it's tempting to be passive.
Husbands...don't be passive. Have you ever wondered why women love "chick flicks"? All women want to be loved and cherished. One of the ways you can show her your love is by not being passive and make the decision. Provide for her. Protect her. Listen to her. And she will trust and respect you.
Well...it was supposed to be short. I hope this has been helpful for all. Let me know if you have any questions. Until next time...
Grace be with you all.
Today's reading is through the book of Colossians, which was written by the apostle Paul. Colosse was a city in Asia Minor (Western modern Turkey), which Paul visited on his third missionary journey. Colossians is a letter in the group of Paul's prison epistles. Written from prison in Rome, Paul also wrote Ephesians, Philippians and Philemon while there.
Unfortunately, I have to keep today's blog short. I do however want to focus on three specific areas within Colossians.
19 For God was pleased to have all his fullness dwell in him, 20 and through him to reconcile to himself all things, whether things on earth or things in heaven, by making peace through his blood, shed on the cross.
Jesus was 100% God and 100% man. Sounds crazy, but it's true. Human blood had to be shed, but only a perfect sacrifice from a perfect being would suffice. God had to be the sacrifice. God had to die. Still sounds crazy...I know, but that's how much God love you and me. We always remember that God's Son died on the cross, but do we remember that Jesus was God in the flesh...ergo...God died on the cross. WOW!!! Father God was still in heaven, but the Son God died on the cross. That's why it is important for us to understand the concept of the Trinity. God is one, three in one. Now that this has happened, we are now 100% reconciled to God and brought back to Him by the blood of Christ.
1 Since, then, you have been raised with Christ, set your hearts on things above, where Christ is seated at the right hand of God. 2 Set your minds on things above, not on earthly things. 3 For you died, and your life is now hidden with Christ in God. 4 When Christ, who is your life, appears, then you also will appear with him in glory.
How often have you wanted to know God's will for your life? God where should I go to college? Who should I marry? What job should I take? We all are confronted with heavy life choices that can be scary and overwhelming. Sometimes it seems that God gives us very generic answers to our specific questions. It's hard to find answers to these questions simply by reading Scripture. But by reading Scripture we get closer to God, and its by being close to Him that we start to understand instinctively what His will is.
We first must do a couple things. We must remember that we have to keep our focus where it needs to be. Set your hearts on things above. And we have to remember and keep in perspective who's we are. The first three little words of verse three are so important. For you died. Don't forget that you have died and Christ is the one who now lives in you. Sometimes God doesn't have huge plans for you, He just has plans. His plan involves us being obedient to Him and being trustworthy with a few small things. Then He will entrust us with some BIG things. If we seek after Him and trust in Him and are obedient to Him...then, as time goes on, we will come to understand what His will is in some of the more specific areas of our life.
18 Wives, submit to your husbands, as is fitting in the Lord.
19 Husbands, love your wives and do not be harsh with them.
These two verse get us every time don't they? We hate these verses. Why? Because they smack us in the face of our own sinfulness. Many people read these verses and automatically think that the Bible puts down women and that the Bible teaches that women are second class citizens. That's just not true. God created woman because man was incomplete without her. Women also represent aspects about God that men do not posses.
Why does it say submit then? Does it mean wives have to submit? Yes. We get all flustered about these verses because the full meaning behind them has not been taught to us, and often it has been forgotten. The fall of mankind is not blamed on Eve, it is blamed on Adam. It's unfair to say that wives should submit and not explain everything. You see, Adam was passive in the garden. His job was to cherish and protect his wife and he didn't. So, Eve did what all women today do in this situation. She was forced to take the lead and make the decision herself.
How often, husbands, has your wife asked you to make a decision and you've beat around the bush about it? She wants a clear answer, but don't feel too bad because you're not alone. All husbands struggle with passiveness. What that did for Eve and does for the wives of today is that wives feel like husbands don't love and cherish them when they are passive. Which leads to mistrust. That's why the command to husbands is to love their wives. But because of the mistrust, whether it be large or small, she then feels like you will not take action so she must.
The command for wives to submit does not imply that women are second class. It does not imply that wives are to be under their husbands thumb. That's why the command tells husbands to not be harsh with them. The command to submit is meant to weed out these temptations due to the fall and help us to respond accordingly to each other. Wives...submit means to trust your husband and allow him to do what he needs to do to provide for you and to protect you. It's hard wired into his system, though it's tempting to be passive.
Husbands...don't be passive. Have you ever wondered why women love "chick flicks"? All women want to be loved and cherished. One of the ways you can show her your love is by not being passive and make the decision. Provide for her. Protect her. Listen to her. And she will trust and respect you.
Well...it was supposed to be short. I hope this has been helpful for all. Let me know if you have any questions. Until next time...
Grace be with you all.
Monday, July 18, 2011
Galatians
Hello everyone. This week we are reading through a majority of the Pauline Epistles. With the exception of Romans and 1&2 Corinthians, Paul's epistles are rather short. So we start with the first of his shorter one, Galatians. Paul and Barnabas set off from Syrian Antioch on their missionary journey and made their way through the Roman territory of Galatia (modern day Turkey). The letter to the Galatians was written to not just one church, but several. Of these include the churches at the villages and cities of: Perga, Pisidian Antioch, Iconium, Lystra, and Derbe.
Paul wrote Galatians to address issues that the churches in that region were facing. A radical group of called the "Judaizers" were traveling from church to church teaching false doctrine. The Judaizers taught that in order to receive salvation, one must not only accept Christ as Savoir, but also submit and adhere to Jewish Law and it's man made customs, with special attention given to the practice of circumcision. This is salvation by grace and works, and not by grace alone like Paul was teaching. As you read through Galatians, you will see Paul touching on this theme repetitively. Paul gets so worked up about it he makes a surprising statement in 5:12. Paul isn't angry that the Galatian churches aren't listening to him. He's angry because he cares for them and doesn't want them to be lead astray.
1:6 I am astonished that you are so quickly deserting the one who called you by the grace of Christ and are turning to a different gospel— 7 which is really no gospel at all. Evidently some people are throwing you into confusion and are trying to pervert the gospel of Christ.
Remember that gospel means "good news." If we have to put constant work into our salvation, how is that good news? I don't have the strength or endurance to earn my own salvation. I need grace. We all need grace. That's why Ephesians 2:8-9 says: For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God— not by works, so that no one can boast. Salvation is a gift of God. All we have to do is accept His gift. That's good news. Not that I'm lazy, I just recognize the fact that I couldn't be saved otherwise. That's why it's called "Amazing Grace."
2:15 “We who are Jews by birth and not ‘Gentile sinners’ 16 know that a man is not justified by observing the law, but by faith in Jesus Christ. So we, too, have put our faith in Christ Jesus that we may be justified by faith in Christ and not by observing the law, because by observing the law no one will be justified.
Justice is a term that most of us are familiar with. Based on what a person has done, they are treated likewise. Whether it be good or bad, that person receives treatment equal to their actions. If God was to bring justice on us, we'd be in trouble. Being justified is to be declared "not guilty." Are we guilty? Yes. Are we guilty in the eyes of God? No, because we've been justified by faith. When we put our faith in God, our price being paid for by the blood of Christ, we are declared not guilty. That's the only way to be justified.
When we focus on following the Law, we have to obey each law to a tee. We can't do that. No matter how hard we try, we will eventually mess up. Who tries their hardest to obey the Law anyway? There is always one law we feel isn't as important and we fudge on it don't we? The Law was brought forth to show us how sinful we are, to show how much we need grace. I'm happy to accept. Praise God!!!
3:23 Before this faith came, we were held prisoners by the law, locked up until faith should be revealed. 24 So the law was put in charge to lead us to Christ that we might be justified by faith. 25 Now that faith has come, we are no longer under the supervision of the law.
The Law was given to show us our sinfulness. Sin takes advantage of the Law and creates in us every evil desire. Therefore the Law holds us prisoner. That is, until Christ came. It is because of Christ that we have this faith that Paul speaks of. We believe in God, we trust in God. Grace has taken the place of the Law. The Law still exists to show us our sin and need of a Savior. But where the Law fails to to save, through Christ, grace does. That's why Ephesians 2:8-9 says: For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God— not by works, so that no one can boast.
4:7 So you are no longer a slave, but a son; and since you are a son, God has made you also an heir.
5:1 It is for freedom that Christ has set us free. Stand firm, then, and do not let yourselves be burdened again by a yoke of slavery.
I put these together because they work together to form one thought. We have to understand that we are a slave to one master or another. Where the Bible says servant in reference to God or Christ, it is the Greek word doulos, meaning slave. If that's the case how are we free in Christ? We have freedom from slavery to sin, who is an evil slave master. All slaves inherit the reward of the master. Being a slave to sin grants the same reward sin gains. It will be thrown into the fire. So too will those be if they are slaves to sin.
Not so with Christians, who are no longer slaves to sin, but are slaves of God. Remember, His yoke is easy and His burden is light. What Jesus was telling us is that though we are slaves to Him, we really aren't slaves in the way the world thinks of slavery. We do have to obey God and become new creations. We have to serve. But in the words of John MacArther, "We are slaves that become sons, sons who become joint heirs." We are joint heirs with Christ. The Kingdom of Heaven is His. That's the Son's inheritance. We too will inherit heaven. If I get heaven, then I happily accept my servitude under God.
5:5 But by faith we eagerly await through the Spirit the righteousness for which we hope. 6 For in Christ Jesus neither circumcision nor uncircumcision has any value. The only thing that counts is faith expressing itself through love.
By faith we eagerly await through the Spirit the future for which we hope. We are waiting for God to do mighty things in our lives. These mighty things that bring Him glory and show the world that He is!!! Circumcision or uncircumcision mean nothing. What matters is faith expressing itself through love. While we wait on the Lord, let us obey Him and work to do as He commands. That is, to love all. Love is what matters. God loves, so too should we.
I want to stop here today because I don't want to get ahead of myself. I know there is still two chapters left, but I intend to preach from this section in the near future. This last tidbit is only the tip of the iceberg. Let me just say that it would be a good idea to pray and meditate on Galatians 5-6 and seek to understand what it means to be a New Creation in Christ. Until next time...
The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with your spirit, brothers and sisters.
Paul wrote Galatians to address issues that the churches in that region were facing. A radical group of called the "Judaizers" were traveling from church to church teaching false doctrine. The Judaizers taught that in order to receive salvation, one must not only accept Christ as Savoir, but also submit and adhere to Jewish Law and it's man made customs, with special attention given to the practice of circumcision. This is salvation by grace and works, and not by grace alone like Paul was teaching. As you read through Galatians, you will see Paul touching on this theme repetitively. Paul gets so worked up about it he makes a surprising statement in 5:12. Paul isn't angry that the Galatian churches aren't listening to him. He's angry because he cares for them and doesn't want them to be lead astray.
1:6 I am astonished that you are so quickly deserting the one who called you by the grace of Christ and are turning to a different gospel— 7 which is really no gospel at all. Evidently some people are throwing you into confusion and are trying to pervert the gospel of Christ.
Remember that gospel means "good news." If we have to put constant work into our salvation, how is that good news? I don't have the strength or endurance to earn my own salvation. I need grace. We all need grace. That's why Ephesians 2:8-9 says: For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God— not by works, so that no one can boast. Salvation is a gift of God. All we have to do is accept His gift. That's good news. Not that I'm lazy, I just recognize the fact that I couldn't be saved otherwise. That's why it's called "Amazing Grace."
2:15 “We who are Jews by birth and not ‘Gentile sinners’ 16 know that a man is not justified by observing the law, but by faith in Jesus Christ. So we, too, have put our faith in Christ Jesus that we may be justified by faith in Christ and not by observing the law, because by observing the law no one will be justified.
Justice is a term that most of us are familiar with. Based on what a person has done, they are treated likewise. Whether it be good or bad, that person receives treatment equal to their actions. If God was to bring justice on us, we'd be in trouble. Being justified is to be declared "not guilty." Are we guilty? Yes. Are we guilty in the eyes of God? No, because we've been justified by faith. When we put our faith in God, our price being paid for by the blood of Christ, we are declared not guilty. That's the only way to be justified.
When we focus on following the Law, we have to obey each law to a tee. We can't do that. No matter how hard we try, we will eventually mess up. Who tries their hardest to obey the Law anyway? There is always one law we feel isn't as important and we fudge on it don't we? The Law was brought forth to show us how sinful we are, to show how much we need grace. I'm happy to accept. Praise God!!!
3:23 Before this faith came, we were held prisoners by the law, locked up until faith should be revealed. 24 So the law was put in charge to lead us to Christ that we might be justified by faith. 25 Now that faith has come, we are no longer under the supervision of the law.
The Law was given to show us our sinfulness. Sin takes advantage of the Law and creates in us every evil desire. Therefore the Law holds us prisoner. That is, until Christ came. It is because of Christ that we have this faith that Paul speaks of. We believe in God, we trust in God. Grace has taken the place of the Law. The Law still exists to show us our sin and need of a Savior. But where the Law fails to to save, through Christ, grace does. That's why Ephesians 2:8-9 says: For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God— not by works, so that no one can boast.
4:7 So you are no longer a slave, but a son; and since you are a son, God has made you also an heir.
5:1 It is for freedom that Christ has set us free. Stand firm, then, and do not let yourselves be burdened again by a yoke of slavery.
I put these together because they work together to form one thought. We have to understand that we are a slave to one master or another. Where the Bible says servant in reference to God or Christ, it is the Greek word doulos, meaning slave. If that's the case how are we free in Christ? We have freedom from slavery to sin, who is an evil slave master. All slaves inherit the reward of the master. Being a slave to sin grants the same reward sin gains. It will be thrown into the fire. So too will those be if they are slaves to sin.
Not so with Christians, who are no longer slaves to sin, but are slaves of God. Remember, His yoke is easy and His burden is light. What Jesus was telling us is that though we are slaves to Him, we really aren't slaves in the way the world thinks of slavery. We do have to obey God and become new creations. We have to serve. But in the words of John MacArther, "We are slaves that become sons, sons who become joint heirs." We are joint heirs with Christ. The Kingdom of Heaven is His. That's the Son's inheritance. We too will inherit heaven. If I get heaven, then I happily accept my servitude under God.
5:5 But by faith we eagerly await through the Spirit the righteousness for which we hope. 6 For in Christ Jesus neither circumcision nor uncircumcision has any value. The only thing that counts is faith expressing itself through love.
By faith we eagerly await through the Spirit the future for which we hope. We are waiting for God to do mighty things in our lives. These mighty things that bring Him glory and show the world that He is!!! Circumcision or uncircumcision mean nothing. What matters is faith expressing itself through love. While we wait on the Lord, let us obey Him and work to do as He commands. That is, to love all. Love is what matters. God loves, so too should we.
I want to stop here today because I don't want to get ahead of myself. I know there is still two chapters left, but I intend to preach from this section in the near future. This last tidbit is only the tip of the iceberg. Let me just say that it would be a good idea to pray and meditate on Galatians 5-6 and seek to understand what it means to be a New Creation in Christ. Until next time...
The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with your spirit, brothers and sisters.
Thursday, July 14, 2011
Mark 5-8
Hello everyone. So we've done two straight biblical works by the apostle John. Over the next few days we will be looking at the Gospel of Mark. Mark's gospel account can only be credited to John Mark, who was a very close confidant to Peter, in which he no doubt got his information. It is believed that Mark could have wrote his gospel as early as 45 A.D. but no later than 60 A.D. Mark is among the company of Matthew and Luke in being one of the three Synoptic Gospels. They are called thus because they were all written at about the same period of time and contain much of the same material of recorded events. It has been theorized that Matthew and Luke used Mark in the writing of their gospels. This has never been proven.
Mark is unique of the three because it is the shortest gospel composed of only 16 chapters. In being short, it gives us some advantages. Mark's gospel is to the point leaving out what some would call unnecessary details. Mark's gospel is also action packed with Jesus always on the move. The word "immediately" is repeated. Mark is the only gospel writer to call his work a gospel (Mark 1:1).
Let's skip ahead to Mark 5:21-6:6. This is an interesting and inspiring passage. Jesus says two significant things, one to the woman and the other to the synagogue ruler.
“Daughter, your faith has healed you. Go in peace and be freed from your suffering.”
“Don’t be afraid; just believe.”
For those who were at church on Sunday, this might seem to be a repeat. But I want to communicate the significance of the miraculous healings done by Jesus. Jesus healed the woman upon her belief that if she could only touch His cloak. He told the synagogue ruler to not be afraid and just believe. Again, healing comes as a result of faith. Notice what happens when Jesus goes to His hometown.
6:4 Jesus said to them, “Only in his hometown, among his relatives and in his own house is a prophet without honor.” 5 He could not do any miracles there, except lay his hands on a few sick people and heal them. 6 And he was amazed at their lack of faith.
Is Jesus limited by our lack of faith? I think not! Why could He not do many miracles in His hometown? It's not that He couldn't, but we have to remember that the physical healings of Jesus are visual aids to the real healing that takes place in our very souls. When we have faith in Christ, our souls are healed. If we refuse to have faith we don't get healed. Faith is the beginning of the process. When we choose to have faith, we choose to obey God's commands. When we choose to obey, we get baptized and receive the Holy Spirit. Thus, completing the regenerative process. When we refuse to have faith, we refuse God. God will not force His Spirit upon someone who doesn't want Him.
We're going to skip ahead again, but not at the expense of what we're skipping over. Over the course of the next few chapters, Jesus feed the five thousand, walks on water, drives a demon out of the daughter of the Syrophoenician woman, heals a deaf and mute man and feed the four thousand. Keep this in mind for the following.
8:11 The Pharisees came and began to question Jesus. To test him, they asked him for a sign from heaven. 12 He sighed deeply and said, “Why does this generation ask for a miraculous sign? I tell you the truth, no sign will be given to it.” 13 Then he left them, got back into the boat and crossed to the other side.
Does Jesus refuse the Pharisees a sign because He doesn't like them? They are testing Him here after all. If we keep in mind what we have read over the past few chapters we see the reason. Jesus has just performed numerous miracles and signs from heaven. Jesus has already proved Himself. Now these wise guys are asking for more. "Give us a sign on command." They still don't get it. They don't believe and their hearts are stone. The Pharisees viewed themselves as being the authority in the land. They believed they had more authority than Jesus and that they had authority over Jesus.
Who has authority over God? No one and certainly not the Pharisees. They come to Jesus with a belittling attitude; we can't come to God like that. Who are we to do that to God? He proves Himself everyday by giving us another breath. Look around you and see the glory of God, the proof He is!!! Now I ask you, who are we to come to Him and ask for a sign?
If only we would believe. How often do we think we know better? How often do we not believe someone, or God even, because we believe we know better? That attitude always puts a block on our ability to build relationships. That attitude always drives a wedge. It always separates and never reconciles.
The Pharisees were bad enough. Jesus own disciples, though they get infinitely better, are almost as bad.
8:15 “Be careful,” Jesus warned them. “Watch out for the yeast of the Pharisees and that of Herod.”
16 They discussed this with one another and said, “It is because we have no bread.”
17 Aware of their discussion, Jesus asked them: “Why are you talking about having no bread? Do you still not see or understand? Are your hearts hardened? 18 Do you have eyes but fail to see, and ears but fail to hear? And don’t you remember?
Jesus is frustrated with them for two reasons. First, they totally missed the point of what He said. They heard the word "yeast" and immediately thought He was talking about their lack of food. Second, why are they worried about not having bread and why do they think Jesus would be worried about it? He replies to them by calling their attention to the feeding of the five thousand and the four thousand. "Do you not remember that I fed those people by miraculously multiplying just a few small loaves and a few small fish?" The read between the lines meaning is the same meaning from John's account. Why hunger for food that spoils. Hunger for the food that gives life. Faith in Jesus provides healing for our souls and sustenance for our souls.
Ever hear the expression: We have a God sized hole in each of us? That's true. Nothing can fill that hole but Jesus. He is the Bread of Life. We have our fill and are satisfied when we have Christ and the hole is filled. We need no signs or miracles. We need to just believe. And when we believe, our faith will cast out all fear, mush the same as with the synagogue ruler.
That's all for now, but I want to challenge you all before I go. Ever notice how Jesus tells people not to tell anyone who He is, or not to tell anyone about a miracle He's performed? Why does He do that? If you know I'd love to here what your explanation is. If you don't I'd love to discuss it with you. Comment here or on my facebook page. Ask me at church if you'd like. I look forward to hearing from you. Until next time...
Peace and grace be with you all.
Mark is unique of the three because it is the shortest gospel composed of only 16 chapters. In being short, it gives us some advantages. Mark's gospel is to the point leaving out what some would call unnecessary details. Mark's gospel is also action packed with Jesus always on the move. The word "immediately" is repeated. Mark is the only gospel writer to call his work a gospel (Mark 1:1).
Let's skip ahead to Mark 5:21-6:6. This is an interesting and inspiring passage. Jesus says two significant things, one to the woman and the other to the synagogue ruler.
“Daughter, your faith has healed you. Go in peace and be freed from your suffering.”
“Don’t be afraid; just believe.”
For those who were at church on Sunday, this might seem to be a repeat. But I want to communicate the significance of the miraculous healings done by Jesus. Jesus healed the woman upon her belief that if she could only touch His cloak. He told the synagogue ruler to not be afraid and just believe. Again, healing comes as a result of faith. Notice what happens when Jesus goes to His hometown.
6:4 Jesus said to them, “Only in his hometown, among his relatives and in his own house is a prophet without honor.” 5 He could not do any miracles there, except lay his hands on a few sick people and heal them. 6 And he was amazed at their lack of faith.
Is Jesus limited by our lack of faith? I think not! Why could He not do many miracles in His hometown? It's not that He couldn't, but we have to remember that the physical healings of Jesus are visual aids to the real healing that takes place in our very souls. When we have faith in Christ, our souls are healed. If we refuse to have faith we don't get healed. Faith is the beginning of the process. When we choose to have faith, we choose to obey God's commands. When we choose to obey, we get baptized and receive the Holy Spirit. Thus, completing the regenerative process. When we refuse to have faith, we refuse God. God will not force His Spirit upon someone who doesn't want Him.
We're going to skip ahead again, but not at the expense of what we're skipping over. Over the course of the next few chapters, Jesus feed the five thousand, walks on water, drives a demon out of the daughter of the Syrophoenician woman, heals a deaf and mute man and feed the four thousand. Keep this in mind for the following.
8:11 The Pharisees came and began to question Jesus. To test him, they asked him for a sign from heaven. 12 He sighed deeply and said, “Why does this generation ask for a miraculous sign? I tell you the truth, no sign will be given to it.” 13 Then he left them, got back into the boat and crossed to the other side.
Does Jesus refuse the Pharisees a sign because He doesn't like them? They are testing Him here after all. If we keep in mind what we have read over the past few chapters we see the reason. Jesus has just performed numerous miracles and signs from heaven. Jesus has already proved Himself. Now these wise guys are asking for more. "Give us a sign on command." They still don't get it. They don't believe and their hearts are stone. The Pharisees viewed themselves as being the authority in the land. They believed they had more authority than Jesus and that they had authority over Jesus.
Who has authority over God? No one and certainly not the Pharisees. They come to Jesus with a belittling attitude; we can't come to God like that. Who are we to do that to God? He proves Himself everyday by giving us another breath. Look around you and see the glory of God, the proof He is!!! Now I ask you, who are we to come to Him and ask for a sign?
If only we would believe. How often do we think we know better? How often do we not believe someone, or God even, because we believe we know better? That attitude always puts a block on our ability to build relationships. That attitude always drives a wedge. It always separates and never reconciles.
The Pharisees were bad enough. Jesus own disciples, though they get infinitely better, are almost as bad.
8:15 “Be careful,” Jesus warned them. “Watch out for the yeast of the Pharisees and that of Herod.”
16 They discussed this with one another and said, “It is because we have no bread.”
17 Aware of their discussion, Jesus asked them: “Why are you talking about having no bread? Do you still not see or understand? Are your hearts hardened? 18 Do you have eyes but fail to see, and ears but fail to hear? And don’t you remember?
Jesus is frustrated with them for two reasons. First, they totally missed the point of what He said. They heard the word "yeast" and immediately thought He was talking about their lack of food. Second, why are they worried about not having bread and why do they think Jesus would be worried about it? He replies to them by calling their attention to the feeding of the five thousand and the four thousand. "Do you not remember that I fed those people by miraculously multiplying just a few small loaves and a few small fish?" The read between the lines meaning is the same meaning from John's account. Why hunger for food that spoils. Hunger for the food that gives life. Faith in Jesus provides healing for our souls and sustenance for our souls.
Ever hear the expression: We have a God sized hole in each of us? That's true. Nothing can fill that hole but Jesus. He is the Bread of Life. We have our fill and are satisfied when we have Christ and the hole is filled. We need no signs or miracles. We need to just believe. And when we believe, our faith will cast out all fear, mush the same as with the synagogue ruler.
That's all for now, but I want to challenge you all before I go. Ever notice how Jesus tells people not to tell anyone who He is, or not to tell anyone about a miracle He's performed? Why does He do that? If you know I'd love to here what your explanation is. If you don't I'd love to discuss it with you. Comment here or on my facebook page. Ask me at church if you'd like. I look forward to hearing from you. Until next time...
Peace and grace be with you all.
Monday, July 11, 2011
John 13-16
Hello everyone. In the next two days we are going to finish the book of John. In yesterdays reading, Jesus made His triumphal entry into Jerusalem. It is upon this event that we start the final days of Jesus' life on earth. Chapters 12-21 cover this time. That's 10 chapters!!! John puts a lot of emphasis on Jesus' final days.
13:1 It was just before the Passover Feast. Jesus knew that the time had come for him to leave this world and go to the Father. Having loved his own who were in the world, he now showed them the full extent of his love.
This is a different introduction to the Last Supper, unlike the account in the other gospels. Jesus washes His disciples' feet. I don't want to get into the symbolism behind the washing, but I do want to talk about the motivation behind the act. Think about the phrase "He washed His disciples' feet." The very fact that they were His disciples shows that He had authority. He was their leader. How often do we see leaders humble themselves to serve their subjects?
13 “You call me ‘Teacher’ and ‘Lord,’ and rightly so, for that is what I am. 14 Now that I, your Lord and Teacher, have washed your feet, you also should wash one another’s feet. 15 I have set you an example that you should do as I have done for you. 16 I tell you the truth, no servant is greater than his master, nor is a messenger greater than the one who sent him. 17 Now that you know these things, you will be blessed if you do them.
Jesus sets a precedent for leadership; a leader who humbly serves those under him. This is where we get the Christian concept of what we call a: "Servant Leader." Servant leaders are rare in the world, but there is supposed to an abundance of them in the church. Jesus has given us the example to follow. We should lead by example as Jesus did. Jesus said, "Now that I, your Lord and Teacher, have washed your feet, you also should wash one another’s feet." In other words, you should serve one another; especially those who find themselves in a leadership role. What type of leadership role? That's a good question.
13:34 “A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another. 35 By this all men will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another.”
Again, John relates to us the Lord's command to love one another. Jesus has been teaching them this whole time and now He says these words. Love on another. He's just given them a visual aid of what this means. I washed your feet. Now wash each others' feet. I love you. Now love one another. Remember that the washing of the feet was a way in which He showed them the full extent of His love. He humbled Himself to do this and so should we. Jesus never stops teaching. He never stops loving. Neither should we. He touches on this again and again over course of the next couple chapters.
14:6 Jesus answered, “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me. 7 If you really knew me, you would know my Father as well. From now on, you do know him and have seen him.”
There are some who believe that the Bible says nothing about having a relationship with Christ. I say they're not looking. Here is an example in chapter 14. Jesus says, "I am the way." In this "I am" statement we see that to get to the Father, we must go through Jesus. Notice He says. "If you really knew me." It's easy to know about someone and know all about them, especially now in our technological age. How do you really get to know someone, but by having a relationship? It is our relationship with Christ that gets us to the Father. That's why Jesus is the way and the truth and the life.
15:18 “If the world hates you, keep in mind that it hated me first. 19 If you belonged to the world, it would love you as its own. As it is, you do not belong to the world, but I have chosen you out of the world. That is why the world hates you. 20 Remember the words I spoke to you: ‘No servant is greater than his master.’ If they persecuted me, they will persecute you also. If they obeyed my teaching, they will obey yours also.
Sometimes we wonder why people in the church do things that are contrary to Christ's teachings and more like that of the world. Are these people merely so-called believers that actually belong to the world? It's hard to answer this question with certainty. It's possible, though very difficult to interpret the fruit of a person. We can't judge the heart, but we can judge the fruit. This is not to judge as to condemn, but to gain an understanding.
We must also remember that we are all works in progress. Jesus just talked about the "True Vine." We are transplants into the true vine from the world. We start in the world and it takes time and growth in order to flush out the world's influence in our lives. That is why we must be patient and kind even if we don't want to. After all, that's the way we wish to be treated. It was Christ who said, "So in everything, do to others what you would have them do to you."
There are so many awesome things to discuss from these chapters. It's unfortunate that we can't discuss them all. After all, who want to be reading my blog all day long? : ) I can only try my best to touch on what I feel the Spirit is leading me to touch on. I leave you with the ending of chapter 16 (though this discourse by Jesus continues on into 17). I hope this verse is as much of an encouragement to you as it is for me.
16:33 “I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.”
Though the world hates us (Christians) because we belong to God, we have a hope and peace that will always last. I find myself thinking about Finding Nemo where Dory tells Marlin, "When life gets you down, just keep swimming." Having a good attitude about life is healthy, but when the world gets you down the "Just keep swimming mentality" can only get us so far. Sometimes life kicks you in the teeth. I'm not going to "Just keep swimming" when things are that rough. I know the same is true for most of us.
Praise God that we don't have to get ourselves through when world gets us down. Jesus says, "Take heart!" In other words "Just keep swimming." But don't swim under your own power, but do so from God's power. He has overcome the world and if we remain in Him we have the promise that there is nothing that this world can do to us that can separte us from the love of God. Nothing can separate us from our God!!! That is where we find the strength to "Just keep swimming" and the peace to endure through the troubles of this world. Until next time...
Peace and grace be with you all.
13:1 It was just before the Passover Feast. Jesus knew that the time had come for him to leave this world and go to the Father. Having loved his own who were in the world, he now showed them the full extent of his love.
This is a different introduction to the Last Supper, unlike the account in the other gospels. Jesus washes His disciples' feet. I don't want to get into the symbolism behind the washing, but I do want to talk about the motivation behind the act. Think about the phrase "He washed His disciples' feet." The very fact that they were His disciples shows that He had authority. He was their leader. How often do we see leaders humble themselves to serve their subjects?
13 “You call me ‘Teacher’ and ‘Lord,’ and rightly so, for that is what I am. 14 Now that I, your Lord and Teacher, have washed your feet, you also should wash one another’s feet. 15 I have set you an example that you should do as I have done for you. 16 I tell you the truth, no servant is greater than his master, nor is a messenger greater than the one who sent him. 17 Now that you know these things, you will be blessed if you do them.
Jesus sets a precedent for leadership; a leader who humbly serves those under him. This is where we get the Christian concept of what we call a: "Servant Leader." Servant leaders are rare in the world, but there is supposed to an abundance of them in the church. Jesus has given us the example to follow. We should lead by example as Jesus did. Jesus said, "Now that I, your Lord and Teacher, have washed your feet, you also should wash one another’s feet." In other words, you should serve one another; especially those who find themselves in a leadership role. What type of leadership role? That's a good question.
13:34 “A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another. 35 By this all men will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another.”
Again, John relates to us the Lord's command to love one another. Jesus has been teaching them this whole time and now He says these words. Love on another. He's just given them a visual aid of what this means. I washed your feet. Now wash each others' feet. I love you. Now love one another. Remember that the washing of the feet was a way in which He showed them the full extent of His love. He humbled Himself to do this and so should we. Jesus never stops teaching. He never stops loving. Neither should we. He touches on this again and again over course of the next couple chapters.
14:6 Jesus answered, “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me. 7 If you really knew me, you would know my Father as well. From now on, you do know him and have seen him.”
There are some who believe that the Bible says nothing about having a relationship with Christ. I say they're not looking. Here is an example in chapter 14. Jesus says, "I am the way." In this "I am" statement we see that to get to the Father, we must go through Jesus. Notice He says. "If you really knew me." It's easy to know about someone and know all about them, especially now in our technological age. How do you really get to know someone, but by having a relationship? It is our relationship with Christ that gets us to the Father. That's why Jesus is the way and the truth and the life.
15:18 “If the world hates you, keep in mind that it hated me first. 19 If you belonged to the world, it would love you as its own. As it is, you do not belong to the world, but I have chosen you out of the world. That is why the world hates you. 20 Remember the words I spoke to you: ‘No servant is greater than his master.’ If they persecuted me, they will persecute you also. If they obeyed my teaching, they will obey yours also.
Sometimes we wonder why people in the church do things that are contrary to Christ's teachings and more like that of the world. Are these people merely so-called believers that actually belong to the world? It's hard to answer this question with certainty. It's possible, though very difficult to interpret the fruit of a person. We can't judge the heart, but we can judge the fruit. This is not to judge as to condemn, but to gain an understanding.
We must also remember that we are all works in progress. Jesus just talked about the "True Vine." We are transplants into the true vine from the world. We start in the world and it takes time and growth in order to flush out the world's influence in our lives. That is why we must be patient and kind even if we don't want to. After all, that's the way we wish to be treated. It was Christ who said, "So in everything, do to others what you would have them do to you."
There are so many awesome things to discuss from these chapters. It's unfortunate that we can't discuss them all. After all, who want to be reading my blog all day long? : ) I can only try my best to touch on what I feel the Spirit is leading me to touch on. I leave you with the ending of chapter 16 (though this discourse by Jesus continues on into 17). I hope this verse is as much of an encouragement to you as it is for me.
16:33 “I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.”
Though the world hates us (Christians) because we belong to God, we have a hope and peace that will always last. I find myself thinking about Finding Nemo where Dory tells Marlin, "When life gets you down, just keep swimming." Having a good attitude about life is healthy, but when the world gets you down the "Just keep swimming mentality" can only get us so far. Sometimes life kicks you in the teeth. I'm not going to "Just keep swimming" when things are that rough. I know the same is true for most of us.
Praise God that we don't have to get ourselves through when world gets us down. Jesus says, "Take heart!" In other words "Just keep swimming." But don't swim under your own power, but do so from God's power. He has overcome the world and if we remain in Him we have the promise that there is nothing that this world can do to us that can separte us from the love of God. Nothing can separate us from our God!!! That is where we find the strength to "Just keep swimming" and the peace to endure through the troubles of this world. Until next time...
Peace and grace be with you all.
Friday, July 8, 2011
John 1-8
1:1 In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. 2 He was with God in the beginning.
3 Through him all things were made; without him nothing was made that has been made. 4 In him was life, and that life was the light of men. 5 The light shines in the darkness, but the darkness has not understood it.
Hello everyone. This has to be my favorite beginning to any book of the Bible. John sets the stage right away, letting us know who Jesus is and that He is indeed the God who was, and is, and is to come.
John wrote the gospel that bears his name sometime around 90 A.D. in the city of Ephesus. John's gospel is unique when compared to the other three. Ever noticed that Matthew, Mark and Luke are all very similar? Each were written to a specific audience as well as written at about the same period of time, roughly 40-50 A.D. John wrote his later on, in part, to combat the Gnostic teachings about Christ. The Gnostics believed that flesh was evil, so evil in fact, that the Spirit of God could not reside inside of it. Therefore, Christ was spirit only and only appeared to be in the flesh. Now that's just silly.
John has lots of exclusive material not found in the other Gospels. Major themes that we run across while reading through John are Jesus' "I AM" statements. I won't be writing about all of them, but I will touch base on as many as I can. After all, there's lots of good stuff in John. Let us first look at perhaps the most popular chapter in Scripture; John chapter 3.
3:1 Now there was a man of the Pharisees named Nicodemus, a member of the Jewish ruling council. 2 He came to Jesus at night and said, “Rabbi, we know you are a teacher who has come from God. For no one could perform the miraculous signs you are doing if God were not with him.”
3 In reply Jesus declared, “I tell you the truth, no one can see the kingdom of God unless he is born again.”
4 “How can a man be born when he is old?” Nicodemus asked. “Surely he cannot enter a second time into his mother’s womb to be born!”
5 Jesus answered, “I tell you the truth, no one can enter the kingdom of God unless he is born of water and the Spirit.
How often do we skip right over this and focus on John 3:16-17? Have you ever wondered why Nicodemus came to see Jesus at night? Nicodemus was a Pharisee, though not militant against Jesus like the others, that's what he was. The Pharisees wanted to kill Jesus right from the start. So Nicodemus goes at night to conceal his visit.
Nicodemus' initial query to Jesus is interesting. He calls Jesus rabbi to acknowledge Jesus' authority, which is polite according to Jewish custom. However, he does not yet know He's the Son of God. Nicodemus doesn't get any further before Jesus lays it on him. He does not mince words. "No one can enter the kingdom of God unless he is born again." This confuses Nicodemus, and it would me too if I were him. Jesus clarifies further by adding "born of water and spirit."
We understand from Scripture that we have to die and be raised to life with Christ. How does that work? At what point do we die and at what point do we rise to new life? Think about it. Jesus says "born again." We celebrate birthdays all the time to remember the day our lives started. Jesus is using a metaphor to show us that we enter into new life when we receive the Holy Spirit. When do that happen? Acts 2:38 is very clear that we receive the Holy Spirit upon our baptism. The Greek here means to be immersed.
There is some argument about whether this is baptism by the Holy Spirit or baptism by water to receive the Holy Spirit. To be immersed means to go under. Can we go under the Holy Spirit? No, but we can go under water. When we go under the water is when we die. We can not have new life unless we first die. When we come out of the water is when we are brought back to life, cleansed and regenerated. This is when we receive the Holy Spirit, the Spirit that give us life in Christ.
When we read Scripture in a whole Bible context, it eliminates wiggle room. Unfortunately, many have read one verse and have developed an entire doctrine without consideration to what the Bible says as a whole on the subject. Therefore, I tell you, baptism is essential for salvation. For it is only by being immersed in water that we can be born again.
Next, chapter 4 is the account of Jesus and the Samaritan woman at the well. We can focus on many things here, but I want to briefly touch on one part.
4:23 Yet a time is coming and has now come when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth, for they are the kind of worshipers the Father seeks. 24 God is spirit, and his worshipers must worship in spirit and in truth.”
The Samaritan woman has just talked about how they worship on Mt. Gerizim and the Jews in Jerusalem. "A time is coming" refers to not being tied to sacred sites for worship. We are to worship in spirit. This refers to the Holy Spirit, which all Christians have inside them and is the only requirement as to what place you worship. Everywhere we go, the Spirit is with us. Hence, we can worship anywhere.
This is awesome!!! But Jesus adds one more. True worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and in truth. This means we are to worship according to the Truth of God. Where can we find what the Truth of God is? We find God's truth in the Bible. If you worship by the Spirit and according to Scripture, you are the kind of worshiper the Father seeks. I think American churches would have less issues with music in worship if we took this passage of Scripture more seriously.
6:35 Then Jesus declared, “I am the bread of life. He who comes to me will never go hungry, and he who believes in me will never be thirsty.
Jesus says these words after He crosses over the Sea of Galilee following the feeding of the five thousand. Have you ever noticed that Jesus teachings usually have visual aids prior to the actual verbal teaching. Here we see a crowd of people who have followed Jesus because He fed so many people. Hey, if I can get a free meal I can. But he tells them this: 27 Do not work for food that spoils, but for food that endures to eternal life, which the Son of Man will give you.Just as Jesus provided them with physical food until they had their fill, so too will He provide spiritually for all who come to Him. 40 For my Father’s will is that everyone who looks to the Son and believes in him shall have eternal life, and I will raise him up at the last day.”
John 1-8 has many things I could write about, but I doubt anyone would get through this blog if I did. : )
I will leave you with one more tidbit. John 7:52-8:11 is what is known as a spurious passage because it does not appear in our most reliable manuscripts and historical witnesses. It flows as if it were meant to be there. But if it was not there, it would still flow. Was it a part of John's original gospel? No one can be for sure though many have their theories.
A woman caught in adultery is brought before Jesus by the teachers of the law and Pharisees in an effort to gain grounds to accuse Him. Jesus does what none of them expected.
8:7 When they kept on questioning him, he straightened up and said to them, “If any one of you is without sin, let him be the first to throw a stone at her.”
One by one they all dropped their stones and left, the older ones first. They realized that they had no right to condemn this woman of her sin when they were all guilty of sin of their own. God alone is judge, we need to remember that.
8:10 Jesus straightened up and asked her, “Woman, where are they? Has no one condemned you?”
11 “No one, sir,” she said.
“Then neither do I condemn you,” Jesus declared. “Go now and leave your life of sin.”
He does not condemn us, so neither should we condemn others. Instead, just like Jesus, we should always work to encourage others to leave their life of sin. That's all for today. Until next time...
Peace and grace be with you all.
3 Through him all things were made; without him nothing was made that has been made. 4 In him was life, and that life was the light of men. 5 The light shines in the darkness, but the darkness has not understood it.
Hello everyone. This has to be my favorite beginning to any book of the Bible. John sets the stage right away, letting us know who Jesus is and that He is indeed the God who was, and is, and is to come.
John wrote the gospel that bears his name sometime around 90 A.D. in the city of Ephesus. John's gospel is unique when compared to the other three. Ever noticed that Matthew, Mark and Luke are all very similar? Each were written to a specific audience as well as written at about the same period of time, roughly 40-50 A.D. John wrote his later on, in part, to combat the Gnostic teachings about Christ. The Gnostics believed that flesh was evil, so evil in fact, that the Spirit of God could not reside inside of it. Therefore, Christ was spirit only and only appeared to be in the flesh. Now that's just silly.
John has lots of exclusive material not found in the other Gospels. Major themes that we run across while reading through John are Jesus' "I AM" statements. I won't be writing about all of them, but I will touch base on as many as I can. After all, there's lots of good stuff in John. Let us first look at perhaps the most popular chapter in Scripture; John chapter 3.
3:1 Now there was a man of the Pharisees named Nicodemus, a member of the Jewish ruling council. 2 He came to Jesus at night and said, “Rabbi, we know you are a teacher who has come from God. For no one could perform the miraculous signs you are doing if God were not with him.”
3 In reply Jesus declared, “I tell you the truth, no one can see the kingdom of God unless he is born again.”
4 “How can a man be born when he is old?” Nicodemus asked. “Surely he cannot enter a second time into his mother’s womb to be born!”
5 Jesus answered, “I tell you the truth, no one can enter the kingdom of God unless he is born of water and the Spirit.
How often do we skip right over this and focus on John 3:16-17? Have you ever wondered why Nicodemus came to see Jesus at night? Nicodemus was a Pharisee, though not militant against Jesus like the others, that's what he was. The Pharisees wanted to kill Jesus right from the start. So Nicodemus goes at night to conceal his visit.
Nicodemus' initial query to Jesus is interesting. He calls Jesus rabbi to acknowledge Jesus' authority, which is polite according to Jewish custom. However, he does not yet know He's the Son of God. Nicodemus doesn't get any further before Jesus lays it on him. He does not mince words. "No one can enter the kingdom of God unless he is born again." This confuses Nicodemus, and it would me too if I were him. Jesus clarifies further by adding "born of water and spirit."
We understand from Scripture that we have to die and be raised to life with Christ. How does that work? At what point do we die and at what point do we rise to new life? Think about it. Jesus says "born again." We celebrate birthdays all the time to remember the day our lives started. Jesus is using a metaphor to show us that we enter into new life when we receive the Holy Spirit. When do that happen? Acts 2:38 is very clear that we receive the Holy Spirit upon our baptism. The Greek here means to be immersed.
There is some argument about whether this is baptism by the Holy Spirit or baptism by water to receive the Holy Spirit. To be immersed means to go under. Can we go under the Holy Spirit? No, but we can go under water. When we go under the water is when we die. We can not have new life unless we first die. When we come out of the water is when we are brought back to life, cleansed and regenerated. This is when we receive the Holy Spirit, the Spirit that give us life in Christ.
When we read Scripture in a whole Bible context, it eliminates wiggle room. Unfortunately, many have read one verse and have developed an entire doctrine without consideration to what the Bible says as a whole on the subject. Therefore, I tell you, baptism is essential for salvation. For it is only by being immersed in water that we can be born again.
Next, chapter 4 is the account of Jesus and the Samaritan woman at the well. We can focus on many things here, but I want to briefly touch on one part.
4:23 Yet a time is coming and has now come when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth, for they are the kind of worshipers the Father seeks. 24 God is spirit, and his worshipers must worship in spirit and in truth.”
The Samaritan woman has just talked about how they worship on Mt. Gerizim and the Jews in Jerusalem. "A time is coming" refers to not being tied to sacred sites for worship. We are to worship in spirit. This refers to the Holy Spirit, which all Christians have inside them and is the only requirement as to what place you worship. Everywhere we go, the Spirit is with us. Hence, we can worship anywhere.
This is awesome!!! But Jesus adds one more. True worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and in truth. This means we are to worship according to the Truth of God. Where can we find what the Truth of God is? We find God's truth in the Bible. If you worship by the Spirit and according to Scripture, you are the kind of worshiper the Father seeks. I think American churches would have less issues with music in worship if we took this passage of Scripture more seriously.
6:35 Then Jesus declared, “I am the bread of life. He who comes to me will never go hungry, and he who believes in me will never be thirsty.
Jesus says these words after He crosses over the Sea of Galilee following the feeding of the five thousand. Have you ever noticed that Jesus teachings usually have visual aids prior to the actual verbal teaching. Here we see a crowd of people who have followed Jesus because He fed so many people. Hey, if I can get a free meal I can. But he tells them this: 27 Do not work for food that spoils, but for food that endures to eternal life, which the Son of Man will give you.Just as Jesus provided them with physical food until they had their fill, so too will He provide spiritually for all who come to Him. 40 For my Father’s will is that everyone who looks to the Son and believes in him shall have eternal life, and I will raise him up at the last day.”
John 1-8 has many things I could write about, but I doubt anyone would get through this blog if I did. : )
I will leave you with one more tidbit. John 7:52-8:11 is what is known as a spurious passage because it does not appear in our most reliable manuscripts and historical witnesses. It flows as if it were meant to be there. But if it was not there, it would still flow. Was it a part of John's original gospel? No one can be for sure though many have their theories.
A woman caught in adultery is brought before Jesus by the teachers of the law and Pharisees in an effort to gain grounds to accuse Him. Jesus does what none of them expected.
8:7 When they kept on questioning him, he straightened up and said to them, “If any one of you is without sin, let him be the first to throw a stone at her.”
One by one they all dropped their stones and left, the older ones first. They realized that they had no right to condemn this woman of her sin when they were all guilty of sin of their own. God alone is judge, we need to remember that.
8:10 Jesus straightened up and asked her, “Woman, where are they? Has no one condemned you?”
11 “No one, sir,” she said.
“Then neither do I condemn you,” Jesus declared. “Go now and leave your life of sin.”
He does not condemn us, so neither should we condemn others. Instead, just like Jesus, we should always work to encourage others to leave their life of sin. That's all for today. Until next time...
Peace and grace be with you all.
Wednesday, July 6, 2011
1 John Part Two
Hello everyone. Now for 1 John part two. After reading 1 John for a few days, I'm sure John's themes have not been lost to you. He's one of the more straight forward writers when it comes to his letters. Love is a central theme here in this book. You may have noticed an underlying theme. In chapter 2 he talks about "Do Not Love the World" and "Warning Against Antichrists"(2:15-27). In chapter 4 he talks about "Test the Spirits" (4:1-6).
These two sections are a warning to Christians. What happens if we don't love one another? The world will infiltrate, the spirit of the antichrist can come in. Sheep have a tendency to wander as it is. If love is not a part of the flock, imagine how much more the flock will wander. All it takes is one disagreement or negative circumstance and the flock will scatter. 1 John encourages us to love and reminds us of God's promises and blessings. But it is also a warning of the heavy price that is paid when we fail to love one another.
4:10 This is love: not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as an atoning sacrifice for our sins.
In our sinful state, before Christ, we don't love God. He first loved us. 19 We love because he first loved us. We should always keep this in mind when loving others. Though they may not always love us, we serve a God who loved us when we didn't love Him. Therefore, we should always love others no matter what the circumstances.
5:3 This is love for God: to obey his commands. And his commands are not burdensome, 4 for everyone born of God overcomes the world.
Though I've preached about this an awful lot lately, I didn't want to pass this one by. God is not a god of oppression. He is the Prince of Peace. He is faithful to us continually and constantly. He asks us to love Him in return and to be faithful as He is. That means keeping His commands; obedience. His commands are not burdensome and they even come with a promise. Everyone born of God, loving God and others, overcomes the world.
Now I want to address a confusing piece of Scripture. 1 John 5:16-17 has baffled scholars for centuries. Evidence of scholarly confusion can be found as early as the second century A.D. Which means that upon the apostles departure from the scene, the understanding of this Scripture was lost. Also, John's letters were not as circulated as Paul's. So only a portion understood these verses to begin with. We should remember that John had a particular audience in mind when he wrote this letter. This is an audience that understood these verses as a figure of speech. I do not believe John is contradicting Scripture.
There are some theories, but they are only theories and not proven facts.
1. John is talking about sins that lead to physical sickness and death.
2. John is talking about sins punishable by death.
3. The denying of Christ altogether, which does lead to death.
4. The denial of God's truth altogether, which leads to death.
John could have been talking about any, all, or none of these. Does this challenge our faith? No it does not. John is talking to people who have Christ, who have the Holy Spirit. Christians who continually repent of their sins still sin. Their sin, though we all die because of sin, does not lead to spiritual death because they have Christ. All sin does lead to physical death, but all sin only leads spiritual death if we don't have Christ. Now, if you have Christ, and start living in sin, that can lead to spiritual death because to live in sin is to deny Christ. Denying Christ leads to spiritual death. Is this clear as mud? : )
If you have any question please feel free to ask, whether in person or by email or this forum. Don't let these two verses cause you any grief. The rest of this letter by John talks about the love that God has for us and the love that we have for each other, which is an unending comfort of joy. Continue to love each other and pray for each other as John instructs in 5:16. Until next time...
Peace and grace be with you all.
These two sections are a warning to Christians. What happens if we don't love one another? The world will infiltrate, the spirit of the antichrist can come in. Sheep have a tendency to wander as it is. If love is not a part of the flock, imagine how much more the flock will wander. All it takes is one disagreement or negative circumstance and the flock will scatter. 1 John encourages us to love and reminds us of God's promises and blessings. But it is also a warning of the heavy price that is paid when we fail to love one another.
4:10 This is love: not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as an atoning sacrifice for our sins.
In our sinful state, before Christ, we don't love God. He first loved us. 19 We love because he first loved us. We should always keep this in mind when loving others. Though they may not always love us, we serve a God who loved us when we didn't love Him. Therefore, we should always love others no matter what the circumstances.
5:3 This is love for God: to obey his commands. And his commands are not burdensome, 4 for everyone born of God overcomes the world.
Though I've preached about this an awful lot lately, I didn't want to pass this one by. God is not a god of oppression. He is the Prince of Peace. He is faithful to us continually and constantly. He asks us to love Him in return and to be faithful as He is. That means keeping His commands; obedience. His commands are not burdensome and they even come with a promise. Everyone born of God, loving God and others, overcomes the world.
Now I want to address a confusing piece of Scripture. 1 John 5:16-17 has baffled scholars for centuries. Evidence of scholarly confusion can be found as early as the second century A.D. Which means that upon the apostles departure from the scene, the understanding of this Scripture was lost. Also, John's letters were not as circulated as Paul's. So only a portion understood these verses to begin with. We should remember that John had a particular audience in mind when he wrote this letter. This is an audience that understood these verses as a figure of speech. I do not believe John is contradicting Scripture.
There are some theories, but they are only theories and not proven facts.
1. John is talking about sins that lead to physical sickness and death.
2. John is talking about sins punishable by death.
3. The denying of Christ altogether, which does lead to death.
4. The denial of God's truth altogether, which leads to death.
John could have been talking about any, all, or none of these. Does this challenge our faith? No it does not. John is talking to people who have Christ, who have the Holy Spirit. Christians who continually repent of their sins still sin. Their sin, though we all die because of sin, does not lead to spiritual death because they have Christ. All sin does lead to physical death, but all sin only leads spiritual death if we don't have Christ. Now, if you have Christ, and start living in sin, that can lead to spiritual death because to live in sin is to deny Christ. Denying Christ leads to spiritual death. Is this clear as mud? : )
If you have any question please feel free to ask, whether in person or by email or this forum. Don't let these two verses cause you any grief. The rest of this letter by John talks about the love that God has for us and the love that we have for each other, which is an unending comfort of joy. Continue to love each other and pray for each other as John instructs in 5:16. Until next time...
Peace and grace be with you all.
Tuesday, July 5, 2011
1 John Part One
Hello everyone. I hope you all had a good Independence Day!!! Let us begin exploring the Scriptures. Reading our Bibles is one of the primary ways we seek after God in an effort to strengthen our relationship with Him. So let's begin with 1 John. Let me give you a little background.
1 John was written by the apostle John sometime toward the end of his life. We know from archaeological evidence that John's gospel was written sometime around 90 A.D. from the city of Ephesus. John had spent considerable time ministering to the church there until his death near 98 A.D. Sometime between 68 and 98 A.D., John spent some time in exile on the island Patmos. Scholars are unsure when John wrote his epistles (letters) but speculate that they could have been written from either Patmos or Ephesus.
John's writings are quite unique when in the company of other New Testament books. Like Paul, John has his own style and topics he likes to focus on. If you were to sum up 1 John in one phrase it would be: Fellowship with God is Based on Truth and Love. Love is a popular theme with John, as we see in the gospel that bears his name.
1:7 But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus, his Son, purifies us from all sin.
Our fellowship is based on truth and love. If we live in the light mostly, yet partially in the darkness, are we really walking in the light? We can't expect for God to work His power in our lives if we are keeping part of ourselves in the darkness. Holding just one part in the darkness, hidden, is withdrawing from God and withdrawing from fellowship. When we withhold sin from God, will the blood of His Son purify it? That's why we must walk completely in the light, as He is in the light.
2:3 We know that we have come to know him if we obey his commands.
John's letters were written with the additional purpose of combating Gnostic teachings. The Gnostics believed that salvation came from gaining knowledge of God. Therefore, knowing God came from knowing information about Him. Today, how often do we know all there is to know about our favorite celebrity? We can know all there is about them and still not have a personal relationship. We can know all about them and still not know them. How do we know God? We know God by obeying His commands. What does God command?
2:11 But whoever hates his brother is in the darkness and walks around in the darkness; he does not know where he is going, because the darkness has blinded him.
When we get accustomed to things in our lives, they become second nature. So if we walk around in the darkness long enough, we get used to it and don't realize we're still there. Sometimes we stop loving people and we continue not loving them for so long that we become blind to the fact that we're not loving them. Periodic self evaluation is always a good idea. Am I failing to love a brother or sister? Is this something you struggle with?
3:16 This is how we know what love is: Jesus Christ laid down his life for us. And we ought to lay down our lives for our brothers.
John uses Cain as the example of what not to do in verse 12. Ultimately, Cain is used as the example of hate, which is murder. Cain murdered Abel. Christ, on the other hand, is the example of love. Hate requires us to sacrifice someone else in order to lift ourselves up. Love requires us to sacrifice ourselves in order to lift others up. God has promised to lift us up when we lay ourselves down for others. This is love; thinking nothing of yourself and everything of others.
3:21 Dear friends, if our hearts do not condemn us, we have confidence before God 22 and receive from him anything we ask, because we obey his commands and do what pleases him. 23 And this is his command: to believe in the name of his Son, Jesus Christ, and to love one another as he commanded us.
If we want to know God and receive His blessings we have to obey. If we love Him, we will seek to please Him. We please Him through obedience. What command do we obey? We must believe in the name of His Son, Jesus Christ, and to love one another. John then tells us of something that should give us much peace. We have the promise that God will not be far, but be close to us by making His dwelling in us. And we will also live in Him.
3:24 Those who obey his commands live in him, and he in them. And this is how we know that he lives in us: We know it by the Spirit he gave us.
I wish you all a good day in the Lord. Tomorrow we will continue to look at what God has revealed to us in His Scriptures by the apostle John. Until then...
Grace be with you all.
1 John was written by the apostle John sometime toward the end of his life. We know from archaeological evidence that John's gospel was written sometime around 90 A.D. from the city of Ephesus. John had spent considerable time ministering to the church there until his death near 98 A.D. Sometime between 68 and 98 A.D., John spent some time in exile on the island Patmos. Scholars are unsure when John wrote his epistles (letters) but speculate that they could have been written from either Patmos or Ephesus.
John's writings are quite unique when in the company of other New Testament books. Like Paul, John has his own style and topics he likes to focus on. If you were to sum up 1 John in one phrase it would be: Fellowship with God is Based on Truth and Love. Love is a popular theme with John, as we see in the gospel that bears his name.
1:7 But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus, his Son, purifies us from all sin.
Our fellowship is based on truth and love. If we live in the light mostly, yet partially in the darkness, are we really walking in the light? We can't expect for God to work His power in our lives if we are keeping part of ourselves in the darkness. Holding just one part in the darkness, hidden, is withdrawing from God and withdrawing from fellowship. When we withhold sin from God, will the blood of His Son purify it? That's why we must walk completely in the light, as He is in the light.
2:3 We know that we have come to know him if we obey his commands.
John's letters were written with the additional purpose of combating Gnostic teachings. The Gnostics believed that salvation came from gaining knowledge of God. Therefore, knowing God came from knowing information about Him. Today, how often do we know all there is to know about our favorite celebrity? We can know all there is about them and still not have a personal relationship. We can know all about them and still not know them. How do we know God? We know God by obeying His commands. What does God command?
2:11 But whoever hates his brother is in the darkness and walks around in the darkness; he does not know where he is going, because the darkness has blinded him.
When we get accustomed to things in our lives, they become second nature. So if we walk around in the darkness long enough, we get used to it and don't realize we're still there. Sometimes we stop loving people and we continue not loving them for so long that we become blind to the fact that we're not loving them. Periodic self evaluation is always a good idea. Am I failing to love a brother or sister? Is this something you struggle with?
3:16 This is how we know what love is: Jesus Christ laid down his life for us. And we ought to lay down our lives for our brothers.
John uses Cain as the example of what not to do in verse 12. Ultimately, Cain is used as the example of hate, which is murder. Cain murdered Abel. Christ, on the other hand, is the example of love. Hate requires us to sacrifice someone else in order to lift ourselves up. Love requires us to sacrifice ourselves in order to lift others up. God has promised to lift us up when we lay ourselves down for others. This is love; thinking nothing of yourself and everything of others.
3:21 Dear friends, if our hearts do not condemn us, we have confidence before God 22 and receive from him anything we ask, because we obey his commands and do what pleases him. 23 And this is his command: to believe in the name of his Son, Jesus Christ, and to love one another as he commanded us.
If we want to know God and receive His blessings we have to obey. If we love Him, we will seek to please Him. We please Him through obedience. What command do we obey? We must believe in the name of His Son, Jesus Christ, and to love one another. John then tells us of something that should give us much peace. We have the promise that God will not be far, but be close to us by making His dwelling in us. And we will also live in Him.
3:24 Those who obey his commands live in him, and he in them. And this is how we know that he lives in us: We know it by the Spirit he gave us.
I wish you all a good day in the Lord. Tomorrow we will continue to look at what God has revealed to us in His Scriptures by the apostle John. Until then...
Grace be with you all.
Sunday, July 3, 2011
Getting Started
Hello everyone. I wanted to address a few things in order to get us started. You'll notice on our schedules that it reads 1 John for the first four days. What chapters do we read? All of them. 1 John has five short chapters which should take roughly 15-20 minutes to read. That leaves us 10-15 for prayer and reflection. Please feel free to take more time if you can and need.
Why are we reading 1 John four times in four days? Good question. 1 John has a few of the more foundational teachings that essential for us to know. And repetition is always good in helping us retain information. There will be one day this week where you've read something from 1 John a day prior and it will click suddenly the next. Also, some of the more frequent verses that I quote when preaching come from 1 John.
Though I tweaked it somewhat, our outline has been adapted from one done by Tim LaHaye, coauthor of the Left Behind series. His outline requires reading 1 John seven times in seven days. I felt this was excessive and I didn't want to do that to you.
You'll also notice bold dates. These are Mondays. I made them bold to help us keep track. Feel free to hang your schedule on your fridge or above your desk or someplace where you'll see it frequently and its convenient. I've found it's always helpful to pray for God's leading before I read Scripture. Remember it's the living word. It always has something new to teach us, though we've read it before.
I wish you all a good week as I am excited to see God move in our church through our Scripture reading. God bless and may your cups overflow with what we will read together.
Peace and grace be with you.
Why are we reading 1 John four times in four days? Good question. 1 John has a few of the more foundational teachings that essential for us to know. And repetition is always good in helping us retain information. There will be one day this week where you've read something from 1 John a day prior and it will click suddenly the next. Also, some of the more frequent verses that I quote when preaching come from 1 John.
Though I tweaked it somewhat, our outline has been adapted from one done by Tim LaHaye, coauthor of the Left Behind series. His outline requires reading 1 John seven times in seven days. I felt this was excessive and I didn't want to do that to you.
You'll also notice bold dates. These are Mondays. I made them bold to help us keep track. Feel free to hang your schedule on your fridge or above your desk or someplace where you'll see it frequently and its convenient. I've found it's always helpful to pray for God's leading before I read Scripture. Remember it's the living word. It always has something new to teach us, though we've read it before.
I wish you all a good week as I am excited to see God move in our church through our Scripture reading. God bless and may your cups overflow with what we will read together.
Peace and grace be with you.
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