February 5, 2015
This was a part of Jesus’ answer to the disciples questions concerning end times. The Greek word translated “nations” is ethnos (ἔθνος). It might also be translated every race/culture/tongue. According to Wycliffe Bible Translators, there are still 350 million people in the world who do not have a Scripture translation in their heart language. And according to the www.joshuaproject.net 43% of the world’s people groups are still unreached. Most of these are in the 10/40 window. There are still “ethnos” who have not heard the gospel. God is still asking, “Whom shall I send and who will go for us?” (Isa.6:8).
February 3, 2015
Jesus not only taught, but modeled the art of servant leadership. He showed that true greatness was not about exalting oneself, but being humble enough to wash another’s feet. This is the Kingdom leadership model that turns the world upside down. The servant leader descends to greatness. By choosing to serve, the Lord lifts him up.
February 1, 2015
Using the “rejected stone” imagery from Psalm 118, Jesus applied it to the Jewish religious leaders and their rejection of Him. Since they had rejected John the Baptist as the forerunner and had also rejected Jesus as the Messiah, they would be rejected by God and His kingdom would be “taken” from them. The chief priests and Pharisees did not bear the “fruits” of the kingdom. They had not repented of sin and accepted the Christ as their Lord and Savior, therefore their rejection of the Son would result in them being rejected by the Father. Even when they heard these words of warning from Jesus, they did not repent, but only became more determined to kill Him. And to what “nation” was the kingdom of God to be given? It was given to a holy nation, a nation without borders or end, to a house made up of those who accepted Christ as the Chief Cornerstone, and became themselves “living stones” in His temple (Read 1 Peter 2:4-10). Those who accept the Son, have life in the kingdom. Those who reject Him, do not (1 John 5:12).
January 28, 2015
Peter asked Jesus whether we should put a limit on forgiveness. Jesus answered with a parable concerning a king and his subject who owed him “ten thousand talents” (A “talent” was a unit of gold weighing around 75 pounds. One talent was equal to about 16 years’ wages). The king forgave his subject completely, erasing his debt. But the subject’s heart was unchanged. He immediately went out and put in prison one who owed him only “one hundred denarii” (A “denarii” was a Roman coin made of about 4 grams of silver. It was considered a day’s wages). The point of the parable seems to be that God has forgiven us a debt much greater than any could ever repay, therefore we should always forgive because we have been forgiven so much. Our capacity for the forgiveness of others is drawn from God’s limitless supply of forgiveness for us. We are to love and forgive unconditionally, as God through Christ has loved and forgiven us.
January 25, 2015
Jesus had many hard sayings, but the teaching concerning His suffering, death and resurrection was the hardest for the disciples to receive. Bold Peter even attempted to rebuke Jesus for saying such things. But Jesus put him in his place with, “Get behind Me, Satan!” Poor Peter went from Peter the confessor, to Peter the transgressor in a matter of moments. One minute, he was listening to God’s voice, recognizing Jesus as the “Christ, the Son of the Living God.” And the next minute, he was under Satan’s influence, trying to dissuade Jesus from His ultimate purpose. Jesus tried to prepare the disciples for the cross and the empty tomb, but only the sight of His resurrected body and the sound of His voice was able to convince them of its truth. They finally understood that Jesus “must go” to the cross, the tomb and be raised again on the third day in order to redeem us and reconcile us to God.
January 22, 2015
Perhaps you’ve heard someone say, “If you want to walk on water, you have to get out of the boat.” This mantra is offered to encourage us to have a risk-taking kind of faith like Peter’s. Yet, it overlooks Peter’s first step. His first step wasn’t to get his feet wet. His first step was to ask permission from Jesus to join Him on the sea. Peter asked to walk on the water to Jesus. And Jesus said, “Come.” So, during the 4th watch of the night (3-6AM), Peter got to practice his gait on the Galilee. What unexpected joy awaits those who will follow Jesus wherever He leads!
January 21, 2015
The people of Nazareth were offended at the authority of Jesus’ teachings because of their familiarity with him. They knew his family. They had seen him grow up. “Who does he think he is coming back home preaching to us?” They thought.
Two ways we might relate to this passage:
One, we might relate to the Nazarenes. We sometimes respond without respect to Christ because of familiarity. We’ve been believers for a long time, so we feel we’ve heard it all before. We’ve sung all the songs. Listened to all the sermons. Attended all the holiday events. We lose sight of our “first love.” We become like the people of Nazareth. And we do not see Jesus do mighty works in our lives because of our unbelief.
Two, we might relate to Jesus. We sometimes experience rejection from our family and friends when we bring Jesus home with us. We are able to share our testimony of faith with strangers and see them accept Christ, but our own family members act offended when we offer the same to them. Like Jesus, we have no honor in our own house.
How do you relate to this passage?
January 19, 2015
Ever since God told Adam and Eve about the Seed that would crush the serpent’s head, believers had looked for the Messiah. Generation after generation, the Word of the Lord came to prophets enlarging their understanding and anticipation of His coming. But their lives passed without hearing or seeing the Desire of all nations. Yet, when the Christ did come to God’s chosen people, the ones He had prepared throughout the centuries to receive Him, they received Him not. Only a remnant had eyes to perceive and ears to understand that the Messiah had come. Today, it is the same. Only a few perceive and understand the gospel and receive Jesus as Lord. Only a remnant look for and anticipate His return. What grace that God would open our blind eyes and deaf ears, so that we might know the Son! What a blessing to be a member of the remnant that He calls to be His own!
January 16, 2015
Jesus offered this invitation in the context of talking about access to the Father. He had just said that no one knows the Father except the Son, and the one to whom the Son chooses to reveal Him. This is similar to Jesus describing Himself as the only way to God as He did in John’s gospel (John 14:6). In this context, Jesus invites those who are heavy with laboring to find God, or to please God with their works, to come to Him instead and make Him their Master (“Take My yoke”), resting their souls in Him. The invitation to take His “yoke” (An implement for putting an ox into service pulling a plow) is an invitation to come under His Lordship, becoming His servant. This is Christ’s offer of a great exchange. Exchange your hard and impossible work to please God for His finished work on your behalf. Therein, you will find “rest” (sabbath) for your soul. Have you accepted this invitation?
January 15, 2015
This statement from Jesus to His disciples is very disconcerting, until you understand it’s significance. Jesus is claiming the priority love that belongs to God alone. He is not saying you cannot love your family and be His follower too. No, far from it. He is saying that we must love Him above all others, even our very families. Since Jesus is God, He appropriately claims our first devotion. Yet, choosing to love Christ first, above all others, we are actually filled with the love of God which causes us to truly love not only our families, but our neighbors and even our enemies. The thing that grieved Christ about the church of Ephesus was not that they had fallen into sin, or that they had become heretics. No, He commended them for their faithfulness in these areas. What grieved Christ is that they had “forsaken” their “first love” for Him (Rev. 2:4). Following Christ is a commitment of the heart as well as the head. We are called to a love relationship with the One who redeemed us.