April 25, 2016
On the night He was betrayed, Jesus quoted the Messianic prophecy of Isaiah 53:12 to prepare the disciples for His crucifixion. He who knew no sin, would be “numbered” or counted among the sinners. And He would allow this accounting to take place willingly, so that those who believed in Him might be numbered among the righteous.
April 24, 2016
The Lord addressed him as, “Simon, Simon,” not as “Peter,” for he would not yet be the “Rock” until after Christ’s resurrection. Simon Peter meant well, but in his flesh he had no power to live up to the new name Jesus had given him. Christ repeated the name “Simon” twice, probably to emphasize both His tender affection for Peter as well as His warning to him (See Luke 10:41 – “Martha, Martha.” Ex. 3:4 -“Moses, Moses;” or Gen. 22:11 – “Abraham, Abraham.”). Jesus was already shifting from His physical role as the Shepherd protecting Peter and the disciples, to His role as Advocate, praying and representing them before the Father (1 John 2:1). Jesus was preparing Peter for the trial and temptation that awaited him and the disciples. For Satan had asked to “sift” Simon Peter, just as he had Job, to test whether he truly had the “wheat” of faith, or was merely voicing the bravado of the “chaff” of the flesh. That Jesus was so mindful of Peter and His disciples on the eve of His crucifixion shows both His great love for them as well as His divine plan to see them carry the gospel to the nations. Have you heard the Lord repeat your name twice?
April 23, 2016
When Jesus told Peter and John to go and prepare the Passover, they asked, “Where?” Jesus didn’t respond with an address, but with a set of circumstances and a person. He told them that they would meet a man carrying a jar of water as they entered Jerusalem and that they should follow him to the place. He even told them what to ask when they got there.
Have you ever experienced this kind of direction and help from the Lord? Peter and John were ready to obey, but needed direction. Sometimes we are ready to obey, but we don’t pause to ask the Lord for help. We come up with our own plans, rather than asking the Lord for where He wants us to go. What joy to hear the Lord’s voice saying, “Follow the man with the water jar!”
April 22, 2016
The disciples had been talking about the beauty and grandeur of Jerusalem, when Jesus interrupted them to say, “As for these things that you see, the days will come when there will not be left here one stone upon another that will not be thrown down” (Luke 21:6).
This must have been a troubling prophecy for the disciples to hear, so they asked for more specifics. Jesus offered many details about signs and times, not only of Jerusalem’s destruction, but also of His future return and time of redemption. Within His prophetic response, there was the mention not only of Jerusalem’s destruction, but also the hope of its future return to the Jews. Jesus described this season as the “times of the Gentiles” that would some day be “fulfilled,” or finished. In fact, Christ’s prediction of the destruction of Jerusalem came true in 70 AD when the Romans destroyed the city. And it wasn’t until the Six Day War of 1967 that Jerusalem again came under Jewish rule again. Nineteen hundred years passed before Jerusalem again belonged to the Jews. Regardless of one’s eschatology, the reality of these historical facts gives one much to ponder. Can it be much longer before the rest of Christ’s predictions come true? Are we the generation that will see the return of Christ?
April 3, 2016
“Who is my neighbor?” Asked the legal expert of Jesus. He asked this question seeking to “justify himself.” For the law is so perfect in its demand, who can keep it? Therefore, the lawyer sought a loophole or a limitation to the law in order to satisfy it. However, Jesus did not allow for a legal accommodation. Instead, he told a parable of three travelers passing by a man in need. The first two were experts in the law of Moses, yet failed to love their neighbor by stopping to help. The third man, a Samaritan, one hated by the Jews as a half-breed and certainly not a legal expert, he actually stopped to help the injured man. The parable surely hit the mark. It is not enough to know the law. One must do it. And since the lawyer must’ve realized the impossibility of keeping the law, perhaps he recognized his need for a Savior to rescue him from the sin that he couldn’t overcome. Because the truth is, both he and we are the ones in the ditch that needs someone to show us mercy.
April 2, 2016
Jesus was determined to go to Jerusalem. As he traveled from Galilee, he sought to take the direct route through Samaria, but they would not “receive” him. Their rejection was a foreshadowing of the rejection he would face in Jerusalem. Yet, he “set his face” to go there. It was time. The reason for his coming was at hand. The betrayal, the rejection, the cross, the death and the burial… all these stood between him and his ascension back to the Father. He “set his face” to endure all these, looking past them to the time when he would be “taken up,” having completed his mission. Like a mother giving birth, who sets her face to endure the labor, Jesus “set his face” to endure the cross in order to experience the joy that was set before him (Heb. 12:2). Looking past the dark shadow of the cross, Jesus “set his face” to the bright glory that awaited him with the Father. Those who follow Jesus have a similar way of facing life, setting their face on being with Him, they order their lives accordingly.
April 1, 2016
Jesus took his inner circle of disciples up on a mountain to pray. As usual, they fell asleep, but they awoke suddenly to discover a change. The veil separating this world from the next had been pulled back. They saw Moses and Elijah talking with Jesus about his soon approaching exodus from this world. Even more, Christ’s true majestic glory was revealed as they glimpsed His person with unveiled faces. Peter’s sleepy mumblings were silenced by the Father saying, “This is my Son, my Chosen One; listen to him!”
So, looking and listening, what is observed? Here are two observations: 1) Moses and Elijah are alive and identifiable, giving evidence of the afterlife with God. 2) The Divinity of Christ is supported both by the visible revelation of His person and the audible testimony of His Father. How do these two observations encourage you today?
March 31, 2016
Jesus predicted his own death, burial and resurrection. No one took His life. He gave it willingly. The disciples didn’t really understand Christ’s claims until after His resurrection. When the disciples became eye witnesses of the risen Lord and were filled with the Holy Spirit, they went from frightened, unschooled followers to courageous, emboldened proclaimers of the gospel. And so Christ-followers greet one another even until this day saying, “He is risen!” He is risen indeed!
March 28, 2016
Of the four soils that Jesus described in his parable about receptivity to God’s Word, the thorny soil probably best resembles modern hearts. There has never been a generation so blessed with access to the Bible and the gospel message. Yet, today’s believers have a stunted spiritual maturity. They spend their days distracted by so many things that they fail to focus on the important. Are you cultivating the seed of God’s Word or is your spiritual life getting lost in the weeds?
March 26, 2016
Jesus is a funeral crasher. When he encountered the crying widow of Nain marching behind her only son’s coffin in a funeral procession, he interrupted their progress (Who does that?). He was moved with compassion for the widow whose only link to a hopeful future lay in the casket. The rights and possessions of her husband belonged to her now dead son. She would be left destitute and alone. But Jesus crashed the funeral and told the widow, “Don’t cry!” How offensive this would be if he were only telling her to deny her feelings. After all, what else could she do? She had no power to overcome death. She had every right to those tears! Who is this that he would stop a funeral along with its tears? He is Jesus, the Resurrection and the Life. And when death meets Life, Life wins. So, Jesus touched the bier and told the young man to arise. And the dead boy arose and began to speak, and Jesus gave him back to his mother. Because Jesus has defeated sin, death, and the grave, He is able to turn our mourning into laughter.