Jesus, the Son of God
Chapter 25
God Agrees with the Pharisees
“the chief priests and the Pharisees called a meeting of the Sanhedrin. . . . . Then one of them, named Caiaphas, who was high priest that year, spoke up, '. . . Can't you see that it's to our advantage that one man dies for the people rather than the whole nation be destroyed?'" John 11:47-50
Reflection
As the religious leaders met to decide what to do with Jesus, Caiaphas proposed a reasonable solution. Far better to eliminate Jesus than to have the Roman Army enter Jerusalem and use brutal force to crush what would look to the military like political unrest, or even potential insurrection.
God agreed with Caiaphas. Thus John 3:16.
Why would God do this? Why would God send his Son (Himself as His Son) to die so that I can live? Why would God do this, as the big picture of the Bible implies, for you, even if you were the only person on earth? Why would He choose to die in your place?
If you know the answer to this question, then you understand Christianity.
Prayer
“Lord, I once heard that Karl Barth, perhaps the greatest theologian of the 20th century, when asked to summarize everything he had learned in a lifetime with scripture, answer, ‘Jesus loves me, this I know, for the Bible tells me so’. I, too, want to know that love even more deeply than I do now. Amen”
Friday, March 23, 2012
Thursday, March 22, 2012
Jesus, the Son of God
Chapter 25
All who are in Hell choose to be there
"if anyone hears my words but does not keep them, I do not judge him. For I did not come to judge the world, but to save it. There is a judge for the one who rejects me and does not accept my words; that very word which I spoke will condemn him at the last day. 49 For I did not speak of my own accord, but the Father who sent me commanded me what to say and how to say it. 50 I know that his command leads to eternal life. So whatever I say is just what the Father has told me to say." John 12:47-50(NIV)
Predestination or Free Will?
Jesus is very clear. He came to save the world, not to condemn it. (see also John 3:17).
When confronted with light, or truth, or something we don’t want to admit or do or submit to we have a choice. We can either “agree” or “disagree”. We can either submit or rebel.
When confronted with God each of us reacts. This reaction, this choice, is both caused by God (it is a reaction to something after all) and my free choice (God does not violate our free will, an aspect of His image within us).
In this way the predestination/election (Calvinism) vs. free will (Arminianism) debate is a false one. In the end we will all discover that there is no difference between them. They will be discovered to have been one in the same.
One more thought. You have already chosen heaven or hell. You are living your choice at this very moment. Not all choices are actively chosen.
Prayer
“Lord, thank you for pursuing me with a love which, although freely received, is nevertheless irresistible. Amen”
Chapter 25
All who are in Hell choose to be there
"if anyone hears my words but does not keep them, I do not judge him. For I did not come to judge the world, but to save it. There is a judge for the one who rejects me and does not accept my words; that very word which I spoke will condemn him at the last day. 49 For I did not speak of my own accord, but the Father who sent me commanded me what to say and how to say it. 50 I know that his command leads to eternal life. So whatever I say is just what the Father has told me to say." John 12:47-50(NIV)
Predestination or Free Will?
Jesus is very clear. He came to save the world, not to condemn it. (see also John 3:17).
When confronted with light, or truth, or something we don’t want to admit or do or submit to we have a choice. We can either “agree” or “disagree”. We can either submit or rebel.
When confronted with God each of us reacts. This reaction, this choice, is both caused by God (it is a reaction to something after all) and my free choice (God does not violate our free will, an aspect of His image within us).
In this way the predestination/election (Calvinism) vs. free will (Arminianism) debate is a false one. In the end we will all discover that there is no difference between them. They will be discovered to have been one in the same.
One more thought. You have already chosen heaven or hell. You are living your choice at this very moment. Not all choices are actively chosen.
Prayer
“Lord, thank you for pursuing me with a love which, although freely received, is nevertheless irresistible. Amen”
Wednesday, March 21, 2012
Jesus, the Son of God
Chapter 25
The Jesus Update
"Jesus summarizes the whole Bible
'You shall love the LORD your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind.' 38 This is the first and great commandment. 39 And the second is like it: 'You shall love your neighbor as yourself.'"
Matthew 22:37-39(NKJV)
Jesus updates part two of his summary
34 A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another; as I have loved you, that you also love one another. 35 By
this all will know that you are My disciples, if you have love for one another." John 13:34-35(NKJV)
Reflection
Do you see Jesus’ update? Christianity is hard, isn’t it? Or is it?
PLEASE take the time to read the entire section below from Mere Christianity by CS Lewis. It will be worth it.
“Is Christianity Hard or Easy?”
“The ordinary idea which we all have before we become Christians is this. We take as a starting point our ordinary self with its various desires and interests. We then admit that something else – call it ‘morality’ or ‘decent behavior’, or ‘the good of society’ – has claims on this self: claims which interfere with its own desires. What we mean by ‘being good’ is giving in to these claims. Some of the things the ordinary self wanted to do turn out to be what we call ‘wrong’: well, we must give them up. Other things, which the self did not want to do, turn out to be what we call ‘right’: well, we shall have to do them. But we are hoping all the time that when all the demands have been met, the poor natural self will still have some chance, and some time, to get on with its own life and do what it likes. In fact, we are very like an honest man paying his taxes. He pays them all right, but he does hope that there will be enough left over for him to live on. Because we are still taking our natural self as the starting point.
As long as we are thinking that way, one or other of two results is likely to follow. Either we give up trying to be good, or else we become very unhappy indeed. For, make no mistake: if you are really going to try to meet all the demands made on the natural self, it will not have enough left over to live on. The more you obey your conscience, the more your conscience will demand of you. And your natural self, which is thus being starved and hampered and worried at every turn, trying to be good, or else become one of those people who, as they say, ‘live for others’ but always in a discontented, grumbling way – always wondering why the others do not notice it more and always making a martyr of yourself. And once you have become that you will be a far greater pest to anyone who has to live with you than you would have been if you had remained frankly selfish.
The Christian way is different: harder, and easier. Christ says ‘Give me All. I don’t want so much of your time and so much of your money and so much of your work: I want You. I have not come to torment your natural self, but to kill it. No half-measures are any good. I don’t want to cut off a branch here and a branch there, I want to have the whole tree down. I don’t want to drill the tooth, or crown it, or stop it, but to have it out. Hand over the natural self, all the desires which you think innocent as well as the ones you think wicked – the whole outfit. I will give you a new self instead. In fact, I will give you Myself: my own will shall become yours.’
It is like that here. The terrible thing, the almost impossible thing, is to hand over your whole self – all your wishes and precautions – to Christ. But it is far easier than what we are all trying to do instead. For what we are trying to do is to remain what we call ‘ourselves’, to keep personal happiness as our great aim in life, and yet at the same time be ‘good’. We are all trying to let our mind and heart go their own way – centered on money or pleasure or ambition – and hoping, in spite of this to behave honestly and chastely and humbly. And that is exactly what Christ warned us you could not do. As He said, a thistle cannot produce figs. If I am a field that contains nothing but grass-seed, I cannot produce wheat. Cutting the grass may keep it short: but I shall still produce grass and no wheat. If I want to produce wheat, the change must go deeper than the surface. I must be ploughed up and re-sown.”
Chapter 25
The Jesus Update
"Jesus summarizes the whole Bible
'You shall love the LORD your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind.' 38 This is the first and great commandment. 39 And the second is like it: 'You shall love your neighbor as yourself.'"
Matthew 22:37-39(NKJV)
Jesus updates part two of his summary
34 A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another; as I have loved you, that you also love one another. 35 By
this all will know that you are My disciples, if you have love for one another." John 13:34-35(NKJV)
Reflection
Do you see Jesus’ update? Christianity is hard, isn’t it? Or is it?
PLEASE take the time to read the entire section below from Mere Christianity by CS Lewis. It will be worth it.
“Is Christianity Hard or Easy?”
“The ordinary idea which we all have before we become Christians is this. We take as a starting point our ordinary self with its various desires and interests. We then admit that something else – call it ‘morality’ or ‘decent behavior’, or ‘the good of society’ – has claims on this self: claims which interfere with its own desires. What we mean by ‘being good’ is giving in to these claims. Some of the things the ordinary self wanted to do turn out to be what we call ‘wrong’: well, we must give them up. Other things, which the self did not want to do, turn out to be what we call ‘right’: well, we shall have to do them. But we are hoping all the time that when all the demands have been met, the poor natural self will still have some chance, and some time, to get on with its own life and do what it likes. In fact, we are very like an honest man paying his taxes. He pays them all right, but he does hope that there will be enough left over for him to live on. Because we are still taking our natural self as the starting point.
As long as we are thinking that way, one or other of two results is likely to follow. Either we give up trying to be good, or else we become very unhappy indeed. For, make no mistake: if you are really going to try to meet all the demands made on the natural self, it will not have enough left over to live on. The more you obey your conscience, the more your conscience will demand of you. And your natural self, which is thus being starved and hampered and worried at every turn, trying to be good, or else become one of those people who, as they say, ‘live for others’ but always in a discontented, grumbling way – always wondering why the others do not notice it more and always making a martyr of yourself. And once you have become that you will be a far greater pest to anyone who has to live with you than you would have been if you had remained frankly selfish.
The Christian way is different: harder, and easier. Christ says ‘Give me All. I don’t want so much of your time and so much of your money and so much of your work: I want You. I have not come to torment your natural self, but to kill it. No half-measures are any good. I don’t want to cut off a branch here and a branch there, I want to have the whole tree down. I don’t want to drill the tooth, or crown it, or stop it, but to have it out. Hand over the natural self, all the desires which you think innocent as well as the ones you think wicked – the whole outfit. I will give you a new self instead. In fact, I will give you Myself: my own will shall become yours.’
It is like that here. The terrible thing, the almost impossible thing, is to hand over your whole self – all your wishes and precautions – to Christ. But it is far easier than what we are all trying to do instead. For what we are trying to do is to remain what we call ‘ourselves’, to keep personal happiness as our great aim in life, and yet at the same time be ‘good’. We are all trying to let our mind and heart go their own way – centered on money or pleasure or ambition – and hoping, in spite of this to behave honestly and chastely and humbly. And that is exactly what Christ warned us you could not do. As He said, a thistle cannot produce figs. If I am a field that contains nothing but grass-seed, I cannot produce wheat. Cutting the grass may keep it short: but I shall still produce grass and no wheat. If I want to produce wheat, the change must go deeper than the surface. I must be ploughed up and re-sown.”
Friday, March 16, 2012
The Sermon on the Mount
Matthew 6
Don't Worry
" 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 important than food, and the body more important 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? Who of you by worrying can add a single hour to his life?
"And why do you worry about clothes? See how the lilies 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, O 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."
Matthew 6:25-34(NIV)
Prayer
“Lord, so much of my worry is control. It’s all an illusion. All things are in your hands. You tell us in the Bible that you are weaving all events, every single one of them, even those that are the epitome of evil, into good. Help me, Lord, to be a “thank you person”, to be a person who sees every anxiety and fear as a place of training so that you can build me into a truster of you. Train me Lord, regardless of the cost, out of the fearful person I now am into a person who knows he is in the most ultimate sense, safe, and therefore can be happy. Amen”
Matthew 6
Don't Worry
" 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 important than food, and the body more important 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? Who of you by worrying can add a single hour to his life?
"And why do you worry about clothes? See how the lilies 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, O 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."
Matthew 6:25-34(NIV)
Prayer
“Lord, so much of my worry is control. It’s all an illusion. All things are in your hands. You tell us in the Bible that you are weaving all events, every single one of them, even those that are the epitome of evil, into good. Help me, Lord, to be a “thank you person”, to be a person who sees every anxiety and fear as a place of training so that you can build me into a truster of you. Train me Lord, regardless of the cost, out of the fearful person I now am into a person who knows he is in the most ultimate sense, safe, and therefore can be happy. Amen”
Thursday, March 15, 2012
The Sermon on the Mount
Matthew 6
Jesus Teaches Us How to Pray
"This, then, is how you should pray:
'Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name,
your kingdom come, your will be done on earth as it is in heaven.
Give us today our daily bread.
Forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors.
And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one.'
For if you forgive men when they sin against you, your heavenly Father will also
forgive you. But if you do not forgive men their sins, your Father will not
forgive your sins." Matthew 6:9-15(NIV)
This is how to Pray
Pray for God’s Kingdom to replace your kingdom. If you see answers to this prayer, then you are entering the Kingdom of God.
Notice the parts. You are talking to your “dad”. You tell him you want everyone to know him, and to trust him. You ask him for what you need and believe he’s providing exactly that. And you ask him to empower you to do what you can’t do on your own, that is to forgive and to resist temptation.
But then Jesus reiterates in the strongest possible terms one aspect of the prayer. Did you know that your refusal to forgive hardens you to the point that you cannot receive forgiveness? Jesus tells us that stubbornly holding on to “justice” or bitterness or unforgiveness is the equivalent of stubbornly rejecting God?
Prayer
“Lord, your kingdom is one of peace. Forgive me for those times when I have refused to take up my cross and follow you by absorbing the cost of forgiving another. That’s your path, Lord. You led the way, help me to follow. Amen”
Matthew 6
Jesus Teaches Us How to Pray
"This, then, is how you should pray:
'Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name,
your kingdom come, your will be done on earth as it is in heaven.
Give us today our daily bread.
Forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors.
And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one.'
For if you forgive men when they sin against you, your heavenly Father will also
forgive you. But if you do not forgive men their sins, your Father will not
forgive your sins." Matthew 6:9-15(NIV)
This is how to Pray
Pray for God’s Kingdom to replace your kingdom. If you see answers to this prayer, then you are entering the Kingdom of God.
Notice the parts. You are talking to your “dad”. You tell him you want everyone to know him, and to trust him. You ask him for what you need and believe he’s providing exactly that. And you ask him to empower you to do what you can’t do on your own, that is to forgive and to resist temptation.
But then Jesus reiterates in the strongest possible terms one aspect of the prayer. Did you know that your refusal to forgive hardens you to the point that you cannot receive forgiveness? Jesus tells us that stubbornly holding on to “justice” or bitterness or unforgiveness is the equivalent of stubbornly rejecting God?
Prayer
“Lord, your kingdom is one of peace. Forgive me for those times when I have refused to take up my cross and follow you by absorbing the cost of forgiving another. That’s your path, Lord. You led the way, help me to follow. Amen”
Wednesday, March 14, 2012
The Sermon on the Mount
Matthew 5
What Life is Like in the Kingdom of God
"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." Matthew 5:3-10(NIV)
Happy
“Blessed” more or less means happy. In these “beatitudes” Jesus does not list things to do. He is not saying that if I do A then I will get B. That’s works not Grace.
Jesus is teaching grace. In God’s Kingdom the impoverished, the persecuted, those who hunger for a better world, but are not experiencing it, those from humble circumstances . . . . .all can view themselves as blessed, as happy because God is with them and because God will not allow their bad circumstances to be the last word of their lives. Each will be compensated for in heaven (read vs. 12 in your Bible).
None of this is an “ought”, rather life as it is. Virtually all reports I receive from the third world tell of the happiness of the poor relative to the spiritual impoverishment of us Americans who “have it all”. We’re simply not a very happy bunch. Who is richer? Those who live short lives in impoverished communities who know God and his provision or those in the first world who have garages (equipped with openers!) and too many clothes and too much food and too much TV and internet, but are too consumed with consumption to know God?
Prayer
“Father, I am among the consumed consumers. Forgive me, Lord. As an addict to comfort and complacency I need your help. In Jesus’ Name. Amen”
Matthew 5
What Life is Like in the Kingdom of God
"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." Matthew 5:3-10(NIV)
Happy
“Blessed” more or less means happy. In these “beatitudes” Jesus does not list things to do. He is not saying that if I do A then I will get B. That’s works not Grace.
Jesus is teaching grace. In God’s Kingdom the impoverished, the persecuted, those who hunger for a better world, but are not experiencing it, those from humble circumstances . . . . .all can view themselves as blessed, as happy because God is with them and because God will not allow their bad circumstances to be the last word of their lives. Each will be compensated for in heaven (read vs. 12 in your Bible).
None of this is an “ought”, rather life as it is. Virtually all reports I receive from the third world tell of the happiness of the poor relative to the spiritual impoverishment of us Americans who “have it all”. We’re simply not a very happy bunch. Who is richer? Those who live short lives in impoverished communities who know God and his provision or those in the first world who have garages (equipped with openers!) and too many clothes and too much food and too much TV and internet, but are too consumed with consumption to know God?
Prayer
“Father, I am among the consumed consumers. Forgive me, Lord. As an addict to comfort and complacency I need your help. In Jesus’ Name. Amen”
Tuesday, March 13, 2012
The Kingdom of God
Mark 4
The Kingdom of God
"This is what the kingdom of God is like.
A man scatters seed on the ground. Night and day, whether he sleeps or gets up, the seed sprouts and grows, though he does not know how. All by itself the soil produces grain--first the stalk, then the head, then the full kernel in the head. As soon as the grain is ripe, he puts the sickle to it, because the harvest has come." Mark 4:26-29(NIV)
"All by itself" - You cannot build God's Kingdom
My problem in life, and yours, and that of the world, is that each of us seeks his own Kingdom. Doing so “works” for a while but eventually passes away like all other Kingdoms except God’s. If I repent, jettison my kingdom in favor of His, then I have to spend a life time learning how live differently , because His Kingdom is run by Him, not me. My job, then, is to arrange my life in such a way that my decisions, efforts, attitudes, relationships are all to be pursued in a way that opens me to God’s direction and provision. I no longer make my life happen, He does. This is where spiritual disciplines, although requiring discipline, are not about my making things happen, rather they put me into a position where God has the freedom to lead in my life, and in doing so he enables me to do what I could not do without His presence.
Prayer
“Lord, help! I have only a meager prayer life, when you want to open me to yourself by way of a praying life. Please lead me into spiritual practices that open me to your leadership in my life. Amen."
Mark 4
The Kingdom of God
"This is what the kingdom of God is like.
A man scatters seed on the ground. Night and day, whether he sleeps or gets up, the seed sprouts and grows, though he does not know how. All by itself the soil produces grain--first the stalk, then the head, then the full kernel in the head. As soon as the grain is ripe, he puts the sickle to it, because the harvest has come." Mark 4:26-29(NIV)
"All by itself" - You cannot build God's Kingdom
My problem in life, and yours, and that of the world, is that each of us seeks his own Kingdom. Doing so “works” for a while but eventually passes away like all other Kingdoms except God’s. If I repent, jettison my kingdom in favor of His, then I have to spend a life time learning how live differently , because His Kingdom is run by Him, not me. My job, then, is to arrange my life in such a way that my decisions, efforts, attitudes, relationships are all to be pursued in a way that opens me to God’s direction and provision. I no longer make my life happen, He does. This is where spiritual disciplines, although requiring discipline, are not about my making things happen, rather they put me into a position where God has the freedom to lead in my life, and in doing so he enables me to do what I could not do without His presence.
Prayer
“Lord, help! I have only a meager prayer life, when you want to open me to yourself by way of a praying life. Please lead me into spiritual practices that open me to your leadership in my life. Amen."
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