Kintsugi, or “golden joinery,” is a Japanese method of mending broken pottery. Instead of using simple glue or bonding material, the cracks are filled with gold. The broken vessel becomes more beautiful than it was before. It seems we are seeing some of this as Israel’s shattered heart is receiving healing hands of comfort and blessing from unexpected places. It’s like gold.
Even those in Israel’s government have noticed that conspicuously absent from the hatefest against Israel in the media are two big allies: Evangelicals and Iran. Now neither of those groups would have been considered natural allies before October 7. Christians who have done so much to support Israel in the past have been viewed with suspicion due to the persecution of Jewish people throughout church history, and I don’t need to tell you about Iran. Yet it’s consistently been these two groups that have been prominently supporting Israel against the waves of antisemitism sweeping the world with terrifying force, bringing balm to Israel’s broken heart.
More than that, Arab brothers and sisters here in the land have been able to bring comfort and support. Our Arabic outreach team went to serve in a Messianic congregation located in the south of Israel, not far from Gaza. They have experienced continual rocket fire from Hamas for many years, and have suffered deeply. Nizar Francis and others led worship, singing songs of hope and faith over them, while pastor Nader, who leads an Arabic-speaking church in the north of Israel, came to share about Psalm 23. Someone approached pastor Nader after the service, to thank him for his message and say how much it had helped.
“It was like your words were washing me inside,” she said. It was the first time she had ever been to a Messianic congregation.
Some groups meet with Arabs and Jews praying together in unity. While we are being pitched to hate each other with greater ferocity, the determination to contend for our unity has become even stronger. We need God, and we need one another.
Judas Drew a torch
https://familybroadcastingcorporation.com/drew-sumrall/
FBC believes that forward thinking is what
shapes history.
They continue to celebrate their legacy, as they
strive to take the next big steps
toward reaching the billions yet untold, boldly
carrying the torch
into the present and future darkness, to bring the hope
of Jesus Christ to
a dying generation
in desperate need of God’s redeeming love.
Hoosier evangelist Lester F. Sumrall,
one of the
pioneers of Christian television,
wrote an important
reminder on the front page
of his Bible.
“If I die rich,”
he wrote,
“I die a traitor
to the
cause of Christ
and to
the Gospel.”
ANew You
God wants to do a new thing in your life. No matter where you are on your journey, the transformation can start today. A new thing is happening in the earth today and you can be a part of it. Join those who've shaped history and become a history maker. This message will inspire you on your journey.
Judas Iscariot was one of Jesus's apostles who betrayed him to the authorities in exchange for money.Judas's betrayal led to Jesus's arrest, trial, and crucifixion. Judas is often used as a symbol for treason and treachery
In the Bible, Jesus calls Judas Iscariot the "son of perdition" in John 17:12. The term refers to Judas's destiny to perish, and is also used to describe the Antichrist.
- In John 17:12, Jesus uses the phrase while praying to the Father for his disciples. He says that he "protected them and kept them safe" and that none of them were lost except the "son of perdition
- "Son of perdition" is a Semitic phrase that means "man doomed to destruction". It's similar to "son of gehenna" and "son of death".
- The term "perdition" means "eternal damnation" or "utter destruction". It's a religious concept from Christianity that's often used as a synonym for hell.
- The phrase "son of perdition" appears in the New Testament twice, in John 17:12 and 2 Thessalonians 2:3.
The heart of Israel is broken in two. “I’ve gone from weeping to anger, back to wailing, then anger again,” an Israeli woman candidly admitted. Some Christians from overseas came with smiles, but she couldn’t even bear to see it. Feeling sorrow about her response to those who only meant well, God led her to Isaiah 22 to validate her in the deep distress she was feeling: Therefore I said: “Look away from me; let me weep bitter tears; do not labor to comfort me concerning the destruction of the daughter of my people.” (Isaiah 22:4)
These are very difficult days not just for Israel, but for many around the turbulent Middle East. For many, the horror show of the Bibas family returning in caskets was the last straw. People who were hanging on by their fingertips finally lost their grip. The resolve of those trying to hold themselves together is slipping. The heart of Israel is broken.
In general, the people of Israel are not full of hatred, and the majority long for peace. A huge number are (or at least were) peace activists, going to great lengths to build bridges, find common ground, and heal rifts wherever the opportunity presented itself. But now many hearts — even of believers — are becoming hardened. People are starting to believe the lie that there are “no good people in Gaza”, and are gradually letting go of compassion, unable to hold it together with a heart that has been shattered.
“I’m beginning to come to terms with the fact that I am feeling hate — an unsettling, unfamiliar emotion for me,” wrote Marc Katz in the Times of Israel.
Of course as believers, hating our enemies is not an option, but the struggle to cope can be overwhelming. We always pray for the hearts of our soldiers not to grow hard, and we endeavor to pray for those who hate Israel so that we can keep God’s heart for them, but even believers are starting to confess that it’s getting harder and harder. With every cynical torture tactic of Hamas, with every protest calling for Israel’s destruction storming through the cities of the west, every church speaking in opposition to Israel, hearts have gradually become calcified, and broken. What is the cure?
Click here to read more: https://www.oneforisrael.org/.../healing-the-broken.../
In John 16:8,
Jesus promised to send
the Holy Spirit:
“When [the Spirit] comes, he will convict the world concerning sin and righteousness and judgment” (ESV). In this verse, we see a three-fold ministry the Spirit will perform in relation to the unsaved world. He will “convict” the world; that is, He will reprove it or show it to be wrong. This reproof will target three areas in which the world needs admonishing: sin, righteousness, and judgment.
Jesus went on to explain: “Concerning sin, because they do not believe in me; concerning righteousness, because I go to the Father, and you will see me no longer; concerning judgment, because the ruler of this world is judged” (John 16:9–11, ESV).
The world is a sinful place, and one of the Holy Spirit’s tasks is to convict the world of its sin. No amount of preaching, pleading, or pointing of fingers will bring about the conviction of sin, unless the Holy Spirit is at work in the sinner’s heart. It is the Spirit’s job to convict. And what is the most basic sin of which the world is guilty? Jesus specifies it as unbelief. The convicting power of the Holy Spirit is at work in the world “because they believe not in [Christ].” Once a person responds to the Spirit’s conviction and turns to faith in Christ, the other sins he practiced will be taken care of. It is the sin of unbelief—a refusal to trust in Jesus—that is primary.
The world must also be convicted of righteousness, and this, too, is something the Holy Spirit does. There is a righteous standard we are all held to, despite the world’s stubborn denial of absolute truth. And who is the standard-bearer of righteousness? Jesus points to Himself as that standard: “Because I go to the Father.” There is only one Person who came down from heaven, lived a life of sinless perfection, and who ascended back to heaven—the Son of Man, who lives to be our Intercessor (John 3:13; 1 Timothy 2:5). The righteousness that the world tries to deny is found demonstrated in Christ. Everything He ever said and did was the consummate expression of God the Father (John 8:28; Colossians 2:9). He is righteousness personified, and none can measure up to Him (Romans 3:23).
The world is facing judgment, and the Holy Spirit also convicts them of this truth. There is a day of reckoning scheduled—a day in which the holy God will mete out justice and rid His creation of sin. In fact, this judgment has already begun. With whom did it begin? Jesus identifies Satan as the one on whom judgment fell: “Because the ruler of this world is cast out.” Jesus had earlier indicated that His death on the cross was when “the prince of this world will be driven out” (John 12:31). It was on the cross that Jesus redeemed sinners for God and utterly vanquished Satan. “That by his death he might break the power of him who holds the power of death—that is, the devil” (Hebrews 2:14). Three days later Jesus rose from the dead, showing to all the world that Satan’s rule has been overthrown. All who reject Christ and remain in their sin will be condemned along with Satan, and this is the warning that the Holy Spirit sounds in the hearts of the unsaved.
The influence of the Holy Spirit in an unsaved person’s life will lead that person to the realization that he is guilty, that God is just, and that all sinners are deserving of judgment. Once a sinner has been awakened to his soul’s great need, the Spirit will point him to Christ, the one and only Savior and Refuge from judgment (John 16:14). In all of this, the Spirit uses His “sword,” the Word of God (Ephesians 6:17), and the result is a regenerated heart. “Faith comes from hearing the message, and the message is heard through the word about Christ” (Romans 10:17).
John 14:17, Jesus says,
“Even the Spirit of truth, whom the
world cannot receive,
because it neither sees him nor knows him.
You know him,
for he dwells with you and will be in you”
(ESV).
Because the ESV capitalizes Spirit, modern readers can easily infer that the spirit in question is the Holy Spirit. To understand why Jesus refers to the Holy Spirit as the “Spirit of truth,” let us review the context of John 14.
John 14 is part of the Upper Room Discourse (John 13—17), a collection of teachings delivered by Jesus to His disciples on the night before His crucifixion. In these final moments, the disciples were greatly distressed about the impending departure of their beloved friend, Jesus (John 14:1). For this reason, Jesus took an extended moment to calm their troubled hearts and reassure them that “another Helper” was on the way (John 14:16, ESV).
The Greek term translated as “Helper” (John 14:16, 26; 15:26; 16:7) is paráklētos. The form of this word is passive and means “one who is called alongside.” At the Son’s request, the Father will send another Helper to encourage and exhort the disciples.
John’s use of the term another implies that the disciples already had a helper—the one who would soon depart from the earth. Although the Gospel writers never explicitly refer to Jesus as a paráklētos, the term is applied to Him in 1 John 2:1. Thus, in the context of John 14:16, Jesus promises to send His disciples a helper of the same type, and that helper would continue the ministry that Jesus began.
In John 14:17, the identity of the helper is now revealed: He is the Spirit of truth (cf. John 15:26; 16:13). The Spirit of truth is God the Holy Spirit, the third Person of the Trinity. The Father will send the Spirit to come alongside the disciples. He is called the Spirit of truth because He bears witness to the truth of Jesus Christ (see John 14:6).
In contrast to the work of the Holy Spirit is the work of the devil, a being who does not hold “to the truth, for there is no truth in him. When he lies, he speaks his native language, for he is a liar and the father of lies” (John 8:44).
Because the unbelieving world remains ensnared by satanic falsehoods,
they cannot receive the Spirit of truth (cf. 1 Corinthians 2:14).
Tragically, unbelievers
prefer to walk by sight and not
by faith,
failing
to understand
that sight
guarantees nothing.
At the moment of His baptism, Jesus received the Holy Spirit: John bore witness: “I saw the Spirit descend from heaven like a dove, and it remained on him” (John 1:32, ESV). So, in a sense, the Spirit of truth was already withthe disciples. Following the departure of Jesus, however, the disciples will know the Spirit more intimately because He would be in them (cf. Romans 8:9–11 and Ephesians 1:13–14).
Before the disciples began their ministry, Jesus instructed them to remain in Jerusalem for the promised Holy Spirit: “And while staying with them he ordered them not to depart from Jerusalem, but to wait for the promise of the Father, which, he said, ‘you heard from me; for John baptized with water, but you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit not many days from now’” (Acts 1:4–5, ESV). Once the Holy Spirit came upon them, they were fully equipped to proclaim the gospel of Jesus Christ (verse 8).
Believers should be thankful that the Spirit of truth is with us, in us, and upon us. For, without His guidance and light, we could not distinguish truth from error.
Jesus and Nicodemus
(Genesis 22:1–10; Romans 5:6–11)
1Now there was a man of the Pharisees named Nicodemus, a leader of the Jews.2He came to Jesus at night and said, “Rabbi, we know that You are a teacher who has come from God. For no one could perform the signs You are doing if God were not with him.”
3Jesus replied, “Truly, truly, I tell you, no one can see the kingdom of God unless he is born again.a”
4“How can a man be born when he is old?” Nicodemus asked. “Can he enter his mother’s womb a second time to be born?”
5Jesus answered, “Truly, truly, I tell you, no one can enter the kingdom of God unless he is born of water and the Spirit. 6Flesh is born of flesh, but spirit is born of the Spirit. 7Do not be amazed that I said, ‘Youb must be born again.’ 8The wind blows where it wishes. You hear its sound, but you do not know where it comes from or where it is going. So it is with everyone born of the Spirit.”
9“How can this be?” Nicodemus asked.
10“You are Israel’s teacher,” said Jesus, “and you do not understand these things?11Truly, truly, I tell you, we speak of what we know, and we testify to what we have seen, and yet you people do not accept our testimony.
12If I have told you about earthly things and you do not believe, how will you believe if I tell you about heavenly things? 13No one has ascended into heaven except the One who descended from heaven—the Son of Man.c 14Just as Moses lifted up the snake in the wilderness, so the Son of Man must be lifted up, 15that everyone who believes in Him may have eternal life.
16For God so loved the world that He gave His one and onlye Son, that everyone who believes in Him shall not perish but have eternal life. 17For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through Him.18Whoever believes in Him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe has already been condemned, because he has not believed in the name of God’s one and only Son.
19And this is the verdict: The Light has come into the world, but men loved the darkness rather than the Light because their deeds were evil. 20Everyone who does evil hates the Light, and does not come into the Light for fear that his deeds will be exposed. 21But whoever practices the truth comes into the Light, so that it may be seen clearly that what he has done has been accomplished in God.”
John’s Testimony about Jesus
22After this, Jesus and His disciples went into the Judean countryside, where He spent some time with them and baptized.
23Now John was also baptizing at Aenon near Salim, because the water was plentiful there, and people kept coming to be baptized. 24(For John had not yet been thrown into prison.)
25Then a dispute arose between John’s disciples and a certain Jewg over the issue of ceremonial washing. 26So John’s disciples came to him and said, “Look, Rabbi, the One who was with you beyond the Jordan, the One you testified about—He is baptizing, and everyone is going to Him.”
27John replied, “A man can receive only what is given him from heaven. 28You yourselves can testify that I said, ‘I am not the Christ, but am sent ahead of Him.’29The bride belongs to the bridegroom. The friend of the bridegroom stands and listens for him, and is overjoyed to hear the bridegroom’s voice. That joy is mine, and it is now complete. 30He must increase; I must decrease.
31The One who comes from above is above all. The one who is from the earth belongs to the earth and speaks as one from the earth. The One who comes from heaven is above all. 32He testifies to what He has seen and heard, yet no one accepts His testimony. 33Whoever accepts His testimony has certified that God is truthful.
34For the One whom God has sent speaks the words of God, for God gives the Spirit without limit.
35The Father loves the Son and has placed all things in His hands. 36Whoever believes in the Son has eternal life. Whoever rejects the Son will not see life. Instead, the wrath of God remains on him.”
In the dispensation of Innocence, God worked face to face with His highest creation, made in His own image. After the fall of Adam and Eve, mankind was no longer innocent, and God appealed to humans to use their divinely implanted consciences to do right. That brought in the second dispensation (Conscience), which lasted for about 1,600 years until God could tolerate the sin no more and brought a flood to destroy all but eight persons—a remnant to continue His sovereign plan for mankind. During the dispensation of Human Government, civil authority was established to govern society, but again, mankind rebelled—this time, at the Tower of Babel (Genesis 11:4). After God dispersed the people, He created the nation of Israel from Abraham and his descendants (the dispensation of Promise). After God had created the Hebrew people, He gave them the Law through Moses (the dispensation of Law). God’s people consistently broke the commandments, but the Law was finally fulfilled in Christ. The Lord then established the dispensation of Grace. God’s unmerited favor would finally allow His chosen people (believing Jews and Gentiles) to have lasting fellowship with Him.
In 2 Corinthians 2:17—7:4, the apostle Paul sets forth a defense of his apostolic ministry. In verses 4:1–6, he focuses on the transparency of his ministry. Paul renounces secret and underhanded methods, stating that he does not “try to trick anyone or distort the word of God. We tell the truth before God, and all who are honest know this” (2 Corinthians 4:2, NLT). Paul contends that, if the message of the gospel seems hidden, it is not because he has tried to hide anything. Rather, it is obscured to those who are perishing (verse 3) because “the god of this age has blinded the minds of unbelievers, so that they cannot see the light of the gospel that displays the glory of Christ, who is the image of God” (2 Corinthians 4:4).
Who is the “god of this age”? We can eliminate the possibility that Paul is referring to the one true God here. This “god” is blinding minds and keeping people from Christ and His gospel. So, the god of this age must be an evil being.
One clue as to the identity of the god of this age is that his rule is temporary. The exact phrase god of this age is found nowhere else in the New Testament. The original Greek word (aiōn) in 2 Corinthians 4:4, translated as “age” (NIV, CSB, NKJV) or “world” (ESV, NLT, NASB, KJV), means “an era of time or an epoch.” This god’s reign has a limited span.
Another clue on the identity of the god of this age is the use of similar titles in the Bible. Ephesians 2:2 speaks of “the ruler of the kingdom of the air” and “the spirit who is now at work in those who are disobedient.” In John 14:20, Jesus refers to “the prince of this world.” If all these appellations point to the same being, we have a ruler who wields temporary authority over the ungodly and blinds their minds to God’s plan of salvation. The obvious identity of the god of this age is the devil, or Satan.
As the god of this age, Satan maintains a significant influence on the values, thoughts, beliefs, and objectives of the unsaved people of the world. Satan himself claimed to rule the world in one of his temptations of Jesus (Matthew 4:8–9). But Satan does not control this present world completely. He is not the ultimate authority. God is still the sovereign Lord of the universe. Satan is only a “god” in the sense that he controls the lives of unbelievers and blinds their minds to truth. The unredeemed serve and worship Satan (even if they don’t realize it) as if he is their divine master.
As the god of this age, Satan possesses a powerful dominion over this present, fallen, dark world of sin and death (Ephesians 6:12; Colossians 1:13; 1 John 5:19). From a biblical perspective, this evil age began with Adam’s fall, not with the creation of the world. Humanity’s rebellion against God was initiated by Satan (1 John 3:8; John 8:44), and people got “caught up in the cosmic and supernatural uprising of Satan against the one true and living God” (Barnett, P., The Message of 2 Corinthians: Power in Weakness, the Bible Speaks Today, InterVarsity Press, 1988, p. 82).
The Bible teaches that, before salvation, we “were dead in [our] transgressions and sins, in which [we] used to live when [we] followed the ways of this world and of the ruler of the kingdom of the air, the spirit who is now at work in those who are disobedient. All of us also lived among them at one time, gratifying the cravings of our flesh and following its desires and thoughts” (Ephesians 2:1–3). Blinded as unbelievers, we served and followed Satan, the god of this age. But through God’s mercy and grace, we received the gift of salvation in Jesus Christ. Our Lord died on the cross “for our sins to rescue us from the present evil age, according to the will of our God and Father” (Galatians 1:4). The redeemed become partakers of God’s heavenly kingdom (Hebrews 6:5). In the age to come, God’s kingdom will be fully revealed, and every wrong of this present age will be made right (Luke 18:30).
In predicting His death, Jesus said, “Now is the time for judgment on this world; now the prince of this world will be driven out” (John 12:31), and He assured His disciples that “the prince of this world now stands condemned” (John 16:11). Jesus is the King of kings, and He came into this world “to destroy the devil’s work” (1 John 3:8). Until the final judgment, Satan has been allotted an “hour—when darkness reigns” (Luke 22:53). But his time is limited.
As the god of this age, Satan’s greatest superpower is deceit (Revelation 12:9). He blinds people’s minds to spiritual truth (John 3:19–20; 2 Corinthians 4:4; Ephesians 4:17–19; 2 Thessalonians 2:9–10). Jesus stated that Satan “has always hated the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he lies, it is consistent with his character; for he is a liar and the father of lies” (John 8:44, NLT). Thankfully, God has made His light shine in the hearts of believers so that they are no longer blind to His truth (2 Corinthians 4:6). Nevertheless, Christians must stay firmly rooted in the Word of God (John 17:17; Psalm 119:11; 2 Timothy 3:15; 1 Peter 1:23) and put on all of God’s armor so that they can stand firm against Satan’s deceptive strategies (Ephesians 6:11).
Almost two thousand years ago, Truth was put on trial and judged by people who were devoted to lies. In fact, Truth faced six trials in less than one full day, three of which were religious, and three that were legal. In the end, few people involved in those events could answer the question, “What is truth?”
After being arrested, the Truth was first led to a man named Annas, a corrupt former high priest of the Jews. Annas broke numerous Jewish laws during the trial, including holding the trial in his house, trying to induce self-accusations against the defendant, and striking the defendant, who had been convicted of nothing at the time. After Annas, the Truth was led to the reigning high priest, Caiaphas, who happened to be Annas’s son-in-law. Before Caiaphas and the Jewish Sanhedrin, many false witnesses came forward to speak against the Truth, yet nothing could be proved and no evidence of wrongdoing could be found. Caiaphas broke no fewer than seven laws while trying to convict the Truth: (1) the trial was held in secret; (2) it was carried out at night; (3) it involved bribery; (4) the defendant had no one present to make a defense for Him; (5) the requirement of 2-3 witnesses could not be met; (6) they used self-incriminating testimony against the defendant; (7) they carried out the death penalty against the defendant the same day. All these actions were prohibited by Jewish law. Regardless, Caiaphas declared the Truth guilty because the Truth claimed to be God in the flesh, something Caiaphas called blasphemy.
When morning came, the third trial of the Truth took place, with the result that the Jewish Sanhedrin pronounced the Truth should die. However, the Jewish council had no legal right to carry out the death penalty, so they were forced to bring the Truth to the Roman governor at the time, a man named Pontius Pilate. Pilate was appointed by Tiberius as the fifth prefect of Judea and served in that capacity A.D. 26 to 36. The procurator had power of life and death and could reverse capital sentences passed by the Sanhedrin. As the Truth stood before Pilate, more lies were brought against Him. His enemies said, “We found this man misleading our nation and forbidding to pay taxes to Caesar, and saying that He Himself is Christ, a King” (Luke 23:2). This was a lie, as the Truth had told everyone to pay their taxes (Matthew 22:21) and never spoke of Himself as a challenge to Caesar.
After this, a very interesting conversation between the Truth and Pilate took place. “Therefore Pilate entered again into the Praetorium, and summoned Jesus and said to Him, ‘Are You the King of the Jews?’ Jesus answered, ‘Are you saying this on your own initiative, or did others tell you about Me?’ Pilate answered, ‘I am not a Jew, am I? Your own nation and the chief priests delivered You to me; what have You done?’ Jesus answered, ‘My kingdom is not of this world. If My kingdom were of this world, then My servants would be fighting so that I would not be handed over to the Jews; but as it is, My kingdom is not of this realm.’ Therefore Pilate said to Him, ‘So You are a king?’ Jesus answered, ‘You say correctly that I am a king. For this I have been born, and for this I have come into the world, to testify to the truth. Everyone who is of the truth hears My voice.’ Pilate said to Him, ‘What is truth?’” (John 18:33–38).
Pilate’s question, “What is truth?” has reverberated down through history. Was it a melancholy desire to know what no one else could tell him, a cynical insult, or perhaps an irritated, indifferent reply to Jesus’ words?
In a postmodern world that denies that truth can be known, the question is more important than ever to answer. What is truth?
A Proposed Definition of Truth
In defining truth, it is first helpful to note what truth is not:
• Truth is not simply whatever works. This is the philosophy of pragmatism—an ends-vs.-means-type approach. In reality, lies can appear to “work,” but they are still lies and not the truth.
• Truth is not simply what is coherent or understandable. A group of people can get together and form a conspiracy based on a set of falsehoods where they all agree to tell the same false story, but it does not make their presentation true.
• Truth is not what makes people feel good. Unfortunately, bad news can be true.
• Truth is not what the majority says is true. Fifty-one percent of a group can reach a wrong conclusion.
• Truth is not what is comprehensive. A lengthy, detailed presentation can still result in a false conclusion.
• Truth is not defined by what is intended. Good intentions can still be wrong.
• Truth is not how we know; truth is what we know.
• Truth is not simply what is believed. A lie believed is still a lie.
• Truth is not what is publicly proved. A truth can be privately known (for example, the location of buried treasure).
The Greek word for “truth” is aletheia, which refers to “divine revelation” and is related to a word that literally means “what can’t be hidden.” It conveys the thought that truth is always there, always open and available for all to see, with nothing being hidden or obscured. The Hebrew word for “truth” is emeth, which means “firmness,” “constancy” and “duration.” Such a definition implies an everlasting substance and something that can be relied upon.
From a philosophical perspective, there are three simple ways to define truth:
1. Truth is that which corresponds to reality.
2. Truth is that which matches its object.
3. Truth is simply telling it like it is.
First, truth corresponds to reality or “what is.” It is real. Truth is also correspondent in nature. In other words, it matches its object and is known by its referent. For example, a teacher facing a class may say, “Now the only exit to this room is on the right.” For the class that may be facing the teacher, the exit door may be on their left, but it’s absolutely true that the door, for the professor, is on the right.
Truth also matches its object. It may be absolutely true that a certain person may need so many milligrams of a certain medication, but another person may need more or less of the same medication to produce the desired effect. This is not relative truth, but just an example of how truth must match its object.
In short, truth is simply telling it like it is; it is the way things really are, and any other viewpoint is wrong. A foundational principle of philosophy is being able to discern between truth and error, or as Thomas Aquinas observed, "It is the task of the philosopher to make distinctions" (quoted by Drewlo, E. F., in Thoughtful Adaptations to Change: Authentic Christian Faith in Postmodern Times, Friesen Press, 2017, p. 155).
The Offensive Nature of Truth
When the concept of truth is maligned, it is usually for one or more of the following reasons:
One common complaint against anyone claiming to have absolute truth in matters of faith and religion is that such a stance is “narrow-minded.” However, the critic fails to understand that, by nature, truth is narrow. Is a math teacher narrow-minded for holding to the belief that 2 + 2 only equals 4?
Another objection to truth is that it is arrogant to claim that someone is right and another person is wrong. However, returning to the above example with mathematics, is it arrogant for a math teacher to insist on only one right answer to an arithmetic problem? Or is it arrogant for a locksmith to state that only one key will open a locked door?
A third charge against those holding to absolute truth in matters of faith and religion is that such a position excludes people, rather than being inclusive. But such a complaint fails to understand that truth, by nature, excludes its opposite. All answers other than 4 are excluded from the reality of what 2 + 2 truly equals.
Yet another protest against truth is that it is offensive and divisive to claim one has the truth. Instead, the critic argues, all that matters is sincerity. The problem with this position is that truth is immune to sincerity, belief, and desire. It doesn’t matter how much one sincerely believes a wrong key will fit a door; the key still won’t go in and the lock won’t be opened. Truth is also unaffected by sincerity. Someone who picks up a bottle of poison and sincerely believes it is lemonade will still suffer the unfortunate effects of the poison. Finally, truth is impervious to desire. A person may strongly desire that their car has not run out of gas, but if the gauge says the tank is empty and the car will not run any farther, then no desire in the world will miraculously cause the car to keep going.
Some will admit that absolute truth exists, but then claim such a stance is only valid in the area of science and not in matters of faith and religion. This is a philosophy called logical positivism, which was popularized by philosophers such as David Hume and A. J. Ayer. In essence, such people state that truth claims must either be (1) tautologies (for example, all bachelors are unmarried men) or (2) empirically verifiable (that is, testable via science). To the logical positivist, all talk about God is nonsense.
Those who hold to the notion that only science can make truth claims fail to recognize is that there are many realms of truth where science is impotent. For example:
• Science cannot prove the disciplines of mathematics and logic because it presupposes them.
• Science cannot prove metaphysical truths such as, minds other than my own do exist.
• Science is unable to provide truth in the areas of morals and ethics. You cannot use science, for example, to prove the Nazis were evil.
• Science is incapable of stating truths about aesthetic positions such as the beauty of a sunrise.
• Lastly, when anyone makes the statement “science is the only source of objective truth,” they have just made a philosophical claim—which cannot be tested by science.
And there are those who say that absolute truth does not apply in the area of morality. Yet the response to the question, “Is it moral to torture and murder an innocent child?” is absolute and universal: No. Or, to make it more personal, those who espouse relative truth concerning morals always seem to want their spouse to be absolutely faithful to them.
Why Truth Is Important
Why is it so important to understand and embrace the concept of absolute truth in all areas of life (including faith and religion)? Simply because life has consequences for being wrong. Giving someone the wrong amount of a medication can kill them; having an investment manager make the wrong monetary decisions can impoverish a family; boarding the wrong plane will take you where you do not wish to go; and dealing with an unfaithful marriage partner can result in the destruction of a family and, potentially, disease. Nowhere are the consequences more important than in the area of faith and religion. Eternity is an awfully long time to be wrong.
God and Truth
During the six trials of Jesus, the contrast between the truth (righteousness) and lies (unrighteousness) was unmistakable. There stood Jesus, the Truth, being judged by those whose every action was bathed in lies. The Jewish leaders broke nearly every law designed to protect a defendant from wrongful conviction. They fervently worked to find any testimony that would incriminate Jesus, and in their frustration, they turned to false evidence brought forward by liars. But even that could not help them reach their goal. So they broke another law and forced Jesus to implicate Himself.
Once in front of Pilate, the Jewish leaders lied again. They convicted Jesus of blasphemy, but since they knew that wouldn’t be enough to coax Pilate to kill Jesus, they claimed Jesus was challenging Caesar and was breaking Roman law by encouraging the crowds to not pay taxes. Pilate quickly detected their superficial deception, and he never even addressed the charge.
Jesus the Righteous was being judged by the unrighteous. The sad fact is that the latter always persecutes the former. It’s why Cain killed Abel. The link between truth and righteousness and between falsehood and unrighteousness is demonstrated by a number of examples in the New Testament:
• For this reason God will send upon them a deluding influence so that they will believe what is false, in order that they all may be judged who did not believe the truth, but took pleasure in wickedness” (2 Thessalonians 2:11–12, emphasis added).
• “For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men who suppress the truth in unrighteousness” (Romans 1:18, emphasis added).
• “who will render to each person according to his deeds; to those who by perseverance in doing good seek for glory and honor and immortality, eternal life; but to those who are selfishly ambitious and do not obey the truth, but obey unrighteousness, wrath and indignation” (Romans 2:6–8, emphasis added).
• “[love] does not act unbecomingly; it does not seek its own, is not provoked, does not take into account a wrong suffered, does not rejoice in unrighteousness, but rejoices with the truth” (1 Corinthians 13:5–6, emphasis added).
The question Pontius Pilate asked centuries ago needs to be rephrased in order to be completely accurate. The Roman governor’s remark “What is truth?” overlooks the fact that many things can have truth, but only one thing can actually be the Truth. Truth must originate from somewhere.
The stark reality is that Pilate was looking directly at the Origin of all Truth on that early morning almost two thousand years ago. Not long before being arrested and brought to the governor, Jesus had made the simple statement “I am the truth” (John 14:6), which was a rather incredible statement. How could a mere man be the truth? He couldn’t be, unless He was more than a man, which is actually what He claimed to be. The fact is, Jesus’ claim was validated when He rose from the dead (Romans 1:4).
There’s a story about a man who lived in Paris who had a stranger from the country come see him.
Wanting to show the stranger the magnificence of Paris, he took him to the Louvre
to see the great art and then to a concert at a majestic symphony hall to hear a great symphony orchestra play.
At the end of the day, the stranger from the country commented that
he didn’t particularly like either the art or the music.
To which his host replied, “They aren’t on trial, you are.” Pilate and the Jewish leaders thought they
were judging Christ, when, in reality, they were the ones being judged.
Moreover, the One they convicted will actually serve as their Judge one day,
as He will for all who suppress the truth in unrighteousness.
In our fast-paced, attention-grabbing world, it is easy to get caught up in the daily grind, get distracted, and lose sight of our true purpose in life—the worship and love of God (see Matthew 22:37). Yet we are told to run our race with our eyes focused on Christ: “Let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us, fixing our eyes on Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of faith” (Hebrews 12:1–2). How can we resist the allure of the world and keep our focus where it belongs, on Christ?
To focus is to direct one’s attention or concentrate on something. If we are focused on Christ, then He has our attention; we are concentrating on Him and His word; He occupies the forefront of our minds. Such a focus is only fitting, because Jesus “is the head of the body, the church; he is the beginning and the firstborn from among the dead, so that in everything he might have the supremacy” (Colossians 1:18). By rights, He should be our focus.
Colossians 3:1–4 contains much that can help us stay focused on Christ: “Since, then, you have been raised with Christ, set your hearts on things above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God. Set your minds on things above, not on earthly things. For you died, and your life is now hidden with Christ in God. When Christ, who is your life, appears, then you also will appear with him in glory.” We are to focus on “things above,” remembering that Christ is seated in the place of glory and power (verse 1). The reason for the command is also given: because we have been raised to new life with Christ. To focus on the things above, we must consciously remove our focus from “earthly things” (verse 2), and the reason is given: we have died to self, and Christ is our very life (verse 3). Helping us stay focused on Christ is the reminder that Jesus is coming again, and when we see Him we will know glory (verse 4).
Hebrews 2 lists some of the things that Christ has done or is doing for us: He shared our humanity (verse 14), He breaks the power of the devil (verse 14), He frees us (verse 15), He is our “merciful and faithful high priest” (verse 17), He suffered for us (verse 18), and He helps those who are tempted in this world (verse 18). Because of all this, Hebrews 3:1, says, “Therefore, holy brothers and sisters, who share in the heavenly calling, fix your thoughts on Jesus, whom we acknowledge as our apostle and high priest.”
This dispensation of Grace is often referred to as the Church Age because it is during this era that Jesus is building His Church (Matthew 16:18). It began at Pentecost (Acts 2) and will end when all who are born again by the baptism of the Holy Spirit are raptured out of this world to be with Jesus Himself (1 Thessalonians 4:13-18). The Church is mentioned again in Revelation 19 as returning to earth with the Lord Jesus at His Second Coming.
Grace is God’s benevolence to the undeserving. Grace is the rule of life for the Church, and through the Church God’s grace is extended to the whole world, as the gospel of Jesus Christ is taken to the ends of the earth. It has been said that grace saved us (Ephesians 2:8-9), it supports us (Romans 5:2), it teaches us (Titus 2:11-12), and it disciplines us (1 Corinthians 11:28-32; Hebrews 12:5-11). With the Holy Spirit indwelling His Church, we are able to walk with the Lord and live as He intends (Philippians 2:13; Ephesians 2:10; 5:17-18; Philippians 1:6; 4:13; Romans 8:14). It is not heaven yet, and it is far short of perfection, but as the Church is being sanctified, it provides a little taste of heaven on earth (Ephesians 2:21-22).
Colossians 1:28
We proclaim Him, admonishing and teaching everyone with all wisdom, so that we may present everyone perfect in Christ.
Philippians 3:14
I press on toward the goal to win the prize of God’s heavenly calling in Christ Jesus.
1 Corinthians 14:20
Brothers, stop thinking like children. In regard to evil be infants, but in your thinking be mature.
Hebrews 5:14
But solid food is for the mature, who by constant use have trained their senses to distinguish good from evil.
2 Corinthians 3:18
And we, who with unveiled faces all reflect the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into His image with intensifying glory, which comes from the Lord, who is the Spirit.
Romans 8:29
For those God foreknew, He also predestined to be conformed to the image of His Son, so that He would be the firstborn among many brothers.
1 Corinthians 13:10-12
but when the perfect comes, the partial passes away.
When I was a child, I talked like a child, I thought like a child, I reasoned like a child. When I became a man, I set aside childish ways. / Now we see but a dim reflection as in a mirror; then we shall see face to face. Now I know in part; then I shall know fully, even as I am fully known.
Colossians 2:2
that they may be encouraged in heart, knit together in love, and filled with the full riches of complete understanding, so that they may know the mystery of God, namely Christ,
1 John 3:2
Beloved, we are now children of God, and what we will be has not yet been revealed. We know that when Christ appears, we will be like Him, for we will see Him as He is.
Hebrews 6:1
Therefore let us leave the elementary teachings about Christ and go on to maturity, not laying again the foundation of repentance from dead works, and of faith in God,
1 Peter 2:2
Like newborn babies, crave pure spiritual milk, so that by it you may grow up in your salvation,
2 Peter 3:18
But grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. To Him be the glory both now and to the day of eternity. Amen.
Matthew 5:48
Be perfect, therefore, as your heavenly Father is perfect.
John 17:23
I in them and You in Me—that they may be perfectly united, so that the world may know that You sent Me and have loved them just as You have loved Me.
1 Corinthians 2:6
Among the mature, however, we speak a message of wisdom—but not the wisdom of this age or of the rulers of this age, who are coming to nothing.
Ephesians 4:3,5
Endeavouring to keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace…
Jeremiah 32:38,39
And they shall be my people, and I will be their God: …
Ezekiel 37:21,22
And say unto them, Thus saith the Lord GOD; Behold, I will take the children of Israel from among the heathen, whither they be gone, and will gather them on every side, and bring them into their own land: …
Isaiah 53:11
He shall see of the travail of his soul, and shall be satisfied: by his knowledge shall my righteous servant justify many; for he shall bear their iniquities.
Matthew 11:27
All things are delivered unto me of my Father: and no man knoweth the Son, but the Father; neither knoweth any man the Father, save the Son, and he to whomsoever the Son will reveal him.
John 16:3
And these things will they do unto you, because they have not known the Father, nor me.
unto a.
Ephesians 4:12
For the perfecting of the saints, for the work of the ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ:
Ephesians 2:15
Having abolished in his flesh the enmity, even the law of commandments contained in ordinances; for to make in himself of twain one new man, somaking peace;
1 Corinthians 14:20
Brethren, be not children in understanding: howbeit in malice be ye children, but in understanding be men.
stature.
Ephesians 1:23
Which is his body, the fulness of him that filleth all in all.
Unity in the Body
(Psalm 133:1–3; 1 Corinthians 1:10–17)
1As a prisoner in the Lord, then, I urge you to walk in a manner worthy of the calling you have received: 2with all humility and gentleness, with patience, bearing with one another in love, 3and with diligence to preserve the unity of the Spirit through the bond of peace.
4There is one body and one Spirit, just as you were called to one hope when you were called; 5one Lord, one faith, one baptism; 6one God and Father of all, who is over all and through all and in all.
7Now to each one of us grace has been given according to the measure of the gift of Christ. 8This is why it says:
“When He ascended on high,
He led captives away,
and gave gifts to men.”
9What does “He ascended” mean, except that He also descendedc to the lower parts of the earth? 10He who descended is the very One who ascended above all the heavens, in order to fill all things.
11And it was He who gave some to be apostles, some to be prophets, some to be evangelists, and some to be pastors and teachers, 12to equip the saints for works of ministry and to build up the body of Christ, 13until we all reach unity in the faith and in the knowledge of the Son of God, as we mature to the full measure of the stature of Christ.
14Then we will no longer be infants, tossed about by the waves and carried around by every wind of teaching and by the clever cunning of men in their deceitful scheming. 15Instead, speaking the truth in love, we will in all things grow up into Christ Himself, who is the head. 16From Him the whole body, fitted and held together by every supporting ligament, grows and builds itself up in love through the work of each individual part.
Christ Our Cornerstone
(Isaiah 28:14–22; 1 Corinthians 3:10–15; 1 Peter 2:1–8)
19Therefore you are no longer strangers and foreigners, but fellow citizens with the saints and members of God’s household, 20built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, with Christ Jesus Himself as the cornerstone. 21In Him the whole building is fitted together and grows into a holy temple in the Lord.22And in Him you too are being built together into a dwelling place for God in His Spirit.
The apostle Paul wrote a warning for the church: “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” (2 Timothy 4:3).
The Greek word translated “itching” literally means “to itch, rub, scratch, or tickle.” To want one’s ears “tickled” is to desire massages rather than messages—sermons that charm rather than challenge, entertain rather than edify, and please rather than preach. The people Paul warns about will have, as one commentator put it, “ears which have to be continually titillated with novelties.”
“Itching ears” is a figure of speech that refers to people’s desires, felt needs, or wants. It is these desires that impel a person to believe whatever he wants to believe rather than the actual truth itself. When people have “itching ears,” they decide for themselves what is right or wrong, and they seek out others to support their notions. “Itching ears” are concerned with what feels good or comfortable, not with the truth—after all, truth is often uncomfortable. Paul’s warning is that the church would one day contain those who only opened their ears to those who would scratch their “itch.”
Those with “itching ears” only want teachers who will assure them that all is well, teachers who say, “Peace, peace . . . when there is no peace” (Jeremiah 6:14). Where there is a demand for something, the suppliers are not far away. Paul says that not only will there be great demand for watered-down, personalized messages, but there will be “a great number of teachers” willing to provide such pap and steer people away from “sound doctrine.”
Evidence today of people having “itching ears” includes the popularity of messages that people are not required to change, as if repentance were outmoded; that people are basically good; that God is too loving to judge anyone; that the cross, with all its blood, is not really necessary; and that God wants His children to be healthy, wealthy, and content in this world. As people turn their backs on the truth about sin and condemnation, they disregard their need for repentance and forgiveness. And a craving for “new” and “fresher” ideas grows—even though there is “nothing new under the sun” (Ecclesiastes 1:9–10)—accompanied by a longing to feel good about who they are and where they’re going. Messages that tickle ears can fill a lot of churches, sell a lot of books, and buy a lot of time on cable tv.
Some of the early followers of Jesus complained about some of the Lord’s words: “Many of his disciples said, ʻThis is a hard teaching. Who can accept it?’ . . . From this time many of his disciples turned back and no longer followed him” (John 6:60, 66). Walking away from hard truth is easy to do.
I retract that statement not written by me about homosexuality and repentance, they worded it unfairly.
God makes clear statements in a variety of ways on topics of his will, Grace and biblical conviction,
emphasizing some more than others. Gods Grace is not exclusive, it’s available for all.
It’s not a license for sin, we all need to recognize our own sins.
We come to know our personal savior by Grace through faith
The church’s remedy for those who have “itching ears” is found in the same passage of 2 Timothy: “Preach the word; be prepared in season and out of season; correct, rebuke and encourage—with great patience and careful instruction” (2 Timothy 4:2). It is a solemn charge, made “in the presence of God and of Christ Jesus, who will judge the living and the dead, and in view of his appearing and his kingdom” (verse 1). And it contains all the elements needed to combat the temptation to tickle ears: preach, correct, rebuke, and encourage. The content of preaching must be the written Word of God, and it must be preached when convenient and when inconvenient. This takes “great patience and careful instruction,” but sound doctrine is worth it.
The church’s quest to manage the comfort level of its audience must never take priority over preaching the Word. The fear of offending people’s sensibilities can never supersede the fear of offending God. Rather, the church should follow the example of the apostles: “We have renounced secret and shameful ways; we do not use deception, nor do we distort the word of God. On the contrary, by setting forth the truth plainly we commend ourselves to every man’s conscience in the sight of God” (2 Corinthians 4:2).
The church today, more than ever, needs to re-examine the teachings it endorses. We need to ask ourselves the following questions:
• Are our teachings truly from God or simply itches we want to scratch?
• Are we standing on solid biblical grounds, or have we allowed the world to influence our thinking?
• Have we guarded ourselves from the schemes of Satan (Ephesians 6:11)?
• Are we keeping ourselves “blameless for the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ” (1 Thessalonians 5:23)?
The truth is, God is not concerned with scratching our itches but in transforming us into the image of His Son
(Romans 12:2; 2 Corinthians 4:4).
Sound doctrine is important because our faith is based on a specific message. The overall teaching of the church contains many elements, but the primary message is explicitly defined: “Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures [and] . . . he was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures” (1 Corinthians 15:3-4). This is the unambiguous good news, and it is “of first importance.” Change that message, and the basis of faith shifts from Christ to something else. Our eternal destiny depends upon hearing “the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation” (Ephesians 1:13; see also 2 Thessalonians 2:13-14).
Sound doctrine is important because the gospel is a sacred trust, and we dare not tamper with God’s communication to the world. Our duty is to deliver the message, not to change it. Jude conveys an urgency in guarding the trust: “I felt I had to write and urge you to contend for the faith that was once for all entrusted to the saints” (Jude 1:3; see also Philippians 1:27). To “contend” carries the idea of strenuously fighting for something, to give it everything you’ve got. The Bible includes a warning neither to add to nor subtract from God’s Word (Revelation 22:18-19). Rather than alter the apostles’ doctrine, we receive what has been passed down to us and keep it “as the pattern of sound teaching, with faith and love in Christ Jesus” (2 Timothy 1:13).
Sound doctrine is important because what we believe affects what we do. Behavior is an extension of theology, and there is a direct correlation between what we think and how we act. For example, two people stand on top of a bridge; one believes he can fly, and the other believes he cannot fly. Their next actions will be quite dissimilar. In the same way, a man who believes that there is no such thing as right and wrong will naturally behave differently from a man who believes in well-defined moral standards. In one of the Bible’s lists of sins, things like rebellion, murder, lying, and slave trading are mentioned. The list concludes with “whatever else is contrary to the sound doctrine” (1 Timothy 1:9-10). In other words, true teaching promotes righteousness; sin flourishes where “the sound doctrine” is opposed.
Sound doctrine is important because we must ascertain truth in a world of falsehood. “Many false prophets have gone out into the world” (1 John 4:1). There are tares among the wheat and wolves among the flock (Matthew 13:25; Acts 20:29). The best way to distinguish truth from falsehood is to know what the truth is.
Sound doctrine is important because the end of sound doctrine is life. “Watch your life and doctrine closely. Persevere in them, because if you do, you will save both yourself and your hearers” (1 Timothy 4:16). Conversely, the end of unsound doctrine is destruction. “Certain men whose condemnation was written about long ago have secretly slipped in among you. They are godless men, who change the grace of our God into a license for immorality and deny Jesus Christ our only Sovereign and Lord” (Jude 1:4). Changing God’s message of grace is a “godless” thing to do, and the condemnation for such a deed is severe. Preaching another gospel (“which is really no gospel at all”) carries an anathema: “let him be eternally condemned!” (see Galatians 1:6-9).
Jesus cleansed the temple of the money-changers and sellers of merchandise because of His disgust at what they had made of God’s house of prayer and His zeal to purify it from the abuse of ungodly men. Judea was under the rule of the Romans, and the money in current use was Roman coin. However, the Jewish law required that every man should pay a tribute to the service of the sanctuary of “half a shekel” (Exodus 30:11–16), a Jewish coin. It became, therefore, a matter of convenience to have a place where the Roman coin could be exchanged for the Jewish half shekel. The money-changers provided this convenience but would demand a small sum for the exchange. Because so many thousands of people came up to the great feasts, changing money was a very profitable business and one that resulted in fraud and oppression of the poor.
Also, according to the Law, two doves or pigeons were required to be offered in sacrifice (Leviticus 14:22; Luke 2:24). Yet it was difficult to bring them from the distant parts of Judea, so a lucrative business selling the birds sprang up, with the sellers gouging the faithful by charging exorbitant prices. There were other merchants selling cattle and sheep for the temple sacrifices as well. Because of these sellers who preyed on the poor and because of His passion for the purity of His Father’s house, Jesus was filled with righteous indignation. As He overturned the tables of the money-changers, He condemned them for having turned God’s house of prayer into “a den of thieves” (Matthew 21:13). As He did so, His disciples remembered Psalm 69:9, “Zeal for your house consumes me, and the insults of those who insult you fall on me.”
Jesus’ first cleansing of the temple is described in John 2:11–12 as having occurred just after Jesus’ first miracle, the turning of water into wine at the wedding in Cana. John makes it clear that it was “after this” that He went to Capernaum, where He “stayed for a few days.” Then in the next verse (verse 13), John tells us that the “Passover of the Jews was at hand” (NKJV). These verses trace Jesus’ movements over a short period of time from Cana in Galilee to Capernaum and eventually to Jerusalem for the Passover. This is the first of the two times Jesus cleansed the temple. The Synoptic Gospels do not record the temple cleansing mentioned in John 2, instead only recording the temple cleansing that occurred during Passion Week.
The second cleansing of the temple occurred just after Jesus’ triumphal entry into Jerusalem the last week of His life. This second cleansing is recorded in Matthew, Mark, and Luke but not in John. There are differences in the two events, aside from their being nearly three years apart. In the first cleansing, temple officials confronted Jesus immediately (John 2:18), whereas in the second cleansing, the chief priests and scribes confronted Him the following day (Matthew 21:17–23). In the first event, Jesus made a whip of cords with which to drive out the sellers, but there is no mention of a whip in the second cleansing. So there are two recorded occasions when Jesus cleansed the temple—the first time at the beginning of His public ministry, and the second time just after His triumphal entry into Jerusalem shortly before He was crucified.
In John 8:31–47, the Jewish religious leaders claimed to be descendants of Abraham, with God Himself as their “true Father” (verse 41, NLT; see also verses 33, 37, and 39). But Jesus confronted them by saying, “You are of your father the devil, and you want to carry out your father’s desires. He was a murderer from the beginning and does not stand in the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he tells a lie, he speaks from his own nature, because he is a liar and the father of lies” (John 8:44, CSB).
The Pharisees and teachers of the law believed their relationship with Abraham set them free from sin and error, making them automatic children of God. But Jesus presented them with the ultimate fail-safe paternity test: “If you were Abraham’s children,” said Jesus, “then you would do what Abraham did. As it is, you are looking for a way to kill me, a man who has told you the truth that I heard from God. Abraham did not do such things. You are doing the works of your own father” (John 8:39–41).
Jesus affirmed that a person’s actions reveal his inner nature. The way we live and behave proves our true paternity. If Abraham is our father, we will share his character. We will be like Abraham, believing in God and obeying His truth (Genesis 15:6; Romans 4:3; Galatians 3:6). Abraham was known as “God’s friend” (Isaiah 41:8; James 2:23) and for good reason. He loved God, listened to Him, and obeyed His truth even when he didn’t understand it (see Genesis 22:1–24). Abraham’s obedience proved his character as God’s child. The Jewish leaders were nothing like Abraham. Their rebellion confirmed they were children of the devil (Acts 13:10; Matthew 13:38).
Jesus told the Jewish religious leaders, “You are of your father the devil,” because they behaved like the devil. “If God were your Father, you would love me, for I have come here from God,” explained Jesus (John 8:42). The devil is God’s enemy. He opposes God’s presence, purposes, and people in this world (Matthew 16:23; 1 Chronicles 21:1; Ephesians 6:11–13; 1 John 3:7–10; Revelation 12:10; 13:6). True children of God love Jesus (1 John 5:1), but the devil hates Him. Satan is a murderer (John 8:44; 1 John 3:12), and the Jewish leaders were cut from the same cloth, looking for a way to kill Jesus (John 7:1; 8:37, 40). Their hate-filled, murderous actions proved that they, like Cain, “belonged to the evil one,” their father, the devil (1 John 3:10).
After he killed his brother Abel, Cain lied about it (Genesis 4). Jesus said the Jewish leaders could not understand His words because their native tongue was lying, the same language as the devil’s: “He has always hated the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he lies, it is consistent with his character; for he is a liar and the father of lies. So when I tell the truth, you just naturally don’t believe me! . . . Anyone who belongs to God listens gladly to the words of God. But you don’t listen because you don’t belong to God” (John 8:44–47, NLT).
If we are God’s children, then we “participate in the divine nature” (2 Peter 1:1–4) and walk in His truth (Ephesians 5:8–9; 2 John 1:4; 3 John 1:4). But if we are of our father the devil, we share in his evil nature and have no truth in us.
The devil brought spiritual and physical death to humankind by telling a lie (Genesis 3:4, 13; 1 John 3:8, 10–15). Today, he still distorts the truth, doing everything in his power to lead people away from God, who is the source of truth and life (2 Corinthians 4:4).
The Bible says obedience, love, and truthfulness are marks of a true child of God: “So now we can tell who are children of God and who are children of the devil. Anyone who does not live righteously and does not love other believers does not belong to God” (1 John 3:10, NLT). Jesus told the Jewish leaders, “You are of your father the devil,” because there was no room in their hearts for Christ’s message of life and truth (John 8:37). These religious pretenders showed their true colors as murderers, liars, and rejectors of God’s salvation in Jesus Christ. By refusing God’s words of truth and life, they forfeited their opportunity to become His children (John 3:19–20; 8:40).
Dictionaries define righteousness as “behavior that is morally justifiable or right.” Such behavior is characterized by accepted standards of morality, justice, virtue, or uprightness. The Bible’s standard of human righteousness is God’s own perfection in every attribute, every attitude, every behavior, and every word. Thus, God’s laws, as given in the Bible, both describe His own character and constitute the plumb line by which He measures human righteousness.
The Greek New Testament word for “righteousness” primarily describes conduct in relation to others, especially with regards to the rights of others in business, in legal matters, and beginning with relationship to God. It is contrasted with wickedness, the conduct of the one who, out of gross self-centeredness, neither reveres God nor respects man. The Bible describes the righteous person as just or right, holding to God and trusting in Him (Psalm 33:18–22).
The bad news is that true and perfect righteousness is not possible for man to attain on his own; the standard is simply too high. The good news is that true righteousness is possible for mankind, but only through the cleansing of sin by Jesus Christ and the indwelling of the Holy Spirit. We have no ability to achieve righteousness in and of ourselves. But Christians possess the righteousness of Christ, because “God made him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God” (2 Corinthians 5:21). This is an amazing truth. On the cross, Jesus exchanged our sin for His perfect righteousness so that we can one day stand before God and He will see not our sin, but the holy righteousness of the Lord Jesus.
This means that we are made righteous in the sight of God; that is, that we are accepted as righteous and treated as righteous by God on account of what the Lord Jesus has done. He was made sin; we are made righteousness. On the cross, Jesus was treated as if He were a sinner, though He was perfectly holy and pure, and we are treated as if we were righteous, though we are defiled and depraved. On account of what the Lord Jesus has endured on our behalf, we are treated as if we had entirely fulfilled the Law of God and had never become exposed to its penalty. We have received this precious gift of righteousness from the God of all mercy and grace. To Him be the glory!
To trespass is to go beyond one’s right by violating a boundary or a law. When we trespass on someone’s property, we violate the physical boundaries they have in place. In a similar way, we trespass when we violate God’s moral law or the rights of other people. Ephesians 2:1 shows how serious it is to trespass against God’s commands: “You were dead in your trespasses and sins.” The words trespass and sin can be used interchangeably, and it is possible that Paul uses both terms here for emphasis’ sake or to refer to all sorts of sins. It could also be that the thought in Ephesians 2:1 is that, while all are guilty of inherited sin through Adam (Romans 5:12), we are also guilty of individual trespasses against God’s law. However we interpret it, Scripture says we are all trespassers.
The Greek word most often translated “trespass” in the New Testament literally means “a false step.” It implies a falling away after being close beside. It is a tripping up, a deviation of course, a stumble away from the truth, or a falling over of some kind. Trespasses can be intentional or non-intentional. The trespass offering (or guilt offering) in the Old Testament was offered by those who realized they had inadvertently committed a sin against the sanctified items of the tabernacle (Leviticus 5).
“We all stumble in many ways” (James 3:2). We all trespass. A husband can trespass against his wife by dealing harshly with her, causing her to pull away (Colossians 3:19). A friend can trespass against another friend by breaking a trust or betraying a confidence (Proverbs 18:19). Trespasses have a way of catching us as if in a trap (Galatians 6:1).
Jesus taught us how to deal with trespasses and offenses in Matthew 18:15–17. He also taught that we are to forgive those who trespass against us so that our Father will forgive us (Matthew 6:12; 18:23–35).
We all trespass against God because we are all sinful (Romans 3:23). God posted His “No Trespassing” signs, and we violated His boundaries. But God is willing to forgive our trespasses when we confess them to Him and place our faith in Christ (1 John 1:9; Acts 3:19). Jesus took our trespasses upon Himself on the cross (2 Corinthians 5:21). His death and resurrection removed the barrier that our trespasses and sins created between us and God (Colossians 2:14).
When we repent of our sin and receive Christ by faith, His blood cancels our trespasses, and God pronounces us righteous.
Hacking is an unauthorized intrusion into a computer or a network. Hackers illegally bypass a computer’s security features in order to accomplish a goal that differs from the original purpose of the system. Many technologically savvy students become hackers and use hacking as a form of 21st-century vandalism.
Hacking is a digital form of breaking and entering. Instead of invading a home or business, hackers invade computer systems. Computers store private data, vital statistics, and sensitive information, so it is a gross violation of privacy and decency to hack into someone’s computer.
It is also a violation of the Golden Rule, which says, “Do to others whatever you would like them to do to you” (Matthew 7:12).
We all have areas of our lives that are not open to public scrutiny. Since we would not want our privacy invaded,
we should never invade the privacy of someone else.
Hacking also violates God’s command against theft (Exodus 20:16; Deuteronomy 19:11).
Hackers often steal personal information and use it for their own selfish reasons
Voyeurism also often includes secretly videotaping or photographing the person being watched without his or her knowledge or consent. The voyeur usually observes from a secret vantage point or uses a hidden camera to capture illicit images. Voyeurism is sinful for at least two reasons: first, it is invasive and disrespectful to the person being watched. The Bible commands people to treat others with respect, justice, and kindness (Micah 6:8; Zechariah 7:9; Galatians 5:22). Voyeurism is a violation of this command—the voyeur treats other people as objects. Second, voyeurism falls under the category of unlawful or immoral sexual behavior. Lust is on the same level, spiritually, with adultery. When we look at another person with “lustful intent,” we have already committed adultery with him or her in our hearts (Matthew 5:28).
What does it mean to exploit someone?
: to make use of meanly or unfairly for one's own advantage
This is a Private Group for people to share stories of what happened to them a this Church. I recently shared my personal story of the devastation that I experienced there. In my research, I have discovered that there are a lot of us out here. If you or someone you know experienced "church hurt" there, feel free to share your story in this group.
Nervous about sharing your story? We understand.
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Just click on the anonymous button before typing your post and
your name will not appear.
You can listen to my story here. Or on Spotify or other Podcast Platforms.
https://robertablevins.com/the-podcast...
Stovall Weems Ministry
https://youtube.com/@stovall-weems?si=fARXhzN6ieRNj2vs
TRUTH:
Stability, certainty, truth, trustworthiness :assured establishment,
faithful, right, sure, true
JUSTICE:
A verdict based in truth and divine law pronounced judicially;
the act, the place, the suit, the crime, and the penalty.
Whether a lie is small or large is not
really the issue.
Lies are of the devil.
The Bible teaches that all liars
“will be consigned to the fiery lake of burning sulfur.
This is the second death”
(Revelation 21:8).
Warnings are never pleasant,
but they are better than ignorance of danger; the
Bible faithfully warns sinners of danger, including the
danger of lying.
Proverbs 19:9 also teaches
that liars
will be punished.
Jesus is the Truth (John 14:6),
and
He will never deceive you.
Thankfully, Jesus is also the Savior,
and His death and resurrection provide
the basis for
your forgiveness of all sin, including
the sin of lying.
Come to
Jesus in faith and humility,
and you will
find that “you will know
the truth,
and the
truth will set you free”
(John 8:32).
In Jesus’
High Priestly Prayer,
Jesus prays to His Father, saying,
“Sanctify them by the truth; your word is truth”
(John 17:17).
In this verse,
Jesus communicates two important facts:
God’s Word is truth--
God’s Word equals truth—and it’s by
that truth
that God sanctifies us,
or sets us apart
for
holy service to Himself
In the same prayer, Jesus prays for His disciples and all who will believe in Him through the gospel (John 17:20). Believers accept God’s words (John 17:6) and accept Jesus as God’s Word (John 17:8). God is truth, and His truth brings salvation to all who accept it (Titus 2:11). Further, God’s written and living Word will sustain believers as they are in the world (John 17:14).
In the High Priestly Prayer in John 17, Jesus confirms that He brought the message of salvation to the world: “Now this is eternal life: that they know you, the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom you have sent” (John 17:3). Jesus’ mission of bringing the truth has been accomplished (John 17:4), and He turns the focus of His prayer to God working through the disciples and other believers. He confirms that believers will be rejected by the world for believing “Your word is truth,” but believers are also assured joy, God’s protection from the evil one, and sanctification by God’s Word (John 17:13–19).
The Old and New Testaments both affirm that the words recorded in the Bible are God’s words and that they are true. Since God cannot lie, His Word is truth: “As for God, his way is perfect: The Lord’s word is flawless” (Psalm 18:30). Since God is eternal and unchanging, His Word is always the same: “Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will never pass away” (Matthew 24:35; cf. Isaiah 40:8). Jesus uses the Word as He rebukes the devil who was tempting Him: “It is written: ‘Man shall not live on bread alone, but on every word that comes from the mouth of God’” (Matthew 4:4; cf. Deuteronomy 8:3).
If we want to know truth, we will look in God’s written Word (2 Timothy 3:16–17) and look to Jesus Christ (John 14:6; 2 Corinthians 4:6; Hebrews 1:3). John refers to Jesus Christ in John 1:1–2, saying, “In the beginning was the Word. And the Word was with God and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God.” The Word is God’s total message, and Jesus embodied that full message, which is why He is called the “Logos,” or “Word,” of God (Colossians 1:19; 2:9). God is truth. His Word is truth. Salvation comes by accepting Jesus and agreeing that “Your word is truth.”
Jesus said, “Your word is truth.” When we look at the Bible, we see truth. The Bible does not merely contain the truth; it is the truth. Every word is truth, in every part of the Bible. “The words of the LORD are flawless, like silver purified in a crucible, like gold refined seven times” (Psalm 12:6). This is the doctrine of the verbal, plenary inspiration of Scripture.
How we respond to God’s written Word and the Word made flesh has an eternal impact on us. Since God’s Word is truth, rejecting the Bible and rejecting Jesus is rejecting God Himself. Believing, cherishing, studying, and obeying God’s Word is the key to salvation, understanding God, and living abundantly (John 10:10). No matter what we may face in this world, we are sustained by the truth prayed over us in Jesus’ prayer: “Sanctify them by the truth; your word is truth” (John 17:17).
The title “son of perdition” is used twice in the New Testament,
first in John 17:12 and again in 2 Thessalonians 2:3.
The phrase simply means “man doomed to destruction” and is not reserved for any one individual.
In fact, there are two people to which the title “son of perdition” is applied.
In context, John 17:12 is referring to Judas Iscariot, while 2 Thessalonians 2:3 is referring to
the “man of lawlessness”—the Antichrist--
who will appear in the end times before Christ’s return.
The word perdition means “eternal damnation” or “utter destruction.” It can also be used as a synonym for hell. When a person is called “son of perdition,” the connotation is that of a person in an unredeemable state, someone who is already damned while he is still alive. Jesus mentions the “son of perdition” in His high priestly prayer in John 17. While praying to the Father for His disciples, Jesus mentions that He “protected them and kept them safe” and that none of them were lost
except the “son of perdition,”
that is, the one
who was already in a damned state.
The fact that the phrase is used again to describe the Antichrist shows us that forgiveness was not planned for Judas. God could have saved Judas—moved his heart to repentance—but He chose not to. He was indeed “doomed to destruction.”
A good picture of a person who is a “son of perdition” appears in Hebrews 6:4–8, which describes a person who, like Judas, has experienced a certain closeness to God and has a good understanding of salvation, but then denies it. Instead of bearing good fruit, he bears “thorns and thistles.” This is a person who sees the path to salvation, which is trusting in God’s grace to cover sin (Ephesians 2:8–9), and instead either flatly denies the existence of God or denies God’s gift of salvation, preferring to pay his own debt. Judas chose the second path, punishing himself by suicide instead of accepting grace.
However, Judas and the Antichrist are extreme cases. It is never right for a human being to label another person a “son of perdition” because only God knows the ultimate future of each human soul. Only with these two individuals did God choose to reveal His plan for their eternal damnation.
With every other person, no matter how lost or evil he may seem, we are to hope and pray for his redemption
(1 Timothy 2:1).
The First Disciples
(Matthew 4:18–22; Mark 1:16–20; John 1:35–42)
1On one occasion, while Jesus was standing by the Lake of Gennesareta with the crowd pressing in on Him to hear the word of God, 2He saw two boats at the edge of the lake. The fishermen had left them and were washing their nets. 3Jesus got into the boat belonging to Simon and asked him to put out a little from shore. And sitting down, He taught the people from the boat.
4When Jesus had finished speaking, He said to Simon, “Put out into deep water and let down your nets for a catch.”
5“Master,” Simon replied, “we have worked hard all night without catching anything. But because You say so, I will let down the nets.” 6When they had done so, they caught such a large number of fish that their nets began to tear. 7So they signaled to their partners in the other boat to come and help them, and they came and filled both boats so full that they began to sink.
8When Simon Peter saw this, he fell at Jesus’ knees. “Go away from me, Lord,” he said, “for I am a sinful man.” 9For he and his companions were astonished at the catch of fish they had taken, 10and so were his partners James and John, the sons of Zebedee.
“Do not be afraid,” Jesus said to Simon. “From now on you will catch men.” 11And when they had brought their boats ashore, they left everything and followed Him.
The Leper’s Prayer
(Leviticus 14:1–32; Matthew 8:1–4; Mark 1:40–45)
12While Jesus was in one of the towns, a man came along who was covered with leprosy.b When he saw Jesus, he fell facedown and begged Him, “Lord, if You are willing, You can make me clean.”
13Jesus reached out His hand and touched the man. “I am willing,” He said. “Be clean!” And immediately the leprosy left him.
14“Do not tell anyone,” Jesus instructed him. “But go, show yourself to the priest and present the offering Moses prescribed for your cleansing, as a testimony to them.”
15But the news about Jesus spread all the more, and great crowds came to hear Him and to be healed of their sicknesses. 16Yet He frequently withdrew to the wilderness to pray.
Jesus Heals a Paralytic
(Matthew 9:1–8; Mark 2:1–12)
17One day Jesus was teaching, and the Pharisees and teachers of the law were sitting there. People had come from Jerusalem
and from every village of Galilee and Judea, and the power of the Lord was present for Him to heal the sick.
18Just then some men came carrying a paralyzed man on a mat. They tried to bring him inside to set him before Jesus, 19but they could not find a way through the crowd. So they went up on the roof and lowered him on his mat through the tiles into the middle of the crowd, right in front of Jesus.
20When Jesus saw their faith, He said, “Friend, your sins are forgiven.”
21But the scribes and Pharisees began thinking to themselves, “Who is this man who speaks blasphemy? Who can forgive sins but God alone?”
22Knowing what they were thinking, Jesus replied, “Why are you thinking these things in your hearts? 23Which is easier: to say, ‘Your sins are forgiven,’ or to say, ‘Get up and walk’? 24But so that you may know that the Son of Man has authority on the earth to forgive sins…” He said to the paralytic, “I tell you, get up, pick up your mat, and go home.”
25And immediately the man stood up before them, took what he had been lying on, and went home glorifying God. 26Everyone was taken with amazement and glorified God. They were filled with awe and said, “We have seen remarkable things today.”
Jesus Calls Levi
(Matthew 9:9–13; Mark 2:13–17)
27After this, Jesus went out and saw a tax collector named Levi sitting
at the tax booth. “Follow Me,”
He told him, 28and Levi got up, left everything, and followed Him.
Questions about Fasting
(Matthew 9:14–15; Mark 2:18–20)
33Then they said to Him, “John’s disciples and those of the Pharisees frequently fast and pray, but Yours keep on eating and drinking.”
34Jesus replied, “Can you make the guests of the bridegroom fast while He is with them? 35But the time will come when the bridegroom will be taken from them; then they will fast.”
The Patches and the Wineskins
(Matthew 9:16–17; Mark 2:21–22)
36He also told them a parable: “No one tears a piece of cloth from a new garment and sews it on an old one. If he does,
he will tear the new garment as well, and the patch from the new will not match the old.
37And no one pours new wine into old wineskins. If he does, the new wine will burst the skins, the wine will spill, and the wineskins will be ruined.
38Instead, new wine is poured into new wineskins. 39And no one after drinking old wine wants new, for he says, ‘The old is better.’”
In the prosperity gospel, also known as
the “Word of Faith Movement,”
the believer is told to use God,
whereas the truth
of biblical Christianity is just
the opposite--
God uses the believer.
Prosperity theology sees the Holy Spirit as a power
to be put to use
for whatever the believer wills.
The Bible teaches that the Holy Spirit is a Person
who enables the believer to do God’s will.
The prosperity gospel movement closely resembles some
of the destructive greed sects
that infiltrated the early church.
Paul and the other apostles
were not accommodating to or conciliatory with
the false teachers who propagated
such heresy.
They identified them as dangerous false teachers
and
urged Christians to avoid them.
Paul warned Timothy about such men in 1 Timothy 6:5, 9-11.
These men of “corrupt mind” supposed godliness was
a means of gain and
their desire for riches was a trap
that brought them “into ruin and destruction” (v. 9).
The pursuit of wealth
is a dangerous path for Christians and one which
God warns about:
“For the love of money is a root
of all kinds of evil.
Some people, eager for money,
have wandered from the faith
and pierced
themselves with many griefs” (v. 10).
If riches were a reasonable goal for
the godly,
Jesus would have pursued it.
But He did not, preferring
instead to have no place to lay His head
(Matthew 8:20)
and teaching His disciples to do the same.
It should also be remembered that
the only
disciple concerned with wealth
was Judas.
Paul said covetousness is idolatry (Ephesians 5:5) and instructed the Ephesians
to avoid anyone who
brought a message of immorality or covetousness
(Ephesians 5:6-7).
Prosperity teaching prohibits God from working on His own, meaning that
God is not Lord of all
because He cannot work until we release Him to do so.
Faith, according to the Word of Faith doctrine, is
not submissive trust in God;
faith is a formula by which
we manipulate the spiritual laws that prosperity teachers
believe govern the universe.
As the name “Word of Faith” implies, this movement teaches
that faith is a matter of what we say
more than whom we trust or what truths we embrace and affirm in our hearts.
A favorite term of prosperity gospel
teachers is “positive confession.”
This refers to the teaching that words themselves
have creative power.
What you say, prosperity teachers claim, determines everything that happens to you. Your confessions, especially the favors you demand of God, must all be stated positively and without wavering. Then God is required to answer (as though man could require anything of God!). Thus, God’s ability to bless us supposedly hangs on our faith. James 4:13-16 clearly contradicts this teaching: “Now listen, you who say, ‘Today or tomorrow we will go to this or that city, spend a year there, carry on business and make money.’ Why, you do not even know what will happen tomorrow. What is your life? You are a mist that appears for a little while and then vanishes.”
Far from speaking things into existence in the future, we do not even know what tomorrow will bring or even whether we will be alive.
Instead of stressing the importance of wealth, the Bible warns against pursuing it. Believers, especially leaders in the church (1 Timothy 3:3), are to be free from the love of money (Hebrews 13:5). The love of money leads to all kinds of evil (1 Timothy 6:10).
Jesus warned, “Watch out! Be on your guard against all kinds of greed; a man’s life does not consist in the abundance of his possessions” (Luke 12:15). In sharp contrast to the prosperity gospel emphasis on gaining money and possessions in this life, Jesus said,
“Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy, and where thieves break in and steal”
(Matthew 6:19).
The irreconcilable contradictions between prosperity teaching and
the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ
is best summed up in the words of Jesus in Matthew 6:24,
“You cannot serve both God and money.”
Mark 4:19 says,
“The cares of the world and the
deceitfulness
of riches and the desires for other things
enter in and choke the word,
and it proves unfruitful.”
Jesus' warning in the Parable of the Sower
teaches that the love of money
makes us useless
to the Kingdom of God
The Charismatic movement is an interdenominational Christian renewal movement and is one of the most popular and fastest-growing forces within the Christian world today. The movement traces its roots to 1906, at the Azusa Street mission in Los Angeles, California, a Methodist-sponsored revival. It was there that people claimed to have been “baptized by the Holy Spirit” in the manner recorded in Acts chapter 2 during the celebration of Pentecost. People speaking in tongues and miracles of healing roused people to a spiritual frenzy. The people who attended those meetings spread their enthusiasm throughout the United States, and the Pentecostal/Charismatic movement began.
The movement takes its name from the Greek words charis, which is the English transliteration of the Greek word for “grace,” and mata, which is the Greek word meaning “gifts.” Charismata, then, means “grace gifts.” It emphasizes the manifestations of the gifts of the Holy Spirit as a sign of the presence of the Holy Spirit. These gifts are also known as the biblical “charisms,” or spiritual gifts which supposedly give an individual influence or authority over large numbers of people. The prominent gifts among these “charisms” are speaking in tongues and prophesying. Charismatics hold that the manifestations of the Holy Spirit given to those in the first-century church may still be experienced and practiced today.
The Charismatic movement is most known for its acceptance of speaking in tongues (also known as glossolalia), divine healing, and prophecies as evidence of the Holy Spirit. Most meetings are for praying and spirited singing, dancing, shouting “in the spirit,” and raising hands and arms in prayer. Also, anointing the sick with oil is often part of the worship service. These are the primary reasons for the movement’s growth and popularity. While growth and popularity are certainly desirable, they cannot be used as a test for truth.
The question remains: is the Charismatic movement scriptural? We can best answer that question this way: we know that since the creation of mankind Satan’s insidious master plan has been simply to put a veil between God’s children and God’s inerrant Word. It began in the Garden of Eden when the serpent asked Eve, “Did God really say . . .?” (Genesis 3:1), thereby raising doubt as to the authority and authenticity of what God had said. Ever since that day, he continues to attack the inerrancy and sufficiency of the Bible. Without question, we know that Satan has stepped up the pace of this strategy (1 Peter 5:8).
Where Satan does not succeed in
taking
the Bible from us,
he works hard at taking us
from the Bible.
One way he can do this is simply to get Christians to focus their attention on the claims of some men and women concerning supernatural experiences. Those who seek after sensational experiences or new words from God have neither time nor interest in searching the Scriptures for God’s truth.
There is no denying that God performs miracles.
Some of what occurs in the Charismatic movement may well be
a true work of the Holy Spirit. However,
the truth is
that the Body of Christ
has already been given the
all-sufficient, eternal Word of God.
The New Covenant focuses
on the spiritual and eternal inheritance,
not earthly and physical
Or is the greater need
to return to the Bible
and proclaim
the whole counsel of God
in the power and love
of the
Holy Spirit?
So, what is the Father’s will?
Some men came to Jesus once with a question about what God required of them: “They asked him, ‘What must we do to do the works God requires?’
Jesus answered, ‘The work of God is this: to believe in the one he has sent’” (John 6:28–29).
God wants us to have faith in His Son: “This is his command: to believe in the name of his Son, Jesus Christ” (1 John 3:23). Those who are born again by faith in Christ will produce good works to the glory of God (Ephesians 2:10).
When Jesus said, “I never knew you,” to the feigned disciples, He meant that He never recognized them as His true disciples or His friends. He never had anything in common with them nor approved of them. They were no relations of His (Mark 3:34–35). Christ did not dwell in their hearts (Ephesians 3:17), nor did they have His mind (1 Corinthians 2:16). In all these ways and more, Jesus never knew them. Note that Jesus is not breaking off the relationship here—there was never a relationship to break off. Despite their high-sounding words and showy displays of religious fervor, they had no intimacy with Christ.
So it turns out that what matters isn’t so much that we know God on some level, but that God knows us. As Paul explained, “Whoever loves God is known by God” (1 Corinthians 8:3; also see Galatians 4:9). The Lord “tends His flock like a shepherd” (Isaiah 40:11), and
He knows who are His sheep (John 10:14).
Those somber words “I never knew you: depart from me, ye that work iniquity” in Matthew 7:23 (KJV) show that Jesus is indeed omniscient. He did not “know” them in the sense He would if they were His followers, but He knew their hearts—they were full of iniquity! Isaiah’s condemnation of hypocrisy fits this group well: “These people come near to me with their mouth and honor me with their lips, but their hearts are far from me” (Isaiah 29:13). The evildoers whom Jesus does not know are fake Christians, false teachers, and nominal adherents of religion.
First Corinthians 13 is one of the most famous passages in the New Testament. It is often referred to as the “Love Chapter” because it illustrates a biblical understanding of love. It’s in this chapter that Paul speaks of a time when “we shall see face to face” (1 Corinthians 13:12).
In 1 Corinthians 13:1–3, Paul argues that love surpasses all spiritual gifts. Even the greatest spiritual gift is worthless without love.
In 1 Corinthians 13:4–7, Paul describes the characteristics of love. These characteristics emphasize the importance of putting the interests of others above our own (cf. John 15:13; Philippians 2:14).
In 1 Corinthians 13:8–12, Paul speaks to the temporary nature of spiritual gifts and the hope that Christians have for a full, complete, and intimate knowledge of God in the future. This section reminds us that spiritual gifts such as speaking in tongues and prophesying are not eternal. Love, however, is eternal and will never fail (verse 8 and verse 13). Therefore, love is what truly matters.
This section also speaks to the limitations of human understanding. Because of sin and human finitude, we can only know and prophesy in part (1 Corinthians 13:9). Currently, we cannot understand God’s ways (Romans 11:33), nor can we fathom the depths of His love (Ephesians 3:17–19). But when Christ returns, sin will disappear and we will finally see God face to face (1 Corinthians 13:12).
The expression face to face appears in 1 Corinthians 13:12.
The full verse reads,
“For now we see only
a reflection as in a mirror; then we shall see face to face.
Now I know in part; then I shall
know fully, even as I am fully known.”
The event described in this verse is often referred to as the “Beatific Vision” (to see God as He is), promised to Christians when Christ returns: “We know that when Christ appears, we shall be like him, for we shall see him as he is” (1 John 3:2). In our present state, however, we only have an indirect and imperfect knowledge of God’s infinite wisdom, glory, and love. Thus, we cannot see God as He is.
Paul compares our present knowledge of divine things to a dark reflection in a mirror. In New Testament times, a mirror was formed from polished metal, which could only reflect a dim and imperfect image. Yet Paul promises that God will exchange our dim images for a face-to-face encounter with Himself. On that glorious day, the light of God will shine upon us, and we will be free from all darkness. imperfection, and error.
We will know Him fully,
even as we
are fully known by Him.
This mutual
recognition and understanding
is the epitome
of a
deeply intimate relationship.
The beatific vision has roots in the Old Testament (Genesis 32:20; Exodus 33:11; Deuteronomy 34:10). In Exodus 33:18–23, Moses asks to see God’s glory, but God tells Moses that no one can see His glory and live. However, God allows Moses to see His back, but not Him in His entirety (that is, in His full glory).
In Matthew 5:8, Jesus promises that the pure in heart will see God. Jesus can make this promise because He is the only one who has seen the Father (John 1:18), and whoever has seen Jesus has seen the Father (John 14:9). Jesus is the “radiance of God’s glory and the exact representation of His being” (Hebrews 1:3). And when He returns, we will behold the fullness of God’s glory. On that day, we will see God as He truly is.
This hope for a face-to-face encounter with God gives Christians peace and comfort, even in difficult circumstances. When this life comes to an end, we will see and be seen by the One who loved us enough to die for us (John 3:16; Romans 5:8).
Second Peter 3:18 tells us to “grow in the grace and knowledge of the Lord Jesus Christ.”
To grow in grace is to mature as a Christian. We are saved by grace through faith (Ephesians 2:8–9), and we mature and are sanctified by grace alone. We know that grace is a blessing that we don’t deserve. It is God’s grace that justifies us, sanctifies us, and eventually glorifies us in heaven.
The sanctification process, becoming more
like Christ,
is synonymous with growing in grace.
We grow in grace by reading God’s Word and letting it “dwell in us richly” (Colossians 3:16) and by praying. Those actions by themselves don’t mature us, but God uses these spiritual disciplines to help us grow. Therefore, maturing in our Christian life is not about what we do, but about what God does in us, by His grace. Understanding and applying God’s grace in our lives is important. We are not to impair it by being proud, because God says that He resists the proud but gives grace to the humble (James 4:6). Grace is that attribute of God that enables us to break free of our sinful nature and follow Him. It gives us strength and protects us. Without God’s grace, His favor, we would be hopelessly lost in this world.
The more grace we have and ask God for, the more mature as Christians we will be.
To grow in grace does not mean gaining more grace from God. God’s grace never increases; it is infinite, it cannot be more, and according to the nature of God, it could never be less. He gave His only Son so that whoever believes in Him should be saved (John 3:16). How much more grace could there possibly be than that?
But to grow in grace is to grow in our understanding of what Jesus did and to grow in our appreciation of the grace we have been given.
The more we learn about Jesus,
the more we will appreciate all He has done,
and the more we
appreciate His love and sacrifice for us,
the more we will
perceive the never-ending grace of God.
Peter also confirms that we need to grow in our knowledge of Jesus and to have that intimate relationship with Him because the more we know of Him, the more of Him will be seen in our lives.
Paul said in Colossians 3:1–4:
“Since, then, you have been raised with Christ, set your hearts on things above, where Christ is seated at the right hand of God. Set your minds on things above, not on earthly things. For you died, and your life is now hidden with Christ in God.
When Christ, who is your life, appears,
then you also will
appear with him in glory.”
The Scriptures contain all
the knowledge
we will ever need to learn of God,
His Son, and His Spirit, at least in this life.
God`s desire for those
He has saved
is their sanctification and transformation.
He wants us to become more holy like Himself.
He wants to transform us into the image of His Son.
Then we will prove 2 Corinthians 3:18:
“”We, who with unveiled faces all reflect the Lord’s glory,
are being transformed into his likeness
with ever-increasing glory, which comes from the Lord.”
Romans has the theme of faith (Romans 1:16–17). Paul addresses the process by which faith is produced in the heart in Romans 10:17: “Faith comes from hearing the message, and the message is heard through the word about Christ.”
The first eight chapters of Romans contends with the ideas of positional salvation through faith (Romans 1:18—5:21), the process of growing in holiness through faith (Romans 6:1—8:17), and the future glorification Christians will receive because of faith (Romans 8:18–39). Chapters 9—11 of Romans works from the implied question, “Has God then failed to fulfill His promises to Israel?”
It is within this context that Paul gives the reason for the Israelites’ lack of salvation; namely, they lack faith (Romans 9:32; 10:4). The Israelites are saved through faith in Christ, just like the Gentiles. Eternal salvation does not distinguish between Gentile or Jew but is received through belief in the person and work of Jesus Christ (Romans 10:12–13; 1 Corinthians 15:1–8; Galatians 3:23–29).
In the lead-up to the statement that faith comes by hearing, Romans 10:14–16 explains the requirements for a series of actions to take place. In order for one to “call on the name of the Lord,” he or she must believe. In order to believe, one must hear (or receive the report). In order for one to hear, another has to give the report. And that other won’t give the report unless he or she is sent.
Paul continues in Romans 10:17 to summarize the argument thus far: “So faith comes from hearing, and hearing by the word of Christ” (NASB).
“Faith” is translated from the Greek word pistis, which means “belief, trust, or confidence in someone or something.” It is key to the book of Romans and is used 40 times in the book—three of those occurrences appearing in chapter 10. The verb form of the word is also used 21 times within the book and most often translated as “believe.”
If faith comes by hearing, then what does Paul mean by “hearing”? In this context, it is not simply the physical receiving of sounds by the ear as most English speakers would understand the term. “Hearing” seems to designate something more—the receiving or acceptance of a report. Note the use of the word, translated “message” in Romans 10:16, as Paul quotes Isaiah 53:1: “Lord, who has believed our message?” In Isaiah’s day, the Lord had provided Israel with a message, but the prophet laments that few actually received it. The “hearing” was not attached to simple sounds but to a message or report given. In Romans 10, Paul makes the point that the good news has been given and the people of Israel have heard (Romans 10:18).
The nature of the gospel is a report: a report of God saving people from the wrath they deserve. In order to believe the report, one must receive the report! Faith comes by hearing. It is not a guarantee that the report will result in faith, as Paul makes clear in Romans 10:16. For just as the Israelites refused to believe the message of Isaiah, every human today can refuse to believe the message of the gospel.
The nature of “hearing” also does not require the physical act of hearing with the ear. The report simply needs to be received. For instance, someone could read the gospel through GotQuestions.org and receive it by faith, without an audible word being spoken. As long as the message can be received fully, the medium does not affect the outcome. The content of the message must be “the word about Christ.” As Paul states in 1 Corinthians 15:3–5, the message is “that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, and that He was buried, and that He was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures, and that He appeared to Cephas, then to the twelve” (NASB). Faith that leads to eternal salvation comes after “hearing”; that is, after receiving this message concerning Christ.
Our salvation is not the result of any of our efforts, abilities, intelligent choices, personal characteristics, or acts of service we may perform. However, as believers, we are “created in Christ Jesus for good works”—to help and serve others. While there is nothing we can do to earn our salvation, God’s intention is that our salvation will result in acts of service. We are saved not merely for our own benefit but to serve Christ and build up the church (Ephesians 4:12). This reconciles the seeming conflict between faith and works. Our righteous acts do not produce salvation but are, in fact, evidence of our salvation (James 1:22; 2:14–26).
In the end, we must recognize that even our righteous acts come as a result of God within us, not of ourselves. On our own, our “righteousness” is simply self-righteousness, and vain, hypocritical religion produces nothing more than “filthy rags.”
Second Corinthians 5:6–7 says, "So we are always of good courage. We know that while we are at home in the body we are away from the Lord, for we walk by faith, not by sight" (ESV, emphasis added). Other versions use the word live, rather than walk. The "walk" here is a metaphorical reference to the way a person conducts his or her life. We still use the phrase "all walks of life" to mean a variety of lifestyles or cultures.
The apostle Paul reminds his readers that followers of Christ must not build their lives around things that have no eternal significance. Rather than pursuing the same things the world pursues, a Christian should focus on the unseen realities such as Jesus and heaven. Paul goes on to say, "So whether we are at home or away, we make it our aim to please him. For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, so that each one may receive what is due for what he has done in the body, whether good or evil" (2 Corinthians 5:9–10). Jesus instructed us to store up treasure in heaven (Matthew 6:19–20; Luke 12:33). He promised rewards to everyone who does His will (Matthew 16:27; 1 Peter 1:17; Revelation 22:12) and punishment for those who reject Him (Matthew 25:24–46; John 3:16–18).
Walking by faith means living life in light of eternal consequences. To walk by faith is to fear God more than man; to obey the Bible even when it conflicts with man’s commands; to choose righteousness over sin, no matter what the cost; to trust God in every circumstance; and to believe God rewards those who seek Him, regardless of who says otherwise (Hebrews 11:6).
Rather than loving the things of this world (1 John 2:15–16), Christians should spend their lives glorifying God in everything they do (1 Corinthians 10:31). It requires faith to live this way because we cannot see, hear, or touch anything spiritual. When we base our lives on the truth of God’s Word, rather than on the popular philosophy of our day, we are going against our natural inclinations. Our natural instinct may be to hoard money, but walking by faith says we should give to those in need (Luke 11:41; Ephesians 4:28). Society may say that sexual immorality is acceptable, but those who walk by faith base their standards on God’s unchanging Word, which says any sex outside of marriage is sin (1 Corinthians 6:18; Ephesians 5:3; Galatians 5:19). To walk by faith requires that we tune our hearts to the voice of the Holy Spirit and the truth of His Word (John 10:27; 16:13). We choose to live according to what God reveals to us, rather than trust our own understanding (Proverbs 3:5–6).
Jesus said to seek first the kingdom of God in His Sermon on the Mount (Matthew 6:33). The verse’s meaning is as direct as it sounds. We are to seek the things of God as a priority over the things of the world. Primarily, it means we are to seek the salvation that is inherent in the kingdom of God because it is of greater value than all the world’s riches. Does this mean that we should neglect the reasonable and daily duties that help sustain our lives? Certainly not. But for the Christian, there should be a difference in attitude toward them. If we are taking care of God’s business as a priority—seeking His salvation, living in obedience to Him, and sharing the good news of the kingdom with others—then He will take care of our business as He promised—and if that’s the arrangement, where is worrying?
But how do we know if we’re truly seeking God’s kingdom first? There are questions we can ask ourselves. “Where do I primarily spend my energies? Is all my time and money spent on goods and activities that will certainly perish, or in the service of God—the results of which live on for eternity?” Believers who have learned to truly put God first may then rest in this holy dynamic: “…and all these things will be given to you as well.”
God has promised to provide for His own, supplying every need (Philippians 4:19), but His idea of what we need is often different from ours, and His timing will only occasionally meet our expectations. For example, we may see our need as riches or advancement, but perhaps God knows that what truly we need is a time of poverty, loss or solitude. When this happens, we are in good company. God loved both Job and Elijah, but He allowed Satan to absolutely pound Job (all under His watchful eye), and He let that evil woman, Jezebel, break the spirit of His own prophet Elijah (Job 1–2; 1 Kings 18–19). In both cases, God followed these trials with restoration and sustenance.
These “negative” aspects of the kingdom run counter to a heresy that is gaining ground around the world, the so-called "prosperity" gospel. A growing number of false teachers are gathering followers under the message “God wants you to be rich!” But that philosophy is not the counsel of the Bible—and it is certainly not the counsel of Matthew 6:33, which is not a formula for gaining wealth. It is a description of how God works. Jesus taught that our focus should be shifted away from this world—its status and its lying allurements—and placed upon the things of God’s kingdom.
The Hebrew word translated “gossip” in the Old Testament is defined as “one who reveals secrets, one who goes about as a talebearer or scandal-monger.” A gossiper is a person who has privileged information about people and proceeds to reveal that information to those who have no business knowing it. Gossip is distinguished from sharing information in two ways:
1. Intent. Gossipers often have the goal of building themselves up by making others look bad and exalting themselves as some kind of repositories of knowledge.
2. The type of information shared. Gossipers speak of the faults and failings of others, or reveal potentially embarrassing or shameful details regarding the lives of others without their knowledge or approval. Even if they mean no harm, it is still gossip.
In the book of Romans, Paul reveals the sinful nature and lawlessness of mankind, stating how God poured out His wrath on those who rejected His laws. Because they had turned away from God’s instruction and guidance, He gave them over to their sinful natures. The list of sins includes gossips and slanderers (Romans 1:29b-32). We see from this passage how serious the sin of gossip is and that it characterizes those who are under God’s wrath.
The more committed to the abusive church a person becomes, the more isolated he becomes
from non-members, and the more he fears punishment if he tries to leave.
Spiritual abuse can occur when church or cult leaders misuse Scripture to bolster their own authority and keep their members under their thumb. For example, a spiritual authority may use Hebrews 13:17 (“Have confidence in your leaders and submit to their authority”) to demand blind loyalty and unthinking obedience
Cults and abusive churches pre-emptively insulate members from any information critical of the group. Members are taught early on to be skeptical of any negative report about the group
and that the biased media only lies about them
In the Old Testament, the Hebrew word translated “integrity” means “the condition of being without blemish, completeness, perfection, sincerity, soundness, uprightness, wholeness.” Integrity in the New Testament means “honesty and adherence to a pattern of good works.”
Jesus is the perfect example of a man of integrity. After He was baptized, He went into the wilderness to fast for forty days and nights, during which time Satan came to Him at His weakest to try to break His integrity and corrupt Him. Jesus was wholly man and wholly God at the same time, and He was tempted in every way we are, yet He never sinned (Hebrews 4:15); that is the definition of integrity. Jesus is the only one who was ever without blemish, perfect, completely truthful, and always showing a pattern of good works.
Christians are called to be like Jesus. In Christ, we are new creations and can be considered without blemish before God (2 Corinthians 5:17, 21; Ephesians 1:4–8). In Christ, we also have the indwelling Holy Spirit at work in us, sanctifying us and making us more like Jesus (Romans 8:29; 2 Corinthians 3:18). We are also to strive to “work out your salvation with fear and trembling, for it is God who works in you to will and to act in order to fulfill his good purpose” (Philippians 2:12–13). It is by God’s power that we become increasingly people of integrity. We are called to obey God and, in so doing, to be people of uncompromised morality and integrity. Christians should be those who adhere to the truth and who do good works.
“Integrity” in our world today implies moral incorruptibility. Christians should be those who cannot be bribed or compromised because we serve God rather than men (Colossians 3:17, 23; Acts 5:29). We are to be people who keep our word (Matthew 5:37; James 5:12). We are to love those around us in both word and deed (1 John 3:17–18; James 2:17–18; Ephesians 4:29). We are called upon to believe in God and therefore to follow Him in all our ways (John 6:19; 15:1–17). Our lives should line up with our belief in God and evince a trust that His ways are best (Proverbs 3:5–6).
Living with integrity in a world where the corrupt seem favored, not to mention our battle with our own sin nature, is challenging. First Peter 3:13–18 gives this encouragement: “Who is going to harm you if you are eager to do good? But even if you should suffer for what is right, you are blessed. ‘Do not fear their threats; do not be frightened.’ But in your hearts revere Christ as Lord. Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have. But do this with gentleness and respect, keeping a clear conscience, so that those who speak maliciously against your good behavior in Christ may be ashamed of their slander. For it is better, if it is God’s will, to suffer for doing good than for doing evil. For Christ also suffered once for sins, the righteous for the unrighteous, to bring you to God. He was put to death in the body but made alive in the Spirit.” To live with integrity is to follow the example of Christ. And we can only live with true integrity by His power, which He graciously and freely gives to all who are His (John 16:33; Philippians 1:6; Ephesians 1:13–14).
Dishonesty is reproved in Scripture. God does not accept a person who “practices deceit” (Psalm 101:7), and Jeremiah 9:5 says of a wicked society, “Everyone deceives his neighbor, and no one speaks the truth; they have taught their tongue to speak lies; they weary themselves committing iniquity.” Speaking the truth, or honesty, is a mark of healthy human interaction.
Whitewashed tombs means exactly what it sounds like: tombs or mausoleums that have been covered with white paint, so they “look beautiful on the outside but on the inside are full of the bones of the dead and everything unclean” (Matthew 23:27). This speaks to the spiritual condition of the scribes and Pharisees.
Outwardly, they were holy and clean, but inside they were
spiritually dead.
God’s justice and mercy are seemingly incompatible. After all, justice involves the dispensing of deserved punishment for wrongdoing, and mercy is all about pardon and compassion for an offender. However, these two attributes of God do in fact form a unity within His character.
The Bible contains many references to God’s mercy. Over 290 verses in the Old Testament and 70 in the New Testament contain direct statements of the mercy of God toward His people.
God was merciful to the Ninevites who repented at the preaching of Jonah, who described God as “a gracious and compassionate God, slow to anger and abounding in love, a God who relents from sending calamity” (Jonah 4:2). David said God is “gracious and merciful; Slow to anger and great in loving-kindness. The LORD is good to all, and His mercies are over all His works” (Psalm 145:8–9, NASB).
But the Bible also speaks of God’s justice and His wrath over sin. In fact, God’s perfect justice is a defining characteristic: “There is no God apart from me, a righteous [just] God and a Savior; there is none but me” (Isaiah 45:21). “He is the Rock, his works are perfect, and all his ways are just. A faithful God who does no wrong, upright and just is he” (Deuteronomy 32:4).
In the New Testament, Paul details why God’s judgment is coming: “Put to death, therefore, whatever belongs to your earthly nature: sexual immorality, impurity, lust, evil desires and greed, which is idolatry. Because of these, the wrath of God is coming” (Colossians 3:5–6).
So the Bible showcases the fact that God is merciful, but it also reveals that He is just and will one day dispense justice on the sin of the world.
In every other religion in the world that holds to the idea of a supreme deity, that deity’s mercy is always exercised at the expense of justice. For example, in Islam, Allah may grant mercy to an individual, but it’s done by dismissing the penalties of whatever law has been broken. In other words, the offender’s punishment that was properly due him is brushed aside so that mercy can be extended. Islam’s Allah and every other deity in the non-Christian religions set aside the requirements of moral law in order to be merciful. Mercy is seen as at odds with justice. In a sense, in those religions, crime can indeed pay.
If any human judge acted in such a fashion, most people would lodge a major complaint. It is a judge’s responsibility to see that the law is followed and that justice is provided. A judge who ignores the law is betraying his office.
Christianity is unique in that God’s mercy is shown through His justice. There is no setting aside of justice to make room for mercy. The Christian doctrine of penal substitution states that sin and injustice were punished at the cross of Christ and it’s only because the penalty of sin was satisfied through Christ’s sacrifice that God extends His mercy to undeserving sinners who look to Him for salvation.
As Christ died for sinners, He also demonstrated God’s righteousness; His death on the cross showcased God’s justice. This is exactly what the apostle Paul says: “All are justified freely by his grace through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus. God presented Christ as a sacrifice of atonement, through the shedding of his blood—to be received by faith. He did this to demonstrate his righteousness, because in his forbearance he had left the sins committed beforehand unpunished—he did it to demonstrate his righteousness at the present time, so as to be just and the one who justifies those who have faith in Jesus (Romans 3:24–26, emphasis added).
In other words, all the sin from Adam to the time of Christ was under the forbearance and mercy of God. God in His mercy chose not to punish sin, which would require an eternity in hell for all sinners, although He would have been perfectly just in doing so. Adam and Eve were not immediately destroyed when they ate the forbidden fruit. Instead, God planned a Redeemer (Genesis 3:15). In His love God sent His own Son (John 3:16). Christ paid for every single sin ever committed; thus, God was just in punishing sin, and He can also justify sinners who receive Christ by faith (Romans 3:26). God’s justice and His mercy were demonstrated by Christ’s death on the cross. At the cross, God’s justice was meted out in full (upon Christ), and God’s mercy was extended in full (to all who believe). So God’s perfect mercy was exercised through His perfect justice.
The end result is that everyone who trusts in the Lord Jesus is saved from God’s wrath and instead experiences His grace and mercy (Romans 8:1). As Paul says, “Since we have now been justified by his blood, how much more shall we be saved from God’s wrath through him!” (Romans 5:9).
Grace is an essential part of God’s character. Grace is closely related to God’s benevolence, love, and mercy. Grace can be variously defined as “God’s favor toward the unworthy” or “God’s benevolence on the undeserving.” In His grace, God is willing to forgive us and bless us abundantly, in spite of the fact that we don’t deserve to be treated so well or dealt with so generously.
To fully understand grace, we need to consider who we were without Christ and who we become with Christ. We were born in sin (Psalm 51:5), and we were guilty of breaking God’s holy laws (Romans 3:9–20, 23; 1 John 1:8–10). We were enemies of God (Romans 5:6, 10; 8:7; Colossians 1:21), deserving of death (Romans 6:23a). We were unrighteous (Romans 3:10) and without means of justifying ourselves (Romans 3:20). Spiritually, we were destitute, blind, unclean, and dead. Our souls were in peril of everlasting punishment.
But then came grace. God extended His favor to us. Grace is what saves us (Ephesians 2:8). Grace is the essence of the gospel (Acts 20:24). Grace gives us victory over sin (James 4:6). Grace gives us “eternal encouragement and good hope” (2 Thessalonians 2:16). Paul repeatedly identified grace as the basis of his calling as an apostle (Romans 15:15; 1 Corinthians 3:10; Ephesians 3:2, 7). Jesus Christ is the embodiment of grace, coupled with truth (John 1:14).
The Bible repeatedly calls grace a “gift” (e.g., Ephesians 4:7). This is an important analogy because it teaches us some key things about grace:
First, anyone who has ever received a gift understands that a gift is much different from a loan, which requires repayment or return by the recipient. The fact that grace is a gift means that nothing is owed in return.
Second, there is no cost to the person who receives a gift. A gift is free to the recipient, although it is not free to the giver, who bears the expense. The gift of salvation costs us sinners nothing. But the price of such an extravagant gift came at a great cost for our Lord Jesus, who died in our place.
Third, once a gift has been given, ownership of the gift has transferred and it is now ours to keep. There is a permanence in a gift that does not exist with loans or advances. When a gift changes hands, the giver permanently relinquishes all rights to renege or take back the gift in the future. God’s grace is ours forever.
Fourth, in the giving of a gift, the giver voluntarily forfeits something he owns, willingly losing what belongs to him so that the recipient will profit from it. The giver becomes poorer so the recipient can become richer. This generous and voluntary exchange from the giver to the recipient is visible in 2 Corinthians 8:9: “You know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that though he was rich, yet for your sake he became poor, so that you through his poverty might become rich.”
Finally, the Bible teaches that grace is completely unmerited. The gift and the act of giving have nothing at all to do with our merit or innate quality (Romans 4:4; 11:5–6; 2 Timothy 1:9–10). In fact, the Bible says quite clearly that we don’t deserve God’s salvation. Romans 5:8–10 says, “God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us. . . . While we were God’s enemies, we were reconciled to him through the death of his Son.”
Grace does not stop once we are saved; God is gracious to us for the rest of our lives, working within and upon us. The Bible encourages us with many additional benefits that grace secures for every believer:
• Grace justifies us before a holy God (Romans 3:24; Ephesians 1:6; Titus 3:7).
• Grace provides us access to God to communicate and fellowship with Him (Ephesians 1:6; Hebrews 4:16).
• Grace wins for us a new relationship of intimacy with God (Exodus 33:17).
• Grace disciplines and trains us to live in a way that honors God (Titus 2:11–14; 2 Corinthians 8:7).
• Grace grants us immeasurable spiritual riches (Proverbs 10:22; Ephesians 2:7).
• Grace helps us in our every need (Hebrews 4:16).
• Grace is the reason behind our every deliverance (Psalm 44:3–8; Hebrews 4:16).
• Grace preserves us and comforts, encourages, and strengthens us (2 Corinthians 13:14; 2 Thessalonians 2:16–17; 2 Timothy 2:1).
Grace is actively and continually working in the lives of God’s people. Paul credited the success of his ministry not to his own substantial labors but to “the grace of God that was with me” (1 Corinthians 15:10). Grace is the ongoing, benevolent act of God working in us, without which we can do nothing (John 15:5). Grace is greater than our sin (Romans 5:20), more abundant than we expect (1 Timothy 1:14), and too wonderful for words (2 Corinthians 9:15).
As the recipients of God’s grace, Christians are to be gracious to others. Grace is given to us to serve others and to exercise our spiritual gifts for the building up of the church (Romans 12:6; Ephesians 3:2, 7; 4:7; 1 Peter 4:10).
Mercy and grace are closely related. While the terms have similar meanings, grace and mercy are not exactly the same. Mercy has to do with kindness and compassion; it is often spoken of in the context of God’s not punishing us as our sins deserve. Grace includes kindness and compassion, but also carries the idea of bestowing a gift or favor. It may help to view mercy as a subset of grace. In Scripture, mercy is often equated with a deliverance from judgment (e.g., Deuteronomy 4:30–31; 1 Timothy 1:13), and grace is always the extending of a blessing to the unworthy.
According to the Bible, we have all sinned (Ecclesiastes 7:20; Romans 3:23; 1 John 1:8). As a result of that sin, we all deserve death (Romans 6:23) and eternal judgment in the lake of fire (Revelation 20:12–15). Given what we deserve, every day we live is an act of God’s mercy. If God gave us all what we deserve, we would all be, right now, condemned for eternity. In Psalm 51:1–2, David cries out, “Have mercy on me, O God, according to your unfailing love; according to your great compassion blot out my transgressions. Wash away all my iniquity and cleanse me from my sin.” Pleading for God’s mercy is asking Him to show kindness and withhold the judgment we deserve.
We deserve nothing good from God. God does not owe us any good thing. What good we experience is a result of the grace of God (Ephesians 2:5). Grace is simply defined as “unmerited favor.” God favors us—He shows us approval and kindness—in blessing us with good things that we do not deserve and could never earn. Common grace refers to the blessings that God bestows on all of mankind regardless of their spiritual standing before Him, while saving grace is that special blessing whereby God sovereignly bestows unmerited divine assistance upon His elect for their regeneration and sanctification.
Mercy and grace are evident in the salvation that is available through Jesus Christ. We deserved judgment, but in Christ we receive mercy from God and are delivered from judgment. In Christ we receive eternal salvation, forgiveness of sins, and abundant life (John 10:10)—all gifts of grace. Our response to the mercy and grace of God should be to fall on our knees in worship and thanksgiving.
Hebrews 4:16 declares,
“Let us then approach the throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need.”
The epistle of James emphasizes the power of prayer in the life of believers. It also reminds us that, even if we truly know and love the Lord, we still sin. While we remain in these earthly bodies, we will continue to battle with sin. In the body of Christ, sometimes we sin against our brothers and sisters in the Lord. James 5:16 tells us what to do when we sin against one another: “Therefore confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous person is powerful and effective” (James 5:16).
The word confess means “to agree,” “to admit,” or “to say the same thing.” Confession is saying the same thing as God does about sin or having the same perspective on sin as God does. It involves identifying sin for what it truly is, honestly acknowledging the offenses we have committed. Confession also should include an attitude of turning away from sin.
James instructs believers who are struggling with sin to seek faithful and trusted brothers and sisters in Christ who will intercede for them in their battle with sin. He is not suggesting that we confess our sins carelessly to just anyone, but to mature believers who will provide spiritual and practical support. Of course, we should also confess our sins to those we have sinned against, as we seek forgiveness and restoration.
Confessing our sins to one another in the body of Christ can break the power of secret sin. Covering up sin has no profit but yields negative consequences: “When I refused to confess my sin, my body wasted away, and I groaned all day long. Day and night your hand of discipline was heavy on me. My strength evaporated like water in the summer heat. Finally, I confessed all my sins to you and stopped trying to hide my guilt. I said to myself, ‘I will confess my rebellion to the LORD.’ And you forgave me! All my guilt is gone” (Psalm 32:3–5, NLT). Confession of secret sin should be made with discretion. Depending on the situation, there may be no need to shout the sin from the rooftops. Confession involves choosing wise and trustworthy confidantes who will handle the truth appropriately.
As regenerated people of God, we are to live in the light of truth: “For you were once darkness, but now you are light in the Lord. Live as children of light (for the fruit of the light consists in all goodness, righteousness and truth)” (Ephesians 5:8–9).
“So stop telling lies. Let us tell our neighbors the truth, for we are all parts of the same body”
(Ephesians 4:25, NLT).
To live as children of light, we must be honest with ourselves
and others about who we are
Confession brings God’s mercy,
forgiveness, freedom from guilt, strength through fellowship,
and a multitude of blessings from God
(Proverbs 28:13; Psalm 32:2; 1 John 1:8–10).
Confession, while an essential part of the Christian life, does not require a priest or any other church-appointed human mediator. There is only One who can absolve us of sin, and that is God (see Psalm 130); there is only one Mediator between us and God, and that is Jesus Christ (1 Timothy 2:5). We confess our sins to one another in order to solicit prayer, exhortation, and strength along the way.
In his commentary Opening Up James, Roger Ellsworth sheds further light on why we should confess our sins to one another:
“Confession should always be as wide as the sin. If we have sinned secretly, we should confess it to God. If we have sinned against someone else, we should confess it to God and to the person whom we have wronged. And if we have sinned publicly, we should confess it to God and in public”
(Day One Publications, 2009, p. 162).
Private confession to God is necessary because it cleanses us and restores our fellowship with Him (1 John 1:9). Likewise, when we seek honest reconciliation with an individual we have wronged, we gain a restored relationship both with God and the other person: “So if you are presenting a sacrifice at the altar in the Temple and you suddenly remember that someone has something against you, leave your sacrifice there at the altar. Go and be reconciled to that person. Then come and offer your sacrifice to God” (Matthew 5:23–24, NLT). And as James encourages, if we have sinned against the church, we are to confess it publicly. Public confession of sin is also seen in Acts 19:18: “Many of those who believed now came and openly confessed what they had done.”
Why do we confess our sins to one another? Because a continual relationship of confession and forgiveness among brothers and sisters in Christ cultivates honesty and purity and reflects the unity the church is meant to embody: “Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you”
(Ephesians 4:32).
Technically, repentance is a change of mind, not a turning from sin. The Greek word translated “repentance” is metanoia, and the meaning is simply “a change of mind.” In common usage, however, we often speak of repentance as “a turning from sin.” There is a good reason for this.
Repentance is often associated with salvation in Scripture. What happens when the Holy Spirit begins His work to bring a person to salvation? The Spirit gives the sinner a personal understanding and infallible conviction that the facts concerning his spiritual state are true. Those facts are his personal sin, the eternal punishment due him for his sin, the substitutionary nature of Jesus’ suffering for his sin, and the need for faith in Jesus to save him from his sin. From that convicting work of the Holy Spirit (John 16:8), the sinner repents—he changes his mind—about sin, the Savior, and salvation.
When a repentant person changes his mind about sin, that change of mind naturally leads to a turning from sin. Sin is no longer desirable or fun, because sin brings condemnation. The repentant sinner begins to abhor his past misdeeds. And he begins to seek ways to amend his behavior (see Luke 19:8). So, ultimately, the result of the change of mind about sin is good deeds. The sinner turns away from sin toward faith in the Savior, and that faith is shown in action (see James 2:17).
The change of mind (repentance) is not precisely the same as the active turning from sin and visible performance of good deeds, but one leads to the other. In this way, repentance is related to turning from sin
In summary, repentance is a change of mind. But the full biblical understanding of repentance goes beyond that. In relationship to salvation, repentance is a change of mind from an embrace of sin to rejection of sin and from rejection of Christ to faith in Christ. Such repentance is something only God can enable (John 6:44; Acts 11:18; 2 Timothy 2:25). Therefore, true biblical repentance will always result in a change of behavior. Maybe not instantly, but inevitably and progressively.
In essence, “hypocrisy” refers to the act of claiming to believe something but acting in a different manner. The word is derived from the Greek term for “actor”—literally, “one who wears a mask”—in other words, someone who pretends to be what he is not.
The Bible calls hypocrisy a sin. There are two forms hypocrisy can take: that of professing belief in something and then acting in a manner contrary to that belief, and that of looking down on others when we ourselves are flawed.
The prophet Isaiah condemned the hypocrisy of his day: “The Lord says, ‘These people come near to me with their mouth and honor me with their lips, but their hearts are far from me. Their worship of me is made up only of rules taught by men’” (Isaiah 29:13). Centuries later, Jesus quoted this verse, aiming the same condemnation at the religious leaders of His day (Matthew 15:8-9). John the Baptist refused to give hypocrites a pass, telling them to produce “fruits worthy of repentance” (Luke 3:8). Jesus took an equally staunch stand against sanctimony—He called hypocrites “wolves in sheep’s clothing” (Matthew 7:15), “whitewashed tombs” (Matthew 23:27), “snakes,” and “brood of vipers” (Matthew 23:33).
We cannot say we love God if we do not love our brothers (1 John 2:9). Love must be “without hypocrisy” (Romans 12:9, NKJV). A hypocrite may look righteous on the outside, but it is a façade. True righteousness comes from the inner transformation of the Holy Spirit not an external conformity to a set of rules (Matthew 23:5; 2 Corinthians 3:8).
Jesus addressed the other form of hypocrisy in the Sermon on the Mount: “Why do you look at the speck of sawdust in your brother’s eye and pay no attention to the plank in your own eye? How can you say to your brother, ‘Let me take the speck out of your eye,’ when all the time there is a plank in your own eye? You hypocrite, first take the plank out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to remove the speck from your brother’s eye” (Matthew 7:3-5). Jesus is not teaching against discernment or helping others overcome sin; instead, He is telling us not be so prideful and convinced of our own goodness that we criticize others from a position of self-righteousness. We should do some introspection first and correct our own shortcomings before we go after the “specks” in others (cf. Romans 2:1).
Actively hiding, disguising, or keeping a mistake or sin hidden rather than correcting it is referred to as a “cover-up.” The church should not be involved in cover-ups. Anyone with knowledge of abuse or who suspects abuse is morally obligated to act on such information. In many cases, there is also a legal obligation to report the abuse to the proper authorities. State laws clearly define abuse and detail when, how, and to whom to report it. Churches and Christian ministries are required to follow state laws in this matter (Romans 13:1–7).
Beyond the legal requirement is the moral requirement to deal with incidents of abuse. When abuse is suspected in a church or Christian ministry, the organization should carefully and thoroughly investigate the matter. The goal should be to discover truth and seek justice—not to prioritize reputation. Cover-ups seek to evade consequences while ignoring the harm caused by an incident. Covering up abuse is sinful because it perpetuates wrong, exalts what God hates, and ignores state law. In the long run, covering up abuse will have far worse consequences than dealing with the truth immediately.
Any professing Christian individual or organization who participates in a cover-up of abuse, as legally defined, is guilty of sin. To identify oneself with the Lord while enabling sin violates the command not to take His name in vain. Denying victims justice through crafty deflections is a rejection of the Lord’s will (Isaiah 10:1–2; Mark 7:9–13). Such actions lead to people blaspheming the Lord (Romans 2:23–24). God’s people are called to protect the weak and vulnerable, not exploit them (see Exodus 22:22). God hates any attempt to use good things as a cover-up for sin and evil (Proverbs 21:27; 1 Peter 2:16).
Those who participate in a cover-up often claim good intentions. A common excuse for creating these smokescreens is guarding the faith-based group’s reputation. By covering up one person’s sin, the organization reasons it can continue proclaiming the gospel or doing other good work. This thinking is misguided. Christians are called to protect the weak and hurting (Proverbs 22:22; 31:8–9) and should be committed to the truth.
Another rationalization for cover-ups is the idea that grace and forgiveness should trump correction. But true repentance never dispenses with justice. Biblical commands to rebuke, correct, or excommunicate some people provide the very means by which heinous sin is to be resolved (1 Corinthians 5:9–13; 1 Timothy 5:20). Dodging the consequences of abuse is done at the cost of those who have been harmed (Proverbs 19:5).
Confronting abuse can be painful. But few things interfere with evangelism more than professing Christians using deceptive, cynical schemes to protect their reputation (2 Corinthians 4:2; 1 Peter 3:17). Most attempted cover-ups will be found out in this life. And those who think God will look the other way are sorely mistaken (Psalm 10:11–15). God is aware and cannot be fooled (Matthew 12:36; Hebrews 4:13). Jesus pointedly warned hypocritical religious leaders that their secret actions would be uncovered (Luke 12:2–3).
Secret sins will eventually be exposed (Numbers 32:23; Proverbs 26:26; Ecclesiastes 12:14). Once discovered, cover-ups will always make the church or group look worse. It is better to be criticized while repenting of sin than to protect one’s reputation while lying (Proverbs 16:8; 28:6). Never should we allow sin to continue and victims to suffer.
Cover-ups erode trust in everything an organization says. Abuse involves a violation of trust; a cover-up only magnifies that violation and worsens the scandal. After a cover-up of abuse is discovered, whatever moral statements the person, church, or organization makes are rightly seen as hypocritical, even if they are biblically correct. It would be foolish to assume leaders who enabled or hid abuse in a church should be trusted to suddenly “do the right thing” after they have been caught.
A good way to prevent cover-ups is to establish a clear sense of accountability. This applies to individuals and to organizations. Transparency and integrity are important standards to uphold to prevent abuse from happening in the first place (2 Corinthians 8:20–22). Nothing enables abuse within the church more than leaders who sense they are not truly accountable. The Bible holds leaders to high standards (1 Timothy 3:1–13; James 3:1), and they are to be called to account if they fail (see Galatians 2:11–13; Proverbs 27:5). Believers are to carefully compare all things—including the words and actions of leaders—to God’s truth, regardless of who those leaders are (Proverbs 18:17; Acts 17:11; 1 John 4:1; Ephesians 5:10; 1 Thessalonians 2:4; 5:21).
If abuse does happen, the only acceptable remedy is truthful humility. Care for the victim is paramount—far more important than preserving the reputation of the abuser. Ideally, victims of abuse should feel empowered to speak up. This needs to be part of a church’s fundamental culture. Those guilty of abuse, whoever they are, should be confronted. In a church situation, they should undergo proper church discipline (Matthew 18:15–20); in all situations, they should also be referred to the proper legal authorities (Romans 13:1–5). Care and restitution for victims must be important parts of the process.
Abuse is a clear violation of God’s will. Both abuse and cover-ups are twisted opposites of God’s command for Christians to be known for their love toward others (John 13:35). There is nothing loving about disguising sin or failing to address it with integrity.
While there are parallels between baptism and circumcision, they symbolize two very different covenants. The Old Covenant had a physical means of entrance: one was born to Jewish parents or bought as a servant into a Jewish household (Genesis 17:10-13). One’s spiritual life was unconnected to the sign of circumcision. Every male was circumcised, whether he showed any devotion to God or not. However, even in the Old Testament, there was recognition that physical circumcision was not enough. Moses commanded the Israelites in Deuteronomy 10:16 to circumcise their hearts, and even promised that God would do the circumcising (Deuteronomy 30:6). Jeremiah also preached the need for a circumcision of the heart (Jeremiah 4:4).
In contrast, the New Covenant has a spiritual means of entrance: one must believe and be saved (Acts 16:31). Therefore, one’s spiritual life is closely connected to the sign of baptism. If baptism indicates an entrance into the New Covenant, then only those devoted to God and trusting in Jesus should be baptized.
True circumcision, as Paul preaches in Romans 2:29, is that of the heart, and it is accomplished by the Spirit. In other words, a person today enters a covenant relationship with God not based on a physical act but on the Spirit’s work in the heart.
Colossians 2:11-12 refers to this type of spiritual circumcision: “In him you were also circumcised, in the putting off of the sinful nature, not with a circumcision done by the hands of men but with the circumcision done by Christ, having been buried with him in baptism and raised with him through your faith in the power of God, who raised him from the dead.” This circumcision does not involve the cutting of the body; it is a cutting away of our old nature. It is a spiritual act and refers to nothing less than salvation, effected by the Holy Spirit. Baptism, mentioned in verse 12, does not replace circumcision; it follows circumcision—and it is clearly a spiritual circumcision that is meant. Baptism, therefore, is a sign of inward, spiritual “circumcision.”
This passage also specifies that the new life, represented by baptism, comes “through your faith.” This implies that the one being baptized has the ability to exercise faith. Since infants are not capable of exercising faith, they should not be candidates for baptism.
Someone born (physically) under the Old Covenant received the sign of that covenant (circumcision); likewise, someone born (spiritually) under the New Covenant (“born again,” John 3:3) receives the sign of that covenant (baptism).
The Parable of the Wicked Tenants
(Matthew 21:33–46; Luke 20:9–18)
1Then Jesus began to speak to them in parables: “A man planted a vineyard. He put a wall around it, dug a wine vat, and built a watchtower. Then he rented it out to some tenants and went away on a journey.
2At harvest time, he sent a servant to the tenants to collect his share of the fruit of the vineyard. 3But they seized the servant, beat him, and sent him away empty-handed.
4Then he sent them another servant, and they struck him over the head and treated him shamefully.
5He sent still another, and this one they killed.
He sent many others; some they beat and others they killed.
6Finally, having one beloved son, he sent him to them. ‘They will respect my son,’ he said.
7But the tenants said to one another, ‘This is the heir. Come, let us kill him, and the inheritance will be ours.’ 8So they seized the son, killed him, and threw him out of the vineyard.
9What then will the owner of the vineyard do? He will come and kill those tenants and give the vineyard to others. 10Have you never read this Scripture:
‘The stone the builders rejected
has become the cornerstone.
11This is from the Lord,
and it is marvelous in our eyes’a?”
12At this, the leaders soughtb to arrest Jesus, for they knew that He had spoken this parable against them. But fearing the crowd, they left Him and went away.
Paying Taxes to Caesar
(Matthew 22:15–22; Luke 20:19–26)
13Later, they sent some of the Pharisees and Herodians to catch Jesus in His words. 14“Teacher,” they said, “we know that You are honest and seek favor from no one. Indeed, You are impartial and teach the way of God in accordance with the truth. Is it lawful to pay taxes to Caesar or not? Should we pay them or not?”
15But Jesus saw through their hypocrisy and said, “Why are you testing Me? Bring Me a denariusc to inspect.” 16So they brought it, and He asked them, “Whose image is this? And whose inscription?”
“Caesar’s,” they answered.
17Then Jesus told them, “Give to Caesar what is Caesar’s, and to God what is God’s.”
And they marveled at Him.
The Sadducees and the Resurrection
(Matthew 22:23–33; Luke 20:27–40)
18Then the Sadducees, who say there is no resurrection, came to Jesus and questioned Him: 19“Teacher, Moses wrote for us that if a man’s brother dies and leaves a wife but no children, the man is to marry his brother’s widow and raise up offspring for him.d 20Now there were seven brothers. The first one married and died, leaving no children. 21Then the second one married the widow, but he also died and left no children. And the third did likewise. 22In this way, none of the seven left any children. And last of all, the woman died. 23In the resurrection, then,e whose wife will she be? For all seven were married to her.”
24Jesus said to them, “Aren’t you mistaken, because you do not know the Scriptures or the power of God? 25When the dead rise, they will neither marry nor be given in marriage. Instead, they will be like the angels in heaven.
26But concerning the dead rising, have you not read about the burning bush in the Book of Moses, how God told him, ‘I am the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob’f? 27He is not the God of the dead, but of the living. You are badly mistaken!”
The Greatest Commandment
(Deuteronomy 6:1–19; Matthew 22:34–40)
28Now one of the scribes had come up and heard their debate. Noticing how well Jesus had answered them, he asked Him, “Which commandment is the most important of all?”
29Jesus replied, “This is the most important: ‘Hear O Israel, the Lord our God, the Lord is One. 30Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength.’g 31The second is this: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’h No other commandment is greater than these.”
32“Right, Teacher,” the scribe replied. “You have stated correctly that God is One and there is no other but Him, 33and to love Him with all your heart and with all your understanding and with all your strength, and to love your neighbor as yourself. This is more important than all burnt offerings and sacrifices.”
34When Jesus saw that the man had answered wisely, He said, “You are not far from the kingdom of God.”
And no one dared to question Him any further.
Whose Son Is the Christ?
(Matthew 22:41–46; Luke 20:41–44)
35While Jesus was teaching in the temple courts,i He asked, “How can the scribes say that the Christ is the Son of David? 36Speaking by the Holy Spirit, David himself declared:
‘The Lord said to my Lord,
“Sit at My right hand
until I put Your enemies
under Your feet.”’
37David himself calls Him ‘Lord.’ So how can He be David’s son?”
And the large crowd listened to Him with delight.
Beware of the Scribes
(Luke 20:45–47)
38In His teaching Jesus also said, “Watch out for the scribes. They like to walk around in long robes, to receive greetings in the marketplaces, 39and to have the chief seats in the synagogues and the places of honor at banquets. 40They defraud widows of their houses, and for a show make lengthy prayers. These men will receive greater condemnation.”
The Widow’s Offering
(Luke 21:1–4)
41As Jesus was sitting opposite the treasury, He watched the crowd putting money into it. And many rich people put in large amounts. 42Then one poor widow came and put in two small copper coins, which amounted to a small fraction of a denarius.
43Jesus called His disciples to Him and said, “Truly I tell you, this poor widow has put more than all the others into the treasury. 44For they all contributed out of their surplus, but she out of her poverty has put in all she had to live on.”
Faith and Belief
(James 2:14–26)
1O foolish Galatians! Who has bewitched you? Before your very eyes Jesus Christ was clearly portrayed as crucified. 2I would like to learn just one thing from you: Did you receive the Spirit by works of the law, or by hearing with faith?
3Are you so foolish? After starting in the Spirit, are you now finishing in the flesh?4Have you suffered so much for nothing, if it really was for nothing? 5Does God lavish His Spirit on you and work miracles among you because you practice the law, or because you hear and believe?
6So also, “Abraham believed God, and it was credited to him as righteousness.”a7Understand, then, that those who have faith are sons of Abraham. 8The Scripture foresaw that God would justify the Gentiles by faith, and foretold the gospel to Abraham: “All nations will be blessed through you.”b 9So those who have faith are blessed along with Abraham, the man of faith.
Christ Has Redeemed Us
10All who rely on works of the law are under a curse. For it is written: “Cursed is everyone who does not continue to do everything written in the Book of the Law.”c11Now it is clear that no one is justified before God by the law, because, “The righteous will live by faith.”d 12The law, however, is not based on faith; on the contrary, “The man who does these things will live by them.”
13Christ redeemed us from the curse of the law by becoming a curse for us. For it is written: “Cursed is everyone who is hung on a tree.”f 14He redeemed us in order that the blessing promised to Abrahamg would come to the Gentiles in Christ Jesus, so that by faith we might receive the promise of the Spirit.
The Purpose of the Law
(Romans 7:1–6)
15Brothers, let me put this in human terms. Even a human covenant, once it is ratified, cannot be canceled or amended. 16The promises were spoken to Abraham and to his seed. The Scripture does not say, “and to seeds,” meaning many, but “and to your seed,”h meaning One, who is Christ.
17What I mean is this: The law that came 430 years later does not revoke the covenant previously established by God, so as to nullify the promise. 18For if the inheritance depends on the law, then it no longer depends on a promise; but God freely granted it to Abraham through a promise.
19Why then was the law given? It was added because of transgressions, until the arrival of the seed to whom the promise referred. It was administered through angels by a mediator. 20A mediator is unnecessary, however, for only one party; but God is one.
21Is the law, then, opposed to the promises of God? Certainly not! For if a law had been given that could impart life, then righteousness would certainly have come from the law. 22But the Scripture pronounces all things confined by sin, so that by faith in Jesus Christ the promise might be given to those who believe.
23Before this faith came, we were held in custody under the law, locked up until faith should be revealed. 24So the law became our guardian to lead us to Christ, that we might be justified by faith. 25Now that faith has come, we are no longer under a guardian.
Sons through Faith in Christ
26You are all sons of God through faith in Christ Jesus. 27For all of you who were baptized into Christ have clothed yourselves with Christ. 28There is neither Jew nor Greek, slave nor free, male nor female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus.29And if you belong to Christ, then you are Abraham’s seed and heirs according to the promise.
Second Corinthians 3:6 says,
“He has made us competent as ministers of a new covenant--
not of the letter but of the Spirit;
for the letter kills, but the Spirit gives life.”
With these words,
Paul summarizes the key difference
between
the Old and New Testaments:
the first covenant was based on
obedience to the written law (the “letter”),
but the second covenant is based on
the blood of Christ
and sealed by the Holy Spirit.
Ephesians 4:14
Ephesians 4:14, "Then we will no longer be little children, tossed by the waves and blown around by every wind of teaching, by human cunning with cleverness in the techniques of deceit".
"Infants in Christ"
The phrase "infants in Christ" refers to believers who are immature in their faith, easily influenced by false teachings and swayed by the opinions of others.
"Waves of Doctrine"
The "waves of doctrine" symbolize the various false teachings and philosophies that
can disrupt and mislead believers.
The Goal:
The passage encourages believers to grow in their faith and become mature,
no longer being tossed about by every wind of doctrine.
How to Avoid Being Tossed:
- To avoid being swayed by false teachings, believers are encouraged to:
- Study God's Word: Develop a strong foundation in the Bible to discern truth from falsehood.
- Seek Wisdom: Rely on the guidance of the Holy Spirit and mature Christian leaders.
- Grow in Maturity: Strive for spiritual growth and discernment, rather than remaining immature in their faith.
John’s Inquiry(Luke 7:18–23)
1After Jesus had finished instructing His twelve disciples, He went on from there to teach and preach in their cities.
2Meanwhile John heard in prison about the works of Christ, and he sent his disciplesb 3to ask Him, “Are You the One who was to come, or should we look for someone else?”
4Jesus replied, “Go back and report to John what you hear and see: 5The blind receive sight, the lame walk, the lepersc are cleansed, the deaf hear, the dead are raised, and the good news is preached to the poor. 6Blessed is the one who does not fall away on account of Me.d”
Jesus Testifies about John
(Malachi 3:1–5; Luke 7:24–35)
7As John’s disciples were leaving, Jesus began to speak to the crowds about John: “What did you go out into the wilderness to see? A reed swaying in the wind? 8Otherwise, what did you go out to see? A man dressed in fine clothes? Look, those who wear fine clothing are found in kings’ palaces. 9What then did you go out to see? A prophet? Yes, I tell you, and more than a prophet. 10This is the one about whom it is written:
‘Behold, I will send My messenger ahead of You,
who will prepare Your way before You.’e
11Truly I tell you, among those born of women there has risen no one greater than John the Baptist. Yet even the least in the kingdom of heaven is greater than he.12From the days of John the Baptist until now, the kingdom of heaven has been subject to violence,f and the violent lay claim to it. 13For all the Prophets and the Law prophesied until John. 14And if you are willing to accept it, he is the Elijah who was to come.g
15He who has ears,h let him hear.
16To what can I compare this generation? They are like children sitting in the marketplaces and calling out to others:
17‘We played the flute for you,
and you did not dance;
we sang a dirge,
and you did not mourn.’
18For John came neither eating nor drinking, and they say, ‘He has a demon!’
19The Son of Man came eating and drinking, and they say, ‘Look at this glutton and drunkard, a friend of tax collectors and sinners!’ But wisdom is vindicated by her actions.”
Woe to the Unrepentant
(Luke 10:13–16)
20Then Jesus began to denounce the cities in which most of His miracles had been performed, because they did not repent. 21“Woe to you, Chorazin! Woe to you, Bethsaida! For if the miracles that were performed in you had been performed in Tyre and Sidon, they would have repented long ago in sackcloth and ashes. 22But I tell you, it will be more bearable for Tyre and Sidon on the day of judgment than for you.
23And you, Capernaum, will you be lifted up to heaven? No, you will be brought down to Hades! For if the miracles that were performed in you had been performed in Sodom, it would have remained to this day. 24But I tell you that it will be more bearable for Sodom on the day of judgment than for you.”
Rest for the Weary
(Luke 10:21–24)
25At that time Jesus declared, “I praise You, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, because You have hidden these things from the wise and learned, and revealed them to little children. 26Yes, Father, for this was well-pleasing in Your sight.
27All things have been entrusted to Me by My Father. No one knows the Son except the Father, and no one knows the Father except the Son and those to whom the Son chooses to reveal Him.
28Come to Me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest.29Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. 30For My yoke is easy and My burden is light.”
The Sabbath Rest
(Genesis 2:1–3; Exodus 16:22–30)
1Therefore, while the promise of entering His rest still stands, let us be careful that none of you be deemed to have fallen short of it. 2For we also received the good news just as they did; but the message they heard was of no value to them, since they did not share the faith of those who comprehended it.a
3Now we who have believed enter that rest. As for the others, it is just as God has said:
“So I swore on oath in My anger,
‘They shall never enter My rest.’”
And yet His works have been finished since the foundation of the world. 4For somewhere He has spoken about the seventh day in this manner: “And on the seventh day God rested from all His works.”c 5And again, as He says in the passage above: “They shall never enter My rest.”
6Since, then, it remains for some to enter His rest, and since those who formerly heard the good news did not enter because of their disobedience, 7God again designated a certain day as “Today,” when a long time later He spoke through David as was just stated: “Today, if you hear His voice, do not harden your hearts.”d
8For if Joshua had given them rest, God would not have spoken later about another day. 9There remains, then, a Sabbath rest for the people of God. 10For whoever enters God’s rest also rests from his own work, just as God did from His.11Let us, therefore, make every effort to enter that rest, so that no one will fall by following the same pattern of disobedience.
The Living Word
(2 Timothy 3:10–17)
12For the word of God is living and active. Sharper than any double-edged sword, it pierces even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow. It judges the thoughts and intentions of the heart. 13Nothing in all creation is hidden from God’s sight; everything is uncovered and exposed before the eyes of Him to whom we must give account.
14Therefore, since we have a great high priest who has passed through the heavens, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold firmly to what we profess. 15For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but we have one who was tempted in every way that we are, yet was without sin. 16Let us then approach the throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need.
The Feeding of the Five Thousand
(Matthew 14:13–21; Mark 6:30–44; Luke 9:10–17)
1After this, Jesus crossed to the other side of the Sea of Galilee (that is, the Sea of Tiberias). 2A large crowd followed Him because they saw the signs He was performing on the sick. 3Then Jesus went up on the mountain and sat down with His disciples.
4Now the Jewish Feast of the Passover was near. 5When Jesus looked up and saw a large crowd coming toward Him, He said to Philip, “Where can we buy bread for these people to eat?” 6But He was asking this to test him, for He knew what He was about to do.
7Philip answered, “Two hundred denariia would not buy enough bread for each of them to have a small piece.”
8One of His disciples, Andrew, Simon Peter’s brother, said to Him, 9“Here is a boy with five barley loaves and two small fish. But what difference will these make among so many?”
10“Have the people sit down,” Jesus said. Now there was plenty of grass in that place, so the men sat down, about five thousand of them.
11Then Jesus took the loaves and the fish, gave thanks, and distributed to those who were seated as much as they wanted.
12And when everyone was full, He said to His disciples, “Gather the pieces that are left over, so that nothing will be wasted.”
13So they collected them and filled twelve baskets with the pieces of the five barley loaves left over by those who had eaten.
14When the people saw the sign that Jesus had performed,b they began to say, “Truly this is the Prophet who is to come into the world.”
15Then Jesus, realizing that they were about to come and make Him king by force, withdrew again to a mountain by Himself.
Jesus Walks on Water
(Matthew 14:22–33; Mark 6:45–52)
16When evening came, His disciples went down to the sea, 17got into a boat, and started across the sea to Capernaum. It was already dark, and Jesus had not yet gone out to them. 18A strong wind was blowing, and the sea grew agitated.
19When they had rowed about three or four miles,c they saw Jesus approaching the boat, walking on the sea—and they were terrified. 20But Jesus spoke up: “It is I; do not be afraid.” 21Then they were willing to take Him into the boat, and at once the boat reached the shore where they were heading.
Jesus the Bread of Life
22The next day, the crowd that had remained on the other side of the sea realized that only one boat had been there, and that Jesus had not boarded it with His disciples, but they had gone away alone. 23However, some boats from Tiberias landed near the place where the people had eaten the bread after the Lord had given thanks. 24So when the crowd saw that neither Jesus nor His disciples were there, they got into the boats and went to Capernaum to look for Him. 25When they found Him on the other side of the sea, they asked Him, “Rabbi, when did You get here?”
26Jesus replied, “Truly, truly, I tell you, it is not because you saw these signs that you are looking for Me, but because you ate the loaves and had your fill. 27Do not work for food that perishes, but for food that endures to eternal life, which the Son of Man will give you. For on Him God the Father has placed His seal of approval.”
28Then they inquired, “What must we do to perform the works of God?”
29Jesus replied, “The work of God is this: to believe in the One He has sent.”
30So they asked Him, “What sign then will You perform, so that we may see it and believe You? What will You do? 31Our fathers ate the manna in the wilderness, as it is written: ‘He gave them bread from heaven to eat.’d”
32Jesus said to them, “Truly, truly, I tell you, it was not Moses who gave you the bread from heaven, but it is My Father who gives you the true bread from heaven.33For the bread of God is He who comes down from heaven and gives life to the world.”
34“Sir,” they said, “give us this bread at all times.”
35Jesus answered, “I am the bread of life. Whoever comes to Me will never hunger, and whoever believes in Me will never thirst. 36But as I stated, you have seen Me and still you do not believe.
37Everyone the Father gives Me will come to Me, and the one who comes to Me I will never drive away. 38For I have come down from heaven, not to do My own will, but to do the will of Him who sent Me.
39And this is the will of Him who sent Me, that I shall lose none of those He has given Me, but raise them up at the last day. 40For it is My Father’s will 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.”
41At this, the Jews began to grumble about Jesus because He had said, “I am the bread that came down from heaven.” 42They were asking, “Is this not Jesus, the son of Joseph, whose father and mother we know? How then can He say, ‘I have come down from heaven?’”
43“Stop grumbling among yourselves,” Jesus replied. 44“No one can come to Me unless the Father who sent Me draws him, and I will raise him up at the last day.45It is written in the Prophets: ‘And they will all be taught by God.’e Everyone who has heard the Father and learned from Him comes to Me— 46not that anyone has seen the Father except the One who is from God; only He has seen the Father.
47Truly, truly, I tell you, he who believes has eternal life. 48I am the bread of life.49Your fathers ate the manna in the wilderness, yet they died. 50This is the bread that comes down from heaven, so that anyone may eat of it and not die. 51I am the living bread that came down from heaven. If anyone eats of this bread, he will live forever. And this bread, which I will give for the life of the world, is My flesh.”
52At this, the Jews began to argue among themselves, “How can this man give us His flesh to eat?”
53So Jesus said to them, “Truly, truly, I tell you, unless you eat the flesh and drink the blood of the Son of Man, you have no life in you. 54Whoever eats My flesh and drinks My blood has eternal life, and I will raise him up at the last day. 55For My flesh is real food, and My blood is real drink.
56Whoever eats My flesh and drinks My blood remains in Me, and I in him. 57Just as the living Father sent Me and I live because of the Father, so also the one who feeds on Me will live because of Me. 58This is the bread that came down from heaven. Unlike your fathers, who ate the manna and died, the one who eats this bread will live forever.”
Many Disciples Turn Back
(Matthew 8:18–22; Luke 9:57–62; Luke 14:25–33)
59Jesus said this while teaching in the synagogue in Capernaum. 60On hearing it, many of His disciples said, “This is a difficult teaching. Who can accept it?”
61Aware that His disciples were grumbling about this teaching, Jesus asked them, “Does this offend you? 62Then what will happen if you see the Son of Man ascend to where He was before?
63The Spirit gives life; the flesh profits nothing. The words I have spoken to you are spirit and they are life. 64However, there are some of you who do not believe.”(For Jesus had known from the beginning which of them did not believe and who would betray Him.)
65Then Jesus said, “This is why I told you that no one can come to Me unless the Father has granted it to him.”
66From that time on many of His disciples turned back and no longer walked with Him.
Peter’s Confession of Faith
(Matthew 16:13–20; Mark 8:27–30; Luke 9:18–20)
67So Jesus asked the Twelve, “Do you want to leave too?”
68Simon Peter replied, “Lord, to whom would we go?
You have the words of eternal life.
69We believe and know that You are the Holy One of God.f”
70Jesus answered them,
“Have I not chosen you, the Twelve?
Yet one of you is
a devil!”
71He was speaking about
Judas, the
son of Simon Iscariot.
For although Judas was one of the Twelve,
he was later to betray Jesus.
1 John 4:1-3
Beloved, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to see whether they are from God. For many false prophets have gone out into the world. / By this you will know the Spirit of God: Every spirit that confesses that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is from God, / and every spirit that does not confess Jesus is not from God. This is the spirit of the antichrist, which you have heard is coming and which is already in the world at this time.
Revelation 17:12-14
The ten horns you saw are ten kings who have not yet received a kingdom, but will receive one hour of authority as kings along with the beast. / These kings have one purpose: to yield their power and authority to the beast. / They will make war against the Lamb, and the Lamb will triumph over them, because He is Lord of lords and King of kings; and He will be accompanied by His called and chosen and faithful ones.”
2 Peter 2:1-3
Now there were also false prophets among the people, just as there will be false teachers among you. They will secretly introduce destructive heresies, even denying the Master who bought them—bringing swift destruction on themselves. / Many will follow in their depravity, and because of them the way of truth will be defamed. / In their greed, these false teachers will exploit you with deceptive words. The longstanding verdict against them remains in force, and their destruction does not sleep.
1 John 2:22
Who is the liar, if it is not the one who denies that Jesus is the Christ? This is the antichrist, who denies the Father and the Son.
Matthew 24:4-6
And Jesus answered and said unto them, Take heed that no man deceive you…
1 Corinthians 6:9
Know ye not that the unrighteous shall not inherit the kingdom of God? Be not deceived: neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor effeminate, nor abusers of themselves with mankind,
Ephesians 5:6
Let no man deceive you with vain words: for because of these things cometh the wrath of God upon the children of disobedience.
1 Timothy 4:1-3
Now the Spirit speaketh expressly, that in the latter times some shall depart from the faith, giving heed to seducing spirits, and doctrines of devils; …
2 Timothy 3:1-3
This know also, that in the last days perilous times shall come…
2 Timothy 4:3,4
For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine; but after their own lusts shall they heap to themselves teachers, having itching ears; …
man.
2 Thessalonians 2:8-10
And then shall that Wicked be revealed, whom the Lord shall consume with the spirit of his mouth, and shall destroy with the brightness of his coming: …
Daniel 7:25
And he shall speak great words against the most High, and shall wear out the saints of the most High, and think to change times and laws: and they shall be given into his hand until a time and times and the dividing of time.
1 John 2:18
Little children, it is the last time: and as ye have heard that antichrist shall come, even now are there many antichrists; whereby we know that it is the last time.
the son.
John 17:12
While I was with them in the world, I kept them in thy name: those that thou gavest me I have kept, and none of them is lost, but the son of perdition; that the scripture might be fulfilled.
Revelation 17:8,11
The beast that thou sawest was, and is not; and shall ascend out of the bottomless pit, and go into perdition: and they that dwell on the earth shall wonder, whose names were not written in the book of life from the foundation of the world, when they behold the beast that was, and is not, and yet is…
Genesis 49:10
The sceptre shall not depart from Judah, nor a lawgiver from between his feet, until Shiloh come; and unto him shall the gathering of the people be.
Matthew 24:31
And he shall send his angels with a great sound of a trumpet, and they shall gather together his elect from the four winds, from one end of heaven to the other.
Matthew 25:32
And before him shall be gathered all nations: and he shall separate them one from another, as a shepherd divideth hissheep from the goats:
Matthew 24:10-12
At that time many will fall away and will betray and hate one another, / and many false prophets will arise and deceive many. / Because of the multiplication of wickedness, the love of most will grow cold.
1 Timothy 4:1
Now the Spirit expressly states that in later times some will abandon the faith to follow deceitful spirits and the teachings of demons,
Judas Iscariot, son of perdition, is typically remembered for one thing: his betrayal of Jesus.
He was one of the twelve disciples who lived with and followed Jesus for three years. He witnessed Jesus’ ministry, His teaching, and His many miracles. He was the treasurer for the group and used this trusted position to steal from their resources (John 12:6).
Judas was a common name in that era, and there are several other Judases mentioned in the New Testament. One of the other disciples was named Judas (John 14:22), and so was one of Jesus’ own half-brothers (Mark 6:3). To differentiate, John 6:71 and John 13:26 refer to Christ’s betrayer as “Judas, son of Simon Iscariot.”
Scholars have several ideas about the derivation of the surname. One is that Iscariotrefers to Kerioth, a region or town in Judea. Another idea is that it refers to the Sicarii, a cadre of assassins among the Jewish rebels.
The possible association with the Sicarii allows for interesting speculation about Judas’ motives for his betrayal, but the fact that he made a conscious choice to betray Jesus (Luke 22:48) remains the same. The surname Iscariot is useful, if for no other reason, in that it leaves no doubt about which Judas is being referred to.
Here are some of the facts we glean from key verses about Judas and his betrayal:
Money was important to Judas. As already mentioned, he was a thief, and, according to Matthew 26:13–15, the chief priests paid him “thirty silver coins” to betray the Lord.
Jesus knew from the very beginning what Judas Iscariot would do. Jesus told His disciples, “Have I not chosen you, the Twelve? Yet one of you is a devil!” (John 6:70). And at the Last Supper, Jesus predicted His betrayal and identified the betrayer: “Jesus answered, ‘It is the one to whom I will give this piece of bread when I have dipped it in the dish.’ Then, dipping the piece of bread, he gave it to Judas Iscariot, son of Simon” (John 13:26).
Jesus said that Judas Iscariot was not “clean”; i.e., he had not been born again and was not forgiven of his sins (John 13:10–11). In fact, Judas was empowered to do what he did by the devil himself: “As soon as Judas took the bread [that Jesus had given him], Satan entered into him” (John 13:27).
The other disciples had no clue that Judas Iscariot harbored treacherous thoughts. When Jesus mentioned a betrayer in their midst, the other disciples worried that it was they who would prove disloyal (John 13:22). No one suspected Judas. He was a trusted member of the Twelve. Even when Jesus told Judas, “What you are about to do, do quickly,” (John 13:27), and Judas left the Last Supper, the others at the table simply thought Judas had been sent to buy more food or to give something to charity (verses 28–29).
Judas Iscariot betrayed the Lord with a kiss, perfectly in keeping with his brazen duplicity (Luke 22:47–48). After committing his atrocious act, Judas “was seized with remorse and returned the thirty silver coins to the chief priests and the elders” (Matthew 27:3). But we learn that remorse does not equal repentance—rather than make amends or seek forgiveness, “he went away and hanged himself” (Matthew 27:5).
Judas Iscariot fulfilled the prophecy of Psalm 41:9, “Even my close friend, someone I trusted, one who shared my bread, has turned against me” (cf. John 13:18). Yet Judas was fully responsible for his actions. Jesus said, “The Son of Man will go just as it is written about him. But woe to that man who betrays the Son of Man! It would be better for him if he had not been born” (Matthew 26:24).
Matthew 27:6–8 reports that the chief priests took the “blood money” from Judas and bought a potter’s field as a place for burying foreigners (thus fulfilling the prophecy of Zechariah 11:12–13). Acts 1:18–19 continues the story of what happened after Judas’ death and gives some additional information. Luke reports, “With the reward he got for his wickedness, Judas bought a field; there he fell headlong, his body burst open and all his intestines spilled out. Everyone in Jerusalem heard about this, so they called that field in their language Akeldama, that is, Field of Blood.” The additional detail we learn from Luke is that, after Judas hanged himself, his dead body fell into the very field purchased with his ill-gotten gains.
Given the fact of Judas’ close proximity to Jesus during three years of ministry, it is hard to imagine how he could follow through on such a dastardly betrayal. Judas’ story teaches us to guard against small, gradual failings that gain strength and power in our lives and that could open the door to more deadly influences. His story is also a great reminder that appearances can be deceiving. Jesus taught, “Many will say to me on that day, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name and in your name drive out demons and in your name perform many miracles?’ Then I will tell them plainly, ‘I never knew you. Away from me, you evildoers!’” (Matthew 7:22–23).
The Man of Lawlessness
1Now concerning the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ and our being gathered together to Him, we ask you, brothers, 2not to be easily disconcerted or alarmed by any spirit or message or letter seeming to be from us, alleging that the Day of the Lord has already come. 3Let no one deceive you in any way, for it will not come until the rebellion occurs and the man of lawlessness—the son of destruction—is revealed. 4He will oppose and exalt himself above every so-called god or object of worship. So he will seat himself in the temple of God, proclaiming himself to be God.
5Do you not remember that I told you these things while I was still with you? 6And you know what is now restraining him, so that he may be revealed at the proper time. 7For the mystery of lawlessness is already at work, but the one who now restrains it will continue until he is taken out of the way. 8And then the lawless one will be revealed, whom the Lord Jesus will slay with the breath of His mouth and annihilate by the majesty of His arrival.
9The coming of the lawless one will be accompanied by the working of Satan, with every kind of power, sign, and false wonder, 10and with every wicked deception directed against those who are perishing, because they refused the love of the truth that would have saved them. 11For this reason God will send them a powerful delusion so that they believe the lie, 12in order that judgment may come upon all who have disbelieved the truth and delighted in wickedness.
Stand Firm
13But we should always thank God for you, brothers who are loved by the Lord, because God chose you from the beginninga to be saved by the sanctification of the Spirit and by faith in the truth. 14To this He called you through our gospel, so that you may share in the glory of our Lord Jesus Christ. 15Therefore, brothers, stand firm and cling to the traditions we taught you, whether by speech or by letter.
16Now may our Lord Jesus Christ Himself and God our Father, who by grace has loved us and given us eternal comfort and good hope, 17encourage your hearts and strengthen you in every good word and deed.
https://www.indystar.com/story/news/2023/08/28/lester-sumrall-namesake-loses-family-legal-fight-lesea-ministry/70697253007/
Hoosier evangelist Lester F. Sumrall,
one of the
pioneers of Christian television,
wrote an important
reminder on the front page of
his Bible.
“If I die rich,” he wrote,
“I die a traitor to the cause
of Christ
and to the Gospel.”
The simple faith statement was a warning to reject trappings of the material world, even as millions of dollars from sales and gifts flowed into Sumrall's global ministry based in South Bend.
In 1996, he died true to his beliefs. Everything he had went to the ministry. But that hasn’t stopped Sumrall's grandchildren from fighting over his legacy, including control of the multimillion-dollar religious broadcasting and publishing empire and whether there should have been a personal estate distributed to the evangelist’s heirs.
Sumrall’s oldest grandchild and namesake, Lester L. Sumrall of Bristol in Elkhart County, has been leading those attacks. He claims to be the televangelist’s “rightful spiritual and legal heir” but hasn’t had a role with the family ministry since his grandfather’s death.
The primary targets of Lester L. Sumrall's allegations are four cousins who have or had ties to the Lester Sumrall Evangelistic Association, better known as LeSEA Inc., before their grandfather's death. One of those cousins, Andrew "Drew" Sumrall, now serves as chairman and CEO.
Last week, federal judge Philip P. Simon issued two summary judgment orders in favor of LeSEA from a case initially filed in 2018. That suit was brought to stop Lester L. Sumrall from infringing on unique LeSEA trademarks and resulted in a permanent injunction against him. The new rulings shut down Lester L. Sumrall’s counterclaim over intellectual property rights.
The judge's order also offered an unsolicited perspective on the drama playing out in the courts.
“From all accounts of the man and his life’s work,” Simon wrote, “no one can doubt that Dr. Lester Frank Sumrall would be gravely disappointed, if not heartsick, at the ugly family disharmony in the wake of his death.”
https://lestersumrall.dpdcart.com/product/225761
And David was unwilling to move the ark of the LORD into the city of David with him; but David took it aside to the house of Obed-edom the Gittite. Thus the ark of the LORD remained in the house of Obed-edom the Gittite three months, and the LORD blessed Obed-edom and all his household" (2 Sam 6:10-11).
Talk about an unsung hero. Who has ever heard a sermon about Obed-edom? Obed-edom is from Gat, a Philistine city and home to the infamous giant Goliath (2 Sam 21:19). The Gittites were foreigners (see 2 Sam 15:19). And yet God honored the house of this Gittite by making it his Holy of Holies for three months! And if this isn't shocking enough, the book of Chronicles tells us that Obed-edom became a gatekeeper of the ark in the tabernacle/temple, a job which was supposed to be limited exclusively to the descendants of Levi (see 1 Chron 15:4-18, 15:21, 24-25; 16:5, 38).
While I'm not sure how God was able to treat a foreigner's house as his holy temple and how he permitted a Gittite to serve as a "Levite," I stand in awe at his amazing grace to a man who may have even been Goliath's neighbor. And this extraordinarily unique exception to the rule during the period of the Sinai Covenant has now become the glorious rule. All those who were once strangers to the covenants and excluded from the commonwealth of Israel have been brought near through the shed blood of Yeshua the Messiah. Where there was once enmity, now there is peace. Where there were once barriers, now there is unhindered access. Obed-edom serves as a glorious prototype of every unclean Gentile who, through faith in Yeshua, is transformed into a fellow citizen, a co-heir, a living stone, and a saint.
"So then you are no longer strangers and aliens, but you are fellow citizens with the saints, and are of God’s household, having been built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Christ Jesus Himself being the corner stone, in whom the whole building, being fitted together, is growing into a holy temple in the Lord, in whom you also are being built together into a dwelling of God in the Spirit" (Eph 2:19-22).
What to know:
• The privacy and anonymity of watching our videos enables people to explore their questions without pressure or shame. Many find answers and faith this way.
• It is common to hear new believers in Israel share their testimony, saying they found Jesus on the internet when they start googling their questions.
• Many people start seeking spiritual answers in times of hardship and distress. During the current war, we have seen a steady increase in the number of those who subscribe to our videos.
• Over half a million Israelis are now subscribed to our Hebrew YouTube channel, and with a population of less than 10 million people, we are one of Israel’s most followed channels!
How to Pray?
• Pray that many Israelis find Jesus through evangelistic media like ours.
• Pray for God’s leading and inspiration for our team as they plan what videos to make.
• Pray for those who commit faith commitments to find fellowship and help grow as a disciple of Jesus.
• Pray that all Israel, regardless of background, may be saved!
In His great Sermon on the Mount, Jesus Christ sometimes employed a literary tool known as hyperbole to make a point. In one such example, Jesus asked, “Why do you look at the speck of sawdust in your brother’s eye and pay no attention to the plank in your own eye? How can you say to your brother, ‘Let me take the speck out of your eye,’ when all the time there is a plank in your own eye? You hypocrite, first take the plank out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to remove the speck from your brother’s eye” (Matthew 7:3–5).
Jesus drew a brilliant word picture of someone struggling with the sensitive business of extracting a tiny speck of sawdust from a friend’s eye. In contrast, a sizable plank of wood in that person’s own eye completely obstructed his vision. Such a feat would be impossible. It’s evident that Jesus was not speaking literally here. Instead, He used exaggeration to drive home the truth that people are often blind to their own faults while keenly focused on weaknesses in others. This segment of Christ’s sermon addressed the natural human tendency to see shortcomings in others and to be judgmental of their sin while ignoring, minimizing, or excusing our own sin.
When the woman caught in adultery was brought before Jesus, He confronted the same issue by telling the scribes and Pharisees, “Let him who is without sin among you be the first to throw a stone at her” (John 8:7, ESV). Jesus wasn’t excusing the woman’s sin but instead pointing out the need for consistency, honesty, and humility when passing judgment.
The Lord would have us remember that the blade of judgment cuts both ways. When we judge others, we condemn ourselves as well. If we are not willing to evaluate ourselves honestly and accurately, we’ll undermine our right to scrutinize the lives of others. Jesus said, “Do not judge, or you too will be judged. For in the same way you judge others, you will be judged” (Matthew 7:1–2; see also Luke 6:37–42). Paul taught in 1 Corinthians 11:31, “If we were properly judging ourselves, we would not be judged” (CSB).
Sadly, Christ’s instruction to “take the plank out of your own eye” is often misinterpreted as a general prohibition against all judgment. We can’t overlook the fact that Jesus said both the speck and the plank were to be removed. Believers are indeed called to help other Christians who become entangled in sin. Paul said, “Dear brothers and sisters, if another believer is overcome by some sin, you who are godly should gently and humbly help that person back onto the right path” (Galatians 6:1, NLT). But before we can help a fellow brother or sister onto the right path—before we can remove the speck from another’s eye—we must first deal honestly with our own sin.
In the Lord’s illustration, the fact that there is a “plank” in our eye, but only a “speck” in our brother’s eye, exposes the hypocrisy, self-righteousness, and pride at the heart of the matter. Somehow, we can’t discern that our own sins are more glaringly serious than those we concentrate on in others. We criticize others while absolving ourselves. Yet, often, those faults we pass judgment on in others are the very same flaws we can’t bear to admit in ourselves.
The Lord’s choice of an illustration involving the eye also ties in with a person’s overall spiritual condition: “The eye is the lamp of the body. If your eyes are healthy, your whole body will be full of light. But if your eyes are unhealthy, your whole body will be full of darkness. If then the light within you is darkness, how great is that darkness!” (Matthew 6:22–23).
The Lord calls all believers to live holy, godly lives (1 Peter 1:14–16). To do that, we must never forget our propensity to overlook our own faults while arrogantly locking on to those same faults in others. All ungodliness is cause for concern, whether it be in ourselves or in others. If we hope to help and restore someone else, we must honestly face up to our own sins and confess them—we must first take the plank out of our own eye.
The New Covenant is the promise that God will forgive sin and restore fellowship with those whose hearts are turned toward Him. Jesus Christ is the mediator of the New Covenant, and His death on the cross is the basis of the promise (Luke 22:20). The New Covenant was predicted while the Old Covenant was still in effect—the prophets Moses, Jeremiah, and Ezekiel all allude to the New Covenant.
The Old Covenant that God had established with His people required strict obedience to the Mosaic Law. Because the wages of sin is death (Romans 6:23), the Law required that Israel perform daily sacrifices in order to atone for sin. But Moses, through whom God established the Old Covenant, also anticipated the New Covenant. In one of his final addresses to the nation of Israel, Moses looks forward to a time when Israel would be given “a heart to understand” (Deuteronomy 29:4, ESV). Moses predicts that Israel would fail in keeping the Old Covenant (verses 22–28), but he then sees a time of restoration (Deuteronomy 30:1–5). At that time, Moses says, “The Lord your God will circumcise your hearts and the hearts of your descendants, so that you may love him with all your heart and with all your soul, and live” (verse 6). The New Covenant involves a total change of heart so that God’s people are naturally pleasing to Him.
The prophet Jeremiah also predicted the New Covenant. “‘The days are coming,’ declares the Lord, ‘when I will make a new covenant with the people of Israel and with the people of Judah. . . . This is the covenant I will make with the people of Israel after that time,’ declares the Lord. ‘I will put my law in their minds and write it on their hearts. I will be their God, and they will be my people’” (Jeremiah 31:31–33). Jesus Christ came to fulfill the Law of Moses (Matthew 5:17) and to establish the New Covenant between God and His people. The Old Covenant was written in stone, but the New Covenant is written on hearts. Entering the New Covenant is made possible only by faith in Christ, who shed His blood to take away the sins of the world (John 1:29). Luke 22:20 relates how Jesus, at the Last Supper, takes the cup and says, “This cup that is poured out for you is the new covenant in my blood” (ESV).
The New Covenant is also mentioned in Ezekiel 36:26–27, “I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit in you; I will remove from you your heart of stone and give you a heart of flesh. And I will put my Spirit in you and move you to follow my decrees and be careful to keep my laws.” Ezekiel lists several aspects of the New Covenant here: a new heart, a new spirit, the indwelling Holy Spirit, and true holiness.
The Mosaic Law could provide none of these things (see Romans 3:20).
The New Covenant was originally given to Israel and includes a promise of fruitfulness, blessing, and a peaceful existence in the Promised Land. In Ezekiel 36:28–30 God says, “Then you will live in the land I gave your ancestors; you will be my people, and I will be your God. . . . I will call for the grain and make it plentiful and will not bring famine upon you. I will increase the fruit of the trees and the crops of the field, so that you will no longer suffer disgrace among the nations because of famine.” Deuteronomy 30:1–5 contains similar promises related to Israel under the New Covenant. After the resurrection of Christ, God in His grace brought the Gentiles into the blessing of the New Covenant, too (Acts 10; Ephesians 2:13–14). The fulfillment of the New Covenant will be seen in two places: on earth during the Millennial Kingdom, and in heaven for all eternity.
We are no longer under the Law but under grace (Romans 6:14–15). The Old Covenant has served its purpose, and it has been replaced by “a better covenant” (Hebrews 7:22). “In fact the ministry Jesus has received is as superior to theirs as the covenant of which he is mediator is superior to the old one, since the new covenant is established on better promises” (Hebrews 8:6).
Under the New Covenant, we are given the opportunity to receive salvation as a free gift (Ephesians 2:8–9). Our responsibility is to exercise faith in Christ, the One who fulfilled the Law on our behalf and brought an end to the Law’s sacrifices through His own sacrificial death. Through the life-giving Holy Spirit who lives in all believers (Romans 8:9–11), we share in the inheritance of Christ and enjoy a permanent, unbroken relationship with God (Hebrews 9:15).
How can we approach a holy God? Our Torah portion this week continues God’s detailed revelation (begun in Exodus 25) of the plans for the tabernacle and its furnishings. In Exodus 27:20, our portion turns its attention to Aaron and his sons, who will serve as priests in the tabernacle. Chapter 28 describes in great detail the clothing of the priests, especially that of the high priest, Aaron. Chapter 29 then lays out the installation ceremony for Aaron and his sons, who are to be anointed with holy oil to signify their holy status – “set apart” for God and his service.
Exodus 35 – 39 will repeat this entire description, showing that God’s plans were carried out thoroughly and precisely. But why this seemingly laborious attention to detail? In Exodus 29:43-46, God gives us the reason:
There [at the tabernacle] I will meet with the people of Israel, and it shall be sanctified by my glory. I will consecrate the tent for the meeting and the altar. Aaron and his sons I will consecrate to serve me as priests. I will dwell among the people of Israel and will be their God. And they shall know that I am the LORD their God, who brought them out of the land of Egypt that I might dwell among them. I am the LORD their God.
The entire book of Exodus leads to this climax, when the glory of the Lord will fill the tabernacle and God himself will dwell amid his people (chapter 40).
The presence of a holy God demands a holy people, and the High Priest, in his unique sacred attire, will represent Israel before God as holy. As our Torah portion tells us:
So Aaron shall bear the names of the sons of Israel in the breastpiece of judgment on his heart, when he goes into the Holy Place, to bring them to regular remembrance before the LORD. . . . You shall make a plate of pure gold and engrave on it, like the engraving of a signet, “Holy to the LORD.” And you shall fasten it on the turban by a cord of blue. It shall be on the front of the turban. It shall be on Aaron’s forehead, and Aaron shall bear any guilt from the holy things that the people of Israel consecrate as their holy gifts. It shall regularly be on his forehead, that they may be accepted before the LORD. (Exod 28:29, 36-38).
How does this apply to us today? The Apostle Paul tells us, “Do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit within you, whom you have from God? You are not your own, for you were bought with a price. So glorify God in your body” (1 Cor 6:19-20).
We are all painfully aware of how far short we fall from the holiness that God’s presence in us requires. But for this reason, all the more, we thank God for our “great high priest who has passed through the heavens, Yeshua, the Son of God” (Heb 4:14). He, “who through the eternal Spirit offered himself without blemish to God, [purifies] our conscience from dead works to serve the living God” (Heb. 9:14).
Relying on Yeshua’s holiness, we too can “draw near with a true heart in full assurance of faith, with our hearts sprinkled clean from an evil conscience and our bodies washed with pure water” (Hebrews 9:14). “Let us then with confidence draw near to the throne of grace, that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need” (Heb. 4:16).
The Gospel of Salvation is the
good news
that people can be
saved by faith in Jesus Christ.
It's also known as "the Gospel".
The Enduring Word
(Isaiah 40:6–8)
22Since you have purified your souls by obedience to the truth so that you have a genuine love for your brothers, love one another deeply, from a pure heart.
23For you have been born again, not of perishable seed, but of imperishable, through the living and enduring word of God. For,
“All flesh is like grass,
and all its glory like the flowers of the field;
the grass withers and the flowers fall,
25but the word of the Lord stands forever.”
And this is the word that was proclaimed to you.
Rejoice in the Lord
1Therefore, my brothers, whom I love and long for, my joy and crown, that is how you must stand firm in the Lord, my beloved.
2I urge Euodia and Syntyche to agree with each other in the Lord. 3Yes, and I ask you, my true yokefellow,a to help these women who have contended at my side for the gospel, along with Clement and the rest of my fellow workers, whose names are in the Book of Life.
4Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again: Rejoice! 5Let your gentleness be apparent to all. The Lord is near.
6Be anxious for nothing, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. 7And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.
8Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think on these things. 9Whatever you have learned or received or heard from me, or seen in me, put it into practice. And the God of peace will be with you.
The Generosity of the Philippians
(2 Corinthians 8:1–15)
10Now I rejoice greatly in the Lord that at last you have revived your concern for me. You were indeed concerned, but you had no opportunity to show it. 11I am not saying this out of need, for I have learned to be content regardless of my circumstances. 12I know how to live humbly, and I know how to abound. In any and every situation I have learned the secret of being filled and being hungry, of having plenty and having need. 13I can do all things through Christ who gives me strength.
14Nevertheless, you have done well to share in my affliction. 15And as you Philippians know, in the early days of the gospel, when I left Macedonia, no church but you partnered with me in the matter of giving and receiving. 16For even while I was in Thessalonica, you provided for my needs again and again.
17Not that I am seeking a gift, but I am looking for the fruit that may be credited to your account. 18I have all I need and more, now that I have received your gifts from Epaphroditus. They are a fragrant offering, an acceptable sacrifice, well-pleasing to God.
19And my God will supply all your needs according to His glorious riches in Christ Jesus. 20To our God and Father be glory forever and ever. Amen.
Incarnation is a term used by theologians to indicate that Jesus, the Son of God, took on human flesh. This is similar to the hypostatic union. The difference is that the hypostatic union explains how Jesus’ two natures are joined, and the Incarnation more specifically affirms His humanity.
The word incarnation means “the act of being made flesh.” It comes from the Latin version of John 1:14, which in English reads, “The Word became flesh and made His dwelling among us.” Because of the near-exclusive use of the Latin Vulgate in the church through the Middle Ages, the Latin term became standard.
Biblical support for Jesus’ humanity is extensive. The Gospels report Jesus’ human needs including sleep (Luke 8:23), food (Matthew 4:2; 21:18), and physical protection (Matthew 2:13-15; John 10:39). Other indications of His humanity are that He perspired (Luke 22:43-44) and bled (John 19:34). Jesus also expressed emotions including joy (John 15:11), sorrow (Matthew 26:37), and anger (Mark 3:5). During His life, Jesus referred to Himself as a man (John 8:40), and after His resurrection His humanity was still recognized (Acts 2:22).
But the purpose of the Incarnation was not to taste food or to feel sorrow. The Son of God came in the flesh in order to be the Savior of mankind. First, it was necessary to be born “under the law” (Galatians 4:4). All of us have failed to fulfill God’s Law. Christ came in the flesh, under the Law, to fulfill the Law on our behalf (Matthew 5:17; Galatians 4:5).
Second, it was necessary for the Savior to shed His blood for the forgiveness of sins (Hebrews 9:22). A blood sacrifice, of course, requires a body of flesh and blood. And this was God’s plan for the Incarnation: “When Christ came into the world, he said: ‘Sacrifice and offering [under the Old Covenant] you did not desire, but a body you prepared for me’” (Hebrews 10:5). Without the Incarnation, Christ could not really die, and the cross is meaningless.
God did an incredible work in sending His only begotten Son into the world and providing us with a salvation we do not deserve. Praise the Lord for that moment in which “the Word became flesh.” We are now redeemed “with the precious blood of Christ, a lamb without blemish or defect” (1 Peter 1:19).
Jesus was both human and divine. Please read about the divinity of Jesus here.
The most important reason that Jesus must be God is that, if He is not God, His death would not have been sufficient to pay the penalty for the sins of the world (1 John 2:2). A created being, which Jesus would be if He were not God, could not pay the infinite penalty required for sin against an infinite God. Only God could pay such an infinite penalty. Only God could take on the sins of the world (2 Corinthians 5:21), die, and be resurrected, proving His victory over sin and death.
Is Jesus God? Yes. Jesus declared Himself to be God. His followers believed Him to be God. The provision of salvation only works if Jesus is God. Jesus is God incarnate, the eternal Alpha and Omega (Revelation 1:8; 22:13), and God our Savior (2 Peter 1:1).
The idea of “circumcision of the heart”
is found in Romans 2:29.
It refers to having a pure heart, separated unto God. Paul writes, “A Jew is one inwardly, and circumcision is a matter of the heart, by the Spirit, not by the letter.” These words conclude a sometimes confusing passage of Scripture regarding circumcision and the Christian. Verses 25-29 provide context:
“For circumcision indeed is of value if you obey the law, but if you break the law, your circumcision becomes uncircumcision. So, if a man who is uncircumcised keeps the precepts of the law, will not his uncircumcision be regarded as circumcision? Then he who is physically uncircumcised but keeps the law will condemn you who have the written code and circumcision but break the law. For no one is a Jew who is merely one outwardly, nor is circumcision outward and physical. But a Jew is one inwardly, and circumcision is a matter of the heart, by the Spirit, not by the letter. His praise is not from man but from God.”
Paul is discussing the role of the Old Testament Law as it relates to Christianity. He argues that Jewish circumcision is only an outward sign of being set apart to God. However, if the heart is sinful, then physical circumcision is of no avail. A circumcised body and a sinful heart are at odds with each other. Rather than focus on external rites, Paul focuses on the condition of the heart. Using circumcision as a metaphor, he says that only the Holy Spirit can purify a heart and set us apart to God. Ultimately, circumcision cannot make a person right with God; the Law is not enough. A person’s heart must change. Paul calls this change “circumcision of the heart.”
This concept was not original with the apostle Paul. As a Jew trained in the Law of Moses, he was certainly aware of this discussion from Deuteronomy 30. There, the Lord used the same metaphor to communicate His desire for a holy people: “And the LORD your God will circumcise your heart and the heart of your offspring, so that you will love the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul, that you may live” (Deuteronomy 30:6). Physical circumcision was a sign of Israel’s covenant with God; circumcision of the heart, therefore, would indicate Israel’s being set apart to love God fully, inside and out.
John the Baptist warned the Pharisees against taking pride in their physical heritage and boasting in their circumcision: “Do not think you can say to yourselves, 'We have Abraham as our father.' I tell you that out of these stones God can raise up children for Abraham” (Matthew 3:9).
True “children of Abraham” are those who follow Abraham’s example of believing God (Genesis 15:6). Physical circumcision does not make one a child of God; faith does. Believers in Jesus Christ can truly say they are children of “Father Abraham.” “If you belong to Christ, then you are Abraham’s seed, and heirs according to the promise” (Galatians 3:29).
God has always wanted more from His people than just external conformity to a set of rules. He has always wanted them to possess a heart to love, know, and follow Him. That’s why God is not concerned with a circumcision of the flesh. Even in the Old Testament, God’s priority was a spiritual circumcision of the heart: “Circumcise yourselves to the LORD, circumcise your hearts, you men of Judah and people of Jerusalem, or my wrath will break out and burn like fire because of the evil you have done” (Jeremiah 4:4).
Both Testaments focus on the need for repentance and inward change in order to be right with God. In Jesus, the Law has been fulfilled (Matthew 5:17). Through Him, a person can be made right with God and receive eternal life (John 3:16; Ephesians 2:8-9). As Paul said, true circumcision is a matter of the heart, performed by the Spirit of God.
Unity in the Body
(Psalm 133:1–3; 1 Corinthians 1:10–17)
1As a prisoner in the Lord, then, I urge you to walk in a manner worthy of the calling you have received: 2with all humility and gentleness, with patience, bearing with one another in love, 3and with diligence to preserve the unity of the Spirit through the bond of peace.
4There is one body and one Spirit, just as you were called to one hope when you were called; 5one Lord, one faith, one baptism; 6one God and Father of all, who is over all and through all and in all.
7Now to each one of us grace has been given according to the measure of the gift of Christ. 8This is why it says:
“When He ascended on high,
He led captives away,
and gave gifts to men.”
9What does “He ascended” mean, except that He also descendedc to the lower parts of the earth? 10He who descended is the very One who ascended above all the heavens, in order to fill all things.
11And it was He who gave some to be apostles, some to be prophets, some to be evangelists, and some to be pastors and teachers, 12to equip the saints for works of ministry and to build up the body of Christ, 13until we all reach unity in the faith and in the knowledge of the Son of God, as we mature to the full measure of the stature of Christ.
14Then we will no longer be infants, tossed about by the waves and carried around by every wind of teaching and by the clever cunning of men in their deceitful scheming. 15Instead, speaking the truth in love, we will in all things grow up into Christ Himself, who is the head. 16From Him the whole body, fitted and held together by every supporting ligament, grows and builds itself up in love through the work of each individual part.
New Life in Christ
(Colossians 3:1–17)
17So I tell you this, and insist on it in the Lord, that you must no longer walk as the Gentiles do, in the futility of their thinking. 18They are darkened in their understanding and alienated from the life of God because of the ignorance that is in them due to the hardness of their hearts. 19Having lost all sense of shame, they have given themselves over to sensuality for the practice of every kind of impurity, with a craving for more.
20But this is not the way you came to know Christ. 21Surely you heard of Him and were taught in Him—in keeping with the truth that is in Jesus— 22to put off your former way of life, your old self, which is being corrupted by its deceitful desires;23to be renewed in the spirit of your minds; 24and to put on the new self, created to be like God in true righteousness and holiness.
25Therefore each of you must put off falsehood and speak truthfully to his neighbor, for we are all members of one another. 26“Be angry, yet do not sin.”d Do not let the sun set upon your anger, 27and do not give the devil a foothold.
28He who has been stealing must steal no longer, but must work, doing good with his own hands, that he may have something to share with the one in need.
29Let no unwholesome talk come out of your mouths, but only what is helpful for building up the one in need and bringing grace to those who listen.
30And do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, in whom you were sealed for the day of redemption.
31Get rid of all bitterness, rage and anger, outcry and slander, along with every form of malice. 32Be kind and tenderhearted to one another, forgiving each other just as in Christ God forgave you.
Treasures in Heaven
(Luke 12:32–34)
19Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rustcdestroy, and where thieves break in and steal. 20But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where moth and rust do not destroy, and where thieves do not break in and steal. 21For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.
The Lamp of the Body
(Luke 11:33–36)
22The eye is the lamp of the body. If your eyes are good,d your whole body will be full of light. 23But if your eyes are bad,e your whole body will be full of darkness. If then the light within you is darkness, how great is that darkness!
24No one can serve two masters: Either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and money.
Lawsuits among Believers
1If any of you has a grievance against another, how dare he go to law before the unrighteous instead of before the saints! 2Do you not know that the saints will judge the world? And if you are to judge the world, are you not competent to judge trivial cases? 3Do you not know that we will judge angels? How much more the things of this life!
4So if you need to settle everyday matters, do you appoint as judges those of no standing in the church? 5I say this to your shame. Is there really no one among you wise enough to arbitrate between his brothers? 6Instead, one brother goes to law against another, and this in front of unbelievers!
7The very fact that you have lawsuits among you means that you are thoroughly defeated already. Why not rather be wronged? Why not rather be cheated?8Instead, you yourselves cheat and do wrong, even against your own brothers!
Paul wrote 2 Thessalonians, in part, to offer an eschatological clarification after some of his readers misunderstood that the day of the Lord was upon them already (2 Thessalonians 2:1–2). Part of that clarification includes a statement that many have interpreted as predicting a great rebellion before Christ returns. Second Thessalonians 2:3 says this: “Let no one deceive you by any means; for that Day will not come unless the falling away comes first, and the man of sin is revealed, the son of perdition” (NKJV).
In his first letter to the Thessalonians, Paul commended the believers for their faith, hope, and love (2 Thessalonians 1:2–3) and challenged them to excel still more (1 Thessalonians 4:1, 10). One area in which Paul encouraged them to grow was in their hope. To help with that, Paul taught them about the resurrection that will occur when the Lord meets believers in the clouds and the dead in Christ are raised (1 Thessalonians 4:13–17). This event, often referred to as the rapture, allows believers to grieve in a way consistent with their hope.
After the rapture, Paul explains, the day of the Lord will come. It will be a time of great difficulty for those who remain on earth in those days (1 Thessalonians 5:2–3). Paul explains that that day would not overtake believers (1 Thessalonians 5:4) and that God has not destined believers for wrath (1 Thessalonians 5:9). However, because of the shortness of the time, the Thessalonians needed to make the most of their opportunity, being awake and sober (1 Thessalonians 5:6–8).
It is evident that the Thessalonians misunderstood the timing of the day of the Lord, as some thought that the day of the Lord had come upon them (2 Thessalonians 2:1–2). Paul explains that the day of the Lord had not yet come and that it would not come until some things happened first. One of those events preceding the day of the Lord would be the revealing of the man of lawlessness (2 Thessalonians 2:3). Also, Paul says, the “falling away” or “apostasy” (NASB) would come before the day of the Lord. Many have understood from this statement that before Christ returns many people will reject the faith and rebel against God.
Paul uses the Greek word apostasia in 2 Thessalonians 2:3, so “apostasy” is a good, literal translation. The Greek word means “to be apart from or to stand apart from.” Paul uses the same word in 1 Timothy 4 when he explains that in the last days people will stand apart from (or fall away from) the faith and follow various kinds of falsehood (1 Timothy 4:1–3). So, there will be a standing apart from the faith or a great falling away before Christ returns. Wickedness will grow worse and worse (2 Timothy 3:13). This might be what Paul is referring to in 2 Thessalonians 2:3. On the other hand, Paul could be referring to the departure of the church (the rapture). Paul reiterates that the apostasia would come before the day of the Lord, and he could be referencing the church standing apart from or departing before the judgment falls.
In 1 Thessalonians 4 Paul had described the event of the church’s meeting Christ in the clouds; then Paul explained that the day of the Lord would come upon those slated for destruction (“them”) but not upon believers (1 Thessalonians 5:3), because believers were not destined for wrath (1 Thessalonians 5:9). Then in 2 Thessalonians he says a standing apart or away from will take place before the day of the Lord (2 Thessalonians 2:3). Some commentators take the view that the “falling away” is simply a “departure” of the church from the world.
The semantic range of the word apostasia can allow for either type of departure: doctrinal or physical. The great falling away before Christ returns could be a reference to the wickedness of mankind or to the physical removal of believers before the day of the Lord.
Ephesians 3:16
I ask that out of the riches of His glory He may strengthen you with power through His Spirit in your inner being,
Colossians 1:11
being strengthened with all power according to His glorious might so that you may have full endurance and patience, and joyfully
Isaiah 40:29-31
He gives power to the faint and increases the strength of the weak. / Even youths grow tired and weary, and young men stumble and fall. / But those who wait upon the LORD will renew their strength; they will mount up with wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not faint.
Job 1:1 includes the statement that Job was “blameless and upright.” This cannot mean that Job was sinless (Romans 3:23), so what does it mean?
The Hebrew word translated “blameless” is tam and can be translated as “blameless,” “perfect,” or “upright.” The same word is used in Proverbs 29:10, which states, “The bloodthirsty hate a person of integrity / and seek to kill the upright.” A blameless person is someone whose life exhibits integrity.
“Upright” in Job 1:1 is a translation of the Hebrew yashar, meaning “upright” or “just.” This word is used in parallel in this verse with blameless. In Psalm 37:37 the same word is used in parallel with “those who seek peace”: “Consider the blameless, observe the upright; / a future awaits those who seek peace.”
The fuller context in Job 1:1 is, “This man was blameless and upright; he feared God and shunned evil.” So, the description of Job being “blameless and upright” is linked to the fear of God and the avoidance of evil. The parallelism can be seen like this:
Blameless/upright
God-fearer/one who turns from evil
In short, Job was “blameless and upright” in that he was a man of integrity who trusted in God as his redeemer (see Job 19:25), sincerely worshiped the Lord, loved his family, and was consistent in his walk with God.
The dictionary definition of self-righteousness is “confidence in one’s own righteousness, especially when smugly moralistic and intolerant of the opinions and behavior of others.” Biblically speaking, self-righteousness, which is related to legalism, is the idea that we can somehow generate within ourselves a righteousness that will be acceptable to God (Romans 3:10). Although any serious Christian would recognize the error of this thought, because of our sin nature, it is a constant temptation to all of us to believe we are, or can be, righteous in and of ourselves. In the New Testament, Jesus and the apostle Paul came down particularly hard on those who attempted to live in self-righteousness.
Jesus’ condemnation of self-righteousness was especially harsh in His treatment of the Jewish leadership of the time. Six times in Matthew 23, Jesus condemns the scribes and Pharisees for rigidly adhering to their legalistic traditions in order to make themselves look better to others. The parable of the Pharisee and the tax collectorwas specifically told by Jesus to “some who trusted in themselves, that they were righteous, and treated others with contempt” (Luke 18:9–14). The Pharisee assumed his acceptance with God based on his own actions, whereas the tax collector recognized that there was nothing in himself that would cause God to approve of him. Over and over again in the Gospels, Jesus clashes with the Pharisees and scribes about true righteousness. At the same time, He spends a great deal of time and energy warning His disciples about the dangers of self-righteousness, making it clear that, without Him, they could do nothing (John 15:5).
Paul’s treatment of self-righteousness is no less scathing than Jesus’ was. He began his great argument in Romans for the grace of God by condemning the Jews’ self-righteous trust in circumcision (Romans 2:17–24). He follows that up in chapter 10, saying that the Jews tried to gain acceptance with God based on their own righteousness, demonstrating ignorance of the true righteousness of God (Romans 10:3). His conclusion is that Christ is the end of the law for righteousness, not man (verse 4).
Paul’s letter to the Galatian church also addressed this issue. These believers were being told that they had to do certain things to be acceptable to God, specifically, to be circumcised. Paul goes so far as to say that this is another gospel and calls those who advocate it “accursed” (Galatians 1:8–9). More tellingly, he tells his readers that, if righteousness could come from their own actions, then Jesus died “for no purpose” (Galatians 2:21), and that righteousness could come “by the law” (Galatians 3:21). Paul’s conclusion about the Galatian believers was that they had been foolish in their attempt to be perfected by the flesh (Galatians 3:1–3).
It would be an understatement to say that every believer is plagued by this attitude. It is in our sin nature to try to do something to merit our salvation. The costly freedom of grace, bought for us by the blood of Jesus with no contribution from us, is difficult for our prideful hearts to understand or appreciate. It is far easier to compare ourselves with one another than it is to recognize that we cannot measure up to the standards of a holy God. However, in Christ we can know true righteousness. In Christ, we can know the forgiveness of sin that comes to us through grace. Because He stood in our place, we benefit from both His sinless life and His sin-bearing death (2 Corinthians 5:21). Because of His sacrifice, we can face our sin and bring it to the cross, rather than try somehow to be good enough for God. Only in the cross can we see the grace that covers all our sin and defeat the constant tendency toward self-righteousness in our hearts.
Paul’s Farewell to the Ephesians
17From Miletus, Paul sent to Ephesus for
the elders of the church.
18When they came to him, he said, “You know how I lived the whole time I was with you, from the first day I arrived in the province of Asia. 19I served the Lord with great humility and with tears, especially in the trials that came upon me through the plots of the Jews.
20I did not shrink back from
declaring anything that was helpful to you as
I taught you publicly and from
house to house,
21testifying to Jews and Greeks alike
about
repentance to God and
faith in our Lord Jesus Christ.
22And now, compelled by the Spirit,
I am going to Jerusalem,
not knowing what will happen to me there.
23I only know that in
town after town
the Holy Spirit warns me that chains and afflictions await me.
24But I consider my life of no value to me, if only I may
finish my course
and complete the ministry
I have
received from the Lord Jesus—the
ministry of testifying
to the good news of God’s grace.
25Now I know that none of you among
whom I have
preached the kingdom will see
my face again.
26Therefore I testify to you this day that
I am innocent of the blood of all men.
27For I did not shrink back from declaring
to you
the whole will of God.
28Keep watch over yourselves and the entire flock of which the Holy Spirit has made you overseers.
Be shepherds of the church of God, which He purchased with His own blood.
29I know that after my departure,
savage wolves will come in among you
and will not spare the flock.
30Even from your own number, men will rise up and
distort the truth
to draw away disciples after them.
31Therefore be alert and remember that for
three years I never stopped
warning each of you night and day with tears.
32And now I commit you to God and to the word of His grace,
which can build you up and
give you an
inheritance among all who are sanctified.
33I have not coveted anyone’s silver or gold or clothing. 34You yourselves know that these hands of mine
have ministered to my own needs and those of my companions.
35In everything, I showed you that by this kind of hard work we must help the weak, remembering the
words of the Lord Jesus Himself:
‘It is more blessed to give than to receive.’”
36When Paul had said this, he knelt down with all of them and prayed. 37They all wept openly as they embraced Paul and kissed him. 38They were especially grieved by his statement that they would never see his face again. Then they accompanied him to the ship.
Jesus alerts us to “watch out for false prophets” in Matthew 7:15.
He compares these false prophets to wolves in sheep’s clothing. Jesus also tells us how to identify these false prophets: we will recognize them by their fruit
(Matthew 7:20).
Throughout the Bible, people are warned about
false prophets
(Ezekiel 13, Matthew 24:23–27, 2 Peter 3:3).
False prophets claim to speak
for God,
but they speak falsehood.
To gain a hearing,
they come to people
“in sheep’s clothing, but
inwardly
they are ferocious wolves”
(Matthew 7:15).
No matter how innocent and harmless
these teachers
appear on the outside,
they have the nature of wolves—they are
intent on destroying faith,
causing spiritual carnage in the church, and
enRICHing THEMSELVES
They “secretly introduce destructive heresies,” “bring the way of truth into disrepute,”
and “exploit you with fabricated stories”
(2 Peter 2:1–3).
The false teachers wear “sheep’s clothing” so they can mingle with the sheep without arousing suspicion.
They usually are not up front about what they believe; rather, they mix in some truth with their falsehood and
carefully choose their words to sound orthodox. In reality, they “follow their own ungodly desires” (Jude 1:17–18),
and “they never stop sinning; they seduce the unstable; they are experts in greed” (2 Peter 2:14).
By contrast,
a true prophet
teaches God’s Word fully
(Deuteronomy 18:20).
Wolves in sheep’s clothing twist God’s Word
to deceive or influence
the audience for their own purposes.
Satan himself masquerades as an angel of light
(2 Corinthians 11:14),
and his ministers masquerade as servants of righteousness
(2 Corinthians 11:15).
The best way to guard against wolves in
sheep’s clothing is to
heed the warnings of Scripture
and
know the truth.
A believer who “correctly handles the word of truth” (2 Timothy 2:15)
and
carefully studies the Bible will be able to identify false prophets.
Christians must
judge all teaching against what Scripture says.
Believers will also be able to identify false prophets
by their fruit--
their words, actions, and lifestyles. Jesus said,
“A tree is recognized by its fruit”
(Matthew 12:33; cf. Matthew 7:20).
Peter described false teachers as having
“depraved conduct” and who “carouse” as “slaves of depravity”
(2 Peter 2:2, 13, 19).
If a teacher in the church does
not live
according to God’s Word,
he is one of those wolves in
sheep’s clothing.
Here are three specific questions to
identify false prophets,
or wolves in sheep’s clothing:
1) What does the teacher say about Jesus?
In John 10:30, Jesus says,
“I and the Father are one.”
The Jews understood Jesus’ statement
as a claim to be God and wanted to stone him
(John 10:33).
Anyone who denies Jesus as Lord (1 John 4:1–3) is a false prophet.
2) Does the teacher preach the biblical gospel?
Anyone who teaches an incomplete or unbiblical gospel is to be eternally condemned
(Galatians 1:9).
Any gospel apart from what the Bible tells us (1 Corinthians 15:1–4) is not
the true good news.
3) Does this teacher exhibit godly character qualities? Jesus said to beware of teachers
whose moral behavior does not match what the Bible says.
He says we will know wolves in sheep’s clothing by their fruits
(Matthew 7:15–20)
It doesn’t matter
how large a church a preacher has, how
many books he has sold,
or how many people applaud him.
If he “teaches a different doctrine and does
not agree with the
sound words of our Lord Jesus Christ
and the
teaching that accords with godliness,”
then he is a wolf in sheep’s clothing
(1 Timothy 6:3).
Freedom in Christ
1It is for
freedom that Christ has set us free.
Stand firm, then,
and do not be
encumbered once more by a yoke of slavery.
2Take notice: I, Paul, tell you that if you let yourselves be circumcised, Christ will be of no value to you at all.
3Again I testify to every man who gets himself circumcised that he is obligated to obey the whole law.
4You who are trying to be justified by the law have been severed from Christ; you have fallen away from grace.
5But by faith we eagerly await through the Spirit the hope of righteousness.
6For in Christ Jesus neither circumcision nor uncircumcision has any value.
What matters is faith expressing itself through love.
7You were running so well. Who has obstructed you from obeying the truth?
8Such persuasion does not come from the One who calls you.
9A little leaven works through the whole batch of dough.
10I am confident in the Lord that you will take no other view.
The one who is troubling you will bear the judgment, whoever he may be.
11Now, brothers, if I am still preaching circumcision, why am I still being persecuted?
In that case the offense of the cross has been abolished. 12As for those who are agitating you, I wish they
would proceed to emasculate themselves!
13For you, brothers, were called to freedom; but do not use your freedom as an opportunity for the flesh.
Rather, serve one another in love.
14The entire law is fulfilled in a single decree: “Love your neighbor as yourself.”
15But if you keep on biting and devouring one another, watch out, or you will be consumed by one another.
What does James 1:8 mean?
This verse completes a crucial idea which James introduced in verse 5. God promises wisdom to all who ask Him for it. He promises to give it generously and not based on our merit. The caveat is that we must believe and not doubt. We must not seek wisdom from sources contrary to God at the same time, expecting to weigh God's wisdom against others and decide which we will follow. We can consult godly advisors, and look to God's creation, but we can't weigh His wisdom against that of the world before we decide who to trust.
Verse 7 made it clear that a doubtful person—the one who treats God as only one of many options—should not expect to receive any wisdom from God. This verse calls that person both double-minded and unstable. Trying to live by God's wisdom while also following a form of "wisdom" from another source will always lead us in two different directions. We will always be deciding whose wisdom feels more right to us in any given moment. In that way, we end up making a god of our own ability to pick the "right" wisdom from day to day.
James makes it clear that the only stable life is one in which a believer has resolved to follow God's wisdom—period. Those who trust the Father seek wisdom from the Father and follow the wisdom the Father gives, no matter what.
James 1:2–18 begins with a challenging command for Christians. We are to classify hard things in their lives as ''joyful,'' because those ordeals help us develop a deeper trust in God. Christians who trust God also seek wisdom from Him—and not from ungodly sources. We continue to trust Him through difficult experiences, in part, to receive the crown of life promised to those who don't stop. We don't blame Him for our desire to sin, but we do credit Him for every good thing in our lives.
How important is it for Christians to trust God? It's so important, James writes, that we should call our worst moments joyful things, because trials help us trust God more. People who trust God ask Him for wisdom—and then take what He gives. People who trust God make a bigger deal about their rewards in the next life than their wealth in this one. People who trust God don't blame Him for their desire to sin; they give Him credit for all that is good in their lives. They look into His Word, and they act on what they see there.
The term double-minded comes from the Greek word dipsuchos, meaning “a person with two minds or souls.” It’s interesting that this word appears only in the book of James (James 1:8; 4:8). Bible scholars conclude that James might have coined this word. To grasp the full meaning of this word, it is best to understand how it is used within its context.
James writes of the doubting person that he is “like a wave of the sea, blown and tossed by the wind. That man should not think he will receive anything from the Lord; he is a double-minded man, unstable in all he does” (James 1:6–8). A doubter is a double-minded person. Jesus had in mind such a person when He spoke of the one who tries to serve two masters (Matthew 6:24). As such, he is “unstable,” which comes from a Greek word meaning “unsteady, wavering, in both his character and feelings.”
A double-minded person is restless and confused in his thoughts, his actions, and his behavior. Such a person is always in conflict with himself. One torn by such inner conflict can never lean with confidence on God and His gracious promises.. He has no defined direction and as a result doesn’t get anywhere.
Those who are double-minded do not have the faith spoken of in Hebrews 11:1, 3: “Now faith is being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see. . . . By faith we understand that the universe was formed at God’s command, so that what is seen was not made out of what was visible.” We cannot be both “certain” and doubting, as is the double-minded person. One part of his mind is sure of something, while the other part doubts. It brings to mind the “pushmi-pullyu” of the Dr. Doolittle stories, an animal with a head at either end of its body and which was constantly trying to walk in two directions at once. Such is the double-minded man.
Jesus declared, “No one can serve two masters.
Either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted
to the one and despise the other”
You can not serve God and Money (Matthew 6:24).
God and the things of this world are of such opposite natures that it is impossible to love either one completely without hating the other. Those who try to love both will become unstable in all their ways. If someone struggles with being double-minded, he or she should read, study, and memorize the Word, for it is the Word of God that produces faith (Romans 10:17). And he or she should pray for faith. God freely gives what is good to those who ask Him (Luke 11:9–12), and it’s good to ask for an increase of faith (Luke 17:5; Mark 9:24).
Luke 5:27
Later, as Jesus left the town, he saw a tax collector named Levi sitting at his tax collector's booth. “Follow me and be my disciple,” Jesus said to him. So Levi got up, left everything, and followed him. Later, Levi held a banquet in his home with Jesus as the guest of honor
“Serve God not man" is a phrase that appears
in the Bible
in Colossians 3:23 and Ephesians 6:7.
It means to put your best effort into your work, as if you were
working for the Lord, not for people.
- Acts 5:29: "We must obey God rather than men".
- Colossians 3:23-24: "Whatever you do, work heartily, as for the Lord and not for men, knowing that from the Lord you will receive the reward of the inheritance".
- Ephesians 6:7-9: "Rendering service with a good will as to the Lord and not to man".
- Matthew 6:24: "No one can serve two masters: Either he will hate the one and love the other".
The phrase "serve God not man" encourages people to
put God first in their lives,
and to prioritize God's will over human authority.
It also reminds people that they will be rewarded
by God for their service
Serving with Honor
(Colossians 3:22–25; 1 Timothy 6:1–2)
5Slaves, obey your earthly masters with respect and fear and sincerity of heart, just as you would obey Christ. 6And do this not only to please them while they are watching, but as servants of Christ, doing the will of God from your heart. 7Serve with good will, as to the Lord and not to men, 8because you know that the Lord will reward each one for whatever good he does, whether he is slave or free.
9And masters, do the same for your slaves. Give up your use of threats, because you know that He who is both their Master and yours is in heaven, and there is no favoritism with Him.
Second Corinthians 2:15 says, “For we are to God the pleasing aroma of Christ among those who are being saved and those who are perishing.” To understand what the apostle Paul meant when he said that Christians are the “aroma of Christ,” we must look at the verses immediately surrounding the expression: “But thanks be to God, who always leads us as captives in Christ’s triumphal procession and uses us to spread the aroma of the knowledge of him everywhere. For we are to God the pleasing aroma of Christ among those who are being saved and those who are perishing. To the one we are an aroma that brings death; to the other, an aroma that brings life. And who is equal to such a task?” (verses 14–16).
For Jewish people, the apostle Paul’s analogy of “the pleasing aroma of Christ” would present an immediate association. In the Old Testament, the scent of burnt offerings was described as “an aroma pleasing to the Lord” (Genesis 8:20–21; Leviticus 23:18; Numbers 28:27). For the Gentiles, this phrase would suggest the scent of incense being burned as an offering to the gods. However, Paul had a more specific picture in mind.
The apostle was speaking to the Corinthians about recent events in his ministry of evangelism. Despite all the difficulties and disappointments he’d faced while traveling from city to city spreading the gospel, Paul was able to reflect on God’s goodness with thanksgiving. The apostle then compared this ministry of evangelism to the triumphal military parades that were common at that time in the Roman world.
Paul’s metaphor would be readily understood by his audience, with the apostle and his co-laborers portrayed as victorious soldiers in a triumphal procession. During these Roman military parades, captives of war would be marched through the streets as garlands of flowers were carried and incense was burned to the gods. The aromatic perfumes wafted on the air as spectators and those in the procession breathed in their fragrance. At the parade’s finale, many prisoners would be put to death. Thus, the aromas were pleasing and life-giving to the victors, but they were the smell of death to those who had been defeated.
In Paul’s analogy, he separates humanity into two groups: those on the path of salvation and those on the road to destruction. The aroma spread everywhere by the ministry of evangelism was the knowledge of God as victor. Christians who spread the gospel are members of God’s victorious army led by Jesus Christ. Believers are like the aroma or fragrance spread during the victory processions. Both the victors and those perishing smell the aroma; however, it has a different meaning for the two groups. For the victorious army and its peoples, the aroma would relate to the joy of triumph. But for the prisoners of war, the fragrance would be associated with defeat, slavery, and death.
This brilliant metaphor contrasts Christian and non-Christian responses to hearing the gospel. To non-Christians, those on the road to destruction, believers who preach the gospel spread the smell of death, as it were. To Christians, those on the path to salvation, they produce the fragrance of life.
Overwhelmed by the extreme importance of this ministry of spreading the gospel, Paul exclaimed, “And who is equal to such a task?” The implication is that no one is worthy. Paul was astounded that God would appoint humans to share in this task. Later, in 2 Corinthians 3:5–6, Paul affirms that our ability rests solely on God: “Not that we are competent in ourselves to claim anything for ourselves, but our competence comes from God. He has made us competent as ministers of a new covenant—not of the letter but of the Spirit; for the letter kills, but the Spirit gives life.”
A host of paradoxical principles exist in God’s kingdom. In the Lord’s economy, weakness and power are opposite sides of the same coin. The apostle Paul tells the Corinthians that the gospel message—the good news that Jesus Christ was crucified on the cross for our sins—is “foolishness” and “weakness” to the unsaved: “Jews demand signs and Greeks look for wisdom, but we preach Christ crucified: a stumbling block to Jews and foolishness to Gentiles, but to those whom God has called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God and the wisdom of God. For the foolishness of God is wiser than human wisdom, and the weakness of God is stronger than human strength” (1 Corinthians 1:22–25).
“The message of the cross is foolish to those who are headed for destruction! But we who are being saved,” explains Paul, “know it is the very power of God” (1 Corinthians 1:18, NLT). The Jews stumbled over the cross of Christ because they were looking for a mighty military leader as their Savior. When Jesus came as a humble servant and died a disgraceful death on the cross, they disregarded Him. They couldn’t see that the most powerful of all beings was walking among them. The message of the cross represented weakness to the Jews and simple-minded nonsense to the Greeks. Today the gospel is regarded in a similar light by those who value the world’s ways of thinking. To the unregenerate human mind, the message of salvation in Jesus Christ is an absurdity swallowed by feeble-minded people.
What Paul dubbed “the weakness of God” is Jesus Christ crucified. This so-called “weakness” only appears to be void of strength, and only to those who are unredeemed. The world sees the Bible and the gospel message as weak. In truth, the gospel is “the power of God that brings salvation to everyone who believes” (Romans 1:16). God’s power, at its slightest, least detectable measure, is more potent than man’s greatest strength. No human-generated force or energy can touch or even come close to the strength and power of God.
Only through the weakness of God in Christ crucified could the unrivaled, unconquerable power of God be revealed: God “released [Jesus] from the horrors of death and raised him back to life, for death could not keep him in its grip” (Acts 2:24, NLT; see also Romans 1:4). God’s power not only resurrected Jesus from the dead but also “seated him in the place of honor at God’s right hand in the heavenly realms. Now he is far above any ruler or authority or power or leader or anything else—not only in this world but also in the world to come” (Ephesians 1:20–21, NLT).
By the same weakness of God in Christ crucified, believers are brought to life with Christ when they repent of their sins and receive His salvation: “For you were buried with Christ when you were baptized. And with him you were raised to new life because you trusted the mighty power of God, who raised Christ from the dead. You were dead because of your sins and because your sinful nature was not yet cut away. Then God made you alive with Christ, for he forgave all our sins. He canceled the record of the charges against us and took it away by nailing it to the cross. In this way, he disarmed the spiritual rulers and authorities. He shamed them publicly by his victory over them on the cross” (Colossians 2:12–15, NLT). Through the weakness of God, we are empowered by Him to live in the freedom of Christ. One day God will raise us up by the same power that raised Jesus from the dead (1 Corinthians 6:14). He will take our weak human bodies and transform them into glorious heavenly bodies (Philippians 3:21; 1 Corinthians 15:42–44).
The weakness of God in Christ crucified opened the way for believers to be set free from sin’s control and sin’s curse (Romans 6:6; 8:3; Titus 2:14; Hebrews 7:25). For the child of God, Jesus broke the power of the devil by the power of the cross. Death and the fear of death have been defeated and destroyed (Hebrews 2:14–15; 1 Corinthians 15:26, 54–57). We gain eternal life through Christ’s humble, submissive sacrifice (John 6:40; 11:25–26; 1 Corinthians 15:22; 1 Peter 3:18; 1 John 5:11–12, 20).
German pastor and theologian Dietrich Bonhoeffer wrote, “God lets himself be pushed out of the world on to the cross. He is weak and powerless in the world, and that is precisely the way, the only way, in which he is with us and helps us . . . not by virtue of his omnipotence, but by virtue of his weakness and suffering” (Christian Quotations, Manser, M., ed., 2016).
The nature of God’s weakness in the unequaled sacrifice of His Son can only be grasped by those who belong to His kingdom. Jesus Christ “was crucified in weakness” but “now lives by the power of God” (2 Corinthians 13:4, NLT). The Lord of the universe chooses “the foolish things of the world to shame the wise” and “the weak things of the world to shame the strong” (1 Corinthians 1:27). God even uses frail, ordinary humans to accomplish His will on earth “to show that this all-surpassing power is from God and not from us” (2 Corinthians 4:7).
The weakness of God is the obverse power of God. It is the Lamb of God who was slain for our sins and the resurrected King of Glory who reigns forever on heaven’s throne.
In Philippians 4:13 the apostle Paul writes, “I can do all this through him who gives me strength.” The “him” of this verse is the Lord Jesus, and Jesus is, of course, all-powerful (Colossians 2:10). But does this verse mean that we can do anything and everything we set our minds to?
The context of this verse focuses on the God-given power to endure any circumstance. Verse 12 notes, “I know what it is to be in need, and I know what it is to have plenty. I have learned the secret of being content in any and every situation, whether well fed or hungry, whether living in plenty or in want.” Paul had faced times of abundance, yet he had also faced many trials for his faith.
In 2 Corinthians 11:24–27, Paul shares some of his sufferings up to that point in his faith: “Five times I received from the Jews the forty lashes minus one. Three times I was beaten with rods, once I was pelted with stones, three times I was shipwrecked, I spent a night and a day in the open sea, I have been constantly on the move. I have been in danger from rivers, in danger from bandits, in danger from my fellow Jews, in danger from Gentiles; in danger in the city, in danger in the country, in danger at sea; and in danger from false believers. I have labored and toiled and have often gone without sleep; I have known hunger and thirst and have often gone without food; I have been cold and naked.” Despite these and other problems, Paul believed and taught he could persevere because he could do “all things through him who gives me strength.”
Also, the focus in Philippians 4 is what the believer can do through the strength that Christ gives. This is not a promise that Christians will have superpowers or that they will be invincible or immune to life’s challenges. Instead, the promise of Philippians 4:13 is that we will have strength from the Lord to faithfully endure the difficulties that arise in life.
This passage is not about having financial abundance. Some teach a prosperity gospel that says God will bless us financially if we are faithful; in contrast, Paul taught that the believer will endure suffering but can be content in any circumstance, given Christ’s strength. Just as Christ faithfully endured on the cross, His followers can faithfully endure the problems they face. In fact, Philippians 4:11 states, “I have learned to be content whatever the circumstances.” Paul focused on contentment, not earthly abundance.
Finally, Philippians 4:13 is part of a larger passage that addresses Christ’s ability to meet our needs. Christ can give contentment during times of plenty and of poverty. He can help us do all things through His strength. In Paul’s case, it was the strength to serve as a missionary despite facing intense suffering. In our lives, this same strength is available. Whether we serve in another country or help someone in our own community, Christ’s power can enable us to stand firm on His promises and endure the most difficult of life’s challenges. Paul concludes this passage with these words: “My God will meet all your needs according to the riches of his glory in Christ Jesus. To our God and Father be glory for ever and ever. Amen” (verses 19–20).
Second Corinthians 3:6 says, “He has made us competent as ministers of a new covenant—not of the letter but of the Spirit; for the letter kills, but the Spirit gives life.” With these words, Paul summarizes the key difference between the Old and New Testaments: the first covenant was based on obedience to the written law (the “letter”), but the second covenant is based on the blood of Christ and sealed by the Holy Spirit.
There are two parts to this answer, as we look at both the letter and the Spirit.
First, what does Paul mean by “the letter kills”? Simply that the Old Testament Law, which is good and perfect (Psalm 19:7), reveals all people as law-breakers (Galatians 3:10). The law “kills” in that the penalty for breaking God’s law is eternal death in hell (Romans 6:23; Revelation 21:8). As God told Moses the lawgiver, “Whoever has sinned against me I will blot out of my book” (Exodus 32:33). Even if you sin only once in your whole life, it’s the same as breaking all of God’s laws (James 2:10),
just as breaking only one link in a chain breaks the whole chain.
The written law—“the letter”—was chiseled in stone by the finger of God and is the unchanging standard by which all are judged. The law cannot give us righteousness or eternal life in heaven (Galatians 2:16). It can only condemn us as sinners, and the sentence is death. Heaven is where perfection is required (Matthew 5:20, 48; 19:16–21), and “the law made nothing perfect” (Hebrews 7:19).
Second, what does Paul mean by “the Spirit gives life”?
Simply that the Holy Spirit rescues us from our hopeless situation. God saves us from death and grants us eternal life when we are born again through the power of the Holy Spirit. Jesus said, “Flesh gives birth to flesh, but the Spirit gives birth to spirit” (John 3:6), and, later, “The Spirit gives life; the flesh counts for nothing.
The words I have spoken to you—they are Spirit and they are life” (John 6:63).
The Holy Spirit was active in the Incarnation of our Savior (Luke 1:35). It was through the Holy Spirit that Jesus offered Himself as a sacrifice to God for our sins (Hebrews 9:14). The Spirit is the cause of the new birth (John 3:3–8). It is the Spirit who lives in believers (John 14:17), seals them (Ephesians 1:13), and sanctifies them (Romans 15:16).
Jesus came to give us an abundant life, or life “to the full” (John 10:10). The Holy Spirit living in believers is how Jesus fulfills that promise. The abundant Christian life is marked by the fruit of the Spirit, which is “love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control” (Galatians 5:22–23). The Old Testament Law could not produce any of that fruit; only the Holy Spirit can, as He lives in us.
The Spirit gives life in that He enables us to reach God’s ultimate goal for us, to be transformed into the glorious image of God’s own Son (2 Corinthians 3:18; also see Romans 8:28–30). Until the day that we see Christ, the Spirit intercedes with God on our behalf, ensuring our continued forgiveness and preserving the promise of God (Romans 8:26–27).
“The letter kills, but the Spirit gives life” (2 Corinthians 3:6). Elsewhere, Paul teaches the same truth: “But now, by dying to what once bound us, we have been released from the law so that we serve in the new way of the Spirit, and not in the old way of the written code” (Romans 7:6).
In Hebrews 11, we learn about faith from the Bible’s Old Testament heroes. One crucial detail stands out in their lives: they placed their whole confidence in God, entrusting themselves into His hands. The actions and accomplishments of these men and women proved that faith pleases God, and He rewards those who seek Him: “And without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to him must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who earnestly seek him” (Hebrews 11:6).
The author of the book of Hebrews points out two critical convictions of believers. First, “anyone who comes to him must believe that he exists.” Those who desire to draw near to God must have a deep-rooted belief that He is real. Such belief is not mere intellectual knowledge but a wholehearted devotion to His presence and participation in every part of one’s life. Without a genuine conviction that God exists, it is impossible to have an intimate relationship with Him. Second, the Lord’s followers must believe “that he rewards those who earnestly seek him.” This aspect of faith trusts in the character of God as a good, loving, generous, gracious, and merciful Father (James 1:17; Psalm 84:11; Lamentations 3:22–23). These two certainties are the groundwork of saving faith—a faith that pleases God.
Without faith, it is impossible to please God, because faith is the avenue by which we come to God and trust Him for our salvation. In His infinite goodness, God provides the very thing we need to draw near to Him: “For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God—not by works, so that no one can boast” (Ephesians 2:8–9). God gives us the faith required to please Him.
Hebrews 11:1 gives a definition, or at least a good description, of the faith that pleases God: “Now faith is confidence in what we hope for and assurance about what we do not see.” “Confidence” is the translation of a Greek word that means “foundation.” Faith is the foundation that undergirds our hope. It is not a blind grasping in the dark, but an absolute conviction that comes from experiencing God’s love and the faithfulness of His Word. The term translated “assurance” is also translated as “evidence” or “proof.” With our natural eyes, we cannot see the realities of God’s kingdom, but by faith we receive the evidence or proof that they exist.
We’ve established that without faith it is impossible to come to God.
It is also impossible to live for God—to follow and serve Him daily and persevere until the end—without faith. The entire Christian life is lived out by faith: “For in the gospel the righteousness of God is revealed—a righteousness that is by faith from first to last, just as it is written: ‘The righteous will live by faith’” (Romans 1:17; see also Habakkuk 2:4; Galatians 3:11; Hebrews 10:38). The apostle Paul affirmed, “I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me. The life I now live in the body, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me” (Galatians 2:20).
Scripture refers explicitly to Enoch’s faith as pleasing to God: “It was by faith that Enoch was taken up to heaven without dying—‘he disappeared, because God took him.’ For before he was taken up, he was known as a person who pleased God” (Hebrews 11:5, NLT; cf. Genesis 5:24). How did Enoch please God? Through living by faith. Enoch walked by faith in God. He obeyed the Word that had been revealed up to that point and lived in the light of its truth. Walking by faith means consistently living according to God’s Word (John 14:15). Without faith, it is impossible to believe God’s Word and obey it.
Scripture says that it is impossible to please God through works of the flesh: “Those who are in the flesh cannot please God” (Romans 8:8, ESV). We can’t earn God’s approval through good works. Only based on what Jesus Christ has done for us can we become holy and able to live a life pleasing to God (1 Corinthians 1:30). Christ’s life in us produces the righteousness that pleases God (2 Corinthians 5:21; Philippians 2:13; 3:9).
Without faith, it is impossible to please God; in fact, we cannot even begin to approach the Lord and experience a personal relationship with Him without it. Faith is the atmosphere in which the believer’s life is lived. We are called “believers” because we are continually putting our faith, trust, and confidence in God. By faith the Christian life begins, and by faith it perseveres until the end.
The champions of the Old Testament like Abel, Enoch, Noah, Abraham, Sarah, Moses, Joseph, Rahab, Gideon, and David all lived by faith. As they looked toward their future hope, they relied on God to fulfill His promises (Hebrews 11:13–16). And they obeyed God’s Word even when they did not understand it. This kind of walking by faith—accepting as truth the things we cannot yet touch, feel, or see, and then acting on them in obedience—is the prescription for living a life that pleases God. We may not see ourselves right now as God does—holy and made righteous by the sacrifice of Jesus Christ. But when we accept the evidence in God’s Word (Romans 10:17) and reach out in response to experience fellowship with Him, then we begin to live by faith, and that pleases God.
The supremacy of Christ is a doctrine surrounding the
authority of Jesus and His God-nature.
In the simplest of terms, to affirm the supremacy of Christ is to affirm that Jesus is God.
Merriam-Webster’s dictionary defines supreme as “highest in rank or authority” or “highest in degree or quality.” In essence, there is none better. The supreme of something is its ultimate. Jesus is the ultimate in power, glory, authority, and importance. Jesus’ supremacy over all is developed biblically primarily in Hebrews and Colossians.
A main theme of the book of Hebrews is explaining the work of Jesus in the context of the Old Testament system. Jesus was the fulfillment of the Old Testament Jewish traditions and roles. Another main theme of Hebrews is that Jesus does not simply represent a new way of doing things. Rather, He is supreme. He is the actual fulfillment of the old way of doing things and is therefore greater than those ways. Concerning the temple system under the Mosaic Law, the author of Hebrews writes, “But in fact the ministry Jesus has received is as superior to theirs as the covenant of which he is mediator is superior to the old one, since the new covenant is established on better promises” (Hebrews 8:6). In essence, Jesus is greater than the Old Testament system. He both encompasses and supersedes the old way of doing things. This is evident in the many comparisons of Jesus to Old Testament roles and rituals. For instance, we are told that “but because Jesus lives forever, he has a permanent priesthood. Therefore he is able to save completely those who come to God through him, because he always lives to intercede for them” (Hebrews 7:24–25). Jesus, therefore, encompasses the Old Testament priesthood and is supreme over it (see here for more on this).
Hebrews explains that Christ is supreme over more than just roles and systems. Hebrews 1:3a says, “The Son is the radiance of God’s glory and the exact representation of His being, sustaining all things by His powerful word.” Similarly, Colossians 2:9 says, “For in Christ all the fullness of the Deity lives in bodily form.” Essentially, Jesus is God.
Colossians 1:15–23 is labeled “The Supremacy of Christ” in some Bibles. In this passage, Paul makes it plain that Jesus is over all things. Christ is called “the image of the invisible God” and “the firstborn over all creation” (Colossians 1:15). The word firstborn may seem confusing. It does not imply that Christ was created (as in the doctrine of the Jehovah’s Witnesses). Instead, the term firstborn refers to a position of authority. To be “firstborn” was to hold an honored position. Paul immediately goes on to explain Jesus’ role in creation: “For in him all things were created: things in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or powers or rulers or authorities; all things have been created through him and for him” (Colossians 1:16). This means that Jesus is not created but is Creator. He is God.
Paul goes on to say, “He is before all things, and in him all things hold together. And he is the head of the body, the church; he is the beginning and the firstborn from among the dead, so that in everything he might have the supremacy” (Colossians 1:17–18). Paul highlights multiple areas in which Christ has authority—over creation, over the Church, over death, and finally “in everything.” Christ is both before all things and encompasses all things (“in Him all things hold together”). Therefore, Christ is supreme.
This doctrine is essential to our view of and worship of Christ. The supremacy of Christ affirms that Jesus is fully God. He is not simply a man greater than the rest but is truly above all creation, as only God can be. This truth is essential for our salvation. God is infinite and, therefore, our sin against Him is an infinite offense. In order to atone for this offense, the sacrifice must be infinite. Jesus, as God, is infinite and thus an able sacrifice.
That Jesus is supreme excludes us from saying that He is only one of many ways to God. He is not just a good moral teacher whom we may choose to follow; rather, He is God, and He is over all. Jesus’ supremacy also makes it evident that we cannot atone for our own sins. In fact, “it is impossible for the blood of bulls and goats to take away sins” (Hebrews 10:4). Jesus both fulfilled and replaced that system. Salvation is not based on works (see Ephesians 2:1–10). And, once we are saved, Jesus’ supremacy shows us that we cannot aspire to be like Him of our own strength. Jesus is unlike any other, supreme over all. Christians are called to be like Jesus, but this is through the work of the Holy Spirit (Philippians 2:12–13; Romans 8).
The supremacy of Jesus teaches us that He is not simply a spiritual being above the rest. Paul tells us that through Him all things visible and invisible, in heaven and on earth, i.e., spiritual and physical, were created (see Colossians 1:16). Hebrews 1:4 calls Jesus superior to the angels. This truth negates any tendencies toward angel worship. Jesus created the angels and is above them. We are explicitly told He is greater than they. Therefore, we need only worship Jesus. Similarly, that Jesus created the things of earth means that creation is not worthy of our worship.
Jesus is supreme over both the physical and spiritual realms, thus giving both arenas importance while still remaining sovereign over them.
When we understand the supremacy of Christ, we have a more accurate view of Him.
We more fully understand the depth of His love; we are more able to receive and to respond to His love. Theologians believe that Colossians was written, in part, to combat heresies rising in Colossae. It seemed fitting to Paul to affirm the supremacy of Christ in order to quash these misled beliefs. He affirmed Christ’s supremacy, His lordship, and His sufficiency for us. Hebrews explains the link between the Old Testament covenant and the new covenant of Jesus. It reveals the old system as a shadow of the ultimate fulfillment in Jesus Christ.
The supremacy of Christ is central to an accurate view of His Person, His work, our status as believers,
and the Kingdom.
In Christian theology, false prophets are understood as individuals who deny or distort the teachings and authority of Christ, often leading people astray with deceptive messages and practices.
- Denial of Christ's Authority:
A core characteristic of false prophets is their rejection or undermining of Jesus Christ's role as the Messiah, Lord, and Savior.
In other words, they deny Christ. They deny the One who they claim is their Lord. The one who died for the world and bought his children by his blood. They deny Jesus
Second Timothy 4:3–4 warned us that a time was coming
when people
would not tolerate sound doctrine.
As the days grow darker and sin escalates, a more palatable christ becomes attractive to those who “loved the darkness rather than the light” (John 3:19). Second Thessalonians 2:11–12 explains why so many are attracted to false christs. Verse 10 says, “They perish because they refused to love the truth and so be saved.” When people refuse to love the truth, the real Jesus, or God’s holy Word, God gives them over to their own ideas and their false christs, none of which have any power to save (Romans 1:21–23).
Blasphemy against the Holy Spirit is
the act of rejecting
the Holy Spirit's guidance and work,
and is considered the unforgivable
sin.
It's an issue of the heart that can
manifest in words
Jesus Is Coming
6Then the angel said to me, “These words are faithful and true. The Lord, the God of the
spirits of the prophets, has sent His angel to show His servants what must soona take place.”
7“Behold, I am coming soon. Blessed is the one who keeps the words of prophecy in this book.b”
8And I, John, am the one who heard and saw these things. And when I had heard and seen them, I fell down to worship at the feet of the angel who had shown me these things. 9But he said to me, “Do not do that! I am a fellow servant with you and your brothers the prophets, and with those who keep the words of this book.
Worship God!”
10Then he told me, “Do not seal up the words of prophecy in this book, because the time is near. 11Let the unrighteous continue to be unrighteous, and the vile continue to be vile; let the righteous continue to practice righteousness, and the holy continue to be holy.”
12“Behold, I am coming soon, and My reward is with Me, to give to each one according to what he has done.
13I am the Alpha and the Omega, the First and the Last, the Beginning and the End.”
14Blessed are those who wash their robes,
so that they may have the right to the tree of life and may enter the city by its gates.
15But outside are the dogs, the sorcerers, the sexually immoral, the murderers, the
idolaters, and everyone who loves and practices falsehood.
16“I, Jesus, have sent My angel to give you this testimony for the churches. I am the Root
and the Offspring of David, the bright Morning Star.”
17The Spirit and the bride say, “Come!” Let the one who hears say, “Come!” And let the one
who is thirsty come, and the one who desires the water of life drink freely.
Witnessing to All Nations
(Mark 13:9–13; Luke 21:10–19)
9Then they will deliver you over to be persecuted and killed, and you will be hated by all nations because of My name. 10At that time many will fall away and will betray and hate one another, 11and many false prophets will arise and deceive many.
12Because of the multiplication of wickedness, the love of most will grow cold.13But the one who perseveres to the end will be saved.
14And this gospel of the kingdom will be preached in all the world as a testimony to all nations, and then the end will come.
"And so it was, that when the bearers of the ark of the LORD had gone six paces, he sacrificed an ox and a fatling. And David was dancing before the LORD with all his might, and David was wearing a linen ephod. So David and all the house of Israel were bringing up the ark of the LORD with shouting and the sound of the trumpet.... So they brought in the ark of the LORD and set it in its place inside the tent which David had pitched for it; and David offered burnt offerings and peace offerings before the LORD" (2 Sam 6:13-15, 17).
It is difficult not to think about the last two chapters of the book of Revelation (chapters 21-22) when we read these verses about Israel's "messiah" (David) escorting God's holy "shekinah" into the city of Jerusalem with dancing and shouts of joy. However, in this description of David, we also notice something odd.
According to verse 14, David is wearing the "wrong" clothing for a king, namely a "linen ephod," which is of course the "right" clothing for a levitical priest (see 1 Sam 2:18; 22:18; 1 Chr. 15:27). David the king is dressed like a priest. And by offering burnt and peace offerings in verse 17, David the king acts like a priest.
For a moment, the author of Samuel gifts us a brief glimpse of the Old Covenant boundaries collapsing. David embodies Israel's national mission to be a kingdom of priests (see Exod 19:9). Add to this the prophetic associations of music in the Hebrew Bible (see 1 Sam 10:5), this description of David gives us a prophetic glimpse at the Messiah's profile picture. Israel's Messiah will be a conquering king, as well as a prophet and a priest. As is typical of ALL Israel's prophets, Israel's Messiah must first be rejected. As is typical of all Israel's priests, Israel's Messiah will provide Israel atonement and give us access to God. And as is typical of all Israel's kings, Israel's Messiah will reign from David's throne.
Indeed, this description of David most likely fuels two inspired fires of Zechariah and David's prophecies about the Priest-Messiah in Zechariah 6 and Psalm 110. Moreover, it gives us a far more profound appreciation for the description of Yeshua as the greatest of Israel's prophets, priests, and kings in the book of Hebrews (see Heb 1:1; 7:13-16). The dancing king-prophet-priest escorting the LORD's presence into Jerusalem is a dim shadow of Israel's Messiah.
Though David, the "messiah," was not able to bring God's people into
the Holy of Holies,
Yeshua, our Great High Priest, is!
"But when Christ appeared as a high priest of the good things to come, He entered through the greater and more perfect tabernacle, not made with hands, that is to say, not of this creation; and not through the blood of goats and calves, but through His own blood,
He entered the holy place once for all, having obtained eternal redemption"
(Heb 9:11-12).
It is difficult not to think about the last two chapters of the book of Revelation (chapters 21-22) when we read these verses about Israel's "messiah" (David) escorting God's holy "shekinah" into the city of Jerusalem with dancing and shouts of joy. However, in this description of David, we also notice something odd.
According to verse 14, David is wearing the "wrong" clothing for a king, namely a "linen ephod," which is of course the "right" clothing for a levitical priest (see 1 Sam 2:18; 22:18; 1 Chr. 15:27). David the king is dressed like a priest. And by offering burnt and peace offerings in verse 17, David the king acts like a priest.
For a moment, the author of Samuel gifts us a brief glimpse of the Old Covenant boundaries collapsing. David embodies Israel's national mission to be a kingdom of priests (see Exod 19:9). Add to this the prophetic associations of music in the Hebrew Bible (see 1 Sam 10:5), this description of David gives us a prophetic glimpse at the Messiah's profile picture. Israel's Messiah will be a conquering king, as well as a prophet and a priest. As is typical of ALL Israel's prophets, Israel's Messiah must first be rejected. As is typical of all Israel's priests, Israel's Messiah will provide Israel atonement and give us access to God. And as is typical of all Israel's kings, Israel's Messiah will reign from David's throne.
Indeed, this description of David most likely fuels two inspired fires of Zechariah and David's prophecies about the Priest-Messiah in Zechariah 6 and Psalm 110. Moreover, it gives us a far more profound appreciation for the description of Yeshua as the greatest of Israel's prophets, priests, and kings in the book of Hebrews (see Heb 1:1; 7:13-16). The dancing king-prophet-priest escorting the LORD's presence into Jerusalem is a dim shadow of Israel's Messiah.
Though David, the "messiah," was not able to bring God's people into
the Holy of Holies,
Yeshua, our Great High Priest, is!
"But when Christ appeared as a high priest of the good things to come, He entered through the greater and more perfect tabernacle, not made with hands, that is to say, not of this creation; and not through the blood of goats and calves, but through His own blood,
He entered the holy place once for all, having obtained eternal redemption"
(Heb 9:11-12).
Aleph Tav
A great sign appeared in heaven: a woman clothed with the sun, with the moon under her feet and a crown of twelve stars on her head. 2 She was pregnant and cried out in pain as she was about to give birth. 3 Then another sign appeared in heaven: an enormous red dragon with seven heads and ten horns and seven crowns on its heads. 4 Its tail swept a third of the stars out of the sky and flung them to the earth. The dragon stood in front of the woman who was about to give birth, so that it might devour her child the moment he was born. 5 She gave birth to a son, a male child, who “will rule all the nations with an iron scepter.”[a] And her child was snatched up to God and to his throne. 6 The woman fled into the wilderness to a place prepared for her by God, where she might be taken care of for 1,260 days.
7 Then war broke out in heaven. Michael and his angels fought against the dragon, and the dragon and his angels fought back. 8 But he was not strong enough, and they lost their place in heaven. 9 The great dragon was hurled down—that ancient serpent called the devil, or Satan, who leads the whole world astray. He was hurled to the earth, and his angels with him.
10 Then I heard a loud voice in heaven say:
“Now have come the salvation and the power
and the kingdom of our God,
and the authority of his Messiah.
For the accuser of our brothers and sisters,
who accuses them before our God day and night,
has been hurled down.
11 They triumphed over him
by the blood of the Lamb
and by the word of their testimony;
they did not love their lives so much
as to shrink from death.
12 Therefore rejoice, you heavens
and you who dwell in them!
But woe to the earth and the sea,
because the devil has gone down to you!
He is filled with fury,
because he knows that his time is short.”
13 When the dragon saw that he had been hurled to the earth, he pursued the woman who had given birth to the male child. 14 The woman was given the two wings of a great eagle, so that she might fly to the place prepared for her in the wilderness, where she would be taken care of for a time, times and half a time, out of the serpent’s reach. 15 Then from his mouth the serpent spewed water like a river, to overtake the woman and sweep her away with the torrent. 16 But the earth helped the woman by opening its mouth and swallowing the river that the dragon had spewed out of his mouth. 17 Then the dragon was enraged at the woman and went off to wage war against the rest of her offspring—those who keep God’s commands and hold fast their testimony about Jesus.
Root of Jesse
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All Israel will be saved
Was the ministry of Jesus 3 1 years?
"Now when He was in Jerusalem at the Passover ..."
John 2:23 and
- "Now before the Feast of Passover ..."
- John 13:1
- "after this there was a feast of the Jews ..." John 5:1
- This is The Feast of Weeks (aka Shavuot) not Passover
- . and
- "Now the Passover, a feast of the Jews was near."
"So the LORD delivered Israel that day, and the battle spread beyond Beth-aven" (1 Sam 14:23).
Israel was up against overwhelming odds. Their enemies were more numerous than the "sand on the seashore" (1 Sam 13:5; see Josh 11:4; Judg 7:12), and were well-equipped with horses and chariots (1 Sam 13:5; see Exod 14:9, 17-18, 23, 26, 28). With the exception of King Saul and his son Jonathan, Israel's armies had no weapons to fight on the day of battle (1 Sam 13:22). These impossible odds provided the perfect conditions for proving to Israel that one leader with a sword is more than enough force to defeat the greatest superpower on the planet as long as this leader puts his trust in the LORD: "Then Jonathan said to the young man who was carrying his armor, 'Come and let us cross over to the garrison of these uncircumcised; perhaps the LORD will work for us, for the LORD is not restrained to save by many or by few'" (1 Sam 14:6; see Josh 10:11; Judg 7:2).
Although Jonathan may not have had his own personal copy of stories about Moses' "battle" against the Egyptians at the Reed Sea (Exodus 14), Joshua's battle against the Canaanite kings (Joshua 10-12), and Gideon's battle against Midian (Judg 7-8), he clearly proved himself to be a remarkable student of God's word, because he obviously applied their "military tactics" to his own battle.
It is small wonder, therefore, that the author borrows words from the Exodus Story to describe the LORD's victory through Jonathan over the Philistines. For this exact phrase, "the LORD delivered Israel that day" (1 Sam 14:23), is only elsewhere in the story of the Exodus (Exod 14:30). By citing this verse, moreover, the author casts Jonathan's victory in a Messianic light, since the author likens Jonathan (not Saul) to a new Moses who leads God's people to victory (see Exod 14:30-31).
And if Moses defeated the armies of Egypt with a staff (Exod 14:16), Joshua defeated the armies of Canaan with a javelin (Josh 8:18), Gideon defeated the myriads of Midianites with three hundred men (Judg 7:8), and Jonathan toppled a garrison of Philistines with a sword (1 Sam 13:22), then our Messiah was more than well-equipped to completely humiliate all the armies of hell and cancel our debt of sin with a wooden execution stake, a few nails, and a crown of thorns.
"When you were dead in your transgressions and the uncircumcision of your flesh, He made you alive together with Him, having forgiven us all our transgressions, having canceled out the certificate of debt consisting of decrees against us, which was hostile to us; and He has taken it out of the way, having nailed it to the cross. When He had disarmed the rulers and authorities, He made a public display of them, having triumphed over them through Him" (Col 2:13-15).
MATT 5:17
Jesus visited the temple in Jerusalem as
an infant,
as a CHILD, and before his death.
INFANT Jesus
- Jesus was taken to the temple 40 days after his birth.
- This was to complete Mary's ritual purification and to redeem Jesus as the firstborn son.
- Simeon prophesied that Jesus would be a sign of redemption for Israel.
- Anna, an elderly prophetess, praised God for Jesus.
CHILD Jesus
- Jesus visited the temple with his parents when he was 12 years old.
- He was lost and separated from his parents and found in the temple teaching
- The teachers were amazed at his understanding.
Before his DEATH
- Jesus visited the temple before he died.
- He cleansed the temple, which led to opposition to him and eventually to his execution.
The Gospels of Matthew, Mark, and Luke only show Jesus in Jerusalem during the final days of his ministry. John's gospel includes details about Jesus teaching in the temple courts.
- Passover
Jesus celebrated Passover in Jerusalem, where he also taught Torah and sat opposite - one of the Temple's treasuries.
- Hanukkah
Jesus celebrated Hanukkah in Jerusalem, where he taught in Solomon's Porch in the Temple compound. - Tabernacles
Jesus celebrated the Feast of Tabernacles in Jerusalem, where he - also taught in the Temple.
Purim
Jesus celebrated Purim in Jerusalem in the 12th month- of the Jewish Calendar.
Jesus was very observant of
Jewish holidays and feasts.
He also celebrated the Feast of Dedication
Jesus spent 40 days fasting in the wilderness
and
40 days with his apostles after his resurrection.
Fasting in the wilderness
- Jesus spent 40 days fasting and praying in the wilderness to prepare for his ministry.
- The desert may have been a metaphor for the world, which is empty of spiritual nourishment.
- Jesus' fast prepared him to die on the cross for the sins of the world.
With the apostles after resurrection
- He commanded them to stay in Jerusalem.
- He presented himself alive, spoke of the kingdom of God, and received the Holy Spirit.
- He healed many and continued to preach.
- He ascended to heaven, which confirmed his divinity.
- Jesus appeared to his apostles for 40 days after his resurrection.
The number 40 is significant in the Bible,
and Christians sometimes imitate
Jesus' 40-day fast to prepare for
Good Friday
the Israelites wandered in the wilderness for
40 years after leaving Egypt.
This time was a period of
testing, transformation, and spiritual growth.
Why the Israelites wandered
- The Israelites disobeyed the Lord's voice
- The Israelites chose to return to slavery in Egypt instead of facing the challenges of the Promised Land
- The Israelites lacked faith in God's power to deliver them
What happened during the wilderness years
- The Israelites were punished by God with poisonous snakes that made them sick
- God provided the Israelites with food, water, and clothing
- The rebellious generation died, and a new generation took over under Joshua
- The Israelites ate quail and manna
What can we learn from this story?
- We should trust in God's power and plan for our lives
- We should practice prayer and mindfulness to keep our faith in God
- We should not see the wilderness as our destination, but as a development ground
Jesus traveled from
Town to Town,
Preaching his Message
in synagogues
and
throughout the villages,
sharing the
"GOOD NEWS"
of
The KINGDOM of God
PERFORMING HEALINGS wherever
he went;
this is particularly
documented in the
GOSPEL of Matthew,
chapter 9:35 where it states
"And Jesus went about
all the
Cities and Villages ,
TEACHING in their Synagogues,
and PREACHING
The
GOSPEL of the KINGDOM,
and
Healing Every
Sickness and every Disease
AMONG the PEOPLE
John 1:14
And the WORD became
flesh
and dwelt AMONG us,
and we have
SEEN his GLORY,
GLORY as of the
only
Son from the Father,
full of
GRACE and TRUTH
Last night my 10 year old daughter decided
she needed a pet rock,
so she went to the pond and came back
with two river stones.
Thankfully
it wasn’t a Frog again this time,
pet stones I can handle
She hid them away in her New White Purse:)
The story of the Widow's Mite
coin
A widow gave two small coins -
all that
she had - to the temple treasury.
Jesus witnessed her
offering and deemed it very good,
even though others more
fortunate than her were giving more
on the surface.
Mark 12:41-44, Luke 21:1-6.
Luke 12:6-7
Are not five sparrows sold for
two pennies?
Yet not one of them is forgotten
by God.
And even the
very hairs of your head are all numbered.
So do not be afraid;
you are
worth more than many sparrows.
Cleansing from Skin Diseases
(Matthew 8:1–4; Mark 1:40–45; Luke 5:12–16)
Then the LORD said to Moses,
This is the law for the one
afflicted
with a skin disease
on the day
of his cleansing, when he is brought
to the priest.
The priest is to go outside the camp to examine him,
and if the skin disease
of the
afflicted person has healed,
The priest shall order that
two live clean birds,
cedar wood, scarlet yarn, and hyssop
be brought
for the one to be cleansed.
Then the priest shall command
that one of the birds be slaughtered
over fresh water in a clay pot.
And he is to take the live bird together
with the
cedar wood, scarlet yarn, and hyssop,
and dip them into the blood of the bird
that was slaughtered over the
fresh water.
Seven times he shall sprinkle
the one to
be cleansed of the skin disease.
Then he shall pronounce him
clean and
release the
live bird into the open
field
The one being cleansed
must wash his clothes, shave off all his hair,
and bathe with water;
then he will be ceremonially clean.
Afterward, he may enter the camp,
but he must
remain outside
his tent for seven days.
On the seventh day he must shave off all his hair--
his head, his beard,
his eyebrows, and the rest of his hair.
He must wash his clothes and bathe himself
with water,
and he will be clean.
On the eighth day he is to bring two unblemished male lambs,
an unblemished ewe lamb a year old,
a grain offering of three-tenths of an
of fine flour mixed
with olive oil, and one log
of olive oil.
The priest who performs the cleansing
shall present the one to be cleansed, together with these offerings,
before the LORD at the entrance
to the Tent of Meeting.
Then the priest is to take one of the male lambs and present it
as a guilt offering, along with the log of olive oil;
and he must wave them as a wave offering before the LORD.
Then he is to slaughter the lamb in the sanctuary area where the sin offering
and burnt offering are slaughtered.
Like the sin offering, the guilt offering belongs to the priest; it is most holy.
The priest is to take some
of the
blood from the guilt offering
and put it on
the right
earlobe of the one to be cleansed,
on the thumb of his
right hand,
and on the big toe
of his right foot.
Then the priest shall take some of the
log of olive oil,
pour it into his left palm,
Dip his right forefinger into the oil in his left palm, and sprinkle some of
the oil with his finger seven times before the LORD.
And the priest is to put some of the oil
remaining in his palm on the right earlobe of the one to be cleansed,
on the thumb of his right hand,
and on the big toe of his right foot, on top of the blood of the guilt offering.
The rest of the oil in his palm, the priest is to put on the head of the one to be cleansed,
to make atonement for him before the LORD.
Then the priest is to sacrifice the sin offering and make atonement for the one to
be cleansed from his uncleanness.
After that, the priest shall slaughter the burnt offering
and offer it on the altar, with the grain offering, to make atonement for him,
and he will be clean.
If, however, the person is poor and cannot afford these offerings,
he is to take
one male lamb as a guilt offering to be waved
to make atonement for him, along with a tenth of an ephah of fine flour
mixed with olive oil for a grain offering, a log of olive oil,
and two turtledoves or two young pigeons, whichever he can afford,
one to be a sin offering and the other a burnt offering.
On the eighth day he is to bring them
for his cleansing to
the priest at
the entrance to the Tent of Meeting
before the LORD.
The priest shall take the lamb for
the guilt offering, along with the log of olive oil,
and wave them
as a wave offering before the LORD.
And after he slaughters the lamb for the guilt offering,
the priest is to take some of the
blood of the guilt offering and put it on the right earlobe
of the one to be cleansed, on the thumb of his right hand,
and on the big toe of his right foot.
Then the priest is to pour some of the oil into his left palm
and sprinkle with his right forefinger some of the oil in
his left palm seven times before the LORD.
The priest shall also put some of the oil in his palm on the right
earlobe of the one to be cleansed,
on the thumb of his right hand,
and on the big toe of his right foot—on the same places as the
blood of the guilt offering.
The rest of the oil in his palm, the priest is to put on the head of the
one to be cleansed,
to make atonement for him before the LORD.
Then he must sacrifice the turtledoves or young pigeons,
whichever he can afford,
one as a sin offering and the other as a burnt offering,
together with the grain offering.
In this way the priest will make atonement before
the LORD for the one to be cleansed.
This is the law for someone who has a skin disease and
cannot afford the cost of his cleansing.”
Signs of Home Contamination
Then the LORD said to Moses and Aaron,
When you enter the land of Canaan,
which I am
giving you as your possession,
and I put a contamination of mildew
into
a house in that land,
the owner of the house shall come
and tell the priest, ‘
Something like mildew has appeared
in my house.’
The priest must order that the house
be cleared before
he enters it to examine the mildew,
so that nothing
in the house will become unclean.
After this, the priest
shall go in to inspect the house.
He is to examine the house
and if the mildew on the
walls consists of green or red depressions
that appear
to be beneath the surface of the wall,
The priest shall go outside the doorway
of the house
and close it up for seven days.
on the seventh day
the priest is to return and inspect the house.
If the mildew has spread on the walls,
He must order that
the contaminated stones be pulled out and thrown
into an unclean place outside the city.
And he shall have
the inside of the house scraped completely and the plaster
that is scraped off
dumped into an unclean place outside the city.
So different stones
must be obtained to replace the contaminated ones,
as well
as additional mortar to replaster the house.
If the mildew reappears in the house after the stones have been
torn out and the house has been scraped and replastered,
The priest must come and inspect it.
If the mildew has spread in the house, it is a destructive mildew;
the house is unclean.
It must be torn down with its stones, its timbers, and all its plaster, and
taken outside the city to an unclean place.
Anyone who enters the house during any of the days that it is closed up
will be unclean until evening.
And anyone who sleeps in the house or eats in it must wash his clothes.
Cleansing a Home
If, however, the priest comes and inspects it, and
the mildew has not
spread after the house has been replastered,
he shall pronounce the house clean, because
the mildew is gone.
He is to take two birds,
cedar wood, scarlet yarn, and
hyssop to purify the house;
and he shall slaughter one of
the birds over
fresh water in a clay pot.
Then he shall take the cedar wood,
the hyssop, the scarlet yarn,
and the live bird, dip them in the blood
of the
slaughtered bird and the fresh water,
and sprinkle the house seven times.
And he shall cleanse the house with the bird’s blood,
the fresh water, the live bird,
the cedar wood, the hyssop, and the scarlet yarn.
Finally, he is to release the live bird into the
open fields
outside the city.
In this way he will make atonement for the house,
and it will be clean.
This is the law for any infectious skin disease,
for a scaly outbreak,
For mildew in clothing or in a house,
And for a swelling, rash, or spot,
to determine when something is clean or unclean.
This is the law
regarding skin diseases and mildew.
Let no man deceive you by any means, for that Day shall not come,
unless there come a falling away first,
and that man of sin be revealed, the son of perdition
The Parable of the Unjust Steward
can be found in Luke 16:1–13.
The text can be broken down into two parts: the parable (verses 1–8) and the application (verses 9–13). Luke 16:1 identifies that Jesus is speaking to His disciples, but there is a suggestion that His audience is mixed—disciples and Pharisees. Luke 16:14 states that the Pharisees “heard all this and were sneering at Jesus.” We also see in verse 1 (in the ESV) that Jesus “also” said to the disciples; the “also” would suggest that this parable is connected to the previous three in Luke 15 and that the audience was a mixed crowd of disciples and Pharisees.
It is important to know to whom Jesus is addressing this parable. The parable is for the benefit of the disciples, but there is also a not-so-subtle critique of the Pharisees, as was evident in Luke 15. As Luke introduces the parable of the unjust steward, he gives a commentary on the motivation of the Pharisees in Luke 16:14, and in verse 15 our Lord condemns their motives. And what was the Pharisees’ motivation? They were those who “loved money” (Luke 16:14), justified themselves before others, and exalted that which was “an abomination in the sight of God” (Luke 16:15, ESV).
With that as a backdrop, let’s look at the parable. It’s a fairly simple, if somewhat unorthodox, parable from Jesus. The story is simple, but the setting is unusual. In most of Jesus’ parables, the protagonist is either representative of God, Christ, or some other positive character. In this parable the characters are all wicked—the steward and the man whose possessions he manages are both unsavory characters. This should alert us to the fact that Jesus is not exhorting us to emulate the behavior of the characters but is trying to expound on a larger principle.
The parable begins with a rich man calling his steward before him to inform him that he will be relieving him of his duties for mismanaging his master’s resources. A steward is a person who manages the resources of another. The steward had authority over all of the master’s resources and could transact business in his name. This requires the utmost level of trust in the steward. Now, it may not be apparent at this point in the parable (but is made more evident later on), but the master is probably not aware of the steward’s dishonesty. The steward is being released for apparent mismanagement, not fraud. This explains why he is able to conduct a few more transactions before he is released and why he is not immediately tossed out on the street or executed.
The steward, realizing that he will soon be without a job, makes some shrewd deals behind his master’s back by reducing the debt owed by several of the master’s debtors in exchange for shelter when he is eventually put out. When the master becomes aware of what the wicked servant had done, he commends him for his shrewdness.
In His application of the story in the remaining verses, Jesus begins by saying, “For the sons of this world are more shrewd in dealing with their own generation than the sons of light” (Luke 16:8, ESV). Jesus is drawing a contrast between the “sons of this world” (i.e., unbelievers) and the “sons of light” (believers). Unbelievers are wiser in the things of this world than believers are about the things of the world to come. The unjust steward, once he knew he was about to be put out, maneuvered to collect some quick cash, cheat his master (who more than likely was cheating his customers), and make friends of his master’s debtors—who would then be obligated to care for him once he lost his job.
What does this have to do with believers being wise about the life to come? Let’s look at Luke 16:9: “And I tell you, make friends for yourselves by means of unrighteous wealth, so that when it fails they may receive you into the eternal dwellings” (ESV). Jesus is encouraging His followers to be generous with their wealth in this life so that in the life to come their new friends will receive them into “eternal dwellings.” This is similar to Jesus’ teaching on wealth in the Sermon on the Mount where Jesus exhorts His followers to lay up treasures in heaven (Matthew 6:19–21).
The term unrighteous (or worldly) wealth seems to strike readers the wrong way. But Jesus is not saying that believers should gain wealth unrighteously and then be generous with it. “Unrighteous” in reference to wealth can refer to 1) the means in acquiring wealth; 2) the way in which one desires to use the wealth; or 3) the corrupting influence wealth can have that often leads people to commit unrighteous acts. Given the way in which Jesus employs the term, the third explanation seems the most likely. Wealth is not inherently evil, but the love of money can lead to all sorts of sin (1 Timothy 6:10).
So, the principle that Jesus is trying to convey is one of a just steward rather than an unjust one. The unjust steward saw his master’s resources as a means for his own personal enjoyment and advancement. Conversely, Jesus wants His followers to be just, righteous stewards. If we understand the principle that everything we own is a gift from God, then we realize that God is the owner of everything and that we are His stewards. As such, we are to use the Master’s resources to further the Master’s goals. In this specific case, we are to be generous with our wealth and use it for the benefit of others.
Jesus then goes on to expand in Luke 16:10–13 the principle given in verse 9. If one is faithful in “little” (i.e., “unrighteous” wealth), then one will be faithful in much. Similarly, if one is dishonest in little, he will also be dishonest in much. If we can’t be faithful with earthly wealth, which isn’t even ours to begin with, then how can we be entrusted with “true riches”? The “true riches” here is referring to stewardship and responsibility in God’s kingdom along with all the accompanying heavenly rewards.
The climax of Jesus’ application is verse Luke 16:13: “No servant can serve two masters, for either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and money” (ESV; see also Matthew 6:24). If God is our Master, then our wealth will be at His disposal. In other words, the faithful and just steward whose Master is God will employ that wealth in building up the kingdom of God.
In Hebrew culture, thirty pieces of silver was not a lot of money. In fact, it was the exact price paid to the master of a slave if and when his slave was gored by an ox (Exodus 21:32). The slave’s death was compensated by the thirty pieces of silver. There are two other places in the Bible that specifically mention the amount of thirty pieces of silver, and they are directly linked. The first passage is in Zechariah, which contains a prophecy that is later fulfilled in the book of Matthew.
Leading up to the prophecy of the thirty pieces of silver is a description of a strange episode in Zechariah’s life. God had the prophet Zechariah play the part of a shepherd and care for a flock “doomed to slaughter” (Zechariah 11:4–14). God used this to illustrate a prophetic judgment against Israel for crucifying Christ, predicting the fall of Israel in AD 70 and the subsequent scattering of the nation. There are several elements in this passage that point to it as a prophecy about Jesus. First, Zechariah says he “got rid of the three shepherds” of the doomed flock (verse 8). The “three shepherds” are probably a reference to the three religious offices during Jesus’ day that worked to condemn Jesus: the elders, the scribes, and the chief priests (Matthew 16:21). Second, Zechariah breaks his two shepherding staffs. One is named Favor and is broken to symbolize the breaking of the Mosaic Covenant by the disobedient people and God’s setting aside His favor or providential care to allow judgment to come upon them (Zechariah 11:10). The second staff, named Union, is broken to represent the breaking up of the nation by the Romans.
Another prophetic reference is found in the thirty pieces of silver given to Zechariah after his work as a shepherd. He went to those he worked for and asked them to pay him what they thought he was worth. They gave him thirty pieces of silver, which he sarcastically calls a “handsome price” because it was such a small amount (Zechariah 11:13)—the price paid for a slave’s accidental death. The employers meant to insult Zechariah with this amount of money. Returning the insult, God tells Zechariah to “throw it to the potter,” and Zechariah tossed the money into the house of the Lord to be given to the potter.
These actions are a shockingly accurate and detailed prophecy, for when Judas Iscariot bargained with the leaders of Israel to betray the Lord Jesus, he asked, “What are you willing to give me if I deliver him over to you?” The murderous cabal then counted out for Judas “thirty pieces of silver” (Matthew 26:15). That’s all they considered Jesus to be worth.
Later, Judas was overcome with guilt for betraying Jesus, and, fulfilling Zechariah’s vivid prophecy, he threw the thirty silver coins into the temple (Matthew 27:3–5). The Jewish leaders used the thirty pieces of silver to buy a field from a potter, again as Zechariah had predicted (Matthew 27:6–10). It was in that field that Judas hanged himself.
The title “son of perdition” is used twice in the New Testament, first in John 17:12 and again in 2 Thessalonians 2:3. The phrase simply means “man doomed to destruction” and is not reserved for any one individual. In fact, there are two people to which the title “son of perdition” is applied. In context, John 17:12 is referring to Judas Iscariot, while 2 Thessalonians 2:3 is referring to the “man of lawlessness”—the Antichrist—who will appear in the end times before Christ’s return.
The word perdition means “eternal damnation” or “utter destruction.” It can also be used as a synonym for hell. When a person is called “son of perdition,” the connotation is that of a person in an unredeemable state, someone who is already damned while he is still alive. Jesus mentions the “son of perdition” in His high priestly prayer in John 17. While praying to the Father for His disciples, Jesus mentions that He “protected them and kept them safe” and that none of them were lost except the “son of perdition,” that is, the one who was already in a damned state. The fact that the phrase is used again to describe the Antichrist shows us that forgiveness was not planned for Judas. God could have saved Judas—moved his heart to repentance—but He chose not to. He was indeed “doomed to destruction.”
A good picture of a person who is a “son of perdition” appears in Hebrews 6:4–8, which describes a person who, like Judas, has experienced a certain closeness to God and has a good understanding of salvation, but then denies it. Instead of bearing good fruit, he bears “thorns and thistles.” This is a person who sees the path to salvation, which is trusting in God’s grace to cover sin (Ephesians 2:8–9), and instead either flatly denies the existence of God or denies God’s gift of salvation, preferring to pay his own debt. Judas chose the second path, punishing himself by suicide instead of accepting grace.
A Purse is a bag for Money
The Hebrews, when on a journey, were provided with a bag, in which they carried their money, ( Genesis 42:35 ; Proverbs 1:14 ; 7:20 ; Isaiah 46:6 ) and, if they were merchants, also their weights. ( 25:13 ; Micah 6:11 ) This bag is described in the New Testament by the terms balantion (bag) ( Luke 10:4 ; 12:33 ; Luke 22:35 Luke 22:38 ) and glossokomon (originally the bag in which musicians carried the mouth-pieces of their Instruments). ( John 12:6 ; 13:29 ) The girdle also served as a purse. ( Matthew 10:9; Mark 6:8 ) Ladies wore ornamental purses. ( Isaiah 3:24 )
The Gospels of Mark and Luke both relay an incident involving a widow’s gift to God. She didn’t give much—just two mites—or did she?
The story is often called the story of the widow’s mite or the story of the widow’s offering. One day, Jesus was sitting with His disciples near the temple treasury watching people depositing money into the offering receptacles. The court of women held thirteen such receptacles, and people could cast their money in as they walked by. Jesus watched as the rich were contributing large sums of money, but then along came a widow with two small coins in her hand. The ESV calls them “two small copper coins, which make a penny” (Mark 12:41). The KJV calls the coins “mites.” These were the smallest denomination of coins. The widow put her coins into the box, and Jesus called His disciples to Him and pointed out her action: “Truly I tell you, this poor widow has put more into the treasury than all the others. They all gave out of their wealth; but she, out of her poverty, put in everything—all she had to live on” (Mark 12:43–44; cf. Luke 21:1–4).
There are several things that the story of the widow’s mite teaches us. First, God sees what man overlooks. The big gifts in the temple were surely noticed by people; that’s probably what the disciples were watching. But Jesus saw what no one else did: He saw the humble gift of a poor widow. This was the gift that Jesus thought worthy of comment; this was the gift that the disciples needed to be aware of. The other gifts in the treasury that day made a lot of noise as they jingled into the receptacles, but the widow’s mites were heard in heaven.
Second, God’s evaluation is different from man’s. The widow’s two mites added up to a penny, according to man’s tabulation. But Jesus said that she had given more than anyone else that day (Mark 12:43). How could this be, when “many rich people threw in large amounts” (Mark 12:41)? The difference is one of proportion. The rich were giving large sums, but they still retained their fortunes; the widow “put in everything—all she had to live on” (Mark 12:44). Hers was a true sacrifice; the rich had not begun to give to the level of her sacrifice.
Third, God commends giving in faith. Here was a woman in need of receiving charity, yet she had a heart to give. Even though the amount was negligible—what could a widow’s mite buy?—she gave it in faith that God could use it. The widow’s faith is also evident in the fact that she gave the last of her money. Like the widow of Zarephath, who gave her last meal to Elijah (see 1 Kings 17:7–16), the widow in the temple gave away her last means of self-support. Does that mean the widow left the temple completely destitute, went home, and died of starvation? No. The Bible teaches that God provides for our needs (Matthew 6:25–34). We don’t know the details of this particular widow’s future, but we can be certain that she was provided for. Just as God provided for the widow and her son in Elijah’s day (1 Kings 17:15–16), God also provided for the widow in Jesus’ day.
It is interesting that, just before Jesus commented on the widow’s mite, He commented on the scribes “who devour widows’ houses” (Mark 12:40). The religious officials of the day, instead of helping the widows in need, were perfectly content to rob them of their livelihood and inheritance. The system was corrupt, and the darkness of the scribes’ greed makes the widow’s sacrifice shine even more brightly. “God loves a cheerful giver” (2 Corinthians 9:7), and He is faithful to take care of His own.
The Parables of the Lost Sheep and the Lost Coin (Luke 15:3–10) are the first two in a series of three. The third is the “lost son” or the “prodigal son.” Just as in other cases, Jesus taught these parables in a set of three to emphasize His point
In the “lost coin” parable, the ten silver coins refers to a piece of jewelry with ten silver coins on it worn by brides. This was the equivalent of a wedding ring in modern times.
Luke 15:1–2. “Now the tax collectors and ‘sinners’ were all gathering around to hear him. But the Pharisees and the teachers of the law muttered, ‘This man welcomes sinners and eats with them’” (NIV). Notice that the Pharisees did not complain that Jesus is teaching sinners. Since the Pharisees thought themselves to be righteous teachers of the law and all others to be wicked, they could not condemn His preaching to “sinners,” but they thought it was inconsistent with the dignity of someone so knowledgeable in the Scriptures to “eat with them.” The presupposition behind the statement of the Pharisees, “this man welcomes sinners,” is what Jesus addresses in all three parables.
Upon careful examination of the parables, we can see that Jesus was turning His listeners’ understanding of things upside down. The Pharisees saw themselves as being the beloved of God and the “sinners” as refuse. Jesus uses the Pharisees’ prejudices against them, while encouraging the sinners with one clear message. That message is this: God has a tender, personal concern (“and when he finds it, he puts it on his shoulders,” v. 5). God has a joyous love for individuals who are lost (in sin) and are found (repent). Jesus makes it clear that the Pharisees, who thought they were close to God, were actually distant and those sinners and tax collectors were the ones God was seeking after. We see this same message in 18:9-14. There, Jesus is teaching on attitudes of prayer, but the problem he is addressing is the same as in chapter 15. In 18:14 Jesus provides the conclusion for us: “I tell you that this man, rather than the other, went home justified before God. Everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, and he who humbles himself will be exalted.”
The main character possesses something valuable
and does not want to lose it.
The main character rejoices in the finding of the lost thing,
but does not rejoice alone.
The main character (God)
expresses care in either the looking or the handling
of that which was lost.
Each thing that was lost has a personal value,
not just a monetary value:
shepherds care for their sheep,
women cherish their bridal jewelry,
and a
father loves his son.
Incidentally, this first illustration of the shepherd carrying the sheep on his shoulders was the original figure used to identify Christians before people began identifying Christianity with crosses. In these parables Jesus paints with words a beautiful picture of God’s grace in His desire to see the lost return to Him. Men seek honor and avoid shame; God seeks to glorify Himself through us His sheep, His sons and daughters. Despite having ninety-nine other sheep, despite the sinful rebellion of His lost sheep, God joyfully receives it back, just as He does when we repent and return to Him.
To the one who is
victorious,
I will give some of the
hidden manna.
I will also give that person
a white stone
with a new name
written on it,
known only
to the one who
receives it”
(Revelation 2:17)
12 tribes, 12 apostles,
messianic seal,
144
the number 144,000, mentioned in the Book of Revelation, represents a group of people sealed by God, with "12" symbolizing the 12 tribes of Israel and the 12 apostles of Jesus, essentially signifying a complete and chosen group of followers, where "144" is derived from multiplying 12 by 12 (12 x 12 = 144).
It's 12 x 12 x 1000—12 being the number of completion for God's people (representing the 12 tribes of Israel and the 12 apostles of the Lamb) and 1000 being a generic number suggesting a great multitude. So 144,000 is a way of saying all of God's people under the old and new covenant
They will fall by the edge of
the sword
and
be led captive among
all nations,
and Jerusalem
will be trampled underfoot
by the Gentiles,
until the
times of the Gentiles are fulfilled.
The Poor Widow’s Offering
(Mark 12:41–44)
1Then Jesus looked up and saw the rich putting their gifts into the treasury, 2and He saw a poor widow put in two small copper coins.
3“Truly I tell you,” He said, “this poor widow has put in more than all the others.4For they all contributed out of their surplus, but she out of her poverty has put in all she had to live on.”
Temple Destruction and Other Signs
(Matthew 24:1–8; Mark 13:1–8)
5As some of the disciples were remarking how the temple was adorned with beautiful stones and consecrated gifts, Jesus said, 6“As for what you see here, the time will come when not one stone will be left on another; every one will be thrown down.”
7“Teacher,” they asked, “when will these things happen? And what will be the sign that they are about to take place?”
8Jesus answered, “See to it that you are not deceived. For many will come in My name, claiming, ‘I am He,’ and, ‘The time is near.’ Do not follow them. 9When you hear of wars and rebellions, do not be alarmed. These things must happen first, but the end is not imminent.”
Witnessing to All Nations
(Matthew 24:9–14; Mark 13:9–13)
10Then He told them, “Nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. 11There will be great earthquakes, famines, and pestilences in various places, along with fearful sights and great signs from heaven.
12But before all this, they will seize you and persecute you. On account of My name they will deliver you to the synagogues and prisons, and they will bring you before kings and governors. 13This will be your opportunity to serve as witnesses.14So make up your mind not to worry beforehand how to defend yourselves.15For I will give you speech and wisdom that none of your adversaries will be able to resist or contradict.
16You will be betrayed even by parents and brothers and relatives and friends, and some of you will be put to death. 17And you will be hated by everyone because of My name. 18Yet not even a hair of your head will perish. 19By your patient endurance you will gain your souls.
The Destruction of Jerusalem
(Matthew 24:15–25; Mark 13:14–23)
20But when you see Jerusalem surrounded by armies, you will know that her desolation is near. 21Then let those who are in Judea flee to the mountains, let those in the city get out, and let those in the country stay out of the city. 22For these are the days of vengeance, to fulfill all that is written.
23How miserable those days will be for pregnant and nursing mothers! For there will be great distress upon the land and wrath against this people. 24They will fall by the edge of the sword and be led captive into all the nations. And Jerusalem will be trodden down by the Gentiles, until the times of the Gentiles are fulfilled.
The Return of the Son of Man
(Matthew 24:26–31; Mark 13:24–27)
25There will be signs in the sun and moon and stars, and on the earth dismay among the nations, bewildered by the roaring of the sea and the surging of the waves. 26Men will faint from fear and anxiety over what is coming upon the earth, for the powers of the heavens will be shaken. 27At that time they will see the Son of Man coming in a cloud with power and great glory.b 28When these things begin to happen, stand up and lift up your heads, because your redemption is drawing near.”
The Lesson of the Fig Tree
(Matthew 24:32–35; Mark 13:28–31)
29Then Jesus told them a parable: “Look at the fig tree and all the trees. 30When they sprout leaves, you can see for yourselves and know that summer is near.31So also, when you see these things happening, know that the kingdom of God is near. 32Truly I tell you, this generation will not pass away until all these things have happened. 33Heaven and earth will pass away, but My words will never pass away.
Be Watchful for the Day
34But watch yourselves, or your hearts will be weighed down by dissipation, drunkenness, and the worries of life—and that day will spring upon you suddenly like a snare. 35For it will come upon all who dwell on the face of all the earth.36So keep watch at all times, and pray that you may have the strength to escape all that is about to happen and to stand before the Son of Man.”
37Every day Jesus taught at the temple, but every evening He went out to spend the night on the Mount of Olives. 38And early in the morning all the people would come to hear Him at the temple.
Matthew 24:15-22
So when you see standing in the holy place ‘the abomination of desolation,’ spoken of by the prophet Daniel (let the reader understand), / then let those who are in Judea flee to the mountains. / Let no one on the housetop come down to retrieve anything from his house. ...
Mark 13:14-20
So when you see the abomination of desolation standing where it should not be (let the reader understand), then let those who are in Judea flee to the mountains. / Let no one on the housetop go back inside to retrieve anything from his house. / And let no one in the field return for his cloak. ...
Romans 11:25
I do not want you to be ignorant of this mystery, brothers, so that you will not be conceited: A hardening in part has come to Israel, until the full number of the Gentiles has come in.
Revelation 11:2
But exclude the courtyard outside the temple. Do not measure it, because it has been given over to the nations, and they will trample the holy city for 42 months.
Daniel 9:26-27
Then after the sixty-two weeks the Messiah will be cut off and will have nothing. Then the people of the prince who is to come will destroy the city and the sanctuary. The end will come like a flood, and until the end there will be war; desolations have been decreed. / And he will confirm a covenant with many for one week, but in the middle of the week he will put an end to sacrifice and offering. And on the wing of the temple will come the abomination that causes desolation, until the decreed destruction is poured out upon him.”
Zechariah 12:3
On that day, when all the nations of the earth gather against her, I will make Jerusalem a heavy stone for all the peoples; all who would heave it away will be severely injured.
Zechariah 14:2
For I will gather all the nations for battle against Jerusalem, and the city will be captured, the houses looted, and the women ravished. Half of the city will go into exile, but the rest of the people will not be removed from the city.
Isaiah 63:18
For a short while Your people possessed Your holy place, but our enemies have trampled Your sanctuary.
Jeremiah 21:7
‘After that,’ declares the LORD, ‘I will hand over Zedekiah king of Judah, his officers, and the people in this city who survive the plague and sword and famine, to Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon and to their enemies who seek their lives. He will put them to the sword; he will not spare them or show pity or compassion.’
Hosea 3:4
For the Israelites must live many days without king or prince, without sacrifice or sacred pillar, and without ephod or idol.
Deuteronomy 28:64
Then the LORD will scatter you among all the nations, from one end of the earth to the other, and there you will worship other gods, gods of wood and stone, which neither you nor your fathers have known.
Leviticus 26:33
But I will scatter you among the nations and will draw out a sword after you as your land becomes desolate and your cities are laid waste.
Ezekiel 5:12
A third of your people will die by plague or be consumed by famine within you, a third will fall by the sword outside your walls, and a third I will scatter to every wind and unleash a sword behind them.
Ezekiel 22:15
I will disperse you among the nations and scatter you throughout the lands; I will purge your uncleanness.
Joel 3:2
I will gather all the nations and bring them down to the Valley of Jehoshaphat. There I will enter into judgment against them concerning My people, My inheritance, Israel, whom they have scattered among the nations as they divided up My land
Deuteronomy 28:64-68
And the LORD shall scatter thee among all people, from the one end of the earth even unto the other; and there thou shalt serve other gods, which neither thou nor thy fathers have known, even wood and stone…
Jerusalem.
Isaiah 5:5
And now go to; I will tell you what I will do to my vineyard: I will take away the hedge thereof, and it shall be eaten up; and break down the wall thereof, and it shall be trodden down:
Isaiah 63:18
The people of thy holiness have possessed it but a little while: our adversaries have trodden down thy sanctuary.
Lamentations 1:15
The Lord hath trodden under foot all my mighty men in the midst of me: he hath called an assembly against me to crush my young men: the Lord hath trodden the virgin, the daughter of Judah, as in a winepress.
until.
Isaiah 66:12,19
For thus saith the LORD, Behold, I will extend peace to her like a river, and the glory of the Gentiles like a flowing stream: then shall ye suck, ye shall be borne upon her sides, and be dandled upon her knees…
Daniel 9:27
And he shall confirm the covenant with many for one week: and in the midst of the week he shall cause the sacrifice and the oblation to cease, and for the overspreading of abominations he shall make it desolate, even until the consummation, and that determined shall be poured upon the desolate.
Daniel 12:7
And I heard the man clothed in linen, which was upon the waters of the river, when he held up his right hand and his left hand unto heaven, and sware by him that liveth for ever that it shall be for a time, times, and an half; and when he shall have accomplished to scatter the power of the holy people, all these things shall be finished.
What does Luke 21:24 mean?
This finishes Jesus' description of the fall of Jerusalem, which would happen a few decades later, in AD 70. Armies will surround Jerusalem. The only escape is to flee—and that isn't guaranteed. God will throw vengeance on His people for refusing their Messiah (Luke 19:41–44). Nursing and pregnant women will be particularly vulnerable (Luke 21:20–23). Some will die of famine and some by violent men. Many others will be taken captive.
Flavius Josephus was a Pharisee and rebel commander who fought the Romans in Galilee in AD 66. The Jews drove out the Romans until General Vespasian arrived with his greater army. Josephus was captured, but unlike many Jews, he was not killed. Vespasian made him a recorder; he traveled with Titus, Vespasian's son, on his march to conquer Jerusalem. Having seen the power of Rome's army, Josephus tried to convince the Jews to surrender. His efforts were futile.
While he was captured, many other rebel leaders in Galilee fled to Jerusalem. They soon realized the Jewish religious leaders, who were primarily Sadducees, did not hate the Romans. Angry with their lack of national pride, the Zealots killed many. A civil war ensued. Titus wisely besieged the city but did not immediately attack, letting the Jews thin their own population first. At one point, a faction even burned a storehouse of food that would have supplied the city for years.
Josephus recorded the events in The Wars of the Jews. He wrote that over a million were killed by both Romans and other Jews. Nearly a hundred thousand were taken captive, many sold into slavery. People who tried to flee Jerusalem were often slaughtered. According to a story reported by Josephus, at least one woman, starving because Jewish insurrectionists kept stealing her food, roasted and ate her baby son.
In AD 70, Titus led his army to breach the walls and take the city. The Jews were scattered across the world. They would not have a homeland again until 1948, after the Holocaust drove other nations to act on their behalf. Jerusalem is still not fully controlled by the Israelites; Muslims hold the temple Mount.
But Jesus promises this is not the end. One day, the times of the Gentiles will be over. Jesus will return and judge the nations for their wickedness. "The Son of Man [will come] in a cloud with power and great glory" (Luke 21:27). The Jews will look to their Messiah and be redeemed (Luke 21:25–28).
Luke 21:20–24 answers the disciples' question regarding what signs will precede the destruction of the temple (Luke 21:6–7). Jesus reveals that all Jerusalem will be destroyed. This happened decades after Jesus' ascension, during the Roman attack in AD 70. Jesus' next prophecy skips the church age and covers His return at the end of the tribulation (Luke 21:25–28), mentioning the "times of the Gentiles" (Luke 21:24) but not providing specific details. Matthew 24:15–20 and Mark 13:14–18 also record Jesus' words about the destruction of Jerusalem.
Luke 21 records the last of Jesus' teachings before the Last Supper, His arrest, and His crucifixion. Luke 21:1–4 fits well with the themes of Luke 19:28—20:47. Luke 21:5–11 describes how false messiahs, war, and natural disasters will become normal. Luke 21:12–24 prophesies challenges prior to the destruction of Jerusalem in AD 70. Luke 21:25–28 moves to the tribulation. Luke 21:29–36 is Jesus' instructions about the disciples' lives and ministries with respect to the delayed kingdom. Luke 21:37–38 is a note about Jesus' schedule in the days between the triumphal entry and His arrest.
Galatians 3:24
So the law became our guardian to lead us to Christ, that we might be justified by faith.
Matthew 5:17
Do not think that I have come to abolish the Law or the Prophets. I have not come to abolish them, but to fulfill them.
2 Corinthians 3:14
But their minds were closed. For to this day the same veil remains at the reading of the old covenant. It has not been lifted, because only in Christ can it be removed.
Philippians 3:9
and be found in Him, not having my own righteousness from the law, but that which is through faith in Christ, the righteousness from God on the basis of faith.
Colossians 2:14
having canceled the debt ascribed to us in the decrees that stood against us. He took it away, nailing it to the cross!
Hebrews 8:13
By speaking of a new covenant, He has made the first one obsolete; and what is obsolete and aging will soon disappear.
Ephesians 2:15
by abolishing in His flesh the law of commandments and decrees. He did this to create in Himself one new man out of the two, thus making peace
Galatians 3:25
Now that faith has come, we are no longer under a guardian.
John 1:17
For the law was given through Moses; grace and truth came through Jesus Christ.
Hebrews 10:1
For the law is only a shadow of the good things to come, not the realities themselves. It can never, by the same sacrifices offered year after year, make perfect those who draw near to worship.
Galatians 2:16
know that a man is not justified by works of the law, but by faith in Jesus Christ. So we, too, have believed in Christ Jesus, that we may be justified by faith in Christ and not by works of the law, because by works of the law no one will be justified.
1 Timothy 1:9
We realize that law is not enacted for the righteous, but for the lawless and rebellious, for the ungodly and sinful, for the unholy and profane, for killers of father or mother, for murderers,
Acts 13:39
Through Him everyone who believes is justified from everything from which you could not be justified by the law of Moses.
Galatians 5:18
But if you are led by the Spirit, you are not under the law.
Hebrews 7:18-19
So the former commandment is set aside because it was weak and useless / (for the law made nothing perfect), and a better hope is introduced, by which we draw near to God.
Romans 3:25-31
Whom God hath set forth to be a propitiation through faith in his blood, to declare his righteousness for the remission of sins that are past, through the forbearance of God; …
Romans 8:3,4
For what the law could not do, in that it was weak through the flesh, God sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh, and for sin, condemned sin in the flesh: …
Isaiah 53:11
He shall see of the travail of his soul, and shall be satisfied: by his knowledge shall my righteous servant justify many; for he shall bear their iniquities.
The Parable of the Sower
(Mark 4:1–9; Luke 8:4–8)
1That same day Jesus went out of the house and sat by the sea. 2Such large crowds gathered around Him that He got into a boat and sat down, while all the people stood on the shore.
3And He told them many things in parables, saying, “A farmer went out to sow his seed. 4And as he was sowing, some seed fell along the path, and the birds came and devoured it.
5Some fell on rocky ground, where it did not have much soil. It sprang up quickly because the soil was shallow. 6But when the sun rose, the seedlings were scorched, and they withered because they had no root.
7Other seed fell among thorns, which grew up and choked the seedlings.
8Still other seed fell on good soil and produced a crop—a hundredfold, sixtyfold, or thirtyfold.
9He who has ears,a let him hear.”
The Purpose of Jesus’ Parables
(Isaiah 6:1–13; Mark 4:10–12; Luke 8:9–10)
Then the disciples came to Jesus and asked,
“Why do You speak to the people in parables?”
He replied,
“The knowledge of the mysteries of the kingdom of heaven
has been given to you,
but not to them.
whoever has will be given more, and he will have an abundance.
Whoever does not have,
even what he has will be taken away from him.
This is why I speak to them in parables:
‘Though seeing, they do not see;
though hearing,
they do not hear or understand.’
In them the prophecy of Isaiah is fulfilled:
‘You will be ever hearing but never understanding;
you will be ever seeing but never perceiving.
For this people’s heart has grown callous;
they hardly hear with their ears,
and they have closed their eyes.
Otherwise they might see with their eyes,
hear with their ears,
understand with their hearts,
and turn, and I would heal them.’
16But blessed are your eyes because they see, and
your ears because they hear.
For truly I tell you,
many prophets and righteous men longed
to see what you see but did not see it,
and to hear what you hear but did not hear it.
The Parable of the Sower Explained
(Mark 4:13–20; Luke 8:11–15)
18Consider, then, the parable of the sower: when anyone hears
the message of the kingdom but does not understand it,
the evil one comes and snatches away what was sown in his heart.
This is the seed sown along the path.
The seed sown on rocky ground is the one who hears the word
and at once receives it with joy.
21But since he has no root, he remains for only a season.
When trouble or persecution comes because of the word,
he quickly falls away.
The seed sown among the thorns is the one who hears the word,
but the worries of this life and the
deceitfulness of wealth choke the word, and it becomes unfruitful.
But the seed sown on good soil
is the one who hears the word and understands it.
He indeed bears fruit and
produces a crop—a hundredfold, sixtyfold, or thirtyfold.”
The Parable of the Weeds
(Ezekiel 17:1–10)
Jesus put before them another parable: “The kingdom of heaven is like a man
who sowed good seed in
his field.
But while everyone was asleep, his enemy came and sowed weeds
among the wheat, and slipped away.
When the wheat sprouted and bore grain, then the weeds also appeared.
The owner’s servants came to him and said, ‘Sir, didn’t you sow good seed in your field?
Where then did the weeds come from?’
‘An enemy did this,’ he replied.
So the servants asked him, ‘Do you want us to go and pull them up?’
29‘No,’ he said, ‘if you pull the weeds now, you might uproot the wheat with them.30Let both grow together until the harvest. At that time I will tell the harvesters: First collect the weeds and tie them in bundles to be burned; then gather the wheat into my barn.’”
The Parable of the Mustard Seed
(Mark 4:30–34; Luke 13:18–19)
31He put before them another parable: “The kingdom of heaven is like a mustard seed that a man took and planted in his field. 32Although it is the smallest of all seeds, yet it grows into the largest of garden plants and becomes a tree, so that the birds of the air come and nest in its branches.”
The Parable of the Leaven
(Luke 13:20–21)
33He told them still another parable: “The kingdom of heaven is like leaven that a woman took and mixed into three measures of flour, until all of it was leavened.”
I Will Open My Mouth in Parables
(Psalm 78:1–72)
34Jesus spoke all these things to the crowds in parables. He did not tell them anything without using a parable. 35So was fulfilled what was spoken through the prophet:
“I will open My mouth in parables;
I will utter things hidden since the foundation of the world.”
The Parable of the Weeds Explained
(Zephaniah 1:1–6)
36Then Jesus dismissed the crowds and went into the house. His disciples came to Him and said, “Explain to us the parable of the weeds in the field.”
37He replied, “The One who sows the good seed is the Son of Man. 38The field is the world, and the good seed represents the sons of the kingdom. The weeds are the sons of the evil one, 39and the enemy who sows them is the devil. The harvest is the end of the age, and the harvesters are angels.
40As the weeds are collected and burned in the fire, so will it be at the end of the age. 41The Son of Man will send out His angels, and they will weed out of His kingdom every cause of sin and all who practice lawlessness. 42And they will throw them into the fiery furnace, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth. 43Then the righteous will shine like the sun in the kingdom of their Father.
He who has ears, let him hear.
The Parables of the Treasure and the Pearl
44The kingdom of heaven is like treasure hidden in a field. When a man found it, he hid it again, and in his joy he went and sold all he had and bought that field.
45Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a merchant in search of fine pearls.46When he found one very precious pearl, he went away and sold all he had and bought it.
The Parable of the
NET
47Once again, the kingdom of heaven is like a net that was cast into the sea and caught all kinds of fish. 48When it was full, the men pulled it ashore.
Then they sat down and sorted the good fish into containers, but threw the bad away.
49So will it be at the end of the age: The angels will come and separate the wicked from the righteous
50and throw them into the fiery furnace, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.
51Have you understood all these things?”
“Yes,” they answered.
52Then He told them,
“For this reason, every scribe who has been
discipled in
the kingdom of heaven is like a
homeowner who brings out of his storeroom
new treasures as well as old.”
The Rejection at Nazareth
(Mark 6:1–6; Luke 4:16–30)
53When Jesus had finished these parables, He withdrew from that place.54Coming to His hometown, He taught the people in their synagogue, and they were astonished. “Where did this man get such wisdom and miraculous powers?” they asked. 55“Isn’t this the carpenter’s son? Isn’t His mother’s name Mary, and aren’t His brothers James, Joseph,g Simon, and Judas? 56Aren’t all His sisters with us as well? Where then did this man get all these things?” 57And they took offense at Him.
But Jesus said to them,
“Only in his
hometown and in his own household is
a prophet without honor.”
AND
He did not do many miracles there, because
of their unbelief.
Matthew 13:46
When he found one very precious pearl, he went away and sold all he had and bought it.
Proverbs 2:4
if you seek it like silver and search it out like hidden treasure,
Philippians 3:7-8
But whatever was gain to me I count as loss for the sake of Christ. / More than that, I count all things as loss compared to the surpassing excellence of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, for whom I have lost all things. I consider them rubbish, that I may gain Christ
Isaiah 55:1-2
“Come, all you who are thirsty, come to the waters; and you without money, come, buy, and eat! Come, buy wine and milk without money and without cost! / Why spend money on that which is not bread, and your labor on that which does not satisfy? Listen carefully to Me, and eat what is good, and your soul will delight in the richest of foods.
Revelation 21:21
And the twelve gates were twelve pearls, with each gate consisting of a single pearl. The main street of the city was pure gold, as clear as glass.
Luke 14:33
In the same way, any one of you who does not give up everything he has cannot be My disciple.
1 Kings 10:2
She arrived in Jerusalem with a very large caravan—with camels bearing spices, gold in great abundance, and precious stones. And she came to Solomon and spoke to him all that was on her mind.
Colossians 2:3
in whom are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge.
Job 28:18
Coral and quartz are unworthy of mention; the price of wisdom is beyond rubies.
1 Peter 1:7
so that the proven character of your faith—more precious than gold, which perishes even though refined by fire—may result in praise, glory, and honor at the revelation of Jesus Christ.
1 Timothy 6:18-19
Instruct them to do good, to be rich in good works, and to be generous and ready to share, / treasuring up for themselves a firm foundation for the future, so that they may take hold of that which is truly life.
Proverbs 3:14-15
for she is more profitable than silver, and her gain is better than fine gold. / She is more precious than rubies; nothing you desire compares with her.
Revelation 3:18
I counsel you to buy from Me gold refined by fire so that you may become rich, white garments so that you may be clothed and your shameful nakedness not exposed, and salve to anoint your eyes so that you may see.
Psalm 119:72
The law from Your mouth is more precious to me than thousands of pieces of gold and silver.
1 Corinthians 2:9
Rather, as it is written: “No eye has seen, no ear has heard, no heart has imagined, what God has prepared for those who love him
Matthew 16:26
For what is a man profited, if he shall gain the whole world, and lose his own soul? or what shall a man give in exchange for his soul?
Matthew 22:5
But they made light of it, and went their ways, one to his farm, another to his merchandise:
Proverbs 3:13-18
Happy is the man that findeth wisdom, and the man that getteth understanding…
seeking.
Job 28:18
No mention shall be made of coral, or of pearls: for the price of wisdom is above rubies.
Psalm 4:6,7
There be many that say, Who will shew us any good? LORD, lift thou up the light of thy countenance upon us…
Psalm 39:6,7
Surely every man walketh in a vain shew: surely they are disquieted in vain: he heapeth up riches, and knoweth not who shall gather them…
The Twelve Apostles
(Mark 3:13–19; Luke 6:12–16)
1And calling His twelve disciples to Him, Jesus gave them authority over unclean spirits, so that they could drive them out and heal every disease and sickness.
2These are the names of the twelve apostles: first Simon, called Peter, and his brother Andrew; James son of Zebedee, and his brother John; 3Philip and Bartholomew; Thomas and Matthew the tax collector; James son of Alphaeus, and Thaddaeus; 4Simon the Zealot,a and Judas Iscariot, who betrayed Jesus.
The Ministry of the Twelve
(Mark 6:7–13; Luke 9:1–6)
5These twelve Jesus sent out with the following instructions: “Do not go onto the road of the Gentiles or enter any town of the Samaritans. 6Go rather to the lost sheep of Israel. 7As you go, preach this message: ‘The kingdom of heaven is near.’ 8Heal the sick, raise the dead, cleanse the lepers,c drive out demons. Freely you have received; freely give.
9Do not take along any gold or silver or copper in your belts. 10Take no bag for the road, or second tunic, or sandals, or staff; for the worker is worthy of his provisions.
11Whatever town or village you enter, find out who is worthy there and stay at his housed until you move on. 12As you enter the home, greet its occupants.e 13If the home is worthy, let your peace rest on it, but if it is not, let your peace return to you. 14And if anyone will not welcome you or heed your words, shake the dust off your feet when you leave that home or town. 15Truly I tell you, it will be more bearable for Sodom and Gomorrah on the day of judgment than for that town.
Sheep among Wolves
(2 Timothy 1:3–12)
16Behold, I am sending you out like sheep among wolves; therefore be as shrewd as snakes and as innocent as doves. 17But beware of men, for they will hand you over to their councils and flog you in their synagogues. 18On My account you will be brought before governors and kings as witnesses to them and to the Gentiles.19But when they hand you over, do not worry about how to respond or what to say. In that hour you will be given what to say. 20For it will not be you speaking, but the Spirit of your Father speaking through you.
21Brother will betray brother to death, and a father his child; children will rise against their parents and have them put to death. 22You will be hated by everyone because of My name, but the one who perseveres to the end will be saved.
23When they persecute you in one town, flee to the next. Truly I tell you, you will not reach all the towns of Israel before the Son of Man comes.
24A disciple is not above his teacher, nor a servant above his master. 25It is enough for a disciple to be like his teacher, and a servant like his master. If the head of the house has been called Beelzebul,f how much more the members of his household!
Fear God Alone
(Luke 12:4–7)
26So do not be afraid of them. For there is nothing concealed that will not be disclosed, and nothing hidden that will not be made known. 27What I tell you in the dark, speak in the daylight; what is whispered in your ear, proclaim from the housetops.
28Do not be afraid of those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul. Instead, fear the One who can destroy both soul and body in hell.
29Are not two sparrows sold for a penny?h Yet not one of them will fall to the ground apart from the will of your Father. 30And even the very hairs of your head are all numbered. 31So do not be afraid; you are worth more than many sparrows.
Confessing Christ
(Luke 12:8–12)
32Therefore everyone who confesses Me before men, I will also confess him before My Father in heaven. 33But whoever denies Me before men, I will also deny him before My Father in heaven.
Not Peace but a Sword
(Micah 7:1–6; Luke 12:49–53)
34Do not assume that I have come to bring peace to the earth; I have not come to bring peace, but a sword.
35For I have come to turn
‘a man against his father,
a daughter against her mother,
a daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law.
36A man’s enemies will be the members
of his own household.’
37Anyone who loves his father or mother more than Me is not worthy of Me; anyone who loves his son or daughter more than Me is not worthy of Me; 38and anyone who does not take up his cross and follow Me is not worthy of Me.39Whoever finds his life will lose it, and whoever loses his life for My sake will find it.
The Reward of Service
(2 Kings 4:8–17)
40He who receives you receives Me, and he who receives Me receives the One who sent Me. 41Whoever receives a prophet because he is a prophet will receive a prophet’s reward, and whoever receives a righteous man because he is a righteous man will receive a righteous man’s reward. 42And if anyone gives even a cup of cold water to one of these little ones because he is My disciple, truly I tell you, he will never lose his reward.”
Luke 12:6-7
Are not five sparrows sold for two pennies? Yet not one of them is forgotten by God. / And even the very hairs of your head are all numbered. So do not be afraid; you are worth more than many sparrows.
Matthew 6:26
Look at the birds of the air: They do not sow or reap or gather into barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they?
Psalm 147:9
He provides food for the animals, and for the young ravens when they call.
Job 38:41
Who provides food for the raven when its young cry out to God as they wander about for lack of food?
Luke 12:24
Consider the ravens: They do not sow or reap, they have no storehouse or barn; yet God feeds them. How much more valuable you are than the birds!
Genesis 1:20-21
And God said, “Let the waters teem with living creatures, and let birds fly above the earth in the open expanse of the sky.” / So God created the great sea creatures and every living thing that moves, with which the waters teemed according to their kinds, and every winged bird after its kind. And God saw that it was good.
Psalm 50:11
I know every bird in the mountains, and the creatures of the field are Mine.
Job 12:10
The life of every living thing is in His hand, as well as the breath of all mankind.
1 Peter 5:7
Cast all your anxiety on Him, because He cares for you.
Psalm 104:27-28
All creatures look to You to give them their food in due season. / When You give it to them, they gather it up; when You open Your hand, they are satisfied with good things.
Acts 17:25
Nor is He served by human hands, as if He needed anything, because He Himself gives everyone life and breath and everything else.
Genesis 8:1
But God remembered Noah and all the animals and livestock that were with him in the ark. And God sent a wind over the earth, and the waters began to subside.
Psalm 145:15-16
The eyes of all look to You, and You give them their food in season. / You open Your hand and satisfy the desire of every living thing.
Isaiah 46:4
Even to your old age, I will be the same, and I will bear you up when you turn gray. I have made you, and I will carry you; I will sustain you and deliver you.
Hebrews 1:3
The Son is the radiance of God’s glory and the exact representation of His nature, upholding all things by His powerful word. After He had provided purification for sins, He sat down at the right hand of the Majesty on high.
Luke 12:6,7
Are not five sparrows sold for two farthings, and not one of them is forgotten before God? …
farthing.
Matthew 18:28
But the same servant went out, and found one of his fellowservants, which owed him an hundred pence: and he laid hands on him, and took him by the throat, saying, Pay me that thou owest.
and one.
Psalm 104:27-30
These wait all upon thee; that thou mayest give them their meat in due season…
GENESIS 49 –
THE BLESSING OF THE SONS OF JACOB
Genesis 49:Genesis 49 –
The Blessing of The Tribes of Israel
A. The prophetic blessings upon the Sons of Israel.1. (1-2) What will befall the sons of Jacob in the last days.And Jacob called his sons and said, “Gather together, that I may tell you what shall befall you in the last days:
“Gather together and hear, you sons of Jacob,
And listen to Israel your father.
a. Jacob called his sons: This was Jacob’s last significant act as a patriarch and as
the heir to Abraham and Isaac. Here, he prophesied blessings upon each son, one-by-one.
b. What shall befall you in the last days: Some of what follows are not so much blessings as they are prophecies regarding what God will do with these tribes in the future.
i. This is the first conscious prophecy spoken by a man in the Bible. There were many prophecies announced by God (such as the promise of the triumph of the seed of the woman in Genesis 3:15), and other veiled prophecies by men, but this is the first declared prophecy through a man in the Bible.
ii. Jewish traditions tell us that as Jacob was about to bless his sons, he was ready to tell them the “great secret concerning the end of time.” But at that moment, the glory of God visited and left just as quickly, taking all trace of the knowledge of the great mystery, so he couldn’t tell them. Again, we regard this as just an interesting legend.
c. You sons of Jacob, and listen to Israel your father: At the very beginning of the blessing, Jacob realized he was both Jacob and Israel, and his sons are sons of each. This was a place of spiritual maturity, realizing both what God made him (Israel) and what he had to battle against (Jacob).
2. (3-4) Reuben: You shall not excel.“Reuben, you are my firstborn,
My might and the beginning of my strength,
The excellency of dignity and the excellency of power.
Unstable as water, you shall not excel,
Because you went up to your father’s bed;
Then you defiled it--
He went up to my couch.
a. You are my firstborn: As the firstborn of the family, Reuben had claim to the inheritance rights of the firstborn, but he forfeited it through pride (the excellency of dignity) and through immorality (you defiled it).
i. Reuben’s immorality with his father’s concubine Bilhah (the mother of his brothers Dan and Naphtali) is recorded in Genesis 35:22.
b. Unstable as water, you shall not excel: Because of Reuben’s instability, the birthright was divided. Usually the firstborn was the spiritual and social leader of the clan; but among the sons of Israel, the rights of blessing, priesthood, and ruling authority were divided among brothers rather than being centralized in one.
i. Though we see the great wisdom of God in decentralizing authority among the sons of Israel, Reuben paid a high price for his instability. As much as anything, God looks for stable character in those who will lead His people.
c. You shall not excel: The tribe of Reuben never did excel. No prophet, no judge, or no king that we know of came from the tribe of Reuben. Reuben is an example of how the first can be last (Matthew 19:30).
i. “So a man may have great opportunities, and yet lose them. Uncontrolled passions may make him very little who otherwise might have been great.” (Spurgeon)
3. (5-7) Simeon and Levi: I will… scatter them in Israel.“Simeon and Levi are brothers;
Instruments of cruelty are in their dwelling place.
Let not my soul enter their council;
Let not my honor be united to their assembly;
For in their anger they slew a man,
And in their self-will they hamstrung an ox.
Cursed be their anger, for it is fierce;
And their wrath, for it is cruel!
I will divide them in Jacob
And scatter them in Israel.
a. Simeon and Levi are brothers: The second-born son Simeon and the third-born son Levi received the same words for the same evil deed. They were instruments of cruelty when they wiped out all the men of Shechem in retaliation for the rape of their sister Dinah (Genesis 34:25-29).
i. Jacob, perhaps in weakness, did nothing at the time except register a small, self-centered complaint (Genesis 34:30). Yet he (and the LORD) remembered this event. This illustrates the principle that the sins of our past can come back and haunt us. Even when forgiven, they may carry consequences we must face for a lifetime.
b. Cursed be their anger, for it is fierce: The real problem with Simeon and Levi was their anger (in their anger they slew a man). Their anger was sin because it was rooted in self-will (in their self-will they hamstrung an ox).
i. The Bible speaks of a godly anger (Be angry and do not sin, Ephesians 4:26) and an ungodly anger (Let all bitterness, wrath, anger…be put away from you, Ephesians 4:31). Often, the difference between a godly, righteous anger and an ungodly anger is self-will.
c. I will divide them in Jacob and scatter them in Israel: The prophecy of dividing and scattering turned out to be a curse for Simeon. The tribe of Simeon was the weakest numerically of the 12 (Numbers 26:14) and shared an allotment of land with Judah (Joshua 19:1).
i. The tribe of Simeon became small during the wilderness wanderings. They started out from Egypt being the third largest tribe (Numbers 1:23), but some 35 years later, at the second wilderness census of Israel, 63% of the tribe perished and they became the smallest tribe (Numbers 26:14).
d. I will divide them in Jacob and scatter them in Israel: The prophecy of dividing and scattering became a blessing for Levi. Because of the faithfulness of this tribe during the rebellion of the golden calf (Exodus 32:26-28), it was scattered as a blessing throughout the whole nation of Israel. They received no large tract of land, for the LORD was their inheritance, not land (Joshua 13:33).
i. So both Simeon and Levi were scattered, but one as a blessing and the other as a curse. “Happy is that man who, though he begins with a dark shadow resting upon him, so lives as to turn even that shadow into bright sunlight. Levi gained a blessing at the hands of Moses, one of the richest blessings of any of the tribes.” (Spurgeon)
ii. The American author Washington Irving said: “It lightens the stroke to draw near to him who handles the rod.” When we suffer from our sin, we should draw near to God and anticipate that in mercy He will turn suffering into blessing.
4. (8-12) Judah:
The scepter shall not depart from Judah.“Judah, you are he whom your brothers shall praise;
Your hand shall be on the neck of your enemies;
Your father’s children shall bow down before you.
Judah is a lion’s whelp;
From the prey, my son, you have gone up.
He bows down, he lies down as a lion;
And as a lion, who shall rouse him?
The scepter shall not depart from Judah,
Nor a lawgiver from between his feet,
Until Shiloh comes;
And to Him shall be the obedience of the people.
Binding his donkey to the vine,
And his donkey’s colt to the choice vine,
He washed his garments in wine,
And his clothes in the blood of grapes.
His eyes are darker than wine,
And his teeth whiter than milk.
a. Judah, you are he whom your brothers shall praise: Judah wasn’t a completely exemplary character. He suggested a profit motive in getting rid of Joseph (Genesis 37:26). He did not deal faithfully with his daughter-in-law Tamar (Genesis 38:26), and he had sex with her as a prostitute (Genesis 38:18). But he showed good character when he interceded and offered himself as a substitute for Benjamin (Genesis 44:18-34). Overall, this blessing is an example of the richness of God’s grace to the undeserving.
i. In a powerful way, this prophecy over Judah is a description of Judah’s greatest descendant: Jesus Christ. “The dying patriarch was speaking of his own son Judah; but while speaking of Judah he had a special eye to our Lord, who sprang from the tribe of Judah. Everything therefore which he says of Judah, the type, he means with regard to our greater Judah, the antitype, our Lord Jesus Christ.” (Spurgeon)
b. You are he whom your brothers shall praise…as a lion…the scepter shall not depart from Judah, nor a lawgiver from between his feet…to Him shall be the obedience of the people: Each of these refer to the ruling position Judah will have among his brethren. He inherited the leadership aspect of the firstborn’s inheritance. This leadership position among his brothers meant that the eventual kings of Israel would come from Judah and that the Messiah – God’s ultimate leader – would eventually come from the tribe of Judah.
i. In Revelation 5:5, Jesus is called the Lion of the tribe of Judah.
ii. “The firstborn normally had two rights. First, he became the leader of the family, the new patriarch. Second, he was entitled to a double share of the inheritance, receiving twice as much as any of the other brothers.” (Boice)
c. Until Shiloh comes: The leadership prophecy took some 640 years to fulfill in part with the reign of David, first of Judah’s dynasty of kings. The prophecy took some 1600 years to completely fulfill in Jesus. Jesus is referred to as Shiloh, the name meaning, He whose right it is or to Whom it belongs and a title anciently understood to speak of the Messiah.
i. From David until the Herods, a prince of Judah was head over Israel (even Daniel in captivity). The promise was that Israel would keep this scepter until Shiloh comes. Even under their foreign masters during this period, Israel had a limited right to self-rule, until a.d. 7. At that time, under Herod and the Romans, their right to capital punishment – a small but remaining element of their self-governance – was taken away.
ii. At the time, the rabbis considered it a disaster of unfulfilled Scripture. Seemingly, the last vestige of the scepter had passed from Judah, and they did not see the Messiah. Reportedly, rabbis walked the streets of Jerusalem and said, “Woe unto us, for the scepter has been taken away from Judah, and Shiloh has not come.” Yet God’s word had not been broken.
iii. Certainly, Jesus was alive then. Perhaps this was the very year He was 12 years old and discussed God’s Word in the temple with the scholars of His day. Perhaps He impressed them with His understanding of this very issue.
d. Binding his donkey to the vine: This blessing also contained a description of Judah’s material abundance (the vine… the choice vine). Judah’s land was great wine-growing country.
5. (13) Zebulun: A haven for ships.“Zebulun shall dwell by the haven of the sea;
He shall become a haven for ships,
And his border shall adjoin Sidon.
a. Zebulun: Jacob now skipped the birth order, moving to the tenth-born and ninth-born sons, but keeping his focus on the sons born of Leah.
i. The tribe of Zebulun was noted for its faithfulness to David, supplying the largest number of soldiers to David’s army of any single tribe: Of Zebulun there were fifty thousand who went out to battle, expert in war with all weapons of war, stouthearted men who could keep ranks(1 Chronicles 12:33).
b. He shall become a haven for ships: The tribe of Zebulun seems to have settled the piece of land sitting between the Mediterranean Sea and the Sea of Galilee. Literally, shall dwell by the haven of the sea can be translated looking towards the sea. Zebulun did look to the sea, both to the east and west.
6. (14-15) Issachar: A strong donkey.“Issachar is a strong donkey,
Lying down between two burdens;
He saw that rest was good,
And that the land was pleasant;
He bowed his shoulder to bear a burden,
And became a band of slaves.
a. Issachar is a strong donkey: Issachar was a large tribe – third in size according to the Numbers 26 census.
b. And became a band of slaves: Because of their size and abundance, they were often targets of oppressive foreign armies who put them into servitude. Thus, they became a band of slaves.
i. “The meaning seems to be that Issachar was strong, but docile and lazy. He would enjoy the good land assigned him but would not strive for it. Therefore, eventually he would be pressed into servitude and the mere bearing of burdens for his masters.” (Leupold)
7. (16-18) Dan: A serpent by the way.“Dan shall judge his people
As one of the tribes of Israel.
Dan shall be a serpent by the way,
A viper by the path,
That bites the horse’s heels
So that its rider shall fall backward.
I have waited for your salvation, O LORD!
a. Dan shall judge his people: The tribe of Dan did judge his people. They supplied one of the most prominent of the Judges, Samson (Judges 13:2).
b. Dan shall be a serpent by the way: Dan was a troublesome tribe. They introduced idolatry into Israel (Judges 18:30). Jeroboam set up one of his idolatrous golden calves in Dan (1 Kings 12:26-30), and later Dan became a center of idol worship in Israel (Amos 8:14).
i. Some think the serpent by the way refers to the idea that the Antichrist would come from the tribe of Dan (based on Daniel 11:37 and Jeremiah 8:16).
ii. Dan is left out of the listing of tribes regarding the 144,000 in Revelation 7:5-8. But Dan is the first tribe listed in Ezekiel’s millennial roll call of the tribes (Ezekiel 48). This is a remarkable sign of God’s redemption.
c. I have waited for your salvation, O LORD: The Hebrew word for salvation is “yeshuwah.” At this point in the prophecy, when Jacob was near death, he called out for God’s salvation. Knowingly or not, Jacob called out for Jesus.
i. “What a happy breathing-space is this! When you and I also are near our journey’s end, may we be able to say, as Jacob did, ‘I have waited for thy salvation, O Lord.’” (Spurgeon)
8. (19) Gad: He shall triumph at last.“Gad, a troop shall tramp upon him,
But he shall triumph at last.
a. Gad: The tribe of Gad supplied many fine troops for the later king of Israel, David (1 Chronicles 12:14).
b. A troop shall tramp upon him: In the days of Jeremiah (among other times), foreign armies oppressed Gad (Jeremiah 49:1)
. Yet victory would be his in the end (he shall triumph at last).
i. He shall triumph at last: “This has been the blessing of many a child of God – to fight, and apparently to lose the battle, yet to win it at the end.” (Spurgeon)
9. (20) Asher: He shall yield royal dainties.“Bread from Asher shall be rich,
And he shall yield royal dainties.
a. Bread from Asher shall be rich: In Deuteronomy 33:24, Moses again took up this prophecy regarding Asher: Asher is most blessed of sons; let him be favored by his brothers, and let him dip his foot in oil.
b. He shall yield royal dainties: Apparently, the land eventually occupied by Asher was good enough to bring not only necessities, but also luxuries.
10. (21) Naphtali: He gives goodly words.“Naphtali is a deer let loose;
He uses beautiful words.
a. Naphtali: Naphtali’s land was in a key portion near the Sea of Galilee, the region where Jesus did much of His teaching and ministry.
i. Now when Jesus heard that John had been put in prison, He departed to Galilee. And leaving Nazareth, He came and dwelt in Capernaum, which is by the sea, in the regions of Zebulun and Naphtali, that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by Isaiah the prophet, saying: “The land of Zebulun and the land of Naphtali, by the way of the sea, beyond the Jordan, Galilee of the Gentiles: The people who sat in darkness have seen a great light, and upon those who sat in the region and shadow of death light has dawned.” (Matthew 4:12-16)
b. He uses beautiful words: Because so much of the ministry of Jesus took place in the region of Naphtali, this was fittingly said of him.
11. (22-26) Joseph:
A fruitful bough.“Joseph is a fruitful bough,
A fruitful bough by a well;
His branches run over the wall.
The archers have bitterly grieved him,
Shot at him and hated him.
But his bow remained in strength,
And the arms of his hands were made strong
By the hands of the Mighty God of Jacob
(From there is the Shepherd, the Stone of Israel),
By the God of your father who will help you,
And by the Almighty who will bless you
With blessings of heaven above,
Blessings of the deep that lies beneath,
Blessings of the breasts and of the womb.
The blessings of your father
Have excelled the blessings of my ancestors,
Up to the utmost bound of the everlasting hills.
They shall be on the head of Joseph,
And on the crown of the head of him
who was separate from his brothers.
a. Joseph is a fruitful bough: This was both a description of Joseph’s life and a personal blessing concerning his descendants. In a sense, Joseph’s tribes were already blessed when his sons received their blessing in Genesis 48.
i. This description of Joseph – as a fruitful bough by a well – speaks of his being well-watered and provided for in his deep and real relationship with God. “The main point in Joseph’s character was that he was in clear and constant fellowship with God, and therefore God blessed him greatly. He lived to God, and was God’s servant; he lived with God, and was God’s child.” (Spurgeon)
b. The archers have bitterly grieved him: Though Joseph was shot at and hated, he was still a fruitful bough. This was because the arms of his hands were made strong by the hands of the Mighty God of Jacob. The idea is that God’s hands were on Joseph’s hands, giving him strength and skill to work the bow expertly. God was there, even when Joseph did not know it.
c. The Almighty who will bless you: Joseph was certainly blessed in his posterity. His tribes were some of the most populous. In this sense, he received the material blessing, the double portion aspect of the inheritance of the firstborn.
d. The blessings of your father have excelled the blessings of my ancestors: Jacob could say this because he was, for much of his life, a scoundrel. Now at the end of his days, he saw just how good God was to him. He was forgiven much and loved much (Luke 7:47).
e. The Mighty God of Jacob: In his words about Joseph, Jacob listed five great titles for God. These titles show that Jacob did come to an understanding of who God is.
· The Mighty God of Jacob
· The Shepherd
· The Stone of Israel
· The God of your father
· The Almighty
i. This is much better than when Jacob referred to God as the God of Abraham or the Fear of his father Isaac(Genesis 31:53). Now he knew who God was for himself.
12. (27) Benjamin: a ravenous wolf.“Benjamin is a ravenous wolf;
In the morning he shall devour the prey,
And at night he shall divide the spoil.”
a. Benjamin is a ravenous wolf: This was the tribe with a reputation for fierceness.
b. He shall devour the prey: To see the great extent of this, look at Ehud (Judges 3:15-23), Saul (1 Samuel 9:1, 14:47-52), and Paul (Acts 8:1-3). The cruelty of the tribe in general is seen in Judges 19 and 20.
13. (28) Jacob concludes his blessing of the sons.All these are the twelve tribes of Israel, and this is what their father spoke to them. And he blessed them; he blessed each one according to his own blessing.
a. And he blessed them: Some of the things mentioned regarding these tribes may seem a bit cloudy, but only because we may not know their exact fulfillment until the age to come.
b. Each one according to his own blessing: Each son and each tribe that would come from them had their own calling and destiny. Yet the remarkable promise remained – that they each would survive and grow into significant tribes, without one perishing during the centuries to come in Egypt.
B. Jacob’s death.1. (29-32) Jacob makes his sons promise to bury him in Canaan.
Then he charged them and said to them: “I am to be gathered to my people; bury me with my fathers in the cave that is in the field of Ephron the Hittite, in the cave that is in the field of Machpelah, which is before Mamre in the land of Canaan, which Abraham bought with the field of Ephron the Hittite as a possession for a burial place.
There they buried Abraham and Sarah his wife, there they buried Isaac and Rebekah his wife, and there I buried Leah. The field and the cave that is there were purchased from the sons of Heth.”
a. I am to be gathered to my people: Jacob was confident that his father Isaac and his grandfather Abraham continued to live in the eternal state, and that he would be gathered to them.
b. Bury me with my fathers: Though Jacob was now in Egypt, he knew he was not an Egyptian. He was a son of the promise, an heir of God’s covenant with Abraham, and he asked to be buried in the land promised to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob by covenant.
c. In the cave that is in the field of Machpelah: Egypt was filled with magnificent tombs, and because of the respect Jacob had, he could have been buried like a Pharaoh. But he wanted to be buried in an obscure cave in Canaan, because Canaan was the land of promise.
2. (33) The death of Jacob.And when Jacob had finished commanding his sons, he drew his feet up into the bed and breathed his last, and was gathered to his people.
a. Breathed his last: This ends the life of the last of the great patriarchs, of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. Yet the work and plan of God did not end. It continued through men and generations to come.
i. When Jacob had finished commanding his sons: “Jacob did not yield up the ghost until he had delivered the last sentence of admonition and benediction to his twelve sons. He was immortal till his work was done. So long as God had another sentence to speak by him, death could not paralyze his tongue.” (Spurgeon)
b. And was gathered to his people: There are said to be three basic attitudes towards death. Among the ancient Greeks, they held to what can be called the death-accepting view. Our modern world is sold out to a death-denying approach. The Biblical approach is the death-defying attitude.
The Word Brings Salvation
(Isaiah 65:1–16)
1Brothers, my heart’s desire and prayer to God for the Israelites is for their salvation. 2For I testify about them that they are zealous for God, but not on the basis of knowledge. 3Because they were ignorant of God’s righteousness and sought to establish their own, they did not submit to God’s righteousness. 4For Christ is the end of the law, to bring righteousness to everyone who believes.
5For concerning the righteousness that is by the law, Moses writes: “The man who does these things will live by them.”a 6But the righteousness that is by faith says: “Do not say in your heart, ‘Who will ascend into heaven?’b (that is, to bring Christ down) 7or, ‘Who will descend into the Abyss?’c (that is, to bring Christ up from the dead).”
8But what does it say? “The word is near you; it is in your mouth and in your heart,”d that is, the word of faith we are proclaiming: 9that if you confess with your mouth, “Jesus is Lord,” and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved. 10For with your heart you believe and are justified, and with your mouth you confess and are saved.
11It is just as the Scripture says: “Anyone who believes in Him will never be put to shame.”e 12For there is no difference between Jew and Greek: The same Lord is Lord of all, and gives richly to all who call on Him, 13for, “Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.”
14How then can they call on the One in whom they have not believed? And how can they believe in the One of whom they have not heard? And how can they hear without someone to preach? 15And how can they preach unless they are sent? As it is written: “How beautiful are the feet of those who bring good news!”g
16But not all of them welcomed the good news. For Isaiah says, “Lord, who has believed our message?”h 17Consequently, faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the word of Christ.
18But I ask, did they not hear? Indeed they did:
“Their voice has gone out into all the earth,
their words to the ends of the world.”i
19I ask instead, did Israel not understand? First, Moses says:
“I will make you jealous by those who are not a nation;
I will make you angry by a nation without understanding.”
20And Isaiah boldly says:
“I was found by those who did not seek Me;
I revealed Myself to those who did not ask for Me.”k
21But as for Israel he says:
“All day long I have held out My hands
to a disobedient and obstinate people.”
In Genesis 3, God pronounces judgment against Adam, Eve, and the serpent for their sinful rebellion. To the serpent, God says, “I will put enmity between thee and the woman, and between thy seed and her seed; it shall bruise thy head, and thou shalt bruise his heel” (verse 15, KJV). This verse is known as the protoevangelium, or the “first gospel,” because it introduces the theme of a Savior who will redeem humanity from the curse of sin (Galatians 3:13). In Genesis 3, the Savior is called the “Seed” of the woman (NKJV and AMP).
The Hebrew word for “seed” here means “offspring,” which is how many translations render it (e.g., NIV, ESV, CSB). The figurative language in Genesis 3:14 (“dust you shall eat,” ESV) indicates that the subsequent verse speaks of a spiritual war between Satan (the serpent) and humanity (the seed of the woman).
The woman spoken of is Eve, the mother of humanity (Genesis 3:20). The prophecy is that her offspring would be continually harassed by Satan and his followers (the offspring of the serpent). Sin entered the world through Adam’s disobedience, and we all suffer because of it (Romans 5:12–14). The perpetual war Satan wages against humanity began in the Garden of Eden.
There is an indication of number in Genesis 3:15 that we cannot overlook. The woman’s offspring is referred to by the singular noun seed, and that seed is immediately antecedent to the singular pronouns he and his. So, the seed of the woman is individualized. There is one Seed in particular who is to come. The sole tempter will be countered by the sole Savior.
Also, Genesis 3:15 speaks of the seed of a woman rather than the seed of a man. This unusual wording could indicate that the woman’s offspring would not have an earthly father. In that case, the protoevangelium is certainly fulfilled in Jesus Christ, who was begotten of the Holy Spirit and born of a virgin (Luke 1:34–35).
The enmity spoken of in Genesis 3:15 is ultimately between Satan and Christ. Satan “bruised the heel” of the Savior when Jesus was crucified—Jesus suffered in His flesh. But the story does not end there. On the third day, Jesus rose from the grave. In so doing, He crushed the power of Satan, sin, and death—He crushed the serpent’s head. Jesus is the Seed of the woman who has won the victory over the tempter and enemy of mankind. And, to His eternal praise, He grants victory to everyone who believes in Him (John 16:33). “To the one who is victorious, I will give the right to sit with me on my throne, just as I was victorious and sat down with my Father on his throne” (Revelation 3:21).
In Revelation chapter 12, John sees a vision of a woman "clothed with the sun, and the moon under her feet, and on her head a crown of twelve stars" (Revelation 12:1). Note the similarity between this description and the description that Joseph gave of his father Jacob (Israel) and his mother and their children (Genesis 37:9-11).
The twelve stars
refer to the
twelve tribes of Israel.
So the
woman in Revelation 12
is Israel
Additional evidence for this interpretation is that Revelation 12:2-5 speaks of the woman being with child and giving birth. While it is true that Mary gave birth to Jesus, it is also true that Jesus, the son of David from the tribe of Judah, came from Israel. In a sense, Israel gave birth—or brought forth—Christ Jesus. Verse 5 says that the woman’s child was "a male child, who is to rule all the nations with a rod of iron; and her child was caught up to God and to His throne." Clearly, this is describing Jesus. Jesus ascended to heaven (Acts 1:9-11) and will one day establish His kingdom on earth (Revelation 20:4-6), and He will rule it with perfect judgment (the “rod of iron”; see Psalm 2:7-9).
The woman’s flight into the wilderness for 1,260 days refers to the future time called the Great Tribulation. Twelve hundred, sixty days is 42 months (of 30 days each), which is the same as 3 1/2 years. Halfway through the Tribulation period, the Beast (the Antichrist) will set an image of himself up in the temple that will be built in Jerusalem. This is the abomination that Jesus spoke of in Matthew 24:15 and Mark 13:14. When the Beast does this, he breaks the peace pact he had made with Israel, and the nation has to flee for safety—possibly to Petra (also see Matthew 24; Daniel 9:27). This escape of the Jews is pictured as the woman fleeing into the wilderness.
Revelation 12:12-17 speaks of how the devil will make war against Israel, trying to destroy her (Satan knows his time is short, relatively speaking—see Revelation 20:1-3, 10). It also reveals that God will protect Israel in the wilderness. Revelation 12:14 says Israel will be protected from the devil for "a time, times, and half a time (“a time” = 1 year; “times” = 2 years; “half a time” = one-half year; in other words, 3 1/2 years).
The 144,000 are first mentioned in Revelation 7:4, “Then I heard the number of those who were sealed: 144,000 from all the tribes of Israel.” This passage comes in an interlude between the judgment of the sixth seal of the tribulation (Revelation 6:12–17) and the opening of the seventh seal (Revelation 8:1).
These 144,000 Jews are “sealed,” which means they have the special protection of God. They are kept safe from the divine judgments and from the wrath of the Antichrist. They can freely perform their mission during the tribulation. It had been previously prophesied that Israel would repent and turn back to God (Zechariah 12:10; Romans 11:25–27), and the 144,000 Jews seem to be a sort of “first fruits” (Revelation 14:4) of that redeemed Israel. Their mission seems to be to evangelize the post-rapture world and proclaim the gospel during the tribulation period. As a result of their ministry, millions—“a great multitude that no one could count, from every nation, tribe, people and language” (Revelation 7:9)—will come to faith in Christ.
Jacob Blesses His Sons
Then Jacob called for his sons
and said,
“Gather around so that I can tell you what
will happen
to you in the days to come:
Come together and listen, O sons of Jacob;
listen to your father Israel.
Reuben, you are my firstborn, my might,
and the beginning of my strength,
excelling in honor,
excelling in power.
Uncontrolled as the waters,
you will no longer excel,
because you went up to your father’s bed,
onto my couch, and defiled it.
Simeon and Levi are brothers;
their swords are weapons of violence.
May I never enter their council;
may I never join their assembly.
For they kill men in their anger,
and hamstring oxen on a whim.
Cursed be their anger, for it is strong,
and their wrath, for it is cruel!
I will disperse them in Jacob
and scatter them in Israel.
Judah,
your brothers shall praise you.
Your hand shall be on the necks of your enemies;
your father’s sons shall bow down to you.
Judah is a young lion--
my son, you return from the prey.
Like a lion he crouches and lies down;
like a lioness, who dares to rouse him?
The scepter will not depart from Judah,
nor the staff from between his feet,
until Shiloh comes
and the
allegiance of the nations is his.
He ties his donkey to the vine,
his colt to the choicest branch.
He washes his garments in wine,
his robes in the blood of grapes.
His eyes are darker than wine,
and his teeth are whiter than milk.
13Zebulun shall dwell by the seashore
and become a harbor for ships;
his border shall extend to Sidon.
14Issachar is a strong donkey,
lying down between the sheepfolds.
He saw that his resting place was good
and that his land was pleasant,
so he bent his shoulder to the burden
and submitted to labor as a servant.
Dan shall provide justice for his people
as one of the tribes of Israel.
He will be a snake by the road,
a viper in the path
that bites the horse’s heels
so that its rider tumbles backward.
Gad await Your salvation, O LORD.
Gad will be attacked by raiders
but he will attack their heels.
Asher’s food will be rich;
he shall provide royal delicacies.
21Naphtali is a doe set free
that bears beautiful fawns.
Joseph is a fruitful vine--
a fruitful vine by a spring,
whose branches scale the wall.
The archers attacked him with bitterness;
they aimed at him in hostility.
Yet he steadied his bow,
and his
strong arms were tempered
by the hands
of the Mighty One of Jacob,
in the name
of the Shepherd, the Rock of Israel,
By the God of your father who helps you,
and by the Almightyj who blesses you,
with blessings of the heavens above,
with blessings of the depths below,
with blessings of the breasts and womb.
The blessings of your father have surpassed
the blessings of the ancient mountains
and the
bounty of the everlasting hills.
May they rest on the head of Joseph,
on the brow of the prince of his brothers.
Benjamin is a ravenous wolf;
in the
morning he devours the prey,
in the evening he divides the plunder.”
These are the tribes of Israel,
twelve in all,
and this was what
their father said to them.
He blessed them, and he blessed
each one
with a suitable blessing.
The Death of Jacob
Then Jacob instructed them,
“I am about
to be gathered to my people.
BURY me
with my fathers
in the
CAVE in the FIELD
of Ephron the Hittite.
The
CAVE is in the FIELD
of
near Mamre,
in the
LAND of CANAAN
This is the FIELD ABRAHAM
PURCHASED
from Ephron the Hittite
as a BURIAL SITE
There Abraham and his wife Sarah
are buried,
there Isaac and his wife Rebekah
are buried,
and there I buried Leah.
The FIELD and the CAVE
that is in it
were PURCHASED
from the Hittites.”
When Jacob had finished instructing
his SONS,
he pulled his feet into the bed and
BREATHED his LAST,
and he
was gathered to his people.
Revelation 19:10 makes a bold statement regarding
the relationship
between prophecy and Jesus Christ:
“The testimony of Jesus is the spirit of prophecy”
(NKJV).
The book of Revelation
is a book of prophecy given by
Jesus Christ to His servant John
(Revelation 1:1).
The term revelation refers to a
revealing or the
making known of something
that was previously unknown.
Revelation is like pulling back a
veil to show what’s behind
it or unwrapping
a present to see what’s inside.
What is prophecy, then? Simply put, prophecy is communication from God to mankind. Some prophecy can be speaking of future events, and other prophecy might not be. Prophets were utilized as a mouthpiece for God—they listened to God and then conveyed God’s message to the masses. Some examples of prophets are Elijah, Isaiah, Moses, and Jonah.
In the context of Revelation 19:10,
John has seen the fall of the evil world system called Babylon the Great(Revelation 18).
A great multitude in heaven
is celebrating and singing praise to God because of that judgment
(Revelation 19:1–3) and because it is
now time for
the wedding supper of the Lamb
(verses 6–8).
An angel says to John,
“Blessed are those who are
invited to the
wedding supper of the Lamb!”
(Revelation 19:9)
At this proclamation,
John falls to worship at the feet of
the angel
who is communicating this
prophecy,
but the angel insists John rise
to his feet, for he is but
“a fellow servant”
(Revelation 19:10; cf. Colossians 2:18).
In response to John’s wrongful worship,
the angel says,
“See that you do not do that! . . .
Worship God!
For the
testimony of
Jesus is the spirit of prophecy”
(Revelation 19:10, NKJV).
1. Jesus is the substance of all prophecy, or, put another way, Jesus is the common theme among all prophecy.
2. All true prophecy bears witness about Jesus. Therefore, all prophecy should cause us to worship Him alone.
3. The message or testimony given by Jesus is the essence of true prophecy. Jesus is the Word, and no prophecy comes to us except through Him, ultimately pointing to God as the source of all true prophecy.
The NIV translates the angel’s statement as “It is the Spirit of prophecy who bears testimony to Jesus.”
The NLT’s wording is “The essence of prophecy is to give a clear witness for Jesus.”
The wording of both these translations prefers one of the first two interpretations, above. The third interpretation, however, seems to fit best within the context of Revelation 19:10. John is not to worship the angel but God alone. Since John was worshiping the angel in response to the prophecy given, the angel ensures that John understands Jesus is the source of the communication and He alone is worthy of the worship
(cf. Luke 4:8; Acts 14:11–15).
Following the angel’s command to John, we ought to worship God alone.
We are to worship not the purveyor of the message but the Source of the message.
While God has made many beautiful things, such as angels, He is alone worthy of our praise
(cf. John 17:3; 1 Timothy 1:17; 6:15; 1 Samuel 7:4).
First Peter 2:2 reads,
“Like newborn babies, crave
pure
spiritual milk,
so that by it you may
grow up in your
salvation.”
In the previous verse, Peter had urged his readers to rid themselves of sinful behaviors and the desires of the natural man. As they laid aside “all malice and all deceit, hypocrisy, envy, and slander of every kind” (verse 1), they were to strive for spiritual milk like babies.
Every nursing mother knows the intensity of babies looking for milk, crying until they are satisfied. Experts have shown that a mother’s milk benefits her baby in many ways, including aiding brain development, promoting healthy weight, and bolstering antibodies (www.healthline.com/health/breastfeeding/11-benefits-of-breastfeeding#benefits-for-you). Peter employs this analogy to convey that, as Christians, our overall spiritual growth and well-being hinge on receiving “pure spiritual milk.” But what exactly is this spiritual milk?
Elsewhere, Scripture uses milk as a metaphor for the basic essentials of the gospel and Christian living. In Hebrews 5:12–14, the writer speaks of milk and solid food to encourage readers to move beyond “the elementary truths of God’s word” (verse 12). Paul likewise references milk in 1 Corinthians 3:1–3 in a rebuke to his immature readers. However, Peter uses the term spiritual milk positively, encouraging his readers to feed continually on it.
The “pure spiritual milk” constitutes God’s complete, special revelation, encapsulated in what we now know as the Bible. Some translations, such as the KJV, render the phrase as the “sincere milk of the word.” The Word can also symbolize Christ (John 1:1–5), implying that our craving should extend to deeper knowledge of Christ and closer fellowship with Him. In essence, growth comes as we feed on the written Word and fellowship with the living Word.
The directive in 1 Peter 2:2 is active and imperative, signifying that it is our responsibility to yearn for pure spiritual milk. We are to read, meditate upon, and study God’s written Word both individually and in the company of fellow believers. We should also engage in communion with the living Word and cultivate a deeper understanding of His person and work. Through these activities, we progress toward becoming more like Jesus in character and conduct. We will “grow up in [our] salvation” (1 Peter 2:2b).
Bible-based sermons are also helpful, as are Christian books and Christ-centered songs. Sound teachers facilitate a deeper understanding of God’s Word and rekindle a zeal for more. Well-written Christian books can provide insight into the knowledge of Christ, while songs enhance fellowship and remind us of the beauty found in Christ.
Peter’s instructions serve as a reminder that what we crave and consume profoundly impacts our spiritual growth. The world’s “milk” is impure and only gratifies our sinful desires. False teachings are, at best, spiritual junk and, at worst, poison. We must hunger for pure, unadulterated spiritual nourishment.
The Bible uses several metaphors involving birth to help explain what it means to have a saving relationship with Jesus. We find terms such as born again (John 3:3), born of God (John 1:13), and born of the Spirit (John 3:6). They all mean the same thing. Birth metaphors are used because we all understand physical birth. When a baby is born, a new person emerges into the world. The new life will grow, and the young person will come to resemble his or her parents. When we are born of the Spirit, a “new person” arrives with a new spiritual life. And as we grow, we come to resemble our Father in heaven (Romans 8:29).
People try to know God through a variety of means: some try religion or following an ethical code; some turn to intellect or logic; others try to find God in nature; and others through emotional experiences, believing that God inhabits whatever feelings they can muster when they think about Him. None of those bring us one step closer to actually communing with the God of the Bible because He cannot be known through our moral codes, our minds, our environment, or our emotions. He is Spirit, and those who would worship must worship “in spirit and in truth” (John 4:24).
Imagine trying to paint a portrait using a hammer and nails or trying to bake a meal using pen and paper. It would not help to try harder or cry over it because both tasks are impossible given the tools mentioned. So it is with the flesh and the Spirit. We cannot commune with a holy, incorporeal Being using sinful, fleshly means. Unless our spirits are reborn with life from God’s Spirit, we simply do not have the capability to fellowship with Him. We must be born of the Spirit.
God has instituted a way for fallen human beings to enter His holy presence, and it is the only way we can come to Him. Jesus said, “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me” (John 14:6). When Jesus offered Himself as a sacrifice for sin (John 10:18) and rose again, He opened a door that had been locked. When He died on the cross, the veil of the temple was torn in two, symbolizing the fact that He has made a way to enter God’s presence. God has opened the door to heaven so that whoever trusts in His Son’s sacrifice can be born again in his or her spirit (Mark 15:38).
When we place our faith in the risen Christ, a divine transaction takes place (2 Corinthians 5:21). God removes from us the sin, guilt, and condemnation we deserved because of our rebellion against Him. He throws our sin as far as the east is from the west (Psalm 103:12). At the moment of repentance and faith, the Holy Spirit breathes new life into us, and our bodies become His temple (1 Corinthians 3:16). Our spirits can now commune with God’s Spirit as He assures us that we belong to Him (Romans 8:16).
We might think of the human spirit like a deflated balloon that hangs lifeless inside our hearts. We are scarcely aware of its existence until God calls our names and an awakening begins. When we respond to God’s call with repentance and faith in what Jesus Christ has done for salvation, we are born of the Spirit. At that point the balloon inflates. The Holy Spirit moves into our spirits and fills us. He begins His transforming work so that we begin to resemble Jesus (2 Corinthians 5:17; Romans 8:29).
There are only two types of people in the world: those who are born of the Spirit and those who are not. In the end, only those two categories matter (John 3:3). Our earthly lives are extended opportunities for us to respond to God’s call and become born of the Spirit (Hebrews 3:15).
But we all, with unveiled face, beholding as in a mirror the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from glory to glory, just as from the Lord, the Spirit” (2 Corinthians 3:18, NASB).
With those few words—“from glory to glory”—Paul sums up our entire Christian life, from redemption and sanctification on earth, to our glorious eternal welcome into heaven. There is a great deal of content packed into those few words. It’s all so important that Paul labors at great length, from 2 Corinthians 2:14 through the end of chapter 5, to open his readers’ eyes to a great truth. Let’s see why that truth matters so much.
The same Greek word for “glory” is used twice in the phrase from glory to glory, yet each usage refers to something different. The first “glory” is that of the Old Covenant—the Law of Moses—while the second is that of the New Covenant, the gospel of Jesus Christ. Both have astonishing splendor.
The Old Covenant was given to Moses directly from God, written by God’s own finger (Exodus 31:18). That root of our Christian faith is glorious indeed; it’s the glory we’re coming “from.” Yet the New Covenant, the glory we’re going “to,” far surpasses that of the Old.
The transformation is from the glory of the Law. Like the stone it was written on, the Law was inflexible and absolute, applying to all Israelites without much regard for individual circumstances (Hebrews 10:28). Though holy, good, and righteous in itself (Romans 7:12), the Law was, for us sinners, the letter that kills us (2 Corinthians 3:6). The Law was an external force to control behavior. In addition, stone, despite its strength, is earthly and will eventually wear away. The Law was merely a temporary guardian (Galatians 3:23–25) until something better came along.
The transformation is to the glory of the New Covenant, which far surpasses the Old in every way. It forgives us of our sin and gives us sinners life (John 6:63). It is written on believers’ hearts by the Holy Spirit (Jeremiah 31:33; 2 Corinthians 3:3), so our obedience to God springs up from within us by God-given desires rather than by threats of legal punishment. In place of a cold set of writings as a guide for pleasing God, we now have Father, Son and Holy Spirit making their home with us, fellowshipping in loving intimacy, teaching us everything we must know and do (John 14:23; 16:13). That position in Christ is as permanent, eternal, and spiritual as God Himself, rather than temporary and earthly.
Paul is intent on directing Christians to focus on the spiritual glory of the New Covenant rather than the physical glory of the Old, as many Jews in his day refused to do. He compared the two types of glory by recalling how Moses absorbed and reflected God’s glory for a time after being in his presence (2 Corinthians 3:7–11, 13; cf. Exodus 34:29–35). Though Moses’ glow had a spiritual cause, there was nothing spiritual about the effect—any person, regardless of his relationship with God, could see the glow on Moses’ face, which he covered with a veil.
Not so the glory of the New Covenant. That can be seen only with a believer’s spiritual eyes—what Paul is doing his best to open, so that we discern the gospel’s glory. So he writes, “For God, who said, ‘Let light shine out of darkness,’ made his light shine in our hearts to give us the light of the knowledge of God’s glory displayed in the face of Christ” (2 Corinthians 4:6).
But, as we move from glory to glory, there’s something even more important about the glory of the New Covenant that Christians must understand: its supernatural power to transform us. And that brings us to God’s ultimate purpose and destination for every believer, to transform us into the image of His own beloved Son (2 Corinthians 3:18; Romans 8:28–30; Philippians 3:20–21).
Before he finishes with the topic of being transformed from glory to glory, Paul presents yet one more astonishing claim: “Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come!” (2 Corinthians 5:17).
This is the invitation the Lord makes to all Christians, to have our lives radically transformed here and now, by opening our eyes to see the glorious journey He is taking us on “from glory to glory.”
Jesus emphasized the importance of spiritual food when He was tempted by Satan: “Man does not live by bread alone, but by every word that comes from the mouth of God” (Matthew 4:4, NET). Man is both physical and spiritual, which is why spiritual food is just as important as physical nourishment. This spiritual food is “every word that comes from the mouth of God” God has spoken to us in His Word, the Bible. His Word imparts life (John 6:63).
The Bible often speaks of the spiritual food we need: God’s Word provides milk (1 Peter 2:2); it is meat (1 Corinthians 3:2) and bread (Deuteronomy 8:3; Job 23:12); and it is sweeter than honey (Psalm 119:103). The prophet Jeremiah wrote, “When your words came, I ate them; they were my joy and my heart’s delight, for I bear your name, LORD God Almighty” (Jeremiah 15:16). Scripture’s use of food metaphors demonstrates the importance of ingesting God’s Word, of making it a part of us. Scripture is not something merely to study or read but to be “eaten” by God’s people. We read the Word, but we then pause to “chew on it” a while, meditating and reflecting on the meaning and application of what we’ve read (see Psalm 1:1–3).
On a couple occasions, Jesus spoke of another type of spiritual food. After Jesus spoke to the Samaritan woman at the well, the disciples brought Him some food from town. But He did not partake, saying, “I have food to eat that you know nothing about” (John 4:32). This puzzled the disciples, whose minds were stuck on physical food, and Jesus explained: “My food is to do the will of him who sent me and to accomplish his work” (verse 34, ESV). Later, after feeding the 5,000, Jesus referred to faith, salvation, and His sacrifice using a food metaphor: “Whoever eats my flesh and drinks my blood has eternal life, and I will raise them up at the last day. For my flesh is real food and my blood is real drink” (John 6:54–55).
We need spiritual food
Of all of Jesus’ many miracles, only the resurrection and the feeding of the 5,000 are recorded in all four Gospels. Obviously, the Gospel writers considered the feeding of 5,000 a significant miracle. When Christ fed the masses that day, He began with only “five barley loaves and two fish,” borrowed from a boy’s lunch (John 6:9). To feed 5,000 people with five loaves and two fish is indeed miraculous, but the Greek term used in Matthew 14:21 specifies males, and Matthew further emphasizes the point by adding, “Besides women and children.” Many Bible scholars believe the actual number fed that day could have been 15,000—20,000 people.
Jesus’ disciples had wanted to send the people away because evening was approaching and they were in a remote place (Matthew 14:15). They knew the people needed to reach surrounding villages soon to buy food, find lodging, etc., or they would likely go hungry (Mark 6:36). But Christ had a better idea: “You give them something to eat” (Matthew 14:16). At this point, the disciples should have recalled the many miracles they had seen Jesus do. Perhaps some of them did, but Andrew asked, “What are [five loaves and two fish] for so many?” (John 6:9). And Philip exclaimed, “It would take more than half a year’s wages to buy enough bread for each one to have a bite!” (verse 7).
Jesus called for the bread and fish to be brought to Him (Matthew 14:18). He then gave thanks for the meal, broke the bread, and gave it to His disciples to give to the crowd. Amazingly, the entire multitude was fed with that small meal. Jesus provided “as much as they wanted” (John 6:11), and “they all ate and were satisfied” (Matthew 14:20). Christ did not just meet the need; He lavished them with so much food that there were “twelve baskets full of broken pieces and of the fish” left over (Mark 6:43).
God will shatter the pint-sized expectations of what His followers can do if they would learn to bring Him what they have already been given. “Little is much when God is in it.” When Christians are willing to offer their lives sacrificially, relinquishing their hold on whatever God has given them in terms of time, money, talents, etc., God will use these ordinary things to create extraordinary things. Christians must never believe their resources are too little to serve God. God delights in taking a humble, seemingly insignificant person and using him or her for His glory (see 1 Corinthians 1:27).
Philip’s mind immediately ran to the cost of the project. He quickly calculated how many man-hours of work it would take to feed all those people; he saw the task as impossible because he approached it as if everything depended on his own work. Jesus’ approach was different. Jesus bypassed all human effort and did the impossible. It’s “‘not by might nor by power, but by my Spirit,’ says the LORD Almighty” (Zechariah 4:6).
It is noteworthy that Jesus fed the people through the agency of His disciples. He could have simply snapped His fingers and caused everyone present to have a meal, but He didn’t. Instead, He “gave . . . to his disciples to distribute to the people” (Mark 6:41). In this way, the disciples had to trust the Lord for everything they distributed. They could only give as they received. Philip, Andrew, and the rest were put in a position of total dependence upon the Lord for the supply. God still uses people the same way today.
Christians should also be reminded that their problems are never too large (the “many” of John 6:9) for God to handle. Surely, Andrew was wondering, “What good are we going to do with only five loaves and two fish?” Of course, theoretically, believers know God can easily multiply whatever He wants, to feed as many people as He wants—He is God. The problem comes when we are faced with a practical outworking of the theory; we tend to doubt that God will want to meet our need.
There is a foreshadowing of Christ’s miracle in the life of Elisha in 2 Kings. Elisha told his servant to feed the people gathered there, although there was not enough food for the hundred men. One of the men said, “How can I set this before a hundred men?” (2 Kings 4:42–43) In the end, however, the men not only had enough to eat, but “they ate and had some left” (2 Kings 4:44). Isn’t that just like God? He says He will do more than provide for His people; He will give an abundance (Psalm 132:15).
Christians must bring their lives to God in a spirit of obedience and sacrifice, no matter how insignificant they may think their gifts or talents are (Romans 12:1). When doing so, expect God to do far beyond what can be imagined (Ephesians 3:20). Also, Christians should trust that God not only wants to meet the needs of His children, but He wants to lavish His children with spiritual blessings, even to overflowing (Psalm 23:5).
The fullness of God is the totality of everything God is—His attributes, His character, His perfection, His holiness, His power, His love, et cetera. The fullness of God is His complete nature; it is who He is. The Bible mentions the “fullness” (Greek pleroma) of God in a few different senses, and it is important to consider the context when interpreting these passages. Let’s briefly discuss three of the most direct references to the fullness of God, found in Colossians and Ephesians:
In Colossians 1:19, Paul writes that “it was the Father’s good pleasure for all the fullness to dwell in [Christ]” (NASB). In Colossians 2:9, we see that “in Christ all the fullness of the Deity lives in bodily form.” Both passages powerfully affirm the fact that Jesus is God. The fullness, or totality, of God is found in Christ. Everything that can be said of God can be said of Jesus Christ (see John 14:7–11). Paul continues with another incredible fact: that, in Christ, we ourselves have been “brought to fullness” (Colossians 2:10). Christians find their completeness in Christ and no one else. Jesus, who is the fullness of God in bodily form, makes us whole by His grace.
Paul conveys the same idea in Ephesians 3:19. At the end of a lengthy prayer, Paul makes a series of requests, climaxing with a prayer that his readers “may be filled to all the fullness of God” (NASB). Obviously, none of God’s creatures can achieve the fullness of God in the sense of becoming equal with God. Rather, being filled to all the fullness of God describes the fulfillment of Jesus’ promise: “Anyone who loves me will obey my teaching. My Father will love them, and we will come to them and make our home with them” (John 14:23). God indwells believers, and they become “partakers of divine nature” (2 Peter 1:4, ESV). The riches of God are available to us. God by His grace, fills us with His Holy Spirit, enabling us to live more like Christ, in whom the fullness dwells (Ephesians 5:18–20).
Jesus said that “whoever drinks the water I give them will never thirst. Indeed, the water I give them will become in them a spring of water welling up to eternal life” (John 4:14). A never-ending source of life and satisfaction and spiritual abundance—this fountain of living water is the fullness of God within the believer.
Francis Foulkes, a theologian and commentator, expresses the heart of Ephesians 3:19 well: “He [Paul] thus prays ultimately that they may receive not any attribute of God, or any gift of his, not love, not knowledge, not strength, alone or in combination—but no less than the very highest he can pray for, the full indwelling of God. . . . Of course the eternal God can never be limited to the capacity of any one, or all, of his sinful creatures; at the same time Paul does not want to pray for anything less than that God’s people may be filled to (eis) the very fullest of himself that he seeks to bring into their lives” (The Letter of Paul to the Ephesians: An Introduction and Commentary, Wm. B. Eerdmans Pub., 1989, p. 114). The goal of every Christian is to be filled completely with God, so that His character, His attributes, and His love define our existence.
In conclusion, the fullness of God refers to the totality of who God is. In one sense, the absolute fullness of God is unknowable for finite creatures. However, in His grace, God chooses to communicate with His creatures, offering them new life in Christ, indwelling them by the Holy Spirit, and ultimately filling them with His fullness. A powerful image from C. S. Lewis’s The Screwtape Letters illustrates this well. In this fictional book, an elder demon is writing to his young nephew, attempting to explain God’s grand plan for humankind: “One must face the fact that all the talk about His [God’s] love for men, and His service being perfect freedom, is not (as one would gladly believe) mere propaganda, but an appalling truth. He really does want to fill the universe with a lot of loathsome little replicas of Himself—creatures whose life, on its miniature scale, will be qualitatively like His own, not because He has absorbed them but because their wills freely conform to His” (HarperCollins Pub., 1996, p. 38).
“He who began a good work among you will complete it by the day of Christ Jesus”
(Philippians 1:6, NASB)
“All art is a balance between realism and symbolism" art incorporates elements of
both realistic depiction and symbolic meaning to convey a deeper message or evoke emotions,
even if one aspect might be more dominant depending on the artist's intention and style
A bird's-eye view is an
elevated view
of an object or location
from a
very steep viewing angle,
creating
a perspective as if the
observer were a bird
in flight
looking downward.
Bird's-eye views
can be an aerial photograph,
but also a drawing,
and are often used in the
making of
blueprints, floor plans and maps.
Before crewed flight was common, the term "bird's eye" was used to distinguish views drawn from direct observation at high vantage locations (e.g. a mountain or tower), from those constructed from an imagined bird's perspectives.
Bird's eye views as a genre have existed since classical times. They were significantly popular in the mid-to-late 19th century in the United States and Europe as photographic prints.
TerminologyThe terms aerial view and aerial viewpoint are also sometimes used synonymous with bird's-eye view. The term aerial view can refer to any view from a great height, even at a wide angle, as for example when looking sideways from an airplane window or from a mountain top. Overhead viewis fairly synonymous with bird's-eye view but tends to imply a vantage point of a lesser height than the latter term. For example, in computer and video games, an "overhead view" of a character or situation often places the vantage point only a few feet (a meter or two) above human height. See top–down perspective.
Recent[when?] technological and networking developments have made satellite images more accessible. Microsoft Bing Maps offers direct overhead satellite photos of the entire planet but also offers a feature named Bird's eye view in some locations. The Bird's Eye photos are angled at 40 degrees rather than being straight down. Satellite imaging programs and photos have been described as offering a viewer the opportunity to "fly over" and observe the world from this specific angle.
In filmmaking and video production, a bird's-eye shot refers to a shot looking directly down on the subject. The perspective is very foreshortened, making the subject appear short and squat. This shot can be used to give an overall establishing shot of a scene, or to emphasise the smallness or insignificance of the subjects. It is shot by lifting the camera up by hands or by hanging it off something strong enough to support it. When a scene needs a large area shot, it is a crane shot.
The Bible mentions a scarlet thread in several different contexts, from an unusual childbirth to the high priestly garments to the conquest of Canaan.
One reference to the scarlet thread in the Bible occurs during the birth of the twin sons of Judah and Tamar (Genesis 38:27–30). As Tamar was giving birth, the arm of one twin, Zerah, reached out of the birth canal, and immediately the midwife tied a scarlet thread to the baby’s wrist to designate Zerah as the firstborn. As it turned out, however, Zerah was not the firstborn; the arm was withdrawn into the womb, and the other twin, Perez, was born first.
In the case of Perez and Zerah, the scarlet thread was to indicate who was to have the designation and privileges of the firstborn. To all appearances, Zerah seemed to be the one, but God had different plans, and Perez was the firstborn. In God’s providence, it was through Perez that the line of the Lord Jesus Christ proceeded (Matthew 1:3).
The Bible also mentions scarlet thread or scarlet yarn as part of the tabernacle’s curtains (Exodus 26:1) and the high priest’s ephod (Exodus 28:6), along with threads of gold, blue, and purple. Scripture does not comment on the significance of those colors in the curtains or ephod, but some commentators surmise that the gold, blue, and purple foreshadow Christ’s glory, heavenly origin, and kingly position, while the scarlet thread represents Christ’s atoning work on the cross through the shedding of His blood.
Another significant mention of scarlet thread is in Joshua 2. Two spies had been sent to Jericho in advance of the Israelites’ taking of that city. The spies were hidden in Jericho by Rahab the harlot, who expressed her faith in Israel’s God and protected the spies (see Hebrews 11:31). Rahab allowed the Hebrew spies to escape from Jericho by letting them down through her window by means of a rope made of scarlet thread. As they departed, the spies told Rahab, “Tie this cord of scarlet thread in the window” (Joshua 2:18), with the promise that she and her household would be kept safe in the coming invasion. By faith, Rahab obeyed: “And she tied the scarlet cord in the window” (verse 21).
Later, when the walls of Jericho fell down and the Israelites took the city, Joshua commanded that Rahab and her family be spared (Joshua 6:22–23). Marking her home was, of course, the “cord of scarlet thread.” It’s easy to dismiss the color of Rahab’s rope as mere coincidence, but the scarlet color is significant. The rope in her window was a sign of her faith and led to her salvation, as she was not destroyed with the rest of Jericho. The scarlet rope—the color of blood—worked for Rahab much as the blood of the Passover lamb had worked during the exodus: every home marked with blood was spared death that night (Exodus 12:13). God’s mercy and forgiveness of Rahab the harlot was signified by a rope of scarlet thread, which becomes a symbol of the blood of Christ.
Theologians and Bible students sometimes refer to “the scarlet thread running through the Bible.” By this they mean that the Bible’s theme is Jesus Christ and His sacrifice for the redemption of mankind. The blood of Christruns throughout the entire Bible, symbolically. It is seen in the animals killed in Eden to provide garments for Adam and Eve, the ram that took Isaac’s place on the altar of Moriah, the Passover lamb, the institution of the sacrificial system, the scarlet rope of Rahab, and the thousands of years of sacrifices performed at the tabernacle and temple. The scarlet thread runs all the way up to John the Baptist’s declaration, “Look, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world!” (John 1:29) and to the foot of the cross, where Jesus finally says, “It is finished” (John 19:30).
“Without the shedding of blood there is no forgiveness” (Hebrews 9:22), and that’s why the symbolism of the scarlet thread in the Bible is significant. The scarlet thread is the theme of atonement found throughout the pages of Scripture.
In My Father’s House Are Many Rooms
1“Do not let your hearts be troubled. You believe in God;a believe in Me as well.2In My Father’s house are many rooms. If it were not so, would I have told you that I am going there to prepare a place for you?b 3And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come back and welcome you into My presence, so that you also may be where I am. 4You know the way to the place where I am going.c”
The Way, the Truth, and the Life
5“Lord,” said Thomas, “we do not know where You are going, so how can we know the way?”
6Jesus answered, “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me. 7If you had known Me, you would know My Father as well. From now on you do know Him and have seen Him.”
8Philip said to Him, “Lord, show us the Father, and that will be enough for us.”
9Jesus replied, “Philip, I have been with you all this time, and still you do not know Me? Anyone who has seen Me has seen the Father. How can you say, ‘Show us the Father’? 10Do you not believe that I am in the Father and the Father is in Me? The words I say to you, I do not speak on My own. Instead, it is the Father dwelling in Me, performing His works. 11Believe Me that I am in the Father and the Father is in Me—or at least believe on account of the works themselves.
12Truly, truly, I tell you, whoever believes in Me will also do the works that I am doing. He will do even greater things than these, because I am going to the Father.13And I will do whatever you ask in My name, so that the Father may be glorified in the Son. 14If you ask Med for anything in My name, I will do it.
Jesus Promises the Holy Spirit
(John 16:5–16)
15If you love Me, you will keepe My commandments. 16And I will ask the Father, and He will give you another Advocatef to be with you forever— 17the Spirit of truth. The world cannot receive Him, because it neither sees Him nor knows Him. But you do know Him, for He abides with you and will be in you.
18I will not leave you as orphans; I will come to you. 19In a little while the world will see Me no more, but you will see Me. Because I live, you also will live. 20On that day you will know that I am in My Father, and you are in Me, and I am in you.21Whoever has My commandments and keeps them is the one who loves Me. The one who loves Me will be loved by My Father, and I will love him and reveal Myself to him.”
22Judas (not Iscariot) asked Him, “Lord, why are You going to reveal Yourself to us and not to the world?”
23Jesus replied, “If anyone loves Me, he will keep My word. My Father will love him, and We will come to him and make Our home with him. 24Whoever does not love Me does not keep My words. The word that you hear is not My own, but it is from the Father who sent Me.
25All this I have spoken to you while I am still with you. 26But the Advocate, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in My name, will teach you all things and will remind you of everything I have told you.
Peace I Leave with You
27Peace I leave with you; My peace I give to you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled; do not be afraid. 28You heard Me say, ‘I am going away, and I am coming back to you.’ If you loved Me, you would rejoice that I am going to the Father, because the Father is greater than I. 29And now I have told you before it happens, so that when it does happen, you will believe.
30I will not speak with you much longer, for the prince of this world is coming, and he has no claim on Me. 31But I do exactly what the Father has commanded Me, so that the world may know that I love the Father.
Get up! Let us go on from here.
A Call to Persevere in Faith19 Therefore, brothers and sisters, since we have confidence to enter the Most Holy Place by the blood of Jesus, 20 by a new and living way opened for us through the curtain, that is, his body, 21 and since we have a great priest over the house of God, 22 let us draw near to God with a sincere heart and with the full assurance that faith brings, having our hearts sprinkled to cleanse us from a guilty conscience and having our bodies washed with pure water. 23 Let us hold unswervingly to the hope we profess, for he who promised is faithful. 24 And let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds, 25 not giving up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but encouraging one another—and all the more as you see the Day approaching.
26 If we deliberately keep on sinning after we have received the knowledge of the truth, no sacrifice for sins is left,27 but only a fearful expectation of judgment and of raging fire that will consume the enemies of God. 28 Anyone who rejected the law of Moses died without mercy on the testimony of two or three witnesses. 29 How much more severely do you think someone deserves to be punished who has trampled the Son of God underfoot, who has treated as an unholy thing the blood of the covenant that sanctified them, and who has insulted the Spirit of grace? 30 For we know him who said, “It is mine to avenge; I will repay,”[a] and again, “The Lord will judge his people.”[b] 31 It is a dreadful thingto fall into the hands of the living God.
32 Remember those earlier days after you had received the light, when you endured in a great conflict full of suffering.33 Sometimes you were publicly exposed to insult and persecution; at other times you stood side by side with those who were so treated. 34 You suffered along with those in prison and joyfully accepted the confiscation of your property, because you knew that you yourselves had better and lasting possessions.
So do not throw away your
confidence;
it will be richly rewarded
You need to persevere so that when you
have done the will of God,
you will receive what he has promised.
For,
“In just a little while,
he who is coming will come
and will not delay.”
And,
“But my righteous one will live
by faith.
And I take no pleasure
in the one who shrinks back.”
But we do not belong to those who shrink
back and are destroyed,
but to those who have faith and are saved.
Faith in Action
Now faith is confidence
in what we hope for and assurance
about what we do not see.
This is what the ancients were commended for.
3 By faith we understand that the universe was formed at God’s command, so that what is seen was not made out of what was visible.
4 By faith Abel brought God a better offering than Cain did. By faith he was commended as righteous, when God spoke well of his offerings. And by faith Abel still speaks, even though he is dead.
5 By faith Enoch was taken from this life, so that he did not experience death: “He could not be found, because God had taken him away.”[f] For before he was taken, he was commended as one who pleased God. 6 And without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to him must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who earnestly seek him.
7 By faith Noah, when warned about things not yet seen, in holy fear built an ark to save his family. By his faith he condemned the world and became heir of the righteousness that is in keeping with faith.
8 By faith Abraham, when called to go to a place he would later receive as his inheritance, obeyed and went, even though he did not know where he was going. 9 By faith he made his home in the promised land like a stranger in a foreign country; he lived in tents, as did Isaac and Jacob, who were heirs with him of the same promise. 10 For he was looking forward to the city with foundations, whose architect and builder is God. 11 And by faith even Sarah, who was past childbearing age, was enabled to bear children because she[g] considered him faithful who had made the promise. 12 And so from this one man, and he as good as dead, came descendants as numerous as the stars in the sky and as countless as the sand on the seashore.
13 All these people were still living by faith when they died. They did not receive the things promised; they only saw them and welcomed them from a distance, admitting that they were foreigners and strangers on earth. 14 People who say such things show that they are looking for a country of their own. 15 If they had been thinking of the country they had left, they would have had opportunity to return. 16 Instead, they were longing for a better country—a heavenly one.Therefore God is not ashamed to be called their God, for he has prepared a city for them.
17 By faith Abraham, when God tested him, offered Isaac as a sacrifice. He who had embraced the promises was about to sacrifice his one and only son, 18 even though God had said to him, “It is through Isaac that your offspring will be reckoned.”[h] 19 Abraham reasoned that God could even raise the dead, and so in a manner of speaking he did receive Isaac back from death.
20 By faith Isaac blessed Jacob and Esau in regard to their future.
21 By faith Jacob, when he was dying, blessed each of Joseph’s sons, and worshiped as he leaned on the top of his staff.
22 By faith Joseph, when his end was near, spoke about the exodus of the Israelites from Egypt and gave instructions concerning the burial of his bones.
23 By faith Moses’ parents hid him for three months after he was born, because they saw he was no ordinary child, and they were not afraid of the king’s edict.
24 By faith Moses, when he had grown up, refused to be known as the son of Pharaoh’s daughter. 25 He chose to be mistreated along with the people of God rather than to enjoy the fleeting pleasures of sin. 26 He regarded disgrace for the sake of Christ as of greater value than the treasures of Egypt, because he was looking ahead to his reward. 27 By faith he left Egypt, not fearing the king’s anger; he persevered because he saw him who is invisible. 28 By faith he kept the Passover and the application of blood, so that the destroyer of the firstborn would not touch the firstborn of Israel.
29 By faith the people passed through the Red Sea as on dry land; but when the Egyptians tried to do so, they were drowned.
30 By faith the walls of Jericho fell, after the army had marched around them for seven days.
31 By faith the prostitute Rahab, because she welcomed the spies, was not killed with those who were disobedient.
32 And what more shall I say? I do not have time to tell about Gideon, Barak, Samson and Jephthah, about David and Samuel and the prophets, 33 who through faith conquered kingdoms, administered justice, and gained what was promised; who shut the mouths of lions, 34 quenched the fury of the flames, and escaped the edge of the sword;whose weakness was turned to strength; and who became powerful in battle and routed foreign armies. 35 Women received back their dead, raised to life again. There were others who were tortured, refusing to be released so that they might gain an even better resurrection. 36 Some faced jeers and flogging, and even chains and imprisonment.37 They were put to death by stoning;[j] they were sawed in two; they were killed by the sword. They went about in sheepskins and goatskins, destitute, persecuted and mistreated-- 38 the world was not worthy of them. They wandered in deserts and mountains, living in caves and in holes in the ground.
39 These were all commended for their faith, yet none of them received what had been promised, 40 since God had planned something better for us so that only together with us would they be made perfect.
12 Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles. And let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us, 2 fixing our eyes on Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of faith. For the joy set before him he endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. 3 Consider him who endured such opposition from sinners, so that you will not grow weary and lose heart.
God Disciplines His Children4 In your struggle against sin, you have not yet resisted to the point of shedding your blood. 5 And have you completely forgotten this word of encouragement that addresses you as a father addresses his son? It says,
“My son, do not make light of the Lord’s discipline,
and do not lose heart when he rebukes you,
6 because the Lord disciplines the one he loves,
and he chastens everyone he accepts as his son.”
7 Endure hardship as discipline; God is treating you as his children. For what children are not disciplined by their father? 8 If you are not disciplined—and everyone undergoes discipline—then you are not legitimate, not true sons and daughters at all. 9 Moreover, we have all had human fathers who disciplined us and we respected them for it. How much more should we submit to the Father of spirits and live! 10 They disciplined us for a little while as they thought best; but God disciplines us for our good, in order that we may share in his holiness. 11 No discipline seems pleasant at the time, but painful. Later on, however, it produces a harvest of righteousness and peace for those who have been trained by it.
12 Therefore, strengthen your feeble arms and weak knees. 13 “Make level paths for your feet,”
so that the lame may not be disabled, but rather healed.
Warning and Encouragement14 Make every effort to live in peace with everyone and to be holy; without holiness no one will see the Lord. 15 See to it that no one falls short of the grace of God and that no bitter root grows up to cause trouble and defile many. 16 See that no one is sexually immoral, or is godless like Esau, who for a single meal sold his inheritance rights as the oldest son. 17 Afterward, as you know, when he wanted to inherit this blessing, he was rejected. Even though he sought the blessing with tears, he could not change what he had done.
The Mountain of Fear and the Mountain of Joy18 You have not come to a mountain that can be touched and that is burning with fire; to darkness, gloom and storm;19 to a trumpet blast or to such a voice speaking words that those who heard it begged that no further word be spoken to them, 20 because they could not bear what was commanded: “If even an animal touches the mountain, it must be stoned to death.”[m] 21 The sight was so terrifying that Moses said, “I am trembling with fear.
22 But you have come to Mount Zion, to the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem. You have come to thousands upon thousands of angels in joyful assembly, 23 to the church of the firstborn, whose names are written in heaven. You have come to God, the Judge of all, to the spirits of the righteous made perfect, 24 to Jesus the mediatorof a new covenant, and to the sprinkled blood that speaks a better word than the blood of Abel.
25 See to it that you do not refuse him who speaks. If they did not escape when they refused him who warned them on earth, how much less will we, if we turn away from him who warns us from heaven? 26 At that time his voice shook the earth, but now he has promised, “Once more I will shake not only the earth but also the heavens.”[o] 27 The words “once more” indicate the removing of what can be shaken—that is, created things—so that what cannot be shaken may remain.
28 Therefore, since we are receiving a kingdom that cannot be shaken, let us be thankful, and so worship God acceptably with reverence and awe, 29 for our “God is a consuming fire.”
In Philippians 3:12–14, the apostle Paul portrays himself (a follower of Christ) as a determined athlete running a race (the Christian life). In that race, Paul is resolutely reaching toward the goal of “knowing Christ Jesus” so fully and experientially (Philippians 3:8–11) that one day he will cross the finish line of perfect spiritual maturity: “I don’t mean to say that I have already achieved these things or that I have already reached perfection. But I press on to possess that perfection for which Christ Jesus first possessed me. No, dear brothers and sisters, I have not achieved it, but I focus on this one thing: Forgetting the past and looking forward to what lies ahead, I press on to reach the end of the race and receive the heavenly prize for which God, through Christ Jesus, is calling us” (Philippians 3:12–14, NLT).
Twice in the passage, Paul uses the expression I press on. In the original language, the verb translated as “press on” in verses 12 and 13 means “to carry out or participate in an activity, to pursue or follow after, to strive energetically for some purpose.” The apostle was actively participating in the process of knowing Christ in every facet of his life—in power and weakness (Philippians 3:10), in joy and suffering (Philippians 4:4; 2 Corinthians 4:10), in plenty or want (Philippians 4:12). The race he was running was not a passive, apathetic, or careless Christian walk. He was running to win. He urged the Corinthian believers, “Do you not know that in a race all the runners run, but only one gets the prize? Run in such a way as to get the prize” (1 Corinthians 9:24).
Paul wasn’t running aimlessly but with purpose in every step. He explained, “I am not just shadowboxing. I discipline my body like an athlete, training it to do what it should. Otherwise, I fear that after preaching to others I myself might be disqualified” (1 Corinthians 9:26–27, NLT). Paul was bound and determined to live for Christ with every fiber of his being (Philippians 1:21; Galatians 2:20; Acts 20:24). He was pursuing Jesus in an all-out effort to reach the culminating moment when he would stand before Him face to face and hear Him say: “Well done, good and faithful servant. . . . Enter into the joy of your master” (Matthew 25:23, ESV).
The goal of pressing on is not salvation. Jesus Christ secures our salvation for us (John 3:16; Hebrews 9:12; 1 Peter 1:18–19). If we are saved, our citizenship is in heaven, where our Savior awaits us (Philippians 3:20; 1 Corinthians 3:11–15). But we still have miles to go in working out our salvation while on earth (Philippians 2:12–13). “A sanctified dissatisfaction,” writes Warren Wiersbe, “is the first essential to progress in the Christian race” (The Bible Exposition Commentary, vol. 2, Victor Books, 1996, p. 88). Paul knew he had not arrived yet. Mature believers can honestly evaluate their spiritual condition and recognize their need to press on.
Peter describes the process of spiritual growth in 2 Peter 1:3–11. We come to know Jesus and become more like Him as we allow the Holy Spirit to work in our lives. We “make every effort to respond to God’s promises. Supplement [our] faith with a generous provision of moral excellence, and moral excellence with knowledge, and knowledge with self-control, and self-control with patient endurance, and patient endurance with godliness, and godliness with brotherly affection, and brotherly affection with love for everyone. The more [we] grow like this, the more productive and useful [we] will be in [our] knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ” (verses 5–8, NLT). The goal we press on to receive is the heavenly reward God has planned for us (see 1 Corinthians 3:11–15; Romans 8:17–18; Colossians 3:23–24).
With the words, “I press on,” Paul declares, “I will never give up.” He knows the Christian journey is best understood as a marathon, not a sprint. As determined followers of Jesus, we too must persevere in faith to grow toward spiritual maturity (Colossians 2:6–7; Colossians 1:23; Hebrews 6:1; 10:36–38). We long for the perfection that Christ died to provide for us, but we realize we won’t attain it until the future resurrection. In the meantime, like soldiers, we “don’t get tied up in the affairs of civilian life,” and like athletes, we run to “win the prize,” pleasing our heavenly Father and staying on course to receive our reward (2 Timothy 2:4–5, NLT).
Another New Testament word, agorazein (and its cognates), is used to express the costly nature of God’s redemptive work in Christ (1 Corinthians 6:20; Galatians 4:5). Redemption cost Jesus, our Redeemer, everything: “Christ has rescued us from the curse pronounced by the law. When he was hung on the cross, he took upon himself the curse for our wrongdoing. For it is written in the Scriptures, ‘Cursed is everyone who is hung on a tree’” (Galatians 3:13, NLT; see also 1 Corinthians 7:22–24).
Christ paid the ransom to secure our freedom from sin and death with His own precious blood
(Acts 20:28; Ephesians 1:7; Hebrews 9:12–14; 13:11–12; Revelation 1:5; 5:9–10).
The apostle Peter testified,
“For you know that it was not with
perishable things
such as
silver or gold that you were
redeemed
from the empty way of life
handed down
to you from your ancestors,
but with
the precious blood of Christ,
a lamb without blemish or defect”
(1 Peter 1:18–19).
Throughout the Bible,
God’s work of redemption
points to Jesus
as the
supreme Redeemer of humanity
(Isaiah 63:16).
Christ is the fulfillment of Scripture’s redemptive theme
(Romans 3:25).
Although our sins separated us from God, the Father, in His love and mercy, sanctioned the ultimate rescue mission by sending His Son to be our Redeemer. Christ gave His life so we might live (John 3:16; 10:10–11). Believers are “justified by his blood” and “saved from God’s wrath through him!” (Romans 5:9). We are forgiven and cleansed from our sins (Matthew 26:28; Hebrews 9:14; Ephesians 1:7; Colossians 1:14; 1 John 1:7), released from guilt and condemnation (Hebrews 9:14; Romans 5:9; 8:1–2), and restored to fellowship with God (1 John 1:6–9; Romans 5:10; Ephesians 2:13; Colossians 1:19–22; Ephesians 2:14). Jesus our Redeemer sets us free from evil forces and powers of darkness in the world (Acts 26:18; Colossians 1:13; 2:20; Galatians 1:4) and rescues us from the “the terrors of the coming judgment” (1 Thessalonians 1:10; 5:9).
The apostle Paul explains that our complete redemption will be experienced in the future.
Right now, we have
“the Holy Spirit within us as a foretaste of future glory”
as we
“wait with eager hope for the day when God will give us our full rights as his adopted children,
including the new bodies he has promised us”
(Romans 8:23, NLT).
In the eternal state, we will enjoy
every glorious aspect
of the spiritual
inheritance God has promised
to His people
(Ephesians 1:14; Romans 8:17–18; 1 Peter 1:3–5).
Oh, what a Redeemer we have in Jesus!
May we always remember and rejoice
in the
deliverance and freedom He supplies.
The Bible describes humility as meekness, lowliness, and absence of self. The Greek word translated “humility” in Colossians 3:12 and elsewhere literally means “lowliness of mind,” so we see that humility is a heart attitude, not merely an outward demeanor. One may put on an outward show of humility but still have a heart full of pride and arrogance. Jesus said that those who are “poor in spirit” would have the kingdom of heaven (Matthew 5:3). Being poor in spirit means that only those who admit to an absolute bankruptcy of spiritual worth will inherit eternal life. Therefore, humility is a prerequisite for the Christian.
When we come to Christ as sinners, we must come in humility. We acknowledge that we are paupers and beggars who come with nothing to offer Him but our sin and our need for salvation. We recognize our lack of merit and our complete inability to save ourselves. Then when He offers the grace and mercy of God, we accept it in humble gratitude and commit our lives to Him and to others. We “die to self” so that we can live as new creations in Christ (2 Corinthians 5:17). We never forget that He has exchanged our worthlessness for His infinite worth, and our sin for His righteousness. The life we now live, we live by faith in the Son of God who loved us and gave Himself for us (Galatians 2:20). That is true humility.
Biblical humility is not only necessary to enter the kingdom, it is also necessary to be great in the kingdom (Matthew 20:26-27). Here Jesus is our model. Just as He did not come to be served, but to serve, so must we commit ourselves to serving others, considering their interests above our own (Philippians 2:3). This attitude precludes selfish ambition, conceit, and the strife that comes with self-justification and self-defense. Jesus was not ashamed to humble Himself as a servant (John 13:1-16), even to death on the cross (Philippians 2:8). In His humility, He was always obedient to the Father and so should the humble Christian be willing to put aside all selfishness and submit in obedience to God and His Word. True humility produces godliness, contentment, and security.
God has promised to give grace to the humble, while He opposes the proud (Proverbs 3:34; 1 Peter 5:5). Therefore, we must confess and put away pride. If we exalt ourselves, we place ourselves in opposition to God who will, in His grace and for our own good, humble us. But if we humble ourselves, God gives us more grace and exalts us (Luke 14:11).
Along with Jesus,
Paul is also to be our example of humility.
In spite of the great
gifts and understanding he had received,
Paul saw himself
as the
“least of the apostles” and the “chief of sinners”
(1 Timothy 1:15; 1 Corinthians 15:9).
Like Paul, the truly humble will
glory in the
grace of God and in the cross,
not in self-righteousness
That probably made Paul
more confident
in childlike faith than being
childlike,
with a Faith that great
and commitment to delivering
the message,
he had greater goals in mind
(Philippians 3:3-9).
Mary’s Song
And Mary said:
“My soul glorifies the Lord
47 and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior,
48 for he has been mindful
of the humble state of his servant.
From now on all generations will call me blessed,
49 for the Mighty One has done great things for me--
holy is his name.
50 His mercy extends to those who fear him,
from generation to generation.
51 He has performed mighty deeds with his arm;
he has scattered those who are proud in their inmost thoughts.
52 He has brought down rulers from their thrones
but has lifted up the humble.
53 He has filled the hungry with good things
but has sent the rich away empty.
54 He has helped his servant Israel,
remembering to be merciful
55 to Abraham and his descendants forever,
just as he promised our ancestors.”
Thankfulness is a prominent Bible theme.
First Thessalonians 5:16-18 says, “Be joyful always; pray continually; give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.” Did you catch that? Give thanks in all circumstances. Thankfulness should be a way of life for us, naturally flowing from our hearts and mouths.
Digging into the Scriptures a little more deeply, we understand why we should be thankful and also how to have gratitude in different circumstances.
Psalm 136:1 says, “Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good. His love endures forever.” Here we have two reasons to be thankful: God’s constant goodness and His steadfast love. When we recognize the nature of our depravity and understand that, apart from God, there is only death (John 10:10; Romans 7:5), our natural response is to be grateful for the life He gives.
Psalm 30 gives praise to God for His deliverance. David writes, “I will exalt you, O Lord, for you lifted me out of the depths and did not let my enemies gloat over me. O Lord my God, I called to you for help, and you healed me. O Lord, you brought me up from the grave; you spared me from going down into the pit. . . . You turned my wailing into dancing; you removed my sackcloth and clothed me with joy, that my heart may sing to you and not be silent. O Lord my God, I will give you thanks forever” (Psalm 30:1-12). Here David gives thanks to God following an obviously difficult circumstance. This psalm of thanksgiving not only praises God in the moment but remembers God’s past faithfulness. It is a statement of God’s character, which is so wonderful that praise is the only appropriate response.
We also have examples of being thankful in the midst of hard circumstances. Psalm 28, for example, depicts David’s distress. It is a cry to God for mercy, protection, and justice. After David cries out to God, he writes, “Praise be to the Lord, for he has heard my cry for mercy. The Lord is my strength and my shield; my heart trusts in him, and I am helped. My heart leaps for joy, and I will give thanks to him in song” (Psalm 28:6-7). In the midst of hardship, David remembers who God is and, as a result of knowing and trusting God, gives thanks. Job had a similar attitude of praise, even in the face of death: “The LORD gave and the LORD has taken away; may the name of the LORD be praised” (Job 1:21).
There are examples of believers’ thankfulness in the New Testament as well. Paul was heavily persecuted, yet he wrote, “Thanks be to God, who always leads us in triumphal procession in Christ and through us spreads everywhere the fragrance of the knowledge of him” (2 Corinthians 2:14). The writer of Hebrews says,
“Therefore, since we are receiving a kingdom that cannot be shaken, let us be thankful, and so worship God acceptably with reverence and awe” (Hebrews 12:28).
Peter gives a reason to be thankful for “grief and all kinds of trials,” saying that, through the hardships, our faith “may be proved genuine and may result in praise, glory and honor when Jesus Christ is revealed” (1 Peter 1:6-7).
The people of God are thankful people, for they realize how much they have been given.
One of the characteristics of the last days is a lack of thanksgiving, according to 2 Timothy 3:2.
Wicked people will be “ungrateful.”
We should be thankful because God is worthy of our thanksgiving.
It is only right to credit Him for “every good and perfect gift” He gives
(James 1:17).
When we are thankful, our focus moves off selfish desires
and off the pain of current circumstances.
Expressing thankfulness helps us remember that
God is in control.
Thankfulness, then, is not only appropriate; it is actually
healthy and beneficial to us.
It reminds us of the bigger picture, that we belong to God,
and that we have been blessed with every spiritual blessing
(Ephesians 1:3).
Truly, we have an abundant life (John 10:10),
and gratefulness is fitting.
The kingdom of heaven is like a mustard seed, which
a man took and planted in his field.
Though it is the smallest of all your seeds, yet when it grows,
it is the largest of garden plants and becomes a tree,
so that the birds of the air come and perch in its branches
Like a cup of water in the summer desert, that may have been when
believers inherited a strategic leap
You’ll soon See a regenerative understanding of the cost of Redemption,
humility that increases growth, zeal for true knowledge of God,
Strong Doctrine and thoughtful ability to analyze the full scope of the Message,
Fair and constructive judgement, Perseverance in commitment to Truth,
An exponential Fountain of Spiritual Growth
Genuine Commitment to Grace, and a truly authentic reverence for the faith
"Then Samuel took the horn of oil and anointed him in the midst of his brothers; and the Spirit of the LORD came mightily upon David from that day forward. And Samuel arose and went to Ramah" (1 Sam 16:13).
The story of God's choice of David to rule over his people is not only rich in allusions to the story of Joseph, who himself happens to be a prefiguration of Moses (a Hebrew slave, rejected by his brothers, named by Egyptians, mistaken for Egyptians by their dress, marries the daughter of a Gentile priest, has two sons, becomes ruler over his people, etc.), but also contains an allusion to two other incredibly significant texts in the Torah. According to 1 Samuel 16:13, David is anointed "in the midst of his brothers." This exact phrase and a very close variant of it are used in only two other passages in Scripture: Deuteronomy 17 and Deuteronomy 18.
In Deuteronomy 17, it is used concerning the choosing of Israel's king. "You shall surely set a king over you whom the LORD your God chooses, one FROM THE MIDST OF HIS BROTHERS you shall set as king over yourselves" (Deut 17:15a). In Deuteronomy 18, it is used concerning the tribe of Levi (Deut 18:2), and also about the promise of a prophet like Moses: "I will raise up a prophet FROM THE MIDST OF HIS BROTHERS like you, and I will put My words in his mouth, and he shall speak to them all that I command him" (Deut 18:18).
Consider for a moment the potency of these tiny allusions to Deuteronomy 17-18: the author paints a portrait of David using all the key colors associated with Israel's Messiah. The Messiah will be Israel's King of kings, Israel's Highest Priest, and a Prophet like Moses. When we consider the parallels between God's choice of David over his older brothers with Joseph earlier in this chapter, we also see David as a picture of Israel's suffering servant (compare 1 Sam 16:11 with Gen 37:2).
Friends, the plot-structure of the Hebrew Bible is like a gently flowing river. When we willingly go with its flow, the river of redemption leads every truth seeking reader to the King, High Priest, Prophet, and Suffering Servant whom God sent to redeem and rule over the world!
Ark of the Covenant
One for Israel Ministry, Itown Church- Son of David,
Northview Church- Son of Abraham, Heartland Church- Son of Abraham,
ARC, Church of the Highlands,, Chicago City Church, Grace Church
Faith and Belief
(James 2:14–26)
O foolish Galatians! Who has bewitched you? Before your very eyes Jesus Christ was clearly portrayed as crucified. I would like to learn just one thing from you: Did you receive the Spirit by works of the law, or by hearing with faith?
Are you so foolish? After starting in the Spirit, are you now finishing in the flesh? Have you suffered so much for nothing, if it really was for nothing? Does God lavish His Spirit on you and work miracles among you because you practice the law, or because you hear and believe?
So also, “Abraham believed God, and it was credited to him as righteousness.” Understand, then, that those who have faith are sons of Abraham. The Scripture foresaw that God would justify the Gentiles by faith, and foretold the gospel to Abraham: “All nations will be blessed through you.” So those who have faith are blessed along with Abraham, the man of faith.
Christ Has Redeemed Us
All who rely on works of the law are under a curse. For it is written: “Cursed is everyone who does not continue to do everything written in the Book of the Law.”Now it is clear that no one is justified before God by the law, because, “The righteous will live by faith.” The law, however, is not based on faith; on the contrary, “The man who does these things will live by them.”
Christ redeemed us from the curse of the law by becoming a curse for us. For it is written: “Cursed is everyone who is hung on a tree.” He redeemed us in order that the blessing promised to Abraham would come to the Gentiles in Christ Jesus, so that by faith we might receive the promise of the Spirit.
In Romans 1:16–17,
Paul reaches the high point of his introductory greeting to the church in Rome: “For I am not ashamed of this Good News about Christ. It is the power of God at work, saving everyone who believes—the Jew first and also the Gentile. This Good News tells us how God makes us right in His sight. This is accomplished from start to finish by faith. As the Scriptures say, ‘It is through faith that a righteous person has life’
Nothing mattered more to Paul than fulfilling God’s will for his life, which was to preach the good news of salvation. Without the good news of the gospel, and without the power that is the gospel, there can be no salvation, no freedom from sin, no redemption, and no life. The power of the gospel is the theme of Paul’s letter to the Romans and the ambition of his life.
Paul writes with full knowledge that the church in Rome is facing persecution and suffering under Roman oppression. Many of the believers there are experiencing humiliation and shame because of their faith in Christ. Paul wants them to be assured that the worldly power of Rome cannot hold a candle to the mighty power of God—the gospel of Jesus Christ. That gospel is God’s limitless power directed toward the salvation of men and women. For every person who believes, whether Jew or Gentile, man or woman, black or white, the gospel effectively becomes the saving power of God.
Paul tells the Roman Christians
that
“In THE GOSPEL
the
Righteousness of God
is revealed”
(Romans 1:17)
Righteousness
is thus a complete and
total work of God.
Humans
tend to view righteousness
as something
we can achieve
by our
own merit or actions.
But the righteousness of God
is different.
It is a right standing before God that
has nothing to do
with human accomplishment
or worth.
It is received by faith.
There is nothing we can do
to deserve or earn it.
Whether we are brand-new followers of Christ or seasoned, mature believers who have walked with the Lord for many years, we must trust God “from start to finish” and rely on His mighty power—the power of the gospel—to change our lives and the lives of those we encounter.
The Bible has a lot to say about perseverance in several different contexts.
Clearly, the Scriptures teach that those
who
overcome” and persevere in
the faith
will inherit eternal life
(Revelation 2:7).
This truth is also expressed in Colossians 1:23 where we see that people will be holy, blameless, and above reproach “if they continue in the faith, grounded and steadfast, and are not moved away from the hope of the gospel.” So all Christians should be in agreement that those who are ultimately saved are those who do
persevere and continue to believe the gospel.
We are “born again” by the Holy Spirit,
which results in
our coming to faith in Christ.
All who have been “born again” do have eternal security and will persevere. The doctrine of the perseverance of the saints is founded in the promise that “he who began a good work in you will bring it to completion at the day of Jesus Christ” (Philippians 1:6) and Jesus’ declaration that “all that the Father gives me will come to me” and “I shall lose none of them that he has given me”
(John 6:37, 39).
Beyond the concept of perseverance in regard to salvation, there are biblical exhortations to persevere in the Christian life. In his pastoral epistles to Timothy, the apostle Paul reminds the young pastor to “watch your life and doctrine closely. Persevere in them, because if you do, you will save both yourself and your hearers” (1 Timothy 4:16). Timothy’s character was that of a godly man, and his doctrine was sound and scriptural. Paul warned him to watch them both closely and persevere in them because—and this is a warning to all Christians—perseverance in godly living and believing the truth always accompany genuine conversion
(John 8:31; Romans 2:7).
Further exhortations to persevere in the Christian life come from James, who warns us to be “doers of the word and not hearers only” because those who hear but do not do are “deceiving themselves.” “But he who looks into the perfect law of liberty and continues in it [perseveres]…this one will be blessed in what he does” (James 1:22-25). The sense here is that the Christian who perseveres in godliness and the spiritual disciplines will be blessed in the very act of persevering.
The more we
persevere in the Christian life,
the more
God grants His blessings upon us,
thereby
enabling us to continue to persevere.
The psalmist
reminds us that there is great reward
in persevering in the Christian life.
In keeping God’s
commandments,
there is “great reward” for our souls
(Psalm 19:11),
peace of mind, a clear conscience,
and a witness to the
world more eloquent than many words.
James also exhorts
us to persevere “under trials”
because
those who do will be blessed
and will receive
the “crown of life” which God
has promised
(James 1:12).
Just as the true
believer will be eternally
secure in his salvation,
his faith will also
persevere
in affliction, sickness, persecution,
and the other trials
of life
that befall all believers.
If we desire
to live godly lives in Christ,
we will suffer persecution
(2 Timothy 3:12),
but the
faithful will persevere,
kept by the
Power of the Holy Spirit
who is the
guarantee of our salvation
and who will
keep us “strong to the end,”
persevering so we will
be
“blameless on the day
of our
Lord Jesus Christ”
(1 Corinthians 1:8).
The Purpose of the Law
(Romans 7:1–6)
Brothers, let me put this in human terms.
Even a human covenant,
once it is ratified,
cannot be canceled or amended.
The promises were spoken
to
Abraham and to his seed.
The Scripture does not say, “and to seeds,”
meaning many,
but “and
to your seed,” meaning
One,
who is Christ.
What I mean is this: The law that came 430 years later does
not revoke the covenant
previously established by God, so as to nullify the promise.
For if the inheritance depends on the law,
then it no longer depends on a promise;
but God freely granted it
to Abraham through a promise.
Why then was the law given?
It was added because of transgressions,
until the arrival of
the seed
to whom the promise referred.
It was
administered through angels
by a mediator.
A mediator is unnecessary, however, for only one party; but God is one.
Is the law, then, opposed to the promises of God? Certainly not!
For if a law had been given that could impart life,
then righteousness
would certainly have come from the law.
But the Scripture pronounces all things
confined by sin,
So that by Faith
in
Jesus Christ
The Promise Might
be Given
To Those who Believe
Before this
faith came, we were held in
custody under the law,
locked up until
faith should be revealed.
So the law
became our guardian to
lead us to Christ,
that we might be justified
by faith.
Now that faith has come,
we are
no longer under a guardian.
Sons through Faith in Christ
You are all sons of God
through
faith in Christ Jesus.
For all of you
who were baptized
into Christ have
clothed
yourselves with Christ.
There is neither
Jew nor Greek, slave nor free,
male nor female,
for you are all one
in Christ Jesus.
And if
YOU BELONG to Christ,
then YOU ARE
Abraham’s Seed and Heirs
according
to
The PROMISE
Future Glory
(2 Corinthians 5:1–10)
I consider that our present sufferings
are not comparable
to the glory
that will be revealed in us.
The creation waits in eager
expectation for the revelation of the
sons of God.
For the creation was subjected to futility,
not by its own will,
but because of the One who subjected it,
in hope that the creation itself
will be set free
from its bondage to decay and brought
into the glorious
freedom of the children of God.
We know that the whole creation has been groaning together in the pains of childbirth until the present time. Not only that, but we ourselves, who have the firstfruits of the Spirit, groan inwardly as we wait eagerly for our adoption as sons, the redemption of our bodies. For in this hope we were saved; but hope that is seen is no hope at all. Who hopes for what he can already see? But if we hope for what we do not yet see, we wait for it patiently.
In the same way, the Spirit helps us in our weakness. For we do not know how we ought to pray, but the Spirit Himself intercedes for us with groans too deep for words. And He who searches our hearts knows the mind of the Spirit, because the Spirit intercedes for the saints according to the will of God.
God Works in All Things
(Ephesians 1:3–14)
And we know that God works all things together for the good of those who love Him, who are called according to His purpose. For those God foreknew, He also predestined to be conformed to the image of His Son, so that He would be the firstborn among many brothers. And those He predestined, He also called; those He called, He also justified; those He justified, He also glorified.
What then shall we say in response to these things? If God is for us, who can be against us? He who did not spare His own Son but gave Him up for us all, how will He not also, along with Him, freely give us all things? Who will bring any charge against God’s elect? It is God who justifies. Who is there to condemn us? For Christ Jesus, who died, and more than that was raised to life, is at the right hand of God—and He is interceding for us.
More than Conquerors
(Psalm 44:1–26)
Who shall separate us from the
love of Christ?
Shall trouble or distress or
persecution or famine
or nakedness or danger or sword?
As it is written:
“For Your sake we face death all day long;
we are
considered as sheep to be slaughtered.”
No, in all these
things we are more than conquerors
through Him who loved us.
For I am convinced
that neither death nor life,
neither angels nor principalities,
neither the present nor the future,
nor any powers,
Neither height nor depth,
nor anything else in all creation,
will be able to separate us from
the love of God
that is in
Christ Jesus our Lord.
the whole counsel
of God
is found in Acts 20:27
In his farewell speech to
the elders
of the Ephesian church,
Paul says,
“Therefore
I testify to you this day
that I am
innocent of the blood of all,
for I did not shrink from
declaring to you
the whole counsel of God”
(Acts 20:26–27, ESV)
Declaring the whole counsel of God is what made Paul “innocent” of anyone’s choice to turn away from the truth. Paul had fulfilled his ministry among the Ephesians.
Paul spent several years in Ephesus prior to this speech. When he first arrived in Ephesus, Paul had found some disciples who had only heard of John the Baptist and did not yet know of the completed ministry of Jesus or the coming of the Holy Spirit. After bringing them up to speed by presenting Jesus to them, Paul baptized them “in the name of the Lord Jesus” (Acts 19:4–5). Paul then spent time teaching in the synagogue and, when he was opposed there, taught at the lecture hall, and “all the Jews and Greeks who lived in the province of Asia heard the word of the Lord” (Acts 19:10). Verse 20 says, “The word of the Lord spread widely and grew in power.” Later, a group of merchants in Ephesus started a riot over the positive impact of the gospel in their city. After the riot ended, Paul said goodbye to the disciples in Ephesus before going to Macedonia. Several months later, on his way to Jerusalem, Paul called the Ephesian elders to Miletus to meet with him. It is here that Paul reminds the Ephesians that he had “not hesitated to proclaim . . . the whole will of God” (Acts 20:27).
Paul shared “the whole counsel of God” (ESV) or “the whole will of God” (NIV) or “the whole purpose of God” (NASB) in that he spoke the complete gospel. He had given them the whole truth about God’s salvation. He also revealed to them the “mystery” of God (Ephesians 3:9), which in the context of Ephesians 3 is God’s extending His plan of salvation to Gentiles as well as Jews.
Despite the opposition Paul faced in Ephesus, he continued to share the good news in its entirety. He did not shrink back from his duty but proclaimed the whole counsel of God. He tells the Ephesian elders, “I served the Lord with great humility and with tears and in the midst of severe testing by the plots of my Jewish opponents. You know that I have not hesitated to preach anything that would be helpful to you but have taught you publicly and from house to house. I have declared to both Jews and Greeks that they must turn to God in repentance and have faith in our Lord Jesus” (Acts 20:19–21). Paul shared everything that God had revealed with everyone who would listen—and even some who wouldn’t.
Paul tells the Ephesian elders that, having given them the whole counsel of God, he is innocent if any of the Ephesians choose to turn away from Christ. Like the prophet Ezekiel, Paul had been a faithful watchman: “Son of man, I have made you a watchman for the people of Israel; so hear the word I speak and give them warning from me.”
(Ezekiel 3:17–19; cf. 33:1–9).
Paul emphasizes “the whole counsel of God” as a way to affirm the completion of his duties toward the Ephesians and to remind them of the truth. Paul warns, “I know that after I leave, savage wolves will come in among you and will not spare the flock. Even from your own number men will arise and distort the truth in order to draw away disciples after them. So be on your guard!” (Acts 20:29–31).
The whole counsel of God includes some things that are difficult to hear—the fact that we are dead in sin and deserving of God’s wrath (Ephesians 2:1–3) and the fact that we cannot save ourselves through works (Ephesians 2:8–9). The gospel is a call to repentance and faith. Believers will face persecution (John 16:33) and likely be considered foolish. But none of these things can dissuade us.
We should follow Paul’s example and also preach the whole counsel of God. All Scripture is inspired, and all of it is profitable (2 Timothy 3:16).
We must preach it in its entirety and allow the Holy Spirit to use His sword as He sees fit
(Ephesians 6:17).
Paul did not share
half-truths or only parts of
the gospel;
rather, he shared all of what
God has revealed.
We must do the same.
There is one body and one
Spirit,
just as
you were called
to one hope
when you were called;
one
Lord, one faith, one baptism;
one God and Father of all,
who is over
all and through all and in all.
The Word of Life
(Luke 24:36–49; John 20:19–23)
That which was from the beginning,
which we have heard,
which we have seen with our own eyes,
which we have
gazed upon and touched with our own hands--
this is the
Word of Life
And this is the life that
was revealed;
we have seen it and testified to it,
and we
proclaim to you the eternal life
that was with
the Father and was revealed
to us.
We proclaim to you what we have
seen and heard,
so that you
also may have fellowship with us.
And this
fellowship
of ours is with the Father
and
with His Son, Jesus Christ.
We write
these things so that our
joy may be complete.
Walking in the Light
(John 8:12–29)
And this is the message
we have heard
from
Him and announce to you:
God is light,
and in Him
there is no darkness at all.
If we say
we have fellowship with Him yet
walk in the darkness,
we lie
and do not practice the
truth.
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 cleanses us from all sin.
If we say we
have no sin, we deceive ourselves,
and
the truth is not in us.
If we confess our sins,
He is faithful and just to forgive
us our sins and
to cleanse us
from all unrighteousness.
If we say we have not sinned,
we make Him out to be a liar,
and
His word is not in us.
Romans has the theme
of faith
(Romans 1:16–17).
Paul addresses the process
by which
faith is
produced in the heart
in Romans 10:17:
“Faith
comes from hearing the
message,
and the message
is heard
through the word about
Christ.”
The first eight chapters of Romans contends with
the ideas of positional
salvation through faith
(Romans 1:18—5:21),
the process of growing in holiness
through faith
(Romans 6:1—8:17),
and the future
glorification Christians will
receive
because of faith
(Romans 8:18–39).
Chapters 9—11 of Romans works from the implied question,
“Has God then failed to fulfill His promises
to Israel?”
It is within this context that Paul gives the reason
for the Israelites
’ lack of salvation; namely, they lack faith
(Romans 9:32; 10:4).
The Israelites are saved through faith in Christ,
just like the Gentiles.
Eternal salvation
does not
distinguish
between Gentile or Jew but
is received through belief
in the person
and work of Jesus Christ
(Romans 10:12–13; 1 Corinthians 15:1–8; Galatians 3:23–29).
In the lead-up to
the statement that faith comes by hearing,
Romans 10:14–16 explains the
requirements for a series of actions to take place.
In order for one
to “call on the name of the Lord,”
he or she must believe.
In order to believe, one must hear (or receive the report).
In order for one to hear, another has to give the report.
And that other won’t give the report unless he or she is sent.
Paul continues in Romans 10:17 to summarize the argument thus far:
“So faith comes from hearing, and hearing by the word of Christ”
(NASB).
“Faith” is translated from the Greek word pistis, which means
“belief, trust, or confidence in someone or something.”
It is key to the book of Romans and is used
40
times in the book--
three of those occurrences appearing
in chapter 10.
The verb form of the word is also used
21
times within
the book and most often translated
as “believe.”
If faith comes by hearing, then what does Paul mean by “hearing”?
In this context, it is not simply the physical receiving of sounds by the ear as most English speakers would understand the term. “Hearing” seems to designate something more--the receiving or acceptance of a report.
Note the use of the word, translated “message” in Romans 10:16, as Paul quotes
Isaiah 53:1: “Lord, who has believed our message?”
In Isaiah’s day, the Lord had provided Israel with a message, but the prophet laments
that few actually received it.
The “hearing” was not attached to simple
sounds but
to a message or report given.
In Romans 10,
Paul makes the point that the
good news
has been given and the people of Israel
have heard
(Romans 10:18).
The nature of the gospel is
a report:
a report of God saving people from
the wrath they deserve.
In order to believe the report, one must
receive the report!
Faith comes by hearing.
It is not a
guarantee that the report will
result in faith,
as Paul makes clear in Romans 10:16.
For just as the Israelites
refused to
believe the message of Isaiah,
every human today
can refuse to
believe the message of
THE GOSPEL
Faith that leads
to eternal salvation comes after
“hearing”; that is,
after
receiving this message concerning
Christ.
One type of
forgiveness accomplishes a reconciliation
between two parties.
The other type of forgiveness does
not accomplish reconciliation.
For example, God’s forgiveness of the believer
results
in reconciliation
between the believer and God.
Second Corinthians 5:18–19 says that
God “reconciled us to himself through Christ. . . .
God was
reconciling the world to himself
in Christ,
not counting people’s sins against
them.”
When we are saved,
God cancels the debt we owed
and restores our relationship.
In Christ we now have
a favorable relationship
with God
and are accounted His children
(1 John 3:1).
But the Bible also reveals a type of forgiveness that does not lead to reconciliation.
On the cross, Jesus prayed,
“Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they are doing”
(Luke 23:34).
But not everyone present at Golgotha that day
was reconciled to God.
Jesus prayed that they would be forgiven, but
no reconciliation resulted.
Was Jesus sincere in His prayer? Yes.
Was universal reconciliation the result?
No.
In the same way, Stephen, as he was being stoned to death,
prayed,
“Lord, do not hold this sin against them”
(Acts 7:60).
Stephen held no bitterness, and he forgave his murderers.
They were not reconciled to him,
but the type of forgiveness he extended did not require that.
We forgive others because we have
been forgiven by God.
We forgive because God commands
us to forgive.
We forgive because
we must not harbor bitterness in our hearts
(Hebrews 12:15)
or repay evil for evil
(1 Peter 3:9).
When we forgive, we reflect the heart of God,
who is patient and
“does not want anyone to be destroyed, but wants
everyone to repent”
(2 Peter 3:9, NLT).
Our Lord takes no
“pleasure in the death of the wicked”
but is
“pleased when
they turn from their ways and live”
(Ezekiel 18:23).
The fact that reconciliation
does not
always follow forgiveness means
that
the restoration of trust is not automatic.
It is wrong to think that forgiving
an abusive spouse today means the
separation
should end tomorrow.
Scripture gives
us many
reasons to distrust those who have
proved
themselves untrustworthy
(see Luke 16:10–12).
Rebuilding trust can only
begin after
a process of reconciliation,
and, as we’ve seen,
reconciliation does not always proceed
from forgiveness.
God’s solution for slander is to love
each other
(John 13:34).
We don’t slander people whom we love
(1 Corinthians 13:4–7).
Love wants the best for others,
and that means
guarding their reputations as
we do our own
(Matthew 7:12)
. “Love does no harm to a neighbor.
Therefore love is the fulfillment
of the law”
(Romans 13:10).
When we focus
on obeying the Lord by loving
as He loves us,
slander will not tempt us.
Jesus’ words
“Father, forgive them,
for they do
not know what they are
doing”
are found in Luke 23:34.
Jesus looked down from the cross upon a scene that must
have been distressing to Him.
The Roman soldiers were gambling for His clothing
(John 19:23–24);
the criminals on the crosses to either side of Him were reviling Him
(Matthew 27:44);
the religious leaders were mocking Him
(Matthew 27:41–43);
and the crowd was blaspheming Him
(Matthew 27:39).
Surrounded by this most unworthy
lot,
Jesus prayed for them.
“Father, forgive them” is a prayer of unmatched
mercy and love.
When seeking what we can learn from the
thief on the cross,
it should be remembered that at the time
of Jesus’ crucifixion,
two thieves were crucified beside Him
(Luke 23:33–43),
and both began their time on the cross by
mocking and blaspheming Him
(Matthew 27:44; Mark 15:32),
as did many of the spectators.
One of the thieves responded in faith to the
message of salvation
and was taken to paradise that very day.
He is the one
usually referred to as the thief on the cross.
The man on the cross
on the other side of Jesus never repented,
as far as we know.
So, at Calvary we have a picture
of the two possible
responses
people can have to the Savior.
It is remarkable that, while in the excruciating and mind-numbing torment of the cross, the Son of Man had the heart, mind, and will to pray for others. Yet it is a miracle that one thief, while in agony himself, heard the Spirit of God call him to repentance and acceptance of the forgiveness God was just about to provide through the death of Christ. While the disciples were abandoning the Lord, this man answered the call, and his sins were forgiven, including his blasphemy against the Son of God
(Luke 5:31-32, 12:8–10).
That the other thief rejected Jesus is remarkable in its own right. While being tortured on the cross he literally joined his torturers in insulting the Savior of the world, and he most likely did so because he wanted his torturers to think he was just like them, joined to the world and with no love for God
(Matthew 27:44).
Not only was this man next to the Savior, he heard Him pray, he witnessed the salvation of the other thief, he saw the world go dark, and he heard the testimony of the Son. But his pride kept him from submitting to the only One who could save him, and when he one day bows to the Name he mocked, he will be doing so reluctantly and while in torment
(Philippians 2:10).
What we learn from the saved thief on the cross
is that
we are all sinners in need of a Savior,
and no matter
the number of our sins and no matter if we,
or the world,
think our sins are minor or extreme,
it is never too late
to repent and accept the
free gift of salvation
(Ephesians 2:8–9; Revelation 22:17).
Moreover, as long as someone still has a
mind and the will
to choose life over death
(Hebrews 9:27),
it is not too late to proclaim
the gospel,
which hopefully will open a heart
to a miracle
by the Holy Spirit.
Reconciliation necessarily involves
change.
In Christian
reconciliation, God does
not change.
He remains perfect.
But He changes us.
As a result, our relationship with Him changes.
The means God
used to reconcile us to Himself was
His own Son, Jesus Christ:
“All this is from God, who reconciled us to
himself through Christ
and gave us the ministry of reconciliation:
that God was reconciling the world to
himself in Christ,
not counting men’s sins against them”
(2 Corinthians 5:18–19).
In fact, it was “while we were God’s enemies [that]
we were
reconciled to him through the death of his Son”
(Romans 5:10).
Jesus’ death makes all the difference.
When Christ died,
He was “making peace through his blood, shed on the cross”
(Colossians 1:20).
Jesus Christ’s death on the cross
is the basis
of our forgiveness and justification.
By grace through faith in His Son,
God thoroughly remakes us into the image of Christ.
God and man are brought together:
the formerly dead in sin are raised to new life.
“We are no longer enemies, ungodly, sinners, or powerless.
Instead, the love of God
has been poured out in our hearts through the Holy Spirit
whom he has given to us (Romans 5:5).
It is a change in the total state of our lives”
The grace and goodness
of God
are on full display
in Christian reconciliation.
“You were his enemies, separated from him by your evil thoughts and actions. Yet now he has reconciled you to himself through the death of Christ in his physical body. As a result, he has brought you into his own presence, and you are holy and blameless as you stand before him without a single fault”
(Colossians 1:21–22, NLT).
As those who have been reconciled to God,
we have been given
“the ministry of reconciliation”
(2 Corinthians 5:18).
We have been entrusted with “the message of reconciliation”
(verse 19).
We now take the gospel to a dying world, saying,
“We implore you on behalf
of Christ,
be reconciled to God”
(verse 20, ESV).
Jesus’ perfect sacrifice
on the
cross has made
atonement for sin
(Hebrews 2:17)
. By His death,
He brought harmony to our relationship
with God.
We plead with the unsaved to
have faith in Christ
and know the joys
of
Christian reconciliation.
doctrine is teaching
imparted by an
authoritative source.
The Bible says of itself that it
is “profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness”
(2 Timothy 3:16).
We are to be careful about what we believe and present
as truth.
First Timothy 4:16 says,
“Watch your life and doctrine
closely.
Persevere in them, because if you do,
you will save
both yourself and your hearers.”
Biblical doctrine helps us
understand the will of God for
our lives.
Biblical doctrine teaches us
the nature and the character of God
(Psalm 90:2; 97:2; John 4:24),
the path of salvation through faith
(Ephesians 2:8–9; Romans 10:9–10),
instruction for the church
(1 Corinthians 14:26; Titus 2:1–10),
and God’s standard of holiness
for our lives
(1 Peter 1:14–17; 1 Corinthians 6:18–20).
When we accept the Bible as God’s Word to us
2 Timothy 3:16; 2 Peter 1:20–21
we have a solid foundation for
our doctrine.
There can be disagreement within the
body of Christ
over
secondary points of doctrine,
such as
eschatology, church organization, or the
gifts of the Holy Spirit.
But truly biblical doctrine is that which
incorporates
the “whole counsel of God”
(Acts 20:27)
and draws
conclusions based on that which seems
most closely aligned
with the
character of our unchanging God
(Numbers 23:19; Hebrews 13:8)
However, the Bible is not always
the foundation
upon which people or
churches
build their doctrinal statements.
Our sinful natures
do not easily submit to God’s decrees,
so we often
pick and choose the parts of the Bible
we are
comfortable with and discard the rest.
Or we replace what God
says with a man-made doctrine or tradition.
This is nothing new.
Jesus rebuked the scribes and Pharisees for
“teaching as
doctrines the commandments
of men”
(Mark 7:7, ESV; cf. Isaiah 29:13).
False doctrine
was
rampant in New Testament times,
and the
Scriptures tell us it will continue
(Matthew 7:15; 2 Peter 2:1; 1 John 4:1). Second Timothy 4:3 says,
“For the time will come
when people 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.”
The Bible gives stern warning
to those
who would
teach false or incomplete doctrine
simply because it is
more
compatible with man’s ideas.
First Timothy 6:3–4 says,
“If anyone teaches
a different doctrine and does not agree
with the sound words
of our Lord Jesus Christ and the teaching
that accords with godliness,
he is puffed up
with conceit and understands nothing.”
The apostle Paul
wrote harsh words about perverting
the gospel with false doctrine:
“Evidently some people are throwing you
into confusion and are
trying to
pervert the gospel of Christ.
But even if we or
an angel
from heaven should
preach a gospel
other than the one
we preached to you,
let them be under God’s curse! As we have already said, so now I say again:
If anybody is preaching to you a gospel
other than what you accepted, let them be under God’s curse!
”(Galatians 1:7–9).
Doctrine is the worldview by which
we govern our lives.
If our
doctrine is based soundly upon
Scripture,
we can know we are
walking in
the path
God designed for us.
However, if we do not study the Word of God for ourselves
(2 Timothy 2:15),
we are led more easily into error.
Although there are a variety of minor issues upon which Christians disagree,
true doctrine is clearer than many imply.
Second Peter 1:20 says that
“no prophecy of Scripture is a matter of one’s own interpretation.”
There is a right interpretation of everything God says, and it
is our job to discern that meaning,
not create an interpretation to suit our tastes.
God wants us to know
His heart
and has given us His Word
upon
which we can build godly lives
(see Matthew 7:24).
The more we study true doctrine,
the more we
understand God and ourselves.
Ask, Seek, Knock
(Luke 11:5–13)
Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and the door will be opened to you.
For everyone who asks receives; he who seeks finds; and to him who knocks, the door will be opened.
Which of you, if his son asks for bread, will give him a stone? Or if he asks for a fish, will give him a snake?
so if you who are evil know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will
your Father in heaven give good things to those who ask Him!
In everything, then, do to others as you would have them do to you.
For this is the essence of the Law and the Prophets.
The Narrow Gate
(Luke 13:22–30)
Enter through the narrow gate. For wide is the gate and broad is the way that leads to destruction,
and many enter through it.
But small is the gate and narrow the way that leads to life, and only a few find it.
The Authority of Jesus
when Jesus
had finished saying these things,
the crowds
were astonished at His teaching,
Because He taught
as one
who had authority,
and
not as their scribes.
Don't cast your pearls
before swine” is a proverb
that means
don't waste good things
on people
who won't appreciate them.
It appears in the Bible in Matthew 7:6
God Remains Faithful
What, then, is the advantage of being a Jew?
Or what is the value of circumcision?
Much in every way.
First of all,
they have been entrusted with the
very words of God.
What if some did not have faith?
Will their lack of faith
nullify
God’s faithfulness?
certainly not!
Let God be true and every man a liar.
As it is written:
“So that You may be proved right
when You speak
and
victorious when You judge.”
But if our unrighteousness
highlights the righteousness of God,
what shall we say?
That God is unjust to inflict His wrath
on us?
I am speaking in human terms.
Certainly not!
In that case,
how could God judge the world?
however,
if my falsehood accentuates
God’s truthfulness,
to the
increase of His glory,
why am I still condemned as a sinner?
why not say, as some slanderously
claim that
we say, “Let us do evil that good may result”?
Their condemnation is deserved!
Righteousness through Faith in Christ
(Philippians 3:1–11)
But now, apart from the law, the righteousness of God has been revealed, as attested by the Law and the Prophets. And this righteousness from God comes through faith in Jesus Christ to all who believe. There is no distinction, for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, and are justified freely by His grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus.
God presented Him as an atoning sacrifice in His blood through faith, in order to demonstrate His righteousness, because in His forbearance He had passed over the sins committed beforehand. He did this to demonstrate His righteousness at the present time, so as to be just and to justify the one who has faith in Jesus.
Where, then, is boasting? It is excluded.
On what principle?
On that of works? No, but on that of faith.
For we maintain that a man
is justified by
faith apart from works of the law.
Is God the God of Jews only?
Is He not
the God of Gentiles too?
Yes, of Gentiles too,
Since there is only one God, who will
justify the
circumcised by faith and the uncircumcised
through that same faith.
Do we, then, nullify the law by
this faith?
Certainly not!
Instead, we uphold the law.
First Corinthians 13:7
lists
four specific actions
that
love “always” performs.
The fourth and final one
is that
love “always perseveres”
or “endures all things”
(ESV).
There is a persistence to love,
even in the tough times.
The Greek word hupomenei
carries the
idea of “remaining” or “enduring.”
Love doesn’t quit or give up.
Love lasts.
The love spoken of in 1 Corinthians 13
is not a
fleeting romance or a fading feeling.
Instead, godly love always perseveres.
During good times and bad,
the love of God’s people endures
the challenges
of life and remains steadfast.
Jesus
modeled enduring love:
“Having loved his own who were
in the world,
he loved them to the end”
(John 13:1).
During His most difficult night,
He washed the feet of
His disciples
and prayed for them.
His love even endured
the cross
(Hebrews 12:2).
Earlier in his epistle, Paul had spoken to the Corinthian
believers
regarding endurance:
“When reviled, we bless; when persecuted, we endure”
(1 Corinthians 4:12, ESV).
Such perseverance in the face of opposition can
only come from
the love of God rooted in the heart.
Endurance for the sake of endurance is not the
point of this teaching.
It is endurance motivated by love for God
and others.
“If you suffer for doing good
and you endure it,
this is commendable before God”
(1 Peter 2:20).
We are called to endure for what is right.
We must show love
whether or not it is convenient or easy.
A person with God’s type of love will consistently seek what is best for his loved one.
There is no fair-weather friendship in love.
It’s not an on-again, off-again proposition,
but a commitment to always
seek the highest good, no matter what adversity befalls.
In the description of love in 1 Corinthians 13, we find four things that love “always” does.
Love is not just an
idea;
it is action
The third action listed is that
love “always hopes” (NIV) or “hopes all things”
(ESV).
It’s nice to know that love is hopeful, but what
exactly does this mean?
The Greek word translated “hope” is from elpidzo, meaning
“to hope or wait for salvation with
joy and full confidence.”
Used 32 times in the New Testament, this word expresses
more than a
wish or desire, but a confident belief in the unseen.
Hebrews 11:1 says,
“Faith is being sure of what we hope
for and
certain of what we do not see.”
Faith, hope, and love
are often intimately connected
in Scripture
(see 1 Corinthians 13:13).
In Colossians 1:4-5
we find
the same combination
of faith, hope, and love:
“We heard
of your faith in Christ Jesus
and of the love
that you have for all the saints,
because of the
hope
laid up for you in heaven”
(emphasis added).
Just as God is called “love” (1 John 4:8),
Jesus is called our “hope” (1 Timothy 1:1).
Hope not only concerns our belief in Christ but describes who He is to us. The hope within us is Christ Himself.
If He lives within us, His hope will be seen in how we treat others. Living with such an attitude reflects the way of Christ, leads to holy living, and brings glory to the Heavenly Father
(Matthew 5:17).
How many times
in the Old Testament did Israel
fail God?
Yet their failure was never final.
Love never says die.
Peter failed Jesus,
yet the Lord restored him.
The Corinthians failed
Paul in some ways, yet the apostle, in love,
patiently corrected
them and called them “sanctified”
(1 Corinthians 1:2).
Love always points to a brighter day ahead.
Love is the lifeline
that the hurting can hold on to.
If you have ever had a person believe in you and share a
hopeful attitude for your future,
then you have
experienced some of what 1 Corinthians 13:7 teaches.
As long as there is love, there will be hope.
The Greek word translated as “believes” is a form of the verb pisteuo, which means “to believe, place faith in, or trust.” The word is a common one, used 248 times in the New Testament. Many times, this word is found in contexts in which belief is an expression of love.
Those who love will always “believe” in the other person.
There is no second-guessing or questioning of whether
the person should be loved.
Love is simply given. It is unconditional.
The loved one
does not need to perform anything
or achieve
a certain goal in order to be loved.
Just as Christ
loves His children unconditionally,
He calls us to love others.
Love is based on who He is, not on
what others do.
Some scholars suggest this teaching of “love always trusts” is directly connected to Paul’s rebuke of lawsuits earlier in his letter. In chapter 6 we read of believers bringing lawsuits against one another in the local courts.
Love that “always trusts” would not do such a thing.
A person with God’s type of love will “always trust.” That is, he will not be suspicious of the one he loves.
If brothers and sisters in Christ would
believe
in one another,
setting suspicion aside and extending
unconditional love,
what a difference it would make
in the church!
When our focus is on Christ,
we can show His love to meet the
needs of others.
The final verse of 1 Corinthians 13 lists
three things
that will always remain:
faith (pistis), hope, and love.
The Christian need never be without
these gifts.
His nature is to believe and to love.
Unity in the Body
(Psalm 133:1–3; 1 Corinthians 1:10–17)
As a prisoner in the Lord,
then, I urge you to walk in a manner
worthy
of the calling you have received:
with all
humility and gentleness, with patience,
bearing with one
another in love, and with diligence to
preserve the unity
of the Spirit through the bond of peace.
There is one body and one Spirit,
just as you were
called to one hope when you were called;
one Lord, one faith,
one baptism; one God and Father of all,
who is over all and through all and in all.
Now to each one
of us grace has been given
according to
the measure of the gift of Christ.
This is why it says:
“When He ascended on high,
He led captives away,
and gave gifts to men.”
what does
“He ascended” mean,
except that He also descended
to the lower parts of the earth?
He who descended
is the very One who ascended
above all the heavens,
in order to fill all things.
And it was He who
gave some to be apostles,
some to
be prophets, some to be evangelists,
and some to be pastors and teachers,
To equip the saints for works of ministry
and to
build up the body of Christ,
Until we
all reach unity in the faith
and in the
knowledge of the Son of God,
as we mature to the
full measure of the stature of Christ.
Then we will no longer be infants,
tossed about by
the waves and carried around by
every wind of teaching and
by the clever
cunning of men in their deceitful scheming.
Instead, speaking the truth in love,
we will in all things grow up into Christ Himself,
who is the head.
From Him the whole body,
fitted and held together by every supporting
ligament, grows and builds itself up
in love through the work of each individual part.
Then Samuel said to Saul, 'The LORD sent me to anoint you as king over His people, over Israel; now therefore, listen to the words of the LORD. Thus says the LORD of hosts, "I will punish Amalek for what he did to Israel, how he set himself against him on the way while he was coming up from Egypt. Now go and strike Amalek and utterly destroy all that he has, and do not spare him; but put to death both man and woman, child and infant, ox and sheep, camel and donkey"'" (1 Sam 15:1-3).
God's command to strike down men, women, children, and animals is not an easy pill to swallow. These verses are easily manipulated to make the God of Israel look like Allah (God forbid). These verses can also be twisted out of context to justify blind hatred for all our enemies. However, my use of the words "manipulated" and "twisted" is intentionally chosen since 1 Samuel 15 is not a story unto itself. It is part of a book called "Samuel" (1-2 Samuel is one book), and Samuel is part of a larger story called the Former Prophets (Joshua—Kings), and the Former Prophets have also been intentionally joined to the Torah (Genesis—Deuteronomy) as a theological history which tells the story of God's choice of Israel to redeem the world.
This command to destroy the seed of Amalek, therefore, can only be adequately understood from the literary-theological perspective of Genesis 3:14-15, namely, the battle between the spiritual seed of the serpent and the physical seed of the woman (see Gen 6:1-8; 16:7; 25:18-19; Exod 17:14-16; Num 24:7; 1 Sam 15:7-8; 27:8). But this particular story aside, we must never forget that God's purpose for choosing the collective as well as the individual seed of Abraham was, is, and will always be God's plan to abolish the curse and bring blessing to Israel and to all the nations of the earth (Gen 12:1-3).
Our use of any verse in the Bible must always consider the context of that verse within the larger story. In other words, systematic theology must never be done without a serious commitment to biblical theology. And biblical theology reflects one's commitment to see how every verse finds its place in a story that ultimately leads us to every tribe, tongue, and nation standing before God's throne and praising him for his grace which he lavishes upon all who believe in Israel's Messiah.
"After these things I looked, and behold, a great multitude which no one could count, from every nation and all tribes and peoples and tongues, standing before the throne and before the Lamb, clothed in white robes, and palm branches were in their hands; and they cry out with a loud voice, saying, 'Salvation to our God who sits on the throne, and to the Lamb'" (Rev 7:9-10).
In My Father’s House
Are
Many Rooms
Do not let your hearts be troubled.
You believe
in God;
believe in Me
as well
In My
Father’s
house are many
rooms.
If it were not so,
would
I have told you that I am going there
to prepare a place for you?
3And if I go and prepare a place for you,
I will come back and welcome you
into My presence,
so that you also may be
where I am.
4You know the way to the place where
I am going.c”
The Way, the Truth, and the Life
5“Lord,” said Thomas,
“we do not know where You are going,
so how
can we know the way?”
6Jesus answered,
“I am the way and the truth
and the life.
No one comes
to the
Father except through
Me.
If you had known Me, you would know My Father as well.
From now on you do know Him and have seen Him.”
8Philip said to Him,
“Lord, show us the Father, and that will be enough for us.”
9Jesus replied,
“Philip,
I have been with you
all this time,
and still
you do not know Me?
Anyone who
has seen Me
has seen the Father.
How can you say, ‘
Show us the Father’?
Do you not believe that
I am in the Father
and the
Father is in Me?
The words I say to you, I do not speak
on My own. Instead, it is
the Father
dwelling in Me, performing
His works.
Believe Me that I am in
the Father and
the Father is in Me—or at least
believe on account
of the works themselves.
TRULY
, truly, I tell you, whoever believes in Me
will also do
the works that I am doing.
He will do even
greater things than these, because
I am going to the Father
.and I will do
whatever you ask in My name,
so that the Father
may be glorified in the Son.
If you ask Me for
anything in My name, I will do it.
Jesus Promises the Holy Spirit
(John 16:5–16)
If you love Me,
you will
keep My commandments.
And I will ask the Father,
and He will
give you another Advocate
to be with you forever—
The Spirit of truth.
The world cannot receive
Him,
because it neither
sees Him nor knows Him.
But you do know Him, for
He abides with
you and will be in you.
18I will not leave you as orphans; I will come to you. 19In a little while the world will see Me no more, but you will see Me. Because I live, you also will live. 20On that day you will know that I am in My Father, and you are in Me, and I am in you.21Whoever has My commandments and keeps them is the one who loves Me.
The one who loves Me
will be
loved by My Father,
and I will love him
and
reveal Myself to him.”
JUDAS (not Iscariot) asked Him
, “Lord, why are
You going to reveal Yourself to us
and not to the world?”
Jesus replied, “If anyone loves Me,
he will keep My word.
My Father will love him,
and We
will come to him and make
Our home with him.
WHOEVER does not
love Me
does not keep My words.
The word that you hear is
not My own,
but it is from the Father
who sent Me.
ALL this
I have spoken to you while
I am
still with you.
BUT the
Advocate, the Holy Spirit,
whom the Father will send in
My name,
will teach you all things
and will
remind you of everything
I have told you.
Peace I Leave with You
Peace I leave with you; My peace
I give to you.
I do not give to you as the
world gives.
Do not let your hearts be troubled;
do not be afraid.
You heard Me say,
‘I am going away, and I am coming
back to you.’
If you loved Me,
you would rejoice
that I am going to the Father,
because the
Father is greater than I.
And now I have
told you before it happens,
so that when it
does happen, you will believe.
30I will not speak with you much longer, for the prince of this world is coming, and he has no claim on Me. 31But I do exactly what the Father has commanded Me, so that the world may know that I love the Father.
Get up! Let us go on from here.
Paul’s Message by the Spirit’s Power
1When I came to you, brothers, I did not
come with
eloquence or wisdom
as I proclaimed to you the testimony
about God.
2For I resolved to know nothing while
I was with you
except Jesus Christ and Him
crucified.
3I came to you in weakness
and fear,
and with much trembling.
4My message
and
my preaching were not with
persuasive words of wisdom,
but
with a demonstration of
the Spirit’s power,
so that your faith would
not rest on mens
wisdom, but on God’s power.
Spiritual Wisdom
(Ephesians 1:15–23)
Among the mature, however,
we speak a
message of wisdom--
but not the
wisdom of this age or of
the rulers of this age, who are
coming to nothing.
No, we speak of the mysterious
and
hidden wisdom of God
which He destined for our glory
before time began.
None of the rulers of this age
understood it.
For if they
had, they would not have
crucified the Lord of glory.
Rather, as it is written:
“No eye has seen,
no ear has heard,
no heart has imagined,
what God has
prepared for those who love Him.”
but God has
revealed it to us by the Spirit.
The Spirit searches all things, even the deep things of God.
For who among men knows the thoughts of man
except his own spirit within him?
So too, no one knows
the thoughts of God except the Spirit of God.
We have not received the spirit of the world, but
the Spirit who is from God,
that we may
understand what God has freely given us.
And this is what we speak, not in words
taught us by human wisdom,
but in
words taught by the Spirit, expressing
spiritual truths in spiritual words.
The natural man does not accept the things that
come from the Spirit of God.
For they are foolishness to him, and he cannot
understand them,
because they are spiritually discerned.
The spiritual man judges all things, but he himself
is not subject to anyone’s judgment.
“For who has known the mind of the Lord, so as to
instruct Him?”
But we have the mind of Christ.
The Message of the Cross
Foe the message of the cross is foolishness
to those
who are perishing,
but to us who
are being saved it is the power of God.
For it is written:
“I will destroy the wisdom of the wise;
the intelligence
of the intelligent I will frustrate.”
where is the wise man? Where is the scribe?
Where is the philosopher of this age?
Has not God made foolish the wisdom
of the world?
For since in the wisdom of God
the world through its wisdom did not
know Him,
God was pleased through the foolishness
of what was
preached to save those who believe.
Jews demand signs and Greeks
search for wisdom,
but we preach Christ crucified,
a stumbling block to Jews
and foolishness to Gentiles,
but to those who are called, both
Jews and Greeks,
Christ the power of God and the
wisdom of God.
For the foolishness of God
is wiser than man’s wisdom,
and the weakness of God
is stronger than man’s strength.
Wisdom from God
Brothers, consider the time of
your calling:
Not many of you were wise
by human standards;
not many were powerful; not many
were of noble birth.
But God chose the foolish things
of the world
to shame the wise;
God chose the weak things of the world
to shame the strong.
He chose the lowly and despised
things of the world,
and the things that are not,
to nullify the things that are,
So that no one may boast in
His presence.
It is because of Him that you are
in Christ Jesus,
who has become for
us wisdom from God:
our righteousness, holiness,
and redemption.
Therefore, as it is written:
“Let him who boasts boast in the Lord.”
A great sign appeared in heaven:
a woman
clothed with the sun,
with the moon under her feet
and a crown of twelve stars
on her head.
She was pregnant and cried out
in pain as
she was about to give birth.
Then another sign appeared in heaven
: an enormous red dragon
with seven heads and ten horns and
seven crowns on its heads.
Its tail swept a third
of the stars out of the sky and
flung them to the earth.
The dragon stood in front of the
woman who
was about to give birth,
so that it might devour
her child the moment he was born.
She gave birth to a son, a male child, who
“will rule all the nations with an iron scepter.
And her child
was snatched up to God
and to his throne.
The woman fled into the wilderness
to a place prepared for
her by God,
where she might be taken care
of for 1,260 days.
Then war broke out in heaven.
Michael and his angels fought against
the dragon,
and the dragon
and his angels fought back.
But he was not strong enough,
and they lost their place in heaven.
The great dragon
was hurled down—that ancient
serpent
called the devil, or Satan,
who leads the whole world astray.
He was hurled to the earth, and
his angels with him.
Then I heard a loud voice
in heaven say:
“Now have come the salvation and
the power
and the
kingdom of our God,
and the
authority of his Messiah.
For the
accuser
of our brothers and sisters,
who accuses
them before our God
day and night,
has been hurled down.
They triumphed over him
by the blood of the Lamb
and by the
word of their testimony;
they did not love their lives
so much
as to shrink from death.
Therefore rejoice, you heavens
and you who dwell in them!
But woe to the earth and the sea,
because the
devil has gone down to you!
He is filled with fury,
because
he knows that his time is short.”
When the dragon saw
that he had been hurled to
the earth,
he pursued the woman
who had given birth to the
male child.
The woman was given the two
wings of a great eagle,
so that she might fly
to the place prepared for her
in the wilderness,
where she would be taken care
of for a time,
times and half a time,
out of the serpent’s reach.
Then from his mouth
the serpent
spewed water like a river,
to overtake the woman
and sweep
her away with the torrent.
But the earth helped the woman by opening its mouth and swallowing the river that the dragon had spewed out of his mouth.
Then the dragon was enraged at the woman and went off to wage war against the rest of her offspring—those who keep God’s commands and hold fast their testimony about Jesus.
Revelation 16:12–16 is
the record of what will happen
toward
the end of the tribulation,
when an angel pours out
the sixth bowl judgment
on the earth.
The word Armageddon
makes its
only appearance in the Bible
in this passage:
“The sixth angel poured out
his bowl
on the
great river Euphrates,
and its
water was dried up
to PREPARE the WAY
for the
kings from the East.
Then I saw three impure spirits
that
LOOKED like FROGS
they came out
of the
mouth of the DRAGON,
out of the mouth
of the beast and out of
the mouth
of the FALSE PROPHET
They are demonic spirits that
perform signs,
and they go out
to the kings
of the whole world,
to gather them for the
battle on
the great day of God Almighty. . . .
Then they gathered the
kings together
to the place that in Hebrew
is called Armageddon.”
In Revelation 19:11–20,
a final battle occurs at
Christ’s
second coming as the
conquering
Christ defeats the forces
of the Antichrist.
We take this to be a description
of the
Battle of Armageddon
mentioned in Revelation 16:
“I saw heaven standing open and there
before
me was a white horse,
whose rider is
called Faithful and True.
With justice he judges and wages war.
His eyes are like blazing fire,
and on his
head are many crowns.
He has a name written
on him
that no one knows but
he himself.
He is dressed
in a robe dipped in blood, and
his name
is the Word of God.
The armies
of heaven were following him,
riding on white horses
and dressed in fine linen,
white and clean. Coming out of his mouth
is a sharp sword
with which to strike down
the nations.
‘He will rule them with an iron scepter.’
He treads the winepress of the fury of the
wrath of God Almighty.
On his robe and on his thigh he
has this name written:
KING OF KINGS AND LORD OF LORDS.
“And I saw an angel standing
in the sun,
who cried in a
loud voice
to all the birds flying
in midair,
‘Come,
gather together for
the great
supper of God,
so that you may eat the flesh of kings, generals,
and the mighty,
of horses and their riders,
and the flesh of all people, free and slave,
great and small.’
“Then I saw the beast and the kings of the earth and their armies gathered together to wage war against the rider on the horse and his army. But the beast was captured, and with it the false prophet who had performed the signs on its behalf. With these signs he had deluded those who had received the mark of the beast and worshiped its image. The two of them were thrown alive into the fiery lake of burning sulfur.
The rest were killed with the sword coming out of the mouth of the rider on the horse,
and all the birds gorged themselves on their flesh.”
The exact location of Armageddon is unclear because there is no mountain called Meggido. However, since Harcan also mean “hill,” the most likely location is the hill country surrounding the plain of Meggido, some sixty miles north of Jerusalem. Throughout history, armies have fought countless battles in that region: Egyptians, Assyrians, Greeks, Romans, and Crusaders fought in Megiddo, as well as the armies of Napoleon. Megiddo was the site of battles during World War I and the Arab-Israeli War of 1948 (Weintraub, P., “Rewriting Tel Megiddo’s Violent History,” Discover, Sep 30, 2015). In the future, the plain of Megiddo and the nearby plain of Esdraelon will also be the focal point for the battle of Armageddon.
The plain of Megiddo, or Armageddon, was famous for two great victories in Israel’s history: 1) Barak’s victory over the Canaanites (Judges 4:15) and 2) Gideon’s victory over the Midianites (Judges 7). Armageddon was also the site of two great tragedies: 1) the death of Saul and his sons (1 Samuel 31:8) and 2) the death of King Josiah (2 Kings 23:29–30; 2 Chronicles 35:22).
According to the futurist interpretation of Revelation, which is our view, the Battle of Armageddon will be a real battle in the future, near the end of the tribulation. Demonic influences will cause the kings of the earth to gather their armies for an all-out assault on Jerusalem. The Antichrist will be leading the charge (Revelation 16:13–16). Jesus Christ will return to earth with the armies of heaven (Matthew 25:31; Revelation 19:14); His feet will stand on the Mount of Olives (Zechariah 14:4); He will defeat the forces of evil (Revelation 19:15–16); He will cast the Antichrist and the false prophet into the lake of fire (Revelation 19:20); He will bind Satan; and He will set up His kingdom on earth for 1,000 years (Revelation 20:1–6). At Armageddon the Lord Jesus Christ “treads the winepress of the fury of the wrath of God Almighty” (Revelation 16:19), and all things will be made right.
The Euphrates River, long part of the area known as the Fertile Crescent, is a significant landmark in Scripture and a valuable resource in the Middle East as it runs through Turkey, Syria, and Iraq. Over the past few years, the water level of the Euphrates River has dropped dramatically. The drying up of the Euphrates River has revealed several ancient ruins and a cave. Some people are quick to point to the drying river bed as a fulfillment of the Bible’s end-times prophecies.
Two passages in the Bible predict the drying up of the Euphrates River. The first prediction is part of a lengthy oracle against Babylon. God pronounces judgment against Babylon’s officials and wise men and against its false prophets, warriors, horses and chariots, and treasures. Then God says,
“A drought on her waters!
They will dry up.
For it is a land of idols,
idols that
will go mad with terror”
(Jeremiah 50:38).
The waters of Babylon
are the Euphrates and Tigris rivers.
Both rivers are drying up now.
Are we witnessing
the fulfillment of Jeremiah’s prophecy?
The second prediction of the Euphrates River drying up comes as part of the seven bowl judgments in Revelation. The judgments of the seven-year tribulation start with the seven seals (Revelation 6:1–17; 8:1–5), continue with the seven trumpets (Revelation 8:6—9:21; 11:15–19), and end with the seven bowls (Revelation 16:1–21). The bowl judgments come at the end of the tribulation, and they are so destructive that, if they continued, all human life would perish (Mark 13:19–20).
The sixth bowl judgment—the penultimate judgment of the tribulation—is the drying up of the Euphrates River. Revelation 16:12 says, “The sixth angel poured out his bowl on the great river Euphrates, and its water was dried up to prepare the way for the kings from the East.” This prophecy not only identifies the judgment but also gives the reason for it: so a great army from the East can cross the Euphrates unimpeded.
Next, the kings of the earth gather “to the place that in Hebrew is called Armageddon” (Revelation 16:16).
At that point, Jesus returns,
and the
battle fought at Armageddon
will result in all
God’s enemies being destroyed
(Revelation 16:17–20; 19:11–21).
A key event leading up to Armageddon
is the
drying up of the Euphrates
The sixth bowl.
The sixth angel pours out his bowl of
judgment on the Euphrates River.
That river is dried up in preparation for
the kings of the East
making their way to their own destruction
(Revelation 16:12).
John then sees three unclean spirits
“that looked like
frogs”
coming from the mouths of Satan,
the Antichrist,
and the false prophet (verse 13).
These demons perform
miracles
and deceive the kings of the earth
and gather them to the
final
battle on the Day of the Lord
(verse 14).
Under demonic influence,
“the kings [gather] together to the place
that in Hebrew
is called
Armageddon”
(verse 16).
The SEVENTH BOW
The seventh bowl is emptied into
the atmosphere.
A LOUD VOICE in HEAVEN says,
“It IS DONE!”
(Revelation 16:17).
The seventh bowl results in flashes of lightning and an earthquake so severe that
“no earthquake like it has ever occurred since mankind has been on earth,
so tremendous was the quake” (verse 18).
Jerusalem is split into three parts,
and the cities of the world collapse (verse 19).
Islands are flooded,
and mountains disappear (verse 20). Giant hailstones, “each weighing
about a hundred pounds, fell on people” (verse 21).
Those under judgment “cursed God on account of the plague of hail,
because the plague was so terrible”
(verse 21).
One of the angels of the seven bowl judgments
then shows John
the fate of Babylon the Great
(Revelation 17),
as God avenges
“the blood of prophets and of God’s holy people,
of all who have
been slaughtered on the earth”
(Revelation 18:24).
The world mourns the fall of Babylon
(chapter 18),
but heaven rejoices (chapter 19).
Jesus Christ then returns
in glory
to defeat the armies
of the Antichrist
at Armageddon
(Revelation 19:11–21)
and to set up
His kingdom on earth
(Revelation 20:1–6).
The Israelites’ crossing of the Jordan River on dry land
was of tremendous significance to the Israelites. Joshua explained the significance of this event before it took place, stating, “This is how you will know that the living God is among you and that he will certainly drive out before you the Canaanites, Hittites, Hivites, Perizzites, Girgashites, Amorites and Jebusites.
See, the ark of the covenant of the Lord of all the earth will go into the Jordan ahead of you.
Now then, choose twelve men from the tribes of Israel, one from each tribe. And as soon as the priests who carry the ark of the Lord—the Lord of all the earth—set foot in the Jordan, its waters flowing downstream will be cut off and stand up in a heap” (Joshua 3:10–13).
Their miraculous crossing affirmed God’s presence with them and His promise to remove their enemies from the land.
In John 6:44, Jesus says,
“No one can come to me
unless the Father
who sent me draws him.
And I will raise him up on
the last day”
The promise that Jesus will
“raise him
up on the last day”
also appears three
other times in the same context,
in verses 39, 40, and 54.
This promise of resurrection
is couched
in an extended teaching
as Jesus presents
Himself as the Bread of Life.
In John 6:39–40,
Jesus speaks about the
Father’s
eternal will and purpose
for those
who come to the Son.
He says, “This is the will of him who sent me, that I should lose nothing of all that he has given me but raise it up on the last day. For this is the will of my Father, that everyone who looks on the Son and believes in him should have eternal life, and I will raise him up on the last day” (ESV, emphasis added). The repetition of raise him up at the last day indicates the sureness of the promise. Jesus gives a guarantee that those who look to (and believe in) Him will be resurrected unto eternal life.
In John 6:44, Jesus speaks of how people are drawn to the Son: “No one can come to me unless the Father who sent me draws him. And I will raise him up on the last day” (ESV, emphasis added). This verse introduces the doctrine of divine sovereignty in salvation, a major theme in the Gospel of John (see verse 65; 10:29; 17). Divine sovereignty and human responsibility are not incompatible. People must look to the Son and believe in Him for eternal life, but they cannot come to Jesus unless the Father gives them the desire and inclination to do so. And when they come, Jesus promises not to reject them (John 6:37). They belong to Him, and He will raise them up on the last day.
In John 6:54, Jesus speaks about the need to eat His flesh and drink His blood for eternal life: “Whoever eats my flesh and drinks my blood has eternal life, and I will raise him up on the last day” (ESV, emphasis added). Of course, Jesus is not speaking literally. To “eat” His flesh is to trust and believe that He gave His body as a ransom for our sins (verse 35; cf. Mark 10:45). Likewise, to “drink” His blood means to trust in His atoning death, represented by His shed blood on Calvary.
His flesh and His blood must be “consumed” to gain eternal life.
Readers should not hastily skip over the parallel between John 6:40 and John 6:54. The only substantial difference is that the former speaks about looking to the Son and believing in Him, while the latter speaks about eating His flesh and drinking His blood. The obvious conclusion is that verse 54 is the metaphorical expression of verse 40. Eating illustrates belief. As Augustine of Hippo wrote, “Crede, et manducasti” (“Believe, and you have eaten”).
The final resurrection,
mentioned in John 6:39, 40, 44, and 54,
is granted to everyone
who trusts and
believes in the finished
work of Christ.
Eternal life is not just promised the
soul or spirit,
but the body as well.
Christ redeems the whole person, and we have passed from condemnation to justification (Romans 5:1), from darkness to light (1 Peter 2:9), and from death to life (John 5:24).
“I am the bread of life”
(John 6:35)
is one of the
seven “I Am” statements
of Jesus.
Jesus used the same
phrase
“I AM”
in seven declarations
about Himself.
In all seven, He combines
I AM
with tremendous metaphors
which express
His saving relationship toward
the world.
All appear in the
book of John.
John 6:35 says
“I am the bread of life;
whoever comes to me shall
not hunger,
and whoever
believes
in me shall never thirst.”
Bread is considered a staple food—i.e., a basic dietary item. A person can survive a long time on only bread and water. Bread is such a basic food item that it becomes synonymous for food in general. We even use the phrase “breaking bread together” to indicate the sharing of a meal with someone. Bread also plays an integral part of the Jewish Passover meal. The Jews were to eat unleavened bread during the Passover feast and then for seven days following as a celebration of the exodus from Egypt.
Finally, when the Jews were
wandering
in the desert for
40 years,
God rained down
“bread from heaven”
to sustain the nation
(Exodus 16:4).
All of this plays into the scene being described in John 6 when Jesus used the term “bread of life.” He was trying to get away from the crowds to no avail. He had crossed the Sea of Galilee, and the crowd followed Him. After some time, Jesus inquires of Philip how they’re going to feed the crowd.
Philip’s answer displays
his “little faith” when he says
they
don’t have enough money
to give each of them the smallest
morsel of food.
Finally, Andrew brings to
Jesus a boy
who had
five small loaves of bread
and two fish.
With that amount,
Jesus miraculously
fed the throng
with lots of food to spare.
Afterward, Jesus and His disciples cross back to the other side of Galilee. When the crowd sees that Jesus has left, they follow Him again. Jesus takes this moment to teach them a lesson. He accuses the crowd of ignoring His miraculous signs and only following Him for the “free meal.” Jesus tells them in John 6:27, “Do not labor for the food that perishes, but for the food that endures to eternal life, which the Son of Man will give to you. For on him God the Father has set his seal.” In other words, they were so enthralled with the food, they were missing out on the fact that their Messiah had come. So the Jews ask Jesus for a sign that He was sent from God (as if the miraculous feeding and the walking across the water weren’t enough). They tell Jesus that God gave them manna during the desert wandering. Jesus responds by telling them that they need to ask for the true bread from heaven that gives life. When they ask Jesus for this bread, Jesus startles them by saying, “I am the bread of life; whoever comes to me shall not hunger, and whoever believes in me shall never thirst.”
This is a phenomenal statement! First, by equating Himself with bread, Jesus is saying he is essential for life. Second, the life Jesus is referring to is not physical life, but eternal life. Jesus is trying to get the Jews’ thinking off of the physical realm and into the spiritual realm. He is contrasting what He brings as their Messiah with the bread He miraculously created the day before. That was physical bread that perishes. He is spiritual bread that brings eternal life.
Third, and very important, Jesus is making another claim to deity. This statement is the first of the “I AM” statements in John’s Gospel. The phrase “I AM” is the covenant name of God (Yahweh, or YHWH), revealed to Moses at the burning bush (Exodus 3:14). The phrase speaks of self-sufficient existence (or what theologians refer to as “aseity”), which is an attribute only God possesses. It is also a phrase the Jews who were listening would have automatically understood as a claim to deity.
Fourth, notice the words “come” and “believe.” This is an invitation for those listening to place their faith in Jesus as the Messiah and Son of God. This invitation to come is found throughout John’s Gospel. Coming to Jesus involves making a choice to forsake the world and follow Him. Believing in Jesus means placing our faith in Him that He is who He says He is, that He will do what He says He will do, and that He is the only one who can.
Fifth, there are the words “hunger and thirst.” Again, it must be noted that Jesus isn’t talking about alleviating physical hunger and thirst. The key is found in another statement Jesus made, back in His Sermon on the Mount. In Matthew 5:6, Jesus says, “Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be satisfied.” When Jesus says those who come to Him will never hunger and those who believe in Him will never thirst, He is saying He will satisfy our hunger and thirst to be made righteous in the sight of God.
If there is anything the history of human religion tells us, it is that people seek to earn their way to heaven. This is such a basic human desire because God created us with eternity in mind. The Bible says God has placed [the desire for] eternity in our hearts (Ecclesiastes 3:11).
The Bible also tells us that there is nothing we can do
to earn our way to heaven
because we’ve all sinned (Romans 3:23)
and the only thing our sin earns us is death
(Romans 6:23).
There is no one who is righteous in himself
(Romans 3:10).
Our dilemma is we have a desire
we cannot fulfill, no matter what we do.
That is where Jesus comes in.
He, and He alone,
can fulfill that desire in our hearts
for righteousness
through the Divine Transaction:
“For our sake he
made him to be sin who knew no sin,
so that in him
we might become the righteousness of God”
(2 Corinthians 5:21).
When Christ died on the cross,
He took the sins
of mankind upon Himself and
made atonement for them.
When we place our faith in Him,
our sins are imputed to Jesus,
and His righteousness is imputed to us.
Jesus satisfies
our hunger and thirst for righteousness.
He is our Bread of Life.
In John 6:53–58, Jesus says, “Very truly I tell you, unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink his blood, you have no life in you. Whoever eats my flesh and drinks my blood has eternal life, and I will raise them up at the last day. For my flesh is real food and my blood is real drink. Whoever eats my flesh and drinks my blood remains in me, and I in them. Just as the living Father sent me and I live because of the Father, so the one who feeds on me will live because of me.
This is the bread that came
down from heaven.
Your ancestors ate manna and died,
but whoever feeds
on this
bread will live forever.”
Upon hearing these words, many of
Jesus’ followers said,
“This is a hard teaching” (verse 60),
and many of them
actually stopped following Him that day
(verse 66).
Jesus’ graphic imagery about eating His flesh and drinking His blood is indeed puzzling at first. Context will help us understand what He is saying. As we consider everything that Jesus said and did in John 6, the meaning of His words becomes clearer.
Earlier in the chapter, Jesus fed the 5,000
(John 6:1–13).
The next day,
the same multitudes continued
to follow Him,
seeking another meal.
Jesus pointed out their short-sightedness:
they were
only seeking physical bread,
but there was something more important:
“Food that endures to eternal life,
which the
Son of Man will give you”
(verse 27).
At this point,
Jesus attempts to turn their
perspective
away from physical
sustenance to their
true need,
which was spiritual.
This contrast between physical food and spiritual food sets the stage for Jesus’ statement that we must eat His flesh and drink His blood. Jesus explains that it is not physical bread that the world needs, but spiritual bread. Jesus three times identifies Himself as that spiritual bread (John 6:35, 48, 51). And twice He emphasizes faith (a spiritual action) as the key to salvation: “My Father’s will is that everyone who looks to the Son and believes in him shall have eternal life” (verse 40); and “Very truly I tell you, the one who believes has eternal life” (verse 47).
Jesus then compares and contrasts Himself to the manna that Israel had eaten in the time of Moses: “Your ancestors ate the manna in the wilderness, yet they died. But here is the bread that comes down from heaven, which anyone may eat and not die” (John 6:49–50). Like manna, Jesus came down from heaven; and, like manna, Jesus gives life. Unlike manna, the life Jesus gives lasts for eternity (verse 58).
In this way, Jesus is greater than Moses (see Hebrews 3:3).
Having established His metaphor (and the fact that He is speaking of faith in Him), Jesus presses the symbolism even further: “I am the living bread that came down from heaven. Anyone who eats this bread will live forever; and this bread, which I will offer so the world may live, is my flesh. . . . I tell you the truth, unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink his blood, you cannot have eternal life within you. But anyone who eats my flesh and drinks my blood has eternal life. . . . My flesh is true food, and my blood is true drink. Anyone who eats my flesh and drinks my blood remains in me, and I in him. . . . Anyone who feeds on me will live because of me” (John 6:53–57, NLT).
To prevent being misconstrued, Jesus specifies that He has been speaking metaphorically: “The Spirit gives life; the flesh counts for nothing. The words I have spoken to you—they are full of the Spirit and life” (John 6:63). Those who misunderstood Jesus and were offended by His talk about eating His flesh and drinking His blood were stuck in a physical mindset, ignoring the things of the Spirit. They were concerned with getting another physical meal, so Jesus uses the realm of the physical to teach a vital spiritual truth. Those who couldn’t make the jump from the physical to the spiritual turned their backs on Jesus and walked away (verse 66).
At the Last Supper, Jesus gives a similar message and one that complements His words in John 6—when the disciples gather to break bread and drink the cup, they “proclaim the Lord’s death until he comes” (1 Corinthians 11:26). In fact, Jesus said that the bread broken at the table is His body, and the cup they drink is the new covenant in His blood, shed for the forgiveness of sins (Matthew 26:26–28). Their act of eating and drinking was to be a symbol of their faith in Christ. Just as physical food gives earthly life,
Christ’s sacrifice on the cross
gives
heavenly life.
Some people believe that the bread and wine of communion are somehow transformed into Jesus’ actual flesh and blood, or that Jesus somehow imbues these substances with His real presence. These ideas, called transubstantiation (professed by the Catholic and Orthodox churches) and consubstantiation (held by some Lutherans), ignore Jesus’ statement that “the flesh counts for nothing” (John 6:63). The majority of Protestants understand that Jesus was speaking metaphorically about His flesh and blood and hold that
the bread and wine are
symbolic
of the spiritual bond
created
with Christ through
faith.
In the wilderness
testing,
the devil tempts Jesus
with bread,
and
Jesus answers,
“It is written: ‘
Man shall not live on
bread alone,
but on every word
that comes
from the mouth of God’”
(Matthew 4:4, quoting Deuteronomy 8:3).
The implication is that the bread is God’s Word and that is what sustains us. Jesus is called the Word of God who came to earth and was made flesh (John 1:14). The Word of God is also the Bread of Life(John 6:48).
The book of Hebrews references the way that God uses the physical things of this earth as a way to help us understand and apply spiritual truth. Hebrews 8:5 says that some tangible things are “a copy and shadow of what is in heaven,” and that chapter explains how the Old Covenant, so concerned with physical rites and ceremonies, was replaced by the New Covenant in which God’s laws are written on our hearts (verse 10; cf. Jeremiah 31:33).
Hebrews 9:1–2 says, “The first covenant had regulations for worship and also an earthly sanctuary. A tabernacle was set up. In its first room were the lampstand and the table with its consecrated bread; this was called the Holy Place.” According to Hebrews 8:5, the consecrated bread, or the “bread of the Presence,” was a physicalrepresentation of a spiritual concept, namely, the actual presence of God being continually with us today. The physical tent of meeting has been replaced by a spiritual temple of God (1 Corinthians 3:16), and the physical bread of the Presence has become the spiritual bread that abides within us through the Holy Spirit.
When Jesus said we must “eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink his blood” (John 6:53), He spoke, as He often did, in parabolic terms. We must receive Him by faith (John 1:12). “Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be filled” (Matthew 5:6). We understand that we need physical food and drink;
Jesus wants us to understand
that
we also need
spiritual food and drink--
and that
is what His sacrifice provides.
Psalm 27,
a psalm written by
David,
is an
example of Hebrew poetry
One element of Hebrew poetry prominent in this psalm is a grammatical structure known as synonymous parallelism. For example, in the first verse of Psalm 27, the main idea and structure of the first line are synonymous with the idea and structure of the second, as shown below:
Line 1: The LORD is my light and my salvation—whom shall I fear?
Line 2: The LORD is the stronghold of my life—of whom shall I be afraid?
Both the first and second lines focus on the Lord. In the first line,
David describes the Lord
as his
light and salvation.
In the second line,
David describes
the Lord
as his stronghold or refuge.
Both lines end with the same question phrased in a slightly different manner. This parallelism allows for a fuller understanding of the first line by looking at the immediate context of the second, and vice versa.
A stronghold or refuge
was a place of
protection during a time of siege.
The farmers and workers outside
of the city
would be particularly
susceptible to attack as they
would have been outside the
city walls’ protection
(Nehemiah 2:17; cf. Joshua 6:1–21).
So, those farmers and workers would run to the
city for refuge
and protection whenever battle came.
Many cities also had a strong tower,
which would
have been an extra layer of defense.
The strong tower
would give protection to those within
and allow those outside to identify
the city’s location
whenever a battle was imminent
(see Proverbs 18:10).
This protection in the stronghold
is why David
can ask the question in Psalm 27:1,
“Of whom shall I be afraid?”
Much like God is a stronghold for David,
He is also David’s light and salvation.
Light is utilized to see and be
aware of one’s
surroundings amid the darkness.
The idea of “light” is
often used in Scripture
as a metaphor for
one’s deliverance, such as
in Psalm 27:1.
Whenever Jesus makes
the claim, “I am the light of the world”
(John 8:12),
He is claiming that deliverance from darkness
comes through Him. Salvation,
as seen in Psalm 27:1, can also be thought of as deliverance.
David utilizes three terms to describe
God as the Deliverer:
light, salvation, and stronghold.
If God is David’s Deliverer, whom should he fear?
If you have faith
in the person
and
work of Jesus Christ
(1 Corinthians 15:3–5),
then God has bought
you back
or redeemed you.
He has transferred you
from the
domain or authority of darkness
to the kingdom of Jesus
(Colossians 1:13–14).
Through Christ’s provision, the Christian has
been equipped for protection
through the “full armor of God”
(Ephesians 6:10–17).
Much as David can proclaim
God is his light and salvation
from the
enemies surrounding him,
the Christian can claim God is his
light and salvation
from the
domain of darkness and eternal judgment
(Ephesians 2:1–10).
“For the wages of sin is death,
but the gift of God
is eternal life
in Christ Jesus our Lord”
(Romans 6:23).
Six times in the Bible, specific reference is
made to a “double portion.”
When someone receives a double portion,
he gets a gift twice
as much as that given to others.
The concept of the double portion is first
mentioned
in the Law of Moses:
“But he shall acknowledge
the firstborn . . .
by giving him a double portion
of all that he has,
for he is the firstfruits of
his strength.
The right of the firstborn is his”
(Deuteronomy 21:17).
A firstborn son
was
entitled to receive twice
the inheritance
of that
of a father’s other sons,
in addition
to the
right of succession.
Because Hannah
could not
have children, her husband tried to
assuage her grief
with an extra blessing.
“But to Hannah he gave a double portion,
because he loved her”
(1 Samuel 1:5).
Near the end of Elijah’s time on earth, he offered his assistant Elisha
a gift:
“What can I do for you before I am taken from you?”
Elisha answered,
“Please let there be a double portion of your spirit on me”
(2 Kings 2:9).
Elisha’s request was to be considered
the successor of Elijah
and to
be “doubly blessed”
with power
in the prophetic office.
Throughout 2 Kings,
the many miracles Elisha performed
confirm that he had
indeed been granted
a double portion.
Isaiah 61:7 promises a double
portion of
joy and blessing upon Israel:
“Instead of your shame
there shall be a double portion;
instead of dishonor
they shall rejoice in their lot;
therefore in their land
they shall possess a double portion;
they shall have everlasting joy.”
The reign of the Messiah
during the millennium
will
occasion everlasting
joy.
In a related passage,
God restored
to Job twice as much
as he originally
had before his time of testing: “
And the LORD restored the fortunes
of Job,
when he had prayed for his friends.
And the LORD gave Job
twice as much as he had before”
(Job 42:10).
It could be said that Job
received
a “double portion.”
Why did the Israelites build a memorial?
Joshua said, “When your children ask you,
‘What do these stones mean?’
tell them that the flow of
the Jordan
was cut off before
the ark
of the
covenant of the Lord.
When it crossed the Jordan,
the waters
of the
Jordan were cut off.
These stones
are to be a memorial to the
people of Israel forever”
(Joshua 4:6–7).
The memorial was to serve as a
lasting sign of
God’s work among the Israelites.
The conclusion of this event offers an additional insight into its significance and the reason for the memorial. Joshua 4:23–24 says, “The Lord your God dried up the Jordan before you until you had crossed over. The Lord your God did to the Jordan what he had done to the Red Sea when he dried it up before us until we had crossed over. He did this so that all the peoples of the earth might know that the hand of the Lord is powerful and so that you might always fear the Lord your God.”
First, a comparison is made with the crossing that took place at the Red Sea under the leadership of Moses.
This emphasis on
God’s miraculous provision was an ongoing sign
to the people of Israel.
Second, there was an emphasis on the power of God.
The miracle was done “so that all the peoples of the earth might know that the hand of the Lord is powerful.” No other god could compare in power. The gods of Israel’s enemies were created things that had no ability to move water and provide dry passage across a river.
Third, the result of the miracle
was that the
Israelites would fear the Lord forever.
The idea was that this miracle would leave the people in such awe that they and their descendants would talk about it and live in the fear of God and worship Him as a result.
God showed
His power and presence
in the
CROSSING THE JORDAN
and the memorial
set up by His people served
as a
reminder of His might and
why the
Israelites should fear the Lord.
Both the act
and its memorial worked
to point to
God’s glory,
presence, and strength,
which
would empower the Israelites
as they
took possession of their land
in the days ahead.
Still today, a look at this powerful
miracle
reveals the greatness of God,
and our only appropriate
response—to
worship and serve Him.
Revelation 16:12
This verse tells us the sixth angel poured his bowl on the river Euphrates. The contents of the bowl caused the river to dry up. Prior bowl judgments have either corrupted or destroyed most of the water on earth (Revelation 16:1–4). This judgment is not about corrupting or removing the use of this water.
Rather, it seems to be about removing a barrier used for defensive purposes:
preparing the way for invading kings from the east.
The Euphrates
is called
"the great river"
five
times in Scripture.
It was the
eastern boundary
of
Israel's inheritance
(Deuteronomy 1:7; 11:24).
To some extent the river
provided
protection for Israel because it
was difficult
to cross and a wilderness
to the west
separated it from Canaan,
the Promised Land.
It flows
almost 2,000 miles toward
Palestine before making
its way
southeast to the Persian Gulf.
In the first century,
when
Revelation was written,
the Euphrates divided
East from West,
and the
kingdoms of China and India
lay beyond it to the east.
Centuries earlier, the armies of Cyrus of Persia
conquered Babylon
by diverting the
Euphrates that flowed through
the city.
They were able
to march into Babylon
on the dry river bed
and capture the city.
In the great tribulation,
the eastern invader
will cross the Euphrates,
march through
Babylon, and enter Palestine.
Did you know that God wants to be involved in your life, be a part of your life, and dwell in your heart and fill your entire being? Sounds crazy! Let me explain: In this week’s Torah portion we reach a climax in Israel’s journey and birth as a nation. After redeeming Israel from slavery and giving his holy commandments at Mount Sinai, God’s full redemption plan is at a peak. Now preparation is needed for God to dwell among his people in full glory once again.
God’s burning desire for a relationship with mankind, the relationship that once was cut off and destroyed by sin in the Garden of Eden, lays a foundation for a restored relationship by ordering the construction of the tabernacle. In Exodus 25:8 God says, “And let them make me a sanctuary, that I may dwell in their midst,” asking Israel to offer willingly from their hearts the finest materials necessary for building the tabernacle (Exod 25:2-7). God gave Moses a revelation of a simple yet divine worship structure to make atonement for sin and offer intimacy with God. But we need to take a step back to understand the big picture and how this relates to Messiah Yeshua, who became the only way to enter into a right relationship with God.
Step 1 began in Genesis when God enjoyed a relationship with Adam and Eve with no shame or separation by sin. Once sin entered, this unique relationship sadly ended. We read about Step 2 in this week’s portion: God gives the tabernacle as a temporary solution for sacrifice and atonement for sin, which enables God’s presence to dwell among his people once again. After Israel entered the “promised land,” the time came for Step 3. The temporary tabernacle of Israel that hosted the famous Ark of the Covenant and God’s divine presence was put aside for the temple's sake in Jerusalem; this became the center for worship of the God of Israel.
However, a key prophecy in Daniel 9:26 explains that before the destruction of the rebuilt temple, “an anointed one shall be cut off.” This provides the way for God’s ultimate solution for sin, thus making God’s divine dwelling possible among all mankind. And this brings us to the climax of Step 4, as we read in the Gospel of John: “And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we have seen his glory, glory as of the only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth” (John 1:14). Messiah’s coming into our world as prophesied in Daniel just before the destruction of the temple was the ultimate fulfillment of Exodus 25:8 – the son of God in flesh came to dwell among his people. The tabernacle and temple were a shadow of this historic event, shouting out from the pages of Scripture: The Son of God has come to dwell among his people and become the way, the altar, the sacrifice, the cleansing water, the light, the bread of life, the altar of incense, and the very presence of God with man.
I remember thinking as a child that knowing God or even obeying his commandments was enough; when I examined John chapter 1 in light of this weekly portion, my thinking changed. Think about it for a moment. Can you imagine a bride and groom who are entirely in love living in separate homes after their wedding day? That would seem crazy! So why do we live in a world that thinks we can please God by marking checks on our spiritual task lists, instead of giving him complete freedom to enter our entire life and fill us with his presence by his Spirit?
Yes, God loves you and wants to be a part of your life and dwell in your spiritual home – your heart! Yeshua is the one who can take away your sin, clean up the rooms of your heart, and fill you with God’s presence. Maybe this truth was one of the reasons why the people of Israel decided to give willingly and generously as described in Exodus 36; Moses had to tell the people to stop their giving because it was so abundant.
May we give God the freedom to dwell in us and fill our lives with his presence so that our words and deeds represent God dwelling in man rather than man being full of self and trying to be God. I encourage you to give to God generously, just as Israel did, and see what God can build out of your life.
Jesus is called the
Messiah
in Matthew 1:16
In fact, every time someone says,
“Jesus Christ,”
he is referring to
Jesus as the Messiah,
since Christ means
“Messiah” or “Anointed One.”
The Old Testament predicts
the Messiah,
and the
New Testament
reveals
the Messiah to be
Jesus of Nazareth
There are several things that the Jewish people who anticipated the Messiah expected Him to be, based on Old Testament prophecies. The Messiah would be a Hebrew man (Isaiah 9:6) born in Bethlehem (Micah 5:2) of a virgin (Isaiah 7:14), a prophet akin to Moses (Deuteronomy 18:18), a priest in the order of Melchizedek (Psalm 110:4), a king (Isaiah 11:1–4), and the Son of David (Matthew 22:42) who suffered before entering His glory (Isaiah 53). Jesus met each of these messianic requirements.
Jesus fulfilled the requirements of the Messiah in that He was a Hebrew of the tribe of Judah (Luke 3:30), and He was born in Bethlehem (Luke 2:4–7) to a virgin (Luke 1:26–27).
Another proof that Jesus was the Messiah is the fact that He was a prophet like Moses. Both Moses and Jesus were prophets “whom the LORD knew face to face” (Deuteronomy 34:10; cf. John 8:38). But Jesus is an even greater prophet than Moses in that, while Moses delivered Israel from slavery, Jesus frees us from the bondage of death and sin. Unlike Moses, Jesus didn’t just represent God—He is God (John 10:30). Jesus doesn’t just lead us to the Promised Land; He takes us up to heaven for eternity (John 14:1–3). For these and many more reasons, Jesus is a prophet greater than Moses.
The Messiah was to have priestly duties; Jesus was not a Levite, and only Levites were allowed to be priests. So how could Jesus qualify? Jesus is a priest in the order of Melchizedek (Genesis 14; Psalm 110:4; Hebrews 6:20). Melchizedek predated the Jewish temple, and his very name means “King of Righteousness.” Melchizedek was also called the “King of Salem,” which means “King of Peace” (Hebrews 7:2). Melchizedek blessed Abraham (the greater blesses the lesser, Hebrews 7:7), and Abraham gave Melchizedek a tithe. Thus, as a priest in the order of Melchizedek, Jesus is greater than Abraham (see John 8:58) and the Levitical priesthood. He is a heavenly priest who offered a sacrifice that removes sin permanently, not just temporarily covers it.
Jesus must also be a king in order to be the Messiah. Jesus was from Judah, the kingly tribe. When Jesus was born, wise men from the East came looking for the King of the Jews (Matthew 2:1–2). Jesus taught that He would one day sit on a glorious throne (Matthew 19:28; 25:31). Many people in Israel saw Jesus as their long-awaited king and expected Him to set up His rule immediately (Luke 19:11), although Jesus’ kingdom is currently not of this world (John 18:36). At the end of Jesus’ life, during His trial before Pilate, Jesus did not defend Himself except to answer affirmatively when Pilate asked if He was the King of the Jews (Mark 15:2).
Another way Jesus fits the Old Testament description of the Messiah is that He was the Suffering Servant of Isaiah 53. On the cross Jesus was “despised” and “held . . . in low esteem” (Isaiah 53:3). He was “pierced” (verse 5) and “oppressed and afflicted” (verse 7). He died with thieves yet was buried in a rich man’s tomb (verse 9; cf. Mark 15:27; Matthew 27:57–60). After His suffering and death, Jesus the Messiah was resurrected (Isaiah 53:11; cf. 1 Corinthians 15:4) and glorified (Isaiah 53:12). Isaiah 53 is one of the clearest prophecies identifying Jesus as the Messiah; it is the very passage that the Ethiopian eunuch was reading when Philip met him and explained to him about Jesus (Acts 8:26–35).
There are other ways in which Jesus is shown to be the Messiah. Each of the feasts of the Lord in the Old Testament is related to and fulfilled by Jesus. When Jesus came the first time, He was our Passover Lamb (John 1:29), our Unleavened Bread (John 6:35), and our First Fruits (1 Corinthians 15:20). The pouring out of Christ’s Spirit happened at Pentecost (Acts 2:1–4). When Jesus the Messiah returns, we will hear the shout of the archangel and the trumpet of God. It is no coincidence that the first fall festival day is Yom Teruah, the Feast of Trumpets. After Jesus returns, He will judge the earth. This is the fulfillment of the next fall festival, Yom Kippur, the Day of Atonement. Then Jesus will set up His millennial kingdom and reign from the throne of David for 1,000 years; that will complete the final fall festival, Sukkot or the Feast of Tabernacles, when God dwells with us.
To those of us who believe in Jesus as Lord and Savior, the proof that He is the Jewish Messiah seems overwhelming. How is it that, generally speaking, the Jews do not accept Jesus as their Messiah? Both Isaiah and Jesus prophesied a spiritual blindness upon Israel as a judgment for their lack of faith (Isaiah 6:9–10; Matthew 13:13–15). Also, most of the Jews of Jesus’ time were looking for a political and cultural savior, not a Savior from sin. They wanted Jesus to throw off the yoke of Rome and establish Zion as the capital of the world (see Acts 1:6). They could not see how the meek and lowly Jesus could possibly do that.
The story of Joseph provides an interesting parallel to the Jews’ missing their Messiah. Joseph was sold into slavery by his brothers, and after many ups and downs he was made prime minister of all of Egypt. When a famine hit both Egypt and Israel, Joseph’s brothers traveled to Egypt to get food, and they met with Joseph—but they did not recognize him. Their own brother, standing right in front of them, yet they were oblivious. They did not recognize Joseph for a very simple reason: he did not look as they expected him to look. Joseph was dressed as an Egyptian; he spoke as an Egyptian; he lived as an Egyptian. The thought that he might be their long-lost brother never crossed their minds—Joseph was a Hebrew shepherd, after all, not Egyptian royalty. In a similar way, most Jewish people did not (and do not) recognize Jesus as their Messiah. They were looking for an earthly king, not the ruler of a spiritual kingdom. (Many rabbis interpret the Suffering Servant of Isaiah 53 as the Jewish people who have suffered at the hands of the world.) Their blindness was so great that no amount of miracles made a difference (Matthew 11:20).
Still, there were many in Jesus’ day who saw the truth about Jesus. The Bethlehem shepherds saw (Luke 2:16–17). Simeon in the temple saw (verse 34). Anna saw and “spoke about the child to all who were looking forward to the redemption of Jerusalem” (verse 38). Peter and the other disciples saw (Matthew 16:16). May many more continue to see that Jesus is the Messiah, the One who fulfills the Law and the Prophets (Matthew 5:17).
Revelation 1:7 says,
“‘Look, he is coming with the clouds,’
and
‘every eye will see him,
even those
who pierced him’;
and all peoples on earth
‘will mourn because of him.’ So shall it be!
Amen.”
This verse brings together two other passages:
Matthew 26:64,
in which Jesus tells the Sanhedrin
they will see the Son
“coming on the clouds of heaven”;
and Zechariah 12:10,
which says that
Jerusalem’s inhabitants will mourn
when they
see “the one they have pierced.”
Some have tried to allegorize Revelation 1:7 by assigning various figurative meanings to the “clouds.” But there is no need to look for hidden meanings here, for the passage means just what it says, as do the two passages it quotes. There is nothing more to make of the statement that “He comes with the clouds.” It simply means that Jesus will appear to all people as He comes to earth out of the heavens.
After Jesus gave His disciples the Great Commission, “he was taken up before their very eyes, and a cloud hid him from their sight” (Acts 1:9). As the disciples stood there, gazing after the Lord, two angels appeared and told them, “This same Jesus, who has been taken from you into heaven, will come back in the same way you have seen him go into heaven” (verse 11). A cloud is mentioned at His ascension, and the clouds are mentioned at His return.
The 144,000 are first mentioned in Revelation 7:4, “Then I heard the number of those who were sealed: 144,000 from all the tribes of Israel.” This passage comes in an interlude between the judgment of the sixth seal of the tribulation (Revelation 6:12–17)
and the opening of the seventh seal (Revelation 8:1).
These 144,000 Jews are “sealed,”
which means they have the special protection of God.
They are kept safe from the divine
judgments and from the wrath of the Antichrist.
They can freely perform their mission during the tribulation.
It had been previously prophesied that
Israel would repent
and turn back to God
(Zechariah 12:10; Romans 11:25–27),
and the 144,000 Jews
seem to be a sort of “first fruits”
(Revelation 14:4)
of that redeemed Israel.
Their mission seems
to be to evangelize the post-rapture
world and
proclaim the gospel
during the tribulation period.
As a result of their ministry, millions
—“a great multitude that no one could count,
from every
nation, tribe, people and language”
(Revelation 7:9)—will
come to faith in Christ.
The name Faithful and True
expresses the total trustworthiness,
reliability, and constancy of Jesus Christ.
The title reveals His character
and makes known His words and works.
In Revelation 19:11, John sees a vision of Jesus as the exalted King of kings leaving heaven to return to earth: “I saw heaven standing open and there before me was a white horse, whose rider is called Faithful and True.
With justice he judges and wages war.” This picture of Christ’s second coming at the end of the age shows Jesus no longer as the peaceful, humble servant riding on a lowly donkey (John 12:12–15).
Now He is the victorious
King,
charging forth like a conquering
war general,
leading His troops into battle
(Revelation 19:14).
In this vivid portrayal,
John identifies Jesus
by four different titles,
beginning with
Faithful and True.
It is the first and only time
this name of
Jesus appears in Scripture.
The second title is unknown to us
(Revelation 19:12);
the third is the Word of God
(verse 13);
the fourth is King of kings and Lord of lords
(verse 16).
The word for “Faithful”
in the original language
means
“characterized by steadfast affection or allegiance,”
and the word translated
“True” means “truthful
or characterized by expressing
the truth.”
The nature of Jesus Christ--
His whole being
—exudes faithfulness and truth.
Earlier, in Revelation 3:14,
Jesus called Himself
the “faithful and true witness”
in His letter
to the church in Laodicea.
Faithful and True is who Jesus Christ is.
In His first coming to earth,
Jesus proved
Himself to be faithful to
the mission
and will
of God His Father:
“I have brought you glory on earth
by finishing
the work you gave me to do”
(John 17:4; see also John 5:30; Hebrews 3:6; Luke 4:43).
Never once did the Lord give in to the temptation to sin
(Hebrews 4:15–16),
from the time Satan tempted Him in the wilderness
(Matthew 4:1–11; Mark 1:12–13; Luke 4:1–13)
until His death on the cross
(Matthew 16:21–23; 26:36–44; Mark 8:31–33; 14:32–42; Luke 22:40–46).
From the day Isaiah foretold
His coming,
Christ’s faithfulness was known
(Isaiah 11:5; 42:3). As a young man (Luke 2:49)
and throughout His ministry,
Jesus was a faithful and obedient servant to His Father God
(John 4:34; 6:38; 8:29; 12:27; 14:31).
Jesus is consistently the same “yesterday and today and forever”
(Hebrews 13:8).
Others will wear out, change, or perish, but Jesus Christ remains the same for all eternity
(Hebrews 1:11–12).
Jesus, who said, “I am the way and the truth and the life,”
is the very embodiment of truth
(John 14:6).
He came from His Father “full of grace and truth” (John 1:14).
And His promise of eternal life is true: “Truly, truly, I say to you, whoever hears my word
and believes him who sent me has eternal life.
He does not come into judgment, but has passed from death to life”
(John 5:24, ESV; see also John 6:47).
Because of the fidelity inherent in His character,
Jesus is faithful toward His followers in every circumstance.
“If we are faithless, he remains faithful,
for he cannot disown himself,” declares 2 Timothy 2:13
see also Matthew 28:20; 2 Thessalonians 3:3; Hebrews 10:23
Faithful and True is
a fitting title for Jesus Christ our King,
and He calls His followers
to emulate His faithfulness and truth
(Revelation 14:12; Hebrews 10:23).
The entire book of Revelation conveys a
message
to the church of Jesus Christ
to be faithful and true,
just as He is Faithful and True.
In Revelation 19:11, when John sees the gates of heaven open, the One who has been Faithful and True from ages past appears at the end of time to wage His final battle. Jesus Christ comes with justice to judge and wage war, and He will triumph over the enemies of God! The outcome is sure because He is Faithful and True. He will do what He has promised to do. He shall defeat the devil once and for all. He will destroy the power of death, wiping away every sorrow, tear, and pain from the hearts of His devoted followers
(Isaiah 25:8; 1 Corinthians 15:54; Hebrews 2:14; Revelation 20:14).
Ark of the Covenant
One for Israel Ministry
Itown Church- Son of David
Northview Church- Son of Abraham, Heartland Church- Son of Abraham
ARC, Church of the Highlands
Chicago City Church, Grace Church
In the
Book of Zechariah,
we see
that the Seven LAMPS
of the
LAMPSTAND
are the
Seven Spirits of God,
the
Sevenfold intensified Spirit,
as the
Seven Eyes of Jehovah,
the Seven Eyes
of the
REDEEMING Lamb,
and the
seven eyes of the building stone
for the
FULL
Expression of the Triune God
And the Rebuilding
of the
HOUSE of God
This is MYSTERIOUS
yet so wonderful and real!
Haggai and Zechariah were
two prophets at
the TIME of Ezra and Nehemiah,
and they
SPOKE the WORD of God
FAITHFULLY to HIS PEOPLE
to encourage
them and strengthen them
to RETURN to the work
of the
building of the house of God.
The people of Israel who RETURNED
from captivity started
to build the
House of God, the TEMPLE,
in Jerusalem,
under the
leadership of Zerubbabel (the governor)
and Joshua (the high priest),
but they became
somewhat discouraged and disheartened from
the
attacks of the enemies around them
so they
focused on their own houses,
taking
care of their own Plan
The building work of the
house of God
stopped for a few years
Yes, they have
RETURNED to the GOOD LAND
to
BUILD the HOUSE of God,
THE Lord Sent Haggai and Zechariah,
each
with a particular word,
to rebuke
and encourage the disheartened
People of Israel
that they may RISE up, go up
to THE MOUNTAIN
bring wood, and build the house
May we be under the Lord’s shining
and infusing, warned,
rebuked,
encouraged, and strengthened
like Zerubbabel, made by
Jehovah as a SIGNET RING
(Hag. 2:32),
THE REPRESENTATIVE
TRUSTED
and loved by the Lord
CHRIST is the CULMINATION
of Zerubbabel,
He is the One
whom
God LOVES and TRUSTS
(Matt. 3:17; 17:5; John 3:35; 17:2).
As THE ONE
Christ Is
Qualified to take Care of
the
Building of God’s House,
THE CHURCH
(Matt. 16:18).
The book of Zechariah
reveals
that the seven lamps of the
(4:2; Rev. 4:5)
are the
seven Spirits of God, the sevenfold
intensified Spirit
(1:4),
as the seven eyes of Jehovah
(Zech. 4:10),
the seven eyes of the redeeming Lamb
(Rev. 5:6),
and the
seven eyes of the building stone
(Zech. 3:9)
for the
full expression of the Triune God
and the
rebuilding of the house of God.
In Zechariah chapter four,
we see the
seven lamps of the lampstand,
in Rev. 4:5
The seven lamps
are
the seven Spirits of God,
the
sevenfold intensified Spirit.
ONE SPIRIT intensified
sevenfold to be the seven eyes of Jehovah
John 1:29
Christ is the Lamb of God
coming to
take away the sin of the world.
Revelation 5
redeeming Lamb has seven eyes.
We may think of the Lord as the Lamb of God
as being a white
little animal with a little tail, so gentle and cuddly.
But Christ as the
redeeming Lamb has seven eyes,
being freshly SLAIN,
standing next to the THRONE of God;
this Lamb
is definitely NOT cuddly and cute,
but it is
A FIERCE LAMB
with
SEVEN EYES
The Seven Eyes of The Lamb
are the
SEVEN SPIRITS of GOD
In Zechariah, we also
SEE the STONE,
The Stone for God’s Building,
THE CORNERSTONE
And on
THE STONE for the building,
there are SEVEN EYES,
which
ARE
the seven Spirits of God
Hallelujah!
These
Seven SPIRITS ARE the Seven Lamps
of the
LAMPSTAND,
BEING before GODS THRONE
TO BURN and SHINE
and
RUN TO and FRO
to
ACCOMPLISH
God’s
ADMINISTRATION and CARRY OUT
HIS ECONOMY
Just as our eyes are part of ourselves
The Seven Eyes of the Lamb
are
Part of CHRIST;
the
Seven Spirits are
FULLY
ONE with CHRIST
and
ARE CHRIST HIMSELF
The stone set before Joshua in
Zech. 3:9
typifies Christ as the stone
(Psa. 118:22; Matt. 21:42).
Christ
was engraved, cut and Refined
by God.
To Remove the iniquity of
the land
Hallelujah, through His death
on the cross,
Christ as the Lamb of God
who
took away the sin of
the world
(1 Pet. 2:24; John 1:29).
As the stone
for God’s building, Christ is
everything in God’s building.
Christ
is the foundation
the cornerstone to join together
the
Gentile and Jewish members
of His Body,
the TOPSTONE of GRACE
to CONSUMMATE
everything in The TEMPLE
(see Isa. 28:16; 1 Cor. 3:11; Eph. 2:20; 1 Pet. 2:6; Zech. 4:7).
Our spirit is the lamp of Jehovah
(Prov. 29:27),
the SPIRIT of GOD has COME
into us
through
REGENERATION to
FILL our LAMP
WITH LIGHT
we are now
ONE SPIRIT with the Lord
(1 Cor. 6:17).
May we learn to open the
inward parts
of our soul to the Lord
so that He may come in,
saturate us with His life,
and make us stones
suitable for God’s building.
allow him to
come in, not being afraid
of His
shining, searching, and infusing.
The more
we enjoy and experience Christ
as the
Lamb of God for redemption
The deeper our Unity with him,
His dwelling place on earth,
His Shekena Glory
Through the sanctification process of
growing in Grace and Knowledge
of Christ,
we continue to grow and conform
to his Image and likeness
through the washing of the Word
and redeeming Work of the Cross
Christ is the Lamb
for redemption
The
Temple Cornerstone
Thank You, Lord Jesus, for coming
as the Lamb of God
to take away the sin of the world
for being willing to submit to
the Father’s Will
Crucified,
engraved, and purified on
the CROSS,
To
remove the iniquity of the land
By
lifting them Up in the
Last Day
remove any impurity and sin.
Work Yourself
into us, Lord,
and make us Living Stones built
into You
CHRIST
is the
Seven Spirits of God
and
the LAMB STONE
for the
BUILDING of God’s House
The New Testament uses
the
Greek word for
kidneys, nephros, just
once
It describes the
searching
work of Christ
in
his churches:
“And all the churches will
know
that I AM HE
who searches
MIND and HEART
[kidney]”
In Ephesians 5:25–26,
Christ
reminded them of how deeply
Christ
is committed to
the church, the body of believers:
"Christ also
loved the church and gave
Himself up for her,
so that He might sanctify her,
having cleansed her by
the
washing of water with
the word
"Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her, that he might sanctify her, having cleansed her by the washing of water with the word," meaning that through the power of God's word, Jesus cleanses and purifies the church, symbolized by the act of washing with water; essentially, the word "sanctify" means to set apart as holy, and "washing with water" represents the cleansing power of God's word
Zechariah sees a man with a
measuring line.
In the end times,
Jerusalem's people will multiply
and the city
expand beyond its ancient walls.
God will live
among them and be their wall of fire.
All nations will be saved
and
joined to God's people.
Vision Three - The Surveyor
In Zechariah's third vision, he
sees a man
going out with
a measuring line in his hand
(v1).
It is likely that
this is the same man whom Zechariah
saw in his first vision,
in which case
he is the
Angel of the Lord,
the
pre-incarnate Christ.
When Zechariah asks where
he is going,
he is told that he
is going to measure
the
length and width of Jerusalem
(v2).
The angelic messenger
who helped Zechariah
understand
the
first two visions
then
goes out also.
But another messenger meets him
(v3)
and
tells him to hurry
back to Zechariah
with
a proclamation from
God.
God says that Jerusalem
will no
longer be enclosed by walls
because of the
multitude of
people and animals
there
(v4).
Instead,
God will be Jerusalem's
wall of FIRE
and
the
SOURCE of GLORY
in
her midst
Living Water of Redemption
Renewing
A Steadfast Spirit
Thou wilt show me the
path of life; in
Thy
presence is fullness of joy
at Thy right hand
there are
pleasures for evermore.
Water
is absolutely indispensable
for
human life.
The average human body is more than
50 percent water.
Water is also refreshing,
whether it is used to drink or to bathe or swim in.
In developed countries,
water is often taken for granted.
But in many nations
the lack of clean water
is the
primary public health problem;
even when
clean water is available,
it takes significant
time and effort to get it.
The concern for clean water was often
primary
in ancient times as well.
Water is so
critical
to our existence that it
has become
a symbol for life itself.
There is a Brothers Grimm fairy tale called “The Water of Life” in which a dying king’s sons attempt to locate “the water of life” so that their father can live. Similar scenarios are common in literature. Spanish explorer Ponce de León is said to have been on a quest for the “Fountain of Youth” in the New World. Of course, he died without ever finding it. There is no “water of life,” that is, water that one can drink or bathe in which will grant eternal life, healing, or perpetual youth.
The Bible uses water as a metaphor in some places, and it does speak of “the water of life.” John 4:10–26 is sometimes called the Water of Life Discourse (the counterpart to the Bread of Life Discourse in John 6:22–59).
In John 4, Jesus is sitting at a well in Samaria when a woman comes to draw water. This would have been a daily task for her and would have involved significant effort and time on her part. Jesus asks her for a drink. This simple request was significant because Jesus was publicly speaking to a woman (see John 6:27) and a Samaritan woman at that (John 4:9). The woman asks Jesus why He is willing to associate with her, assuming that most Jews would not stoop to ask a Samaritan for a drink. Jesus uses the occasion to turn the conversation in another direction.
Jesus answers the Samaritan woman at the well,
“If you knew the
gift of God
and who it is that asks you for a drink,
you would have asked
him and he would have given you
living water”
(John 4:10).
The woman wonders how Jesus
can provide
this water, especially since
He had no means to
draw it.
In fact, didn’t He just ask her for a drink?
Jesus answers,
“Everyone who drinks this water will
be thirsty again,
but whoever drinks the water I give them
will never thirst. Indeed, the water
I give them
will become in them a spring of water
welling up to eternal life”
(John 4:13–14).
Jesus turns the
conversation from physical needs
to spiritual needs
by telling the
woman to go and get
her husband.
She responds that she does not
have a husband
Jesus says,
“You are right when you say you have
no husband.
The fact is, you have had five husbands,
and the man you now have is
not your husband.
What you have just said is quite true”
(John 4:17–18).
The conversation ends with Jesus
telling her that
He is the promised Messiah,
and she
goes and tells the whole town
to come out and
listen to what Jesus has to say.
The water of life that Jesus spoke of
is a metaphor
for
spiritual washing and refreshment,
In John 7, Jesus mentions this water of life or living water
again. “Jesus stood and said in a
loud voice, ‘Let anyone who is thirsty come to me and drink.
Whoever believes in me,
as Scripture has said, rivers of living water
will flow from within them.’
By this he meant the Spirit,
whom those who
believed in him were later to receive”
(verses 37–38).
Once again,
Jesus uses the physical to
point to the spiritual.
People need “living water” to give life to their spirits more than they need water to give
life to their bodies. Here, we are told that
the “living water”
Jesus offered is really
the
Holy Spirit.
He is the one who
will be
able to cleanse and satisfy
the thirsty spirit.
Finally, the water of life is mentioned in Revelation 21—22,
which tells of
the blessings of those
who will
spend eternity with God
in the
new heavens and new earth.
In Revelation 21:6 God says, “To the thirsty I will give water without cost from the spring of the water of life.”
This is a picture of bountiful spiritual supply.
Revelation 22:1expounds further:
“Then the angel showed me the river of the water of life, as clear as crystal, flowing from the throne of God and of the Lamb.” A final invitation is issued in Revelation 22:17, “Let the one who is thirsty come; and let the one who wishes take the free gift of the water of life.”
We need not understand the references
to the “river” in
the
New Jerusalem literally.
The picture is of a place
where God lives with
His people
and meets all of their needs.
In ancient times, a city with a continual supply of fresh, clean water would be considered a great place to live. The abode of God and of the believer for all eternity is pictured as having a pure, clear river running through the heart of it; in other words, it is a place where no need will be left unmet.
It is not necessary to wait for the new heavens and the new earth to experience the blessings of the water of life. Because the Holy Spirit comes to live within the believer, the Christian can experience a taste of this now.
The Holy Spirit
within the believer will quench
every spiritual thirst,
as long as the
believer will simply take what
the Spirit has to offer
and follow the Spirit’s leading
on a moment-by-moment basis.
In summary, the water of life is a metaphor
that speaks of
the Holy Spirit’s work
in the life of the believer,
providing spiritual
cleansing
and constant refreshment.
regeneration is rebirth, related to the biblical phrase “born again.”
Our rebirth is distinguished from our first birth, when we were conceived physically and inherited our sin nature. The new birth is a spiritual, holy, and heavenly birth that results in our being made alive spiritually. Man in his natural state is “dead in trespasses and sins” until he is “made alive” (regenerated) by Christ. This happens when he places his faith in Christ (Ephesians 2:1).
Regeneration is a radical change. Just as our physical birth resulted in a new individual entering the earthly realm, our spiritual birth results in a new person entering the heavenly realm (Ephesians 2:6). After regeneration, we begin to see and hear and seek after divine things; we begin to live a life of faith and holiness. Now Christ is formed in the hearts; now we are partakers of the divine nature, having been made new creatures (2 Corinthians 5:17). God, not man, is the source of this transformation (Ephesians 2:1, 8). God’s great love and free gift, His rich grace and abundant mercy, are the cause of the rebirth. The mighty power of God—the power that raised Christ from the dead—is displayed in the regeneration and conversion of sinners
(Ephesians 1:19–20)
But we all, with unveiled face, beholding as in a mirror the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from glory to glory, just as from the Lord, the Spirit” (2 Corinthians 3:18, NASB).
With those few words—“from glory to glory”—Paul sums up our entire Christian life, from redemption and sanctification on earth, to our glorious eternal welcome into heaven. There is a great deal of content packed into those few words. It’s all so important that Paul labors at great length, from 2 Corinthians 2:14 through the end of chapter 5, to open his readers’ eyes to a great truth. Let’s see why that truth matters so much.
The same Greek word for “glory” is used twice in the phrase from glory to glory, yet each usage refers to something different. The first “glory” is that of the Old Covenant—the Law of Moses—while the second is that of the New Covenant, the gospel of Jesus Christ. Both have astonishing splendor.
The Old Covenant was given to Moses directly from God, written by God’s own finger (Exodus 31:18). That root of our Christian faith is glorious indeed; it’s the glory we’re coming “from.” Yet the New Covenant, the glory we’re going “to,” far surpasses that of the Old.
The transformation is from the glory of the Law. Like the stone it was written on, the Law was inflexible and absolute, applying to all Israelites without much regard for individual circumstances (Hebrews 10:28). Though holy, good, and righteous in itself (Romans 7:12), the Law was, for us sinners, the letter that kills us (2 Corinthians 3:6). The Law was an external force to control behavior. In addition, stone, despite its strength, is earthly and will eventually wear away. The Law was merely a temporary guardian (Galatians 3:23–25) until something better came along.
The transformation is to the glory of the New Covenant, which far surpasses the Old in every way. It forgives us of our sin and gives us sinners life (John 6:63). It is written on believers’ hearts by the Holy Spirit (Jeremiah 31:33; 2 Corinthians 3:3), so our obedience to God springs up from within us by God-given desires rather than by threats of legal punishment. In place of a cold set of writings as a guide for pleasing God, we now have Father, Son and Holy Spirit making their home with us, fellowshipping in loving intimacy, teaching us everything we must know and do (John 14:23; 16:13). That position in Christ is as permanent, eternal, and spiritual as God Himself, rather than temporary and earthly.
Paul is intent on directing Christians to focus on the spiritual glory of the New Covenant rather than the physical glory of the Old, as many Jews in his day refused to do. He compared the two types of glory by recalling how Moses absorbed and reflected God’s glory for a time after being in his presence (2 Corinthians 3:7–11, 13; cf. Exodus 34:29–35). Though Moses’ glow had a spiritual cause, there was nothing spiritual about the effect—any person, regardless of his relationship with God, could see the glow on Moses’ face, which he covered with a veil.
Not so the glory of the New Covenant. That can be seen only with a believer’s spiritual eyes—what Paul is doing his best to open, so that we discern the gospel’s glory. So he writes, “For God, who said, ‘Let light shine out of darkness,’ made his light shine in our hearts to give us the light of the knowledge of God’s glory displayed in the face of Christ” (2 Corinthians 4:6).
But, as we move from glory to glory, there’s something even more important about the glory of the New Covenant that Christians must understand: its supernatural power to transform us. And that brings us to God’s ultimate purpose and destination for every believer, to transform us into the image of His own beloved Son (2 Corinthians 3:18; Romans 8:28–30; Philippians 3:20–21).
Before he finishes with the topic of being transformed from glory to glory, Paul presents yet one more astonishing claim: “Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come!” (2 Corinthians 5:17).
This is the invitation the Lord makes to all Christians, to have our lives radically transformed here and now, by opening our eyes to see the glorious journey He is taking us on “from glory to glory.”
At the very end of the Old Testament,
the redeemed of Israel are
promised great joy in the future:
“But for you who fear my name, the
sun of righteousness
shall rise with healing in its wings.
You shall go out leaping like calves from the stall”
(Malachi 4:2, ESV).
This passage speaks of an eschatological period referenced
in Scripture
as the “Day of the Lord”
(Isaiah 13:6; Malachi 4:5; Joel 1:15; 2:1; Acts 2:20).
It will be a time of judgment for evildoers and a time of great blessing for the righteous (Malachi 4:2–3). Those who “fear my name” or “revere my name” are God’s people—the righteous. They know and reverence the Lord and understand the full implications of His name and character. The New Living Translation describes the experience of the righteous on that future day as those who “will go free, leaping with joy like calves let out to pasture.”
The “Sun of Righteousness” is an unmistakable reference to the Messiah, Jesus Christ, the Light of the world (John 9:5). Malachi 4:2 indicates that the Messiah “shall arise with healing in His wings.” The spreading rays of sunshine symbolize the coming infusion of light and healing on the earth. At the second coming, Jesus Christ will shine forth in all His brilliance (Matthew 26:64). This “healing” goes beyond the physical into the realm of spiritual restoration—salvation from death and deliverance from eternal damnation (Psalm 107:20).
Healing is mentioned as part of the eternal state: “Then the angel showed me the river of the water of life, as clear as crystal, flowing from the throne of God and of the Lamb down the middle of the great street of the city. On each side of the river stood the tree of life, bearing twelve crops of fruit, yielding its fruit every month. And the leaves of the tree are for the healing of the nations. No longer will there be any curse” (Revelation 22:1–3a). Ezekiel describes a river that flows out of a new and glorious temple: “Fruit trees of all kinds will grow on both banks of the river. Their leaves will not wither, nor will their fruit fail. Every month they will bear fruit, because the water from the sanctuary flows to them. Their fruit will serve for food and their leaves for healing” (Ezekiel 47:12).
When Christ returns with “healing in his wings,” the redeemed will know perpetual health and everlasting life. Sickness of mind, body, and soul will be healed. The spiritual malady of sin will be forever eradicated. Through Jesus come grace and truth (John 1:17). The Lord vows to “heal you of your faithlessness; my love will know no bounds, for my anger will be gone forever” (Hosea 14:4, NLT).
He will completely fulfill the prophecy
of Isaiah 61:1–3a:
“The Spirit of the Sovereign Lord is on me,
because the Lord has anointed me
to proclaim good news to the poor.
He has sent me to bind up the brokenhearted,
to proclaim freedom for the captives
and release from darkness for the prisoners,
to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor
and the day of vengeance of our God,
to comfort all who mourn,
and provide for those who grieve in Zion--
to bestow on them a crown of beauty
instead of ashes,
the oil of joy
instead of mourning,
and a garment of praise
instead of a spirit of despair.”
Christ died on the
cross
so that those who believe
in Him
and receive Him as Savior
will experience
spiritual healing and restored
fellowship with God
(Isaiah 53:5; 1 Peter 2:24).
We don’t have to fear the day of judgment because we have the hope and the promise that “the Sun of Righteousness shall arise with healing in His wings” (see John 3:18; Matthew 25:33–34). Believers can take courage in knowing God is “a sun and shield,” who gives us grace and glory and withholds “no good thing from those who do what is right” (Psalm 84:11, NLT).
When Jesus Christ returns, He will judge the wicked, and the world will experience a time of unprecedented peace, righteousness, and healing. The prophet Isaiah describes the millennial reign of Christ in glorious detail: “In that day the wolf and the lamb will live together; the leopard will lie down with the baby goat. The calf and the yearling will be safe with the lion, and a little child will lead them all. The cow will graze near the bear. The cub and the calf will lie down together. The lion will eat hay like a cow. The baby will play safely near the hole of a cobra. Yes, a little child will put its hand in a nest of deadly snakes without harm. Nothing will hurt or destroy in all my holy mountain, for as the waters fill the sea, so the earth will be filled with people who know the Lord” (Isaiah 11:6–9, NLT).
When Jesus, the Sun of Righteousness, rises with healing in His wings, “my people will again live under my shade,” promises the Lord (Hosea 14:7, NLT). In this sin-darkened world, we can have hope knowing that the future coming of Jesus Christ will be like the dawning of the brightest day of curative sunshine. His appearance will be like a beautiful sunrise after a long, dark night. It will be a day of deliverance and spiritual light for the righteous. “Light is sweet, and it pleases the eyes to see the sun” (Ecclesiastes 11:7).
The precise phrase river of life does not appear in the Bible. However, Revelation 22:1–2does refer to “the river of the water of life, as clear as crystal, flowing from the throne of God and of the Lamb.” The apostle John, in his vision of the New Jerusalem, describes the river as flowing “down the middle of the great street of the city.”
The “water of life” referred to here does not have to be considered physical water as we know it. Rather, the water flowing from the throne is probably symbolic of the water of eternal life, crystal clear to reflect the glory of God in a dazzling, never-ending stream. The fact that the stream emanates from the throne tells us that eternal life flows from God to His people.
Water is a common symbolic representation of eternal life in Scripture. Isaiah refers to drawing water from the “wells of salvation” with joy (Isaiah 12:3). The Old Testament prophet Jeremiah rebuked the Israelites for abandoning God’s “spring of living water” and digging for themselves their own cisterns which could not hold water (Jeremiah 2:13). The Israelites had forsaken the living God, who alone provides eternal life, to chase after false idols, worldliness, and works-based religions. Men do the same today, refusing the water of life only Christ provides for a parched and dusty life of materialism and self-indulgence.
Jesus encouraged the Samaritan woman at the well to take from Him the water of (eternal) life so that she would never thirst again spiritually (John 4:13–14). Those who believe in Him, Jesus goes on to say in John 7:38, will have streams of living water flowing from them. Water is an appropriate and easily understood symbol for life. Just as physical water is necessary to sustain physical life on earth, living water from the Savior is necessary to sustain eternal life with Him. Jesus is both the Bread of Life (John 6:35) and the source of living water, sustaining His people forever.
There are several references to the throne of God
in the Bible.
Jesus calls heaven “God’s throne” in Matthew 5:34,
recalling God’s statement
in Isaiah 66:1, “Heaven is my throne, and the earth is my footstool.”
Other references to God’s throne are
found in 2 Chronicles 18:18; Psalm 11:4; Hebrews 8:1; 12:2; Revelation 1:4; 3:21; 4:2;
and many other verses.
A throne is a special seat reserved
for a monarch.
When the Bible speaks of God’s “throne,”
the emphasis is on
God’s transcendence, dignity, and
sovereign rule.
The fact that His throne is in heaven
further underscores
the transcendent nature of God’s existence.
The throne of God need not be thought of as a literal throne. God the Father is incorporeal (John 4:24). Not having a physical body, God does not literally “sit.” References to a divine throne are akin to biblical allusions to God’s “hand” or “mouth” or “eyes”—they are anthropomorphisms, descriptions of
God couched in human terms out of deference
to our limited knowledge.
God has to describe Himself in ways we can understand.
Isaiah sees the Lord
“high and exalted, seated on a throne;
and the
train of his robe filled the temple”
(Isaiah 6:1).
At that time, the prophet was having an inspired vision. God’s throne (and His robe) are not to be taken as literal, physical objects. Rather, God was communicating to Isaiah the magnificence, splendor, and exaltation of His Being. Other descriptions of the throne of God are found in other prophetic visions, e.g., in those of Ezekiel and John.
God’s throne is a place of power and authority. In 2 Chronicles 18:18, the prophet Micaiah relates his vision of God’s throne room, in which spirit beings stand in attendance. Compare this to Job 1:6, where God demands answers from the angelic beings summoned there.
God’s throne is a place of majesty and honor. The Bible says that, when Jesus ascended to heaven, He “sat down at the right hand of the throne of God” (Hebrews 12:2). There is no higher place than heaven. God is the King of heaven, and Jesus holds the place of honor at God’s right hand.
God’s throne is a place of perfect justice. “He has prepared His throne for judgment” (Psalm 9:7; cf. 89:14). The final judgment, described in Revelation 20, is held before “a great white throne” (verse 11).
God’s throne is a place of sovereignty and holiness. “God reigns over the nations; God is seated on his holy throne” (Psalm 47:8; cf. 103:19). He does whatever He pleases, and all He does is good.
God’s throne is a place of praise. John’s vision of heaven includes a scene in which a “new song” is sung in praise to the One who occupies the throne (Revelation 14:3). Around the throne, the praise of God is surely “glorious” (Psalm 66:2).
God’s throne is a place of purity. Only the redeemed, those who have been granted the righteousness of Christ, will have the right to stand before His throne (Revelation 14:5).
God’s throne is a place of eternal life. God is the Source of life. In heaven, John sees “the river of the water of life, as clear as crystal, flowing from the throne of God and of the Lamb” (Revelation 22:1).
God’s throne is a place of grace. Not only does the throne of God represent judgment for the unbeliever, but it also represents mercy and grace for His children. “Let us then approach God’s throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need” (Hebrews 4:16). Inside the Jewish temple was the Ark of the Covenant, which was a “copy of the true” (Hebrews 9:24), and it had a “mercy seat” where God’s presence would appear (Leviticus 16:2, ESV).
One day, all creation will bow to the majesty of God’s throne (Philippians 2:9–11). The regal beings surrounding the throne of God will “lay their crowns before the throne and say: ‘You are worthy, our Lord and God, to receive glory and honor and power’” (Revelation 4:10–11).
One of God’s promises concerning the eternal state is that the nations of the world will have healing. The question comes up, though, as to why exactly healing is needed. Isn’t the New Jerusalem a place of perfection already?
The promise of the healing of the nations is found in Revelation 22, after the creation of the new heaven and new earth (Revelation 21:1). John writes, “Then the angel showed me the river of the water of life, as clear as crystal, flowing from the throne of God and of the Lamb down the middle of the great street of the city. On each side of the river stood the tree of life, bearing twelve crops of fruit, yielding its fruit every month. And the leaves of the tree are for the healing of the nations. No longer will there be any curse. The throne of God and of the Lamb will be in the city, and his servants will serve him. They will see his face, and his name will be on their foreheads. There will be no more night. They will not need the light of a lamp or the light of the sun, for the Lord God will give them light. And they will reign for ever and ever” (Revelation 22:1–5).
The healing of the nations is linked to the tree of life, as God reestablishes Eden. It is the leaves of this tree that are said to be “for the healing of the nations” (Revelation 22:2). It is possible that the tree of life in the New Jerusalem is literal and that its leaves and various fruits will somehow enrich our existence in the eternal state. All the nations represented there will be “healed” of their divisions and strife in their equal access to the tree of life.
It is also possible that the tree of life in the New Jerusalem is symbolic and that its “healing” signifies the eternal life that all will enjoy there. The different fruits it bears could represent the unlimited variety of our existence in heaven. The clear flowing river that waters the tree could picture the spiritual life of God’s redeemed—the “living water” Jesus promised in John 4:13–14.
The healing the tree of life’s leaves provide is not the healing of the wounds of battle—warfare will have ended. The healing is not needed for combating sickness—there will be no more sickness, death, or pain (Revelation 21:4). No, the “healing” is a reference to the perpetual blessing of the new heaven and earth; never again will the world be plagued by physical disorders or spiritual malaise or corruption. There will be no more warfare, no strife, no conflicting factions. God will heal all that ails His creation, and there will be no more curse (Revelation 22:3).
In the eternal state, everything will be blessed, and the tree of life represents that blessedness. There will be perfect sinlessness, perfect government, perfect service to God, perfect communion, and perfect glory. It is impossible for us to imagine being totally separated from sin and living in a glorified state before God. But the Lord assures us that “these words are trustworthy and true” (Revelation 22:6).
As the Psalmist reminds us, while the universe may have no voice, “their words to out to the end of the world” (Psalm 19:3-4). Of course, the Gospel also tells us that how people react to God’s Word, spoken naturally or supernaturally, varies (Matthew 13:18-23).
In Genesis 1, God creates “the heavens and the earth.” When we examine the specific things mentioned that he makes — the sun and moon, the birds of the air, the fishes of the sea, the cattle — we find that the inspired writer is engaging in a polemic with Israel’s neighbors, who worshipped one of more of those things as gods. Egypt worshipped the sun, Babylon the moon.
Genesis (1:14-19) assigns them utilitarian purposes: to provide light, to mark the seasons and the “appointed times,” (i.e., times that depend on how God set up the universe, such as the rotation and revolution of the earth, corresponding to days and years). And since animals don’t need, or at least are not consciously aware of the passage of time, that utilitarian purpose serves one creature: man, the summit of God’s creation, his viceroy (1:28).
Man is given creation to use, not abuse. This is fundamentally different from our contemporary eco-idolatry that reduces the human person to just another species in the world, and an allegedly environmentally bad one at that. This is part of the Judaeo-Christian Genesis heritage a Gaia-infatuated modernity is in danger of losing, with its concomitant threat to the human person and his dignity.
God met men where he’s at. Genesis already cut down the sun, moon and stars to tools for man, not lords over him that determine his destiny. So, from the get go, astrology was out.
But, in meeting man where he’s at, God allows the “signs in the heavens” to speak to him.
They don’t speak for themselves, much less control things, but they can be signs of God’s. We already see that at a natural level, where those disinclined to persist in epistemological blinders can recognize cosmic order and an Orderer. At the supernatural level, we see this in the account of Jesus’ Nativity, for which we are preparing during Advent. While the Jerusalem establishment had the even more reliable revealed Word of God to tell them “where the Messiah is to be born” (Matthew 2:4-6) it was the Magi who, relying on their assumptions about celestial signs, followed the “star” (Matthew 2:2) to Bethlehem.
And just as, on Good Friday, the Evangelists speak of cosmic signs (Matthew 27:45), earthly disturbances (27:51) and even a mini-resurrection (27:52-53) that even elicited a pagan’s profession of faith (27:54), “there will be signs in the sun and the moon and the stars.”
Because, as Scripture reminds us, we await a “new heaven and a new earth” (Revelation 21:1; 2 Peter 3:13). Scripture speaks of the destruction of the old — of sin and evil — by fire (Malachi 4:1; 2 Peter 3:7, 10). Sin and evil are the “futility” to which creation has been subjected by man’s unfaithful stewardship, and St. Paul reminds us that all of creation is waiting, as in childbirth (Romans 8:19-24).
Creation is awaiting childbirth
— the revelation of “the children of God” (v. 21),
those who were “wise” in the
biblical sense of
knowing the priority of God in their lives,
to “shine like the brightness of the heavens
… and like the
brightness of the stars for all eternity”
(Daniel 12:3).
Because the
true glory of God — and his creation — is “man fully alive”
(St. Irenaeus).
Is it a surprise that our model,
Mary, the
first and truest disciple,
is also frequently depicted as
crowned with stars,
standing on the moon,
an image of Biblical warrant?
(See Revelation 12:1-2.)
Today’s mosaic comes from the Cappella Palatina in Palermo.
Some readers might be surprised
to see artwork
that looks very much like of
Eastern Christian origin,
from 12th-century Sicily.
But Sicily lay at the
crossroads
between East and West,
and Byzantine and Roman influences are both
found in that church,
dating from around 1140.
The illustration above comes from a
cycle of creation
appearing on the sanctuary wall.
The sun, moon, and stars
are enclosed in an orb,
outside of which Jesus stands.
God enters
our history, but he also
remains above it:
It is through the Word
that the
Father created and,
as the blessing of the
Paschal candle at Easter
reminds us:
Christ yesterday and today
the beginning and the end
the Alpha and the Omega
all time belongs to him
and all the ages.
The heavens themselves
are like
a scroll in his hand
(Revelation 6:14).
The mosaic is very biblical. Notice that
our cosmos — the sun, moon and stars --
is enclosed in
only a part of “the bigger picture.”
Jesus stands outside it,
the
gold background
symbolic of
the eternal, heavenly realm.
There are more things beyond heaven and earth, too.
He who made those heavens rules them and will
redeem them.
So should we be surprised there will
be signs in them?
Dive into our infographic showcasing
one of the most
thrilling celestial events – the planetary
alignment!
Often referred to as a planet parade, this cosmic phenomenon involves the alignment of 3 to 8 planets. And here's the exciting part – it's not a once-in-a-lifetime event; the next alignment of planets is set for February 2025! However, patience is key if you want to witness all the planets lined up.
Explore the planetary alignments in 2025 and beyond. Take note of the planetary alignment dates and dispel any myths associated with this celestial parade. Let's delve into the cosmic mechanics of aligning planets through colorful pictures! For more detailed information about planetary alignments, check out our dedicated article.
Share the cool info in this image about the alignment of planets! You can also find it on our Instagram with #infographics_StarWalk.
Don't miss the planetary
parade –
witness
the beauty
of the planets
tonight!
The Presence of the
LORD
(Acts 2:14–36)
A Miktama of
David
1 Preserve me, O God,
for in You I take refuge.
2I said to the LORD, “You are my Lord;
apart from You I have no good thing.”
3As for the saints in the land,
they are the excellence
in whom all my delight resides.
4Sorrows will multiply
to those who chase other gods.
I will not pour out their libations of blood,
or speak their names with my lips.
5The LORD is my chosen portion and my cup;
You have made my lot secure.
6The lines of my boundary have fallen in pleasant places;
surely my inheritance is delightful.
7I will bless the LORD who counsels me;
even at night my conscience instructs me.
8I have setc the LORD always before me.
Because He is at my right hand, I will not be shaken.
9Therefore my heart is glad and my tongue rejoices;
my body also will dwell securely.
10For You will not abandon my soul to Sheol,
nor will You let Your Holy One see decay.e
11You have made known to me the path of life;
You will fill me with joy in Your presence,f
with eternal pleasures at Your right hand.
is probably a musical
or liturgical term; used
for Psalm 16 and Psalms 56–60.
my heart instructs me;
Hebrew my kidneys instruct me
I foresaw
will dwell in hope
Cited in Acts 13:35
Cited in Acts 2:25–28
A Light
for the
Gentiles
The New Testament uses the
Greek word for
kidneys, nephros, just once
It describes the
searching
work of Christ in
his churches:
“And all the churches will know
that I am he
who searches
mind and heart [kidney]”
(Rev 2:23b ESV)
Acts 2:28
You have made known to me the paths of life; You will fill me with joy in Your presence.’
John 14:6
Jesus answered, “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me.
Psalm 21:6
For You grant him blessings forever; You cheer him with joy in Your presence.
Psalm 36:8-9
They feast on the abundance of Your house, and You give them drink from Your river of delights. / For with You is the fountain of life; in Your light we see light.
John 17:3
Now this is eternal life, that they may know You, the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom You have sent.
Matthew 25:21
His master replied, ‘Well done, good and faithful servant! You have been faithful with a few things; I will put you in charge of many things. Enter into the joy of your master!’
Isaiah 35:10
So the redeemed of the LORD will return and enter Zion with singing, crowned with everlasting joy. Gladness and joy will overtake them, and sorrow and sighing will flee.
Revelation 21:4
‘He will wipe away every tear from their eyes,’ and there will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain, for the former things have passed away.”
Psalm 73:24-26
You guide me with Your counsel, and later receive me in glory. / Whom have I in heaven but You? And on earth I desire no one besides You. / My flesh and my heart may fail, but God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever.
Romans 15:13
Now may the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you believe in Him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit.
1 Peter 1:8
Though you have not seen Him, you love Him; and though you do not see Him now, you believe in Him and rejoice with an inexpressible and glorious joy,
Isaiah 61:7
Instead of shame, My people will have a double portion, and instead of humiliation, they will rejoice in their share; and so they will inherit a double portion in their land, and everlasting joy will be theirs.
John 10:10
The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy. I have come that they may have life, and have it in all its fullness.
1 Corinthians 2:9
Rather, as it is written: “No eye has seen, no ear has heard, no heart has imagined, what God has prepared for those who love Him.”
Psalm 23:6
Surely goodness and mercy will follow me all the days of my life, and I will dwell in the house of the LORD forever.
Psalm 21:4
He asked life of thee, and thou gavest ithim, even length of days for ever and ever.
Proverbs 2:19
None that go unto her return again, neither take they hold of the paths of life.
Proverbs 4:18
But the path of the just is as the shining light, that shineth more and more unto the perfect day.
in thy
Psalm 17:15
As for me, I will behold thy face in righteousness: I shall be satisfied, when I awake, with thy likeness.
Psalm 21:5,6
His glory is great in thy salvation: honour and majesty hast thou laid upon him…
Matthew 5:8
Blessed are the pure in heart: for they shall see God.
at thy
Mark 16:19
So then after the Lord had spoken unto them, he was received up into heaven, and sat on the right hand of God.
Acts 7:56
And said, Behold, I see the heavens opened, and the Son of man standing on the right hand of God.
1 Peter 3:22
Who is gone into heaven, and is on the right hand of God; angels and authorities and powers being made subject unto him.
pleasures
Psalm 36:8
They shall be abundantly satisfied with the fatness of thy house; and thou shalt make them drink of the river of thy pleasures.
Matthew 25:33,46
And he shall set the sheep on his right hand, but the goats on the left…
Today is My
Firstborn Son’s Birthday
In Hebrew, his Name means
"pleasure" or "delight".
"garden" or "paradise"
Sign of Jonah
And the 153 fish
John 21.11
THE CATCH of FISH
tells us of
the
salvation of humanity,
but
humanity cannot be saved
without
keeping the 10 commandments.
But, on account of the fall,
we cannot
even keep the commandments
without the
help of Grace and
the
7 gifts
of the
Holy Spirit.
Moreover, the number
7 signifies holiness,
since God
Blessed
the
7th day and made
it Holy
(Gen 2:3).
But 10 plus 7 equals 17,
and if all the numbers
from 1 to 17 are added together
(1+2+3…+17),
they equal
153
Hence, the 153 fish signify
that
all the elect are
to be
saved by the gift of grace
(7)
and the following of the
commandments (10)
(St Augustine, Commentary on John, 72.8)
153 consists of 100
(the great number of gentiles to be saved),
plus 50
(the smaller number of Jews to be saved),
plus 3
(the TRINITY who SAVES ALL)
(St Cyril; this kind of reading is very similar to that
of his brother Methodius
in reading the number 1260 in Rev 12).
Others follow St. Cyril, but modify this as follows: 100
(the multitude of married
lay
faithful in the Church),
plus 50
the many faithful who commit
themselves
later in life to continence
either
living as widows or living
with their spouse
in a brother-sister relationship
plus 3
(the precious few who commit
their whole
lives to celibacy as virgins)
equals 153
the whole Church
taken
together as a single
body
It was thought at that time that there were only
153 species of fish in all
the world.
Hence, the disciples caught
153 fish,
signifying that people of every class and
TIME
would be SAVED
through
The Gospel
. (St Jerome, Comm. Ez. 47.6-12).
Pythogoras was associated
with
catches of fish,
and he had
calculated that 153 is the denominator
of the closest known fraction
to the square root of 3 (265/153),
and this was also the
ratio of a fish shape drawn between
two overlapping circles
which are centered
on each other’s circumference.
This shape is therefore known as
the vesica piscis or the mandorla
and the
ratio was called by Pythagoras
the
‘MEASURE of the FISH’
If the two circles
represent God and humanity,
then the OVERLAP represents
Jesus as God incarnate,
along
with his followers,
whose sign
becomes the
sign of the fish.
The square root of 153 is 12.369, which is the number of lunar months in a solar year, and it therefore points to the moon which waxes and wanes, which is visible one minute and hides itself another.
Just as the moon can hide itself, in Isaiah 8 the Lord spoke of hiding his face from Israel and binding up his testimony among the disciples.
The fish and the number 153 are for
signs and symbols.
“Here am I,
and the
children the LORD has
given me.
These are signs and symbols
in ISRAEL
from
the LORD Almighty,
who
DWELLS on Mount ZION”
(Isaiah 8:11-18).
Zechariah 2
A Vision of a Man
Holding a
Measuring Line
1Then I looked up and saw a man.
He was holding
a measuring line.
2“Where are you going?” I asked.
“To measure Jerusalem,”
he answered.
I want to find out
how wide and how long it is.”
3The angel
who was talking with me
was leaving.
At that time, another angel came
over to him.
4He said to him, “Run!
Tell that young man Zechariah,
‘Jerusalem will be a city
that does not
have any walls around it.
It will have huge
numbers
of people and animals in it.
5And I myself
will be like a wall of fire
around it,’
announces the Lord.
‘I will be the city’s glory.’
6“Israel,
I have scattered you,”
announces the Lord.
I have used the
power of the
four
winds of heaven to do it.
Come quickly!
Run away from the land of
the north,”
announces the Lord.
7“Come, people of Zion!
Escape, you who live
in Babylon!”
8The Lord rules over all.
His angel says to
Israel,
“The Glorious One
has sent me to punish
the nations that
have
robbed you of everything.
That’s because anyone who hurts you
hurts those
the Lord loves and guards.
9So I will raise my powerful
hand to
strike down your enemies.
Their own slaves
will rob them of everything.
Then you will know that
the Lord who
rules over all has sent me
“ ‘People of Zion, shout
and be glad!
I am
coming to live among you,’
announces the Lord.
At that time many nations
will join
themselves to me.
And they will
become my people.
I will live among you,’
says the Lord.
Then you will know that the Lord
who rules over
all has sent me to you.
12He will receive
Judah as his share in
the holy land.
And he will
choose Jerusalem again.
13All you people of the world,
be still
because the Lord is coming.
He is getting ready to
come down
from his
holy temple in heaven.”
The phrase “sign of Jonah”
was used
by Jesus as a typological
metaphor for
His future crucifixion, burial,
and
resurrection.
Jesus answered with this expression
when
asked by the Pharisees for
miraculous proof that He was
indeed
the Messiah.
The Pharisees remained
unconvinced
of Jesus’ claims about
Himself,
despite His having
just cured a demon-possessed man
who was
both blind and mute.
Shortly after the Pharisees accused Jesus
of driving out demons
by the power of Satan,
they said to Him,
Teacher,
WE WANT to
SEE a
SIGN from you.”
PROVE IT
He answered, “A wicked and adulterous generation asks for a sign! But none will be given it except the sign of the prophet Jonah. For as Jonah was three days and three nights in the belly of a huge fish, so the Son of Man will be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth. The men of Nineveh will stand up at the judgment with this generation and condemn it;
for they repented at the preaching of Jonah, and now something greater than Jonah is here”
(Matthew 12:38–41).
To fully appreciate the answer that Jesus gave, we must go to the Old Testament book of Jonah. In its first chapter, we read that God commanded the prophet Jonah to go to the city of Nineveh and warn its people that He was going to destroy it for its wickedness.
Jonah disobediently ran from the Lord and headed for the city of Tarshish by boat.
The Lord then sent a severe storm that caused the crew of the ship to fear for their lives. Jonah was soon thrown overboard and swallowed by a great fish where he remained for “three days and three nights” (Jonah 1:15–17).
After the three-day period, the Lord caused the great fish to vomit Jonah out onto dry land (Jonah 2:10).
It is this three days that Jesus was
referring to when
He spoke of the sign of Jonah.
Jesus had already
been producing miracles
that were
witnessed by many.
Jesus had just performed a great sign in the Pharisees’ presence by healing a deaf man who was possessed of a demon. Rather than believe, they accused Jesus of doing this by the power of Satan. Jesus recognized their hardness of heart and refused to give them further proof of His identity. However, He did say that there would be one further sign forthcoming, His resurrection from the dead. This would be their final opportunity to be convinced.
Jesus’ paralleling of the Pharisees with the people of Nineveh is telling. The people of Nineveh repented of their evil ways (Jonah 3:4–10) after hearing Jonah’s call for repentance, while the Pharisees continued in their unbelief despite being eyewitnesses to the miracles of Jesus. Jesus was telling the Pharisees that they were culpable for their unbelief, given the conversion of the people of Nineveh, sinners who had received far less evidence than the Pharisees themselves had witnessed. Interestingly, from the time of Jonah’s preaching, the people of Nineveh had 40 days to repent, and they did, sparing their city from destruction. From the time of Jesus’ preaching, the people of Jerusalem had 40 years, but they did not repent, and Jerusalem was destroyed.
But what are we to make
of the phrase
“three days and three nights”?
Was Jesus saying that He would be dead for three full 24-hour periods before
He would rise from the dead?
It does not appear so. The phrase “three days and three nights” need not refer to a literal 72-hour period. Rather, according to the Hebrew reckoning of time, the days could refer to three days in part or in whole. Jesus was probably crucified on a Friday (Mark 15:42). According to the standard reckoning, Jesus died at about 3:00 PM (Matthew 27:46) on Friday (day 1). He remained dead for all of Saturday (day 2) and rose from the dead early on Sunday morning (day 3). Attempts to place Jesus’ death on Wednesday to accommodate a literal 72-hour period are probably unnecessary once we take into account the Hebrew method of reckoning of each day as beginning at sundown. So it seems that the expression “three days and three nights” was used as a figure of speech meant to signify any part of three days.
God
would often use
signs (or miracles)
in the Bible
to authenticate
His chosen messenger.
The Lord provided Moses with several
miraculous signs
in order to
PROVE
to others that
he was
appointed by God
(Exodus 4:5–9; 7:8–10;19-20).
God sent down
fire
on Elijah’s altar
during
Elijah’s contest with the prophets
of Baal
(1 Kings 18:36–39).
He performed this miracle
to PROVE
that the God of Israel
was the
one TRUE GOD
Jesus Himself would
perform
many miracles (or “signs”) to demonstrate
His power over nature
(Matthew 4:23; Mark 6:30–44; Luke 8:22–24; John 6:16–24).
The “sign of Jonah”
would turn out to be
Jesus’ greatest miracle
of all.
Jesus’ resurrection from the
dead
would
be God’s CHIEF SIGN
that Jesus was
Israel’s long-awaited
MESSIAH
(Acts 2:23–32)
and establish
Christ’s
claims to
DEITY
(Romans 1:3–4).
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Three times in the Song of Solomon, the daughters of Jerusalem are given this charge: “Do not stir up or awaken love until it pleases” (Song of Solomon 2:7; 3:5; 8:4, ESV). The NIV’s wording is similar: “Do not arouse or awaken love until it so desires” With the three-fold repetition, this command can be considered a refrain and becomes a theme running throughout the song.
The speaker addresses the “daughters of Jerusalem”—young, unmarried women in Israel’s capital city—and gives them some wise advice. Do not awaken love until it pleases. It’s a solemn charge, given by one who has found true love and is experiencing its joys. Do not attempt to arouse or awaken love. Don’t stir it up. Love should be allowed to “rest” until it awakes on its own accord.
The meaning seems to be this: true love, that which is worthy of being called “love,” should be spontaneous. There is danger in trying to “force” love or to stir up passions before their time. There is a tendency, especially among the young, to fall victim to “puppy love” or to mistake infatuation for true love. The speaker in the Song of Solomon would save us much grief. The charge not to awaken love until it pleases is a warning against entering romantic relationships too young. It is a warning against becoming so desperate to find love that we start looking for it in all the wrong places. It is a warning against trying to manufacture feelings of love where there were none to begin with.
The NLT translates Song of Solomon 2:7 in a way that emphasizes the need for proper timing: “Promise me, O women of Jerusalem, . . . not to awaken love until the time is right.” Waiting is never easy; in matters of the heart, waiting may be even more difficult. But waiting for the right one, at the right time, has prevented many a broken heart. Let love rise naturally; let affection be without affectation. The result will be beautiful.
If a relationship is to move on to the next level, then it will do so without artifice or stratagem. If romance is God’s intention, then romance will come. No need to press it. True love is special. It cannot be ginned up, and it cannot be manipulated. Romantic feelings should not be stirred too early. Let them sleep until it’s time for them to awake.
The wording of the adjuration is interesting and quite significant. In two instances, the charge makes an appeal to fauna. Here is the whole of Song of Solomon 2:7: “I adjure you, O daughters of Jerusalem, by the gazelles or the does of the field, that you not stir up or awaken love until it pleases” (ESV). Using beautiful imagery, the speaker underscores the truth that love must have freedom. Just as gazelles and deer are free to roam, so love should have freedom to move in our hearts in its own time and in its own way.
Love should not be manipulated
any more than a
gazelle should be fettered or caged.
When the time is right, love will bloom.
Until then,
wisdom advises us to guard our hearts.
It will be worth the wait.
When Jesus healed on the Sabbath,
He was also challenging the religious leaders with the question of doing good or evil on the Sabbath: “Which is lawful on the Sabbath: to do good or to do evil, to save life or to kill?” (Mark 3:4).
The leaders remained silent and refused to answer.
His healing gave them the answer.
Doing good and saving life is lawful,
even on the Sabbath.
Using the Sabbath rule to do evil or to kill
is an ungodly perversion of the law.
Let’s take a look at the law in question.
The Torah is the law proper.
But the Pharisees also added their traditions to the law God had given.
The religious leaders’ traditions that they combined with the biblical law became as important to them as God’s actual Word. Jesus stood against such additions to the law, rebuking the teachers of the law for “teaching as doctrines the commandments of men”
(Mark 7:7, ESV).
Another reason Jesus healed on the Sabbath was to remind people of
why
God instituted the Sabbath day of rest.
The Sabbath
was meant to benefit people as much
as to glorify God:
“The Sabbath was made
for man,
not man for the Sabbath”
(Mark 2:27).
The Sabbath helped people
recuperate
(mentally and physically)
after a week of work
and
redirect their focus
from the daily routine
to God.
Jesus’ healing on the
Sabbath
was
therefore very much compatible
with
God’s purpose for the Sabbath.
Confronted with
Jesus’ undeniable power
to
heal and restore,
the religious leaders
passed up their chance to reflect
on the
possibility that
they were wrong.
Instead, they dug
in their heels
and doubled down on their
untenable position.
Their stubbornness is a good reminder for
us of our need
to
examine our beliefs and ensure
they are
biblical and in line with
the
Word of God
The Bible
uses nectar to represent imagery
that’s desirable,
such as honey, wine, and manna,
to convey the idea of
divine
sustenance and spiritual nourishment.
- Heavenly banquet
The Bible- uses this imagery to convey the idea
- of divine sustenance
- and spiritual nourishment
- Song of Songs 4:11
- "Your lips are as sweet
- as nectar, my bride.
- Honey and milk are under your tongue"
- Manna, wine, and honey
The Bible uses these to convey the idea of- divine sustenance and spiritual nourishment
- The Bible communicates the richness of God's provision
- and the eternal satisfaction
- found in a relationship with Him
- Song of Songs 4:11
- Your lips are as sweet as nectar,
- my bride.
Honey and milk are under your tongue. - Your clothes are scented like...
divine sustenance, - abundance, and spiritual nourishment
THE TRUTH
will set YOU
FREE”
is a common saying in academic
CIRCLES
that want to promote academic
FREEDOM
and
the POWER of LEARNING
Many universities
have this statement emblazoned on
a sign near
the entrance of a building.
But “the truth will set you free”
did not
originate in academia;
Jesus said it in John 8:32.
In context,
Jesus’ statement
has nothing to do with classroom learning
In fact, John 8:32
speaks of a higher form of knowledge
than is capable
of being learned in a classroom.
Jesus had just finished a speech
at the temple
where He delineated
differences between
Himself and His listeners.
“You are from below; I am from above.
You are of this world; I am not of this world.
I told you that you would die in your sins;
if you do not believe that I am he,
you will indeed die in your sins”
(John 8:23–24).
The result of Jesus’ message was that
“even as he spoke,
many believed in him”
(verse 30).
Then, in verse 31,
Jesus
begins to speak just to those
who had believed
“Jesus said,
‘If you hold to my teaching,
you are
really my disciples’”
(John 8:31).
True discipleship
is more than intellectual assent;
those
who are “really” followers
of Christ
will “hold to” His Word.
That means they will not only accept
His teachings as truth,
but they will also obey His teachings.
Action is proof of faith
(cf. James 2:17).
True disciples of Jesus
believe that He speaks
the truth
about God and the Scriptures.
They also
know that He is
who
He claims to be.
Back in verse 25, the people asked
Jesus who He was,
and He responded,
“Just what I have been telling
you
from the beginning.”
There may be a tinge of exasperation in
His response;
He had repeatedly made
known that
He was the Messiah,
the one
they had anticipated for
many years.
Verse 32 begins with,
“Then you will know the truth.” “You” refers to those
who are true disciples of Jesus.
True disciples will know
the truth.
More than that, their eyes are
opened
to a greater understanding
of the truth
(cf. 1 John 5:20).
The truth Jesus’ disciples
receive
brings with it freedom.
Jesus continues,
“And the truth will set you free”
(verse 32)
At that point in history, the Jews were under the rule of the Roman government.
Even though Rome gave them an exceptional amount of autonomy,
they were keenly aware of the Roman presence
around them
in the form of soldiers, governors, and
empirically appointed kings.
When Jesus said the truth would set them free, however,
He was not talking about political freedom
(though the following verses indicate that’s how the Jews took it).
Jesus provides the best commentary for
His own statement in verse 34.
Jesus explains, “Very truly I tell you, everyone who sins is a slave to sin.”
Being a slave to sin is the ultimate
bondage
The freedom Jesus offers is a spiritual freedom from the bondage of sin—that is, release from the lifestyle of habitual lawlessness. He continues with an analogy: “Now a slave has no permanent place in the family, but a son belongs to it forever” (verse 35).
The people would have understood Jesus to mean that they
were not members of God’s family,
despite their biological relationship
to Abraham
(verse 37), because they were slaves to sin.
If they were to become
disciples of Jesus,
they would
know the truth of their condition
and the truth about
Christ,
and Jesus would set them free.
Believers would be freed
from their
bondage and brought into the
family of God.
Jesus is the Truth
(John 14:6).
Knowing the Truth will set one at liberty--
free from sin,
free from condemnation, and free from death
(Romans 6:22; 8:1–2).
Jesus came to proclaim liberty to the captives (Luke 4:18).
“Live as people who are free, not using your freedom as a cover-up for evil,
but living as servants of God”
(1 Peter 2:16, ESV
Second Peter 3:18 tells us
to “grow in the grace and knowledge of the Lord Jesus Christ.”
To grow in grace is to mature as a Christian.
We are saved by grace through faith
(Ephesians 2:8–9), and
we mature and are sanctified by grace alone.
We know that grace
is a blessing that we don’t deserve.
It is God’s grace
that justifies us, sanctifies us, and
eventually glorifies us in heaven.
The sanctification process, becoming
more like Christ, is
synonymous with growing in grace.
We grow in grace by reading God’s Word and letting it “dwell in us richly” (Colossians 3:16)
and by praying.
Those actions by themselves don’t mature us, but God uses these spiritual disciplines to help us grow.
Therefore, maturing in our Christian life is not about what we do,
but about what God does
in us,
by His grace.
Understanding and applying God’s grace in
our lives is important.
We are not to impair it by being proud, because God says that
He resists the proud
but gives grace to the humble
(James 4:6).
Grace
is that attribute of
God
that enables us to
break free
of our sinful nature
and
follow Him
It gives us strength and protects us.
Without God’s grace,
His favor, we would be hopelessly lost in this world.
The more grace we have and ask God for,
the more mature as Christians we will be.
To grow in grace does not mean gaining more grace from God. God’s grace never increases; it is infinite, it cannot be more, and according to the nature of God, it could never be less. He gave His only Son so that whoever believes in Him should be saved (John 3:16).
How much more grace could there possibly be than that? But to grow in grace is to grow in our understanding of what Jesus did and to grow in our appreciation of the grace we have been given.
The more we learn about Jesus, the more we will appreciate all He has done,
and the more we appreciate His love and sacrifice
for us, the more we will
perceive the never-ending grace of God.
Peter also confirms that
we need to
grow in our knowledge of Jesus
and to have
that intimate relationship
with Him because the more we
know of Him,
the more of Him will be seen in our lives.
Paul said in Colossians 3:1–4:
“Since, then, you have been
raised with Christ,
set your hearts on things
above,
where Christ is seated at the
right hand of God.
Set your minds on things
above,
not on earthly things.
For you died,
and your life
is now
hidden
with
Christ in God.
When Christ, who is your life,
appears, then you
also will
appear with him in
glory.”
The Scriptures
contain all the knowledge
we will ever need
to learn of God,
His Son, and His Spirit,
at least in this life.
God`s desire for those
He has saved is
their
sanctification and transformation
He wants us to become more holy like Himself.
He wants to
transform us
into the
image of His Son.
The way to do this is by meditating on the Scriptures and applying their principles
to our lives as we yield
to the conviction and power of the Holy Spirit who dwells within us.
Then we will prove 2 Corinthians 3:18:
“We, who with unveiled faces all reflect the Lord’s glory,
are being transformed into his
likeness with ever-increasing glory, which comes from the Lord.”
Do not be unequally yoked
with
unbelievers”
is a Bible verse
from 2 Corinthians 6:14. It means that
believers should not partner
with
people who don't share their
beliefs or values
Paul uses the image of a yoke to illustrate the imbalance that can occur when two people with different purposes try to work together. In agriculture, yoking an ox and a donkey together would be futile because the ox would overpower the donkey. Similarly, when people with different passions and purposes are yoked together, it can lead to disaster.
The verse is a warning against associating with people who don't live for Jesus or who engage in intimate relationships with unbelievers. Believers should only work together if they agree on the Word of God, the will of God, and the purpose of God.
The phrase “unequally yoked” comes from 2 Corinthians 6:14 in the King James Version: “Be ye not unequally yoked together with unbelievers: for what fellowship hath righteousness with unrighteousness? and what communion hath light with darkness?” The New American Standard Version says, “Do not be bound together with unbelievers; for what partnership have righteousness and lawlessness, or what fellowship has light with darkness?”
A yoke is a wooden bar that joins two oxen to each other and to the burden they pull. An “unequally yoked” team has one stronger ox and one weaker, or one taller and one shorter. The weaker or shorter ox would walk more slowly than the taller, stronger one, causing the load to go around in circles. When oxen are unequally yoked, they cannot perform the task set before them. Instead of working together, they are at odds with one another.
Paul’s admonition in 2 Corinthians 6:14 is part of a larger discourse to the church at Corinth on the Christian life. He discouraged them from being in an unequal partnership with unbelievers because believers and unbelievers are opposites, just as light and darkness are opposites. They simply have nothing in common, just as Christ has nothing in common with “Belial,” a Hebrew word meaning “worthlessness” (verse 15). Here Paul uses it to refer to Satan. The idea is that the pagan, wicked, unbelieving world is governed by the principles of Satan and that Christians should be separate from that wicked world, just as Christ was separate from all the methods, purposes, and plans of Satan. He had no participation in them; He formed no union with them, and so it should be with the followers of the one in relation to the followers of the other. Attempting to live a Christian life with a non-Christian for our close friend and ally will only cause us to go around in circles.
Freedom in Christ
1It is for
freedom that Christ has set us free.
Stand firm,
then, and do not be encumbered
once more by a
yoke of slavery
2Take notice: I, Paul, tell you that if you let yourselves be circumcised, Christ will be of no value to you at all. 3Again I testify to every man who gets himself circumcised that he is obligated to obey the whole law. 4You who are trying to be justified by the law have been severed from Christ; you have fallen away from grace.
5But by faith we eagerly await through the Spirit the hope of righteousness. 6For in Christ Jesus neither circumcision nor uncircumcision has any value. What matters is faith expressing itself through love.
7You were running so well. Who has obstructed you from obeying the truth?8Such persuasion does not come from the One who calls you. 9A little leaven works through the whole batch of dough. 10I am confident in the Lord that you will take no other view. The one who is troubling you will bear the judgment, whoever he may be.
11Now, brothers, if I am still preaching circumcision, why am I still being persecuted? In that case the offense of the cross has been abolished. 12As for those who are agitating you, I wish they would proceed to emasculate themselves!
13For you, brothers, were called to freedom; but do not use your freedom as an opportunity for the flesh. Rather, serve one another in love. 14The entire law is fulfilled in a single decree: “Love your neighbor as yourself.”a 15But if you keep on biting and devouring one another, watch out, or you will be consumed by one another.
In Galatians 5:1, Paul reminds the Galatian believers that “it is for freedom that Christ has set us free.” Believers’ sins are forgiven on the basis of Christ’s perfect sacrifice. Now believers can live in freedom from the law, and they can live in freedom from the consequences and power of sin. The NLT says, “Christ has truly set us free”; believers are “truly free” to live for the things of God.
The occasion of Paul’s letter to the Galatians was that false teachers had come into the churches there. These teachers promoted legalism and tried to require Christians to observe the Old Testament rules, laws, and ceremonies, especially circumcision (Galatians 2:3–5). Paul, in no uncertain terms, says that
“for freedom Christ has set us free” and that Christians should not be placed
back under the law’s yoke of bondage (Galatians 5:1).
The law’s purpose was to reveal our sinfulness (see Romans 3:20)
and to bring us to Christ (Galatians 3:24).
Before Christ’s sacrifice, we lived under bondage to the law (Galatians 4:3).
We were burdened by demands we could not keep (Acts 15:10). Christ’s death and resurrection broke our bondage to the law. Jesus’ perfect life and holy sacrifice on the cross was the complete fulfillment of the law, and anyone who trusts in Him for salvation is made right with God.
Only Christians have true freedom from the law.
John 8:36 confirms, “If the Son sets you free, you will be free indeed.”
In Christ, we are free from the Mosaic Law’s oppressive system, and we are also free from the penalty and power of sin. Before Christ, we lived as slaves to sin (John 8:34). We sought to gratify our desires and lived for ourselves. We were dead in our sins (Colossians 2:13) and were destined to face the consequence of our sin, which is death (Romans 6:23). Yet, when we trusted in Christ for our salvation, our course in life completely changed. We were released from the law’s bondage because for freedom Christ has set us free.
Believers are indwelt by the Holy Spirit and are characterized by a joyous freedom to follow Christ and God’s design for life (Galatians 2:20). The Bible is clear that Christian freedom is not a license to sin. Instead, believers are free not to live for sin and are free to live holy lives in Christ. For this freedom Christ has set us free: to live in relationship to God and others the way He intended (Galatians 5:13). Believers are free to live an abundant life (John 10:10), and we have been given everything we need for life and godliness (2 Peter 1:3).
Jesus did what the law could not do—He took away our sin and saved us, and in doing so He set us free from the penalty and power of sin. For freedom to follow His design of life He set us free. “The law of Moses was unable to save us because of the weakness of our sinful nature. So God did what the law could not do. He sent his own Son in a body like the bodies we sinners have. And in that body God declared an end to sin’s control over us by giving his Son as a sacrifice for our sins. He did this so that the just requirement of the law would be fully satisfied for us, who no longer follow our sinful nature but instead follow the Spirit” (Romans 8:3–4, NLT). Now we who have this freedom can live in God’s ways and love others well in the power of the Spirit (Galatians 5:13–26).
In Genesis 2:18, we read of the one thing that was not declared “good” in all of God’s creation: “Then the LORD God said, ‘It is not good that the man should be alone.’” The same verse includes God’s solution: “I will make him a helper fit for him.” Eve was the solution to Adam’s deficiency.
Two Hebrew terms in this verse provide important
information to better
understand the creation of Eve as the first woman.
The word translated “helper” is the
Hebrew term ‘ezer.
This word is even used of God, sometimes,
noting that
He is our Helper
(Psalm 115:9-11).
We would certainly not view God, as a Helper, as subservient to humans, nor should we understand the role of “helper” in Genesis 2:18 as a position of subservience. The concept of an “ideal partner” seems to convey the thought best.
The second important Hebrew word in this verse, translated “fit” is kenegdow. It literally means “according to the opposite of him.” In other words, the focus is on an appropriate match. Eve was not created above or below Adam; she was complementary. The animals Adam had named each had an appropriate companion (Genesis 2:20), and Adam was given a fitting companion as well. Eve was “just right” for him.
Further, God’s statement that it was not good for man to be alone implies that Adam was lonely and incomplete by himself. He had been created for relationship, and it is impossible to have relationship alone. With the creation of Eve, Adam experienced the joy of love for another person.
The Bible is unique in its depiction of women’s valued status as a complementary companion. No other ancient text from the Middle East offers commentary on the creation of women. It is in the Bible that we learn of the important role women have had since the beginning of human existence. Both man and woman were made in God’s image, according to Genesis 1:27, “So God created man in his own image, in the image of God he created him; male and female he created them.”
The apostle Paul refers to Genesis when he says, “A man shall leave his father and mother and hold fast to his wife, and the two shall become one flesh” (Ephesians 5:31).
Husband and wife are to live as one, united in love
for
God and for one another,
modeling the love
Christ
has for
His bride, the Church
Of all the
gifts given to mankind
by God,
there is none greater
than the presence
of the
Holy Spirit
The Spirit has many functions, roles, and activities.
First, He does a work in
the hearts
of all people everywhere.
Jesus told the disciples that
He would
send the Spirit into the world
to “will convict the world
regarding sin, and
righteousness, and judgment”
(John 16:8, NASB).
Everyone has a “God consciousness,” whether or not they admit it. The Spirit applies God’s truths to people's minds to convince them by fair and sufficient arguments that they are sinners. Responding to that conviction brings us to salvation.
Once we are saved and belong to God, the Spirit takes up residence in our hearts forever, sealing us with the confirming, certifying, and assuring pledge of our eternal state as His children. Jesus said He would send the Spirit to us to be our Helper, Comforter, and Guide. “And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Counselor to be with you forever” (John 14:16). The Greek word translated here “Counselor” means “one who is called alongside” and has the idea of someone who encourages and exhorts. The Holy Spirit takes up permanent residence in the hearts of believers (Romans 8:9; 1 Corinthians 6:19-20; 12:13). Jesus gave the Spirit as a “compensation” for His absence, to perform the functions toward us that He would have done if He had remained personally with us.
Among those functions is that of revealer of truth. The Spirit’s presence within us enables us to understand and interpret God’s Word. Jesus told His disciples that “when he, the Spirit of truth, comes, he will guide you into all truth” (John 16:13). He reveals to our minds the whole counsel of God as it relates to worship, doctrine, and Christian living. He is the ultimate guide, going before, leading the way, removing obstructions, opening the understanding, and making all things plain and clear. He leads in the way we should go in all spiritual things. Without such a guide, we would be apt to fall into error. A crucial part of the truth He reveals is that Jesus is who He said He is (John 15:26; 1 Corinthians 12:3). The Spirit convinces us of Christ’s deity and incarnation, His being the Messiah, His suffering and death, His resurrection and ascension, His exaltation at the right hand of God, and His role as the judge of all. He gives glory to Christ in all things (John 16:14).
Another one of the Holy Spirit’s roles is that of gift-giver. First Corinthians 12 describes the spiritual gifts given to believers in order that we may function as the body of Christ on earth. All these gifts, both great and small, are given by the Spirit so that we may be His ambassadors to the world, showing forth His grace and glorifying Him.
The Spirit also functions as fruit-producer in our lives. When He indwells us, He begins the work of harvesting His fruit in our lives—love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control (Galatians 5:22-23). These are not works of our flesh, which is incapable of producing such fruit, but they are products of the Spirit’s presence in our lives.
The knowledge that the Holy Spirit of God has taken up residence in our lives, that He performs all these miraculous functions, that He dwells with us forever, and that He will never leave or forsake us is cause for great joy and comfort. Thank God for this precious gift—the Holy Spirit and His work in our lives!
Imitators of God
1Be imitators of God, therefore, as beloved children, 2and walk in love, just as Christ loved usa and gave Himself up for us as a fragrant sacrificial offering to God.
3But among you, as is proper among the saints, there must not be even a hint of sexual immorality, or of any kind of impurity, or of greed. 4Nor should there be obscenity, foolish talk, or crude joking, which are out of character, but rather thanksgiving. 5For of this you can be sure: No immoral, impure, or greedy person (that is, an idolater) has any inheritance in the kingdom of Christ and of God.
6Let no one deceive you with empty words, for because of such things the wrath of God is coming on the sons of disobedience. 7Therefore do not be partakers with them.
Wives and Husbands
(Song of Solomon 1:1–17; 1 Peter 3:1–7)
21Submit to one another out of reverence for Christ.
22Wives, submit to your husbands as to the Lord. 23For the husband is the head of the wife as Christ is the head of the church, His body, of which He is the Savior.24Now as the church submits to Christ, so also wives should submit to their husbands in everything.
25Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ loved the church and gave Himself up for her 26to sanctify her, cleansing her by the washing with water through the word, 27and to present her to Himself as a glorious church, without stain or wrinkle or any such blemish, but holy and blameless.
28In the same way, husbands ought to love their wives as their own bodies. He who loves his wife loves himself. 29Indeed, no one ever hated his own body, but he nourishes and cherishes it, just as Christ does the church. 30For we are members of His body.
31“For this reason a man will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife, and the two will become one flesh.”e 32This mystery is profound, but I am speaking about Christ and the church. 33Nevertheless, each one of you also must love his wife as he loves himself, and the wife must respect her husband.
Jesus stated plainly that the mark of a true disciple of Christ is that he remains faithful to His teachings. He told the Jews who believed in Him, “If you abide in my word, you are truly my disciples, and you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free” (John 8:31–32, ESV).
The word know in John 8:32 is translated from a Greek verb that means “to know experientially.”
Understanding something with the mind or intellect, often called “head knowledge,” is different than knowing something experientially. We can know that something is bad for us yet still do it. But when we take Jesus at His word and practice “the truth that comes from him,” then we will “throw off [our] old sinful nature and [our] former way of life” and “let the Spirit renew [our] thoughts and attitudes” so that the truth we live by sets us free “to be like God—truly righteous and holy” (Ephesians 4:20–24).
We shall know the truth in a way that sets us free from our old sinful way of life when we know Jesus experientially, in word, deed, and truth (see Colossians 3:17; 1 John 3:18). “Our actions will show that we belong to the truth” (1 John 3:19, NLT).
Knowing the truth means experiencing Jesus Christ by accepting His teachings as absolute truth and then living in faithful obedience to them. We receive the message of the gospel and the teachings of Christ, and then we abide by them. The apostle John often framed the concept of true discipleship as knowing the truth of Christ experientially: “And we can be sure that we know him if we obey his commandments” (1 John 2:3, NLT; see also 1 John 2:29; 3:16, 24).
Knowing the truth is a rock-steady way of life. John 8:32 upholds the biblical concept that truth is the only dependable foundation for constructing one’s life (see also Psalm 26:3). Jesus taught, “Anyone who listens to my teaching and follows it is wise, like a person who builds a house on solid rock. Though the rain comes in torrents and the floodwaters rise and the winds beat against that house, it won’t collapse because it is built on bedrock. But anyone who hears my teaching and doesn’t obey it is foolish, like a person who builds a house on sand. When the rains and floods come and the winds beat against that house, it will collapse with a mighty crash” (Matthew 7:24–27, NLT).
If we plant our feet firmly on Christ’s truth and follow the path of His teachings, nothing can shake, derail, or destroy us.
Jesus is the personification of truth (John 14:6). Only He embodies the truth that sets us free (Galatians 5:1; Romans 6:18; John 8:36). Those who know the truth are born-again believers who live in fellowship with God through a relationship with Jesus Christ: “And we know that the Son of God has come, and he has given us understanding so that we can know the true God. And now we live in fellowship with the true God because we live in fellowship with his Son, Jesus Christ. He is the only true God, and he is eternal life” (1 John 5:20, NLT).
You will know the truth also expresses the moral commitment of genuine disciples to do the will of God (John 7:17; 14:21, 23; James 1:25). We know the truth in the person of Jesus Christ, who prayed to the Father for us to be “made holy” by His truth and gave His own life as the sacrifice that made it possible for us to live out that truth (see John 17:14–19). Moreover, Jesus asked the Father to send us “the Holy Spirit, who leads into all truth” (John 14:16–17, NLT; see also Ephesians 1:13).
When Jesus said, “You will know the truth, and the truth shall make you free,” He was telling His followers that obedience to God is the only way to experience true liberation—spiritual freedom from sin. The freedom Jesus offers is restored fellowship with the Father, who is the source of all true life. And the mark of one who has received this life is to remain faithful to His teachings.
We are commanded in Scripture to "grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ" (2 Peter 3:18). This growth is spiritual growth, growing in faith.
At the moment we receive Christ as our Savior, we are born again spiritually into God’s family. But just as a newborn baby requires nourishing milk for growth and good development, so also a baby Christian requires spiritual food for growth. "Like newborn babies, crave pure spiritual milk, so that by it you may grow up in your salvation, now that you have tasted that the Lord is good" (1 Peter 2:2-3). Milk is used in the New Testament as a symbol of what is basic to the Christian life.
But as a baby grows, its diet changes to also include solid foods. With this in mind, read how the writer of Hebrews admonished the Christians: “In fact, though by this time you ought to be teachers, you need someone to teach you the elementary truths of God’s word all over again. You need milk, not solid food! Anyone who lives on milk, being still an infant, is not acquainted with the teaching about righteousness. But solid food is for the mature, who by constant use have trained themselves to distinguish good from evil" (Hebrews 5:12-14). Paul saw the same problem with the Corinthian believers; they had not grown in their faith, and he could only give them "milk" because they were not ready for solid food (1 Corinthians 3:1-3).
The analogy between a human baby and a spiritual baby breaks down when we realize how each baby matures. A human baby is fed by his parents and growth is natural. But a baby Christian will only grow as much as he purposefully reads and obeys and applies the Word to his life. Growth is up to him. There are Christians who have been saved many years, but spiritually they are still babies.
They cannot understand the deeper truths of the
Word of God.
What should a Christian’s diet consist of?
The Word of God!
The truths taught in the Bible are rich food for Christians. Peter wrote that God has given us everything we need for life through our (growing) knowledge of Him. Read carefully 2 Peter 1:3-11 where Peter lists character qualities that need to be added to our beginning point of faith in order for maturity to take place and to have a rich welcome into
the eternal kingdom
of our
Lord and Savior
Jesus Christ
The lesson of the
fig tree
in the story of Jesus cleansing the temple is that outward religious practices without genuine spiritual fruit are meaningless, signifying that God expects true transformation and action alongside outward displays of devotion; the withered fig tree symbolizes the hypocrisy and lack of spiritual fruitfulness within the Jewish leadership, mirroring the corruption Jesus saw in the temple practices, essentially acting as a warning of impending judgment upon those who only appear religious without genuine change
The concept of “blasphemy against the Spirit” is mentioned in Mark 3:22–30 and Matthew 12:22–32. Jesus has just performed a miracle. A demon-possessed man was brought to Jesus, and the Lord cast the demon out, healing the man of blindness and muteness.
The eyewitnesses
to this exorcism began to wonder if Jesus was indeed
the Messiah
they had been waiting for. A group of Pharisees,
hearing the talk of the Messiah,
quickly quashed
any budding faith in the crowd:
“It is only by Beelzebul,
the prince of demons, that this fellow drives out demons,”
they said (Matthew 12:24).
Jesus rebuts the
Pharisees with some logical arguments for why
He is not casting
out demons in the power of Satan (Matthew 12:25–29).
Then He speaks of the
blasphemy
against the Holy Spirit:
“I tell you, every kind of sin and slander can be forgiven,
but blasphemy
against the Spirit will not be forgiven.
Anyone who
speaks a word against the
Son of Man
will be forgiven,
but anyone who speaks against the
Holy Spirit
will not be forgiven,
either in this age or
in the
age to come”
(verses 31–32).
Psalm 118 is one of the Hallel psalms, also called the “Egyptian Hallel,” a short series of psalms (Psalm 113—118) incorporated in the celebration of the Passover. The final psalm is sung in the festive processional as the people enter the temple gates to worship. In Psalm 118:26, the congregation welcomes the vindicated king, singing, “Blessed is he who comes in the name of the LORD. From the house of the LORD we bless you.”
Originally, this psalm depicted Israel’s exodus journey from Egypt to their eventual arrival at Mount Zion. But its celebratory welcoming of the king was ultimately fulfilled in Jesus Christ’s triumphal entry into Jerusalem on Palm Sunday. All four gospels quote Psalm 118:26: “Jesus was in the center of the procession, and the people all around him were shouting, ‘Praise God for the Son of David! Blessings on the one who comes in the name of the LORD! Praise God in highest heaven!’” (Matthew 21:9, NLT; see also Mark 11:9; Luke 19:38; John 12:13).
The term translated “blessed is” comes from the Hebrew word barukh (literally “to bless”) and is most often used of God. But in Psalm 118:26 it speaks of the king figure who comes in God’s authority. Faithlife Study Bible explains that barukh “describes bestowing someone with special power or declaring Yahweh to be the source of special power. In that regard, it means praising Yahweh for who He is” (Barry, J. D., et al, entry for Psalm 103:1, Lexham Press, 2012, 2016).
With the words, “Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord,” the ancient psalm praises God for who He is: “The LORD is God, and he has made his light shine on us” (Psalm 118:27). The blessing also forecasts His future coming as Israel’s Messiah. During passion week, we hear the echo, “Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord,” as the people of Christ’s day recognize Jesus as the long-awaited One.
Earlier, when Jesus lamented over Jerusalem, He predicted to the Pharisees, “Look, your house is left to you desolate. I tell you, you will not see me again until you say, ‘Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord’” (Luke 13:35). Jesus identified Himself as the “stone the builders rejected” (Psalm 118:22; cf. Matthew 21:42; Mark 12:10; Luke 20:17) who would bring salvation to all who prayed to Him, “Save us, Lord!” (Psalm 118:2). Through His crucifixion and resurrection, Jesus was the “living stone rejected by men but in the sight of God chosen and precious” (1 Peter 2:4, ESV).
He became the chief cornerstone
(Acts 4:11; Romans 9:33),
“and whoever believes in him will not be put to shame”
Romans 10:11; cf. 1 Peter 2:4–8).
Jesus came in the “special power”
of Yahweh.
He was vested with
all the
authority of His Father God.
Jesus spoke with God’s authority so that “the people were amazed at his teaching” (Mark 1:22). He drove out unclean spirits (Mark 1:21–28, 39; Luke 4:31–37), healed the sick, and forgave people’s sins (Matthew 9:1–8; Mark 2:1–12; Luke 7:48). Jesus controlled the elements (Matthew 8:23–27), raised the dead to life (John 11:38–44), and cleansed the temple (Mark 11:27–33), all by God’s mandate.
“All authority in heaven and on earth” was given to Jesus by His Father (Matthew 28:18), including the authority “to judge” (John 5:27) and to lay down His life in sacrifice for the sins of the world (John 10:18).
God “granted him
authority
over all people that he might
give
eternal life to all those”
God had given to Him
(John 17:2).
The phrase hosanna in the highest appears only twice in the Bible, once in Matthew and again in Mark, during the triumphal entry of Jesus into Jerusalem. The people were crowded around the gate watching Jesus enter the city, and they were celebrating and calling out, “Hosanna to the Son of David! Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord! Hosanna in the highest!” (Matthew 21:9, ESV). Mark 11:10 records the crowd saying, “Blessed is the coming kingdom of our father David! Hosanna in the highest!” (ESV). The NIV translates their shout as “Hosanna in the highest heaven!”
The word hosanna comes from a Hebrew word meaning “save now” or “save us, we pray.” The first word of Psalm 118:25 is howosiah-na, translated “Save us!” and the crowd’s use of this word at the triumphal entry was significant—especially as they waved palm branches (Psalm 118 was associated with the Feast of Tabernacles). By saying “hosanna” as Jesus passed through the gates of Jerusalem and referring to David and David’s kingdom, the Jews were acknowledging Jesus as their Messiah. The Jews had been waiting a long time for the fulfillment of the Davidic Covenant (2 Samuel 7; 1 Chronicles 17:11–14; 2 Chronicles 6:16), and their shouts of “hosanna in the highest” indicated the hope that their Messiah had finally come to set up God’s kingdom then and there (see Luke 19:11).
By saying “in the highest,” the crowd was invoking heaven’s blessing on them and the salvation that the Messiah was bringing. The phrase also echoes the song of the angels in Luke 2:14: “Glory to God in the highest” (ESV). To paraphrase the shouts of the crowd: “Save us, our Messiah, who comes to fulfill God’s mission! Save us, we beseech you, as you take your rightful throne and extend heaven’s salvation to us!”
Sadly, the salvation that the people of Jerusalem wanted that day was political, not spiritual. They were only interested in a temporary, worldly fulfillment of the messianic prophecies. They chose not to see the prophecies that said the Messiah would be “a man of sorrows” who would bear the griefs of His people and be crushed for their sins. His oppression and death were clearly predicted in Isaiah 53. Yes, Jesus was the Messiah they had been waiting for, and He accepted their shouts of “hosanna in the highest.” He was truly Immanuel, God with us (Isaiah 7:14). But the political conquest and final fulfillment of the David Covenant must await the second coming (Acts 1:11; Zechariah 14:4; Matthew 24:30; Titus 2:13). Before Jesus could take care of the political problems of His people, He had to take care of the sin problem.
As the people shouted “hosanna in the highest,” little did they know what that would actually mean. Jesus had come to save (Luke 19:10), but not in the manner they desired. “Without the shedding of blood there is no forgiveness” (Hebrews 9:22). Their cries for salvation and their demand that it come “now” were answered with the cross. God provided a spiritual salvation from the bondage of sin, bought at great cost to the Lord Jesus. But the blessed results of that salvation extend into eternity and far outweigh any temporary benefits we could experience in this world.
“Blessed is he who comes in the NAME of the Lord”
is a declaration of praise and recognition that Jesus Christ is the Savior of the world who came in the power and authority of God. “I have come in my Father’s name,” said Jesus (John 5:43). All that Christ did was commissioned by His Father. Everything Jesus said and did was to glorify His Father and accomplish the work of making Him known to humans so that they might be saved (John 17:1–24).
In Jacob’s blessings of his twelve sons, he says this about Judah: “The scepter will not depart from Judah, nor the ruler’s staff from between his feet, until he to whom it belongs shall come and the obedience of the nations shall be his” (Genesis 49:10).
In ancient times a scepter was often a full-length staff—note that, in the poetry of Jacob’s prophecy, the words scepter and ruler’s staff are used in parallel. A scepter was usually made of carved wood and sometimes embellished with fine metal or gems; it symbolized a ruler’s absolute power and authority over a tribe or nation. The same Hebrew word translated “scepter” is sometimes translated as “club,” “staff,” or “rod,” all of which can be used as weapons. Scepters symbolized the irresistible civic and military power that a ruler had at his command.
When Jacob said, “The scepter will not depart from Judah,” he was giving, in part, a divine prediction concerning the children of Judah. Centuries later, when Jacob’s descendants formed a nation in the Promised Land and kings began to rule, it was the line of Judah that became the royal line. Starting with David, the line of Judah’s kings continued through Solomon, Rehoboam, Abijah, and many others, all the way through Zedekiah, the last king of Judah. Jacob’s prophecy came true: the tribe of Judah possessed the scepter—the kings of the Davidic dynasty were all descended from Jacob’s fourth son, Judah.
When Jacob said, “The scepter will not depart from Judah,” he was also giving a divine prediction of one Descendant in particular who would come from the line of Judah. Jacob says the tribe of Judah would possess the scepter “until the coming of the one to whom it belongs, the one whom all nations will honor” (Genesis 49:10, NLT). Some more literal translations, such as the KJV and the NASB, render the prophecy as “until Shiloh comes”--Shiloh being a title of the Messiah.
Later in biblical history, God tells King David, a descendant of Judah, that his throne would be established forever, confirming that the Messiah would be descended from him (2 Samuel 7:8–16). The One who fulfills this prophecy is Jesus Christ, the Son of David, whose kingdom is eternal (2 Peter 1:11). Jesus is “the Lion of the tribe of Judah, the Root of David” (Revelation 5:5). Because of Jesus Christ, the scepter has not departed from Judah.
Worldly authority, symbolized by the scepter, is temporary, and earthly kings often find their scepters slipping out of their grasp. But the scepter wielded by the Messiah, Jesus Christ, will never be lost, stolen, or set aside. When He establishes His kingdom on earth, it will be one of perfect justice: “Your throne, O God, will last for ever and ever; a scepter of justice will be the scepter of your kingdom. You have loved righteousness and hated wickedness” (Hebrews 1:8–9; cf. Psalm 45:6–7). Jesus’ reign will include a final judgment of the nations, and He “will rule them with an iron scepter and will dash them to pieces like pottery” (Revelation 2:27; cf. Psalm 2:9; cf. Revelation 19:15).
Just before they crucified Jesus, Roman soldiers mocked Him, placing a crown of thorns on His head and a staff in His hand as a royal scepter. They bowed before Him in jest, saying, “Hail, king of the Jews!” then struck Him repeatedly with the fake scepter (Matthew 27:27–31). How supremely ironic that the scepter, a symbol of worldly authority, was used to batter the One who holds the highest authority in heaven and on earth!
A 4,000-year-old prophecy, “the scepter will not depart from Judah,” will be fully realized some day when Jesus, the King of kings and Lord of lords, returns with His saints and angels. The Lion of the tribe of Judah will wield the scepter: “See, the Lord is coming with thousands upon thousands of his holy ones to judge everyone, and to convict all of them of all the ungodly acts they have committed in their ungodliness, and of all the defiant words ungodly sinners have spoken against him” (Jude 1:14–15).
The term blasphemy
may be generally
defined
as “defiant irreverence.”
The term can be applied to such sins as cursing God or willfully degrading things relating to God.
Blasphemy is also attributing some evil to God or denying Him some good that we should attribute to Him.
This particular case of blasphemy, however, is called “the blasphemy against the Holy Spirit” in Matthew 12:31. The Pharisees, having witnessed irrefutable proof that Jesus was working miracles in the power of the Holy Spirit, claimed instead that the Lord was possessed by a demon (Matthew 12:24).
Notice in Mark 3:30 Jesus is very specific about what the Pharisees did to commit blasphemy against the Holy Spirit: “He said this because they were saying, ‘He has an impure spirit.’”
Blasphemy against the
Holy Spirit
has to do with
accusing Jesus Christ
of being
demon-possessed instead
of Spirit-filled
The Pharisees were in a unique moment in history: they had the Law and the Prophets, they had the Holy Spirit stirring their hearts, they had the Son of God Himself standing right in front of them, and they saw with their own eyes the miracles He did.
Never before in the history of the world
had so much
divine light been granted to men;
if anyone should have recognized Jesus for who He was, it was the Pharisees. Yet they chose defiance. They purposely attributed the work of the Spirit to the devil, even though they knew the truth and had the proof. Jesus declared their willful blindness to be unpardonable.
Their blasphemy
against the
Holy Spirit was their
final
rejection of God’s grace.
They had set their course,
and
God was going to let them
sail into
perdition unhindered.
Jesus told the crowd that the Pharisees’
blasphemy against the Holy Spirit “
will not be forgiven,
either in
this age or in the age to come”
Matthew 12:32
This is another way of saying that
their sin would never be forgiven,
ever.
Not now, not in eternity.
As Mark 3:29 puts it,
“They are guilty of an eternal sin.”
The immediate result of the Pharisees’ public rejection of Christ (and God’s rejection of them) is seen in the next chapter. Jesus, for the first time, “told them many things in parables” (Matthew 13:3; cf. Mark 4:2). The disciples were puzzled at Jesus’ change of teaching method, and Jesus explained His use of parables: “Because the knowledge of the secrets of the kingdom of heaven has been given to you, but not to them. . . . Though seeing, they do not see; though hearing, they do not hear or understand” (Matthew 13:11, 13). Jesus began to veil the truth with parables and metaphors as a direct result of the Jewish leaders’ official denunciation of Him.
Again, the blasphemy of the Holy Spirit cannot be repeated today, although some people try. Jesus Christ is not on earth—He is seated at the right hand of God. No one can personally witness Jesus performing a miracle and then attribute that power to Satan instead of the Spirit.
The unpardonable sin today is the state of continued
unbelief.
The Spirit currently convicts the unsaved world of sin, righteousness, and judgment
(John 16:8)
. To resist that conviction and willfully remain unrepentant is to “blaspheme” the Spirit. There is no pardon, either in this age or in the age to come, for a person who rejects the Spirit’s promptings to trust in Jesus Christ and then dies in unbelief. The love of God is evident: “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” (John 3:16). And the choice is clear: “Whoever believes in the Son has eternal life, but whoever rejects the Son will not see life, for God’s wrath remains on him” (John 3:36).
The Demand for a
Sign
(Mark 8:11–13; Luke 12:54–56)
1Then the Pharisees and Sadducees came and tested Jesus by asking Him to show them a sign from heaven.
2But He replied, “When evening comes, you say, ‘The weather will be fair, for the sky is red,’ 3and in the morning, ‘Today it will be stormy, for the sky is red and overcast.’ You know how to interpret the appearance of the sky, but not the signs of the times.a 4A wicked and adulterous generation demands a sign, but none will be given it except the sign of Jonah.” Then He left them and went away.
The Leaven
of the Pharisees and Sadducees
(Mark 8:14–21; Luke 12:1–3)
5When they crossed to the other side, the disciples forgot to take bread. 6“Watch out!” Jesus told them. “Beware of the leaven of the Pharisees and Sadducees.”
7They discussed this among themselves and concluded, “It is because we did not bring any bread.”
8Aware of their conversation, Jesus said, “You of little faith, why are you debating among yourselves about having no bread? 9Do you still not understand? Do you not remember the five loaves for the five thousand, and how many basketfuls you gathered? 10Or the seven loaves for the four thousand, and how many basketfuls you gathered? 11How do you not understand that I was not telling you about bread? But beware of the leaven of the Pharisees and Sadducees.”
12Then they understood that He was not telling them to beware of the leaven used in bread, but of the teaching of the Pharisees and Sadducees.
Peter’s Confession of Christ
(Mark 8:27–30; Luke 9:18–20; John 6:67–71)
13When Jesus came to the region of Caesarea Philippi, He questioned His disciples: “Who do people say the Son of Man is?”
14They replied, “Some say John the Baptist; others say Elijah; and still others, Jeremiah or one of the prophets.”
15“But what about you?” Jesus asked. “Who do you say I am?”
16Simon Peter answered, “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.”
17Jesus replied, “Blessed are you, Simon son of Jonah!b For this was not revealed to you by flesh and blood, but by My Father in heaven. 18And I tell you that you are Peter, and on this rock I will build My church, and the gates of Hades will not prevail against it. 19I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven. Whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven.”
20Then He admonished the disciples not to tell anyone that He was the Christ.
Christ’s Passion Foretold
(Mark 8:31–33; Luke 9:21–22)
21From that time on Jesusc began to show His disciples that He must go to Jerusalem and suffer many things at the hands of the elders, chief priests, and scribes, and that He must be killed and on the third day be raised to life.
22Peter took Him aside and began to rebuke Him. “Far be it from You, Lord!” he said. “This shall never happen to You!”
23But Jesus turned and said to Peter, “Get behind Me, Satan! You are a stumbling block to Me. For you do not have in mind the things of God, but the things of men.”
Take Up Your Cross
(Mark 8:34–38; Luke 9:23–27)
24Then Jesus told His disciples, “If anyone wants to
come after Me,
he must deny himself and take up his cross and
follow Me.
25For whoever wants to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for My sake
will find it.
26What will it profit a man if he gains the whole world,
yet forfeits his soul?
Or what can a man give in exchange
for his soul?
27For the Son of Man
will come
in His Father’s glory
with His angels,
and then
He will repay
each one according to
what he has done.
28Truly I tell you,
some who are
standing here will not
taste death
before they
see the Son of Man
coming in His kingdom.”
John the Baptist Beheaded
At that time Herod the tetrarch heard the reports about Jesus, 2 and he said to his attendants, “This is John the Baptist; he has risen from the dead! That is why miraculous powers are at work in him.”
3 Now Herod had arrested John and bound him and put him in prison because of Herodias, his brother Philip’s wife, 4 for John had been saying to him: “It is not lawful for you to have her.”5 Herod wanted to kill John, but he was afraid of the people, because they considered John a prophet.
6 On Herod’s birthday the daughter of Herodias danced for the guests and pleased Herod so much7 that he promised with an oath to give her whatever she asked. 8 Prompted by her mother, she said, “Give me here on a platter the head of John the Baptist.” 9 The king was distressed, but because of his oaths and his dinner guests, he ordered that her request be granted 10 and had John beheaded in the prison. 11 His head was brought in on a platter and given to the girl, who carried it to her mother. 12 John’s disciples came and took his body and buried it. Then they went and told Jesus.
Jesus Feeds the Five Thousand13 When Jesus heard what had happened, he withdrew by boat privately to a solitary place. Hearing of this, the crowds followed him on foot from the towns. 14 When Jesus landed and saw a large crowd, he had compassion on them and healed their sick.
15 As evening approached, the disciples came to him and said, “This is a remote place, and it’s already getting late. Send the crowds away, so they can go to the villages and buy themselves some food.”
16 Jesus replied, “They do not need to go away. You give them something to eat.”
17 “We have here only five loaves of bread and two fish,” they answered.
18 “Bring them here to me,” he said. 19 And he directed the people to sit down on the grass. Taking the five loaves and the two fish and looking up to heaven, he gave thanks and broke the loaves.Then he gave them to the disciples, and the disciples gave them to the people. 20 They all ate and were satisfied, and the disciples picked up twelve basketfuls of broken pieces that were left over.21 The number of those who ate was about five thousand men, besides women and children.
Jesus Walks on the Water22 Immediately Jesus made the disciples get into the boat and go on ahead of him to the other side, while he dismissed the crowd. 23 After he had dismissed them, he went up on a mountainside by himself to pray. Later that night, he was there alone, 24 and the boat was already a considerable distance from land, buffeted by the waves because the wind was against it.
25 Shortly before dawn Jesus went out to them, walking on the lake. 26 When the disciples saw him walking on the lake, they were terrified. “It’s a ghost,” they said, and cried out in fear.
27 But Jesus immediately said to them: “Take courage! It is I. Don’t be afraid.”
28 “Lord, if it’s you,” Peter replied, “tell me to come to you on the water.”
29 “Come,” he said.
Then Peter got down out of the boat, walked on the water and came toward Jesus. 30 But when he saw the wind, he was afraid and, beginning to sink, cried out, “Lord, save me!”
31 Immediately Jesus reached out his hand and caught him. “You of little faith,” he said, “why did you doubt?”
32 And when they climbed into the boat, the wind died down. 33 Then those who were in the boat worshiped him, saying, “Truly you are the Son of God.”
34 When they had crossed over, they landed at Gennesaret. 35 And when the men of that place recognized Jesus, they sent word to all the surrounding country. People brought all their sick to him 36 and begged him to let the sick just touch the edge of his cloak, and all who touched it were healed.
The Temptation of Jesus
(Mark 1:12–13; Luke 4:1–13)
1Then Jesus was led by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil.2After fasting forty days and forty nights, He was hungry.
3The tempter came to Him and said, “If You are the Son of God, tell these stones to become bread.”
4But Jesus answered, “It is written:
‘Man shall not live on bread alone,
but on every word that comes from the mouth of God.’
5Then the devil took Him to the holy city and set Him on the pinnacle of the temple. 6“If You are the Son of God,” he said, “throw Yourself down.
For it is written:
‘He will command His angels concerning You,
and they will lift You up in their hands,
so that You will not strike Your foot
against a stone.’
7Jesus replied, “It is also written: ‘Do not put the Lord your God to the test.’c”
8Again, the devil took Him to a very high mountain and showed Him all the kingdoms of the world and their glory. 9“All this I will give You,” he said, “if You will fall down and worship me.”
10“Away from Me, Satan!” Jesus told him. “For it is written: ‘Worship the Lord your God and serve Him only.’d”
11Then the devil left Him, and angels came and ministered to Him.
Temple Destruction and Other Signs
(Mark 13:1–8; Luke 21:5–9)
1As Jesus left the temple and was walking away, His disciples came up to Him to point out its buildings.
2“Do you see all these things?” He replied. “Truly I tell you, not one stone here will be left on another; every one will be thrown down.”
3While Jesus was sitting on the Mount of Olives, the disciples came to Him privately. “Tell us,” they said, “when will these things happen, and what will be the sign of Your coming and of the end of the age?”
4Jesus answered, “See to it that no one deceives you. 5For many will come in My name, claiming, ‘I am the Christ,’ and will deceive many. 6You will hear of wars and rumors of wars, but see to it that you are not alarmed. These things must happen, but the end is still to come. 7Nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. There will be famines and earthquakes in various places. 8All these are the beginning of birth pains.
Witnessing to All Nations
(Mark 13:9–13; Luke 21:10–19)
9Then they will deliver you over to be persecuted and killed, and you will be hated by all nations because of My name. 10At that time many will fall away and will betray and hate one another, 11and many false prophets will arise and deceive many.
12Because of the multiplication of wickedness, the love of most will grow cold.13But the one who perseveres to the end will be saved.
14And this gospel of the kingdom will be preached in all the world as a testimony to all nations, and then the end will come.
The Abomination of Desolation
(Mark 13:14–23; Luke 21:20–24)
15So when you see standing in the holy place ‘the abomination of desolation,’aspoken of by the prophet Daniel (let the reader understand), 16then let those who are in Judea flee to the mountains. 17Let no one on the housetop come down to retrieve anything from his house. 18And let no one in the field return for his cloak.
19How miserable those days will be for pregnant and nursing mothers! 20Pray that your flight will not occur in the winter or on the Sabbath. 21For at that time there will be great tribulation, unseen from the beginning of the world until now, and never to be seen again. 22If those days had not been cut short, nobody would be saved. But for the sake of the elect, those days will be cut short.
23At that time, if anyone says to you, ‘Look, here is the Christ!’ or ‘There He is!’ do not believe it. 24For false Christs and false prophets will appear and perform great signs and wonders to deceive even the elect, if that were possible. 25See, I have told you in advance.
The Return of the Son of Man
(Mark 13:24–27; Luke 21:25–28)
26So if they tell you, ‘There He is, in the wilderness,’ do not go out, or, ‘Here He is, in the inner rooms,’ do not believe it. 27For just as the lightning comes from the east and flashes as far as the west, so will be the coming of the Son of Man.28Wherever there is a carcass, there the vultures will gather.
29Immediately after the tribulation of those days:
‘The sun will be darkened,
and the moon will not give its light;
the stars will fall from the sky,
and the powers of the heavens will be shaken.
30At that time the sign of the Son of Man will appear in heaven,c and all the tribes of the earth will mourn. They will see the Son of Man coming on the clouds of heaven with power and great glory.d 31And He will send out His angels with a loud trumpet call, and they will gather His elect from the four winds, from one end of the heavens to the other.
The Lesson of the Fig Tree
(Mark 13:28–31; Luke 21:29–33)
32Now learn this lessone from the fig tree: As soon as its branches become tender and sprout leaves, you know that summer is near. 33So also, when you see all these things, you will know that He is near,f right at the door. 34Truly I tell you, this generation will not pass away until all these things have happened. 35Heaven and earth will pass away, but My words will never pass away.
Readiness at Any Hour
(Genesis 6:1–7; Mark 13:32–37; Luke 12:35–48)
36No one knows about that day or hour, not even the angels in heaven, nor the Son,g but only the Father. 37As it was in the days of Noah, so will it be at the coming of the Son of Man. 38For in the days before the flood, people were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, up to the day Noah entered the ark.39And they were oblivious until the flood came and swept them all away. So will it be at the coming of the Son of Man. 40Two men will be in the field: one will be taken and the other left. 41Two women will be grinding at the mill: one will be taken and the other left.
42Therefore keep watch, because you do not know the day on which your Lord will come. 43But understand this: If the homeowner had known in which watch of the night the thief was coming, he would have kept watch and would not have let his house be broken into. 44For this reason, you also must be ready, because the Son of Man will come at an hour you do not expect.
45Who then is the faithful and wise servant, whom the master has put in charge of his household, to give the others their food at the proper time? 46Blessed is that servant whose master finds him doing so when he returns. 47Truly I tell you, he will put him in charge of all his possessions.
48But suppose that servant is wicked and says in his heart, ‘My master will be away a long time.’ 49And he begins to beat his fellow servants and to eat and drink with drunkards. 50The master of that servant will come on a day he does not expect and at an hour he does not anticipate. 51Then he will cut him to pieces and assign him a place with the hypocrites, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.
The River of Life
1Then the angel showed me a river of the water of life, as clear as crystal, flowing from the throne of God and of the Lamb 2down the middle of the main street of the city. On either side of the river stood a tree of life, bearing twelve kinds of fruit and yielding a fresh crop for each month. And the leaves of the tree are for the healing of the nations.
3No longer will there be any curse. The throne of God and of the Lamb will be within the city, and His servants will worship Him. 4They will see His face, and His name will be on their foreheads. 5There will be no more night in the city, and they will have no need for the light of a lamp or of the sun. For the Lord God will shine on them, and they will reign forever and ever.
Jesus Is Coming
6Then the angel said to me, “These words are faithful and true. The Lord, the God of the spirits of the prophets, has sent His angel to show His servants what must soona take place.”
7“Behold, I am coming soon. Blessed is the one who keeps the words of prophecy in this book.b”
8And I, John, am the one who heard and saw these things. And when I had heard and seen them, I fell down to worship at the feet of the angel who had shown me these things. 9But he said to me, “Do not do that! I am a fellow servant with you and your brothers the prophets, and with those who keep the words of this book.
Worship God!”
10Then he told me, “Do not seal up the
words of
prophecy in this book,
because the time is
near.
Let the
unrighteous continue to be unrighteous,
and the
vile continue to be vile;
let the righteous
continue to practice righteousness,
and the
holy continue to be holy.”
12“Behold, I am coming soon,
and
My reward is with Me,
to give
to each one according to what
he has done.
I AM the Alpha and
the Omega,
the
First and the Last,
the
Beginning and the End.”
14Blessed are those who wash their robes,c so that they may have the right to the tree of life and may enter the city by its gates. 15But outside are the dogs, the sorcerers, the sexually immoral, the murderers, the idolaters, and everyone who loves and practices falsehood.
“I, Jesus,
have sent My angel
to give you
this
testimony for the churches
I am the Root
and the
Offspring of David,
the bright
Morning Star.”
The Spirit and the bride say,
“Come!”
Let the one who hears say, “Come!”
And let the one who is thirsty come,
and the one who
desires the water of life drink
freely.
The Scripture has several words translated "right" and the usage of the term, "right hand" ranges from a direction, to the opposite of wrong, what is just or what conforms to an established standard, and to a place of honor or authority. In the case of division or appointment in the Bible, the right hand or right side came first, as when Israel (Jacob) divided the blessings to Joseph’s sons before he died (Genesis 48:13-14).
In addition, a person of high rank who put someone on his right hand gave him equal honor with himself and recognized him as possessing equal dignity and authority. And this is what the Apostle Paul writes of Jesus Christ in Ephesians. "And what is the surpassing greatness of His power toward us, the ones believing according to the working of His mighty strength which He worked in Christ in raising Him from the dead, and He seated Him at His right hand in the heavenlies, far above all principality and authority and power and dominion, and every name being named, not only in this world, but also in the coming age" (Ephesians 1:19-21). Here we see God exalting Jesus above all others by seating Him at the right hand of the Father.
The term "God’s right hand" in prophecy refers to the Messiah to whom is given the power and authority to subdue His enemies (Psalm 110:1; Psalm 118:16). We find a quote in Matthew 22:44 from Psalm 110:1, which is a Messianic Psalm. "The Son of David" is claimed by the LORD Jesus Christ as He is the "greater son of David" or the Messiah. In this passage of Matthew 22, Jesus questions the Pharisees about who they think the "Christ" or the Messiah is. "While the Pharisees were gathered together, Jesus asked them, Saying, What think ye of Christ? Whose son is He? They say unto him, The Son of David. He saith unto them, How then doth David in spirit call him Lord, saying, The LORD said unto my Lord, Sit thou on my right hand, till I make Thine enemies thy footstool? If David then call Him Lord, how is He his son?" (Matthew 22:41-45, KJV). The position of the Messiah is at God’s right hand.
The fact that Jesus Christ is at the "right hand of God" was a sign to the disciples that Jesus had indeed gone to heaven. In John 16:7-15, Jesus told the disciples that He had to go away and He would send the Holy Spirit. So the coming of the Holy Spirit in the upper room on the day of Pentecost (Acts 2:1-13) was proof positive that Jesus was indeed in heaven seated at the right hand of God. This is confirmed in Romans 8:34 where the Apostle Paul writes that Christ is sitting at God’s right hand making intercession for us.
Therefore, what we can say is that "God’s right hand" refers to the Messiah, the LORD Jesus Christ, and He is of equal position, honor, power, and authority with God (John 1:1-5). The fact that Christ is "sitting" refers to the fact that His work of redemption is done and when the fullness of the Gentiles is brought in (Romans 11:25), Christ’s enemies will be made His footstool. When the end of the age comes, all prophecy will be completed, and time will be no more.
The theme of Psalm 16 centers on entrusting one’s self to God’s care and walking closely with Him. In one way or another, the psalmist seems to say with every line, “Lord, you mean everything to me.” David, the author of the psalm, ends with this declaration of eternal trust in the goodness of God: “You make known to me the path of life; in your presence there is fullness of joy; at your right hand are pleasures forevermore” (Psalm 16:11, ESV).
David acknowledges that God’s providence keeps him on the path of life, even beyond the grave. He says, “You will not abandon me to the realm of the dead, nor will you let your faithful one see decay” (Psalm 16:10). In the security of God’s presence, David experiences complete joy. Then he makes this curious statement: “At your right hand are pleasures forevermore.”
The right hand is a term used metaphorically in Scripture to speak of God’s strength and power: “Your right hand, LORD, was majestic in power. Your right hand, LORD, shattered the enemy” (Exodus 15:6, see also Exodus 15:12; Psalm 18:35; 20:6; 63:8; 98:1). God’s right hand guides and sustains His people in times of need (Psalm 139:10). To be “at the right hand of God” is to inhabit a place of great honor and blessing (Psalm 45:9; 110:1). The Lord Jesus Christ now reigns in glory “at the right hand of God” (Mark 14:62; Acts 2:33; Hebrews 1:3; Colossians 3:1) and intercedes for those He has redeemed (Romans 8:34). In the early church, believers extended “the right hand of fellowship” to offer a warm greeting and as a sign of acceptance and mutual comradery (Galatians 2:9).
When David said, “At your right hand are pleasures forever,” he was expressing trust in the knowledge that his life was eternally secure in the glorious presence of his all-powerful God. He was thinking beyond life on earth to everlasting life—resurrection life—in eternity. For this reason, on the Day of Pentecost, the apostle Peter cited David’s words (Psalm 16:8–11) and interpreted them as a prophecy of Jesus Christ’s resurrection from the dead (Acts 2:25–31). Paul also quoted Psalm 16:10 at Antioch (Acts 13:35–37) as a reference to the Lord’s resurrection.
David’s confidence in God touched every aspect of his life, extending beyond mortality. He did not fear the end (Psalm 23:4) because he trusted that not even death could interrupt the joy and pleasure of intimate fellowship with His Lord.
All the more, Christians today can say to God, “At your right hand are pleasures forevermore,” because we have the complete revelation of Christ’s resurrection and our participation in it (Romans 6:9; 8:11; 1 Corinthians 15:20, 50–57; 6:14). We know that Jesus Christ triumphed over death (Luke 24:6; Revelation 1:18). Christ’s death and resurrection utterly changed the realities of life and death for all who believe in Him (Hebrews 2:14). Jesus lived to die and died to live again. Now He lives so that we can partake of His life forever (Matthew 20:28; John 3:16; 10:17, 28; 14:3, 19).
Christ’s “path of death” opened up the “path of life” for us (John 14:6; 1 John 5:11–12). And because we belong to Him, we too will enjoy the pleasures of God’s presence for all eternity (Colossians 3:1–4; 2 Corinthians 5:8; Philippians 1:23) where no one can rob us of our joy (John 16:22).
When we are “at God’s right hand,” we are near to Him—so close that God needs only to extend His right hand that we might partake of the inexhaustible store of His abundant gifts and blessings. In the closeness of His presence, we are honored and privileged to enjoy His love, companionship, care, power, and protection.
The pleasures of this world are fleeting (Hebrews 11:25), but the complete joy of close fellowship in God’s presence endures forever: “Those who have been ransomed by the LORD will return. They will enter Jerusalem singing, crowned with everlasting joy. Sorrow and mourning will disappear, and they will be filled with joy and gladness” (Isaiah 51:11, NLT; see also Isaiah 35:10; Zephaniah 3:17; Revelation 7:15–17).
Jesus Appears by the Sea of Tiberias
…5So He called out to them, “Children, do you have any fish?” “No,” they answered. 6 He told them, “Cast the neton the right side of the boat, and you will find some.” So they cast it there, andthey were unable to haul it in because ofthe great number of fish. 7Then the disciple whom Jesus loved said to Peter, “It is the Lord!” As soon as Simon Peter heard that it was the Lord, he put on his outer garment (for he had removed it) and jumped into the sea.…
Luke 5:4-7
When Jesus had finished speaking, He said to Simon, “Put out into deep water and let down your nets for a catch.” / “Master,” Simon replied, “we have worked hard all night without catching anything. But because You say so, I will let down the nets.” / When they had done so, they caught such a large number of fish that their nets began to tear. ...
John’s Vision of
Christ
I, John,
your brother and companion
in the
suffering and kingdom and patient
endurance
that are ours in
Jesus,
was on the island of Patmos because
of the
Word of God
and the
Testimony of Jesus
On the Lord’s Day I was in the Spirit, and I heard behind me a loud voice like a trumpet, 11 which said: “Write on a scroll what you see and send it to the seven churches: to Ephesus, Smyrna,Pergamum, Thyatira, Sardis, Philadelphia and Laodicea.”
12 I turned around to see the voice that was speaking to me. And when I turned I saw seven golden lampstands, and among the lampstands was someone like a son of man, dressed in a robe reaching down to his feet and with a golden sash around his chest.
The hair on his head was white like wool, as white as snow, and his eyes were like blazing fire. His feet were like bronze glowing in a furnace, and his voice was like the sound of rushing waters.
In his right hand he held seven stars, and coming out of his mouth was a sharp, double-edged sword. His face was like the sun shining in all its brilliance.
17 When I saw him, I fell at his feet as
though dead.
Then he placed his right hand on me and said:
“Do not be afraid.
I am the First and the Last.
I am the Living One; I was dead, and now look, I am alive for ever and ever!
And I hold the keys of death and Hades.
“Write, therefore, what you have seen,
what is now and
what will take place later.
The mystery of the seven stars
that you saw in my
right hand
and of the seven golden
is this:
The seven stars are the angels
of the seven churches,
and the seven
lampstands are the seven churches.
The Jacob’s ladder incident is a bit of an odd story, but there is prophetic depth to it that relates to Israel today. Sometimes there are phrases in the Bible that leap out as ridiculously relevant. The Bible is alive—a sharp sword, living and active—so we shouldn’t be surprised when it happens really.
This phenomenon happened a few times in the wake of the events of October 7, 2023. Psalm 27 seemed to pack a whole new punch as it described not only an enemy attack (v3), but also the very word “Hamas” which means violence in Hebrew (v12):
Give me not up to the will of my adversaries;
for false witnesses have risen against me,
and they breathe out violence (= Hamas in Hebrew)
THE PROPHETIC ELEMENT IN
THE STORY OF JOSEPH
Several times the weekly Torah portion read in the synagogues seemed to speak directly into the trouble of Israel, even the terrible hostage situation. Last week’s Bible portion was about Joseph, and the fateful journey he took sent by his father to go and find his brothers. Here’s what happens:
A man found him wandering in the fields. And the man asked him, “What are you seeking?”
(Hebrew = “What is your request?”)
“I am seeking my brothers,” he said. (Genesis 37:15-16)
In Hebrew it’s very poignant, and almost sounds like a prayer: אֶת-אַחַי אָנֹכִי מְבַקֵּשׁ – it’s literally saying something like, “It’s my brothers I am asking for.”
This has been made into a big poster hung on the streets of Jerusalem, joining the myriads of other posters and stickers, memorials and requests of loved ones and lost ones, fallen soldiers and hostages still in captivity.
But just as prophetic as the Scriptures may be about Israel’s trouble, there are also words of living hope that speak to us directly today.
For example, the passage about Joseph being reunited with his brothers gives us a powerful, prophetic picture of Jesus finally being recognized by his Jewish brethren. In many ways, Joseph was a foreshadowing of the Messiah. Joseph was sold for 20 silver coins as Yeshua was betrayed for 30, he suffering at the hands of, and on behalf of, his brothers, out in the land of the Gentiles, unrecognizable to his brothers, yet procuring salvation both for his family and a whole lot of other Gentiles besides. The time will come when this revelation will come to the people of Israel.
THE DEEPER MEANING OF JACOB’S LADDER IN THE BIBLEIn the episode of Jacob’s encounter with God with the ladder from heaven, part of the story seems to be prophetically speak about the future of Israel, and the awakening that will one day come. In his dream, Jacob receives a promise from God, and then says something interesting in response. Here’s what God says, and then notice what Jacob says next:
“Your offspring shall be like the dust of the earth, and you shall spread abroad to the west and to the east and to the north and to the south, and in you and your offspring shall all the families of the earth be blessed. Behold, I am with you and will keep you wherever you go, and will bring you back to this land. For I will not leave you until I have done what I have promised you.”
Then Jacob awoke from his sleep and said, “Surely the Lordis in this place, and I did not know it.”
And he was afraid and said, “How awesome is this place! This is none other than the house of God, and this is the gate of heaven.”
In essence, God says that Jacob (who would later be named Israel) will be scattered throughout the earth,
and promises
His constant presence and blessing,
then He says He will bring
Israel back to
the
Land of Promise…
…And then Jacob
WAKES UP.
Jacob wakes up, and what does He say? “Surely the Lord is in this place, and I did not know it!”
This points towards the spiritual awakening of the regathered people of Israel, when they suddenly realize the significance of Israel and more importantly, the God of Israel.
And also, the fact that they had been unaware of it before!
“How awesome is this place!”
Israel marvels…
“This is none other than
the house of God,
and this is the gate of heaven.”
Jacob, AKA Israel, understands with
new eyes,
after this revelation,
that he is in a very special place:
none other than the house of God.
The gate of heaven.
Indeed, Israel, and specifically Jerusalem,
is the place where heaven and earth
were connected when
Jesus paid for the sin of humanity on the cross.
Jesus Himself draws the parallel at the very end of John 1. He goes to meet Nathanael, a “true Israelite” whose name means “gift of God”. Here’s how the conversation goes:
Jesus saw Nathanael coming toward him and said of him,
“Behold, an Israelite indeed, in whom there is no deceit!”
Nathanael said to him,
“How do you know me?”
Jesus answered him,
“Before Philip called you, when you were under the fig tree, I saw you.”
Nathanael answered him,
“Rabbi, you are the Son of God!
You are the King of Israel!”
Jesus answered him,
“Because I said to you, ‘I saw you under the fig tree,’
do you believe?
You will see greater things than these.”
(John 1:47-50)
Then what does Jesus say
to this
representative of Israel?
“Truly, truly, I say to you,
you will
see heaven opened,
and
the angels of God
ascending and descending
on
the Son of Man.”
Jesus IS the ladder.
He is the Messiah, sent to
bring peace
between heaven and earth,
and Israel
is the place He chose to do it.
This is the gate of heaven,
made open to all the families
of the earth.
So now all the nations are
hearing
this Good News
and are being
reconciled to God through
Jesus
who made the way
But what about Israel?
What about the beloved descendants
of Jacob?
Israel’s time will come.
But let these prophetic Scriptures act as a directive
from the Father
urging you on to seek out the lost brothers
and pray for
the regathered people of Israel:
אֶת-אַחַי אָנֹכִי מְבַקֵּשׁ –
et
anochi mevakesh:
“It’s my brothers I am asking for.”
Wake up Israel!
Jesus Our Advocate
1My little children, I am writing these things to you so that you will not sin. But if anyone does sin, we have an advocate before the Father—Jesus Christ, the Righteous One. 2He Himself is the atoning sacrificea for our sins, and not only for ours but also for the sins of the whole world.
3By this we can be sure that we have come to know Him: if we keep His commandments. 4If anyone says, “I know Him,” but does not keep His commandments, he is a liar, and the truth is not in him. 5But if anyone keeps His word, the love of God has been truly perfected in him. By this we know that we are in Him: 6Whoever claims to abide in Him must walk as Jesus walked.
ANew Commandment
7Beloved, I am not writing to you a new commandment, but an old one, which you have had from the beginning. This commandment is the message you have heard.8Then again, I am also writing to you a new commandment, which is true in Him and also in you. For the darkness is fading and the true light is already shining.
9If anyone claims to be in the light but hates his brother, he is still in the darkness.10Whoever loves his brother remains in the light, and there is no cause of stumbling in him. 11But whoever hates his brother is in the darkness and walks in the darkness. He does not know where he is going, because the darkness has blinded his eyes.
12I am writing to you, little children, because your sins have been forgiven through His name.
13I am writing to you, fathers, because you know Him who is from the beginning.
I am writing to you, young men, because you have overcome the evil one.
I have written to you, children, because you know the Father.
14I have written to you, fathers, because you know Him who is from the beginning.
I have written to you, young men, because you are strong, and the word of God abides in you, and you have overcome the evil one.
Do Not Love the World
15Do not love the world or anything in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him. 16For all that is in the world—the desires of the flesh, the desires of the eyes, and the pride of life—is not from the Father but from the world. 17The world is passing away, along with its desires; but whoever does the will of God remains forever.
Beware of Antichrists
18Children, it is the last hour; and just as you have heard that the antichrist is coming, so now many antichrists have appeared. This is how we know it is the last hour. 19They went out from us, but they did not belong to us. For if they had belonged to us, they would have remained with us. But their departure made it clear that none of them belonged to us.
20You, however, have an anointing from the Holy One, and all of you know the truth.c 21I have not written to you because you lack knowledge of the truth, but because you have it, and because no lie comes from the truth. 22Who is the liar, if it is not the one who denies that Jesus is the Christ? This is the antichrist, who denies the Father and the Son. 23Whoever denies the Son does not have the Father, but whoever confesses the Son has the Father as well.
Remain in Christ
24As for you, let what you have heard from the beginning remain in you. If it does, you will also remain in the Son and in the Father. 25And this is the promise that He Himself made to us: eternal life.
26I have written these things to you about those who are trying to deceive you.27And as for you, the anointing you received from Him remains in you, and you do not need anyone to teach you. But just as His true and genuine anointing teaches you about all things, so remain in Him as you have been taught.
28And now, little children, remain in Christ,d so that when He appears, we may be confident and unashamed before Him at His coming.
29If you know that He is righteous, you also know that everyone
who practices righteousness has been born of Him.
“Beware of wolves in sheep's clothing” is a warning to
be cautious of people
who seem harmless but may have harmful intentions.
The phrase comes from the Bible, in
Jesus' Sermon on the Mount.
In the sermon, Jesus warns that
false prophets may appear
to be sheep but are actually ravenous wolves.
Jesus says,
“by their fruits shall ye know them”.
This means that their true nature
will be
revealed by their actions.
The phrase has been used in European literature and in the writings of the Church Fathers. A Latin proverb based on the phrase is Pelle sub agnina latitat mens saepe lupina, which means “Under a sheep's skin often hides a wolfish mind”.
The phrase is a reminder to be cautious of those who may
try to deceive you.
It also calls believers to have sensible, informed,
and mature faith
Doctrine is “a set of ideas or beliefs that are taught or believed to be true.” Biblical doctrine refers to teachings that align with the revealed Word of God, the Bible. False doctrine is any idea that adds to, takes away from, contradicts, or nullifies the doctrine given in God’s Word. For example, any teaching about Jesus that denies His virgin birthis a false doctrine, because it contradicts the clear teaching of Scripture (Matthew 1:18).
As early as the first century AD,
false doctrine was
already infiltrating the church,
and many of the letters in the
New Testament were written
to address those errors
(Galatians 1:6–9; Colossians 2:20–23; Titus 1:10–11).
Paul exhorted his protégé Timothy to guard against those who were peddling heresies and confusing the flock: “If anyone advocates a different doctrine and does not agree with sound words, those of our Lord Jesus Christ, and with the doctrine conforming to godliness, he is conceited and understands nothing” (1 Timothy 6:3–4).
As followers of Christ, we have no excuse for remaining ignorant of theology because we have the “whole counsel of God” (Acts 20:27) available to us—the Bible is complete. As we “study to show ourselves approved unto God” (2 Timothy 2:15), we are less likely to be taken in by smooth talkers and false prophets. When we know God’s Word, “we are no longer to be children, tossed here and there by waves and carried about by every wind of doctrine, by the trickery of men, by craftiness in deceitful scheming” (Ephesians 4:14).
It is important to point out the difference between false doctrine and denominational disagreements. Different congregational groups see secondary issues in Scripture differently. These differences are not always due to false doctrine on anyone’s part. Church policies, governmental decisions, style of worship, etc., are all open for discussion, since they are not directly addressed in Scripture. Even those issues that are addressed in Scripture are often debated by equally sincere disciples of Christ. Differences in interpretation or practice do not necessarily qualify as false doctrine, nor should they divide the Body of Christ (1 Corinthians 1:10).
False doctrine is that which opposes some fundamental truth or that which is necessary for salvation
The Word Brings Salvation
(Isaiah 65:1–16)
1Brothers, my heart’s desire and prayer to God for the Israelites is for their salvation. 2For I testify about them that they are zealous for God, but not on the basis of knowledge. 3Because they were ignorant of God’s righteousness and sought to establish their own, they did not submit to God’s righteousness. 4For Christ is the end of the law, to bring righteousness to everyone who believes.
5For concerning the righteousness that is by the law, Moses writes: “The man who does these things will live by them.”a 6But the righteousness that is by faith says: “Do not say in your heart, ‘Who will ascend into heaven?’b (that is, to bring Christ down) 7or, ‘Who will descend into the Abyss?’c (that is, to bring Christ up from the dead).”
8But what does it say? “The word is near you; it is in your mouth and in your heart,”d that is, the word of faith we are proclaiming: 9that if you confess with your mouth, “Jesus is Lord,” and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved. 10For with your heart you believe and are justified, and with your mouth you confess and are saved.
11It is just as the Scripture says: “Anyone who believes in Him will never be put to shame.”e 12For there is no difference between Jew and Greek: The same Lord is Lord of all, and gives richly to all who call on Him, 13for, “Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.”
14How then can they call on the One in whom they have not believed? And how can they believe in the One of whom they have not heard? And how can they hear without someone to preach? 15And how can they preach unless they are sent? As it is written: “How beautiful are the feet of those who bring good news!”
16But not all of them welcomed the good news.
For Isaiah says,
“Lord, who has believed our message?”
17Consequently, faith comes by hearing,
and
hearing by the word of Christ.
18But I ask, did they not hear?
Indeed they did:
“Their voice has gone out into all the earth,
their words to the ends of the world.”
19I ask instead, did Israel not understand? First, Moses says:
“I will make you jealous
by those
who are not a nation;
I will make you angry by a nation without understanding.”
20And Isaiah boldly says:
“I was found by those who did not seek Me;
I revealed Myself to those who did not ask for Me.”
21But as for Israel he says:
“All day long I have held out My hands
to a disobedient and obstinate people.”
Our Eternal Dwelling
(Romans 8:18–27)
1For we know that if the earthly tent we live in is dismantled, we have a building from God, an eternal house in heaven, not built by human hands. 2For in this tent we groan, longing to be clothed with our heavenly dwelling, 3because when we are clothed, we will not be found naked. 4For while we are in this tent, we groan under our burdens, because we do not wish to be unclothed but clothed, so that our mortality may be swallowed up by life. 5And it is God who has prepared us for this very purpose and has given us the Spirit as a pledge of what is to come.
6Therefore we are always confident, although we know that while we are at home in the body, we are away from the Lord. 7For we walk by faith, not by sight. 8We are confident, then, and would prefer to be away from the body and at home with the Lord. 9So we aspire to please Him, whether we are at home in this body or away from it. 10For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, that each one may receive his due for the things done in the body, whether good or bad.
Ambassadors for Christ
11Therefore, since we know what it means to fear the Lord, we try to persuade men. What we are is clear to God, and I hope it is clear to your conscience as well.12We are not commending ourselves to you again. Instead, we are giving you an occasion to be proud of us, so that you can answer those who take pride in appearances rather than in the heart.
13If we are out of our mind, it is for God; if we are of sound mind, it is for you.14For Christ’s love compels us, because we are convinced that One died for all, therefore all died. 15And He died for all, that those who live should no longer live for themselves, but for Him who died for them and was raised again.
16So from now on we regard no one according to the flesh. Although we once regarded Christ in this way, we do so no longer. 17Therefore if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation.a The old has passed away. Behold, the new has come!
18All this is from God, who reconciled us to Himself through Christ and gave us the ministry of reconciliation: 19that God was reconciling the world to Himself in Christ, not counting men’s trespasses against them. And He has committed to us the message of reconciliation.
20Therefore we are ambassadors for Christ, as though God were making His appeal through us. We implore you on behalf of Christ: Be reconciled to God.21God made Him who knew no sin to be sinb on our behalf, so that in Him we might become the righteousness of God.
Galatians 3:24
So the law became our guardian to lead us to Christ, that we might be justified by faith.
Matthew 5:17
Do not think that I have come to abolish the Law or the Prophets. I have not come to abolish them, but to fulfill them.
2 Corinthians 3:14
But their minds were closed. For to this day the same veil remains at the reading of the old covenant. It has not been lifted, because only in Christ can it be removed.
Philippians 3:9
and be found in Him, not having my own righteousness from the law, but that which is through faith in Christ, the righteousness from God on the basis of faith.
Colossians 2:14
having canceled the debt ascribed to us in the decrees that stood against us. He took it away, nailing it to the cross!
Hebrews 8:13
By speaking of a new covenant, He has made the first one obsolete; and what is obsolete and aging will soon disappear.
Ephesians 2:15
by abolishing in His flesh the law of commandments and decrees. He did this to create in Himself one new man out of the two, thus making peace
Galatians 3:25
Now that faith has come, we are no longer under a guardian.
John 1:17
For the law was given through Moses; grace and truth came through Jesus Christ.
Hebrews 10:1
For the law is only a shadow of the good things to come, not the realities themselves. It can never, by the same sacrifices offered year after year, make perfect those who draw near to worship.
Galatians 2:16
know that a man is not justified by works of the law, but by faith in Jesus Christ. So we, too, have believed in Christ Jesus, that we may be justified by faith in Christ and not by works of the law, because by works of the law no one will be justified.
1 Timothy 1:9
We realize that law is not enacted for the righteous, but for the lawless and rebellious, for the ungodly and sinful, for the unholy and profane, for killers of father or mother, for murderers,
Acts 13:39
Through Him everyone who believes is justified from everything from which you could not be justified by the law of Moses.
Galatians 5:18
But if you are led by the Spirit, you are not under the law.
Hebrews 7:18-19
So the former commandment is set aside because it was weak and useless / (for the law made nothing perfect), and a better hope is introduced, by which we draw near to God.
For Christ is the end of the law
for righteousness
to every one that believes
Christ
Romans 3:25-31
Whom God hath set forth to be a propitiation through faith in his blood, to declare his righteousness for the remission of sins that are past, through the forbearance of God; …
Romans 8:3,4
For what the law could not do, in that it was weak through the flesh, God sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh, and for sin, condemned sin in the flesh: …
Isaiah 53:11
He shall see of the travail of his soul, and shall be satisfied: by his knowledge shall my righteous servant justify many; for he shall bear their iniquities.
““Not a letter until all is fulfilled"
means that not even the smallest detail or part of the law will cease to be relevant or pass away until everything it was meant to achieve has been accomplished, emphasizing the complete and thorough nature of its fulfillment; this phrase is typically referenced from the Bible verse Matthew 5:18 where Jesus says "until heaven and earth pass away, not an iota, not a dot, will pass from the Law until all is accomplished
There is therefore now no
condemnation to them which are
in Christ Jesus,
who walk not after the flesh,
but after the Spirit.
For the law
of the
Spirit of life in Christ Jesus
hath made me free
from
the law of sin and death
The Conversion of the Jailer
25About midnight
Paul and Silas were praying and
singing hymns to God,
and the other prisoners were listening to them.
26Suddenly a strong earthquake shook the
foundations of the prison.
At once all the doors flew open and everyone’s
chains came loose.
27When the jailer woke up and saw the prison doors open, he drew his sword and was about to kill himself, presuming that the prisoners had escaped.
28But Paul called out in a loud voice, “Do not harm yourself! We are all here!”
29Calling for lights, the jailer rushed in and fell trembling before Paul and Silas.30Then he brought them out and asked, “Sirs, what must I do to be saved?”
31They replied, “Believe in the Lord Jesus and you will be saved, you and your household.” 32Then Paul and Silas spoke the word of the Lord to him and to everyone in his house. 33At that hour of the night, the jailer took them and washed their wounds. And without delay, he and all his household were baptized. 34Then he brought them into his home and set a meal before them.
So he and all his household rejoiced that they had come to believe in God.
A Cornerstone in Zion
(1 Corinthians 3:10–15; Ephesians 2:19–22; 1 Peter 2:1–8)
14Therefore hear the word of the LORD, O scoffers
who rule this people in Jerusalem.
15For you said, “We have made a covenant with death;
we have fashioned an agreement with Sheol.
When the overwhelming scourge passes through
it will not touch us,
because we have made lies our refuge
and falsehoode our hiding place.”
16So this is what the Lord GOD says:
“See, I lay a stone in Zion,
a tested stone,
a precious cornerstone, a sure foundation;
the one who believes will never be shaken.
17I will make justice the measuring line
and righteousness the level.
Hail will sweep away your refuge of lies,
and water will flood your hiding place.
18Your covenant with death will be dissolved,
and your agreement with Sheol will not stand.
When the overwhelming scourge passes through,
you will be trampled by it.
19As often as it passes through,
it will carry you away;
it will sweep through morning after morning,
by day and by night.”
The understanding of this message
will bring sheer terror.
20Indeed, the bed is too short to stretch out on,
and the blanket too small to wrap around you.
21For the LORD will rise up as at Mount Perazim.
He will rouse Himself as in the Valley of Gibeon,
to do His work, His strange work,
and to perform His task, His disturbing task.
22So now, do not mock,
or your shackles will become heavier.
Indeed, I have heard from the Lord GOD of Hosts
a decree of destruction against the whole land.
Listen and Hear
23Listen and hear my voice.
Pay attention and hear what I say.
24Does the plowman plow for planting every day?
Does he continuously loosen and harrow the soil?
25When he has leveled its surface,
does he not sow caraway and scatter cumin?
He plants wheat in rows and barley in plots,
and rye within its border.
26For his God instructs
and teaches him properly.
27Surely caraway is not threshed with a sledge,
and the wheel of a cart is not rolled over the cumin.
But caraway is beaten out with a stick,
and cumin with a rod.
28Grain for bread must be ground,
but it is not endlessly threshed.
Though the wheels of the cart roll over it,
the horses do not crush it.
29This also comes from the LORD of Hosts,
who is wonderful in counsel
and excellent in wisdom.
An Official Apology
When daylight came,
the magistrates
sent their officers with the order:
“Release those men.”
The jailer informed Paul:
“The magistrates have sent orders
to release you.
Now you may go on your way
in peace.”
But Paul said to the officers,
“They beat us publicly without a trial
and
threw us into prison,
even though we are Roman citizens.
And now do they
want to send us away
secretly?
Absolutely not!
Let them come themselves and
escort us out!”
so the officers relayed this
message to the magistrates,
who were alarmed to hear
that
Paul and Silas were Roman citizens.
39They came to appease them and
led them out,
requesting that they leave the Town
40After Paul and Silas came out
of the prison,
they went to Lydia’s house
to see the
brothers and encourage them.
Then they left the Town
https://www.minimannamoments.com/the-almah-miriams-and-a-place-at-the-table/
https://www.minimannamoments.com/2-x-3000-a-marriage-made-in-heaven/
https://www.minimannamoments.com/revealing-the-overcoming-resheet-of-bikkurim/
Treasures in Heaven
(Luke 12:32–34)
Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy, and where thieves break in and steal.
But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where moth and rust do not destroy, and where thieves do not break in and steal.
21For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.
The Lamp of the Body
(Luke 11:33–36)
The eye is the lamp of the body. If your eyes are good,
your whole body
will be full of light. but if your eyes are bad,
your whole body will be full of darkness.
If then the light within you is darkness,
how great is that darkness!
I don’t know where your
THEOLOGY
LANDS
BUTT….I PROMISE
No one can
SERVE
TWO MASTERS
Either he will hate the one and love the other,
or he will be devoted
to the one and despise the other.
You cannot
serve both
God and Money
You must be BORN
Again
Aaron’s rod, or staff, played an important part in God’s plan to lead the Israelites out of Egypt and into the Promised Land. In ancient Israelite culture, a rod was a symbol of authority. Shepherds used rods to guide and correct their flocks (Psalm 23:4). When God called the shepherd Moses to lead the Israelites out of Egypt, He demonstrated His power by performing miracles using Moses’ rod (Exodus 4:1–5; Numbers 20:11). God also chose Moses’ brother, Aaron, to perform miracles with his own rod (Exodus 7:19; 8:5, 16).
Aaron’s rod was the one that turned into a snake in Pharaoh’s court; when the Egyptian magi also turned their staffs into snakes, the snake that had been Aaron’s rod swallowed theirs up (Exodus 7:8–10). It was Aaron’s rod that God used to turn the water of Egypt into blood (Exodus 7:19–21). And it was Aaron’s rod that summoned the plagues of the frogs (Exodus 8:5–6) and gnats (verses 16–17). After Moses and Aaron had led the Israelites out of captivity, God set apart Aaron and his sons as priests (Exodus 28:1; Numbers 18:1). The rest of the Levites were to minister to the Lord in the tabernacle, offer sacrifices, and hear from God for the good of the whole nation.
The most famous story of Aaron’s rod begins with a few of the Levites becoming disgruntled about the extra authority given to Moses and Aaron. In Numbers 16, Korah, who was also a Levite, joined with two others, Dathan and Abiram, to incite a rebellion against Moses and Aaron. In verse 3 Korah says to Moses, “You have gone too far! The whole community of Israel has been set apart by the Lord, and he is with all of us. What right do you have to act as though you are greater than the rest of the Lord’s people?” Because of this defiance of the Lord’s authority, God caused the earth to open up and swallow these three men and their families (verses 28–33).
However, rather than submit to the Lord, the other tribal leaders jointed the revolt. Numbers 16:41 says, “But the very next morning the whole community of Israel began muttering again against Moses and Aaron, saying, ‘You have killed the Lord’s people!’” The Lord desired to wipe out the whole company, but Moses and Aaron fell on their faces and pleaded with Him not to destroy them. God relented and, instead, sent a plague throughout the company of rebellious Israel; the plague killed 14,700 of them (verse 49).
To put an end to the unrest, God once again used Aaron’s rod for a miracle. God commanded Moses to have the leader of each tribe of Israel bring his rod or staff to the tent of meeting, with Aaron’s rod representing the tribe of Levi. Each of the twelve leaders was to have his name inscribed on his rod. The Lord told Moses, “Buds will sprout on the staff belonging to the man I choose. Then I will finally put an end to the people’s murmuring and complaining against you” (Numbers 17:5). They left their rods before the Lord, and in the morning “Aaron’s staff, representing the tribe of Levi, had sprouted, budded, blossomed, and produced ripe almonds” (verse 8). Aaron’s rod didn’t just sprout buds; it brought forth flowers and fruit, a clear demonstration of the power of the One who gives life. Verse 10 says, “And the Lord said to Moses: ‘Place Aaron’s staff permanently before the Ark of the Covenant to serve as a warning to rebels. This should put an end to their complaints against me and prevent any further deaths.’”
Hebrews 9:4 tells us that Aaron’s rod remained in the Ark of the Covenant as a testimony of God’s choice of Aaron and Moses to lead His people. Aaron’s rod was also a reminder that God does not put up with rebellion against Himself or His chosen representatives on earth (1 Corinthians 10:10). Those who murmur, complain, and cause division within the Body of Christ are to be rebuked (James 5:9; 1 Timothy 5:20; 2 Timothy 2:23). God’s plans on this earth are far beyond any single human being. He desires that we work together, in one accord, to obey Him and reflect His glory.
The writer to the Hebrews talks about the arrangement of the tabernacle of the Old Testament. The tabernacle was the portable sanctuary used by the Israelites from the time of their wandering in the wilderness after the Exodus from Egypt to the building of the temple in Jerusalem (see Exodus 25–27). Within the tabernacle was the ark of the covenant which included the mercy seat (Hebrews 9:3-5 NKJV).
The ark of the covenant, the chest containing the two stone tablets inscribed with the Ten Commandments, was the most sacred object of the tabernacle and later in the temple in Jerusalem, where it was placed in an inner area called the Holy of Holies. Also within the ark were the golden pot of manna, such as was provided by God in the wilderness wanderings (Exodus 16:4) and Aaron’s almond rod (Numbers 17:1-13). On top of the ark was a lid called the mercy seat on which rested the cloud or visible symbol of the divine presence. Here God was supposed to be seated, and from this place He was supposed to dispense mercy to man when the blood of the atonement was sprinkled there.
In a manner of speaking, the mercy seat concealed the people of God from the ever-condemning judgment of the Law. Each year on the Day of Atonement, the high priest entered the Holy of Holies and sprinkled the blood of animals sacrificed for the atonement of the sins of God’s people. This blood was sprinkled on the mercy seat. The point conveyed by this imagery is that it is only through the offering of blood that the condemnation of the Law could be taken away and violations of God’s laws covered.
The Greek word for “mercy seat” in Hebrews 9:5 is hilasterion, which means “that which makes expiation” or “propitiation.” It carries the idea of the removal of sin. In Ezekiel 43:13-15, the brazen altar of sacrifice is also called hilasterion (the propitiatory or mercy seat) in the Septuagint (the Greek translation of the Old Testament) because of its association with the shedding of blood for sin.
What is the significance of this? In the New Testament, Christ Himself is designated as our “propitiation.” Paul explains this in his letter to the Romans: “Being justified freely by His grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus, whom God set forth as a propitiation by His blood, through faith, to demonstrate His righteousness, because in His forbearance God had passed over the sins that were previously committed” (Romans 3:24-25 NKJV). What Paul is teaching here is that Jesus is the covering for sin, as shown by these Old Testament prophetic images. By means of His death, and our response to Christ through our faith in Him, all our sins are covered. Also, whenever believers sin, we may turn to Christ who continues to be the propitiation or covering for our sins (1 John 2:1, 4:10). This ties together the Old and New Testament concepts regarding the covering of sin as exemplified by the mercy-seat of God.
First Corinthians 13 is one of the most famous passages in the New Testament. It is often referred to as the “Love Chapter” because it illustrates a biblical understanding of love.
It’s in this chapter that Paul speaks
of a time
when “we shall see face to face”
(1 Corinthians 13:12)
In 1 Corinthians 13:1–3, Paul argues that love surpasses all spiritual gifts.
Even the greatest spiritual gift is worthless without love.
In 1 Corinthians 13:4–7, Paul describes the characteristics of love. These characteristics emphasize the importance of putting the interests of others above our own (cf. John 15:13; Philippians 2:14).
In 1 Corinthians 13:8–12, Paul speaks to the temporary nature of spiritual gifts and the hope that Christians have for a full, complete, and intimate knowledge of God in the future. This section reminds us that spiritual gifts such as speaking in tongues and prophesying are not eternal. Love, however, is eternal and will never fail
(verse 8 and verse 13).
Therefore, love is what truly matters.
This section also speaks to the limitations of human understanding.
Because of sin and human finitude, we can only know and prophesy in part
(1 Corinthians 13:9).
Currently, we cannot understand God’s ways (Romans 11:33),
nor can we fathom the depths of His love (Ephesians 3:17–19).
But when Christ returns,
sin
will disappear and
we will
finally see
God face to face
(1 Corinthians 13:12).
The expression face to face appears in 1 Corinthians 13:12.
The full verse reads,
“For now we see only a reflection
as in a mirror;
then we shall see face to face.
Now I know in part; then I shall
know fully,
even as I am fully known.”
The event described in this verse is often referred to as the “Beatific Vision” (to see God as He is),
promised to Christians when Christ returns:
“We know that when Christ appears, we shall be like him, for we shall see him as he is” (1 John 3:2).
In our present state, however, we only have
an indirect and imperfect
knowledge of God’s infinite wisdom, glory, and love.
Thus, we cannot see God as He is.
Paul compares our present knowledge of divine things to a dark reflection in a mirror.
In New Testament times, a mirror was
formed from polished metal,
which could only
reflect a dim and imperfect image.
Yet Paul promises
that God
will exchange our dim images for
a face-to-face encounter with Himself.
On that glorious day,
the light of God will shine upon us,
and we will be free
from all darkness. imperfection, and error.
We will know Him fully,
even as we are fully known by Him.
This mutual recognition and understanding
is the epitome
of a deeply intimate relationship.
The beatific vision has roots in the Old Testament
(Genesis 32:20; Exodus 33:11; Deuteronomy 34:10).
In Exodus 33:18–23, Moses asks to
see God’s glory,
but God tells Moses that no one can
see His glory and live.
However, God allows Moses to
see His back,
but not Him in His entirety
(that is, in His full glory)
In Matthew 5:8,
Jesus promises
that the
Pure in Heart
will
See God
Jesus can make this promise because He is the only one who has seen the Father (John 1:18), and whoever has seen Jesus has seen the Father (John 14:9). Jesus is the “radiance of God’s glory and the exact representation of His being” (Hebrews 1:3). And when He returns, we will behold the fullness of God’s glory. On that day, we will see God as He truly is.
This hope for a face-to-face encounter with God gives Christians peace and comfort, even in difficult circumstances. When this life comes to an end, we will see and be seen by the One who loved us enough to die for us (John 3:16; Romans 5:8).
In the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus taught His listeners the difference between earthly treasure and heavenly treasure, and He emphasized the importance of the heavenly: “Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where moth and rust do not destroy, and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also” (Matthew 6:19–21). Whatever we focus on dictates our actions. When we focus on earthly success and wealth, we will expend our energies on earthly matters. However, when we focus on God’s priorities, our actions will reflect different priorities—and our reward in heaven will last forever.
Treasure is anything we value above all else and that which motivates us to action. For some it is money. For others it is power. Still other people strive for fame or attention. There are many things in this world vying for control of our heart. According to Jesus, determining where our treasure is also determines where our heart is. Many people claim to look forward to heaven, but their hearts are really not in it—their hearts are caught up in the cares of this world, because that’s where their treasure lies.
Jesus warned us that earthly currency has an expiration date. While it may satisfy us temporarily, it is unstable and fleeting. The ever-changing faces on magazine covers remind us that the famous are here and gone in a blink. The stock market crash of 1929 taught us that the wealthy can quickly lose it all. Power, prestige, and public approval are limited and can be gone in an instant. Even the Son of God experienced the fickleness of human approval. One day people were trying to make Him king (John 6:15), and the next they were leaving Him in droves (verse 66).
“This world in its present form is passing away” (1 Corinthians 7:31). The moment we take our last breath, earthly treasure won’t matter anymore. Jesus urged us to think beyond that last breath to eternity. When our focus is on eternity—when our treasure is laid up in heaven—our lifestyles reflect that perspective.
We will all give an account of ourselves before God for every action (Romans 14:12) and every idle word (Matthew 12:36). No one is exempt. Excuses are not accepted. God sees and knows every thought we think and holds us accountable for the truth we’ve been given (Romans 1:18–22). We store up “treasure in heaven” when we make choices on earth that benefit God’s kingdom. Jesus said that even offering a cup of cool water to a fellow believer is worthy of eternal reward (Matthew 10:42).
In Luke 16:19–31, Jesus told a story about a rich man and a beggar. The rich man had invested his life in opulence and pleasure. He cared little for anyone or anything but himself. When he died, his riches could not follow him. His life choices had prepared him only for hell, and all the money and prestige he enjoyed on earth counted for nothing. After death, he would have given everything he ever owned for a single drop of water, but his treasure had been invested elsewhere.
It is no sin to be rich, but our passions follow our investments. Wealthy people who consider their riches as belonging to God will use what they have in ways that have eternal significance, protecting their own hearts from the love of money (1 Timothy 6:10). People whose treasure is in heaven cannot be owned by their possessions. They cannot be bought off because nothing on earth is worth the price of their soul. They value the currency of heaven and use their earthly treasure to purchase “heavenly gold,” which will never lose its value. Investing our treasure in material things keeps our hearts anchored to earthly values; however, when we invest in things of eternal value, our hearts remain loyal to the Lord, and we will not be tempted to foolishly attempt to serve both God and money (Luke 16:13).
Jesus told us to “store up for yourselves treasures in heaven” (Matthew 6:20). He linked this command to the desire of our hearts: “Where your treasure is, there your heart will be also” (Matthew 6:21; see also verses 10–20).
The Bible mentions rewards that await the believer who serves the Lord faithful in this world (Matthew 10:41). A “great” reward is promised to those who are persecuted for Jesus’ sake. Various crowns are mentioned (in 2 Timothy 4:8, e.g.). Jesus says that He will bring rewards with Him when He returns (Revelation 22:12).
We are to treasure the Lord Jesus most of all. When Jesus is our treasure, we will commit our resources—our money, our time, our talents—to His work in this world. Our motivation for what we do is important (1 Corinthians 10:31). Paul encourages servants that God has an eternal reward for those who are motivated to serve Christ: “Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for human masters, 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).
When we live sacrificially for Jesus’ sake or serve Him by serving the body of Christ, we store up treasure in heaven. Even seemingly small acts of service do not go unnoticed by God. “If anyone gives even a cup of cold water to one of these little ones who is my disciple, truly I tell you, that person will certainly not lose their reward” (Matthew 10:42).
Everyone, but especially those with more visible gifts such as teaching, singing, or playing a musical instrument, might be tempted to use their gift for their own glory. Another temptation they face is finding their identity in others’ acknowledgement of their gift. Those who use their talents or spiritual gifts coveting the praise of men rather than seeking God’s glory receive their “payment” in full here and now. The applause of men was the extent of the Pharisees’ reward (Matthew 6:16). Why should we work for worldly plaudits, however, when we can have so much more in heaven?
The Lord will be faithful to reward us for the service we give Him (Hebrews 6:10). Our ministries may differ, but the Lord we serve is the same. “The one who plants and the one who waters have one purpose, and they will each be rewarded according to their own labor” (1 Corinthians 3:8).
The rich young man loved his money more than God, a fact that Jesus incisively pointed out
(Matthew 19:16–30).
The issue wasn’t that the young man
was rich but that
he “treasured” his riches and did not “treasure”
what he could have
in Christ.
Jesus told the man to sell his possessions and
give to the poor,
“and you will have treasure in heaven.
Then come, follow me” (verse 21).
The young man left Jesus sad, because
he was very rich.
He chose this world’s treasure
and so
did not lay up treasure in heaven.
He was unwilling to make
Jesus his treasure
The young man was religious, but Jesus
exposed his heart of greed.
We are warned not to lose our full reward by following after false teachers
(2 John 1:8).
This is why it is so important
to be
in God’s Word daily
(2 Timothy 2:15).
That way we can recognize false teaching
when we hear it.
The treasures that await the child of God
will far outweigh any trouble,
inconvenience, or persecution we may face
(Romans 8:18).
We can serve the Lord wholeheartedly, knowing that God is the One keeping score, and His reward will be abundantly gracious. “Always give yourselves fully to the work of the Lord, because you know that your labor in the Lord is not in vain” (1 Corinthians 15:58).
The Old Covenant that God had established with His people required strict obedience to the Mosaic Law. Because the wages of sin is death (Romans 6:23), the Law required that Israel perform daily sacrifices in order to atone for sin. But Moses, through whom God established the Old Covenant, also anticipated the New Covenant. In one of his final addresses to the nation of Israel, Moses looks forward to a time when Israel would be given “a heart to understand” (Deuteronomy 29:4, ESV). Moses predicts that Israel would fail in keeping the Old Covenant (verses 22–28), but he then sees a time of restoration (Deuteronomy 30:1–5). At that time, Moses says, “The Lord your God will circumcise your hearts and the hearts of your descendants, so that you may love him with all your heart and with all your soul, and live” (verse 6). The New Covenant involves a total change of heart so that God’s people are naturally pleasing to Him.
The prophet Jeremiah also predicted the New Covenant. “‘The days are coming,’ declares the Lord, ‘when I will make a new covenant with the people of Israel and with the people of Judah. . . . This is the covenant I will make with the people of Israel after that time,’ declares the Lord. ‘I will put my law in their minds and write it on their hearts. I will be their God, and they will be my people’” (Jeremiah 31:31–33). Jesus Christ came to fulfill the Law of Moses (Matthew 5:17) and to establish the New Covenant between God and His people. The Old Covenant was written in stone, but the New Covenant is written on hearts. Entering the New Covenant is made possible only by faith in Christ, who shed His blood to take away the sins of the world (John 1:29). Luke 22:20 relates how Jesus, at the Last Supper, takes the cup and says, “This cup that is poured out for you is the new covenant in my blood” (ESV).
The New Covenant is also mentioned in Ezekiel 36:26–27, “I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit in you; I will remove from you your heart of stone and give you a heart of flesh. And I will put my Spirit in you and move you to follow my decrees and be careful to keep my laws.” Ezekiel lists several aspects of the New Covenant here: a new heart, a new spirit, the indwelling Holy Spirit, and true holiness. The Mosaic Law could provide none of these things (see Romans 3:20).
The New Covenant was originally given to Israel and includes a promise of fruitfulness, blessing, and a peaceful existence in the Promised Land. In Ezekiel 36:28–30 God says, “Then you will live in the land I gave your ancestors; you will be my people, and I will be your God. . . . I will call for the grain and make it plentiful and will not bring famine upon you. I will increase the fruit of the trees and the crops of the field, so that you will no longer suffer disgrace among the nations because of famine.” Deuteronomy 30:1–5 contains similar promises related to Israel under the New Covenant. After the resurrection of Christ, God in His grace brought the Gentiles into the blessing of the New Covenant, too (Acts 10; Ephesians 2:13–14). The fulfillment of the New Covenant will be seen in two places: on earth during the Millennial Kingdom, and in heaven for all eternity.
We are no longer under the Law but under grace (Romans 6:14–15). The Old Covenant has served its purpose, and it has been replaced by “a better covenant” (Hebrews 7:22). “In fact the ministry Jesus has received is as superior to theirs as the covenant of which he is mediator is superior to the old one, since the new covenant is established on better promises” (Hebrews 8:6).
Under the New Covenant, we are given the opportunity to receive salvation as a free gift (Ephesians 2:8–9). Our responsibility is to exercise faith in Christ, the One who fulfilled the Law on our behalf and brought an end to the Law’s sacrifices through His own sacrificial death. Through the life-giving Holy Spirit who lives in all believers (Romans 8:9–11), we share in the inheritance of Christ and enjoy a permanent, unbroken relationship with God (Hebrews 9:15).
Hebrews 11:1
Now faith is the assurance of what we hope for and the certainty of what we do not see.
Romans 1:17
For the gospel reveals the righteousness of God that comes by faith from start to finish, just as it is written: “The righteous will live by faith.”
Galatians 2:20
I have been crucified with Christ, and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me. The life I live in the body, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself up for me.
Hebrews 10:38
But My righteous one will live by faith; and if he shrinks back, I will take no pleasure in him.”
John 20:29
Jesus said to him, “Because you have seen Me, you have believed; blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed.”
Romans 8:24-25
For in this hope we were saved; but hope that is seen is no hope at all. Who hopes for what he can already see? / But if we hope for what we do not yet see, we wait for it patiently.
1 Peter 1:8-9
Though you have not seen Him, you love Him; and though you do not see Him now, you believe in Him and rejoice with an inexpressible and glorious joy, / now that you are receiving the goal of your faith, the salvation of your souls.
Ephesians 2:8-9
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.
James 2:17
So too, faith by itself, if it does not result in action, is dead.
Matthew 21:21-22
“Truly I tell you,” Jesus replied, “if you have faith and do not doubt, not only will you do what was done to the fig tree, but even if you say to this mountain, ‘Be lifted up and thrown into the sea,’ it will happen. / If you believe, you will receive whatever you ask for in prayer.”
Mark 11:22-24
“Have faith in God,” Jesus said to them. / “Truly I tell you that if anyone says to this mountain, ‘Be lifted up and thrown into the sea,’ and has no doubt in his heart but believes that it will happen, it will be done for him. / Therefore I tell you, whatever you ask for in prayer, believe that you have received it, and it will be yours.
John 3:16
For God so loved the world that He gave His one and only Son, that everyone who believes in Him shall not perish but have eternal life.
1 John 5:4
because everyone born of God overcomes
the world.
And this is the victory that has overcome the world:
our faith.
Habakkuk 2:4
Look at the proud one; his soul is not upright—but the righteous will live by faith--
Isaiah 7:9
The head of Ephraim is Samaria, and the head of Samaria is the son of Remaliah. If you do not stand firm in your faith, then you will not stand at all.’”
(For we walk by faith, not by sight:)
2 Corinthians 1:24
Not for that we have dominion over your faith, but are helpers of your joy: for by faith ye stand.
2 Corinthians 4:18
While we look not at the things which are seen, but at the things which are not seen: for the things which are seen aretemporal; but the things which are not seen are eternal.
Deuteronomy 12:9
For ye are not as yet come to the rest and to the inheritance, which the LORD your God giveth you.
The First Disciples
(Matthew 4:18–22; Mark 1:16–20; John 1:35–42)
1On one occasion, while Jesus was standing by the Lake of Gennesareta with the crowd pressing in on Him to hear the word of God, 2He saw two boats at the edge of the lake. The fishermen had left them and were washing their nets. 3Jesus got into the boat belonging to Simon and asked him to put out a little from shore. And sitting down, He taught the people from the boat.
4When Jesus had finished speaking, He said to Simon, “Put out into deep water and let down your nets for a catch.”
5“Master,” Simon replied, “we have worked hard all night without catching anything. But because You say so, I will let down the nets.” 6When they had done so, they caught such a large number of fish that their nets began to tear. 7So they signaled to their partners in the other boat to come and help them, and they came and filled both boats so full that they began to sink.
8When Simon Peter saw this, he fell at Jesus’ knees. “Go away from me, Lord,” he said, “for I am a sinful man.” 9For he and his companions were astonished at the catch of fish they had taken, 10and so were his partners James and John, the sons of Zebedee.
“Do not be afraid,” Jesus said to Simon. “From now on you will catch men.” 11And when they had brought their boats ashore, they left everything and followed Him.
The Leper’s Prayer
(Leviticus 14:1–32; Matthew 8:1–4; Mark 1:40–45)
12While Jesus was in one of the towns, a man came along who was covered with leprosy.b When he saw Jesus, he fell facedown and begged Him, “Lord, if You are willing, You can make me clean.”
13Jesus reached out His hand and touched the man. “I am willing,” He said. “Be clean!” And immediately the leprosy left him.
14“Do not tell anyone,” Jesus instructed him. “But go, show yourself to the priest and present the offering Moses prescribed for your cleansing, as a testimony to them.”
15But the news about Jesus spread all the more, and great crowds came to hear Him and to be healed of their sicknesses. 16Yet He frequently withdrew to the wilderness to pray.
Jesus Heals a Paralytic
(Matthew 9:1–8; Mark 2:1–12)
17One day Jesus was teaching, and the Pharisees and teachers of the law were sitting there. People had come from Jerusalem and from every village of Galilee and Judea, and the power of the Lord was present for Him to heal the sick.
18Just then some men came carrying a paralyzed man on a mat. They tried to bring him inside to set him before Jesus, 19but they could not find a way through the crowd. So they went up on the roof and lowered him on his mat through the tiles into the middle of the crowd, right in front of Jesus.
20When Jesus saw their faith, He said, “Friend, your sins are forgiven.”
21But the scribes and Pharisees began thinking to themselves, “Who is this man who speaks blasphemy?
Who can forgive sins but God alone?”
22Knowing what they were thinking, Jesus replied, “Why are you thinking these things in your hearts? 23Which is easier: to say, ‘Your sins are forgiven,’ or to say, ‘Get up and walk’? 24But so that you may know that the Son of Man has authority on the earth to forgive sins…” He said to the paralytic, “I tell you, get up, pick up your mat, and go home.”
25And immediately the man stood up before them, took what he had been lying on, and went home glorifying God. 26Everyone was taken with amazement and glorified God. They were filled with awe and said, “We have seen remarkable things today.”
Jesus Calls Levi
(Matthew 9:9–13; Mark 2:13–17)
27After this, Jesus went out and saw a tax collector named Levi sitting at the tax booth. “Follow Me,” He told him, 28and Levi got up, left everything, and followed Him.
29Then Levi hosted a great banquet for Jesus at his house. A large crowd of tax collectors was there, along with others who were eating with them. 30But the Pharisees and their scribes complained to Jesus’ disciples, “Why do you eat and drink with tax collectors and sinners?”
31Jesus answered, “It is not the healthy who need a doctor, but the sick. 32I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners, to repentance.”
Questions about Fasting
(Matthew 9:14–15; Mark 2:18–20)
33Then they said to Him, “John’s disciples and those of the Pharisees frequently fast and pray, but Yours keep on eating and drinking.”
34Jesus replied, “Can you make the guests of the bridegroom fast while He is with them? 35But the time will come when the bridegroom will be taken from them; then they will fast.”
The Patches and the Wineskins
(Matthew 9:16–17; Mark 2:21–22)
36He also told them a parable: “No one tears a piece of cloth from a new garment and sews it on an old one. If he does, he will tear the new garment as well, and the patch from the new will not match the old.
37And no one pours new wine into old wineskins. If he does, the new wine will burst the skins, the wine will spill, and the wineskins will be ruined. 38Instead, new wine is poured into new wineskins. 39And no one after drinking old wine wants new, for he says, ‘The old is better.’”
"So Saul said to his servants, 'Provide for me now a man who can play well and bring him to me.' Then one of the young men said, 'Behold, I have seen a son of Jesse the Bethlehemite who is a skillful musician, a mighty man of valor, a warrior, one prudent in speech, and a handsome man; and the LORD is with him.' So Saul sent messengers to Jesse and said, 'Send me your son David who is with the flock'" (1 Sam 16:17-19).
While the parallels between David and Joseph continue to pile up in 1 Samuel 16, there is also an unanticipated twist in the plot (as we shall soon see). By describing David as a skillful musician who can alleviate Saul's tormented soul, the author portrays David as a Spirit-filled prophet since music and prophecy are closely associated in the Hebrew Bible (1 Sam 10:5; 16:13; 2 Sam 23:2). But as a Spirit-filled wise man (in Hebrew, "navon"), David is portrayed as a second Joseph (compare 1 Sam 16:18 and Gen 41:33; 1 Sam 16:13 with Gen 41:38). Like Joseph, David is a "handsome man" (compare 1 Sam 16:18 with Gen 39:6), and like Joseph, "the LORD is with" David (compare 1 Sam 16:18 with Gen 39:2, 21).
Now, for the twist in the plot: since Saul is the king who chooses Joseph-like David to serve in his court, Saul is portrayed as a new Pharaoh who is enslaving the people of Israel. The parallelism between Saul and Pharaoh highlights the tragic consequences of Saul's decision not to obey the Lord in 1 Samuel 15. From being the LORD's anointed, Saul is now portrayed as public enemy number one.
What can we learn from Saul's fall from grace? God has given us the freedom to choose our actions. But we are not free to choose the consequences of our actions. Even though we may try to minimize or justify a sinful decision, just like Saul, we will eventually have to face the music (this pun is intended). May God give us the prophetic foresight to weigh the outcome of all our choices carefully, be they good or bad, because God's gift of salvation does not make us immune to the consequences of our options!
Romans 11:25
Paul continues to talk to the Gentile Christians with a cautioning tone. He doesn't want them to reach the wrong conclusion about the truth by being wise in their own sight.
He wants them
to understand one of the central
mysteries of
God's relationship with Israel
and
humanity at large.
God has brought upon Israel a "partial hardening." In other words, most Israelites have been hardened to faith in Christ by God, keeping them from receiving God's righteousness. Why has God done this? As Paul has made clear, it was to make room for the non-Jewish people of the world to come into relationship with God through faith in Christ.
However, Paul now states outright that this is a temporary season. Israel's hardening will end when the "fullness" of the Gentiles has come to God through faith in Christ. Does this mean that God is waiting for all Gentiles to believe in Jesus? That's not likely, nor does it fit the words used here. The "fullness of the Gentiles" means "as many as will believe," or "the complete number." When that mysterious point has been reached, the Jewish people will no longer be hardened in their unbelief in Christ. This does not mean, necessarily, that every Israelite will come to faith in Christ, but perhaps that a representative proportion of living Israelites will do so. Nor does it mean that no Jewish person, prior to then, can come to faith—but most will not.
Everyone is in need of redemption. Our natural condition was characterized by guilt: “all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God” (Romans 3:23). Christ’s redemption has freed us from guilt, being “justified freely by His grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus” (Romans 3:24).
The benefits of redemption include eternal life (Revelation 5:9-10), forgiveness of sins (Ephesians 1:7), righteousness (Romans 5:17), freedom from the law’s curse (Galatians 3:13), adoption into God’s family (Galatians 4:5), deliverance from sin’s bondage (Titus 2:14; 1 Peter 1:14-18), peace with God (Colossians 1:18-20), and the indwelling of the Holy Spirit (1 Corinthians 6:19-20). To be redeemed, then, is to be forgiven, holy, justified, free, adopted, and reconciled. See also Psalm 130:7-8; Luke 2:38; and Acts 20:28.
The word redeem means “to buy out.” The term was used specifically in reference to the purchase of a slave’s freedom. The application of this term to Christ’s death on the cross is quite telling. If we are “redeemed,” then our prior condition was one of slavery. God has purchased our freedom, and we are no longer in bondage to sin or to the Old Testament law. This metaphorical use of “redemption” is the teaching of Galatians 3:13 and 4:5.
Related to the Christian concept of redemption is the word ransom. Jesus paid the price for our release from sin and its punishment (Matthew 20:28; 1 Timothy 2:6). His death was in exchange for our life. In fact, Scripture is quite clear that redemption is only possible “through His blood,” that is, by His death (Colossians 1:14).
The streets of heaven will be filled with former captives who, through no merit of their own, find themselves redeemed, forgiven, and free. Slaves to sin have become saints. No wonder we will sing a new song—a song of praise to the Redeemer who was slain (Revelation 5:9). We were slaves to sin, condemned to eternal separation from God. Jesus paid the price to redeem us, resulting in our freedom from slavery to sin and our rescue from the eternal consequences of that sin.
Hebrews 12:1 says, “Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles, and let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us.” Here the writer to the Hebrews exhorts all who profess faith in Jesus Christ, the “author and perfecter of our faith” (v. 2), to do two things. First, we are to remove or put off any burden that keeps us from Christ-likeness, especially sin because sin ensnares us and keeps us in bondage to itself. Second, we are to persevere, patiently enduring all things until we grow and mature in the faith. James reminds us that trials serve to strengthen our faith and bring us to maturity (James 1:2-3). Hebrews 12:1 is reminding us to persevere through those trials, knowing that, by God’s faithfulness, we won’t be overwhelmed by them (1 Corinthians 10:13).
So who are the “cloud of witnesses,” and how is it they “surround” us? To understand this, we need to look at the previous chapter, as evidenced by the word therefore beginning chapter 12. Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, and the rest of the Old Testament believers looked forward with faith to the coming of the Messiah. The author of Hebrews illustrates this eloquently in chapter 11 and then ends the chapter by telling us that the forefathers had faith to guide and direct them, but God had something better planned. Then he begins chapter 12 with a reference to these faithful men and women who paved the way for us. What the Old Testament believers looked forward to in faith—the Messiah—we look back to, having seen the fulfillment of all the prophecies concerning His first coming.
We are surrounded by the saints of the past in a unique way. It’s not that the faithful who have gone before us are spectators to the race we run. Rather, it is a figurative representation and means that we ought to act as if they were in sight and cheering us on to the same victory in the life of faith that they obtained. We are to be inspired by the godly examples these saints set during their lives. These are those whose past lives of faith encourage others to live that way, too. That the cloud is referred to as “great” indicates that millions of believers have gone before us, each bearing witness to the life of faith we now live.
One of God’s promises concerning the eternal state is that the nations of the world will have healing. The question comes up, though, as to why exactly healing is needed. Isn’t the New Jerusalem a place of perfection already?
The promise of the healing of the nations is found in Revelation 22, after the creation of the new heaven and new earth (Revelation 21:1). John writes, “Then the angel showed me the river of the water of life, as clear as crystal, flowing from the throne of God and of the Lamb down the middle of the great street of the city. On each side of the river stood the tree of life, bearing twelve crops of fruit, yielding its fruit every month. And the leaves of the tree are for the healing of the nations. No longer will there be any curse. The throne of God and of the Lamb will be in the city, and his servants will serve him. They will see his face, and his name will be on their foreheads. There will be no more night. They will not need the light of a lamp or the light of the sun, for the Lord God will give them light. And they will reign for ever and ever” (Revelation 22:1–5).
The healing of the nations is linked to the tree of life, as God reestablishes Eden. It is the leaves of this tree that are said to be “for the healing of the nations” (Revelation 22:2). It is possible that the tree of life in the New Jerusalem is literal and that its leaves and various fruits will somehow enrich our existence in the eternal state. All the nations represented there will be “healed” of their divisions and strife in their equal access to the tree of life.
It is also possible that the tree of life in the New Jerusalem is symbolic and that its “healing” signifies the eternal life that all will enjoy there. The different fruits it bears could represent the unlimited variety of our existence in heaven. The clear flowing river that waters the tree could picture the spiritual life of God’s redeemed—the “living water” Jesus promised in John 4:13–14.
The healing the tree of life’s leaves provide is not the healing of the wounds of battle—warfare will have ended. The healing is not needed for combating sickness—there will be no more sickness, death, or pain (Revelation 21:4). No, the “healing” is a reference to the perpetual blessing of the new heaven and earth; never again will the world be plagued by physical disorders or spiritual malaise or corruption. There will be no more warfare, no strife, no conflicting factions. God will heal all that ails His creation, and there will be no more curse (Revelation 22:3).
In the eternal state, everything will be blessed, and the tree of life represents that blessedness. There will be perfect sinlessness, perfect government, perfect service to God, perfect communion, and perfect glory. It is impossible for us to imagine being totally separated from sin and living in a glorified state before God. But the Lord assures us that “these words are trustworthy and true” (Revelation 22:6).
Our reconciliation with God is possible only because Christ went to the cross and received the punishment due for our sin. When our Savior cried out, “It is finished,” the barrier between sinful man and Holy God was removed, making all those who trust in Him “holy in His sight, without blemish and free from accusation” (Colossians 1:22). Our reconciliation is based on the salvation Jesus provides, and it is accepted by faith (John 3:16; Ephesians 2:8-9).
Christians are God’s ambassadors in that they have been “approved by God to be entrusted with the gospel” (1 Thessalonians 2:4). As we go through this world, we represent another Kingdom (John 18:36), and it is our responsibility to reflect the “official position” of heaven. We are in this world, but not of it (John 17:16). God’s ambassadors are to be “as shrewd as snakes and as innocent as doves” (Matthew 10:16). Empowered by the Holy Spirit, we must take the message of our King to the “ends of the earth” (Acts 1:8), imploring men and women everywhere to be reconciled to God.
"In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. The earth was formless and void, and darkness was over the surface of the deep, and the Spirit of God was moving over the surface of the waters" (Gen 1:1-2).
The more I study the prologue to the Torah (Gen 1:1—2:3), the more I'm blown away by the profundity of its opening verses. I probably read these verses thousands of times before I began asking the right questions, one of the most essential being, "For what reason does the Spirit of God appear in Genesis 1:2?" This question cannot be answered until we read the entire Torah and see the role of the Spirit of God elsewhere in the story. The Spirit of God is always associated with God's wisdom, be it his wisdom to reveal the meaning of dreams (Gen 41:38), to fashion a suitable dwelling place for his glory (Exod 31:3; 35:31), to reveal things that will take place in the last days (Num 24:2, 14), and to give Joshua the skills required to lead the nation of Israel in Moses' place and bring them into the Promised Land (Deut 34:9).
Only when we read Genesis 1:2 concerning the entire Torah do we realize that the Spirit of God is the Spirit of wisdom, and it is in blessed partnership with the Spirit of wisdom that God creates the world (Gen 1:26)! The author of Proverbs interpreted Genesis 1:2 and 26 in this way when he tells us that God created the world through wisdom (Prov 3:19) and that "Lady Wisdom" was at God's side when he made the world (Prov 8:22-31).
The mathematical genius of this story's literary structure even reflects God's wisdom. The first verse of Scripture contains seven words in the original Hebrew (Gen 1:1), and there are fourteen words in Genesis 2:2 (double seven), which happens to be the verse about the Sabbath. There are seven days in the creation story, and the word "day" is used fourteen times (Gen 1:5, 8, 13-14, 16, 18-19, 23, 31; 2:2-3). The author tells us seven times about the perfect goodness of God's creation (Gen 1:4, 10, 12, 18, 21, 25, 31). "God" is mentioned thirty-five times, a number divisible by seven (Gen 1:1-12, 14, 16-18, 20-22, 24-29, 31; 2:2-3).
The word "create" is used seven times (Gen 1:1, 21, 27; 2:3-4), and "land" is used twenty-one times (another multiple of seven).
Since the God who spoke this universe into being is so perfectly wise, then human wisdom is measured by our devotion and obedience to his word, which is also identified as God's wisdom (Deut 4:6). For this reason, Adam and Eve's pursuit of "good" and "wisdom" apart from God is not only sinful but also the epitome of foolishness (Gen 3:6; see Deut 32:6).
Suppose there's one thing God wants us to learn from the creation story. In that case, it's this: if we do not regularly study God's word, diligently seeking the perfections of his revealed wisdom, or seek a good life apart from God's will, we are acting like blind men trying to navigate through the darkness of this world using our carnal stupidity. We should not fumble in the darkness when God says, "Let there be light" (Gen 1:3).
"Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path" (Psa 119:105). "For the commandment is a lamp and the teaching is light; and reproofs for discipline are the way of life" (Prov 6:23). "For you were formerly darkness, but now you are Light in the Lord; walk as children of Light (for the fruit of the Light consists in all goodness and righteousness and truth) ... Therefore be careful how you walk, not as unwise men but as wise, making the most of your time, because the days are evil. So then do not be foolish, but understand what the will of the Lord is. And do not get drunk with wine, for that is dissipation, but be filled with the Spirit" (Eph 5:8-9, 15-18).
Stones
have been used to commemorate and memorialize persecuted people in a variety of contexts, including the Holocaust, and the persecution of Christians
Holocaust
- Stolpersteine: Stumbling stones that are set into sidewalks in Germany and other European cities to honor victims of the Holocaust. The stones are engraved with the names of the victims.
Persecution of Christians
- Stoning: A brutal method of execution in which a group of people throws stones at a condemned person until they die. In the Bible, Stephen was stoned to death by religious rulers for his faith in Jesus Christ.
John 19:25-27
Near the cross of Jesus stood His mother and her sister, as well as Mary the wife of Clopas and Mary Magdalene. / When Jesus saw His mother and the disciple whom He loved standing nearby, He said to His mother, “Woman, here is your son.” / Then He said to the disciple, “Here is your mother.” So from that hour, this disciple took her into his home.
Isaiah 53:3-5
He was despised and rejected by men, a man of sorrows, acquainted with grief. Like one from whom men hide their faces, He was despised, and we esteemed Him not. / Surely He took up our infirmities and carried our sorrows; yet we considered Him stricken, struck down by God, and afflicted. / But He was pierced for our transgressions, He was crushed for our iniquities; the punishment that brought us peace was upon Him, and by His stripes we are healed.
Hebrews 4:12
For the word of God is living and active. Sharper than any double-edged sword, it pierces even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow. It judges the thoughts and intentions of the heart.
Zechariah 12:10
Then I will pour out on the house of David and on the people of Jerusalem a spirit of grace and prayer, and they will look on Me, the One they have pierced. They will mourn for Him as one mourns for an only child, and grieve bitterly for Him as one grieves for a firstborn son.
Matthew 10:34-36
Do not assume that I have come to bring peace to the earth; I have not come to bring peace, but a sword. / For I have come to turn ‘a man against his father, a daughter against her mother, a daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law. / A man’s enemies will be the members of his own household.’
John 7:43
So there was division in the crowd because of Jesus.
Acts 28:22
But we consider your views worth hearing, because we know that people everywhere are speaking against this sect.”
1 Peter 2:8
and, “A stone of stumbling and a rock of offense.” They stumble because they disobey the word—and to this they were appointed.
Psalm 22:16-18
For dogs surround me; a band of evil men encircles me; they have pierced my hands and feet. / I can count all my bones; they stare and gloat over me. / They divide my garments among them and cast lots for my clothing.
Matthew 27:54
When the centurion and those with him who were guarding Jesus saw the earthquake and all that had happened, they were terrified and said, “Truly this was the Son of God.”
John 3:19-21
And this is the verdict: The Light has come into the world, but men loved the darkness rather than the Light because their deeds were evil. / Everyone who does evil hates the Light, and does not come into the Light for fear that his deeds will be exposed. / But whoever practices the truth comes into the Light, so that it may be seen clearly that what he has done has been accomplished in God.”
Romans 9:32-33
Why not? Because their pursuit was not by faith, but as if it were by works. They stumbled over the stumbling stone, / as it is written: “See, I lay in Zion a stone of stumbling and a rock of offense; and the one who believes in Him will never be put to shame.”
1 Corinthians 1:23-24
but we preach Christ crucified, a stumbling block to Jews and foolishness to Gentiles, / but to those who are called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God and the wisdom of God.
Isaiah 8:14-15
And He will be a sanctuary—but to both houses of Israel a stone of stumbling and a rock of offense, to the dwellers of Jerusalem a trap and a snare. / Many will stumble over these; they will fall and be broken; they will be ensnared and captured.”
Jeremiah 31:15
This is what the LORD says: “A voice is heard in Ramah, mourning and great weeping, Rachel weeping for her children and refusing to be comforted, because they are no more.”
(Yes, a sword shall pierce through your own soul also,)
that the thoughts of many hearts may be revealed.
a sword.
Psalm 42:10
As with a sword in my bones, mine enemies reproach me; while they say daily unto me, Where is thy God?
John 19:25
Now there stood by the cross of Jesus his mother, and his mother's sister, Mary the wife of Cleophas, and Mary Magdalene.
that.
Luke 16:14,15
And the Pharisees also, who were covetous, heard all these things: and they derided him…
Deuteronomy 8:2
And thou shalt remember all the way which the LORD thy God led thee these forty years in the wilderness, to humble thee, and to prove thee, to know what was in thine heart, whether thou wouldest keep his commandments, or no.
Judges 5:15,16
And the princes of Issachar were with Deborah; even Issachar, and also Barak: he was sent on foot into the valley. For the divisions of Reuben there were great thoughts of heart…
The name Mary has multiple possible meanings, including "bitter" and "star of the sea".
- The name Mary comes from the Hebrew name "Miryam", which may come from the root word "merur" meaning "bitterness".
- The bitterness could refer to the sorrow Mary experienced, as described in Luke 2:35.
- The name may also be related to the verb "mara" which means "to be rebellious or disobedient".
Star of the sea
- The Church has traditionally interpreted the name Mary as "Star of the Sea".
- This interpretation is based on the idea that Christians attain glory through Mary's maternal intercession, just as mariners are guided to port by the ocean star.
- The Church venerates the name Mary because of her role as the Mother of God.
- Early Christian writers also interpreted the name Mary to mean "Bitter Sea", "Myrrh of the Sea", "The Enlightened One", and "The Light Giver".
- St. Jerome suggested the name meant "Lady", based on the Aramaic "mar" meaning "Lord".
The Prophecy of Simeon
25Now there was a man in Jerusalem named Simeon, who was righteous and devout. He was waiting for the consolation of Israel, and the Holy Spirit was upon him. 26The Holy Spirit had revealed to him that he would not see death before he had seen the Lord’s Christ. 27Led by the Spirit, he went into the temple courts.eAnd when the parents brought in the child Jesus to do for Him what was customary under the Law, 28Simeon took Him in his arms and blessed God, saying:
29“Sovereign Lord, as You have promised,
You now dismiss
Your servant in peace.
30For my eyes
have
seen Your salvation,
31which You
have prepared in the sight of all people,
32a light
for revelation to the Gentiles,
and for
glory to Your people Israel.”
33The Child’s father and mother
were amazed
at what was spoken about Him.
34Then Simeon blessed them and said to
His mother Mary:
“Behold, this Child is appointed to cause
the rise and fall
of many
in Israel,
and to be a sign that will be spoken
against,
35so that the thoughts of many
hearts will be revealed--
and a sword
will pierce your soul as well.”
Some intriguing facts about people and places connected with this season of His appointed times: The very first time Almah – עַלְמָה – almāh, is seen is in the Torah
Hebrew: תּוֹרָה, Direction, Instruction, Teaching or Law. (Pronounced:to-raw‘).Strongs 8451: Acquired knowledge or skills that mark the direction one is to take in life. A straight direction. Knowledge passed from one person to another.It is found in The Book of Exodus(i.e., Sefer Shemot [סֵפֶר שְׁמוֹת])
שְׁמוֹת Shemot, Shemoth, or Shemos (שְׁמוֹת — Hebrew for Names, in the Old Testament in the Tenakh.The Tanakh (Hebrew: תַּנַ”ךְ, pronounced [taˈnaχ] or [təˈnax]; TaNaKh also Tenakh, Tenak, Tanach) ) is the canonical collection of Jewish texts, it is a name used in Judaism for the canon of the Hebrew Bible, which is also the textual source for the Christian Old Testament.
The Tanakh is also known as the Masoretic Text or the Miqra.The Greek translation of the Hebrew (the Septuagint) (Kitvei HaKodesh) Some Jews refer to the entire Hebrew Bible (Kitvei HaKodesh) simply as the Torah without making the distinction of the divisions
Though the Christian Old Testament is the result of the canonization of the Jewish scriptures, the order of the books in the Tanakh is not identical to the Christian Old Testament (though the content is the same, the chapter and verse references are not).כתבי הקדשׁ – Kitvei HaKadosh – The Hebrew Scriptures
Almah is a Hebrew word – עַלְמָה – for virgin.Almah (עַלְמָה ‘almāh, plural: עֲלָמוֹת ‘ălāmōṯ), from a root implying the vigour of adolescence and puberty.
It is a Hebrew word for a young woman of childbearing age. … Etymologically, the meaning of the word almah is derived from the verb almah, to hide, or to conceal which helps to support the virgin interpretation. Being careful here in connecting the concept of being hidden with that of being a virgin, especially since some of the almah’s in the bible went about freely in public and were anything but hidden (Gen 24:43 and Psalm 68:25 -26).Almah definition, (in Egypt) a woman or girl who dances or sings professionally.In the second book of Torah in Exodus. Shemot – שְׁמוֹת ….
is the story of a young maiden, Miriam/Mary who was the one who watched over the baby Moses in his box/ark as he floated down the Nile River towards his destiny as a Redeemer of Israel; their mother having set him afloat so he would not be killed by Pharaoh’s servants and soldiers.This occurred not long after Pharaoh decreed that all newborn Hebrew boys were to be drowned in the Nile river. Previous to this, Miriam’s mother, Yocheved, had hidden Miriam’s infant brother, Moses, for three months.
Miryam watches as Pharaoh’s daughter finds the basket.Ex. 2:5 And the girl went and got the baby Moses’ birth mother, Jochebed, Pharaoh’s daughter Batya said to her, “Take this baby and nurse him for me, and I will pay you.” So the woman took and the baby and nursed him. When the child grew older, she took him to Pharaoh’s daughter who adopted him and he became her son. She named him Moses, saying, “I drew him out of the water.”
Almah is also found in Isaiah 7 where the prophetic word states that an Almah will conceive and bring forth a child.Therefore the Lord himself will give you a sign: The virgin (almah) will conceive and give birth to a son, and will call him Immanuel. Isaiah 7:14This Messianic prophecy is further complemented by a description of this same child found in Isaiah 9:6 which reconfirms the name Immanuel. The Septuagint (Greek copy of the Old Testament) chose the specific Greek word for virgin in this same Isaiah 7:14 prophecy many years before Yeshua/Jesus was born. In the New Testament, Matthew 1:18-23 confirms that Yeshua/Jesus, The Messiah, was the one foretold about in Isaiah 7:14.Gen 24:43, here “almah” refers to Rebekah, a virgin.
Exodus 2:8, here almah is used to describe Moses’ s young sister, a young girl who is likely a virgin.
Song of Solomon 6:8, classifies Solomon’s women into three categories: wives, concubines and virgins. If they were not virgins, they would be concubines, suggesting almah means virgin.(4)
Scriptures of interest include:
Psalm 68:25, Song of Solomon 1:3, Proverbs 30:19 and Isaiah 9:6.The Hebrew word almah is not used to describe a virgin 100 percent of the time however, it may have been the best choice in Hebrew and Greek wording.
All believers understand that this prophecy tells of the virgin(almah) birth of our Messiah Jesus Christ/Yeshua HaMashiach. Complemented with Isaiah 9:6 which is a further description of this child, including His divine attributes, it fits perfectly with the child’s name/title here, Immanuel (God is with us).https://www.minimannamoments.com/is-el-eem-anu/True biblical prophecy works together with other areas of scripture, meaning words in scripture support scripture.This child’s birthplace can be found in Micah 5:2A ruler out of Bethlehem, this child’s name/title can be found here in Isaiah 7:14 (Immanuel). His divine attributes are found in Isaiah 9:6 and Isaiah 43:11.The time of his death is found in Daniel 9:24 – 27.His resurrection is found in psalm 16. His return to earth (second coming) is found in 12:10 where Israel will look upon the one that is pierced which is further supported in Zechariah 14: 1-7 which brings Daniel’s 70th week (see Daniel 9:24-27) prophecy to an end.All of these prophecies work together and no one prophecy needs to stand alone.
Some other Marys Almahs and MiryamsJohn tells us that early on the first day of the week, (Feast of Firstfruits) while it was still dark,
Mary Magdalene went to the tomb and saw that the stone had been removed from the entrance.” Early on the first day of the week, while it was still dark, Mary Magdalene went to the tomb and saw that the stone had been removed from the entrance.”John: 20:1
The first people to the tomb were women and 2 out of the 3 of them were called Mary. However all 3 may have been called Mary according to Mark 16:1 Mary Magdalene, Mary the mother of James, and {Mary} Salome went to the tomb.Mary, (Hebrew Miryam), was one of the most common women’s names in New Testament times, and so it is not surprising that the crucifixion and resurrection narratives seem to speak of as many as five separate Marys.
As we all know the mother of Jesus/Yeshua was also called Mary (Hebrew Miryam); who, John tells us in 19:25, was at the cross with Mary the wife of Cleophas, and Mary Magdalene. ‘standing by the cross of Jesus were his mother and his mother’s sister, Mary the wife of Clopas, and Mary Magdalene.’
Mary is pronounced MARE-ee. It is of Latin origin, and the meaning of Mary is “star of the sea”.
Other possible meanings from the Hebrew are:wished-for child;rebellion;sea of bitterness.Another meaning of Miriam is “Mistress of the Sea”. Keeping in mind that many names may have different meanings in other countries and languages.Transliteration: MiryamOriginal Word: מִרְיָם
The name Maria (or Mary) is the Greek transliteration of an older version of the name Mary from the Hebrew name Miriam, the name Mareike means: Bitter or Sea, the same as Maria in Dutch.
The young woman in the exodus story was Mary/Miriam. רְיָםמִ strongs 4813 Miryam a sister of Aaron and Moses pronounced MEER-ee-em.
Most scholars derive the name Miriam from the verb מרה (mara) meaning to be bitter, rebellious or disobedient.Strongs 4755 Mara מָרָא (pronounced MAHR-ah – maw-raw’) Mara: “bitter,” symbolic name of Naomi MARA. ma’-ra, mar’-a (marah, “bitter”): The term which Naomi applies to herself on her return from Moab to her native country.
Phonetic Spelling: (meer-yawm’)Word Origin rom the same as MerayahOriginal Word: מְרָיָהTransliteration: MerayahPhonetic Spelling: (mer-aw-yaw’)
Waters of bitterness or sorrowExodus 15:20. Miriam the prophetess — ΄αριαμ in the Greek, in the Latin Maria, from the Hebrew word מרה marah, bitterness. She was so called, say some, from the times of affliction and bitterness, (Exodus 1:14.) in which she was born.There are several meanings behind the name Miriam, spelled ‘mem’, ‘reish/resh’, ‘yud/yod’, ‘mem’ in Hebrew (מִרְיָם),
Various Jewish sources relate to either bitter, water, rebellion or elevation.One meaning is based on the letters ‘mem’, ‘reish’ of her name spelling “mar” (מר) which means “bitter”. This connotes the fact that Miriam was born during the beginning of Pharaoh’s bitter decrees as in the verse, “And the [Egyptians] embittered [the Jews’] lives with hard labor.However, another meaning of mar (מר) is water as in the verse, “The nations are as a drop of water (c’mar) from a bucket”.
Miriam’s strong association with water includes her involvement in saving Moses at the Nile, singing praise to God after crossing the Sea of Reeds or Red Sea and the special well or spring of water called the “Well of Miriam”. In her merit, this well miraculously provided water for the Jews by accompanying them throughout their wanderings in the wilderness.
There is a Hebrew teaching that says, “Three great leaders led Israel: Moses, Aaron and Miriam.In their merit they received three great gifts: the Well [Miriam],the Clouds of Glory [Aaron]and the Manna [Moses].”When Miriam died, the well was removed as is evidenced by the fact that immediately after the verse And Miriam died, the Torah states, The People had no water.After Miriam’s death, this is the significance of the verses where Moses is searching for and eventually strikes the rock, in order to restore its’ waters, which had dried up with Miriam’s death.
Concerning the death of Miriam, the Torah (First 5 books of Old Testament) states:“The entire congregation of the children of Israel arrived at the desert of Tzin in the first month, and the people settled in Kadesh. Miriam died there and was buried there”.By identifying Miriam’s death as occurring in the 1st month the Torah reveals that she died in the Hebrew month of Nisan and indicate that the day of her passing, (yahrtzeit), was the 10th of Nisan.The Sages taught that the Torah’s account of Miriam’s death follows immediately after the laws of purification through the red heifer. This may have been to in order to emphasize and teach that, just as sacrifices bring atonement, so the death of the righteous secures atonement. Miriam’s great level of purity and righteousness is indicated by the fact that God chose her as the holy (set-apart) person through which to express this teaching. Also noted is that as did Aaron and Moses, Miriam also died through the painless kiss of death, whereby the Divine Presence is revealed to the departing soul as God lovingly draws it back within Himself.
The Sages also explains that this well was the same rock from which Moses brought forth water after Miriam’s death, but adds that it was round as a sieve; such that it would miraculously roll along with the Israelites on their journeys through the desert. It further states that when they encamped, the leader of each Tribe took his staff to the well and drew a line in the sand toward his Tribe’s encampment. The waters of the well were drawn after the mark and thus supplied water for each of the Tribes. In this way, Miriam was a source of sustenance for all of Israel.
According to one opinion of the Sages, Miriam’s Well is now in the Sea of Galilee (the Kinneret). Based on verses which suggest the travelling and coming to rest of the well, they note: “One who ascends to the top of Mount Yeshimon on the Golan Heights, which overlooks wastelands (yeshimon) to the east one can see [looking west] a kind of small sieve in the Sea of Tiberius [the Sea of Galilee]. This is the Well of Miriam.”
According to another opinion of the Sages, the Well of Miriam came to rest in the Mediterranean Sea and can be seen from the heights of Mount Carmel on the coast of Haifa.
In addition, since water is associated with chesed – compassion – kindliness – this meaning behind Miriam indicates her special acts of kindness in serving as a midwife,
devoting herself to the needs of her suffering people and sparing Israelite infants from Pharaoh’s evil decree.
Another meaning behind Miriam is related to the letters ‘mem’, ‘reish’, ‘yud’ of her name spelling: meri, (מרי) which means “rebellion”.This makes reference to the way she rebelled against Pharaoh’s orders that the Jewish midwives kill all male infants. She even rebelled against her father who, in the name of sparing Hebrew infants from death, caused couples to separate so they wouldn’t have children. Once she convinced her father of his mistake, Amram remarried Yocheved, followed by the other Israelite men, after which time Moses was born.
A last meaning is based on all of the letters of the name Miriam, ‘mem’, ‘reish’, ‘yud’, ‘mem’ spelling the word: merim – (מרים) which means elevate. In the merit of saving the new-born Israelites, thereby building the House of Israel, God blessed Yocheved that He would make from her houses of cohanim and leviim and from Miriam, houses of kingship. Merim here indicates the fact that Miriam, from whom King David came (through her husband Calev of Judah), was elevated to house the Davidic Dynasty which is destined to elevate the Hebrew nation and the perfected community of humanity to Redemption and the World to Come. This might be consistent with an idea which, although not found in Jewish sources, is based on the suggestion that mri in ancient Egyptian means beloved.
The song of Miriam, Exodus 15:20-21 Miriam became the leader of the Hebrew women when they and their families escaped from Egypt. On one occasion she and the women sang the Song of Miriam; it is one of the few poems that survive from the ancient world.Exodus 15:20 Then Miriam the prophet, Aaron’s sister, took a timbrel in her hand, and all the women followed her, with timbrels and dancing.
Then over 1000 years later another baby was born. She was named after this Almah. Moses sister Miriam.
In our translations we know her as Mary.Meaning of Mary: Usual English form of Maria, which was the Latin form of the New Testament Greek names Μαριαμ (Mariam) and Μαρια (Maria) – the spellings are interchangeable – which were from the Hebrew name מִרְיָם (Miryam). Usual English form of Maria, which was the Latin form of the New Testament Greek names Μαριαμ (Mariam) and Μαρια (Maria) Like other typical Levite names, the name Miriam is probably Egyptian of origin, and mentioned earlier, derived from a word that means Beloved.To a Hebrew audience, particularly one that didn’t speak ancient Egyptian, the name Miriam/Mary would have seemed obviously akin the verb מרה (mara) meaning to be rebellious or disobedient, or the related verb מרר (marar), meaning to be bitter or strong.The meaning is not known for certain, but there are several theories including, (as previously mentioned): sea of bitterness, rebelliousness, and wished for child. However it was most likely originally an Egyptian name, perhaps derived in part from mry – beloved, or mr – love.
This is the name of several New Testament characters, most importantly Mary the mother of Messiah.Matthew 1:18. “Now the birth of Jesus Christ was on this wise: When as his mother Mary was espoused to Joseph, before they came together, she was found with child of the Holy Ghost.”There is the general belief that the name Mary in the Hebrew is Miriam. The problem with this is that Miriam as we have seen, means rebellious or bitter.However she was always called Miriam and she was the true Almah, the one chosen as the vessel (womb/racham) to bring the Messiah, the Redeemer, into our world as a baby. Isaiah 9:6
This word Almah, also means, One who is hidden; as in Hidden from the world, (the place of hiding in the womb/racham) separate, pure and untouched.The Hebrew verb: רָחַם – râcham (Strong’s #7355, x47) – to have mercy, and its corresponding noun: רַחַם – racham(Strong’s #7356, x44) mercy, compassion, womb, bowels.רחמ
This word can also be applied to those who desire and then choose to become pure, untouched, separate from sin cleansed and holy/set apart. These will be the ones who will bear God’s presence and be a channel, a vessel for bearing God’s blessings into the world.It is there, for whosoever will, to become a spiritual Almah.
To separate ourselves from whatever is pulling us in another direction and to join ourselves all the more securely to the Father.There is no better time than right now at this season of new beginnings, of new life; to renew our covenant with the Lord, to rededicate our lives.
As we follow the days of Omer to Pentecost, we can prepare our hearts with some spiritual spring cleaning in readiness for the outpouring of His spirit, 50 days from Resurrection Day.
It was no coincidence that on Nisan 17 daytime – That among the women bringing spices to the tomb early in the morning were two called Mary/Miriam. Who had separated themselves(the ecclesia) to the service of their Lord and had been made clean, holy, set apart, in His sight.Mark 16:1 – Three women visit Jesus’ tomb: Mary Magdalene, a second Mary the mother of James, and (Mary) Salome.Having been given new life for old, they sought Him out from where He was Hidden from the world,
(the place of hiding in the womb/racham) in the tomb and resurrected raised as the seed,
Yeshua/Jesus the Messiah of new beginnings – Yeshua the Resheet on Reishit Katzir, the beginning of the Harvest; Chag Ha-Bikkurim –the first fruits festival.(Weymouth New Testament):In most solemn truth I tell you that unless the grain of wheat falls into the ground and dies, it remains what it was–a single grain; but that if it dies, it yields a rich harvest.
“Unless a grain of wheat falls to the ground and dies”All food has to die first.The grain is plucked from the ground, dies, is crushed, mixed and baked to make bread. The fresh fruit and vegetables we eat, were all cut off and removed from their life support and are in the process of dying when we eat them.https://www.minimannamoments.com/the-season-of-our-hiding/
Then after Mary saw Jesus; the disciples encounter the risen Messiah and on Nisan 17 evening – Yeshua/Jesus raised from the dead at/after Havdalah, (at least before sunrise).
Interesting notes to questions that we have misinterpreted because of mis-translation, Hebraic meaning and culture.What was the seating arrangement at the last supper, (Passover) and how did Judas get to sit at the place designated for the gathering’s most honored guest? Who prompted the Lord to reveal the name of His betrayer?The upper room as it is today.Most of us think of the Last Supper in terms that are familiar to us. In our imagination Jesus/Yeshua and His disciples sit around a square table on chairs. Jesus/Yeshua is at the center and His disciples are around him.
The famous painting of Leonardo Da Vinci may also be uppermost in our thinking.The seating of guests in chairs, implied in Leonardo da Vinci’s Last Supper painting, were not used for this most solemn occasion.
Some scholars say the layout of tables may have taken a horseshoe shape.
At the Pesach/Passover supper, everyone reclined on one elbow and yet still faced the table. (As in the diagram above.)This meant that they lay head towards table and feet away from it.The person who reclined in front of another was referred to as reclining or leaning on the bosom or chest; or more commonly spoken of as the lap of that individual. Not literally leaning on the persons chest.
This was the meaning in John 13:23, 25; at the last Seder, Pesach supper meal. To be in Abraham’s bosom meant to have the place of honor at a banquet, in Luke 16:23 where it refers to Lazarus in Abraham’s bosom. This was in reference to him being a partaker of the same state of peace and joy as Abraham had in paradise awaiting Messiah. Here may be where we have misinterpreted that reference in John 13:25:Now there was leaning on Jesus‘ bosom one of his disciples, whom Jesus loved.
In the seating diagram above, Judas is sitting to the left of Jesus/Yeshua, in the place designated for the most honored guest. Although the host would normally select who sat next to him, (see Luke 14:7 – 11), no record exists of Yeshua/Jesus asking Judas to sit next to Him. Judas likely felt he deserved to be the honored guest at the supper and quickly claimed the choice position as his right.
Apparently at a Jewish meal, the top place was at the head end of the table or the middle of the middle couch, however the guests, were not really free to sit where they desired. The host could seat and reseat guests as needs arose. Jesus gives an example of the host asking a presumptuous guest to give up his place of honor to another guest.Luke 14:1 – 14 When he noticed how the guests picked the places of honor at the table, he told them this parable: “When someone invites you to a wedding feast, do not take the place of honor, for a person more distinguished than you may have been invited. [9] If so, the host who invited both of you will come and say to you, ‘Give this man your seat.’ Based on Jewish law and tradition, Passover (and most meals) was partaken of while people reclined around a low, long oval table.
Each person would be lying on their left side and leaning on their left arm, with their feet behind them and their heads facing the table. This means those seated on the left side would have their bodies somewhat facing the end of the table. This position, during a meal like the last supper, frees up the right arm for eating.
Jesus/Yeshua was the host of this seder meal – (the leader). Although the Bible does not directly state the seating for this last meeting, we can postulate where Judas, Jesus, Peter, and John would have had to sit.It should also be noted that Peter, in the seating diagram below, is located across from John at the end of the table. This was, (especially during this most solemn seder,) the lowest and most humble place at the table.
Is there evidence from the Scripture to show that the above seating arrangement for Yeshua/Jesus’s last gathering with His disciples is correct?In the gospels it tells us that Peter had to get John’s attention in order for him to ask Yeshua/Jesus who was going to betray Him. (John 13:21, 24). This would have been unnecessary if Peter was seated next to John. Peter, however, had to be close enough to John so that his request wouldn’t be heard by the others. John then leans backwards against Yeshua/Jesus’ chest to ask Him. (John 13:23-25).
Given how people sat to eat a meal, John had to be immediately to Yeshua/Jesus’ right while at the table. This position enabled him to slightly lean back and be against the Lord’s chest. Additionally, the interaction that involved Peter, John, Yeshua/Jesus and Judas, was quiet and close enough so that the other disciples didn’t know what was said (see John 13:28). This meant they didn’t know that, during the meal, the betrayer would be the one given a piece of bread, the sop.
The host of a formal meal or supper would give, the honored guest, at the table the first sop. The sop was a piece of bread or other small amount of choice food that is dipped in a sauce. The host, once he had the sop, would place it into the mouth of the honored guest. This guest always sat to the left of the host, in John 13:21, 25-26, the Bible clearly states was Judas Iscariot.
After receiving the sop, Judas asked if he was the betrayer, which Messiah confirmed that he was in Matthew 26:23-25. Satan then immediately enters Judas and he leaves the room.
The 9 disciples who didn’t hear what was discussed, were unaware of what was happening (John 13:28-29). After Judas left and the seder was finished, Yeshua/Jesus did something that caught the disciples off guard. He took off some of His clothes, wrapped a towel around his waist, and then began at Peter to wash the disciples’ feet (John 13:3-8)! Peter was the first to receive this ceremony since he sat at the end of the table. His seating also explains his initial impulsive rejection of having his feet washed (John 13:6)
Reclining to eat in first Century Israel was symbolic of their freedom from Egyptian bondage, no longer slaves. At Passover as at every seder meal, They reclined as described in the four Gospels. It was understood that when it was written that they reclined it was because they were eating a meal. So as to not take up much space at the table the couches or pillows they reclined on were angled toward the table. They were not full the length of a couch alongside the table.
In Hebraic thinking, the Seder plate holds the place of honor at the Passover table!
https://www.minimannamoments.com/midweek-mannabite-secrets-of-the-seder-plate/
Please – Don’t leave this page without making certain of your place at His Banqueting table.He IS RISEN and He is calling you…inviting you to Come and Dine…
Shalom to all!
Make sure Messiah Jesus/Yeshua is
your Redeemer,
Savior, Lord and soon returning King
and that you have a personal relationship with Him.
NOT CERTAIN?
YOU CAN BE..
Its all about Life and Relationship, NOT Religion.
It Will All Work Together
Pastor Aaron Lindsey | February 23, 2025
I Thess 5:16-18 TLB
Always be joyful. Always keep on praying. No matter what happens,
always be thankful,
for this is God’s will for you who belong to Christ Jesus.
Romans 8:28 HCSB
We know that all things work together for the good of those
who love God:
those who are called according to His purpose.
Hebrew law,
as prescribed in Leviticus 25 and 27,
declared every fiftieth year to
be a jubilee year
during which time slaves would
be emancipated,
debts
would be forgiven, and even the
land would be allowed to rest..
This year is set by counting off
“seven Sabbaths of years,”
or
seven times seven years
During this 70 x (N groups of Seven) a lot must happen:
- Finish transgression (End the rebellion, not done yet)
- Atonement for sin (Yeshua, complete)
- Bring in everlasting righteousness ( Rapture, soon )
- Complete/Finish/Seal Up the Vision of Prophets (Judgment day and/or Millennial reign)
- Anoint the Most Holy (King of Kings)
- Jeremiah
And it shall come to pass, when seventy years (70 periods/cycles) are accomplished, that I will punish the king of Babylon, and that nation, saith YHVH, for their iniquity, and the land of the Chaldeans, and will make it perpetual desolations.
And I will bring upon that land all my words which I have pronounced against it, even all that is written in this book, which Jeremiah hath prophesied against all the nations. — Jeremiah 25:12–13
This means that Jeremiah’s 70 years and Daniel’s 70 x (N x 7)
are covering the same period of time because Jeremiah clearly describes the rapture and bringing in everlasting righteousness and the point for completing the vision of prophets lines up with
“all that is written in this book”.
As you can see, 490 years, the traditional view, is not enough time for everything described
by Daniel and 70
literal years certainly wasn’t enough to cover everything in Jeremiah’s book.
Then we have the book of 2 Chronicles which references these
70 years
and links them to
Sabbaths.
To fulfill the word
of the LORD
by the mouth of Jeremiah,
until the land
had
enjoyed(completed)
her sabbaths
(H7676)
for as long as she lay desolate she kept sabbath
(H7673),
to fulfill 70 years.— 2 Chronicles 36:21
Seventy Years of Captivity
The word that came to Jeremiah concerning all the people of Judah, in the fourth year of Jehoiakim the son of Josiah, king of Judah (that was the first year of Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon), 2 which Jeremiah the prophet spoke to all the people of Judah and all the inhabitants of Jerusalem: 3 “For twenty-three years, from the thirteenth year of Josiah the son of Amon, king of Judah, to this day, the word of the Lord has come to me, and I have spoken persistently to you, but you have not listened. 4 You have neither listened nor inclined your ears to hear, although the Lord persistently sent to you all his servants the prophets, 5 saying, ‘Turn now, every one of you, from his evil way and evil deeds, and dwell upon the land that the Lord has given to you and your fathers from of old and forever. 6 Do not go after other gods to serve and worship them, or provoke me to anger with the work of your hands. Then I will do you no harm.’ 7 Yet you have not listened to me, declares the Lord, that you might provoke me to anger with the work of your hands to your own harm.
8 “Therefore thus says the Lord of hosts: Because you have not obeyed my words, 9 behold, I will send for all the tribes of the north, declares the Lord, and for Nebuchadnezzar the king of Babylon, my servant, and I will bring them against this land and its inhabitants, and against all these surrounding nations. I will devote them to destruction, and make them a horror, a hissing, and an everlasting desolation. 10 Moreover, I will banish from them the voice of mirth and the voice of gladness, the voice of the bridegroom and the voice of the bride, the grinding of the millstones and the light of the lamp. 11 This whole land shall become a ruin and a waste, and these nations shall serve the king of Babylon seventy years. 12 Then after seventy years are completed, I will punish the king of Babylon and that nation, the land of the Chaldeans, for their iniquity, declares the Lord, making the land an everlasting waste. 13 I will bring upon that land all the words that I have uttered against it, everything written in this book, which Jeremiah prophesied against all the nations. 14 For many nations and great kings shall make slaves even of them, and I will recompense them according to their deeds and the work of their hands.”
The Cup of the Lord's Wrath15 Thus the Lord, the God of Israel, said to me: “Take from my hand this cup of the wine of wrath, and make all the nations to whom I send you drink it. 16 They shall drink and stagger and be crazed because of the sword that I am sending among them.”
17 So I took the cup from the Lord's hand, and made all the nations to whom the Lord sent me drink it: 18 Jerusalem and the cities of Judah, its kings and officials, to make them a desolation and a waste, a hissing and a curse, as at this day; 19 Pharaoh king of Egypt, his servants, his officials, all his people, 20 and all the mixed tribes among them; all the kings of the land of Uz and all the kings of the land of the Philistines (Ashkelon, Gaza, Ekron, and the remnant of Ashdod); 21 Edom, Moab, and the sons of Ammon; 22 all the kings of Tyre, all the kings of Sidon, and the kings of the coastland across the sea; 23 Dedan, Tema, Buz, and all who cut the corners of their hair; 24 all the kings of Arabia and all the kings of the mixed tribes who dwell in the desert; 25 all the kings of Zimri, all the kings of Elam, and all the kings of Media; 26 all the kings of the north, far and near, one after another, and all the kingdoms of the world that are on the face of the earth. And after them the king of Babylon shall drink.
27 “Then you shall say to them, ‘Thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel: Drink, be drunk and vomit, fall and rise no more, because of the sword that I am sending among you.’
28 “And if they refuse to accept the cup from your hand to drink, then you shall say to them, ‘Thus says the Lord of hosts: You must drink! 29 For behold, I begin to work disaster at the city that is called by my name, and shall you go unpunished? You shall not go unpunished, for I am summoning a sword against all the inhabitants of the earth, declares the Lord of hosts.’
30 “You, therefore, shall prophesy against them all these words, and say to them:
“‘The Lord will roar from on high,
and from his holy habitation utter his voice;
he will roar mightily against his fold,
and shout, like those who tread grapes,
against all the inhabitants of the earth.
31 The clamor will resound to the ends of the earth,
for the Lord has an indictment against the nations;
he is entering into judgment with all flesh,
and the wicked he will put to the sword,
declares the Lord.’
32 “Thus says the Lord of hosts:
Behold, disaster is going forth
from nation to nation,
and a great tempest is stirring
from the farthest parts of the earth!
33 “And those pierced by the Lord on that day shall extend from one end of the earth to the other. They shall not be lamented, or gathered, or buried; they shall be dung on the surface of the ground.
34 “Wail, you shepherds, and cry out,
and roll in ashes, you lords of the flock,
for the days of your slaughter and dispersion have come,
and you shall fall like a choice vessel.
35 No refuge will remain for the shepherds,
nor escape for the lords of the flock.
36 A voice—the cry of the shepherds,
and the wail of the lords of the flock!
For the Lord is laying waste their pasture,
37 and the peaceful folds are devastated
because of the fierce anger of the Lord.
38 Like a lion he has left his lair,
for their land has become a waste
because of the sword of the oppressor,
and because of his fierce anger.”
The title “son of perdition” is used twice in the New Testament, first in John 17:12 and again in 2 Thessalonians 2:3. The phrase simply means “man doomed to destruction” and is not reserved for any one individual. In fact, there are two people to which the title “son of perdition” is applied.
In context, John 17:12 is referring to Judas Iscariot, while 2 Thessalonians 2:3 is referring to the “man of lawlessness”—the Antichrist—who will appear in the end times before Christ’s return.
The word perdition means “eternal damnation” or “utter destruction.” It can also be used as a synonym for hell. When a person is called “son of perdition,” the connotation is that of a person in an unredeemable state, someone who is already damned while he is still alive. Jesus mentions the “son of perdition” in His high priestly prayer in John 17. While praying to the Father for His disciples, Jesus mentions that He “protected them and kept them safe” and that none of them were lost except the “son of perdition,” that is, the one who was already in a damned state. The fact that the phrase is used again to describe the Antichrist shows us that forgiveness was not planned for Judas. God could have saved Judas—moved his heart to repentance—but He chose not to. He was indeed “doomed to destruction.”
A good picture of a person who is a “son of perdition” appears in Hebrews 6:4–8, which describes a person who, like Judas, has experienced a certain closeness to God and has a good understanding of salvation, but then denies it. Instead of bearing good fruit, he bears “thorns and thistles.” This is a person who sees the path to salvation, which is trusting in God’s grace to cover sin (Ephesians 2:8–9), and instead either flatly denies the existence of God or denies God’s gift of salvation, preferring to pay his own debt. Judas chose the second path, punishing himself by suicide instead of accepting grace.
However, Judas and the Antichrist are extreme cases. It is never right for a human being to label another person a “son of perdition” because only God knows the ultimate future of each human soul. Only with these two individuals did God choose to reveal His plan for their eternal damnation. With every other person, no matter how lost or evil he may seem, we are to hope and pray for his redemption (1 Timothy 2:1).
The Birth of Jesus
(Matthew 1:18–25)
1Now in those days a decree went out from Caesar Augustus that a census should be taken of the whole empire.a 2This was the first census to take place whileb Quirinius was governor of Syria. 3And everyone went to his own town to register.
4So Joseph also went up from Nazareth in Galilee to Judea, to the city of David called Bethlehem, since he was from the house and line of David. 5He went there to register with Mary, who was pledged to him in marriage and was expecting a child.
6While they were there, the time came for her Child to be born. 7And she gave birth to her firstborn, a Son. She wrapped Him in swaddling cloths and laid Him in a manger, because there was no room for them in the inn.
The Shepherds and the Angels
8And there were shepherds residing in the fields nearby, keeping watch over their flocks by night. 9Just then an angel of the Lord stood before them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were terrified. 10But the angel said to them, “Do not be afraid! For behold, I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people: 11Today in the city of David a Savior has been born to you. He is Christ the Lord! 12And this will be a sign to you: You will find a baby wrapped in swaddling cloths and lying in a manger.”
13And suddenly there appeared with the angel a great multitude of the heavenly host, praising God and saying:
“Glory to God in the highest,
and on earth peace to men
on whom His favor rests!”
15When the angels had left them and gone into heaven, the shepherds said to one another, “Let us go to Bethlehem and see this thing that has happened, which the Lord has made known to us.”
16So they hurried off and found Mary and Joseph and the Baby, who was lying in the manger.
17After they had seen the Child, they spread the message they had received about Him. 18And all who heard it were amazed at what the shepherds said to them. 19But Mary treasured up all these things and pondered them in her heart.
20The shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all they had heard and seen, which was just as the angel had told them.
Jesus Presented at the Temple
21When the eight days before His circumcision had passed, He was named Jesus, the name the angel had given Him before He was conceived.
22And when the time of purification according to the Law of Moses was complete, His parents brought Him to Jerusalem to present Him to the Lord 23(as it is written in the Law of the Lord: “Every firstborn male shall be consecrated to the Lord”c), 24and to offer the sacrifice specified in the Law of the Lord: “A pair of turtledoves or two young pigeons.”
The Prophecy of Simeon
25Now there was a man in Jerusalem named Simeon, who was righteous and devout. He was waiting for the consolation of Israel, and the Holy Spirit was upon him. 26The Holy Spirit had revealed to him that he would not see death before he had seen the Lord’s Christ. 27Led by the Spirit, he went into the temple courts.eAnd when the parents brought in the child Jesus to do for Him what was customary under the Law, 28Simeon took Him in his arms and blessed God, saying:
29“Sovereign Lord, as You have promised,
You now dismiss Your servant in peace.
30For my eyes have seen Your salvation,
31which You have prepared in the sight of all people,
32a light for revelation to the Gentiles,
and for glory to Your people Israel.”
33The Child’s father and mother were amazed at what was spoken about Him.
34Then Simeon blessed them and said to
His mother Mary:
“Behold, this Child is appointed to cause
the rise and fall of many in Israel,
and to be a sign that will be spoken against,
35so that the thoughts of many hearts will be revealed--
and a sword will pierce your soul as well.”
The Prophecy of Anna
36There was also a prophetess named Anna, the daughter of Phanuel, of the tribe of Asher, who was well along in years. She had been married for seven years,37and then was a widow to the age of eighty-four.f She never left the temple, but worshiped night and day, fasting and praying.
38Coming forward at that moment, she gave thanks to God and spoke about the Child to all who were waiting for the redemption of Jerusalem.
The Return to Nazareth
(Matthew 2:19–23)
39When Jesus’ parents had done everything required by the Law of the Lord, they returned to Galilee, to their own town of Nazareth.
40And the Child grew and became strong.g He was filled with wisdom, and the grace of God was upon Him.
The Boy Jesus at the Temple
41Every year His parents went to Jerusalem for the Feast of the Passover. 42And when He was twelve years old, they went up according to the custom of the Feast.
43When those days were over and they were returning home, the boy Jesus remained behind in Jerusalem, but His parents were unaware He had stayed.44Assuming He was in their company, they traveled on for a day before they began to look for Him among their relatives and friends.
45When they could not find Him, they returned to Jerusalem to search for Him.46Finally, after three days they found Him in the temple courts, sitting among the teachers, listening to them and asking them questions. 47And all who heard Him were astounded at His understanding and His answers.
48When His parents saw Him, they were astonished. “Child, why have You done this to us?” His mother asked. “Your father and I have been anxiously searching for You.”
49“Why were you looking for Me?” He asked. “Did you not know that I had to be in My Father’s househ?” 50But they did not understand the statement He was making to them.
51Then He went down to Nazareth with them and was obedient to them.
But His mother treasured up all these things in her heart.
52And Jesus grew in wisdom and stature, and in favor with God and man.
The term born of God is found primarily in the book of 1 John. First John 5:1 says, “Everyone who believes that Jesus is the Christ is born of God, and everyone who loves the father loves his child as well.” Other references are found in 1 John 2:29; 3:9; 4:7; and 5:4, 18.
The term born of God closely mirrors Jesus’ words in John 3:3 when He told Nicodemus that
he must be “born again” or, in some translations, “born from above.”
Nicodemus responded the way anyone would. He asked, “How can someone be born when they are old?” (verse 4) Jesus’ answer was even more puzzling. He said, “The wind blows wherever it pleases. You hear its sound, but you cannot tell where it comes from or where it is going. So it is with everyone born of the Spirit” (verse 8).
Why did Jesus begin talking about the wind in relation to being born again? The Greek word for “wind” is pneuma, the same word used for “spirit.” When wind blows, we cannot see it, but we see where it has been. Tree leaves move, plants bend, and we feel the wind touch our faces. Yet no one can catch it or restrain it. When wind blows, it changes everything it touches. So it is with the Spirit. Spiritual birth is an act of the Holy Spirit. He is invisible, yet whenever He moves, there are definite changes. Neither persuasive words nor intellectual agreements have the power to make someone “born of God.” Only the Holy Spirit can perform that transformation in a repentant heart (Mark 1:15; Acts 2:38).
So how does one become born again, or born of God? Jesus used an earthly metaphor to explain a spiritual idea. When a baby is born, a new life emerges that did not previously exist. The baby is a brand-new being who begins to grow to look like the parents. A puppy grows up to look like a dog. A calf grows to look like a cow. An infant grows to look like an adult human. So it is with those born of God. Second Corinthians 5:17 says that, if anyone is in Christ, he is a “new creature.” Later on in John 3, Jesus explains how to become born of God: “Whoever believes in Him shall not perish but shall have everlasting life” (verse 16). When we are born into the family of God (John 1:12), we grow to look more like our Father.
First John 3:9 describes a person who has been born of God: “No one who is born of God will continue to sin, because God’s seed remains in them; they cannot go on sinning because they have been born of God.” God our Father is holy, and He desires that His children become holy like He is (1 Peter 1:15–16). When we are born of God, we have a new heart, one that wants to please God (Ezekiel 36:26; 2 Corinthians 5:9; Colossians 1:10). This does not come about by good intentions or white-knuckled effort. We please our new Father by surrendering to His Holy Spirit who lives within us. We allow Him to change our desires, our goals, and our will to conform to His (Romans 8:29; Philippians 2:13). As a baby grows to look like the parents to whom it was born, so do we grow to be more like our heavenly Father when we are born of God (Philippians 3:10; Romans 6:1–2).
The story of Peter’s threefold denial of Christ is found in all four Gospel accounts: Matthew 26:69–74, Mark 14:66–72, Luke 22:55–62, and John 18:15–18, 25–27. But why would the chief of the disciples deny even knowing Him? There were two main reasons why Peter denied Jesus: weakness and fear.
Peter’s denial was based partially on weakness, the weakness born of human frailty. After the Last Supper, Jesus took His disciples to the Garden of Gethsemane to await His arrest. He told them to stay awake and pray while He went off to pray alone. When He returned to them, He found them sleeping. He warned Peter to stay awake and pray because, although his spirit might be willing, his flesh was weak. But he fell asleep again, and, by the time the soldiers had come to arrest Jesus, it was too late to pray for the strength to endure the ordeal to come. No doubt his failure to appropriate the only means to shore up his own weakness—prayer—occurred to him as he was weeping bitterly after his denials. But Peter learned his lesson about being watchful, and he exhorts us in 1 Peter 5:8, “Be on the alert, because your adversary, the devil, prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour.” Peter’s weakness had caused him to be “devoured” momentarily as he denied his Lord because he hadn’t been prepared through prayer and he underestimated his own weakness.
A second reason for Peter’s failure was fear. To his credit, although all the others had fled (Mark 14:50), Peter still followed Jesus after His arrest, but he kept his distance so as not to be identified with Him (Mark 14:54). There’s no question that fear gripped him. From the courtyard, he watched Jesus being falsely accused, beaten, and insulted (Mark 14:57–66). Peter was afraid Jesus would die, and he was fearful for his own life as well. The world hated Jesus, and Peter found that he was not prepared to face the ridicule and persecution that Jesus was suffering. Earlier, Jesus had warned His disciples as well as us today, “If the world hates you, keep in mind that it hated me first” (John 15:18; cf. Matthew 24:9). Peter quickly found he wasn’t nearly as bold and courageous as he had proclaimed, and in fear he denied the One who had loved him.
We might well wonder why Jesus allowed Peter to fail so miserably and deny his Lord three times that night. Jesus revealed to Peter that Satan had asked for permission to sift Peter like wheat (Luke 22:31). Jesus could have easily protected Peter and not allowed Satan to sift him, but Jesus had a higher goal. He was equipping Peter to strengthen his brothers (Luke 22:32). Not only did Peter strengthen the other disciples, but he became the pillar of the early church in Jerusalem, exhorting and training others to follow the Lord Jesus (Acts 2). And he continues to this day to strengthen us through his epistles, 1 and 2 Peter. As with all our failures, God used Peter’s many failures, including his three denials of Christ, to turn him from Simon, a common man with a common name, into Peter, the Rock.
Isaiah 8:14-15
And He will be a sanctuary—but to both houses of Israel a stone of stumbling and a rock of offense, to the dwellers of Jerusalem a trap and a snare. / Many will stumble over these; they will fall and be broken; they will be ensnared and captured.”
Isaiah 28:16
So this is what the Lord GOD says: “See, I lay a stone in Zion, a tested stone, a precious cornerstone, a sure foundation; the one who believes will never be shaken.
Isaiah 53:3
He was despised and rejected by men, a man of sorrows, acquainted with grief. Like one from whom men hide their faces, He was despised, and we esteemed Him not.
Malachi 3:1-2
“Behold, I will send My messenger, who will prepare the way before Me. Then the Lord whom you seek will suddenly come to His temple—the Messenger of the covenant, in whom you delight—see, He is coming,” says the LORD of Hosts. / But who can endure the day of His coming? And who can stand when He appears? For He will be like a refiner’s fire, like a launderer’s soap.
Malachi 4:2-3
“But for you who fear My name, the sun of righteousness will rise with healing in its wings, and you will go out and leap like calves from the stall. / Then you will trample the wicked, for they will be ashes under the soles of your feet on the day I am preparing,” says the LORD of Hosts.
Psalm 118:22
The stone the builders rejected has become the cornerstone.
Psalm 72:11
May all kings bow down to him and all nations serve him.
Psalm 2:6-12
“I have installed My King on Zion, upon My holy mountain.” / I will proclaim the decree spoken to Me by the LORD: “You are My Son; today I have become Your Father. / Ask Me, and I will make the nations Your inheritance, the ends of the earth Your possession. ...
Genesis 49:10
The scepter will not depart from Judah, nor the staff from between his feet, until Shiloh comes and the allegiance of the nations is his.
Daniel 2:34-35
As you watched, a stone was cut out, but not by human hands. It struck the statue on its feet of iron and clay, and crushed them. / Then the iron, clay, bronze, silver, and gold were shattered and became like chaff on the threshing floor in summer. The wind carried them away, and not a trace of them could be found. But the stone that had struck the statue became a great mountain and filled the whole earth.
Matthew 21:42-44
Jesus said to them, “Have you never read in the Scriptures: ‘The stone the builders rejected has become the cornerstone. This is from the Lord, and it is marvelous in our eyes’? / Therefore I tell you that the kingdom of God will be taken away from you and given to a people who will produce its fruit. / He who falls on this stone will be broken to pieces, but he on whom it falls will be crushed.”
John 3:18-19
Whoever believes in Him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe has already been condemned, because he has not believed in the name of God’s one and only Son. / And this is the verdict: The Light has come into the world, but men loved the darkness rather than the Light because their deeds were evil.
John 9:39
Then Jesus declared, “For judgment I have come into this world, so that the blind may see and those who see may become blind.”
Acts 4:11-12
This Jesus is ‘the stone you builders rejected, which has become the cornerstone.’ / Salvation exists in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given to men by which we must be saved.”
Romans 9:32-33
Why not? Because their pursuit was not by faith, but as if it were by works. They stumbled over the stumbling stone, / as it is written: “See, I lay in Zion a stone of stumbling and a rock of offense; and the one who believes in Him will never be put to shame.”
Genesis 14:19
And he blessed him, and said, Blessed be Abram of the most high God, possessor of heaven and earth:
Genesis 47:7
And Joseph brought in Jacob his father, and set him before Pharaoh: and Jacob blessed Pharaoh.
Exodus 39:43
And Moses did look upon all the work, and, behold, they had done it as the LORD had commanded, even so had they done it: and Moses blessed them.
Isaiah 8:14,15
And he shall be for a sanctuary; but for a stone of stumbling and for a rock of offence to both the houses of Israel, for a gin and for a snare to the inhabitants of Jerusalem…
Hosea 14:9
Who is wise, and he shall understand these things? prudent, and he shall know them? for the ways of the LORD areright, and the just shall walk in them: but the transgressors shall fall therein.
Matthew 21:44
And whosoever shall fall on this stone shall be broken: but on whomsoever it shall fall, it will grind him to powder.
Acts 2:36-41
Therefore let all the house of Israel know assuredly, that God hath made that same Jesus, whom ye have crucified, both Lord and Christ…
Acts 3:15-19
And killed the Prince of life, whom God hath raised from the dead; whereof we are witnesses…
Acts 6:7
And the word of God increased; and the number of the disciples multiplied in Jerusalem greatly; and a great company of the priests were obedient to the faith.
Psalm 22:6-8
But I am a worm, and no man; a reproach of men, and despised of the people…
Psalm 69:9-12
For the zeal of thine house hath eaten me up; and the reproaches of them that reproached thee are fallen upon me…
Isaiah 8:18
Behold, I and the children whom the LORD hath given me are for signs and for wonders in Israel from the LORD of hosts, which dwelleth in mount Zion.
Our wonderful, infinitely wise, loving, gracious,
and
merciful God is a covenanting God,
and it is our privilege to take a
look at some of the
major covenants God made with man
God came in after Adam and Eve fell not to blame them or condemn them but to preach the gospel to them and promise them a seed – the seed of the woman who will crush the head of the serpent. God made a covenant with Noah after the earth was destroyed by water, promising He will never again do that; He is faithful in His promises. Then, God made a covenant with Abraham, promising him a seed in which all the nations will be blessed and also to give him the good land of Canaan.
All these covenants God made with individual people but they have a spiritual significance
and application in our Christian life:
- the seed of the woman is Christ as the overcoming One, the One who destroyed the devil through His death on the cross, and who is now being reproduced in us as the man-child;
- the rainbow stands in the heaven and God’s promises are in His word, and we can stand on His promises and enjoy Him in His faithfulness; and
- Christ as the life-giving Spirit is the unique blessing for all the nations, He Himself becoming our good land to all-inclusively supply us and meet all our needs as we live a life for God’s purpose.
Today we want to see the covenant God made with David and how this covenant applies to us. God promised David a seed which will be called the Son of God, and this seed will build up God’s house, the temple
(2 Sam. 7:12-14).
Christ is the seed of David: He as the Lord of David in His divinity became a man to be the seed of David in His humanity and was later transfigured to become the life-giving Spirit to be dispensed into us all to make us sons of God and the co-kings with Christ.
How wonderful it is that our covenanting God keeps promising to work Himself into us to make us God’s sons and even the same as He is in life and nature! We can stand on His promises, enjoy the benefits of His covenant, and be made the same as Christ to match Him in every possible way!
God’s Covenant with David: Christ as the Seed of David Carries out God’s Economy
David was a man after God’s heart, fought God’s battles, yearned to know God and experience Him, and he desired to build God a house, but God made a covenant with him telling him that God will build him (David) a house, and David’s seed which comes out of his loins will be called the Son of God and will build the house of God
(2 Sam. 7:12-14).
This promise was fulfilled initially in Solomon, David’s son, who built the temple as God’s house; but the real fulfillment of God’s covenant with David was in the Lord Jesus. The Lord Jesus Christ came as the seed of David to die and be resurrected and carry out God’s New Testament economy for the dispensing of the processed Triune God into the members of the Body of Christ.
Christ came as God becoming man,
and He puzzled
the Jews in His time; He asked them,
Who do people say that Messiah is?
Is He the Son of David?
Then why does David calls Him, Lord?
(see Matt. 22:41-46)
The Lord of David – Christ in His divinity, the root of David – was incarnated to become the son of David – Christ in His humanity, the Offspring of David – to be the last Adam; as the last Adam, Christ was resurrected to become the Firstborn Son of God and the life-giving Spirit, a transfigured descendant of David, to be dispensed into us to make us the sons of God and co-kings with Christ
(see Rev. 22:16; John 1:14; 1 Cor. 15:45; John 12:24; Rom. 8:28-29; Acts 13:33; Rom. 5:17).
The resurrected
Christ is God’s sure mercies,
of which
Christ is the center and reality,
shown to David through his
descendant
Mary, the mother of Christ
(Matt. 1:16),
for the dispensing of God Himself
into all the
believers of Christ in His resurrection
(Acts 13:32-35; Isa. 55:3-4)
….In Christ as the sure mercies, God reaches us in His grace to be our enjoyment.
Because our situation was miserable and could not match God’s grace, Christ not only took the step of incarnation to bring God as grace to us, but He also took the further step of death and resurrection in order to become the sure mercies to us in resurrection.
Through His death and resurrection, Christ, the embodiment of God’s grace, became the sure mercies, and through these mercies we are now in the proper position to match God and to receive Him as grace.
(The Central Line of the Divine Revelation, pp. 89-90, by Witness Lee)
Christ as the Lord of David became the Son of David to accomplish God’s judicial redemption
through His death on the cross;
Christ as the son of David (the seed of David) became the
firstborn Son of God as the
life-giving Spirit
to carry out God’s organic salvation.
The fulfillment of the promised seed of David is Christ Himself; Christ is the seed of David, working Himself in the lineage of David to be a Man who accomplished God’s judicial redemption and was resurrected to be the life-giving Spirit to carry out His organic salvation by saving the believers in God’s life until they reign in life.
Today the resurrected Christ as the life-giving Spirit is the transfigured descendant of David, the seed of David, who is constantly being dispensed into us as God’s sure mercies, His eternal covenant, for our day-by-day enjoyment and supply (see Isa. 55:1-3, 6-11; Acts 13:33-35).
As Christ as the life-giving Spirit is being dispensed into us daily, we are saved in God’s life and we’re brought to a position where we can share His kingship in His resurrection in the eternal kingdom of God
(2 Tim. 2:12; Rev. 20:4, 6).
The resurrected Christ as the life-giving Spirit is the transfigured descendant of David, the seed of David, the seed of the kingdom, dispensed into us to make us the sons of the kingdom, reigning in life to live in the reality of the kingdom so that we may be translated by Him and return with Him in the manifestation of the kingdom as the corporate smiting stone to annihilate the kingdoms of this world and become a great mountain, the kingdom of God, that fills the whole earth
(Mark 4:26; Matt. 13:18-23, 38; Heb. 11:5-6; Gen. 5:21-24; Dan. 2:34-35).
Crystallization-Study of Exodus (2), outline 6
This is so glorious! God didn’t merely promise David that his son will build God a house and that God will establish his throne forever; what God promised David is that He will work Himself into man to save man to the uttermost until man becomes a co-king with Christ to rule and reign with Him for the fulfillment of His purpose, the bringing in of the kingdom of God!
Hallelujah!
Thank You Lord for coming as a Man, the seed of David, to be the last Adam in the flesh; thank You for dying and being resurrected to become the firstborn Son of God and the life-giving Spirit, a transfigured descendant of David, to be dispensed into us and make us the many sons of God and co-kings with Christ! Hallelujah, today we are sons of God under the divine dispensing of the transfigured seed of David to be made sons of the kingdom, reigning in life to live in the reality of the kingdom today so that we may be translated by Him and return with Him in the manifestation of the kingdom as the corporate smiting stone to destroy Satan’s kingdom and bring in God’s kingdom on earth! Hallelujah!
Seeing the Divine Economy in God’s Promise
of the
Seed of the Woman, of Abraham, and of David
If we step back
and take a look at God’s promises of the
seed of the woman,
the seed of Abraham, and the seed of David,
we will realize one amazing thing:
these promises are for the fulfillment of
God’s economy,
His dispensing. Christ as the seed of the
woman destroys Satan and saves us from sin and death.
Christ as the seed of Abraham causes us to inherit the consummated Triune God as our unique blessing and wonderful inheritance. Christ as the seed of David is constantly working Himself into us to cause us to share in Christ’s kingship.
These three matters cover God’s full salvation in complete way;
in His full salvation God delivers us
from the hand of Satan and out of sin and death,
He brings us into the
full inheritance of Himself as our blessing, and
He causes us to share the kingship
with Christ
as His co-kings in the kingdom age.
God’s full salvation is to save us from any negative thing, cause us to enjoy God as our portion, and make us kings with Christ, and the promise of the seed of the woman, the seed of Abraham, and the seed of David accomplish God’s full salvation.
These three seeds refer to one person – Christ, who is the God-man. Christ as God yet man came to be the seed of the woman, the seed of Abraham, and the seed of David; this One is being wrought into us to make us the same as He is in His full salvation so that we may be one with Christ for the fulfillment of God’s purpose, His economy. Hallelujah!
The consummation of God’s purpose
and intention
is the New Jerusalem,
an entity
in which God and man
are fully
mingled and blended together;
the New Jerusalem is the totality
of God’s
dispensing of Himself into humanity
Today we need to live a daily life under God’s dispensing of Himself in Christ as the Spirit, the reality of the seed of the woman, the seed of Abraham, and the seed of David, so that we may be fully saved from Satan, sin, and death, we may enjoy God as our blessing and inheritance, and
we may be qualified
to reign
with Christ in His kingdom!
Lord Jesus, thank You for coming as the seed of the woman to destroy Satan and save us from sin and death. Thank You for coming as the seed of Abraham to bring us into the full enjoyment of the Triune God as our blessing and inheritance. Thank You for coming as the seed of David to cause us to share in Christ’s kingship. Lord, keep us under Your divine dispensing daily so that we may be saved from sin and death, we may enjoy God as our blessing and inheritance, and we may reign with Christ!
Joseph was the
second youngest of twelve brothers
born to Jacob,
who was called Israel
In Genesis 37:3–4 we read, “Now Israel loved Joseph more than any of his other sons, because he had been born to him in his old age; and he made an ornate robe for him. When his brothers saw that their father loved him more than any of them, they hated him and could not speak a kind word to him.” The same passage also discusses two dreams Joseph had that angered his brothers; the dreams indicated his brothers would someday bow to him. Joseph’s brothers also despised him due to their father’s overt favoritism toward him.
One day, Joseph traveled to check on his brothers while they were watching their sheep. His brothers plotted against him, threw him in an empty well, and later sold him as a slave to some traveling Midianites. Applying animal blood to his “ornate robe,” they returned home and made Jacob believe his son had been killed by wild animals.
In the meantime, Joseph was taken to Egypt and sold to the captain of the guard, Potiphar, as a household slave. Joseph was later falsely accused of attempting to rape Potiphar’s wife and thrown into prison. While in prison, Joseph accurately interpreted the dreams of two of Pharaoh’s servants, who were also incarcerated. Later, Pharaoh had a disturbing dream no one could interpret. One of the servants Joseph had previously helped then suggested to Pharaoh that Joseph could interpret the dream. Joseph was summoned from prison, and he interpreted Pharaoh’s dream in such a powerful way that he was appointed second-in-command over Egypt.
Pharaoh’s dream predicted seven years of famine. During the famine, Joseph’s older brothers came to Egypt to buy food. They did not recognize Joseph, now twenty years older, and he treated them harshly, pretending that he thought they were spies. Joseph kept one brother in prison until the others brought their youngest brother, Benjamin, back to Egypt to prove they were not spies. They brought Benjamin with them on a return trip, and, after a series of twists that included his brothers bowing before him—in fulfillment of Joseph’s dream of long ago—Joseph revealed himself to his brothers. They were shocked, yet soon glad to be reunited. Joseph sent word for the entire family to join them in Egypt until after the famine.
Later, when their father, Jacob, died, Joseph’s brothers feared that Joseph would take revenge against them for their prior treatment of him. They came to Joseph and begged for his forgiveness, appealing to a request their father had made before he died (Genesis 50:16–17) Joseph wept when he heard their appeal. Revenge was the last thing on his mind. Joseph said to them, “Don’t be afraid. Am I in the place of God? You intended to harm me, but God intended it for good to accomplish what is now being done, the saving of many lives”
(Genesis 50:19–20).
In the story of Joseph and his brothers, we see the themes of forgiveness, the father-son bond, sibling rivalry, brotherly love, God’s sovereignty, and God’s greater good in times of suffering. Just like Joseph, we are called to forgive those who have offended us and see life’s experiences as part of God’s plan to help us serve others.
Seventeen verses in the New Testament describe Jesus as the “son of David.” But the question arises, how could Jesus be the son of David if David lived approximately 1,000 years before Jesus? The answer is that Christ (the Messiah) was the fulfillment of the prophecy of the seed of David (2 Samuel 7:12–16). Jesus is the promised Messiah, which means He had to be of the lineage of David. Matthew 1 gives the genealogical proof that Jesus, in His humanity, was a direct descendant of Abraham and David through Joseph, Jesus’ legal father. The genealogy in Luke 3 traces Jesus’ lineage through His mother, Mary. Jesus is a descendant of David by adoption through Joseph and by blood through Mary. “As to his earthly life [Christ Jesus] was a descendant of David” (Romans 1:3).
Primarily, the title “Son of David” is more than a statement of physical genealogy. It is a Messianic title. When people referred to Jesus as the Son of David, they meant that He was the long-awaited Deliverer, the fulfillment of the Old Testament prophecies.
Jesus was addressed as “Lord, thou son of David” several times by people who, by faith, were seeking mercy or healing. The woman whose daughter was being tormented by a demon (Matthew 15:22) and the two blind men by the wayside (Matthew 20:30) all cried out to the Son of David for help. The titles of honor they gave Him declared their faith in Him. Calling Him “Lord” expressed their sense of His deity, dominion, and power, and calling Him “Son of David,” expressed their faith that He was the Messiah.
The Pharisees understood exactly what the people meant when they called Jesus “Son of David.” But, unlike those who cried out in faith, the Pharisees were so blinded by their own pride that they couldn’t see what the blind beggars could see—that here was the Messiah they had supposedly been waiting for all their lives. They hated Jesus because He wouldn’t give them the honor they thought they deserved, so when they heard the people hailing Jesus as the Savior, they became enraged (Matthew 21:15) and plotted to destroy Him (Luke 19:47).
Jesus further confounded the scribes and Pharisees by asking them to explain the meaning of this very title: how could it be that the Messiah is the son of David when David himself refers to Him as “my Lord” (Mark 12:35–37; cf. Psalm 110:1)? The teachers of the Law couldn’t answer the question. Jesus thereby exposed the Jewish leaders’ ineptitude as teachers and their ignorance of what the Old Testament taught as to the true nature of the Messiah, further alienating them from Him.
Jesus’ point in asking the question of Mark 12:35 was that the Messiah is more than the physical son of David. If He is David’s Lord, He must be greater than David. As Jesus says in Revelation 22:16, “I am the Root and the Offspring of David.” That is, He is both the Creator of David and the Descendant of David. Only the Son of God made flesh could say that.
The Trinity is one God existing in three Persons. Understand that this is not in any way suggesting three Gods. Keep in mind when studying this subject that the word “Trinity” is not found in Scripture. This is a term that is used to attempt to describe the triune God—three coexistent, co-eternal Persons who are God. Of real importance is that the concept represented by the word “Trinity” does exist in Scripture. The following is what God’s Word says about the Trinity:
1) There is one God (Deuteronomy 6:4; 1 Corinthians 8:4; Galatians 3:20; 1 Timothy 2:5).
2) The Trinity consists of three Persons (Genesis 1:1, 26; 3:22; 11:7; Isaiah 6:8, 48:16, 61:1; Matthew 3:16-17, 28:19; 2 Corinthians 13:14). In Genesis 1:1, the Hebrew plural noun "Elohim" is used. In Genesis 1:26, 3:22, 11:7and Isaiah 6:8, the plural pronoun for “us” is used. The word "Elohim" and the pronoun “us” are plural forms, definitely referring in the Hebrew language to more than two. While this is not an explicit argument for the Trinity, it does denote the aspect of plurality in God. The Hebrew word for "God," "Elohim," definitely allows for the Trinity.
In Isaiah 48:16 and 61:1, the Son is speaking while making reference to the Father and the Holy Spirit. Compare Isaiah 61:1 to Luke 4:14-19 to see that it is the Son speaking. Matthew 3:16-17 describes the event of Jesus’ baptism. Seen in this passage is God the Holy Spirit descending on God the Son while God the Father proclaims His pleasure in the Son. Matthew 28:19 and 2 Corinthians 13:14 are other examples of passages that present three distinct Persons in the Trinity.
3) The members of the Trinity are distinguished one from another in various passages. In the Old Testament, “LORD” is distinguished from “Lord” (Psalm 110:1). The LORD has a Son (Psalm 2:7, 12; Proverbs 30:2-4). The Spirit is distinguished from the “LORD” (Numbers 27:18) and from “God” (Psalm 51:10-12). God the Son is distinguished from God the Father (Psalm 45:6-7; Hebrews 1:8-9). In the New Testament, Jesus speaks to the Father about sending a Helper, the Holy Spirit (John 14:16-17). This shows that Jesus did not consider Himself to be the Father or the Holy Spirit. Consider also the other instances when Jesus speaks to the Father. Was He speaking to Himself? No. He spoke to another Person in the Trinity—the Father.
4) Each member of the Trinity is God. The Father is God (John 6:27; Romans 1:7; 1 Peter 1:2). The Son is God (John 1:1, 14; Romans 9:5; Colossians 2:9; Hebrews 1:8; 1 John 5:20). The Holy Spirit is God (Acts 5:3-4; 1 Corinthians 3:16).
5) There is subordination within the Trinity. Scripture shows that the Holy Spirit is subordinate to the Father and the Son, and the Son is subordinate to the Father. This is an internal relationship and does not deny the deity of any Person of the Trinity. This is simply something our finite minds cannot understand concerning the infinite God. Concerning the Son see Luke 22:42, John 5:36, John 20:21, and 1 John 4:14. Concerning the Holy Spirit see John 14:16, 14:26, 15:26, 16:7, and especially John 16:13-14.
6) The individual members of the Trinity have different tasks. The Father is the ultimate source or cause of the universe (1 Corinthians 8:6; Revelation 4:11); divine revelation (Revelation 1:1); salvation (John 3:16-17); and Jesus’ human works (John 5:17; 14:10). The Father initiates all of these things.
The Son is the agent through whom the Father does the following works: the creation and maintenance of the universe (1 Corinthians 8:6; John 1:3; Colossians 1:16-17); divine revelation (John 1:1, 16:12-15; Matthew 11:27; Revelation 1:1); and salvation (2 Corinthians 5:19; Matthew 1:21; John 4:42). The Father does all these things through the Son, who functions as His agent.
The Holy Spirit is the means by whom the Father does the following works: creation and maintenance of the universe (Genesis 1:2; Job 26:13; Psalm 104:30); divine revelation (John 16:12-15; Ephesians 3:5; 2 Peter 1:21); salvation (John 3:6; Titus 3:5; 1 Peter 1:2); and Jesus’ works (Isaiah 61:1; Acts 10:38). Thus, the Father does all these things by the power of the Holy Spirit.
There have been many attempts to develop illustrations of the Trinity. However, none of the popular illustrations are completely accurate. The egg (or apple) fails in that the shell, white, and yolk are parts of the egg, not the egg in themselves, just as the skin, flesh, and seeds of the apple are parts of it, not the apple itself. The Father, Son, and Holy Spirit are not parts of God; each of them is God. The water illustration is somewhat better, but it still fails to adequately describe the Trinity. Liquid, vapor, and ice are forms of water. The Father, Son, and Holy Spirit are not forms of God, each of them is God. So, while these illustrations may give us a picture of the Trinity, the picture is not entirely accurate. An infinite God cannot be fully described by a finite illustration.
The doctrine of the Trinity has been a divisive issue throughout the entire history of the Christian church. While the core aspects of the Trinity are clearly presented in God’s Word, some of the side issues are not as explicitly clear. The Father is God, the Son is God, and the Holy Spirit is God—but there is only one God. That is the biblical doctrine of the Trinity. Beyond that, the issues are, to a certain extent, debatable and non-essential. Rather than attempting to fully define the Trinity with our finite human minds, we would be better served by focusing on God’s greatness and His infinitely higher nature. “Oh, the depth of the riches of the wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable his judgments, and his paths beyond tracing out!
Who has known the mind of the Lord? Or who has been his counselor?” (Romans 11:33-34).
After healing a man who was lame from birth, Peter explained to the people gathered at the temple that the man had not been healed by Peter’s power. In his explanation of where the power came, he mentioned “the times of restoration of all things” (Acts 3:21, NKJV).
The healed man was walking and leaping and praising God (Acts 3:8), and Peter made sure the onlookers knew that the healing was not done by human power (Acts 3:12).
The power was from Jesus,
whom the people
had disowned and had crucified
(Acts 3:13–15).
The healing was on the
basis of faith
in the name of Jesus
(Acts 3:16).
Earlier, they had rejected Jesus in ignorance, Peter explains
(Acts 3:17).
Christ had to suffer and die, just as God had revealed
to the prophets
(Acts 3:18).
The people now had an opportunity to
change their minds
about Jesus and to return
to their Messiah.
If they did, they would be forgiven, and
times
of refreshing would come
(Acts 3:19).
The same Messiah who died
for them
would one day return for them
(Acts 3:20).
Now, Christ is in heaven until
the time of restoration of
all things
that the Hebrew prophets had described
(Acts 3:21).
The time of restoration of all things
is described by Isaiah:
“The desert and the parched land will be glad;
the wilderness will rejoice and blossom.
Like the crocus, it will burst into bloom;
it will rejoice greatly and shout for joy.
The glory of Lebanon will be given to it,
the splendor of Carmel and Sharon;
they will see the glory of the Lord,
the splendor of our God. . . .
Then will the eyes of the blind be opened
and the ears of the deaf unstopped.
Then will the lame leap like a deer,
and the mute tongue shout for joy.
Water will gush forth in the wilderness
and streams in the desert”
(Isaiah 35:1–2, 5–6).
The time of restoration of all things is mentioned
by Paul:
“The creation itself
will be liberated from its bondage to decay
and brought into the
freedom and glory of the children of God”
(Romans 8:21).
John recorded Jesus saying, “I am making everything new!”
(Revelation 21:5).
In the temple, Peter pointed his hearers to Jesus, reminding them that God had promised through Moses that God would send another prophet to whom they should listen (Acts 3:22–23; cf. Deuteronomy 18:15).
The coming of that prophet would be associated with the time when God will restore everything.
Samuel and others had announced “these days” (Acts 3:24)—the time of the restoration of all things. The prophet Malachi announced that another prophet would come before the day of the Lord (Malachi 4:5), and that day would be associated with a restoration (Malachi 4:6). These prophecies were not irrelevant for the people. It was important that they understood that not only was the Messiah coming, but that He had already come.
Peter reminded his audience that they were the sons of the prophets and partakers of the covenant God had made with Abraham (Acts 3:25). In addition to promises of blessing for those who were descended from Abraham, that covenant promised blessing for all the families of the earth through Abraham’s seed (Genesis 12:3b; Acts 3:25). But the first promises of that covenant (Genesis 12:2–3a) included blessings for the descendants of Abraham—which Peter’s audience were. Peter explains that it was for them first that God raised up His Servant, the Messiah, and sent Him to bless the people by turning them from their wickedness (Acts 3:26).
Until the time of the restoration of all things, when God’s covenant promises to the descendants of Abraham would be fulfilled, Jesus is in heaven. The people still had time to change their minds about Him and recognize Him as their Messiah.
The healing miracle of the man born lame in Acts 3 was a vivid example of the power of Jesus to restore all things. The people at the temple that day were given an opportunity to repent, moving from unbelief to belief. All who believe in the Messiah will not be disappointed (Romans 9:33; 10:11; 1 Peter 2:6).
Likewise, when we read of the miracles and signs that Jesus and His apostles accomplished, we can recognize who Jesus is and live by believing in His name (John 20:31). One day, the time of the restoration of all things will arrive. God will keep His covenant promises. As surely as those days will come, God will also keep His promises to all who believe in Him. Jesus said that the believing one has eternal life (John 6:47).
Just as He has power to heal a lame man,
He has power to forgive sin
and provide eternal life to all who believe in Him.
A Lame Man Walks
One afternoon Peter and John were going up to the temple at the hour of prayer, the ninth hour. And a man who was lame from birth was being carried to the temple gate called Beautiful, where he was put every day to beg from those entering the temple courts.
when he saw Peter and John
about to enter,
he asked them for money.
Peter looked directly at him, as did John.
“Look at us!”
said Peter.
So the man gave them his attention,
expecting to receive something from them.
But Peter said,
“Silver or gold I do not have,
but what
I have I give you:
In the name
of Jesus Christ of Nazareth,
get up and walk!
Taking him by the
right hand,
Peter helped him up,
and at once
the man’s feet and ankles
were made strong.
He sprang
to his feet and began to walk.
Then he went with
them into the temple courts,
walking and
leaping and praising God.
When all the people saw him walking and
praising God,
they recognized him as the man who
used to sit begging
at the Beautiful Gate of the temple,
and they were filled with wonder
and amazement
at what had happened to him.
Peter Speaks in Solomon’s Colonnade
(Deuteronomy 18:15–22)
11While the man clung to Peter and John, all the people were astonished and ran to them in the walkway called Solomon’s Colonnade. And when Peter saw this, he addressed the people: “Men of Israel, why are you surprised by this? Why do you stare at us as if by our own power or godliness we had made this man walk?
The God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, the God of our fathers, has glorified His servant Jesus.
You handed Him over and rejected Him before Pilate, even though he had decided to release Him. You rejected the Holy and Righteous One and asked that a murderer be released to you. You killed the Author of life, but God raised Him from the dead, and we are witnesses of this fact.
By faith
in the name of Jesus, this man whom
you see
and know has been made strong.
It is Jesus’ name and the faith that comes through Him that
has given him this complete healing in your presence.
And now, brothers, I know that you acted in ignorance,
as did your leaders.
But in this way God has fulfilled what He foretold
through all the
prophets, saying that His Christ would suffer.
Repent, then, and turn back,
so that your sins may be wiped away,
that times of refreshing
may come from the presence of the Lord,
and that He may send
Jesus, the Christ,
who has been appointed for you.
heaven must take Him in until
the time comes for the restoration of all things,
which God announced long ago through His holy prophets.
For Moses said,
‘The Lord your God will
raise up for you a prophet like me
from among your brothers.
You must listen to Him in everything He tells you.
Everyone who does not listen to Him
will be completely cut off from among his people.
Indeed, all the prophets from Samuel on, as many as have spoken, have proclaimed these days. And you are sons of the prophets and of the covenant God made with your fathers when He said to Abraham, ‘Through your offspring all the families of the earth will be blessed.’ When God raised up His Servant, He sent Him first to you to bless you by turning each of you from your wicked ways.”
The supremacy of Christ
is a doctrine surrounding
the authority of
Jesus
and His God-nature.
In the simplest of terms, to
affirm the supremacy of Christ
is to
affirm that Jesus is God.
Merriam-Webster’s dictionary defines
supreme as “highest in rank or authority” or “highest in degree or quality.”
In essence, there is none better.
The supreme of something is its ultimate. Jesus is the ultimate in power, glory, authority, and importance. Jesus’ supremacy over all is developed biblically primarily in Hebrews and Colossians.
A main theme of the book of Hebrews is explaining the work of Jesus in the context of the Old Testament system. Jesus was the fulfillment of the Old Testament Jewish traditions and roles. Another main theme of Hebrews is that Jesus does not simply represent a new way of doing things. Rather, He is supreme. He is the actual fulfillment of the old way of doing things and is therefore greater than those ways. Concerning the temple system under the Mosaic Law, the author of Hebrews writes, “But in fact the ministry Jesus has received is as superior to theirs as the covenant of which he is mediator is superior to the old one, since the new covenant is established on better promises” (Hebrews 8:6). In essence, Jesus is greater than the Old Testament system. He both encompasses and supersedes the old way of doing things. This is evident in the many comparisons of Jesus to Old Testament roles and rituals. For instance, we are told that “but because Jesus lives forever, he has a permanent priesthood. Therefore he is able to save completely those who come to God through him, because he always lives to intercede for them” (Hebrews 7:24–25). Jesus, therefore, encompasses the Old Testament priesthood and is supreme over it (see here for more on this).
Hebrews explains that Christ is supreme over more than just roles and systems. Hebrews 1:3a says, “The Son is the radiance of God’s glory and the exact representation of His being, sustaining all things by His powerful word.” Similarly, Colossians 2:9 says, “For in Christ all the fullness of the Deity lives in bodily form.” Essentially, Jesus is God.
Colossians 1:15–23 is labeled “The Supremacy of Christ” in some Bibles. In this passage, Paul makes it plain that Jesus is over all things. Christ is called “the image of the invisible God” and “the firstborn over all creation” (Colossians 1:15). The word firstborn may seem confusing. It does not imply that Christ was created (as in the doctrine of the Jehovah’s Witnesses). Instead, the term firstborn refers to a position of authority. To be “firstborn” was to hold an honored position. Paul immediately goes on to explain Jesus’ role in creation: “For in him all things were created: things in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or powers or rulers or authorities; all things have been created through him and for him” (Colossians 1:16). This means that Jesus is not created but is Creator. He is God.
Paul goes on to say, “He is before all things, and in him all things hold together. And he is the head of the body, the church; he is the beginning and the firstborn from among the dead, so that in everything he might have the supremacy” (Colossians 1:17–18). Paul highlights multiple areas in which Christ has authority—over creation, over the Church, over death, and finally “in everything.” Christ is both before all things and encompasses all things (“in Him all things hold together”). Therefore, Christ is supreme.
This doctrine is essential to our view of and worship of Christ. The supremacy of Christ affirms that Jesus is fully God. He is not simply a man greater than the rest but is truly above all creation, as only God can be. This truth is essential for our salvation. God is infinite and, therefore, our sin against Him is an infinite offense. In order to atone for this offense, the sacrifice must be infinite. Jesus, as God, is infinite and thus an able sacrifice.
That Jesus is supreme excludes us from saying that He is only one of many ways to God. He is not just a good moral teacher whom we may choose to follow; rather, He is God, and He is over all. Jesus’ supremacy also makes it evident that we cannot atone for our own sins. In fact, “it is impossible for the blood of bulls and goats to take away sins” (Hebrews 10:4). Jesus both fulfilled and replaced that system. Salvation is not based on works (see Ephesians 2:1–10). And, once we are saved, Jesus’ supremacy shows us that we cannot aspire to be like Him of our own strength. Jesus is unlike any other, supreme over all. Christians are called to be like Jesus, but this is through the work of the Holy Spirit (Philippians 2:12–13; Romans 8).
The supremacy of Jesus teaches us that He is not simply a spiritual being above the rest. Paul tells us that through Him all things visible and invisible, in heaven and on earth, i.e., spiritual and physical, were created (see Colossians 1:16). Hebrews 1:4 calls Jesus superior to the angels. This truth negates any tendencies toward angel worship. Jesus created the angels and is above them. We are explicitly told He is greater than they. Therefore, we need only worship Jesus. Similarly, that Jesus created the things of earth means that creation is not worthy of our worship. Jesus is supreme over both the physical and spiritual realms, thus giving both arenas importance while still remaining sovereign over them.
When we understand the supremacy of Christ, we have a more accurate view of Him. We more fully understand the depth of His love; we are more able to receive and to respond to His love. Theologians believe that Colossians was written, in part, to combat heresies rising in Colossae. It seemed fitting to Paul to affirm the supremacy of Christ in order to quash these misled beliefs. He affirmed Christ’s supremacy, His lordship, and His sufficiency for us. Hebrews explains the link between the Old Testament covenant and the new covenant of Jesus. It reveals the old system as a shadow of the ultimate fulfillment in Jesus Christ. The supremacy of Christ is central to an accurate view of His Person, His work, our status as believers, and the Kingdom.
God’s being “all in all” is rooted in the truth of Jesus’ resurrection and the resultant future, when Christ returns and “the Son himself will be made subject to him who put everything under him, so that God may be all in all” (1 Corinthians 15:28).
Paul begins 1 Corinthians 15 by discussing the gospel message, namely, that Jesus died, was buried, rose from the dead, and appeared to many witnesses (1 Corinthians 15:1–11). Some of the Corinthians had been claiming the resurrection was a false doctrine (1 Corinthians 15:12). Paul counters that the resurrection of Jesus and of those who believe in the gospel is crucial for the present process of becoming holy and the Christian’s future glorification. As Paul states in 1 Corinthians 15:17–19, if the resurrection of Jesus is a false reality, the Christian’s future resurrection is not a reality. Without the resurrection of Christ, the Christian is “of all men most to be pitied.”
Paul makes a clear defense of the resurrection of Christ beginning in 1 Corinthians 15:20. This resurrection will lead to a future resurrection for all those who have life through faith in Him. Jesus was the first person to be raised from the dead, never to die again. His is an eternal resurrection. As Jesus has led the way, other events will follow: believers who have died before Jesus’ second coming will be resurrected when He comes (1 Corinthians 15:23), and those still living will be made incorruptible (1 Corinthians 15:50–58; cf. 1 Thessalonians 4:13–17).
After Jesus comes again, He will bind Satan, set up an earthly kingdom, and physically rule for 1,000 years (Revelation 20:1–6). At the end of that time, Satan will be released from imprisonment, and Satan and his followers will rebel and be destroyed (Revelation 20:5–10). Jesus will then give authority back to the Father, and He Himself will be in subjection to the Father. It’s based on these truths that Paul claims, “God may be all in all.” Ultimately, all in all is an expression of the rightful authority that God possesses. In the future, when evil has been eradicated forever, God will reign as the unchallenged Supreme over all the universe. He will be the one and only Ruler of all hearts and lives and the only desire of His creatures. When God is all in all, our redemption will be fully accomplished, and God’s glory will fill all creation (cf. Psalm 72:19).
God’s being “all in all” is expressed in the NLT as being “utterly supreme over everything, everywhere.” The full context: “All who belong to Christ will be raised when he comes back. After that the end will come, when he will turn the Kingdom over to God the Father, having destroyed every ruler and authority and power. For Christ must reign until he humbles all his enemies beneath his feet. And the last enemy to be destroyed is death. For the Scriptures say, ‘God has put all things under his authority.’ . . . Then, when all things are under his authority, the Son will put himself under God’s authority, so that God, who gave his Son authority over all things, will be utterly supreme over everything everywhere” (1 Corinthians 15:23–28, NLT). The AMP depicts God as “manifesting His glory without any opposition, the supreme indwelling and controlling factor of life.”
It’s important to note that, in reality, God has always had complete authority over His creation, although, in this present world, His rule is not as evident due to the presence of His enemies. One day, all God’s enemies will be vanquished. Not even death can last (1 Corinthians 15:26).
According to 1 Corinthians 15:28, Jesus will practically continue in an eternal submission to God the Father. Ontologically, Jesus is equal with God as the Second Person of the Trinity (John 8:58). Just as God has absolute authority as Creator, Jesus has absolute authority as Creator (see Colossians 1:15–16; 3:11).
As Paul continues in 1 Corinthians 15, he shows the implications of God’s being all in all. Those who are to be resurrected need to lead holy lives, fulfilling the purpose of bringing God glory. For if the resurrection isn’t true, why not “eat and drink, for tomorrow we die” (1 Corinthians 15:32)? However, the resurrection is true—all of humanity will be resurrected by God, so “do not be misled . . . and stop sinning” (1 Corinthians 15:34).
Jesus died, was buried, and rose from the dead. He will gather His elect to Himself in the future, reign on earth, and abolish Satan and death. Upon completing these events, all enemies will be defeated. All things will be subject to God, giving all authority to God, and He will be “all in all.” In light of this future, let us obey Jesus, stop sinning, and enjoy the grace of God.
Matthew 17:11
Jesus replied, “Elijah does indeed come, and he will restore all things.
Romans 8:21-23
that the creation itself will be set free from its bondage to decay and brought into the glorious freedom of the children of God. / We know that the whole creation has been groaning together in the pains of childbirth until the present time. / Not only that, but we ourselves, who have the firstfruits of the Spirit, groan inwardly as we wait eagerly for our adoption as sons, the redemption of our bodies.
Ephesians 1:9-10
And He has made known to us the mystery of His will according to His good pleasure, which He purposed in Christ / as a plan for the fullness of time, to bring all things in heaven and on earth together in Christ.
Colossians 1:19-20
For God was pleased to have all His fullness dwell in Him, / and through Him to reconcile to Himself all things, whether things on earth or things in heaven, by making peace through the blood of His cross.
Revelation 21:1-5
Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the first heaven and earth had passed away, and the sea was no more. / I saw the holy city, the new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband. / And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying: “Behold, the dwelling place of God is with man, and He will dwell with them. They will be His people, and God Himself will be with them as their God. ...
Isaiah 65:17
For behold, I will create new heavens and a new earth. The former things will not be remembered, nor will they come to mind.
Isaiah 66:22
“For just as the new heavens and the new earth, which I will make, will endure before Me,” declares the LORD, “so your descendants and your name will endure.
2 Peter 3:13
But in keeping with God’s promise, we are looking forward to a new heaven and a new earth, where righteousness dwells.
Revelation 11:15
Then the seventh angel sounded his trumpet, and loud voices called out in heaven: “The kingdom of the world has become the kingdom of our Lord and of His Christ, and He will reign forever and ever.”
1 Corinthians 15:24-28
Then the end will come, when He hands over the kingdom to God the Father after He has destroyed all dominion, authority, and power. / For He must reign until He has put all His enemies under His feet. / The last enemy to be destroyed is death. ...
Hebrews 9:28
so also Christ was offered once to bear the sins of many; and He will appear a second time, not to bear sin, but to bring salvation to those who eagerly await Him.
1 Peter 1:10-12
Concerning this salvation, the prophets who foretold the grace to come to you searched and investigated carefully, / trying to determine the time and setting to which the Spirit of Christ in them was pointing when He predicted the sufferings of Christ and the glories to follow. / It was revealed to them that they were not serving themselves, but you, when they foretold the things now announced by those who preached the gospel to you by the Holy Spirit sent from heaven. Even angels long to look into these things.
Daniel 7:13-14
In my vision in the night I continued to watch, and I saw One like the Son of Man coming with the clouds of heaven. He approached the Ancient of Days and was led into His presence. / And He was given dominion, glory, and kingship, that the people of every nation and language should serve Him. His dominion is an everlasting dominion that will not pass away, and His kingdom is one that will never be destroyed.
Isaiah 11:6-9
The wolf will live with the lamb, and the leopard will lie down with the goat; the calf and young lion and fatling will be together, and a little child will lead them. / The cow will graze with the bear, their young will lie down together, and the lion will eat straw like the ox. / The infant will play by the cobra’s den, and the toddler will reach into the viper’s nest. ...
Isaiah 9:6-7
For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given, and the government will be upon His shoulders. And He will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. / Of the increase of His government and peace there will be no end. He will reign on the throne of David and over his kingdom, to establish and sustain it with justice and righteousness from that time and forevermore. The zeal of the LORD of Hosts will accomplish this.
Acts 1:11
Which also said, Ye men of Galilee, why stand ye gazing up into heaven? this same Jesus, which is taken up from you into heaven, shall so come in like manner as ye have seen him go into heaven.
Acts 3:19
Repent ye therefore, and be converted, that your sins may be blotted out, when the times of refreshing shall come from the presence of the Lord;
Isaiah 1:26
And I will restore thy judges as at the first, and thy counsellers as at the beginning: afterward thou shalt be called, The city of righteousness, the faithful city.
Malachi 3:3,4
And he shall sit as a refiner and purifier of silver: and he shall purify the sons of Levi, and purge them as gold and silver, that they may offer unto the LORD an offering in righteousness…
Acts 10:43
To him give all the prophets witness, that through his name whosoever believeth in him shall receive remission of sins.
Luke 1:70
As he spake by the mouth of his holy prophets, which have been since the world began:
2 Peter 1:21
For the prophecy came not in old time by the will of man: but holy men of God spake as they were moved by the Holy Ghost.
Psalm 15
A psalm of David
Lord, who may dwell in your
sacred tent?
Who may live on your
holy mountain?
The one whose walk is blameless,
who does what is
righteous,
who speaks the truth from
their heart;
whose tongue utters no slander,
who does no wrong to
a neighbor,
and casts no slur on others;
who despises a vile person
but honors those who fear the Lord;
who keeps an oath even when
it hurts,
and does not change their mind;
who lends
money to the poor without interest;
who does not accept a bribe against
the innocent
Whoever does these things
will never be shaken
Have you been praying about something for ages with no apparent results? Are you beginning to wonder if anyone is listening to your prayers? The frustration of unanswered prayer is pretty common but there is much that the Bible has to say on the matter. Do not despair! There are good reasons for God’s choices and there is much hope for you. God is good, He loves you, He is powerful, and He is listening. So what’s going wrong?
PRAYER PROBLEMSJesus assures His disciples in John 16:23-34 that whatever they ask of the Father in His name will be given to them. Later, John writes from experience that asking in the name of Jesus means in line with His will:
And this is the confidence that we have toward him, that if we ask anything according to his will he hears us. And if we know that he hears us in whatever we ask, we know that we have the requests that we have asked of him. (1 John 5:14-15)
This is a concrete biblical promise, but there are a number of reasons why we might not see immediate breakthrough.
The first is that we may be mistaken about what God’s will is in a situation. Sometimes God has a better idea. It could be that what you’re asking is not in line with God’s plan and will, because He’s cooking something superior up instead. I have certainly experienced this myself, and even had the privilege of being able to see with hindsight the breathtaking wonder of His genius plan. This removed any hint of disappointment that God didn’t go with my feeble ideas. We don’t always get to see why God chose differently, but as He says in Isaiah 55, His ways are higher and better than ours—God thinks on another level. So that’s the first thing. Sometimes it’s a no, but a no you’ll appreciate later. We can take our prayers to God but it’s always good to go in humility, seeking His will and plan in a situation. But I think you already know that.
Secondly it could be a matter of persistence. If a prayer isn’t answered with a direct yes or no, it could be that God is simply saying “wait”. The reason for the wait could be that His perfect timing involves more elements coming together than just the one thing you are focussed on. It could be that He is asking us to persist with increasing faith, since it takes greater and greater faith to keep going in the absence of visible change. Sometimes there is a tipping point of collective prayers which God waits for before He acts. Prayer is a choice and one that is not always easy to make, and our collective will and persistence to keep praying over time can mean the difference between something happening… or not. God invites us to take part in His actions in the world in this way. Jesus encourages us in Luke 18 to pray and not give up. It’s a chapter worth reading if you find yourself in this predicament. Take encouragement from saints in the past who saw prayers answered after decades of perseverance, because it does happen. If there’s not immediate result or reason to think the answer is “no”, then keep going! But I think you know that, too.
Thirdly there may be a blockage. Isaiah describes it like this:
Your iniquities have made a separation between you and your God, and your sins have hidden his face from you so that he does not hear. (Isaiah 59:2)
In the previous chapter, God exhorts Israel to make sure that their walk matches their talk as they pray and fast. Otherwise it won’t count for anything.
“Fasting like yours this day will not make your voice to be heard on high.” (Is 58:4b)
According to this passage, we learn that fasting should generally make our voice heard on high, but the way they were going about it was wrong and was not going to achieve results. Soberly take note as God talks to Israel in this way, as a window into how things work from God’s point of view. We need to be walking rightly with God and with our fellow man in order to be heard on high. And in case you’re wondering if this is just a problem for the Israelites in the Old Covenant, the same principles apply in the New. Peter admonishes married men in this way:
Husbands, live with your wives in an understanding way, showing honor to the woman as the weaker vessel, since they are heirs with you of the grace of life, so that your prayers may not be hindered.
(1 Peter 3:7)
Clearly, Peter believes that treating your wife wrongly can actually hinder your prayers.
God won’t listen to you until you put things right!
It is even spelled out for all of us—male, female, married and single—a few verses later:
For the eyes of the Lord are on the righteous, and his ears are open to their prayer.
But the face of the Lord is against those who do evil. (1 Peter 3:12)
Again in the next chapter,
Peter makes it plain that God’s response to our prayers is affected by the way that we live:
The end of all things is at hand; therefore be self-controlled and sober-minded for the sake of your prayers.
(1 Peter 4:7)
POWERFUL AND EFFECTIVE PRAYERSJames, brother of Jesus, gives Elijah to us as an example of what God can do in response to the prayers of someone who is taking Him seriously. In the last chapter of his book, James draws a correlation between confessing our sins and being healed, seeing answers to our prayers. His conclusion is that Elijah was just an ordinary person like us, but that the prayers of a righteous person are powerful and effective (James 5:15-20).
How do we become righteous like Elijah?
Confessing our sin is highlighted as being of the utmost importance. We have another concrete promise here in 1 John 1:9 that confession, agreeing with God about our sin, leads to God cleansing us from all unrighteousness.
If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.
The anchor for this promise is in God’s character: He is faithful and just. It is a promise. It is also conditional—we are only cleansed if we confess our sin. But this will definitely do the trick, thanks to Yeshua’s sacrifice on our behalf which took our sin away as far as the east is from the west. Thank you, Jesus! Something I have done from time to time is invite the Holy Spirit to highlight anything that was displeasing to Him in my life, written it all down, written 1 John 1:9 over the top of it, and destroyed the list completely. Gone. If we do this on a regular basis, even just mentally, whenever we become aware of sin, then we are walking in the light.
Walking in righteousness.
There is a beautiful illustration of this in the book of Zechariah. Joshua, the high priest (the high priest!) was dirty with sin and Satan, the accuser, was pointing it all out. Here’s what happens:
Then he showed me Joshua the high priest standing before the angel of the Lord, and Satan standing at his right hand to accuse him. And the Lord said to Satan, “The Lordrebuke you, O Satan! The Lord who has chosen Jerusalem rebuke you! Is not this a brand plucked from the fire?” Now Joshua was standing before the angel, clothed with filthy garments. And the angel said to those who were standing before him, “Remove the filthy garments from him.” And to him he said, “Behold, I have taken your iniquity away from you, and I will clothe you with pure vestments.” And I said, “Let them put a clean turban on his head.” So they put a clean turban on his head and clothed him with garments. And the angel of the Lord was standing by. And the angel of the Lord solemnly assured Joshua, “Thus says the Lord of hosts: If you will walk in my ways and keep my charge, then you shall rule my house and have charge of my courts, and I will give you the right of access among those who are standing here.”
In the same manner, even if you’ve been a believer for ages, you can still have filthy garments of sin. But God can give us brand new robes of righteousness and stop the voice of the accuser. Moreover, see what God says next to Joshua: “If you will walk in my ways and keep my charge, then you shall rule my house and have charge of my courts, and I will give you the right of access among those who are standing here.” Once again, there is the condition, “if”… but not only has he got new clothes appropriate for being in heavenly places with God, he is given responsibility, authority, and access by God. If we will walk in God’s ways.
KEEP IN STEP WITH THE SPIRITLearning to walk in God’s ways is a lifetime journey and of course cannot—simply cannot—be done without the power of the Holy Spirit. But as we learn to walk in God’s ways, with His help, we are changed from glory to glory, from the inside out. We grow in family resemblance to our Father God as we spend time with Him. We become more and more familiar with what makes Him happy or not, and more attuned to His perspective as we meditate on His word. We understand better who He is, and the authority that He has over the universe. We start to appreciate what it means that He has given all authority to Jesus, and that we are also sent in His name. We understand that the laws of nature do not apply to Him; that all of creation is under His feet. We adjust from being the most important person in our lives to allowing Him to call the shots, and maintain a posture of readiness to obey, ready to leap into action at His word, like an athlete poised at the starting blocks, just waiting for the signal. We get to know who we really are as His children, who He is as our Father, and what it means to have been adopted into the most royal family there is! We slowly absorb what we have inherited in our Messiah, and learn how to appropriate the authority entrusted to us in His name. Eventually, the word “impossible” becomes irrelevant.
“The wonderful thing about praying,” said Corrie ten Boom, “is that you leave a world of not being able to do something, and enter God’s realm where everything is possible”.
Teach me your way, O Lord,
that I may walk in your truth;
unite my heart to fear your name.
(Psalm 86:11)
Treasures in Heaven
“Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moths and vermin destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where moths and vermin do not destroy, and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.
“The eye is the lamp of the body. If your eyes are healthy,[c] your whole body will be full of light.
But if your eyes are unhealthy, your whole body will be full of darkness. If then the light within you is darkness, how great is that darkness!
“No one can serve two masters. Either you will hate the one and love the other, or you will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and money.
Do Not Worry
“Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothes? Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them
.Are you not much more valuable than they?
Can any one of you by worrying add a single hour to your life?
“And why do you worry about clothes? See how the flowers of the field grow. They do not labor or spin. Yet I tell you that not even Solomon in all his splendor was dressed like one of these. If that is how God clothes the grass of the field, which is here today and tomorrow is thrown into the fire, will he not much more clothe you—you of little faith? So do not worry, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’
For the pagans run after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them.
But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well. Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.
In the Sermon on the Mount,
Jesus taught His listeners the difference between earthly treasure and heavenly treasure, and He emphasized the importance of the heavenly: “Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where moth and rust do not destroy, and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also” (Matthew 6:19–21). Whatever we focus on dictates our actions. When we focus on earthly success and wealth, we will expend our energies on earthly matters. However, when we focus on God’s priorities, our actions will reflect different priorities—and our reward in heaven will last forever.
Treasure is anything we value above all else and that which motivates us to action. For some it is money. For others it is power. Still other people strive for fame or attention. There are many things in this world vying for control of our heart. According to Jesus, determining where our treasure is also determines where our heart is. Many people claim to look forward to heaven, but their hearts are really not in it—their hearts are caught up in the cares of this world, because that’s where their treasure lies.
Jesus warned us that earthly currency has an expiration date. While it may satisfy us temporarily, it is unstable and fleeting. The ever-changing faces on magazine covers remind us that the famous are here and gone in a blink. The stock market crash of 1929 taught us that the wealthy can quickly lose it all. Power, prestige, and public approval are limited and can be gone in an instant. Even the Son of God experienced the fickleness of human approval. One day people were trying to make Him king (John 6:15), and the next they were leaving Him in droves (verse 66).
“This world in its present form is passing away” (1 Corinthians 7:31). The moment we take our last breath, earthly treasure won’t matter anymore. Jesus urged us to think beyond that last breath to eternity. When our focus is on eternity—when our treasure is laid up in heaven—our lifestyles reflect that perspective.
We will all give an account of ourselves before God for every action (Romans 14:12) and every idle word (Matthew 12:36). No one is exempt. Excuses are not accepted. God sees and knows every thought we think and holds us accountable for the truth we’ve been given (Romans 1:18–22). We store up “treasure in heaven” when we make choices on earth that benefit God’s kingdom. Jesus said that even offering a cup of cool water to a fellow believer is worthy of eternal reward (Matthew 10:42).
In Luke 16:19–31, Jesus told a story about a rich man and a beggar. The rich man had invested his life in opulence and pleasure. He cared little for anyone or anything but himself. When he died, his riches could not follow him. His life choices had prepared him only for hell, and all the money and prestige he enjoyed on earth counted for nothing. After death, he would have given everything he ever owned for a single drop of water, but his treasure had been invested elsewhere.
It is no sin to be rich, but our passions follow our investments. Wealthy people who consider their riches as belonging to God will use what they have in ways that have eternal significance, protecting their own hearts from the love of money (1 Timothy 6:10). People whose treasure is in heaven cannot be owned by their possessions. They cannot be bought off because nothing on earth is worth the price of their soul. They value the currency of heaven and use their earthly treasure to purchase “heavenly gold,” which will never lose its value. Investing our treasure in material things keeps our hearts anchored to earthly values; however, when we invest in things of eternal value, our hearts remain loyal to the Lord, and we will not be tempted to foolishly attempt to serve both God and money (Luke 16:13).
Habakkuk 2:4 includes the well-known statement “the righteous will live by faith.” What does this mean?
The context helps us to understand God’s intent in this passage. The whole verse reads, “Behold, his soul is puffed up; it is not upright within him, but the righteous shall live by his faith.” “His soul” is a symbolic reference to Babylonia. This nation had become proud or “puffed up.” As a result, they were unrighteous and facing God’s judgment. In contrast, the righteous (or the “just”) would live by faith in God. By contrast, the righteous are humble in God’s eyes and will never face God’s judgment.
Habakkuk 2:4 is quoted three times in the New Testament. Paul quotes it in Romans 1:17, emphasizing the idea that righteousness by faith is for both Jews and Gentiles: “For in the gospel a righteousness of God is revealed from faith to faith, just as it is written, ‘The righteous will live by faith.’”
Then, in Galatians 3:11, we read, “Now it is evident that no one is justified before God by the law, for ‘The righteous shall live by faith.’” Here, Paul stresses that we are justified or made right before God by faith. The Law has no ability to justify anyone. As Habakkuk had recorded, people have always been saved by faith, not by works. Habakkuk 2:4 is also quoted in Hebrews 10:38.
In the third century, Rabbi Simla noted that Moses gave 365 prohibitions and 248 positive commands. David reduced them to eleven commands in Psalm 15; Isaiah made them six (33:14-15); Micah bound them into three (6:8); and Habakkuk condensed them all to one, namely—“The righteous shall live by faith” (from P. L. Tan, Encyclopedia of 7700 illustrations. Garland, TX: Bible Communications, #1495).
Christians are saved by grace through faith (Ephesians 2:8-9), and we walk in faith (2 Corinthians 5:7). Only by faith in Christ are we made righteous (Romans 5:19). Paul further expounds on this truth in Galatians 2:16, saying, “We know that a person is not justified by works of the law but through faith in Jesus Christ, so we also have believed in Christ Jesus, in order to be justified by faith in Christ and not by works of the law, because by works of the law no one will be justified.” It is Christ’s righteousness that saves us, and the only way to receive that gift is to trust in Him. “Whoever believes in the Son has eternal life” (John 3:36).
When Habakkuk wrote, “The righteous shall live by his faith,” he was echoing a timeless truth first modeled in Abraham’s life (Genesis 15:6). The righteous man will “live” in that he will not face God’s judgment; rather, in return for his faith in God, he has been given eternal life.
Thus says the LORD of hosts, 'I will punish Amalek for what he did to Israel, how he set himself against him on the way while he was coming up from Egypt. Now go and strike Amalek and utterly destroy all that he has, and do not spare him; but put to death both man and woman, child and infant, ox and sheep, camel and donkey.' ... So Saul defeated the Amalekites, from Havilah as you go to Shur, which is east of Egypt. He captured Agag the king of the Amalekites alive, and utterly destroyed all the people with the edge of the sword. But Saul and the people spared Agag and the best of the sheep, the oxen, the fatlings, the lambs, and all that was good, and were not willing to destroy them utterly; but everything despised and worthless, that they utterly destroyed" (1 Sam 15:2-3, 7-9).
As brand new parents desperately trying to bring our rebellious three-year-old daughter under the umbrella of delegated authority (see Exod 20:12), we were using our most sophisticated negotiation tactics. The countdown for obedience would begin. "If you don't do what we say by the time we count to ten, you'll be in big trouble. One, two, three...." Then, a very wise instructor shared some invaluable biblical wisdom with us. "Delayed obedience is disobedience." Although we meant well, we were teaching our daughter it was okay to put off obedience to God and that it was OK to negotiate with him about keeping his commandments. As parents who wanted to teach our daughter about God's total authority over our lives, we unintentionally sent our daughter the wrong message.
God did not applaud Saul's partial obedience. He treated it for what it was: disobedience (1 Sam 15:10-11). May God give us a far more profound understanding of his sovereign authority and eternal kingship over our lives so that we will have a godly passion to obey his commands. May the intrinsic motivation that flows from the grace of the gospel and the power of the Spirit be ours in abundance, not just that we will obey immediately, but that we will obey willingly and out of the sheer desire to please our heavenly Father.
"If you love Me, you will keep My commandments. I will ask the Father, and He will give you another Helper, that He may be with you forever; that is the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it does not see Him or know Him, but you know Him because He abides with you and will be in you. I will not leave you as orphans; I will come to you. After a little while the world will no longer see Me, but you will see Me; because I live, you will live also. In that day you will know that I am in My Father, and you in Me, and I in you. He who has My commandments and keeps them is the one who loves Me; and he who loves Me will be loved by My Father, and I will love him and will disclose Myself to him" (John 14:15-21).
As we move into Passion tide the
actual sacrifice of
Our Lord Jesus Christ comes
to the fore.
When Jesus died on the
Cross as the
Lamb of Sacrifice
He literally poured out every
drop of
His life-blood as
a sin-offering for our salvation
Therefore we hail
the Most
Precious Blood of Jesus as
the
“Price of Our Redemption”.
The picture here
from our front cover shows
Christ as the Mystic Lamb
with the Blood flowing from
His side
which makes the lilies
(the Christian faithful)
grow and flourish.
The inscription in English
translation reads
as follows:
To Him who loves us
and who
washes us of our sins
by His Blood
and
who has made us
kings and priests of
God His Father:
to Him be
the
Glory and the Power. Amen.
Judging Others
(Luke 6:37–42; Romans 14:1–12)
1“Do not judge, or you will be judged. 2For with the same judgment you pronounce, you will be judged, and with the measure you use, it will be measured to you.
3Why do you look at the speck in your brother’s eye but fail to notice the beam in your own eye? 4How can you say to your brother, ‘Let me take the speck out of your eye,’ while there is still a beam in your own eye? 5You hypocrite! First take the beam out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to remove the speck from your brother’s eye.
6Do not give dogs what is holy; do not throw your pearls before swine. If you do, they may trample them under their feet, and then turn and tear you to pieces.
Ask, Seek, Knock
(Luke 11:5–13)
7Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and the door will be opened to you. 8For everyone who asks receives; he who seeks finds; and to him who knocks, the door will be opened.
9Which of you, if his son asks for bread, will give him a stone? 10Or if he asks for a fish, will give him a snake? 11So if you who are evil know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give good things to those who ask Him!
12In everything, then, do to others as you would have them do to you. For this is the essence of the Law and the Prophets.
The Narrow Gate
(Luke 13:22–30)
13Enter through the narrow gate. For wide is the gate and broad is the way that leads to destruction, and many enter through it. 14But small is the gate and narrow the way that leads to life, and only a few find it.
A Tree and Its Fruit
(Luke 6:43–45)
15Beware of false prophets. They come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly they are ravenous wolves. 16By their fruit you will recognize them. Are grapes gathered from thornbushes, or figs from thistles? 17Likewise, every good tree bears good fruit, but a bad tree bears bad fruit. 18A good tree cannot bear bad fruit, and a bad tree cannot bear good fruit. 19Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. 20So then, by their fruit you will recognize them.
21Not everyone who says to Me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only he who does the will of My Father in heaven. 22Many will say to Me on that day, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in Your name, and in Your name drive out demons and perform many miracles?’
23Then I will tell them plainly, ‘I never knew you; depart from Me, you workers of lawlessness!’
The House on the Rock
(Luke 6:46–49)
24Therefore everyone who hears these words of Mine and acts on them is like a wise man who built his house on the rock. 25The rain fell, the torrents raged, and the winds blew and beat against that house; yet it did not fall, because its foundation was on the rock.
26But everyone who hears these words of Mine and does not act on them is like a foolish man who built his house on sand. 27The rain fell, the torrents raged, and the winds blew and beat against that house, and it fell—and great was its collapse!”
The Authority of Jesus
28When Jesus had finished saying these things, the crowds were astonished at His teaching, 29because He taught as one who had authority, and not as their scribes.
The Bible references five crowns that await believers in heaven. One of these crowns—the crown of life—is a gift from God that will be awarded to those who, because of their love for Him, faithfully endured trials and tests on earth: “Blessed is the one who perseveres under trial because, having stood the test, that person will receive the crown of life that the Lord has promised to those who love him” (James 1:12).
The crown of life is not an actual ornamental headdress but a symbolic representation of God’s recognition for having spiritually triumphed in this life. In the original Greek, the word rendered “crown” in James 1:12 denotes a prize. The term does not refer to a royal crown like those worn by kings and rulers. This crown describes a garland or wreath of laurel foliage that, in ancient times, was placed upon the head of a victorious athlete as an emblem of honor and triumph in a contest.
The crown of life is God’s reward for those who love Him and loyally persevere under trial. It does not signify any royal position or authority over others but is indicative of everlasting joy in the life to come (1 John 2:25; Matthew 10:22; James 2:5). Jesus announced this divine privilege in His Sermon on the Mount: “Blessed are those who are persecuted because of righteousness, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. Blessed are you when people insult you, persecute you and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of me. Rejoice and be glad, because great is your reward in heaven” (Matthew 5:10–12). As we face trials and tribulations, we can endure them for God’s glory, trusting that they will bring us spiritual fulfillment and demonstrate our love for Him.
The apostle Paul stressed the need for steadfast persistence and self-discipline to finish the race and receive the crown of life: “Do you not know that in a race all the runners run, but only one gets the prize? Run in such a way as to get the prize. Everyone who competes in the games goes into strict training. They do it to get a crown that will not last, but we do it to get a crown that will last forever. Therefore I do not run like someone running aimlessly; I do not fight like a boxer beating the air. No, I strike a blow to my body and make it my slave so that after I have preached to others, I myself will not be disqualified for the prize” (1 Corinthians 9:24–27). No matter what challenges we confront, we can take comfort in knowing that God has prepared incredible blessings (both now and in the future) for those who suffer hardship because of their love for Him
(2 Corinthians 4:7–15)
The crown of life is reserved for believers who leave behind the safety and shelter of Christian infancy in search of spiritual maturity (1 John 2:12–14). They discover that the battlefields of this life are training grounds as they “press on toward the goal to win the prize” (see Philippians 3:12–14). They endure hardship for Jesus, knowing abundant life awaits them. The world may perceive them as losing out on the pleasures of this world, but these believers have come to understand that their kingdom is not of this earthly realm (John 8:23; 17:14, 16; 18:36). Future crown-bearers know this life is only temporary (1 Corinthians 7:31) and, therefore, choose to pursue the will of God and endure suffering for Christ (1 John 2:17). They set their hearts on things above (Colossians 3:1), fixing their eyes on the prize—the crown of life by which God will bless them with victory, joy, and the matchless reward of eternity spent with Him.
Christians of every age have faced suffering and persecution (2 Timothy 3:12; 1 Thessalonians 3:4), but not without the promise of an eternal reward (Mark 10:29–30). Jesus assured the church in Smyrna, “Do not be afraid of what you are about to suffer. I tell you, the devil will put some of you in prison to test you, and you will suffer persecution for ten days. Be faithful, even to the point of death, and I will give you life as your victor’s crown” (Revelation 2:10). While trials and tests are frightening and unpleasant as we go through them, Jesus guarantees they will result in a worthy prize—the crown of life.
Constructing the Ark
(Exodus 25:10–16)
1Bezalel went on to construct the ark of acacia wood, two and a half cubits long, a cubit and a half wide, and a cubit and a half high.a 2He overlaid it with pure gold, both inside and out, and made a gold molding around it. 3And he cast four gold rings for its four feet, two rings on one side and two on the other. 4Then he made poles of acacia wood and overlaid them with gold. 5He inserted the poles into the rings on the sides of the ark in order to carry it.
The Mercy Seat
(Exodus 25:17–22)
6He constructed a mercy seat of pure gold, two and a half cubits long and a cubit and a half wide.b 7He made two cherubim of hammered gold at the ends of the mercy seat, 8one cherub on one end and one on the other, all made from one piece of gold. 9And the cherubim had wings that spread upward, overshadowing the mercy seat. The cherubim faced each other, looking toward the mercy seat.
The Table of Showbread
(Exodus 25:23–30; Leviticus 24:5–9)
He also made the table
of acacia wood
two cubits long, a cubit wide,
and a cubit and a half high.
he overlaid it with pure gold and made a
gold molding around it.
and he made a rim around it a handbreadth wide and put a
gold molding on the rim.
he cast four gold rings for the table and fastened them to the
four corners at its four legs.
The rings were placed close to the rim, to serve as holders for the
poles used to carry the table.
He made the poles of acacia wood for carrying the
table and overlaid them with gold.
he also made the utensils for the table out of pure gold: its plates and dishes,
as well
as its bowls and pitchers for pouring drink offerings
.
The Lampstand
(Exodus 25:31–40; Numbers 8:1–4)
Then he made the lampstand out of pure hammered gold, all of one piece: its base and shaft, its cups, and its buds and petals.
six branches extended from the sides, three on one side and three on the other.
There were three cups shaped like almond blossoms on the first branch, each with buds and petals, three on the next branch, and the same for all six branches that extended from the lampstand.
and on the lampstand were four cups shaped like almond blossoms with buds and petals.
21A bud was under the first pair of branches that extended from the lampstand, a bud under the second pair, and a bud under the third pair.
the buds and branches were all of one piece with the lampstand, hammered out of pure gold.
He also made its seven lamps, its wick trimmers,
and trays of pure gold.
He made the lamp-stand
and all its utensils from
a talent of pure gold.
The Altar of Incense
(Exodus 30:1–10)
He made the altar of incense out of acacia wood. It was square, a cubit long,
a cubit wide, and two cubits high. Its horns were of one piece.
And he overlaid with pure gold
the top and all the sides and horns.
Then he made a molding of gold around it.
He made two gold rings
below the molding on opposite sides
to hold the poles used to carry it.
And he made the poles of acacia wood
and
overlaid them with gold.
He also made the sacred anointing
oil and the pure,
fragrant incense, the work of a perfumer.
Offerings for the Tabernacle
(Exodus 35:4–9)
Then the LORD said to Moses,
Tell the Israelites to bring Me an offering.
You are to receive My offering from every man
whose heart compels him.
This is the offering you are to accept from them:
gold, silver, and bronze;
blue, purple, and scarlet yarn;
fine linen and goat hair;
ram skins dyed red and fine leather;
acacia wood;
olive oil for the light;
spices for the anointing oil and for the
fragrant incense;
and onyx stones and gemstones
to be mounted
on the ephod and breast-piece
And they are to make a sanctuary
for Me,
so that I may dwell among them.
you must make
the tabernacle and design
all its furnishings
according to the pattern I show you.
John the Baptist came preaching repentance and baptizing in the wilderness of Judea, and he was sent as a herald to announce the arrival of Jesus, the Son of God
(Matthew 3:1-12).
He announced, “I indeed baptize you with water unto repentance, but He who is coming after me is mightier than I, whose sandals I am not worthy to carry.
He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire”
(Matthew 3:11).
After Jesus had risen from the dead, He instructed His apostles to “…wait for the Promise of the Father which you have heard from Me; for John truly baptized with water, but you shall be baptized with the Holy Spirit not many days from now” (Acts 1:4-5). This promise was first fulfilled on the day of Pentecost (Acts 2:1-4), and the baptism of the Spirit joins every believer to the body of Christ (1 Corinthians 12:13). But what about the baptism with fire?
Some interpret the baptism of fire as referring to the day of Pentecost, when the Holy Spirit was sent from heaven. “And suddenly there came a sound from heaven, as of a rushing mighty wind, and it filled the whole house where they were sitting. Then there appeared to them divided tongues, as of fire, and one sat upon each of them” (Acts 2:2-3). It is important to note that these were tongues as of fire, not literal fire.
Some believe that the baptism with fire refers to the Holy Spirit’s office as the energizer of the believer’s service, and the purifier of evil within, because of the exhortation “Do not quench the Spirit” found in 1Thessalonians 5:19. The command to the believer is to not put out the Spirit’s fire by suppressing His ministry.
A third and more likely interpretation is that the baptism of fire refers to judgment. In all four Gospel passages mentioned above, Mark and John speak of the baptism of the Holy Spirit, but only Matthew and Luke mention the baptism with fire. The immediate context of Matthew and Luke is judgment (Matthew 3:7-12; Luke 3:7-17). The context of Mark and John is not (Mark 1:1-8; John 1:29-34).
We know that the Lord Jesus is coming
in flaming fire to
judge those who do not know God
(2 Thessalonians 1:3-10; John 5:21-23; Revelation 20:11-15),
but praise be to God that
He will save all that will come
and
put their trust in Him
(John 3:16)!
The Demand for a Sign
(Mark 8:11–13; Luke 12:54–56)
1Then the Pharisees and Sadducees came and tested Jesus by asking Him to show them a sign from heaven.
2But He replied, “When evening comes, you say, ‘The weather will be fair, for the sky is red,’ 3and in the morning, ‘Today it will be stormy, for the sky is red and overcast.’ You know how to interpret the appearance of the sky, but not the signs of the times.a 4A wicked and adulterous generation demands a sign, but none will be given it except the sign of Jonah.” Then He left them and went away.
The Leaven of the Pharisees and Sadducees
(Mark 8:14–21; Luke 12:1–3)
5When they crossed to the other side, the disciples forgot to take bread. 6“Watch out!” Jesus told them. “Beware of the leaven of the Pharisees and Sadducees.”
7They discussed this among themselves and concluded, “It is because we did not bring any bread.”
8Aware of their conversation, Jesus said, “You of little faith, why are you debating among yourselves about having no bread? 9Do you still not understand? Do you not remember the five loaves for the five thousand, and how many basketfuls you gathered? 10Or the seven loaves for the four thousand, and how many basketfuls you gathered? 11How do you not understand that I was not telling you about bread? But beware of the leaven of the Pharisees and Sadducees.”
12Then they understood that He was not telling them to beware of the leaven used in bread, but of the teaching of the Pharisees and Sadducees.
Peter’s Confession of Christ
(Mark 8:27–30; Luke 9:18–20; John 6:67–71)
13When Jesus came to the region of Caesarea Philippi, He questioned His disciples:
“Who do people say the Son of Man is?”
14They replied, “Some say John the Baptist; others say Elijah; and still others, Jeremiah or one of the prophets.”
15“But what about you?” Jesus asked.
“Who do you say I am?”
Simon Peter answered,
“You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.”
17Jesus replied, “Blessed are you, Simon son of Jonah!b For this was not revealed to you by flesh and blood, but by My Father in heaven. 18And I tell you that you are Peter, and on this rock I will build My church, and the gates of Hades will not prevail against it. 19I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven. Whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven.”
20Then He admonished the disciples not to tell anyone that He was the Christ.
Christ’s Passion Foretold
(Mark 8:31–33; Luke 9:21–22)
21From that time on Jesusc began to show His disciples that He must go to Jerusalem and suffer many things at the hands of the elders, chief priests, and scribes, and that He must be killed and on the third day be raised to life.
22Peter took Him aside and began to rebuke Him. “Far be it from You, Lord!” he said. “This shall never happen to You!”
23But Jesus turned and said to Peter, “Get behind Me, Satan! You are a stumbling block to Me. For you do not have in mind the things of God, but the things of men.”
Take Up Your Cross
(Mark 8:34–38; Luke 9:23–27)
24Then Jesus told His disciples, “If anyone wants to come after Me, he must deny himself and take up his cross and follow Me. 25For whoever wants to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for My sake will find it.
26What will it profit a man if he gains the whole world,
yet forfeits his soul?
Or what can a man give in exchange for his soul?
27For the Son of Man will come in His Father’s glory
with His angels, and then
He will repay each one according to what he has done.
Truly I tell you,
some who are standing here will
not taste death before they see
the Son of Man
coming in His kingdom.”
This week’s portion takes place when the nation of Israel is in Sinai, right after the Ten Commandments are given. The nation of Israel is in great awe from this outstanding event (מעמד) and asks Moses that only he talk to God, and they will obey: “And all the people answered with one voice and said, ‘All the words that the LORD has spoken we will do’” (Exod 24:3b).
With that as context, let us look at two significant verses God speaks: “You shall not spread a false report. You shall not join hands with a wicked man to be a malicious witness. You shall not fall in with the many to do evil, nor shall you bear witness in a lawsuit, siding with the many, so as to pervert justice” (Exod 23:1-2).
As we know from the Ten Commandments, four commandments deal with our relationship with God, while six involve human relationships. Many places in the Scriptures tell us that how we act in our human relationships is a strong witness to our relationship with the Lord. In the words of Yeshua: “. . . love one another. By this all people will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another” (John 13:34-35). Our human relationships are a reflection of our relationship with the Lord.
In Scripture, there are less than fifteen places where God says he hates something. In most of these places, God refers to how humans treat each other. Most texts involve prideful attitudes and behavior, favoritism, or false witness.
So it is no wonder that right after the Ten Commandments are given, God talks to us about how we should behave toward one another. God says we should “not spread a false report.” The Hebrew word translated as “spread” also has the connotation of hearing; that is, we are told not to listen to or spread gossip.
Of special interest is the expansion of this command in Exodus 23:2: “You shall not fall in with the many to do evil.” This expression “with the many” is repeated twice in the verse. As people, we often seek human acceptance, and sometimes we may even be willing to pay with the currency of our integrity to get it. During times of persecution and testing because of our faith, we may be tempted to deny our faith in Messiah to gain social acceptance. The book of Hebrews, specifically written to Jewish believers in the first century, encouraged us to stand firm in our faith during trial, persecution, or testing. And Yeshua said, “I tell you, everyone who acknowledges me before men, the Son of Man also will acknowledge before the angels of God” (Luke 12:8).
In summary, while it is definitely normal for humans to desire acceptance from other people, this is secondary to acceptance from God. Put another way, when our vertical relationships are not grounded, we seek comfort in our horizontal ones, even if we need to compromise. But when our relationship with God is firmly grounded, we do not depend upon the comfort of human acceptance and approval.
Sixteen times in the Hebrew Scriptures, God mentions to the nation of Israel that he sent his servants the prophets to them repeatedly, to encourage them to believe in him. God’s prophets were almost always in the minority – not accepted by their contemporaries. Why? Because the ‘cool’ majority did not believe in the prophets. Let us take courage and stand against the tide, firm in God and his word!
“You shall not fall in with the many to do evil!”
Rejoice in the Lord
therefore,
my brothers, whom I love
and long for,
my joy and crown,
that is
how you must stand firm
in the Lord, my beloved
I urge Euodia and Syntyche to agree
with
each other in the Lord.
Yes, and I ask you,
my true yokefellow,
to help
these women who have
contended at my side for
the gospel,
along with Clement and
the rest of
my fellow workers,
whose
Names are in the
Book of Life
Rejoice in the Lord
always. I will say it again:
Rejoice!
Let your gentleness be apparent
to all.
The Lord is Near!
Be anxious for nothing, but in everything,
by prayer and petition,
with thanksgiving,
present your requests to God.
And the peace of God,
which surpasses all understanding,
will guard your hearts
and
your minds in Christ Jesus
Finally, brothers, whatever is true,
whatever is honorable,
whatever is right, whatever is pure,
whatever is lovely,
whatever is admirable—if anything
is excellent or
praiseworthy—think on these things.
Whatever you have learned
or received
or heard from me,
or seen in me, put it into practice.
And the God of peace will
be with you.
The Generosity of the Philippians
(2 Corinthians 8:1–15)
Now I rejoice greatly in the Lord
that at last
you have revived your concern
for me.
You were indeed concerned,
but you had no opportunity
to show it.
I am not saying this out of need,
for I have learned
to be content regardless
of my
circumstances.
I know how
to live humbly, and I know
how to abound.
In any and
every situation I have learned
the secret of being
filled and being hungry,
of having
plenty and having need.
I can do all things
through
Christ who gives me strength
Nevertheless, you have done
well
to share in my affliction.
And as you Philippians know,
in the
early days of the
Gospel,
when I left Macedonia,
no church but
you partnered with me in
the matter of
giving and receiving.
For even while I was in Thessalonica,
you provided for
my needs again and again.
Not that I am seeking
a gift,
but I am looking for
the fruit
that may be credited to
your account.
I have all I need and more,
now that I have
received your gifts from Epaphroditus.
They are a fragrant offering,
an acceptable
sacrifice, well-pleasing to God.
And my God
will
supply all your needs
according to
His glorious riches in
Christ Jesus
To our God and Father
be glory
forever and ever.
Amen.
Matthew 6:33
But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things will be added unto you.
2 Corinthians 9:8
And God is able to make all grace abound to you, so that in all things, at all times, having all that you need, you will abound in every good work.
Psalm 23:1
A Psalm of David. The LORD is my shepherd; I shall not want.
Ephesians 3:20
Now to Him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to His power that is at work within us,
Romans 8:32
He who did not spare His own Son but gave Him up for us all, how will He not also, along with Him, freely give us all things?
2 Peter 1:3
His divine power has given us everything we need for life and godliness through the
knowledge of Him who called us by His own glory and excellence.
Psalm 34:10
Young lions go lacking and hungry, but those who seek the LORD lack no good thing.
Luke 12:31
But seek His kingdom, and these things will be added unto you.
2 Corinthians 8:9
For you know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ,
that though He was rich, yet for your sake He became poor, so that you through His poverty might become rich.
Psalm 37:25
I once was young and now am old, yet never have I seen the righteous abandoned
or their children begging for bread.
Malachi 3:10
Bring the full tithe into the storehouse, so that there may be food in My house. Test Me in this,” says the
LORD of Hosts. “See if I will not open the windows of heaven and pour out for you blessing without measure.
Proverbs 10:3
The LORD does not let the righteous go hungry, but He denies the craving of the wicked.
Matthew 7:7-11
Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and the door will be opened to you.
For everyone who asks receives; he who seeks finds; and to him who knocks, the door will be opened.
Which of you, if his son asks for bread, will give him a stone? ...
John 14:13-14
And I will do whatever you ask in My name, so that the Father may be glorified in the Son. / If you ask Me for anything in My name, I will do it.
Isaiah 58:11
The LORD will always guide you; He will satisfy you in a sun-scorched land and strengthen your frame.
You will be like a well-watered garden, like a spring whose waters never fail.
For I know that my Redeemer lives,
and in the
the latter day upon the earth
He shall stand.
(Job 19:25)
The promise of land belonging
to the
children of Israel is permanent.
Even when Israel was expelled from their land, which has happened twice in history, God promised they would return: “Even if you have been banished to the most distant land under the heavens, from there the LORD your God will gather you and bring you back. He will bring you to the land that belonged to your ancestors, and you will take possession of it”
The Bible teaches that God will eventually fulfill the promise to give Israel full control over the Promised Land. Israel’s full territory will ultimately be ruled by the Messiah during the Millennium (Revelation 20:1–6). God’s promises, partly fulfilled throughout history, will have complete, literal, fulfillment prior to God’s creation of new heavens and a new earth
(Revelation 21—22; cf. Psalm 72:8).
Waiting on God
For the
choirmaster. According to Jeduthun.
A Psalm of David.
In God alone my soul finds rest;
my salvation comes from Him.
He alone is my rock and my salvation.
He is my fortress;
I will never be shaken.
How long will you threaten a man?
Will all of you throw him down
like a leaning wall
or a
tottering fence?
They fully intend to cast him
down
from his lofty perch;
they delight in lies;
with their mouths they bless,
but inwardly they curse.
Selah
Rest in God alone, O my soul,
for my hope comes from Him.
He alone is my rock and my salvation;
He is my fortress; I will not be shaken.
My salvation
and my honor rest on God,
my strong rock;
my refuge is in God.
Trust in Him at all times, O people;
pour out your hearts before Him.
God is our refuge.
Selah
lowborn men are but a vapor;
the exalted are but a lie.
Weighed on the scale, they go up;
together they are but a vapor.
Place no trust in extortion
or false hope in stolen goods.
If your riches increase,
do not set your heart upon them.
God has spoken once;
I have heard this twice:
that
power belongs to God,
and
loving devotion to You, O Lord.
For You will repay each man
according to his deeds.
Isaiah 26:3-4
You will keep in perfect peace the steadfast of mind, because he trusts in You. / Trust in the LORD forever, because GOD the LORD is the Rock eternal.
Matthew 7:24-25
Therefore everyone who hears these words of Mine and acts on them is like a wise man who built his house on the rock. / The rain fell, the torrents raged, and the winds blew and beat against that house; yet it did not fall, because its foundation was on the rock.
1 Peter 5:7
Cast all your anxiety on Him, because He cares for you.
Isaiah 40:31
But those who wait upon the LORD will renew their strength; they will mount up with wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not faint.
Philippians 4:6-7
Be anxious for nothing, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. / And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.
Proverbs 18:10
The name of the LORD is a strong tower; the righteous run to it and are safe.
John 14:27
Peace I leave with you; My peace I give to you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled; do not be afraid.
Hebrews 13:6
So we say with confidence: “The Lord is my helper; I will not be afraid. What can man do to me?”
Psalm 18:2
The LORD is my rock, my fortress, and my deliverer. My God is my rock, in whom I take refuge, my shield, and the horn of my salvation, my stronghold.
Romans 8:31
What then shall we say in response to these things? If God is for us, who can be against us?
Psalm 46:1-3
For the choirmaster. Of the sons of Korah. According to Alamoth. A song. God is our refuge and strength, an ever-present help in times of trouble. / Therefore we will not fear, though the earth is transformed and the mountains are toppled into the depths of the seas, / though their waters roar and foam and the mountains quake in the surge. Selah
2 Samuel 22:31-32
As for God, His way is perfect; the word of the LORD is flawless. He is a shield to all who take refuge in Him. / For who is God besides the LORD? And who is the Rock except our God?
2 Corinthians 12:9-10
But He said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for My power is perfected in weakness.” Therefore I will boast all the more gladly in my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may rest on me. / That is why, for the sake of Christ, I delight in weaknesses, in insults, in hardships, in persecutions, in difficulties. For when I am weak, then I am strong.
Psalm 91:1-2
He who dwells in the shelter of the Most High will abide in the shadow of the Almighty. / I will say to the LORD, “You are my refuge and my fortress, my God, in whom I trust.”
Ephesians 6:10
Finally, be strong in the Lord and in His mighty power.
Psalm 62:2
He only is my rock and my salvation; he is my defence; I shall not be greatly moved.
Psalm 18:31,32
For who is God save the LORD? or who is a rock save our God? …
Isaiah 45:17
But Israel shall be saved in the LORD with an everlasting salvation: ye shall not be ashamed nor confounded world without end.
Psalm 16:8
I have set the LORD always before me: because he is at my right hand, I shall not be moved.
Psalm 112:6
Surely he shall not be moved for ever: the righteous shall be in everlasting remembrance.
Proverbs 10:30
The righteous shall never be removed: but the wicked shall not inhabit the earth.
The LORD Is My Rock
(2 Samuel 22:1–51)
For the choirmaster. Of David the
servant of the LORD,
who sang this song to the LORD
on the day the
LORD had delivered him from
the hand of all his enemies
and from the hand of Saul. He said:
I Love You, O LORD,
my strength.
The LORD is my rock,
my fortress,
and my deliverer
My God is
My rock, in whom I take refuge,
my shield,
and the horn of my salvation,
my stronghold.
I will call upon the LORD,
who is
worthy to be praised;
so shall I be saved from my enemies.
The cords of death encompassed me;
the
torrents of chaos overwhelmed me.
The cords of Sheol entangled me;
the snares of death confronted me.
In my distress I called upon the LORD;
I cried to my God for help.
From His temple He heard my voice,
and my cry for His help reached His ears.
Then the earth shook and quaked,
and the
foundations of the mountains trembled;
they were
shaken because He burned with anger.
Smoke rose from His nostrils,
and consuming fire
came from His mouth;
glowing coals blazed forth.
He parted the heavens and came down
with dark clouds beneath His feet.
He mounted a cherub and flew;
He soared on the wings of the wind.
He made darkness His hiding place,
and storm
clouds a canopy around Him.
12From the brightness of His presence
His clouds advanced--
hailstones and coals of fire.
13The LORD thundered from heaven;
the voice of the Most High resounded--
hailstones and coals of fire
14He shot His arrows and scattered the foes;
He hurled lightning and routed them.
15The channels of the sea appeared,
and the foundations of the world were exposed,
at Your rebuke, O LORD,
at the blast of the breath of Your nostrils.
16He reached down from on high and took hold of me;
He drew me out of deep waters.
17He rescued me from my powerful enemy,
from foes too mighty for me.
18They confronted me in my day of calamity,
but the LORD was my support.
19He brought me out into the open;
He rescued me because He delighted in me.
20The LORD has rewarded me according to my righteousness;
He has repaid me according to the cleanness of my hands.
21For I have kept the ways of the LORD
and have not wickedly departed from my God.
22For all His ordinances are before me;
I have not disregarded His statutes.
23And I have been blameless before Him
and kept myself from iniquity.
24So the LORD has repaid me according to my righteousness,
according to the cleanness of my hands in His sight.
25To the faithful You show Yourself faithful,
to the blameless You show Yourself blameless;
26to the pure You show Yourself pure,
but to the crooked You show Yourself shrewd.
27For You save an afflicted people,
but You humble those with haughty eyes.
28For You, O LORD, light my lamp;
my God lights up my darkness.
29For in You I can charge an army,
and with my God I can scale a wall.
30As for God, His way is perfect;
the word of the LORD is flawless.
He is a shield to all who take refuge in Him.
31For who is God besides the LORD?
And who is the Rock except our God?
32It is God who arms me with strength
and makes my way clear.
33He makes my feet like those of a deer
and stations me upon the heights.
34He trains my hands for battle;
my arms can bend a bow of bronze.
35You have given me Your shield of salvation;
Your right hand upholds me,
and Your gentleness exalts me.
36You broaden the path beneath me
so that my ankles do not give way.
37I pursued my enemies and overtook them;
I did not turn back until they were consumed.
38I crushed them so they could not rise;
they have fallen under my feet.
39You have armed me with strength for battle;
You have subdued my foes beneath me.
40You have made my enemies retreat before me;
I destroyed those who hated me.
41They cried for help, but there was no one to save them--
to the LORD, but He did not answer.
42I ground them as dust in the face of the wind;
I trampled themd like mud in the streets.
43You have delivered me from the strife of the people;
You have made me the head of nations;
a people I had not known shall serve me.
44When they hear me, they obey me;
foreigners cower before me.
45Foreigners lose heart
and come trembling from their strongholds.
46The LORD lives, and blessed be my Rock!
And may the God of my salvation be exalted--
47the God who avenges me
and subdues nations beneath me,
48who delivers me from my enemies.
You exalt me above my foes;
You rescue me from violent men.
49Therefore I will praise You, O LORD, among the nations;
I will sing praises to Your name.e
50Great salvation He brings to His king.
He shows loving devotion to His anointed,
to David and his descendants forever.
2 Samuel 22:7
In my distress I called upon the LORD, and cried to my God: and he did hear my voice out of his temple, and my cry did enter into his ears.
2 Chronicles 18:13
And Micaiah said, As the LORD liveth, even what my God saith, that will I speak.
Nehemiah 5:19
Think upon me, my God, for good, according to all that I have done for this people.
Genesis 48:15
And he blessed Joseph, and said, God, before whom my fathers Abraham and Isaac did walk, the God which fed me all my life long unto this day,
Deuteronomy 8:3,4
And he humbled thee, and suffered thee to hunger, and fed thee with manna, which thou knewest not, neither did thy fathers know; that he might make thee know that man doth not live by bread only, but by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of the LORD doth man live…
Nehemiah 9:15
And gavest them bread from heaven for their hunger, and broughtest forth water for them out of the rock for their thirst, and promisedst them that they should go in to possess the land which thou hadst sworn to give them.
Psalm 36:8
They shall be abundantly satisfied with the fatness of thy house; and thou shalt make them drink of the river of thy pleasures.
Psalm 104:24
O LORD, how manifold are thy works! in wisdom hast thou made them all: the earth is full of thy riches.
Psalm 130:7
Let Israel hope in the LORD: for with the LORD there is mercy, and with him isplenteous redemption.
Romans 8:18
For I reckon that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory which shall be revealed in us.
2 Corinthians 4:17
For our light affliction, which is but for a moment, worketh for us a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory;
1 Thessalonians 2:12
That ye would walk worthy of God, who hath called you unto his kingdom and glory.
Christianity is unique
in that
God’s Mercy
is shown
through His justice.
There is no setting aside of justice to make
room for mercy.
The Christian doctrine of penal
substitution states
that
sin and injustice were
punished
at the cross of Christ
and it’s only
because the penalty of sin
was
satisfied through Christ’s
sacrifice
that God extends His Mercy
to undeserving
sinners who look to Him
for salvation
As Christ died
for sinners,
He also demonstrated
God’s righteousness;
His death
on the CROSS
showcased God’s justice
This is exactly what the apostle Paul
says:
All are justified freely
by his
grace through the redemption
that came by Christ Jesus.
God presented
Christ as a sacrifice of atonement,
through the
shedding of his blood—to be received
by faith
He did this to demonstrate his righteousness, because in his forbearance he had left the sins committed beforehand unpunished—he did it to demonstrate his righteousness at the present time, so as to be just and the one who justifies those who have faith in Jesus (Romans 3:24–26, emphasis added).
In other words, all the sin from Adam to the time of Christ was under the forbearance and mercy of God. God in His mercy chose not to punish sin, which would require an eternity in hell for all sinners, although He would have been perfectly just in doing so. Adam and Eve were not immediately destroyed when they ate the forbidden fruit. Instead, God planned a Redeemer (Genesis 3:15). In His love God sent His own Son (John 3:16). Christ paid for every single sin ever committed; thus, God was just in punishing sin, and He can also justify sinners who receive Christ by faith (Romans 3:26). God’s justice and His mercy were demonstrated by Christ’s death on the cross. At the cross, God’s justice was meted out in full (upon Christ), and God’s mercy was extended in full (to all who believe). So God’s perfect mercy
was exercised through His perfect justice.
The end RESULT is that everyone
who
TRUSTS in the LORD Jesus
is SAVED from God’s wrath
and INSTEAD
experiences His
GRACE and MERCY
(Romans 8:1)
As Paul says, “Since we have now been justified by his blood, how much more shall we be saved from God’s wrath through him!” (Romans 5:9).
Romans has the theme of faith (Romans 1:16–17). Paul addresses the process by which faith is produced in the heart in Romans 10:17: “Faith comes from hearing the message, and the message is heard through the word about Christ.”
The first eight chapters of Romans contends with the ideas of positional salvation through faith (Romans 1:18—5:21), the process of growing in holiness through faith (Romans 6:1—8:17), and the future glorification Christians will receive because of faith (Romans 8:18–39). Chapters 9—11 of Romans works from the implied question, “Has God then failed to fulfill His promises to Israel?”
It is within this context that Paul gives the reason for the Israelites’ lack of salvation; namely, they lack faith (Romans 9:32; 10:4). The Israelites are saved through faith in Christ, just like the Gentiles. Eternal salvation does not distinguish between Gentile or Jew but is received through belief in the person and work of Jesus Christ (Romans 10:12–13; 1 Corinthians 15:1–8; Galatians 3:23–29).
In the lead-up to the statement that faith comes by hearing, Romans 10:14–16 explains the requirements for a series of actions to take place. In order for one to “call on the name of the Lord,” he or she must believe. In order to believe, one must hear (or receive the report). In order for one to hear, another has to give the report. And that other won’t give the report unless he or she is sent.
Paul continues in Romans 10:17 to summarize the argument thus far: “So faith comes from hearing, and hearing by the word of Christ” (NASB).
“Faith” is translated from the Greek word pistis, which means “belief, trust, or confidence in someone or something.” It is key to the book of Romans and is used 40 times in the book—three of those occurrences appearing in chapter 10. The verb form of the word is also used 21 times within the book and most often translated as “believe.”
If faith comes by hearing, then what does Paul mean by “hearing”? In this context, it is not simply the physical receiving of sounds by the ear as most English speakers would understand the term. “Hearing” seems to designate something more—the receiving or acceptance of a report. Note the use of the word, translated “message” in Romans 10:16, as Paul quotes Isaiah 53:1: “Lord, who has believed our message?” In Isaiah’s day, the Lord had provided Israel with a message, but the prophet laments that few actually received it. The “hearing” was not attached to simple sounds but to a message or report given. In Romans 10, Paul makes the point that the good news has been given and the people of Israel have heard (Romans 10:18).
The nature of the gospel is a report: a report of God saving people from the wrath they deserve. In order to believe the report, one must receive the report! Faith comes by hearing. It is not a guarantee that the report will result in faith, as Paul makes clear in Romans 10:16. For just as the Israelites refused to believe the message of Isaiah, every human today can refuse to believe the message of the gospel.
The nature of “hearing” also does not require the physical act of hearing with the ear. The report simply needs to be received. For instance, someone could read the gospel through GotQuestions.org and receive it by faith, without an audible word being spoken. As long as the message can be received fully, the medium does not affect the outcome. The content of the message must be “the word about Christ.” As Paul states in 1 Corinthians 15:3–5, the message is “that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, and that He was buried, and that He was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures, and that He appeared to Cephas, then to the twelve” (NASB). Faith that leads to eternal salvation comes after “hearing”; that is, after receiving this message concerning Christ.
The word propitiation carries the basic idea of appeasement or satisfaction, specifically toward God. Propitiation is a two-part act that involves appeasing the wrath of an offended person and being reconciled to him.
The necessity of appeasing God is something many religions have in common. In ancient pagan religions, as well as in many religions today, the idea is taught that man appeases God by offering various gifts or sacrifices. However, the Bible teaches that God Himself has provided the only means through which His wrath can be appeased and sinful man can be reconciled to Him. In the New Testament, the act of propitiation always refers to the work of God and not the sacrifices or gifts offered by man. The reason for this is that man is totally incapable of satisfying God’s justice except by spending eternity in hell. There is no service, sacrifice, or gift that man can offer that will appease the holy wrath of God or satisfy His perfect justice. The only satisfaction, or propitiation, that could be acceptable to God and that could reconcile man to Him had to be made by God. For this reason God the Son, Jesus Christ, came into the world in human flesh to be the perfect sacrifice for sin and make atonement or “propitiation for the sins of the people” (Hebrews 2:17).
The word propitiation is used in several verses to explain what Jesus accomplished through His death on the cross. For example, in Romans 3:24-25 believers in Christ have been “justified freely by His grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus, whom God set forth as a propitiation by His blood, through faith, to demonstrate His righteousness, because in His forbearance God had passed over the sins that were previously committed.”
These verses are a key point in
Paul’s argument
in the book of Romans
and are really at the
HEART
of the
GOSPEL MESSAGE
In the first three chapters of Romans, Paul makes the argument that everyone, Jew and Gentile alike, is under the condemnation of God and deserving of His wrath (Romans 1:18). Everyone has sinned and fallen short of the glory of God (Romans 3:23). All of us deserve His wrath and punishment. God in His infinite grace and mercy has provided a way that His wrath can be appeased and we can be reconciled to Him. That way is through the sacrificial death of His Son, Jesus Christ, as the payment for sins. It is through faith in Jesus Christ as God’s perfect sacrifice that we can be reconciled to God. It is only because of Christ’s death on the cross and His resurrection on the third day that a lost sinner deserving of hell can be reconciled to a holy God. The wonderful truth of the gospel is that Christians are saved from God’s wrath and reconciled to God not because “we loved God, but that He loved us and sent His Son to be the propitiation for our sins” (1 John 4:10).
Jesus said, “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me” (John 14:6). The only way for God’s wrath against sinful man to be appeased and for us to be reconciled to God is through Jesus Christ. There is no other way. This truth is also communicated in 1 John 2:2, “And He Himself is the propitiation for our sins, and not for ours only but also for the whole world.” An important part of Christ’s saving work is deliverance from God’s wrath; Jesus’ propitiation on the cross is the only thing that can turn away God’s divine condemnation of sin. Those who reject Christ as their Savior and refuse to believe in Him have no hope of salvation. They can only look forward to facing the wrath of God that they have stored up for the coming day of judgment (Romans 2:5). There is no other propitiation or sacrifice that can be made for their sins.
The ministry of reconciliation in 2 Corinthians 5:18 refers to the work believers have been given to do and the message they declare: you can have a restored relationship with God through Jesus. The verse says this: “All this is from God, who reconciled us to himself through Christ and gave us the ministry of reconciliation.”
The ministry of reconciliation involves the proclamation of the gospel and its assurance that forgiveness of sin is available in Christ. Sin prevents us from having a relationship with God, but Jesus’ perfect sacrifice on the cross made atonement for sin (Hebrews 2:17) and brought harmony to mankind’s relationship with Him. Jesus reconciled us to God. Now we can proclaim that people can repent of their sin and be right with God again through faith in Jesus (Romans 5:10; Colossians 1:20–21).
We need reconciliation with God because our relationship with Him was broken. God is holy and righteous, and our sin separates us from Him (Isaiah 59:2). Sin made us His enemies (Romans 5:10). On the cross, Jesus took our sin upon Himself, satisfying God’s justice. Jesus’ death made it possible for us to have peace with God, as 2 Corinthians 5:19 says, “God was reconciling the world to himself in Christ, not counting people’s sins against them.” Now we can be called God’s “friends” (John 15:15) and Jesus’ “brothers and sisters” (Hebrews 2:11). Those who have been justified through faith (Romans 5:1) by Jesus’ blood (Romans 5:9) no longer have their sins counted against them. They are reconciled with God.
God has given believers the ministry of reconciliation; that is, He uses us to tell the world that they can be reconciled to God through Christ. In this way, we become “Christ’s ambassadors, as though God were making his appeal through us” (2 Corinthians 5:20). Verse 19 describes this ministry of reconciliation as proclaiming “the message of reconciliation.” The message we are to share with the world is this: “Be reconciled to God” (verse 20). We are to tell people of the wonderful opportunity they have to be made right with God through Jesus. We implore them to believe in Christ. Sins do not count against those who are reconciled to God through Christ, because “God made him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God” (verse 21).
This ministry of reconciliation is a big responsibility. God is “making his appeal through us” (2 Corinthians 5:20). The ministry we’ve been given to turn hearts toward God is urgent and it is vital—it’s truly a matter of life and death. Jesus paid the price for our reconciliation because God loves us (John 3:16), so we must share this message of reconciliation in love, and our lives need to reflect our message (Ephesians 4:1). Jesus is the One who saves, and the Holy Spirit is the One who convicts the world of guilt in regard to sin and righteousness and judgment (John 16:8), yet we have been given the privilege of being ambassadors for Christ.
Every believer plays a part in this ministry of reconciliation. One plants; one waters, and God brings growth (1 Corinthians 3:7). As we proclaim the gospel, we act as peacemakers, and God blesses such (Matthew 5:9). We tell and live out His message of reconciliation, lives are changed, and God gets the glory.
Another word for regeneration is rebirth, related to the biblical phrase “born again.” Our rebirth is distinguished from our first birth, when we were conceived physically and inherited our sin nature. The new birth is a spiritual, holy, and heavenly birth that results in our being made alive spiritually. Man in his natural state is “dead in trespasses and sins” until he is “made alive” (regenerated) by Christ. This happens when he places his faith in Christ (Ephesians 2:1).
Regeneration is a radical change. Just as our physical birth resulted in a new individual entering the earthly realm, our spiritual birth results in a new person entering the heavenly realm (Ephesians 2:6). After regeneration, we begin to see and hear and seek after divine things; we begin to live a life of faith and holiness. Now Christ is formed in the hearts; now we are partakers of the divine nature, having been made new creatures (2 Corinthians 5:17). God, not man, is the source of this transformation (Ephesians 2:1, 8). God’s great love and free gift, His rich grace and abundant mercy, are the cause of the rebirth. The mighty power of God—the power that raised Christ from the dead—is displayed in the regeneration and conversion of sinners (Ephesians 1:19–20).
Regeneration is necessary. Sinful human flesh cannot stand in God’s presence. In His conversation with Nicodemus, Jesus said twice that a man must be born again in order to see the kingdom of God (John 3:3, 7). Regeneration is not optional, for “flesh gives birth to flesh, but the Spirit gives birth to spirit” (John 3:6). Physical birth fits us for earth; spiritual rebirth fits us for heaven. See Ephesians 2:1; 1 Peter 1:23; John 1:13; 1 John 3:9; 4:7; 5:1, 4, 18. Regeneration is part of what God does for us at the moment of salvation, along with sealing (Ephesians 1:14), adoption (Galatians 4:5), reconciliation (2 Corinthians 5:18–20), etc. Regeneration is God’s making a person spiritually alive, as a result of faith in Jesus Christ. Prior to salvation we were not God’s children (John 1:12–13); rather, we were children of wrath (Ephesians 2:3; Romans 5:18–20). Before salvation, we were degenerate; after salvation we are regenerated. The result of regeneration is peace with God (Romans 5:1), new life (Titus 3:5; 2 Corinthians 5:17), and eternal sonship (John 1:12–13; Galatians 3:26). Regeneration begins the process of sanctification wherein we become the people God intends us to be (Romans 8:28–30).
The only means of regeneration is by faith in the finished work of Christ on the cross. No amount of good works or keeping of the Law can regenerate the heart. “By works of the law no human being will be justified in [God’s] sight” (Romans 3:20). Only Christ offers a cure for the total depravity of the human heart.
We don’t need renovation or reformation or reorganization;
we need rebirth.
The Bible uses several metaphors involving birth to help explain what it means to have a saving relationship with Jesus. We find terms such as born again (John 3:3), born of God (John 1:13), and born of the Spirit (John 3:6). They all mean the same thing. Birth metaphors are used because we all understand physical birth. When a baby is born, a new person emerges into the world. The new life will grow, and the young person will come to resemble his or her parents. When we are born of the Spirit, a “new person” arrives with a new spiritual life. And as we grow, we come to resemble our Father in heaven (Romans 8:29).
The SPIRIT gives BIRTH to SPIRIT”
John 3:6
The
HOLY SPIRIT
gives
BIRTH to SPIRITUAL LIFE,
while humans can
only
reproduce human life.
- The Holy Spirit's work is to cleanse, give new birth, and live inside a person, making them a holy temple.
- The Holy Spirit's work is to transform a person so that they begin to resemble Jesus.
- In this passage, Jesus is telling people that they must be BORN again, or born of the SPIRIT, to enter the kingdom of God.
- The Holy Spirit's work is to CREATE ANEW person who desires to believe in CHRIST
- This new birth is irresistible, meaning that it happens before a person is aware of it, and it TRANSFORMS their affections and removes their hostility toward God.
We are the aroma of Christ to God among those
who are being saved
and among those who are perishing,
to one a fragrance from death to death,
to the other a
fragrance from
life to life
Who is
sufficient for these things?”
(vv. 15–16).
Paul likens his Apostolic ministry
to the VICTORY
parades of Roman generals.
Paul was a
BONDSERVANT TO CHRIST
Reaffirm Your Love
1So I made up my mind not to make another painful visit to you. 2For if I grieve you, who is left to cheer me but those whom I have grieved? 3I wrote as I did so that on my arrival I would not be grieved by those who ought to make me rejoice. I had confidence in all of you, that you would share my joy. 4For through many tears I wrote you out of great distress and anguish of heart, not to grieve you but to let you know how much I love you.
5Now if anyone has caused grief, he has not grieved me but all of you—to some degree, not to overstate it. 6The punishment imposed on him by the majority is sufficient for him. 7So instead, you ought to forgive and comfort him, so that he will not be overwhelmed by excessive sorrow. 8Therefore I urge you to reaffirm your love for him.
9My purpose in writing you was to see if you would stand the test and be obedient in everything. 10If you forgive anyone, I also forgive him. And if I have forgiven anything, I have forgiven it in the presence of Christ for your sake, 11in order that Satan should not outwit us. For we are not unaware of his schemes.
Triumph in Christ
12Now when I went to Troas to preach the gospel of Christ and a door stood open for me in the Lord, 13I had no peace in my spirit, because I did not find my brother Titus there. So I said goodbye to them and went on to Macedonia.
14But thanks be to God, who always leads us triumphantly as captives in Christ and through us spreads everywhere the fragrance of the knowledge of Him. 15For we are to God the sweet aroma of Christ among those who are being saved and those who are perishing. 16To the one we are an odor that brings death, to the other a fragrance that brings life.a And who is qualified for such a task?
17For we are not like so many others, who peddle the word of God for profit. On the contrary, in Christ we speak before God with sincerity, as men sent from God.
Paul addresses the process
by which
faith
is produced in
the
heart
in
Romans 10:17:
“Faith comes
from
hearing the message,
and the message
is heard through
the
word about Christ.”
“And without faith it is impossible to
please God,
because anyone who comes to him
must believe that he exists
and that he
rewards those who earnestly
seek him”
(Hebrews 11:6)
anyone who
comes to him must believe
that
He exists.”
Those who
desire
to draw near to God
must have a
deep-rooted belief that
He IS Real
Without a
genuine conviction that God exists,
it is impossible to
have an
intimate relationship with Him.
Second, the Lord’s followers must
believe
“that he rewards those who earnestly
seek him.”
This aspect of faith
trusts
in the
character of God
as a good, loving,
generous, gracious, and merciful
Father
(James 1:17; Psalm 84:11; Lamentations 3:22–23).
These two certainties are the
groundwork of saving faith—a faith
that pleases God.
Without faith, it is impossible to please God,
because
faith is the avenue by which
we come to God and
trust
Him for our salvation.
In His infinite goodness,
God provides the
very thing
we need to draw near
to Him:
“For it is by
grace you have been saved,
through faith
—and this
is not from yourselves,
it is the GIFT of God
—not by
works, so that no one can boast”
(Ephesians 2:8–9)
God gives us the faith required
to please Him.
Hebrews 11:1 gives a definition, or at least a good description,
of the faith that pleases God:
“Now faith is
confidence in what we
hope for
and assurance
about what we do not see.”
“Confidence”
is the
translation of a Greek
word that
means “foundation.”
Faith is the
foundation that undergirds
our Hope
It is not a blind grasping in the dark, but an
absolute conviction that comes
from
experiencing God’s love
and the
faithfulness of His Word
The term translated “assurance” is also translated as “evidence” or “proof.” With our natural eyes, we cannot see the realities of God’s kingdom, but by faith we receive the evidence or proof that they exist.
We’ve established that without faith it is impossible to come to God.
It is also impossible to live for God—to follow and
serve Him daily
and persevere
until the end—without faith.
The entire Christian life is lived
out by faith:
“For in the gospel the righteousness
of God
is revealed—a righteousness
that is by faith from first to last, just as it is written:
“The righteous will live by faith’”
(Romans 1:17; see also Habakkuk 2:4; Galatians 3:11; Hebrews 10:38).
The apostle Paul affirmed,
“I have been crucified
with
Christ and I no longer live,
but
Christ lives in me.
The life I now live in the
body,
I live by faith in the
Son of God,
who
loved me and gave himself
for me”
(Galatians 2:20).
Scripture refers explicitly to
Enoch’s faith
as
pleasing to God:
“It was by faith
That Enoch was taken
up to heaven
without dying—‘
he
disappeared, because God
took him.’
For before he was taken up,
he was known
as a person who pleased God”
(Hebrews 11:5, NLT; cf. Genesis 5:24).
How did Enoch please God?
Through living by faith.
Enoch
walked by Faith in God
He obeyed the Word
that
had been revealed
up to that
Point and lived in the
Light of its Truth
Walking by faith means consistently living according
to God’s Word
(John 14:15).
Without faith, it is impossible to believe God’s Word and obey it.
Only based on
what Jesus Christ has done for us
can we become holy
and able
to live a life pleasing to God
(1 Corinthians 1:30).
Christ’s life in us
produces the righteousness
that pleases God
(2 Corinthians 5:21; Philippians 2:13; 3:9).
Without faith, it is impossible to please God;
in fact,
we cannot even begin to approach
the Lord
and experience a personal
relationship with Him without it.
Faith is the atmosphere
in which the believer’s life is lived.
We are called “believers”
because we are
continually putting our faith, trust,
and confidence in God.
By faith the Christian life begins,
and by faith
it perseveres until the end.
Grace is a free gift from God,
not something that can be earned
or bought.
Grace is a gift that saves
people from judgment and makes them
partakers of Christ's salvation.
Grace is a gift that replaces
the law,
and that allows people to
live
"under grace" instead of "under law".
Grace is a gift that
allows people
to be
kind and compassionate
to one another,
forgiving each other,
just as
God has forgiven them
Ephesians 2:8-9, Ephesians 1:2-10, John 1:16, Galatians 2-5, and Romans 6:23.
Grace is a gift
that allows people
to be
delivered from God's wrath at
the
final judgment
Justified by his grace" means that a person is declared righteous or innocent before God solely because of God's unmerited favor, or grace, not due to any good deeds or merit of their own;
Romans 3:24,
"and are justified freely
by his
Grace
through the redemption
that is in Christ Jesus
Therefore,
there is
now no condemnation
for those
who are in Christ Jesus,
because through
Christ Jesus
the law of the Spirit
who gives life
has set you free
from the law
of sin and death
Habakkuk 2:4
includes the well-known statement
“the righteous will live by faith.”
What does this mean?
The context helps us to understand God’s intent in this passage. The whole verse reads, “Behold, his soul is puffed up; it is not upright within him, but the righteous shall live by his faith.” “His soul” is a symbolic reference to Babylonia. This nation had become proud or “puffed up.” As a result, they were unrighteous and facing God’s judgment.
In contrast, the righteous (or the “just”) would
live by faith in God.
By contrast,
the righteous are humble in
God’s eyes
and will never face God’s judgment.
Habakkuk 2:4 is quoted three
times in
The New Testament
Paul quotes it in Romans 1:17,
emphasizing the idea
that
righteousness by faith
is for both
Jews and Gentiles:
“For in the GOSPEL
a righteousness of God
is revealed
FROM faith TO faith,
just as it is written,
‘The righteous will live BY faith.’”
Then, in Galatians 3:11, we read, “Now it is evident that no one is justified before God by the law, for ‘
The righteous shall live by faith.’”
Here, Paul stresses that we are justified or made
right before God by faith.
The Law has no ability to justify anyone.
As Habakkuk had recorded,
people have always been saved by faith,
not by works.
Habakkuk 2:4 is also quoted in Hebrews 10:38.
This verse continues the thought begun in verse 13,
explaining
how the Colossian believers had been
forgiven
Though the Colossians were
once dead in sin,
and
uncircumcised,
now they are alive
and
spiritually circumcised
in Christ
In this verse, Paul makes special emphasis on several aspects of the
forgiveness we have
in Jesus
So then, the law was our guardian
until
Christ came, in order
that we might be justified by faith.
So the law
was our guardian until Christ came that
we might be justified by
faith
Even so, consider yourselves to be
dead to sin
[and your relationship to it broken], but
alive to God
[in unbroken fellowship with Him] in
Christ Jesus
Living Sacrifices
(1 Corinthians 3:16–23; 1 Corinthians 6:18–20)
Therefore I urge you, brothers, on account of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to God, which is your spiritual service of worship. Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what is the good, pleasing, and perfect will of God.
For by the grace given me I say to every one of you: Do not think of yourself more highly than you ought, but think of yourself with sober judgment, according to the measure of faith God has given you. Just as each of us has one body with many members, and not all members have the same function, so in Christ we who are many are one body, and each member belongs to one another.
We have different gifts according to the grace given us. If one’s gift is prophecy, let him use it in proportion to his faith; if it is serving, let him serve; if it is teaching, let him teach; if it is encouraging, let him encourage; if it is giving, let him give generously; if it is leading, let him lead with diligence; if it is showing mercy, let him do it cheerfully.
Jesus cancelled the record of our debt,
in the same way a
legal pardon cancels the penalty for that crime.
In the day and time Paul wrote this,
a person could be
arrested or enslaved to pay off financial debts.
They could also be enslaved as punishment
for committing a crime.
The image Paul's original readers would have gotten
is a person's financial debt
being erased along with the legal consequences.
A believer no longer lived
under the threat of
punishment or enslavement to sin.
Second, Jesus "set aside" our sins as believers.
This is a separate
action from the legal or financial metaphor.
Declaring someone "pardoned" does
not necessarily
mean they are "welcomed."
However, according to Paul,
those who put
their faith in Christ have
their sins
removed from His sight.
The failures of a saved believer
are no longer a
barrier
between them and God.
God's forgiveness
not only
means freedom from the
eternal punishment
of sin,
it means we can have
a living
relationship with God,
now.
Third, for the
believer in Christ,
the
death of Jesus on the cross
is
sufficient
payment for all sins.
Paul uses a graphic metaphor
here, of
sin itself being crucified.
In that era,
crucifixion was not merely a
brutal form of execution,
it was a
sign of absolute rejection
There were many other ways to execute people
at that time,
but crucifixion
carried a sense of shame and disowning.
So, when God crucifies sin,
He is not merely killing it,
He is completely and utterly ignoring it
and cutting it off.
This thought is further emphasized in verse 15, where
Paul says that
Christ's victory over sin
is a
mark of "open shame"
for the
spiritual powers which oppose us
Speaking of Jesus, the writer to the
Hebrews says,
“Therefore He is able also to save forever
those who
draw near to God through Him,
since He always
lives to make intercession for them”
(Hebrews 7:25).
This verse (and others like it) tells us that
although
Christ’s Work to secure
the salvation
of the
elect was Completed
on the CROSS
as evidenced by
His cry “It is finished!”
(John 19:30),
His care for His redeemed children will never be finished.
Jesus did not go to heaven after His earthly ministry and “take a break” from His role as eternal Shepherd to His people. “For if while we were enemies we were reconciled to God through the death of His Son, much more, having been reconciled, we shall be saved by His life” (Romans 5:10, emphasis added).
If when humble, despised,
dying, and dead,
He had the power to accomplish
so great a work
as reconciling us to God,
how much more
may we expect that He will
be able
to keep us now that
He is a living,
exalted, and
triumphant Redeemer,
raised to life
and interceding
on our
behalf before the throne
(Romans 8:34)
. Clearly,
Jesus is still
very active on our behalf
in heaven.
After Jesus ascended to heaven
and was
seated at the right hand of God the Father
(Acts 1:9; Colossians 3:1),
He returned to
the glory He had before His
incarnation
(John 17:5)
to carry on His role of King of kings and Lord of lords--
His eternal role as
the second Person of the triune God.
While this old earth continues to be “won” for Christ,
Jesus is the Advocate for
Christians,
meaning He is our great Defender.
This is the intercessory role
He currently fulfills for those who are His
(1 John 2:1).
Jesus is always pleading our case
before the Father,
like a defense lawyer on our behalf.
Jesus is interceding for us while Satan (whose name means “accuser”) is accusing us, pointing out our sins and frailties before God, just as he did with Job (Job 1:6-12). But the accusations fall upon deaf ears in heaven, because Jesus’ work on the cross paid our sin debt in full; therefore, God always sees in His children the perfect righteousness of Jesus. When Jesus died on the cross, His righteousness (perfect holiness) was imputed to us, while our sin was imputed to Him at His death. This is the great exchange Paul talks about in 2 Corinthians 5:21. That took away forever our sinful state before God, so God can accept us as blameless before Him.
Christ alone is the God-man,
and
He mediates and intercedes between
God and man.
“For there is one God,
and one mediator also
between
God and men, the man
Christ Jesus”
(1 Timothy 2:5).
God Works in All Things
(Ephesians 1:3–14)
And we know that God works all things together for the good of those who love Him, who are called according to His purpose. For those God foreknew, He also predestined to be conformed to the image of His Son, so that He would be the firstborn among many brothers.
And those He predestined, He also called; those
He called,
He also justified; those He justified,
He also glorified.
What then shall we say in response
to these things?
If God is for us, who can be against us?
He who did not spare His own Son
but gave Him up
for us all, how will He not also,
along with Him, freely give us all things?
Who will bring
any charge against God’s elect?
It is God who justifies.
Who is there to condemn us?
For Christ Jesus, who died,
and more than that was raised to life,
is at the right hand
of God—and He is interceding for us.
More than Conquerors
(Psalm 44:1–26)
Who shall separate us from the
love of Christ?
Shall trouble or distress
or persecution or famine or nakedness
or danger or sword?
As it is written:
“For Your sake we face death all day long;
we are
considered as sheep to be slaughtered.”
No, in all these things we are
more than conquerors
through Him who loved us.
For I am convinced that neither
death nor life,
neither angels nor principalities,
neither the present nor the future,
nor any powers, neither height
nor depth,
nor anything else in all creation,
will be able to separate us from
the love of God
that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.
Absent in Body, Present in Spirit
(Revelation 3:14–22)
For I want you to know how much I am struggling for you and for those at Laodicea, and for all who have not met me face to face, that they may be encouraged in heart, knit together in love, and filled with the full riches of complete understanding, so that they may know the mystery of God, namely Christ, in whom are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge.
I say this so that no one will deceive you by smooth rhetoric. For although I am absent from you in body, I am present with you in spirit, and I delight to see your orderly condition and firm faith in Christ.
Alive with Christ
(Ephesians 2:1–10)
Therefore, just as you have received Christ Jesus as Lord, continue to walk in Him, rooted and built up in Him, established in the faith as you were taught, and overflowing with thankfulness.
See to it that no one takes you captive through philosophy and empty deception, which are based on human tradition and the spiritual forces of the world rather than on Christ.
For in Christ all the fullness of the Deity dwells in bodily form. And you have been made complete in Christ, who is the head over every ruler and authority.
In Him you were also circumcised, in the putting off of your sinful nature, with the circumcision performed by Christ and not by human hands. And having been buried with Him in baptism, you were raised with Him through your faith in the power of God, who raised Him from the Absent in Body, Present in Spirit
(Revelation 3:14–22)
When you were dead in your trespasses and in the uncircumcision of your sinful nature, God made you alive with Christ. He forgave us all our trespasses, having canceled the debt ascribed to us in the decrees that stood against us.
He took it away, nailing
it to the cross!
And having disarmed the powers
and authorities,
He made a public spectacle of them,
triumphing over them by the cross.
Therefore let no one judge you by what
you eat or drink, or with
regard to a feast,
a New Moon, or a Sabbath.
These are a shadow of the things to come,
but the
body that casts it belongs to Christ.
Do not let anyone who delights in false humility
and the worship of angels
disqualify you with speculation about
what he has seen.
Such a person is puffed up without basis by his unspiritual mind.
He has lost connection to the head, from whom the whole body,
supported and knit together
by its joints and ligaments, grows as God causes it to grow.
If you have died
with
Christ to the spiritual forces
of the world,
why, as though you still belonged
to the world, do you submit to its regulations:
21“Do not handle, do not taste, do not touch!”?
These will all perish with use,
because they are based
on human commands and teachings.
Such restrictions indeed have an
appearance of wisdom,
with their self-prescribed worship,
their false humility,
and their harsh treatment of the body;
but they are of no value
against the indulgence of the flesh.
There are two primary Greek words
that describe
Scripture which are translated
“word”
in the
New Testament
The first, logos, refers principally
to the
total inspired Word of God
and to Jesus,
who is the living Word
Logos is found
in John 1:1; Luke 8:11; Philippians 2:16; Hebrews 4:12;
and other verses.
The second Greek word translated
“word” is rhema,
which refers to the spoken word
Rhema
literally means an utterance
(individually, collectively or specifically)
Examples are found in Luke 1:38; 3:2; 5:5;
and
Acts 11:16.
Charismatic and non-charismatic Christians
have
different views regarding
rhema and how
it
should be understood
Some charismatics view rhema as the
voice of the Holy Spirit
speaking to them at the present moment
They believe they should be guided by
the Holy Spirit
through
inner feelings, impressions and experiences
Some believe that the direct words of God to the individual
can also be imparted
through the words of others,
such as a preacher in a worship service or a friend
who counsels them.
Through these avenues, the Christian experiences
God’s direct leading.
There is also the belief that the
spoken word
has more power than the written word,
but there is
no biblical basis for such a belief.
Evangelical Christians, however, have a
much different
understanding of rhema,
believing
that it is essentially synonymous with logos.
In other words, the
specific guidance we receive from the
Holy Spirit
at any given time
can only be discerned
by the
general principles laid down in the Bible.
Where the Bible is silent on specifics—such as
where a
young person should
go
to college--
then the Christian applies biblical principles
(good stewardship of God-given resources, protecting one’s heart and mind from godless influences, etc.)
to the situation and thereby arrives at a decision.
The test of the
authenticity of a rhema from God
is how it
compares to the whole of Scripture.
Orthodoxy says that
God will not speak a word that
contradicts
His written Word, the Scriptures, so there is a
built-in safeguard
to prevent misinterpretation.
The obvious danger is that one
who is
not familiar with the logos
can
misinterpret or misunderstand
what
he or she perceives to be a rhema.
The term word
is used in different ways
in the Bible.
In the New Testament,
there are two Greek words translated
"word": rhema
and
logos
For example, in Luke 1:38, when
the angel told Mary that
she would
be the mother of God’s Son,
Mary replied, "Behold,
I am the
servant of the Lord;
let it be
to me according to
your word [rhema].”
Logos, however, has a broader, more philosophical meaning.
This is the term used in
John 1.
It usually implies a total message, and is used
mostly in reference to
God’s message to mankind.
For example, Luke 4:32 says that,
when
Jesus taught the people,
"they were amazed at his teaching,
because his
words [logos] had authority."
The people were amazed
not merely by
the particular words Jesus chose
but by
His total message
"The Word" (Logos)
in
John 1 is referring
to Jesus
Jesus is the
total Message—everything
that God
wants to communicate
to man.
The first chapter of John gives us a
glimpse inside the
Father/Son relationship
before
Jesus came to earth in human form
He preexisted with the Father (verse 1),
He was involved in
the creation of everything (verse 3),
and He is
the "light of all mankind" (verse 4).
The Word (Jesus) is the full embodiment of all that is God
(Colossians 1:19; 2:9; John 14:9).
But God the Father is Spirit.
He is invisible to the human eye.
The message of love and redemption
that God spoke through
the prophets
had gone unheeded for centuries
(Ezekiel 22:26; Matthew 23:37).
People found it easy to
disregard the
message of an invisible God
and
continued in their sin and rebellion.
So the Message became
flesh,
took on human form,
and came
to dwell among us
(Matthew 1:23; Romans 8:3; Philippians 2:5–11).
The Greeks used the word logos to refer to
one’s “mind,” “reason,” or “wisdom.”
John used
this Greek concept to communicate the fact that
Jesus,
the Second Person of the Trinity,
is the
self-expression of God to the world.
In the Old Testament, the word of God brought the universe into existence
(Psalm 33:6)
and saved the needy (Psalm 107:20).
In chapter 1 of his Gospel,
John is
appealing to both Jew and Gentile to receive the eternal Christ.
Jesus told a parable
in Luke 20:9–16 to explain why the
Word had to become flesh.
“A man planted a vineyard, rented it to some farmers and went away for a long time. At harvest time he sent a servant to the tenants so they would give him some of the fruit of the vineyard. But the tenants beat him and sent him away empty-handed. He sent another servant, but that one also they beat and treated shamefully and sent away empty-handed. He sent still a third, and they wounded him and threw him out.
“Then the owner of the vineyard said, ‘
What shall I do?
I will send my son,
whom I love; perhaps they will
respect him.’
But when the tenants saw him, they talked the matter over. ‘
This is the heir,’ they said. ‘
Let’s kill him, and the inheritance will be ours.’
So they threw him out of the vineyard and
killed him.
What then will the owner of the vineyard do to them?
He will come and kill those tenants and give the vineyard to others.”
In this parable,
Jesus was reminding the Jewish leaders that they had
rejected the prophets
and were
now rejecting the Son.
The Logos, the Word of God,
was now going
to be offered to everyone, not just the Jews
(John 10:16;
Galatians 2:28; Colossians 3:11).
Because the Word became flesh,
we have a high priest
who is able to empathize with our weaknesses,
one who has been tempted
in every way, just as we are—yet He did not sin
(Hebrews 4:15).
Believing that
Jesus is God incarnate
who died on the
cross
to pay
the penalty for our sins
and was
resurrected is not enough.
Even the demons “believe” in God and acknowledge those facts
(cf. James 2:19).
We must personally
and fully
rely on the death of Christ
as the
atoning sacrifice for our sins.
We must “sit in the chair” of the salvation
that
Jesus Christ has provided.
This is saving
faith.
The faith God requires of us for salvation is belief in what the Bible says about
who Jesus is
and what He accomplished and
fully trusting
in Jesus for that salvation
(Acts 16:31).
Biblical Faith
is always
accompanied by repentance:)
(Matthew 21:32; Mark 1:15).
The biblical definition of faith does not apply only to salvation.
It is equally applicable to the rest of the Christian life.
We are to believe what the Bible says, and we are to obey it.
We are to believe the promises of God, and we are to live accordingly.
We are to agree with the truth of God’s Word, and
we are to allow
ourselves to be transformed by it
(Romans 12:2).
Why is this definition of faith so important?
Why must trust
accompany agreeing with facts?
Because
“without faith, it is impossible to please God”
(Hebrews 11:6).
Without faith, we cannot be saved
(John 3:16).
Without faith, the Christian life cannot be what God intends it to be
(John 10:10).
“Don't go back to bondage of law"
means to not return to a state of being controlled or restricted by the
rules of the law,
particularly referring to the idea that through faith in Christ,
Christians are freed from the burden of needing to perfectly
follow the law to be saved;
essentially, it's a warning against trying to earn salvation through strict
adherence to legalistic practices
Freedom in Christ
Otis is for freedom that Christ has set us free.
Stand firm, then,
and do not be
encumbered once more by a
yoke of slavery.
Take notice: I, Paul, tell you that if you let yourselves
be circumcised,
Christ will be of no value to you at all.
Again I testify to every
man
who gets himself
circumcised that he
is
obligated to obey the
whole law.
you who are trying to be justified
by the law
have been severed from
Christ;
you have fallen away from
grace.
but by faith
we eagerly await
through the Spirit
the hope
of righteousness.
for in Christ Jesus neither
circumcision nor uncircumcision
has any value.
What matters is
faith expressing itself through love.
You were running so well. Who has obstructed you from obeying
the truth?
Such persuasion does not come from the One who calls you.
A little leaven works through the whole batch of dough.
I AM
confident in the Lord that you will take
no other view.
The one who is troubling you will bear
the judgment,
whoever he may be.
Now, brothers, if I am still preaching circumcision,
why am I still being persecuted?
In that case the offense of the cross has been abolished.
As for those who are agitating you,
I wish they
would proceed to emasculate themselves!
For you, brothers, were called to freedom;
but do not use
your freedom as an opportunity
for the flesh.
Rather, serve one another in love.
The entire law is fulfilled in a
single decree:
“Love your neighbor as yourself.”
A yoke is a wooden bar
that
joins two oxen to each other
and to
the burden they pull.
An “unequally yoked” team
has one
stronger ox and one weaker,
or one taller and one shorter.
The weaker or shorter ox would walk
more slowly
than the taller, stronger one,
causing
the load to go around
in circles.
When oxen are unequally
yoked,
they cannot perform the task set
before them.
Instead of working together,
they
are at odds with one another.
Paul’s
admonition in 2 Corinthians 6:14
is part of a larger discourse
to the
church at Corinth on the Christian life
He discouraged them from
being in an
unequal partnership with unbelievers
because
believers and unbelievers are opposites,
just as light and darkness are opposites.
They simply have nothing in common, just as Christ has nothing in common
with “Belial,” a Hebrew word meaning “worthlessness” (verse 15).
Here Paul uses it to refer to Satan.
The idea is that the pagan, wicked, unbelieving world is governed by the
principles of Satan
and that Christians
should be separate from that wicked world,
just as Christ was separate
from all the methods, purposes, and plans of Satan.
He had no
participation in them; He formed no union with them,
and so it should be with the followers
of the one in
relation to the followers of the other
Attempting to live
a Christian life with a non-Christian
for our close friend and ally
will only
cause us to go around in circles.
The “unequal yoke” is often applied to business relationships
For a Christian to enter
into a partnership with an unbeliever is to court disaster.
Unbelievers have opposite worldviews and morals,
and business decisions
made daily will reflect the worldview of one partner or the other.
For the relationship to work, one or the other must abandon
his moral center and
move
toward that of the other.
More often than not, it is the believer who finds himself
pressured to leave his Christian principles behind
for the sake of
profit and the growth of the business.
Of course, the closest alliance
one person can have
with another is found in marriage,
and this is
how the passage is usually interpreted.
God’s plan
is for a man and a woman to become
“one flesh”
Genesis 2:24
a relationship so intimate that one literally and figuratively
becomes part of the other.
Uniting a believer with an unbeliever is essentially
uniting opposites,
which makes for a very difficult marriage
relationship.
Jesus does not
deny
His kingship wholly;
He has a kingdom,
but it
is “from another place”
(John 18:36).
He says He had “come into the world”
(John 18:37),
with the clear implication that He was from some place other than this world (cf. John 3:3).
His kingdom is heavenly and extends
over
the hearts and minds of His subjects.
It does not originate in this world:
“His royal power and state
are not
furnished by earthly force, or fleshly
ordinances,
or physical energies, or material wealth,
or imperial armies
Another mention of principalities and powers is in Colossians 1:16,
“For by him
all things
were created: things in
heaven and on earth,
visible and invisible,
whether thrones
or powers or rulers or authorities;
all things were
created by him and for him.”
Here is the clear
statement that God is the
Creator
and Ruler over all authorities,
whether they
submit to Him
or rebel against Him.
Whatever power the evil forces possess, they are
not out of the
ultimate control of our sovereign God,
who uses even the wicked for
bringing about
His perfect plan and purpose
(Daniel 4:35; Isaiah 46:10–11).
In the next chapter of Colossians, we read about
Jesus’ ultimate power over
all
other powers:
“And having disarmed
the
powers and authorities,
he made a
public spectacle of them,
triumphing
over them by the cross”
(Colossians 2:15).
In keeping with all things, the powers are created by Christ and therefore under His control. They are not to be feared, for they have been disarmed by the cross. The Savior, by His death, took dominion from them, and took back what they had captured. Satan and his legions had invaded the earth and drawn mankind into captivity, subjecting them to their evil reign. But Christ, by His death, subdued the invaders and recaptured those who had been vanquished. Colossians 2:14 speaks of Jesus being nailed to the cross along with the written charges against us. The record of our wrongdoing, with which Satan accuses us before God, is nailed with Christ to the cross. It is thereby destroyed, and the powers can no longer accuse us; we are innocent in the eyes of God. Hence, they are disarmed.
Ephesians 3:10–11 presents different
principalities and powers--
those of the heavenly realms:
“His intent
was that now, through
the church, the
manifold wisdom of God should be
made known
to the rulers and authorities in the
heavenly realms,
according to
his eternal purpose
which he
accomplished
in
Christ Jesus our Lord.”
Here we see the
angelic hosts
being shown the
wisdom and purpose
of God
in the plan of
salvation through
Christ
Angels,
both holy and unholy
witness
the glory of God
and the
preeminence of Christ
above
all creatures in the church,
those who are
saved and preserved by
His power
(Ephesians 1:20–21).
Ephesians 6:12 declares the warfare in which we are engaged as we battle throughout our lives “against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms.”
So, having been saved, we must continue to struggle to do good things in light of the sure victory promised in Romans 8. It is as though we are facing an army of dark powers who have been
disarmed from real power
and against whom
we have been promised victory.
It is our job
to demonstrate and depend upon
the
Wisdom and Power of God
in
defeating them in our lives.
We can do this
by trusting in
God’s Victory
The final reference to principalities and powers is Titus 3:1. Here they refer to those governmental authorities whom God has placed over us for our protection and welfare.
They are God’s representatives
on earth,
and submission to Him
involves submission to
His duly
constituted authorities.
Those who rebel against
earthly authorities are
“rebelling against what God has instituted,
and those who do so
will bring judgment on themselves”
(Romans 13:2).
As His followers, Christians
are members of
His kingdom, which is “not of this world.”
We know that
“our citizenship is in heaven”
(Philippians 3:20).
We “seek first his kingdom and his righteousness”
Matthew 6:33
And we rest in the knowledge
that our King
gives us eternal life:
“The world
and its desires pass away,
but whoever does
The Will of God
lives forever”
(1 John 2:17).
We are on earth for now,
but our earthly
lives are nothing but
a vapor
in comparison to eternity
(James 4:14).
“This world in its present form is passing away”
(1 Corinthians 7:31).
The sufferings and trials of this world
are part of life.
But, in remembering that we
are “not of this world,”
we know that such
things
are just for a little while
(1 Peter 5:10).
The knowledge
that we are not of this world gives
Christians hope
even in the darkest times
(1 Peter 1:6 –9).
This broken place is
not where we ultimately belong,
and it is
not where we will stay
(Hebrews 13:14).
“We are
receiving a kingdom
that cannot be shaken”
(Hebrews 12:28).
Christians, as part of Jesus’ kingdom,
are not of this world.
We have been adopted as heirs of heaven
by God Himself,
and that is where our citizenship is
(Titus 3:7).
Until our King returns, we wait
(Titus 2:13),
and we hope (Romans 5:5),
and we do
what we can to bring others
into the
“not of this world”
Relationship with Jesus Christ
In John 14:17,
Jesus says,
“Even the Spirit of Truth,
whom the world cannot
receive,
because it neither sees him
nor knows him.
You know him,
for
he dwells with you
and
will be in you”
(ESV)
Because the ESV capitalizes
Spirit,
modern readers can easily infer
that
the spirit in question is
The Holy Spirit
To understand why
Jesus refers to the Holy Spirit
as
the “Spirit of truth,”
let us review the context of John 14.
John 14 is part of the Upper Room Discourse (John 13—17), a collection of
teachings delivered
by Jesus
to His disciples
on the
night
before His crucifixion
In these final moments, the disciples were
greatly distressed about the
impending
departure of their beloved
friend, Jesus
(John 14:1).
For this reason,
Jesus took an extended moment
to calm
their troubled hearts
and
reassure them that
“another Helper” was on the way
(John 14:16, ESV)
The Greek term translated
as “Helper”
(John 14:16, 26; 15:26; 16:7)
is paráklētos.
The form of this word is passive
and means
“one who is called alongside.”
At the Son’s request, the Father will
send another Helper
to encourage and exhort the disciples
John’s use of the term another implies that the
disciples already had a helper--
the one who would
soon depart from the earth.
Although the Gospel writers never explicitly refer to
Jesus as a paráklētos,
the term is applied to Him in 1 John 2:1.
Thus, in the context of John 14:16,
Jesus promises to send
His disciples
a helper of the same type,
and that helper would
continue
the ministry that Jesus began
In John 14:17, the
identity of the helper is now
revealed:
He is the Spirit of truth
(cf. John 15:26; 16:13).
The Spirit of truth is God
the Holy Spirit,
the third Person of the
Trinity
The Father will send the Spirit to come alongside the disciples.
He is called the Spirit of truth
because
He bears witness
to the
TRUTH of Jesus Christ
(see John 14:6).
In contrast to the work of the Holy Spirit is the
work of the devil,
a being who does not hold
“to the truth, for there is no truth in him.
When he lies, he speaks his native language,
for he is a liar and the father of lies” (John 8:44).
Because the unbelieving world remains
ensnared by satanic falsehoods,
they cannot receive the Spirit of truth
(cf. 1 Corinthians 2:14).
Tragically, unbelievers prefer to
walk by sight
and not by faith, failing to
understand that
sight guarantees nothing.
At the moment of His baptism, Jesus received the
Holy Spirit:
John bore witness:
“I saw the Spirit descend from heaven like a dove, and it remained on him”
(John 1:32, ESV).
So, in a sense, the Spirit of truth was already
with the disciples.
Following
the
departure of Jesus,
however,
the
disciples will know
the Spirit
more intimately because He
would be in them
(cf. Romans 8:9–11 and Ephesians 1:13–14)
Before the disciples began their ministry, Jesus instructed them to
remain in Jerusalem for the promised Holy Spirit:
“And while staying with them he ordered them not to depart from Jerusalem, but to wait for the promise of the Father, which, he said, ‘you heard from me;
for
John baptized with
water,
but you will be baptized
with the
Holy Spirit
not many days
from now’”
(Acts 1:4–5, ESV).
Once the Holy Spirit came
upon them,
they were fully equipped
to proclaim
The Gospel of Jesus Christ
(verse 8).
Believers should be thankful
that the
Spirit of truth
is with us,
in us, and upon us.
For,
without His guidance and
light,
we could not distinguish
truth from error
Dictionaries define
righteousness
as
“behavior that is morally justifiable
or right.”
Such behavior is characterized by accepted
standards of
morality, justice, virtue, or uprightness.
The Bible’s standard of human righteousness is God’s own perfection in every attribute, every attitude, every behavior, and every word. Thus, God’s laws, as given in the Bible, both describe
His own character and constitute the plumb line
by which
He measures human righteousness.
The Greek New Testament word for “righteousness” primarily describes
conduct in relation to others,
especially with regards to the rights of others in business, in legal matters, and
beginning with relationship to God.
It is contrasted with wickedness, the conduct of the one who,
out of gross self-centeredness,
neither reveres God nor respects man.
The Bible describes the
righteous person as
just or right, holding to God and trusting
in Him
(Psalm 33:18–22).
The bad news is that true and perfect righteousness
is not possible
for man to attain on his own;
the standard is simply too high.
The good news is that
true
righteousness is possible for mankind,
but only through the
cleansing of sin by Jesus Christ
and the
indwelling of the Holy Spirit.
We have no ability to achieve righteousness in and of ourselves. But Christians possess the righteousness of Christ, because “God made him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God” (2 Corinthians 5:21). This is an amazing truth. On the cross, Jesus exchanged our sin for His perfect righteousness so that we can one day stand before God and He will see not our sin, but the holy righteousness of the Lord Jesus.
This means that we are made righteous in
the sight of God;
that is, that we are accepted as righteous
and treated as righteous by God on account
of what
the Lord Jesus has done.
He was made sin; we are made righteousness.
On the cross, Jesus was treated as if He were a sinner, though He was perfectly holy and pure, and we are treated as if we were righteous, though we are defiled and depraved.
On account of what the Lord Jesus
has
endured on our behalf,
we are treated as if we had entirely
fulfilled the Law of God
and had
never become exposed to its penalty
We have received
this precious
gift of righteousness from the
God of all mercy and grace.
To Him be the glory!
John 8:4
This conversation between Jesus and the Pharisees dispels any myths that
Jesus was weak, passive, or timid. In response to
His claims,
the religious leaders of Jerusalem have gone so far as to question
Jesus' birth.
They did this by insinuating that He was "born of sexual immorality,"
which could actually be seen as an attack on His mother (John 8:41).
These same men have also tried to have Jesus arrested (John 7:32)
and even killed (John 5:18).
All of this is grounded in their refusal to accept His message (John 8:43),
which they do not understand specifically because they have no intent to listen.
Here, the men opposing Jesus sink even lower in their approach.
The Jewish people saw Samaritans as despised half-breeds.
This cultural hatred was a major reason
why Jesus' actions in the Samaritan town of Sychar were so controversial
(John 4:1–9).
Calling Jesus a "Samaritan"
combined two insults into one:
mocking His birth
and
accusing Him of heresy
Referring to someone as demon-possessed was,
in that day,
equivalent to calling them crazy
Unable to give
reasonable answers to
His teaching,
those
opposed to Jesus are resorting
to petty insults
A House Divided
(Mark 3:20–27; Luke 11:14–23)
then a demon-possessed man who
was blind
and mute was brought to Jesus,
and He healed the man
so that he could speak and see
the
crowds were astounded
and asked,
“Could this be the Son of David?”
but when the Pharisees heard this,
they said,
“Only by Beelzebul,
the prince of demons,
does this man drive out demons.”
Knowing their thoughts,
Jesus said to them, “Every kingdom divided against itself will be laid waste,
and every city or household divided against itself will not stand.
if Satan drives out Satan, he is divided against himself.
How then can his kingdom stand?
and if I drive out demons by Beelzebul, by whom do
your sons drive them out?
So then, they will be
your judges.
but if I drive out demons by
the Spirit of God,
then the
kingdom of God has come
upon you
or again, how can anyone enter a
strong man’s house
and steal his possessions,
unless he first ties up the strong man?
Then he can plunder his house.
He who is not with Me is against Me,
and he who
does not gather with Me scatters.
The Unpardonable Sin
(Mark 3:28–30)
31Therefore I tell you, every sin and blasphemy will be forgiven men, but the blasphemy against the Spirit will not be forgiven. 32Whoever speaks a word against the Son of Man will be forgiven, but whoever speaks against the Holy Spirit will not be forgiven, either in this age or in the one to come.
Good and Bad Fruit
(Luke 6:43–45)
33Make a tree good and its fruit will be good, or make a tree bad and its fruit will be bad, for a tree is known by its fruit.
You brood of vipers,
how can you who
are evil
say anything good?
Indeed, figs are not gathered from
thornbushes,
nor grapes from brambles.
The good man
brings good things out of the
good treasure of his heart,
and the
evil man brings evil things
out of the evil
treasure of his heart.
For out of the overflow of the
heart the mouth speaks.
for
by your words
you will be acquitted,
and by your
words
you will be condemned.”
John the Baptist
condemned the Pharisees and Sadducees
as a “brood of vipers” in Matthew 3:7.
A “brood of vipers” is a “family of snakes.”
Because vipers are venomous,
John was
essentially calling the religious leaders
“deadly sons of serpents.”
It’s quite a bold denunciation--
and one Jesus repeated
to the
Pharisees in Matthew 12:34.
The Pharisees and Sadducees
were the religious leaders in Israel during
the time of
John the Baptist and Jesus.
The Pharisees were the Law-keepers
and
promoters of tradition, and
the Sadducees
comprised the wealthier ruling class.
Over the centuries, these
well-meaning groups
had become corrupt,
legalistic, and hypocritical and would
eventually be
responsible for crucifying the Son of God.
They earned their label
“brood of vipers,”
a sobriquet with
deeper meaning
than is obvious at first glance.
The viper was seen to be an
evil creature.
Its venom
was deadly, and it was also devious--
the viper that
bit Paul
as paul was hiding in the firewood
(Acts 28:3).
The Hebrew Scriptures,
which the Pharisees knew well, associate
the serpent with Satan in Genesis 3.
For John to call
the Pharisees a “brood of vipers” implies that they
bore satanic qualities.
This idea is clearly stated by Jesus in John 8:44,
where
He says the unbelieving Jews
“belong to [their] father, the devil.”
When John and Jesus
called the Pharisees a “brood of vipers,” they were pointing
out that these men were deceitful,
dangerous, and wicked--deceitful in that they were hypocrites
(Matthew 23:15);
dangerous in that they were blind leaders of the blind
(Matthew 15:14);
and wicked in that
their hearts were full of murder
(John 8:37).
Another fascinating detail
is found
in Jesus’ use of the epithet “brood of vipers”
to describe the Pharisees.
In Matthew 23:33, He says,
“You brood of vipers, how are you to escape
being
sentenced to hell?”
Farmers, then as now,
often burned
the stubble of their fields to get
the land
ready for the next planting season.
As the fires neared the vipers’ dens,
the snakes would slither away from
the flames,
but they often did not escape being
consumed.
Snakes fleeing the fire was a common
sight,
and Jesus’ words
to the Pharisees would likely
have called it to their minds.
How could they think they would
escape the
fire of God’s judgment by
relying on
their own works, which were not
at all honest or good?
John’s and Jesus’ calling them
a brood of vipers was meant to make them
aware of their own
wickedness and call them to repent.
When it was almost time for the Jewish
Passover,
Jesus went up to Jerusalem.
In the temple courts
he found
people selling cattle, sheep
and doves,
and others
sitting at
tables
exchanging money
So he made a whip out of cords, and
drove all from the
temple courts,
both sheep and cattle;
he scattered the coins of the money changers and overturned their tables.
To those who sold doves he said,
“Get these out of here! Stop turning my Father’s house into a market!”
(John 2:13–16)
The event
of
Jesus overturning tables
in John 2:15
also appears in all the Synoptic Gospels. In fact, Jesus cleansed the temple on two separate occasions: once at the beginning of His ministry, and again at the end (Matthew 21:12–13; Mark 11:15–17; Luke 19:45–46).
In contemporary Christian circles, the phrase Jesus overturns tables or Jesus flips tables is used to communicate the iconoclastic nature of Jesus’ ministry. The saying also serves to counterbalance the distorted modern portrayal of the Son of God as an insipid, weak man who was all about “peace” and “love” and never about correction or judgment.
We see that Jesus “overturns tables” in many ways in Scripture.
He countered the incomplete teaching of the scribes (Matthew 5:21–28),
He confronted the hypocrisy of the Pharisees (Matthew 23),
He reached out to “tax collectors and sinners” (Luke 15:1–2),
He violated custom (Matthew 15:2; John 4:7–9), and
He publicly spoke against the king (Luke 13:32).
We should recognize that Jesus’ actions in John 2:15 were justified.
So, why did
Jesus overturn tables?
Conducting commerce
within the temple was problematic
by itself
as that undermined the sacred purpose
of that place
(John 2:16).
Yet there were deeper issues at play.
In the Synoptic accounts of the second
cleansing,
Jesus denounces the
money changers and merchants
for transforming the temple
into
a “den of robbers”
(Matthew 21:13; Mark 11:17; Luke 19:45; cf. Jeremiah 7:11).
It seems it wasn’t just business taking place, but exploitation. The devout were being cheated; especially vulnerable were foreigners and the poor, in direct violation of God’s commands (Exodus 22:21; Leviticus 19:33–34; Deuteronomy 10:18–19; Isaiah 1:17).
As Jesus overturned the tables in the temple, He referenced Isaiah 56:7, which calls the temple God’s “house of prayer.” Jesus’ anger was ignited by the misuse of the temple and the injustice taking place within it.
What implications does the event in John 2:15 hold for us today? First, our perception of Jesus must be grounded in Scripture, not sentiment.
The same Jesus who played with children and conversed gently with the Samaritan woman could construct a whip and overturn tables. He embodies the traits of both a lion and a lamb.
In fact, Jesus would be an inadequate
Savior
and incompetent Lord if
He failed to express anger against
sin and oppression.
What kind of person shrugs at abuse?
Second, given that Jesus sets the standard for goodness, there are appropriate times to not be “nice.” There are times we cannot simply “go along to get along.”
We should emulate Jesus’ example
and
confront abuse and injustice,
especially within the church.
When God’s reputation is at stake,
and when people
are being exploited, we should act.
Finally, we should remember that Christians today are God’s temple (1 Corinthians 6:19).
Just as Jesus was
zealous for His temple in Jerusalem,
so is He for us
(John 2:17; cf. Psalm 69:9).
We must take care
not to defile
His temple with sin;
rather,
we should make every effort
to ensure that our bodies are “houses of prayer” to honor God.
The Parable of the Good Samaritan
is precipitated by and in
answer to a question posed to
Jesus
by a lawyer.
In this case the lawyer
would have been
an expert
in the Mosaic Law
and not
a court lawyer of today.
The lawyer’s question was, “Teacher, what shall I do to inherit eternal life?"
(Luke 10:25).
This question provided
Jesus with an opportunity to define
what
His disciples’ relationship
should be
to their neighbors.
The text says that the scribe (lawyer) had put the
question to Jesus as a test,
but the text does not indicate that there was hostility in the question. He could have simply
been seeking information. The wording of the question does, however,
give us some insight into where the scribe’s heart was spiritually.
He was making the assumption that man must do something
to obtain eternal life.
Although this could have been an opportunity for
Jesus to discuss salvation issues,
He chose a different course
and focuses on our
relationships and what it means to love
Jesus answers the question using what is called the Socratic method; i.e., answering a question with a question: “He said to him, ‘What is written in the law? What is your reading of it?’" (Luke 10:26). By referring to the Law, Jesus is directing the man to an authority they both would accept as truth, the Old Testament. In essence, He is asking the scribe, what does Scripture say about this and how does he interpret it? Jesus thus avoids an argument and puts Himself in the position of evaluating the scribe’s answer instead of the scribe evaluating His answer. This directs the discussion towards Jesus’ intended lesson. The scribe answers Jesus’ question by quoting Deuteronomy 6:5 and Leviticus 19:18. This is virtually the same answer that Jesus had given to the same question in Matthew 22 and Mark 12.
In verse 28, Jesus affirms that the lawyer’s answer is correct. Jesus’ reply tells the scribe that he has given an orthodox (scripturally proper) answer, but then goes on in verse 28 to tell him that this kind of love requires more than an emotional feeling; it would also include orthodox practice; he would need to “practice what he preached.” The scribe was an educated man and realized that he could not possibly keep that law, nor would he have necessarily wanted to. There would always be people in his life that he could not love. Thus, he tries to limit the law’s command by limiting its parameters and asked the question “who is my neighbor?” The word “neighbor” in the Greek means “someone who is near,” and in the Hebrew it means “someone that you have an association with.” This interprets the word in a limited sense, referring to a fellow Jew and would have excluded Samaritans, Romans, and other foreigners. Jesus then gives the parable of the Good Samaritan to correct the false understanding that the scribe had of who his neighbor is, and what his duty is to his neighbor.
The Parable of the Good Samaritan tells the story of a man traveling from Jerusalem to Jericho, and while on the way he is robbed of everything he had, including his clothing, and is beaten to within an inch of his life. That road was treacherously winding and was a favorite hideout of robbers and thieves. The next character Jesus introduces into His story is a priest. He spends no time describing the priest and only tells of how he showed no love or compassion for the man by failing to help him and passing on the other side of the road so as not to get involved. If there was anyone who would have known God’s law of love, it would have been the priest. By nature of his position, he was to be a person of compassion, desiring to help others. Unfortunately, “love” was not a word for him that required action on the behalf of someone else. The next person to pass by in the Parable of the Good Samaritan is a Levite, and he does exactly what the priest did: he passes by without showing any compassion.
Again, he would have known the law,
but he also failed
to show the injured man compassion
The next person to come by is the Samaritan,
the one least likely to
have shown compassion for the man.
Samaritans
were considered a low class of people
by the Jews
since they had intermarried
with non-Jews
and did not keep all the law.
Therefore,
Jews would have nothing to do with them.
We do not know if the
injured man
was a
Jew or Gentile,
but it made no
difference to the Samaritan;
he did not
consider the man’s
race or religion
The “Good Samaritan” saw only a person
in dire need of assistance,
and assist him he did,
above
and beyond the minimum required.
He dresses the man’s wounds with wine (to disinfect) and oil (to sooth the pain).
He puts the man on his animal and takes him to an inn for a time of healing and pays the innkeeper with his own money.
He then goes beyond common decency and tells the innkeeper to take good care of the man, and he would pay for any extra expenses on his return trip.
The Samaritan saw his neighbor as anyone who was in need.
Because the good man was a Samaritan, Jesus is drawing a strong contrast between those who knew the law and those who actually followed the law in their lifestyle and conduct. Jesus now asks the lawyer if he can apply the lesson to his own life with the question “So which of these three do you think was neighbor to him who fell among the thieves?" (Luke 10:36).
Once again, the lawyer’s answer is telling of his personal hardness
of heart.
He cannot bring himself to say
the word
“Samaritan”; he refers to the “good man” as “he who showed mercy.”
His hate for the Samaritans (his neighbors)
was so strong that he
couldn’t even refer to them in a proper way.
Jesus then tells the lawyer to “go and do likewise,” meaning that he should start living
what the law tells him to do.
By ending the encounter in this manner, Jesus is telling us to follow the Samaritan’s example in our own conduct; i.e., we are to show compassion and love for those we encounter in our everyday activities.
We are to love others (vs. 27) regardless of their race or religion; the criterion is need.
If they need and we have the supply,
then we are to give
generously and freely, without expectation
of return.
This is an impossible obligation for the
lawyer,
and for us.
We cannot always
keep the law because of our
human condition;
our heart
and desires are mostly of self and selfishness.
When left to our own, we do the wrong thing,
failing to meet the law.
We can hope that the lawyer saw this
and came to the realization
that there was nothing he could do to justify himself,
that he needed a
personal savior to atone for his lack of ability
to save himself from his sins.
Thus, the lessons of the Parable of the Good Samaritan are three-fold:
1) we are to set aside our prejudice and show love and compassion for others. (2) Our neighbor is anyone we encounter; we are all creatures of the creator and we are to love all of mankind as Jesus has taught. (3) Keeping the law in its entirety with the intent to save ourselves is an impossible task; we need a savior, and this is Jesus.
There is another possible way to
interpret the
Parable of the Good Samaritan,
and that is as a metaphor.
In this interpretation the injured man is all men in their
fallen condition of sin.
The robbers are Satan attacking man with the intent of destroying
their relationship with God.
The lawyer is mankind without the true understanding
of God and His Word.
The priest is religion in an apostate condition.
The Levite is legalism that instills prejudice into
the hearts of believers.
The Samaritan is Jesus who provides
the way to spiritual health.
Although this interpretation teaches good lessons, and the
parallels between
Jesus and the Samaritan are striking,
this understanding draws attention to Jesus that does not appear to be intended in the text.
Therefore, we must conclude that the teaching of the Parable of the Good Samaritan
is simply a lesson on what it means to love one’s neighbor.
Probably in every culture, in every part of history, from the tax collectors of ancient Israel to the IRS agents of today, the tax man has received more than his share of scorn and contumely. The New Testament indicates that the occupation of “tax collector” (or “publican”) was looked down upon by the general populace.
The Pharisees communicated their
disdain for tax collectors
in one of
their early confrontations with Jesus
The Lord was eating a meal
with
“many tax collectors and sinners . . .,
for there
were many who followed him.”
When the Pharisees noticed this,“they
asked
his disciples: ‘
Why does he eat with tax collectors and sinners?’”
(Mark 2:15–16)
A “sinner,” to a Pharisee, was a Jew who did not follow the Law
(plus the Pharisees’ own rules).
And a “tax collector” was—well, a tax collector
Jesus used the commonly held opinion of tax collectors as an illustration of the final stage of church discipline: when a person is excommunicated, Jesus said to “treat them as you would a pagan or a tax collector” (Matthew 18:17). In other words, the excommunicant is to be considered an outsider and a candidate for evangelism.
There are a few reasons for the low view of tax collectors in the New Testament era. First, no one likes to pay money to the government, especially when the government is an oppressive regime like the Roman Empire of the 1st century. Those who collected the taxes for such a government bore the brunt of much public displeasure.
Second, the tax collectors in the Bible were Jews who were working for the hated Romans. These individuals were seen as turncoats, traitors to their own countrymen. Rather than fighting the Roman oppressors, the publicans were helping them—and enriching themselves at the expense of their fellow Jews.
Third, it was common knowledge that the tax collectors cheated the people they collected from. By hook or by crook, they would collect more than required and keep the extra for themselves. Everyone just understood that was how it worked. The tax collector Zacchaeus, in his confession to the Lord, mentioned his past dishonesty
(Luke 19:8).
Fourth, because of their skimming off the top, the tax collectors were well-to-do. This further separated them from the lower classes, who resented the injustice of their having to support the publicans’ lavish lifestyle. The tax collectors, ostracized as they were from society, formed their own clique, further separating themselves from the rest of society.
Jesus taught that we should love our enemies. To emphasize the point, He said, “If you love those who love you, what reward will you get? Are not even the tax collectors doing that?” (Matthew 5:46). The word even is significant. Jesus was telling the crowd they needed to rise above the level of publican behavior. If our love is only reciprocal, then we’re no better than a tax collector! Such a comparison must have left its mark on Jesus’ hearers.
Given the low esteem people had for tax collectors, it is noteworthy that Jesus spent so much time with them. The reason He was eating that meal in Mark 2 with “many tax collectors” is that He had just called Matthew, a tax collector, to be one of His twelve disciples. Matthew was throwing a feast because he wanted his circle of friends to meet the Lord. Many believed in Jesus (verse 15). Jesus responded to the Pharisees’ indignation by stating His ministry purpose: “It is not the healthy who need a doctor, but the sick. I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners” (Mark 2:17).
The Pharisees saw tax collectors as enemies to be shunned.
Jesus saw them
as the
spiritually sick to be healed.
The Pharisees could offer nothing to the tax collectors
except a list of rules.
Jesus offered forgiveness of sins
and the
hope of anew life.
No wonder the publicans
liked to
spend time with Jesus
(Luke 15:1).
And tax collectors
like
Matthew and Zacchaeus
were transformed
by
the gospel
and
followed the Lord.
John the Baptist’s message was that all need to repent, not just tax collectors and other obvious sinners.
The Pharisees couldn’t see their need and refused to be categorized with publicans.
To the self-righteous, Jesus said,
“Truly I tell you,
the tax collectors and the prostitutes
are entering
the kingdom of God ahead of you.
For John came to you
to show you the way of righteousness,
and you did not believe him,
but the tax collectors and the prostitutes did.
And even after
you saw this,
you did not repent and believe him”
(Matthew 21:31–32).
The Bible is quite clear that the
Holy Spirit
is active in our world
The book of Acts,
which sometimes goes by the longer
title of
“The Acts of the Apostles,”
could just as accurately be
called
“The Acts of the Holy Spirit through the Apostles.”
After the apostolic age,
there have been some changes--
the Spirit
does not inspire further Scripture, for example—but
He continues to do His work in the world.
First, the
Holy Spirit does many things in the lives
of believers.
He is the believers’ Helper
(John 14:26).
He indwells believers
and seals
them until the day of redemption--
this indicates that the
Holy Spirit’s presence
in the
believer is irreversible.
He guards and guarantees the salvation of the
ones He indwells
(Ephesians 1:13; 4:30).
The Holy Spirit assists believers in prayer
(Jude 1:20)
and “intercedes for
God’s people in accordance with the will of God”
(Romans 8:26–27).
The Holy Spirit regenerates and renews the believer
(Titus 3:5).
At the moment of salvation, the Spirit baptizes the
believer into
the Body of Christ (Romans 6:3).
Believers receive the
new birth by the power of the Spirit
(John 3:5–8).
The Spirit
comforts believers with fellowship
and joy
as they go through a hostile world
(1 Thessalonians 1:6; 2 Corinthians 13:14).
The Spirit, in His mighty power,
fills believers with
“all joy and peace”
as they trust the Lord,
causing
believers to “overflow with hope”
(Romans 15:13).
Sanctification is another work of the Holy Spirit in the life of a believer.
The Spirit sets Himself
against the desires of the flesh and leads the
believer into righteousness
(Galatians 5:16–18).
The works of the flesh become less evident, and the fruit of the Spirit becomes more evident
(Galatians 5:19–26).
Believers are commanded to “be filled with the Spirit” (Ephesians 5:18),
which means they are
to yield themselves to the Spirit’s full control.
The Holy Spirit is also
a gift-giver.
“There are different kinds of gifts, but the same Spirit distributes them”
(1 Corinthians 12:4).
The spiritual gifts that believers
possess are
given by the Holy Spirit as He determines in His wisdom
(verse 11).
The Holy Spirit also does work among unbelievers.
Jesus promised that He would
send the
Holy Spirit
to “convict the world
concerning sin and righteousness
and
judgment”
(John 16:8, ESV).
The Spirit testifies of Christ
(John 15:26),
pointing people to the Lord.
Currently, the Holy Spirit
is also restraining sin and
combatting
“the secret power of lawlessness”
in the world.
This action keeps the rise of the Antichrist
at bay
(2 Thessalonians 2:6–10).
The Holy Spirit
has
one other important role,
and that is
to give
believers wisdom by
which
we can understand God.
“These are the
things God has revealed
to us
by his Spirit.
The Spirit searches all things,
even the
deep things of God.
For who knows a person’s
thoughts
except their own spirit within them?
In the same way
no one
knows the thoughts of God except
the Spirit of God”
(1 Corinthians 2:10–11).
Since we have been given the amazing
gift of
God’s Spirit inside ourselves,
we can comprehend the
thoughts of God,
as revealed in the Scripture.
The Spirit helps us understand.
This is wisdom from God, rather than wisdom
from man.
No amount of human knowledge
can ever
replace the Holy Spirit’s teaching
(1 Corinthians 2:12–13).
The Scripture
has several words translated
"right"
and the usage of the term,
"right hand"
ranges from a direction, to the opposite of wrong, what
is just or what conforms
to an
established standard,
and to a place of honor or authority.
In the case
of division or appointment in the Bible,
the right
hand or right side came
first,
as when Israel (Jacob)
divided
the blessings to Joseph’s sons
before he died
(Genesis 48:13-14).
In addition, a person of high rank who put
someone on his right hand
gave him equal honor with himself
and recognized him
as possessing equal dignity and authority.
And this is what the
Apostle Paul writes of
Jesus Christ
in Ephesians.
"And what is the
surpassing
greatness of His power
toward us,
the ones believing according
to the
working of His mighty strength
which He worked in Christ
in raising
Him from the dead, and
He seated Him at His right hand
in the heavenlies,
far above all principality
and
authority and power and dominion,
and
every name being named,
not only
in this world, but also in
the coming age"
(Ephesians 1:19-21).
Here we see God
exalting
Jesus above all others by
seating Him
at the
right hand of the Father.
The term "God’s right hand" in prophecy refers to
the Messiah
to whom is given the
power and authority to subdue His enemies
(Psalm 110:1; Psalm 118:16).
We find a quote in Matthew 22:44 from Psalm 110:1,
which is a
Messianic Psalm.
“The Son of David"
is
claimed
by the
LORD Jesus Christ
as He is the
"greater son of David"
or the
Messiah.
In this passage of Matthew 22,
Jesus questions the Pharisees
about
who they think the
"Christ" or the Messiah is.
“While the Pharisees were gathered together,
Jesus asked them, Saying,
What think ye of Christ? Whose
son is He?
They say unto him, The Son of David.
He saith unto them,
How then doth
David in spirit call him Lord,
saying,
The LORD said unto my Lord, Sit thou on
my right hand,
till I make
Thine enemies thy footstool?
If David
then call
Him Lord, how is He his son?"
(Matthew 22:41-45, KJV).
The position of the
Messiah is at God’s right hand.
The fact that
Jesus Christ
is at
the "right hand of God"
was a sign to the disciples
that
Jesus had indeed gone
to heaven.
In John 16:7-15,
Jesus told the
disciples that He had to go away
and He would
send the Holy Spirit.
So the coming of the Holy Spirit in the upper room
on the
day of Pentecost
(Acts 2:1-13) was
PROOF POSITIVE that
Jesus was
INDEED in heaven
SEATED
at the
RIGHT hand of God
This is confirmed in Romans 8:34 where the Apostle Paul
writes that
Christ is sitting at God’s right hand
making
intercession for us.
Therefore, what we can say is that
"God’s RIGHT hand"
refers
to the Messiah,
the
LORD Jesus Christ,
and
He is of equal position,
honor, power, and authority
with God
(John 1:1-5).
The fact that
Christ is "sitting" refers to the
fact that
His work of redemption is done
and when the
fullness of the Gentiles is brought in
(Romans 11:25),
Christ’s enemies will be made
His footstool.
When the end of the age comes,
all
prophecy will be completed,
and
time
will be no more.
The theme of Psalm 16 centers on
entrusting one’s self to God’s care
and
walking closely with Him.
In one way or another, the psalmist seems to say with every line,
Lord, you mean everything to me.”
David, the author of the psalm,
ends with this
declaration of eternal trust in the goodness of God:
“You make known
to me the
path of life; in your presence
there is fullness of joy;
at your right hand
are pleasures forevermore”
(Psalm 16:11, ESV)
David acknowledges that God’s providence
keeps him on the
path of life, even beyond the grave.
He says, “You will not abandon me to the realm of the dead,
nor will you
let your faithful one see decay”
(Psalm 16:10).
In the
security of God’s presence,
David
experiences complete joy
Then he makes this curious statement:
“At your right hand are pleasures forevermore.”
The right hand is a term
used metaphorically in Scripture
to speak of
God’s strength and power:
“Your right hand, LORD,
was
majestic in power
Your right hand, LORD, shattered the enemy” (Exodus 15:6, see also Exodus 15:12; Psalm 18:35; 20:6; 63:8; 98:1). God’s right hand guides and sustains His people in times of need (Psalm 139:10).
To be “at the right hand of God” is to inhabit a place of great honor and blessing
(Psalm 45:9; 110:1).
The Lord Jesus Christ
now reigns in
glory
“at the right hand of God”
(Mark 14:62; Acts 2:33; Hebrews 1:3; Colossians 3:1)
and
intercedes for those He has redeemed
(Romans 8:34).
In the early church, believers extended
“the right hand of fellowship”
(Galatians 2:9).
When David said,
“At your right hand are pleasures forever,”
he was
expressing trust in the knowledge
that his life was eternally secure
in the
glorious presence of his all-powerful
God.
He was thinking beyond life
on earth to
everlasting life—resurrection life—in eternity.
For this reason, on the Day of Pentecost,
the apostle
Peter cited David’s words
(Psalm 16:8–11)
and interpreted them
as a
prophecy of Jesus Christ’s resurrection
from the dead
(Acts 2:25–31).
Paul also quoted Psalm 16:10 at Antioch (Acts 13:35–37)
as a
reference to the Lord’s resurrection.
David’s confidence in God touched every aspect
of his life,
extending beyond mortality
He did not fear the end (Psalm 23:4) because he
trusted that not even death could interrupt
the joy and pleasure of intimate fellowship
with His Lord.
All the more, Christians today can say to
God, “At your right hand are pleasures forevermore,”
because we have the
complete revelation of Christ’s resurrection
and our
participation in it
(Romans 6:9; 8:11; 1 Corinthians 15:20, 50–57; 6:14).
We know that Jesus Christ triumphed over death (Luke 24:6; Revelation 1:18).
Christ’s death and resurrection
utterly changed the realities
of life and death
for all who believe in Him
(Hebrews 2:14).
Jesus lived to die and died to live again.
Now He lives so that we can partake of His life forever
(Matthew 20:28; John 3:16; 10:17, 28; 14:3, 19).
Christ’s “path of death” opened up the “path of life” for us
(John 14:6; 1 John 5:11–12).
And because we belong to Him,
we too will enjoy
the pleasures of God’s presence for all eternity
(Colossians 3:1–4; 2 Corinthians 5:8; Philippians 1:23)
where no one can rob us of our joy
(John 16:22).
When we are “at God’s right hand,” we are
near to Him--
so close that God needs only to extend
His right hand that we might partake
of the
inexhaustible store of
His abundant gifts and blessings.
In the
closeness of His presence, we are honored
and privileged to enjoy
His love, companionship, care, power, and protection.
The pleasures of this world are fleeting
(Hebrews 11:25),
but the complete joy
of close
fellowship in God’s presence
endures forever:
“Those who have been ransomed by the LORD
will return.
They will enter Jerusalem singing,
crowned with everlasting joy.
Sorrow and mourning will disappear, and they will
be filled with joy and gladness”
(Isaiah 51:11, NLT; see also Isaiah 35:10; Zephaniah 3:17; Revelation 7:15–17).
In Genesis 2:18, we read of the one thing that was not declared “good” in all of
God’s creation:
“Then the LORD God said, ‘It is not good that the man should be alone.’”
The same verse includes God’s solution: “I will make him a helper fit for him.”
Eve was the solution to Adam’s deficiency.
Two Hebrew terms in this verse provide important information to
better understand
the creation of Eve as the first woman.
The word translated “helper” is the Hebrew term ‘ezer.
This word is even used of God, sometimes, noting that He is our Helper
(Psalm 115:9-11).
We would certainly not view God, as a Helper, as subservient to humans,
nor should we understand the role of “helper” in Genesis 2:18
as a position of subservience.
The concept of an “ideal partner” seems to convey the thought best.
The second important Hebrew word in this verse, translated
“fit” is kenegdow.
It literally means “according to the opposite of him.”
In other words,
the focus is on an appropriate match.
Eve was not created above or below Adam; she was
complementary.
The animals Adam had named each had an appropriate companion
(Genesis 2:20), and
Adam was given a fitting companion as well.
Eve was “just right” for him.
Further, God’s statement that it was
not good for man to be alone
implies that
Adam was lonely and incomplete by himself.
He had been created for relationship,
and it is
impossible to have relationship alone.
With the creation of Eve,
Adam experienced
the joy
of love for another person.
The Bible is unique in its depiction of women’s valued status as a complementary companion.
No other ancient text from the Middle East offers commentary on the creation of women.
It is in the Bible that we learn of the important role women have had since the beginning of human existence.
Both man and woman were made in God’s image, according to Genesis 1:27,
“So God created man in his own image, in the image of God he created him; male and female he created them.”
The apostle Paul refers to Genesis when he says,
“A man shall leave his father and mother and hold fast to his wife, and the two shall become one flesh”
(Ephesians 5:31).
Husband and wife are to live as one, united
in love for God
and for one another,
modeling the love Christ
has for
His bride, the Church
Citing Psalm 118:6, the author of Hebrews writes,
“The Lord is my helper; I will not fear; what can man do to me?”
(Hebrews 13:6, ESV).
Here, believers
are
encouraged to rely on God for all
their needs,
especially in times of persecution.
Because the Lord is on our side,
we do not
have to fear anyone or anything
(Romans 8:31; 1 John 4:4).
The book of Hebrews was written to encourage Christians to persevere through trials and tribulations
(Hebrews 10:32–34).
Hebrews 13:6, then, is not just a statement of belief in God’s power and provision but is also a
reminder to hold fast to our faith:
“Count it all joy, my brothers,
when you
meet trials of various kinds, for
you know that the
testing of your
faith produces steadfastness.
And let steadfastness have its
full effect,
that you may be
perfect and complete,
lacking in nothing”
(James 1:2–4, ESV).
In doing so, James says, we will “receive the crown of life, which God has promised to those who love him” (verse 12, ESV).
“The Lord is my helper”
(Hebrews 13:6)
is a declaration that represents continual reliance on God’s omnipotence.
In Psalm 46:1, the psalmist writes, “God is our refuge and strength, an ever-present help in trouble.”
God is a constant source of help, reinforcing the idea that
divine assistance is always available.
For this reason, we should seek Him in every situation
(1 Chronicles 16:11),
knowing that His power is greater than our own
(Matthew 19:26).
Next, the author of Hebrews writes, “I will not fear” (Hebrews 13:6, ESV).
Although fear is a natural emotion, especially in troublesome and uncertain times,
we are challenged to rise above it by placing our trust in God.
In Philippians 4:11–13, the apostle Paul writes,
I have learned to be content whatever the circumstances.
I know what it is to be in need,
and I know what it is to have plenty.
I have learned the secret of being
content in any and every situation,
whether
well fed or hungry, whether
living in plenty or in want.
I can do all this through him who gives me strength.”
In short, contentment is a direct
result of entrusting our fears and concerns to God
(Matthew 10:28; 1 Peter 5:7).
“What can man do to me?
” (Hebrews 13:6, ESV) is a rhetorical question that
highlights the
limitations of human power compared
to God’s power.
This is not a display of arrogance; rather, it is a
recognition of the relative insignificance
of human threats
before an all-powerful God:
“Lift up your heads, you gates;
be lifted up,
you ancient doors,
that the
King of glory may
come in.
Who is this King of glory?
The Lord strong and mighty,
the
Lord mighty in battle”
(Psalm 24:7–8).
Since God is committed to working everything for our good
(Romans 8:28),
we have absolutely nothing to fear.
Hebrews 13:6
reflects a broader biblical theme of placing
one’s confidence in
God
rather than our own finite understanding or circumstance.
In Proverbs 3:5–6, Solomon advises us to
“trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean
not on
your own understanding;
in all your ways submit to him,
and he will
make your paths straight.”
May we always believe that “the Lord is my helper.”
Genesis 32:22–32
recounts the puzzling
story of Jacob in
an
all-night wrestling match.
His opponent
is a man who refers to himself
as “God”
(verse 28)
Later, Jacob also refers
to the
man he struggled with
as “God”
(verse 30)
To know Jacob’s story
is to know his life was a never-ending struggle.
Jacob’s family
was characterized by deep-seated hostility.
Jacob was a con artist who had been conned,
a liar who had been lied to,
and a manipulator who had been manipulated.
In many ways, he lived up to his name Jacob,
which literally means
“heel-catcher”
and carries the sense of “one who follows after to supplant or deceive.”
God had promised Jacob that through him would come
a great nation
through whom the whole world would be blessed
(Genesis 28:10–15).
Still, Jacob was a man full of fears and anxieties. His brother, Esau,
had vowed to kill him. His uncle, Laban,
had cheated him for years. His two wives had an adversarial relationship with each other.
After he fled Laban’s ill-treatment, Jacob and his family camped in a spot chosen for him by angels (Genesis 32:1–2).
From there, he sent messengers with a gift to his estranged brother, Esau, and they returned with the news that Esau was on his way with 400 men (Genesis 32:3–6). Fearing the worst, Jacob divided his family and herds so that, in case one group fell victim to Esau’s men, the other group might escape. Jacob prayed for the Lord’s help and then sent several caravans of lavish gifts ahead of him in hopes of pacifying Esau. Finally, Jacob sent his wives and children across the River Jabbok with all the rest of his possessions
(Genesis 32:22–23).
Alone in the desert
wilderness,
Jacob had the ultimate
restless night.
A stranger visited Jacob,
and they
wrestled throughout the night until daybreak,
at which point
the stranger
crippled Jacob with a blow to his hip.
Even then, Jacob held on.
He must have known there was something supernatural
about this stranger,
because he demanded a blessing from him
(Genesis 32:26).
The stranger then gave Jacob
anew name:
Israel, which likely means
“he struggles with God”
(Genesis 32:28).
The stranger gave the reason for Jacob’s
new name:
“Because you have struggled
with
God and with humans
and
have overcome”
(Genesis 32:28).
Jacob asks for the stranger’s name, but the man declines to give it—Jacob
knew with whom he wrestled.
And then Jacob receives what he wanted: a blessing
(Genesis 32:29).
Jacob limped for the
rest of his life,
but he “saw God face to face”
(Genesis 32:30) and received God’s blessing. In his weakness, he was strong.
The next morning,
God’s blessing of Jacob was evident
Esau, the brother Jacob had feared,
received him gladly
(Genesis 33).
In Western culture and even in our churches, we celebrate wealth, power, strength, confidence, prestige, and victory.
We avoid weakness, failure, and doubt.
Though we know that a
measure of vulnerability, fear, and discouragement
comes with life,
we tend to view these as signs of failure
or even a lack of faith. However, we also know that, in real life,
naïve optimism and the glowing accolades
of glamour and success
are a recipe for discontent and despair.
Sooner or later, the cold, hard realism of life catches up
with most of us.
The story of Jacob pulls us back to reality.
Frederick Buechner characterized Jacob’s divine encounter at the Jabbok River as the “magnificent defeat of the human soul at the hands of God” (The Magnificent Defeat, HarperOne, 1985, p. 18).
It’s in Jacob’s story we can easily recognize our own elements of struggle: fear, darkness, loneliness, vulnerability, emptiness, exhaustion, and pain.
Even the apostle Paul experienced discouragement and fear: “We were harassed at every turn—conflicts on the outside, fears within”
(2 Corinthians 7:5).
But, in truth, God does not want to leave us with our trials, our fears, our battles in life. What we come to learn in our conflicts is that God proffers us a corresponding divine gift. He comes to us and manifests Himself to us in our struggles.
It is through Him
that we can receive the
power
of conversion and transformation,
the gifts of freedom,
endurance, faith, and courage.
In the end, Jacob does what we all must do. In his weakness and fear,
he faces God.
Jacob was separated from all others and from his worldly possessions,
and that’s when
he grapples all night for what is truly important.
It was an exhausting struggle that
left him crippled.
It was only after he wrestled with God and ceased his struggling,
realizing that he could not
go on without Him, that he received God’s blessing
Genesis 32:29
The precise identity of the angel of the Lord
is not given in the Bible.
However, there are many important clues to his identity.
These clues help us see that the angel of the Lord is a unique being, separate from the other angels.
Here are some instances of the angel of the Lord showing up in Scripture:
• He finds Hagar in the wilderness and gives her a promise concerning her son, Ishmael
(Genesis 16:7–12; cf. 21:17–18).
• He stops Abraham from sacrificing Isaac (Genesis 22:11–18).
• He appears to Moses “in flames of fire from within a bush” (Exodus 3:2).
• He delivers a message to wayward Israel (Judges 2:1–4).
• He commissions Gideon and performs a miracle for him (Judges 6:11–24).
• He brings a plague on Israel during David’s time (2 Samuel 24:15–17).
• He appears in a vision of the prophet Zechariah (Zechariah 1:11–13; cf. 3:1–10).
As part of the curse, enmity—mutual hatred and ill will—will exist between
the woman and the serpent.
Later, the same enmity will continue between the woman’s seed or offspring
(mankind in general, since
Eve is the “mother of all living,”
Genesis 3:20)
and the serpent’s seed.
Their offspring will remain enemies throughout all generations.
The serpent’s (metaphorical) offspring are demonic forces and
also those people
who follow the devil and accomplish his will.
Jesus called
the Pharisees a “brood of vipers”
in Matthew 12:34
and said they
belonged to their “father, the devil” in
John 8:44.
In short, God says that Satan will always be the enemy of mankind.
It follows that people who side with Satan will be at perpetual war
with God’s elect
and that we are engaged in a very real battle between good and evil
(Ephesians 6:12).
Genesis 3:15 is a remarkable verse, often called the protoevangelium (literally, “first gospel”),
because it is the Bible’s first prediction of a Savior.
The second half of the verse gives two messianic prophecies concerning that Savior:
The first messianic prophecy in Genesis 3:15 is that “he will crush your head.”
That is, the seed of the woman will crush the serpent’s head.
The Amplified Bible makes it clear that “the woman’s seed”
is more than
mankind in general; it is an individual representing all mankind:
“And I will put enmity (open hostility)
Between you and the woman,
And between your seed (offspring) and her Seed;
He shall [fatally] bruise your head.”
The second messianic prophecy in Genesis 3:15
is that
“you will strike his heel.”
That is, the serpent will
bite the
heel of “the woman’s seed.”
The heel-bite is set in contrast to the head-crush, as the Amplified Bible brings out:
“And you shall [only] bruise His heel.”
This passage points to
the promise of
Jesus’ birth, His redemption,
and
His victory over Satan.
The woman’s offspring is Jesus.
Being virgin-born,
He is literally the offspring of a woman
(Matthew 1:25; Galatians 4:4; cf. Isaiah 7:14).
Being the Son of Man, He is the perfect representative of humankind.
The devil’s offspring
were the evil men and demonic forces who,
like a snake,
lay in wait for the Savior and struck at Him.
Their venomous conspiracy condemned Jesus to be crucified.
But the
serpent’s strike did not spell the end of the Offspring of the woman.
Jesus rose the third day,
breaking the power of death and
winning
the ultimate victory.
With the
cross, Jesus “crushed” the devil’s head, defeating him forever.
So, in Genesis 3:15, the crushing of the serpent’s head
was a picture of
Jesus’ triumph over sin and Satan at the cross
(cf. John 12:31).
The striking of the Messiah’s heel
was a picture of the wounding and death
of Jesus on the cross.
Satan bruised Jesus’ “heel,” but Jesus showed complete dominance over Satan by bruising his “head.”
Satan, although still active in this world, is a defeated foe.
His doom is sure: “And the devil . . . was thrown into the lake of burning sulfur” (Revelation 20:10).
Until that time, there remains enmity between Satan and God’s children.
The protoevangelium shows us that God always had the plan of salvation in mind and informed us of His plan as soon as sin entered the world. Satan formulated a plan involving the serpent in Eden, but God was way ahead of him,
having already ordained the Serpent-crusher.
Jesus Christ perfectly fulfilled
God’s mission: “
The reason the Son of God
appeared was to destroy the devil’s work”
1 John 3:8).
In various passages, the
angel of the Lord speaks as God, identifies Himself with God,
and exercises the responsibilities of God.
In several of these appearances, those who saw the angel of the Lord
feared for their lives because they had “seen God” (Judges 13:22; cf. Judges 6:22).
Therefore, we can say that, in at least
some instances,
the angel
of the Lord is a theophany,
an appearance
of God in physical form.
The
appearances of the angel of the Lord cease after the
incarnation of Christ.
Angels are mentioned numerous times in the
New Testament, but “the angel of the Lord”
is never mentioned in the
New Testament after the birth of Christ.
One possible difficulty is that the angel who appears to Joseph in a dream in Matthew 1:24
is called “the” angel of the Lord.
However, this angel is clearly the same one appearing in verse 20, which
calls him “an” angel.
Matthew is simply referencing the same angel he had just mentioned.
There is also some confusion regarding Matthew 28:2, where the KJV
says “the angel of the Lord” descended from heaven and rolled the stone away from Jesus’ tomb.
Here, it is important to note that the original Greek has no article in front of the
word for “angel”; it could be “the angel” or “an angel,”
but the article must be supplied by the translators. Other translations besides the KJV
say it was “an angel,” which is the better wording.
It is possible that appearances of the
angel
of the Lord represent
the
Son of God
taking on
temporary human form--
a pre-incarnate
appearance of Jesus Christ
Jesus declared Himself to be existent “before Abraham” (John 8:58), so it makes sense that He would be active and could manifest in the world. Whatever the case, whether the angel of the Lord was a pre-incarnate appearance of Christ (a Christophany) or an appearance of God the Father (a theophany), it is likely that “the angel of the Lord” was, in most cases, a physical appearance of God.
The hypostatic union is the term used to describe
how God the Son, Jesus Christ,
took on a human nature, yet remained fully God at the same time.
Jesus always had been God
(John 8:58, 10:30),
but at the incarnation Jesus became a human being
(John 1:14).
The addition of the
human nature
to the
divine nature is Jesus, the God-man.
This is the hypostatic union,
Jesus Christ,
one Person,
fully God and fully man.
Jesus’ two
natures, human and divine,
are inseparable.
Jesus will forever be the God-man,
fully God and fully human,
two
distinct natures in one Person.
Jesus’
humanity and divinity
are not mixed,
but are united
without loss of separate
identity.
Jesus sometimes operated with the limitations of humanity
(John 4:6, 19:28)
and other times in the power of
His deity
(John 11:43; Matthew 14:18-21).
In both,
Jesus’ actions
were from His one Person.
Jesus had two natures,
but only
one personality.
The doctrine of the hypostatic union is an attempt
to explain how
Jesus could be both God and man at the same time.
It is ultimately, though, a doctrine we are incapable of fully understanding.
It is impossible for us to
fully understand how God works.
We, as human beings with finite minds, should not expect to
totally comprehend an infinite God.
Jesus is God’s Son in that He was conceived by the
Holy Spirit
(Luke 1:35).
But that does not mean
Jesus did not exist before He was conceived. Jesus has always existed
(John 8:58, 10:30).
When Jesus was conceived, He became a human being in addition to being God
(John 1:1, 14).
Jesus is both God and man.
Jesus has always been God,
but He did not become a
human
being until He was conceived
in Mary.
Jesus became a human being in order to
identify
with us in our struggles
(Hebrews 2:17)
and, more importantly, so that He could die on the cross to pay the penalty for our sins
(Philippians 2:5-11). In summary,
the
hypostatic union teaches that
Jesus is both
fully human and fully divine, that there is
no mixture or dilution of
either nature,
and that He is one united Person, forever.
The book of Genesis relates how God created Eve:
“The Lord God caused
the man to fall into a
deep sleep;
and while he was
sleeping,
he took one of the man’s
ribs
and then closed up the place with
flesh.
Then the Lord
God made a woman from the rib he had taken out of the man, and he brought her to the man”
(Genesis 2:21–22).
The phrase for “one of his ribs” could be translated
“a part of his side” (NET),
but almost every English translation specifies the
part as a “rib.”
Earlier, in making Adam,
God used the
“dust of the ground” to form his body
and
“breathed into his nostrils the breath of life,
and the
man became a living being”
(Genesis 2:7).
But, in making Eve, God did not go back to the
dust;
He used one of Adam’s ribs to form
the woman.
When she was brought to Adam, the man said,
“This is now bone of my bones
and flesh of my flesh;
she shall be called ‘woman,’
for she was taken out of man”
(verse 23).
God used Adam’s rib to form Eve--
He used existing tissue and did not “start from scratch”--
to show that
Adam and Eve were of the
same substance;
she was made from the same “stuff” and
was a bearer of God’s image and likeness,
just as Adam was
(see Genesis 1:27).
The woman made of
Adam’s rib
was designed to be a companion
and
“helper suitable” for Adam
(Genesis 2:18).
Eve, formed from a physical part of Adam,
was truly his complement,
an integral part of who he was.
As such,
she was a perfect companion.
Why did God use Adam’s rib?
Interestingly,
ribs
have amazing regenerative
powers
Portions of rib bone and cartilage removed in bone graft surgery will regrow in a few months’ time, as long as the rib perichondrium is left intact. This means that Adam’s loss of a rib was only temporary; he did not have to go through the rest of his life with an incomplete skeletal system.
When God brought Eve to Adam,
they were
united in marriage:
the “woman”
in Genesis 2:22 is called Adam’s
“wife”
in verse 24.
The pattern for marriage,
the
first social institution,
was thus
established by God in Eden
The manner of Eve’s creation
is “why a man leaves his father and mother and is
united
to his wife, and they become
one flesh.”
The unity of a
married couple and the “one flesh” principle are based
on the fact that
God used one of Adam’s ribs to make
the woman.
God’s use of one of Adam’s ribs to make Eve
is a reminder that
woman was created to be “beside” man.
Together, the man and woman complement one another in marriage, and
in Christ
they are
“heirs together of the grace of life”
(1 Peter 3:7, NKJV).
Revelation 19:10 says,
“the testimony of Jesus
is the
spirit of prophecy.”
The people who
receive this spirit of prophecy
in this
verse are “the brethren,”
which is a term
Revelation later uses for prophets
(Rev. 22:9)
In other words,
the
testimony of Jesus
is the spirit of
prophecy given to the prophets.
The “seven spirits of God”
are mentioned
several times in
The
book of Revelation:
• Revelation 1:4–5, “John, To the seven churches in the province of Asia: Grace and peace to you from him who is, and who was, and who is to come, and from the seven spirits before his throne, and from Jesus Christ . . .”
• Revelation 3:1, “To the angel of the church in Sardis write: These are the words of him who holds the seven spirits of God . . .”
• Revelation 4:5, “From the throne came flashes of lightning, rumblings and peals of thunder. In front of the throne, seven lamps were blazing. These are the seven spirits of God.”
• Revelation 5:6, “Then I saw a Lamb, looking as if it had been slain, standing at the center of the throne, encircled by the four living creatures and the elders. The Lamb had seven horns and seven eyes, which are the seven spirits of God sent out into all the earth.”
The identity of “the seven spirits” is not explicit in these passages, but arriving at the proper interpretation is fairly straightforward. The “seven spirits” cannot be seven angelic beings such as seraphim or cherubim because of the context of Revelation 1:4. John says that “grace and peace” are coming to the churches from three sources: “
him who is, and who was, and who is to come” (verse 4),
“the seven spirits before the throne”
(verse 4), and “Jesus Christ” (verse 5).
This is a depiction of the Trinity: grace and peace are
given by the
Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit,
the
three co-equal Persons of the Godhead.
In Revelation 3:1 Jesus “holds” the seven spirits of God.
In John 15:26,
Jesus “sends” the Holy Spirit from the Father.
Both passages suggest the superordinate role of the
Son and the subordinate role of the Spirit.
In Revelation 4:5 the seven spirits of God are symbolized
as seven burning lamps that are before God’s throne.
This picture agrees with Zechariah’s vision in which he sees the
Holy Spirit
symbolized as “a solid gold lampstand . . .
with a bowl
at the top and seven lamps on it”
(Zechariah 4:2).
In Revelation 5:6 the seven spirits are
the “seven eyes” of the Lamb,
and they are
“sent out into all the earth.”
The seven eyes speak of the Spirit’s (and the Lamb’s)
omniscience,
and the fact that He is sent
into all the earth speaks of His omnipresence.
Once we identify the “seven spirits” as the Holy Spirit, the question remains,
why are there “seven” of Him?
The Bible, and especially the book of Revelation, uses the number seven to refer
to perfection and completion.
John’s vision includes a picture of the perfect and complete Holy Spirit.
Isaiah 11:2 also references the
Holy Spirit
using a seven-fold description:
“The Spirit of the LORD will rest on him
—the Spirit of wisdom and of understanding,
the Spirit of counsel and of power,
the Spirit
of knowledge and of the fear of the LORD.”
The prophecy is that the Messiah
would be empowered not by seven individual
spirits
but by the
One Spirit, described seven ways:
1) The Spirit of the LORD
2) The Spirit of wisdom
3) The Spirit of understanding
4) The Spirit of counsel
5) The Spirit of power
6) The Spirit of knowledge
7) The Spirit of the fear of the Lord
The “seven spirits of God”
in the
book of Revelation
are thus a reference to
the Holy Spirit
in the
perfection of His manifold ministry
The Woman and the Dragon
A great sign appeared in heaven: a woman clothed with the sun, with the moon under her feet and a crown of twelve stars on her head. She was pregnant and cried out in pain as she was about to give birth. Then another sign appeared in heaven: an enormous red dragon with seven heads and ten horns and seven crowns on its heads. Its tail swept a third of the stars out of the sky and flung them to the earth. The dragon stood in front of the woman who was about to give birth, so that it might devour her child the moment he was born. She gave birth to a son, a male child, who “will rule all the nations with an iron scepter.” And her child was snatched up to God and to his throne. The woman fled into the wilderness to a place prepared for her by God, where she might be taken care of for 1,260 days.
Then war broke out in heaven
Michael and his angels
fought
against the dragon, and the dragon
and his angels fought back.
But he was not strong enough, and they
lost their place in heaven.
The great dragon
was hurled down
—that ancient serpent called the devil, or Satan,
who leads the whole world astray
He was hurled to the earth, and his
angels with him.
Then I heard a loud voice in heaven say:
“Now have come the salvation and the power
and the kingdom of our God,
and the
authority of his Messiah
For the accuser of our brothers and sisters,
who accuses them before our God day and night,
has been hurled down.
They triumphed over him
by the blood of the Lamb
and by the word of their testimony;
they did not love their lives so much
as to shrink from death.
Therefore rejoice, you heavens
and you who dwell in them!
But woe to the earth and the sea,
because the devil has gone down to you!
He is filled with fury,
because he knows that his time is short.”
When the dragon saw that he had been hurled to the earth,
he pursued the woman
who had given birth to the male child.
The woman was given the two wings of a great eagle, so that she might fly to the place prepared for her in the wilderness, where she would be taken care of for a time, times and half a time, out of the serpent’s reach.
Then from his mouth
the serpent
spewed water like a river,
to overtake
the woman and sweep
her away with the torrent. But the earth helped
the woman
by opening its mouth and
swallowing the river that the dragon had
spewed out of his mouth.
Then the dragon was enraged at the woman
and went off to
wage war against the rest of her offspring--
those who
keep God’s commands and
hold fast their
testimony about Jesus.
Jesus,
while being considered
equal
with God,
"did not consider equality with God
something to be
used to his own advantage"
and
"emptied himself, by taking the form
of a servant,
being made in human likeness,"
essentially
choosing to humble himself and
not cling to
his divine status while
on Earth;
this means he considered himself
"less than God"
in the sense of his
earthly existence as a human being,
even
though he was fully divine
One in Christ
(Ephesians 2:11–18)
Therefore
if you have any encouragement
in Christ,
if any comfort from His love,
if any
fellowship with the Spirit,
if any
affection and compassion,
then make my joy complete
by being like-minded, having the same love,
being united in spirit and purpose.
Do nothing out of selfish ambition
or empty pride,
but in humility consider
others more important than yourselves.
Each of you should look not
only
to your own interests, but also to
the interests of others
The Mind of Christ
(Isaiah 52:13–15)
Let this mind be in you which
was
also in Christ Jesus:
who,
existing in the form of God,
did not
consider equality
with God
something to be grasped,
but emptied Himself,
taking
the form of a servant,
being made in human likeness
And being found
in appearance as a man,
He humbled Himself
and became obedient
to death--
even death on a cross
Therefore God exalted Him to
the highest place
and gave Him
the name above all names,
that at the
name of Jesus
every knee should bow,
in heaven
and
on earth and under the earth,
and
every tongue confess that
Jesus Christ is Lord,
to the
glory of God the Father.
Lights in the World
(Matthew 5:13–16)
12Therefore, my beloved, just as you have always obeyed, not only in my presence, but now even more in my absence, continue to work out your salvation with fear and trembling.
For it is God who works in you to will and to act on behalf of His good purpose.
14Do everything without complaining or arguing, 15so that you may be blameless and pure, children of God without fault in a crooked and perverse generation,b in which you shine as lights in the world 16as you hold forth the word of life, in order that I may boast on the day of Christ that I did not run or labor in vain.
17But even if I am being poured out like a drink offering on the sacrifice and service of your faith, I am glad and rejoice with all of you. 18So you too should be glad and rejoice with me.
Timothy and Epaphroditus
(1 Corinthians 16:10–12)
19Now I hope in the Lord Jesus to send Timothy to you soon, that I also may be cheered when I learn how you are doing. 20I have nobody else like him who will genuinely care for your needs. 21For all the others look after their own interests, not those of Jesus Christ. 22But you know Timothy’s proven worth, that as a child with his father he has served with me to advance the gospel. 23So I hope to send him as soon as I see what happens with me. 24And I trust in the Lord that I myself will come soon.
25But I thought it necessary to send back to you Epaphroditus, my brother, fellow worker, and fellow soldier, who is also your messenger and minister to my needs.26For he has been longing for all of you and is distressed because you heard he was ill. 27He was sick indeed, nearly unto death. But God had mercy on him, and not only on him but also on me, to spare me sorrow upon sorrow.
28Therefore I am all the more eager to send him, so that when you see him again you may rejoice, and I may be less anxious. 29Welcome him in the Lord with great joy, and honor men like him, 30because he nearly died for the work of Christ, risking his life to make up for your deficit of service to me.
In Matthew 21:44, Jesus says,
"He who falls on
this stone
will be broken to pieces,
but he on whom it
falls
will be crushed."
The key
to understanding this statement lies in the context of the verse and the
larger conversation Jesus was having.
Jesus was teaching in the temple courts when the chief priests and elders approached Him and demanded to know the source of His authority. In response, Jesus asked them about John the Baptist--
was he a prophet of God or not?
The religious leaders, fearing the people’s response, refused to reveal their true opinion on the matter. In turn, Jesus refused to reveal the source of His authority (Matthew 21:23-27).
In doing so, Jesus made it clear that the Jewish leaders themselves had
no authority to judge Him.
Jesus then related two parables concerning
vineyards.
In the first, Jesus told of two sons who were told by their father to go work
in the vineyard.
The first son initially refused but later changed his mind and
went to work.
The second son promised to work, but he never went
to the vineyard.
Jesus applied this to the religious leaders of Israel, who were like the second son—they expressed agreement with the Father but, in the final analysis, were disobedient. The sinners who responded to John the Baptist’s message were like the first son—they seemed unlikely candidates for heaven,
but they repented and thus will enter the kingdom (verses 28-32).
In the second parable,
Jesus tells of a landowner who,
at harvest time,
sent
some servants to his vineyard
to collect the fruit.
However, the farmers
who were tending
the vineyard were a wicked lot,
and when the servants arrived,
the farmers beat some of them and
killed others.
Finally,
the landowner sent his own son to
collect the fruit,
expecting that
the farmers would show him respect.
But the farmers treated the son worst of all,
throwing him out
of the vineyard and killing him
(Matthew 21:33-39).
Jesus then asks a question:
"When the owner of the vineyard comes, what will he do to those tenants?"
(Matthew 21:40).
The chief priests and elders respond, "He will bring those wretches to a wretched end"
(Matthew 21:41).
Jesus then presses His point home with a quotation
from Psalm 118:
“The stone the builders
rejected has become the capstone;
the Lord has done this,
and it is marvelous in our eyes"
(Matthew 21:42).
After a warning that the religious leaders will not inherit the kingdom
(Matthew 21:43),
we come to the statement in question,
which is the culmination of a series of dire pronouncements aimed at
the chief priests and elders.
Jesus begins with a question about John the Baptist in Matthew 21:25, but by the end of the conversation,
Jesus is plainly speaking of Himself, referring to a "father" sending his "son" who was killed
(Matthew 21:37).
He then immediately quotes a Messianic prophecy (Matthew 21:42),
in effect claiming to be the long-awaited Messiah.
The progression is logical:
a rejection of John leads one naturally to a rejection of Christ, to whom John pointed
(John 1:29, 3:30).
The stone which "the builders rejected" in verse 42 is Jesus.
Although rejected,
He nevertheless becomes the "chief cornerstone" (NKJV).
See also Acts 4:11; Ephesians 2:20; and 1 Peter 2:6-8.
The builders’ rejection of the stone is a
reference
to Christ’s crucifixion.
The Lord’s choice of the
stone to be the cornerstone is a reference to
Christ’s resurrection.
God chose His Son, despised and rejected by the world, to be the foundation of His church
(1 Corinthians 3:11).
"See, I lay a stone in Zion, a tested stone, a precious cornerstone for a sure foundation"
(Isaiah 28:16).
Now, there are consequences for
coming
into contact with a stone.
If you trip over
the edge of a rock and fall on it,
you may break some bones.
If a large enough rock
falls on top of you, you may be killed.
Jesus uses these truths
to deliver
a warning to the Jewish leaders.
The stone
in verse 44 is also
Jesus.
In saying that those who
fall on this
stone
"will be broken to pieces,"
Jesus is warning against opposing Him. Defying Jesus is like beating
one’s head against a solid rock
—a foolish action. In saying that those upon whom the
stone falls "will be crushed,"
Jesus is warning against ignoring Him or trivializing Him.
Apathy towards Jesus
is like standing in the way of a falling
rock
—another foolish action.
"I am here to do God’s work,"
Jesus essentially says.
"The foundation for the church will be laid.
It is unwise to oppose Me
because God’s work is not inconsequential."
Rejection of the Savior is fatal. Unfortunately, many do reject Him.
"He will be a stone that
causes men to stumble and a rock that makes them fall"
(Isaiah 8:14).
To persistently reject the Savior
is to court judgment
so severe that the only thing left
will be dust.
The prophet Daniel gives a similar picture
of the
Messiah, likening Him to a rock "cut out, but not by human hands,"
which smashes into the
nations of the world and completely obliterates them
(Daniel 2:31-45).
Matthew 21:44 is a call to faith, an appeal to open one’s eyes and see that Jesus is indeed the Son of God sent into the world. The verse is also a strict warning against rejecting Jesus Christ. He is the sure Rock of salvation for those who believe, but an immovable stumbling stone for those who do not.
re·fine·ment
/rəˈfīnm(ə)nt/
noun: refinement
the
process of removing
impurities or
unwanted elements from a substance
But now thus says the Lord,
he who created you, O Jacob, he who formed you, O Israel:
“Fear not, for I have redeemed you; I have called you
by name, you are mine.
When you pass through the waters, I will be with you;
and through the rivers,
they shall not overwhelm you;
when you walk through fire you shall not be burned,
and the flame shall not consume you.
For I am the Lord your God, the Holy One of Israel, your Savior.
(Isaiah 43:1-3 ESV)
The first time we see the word lampstand in the Bible is in Exodus 25:31, as
God gives detailed instructions
about
the golden lampstand to be placed in
the tabernacle
the Israelites were building.
It’s interesting to note just how precise God is in explaining how He wanted the lampstand to look.
Since we can be assured there are no “wasted words” in the Bible,
we know each detail
and specification are important for some reason.
The lampstand was to be made of pure gold, hammered out to the perfect accuracy of God’s decree
(Exodus 25:31).
Gold was the most valuable of all metals (Psalm 119:127; 19:10).
Gold is often spoken of in terms of being “tested by fire”;
the Bible compares the testing of gold with the testing of the church in 1 Peter 1:7.
Out of testing, or refining,
will come
the true people of God
(see Zechariah 13:7–9; Job 23:10).
Those who
withstand the “fire” will be purified
(see Numbers 31:23).
The lampstand as a whole was to be fashioned as a tree with the base and center shaft representing the trunk and with three “branches” on each side. The top of the shaft and of each branch was to be made like an open almond flower; each flower held an oil lamp
(Exodus 25:32, 37).
There are several passages in the Bible that speak about the almond tree, which was always the first tree to blossom and bear fruit in the spring, as early as February. The apostle Paul calls Christ the “firstfruits” because Jesus was the first to rise from the dead to everlasting life, and because of His resurrection all believers will also be raised
(1 Corinthians 15:20–23; Romans 8:23)
God used Aaron’s rod as a sign to the
Israelites
of his unique priesthood
At one time, when
Aaron’s priesthood was being challenged,
God caused Aaron’s rod
to bud and grow ripe almonds
overnight;
this miracle reaffirmed that the privilege of
being chosen
as High Priest only came through
God’s appointment
(Numbers 16:3;17:10).
This was a “shadow of things to come” experience
that pointed to
Jesus, our God-ordained,
life-giving
High Priest forever
(Hebrews 7:21).
In the tabernacle,
the lampstand
was to be placed in the first section,
called the Holy Place
(Hebrews 9:2).
The lamp was to be tended by Aaron and his sons so that
its light never went out.
The lampstand
was to give forth light day and night
(Exodus 27:20–21).
The lampstand’s being the only source of light
points directly to
Christ as being the light of the world
(John 8:12; 9:5).
Jesus is the “true light that gives light to everyone”
(John 1:9)
and the only way anyone can come to the Father
(John 14:6).
Jesus also calls His church the “light of the world” (Matthew 5:14), not of their own doing but because Christ is abiding in the church (John 1:4–5). A Christian who is shining with the light of Christ will live a godly life (1 Peter 2:9). Scripture is overflowing with references that compare and contrast light and darkness, believer and unbeliever, right up through the book of Revelation. In Revelation 1:20 Christ says the “seven lampstands are the seven churches.” The churches of Christ are to walk in the light of God (1 John 1:7) and
spread the light of the gospel so that all people will glorify God
(Matthew 5:16).
There is other symbolism in the lampstand: it was made of one piece, as Christ is one with His church (Colossians 1:8); the six branches (6 being the number of man) plus the main shaft equals seven lights (7 being the number of completion)—man is only complete in Christ (John 15:5).
The most important thing to note about the lampstand is that it points to Christ, as do all the elements of the tabernacle. The Bible is from beginning to end a testimony about Christ and God’s merciful plan of redemption. Praise the Lord, He has taken His children out of the darkness and into His marvelous light (1 Peter 2:9).
Malachi 3:2, where the phrase refiner’s fire is used, has been a popular verse in Western society for centuries due to its use in Handel’s famous oratorio Messiah. The verse reads, “But who can endure the day of his coming? Who can stand when he appears? For he will be like a refiner’s fire or a launderer’s soap.” Let’s take a look at the prophet’s similes.
Malachi says that, when
the Lord returns, no one will be able to stand before Him. The Lord’s holiness and judgment will be as a refiner’s blazing fire and as a fuller’s bleaching agent. The idea of “standing” before the Lord is associated with “withstanding” or “standing up to”; sinful human flesh will not have the strength, the right, or the desire to resist the Lord in His glory
(cf. Psalm 76:7; Revelation 6:17).
The two similes help clarify why no one will be able to stand in the Day of the Lord. First, Malachi 3:2 says the Messiah will be like a refiner’s fire, an allusion to the process of purifying metal. A refiner uses a fire to heat metal to a molten state; then he skims off the dross that floats to the top. The refiner’s fire is, of course, maintained at an extremely high temperature, and such a high degree of heat is the prophet’s picture of the testing people will face on Judgment Day. All judgment has been entrusted to the Son (John 5:22). Upon Christ’s return, the intense flame of God’s judgment will purify the earth, removing the dross of sin.
Second, the Messiah will be like a launderer’s soap. This type of soap was caustic and quite effective in producing bright white clothing. The HCSB translates it as “cleansing lye.” When Christ returns, He will cleanse the world of all impurity. Every stain of sin will be scrubbed away. The account of Jesus’ transfiguration contains a reference to His purity, using language similar to Malachi’s: “He was transfigured before them. His clothes became dazzling white, whiter than anyone in the world could bleach them” (Mark 9:2–3).
The goal of Jesus will be to judge wickedness and purify His people: “He will sit as a refiner and purifier of silver; he will purify the Levites and refine them like gold and silver. Then the LORD will have men who will bring offerings in righteousness” (Malachi 3:3). Like the refiner’s fire, He will burn away the impurities of the priests. Like launderer’s soap, He will wash away their uncleanness (Isaiah 1:25; Jeremiah 6:29–30; Ezekiel 22:17–22; Zechariah 3:5).
The priests in the millennial kingdom will then be able to offer sacrifices from
a pure heart.
The sacrifices in those days will be similar to those when the temple was first built:
“The offerings of Judah and Jerusalem will be
acceptable to the LORD,
as in days gone by, as in former years”
(Malachi 3:4).
The refiner’s fire and launderer’s soap indicate the holiness and burning judgment of the Messiah when He returns to reign in Jerusalem at His second coming. His purifying brightness and absolute holiness will affect those who serve Him, creating a cleansed temple and purified priesthood. “See, the Sovereign LORD comes with power, and his arm rules for him. See, his reward is with him, and his recompense accompanies him” (Isaiah 40:10).
The gift of grace is a concept in Christianity that refers to God's gift of love, forgiveness, and acceptance. It's also a term that can refer to positive qualities or talents in a person.
How grace is received
Grace is received through humility and faith,
not by earning it.
It's a dynamic gift that works
within people to motivate them to do good.
How grace is applied
Grace can be applied in many ways, including:
Angels
Descendants of Seth
Historical figures
Nephilim
In 1 Peter 1:13-16, Peter writes to
believers,
"Therefore, prepare
your minds for action, keep sober in spirit,
fix your hope completely on the grace
to be brought
to you at the revelation of Jesus Christ.
As obedient children, do not be conformed to the former lusts which were yours in your ignorance,
but like the Holy One who called you,
be holy yourselves
also in all your behavior;
because it is written, 'You shall be holy, for I am holy.'"
Peter is quoting from Leviticus 11:44 and Leviticus 19:2.
First, let’s look at God’s holiness. What does it mean that God is holy? Passages like 1 Samuel 2:2 and Isaiah 6:3 are just two of many examples of passages about God’s holiness. Another way to say it is absolute perfection. God is unlike any other (see Hosea 11:9), and His holiness is the essence of that “otherness.” His very being is completely absent of even a trace of sin (James 1:13; Hebrews 6:18). He is high above any other, and no one can compare to Him (Psalm 40:5). God’s holiness pervades His entire being and shapes all His attributes. His love is a holy love, His mercy is holy mercy, and even His anger and wrath are holy anger and holy wrath. These concepts are difficult for humans to grasp, just as God is difficult for us to understand in His entirety.
Next, what does it mean for us to be holy? When God told Israel to be holy in Leviticus 11 and 19, He was instructing them to be distinct from the other nations by giving them specific regulations to govern their lives. Israel is God’s chosen nation and God has set them apart from all other people groups. They are His special people, and consequently they were given standards that God wanted them to live by so the world would know they belonged to Him. When Peter repeats the Lord’s words in 1 Peter 1:16, he is talking specifically to believers. As believers, we need to be "set apart" from the world unto the Lord. We need to be living by God’s standards, not the world’s. God isn’t calling us to be perfect, but to be distinct from the world. First Peter 2:9 describes believers as "a holy nation." It is a fact! We are separated from the world; we need to live out that reality in our day-to-day lives, which Peter tells us how to do in 1 Peter 1:13-16.
Finally, how can we become
holy?
Holiness only results
from a right relationship with God
by believing
in Jesus Christ as Savior
(accepting His gift of eternal life).
If we have not placed our faith in God’s Son alone to save us from our sins, then our pursuit of holiness is in vain. So, we must first make sure we are born-again believers (see John 3). If we truly are believers, then we recognize that our position in Christ automatically sets us apart from the world (1 Peter 2:9).
After all, we have a relationship with the living God! Then we must daily live
a set-apart life, not trying to "blend in" with the world,
but instead living according to God’s Word as we
study the Bible and grow in it.
Sanctification is God’s will for us (1 Thessalonians 4:3).
The word sanctification is related
to the word
saint;
both words have to do with
holiness.
To “sanctify”
something is to
set it apart for special use;
to “sanctify”
a person is to make him holy.
Isaiah 44:3
For I will pour water on the thirsty land, and currents on the dry ground. I will pour out My Spirit on your descendants, and My blessing on your offspring.
Ezekiel 36:26-27
I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit within you; I will remove your heart of stone and give you a heart of flesh. / And I will put My Spirit within you and cause you to walk in My statutes and to carefully observe My ordinances.
Jeremiah 31:33-34
“But this is the covenant I will make with the house of Israel after those days, declares the LORD. I will put My law in their minds and inscribe it on their hearts. And I will be their God, and they will be My people. / No longer will each man teach his neighbor or his brother, saying, ‘Know the LORD,’ because they will all know Me, from the least of them to the greatest, declares the LORD. For I will forgive their iniquities and will remember their sins no more.”
John 7:38-39
Whoever believes in Me, as the Scripture has said: ‘Streams of living water will flow from within him.’” / He was speaking about the Spirit, whom those who believed in Him were later to receive. For the Spirit had not yet been given, because Jesus had not yet been glorified.
John 14:16-17
And I will ask the Father, and He will give you another Advocate to be with you forever— / the Spirit of truth. The world cannot receive Him, because it neither sees Him nor knows Him. But you do know Him, for He abides with you and will be in you.
John 16:13
However, when the Spirit of truth comes, He will guide you into all truth. For He will not speak on His own, but He will speak what He hears, and He will declare to you what is to come.
Galatians 3:14
He redeemed us in order that the blessing promised to Abraham would come to the Gentiles in Christ Jesus, so that by faith we might receive the promise of the Spirit.
Ephesians 1:13-14
And in Him, having heard and believed the word of truth—the gospel of your salvation—you were sealed with the promised Holy Spirit, / who is the pledge of our inheritance until the redemption of those who are God’s possession, to the praise of His glory.
Titus 3:5-6
He saved us, not by the righteous deeds we had done, but according to His mercy, through the washing of new birth and renewal by the Holy Spirit. / This is the Spirit He poured out on us abundantly through Jesus Christ our Savior,
Hebrews 8:10
For this is the covenant I will make with the house of Israel after those days, declares the Lord. I will put My laws in their minds and inscribe them on their hearts. And I will be their God, and they will be My people.
1 John 2:20
You, however, have an anointing from the Holy One, and all of you know the truth.
Isaiah 2:2
And it shall come to pass in the last days, that the mountain of the LORD'S house shall be established in the top of the mountains, and shall be exalted above the hills; and all nations shall flow unto it.
Psalm 72:6
He shall come down like rain upon the mown grass: as showers that water the earth.
Proverbs 1:23
Turn you at my reproof: behold, I will pour out my spirit unto you, I will make known my words unto you.
Spiritual Gifts
1Now about spiritual gifts, brothers, I do not want you to be uninformed. 2You know that when you were pagans, you were influenced and led astray to mute idols. 3Therefore I inform you that no one who is speaking by the Spirit of God says, “Jesus be cursed,” and no one can say, “Jesus is Lord,” except by the Holy Spirit.
4There are different gifts, but the same Spirit. 5There are different ministries, but the same Lord. 6There are different ways of working, but the same God works all things in all people.
7Now to each one the manifestation of the Spirit is given for the common good.8To one there is given through the Spirit the message of wisdom, to another the message of knowledge by the same Spirit, 9to another faith by the same Spirit, to another gifts of healing by that one Spirit, 10to another the working of miracles, to another prophecy, to another distinguishing between spirits, to another speaking in various tongues, and to still another the interpretation of tongues. 11All these are the work of one and the same Spirit, who apportions them to each one as He determines.
The Greater Gifts
27Now you are the body of Christ, and each of you is a member of it. 28And in the church God has appointed first of all apostles, second prophets, third teachers, then workers of miracles, and those with gifts of healing, helping, administration, and various tongues. 29Are all apostles? Are all prophets? Are all teachers? Do all work miracles? 30Do all have gifts of healing? Do all speak in tongues? Do all interpret? 31But eagerly desire the greater gifts.
And now I will show you the most excellent way.
The Holy Spirit at Pentecost
(Genesis 11:1–9; Leviticus 23:15–22)
1When the day of Pentecosta came, they were all together in one place.2Suddenly a sound like a mighty rushing wind came from heaven and filled the whole house where they were sitting. 3They saw tongues like flames of fire that separated and came to rest on each of them.
and they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other tongues as the Spirit enabled them.
Now there were dwelling in Jerusalem
God-fearing Jews from every nation under heaven.
And when this sound rang out, a crowd came
together in bewilderment,
because each one heard them speaking
his own language.
Astounded and amazed, they asked, “Are not all these who are speaking Galileans?
how is it then that each of us hears them in his own native language?
9Parthians, Medes, and Elamites; residents of Mesopotamia, Judea and Cappadocia, Pontus and Asia,
10Phrygia and Pamphylia, Egypt and the parts of Libya near Cyrene; visitors from Rome,
both Jews and converts to Judaism; Cretans and Arabs--
we hear them declaring the
wonders of God
in our own tongues!”
Astounded and perplexed, they asked one another, “What does this mean?”
but others mocked them and said, “They are drunk on new wine!”
Peter Addresses the Crowd
(Psalm 16:1–11; Joel 2:28–32)
Then Peter stood up with the Eleven,
lifted up his voice,
and addressed the crowd:
“Men of Judea and all who dwell
in Jerusalem,
let this be known to you,
and listen carefully to my words.
these men are not drunk, as you suppose.
It is only the third hour of the day!
No, this is what was spoken by the prophet Joel:
‘In the last days, God says,
I will pour out My Spirit on all people.
Your sons and daughters will prophesy,
your young men will see visions,
your old men will dream dreams.
even on My menservants and maidservants
I will pour out My Spirit in those days,
and they will prophesy.
I will show wonders in the heavens above
and signs on the earth below,
blood and fire and billows of smoke.
the sun will be turned to darkness,
and the moon to blood,
before the coming of the great and glorious Day of the Lord.
and everyone who calls on the name of the Lord
will be saved.’
men of Israel, listen to
this message:
Jesus of Nazareth
was a man certified by God
to you by
miracles, wonders, and signs,
which God did among you
through Him,
as you yourselves know.
he was delivered up
by God’s set plan and foreknowledge,
and you,
by the hands of the lawless, put Him to death by
nailing Him to the cross.
But God raised Him
from the dead, releasing Him from
the agony of death,
because it was
impossible for death to keep Him in its grip.
25David says about Him:
‘I saw the Lord always before me;
because He is at my right hand, I will not be shaken.
26Therefore my heart is glad and my tongue rejoices;
my body also will dwell in hope,
27because You will not abandon my soul to Hades,
nor will You let Your Holy One see decay.
28You have made known to me the paths of life;
You will fill me with joy in Your presence.’
29Brothers, I can tell you with
confidence that
the patriarch David died and
was buried,
and his tomb is with us to this day.
but he was a prophet
and knew
that God had promised him on oath
that He would
place one of his descendants on
his throne.
Foreseeing this,
David spoke about the resurrection
of the Christ,
that He was not abandoned
to Hades, nor did His body
see decay.
God has raised this
Jesus to life,
to which we are all
witnesses.
exalted, then, to the right hand
of God,
He has received
from the
Father the promised Holy Spirit
and has poured
out what
you now see and hear.
David did not ascend
into heaven,
but he himself says:
‘The Lord said to my Lord,
“Sit at My right hand
35until I make Your enemies
a footstool for Your feet.”’
36Therefore let all Israel know with certainty that
God has made this Jesus,
whom you
crucified, both Lord and Christ!”
Before the birth of Jesus, an
angel appeared to Joseph
and
revealed that his fiancée,
Mary,
had conceived a
child
through the Holy Spirit
(Matthew 1:20–21).
Mary would give birth to a Son, and they were to name Him Jesus. Then Matthew, quoting from
Isaiah 7:14, provided this inspired revelation:
“All this took place to fulfill what the Lord had said through the prophet: ‘The virgin will conceive and give birth to a son, and they will call him Immanuel’ (which means ‘God with us’)”
(Matthew 1:22–23).
Seven hundred years earlier, the prophet Isaiah foresaw the virgin birth of the promised Messiah.
He prophesied that His name would be
Immanuel,
which means “God with us.”
By referencing the words of Isaiah,
Matthew recognized Jesus as Immanuel.
The name Immanuel expresses the
miracle of the Incarnation:
Jesus is God with us! God had been with
His people always—in the pillar of cloud
above the tabernacle,
in the voice of the prophets, in the
ark of the covenant--
but never was God so
clearly present with His people as
He was through
His virgin-born Son,
Jesus, the Messiah of Israel.
In the Old Testament,
the presence of God with His people was
most evident when
His glory filled the tabernacle
(Exodus 25:8; 40:34–35) and the temple (1 Kings 8:10–11).
But that
glory was far surpassed
by the personal
presence of God the Son,
God with us in person.
Perhaps the most significant passage in the Bible on the
Incarnation of Jesus is John 1:1–14.
John states that
“the Word was with God,
and the
Word was God.
He was with God in the beginning”
(verses 1–2).
John uses the term logos, or “the Word,” as a clear reference to God.
John declares in verse 14,
“The Word became flesh
and made
his dwelling among us.
We have seen his glory,
the glory
of the one and only Son,
who
came from the Father,
full
of grace and truth.”
On the night of His arrest, Jesus was teaching His disciples. Philip had a request:
“Lord, show us the Father, and that will be enough for us.”
It was a perfectly natural yearning. But Jesus replied, “Philip,
I have been with you all this time, and still you do not know Me?
Anyone who has seen Me has seen the Father”
(John 14:8–9, BSB)
Jesus had been showing them the Father all along.
He was truly “God with us.”
Whenever Jesus spoke, He spoke the Father’s words.
Whatever Jesus did, He did exactly as the Father would do.
God took upon Himself human flesh and blood (1 Timothy 3:16).
This is the meaning of incarnation.
The Son of God literally “tabernacled” among us as one of us;
He “set up His tent” in our camp (John 1:14).
God showed us His glory and offered us His grace and truth.
Under the Old Covenant, the tabernacle represented the presence of God, but now, under the New Covenant, Jesus Christ is God with us. He is not merely a symbol of God with us; Jesus is God with us in person. Jesus is not a partial revelation of God; He is God with us in all His fullness: “For in Christ lives all the fullness of God in a human body” (Colossians 2:9, NLT).
God makes Himself fully known to us through Jesus Christ. He reveals Himself as our Redeemer (1 Peter 1:18–19). Jesus is God with us as Reconciler. Once we were separated from God through sin (Isaiah 59:2), but when Jesus Christ came, He brought God to us: “For God was in Christ, reconciling the world to himself, no longer counting people’s sins against them” (2 Corinthians 5:19, NLT; see also Romans 8:3).
Jesus is not only God with us but also God in us. God comes to live in us through Jesus Christ when we are born again: “My old self has been crucified with Christ. It is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me. So I live in this earthly body by trusting in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me” (Galatians 2:20, NLT). The Spirit of God lives in us, and we are His dwelling place: “For we are the temple of the living God. As God said: ‘I will live in them and walk among them. I will be their God, and they will be my people’” (2 Corinthians 6:16, NLT).
Jesus is not God with us temporarily, but eternally. God the Son, never ceasing for a moment to be divine, took on a fully human nature and became ‘God with us’ forever: “And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age” (Matthew 28:20; see also Hebrews 13:5).
When it was time for Jesus to return to the Father, He told His disciples, “I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Helper, to be with you forever” (John 14:16, ESV). Jesus was speaking of the Holy Spirit, the third Person of the Godhead, who would continue to bring the presence of God to dwell in the lives of believers. The Holy Spirit carries on the role of Jesus as teacher, revealer of truth, encourager, comforter, intercessor, and God with us.
Both
Enoch and Mary were assumed
into
heaven, body and soul
Enoch's assumption
is described in Genesis 5:21-24,
and
Mary's assumption
is
believed to have occurred
after
Christ's death.
Hebrews 11:5 says that Enoch was taken up so that he would not see death. Mary was the first and most perfect disciple Mary's assumption was the fulfillment of a promise made by God to the Jews and Christians
Mary went to heaven body and soul
According to Scripture, Enoch and Elijah may have been assumed into heaven before the time of Christ. This is less clear in Enoch’s case, since Genesis 5:24 says only that God “took” him, but doesn’t say where. Sirach 44:16 and 49:14 make it clear that he was taken up from the earth, and Hebrews 11:5 adds
“so that he should not see death.”
In Elijah’s case, 2 Kings 2:11 states that “Elijah went up by a whirlwind into heaven.” First Maccabees 2:58 adds, “Elijah because of great zeal for the Law was taken up into heaven. ” Taken at face value, these would seem to indicate that both Enoch and Elijah were assumed into heaven. But the Church teaches that heaven was not yet opened to the saints because Christ had not yet come. How can this be explained?
One possible explanation is to say that they didn’t really go to heaven but to the abode of the dead
where the souls of the righteous
were waiting
for the Messiah to open heaven.
A difficulty is that the abode of the dead, or she’ol, is pictured in the Old Testament as being down (e.g., Nm 16:33 speaks of Korah and his followers going “down alive into she’ol“), yet Enoch and Elijah are depicted as being taken up.
Another possibility would be to say they were taken up but to a different kind of heaven than the one Christ opened. Or it is possible to say simply that they received entrance to heaven as a grace which came from the redemption Christ wrought – only they received it early, as did Mary when she was immaculately conceived.
Like Mary, Enoch and Elijah
may have been
foretastes of the good things to come
In such a case,
they would be exceptions to the rule
But God
can do what he wants
Described in Leviticus 23, The Feast of Weeks is the second of the three “solemn feasts” that all Jewish males
were required to travel to Jerusalem to attend (Exodus 23:14–17; 34:22–23; Deuteronomy 16:16).
This important feast gets its name from the fact that it
starts seven full weeks,
or exactly 50 days, after the
Feast of Firstfruits.
Since it takes place exactly
50 days
after the
previous feast, this feast is also
known
as “Pentecost” (Acts 2:1), which means
“”fifty”
Each of three “solemn feasts”—Passover, the Feast of Weeks, and the Feast of Tabernacles—required that all able-bodied Jewish males travel to Jerusalem to attend the feast and offer sacrifices. All three of these feasts required that “firstfruit” offerings be made at the temple as a way of expressing thanksgiving for God’s provision. The Feast of Firstfruits celebrated at the time of the Passover included the first fruits of the barley harvest. The Feast of Weeks was in celebration of the first fruits of the wheat harvest, and the Feast of Tabernacles involved offerings of the first fruits of the olive and grape harvests.
Since the Feast of Weeks was one of the “harvest feasts,” the Jews were commanded to “present an offering of new grain to the Lord” (Leviticus 23:16). This offering was to be “two wave loaves of two-tenths of an ephah” which were made “of fine flour . . . baked with leaven.” The offerings were to be made of the first fruits of that harvest (Leviticus 23:17). Along with the “wave offerings” they were also to offer seven first-year lambs that were without blemish along with one young bull and two rams. Additional offerings are also prescribed in Leviticus and the other passages that outline how this feast was to be observed. Another important requirement of this feast is that, when the Jews harvested their fields, they were required to leave the corners of the field untouched and not gather “any gleanings” from the harvest as a way of providing for the poor and strangers (Leviticus 23:22).
To the Jews, this time of celebration is known as Shavuot, which is the Hebrew word meaning “weeks.” This is one of three separate names that are used in Scripture to refer to this important Jewish feast. Each name emphasizes an important aspect of the feast as well as its religious and cultural significance to both Jews and Christians. Besides being called the Feast of Weeks in Leviticus 23, this special feast celebration is called the “Day of the Firstfruits” in Numbers 28:26 and the “Feast of Harvest” in Exodus 23:16.
The Feast of Weeks takes place exactly 50 days after the Feast of Firstfruits. It normally occurs in late spring, either the last part of May or the beginning of June. Unlike other feasts that began on a specific day of the Hebrew calendar, this one is calculated as being “fifty days to the day after the seventh Sabbath” (Leviticus 23:15–16; Deuteronomy 16:9–10).
Like other Jewish feasts, the Feast of Weeks is important in that it foreshadows the coming Messiah and His ministry. Each and every one of the seven Jewish Feasts signifies an important aspect of God’s plan of redemption through Jesus Christ.
Jesus was crucified as the “Passover Lamb” and rose from the grave at the Feast of Firstfruits. Following His resurrection, Jesus spent the next 40 days teaching His disciples before ascending to heaven (Acts 1). Fifty days after His resurrection and after ascending to heaven to sit at the right hand of God, Jesus sent the Holy Spirit as promised (John 14:16–17) to indwell the disciples and empower them for ministry. The promised Holy Spirit arrived on the Day of Pentecost, which is another name for the Feast of Weeks.
The spiritual significances of the Feast of Weeks are many. Some see the two loaves of leavened bread that were to be a wave offering as foreshadowing the time when the Messiah would make both Jew and Gentile to be one in Him (Ephesians 2:14–15). This is also the only feast where leavened bread is used. Leaven in Scripture is often used symbolically of sin, and the leavened bread used in the Feast of Weeks is thought to be representative of the fact that there is still sin within the church (body of Christ) and will be until Christ returns again.
On the Day of Pentecost or the Feast of Weeks, the “firstfruits” of the church were gathered by Christ as some 3,000 people heard Peter present the gospel after the Holy Spirit had empowered and indwelt the disciples as promised.
With the promised indwelling of the Holy Spirit, the first fruits of God’s spiritual harvest under the New Covenant began. Today that harvest continues as people continue to be saved, but there is also another coming harvest whereby God will again turn His attention back to Israel so that “all of Israel will be saved” (Romans 11:26).
The word “jubilee”—literally, “the blast of a horn” in Hebrew--
is defined in Leviticus 25:9as
the sabbatical year
after seven cycles of seven years (49 years).
The fiftieth year
was to be a time of celebration and rejoicing for the Israelites.
The ram’s horn
was blown on the tenth day of the seventh month to start
the fiftieth year of universal redemption.
The Year of the Jubilee involved a year of release from indebtedness (Leviticus 25:23-38) and all types of bondage (vv. 39-55). All prisoners and captives were set free, all slaves were released, all debts were forgiven, and all property was returned to its original owners. In addition, all labor was to cease for one year, and those bound by labor contracts were released from them. One of the benefits of the Jubilee was that both the land and the people were able to rest.
The Jubilee presents a beautiful picture of the New Testament themes of
redemption and forgiveness.
Christ is the Redeemer
who came to set free
those who are slaves and
prisoners to sin
(Romans 8:2; Galatians 5:1; 3:22).
The debt of sin we owe to God was paid on the cross as Jesus died on our behalf (Colossians 2:13-14), and we are forgiven the debt forever. We are no longer in bondage, no longer slaves to sin, having been freed by Christ, and we can truly enter the rest God provides as we cease laboring to make ourselves acceptable to God by our own works (Hebrews 4:9-10).
There is no “Book of Noah” in existence today. However, written material ascribed to Noah is mentioned in two books of Old Testament pseudepigrapha (books that falsely claim to have been written by well-known Old Testament characters) as well as in some fragments in the Dead Sea Scrolls.
In the non-canonical Book of Jubilees, Abraham calls Isaac to him and gives him some instructions regarding sacrifices and the eating of sacrificial animals. He says that he is repeating these instructions as “I have found it written in the books of my forefathers, and in the words of Enoch, and in the words of Noah” (Jubilees 21:10). Since these instructions are not found in the Bible in connection with Noah, many feel this refers to some other written source that had Noah’s name attached to it. Earlier in Jubilees, this “book” is described more fully. One of the good spirits describes its conflict with evil spirits who are attempting to lead Noah’s descendants astray. Most of the spirits are bound and condemned, but some are left as a test. God commands one of the good spirits to instruct Noah so that he and his descendants can avoid any traps:
“And one of us He commanded that we should teach Noah all their medicines; for He knew that they would not walk in uprightness, nor strive in righteousness.
“And we did according to all His words: all the malignant evil ones we bound in the place of condemnation and a tenth part of them we left that they might be subject before Satan on the earth.
“And we explained to Noah all the medicines of their diseases, together with their seductions, how he might heal them with herbs of the earth.
“And Noah wrote down all things in a book as we instructed him concerning every kind of medicine. Thus the evil spirits were precluded from (hurting) the sons of Noah.
“And he gave all that he had written to Shem, his eldest son; for he loved him exceedingly above all his sons”
(Jubilees 10:10–14).
So Jubilees refers to material that was written down by Noah.
The author may have indeed quoted from some existing work, a “Book of Noah,” or he may have simply ascribed things to Noah without any written source.
In the Book of Enoch (another pseudepigraphal book) chapters 50—59, there is an extensive section that refers to Noah. This is often assumed to be a fragment from the Book of Noah. Enoch, Noah’s grandfather, is the narrator. He reveals to Noah what will come to pass as well as some hidden knowledge that he will need to know. Chapter 106 gives a “prophecy” about Noah and the destruction that will come on the earth.
The term Grigori is not found in Scripture. But watcher angels are mentioned in three verses of the Bible, each in a vision that King Nebuchadnezzar had (Daniel 4:13, 17, 23). Not all translations use the term watcher angels. The ESV, CEV, and KJV speak of “a watcher” in Daniel 4:13, and the NASB calls it “an angelic watcher,” but the NIV simply calls this being “a messenger” from heaven. The NET says that Nebuchadnezzar sees “a sentinel.” These watcher angels are supernatural, celestial beings or “holy ones” who come down from heaven with authority to speak for God.
The Hebrew word translated “watcher” in Daniel 4 comes from a root word meaning “wakeful one” and thus can mean “watcher,” “sentinel,” or “guardian.” The International Standard Bible Encyclopedia describes watcher angels as servants of God who “possess a certain joint authority to speak the decrees of God, and apparently form a heavenly council who listen to God’s word and then act as divine messengers to bring these commands and revelations to human beings” (vol. 4, p. 1024).
Noncanonical literature elaborates in detail regarding the watcher angels. According to the books of Enoch, watcher angels can be either fallen angels or holy angels. These watcher angels take a particular interest in the earthly affairs of human beings, “watching” them, and, at times, even interfering in or controlling situations that concern people. The fall of the watcher angels unfolds in the apocryphal book of 1 Enoch. Part of Enoch’s mission is to pronounce God’s judgment on the fallen watcher angels who supposedly dwelled in the fifth heaven where their fall took place.
Grigori is the name Enoch assigns to these fallen watcher angels in the book of 2 Enoch. The English word Grigori is simply a transliteration of the Greek word for “watcher,” used in the Septuagint. According to the account, the watcher angels are sent down to earth to look after humans. They soon develop an unnatural lust for the beautiful women of earth. A large group of rebellious watchers, the Grigori, seduce the women of earth and impregnate them with a race of hybrid giants who violently raid the earth and threaten humanity.
Another noncanonical book, Jubilees, also speaks of heavenly watchers who violate their ordained nature by lusting after and having sexual relations with human women. The offspring of their unnatural unions are monstrous giants who corrupt the children of earth and prompt the flood of Noah’s time.
These extrabiblical writings seem to provide an explanation for the creatures mentioned in Genesis 6:1–4 called Nephilim. The Bible tells us that Nephilim were the result of sexual relations between “the sons of God” and “the daughters of men” (verse 2). Much debate exists regarding the true identity and origin of the Nephilim. The only solid information we can gather from Scripture is that the Nephilim are the offspring of the sons of God and human women and are described as “heroes of old” and “men of renown” (verse 4). Numbers 13:33 suggests that the Nephilim were a people of extraordinary size, possibly associating them with giants.
Substantial debate also surrounds the nature of the “sons of God” who fathered the Nephilim. Were they fallen watcher angels or Grigori? Does the biblical book of Jude provide a clue: “And the angels who did not keep their positions of authority but abandoned their proper dwelling—these he has kept in darkness, bound with everlasting chains for judgment on the great Day” (Jude 1:6)? For now, we can only speculate. The Bible does not provide us with clear answers; therefore, we must be content with uncertainty.
We are wise to be extra cautious about giving serious weight to the ideas found in extrabiblical sources. Nevertheless, Scripture does affirm the concept of heavenly beings who watch the earth (Ezekiel 1:15–20) and are interested in the affairs of humans: “This Good News has been announced to you by those who preached in the power of the Holy Spirit sent from heaven. It is all so wonderful that even the angels are eagerly watching these things happen” (1 Peter 1:12, NLT).
Since God’s purpose is to use the church to display His wisdom to rulers and authorities in the heavenly realms
(Ephesians 3:10),
then the idea of attentive watcher angels or guardians is biblically sound. Likewise, the Bible confirms the presence of angels who guard and protect humans: “The angel of the LORD encamps around those who fear him, and he delivers them”
(Psalm 34:7; see also Matthew 18:10; Acts 12:9–15).
Enoch is also one of the three people in the Bible taken up to heaven bodily, the only others being Elijah and Jesus (and only Jesus having experienced a resurrection). We read about Enoch’s translation in Genesis 5:24: “And Enoch walked with God, and he was not; for God took him” (see also Hebrews 11:5). Most commonly, when people refer to the Book of Enoch, they mean 1 Enoch, which is wholly extant only in the Ethiopic language. The Book of Enoch is accepted as canonical by the Ethiopian Orthodox Church and the Eritrean Orthodox Church. In addition to 1 Enoch, there are 2 Enoch (“The Book of the Secrets of Enoch”) and 3 Enoch (“The Hebrew Book of Enoch”). Fragments of the Book of Enoch in Aramaic and Hebrew were found among the Dead Sea Scrolls.
Much of the Book of Enoch is apocalyptic—it uses vivid imagery to predict doom and the final judgment of evil. There’s a heavy emphasis on angelology and demonology, and a large portion of the book is devoted to filling in the backstory of Genesis 6:1–4. The Book of Enoch thus explains the origin of the Nephilim and the identity of the “sons of God,” mentioned in Genesis 6:2 and 4. The result is a strange and sensationalistic piece of non-canonical literature.
In its Ethiopic form, the Book of Enoch is arranged in five sections:
Section I (chapters 1—36) has Enoch pronouncing God’s judgment on the angels who cohabited with the daughters of men (see Genesis 6:1–4). In this section, two hundred angelic “Watchers” rebel against God and are cast out of heaven along with Satan. On earth, they indulge their lust and have sexual relations with human women, producing the Nephilim, a race of evil giants who terrorize the antediluvian world. Enoch sees a “chaotic and horrible” place and a fiery prison reserved for the angels who sinned (Enoch 21:3, 7).
Section II (chapters 37—71) has three parables relating apocalyptic judgments. It also contains the story of Enoch’s translation into heaven (see Genesis 5:24). In this section, Enoch describes the activity of an angel named Gadreel: “He it is who showed the children of men all the blows of death, and he led astray Eve, and showed [the weapons of death to the sons of men] the shield and the coat of mail, and the sword for battle, and all the weapons of death to the children of men. And from his hand they have proceeded against those who dwell on the earth from that day and for evermore” (Enoch 69:6–7, trans. by Charles, R. H., 1917).
Section III (chapters 72—87) is primarily an explanation of the workings of the stars in their pathways, as per a vision that Enoch has.
Section IV (chapters 88—90) contains Enoch’s vision of the coming flood and prophecies concerning other events yet future, including the Exodus, the conquest of Canaan, the building of the temple, the fall of the northern kingdom, the destruction of Jerusalem, the final judgment, the building of the New Jerusalem, the resurrection of the saints, and the coming of the Messiah.
Section V (chapters 91—105)
pronounces woes on sinners and promises blessings to the righteous. It ends with a
promise of peace to the “children of uprightness” (Enoch 105:2).
The biblical book of Jude quotes from chapter 1 of the Book of Enoch in Jude 1:14–15, “Enoch, the seventh from Adam, prophesied about these men: ‘See, the Lord is coming with thousands upon thousands of his holy ones to judge everyone, and to convict all the ungodly of all the ungodly acts they have done in the ungodly way, and of all the harsh words ungodly sinners have spoken against him.’” Jude’s quotation does not mean the Book of Enoch is inspired by God or that it should be in the Bible.
Jude’s quote is not the only quote in the Bible from a non-biblical source. The apostle Paul quotes Epimenides in Titus 1:12, but that does not mean we should give any additional authority to Epimenides’ writings. The same is true with Jude 1:14–15. Jude quoting from the Book of Enoch does not indicate the entire Book of Enoch is inspired, or even true. All it means is that particular passage of Enoch is true. It is interesting to note that no scholars believe the Book of Enoch to have truly been written by the Enoch in the Bible. Enoch was seven generations from Adam, prior to the flood (Genesis 5:1–24). Evidently, though, the words Jude quotes were genuinely something that Enoch prophesied—or the Bible would not attribute it to him: “Enoch, the seventh from Adam, prophesied about these men” (Jude 1:14).
This saying of Enoch
was somehow handed down
through the generations
and
eventually recorded in the
Book of Enoch.
Jesus had a lot
to say
about sanctification
in John 17.
In verse 16 the Lord says,
They are not of the world, even as I am not of it,” and this is before
His request
: “Sanctify them by the truth; your word is truth” (verse 17).
In Christian theology, sanctification is a state of separation unto God; all believers enter into this state when they are born of God: “You are in Christ Jesus, who became to us wisdom from God, righteousness and sanctification and redemption” (1 Corinthians 1:30, ESV). The sanctification mentioned in this verse is a once-for-ever separation of believers unto God. It is a work God performs, an integral part of our salvation and our connection with Christ (Hebrews 10:10).
Theologians sometimes refer to this state of holiness before God as “positional” sanctification; it is related to justification.
While we are positionally holy (“set free from every sin” by the blood of Christ, Acts 13:39), we know that we still sin (1 John 1:10). That’s why the Bible also refers to sanctification as a practical experience of our separation unto God. “Progressive” or “experiential” sanctification, as it is sometimes called, is the effect of obedience to the Word of God in one’s life. It is the same as growing in the Lord (2 Peter 3:18) or spiritual maturity. God started the work of making us like Christ, and He is continuing it (Philippians 1:6). This type of sanctification is to be pursued by the believer earnestly (1 Peter 1:15; Hebrews 12:14) and is effected by the application of the Word (John 17:17). Progressive sanctification has in view the setting apart of believers for the purpose for which they are sent into the world: “As you sent me into the world, I have sent them into the world. For them I sanctify myself, that they too may be truly sanctified” (John 17:18–19). That Jesus set Himself apart for God’s purpose is both the basis and the condition of our being set apart (see John 10:36). We are sanctified and sent because Jesus was. Our Lord’s sanctification is the pattern of and power for our own. The sending and the sanctifying are inseparable. On this account we are called “saints” (hagioi in the Greek), or “sanctified ones.” Prior to salvation, our behavior bore witness to our standing in the world in separation from God, but now our behavior should bear witness to our standing before God in separation from the world. Little by little, every day, “those who are being sanctified” (Hebrews 10:14, ESV) are becoming more like Christ.
There is a third sense in which the word sanctification is used in Scripture—a “complete” or “ultimate” sanctification.
This is the same as glorification. Paul prays in 1 Thessalonians 5:23, “May the God of peace himself sanctify you completely, and may your whole spirit and soul and body be kept blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ” (ESV). Paul speaks of Christ as “the hope of glory” (Colossians 1:27) and links the glorious appearing of Christ to our personal glorification: “When Christ, who is your life, appears, then you also will appear with him in glory” (Colossians 3:4). This glorified state will be our ultimate separation from sin, a total sanctification in every regard. “We know that when Christ appears, we shall be like him, for we shall see him as he is” (1 John 3:2).
To summarize, “sanctification” is a translation of the
Greek word hagiasmos,
meaning “holiness” or “a separation.”
In the past, God granted us justification, a once-for-all, positional holiness in Christ.
In the present, God guides us to maturity, a practical, progressive holiness.
In the future,
God will give us glorification, a permanent, ultimate holiness.
These three phases of sanctification separate the believer
from the penalty
of sin (justification), the power of sin (maturity), and the presence of sin (glorification).
Now on the first day of the week Mary Magdalene came to the tomb early, while it was still dark, and saw that the stone had been taken away from the tomb. So she ran and went to Simon Peter and the other disciple, the one whom Jesus loved, and said to them, “They have taken the Lord out of the tomb, and we do not know where they have laid him.” So Peter went out with the other disciple, and they were going toward the tomb…
But Mary stood
weeping outside the tomb, and as she wept
she stooped to look into the tomb.
And she saw two angels in white, sitting where
the body of Jesus had lain,
one at the head and one at the feet.
They said to her, “Woman, why are you weeping?”
She said to them,
They have taken away my Lord, and I do not know where they have laid him.”
Having said this, she turned around
and saw Jesus standing, but she did not know that it was Jesus.
Jesus said to her, “Woman, why are you weeping?
Whom are you seeking?”
Supposing him to be the gardener, she said to him, “Sir, if you have carried him away,
tell me where you have laid him, and I will take him away.”
Jesus said to her, “Mary.”
She turned and said to him in Aramaic, “Rabboni!” (which means Teacher).
Jesus said to her, “Do not cling to me, for I have not yet ascended to the Father;
but go to my brothers and say to them,
‘I am ascending to my Father
and your
Father, to my God and your God.’”
Mary Magdalene
went and announced to the
disciples,
“I have seen the Lord”—and that he had said these things to her.
(John 20:1-3, 11-18, ESV)
Was Mary Magdalene possessed by Lilith and healed by Jesus?
The Bible includes Mary Magdalene in a list of
women
who had evil spirits healed by Jesus.
Jesus is said to have cast seven evil spirits out of her
(Luke 8:1-3)
The specific demon is not named in Scripture.
In The Chosen, we see a brief flashback during Season 1, Episode 1 that
strongly implies that
Mary was raped by a Roman soldier.
The trauma of her rape
is hinted
at again in Season 2, Episode 5, and is
the trigger
that causes Mary to backslide.
Torah (Instruction)
GenesisBereshit
ExodusShemot
LeviticusWayiqra
NumbersBemidbar
DeuteronomyDevarim
Nevi'im (Prophets)
Former
JoshuaYehoshua
JudgesShofetim
SamuelShemuel
KingsMelakhim
Latter
IsaiahYeshayahu
JeremiahYirmeyahu
EzekielYekhezqel
Minor
Ketuvim (Writings)
Poetic
PsalmsTehillim
ProverbsMishlei
JobIyov
Five Megillot (Scrolls)
Song of SongsShir Hashirim
RuthRut
LamentationsEikhah
EcclesiastesQohelet
EstherEster
Historical
DanielDaniyyel
Ezra–NehemiahEzra
ChroniclesDivre Hayyamim
What does it mean to proclaim
Mary as the New Eve?
Second-century Christian writers readily proclaimed
“death through Eve, life through Mary”
(Read Sts. Justin Martyr and Irenaeus).
In Genesis 3:15, we have what the tradition has come to know as the protoevangelium
(“first gospel”),
where God responds to the Serpent, hinting at his first promise of redemption after the fall of Adam and Eve: “I will put enmity between you and the woman and between your seed and her seed; he shall bruise your head and you shall bruise his heel.”
This hints at the cosmic struggle that will ensue, resulting in the Serpent’s ultimate defeat through the seed of the Woman—though her seed will also suffer through this victory (“you shall bruise his heel”). The Christian tradition sees this ultimately as a cryptic prophecy of Jesus’ victory over the devil on the Cross.
Further,
Eve is also described as “the mother of all the living”
(Genesis 3:20).
Through grace—in Christ--Mary becomes our mother;
she becomes
the mother of all the living
not in the order of nature,
but in the
order of supernatural grace.
Eve was created in a state of
grace,
without sin;
if Mary
is to exhibit this total “enmity”
between her and the Serpent
(as mentioned in the above passage),
it would seem that her
graced state
must rise at least to the level of Eve.
Here, we can see a hint
of Mary’s Immaculate Conception:
this is not a
doctrine implying Mary does not need a
savior,
but rather one referring to the
unique and special way
in which she is saved by her son.
Most of us are drowning in sin and Jesus pulls us out;
the Immaculate Conception
means that
Jesus saved her before she fell into sin.
What’s the biblical evidence
for seeing
Mary as the New Eve?
For the most part, it comes from the writings of St. John—likely not a coincidence since
he was the one who took Mary in after Jesus’ death. Surely, John must have asked the Blessed Mother what Jesus was like when he was just two? In other words, it’s not an accident that St. John’s writings give us some of the most exalted theological writing in the New Testament—after all, he was able to contemplate these mysteries with the Blessed Mother by his side.
Let’s begin with the Gospel. John opens with clear allusions to Genesis: “In the beginning was the Word … ” (John 1:1; see Genesis 1:1). John continues to refer to “light” and “life”—again, clear allusions to Genesis 1 (see John 1:4). If we follow the text carefully, John then proceeds to lay out a series of days, using the recurring phrase “the next day.” He does this three times (John 1:29, 35, 43), suggesting a series of four days (the first “next day” would be the second day, then the third, and then the fourth).
In this context, we have a marriage which is said to take place “on the third day” (2:1). Well, the third day from what? Perhaps from the fourth day—in which case the “third day” would be the seventh day. In other words, especially in light of the way John began his Gospel with clear allusions to Genesis 1, he seems here to be subtly setting up a new creation week.
This is the setting for Jesus’ reply to Mary: “Woman … my hour has not yet come” (2:4). Despite the way it sounds to our ears, this is not a disrespectful rebuke for a couple of reasons: (1) Jesus is the God-man—surely he’s not breaking the fourth commandment here; and (2) Mary’s response is itself indicative: she doesn’t cower away, saying, “Gosh, Jesus, do you have to be so mean—in public!” Rather, Mary turns directly to the servants saying, “Do whatever he tells you” (2:5). In other words, Mary’s response suggests an enthusiastic eagerness—as if she’s joyfully saying, “Jesus is going to help us!”
If Jesus is not giving Mary a rebuke, then what’s he doing—and why does John recount the narrative the way he does? Given the Genesis allusions with which John began his Gospel—and then the subtle creation week he develops by recourse to the phrase the “next day” and then the “third day”—it seems that there may be a certain “woman” in my mind, to which Jesus is alluding: “I will put enmity between you and the woman” (Genesis 3:15). In other words, Jesus is proclaiming Mary to be the New Eve—the woman who bears the seed who brings about this ultimate victory (see John 12:31-32).
In fact, John never refers to Mary by name—rather, he always refers to her as “woman”
(see John 2:4; 19:26; cf. Revelation 12:1).
On the Cross, in John’s Gospel, Jesus looks down and sees his mother and John the beloved disciple and Jesus says: “Woman, behold your son … behold, your mother” (19:26-27).
Here, John takes Mary as his
spiritual mother, and
Mary
takes John as her spiritual son.
Why does John call himself the
beloved disciple?
Well, are you beloved?
Am I beloved?
John here sees himself as embodying the
relationship granted to all disciples.
His taking Mary as his spiritual mother
refers not just to him,
but to the
relationship all Christians now have
with the Blessed Mother.
In entrusting John and Mary to each other
in this way,
Jesus has entrusted the Blessed Mother
to all of us.
Mary becomes our spiritual mother
who constantly
brings our needs to her son--
just as she did at the
Wedding at Cana;
and she continually
says to all of us, just as she did then: “
Do whatever he tells you” (2:5)
. In other words,
Mary always takes us to Jesus--
the closer we get to her,
the closer we get to him.
We have similar material in Revelation 12,
where we have a “woman”
who is both the
mother of the Messiah (see 12:1, 5)
and the mother of all Christians—her other children
are described
as “those who keep the commandments of God
and bear testimony to Jesus”
(12:17).
The early Church knew that Mary is the New Eve, the new mother of all the living and therefore our mother in Christ. As the early Church Fathers liked to say, Mary is like the moon: she has no light of herself, but she radiantly reflects the light of the sun. This analogy is important because it shows that Mary’s glory is always a participation in that of her son; that is, it’s never in competition with Jesus—it never takes away from Jesus, but only serves to show his power.
Both Eve and Mary were approached by an angel
(with Eve, a fallen angel);
doubt crept into Eve’s heart, whereas Mary’s faith was steadfast
(see Luke 1:45).
Eve participated in the downfall of the first Adam, just as
Mary participates
in the victory of her Son, the New Adam (see Luke 2:34-35).
In the words of the early Fathers, “the knot of Eve’s disobedience
was untied by Mary’s faith.”
In God’s Providence, it was Mary’s fiat that
prepared the way for the new creation,
made manifest in Christ’s resurrection.
Her “yes”—in one of her great titles—became the
“cause of our salvation.”
Mary’s fiat became humanity’s yes to the divine wedding proposal.
How can we get closer to Mary, and thereby draw closer to her son?
For Mary’s deepest desire is to unite us to her son.
Who Are the Sons of God, Daughters of Man, and Nephilim?
IN GENESIS 6:1–4,
THE READER ENCOUNTERS ONE OF THE
MOST CHALLENGING
PASSAGES IN ALL OF SCRIPTURE TO INTERPRET.
In Genesis 6:1–4, the reader encounters one of the most challenging passages in all of
Scripture to interpret. Here’s the passage in the ESV.
When man began to multiply on the face of the land and daughters were born to them, 2 the sons of God saw that the daughters of man were attractive. And they took as their wives any they chose. 3 Then the Lord said, “My Spirit shall not abide in man forever, for he is flesh: his days shall be 120 years.” 4 The Nephilim were on the earth in those days, and also afterward, when the sons of God came in to the daughters of man and they bore children to them. These were the mighty men who were of old, the men of renown.
Echoes from Genesis 1–3
People multiplying is an echo of Genesis 1. God made “man” (Gen 1:26–27), and then he commissioned his image-bearers to be fruitful and “multiply” (1:28). In 6:1, we read of this multiplication happening.
The reference to
God “Spirit”
in Genesis 6:3 reminds us of 1:2, the second verse in the Bible. There the Spirit of God was hovering over the face of the waters, and in 6:3 the Lord’s Spirit shall no longer abide in image-bearers for extraordinary lengths of time. The limit of “his days shall be 120 years.”
Marriages are reported in Genesis 6:1–4, and marriage is rooted in Genesis 2. Adam and Eve were the first image-bearers, and they were the first married couple. Many generations later, marriages were happening in Genesis 6.
In Genesis 3, Eve’s sin occurs when she takes the fruit from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, the tree God had forbidden his image-bearers to eat from. Note the language in 3:6: the woman “saw that the tree was good for food, and that it was a delight to the eyes, and that the tree was to be desired to make one wise,” so “she took of its fruit and ate.” In 6:2, the sons of God “saw” that the daughters of man were “attractive,” so they “took” as their wives any they chose. In Genesis 3 and 6, there was a “taking” of what someone “saw” as “desirable,” and this “taking” was something that should not have happened.
Sons and Daughters in Genesis 5
The four verses of Genesis 6:1–4 come right after a genealogy. In Genesis 5, we see a ten-member linear genealogy that takes us from Adam to Noah. The purpose of this genealogy is to take the reader to the days preceding the flood, and that means the days of Noah.
Some language in Genesis 5 is noteworthy for our purposes because the words “sons” and “daughters” in 6:1–4 occur in this genealogy as well. The genealogy implies marrying and having children, and long lives are reported right before the statement that the genealogy member “died.” Take Adam as an example. “The days of Adam after he fathered Seth were 800 years; and he had other sons and daughters. Thus all the days that Adam lived were 930 years, and he died” (5:4).
In Genesis 6:1–4 we read about marriages and about children born from these unions (6:2, 4). The long lives will now not exceed 120 years (6:3). And interestingly, the terms “sons” and “daughters” appear in 6:2. To be sure, these terms are part of larger phrases: “sons of God” and “daughters of man.”
In the Days of the Promised Flood
Having reviewed what comes before Genesis 6:1–4, let’s remember what comes after it. God beholds the widespread wickedness of the world and promises to judge his image-bearers (6:5–8).
So Genesis 6:1–4 occurs between a genealogy and a judgment. This judgment is a divine response to “the wickedness of man” that “was great in the earth” (6:5). Whatever 6:1–4 means, its literary placement suggests that the disobedience described there was part of what angered the Lord and resulted in a divine judgment that occurred in the days of Noah.
What are the ways interpreters have read 6:1–4?
The Sons of God are Sethites
According to the Sethite view, the “sons of God” are the descendants of Seth. They are human beings only. Their marriages to “daughters of man” would be human marriages, and their offspring would be human children. If the Nephilim are considered the offspring of these unions, the Nephilim are not supernatural beings.
The distinction between the “sons of God” and “daughters of man” is a spiritual one. The godly line of Seth would be intermarrying with the daughters of man, and “of man” emphasizes that these “daughters” do not know the Lord. In the Sethite view, then, these marriages displease the Lord because they involve the joining together of believers and unbelievers.
Support for this view comes, first of all, from the immediately preceding chapter. In Genesis 5, the genealogy of Adam through Seth is traced to Noah. Genesis 5 reports family descent through birth of human “sons” and human “daughters.” Second, the prior chapters of Genesis have been interested in conflicting spiritual lines. We see Cain and Abel in Genesis 4. After Abel dies, the Lord gives Eve another son, Seth. And in Genesis 4, we see the respective lines of descent for Cain and Seth, lines we should contrast. Third, the Sethite view has the advantage of staying with the realm of humanity and not moving to the realm of angels, so there may be less initial objection to strangeness. The non-human views of the “sons of God” must deal with the accompanying oddities which the Sethite view can avoid. Fourth, 6:1–4 reports marriages, and throughout the Old and New Testaments we see human beings getting married. Jesus says in Matthew 22:30 that the angels in heaven do not marry.
The Sons of God are Human Kings
The “human king” view understands that in the ancient Near East, a king might be viewed as divine or partly divine, a “son” of the gods. In Genesis 6:1–4, then, the “sons of God” would be human kings who have relationships with human women. These human women became wives to these “sons of God.”
According to the human king—or royal son—view, the offspring of these marriages would be mighty people, the Nephilim, who were human offspring.
Support for this view includes, first, the recognition that in Psalm 2:7 and 2 Samuel 7:13–13, a renowned “son” can be a king. Indeed, in Psalm 2:7, the royal son is a son of God. Second, the view avoids the entanglements that a supernatural explanation brings to the question of who the “sons of God” are. Third, the marriages are human marriages, in keeping with Jesus’s statement in Matthew 22:30 that the angels in heaven do not marry.
Option 3: The Sons of God are Angels, and the Nephilim are Their Offspring
Options 3 and 4 both view the sons of God as angels—rebellious angels. The nefarious activity in Genesis 6:1–4 would be evil spirits acting in ways that further provoke the judgment of God. The spirits would be acting directly with women, or they are possessing men who are acting directly with women.
According to Option 3, the “sons of God” are the angels who engage in sexual activity with human women (“the daughters of man”), and the result of their union are beings known as the Nephilim.
The Nephilim would be demonic offspring.
Support for this view of the
“sons of God”
comes from several directions. First, the use of the phrase
“sons of God”
in the Old Testament can refer to angels.
Such a phrase seems to distinguish this group from the
“daughters of man,”
which would naturally refer to human beings.
Second, though angels in heaven do not marry (Matt 22:30), the activity described in Genesis 6:1–4 is earthly and not heavenly. Third, the Nephilim in Genesis 6:4 are called “mighty men who were of old, the men of renown.” This language seems to suggest incredible stature and strength, a might that warrants a spiritual—and not merely human—explanation. Fourth, in Peter and Jude’s writings in the New Testament, they seem to confirm rebellious angelic activity in the days of Noah.
The Sons of God are Angels, but the Nephilim are Not Their Offspring
This view has a lot of overlap with Option 3, because the identities of the “sons of God” and the “daughters of man” are the same. The sons of God are rebellious angels, and the daughters of man are human women. Marriages take place, and offspring are born.
But in Option 4, the Nephilim are not the children of these marriages. Instead, the biblical author clarifies that these marriages and the offspring were taking place in the days of the Nephilim.
Support for this view is multifaceted. First, the phrase
“sons of God” in the Old Testament can refer to angels.
Second, the rebellious angelic activity would be on earth, thus avoiding the specific language in Matthew 22:30 that angels in heaven do not marry.
Third, Peter and Jude’s writings in the New Testament seem to confirm rebellious angelic activity in the days of Noah.
Fourth, the Nephilim in Genesis 6:4 are never actually called the offspring of the marriages between the sons of God and daughters of man. Paying careful attention to the language, we notice that the Nephilim were on earth at the same time as the illicit marriages were happening, and this report distinguishes the Nephilim from these relationships.
In other words, the presence of the Nephilim preceded the offspring of the illicit marriages.
Fifth, Numbers 13:33 mentions the Israelite spies seeing “the Nephilim (the sons of Anak, who come from the Nephilim), and we seemed to ourselves like grasshoppers, and so we seemed to them.”
If Nephilim in Genesis 6:4 referred to mighty warriors and not to demonic offspring, the reference in Numbers 13:33 makes sense. If the Nephilim were demonic offspring (like Option 3 asserts), then their death in the flood would seem to conflict with the later reference to their presence in Canaan (in Num 13:33).
Bible readers might be surprised to learn that the oldest Jewish interpretation of the “sons of God” is that they are angels.
And the oldest view about the Nephilim is that they
are the offspring of
the sons of God and daughters of man.
Fallen angels are angels who were expelled from Heaven. The literal term "fallen angel" does not appear in any Abrahamic religious texts, but is used to describe angels cast out of heaven. Such angels are often described as corrupting humanity by teaching forbidden knowledge or by tempting them into sin.
The first idea of the concept of
fallen angels
may be found in Canaanite beliefs
about the bənē hāʾĔlōhīm ("sons of God"),
expelled from the divine court.
ben Šāḥar is thrown down from heaven for claiming equality with ʻElyōn. Such stories are later collected in the Old Testament and appear in pseudepigraphicJewish literature.
Under the assumption that the "sons of God" (בני האלוהים) mentioned in Genesis 6:1–4 or the Book of Enoch, are angels, derives the concept of fallen angels.
In the period immediately preceding the composition of the New Testament,
some groups of Second Temple Judaism identified these
"sons of God" as fallen angels.
During the late Second Temple period the Nephilim were considered to be the monstrous offspring of
fallen angels and human women.
In such accounts, God sends the Great Deluge to purge the world of these creatures; their
bodies are destroyed,
yet their souls survive,
thereafter roaming the earth
as demons.
Rabbinic Judaism and early Christian authorities after the third century rejected the Enochian writings and the notion of an illicit union between angels and women.
The Elohist sources speak of bənē hāʾĔlōhīm ("sons of God"),
manifestations of the Divine
and part of the heavenly court in the Canaanite pantheon.
According to Genesis 6:1–4 the bənē hāʾĔlōhīm
descended to earth and mated with human women and beget the Nephilim,
followed by
God sending down a flood clean the world from humans
A passage from the
Book of Psalms,
although at least five hundred years apart from the passage in Genesis speaks about a similar heavenly court.
According to the text, God delivers judgement upon the gods by turning them into mortals
Although the text does not imply that the gods fell from heaven, it parallels their descend from immortality to mortality.
Unlike Genesis, the text is silent about the sins of the gods.
As evident from the Old Testament, in later Hebrew tradition, angels became
identified with stars.
As such, the Book of Isaiah, narrating the
fall of a deity,
serves as a template for the later belief in fallen angels.
According to the Book of Isaiah, Hêlêl ben Šāḥar, son of Šāḥar, known from
the Ugaritic poem of Shachar (dawn) and Shalim (dusk),
claims equality with ʻElyōn and is then thrown down into the abyss as means of punishment.
2 Enoch
The concept of fallen angels is also in the
Second Book of Enoch.
It tells about Enoch's ascent through the
layers of heaven.
During his journey, he
encounters fallen angels imprisoned in
the 2nd heaven.
At first, he decides to pray for them, but refuses
to do so,
since he himself as merely human,
would not be worthy to pray for angels.
In the 5th heaven
however, he meets other rebellious angels,
here called Grigori, remaining in grief,
not joining the heavenly hosts in song.
Enoch tries to cheer them up by telling about his prayers for their
fellow angels and thereupon they join the heavenly liturgy.
Strikingly, the text refers to the leader of the Grigori as Satanail and not as Azael or Shemyaza,
as in the other Books of Enoch.
But the Grigori are identified with the Watchers of 1 Enoch.
The narration of the Grigori in 2 Enoch 18:1–7, who went down on to earth, married women and "befouled the earth with their deeds", resulting in their confinement under the earth, shows that the author of 2 Enoch knew about the stories in 1 Enoch.
The longer recension of 2 Enoch, chapter 29 refers to angels who were
"thrown out from the height"
when their leader tried to become equal in rank with the Lord's power (2 Enoch 29:1–4), an idea probably taken from Ancient Canaanite religion about Attar, trying to rule the throne of Baal.
The Book of Jubilees, an ancient Jewish religious work, accepted as canonical by the Ethiopian Orthodox Church and Beta Israel, refers to the Watchers, who are among the angels created on the first day.
However, unlike the (first) Book of Enoch, the Watchers are commanded by God
to descend to earth and to instruct humanity.
It is only after they copulate with human women that they transgress the laws of God.
These illicit unions result in demonic offspring, who battle each other until they die,
while the Watchers are bound in the depths of the earth as punishment.
In Jubilees 10:1, another angel called Mastema appears as the leader of the evil spirits.
He asks God to spare some of the demons, so he might use their aid to lead humankind into sin.
Afterwards, he becomes their leader:
Lord, Creator, let some of them remain before me, and let them harken to my voice, and do all that I shall say unto them; for if some of them are not left to me, I shall not be able to execute the power of my will on the sons of men; for these are for corruption and leading astray before my judgment, for great is the wickedness of the sons of men. (10:8)
Both the (first) Book of Enoch and the Book of Jubilees include the motif of angels introducing evil to humans. However, unlike the Book of Enoch, the Book of Jubilees does not hold that evil was caused by the fall of angels in the first place, although their introduction to sin is affirmed.
Further, while the fallen angels in the Book of Enoch are acting against
God's will, the
fallen angels and demons in the
Book of Jubilees seem
to have
no power independent
from God
but only act within his power
Lilith (/ˈlɪlɪθ/; Hebrew: לִילִית, romanized: Līlīṯ), also spelled Lilit, Lilitu, or Lilis,
is a feminine figure
in Mesopotamian and Jewish mythology, theorized to be the
first wife of Adam
and a primordial she-demon. Lilith is cited as having been "banished" from the Garden of Eden for not complying with and obeying Adam.
The original Hebrew word from which the name Lilith is taken is in the Biblical Hebrew, in the Book of Isaiah, though Lilith herself is not mentioned in any biblical text.
In late antiquityin Mandaean and Jewish sources from 500 AD onward, Lilith appears in historiolas(incantations incorporating a short mythic story) in various concepts and localities
that give partial descriptions of her.
She is mentioned in the Babylonian Talmud (Eruvin 100b, Niddah24b, Shabbat 151b, Bava Batra 73a),
in the Conflict of Adam and Eve with Satan
as Adam's first wife,
and in the Zohar § Leviticus 19a
as "a hot fiery female who first cohabited with man".
Many rabbinic authorities,
including Maimonides and Menachem Meiri,
reject the existence of Lilith.
The name Lilith stems from lilû, lilîtu, and (w)ardat lilî).
The Akkadian word lilû is related to the Hebrew word lilit appearing in Isaiah 34:14,
which is thought to be a night bird by some modern scholars such as Judit M. Blair
The spirit in the tree in the Gilgamesh
cycleSamuel Noah Kramer (1932, published 1938)[27] translated ki-sikil-lil-la-ke as "Lilith" in Tablet XII of the Epic of Gilgamesh dated c. 600 BC. Tablet XII is not part of the Epic of Gilgamesh, but is a later Assyrian Akkadian translation of the latter part of the Sumerian Epic of Gilgamesh.[28] The ki-sikil-lil-la-ke is associated with a serpent and a zu bird.[b] In Gilgamesh, Enkidu, and the Netherworld, a huluppu tree grows in Inanna's garden in Uruk, whose wood she plans to use to build a new throne. After ten years of growth, she comes to harvest it and finds a serpent living at its base, a Zu bird raising young in its crown, and that a ki-sikil-lil-la-ke made a house in its trunk. Gilgamesh is said to have killed the snake, and then the zu bird flew away to the mountains with its young, while the ki-sikil-lil-la-ke fearfully destroys its house and runs for the forest.[29][30] Identification of the ki-sikil-lil-la-keas Lilith is stated in the Dictionary of Deities and Demons in the Bible (1999).
According to a new source from late antiquity,
Lilith appears in a Mandaeanmagic story
where she is considered to represent the
branches of a tree
with other demonic figures that form other
parts of the tree,
though this may also include multiple
"Liliths".
Suggested translations for the Tablet XII
spirit in the tree include
ki-sikil as "sacred place", lil as "spirit", and lil-la-ke as "water spirit",
but also simply "owl",
given that the lil is building a home in
the trunk of the tree.
was rejected on textual grounds by Sergio Ribichini (1978).
,וּפָגְשׁוּ צִיִּים אֶת-אִיִּים, וְשָׂעִיר עַל-רֵעֵהוּ יִקְרָא; אַךְ-שָׁם הִרְגִּיעָה לִּילִית, וּמָצְאָה לָהּ מָנוֹח
up̄āḡəšu ṣiyyim eṯ-ʾiyyim, wəśāʿir ʿal-rēʿēhu yiqrā; ʾaḵ-šam hirgiʿā liliṯ, umāṣʾā lāh mānoḥ
34:14 "And shall-meet wildcats with jackals
the goat he-calls his- fellow
lilit (lilith) she-rests and she-finds rest
34:15 there she-shall-nest the great-owl, and she-lays-(eggs),
and
she-hatches, and she-gathers under her-shadow:
hawks
[kites, gledes] also they-gather, every one with its mate.
At the Last Supper,
Jesus warned Simon Peter that a
test of faith was coming:
“Simon, Simon!
Indeed, Satan has asked for you,
that he may sift you as wheat”
(Luke 22:31, NKJV).
The outspoken disciple seemed to be in the same predicament as Job when Satan sought to put him to the test (Job 1—2). Satan wanted to “sift Peter as wheat,” which means that he wished to shake Peter’s faith so forcefully that he would fall, proving that God’s faithful servant was lacking.
It was not just Peter who was in danger, though. The word for “you” in Luke 22:31 is plural. Jesus was speaking to Peter, informing him that Satan had his sights set on all the disciples. Some translations, such as the Berean Standard Bible, specify the whole group: “Simon, Simon, Satan has asked to sift each of you like wheat.”
The name Satan means “adversary” or “accuser.” He accuses God’s people of doing wrong (Zechariah 3:1; Revelation 12:10). As Peter would later testify, the devil “prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour” (1 Peter 5:8).
Sift as wheat is a metaphor that could also be expressed as “shake someone apart” or “break a person down.” Amos 9:9 gives us a similar image of God shaking Israel: “For I will give the command and will shake Israel along with the other nations as grain is shaken in a sieve, yet not one true kernel will be lost” (NLT).
In biblical times, wheat or other grain was sifted through a sieve or large strainer. As it was shaken violently, the dirt and other impurities that clung to the grain during the threshing process would separate from the good, usable grain.
In sifting Peter and the other disciples as wheat, Satan’s goal was to crush them and wreck their faith. In truth, the adversary wants to destroy the faith of every believer (John 10:10). But Jesus assured Peter, “I have pleaded in prayer for you, Simon, that your faith should not fail. So when you have repented and turned to me again, strengthen your brothers” (Luke 22:32, NLT). Peter’s leadership role in the early church proved that the Lord’s prayer for Peter was answered.
Jesus did not promise to remove Peter’s impending test. On the contrary, He predicted that Peter would fail the test by denying Christ three times (Luke 22:34). Trials are to be expected in the Christian life. “We must go through many hardships to enter the kingdom of God,” say the missionaries in Acts 14:22. God uses these experiences for our good (Romans 8:28), to refine our character and strengthen our faith (1 Peter 1:6–7; James 1:2–4,12), and to make us more like Jesus (Romans 8:29).
Whenever we do experience a test, Jesus is with us to strengthen us and intercede for us (Philippians 4:13; Romans 8:26–39). In challenging times, it’s reassuring to remember that Satan’s power to sift Peter as wheat was limited by Christ’s intercession. When Satan comes after us, we should remember that Jesus Christ always lives to intercede for us (Hebrews 7:25).
Jesus was confident that Simon Peter would get back up again and go on to strengthen the other disciples. Another reason the Lord allows us to suffer through experiences of testing is so we can learn how to help others grow in faith: “Even when we are weighed down with troubles, it is for your comfort and salvation! For when we ourselves are comforted, we will certainly comfort you. Then you can patiently endure the same things we suffer” (2 Corinthians 1:6, NLT).
Before Peter’s threefold denial, he was overconfident, trusting in his own strength (Luke 22:33). But after being sifted like wheat, Peter learned that failure is possible because the flesh is weak (see Mark 14:38). Now that he understood how easy it is to fall, Peter would have compassion and mercy for others while helping them avoid the same mistake.
Our true faith and perseverance are revealed not in a walk of sinless perfection but in repentance and restoration. We get up and keep going, like Peter, after we fall. When Satan comes to sift us as wheat, we have an advocate, Jesus Christ, who intercedes for us (John 17:9, 11, 15). He will protect us so that the devil can never destroy our faith and hope (John 10:27–28; Hebrews 7:25).
Jesus Christ began a good work in us, and He is faithful to complete it (Philippians 1:6).
Jesus had just finished explaining to the disciples the meaning of the Parable of the Wheat and the Tares, and these two short parables are a continuance of His discussion of the “kingdom of heaven.” He expressed truths about the kingdom in three pairs of parables in Matthew 13: the seed and the sower (vv. 3-23) and the weeds in the field (vv. 24-30); the mustard seed (vv. 31-32) and the leaven (v. 33); and the hidden treasure (v. 44) and the pearl of great price (vv. 45-46).
The similarities of these two short parables make it clear they teach the same lesson--
the kingdom of heaven is of inestimable value. Both parables involve a man who sold all he had to possess the kingdom. The treasure and the pearl represent Jesus Christ and the salvation He offers. And while we cannot pay for salvation by selling all our worldly goods, once we have found the prize, we are willing to give up everything to possess it. But what is attained in exchange is so much more valuable that it is comparable to trading an ounce of trash for a ton of diamonds
(Philippians 3:7-9).
In both parables, the treasures are hidden, indicating that spiritual truth is missed by many and cannot be found by intelligence or power or worldly wisdom.
Matthew 13:11-17 and 1 Corinthians 2:7-8, 14 make it clear that the mysteries of the kingdom are hidden from some who are unable to hear, see, and comprehend these
truths.
The disobedient reap the natural consequences of their unbelief—spiritual blindness. Those whose eyes are opened by the Spirit do discern spiritual truth, and they, like the men in the parable, understand its great value.
Notice that the merchant stopped seeking pearls
when he found
the pearl of great price.
Eternal life, the incorruptible inheritance,
and the love of God through Christ
constitute the pearl which,
once found, makes further searching unnecessary.
Christ fulfills our greatest needs,
satisfies our longings, makes us whole and
clean before God,
calms and quiets our hearts, and gives us hope for the future.
The “great price,” of course, is that which was paid by
Christ for our redemption.
He emptied Himself of His glory,
came to earth in the form of a lowly man and
shed His precious blood
on the cross to pay the penalty for our sins.
And I heard what seemed to be a voice in the midst of the four living creatures, saying, "A quart of wheat for a denarius, and three quarts of barley for a denarius, and do not harm the oil and wine!"
Mary, full of grace" is a phrase from the Hail Mary prayer
that refers to the
Virgin Mary's state of being filled with God's presence and free of sin.
The Hail Mary prayer includes the line "Mary, full of grace". The full prayer is:
a pure heart, separated unto God.
Paul writes
“A Jew is one inwardly, and circumcision is a
matter of the heart,
by the Spirit, not by the letter.”
These words conclude a sometimes confusing passage of Scripture regarding circumcision and the Christian. Verses 25-29 provide context:
“For circumcision indeed is of value if you obey the law, but if you break the law, your circumcision becomes uncircumcision. So, if a man who is uncircumcised keeps the precepts of the law, will not his uncircumcision be regarded as circumcision? Then he who is physically uncircumcised but keeps the law will condemn you who have the written code and circumcision but break the law.
For no one is a Jew who is merely one outwardly, nor is circumcision outward and physical.
But a Jew is one inwardly, and circumcision is a
matter of the heart, by the Spirit,
not by the letter. His praise is not from man
but from God.”
Paul is discussing the role of the Old Testament Law as it relates to Christianity. He argues that Jewish circumcision is only an outward sign of being set apart to God. However, if the heart is sinful, then physical circumcision is of no avail. A circumcised body and a sinful heart are at odds with each other. Rather than focus on external rites, Paul focuses on the condition of the heart. Using circumcision as a metaphor, he says that only the Holy Spirit can purify a heart and set us apart to God. Ultimately, circumcision cannot make a person right with God; the Law is not enough. A person’s heart must change. Paul calls this change “circumcision of the heart.”
This concept was not original with the apostle Paul. As a Jew trained in the Law of Moses, he was certainly aware of this discussion from Deuteronomy 30. There, the Lord used the same metaphor to communicate His desire for a holy people: “And the LORD your God will circumcise your heart and the heart of your offspring, so that you will love the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul, that you may live” (Deuteronomy 30:6). Physical circumcision was a sign of Israel’s covenant with God; circumcision of the heart, therefore, would indicate Israel’s being set apart to love God fully, inside and out.
John the Baptist warned the Pharisees against taking pride in their physical heritage and boasting in their circumcision: “
Do not think you can say to yourselves,
'We have Abraham as our father.'
I tell you that out of these stones God can raise up children for Abraham”
(Matthew 3:9).
True “children of Abraham” are those who follow Abraham’s example of believing God (Genesis 15:6).
Physical circumcision does not make one a child of God; faith does. Believers in Jesus Christ can truly say they are children of “Father Abraham.
” “If you belong to Christ, then you are Abraham’s seed, and heirs according to the promise”
(Galatians 3:29).
God has always wanted more from His people than just external conformity to a set of rules. He has always wanted them to possess a heart to love, know, and follow Him. That’s why God is not concerned with a circumcision of the flesh. Even in the Old Testament, God’s priority was a spiritual circumcision of the heart: “Circumcise yourselves to the LORD, circumcise your hearts, you men of Judah and people of Jerusalem, or my wrath will break out and burn like fire because of the evil you have done” (Jeremiah 4:4).
Both Testaments focus on the
need for repentance and inward change in order
to be right with God.
In Jesus, the Law has been fulfilled (Matthew 5:17).
Through Him, a person can be made right with God and receive eternal life
(John 3:16; Ephesians 2:8-9).
As Paul said,
true circumcision
is a matter of the heart, performed
by the Spirit of God.
Having the mind of Christ means we understand God’s plan in the world—to bring glory to Himself, restore creation to its original splendor, and provide salvation for sinners.
It means we identify with Christ’s purpose “to seek and to save what was lost” (Luke 19:10). It means we share Jesus’ perspective of humility and obedience (Philippians 2:5-8), compassion (Matthew 9:36), and prayerful dependence on God (Luke 5:16).
In the verses leading up to 1 Corinthians 2:16, we note some truths concerning
the mind of Christ:
1) The mind of Christ stands in sharp contrast to the wisdom of man (verses 5-6).
2) The mind of Christ involves wisdom from God, once hidden but now revealed (verse 7).
3) The mind of Christ is given to believers through the Spirit of God (verses 10-12).
4) The mind of Christ cannot be understood by those without the Spirit (verse 14).
5) The mind of Christ gives believers discernment in spiritual matters (verse 15).
In order to have the mind of Christ, one must first have
saving faith in Christ
(John 1:12; 1 John 5:12).
After salvation
, the believer lives a life under God’s influence.
The Holy Spirit indwells
and enlightens the believer,
infusing him with wisdom—the mind of Christ.
The believer bears a
responsibility to yield to the Spirit’s leading
(Ephesians 4:30) and to allow
the Spirit
to transform and renew his mind
(Romans 12:1-2).
A servant
is someone who carries out the
will of another.
The Servant of the Lord fulfills
God’s will
and is often presented in Scripture
as someone chosen
by God
to hold a leadership position,
to represent Him,
and to
accomplish a certain divine work.
In the Bible, the term Servant of the Lord has been applied to individual people, certain groups of people, the nation of Israel, and the Messiah, who is identified as Jesus Christ in the New Testament.
The book of Isaiah contains four “Servant Songs” describing the Servant of the Lord. The first is found in Isaiah 42:1–9; the second in Isaiah 49:1–13; the third in Isaiah 50:4–11; and the fourth in Isaiah 52:13 through 53:12. In Jewish tradition, the Servant of the Lord in all four passages refers to the nation of Israel. In the final Servant Song of Isaiah 53, a singular pronoun he is used for the Servant of the Lord. Rabbis understand this singular pronoun to be a collective reference to a faithful remnant of Israel, a personification treating the group as one person.
The New Testament clearly identifies the Servant of the Lord in Isaiah
as our Savior,
Jesus Christ of Nazareth.
This unique Servant
takes a preeminent
place
above all others in Scripture.
This perfect Servant
never fails
to accomplish the will
of the Lord
and the purposes of God
(John 17:5).
The final Servant Song (Isaiah 53)
is about
an innocent Suffering Servant
who dies in place of the guilty.
That passage foretells the
life, ministry, death, and resurrection
of Jesus Christ.
Isaiah 53:3 says about
the Servant of the Lord, “He was despised and rejected by mankind, a man of suffering, and familiar with pain. Like one from whom people hide their faces he was despised, and we held him in low esteem.” Jesus was despised by the religious people of His day and rejected as their Messiah.
Jesus Christ, the Servant of the Lord, was “pierced for our transgressions, he was crushed for our iniquities; the punishment that brought us peace was on him, and by his wounds we are healed
” (Isaiah 53:5).
In giving His life for us,
“he was oppressed and afflicted, yet he did not open his mouth;
he was led like a lamb to the slaughter,
and as a sheep before its shearers is silent, so he did not open his mouth”
(verse 7).
At His trial, Jesus did not defend Himself but remained silent against His accusers. He suffered and died in the place of guilty sinners. The sins of all people were placed upon Him, the sacrificial Lamb of God. Jesus paid the price for our salvation. These are just a few of many details in Isaiah 53 that point to Jesus Christ as the fulfillment of messianic prophecy
(Matthew 8:17; Luke 22:37; John 12:38; Acts 8:32–33; Romans 10:16; 1 Peter 2:22, 24–25).
When God the Son came
to earth,
He took on the role of
a servant.
The Creator chose to serve His creatures. Jesus said that He had come
“to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many” (Matthew 20:28).
In the book of Acts, the word servant is applied to Jesus four times in connection with His death (Acts 3:13, 26; 4:27, 30 ).
The humility of Jesus, the Servant of the Lord,
is unmistakably seen in Philippians 2:7–8: “
He gave up his divine privileges;
he took the humble position of a slave and was
born as a human being.
When he appeared in human form, he
humbled himself in obedience to God
and died a criminal’s death on a cross”
(NLT).
While Jesus the Messiah is the ultimate fulfillment of prophecies concerning the Servant of the Lord, the Bible also applies the title to others. In the Old Testament, God describes about fifteen different individuals as “My servant” or “the servant of the Lord.”
The patriarchs are often named as servants of the Lord: “Remember your servants Abraham, Isaac and Israel, to whom you swore by your own self: ‘I will make your descendants as numerous as the stars in the sky and I will give your descendants all this land I promised them, and it will be their inheritance forever’” (Exodus 32:13; see also Genesis 18:3; 32:10; Deuteronomy 9:27; 1 Chronicles 16:13; Psalm 105:6). God called Job His servant: “Then the LORD said to Satan, ‘Have you considered my servant Job?’” (Job 1:8; cf. 2:3 and 42:7–8).
Moses is repeatedly called the servant of the Lord: “And Moses the servant of the LORD died there in Moab, as the LORD had said” (Deuteronomy 34:5; see also Exodus 14:31; Numbers 12:7–8; Joshua 1:1–2; Nehemiah 1:7–8; Malachi 4:4). Significantly, Moses told the people that “the LORD your God will raise up for you a prophet like me from among you, from your fellow Israelites. You must listen to him” (Deuteronomy 18:15). This messianic prophecy was fulfilled in Jesus, who, like Moses, was “the servant of the Lord” but in an even greater way (see Acts 3:22 and Hebrews 3:3).
The Bible describes leaders like Caleb, Joshua, and Samson as servants of the Lord (Numbers 14:24; Joshua 5:14; 24:29; Judges 2:8; 15:18). David, Solomon, and Hezekiah are kings referred to as the Lord’s servants (Psalm 89:20; 1 Samuel 23:11; 2 Samuel 7:5; 1 Chronicles 17:4; 1 Kings 3:7–9; 14:8; 2 Chronicles 32:16). Prophets such as Ahijah, Elijah, Jonah, and Isaiah are also called servants of the Lord (1 Kings 14:18; 18:36; 2 Kings 14:25; Isaiah 20:3).
Samuel’s mother, Hannah, describes herself as a servant of the Lord in 1 Samuel 1:11. Zerubbabel, governor of Judah, is described as a servant of the Lord in Haggai 2:23. Even the pagan kings Nebuchadnezzar and Cyrus are named among the servants of the Lord in that they fulfilled the purposes of God (Jeremiah 25:9; 43:10; Isaiah 45:1).
Groups referred to as servants of the Lord in the Bible are the people of Israel (Isaiah 41:8–9; 43:10; Leviticus 25:42,55; Nehemiah 1:6,10; Jeremiah 30:10–11; 46:27–28; Luke 1:54), the priests (Exodus 28:1, 41; Leviticus 7:35; Numbers 18:7), the Levites (Deuteronomy 18:7; 1 Chronicles 23:28–31; Ezra 6:18; Ezekiel 44:11), and the prophets (Jeremiah 7:25; 29:19; 44:4; Ezekiel 38:17; Daniel 9:6; Amos 3:7; Zechariah 1:6; Matthew 21:34–36; Mark 12:2–5; Luke 20:10–12; Revelation 10:7). Other nations are also called the Lord’s servants on occasion (Psalm 72:11; Isaiah 56:6; Zephaniah 3:9).
In the New Testament, several believers define themselves or are named by God as servants of the Lord. They include Mary the mother of Jesus (Luke 1:38, 48), Simeon (Luke 2:29), Paul (Acts 27:2; Romans 1:1; Ephesians 3:1), James (James 1:1), Simon Peter (2 Peter 1:1), Jude (Jude 1), and John (Revelation 1:1). All of these servants are simply following the example of the ultimate Servant of the Lord, Jesus Christ.
Who is the pure woman of Revelation?
Is the woman of Revelation 12 the holy spirit?
Who is the woman in Revelation 17 4?
Who is the evil woman in Revelation?
Who is the woman in Revelation?
Is Lilith and Mary the same person?
Who is the wife in Revelation?
What color is scarlet in the Bible?
Who is the purple woman in the Bible?
Who is the woman in Revelations 18?
The Woman of the Apocalypse
(or the woman clothed with the sun, Greek: γυνὴ περιβεβλημένη τὸν ἥλιον; Latin: Mulier amicta sole)
is a figure–often considered to be a reference to
the Virgin Mary
in Catholic theology–described in
Chapter 12
of the Book of Revelation
(written c. AD 95).
The woman gives birth to a male child who is threatened by a dragon, identified as the Deviland Satan, who intends to devour the child as soon as he is born. When the child is taken to heaven, the woman flees on eagle’s wings into the wilderness at a "place prepared of God" for 1,260 days.
This leads
to a "War in Heaven"
in which
the angels cast out
the dragon.
The dragon attacks the woman,
but the woman
escapes on her wings
for "a time, times and a time and a half".
The dragon then attacks her again with a
flood of water from his mouth,
which is subsequently swallowed
by earth.
Frustrated, the dragon
initiates war
on "the remnant of her seed",
identified as the
righteous
followers of Christ
The Woman of the Apocalypse
is widely
identified as
the
Virgin Mary
Paul, in his prayers “for saints who are in Ephesus, and are
faithful in Christ Jesus”
(Ephesians 1:1, ESV)
, asks that God “may give
you the
Spirit of wisdom and revelation,
so that
you may know him better”
(verse 17).
Prior to his prayer for the spirit of wisdom and revelation, Paul reminds the Ephesian believers of the blessings God has bestowed upon them (Ephesians 1:3), their adoption as children through Christ (verse 4), the wisdom and insight they have been given (verse 8), and “the mystery of his will according to his good pleasure, which he purposed in Christ” (verse 9). He also reminds them that they have been “marked in him with a seal, the promised Holy Spirit, who is a deposit guaranteeing our inheritance” (verses 13–14). Now he desires for them to be given the spirit of wisdom and revelation.
Since Christians receive the promised Holy Spirit at the moment of salvation (John 14:17), the spirit of wisdom and revelation that Paul prays for cannot refer to the initial gift of the Holy Spirit. Paul’s reference could easily be to an attitude or frame of mind (although the NIV and ESV capitalize Spirit, other translations such as the NASB and BSB translate it as “a spirit,” and the NLT simply has “spiritual wisdom and insight”). If not the Holy Spirit, then what does Paul ask for in his request for “the spirit of wisdom and revelation”? The key is in the phrase that follows, “in the knowledge of him” (ESV), or “so that you may know him better” (NIV).
Paul had commended the Ephesians for their faith in the Lord Jesus and their love toward all the saints (Ephesians 1:15), but now he is asking God to give them a deeper and greater understanding of the mysteries of His character and will, to know Him more thoroughly and intimately. Now that they have the Holy Spirit in their hearts, Paul desires Him to grant them more understanding and greater insight. The “wisdom” is a better understanding of the doctrines of God, and the “revelation” is a clearer picture of the divine character and will. In the NLT, the prayer is that believers would have “spiritual wisdom and insight so that you might grow in your knowledge of God.” The AMP translation has Paul asking that God “may grant you a spirit of wisdom and of revelation [that gives you a deep and personal and intimate insight] into the true knowledge of Him.”
God is infinite, and He can never be fully known by finite creatures. We all need wisdom from above. No matter how far we may advance in our understanding of God, there is an unfathomed depth of knowledge that remains to be explored. Scripture is full of admonitions to grow in our knowledge of Christ (2 Peter 3:18; 1 Peter 2:2; Ephesians 4:15).
Paul outlines some of the mysteries he wants the Ephesians to understand through this spirit of wisdom and revelation. He desires them to grasp “the hope to which he has called you, the riches of his glorious inheritance” (Ephesians 1:18). This is the hope of eternal life, which Paul refers to as the “upward call of God in Christ Jesus” (Philippians 3:14, ESV). We inherit the riches of eternal life through Him who saved us and called us to holiness in Christ before time began (2 Timothy 1:9).
Paul also prays the Spirit will reveal God’s
“incomparably great power for us who believe”
Ephesians 1:19)--power so great it raised Jesus from the dead.
It’s a power that we can only comprehend
as we possess
the spirit of wisdom and revelation.
it is the work
of the Holy Spirit to help
the people of God
understand the things
of God more
fully and completely.
Revelation 19:10
makes
a bold statement regarding
the relationship
between prophecy and
Jesus Christ:
“The testimony of Jesus
is the
spirit of prophecy”
(NKJV).
The book of Revelation is a book of prophecy given by Jesus Christ to His servant John (Revelation 1:1). The term revelation refers to a revealing or the making known of something that was previously unknown. Revelation is like pulling back a veil to show what’s behind it or unwrapping a present to see what’s inside.
What is prophecy, then? Simply put, prophecy is communication from God to mankind. Some prophecy can be speaking of future events, and other prophecy might not be. Prophets were utilized as a mouthpiece for God—they listened to God and then conveyed God’s message to the masses. Some examples of prophets are Elijah, Isaiah, Moses, and Jonah.
In the context of Revelation 19:10, John has seen the fall of the evil world system called Babylon the Great(Revelation 18). A great multitude in heaven is celebrating and singing praise to God because of that judgment (Revelation 19:1–3) and because it is now time for the wedding supper of the Lamb (verses 6–8). An angel says to John, “Blessed are those who are invited to the wedding supper of the Lamb!” (Revelation 19:9). At this proclamation, John falls to worship at the feet of the angel who is communicating this prophecy, but the angel insists John rise to his feet, for he is but “a fellow servant” (Revelation 19:10; cf. Colossians 2:18).
In response to John’s wrongful worship, the angel says, “See that you do not do that! . . . Worship God! For the testimony of Jesus is the spirit of prophecy” (Revelation 19:10, NKJV). It is critical to understand that this statement is a response to John’s intention to worship the angel. Because of the construction of the clause in the original language (Greek), there are three common understandings of the testimony of Jesus is the spirit of prophecy:
1. Jesus is the substance of all prophecy, or, put another way, Jesus is the common theme among all prophecy.
2. All true prophecy bears witness about Jesus. Therefore, all prophecy should cause us to worship Him alone.
3. The message or testimony given by Jesus is the essence of true prophecy. Jesus is the Word, and no prophecy comes to us except through Him, ultimately pointing to God as the source of all true prophecy.
The NIV translates the angel’s statement as “It is the Spirit of prophecy who bears testimony to Jesus.” The NLT’s wording is “The essence of prophecy is to give a clear witness for Jesus.” The wording of both these translations prefers one of the first two interpretations, above. The third interpretation, however, seems to fit best within the context of Revelation 19:10. John is not to worship the angel but God alone. Since John was worshiping the angel in response to the prophecy given, the angel ensures that John understands Jesus is the source of the communication and He alone is worthy of the worship (cf. Luke 4:8; Acts 14:11–15).
Following the angel’s command to John, we ought to worship God alone. We are to worship not the purveyor of the message but the Source of the message. While God has made many beautiful things, such as angels, He is alone worthy of our praise (cf. John 17:3; 1 Timothy 1:17; 6:15; 1 Samuel 7:4).
Revelation 12:10 calls Satan the “accuser of our brothers and sisters, who accuses them before our God day and night.” The context of the verse describes a cosmic battlebetween a great red dragon (identified as Satan in Revelation 12:7) and
the angelic hosts of heaven.
The dragon
is hurled to the earth (Revelation 12:9),
the authority of the Messiah
is locked in place (verse 10), and the
believers are victorious:
“And they overcame him by the blood of the Lamb and by the
word of their testimony,
and they did not love their lives to the death”
(Revelation 12:11, NKJV).
During the tribulation of the end times, Satan’s wrath against God’s’ people, especially Israel (the “woman” of Revelation 12) will intensify. But the believers are promised to overcome. Dr. Charles Ryrie comments on Revelation 12:11: “The believer’s defense against Satan is (1) to bank on the merits of the death of Christ, (2) to be active in witnessing, and (3) to be willing to make any sacrifice, including death” (The Ryrie Study Bible, Moody Press, 1978, p. 1,801).
Down through the centuries, the “great dragon” Satan has despised the mercy, love, grace, and forgiveness that God pours out on believers in Jesus Christ. With relentless, evil determination, the devil hounds us, fixated on destroying our walk with God and chasing us back into a spiritual prison. But, day by day, night by night, believers always overcome him “by the blood of the Lamb” (Revelation 12:11).
Satan’s tireless goal in the life of every Christian is to prevent, disrupt, and cut off his or her relationship with God. He “prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour” (1 Peter 5:8). But the devil’s only real power over believers is to throw our sins and transgressions in our faces. He is the accuser. Thankfully, the sacrifice of Christ has effectively dealt with the problem. It is the blood of Jesus Christ—the blood of the Lamb—that redeems people, setting them free from slavery to sin and Satan’s control.
Scripture gives us vivid pictures of Christ’s redemptive work on the cross.
Peter explains that “God paid a ransom” to save us from our old empty way of life. “
And it was not paid with mere gold or silver, which lose their value. It was the precious blood of Christ, the sinless, spotless Lamb of God”
1 Peter 1:18–19, NLT
The tribulation saints will
have
“washed their robes and made
them white
in the blood of the Lamb”
(Revelation 7:14).
When Jesus Christ died, His precious blood “
purchased for God persons from
every tribe
and language and people and nation”
Revelation 5:9
Jesus’ blood was
poured
out “for the forgiveness of sins”
Matthew 26:28),
and
it “purifies us from all sin” (1 John 1:7)
Satan tries to condemn us, but we
overcome by
the blood of the Lamb. “
There is now no condemnation for those
who are in Christ Jesus,
because through Christ Jesus
the law of the Spirit
who gives life has set you free from the
law of sin and death
” (Romans 8:1–2).
Jesus freed us from the spiritual chains of sin
John 8:35–36; Romans 6:17–22
The next time Satan tries to hurl past failures in your face, remember that
“God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him.
Whoever believes in him is not condemned”
(John 3:17–18).
All believers—past, present and future—overcome the accuser by the blood of the Lamb.
Jesus Christ’s death is the definitive basis for our victory over the enemy of our souls.
The apostle Paul asks,
“Who dares accuse us
whom God has chosen for his own?
No one—for God himself
has given us right standing with himself.
Who then will condemn us?
No one—for Christ Jesus died
for us and was raised to life for us, and
he is sitting in the place of honor
at God’s right
hand, pleading for us”
Romans 8:33–34, NLT
Despite everything in the devil’s arsenal that he can throw at us, “in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us” (Romans 8:37).
Paul tells the Colossians, “For you were buried with Christ when you were baptized. And with him you were raised to new life because you trusted the mighty power of God, who raised Christ from the dead. You were dead because of your sins and because your sinful nature was not yet cut away. Then God made you alive with Christ, for he forgave all our sins. He canceled the record of the charges against us and took it away by nailing it to the cross. In this way, he disarmed the spiritual rulers and authorities. He shamed them publicly by his victory over them on the cross. So don’t let anyone condemn you” (Colossians 2:12–16, NLT).
We must not allow the devil to deceive us with
lies and accusations.
Every charge he can bring against us is canceled,
nailed to the cross,
and overcome by the blood of the Lamb.
It may seem
strange that, in Revelation 12, a raging dragon
is overcome by a slain lamb.
Lambs
are not usually seen as dragon-slayers.
But such is the power and efficacy of
the death of Christ.
Because of Christ’s shed blood on the cross,
sin has lost its grip on us.
Whenever Satan accuses us,
we can sing,
“My chains are gone; I’ve been set free.”
Isaiah 49 speaks of a time of blessing for Israel. There is some difficulty in interpreting this passage because at times it seems that Israel is being addressed, and at other times it seems that a single person is being addressed.
This person will help bring blessing back to Israel,
so he must therefore
be distinguished in some way from Israel.
In Isaiah 49:3, God addresses Israel
: “You are my servant, Israel, in whom I will display my splendor.”
However, by verse 6, the one addressed
is an
individual
called the
Servant of the Lord,
and
He will also restore Israel:
“It is too small a thing for you to be
my servant
to restore the tribes of Jacob
and bring
back those of Israel I have kept.
I will also
make you a light for the Gentiles,
that my
salvation may reach to the ends
of the earth.”
From the context it is clear that “a light for the Gentiles” in Isaiah 49:6
is parallel to
‘my salvation . . . to the ends to the ends of the earth.”
The light is spiritual light,
corresponding to God’s “splendor” in verse 3.
The ends of the earth are the Gentile nations--
the people who
live everywhere other than Israel.
The question is, how does Israel do this? How do they
act as a
light to the Gentiles?
Certainly, if Israel had been loyal to the Lord, other nations would have taken notice and perhaps been drawn to the Lord (see Deuteronomy 4:6). But that did not happen. So Isaiah speaks of a new situation. The Servant who is identified with Israel but also distinguished from Israel be the light instead. This is somewhat mysterious. However, this makes sense if the king of Israel is the one in view. The king is the representative of Israel, yet he is distinguished from Israel. He can do things for Israel but can also do things as Israel.
But Isaiah does not reveal this king’s identity.
In the New Testament,
the identity of the Servant,
the King,
and the
Messiah is revealed
in reference to the Isaiah passage:
“Now there was a man in Jerusalem, whose name was Simeon, and this man was righteous and devout, waiting for the consolation of Israel, and the Holy Spirit was upon him. And it had been revealed to him by the Holy Spirit that he would not see death before he had seen the Lord’s Christ.
And he came in the Spirit into the temple, and when the parents brought in the child Jesus, to do for him according to the custom of the Law, he took him up in his arms and blessed God and said, ‘Lord, now you are letting your servant depart in peace, according to your word; for my eyes have seen your salvation that you have prepared in the presence of all peoples, a light for revelation to the Gentiles, and for glory to your people Israel’” (Luke 2:25–32, ESV).
According to Simeon under the influence of the Holy Spirit, it is Jesus, the King of Israel, who is the glory of Israel and a light to the Gentiles.
Matthew 4:12–16 also applies to Jesus a similar idea from another passage in Isaiah:
“Leaving Nazareth, he went and lived in Capernaum, which was by the lake in
the area of Zebulun and Naphtali—to fulfill what was said through the prophet Isaiah:
“‘Land of Zebulun and land of Naphtali, the Way of the Sea,
beyond the Jordan, Galilee of the Gentiles—the people living in darkness have seen a great light; on those living in the land of the shadow of death a light has dawned’” (Isaiah 9:1–2).
Galilee, both in the time of Isaiah and in the time of Christ, had a large Gentile population. By preaching there, Jesus was bringing light to the Gentiles.
Furthermore, Paul applies Isaiah 49:6 to himself and Barnabas as representatives of the King and preachers of the gospel. On the first missionary journey, they were rejected by the Jewish population in Pisidian Antioch: “On the following Sabbath, nearly the whole city gathered to hear the word of the Lord. But when the Jews saw the crowds, they were filled with jealousy, and they blasphemously contradicted what Paul was saying.
“Then Paul and Barnabas answered them boldly: ‘It was necessary to speak the word of God to you first. But since you reject it and do not consider yourselves worthy of eternal life, we now turn to the Gentiles. For this is what the Lord has commanded us:
“I have made you a
light
for the Gentiles,
to bring salvation
to the
ends of the earth.”’
“When the Gentiles heard this, they rejoiced and glorified the word of the Lord, and all who were appointed for eternal life believed. And the word of the Lord spread throughout that region” (Acts 13:44–49, BSB).
Thus, Paul and Barnabas,
as Israelites and authorized representatives of
the King of Israel,
were also a fulfillment of Isaiah 49:6.
In summary,
Israel is a light
to the nations because Jesus,
as the King of Israel,
provided
salvation for the nations (Gentiles)
and then
authorized His representatives
to spread the
good news throughout the world
(see Matthew 28:18–20 and Acts 1:8).
The Mount of Transfiguration
is the mountain upon which Jesus was transfigured (Matthew 17, Mark 9, Luke 9).
The actual location of the mountain is unknown.
In Matthew 16, Jesus tells the disciples that He will be killed and raised to life (verse 21).
Peter rebukes Him: “Never, Lord!” he says. “This shall never happen to you!” (verse 22). Jesus has to rebuke Peter and goes on to explain that whoever will be His disciple must “take up his cross,” that is, be willing to die also. In the final verse of chapter 16, Jesus makes a rather enigmatic statement: “
Truly I tell you, some who are standing here will not taste death before they see the
Son of Man coming in his kingdom”
(see also Luke 9:27).
In the next event recorded in Matthew and Luke, Jesus takes Peter, James, and John with Him up to a “high mountain.” This unnamed mountain is what we call the Mount of Transfiguration today, because of what takes place next: “There he was transfigured before them. His face shone like the sun, and his clothes became as white as the light. Just then there appeared before them Moses and Elijah, talking with Jesus” (Matthew 17:2–3).
The transfiguration of Jesus on the mountain is significant, for it gave those three disciples a glimpse of the glory that Jesus had before the Incarnation and that He would have again. Perhaps it was also the fulfillment of Jesus’ prophecy that some of the disciples would see Him coming in the kingdom before they died
(Matthew 16:28).
What happened on the Mount of Transfiguration has parallels to what happened on Sinai.
Moses went up to a mountain to meet the Lord and came back with his face shining (Exodus 34)
. In the New Testament, Jesus goes up a mountain and meets with Moses; however, a voice from heaven makes it clear that Jesus is the primary character, not Moses: “While he was still speaking, a bright cloud covered them, and a voice from the cloud said, ‘This is my Son, whom I love; with him I am well pleased. Listen to him!’
When the disciples heard this, they fell facedown to the ground, terrified.
But Jesus came and touched them. ‘Get up,’ he said. ‘Don’t be afraid.’ When they looked up, they saw no one except Jesus”
(Matthew 17:5–8).
Just as the meeting on Sinai between Moses and the Lord signified
anew era
in God’s
dealing with His people,
so this
meeting between the Lord
and
Moses signifies
anew
era in redemption
history.
The “high mountain” that
we call the
Mount of Transfiguration
is never
clearly identified in Scripture.
Both
Mount Tabor and Mount Hermon
have been identified
as the
Mount of Transfiguration
by
various traditions.
Mount Tabor is a little less than 2,000 feet,
but it stands alone in the area.
The earliest tradition identifies Mount Tabor
as the
Mount of Transfiguration,
and it is the location of the
Church of the Transfiguration,
which is built
on the ruins of fourth-century church.
Mount Hermon is a much higher mountain, almost 10,000 feet, and it is closer to Caesarea Philippi where the previous events in Matthew 16 took place. For these reasons, some scholars feel that Mount Hermon is a more likely candidate to be the Mount of Transfiguration.
In the final analysis, we simply do not know what
mountain is the Mount of Transfiguration.
It could be Tabor or Hermon or another mountain that no one has suggested. The fact that the transfiguration happened on a mountain is an important point in the recapitulation of Moses’ meeting on Mount Sinai. However, the importance of the transfiguration is not bound to what mountain it occurred on.
Years later, Peter refers to this event: “
For we did not follow cleverly devised fables when we made known to you the power and coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, but we were eyewitnesses of His majesty.
For He received honor and glory from God the Father when the voice from the Majestic Glory came to Him, saying, ‘This is My beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased.’ And we ourselves heard this voice from heaven when we were with Him on the holy mountain”
(2 Peter 1:16–18).
The Coronation of Mary
is a
Christian art
subject and
Catholic feast day
that celebrates
Mary's role as Queen of Heaven.
In Christian art,
Christ places a crown on Mary's head,
sometimes with
God the Father and the Holy Spirit present.
In early versions
Heaven is depicted as an earthly court,
but later versions
show
Heaven as a place in the sky.
Feast day
The feast day
celebrates the same event that is part of the
fifth
glorious mystery of
the Rosary.
The title "Queen" indicates
Mary's final state,
seated next
to her Son,
the King of glory.
The Church has affirmed
Mary's title
of Queen
through documents
such as Lumen Gentium
and the
papal encyclical Ad Coeli Reginam.
Mary's coronation
is a sign
of
the honor Christ has given
his mother
May Crowning
is a celebration
that includes Marian
prayers
and processions to crown
Mary.
Transfiguration
Some scholars Jesus' transfiguration took
place on
Mount Hermon.
This event is described in the Bible
as when Jesus appeared
in his
true glory as the Son of God.
Caesarea Philippi
The city of
Caesarea Philippi was located
at the base of
Mount Hermon during Jesus'
time.
Peter declared Jesus to be
“the Christ,
the Son of the living God"
in this city.
Jesus told Peter
that the "gates of hell" would
not prevail over
the
church he was building
Mount Tabor
is located
in the Lower Galilee region
of northern Israel
It's about 15 km west of the
Sea of Galilee.
It's at the
eastern end of the Jezreel Valley.
Mount Tabor
has been important throughout history,
especially in Biblical times.
It's traditionally believed to be the place
where
Moses saw the Promised Land before
he died.
It's home to two churches: the
Roman Catholic Church of the Transfiguration
and the
Eastern Sanctuary of the Orthodox Church.
The New Testament accounts do not
Name
the
Mountain upon
which
The transfiguration occurred.
Mount Hermon
is another possible site.
Catholics observe
The Feast of the Transfiguration
As we approach the
great feast
of the Assumption of Mary, I,
having written a
post on the biblical evidence for
the Assumption of Mary,
thought I would change gears and
consider the
historical evidence for the Assumption
in honor
of this year’s feast day
The doctrine of the Assumption of Mary began with a historical event to which Scripture alludes and that been believed in the Church for 2,000 years.
It was passed down in the oral tradition of the Church and developed over the centuries, but it was always believed by the Catholic faithful. Let us examine the facts:
1. Archaeology has revealed two tombs of Mary, one in Jerusalem and one in Ephesus. The fact that Mary lived in both places explains the two tombs. But what is inexplicable apart from the Assumption is the fact that there is no body in either tomb. And there are no relics. Anyone who peruses early Church history knows that Christian belief in the communion of saints and the sanctity of the body—in radical contrast to the Gnostic disdain for “the flesh”—led early Christians to seek out with the greatest fervor relics from the bodies of great saints. Cities, and, later, religious orders, would fight over the bones of great saints.
This is one reason why we have relics of the apostles and so many of the greatest saints and martyrs in history. Yet never was there a single relic of Mary’s body? As revered as Mary was, this would be very strange, except for the fact of the assumption of her body.
2. On the historical front, Fr. Michael O’Carroll, in his book, Theotokos: A Theological Encyclopedia
of the
Blessed Virgin Mary,
writes:
We have known for some time that there were
widespread “Transitus Stories”
that date from the sixth century that
teach Mary’s glorious Assumption.
It was the promulgation of the dogma of the Assumption by Pope Pius XII that rekindled interest in these stories of the end of Mary’s life. In 1955, Fr. A.A. Wenger published L’Assomption (p. 59).
Fr. Wenger found a Greek manuscript that verified what scholars had previously believed to
be TRUE
Because there were whole families of manuscripts from different areas of the world in the sixth century that told a similar story of Mary’s Assumption, there had to be previous manuscripts from which everyone received their data. Fr. Wenger discovered one of these earlier manuscripts, believed to be the source later used
by John of Thessalonica in the sixth century in his teaching on the Assumption.
Fr. O’Carroll continues:
Some years later, M. Haibach-Reinisch added to the dossier an early version of Pseudo-Melito, the most influential text in use in the Latin Church. This could now, it was clear, be dated earlier than the sixth century. . . . V. Arras claimed to have found an Ethiopian version of it which he published in 1973; its similarity to the Irish text gave the latter new status. In the same year M. Van Esbroeck brought out a Gregorian version, which he had located in Tiflis, and another, a Pseudo-Basil, in the following year, found in Mount Athos.
Much still remains to be explored. The Syriac fragments have increased importance, being put as far back as the third century by one commentator. The whole story will eventually be placed earlier, probably in the second century.
This is significant. Recently discovered Syriac fragments of stories about the Assumption of Mary have been dated as early as the third century. And there are undoubtedly more manuscripts to be found. It must be remembered that when we are talking about these “Transitus stories,” we are not only talking about ancient manuscripts and fragments of manuscripts, but we are talking also about two different “families” of manuscripts written in nine languages. They all agree on Mary’s Assumption and they presuppose that the story was already widely known.
What about those who claim the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary is nothing more than a Gnostic fable? Or those who claim the historical narratives about the Assumption of Mary were condemned by Pope Gelasius I? James White, in his book
Mary—Another Redeemer?, goes so far as to claim:
Basically, the first appearance of the idea of the Bodily Assumption of Mary is found in a source that was condemned by the then-bishop of Rome, Gelasius I! The irony is striking: what was defined by the bishop of Rome as heresy at the end of the fifth century becomes dogma itself in the middle of the twentieth! (p. 54).
Mr. White’s reasoning fails for several reasons.
1. Even if it were a papal document, Decretum Gelasianumwould not be a “definition” by the bishop of Rome declaring the Assumption of Mary to be heresy, as White claims. The document does not make such an assertion. It gives us a rather long list of titles of apocryphal books after having listed the accepted books of the Bible. That’s all. One of these titles declared to be “apocryphal” is referred to as: “Liber qui appellatur ‘Transitus, id est Assumptio sanctae Mariae,’” which translates as “A book which is called, ‘
Having been taken up, that is, the Assumption of Holy Mary.’”
White evidently thought this document condemned as untrue the doctrine of the Assumption of Mary. But it did not. As a matter of history, this document does not condemn any doctrines in the books it lists at all;
it declares the books
themselves
to be apocryphal
and
therefore not part
of the
canon of Scripture
This would be something akin to the Church’s rejection of
The Assumption of Moses
and
The Book of Enoch
as
apocryphal works.
The fact that these works are apocryphal does not preclude St. Jude (9; 14) from quoting both of them in Sacred Scripture.
Because a work is declared apocryphal or even condemned does not mean that there is no truth at all to be found in it.
2. There is a real question among scholars today as to whether Pope Gelasius wrote what is popularly called the Dectretum Gelasianum. According to The Oxford Dictionary of the Christian Faith (p. 462), it was probably written in the sixth century (Pope Gelasius died in the late fifth century) in Italy or Gaul and was most likely not a papal work at all. In fact, it was falsely attributed to several different popes over the years.
3. If the pope had genuinely condemned the teaching of the Assumption, great saints and defenders of orthodoxy such as St. Gregory and later St. John Damascene would not have taught it. Further, we would have found other writers condemning this teaching as it became more and more popular throughout the world. And we certainly would not see the Assumption celebrated in the liturgy as we do as early as the fifth century in Palestine, Gaul in the sixth, universally in the East in the seventh century, and in the West in the eighth century. Far from a condemnation of the Assumption, this reveals just how widespread this teaching truly was.
Why Don’t the Earliest Fathers Write About the Assumption?
The most obvious reason would be that when Gnostics, who were some of the main enemies of the Faith in the early centuries of the Christian era, agreed with the Church on the matter, there would have been no need to defend the teaching.
In other words, there is no record of anyone disagreeing on the matter. We don’t find works from the earliest Fathers on Jesus’ celibacy either, but that too was most likely due to the universal agreement on the topic.
Much of early
Christian literature
was
apologetic in nature.
Like the New Testament,
it mostly
dealt with problem areas
in the Church
that
needed to be addressed.
Even so, it is not as though there is no written evidence to support the Assumption either. According to Fr. O’Carroll (Theotokos, 388), we now have what some believe to be a fourth-century homily on
the prophet Simeon and
the Blessed
Virgin Mary by Timothy,
a priest of Jerusalem,
which asserts Mary is
“immortal to the present time
through him
who had his abode in her
and who assumed
and raised her
above the higher regions.”
Evidently, there was disagreement in the circulating stories of the Assumption of Mary as to whether she was taken up alive or after having died. But whether or not she was assumed was not in question. Indeed, the Church even to this day has not decided definitively the matter of whether Mary died or not, though at the level of the Ordinary Magisterium it does teach that Mary died—for example, in Pope Pius XII’s Munificentissimus Deus, 17, 20, 21, 29, 35, 39, and 40.
Rethinking
St. EpiphaniusI believe St. Epiphanius’s work
needs to be reexamined
when it comes to the Assumption of Mary.
This great bishop
and defender of orthodoxy
may give us key insights into the
antiquity of the
Assumption,
writing in ca. A.D. 350.
In his classic Panarion (“breadbox”) or Refutation of All Heresies,
he includes eighty-eight sections dealing with scores
of the most dangerous heresies of his day.
In sections 78 and 79, he deals with one particular sect comprised mainly of women called the “Collyridians.” Evidently, this sect was “ordaining” women as “priestesses” and adoring
Mary as a goddess by offering sacrifice to her.
St. Epiphanius condemns this in the strongest of terms:
For I have heard in turn that others who are out of their minds on this subject of this holy Ever-virgin, have done their best and are doing their best, in the grip both of madness and of folly, to substitute her for God.
For they say that certain Thracian women there in Arabia have introduced this nonsense, and that
they bake a loaf in the name of the Ever-virgin, gather together, and attempt an excess and undertake a
forbidden, blasphemous act in the holy Virgin’s name,
and offer sacrifice
in her name
with women officiants.
This is entirely impious, unlawful, and different from
the Holy Spirit’s message,
and is thus pure devil’s work . . .
And nowhere was a woman a priest.
But I shall go to
the New Testament.
If it were ordained by God
that women should be priests or have
any canonical function in the
Church,
Mary herself, if anyone, should have
functioned
as a priest in the New Testament.
She was counted worthy to bear
the king
of all in her own womb,
the heavenly God, the Son of God.
Her womb became a temple,
and by
God’s kindness and an awesome
mystery,
was prepared
to be a dwelling place of the
Lord’s human nature.
But it was not God’s pleasure that
she be a priest.
These women who were adoring
Mary
as if she were a goddess would no doubt have
been well acquainted with
the “Transitus Stories”
and would have been
teaching Mary’s Assumption.
In fact, it appears
they were teaching Mary
never died at all.
This would be in keeping with
John of Thessalonica,
Timothy of Jerusalem,
and others
who taught this among Christians.
However, these women were taking Mary and the Assumption to the extreme by worshiping her. What is interesting here is that in the midst of condemning the Collyridians, St. Epiphanius gives us, in section 79 of Panarion, a point-blank statement that is overlooked today by many:
Like the bodies of the saints, however, she has been held in honor for her character and understanding. And if I should say anything more in her praise, she is like Elijah, who was virgin from his mother’s womb, always remained so, and was taken up, but has not seen death.
St. Epiphanius clearly indicates his personal agreement with the idea that
Mary was assumed into heaven without ever having died.
He will elsewhere clarify the fact that he is not certain, and no one is, at least not definitively so,
about whether or not she died.
But he never says the same about the Assumption itself. That did not seem to be in doubt.
By comparing her to Elijah, he indicates that she was taken up bodily,
just as the Church continues to teach 1,600 years later.
Since the time of the promulgation of the dogma of the Assumption of Mary, there has been much new discovery. We now have written evidence of belief in the Assumption of Mary as far back as the third century. Though it is not necessary for there to be written evidence all the way back to the second century for us as Catholics because we have Sacred Tradition and Sacred Scripture as interpreted by the Magisterium of the Church first and foremost that has already given us the truth of the Matter, I believe it is really exciting that new historical discoveries continue to be made and once again . . . and again . . .
and again, they
confirm the Faith of our Fathers.
Dictionaries define
righteousness
as
“behavior that is morally justifiable
or right.”
Such behavior is characterized by accepted
standards of
morality, justice, virtue, or uprightness.
The Bible’s standard of human righteousness is God’s own perfection in every attribute, every attitude, every behavior, and every word. Thus, God’s laws, as given in the Bible, both describe
His own character and constitute the plumb line
by which
He measures human righteousness.
The Greek New Testament word for “righteousness” primarily describes
conduct in relation to others,
especially with regards to the rights of others in business, in legal matters, and
beginning with relationship to God.
It is contrasted with wickedness, the conduct of the one who,
out of gross self-centeredness,
neither reveres God nor respects man.
The Bible describes the
righteous person as
just or right, holding to God and trusting
in Him
(Psalm 33:18–22).
The bad news is that true and perfect righteousness
is not possible
for man to attain on his own;
the standard is simply too high.
The good news is that
true
righteousness is possible for mankind,
but only through the
cleansing of sin by Jesus Christ
and the
indwelling of the Holy Spirit.
We have no ability to achieve righteousness in and of ourselves. But Christians possess the righteousness of Christ, because “God made him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God” (2 Corinthians 5:21). This is an amazing truth. On the cross, Jesus exchanged our sin for His perfect righteousness so that we can one day stand before God and He will see not our sin, but the holy righteousness of the Lord Jesus.
This means that we are made righteous in
the sight of God;
that is, that we are accepted as righteous
and treated as righteous by God on account
of what
the Lord Jesus has done.
He was made sin; we are made righteousness.
On the cross, Jesus was treated as if He were a sinner, though He was perfectly holy and pure, and we are treated as if we were righteous, though we are defiled and depraved.
On account of what the Lord Jesus
has
endured on our behalf,
we are treated as if we had entirely
fulfilled the Law of God
and had
never become exposed to its penalty
We have received
this precious
gift of righteousness from the
God of all mercy and grace.
To Him be the glory!
John 8:4
This conversation between Jesus and the Pharisees dispels any myths that
Jesus was weak, passive, or timid. In response to
His claims,
the religious leaders of Jerusalem have gone so far as to question
Jesus' birth.
They did this by insinuating that He was "born of sexual immorality,"
which could actually be seen as an attack on His mother (John 8:41).
These same men have also tried to have Jesus arrested (John 7:32)
and even killed (John 5:18).
All of this is grounded in their refusal to accept His message (John 8:43),
which they do not understand specifically because they have no intent to listen.
Here, the men opposing Jesus sink even lower in their approach.
The Jewish people saw Samaritans as despised half-breeds.
This cultural hatred was a major reason
why Jesus' actions in the Samaritan town of Sychar were so controversial
(John 4:1–9).
Calling Jesus a "Samaritan"
combined two insults into one:
mocking His birth
and
accusing Him of heresy
Referring to someone as demon-possessed was,
in that day,
equivalent to calling them crazy
Unable to give
reasonable answers to
His teaching,
those
opposed to Jesus are resorting
to petty insults
A House Divided
(Mark 3:20–27; Luke 11:14–23)
then a demon-possessed man who
was blind
and mute was brought to Jesus,
and He healed the man
so that he could speak and see
the
crowds were astounded
and asked,
“Could this be the Son of David?”
but when the Pharisees heard this,
they said,
“Only by Beelzebul,
the prince of demons,
does this man drive out demons.”
Knowing their thoughts,
Jesus said to them, “Every kingdom divided against itself will be laid waste,
and every city or household divided against itself will not stand.
if Satan drives out Satan, he is divided against himself.
How then can his kingdom stand?
and if I drive out demons by Beelzebul, by whom do
your sons drive them out?
So then, they will be
your judges.
but if I drive out demons by
the Spirit of God,
then the
kingdom of God has come
upon you
or again, how can anyone enter a
strong man’s house
and steal his possessions,
unless he first ties up the strong man?
Then he can plunder his house.
He who is not with Me is against Me,
and he who
does not gather with Me scatters.
The Unpardonable Sin
(Mark 3:28–30)
31Therefore I tell you, every sin and blasphemy will be forgiven men, but the blasphemy against the Spirit will not be forgiven. 32Whoever speaks a word against the Son of Man will be forgiven, but whoever speaks against the Holy Spirit will not be forgiven, either in this age or in the one to come.
Good and Bad Fruit
(Luke 6:43–45)
33Make a tree good and its fruit will be good, or make a tree bad and its fruit will be bad, for a tree is known by its fruit.
You brood of vipers,
how can you who
are evil
say anything good?
Indeed, figs are not gathered from
thornbushes,
nor grapes from brambles.
The good man
brings good things out of the
good treasure of his heart,
and the
evil man brings evil things
out of the evil
treasure of his heart.
For out of the overflow of the
heart the mouth speaks.
for
by your words
you will be acquitted,
and by your
words
you will be condemned.”
John the Baptist
condemned the Pharisees and Sadducees
as a “brood of vipers” in Matthew 3:7.
A “brood of vipers” is a “family of snakes.”
Because vipers are venomous,
John was
essentially calling the religious leaders
“deadly sons of serpents.”
It’s quite a bold denunciation--
and one Jesus repeated
to the
Pharisees in Matthew 12:34.
The Pharisees and Sadducees
were the religious leaders in Israel during
the time of
John the Baptist and Jesus.
The Pharisees were the Law-keepers
and
promoters of tradition, and
the Sadducees
comprised the wealthier ruling class.
Over the centuries, these
well-meaning groups
had become corrupt,
legalistic, and hypocritical and would
eventually be
responsible for crucifying the Son of God.
They earned their label
“brood of vipers,”
a sobriquet with
deeper meaning
than is obvious at first glance.
The viper was seen to be an
evil creature.
Its venom
was deadly, and it was also devious--
the viper that
bit Paul
as paul was hiding in the firewood
(Acts 28:3).
The Hebrew Scriptures,
which the Pharisees knew well, associate
the serpent with Satan in Genesis 3.
For John to call
the Pharisees a “brood of vipers” implies that they
bore satanic qualities.
This idea is clearly stated by Jesus in John 8:44,
where
He says the unbelieving Jews
“belong to [their] father, the devil.”
When John and Jesus
called the Pharisees a “brood of vipers,” they were pointing
out that these men were deceitful,
dangerous, and wicked--deceitful in that they were hypocrites
(Matthew 23:15);
dangerous in that they were blind leaders of the blind
(Matthew 15:14);
and wicked in that
their hearts were full of murder
(John 8:37).
Another fascinating detail
is found
in Jesus’ use of the epithet “brood of vipers”
to describe the Pharisees.
In Matthew 23:33, He says,
“You brood of vipers, how are you to escape
being
sentenced to hell?”
Farmers, then as now,
often burned
the stubble of their fields to get
the land
ready for the next planting season.
As the fires neared the vipers’ dens,
the snakes would slither away from
the flames,
but they often did not escape being
consumed.
Snakes fleeing the fire was a common
sight,
and Jesus’ words
to the Pharisees would likely
have called it to their minds.
How could they think they would
escape the
fire of God’s judgment by
relying on
their own works, which were not
at all honest or good?
John’s and Jesus’ calling them
a brood of vipers was meant to make them
aware of their own
wickedness and call them to repent.
When it was almost time for the Jewish
Passover,
Jesus went up to Jerusalem.
In the temple courts
he found
people selling cattle, sheep
and doves,
and others
sitting at
tables
exchanging money
So he made a whip out of cords, and
drove all from the
temple courts,
both sheep and cattle;
he scattered the coins of the money changers and overturned their tables.
To those who sold doves he said,
“Get these out of here! Stop turning my Father’s house into a market!”
(John 2:13–16)
The event
of
Jesus overturning tables
in John 2:15
also appears in all the Synoptic Gospels. In fact, Jesus cleansed the temple on two separate occasions: once at the beginning of His ministry, and again at the end (Matthew 21:12–13; Mark 11:15–17; Luke 19:45–46).
In contemporary Christian circles, the phrase Jesus overturns tables or Jesus flips tables is used to communicate the iconoclastic nature of Jesus’ ministry. The saying also serves to counterbalance the distorted modern portrayal of the Son of God as an insipid, weak man who was all about “peace” and “love” and never about correction or judgment.
We see that Jesus “overturns tables” in many ways in Scripture.
He countered the incomplete teaching of the scribes (Matthew 5:21–28),
He confronted the hypocrisy of the Pharisees (Matthew 23),
He reached out to “tax collectors and sinners” (Luke 15:1–2),
He violated custom (Matthew 15:2; John 4:7–9), and
He publicly spoke against the king (Luke 13:32).
We should recognize that Jesus’ actions in John 2:15 were justified.
So, why did
Jesus overturn tables?
Conducting commerce
within the temple was problematic
by itself
as that undermined the sacred purpose
of that place
(John 2:16).
Yet there were deeper issues at play.
In the Synoptic accounts of the second
cleansing,
Jesus denounces the
money changers and merchants
for transforming the temple
into
a “den of robbers”
(Matthew 21:13; Mark 11:17; Luke 19:45; cf. Jeremiah 7:11).
It seems it wasn’t just business taking place, but exploitation. The devout were being cheated; especially vulnerable were foreigners and the poor, in direct violation of God’s commands (Exodus 22:21; Leviticus 19:33–34; Deuteronomy 10:18–19; Isaiah 1:17).
As Jesus overturned the tables in the temple, He referenced Isaiah 56:7, which calls the temple God’s “house of prayer.” Jesus’ anger was ignited by the misuse of the temple and the injustice taking place within it.
What implications does the event in John 2:15 hold for us today? First, our perception of Jesus must be grounded in Scripture, not sentiment.
The same Jesus who played with children and conversed gently with the Samaritan woman could construct a whip and overturn tables. He embodies the traits of both a lion and a lamb.
In fact, Jesus would be an inadequate
Savior
and incompetent Lord if
He failed to express anger against
sin and oppression.
What kind of person shrugs at abuse?
Second, given that Jesus sets the standard for goodness, there are appropriate times to not be “nice.” There are times we cannot simply “go along to get along.”
We should emulate Jesus’ example
and
confront abuse and injustice,
especially within the church.
When God’s reputation is at stake,
and when people
are being exploited, we should act.
Finally, we should remember that Christians today are God’s temple (1 Corinthians 6:19).
Just as Jesus was
zealous for His temple in Jerusalem,
so is He for us
(John 2:17; cf. Psalm 69:9).
We must take care
not to defile
His temple with sin;
rather,
we should make every effort
to ensure that our bodies are “houses of prayer” to honor God.
The Parable of the Good Samaritan
is precipitated by and in
answer to a question posed to
Jesus
by a lawyer.
In this case the lawyer
would have been
an expert
in the Mosaic Law
and not
a court lawyer of today.
The lawyer’s question was, “Teacher, what shall I do to inherit eternal life?"
(Luke 10:25).
This question provided
Jesus with an opportunity to define
what
His disciples’ relationship
should be
to their neighbors.
The text says that the scribe (lawyer) had put the
question to Jesus as a test,
but the text does not indicate that there was hostility in the question. He could have simply
been seeking information. The wording of the question does, however,
give us some insight into where the scribe’s heart was spiritually.
He was making the assumption that man must do something
to obtain eternal life.
Although this could have been an opportunity for
Jesus to discuss salvation issues,
He chose a different course
and focuses on our
relationships and what it means to love
Jesus answers the question using what is called the Socratic method; i.e., answering a question with a question: “He said to him, ‘What is written in the law? What is your reading of it?’" (Luke 10:26). By referring to the Law, Jesus is directing the man to an authority they both would accept as truth, the Old Testament. In essence, He is asking the scribe, what does Scripture say about this and how does he interpret it? Jesus thus avoids an argument and puts Himself in the position of evaluating the scribe’s answer instead of the scribe evaluating His answer. This directs the discussion towards Jesus’ intended lesson. The scribe answers Jesus’ question by quoting Deuteronomy 6:5 and Leviticus 19:18. This is virtually the same answer that Jesus had given to the same question in Matthew 22 and Mark 12.
In verse 28, Jesus affirms that the lawyer’s answer is correct. Jesus’ reply tells the scribe that he has given an orthodox (scripturally proper) answer, but then goes on in verse 28 to tell him that this kind of love requires more than an emotional feeling; it would also include orthodox practice; he would need to “practice what he preached.” The scribe was an educated man and realized that he could not possibly keep that law, nor would he have necessarily wanted to. There would always be people in his life that he could not love. Thus, he tries to limit the law’s command by limiting its parameters and asked the question “who is my neighbor?” The word “neighbor” in the Greek means “someone who is near,” and in the Hebrew it means “someone that you have an association with.” This interprets the word in a limited sense, referring to a fellow Jew and would have excluded Samaritans, Romans, and other foreigners. Jesus then gives the parable of the Good Samaritan to correct the false understanding that the scribe had of who his neighbor is, and what his duty is to his neighbor.
The Parable of the Good Samaritan tells the story of a man traveling from Jerusalem to Jericho, and while on the way he is robbed of everything he had, including his clothing, and is beaten to within an inch of his life. That road was treacherously winding and was a favorite hideout of robbers and thieves. The next character Jesus introduces into His story is a priest. He spends no time describing the priest and only tells of how he showed no love or compassion for the man by failing to help him and passing on the other side of the road so as not to get involved. If there was anyone who would have known God’s law of love, it would have been the priest. By nature of his position, he was to be a person of compassion, desiring to help others. Unfortunately, “love” was not a word for him that required action on the behalf of someone else. The next person to pass by in the Parable of the Good Samaritan is a Levite, and he does exactly what the priest did: he passes by without showing any compassion.
Again, he would have known the law,
but he also failed
to show the injured man compassion
The next person to come by is the Samaritan,
the one least likely to
have shown compassion for the man.
Samaritans
were considered a low class of people
by the Jews
since they had intermarried
with non-Jews
and did not keep all the law.
Therefore,
Jews would have nothing to do with them.
We do not know if the
injured man
was a
Jew or Gentile,
but it made no
difference to the Samaritan;
he did not
consider the man’s
race or religion
The “Good Samaritan” saw only a person
in dire need of assistance,
and assist him he did,
above
and beyond the minimum required.
He dresses the man’s wounds with wine (to disinfect) and oil (to sooth the pain).
He puts the man on his animal and takes him to an inn for a time of healing and pays the innkeeper with his own money.
He then goes beyond common decency and tells the innkeeper to take good care of the man, and he would pay for any extra expenses on his return trip.
The Samaritan saw his neighbor as anyone who was in need.
Because the good man was a Samaritan, Jesus is drawing a strong contrast between those who knew the law and those who actually followed the law in their lifestyle and conduct. Jesus now asks the lawyer if he can apply the lesson to his own life with the question “So which of these three do you think was neighbor to him who fell among the thieves?" (Luke 10:36).
Once again, the lawyer’s answer is telling of his personal hardness
of heart.
He cannot bring himself to say
the word
“Samaritan”; he refers to the “good man” as “he who showed mercy.”
His hate for the Samaritans (his neighbors)
was so strong that he
couldn’t even refer to them in a proper way.
Jesus then tells the lawyer to “go and do likewise,” meaning that he should start living
what the law tells him to do.
By ending the encounter in this manner, Jesus is telling us to follow the Samaritan’s example in our own conduct; i.e., we are to show compassion and love for those we encounter in our everyday activities.
We are to love others (vs. 27) regardless of their race or religion; the criterion is need.
If they need and we have the supply,
then we are to give
generously and freely, without expectation
of return.
This is an impossible obligation for the
lawyer,
and for us.
We cannot always
keep the law because of our
human condition;
our heart
and desires are mostly of self and selfishness.
When left to our own, we do the wrong thing,
failing to meet the law.
We can hope that the lawyer saw this
and came to the realization
that there was nothing he could do to justify himself,
that he needed a
personal savior to atone for his lack of ability
to save himself from his sins.
Thus, the lessons of the Parable of the Good Samaritan are three-fold:
1) we are to set aside our prejudice and show love and compassion for others. (2) Our neighbor is anyone we encounter; we are all creatures of the creator and we are to love all of mankind as Jesus has taught. (3) Keeping the law in its entirety with the intent to save ourselves is an impossible task; we need a savior, and this is Jesus.
There is another possible way to
interpret the
Parable of the Good Samaritan,
and that is as a metaphor.
In this interpretation the injured man is all men in their
fallen condition of sin.
The robbers are Satan attacking man with the intent of destroying
their relationship with God.
The lawyer is mankind without the true understanding
of God and His Word.
The priest is religion in an apostate condition.
The Levite is legalism that instills prejudice into
the hearts of believers.
The Samaritan is Jesus who provides
the way to spiritual health.
Although this interpretation teaches good lessons, and the
parallels between
Jesus and the Samaritan are striking,
this understanding draws attention to Jesus that does not appear to be intended in the text.
Therefore, we must conclude that the teaching of the Parable of the Good Samaritan
is simply a lesson on what it means to love one’s neighbor.
Probably in every culture, in every part of history, from the tax collectors of ancient Israel to the IRS agents of today, the tax man has received more than his share of scorn and contumely. The New Testament indicates that the occupation of “tax collector” (or “publican”) was looked down upon by the general populace.
The Pharisees communicated their
disdain for tax collectors
in one of
their early confrontations with Jesus
The Lord was eating a meal
with
“many tax collectors and sinners . . .,
for there
were many who followed him.”
When the Pharisees noticed this,“they
asked
his disciples: ‘
Why does he eat with tax collectors and sinners?’”
(Mark 2:15–16)
A “sinner,” to a Pharisee, was a Jew who did not follow the Law
(plus the Pharisees’ own rules).
And a “tax collector” was—well, a tax collector
Jesus used the commonly held opinion of tax collectors as an illustration of the final stage of church discipline: when a person is excommunicated, Jesus said to “treat them as you would a pagan or a tax collector” (Matthew 18:17). In other words, the excommunicant is to be considered an outsider and a candidate for evangelism.
There are a few reasons for the low view of tax collectors in the New Testament era. First, no one likes to pay money to the government, especially when the government is an oppressive regime like the Roman Empire of the 1st century. Those who collected the taxes for such a government bore the brunt of much public displeasure.
Second, the tax collectors in the Bible were Jews who were working for the hated Romans. These individuals were seen as turncoats, traitors to their own countrymen. Rather than fighting the Roman oppressors, the publicans were helping them—and enriching themselves at the expense of their fellow Jews.
Third, it was common knowledge that the tax collectors cheated the people they collected from. By hook or by crook, they would collect more than required and keep the extra for themselves. Everyone just understood that was how it worked. The tax collector Zacchaeus, in his confession to the Lord, mentioned his past dishonesty
(Luke 19:8).
Fourth, because of their skimming off the top, the tax collectors were well-to-do. This further separated them from the lower classes, who resented the injustice of their having to support the publicans’ lavish lifestyle. The tax collectors, ostracized as they were from society, formed their own clique, further separating themselves from the rest of society.
Jesus taught that we should love our enemies. To emphasize the point, He said, “If you love those who love you, what reward will you get? Are not even the tax collectors doing that?” (Matthew 5:46). The word even is significant. Jesus was telling the crowd they needed to rise above the level of publican behavior. If our love is only reciprocal, then we’re no better than a tax collector! Such a comparison must have left its mark on Jesus’ hearers.
Given the low esteem people had for tax collectors, it is noteworthy that Jesus spent so much time with them. The reason He was eating that meal in Mark 2 with “many tax collectors” is that He had just called Matthew, a tax collector, to be one of His twelve disciples. Matthew was throwing a feast because he wanted his circle of friends to meet the Lord. Many believed in Jesus (verse 15). Jesus responded to the Pharisees’ indignation by stating His ministry purpose: “It is not the healthy who need a doctor, but the sick. I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners” (Mark 2:17).
The Pharisees saw tax collectors as enemies to be shunned.
Jesus saw them
as the
spiritually sick to be healed.
The Pharisees could offer nothing to the tax collectors
except a list of rules.
Jesus offered forgiveness of sins
and the
hope of anew life.
No wonder the publicans
liked to
spend time with Jesus
(Luke 15:1).
And tax collectors
like
Matthew and Zacchaeus
were transformed
by
the gospel
and
followed the Lord.
John the Baptist’s message was that all need to repent, not just tax collectors and other obvious sinners.
The Pharisees couldn’t see their need and refused to be categorized with publicans.
To the self-righteous, Jesus said,
“Truly I tell you,
the tax collectors and the prostitutes
are entering
the kingdom of God ahead of you.
For John came to you
to show you the way of righteousness,
and you did not believe him,
but the tax collectors and the prostitutes did.
And even after
you saw this,
you did not repent and believe him”
(Matthew 21:31–32).
The Bible is quite clear that the
Holy Spirit
is active in our world
The book of Acts,
which sometimes goes by the longer
title of
“The Acts of the Apostles,”
could just as accurately be
called
“The Acts of the Holy Spirit through the Apostles.”
After the apostolic age,
there have been some changes--
the Spirit
does not inspire further Scripture, for example—but
He continues to do His work in the world.
First, the
Holy Spirit does many things in the lives
of believers.
He is the believers’ Helper
(John 14:26).
He indwells believers
and seals
them until the day of redemption--
this indicates that the
Holy Spirit’s presence
in the
believer is irreversible.
He guards and guarantees the salvation of the
ones He indwells
(Ephesians 1:13; 4:30).
The Holy Spirit assists believers in prayer
(Jude 1:20)
and “intercedes for
God’s people in accordance with the will of God”
(Romans 8:26–27).
The Holy Spirit regenerates and renews the believer
(Titus 3:5).
At the moment of salvation, the Spirit baptizes the
believer into
the Body of Christ (Romans 6:3).
Believers receive the
new birth by the power of the Spirit
(John 3:5–8).
The Spirit
comforts believers with fellowship
and joy
as they go through a hostile world
(1 Thessalonians 1:6; 2 Corinthians 13:14).
The Spirit, in His mighty power,
fills believers with
“all joy and peace”
as they trust the Lord,
causing
believers to “overflow with hope”
(Romans 15:13).
Sanctification is another work of the Holy Spirit in the life of a believer.
The Spirit sets Himself
against the desires of the flesh and leads the
believer into righteousness
(Galatians 5:16–18).
The works of the flesh become less evident, and the fruit of the Spirit becomes more evident
(Galatians 5:19–26).
Believers are commanded to “be filled with the Spirit” (Ephesians 5:18),
which means they are
to yield themselves to the Spirit’s full control.
The Holy Spirit is also
a gift-giver.
“There are different kinds of gifts, but the same Spirit distributes them”
(1 Corinthians 12:4).
The spiritual gifts that believers
possess are
given by the Holy Spirit as He determines in His wisdom
(verse 11).
The Holy Spirit also does work among unbelievers.
Jesus promised that He would
send the
Holy Spirit
to “convict the world
concerning sin and righteousness
and
judgment”
(John 16:8, ESV).
The Spirit testifies of Christ
(John 15:26),
pointing people to the Lord.
Currently, the Holy Spirit
is also restraining sin and
combatting
“the secret power of lawlessness”
in the world.
This action keeps the rise of the Antichrist
at bay
(2 Thessalonians 2:6–10).
The Holy Spirit
has
one other important role,
and that is
to give
believers wisdom by
which
we can understand God.
“These are the
things God has revealed
to us
by his Spirit.
The Spirit searches all things,
even the
deep things of God.
For who knows a person’s
thoughts
except their own spirit within them?
In the same way
no one
knows the thoughts of God except
the Spirit of God”
(1 Corinthians 2:10–11).
Since we have been given the amazing
gift of
God’s Spirit inside ourselves,
we can comprehend the
thoughts of God,
as revealed in the Scripture.
The Spirit helps us understand.
This is wisdom from God, rather than wisdom
from man.
No amount of human knowledge
can ever
replace the Holy Spirit’s teaching
(1 Corinthians 2:12–13).
The Scripture
has several words translated
"right"
and the usage of the term,
"right hand"
ranges from a direction, to the opposite of wrong, what
is just or what conforms
to an
established standard,
and to a place of honor or authority.
In the case
of division or appointment in the Bible,
the right
hand or right side came
first,
as when Israel (Jacob)
divided
the blessings to Joseph’s sons
before he died
(Genesis 48:13-14).
In addition, a person of high rank who put
someone on his right hand
gave him equal honor with himself
and recognized him
as possessing equal dignity and authority.
And this is what the
Apostle Paul writes of
Jesus Christ
in Ephesians.
"And what is the
surpassing
greatness of His power
toward us,
the ones believing according
to the
working of His mighty strength
which He worked in Christ
in raising
Him from the dead, and
He seated Him at His right hand
in the heavenlies,
far above all principality
and
authority and power and dominion,
and
every name being named,
not only
in this world, but also in
the coming age"
(Ephesians 1:19-21).
Here we see God
exalting
Jesus above all others by
seating Him
at the
right hand of the Father.
The term "God’s right hand" in prophecy refers to
the Messiah
to whom is given the
power and authority to subdue His enemies
(Psalm 110:1; Psalm 118:16).
We find a quote in Matthew 22:44 from Psalm 110:1,
which is a
Messianic Psalm.
“The Son of David"
is
claimed
by the
LORD Jesus Christ
as He is the
"greater son of David"
or the
Messiah.
In this passage of Matthew 22,
Jesus questions the Pharisees
about
who they think the
"Christ" or the Messiah is.
“While the Pharisees were gathered together,
Jesus asked them, Saying,
What think ye of Christ? Whose
son is He?
They say unto him, The Son of David.
He saith unto them,
How then doth
David in spirit call him Lord,
saying,
The LORD said unto my Lord, Sit thou on
my right hand,
till I make
Thine enemies thy footstool?
If David
then call
Him Lord, how is He his son?"
(Matthew 22:41-45, KJV).
The position of the
Messiah is at God’s right hand.
The fact that
Jesus Christ
is at
the "right hand of God"
was a sign to the disciples
that
Jesus had indeed gone
to heaven.
In John 16:7-15,
Jesus told the
disciples that He had to go away
and He would
send the Holy Spirit.
So the coming of the Holy Spirit in the upper room
on the
day of Pentecost
(Acts 2:1-13) was
PROOF POSITIVE that
Jesus was
INDEED in heaven
SEATED
at the
RIGHT hand of God
This is confirmed in Romans 8:34 where the Apostle Paul
writes that
Christ is sitting at God’s right hand
making
intercession for us.
Therefore, what we can say is that
"God’s RIGHT hand"
refers
to the Messiah,
the
LORD Jesus Christ,
and
He is of equal position,
honor, power, and authority
with God
(John 1:1-5).
The fact that
Christ is "sitting" refers to the
fact that
His work of redemption is done
and when the
fullness of the Gentiles is brought in
(Romans 11:25),
Christ’s enemies will be made
His footstool.
When the end of the age comes,
all
prophecy will be completed,
and
time
will be no more.
The theme of Psalm 16 centers on
entrusting one’s self to God’s care
and
walking closely with Him.
In one way or another, the psalmist seems to say with every line,
Lord, you mean everything to me.”
David, the author of the psalm,
ends with this
declaration of eternal trust in the goodness of God:
“You make known
to me the
path of life; in your presence
there is fullness of joy;
at your right hand
are pleasures forevermore”
(Psalm 16:11, ESV)
David acknowledges that God’s providence
keeps him on the
path of life, even beyond the grave.
He says, “You will not abandon me to the realm of the dead,
nor will you
let your faithful one see decay”
(Psalm 16:10).
In the
security of God’s presence,
David
experiences complete joy
Then he makes this curious statement:
“At your right hand are pleasures forevermore.”
The right hand is a term
used metaphorically in Scripture
to speak of
God’s strength and power:
“Your right hand, LORD,
was
majestic in power
Your right hand, LORD, shattered the enemy” (Exodus 15:6, see also Exodus 15:12; Psalm 18:35; 20:6; 63:8; 98:1). God’s right hand guides and sustains His people in times of need (Psalm 139:10).
To be “at the right hand of God” is to inhabit a place of great honor and blessing
(Psalm 45:9; 110:1).
The Lord Jesus Christ
now reigns in
glory
“at the right hand of God”
(Mark 14:62; Acts 2:33; Hebrews 1:3; Colossians 3:1)
and
intercedes for those He has redeemed
(Romans 8:34).
In the early church, believers extended
“the right hand of fellowship”
(Galatians 2:9).
When David said,
“At your right hand are pleasures forever,”
he was
expressing trust in the knowledge
that his life was eternally secure
in the
glorious presence of his all-powerful
God.
He was thinking beyond life
on earth to
everlasting life—resurrection life—in eternity.
For this reason, on the Day of Pentecost,
the apostle
Peter cited David’s words
(Psalm 16:8–11)
and interpreted them
as a
prophecy of Jesus Christ’s resurrection
from the dead
(Acts 2:25–31).
Paul also quoted Psalm 16:10 at Antioch (Acts 13:35–37)
as a
reference to the Lord’s resurrection.
David’s confidence in God touched every aspect
of his life,
extending beyond mortality
He did not fear the end (Psalm 23:4) because he
trusted that not even death could interrupt
the joy and pleasure of intimate fellowship
with His Lord.
All the more, Christians today can say to
God, “At your right hand are pleasures forevermore,”
because we have the
complete revelation of Christ’s resurrection
and our
participation in it
(Romans 6:9; 8:11; 1 Corinthians 15:20, 50–57; 6:14).
We know that Jesus Christ triumphed over death (Luke 24:6; Revelation 1:18).
Christ’s death and resurrection
utterly changed the realities
of life and death
for all who believe in Him
(Hebrews 2:14).
Jesus lived to die and died to live again.
Now He lives so that we can partake of His life forever
(Matthew 20:28; John 3:16; 10:17, 28; 14:3, 19).
Christ’s “path of death” opened up the “path of life” for us
(John 14:6; 1 John 5:11–12).
And because we belong to Him,
we too will enjoy
the pleasures of God’s presence for all eternity
(Colossians 3:1–4; 2 Corinthians 5:8; Philippians 1:23)
where no one can rob us of our joy
(John 16:22).
When we are “at God’s right hand,” we are
near to Him--
so close that God needs only to extend
His right hand that we might partake
of the
inexhaustible store of
His abundant gifts and blessings.
In the
closeness of His presence, we are honored
and privileged to enjoy
His love, companionship, care, power, and protection.
The pleasures of this world are fleeting
(Hebrews 11:25),
but the complete joy
of close
fellowship in God’s presence
endures forever:
“Those who have been ransomed by the LORD
will return.
They will enter Jerusalem singing,
crowned with everlasting joy.
Sorrow and mourning will disappear, and they will
be filled with joy and gladness”
(Isaiah 51:11, NLT; see also Isaiah 35:10; Zephaniah 3:17; Revelation 7:15–17).
In Genesis 2:18, we read of the one thing that was not declared “good” in all of
God’s creation:
“Then the LORD God said, ‘It is not good that the man should be alone.’”
The same verse includes God’s solution: “I will make him a helper fit for him.”
Eve was the solution to Adam’s deficiency.
Two Hebrew terms in this verse provide important information to
better understand
the creation of Eve as the first woman.
The word translated “helper” is the Hebrew term ‘ezer.
This word is even used of God, sometimes, noting that He is our Helper
(Psalm 115:9-11).
We would certainly not view God, as a Helper, as subservient to humans,
nor should we understand the role of “helper” in Genesis 2:18
as a position of subservience.
The concept of an “ideal partner” seems to convey the thought best.
The second important Hebrew word in this verse, translated
“fit” is kenegdow.
It literally means “according to the opposite of him.”
In other words,
the focus is on an appropriate match.
Eve was not created above or below Adam; she was
complementary.
The animals Adam had named each had an appropriate companion
(Genesis 2:20), and
Adam was given a fitting companion as well.
Eve was “just right” for him.
Further, God’s statement that it was
not good for man to be alone
implies that
Adam was lonely and incomplete by himself.
He had been created for relationship,
and it is
impossible to have relationship alone.
With the creation of Eve,
Adam experienced
the joy
of love for another person.
The Bible is unique in its depiction of women’s valued status as a complementary companion.
No other ancient text from the Middle East offers commentary on the creation of women.
It is in the Bible that we learn of the important role women have had since the beginning of human existence.
Both man and woman were made in God’s image, according to Genesis 1:27,
“So God created man in his own image, in the image of God he created him; male and female he created them.”
The apostle Paul refers to Genesis when he says,
“A man shall leave his father and mother and hold fast to his wife, and the two shall become one flesh”
(Ephesians 5:31).
Husband and wife are to live as one, united
in love for God
and for one another,
modeling the love Christ
has for
His bride, the Church
Citing Psalm 118:6, the author of Hebrews writes,
“The Lord is my helper; I will not fear; what can man do to me?”
(Hebrews 13:6, ESV).
Here, believers
are
encouraged to rely on God for all
their needs,
especially in times of persecution.
Because the Lord is on our side,
we do not
have to fear anyone or anything
(Romans 8:31; 1 John 4:4).
The book of Hebrews was written to encourage Christians to persevere through trials and tribulations
(Hebrews 10:32–34).
Hebrews 13:6, then, is not just a statement of belief in God’s power and provision but is also a
reminder to hold fast to our faith:
“Count it all joy, my brothers,
when you
meet trials of various kinds, for
you know that the
testing of your
faith produces steadfastness.
And let steadfastness have its
full effect,
that you may be
perfect and complete,
lacking in nothing”
(James 1:2–4, ESV).
In doing so, James says, we will “receive the crown of life, which God has promised to those who love him” (verse 12, ESV).
“The Lord is my helper”
(Hebrews 13:6)
is a declaration that represents continual reliance on God’s omnipotence.
In Psalm 46:1, the psalmist writes, “God is our refuge and strength, an ever-present help in trouble.”
God is a constant source of help, reinforcing the idea that
divine assistance is always available.
For this reason, we should seek Him in every situation
(1 Chronicles 16:11),
knowing that His power is greater than our own
(Matthew 19:26).
Next, the author of Hebrews writes, “I will not fear” (Hebrews 13:6, ESV).
Although fear is a natural emotion, especially in troublesome and uncertain times,
we are challenged to rise above it by placing our trust in God.
In Philippians 4:11–13, the apostle Paul writes,
I have learned to be content whatever the circumstances.
I know what it is to be in need,
and I know what it is to have plenty.
I have learned the secret of being
content in any and every situation,
whether
well fed or hungry, whether
living in plenty or in want.
I can do all this through him who gives me strength.”
In short, contentment is a direct
result of entrusting our fears and concerns to God
(Matthew 10:28; 1 Peter 5:7).
“What can man do to me?
” (Hebrews 13:6, ESV) is a rhetorical question that
highlights the
limitations of human power compared
to God’s power.
This is not a display of arrogance; rather, it is a
recognition of the relative insignificance
of human threats
before an all-powerful God:
“Lift up your heads, you gates;
be lifted up,
you ancient doors,
that the
King of glory may
come in.
Who is this King of glory?
The Lord strong and mighty,
the
Lord mighty in battle”
(Psalm 24:7–8).
Since God is committed to working everything for our good
(Romans 8:28),
we have absolutely nothing to fear.
Hebrews 13:6
reflects a broader biblical theme of placing
one’s confidence in
God
rather than our own finite understanding or circumstance.
In Proverbs 3:5–6, Solomon advises us to
“trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean
not on
your own understanding;
in all your ways submit to him,
and he will
make your paths straight.”
May we always believe that “the Lord is my helper.”
Genesis 32:22–32
recounts the puzzling
story of Jacob in
an
all-night wrestling match.
His opponent
is a man who refers to himself
as “God”
(verse 28)
Later, Jacob also refers
to the
man he struggled with
as “God”
(verse 30)
To know Jacob’s story
is to know his life was a never-ending struggle.
Jacob’s family
was characterized by deep-seated hostility.
Jacob was a con artist who had been conned,
a liar who had been lied to,
and a manipulator who had been manipulated.
In many ways, he lived up to his name Jacob,
which literally means
“heel-catcher”
and carries the sense of “one who follows after to supplant or deceive.”
God had promised Jacob that through him would come
a great nation
through whom the whole world would be blessed
(Genesis 28:10–15).
Still, Jacob was a man full of fears and anxieties. His brother, Esau,
had vowed to kill him. His uncle, Laban,
had cheated him for years. His two wives had an adversarial relationship with each other.
After he fled Laban’s ill-treatment, Jacob and his family camped in a spot chosen for him by angels (Genesis 32:1–2).
From there, he sent messengers with a gift to his estranged brother, Esau, and they returned with the news that Esau was on his way with 400 men (Genesis 32:3–6). Fearing the worst, Jacob divided his family and herds so that, in case one group fell victim to Esau’s men, the other group might escape. Jacob prayed for the Lord’s help and then sent several caravans of lavish gifts ahead of him in hopes of pacifying Esau. Finally, Jacob sent his wives and children across the River Jabbok with all the rest of his possessions
(Genesis 32:22–23).
Alone in the desert
wilderness,
Jacob had the ultimate
restless night.
A stranger visited Jacob,
and they
wrestled throughout the night until daybreak,
at which point
the stranger
crippled Jacob with a blow to his hip.
Even then, Jacob held on.
He must have known there was something supernatural
about this stranger,
because he demanded a blessing from him
(Genesis 32:26).
The stranger then gave Jacob
anew name:
Israel, which likely means
“he struggles with God”
(Genesis 32:28).
The stranger gave the reason for Jacob’s
new name:
“Because you have struggled
with
God and with humans
and
have overcome”
(Genesis 32:28).
Jacob asks for the stranger’s name, but the man declines to give it—Jacob
knew with whom he wrestled.
And then Jacob receives what he wanted: a blessing
(Genesis 32:29).
Jacob limped for the
rest of his life,
but he “saw God face to face”
(Genesis 32:30) and received God’s blessing. In his weakness, he was strong.
The next morning,
God’s blessing of Jacob was evident
Esau, the brother Jacob had feared,
received him gladly
(Genesis 33).
In Western culture and even in our churches, we celebrate wealth, power, strength, confidence, prestige, and victory.
We avoid weakness, failure, and doubt.
Though we know that a
measure of vulnerability, fear, and discouragement
comes with life,
we tend to view these as signs of failure
or even a lack of faith. However, we also know that, in real life,
naïve optimism and the glowing accolades
of glamour and success
are a recipe for discontent and despair.
Sooner or later, the cold, hard realism of life catches up
with most of us.
The story of Jacob pulls us back to reality.
Frederick Buechner characterized Jacob’s divine encounter at the Jabbok River as the “magnificent defeat of the human soul at the hands of God” (The Magnificent Defeat, HarperOne, 1985, p. 18).
It’s in Jacob’s story we can easily recognize our own elements of struggle: fear, darkness, loneliness, vulnerability, emptiness, exhaustion, and pain.
Even the apostle Paul experienced discouragement and fear: “We were harassed at every turn—conflicts on the outside, fears within”
(2 Corinthians 7:5).
But, in truth, God does not want to leave us with our trials, our fears, our battles in life. What we come to learn in our conflicts is that God proffers us a corresponding divine gift. He comes to us and manifests Himself to us in our struggles.
It is through Him
that we can receive the
power
of conversion and transformation,
the gifts of freedom,
endurance, faith, and courage.
In the end, Jacob does what we all must do. In his weakness and fear,
he faces God.
Jacob was separated from all others and from his worldly possessions,
and that’s when
he grapples all night for what is truly important.
It was an exhausting struggle that
left him crippled.
It was only after he wrestled with God and ceased his struggling,
realizing that he could not
go on without Him, that he received God’s blessing
Genesis 32:29
The precise identity of the angel of the Lord
is not given in the Bible.
However, there are many important clues to his identity.
These clues help us see that the angel of the Lord is a unique being, separate from the other angels.
Here are some instances of the angel of the Lord showing up in Scripture:
• He finds Hagar in the wilderness and gives her a promise concerning her son, Ishmael
(Genesis 16:7–12; cf. 21:17–18).
• He stops Abraham from sacrificing Isaac (Genesis 22:11–18).
• He appears to Moses “in flames of fire from within a bush” (Exodus 3:2).
• He delivers a message to wayward Israel (Judges 2:1–4).
• He commissions Gideon and performs a miracle for him (Judges 6:11–24).
• He brings a plague on Israel during David’s time (2 Samuel 24:15–17).
• He appears in a vision of the prophet Zechariah (Zechariah 1:11–13; cf. 3:1–10).
As part of the curse, enmity—mutual hatred and ill will—will exist between
the woman and the serpent.
Later, the same enmity will continue between the woman’s seed or offspring
(mankind in general, since
Eve is the “mother of all living,”
Genesis 3:20)
and the serpent’s seed.
Their offspring will remain enemies throughout all generations.
The serpent’s (metaphorical) offspring are demonic forces and
also those people
who follow the devil and accomplish his will.
Jesus called
the Pharisees a “brood of vipers”
in Matthew 12:34
and said they
belonged to their “father, the devil” in
John 8:44.
In short, God says that Satan will always be the enemy of mankind.
It follows that people who side with Satan will be at perpetual war
with God’s elect
and that we are engaged in a very real battle between good and evil
(Ephesians 6:12).
Genesis 3:15 is a remarkable verse, often called the protoevangelium (literally, “first gospel”),
because it is the Bible’s first prediction of a Savior.
The second half of the verse gives two messianic prophecies concerning that Savior:
The first messianic prophecy in Genesis 3:15 is that “he will crush your head.”
That is, the seed of the woman will crush the serpent’s head.
The Amplified Bible makes it clear that “the woman’s seed”
is more than
mankind in general; it is an individual representing all mankind:
“And I will put enmity (open hostility)
Between you and the woman,
And between your seed (offspring) and her Seed;
He shall [fatally] bruise your head.”
The second messianic prophecy in Genesis 3:15
is that
“you will strike his heel.”
That is, the serpent will
bite the
heel of “the woman’s seed.”
The heel-bite is set in contrast to the head-crush, as the Amplified Bible brings out:
“And you shall [only] bruise His heel.”
This passage points to
the promise of
Jesus’ birth, His redemption,
and
His victory over Satan.
The woman’s offspring is Jesus.
Being virgin-born,
He is literally the offspring of a woman
(Matthew 1:25; Galatians 4:4; cf. Isaiah 7:14).
Being the Son of Man, He is the perfect representative of humankind.
The devil’s offspring
were the evil men and demonic forces who,
like a snake,
lay in wait for the Savior and struck at Him.
Their venomous conspiracy condemned Jesus to be crucified.
But the
serpent’s strike did not spell the end of the Offspring of the woman.
Jesus rose the third day,
breaking the power of death and
winning
the ultimate victory.
With the
cross, Jesus “crushed” the devil’s head, defeating him forever.
So, in Genesis 3:15, the crushing of the serpent’s head
was a picture of
Jesus’ triumph over sin and Satan at the cross
(cf. John 12:31).
The striking of the Messiah’s heel
was a picture of the wounding and death
of Jesus on the cross.
Satan bruised Jesus’ “heel,” but Jesus showed complete dominance over Satan by bruising his “head.”
Satan, although still active in this world, is a defeated foe.
His doom is sure: “And the devil . . . was thrown into the lake of burning sulfur” (Revelation 20:10).
Until that time, there remains enmity between Satan and God’s children.
The protoevangelium shows us that God always had the plan of salvation in mind and informed us of His plan as soon as sin entered the world. Satan formulated a plan involving the serpent in Eden, but God was way ahead of him,
having already ordained the Serpent-crusher.
Jesus Christ perfectly fulfilled
God’s mission: “
The reason the Son of God
appeared was to destroy the devil’s work”
1 John 3:8).
In various passages, the
angel of the Lord speaks as God, identifies Himself with God,
and exercises the responsibilities of God.
In several of these appearances, those who saw the angel of the Lord
feared for their lives because they had “seen God” (Judges 13:22; cf. Judges 6:22).
Therefore, we can say that, in at least
some instances,
the angel
of the Lord is a theophany,
an appearance
of God in physical form.
The
appearances of the angel of the Lord cease after the
incarnation of Christ.
Angels are mentioned numerous times in the
New Testament, but “the angel of the Lord”
is never mentioned in the
New Testament after the birth of Christ.
One possible difficulty is that the angel who appears to Joseph in a dream in Matthew 1:24
is called “the” angel of the Lord.
However, this angel is clearly the same one appearing in verse 20, which
calls him “an” angel.
Matthew is simply referencing the same angel he had just mentioned.
There is also some confusion regarding Matthew 28:2, where the KJV
says “the angel of the Lord” descended from heaven and rolled the stone away from Jesus’ tomb.
Here, it is important to note that the original Greek has no article in front of the
word for “angel”; it could be “the angel” or “an angel,”
but the article must be supplied by the translators. Other translations besides the KJV
say it was “an angel,” which is the better wording.
It is possible that appearances of the
angel
of the Lord represent
the
Son of God
taking on
temporary human form--
a pre-incarnate
appearance of Jesus Christ
Jesus declared Himself to be existent “before Abraham” (John 8:58), so it makes sense that He would be active and could manifest in the world. Whatever the case, whether the angel of the Lord was a pre-incarnate appearance of Christ (a Christophany) or an appearance of God the Father (a theophany), it is likely that “the angel of the Lord” was, in most cases, a physical appearance of God.
The hypostatic union is the term used to describe
how God the Son, Jesus Christ,
took on a human nature, yet remained fully God at the same time.
Jesus always had been God
(John 8:58, 10:30),
but at the incarnation Jesus became a human being
(John 1:14).
The addition of the
human nature
to the
divine nature is Jesus, the God-man.
This is the hypostatic union,
Jesus Christ,
one Person,
fully God and fully man.
Jesus’ two
natures, human and divine,
are inseparable.
Jesus will forever be the God-man,
fully God and fully human,
two
distinct natures in one Person.
Jesus’
humanity and divinity
are not mixed,
but are united
without loss of separate
identity.
Jesus sometimes operated with the limitations of humanity
(John 4:6, 19:28)
and other times in the power of
His deity
(John 11:43; Matthew 14:18-21).
In both,
Jesus’ actions
were from His one Person.
Jesus had two natures,
but only
one personality.
The doctrine of the hypostatic union is an attempt
to explain how
Jesus could be both God and man at the same time.
It is ultimately, though, a doctrine we are incapable of fully understanding.
It is impossible for us to
fully understand how God works.
We, as human beings with finite minds, should not expect to
totally comprehend an infinite God.
Jesus is God’s Son in that He was conceived by the
Holy Spirit
(Luke 1:35).
But that does not mean
Jesus did not exist before He was conceived. Jesus has always existed
(John 8:58, 10:30).
When Jesus was conceived, He became a human being in addition to being God
(John 1:1, 14).
Jesus is both God and man.
Jesus has always been God,
but He did not become a
human
being until He was conceived
in Mary.
Jesus became a human being in order to
identify
with us in our struggles
(Hebrews 2:17)
and, more importantly, so that He could die on the cross to pay the penalty for our sins
(Philippians 2:5-11). In summary,
the
hypostatic union teaches that
Jesus is both
fully human and fully divine, that there is
no mixture or dilution of
either nature,
and that He is one united Person, forever.
The book of Genesis relates how God created Eve:
“The Lord God caused
the man to fall into a
deep sleep;
and while he was
sleeping,
he took one of the man’s
ribs
and then closed up the place with
flesh.
Then the Lord
God made a woman from the rib he had taken out of the man, and he brought her to the man”
(Genesis 2:21–22).
The phrase for “one of his ribs” could be translated
“a part of his side” (NET),
but almost every English translation specifies the
part as a “rib.”
Earlier, in making Adam,
God used the
“dust of the ground” to form his body
and
“breathed into his nostrils the breath of life,
and the
man became a living being”
(Genesis 2:7).
But, in making Eve, God did not go back to the
dust;
He used one of Adam’s ribs to form
the woman.
When she was brought to Adam, the man said,
“This is now bone of my bones
and flesh of my flesh;
she shall be called ‘woman,’
for she was taken out of man”
(verse 23).
God used Adam’s rib to form Eve--
He used existing tissue and did not “start from scratch”--
to show that
Adam and Eve were of the
same substance;
she was made from the same “stuff” and
was a bearer of God’s image and likeness,
just as Adam was
(see Genesis 1:27).
The woman made of
Adam’s rib
was designed to be a companion
and
“helper suitable” for Adam
(Genesis 2:18).
Eve, formed from a physical part of Adam,
was truly his complement,
an integral part of who he was.
As such,
she was a perfect companion.
Why did God use Adam’s rib?
Interestingly,
ribs
have amazing regenerative
powers
Portions of rib bone and cartilage removed in bone graft surgery will regrow in a few months’ time, as long as the rib perichondrium is left intact. This means that Adam’s loss of a rib was only temporary; he did not have to go through the rest of his life with an incomplete skeletal system.
When God brought Eve to Adam,
they were
united in marriage:
the “woman”
in Genesis 2:22 is called Adam’s
“wife”
in verse 24.
The pattern for marriage,
the
first social institution,
was thus
established by God in Eden
The manner of Eve’s creation
is “why a man leaves his father and mother and is
united
to his wife, and they become
one flesh.”
The unity of a
married couple and the “one flesh” principle are based
on the fact that
God used one of Adam’s ribs to make
the woman.
God’s use of one of Adam’s ribs to make Eve
is a reminder that
woman was created to be “beside” man.
Together, the man and woman complement one another in marriage, and
in Christ
they are
“heirs together of the grace of life”
(1 Peter 3:7, NKJV).
Revelation 19:10 says,
“the testimony of Jesus
is the
spirit of prophecy.”
The people who
receive this spirit of prophecy
in this
verse are “the brethren,”
which is a term
Revelation later uses for prophets
(Rev. 22:9)
In other words,
the
testimony of Jesus
is the spirit of
prophecy given to the prophets.
The “seven spirits of God”
are mentioned
several times in
The
book of Revelation:
• Revelation 1:4–5, “John, To the seven churches in the province of Asia: Grace and peace to you from him who is, and who was, and who is to come, and from the seven spirits before his throne, and from Jesus Christ . . .”
• Revelation 3:1, “To the angel of the church in Sardis write: These are the words of him who holds the seven spirits of God . . .”
• Revelation 4:5, “From the throne came flashes of lightning, rumblings and peals of thunder. In front of the throne, seven lamps were blazing. These are the seven spirits of God.”
• Revelation 5:6, “Then I saw a Lamb, looking as if it had been slain, standing at the center of the throne, encircled by the four living creatures and the elders. The Lamb had seven horns and seven eyes, which are the seven spirits of God sent out into all the earth.”
The identity of “the seven spirits” is not explicit in these passages, but arriving at the proper interpretation is fairly straightforward. The “seven spirits” cannot be seven angelic beings such as seraphim or cherubim because of the context of Revelation 1:4. John says that “grace and peace” are coming to the churches from three sources: “
him who is, and who was, and who is to come” (verse 4),
“the seven spirits before the throne”
(verse 4), and “Jesus Christ” (verse 5).
This is a depiction of the Trinity: grace and peace are
given by the
Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit,
the
three co-equal Persons of the Godhead.
In Revelation 3:1 Jesus “holds” the seven spirits of God.
In John 15:26,
Jesus “sends” the Holy Spirit from the Father.
Both passages suggest the superordinate role of the
Son and the subordinate role of the Spirit.
In Revelation 4:5 the seven spirits of God are symbolized
as seven burning lamps that are before God’s throne.
This picture agrees with Zechariah’s vision in which he sees the
Holy Spirit
symbolized as “a solid gold lampstand . . .
with a bowl
at the top and seven lamps on it”
(Zechariah 4:2).
In Revelation 5:6 the seven spirits are
the “seven eyes” of the Lamb,
and they are
“sent out into all the earth.”
The seven eyes speak of the Spirit’s (and the Lamb’s)
omniscience,
and the fact that He is sent
into all the earth speaks of His omnipresence.
Once we identify the “seven spirits” as the Holy Spirit, the question remains,
why are there “seven” of Him?
The Bible, and especially the book of Revelation, uses the number seven to refer
to perfection and completion.
John’s vision includes a picture of the perfect and complete Holy Spirit.
Isaiah 11:2 also references the
Holy Spirit
using a seven-fold description:
“The Spirit of the LORD will rest on him
—the Spirit of wisdom and of understanding,
the Spirit of counsel and of power,
the Spirit
of knowledge and of the fear of the LORD.”
The prophecy is that the Messiah
would be empowered not by seven individual
spirits
but by the
One Spirit, described seven ways:
1) The Spirit of the LORD
2) The Spirit of wisdom
3) The Spirit of understanding
4) The Spirit of counsel
5) The Spirit of power
6) The Spirit of knowledge
7) The Spirit of the fear of the Lord
The “seven spirits of God”
in the
book of Revelation
are thus a reference to
the Holy Spirit
in the
perfection of His manifold ministry
The Woman and the Dragon
A great sign appeared in heaven: a woman clothed with the sun, with the moon under her feet and a crown of twelve stars on her head. She was pregnant and cried out in pain as she was about to give birth. Then another sign appeared in heaven: an enormous red dragon with seven heads and ten horns and seven crowns on its heads. Its tail swept a third of the stars out of the sky and flung them to the earth. The dragon stood in front of the woman who was about to give birth, so that it might devour her child the moment he was born. She gave birth to a son, a male child, who “will rule all the nations with an iron scepter.” And her child was snatched up to God and to his throne. The woman fled into the wilderness to a place prepared for her by God, where she might be taken care of for 1,260 days.
Then war broke out in heaven
Michael and his angels
fought
against the dragon, and the dragon
and his angels fought back.
But he was not strong enough, and they
lost their place in heaven.
The great dragon
was hurled down
—that ancient serpent called the devil, or Satan,
who leads the whole world astray
He was hurled to the earth, and his
angels with him.
Then I heard a loud voice in heaven say:
“Now have come the salvation and the power
and the kingdom of our God,
and the
authority of his Messiah
For the accuser of our brothers and sisters,
who accuses them before our God day and night,
has been hurled down.
They triumphed over him
by the blood of the Lamb
and by the word of their testimony;
they did not love their lives so much
as to shrink from death.
Therefore rejoice, you heavens
and you who dwell in them!
But woe to the earth and the sea,
because the devil has gone down to you!
He is filled with fury,
because he knows that his time is short.”
When the dragon saw that he had been hurled to the earth,
he pursued the woman
who had given birth to the male child.
The woman was given the two wings of a great eagle, so that she might fly to the place prepared for her in the wilderness, where she would be taken care of for a time, times and half a time, out of the serpent’s reach.
Then from his mouth
the serpent
spewed water like a river,
to overtake
the woman and sweep
her away with the torrent. But the earth helped
the woman
by opening its mouth and
swallowing the river that the dragon had
spewed out of his mouth.
Then the dragon was enraged at the woman
and went off to
wage war against the rest of her offspring--
those who
keep God’s commands and
hold fast their
testimony about Jesus.
Jesus,
while being considered
equal
with God,
"did not consider equality with God
something to be
used to his own advantage"
and
"emptied himself, by taking the form
of a servant,
being made in human likeness,"
essentially
choosing to humble himself and
not cling to
his divine status while
on Earth;
this means he considered himself
"less than God"
in the sense of his
earthly existence as a human being,
even
though he was fully divine
One in Christ
(Ephesians 2:11–18)
Therefore
if you have any encouragement
in Christ,
if any comfort from His love,
if any
fellowship with the Spirit,
if any
affection and compassion,
then make my joy complete
by being like-minded, having the same love,
being united in spirit and purpose.
Do nothing out of selfish ambition
or empty pride,
but in humility consider
others more important than yourselves.
Each of you should look not
only
to your own interests, but also to
the interests of others
The Mind of Christ
(Isaiah 52:13–15)
Let this mind be in you which
was
also in Christ Jesus:
who,
existing in the form of God,
did not
consider equality
with God
something to be grasped,
but emptied Himself,
taking
the form of a servant,
being made in human likeness
And being found
in appearance as a man,
He humbled Himself
and became obedient
to death--
even death on a cross
Therefore God exalted Him to
the highest place
and gave Him
the name above all names,
that at the
name of Jesus
every knee should bow,
in heaven
and
on earth and under the earth,
and
every tongue confess that
Jesus Christ is Lord,
to the
glory of God the Father.
Lights in the World
(Matthew 5:13–16)
12Therefore, my beloved, just as you have always obeyed, not only in my presence, but now even more in my absence, continue to work out your salvation with fear and trembling.
For it is God who works in you to will and to act on behalf of His good purpose.
14Do everything without complaining or arguing, 15so that you may be blameless and pure, children of God without fault in a crooked and perverse generation,b in which you shine as lights in the world 16as you hold forth the word of life, in order that I may boast on the day of Christ that I did not run or labor in vain.
17But even if I am being poured out like a drink offering on the sacrifice and service of your faith, I am glad and rejoice with all of you. 18So you too should be glad and rejoice with me.
Timothy and Epaphroditus
(1 Corinthians 16:10–12)
19Now I hope in the Lord Jesus to send Timothy to you soon, that I also may be cheered when I learn how you are doing. 20I have nobody else like him who will genuinely care for your needs. 21For all the others look after their own interests, not those of Jesus Christ. 22But you know Timothy’s proven worth, that as a child with his father he has served with me to advance the gospel. 23So I hope to send him as soon as I see what happens with me. 24And I trust in the Lord that I myself will come soon.
25But I thought it necessary to send back to you Epaphroditus, my brother, fellow worker, and fellow soldier, who is also your messenger and minister to my needs.26For he has been longing for all of you and is distressed because you heard he was ill. 27He was sick indeed, nearly unto death. But God had mercy on him, and not only on him but also on me, to spare me sorrow upon sorrow.
28Therefore I am all the more eager to send him, so that when you see him again you may rejoice, and I may be less anxious. 29Welcome him in the Lord with great joy, and honor men like him, 30because he nearly died for the work of Christ, risking his life to make up for your deficit of service to me.
In Matthew 21:44, Jesus says,
"He who falls on
this stone
will be broken to pieces,
but he on whom it
falls
will be crushed."
The key
to understanding this statement lies in the context of the verse and the
larger conversation Jesus was having.
Jesus was teaching in the temple courts when the chief priests and elders approached Him and demanded to know the source of His authority. In response, Jesus asked them about John the Baptist--
was he a prophet of God or not?
The religious leaders, fearing the people’s response, refused to reveal their true opinion on the matter. In turn, Jesus refused to reveal the source of His authority (Matthew 21:23-27).
In doing so, Jesus made it clear that the Jewish leaders themselves had
no authority to judge Him.
Jesus then related two parables concerning
vineyards.
In the first, Jesus told of two sons who were told by their father to go work
in the vineyard.
The first son initially refused but later changed his mind and
went to work.
The second son promised to work, but he never went
to the vineyard.
Jesus applied this to the religious leaders of Israel, who were like the second son—they expressed agreement with the Father but, in the final analysis, were disobedient. The sinners who responded to John the Baptist’s message were like the first son—they seemed unlikely candidates for heaven,
but they repented and thus will enter the kingdom (verses 28-32).
In the second parable,
Jesus tells of a landowner who,
at harvest time,
sent
some servants to his vineyard
to collect the fruit.
However, the farmers
who were tending
the vineyard were a wicked lot,
and when the servants arrived,
the farmers beat some of them and
killed others.
Finally,
the landowner sent his own son to
collect the fruit,
expecting that
the farmers would show him respect.
But the farmers treated the son worst of all,
throwing him out
of the vineyard and killing him
(Matthew 21:33-39).
Jesus then asks a question:
"When the owner of the vineyard comes, what will he do to those tenants?"
(Matthew 21:40).
The chief priests and elders respond, "He will bring those wretches to a wretched end"
(Matthew 21:41).
Jesus then presses His point home with a quotation
from Psalm 118:
“The stone the builders
rejected has become the capstone;
the Lord has done this,
and it is marvelous in our eyes"
(Matthew 21:42).
After a warning that the religious leaders will not inherit the kingdom
(Matthew 21:43),
we come to the statement in question,
which is the culmination of a series of dire pronouncements aimed at
the chief priests and elders.
Jesus begins with a question about John the Baptist in Matthew 21:25, but by the end of the conversation,
Jesus is plainly speaking of Himself, referring to a "father" sending his "son" who was killed
(Matthew 21:37).
He then immediately quotes a Messianic prophecy (Matthew 21:42),
in effect claiming to be the long-awaited Messiah.
The progression is logical:
a rejection of John leads one naturally to a rejection of Christ, to whom John pointed
(John 1:29, 3:30).
The stone which "the builders rejected" in verse 42 is Jesus.
Although rejected,
He nevertheless becomes the "chief cornerstone" (NKJV).
See also Acts 4:11; Ephesians 2:20; and 1 Peter 2:6-8.
The builders’ rejection of the stone is a
reference
to Christ’s crucifixion.
The Lord’s choice of the
stone to be the cornerstone is a reference to
Christ’s resurrection.
God chose His Son, despised and rejected by the world, to be the foundation of His church
(1 Corinthians 3:11).
"See, I lay a stone in Zion, a tested stone, a precious cornerstone for a sure foundation"
(Isaiah 28:16).
Now, there are consequences for
coming
into contact with a stone.
If you trip over
the edge of a rock and fall on it,
you may break some bones.
If a large enough rock
falls on top of you, you may be killed.
Jesus uses these truths
to deliver
a warning to the Jewish leaders.
The stone
in verse 44 is also
Jesus.
In saying that those who
fall on this
stone
"will be broken to pieces,"
Jesus is warning against opposing Him. Defying Jesus is like beating
one’s head against a solid rock
—a foolish action. In saying that those upon whom the
stone falls "will be crushed,"
Jesus is warning against ignoring Him or trivializing Him.
Apathy towards Jesus
is like standing in the way of a falling
rock
—another foolish action.
"I am here to do God’s work,"
Jesus essentially says.
"The foundation for the church will be laid.
It is unwise to oppose Me
because God’s work is not inconsequential."
Rejection of the Savior is fatal. Unfortunately, many do reject Him.
"He will be a stone that
causes men to stumble and a rock that makes them fall"
(Isaiah 8:14).
To persistently reject the Savior
is to court judgment
so severe that the only thing left
will be dust.
The prophet Daniel gives a similar picture
of the
Messiah, likening Him to a rock "cut out, but not by human hands,"
which smashes into the
nations of the world and completely obliterates them
(Daniel 2:31-45).
Matthew 21:44 is a call to faith, an appeal to open one’s eyes and see that Jesus is indeed the Son of God sent into the world. The verse is also a strict warning against rejecting Jesus Christ. He is the sure Rock of salvation for those who believe, but an immovable stumbling stone for those who do not.
re·fine·ment
/rəˈfīnm(ə)nt/
noun: refinement
the
process of removing
impurities or
unwanted elements from a substance
But now thus says the Lord,
he who created you, O Jacob, he who formed you, O Israel:
“Fear not, for I have redeemed you; I have called you
by name, you are mine.
When you pass through the waters, I will be with you;
and through the rivers,
they shall not overwhelm you;
when you walk through fire you shall not be burned,
and the flame shall not consume you.
For I am the Lord your God, the Holy One of Israel, your Savior.
(Isaiah 43:1-3 ESV)
The first time we see the word lampstand in the Bible is in Exodus 25:31, as
God gives detailed instructions
about
the golden lampstand to be placed in
the tabernacle
the Israelites were building.
It’s interesting to note just how precise God is in explaining how He wanted the lampstand to look.
Since we can be assured there are no “wasted words” in the Bible,
we know each detail
and specification are important for some reason.
The lampstand was to be made of pure gold, hammered out to the perfect accuracy of God’s decree
(Exodus 25:31).
Gold was the most valuable of all metals (Psalm 119:127; 19:10).
Gold is often spoken of in terms of being “tested by fire”;
the Bible compares the testing of gold with the testing of the church in 1 Peter 1:7.
Out of testing, or refining,
will come
the true people of God
(see Zechariah 13:7–9; Job 23:10).
Those who
withstand the “fire” will be purified
(see Numbers 31:23).
The lampstand as a whole was to be fashioned as a tree with the base and center shaft representing the trunk and with three “branches” on each side. The top of the shaft and of each branch was to be made like an open almond flower; each flower held an oil lamp
(Exodus 25:32, 37).
There are several passages in the Bible that speak about the almond tree, which was always the first tree to blossom and bear fruit in the spring, as early as February. The apostle Paul calls Christ the “firstfruits” because Jesus was the first to rise from the dead to everlasting life, and because of His resurrection all believers will also be raised
(1 Corinthians 15:20–23; Romans 8:23)
God used Aaron’s rod as a sign to the
Israelites
of his unique priesthood
At one time, when
Aaron’s priesthood was being challenged,
God caused Aaron’s rod
to bud and grow ripe almonds
overnight;
this miracle reaffirmed that the privilege of
being chosen
as High Priest only came through
God’s appointment
(Numbers 16:3;17:10).
This was a “shadow of things to come” experience
that pointed to
Jesus, our God-ordained,
life-giving
High Priest forever
(Hebrews 7:21).
In the tabernacle,
the lampstand
was to be placed in the first section,
called the Holy Place
(Hebrews 9:2).
The lamp was to be tended by Aaron and his sons so that
its light never went out.
The lampstand
was to give forth light day and night
(Exodus 27:20–21).
The lampstand’s being the only source of light
points directly to
Christ as being the light of the world
(John 8:12; 9:5).
Jesus is the “true light that gives light to everyone”
(John 1:9)
and the only way anyone can come to the Father
(John 14:6).
Jesus also calls His church the “light of the world” (Matthew 5:14), not of their own doing but because Christ is abiding in the church (John 1:4–5). A Christian who is shining with the light of Christ will live a godly life (1 Peter 2:9). Scripture is overflowing with references that compare and contrast light and darkness, believer and unbeliever, right up through the book of Revelation. In Revelation 1:20 Christ says the “seven lampstands are the seven churches.” The churches of Christ are to walk in the light of God (1 John 1:7) and
spread the light of the gospel so that all people will glorify God
(Matthew 5:16).
There is other symbolism in the lampstand: it was made of one piece, as Christ is one with His church (Colossians 1:8); the six branches (6 being the number of man) plus the main shaft equals seven lights (7 being the number of completion)—man is only complete in Christ (John 15:5).
The most important thing to note about the lampstand is that it points to Christ, as do all the elements of the tabernacle. The Bible is from beginning to end a testimony about Christ and God’s merciful plan of redemption. Praise the Lord, He has taken His children out of the darkness and into His marvelous light (1 Peter 2:9).
Malachi 3:2, where the phrase refiner’s fire is used, has been a popular verse in Western society for centuries due to its use in Handel’s famous oratorio Messiah. The verse reads, “But who can endure the day of his coming? Who can stand when he appears? For he will be like a refiner’s fire or a launderer’s soap.” Let’s take a look at the prophet’s similes.
Malachi says that, when
the Lord returns, no one will be able to stand before Him. The Lord’s holiness and judgment will be as a refiner’s blazing fire and as a fuller’s bleaching agent. The idea of “standing” before the Lord is associated with “withstanding” or “standing up to”; sinful human flesh will not have the strength, the right, or the desire to resist the Lord in His glory
(cf. Psalm 76:7; Revelation 6:17).
The two similes help clarify why no one will be able to stand in the Day of the Lord. First, Malachi 3:2 says the Messiah will be like a refiner’s fire, an allusion to the process of purifying metal. A refiner uses a fire to heat metal to a molten state; then he skims off the dross that floats to the top. The refiner’s fire is, of course, maintained at an extremely high temperature, and such a high degree of heat is the prophet’s picture of the testing people will face on Judgment Day. All judgment has been entrusted to the Son (John 5:22). Upon Christ’s return, the intense flame of God’s judgment will purify the earth, removing the dross of sin.
Second, the Messiah will be like a launderer’s soap. This type of soap was caustic and quite effective in producing bright white clothing. The HCSB translates it as “cleansing lye.” When Christ returns, He will cleanse the world of all impurity. Every stain of sin will be scrubbed away. The account of Jesus’ transfiguration contains a reference to His purity, using language similar to Malachi’s: “He was transfigured before them. His clothes became dazzling white, whiter than anyone in the world could bleach them” (Mark 9:2–3).
The goal of Jesus will be to judge wickedness and purify His people: “He will sit as a refiner and purifier of silver; he will purify the Levites and refine them like gold and silver. Then the LORD will have men who will bring offerings in righteousness” (Malachi 3:3). Like the refiner’s fire, He will burn away the impurities of the priests. Like launderer’s soap, He will wash away their uncleanness (Isaiah 1:25; Jeremiah 6:29–30; Ezekiel 22:17–22; Zechariah 3:5).
The priests in the millennial kingdom will then be able to offer sacrifices from
a pure heart.
The sacrifices in those days will be similar to those when the temple was first built:
“The offerings of Judah and Jerusalem will be
acceptable to the LORD,
as in days gone by, as in former years”
(Malachi 3:4).
The refiner’s fire and launderer’s soap indicate the holiness and burning judgment of the Messiah when He returns to reign in Jerusalem at His second coming. His purifying brightness and absolute holiness will affect those who serve Him, creating a cleansed temple and purified priesthood. “See, the Sovereign LORD comes with power, and his arm rules for him. See, his reward is with him, and his recompense accompanies him” (Isaiah 40:10).
The gift of grace is a concept in Christianity that refers to God's gift of love, forgiveness, and acceptance. It's also a term that can refer to positive qualities or talents in a person.
- Ephesians 2:8-9: "For by grace you have been saved through faith and this not your own doing; it is the gift of God"
- Romans 5:20-21: "But where sin increased; grace abounded all the more"
- Ephesians 4:7: "But grace was given each one of us according to the measure of Christ's gift"
How grace is received
Grace is received through humility and faith,
not by earning it.
It's a dynamic gift that works
within people to motivate them to do good.
How grace is applied
Grace can be applied in many ways, including:
- Forgiving others and ourselves
- Recognizing the good in others
- Being grateful for what we have
- Letting go of pride and control
- Surrendering to grace in difficult situations
- Praying for others who need grace
Angels
- In Genesis 6:1–4, "sons of God" refers to angels who rebelled against God.
- In Job, "sons of God" refers to angels who were present when God created the earth.
- In the Psalms, "sons of God" refers to divine beings, or angels, who carry God's message to believers.
Descendants of Seth
- One interpretation of "sons of God" is that they were descendants of Seth.
- In this interpretation, Seth's godly descendants married women descended from Cain, leading to greater wickedness.
Historical figures
- In the Old Testament, historical figures like Jacob and Solomon are referred to as "sons of God" because they descended from Adam.
- In Luke, Adam is said to be the "son" of God because he had no earthly parents.
Nephilim
- The offspring of the "sons of God" and "daughters of men" are
- known as the Nephilim,
- which literally means "the fallen ones".
In 1 Peter 1:13-16, Peter writes to
believers,
"Therefore, prepare
your minds for action, keep sober in spirit,
fix your hope completely on the grace
to be brought
to you at the revelation of Jesus Christ.
As obedient children, do not be conformed to the former lusts which were yours in your ignorance,
but like the Holy One who called you,
be holy yourselves
also in all your behavior;
because it is written, 'You shall be holy, for I am holy.'"
Peter is quoting from Leviticus 11:44 and Leviticus 19:2.
First, let’s look at God’s holiness. What does it mean that God is holy? Passages like 1 Samuel 2:2 and Isaiah 6:3 are just two of many examples of passages about God’s holiness. Another way to say it is absolute perfection. God is unlike any other (see Hosea 11:9), and His holiness is the essence of that “otherness.” His very being is completely absent of even a trace of sin (James 1:13; Hebrews 6:18). He is high above any other, and no one can compare to Him (Psalm 40:5). God’s holiness pervades His entire being and shapes all His attributes. His love is a holy love, His mercy is holy mercy, and even His anger and wrath are holy anger and holy wrath. These concepts are difficult for humans to grasp, just as God is difficult for us to understand in His entirety.
Next, what does it mean for us to be holy? When God told Israel to be holy in Leviticus 11 and 19, He was instructing them to be distinct from the other nations by giving them specific regulations to govern their lives. Israel is God’s chosen nation and God has set them apart from all other people groups. They are His special people, and consequently they were given standards that God wanted them to live by so the world would know they belonged to Him. When Peter repeats the Lord’s words in 1 Peter 1:16, he is talking specifically to believers. As believers, we need to be "set apart" from the world unto the Lord. We need to be living by God’s standards, not the world’s. God isn’t calling us to be perfect, but to be distinct from the world. First Peter 2:9 describes believers as "a holy nation." It is a fact! We are separated from the world; we need to live out that reality in our day-to-day lives, which Peter tells us how to do in 1 Peter 1:13-16.
Finally, how can we become
holy?
Holiness only results
from a right relationship with God
by believing
in Jesus Christ as Savior
(accepting His gift of eternal life).
If we have not placed our faith in God’s Son alone to save us from our sins, then our pursuit of holiness is in vain. So, we must first make sure we are born-again believers (see John 3). If we truly are believers, then we recognize that our position in Christ automatically sets us apart from the world (1 Peter 2:9).
After all, we have a relationship with the living God! Then we must daily live
a set-apart life, not trying to "blend in" with the world,
but instead living according to God’s Word as we
study the Bible and grow in it.
Sanctification is God’s will for us (1 Thessalonians 4:3).
The word sanctification is related
to the word
saint;
both words have to do with
holiness.
To “sanctify”
something is to
set it apart for special use;
to “sanctify”
a person is to make him holy.
Isaiah 44:3
For I will pour water on the thirsty land, and currents on the dry ground. I will pour out My Spirit on your descendants, and My blessing on your offspring.
Ezekiel 36:26-27
I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit within you; I will remove your heart of stone and give you a heart of flesh. / And I will put My Spirit within you and cause you to walk in My statutes and to carefully observe My ordinances.
Jeremiah 31:33-34
“But this is the covenant I will make with the house of Israel after those days, declares the LORD. I will put My law in their minds and inscribe it on their hearts. And I will be their God, and they will be My people. / No longer will each man teach his neighbor or his brother, saying, ‘Know the LORD,’ because they will all know Me, from the least of them to the greatest, declares the LORD. For I will forgive their iniquities and will remember their sins no more.”
John 7:38-39
Whoever believes in Me, as the Scripture has said: ‘Streams of living water will flow from within him.’” / He was speaking about the Spirit, whom those who believed in Him were later to receive. For the Spirit had not yet been given, because Jesus had not yet been glorified.
John 14:16-17
And I will ask the Father, and He will give you another Advocate to be with you forever— / the Spirit of truth. The world cannot receive Him, because it neither sees Him nor knows Him. But you do know Him, for He abides with you and will be in you.
John 16:13
However, when the Spirit of truth comes, He will guide you into all truth. For He will not speak on His own, but He will speak what He hears, and He will declare to you what is to come.
Galatians 3:14
He redeemed us in order that the blessing promised to Abraham would come to the Gentiles in Christ Jesus, so that by faith we might receive the promise of the Spirit.
Ephesians 1:13-14
And in Him, having heard and believed the word of truth—the gospel of your salvation—you were sealed with the promised Holy Spirit, / who is the pledge of our inheritance until the redemption of those who are God’s possession, to the praise of His glory.
Titus 3:5-6
He saved us, not by the righteous deeds we had done, but according to His mercy, through the washing of new birth and renewal by the Holy Spirit. / This is the Spirit He poured out on us abundantly through Jesus Christ our Savior,
Hebrews 8:10
For this is the covenant I will make with the house of Israel after those days, declares the Lord. I will put My laws in their minds and inscribe them on their hearts. And I will be their God, and they will be My people.
1 John 2:20
You, however, have an anointing from the Holy One, and all of you know the truth.
Isaiah 2:2
And it shall come to pass in the last days, that the mountain of the LORD'S house shall be established in the top of the mountains, and shall be exalted above the hills; and all nations shall flow unto it.
Psalm 72:6
He shall come down like rain upon the mown grass: as showers that water the earth.
Proverbs 1:23
Turn you at my reproof: behold, I will pour out my spirit unto you, I will make known my words unto you.
Spiritual Gifts
1Now about spiritual gifts, brothers, I do not want you to be uninformed. 2You know that when you were pagans, you were influenced and led astray to mute idols. 3Therefore I inform you that no one who is speaking by the Spirit of God says, “Jesus be cursed,” and no one can say, “Jesus is Lord,” except by the Holy Spirit.
4There are different gifts, but the same Spirit. 5There are different ministries, but the same Lord. 6There are different ways of working, but the same God works all things in all people.
7Now to each one the manifestation of the Spirit is given for the common good.8To one there is given through the Spirit the message of wisdom, to another the message of knowledge by the same Spirit, 9to another faith by the same Spirit, to another gifts of healing by that one Spirit, 10to another the working of miracles, to another prophecy, to another distinguishing between spirits, to another speaking in various tongues, and to still another the interpretation of tongues. 11All these are the work of one and the same Spirit, who apportions them to each one as He determines.
The Greater Gifts
27Now you are the body of Christ, and each of you is a member of it. 28And in the church God has appointed first of all apostles, second prophets, third teachers, then workers of miracles, and those with gifts of healing, helping, administration, and various tongues. 29Are all apostles? Are all prophets? Are all teachers? Do all work miracles? 30Do all have gifts of healing? Do all speak in tongues? Do all interpret? 31But eagerly desire the greater gifts.
And now I will show you the most excellent way.
The Holy Spirit at Pentecost
(Genesis 11:1–9; Leviticus 23:15–22)
1When the day of Pentecosta came, they were all together in one place.2Suddenly a sound like a mighty rushing wind came from heaven and filled the whole house where they were sitting. 3They saw tongues like flames of fire that separated and came to rest on each of them.
and they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other tongues as the Spirit enabled them.
Now there were dwelling in Jerusalem
God-fearing Jews from every nation under heaven.
And when this sound rang out, a crowd came
together in bewilderment,
because each one heard them speaking
his own language.
Astounded and amazed, they asked, “Are not all these who are speaking Galileans?
how is it then that each of us hears them in his own native language?
9Parthians, Medes, and Elamites; residents of Mesopotamia, Judea and Cappadocia, Pontus and Asia,
10Phrygia and Pamphylia, Egypt and the parts of Libya near Cyrene; visitors from Rome,
both Jews and converts to Judaism; Cretans and Arabs--
we hear them declaring the
wonders of God
in our own tongues!”
Astounded and perplexed, they asked one another, “What does this mean?”
but others mocked them and said, “They are drunk on new wine!”
Peter Addresses the Crowd
(Psalm 16:1–11; Joel 2:28–32)
Then Peter stood up with the Eleven,
lifted up his voice,
and addressed the crowd:
“Men of Judea and all who dwell
in Jerusalem,
let this be known to you,
and listen carefully to my words.
these men are not drunk, as you suppose.
It is only the third hour of the day!
No, this is what was spoken by the prophet Joel:
‘In the last days, God says,
I will pour out My Spirit on all people.
Your sons and daughters will prophesy,
your young men will see visions,
your old men will dream dreams.
even on My menservants and maidservants
I will pour out My Spirit in those days,
and they will prophesy.
I will show wonders in the heavens above
and signs on the earth below,
blood and fire and billows of smoke.
the sun will be turned to darkness,
and the moon to blood,
before the coming of the great and glorious Day of the Lord.
and everyone who calls on the name of the Lord
will be saved.’
men of Israel, listen to
this message:
Jesus of Nazareth
was a man certified by God
to you by
miracles, wonders, and signs,
which God did among you
through Him,
as you yourselves know.
he was delivered up
by God’s set plan and foreknowledge,
and you,
by the hands of the lawless, put Him to death by
nailing Him to the cross.
But God raised Him
from the dead, releasing Him from
the agony of death,
because it was
impossible for death to keep Him in its grip.
25David says about Him:
‘I saw the Lord always before me;
because He is at my right hand, I will not be shaken.
26Therefore my heart is glad and my tongue rejoices;
my body also will dwell in hope,
27because You will not abandon my soul to Hades,
nor will You let Your Holy One see decay.
28You have made known to me the paths of life;
You will fill me with joy in Your presence.’
29Brothers, I can tell you with
confidence that
the patriarch David died and
was buried,
and his tomb is with us to this day.
but he was a prophet
and knew
that God had promised him on oath
that He would
place one of his descendants on
his throne.
Foreseeing this,
David spoke about the resurrection
of the Christ,
that He was not abandoned
to Hades, nor did His body
see decay.
God has raised this
Jesus to life,
to which we are all
witnesses.
exalted, then, to the right hand
of God,
He has received
from the
Father the promised Holy Spirit
and has poured
out what
you now see and hear.
David did not ascend
into heaven,
but he himself says:
‘The Lord said to my Lord,
“Sit at My right hand
35until I make Your enemies
a footstool for Your feet.”’
36Therefore let all Israel know with certainty that
God has made this Jesus,
whom you
crucified, both Lord and Christ!”
Before the birth of Jesus, an
angel appeared to Joseph
and
revealed that his fiancée,
Mary,
had conceived a
child
through the Holy Spirit
(Matthew 1:20–21).
Mary would give birth to a Son, and they were to name Him Jesus. Then Matthew, quoting from
Isaiah 7:14, provided this inspired revelation:
“All this took place to fulfill what the Lord had said through the prophet: ‘The virgin will conceive and give birth to a son, and they will call him Immanuel’ (which means ‘God with us’)”
(Matthew 1:22–23).
Seven hundred years earlier, the prophet Isaiah foresaw the virgin birth of the promised Messiah.
He prophesied that His name would be
Immanuel,
which means “God with us.”
By referencing the words of Isaiah,
Matthew recognized Jesus as Immanuel.
The name Immanuel expresses the
miracle of the Incarnation:
Jesus is God with us! God had been with
His people always—in the pillar of cloud
above the tabernacle,
in the voice of the prophets, in the
ark of the covenant--
but never was God so
clearly present with His people as
He was through
His virgin-born Son,
Jesus, the Messiah of Israel.
In the Old Testament,
the presence of God with His people was
most evident when
His glory filled the tabernacle
(Exodus 25:8; 40:34–35) and the temple (1 Kings 8:10–11).
But that
glory was far surpassed
by the personal
presence of God the Son,
God with us in person.
Perhaps the most significant passage in the Bible on the
Incarnation of Jesus is John 1:1–14.
John states that
“the Word was with God,
and the
Word was God.
He was with God in the beginning”
(verses 1–2).
John uses the term logos, or “the Word,” as a clear reference to God.
John declares in verse 14,
“The Word became flesh
and made
his dwelling among us.
We have seen his glory,
the glory
of the one and only Son,
who
came from the Father,
full
of grace and truth.”
On the night of His arrest, Jesus was teaching His disciples. Philip had a request:
“Lord, show us the Father, and that will be enough for us.”
It was a perfectly natural yearning. But Jesus replied, “Philip,
I have been with you all this time, and still you do not know Me?
Anyone who has seen Me has seen the Father”
(John 14:8–9, BSB)
Jesus had been showing them the Father all along.
He was truly “God with us.”
Whenever Jesus spoke, He spoke the Father’s words.
Whatever Jesus did, He did exactly as the Father would do.
God took upon Himself human flesh and blood (1 Timothy 3:16).
This is the meaning of incarnation.
The Son of God literally “tabernacled” among us as one of us;
He “set up His tent” in our camp (John 1:14).
God showed us His glory and offered us His grace and truth.
Under the Old Covenant, the tabernacle represented the presence of God, but now, under the New Covenant, Jesus Christ is God with us. He is not merely a symbol of God with us; Jesus is God with us in person. Jesus is not a partial revelation of God; He is God with us in all His fullness: “For in Christ lives all the fullness of God in a human body” (Colossians 2:9, NLT).
God makes Himself fully known to us through Jesus Christ. He reveals Himself as our Redeemer (1 Peter 1:18–19). Jesus is God with us as Reconciler. Once we were separated from God through sin (Isaiah 59:2), but when Jesus Christ came, He brought God to us: “For God was in Christ, reconciling the world to himself, no longer counting people’s sins against them” (2 Corinthians 5:19, NLT; see also Romans 8:3).
Jesus is not only God with us but also God in us. God comes to live in us through Jesus Christ when we are born again: “My old self has been crucified with Christ. It is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me. So I live in this earthly body by trusting in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me” (Galatians 2:20, NLT). The Spirit of God lives in us, and we are His dwelling place: “For we are the temple of the living God. As God said: ‘I will live in them and walk among them. I will be their God, and they will be my people’” (2 Corinthians 6:16, NLT).
Jesus is not God with us temporarily, but eternally. God the Son, never ceasing for a moment to be divine, took on a fully human nature and became ‘God with us’ forever: “And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age” (Matthew 28:20; see also Hebrews 13:5).
When it was time for Jesus to return to the Father, He told His disciples, “I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Helper, to be with you forever” (John 14:16, ESV). Jesus was speaking of the Holy Spirit, the third Person of the Godhead, who would continue to bring the presence of God to dwell in the lives of believers. The Holy Spirit carries on the role of Jesus as teacher, revealer of truth, encourager, comforter, intercessor, and God with us.
Both
Enoch and Mary were assumed
into
heaven, body and soul
Enoch's assumption
is described in Genesis 5:21-24,
and
Mary's assumption
is
believed to have occurred
after
Christ's death.
Hebrews 11:5 says that Enoch was taken up so that he would not see death. Mary was the first and most perfect disciple Mary's assumption was the fulfillment of a promise made by God to the Jews and Christians
Mary went to heaven body and soul
According to Scripture, Enoch and Elijah may have been assumed into heaven before the time of Christ. This is less clear in Enoch’s case, since Genesis 5:24 says only that God “took” him, but doesn’t say where. Sirach 44:16 and 49:14 make it clear that he was taken up from the earth, and Hebrews 11:5 adds
“so that he should not see death.”
In Elijah’s case, 2 Kings 2:11 states that “Elijah went up by a whirlwind into heaven.” First Maccabees 2:58 adds, “Elijah because of great zeal for the Law was taken up into heaven. ” Taken at face value, these would seem to indicate that both Enoch and Elijah were assumed into heaven. But the Church teaches that heaven was not yet opened to the saints because Christ had not yet come. How can this be explained?
One possible explanation is to say that they didn’t really go to heaven but to the abode of the dead
where the souls of the righteous
were waiting
for the Messiah to open heaven.
A difficulty is that the abode of the dead, or she’ol, is pictured in the Old Testament as being down (e.g., Nm 16:33 speaks of Korah and his followers going “down alive into she’ol“), yet Enoch and Elijah are depicted as being taken up.
Another possibility would be to say they were taken up but to a different kind of heaven than the one Christ opened. Or it is possible to say simply that they received entrance to heaven as a grace which came from the redemption Christ wrought – only they received it early, as did Mary when she was immaculately conceived.
Like Mary, Enoch and Elijah
may have been
foretastes of the good things to come
In such a case,
they would be exceptions to the rule
But God
can do what he wants
Described in Leviticus 23, The Feast of Weeks is the second of the three “solemn feasts” that all Jewish males
were required to travel to Jerusalem to attend (Exodus 23:14–17; 34:22–23; Deuteronomy 16:16).
This important feast gets its name from the fact that it
starts seven full weeks,
or exactly 50 days, after the
Feast of Firstfruits.
Since it takes place exactly
50 days
after the
previous feast, this feast is also
known
as “Pentecost” (Acts 2:1), which means
“”fifty”
Each of three “solemn feasts”—Passover, the Feast of Weeks, and the Feast of Tabernacles—required that all able-bodied Jewish males travel to Jerusalem to attend the feast and offer sacrifices. All three of these feasts required that “firstfruit” offerings be made at the temple as a way of expressing thanksgiving for God’s provision. The Feast of Firstfruits celebrated at the time of the Passover included the first fruits of the barley harvest. The Feast of Weeks was in celebration of the first fruits of the wheat harvest, and the Feast of Tabernacles involved offerings of the first fruits of the olive and grape harvests.
Since the Feast of Weeks was one of the “harvest feasts,” the Jews were commanded to “present an offering of new grain to the Lord” (Leviticus 23:16). This offering was to be “two wave loaves of two-tenths of an ephah” which were made “of fine flour . . . baked with leaven.” The offerings were to be made of the first fruits of that harvest (Leviticus 23:17). Along with the “wave offerings” they were also to offer seven first-year lambs that were without blemish along with one young bull and two rams. Additional offerings are also prescribed in Leviticus and the other passages that outline how this feast was to be observed. Another important requirement of this feast is that, when the Jews harvested their fields, they were required to leave the corners of the field untouched and not gather “any gleanings” from the harvest as a way of providing for the poor and strangers (Leviticus 23:22).
To the Jews, this time of celebration is known as Shavuot, which is the Hebrew word meaning “weeks.” This is one of three separate names that are used in Scripture to refer to this important Jewish feast. Each name emphasizes an important aspect of the feast as well as its religious and cultural significance to both Jews and Christians. Besides being called the Feast of Weeks in Leviticus 23, this special feast celebration is called the “Day of the Firstfruits” in Numbers 28:26 and the “Feast of Harvest” in Exodus 23:16.
The Feast of Weeks takes place exactly 50 days after the Feast of Firstfruits. It normally occurs in late spring, either the last part of May or the beginning of June. Unlike other feasts that began on a specific day of the Hebrew calendar, this one is calculated as being “fifty days to the day after the seventh Sabbath” (Leviticus 23:15–16; Deuteronomy 16:9–10).
Like other Jewish feasts, the Feast of Weeks is important in that it foreshadows the coming Messiah and His ministry. Each and every one of the seven Jewish Feasts signifies an important aspect of God’s plan of redemption through Jesus Christ.
Jesus was crucified as the “Passover Lamb” and rose from the grave at the Feast of Firstfruits. Following His resurrection, Jesus spent the next 40 days teaching His disciples before ascending to heaven (Acts 1). Fifty days after His resurrection and after ascending to heaven to sit at the right hand of God, Jesus sent the Holy Spirit as promised (John 14:16–17) to indwell the disciples and empower them for ministry. The promised Holy Spirit arrived on the Day of Pentecost, which is another name for the Feast of Weeks.
The spiritual significances of the Feast of Weeks are many. Some see the two loaves of leavened bread that were to be a wave offering as foreshadowing the time when the Messiah would make both Jew and Gentile to be one in Him (Ephesians 2:14–15). This is also the only feast where leavened bread is used. Leaven in Scripture is often used symbolically of sin, and the leavened bread used in the Feast of Weeks is thought to be representative of the fact that there is still sin within the church (body of Christ) and will be until Christ returns again.
On the Day of Pentecost or the Feast of Weeks, the “firstfruits” of the church were gathered by Christ as some 3,000 people heard Peter present the gospel after the Holy Spirit had empowered and indwelt the disciples as promised.
With the promised indwelling of the Holy Spirit, the first fruits of God’s spiritual harvest under the New Covenant began. Today that harvest continues as people continue to be saved, but there is also another coming harvest whereby God will again turn His attention back to Israel so that “all of Israel will be saved” (Romans 11:26).
The word “jubilee”—literally, “the blast of a horn” in Hebrew--
is defined in Leviticus 25:9as
the sabbatical year
after seven cycles of seven years (49 years).
The fiftieth year
was to be a time of celebration and rejoicing for the Israelites.
The ram’s horn
was blown on the tenth day of the seventh month to start
the fiftieth year of universal redemption.
The Year of the Jubilee involved a year of release from indebtedness (Leviticus 25:23-38) and all types of bondage (vv. 39-55). All prisoners and captives were set free, all slaves were released, all debts were forgiven, and all property was returned to its original owners. In addition, all labor was to cease for one year, and those bound by labor contracts were released from them. One of the benefits of the Jubilee was that both the land and the people were able to rest.
The Jubilee presents a beautiful picture of the New Testament themes of
redemption and forgiveness.
Christ is the Redeemer
who came to set free
those who are slaves and
prisoners to sin
(Romans 8:2; Galatians 5:1; 3:22).
The debt of sin we owe to God was paid on the cross as Jesus died on our behalf (Colossians 2:13-14), and we are forgiven the debt forever. We are no longer in bondage, no longer slaves to sin, having been freed by Christ, and we can truly enter the rest God provides as we cease laboring to make ourselves acceptable to God by our own works (Hebrews 4:9-10).
There is no “Book of Noah” in existence today. However, written material ascribed to Noah is mentioned in two books of Old Testament pseudepigrapha (books that falsely claim to have been written by well-known Old Testament characters) as well as in some fragments in the Dead Sea Scrolls.
In the non-canonical Book of Jubilees, Abraham calls Isaac to him and gives him some instructions regarding sacrifices and the eating of sacrificial animals. He says that he is repeating these instructions as “I have found it written in the books of my forefathers, and in the words of Enoch, and in the words of Noah” (Jubilees 21:10). Since these instructions are not found in the Bible in connection with Noah, many feel this refers to some other written source that had Noah’s name attached to it. Earlier in Jubilees, this “book” is described more fully. One of the good spirits describes its conflict with evil spirits who are attempting to lead Noah’s descendants astray. Most of the spirits are bound and condemned, but some are left as a test. God commands one of the good spirits to instruct Noah so that he and his descendants can avoid any traps:
“And one of us He commanded that we should teach Noah all their medicines; for He knew that they would not walk in uprightness, nor strive in righteousness.
“And we did according to all His words: all the malignant evil ones we bound in the place of condemnation and a tenth part of them we left that they might be subject before Satan on the earth.
“And we explained to Noah all the medicines of their diseases, together with their seductions, how he might heal them with herbs of the earth.
“And Noah wrote down all things in a book as we instructed him concerning every kind of medicine. Thus the evil spirits were precluded from (hurting) the sons of Noah.
“And he gave all that he had written to Shem, his eldest son; for he loved him exceedingly above all his sons”
(Jubilees 10:10–14).
So Jubilees refers to material that was written down by Noah.
The author may have indeed quoted from some existing work, a “Book of Noah,” or he may have simply ascribed things to Noah without any written source.
In the Book of Enoch (another pseudepigraphal book) chapters 50—59, there is an extensive section that refers to Noah. This is often assumed to be a fragment from the Book of Noah. Enoch, Noah’s grandfather, is the narrator. He reveals to Noah what will come to pass as well as some hidden knowledge that he will need to know. Chapter 106 gives a “prophecy” about Noah and the destruction that will come on the earth.
The term Grigori is not found in Scripture. But watcher angels are mentioned in three verses of the Bible, each in a vision that King Nebuchadnezzar had (Daniel 4:13, 17, 23). Not all translations use the term watcher angels. The ESV, CEV, and KJV speak of “a watcher” in Daniel 4:13, and the NASB calls it “an angelic watcher,” but the NIV simply calls this being “a messenger” from heaven. The NET says that Nebuchadnezzar sees “a sentinel.” These watcher angels are supernatural, celestial beings or “holy ones” who come down from heaven with authority to speak for God.
The Hebrew word translated “watcher” in Daniel 4 comes from a root word meaning “wakeful one” and thus can mean “watcher,” “sentinel,” or “guardian.” The International Standard Bible Encyclopedia describes watcher angels as servants of God who “possess a certain joint authority to speak the decrees of God, and apparently form a heavenly council who listen to God’s word and then act as divine messengers to bring these commands and revelations to human beings” (vol. 4, p. 1024).
Noncanonical literature elaborates in detail regarding the watcher angels. According to the books of Enoch, watcher angels can be either fallen angels or holy angels. These watcher angels take a particular interest in the earthly affairs of human beings, “watching” them, and, at times, even interfering in or controlling situations that concern people. The fall of the watcher angels unfolds in the apocryphal book of 1 Enoch. Part of Enoch’s mission is to pronounce God’s judgment on the fallen watcher angels who supposedly dwelled in the fifth heaven where their fall took place.
Grigori is the name Enoch assigns to these fallen watcher angels in the book of 2 Enoch. The English word Grigori is simply a transliteration of the Greek word for “watcher,” used in the Septuagint. According to the account, the watcher angels are sent down to earth to look after humans. They soon develop an unnatural lust for the beautiful women of earth. A large group of rebellious watchers, the Grigori, seduce the women of earth and impregnate them with a race of hybrid giants who violently raid the earth and threaten humanity.
Another noncanonical book, Jubilees, also speaks of heavenly watchers who violate their ordained nature by lusting after and having sexual relations with human women. The offspring of their unnatural unions are monstrous giants who corrupt the children of earth and prompt the flood of Noah’s time.
These extrabiblical writings seem to provide an explanation for the creatures mentioned in Genesis 6:1–4 called Nephilim. The Bible tells us that Nephilim were the result of sexual relations between “the sons of God” and “the daughters of men” (verse 2). Much debate exists regarding the true identity and origin of the Nephilim. The only solid information we can gather from Scripture is that the Nephilim are the offspring of the sons of God and human women and are described as “heroes of old” and “men of renown” (verse 4). Numbers 13:33 suggests that the Nephilim were a people of extraordinary size, possibly associating them with giants.
Substantial debate also surrounds the nature of the “sons of God” who fathered the Nephilim. Were they fallen watcher angels or Grigori? Does the biblical book of Jude provide a clue: “And the angels who did not keep their positions of authority but abandoned their proper dwelling—these he has kept in darkness, bound with everlasting chains for judgment on the great Day” (Jude 1:6)? For now, we can only speculate. The Bible does not provide us with clear answers; therefore, we must be content with uncertainty.
We are wise to be extra cautious about giving serious weight to the ideas found in extrabiblical sources. Nevertheless, Scripture does affirm the concept of heavenly beings who watch the earth (Ezekiel 1:15–20) and are interested in the affairs of humans: “This Good News has been announced to you by those who preached in the power of the Holy Spirit sent from heaven. It is all so wonderful that even the angels are eagerly watching these things happen” (1 Peter 1:12, NLT).
Since God’s purpose is to use the church to display His wisdom to rulers and authorities in the heavenly realms
(Ephesians 3:10),
then the idea of attentive watcher angels or guardians is biblically sound. Likewise, the Bible confirms the presence of angels who guard and protect humans: “The angel of the LORD encamps around those who fear him, and he delivers them”
(Psalm 34:7; see also Matthew 18:10; Acts 12:9–15).
Enoch is also one of the three people in the Bible taken up to heaven bodily, the only others being Elijah and Jesus (and only Jesus having experienced a resurrection). We read about Enoch’s translation in Genesis 5:24: “And Enoch walked with God, and he was not; for God took him” (see also Hebrews 11:5). Most commonly, when people refer to the Book of Enoch, they mean 1 Enoch, which is wholly extant only in the Ethiopic language. The Book of Enoch is accepted as canonical by the Ethiopian Orthodox Church and the Eritrean Orthodox Church. In addition to 1 Enoch, there are 2 Enoch (“The Book of the Secrets of Enoch”) and 3 Enoch (“The Hebrew Book of Enoch”). Fragments of the Book of Enoch in Aramaic and Hebrew were found among the Dead Sea Scrolls.
Much of the Book of Enoch is apocalyptic—it uses vivid imagery to predict doom and the final judgment of evil. There’s a heavy emphasis on angelology and demonology, and a large portion of the book is devoted to filling in the backstory of Genesis 6:1–4. The Book of Enoch thus explains the origin of the Nephilim and the identity of the “sons of God,” mentioned in Genesis 6:2 and 4. The result is a strange and sensationalistic piece of non-canonical literature.
In its Ethiopic form, the Book of Enoch is arranged in five sections:
Section I (chapters 1—36) has Enoch pronouncing God’s judgment on the angels who cohabited with the daughters of men (see Genesis 6:1–4). In this section, two hundred angelic “Watchers” rebel against God and are cast out of heaven along with Satan. On earth, they indulge their lust and have sexual relations with human women, producing the Nephilim, a race of evil giants who terrorize the antediluvian world. Enoch sees a “chaotic and horrible” place and a fiery prison reserved for the angels who sinned (Enoch 21:3, 7).
Section II (chapters 37—71) has three parables relating apocalyptic judgments. It also contains the story of Enoch’s translation into heaven (see Genesis 5:24). In this section, Enoch describes the activity of an angel named Gadreel: “He it is who showed the children of men all the blows of death, and he led astray Eve, and showed [the weapons of death to the sons of men] the shield and the coat of mail, and the sword for battle, and all the weapons of death to the children of men. And from his hand they have proceeded against those who dwell on the earth from that day and for evermore” (Enoch 69:6–7, trans. by Charles, R. H., 1917).
Section III (chapters 72—87) is primarily an explanation of the workings of the stars in their pathways, as per a vision that Enoch has.
Section IV (chapters 88—90) contains Enoch’s vision of the coming flood and prophecies concerning other events yet future, including the Exodus, the conquest of Canaan, the building of the temple, the fall of the northern kingdom, the destruction of Jerusalem, the final judgment, the building of the New Jerusalem, the resurrection of the saints, and the coming of the Messiah.
Section V (chapters 91—105)
pronounces woes on sinners and promises blessings to the righteous. It ends with a
promise of peace to the “children of uprightness” (Enoch 105:2).
The biblical book of Jude quotes from chapter 1 of the Book of Enoch in Jude 1:14–15, “Enoch, the seventh from Adam, prophesied about these men: ‘See, the Lord is coming with thousands upon thousands of his holy ones to judge everyone, and to convict all the ungodly of all the ungodly acts they have done in the ungodly way, and of all the harsh words ungodly sinners have spoken against him.’” Jude’s quotation does not mean the Book of Enoch is inspired by God or that it should be in the Bible.
Jude’s quote is not the only quote in the Bible from a non-biblical source. The apostle Paul quotes Epimenides in Titus 1:12, but that does not mean we should give any additional authority to Epimenides’ writings. The same is true with Jude 1:14–15. Jude quoting from the Book of Enoch does not indicate the entire Book of Enoch is inspired, or even true. All it means is that particular passage of Enoch is true. It is interesting to note that no scholars believe the Book of Enoch to have truly been written by the Enoch in the Bible. Enoch was seven generations from Adam, prior to the flood (Genesis 5:1–24). Evidently, though, the words Jude quotes were genuinely something that Enoch prophesied—or the Bible would not attribute it to him: “Enoch, the seventh from Adam, prophesied about these men” (Jude 1:14).
This saying of Enoch
was somehow handed down
through the generations
and
eventually recorded in the
Book of Enoch.
Jesus had a lot
to say
about sanctification
in John 17.
In verse 16 the Lord says,
They are not of the world, even as I am not of it,” and this is before
His request
: “Sanctify them by the truth; your word is truth” (verse 17).
In Christian theology, sanctification is a state of separation unto God; all believers enter into this state when they are born of God: “You are in Christ Jesus, who became to us wisdom from God, righteousness and sanctification and redemption” (1 Corinthians 1:30, ESV). The sanctification mentioned in this verse is a once-for-ever separation of believers unto God. It is a work God performs, an integral part of our salvation and our connection with Christ (Hebrews 10:10).
Theologians sometimes refer to this state of holiness before God as “positional” sanctification; it is related to justification.
While we are positionally holy (“set free from every sin” by the blood of Christ, Acts 13:39), we know that we still sin (1 John 1:10). That’s why the Bible also refers to sanctification as a practical experience of our separation unto God. “Progressive” or “experiential” sanctification, as it is sometimes called, is the effect of obedience to the Word of God in one’s life. It is the same as growing in the Lord (2 Peter 3:18) or spiritual maturity. God started the work of making us like Christ, and He is continuing it (Philippians 1:6). This type of sanctification is to be pursued by the believer earnestly (1 Peter 1:15; Hebrews 12:14) and is effected by the application of the Word (John 17:17). Progressive sanctification has in view the setting apart of believers for the purpose for which they are sent into the world: “As you sent me into the world, I have sent them into the world. For them I sanctify myself, that they too may be truly sanctified” (John 17:18–19). That Jesus set Himself apart for God’s purpose is both the basis and the condition of our being set apart (see John 10:36). We are sanctified and sent because Jesus was. Our Lord’s sanctification is the pattern of and power for our own. The sending and the sanctifying are inseparable. On this account we are called “saints” (hagioi in the Greek), or “sanctified ones.” Prior to salvation, our behavior bore witness to our standing in the world in separation from God, but now our behavior should bear witness to our standing before God in separation from the world. Little by little, every day, “those who are being sanctified” (Hebrews 10:14, ESV) are becoming more like Christ.
There is a third sense in which the word sanctification is used in Scripture—a “complete” or “ultimate” sanctification.
This is the same as glorification. Paul prays in 1 Thessalonians 5:23, “May the God of peace himself sanctify you completely, and may your whole spirit and soul and body be kept blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ” (ESV). Paul speaks of Christ as “the hope of glory” (Colossians 1:27) and links the glorious appearing of Christ to our personal glorification: “When Christ, who is your life, appears, then you also will appear with him in glory” (Colossians 3:4). This glorified state will be our ultimate separation from sin, a total sanctification in every regard. “We know that when Christ appears, we shall be like him, for we shall see him as he is” (1 John 3:2).
To summarize, “sanctification” is a translation of the
Greek word hagiasmos,
meaning “holiness” or “a separation.”
In the past, God granted us justification, a once-for-all, positional holiness in Christ.
In the present, God guides us to maturity, a practical, progressive holiness.
In the future,
God will give us glorification, a permanent, ultimate holiness.
These three phases of sanctification separate the believer
from the penalty
of sin (justification), the power of sin (maturity), and the presence of sin (glorification).
Now on the first day of the week Mary Magdalene came to the tomb early, while it was still dark, and saw that the stone had been taken away from the tomb. So she ran and went to Simon Peter and the other disciple, the one whom Jesus loved, and said to them, “They have taken the Lord out of the tomb, and we do not know where they have laid him.” So Peter went out with the other disciple, and they were going toward the tomb…
But Mary stood
weeping outside the tomb, and as she wept
she stooped to look into the tomb.
And she saw two angels in white, sitting where
the body of Jesus had lain,
one at the head and one at the feet.
They said to her, “Woman, why are you weeping?”
She said to them,
They have taken away my Lord, and I do not know where they have laid him.”
Having said this, she turned around
and saw Jesus standing, but she did not know that it was Jesus.
Jesus said to her, “Woman, why are you weeping?
Whom are you seeking?”
Supposing him to be the gardener, she said to him, “Sir, if you have carried him away,
tell me where you have laid him, and I will take him away.”
Jesus said to her, “Mary.”
She turned and said to him in Aramaic, “Rabboni!” (which means Teacher).
Jesus said to her, “Do not cling to me, for I have not yet ascended to the Father;
but go to my brothers and say to them,
‘I am ascending to my Father
and your
Father, to my God and your God.’”
Mary Magdalene
went and announced to the
disciples,
“I have seen the Lord”—and that he had said these things to her.
(John 20:1-3, 11-18, ESV)
Was Mary Magdalene possessed by Lilith and healed by Jesus?
The Bible includes Mary Magdalene in a list of
women
who had evil spirits healed by Jesus.
Jesus is said to have cast seven evil spirits out of her
(Luke 8:1-3)
The specific demon is not named in Scripture.
In The Chosen, we see a brief flashback during Season 1, Episode 1 that
strongly implies that
Mary was raped by a Roman soldier.
The trauma of her rape
is hinted
at again in Season 2, Episode 5, and is
the trigger
that causes Mary to backslide.
Torah (Instruction)
GenesisBereshit
ExodusShemot
LeviticusWayiqra
NumbersBemidbar
DeuteronomyDevarim
Nevi'im (Prophets)
Former
JoshuaYehoshua
JudgesShofetim
SamuelShemuel
KingsMelakhim
Latter
IsaiahYeshayahu
JeremiahYirmeyahu
EzekielYekhezqel
Minor
Ketuvim (Writings)
Poetic
PsalmsTehillim
ProverbsMishlei
JobIyov
Five Megillot (Scrolls)
Song of SongsShir Hashirim
RuthRut
LamentationsEikhah
EcclesiastesQohelet
EstherEster
Historical
DanielDaniyyel
Ezra–NehemiahEzra
ChroniclesDivre Hayyamim
What does it mean to proclaim
Mary as the New Eve?
Second-century Christian writers readily proclaimed
“death through Eve, life through Mary”
(Read Sts. Justin Martyr and Irenaeus).
In Genesis 3:15, we have what the tradition has come to know as the protoevangelium
(“first gospel”),
where God responds to the Serpent, hinting at his first promise of redemption after the fall of Adam and Eve: “I will put enmity between you and the woman and between your seed and her seed; he shall bruise your head and you shall bruise his heel.”
This hints at the cosmic struggle that will ensue, resulting in the Serpent’s ultimate defeat through the seed of the Woman—though her seed will also suffer through this victory (“you shall bruise his heel”). The Christian tradition sees this ultimately as a cryptic prophecy of Jesus’ victory over the devil on the Cross.
Further,
Eve is also described as “the mother of all the living”
(Genesis 3:20).
Through grace—in Christ--Mary becomes our mother;
she becomes
the mother of all the living
not in the order of nature,
but in the
order of supernatural grace.
Eve was created in a state of
grace,
without sin;
if Mary
is to exhibit this total “enmity”
between her and the Serpent
(as mentioned in the above passage),
it would seem that her
graced state
must rise at least to the level of Eve.
Here, we can see a hint
of Mary’s Immaculate Conception:
this is not a
doctrine implying Mary does not need a
savior,
but rather one referring to the
unique and special way
in which she is saved by her son.
Most of us are drowning in sin and Jesus pulls us out;
the Immaculate Conception
means that
Jesus saved her before she fell into sin.
What’s the biblical evidence
for seeing
Mary as the New Eve?
For the most part, it comes from the writings of St. John—likely not a coincidence since
he was the one who took Mary in after Jesus’ death. Surely, John must have asked the Blessed Mother what Jesus was like when he was just two? In other words, it’s not an accident that St. John’s writings give us some of the most exalted theological writing in the New Testament—after all, he was able to contemplate these mysteries with the Blessed Mother by his side.
Let’s begin with the Gospel. John opens with clear allusions to Genesis: “In the beginning was the Word … ” (John 1:1; see Genesis 1:1). John continues to refer to “light” and “life”—again, clear allusions to Genesis 1 (see John 1:4). If we follow the text carefully, John then proceeds to lay out a series of days, using the recurring phrase “the next day.” He does this three times (John 1:29, 35, 43), suggesting a series of four days (the first “next day” would be the second day, then the third, and then the fourth).
In this context, we have a marriage which is said to take place “on the third day” (2:1). Well, the third day from what? Perhaps from the fourth day—in which case the “third day” would be the seventh day. In other words, especially in light of the way John began his Gospel with clear allusions to Genesis 1, he seems here to be subtly setting up a new creation week.
This is the setting for Jesus’ reply to Mary: “Woman … my hour has not yet come” (2:4). Despite the way it sounds to our ears, this is not a disrespectful rebuke for a couple of reasons: (1) Jesus is the God-man—surely he’s not breaking the fourth commandment here; and (2) Mary’s response is itself indicative: she doesn’t cower away, saying, “Gosh, Jesus, do you have to be so mean—in public!” Rather, Mary turns directly to the servants saying, “Do whatever he tells you” (2:5). In other words, Mary’s response suggests an enthusiastic eagerness—as if she’s joyfully saying, “Jesus is going to help us!”
If Jesus is not giving Mary a rebuke, then what’s he doing—and why does John recount the narrative the way he does? Given the Genesis allusions with which John began his Gospel—and then the subtle creation week he develops by recourse to the phrase the “next day” and then the “third day”—it seems that there may be a certain “woman” in my mind, to which Jesus is alluding: “I will put enmity between you and the woman” (Genesis 3:15). In other words, Jesus is proclaiming Mary to be the New Eve—the woman who bears the seed who brings about this ultimate victory (see John 12:31-32).
In fact, John never refers to Mary by name—rather, he always refers to her as “woman”
(see John 2:4; 19:26; cf. Revelation 12:1).
On the Cross, in John’s Gospel, Jesus looks down and sees his mother and John the beloved disciple and Jesus says: “Woman, behold your son … behold, your mother” (19:26-27).
Here, John takes Mary as his
spiritual mother, and
Mary
takes John as her spiritual son.
Why does John call himself the
beloved disciple?
Well, are you beloved?
Am I beloved?
John here sees himself as embodying the
relationship granted to all disciples.
His taking Mary as his spiritual mother
refers not just to him,
but to the
relationship all Christians now have
with the Blessed Mother.
In entrusting John and Mary to each other
in this way,
Jesus has entrusted the Blessed Mother
to all of us.
Mary becomes our spiritual mother
who constantly
brings our needs to her son--
just as she did at the
Wedding at Cana;
and she continually
says to all of us, just as she did then: “
Do whatever he tells you” (2:5)
. In other words,
Mary always takes us to Jesus--
the closer we get to her,
the closer we get to him.
We have similar material in Revelation 12,
where we have a “woman”
who is both the
mother of the Messiah (see 12:1, 5)
and the mother of all Christians—her other children
are described
as “those who keep the commandments of God
and bear testimony to Jesus”
(12:17).
The early Church knew that Mary is the New Eve, the new mother of all the living and therefore our mother in Christ. As the early Church Fathers liked to say, Mary is like the moon: she has no light of herself, but she radiantly reflects the light of the sun. This analogy is important because it shows that Mary’s glory is always a participation in that of her son; that is, it’s never in competition with Jesus—it never takes away from Jesus, but only serves to show his power.
Both Eve and Mary were approached by an angel
(with Eve, a fallen angel);
doubt crept into Eve’s heart, whereas Mary’s faith was steadfast
(see Luke 1:45).
Eve participated in the downfall of the first Adam, just as
Mary participates
in the victory of her Son, the New Adam (see Luke 2:34-35).
In the words of the early Fathers, “the knot of Eve’s disobedience
was untied by Mary’s faith.”
In God’s Providence, it was Mary’s fiat that
prepared the way for the new creation,
made manifest in Christ’s resurrection.
Her “yes”—in one of her great titles—became the
“cause of our salvation.”
Mary’s fiat became humanity’s yes to the divine wedding proposal.
How can we get closer to Mary, and thereby draw closer to her son?
For Mary’s deepest desire is to unite us to her son.
Who Are the Sons of God, Daughters of Man, and Nephilim?
IN GENESIS 6:1–4,
THE READER ENCOUNTERS ONE OF THE
MOST CHALLENGING
PASSAGES IN ALL OF SCRIPTURE TO INTERPRET.
In Genesis 6:1–4, the reader encounters one of the most challenging passages in all of
Scripture to interpret. Here’s the passage in the ESV.
When man began to multiply on the face of the land and daughters were born to them, 2 the sons of God saw that the daughters of man were attractive. And they took as their wives any they chose. 3 Then the Lord said, “My Spirit shall not abide in man forever, for he is flesh: his days shall be 120 years.” 4 The Nephilim were on the earth in those days, and also afterward, when the sons of God came in to the daughters of man and they bore children to them. These were the mighty men who were of old, the men of renown.
Echoes from Genesis 1–3
People multiplying is an echo of Genesis 1. God made “man” (Gen 1:26–27), and then he commissioned his image-bearers to be fruitful and “multiply” (1:28). In 6:1, we read of this multiplication happening.
The reference to
God “Spirit”
in Genesis 6:3 reminds us of 1:2, the second verse in the Bible. There the Spirit of God was hovering over the face of the waters, and in 6:3 the Lord’s Spirit shall no longer abide in image-bearers for extraordinary lengths of time. The limit of “his days shall be 120 years.”
Marriages are reported in Genesis 6:1–4, and marriage is rooted in Genesis 2. Adam and Eve were the first image-bearers, and they were the first married couple. Many generations later, marriages were happening in Genesis 6.
In Genesis 3, Eve’s sin occurs when she takes the fruit from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, the tree God had forbidden his image-bearers to eat from. Note the language in 3:6: the woman “saw that the tree was good for food, and that it was a delight to the eyes, and that the tree was to be desired to make one wise,” so “she took of its fruit and ate.” In 6:2, the sons of God “saw” that the daughters of man were “attractive,” so they “took” as their wives any they chose. In Genesis 3 and 6, there was a “taking” of what someone “saw” as “desirable,” and this “taking” was something that should not have happened.
Sons and Daughters in Genesis 5
The four verses of Genesis 6:1–4 come right after a genealogy. In Genesis 5, we see a ten-member linear genealogy that takes us from Adam to Noah. The purpose of this genealogy is to take the reader to the days preceding the flood, and that means the days of Noah.
Some language in Genesis 5 is noteworthy for our purposes because the words “sons” and “daughters” in 6:1–4 occur in this genealogy as well. The genealogy implies marrying and having children, and long lives are reported right before the statement that the genealogy member “died.” Take Adam as an example. “The days of Adam after he fathered Seth were 800 years; and he had other sons and daughters. Thus all the days that Adam lived were 930 years, and he died” (5:4).
In Genesis 6:1–4 we read about marriages and about children born from these unions (6:2, 4). The long lives will now not exceed 120 years (6:3). And interestingly, the terms “sons” and “daughters” appear in 6:2. To be sure, these terms are part of larger phrases: “sons of God” and “daughters of man.”
In the Days of the Promised Flood
Having reviewed what comes before Genesis 6:1–4, let’s remember what comes after it. God beholds the widespread wickedness of the world and promises to judge his image-bearers (6:5–8).
So Genesis 6:1–4 occurs between a genealogy and a judgment. This judgment is a divine response to “the wickedness of man” that “was great in the earth” (6:5). Whatever 6:1–4 means, its literary placement suggests that the disobedience described there was part of what angered the Lord and resulted in a divine judgment that occurred in the days of Noah.
What are the ways interpreters have read 6:1–4?
The Sons of God are Sethites
According to the Sethite view, the “sons of God” are the descendants of Seth. They are human beings only. Their marriages to “daughters of man” would be human marriages, and their offspring would be human children. If the Nephilim are considered the offspring of these unions, the Nephilim are not supernatural beings.
The distinction between the “sons of God” and “daughters of man” is a spiritual one. The godly line of Seth would be intermarrying with the daughters of man, and “of man” emphasizes that these “daughters” do not know the Lord. In the Sethite view, then, these marriages displease the Lord because they involve the joining together of believers and unbelievers.
Support for this view comes, first of all, from the immediately preceding chapter. In Genesis 5, the genealogy of Adam through Seth is traced to Noah. Genesis 5 reports family descent through birth of human “sons” and human “daughters.” Second, the prior chapters of Genesis have been interested in conflicting spiritual lines. We see Cain and Abel in Genesis 4. After Abel dies, the Lord gives Eve another son, Seth. And in Genesis 4, we see the respective lines of descent for Cain and Seth, lines we should contrast. Third, the Sethite view has the advantage of staying with the realm of humanity and not moving to the realm of angels, so there may be less initial objection to strangeness. The non-human views of the “sons of God” must deal with the accompanying oddities which the Sethite view can avoid. Fourth, 6:1–4 reports marriages, and throughout the Old and New Testaments we see human beings getting married. Jesus says in Matthew 22:30 that the angels in heaven do not marry.
The Sons of God are Human Kings
The “human king” view understands that in the ancient Near East, a king might be viewed as divine or partly divine, a “son” of the gods. In Genesis 6:1–4, then, the “sons of God” would be human kings who have relationships with human women. These human women became wives to these “sons of God.”
According to the human king—or royal son—view, the offspring of these marriages would be mighty people, the Nephilim, who were human offspring.
Support for this view includes, first, the recognition that in Psalm 2:7 and 2 Samuel 7:13–13, a renowned “son” can be a king. Indeed, in Psalm 2:7, the royal son is a son of God. Second, the view avoids the entanglements that a supernatural explanation brings to the question of who the “sons of God” are. Third, the marriages are human marriages, in keeping with Jesus’s statement in Matthew 22:30 that the angels in heaven do not marry.
Option 3: The Sons of God are Angels, and the Nephilim are Their Offspring
Options 3 and 4 both view the sons of God as angels—rebellious angels. The nefarious activity in Genesis 6:1–4 would be evil spirits acting in ways that further provoke the judgment of God. The spirits would be acting directly with women, or they are possessing men who are acting directly with women.
According to Option 3, the “sons of God” are the angels who engage in sexual activity with human women (“the daughters of man”), and the result of their union are beings known as the Nephilim.
The Nephilim would be demonic offspring.
Support for this view of the
“sons of God”
comes from several directions. First, the use of the phrase
“sons of God”
in the Old Testament can refer to angels.
Such a phrase seems to distinguish this group from the
“daughters of man,”
which would naturally refer to human beings.
Second, though angels in heaven do not marry (Matt 22:30), the activity described in Genesis 6:1–4 is earthly and not heavenly. Third, the Nephilim in Genesis 6:4 are called “mighty men who were of old, the men of renown.” This language seems to suggest incredible stature and strength, a might that warrants a spiritual—and not merely human—explanation. Fourth, in Peter and Jude’s writings in the New Testament, they seem to confirm rebellious angelic activity in the days of Noah.
The Sons of God are Angels, but the Nephilim are Not Their Offspring
This view has a lot of overlap with Option 3, because the identities of the “sons of God” and the “daughters of man” are the same. The sons of God are rebellious angels, and the daughters of man are human women. Marriages take place, and offspring are born.
But in Option 4, the Nephilim are not the children of these marriages. Instead, the biblical author clarifies that these marriages and the offspring were taking place in the days of the Nephilim.
Support for this view is multifaceted. First, the phrase
“sons of God” in the Old Testament can refer to angels.
Second, the rebellious angelic activity would be on earth, thus avoiding the specific language in Matthew 22:30 that angels in heaven do not marry.
Third, Peter and Jude’s writings in the New Testament seem to confirm rebellious angelic activity in the days of Noah.
Fourth, the Nephilim in Genesis 6:4 are never actually called the offspring of the marriages between the sons of God and daughters of man. Paying careful attention to the language, we notice that the Nephilim were on earth at the same time as the illicit marriages were happening, and this report distinguishes the Nephilim from these relationships.
In other words, the presence of the Nephilim preceded the offspring of the illicit marriages.
Fifth, Numbers 13:33 mentions the Israelite spies seeing “the Nephilim (the sons of Anak, who come from the Nephilim), and we seemed to ourselves like grasshoppers, and so we seemed to them.”
If Nephilim in Genesis 6:4 referred to mighty warriors and not to demonic offspring, the reference in Numbers 13:33 makes sense. If the Nephilim were demonic offspring (like Option 3 asserts), then their death in the flood would seem to conflict with the later reference to their presence in Canaan (in Num 13:33).
Bible readers might be surprised to learn that the oldest Jewish interpretation of the “sons of God” is that they are angels.
And the oldest view about the Nephilim is that they
are the offspring of
the sons of God and daughters of man.
Fallen angels are angels who were expelled from Heaven. The literal term "fallen angel" does not appear in any Abrahamic religious texts, but is used to describe angels cast out of heaven. Such angels are often described as corrupting humanity by teaching forbidden knowledge or by tempting them into sin.
The first idea of the concept of
fallen angels
may be found in Canaanite beliefs
about the bənē hāʾĔlōhīm ("sons of God"),
expelled from the divine court.
ben Šāḥar is thrown down from heaven for claiming equality with ʻElyōn. Such stories are later collected in the Old Testament and appear in pseudepigraphicJewish literature.
Under the assumption that the "sons of God" (בני האלוהים) mentioned in Genesis 6:1–4 or the Book of Enoch, are angels, derives the concept of fallen angels.
In the period immediately preceding the composition of the New Testament,
some groups of Second Temple Judaism identified these
"sons of God" as fallen angels.
During the late Second Temple period the Nephilim were considered to be the monstrous offspring of
fallen angels and human women.
In such accounts, God sends the Great Deluge to purge the world of these creatures; their
bodies are destroyed,
yet their souls survive,
thereafter roaming the earth
as demons.
Rabbinic Judaism and early Christian authorities after the third century rejected the Enochian writings and the notion of an illicit union between angels and women.
The Elohist sources speak of bənē hāʾĔlōhīm ("sons of God"),
manifestations of the Divine
and part of the heavenly court in the Canaanite pantheon.
According to Genesis 6:1–4 the bənē hāʾĔlōhīm
descended to earth and mated with human women and beget the Nephilim,
followed by
God sending down a flood clean the world from humans
A passage from the
Book of Psalms,
although at least five hundred years apart from the passage in Genesis speaks about a similar heavenly court.
According to the text, God delivers judgement upon the gods by turning them into mortals
Although the text does not imply that the gods fell from heaven, it parallels their descend from immortality to mortality.
Unlike Genesis, the text is silent about the sins of the gods.
As evident from the Old Testament, in later Hebrew tradition, angels became
identified with stars.
As such, the Book of Isaiah, narrating the
fall of a deity,
serves as a template for the later belief in fallen angels.
According to the Book of Isaiah, Hêlêl ben Šāḥar, son of Šāḥar, known from
the Ugaritic poem of Shachar (dawn) and Shalim (dusk),
claims equality with ʻElyōn and is then thrown down into the abyss as means of punishment.
2 Enoch
The concept of fallen angels is also in the
Second Book of Enoch.
It tells about Enoch's ascent through the
layers of heaven.
During his journey, he
encounters fallen angels imprisoned in
the 2nd heaven.
At first, he decides to pray for them, but refuses
to do so,
since he himself as merely human,
would not be worthy to pray for angels.
In the 5th heaven
however, he meets other rebellious angels,
here called Grigori, remaining in grief,
not joining the heavenly hosts in song.
Enoch tries to cheer them up by telling about his prayers for their
fellow angels and thereupon they join the heavenly liturgy.
Strikingly, the text refers to the leader of the Grigori as Satanail and not as Azael or Shemyaza,
as in the other Books of Enoch.
But the Grigori are identified with the Watchers of 1 Enoch.
The narration of the Grigori in 2 Enoch 18:1–7, who went down on to earth, married women and "befouled the earth with their deeds", resulting in their confinement under the earth, shows that the author of 2 Enoch knew about the stories in 1 Enoch.
The longer recension of 2 Enoch, chapter 29 refers to angels who were
"thrown out from the height"
when their leader tried to become equal in rank with the Lord's power (2 Enoch 29:1–4), an idea probably taken from Ancient Canaanite religion about Attar, trying to rule the throne of Baal.
The Book of Jubilees, an ancient Jewish religious work, accepted as canonical by the Ethiopian Orthodox Church and Beta Israel, refers to the Watchers, who are among the angels created on the first day.
However, unlike the (first) Book of Enoch, the Watchers are commanded by God
to descend to earth and to instruct humanity.
It is only after they copulate with human women that they transgress the laws of God.
These illicit unions result in demonic offspring, who battle each other until they die,
while the Watchers are bound in the depths of the earth as punishment.
In Jubilees 10:1, another angel called Mastema appears as the leader of the evil spirits.
He asks God to spare some of the demons, so he might use their aid to lead humankind into sin.
Afterwards, he becomes their leader:
Lord, Creator, let some of them remain before me, and let them harken to my voice, and do all that I shall say unto them; for if some of them are not left to me, I shall not be able to execute the power of my will on the sons of men; for these are for corruption and leading astray before my judgment, for great is the wickedness of the sons of men. (10:8)
Both the (first) Book of Enoch and the Book of Jubilees include the motif of angels introducing evil to humans. However, unlike the Book of Enoch, the Book of Jubilees does not hold that evil was caused by the fall of angels in the first place, although their introduction to sin is affirmed.
Further, while the fallen angels in the Book of Enoch are acting against
God's will, the
fallen angels and demons in the
Book of Jubilees seem
to have
no power independent
from God
but only act within his power
Lilith (/ˈlɪlɪθ/; Hebrew: לִילִית, romanized: Līlīṯ), also spelled Lilit, Lilitu, or Lilis,
is a feminine figure
in Mesopotamian and Jewish mythology, theorized to be the
first wife of Adam
and a primordial she-demon. Lilith is cited as having been "banished" from the Garden of Eden for not complying with and obeying Adam.
The original Hebrew word from which the name Lilith is taken is in the Biblical Hebrew, in the Book of Isaiah, though Lilith herself is not mentioned in any biblical text.
In late antiquityin Mandaean and Jewish sources from 500 AD onward, Lilith appears in historiolas(incantations incorporating a short mythic story) in various concepts and localities
that give partial descriptions of her.
She is mentioned in the Babylonian Talmud (Eruvin 100b, Niddah24b, Shabbat 151b, Bava Batra 73a),
in the Conflict of Adam and Eve with Satan
as Adam's first wife,
and in the Zohar § Leviticus 19a
as "a hot fiery female who first cohabited with man".
Many rabbinic authorities,
including Maimonides and Menachem Meiri,
reject the existence of Lilith.
The name Lilith stems from lilû, lilîtu, and (w)ardat lilî).
The Akkadian word lilû is related to the Hebrew word lilit appearing in Isaiah 34:14,
which is thought to be a night bird by some modern scholars such as Judit M. Blair
The spirit in the tree in the Gilgamesh
cycleSamuel Noah Kramer (1932, published 1938)[27] translated ki-sikil-lil-la-ke as "Lilith" in Tablet XII of the Epic of Gilgamesh dated c. 600 BC. Tablet XII is not part of the Epic of Gilgamesh, but is a later Assyrian Akkadian translation of the latter part of the Sumerian Epic of Gilgamesh.[28] The ki-sikil-lil-la-ke is associated with a serpent and a zu bird.[b] In Gilgamesh, Enkidu, and the Netherworld, a huluppu tree grows in Inanna's garden in Uruk, whose wood she plans to use to build a new throne. After ten years of growth, she comes to harvest it and finds a serpent living at its base, a Zu bird raising young in its crown, and that a ki-sikil-lil-la-ke made a house in its trunk. Gilgamesh is said to have killed the snake, and then the zu bird flew away to the mountains with its young, while the ki-sikil-lil-la-ke fearfully destroys its house and runs for the forest.[29][30] Identification of the ki-sikil-lil-la-keas Lilith is stated in the Dictionary of Deities and Demons in the Bible (1999).
According to a new source from late antiquity,
Lilith appears in a Mandaeanmagic story
where she is considered to represent the
branches of a tree
with other demonic figures that form other
parts of the tree,
though this may also include multiple
"Liliths".
Suggested translations for the Tablet XII
spirit in the tree include
ki-sikil as "sacred place", lil as "spirit", and lil-la-ke as "water spirit",
but also simply "owl",
given that the lil is building a home in
the trunk of the tree.
was rejected on textual grounds by Sergio Ribichini (1978).
,וּפָגְשׁוּ צִיִּים אֶת-אִיִּים, וְשָׂעִיר עַל-רֵעֵהוּ יִקְרָא; אַךְ-שָׁם הִרְגִּיעָה לִּילִית, וּמָצְאָה לָהּ מָנוֹח
up̄āḡəšu ṣiyyim eṯ-ʾiyyim, wəśāʿir ʿal-rēʿēhu yiqrā; ʾaḵ-šam hirgiʿā liliṯ, umāṣʾā lāh mānoḥ
34:14 "And shall-meet wildcats with jackals
the goat he-calls his- fellow
lilit (lilith) she-rests and she-finds rest
34:15 there she-shall-nest the great-owl, and she-lays-(eggs),
and
she-hatches, and she-gathers under her-shadow:
hawks
[kites, gledes] also they-gather, every one with its mate.
At the Last Supper,
Jesus warned Simon Peter that a
test of faith was coming:
“Simon, Simon!
Indeed, Satan has asked for you,
that he may sift you as wheat”
(Luke 22:31, NKJV).
The outspoken disciple seemed to be in the same predicament as Job when Satan sought to put him to the test (Job 1—2). Satan wanted to “sift Peter as wheat,” which means that he wished to shake Peter’s faith so forcefully that he would fall, proving that God’s faithful servant was lacking.
It was not just Peter who was in danger, though. The word for “you” in Luke 22:31 is plural. Jesus was speaking to Peter, informing him that Satan had his sights set on all the disciples. Some translations, such as the Berean Standard Bible, specify the whole group: “Simon, Simon, Satan has asked to sift each of you like wheat.”
The name Satan means “adversary” or “accuser.” He accuses God’s people of doing wrong (Zechariah 3:1; Revelation 12:10). As Peter would later testify, the devil “prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour” (1 Peter 5:8).
Sift as wheat is a metaphor that could also be expressed as “shake someone apart” or “break a person down.” Amos 9:9 gives us a similar image of God shaking Israel: “For I will give the command and will shake Israel along with the other nations as grain is shaken in a sieve, yet not one true kernel will be lost” (NLT).
In biblical times, wheat or other grain was sifted through a sieve or large strainer. As it was shaken violently, the dirt and other impurities that clung to the grain during the threshing process would separate from the good, usable grain.
In sifting Peter and the other disciples as wheat, Satan’s goal was to crush them and wreck their faith. In truth, the adversary wants to destroy the faith of every believer (John 10:10). But Jesus assured Peter, “I have pleaded in prayer for you, Simon, that your faith should not fail. So when you have repented and turned to me again, strengthen your brothers” (Luke 22:32, NLT). Peter’s leadership role in the early church proved that the Lord’s prayer for Peter was answered.
Jesus did not promise to remove Peter’s impending test. On the contrary, He predicted that Peter would fail the test by denying Christ three times (Luke 22:34). Trials are to be expected in the Christian life. “We must go through many hardships to enter the kingdom of God,” say the missionaries in Acts 14:22. God uses these experiences for our good (Romans 8:28), to refine our character and strengthen our faith (1 Peter 1:6–7; James 1:2–4,12), and to make us more like Jesus (Romans 8:29).
Whenever we do experience a test, Jesus is with us to strengthen us and intercede for us (Philippians 4:13; Romans 8:26–39). In challenging times, it’s reassuring to remember that Satan’s power to sift Peter as wheat was limited by Christ’s intercession. When Satan comes after us, we should remember that Jesus Christ always lives to intercede for us (Hebrews 7:25).
Jesus was confident that Simon Peter would get back up again and go on to strengthen the other disciples. Another reason the Lord allows us to suffer through experiences of testing is so we can learn how to help others grow in faith: “Even when we are weighed down with troubles, it is for your comfort and salvation! For when we ourselves are comforted, we will certainly comfort you. Then you can patiently endure the same things we suffer” (2 Corinthians 1:6, NLT).
Before Peter’s threefold denial, he was overconfident, trusting in his own strength (Luke 22:33). But after being sifted like wheat, Peter learned that failure is possible because the flesh is weak (see Mark 14:38). Now that he understood how easy it is to fall, Peter would have compassion and mercy for others while helping them avoid the same mistake.
Our true faith and perseverance are revealed not in a walk of sinless perfection but in repentance and restoration. We get up and keep going, like Peter, after we fall. When Satan comes to sift us as wheat, we have an advocate, Jesus Christ, who intercedes for us (John 17:9, 11, 15). He will protect us so that the devil can never destroy our faith and hope (John 10:27–28; Hebrews 7:25).
Jesus Christ began a good work in us, and He is faithful to complete it (Philippians 1:6).
Jesus had just finished explaining to the disciples the meaning of the Parable of the Wheat and the Tares, and these two short parables are a continuance of His discussion of the “kingdom of heaven.” He expressed truths about the kingdom in three pairs of parables in Matthew 13: the seed and the sower (vv. 3-23) and the weeds in the field (vv. 24-30); the mustard seed (vv. 31-32) and the leaven (v. 33); and the hidden treasure (v. 44) and the pearl of great price (vv. 45-46).
The similarities of these two short parables make it clear they teach the same lesson--
the kingdom of heaven is of inestimable value. Both parables involve a man who sold all he had to possess the kingdom. The treasure and the pearl represent Jesus Christ and the salvation He offers. And while we cannot pay for salvation by selling all our worldly goods, once we have found the prize, we are willing to give up everything to possess it. But what is attained in exchange is so much more valuable that it is comparable to trading an ounce of trash for a ton of diamonds
(Philippians 3:7-9).
In both parables, the treasures are hidden, indicating that spiritual truth is missed by many and cannot be found by intelligence or power or worldly wisdom.
Matthew 13:11-17 and 1 Corinthians 2:7-8, 14 make it clear that the mysteries of the kingdom are hidden from some who are unable to hear, see, and comprehend these
truths.
The disobedient reap the natural consequences of their unbelief—spiritual blindness. Those whose eyes are opened by the Spirit do discern spiritual truth, and they, like the men in the parable, understand its great value.
Notice that the merchant stopped seeking pearls
when he found
the pearl of great price.
Eternal life, the incorruptible inheritance,
and the love of God through Christ
constitute the pearl which,
once found, makes further searching unnecessary.
Christ fulfills our greatest needs,
satisfies our longings, makes us whole and
clean before God,
calms and quiets our hearts, and gives us hope for the future.
The “great price,” of course, is that which was paid by
Christ for our redemption.
He emptied Himself of His glory,
came to earth in the form of a lowly man and
shed His precious blood
on the cross to pay the penalty for our sins.
And I heard what seemed to be a voice in the midst of the four living creatures, saying, "A quart of wheat for a denarius, and three quarts of barley for a denarius, and do not harm the oil and wine!"
Mary, full of grace" is a phrase from the Hail Mary prayer
that refers to the
Virgin Mary's state of being filled with God's presence and free of sin.
- Roman Catholics use the phrase to prove that Mary was born without original sin, or immaculately conceived.
- Pope Francis has said that Mary is full of grace because she is filled with God's presence and there is no room for sin within her.
- The angel Gabriel told Mary she was "full of grace" to acknowledge that she was filled with God's presence.
- The phrase "full of grace" is a translation of the Greek phrase pleres charitos, which comes from the verb charitoo
- meaning "to give grace".
- The phrase has also been translated as "graced one", "highly graced", or "highly favored".
The Hail Mary prayer includes the line "Mary, full of grace". The full prayer is:
- "Hail Mary, full of grace, the Lord is with thee. Blessed art thou amongst women and blessed is the fruit of thy womb. Jesus Holy Mary Mother of God pray for us sinners now and at the hour of our death. Amen".
-
a pure heart, separated unto God.
Paul writes
“A Jew is one inwardly, and circumcision is a
matter of the heart,
by the Spirit, not by the letter.”
These words conclude a sometimes confusing passage of Scripture regarding circumcision and the Christian. Verses 25-29 provide context:
“For circumcision indeed is of value if you obey the law, but if you break the law, your circumcision becomes uncircumcision. So, if a man who is uncircumcised keeps the precepts of the law, will not his uncircumcision be regarded as circumcision? Then he who is physically uncircumcised but keeps the law will condemn you who have the written code and circumcision but break the law.
For no one is a Jew who is merely one outwardly, nor is circumcision outward and physical.
But a Jew is one inwardly, and circumcision is a
matter of the heart, by the Spirit,
not by the letter. His praise is not from man
but from God.”
Paul is discussing the role of the Old Testament Law as it relates to Christianity. He argues that Jewish circumcision is only an outward sign of being set apart to God. However, if the heart is sinful, then physical circumcision is of no avail. A circumcised body and a sinful heart are at odds with each other. Rather than focus on external rites, Paul focuses on the condition of the heart. Using circumcision as a metaphor, he says that only the Holy Spirit can purify a heart and set us apart to God. Ultimately, circumcision cannot make a person right with God; the Law is not enough. A person’s heart must change. Paul calls this change “circumcision of the heart.”
This concept was not original with the apostle Paul. As a Jew trained in the Law of Moses, he was certainly aware of this discussion from Deuteronomy 30. There, the Lord used the same metaphor to communicate His desire for a holy people: “And the LORD your God will circumcise your heart and the heart of your offspring, so that you will love the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul, that you may live” (Deuteronomy 30:6). Physical circumcision was a sign of Israel’s covenant with God; circumcision of the heart, therefore, would indicate Israel’s being set apart to love God fully, inside and out.
John the Baptist warned the Pharisees against taking pride in their physical heritage and boasting in their circumcision: “
Do not think you can say to yourselves,
'We have Abraham as our father.'
I tell you that out of these stones God can raise up children for Abraham”
(Matthew 3:9).
True “children of Abraham” are those who follow Abraham’s example of believing God (Genesis 15:6).
Physical circumcision does not make one a child of God; faith does. Believers in Jesus Christ can truly say they are children of “Father Abraham.
” “If you belong to Christ, then you are Abraham’s seed, and heirs according to the promise”
(Galatians 3:29).
God has always wanted more from His people than just external conformity to a set of rules. He has always wanted them to possess a heart to love, know, and follow Him. That’s why God is not concerned with a circumcision of the flesh. Even in the Old Testament, God’s priority was a spiritual circumcision of the heart: “Circumcise yourselves to the LORD, circumcise your hearts, you men of Judah and people of Jerusalem, or my wrath will break out and burn like fire because of the evil you have done” (Jeremiah 4:4).
Both Testaments focus on the
need for repentance and inward change in order
to be right with God.
In Jesus, the Law has been fulfilled (Matthew 5:17).
Through Him, a person can be made right with God and receive eternal life
(John 3:16; Ephesians 2:8-9).
As Paul said,
true circumcision
is a matter of the heart, performed
by the Spirit of God.
Having the mind of Christ means we understand God’s plan in the world—to bring glory to Himself, restore creation to its original splendor, and provide salvation for sinners.
It means we identify with Christ’s purpose “to seek and to save what was lost” (Luke 19:10). It means we share Jesus’ perspective of humility and obedience (Philippians 2:5-8), compassion (Matthew 9:36), and prayerful dependence on God (Luke 5:16).
In the verses leading up to 1 Corinthians 2:16, we note some truths concerning
the mind of Christ:
1) The mind of Christ stands in sharp contrast to the wisdom of man (verses 5-6).
2) The mind of Christ involves wisdom from God, once hidden but now revealed (verse 7).
3) The mind of Christ is given to believers through the Spirit of God (verses 10-12).
4) The mind of Christ cannot be understood by those without the Spirit (verse 14).
5) The mind of Christ gives believers discernment in spiritual matters (verse 15).
In order to have the mind of Christ, one must first have
saving faith in Christ
(John 1:12; 1 John 5:12).
After salvation
, the believer lives a life under God’s influence.
The Holy Spirit indwells
and enlightens the believer,
infusing him with wisdom—the mind of Christ.
The believer bears a
responsibility to yield to the Spirit’s leading
(Ephesians 4:30) and to allow
the Spirit
to transform and renew his mind
(Romans 12:1-2).
A servant
is someone who carries out the
will of another.
The Servant of the Lord fulfills
God’s will
and is often presented in Scripture
as someone chosen
by God
to hold a leadership position,
to represent Him,
and to
accomplish a certain divine work.
In the Bible, the term Servant of the Lord has been applied to individual people, certain groups of people, the nation of Israel, and the Messiah, who is identified as Jesus Christ in the New Testament.
The book of Isaiah contains four “Servant Songs” describing the Servant of the Lord. The first is found in Isaiah 42:1–9; the second in Isaiah 49:1–13; the third in Isaiah 50:4–11; and the fourth in Isaiah 52:13 through 53:12. In Jewish tradition, the Servant of the Lord in all four passages refers to the nation of Israel. In the final Servant Song of Isaiah 53, a singular pronoun he is used for the Servant of the Lord. Rabbis understand this singular pronoun to be a collective reference to a faithful remnant of Israel, a personification treating the group as one person.
The New Testament clearly identifies the Servant of the Lord in Isaiah
as our Savior,
Jesus Christ of Nazareth.
This unique Servant
takes a preeminent
place
above all others in Scripture.
This perfect Servant
never fails
to accomplish the will
of the Lord
and the purposes of God
(John 17:5).
The final Servant Song (Isaiah 53)
is about
an innocent Suffering Servant
who dies in place of the guilty.
That passage foretells the
life, ministry, death, and resurrection
of Jesus Christ.
Isaiah 53:3 says about
the Servant of the Lord, “He was despised and rejected by mankind, a man of suffering, and familiar with pain. Like one from whom people hide their faces he was despised, and we held him in low esteem.” Jesus was despised by the religious people of His day and rejected as their Messiah.
Jesus Christ, the Servant of the Lord, was “pierced for our transgressions, he was crushed for our iniquities; the punishment that brought us peace was on him, and by his wounds we are healed
” (Isaiah 53:5).
In giving His life for us,
“he was oppressed and afflicted, yet he did not open his mouth;
he was led like a lamb to the slaughter,
and as a sheep before its shearers is silent, so he did not open his mouth”
(verse 7).
At His trial, Jesus did not defend Himself but remained silent against His accusers. He suffered and died in the place of guilty sinners. The sins of all people were placed upon Him, the sacrificial Lamb of God. Jesus paid the price for our salvation. These are just a few of many details in Isaiah 53 that point to Jesus Christ as the fulfillment of messianic prophecy
(Matthew 8:17; Luke 22:37; John 12:38; Acts 8:32–33; Romans 10:16; 1 Peter 2:22, 24–25).
When God the Son came
to earth,
He took on the role of
a servant.
The Creator chose to serve His creatures. Jesus said that He had come
“to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many” (Matthew 20:28).
In the book of Acts, the word servant is applied to Jesus four times in connection with His death (Acts 3:13, 26; 4:27, 30 ).
The humility of Jesus, the Servant of the Lord,
is unmistakably seen in Philippians 2:7–8: “
He gave up his divine privileges;
he took the humble position of a slave and was
born as a human being.
When he appeared in human form, he
humbled himself in obedience to God
and died a criminal’s death on a cross”
(NLT).
While Jesus the Messiah is the ultimate fulfillment of prophecies concerning the Servant of the Lord, the Bible also applies the title to others. In the Old Testament, God describes about fifteen different individuals as “My servant” or “the servant of the Lord.”
The patriarchs are often named as servants of the Lord: “Remember your servants Abraham, Isaac and Israel, to whom you swore by your own self: ‘I will make your descendants as numerous as the stars in the sky and I will give your descendants all this land I promised them, and it will be their inheritance forever’” (Exodus 32:13; see also Genesis 18:3; 32:10; Deuteronomy 9:27; 1 Chronicles 16:13; Psalm 105:6). God called Job His servant: “Then the LORD said to Satan, ‘Have you considered my servant Job?’” (Job 1:8; cf. 2:3 and 42:7–8).
Moses is repeatedly called the servant of the Lord: “And Moses the servant of the LORD died there in Moab, as the LORD had said” (Deuteronomy 34:5; see also Exodus 14:31; Numbers 12:7–8; Joshua 1:1–2; Nehemiah 1:7–8; Malachi 4:4). Significantly, Moses told the people that “the LORD your God will raise up for you a prophet like me from among you, from your fellow Israelites. You must listen to him” (Deuteronomy 18:15). This messianic prophecy was fulfilled in Jesus, who, like Moses, was “the servant of the Lord” but in an even greater way (see Acts 3:22 and Hebrews 3:3).
The Bible describes leaders like Caleb, Joshua, and Samson as servants of the Lord (Numbers 14:24; Joshua 5:14; 24:29; Judges 2:8; 15:18). David, Solomon, and Hezekiah are kings referred to as the Lord’s servants (Psalm 89:20; 1 Samuel 23:11; 2 Samuel 7:5; 1 Chronicles 17:4; 1 Kings 3:7–9; 14:8; 2 Chronicles 32:16). Prophets such as Ahijah, Elijah, Jonah, and Isaiah are also called servants of the Lord (1 Kings 14:18; 18:36; 2 Kings 14:25; Isaiah 20:3).
Samuel’s mother, Hannah, describes herself as a servant of the Lord in 1 Samuel 1:11. Zerubbabel, governor of Judah, is described as a servant of the Lord in Haggai 2:23. Even the pagan kings Nebuchadnezzar and Cyrus are named among the servants of the Lord in that they fulfilled the purposes of God (Jeremiah 25:9; 43:10; Isaiah 45:1).
Groups referred to as servants of the Lord in the Bible are the people of Israel (Isaiah 41:8–9; 43:10; Leviticus 25:42,55; Nehemiah 1:6,10; Jeremiah 30:10–11; 46:27–28; Luke 1:54), the priests (Exodus 28:1, 41; Leviticus 7:35; Numbers 18:7), the Levites (Deuteronomy 18:7; 1 Chronicles 23:28–31; Ezra 6:18; Ezekiel 44:11), and the prophets (Jeremiah 7:25; 29:19; 44:4; Ezekiel 38:17; Daniel 9:6; Amos 3:7; Zechariah 1:6; Matthew 21:34–36; Mark 12:2–5; Luke 20:10–12; Revelation 10:7). Other nations are also called the Lord’s servants on occasion (Psalm 72:11; Isaiah 56:6; Zephaniah 3:9).
In the New Testament, several believers define themselves or are named by God as servants of the Lord. They include Mary the mother of Jesus (Luke 1:38, 48), Simeon (Luke 2:29), Paul (Acts 27:2; Romans 1:1; Ephesians 3:1), James (James 1:1), Simon Peter (2 Peter 1:1), Jude (Jude 1), and John (Revelation 1:1). All of these servants are simply following the example of the ultimate Servant of the Lord, Jesus Christ.
Who is the pure woman of Revelation?
Is the woman of Revelation 12 the holy spirit?
Who is the woman in Revelation 17 4?
Who is the evil woman in Revelation?
Who is the woman in Revelation?
Is Lilith and Mary the same person?
Who is the wife in Revelation?
What color is scarlet in the Bible?
Who is the purple woman in the Bible?
Who is the woman in Revelations 18?
The Woman of the Apocalypse
(or the woman clothed with the sun, Greek: γυνὴ περιβεβλημένη τὸν ἥλιον; Latin: Mulier amicta sole)
is a figure–often considered to be a reference to
the Virgin Mary
in Catholic theology–described in
Chapter 12
of the Book of Revelation
(written c. AD 95).
The woman gives birth to a male child who is threatened by a dragon, identified as the Deviland Satan, who intends to devour the child as soon as he is born. When the child is taken to heaven, the woman flees on eagle’s wings into the wilderness at a "place prepared of God" for 1,260 days.
This leads
to a "War in Heaven"
in which
the angels cast out
the dragon.
The dragon attacks the woman,
but the woman
escapes on her wings
for "a time, times and a time and a half".
The dragon then attacks her again with a
flood of water from his mouth,
which is subsequently swallowed
by earth.
Frustrated, the dragon
initiates war
on "the remnant of her seed",
identified as the
righteous
followers of Christ
The Woman of the Apocalypse
is widely
identified as
the
Virgin Mary
Paul, in his prayers “for saints who are in Ephesus, and are
faithful in Christ Jesus”
(Ephesians 1:1, ESV)
, asks that God “may give
you the
Spirit of wisdom and revelation,
so that
you may know him better”
(verse 17).
Prior to his prayer for the spirit of wisdom and revelation, Paul reminds the Ephesian believers of the blessings God has bestowed upon them (Ephesians 1:3), their adoption as children through Christ (verse 4), the wisdom and insight they have been given (verse 8), and “the mystery of his will according to his good pleasure, which he purposed in Christ” (verse 9). He also reminds them that they have been “marked in him with a seal, the promised Holy Spirit, who is a deposit guaranteeing our inheritance” (verses 13–14). Now he desires for them to be given the spirit of wisdom and revelation.
Since Christians receive the promised Holy Spirit at the moment of salvation (John 14:17), the spirit of wisdom and revelation that Paul prays for cannot refer to the initial gift of the Holy Spirit. Paul’s reference could easily be to an attitude or frame of mind (although the NIV and ESV capitalize Spirit, other translations such as the NASB and BSB translate it as “a spirit,” and the NLT simply has “spiritual wisdom and insight”). If not the Holy Spirit, then what does Paul ask for in his request for “the spirit of wisdom and revelation”? The key is in the phrase that follows, “in the knowledge of him” (ESV), or “so that you may know him better” (NIV).
Paul had commended the Ephesians for their faith in the Lord Jesus and their love toward all the saints (Ephesians 1:15), but now he is asking God to give them a deeper and greater understanding of the mysteries of His character and will, to know Him more thoroughly and intimately. Now that they have the Holy Spirit in their hearts, Paul desires Him to grant them more understanding and greater insight. The “wisdom” is a better understanding of the doctrines of God, and the “revelation” is a clearer picture of the divine character and will. In the NLT, the prayer is that believers would have “spiritual wisdom and insight so that you might grow in your knowledge of God.” The AMP translation has Paul asking that God “may grant you a spirit of wisdom and of revelation [that gives you a deep and personal and intimate insight] into the true knowledge of Him.”
God is infinite, and He can never be fully known by finite creatures. We all need wisdom from above. No matter how far we may advance in our understanding of God, there is an unfathomed depth of knowledge that remains to be explored. Scripture is full of admonitions to grow in our knowledge of Christ (2 Peter 3:18; 1 Peter 2:2; Ephesians 4:15).
Paul outlines some of the mysteries he wants the Ephesians to understand through this spirit of wisdom and revelation. He desires them to grasp “the hope to which he has called you, the riches of his glorious inheritance” (Ephesians 1:18). This is the hope of eternal life, which Paul refers to as the “upward call of God in Christ Jesus” (Philippians 3:14, ESV). We inherit the riches of eternal life through Him who saved us and called us to holiness in Christ before time began (2 Timothy 1:9).
Paul also prays the Spirit will reveal God’s
“incomparably great power for us who believe”
Ephesians 1:19)--power so great it raised Jesus from the dead.
It’s a power that we can only comprehend
as we possess
the spirit of wisdom and revelation.
it is the work
of the Holy Spirit to help
the people of God
understand the things
of God more
fully and completely.
Revelation 19:10
makes
a bold statement regarding
the relationship
between prophecy and
Jesus Christ:
“The testimony of Jesus
is the
spirit of prophecy”
(NKJV).
The book of Revelation is a book of prophecy given by Jesus Christ to His servant John (Revelation 1:1). The term revelation refers to a revealing or the making known of something that was previously unknown. Revelation is like pulling back a veil to show what’s behind it or unwrapping a present to see what’s inside.
What is prophecy, then? Simply put, prophecy is communication from God to mankind. Some prophecy can be speaking of future events, and other prophecy might not be. Prophets were utilized as a mouthpiece for God—they listened to God and then conveyed God’s message to the masses. Some examples of prophets are Elijah, Isaiah, Moses, and Jonah.
In the context of Revelation 19:10, John has seen the fall of the evil world system called Babylon the Great(Revelation 18). A great multitude in heaven is celebrating and singing praise to God because of that judgment (Revelation 19:1–3) and because it is now time for the wedding supper of the Lamb (verses 6–8). An angel says to John, “Blessed are those who are invited to the wedding supper of the Lamb!” (Revelation 19:9). At this proclamation, John falls to worship at the feet of the angel who is communicating this prophecy, but the angel insists John rise to his feet, for he is but “a fellow servant” (Revelation 19:10; cf. Colossians 2:18).
In response to John’s wrongful worship, the angel says, “See that you do not do that! . . . Worship God! For the testimony of Jesus is the spirit of prophecy” (Revelation 19:10, NKJV). It is critical to understand that this statement is a response to John’s intention to worship the angel. Because of the construction of the clause in the original language (Greek), there are three common understandings of the testimony of Jesus is the spirit of prophecy:
1. Jesus is the substance of all prophecy, or, put another way, Jesus is the common theme among all prophecy.
2. All true prophecy bears witness about Jesus. Therefore, all prophecy should cause us to worship Him alone.
3. The message or testimony given by Jesus is the essence of true prophecy. Jesus is the Word, and no prophecy comes to us except through Him, ultimately pointing to God as the source of all true prophecy.
The NIV translates the angel’s statement as “It is the Spirit of prophecy who bears testimony to Jesus.” The NLT’s wording is “The essence of prophecy is to give a clear witness for Jesus.” The wording of both these translations prefers one of the first two interpretations, above. The third interpretation, however, seems to fit best within the context of Revelation 19:10. John is not to worship the angel but God alone. Since John was worshiping the angel in response to the prophecy given, the angel ensures that John understands Jesus is the source of the communication and He alone is worthy of the worship (cf. Luke 4:8; Acts 14:11–15).
Following the angel’s command to John, we ought to worship God alone. We are to worship not the purveyor of the message but the Source of the message. While God has made many beautiful things, such as angels, He is alone worthy of our praise (cf. John 17:3; 1 Timothy 1:17; 6:15; 1 Samuel 7:4).
Revelation 12:10 calls Satan the “accuser of our brothers and sisters, who accuses them before our God day and night.” The context of the verse describes a cosmic battlebetween a great red dragon (identified as Satan in Revelation 12:7) and
the angelic hosts of heaven.
The dragon
is hurled to the earth (Revelation 12:9),
the authority of the Messiah
is locked in place (verse 10), and the
believers are victorious:
“And they overcame him by the blood of the Lamb and by the
word of their testimony,
and they did not love their lives to the death”
(Revelation 12:11, NKJV).
During the tribulation of the end times, Satan’s wrath against God’s’ people, especially Israel (the “woman” of Revelation 12) will intensify. But the believers are promised to overcome. Dr. Charles Ryrie comments on Revelation 12:11: “The believer’s defense against Satan is (1) to bank on the merits of the death of Christ, (2) to be active in witnessing, and (3) to be willing to make any sacrifice, including death” (The Ryrie Study Bible, Moody Press, 1978, p. 1,801).
Down through the centuries, the “great dragon” Satan has despised the mercy, love, grace, and forgiveness that God pours out on believers in Jesus Christ. With relentless, evil determination, the devil hounds us, fixated on destroying our walk with God and chasing us back into a spiritual prison. But, day by day, night by night, believers always overcome him “by the blood of the Lamb” (Revelation 12:11).
Satan’s tireless goal in the life of every Christian is to prevent, disrupt, and cut off his or her relationship with God. He “prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour” (1 Peter 5:8). But the devil’s only real power over believers is to throw our sins and transgressions in our faces. He is the accuser. Thankfully, the sacrifice of Christ has effectively dealt with the problem. It is the blood of Jesus Christ—the blood of the Lamb—that redeems people, setting them free from slavery to sin and Satan’s control.
Scripture gives us vivid pictures of Christ’s redemptive work on the cross.
Peter explains that “God paid a ransom” to save us from our old empty way of life. “
And it was not paid with mere gold or silver, which lose their value. It was the precious blood of Christ, the sinless, spotless Lamb of God”
1 Peter 1:18–19, NLT
The tribulation saints will
have
“washed their robes and made
them white
in the blood of the Lamb”
(Revelation 7:14).
When Jesus Christ died, His precious blood “
purchased for God persons from
every tribe
and language and people and nation”
Revelation 5:9
Jesus’ blood was
poured
out “for the forgiveness of sins”
Matthew 26:28),
and
it “purifies us from all sin” (1 John 1:7)
Satan tries to condemn us, but we
overcome by
the blood of the Lamb. “
There is now no condemnation for those
who are in Christ Jesus,
because through Christ Jesus
the law of the Spirit
who gives life has set you free from the
law of sin and death
” (Romans 8:1–2).
Jesus freed us from the spiritual chains of sin
John 8:35–36; Romans 6:17–22
The next time Satan tries to hurl past failures in your face, remember that
“God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him.
Whoever believes in him is not condemned”
(John 3:17–18).
All believers—past, present and future—overcome the accuser by the blood of the Lamb.
Jesus Christ’s death is the definitive basis for our victory over the enemy of our souls.
The apostle Paul asks,
“Who dares accuse us
whom God has chosen for his own?
No one—for God himself
has given us right standing with himself.
Who then will condemn us?
No one—for Christ Jesus died
for us and was raised to life for us, and
he is sitting in the place of honor
at God’s right
hand, pleading for us”
Romans 8:33–34, NLT
Despite everything in the devil’s arsenal that he can throw at us, “in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us” (Romans 8:37).
Paul tells the Colossians, “For you were buried with Christ when you were baptized. And with him you were raised to new life because you trusted the mighty power of God, who raised Christ from the dead. You were dead because of your sins and because your sinful nature was not yet cut away. Then God made you alive with Christ, for he forgave all our sins. He canceled the record of the charges against us and took it away by nailing it to the cross. In this way, he disarmed the spiritual rulers and authorities. He shamed them publicly by his victory over them on the cross. So don’t let anyone condemn you” (Colossians 2:12–16, NLT).
We must not allow the devil to deceive us with
lies and accusations.
Every charge he can bring against us is canceled,
nailed to the cross,
and overcome by the blood of the Lamb.
It may seem
strange that, in Revelation 12, a raging dragon
is overcome by a slain lamb.
Lambs
are not usually seen as dragon-slayers.
But such is the power and efficacy of
the death of Christ.
Because of Christ’s shed blood on the cross,
sin has lost its grip on us.
Whenever Satan accuses us,
we can sing,
“My chains are gone; I’ve been set free.”
Isaiah 49 speaks of a time of blessing for Israel. There is some difficulty in interpreting this passage because at times it seems that Israel is being addressed, and at other times it seems that a single person is being addressed.
This person will help bring blessing back to Israel,
so he must therefore
be distinguished in some way from Israel.
In Isaiah 49:3, God addresses Israel
: “You are my servant, Israel, in whom I will display my splendor.”
However, by verse 6, the one addressed
is an
individual
called the
Servant of the Lord,
and
He will also restore Israel:
“It is too small a thing for you to be
my servant
to restore the tribes of Jacob
and bring
back those of Israel I have kept.
I will also
make you a light for the Gentiles,
that my
salvation may reach to the ends
of the earth.”
From the context it is clear that “a light for the Gentiles” in Isaiah 49:6
is parallel to
‘my salvation . . . to the ends to the ends of the earth.”
The light is spiritual light,
corresponding to God’s “splendor” in verse 3.
The ends of the earth are the Gentile nations--
the people who
live everywhere other than Israel.
The question is, how does Israel do this? How do they
act as a
light to the Gentiles?
Certainly, if Israel had been loyal to the Lord, other nations would have taken notice and perhaps been drawn to the Lord (see Deuteronomy 4:6). But that did not happen. So Isaiah speaks of a new situation. The Servant who is identified with Israel but also distinguished from Israel be the light instead. This is somewhat mysterious. However, this makes sense if the king of Israel is the one in view. The king is the representative of Israel, yet he is distinguished from Israel. He can do things for Israel but can also do things as Israel.
But Isaiah does not reveal this king’s identity.
In the New Testament,
the identity of the Servant,
the King,
and the
Messiah is revealed
in reference to the Isaiah passage:
“Now there was a man in Jerusalem, whose name was Simeon, and this man was righteous and devout, waiting for the consolation of Israel, and the Holy Spirit was upon him. And it had been revealed to him by the Holy Spirit that he would not see death before he had seen the Lord’s Christ.
And he came in the Spirit into the temple, and when the parents brought in the child Jesus, to do for him according to the custom of the Law, he took him up in his arms and blessed God and said, ‘Lord, now you are letting your servant depart in peace, according to your word; for my eyes have seen your salvation that you have prepared in the presence of all peoples, a light for revelation to the Gentiles, and for glory to your people Israel’” (Luke 2:25–32, ESV).
According to Simeon under the influence of the Holy Spirit, it is Jesus, the King of Israel, who is the glory of Israel and a light to the Gentiles.
Matthew 4:12–16 also applies to Jesus a similar idea from another passage in Isaiah:
“Leaving Nazareth, he went and lived in Capernaum, which was by the lake in
the area of Zebulun and Naphtali—to fulfill what was said through the prophet Isaiah:
“‘Land of Zebulun and land of Naphtali, the Way of the Sea,
beyond the Jordan, Galilee of the Gentiles—the people living in darkness have seen a great light; on those living in the land of the shadow of death a light has dawned’” (Isaiah 9:1–2).
Galilee, both in the time of Isaiah and in the time of Christ, had a large Gentile population. By preaching there, Jesus was bringing light to the Gentiles.
Furthermore, Paul applies Isaiah 49:6 to himself and Barnabas as representatives of the King and preachers of the gospel. On the first missionary journey, they were rejected by the Jewish population in Pisidian Antioch: “On the following Sabbath, nearly the whole city gathered to hear the word of the Lord. But when the Jews saw the crowds, they were filled with jealousy, and they blasphemously contradicted what Paul was saying.
“Then Paul and Barnabas answered them boldly: ‘It was necessary to speak the word of God to you first. But since you reject it and do not consider yourselves worthy of eternal life, we now turn to the Gentiles. For this is what the Lord has commanded us:
“I have made you a
light
for the Gentiles,
to bring salvation
to the
ends of the earth.”’
“When the Gentiles heard this, they rejoiced and glorified the word of the Lord, and all who were appointed for eternal life believed. And the word of the Lord spread throughout that region” (Acts 13:44–49, BSB).
Thus, Paul and Barnabas,
as Israelites and authorized representatives of
the King of Israel,
were also a fulfillment of Isaiah 49:6.
In summary,
Israel is a light
to the nations because Jesus,
as the King of Israel,
provided
salvation for the nations (Gentiles)
and then
authorized His representatives
to spread the
good news throughout the world
(see Matthew 28:18–20 and Acts 1:8).
The Mount of Transfiguration
is the mountain upon which Jesus was transfigured (Matthew 17, Mark 9, Luke 9).
The actual location of the mountain is unknown.
In Matthew 16, Jesus tells the disciples that He will be killed and raised to life (verse 21).
Peter rebukes Him: “Never, Lord!” he says. “This shall never happen to you!” (verse 22). Jesus has to rebuke Peter and goes on to explain that whoever will be His disciple must “take up his cross,” that is, be willing to die also. In the final verse of chapter 16, Jesus makes a rather enigmatic statement: “
Truly I tell you, some who are standing here will not taste death before they see the
Son of Man coming in his kingdom”
(see also Luke 9:27).
In the next event recorded in Matthew and Luke, Jesus takes Peter, James, and John with Him up to a “high mountain.” This unnamed mountain is what we call the Mount of Transfiguration today, because of what takes place next: “There he was transfigured before them. His face shone like the sun, and his clothes became as white as the light. Just then there appeared before them Moses and Elijah, talking with Jesus” (Matthew 17:2–3).
The transfiguration of Jesus on the mountain is significant, for it gave those three disciples a glimpse of the glory that Jesus had before the Incarnation and that He would have again. Perhaps it was also the fulfillment of Jesus’ prophecy that some of the disciples would see Him coming in the kingdom before they died
(Matthew 16:28).
What happened on the Mount of Transfiguration has parallels to what happened on Sinai.
Moses went up to a mountain to meet the Lord and came back with his face shining (Exodus 34)
. In the New Testament, Jesus goes up a mountain and meets with Moses; however, a voice from heaven makes it clear that Jesus is the primary character, not Moses: “While he was still speaking, a bright cloud covered them, and a voice from the cloud said, ‘This is my Son, whom I love; with him I am well pleased. Listen to him!’
When the disciples heard this, they fell facedown to the ground, terrified.
But Jesus came and touched them. ‘Get up,’ he said. ‘Don’t be afraid.’ When they looked up, they saw no one except Jesus”
(Matthew 17:5–8).
Just as the meeting on Sinai between Moses and the Lord signified
anew era
in God’s
dealing with His people,
so this
meeting between the Lord
and
Moses signifies
anew
era in redemption
history.
The “high mountain” that
we call the
Mount of Transfiguration
is never
clearly identified in Scripture.
Both
Mount Tabor and Mount Hermon
have been identified
as the
Mount of Transfiguration
by
various traditions.
Mount Tabor is a little less than 2,000 feet,
but it stands alone in the area.
The earliest tradition identifies Mount Tabor
as the
Mount of Transfiguration,
and it is the location of the
Church of the Transfiguration,
which is built
on the ruins of fourth-century church.
Mount Hermon is a much higher mountain, almost 10,000 feet, and it is closer to Caesarea Philippi where the previous events in Matthew 16 took place. For these reasons, some scholars feel that Mount Hermon is a more likely candidate to be the Mount of Transfiguration.
In the final analysis, we simply do not know what
mountain is the Mount of Transfiguration.
It could be Tabor or Hermon or another mountain that no one has suggested. The fact that the transfiguration happened on a mountain is an important point in the recapitulation of Moses’ meeting on Mount Sinai. However, the importance of the transfiguration is not bound to what mountain it occurred on.
Years later, Peter refers to this event: “
For we did not follow cleverly devised fables when we made known to you the power and coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, but we were eyewitnesses of His majesty.
For He received honor and glory from God the Father when the voice from the Majestic Glory came to Him, saying, ‘This is My beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased.’ And we ourselves heard this voice from heaven when we were with Him on the holy mountain”
(2 Peter 1:16–18).
The Coronation of Mary
is a
Christian art
subject and
Catholic feast day
that celebrates
Mary's role as Queen of Heaven.
In Christian art,
Christ places a crown on Mary's head,
sometimes with
God the Father and the Holy Spirit present.
In early versions
Heaven is depicted as an earthly court,
but later versions
show
Heaven as a place in the sky.
Feast day
The feast day
celebrates the same event that is part of the
fifth
glorious mystery of
the Rosary.
The title "Queen" indicates
Mary's final state,
seated next
to her Son,
the King of glory.
The Church has affirmed
Mary's title
of Queen
through documents
such as Lumen Gentium
and the
papal encyclical Ad Coeli Reginam.
Mary's coronation
is a sign
of
the honor Christ has given
his mother
May Crowning
is a celebration
that includes Marian
prayers
and processions to crown
Mary.
Transfiguration
Some scholars Jesus' transfiguration took
place on
Mount Hermon.
This event is described in the Bible
as when Jesus appeared
in his
true glory as the Son of God.
Caesarea Philippi
The city of
Caesarea Philippi was located
at the base of
Mount Hermon during Jesus'
time.
Peter declared Jesus to be
“the Christ,
the Son of the living God"
in this city.
Jesus told Peter
that the "gates of hell" would
not prevail over
the
church he was building
Mount Tabor
is located
in the Lower Galilee region
of northern Israel
It's about 15 km west of the
Sea of Galilee.
It's at the
eastern end of the Jezreel Valley.
Mount Tabor
has been important throughout history,
especially in Biblical times.
It's traditionally believed to be the place
where
Moses saw the Promised Land before
he died.
It's home to two churches: the
Roman Catholic Church of the Transfiguration
and the
Eastern Sanctuary of the Orthodox Church.
The New Testament accounts do not
Name
the
Mountain upon
which
The transfiguration occurred.
Mount Hermon
is another possible site.
Catholics observe
The Feast of the Transfiguration
As we approach the
great feast
of the Assumption of Mary, I,
having written a
post on the biblical evidence for
the Assumption of Mary,
thought I would change gears and
consider the
historical evidence for the Assumption
in honor
of this year’s feast day
The doctrine of the Assumption of Mary began with a historical event to which Scripture alludes and that been believed in the Church for 2,000 years.
It was passed down in the oral tradition of the Church and developed over the centuries, but it was always believed by the Catholic faithful. Let us examine the facts:
1. Archaeology has revealed two tombs of Mary, one in Jerusalem and one in Ephesus. The fact that Mary lived in both places explains the two tombs. But what is inexplicable apart from the Assumption is the fact that there is no body in either tomb. And there are no relics. Anyone who peruses early Church history knows that Christian belief in the communion of saints and the sanctity of the body—in radical contrast to the Gnostic disdain for “the flesh”—led early Christians to seek out with the greatest fervor relics from the bodies of great saints. Cities, and, later, religious orders, would fight over the bones of great saints.
This is one reason why we have relics of the apostles and so many of the greatest saints and martyrs in history. Yet never was there a single relic of Mary’s body? As revered as Mary was, this would be very strange, except for the fact of the assumption of her body.
2. On the historical front, Fr. Michael O’Carroll, in his book, Theotokos: A Theological Encyclopedia
of the
Blessed Virgin Mary,
writes:
We have known for some time that there were
widespread “Transitus Stories”
that date from the sixth century that
teach Mary’s glorious Assumption.
It was the promulgation of the dogma of the Assumption by Pope Pius XII that rekindled interest in these stories of the end of Mary’s life. In 1955, Fr. A.A. Wenger published L’Assomption (p. 59).
Fr. Wenger found a Greek manuscript that verified what scholars had previously believed to
be TRUE
Because there were whole families of manuscripts from different areas of the world in the sixth century that told a similar story of Mary’s Assumption, there had to be previous manuscripts from which everyone received their data. Fr. Wenger discovered one of these earlier manuscripts, believed to be the source later used
by John of Thessalonica in the sixth century in his teaching on the Assumption.
Fr. O’Carroll continues:
Some years later, M. Haibach-Reinisch added to the dossier an early version of Pseudo-Melito, the most influential text in use in the Latin Church. This could now, it was clear, be dated earlier than the sixth century. . . . V. Arras claimed to have found an Ethiopian version of it which he published in 1973; its similarity to the Irish text gave the latter new status. In the same year M. Van Esbroeck brought out a Gregorian version, which he had located in Tiflis, and another, a Pseudo-Basil, in the following year, found in Mount Athos.
Much still remains to be explored. The Syriac fragments have increased importance, being put as far back as the third century by one commentator. The whole story will eventually be placed earlier, probably in the second century.
This is significant. Recently discovered Syriac fragments of stories about the Assumption of Mary have been dated as early as the third century. And there are undoubtedly more manuscripts to be found. It must be remembered that when we are talking about these “Transitus stories,” we are not only talking about ancient manuscripts and fragments of manuscripts, but we are talking also about two different “families” of manuscripts written in nine languages. They all agree on Mary’s Assumption and they presuppose that the story was already widely known.
What about those who claim the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary is nothing more than a Gnostic fable? Or those who claim the historical narratives about the Assumption of Mary were condemned by Pope Gelasius I? James White, in his book
Mary—Another Redeemer?, goes so far as to claim:
Basically, the first appearance of the idea of the Bodily Assumption of Mary is found in a source that was condemned by the then-bishop of Rome, Gelasius I! The irony is striking: what was defined by the bishop of Rome as heresy at the end of the fifth century becomes dogma itself in the middle of the twentieth! (p. 54).
Mr. White’s reasoning fails for several reasons.
1. Even if it were a papal document, Decretum Gelasianumwould not be a “definition” by the bishop of Rome declaring the Assumption of Mary to be heresy, as White claims. The document does not make such an assertion. It gives us a rather long list of titles of apocryphal books after having listed the accepted books of the Bible. That’s all. One of these titles declared to be “apocryphal” is referred to as: “Liber qui appellatur ‘Transitus, id est Assumptio sanctae Mariae,’” which translates as “A book which is called, ‘
Having been taken up, that is, the Assumption of Holy Mary.’”
White evidently thought this document condemned as untrue the doctrine of the Assumption of Mary. But it did not. As a matter of history, this document does not condemn any doctrines in the books it lists at all;
it declares the books
themselves
to be apocryphal
and
therefore not part
of the
canon of Scripture
This would be something akin to the Church’s rejection of
The Assumption of Moses
and
The Book of Enoch
as
apocryphal works.
The fact that these works are apocryphal does not preclude St. Jude (9; 14) from quoting both of them in Sacred Scripture.
Because a work is declared apocryphal or even condemned does not mean that there is no truth at all to be found in it.
2. There is a real question among scholars today as to whether Pope Gelasius wrote what is popularly called the Dectretum Gelasianum. According to The Oxford Dictionary of the Christian Faith (p. 462), it was probably written in the sixth century (Pope Gelasius died in the late fifth century) in Italy or Gaul and was most likely not a papal work at all. In fact, it was falsely attributed to several different popes over the years.
3. If the pope had genuinely condemned the teaching of the Assumption, great saints and defenders of orthodoxy such as St. Gregory and later St. John Damascene would not have taught it. Further, we would have found other writers condemning this teaching as it became more and more popular throughout the world. And we certainly would not see the Assumption celebrated in the liturgy as we do as early as the fifth century in Palestine, Gaul in the sixth, universally in the East in the seventh century, and in the West in the eighth century. Far from a condemnation of the Assumption, this reveals just how widespread this teaching truly was.
Why Don’t the Earliest Fathers Write About the Assumption?
The most obvious reason would be that when Gnostics, who were some of the main enemies of the Faith in the early centuries of the Christian era, agreed with the Church on the matter, there would have been no need to defend the teaching.
In other words, there is no record of anyone disagreeing on the matter. We don’t find works from the earliest Fathers on Jesus’ celibacy either, but that too was most likely due to the universal agreement on the topic.
Much of early
Christian literature
was
apologetic in nature.
Like the New Testament,
it mostly
dealt with problem areas
in the Church
that
needed to be addressed.
Even so, it is not as though there is no written evidence to support the Assumption either. According to Fr. O’Carroll (Theotokos, 388), we now have what some believe to be a fourth-century homily on
the prophet Simeon and
the Blessed
Virgin Mary by Timothy,
a priest of Jerusalem,
which asserts Mary is
“immortal to the present time
through him
who had his abode in her
and who assumed
and raised her
above the higher regions.”
Evidently, there was disagreement in the circulating stories of the Assumption of Mary as to whether she was taken up alive or after having died. But whether or not she was assumed was not in question. Indeed, the Church even to this day has not decided definitively the matter of whether Mary died or not, though at the level of the Ordinary Magisterium it does teach that Mary died—for example, in Pope Pius XII’s Munificentissimus Deus, 17, 20, 21, 29, 35, 39, and 40.
Rethinking
St. EpiphaniusI believe St. Epiphanius’s work
needs to be reexamined
when it comes to the Assumption of Mary.
This great bishop
and defender of orthodoxy
may give us key insights into the
antiquity of the
Assumption,
writing in ca. A.D. 350.
In his classic Panarion (“breadbox”) or Refutation of All Heresies,
he includes eighty-eight sections dealing with scores
of the most dangerous heresies of his day.
In sections 78 and 79, he deals with one particular sect comprised mainly of women called the “Collyridians.” Evidently, this sect was “ordaining” women as “priestesses” and adoring
Mary as a goddess by offering sacrifice to her.
St. Epiphanius condemns this in the strongest of terms:
For I have heard in turn that others who are out of their minds on this subject of this holy Ever-virgin, have done their best and are doing their best, in the grip both of madness and of folly, to substitute her for God.
For they say that certain Thracian women there in Arabia have introduced this nonsense, and that
they bake a loaf in the name of the Ever-virgin, gather together, and attempt an excess and undertake a
forbidden, blasphemous act in the holy Virgin’s name,
and offer sacrifice
in her name
with women officiants.
This is entirely impious, unlawful, and different from
the Holy Spirit’s message,
and is thus pure devil’s work . . .
And nowhere was a woman a priest.
But I shall go to
the New Testament.
If it were ordained by God
that women should be priests or have
any canonical function in the
Church,
Mary herself, if anyone, should have
functioned
as a priest in the New Testament.
She was counted worthy to bear
the king
of all in her own womb,
the heavenly God, the Son of God.
Her womb became a temple,
and by
God’s kindness and an awesome
mystery,
was prepared
to be a dwelling place of the
Lord’s human nature.
But it was not God’s pleasure that
she be a priest.
These women who were adoring
Mary
as if she were a goddess would no doubt have
been well acquainted with
the “Transitus Stories”
and would have been
teaching Mary’s Assumption.
In fact, it appears
they were teaching Mary
never died at all.
This would be in keeping with
John of Thessalonica,
Timothy of Jerusalem,
and others
who taught this among Christians.
However, these women were taking Mary and the Assumption to the extreme by worshiping her. What is interesting here is that in the midst of condemning the Collyridians, St. Epiphanius gives us, in section 79 of Panarion, a point-blank statement that is overlooked today by many:
Like the bodies of the saints, however, she has been held in honor for her character and understanding. And if I should say anything more in her praise, she is like Elijah, who was virgin from his mother’s womb, always remained so, and was taken up, but has not seen death.
St. Epiphanius clearly indicates his personal agreement with the idea that
Mary was assumed into heaven without ever having died.
He will elsewhere clarify the fact that he is not certain, and no one is, at least not definitively so,
about whether or not she died.
But he never says the same about the Assumption itself. That did not seem to be in doubt.
By comparing her to Elijah, he indicates that she was taken up bodily,
just as the Church continues to teach 1,600 years later.
Since the time of the promulgation of the dogma of the Assumption of Mary, there has been much new discovery. We now have written evidence of belief in the Assumption of Mary as far back as the third century. Though it is not necessary for there to be written evidence all the way back to the second century for us as Catholics because we have Sacred Tradition and Sacred Scripture as interpreted by the Magisterium of the Church first and foremost that has already given us the truth of the Matter, I believe it is really exciting that new historical discoveries continue to be made and once again . . . and again . . .
and again, they
confirm the Faith of our Fathers.
Following the extraordinary
events in Syria,
Israel
decided not to take
any chances.
It swiftly moved up
to the
top of Mount Hermon,
ensuring they could protect
the border
from whatever might happen
next
The mountain ridge
runs along the
border
between Lebanon and Syria,
with its
southern slope descending
into the
most northerly part
of Israel,
the Golan Heights.
However, the very top of the hill is in
Syrian territory.
The mountain's peak
overlooks
Syria, Lebanon, and Israel,
making it a perfect lookout.
Mount Hermon
is so strategic
that it has been called
“the eyes of the Middle East.”
Mount Hermon
is a
profoundly significant place,
both from
a geo-political point of view,
historically,
and most importantly,
spiritually.
So not only does having
the
peak of Mount Hermon
provide strategic
“eyes”
to whoever holds it,
but that peak
also holds deep mysteries.
It is thought this was where the
“sons of God”,
the
angels who fell,
descended
to have relations with women.
The story is told in Genesis 6 and the
ancient Jewish
apocryphal Book of Enoch
(quoted in Titus 1:12 and Jude 1:14–15).
The angel/human
offspring
were known as Nephilim
from
the Hebrew word to fall,
but
sometimes this word is translated
as “giants”,
as they were
abnormally mighty and tall.
When the twelve spies went into
the Promised Land
to take a look,
they were
amazed at the size of them:
“And there we saw the
(the sons of Anak, who come from the Nephilim),
and we
seemed to ourselves like
grasshoppers,
and so we seemed to them.”
(Numbers 3:33)
Anak means massive, and the Anakim
means giants.
The whole saga seems bizarre in many ways--
not to mention
distinctly bad news spiritually--
and
Mount Hermon is where it all happened.
It shouldn’t then surprise us
that the
area became a spiritual hotbed for
all things
on the dark side of the force.
According to Enoch 6:6,
“They were in all two hundred;
who
descended of Jared on the summit of
Mount Hermon,
and they
called it Mount Hermon,
because
they had sworn and
bound
themselves by mutual imprecations
upon it.”
The word “Hermon”
(from the Hebrew root חרמ)
means devoted to
God,
but this
can be positive or negative.
When the heavens are shut up and there
is no rain because
your people have sinned against you,
and when they pray
toward this place and give praise
to your name and turn
from their sin
because you have afflicted them,
then hear from heaven and forgive
the sin of your servants, your people Israel.
Teach them the right way to live,
and send rain on the land
you gave your
people for an inheritance.
Yet he has not left himself without
testimony:
He has shown kindness by giving you
rain from
heaven and crops in their seasons;
he provides you
with
plenty of food and fills
your
hearts with joy.”
Do any of the worthless idols of the nations
bring rain?
Do the skies themselves send down showers?
No, it is you, LORD our God.
Therefore our hope is in you, for you are
the one
who does all this.
Be glad, people of Zion, rejoice
in the
LORD your God,
for he has given you
the autumn rains because
he is faithful.
He sends you abundant showers,
both
autumn and spring rains, as before.
Prayer for the Son
1When Jesus had spoken these things, He lifted up His eyes to heaven and said, “Father, the hour has come. Glorify Your Son, that Your Son may glorify You. 2For You granted Him authority over all people,a so that He may give eternal life to all those You have given Him. 3Now this is eternal life, that they may know You, the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom You have sent. 4I have glorified You on earth by accomplishing the work You gave Me to do. 5And now, Father, glorify Me in Your presence with the glory I had with You before the world existed.
Prayer for the Disciples
6I have revealed Your name to those You have given Me out of the world. They were Yours; You gave them to Me, and they have kept Your word. 7Now they know that everything You have given Me comes from You. 8For I have given them the words You gave Me, and they have received them. They knew with certainty that I came from You, and they believed that You sent Me.
9I ask on their behalf. I do not ask on behalf of the world, but on behalf of those You have given Me; for they are Yours. 10All I have is Yours, and all You have is Mine; and in them I have been glorified. 11I will no longer be in the world, but they are in the world, and I am coming to You.
Holy Father, protect them by Your name, the name You gave Me,b so that they may be one as We are one. 12While I was with them, I protected and preserved them by Your name, the name You gave Me. Not one of them has been lost, except the son of destruction, so that the Scripture would be fulfilled.
13But now I am coming to You; and I am saying these things while I am in the world, so that they may have My joy fulfilled within them. 14I have given them Your word and the world has hated them. For they are not of the world, just as I am not of the world.
15I am not asking that You take them out of the world, but that You keep them from the evil one.c 16They are not of the world, just as I am not of the world.17Sanctify them by the truth; Your word is truth. 18As You sent Me into the world, I have also sent them into the world. 19For them I sanctify Myself, so that they too may be sanctified by the truth.
Prayer for All Believers
20I am not asking on behalf of them alone, but also on behalf of those who will believe in Me through their message, 21that all of them may be one, as You, Father, are in Me, and I am in You. May they also be in Us, so that the world may believe that You sent Me.
22I have given them the glory You gave Me, so that they may be one as We are one— 23I in them and You in Me—that they may be perfectly united, so that the world may know that You sent Me and have loved them just as You have loved Me.
24Father, I want those You have given Me to be with Me where I am, that they may see the glory You gave Me because You loved Me before the foundation of the world.
25Righteous Father, although the world has not known You, I know You, and they know that You sent Me. 26And I have made Your name known to them and will continue to make it known, so that the love You have for Me may be in them, and I in them.”
The goal of Christ giving Himself up for us and sanctifying us is that He might present the church to Himself glorious as His bride (Eph. 5:27). In the past, Christ was our Redeemer as a man in the flesh to fulfill God's righteous requirements and make us the righteousness of God
sanctified washing of the word
Ephesians 5:26.
cleansing and renewing of the mind and heart through the
power of God's Word.
- The phrase "washing of water by the word" is linked to water baptism.
- Baptism symbolizes death to sin and new life in Christ.
- The Word of God cleanses and renews the mind and heart by:
- Purifying thoughts
- Scrubbing motives
- Cleaning the conscience
- Pointing out areas that need confession and renunciation
- Removing dirt
- Convicting those who read it reverently
- Warning against sin
Psalm 51:10-19
Create in me a clean heart, O God; and renew a right spirit within me.
Cast me not away from thy presence; and take not thy holy spirit from me.
Restore unto me the joy of thy salvation; and uphold me with thy free spirit.
Then will I teach transgressors thy ways; and sinners shall be converted unto thee.
14 Deliver me from bloodguiltiness,
O God, thou God of my salvation: and my tongue shall sing aloud of thy righteousness.
O Lord, open thou my lips; and my mouth shall shew forth thy praise.
For thou desirest not sacrifice; else would I give it: thou delightest not in burnt offering.
The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit: a broken and a contrite heart, O God, thou wilt not despise.
Do good in thy good pleasure unto Zion: build thou the walls of Jerusalem.
Then shalt thou be pleased with the sacrifices of righteousness,
with burnt offering and whole burnt offering: then shall they offer bullocks upon thine altar.
You heavens above, rain down my righteousness; let the clouds shower it down. Let the earth open wide,
let salvation spring up, let righteousness flourish with it; I, the LORD, have created it.
I also withheld rain from you when the harvest was still three months away. I sent rain on one town,
but withheld it from another. One field had rain; another had none and dried up.
Sow righteousness for yourselves, reap the fruit of unfailing love, and break up your unplowed ground;
for it is time to seek the LORD, until he comes and showers his righteousness on you.
Isaiah 45
1 “This is what the LORD says to his anointed, to Cyrus, whose right hand I take hold of to subdue nations before him and to strip kings of their armor, to open doors before him so that gates will not be shut:
2 I will go before you and will level the mountains ; I will break down gates of bronze and cut through bars of iron.
3 I will give you hidden treasures, riches stored in secret places, so that you may know that I am the LORD, the God of Israel, who summons you by name.
4 For the sake of Jacob my servant, of Israel my chosen, I summon you by name and bestow on you a title of honor, though you do not acknowledge me.
5 I am the LORD, and there is no other; apart from me there is no God. I will strengthen you, though you have not acknowledged me,
6 so that from the rising of the sun to the place of its setting people may know there is none besides me. I am the LORD, and there is no other.
7 I form the light and create darkness, I bring prosperity and create disaster; I, the LORD, do all these things.
8 “You heavens above, rain down my righteousness; let the clouds shower it down. Let the earth open wide, let salvation spring up, let righteousness flourish with it; I, the LORD, have created it.
9 “Woe to those who quarrel with their Maker, those who are nothing but potsherds among the potsherds on the ground. Does the clay say to the potter, ‘What are you making?’ Does your work say, ‘The potter has no hands’?
10 Woe to the one who says to a father, ‘What have you begotten?’ or to a mother, ‘What have you brought to birth?’
11 “This is what the LORD says— the Holy One of Israel, and its Maker: Concerning things to come, do you question me about my children, or give me orders about the work of my hands?
12 It is I who made the earth and created mankind on it. My own hands stretched out the heavens; I marshaled their starry hosts.
13 I will raise up Cyrus in my righteousness: I will make all his ways straight. He will rebuild my city and set my exiles free, but not for a price or reward, says the LORD Almighty.”
14 This is what the LORD says: “The products of Egypt and the merchandise of Cush,and those tall Sabeans— they will come over to you and will be yours; they will trudge behind you, coming over to you in chains. They will bow down before you and plead with you, saying, ‘Surely God is with you, and there is no other; there is no other god.’ ”
15 Truly you are a God who has been hiding himself, the God and Savior of Israel.
16 All the makers of idols will be put to shame and disgraced; they will go off into disgrace together.
17 But Israel will be saved by the LORDwith an everlasting salvation; you will never be put to shame or disgraced, to ages everlasting.
18 For this is what the LORD says— he who created the heavens, he is God; he who fashioned and made the earth, he founded it; he did not create it to be empty, but formed it to be inhabited— he says: “I am the LORD, and there is no other.
19 I have not spoken in secret, from somewhere in a land of darkness; I have not said to Jacob’s descendants, ‘Seek me in vain.’ I, the LORD, speak the truth; I declare what is right.
20 “Gather together and come; assemble, you fugitives from the nations. Ignorant are those who carry about idols of wood, who pray to gods that cannot save.
21 Declare what is to be, present it— let them take counsel together. Who foretold this long ago, who declared it from the distant past? Was it not I, the LORD? And there is no God apart from me, a righteous God and a Savior; there is none but me.
22 “Turn to me and be saved, all you ends of the earth; for I am God, and there is no other.
23 By myself I have sworn, my mouth has uttered in all integrity a word that will not be revoked: Before me every knee will bow; by me every tongue will swear.
24 They will say of me, ‘In the LORD alone are deliverance and strength.’ ” All who have raged against him will come to him and be put to shame.
25 But all the descendants of Israel will find deliverance in the LORDand will make their boast in him.
In Iconium At Iconium Paul and Barnabas went as usual into the Jewish synagogue.
There they spoke so effectively that a great number of Jews and Greeks believed.
2 But the Jews who refused to believe stirred up the other Gentiles and poisoned their minds against the brothers.
3 So Paul and Barnabas spent considerable time there, speaking boldly for the Lord, who confirmed the message of his grace by enabling them to perform signs and wonders.
4 The people of the city were divided; some sided with the Jews, others with the apostles.
5 There was a plot afoot among both Gentiles and Jews, together with their leaders, to mistreat them and stone them.
6 But they found out about it and fled to the Lycaonian cities of Lystra and Derbe and to the surrounding country,
7 where they continued to preach the gospel.In Lystra and Derbe8 In Lystra there sat a man who was lame. He had been that way from birth and had never walked.
9 He listened to Paul as he was speaking. Paul looked directly at him, saw that he had faith to be healed
10 and called out, “Stand up on your feet!” At that, the man jumped up and began to walk.
11 When the crowd saw what Paul had done, they shouted in the Lycaonian language, “The gods have come down to us in human form!”
12 Barnabas they called Zeus, and Paul they called Hermes because he was the chief speaker.
13 The priest of Zeus, whose temple was just outside the city, brought bulls and wreaths to the city gates because he and the crowd wanted to offer sacrifices to them.
14 But when the apostles Barnabas and Paul heard of this, they tore their clothes and rushed out into the crowd, shouting:
15 “Friends, why are you doing this? We too are only human, like you. We are bringing you good news, telling you to turn from these worthless things to the living God, who made the heavens and the earth and the sea and everything in them.
16 In the past, he let all nations go their own way.
17 Yet he has not left himself without testimony: He has shown kindness by giving you rain from heaven and crops in their seasons; he provides you with plenty of food and fills your hearts with joy.”
18 Even with these words, they had difficulty keeping the crowd from sacrificing to them.
19 Then some Jews came from Antioch and Iconium and won the crowd over. They stoned Paul and dragged him outside the city, thinking he was dead.
20 But after the disciples had gathered around him, he got up and went back into the city. The next day he and Barnabas left for Derbe.The Return to Antioch in Syria21 They preached the gospel in that city and won a large number of disciples. Then they returned to Lystra, Iconium and Antioch,
22 strengthening the disciples and encouraging them to remain true to the faith. “We must go through many hardships to enter the kingdom of God,” they said.
23 Paul and Barnabas appointed elders for them in each church and, with prayer and fasting, committed them to the Lord, in whom they had put their trust.
24 After going through Pisidia, they came into Pamphylia,
25 and when they had preached the word in Perga, they went down to Attalia.
26 From Attalia they sailed back to Antioch, where they had been committed to the grace of God for the work they had now completed.
27 On arriving there, they gathered the church together and reported all that God had done through them and how he had opened a door of faith to the Gentiles.
28 And they stayed there a long time with the disciples.
Ephesians 5:25–27 uses Christ’s unique role as the one who sanctifies the church as a model for how a husband should love and care for his wife. These verses say that “Christ also loved the church and gave Himself for her, that He might sanctify and cleanse her with the washing of water by the word, that He might present her to Himself a glorious church, not having spot or wrinkle or any such thing, but that she should be holy and without blemish” (NKJV).
In marriage, a husband should sacrificially love his wife, as Christ loved the church. Unlike marriage, however, husbands do not “sanctify” or “wash” their wives. But this is something that Christ does for His church. In this context, to sanctify is to set apart for God’s purpose and purify from sin. Through faith in the finished work of Christ, believers are set apart as holy and dedicated to God’s service (see Romans 12:1–2; 1 Peter 1:15–16).
In Ephesians 5:26, the expression washing of water is linked to water baptism, as mentioned in Romans 6:3–4. According to Paul, baptism symbolizes the believer’s death to sin and new life in Christ. The reality is that “if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come” (2 Corinthians 5:17, ESV). Water for cleansing also played a part in a bride’s preparation for her wedding day.
There may also be a link between Ezekiel 16:1–13 and Ephesians 5:26–27. In the Ezekiel passage, Israel is portrayed as an abandoned girl who becomes a queen. This passage prefigures the New Testament concept of the church as the bride of Christ, who is sanctified and cleansed for Him. The metaphor is further enriched by Ezekiel 36:25, where God promises to “sprinkle clean water on you, and you shall be clean from all your uncleanness, and from all your idols I will cleanse you” (ESV). In Christ, we are thoroughly cleansed.
The culmination of Christ’s sanctifying work is beautifully illustrated in the eschatological visions of Revelation 19:7–9 and 21:2, 9–11. In these passages, the apostle John describes the marriage supper of the Lamb, an event that represents the final consummation of Christ’s relationship with His church. This future event is not only a celebration but a fulfillment of God’s redemptive plan, where Christ presents “the church to himself in splendor, without spot or wrinkle or any such thing, that she might be holy and without blemish” (Ephesians 5:27, ESV).
Ephesians 5:26 also specifies the agency through which Christ accomplishes His “washing” of the church: it is done “through the word.” In His High Priestly Prayer, Jesus said, “Sanctify them [the disciples] by the truth; your word is truth.” The means by which God justifies, saves, and sanctifies His people is the Word of God (see also John 15:3; James 1:18). It is by the Word that God accomplishes His purpose “to prepare and equip his people to do every good work” (2 Timothy 3:17, NLT).
While the focus of Ephesians 5:26–27 is on Christ’s role, there are practical implications for believers. Because we have been “sanctified” and “washed,” God expects us to “walk in a manner worthy of the calling to which you have been called, with all humility and gentleness, with patience, bearing with one another in love, eager to maintain the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace” (Ephesians 4:1–3, ESV). Such a “walk,” or lifestyle, is not about earning salvation; rather, it is about responding to God’s grace with reverence and obedience.
The church, as the collective body of believers, plays an important role in the sanctification process. This communal aspect of sanctification is emphasized in Hebrews 10:24–25, which encourages believers “to stir one another to love and good works, not neglecting to meet together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another, and all the more as you see the Day drawing near” (ESV).
The sanctification process is both personal and communal. Individually, believers are called to engage with Scripture, allowing the Word of God to cleanse them from sin and transform their hearts and minds (Psalm 119:105; James 1:22–25). Collectively, the church reflects the holiness and purity of Christ, given to the church through what He accomplished on the cross.
Ephesians 5:26–27 presents profound insights into Christ’s role in the sanctification of His church, drawing from Old Testament allegories and culminating in our future union with Him. Not only does this passage reveal the depth of Christ’s love and sacrifice, but it also calls us to a life of holiness and dedication to God’s service. Let us, then, live out the fulness of our spiritual cleansing, demonstrating to everyone that we belong to Christ, who sanctifies us “by the washing with water through the word.”
Psalms 72
Of Solomon
Endow the king with your justice, O God, the royal son with your righteousness.
2 May he judge your people in righteousness, your afflicted ones with justice.
3 May the mountains bring prosperity to the people, the hills the fruit of righteousness.
4 May he defend the afflicted among the people and save the children of the needy; may he crush the oppressor.
5 May he endure as long as the sun, as long as the moon, through all generations.
6 May he be like rain falling on a mown field, like showers watering the earth.
7 In his days may the righteous flourish and prosperity abound till the moon is no more.
8 May he rule from sea to sea and from the River to the ends of the earth.
9 May the desert tribes bow before him and his enemies lick the dust.
10 May the kings of Tarshish and of distant shores bring tribute to him. May the kings of Sheba and Seba present him gifts.
11 May all kings bow down to him and all nations serve him.
12 For he will deliver the needy who cry out, the afflicted who have no one to help.
13 He will take pity on the weak and the needy and save the needy from death.
14 He will rescue them from oppression and violence, for precious is their blood in his sight.
15 Long may he live! May gold from Sheba be given him. May people ever pray for him and bless him all day long.
16 May grain abound throughout the land; on the tops of the hills may it sway. May the crops flourish like Lebanon and thrive like the grass of the field.
17 May his name endure forever; may it continue as long as the sun. Then all nations will be blessed through him,and they will call him blessed.
18 Praise be to the LORD God, the God of Israel, who alone does marvelous deeds.
19 Praise be to his glorious name forever; may the whole earth be filled with his glory. Amen and Amen.
20 This concludes the prayers of David son of Jesse.
Spirit of testimony, wisdom, and revelation"
the work of the Holy Spirit in providing a deeper understanding of God's truth through personal experience, insightful knowledge, and divine insight, essentially allowing individuals to not only know the truth but also personally witness and testify to it based on their own understanding; this concept is often drawn from Ephesians 1:17 where it speaks of "the Spirit of wisdom and revelation" which enables a deeper knowledge of God.
Matthew 5:48 is part of the challenging
Sermon on the Mount:
“Be perfect, therefore, as your heavenly Father is perfect.”
This sounds like an impossible
standard Jesus is placing before us.
How can we be as perfect as God?
What did Jesus mean?
Some people might view the command to be perfect as a proof text for sinless perfection. However, several passages of Scripture acknowledge the ongoing struggle with sin in a Christian’s life
(Galatians 5:17; Romans 7:15–20; 1 John 1:8–10; Philippians 3:12).
Jesus’ words cannot
be used to
defend the doctrine of sinless perfection,
as Scripture
consistently conveys a different message.
Let us consider the
overall context before delving into
what it means to “be perfect.”
Jesus begins His sermon
by pronouncing
blessings on unlikely recipients
(Matthew 5:3–12).
He then declares that His followers
are the
salt of the earth and the light of the world,
emphasizing the importance of good deeds (verses 13–16). Next, He turns His attention to the law, making it clear that His standard surpasses mere observance of the law’s letter (verses 17–47). Our thoughts and motives matter, too. That’s why Jesus equates lust with adultery and hatred with murder. He also emphasizes love for enemies, non-resistance, the permanence of marriage, and the avoidance of oath-taking.
In Matthew 5:48 Jesus continues setting the standard higher than we are wont to set it. The literal interpretation is likely what Jesus intended. We are called to be absolutely perfect, matching the perfection of our heavenly Father. Every aspect of our being should align with God’s ways, including our deepest thoughts. The Greek word used, teleios, conveys a sense of maturity, completeness, or attaining a goal. In this context, the goal is to meet God’s standard, not simply settle for human morality. A follower of Christ cannot take an attitude of “I’m good enough.”
This realization should frustrate any honest person, for who can achieve moral perfection? Who hasn’t experienced coveting, lust, or hatred? The idea that we can be perfect like God seems hyperbolic. Moreover, the Bible clearly states that we are not perfect. We are all sinners and have fallen short of God’s standard (Romans 3:9–20; 1 John 1:8; Ecclesiastes 7:20; Psalm 14:2–3). How, then, do we reconcile the command to be perfect like God with the truth that we’re not?
The answer lies in the gospel. Jesus is the only One who has lived a perfect life, and it is through Him that we meet God’s standard. Rather than earning righteousness, we are declared righteous because of Christ. As Paul states,
We are made right with God by placing our faith in Jesus Christ. And this is true for everyone who believes, no matter who we are. For everyone has sinned; we all fall short of God’s glorious standard. Yet God freely and graciously declares that we are righteous. He did this through Christ Jesus when he freed us from the penalty for our sins. (Romans 3:22-24, NLT)
Second Corinthians 5:21 further demonstrates the substitutionary atonement of Jesus: “God made him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.”
Because we are made perfect through Christ, we should live accordingly. Our lives should exhibit God’s righteousness and holiness due to our identity as His people. Christ’s standard becomes a way of life as we obey His teachings. Through the power of the Holy Spirit, we find the strength to love our enemies, uphold our relationships, overcome lust and hatred, and follow the other commands in Scripture.
In obeying the command to be perfect as your heavenly Father is perfect, we cannot lean on our own righteousness, which falls far short. We must rely on Christ and the working of the Holy Spirit within us. “‘Not by might nor by power, but by my Spirit,’ says the Lord Almighty” (Zechariah 4:6).
The Sermon on the Mount
1When Jesus saw the crowds, He went up on the mountain and sat down. His disciples came to Him,
2and He began to teach them, saying:
The Beatitudes
(Psalm 1:1–6; Luke 6:20–23)
3“Blessed are the poor in spirit,
for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
4Blessed are those who mourn,
for they will be comforted.
5Blessed are the meek,
for they will inherit the earth.a
6Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness,
for they will be filled.
7Blessed are the merciful,
for they will be shown mercy.
8Blessed are the pure in heart,
for they will see God.
9Blessed are the peacemakers,
for they will be called sons of God.
10Blessed are those who are persecuted because of righteousness,
for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
11Blessed are you when people insult you, persecute you, and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of Me. 12Rejoice and be glad, because great is your reward in heaven, for in the same way they persecuted the prophets before you.
Salt and Light
(Mark 9:49–50; Luke 14:34–35; Philippians 2:12–18)
13You are the salt of the earth. But if the salt loses its savor, how can it be made salty again? It is no longer good for anything, except to be thrown out and trampled by men.
14You are the light of the world. A city on a hillb cannot be hidden. 15Neither do people light a lamp and put it under a basket. Instead, they set it on a stand, and it gives light to everyone in the house. 16In the same way, let your light shine before men, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your Father in heaven.
The Fulfillment of the Law
17Do not think that I have come to abolish the Law or the Prophets. I have not come to abolish them, but to fulfill them. 18For I tell you truly, until heaven and earth pass away, not a single jot, not a stroke of a pen, will disappear from the Law until everything is accomplished.
19So then, whoever breaks one of the least of these commandments and teaches others to do likewise will be called least in the kingdom of heaven; but whoever practices and teaches them will be called great in the kingdom of heaven. 20For I tell you that unless your righteousness exceeds that of the scribes and Pharisees, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven.
The Bible mentions
stars in
Genesis, Job, Psalm, and Revelation
God creating the stars and placed
them in the sky
- Psalm 147:4: God determines the number of stars and calls them each by name
- Revelation 1:16: God holds seven stars in his right hand
- Revelation 1:20: The seven stars in God's right hand are angels of the seven churches
- Genesis 1:16: God made the stars, along with the sun and moon
- Psalm 8:3: God set the stars in place
- Job 9:9: God created the constellations, including Orion and the Bear
- Psalm 136:9: The stars and moon govern the night
- Job 38:7: The morning stars sang and the angels shouted for joy
- Judges 5:20: The stars fought from heaven against Sisera
- Isaiah 14:13: Someone said they would raise their throne above the stars of God
- Obadiah 1:4: God will bring someone down from their nest among the stars
- The Star of Bethlehem: Led the Three Wise Men to Jesus
The 12 stars
appear in Revelation 12:1
as a crown
on the head of a woman
The stars symbolize
the
12 tribes of Israel and the 12 apostles
The number 12 is considered a number
of perfection
The woman in Revelation 12 represents
Israel
The 12 stars represent the 12 tribes of Israel, who were
the original people of God.
The 12 apostles represent the renewed people of God
The 12 stars symbolize
Mary's special privileges and charisms.
The 12 stars
represent the people of the
Old and New Covenants
The woman in
Revelation 12 is pregnant and about
to give birth
Israel giving birth to Jesus
The woman
flees into the wilderness,
fleeing the
devil's attempts to destroy them
Tents symbolize God's Dwelling Place and the temporary nature of human existence
- Revelation 21:3: Describes God dwelling among people in a tabernacle
- 2 Corinthians 5:1-8: Compares the human body to a tent, which is mortal and temporary
- Hebrews 11:9–10: Abraham lived in tabernacles with Isaac and Jacob in the land of promise
- Isaiah 54:2: Encourages people to enlarge their tents and stretch out their habitations' curtains
The Tabernacle
The Tabernacle, or "Ohel Moed" in Hebrew,
was a tent
used by the Israelites in the wilderness.
Tents in the Old Testament
The Hebrew word for "tent" is "Ohel", pronounced "Oh-Hell"
It is used in the Old Testament
to refer to the tents people lived in and the Tabernacle.
Tents in the Bible and God
In the Bible, tents
can also symbolize the condition of God's people,
who are like wanderers
awaiting the establishment of a permanent city
The phrase tent of meeting is used in the Old Testament, specifically in Exodus, Leviticus, and Numbers, as the name of a place where God would meet with His people, Israel. Usually, the “tent of meeting” was used as another name for the Tabernacle of Moses. However, before the tabernacle was constructed, God met with Moses in a temporary tent of meeting: “Now Moses used to take a tent and pitch it outside the camp some distance away, calling it the ‘tent of meeting.’ Anyone inquiring of the Lord would go to the tent of meeting outside the camp. . . . As Moses went into the tent, the pillar of cloud would come down and stay at the entrance, while the Lord spoke with Moses” (Exodus 33:7, 9). The fact that Moses set up the tent of meeting outside of the camp underscored that the people had broken fellowship with God at Sinai when they had made the golden calf (see Exodus 33:3). After the tabernacle was built, Moses no longer needed his temporary tent, and the term tent of meeting began to be applied to the tabernacle.
In the Law that God gave Moses, God provided specific instructions to build a place of worship (Exodus 25—27). This “tent of meeting” or tabernacle could be taken up and moved each time they changed locations while wandering in the wilderness. The word tabernacle is an English rendition of the Hebrew word miskan, or “dwelling place.” The tabernacle was a temporary dwelling place for the Ark of the Covenant and the other holy items that the Israelites were instructed to use in the worship of and sacrifice to Yahweh.
Interestingly, the word tent or tabernacle is also used in the New Testament to draw profound spiritual conclusions about salvation. Both Paul and the writer of Hebrews make a distinction between a heavenly tent and an earthly tent, between what was “built by human hands” and what is “not part of this creation” (2 Corinthians 5:1; Hebrews 9:11). Hebrews 9:1–10 describes the earthly tabernacle, or “tent of meeting,” as a place into which the priests would go to offer sacrifices for the sins of the people. Then, in verse 11, Christ is shown to be a better “high priest” who entered once through the “greater and more perfect tent,” referring to His body, to offer a sacrifice that would satisfy the wrath of God completely, for all time. This refers to His blood shed on the cross. The point of the passage is to show how, if the blood of animals could temporarily cleanse worshipers of the guilt of sin, the perfect blood of Christ, the Lamb of God, would cleanse His followers perfectly—that is, eternally—of their sins.
In Hebrews 10:14, the writer says that Jesus has “perfected forever those who are being sanctified.” This verse expresses a spiritual paradox. By entering the “tent of meeting,” which was His own body, and offering up His own blood, Christ “perfected forever” those who have faith in Him. And the result of belief in Christ is sanctification, a continual upward spiral of holiness and closeness to God, as the Holy Spirit performs His work within Christ’s followers. In this way, we are eternally “perfect” because of the preciousness of Christ’s blood applied to our lives, yet at the same time we are “being sanctified” by the Holy Spirit who indwells us and changes us into the image of Christ (Ephesians 2:8–9; Romans 8:29).
Paul also mentions the “tent of meeting” or the tabernacle, comparing it to the earthly human body: “For we know that if the tent that is our earthly home is destroyed, we have a building from God, a house not made with hands, eternal in the heavens. For in this tent we groan, longing to put on our heavenly dwelling, if indeed by putting it on we may not be found naked. For while we are still in this tent, we groan, being burdened—not that we would be unclothed, but that we would be further clothed, so that what is mortal may be swallowed up by life. He who has prepared us for this very thing is God, who has given us the Spirit as a guarantee” (2 Corinthians 5:1–5).
When Paul says, “The tent that is our earthly home,” he is referring to our earthly body, our temporary dwelling place. Just as the Israelites moved the tent of meeting from place to place waiting for entrance to the Promised Land, believers in Christ are wanderers on the earth—people who are not “at home” in the world and who “seek a city that is to come” (Hebrews 13:14). Paul says that those who belong to God will be “further clothed” with immortality upon their deaths and that their earthly tent (their body) will be replaced with a “heavenly dwelling.” God does the work of preparing us for that day of glorification by the process of sanctification by the Spirit, and that work happening within us is a “guarantee” that our inheritance and our heavenly dwelling are real. “In him you also, when you heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation, and believed in him, were sealed with the promised Holy Spirit, who is the guarantee of our inheritance until we acquire possession of it, to the praise of his glory” (Ephesians 1:13–15).
1 Peter 1:15-16
But just as He who called you is holy, so be holy in all you do, / for it is written: “Be holy, because I am holy.”
Leviticus 19:2
“Speak to the whole congregation of Israel and tell them: Be holy because I, the LORD your God, am holy.
Ephesians 5:1
Be imitators of God, therefore, as beloved children,
1 John 3:2-3
Beloved, we are now children of God, and what we will be has not yet been revealed. We know that when Christ appears, we will be like Him, for we will see Him as He is. / And everyone who has this hope in Him purifies himself, just as Christ is pure.
Colossians 1:28
We proclaim Him, admonishing and teaching everyone with all wisdom, so that we may present everyone perfect in Christ.
Philippians 3:12-15
Not that I have already obtained all this, or have already been made perfect, but I press on to take hold of that for which Christ Jesus took hold of me. / Brothers, I do not consider myself yet to have taken hold of it. But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, / I press on toward the goal to win the prize of God’s heavenly calling in Christ Jesus. ...
1 Thessalonians 4:7
For God has not called us to impurity, but to holiness.
2 Corinthians 7:1
Therefore, beloved, since we have these promises, let us cleanse ourselves from everything that defiles body and spirit, perfecting holiness in the fear of God.
Hebrews 12:14
Pursue peace with everyone, as well as holiness, without which no one will see the Lord.
James 1:4
Allow perseverance to finish its work, so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything.
Romans 12:2
Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what is the good, pleasing, and perfect will of God.
1 John 4:17
In this way, love has been perfected among us, so that we may have confidence on the day of judgment; for in this world we are just like Him.
1 Corinthians 14:20
Brothers, stop thinking like children. In regard to evil be infants, but in your thinking be mature.
Deuteronomy 18:13
You must be blameless before the LORD your God.
Genesis 17:1
When Abram was ninety-nine years old, the LORD appeared to him and said, “I am God Almighty. Walk before Me and be blameless.
Genesis 17:1
And when Abram was ninety years old and nine, the LORD appeared to Abram, and said unto him, I am the Almighty God; walk before me, and be thou perfect.
Leviticus 11:44
For I am the LORD your God: ye shall therefore sanctify yourselves, and ye shall be holy; for I am holy: neither shall ye defile yourselves with any manner of creeping thing that creepeth upon the earth.
Leviticus 19:2
Speak unto all the congregation of the children of Israel, and say unto them, Ye shall be holy: for I the LORD your God amholy.
Matthew 5:16,45
Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father which is in heaven…
Ephesians 3:1
For this cause I Paul, the prisoner of Jesus Christ for you Gentiles,
Ephesians 5:1,2
Be ye therefore followers of God, as dear children; …
Elijah & Elisha in the New Testament
He said to them, “No doubt you will quote this proverb to Me, ‘Physician, heal yourself! Whatever we heard was done at Capernaum, do here in your hometown as well.’” 24And He said, “Truly I say to you, no prophet is welcome in his hometown. 25But I say to you in truth, there were many widows in Israel in the days of Elijah, when the sky was shut up for three years and six months, when a great famine came over all the land; 26and yet Elijah was sent to none of them, but only to Zarephath, in the land of Sidon, to a woman who was a widow. 27And there were many lepers in Israel in the time of Elisha the prophet; and none of them was cleansed, but only Naaman the Syrian.”
28And all the people in the synagogue were filled with rage as they heard these things; 29and they got up and drove Him out of the city, and led Him to the brow of the hill on which their city had been built, in order to throw Him down the cliff. 30But passing through their midst, He went His way. (Luke 4:23–30)
17Elijah was a man with a nature like ours, and he prayed earnestly that it would not rain, and it did not rain on the earth for three years and six months. 18Then he prayed again, and the sky poured rain and the earth produced its fruit. (James 5:17–18)
uke records Christ’s reference to Elijah and Elisha in the context of an illustration of His First Coming. The residents of His hometown became so incensed at the notion that Gentiles could take their place that they decided to undertake the ultimate approach to “silence the messenger” by attempting to kill Him. But in James’ Epistle in chapter 5, in which another reference to Elijah is found, the main topic of discussion is the Second Coming of Christ. In other words, bothreferences are eschatological, it’s just that the first provided by Christ pertains to the eschatology of His First Coming, and the following by James to the eschatology of His Second Coming. There are many examples throughout God’s prophetic Word where a single thing is recapitulated in related but slightly different ways for both Christ’s First and Second Comings.
Add to this the fact that in Jesus’ usage pertaining to His First Coming, the emphasis is on the withholding of rain and the ensuing famine, but James provides the added qualification of not just making it rain again, but ending the famine so that “the earth produced its fruit”. Whereas Christ’s example leaves off with His rejection in keeping with the results of His First Coming and comparing it to a drought and famine, James’ usage picks up in parallel with the restoration promised to come in conjunction with Christ’s Second Coming and is not just identified with ending the drought and famine, but invoking a season of fruitfulness.
As previously mentioned, [See “Usage in Eschatology—The Mathematical Terms”] these two passages contain a unique biblical measurement for Elijah—“three years and six months”, which is distinct from all other references thought to be the equivalent of “3-1/2 years”. As discussed at length in the chapter, “The Hermeneutic of Synonyms”, this either indicates that if “Elijah to come” is, indeed, one of the final Two Witnesses of Revelation 11, that there is some kind of distinction to which the Holy Spirit is singling out for just him alone, separate from the other Witness, or that he is distinct and not actually one of them. Obviously this author subscribes to the latter.
In either case, it presents a further interesting question as to the timing of this “three years and six months” because the parallel to John the Baptist is unavoidable in either case. It is very difficult to find a chart depicting the events of the End Times—(and a Google Internet image search on the term “Tribulation Chart” will net you hundredsupon hundreds of examples), which does not carefully and precisely overlay each and every item assigned a 3-1/2 year quantity neatly on top of one another. Whether it is “42 months”, “1,260 days”, “time, times and half a time”, or “three years and six months”, the repeated behavior is to ascertain how to tailor fit them on top of each other so that they exclusively occupy the first or second half of the final seven year tribulational period, providing some kind of justification so as to prevent them from overlapping in any fashion, or to avoid being assigned to the perceived “wrong” half of Daniel’s 70th Week.
First of all, we have to recognize the fact that John the Baptist’s ministry not only began well before that of Christ’s, but overlapped and extended into it for a significant amount of time. Although we are not provided with precise dates, it is not uncommon to find those who have put together parallels of the four Gospels who estimate that John’s death did not take place until some point during the second year of Christ’s ministry. In other words, if this is correct, and if John had only been baptizing and preaching beyond the Jordan for 18 months prior to Jesus’ baptism and the start of His ministry, it’s very possible that John operated for a 3-1/2 year period which greatly overlapped the 3-1/2 year ministry of Jesus. Even if it was not exactly 3-1/2 years, we nonetheless cannot avoid the fact that John’s ministry did not precisely begin and end in synchronous harmony with that of Jesus’, and therefore should have no expectation that the timing of “Elijah to come” will break precedent, whether it overlaps a little or a lot.
In Scripture there are a variety of things which are specifically assigned a duration equivalent of approximately 3-1/2 years: “the times of the Gentiles” (Rev. 11:2), the Antichrist/Beast (Dan. 7:25; Rev. 13:4-7), “the woman in the wilderness” (which is a picture of Israel—Rev. 12:6, 14), the Two Witnesses (Rev. 11:3), the time which Daniel states will span between the Abomination of Desolation at the midway point of the final seven years until the end (Dan. 12:6-7), and the references to Elijah by Jesus (Lk. 4:26) and James (Ja. 5:17).
It is very possible that some of these things do, indeed, precisely take place in parallel with each other, sharing the exact, same beginning and end points, but we cannot ignore the fact that this was not the case for the 3-1/2 year span of Christ’s First Coming and the multi-year public appearance of His forerunner in the character of Elijah, John the Baptist. At the very least, we cannot expect that the replay of John in the Second Coming by the “Elijah to come” will break precedent and suddenly synchronize when the first did not, but that it will once again overlap, beginning ahead of the final sequence of events to come and extending into it. And if we are absolutely honest about it, where there is one overlap, we at least have to consider what factors may be indicating that perhaps some of these things cannot be stacked one upon the other as traditionally presented in our customary End Times charts.
This phenomenon may help to explain why Daniel refers to two specifications which are absolutely not equal to 3-1/2 standard lunar years, “1,290 days” (Dan. 12:11) and “1,335 days” (Dan. 12:12), and a term which is not equivalent to either 3-1/2 or 7 years, “2,300 evenings and mornings”, (Dan. 8:13-14) which by biblical standards equals just under 6.4 lunar years. One of the possibilities we should seriously consider in tandem with any other biblical examples which we can find of these things is that they fit together in an overlapping fashion rather as a strictly synchronized string of end-to-end windows, even if the overlaps are small. Or perhaps since Daniel’s “1,290 days” and “1,335 days” refer to the second half of that week of years from the midpoint of the Abomination of Desolation to the end, we are being told that the first half is not precisely equal to the second.
The Expectation of Elijah5“Behold, I am going to send you Elijah the prophet before the coming of the great and terrible day of the LORD. 6He will restore the hearts of the fathers to their children and the hearts of the children to their fathers, so that I will not come and smite the land with a curse.” (Malachi 4:5–6)
14And King Herod heard of it, for His name had become well known; and people were saying, “John the Baptist has risen from the dead, and that is why these miraculous powers are at work in Him.” 15But others were saying, “He is Elijah.” And others were saying, “He is a prophet, like one of the prophets of old.” (Mark 6:14–15)
19This is the testimony of John, when the Jews sent to him priests and Levites from Jerusalem to ask him, “Who are you?” 20And he confessed and did not deny, but confessed, “I am not the Christ.” 21They asked him, “What then? Are you Elijah?” And he said, “I am not.” “Are you the Prophet?” And he answered, “No.” (John 1:19–21)
13Now when Jesus came into the district of Caesarea Philippi, He was asking His disciples, “Who do people say that the Son of Man is?” 14And they said, “Some say John the Baptist; and others, Elijah; but still others, Jeremiah, or one of the prophets.” (Matthew 16:13–14)
The belief in Elijah’s return was not something merely confined to academic circles at Christ’s First Coming, but one of the most commonly held beliefs among the general population. Explanations for the activities and teachings of both John and Jesus were proposed to be fulfillments of the expected return of Elijah.
Over the intervening centuries between Malachi’s prophecy and the arrival of John the Baptist and Jesus, the Jews did not limit their expectation of what Elijah would do upon his return to just what was contained within the brief text which Malachi provided. There were many notions and traditions which became institutionalized in their thoughts and practices, such as putting out an empty chair for Elijah at Passover, or the belief that Elijah would return at Hanukkah to give instructions as to what to do with the desecrated altar they removed from the Temple when Antiochus Epiphanes IV committed the Abomination of Desolation upon it, precipitating the Maccabean Revolt nearly 200 years earlier. There were various notions about Elijah coming to perform a variety of signs and tasks which actually persist within classic Judaism to this day.
Whereas Malachi emphatically highlighted a ministry of spiritual reconciliation, the beliefs which sprung up around Elijah’s return, much as they still remain today, mostly attached signs and wonders and many such visible types of working rather than the greater spiritual goal to restore the heart. Just as they ignored Scripture pointing to a Messiah who would first come to die for sin and instead over-realized the Scriptures for His Second Coming establishment of a Millennial Kingdom, the same kind of mindset re-cast their definition of what a return of Elijah would look like. Scripture explicitly assigns Elijah a role of spiritual reconciliation, but tradition heaped upon him all manner of supernatural speculation.
It is very likely, therefore, that the same confusion will be the hallmark of the final ministry of the “Elijah to come”. On the one hand, within most circles of the various sects of Judaism, there is still an expected return of Elijah which is very often attached to an association with miracles and signs. Jews will probably challenge the authority and authenticity of this figure should, like John before him, his emphasis be on the preaching of a message stressing a baptism of repentance in preparation of the coming of the Messiah rather than working signs and wonders. But since he is so prolifically assigned to be one of the Two Witnesses by so many Christian factions, a pair directly attributed by Scripture to publicly perform signs and wonders as part of their prophetic ministry, many from that other side of the aisle are likely to discredit such a one replaying John’s ministry, even with a double portion of his spirit.
Just as there was much confusion and conjecture at the First Coming as to someone coming as either the Messiah, Elijah, some kind of other prophet, or even the reincarnation of sorts of John the Baptist himself, it is very likely that this is replayed again not just strictly by ethnic Jews alone, but as a response from Gentile sources as well, even from within the Church.
All Israel Will Be Saved25For I do not want you, brethren, to be uninformed of this mystery—so that you will not be wise in your own estimation—that a partial hardening has happened to Israel until the fullness of the Gentiles has come in; 26and so all Israel will be saved; just as it is written,
“THE DELIVERER WILL COME
FROM ZION,
HE WILL REMOVE UNGODLINESS
FROM JACOB.”
THIS IS MY COVENANT
WITH THEM,
WHEN
I TAKE AWAY THEIR SINS.”
(Romans 11:25–27)
There are many parallel supporting Scriptures, but here Paul sums up for us what is actually God’s greater purpose for the Rapture of the Church. The work of the Church Age which began on the Day of Pentecost, here called “the fullness of the Gentiles”, is completed with the removal of the Church via the Rapture, and God’s focus returns to Israel that He may fulfill all His promises to them and complete His work. Notice that Paul says this work comes specifically through Christ—“the Deliverer”, who will remove their ungodliness and take away their sins through the New Covenant. Israel will finally accept Yeshua and what He did for their sin at His First Coming as a crucial fulfillment of allHe will subsequently accomplish at His Second Coming.
Unless someone subscribes to one of the forms of Replacementism, which wrongly asserts that Israel had their chance and blew it, hence God is finished with them, and therefore every scriptural reference to “Israel” should now be read as pertaining instead to the Church—in others words, the “Church” has replaced “Israel”, it is difficult to find a teacher or scholar who does not believe in this End Times return of God’s focus upon Israel in the wake of the departure of the Church. Even the majority of those holding to competing eschatologies agree that a major hallmark of the Last Days is an unprecedented, yet anticipated, revival among ethnic Israel when on a large scale they finally accept Yeshua as Messiah. Or as Zechariah expressed it, “…they will look on Me whom they have pierced; and they will mourn for Him, as one mourns for an only son, and they will weep bitterly over Him like the weeping over a firstborn”. (Zech. 12:10) The major point of conjecture and disagreement arises when it comes to the discussion of how this revival will take place and through whom.
The 144,0004And I heard the number of those who were sealed, one hundred and forty-four thousand sealed from every tribe of the sons of Israel: (Revelation 7:4)
1Then I looked, and behold, the Lamb was standing on Mount Zion, and with Him one hundred and forty-four thousand, having His name and the name of His Father written on their foreheads. 2And I heard a voice from heaven, like the sound of many waters and like the sound of loud thunder, and the voice which I heard was like the sound of harpists playing on their harps. 3And they sang a new song before the throne and before the four living creatures and the elders; and no one could learn the song except the one hundred and forty-four thousand who had been purchased from the earth. 4These are the ones who have not been defiled with women, for they have kept themselves chaste. These are the ones who follow the Lamb wherever He goes. These have been purchased from among men as first fruits to God and to the Lamb. 5And no lie was found in their mouth; they are blameless. (Revelation 14:1–5)
This role is most often assigned to the 144,000 ethnic Jews who are sealed in Revelation 7:4-8, 12,000 coming from each of the 12 tribes subsequently listed in the passage. It is not uncommon for commentators to label them as “super evangelists” and state that their purpose is not limited to just preaching the Gospel to Israel alone, but that they will be evangelists to the entire world. If this is true, it is an assumption that is never referenced in Scripture. Nowhere in the two passages of Revelation 7 and 14 directly referencing the 144,000 is the activity of evangelization even hinted. For some reason, there is a feeling that someone has to fill in the void left by the just-removed Church to preach the Gospel in their place, and this perceived “vacuum” is most often assigned to the 144,000 even though it is never stated as such in Scripture. I would argue that “sealing” is not associated in Scripture with anointing someone with any kind of teaching or preaching ministry and has a scripturally specified alternative purpose.
3Then the glory of the God of Israel went up from the cherub on which it had been, to the threshold of the temple. And He called to the man clothed in linen at whose loins was the writing case. 4The LORD said to him, “Go through the midst of the city, even through the midst of Jerusalem, and put a mark on the foreheads of the men who sigh and groan over all the abominations which are being committed in its midst.” 5But to the others He said in my hearing, “Go through the city after him and strike; do not let your eye have pity and do not spare. (Ezekiel 9:3–5)
In preparation for the wrath of God’s final judgment upon Israel leading up to its being given over to the Babylonian Captivity, God undertook the same kind of “marking” or “sealing” in Ezekiel’s day; notice that He marks the faithful, those “who sigh and groan over all the abominations which are being committed in its midst”. Does this marking then empower them to undertake some kind of ministry to those not so marked? No, it only exempts them individually from the wrath to come. This same thing happens in Revelation, such as when the angel of the 5th Trumpet judgment is told to strike “only the men who do not have the seal of God on their foreheads”. (Rev. 9:4)
This is further stipulated for the 144,000 if we take note of the fact that in Revelation 14:4 they are specifically described, “These have been purchased from among men as first fruits to God and to the Lamb”. This term “first fruits” is extremely Jewish-concentric in Scripture, and always means the first and best of many more to come. One of the earliest commandments given to Israel in the Exodus account was the requirement that every firstborn belongs to the Lord and must be redeemed. (Ex. 13:11-16) It is far more likely that the 144,000 represents the first of a wholesale return of Israel to the Lord and speaks of the anticipated prolific spiritual reconciliation expected rather than an inauguration of evangelists, which is not actually attributed to them in Scripture.
A textual issue concerning the 144,000 in Revelation 7:4-8 which nags at me and for which I have never read a completely satisfying answer, is that it the 144,000 become born-again in Christ at this point, why are they then left behind and not taken along with the multitude in the succeeding passage in Revelation 7:9-17? The cannot have been taken because they are obviously present in Revelation 14. Is the answer that they are sealed before the Church’s removal, but come to faith after in the character of the prophets in the wake of Elijah’s rapture? [I mention this for honesty’s sake and so readers will know that, like everyone else, I’m still a work in progress.]
The Two Witnesses1Then there was given me a measuring rod like a staff; and someone said, “Get up and measure the temple of God and the altar, and those who worship in it. 2Leave out the court which is outside the temple and do not measure it, for it has been given to the nations; and they will tread under foot the holy city for forty-two months.
3“And I will grant authority to my two witnesses, and they will prophesy for twelve hundred and sixty days, clothed in sackcloth.” 4These are the two olive trees and the two lampstands that stand before the Lord of the earth. 5And if anyone wants to harm them, fire flows out of their mouth and devours their enemies; so if anyone wants to harm them, he must be killed in this way. 6These have the power to shut up the sky, so that rain will not fall during the days of their prophesying; and they have power over the waters to turn them into blood, and to strike the earth with every plague, as often as they desire.
7When they have finished their testimony, the beast that comes up out of the abyss will make war with them, and overcome them and kill them. 8And their dead bodies will lie in the street of the great city which mystically is called Sodom and Egypt, where also their Lord was crucified. 9Those from the peoples and tribes and tongues and nations will look at their dead bodies for three and a half days, and will not permit their dead bodies to be laid in a tomb. 10And those who dwell on the earth will rejoice over them and celebrate; and they will send gifts to one another, because these two prophets tormented those who dwell on the earth. 11But after the three and a half days, the breath of life from God came into them, and they stood on their feet; and great fear fell upon those who were watching them. 12And they heard a loud voice from heaven saying to them, “Come up here.” Then they went up into heaven in the cloud, and their enemies watched them. 13And in that hour there was a great earthquake, and a tenth of the city fell; seven thousand people were killed in the earthquake, and the rest were terrified and gave glory to the God of heaven. (Revelation 11:1–13)
The second most popularly taught assertion as to who will bring spiritual revival to ethnic Israel after the Church is removed is assigned to the Two Witnesses. The highlighted points in the above passage, which is the only section of Scripture devoted to them in literal, unambiguous detail, do not reference evangelization or any kind of preaching of the Gospel to anyone. They provide a “testimony” which is specifically characterized as “prophesy” and “prophesying”, and their chief activity is categorically stated to be that they “tormented those who dwell on the earth”.
While it is true that they seem to operate out of Jerusalem, and this is where they will be killed and resurrected, there is no textual connection to their facilitating a spiritual revival of any kind; in fact, it would seem that they are a source of angst and conflict. As a matter of record, in Revelation 11:1-2 just prior to this, a description is given of the “times of the Gentiles” (Lk. 21:24), when Jerusalem is “tread under foot” by the nations—the Gentiles. Assigning them a role of evangelizing anyone, especially Israel, is an idea that has to be introduced by a presupposition originating completely outside of this text and, if such is the case, they do not appear to have much success in that regard in Jerusalem where they are active.
It is worth noting that none of the forerunners of “Elijah to come” in Elijah, Elisha or John the Baptist are ever found working in Jerusalem. This aspect of the Two Witnesses’ association with Jerusalem is another textual proof that they are not working in the character of Elijah and are instead something independent of him entirely.
What these activities lend themselves to is a parallel to the primary type of these Two Witnesses as discussed previously, Joshua and Zerubbabel in Zechariah 4:11-14. [See, “The Strongest Scriptural Connection”] Ezra, Zechariah and Haggai record their primary struggle with the Temple and non-Jews in the land either wanting to participate in its operation or hinder it completely, historical events which seem likely to be recapitulated in the activities of the final Two Witnesses in Revelation 11. Neither Joshua and Zerubbabel, the “two olive trees” in Zechariah 4, nor these Two Witnesses identically referred to in Revelation 11 as the “two olive trees”, undertake roles as evangelists to anyone, but are rather antagonists.
In fact, if we revisit all the primary examples of a pair of witnesses, we find this activity consistently absent in them as well, and they are all also found to be operating in parallel eschatological contexts: the two angels at Sodom and Gomorrah (Gen. 18-19), Moses and Aaron in the Exodus account, and the two spies at Jericho (Josh. 2). [See “Many Examples”] Of all the many more minor but supporting examples, the only case where preaching the Gospel was involved is found in Jesus’ sending out the Apostles and then the Seventy in pairs, of which it could be argued that although operating in pairs, they are part of a much larger group rather than strictly operating in isolated duos.
6And I saw another angel flying in midheaven, having an eternal gospel to preach to those who live on the earth, and to every nation and tribe and tongue and people; 7and he said with a loud voice, “Fear God, and give Him glory, because the hour of His judgment has come; worship Him who made the heaven and the earth and sea and springs of waters.” (Revelation 14:6–7)
But going back to the question of the role of the Two Witnesses in Revelation 11, if they, or the 144,000 for that matter, are functioning as “super evangelists” not just to Israel but the entire world, why is the only mention of any kind of communication of the Gospel after the removal of the Church is limited to angelic agency when it is presented in the interlude between the trumpet and bowl judgments?
There is only one figure in Scripture to whom this role is specifically assigned, that of Elijah. And it is Jesus Himself who not only says that Elijah came and executed it at the First Coming in the form of John the Baptist, but follows up categorically stating that Elijah will come yet again. And just as this function in the First Coming was focused and limited to only literal Israel, so after the Church is removed in the course of the Second Coming will “Elijah to come” likewise address onlyliteral Israel yet again. In the character of Joseph’s brothers who finally recognized him in their second meeting with him (after the Gentile servants were sent away in Genesis 44-45) and openly mourned and wept in the course of finally being reconciled to him after their obvious initial rejection of him, so the whole of the twelve tribes they spawned will likewise finally accept Yeshua in a similar manner under parallel circumstances.
Elisha succeeds Elijah as the prophet,
and the key
"two witnesses"
to this
succession are
Elijah himself and Elisha,
who witnesses Elijah
being taken up to heaven
in a whirlwind;
this act signifies the transfer of
prophetic authority from
Elijah to Elisha, as described
in 2 Kings 2:11-12.
- Elijah's Ascension:
When Elijah is about to be taken away, he tells Elisha to stay behind, but Elisha insists on following. As they walk together, Elijah is suddenly taken up to heaven in a chariot of fire, and Elisha sees this happen. - The Mantle:
As Elijah ascends, his mantle falls to the ground, and Elisha picks it up, signifying that he is now taking on Elijah's prophetic role. - The Jordan River Miracle:
Elisha then uses Elijah's mantle to part the Jordan River, mirroring a previous miracle performed by Elijah, further confirming his succession.
In the Bible, the Prophet Elisha
turned bitter water
into sweet water in Jericho.
Jericho and water
- In 2 Kings 2:19-21, Elisha healed the water of a spring in Jericho by throwing salt into it.
- Jericho was a well-watered city with a large spring nearby.
- The city was known as the “city of palm trees”.
- Jericho was a gateway city to Canaan, located at the north end of the Dead Sea.
- The Israelites marched around the walls of Jericho for six days, and seven times on the seventh day, before the walls fell.
- The Israelites destroyed the city and killed every living thing in it, except for Rahab and her family
Elijah Taken Up to Heaven
1Shortly before the
LORD took Elijah up to heaven in a whirlwind,
Elijah and Elisha
were on their way from Gilgal,
2and Elijah said to Elisha,
“Please stay here, for the LORD has sent me on to Bethel.”
But Elisha replied,
“As surely as the LORD lives and as you yourself live, I will not leave you.”
So they went down to Bethel.
3Then the sons of the prophets at Bethel came out to Elisha
and said,
“Do you know that the LORD
will take your master away from you today?”
“Yes, I know,” he replied. “Do not speak of it.”
4And Elijah said to Elisha, “Please stay here, for the LORD has sent me on to Jericho.”
But Elisha replied, “As surely as the LORD lives and as you yourself live, I will not leave you.”
So they went to Jericho.
5Then the sons of the prophets at Jericho came up to Elisha and said, “
Do you know that the LORD will take your master away from you today?”
“Yes, I know,” he replied. “Do not speak of it.”
6And Elijah said to Elisha, “Please stay here, for the LORD has sent me on to the Jordan.”
But Elisha replied,
“As surely as the LORD lives and as you yourself live, I will not leave you.”
So the two of them went on.
7Then a company of fifty of the sons of the prophets went and stood at a distance,
facing Elijah and Elisha as the two of them stood by the Jordan.
8And Elijah took his cloak, rolled it up,
and struck the waters, which parted to the right and to the left,
so that the two of them crossed over on dry ground.
9After they had crossed over, Elijah said to Elisha, “
Tell me, what can I do for you before I am taken away from you?”
“Please, let me inherit a double portion of your spirit,”
Elisha replied.
10“You have requested a difficult thing,”
said Elijah
. “Nevertheless, if you see me as I am taken from you, it will be yours.
But if not, then it will not be so.”
11As they were walking along and
talking together,
suddenly a chariot of fire with horses of fire
appeared and separated the two of them,
and Elijah
went up into heaven in a whirlwind.
12As Elisha watched, he cried out, “My father, my father, the chariots and horsemen of Israel!”
And he saw Elijah no more. So taking hold of his own clothes, he tore them in two.
13Elisha also picked up the cloak that had fallen from Elijah,
and he went back
and stood on the bank of the Jordan.
14Then he took the cloak of Elijah
that had fallen from him and struck the waters. “
Where now is the LORD, the God of Elijah?” he asked.
And when he had struck the waters,
they parted to the
right and to the left, and Elisha crossed over.
Elisha Succeeds Elijah
15When the sons of the prophets who were watching him from Jericho saw what had happened, they said, “The spirit of Elijah rests on Elisha.” And they went to meet him and bowed down to the ground before him.
16“Look now,” they said to Elisha, “we your servants have fifty valiant men. Please let them go and search for your master. Perhaps the Spirit of the LORD has taken him up and put him on one of the mountains or in one of the valleys.”
“Do not send them,” Elisha replied.
17But when they pressed him to the point of embarrassment, he said, “Send them.”
And they sent fifty men, who searched for three days but did not find Elijah.
18When they returned to Elisha, who was staying in Jericho, he said to them, “Didn’t I tell you not to go?”
Elisha Heals the Waters of Jericho
19Then the men of the city said to Elisha, “Please note, our lord, that the city’s location is good, as you can see. But the water is bad and the land is unfruitful.”
20“Bring me a new bowl,” he replied, “and put some salt in it.”
So they brought it to him, 21and Elisha went out to the spring, cast the salt into it, and said, “This is what the LORD says: ‘I have healed this water. No longer will it cause death or unfruitfulness.
22And the waters there have been healthy to this day, according to the word spoken by Elisha.
Elisha Mocked
23From there, Elisha went up to Bethel, and as he was walking up the road,
a group of boys came out
of the city and jeered at him, chanting,
“Go up, you baldhead! Go up, you baldhead!”
24Then he turned around, looked at them, and called down a curse on them
in the name of the LORD.
Suddenly two female bears came out of the woods and mauled forty-two of the boys.
25And Elisha went on to Mount Carmel, and from there he
returned to Samaria.
Abraham: a man of faith
The apostle Paul wrote about Abraham’s faith
in Romans 4:3:
“For what does the Scripture say?
‘Abraham believed God,
and it was
accounted to him for righteousness’”
(emphasis added throughout).
Paul was quoting from
Genesis 15:6
What example of Abraham’s faith
was
Paul referring to?
A profound example of the faith of AbrahamThe answer is in Genesis 15:4-6: “And behold, the word of the LORD came to him [Abraham], saying, ‘This one shall not be your heir, but one who will come from your own body shall be your heir.’
Then He brought him outside and said,
‘Look now toward heaven,
and count the stars
if you are able to number them.’
And He said to him,
‘So shall your descendants be.’
And he believed the LORD,
and
He accounted it to him for righteousness.”
This extraordinary, unwavering belief
that Abraham had
in God’s power and promises
was what Paul recounted.
“Who, contrary to hope, in hope believed, so that he became the father of many nations, according to what was spoken, ‘So shall your descendants be.’ And not being weak in faith, he did not consider his own body, already dead (since he was about a hundred years old), and the deadness of Sarah’s womb. He did not waver at the promise of God through unbelief, but was strengthened in faith, giving glory to God, and being fully convinced that what He had promised He was also able to perform”
(Romans 4:18-21).
Paul noted that Abraham’s belief was unhampered
by the
fact that he was almost a hundred years old;
he was not
weak in faith. He was strong in faith.
Faith is a deep conviction
that God’s words are true and that
God will perform all that He promises.
Abraham simply believed
that God would do what He said.
Nothing is too hard for God.
Nothing is impossible for God.
That is an example for all of us today,
that our faith
should be strong in God.
An earlier example of Abraham’s faith“Now the LORD had said to Abram, ‘Get out of your country, from your family and from your father’s house, to a land that I will show you. I will make you a great nation; I will bless you and make your name great. …’ So Abram departed as the LORD had spoken to him, and Lot went with him” (Genesis 12:1-2, 4).
Hebrews 11, the Faith Chapter, tells us what was so extraordinary about this departure: “By faith Abraham obeyed when he was called to go out to the place which he would receive as an inheritance. And he went out, not knowing where he was going” (Hebrews 11:8).
Abraham departed, and he trusted and believed God that He would guide him and his family into uncharted territory. There was no questioning and no wavering! He showed his faith by departing. This was a profound act of faith.
The faith of Abraham continuedAfter Abraham came into the land of Canaan, he continued to be a stranger and a pilgrim in that foreign land. But he believed God, who had promised that one day he and his descendants would inherit that land.
We, too, live our lives as strangers and pilgrims on this earth, waiting with patience and faith for the Kingdom of God to be established on the earth, ruling from Jerusalem.Genesis 13:14-17 records that promise to Abraham: “And the LORD said to Abram, after Lot had separated from him: ‘Lift your eyes now and look from the place where you are—northward, southward, eastward, and westward; for all the land which you see I give to you and your descendants forever. And I will make your descendants as the dust of the earth; so that if a man could number the dust of the earth, then your descendants also could be numbered.
Arise, walk in the land through its length and width, for I give it to you.’”
Looking for a city whose builder and maker is GodIn addition to appreciating the promised blessing of land for his descendants, Abraham grew in his faith toward God and personally anticipated a spiritual reward.
Hebrews 11:9-10 records this process: “By faith he dwelt in the land of promise as in a foreign country, dwelling in tents with Isaac and Jacob, the heirs with him of the same promise; for he waited for the city which has foundations, whose builder and maker is God.”
Abraham (along with other people of faith) anticipated a permanent city and country to come: “These all died in faith, not having received the promises, but having seen them afar off were assured of them, embraced them and confessed that they were strangers and pilgrims on the earth. … But now they desire a better, that is, a heavenly country. Therefore God is not ashamed to be called their God, for He has prepared a city for them” (Hebrews 11:13-16).
We, too, live our lives as strangers and pilgrims on this earth, waiting with patience and faith for the Kingdom of God to be established on the earth, ruling from Jerusalem. We, too, are sojourners, desiring a better heavenly country—a country that is coming in the future.
How did Abraham prove his faith in God?Abraham’s faith was tested again, in the most challenging way. Hebrews 11:17 relates the supreme test of Abraham’s faith: “By faith Abraham, when he was tested, offered up Isaac, and he who received the promises offered up his only begotten son, of whom it was said, ‘In Isaac your seed shall be called,’ concluding that God was able to raise him up, even from the dead, from which he also received him in a figurative sense.”
Abraham believed that God was able to raise Isaac from the dead, if God had not spared Isaac’s life (Genesis 22).
Abraham must have believed that God had a very good reason for asking him to sacrifice Isaac, and that somehow Isaac would have to be raised from the dead to fulfill the promises God had made concerning him.
Abraham’s willingness to give up his son was a type of God the Father’s willingness to give His only begotten Son (Christ) as a sacrifice. We who are of the faith of Abraham must also believe that God can resurrect the dead.
Since Abraham’s faith is so often mentioned
in the Bible,
there are many lessons we can learn.
First of all, Abraham was justified by faith. God has ordained that all should be justified by faith. That means we are declared blameless in His sight by the blood of the sacrifice of His Son Jesus Christ and by faith in God.
The father of faithIn explaining the significance of the righteousness of faith, Paul also acknowledged Abraham’s role as the father of the faithful.
“For we say that faith was accounted to Abraham for righteousness. How then was it accounted? While he was circumcised, or uncircumcised? Not while circumcised, but while uncircumcised. And he received the sign of circumcision, a seal of the righteousness of the faith which he had while still uncircumcised, that he might be the father of all those who believe, though they are uncircumcised, that righteousness might be imputed to them also” (Romans 4:9-11).
So, whether one is Jewish or not, those who have the righteousness of faith, righteousness imputed to them by God, they are the children of our father Abraham (verse 12). All must have faith walking in Abraham’s steps.
“Preached the gospel to Abraham”We must remember that the promises of God given to Abraham are realized through faith. Abraham and his seed, his true descendants who have faith, will inherit the promises of God given to Abraham.
As Romans 4:13 says: “For the promise that he would be the heir of the world was not to Abraham or his seed through the law, but through the righteousness of faith.”
The promises given to Abraham are part of the gospel message—the good news. Abraham heard and believed in the gospel.
Galatians 3:8 says: “And the Scripture, foreseeing that God would justify the Gentiles by faith, preached the gospel to Abraham beforehand, saying, ‘In you all the nations shall be blessed.’ So then those who are of faith are blessed with believing Abraham.” (The scripture being quoted is a combination of a promise in Genesis 12:3 and 22:18.)
This is a good example for us who hear the gospel today. Not all obey. “But they have not all obeyed the gospel. For Isaiah says, ‘Lord, who has believed our report?’ So then faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the word of God” (Romans 10:16-17).
There is a difference between trusting in our own “works” and trusting in God in order to be justified and saved.In Abraham’s Seed all the nations of the earth would be blessed. We are blessed through the righteous Seed of Abraham, who is Jesus Christ.
Abraham’s faith and worksThere is a difference between trusting in our own “works” and trusting in God in order to be justified and saved. And there is a difference between relying on the law, as the Jews did, and doing good works that demonstrateobedience and living faith.
Abraham is our object lesson in this regard.
James explained: “But do you want to know, O foolish man, that faith without works is dead? Was not Abraham our father justified by works when he offered Isaac his son on the altar? Do you see that faith was working together with his works, and by works faith was made perfect? And the Scripture was fulfilled, which says, ‘Abraham believed God and it was accounted to him for righteousness.’ And he was called the friend of God. You see then, that a man is justified by works, and not by faith only” (James 2:20-24).
Our faith is perfected as we do good works.
We should do good works in faith, as our father Abraham did. As John 8:39 says: “If you were Abraham’s children you would do the works of Abraham.”
Abraham did many works that demonstrated his strong faith in God. Jesus Christ told the Jewish leaders of His day, “But now you seek to kill Me, a man who has told you the truth which I heard from God. Abraham did not do this” (verse 40).
Abraham believed the truth from the mouths of God’s messengers and from the mouth of the Lord.
The faith of Abraham is living faithWe need to do what our father Abraham did. We need to believe that God can do the impossible and that nothing is too hard for God. We need to believe in God’s power and promises, without wavering. We need to believe and be willingly obedient to God, to come out of this world and depart from sin.
We also need to
trust
God’s guidance and direction in
leading us
into uncharted territory.
As we journey through life
as pilgrims and strangers in the world,
we need to look in faith to
the coming
Kingdom of God and the New Jerusalem.
Our faith in the future inheritance
of the world to come
should motivate us to live by faith.
Finally, through Abraham’s example, we see that we must demonstrate our faith by being obedient to God and doing good works that demonstrate our faith. Our faith is perfected by doing good works.
Having faith and doing good works is a living faith. “I will show you my faith by my works” (James 2:18).
Abraham certainly showed us all his faith by his works. Are you going to follow Abraham’s example? This is the most important step you can take.
May God help you make these critical changes in your life so you can inherit the same reward as Abraham when Jesus returns and establishes the Kingdom of God here on earth!
The phrase "eye of a needle"
appears in the Bible
in Luke 18:25, Matthew 19:24, and Mark 10:25. It's a metaphor for a very narrow passage.
What does it mean?
- Jesus used the phrase to illustrate how difficult it is for a wealthy person to enter the kingdom of God.
- Jesus was teaching his disciples about the challenges of wealth and the need for humility and dependence on God.
-
- Jesus was not referring to a specific gate in Jerusalem. Instead, he was using the camel as a metaphor
- because it was the largest animal in Palestine.
Why is this important?
The phrase is a reminder that wealth can create a
false sense of security and self-sufficiency.
It encourages believers to focus on eternal treasures
rather than earthly wealth
Luke 18:22-25
When Jesus heard this, He said to him,
“One thing you still lack;
sell all that you
possess and distribute it to the poor,
and you shall have
treasure in heaven; and come, follow Me.”
But when he had
heard these things, he became very sad,
for he was extremely rich.
And Jesus looked at him and said,
“How hard it is for those who are wealthy to
enter the kingdom of God!
For it is easier for a camel to go through
the eye of a needle
than for a rich man to enter the
kingdom of God.”
He was talking about a narrow entrance
into the city of Jerusalem,
a gate known
locally as “the eye of the needle.”
This gate was so small that a camel
could only be
brought through with great difficulty,
squeezed through on its knees--
which depicts how
we humbly need to come to the Lord.
Luke’s gospel: “They who heard it said, ‘Then who can be saved?’
But He said,
‘The things that are impossible with people are possible with God’”
(Luke 18:26-27).
Manufacturing your own salvation is just as impossible
as threading a massive beast of burden
through the eye of a sewing needle.
Apart from the intervention of the Lord, it cannot be done.
For starters, it’s predominant among many prosperity preachers and televangelists, who understandably don’t want to draw scrutiny and rebuke for their extravagant lifestyles. Christ’s exclamation, “How hard it is for those who are wealthy to enter the kingdom of God!” (Luke 18:24) would have been a shock to His original audience. As John MacArthur explains, “The idea that wealth was a sign of God’s blessing was deeply entrenched in Jewish theology.” Prosperity preachers today have repeated that lie to pillage the people of God. What better way to insulate their thievery from Christ’s warning than to warp the meaning of His words altogether?
The rich young ruler was a product of the Jewish religious system, and his self-assurance about earning his salvation was a direct reflection of the Pharisees’ man-centered legalism.
Luke 18:25 is one of the clearest testimonies from our Lord on the inability of man to do anything to save himself. This doctrine of total inability is a vital component to the gospel; it highlights the impossibility of salvation apart from a sovereign work of God in a person’s heart. More than that it highlights God’s grace in that He does do that work. For that reason this text should lead to humble praise of our God and Savior.
Abraham's faith is an example of the trust and obedience that are central to the Abrahamic religions of Judaism, Christianity, and Islam.
Examples of Abraham's faith
- Trust: Abraham trusted God's Word and that God is truthful.
- Obedience: Abraham obeyed God when he was told to leave his country and family to go to a new land.
- Perseverance: Abraham was faithful and stable in his decision to follow God's guidance.
- Sacrifice: Abraham was willing to sacrifice his son Isaac when put to the test.
Abraham's faith in the Bible
In the Bible, Abraham's faith is demonstrated through his life and the life of his wife, Sarah. Abraham's faith was not always perfect, and he sometimes struggled with doubt. However, he eventually learned to wait on God and to trust in God's promises
A Wife for Isaac
1By now Abraham was old and well along in years, and the LORD had blessed him in every way. 2So Abraham instructed the chief servant of his household, who managed all he owned, “Place your hand under my thigh, 3and I will have you swear by the LORD, the God of heaven and the God of earth, that you will not take a wife for my son from the daughters of the Canaanites among whom I am dwelling, 4but will go to my country and my kindred to take a wife for my son Isaac.”
5The servant asked him, “What if the woman is unwilling to follow me to this land?
Shall I then take your son back to the land from which you came?”
6Abraham replied, “Make sure that you do not take my son back there. 7The LORD, the God of heaven, who brought me from my father’s house and my native land, who spoke to me and promised me on oath, saying, ‘To your offspring I will give this land’—He will send His angel before you so that you can take a wife for my son from there. 8And if the woman is unwilling to follow you, then you are released from this oath of mine. Only do not take my son back there.”
9So the servant placed his hand under the thigh of his master Abraham and swore an oath to him concerning this matter.
10Then the servant took ten of his master’s camels and departed with all manner of good things from his master in hand. And he set out for Nahor’s hometown in Aram-naharaim.a 11As evening approached, he made the camels kneel down near the well outside the town at the time when the women went out to draw water.
12“O LORD, God of my master Abraham,” he prayed, “please grant me success today, and show kindness to my master Abraham. 13Here I am, standing beside the spring, and the daughters of the townspeople are coming out to draw water.14Now may it happen that the girl to whom I say, ‘Please let down your jar that I may drink,’ and who responds, ‘Drink, and I will water your camels as well’—let her be the one You have appointed for Your servant Isaac. By this I will know that You have shown kindness to my master.”
Rebekah Is Chosen
15Before the servant had finished praying, Rebekah came out with her jar on her shoulder. She was the daughter of Bethuel son of Milcah, the wife of Abraham’s brother Nahor. 16Now the girl was very beautiful, a virgin who had not had relations with any man. She went down to the spring, filled her jar, and came up again.
17So the servant ran to meet her
and said,
“Please let me have a little water from your jar.”
18“Drink, my lord,” she replied,
and she quickly lowered
her jar to her hands and gave him a drink.
19After she had given him a drink,
she said,
“I will also draw water for your camels,
until they have had enough to drink.”
20And she quickly emptied her jar
into the trough and
ran back to the well to draw water,
until she had drawn water for
all his camels.
21Meanwhile, the man watched her silently to see
whether or not the LORD
had made his journey a success.
22And after the camels had finished drinking, he took out a gold ring weighing a beka,b and two gold bracelets for her wrists weighing ten shekels.c 23“Whose daughter are you?” he asked. “Please tell me, is there room in your father’s house for us to spend the night?”
24She replied, “I am the daughter of Bethuel, the son that Milcah bore to Nahor.”25Then she added, “We have plenty of straw and feed, as well as a place for you to spend the night.”
26Then the man bowed down and worshiped the LORD, 27saying, “Blessed be the LORD, the God of my master Abraham, who has not withheld His kindness and faithfulness from my master.
As for me, the LORD has led me on the journey to the house of my master’s relatives.”
28The girl ran and told her mother’s household about these things. 29Now Rebekah had a brother named Laban, and he rushed out to the man at the spring.30As soon as he saw the ring, and the bracelets on his sister’s wrists, and heard Rebekah’s words, “The man said this to me,” he went and found the man standing by the camels near the spring.
31“Come, you who are blessed by the LORD,” said Laban. “Why are you standing out here?
I have prepared the house and a place for the camels.” 32So the man came to the house, and the camels were unloaded.
Straw and feed were brought to the camels,
and water to wash
his feet and the feet of his companions.
33Then a meal was set before the man, but he said, “I will not eat until I have told you what I came to say.”
So Laban said, “Please speak.”
34“I am Abraham’s servant,” he replied. 35“The LORD has greatly blessed my master, and he has become rich. He has given him sheep and cattle, silver and gold, menservants and maidservants, camels and donkeys. 36My master’s wife Sarah has borne him a son in her old age, and my master has given him everything he owns.
37My master made me swear an oath and said, ‘You shall not take a wife for my son from the daughters of the Canaanites in whose land I dwell, 38but you shall go to my father’s house and to my kindred to take a wife for my son.’
39Then I asked my master, ‘What if the woman will not come back with me?’
40And he told me, ‘The LORD, before whom I have walked, will send His angel with you and make your journey a success, so that you may take a wife for my son from my kindred and from my father’s house. 41And when you go to my kindred, if they refuse to give her to you, then you will be released from my oath.’
42So when I came to the spring today, I prayed: O LORD, God of my master Abraham, if only You would make my journey a success! 43Here I am, standing beside this spring. Now if a maiden comes out to draw water and I say to her, ‘Please let me drink a little water from your jar,’ 44and she replies, ‘Drink, and I will draw water for your camels as well,’ may she be the woman the LORD has appointed for my master’s son.
45And before I had finished praying in my heart, there was Rebekah coming out with her jar on her shoulder, and she went down to the spring and drew water. So I said to her, ‘Please give me a drink.’
46She quickly lowered her jar from her shoulder and said,
‘Drink, and I will water your camels as well.’ So I drank, and she also watered the camels.
47Then I asked her, ‘Whose daughter are you?’
She replied, ‘The daughter of Bethuel son of Nahor, whom Milcah bore to him.’ So I put the ring on her nose and the bracelets on her wrists. 48Then I bowed down and worshiped the LORD; and I blessed the LORD, the God of my master Abraham, who led me on the right road to take the granddaughter of my master’s brother for his son.
49Now if you will show kindness and faithfulness to my master, tell me; but if not, let me know, so that I may go elsewhere.”
50Laban and Bethuel answered, “This is from the LORD; we have no choice in the matter. 51Rebekah is here before you. Take her and go, and let her become the wife of your master’s son, just as the LORD has decreed.”
52When Abraham’s servant heard their words, he bowed down to the ground before the LORD. 53Then he brought out jewels of silver and gold, and articles of clothing, and he gave them to Rebekah. He also gave precious gifts to her brother and her mother. 54Then he and the men with him ate and drank and spent the night there.
When they got up the next morning, he said, “Send me on my way to my master.”
55But her brother and mother said, “Let the girl remain with us ten days or so. After that, she may go.”
56But he replied, “Do not delay me, since the LORD has made my journey a success. Send me on my way so that I may go to my master.”
57So they said, “We will call the girl and ask her opinion.”
58They called Rebekah and asked her, “Will you go with this man?”
“I will go,” she replied.
59So they sent their sister Rebekah on her way,
along with her nurse and
Abraham’s servant and his men.
60And they blessed Rebekah and said to her,
“Our sister, may you become the mother
of thousands upon thousands.
May your offspring possess
the gates of their enemies.”
Then Rebekah and her servant girls got ready,
mounted the camels,
and followed the man.
So the servant took Rebekah and left.
Isaac Marries Rebekah
Now Isaac had just returned
from Beer-lahai-roi,
for he was living in the Negev.
Early in the evening,
Isaac went out to the field to meditate,
and looking up,
he saw the camels approaching.
And when Rebekah looked up and saw Isaac,
she got down from her camel
and asked the servant,
“Who is that man in the field coming to meet us?”
“It is my master,” the servant answered.
So she took her veil and covered herself.
then the servant
told Isaac all that he had done.
and Isaac brought her into the tent
of his
mother Sarah and took Rebekah as his wife.
And Isaac loved her and was comforted
after his mother’s death.
The Lord of the Sabbath
(1 Samuel 21:1–7; Matthew 12:1–8; Mark 2:23–28)
1One Sabbatha Jesus was passing through the grainfields, and His disciples began to pick the heads of grain,
rub them in their hands, and eat them.
2But some of the Pharisees asked, “Why are you doing what is unlawful on the Sabbath?”
Jesus replied,
“Have you not read what
David did
when he and
his companions were
hungry?
He entered the house of God,
took the
consecrated bread
and gave it to his companions,
and ate what is
Lawful only for
the
Priests to Eat.”
then Jesus declared,
“The Son of Man is Lord of the Sabbath.”
The Beatitudes
(Psalm 1:1–6; Matthew 5:3–12)
Looking up at His disciples, Jesus said:
“Blessed are you who are poor,
for yours is the kingdom of God.
21Blessed are you who hunger now,
for you will be filled.
Blessed are you who weep now,
for you will laugh.
Blessed are you when people hate you, and when they
exclude you and insult you
and reject your name
as evil because of the Son of Man.
Rejoice in that day and
leap for joy,
because great is your reward in heaven.
For their fathers
treated the prophets in the same way.
Blessed be the God and Father
of our
Lord Jesus Christ!
By His great mercy He has given us
new birth
into a living hope through
the resurrection of Jesus Christ from
the dead,
4and into an inheritance that is imperishable, undefiled, and unfading, reserved in heaven for you, 5who through faith are shielded by God’s power for the salvation that is ready to be revealed in the last time.
6In this you greatly rejoice, though now for a little while you may have had to suffer grief in various trials
7so that the proven character of your faith—more precious than gold, which perishes even though refined by fire—may result in praise, glory, and honor at the revelation of Jesus Christ.
8Though you have not seen Him, you love Him; and though you do not see Him now, you believe in Him and rejoice with an inexpressible and glorious joy, 9now that you are receiving the goal of your faith, the salvation of your souls.
10Concerning this salvation, the prophets who foretold the grace to come to you searched and investigated carefully, 11trying to determine the time and setting to which the Spirit of Christ in them was pointing when He predicted the sufferings of Christ and the glories to follow.
12It was revealed to them that they were not serving themselves, but you, when they foretold the things now announced by those who preached the gospel to you by the Holy Spirit sent from heaven. Even angels long to look into these things.
Paul’s Hardships and God’s Grace
as God’s fellow workers, then,
we urge you not
to receive God’s grace in vain
For He says:
“In the time of favor I heard you,
and in the day of salvation I helped you.”
Behold, now is the time of favor;
now is
the day of salvation!
We put no obstacle in anyone’s way,
so that no one
can discredit our ministry
4Rather, as servants of God we commend ourselves in every way: in great endurance; in troubles, hardships, and calamities; 5in beatings, imprisonments, and riots; in labor, sleepless nights, and hunger; 6in purity, knowledge, patience, and kindness; in the Holy Spirit and in sincere love; 7in truthful speech and in the power of God; with the weapons of righteousness in the right hand and in the left;8through glory and dishonor, slander and praise; viewed as imposters, yet genuine;
unknown, yet well-known;
dying,
and
yet we live on; punished,
yet not killed;
sorrowful,
yet always rejoicing; poor,
yet making
many rich;
having nothing,
and
yet possessing everything
11We have spoken freely to you, Corinthians. Our hearts are open wide. 12It is not our affection, but yours, that is restrained. 13As a fair exchange—I speak as to my children—open wide your hearts also.
1One afternoon Peter and John
were going up to
the
temple at the hour
of
prayer, the ninth hour
2And a man who was lame from birth was being carried to the temple gate called Beautiful, where he was put every day to beg from those entering the temple courts.b 3When he saw Peter and John about to enter, he asked them for money.
4Peter looked directly at him, as did John. “Look at us!” said Peter. 5So the man gave them his attention, expecting to receive something from them. 6But Peter said, “Silver or gold I do not have, but what I have I give you: In the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, get up and walk!
7Taking him by the right hand, Peter helped him up, and at once the man’s feet and ankles were made strong. 8He sprang to his feet and began to walk. Then he went with them into the temple courts, walking and leaping and praising God.
9When all the people saw him walking and praising God, 10they recognized him as the man who used to sit begging at the Beautiful Gate of the temple, and they were filled with wonder and amazement at what had happened to him.
Matthew 10:8
Heal the sick, raise the dead, cleanse the lepers, drive out demons. Freely you have received; freely give.
Mark 16:17-18
And these signs will accompany those who believe: In My name they will drive out demons; they will speak in new tongues; / they will pick up snakes with their hands, and if they drink any deadly poison, it will not harm them; they will lay their hands on the sick, and they will be made well.”
John 14:12-14
Truly, truly, I tell you, whoever believes in Me will also do the works that I am doing. He will do even greater things than these, because I am going to the Father. / And I will do whatever you ask in My name, so that the Father may be glorified in the Son. / If you ask Me for anything in My name, I will do it.
Luke 9:1-2
Then Jesus called the Twelve together and gave them power and authority over all demons, and power to cure diseases. / And He sent them out to proclaim the kingdom of God and to heal the sick.
Acts 4:10
then let this be known to all of you and to all the people of Israel: It is by the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, whom you crucified but whom God raised from the dead, that this man stands before you healed.
Acts 9:34
“Aeneas,” Peter said to him, “Jesus Christ heals you! Get up and put away your mat.” Immediately Aeneas got up,
Acts 16:18
She continued this for many days. Eventually Paul grew so aggravated that he turned and said to the spirit, “In the name of Jesus Christ I command you to come out of her!” And the spirit left her at that very moment.
James 5:14-15
Is any one of you sick? He should call the elders of the church to pray over him and anoint him with oil in the name of the Lord. / And the prayer offered in faith will restore the one who is sick. The Lord will raise him up. If he has sinned, he will be forgiven.
1 Corinthians 12:9-10
to another faith by the same Spirit, to another gifts of healing by that one Spirit, / to another the working of miracles, to another prophecy, to another distinguishing between spirits, to another speaking in various tongues, and to still another the interpretation of tongues.
2 Corinthians 12:9
But He said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for My power is perfected in weakness.” Therefore I will boast all the more gladly in my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may rest on me.
Philippians 2:9-11
Therefore God exalted Him to the highest place and gave Him the name above all names, / that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, / and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.
Isaiah 35:6
Then the lame will leap like a deer and the mute tongue will shout for joy. For waters will gush forth in the wilderness, and streams in the desert.
Isaiah 53:5
But He was pierced for our transgressions, He was crushed for our iniquities; the punishment that brought us peace was upon Him, and by His stripes we are healed.
Isaiah 61:1
The Spirit of the Lord GOD is on Me, because the LORD has anointed Me to preach good news to the poor. He has sent Me to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives and freedom to the prisoners,
Psalm 103:2-3
Bless the LORD, O my soul, and do not forget all His kind deeds— / He who forgives all your iniquities and heals all your diseases,
Matthew 10:9
Provide neither gold, nor silver, nor brass in your purses,
1 Corinthians 4:11
Even unto this present hour we both hunger, and thirst, and are naked, and are buffeted, and have no certain dwellingplace;
2 Corinthians 6:10
As sorrowful, yet alway rejoicing; as poor, yet making many rich; as having nothing, and yet possessing all things.
Mark 14:8
She hath done what she could: she is come aforehand to anoint my body to the burying.
2 Corinthians 8:12
For if there be first a willing mind, it isaccepted according to that a man hath, and not according to that he hath not.
1 Peter 4:10
As every man hath received the gift, even so minister the same one to another, as good stewards of the manifold grace of God.
Acts 3:16
And his name through faith in his name hath made this man strong, whom ye see and know: yea, the faith which is by him hath given him this perfect soundness in the presence of you all.
Acts 4:7
And when they had set them in the midst, they asked, By what power, or by what name, have ye done this?
Acts 9:34
And Peter said unto him, AEneas, Jesus Christ maketh thee whole: arise, and make thy bed. And he arose immediately.
Acts 2:22,36
Ye men of Israel, hear these words; Jesus of Nazareth, a man approved of God among you by miracles and wonders and signs, which God did by him in the midst of you, as ye yourselves also know: …
Acts 4:10
Be it known unto you all, and to all the people of Israel, that by the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, whom ye crucified, whom God raised from the dead, even by him doth this man stand here before you whole.
Acts 10:38
How God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Ghost and with power: who went about doing good, and healing all that were oppressed of the devil; for God was with him.
The Hebrew word sharon means
“a plain or a level place.”
The Plain of Sharon is the coastal plain
between
the mountains of central Israel
and the
Mediterranean Sea, north of
Joppa to Mt. Carmel
The area is mentioned in Acts 9:35 in conjunction with the town of Lydda, which is about eleven miles SE of Joppa and is called “Lod” in the Old Testament (1 Chronicles 8:12). Modern Israelis have reverted back to the Old Testament name. This town is located in the midst of the Plain of Sharon. This area was proverbially fertile and known for its flowers. The “rose of Sharon” is found in the Song of Solomon 2:1. Therefore, we can surmise that the rose of Sharon flower is named for the district of Sharon.
Webster’s says that the “rose of Sharon” is a hardy plant of the mallow family with the name “Hibiscus Syriacus” and has white, red, pink, or purplish flowers. However, the Rose of Sharon mentioned in the Song of Solomon is a crocus-like flower and the source of saffron. The Hebrew word habaselet as used in Song of Solomon 2:1 is translated twice as “rose,” once here in the Song of Solomon and once in Isaiah 35:1. The translators may indeed have used the word rose to refer to the meaning of the Hebrew word, which is a flower similar to what we now know as a crocus or a bulb flower like a tulip. The NIV uses a footnote that says, “Possibly a member of the crocus family.” Therefore, the “rose of Sharon” is not really what we would classify today as a “rose,” but it could be a plant similar to the hibiscus or it could be a crocus or tulip.
Some Bible expositors see the
rose of Sharon as Christ and the lily as
the church, His bride.
Some of the early church fathers were fond of
this analogy as well.
There are some parallels
that may be drawn between Christ and the rose of Sharon.
In addition, the church is never portrayed
as a lily in the Bible.
Some say that because the rose of Sharon
grows in dry,
unfavorable conditions, it symbolizes
Jesus coming from the root of Jesse and David
(Isaiah 11:1; Revelation 22:16),
fragrant as a rose in Song of Solomon 2:1
can be seen
as symbolic of Christ.
In the middle of His great Sermon on the Mount,
the Lord turns to the
topic of anxiety or worry, encouraging
His followers to trust in God as their provider.
He asks His followers,
“Why are you anxious about clothing?
Consider the lilies of the field, how
they grow:
they neither toil nor spin,
yet I tell you, even Solomon in all his glory was not
arrayed like one of these.
But if God so clothes the grass of the field,
which today is alive and tomorrow is thrown into the oven,
will he not much more clothe you, O you of little faith?”
(Matthew 6:28–30, ESV)
This section of the Sermon on the Mount
(Matthew 6:25–34)
might be titled simply “Stop Worrying!”
Jesus repeats
the word worry or worries at least
five times.
The Lord had just finished teaching about wealth,
contrasting temporary
earthly riches with eternal heavenly treasure
(Matthew 6:19–24).
He drives home the point that true kingdom servants aren’t to live for transient esteem here on earth,
but instead are to look toward heaven and the rewards being stored up for them in eternity.
The purpose of this life, Jesus reveals, is to prepare us
for the world to come.
Building on the theme, Christ teaches that the pursuit of wealth
may be the single greatest rival
for our devotion to God: “No one can serve two masters.
Either you will hate the one and love the other, or you will be devoted
to the one and despise the other.
You cannot serve both God and money” (Matthew 6:24).
The Lord desires our undivided loyalty and affection.
After addressing the topic of money, the Lord moves straight to worry, which is likely the next biggest contender for our time and devotion. Jesus tells His disciples, “Do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothes?” (Matthew 6:25).
The faithful servant who is wholly committed to the King need not worry about everyday life.
The essence of our existence is so much more than what we will eat and what we will wear.
We should consider the birds of the air, according to Jesus.
They don’t farm the soil or store their food in barns. No, their heavenly Father feeds them. “Aren’t you far more valuable to Him than they are?” asks Jesus (Matthew 6:26, NLT). It does us no good to worry about our basic needs. Jesus asks, “Can any one of you by worrying add a single hour to your life?” (verse 27). Trusting God as our provider means believing He will take care of what we need. God has the power of life and death in His hands, and He will sustain His servants as long as they need to endure
(Job 1:21; 33:4; James 4:12).
We should also consider the lilies of the field. They grow and yet don’t have to work to produce their clothing (Matthew 6:28). “Yet I tell you,” Jesus stresses, “that not even Solomon in all his splendor was dressed like one of these” (verse 29). The lilies of the field are here today and gone tomorrow, explains Jesus. If God cares so tenderly for short-lived wildflowers, how much more will He care for us who are of great value to Him (verse 30)?
Not only does Jesus encourage us to trust in our heavenly Father, but He also affirms our great worth in God’s eyes.
Nearing the close of this section on worry, Jesus asks, “Why do you have so little faith?” (Matthew 6:30, ESV). Bible commentaries suggest that Jesus’ tone here is not condescending or scolding, but persuading and reasoning. He punctuates His main point with a penetrating question: “Do you truly trust your Heavenly Father?” Jesus encourages the disciples to look up and look beyond this life, just as Paul urges the Corinthians: “So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen, since what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal” (2 Corinthians 4:18).
If our priorities are in proper order, if we “seek first
his kingdom and
his righteousness,” then “all these things”
(our basic needs for this life) will be provided for us by the King
(Matthew 6:33).
We should consider the lilies of the field because they remind us to trust our Heavenly Father to care for us and provide for our everyday needs. God loves us deeply and therefore will feed and clothe us. “In his hand is the life of every creature and the breath of all mankind,” says Job 12:10. We don’t have to worry because our lives are in God’s hands. We should also consider the lilies of the field because they represent the fleeting nature of our time on this earth (see Isaiah 40:8). Our focus must remain on eternity and our real purpose in this life. And we should consider the lilies of the field because they call to mind how precious we are in God’s eyes.
In the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus taught His listeners the difference between earthly treasure and heavenly treasure, and He emphasized the importance of the heavenly: “Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where moth and rust do not destroy, and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also” (Matthew 6:19–21).
Whatever we focus on dictates our actions.
When we focus on earthly success and wealth, we will expend our energies on earthly matters.
However, when we focus on God’s priorities, our actions will reflect different priorities—and our reward in heaven will last forever.
Treasure is anything we value above all else and that which motivates us to action. For some it is money. For others it is power. Still other people strive for fame or attention. There are many things in this world vying for control of our heart. According to Jesus, determining where our treasure is also determines where our heart is. Many people claim to look forward to heaven, but their hearts are really not in it—their hearts are caught up in the cares of this world, because that’s where their treasure lies.
Jesus warned us that earthly currency has an expiration date. While it may satisfy us temporarily, it is unstable and fleeting. The ever-changing faces on magazine covers remind us that the famous are here and gone in a blink. The stock market crash of 1929 taught us that the wealthy can quickly lose it all. Power, prestige, and public approval are limited and can be gone in an instant.
Even the Son of God
experienced
the fickleness of human approval.
One day
people were trying to make Him king
(John 6:15),
and the next they
were leaving Him in droves (verse 66)
“This world in its present form is passing away”
(1 Corinthians 7:31).
The moment we take our last breath, earthly treasure
won’t matter anymore.
Jesus urged us to think beyond that
last breath to eternity.
When our focus is on eternity—when our treasure is
laid up in heaven
--our lifestyles reflect that perspective.
We will all give an account of ourselves before God for every action (Romans 14:12) and every idle word (Matthew 12:36). No one is exempt. Excuses are not accepted. God sees and knows every thought we think and holds us accountable for the truth we’ve been given (Romans 1:18–22). We store up “treasure in heaven” when we make choices on earth that benefit God’s kingdom. Jesus said that even offering a cup of cool water to a fellow believer is worthy of eternal reward (Matthew 10:42).
In Luke 16:19–31, Jesus told a story about a rich man and a beggar. The rich man had invested his life in opulence and pleasure. He cared little for anyone or anything but himself. When he died, his riches could not follow him. His life choices had prepared him only for hell, and all the money and prestige he enjoyed on earth counted for nothing. After death, he would have given everything he ever owned for a single drop of water, but his treasure had been invested elsewhere.
It is no sin to be rich, but our passions follow our investments. Wealthy people who consider their riches as belonging to God will use what they have in ways that have eternal significance, protecting their own hearts from the love of money (1 Timothy 6:10). People whose treasure is in heaven cannot be owned by their possessions. They cannot be bought off because nothing on earth is worth the price of their soul. They value the currency of heaven and use their earthly treasure to purchase “heavenly gold,” which will never lose its value. Investing our treasure in material things keeps our hearts anchored to earthly values; however, when we invest in things of eternal value, our hearts remain loyal to the Lord, and we will not be tempted to foolishly attempt to serve both God and money (Luke 16:13).
Because of the fidelity inherent in His character,
Jesus is faithful
toward His followers in every circumstance.
“If we are faithless, he remains faithful, for he cannot disown himself,”
declares 2 Timothy 2:13
(see also Matthew 28:20; 2 Thessalonians 3:3; Hebrews 10:23).
Faithful and True is a fitting title for Jesus Christ our King,
and He calls His followers
to emulate His faithfulness and truth
(Revelation 14:12; Hebrews 10:23).
The entire book of Revelation
conveys a message to the church of
Jesus Christ
to be faithful and true,
just as
He is Faithful and True.
In Revelation 19:11,
when John sees the gates of heaven open,
the One who
has been Faithful and True
from ages past appears
at the end of time to wage
His final battle.
Jesus Christ comes with justice to judge and wage war,
and
He will triumph over the enemies of God!
The outcome is sure because He is
Faithful and True.
He will do what He has promised to do.
He shall defeat the devil once and for all.
He will destroy the power of death,
wiping away every sorrow, tear,
and
pain from the hearts of His devoted followers
(Isaiah 25:8; 1 Corinthians 15:54; Hebrews 2:14; Revelation 20:14).
The Bride’s Admiration
The Bride
1I am a rose of Sharon,
a lily of the valley.
The Bridegroom
2Like a lily among the thorns
is my darling among the maidens.
The Bride
3Like an apple tree among the trees of the forest
is my beloved among the young men.
I delight to sit in his shade,
and his fruit is sweet to my taste.
4He has brought me to the house of wine,
and his banner over me is love.
5Sustain me with raisins;
refresh me with apples,
for I am faint with love.
6His left hand is under my head,
and his right arm embraces me.
7O daughters of Jerusalem, I adjure you
by the gazelles and does of the field:
Do not arouse or awaken love
until the time is right.
8Listen! My beloved approaches.
Look! Here he comes,
leaping across the mountains,
bounding over the hills.
9My beloved is like a gazelle or a young stag.
Look, he stands behind our wall,
gazing through the windows,
peering through the lattice.
10My beloved calls to me,
“Arise, my darling.
Come away with me, my beautiful one.
11For now the winter is past;
the rain is over and gone.
12The flowers have appeared in the countryside;
the season of singingc has come,
and the cooing of turtledoves
is heard in our land.
13The fig tree ripens its figs;
the blossoming vines spread their fragrance.
Arise, come away, my darling;
come away with me, my beautiful one.”
The Bridegroom
14O my dove in the clefts of the rock,
in the crevices of the cliff,
let me see your face,
let me hear your voice;
for your voice is sweet,
and your countenance is lovely.
The Friends
15Catch for us the foxes--
the little foxes that ruin the vineyards--
for our vineyards are in bloom.
The Bride
16My beloved is mine and I am his;
he pastures his flock among the lilies.
17Before the day breaks and shadows flee,
turn, my beloved,
and be like a gazelle
or a young stag on the mountains of Bether.
Isaiah 35:1-2
The wilderness and the dry land will be glad; the desert will rejoice and blossom like a rose. / It will bloom profusely and rejoice with joy and singing. The glory of Lebanon will be given to it, the splendor of Carmel and Sharon. They will see the glory of the LORD, the splendor of our God.
Isaiah 11:1
Then a shoot will spring up from the stump of Jesse, and a Branch from his roots will bear fruit.
Hosea 14:5-7
I will be like the dew to Israel; he will blossom like the lily and take root like the cedars of Lebanon. / His shoots will sprout, and his splendor will be like the olive tree, his fragrance like the cedars of Lebanon. / They will return and dwell in his shade; they will grow grain and blossom like the vine. His renown will be like the wine of Lebanon.
Isaiah 53:2
He grew up before Him like a tender shoot, and like a root out of dry ground. He had no stately form or majesty to attract us, no beauty that we should desire Him.
John 15:1-5
“I am the true vine, and My Father is the keeper of the vineyard. / He cuts off every branch in Me that bears no fruit, and every branch that does bear fruit, He prunes to make it even more fruitful. / You are already clean because of the word I have spoken to you. ...
Matthew 6:28-30
And why do you worry about clothes? Consider how the lilies of the field grow: They do not labor or spin. / Yet I tell you that not even Solomon in all his glory was adorned like one of these. / If that is how God clothes the grass of the field, which is here today and tomorrow is thrown into the furnace, will He not much more clothe you, O you of little faith?
Luke 12:27
Consider how the lilies grow: They do not labor or spin. Yet I tell you, not even Solomon in all his glory was adorned like one of these.
John 1:14
The Word became flesh and made His dwelling among us. We have seen His glory, the glory of the one and only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth.
Revelation 22:16
“I, Jesus, have sent My angel to give you this testimony for the churches. I am the Root and the Offspring of David, the bright Morning Star.”
Psalm 45:13-15
All glorious is the princess in her chamber; her gown is embroidered with gold. / In colorful garments she is led to the king; her virgin companions are brought before you. / They are led in with joy and gladness; they enter the palace of the king.
Isaiah 61:10-11
I will rejoice greatly in the LORD, my soul will exult in my God; for He has clothed me with garments of salvation and wrapped me in a robe of righteousness, as a bridegroom wears a priestly headdress, as a bride adorns herself with her jewels. / For as the earth brings forth its growth, and as a garden enables seed to spring up, so the Lord GOD will cause righteousness and praise to spring up before all the nations.
1 Peter 1:24-25
For, “All flesh is like grass, and all its glory like the flowers of the field; the grass withers and the flowers fall, / but the word of the Lord stands forever.” And this is the word that was proclaimed to you.
Matthew 13:31-32
He put before them another parable: “The kingdom of heaven is like a mustard seed that a man took and planted in his field. / Although it is the smallest of all seeds, yet it grows into the largest of garden plants and becomes a tree, so that the birds of the air come and nest in its branches.”
2 Corinthians 2:14-16
But thanks be to God, who always leads us triumphantly as captives in Christ and through us spreads everywhere the fragrance of the knowledge of Him. / For we are to God the sweet aroma of Christ among those who are being saved and those who are perishing. / To the one we are an odor that brings death, to the other a fragrance that brings life. And who is qualified for such a task?
Ephesians 5:25-27
Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ loved the church and gave Himself up for her / to sanctify her, cleansing her by the washing with water through the word, / and to present her to Himself as a glorious church, without stain or wrinkle or any such blemish, but holy and blameless.
rose
Psalm 85:11
Truth shall spring out of the earth; and righteousness shall look down from heaven.
Isaiah 35:1,2
The wilderness and the solitary place shall be glad for them; and the desert shall rejoice, and blossom as the rose…
lily .
Song of Solomon 6:3
I am my beloved's, and my beloved ismine: he feedeth among the lilies.
The Heart
Is
The Ark of The Covenant
The heart is the storage box of the soul, as it holds a
person’s emotions, thoughts, and beliefs.
In worship, the heart
represents the ark of the covenant
The ark of the covenant, also referred to as “the ark of God” (1 Sam. 3:3); “the ark of might” (Psalm 78:61), and “the holy ark” (2 Chron. 35:3) was a symbol of God’s presence on the earth. It rested in the Most Holy Place (the Holy of Holies), the innermost section of the Tabernacle and Temple that only the High Priest could enter once a year (Lev. 16; Heb. 9:7). It is introduced in the Bible narrative in Exodus 25, when God instituted the Tabernacle. He told Moses:
8 “Have the people of Israel build me a holy sanctuary so I can live among them. 9 You must build this Tabernacle and its furnishings exactly according to the pattern I will show you. 10 “Have the people make an Ark…” ~Exodus 25:8-10 (NLT).
The ark was a sacred chest made of acacia wood and overlaid with gold. Per God’s instructions, it stored the tablets inscribed with the Ten Commandments. He told Moses:
When the Ark is finished, place inside it the stone tablets inscribed with the terms of the covenant, which I will give to you.
~Exodus 25:16 (NLT)
Moses detailed this event while retelling Israel’s history before the Israelites entered the Promised Land. He said:
“At that time the Lord said to me, ‘Chisel out two stone tablets like the first ones. Also make a wooden Ark—a sacred chest to store them in. Come up to me on the mountain, 2 and I will write on the tablets the same words that were on the ones you smashed. Then place the tablets in the Ark.’ … Then I turned and came down the mountain and placed the tablets in the Ark of the Covenant, which I had made, just as the Lord commanded me. And the tablets are still there in the Ark.”
~Deut. 10:1-5 (NLT)
When worship moved from the Tabernacle to the Temple, the ark and the tablets moved with it.
6 Then the priests carried the Ark of the Lord’s Covenant into the inner sanctuary of the Temple—the Most Holy Place—and placed it beneath the wings of the cherubim… 9 Nothing was in the Ark except the two stone tablets that Moses had placed in it at Mount Sinai, where the Lord made a covenant with the people of Israel when they left the land of Egypt.
~1 Kings 8:6-9 (NLT)
The heart (nonmaterial part of the soul) is likened to the ark of the covenant because it too stores things. It holds rumors (Prov. 18:8), deep thoughts (Luke 2:35); sin (Psalm 36:1), and instruction (Prov. 4:20-21). And like the ark of the covenant, it holds the word of God as well. As Moses told the Israelites:
… the message is very close at hand; it is on your lips and in your heart so that you can obey it.
~Deut. 30:14 (NLT)
Now, because of the New Covenant, the word of God no longer needs to be written down on stone. Now it is written and lives in the heart of each believer. This is what Jeremiah foretold as one of God’s spokesmen:
“But this is the new covenant I will make with the people of Israel after those days,” says the Lord. “I will put my instructions deep within them, and I will write them on their hearts. I will be their God, and they will be my people.
~Jer. 31:33 (NLT)
Because the word is written on the heart, a person of faith will be convicted when they do wrong, even if they have never read a particular portion of Scripture that specifically deals with that sin. This is because the Holy Spirit lives in the heart (2 Cor. 1:22) and teaches believers how to be godly (1 John 2:27). This is also what Paul spoke of when writing about the Gentile believers, who were not the recipients of the Mosaic Law. He wrote:
14 Even Gentiles, who do not have God’s written law, show that they know his law when they instinctively obey it, even without having heard it. 15 They demonstrate that God’s law is written in their hearts, for their own conscience and thoughts either accuse them or tell them they are doing right. ~Romans 2:14-15 (NLT)
With God’s words in their heart, believers are empowered to fight the good fight of faith (1 Tim. 6:12) and confidently fight the spiritual battle that Jesus has already won for them when He was resurrected (Eph. 1:19-22; 6:10-17).
As the Apostle John wrote:
I have written to you who are God’s children because you know the Father. I have written to you who are mature in the faith because you know Christ, who existed from the beginning. I have written to you who are young in the faith because you are strong. God’s word lives in your hearts, and you have won your battle with the evil one.
~1 John 2:14 (NLT)
In his vision in Revelation 19:7–10, John saw and heard the heavenly multitudes praising God because the wedding feast of the Lamb—literally, the “marriage supper”—was about to begin. The concept of the marriage supper is better understood in light of the wedding customs in the time of Christ.
These wedding customs had three major parts. First, a marriage contract was signed by the parents of the bride and the bridegroom, and the parents of the bridegroom or the bridegroom himself would pay a dowry to the bride or her parents. This began what was called the betrothal period—what we would today call the engagement. This period was the one Joseph and Mary were in when she was found to be with child (Matthew 1:18; Luke 2:5).
The second step in the process usually occurred much later, when the bridegroom, accompanied by his male friends, went to the house of the bride. If he came in the night, he and his companions would create a torchlight parade through the streets. The bride would know in advance this was going to take place, and so she would be ready with her maidens, and they would all join the parade and end up at the bridegroom’s home. This custom is the basis of the parable of the ten virgins in Matthew 25:1–13. The third phase was the marriage supper itself, which might go on for days, as illustrated by the wedding at Cana in John 2:1–2.
What John’s vision in Revelation pictures is the wedding feast of the Lamb (Jesus Christ) and His bride (the Church) in its third phase. The implication is that the first two phases have already taken place. The first phase was completed on earth when each individual believer placed his or her faith in Christ as Savior. The dowry paid by the bridegroom’s parent (God the Father) would be the blood of Christ shed on the Bride’s behalf. The Church on earth today, then, is “betrothed” to Christ, and, like the wise virgins in the parable, all believers should be watching and waiting for the appearance of the Bridegroom (the rapture). The second phase symbolizes the rapture of the Church, when Christ comes to claim His bride and take her to the Father’s house. The marriage supper then follows as the third and final step. It is our view that the marriage supper of the Lamb takes place in heaven between the rapture and the second coming (during the tribulation on earth).
Attending the wedding feast will be not only the Church as the Bride of Christ, but others as well. The “others” include the Old Testament saints—they will not have been resurrected yet, but their souls/spirits will be in heaven with us. As the angel told John to write, “Blessed are those who are invited to the marriage supper of t
The New Jerusalem, which is also called the tabernacle of God, the Holy City, the city of God, the celestial city, the city foursquare, and Heavenly Jerusalem, is literally heaven on earth. It is referred to in the Bible in several places (Galatians 4:26; Hebrews 11:10; 12:22–24; and 13:14), but it is most fully described in Revelation 21.
In Revelation 21, the recorded history of man is at its end. All the ages have come and gone. Christ has gathered His church in the Rapture (1 Thessalonians 4:15–17). The tribulation has passed (Revelation 6—18). The battle of Armageddon has been fought and won by our Lord Jesus Christ (Revelation 19:17–21). Satan has been chained for the 1,000-year reign of Christ on earth (Revelation 20:1–3). A new, glorious temple has been established in Jerusalem (Ezekiel 40—48). The final rebellion against God has been quashed, and Satan has received his just punishment, an eternity in the lake of fire (Revelation 20:7–10.) The great white throne judgment has taken place, and mankind has been judged (Revelation 20:11–15).
In Revelation 21:1 God does a complete make-over of heaven and earth (cf. Isaiah 65:17; 2 Peter 3:12–13). The new heaven and new earth are what some call the “eternal state” and will be “where righteousness dwells” (2 Peter 3:13). After the re-creation, God reveals the New Jerusalem. John sees a glimpse of it in his vision: “The Holy City, the new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride beautifully dressed for her husband” (Revelation 21:2). This is the city that Abraham looked for in faith (Hebrews 11:10). It is the place where God will dwell with His people forever (Revelation 21:3). Inhabitants of this celestial city will have all tears wiped away (Revelation 21:4).
The New Jerusalem will be fantastically huge. John records that the city is nearly 1,400 miles long, and it is as wide and as high as it is long—the New Jerusalem being in equal in length, width, and depth (Revelation 21:15–17). The city will be dazzling in every way. It is lighted by the glory of God (verse 23). Its twelve foundations, bearing the names of the twelve apostles, are “decorated with every kind of precious stone” (verse 19). It has twelve gates, each made of a single pearl, bearing the names of the twelve tribes of Israel (verses 12 and 21). The street will be made of pure gold (verse 21).
The New Jerusalem will be a place of unimagined blessing.
The curse of the old earth will be gone (Revelation 22:3). In the city are the tree of life “for the healing of the nations” and the river of life (verses 1–2). It is the place that Paul spoke of: “In the coming ages [God] might show the incomparable riches of his grace, expressed in his kindness to us in Christ Jesus” (Ephesians 2:7).
The New Jerusalem is the ultimate fulfillment
of all God’s promises.
The New Jerusalem is God’s goodness
made fully manifest.
Who are the residents of the
New Jerusalem?
The Father and the Lamb are there (Revelation 21:22).
Angels are at the gates (verse 12). But the city will be filled with
God’s redeemed children.
The New Jerusalem is the righteous counter to the evil Babylon
(Revelation 17),
destroyed by God’s judgment (Revelation 18).
The wicked had their city, and God has His.
The invitation is extended:
“The Spirit and the bride say, ‘Come!’
And let the one who hears say, ‘Come!’
Let the one who is thirsty come;
and let the one who wishes
take the free gift of the water of life”
(Revelation 22:17).
"Thus Jesse made seven
of his sons pass before Samuel.
But Samuel said to Jesse,
‘The LORD
has not chosen these.' And Samuel
said to Jesse, '
Are these all the children?'
And he said,
'There remains yet the youngest, and behold,
he is tending the sheep.'
Then Samuel said to Jesse, '
’Send and bring him; for we will
not sit
down until he comes here.'
So he sent and brought him in.
Now he was ruddy, with
beautiful
eyes and a handsome appearance
(WORD)
And the LORD said,
'Arise, anoint him; for this is he.'
Then Samuel took the
horn of oil and anointed him
in the midst of his brothers;
and
the Spirit of the LORD came mightily upon
David from that day forward
And Samuel arose and went to Ramah"
(1 Sam 16:10-13)
The divine choice
of the youngest brother,
David,
to rule
instead of his other brothers,
along with his good looks,
provide all the best ingredients
for
a pot of jealousy
which will
boil over in the next chapter
(see 1 Sam 17:28-29)
But there's more to this story than
meets the eye.
Every single word has been strategically
chosen
to parallel another well-known story in the Bible.
The author
introduces David by telling us "he is tending the sheep"
(v. 11),
a phrase used to describe only one other person
in the Hebrew Bible,
who also happens to be the younger brother,
divinely chosen to rule
over his brothers: Joseph (Gen 37:2, .
The description of David's good looks also
draws
a parallel to Joseph
(compare 1 Sam 16:12; Gen 39:6),
and may
even be a subtle hint very early in the story
that David, like Joseph,
will also
have to face the temptation of adultery
(compare 2 Samuel 11 with Genesis 39).
Like Joseph, so too
David is filled
with
the Spirit of God
(compare 1 Sam 16:13 with Gen 41:38).
And perhaps
most important of all, like Joseph, the author
uses
a poem at the end of the
story to interpret the events of
David's life
God's divine choice, the rejection by his brothers,
the
terrible suffering, and eventual ascent to the throne
as a
prefiguration of the Messianic King
(2 Sam 22:1-51; 23:1-7; Gen 49:8-12).
By reading
David, we see Joseph, by reading David and Joseph,
we
See the Messiah!
Using this strategic narrative analogy located
at the very beginning of the story of
David,
the author ties the divine choice of David
directly to
God's promises to the Patriarchs in Genesis,
and to
God's plan to bless the world
through the
Seed of Abraham
It is no surprise, therefore, the authors of the NT
identify
Yeshua as the Messiah son of David
(Matt 1:1),
and also as the Messiah son of Joseph
(John 1:45),
two figures who are
seamlessly woven into the Meta-Story of the
Hebrew Bible
To say
Yeshua is the One of whom Moses and the Prophets
did write is no exaggeration.
It's a factual statement which proves we are sensitive readers.
For Yeshua,
this truly is the resolution of the conflict,
the Hero of heroes whom
God has chosen to rule,
not only
over his brothers but all nations.
So in the spirit of Paul's admonition
to Timothy:
Read wisely, connect the dots, and you
will believe in Yeshua!
"You, however, continue in the things you
have learned
and become convinced of,
knowing
from whom you have learned them,
and
that from childhood you have Known
the
SACRED WRITINGS which are able to
give you
the wisdom that leads to
Salvation
through
Faith which is in Christ Jesus"
(2 Tim 3:14-16).
Return with ALL Your
Heart
I adjure you, O daughters of Jerusalem,
That ye stir not up,
nor awake my love, Until he please
Jesus said unto him,
“‘Thou shalt love
the Lord
thy
God with all thy heart,
and with all
thy soul,
and
with all thy mind.’
Joel 2:23,
“Be glad then, ye children of Zion,
and
rejoice in the LORD your God:
for He hath
given you the former rain moderately,
and
He will cause to come down for you the rain,
the former rain,
and the latter rain in the first month.”
Pentecostals
interpreted the “rain” in this verse as an
outpouring of the Holy Spirit.
The “latter rain”
(the end-times outpouring)
would be greater than
the “former rain.”
Hosea 6
The
Unrepentance of Israel and Judah
Come,
let us return to the LORD
For He has torn us to pieces,
but He will heal us;
He has wounded us,
but He will bind up our wounds
After two days He will revive us;
on the third day He will raise us up,
that we may live in His presence
So let us know--
let us press on to know the LORD.
As surely as the sun rises,
He will appear;
He will come to us like the rain,
like the spring
showers that water
the earth
What shall I do with you, O Ephraim?
What shall I do with you, O Judah?
For your
loyalty is like a morning mist,
like the early dew that vanishes
Therefore I have hewn them by
the prophets;
I have slain them by the words of
My mouth,
and
My judgments go forth like
lightning
For I desire mercy, not sacrifice,
and the knowledge of God
rather than burnt offerings
But they, like Adam,
have transgressed the covenant;
there they were unfaithful to Me
Gilead is a city of evildoers,
tracked with footprints of blood
like raiders who lie in ambush,
so does a band of priests;
they murder on the way to Shechem;
surely they have committed atrocities.
In the house of Israel
I have seen a horrible thing:
Ephraim practices prostitution there,
and Israel is defiled
also for you,
O Judah,
a harvest is appointed,
when I restore
My people from captivity
When Jesus called Matthew to become a disciple (Matthew 9:9–13), the Pharisees were scandalized. Matthew, an unscrupulous tax collector, had been part of the corrupt Roman system that cheated and oppressed its citizens. The Jews passionately hated tax collectors, classifying them among the worst of sinners. When the Pharisees saw Jesus having dinner with a band of these notorious crooks at Matthew’s house, they asked, “Why does your teacher eat with tax collectors and sinners?” (Matthew 9:11, ESV). Jesus responded unapologetically: “Those who are well have no need of a physician, but those who are sick. Go and learn what this means: ‘I desire mercy, and not sacrifice.’ For I came not to call the righteous, but sinners” (Matthew 9:12–13, ESV).
Jesus was quoting from Hosea 6:6, in which God rebuked Israel for focusing on the letter of the law while ignoring its spirit. God desires faithfulness, love, and mercy from His people more than their procedural observance of the law. The word sacrifice in Matthew 9:13 and Hosea 6:6 represents all the obligations and rituals that religious people perform but are void of meaning. Jesus charged the Pharisees with being just like the ancient Israelites. They were faultless in their adherence to religious tradition and ritual sacrifice but had no compassion for needy sinners.
Later, in Matthew 12:1–8, Jesus cites Hosea 6:6 again to the Pharisees. They had scolded Jesus because His hungry disciples plucked some heads of grain and ate them as they passed through the fields. The disciples had done nothing wrong (see Deuteronomy 23:25), but because they had picked grain on the Sabbath, the Pharisees accused them of breaking the law of the Sabbath (Exodus 20:8; Jeremiah 17:22). These religious hypocrites had turned the Scriptures into an oppressive list of rules and regulations instead of understanding what the law meant and why it had been given. Jesus reminds them of Hosea in Matthew 12:7: “If you had known what these words mean, ‘I desire mercy, not sacrifice,’ you would not have condemned the innocent.” Jesus, the Master Teacher, had given the Pharisees “homework” in Matthew 9; they had not completed the assignment and so had not learned their lesson in Matthew 12.
God intended for the Sabbath to be a day for worship and rest, not a legalistic burden. The Old Testament laws, including the Sabbath laws, were all given to lead Israel into a loving, devoted relationship with God. The disciples had not broken God’s law. Instead, they had transgressed the hypocritical regulations laid down by the Pharisees. Jesus is the authority and can override any human tradition: “The Son of Man is Lord of the Sabbath” (Matthew 12:8).
God’s true righteousness flows from our fellowship with Him in Jesus Christ and involves demonstrating mercy to outcasts and sinners. The Lord won’t tolerate cold-heartedness from His people. James informs, “Pure and genuine religion in the sight of God the Father means caring for orphans and widows in their distress” (James 1:27, NLT).
Some Christians tend to be judgmental toward sinners and take pride in their own perceived goodness instead of remembering and replicating the mercy Christ offers. But Jesus taught us to forgive as we have been forgiven and show the same kind of mercy that was shown to us by God (Matthew 6:12; 18:33). Jesus spent time in the company of sinners and welcomed those who repented and followed Him, and so must we.
The self-righteousness of the Pharisees prevented them from seeing their spiritually sickened condition and their need for God and His mercy. Without an intimate relationship with the Lord, all the sacrifices in this world won’t change our hearts so that we are moved with compassion for the lost, broken, and dying people around us. But if we have been transformed through God’s forgiveness and healing and filled with His love and mercy for people in need, our righteous deeds—our sacrifices—are no longer empty gestures but authentic spiritual offerings (Matthew 6:1–18). Our lives become “a living and holy sacrifice—the kind he will find acceptable. This is truly the way to worship him” (Romans 12:1, NLT).
When God says, “I desire mercy and not sacrifice,” He is calling us to an inner circumcision of the heart that “is not merely obeying the letter of the law; rather, it is a change of heart produced by the Spirit” (Romans 2:29, NLT). If God does not have our hearts, He does not have us at all.
Hosea 6:6 reads, “For I desire steadfast love and not sacrifice, the knowledge of God rather than burnt offerings.” Why does God desire love and knowledge of Him instead of burnt offerings?
The key to answering this question is found in the words of the Shema: “Hear, O Israel: The LORD our God, the LORD is one. You shall love the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your might” (Deuteronomy 6:4-5). Love for God was the number-one priority for the people of Israel. The whole Law, including the offerings and sacrifices, was to serve as an expression of this love for the Lord.
However, over time the Israelites began to worship other gods while continuing the ritual of the sacrifices. They “obeyed the Law,” yet they did not display love toward God, and they did not truly know Him. Hosea’s message was a response to Israel’s hypocrisy. God desired their love over external practices of piety. He longed for His people to long for Him rather than simply continue a religious tradition.
Scripture often notes that sacrifices to God are incomplete and even offensive without a changed heart that loves and knows the Lord. First Samuel 15:22 says, “Has the LORD as great delight in burnt offerings and sacrifices, as in obeying the voice of the LORD? Behold, to obey is better than sacrifice, and to listen than the fat of rams.” (See also Isaiah 1:11-17; Amos 5:21-24; Micah 6:6-8 and Matthew 7:21-23.) The same is said of other religious rituals, such as circumcision (Romans 2:28-29).
Jesus would later use Hosea’s teaching against the hypocritical Pharisees, saying, “Go and learn what this means, ‘I desire mercy, and not sacrifice.’ For I came not to call the righteous, but sinners” (Matthew 9:13; cf. 12:7). Without a loving relationship with God, all the rituals in the world couldn’t help the Pharisees.
With the coming of Jesus Christ, the Law was fulfilled (Matthew 5:17). As a result, Christians have no command to obey the Jewish Old Testament ceremonial laws. However, the principle of Hosea 6:6 is still relevant. Many religious people participate in Christian rituals, yet their hearts do not love God and seek to know Him. Those who practice empty rituals should heed Hosea’s words. God cares more about our heart’s love for Him than the things that we do in His name. We must not substitute religious traditions for a relationship with God. May we never be like those whom Jesus described: “These people honor me with their lips, but their hearts are far from me” (Mark 7:6).
Joel 2
Army of Locusts
(Amos 7:1–9)
1Blow the ram’s horn in Zion;
sound the alarm on My holy mountain!
Let all who dwell in the land tremble,
for the Day of the LORD is coming;
indeed, it is near--
2a day of darkness and gloom,
a day of clouds and blackness.
Like the dawn overspreading the mountains
a great and strong army appears,
such as never was of old,
nor will ever be in ages to come.
3Before them a fire devours,
and behind them a flame scorches.
The land before them is like the Garden of Eden,
but behind them, it is like a desert wasteland--
surely nothing will escape them.
4Their appearance is like that of horses,
and they gallop like swift steeds.
5With a sound like that of chariots
they bound over the mountaintops,
like the crackling of fire consuming stubble,
like a mighty army deployed for battle.
6Nations writhe in horror before them;
every face turns pale.
7They charge like mighty men;
they scale the walls like men of war.
Each one marches in formation,
not swerving from the course.
8They do not jostle one another;
each proceeds in his path.
They burst through the defenses,
never breaking ranks.
9They storm the city;
they run along the wall;
they climb into houses,
entering through windows like thieves.
10Before them the earth quakes;
the heavens tremble.
The sun and moon grow dark,
and the stars lose their brightness.
11The LORD raises His voice
in the presence of His army.
Indeed, His camp is very large,
for mighty are those who obey His command.
For the Day of the LORD is great and very dreadful.
Who can endure it?
Return with All Your Heart
12“Yet even now,”
declares the LORD,
“return to Me with all your heart,
with fasting, weeping, and mourning.”
13So rend your hearts and not your garments,
and return to the LORD your God.
For He is gracious and compassionate,
slow to anger, abounding in loving devotion.b
And He relents from sending disaster.
14Who knows? He may turn and relent
and leave a blessing behind Him--
grain and drink offerings
for the LORD your God.
15Blow the ram’s horn in Zion,
consecrate a fast,
proclaim a sacred assembly.
16Gather the people, sanctify the congregation,
assemble the aged, gather the children,
even those nursing at the breast.
Let the bridegroom leave his room,
and the bride her chamber.
17Let the priests who minister before the LORD
weep between the portico and the altar,
saying, “Spare Your people, O LORD,
and do not make Your heritage a reproach,
an object of scorn among the nations.
Why should they say among the peoples,
‘Where is their God?’”
Restoration Promised
18Then the LORD became jealous for His land,
and He spared His people.
19And the LORD answered His people:
“Behold, I will send you
grain, new wine, and oil,
and by them you will be satisfied.
I will never again make you
a reproach among the nations.
20The northern army I will drive away from you,
banishing it to a barren and desolate land,
its front ranks into the Eastern Sea,c
and its rear guard into the Western Sea.d
And its stench will rise;
its foul odor will ascend.
For He has done great things.
21Do not be afraid, O land;
rejoice and be glad,
for the LORD has done great things.
22Do not be afraid, O beasts of the field,
for the open pastures have turned green,
the trees bear their fruit,
and the fig tree and vine yield their best.e
23Be glad, O children of Zion,
and rejoice in the LORD your God,
for He has given you the autumn rains
for your vindication.
He sends you showers,
both autumn and spring rains, as before.
24The threshing floors will be full of grain,
and the vats will overflow with new wine and oil.
25I will repay you for the years eaten by locusts--
the swarming locust, the young locust,
the destroying locust, and the devouring locustf--
My great army that I sent against you.
26You will have plenty to eat,
until you are satisfied.
You will praise the name of the LORD your God,
who has worked wonders for you.
My people will never again
be put to shame.
27Then you will know that I am present in Israel
and that I am the LORD your God,
and there is no other.
My people will never again
be put to shame.
I Will Pour Out My Spirit
(Acts 2:14–36)
28And afterward, I will pour out My Spirit on all people.
Your sons and daughters will prophesy,
your old men will dream dreams,
your young men will see visions.
29Even on My menservants and maidservants,
I will pour out My Spirit in those days.
30I will show wonders in the heavens and on the earth,
blood and fire and columnsg of smoke.
31The sun will be turned to darkness
and the moon to blood
before the coming of the great and awesomeh Day of the LORD.
32And everyone who calls on the name of the LORD
will be saved;i
for on Mount Zion and in Jerusalem
there will be deliverance, as the LORD has promised,
among the remnant called by the LORD.
Date of Writing:
Solomon most likely wrote this song during the early part of his reign.
This would place the date of composition around 965 B.C.
Purpose of Writing:
The Song of Solomon is a lyric poem written to extol the virtues of love between a husband and his wife. The poem clearly presents marriage as God’s design. A man and woman are to live together within the context of marriage, loving each other spiritually, emotionally, and physically.
This book combats two extremes: asceticism (the denial of all pleasure) and hedonism (the pursuit of only pleasure). The marriage profiled in Song of Solomon is a model of care, commitment, and delight.
Key Verses:
Song of Solomon 2:7; 3:5; 8:4 - “Do not arouse or awaken love until it so desires.”
Song of Solomon 5:1 - “Eat, O friends, and drink; drink your fill, O lovers.”
Song of Solomon 8:6-7 - “Place me like a seal over your heart, like a seal on your arm; for love is as strong as death, its jealousy unyielding as the grave. It burns like blazing fire, like a mighty flame. Many waters cannot quench love; rivers cannot wash it away. If one were to give all the wealth of his house for love, it would be utterly scorned.”
Brief Summary:
The poetry takes the form of a dialogue between a husband (the king) and his wife (the Shulamite). We can divide the book into three sections: the courtship (1:1 - 3:5); the wedding (3:6 - 5:1); and the maturing marriage (5:2 - 8:14).
The song begins before the wedding, as the bride-to-be longs to be with her betrothed, and she looks forward to his intimate caresses. However, she advises letting love develop naturally, in its own time. The king praises the Shulamite’s beauty, overcoming her feelings of insecurity about her appearance. The Shulamite has a dream in which she loses Solomon and searches throughout the city for him. With the help of the city guards, she finds her beloved and clings to him, taking him to a safe place. Upon waking, she repeats her injunction not to force love.
On the wedding night, the husband again praises the beauty of his wife, and in highly symbolic language, the wife invites her spouse to partake of all she has to offer. They make love, and God blesses their union.
As the marriage matures, the husband and wife go through a difficult time, symbolized in another dream. In this second dream, the Shulamite rebuffs her husband, and he leaves. Overcome with guilt, she searches the city for him; but this time, instead of helping her, the guards beat her—symbolic of her pained conscience. Things end happily as the lovers reunite and are reconciled.
As the song ends, both the husband and wife are confident and secure in their love, they sing of the lasting nature of true love, and they yearn to be in each other’s presence.
Foreshadowings:
Some Bible interpreters see in Song of Solomon an exact symbolic representation of Christ and His church. Christ is seen as the king, while the church is represented by the Shulamite. While we believe the book should be understood literally as a depiction of marriage, there are some elements that foreshadow the Church and her relationship with her king, the Lord Jesus. Song of Solomon 2:4 describes the experience of every believer who is sought and bought by the Lord Jesus. We are in a place of great spiritual wealth and are covered by His love. Verse 16 of chapter 2 says, “My beloved is mine, and I am his. He feeds his flock among the lilies” (NKJV). Here is a picture of not only the security of the believer in Christ (John 10:28-29), but of the Good Shepherd who knows His sheep—believers—and lays down His life for us (John 10:11).
Because of Him, we are no longer stained by sin, having had our “spots” removed by His blood
(Song of Solomon 4:7; Ephesians 5:27).
Practical Application:
Our world is confused about marriage. The prevalence of divorce and modern attempts to redefine marriage stand in glaring contrast to Solomon’s Song. Marriage, says the biblical poet, is to be celebrated, enjoyed, and revered. This book provides some practical guidelines for strengthening our marriages:
1) Give your spouse the attention he or she needs. Take the time to truly know your spouse.
2) Encouragement and praise, not criticism, are vital to a successful relationship.
3) Enjoy each other. Plan some getaways. Be creative, even playful, with each other.
Delight in God’s gift of married love.
4) Do whatever is necessary to reassure your commitment to your spouse.
Renew your vows; work through problems and do not consider divorce as a solution.
God intends for you both to live in a deeply peaceful, secure love.
James 5:7
Be patient, then, brothers, until the Lord’s coming. See how the farmer awaits the precious fruit of the soil—how patient he is for the fall and spring rains.
Hosea 6:3
So let us know—let us press on to know the LORD. As surely as the sun rises, He will appear; He will come to us like the rain, like the spring showers that water the earth.
Zechariah 10:1
Ask the LORD for rain in springtime; the LORD makes the storm clouds, and He will give everyone showers of rain and crops in the field.
Deuteronomy 11:14
then I will provide rain for your land in season, the autumn and spring rains, that you may gather your grain, new wine, and oil.
Jeremiah 5:24
They have not said in their hearts, ‘Let us fear the LORD our God, who gives the rains, both autumn and spring, in season, who keeps for us the appointed weeks of harvest.’
Acts 14:17
Yet He has not left Himself without testimony to His goodness: He gives you rain from heaven and fruitful seasons, filling your hearts with food and gladness.”
Psalm 65:9-13
You attend to the earth and water it; with abundance You enrich it. The streams of God are full of water, for You prepare our grain by providing for the earth. / You soak its furrows and level its ridges; You soften it with showers and bless its growth. / You crown the year with Your bounty, and Your paths overflow with plenty. ...
Isaiah 30:23
Then He will send rain for the seed that you have sown in the ground, and the food that comes from your land will be rich and plentiful. On that day your cattle will graze in open pastures.
Matthew 5:45
that you may be sons of your Father in heaven. He causes His sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous.
Leviticus 26:4
I will give you rains in their season, and the land will yield its produce, and the trees of the field will bear their fruit.
Job 5:10
He gives rain to the earth and sends water upon the fields.
Ezekiel 34:26
I will make them and the places around My hill a blessing. I will send down showers in season—showers of blessing.
Psalm 68:9
You sent abundant rain, O God; You refreshed Your weary inheritance.
1 Kings 8:36
then may You hear from heaven and forgive the sin of Your servants, Your people Israel, so that You may teach them the good way in which they should walk. May You send rain on the land that You gave Your people as an inheritance.
Isaiah 55:10
For just as rain and snow fall from heaven and do not return without watering the earth, making it bud and sprout, and providing seed to sow and food to eat,
Psalm 149:2
Let Israel rejoice in him that made him: let the children of Zion be joyful in their King.
Lamentations 4:2
The precious sons of Zion, comparable to fine gold, how are they esteemed as earthen pitchers, the work of the hands of the potter!
Zechariah 9:13
When I have bent Judah for me, filled the bow with Ephraim, and raised up thy sons, O Zion, against thy sons, O Greece, and made thee as the sword of a mighty man.
Psalm 28:7
The LORD is my strength and my shield; my heart trusted in him, and I am helped: therefore my heart greatly rejoiceth; and with my song will I praise him.
Psalm 32:11
Be glad in the LORD, and rejoice, ye righteous: and shout for joy, all ye that are upright in heart.
Psalm 33:1
Rejoice in the LORD, O ye righteous: forpraise is comely for the upright.
Joel 2:28,29
And it shall come to pass afterward, thatI will pour out my spirit upon all flesh; and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, your old men shall dream dreams, your young men shall see visions: …
Deuteronomy 32:2
My doctrine shall drop as the rain, my speech shall distil as the dew, as the small rain upon the tender herb, and as the showers upon the grass:
Job 33:23
If there be a messenger with him, an interpreter, one among a thousand, to shew unto man his uprightness:
Leviticus 26:4
Then I will give you rain in due season, and the land shall yield her increase, and the trees of the field shall yield their fruit.
Deuteronomy 11:14
That I will give you the rain of your land in his due season, the first rain and the latter rain, that thou mayest gather in thy corn, and thy wine, and thine oil.
Deuteronomy 28:12
The LORD shall open unto thee his good treasure, the heaven to give the rain unto thy land in his season, and to bless all the work of thine hand: and thou shalt lend unto many nations, and thou shalt not borrow.
Amos 4:7
And also I have withholden the rain from you, when there were yet three months to the harvest: and I caused it to rain upon one city, and caused it not to rain upon another city: one piece was rained upon, and the piece whereupon it rained not withered.
1 Corinthians 15:20
In verses 13–19, Paul followed a premise to its logical conclusions: What if there is no resurrection from the dead? That's what some among the Corinthians were saying. Paul showed that if such a thing were true, it would mean Christ was not raised from the dead. And if Christ was not raised, the gospel is false, the apostles are liars, and believers in Jesus are still unforgiven for their sin and separated from God. The persecution endured by believers is pointless, and our suffering is meaningless (2 Corinthians 11:24–28).
Thankfully, the logic of this situation does not stop there. Christianity is tied, entirely, to the resurrection of Christ. If there are dire consequences for it being false, it stands to reason there are profound reasons to celebrate if it is true.
Here, Paul throws all the "what if" conclusions aside in a grand declaration of what is indeed true: Christ has been raised from the dead (Matthew 28:6)! Even better for those who believe in Him, Christ was not the last to be raised from the dead. Instead, Paul describes Him as the "firstfruits" of those who have died—those who have "fallen asleep".
The firstfruits were the first of the season's crops given by faithful Jewish people to God. Paul's use of the term here means that Jesus was the first of the crop of "the dead" to be resurrected. His was the prototype for what lies in store for believers in the future (1 Corinthians 15:51; 1 John 3:2). In other words, that harvest has only just begun. As God raised Jesus back to life,
He will collect all those who trust
in Christ to life,
as well,
when the time comes.
“Again,
The Kingdom of Heaven
is like
a merchant searching for
fine pearls
When he finds a pearl of great price,
he goes
and sells all that he has
and buys it.”
Matthew 13:45-46
There are many beautiful insights we can take from
this passage.
Certainly we can see
the Kingdom of Heaven as analogous to that
“Pearl of Great Price!”
But the passage
actually states that the Kingdom of Heaven
is analogous
to the “merchant searching for fine pearls.”
This is a revealing fact
One insight this offers us is that
The Kingdom of Heaven
is found
in our diligent search
We search the mystery of Heaven and
it is this search that,
in and of itself,
presents to us God’s Kingdom
Speaking of the “search for God” is another way
of saying that
God is a profound Mystery
of Faith,
a Mysterium Fidei as we say in Mass.
As a divine “Mystery” it’s important
to understand that we can never fully “find” God.
We certainly can find Him,
understand Him, come to know Him
and
give our lives to Him.
But we can never do so fully. The truth is that the more we come to know God, the more we seek Him and the more we seek Him the more we realize we do not fully know Him. But this revelation draws us ever more deeply into the life of God and the acquisition of the Kingdom of Heaven.
The discovery of the beauty, value, mystery, power, and glory of God and His Kingdom is what life must be about. We must spend this life searching, finding, and searching more. This is what we will do in Heaven. Heaven will be a moment of the full revelation of the Kingdom and the inner life of God, but we will discover in this revelation that we will eternally enter more deeply into God and His glorious presence.
Reflect, today, upon the search that you embark on in your life. Is it a diligent search for God? Or do you grow slack in this endeavor? Recommit yourself to a wholehearted search for God and you will find that this search is actually a discovery of the glories of the Kingdom of Heaven.
Jesus had just finished explaining to the disciples the meaning of the Parable of the Wheat and the Tares, and these two short parables are a continuance of His discussion of the “kingdom of heaven.” He expressed truths about the kingdom in three pairs of parables in Matthew 13: the seed and the sower (vv. 3-23) and the weeds in the field (vv. 24-30); the mustard seed (vv. 31-32) and the leaven (v. 33); and the hidden treasure (v. 44) and the pearl of great price (vv. 45-46).
The similarities of these two short parables make it clear they teach the same lesson—the kingdom of heaven is of inestimable value. Both parables involve a man who sold all he had to possess the kingdom. The treasure and the pearl represent Jesus Christ and the salvation He offers. And while we cannot pay for salvation by selling all our worldly goods, once we have found the prize, we are willing to give up everything to possess it. But what is attained in exchange is so much more valuable that it is comparable to trading an ounce of trash for a ton of diamonds (Philippians 3:7-9).
In both parables, the treasures are hidden, indicating that spiritual truth is missed by many and cannot be found by intelligence or power or worldly wisdom. Matthew 13:11-17 and 1 Corinthians 2:7-8, 14 make it clear that the mysteries of the kingdom are hidden from some who are unable to hear, see, and comprehend these truths. The disobedient reap the natural consequences of their unbelief—spiritual blindness.
Those whose eyes are opened by the Spirit
do discern
spiritual truth, and they, like the men in the parable,
understand its great value.
Notice that the merchant stopped seeking pearls when he found the pearl of great price. Eternal life, the incorruptible inheritance, and the love of God through Christ constitute the pearl which, once found, makes further searching unnecessary. Christ fulfills our greatest needs, satisfies our longings, makes us whole and clean before God, calms and quiets our hearts, and gives us hope for the future. The “great price,” of course, is that which was paid by Christ for our redemption. He emptied Himself of His glory, came to earth in the form of a lowly man and shed His precious blood on the cross to pay the penalty for our sins.
Matthew 7 is part of what is commonly called the Sermon on the Mount. It’s a description of the truly righteous life, an outlining of “the law of Christ” (1 Corinthians 9:21, ESV). When Jesus says, “Ask and it will be given to you,” continual prayer is in view (Matthew 7:7a). Prayer is how we communicate our needs and desires to God. Of course, God, being omniscient, knows what Christians need whether they ask or not, but prayer is the means God has chosen to bring about those answers (James 4:2b).
Jesus is not saying that believers always get what they ask for—wrong motives, for example, will hinder answers to prayer (James 4:3). However, the more time a Christian spends in communion with God, the more he or she will know what to ask for in accordance with God’s will. Prayer, in and of itself, does not produce sanctification (an increasing holiness in a believer’s life), but it does show a dependence on God for needs that can be met no other way. God is always pleased with such displays of faith. It is only faith in what God can do, and what Christ has done, that brings about true sanctification, not an artificial self-righteousness (Hebrews 11:6).
Jesus went on to say, “Seek, and you will find” (Matthew 7:7b). What is it believers ought to be seeking? It is God Himself! “You have said, ‘Seek my face.’ My heart says to you, ‘Your face, Lord, do I seek’” (Psalm 27:8). “The young lions suffer want and hunger; but those who seek the Lord lack no good thing” (Psalm 34:10). “Seek the Lord and his strength; seek his presence continually!” (Psalm 105:4). “Blessed are those who keep his testimonies, who seek him with their whole heart” (Psalm 119:2). God is not hiding from His children. His heart’s desire is for us to persistently and passionately look for Him all around us, and when we do, He promises He will be found (Proverbs 8:17). Seeking is a matter of paying attention with an engaged mind and acute awareness.
Earlier in the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus said to “seek first his kingdom and his righteousness” (Matthew 6:33). Seeking God’s kingdom means putting God’s plan before our own; seeking God’s righteousness means setting a priority on personal holiness and desiring to be sanctified.
Jesus then said, “Knock and the door will be opened to you” (Matthew 7:7c). Here, the Lord uses a metaphor for the action a desire produces. If a person needs something from someone behind a door, the most natural thing to do is knock—and keep knocking until the door is opened and the desire is met. In the same way, a believer should pray in faith for God’s provision and be persistent in prayer (see Luke 18:1).
Ask, seek, knock. Notice the three different senses being considered here. Asking is verbal; Christians are to use their mouths and petition God for their needs and desires. And believers are to seek with their minds—this is more than asking; it is a setting of priorities and a focusing of the heart. To knock involves physical movement, one in which the Christian takes action. Although asking and seeking are of great importance, they would be incomplete without knocking. The apostle John said Christians ought not to love in word alone but with actions also (1 John 3:18). In the same way, it’s good to pray and seek God, but if one does not also act in ways that are pleasing to God, all is for naught. It’s no accident that Jesus said believers should love God with all their heart, soul, strength, and mind (Luke 10:27).
The commands are followed by promises: “Everyone who asks receives; the one who seeks finds; and to the one who knocks, the door will be opened” (Matthew 7:8). God delights in the prayer of faith, and He promises to give us what we need.
In 1 Corinthians 13:8–13, the apostle Paul compares the Christian virtue of love to other highly prized spiritual gifts and finds them all lacking. Love is uniquely superior (verse 8). As Christians, we share in giving and receiving the grace of God’s love (see 1 John 4:8, 16). This earthly experience of God’s divine love gives us a taste of His perfect grace and glory. Through the love of Christ poured into our hearts (see Ephesians 3:17; Romans 5:5), we participate to a limited degree in the full perfection we will know and enjoy when we stand in God’s presence in eternity: “For now we see in a mirror dimly, but then face to face. Now I know in part; then I shall know fully, even as I have been fully known” (1 Corinthians 13:12, ESV).
Paul explains that spiritual gifts like prophecy, tongues, and knowledge are temporary and partial. Eventually, they “will become useless. But love will last forever! Now our knowledge is partial and incomplete, and even the gift of prophecy reveals only part of the whole picture! But when the time of perfection comes, these partial things will become useless” (1 Corinthians 13:8–10, NLT). In our current state of existence, the gifts of the Holy Spirit are valuable to us and to the church, but their worth will run out when we are face to face with the Lord in heaven. These gifts only give us an obscured, unfinished picture of our spiritual reality, and they will ultimately pass away.
Paul uses two illustrations to explain this truth. First, he employs the example of a child maturing into adulthood: “When I was a child, I talked like a child, I thought like a child, I reasoned like a child. When I became a man, I put the ways of childhood behind me” (1 Corinthians 13:11). Right now, we are like children playing with plastic toys that will wear out and become unusable. One day we will trade them in for the enduring, grown-up, perfection of eternity. Second, Paul contrasts looking at someone in a dull, dimly lit mirror with meeting that person face to face. In the Greco-Roman world, mirrors were fashioned out of polished metal discs that reflected a blurred, imperfect image, nothing like seeing someone up close, in vivid, eye-to-eye clarity.
Thus, now we see in a mirror dimly is Paul’s figure of speech for “now we have imperfect knowledge and understanding.” The New Living Translation renders the imagery like so: “Now we see things imperfectly, like puzzling reflections in a mirror, but then we will see everything with perfect clarity. All that I know now is partial and incomplete, but then I will know everything completely, just as God now knows me completely” (1 Corinthians 13:12, NLT). Flawless understanding and unrestricted knowledge of matters pertaining to God and His kingdom will only be achieved when we meet Jesus Christ in person.
The apostle John affirms that our knowledge of Jesus is partial now but will become clear when we see Him face to face: “Dear friends, we are already God’s children, but he has not yet shown us what we will be like when Christ appears. But we do know that we will be like him, for we will see him as he really is” (1 John 3:2, NLT).
Within the Scriptures, we have the complete revelation of God, but our understanding of it remains limited (see 1 Corinthians 8:1–3). As we grow in the faith, we undergo a process of spiritual maturation as individual believers (2 Peter 3:18) and together as the body of Christ (Ephesians 4:11–16). Paul calls this progressive development toward Christian maturity “the upward call of God in Christ Jesus” (Philippians 3:14, ESV).
It is our heavenward journey of intimate
fellowship with Jesus Christ.
Along the way, we must stay laser-focused on Jesus, who is the trailblazing forerunner of our quest (Hebrews 12:1–2). He demonstrates the way through His perfect obedience to the Father (John 4:34; 5:30; Luke 22:42). As the Author and Perfecter of our faith, He not only inspires us, but Christ also empowers us to grow toward our heavenly stature. He starts the good work in us and “will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus”
(Philippians 1:6).
In the meantime, until the Lord returns or we reach heaven, we have limited understanding and knowledge—we see in a mirror dimly. But one day our onward and upward growth in ever-increasing degrees of Christian maturity will culminate in heavenly perfection as “we bear the image of the heavenly man”
(1 Corinthians 15:49).
In Philippians 3:12–16, the apostle Paul compares the Christian life to a disciplined athlete running a race. Although he has not reached the finish line yet, Paul explains, “Forgetting what lies behind and straining forward to what lies ahead, I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus” (Philippians 3:13–14, ESV).
Paul is laser-focused on one goal, one prize—the upward call of God. This call is the heavenward journey of an intimate relationship with Jesus Christ. It pulls us ever closer toward Christian maturity as we “are being transformed into his [Christ’s] image with ever-increasing glory” by the Holy Spirit’s power (2 Corinthians 3:18). Paul describes the upward call of God to the Romans like this: “For those God foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brothers and sisters” (Romans 8:29). Eventually, we will reach our goal and win the prize when we meet Jesus in eternity, for we “shall bear the image of the heavenly man” (1 Corinthians 15:49).
Paul discusses the need for spiritual discipline in the upward call of God. Again, he relates it to the strict training of an Olympian runner: “Don’t you realize that in a race everyone runs, but only one person gets the prize? So run to win! All athletes are disciplined in their training. They do it to win a prize that will fade away, but we do it for an eternal prize. So I run with purpose in every step. I am not just shadowboxing. I discipline my body like an athlete, training it to do what it should” (1 Corinthians 9:24–27, NLT).
Both discipline and unwavering determination are required for the upward call of God: “Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles. And let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us, fixing our eyes on Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of faith. For the joy set before him he endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God” (Hebrews 12:1–2).
We keep our eyes on Jesus because intimate knowledge of Him is our goal. He is the groundbreaking pioneer of the upward call of God. He blazed the trail for us through His life, ministry, and journey to the cross. Jesus showed us how to live for God, exemplifying perfect obedience to the Father (John 4:34; 5:30; Luke 22:42). His example inspires us on our ascending path toward heaven. He is the author and perfector of our faith. The Lord who began His good work in us “will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus” (Philippians 1:6).
A primary function of the New Testament church is to aid believers in the upward call of God: “So Christ himself gave the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, the pastors and teachers, to equip his people for works of service, so that the body of Christ may be built up until we all reach unity in the faith and in the knowledge of the Son of God and become mature, attaining to the whole measure of the fullness of Christ. Then we will no longer be infants, tossed back and forth by the waves, and blown here and there by every wind of teaching and by the cunning and craftiness of people in their deceitful scheming. Instead, speaking the truth in love, we will grow to become in every respect the mature body of him who is the head, that is, Christ. From him the whole body, joined and held together by every supporting ligament, grows and builds itself up in love, as each part does its work” (Ephesians 4:11–16).
Together,
through participation in the body of Christ,
we are better equipped
to follow the upward call of God.
The writer of Hebrews encourages
Christians to dig deep into the study
of God’s Word
(Hebrews 5:12–14).
As we immerse ourselves
in Scripture,
we graduate from milk to solid spiritual food.
We progress
“beyond the elementary teachings about Christ”
and move
“forward to maturity” in the upward call of God
(Hebrews 6:1).
The goal and the prize of the upward call of God are one in the same—complete, profound,
experiential knowledge of Jesus Christ.
While the Christian life embodies this process, its fulfillment is still to come.
In the meantime,
we press on,
developing our gifts in the church
and
growing in our relationship with Jesus
until we fully
experience the reality of knowing
Christ
at His future unveiling
(1 Corinthians 13:12; 1 John 3:2).
Lord, I love You and desire to love You
all the more.
Please fill me with zeal and hope as
I seek You.
May my wholehearted
search for You reveal to me the mystery
of Your glorious inner life.
As I discover You,
help me to seek You all the more.
Jesus, I trust in You.
In verses 13–19, Paul followed a premise to its logical conclusions: What if there is no resurrection from the dead? That's what some among the Corinthians were saying. Paul showed that if such a thing were true, it would mean Christ was not raised from the dead. And if Christ was not raised, the gospel is false, the apostles are liars, and believers in Jesus are still unforgiven for their sin and separated from God. The persecution endured by believers is pointless, and our suffering is meaningless (2 Corinthians 11:24–28).
Thankfully, the logic of this situation does not stop there. Christianity is tied, entirely, to the resurrection of Christ. If there are dire consequences for it being false, it stands to reason there are profound reasons to celebrate if it is true.
Here, Paul throws all the "what if" conclusions aside in a grand declaration of what is indeed true: Christ has been raised from the dead (Matthew 28:6)! Even better for those who believe in Him, Christ was not the last to be raised from the dead. Instead, Paul describes Him as the "firstfruits" of those who have died—those who have "fallen asleep".
The firstfruits were the first of the season's crops given by faithful Jewish people to God. Paul's use of the term here means that Jesus was the first of the crop of "the dead" to be resurrected. His was the prototype for what lies in store for believers in the future (1 Corinthians 15:51; 1 John 3:2). In other words, that harvest has only just begun. As God raised Jesus back to life,
He will collect all those who trust
in Christ to life,
as well,
when the time comes.
“Again,
The Kingdom of Heaven
is like
a merchant searching for
fine pearls
When he finds a pearl of great price,
he goes
and sells all that he has
and buys it.”
Matthew 13:45-46
There are many beautiful insights we can take from
this passage.
Certainly we can see
the Kingdom of Heaven as analogous to that
“Pearl of Great Price!”
But the passage
actually states that the Kingdom of Heaven
is analogous
to the “merchant searching for fine pearls.”
This is a revealing fact
One insight this offers us is that
The Kingdom of Heaven
is found
in our diligent search
We search the mystery of Heaven and
it is this search that,
in and of itself,
presents to us God’s Kingdom
Speaking of the “search for God” is another way
of saying that
God is a profound Mystery
of Faith,
a Mysterium Fidei as we say in Mass.
As a divine “Mystery” it’s important
to understand that we can never fully “find” God.
We certainly can find Him,
understand Him, come to know Him
and
give our lives to Him.
But we can never do so fully. The truth is that the more we come to know God, the more we seek Him and the more we seek Him the more we realize we do not fully know Him. But this revelation draws us ever more deeply into the life of God and the acquisition of the Kingdom of Heaven.
The discovery of the beauty, value, mystery, power, and glory of God and His Kingdom is what life must be about. We must spend this life searching, finding, and searching more. This is what we will do in Heaven. Heaven will be a moment of the full revelation of the Kingdom and the inner life of God, but we will discover in this revelation that we will eternally enter more deeply into God and His glorious presence.
Reflect, today, upon the search that you embark on in your life. Is it a diligent search for God? Or do you grow slack in this endeavor? Recommit yourself to a wholehearted search for God and you will find that this search is actually a discovery of the glories of the Kingdom of Heaven.
Jesus had just finished explaining to the disciples the meaning of the Parable of the Wheat and the Tares, and these two short parables are a continuance of His discussion of the “kingdom of heaven.” He expressed truths about the kingdom in three pairs of parables in Matthew 13: the seed and the sower (vv. 3-23) and the weeds in the field (vv. 24-30); the mustard seed (vv. 31-32) and the leaven (v. 33); and the hidden treasure (v. 44) and the pearl of great price (vv. 45-46).
The similarities of these two short parables make it clear they teach the same lesson—the kingdom of heaven is of inestimable value. Both parables involve a man who sold all he had to possess the kingdom. The treasure and the pearl represent Jesus Christ and the salvation He offers. And while we cannot pay for salvation by selling all our worldly goods, once we have found the prize, we are willing to give up everything to possess it. But what is attained in exchange is so much more valuable that it is comparable to trading an ounce of trash for a ton of diamonds (Philippians 3:7-9).
In both parables, the treasures are hidden, indicating that spiritual truth is missed by many and cannot be found by intelligence or power or worldly wisdom. Matthew 13:11-17 and 1 Corinthians 2:7-8, 14 make it clear that the mysteries of the kingdom are hidden from some who are unable to hear, see, and comprehend these truths. The disobedient reap the natural consequences of their unbelief—spiritual blindness.
Those whose eyes are opened by the Spirit
do discern
spiritual truth, and they, like the men in the parable,
understand its great value.
Notice that the merchant stopped seeking pearls when he found the pearl of great price. Eternal life, the incorruptible inheritance, and the love of God through Christ constitute the pearl which, once found, makes further searching unnecessary. Christ fulfills our greatest needs, satisfies our longings, makes us whole and clean before God, calms and quiets our hearts, and gives us hope for the future. The “great price,” of course, is that which was paid by Christ for our redemption. He emptied Himself of His glory, came to earth in the form of a lowly man and shed His precious blood on the cross to pay the penalty for our sins.
Matthew 7 is part of what is commonly called the Sermon on the Mount. It’s a description of the truly righteous life, an outlining of “the law of Christ” (1 Corinthians 9:21, ESV). When Jesus says, “Ask and it will be given to you,” continual prayer is in view (Matthew 7:7a). Prayer is how we communicate our needs and desires to God. Of course, God, being omniscient, knows what Christians need whether they ask or not, but prayer is the means God has chosen to bring about those answers (James 4:2b).
Jesus is not saying that believers always get what they ask for—wrong motives, for example, will hinder answers to prayer (James 4:3). However, the more time a Christian spends in communion with God, the more he or she will know what to ask for in accordance with God’s will. Prayer, in and of itself, does not produce sanctification (an increasing holiness in a believer’s life), but it does show a dependence on God for needs that can be met no other way. God is always pleased with such displays of faith. It is only faith in what God can do, and what Christ has done, that brings about true sanctification, not an artificial self-righteousness (Hebrews 11:6).
Jesus went on to say, “Seek, and you will find” (Matthew 7:7b). What is it believers ought to be seeking? It is God Himself! “You have said, ‘Seek my face.’ My heart says to you, ‘Your face, Lord, do I seek’” (Psalm 27:8). “The young lions suffer want and hunger; but those who seek the Lord lack no good thing” (Psalm 34:10). “Seek the Lord and his strength; seek his presence continually!” (Psalm 105:4). “Blessed are those who keep his testimonies, who seek him with their whole heart” (Psalm 119:2). God is not hiding from His children. His heart’s desire is for us to persistently and passionately look for Him all around us, and when we do, He promises He will be found (Proverbs 8:17). Seeking is a matter of paying attention with an engaged mind and acute awareness.
Earlier in the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus said to “seek first his kingdom and his righteousness” (Matthew 6:33). Seeking God’s kingdom means putting God’s plan before our own; seeking God’s righteousness means setting a priority on personal holiness and desiring to be sanctified.
Jesus then said, “Knock and the door will be opened to you” (Matthew 7:7c). Here, the Lord uses a metaphor for the action a desire produces. If a person needs something from someone behind a door, the most natural thing to do is knock—and keep knocking until the door is opened and the desire is met. In the same way, a believer should pray in faith for God’s provision and be persistent in prayer (see Luke 18:1).
Ask, seek, knock. Notice the three different senses being considered here. Asking is verbal; Christians are to use their mouths and petition God for their needs and desires. And believers are to seek with their minds—this is more than asking; it is a setting of priorities and a focusing of the heart. To knock involves physical movement, one in which the Christian takes action. Although asking and seeking are of great importance, they would be incomplete without knocking. The apostle John said Christians ought not to love in word alone but with actions also (1 John 3:18). In the same way, it’s good to pray and seek God, but if one does not also act in ways that are pleasing to God, all is for naught. It’s no accident that Jesus said believers should love God with all their heart, soul, strength, and mind (Luke 10:27).
The commands are followed by promises: “Everyone who asks receives; the one who seeks finds; and to the one who knocks, the door will be opened” (Matthew 7:8). God delights in the prayer of faith, and He promises to give us what we need.
In 1 Corinthians 13:8–13, the apostle Paul compares the Christian virtue of love to other highly prized spiritual gifts and finds them all lacking. Love is uniquely superior (verse 8). As Christians, we share in giving and receiving the grace of God’s love (see 1 John 4:8, 16). This earthly experience of God’s divine love gives us a taste of His perfect grace and glory. Through the love of Christ poured into our hearts (see Ephesians 3:17; Romans 5:5), we participate to a limited degree in the full perfection we will know and enjoy when we stand in God’s presence in eternity: “For now we see in a mirror dimly, but then face to face. Now I know in part; then I shall know fully, even as I have been fully known” (1 Corinthians 13:12, ESV).
Paul explains that spiritual gifts like prophecy, tongues, and knowledge are temporary and partial. Eventually, they “will become useless. But love will last forever! Now our knowledge is partial and incomplete, and even the gift of prophecy reveals only part of the whole picture! But when the time of perfection comes, these partial things will become useless” (1 Corinthians 13:8–10, NLT). In our current state of existence, the gifts of the Holy Spirit are valuable to us and to the church, but their worth will run out when we are face to face with the Lord in heaven. These gifts only give us an obscured, unfinished picture of our spiritual reality, and they will ultimately pass away.
Paul uses two illustrations to explain this truth. First, he employs the example of a child maturing into adulthood: “When I was a child, I talked like a child, I thought like a child, I reasoned like a child. When I became a man, I put the ways of childhood behind me” (1 Corinthians 13:11). Right now, we are like children playing with plastic toys that will wear out and become unusable. One day we will trade them in for the enduring, grown-up, perfection of eternity. Second, Paul contrasts looking at someone in a dull, dimly lit mirror with meeting that person face to face. In the Greco-Roman world, mirrors were fashioned out of polished metal discs that reflected a blurred, imperfect image, nothing like seeing someone up close, in vivid, eye-to-eye clarity.
Thus, now we see in a mirror dimly is Paul’s figure of speech for “now we have imperfect knowledge and understanding.” The New Living Translation renders the imagery like so: “Now we see things imperfectly, like puzzling reflections in a mirror, but then we will see everything with perfect clarity. All that I know now is partial and incomplete, but then I will know everything completely, just as God now knows me completely” (1 Corinthians 13:12, NLT). Flawless understanding and unrestricted knowledge of matters pertaining to God and His kingdom will only be achieved when we meet Jesus Christ in person.
The apostle John affirms that our knowledge of Jesus is partial now but will become clear when we see Him face to face: “Dear friends, we are already God’s children, but he has not yet shown us what we will be like when Christ appears. But we do know that we will be like him, for we will see him as he really is” (1 John 3:2, NLT).
Within the Scriptures, we have the complete revelation of God, but our understanding of it remains limited (see 1 Corinthians 8:1–3). As we grow in the faith, we undergo a process of spiritual maturation as individual believers (2 Peter 3:18) and together as the body of Christ (Ephesians 4:11–16). Paul calls this progressive development toward Christian maturity “the upward call of God in Christ Jesus” (Philippians 3:14, ESV).
It is our heavenward journey of intimate
fellowship with Jesus Christ.
Along the way, we must stay laser-focused on Jesus, who is the trailblazing forerunner of our quest (Hebrews 12:1–2). He demonstrates the way through His perfect obedience to the Father (John 4:34; 5:30; Luke 22:42). As the Author and Perfecter of our faith, He not only inspires us, but Christ also empowers us to grow toward our heavenly stature. He starts the good work in us and “will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus”
(Philippians 1:6).
In the meantime, until the Lord returns or we reach heaven, we have limited understanding and knowledge—we see in a mirror dimly. But one day our onward and upward growth in ever-increasing degrees of Christian maturity will culminate in heavenly perfection as “we bear the image of the heavenly man”
(1 Corinthians 15:49).
In Philippians 3:12–16, the apostle Paul compares the Christian life to a disciplined athlete running a race. Although he has not reached the finish line yet, Paul explains, “Forgetting what lies behind and straining forward to what lies ahead, I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus” (Philippians 3:13–14, ESV).
Paul is laser-focused on one goal, one prize—the upward call of God. This call is the heavenward journey of an intimate relationship with Jesus Christ. It pulls us ever closer toward Christian maturity as we “are being transformed into his [Christ’s] image with ever-increasing glory” by the Holy Spirit’s power (2 Corinthians 3:18). Paul describes the upward call of God to the Romans like this: “For those God foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brothers and sisters” (Romans 8:29). Eventually, we will reach our goal and win the prize when we meet Jesus in eternity, for we “shall bear the image of the heavenly man” (1 Corinthians 15:49).
Paul discusses the need for spiritual discipline in the upward call of God. Again, he relates it to the strict training of an Olympian runner: “Don’t you realize that in a race everyone runs, but only one person gets the prize? So run to win! All athletes are disciplined in their training. They do it to win a prize that will fade away, but we do it for an eternal prize. So I run with purpose in every step. I am not just shadowboxing. I discipline my body like an athlete, training it to do what it should” (1 Corinthians 9:24–27, NLT).
Both discipline and unwavering determination are required for the upward call of God: “Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles. And let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us, fixing our eyes on Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of faith. For the joy set before him he endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God” (Hebrews 12:1–2).
We keep our eyes on Jesus because intimate knowledge of Him is our goal. He is the groundbreaking pioneer of the upward call of God. He blazed the trail for us through His life, ministry, and journey to the cross. Jesus showed us how to live for God, exemplifying perfect obedience to the Father (John 4:34; 5:30; Luke 22:42). His example inspires us on our ascending path toward heaven. He is the author and perfector of our faith. The Lord who began His good work in us “will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus” (Philippians 1:6).
A primary function of the New Testament church is to aid believers in the upward call of God: “So Christ himself gave the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, the pastors and teachers, to equip his people for works of service, so that the body of Christ may be built up until we all reach unity in the faith and in the knowledge of the Son of God and become mature, attaining to the whole measure of the fullness of Christ. Then we will no longer be infants, tossed back and forth by the waves, and blown here and there by every wind of teaching and by the cunning and craftiness of people in their deceitful scheming. Instead, speaking the truth in love, we will grow to become in every respect the mature body of him who is the head, that is, Christ. From him the whole body, joined and held together by every supporting ligament, grows and builds itself up in love, as each part does its work” (Ephesians 4:11–16).
Together,
through participation in the body of Christ,
we are better equipped
to follow the upward call of God.
The writer of Hebrews encourages
Christians to dig deep into the study
of God’s Word
(Hebrews 5:12–14).
As we immerse ourselves
in Scripture,
we graduate from milk to solid spiritual food.
We progress
“beyond the elementary teachings about Christ”
and move
“forward to maturity” in the upward call of God
(Hebrews 6:1).
The goal and the prize of the upward call of God are one in the same—complete, profound,
experiential knowledge of Jesus Christ.
While the Christian life embodies this process, its fulfillment is still to come.
In the meantime,
we press on,
developing our gifts in the church
and
growing in our relationship with Jesus
until we fully
experience the reality of knowing
Christ
at His future unveiling
(1 Corinthians 13:12; 1 John 3:2).
Lord, I love You and desire to love You
all the more.
Please fill me with zeal and hope as
I seek You.
May my wholehearted
search for You reveal to me the mystery
of Your glorious inner life.
As I discover You,
help me to seek You all the more.
Jesus, I trust in You.
https://www.professorbutterbeard.com/blog/professor-butter-beard-and-its-all-about-the-fig-leaf
Professor Butt-er Beard
and
“It’s
All About the Fig Leaf
(And Benjamin’s)
Some people need a fig-leaf
on
their mouths.”
– Martin Luther
Ooooh, Mr. Luther. A bit harsh?
But I know we’ve all thought it before.
I will admit I have endured meetings by
envisioning the Pope
and his minions strolling in and ceremoniously
placing a marble fig leaf over the presenter’s
mouth,
inciting a standing ovation
from the audience,
but luckily my daydreams remain quiet.
Or so I hope!
Alexxa Gotthardt writes, “Consider the fig leaf: a little piece of foliage that’s shielded
the genitals of famous biblical figures and nude sculptures for centuries.
It’s a plant that’s become synonymous with sin, sex, and censorship.
And in large part, we have art history--
and the artists
determined to portray nudity even
when it was
considered taboo—to thank for that.”
The fig leaf’s role in art history
can be clearly
traced back to the age-old tale
of Adam and Eve.
The original duo, humbled by their nudity after eating from the tree of knowledge, “sewed fig leaves together and made themselves aprons,” as chronicled in the Book of Genesis.
Early artistic depictions of the purported events (such as the mosaic example) show the once shamelessly nude figures sheathed in fig leaves that obscure their genitals, subtly representing original sin and a fall from grace.
The Italian Renaissance brought about the revival of classical Greek statuary and with it, nudity.
Donatello's small bronze statue of David from around 1440
is still considered by art historians
to boldly be the first nude statue since antiquity.
Yet it was another David, by Michelangelo,
that would cause a
cultural gasp due to its larger-than-life nudity.
When this master’s David
was installed in the Piazza della Signoria in Florence in 1504,
nervous authorities immediately placed
a garland of
twenty-eight copper fig leaves around
his waist
in order to cover his impressive nakedness.
This “modesty wreath” was kept in place for another
fifty years!
The art historian Monica Bowen has researched the history of using fig leaves to
censor nudity and promote “modesty” in the early modern period.
She points to the “Fig Leaf Campaign”
begun in 1541 by a fundamentalist named Cardinal Carafa and Monsignor Sernini,
the Ambassador of Mantua.
These men, in an effort to promote the modesty preached
within the Reformation,
unsuccessfully advocated “modifying” the naked figures
in Michelangelo's “Last Judgement.”
Popes like Paul IV began to speak out against nudity, but it was not until the Council of Trent (1545-1563) that the Catholic Church took an even firmer stand. Art historian Arthur Frederick Ide writes, “the Council of Trent condemned nudity in religious art while most of the bishops and cardinals maintained pornography in their personal collections. Pope Paul IV mandated the use of concealing fig leaves, promulgating the church’s attack on nudity in art in a papal bull dated 1557.” Oh dear.
One of my favorite
infamous fig leaf stories involves Queen Victoria
herself!
Around 1857, the Grand Duke of Tuscany presented the
Queen with a fig leaf
specifically created for a plaster
cast of Michelangelo’s “David”
that had been produced
for the
Victoria and Albert Museum collection.
The Queen
was reportedly quite scandalized
by the plaster David
and thus
the fig leaf was kept at the ready by
the museum’s curators
to be rushed into place before every
royal visit.
As another giggle,
I offer up Eugen Sandow,
a German bodybuilder and showman
from Prussia.
Born in Königsberg in 1867, Sandow became interested in bodybuilding at the age of ten during a visit to Italy. Sandow's resemblance to the physiques found on classical Greek and Roman sculpture was no accident, as he precisely measured the statues in museums and helped to develop
“The Grecian Ideal” as a formula for the “perfect physique.”
In addition to strongman sideshows, he performed
"muscle displays" by posing in the nude save for a fig leaf
that he would don in imitation of statues he had seen in Italy as a boy.
For me, the most important thing protected by a humble fig leaf
is the delicious ripe fig itself.
As the nights become cooler and the crickets become louder, I start to see small baskets of gloriously ripe figs appearing at the farmer’s market stands. My cravings for dark chocolate return and I play with new recipes creating a dance between the bewitching chocolate and the sensuous fruit. Throw in a handful of toasted hazelnuts, and you’ll need to catch me as I swoon in a culinary daydream.
So much for the Reformation!
The River of Life
Then the angel showed me
a river
of the water of life,
as clear as crystal,
flowing
from the throne of God and of
the Lamb
down the middle of the main street
of the city.
On either side of the river stood a
tree of life,
bearing twelve kinds of fruit
and
yielding a fresh crop for each month
And the leaves
of the tree are for the healing of
the nations
No longer will there be any curse.
The throne
of God and of the Lamb will be
within the city,
and His servants will worship Him.
They will see His face, and His name will
be on their foreheads.
There will be no more night in the city, and they
will have no need for
the light of a lamp or of the sun.
For the Lord God will shine on them,
and they
will reign forever and ever.
Jesus Is Coming
Then the angel said to me,
“These words are faithful and true.
The Lord,
the God of the spirits of the prophets,
has sent His angel
to show His servants what must
soon take place.”
Behold, I am coming soon.
Blessed is the one who keeps
the
words of prophecy in this book.
And I, John, am the one
who heard and saw these things.
And when I had heard and
seen them,
I fell down to worship at the feet of the angel
who had
shown me these things.
But he said to me, “Do not do that!
I am a fellow servant
with you and your brothers
the prophets,
and
with those who keep the words of
this book.
Worship God!”
Then he told me,
“Do not seal up the words of prophecy in this book,
because the time is near.
Let the unrighteous continue to be unrighteous,
and the vile continue to be vile;
let the righteous continue to
practice righteousness, and the holy continue
to be holy.”
“Behold, I am coming soon, and
My reward is with Me,
to give to each one according to
what he has done.
I am the Alpha and the Omega,
the
First and the Last, the Beginning and the End.”
Blessed are those who wash their robes,
so that they may have the right to the tree of life and
may enter the city by its gates.
But outside are the dogs,
the sorcerers, the sexually immoral, the murderers,
the idolaters,
and everyone who loves and practices falsehood.
I Jesus, have Sent My Angel
to Give You
This Testimony for the Churches.
I am the Root
and the
Offspring of David,
the
Bright Morning Star.”
The Spirit
and
The bride say, “Come!”
Let the one who hears say, “Come!”
And let the one who is thirsty come,
and the one who
desires the water of life drink
freely
Nothing May Be Added or Removed
I testify to everyone who hears
the words of prophecy in this book:
If anyone adds to them,
God
will add to him the plagues described
in this book.
and if anyone takes away
from the words of this book of prophecy,
God will take away his share
in the tree of life and the
holy city,
which are described in this book.
He who
testifies to these things says,
“Yes, I am coming soon.” Amen. Come, Lord Jesus!
21The
Grace of the Lord Jesus
be
with all the saints
Amen
Revelation 22
The river of the water of life
The tree of life.
The light of the city of God is himself
Jesus Is Coming
Ezekiel 47:12
Along both banks of the river, fruit trees of all kinds
will grow.
Their leaves will not wither, and their fruit
will not fail.
Each month they will bear fruit,
because the water from the sanctuary flows to them.
Their fruit
will be used for food and their leaves for healing.”
Genesis 2:9
Out of the ground the LORD God gave growth
to every tree that is pleasing to the eye and good for food.
And in the middle of the garden
were the tree of life
and the tree of the knowledge of good and evil.
Zechariah 14:8
And on that day living water will flow out
from Jerusalem,
half of it toward the Eastern Sea
and the
other half toward the Western Sea,
in summer and winter alike.
Psalm 46:4
There is a river
whose streams delight the city of God,
the holy place
where the Most High dwells.
Revelation 2:7
He who has an ear,
let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches
To the one who overcomes,
I will grant the right
to eat from the tree of life in the Paradise of God
Genesis 3:22
Then the LORD God said,
“Behold, the man has become like one of Us, knowing
good and evil.
And now, lest he reach out his hand
and take also from the tree of life, and eat, and live forever...”
John 4:14
But whoever drinks the water I give him will never thirst.
Indeed, the water I give him
will become in him
a fount of water springing up to eternal life.”
John 7:38
Whoever believes in Me, as the Scripture
has said:
‘Streams of living water will flow from within him.’”
Revelation 21:6
And He told me, “It is done! I am the Alpha and the Omega,
the Beginning and the End.
To the thirsty
I will give freely from the spring of the water of life.
Revelation 21:1
Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth,
for the first
heaven and earth had passed away,
and the sea was no more.
Isaiah 35:1-2
The wilderness and the dry land will be glad;
the desert
will rejoice and blossom like a rose.
It will bloom profusely and rejoice with
joy and singing
The glory of Lebanon will be given to it, the splendor
of Carmel and Sharon.
They will see the glory of the LORD, the splendor of our God
Isaiah 55:1
“Come, all you who are thirsty, come to the waters;
and you
without money, come, buy, and eat! Come,
buy wine and milk
without money and without cost!
Jeremiah 17:8
He is like a tree planted by the waters that sends out its
roots toward the stream.
It does not fear when the heat comes,
and its leaves are always green.
It does not worry in a year of drought, nor does it
cease to produce fruit.
Psalm 1:3
He is like a tree planted
by streams of water, yielding its fruit in season,
whose leaf does not wither,
and who prospers in all he does.
Ezekiel 47:1
Then the man brought me back to the entrance
of the temple,
and I saw water flowing from under
the threshold of the temple toward the east
(for the temple faced east).
The water was coming down from under the south side of the temple, south of the altar.
Revelation 22:1
And he shewed me a pure river of water of life,
clear as crystal,
proceeding out of the throne of God and of the Lamb
Revelation 21:21
And the twelve gates were twelve pearls; every several gate was of one pearl: and the street of the city
was pure gold, as it were transparent glass.
Ezekiel 47:1,12
Afterward he brought me again unto the door of the house; and, behold, waters issued out from under
the threshold of the house eastward: for the forefront of the house stood toward the east, and the waters
came down from under from the right side of the house, at the south sideof the altar…
The TREE of LIFE
Revelation 22:14
Blessed are they that do his commandments, that they may have
right to the tree of life,
and may enter in through the gates into the city.
Revelation 2:7
He that hath an ear,
let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches;
To him that overcometh will I give
to eat of the tree of life,
which is in the midst of the paradise of God.
Genesis 2:9
And out of the ground made the LORD
God to grow every tree that is pleasant to the sight,
and good for food; the tree of life
also in the midst of the garden,
and the tree of knowledge of good and evil.
HEALING
Revelation 21:24
And the nations of them
which are saved shall walk in the light of it:
and the kings of the earth
do bring their glory and honour into it.
Psalm 147:3
He healeth the broken in heart, and bindeth up
their wounds
Isaiah 6:10
Make the heart of this people fat, and make their ears heavy,
and shut their eyes;
lest they see with their eyes, and hear with their ears,
and understand with their heart, and convert, and be healed.
Professor Butt-er Beard
and
“It’s
All About the Fig Leaf
(And Benjamin’s)
Some people need a fig-leaf
on
their mouths.”
– Martin Luther
Ooooh, Mr. Luther. A bit harsh?
But I know we’ve all thought it before.
I will admit I have endured meetings by
envisioning the Pope
and his minions strolling in and ceremoniously
placing a marble fig leaf over the presenter’s
mouth,
inciting a standing ovation
from the audience,
but luckily my daydreams remain quiet.
Or so I hope!
Alexxa Gotthardt writes, “Consider the fig leaf: a little piece of foliage that’s shielded
the genitals of famous biblical figures and nude sculptures for centuries.
It’s a plant that’s become synonymous with sin, sex, and censorship.
And in large part, we have art history--
and the artists
determined to portray nudity even
when it was
considered taboo—to thank for that.”
The fig leaf’s role in art history
can be clearly
traced back to the age-old tale
of Adam and Eve.
The original duo, humbled by their nudity after eating from the tree of knowledge, “sewed fig leaves together and made themselves aprons,” as chronicled in the Book of Genesis.
Early artistic depictions of the purported events (such as the mosaic example) show the once shamelessly nude figures sheathed in fig leaves that obscure their genitals, subtly representing original sin and a fall from grace.
The Italian Renaissance brought about the revival of classical Greek statuary and with it, nudity.
Donatello's small bronze statue of David from around 1440
is still considered by art historians
to boldly be the first nude statue since antiquity.
Yet it was another David, by Michelangelo,
that would cause a
cultural gasp due to its larger-than-life nudity.
When this master’s David
was installed in the Piazza della Signoria in Florence in 1504,
nervous authorities immediately placed
a garland of
twenty-eight copper fig leaves around
his waist
in order to cover his impressive nakedness.
This “modesty wreath” was kept in place for another
fifty years!
The art historian Monica Bowen has researched the history of using fig leaves to
censor nudity and promote “modesty” in the early modern period.
She points to the “Fig Leaf Campaign”
begun in 1541 by a fundamentalist named Cardinal Carafa and Monsignor Sernini,
the Ambassador of Mantua.
These men, in an effort to promote the modesty preached
within the Reformation,
unsuccessfully advocated “modifying” the naked figures
in Michelangelo's “Last Judgement.”
Popes like Paul IV began to speak out against nudity, but it was not until the Council of Trent (1545-1563) that the Catholic Church took an even firmer stand. Art historian Arthur Frederick Ide writes, “the Council of Trent condemned nudity in religious art while most of the bishops and cardinals maintained pornography in their personal collections. Pope Paul IV mandated the use of concealing fig leaves, promulgating the church’s attack on nudity in art in a papal bull dated 1557.” Oh dear.
One of my favorite
infamous fig leaf stories involves Queen Victoria
herself!
Around 1857, the Grand Duke of Tuscany presented the
Queen with a fig leaf
specifically created for a plaster
cast of Michelangelo’s “David”
that had been produced
for the
Victoria and Albert Museum collection.
The Queen
was reportedly quite scandalized
by the plaster David
and thus
the fig leaf was kept at the ready by
the museum’s curators
to be rushed into place before every
royal visit.
As another giggle,
I offer up Eugen Sandow,
a German bodybuilder and showman
from Prussia.
Born in Königsberg in 1867, Sandow became interested in bodybuilding at the age of ten during a visit to Italy. Sandow's resemblance to the physiques found on classical Greek and Roman sculpture was no accident, as he precisely measured the statues in museums and helped to develop
“The Grecian Ideal” as a formula for the “perfect physique.”
In addition to strongman sideshows, he performed
"muscle displays" by posing in the nude save for a fig leaf
that he would don in imitation of statues he had seen in Italy as a boy.
For me, the most important thing protected by a humble fig leaf
is the delicious ripe fig itself.
As the nights become cooler and the crickets become louder, I start to see small baskets of gloriously ripe figs appearing at the farmer’s market stands. My cravings for dark chocolate return and I play with new recipes creating a dance between the bewitching chocolate and the sensuous fruit. Throw in a handful of toasted hazelnuts, and you’ll need to catch me as I swoon in a culinary daydream.
So much for the Reformation!
The River of Life
Then the angel showed me
a river
of the water of life,
as clear as crystal,
flowing
from the throne of God and of
the Lamb
down the middle of the main street
of the city.
On either side of the river stood a
tree of life,
bearing twelve kinds of fruit
and
yielding a fresh crop for each month
And the leaves
of the tree are for the healing of
the nations
No longer will there be any curse.
The throne
of God and of the Lamb will be
within the city,
and His servants will worship Him.
They will see His face, and His name will
be on their foreheads.
There will be no more night in the city, and they
will have no need for
the light of a lamp or of the sun.
For the Lord God will shine on them,
and they
will reign forever and ever.
Jesus Is Coming
Then the angel said to me,
“These words are faithful and true.
The Lord,
the God of the spirits of the prophets,
has sent His angel
to show His servants what must
soon take place.”
Behold, I am coming soon.
Blessed is the one who keeps
the
words of prophecy in this book.
And I, John, am the one
who heard and saw these things.
And when I had heard and
seen them,
I fell down to worship at the feet of the angel
who had
shown me these things.
But he said to me, “Do not do that!
I am a fellow servant
with you and your brothers
the prophets,
and
with those who keep the words of
this book.
Worship God!”
Then he told me,
“Do not seal up the words of prophecy in this book,
because the time is near.
Let the unrighteous continue to be unrighteous,
and the vile continue to be vile;
let the righteous continue to
practice righteousness, and the holy continue
to be holy.”
“Behold, I am coming soon, and
My reward is with Me,
to give to each one according to
what he has done.
I am the Alpha and the Omega,
the
First and the Last, the Beginning and the End.”
Blessed are those who wash their robes,
so that they may have the right to the tree of life and
may enter the city by its gates.
But outside are the dogs,
the sorcerers, the sexually immoral, the murderers,
the idolaters,
and everyone who loves and practices falsehood.
I Jesus, have Sent My Angel
to Give You
This Testimony for the Churches.
I am the Root
and the
Offspring of David,
the
Bright Morning Star.”
The Spirit
and
The bride say, “Come!”
Let the one who hears say, “Come!”
And let the one who is thirsty come,
and the one who
desires the water of life drink
freely
Nothing May Be Added or Removed
I testify to everyone who hears
the words of prophecy in this book:
If anyone adds to them,
God
will add to him the plagues described
in this book.
and if anyone takes away
from the words of this book of prophecy,
God will take away his share
in the tree of life and the
holy city,
which are described in this book.
He who
testifies to these things says,
“Yes, I am coming soon.” Amen. Come, Lord Jesus!
21The
Grace of the Lord Jesus
be
with all the saints
Amen
Revelation 22
The river of the water of life
The tree of life.
The light of the city of God is himself
Jesus Is Coming
Ezekiel 47:12
Along both banks of the river, fruit trees of all kinds
will grow.
Their leaves will not wither, and their fruit
will not fail.
Each month they will bear fruit,
because the water from the sanctuary flows to them.
Their fruit
will be used for food and their leaves for healing.”
Genesis 2:9
Out of the ground the LORD God gave growth
to every tree that is pleasing to the eye and good for food.
And in the middle of the garden
were the tree of life
and the tree of the knowledge of good and evil.
Zechariah 14:8
And on that day living water will flow out
from Jerusalem,
half of it toward the Eastern Sea
and the
other half toward the Western Sea,
in summer and winter alike.
Psalm 46:4
There is a river
whose streams delight the city of God,
the holy place
where the Most High dwells.
Revelation 2:7
He who has an ear,
let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches
To the one who overcomes,
I will grant the right
to eat from the tree of life in the Paradise of God
Genesis 3:22
Then the LORD God said,
“Behold, the man has become like one of Us, knowing
good and evil.
And now, lest he reach out his hand
and take also from the tree of life, and eat, and live forever...”
John 4:14
But whoever drinks the water I give him will never thirst.
Indeed, the water I give him
will become in him
a fount of water springing up to eternal life.”
John 7:38
Whoever believes in Me, as the Scripture
has said:
‘Streams of living water will flow from within him.’”
Revelation 21:6
And He told me, “It is done! I am the Alpha and the Omega,
the Beginning and the End.
To the thirsty
I will give freely from the spring of the water of life.
Revelation 21:1
Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth,
for the first
heaven and earth had passed away,
and the sea was no more.
Isaiah 35:1-2
The wilderness and the dry land will be glad;
the desert
will rejoice and blossom like a rose.
It will bloom profusely and rejoice with
joy and singing
The glory of Lebanon will be given to it, the splendor
of Carmel and Sharon.
They will see the glory of the LORD, the splendor of our God
Isaiah 55:1
“Come, all you who are thirsty, come to the waters;
and you
without money, come, buy, and eat! Come,
buy wine and milk
without money and without cost!
Jeremiah 17:8
He is like a tree planted by the waters that sends out its
roots toward the stream.
It does not fear when the heat comes,
and its leaves are always green.
It does not worry in a year of drought, nor does it
cease to produce fruit.
Psalm 1:3
He is like a tree planted
by streams of water, yielding its fruit in season,
whose leaf does not wither,
and who prospers in all he does.
Ezekiel 47:1
Then the man brought me back to the entrance
of the temple,
and I saw water flowing from under
the threshold of the temple toward the east
(for the temple faced east).
The water was coming down from under the south side of the temple, south of the altar.
Revelation 22:1
And he shewed me a pure river of water of life,
clear as crystal,
proceeding out of the throne of God and of the Lamb
Revelation 21:21
And the twelve gates were twelve pearls; every several gate was of one pearl: and the street of the city
was pure gold, as it were transparent glass.
Ezekiel 47:1,12
Afterward he brought me again unto the door of the house; and, behold, waters issued out from under
the threshold of the house eastward: for the forefront of the house stood toward the east, and the waters
came down from under from the right side of the house, at the south sideof the altar…
The TREE of LIFE
Revelation 22:14
Blessed are they that do his commandments, that they may have
right to the tree of life,
and may enter in through the gates into the city.
Revelation 2:7
He that hath an ear,
let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches;
To him that overcometh will I give
to eat of the tree of life,
which is in the midst of the paradise of God.
Genesis 2:9
And out of the ground made the LORD
God to grow every tree that is pleasant to the sight,
and good for food; the tree of life
also in the midst of the garden,
and the tree of knowledge of good and evil.
HEALING
Revelation 21:24
And the nations of them
which are saved shall walk in the light of it:
and the kings of the earth
do bring their glory and honour into it.
Psalm 147:3
He healeth the broken in heart, and bindeth up
their wounds
Isaiah 6:10
Make the heart of this people fat, and make their ears heavy,
and shut their eyes;
lest they see with their eyes, and hear with their ears,
and understand with their heart, and convert, and be healed.
"Then the LORD God said, 'It is not good for the man to be alone;
I will make him a helper suitable for him.' ... The man said,
'This is now bone of my bones,
and
flesh of my flesh; she shall be
called woman,
because she was taken out of Man.'
For this reason a man shall leave his father and his mother,
and be joined to his wife;
and they shall become one flesh"
(Gen 2:18, 23-24)
The description of Adam's first encounter
with Eve is,
to put it in modern terms, incredibly romantic.
Adam's first
recorded words in the Bible (v. 23) are
poetic in original Hebrew.
Having been alone ever so briefly
in the
newly created world
(vv. 19-20)
Adam is now celebrating the fact that he no longer needs to
attempt to accomplish
the divine calling on his life alone futilely.
That is why God calls Eve a "suitable helper" (v. 18).
Help with what?
To fulfill
the blessing of the creation mandate
by being
fruitful and subduing the land
(1:26, 28)
to the glory of God.
Marriage is not presented in the Bible as a mutually
beneficial agreement.
Rather, it is a partnership forged by God
and designed specifically
for the purpose of
accomplishing his will in the world.
And what is God's will for followers of Yeshua
in the world today?
To go and make disciples of all nations
(Matt 28:18-20).
Therefore, when seeking a spouse, a suitable partner's
top priority is his or her
commitment to the Great Commission.
If he or she is not a disciple of Yeshua or just
a warm body filling a pew,
then this person is definitely not the right choice.
But, if this person motivates, encourages, and
inspires us to
"make disciples in the
name of the
Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit,"
then we know
we've found a truly suitable helper.
On this day,
my wife's 50th birthday,
I am incredibly thankful for 25 years of gospel partnership and to God that I didn't have to obey the Great Commission alone. I praise God that he didn't give me just any partner but a loving, godly, and talented partner who is bone of my bone, flesh of my flesh, my best friend, and the reason my house feels like home!
"He who finds a wife finds a good thing and obtains favor from the LORD"
(Prov 18:22).
Carry
One Another’s Burdens
Brothers, if someone is caught
in a trespass,
you who are spiritual should restore him
with a spirit of gentleness.
But watch yourself, or you also may be tempted.
Carry one another’s
burdens,
and in this way
you will
fulfill
the law of Christ
3If anyone thinks he is something when he is nothing, he deceives himself.
4Each one should test his own work. Then he will have reason to boast in himself alone, and not in someone else. 5For each one should carry his own load.6Nevertheless, the one who receives instruction in the word must share in all good things with his instructor.
7Do not be deceived: God is not to be mocked. Whatever a man sows, he will reap in return. 8The one who sows to please his flesh, from the flesh will reap destruction; but the one who sows to please the Spirit, from the Spirit will reap eternal life.
9Let us not grow weary in well-doing, for in due time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up. 10Therefore, as we have opportunity, let us do good to everyone, and especially to the family of faith.
Final Warnings and Blessings
See what large letters I am using to
write to you
with my own hand!
12Those who want to make a good impression outwardly are trying to compel you to be circumcised. They only do this to avoid persecution for the cross of Christ.13For the circumcised do not even keep the law themselves, yet they want you to be circumcised that they may boast in your flesh.
14But as for me, may I never boast, except in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, through whicha the world has been crucified to me, and I to the world. 15For neither circumcision nor uncircumcision means anything.
What counts
is
Anew Creation
16Peace and mercy to all who walk by this rule, even to the Israel of God.
17From now on let no one cause me trouble, for I bear on my body the marks of Jesus.
18The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with your spirit, brothers.
Amen.
Doing Good to All
Brothers and sisters, if someone is caught in a sin, you who live by the Spirit should restore that person gently. But watch yourselves, or you also may be tempted. 2 Carry each other’s burdens, and in this way you will fulfill the law of Christ. 3 If anyone thinks they are something when they are not, they deceive themselves. 4 Each one should test their own actions. Then they can take pride in themselves alone, without comparing themselves to someone else, 5 for each one should carry their own load. 6 Nevertheless, the one who receives instruction in the word should share all good things with their instructor.
7 Do not be deceived: God cannot be mocked. A man reaps what he sows. 8 Whoever sows to please their flesh, from the flesh will reap destruction; whoever sows to please the Spirit, from the Spirit will reap eternal life. 9 Let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up. 10 Therefore, as we have opportunity, let us do good to all people, especially to those who belong to the family of believers.
Not Circumcision but
the
New Creation
See what large
letters
I use as I write to you with
my own hand!
12 Those who want to impress people by means of the flesh are trying to compel you to be circumcised. The only reason they do this is to avoid being persecuted for the cross of Christ. 13 Not even those who are circumcised keep the law, yet they want you to be circumcised that they may boast about your circumcision in the flesh. 14 May I never boast except in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, through which[a] the world has been crucified to me, and I to the world. 15 Neither circumcision nor uncircumcision means anything; what counts is the new creation. 16 Peace and mercy to all who follow this rule—to[b] the Israel of God.
17 From now on, let no one cause me trouble, for I bear on my body the marks of Jesus.
18 The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with your spirit, brothers and sisters. Amen.
Jeremiah 30:3
For behold, days are coming, declares the Lord, when I will restore the fortunes of my people, Israel and Judah, says the Lord, and I will bring them back to the land that I gave to their fathers, and they shall take possession of it."
And the word
of
LORD JEHOVAH
was upon me, saying:
"What have you seen,
Jeremiah?
And I said,
‘I see
A staff of an almond’"
Romans 10:4
For Christ
is the
End of the Law,
to bring
Righteousness to everyone
who Believes
Matthew 5:17
Think not that I came to destroy the
law or the prophets:
I came not to destroy, but to
fulfil
For verily I say unto you,
Till heaven and earth
pass away,
one jot or one
tittle shall in no wise pass away
from the law,
till all things be accomplished.
Giving to the Needy
(Deuteronomy 15:7–11)
1“Be careful not to perform your righteous actsa before men to be seen by them. If you do, you will have no reward from your Father in heaven.
2So when you give to the needy, do not sound a trumpet before you, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and on the streets, to be honored by men. Truly I tell you, they already have their full reward. 3But when you give to the needy, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing, 4so that your giving may be in secret. And your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you.
The Lord’s Prayer
(Luke 11:1–4)
5And when you pray, do not be like the hypocrites. For they love to pray standing in the synagogues and on the street corners to be seen by men. Truly I tell you, they already have their full reward. 6But when you pray, go into your inner room, shut your door, and pray to your Father, who is unseen. And your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you.
7And when you pray, do not babble on like pagans, for they think that by their many words they will be heard. 8Do not be like them, for your Father knows what you need before you ask Him.
9So then, this is how you should pray:
‘Our Father in heaven,
hallowed be Your name.
10Your kingdom come,
Your will be done,
on earth as it is in heaven.
11Give us this day our daily bread.
12And forgive us our debts,
as we also have forgiven our debtors.
13And lead us not into temptation,
but deliver us from the evil one.
For if you forgive men their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you.
but if you do not forgive men their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive yours.
A branch of an almond tree
appears in
the Bible in the stories of Jeremiah and Aaron.
The almond tree
is a symbol of hope
and
God's watchful care.
Jeremiah
- In Jeremiah 1:11-12, God asks Jeremiah what he sees, and Jeremiah replies, "I see a branch of an almond tree".
- The almond tree was the first tree to bud in the spring, so it was considered to be "watching for spring".
- God used the almond branch to teach Jeremiah that he is always watching over his word.
Aaron
- In Numbers, Aaron's staff sprouted, blossomed, and bore almonds in one night.
- The almond rod showed the Israelites that Moses and Aaron were God's chosen servants.
- The almond tree is one of the first trees to "awaken" from winter, so almonds are eaten on Tu B'Shevat to celebrate the return of spring.
- The Hebrew word for "almond" is shaked, which comes from a root that means "to watch" or "wake".
The Call of Jeremiah
1These are the words of Jeremiah son of Hilkiah, one of the priests in Anathoth in the territory of Benjamin.
2The word of the LORD came to Jeremiah in the thirteenth year of the reign of Josiah son of Amon king of Judah, 3and through the days of Jehoiakim son of Josiah king of Judah, until the fifth month of the eleventh year of Zedekiah son of Josiah king of Judah, when the people of Jerusalem went into exile.
4The word of the LORD came to me, saying:
5“Before I formed you in the womb I knew you,
and before you were born I set you apart
and appointed you as a prophet to the nations.”
6“Ah, Lord GOD,” I said, “I surely do not know how to speak, for I am only a child!”
7But the LORD told me:
“Do not say,
‘I am only a child.’
For to everyone I send you,
you must go,
and all that I command you,
you must speak.
8Do not be afraid of them,
for I am with you to deliver you,”
declares the LORD.
9Then the LORD reached out His hand, touched my mouth, and said to me:
“Behold, I have put My words
in your mouth.
10See, I have appointed you today
over nations and kingdoms
to uproot and tear down,
to destroy and overthrow,
to build and plant.”
11And the word of the LORD came to me, asking, “Jeremiah, what do you see?”
“I see a branch of an almond tree,” I replied.
12“You have observed correctly,” said the LORD, “for I am watchinga over My word to accomplish it.”
13Again the word of the LORD came to me, asking, “What do you see?”
“I see a boiling pot,” I replied, “and it is tilting toward us from the north.”
14Then the LORD said to me, “Disaster from the north will be poured out on all who live in the land.
For I am about to summon all the clans and kingdoms of the north,” declares the LORD.
“Their kings will come and set up their thrones
at the entrance of the gates of Jerusalem.
They will attack all her surrounding walls
and all the other cities of Judah.
16I will pronounce My judgments against them
for all their wickedness,
because they have forsaken Me,
and they have burned incense to other gods
and worshiped the works of their own hands.
17Get yourself ready.b Stand up and tell them everything that I command you. Do not be intimidated by them, or I will terrify you before them. 18Now behold, this day I have made you like a fortified city, an iron pillar, and bronze walls against the whole land—against the kings of Judah, its officials, its priests, and the people of the land. 19They will fight against you but will never overcome you, since I am with you to deliver you,” declares the LORD.
Mourning Turned to Joy
(Matthew 2:16–18)
1“At that time,” declares the LORD, “I will be the God of all the families of Israel, and they will be My people.”
2This is what the LORD says:
“The people who survived the sword
found favor in the wilderness
when Israel went to find rest.”
3The LORD appeared to us in the past, saying:a
“I have loved you with an everlasting love;
therefore I have drawn you with loving devotion.
4Again I will build you, and you will be rebuilt,
O Virgin Israel.
Again you will take up your tambourines
and go out in joyful dancing.
5Again you will plant vineyards on the hills of Samaria;
the farmers will plant and enjoy the fruit.
6For there will be a day when watchmen will call out
on the hills of Ephraim,
‘Arise, let us go up to Zion,
to the LORD our God!’”
7For this is what the LORD says:
“Sing with joy for Jacob;
shout for the foremost of the nations!
Make your praises heard, and say,
‘O LORD, save Your people,
the remnant of Israel!’
8Behold, I will bring them from the land of the north
and gather them from the farthest parts of the earth,
including the blind and the lame,
expectant mothers and women in labor.
They will return as a great assembly!
9They will come with weeping,
and by their supplication I will lead them;
I will make them walk beside streams of waters,
on a level path where they will not stumble.
For I am Israel’s Father,
and Ephraim is My firstborn.”
10Hear, O nations, the word of the LORD,
and proclaim it in distant coastlands:
“The One who scattered Israel will gather them and keep them
as a shepherd keeps his flock.
11For the LORD has ransomed Jacob
and redeemed him from the hand that had overpowered him.
12They will come and shout for joy on the heights of Zion;
they will be radiant over the bounty of the LORD--
the grain, new wine, and oil,
and the young of the flocks and herds.
Their life will be like a well-watered garden,
and never again will they languish.
13Then the maidens will rejoice with dancing,
young men and old as well.
I will turn their mourning into joy,
and give them comfort and joy for their sorrow.
14I will fill the souls of the priests abundantly,
and will fill My people with My goodness,”
declares the LORD.
15This is what the LORD says:
“A voice is heard in Ramah,
mourning and great weeping,
Rachel weeping for her children
and refusing to be comforted,
because they are no more.”b
16This is what the LORD says:
“Keep your voice from weeping
and your eyes from tears,
for the reward for your work will come,
declares the LORD.
Then your children will return
from the land of the enemy.
17So there is hope for your future,
declares the LORD,
and your children will return
to their own land.
18I have surely heard Ephraim’sc moaning:
‘You disciplined me severely,
like an untrained calf.
Restore me, that I may return,
for You are the LORD my God.
19After I returned, I repented;
and after I was instructed, I struck my thigh in grief.
I was ashamed and humiliated
because I bore the disgrace of my youth.’
20Is not Ephraim a precious son to Me,
a delightful child?
Though I often speak against him,
I still remember him.
Therefore My heart yearns for him;d
I have great compassion for him,”
declares the LORD.
21“Set up the road markers,
put up the signposts.
Keep the highway in mind,
the road you have traveled.
Return, O Virgin Israel,
return to these cities of yours.
22How long will you wander,
O faithless daughter?
For the LORD has created a new thing in the land--
a woman will sheltere a man.”
This is what the LORD of Hosts, the God of Israel, says: “When I restore them from captivity,
they will once again speak this word in the land of Judah and in its cities:
‘May the LORD bless you, O righteous dwelling place, O holy mountain.’
And Judah and all its cities will dwell together in the land, the farmers and those who move with the flocks,
for I will refresh the weary soul and replenish all who are weak.”
The Poor Widow’s Offering
(Mark 12:41–44)
Then Jesus looked up
and saw
the RICH putting their GIFTS
into the treasury,
and He saw a poor WIDOW
put in two small copper coins.
“TRULY I tell you,”
He said,
“this poor widow has put in more than
all the others.
For they all contributed out of their
surplus,
but she out of her
poverty
has put in
ALL
she had to live on.”
All four gospels present an account of Jesus being anointed by a woman with a costly jar of perfume (Matthew 26:6–13; Mark 14:3–9; Luke 7:36–50; John 12:1–8). Matthew and Mark relate the same event but do not give the woman’s name; Luke tells of a different woman, also anonymous, on an earlier occasion; and, in yet another event, the woman in John is identified as Mary of Bethany (John 11:2), sister to Martha and Lazarus. To understand the significance of Jesus being anointed on these three occasions, we’ll look at each account separately and then compare and contrast them in conclusion.
The anointing of Jesus
in
Matthew takes place
two days before Passover
in the town
of Bethany
at
Simon the leper’s
Home:
“Now when Jesus was at Bethany
in the
house of Simon the leper,
a woman
came up to him with an alabaster flask
of very expensive ointment,
and she
poured it on his head as
he reclined at table”
(Matthew 26:6–7, ESV).
Matthew focuses on the anointing of Jesus as a teaching episode for the disciples, who react with anger because of the woman’s wasteful extravagance.
But Jesus defends her,
saying,
“She has done a beautiful thing to me”
(Matthew 26:10)
Christ explains that the
anointing
is to prepare His body for burial
and that the
woman’s act of love
will forever be remembered
wherever
the good news is preached
Mark tells the same story in similar terms, with an anonymous woman with an alabaster box interrupting a meal in Simon the leper’s home to anoint the head of Jesus with expensive perfume. Again, the woman’s critics describe her gift as excessive, complaining that it could have been sold for more than a year’s wages
(Mark 14:5)
. But Jesus receives the
woman’s gift
as a
selfless act of love and devotion--
an appropriate way to
honor the Messiah.
Jesus reveals
that He
will not be with them much longer,
which references
His impending death and burial.
Both Matthew and Mark’s accounts emphasize the prophetic significance of the anointing of Jesus, alluding to His death and burial. There may also be an implication of Jesus’ kingship, since, in the Old Testament, the anointing of the head was often associated with the dedication of kings (1 Samuel 9:15—10:1; 16:12–13; 1 Kings 1:38–40).
In Luke’s account of a similar, yet different, instance, Jesus uses the occasion of being anointed to tell a parable about forgiveness (Luke 7:39–50). About a year before His death, Jesus was dining in the home of Simon the Pharisee, who had arrogantly neglected to extend the customary respect and hospitality to his guest, while a sinful woman anoints Jesus’ feet, lavishing her love and gratefulness upon Jesus.
In John’s gospel, Lazarus’ sister Mary is the woman who anoints Jesus with a high-priced perfume at a dinner in Bethany. The story is similar to those in the other gospels, although this anointing takes place six days before Passover, and Judas is named as the disciple who objects to the “waste.” On this occasion, “Mary took a twelve-ounce jar of expensive perfume made from essence of nard, and she anointed Jesus’ feet with it, wiping his feet with her hair”(John 12:3, NLT).
Jesus defends Mary from Judas’s criticism by pointing out the
unique opportunity Mary had:
“You will always have the poor among you, but you will not always have me”
(John 12:8).
Mary’s anointing again
points to
Christ’s identity as Messiah-King,
but it also points to
His humble position as Servant-King.
When Mary anoints Jesus’
feet and then
wipes them with her hair,
she foreshadows
Jesus’ actions at the upcoming
Last Supper
when the
Lord washes the disciples’ feet
and teaches them
how to love one
another through sacrificial, humble service
(John 13:1–20)
In each account,
a woman pours out
a precious
and costly perfume
in an
extravagant act of worship.
Second Corinthians 2:15 says,
“For we are to God
the
pleasing aroma of Christ
among those
who are being Saved
and
those who are perishing.”
To understand what the apostle Paul meant when he said that Christians are the “aroma of Christ,” we must look at the verses immediately surrounding the expression: “But thanks be to God, who always leads us as captives in Christ’s triumphal procession and uses us to spread the aroma of the knowledge of him everywhere. For we are to God the pleasing aroma of Christ among those who are being saved and those who are perishing. To the one we are an aroma that brings death; to the other, an aroma that brings life.
And who is equal to such a task?” (verses 14–16).
For Jewish people,
the apostle Paul’s analogy
of “the pleasing aroma of Christ”
would present an immediate association.
In the Old Testament,
the scent of burnt offerings was described
as “an aroma pleasing to the Lord”
(Genesis 8:20–21; Leviticus 23:18; Numbers 28:27).
For the Gentiles,
this phrase would suggest the scent of incense being burned
as an offering to the gods.
However, Paul had a more specific picture in mind.
The apostle was speaking to the Corinthians
about recent events in his ministry of evangelism.
Despite all the difficulties
and
disappointments
he’d faced while
traveling from
city to city
spreading the gospel,
Paul was able to
reflect on
God’s goodness
with
thanksgiving
The apostle then
compared this ministry of evangelism to
the triumphal military parades
that were common at that time in
the Roman world.
Paul’s metaphor
would be readily understood by
his audience,
with the apostle and his co-laborers
portrayed as victorious
soldiers in a triumphal procession.
During these Roman military parades, captives of war would be marched through the streets as garlands of flowers were carried and incense was burned to the gods. The aromatic perfumes wafted on the air as spectators and those in the procession breathed in their fragrance. At the parade’s finale, many prisoners would be put to death. Thus, the aromas were pleasing and life-giving to the victors, but they were the smell of death to those who had been defeated.
In Paul’s analogy, he separates humanity into two groups: those on the path of salvation and those on the road to destruction. The aroma spread everywhere by the ministry of evangelism was the knowledge of God as victor. Christians who spread the gospel are members of God’s victorious army led by Jesus Christ. Believers are like the aroma or fragrance spread during the victory processions. Both the victors and those perishing smell the aroma; however, it has a different meaning for the two groups. For the victorious army and its peoples, the aroma would relate to the joy of triumph. But for the prisoners of war, the fragrance would be associated with defeat, slavery, and death.
This brilliant metaphor
contrasts
Christian and non-Christian
responses
to hearing the gospel.
To non-Christians, those on the road
to destruction,
believers who preach the
GOSPEL
spread
the smell of death,
as it were.
To Christians,
those on the path to salvation,
they
produce the fragrance of LIFE
Overwhelmed by the extreme
importance of
this
ministry of spreading
the gospel,
Paul exclaimed, “And who is equal to such a task?”
The implication is that no one is worthy.
Paul was
astounded that God would appoint
Humans
to share in this task.
Later, in 2 Corinthians 3:5–6,
Paul affirms that
our ability
rests solely on God:
“Not that we
are competent in ourselves
to claim
anything for ourselves,
but our
competence comes from God.
He has made us
competent as ministers
of
anew covenant--
not of the letter but of
the Spirit;
for
the letter kills, but
the
Spirit gives life.”
The three women who anointed Jesus recognized Christ’s unequaled value and expressed their gratitude with unreserved love and devotion. Two anointings of Jesus happen during the week of Passover and are linked with His imminent death and burial. The earlier anointing, in Luke’s account, is in the middle of Jesus’ ministry in Galilee and draws a different lesson on forgiveness and love.
In each case, the woman’s actions signal more than she knows. But, although she may not fully comprehend the messianic significance of her anointing, each woman
had come to appreciate
Christ’s Worth
more than anyone else
at the table
Jesus Christ is God’s
anointed Messiah.
The word Messiah
means “anointed one” and derives
directly from
the
Hebrew word for “anointed.”
Christ
comes from
the Greek word Christos,
also meaning
“Anointed One
Thus,
Christ is the Greek equivalent
to Messiah.
When Jesus receives the
Holy Spirit
at His baptism,
He is “anointed” by God
in
Preparation
for
His life’s work
(Luke 3:22; cf. Acts 10:38; Luke 4:18).
On three separate occasions, Jesus is anointed with fragrant ointment in His work as the Savior, the King of heaven who was in preparation to die to save His people.
Temple
Destruction and Other Signs
(Matthew 24:1–8; Mark 13:1–8)
5As some of the disciples were remarking how the temple was adorned with beautiful stones and consecrated gifts, Jesus said, 6“As for what you see here, the time will come when not one stone will be left on another; every one will be thrown down.”
7“Teacher,” they asked, “when will these things happen? And what will be the sign that they are about to take place?”
8Jesus answered, “See to it that you are not deceived. For many will come in My name, claiming, ‘I am He,’ and, ‘The time is near.’ Do not follow them. 9When you hear of wars and rebellions, do not be alarmed. These things must happen first, but the end is not imminent.”
Witnessing to All Nations
(Matthew 24:9–14; Mark 13:9–13)
10Then He told them, “Nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. 11There will be great earthquakes, famines, and pestilences in various places, along with fearful sights and great signs from heaven.
12But before all this, they will seize you and persecute you. On account of My name they will deliver you to the synagogues and prisons, and they will bring you before kings and governors. 13This will be your opportunity to serve as witnesses.14So make up your mind not to worry beforehand how to defend yourselves.15For I will give you speech and wisdom that none of your adversaries will be able to resist or contradict.
16You will be betrayed even by parents and brothers and relatives and friends, and some of you will be put to death. 17And you will be hated by everyone because of My name. 18Yet not even a hair of your head will perish. 19By your patient endurance you will gain your souls.
The Destruction of Jerusalem
(Matthew 24:15–25; Mark 13:14–23)
20But when you see Jerusalem surrounded by armies, you will know that her desolation is near. 21Then let those who are in Judea flee to the mountains, let those in the city get out, and let those in the country stay out of the city. 22For these are the days of vengeance, to fulfill all that is written.
23How miserable those days will be for pregnant and nursing mothers! For there will be great distress upon the land and wrath against this people. 24They will fall by the edge of the sword and be led captive into all the nations. And Jerusalem will be trodden down by the Gentiles, until the times of the Gentiles are fulfilled.
The Return of the Son of Man
(Matthew 24:26–31; Mark 13:24–27)
25There will be signs in the sun and moon and stars, and on the earth dismay among the nations, bewildered by the roaring of the sea and the surging of the waves. 26Men will faint from fear and anxiety over what is coming upon the earth, for the powers of the heavens will be shaken. 27At that time they will see the Son of Man coming in a cloud with power and great glory.b 28When these things begin to happen, stand up and lift up your heads, because your redemption is drawing near.”
The Lesson of
the
Fig Tree
(Don't forget to COVER YOUR butt!)
(Matthew 24:32–35; Mark 13:28–31)
Then Jesus told them
a parable:
‘Look at the Fig Tree
and
All the Trees!
When they
SPROUT LEAVES, you can see for yourselves
and
know that summer is near.
so also,
when you see these things happening,
know that
The kingdom of God is
Near
Truly I tell you,
this generation will not pass away
until
all these things have happened
Heaven and earth will pass away,
but My words
will never pass away.
Be Watchful for the Day
34But watch yourselves, or your hearts will be weighed down by dissipation, drunkenness, and the worries of life—and that day will spring upon you suddenly like a snare. 35For it will come upon all who dwell on the face of all the earth.36So keep watch at all times, and pray that you may have the strength to escape all that is about to happen and to stand before the Son of Man.”
every DAY Jesus taught at
the temple,
but every evening
He went out to spend the
NIGHT on
the
Mount of OLIVES
and early in the morning
all the
people would come to
HEAR Him
at
THE TEMPLE
The Parable of the Sower
(also known as the Parable of the Four Soils)
is found in
Matthew 13:3-9; Mark 4:2-9; and Luke 8:4-8.
After presenting
this parable to the multitude,
Jesus interprets
it for
His disciples
in Matthew 13:18-23; Mark 4:13-20; and Luke 8:11-15.
The Parable of the Sower concerns a sower who scatters seed, which falls on four different types of ground. The hard ground “by the way side” prevents the seed from sprouting at all, and the seed becomes nothing more than bird food. The stony ground provides enough soil for the seeds to germinate and begin to grow, but because there is “no deepness of earth,” the plants do not take root and are soon withered in the sun. The thorny ground allows the seed to grow, but the competing thorns choke the life out of the beneficial plants. The good ground receives the seed and produces much fruit.
Jesus’ explanation of the Parable of the Sower highlights four different responses to the gospel. The seed is “the word of the kingdom.” The hard ground represents someone who is hardened by sin; he hears but does not understand the Word, and Satan plucks the message away, keeping the heart dull and preventing the Word from making an impression. The stony ground pictures a man who professes delight with the Word; however, his heart is not changed, and when trouble arises, his so-called faith quickly disappears. The thorny ground depicts one who seems to receive the Word, but whose heart is full of riches, pleasures, and lusts; the things of this world take his time and attention away from the Word, and he ends up having no time for it. The good ground portrays the one who hears, understands, and receives the Word—and then allows the Word to accomplish its result in his life. The man represented by the “good ground” is the only one of the four who is truly saved, because salvation’s proof is fruit (Matthew 3:7-8; 7:15-20).
To summarize the point of the Parable of the Sower: “A man’s reception of God’s Word is determined by the condition of his heart.” A secondary lesson would be “Salvation is more than a superficial, albeit joyful, hearing of the gospel. Someone who is truly saved will go on to prove it.” May our faith and our lives exemplify the "good soil" in the Parable of the Sower.
In the Bible's Parable of the Sower, Jesus warns that loving money more than God can be dangerous. The parable also warns that wealth can be deceptive, and that material possessions don't indicate favor from God.
- The deceitfulness of riches
The parable warns that the cares of the world, the lusts of other things, and the deceitfulness of riches can choke the word of God. - The danger of loving money
The parable teaches that achieving great financial success can be just as dangerous as having financial difficulties. - The true value of money
The parable teaches that money's value lies in its potential to be used to make "eternal friends". - The need to trust in God
The parable teaches that we should look to God and trust Him with the circumstances of our lives, rather than trying to solve our own problems.
The parable illustrates
that a
person's reception
of
God's Word
is determined
by the
condition of their
HEART
The concept of Jesus overturning tables challenges the prevailing view of the “nice Jesus,” the benign teacher the modern world prefers. While Jesus is “nice,” He also displays righteous anger when appropriate. A case study is John 2:15, best understood when read alongside the verses surrounding it:
When it was almost time for the
Jewish Passover,
Jesus went up to Jerusalem.
In the temple courts he found people
selling cattle,
sheep and doves, and others sitting
at tables
exchanging money.
So he made a whip out of cords,
and drove
all from the temple courts,
both sheep and cattle;
he scattered
the coins of the money changers
and overturned their tables.
To those who sold doves
he said,
“Get these out of here! Stop turning my Father’s house into a market!”
(John 2:13–16)
The event of Jesus overturning tables in John 2:15 also appears in all the Synoptic Gospels. In fact, Jesus cleansed the temple on two separate occasions: once at the beginning of His ministry, and again at the end (Matthew 21:12–13; Mark 11:15–17; Luke 19:45–46).
In contemporary Christian circles, the phrase Jesus overturns tables or Jesus flips tables is used to communicate the iconoclastic nature of Jesus’ ministry. The saying also serves to counterbalance the distorted modern portrayal of the Son of God as an insipid, weak man who was all about “peace” and “love” and never about correction or judgment.
We see that
Jesus “overturns tables” in many ways
in Scripture.
He countered the incomplete teaching of the scribes (Matthew 5:21–28),
He confronted the hypocrisy of the Pharisees (Matthew 23),
He reached out to “tax collectors and sinners” (Luke 15:1–2),
He violated custom (Matthew 15:2; John 4:7–9), and
He publicly spoke against the king (Luke 13:32).
We should recognize
that
Jesus’ actions in John 2:15 were
justified.
So, why
did
Jesus overturn
tables?
Conducting commerce within the temple was problematic by itself as that undermined the sacred purpose of that place (John 2:16). Yet there were deeper issues at play. In the Synoptic accounts of the second cleansing, Jesus denounces the money changers and merchants for transforming the temple into a “den of robbers” (Matthew 21:13; Mark 11:17; Luke 19:45; cf. Jeremiah 7:11). It seems it wasn’t just business taking place, but exploitation. The devout were being cheated; especially vulnerable were foreigners and the poor, in direct violation of God’s commands (Exodus 22:21; Leviticus 19:33–34; Deuteronomy 10:18–19; Isaiah 1:17). As Jesus overturned the tables in the temple, He referenced Isaiah 56:7, which calls the temple God’s “house of prayer.” Jesus’ anger was ignited by the misuse of the temple and the injustice taking place within it.
What implications does the event in John 2:15 hold for us today? First, our perception of Jesus must be grounded in Scripture, not sentiment. The same Jesus who played with children and conversed gently with the Samaritan woman could construct a whip and overturn tables. He embodies the traits of both a lion and a lamb. In fact, Jesus would be an inadequate Savior and incompetent Lord if He failed to express anger against sin and oppression. What kind of person shrugs at abuse?
Second, given that Jesus sets the standard for goodness, there are appropriate times to not be “nice.” There are times we cannot simply “go along to get along.” We should emulate Jesus’ example and confront abuse and injustice, especially within the church.
When God’s
reputation is at stake,
and when
people are being exploited,
we should ACT
Finally, we should remember
that
Christians today are
GODS TEMPLE
(1 Corinthians 6:19).
Just as Jesus
was
zealous for His temple
in Jerusalem,
so is He for us
(John 2:17; cf. Psalm 69:9).
We must take care not to defile His temple with sin; rather, we should make
every effort to ensure that our
bodies
are “houses of prayer” to honor God.
When David prays,
“Create in me a clean heart,”
he is asking
God for forgiveness.
The subtitle to Psalm 51 clarifies the situation:
“A psalm of David.
When the prophet Nathan came to him after
David had
committed adultery with Bathsheba.”
Second Samuel 11 tells the sordid tale. King David saw Bathsheba, a married woman, and lusted after her. He summoned her to fulfill his desires. Some time later, she notified him that she was pregnant with his child. David first tried a cover up, and, when that did not work, he arranged for the murder of Bathsheba’s husband. David then married her.
Obviously, David did not have a clean heart after this. He had committed adultery and possibly rape, as the language used in this case is also used of rape; his summoning of and sleeping with Bathsheba was certainly an abuse of royal authority. He then engaged in deception and finally in murder, corrupting others in the process. When it was all done, he thought he had succeeded in covering it up and destroying all the evidence. The last sentence of 2 Samuel 11 tells us, “But the thing David had done displeased the Lord” (verse 27).
In 2 Samuel 12, the prophet Nathan confronts David. He does so using a parable that David could relate to. He told of a rich man who took advantage of a poor man by stealing his only lamb, a pet, which he killed to feed to his guests. David was overcome with anger and exclaimed, “As surely as the Lord lives, the man who did this must die! He must pay for that lamb four times over, because he did such a thing and had no pity” (2 Samuel 12:5–6).
Then Nathan said to David, “You are the man!” (2 Samuel 12:7). Although David had tried to hide his sin, it was eating away at him inside, as he records in Psalm 32:3–4: “When I kept silent [about my sin], my bones wasted away through my groaning all day long. For day and night your hand was heavy on me; my strength was sapped as in the heat of summer.” David admitted to Nathan, “I have sinned against the Lord” (2 Samuel 12:13). He knew he needed a clean heart.
When David was through trying to hide his sin, he confessed it freely.
Psalm 51 is that confession and plea for forgiveness.
His request “create in me a clean heart” is
simply another way
of asking for forgiveness and spiritual cleansing.
Psalm 51:1–10 is filled with poetic
descriptions
of
forgiveness and cleansing,
identified in italics below:
“Have mercy on me, O God,
according to your unfailing love;
according to your great compassion
blot out my transgressions.
Wash away all my iniquity
and cleanse me from my sin.
“For I know my transgressions,
and my sin is always before me.
Against you, you only, have I sinned
and done what is evil in your sight;
so you are right in your verdict
and justified when you judge.
Surely I was sinful at birth,
sinful from the time my mother conceived me.
Yet you desired faithfulness even in the womb;
you taught me wisdom in that secret place.
“Cleanse me with hyssop, and I will be clean;
wash me, and I will be whiter than snow.
Let me hear joy and gladness;
let the bones you have crushed rejoice.
Hide your face from my sins
and blot out all my iniquity.
“Create in me a pure heart, O God,
and
renew a steadfast spirit within me.”
Even though
David suffered consequences
for his sin,
which are outlined in 2 Samuel 12, he was forgiven and restored to spiritual fellowship with God. Psalm 32 tells of the great relief that David felt when he confessed, and in this psalm he encourages others to confess their sins
as well:
“Blessed is the one
whose transgressions are forgiven,
whose sins are covered.
Blessed is the one
whose sin the LORD does not count against them
and in whose spirit is no deceit.
“When I kept silent,
my bones wasted away
through my groaning all day long.
For day and night
your hand was heavy on me;
my strength was sapped
as in the heat of summer.
“Then I acknowledged my sin to you
and did not cover up my iniquity.
I said, ‘I will confess
my transgressions to the LORD.’
And you forgave
the guilt of my sin.
“Therefore let all the faithful pray to you
while you may be found;
surely the rising of the mighty waters
will not reach them.
You are my hiding place;
you will protect me from trouble
and surround me with songs of deliverance.
“I will instruct you and teach you in the way you should go;
I will counsel you with my loving eye on you.
Do not be like the horse or the mule,
which have no understanding
but must be controlled by bit and bridle
or they will not come to you.
Many are the woes of the wicked,
but the LORD’s unfailing love
surrounds the one who trusts in him.
“Rejoice in the LORD and be glad, you righteous;
sing, all you who are upright in heart!”
Paul uses Psalm 32 as an
example of
salvation apart from works
(Romans 4:6–8).
David was forgiven
not
because of any works he did
to earn forgiveness,
but simply
because he asked in faith.
Because of the
sacrifice of Christ,
any sinner
can
ask God for forgiveness,
that is,
for a clean heart,
and
he will receive it.
The apostle John
also tells us, “If we claim to be without sin,
we deceive
ourselves and the truth is not in us.
If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just
and will forgive us our sins
and purify us from all unrighteousness”
(1 John 1: 8–9)
In spite of all that David did, and all that we do,
God is willing to forgive
because Jesus paid the penalty
that we deserve.
No matter how dirty we are,
God can
CREATE
in us a
CLEAN HEART
In Jesus’ High Priestly Prayer,
Jesus prays
to His Father, saying,
“Sanctify them by the truth; your word is truth”
(John 17:17).
In this verse, Jesus communicates two important
facts:
God’s Word is Truth
—God’s Word equals Truth--
and it’s by
that
Truth that God sanctifies us,
or Sets us Apart
for
Holy Service to Himself
In the same prayer,
Jesus prays for His disciples
and all
who will believe in Him through
The GOSPEL
(John 17:20).
Believers accept God’s words (John 17:6) and accept Jesus as God’s Word (John 17:8). God is truth, and His truth brings salvation to all who accept it (Titus 2:11). Further, God’s written and living Word will sustain believers as they are in the world (John 17:14).
In the High Priestly Prayer in John 17, Jesus confirms that He brought the message of salvation to the world:
“Now this is eternal life: that they know you, the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom you have sent” (John 17:3). Jesus’ mission of bringing the truth has been accomplished (John 17:4), and He turns the focus of His prayer to God working through the disciples and other believers.
He confirms that believers will be rejected by the world for believing “Your word is truth,” but believers are also assured joy, God’s protection from the evil one, and sanctification by God’s Word (John 17:13–19).
An alarming epidemic of spiritual adultery and “friendship with the world” ran rampant in the early church (James 4:4). James passionately told his readers to repent from their wicked ways and return to the Lord: “Draw near to God, and he will draw near to you.
Cleanse your hands,
you sinners,
and
purify your hearts,
you
double-minded”
(James 4:8, ESV).
God desires His followers’ wholehearted loyalty and devotion (Exodus 34:14; Mark 12:29–31). Believers who stray from the Lord must submit themselves to God and draw near to Him again through repentance.
“Purify your hearts, you double-minded” was James’ clear and distinct call to inner purification—to recognize and confess our sins and receive God’s forgiveness. His language closely resembles that of the psalmist: “Who may ascend the mountain of the Lord? Who may stand in his holy place? The one who has clean hands and a pure heart, who does not trust in an idol or swear by a false god” (Psalm 24:3–4).
James branded the believers “double-minded” because they continued to live with one foot in the world while claiming to love and worship God. Their vacillating was dividing their loyalties. A similar charge was issued against the people of Isaiah’s time: “These people come near to me with their mouth and honor me with their lips, but their hearts are far from me” (Isaiah 29:13). Earlier, James noted that double-minded people are “unstable in all they do” (James 1:8).
The apostle John
acknowledged that
the
True
children of God who look
forward to
Christ’s Return
“purify
themselves, just as he
is Pure”
(1 John 3:3).
The Lord Jesus Himself
said,
“Blessed are the Pure in Heart,
for they
will See God”
(Matthew 5:8).
The term pure here indicates the
absence of
impurity, contamination,
or filth.
It suggests a single-mindedness
of
Purpose that
is Free
of
Distractions
Double-minded people lack purity of heart.
The Lord desires His followers to be laser-focused in heart, mind, and purpose
(Matthew 6:33).
The greatest commandment, Jesus said,
is to “love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind”
(Matthew 22:37).
The apostle Paul explained that God looks for servants who commit their entire being to Him: “If you keep yourself pure, you will be a special utensil for honorable use. Your life will be clean, and you will be ready for the Master to use you for every good work. Run from anything that stimulates youthful lusts. Instead, pursue righteous living, faithfulness, love, and peace.
Enjoy the companionship of those who call on the Lord with pure hearts”
(2 Timothy 2:21–22, NLT).
Anything that distracts us or has a contaminating influence on our lives
will divide our loyalties
and soil our hearts, rendering us ineffective kingdom servants.
A pure heart
is evidenced by openness,
clarity,
and an uncompromising desire
to please the
Lord in everything we think, say, and do.
Purity goes beyond just cleaning up our outward behavior
(“cleanse your hands”)
to the internal purification of heart, mind, and soul
(“purify your hearts”).
In reality,
humans
are
incapable of purifying their
own hearts.
David prayed,
“Create in me a pure heart,
O God,
and renew a steadfast spirit within me”
Psalm 51:10
God is the only one who can make us pure in heart and single in mind.
It is the shed blood
of
Jesus Christ His Son
that
“purifies us from all sin”
(1 John 1:7)
and the sanctifying work of the Holy Spirit that cleanses our lives
(Romans 15:16; 1 Corinthians 6:11; 1 Peter 1:2).
Christ provided the necessary sacrifice for sin so that we could receive God’s forgiveness
(John 1:29; Ephesians 1:7; Hebrews 9:12–22; 1 Peter 1:18–19).
God’s Word commands us: “Purify your hearts, you double-minded.” And God’s Word—the Logos, who is Jesus Christ—makes the command possible. Since we can enter God’s presence “by the blood of Jesus, by the new and living way that he opened for us through the curtain, that is, through his flesh, and since we have a great priest over the house of God, let us draw near with a true heart in full assurance of faith, with our hearts sprinkled clean from an evil conscience and our bodies washed with pure water” (Hebrews 10:19–22, ESV).
The idea of “circumcision of the heart” is found in Romans 2:29. It refers to having a pure heart, separated unto God. Paul writes, “A Jew is one inwardly, and circumcision is a matter of the heart, by the Spirit, not by the letter.” These words conclude a sometimes confusing passage of Scripture regarding circumcision and the Christian. Verses 25-29 provide context:
“For circumcision indeed is of value if you obey the law, but if you break the law, your circumcision becomes uncircumcision. So, if a man who is uncircumcised keeps the precepts of the law, will not his uncircumcision be regarded as circumcision? Then he who is physically uncircumcised but keeps the law will condemn you who have the written code and circumcision but break the law. For no one is a Jew who is merely one outwardly, nor is circumcision outward and physical. But a Jew is one inwardly, and circumcision is a matter of the heart, by the Spirit, not by the letter. His praise is not from man but from God.”
Paul is discussing the role of the Old Testament Law as it relates to Christianity. He argues that Jewish circumcision is only an outward sign of being set apart to God. However, if the heart is sinful, then physical circumcision is of no avail. A circumcised body and a sinful heart are at odds with each other. Rather than focus on external rites, Paul focuses on the condition of the heart. Using circumcision as a metaphor, he says that only the Holy Spirit can purify a heart and set us apart to God. Ultimately, circumcision cannot make a person right with God; the Law is not enough.
A person’s heart must
change.
Paul calls this change
“circumcision of the heart.”
This concept was not original with the apostle Paul. As a Jew trained in the Law of Moses, he was certainly aware of this discussion from Deuteronomy 30. There, the Lord used the same metaphor to communicate His desire for a holy people: “And the LORD your God will circumcise your heart and the heart of your offspring, so that you will love the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul, that you may live” (Deuteronomy 30:6). Physical circumcision was a sign of Israel’s covenant with God; circumcision of the heart, therefore, would indicate Israel’s being set apart to love God fully, inside and out.
John the Baptist warned the Pharisees against
taking pride
in their physical heritage and boasting
in their circumcision:
“Do not think you can
say to
yourselves, 'We have Abraham
as our father
' I tell you that out of these
stones God can
raise up
children for Abraham”
(Matthew 3:9).
True
“children of Abraham” are those
who follow
Abraham’s example of believing God
Genesis 15:6
Physical circumcision does not make one a child of God; faith does. Believers in Jesus Christ can truly say they are children of “Father Abraham.” “If you belong to Christ, then you are Abraham’s seed, and heirs according to the promise” (Galatians 3:29).
God has always wanted more from His people than just external conformity to a set of rules. He has always wanted them to possess a heart to love, know, and follow Him. That’s why God is not concerned with a circumcision of the flesh. Even in the Old Testament, God’s priority was a spiritual circumcision of the heart: “Circumcise yourselves to the LORD, circumcise your hearts, you men of Judah and people of Jerusalem, or my wrath will break out and burn like fire because of the evil you have done” (Jeremiah 4:4).
Both Testaments focus on the
need for
repentance
and inward change
in order to
be right with God.
In Jesus,
the Law has been fulfilled
(Matthew 5:17).
Through Him, a person can be made right with God and receive eternal life (John 3:16; Ephesians 2:8-9).
As Paul said, true circumcision
is a matter of the heart,
performed
by the Spirit of God.
In 2 Corinthians 2:5–11, the apostle Paul addresses the issue of a man who had committed a sin so grave that it affected the whole body of believers. After the man underwent some form of correction prescribed by Paul and carried out by the church, Paul now believes the discipline had been effective. He urges the believers in Corinth “to forgive and comfort him, so that he will not be overwhelmed by excessive sorrow” (verse 7) and to reaffirm their love for the sinner. One reason Paul gave for ending the punishment and forgiving the man was to prevent Satan from outsmarting them and taking advantage of the situation, “for we are not ignorant of his devices” (verse 11, NKJV).
Paul recognizes that Satan is clever and cunning and that believers need to be aware of his schemes. The Greek term translated as “devices” (KJV, NKVJ) in 2 Corinthians 2:11 is alternately rendered “designs” (ESV) and “schemes” (NIV, NASB, CSB). Satan’s devices are the evil intentions and plans he thinks up to oppose God and His people.
This passage is not the only time Paul draws the Corinthians’ attention to Satan and his clever devices (see 1 Corinthians 5:5; 2 Corinthians 4:4; 6:15; 12:7). In 1 Corinthians 7:5, Paul warns married couples not to deprive one another of sexual intimacy for too long “so that Satan will not tempt you because of your lack of self-control.” He also mentions Satan’s capacity to disguise “himself as an angel of light” (2 Corinthians 11:14, NLT).
By forgiving the man who had sinned, the Corinthians would exercise wisdom rather than be ignorant of Satan’s devices. Forgiveness would restore unity in the church and prevent Satan from taking advantage of any division. It would also deprive Satan of an opportunity to discourage or defeat the man through an excessively long and drawn-out punishment (2 Corinthians 2:6–7; see also Galatians 6:1). Likewise, it would keep church members from hardening their hearts toward the man.
The Bible presents numerous examples of Satan’s schemes. As the enemy of God, the devil is constantly working against God, His purposes, and His people (Job 1:6–19; Matthew 16:23; 1 Thessalonians 2:18). The apostle Peter strongly advised believers to beware of Satan’s devices: “Stay alert! Watch out for your great enemy, the devil. He prowls around like a roaring lion, looking for someone to devour. Stand firm against him, and be strong in your faith” (1 Peter 5:8–9, NLT).
One of Satan’s devices is to
accuse
believers of their past sins
(Revelation 12:10; Zechariah 3:1–2).
Thankfully,
Satan’s accusations are baseless
and powerless
against those who
are
forgiven and redeemed
by
Jesus Christ,
who
“canceled the
record
of the charges against us
and
took it away by
nailing it to the
CROSS
In this way,
he disarmed the spiritual rulers
and authorities.
He shamed them publicly
by his victory
over them on the cross”
(Colossians 2:14–15, NLT).
Another of Satan’s devices is to tempt Christians to sin and fall away from fellowship with God (Ephesians 4:26–27; 1 Thessalonians 3:5; 1 Timothy 5:14–15). Jesus warned His disciples that Satan would try to “sift each of you like wheat” (Luke 22:31). From the beginning, Satan has tried to lure and seduce people to put God to the test (Genesis 3:1–5; Acts 5:3–9; 15:10; 1 Corinthians 10:9).
A favorite device of Satan’s is deceit,
“for he is a liar and the father of lies” and “there is no truth in him”
(John 8:44; see also 1 Timothy 2:14).
We can resist Satan’s deceitfulness by knowing the truth of God’s Word in the depths of our being (Psalm 119:11). When the devil tempted Jesus in the wilderness, the Lord responded to each direct attack with the Word of God (Matthew 4:1–11). Scripture is our most potent weapon against Satan’s devices.
Satan has a way of making sin attractive, but we can resist his temptations if we “prepare [our] minds for action and exercise self-control. Put all [our] hope in the gracious salvation that will come to [us] when Jesus Christ is revealed to the world” (1 Peter 1:13, NLT). Jesus is our High Priest who “understands our weaknesses, for he faced all of the same testings we do, yet he did not sin” (Hebrews 4:15, NLT; see also Hebrews 2:18). “God is faithful. He will not allow the temptation to be more than you can stand. When you are tempted, he will show you a way out so that you can endure” (1 Corinthians 10:13, NLT).
Christians mustn’t be ignorant of Satan’s devices but be vigilant and ready for action. We can rely on God’s faithfulness in times of testing and temptation (see 2 Peter 2:9; Revelation 3:10). We can “be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power. Put on the full armor of God, so that [we] can take [our] stand against the devil’s schemes. For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms” (Ephesians 6:10–12). And we can do as Jesus commanded: “Keep watch and pray, so that you will not give in to temptation. For the spirit is willing, but the body is weak!” (Matthew 26:41, NLT).
As early as the first century AD,
false doctrine
was
already infiltrating
the church,
and many of the
letters
in the New Testament
were written
to address those errors
(Galatians 1:6–9; Colossians 2:20–23; Titus 1:10–11). Paul exhorted his protégé Timothy to guard against those who were peddling heresies and confusing the flock: “If anyone advocates a different doctrine and does not agree with sound words, those of our Lord Jesus Christ, and with the doctrine conforming to godliness, he is conceited and understands nothing” (1 Timothy 6:3–4).
As followers of Christ, we have no excuse for remaining ignorant of theology because we have the “whole counsel of God” (Acts 20:27) available to us—the Bible is complete. As we “study to show ourselves approved unto God” (2 Timothy 2:15), we are less likely to be taken in by smooth talkers and false prophets. When we know God’s Word, “we are no longer to be children, tossed here and there by waves and carried about by every wind of doctrine, by the trickery of men, by craftiness in deceitful scheming” (Ephesians 4:14).
Satan has been confusing and perverting the Word of God since the Garden of Eden (Genesis 3:1–4; Matthew 4:6). False teachers, the servants of Satan, try to appear as “servants of righteousness” (2 Corinthians 11:15), but they will be known by their fruits (Matthew 7:16). A charlatan promoting false doctrine will show signs of pride, greed, and rebellion (see Jude 1:11) and will often promote or engage in sexual immorality (2 Peter 2:14; Revelation 2:20).
We are wise to recognize how vulnerable we are to heresy and make it our habit to do as the Bereans did in Acts 17:11: “They . . . examined the Scriptures every day to see if what Paul said was true.” When we make it our goal to follow the lead of the first church, we will go far in avoiding the pitfalls of false doctrine. Acts 2:42 says, “They devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching and to fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer.” Such devotion will protect us and ensure that we are on the path Jesus set for us.
Word of Faith teaching is decidedly unbiblical. It is not a denomination and does not have a formal organization or hierarchy. Instead, it is a movement that is heavily influenced by a number of high-profile pastors and teachers such as Kenneth Hagin, Benny Hinn, Kenneth Copeland, Paul and Jan Crouch, and Fred Price.
The Word of Faith
movement
grew out of the
Pentecostal movement
in the
late 20th century
Its founder was E. W. Kenyon, who studied the metaphysical New Thought teachings of Phineas Quimby. Mind science (where "name it and claim it" originated) was combined with Pentecostalism, resulting in a peculiar mix of orthodox Christianity and mysticism. Kenneth Hagin, in turn, studied under E. W. Kenyon and made the Word of Faith movement what it is today. Although individual teachings range from completely heretical to completely ridiculous, what follows is the basic theology most Word of Faith teachers align themselves with.
At the heart of the Word of Faith movement is the belief in the "force of faith." It is believed words can be used to manipulate the faith-force, and thus actually create what they believe Scripture promises (health and wealth). Laws supposedly governing the faith-force are said to operate independently of God’s sovereign will and that God Himself is subject to these laws. This is nothing short of idolatry, turning our faith—and by extension ourselves—into god.
In the prosperity gospel, also known as the “Word of Faith Movement,” the believer is told to use God, whereas the truth of biblical Christianity is just the opposite—God uses the believer. Prosperity theology sees the Holy Spirit as a power to be put to use for whatever the believer wills. The Bible teaches that the Holy Spirit is a Person who enables the believer to do God’s will.
The prosperity gospel
movement
closely resembles some
of the
destructive greed
sects
that
infiltrated the early church.
Paul and the other apostles
were not accommodating to or conciliatory
with the
false teachers
who propagated such
heresy.
They identified them as dangerous
false teachers
and
urged Christians to avoid them
Paul warned Timothy about such men in 1 Timothy 6:5, 9-11. These men of “corrupt mind” supposed godliness was a means of gain and their desire for riches was a trap that brought them “into ruin and destruction” (v. 9). The pursuit of wealth is a dangerous path for Christians and one which God warns about: “For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil. Some people, eager for money, have wandered from the faith and pierced themselves with many griefs” (v. 10). If riches were a reasonable goal for the godly, Jesus would have pursued it. But He did not, preferring instead to have no place to lay His head (Matthew 8:20) and teaching His disciples to do the same. It should also be remembered that the only disciple concerned with wealth was Judas.
Paul said covetousness is idolatry (Ephesians 5:5) and instructed the Ephesians to avoid anyone who brought a message of immorality or covetousness (Ephesians 5:6-7). Prosperity teaching prohibits God from working on His own, meaning that God is not Lord of all because He cannot work until we release Him to do so. Faith, according to the Word of Faith doctrine, is not submissive trust in God; faith is a formula by which we manipulate the spiritual laws that prosperity teachers believe govern the universe. As the name “Word of Faith” implies, this movement teaches that faith is a matter of what we say more than whom we trust or what truths we embrace and affirm in our hearts.
A favorite term of prosperity gospel teachers is “positive confession.” This refers to the teaching that words themselves have creative power. What you say, prosperity teachers claim, determines everything that happens to you. Your confessions, especially the favors you demand of God, must all be stated positively and without wavering. Then God is required to answer (as though man could require anything of God!). Thus, God’s ability to bless us supposedly hangs on our faith. James 4:13-16 clearly contradicts this teaching: “Now listen, you who say, ‘Today or tomorrow we will go to this or that city, spend a year there, carry on business and make money.’ Why, you do not even know what will happen tomorrow. What is your life? You are a mist that appears for a little while and then vanishes.” Far from speaking things into existence in the future, we do not even know what tomorrow will bring or even whether we will be alive.
Instead of stressing the importance of wealth, the Bible
warns against pursuing it.
Believers, especially leaders in the church
(1 Timothy 3:3),
are to be free from the love of money
(Hebrews 13:5)
. The love of money leads to all kinds
of evil
(1 Timothy 6:10).
Jesus warned, “Watch out! Be on your guard
against all kinds of greed;
a man’s life does not
consist in the abundance of his possessions”
(Luke 12:15).
In sharp contrast to the
prosperity gospel
emphasis on
gaining money and possessions
in this life,
Jesus said,
“Do not store up
for yourselves treasures
on earth,
where moth and rust destroy,
and
where thieves break in and steal”
(Matthew 6:19)
The irreconcilable contradictions
between
prosperity teaching and
the gospel of our
Lord Jesus Christ is best summed
up in the
words of Jesus in Matthew 6:24,
“You cannot serve both God and money.”
The statement
“you will know them by their fruit”
(Matthew 7:16)
is part of
Jesus’ teaching
about
recognizing true followers
and
avoiding false prophets
Beginning with verse 15, we read this context: “Beware of the false prophets, who come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly are ravenous wolves. You will know them by their fruits. Grapes are not gathered from thorn bushes nor figs from thistles, are they? So every good tree bears good fruit, but the bad tree bears bad fruit. A good tree cannot produce bad fruit, nor can a bad tree produce good fruit. Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. So then, you will know them by their fruits” (Matthew 7:15–20).
The seventh chapter of the Gospel of Matthew is a gold mine of teaching from the popular verse 1 to the well-known parable about the wise man building his house upon the rock (verses 24–27). In verses 21–23, Jesus makes a chilling announcement to many who assumed they belonged to Him. He warned them that on Judgment Day they will hear Him say, “Depart from me. I never knew you.” Just before that warning, Jesus had indicted those who pretended to follow Him but whose lives indicated something else. He told His followers that the “fruit” of their lives proved what was inside their hearts (cf. Mark 7:20–23).
When Jesus says
, “You will know them by
their
fruit,”
what does “fruit” mean?
Jesus
gave the illustration
of
grape vines and fig trees
When we see grape vines, we expect them to contain grapes in season. We also expect fig trees to produce figs. A produce farmer who notices one of his fruit trees not bearing any fruit will cut it down. It is useless. Likewise, we would not come to a field of thistles and expect to harvest fruit. Thistles and thorn bushes can never produce fruit because of their nature. It is impossible. They have no capacity to produce anything but thorns (Matthew 12:33).
In our lives, every word and every action is fruit from our hearts. Sinners sin because that’s what is in their hearts. Thieves steal, rapists attack, and adulterers cheat because those sins are the fruit being produced from an evil heart. Bad hearts produce bad fruit. When Jesus said, “You will know them by their fruit” concerning false teachers, He was giving us a guide for identifying them.
False prophets, speakers of lies,
will have
actions that correspond
to their errant message.
Just as their message
is anti-God,
so will be their works.
They will stray
from
the path of righteousness.
When we repent of our sin and receive Jesus as Lord of our lives (John 1:12; Acts 2:38), He changes our hearts (2 Corinthians 5:17). Now the fruit that is produced is good fruit. Galatians 5:22 lists some of the fruit produced by a heart in tune with God. Our attitudes, actions, words, and perspectives change as we walk in fellowship with the Holy Spirit (1 John 1:6–7). When our hearts change, our fruit changes.
Many false prophets have come and gone, and many of them lived in blatant sin while preaching their message. Jim Jones openly engaged in adultery, drug use, and profanity. David Koresh had child “wives” as young as 11. False teachers might display the “fruit” of sexual immorality, greed, materialism, gluttony, and other sins while justifying their behavior and lifting themselves up as something holy.
Unfortunately, many people through the years have been duped into following such characters and joining them in justifying the sin. If only they had heeded Jesus’ warning that “you will know them by their fruit.” No matter how good or convincing someone sounds, if he is bearing bad fruit, his message should be avoided.
Godly teachers will display good “fruit” such as making disciples (Matthew 28:19), using their gifts to benefit others (Romans 12:4–8), leading lost people to Jesus (James 5:20), loving their fellow believers (1 John 3:14), and seeking humble ways to do good everywhere (Jeremiah 29:7).
All of these things are indications of a good heart.
Often, people profess faith in Jesus as Savior, but it is a mere profession with no real faith.
Some religious groups encourage baptism, confirmation, or other religious rites that are supposed to ensure one’s future in heaven. But as time goes on, the fruit being produced in such a life looks nothing like what is clearly prescribed in the Bible
(1 Peter 1:16).
Some attend church services
but spend the rest of their
time
living entirely for themselves.
Some may rise to prominence,
even teaching or preaching,
writing books,
or dominating the media,
but the fruit
of their lives belies their words
(Matthew 24:24).
Greed, deception, immorality,
pride,
or
dishonesty defines them,
making them
false prophets by
Jesus’ standards
(2 Peter 2:1–3).
While we can never know anyone else’s heart, we can make wise assessments about other people by observing the regular fruit of their lives. All of us stumble from time to time, and we may go through seasons of bearing little fruit (1 John 1:8). But 1 John 3:4–10 makes it clear that those who know God will not continue a lifestyle of bearing bad fruit. We have been transformed, and the fruit of our lives is evidence of that transformation. Apple trees don’t produce bananas, and strawberry plants don’t produce figs. This fact of nature is also true in the spiritual realm. We can identify those whose hearts have been redeemed by the fruit we see in their lives.
The hypostatic union is the term used to describe how God the Son, Jesus Christ, took on a human nature, yet remained fully God at the same time. Jesus always had been God (John 8:58, 10:30), but at the incarnation Jesus became a human being (John 1:14). The addition of the human nature to the divine nature is Jesus, the God-man. This is the hypostatic union, Jesus Christ, one Person, fully God and fully man.
Jesus’ two natures, human and divine, are inseparable. Jesus will forever be the God-man, fully God and fully human, two distinct natures in one Person. Jesus’ humanity and divinity are not mixed, but are united without loss of separate identity. Jesus sometimes operated with the limitations of humanity (John 4:6, 19:28) and other times in the power of His deity (John 11:43; Matthew 14:18-21). In both, Jesus’ actions were from His one Person. Jesus had two natures, but only one personality.
The doctrine of the hypostatic union is an attempt to explain how Jesus could be both God and man at the same time. It is ultimately, though, a doctrine we are incapable of fully understanding. It is impossible for us to fully understand how God works. We, as human beings with finite minds, should not expect to totally comprehend an infinite God. Jesus is God’s Son in that He was conceived by the Holy Spirit (Luke 1:35). But that does not mean Jesus did not exist before He was conceived. Jesus has always existed (John 8:58, 10:30). When Jesus was conceived, He became a human being in addition to being God (John 1:1, 14).
Jesus is both God and man.
Jesus has always been God,
but
He did not become a
human being
until He was conceived
in Mary
Jesus became a human being
in order to
identify
with us in our struggles
(Hebrews 2:17)
and, more importantly,
so that
He could die on the cross
to pay
the penalty for our sins
(Philippians 2:5-11).
In summary, the hypostatic union
teaches that
Jesus is both
fully human and fully divine,
that there is no
mixture
or dilution of either nature,
and that
He is one united Person, forever.
The New Covenant
(Hebrews 8:6–13)
at this I awoke
and
looked around.
My sleep
had been most pleasant
to me.
The days are coming,” declares the LORD, “
when
I will sow
the house of
Israel and the house of Judah
with the seed
of man and of beast.
just as I watched
over them to uproot and
tear down,
to demolish, destroy, and bring disaster,
so I will watch
over them to build and to plant,”
declares the LORD.
In those days,
it will no longer be said:
‘The fathers have eaten sour grapes,
and the teeth
of the children are set on edge.’
instead,
each will die for his own iniquity.
If anyone eats the
sour grapes,
his own teeth will be set on edge.
31Behold, the days
are coming, declares the LORD,
when I will make a new covenant
with the house of Israel
and with the house of Judah.
32It will not be like the covenant
I made with their fathers
when I took them by the hand
to lead them out of the land of Egypt--
a covenant they broke,
though I was a husband to them,
declares the LORD.
But this is the covenant I will make
with
the house of Israel
after those days, declares
the LORD
I will put My law in their minds
and inscribe it on their hearts.
And I will be their God,
and
they will be My people
No longer will each man
teach
his neighbor or his brother,
saying, ‘Know the LORD,’
because they will all
know Me,
from the least of them
to the greatest, declares the LORD.
For I will forgive their iniquities
and will
remember their sins no more.”
Thus says the LORD, who gives the
sun for light by day,
who sets in order the moon and
stars for light by night,
who stirs up the sea so that its
waves roar--
the LORD of Hosts is
His name:
Only if this fixed order departed from
My presence,
declares the LORD,
would Israel’s descendants ever cease
to be a nation before Me.”
this is what the LORD says:
“Only if the heavens above could be measured
and the
foundations of the earth below searched out
would I reject all of Israel’s descendants
because of all they have done,”
declares the LORD.
The days are coming,”i declares the LORD, “when this city will be rebuilt for Me,
from the tower of Hananel to the Corner Gate.
the measuring line will once again stretch out straight to the hill of Gareb and
then turn toward Goah.
40The whole valley of the dead bodies and ashes, and all the
fields as far as the Kidron Valley,
to the corner of the Horse Gate to the east, will be holy to the LORD.
It will never again be uprooted or demolished.”
Fulfilling the Gentiles
Romans 11:25, refers to the idea that God
is bringing in a
large number of non-Jewish people
(Gentiles)
to faith in
Jesus Christ,
signifying a period where
the
Gospel message
is widely
accepted by people from
all nations,
before a future
time when
Israel
will fully embrace
their Messiah;
essentially, it means completing
God's plan
to include Gentiles in his covenant through
the
Acceptance of Jesus Christ
Amos 7:8
And the LORD said unto me, Amos, what seest thou? And I said, A plumbline. Then said the Lord, Behold, I will set a plumbline in the midst of my people Israel: I will not again pass by them any more:
Amos 8:2
And he said, Amos, what seest thou? And I said, A basket of summer fruit. Then said the LORD unto me, The end is come upon my people of Israel; I will not again pass by them any more.
Zechariah 4:2
And said unto me, What seest thou? And I said, I have looked, and behold a candlestick all of gold, with a bowl upon the top of it, and his seven lamps thereon, and seven pipes to the seven lamps, which are upon the top thereof:
I see a rod
Numbers 17:8
And it came to pass, that on the morrow Moses went into the tabernacle of witness; and, behold, the rod of Aaron for the house of Levi was budded, and brought forth buds, and bloomed blossoms, and yielded almonds.
Ezekiel 7:10
Behold the day, behold, it is come: the morning is gone forth; the rod hath blossomed, pride hath budded.
Amos 7:8
“Amos, what do you see?” asked the LORD. “A plumb line,” I replied. “Behold,” said the Lord, “I am setting a plumb line among My people Israel; I will no longer spare them:
Zechariah 4:2
“What do you see?” he asked. “I see a solid gold lampstand,” I replied, “with a bowl at the top and seven lamps on it, with seven spouts to the lamps.
Isaiah 11:1
Then a shoot will spring up from the stump of Jesse, and a Branch from his roots will bear fruit.
Numbers 17:8
The next day Moses entered the Tent of the Testimony and saw that Aaron’s staff, representing the house of Levi, had sprouted, put forth buds, blossomed, and produced almonds.
Ezekiel 7:10
Behold, the day is here! It has come! Doom has gone out, the rod has budded, arrogance has bloomed.
Isaiah 55:11
so My word that proceeds from My mouth will not return to Me empty, but it will accomplish what I please, and it will prosper where I send it.
Psalm 1:3
He is like a tree planted by streams of water, yielding its fruit in season, whose leaf does not wither, and who prospers in all he does.
Genesis 40:9-11
So the chief cupbearer told Joseph his dream: “In my dream there was a vine before me, / and on the vine were three branches. As it budded, its blossoms opened and its clusters ripened into grapes. / Pharaoh’s cup was in my hand, and I took the grapes, squeezed them into his cup, and placed the cup in his hand.”
Matthew 24:32-33
Now learn this lesson from the fig tree: As soon as its branches become tender and sprout leaves, you know that summer is near. / So also, when you see all these things, you will know that He is near, right at the door.
John 15:1-5
“I am the true vine, and My Father is the keeper of the vineyard. / He cuts off every branch in Me that bears no fruit, and every branch that does bear fruit, He prunes to make it even more fruitful. / You are already clean because of the word I have spoken to you. ...
Romans 11:17-24
Now if some branches have been broken off, and you, a wild olive shoot, have been grafted in among the others to share in the nourishment of the olive root, / do not boast over those branches. If you do, remember this: You do not support the root, but the root supports you. / You will say then, “Branches were broken off so that I could be grafted in.” ...
Hebrews 4:12
For the word of God is living and active. Sharper than any double-edged sword, it pierces even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow. It judges the thoughts and intentions of the heart.
Revelation 11:1-2
Then I was given a measuring rod like a staff and was told, “Go and measure the temple of God and the altar, and count the number of worshipers there. / But exclude the courtyard outside the temple. Do not measure it, because it has been given over to the nations, and they will trample the holy city for 42 months.
1 Corinthians 3:6-7
I planted the seed and Apollos watered it, but God made it grow. / So neither he who plants nor he who waters is anything, but only God, who makes things grow.
James 5:7-8
Be patient, then, brothers, until the Lord’s coming. See how the farmer awaits the precious fruit of the soil—how patient he is for the fall and spring rains. / You, too, be patient and strengthen your hearts, because the Lord’s coming is near.
Romans 3:24-26
and are justified freely by His grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus. / God presented Him as an atoning sacrifice in His blood through faith, in order to demonstrate His righteousness, because in His forbearance He had passed over the sins committed beforehand. / He did this to demonstrate His righteousness at the present time, so as to be just and to justify the one who has faith in Jesus.
Romans 7:7
What then shall we say? Is the law sin? Certainly not! Indeed, I would not have been mindful of sin if not for the law. For I would not have been aware of coveting if the law had not said, “Do not covet.”
Romans 8:3-4
For what the law was powerless to do in that it was weakened by the flesh, God did by sending His own Son in the likeness of sinful man, as an offering for sin. He thus condemned sin in the flesh, / so that the righteous standard of the law might be fulfilled in us, who do not walk according to the flesh but according to the Spirit.
Hebrews 9:15
Therefore Christ is the mediator of a new covenant, so that those who are called may receive the promised eternal inheritance, now that He has died to redeem them from the transgressions committed under the first covenant.
2 Corinthians 3:7-11
Now if the ministry of death, which was engraved in letters on stone, came with such glory that the Israelites could not gaze at the face of Moses because of its fleeting glory, / will not the ministry of the Spirit be even more glorious? / For if the ministry of condemnation was glorious, how much more glorious is the ministry of righteousness! ...
Colossians 2:14
having canceled the debt ascribed to us in the decrees that stood against us. He took it away, nailing it to the cross!
Ephesians 2:15-16
by abolishing in His flesh the law of commandments and decrees. He did this to create in Himself one new man out of the two, thus making peace / and reconciling both of them to God in one body through the cross, by which He put to death their hostility.
Philippians 3:9
and be found in Him, not having my own righteousness from the law, but that which is through faith in Christ, the righteousness from God on the basis of faith.
1 Timothy 1:8-9
Now we know that the law is good, if one uses it legitimately. / We realize that law is not enacted for the righteous, but for the lawless and rebellious, for the ungodly and sinful, for the unholy and profane, for killers of father or mother, for murderers,
John 1:17
For the law was given through Moses; grace and truth came through Jesus Christ.
Matthew 5:17
Do not think that I have come to abolish the Law or the Prophets. I have not come to abolish them, but to fulfill them.
Acts 13:38-39
Therefore let it be known to you, brothers, that through Jesus the forgiveness of sins is proclaimed to you. / Through Him everyone who believes is justified from everything from which you could not be justified by the law of Moses.
Romans 5:20-21
The law came in so that the trespass would increase; but where sin increased, grace increased all the more, / so that, just as sin reigned in death, so also grace might reign through righteousness to bring eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.
Romans 6:14
For sin shall not be your master, because you are not under law, but under grace.
Galatians 3:25
But after that faith is come, we are no longer under a schoolmaster.
Galatians 2:19
For I through the law am dead to the law, that I might live unto God.
Galatians 4:2,3
But is under tutors and governors until the time appointed of the father…
Galatians 2:16
Knowing that a man is not justified by the works of the law, but by the faith of Jesus Christ, even we have believed in Jesus Christ, that we might be justified by the faith of Christ, and not by the works of the law: for by the works of the law shall no flesh be justified.
Acts 13:39
And by him all that believe are justified from all things, from which ye could not be justified by the law of Moses.
Luke 11:2
So Jesus told them, “When you pray, say: ‘Father, hallowed be Your name. Your kingdom come.
Daniel 2:44
In the days of those kings, the God of heaven will set up a kingdom that will never be destroyed, nor will it be left to another people. It will shatter all these kingdoms and bring them to an end, but will itself stand forever.
Revelation 11:15
Then the seventh angel sounded his trumpet, and loud voices called out in heaven: “The kingdom of the world has become the kingdom of our Lord and of His Christ, and He will reign forever and ever.”
Isaiah 9:7
Of the increase of His government and peace there will be no end. He will reign on the throne of David and over his kingdom, to establish and sustain it with justice and righteousness from that time and forevermore. The zeal of the LORD of Hosts will accomplish this.
Psalm 103:19
The LORD has established His throne in heaven, and His kingdom rules over all.
Revelation 21:1-4
Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the first heaven and earth had passed away, and the sea was no more. / I saw the holy city, the new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband. / And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying: “Behold, the dwelling place of God is with man, and He will dwell with them. They will be His people, and God Himself will be with them as their God. ...
Isaiah 11:9
They will neither harm nor destroy on all My holy mountain, for the earth will be full of the knowledge of the LORD as the sea is full of water.
Zechariah 14:9
On that day the LORD will become King over all the earth—the LORD alone, and His name alone.
Romans 14:17
For the kingdom of God is not a matter of eating and drinking, but of righteousness, peace, and joy in the Holy Spirit.
1 Corinthians 15:24-28
Then the end will come, when He hands over the kingdom to God the Father after He has destroyed all dominion, authority, and power. / For He must reign until He has put all His enemies under His feet. / The last enemy to be destroyed is death. ...
Isaiah 2:2-4
In the last days the mountain of the house of the LORD will be established as the chief of the mountains; it will be raised above the hills, and all nations will stream to it. / And many peoples will come and say: “Come, let us go up to the mountain of the LORD, to the house of the God of Jacob. He will teach us His ways so that we may walk in His paths.” For the law will go forth from Zion, and the word of the LORD from Jerusalem. / Then He will judge between the nations and arbitrate for many peoples. They will beat their swords into plowshares and their spears into pruning hooks. Nation will no longer take up the sword against nation, nor train anymore for war.
Philippians 2:10-11
that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, / and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.
Hebrews 12:28
Therefore, since we are receiving an unshakable kingdom, let us be filled with gratitude, and so worship God acceptably with reverence and awe.
Psalm 22:28
For dominion belongs to the LORD and He rules over the nations.
Isaiah 65:17-25
For behold, I will create new heavens and a new earth. The former things will not be remembered, nor will they come to mind. / But be glad and rejoice forever in what I create; for I will create Jerusalem to be a joy and its people to be a delight. / I will rejoice in Jerusalem and take delight in My people. The sounds of weeping and crying will no longer be heard in her. ...
Matthew 3:2
And saying, Repent ye: for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.
Matthew 4:17
From that time Jesus began to preach, and to say, Repent: for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.
Matthew 16:28
Verily I say unto you, There be some standing here, which shall not taste of death, till they see the Son of man coming in his kingdom.
Matthew 7:21
Not every one that saith unto me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven; but he that doeth the will of my Father which is in heaven.
Matthew 12:50
For whosoever shall do the will of my Father which is in heaven, the same is my brother, and sister, and mother.
Matthew 26:42
He went away again the second time, and prayed, saying, O my Father, if this cup may not pass away from me, except I drink it, thy will be done.
Nehemiah 9:6
Thou, even thou, art LORD alone; thou hast made heaven, the heaven of heavens, with all their host, the earth, and all things that are therein, the seas, and all that is therein, and thou preservest them all; and the host of heaven worshippeth thee.
Psalm 103:19-21
The LORD hath prepared his throne in the heavens; and his kingdom ruleth over all…
Daniel 4:35
And all the inhabitants of the earth arereputed as nothing: and he doeth according to his will in the army of heaven, and among the inhabitants of the earth: and none can stay his hand, or say unto him, What doest thou?
The Sermon on the Mount
when Jesus saw the crowds, He went up on the mountain and sat down.
His disciples came to Him,
and He began to teach them, saying:
The Beatitudes
(Psalm 1:1–6; Luke 6:20–23)
Blessed are the poor in spirit,
for theirs
is the kingdom of heaven.
Blessed are those who mourn,
for they will be comforted.
Blessed are the meek,
for they will inherit the earth.
Blessed are those who hunger
and thirst
for righteousness,
for they will be filled.
Blessed are the merciful,
for they will be shown mercy.
Blessed are the pure in heart,
for they will see God.
Blessed are the peacemakers,
for they
will be called sons of God.
Blessed are those
who are
persecuted because of righteousness,
for theirs is
The kingdom of heaven
blessed are you when people insult you,
persecute you,
and falsely say all
kinds of evil against you because of Me.
rejoice and be glad, because great is your
reward in heaven,
for in the same way they persecuted
the prophets before you.
Salt and Light
(Mark 9:49–50; Luke 14:34–35; Philippians 2:12–18)
13You are the salt of the earth. But if the salt loses its savor, how can it be made salty again? It is no longer good for anything, except to be thrown out and trampled by men.
14You are the light of the world. A city on a hillb cannot be hidden. 15Neither do people light a lamp and put it under a basket. Instead, they set it on a stand, and it gives light to everyone in the house. 16In the same way, let your light shine before men, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your Father in heaven.
The Fulfillment of the Law
17Do not think that I have come to abolish the Law or the Prophets. I have not come to abolish them, but to fulfill them. 18For I tell you truly, until heaven and earth pass away, not a single jot, not a stroke of a pen, will disappear from the Law until everything is accomplished.
19So then, whoever breaks one of the least of these commandments and teaches others to do likewise will be called least in the kingdom of heaven; but whoever practices and teaches them will be called great in the kingdom of heaven. 20For I tell you that unless your righteousness exceeds that of the scribes and Pharisees, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven.
Anger and Reconciliation
(Luke 12:57–59)
21You have heard that it was said to the ancients, ‘Do not murder’c and ‘Anyone who murders will be subject to judgment.’ 22But I tell you that anyone who is angry with his brotherd will be subject to judgment. Again, anyone who says to his brother, ‘Raca,’e will be subject to the Sanhedrin.f But anyone who says, ‘You fool!’ will be subject to the fire of hell.
23So if you are offering your gift at the altar and there remember that your brother has something against you, 24leave your gift there before the altar. First go and be reconciled to your brother; then come and offer your gift.
25Reconcile quickly with your adversary, while you are still on the way to court. Otherwise, he may hand you over to the judge, and the judge may hand you over to the officer, and you may be thrown into prison. 26Truly I tell you, you will not get out until you have paid the last penny.
Adultery
(Leviticus 18:1–30)
27You have heard that it was said, ‘Do not commit adultery.’i 28But I tell you that anyone who looks at a woman to lust after her has already committed adultery with her in his heart. 29If your right eye causes you to sin, gouge it out and throw it away. It is better for you to lose one part of your body than for your whole body to be thrown into hell.j 30And if your right hand causes you to sin, cut it off and throw it away. It is better for you to lose one part of your body than for your whole body to depart into hell.
Divorce
(Deuteronomy 24:1–5; Luke 16:18)
31It has also been said, ‘Whoever divorces his wife must give her a certificate of divorce.’k 32But I tell you that anyone who divorces his wife, except for sexual immorality, brings adultery upon her.l And he who marries a divorced woman commits adultery.
Oaths and Vows
(Numbers 30:1–16)
33Again, you have heard that it was said to the ancients, ‘Do not break your oath, but fulfill your vows to the Lord.’m 34But I tell you not to swear at all: either by heaven, for it is God’s throne; 35or by the earth, for it is His footstool; or by Jerusalem, for it is the city of the great King. 36Nor should you swear by your head, for you cannot make a single hair white or black. 37Simply let your ‘Yes’ be ‘Yes,’ and your ‘No,’ ‘No.’ Anything more comes from the evil one.
Love Your Enemies
(Leviticus 24:17–23; Luke 6:27–36)
38You have heard that it was said, ‘Eye for eye and tooth for tooth.’o 39But I tell you not to resist an evil person. If someone slaps you on your right cheek, turn to him the other also; 40if someone wants to sue you and take your tunic, let him have your cloak as well; 41and if someone forces you to go one mile,p go with him two miles.q 42Give to the one who asks you, and do not turn away from the one who wants to borrow from you.
43You have heard that it was said, ‘Love your neighbor’r and ‘Hate your enemy.’44But I tell you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you,s 45that you may be sons of your Father in heaven. He causes His sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous. 46If you love those who love you, what reward will you get? Do not even tax collectors do the same? 47And if you greet only your brothers, what are you doing more than others? Do not even Gentiles do the same?
48Be perfect, therefore, as your heavenly Father is perfect.
In Revelation 21:1,
John sees
something spectacular:
“Then I saw ‘anew heaven and anew earth,’
for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away.” This new earth and new heavens are sometimes referred to as the “eternal state.” As seen in Revelation chapters 21—22, the new earth will be the eternal dwelling place of believers in Jesus Christ. Scripture gives us a few details of the new heavens and new earth.
The current heavens and earth have long been subject to God’s curse because of mankind’s sin. All creation “has been groaning as in the pains of childbirth” (Romans 8:22) as it awaits the fulfillment of God’s plan and “the children of God to be revealed” (verse 19). Heaven and earth will pass away (Mark 13:31), and they will be replaced by the new heavens and the new earth. At that time, the Lord, seated on His throne, says, “I am making everything new!” (Revelation 21:5). In the new creation, sin will be totally eradicated, and “there shall be no more curse” (Revelation 22:3, NKJV).
The new heaven and new earth are also mentioned in Isaiah 65:17, Isaiah 66:22, and 2 Peter 3:13. Peter says that the new heaven and new earth will be “where righteousness dwells.” Isaiah says that “the former things will not be remembered, nor will they come to mind.” Things will be completely new, and the old order of things, with the accompanying sorrow and tragedy, will be gone.
The new earth will be free from sin, evil, sickness, suffering, and death. It will be earth as God originally intended it to be, prior to the curse of sin. It will be Eden restored.
A major feature of the new earth
will be
the New Jerusalem
John calls it
“the Holy City . . . coming
down
out of heaven from God,
prepared as a bride
beautifully
dressed for her husband”
Revelation 21:2
This glorious city,
with its streets of gold and pearly gates,
is situated on anew, glorious earth.
The tree of life will be there
(Revelation 22:2).
This city represents the final state of redeemed mankind, forever in fellowship with God: “God’s dwelling place is now among the people, and he will dwell with them.
They will be his people, and
God himself will
be with them and be their God. . . .
His servants
will serve him. They will see his face”
(Revelation 21:3; 22:3–4).
In the new heavens and new earth,
Scripture says,
there are seven things notable for their absence
—seven things that are “no more”:
• no more sea (Revelation 21:1)
• no more death (Revelation 21:4)
• no more mourning (Revelation 21:4)
• no more weeping (Revelation 21:4)
• no more pain (Revelation 21:4)
• no more curse (Revelation 22:3)
• no more night (Revelation 22:5)
The creation
of the
new heavens and new earth
brings the promise
that God “will wipe every tear from their eyes”
(Revelation 21:4).
This event comes after the tribulation,
after the
Lord’s second coming, after the millennial kingdom,
after the final rebellion,
after the
final judgment of Satan, and after the
great white throne judgment.
The brief description of the new heavens and new earth is the
last glimpse
into eternity that the Bible gives.
Faith and Belief
(James 2:14–26)
1O foolish Galatians! Who has bewitched you? Before your very eyes Jesus Christ was clearly portrayed as crucified. 2I would like to learn just one thing from you:
Did you receive
the
Spirit by works
of the law,
or by
hearing with faith?
Are you so foolish? After starting in the Spirit, are you now
finishing in the flesh?
Have you suffered so much for nothing,
if it really was for nothing?
Does God lavish His Spirit on you and work miracles
among you
because you practice the law,
or
because you hear and believe?
6So also, “Abraham believed God, and it was credited to him as righteousness.”a7Understand, then, that those who have faith are sons of Abraham. 8The Scripture foresaw that God would justify the Gentiles by faith, and foretold the gospel to Abraham: “All nations will be blessed through you.”
so those who have Faith
are
Blessed along with Abraham,
the Man of Faith
I do not set aside the
Grace of God;
for if
Righteousness comes through
the law,
then
CHRIST
died in vain.”
The MESSAGE
of
THE CROSS
For The MESSAGE
of
The CROSS
is foolishness to those who are perishing,
but to us
who are being saved it is the power of God.
For it is written:
“I will destroy the wisdom of the wise;
the intelligence
of the intelligent I will frustrate.”
20Where is the wise man? Where is the scribe?
Where is the philosopher of this age?
Has not God
made foolish the wisdom of the world?
21For since in the wisdom of God
the world
through its wisdom did not know Him,
God was pleased through
the foolishness of
what was preached to save those who believe.
22Jews demand signs and Greeks search for wisdom, 23but we preach Christ crucified, a stumbling block to Jews and foolishness to Gentiles,c 24but to those who are called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God and the wisdom of God.
25For the foolishness of God is wiser than man’s wisdom,d and the weakness of God is stronger than man’s strength.
Wisdom from God
26Brothers, consider the time of your calling: Not many of you were wise by human standards; not many were powerful; not many were of noble birth. 27But God chose the foolish things of the world to shame the wise; God chose the weak things of the world to shame the strong. 28He chose the lowly and despised things of the world, and the things that are not, to nullify the things that are, 29so that no one may boast in His presence.
30It is because of Him that you are in Christ Jesus, who has become for us wisdom from God: our righteousness, holiness, and redemption. 31Therefore, as it is written: “Let him who boasts boast in the Lord.”e
Christ Has Redeemed Us
10All who rely on works of the law are under a curse. For it is written: “Cursed is everyone who does not continue to do everything written in the Book of the Law.”c11Now it is clear that no one is justified before God by the law, because, “The righteous will live by faith.”d 12The law, however, is not based on faith; on the contrary, “The man who does these things will live by them.”
13Christ redeemed us from the curse of the law by becoming a curse for us. For it is written: “Cursed is everyone who is hung on a tree.”f 14He redeemed us in order that the blessing promised to Abrahamg would come to the Gentiles in Christ Jesus, so that by faith we might receive the promise of the Spirit.
The Purpose of the Law
(Romans 7:1–6)
15Brothers, let me put this in human terms. Even a human covenant, once it is ratified, cannot be canceled or amended. 16The promises were spoken to Abraham and to his seed. The Scripture does not say, “and to seeds,” meaning many, but “and to your seed,”h meaning One, who is Christ.
17What I mean is this: The law that came 430 years later does not revoke the covenant previously established by God, so as to nullify the promise. 18For if the inheritance depends on the law, then it no longer depends on a promise; but God freely granted it to Abraham through a promise.
19Why then was the law given? It was added because of transgressions, until the arrival of the seed to whom the promise referred. It was administered through angels by a mediator. 20A mediator is unnecessary, however, for only one party; but God is one.
21Is the law, then, opposed to the promises of God? Certainly not! For if a law had been given that could impart life, then righteousness would certainly have come from the law. 22But the Scripture pronounces all things confined by sin, so that by faith in Jesus Christ the promise might be given to those who believe.
23Before this faith came, we were held in custody under the law, locked up until faith should be revealed. 24So the law became our guardian to lead us to Christ, that we might be justified by faith. 25Now that faith has come, we are no longer under a guardian.
Sons through Faith in Christ
26You are all sons of God through faith in Christ Jesus. 27For all of you who were baptized into Christ have clothed yourselves with Christ. 28There is neither Jew nor Greek, slave nor free, male nor female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus.29And if you belong to Christ, then you are Abraham’s seed and heirs according to the promise.
Galatians 3:24-2
Wherefore the law was our
schoolmaster
to
Bring us unto Christ,
that we might be
justified by faith
But after that faith is come,
we are no
longer under a schoolmaster.
For ye are all the
children of God by
faith in Christ Jesus
For in it
the righteousness of God
is revealed
from faith for faith,
as it is written,
"The righteous shall live by faith."
“If you knew the gift of God
and who it is
that asks you for a drink,
you would have asked him
and he
would have given you living water”
(John 4:10)
Notice that He does
not say
that He is the living water,
but that He
would give living water to her
It would be His gift to her,
and
when she received it,
she
would never thirst again
Of course, Jesus was speaking of
a spiritual truth,
and
not physical truth which
is fleeting
But, as the conversation progressed, the woman began
to understand what
Jesus was saying to her about the
living water
The other passage of Scripture where
Jesus speaks of “living water”
is in John 7.
In that context, Jesus is in the temple for the Feast of Booths
(or Feast of Tabernacles).
One feature of that feast was the
pouring out of water
at the base of the altar for seven days.
On the eighth day,
the ritual was suspended--
no water was poured.
It was then that Jesus made a very public,
very dramatic offer:
On the last day,
the climax of the festival,
Jesus stood
and shouted to the crowds,
“Anyone who is thirsty may come to me!
Anyone who
believes in me may come and drink!
For the Scriptures declare,
‘Rivers of living water will flow from his heart.’”
(When he said “living water,” he was speaking of the Spirit, who would be given to everyone believing in him. But the Spirit had not yet been given, because Jesus had not yet entered into his glory.)
(John 7:37–39, NLT).
John’s note that Jesus
“was speaking of the Spirit”
(John 7:39)
is key
to understanding the meaning
of
the “living water.”
The living water is the Holy Spirit
Jesus extended the offer to everyone (“anyone” in John 7:37 and “whoever” in verse 38). The requirement for salvation was faith in Christ (verses 38 and 39). The result of salvation would be the gift of the Holy Spirit (verse 39), likened unto “rivers of living water” (verse 38).
Jesus repeats the promise
of the Spirit
to His disciples
in
John 16:7–15.
The Spirit is always involved in salvation
(John 3:5–8),
but the time of the permanent indwelling
of the Spirit
would have to wait until “later,”
when
Jesus had ascended back to glory
(John 7:39).
The picture of the Spirit as “living water” leads us to the following conclusions:
• The Spirit gives life. Just as water refreshes and revitalizes a thirsty person, so the Spirit gives life to the believer. Just as, in Moses’ time, the water in the desert kept the Israelites alive,
so the Spirit enlivens the followers of Christ
(and, according to 1 Corinthians 10:4, the rock providing the water was a picture of Christ).
• The Spirit is active. He is living water, as opposed to still, standing, or stagnant water. He is an artesian well, “a spring of water welling up to eternal life,” in John 4:14. He is a flowing river of water in John 7:38.
• Believers are channels for the Spirit’s work. At the well in Samaria, Jesus said the water would be “in them” to well up and overflow (John 4:14). During the Feast of Booths, Jesus said the water would “flow from within them” (John 7:38). The Spirit gives gifts, and the believer “shall receive spiritual blessings, or communications of divine grace, in so great an abundance, that he shall not only be refreshed and comforted himself, but shall be instrumental in refreshing and comforting others” (Benson, J., Benson Commentary on the Old and New Testaments, 1857).
This is exactly what we see in John 4, as
the Samaritan woman,
“leaving her water jar, . . . went back to the town”
and
told everyone about Jesus the Messiah
(verse 28).
Long ago, God told His people, Israel,
not to fear,
giving them this promise:
“For I will pour water on the thirsty land,
and streams on the dry ground;
I will pour out my Spirit on your offspring,
and my blessing on your descendants”
(Isaiah 44:3)
The Spirit,
whom the Father likens unto water,
was indeed poured out
on all of those who put their faith
in the Son.
It’s just one of the many
promises
of God that are “yes” and “amen”
in Christ
(2 Corinthians 1:20)
What makes Jesus’ yoke easy and His burden light is that in
Jesus’ own active obedience
(i.e., His perfect fulfillment of the Law of God),
He carried the burden that we were meant to carry
His perfect obedience
is applied (imputed) to us through faith, just as
His righteousness
was exchanged for our sin at the cross
(2 Corinthians 5:21).
Our obedience to Jesus then becomes
our “spiritual worship”
(Romans 12:1).
The life lived by faith
is a much lighter yoke and a much easier burden to carry
than the heavy and burdensome yoke of self-righteousness
under
which some continually strive to make themselves
acceptable to God through works.
Revelation 22:17 proclaims, “The Spirit and the Bride say, ‘Come.’ And let the one who hears say, ‘Come.’ And let the one who is thirsty come; let the one who desires take the water of life without price” (ESV). In this verse, both the Spirit and the Bride extend an invitation to “Come.” To understand their invitation, we will explore who the Spirit and the Bride are, their role in God’s redemptive plan, and the significance of their unified call.
The “Spirit” in Revelation 22:17 is
the Holy Spirit, the
third person of the Trinity.
The Holy Spirit has an important role
in the individual lives of believers and the communal life of the church.
In John 14:26 Jesus says,
“The Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will
send in my name,
he will teach you all things and
bring to your remembrance all that I have said to you”
(ESV).
Here, the Spirit is described as a teacher
who reminds
believers of the teachings of Christ.
The mention of the Holy Spirit in Revelation 22:17
refers to
His drawing people to Christ.
The Holy Spirit
works in the hearts of individuals,
convicting them of sin and leading them
to repentance and faith:
“When he comes, he will convict the world concerning sin and righteousness and judgment”
(John 16:8, ESV).
This work of the Holy Spirit
is essential for sinners to recognize their need
for salvation in Christ
and positively respond to the gospel call
The Holy Spirit also empowers believers for gospel service.
In Acts 1:8
Jesus tells His disciples,
“You will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you,
and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem
and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth”
(ESV).
The Holy Spirit’s empowerment enables
believers to
fulfill the Great Commission
in Matthew 28:19–20.
In Revelation 22:17, the
Spirit’s call to “come”
is an extension of
His empowering and guiding role.
All those who are spiritually thirsty are invited
to receive the
life-giving water of salvation
(cf. John 7:37)
The Bride
in Revelation 22:17 represents
The Church,
the
called-out saints of God
In the New Testament, The Church
is described
as the “Bride of Christ,”
symbolizing a personal,
intimate, and covenantal relationship
with Christ
Ephesians 5:25–27 illustrates the relationship between Christ and His Church, saying, “Husbands, love your wives, as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her, that he might sanctify her, having cleansed her by the washing of water with the word, so that he might present the church to himself in splendor, without spot of wrinkle of any such thing, that she might be holy and without blemish” (ESV)
As the Bride of Christ,
believers are called
to wholehearted devotion to Christ
Part of what it means to be devoted
to Christ
is proclaiming the gospel
and inviting
others to join the household of faith
The Bride’s role in Revelation 22:17,
then,
is to join
the Spirit in saying, “Come.”
The cooperative effort
between
the Holy Spirit and the Bride
signifies the importance
of our sharing
the gospel with unbelievers
The unified call of the Spirit and
the Bride
reflects the heart of God,
who desires that all people come to repentance
and
find eternal life in Christ
(2 Peter 3:9)
Their invitation to “come” is a call to everyone
who recognizes
their need for spiritual renewal
and is
willing to accept the gift of eternal life.
Both the Spirit and the Bride emphasize
the necessity and accessibility
of salvation through faith in Christ
In Galatians 5:1, Paul reminds the Galatian believers that “it is for freedom that Christ has set us free.” Believers’ sins are forgiven on the basis of Christ’s perfect sacrifice. Now believers can live in freedom from the law, and they can live in freedom from the consequences and power of sin. The NLT says,
“Christ has truly set us free”; believers are “truly free” to live for the things of God.
The occasion of Paul’s letter to the Galatians was that false teachers had come into the churches there.
These teachers promoted legalism and tried to require Christians to observe the
Old Testament rules, laws, and ceremonies, especially circumcision (Galatians 2:3–5).
Paul, in no uncertain terms, says that “for freedom Christ has set us free” and that Christians
should not be placed back under the law’s yoke of bondage (Galatians 5:1).
The law’s purpose was to reveal our sinfulness
(see Romans 3:20)
and to bring us to Christ
(Galatians 3:24)
Before Christ’s sacrifice, we lived under bondage to the law
(Galatians 4:3).
We were burdened by demands we could not keep
(Acts 15:10).
Christ’s death and resurrection broke our bondage
to the law.
Jesus’ perfect life and holy sacrifice on
the cross
was the complete fulfillment of the law,
and anyone who trusts in Him
for salvation is made right with God.
Only Christians have true freedom from the law
John 8:36 confirms,
“If the Son sets you free, you will be free indeed.”
The Key of David
is a term found
in Revelation and Isaiah
A key
indicates control or authority;
therefore,
having the Key of David
would give
one control of David’s domain,
i.e., Jerusalem,
the City of David,
and
the kingdom of Israel
The fact that, in Revelation 3:7,
Jesus holds this key shows that
He is the
fulfillment of the Davidic Covenant,
the ruler of the New Jerusalem,
and the
Lord of the kingdom of heaven
The Key of David is most directly referenced
in Revelation 3:7,
“To the angel of the
church in Philadelphia write:
these are the words of him
who is holy and true,
who holds the key of David.”
The Old Testament reference is Isaiah 22:22.
There, the prophet tells
the palace secretary Shebna that he will be replaced by Eliakim,
for God
“will place on his shoulder the key to the house of David”
(Isaiah 22:22).
The one who holds the keys has the authority
Thus, the “key of David” implies control
of David’s domain,
which was promised to the
Messiah
in both
the Old and New Testaments
(Isaiah 9:7; Luke 1:32).
The name Faithful and True
expresses the total trustworthiness, reliability,
and
constancy of Jesus Christ.
The title reveals His character and makes
known
His words and works.
In Revelation 19:11, John sees a vision of Jesus as the exalted King of kings leaving heaven to return to earth: “I saw heaven standing open and there before me was a white horse, whose rider is called Faithful and True. With justice he judges and wages war.”
This picture of Christ’s second coming at the end of the age shows
Jesus no longer as the peaceful, humble servant riding on a lowly donkey (John 12:12–15).
Now He is the victorious King,
charging forth like a
conquering war general, leading His troops into battle
(Revelation 19:14).
In this vivid portrayal, John identifies Jesus by four different titles, beginning with Faithful and True. It is the first and only time this name of Jesus appears in Scripture. The second title is unknown to us (Revelation 19:12); the third is the Word of God (verse 13); the fourth is King of kings and Lord of lords (verse 16).
The word for “Faithful” in the original language means “characterized by steadfast affection or allegiance,” and the word translated “True” means “truthful or characterized by expressing the truth.” The nature of Jesus Christ—His whole being—exudes faithfulness and truth. Earlier, in Revelation 3:14, Jesus called Himself the “faithful and true witness” in His letter to the church in Laodicea. Faithful and True is who Jesus Christ is.
In His first coming to earth, Jesus proved Himself to be faithful to the mission and will of God His Father: “I have brought you glory on earth by finishing the work you gave me to do” (John 17:4; see also John 5:30; Hebrews 3:6; Luke 4:43). Never once did the Lord give in to the temptation to sin (Hebrews 4:15–16), from the time Satan tempted Him in the wilderness (Matthew 4:1–11; Mark 1:12–13; Luke 4:1–13) until His death on the cross (Matthew 16:21–23; 26:36–44; Mark 8:31–33; 14:32–42; Luke 22:40–46).
From the day Isaiah foretold His coming, Christ’s faithfulness was known (Isaiah 11:5; 42:3). As a young man (Luke 2:49) and throughout His ministry, Jesus was a faithful and obedient servant to His Father God (John 4:34; 6:38; 8:29; 12:27; 14:31). Jesus is consistently the same “yesterday and today and forever” (Hebrews 13:8).
Others will wear out, change, or perish, but Jesus Christ remains the same for all eternity
(Hebrews 1:11–12).
Jesus, who said,
“I am the way and the truth and the life,”
is the very embodiment of truth
(John 14:6).
He came from His Father “full of grace and truth” (John 1:14).
And His promise of eternal life is true:
“Truly, truly, I say to you,
whoever hears my word and believes
him who sent me has eternal life.
He does not
come into judgment, but has passed
from death to life”
(John 5:24, ESV; see also John 6:47)
Because of the fidelity inherent in His character,
Jesus is faithful toward His followers
in every circumstance. “If we are faithless, he remains faithful, for he cannot disown himself,”
declares 2 Timothy 2:13
(see also Matthew 28:20; 2 Thessalonians 3:3; Hebrews 10:23).
Faithful and True
is a fitting title for
Jesus Christ our King,
and
He calls His followers
to emulate
His faithfulness and truth
(Revelation 14:12; Hebrews 10:23)
The entire book of Revelation
conveys
a message to the church
of Jesus Christ
to be
faithful and true,
just as He
is Faithful and True
In Revelation 19:11,
when John
sees the gates of heaven open,
the One
who has been Faithful and True
from ages past appears at the
end of time
to wage His final battle.
Jesus Christ
comes with justice to judge and wage war,
and
He will triumph over the enemies of God!
The outcome is sure because
He is Faithful and True.
He will do what He has promised to do.
He shall defeat the devil once and for all.
He will destroy the
power of death,
wiping away every sorrow, tear,
and pain from
the
hearts of His devoted followers
(Isaiah 25:8; 1 Corinthians 15:54; Hebrews 2:14; Revelation 20:14).
The prophecy of the Messiah
as the "root of Jesse" describes a
future leader who
will rule the earth in the Spirit of the Lord.
This leader will
restore righteousness, justice, and peace
to the earth.
Jesus is referred to as the
"root of David"
He is the source or origin of David,
and
all of creation.
The Root of Jesse
Then a shoot will spring up from the stump of Jesse,
and a
Branch from his roots will bear fruit
The Spirit of the LORD will rest on Him--
the Spirit
of wisdom and understanding,
the Spirit of counsel and strength,
the Spirit
of knowledge and fear of the LORD.
And He will delight in the fear
of the LORD.
He will not judge by what His eyes see,
and
He will not decide by what His ears hear,
But with righteousness He will judge the poor,
and with equity
He will decide for the lowly of the earth.
He will strike the earth with the
rod of His mouth
and slay
the wicked with the breath of His lips.
Righteousness
will be the belt around His hips,
and
faithfulness the sash around His waist
The wolf will live with the lamb,
and the
leopard will lie down with the goat;
the calf and
young lion and fatling will be together,
and a little child will lead them.
The cow will graze with the bear,
their young will lie down together,
and the lion
will eat straw like the ox.
The infant will play by the cobra’s den,
and the toddler
will reach into the viper’s nest.
They will neither harm nor destroy
on all My holy mountain,
for the earth
will be full of the knowledge
of the LORD
as the sea is full of water
On that day the Root of Jesse will stand as
a banner for the peoples.
The nations will seek Him,
and
His place of rest will be glorious
On that day the Lord will extend His hand
a second time
to recover the remnant of His people
from
Assyria, from Egypt, from Pathros, from Cush,
from Elam, from Shinar,
from Hamath, and from the islands
of the sea
He will raise a banner for the nations
and
gather the exiles of Israel;
He will collect the scattered of Judah
from the four corners of the earth.
Then the jealousy of Ephraim will depart,
and the
adversaries of Judah will be cut off.
Ephraim will no longer envy Judah,
nor will Judah harass Ephraim.
They will swoop down on the slopes of the Philistines
to the west;
together they will plunder the sons of the east.
They will lay their hands on Edom and Moab,
and the
Ammonites will be subject to them
The LORD will devote to destruction
the gulf of the Sea of Egypt;
with a scorching wind He will sweep
His hand
over the Euphrates.
He will split it into seven
streams
for men to cross with dry sandals
There will be a
highway for the remnant
of His people
who remain from Assyria,
as there was for Israel
when they
came up from the land of Egypt.
Romans 15:12
And once more, Isaiah says: “The Root of Jesse will appear, One who will arise to rule over the Gentiles; in Him the Gentiles will put their hope.”
Revelation 5:5
Then one of the elders said to me, “Do not weep! Behold, the Lion of the tribe of Judah, the Root of David, has triumphed to open the scroll and its seven seals.”
Revelation 22:16
“I, Jesus, have sent My angel to give you this testimony for the churches. I am the Root and the Offspring of David, the bright Morning Star.”
Matthew 12:21
In His name the nations will put their hope.”
John 12:32
And I, when I am lifted up from the earth, will draw everyone to Myself.
Acts 15:16-17
‘After this I will return and rebuild the fallen tent of David. Its ruins I will rebuild, and I will restore it, / so that the remnant of men may seek the Lord, and all the Gentiles who are called by My name, says the Lord who does these things
Romans 1:16
I am not ashamed of the gospel, because it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes, first to the Jew, then to the Greek.
Romans 10:12
For there is no difference between Jew and Greek: The same Lord is Lord of all, and gives richly to all who call on Him,
Galatians 3:14
He redeemed us in order that the blessing promised to Abraham would come to the Gentiles in Christ Jesus, so that by faith we might receive the promise of the Spirit.
Genesis 49:10
The scepter will not depart from Judah, nor the staff from between his feet, until Shiloh comes and the allegiance of the nations is his.
Psalm 72:17
May his name endure forever; may his name continue as long as the sun shines. In him may all nations be blessed; may they call him blessed.
Isaiah 2:2-4
In the last days the mountain of the house of the LORD will be established as the chief of the mountains; it will be raised above the hills, and all nations will stream to it. / And many peoples will come and say: “Come, let us go up to the mountain of the LORD, to the house of the God of Jacob. He will teach us His ways so that we may walk in His paths.” For the law will go forth from Zion, and the word of the LORD from Jerusalem. / Then He will judge between the nations and arbitrate for many peoples. They will beat their swords into plowshares and their spears into pruning hooks. Nation will no longer take up the sword against nation, nor train anymore for war.
Isaiah 42:1
“Here is My Servant, whom I uphold, My Chosen One, in whom My soul delights. I will put My Spirit on Him, and He will bring justice to the nations.
Isaiah 49:6
He says: “It is not enough for You to be My Servant, to raise up the tribes of Jacob, and to restore the protected ones of Israel. I will also make You a light for the nations, to bring My salvation to the ends of the earth.”
The tribulation saints are, quite simply, saints living during the tribulation. We believe that the church will be raptured before the tribulation, but the Bible indicates that a great number of people during the tribulation will place their faith in Jesus Christ. In his vision of heaven, John sees a vast number of these tribulation saints who have been martyred by the Antichrist: “There before me was a great multitude that no one could count, from every nation, tribe, people and language, standing before the throne and in front of the Lamb. They were wearing white robes and were holding palm branches in their hands” (Revelation 7:9). When John asks who they are, he is told, “These are they who have come out of the great tribulation; they have washed their robes and made them white in the blood of the Lamb” (verse 14).
The tribulation will be a time of great trouble for the wicked, because of God’s judgments. It will also be a time of great persecution for the believers—or saints—because of the Antichrist’s persecution (Revelation 13:7). Daniel saw the Antichrist “waging war against the saints and defeating them” (Daniel 7:21). Of course, the saints’ eternal salvation is secure: Daniel also saw that “the Ancient of Days came and pronounced judgment in favor of the saints of the Most High, and the time came when they possessed the kingdom” (Daniel 7:22; cf. Revelation 14:12–13).
"So Saul defeated the Amalekites, from Havilah as you go to Shur, which is east of Egypt. He captured Agag the king of the Amalekites alive, and utterly destroyed all the people with the edge of the sword. But Saul and the people spared Agag and the best of the sheep, the oxen, the fatlings, the lambs, and all that was good, and were not willing to destroy them utterly; but everything despised and worthless, that they utterly destroyed"
(1 Sam 15:7-9).
Reading Scripture is a lot like figuring out
the connections
between the threads of a beautiful tapestry.
By pulling hard on one thread, we look to see what other threads wiggle in the tapestry. Pull hard on 1 Samuel 15:7-9, the story of Saul's sin that led to his dethronement, and Balaam's Messianic prophecy in Numbers 24:7-9 will assuredly wiggle.
"Water will flow from his buckets, and his seed will be by many waters, and his king shall be higher than Agag, and his kingdom shall be exalted. God brings him out of Egypt, He is for him like the horns of the wild ox. He will devour the nations who are his adversaries, and will crush their bones in pieces, and shatter them with his arrows. He couches, he lies down as a lion, and as a lion, who dares rouse him? Blessed is everyone who blesses you, and cursed is everyone who curses you."
And by pulling on the thread of Balaam's prophecy, two other major threads wiggle. (1) Jacob's prophecy about the Messiah King couching like a lion: "Judah is a lion’s whelp; from the prey, my son, you have gone up. He couches, he lies down as a lion, and as a lion, who dares rouse him up?
The scepter shall not depart from Judah, nor the ruler’s staff from between his feet, until Shiloh comes, and to him shall be the obedience of the peoples" (Gen 49:9-10); (2) God's promise to bless all the families of the earth through the seed of Abraham: "And I will bless those who bless you, and the one who curses you I will curse. And in you all the families of the earth will be blessed" (Gen 12:3).
Given the Messianic import of this battle with Amalek (see Exod 17:14), it is small wonder God had to remove Saul from the throne. And when we pull really hard on all these literary threads in the Hebrew Bible,
assuredly our eyes will be drawn to the threads
in the book of Revelation
which promise
the coming of a mighty warrior-king upon
a horse who
will complete the job that Saul and David
left unfinished.
When he comes, he will crush the serpent and
his seed under his feet!
"And I saw heaven opened,
and behold, a white horse, and He
who sat on it is
called Faithful and True,
and in
righteousness He judges and wages war.
His eyes are a flame of fire,
and on His head are many diadems; and
He has a name
written on Him which no one
knows except Himself.
He is clothed with a robe dipped in blood, and
His name is called
The Word of God.
And the armies which are in heaven,
clothed in
fine linen, white and clean,
were following Him on white horses.
From His mouth comes a sharp sword, so that with it He may
strike down the nations,
and He will rule them with a rod of iron; and
He treads the wine press of the fierce wrath of God,
the Almighty.
And on His robe and on His thigh He
has a name written,
'KING OF KINGS, AND LORD OF LORDS'"
(Rev 19:11-16).
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Jesus is described as the author and perfecter, or finisher, of our faith in Hebrews 12:2. An author is an originator or creator, as of a theory or plan. The Greek word translated “author” in Hebrews 12:2 can also mean “captain,” “chief leader” or “prince.” Acts 3:15uses the same word: “And killed the Prince of life, whom God hath raised from the dead; whereof we are witnesses” (KJV), while the NIV and ESV use the word “author” instead of “prince.” From this we can deduce that Christ is the originator of our faith in that He begins it, as well as the captain and prince or our faith. This indicates that Jesus controls our faith, steers it as a captain steers a ship, and presides over it and cares for it as a monarch presides over and cares for his people. The Greek word translated “perfecter” in Hebrews 12:2 appears only this one time in the New Testament. It means literally “completer” or “finisher” and speaks of bringing something to its conclusion. Putting the two words together, we see that Jesus, as God, both creates and sustains our faith We know that saving faith is a gift from God, not something we come up with on our own (Ephesians 2:8-9), and that gift comes from Christ, its creator. He is also the sustainer of our faith, meaning that TRUE saving FAITH cannot be lost, taken away or given away This is a source of great comfort to believers, especially in times of doubt and spiritual struggles. Christ has created our faith and He will watch over it, care for it, and sustain it. It is important for us to understand that God in Christ is not only the creator and sustainer of our saving faith, but He is also the sustainer of our daily walk and the finisher of our spiritual journey. For if God in Christ is not the author of our new life, and if Christ is not the finisher and perfecter of our faith through the Holy Spirit’s indwelling power, then we are neither born again nor are we a true follower of Christ. “And I am sure of this, that he who began a good work in you will bring it to completion at the day of Jesus Christ.” “In him you also, when you heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation, and believed in him, were sealed with the promised Holy Spirit, who is the guarantee of our inheritance until we acquire possession of it, to the praise of his glory” (Philippians 1:6; Ephesians 1:13-14) Second Corinthians 5:6–7 says, "So we are always of good courage. We know that while we are at home in the body we are away from the Lord, for we walk by faith, not by sight" (ESV, emphasis added). Other versions use the word live, rather than walk. The "walk" here is a metaphorical reference to the way a person conducts his or her life. We still use the phrase "all walks of life" to mean a variety of lifestyles or cultures. The apostle Paul reminds his readers that followers of Christ must not build their lives around things that have no eternal significance. Rather than pursuing the same things the world pursues, a Christian should focus on the unseen realities such as Jesus and heaven. Paul goes on to say, "So whether we are at home or away, we make it our aim to please him. For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, so that each one may receive what is due for what he has done in the body, whether good or evil" (2 Corinthians 5:9–10). Jesus instructed us to store up treasure in heaven (Matthew 6:19–20; Luke 12:33). He promised rewards to everyone who does His will (Matthew 16:27; 1 Peter 1:17; Revelation 22:12) and punishment for those who reject Him (Matthew 25:24–46; John 3:16–18). Walking by faith means living life in light of eternal consequences. To walk by faith is to fear God more than man; to obey the Bible even when it conflicts with man’s commands; to choose righteousness over sin, no matter what the cost; to trust God in every circumstance; and to believe God rewards those who seek Him, regardless of who says otherwise (Hebrews 11:6). Rather than loving the things of this world (1 John 2:15–16), Christians should spend their lives glorifying God in everything they do (1 Corinthians 10:31). It requires faith to live this way because we cannot see, hear, or touch anything spiritual. When we base our lives on the truth of God’s Word, rather than on the popular philosophy of our day, we are going against our natural inclinations. Our natural instinct may be to hoard money, but walking by faith says we should give to those in need (Luke 11:41; Ephesians 4:28). Society may say that sexual immorality is acceptable, but those who walk by faith base their standards on God’s unchanging Word, which says any sex outside of marriage is sin (1 Corinthians 6:18; Ephesians 5:3; Galatians 5:19). To walk by faith requires that we tune our hearts to the voice of the Holy Spirit and the truth of His Word (John 10:27; 16:13). We choose to live according to what God reveals to us, rather than trust our own understanding (Proverbs 3:5–6). The Bible contains numerous verses on love, including 1 Peter 4:8, “Above all, love each other deeply, because love covers over a multitude of sins.” The instruction to prioritize love first appears in 1 Peter 1:22 and is emphasized again in the fourth chapter. Peter’s use of the phrase above all underscores the importance of this command. Furthermore, the Greek word translated as “deeply” is also used to describe the effort exerted by an athlete striving to win a race. We are called to make every effort to exhibit this quality of love for each other. Putting Peter’s admonition to “love each other deeply” alongside other passages of Scripture (such as 1 Corinthians 13:4–7; Matthew 22:37–39; 1 John 4:7–8; Romans 13:10), we clearly see that love should be the believer’s highest concern. Many understand the term repentance to mean “a turning from sin.” Regretting sin and turning from it are related to repentance, but are not the precise meaning of the word. In the Bible, the word repent means “to change one’s mind.” The Bible also tells us that true repentance will result in a change of actions (Luke 3:8–14; Acts 3:19). In summarizing his ministry, Paul declares, “I preached that they should repent and turn to God and demonstrate their repentance by their deeds” (Acts 26:20). The short biblical definition of repentance is “a change of mind that results in a change of action.” What, then, is the connection between repentance and salvation? The book of Acts especially focuses on repentance in regard to salvation (Acts 2:38; 3:19; 11:18; 17:30; 20:21; 26:20). To repent, concerning salvation, is to change your mind regarding sin and Jesus Christ. In Peter’s sermon on the day of Pentecost (Acts chapter 2), he concludes with a call for the people to repent (Acts 2:38) Repent from what? Peter calls the people who rejected Jesus (Acts 2:36) to change their minds about that sin and to change their minds about Christ Himself, recognizing that He is indeed “Lord and Christ” (Acts 2:36). Peter calls the people to change their minds, to abhor their past rejection of Christ, and to embrace faith in Him as their Messiah and Savior. Repentance involves recognizing that you have thought wrongly in the past and determining to think rightly in the future. The repentant person has “second thoughts” about the mindset he formerly embraced. There is a change of disposition and anew way of thinking about God, about sin, about holiness, and about doing God’s will. True repentance is prompted by “godly sorrow,” and it “leads to salvation” (2 Corinthians 7:10) Repentance and faith can be understood as two sides of the same coin. It is impossible to place your faith in Jesus Christ as the Savior without first changing your mind about your sin and about who Jesus is and what He has done. Whether it is repentance from willful rejection or repentance from ignorance or disinterest, it is a change of mind. Biblical repentance, in relation to salvation, is changing your mind from rejection of Christ to faith in Christ. Repentance is not a work we do to earn salvation. No one can repent and come to God unless God pulls that person to Himself (John 6:44). Repentance is something God gives—it is only possible because of His grace (Acts 5:31; 11:18). No one can repent unless God grants repentance. All of salvation, including repentance and faith, is a result of God drawing us, opening our eyes, and changing our hearts. God’s longsuffering leads us to repentance (2 Peter 3:9), as does His kindness (Romans 2:4). To see what repentance looks like in real life, turn to the story of Zacchaeus. Here was a man who cheated and stole and lived lavishly on his ill-gotten gains-- until he met Jesus. At that point he had a radical change of mind: “Look, Lord!” said Zacchaeus. “Here and now I give half of my possessions to the poor, and if I have cheated anybody out of anything, I will pay back four times the amount” (Luke 19:8) Jesus happily proclaimed that salvation had come to Zacchaeus’s house, and that even the tax collector was now “a son of Abraham” (verse 9) —a reference to Zacchaeus’s faith. The cheat became a philanthropist; the thief made restitution. That’s repentance, coupled with faith in Christ. Repentance, properly defined, is necessary for salvation. Biblical repentance is changing your mind about your sin—no longer is sin something to toy with; it is something to be forsaken as you “flee from the coming wrath” (Matthew 3:7). It is also changing your mind about Jesus Christ—no longer is He to be mocked, discounted, or ignored; He is the Savior to be clung to; He is the Lord to be worshiped and adored. In Philippians 4:13 the apostle Paul writes, “I can do all this through him who gives me strength.” The “him” of this verse is the Lord Jesus, and Jesus is, of course, all-powerful (Colossians 2:10). But does this verse mean that we can do anything and everything we set our minds to? The context of this verse focuses on the God-given power to endure any circumstance. Verse 12 notes, “I know what it is to be in need, and I know what it is to have plenty. I have learned the secret of being content in any and every situation, whether well fed or hungry, whether living in plenty or in want.” Paul had faced times of abundance, yet he had also faced many trials for his faith. In 2 Corinthians 11:24–27, Paul shares some of his sufferings up to that point in his faith: “Five times I received from the Jews the forty lashes minus one. Three times I was beaten with rods, once I was pelted with stones, three times I was shipwrecked, I spent a night and a day in the open sea, I have been constantly on the move. I have been in danger from rivers, in danger from bandits, in danger from my fellow Jews, in danger from Gentiles; in danger in the city, in danger in the country, in danger at sea; and in danger from false believers. I have labored and toiled and have often gone without sleep; I have known hunger and thirst and have often gone without food; I have been cold and naked.” Despite these and other problems, Paul believed and taught he could persevere because he could do “all things through him who gives me strength.” Also, the focus in Philippians 4 is what the believer can do through the strength that Christ gives. This is not a promise that Christians will have superpowers or that they will be invincible or immune to life’s challenges. Instead, the promise of Philippians 4:13 is that we will have strength from the Lord to faithfully endure the difficulties that arise in life. This passage is not about having financial abundance. Some teach a prosperity gospel that says God will bless us financially if we are faithful; in contrast, Paul taught that the believer will endure suffering but can be content in any circumstance, given Christ’s strength. Just as Christ faithfully endured on the cross, His followers can faithfully endure the problems they face. In fact, Philippians 4:11 states, “I have learned to be content whatever the circumstances.” Paul focused on contentment, not earthly abundance. People tend to judge the character and worth of others by looking at outward appearances. If a person is tall, good-looking, well-built, and tastefully dressed, then he or she possesses physical qualities that humans generally admire and respect. Often these are the physical qualities we seek in a leader. But God has the unique ability to see inside a person. God knows our true character because he “looks at the heart.” In 1 Samuel 16, the time had come for Samuel to go to the house of Jesse in Bethlehem to anoint Israel’s next king. As Samuel looked at Jesse’s oldest son, Eliab, Samuel was impressed with what he saw. “Surely, this is the man the Lord wants me to anoint,” said the prophet (verse 6). But God told Samuel, “Don’t look at his appearance or how tall he is, because I have rejected him. God does not see as humans see. Humans look at outward appearances, but the LORD looks into the heart” (1 Samuel 16:7, GWT). Saul, Israel’s first king, was tall and handsome. Samuel may have been looking for someone like Saul, and Eliab’s appearance was quite striking. But God had a different man in mind to anoint as Israel’s king. The Lord had earlier revealed to Samuel that He sought a man after God’s own heart (1 Samuel 13:14). Samuel looked at all seven of Jesse’s older sons, but the Lord rejected them all as His choice for king. God was looking for one who had a faithful heart. David, Jesse’s youngest son, whom they had not even bothered to call, was out tending the sheep. After Samuel passed over the other sons, they sent for David, and the Lord said, “This is the one” (1 Samuel 16:12). David was God’s choice—imperfect but faithful, a man after God’s heart Although the Bible says he was handsome (verse 12), David was not a striking figure. But David had developed a heart after God. In his time alone in the fields, shepherding the flocks, David had come to know God as his Shepherd (see Psalm 23). Appearances can be deceiving. The outward appearance doesn’t reveal what people are really like. Physical looks don’t show us a person’s value or character or integrity or faithfulness to God. Outward qualities are, by definition, superficial. Moral and spiritual considerations are far more important to God. God looks at the heart. The heart in Scripture is a person’s inner moral and spiritual life. Proverbs 4:23 explains that everything we do flows from our hearts. The heart is the core, the inner essence of who we are: “A good man brings good things out of the good stored up in his heart, and an evil man brings evil things out of the evil stored up in his heart. For the mouth speaks what the heart is full of” (Luke 6:45). To everyone who saw him, Judas Iscariot looked like a faithful disciple, but his appearance was deceiving. The other disciples had no idea of what was going on inside Judas. Jesus was the only one who knew Judas’s heart: “Have I not chosen you, the Twelve? Yet one of you is a devil!” (John 6:70). God’s perspective is higher, deeper, and wiser than ours. Second Chronicles 16:9 says the eyes of God are continually roaming throughout the earth to strengthen people whose hearts are fully committed to Him. God can peer into our hearts, examine our motivations, and know everything there is to know about us (Psalm 139:1). God knows if a person will be faithful. God sees what people can’t see. King David was far from perfect. He committed adultery and murder (2 Samuel 11). But God saw in David a man of deep, abiding faith who was wholly committed to the Lord. God saw a man who would depend on the Lord for strength and guidance (1 Samuel 17:45, 47; 23:2). God saw a man who would recognize his sin and failure and who would repent and ask the Lord for forgiveness (2 Samuel 12). God saw in David a man who loved his Lord; a man who worshiped his Lord with all his being (2 Samuel 6:14); a man who had experienced God’s cleansing and forgiveness (Psalm 51) and had come to understand the depths of God’s love for him (Psalm 13:5–6; 106:1). God saw a man with a sincere and personal relationship with his Creator. When God looked at the heart of David, He saw a man after His own heart (Acts 13:22). Like Samuel, we can’t see what the Lord sees, and we must rely on Him for wisdom. And we can trust that, when God looks at our hearts, He sees our faithfulness, our true character, and our value as individuals. Some may say that God is not loving because He placed the two trees in the garden. He allowed Adam and Eve to have access to the tree of the knowledge of good and evil—knowing that, if the fruit were eaten, sin and death would enter the world. There are a couple points that should be considered. First, God did not force or trick Adam and Eve into eating of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. In fact, He specifically commanded Adam to not eat of the tree, making it clear that it would result in certain death. Adam chose to break God’s commandment and as a result faced the consequences of his sin, along with the rest of humanity(Romans 5:12–14). Second, God’s love is benevolent (agape love) and therefore does not force human beings into subjection as a tyrant would. Because we are created in His image (Genesis 1:27), set apart from the rest of creation, He gives us free will. In order for Adam and Eve to truly be free, they had to have a choice—therefore, two trees were necessary. Unfortunately, Adam and Eve chose, of their own free will, to disobey God and eat the forbidden fruit. In conclusion, God gave Adam and Eve a choice in the Garden of Eden to obey or disobey God’s command. He gave them this choice because He designed them to have free will reflecting His own and because He valued their freedom and loved them enough to not force them into subjection. They were free moral agents, not programmed robots. Still today, there are choices set before us: “Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe stands condemned already because they have not believed in the name of God’s one and only Son” (John 3:18) We must choose wisely In His great love, God provided One who would redeem fallen mankind. Through one man, Adam, sin entered the world, but through another Man, Jesus Christ, redemption through the forgiveness of sin is available to all (Romans 5:17) Those who avail themselves of the sacrifice of Christ on the cross will be resurrected to see the tree of life again, for it stands in the middle of the Holy City, the New Jerusalem Philippians 4:13 is part of a larger passage that addresses Christ’s ability to meet our needs. Christ can give contentment during times of plenty and of poverty. He can help us do all things through His strength. In Paul’s case, it was the strength to serve as a missionary despite facing intense suffering. In our lives, this same strength is available. Whether we serve in another country or help someone in our own community, Christ’s power can enable us to stand firm on His promises and endure the most difficult of life’s challenges. Paul concludes this passage with these words: “My God will meet all your needs according to the riches of his glory in Christ Jesus. To our God and Father be glory for ever and ever. Amen” (verses 19–20). Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia Butt Cover; original Greek The use of an actual fig leaf for the purpose originates in Western painting and sculpture, where leaves would be used by the artist themselves or by later censors in order to hide the genitalia of a subject. Use of the fig plant in particular came about as a Biblical reference to the Book of Genesis, in which Adam and Eve used fig leaves to cover their nudity after eating the forbidden fruit from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil Grace is a constant theme in the Bible, and it culminates in the New Testament with the Coming of Jesus (John 1:17) The word translated "grace" in the New Testament comes from the Greek word charis, which means “favor, blessing, or kindness.” We can all extend grace to others; but when the word grace is used in connection with God, it takes on a more powerful meaning. Grace is God choosing to bless us rather than curse us as our sin deserves. It is His benevolence to the undeserving. Ephesians 2:8 says, “For by grace are you saved, through faith, and that not of yourselves.” The only way any of us can enter into a relationship with God is because of His grace toward us Grace began in the Garden of Eden when God killed an animal to cover the sin of Adam and Eve (Genesis 3:21). He could have killed the first humans right then for their disobedience. But rather than destroy them, He chose to make a way for them to be right with Him. That pattern of grace continued throughout the Old Testament when God instituted blood sacrifices as a means to atone for sinful men. It was not the physical blood of those sacrifices, per se, that cleansed sinners; it was the grace of God that forgave those who trusted in Him (Hebrews 10:4; Genesis 15:6). Sinful men showed their faith by offering the sacrifices that God required. The apostle Paul began many of his letters with the phrase, "Grace and peace to you from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ" (Romans 1:7; Ephesians 1:1; 1 Corinthians 1:3). God is the instigator of grace, and it is from Him that all other grace flows. God shows both mercy and grace, but they are not the same. Mercy withholds a punishment we deserve; grace gives a blessing we don’t deserve. In mercy, God chose to cancel our sin debt by sacrificing His perfect Son in our place (Titus 3:5; 2 Corinthians 5:21). But He goes even further than mercy and extends grace to His enemies (Romans 5:10). He offers us forgiveness (Hebrews 8:12; Ephesians 1:7), reconciliation (Colossians 1:19-20), abundant life (John 10:10), eternal treasure (Luke 12:33), His Holy Spirit (Luke 11:13), and a place in heaven with Him some day (John 3:16-18) when we accept His offer and place our faith in His sacrifice. Grace is God giving the greatest treasure to the least deserving—which is every one of us. In Philippians 4:7 we have a wonderful promise: “The peace of God, which passes all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.” It is important to note the context of this promise, because that’s where we find the condition: “Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God” (verse 6). God’s peace is promised to guard those who pray—with thanksgiving—about everything. This peace will transcend our ability to understand it. There are other gifts of God that are not fully comprehensible to us. The gift of salvation is “indescribable” (2 Corinthians 9:15). The complexity and wisdom of God’s plan is inscrutable (Isaiah 55:8–9). According to Ephesians 3:19, the love of Christ is something else so great we will never fully understand it. Likewise, human reasoning is incapable of fully comprehending the peace of God. The believer who places his or her full confidence in a loving God and is thankful in every circumstance will possess a supernatural peace. An inner calm will dominate the heart. The faithful believer will know peace—his heart and mind are “guarded” by it—despite the tempest raging without. No one, especially those outside of Christ, will be able to fathom that peace. To most, it will remain a mystery how someone can be so serene in the midst of turmoil. The peace that comes from being in a right relationship with God is not the peace of this world. The world’s peace depends on having favorable circumstances: if things are going well, then we feel peaceful; when things go awry, the peace quickly dissipates. Jesus made the distinction between His peace and the world’s vacillating peace: “Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you. I do not give to you as the world gives” (John 14:27). God’s supernatural peace surpasses natural understanding.” Forgiveness in the Bible is a “release” or a “dismissal” of something. The forgiveness we have in Christ involves the release of sinners from God’s just penalty and the complete dismissal of all charges against us (see Romans 8:1). Colossians 1:14 says that in God’s beloved Son “we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins.” The Amplified Bible translates the last phrase like this: “the forgiveness of our sins [and the cancellation of sins’ penalty].” God’s gracious forgiveness of our sin is to be the measure of our gracious forgiveness of others (Ephesians 4:32). To some people, forgiveness may seem like weakness or letting an undeserving person win, but it has no connection to weakness or even to emotions. Instead, forgiveness is an act of the will. Forgiveness is not granted because a person deserves to be forgiven. No one deserves to be forgiven. Forgiveness is a deliberate act of love, mercy, and grace. Forgiveness is a decision to not hold something against another person, despite what he or she has done to you. Jesus had just finished explaining to the disciples the meaning of the Parable of the Wheat and the Tares, and these two short parables are a continuance of His discussion of the “kingdom of heaven.” He expressed truths about the kingdom in three pairs of parables in Matthew 13: the seed and the sower (vv. 3-23) and the weeds in the field (vv. 24-30); the mustard seed (vv. 31-32) and the leaven (v. 33); and the hidden treasure (v. 44) and the pearl of great price (vv. 45-46). The similarities of these two short parables make it clear they teach the same lesson-- the kingdom of heaven is of inestimable value. Both parables involve a man who sold all he had to possess the kingdom. The treasure and the pearl represent Jesus Christ and the salvation He offers. And while we cannot pay for salvation by selling all our worldly goods, once we have found the prize, we are willing to give up everything to possess it. But what is attained in exchange is so much more valuable that it is comparable to trading an ounce of trash for a ton of diamonds (Philippians 3:7-9). In both parables, the treasures are hidden, indicating that spiritual truth is missed by many and cannot be found by intelligence or power or worldly wisdom. Matthew 13:11-17 and 1 Corinthians 2:7-8, 14 make it clear that the mysteries of the kingdom are hidden from some who are unable to hear, see, and comprehend these truths. The disobedient reap the natural consequences of their unbelief—spiritual blindness. Those whose eyes are opened by the Spirit do discern spiritual truth, and they, like the men in the parable, understand its great value. Notice that the merchant stopped seeking pearls when he found the pearl of great price. Eternal life, the incorruptible inheritance, and the love of God through Christ constitute the pearl which, once found, makes further searching unnecessary. Christ fulfills our greatest needs, satisfies our longings, makes us whole and clean before God, calms and quiets our hearts, and gives us hope for the future. The “great price,” of course, is that which was paid by Christ for our redemption. He emptied Himself of His glory, came to earth in the form of a lowly man and shed His precious blood on the cross to pay the penalty for our sins. In Matthew 6:24, Jesus said, “No one can serve two masters. Either you will hate the one and love the other, or you will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and money.” He spoke these words as part of His Sermon on the Mount (Matthew 5—7), in which He had said it was foolish to store up treasures on earth where “moths and vermin destroy and where thieves break in and steal” (Matthew 6:19–20); rather, He urged us to store up treasure in heaven where it will last forever. The obstacle that prevents us from wise investment is the heart. Wherever our treasure is, there will our hearts be (Matthew 6:21). We follow what has captivated our hearts, and Jesus made it clear that we cannot serve two masters. Jesus told us to “store up for yourselves treasures in heaven” (Matthew 6:20). He linked this command to the desire of our hearts: “Where your treasure is, there your heart will be also” (Matthew 6:21; see also verses 10–20). The Bible mentions rewards that await the believer who serves the Lord faithfully in this world (Matthew 10:41). A “great” reward is promised to those who are persecuted for Jesus’ sake. Various crowns are mentioned (in 2 Timothy 4:8, e.g.). Jesus says that He will bring rewards with Him when He returns (Revelation 22:12). Paul encourages servants that God has an eternal reward for those who are motivated to serve Christ: “Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for human masters, 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) The Lord will be faithful to reward us for the service we give Him (Hebrews 6:10). Our ministries may differ, but the Lord we serve is the same. “The one who plants and the one who waters have one purpose, and they will each be rewarded according to their own labor” (1 Corinthians 3:8). The rich young man loved his money more than God, a fact that Jesus incisively pointed out (Matthew 19:16–30). The issue wasn’t that the young man was rich but that he “treasured” his riches and did not “treasure” what he could have in Christ. Jesus told the man to sell his possessions and give to the poor, “and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come, follow me” (verse 21). The young man left Jesus sad, because he was very rich. He chose this world’s treasure and so did not lay up treasure in heaven. He was unwilling to make Jesus his treasure. The young man was religious, but Jesus exposed his heart of greed. We are warned not to lose our full reward by following after false teachers (2 John 1:8). This is why it is so important to be in God’s Word daily (2 Timothy 2:15). That way we can recognize false teaching when we hear it. False teachers have insinuated themselves into the Christian church since its inception. They are dangerously deceptive operators with smooth speech and seductive ways. New believers are particularly susceptible to their methods. Ever the passionately protective shepherd, the apostle Peter dedicates an entire chapter to exposing these religious pretenders. In 2 Peter 2:17, he compares them to “wells without water, clouds carried by a tempest, for whom is reserved the blackness of darkness forever” (NKJV). Peter wants his flock to understand how false teachers operate, learn to spot them, and avoid falling victim to their heresies. His metaphors likening them to “wells without water” and “clouds carried by a tempest” are similar to a portion of Jude’s description of false teachers: “They are clouds without water, carried about by the winds; late autumn trees without fruit, twice dead, pulled up by the roots; raging waves of the sea, foaming up their own shame; wandering stars for whom is reserved the blackness of darkness forever” (Jude 1:12–13, NKJV). The word Peter uses for “well” actually means “a flowing spring” in the original Greek. When Jesus ministers to the Samaritan woman (John 4:1–26), He uses the same term to describe the soul-satisfying, living water He can supply. A thirsty first-century traveler would immediately understand the disappointment of coming upon a well that promises water but does not deliver. Instead of fresh, thirst-quenching, life-giving fountains, wells without water are hollow and useless, producing nothing but dust, mud, and unquenchable thirst. Like a dried-up spring, false teachers promise much but have zero to offer. They do not teach the gospel truth that Jesus calls “a spring of water welling up to eternal life” (John 4:14). They preach freedom but supply bondage, they guarantee pleasure but furnish anguish, and they promise life but deliver death. False teachers deny the gospel or distort it through human error (2 Peter 2:3; Colossians 2:8; 1 Timothy 6:20–21) or demonic inspiration (1 Timothy 4:1–2; 2 Corinthians 11:3–4; 1 John 4:1–3). Like Peter, the apostle Paul devotes much energy to exposing false teachers. Skipping the metaphor of “wells without water,” Paul states plainly, “Let no one deceive you with empty words, for because of such things God’s wrath comes on those who are disobedient” (Ephesians 5:6). Paul teaches Timothy that false teachers depart from the truth and turn to “meaningless talk. They want to be teachers of the law, but they do not know what they are talking about or what they so confidently affirm” (1 Timothy 1:6–7; see also Titus 1:10–11). He advises the Colossians, “See to it that no one takes you captive through hollow and deceptive philosophy, which depends on human tradition and the elemental spiritual forces of this world rather than on Christ” (Colossians 2:8). Peter explains that false teachers “secretly introduce destructive heresies, even denying the sovereign Lord who bought them—bringing swift destruction on themselves” (2 Peter 2:1). False teachers “come disguised as harmless sheep but are really vicious wolves,” warns Jesus (Matthew 7:15, NLT). Paul affirms, “I know that false teachers, like vicious wolves, will come in among you after I leave, not sparing the flock. Even some men from your own group will rise up and distort the truth in order to draw a following” (Acts 20:29–30, NLT). Comparing false teachers to wells without water is Peter’s figurative way of saying the message of false teachers is valueless, meaningless, and useless. Like the rebellious people of Jeremiah’s day, false teachers in the early church had forsaken God, “the spring of living water, and have dug their own cisterns, broken cisterns that cannot hold water” (Jeremiah 2:13). Because they reject “the teaching of the wise,” which is “a fountain of life,” they fall into “the snares of death” (Proverbs 13:14; see also Proverbs 14:27). False teachers hold out a promise of satisfaction for thirsty souls but ultimately leave people parched and in need. Theirs is an empty hope. Their teachings are hollow and void of truth. Like wells without water, they appear to offer life, but they deliver only bondage, destruction, and death. Romans has the theme of faith (Romans 1:16–17). Paul addresses the process by which faith is produced in the heart in Romans 10:17: “Faith comes from hearing the message, and the message is heard through the word about Christ.” The first eight chapters of Romans contends with the ideas of positional salvation through faith (Romans 1:18—5:21), the process of growing in holiness through faith (Romans 6:1—8:17), and the future glorification Christians will receive because of faith (Romans 8:18–39). Chapters 9—11 of Romans works from the implied question, “Has God then failed to fulfill His promises to Israel?” It is within this context that Paul gives the reason for the Israelites’ lack of salvation; namely, they lack faith (Romans 9:32; 10:4). The Israelites are saved through faith in Christ, just like the Gentiles. Eternal salvation does not distinguish between Gentile or Jew but is received through belief in the person and work of Jesus Christ (Romans 10:12–13; 1 Corinthians 15:1–8; Galatians 3:23–29). In the lead-up to the statement that faith comes by hearing, Romans 10:14–16 explains the requirements for a series of actions to take place. In order for one to “call on the name of the Lord,” he or she must believe. In order to believe, one must hear (or receive the report). In order for one to hear, another has to give the report. And that other won’t give the report unless he or she is sent. Paul continues in Romans 10:17 to summarize the argument thus far: “So faith comes from hearing, and hearing by the word of Christ” (NASB). “Faith” is translated from the Greek word pistis, which means “belief, trust, or confidence in someone or something.” It is key to the book of Romans and is used 40 times in the book—three of those occurrences appearing in chapter 10. The verb form of the word is also used 21 times within the book and most often translated as “believe.” If faith comes by hearing, then what does Paul mean by “hearing”? In this context, it is not simply the physical receiving of sounds by the ear as most English speakers would understand the term. “Hearing” seems to designate something more—the receiving or acceptance of a report. Note the use of the word, translated “message” in Romans 10:16, as Paul quotes Isaiah 53:1: “Lord, who has believed our message?” In Isaiah’s day, the Lord had provided Israel with a message, but the prophet laments that few actually received it. The “hearing” was not attached to simple sounds but to a message or report given. In Romans 10, Paul makes the point that the good news has been given and the people of Israel have heard (Romans 10:18). The nature of the gospel is a report: a report of God saving people from the wrath they deserve. In order to believe the report, one must receive the report! Faith comes by hearing. It is not a guarantee that the report will result in faith, as Paul makes clear in Romans 10:16. For just as the Israelites refused to believe the message of Isaiah, every human today can refuse to believe the message of the gospel. The nature of “hearing” also does not require the physical act of hearing with the ear. The report simply needs to be received. For instance, someone could read the gospel through GotQuestions.org and receive it by faith, without an audible word being spoken. As long as the message can be received fully, the medium does not affect the outcome. The content of the message must be “the word about Christ.” As Paul states in 1 Corinthians 15:3–5, the message is “that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, and that He was buried, and that He was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures, and that He appeared to Cephas, then to the twelve” (NASB). Faith that leads to eternal salvation comes after “hearing”; that is, after receiving this message concerning Christ. The treasures that await the child of God will far outweigh any trouble, inconvenience, or persecution we may face (Romans 8:18). We can serve the Lord wholeheartedly, knowing that God is the One keeping score, and His reward will be abundantly gracious. “Always give yourselves fully to the work of the Lord, because you know that your labor in the Lord is not in vain” (1 Corinthians 15:58). Jesus’ call to follow Him is a call to abandon all other masters. He called Matthew from the tax collector’s booth (Matthew 9:9). Matthew obeyed and walked away from extravagant wealth and dirty deals. Jesus called Peter, James, and John from the fishing docks (Mark 1:16–18). To obey Jesus’ call meant that they had to leave behind everything they knew, everything they’d worked for. Jesus called Paul, a successful Pharisee, with the words, “I will show him how much he must suffer for my name” (Acts 9:16). Those words will never make it into a mass-market ad campaign for Christianity—but maybe they should, because that’s what it means to follow Jesus (Luke 9:23). We must forsake everything else, no matter the cost (Matthew 10:34–39). The Lord describes Himself as a “jealous God” (Exodus 34:14). This means He guards what is rightfully His. He is righteously jealous for our affections because we were created to know and love Him (Colossians 1:16). He is not jealous for His own sake; He needs nothing (Psalm 50:9–10). He is jealous for us because we need Him (Mark 12:30; Matthew 22:37). When we serve another master such as money, we rob ourselves of all we were created to be, and we rob God of His rightful adoration. Jesus’ claim to us is exclusive. He bought us with His own blood and delivered us from our former master, sin (1 Corinthians 6:20; 7:23; Romans 6:17). He doesn’t share His throne with anyone. During Jesus’ time on earth, some people followed Him for a ways, but their devotion was superficial (Luke 9:57–62). They wanted something Jesus offered, but they weren’t committed (Mark 10:17–22). Other things were more important. They wanted to serve two masters. We cannot serve two masters because, as Jesus pointed out, we end up hating one and loving the other. It’s only natural. Opposing masters demand different things and lead down different paths. The Lord is headed in one direction, and our flesh and the world are headed in the other. A choice must be made. When we follow Christ, we must die to everything else. If we attempt to serve two masters, we will have divided loyalties, and, when the difficulties of discipleship clash with the lure of fleshly pleasure, the magnetic pull of wealth and worldly success will draw us away from Christ (see 2 Timothy 4:10). The call to godliness goes against our sinful nature. Only with the help of the Holy Spirit can we remain devoted to one Master (John 6:44). In Ephesians 5:26, the expression washing of water is linked to water baptism, as mentioned in Romans 6:3–4. According to Paul, baptism symbolizes the believer’s death to sin and new life in Christ. The reality is that “if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come” (2 Corinthians 5:17, ESV). Water for cleansing also played a part in a bride’s preparation for her wedding day. There may also be a link between Ezekiel 16:1–13 and Ephesians 5:26–27. In the Ezekiel passage, Israel is portrayed as an abandoned girl who becomes a queen. This passage prefigures the New Testament concept of the church as the bride of Christ, who is sanctified and cleansed for Him. The metaphor is further enriched by Ezekiel 36:25, where God promises to “sprinkle clean water on you, and you shall be clean from all your uncleanness, and from all your idols I will cleanse you” (ESV). In Christ, we are thoroughly cleansed. The culmination of Christ’s sanctifying work is beautifully illustrated in the eschatological visions of Revelation 19:7–9 and 21:2, 9–11. In these passages, the apostle John describes the marriage supper of the Lamb, an event that represents the final consummation of Christ’s relationship with His church. This future event is not only a celebration but a fulfillment of God’s redemptive plan, where Christ presents “the church to himself in splendor, without spot or wrinkle or any such thing, that she might be holy and without blemish” (Ephesians 5:27, ESV). Ephesians 5:26 also specifies the agency through which Christ accomplishes His “washing” of the church: it is done “through the word.” In His High Priestly Prayer, Jesus said, “Sanctify them [the disciples] by the truth; your word is truth.” The means by which God justifies, saves, and sanctifies His people is the Word of God (see also John 15:3; James 1:18). It is by the Word that God accomplishes His purpose “to prepare and equip his people to do every good work” (2 Timothy 3:17, NLT). While the focus of Ephesians 5:26–27 is on Christ’s role, there are practical implications for believers. Because we have been “sanctified” and “washed,” God expects us to “walk in a manner worthy of the calling to which you have been called, with all humility and gentleness, with patience, bearing with one another in love, eager to maintain the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace” (Ephesians 4:1–3, ESV). Such a “walk,” or lifestyle, is not about earning salvation; rather, it is about responding to God’s grace with reverence and obedience. The church, as the collective body of believers, plays an important role in the sanctification process. This communal aspect of sanctification is emphasized in Hebrews 10:24–25, which encourages believers “to stir one another to love and good works, not neglecting to meet together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another, and all the more as you see the Day drawing near” (ESV). The sanctification process is both personal and communal. Individually, believers are called to engage with Scripture, allowing the Word of God to cleanse them from sin and transform their hearts and minds (Psalm 119:105; James 1:22–25). Collectively, the church reflects the holiness and purity of Christ, given to the church through what He accomplished on the cross. Ephesians 5:26–27 presents profound insights into Christ’s role in the sanctification of His church, drawing from Old Testament allegories and culminating in our future union with Him. Not only does this passage reveal the depth of Christ’s love and sacrifice, but it also calls us to a life of holiness and dedication to God’s service. Let us, then, live out the fulness of our spiritual cleansing, demonstrating to everyone that we belong to Christ, who sanctifies us “by the washing with water through the word.” Jesus stated plainly that the mark of a true disciple of Christ is that he remains faithful to His teachings. He told the Jews who believed in Him, “If you abide in my word, you are truly my disciples, and you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free” (John 8:31–32, ESV). The word know in John 8:32 is translated from a Greek verb that means “to know experientially.” Understanding something with the mind or intellect, often called “head knowledge,” is different than knowing something experientially. We can know that something is bad for us yet still do it. But when we take Jesus at His word and practice “the truth that comes from him,” then we will “throw off [our] old sinful nature and [our] former way of life” and “let the Spirit renew [our] thoughts and attitudes” so that the truth we live by sets us free “to be like God—truly righteous and holy” (Ephesians 4:20–24). We shall know the truth in a way that sets us free from our old sinful way of life when we know Jesus experientially, in word, deed, and truth (see Colossians 3:17; 1 John 3:18). “Our actions will show that we belong to the truth” (1 John 3:19, NLT). Knowing the truth means experiencing Jesus Christ by accepting His teachings as absolute truth and then living in faithful obedience to them. We receive the message of the gospel and the teachings of Christ, and then we abide by them. The apostle John often framed the concept of true discipleship as knowing the truth of Christ experientially: “And we can be sure that we know him if we obey his commandments” (1 John 2:3, NLT; see also 1 John 2:29; 3:16, 24). Knowing the truth is a rock-steady way of life. John 8:32 upholds the biblical concept that truth is the only dependable foundation for constructing one’s life (see also Psalm 26:3). Jesus taught, “Anyone who listens to my teaching and follows it is wise, like a person who builds a house on solid rock. Though the rain comes in torrents and the floodwaters rise and the winds beat against that house, it won’t collapse because it is built on bedrock. But anyone who hears my teaching and doesn’t obey it is foolish, like a person who builds a house on sand. When the rains and floods come and the winds beat against that house, it will collapse with a mighty crash” (Matthew 7:24–27, NLT). If we plant our feet firmly on Christ’s truth and follow the path of His teachings, nothing can shake, derail, or destroy us. Jesus is the personification of truth (John 14:6). Only He embodies the truth that sets us free (Galatians 5:1; Romans 6:18; John 8:36). Those who know the truth are born-again believers who live in fellowship with God through a relationship with Jesus Christ: “And we know that the Son of God has come, and he has given us understanding so that we can know the true God. And now we live in fellowship with the true God because we live in fellowship with his Son, Jesus Christ. He is the only true God, and he is eternal life” (1 John 5:20, NLT). You will know the truth also expresses the moral commitment of genuine disciples to do the will of God (John 7:17; 14:21, 23; James 1:25). We know the truth in the person of Jesus Christ, who prayed to the Father for us to be “made holy” by His truth and gave His own life as the sacrifice that made it possible for us to live out that truth (see John 17:14–19). Moreover, Jesus asked the Father to send us “the Holy Spirit, who leads into all truth” (John 14:16–17, NLT; see also Ephesians 1:13). When Jesus said, “You will know the truth, and the truth shall make you free,” He was telling His followers that obedience to God is the only way to experience true liberation—spiritual freedom from sin. The freedom Jesus offers is restored fellowship with the Father, who is the source of all true life. And the mark of one who has received this life is to remain faithful to His teachings. Of all the gifts given to mankind by God, there is none greater than the presence of the Holy Spirit. The Spirit has many functions, roles, and activities. First, He does a work in the hearts of all people everywhere. Jesus told the disciples that He would send the Spirit into the world to “will convict the world regarding sin, and righteousness, and judgment” (John 16:8, NASB). Everyone has a “God consciousness,” whether or not they admit it. The Spirit applies God’s truths to people's minds to convince them by fair and sufficient arguments that they are sinners. Responding to that conviction brings us to salvation. Once we are saved and belong to God, the Spirit takes up residence in our hearts forever, sealing us with the confirming, certifying, and assuring pledge of our eternal state as His children. Jesus said He would send the Spirit to us to be our Helper, Comforter, and Guide. “And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Counselor to be with you forever” (John 14:16). The Greek word translated here “Counselor” means “one who is called alongside” and has the idea of someone who encourages and exhorts. The Holy Spirit takes up permanent residence in the hearts of believers (Romans 8:9; 1 Corinthians 6:19-20; 12:13). Jesus gave the Spirit as a “compensation” for His absence, to perform the functions toward us that He would have done if He had remained personally with us. Among those functions is that of revealer of truth. The Spirit’s presence within us enables us to understand and interpret God’s Word. Jesus told His disciples that “when he, the Spirit of truth, comes, he will guide you into all truth” (John 16:13). He reveals to our minds the whole counsel of God as it relates to worship, doctrine, and Christian living. He is the ultimate guide, going before, leading the way, removing obstructions, opening the understanding, and making all things plain and clear. He leads in the way we should go in all spiritual things. Without such a guide, we would be apt to fall into error. A crucial part of the truth He reveals is that Jesus is who He said He is (John 15:26; 1 Corinthians 12:3). The Spirit convinces us of Christ’s deity and incarnation, His being the Messiah, His suffering and death, His resurrection and ascension, His exaltation at the right hand of God, and His role as the judge of all. He gives glory to Christ in all things (John 16:14). Teachings about Divorce (Mark 10:1–12) 1When Jesus had finished saying these things, He left Galilee and went into the region of Judea beyond the Jordan. 2Large crowds followed Him, and He healed them there. 3Then some Pharisees came and tested Him by asking, “Is it lawful for a man to divorce his wife for any reason?” 4Jesus answered, “Have you not read that from the beginning the Creator ‘made them male and female,’a 5and said, ‘For this reason a man will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife, and the two will become one flesh’b? 6So they are no longer two, but one flesh. Therefore what God has joined together, let man not separate.” 7“Why then,” they asked, “did Moses order a man to give his wife a certificate of divorce and send her away?c” 8Jesus replied, “Moses permitted you to divorce your wives because of your hardness of heart. But it was not this way from the beginning. 9Now I tell you that whoever divorces his wife, except for sexual immorality, and marries another woman commits adultery. 10His disciples said to Him, “If this is the case between a man and his wife, it is better not to marry.” 11“Not everyone can accept this word,” He replied, “but only those to whom it has been given. 12For there are eunuchs who were born that way; others were made that way by men; and still others live like eunuchs for the sake of the kingdom of heaven. The one who can accept this should accept it.” The Rich Young Man (Mark 10:17–31; Luke 18:18–30) Just then a man came up to Jesus and inquired, “Teacher, what good thing must I do to obtain eternal life?” “Why do you ask Me about what is good?” Jesus replied. “There is only One who is good. If you want to enter life, keep the commandments.” “Which ones?” the man asked. Jesus answered, “‘Do not murder, do not commit adultery, do not steal, do not bear false witness, honor your father and mother, and love your neighbor as yourself.’ “All these I have kept,” said the young man. “What do I still lack?” Jesus told him, “If you want to be perfect, go, sell your possessions and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come, follow Me.” When the young man heard this, he went away in sorrow, because he had great wealth. Then Jesus said to His disciples, “Truly I tell you, it is hard for a rich man to enter the kingdom of heaven. Again I tell you, it is easier for a camel to pass through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God.” When the disciples heard this, they were greatly astonished and asked, “Who then can be saved?” Jesus looked at them and said, “With man this is impossible, but with God all things are possible.” “Look,” Peter replied, “we have left everything to follow You. What then will there be for us?” Jesus said to them, “Truly I tell you, in the renewal of all things, when the Son of Man sits on His glorious throne, you who have followed Me will also sit on twelve thrones, judging the twelve tribes of Israel. And everyone who has left houses or brothers or sisters or father or mother or wife or children or fields for the sake of My name will receive a hundredfold and will inherit eternal life. But many who are first will be last, and the last will be first. Matthew in the Bible was one of Jesus’ disciples. Matthew’s Gospel, along with the Gospels of Luke, John, and Mark, is an inspired—and thus accurate and true—history of the life of Christ. His Gospel is the longest of the four, and some scholars believe it was the first to be written. Before Matthew became a disciple of Christ, he was a tax collector or “publican” in the town of Capernaum (Matthew 9:9; 10:3) Matthew is also called Levi, the son of Alphaeus, by Luke and Mark (Mark 2:14; Luke 5:27). Although Luke and Mark do not come out and say, “Levi and Matthew are the same person,” we can deduce the names refer to the same individual because of context. Matthew’s account of his call matches exactly the accounts of Levi’s call in Luke and Mark, both in terms of language and chronological placement. Also, it is not uncommon for a person to be given a different name after an encounter with God. Abram became Abraham, Jacob became Israel, Simon became Peter, and Saul became Paul. It is likely that Matthew (meaning “gift of God”) was the name Jesus gave to Levi after his conversion. Tax collectors were absolutely despised by their own culture because they worked for the Roman government and enriched themselves by collecting taxes from their own people-- often dishonestly collecting excessive amounts (see Luke 19:8). It is likely that Matthew was well-to-do, since Luke says that Levi hosted “a great banquet for Jesus” with “a large crowd” in attendance (Luke 5:29). Tax collectors such as Matthew were seen by the religious elite as very sinful people, so sinful that even spending time with them could immediately tarnish a good person’s reputation (Matthew 9:10–11). When Jesus was having dinner at Matthew’s house, with many other tax collectors and sinners present, the Pharisees questioned the disciples about Jesus’ choice of companions. Jesus’ response is one of the clearest explanations of God’s heart and His gospel to man: “It is not the healthy who need a doctor, but the sick. . . . I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners” (Matthew 9:12–13). Jesus came to save not the “good,” self-righteous people, but those who knew they were not good—the people who admitted freely that they needed salvation (cf. Matthew 5:3). It is impossible to save a person who claims not to need saving. Many of Jesus’ followers were from the poor, the rejected, the sick, the sinful, the weary (Matthew 11:28). He never condemned those people; He forgave them and encouraged them. Jesus’ harshest condemnations were to the Pharisees, the teachers of the Law, and the scribes who thought themselves good, worthy, and better than the “tax collectors and sinners” around them (Matthew 9:10; 23:13–15). Matthew was one of the tax collectors whom Jesus saved. When called by Jesus, Matthew immediately left his tax collection booth and followed the Lord (Matthew 9:9). He left behind the source of his riches; he left his position of security and comfort for traveling, hardship, and eventual martyrdom; he left his old life for a new life with Jesus. In the Bible, there is only one reference to God giving us a white stone with anew name: “To the one who is victorious, I will give some of the hidden manna. I will also give that person a white stone with anew name written on it, known only to the one who receives it” (Revelation 2:17) • A white stone was often used as an amulet or charm. However, this custom was associated with sorcery, so it would be odd if the Bible used it as a symbol of salvation. • Another interpretation has to do with the building material used during the time John wrote Revelation. Important buildings were commonly made of white marble, including the temple of Asclepius in Pergamum (the city of the church Jesus is addressing in Revelation 2:17). In front of the temple were white marble pillars engraved with the names of people supposedly healed by the god. One problem with this interpretation is that the Greek word used in this verse, psephon properly means “pebble,” not “stone.” • One of the better-accepted explanations of the white stone has to do with the high priest’s breastplate, which contained twelve stones. Each of these stones had the name of one of the twelve tribes of Israel engraved on it (Exodus 28:21). As he ministered in the temple, the high priest bore the names of God’s people into God’s presence. In the same way, the “white stone” with the believer’s name written on it could be a reference to our standing in God’s presence. • Another widely held explanation suggests that the white stone may be a translucent precious stone such as a diamond. The word translated “white” in Revelation 2:17 is leukos and can also mean “brilliant, bright.” This interpretation holds that on the stone is written the name of Christ, not the name of the believer. Revelation mentions that the name of Christ is written on the foreheads of the saints (Revelation 3:12; Revelation 14:1, and Revelation 14:20) The best theory regarding the meaning of the white stone probably has to do with the ancient Roman custom of awarding white stones to the victors of athletic games. The winner of a contest was awarded a white stone with his name inscribed on it. This served as his “ticket” to a special awards banquet. Jesus promises the overcomers entrance to the eternal victory celebration in heaven. The “new name” most likely refers to the Holy Spirit’s work of conforming believers to the holiness of Christ (see Romans 8:29; Colossians 3:10). The story of Peter’s threefold denial of Christ is found in all four Gospel accounts: Matthew 26:69–74, Mark 14:66–72, Luke 22:55–62, and John 18:15–18, 25–27. But why would the chief of the disciples deny even knowing Him? There were two main reasons why Peter denied Jesus: weakness and fear. Peter’s denial was based partially on weakness, the weakness born of human frailty. The Lord said to Paul, “My grace is sufficient for you, for My strength is made perfect in weakness” (2 Corinthians 12:8–9, NKJV). The New Living Translation says, “My grace is all you need. My power works best in weakness.” God’s strength is made perfect in weakness because He delights in taking situations where human strength is lacking to demonstrate the greatness of His power. After the Last Supper, Jesus took His disciples to the Garden of Gethsemane to await His arrest He told them to stay awake and pray while He went off to pray alone. When He returned to them, He found them sleeping. He warned Peter to stay awake and pray because, although his spirit might be willing, his flesh was weak. But he fell asleep again, and, by the time the soldiers had come to arrest Jesus, it was too late to pray for the strength to endure the ordeal to come. No doubt his failure to appropriate the only means to shore up his own weakness—prayer—occurred to him as he was weeping bitterly after his denials. But Peter learned his lesson about being watchful, and he exhorts us in 1 Peter 5:8, “Be on the alert, because your adversary, the devil, prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour.” Peter’s weakness had caused him to be “devoured” momentarily as he denied his Lord because he hadn’t been prepared through prayer and he underestimated his own weakness. A second reason for Peter’s failure was fear. To his credit, although all the others had fled (Mark 14:50), Peter still followed Jesus after His arrest, but he kept his distance so as not to be identified with Him (Mark 14:54). There’s no question that fear gripped him. From the courtyard, he watched Jesus being falsely accused, beaten, and insulted (Mark 14:57–66). Peter was afraid Jesus would die, and he was fearful for his own life as well. The world hated Jesus, and Peter found that he was not prepared to face the ridicule and persecution that Jesus was suffering. Earlier, Jesus had warned His disciples as well as us today, “If the world hates you, keep in mind that it hated me first” (John 15:18; cf. Matthew 24:9). Peter quickly found he wasn’t nearly as bold and courageous as he had proclaimed, and in fear he denied the One who had loved him. We might well wonder why Jesus allowed Peter to fail so miserably and deny his Lord three times that night. Jesus revealed to Peter that Satan had asked for permission to sift Peter like wheat (Luke 22:31). Jesus could have easily protected Peter and not allowed Satan to sift him, but Jesus had a higher goal. He was equipping Peter to strengthen his brothers (Luke 22:32). Not only did Peter strengthen the other disciples, but he became the pillar of the early church in Jerusalem, exhorting and training others to follow the Lord Jesus (Acts 2). And he continues to this day to strengthen us through his epistles, 1 and 2 Peter. As with all our failures, God used Peter’s many failures, including his three denials of Christ, to turn him from Simon, a common man with a common name, into Peter, the Rock. In Psalm 103, King David lifts his own heart and leads all future generations of believers in praise to God for His great compassion and mercy. David’s personal experiences and relationship with God form the basis of his declarations about the goodness of God’s character, reminding himself and others to praise the Lord because “he forgives all my sins and heals all my diseases. He redeems me from death and crowns me with love and tender mercies. He fills my life with good things. My youth is renewed like the eagle’s!” (verses 3–5, NLT). David’s heart soars as he remembers, above all, God’s forgiveness of sins and deliverance from death. He marvels at the Lord’s love, mercy, and all the good things God has poured into his life. David was probably advancing in years, but the profound experience of God’s grace and goodness sustains him, making him feel young, strong, and free like an eagle gliding high among the clouds. David’s sense that his youth is renewed like an eagle’s strength resounds in the words of the prophet Isaiah: “He gives strength to the weary and increases the power of the weak. Even youths grow tired and weary, and young men stumble and fall; but those who hope in the Lord will renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not be faint” (Isaiah 40:29–31). In Scripture, the eagle symbolizes strength, vitality, and speed and is an appropriate metaphor for the transformative power of God’s forgiveness, deliverance, and mercy. Just as the eagle can swiftly attack from above, swooping down and ascending again to the heights, God’s grace can quickly and decisively change our lives, lifting us from a pit of despair. Like David, when we place our hope in the Lord and praise Him for His forgiveness, goodness, and love, our spirit is renewed, and it feels as if we have the strength and vitality of an eagle. David may have recollected the Lord’s deliverance of Israel from slavery in Egypt. God told Moses on Mount Sinai to say to the people, “You yourselves have seen what I did to Egypt, and how I carried you on eagles’ wings and brought you to myself” (Exodus 19:4). In Deuteronomy 32:11, God’s protection and concern are depicted “like an eagle that stirs up its nest and hovers over its young, that spreads its wings to catch them and carries them aloft.” The Old Testament is full of imagery featuring the eagle and its swift movement (Deuteronomy 28:49; 2 Samuel 1:23; Jeremiah 4:13), its powerful, far-reaching flight (Proverbs 23:5; Isaiah 40:31), and its tender care for its young (Exodus 19:4; Deuteronomy 32:11). When David said, “My youth is renewed like the eagle’s,” he acknowledged that God had sustained him and satisfied his soul with such goodness that, even in old age, he felt young and strong. He was content. His life was overflowing because His God was enough. Similarly, Paul learned the secret of contentment by depending wholly on Christ for his strength (Philippians 4:12–13). The Bible uses several metaphors involving birth to help explain what it means to have a saving relationship with Jesus. We find terms such as born again (John 3:3), born of God (John 1:13), and born of the Spirit (John 3:6). They all mean the same thing. Birth metaphors are used because we all understand physical birth. When a baby is born, a new person emerges into the world. The new life will grow, and the young person will come to resemble his or her parents. When we are born of the Spirit, a “new person” arrives with a new spiritual life. And as we grow, we come to resemble our Father in heaven (Romans 8:29). People try to know God through a variety of means: some try religion or following an ethical code; some turn to intellect or logic; others try to find God in nature; and others through emotional experiences, believing that God inhabits whatever feelings they can muster when they think about Him. None of those bring us one step closer to actually communing with the God of the Bible because He cannot be known through our moral codes, our minds, our environment, or our emotions. He is Spirit, and those who would worship must worship “in spirit and in truth” (John 4:24). Imagine trying to paint a portrait using a hammer and nails or trying to bake a meal using pen and paper. It would not help to try harder or cry over it because both tasks are impossible given the tools mentioned. So it is with the flesh and the Spirit. We cannot commune with a holy, incorporeal Being using sinful, fleshly means. Unless our spirits are reborn with life from God’s Spirit, we simply do not have the capability to fellowship with Him. We must be born of the Spirit. God has instituted a way for fallen human beings to enter His holy presence, and it is the only way we can come to Him. Jesus said, “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me” (John 14:6). When Jesus offered Himself as a sacrifice for sin (John 10:18) and rose again, He opened a door that had been locked. When He died on the cross, the veil of the temple was torn in two, symbolizing the fact that He has made a way to enter God’s presence. God has opened the door to heaven so that whoever trusts in His Son’s sacrifice can be born again in his or her spirit (Mark 15:38). When we place our faith in the risen Christ, a divine transaction takes place (2 Corinthians 5:21). God removes from us the sin, guilt, and condemnation we deserved because of our rebellion against Him. He throws our sin as far as the east is from the west (Psalm 103:12). At the moment of repentance and faith, the Holy Spirit breathes new life into us, and our bodies become His temple (1 Corinthians 3:16). Our spirits can now commune with God’s Spirit as He assures us that we belong to Him (Romans 8:16). We might think of the human spirit like a deflated balloon that hangs lifeless inside our hearts. We are scarcely aware of its existence until God calls our names and an awakening begins. When we respond to God’s call with repentance and faith in what Jesus Christ has done for salvation, we are born of the Spirit. At that point the balloon inflates. The Holy Spirit moves into our spirits and fills us. He begins His transforming work so that we begin to resemble Jesus (2 Corinthians 5:17; Romans 8:29). There are only two types of people in the world: those who are born of the Spirit and those who are not. In the end, only those two categories matter (John 3:3). Our earthly lives are extended opportunities for us to respond to God’s call and become born of the Spirit (Hebrews 3:15). Second Corinthians 3:6 says, “He has made us competent as ministers of a new covenant-- not of the letter but of the Spirit; for the letter kills, but the Spirit gives life.” With these words, Paul summarizes the key difference between the Old and New Testaments: the first covenant was based on obedience to the written law (the “letter”), but the second covenant is based on the blood of Christ and sealed by the Holy Spirit. There are two parts to this answer, as we look at both the letter and the Spirit. First, what does Paul mean by “the letter kills”? Simply that the Old Testament Law, which is good and perfect (Psalm 19:7), reveals all people as law-breakers (Galatians 3:10). The law “kills” in that the penalty for breaking God’s law is eternal death in hell (Romans 6:23; Revelation 21:8). As God told Moses the lawgiver, “Whoever has sinned against me I will blot out of my book” (Exodus 32:33). Even if you sin only once in your whole life, it’s the same as breaking all of God’s laws (James 2:10), just as breaking only one link in a chain breaks the whole chain. The written law—“the letter”—was chiseled in stone by the finger of God and is the unchanging standard by which all are judged. The law cannot give us righteousness or eternal life in heaven (Galatians 2:16). It can only condemn us as sinners, and the sentence is death. Heaven is where perfection is required (Matthew 5:20, 48; 19:16–21), and “the law made nothing perfect” (Hebrews 7:19). Second, what does Paul mean by “the Spirit gives life”? Simply that the Holy Spirit rescues us from our hopeless situation. God saves us from death and grants us eternal life when we are born again through the power of the Holy Spirit. Jesus said, “Flesh gives birth to flesh, but the Spirit gives birth to spirit” (John 3:6), and, later, “The Spirit gives life; the flesh counts for nothing. The words I have spoken to you-- they are Spirit and they are life” (John 6:63) The Holy Spirit was active in the Incarnation of our Savior (Luke 1:35). It was through the Holy Spirit that Jesus offered Himself as a sacrifice to God for our sins (Hebrews 9:14). The Spirit is the cause of the new birth (John 3:3–8). It is the Spirit who lives in believers (John 14:17), seals them (Ephesians 1:13), and sanctifies them (Romans 15:16). The Spirit gives life in that He enables us to reach God’s ultimate goal for us, to be transformed into the glorious image of God’s own Son (2 Corinthians 3:18; also see Romans 8:28–30). Until the day that we see Christ, the Spirit intercedes with God on our behalf, ensuring our continued forgiveness and preserving the promise of God (Romans 8:26–27). “The letter kills, but the Spirit gives life” (2 Corinthians 3:6). Elsewhere, Paul teaches the same truth: “But now, by dying to what once bound us, we have been released from the law so that we serve in the new way of the Spirit, and not in the old way of the written code” (Romans 7:6). In Scripture, God’s glory is associated with His majesty (Psalm 8:1), power (1 Chronicles 29:11), and presence (John 1:14). The glory of God is manifested in all His attributes together. It is the beauty of His nature, eternal and excelling in splendor. In Ephesians 3:16, Paul prays that “according to the riches of [God’s] glory he may grant you to be strengthened with power through his Spirit in your inner being” (ESV). Likewise, in Romans 9:23, Paul mentions “the riches of his glory [made] known to the objects of his mercy, whom he prepared in advance for glory.” In both passages, God’s glory involves His nature and His active engagement with believers. The glory of God provides a spiritual treasury of blessings for those who trust in Him. The “riches of his glory,” according to Paul, are found “in Christ Jesus” (Philippians 4:19). This suggests that the riches of God’s glory are made possible through the finished work of Christ. In Christ, believers have access to every spiritual blessing from the Father. Paul writes, “Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in Christ with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places” (Ephesians 1:3, ESV). Through the finished work of Christ, believers have access to an overabundant supply of blessings that are more than sufficient to meet our needs. God’s abundant grace is part of the riches of His glory. Paul writes, “You know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that though he was rich, yet for your sake he became poor, so that you by his poverty might become rich” (2 Corinthians 8:9, ESV). Here, the word rich refers not to material wealth but to the spiritual riches that come through the sacrificial death of Christ. He became an earth-bound pauper so we could know the abundant fulness of heaven. In short, the “riches of his glory” in Philippians 4:19 refers to the abundant resources with which God meets the needs of believers. He possesses all things, and He has an inexhaustible ability to supply their needs. Because God is infinitely glorious and infinitely gracious, He is able and willing to provide for every need. This assurance is rooted in the person and work of Christ, who is “full of grace and truth” (John 1:14, ESV). A “mystery” in the New Testament is simply something that was hidden in times past but has now been revealed by God. The former mystery, now understood, is that Christ in us is the hope of our future glory. The permanent indwelling of the Holy Spirit given to New Testament believers was a “mystery” to the Old Testament saints. After Jesus ascended to heaven, He sent the Holy Spirit to live within us, never to leave (John 14:16–17; 16:7). Jesus told His disciples, “On that day you will realize that I am in my Father . . . and I am in you” (John 14:20). One of the wonderful truths of Scripture is found in Romans 8:1: “Therefore, there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.” In his letter to the Romans, Paul presents the importance of the GOOD NEWS of Jesus Christ (Romans 1:16–17). We need this good news because all people, in their sin, are under condemnation (Romans 1:18—3:20). Paul then explains the gospel (Romans 3:21—4:25) and what it means to no longer be under condemnation, describing the implications of being declared righteous by God (Romans 5—8). He concludes this section of the epistle by affirming the eternality of the righteousness given by God and asserts that there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus (Romans 8:1). Paul adds an example of the trustworthiness of God (Romans 9—11) and challenges believers in Christ to behave in a manner consistent with their new position of righteousness in Christ (Romans 12—16). The need for salvation is universal because of our connection to Adam and his sin. Adamfell, his nature became sinful, and all humanity bears his image and likeness (Genesis 5). All people born of Adam are naturally under condemnation and separated from God like Adam was (Romans 5:12–15). But Paul explains that those who have believed in Christ are now positionally in Christ. They are justified, or declared righteous, by grace through the redemption in Christ (Romans 3:24), and they are now alive in Christ Jesus (Romans 6:11). They have eternal life (Romans 6:23). Elsewhere, Paul emphasizes that the one believing in Jesus now has anew identity in Christ (Ephesians 1:3–14). Where there was once condemnation by God, there is now justification by God. There is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus. The believer’s new position, received by grace through faith (Ephesians 2:8–9), cannot be taken away Once God declares someone righteous, no one can correctly accuse that person or justly condemn him (Romans 8:31–34). There is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus. When Jesus died on the cross, He took our condemnation upon Himself; He took the punishment that was due us all (1 Peter 3:18). All who believe in Him have eternal life (John 6:47) and are no longer condemned by God. It is worth noting that the KJV and some other translations contain an added clause in Romans 8:1: “who walk not after the flesh but after the Spirit” (Romans 8:1, KJV). In the context, Paul explains that those who believe in Christ are those who walk by the Spirit, and the evidence of that is that they have the Spirit of God in them (Romans 8:9). Even if the added words in the KJV are not original to verse 1, the same truth (that we walk in the Spirit) is communicated in Romans 8:4 and Romans 8:9. Those who “walk after the Spirit” are those who are “in Christ”; these are two ways of describing the same thing. In other words, the statement of Romans 8:1 that there is now no condemnation to those who are in Christ Jesus is not conditional. Once someone has believed in Christ, he is in Christ and can never be separated from the love of Christ, as Paul explains in Romans 8:38–39. No created thing (including an individual) can separate anyone from the love of God that is in Christ When Paul affirms that there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus (Romans 8:1), we can be confident of our secure position in Christ. The hope of glory includes our resurrection: “If the Spirit of him who raised Jesus from the dead is living in you, he who raised Christ from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies because of his Spirit who lives in you” (Romans 8:11). It includes a heavenly inheritance: “In his great mercy he has given us new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, and into an inheritance that can never perish, spoil or fade. This inheritance is kept in heaven for you” (1 Peter 1:3–4). The Spirit of Christ within us is the “deposit guaranteeing our inheritance” (Ephesians 1:14). Christ’s presence in us is the hope of glory, and this TRUTH is full of “glorious riches.” Jesus said to seek first the kingdom of God in His Sermon on the Mount (Matthew 6:33) The verse’s meaning is as direct as it sounds. We are to seek the things of God as a priority over the things of the world. Primarily, it means we are to seek the salvation that is inherent in the kingdom of God because it is of greater value than all the world’s riches. Does this mean that we should neglect the reasonable and daily duties that help sustain our lives? Certainly not. But for the Christian, there should be a difference in attitude toward them. These “negative” aspects of the kingdom run counter to a heresy that is gaining ground around the world, the so-called "prosperity" gospel. A growing number of false teachers are gathering followers under the message “God wants you to be rich!” But that philosophy is not the counsel of the Bible—and it is certainly not the counsel of Matthew 6:33, which is not a formula for gaining wealth. It is a description of how God works. Jesus taught that our focus should be shifted away from this world —its status and its lying allurements-- and placed upon the things of God’s kingdom If we are taking care of God’s business as a priority—seeking His salvation, living in obedience to Him, and sharing the GOOD NEWS of the kingdom with others-- then He will take care of our business as He promised-- and if that’s the arrangement, where is worrying? Turn to your neighbor and say, ”here’s a fig leaf” |
John 1:1
The Word became flesh and made His dwelling among us. We have seen His glory, the glory of the one and only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth.
Philippians 2:7
but emptied Himself, taking the form of a servant, being made in human likeness.
Romans 8:3
For what the law was powerless to do in that it was weakened by the flesh, God did by sending His own Son in the likeness of sinful man, as an offering for sin. He thus condemned sin in the flesh,
Hebrews 2:14
Now since the children have flesh and blood, He too shared in their humanity, so that by His death He might destroy him who holds the power of death, that is, the devil,
Matthew 1:23
“Behold, the virgin will be with child and will give birth to a son, and they will call Him Immanuel” (which means, “God with us”).
Isaiah 7:14
Therefore the Lord Himself will give you a sign: Behold, the virgin will be with child and give birth to a son, and will call Him Immanuel.
Luke 2:7
And she gave birth to her firstborn, a Son. She wrapped Him in swaddling cloths and laid Him in a manger, because there was no room for them in the inn.
John 3:16
For God so loved the world that He gave His one and only Son, that everyone who believes in Him shall not perish but have eternal life.
Romans 1:3
regarding His Son, who was a descendant of David according to the flesh,
Hebrews 4:15
For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but we have one who was tempted in every way that we are, yet was without sin.
Genesis 3:15
And I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your seed and her seed. He will crush your head, and you will strike his heel.”
Micah 5:2
But you, Bethlehem Ephrathah, who are small among the clans of Judah, out of you will come forth for Me One to be ruler over Israel—One whose origins are of old, from the days of eternity.
Matthew 5:17
Do not think that I have come to abolish the Law or the Prophets. I have not come to abolish them, but to fulfill them.
Colossians 1:19
For God was pleased to have all His fullness dwell in Him,
1 John 4:9
This is how God’s love was revealed among us: God sent His one and only Son into the world, so that we might live through Him.
Genesis 49:10
The sceptre shall not depart from Judah, nor a lawgiver from between his feet, until Shiloh come; and unto him shall the gathering of the people be.
Daniel 9:24-26
Seventy weeks are determined upon thy people and upon thy holy city, to finish the transgression, and to make an end of sins, and to make reconciliation for iniquity, and to bring in everlasting righteousness, and to seal up the vision and prophecy, and to anoint the most Holy…
Malachi 3:1
Behold, I will send my messenger, and he shall prepare the way before me: and the Lord, whom ye seek, shall suddenly come to his temple, even the messenger of the covenant, whom ye delight in: behold, he shall come, saith the LORD of hosts.
Isaiah 48:16
Come ye near unto me, hear ye this; I have not spoken in secret from the beginning; from the time that it was, there am I: and now the Lord GOD, and his Spirit, hath sent me.
Zechariah 2:8-11
For thus saith the LORD of hosts; After the glory hath he sent me unto the nations which spoiled you: for he that toucheth you toucheth the apple of his eye…
John 3:16
For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.
Isaiah 9:6,7
For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given: and the government shall be upon his shoulder: and his name shall be called Wonderful, Counseller, The mighty God, The everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace…
Micah 5:2
But thou, Bethlehem Ephratah, thoughthou be little among the thousands of Judah, yet out of thee shall he come forth unto me that is to be ruler in Israel; whose goings forth have been from of old, from everlasting.
Zechariah 6:12
And speak unto him, saying, Thus speaketh the LORD of hosts, saying, Behold the man whose name is The BRANCH; and he shall grow up out of his place, and he shall build the temple of the LORD:
Genesis 3:15
And I will put enmity between thee and the woman, and between thy seed and her seed; it shall bruise thy head, and thou shalt bruise his heel.
Isaiah 7:14
Therefore the Lord himself shall give you a sign; Behold, a virgin shall conceive, and bear a son, and shall call his name Immanuel.
Jeremiah 31:22
How long wilt thou go about, O thou backsliding daughter? for the LORD hath created a new thing in the earth, A woman shall compass a man.
Matthew 3:15
And Jesus answering said unto him, Suffer it to be so now: for thus it becometh us to fulfil all righteousness. Then he suffered him.
Matthew 5:17
Think not that I am come to destroy the law, or the prophets: I am not come to destroy, but to fulfil.
Luke 2:21-27
And when eight days were accomplished for the circumcising of the child, his name was called JESUS, which was so named of the angel before he was conceived in the womb…
John 1:1 says,
“In the beginning was the Word,
and the
Word was with God,
and
the Word was God.”
The Gospel of John begins much
like Genesis,
the “book of beginnings.”
The account of creation
in Genesis begins with the phrase
In the beginning(Genesis 1:1),
which is translated from the Hebrew word bereshit
In the Septuagint
(the Greek Old Testament), which shares the
same language
as the Gospel of John,
the words used in Genesis 1:1a are identical
with
John 1:1a: en arche, or “in the beginning.”
“In the beginning was the Word”
(John 1:1).
To the audience receiving
the gospel,
John’s intentions in this statement would
be clear—“the Word” is connected
with the
God of Israel, the Creator of all things.
John further explains this idea two verses later in
John 1:3,
“All things came into being through Him, and
apart from Him nothing
came into being that has come into being”
(NASB).
“The Word”
is the sole means by which reality finds its existence--
He is the Creator of all things,
and without Him no created thing would exist.
Before anything
was created, “the Word” existed.
The term word is used in different ways
in the Bible.
In the New Testament,
there are two Greek words translated
"word": rhema and logos.
They have slightly different meanings.
Rhema
usually means “a spoken word.”
For example, in Luke 1:38, when the
angel told
Mary
that she would be the
mother of God’s Son,
Mary replied,
"Behold, I am the servant of the Lord; let it be to me according to your word [rhema].”
Logos, however, has a broader, more philosophical meaning. This is the term used in John 1. It usually implies a total message, and is used mostly in reference to God’s message to mankind. For example, Luke 4:32 says that, when Jesus taught the people, "they were amazed at his teaching, because his words [logos] had authority." The people were amazed not merely by the particular words Jesus chose but by His total message.
"The Word" (Logos) in John 1 is referring to Jesus.
Jesus is the total Message--
everything that God wants to communicate to man.
The first chapter of John gives us a glimpse inside the Father/Son relationship before Jesus came to earth in human form. He preexisted with the Father (verse 1), He was involved in the creation of everything (verse 3), and He is the "light of all mankind" (verse 4). The Word (Jesus) is the full embodiment of all that is God (Colossians 1:19; 2:9; John 14:9). But God the Father is Spirit. He is invisible to the human eye. The message of love and redemption that God spoke through the prophets had gone unheeded for centuries (Ezekiel 22:26; Matthew 23:37). People found it easy to disregard the message of an invisible God and continued in their sin and rebellion.
So the Message became flesh, took on human form, and came to dwell among us
(Matthew 1:23; Romans 8:3; Philippians 2:5–11)
The Greeks used the word logos to refer to one’s “mind,” “reason,” or “wisdom.” John used this Greek concept to communicate the fact that Jesus, the Second Person of the Trinity, is the self-expression of God to the world. In the Old Testament, the word of God brought the universe into existence (Psalm 33:6) and saved the needy (Psalm 107:20). In chapter 1 of his Gospel, John is appealing to both Jew and Gentile to receive the eternal Christ.
Jesus told a parable in Luke 20:9–16 to explain why the Word had to become flesh. “A man planted a vineyard, rented it to some farmers and went away for a long time. At harvest time he sent a servant to the tenants so they would give him some of the fruit of the vineyard. But the tenants beat him and sent him away empty-handed. He sent another servant, but that one also they beat and treated shamefully and sent away empty-handed. He sent still a third, and they wounded him and threw him out.
“Then the owner of the vineyard said, ‘What shall I do? I will send my son, whom I love; perhaps they will respect him.’ But when the tenants saw him, they talked the matter over. ‘This is the heir,’ they said. ‘Let’s kill him, and the inheritance will be ours.’ So they threw him out of the vineyard and killed him. What then will the owner of the vineyard do to them? He will come and kill those tenants and give the vineyard to others.”
In this parable, Jesus was reminding the Jewish leaders that they had rejected the prophets and were now rejecting the Son.
The Logos, the Word of God, was now going to be offered to everyone, not just the Jews (John 10:16; Galatians 2:28; Colossians 3:11). Because the Word became flesh, we have a high priest who is able to empathize with our weaknesses, one who has been tempted in every way, just as we are—yet He did not sin (Hebrews 4:15).
The Hebrew word for “seed” here means “offspring,” which is how many translations render it (e.g., NIV, ESV, CSB). The figurative language in Genesis 3:14 (“dust you shall eat,” ESV) indicates that the subsequent verse speaks of a spiritual war between Satan (the serpent) and humanity (the seed of the woman).
The woman spoken of is Eve, the mother of humanity (Genesis 3:20). The prophecy is that her offspring would be continually harassed by Satan and his followers (the offspring of the serpent). Sin entered the world through Adam’s disobedience, and we all suffer because of it (Romans 5:12–14). The perpetual war Satan wages against humanity began in the Garden of Eden.
There is an indication of number in Genesis 3:15 that we cannot overlook. The woman’s offspring is referred to by the singular noun seed, and that seed is immediately antecedent to the singular pronouns he and his. So, the seed of the woman is individualized. There is one Seed in particular who is to come. The sole tempter will be countered by the sole Savior.
Also, Genesis 3:15 speaks of the seed of a woman rather than the seed of a man. This unusual wording could indicate that the woman’s offspring would not have an earthly father. In that case, the protoevangelium is certainly fulfilled in Jesus Christ, who was begotten of the Holy Spirit and born of a virgin (Luke 1:34–35).
The enmity spoken of in Genesis 3:15 is ultimately between Satan and Christ. Satan “bruised the heel” of the Savior when Jesus was crucified—Jesus suffered in His flesh. But the story does not end there. On the third day, Jesus rose from the grave. In so doing, He crushed the power of Satan, sin, and death—He crushed the serpent’s head. Jesus is the Seed of the woman who has won the victory over the tempter and enemy of mankind. And, to His eternal praise, He grants victory to everyone who believes in Him (John 16:33). “To the one who is victorious, I will give the right to sit with me on my throne, just as I was victorious and sat down with my Father on his throne” (Revelation 3:21).
The question “who are the seed of Abraham?” can be answered several ways, and it is important to make some distinctions. There is the Seed of Abraham (Seed being singular); there is the seed of Abraham physically (descendants of Abraham according to the flesh); and there is the seed of Abraham spiritually (those who, like Abraham, have faith in God).
The (singular) Seed of Abraham is Christ, as Galatians 3:16, quoting Genesis 12:7, says, “The promises were spoken to Abraham and to his seed. Scripture does not say ‘and to seeds,’ meaning many people, but ‘and to your seed,’ meaning one person, who is Christ.” The passage goes on to explain that an inheritance was promised to Abraham’s Seed (Christ) apart from the Law. Later, the Mosaic Law was introduced, but it did not annul the promises made to Abraham or to Abraham’s Seed (Christ).
Just as Abraham believed God and his faith was counted as righteousness (Genesis 15:6), so are all today who believe in God’s Son justified apart from the Law. In this way, Abraham is the “father” of all who believe (Romans 4:11–17). “If you belong to Christ, then you are Abraham’s seed, and heirs according to the promise” (Galatians 3:29).
Of course, the seed of Abraham can also refer to the Hebrew people who descended from Abraham through Isaac. Still more broadly, the seed of Abraham could include Arabs, who trace their lineage through Ishmael. This is the physical seed of Abraham. The spiritual seed of Abraham (believers in Jesus Christ) is comprised of people of all nationalities and ethnicities.
The Jewish religious leaders of the first century took pride in that they were Abraham’s seed. They saw their physical connection to Abraham as a guarantee of God’s favor. This attitude kept them from seeing their need for repentance of the heart—and brought condemnation from John the Baptist, who warned them to repent. Anticipating their fallback argument that they were the seed of Abraham, John said, “Do not think you can say to yourselves, ‘We have Abraham as our father.’ I tell you that out of these stones God can raise up children for Abraham” (Matthew 3:9).
Jesus dealt with the same issue later. In speaking to the unbelieving Jews, Jesus emphasized their need to receive His words as truth and obey His commands. They replied, “We be Abraham’s seed” (John 8:33, KJV). Jesus then rebukes them for plotting ways to murder Him; their stubborn response was again, “Abraham is our father” (verse 39a). At this, Jesus makes a distinction between the physical seed of Abraham and the true, spiritual seed of Abraham: “If you were Abraham’s children . . . then you would do what Abraham did” (verse 39b). The conversation heats up as the Jews for a third time reference their connection to Abraham: “Are you greater than our father Abraham?” they ask Jesus (verse 53). Jesus provokes them further: “Your father Abraham rejoiced at the thought of seeing my day; he saw it and was glad” (verse 56). The Jews’ are incredulous that Jesus would claim to be a contemporary of Abraham, and that’s when Jesus brings the exchange to a climax with a claim to full deity: “Very truly I tell you, . . . before Abraham was born, I am!” (verse 58). In a fury, the Jews attempted to stone Jesus (verse 59), again proving that being the physical seed of Abraham is not enough—they had to be born again (John 3:3).
Paul sums up the difference between the seeds of Abraham in Romans 2:28–29: “A person is not a Jew who is one only outwardly, nor is circumcision merely outward and physical. No, a person is a Jew who is one inwardly; and circumcision is circumcision of the heart, by the Spirit, not by the written code. Such a person’s praise is not from other people, but from God.”
Sons and Heirs
1What I am saying is that as long as the heir is a child, he is no different from a slave, although he is the owner of everything. 2He is subject to guardians and trustees until the date set by his father.
3So also, when we were children, we were enslaved under the basic principlesa of the world. 4But when the time had fully come, God sent His Son, born of a woman, born under the law, 5to redeem those under the law, that we might receive our adoption as sons. 6And because you are sons, God sent the Spirit of His Son into our hearts, crying out, “Abba, Father!” 7So you are no longer a slave, but a son; and since you are a son, you are also an heir through God.
Paul’s Concern for the Galatians
8Formerly, when you did not know God, you were slaves to those who by nature are not gods. 9But now that you know God, or rather are known by God, how is it that you are turning back to those weak and worthless principles? Do you wish to be enslaved by them all over again? 10You are observing special days and months and seasons and years! 11I fear for you, that my efforts for you may have been in vain. 12I beg you, brothers, become like me, for I became like you. You have done me no wrong.
13You know that it was because of an illness that I first preached the gospel to you. 14And although my illness was a trial to you, you did not despise or reject me. Instead, you welcomed me as if I were an angel of God, as if I were Christ Jesus Himself. 15What then has become of your blessing? For I can testify that, if it were possible, you would have torn out your eyes and given them to me. 16Have I now become your enemy by telling you the truth?
17Those people are zealous for you, but not in a good way. Instead, they want to isolate you from us, so that you may be zealous for them. 18Nevertheless, it is good to be zealous if it serves a noble purpose—at any time, and not only when I am with you.
19My children, for whom I am again in the pains of childbirth until Christ is formed in you, 20how I wish I could be with you now and change my tone, because I am perplexed about you.
Luke wove some marvelous things
into his Gospel
that only a knowledgeable Jew would have understood—a Jew who knew Jewish Scripture and had eyes to see and ears to hear. One of the things he would have understood is typology.
We all know that the Old Testament is full of stories, people, and historical events. A type is a person, thing, or event in the Old Testament that foreshadows something in the New Testament. It is like a taste or a hint of something that will be fulfilled or realized. Types are like pictures that come alive in a new and exciting way when seen through the eyes of Christ’s revelation. Augustine said that “the Old Testament is the New concealed, but the New Testament is the Old revealed” (Catechizing of the Uninstructed 4:8).
The idea of typology is not new. Paul says that Adam was a type of the one who was to come—Christ (Rom 5:14). Early Christians understood that the Old Testament was full of types or pictures that were fulfilled or realized in the New Testament.
Here are a few more examples of biblical typology:
- Peter uses Noah’s ark as a type of Christian baptism (1 Pt 3:18-22).
- Paul explains that circumcision foreshadowed Christian baptism (Col 2:11-12).
- Jesus uses the bronze serpent as a type of his Crucifixion (Jn 3:14; cf. Nm 21:8-9).
- The Passover lamb prefigures the sacrifice of Christ (1 Cor 5:7).
- Paul says that Abraham “considered that God was able to raise men even from the dead; hence, figuratively speaking, he did receive him back” (Heb 11:19).
The Ark of the Old Covenant
God loved his people and wanted to be close to them. He chose to do so in a very special way. The Catechism of the Catholic Church says, “The prayer of the people of God flourished in the shadow of the dwelling place of God’s presence on earth, the ark of the covenant and the temple, under the guidance of their shepherds, especially King David, and of the prophets” (CCC 2594). God instructed Moses to build a tabernacle surrounded by heavy curtains (cf. Ex 25-27). Within the tabernacle he was to place an ark made of acacia wood covered with gold inside and out. Within the Ark of the Covenant was placed a golden jar holding the manna, Aaron’s rod that budded, and the stone tablets of the covenant (cf. Heb 9:4).
When the ark was completed,
the
glory cloud of the Lord
(the Shekinah Glory)
covered the tent of meeting,
and the
glory of the Lord filled the tabernacle
(Ex 40:34-35; Nm 9:18, 22).
The verb for “to cover” or “to overshadow” and the metaphor of a cloud are used in the Bible to represent the presence and glory of God. The Catechism explains:
In the theophanies of the Old Testament, the cloud, now obscure, now luminous, reveals the living and saving God, while veiling the transcendence of his glory—with Moses on Mount Sinai, at the tent of meeting, and during the wandering in the desert, and with Solomon at the dedication of the temple. In the Holy Spirit, Christ fulfills these figures. The Spirit comes upon the Virgin Mary and “overshadows” her, so that she might conceive and give birth to Jesus. On the mountain of Transfiguration, the Spirit in the “cloud came and overshadowed” Jesus, Moses and Elijah, Peter, James and John, and “a voice came out of the cloud, saying, ‘This is my Son, my Chosen; listen to him!’” Finally, the cloud took Jesus out of the sight of the disciples on the day of his Ascension and will reveal him as Son of Man in glory on the day of his final coming. The glory of the Lord “overshadowed” the ark and filled the tabernacle. (CCC 697)
It’s easy to miss the parallel between the Holy Spirit overshadowing the ark and the Holy Spirit overshadowing Mary, between the Ark of the Old Covenant as the dwelling place of God and Mary as the new dwelling place of God.
God was very specific about every exact detail of the ark (Ex 25-30). It was a place where God himself would dwell (Ex 25:8). God wanted his words—inscribed on stone—housed in a perfect container covered with pure gold within and without. How much more would he want his Word—Jesus—to have a perfect dwelling place! If the only begotten Son were to take up residence in the womb of a human girl, would he not make her flawless?
The Virgin Mary is the living shrine of the Word of God, the Ark of the New and Eternal Covenant. In fact, St. Luke’s account of the Annunciation of the angel to Mary nicely incorporates the images of the tent of meeting with God in Sinai and of the temple of Zion. Just as the cloud covered the people of God marching in the desert (cf. Nm 10:34; Dt 33:12; Ps 91:4) and just as the same cloud, as a sign of the divine mystery present in the midst of Israel, hovered over the Ark of the Covenant (cf. Ex 40:35), so now the shadow of the Most High envelops and penetrates the tabernacle of the New Covenant that is the womb of Mary (cf. Lk 1:35). (Pontifical Council for the Pastoral Care of Migrants and Itinerant People, The Shrine: Memory, Presence and Prophecy of the Living God)
King David and ElizabethLuke weaves additional parallels into the story of Mary—types that could be overlooked if one is unfamiliar with the Old Testament. After Moses died, Joshua led the Israelites across the Jordan River into the Promised Land. Joshua established the Ark of the Covenant in Shiloh, where it stayed for more than 200 years. One day the Israelites were losing a battle with the Philistines, so they snatched the ark and rushed it to the front lines. The Philistines captured the ark, but it caused them great problems, so they sent it back to Israel (1 Sm 5:1-6:12).
David went out to retrieve the ark (1 Sm 6:1-2). After a man named Uzzah was struck dead when he touched the ark, David was afraid and said, “How can the ark of the Lord come to me?” He left the ark in the hill country of Judea for three months. We are also told that David danced and leapt in front of the ark and everyone shouted for joy. The house of Obed-edom, which had housed the ark, was blessed, and then David took the ark to Jerusalem (2 Sm 6:9-14).
Compare David and the ark to Luke’s account of the Visitation:
In those days Mary arose and went with haste into the hill country, to a city of Judah, and she entered the house of Zechariah and greeted Elizabeth. And when Elizabeth heard the greeting of Mary, the babe leaped in her womb; and Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit and she exclaimed with a loud cry, “Blessed are you among women, and blessed is the fruit of your womb! And why is this granted me, that the mother of my Lord should come to me? For behold, when the voice of your greeting came to my ears, the babe in my womb leaped for joy. And blessed is she who believed that there would be a fulfillment of what was spoken to her from the Lord.” (Lk 1:39-45)
- Mary arose and went to the hill country of Judea. I have been to both Ein Kerem (where Elizabeth lived) and Abu Ghosh (where the ark resided), and they are only a short walk apart. Mary and the ark were both on a journey to the same hill country of Judea.
- When David saw the ark he rejoiced and said, “How can the ark of the Lord come to me?” Elizabeth uses almost the same words: “Why is this granted me, that the mother of my Lord should come to me?” Luke is telling us something—drawing our minds back to the Old Testament, showing us a parallel.
- When David approached the ark he shouted out and danced and leapt in front of the ark. He was wearing an ephod, the clothing of a priest. When Mary, the Ark of the New Covenant, approached Elizabeth, John the Baptist leapt in his mother’s womb—and John was from the priestly line of Aaron. Both leapt and danced in the presence of the ark. The Ark of the Old Covenant remained in the house of Obed-edom for three months, and Mary remained in the house of Elizabeth for three months. The place that housed the ark for three months was blessed, and in the short paragraph in Luke, Elizabeth uses the word blessed three times. Her home was certainly blessed by the presence of the ark and the Lord within.
- When the Old Testament ark arrived—as when Mary arrived—they were both greeted with shouts of joy. The word for the cry of Elizabeth’s greeting is a rare Greek word used in connection with Old Testament liturgical ceremonies that were centered around the ark and worship (cf. Word Biblical Commentary, 67). This word would flip on the light switch for any knowledgeable Jew.
- The ark returns to its home and ends up in Jerusalem, where God’s presence and glory is revealed in the temple (2 Sm 6:12; 1 Kgs 8:9-11). Mary returns home and eventually ends up in Jerusalem, where she presents God incarnate in the temple (Lk 1:56; 2:21-22)
It seems clear that Luke has used typology to reveal something about the place of Mary in salvation history. In the Ark of the Old Covenant, God came to his people with a spiritual presence, but in Mary, the Ark of the New Covenant, God comes to dwell with his people not only spiritually but physically, in the womb of a specially prepared Jewish girl.
The Old Testament tells us that one item was placed inside the Ark of the Old Covenant while in the Sinai wilderness: God told Moses to put the stone tablets with the Ten Commandments inside the ark (Dt 10:3-5). Hebrews 9:4 informs us that two additional items were placed in the Ark: “a golden urn holding the manna, and Aaron’s rod that budded.” Notice the amazing parallels: In the ark was the law of God inscribed in stone; in Mary’s womb was the Word of God in flesh. In the ark was the urn of manna, the bread from heaven that kept God’s people alive in the wilderness; in Mary’s womb is the Bread of Life come down from heaven that brings eternal life. In the ark was the rod of Aaron, the proof of true priesthood; in Mary’s womb is the true priest. In the third century, St. Gregory the Wonder Worker said that Mary is truly an ark—”gold within and gold without, and she has received in her womb all the treasures of the sanctuary.”
While the apostle John was exiled on the island of Patmos, he wrote something that would have shocked any first-century Jew. The ark of the Old Covenant had been lost for centuries—no one had seen it for about 600 years. But in Revelation 11:19, John makes a surprising announcement: “Then God’s temple in heaven was opened, and the ark of his covenant was seen within his temple.”
At this point chapter 11 ends and chapter 12 begins. But the Bible was not written with chapter divisions—they were added in the 12th century. When John penned these words, there was no division between chapters 11 and 12; it was a continuing narrative.
What did John say immediately after seeing the Ark of the Covenant in heaven? “And a great portent appeared in heaven, a woman clothed with the sun, with the moon under her feet, and on her head a crown of twelve stars; she was with child” (Rv 12:1-2). The woman is Mary, the Ark of the Covenant, revealed by God to John. She was seen bearing the child who would rule the world with a rod of iron (Rv 12:5). Mary was seen as the ark and as a queen.
But does this passage really refer to Mary? Some say the woman represents Israel or the Church, and certainly she does. John’s use of rich symbolism is well known, but it is obvious from the Bible itself that the woman is Mary. The Bible begins with a real man (Adam), a real woman (Eve), and a real serpent (the devil)—and it also ends with a real man (Jesus, the Last Adam [1 Cor 15:45]), a real woman (Mary, the New Eve [Rv 11:19-12:2]), and a real serpent (the devil of old). All of this was foretold in Genesis 3:15.
John Henry Cardinal Newman wrote about this passage in Revelation:
What I would maintain is this, that the Holy Apostle would not have spoken of the Church under this particular image unless there had existed a Blessed Virgin Mary, who was exalted on high and the object of veneration to all the faithful. No one doubts that the “man-child” spoken of is an allusion to our Lord; why then is not “the Woman” an allusion to his mother? (On the Blessed Virgin Mary)
Later in the same chapter we read that the devil went out to persecute the woman’s other offspring—Christians—which certainly seems to indicate that Mary is somehow the mother of the Church (Rev. 12:17).
the Assumption teaches that at the end of her time on earth, Mary was taken up—body and soul—into heaven. There, she sits at her Son’s right hand, as Queen of Heaven and Earth. The foundation for the teaching is rooted in Scripture, specifically in John’s mysterious and apocalyptic vision recorded in Revelation 12.
First and foremost, the woman of Revelation 12 is identified as Mary, the one “who brought forth a male child, one who is to rule all the nations with a rod of iron . . . [the one] caught up to God and his throne” (Rev 12:5). Revelation 12, however, also uses imagery that reveals the woman to be Daughter Zion, the Queen-Bride of Israel, and the Mother of the Church.
In likening the woman to the Queen Bride of Israel, his description of her echoes Isaiah, who said that Israel would be arrayed like a radiant Queen Bride (Is 60:19–20, 62:3–5). Solomon’s bride in the Song of Solomon is similarly described (Songs 6:10). John drives this point home by telling us that the woman wears a crown of twelve stars, an obvious symbol of the twelve tribes of Israel.
But, throughout Revelation, the twelve tribes are also reckoned as signs of the twelve Apostles, the representatives of the new Israel, the Church (Rev 7:4–8, 21:12–14). So, just as Daughter Zion was a symbol of the chosen people of God—Israel—the woman in Revelation is also a symbol of the new people of God, the Church. Paul, in language similar to that of Revelation, called the Church “the Jerusalem above . . . our mother.” He also spoke of the Church as the Bride of Christ (Gal 4:26; Eph 5:31–32). Likewise, John referred to the Church as a “Lady” (2 Jn, v. 5). The woman of Revelation, however, is more than a symbol for the Church. She is also its mother with “offspring” in addition to the one male child to whom she gives birth. And those children are described in Revelation as those who believe in Jesus.
In Revelation 12 we see a great battle which is a dramatic portrayal of the fulfillment of God’s promise in the Garden of Eden. The serpent lies in wait beneath the woman, preparing to devour her off spring. The birth of her son becomes the occasion for mortal combat. During the battle, the woman flees into the desert—to a place especially prepared for her by God. Later, after the devil’s defeat, John sees the woman given eagle’s wings to fly to a place in the desert where she would be nourished by God. John’s language recalls Jesus’ words to his Apostles in John 14:1–3. The language of preparing a place is also often used in the New Testament to describe the destiny God has planned for his children (Mt 20:23, 25:34; 1 Pet 1:5; 1 Cor 2:9). John’s words also evoke God’s care for Israel in the wilderness (Ex 19:4; Deut 1:31–33, 32:10–12, 8:2–3).
The picture Revelation paints serves as the biblical outline for the Church’s dogma of Mary’s Assumption. Mary is Daughter Zion, the woman who gave birth to the world’s Savior. Because she is the New Eve, she is free from the shadow of sin and its consequences. This includes the long-term separation of soul and body that exists for the rest of us as we wait for the resurrection of the body at the end of time. Mary has been taken up into heaven by God to join her Son in the place He prepared for her. And in that place, as Christ the King’s mother, she sits at His right hand, wearing the crown of the Queen Mother. Additional scriptural evidence for Mary’s Assumption lies in the fact that there are at least two foreshadowings of it in the Old Testament as seen with Enoch and Elijah.
In Revelation chapters 1—3, “seven stars” are referenced four times. There are other “sevens,” as well: seven lampstands, seven spirits, and seven churches. Also, the first few chapters of Revelation contain letters from Jesus to seven historical churches in Asia Minor.
In Revelation 1, John is “in the Spirit” and hears “a loud voice like a trumpet” behind him (verse 10). He turns around and sees a vision of the Lord Jesus in His glory. The Lord is standing in the midst of seven golden lampstands, and “in his right hand he held seven stars” (verse 16). John falls down at Jesus’ feet “as though dead” (verse 17). Jesus then revives John and strengthens him for the task of writing the coming revelation.
The fact that the stars are in Jesus’ right hand indicates that they are important and under His authority. The right hand is a sign of strength and control. Jesus explains to John that the “stars are the angels of the seven churches” (Revelation 1:20). An “angel” is literally a “messenger.” But that leads us to the question—are these human messengers or heavenly beings?
It could be that every local church has a “guardian angel” who oversees and protects that congregation. Even if that is the case, a better interpretation of the “messengers” of Revelation 1 is that they are the pastors or bishops of the seven churches, symbolized by the lampstands. A pastor is God’s “messenger” to the church in that he is responsible to faithfully preach God’s Word to them. John’s vision shows that each pastor is being held in the Lord’s right hand. And, as we learn in John 10:28, no one can snatch them out of Jesus’ hand.
these candlesticks were made of gold, the most precious and valuable of all metals. In this sense, the golden lampstands symbolize the preciousness of the church as God’s most valued possession (see John 3:16). The gold of the lampstands may also be symbolic of purity and holiness. The church is called to be an example of God’s holiness to the world (1 Peter 1:15–16).
And of course candlesticks are designed to bring light to dark places. God’s purpose for the church is to hold forth the light. Jesus said, “You are the light of the world. A town built on a hill cannot be hidden. Neither do people light a lamp and put it under a bowl. Instead they put it on its stand, and it gives light to everyone in the house. In the same way, let your light shine before others, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your Father in heaven” (Matthew 5:14–16). In Jesus’ letter to the church of Ephesus, a church that had left its first love, the Lord warns that they must repent or He will come to them and “remove your lampstand from its place” (Revelation 2:5). In other words, the church was in danger of losing its opportunity to testify of Christ in their community.
In John’s vision, Jesus Christ stands in the center of the seven candlesticks, in the midst of His people. Christ is always present with His church. A candlestick is not the light itself but the bearer of the light. Jesus is the light of the world (John 8:12), and, as candlesticks, the church’s mission is to hold that light up for the world to see: “So that you may become blameless and pure, children of God without fault in a crooked and depraved generation, in which you shine like stars in the universe as you hold out the word of life” (Philippians 2:15–16).
Revelation 1:4–5, “John, To the seven churches in the province of Asia: Grace and peace to you from him who is, and who was, and who is to come, and from the seven spirits before his throne, and from Jesus Christ . . .”
• Revelation 3:1, “To the angel of the church in Sardis write: These are the words of him who holds the seven spirits of God . . .”
• Revelation 4:5, “From the throne came flashes of lightning, rumblings and peals of thunder. In front of the throne, seven lamps were blazing. These are the seven spirits of God.”
• Revelation 5:6, “Then I saw a Lamb, looking as if it had been slain, standing at the center of the throne, encircled by the four living creatures and the elders. The Lamb had seven horns and seven eyes, which are the seven spirits of God sent out into all the earth.”
The identity of “the seven spirits” is not explicit in these passages, but arriving at the proper interpretation is fairly straightforward. The “seven spirits” cannot be seven angelic beings such as seraphim or cherubim because of the context of Revelation 1:4. John says that “grace and peace” are coming to the churches from three sources: “him who is, and who was, and who is to come” (verse 4), “the seven spirits before the throne” (verse 4), and “Jesus Christ” (verse 5). This is a depiction of the Trinity: grace and peace are given by the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit, the three co-equal Persons of the Godhead.
In Revelation 3:1 Jesus “holds” the seven spirits of God. In John 15:26, Jesus “sends” the Holy Spirit from the Father. Both passages suggest the superordinate role of the Son and the subordinate role of the Spirit.
In Revelation 4:5 the seven spirits of God are symbolized as seven burning lamps that are before God’s throne. This picture agrees with Zechariah’s vision in which he sees the Holy Spirit symbolized as “a solid gold lampstand . . . with a bowl at the top and seven lamps on it” (Zechariah 4:2).
In Revelation 5:6 the seven spirits are the “seven eyes” of the Lamb, and they are “sent out into all the earth.” The seven eyes speak of the Spirit’s (and the Lamb’s) omniscience, and the fact that He is sent into all the earth speaks of His omnipresence.
Once we identify the “seven spirits” as the Holy Spirit, the question remains, why are there “seven” of Him? The Bible, and especially the book of Revelation, uses the number seven to refer to perfection and completion. John’s vision includes a picture of the perfect and complete Holy Spirit.
Isaiah 11:2 also references the Holy Spirit using a seven-fold description: “The Spirit of the LORD will rest on him—the Spirit of wisdom and of understanding, the Spirit of counsel and of power, the Spirit of knowledge and of the fear of the LORD.” The prophecy is that the Messiah would be empowered not by seven individual spirits but by the One Spirit, described seven ways:
1) The Spirit of the LORD
2) The Spirit of wisdom
3) The Spirit of understanding
4) The Spirit of counsel
5) The Spirit of power
6) The Spirit of knowledge
7) The Spirit of the fear of the Lord
The “seven spirits of God”
in the
book of Revelation
are thus a reference to the
Holy Spirit
in the perfection of His manifold
ministry.
The Two Witnesses
I was given a reed like a measuring rod and was told, “Go and measure the temple of God and the altar, with its worshipers. But exclude the outer court; do not measure it, because it has been given to the Gentiles. They will trample on the holy city for 42 months. And I will appoint my two witnesses, and they will prophesy for 1,260 days, clothed in sackcloth.” They are “the two olive trees” and the two lampstands, and “they stand before the Lord of the earth.”
If anyone tries to harm them, fire comes from their mouths and devours their enemies. This is how anyone who wants to harm them must die. They have power to shut up the heavens so that it will not rain during the time they are prophesying; and they have power to turn the waters into blood and to strike the earth with every kind of plague as often as they want.
Now when they have finished their testimony, the beast that comes up from the Abyss will attack them, and overpower and kill them. Their bodies will lie in the public square of the great city—which is figuratively called Sodom and Egypt—where also their Lord was crucified. For three and a half days some from every people, tribe, language and nation will gaze on their bodies and refuse them burial. The inhabitants of the earth will gloat over them and will celebrate by sending each other gifts, because these two prophets had tormented those who live on the earth.
But after the three and a half days the breath of life from God entered them, and they stood on their feet, and terror struck those who saw them. Then they heard a loud voice from heaven saying to them, “Come up here.” And they went up to heaven in a cloud, while their enemies looked on.
At that very hour there was a severe earthquake and a tenth of the city collapsed. Seven thousand people were killed in the earthquake, and the survivors were terrified and gave glory to the God of heaven.
The seventh angel sounded his trumpet,
and there were
loud voices in heaven, which said:
“The kingdom of the world has become
the kingdom of
our Lord
and of his Messiah,
and he
will reign for ever and ever.”
And the twenty-four elders,
who were seated on their thrones before God,
fell on their faces and worshiped God,
saying:
“We give thanks to you, Lord God Almighty,
the One who is and who was,
because you have taken your great power
and have begun to reign.
The nations were angry,
and your wrath has come.
The time has come for judging the dead,
and for rewarding your servants the prophets
and your people who revere your name,
both great and small--
and for
destroying those who destroy the earth.”
Then God’s temple in heaven was opened,
and within his temple
was seen the ark of his covenant.
And there came flashes of lightning, rumblings,
peals of thunder,
an earthquake and a severe hailstorm.
Refined like gold" is a biblical phrase that means to be purified and made stronger through difficult experiences, similar to how gold is refined by fire to remove impurities, leaving behind the pure metal; it signifies that going through trials and hardships can lead to spiritual growth and a deeper character, just like the refining process with gold makes it more valuable
The writer to the Hebrews talks about the arrangement of the tabernacle of the Old Testament. The tabernacle was the portable sanctuary used by the Israelites from the time of their wandering in the wilderness after the Exodus from Egypt to the building of the temple in Jerusalem (see Exodus 25–27). Within the tabernacle was the ark of the covenant which included the mercy seat (Hebrews 9:3-5 NKJV).
The ark of the covenant, the chest containing the two stone tablets inscribed with the Ten Commandments, was the most sacred object of the tabernacle and later in the temple in Jerusalem, where it was placed in an inner area called the Holy of Holies. Also within the ark were the golden pot of manna, such as was provided by God in the wilderness wanderings (Exodus 16:4) and Aaron’s almond rod (Numbers 17:1-13). On top of the ark was a lid called the mercy seat on which rested the cloud or visible symbol of the divine presence. Here God was supposed to be seated, and from this place He was supposed to dispense mercy to man when the blood of the atonement was sprinkled there.
In a manner of speaking, the mercy seat concealed the people of God from the ever-condemning judgment of the Law. Each year on the Day of Atonement, the high priest entered the Holy of Holies and sprinkled the blood of animals sacrificed for the atonement of the sins of God’s people. This blood was sprinkled on the mercy seat. The point conveyed by this imagery is that it is only through the offering of blood that the condemnation of the Law could be taken away and violations of God’s laws covered.
The Greek word for “mercy seat” in Hebrews 9:5 is hilasterion, which means “that which makes expiation” or “propitiation.” It carries the idea of the removal of sin. In Ezekiel 43:13-15, the brazen altar of sacrifice is also called hilasterion (the propitiatory or mercy seat) in the Septuagint (the Greek translation of the Old Testament) because of its association with the shedding of blood for sin.
What is the significance of this? In the New Testament, Christ Himself is designated as our “propitiation.” Paul explains this in his letter to the Romans: “Being justified freely by His grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus, whom God set forth as a propitiation by His blood, through faith, to demonstrate His righteousness, because in His forbearance God had passed over the sins that were previously committed” (Romans 3:24-25 NKJV). What Paul is teaching here is that Jesus is the covering for sin, as shown by these Old Testament prophetic images. By means of His death, and our response to Christ through our faith in Him, all our sins are covered. Also, whenever believers sin, we may turn to Christ who continues to be the propitiation or covering for our sins (1 John 2:1, 4:10). This ties together the Old and New Testament concepts regarding the covering of sin as exemplified by the mercy-seat of God.
There was a time when King David asked God to restore to him the joy of his salvation. That time came after the incident recorded in 2 Samuel 11 of David committing adultery with Bathsheba, the wife of one of his loyal soldiers. The sordid story involves not only adultery but Bathsheba’s pregnancy, an attempted cover-up, and David’s eventual murder of Bathsheba’s husband. David then marries Bathsheba and believes that no one will ever know of his misdeeds. But the last part of verse 27 contains this ominous declaration: “But the thing David had done displeased the Lord.”
In 2 Samuel 12, the prophet Nathan confronts David with his sin, and David confesses (verse 14).
Psalm 51 is a song that David penned after this confrontation as noted in the title: “For the director of music. A psalm of David. When the prophet Nathan came to him after David had committed adultery with Bathsheba.”
Psalm 51 is a prayer
of
forgiveness and cleansing.
Verses 1–9:
“Have mercy on me, O God,
according to your unfailing love;
according to your great compassion
blot out my transgressions.
Wash away all my iniquity
and cleanse me from my sin.
For I know my transgressions,
and my sin is always before me.
Against you, you only, have I sinned
and done what is evil in your sight;
so you are right in your verdict
and justified when you judge.
Surely I was sinful at birth,
sinful from the time my mother conceived me.
Yet you desired faithfulness even in the womb;
you taught me wisdom in that secret place.
Cleanse me with hyssop, and I will be clean;
wash me, and I will be whiter than snow.
Let me hear joy and gladness;
let the bones you have crushed rejoice.
Hide your face from my sins
and blot out all my iniquity.”
Verses 10–12 are perhaps the most famous
of Psalm 51:
“Create in me a pure heart, O God,
and renew a steadfast spirit within me.
Do not cast me from your presence
or take your Holy Spirit from me.
Restore to me the joy of your salvation
and grant me a willing spirit, to sustain me.”
In verse 11 David asks that the Holy Spirit not be removed from him. In the Old Testament, the Holy Spirit usually came upon a person to enable the performance of a certain task. If the Holy Spirit were removed from David, it would mean that he would be rejected by God as king in the same way that God had rejected Saul and removed His Spirit from him (1 Samuel 16:14).
Next, David asks God to restore the joy of his salvation. The time between David’s sin and Nathan’s confrontation was some months because the child had already been born. During that time, David suffered inner torment, as he describes in Psalm 32:3–4:
“When I kept silent,
my bones wasted away
through my groaning all day long.
For day and night
your hand was heavy on me;
my strength was sapped
as in the heat of summer.”
Despite all the steps David had taken to suppress the news of what he had done, he did not experience joy in the cover-up. However, once he confessed his sin to God, he received forgiveness, and his joy returned. Psalm 32 begins this way:
“Blessed is the one
whose transgressions are forgiven,
whose sins are covered.
Blessed is the one
whose sin the Lord does not count against them
and in whose spirit is no deceit.”
Psalm 32 ends with “Rejoice in the LORD and be glad, you righteous; sing, all you who are upright in heart!” (verse 11).
When David pleads with God to “restore to me the joy of your salvation,” he is asking that he would again have the fellowship with God that he once knew and enjoyed. David could not enjoy God’s fellowship while he had unconfessed sin.
Even today, we can lose the joy of our salvation. We will not lose salvation—sin will not separate the believer from God—but it can rob us of joy and the enjoyment of close fellowship with our Savior.
Whiter than snow figuratively expresses the condition of one who has received God’s forgiveness, cleansing from sin, and redemption.
King David wrote Psalm 51 during his blackest hour of self-awareness after committing adultery with Bathsheba and murdering her husband, Uriah. In this fourth “penitential psalm,” we find David in sincere repentance and confession of sin (Psalm 51:3–5). Believing God abounds in mercy, David makes this earnest plea: “Purge me with hyssop, and I shall be clean; wash me, and I shall be whiter than snow” (Psalm 51:7, ESV).
Hyssop was a small shrub used in the ceremonial cleansing of lepers under the Old Testament law. It was dipped in the sacrificial blood of an animal and sprinkled seven times on the person needing purification (Leviticus 14:6–7). David referred to hyssop symbolically in Psalm 51 to communicate his longing to be purified of sin. God’s forgiveness would make him “whiter than snow,” spiritually speaking.
David acknowledged that he had been deeply stained by sin, comparing himself to a filthy garment needing to be washed thoroughly. Only the most potent remedy could cleanse him. David even tracked his iniquity back to its source, the corruption of original sin: “For I was born a sinner—yes, from the moment my mother conceived me” (Psalm 51:5, NLT).
David’s prayer then turned to restoration and renewal. It was as though David could hear the forthcoming cry of God’s heart through the prophet Isaiah: “Wash yourselves and be clean! Get your sins out of my sight. Give up your evil ways” (Isaiah 1:16, NLT). So David pleaded with the Lord, “Wash me, and I shall be whiter than snow,” foreshadowing Isaiah’s words, “Though your sins are like scarlet, I will make them as white as snow. Though they are red like crimson, I will make them as white as wool” (Isaiah 1:16–18, NLT).
David’s prayer to be washed and made whiter than snow prefigured “the greater, more perfect” appropriation of God’s grace, forgiveness, and salvation made available through the sacrifice of Jesus Christ: “So Christ has now become the High Priest over all the good things that have come. He has entered that greater, more perfect Tabernacle in heaven, which was not made by human hands and is not part of this created world. With his own blood—not the blood of goats and calves—he entered the Most Holy Place once for all time and secured our redemption forever. Under the old system, the blood of goats and bulls and the ashes of a heifer could cleanse people’s bodies from ceremonial impurity. Just think how much more the blood of Christ will purify our consciences from sinful deeds so that we can worship the living God. For by the power of the eternal Spirit, Christ offered himself to God as a perfect sacrifice for our sins” (Hebrews 9:11–14, NLT).
We may consider our transgressions to be worse than David’s, but there are no sins that the blood of Jesus Christ cannot cleanse. Saul of Tarsus, the persecutor of Christians who became the great apostle Paul, was told by Ananias at his conversion, “Get up and be baptized, and wash away your sins by calling on His name” (Acts 22:16, HCSB). The apostle John affirmed, “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. . . . If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness” (1 John 1:7–9).
Like every Christian, we have flaws and must repent and draw near to the Lord in our blackest moments of failure, asking Christ “who loves us and has freed us from our sins by his blood” (Revelation 1:5) to forgive us and wash our guilt-stained souls whiter than snow (Hebrews 10:19–23).
The book of Revelation
describes a
group of redeemed people
as those who
“have washed their robes and made
them white
in the blood of the Lamb”
(Revelation 7:14).
It is through Christ’s sacrifice on the cross—the shedding of His blood—that we are redeemed and rescued from the kingdom of darkness and transferred to the kingdom of God (Colossians 1:13, 20; Ephesians 1:7). David, Paul, and John will undoubtedly be among the “thousands upon thousands” worshipping around the throne dressed in robes washed whiter than snow.
Together with them, we will join in the thundering chorus, “Worthy is the Lamb, who was slain, to receive power and wealth and wisdom and strength and honor and glory and praise! . . . To him who sits on the throne and to the Lamb be praise and honor and glory and power, for ever and ever!”
(Revelation 5:11–13).
1Then I looked and saw the Lamb standing on Mount Zion, and with Him 144,000
who had His name
and His Father’s name written on their foreheads.
2And I heard a sound from heaven like the roar of many waters and the loud rumbling of thunder.
And the sound I heard was like harpists strumming their harps.
3And they sang a new song before the throne and before the four living creatures and the elders. And no one could learn the song except the 144,000 who had been redeemed from the earth. 4These are the ones who have not been defiled with women, for they are virgins. They follow the Lamb wherever He goes. They have been redeemed from among men as firstfruits to God and to the Lamb. 5And no lie was found in their mouths; they are blameless.
6Then I saw another angel flying overhead, with the eternal gospel to proclaim to those who dwell on the earth—to every nation and tribe and tongue and people.7And he said in a loud voice, “Fear God and give Him glory, because the hour of His judgment has come. Worship the One who made the heavens and the earth and the sea and the springs of waters.”
8Then a second angel followed, saying, “Fallen, fallen is Babylon the great, who has made all the nations drink the wine of the passion of her immorality.”
9And a third angel followed them, calling out in a loud voice, “If anyone worships the beast and its image and receives its mark on his forehead or on his hand, 10he too will drink the wine of God’s anger, poured undiluted into the cup of His wrath. And he will be tormented in fire and sulfur in the presence of the holy angels and of the Lamb. 11And the smoke of their torment rises forever and ever. Day and night there is no rest for those who worship the beast and its image, or for anyone who receives the mark of its name.”
12Here is a call for the perseverance of the saints, who keep the commandments of God and the faith of Jesus.
13And I heard a voice from heaven telling me to write, “Blessed are the dead—those who die in the Lord from this moment on.”
“Yes,” says the Spirit, “they will rest from their labors, for their deeds will follow them.”
The Harvest of the Earth
14And I looked and saw a white cloud, and seated on the cloud was One like the Son of Man,c with a golden crown on His head and a sharp sickle in His hand.
15Then another angel came out of the temple, crying out in a loud voice to the One seated on the cloud, “Swing Your sickle and reap, because the time has come to harvest, for the crop of the earth is ripe.” 16So the One seated on the cloud swung His sickle over the earth, and the earth was harvested.
17Then another angel came out of the temple in heaven, and he too had a sharp sickle. 18Still another angel, with authority over the fire, came from the altar and called out in a loud voice to the angel with the sharp sickle, “Swing your sharp sickle and gather the clusters of grapes from the vine of the earth, because its grapes are ripe.”
19So the angel swung his sickle over the earth and gathered the grapes of the earth, and he threw them into the great winepress of God’s wrath. 20And the winepress was trodden outside the city, and the blood that flowed from it rose as high as the bridles of the horses for a distance of 1,600 stadia.d
The Woman and the Dragon
1And a great sign appeared in heaven: a woman clothed in the sun, with the moon under her feet and a crown of twelve stars on her head. 2She was pregnant and crying out in the pain and agony of giving birth.
3Then another sign appeared in heaven: a huge red dragon with seven heads, ten horns, and seven royal crowns on his heads. 4His tail swept a third of the stars from the sky, hurling them to the earth. And the dragon stood before the woman who was about to give birth, ready to devour her child as soon as she gave birth.
5And she gave birth to a son, a male child, who will rule all the nations with an iron scepter.a And her child was caught up to God and to His throne. 6And the woman fled into the wilderness, where God had prepared a place for her to be nourished for 1,260 days.
The War in Heaven
7Then a war broke out in heaven: Michael and his angels fought against the dragon, and the dragon and his angels fought back. 8But the dragon was not strong enough, and no longer was any place found in heaven for him and his angels. 9And the great dragon was hurled down—that ancient serpent called the devil and Satan, the deceiver of the whole world. He was hurled to the earth, and his angels with him.
10And I heard a loud voice in heaven saying:
“Now have come the salvation and the power
and the kingdom of our God,
and the authority of His Christ.
For the accuser of our brothers has been thrown down--
he who accuses them day and night before our God.
11They have conquered him by the blood of the Lamb
and by the word of their testimony.
And they did not love their lives
so as to shy away from death.
12Therefore rejoice, O heavens,
and you who dwell in them!
But woe to the earth and the sea;
with great fury the devil has come down to you,
knowing he has only a short time.”
The Woman Persecuted
13And when the dragon saw that he had been thrown to the earth, he pursued the woman who had given birth to the male child. 14But the woman was given two wings of a great eagle to fly from the presence of the serpent to her place in the wilderness, where she was nourished for a time, and times, and half a time.
15Then from his mouth the serpent spewed water like a river to overtake the woman and sweep her away in the torrent. 16But the earth helped the woman and opened its mouth to swallow up the river that the dragon had poured from his mouth. 17And the dragon was enraged at the woman and went to make war with the rest of her children, who keep the commandments of God and hold to the testimony of Jesus.
And the dragon stood on the shore of the sea.
Revelation 12:10 calls Satan the “accuser of our brothers and sisters, who accuses them before our God day and night.” The context of the verse describes a cosmic battlebetween a great red dragon (identified as Satan in Revelation 12:7) and the angelic hosts of heaven. The dragon is hurled to the earth (Revelation 12:9), the authority of the Messiah is locked in place (verse 10), and the believers are victorious:
“And they overcame him by the blood of the Lamb and by the word of their testimony, and they did not love their lives to the death” (Revelation 12:11, NKJV).
During the tribulation of the end times, Satan’s wrath against God’s’ people, especially Israel (the “woman” of Revelation 12) will intensify. But the believers are promised to overcome. Dr. Charles Ryrie comments on Revelation 12:11: “The believer’s defense against Satan is (1) to bank on the merits of the death of Christ, (2) to be active in witnessing, and (3) to be willing to make any sacrifice, including death” (The Ryrie Study Bible, Moody Press, 1978, p. 1,801).
Down through the centuries, the “great dragon” Satan has despised the mercy, love, grace, and forgiveness that God pours out on believers in Jesus Christ. With relentless, evil determination, the devil hounds us, fixated on destroying our walk with God and chasing us back into a spiritual prison. But, day by day, night by night, believers always overcome him “by the blood of the Lamb” (Revelation 12:11).
Satan’s tireless goal in the life of every Christian is to prevent, disrupt, and cut off his or her relationship with God. He “prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour” (1 Peter 5:8). But the devil’s only real power over believers is to throw our sins and transgressions in our faces. He is the accuser. Thankfully, the sacrifice of Christ has effectively dealt with the problem. It is the blood of Jesus Christ—the blood of the Lamb—that redeems people, setting them free from slavery to sin and Satan’s control.
Scripture gives us vivid pictures of Christ’s redemptive work on the cross. Peter explains that “God paid a ransom” to save us from our old empty way of life. “And it was not paid with mere gold or silver, which lose their value. It was the precious blood of Christ, the sinless, spotless Lamb of God” (1 Peter 1:18–19, NLT). The tribulation saints will have “washed their robes and made them white in the blood of the Lamb” (Revelation 7:14). When Jesus Christ died, His precious blood “purchased for God persons from every tribe and language and people and nation” (Revelation 5:9). Jesus’ blood was poured out “for the forgiveness of sins” (Matthew 26:28), and it “purifies us from all sin” (1 John 1:7).
Satan tries to condemn us, but we overcome by the blood of the Lamb. “There is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus, because through Christ Jesus the law of the Spirit who gives life has set you free from the law of sin and death” (Romans 8:1–2). Jesus freed us from the spiritual chains of sin (John 8:35–36; Romans 6:17–22).
The next time Satan tries to hurl past failures in your face, remember that “God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him. Whoever believes in him is not condemned” (John 3:17–18).
All believers—past, present and future—overcome the accuser by the blood of the Lamb. Jesus Christ’s death is the definitive basis for our victory over the enemy of our souls. The apostle Paul asks, “Who dares accuse us whom God has chosen for his own? No one—for God himself has given us right standing with himself. Who then will condemn us? No one—for Christ Jesus died for us and was raised to life for us, and he is sitting in the place of honor at God’s right hand, pleading for us” (Romans 8:33–34, NLT). Despite everything in the devil’s arsenal that he can throw at us, “in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us” (Romans 8:37).
Paul tells the Colossians, “For you were buried with Christ when you were baptized. And with him you were raised to new life because you trusted the mighty power of God, who raised Christ from the dead. You were dead because of your sins and because your sinful nature was not yet cut away. Then God made you alive with Christ, for he forgave all our sins. He canceled the record of the charges against us and took it away by nailing it to the cross. In this way, he disarmed the spiritual rulers and authorities. He shamed them publicly by his victory over them on the cross. So don’t let anyone condemn you” (Colossians 2:12–16, NLT).
We must not allow the devil to deceive us with
lies and accusations.
Every charge
he can
bring against us is canceled,
nailed to the cross,
and overcome by
the blood of the Lamb.
It may seem
strange that, in Revelation 12, a raging dragon
is overcome by a slain lamb.
Lambs are not usually seen as dragon-slayers.
But such is the power and efficacy of the
death of Christ.
Because of Christ’s shed blood on the cross,
sin has lost its grip on us.
Whenever Satan accuses us,
we can sing,
“My chains are gone; I’ve been set free.”
