Not to us, Lord, not to us
but to your name be the glory, because of your love and faithfulness. Why do the nations say, ‘Where is their God?’ Our God is in heaven; he does whatever pleases him. But their idols are silver and gold, made by human hands. They have mouths, but cannot speak, eyes, but cannot see. They have ears, but cannot hear, noses, but cannot smell. They have hands, but cannot feel, feet, but cannot walk, nor can they utter a sound with their throats. Those who make them will be like them, and so will all who trust in them. All you Israelites, trust in the Lord – he is their help and shield. House of Aaron, trust in the Lord – he is their help and shield. You who fear him, trust in the Lord – he is their help and shield. The Lord remembers us and will bless us: he will bless his people Israel, he will bless the house of Aaron, he will bless those who fear the Lord – small and great alike. May the Lord cause you to flourish, both you and your children. May you be blessed by the Lord, the Maker of heaven and earth. The highest heavens belong to the Lord, but the earth he has given to the human race. It is not the dead who praise the Lord, those who go down to the place of silence; it is we who extol the Lord, both now and for evermore. Praise the Lord. Observe:
The Gospel of Luke begins with a dedication to a man named Theophilus in which Luke describes himself as an eyewitness to the life of Jesus Christ and the following work as one that will bring clarity and certainty to any who read it. He begins with the foretelling and birth of John the Baptist who was born to a priest named Zechariah and his wife Elizabeth, who was barren. An angel appeared to Zechariah, explaining that his wife would conceive and that their child would be full of the Holy Spirit and on a mission to turn the hearts of the people of Israel towards God so that they might be ready to receive their Lord. Zechariah expressed his doubt and was rendered mute until the naming of his son, John. Mary, the mother of Jesus, was visited in much the same way and told of the One she would bear. He was to be named Jesus, the Son of the Most High. After this, she goes to see her relative Elizabeth who was already in her sixth month of pregnancy. The two rejoice together at their marvelous conceptions! After the birth of John the Baptist, Zechariah prophesies the fulfilment of the covenant made with Abraham all those generations ago. Interpret: John the Baptist is the last of the Old Covenant prophets and comes right on the heels of the New Covenant. Both John and Jesus exist as a comingling of the two epochs, the former ushering in the latter in the waters of baptism. If we look closely at the way in with John the Baptist was introduced not only to his parents but to the rest of the world through prophecy, there are a striking number of allusions to what we read in the Old Testament. For starters, there was the giving of a child to a barren couple, just like Sarah in Genesis and Hannah in 1 Samuel. I sense a nod to Samson when Zechariah is told that his child must not tough wine or strong drink, and that he would be full of the Holy Spirit as seen in the book of Kings. He would be a prophet, charged with turning the hearts of fathers to their children, the disobedient to wisdom, and to prepare a way for the Lord. John then grew up, strong in the spirit, away in the wilderness until his time had come, and we can recall the many years during which the Lord led Israel through the wilderness too! Most striking of all, however, is the connection that Zechariah makes in his prophecy between the birth of John and the one whom he would go before (that is, Jesus), and the incredible insight that Jesus would be the salvation, the redeemer, the king from the line of David foretold by the prophets of old who would “give light to those who sit in darkness and in the shadow of death, to guide our feet in the way of peace.” In the Gospel of Luke, in this very first chapter, we see an intentional and purposeful weaving of the Old Testament into John the Baptist, the life of John with that of Jesus, and the life of Jesus as the fulfilment of everything that had come before. The stage couldn’t be better set for the most important century in human history! Application and question: Jesus is the point of the Bible. He is the perfect revelation of God, the Word made flesh who came to dwell among us and be the wounded saviour of which we read all the way back in Genesis 3. Jesus is the focal point of history, our solid rock in the present, and our homecoming in the future. Reflecting on the sheer magnitude of His birth, life, death, and resurrection, how does that impact you? Do you make him the focal point in your life too? Is there anything else more important or worthy than Him? Prayer: Father, we thank you for knowing our needs and desires, and for loving us anyway. We are deeply sorry that we haven’t made you our foundation or the center of our lives. Please tear away anything and everything we are tempted to put in our hearts and lives to replace you, so that we may truly live on this earth as exiles, as sojourners, wanting only to know you and to make you known. Amen! Song: New Wine - Hillsongs John 19-21 (Ps. 111)
Jesus moves, prophecy by prophecy, toward Calvary. Isaiah 50:6: “I offered my back to those who beat me and my cheeks to those who pulled out my beard. I did not hide my face from mockery and spitting.” Pilate has Jesus flogged (19:1); an iron-tipped whip lacerates His back. The soldiers spit on Him, slap His face, strike His head (bleeding from the thorn ‘crown’) with a reed, humiliating Him (2). Psalm 22:16: “My enemies surround me like a pack of dogs; an evil gang closes in on me. They have pierced my hands and feet.” Brutal Roman soldiers nail wrists and feet to rough wood. (23) Psalm 22:15: “ My strength has dried up like sun-baked clay, My tongue sticks to the roof of My mouth.” Psalm 69:21b: “They offer me sour wine for my thirst.” Despite His thirst, He refuses the offered sour wine. He is very near the end. (28,29) Psalm 22:18: “They divide my garments among themselves and throw dice for my clothing.” Daniel 9:26: “The Anointed One will be put to death and have nothing.” His seamless garment is the prize for hardened soldiers gambling at the foot of a cross that bears the suffering servant-King, their Saviour. The magnitude of this death is meaningless to such hearts. (23-24) Psalm 31:5a: “I entrust my Spirit into Your Hand.” A shout of triumph over death and sin, and Jesus’ sacrifice is complete. (30) Exodus 12:46: “Do not break any of the bones". The Passover Lamb must be whole. Psalm 34:20: “He keeps all his bones; not one of them is broken.” Soldiers break crucified criminals’ legs. Unable to push themselves up to breathe, asphyxiation hastens death. The Lamb of God, already dead, is left whole. (31-36) Isaiah 53: 9c: “He was put in a rich man’s grave.” Pilate permits Joseph of Arimathea to bury Jesus as it is the eve of Passover Sabbath. He and Nicodemus carry His body to a new tomb and lay Him there. (38-42) John records the awesome mystery of Jesus’ Resurrection. As at the Transfiguration, He is changed. Mary eventually recognizes His voice (20:16). He is bodily present but until He ascends to His Father, earth cannot contain Him. His Resurrection body is real. He doesn’t walk through locked doors like a phantom; they open for Him to enter a room. He breathes the Holy Spirit into His disciples and commissions them. Thomas, not present, is skeptical until he sees Him for himself. Chapter 21 reconciles Peter’s three denials by his threefold declaration of love for Jesus; he receives his commission (15-19). The final sentence declares Jesus’ numberless unrecorded acts. God with us -- then, now, forever – awesome beyond words. Redemption is no small feat. Apply “…the Holy Spirit uses all of God’s reliable and life-applicable words to transform us and affirm that His story will end well for believers in Jesus.” (Our Daily Bread 8/28/21) The world is in thrall to godless powers and principalities. Let’s not be surprised as fiery darts come at us by forces opposed to Christ. By faith and faithfulness, prayer and worship in Christ-centred community, we stand firm in His powerful name, wearing His armour against increasing hatred for His church; then, having done all, [we] stand.(Eph 6:13). His story ends well, and His story is ours. Ask Jesus, how do I live out of You? Am I indifferent to the magnitude of Your death and rising? Should I not praise You every minute of my life for Your sacrifice that frees me from sin, Your Resurrection that gives me life? Holy Spirit, would You help me grasp the immensity of Jesus’ sacrifice, then in Your grace, resolutely keep on His Way? Pray Lord Jesus, may we worship You in a way that is worthy of all You are, knowing You suffered and died for us and on the third day gained the victory of the resurrection…Thank you for Your love for us even when we do not understand completely. Lead us in Your way to be a witness to the world. In Jesus’ name. Amen. (Closing prayer, E Jerusalem International Church service, 8/10/21) Sing What wondrous love is this -- Fernando Ortega His Cross is Still There -- Ian White Ps 111: Praise Him -- Scottish Psalmist “ I have given them the glory that you gave me, that they may be one as we are one – I in them and you in me – so that they may be brought to complete unity. Then the world will know that you sent me and have loved them even as you have loved me.”
John 17: 22-23 John 16-18 (Psalm 110) Observe
Interpret The context of these passages is important. The last supper has finished and Jesus is teaching and praying before they walk to the Garden of Gethsemane where He is betrayed and arrested. The grace, peace and power of Christ is truly amazing when we consider that He knew what was coming. Instead of fear and timidity we see Him warn His disciples of persecution, teach about the threefold ministry and role of the Holy Spirit and then pray. He teaches that the Holy Spirit will convict the world of sin, righteousness and judgement, thus confirming humankind’s need of Christ. The Spirit will always guide to Jesus; to truth. He prays for His mission to succeed (God to be glorified through Him), then He prays for His disciples and all believers. This before He immediately experiences the persecution He warned about. He demonstrates power and self-control at His arrest and grace and truth at His interrogations. Compare His poise with that of the other characters in these chapters. Peter fulfills Christ’s prophesy and denies the Lord three times. God’s people, Annas and Caiaphas (those that should be supporting and championing Him), question and assault Him before handing Him over to Pilate. Pilate asks the all-important question, “What is truth?” yet fails to recognise the truth personified in Jesus. Finally, the crowd demand a notorious prisoner be released instead of the Saviour of the world. Application Jesus’ grace, peace and power came from His intimate relationship with His Father and obedience to God’s will. He told His disciples and tells us that our belief in God through Him will give us that same grace, peace and power. The secret is a similar unity with God, and with one another, empowered by the indwelling of the Holy Spirit. In this relationship we can overcome fear, the persecution of the world and ask God anything (16:23-24, 33; 17: 20-23). The proof of these words can be found in Jesus’ example and in Peter’s. Jesus overcame death and the world, Peter overcame failure and empowered by God became the rock on which the Church was built. Pain leads to plenty, and death to life – it is the law of the Kingdom (from In the Hour of Silence). The call for us is to focus on our relationship with God, through Jesus, above all else. Seek ye first the Kingdom and His righteousness and all these things will be given to us as well (Matthew 6: 33). Isn’t it amazing that God gives us the ability to participate in His divine nature (2 Peter 1: 4) and tells us how to (2 Peter 1: 3-11)! The Question of Application How might you grow in unity with God and with your sisters and brothers in Christ? Prayer Father we ask that we will believe in You through the message of Jesus Christ. May we be one, Father, just as you are in Jesus and He is in You. May we also be in You so that the world may believe that you sent Jesus. May we receive the glory that you gave your Son, that we may be one as You are one, Jesus in us as You are in Him, so that we may be brought to complete unity. Then the world will know that you sent Jesus and have loved us even as you have loved Him. Amen Based on Jesus’ prayer - John 17: 20-23 Praise We are the Body of Christ – Brook Hills Music Text: John 13-15
Observe: As the time for Jesus' earthly ministry enters its final hours, Jesus has supper with His disciples in the upper room. At the end of the meal, Jesus laid aside His garments and began to wash the feet of His disciples. At first Peter refuses, telling Jesus that He would never wash his feet. But Jesus insists that it must be done and they would understand why later. So then Peter insists that Jesus wash all of him, but again Jesus insists it is only his feet that need washing because he has already been bathed. When Jesus asked if they understood what He had just done, He explained that they must also wash each other’s feet as an act of service following His example. Jesus next predicts His betrayal by one those present, and one of the disciples asks who it is. Even though Jesus tells him what to look for, he seems not to understand that Jesus is referring to Judas. Once He gives Judas the piece of bread, He tells him to do what he will do quickly, and he leaves at once to seek out the Jewish leaders. After supper, Jesus tells them that he is leaving and where He goes they cannot follow. As usual, Peter objects saying that he would lay down his life for Jesus, but Jesus tells him that he will deny even knowing Him three times before the rooster crows in the morning. He reassures the disciples by telling them that He is going to prepare a place for them in His Father’s house, and that He has shown them what His Father is like. He is “the way, the truth and the life.” The Father lives in Jesus just as Jesus lives in the Father. He tells them to keep all His commands and that He will send them the Spirit of Truth. This Spirit will live in each of them, teach them many things, and remind them of what Jesus told them. Jesus used the imagery of the vine and the braches, where He was the vine and they were the braches. Apart from Him they could do no good and must always remain in Him. And He gave them a new command, to love one another, as He has loved them. The world would hate them because the world hated Him first. Finally, Jesus tells them that when the Spirit of Truth comes to them, they must testify about Him because they had been with Him from the beginning. Interpret: Jesus life was a living example of the things He taught, so when He washed His disciples’ feet, He assumed the position of the lowest servant, and commanded them to be as servants to one another. It’s another example of His humble service. Too often, we find it easy to criticize those with dirty feet instead of just washing them. The world’s way is to criticize others. That’s how news reports work, “Look at their dirty feet, or hands, or faces, or clothes.” Even if they recognize what a difficult walk a person must have had that day, usually all these reports do is point out the dirt on their feet. That is the way of the world, but Jesus’ way is very different. He says nothing, but takes the basin and begins to wash away the stain. He doesn’t judge and condemn, but seeks to restore and improve the ways of the downtrodden. Therefore, just as Jesus washed us “with the washing of water by the word” (Ephesians 5:26), we should use the same “water” in ministering to others. When Judas took the bread from Jesus, in that moment he knew that Jesus knew that he would be the one to betray his Master. In that moment, two things are apparent. First, Judas knew that he was discovered. Second, he knew that despite his treachery, he was still loved, because the offering of the piece of bread in that culture was a token of friendship. Yet, he shut his heart against them both, and as he shut his heart against Jesus, he opened it to evil. Later on, Jesus said that He was the way the truth and the life. Notice that Jesus didn’t say that He would show them the way. He said that He was the way. He didn’t promise to teach them a truth. He said that He was the truth. Jesus didn’t offer to tell them the secrets to life. He said that He was the life. He left no room for debate. No one comes to the Father except by Him. Period. Jesus continued to teach His disciples right to the every end, and it was always done as an act of love. Every action in Jesus life was driven by His all-encompassing love. Its the hallmark of His earthly ministry. Jesus’ love infuses everything He does. Its in the patient way He teaches His followers. Its in the compassionate way He heals the sick. Its in the sacrificial way He serves others. And He calls His disciples to do the same. They will be known as His disciples by the way they love each other. In that love they will be connected to Him, and He to them. Without it, they can do no good thing. Application: In Chapter 14:9, Jesus says, “Have I been with you so long, and yet you have not known Me, Philip? He who has seen Me has seen the Father.” Philip had been close to Jesus for a long time, and still he did not fully understand Him. The same is possible, and unfortunately, true for many of us today. This gentle rebuke of Philip reminds us of what Jesus often said; that to know Him was to know God the Father. Yet we stubborn humans continue to wonder if God really loves us. We make our own plans without seeking His guidance first. We tell our little white lies, thinking that the “white” makes them somehow acceptable. We criticize others for their dirty feet, without ever giving any thought to how we might help wash them. To see the love of Jesus was to see the love of God. Seeing Jesus in action was to see God the Father in action. And we are called to do the same. Discipleship to Jesus is a call to humble action. Questions: Have you ever taken the attitude of the humble servant and done something you thought was beneath you, but which Jesus would have done without even blinking an eye? Prayer: Heavenly Father, we ask your forgiveness when we forget that Jesus came to serve, not to be served. We often stand idly by when we see a need just because it might get our hands dirty. Help us to humble our hearts that we may serve others as He continues to serve us. We bless and praise the holy name of Jesus, our saviour and redeemer. Amen. Song: The Servant King: Maranatha Text: John Chapters 11-12
OBSERVE: Throughout these two chapters we observe the following:
INTERPRET: Prior to the coming of Jesus, the Rabbi’s had divided miracles into two separate categories – those that many could perform if empowered to do so by God, and those reserved only for the Messiah. The four miracles reserved only for the Messiah included: healing a leper, casting out a mute demon, healing a man born blind and raising someone form the dead after four days. This understanding may help explain why each of these miracles was followed by so much excitement and commotion. The raising of Lazarus was the fourth and final Messianic miracle performed by Jesus. The Rabbi’s taught that resurrection from the dead was only possible within the first three days and only the Messiah could perform a resurrection on or after the fourth day. Perhaps this provides the reason to us readers for why Jesus delayed upon hearing the news of the death of his friend. This also explains why there was so much commotion after this miracle – Jesus had just performed the fourth and final Messianic miracle. The religious authorities now had to either accept Jesus as the Messiah or do away with Him as quickly as possible. History records their poor choice. APPLICATION: The people were also faced with a choice after witnessing this miracle from Jesus. We read that many people believed in the signs of Jesus and understood what this meant. When Jesus asked them to remove the stone, He was declaring His Messiahship in a clear, loud voice and everyone who was there that day knew it. We see many believing in these clear signs yet many still remaining in unbelief. Jesus knew that by performing this final miracle that he was giving up his life for the life of Lazarus. Jesus was now entering Jerusalem on a donkey after declaring with his words and actions to be the source of resurrection and life. Jesus is the resurrection and the life for all of us who believe in Him. Jesus gave his life for each and every one of us. When we turn to him in faith and repent of our old ways, we receive new life now and forever. Just as Lazarus stood up and walked out of the tomb, we too need to rise up and walk away from the darkness that we have lived in. Jesus offers us so much and we need to follow him into the light of His Kingdom; desiring all that He has for us. REFLECTION: Has the voice of Jesus awoken you and risen within you a new resurrected heart? Have you followed his calling to walk out of the darkness of the tomb you were in? Are you leaving the old behind you and focusing on walking towards the light each day? PRAYER: Jesus; call me out of the darkness. To life and to hope and towards the promised Kingdom meant for us. Call me out from all those places where I hide from you and from others. Call me towards your light and help me to leave my old ways behind me. Call me towards you; THE RESURECTION AND THE LIFE. AMEN. SONG: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LAcRxNbUThs John 5-6 Observe: John 5 begins with the healing at the pool called Bethesda, in which Jesus heals a paralyzed man who had been waiting for someone to help him for 38 years. Jesus tells him to get up, take his mat, and go home. The Jewish religious leaders saw this man carrying his mat and told him that it violated Sabbath law to carry his mat (never mind the fact that he could walk in the first place!). At a later point Jesus returns to the temple and found this man and encouraged him, then began to teach to those present about the authority of the Son of Man; “For as the Father raises the dead and gives them life, so also the Son gives life to whom he will. The father judges no one, but has given all judgement to the Son, that all may honour the Son, just as they honour the Father. Whoever does not honour the Son does not honour the Father who sent Him,” (21-23). Chapter 6 tells of Jesus feeding the five thousand during which many people found Him while He was by the sea of Tiberias, and followed Him as He did many miracles. Having only five barley loaves and two fish, Jesus gave thanks and began distributing this food to the five thousand, ending up with twelve baskets of leftover bread! Jesus then crosses over to the other side of the sea by walking on the water until He found the boat the disciples were in. Upon joining them in their boat, they immediately found themselves at their destination. The crowd followed Jesus around the lake and began asking him questions, though Jesus knew they were mostly after Him because He fed them, not because they believed He was the Son of God. To prove His point, He began teaching them lessons that were difficult to hear, specifically indicating that He is the Bread of Life and better than the manna that came out of heaven when Moses led them. After hearing all He said, most people turned away, save the 12 disciples. Jesus asked if those 12 would walk away too, and peter replied “Lord, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life, and we have believed, and have come to know, that you are the Holy One of God.” Interpret: Many kinds of personalities are presented in these two chapters. First, we see a group of religious leaders utterly overlooking that a man who had been miraculously healed after 38 years of suffering and focusing instead on the legalistic issue of carrying his mat on the Sabbath. We see more of the same blindness when the Jews were seeking to kill Him for calling Himself equal with God. They so clung to their scriptures and ideas that they failed to see God-made-man right before their eyes! We see a lack of trust in the disciples when it comes to feeding the five thousand, as if Jesus had not worked countless miracles in their sight. On top of that, we see still more following Jesus merely to have themselves or a friend healed of their diseases, or even just their belly filled, with never a thought as to who Jesus really is. Jesus points out their double-minded ways, for the crowd asks Him what it is do be doing the works of God and He spells it out for them as plainly as a point could be made, “This is the work of God, that you believe in Him whom He has sent.” It couldn’t be any clearer, yet most of them just weren’t interested. Jesus goes on to tell them exactly who He is in more specific terms, using familiar Jewish imagery and revelation to make His point; “I am the bread of life; whoever comes to me shall not hunger, and whoever believes in me shall never thirst. But I said to you that you have seen me and yet do not believe … For I have come down from heaven, not to do my own will but the will of Him who sent me … Do not grumble among yourselves. No one can come to me unless the Father who sent me draws him. And I will raise him up on the last day.” At this point, it is more work to have rejected Jesus as the Holy One of God than accept Him, a common state of mind that remains prevalent even today. He goes on to show those of the crowd who claimed to follow Him their true motives. By teaching on things especially difficult to understand, the crowd got offended and melted away instead of wanting to figure out what Jesus was saying. At that point, the hard truth that Jesus revealed turned out to be too much against their desire for food or healing. Jesus constantly points out exactly who He is, why He came, and how we ought to respond. We cannot pretend any longer that we do not know or cannot figure it out. The truth is that the path that leads to eternal life is narrow and difficult, and many prefer their comfort, pride, and autonomy to the truth. Application and question: God does not make partners with other means of salvation. There is nothing besides faith in Christ that can save. No works can earn it, no suffering achieve it, no actions merit it. It is totally and utterly Christ, full stop. If you believe in Christ, does your life reflect it? Is it something you put into action as a response to His love and kindness? Have you made Christ the Lord of your life, or do you follow Him for what He might do for you? So often we see “Christians” who profess belief in Jesus yet refuse to make Him their master. Submission is such a dirty word these days, and the exalting of self is seen as the highest of virtues. This isn’t new, but it definitely isn’t right! Christ constantly reminds us that in order to follow Him we must deny ourselves and pick up our cross. The time has come for us to stop insisting on our own ways and bend our stiff necks. Live the way Christ wants you to live. Confront and reject pride, lust, drunkenness, envy, slander, pre-marital sex, pornography, foul language, and everything else counted as sins. This won’t happen overnight and that is OK – sanctification takes time, but also constant submission and repentance when we get it wrong as well as a keen, critical eye on our own behaviour. It also yields profound joy when we reject our own sinful nature and find in us the rampant growth of new life! A well of joy and peace begins burbling in our hearts as we make more and more room for God. For a time it may feel like you are ridding yourself of pleasure, and in a way, you are, for it is sinful pleasure. The plan is not only to rip these things out of our lives but to replace them with a far superior pleasure: that of walking each day with Jesus Christ and all the vast benefits and blessings that come with it! At the end of all things our lives will reveal who we’ve chosen: ourselves, or Jesus. He makes it absolutely clear that to choose one means we must reject the other, for He will not settle for second in our lives. Furthermore, He is faithful to give us what we want. For those who want Christ, He has promised eternity together. For those who reject God, He has promised eternity apart. Let us live each day with an awareness that today we have a chance to choose our forever, and that when it comes to choosing to follow Jesus Christ, it is all or nothing. Prayer: Lord, I’m sorry for making other things and people the master of my life. Thank you so much for sending Jesus as our Lord and Saviour, and I pray that you would make of me less so that you become more. Please teach me to kill my sin by the power of your Holy Spirit so that I may be truly surrendered to you, not just in word or thought but in heart and deed. Put people in my way that can point out my blind spots and keep me from becoming conceited in my humility. Though parts of me don’t want more of you and want to remain in the shadows, I pray that you make yourself the only desire in my heart, so that love would overflow into the lives of others. Amen! Song: New Wine - Hillsong Worship Text: John 3 and 4
Observation: Convinced that Jesus is a great teacher, but unsure of the implications of his teachings, Nicodemus, a Pharisee, secretly visits Jesus and they discuss the kingdom of God. Jesus explains the need for a new spiritual birth and beginning in order to enter the kingdom since people’s deeds are darkness. Humanity stands condemned for their unbelief but those who believe that Jesus is the Son of God will gain salvation and eternal life, just as those who looked at the snake on the pole in Moses’ day were healed. John the Baptist’s disciples express their concern to him that Jesus is baptizing and the people are more drawn to him than John. Using a metaphor, John replies that he is only the attending friend, but Jesus is the bridegroom. John says Jesus must increase but he must decrease. He affirms that whoever believes Jesus is the Son of God will have eternal life but those who reject him will suffer God’s wrath. Jesus meets a Samaritan woman at a well and discusses with her the availability of “living water” which becomes a spring inside a person, welling up to eternal life. When she expresses her desire for this water, Jesus reveals that he knows her story, that she has had five husbands and is currently living with a man who is not her husband. The woman recognizes Jesus is a prophet and Jesus tells her plainly that he is the Messiah and that the time has come for true worshipers to worship in spirit and truth. The disciples are concerned about Jesus’ physical nourishment but Jesus assures them his food is to do the will of “him who sent me”. He invites the disciples to open their eyes and see the harvest for eternal life. They stay in the town of the Samaritan woman 2 days and many people testify their belief that Jesus is the “Saviour of the world”. In the same place where he turned water into wine, a royal official comes to Jesus to beg him to heal his son. Jesus says the son will live and sent the official on his way home instead of going with him. His servants meet him on the way and confirm that indeed his son was healed at the same hour Jesus said he would live. John records this is the second sign Jesus performed. Interpretation: These accounts recorded in John’s gospel show how people personally wrestled with the identity of who Jesus was. Once they encountered him, they had to decide for themselves whether they believed he was the Messiah or not. They could not remain neutral on the subject and this decision would have a significant implication for their lives. For Nicodemus the struggle was that he, as a Pharisee, would have to lay down his own sense of self-righteousness and recognize his personal darkness and need for a Saviour, his need for a new beginning that relied on the Messiah’s righteousness and not his own. John the Baptist recognized Jesus was the Messiah and that this truth meant he would need to step aside humbly so that Jesus’ fame and influence could increase. John’s disciples had a hard time with this. For the Samaritan woman, once Jesus revealed his identity to her, her belief that he was the Messiah made it impossible for her to keep quiet. She had to tell others about her experience of encountering Jesus and this excitement sparked the belief of many other Samaritans in her town. The royal official whose son was deathly ill had to go back home alone, taking Jesus at his word that his son would live. When his faith was confirmed and he learned his son was healed, he and all his household believed. Application: We can recognize through these chapters that it is our personal experience and encounter of Jesus that leads to a decisive and saving understanding of who he is. Think about when you first believed In Jesus. How did you experience and encounter him and what did he reveal to you personally about his identity? If you haven’t encountered Jesus personally recently, you can always invite him to reveal himself to you in a fresh way. It is a prayer he loves to answer! Prayer: Lord, thank you that you want me to know you in a personal way. Reveal yourself to me afresh and give me the power to respond to your salvation call with the same enthusiasm as the Samaritan woman. Help me to bring my wrestling questions to you like Nicodemus. As you did for the royal official, confirm the faith I put in you with testimonies of healing, and like John the Baptist, let me humbly submit to you so that your presence will increase in my life. Song: https://youtu.be/L57ox0iQU7A “Yet to all who received Him, to those who believed in His name, He gave the right to become children of God.”
John 1: 12 John 1-2 (Psalm 103) Observe
Interpret Jesus is acknowledged as one person of the Triune God. He is the Word of God through whom all things were made and whose identity was confirmed by the Holy Spirit. He was present and active at creation, now He enters the world as one of us: He brought the Kingdom of God. For those who believe in Him He gives the right to become children of God, new creations themselves. He is the means of God’s grace and enables us to ‘see’ God, to know Him. His presence and identity demands a response. Some asked who He is, John denies being the Christ and His first disciples follow Him. The Gospel gives seven titles to Jesus confirming truly who He is (can you see them, if not watch the video!). In turn Jesus asks a truly vital question for all of us, “What do you want?” (1: 38, we will consider this question and our answers on Sunday!). Then, at a wedding, Jesus turns a huge quantity of water into copious amounts of fine wine. A demonstration not only of His power and identity but of the overflowing generosity and blessing of God’s Kingdom. Conversely, Jesus acts in righteous anger in the temple, driving out money changers and cattle salesmen. It was the Passover and pilgrims were being fleeced by the money changers, the temple tax and exorbitant prices for animals to be used in sacrifice; God’s Temple was being desecrated. The animal sacrificial system was soon to be completely replaced by Jesus’ self-sacrifice (2:19-23). Perhaps what angered Jesus most was the use of the Gentile Court for this activity. It meant that the only place a non-Jew could enter to pray and worship was being used and abused for financial gain; Gentiles seeking God’s presence were being shut out. Application Jesus makes it possible for us to become new creations (John 1: 12; 2 Corinthians 5: 17). Our belief in Him and God’s grace for the forgiveness of sin by the sacrifice of Jesus are all vital, as is our repentance (John 1:12, 16-17 & 29). Once a new creation we have access to the overwhelming and bountiful blessings of God’s Kingdom (1: 16 & 2: 1-11). As a new creation our bodies become the temple of God where the Holy Spirit dwells (1 Corinthians 6: 19-20); we are able to commune with God, worship and pray. Our spiritual act of worship is to offer ourselves to God as living sacrifices and not to conform to the way of the world (Romans 12: 1-2). As God’s temple we can have our worship of Him blocked, as with the Temple in Jerusalem, by desire for wealth, greed and sacrificing ourselves to idols other than God. The Question of Application Are you experiencing the fullness of God’s grace, what blessings of His Kingdom do you seek? Ask. As God’s temple, what in your life is blocking your Worship of and relationship with Him and therefore His fullness of blessing? How are you short changing yourself? What idols take your heart away from Him? Prayer Lord Jesus, we thank you for all the benefits that you have won for us, for all the pains and insults that you have borne for us. Most merciful redeemer, friend, brother, may we know you more clearly, love you more dearly and follow you more nearly, day by day. Amen After Richard of Chichester 1253 Praise New Creations by Josh Baldwin Mark 15-16
Observe: The Gospel of Mark draws to a close. The Jewish leaders had previously condemned Jesus to death, but they didn’t have the authority to carry out the sentence. So they decided to hand Jesus over to Pontius Pilate, the Roman governor, for further trial and punishment. During questioning by Pilate, Jesus answers his questions, but when additional accusations are hurled at Him by the Jewish leaders, He does not respond to them. Having been stirred up by their leaders, the crowd demands that Pilate release a criminal to them as was the custom during the festival of the Passover, and the one they want released is not Jesus, but Barabbas, a rebel and murderer. When Pilate asks what they want him to do with Jesus, the leaders and the crowd all yell for him to be crucified. Having found no fault with Jesus during his examination, Pilate asks why, what wrong had he done? But the frenzied crowd just yelled all the louder for Him to be crucified. And so, Jesus was handed over to the guards to be flogged and crucified. Mark then records how Jesus was led away by the soldiers to be horribly mocked, abused, flogged, and crucified. They made Him carry His own cross, but in His weakened condition, Jesus was barely able to stand so they conscripted a passerby name Simon to carry it for Him all the way to Golgotha. Here, Jesus was crucified. He refused to drink the offered wine mixed with myrrh, a kind of narcotic to dull the pain, in order that His senses were not numbed and that He not die from poisoning. As Jesus hung on the cross, He continued to be mocked by the crowd. His discarded clothes were divided up by the people by casting lots for it. The Jewish leaders taunted Him about coming down from the cross. Even two ordinary criminals who were crucified alongside of Jesus mocked Him in their final hours. Jesus died at about 3:00 in the afternoon, after crying out “My God, my God; why have you forsaken me?”. At that moment the curtain in the temple is torn in half from top to bottom, and a Roman centurion exclaims, “Surely this man was the Son of God!” Many women who followed Jesus, were there to witness the end of His earthly life, and were grief-stricken. After His death, Joseph of Arimathea asks for and receives permission from Pilate to take Jesus’ body and places it in a fresh tomb to be properly prepared for burial after the Sabbath. Chapter 16 recounts what happened after the Sabbath. When Mary Magdalene, Mary mother of Jesus, and Salome went to prepare Jesus’ body for burial, they were amazed to find the heavy entrance stone already rolled away. When they looked inside, they saw a young man dressed all in white sitting on the side and they became alarmed. He tried to comfort them by saying that Jesus, whom they were looking for, was no longer there, but had risen from the dead. He told them to tell the other disciples that Jesus was risen and that He was going to Galilee where they would see Him. However, the women so afraid of they had witnessed that they simply went away and didn’t tell anyone. And there ends the accepted official Gospel of Mark. Verses 9-20 found in most bibles are thought to have been added by later writers to finish the narrative line begun by Mark, and wrap up the salvation message of Jesus. These verses recount the various people that Jesus appeared to after His resurrection. He appeared to Mary Magdalene who then told the disciples what she had seen, but at first they didn’t believe her. He then appeared to two men walking along a road (probably the same two men on the road to Emmaus mentioned in Luke 24) who also told the disciples what they had, but again they were not believed. Finally, Jesus appears to the remaining eleven disciples and gives them detailed instructions to go a spread the gospel throughout creation. After that, Jesus was taken up to heaven and the disciples did as Jesus commended them to do and preached the gospel wherever they went. Interpret: These verses in Mark tell of Jesus’ trial, suffering, crucifixion, and resurrection, but they don’t go into the same detail as Matthew. Mark keeps his narrative relative short and to the point. But this brevity helps us focus on the details that he does mention. The hypocrisy and deceit of the Sanhedrin is more clearly exposed. Jesus didn’t fit their concept of the Messiah, and He wouldn’t allow Himself be controlled by them, and so they hated Him because He represented a threat to their authority. They would do whatever it took to get rid of Him, including arresting Him on trumped up charges. When Jesus remained silent during Pilates questioning, what more could He have said when there was absolutely no proof to support the false allegations against Him? Pilate easily saw through the Sanhedrin’s fabrications and was disposed to let Jesus go because He was innocent. But the Jewish leaders seeing this as their best chance to get rid of Jesus, continued to whip up the crowd to demand the release of Barabbas instead of Jesus. Wanting to settle the crowd down again, Pilate gives in and orders Jesus punished and crucified, and washed his hands of the whole affair. Once Jesus is handed over to the soldiers, the real brutality begins. Rome ruled its empire on the strength of her army. They dominated every nation they conquered through fear and extreme violence. Pilate’s soldiers would show no mercy to the condemned Jesus. The dehumanizing brutality of Jesus’ suffering at their hands neither needs nor deserves detailing. It simply encapsulates everything that is dark and shameful in the human heart. Even in His public and debased crucifixion, the mockery continued. There was not a shred of compassion or empathy shown by any of the onlookers, who saw this a sporting entertainment. Where were His followers, His family and His friends? Jesus died as alone as anyone ever did. All God’s prophecies must be fulfilled. At the very moment of His death, the temple curtain, the curtain that separated the sanctuary from the Most Holy Place, was torn from top to bottom. God could not have given us a clearer sign that Jesus had opened the way into the Holiest Place of the temple where God lived. The final sin offering had been made. It was made by God for His creation. In this telling of Jesus’ resurrection, the women who came to the empty tomb did not go immediately to tell the others of what they had seen, but kept it to themselves because they were afraid, confused and hadn’t yet fully understood the true meaning of Jesus’ teachings. Even the disciples themselves didn’t believe it when they were told repeatedly that Jesus had risen, just as He told them He would. They just couldn’t grasp the truth of His sacrifice and the reality of His gift of salvation until they saw Him for themselves standing in their midst and giving them their final instructions. But once they did, the world was forever changed for those who believed. Application: So many people in the world today read the Gospels and think they are so irrelevant because they happened so long ago. The world has moved on. We know better than the people who lived two thousand years ago. We would never condone what happened to Jesus, regardless of who He was, because we are so much more compassionate and enlightened. But the truth is that we are exactly like the people who came before us. We have our pride. We have our own of doing things. We are impatient. We don’t always take direction very well. We are susceptible to our own passions. We all have dark spots in our hearts. We are just like those who stood in the crowd and cried, “Crucify Him! Crucify Him!” But, we have the benefit of knowing the outcome of His sacrifice. We have the benefit of His love, mercy, and grace poured out on us. When we sin and then repent, we know that He welcomes us back into the arms that were opened wide on the cross. Questions: Have you ever thought back on your life and recognized times when your own actions or decisions or thoughts would have placed you among the crowd yelling “Crucify Him! Crucify Him!”? Prayer: Heavenly Father, we humbly ask your forgiveness as we, by own sinful nature, stand among the mocking crowd. At the cross, you showed your great love and mercy to those who showed you scorn and no mercy. We thank you that you would willingly pay the price for our disobedience and rebellion against you. We bless and praise the holy name of Jesus, our saviour and redeemer. Amen. Song: My Redeemer Lives: Hillsong |
Preachers BlogIn 2024, each week's blog is a follow-up reflection written by the preceding Sunday’s preacher to dig deeper into the sermon topic and explore engaging discussion questions. Archives
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