· Do we still have moral responsibility (#2)? Yes, but now we have the Holy Spirit indwelling us, to give us the power to choose right and wrong, and our human spirits have been recreated in the image of Christ—it wants to follow after Him.
· Do we still have human government (#3)? Yes, we do, but if we walk according to the Spirit, we don’t have to be afraid of the government. If they put us to death for righteousness sake, the Bible says we’re supposed to be happy.
· What about the law? Does it still stand? I Tim. 1:8-10 says that the law is not for the righteous—we have been made the righteousness of Christ—but for the lawless, the ungodly, the sinners. The law still stands to point people to Christ, to show them their need. The law still stands as a standard in our world, that if people would follow it, our world would be a better place to live in. The law does not justify us, but it sets the standard and grace gives us the power to live it.
Showing posts with label Luke. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Luke. Show all posts
Tuesday, May 10, 2011
Dispensations
I'm studying Ephesians right now and have come to verse 10. In this verse we see the word dispensation. What is a dispensation? It is the Greek word is oikonomia. It means the management of household affairs, or administration. It's simply the rule of the house, the way things operate for this time. It is used 4 times as dispensation (I Cor. 9:17, Eph. 1:10, 3:2, & Col. 1:25) and 3 times as stewardship (Luke 16:2-4). Some translations will use the word stewardship rather than dispensation. I use the NKJV, which is based on the Textus Receptus. In Eph. 3:9 there appears a word for fellowship--koinonia. But some translations are based on the Alexandrian text, which uses the word oikonomia in that verse instead Just something to be aware of. The NKJV reads, "fellowship of the mystery", the ESV reads, "plan of the mystery", and NASB reads, "dispensation of the mystery."
Heb. 1:1 – God works in different ways in different times. This does not mean that God tried one thing and it didn’t work so He tried something else. The reason for each of these periods is to lead man to the cross, until the final period where Christ will reign forever.
These dispensations help us understand the overall plan of scripture. They help us have a big picture perspective. Understanding these dispensations particularly helps us understand how we are no longer under the law.
So, what are the different dispensations? There are seven, here is a list. I interpret them slightly differently than some. You may ask, "who cares?" Does this information really do us any good in our day-to-day life? For one, I will use them to explain the Sheep and the Goats post. And I see a very practical aspect applied to our parenting. I will post about that soon.
1. Innocence (Gen. 1:28) – from creation to the fall. How long did it last? We don’t really know, but we do know it ended when they sinned. They were no longer innocent at that point.
2. Conscience/Moral Responsibility (Gen. 3:7) – from the fall onward. You now know good and evil, I will leave you to your conscience to choose between those. But man tends toward evil, so we get up to Gen. 6:5 and God says that ALL the purposes of man were evil continually.
3. Government (Gen. 8:15) – from the flood onward. After the flood there were consequences for evil. Man was still accountable to his conscience to choose between good and evil, but God added an incentive. He says that anyone that takes a human life will have his taken away. We see the value God is placing on human life here. If you can’t govern yourself, someone else will have to. See also Rom. 13.
4. Promise (Gen. 12:1) – from the call of Abram onward. This promise was not based on anything Abraham had done; it was unconditional. All Abraham had to do was believe. This promise is still available to us by faith, as well. So this dispensation, too, has not gone away. Gen. 12 & Gal. 3, 4. God is now teaching humans to trust in Him.
5. Law (Ex. 19:1) – from Mt. Sinai until Jesus (or specifically John the Baptist—Luke 16:16). Promise does not end and the Law did not bring justification. It brought a picture of the Savior. It brought many, many types and shadows to point us to the cross. You can study everything in the law, from the Sabbath, to the Feasts, to the elements of the Tabernacle, to the Dietary Laws, to the specific instructions to the priests on how to administer offerings, to the laws for declaring leprosy cleansed, and you will see Christ through and through. Beyond all the symbolism, the law was meant to frustrate man and show him he could never make it on his own, even with conscience and human government.
6. Church (Acts 2:1) – from Pentecost until the rapture. This is sometimes called the Age of Grace (I do not agree with this title) or the Dispensation of Faith (again, I don’t think this is entirely accurate), or the Dispensation of the Spirit. This is the mystery Paul is talking about, the secret that was hidden, not revealed in the OT, that Gentiles and Jews would be part of the same Body, and that the Spirit would indwell us. These were mind-blowing truths. This is one of the reasons Paul prayed for revelation for the people he was writing to. We need to pray this pray, too, that the Holy Spirit would open our eyes to these profound truths.
7. Kingdom (Rev. 20:4) – from Armageddon onward. The visible rule of the Lord Jesus Christ on the earth. We can see II Sam. 7:12-16, Is. 9:6-7, Luke 1:31-33, Rev. 3:21, and Matt. 25:31. He came once to die, the second to reign.
Now, the thread that is common throughout all these dispensations is grace. That is why I do not call the Church Age the Age of Grace. Every single age has been the age of grace. It was God’s grace that blocked Adam and Eve from the Tree of Life. He did not want them to live forever in their fallen state. It was grace that God had on Cain when He marked him and sent him away. It was grace that saved Noah and his family. Grace called Abram out of Ur. Grace redeemed Israel from their bondage to the Egyptians. Grace came and dwelt among us. Grace will rule on a literal throne forever and ever. The other side of this coin is faith. You can read about people of faith throughout all the past in Hebrews 11. Just like them, we are saved by grace, through faith, in whatever age we live.
Thursday, April 21, 2011
What is Grace?
I listened to a fabulous message the other day by John Bevere. You can listen to it, too, here.
He included a great analogy that has really stuck with me.
Imagine a tribe that lives in the bush, in Africa. They live far from all amenities. They have to travel far for water. They have to travel really, really far for medical supplies. They have to go out and hunt their food and then carry the heavy load back to the village. They have no connection to the outside world--no radios, no TV, no Internet. They have no A/C in their huts. And on and on and on.
We decide to grace them, to show them favor, to give them a great gift. We buy them a Land Rover. We bring it over and explain many of its benefits. We show them the A/C, heater, DVD player, Satellite Radio--really awesome things, that will benefit their lives. They are in awe and ask how they can pay for this. No, no, no, this is a FREE gift. We are giving it to them and expect no payment.
We leave and then come back to visit in 10 years. We find that the Land Rover is still sitting in the same spot! We find the odometer reads 0 miles! Why haven't they used it? Why haven't they taken advantage of the benefit of using it for transporting water, medical supplies, food, and more? Why haven't they used it to make their lives better?
Because we FAILED to explain to them the PRIMARY function of the Land Rover--transportation! We explained other good benefits, but not the primary benefit. They wrote songs about how great this gift was, they wrote books about it being a free gift that they didn't earn, they preached sermons about how it covered them when they climbed in to get out of the rain. But they WASTED our gift!
Is Jesus going to come back and see that we have wasted His gift of grace? We write songs about how amazing His grace is--and it is. We write books about how it's a free gift that we could never possibly earn--and it is. We preach sermons about how it covers all our sin--and it does. BUT, we are not teaching people the primary purpose and that is...
Empowerment!
Grace empowers us to overcome sin, overcome our weaknesses, overcome the world, overcome the devil, to be all that God has planned for us to be!
There is much more to the message and I encourage you to listen to it. The different references that were used were Eph. 3:9-10 Msg, Rom. 5:18 Msg, Gen. 1:27 Msg, II Cor. 12:9 TEV & NLT, II Pet. 1:2-3, John 1:16, I John 4:17, I John 2:6 NLT, II Cor. 7:1 TEV, Heb. 12:14, Heb. 12:28, II Cor. 6:1 TEV, John 20:21, Acts 4:33, Acts 6:8 NLT, Luke 2:40, John 14:12, Rom. 5:17 TEV, Dan. 6:3 NASB, Dan. 1:20. Look all of these up and see what the Holy Spirit wants to teach you. All unmarked references are NKJV.
He included a great analogy that has really stuck with me.
Imagine a tribe that lives in the bush, in Africa. They live far from all amenities. They have to travel far for water. They have to travel really, really far for medical supplies. They have to go out and hunt their food and then carry the heavy load back to the village. They have no connection to the outside world--no radios, no TV, no Internet. They have no A/C in their huts. And on and on and on.
We decide to grace them, to show them favor, to give them a great gift. We buy them a Land Rover. We bring it over and explain many of its benefits. We show them the A/C, heater, DVD player, Satellite Radio--really awesome things, that will benefit their lives. They are in awe and ask how they can pay for this. No, no, no, this is a FREE gift. We are giving it to them and expect no payment.
We leave and then come back to visit in 10 years. We find that the Land Rover is still sitting in the same spot! We find the odometer reads 0 miles! Why haven't they used it? Why haven't they taken advantage of the benefit of using it for transporting water, medical supplies, food, and more? Why haven't they used it to make their lives better?
Because we FAILED to explain to them the PRIMARY function of the Land Rover--transportation! We explained other good benefits, but not the primary benefit. They wrote songs about how great this gift was, they wrote books about it being a free gift that they didn't earn, they preached sermons about how it covered them when they climbed in to get out of the rain. But they WASTED our gift!
Is Jesus going to come back and see that we have wasted His gift of grace? We write songs about how amazing His grace is--and it is. We write books about how it's a free gift that we could never possibly earn--and it is. We preach sermons about how it covers all our sin--and it does. BUT, we are not teaching people the primary purpose and that is...
Empowerment!
Grace empowers us to overcome sin, overcome our weaknesses, overcome the world, overcome the devil, to be all that God has planned for us to be!
There is much more to the message and I encourage you to listen to it. The different references that were used were Eph. 3:9-10 Msg, Rom. 5:18 Msg, Gen. 1:27 Msg, II Cor. 12:9 TEV & NLT, II Pet. 1:2-3, John 1:16, I John 4:17, I John 2:6 NLT, II Cor. 7:1 TEV, Heb. 12:14, Heb. 12:28, II Cor. 6:1 TEV, John 20:21, Acts 4:33, Acts 6:8 NLT, Luke 2:40, John 14:12, Rom. 5:17 TEV, Dan. 6:3 NASB, Dan. 1:20. Look all of these up and see what the Holy Spirit wants to teach you. All unmarked references are NKJV.
Thursday, February 17, 2011
A Lesson in Agriculture
I gave my kids a lesson in agriculture this morning. I thought I would share it with you.
Do you want fruit? You will first need some seed.
Plant the seed into good soil.
Then water it.
Your plant will also need a good source of light.
Finally, you need time. Lots of it. Your plant will not grow overnight and will not bear fruit overnight. The amount of time needed depends on what you planted, say tomatoes, melons, or apples, for example. Tomatoes can bear fruit in 90 days, melons take at least 100, and apples can take a few years.
But your hard work and patience has paid off and you will reap the rewards--your fruit!
Sound simple? What happens if you leave one of those ingredients out of the formula? You will not get fruit. Simple enough. If you don't plant a seed, you don't get fruit. If you don't have good soil, you will not get fruit. If you don't water, you will not get fruit. If you plant a seed in fantastic soil and water it everyday, but leave it in an unlit closet--you won't get fruit! If you do all the right things, yet don't give the plant enough time, you won't get to enjoy the fruit!
Let's put this into a spiritual context. What is fruit? Fruit is our works, our obedience, our good choices. You want to bear fruit spiritually?
First you will need to plant a seed--God's Word. (Luke 8:11)
Plant it into good soil--your heart. (Luke 8:11-15) We could go on a tangent here about the condition of the heart being right, but I will save that for another time.
Water it regularly--water is God's Word and the Holy Spirit. (Hint--once a week isn't enough!) (Ephesians 5:26 & John 7:38-39)
Expose it to a good source of light--that is also God's Word and the Holy Spirit. John 8:12 speaks of Jesus as the light, but John 1:1 tells us Jesus is the Word. Psalm 119:105 tells us the Word is light. The oil in the Parable of the Virgins (Matthew 25) is a picture of the Holy Spirit, the source of light in our life. John 14:26 tells us that the Holy Spirt will teach us all things. Afterall, it only makes sense that the author of the Scriptures would be the One to explain them. (II Timothy 3:16)
Finally, you need time--that is patience. (Luke 8:15) Spiritual fruit doesn't come overnight, it comes in its season (Psalm 1:3). Never give up, no matter how long it takes.
Alas--fruit! There is a lot of emphasis on fruit and rightly so! But we HAVE to know HOW to get that fruit. We can't go to the spiritual store and buy the fruit. We can't take anyone else's fruit. We can't just make up our own fruit (not sure how one would do that, but I do see people make up their own works that were not directed by God--remember Abraham and Hagar!). Oh, and that fruit--you do want it, because Jesus said in John 15 that every branch that does not bear fruit will be taken away! But notice that He tells us just a few verses down (vs. 5) that we can do nothing without Him. We must never forget that--it is through His power!
I hope you see a pattern here--want fruit? You need the Word, planted in your heart, sprinkled with more Word, illuminated with more Word, and patience. Word, Word, Word.
Do you want fruit? You will first need some seed.
Plant the seed into good soil.
Then water it.
Your plant will also need a good source of light.Finally, you need time. Lots of it. Your plant will not grow overnight and will not bear fruit overnight. The amount of time needed depends on what you planted, say tomatoes, melons, or apples, for example. Tomatoes can bear fruit in 90 days, melons take at least 100, and apples can take a few years.
But your hard work and patience has paid off and you will reap the rewards--your fruit!Sound simple? What happens if you leave one of those ingredients out of the formula? You will not get fruit. Simple enough. If you don't plant a seed, you don't get fruit. If you don't have good soil, you will not get fruit. If you don't water, you will not get fruit. If you plant a seed in fantastic soil and water it everyday, but leave it in an unlit closet--you won't get fruit! If you do all the right things, yet don't give the plant enough time, you won't get to enjoy the fruit!Let's put this into a spiritual context. What is fruit? Fruit is our works, our obedience, our good choices. You want to bear fruit spiritually?
First you will need to plant a seed--God's Word. (Luke 8:11)
Plant it into good soil--your heart. (Luke 8:11-15) We could go on a tangent here about the condition of the heart being right, but I will save that for another time.Water it regularly--water is God's Word and the Holy Spirit. (Hint--once a week isn't enough!) (Ephesians 5:26 & John 7:38-39)Expose it to a good source of light--that is also God's Word and the Holy Spirit. John 8:12 speaks of Jesus as the light, but John 1:1 tells us Jesus is the Word. Psalm 119:105 tells us the Word is light. The oil in the Parable of the Virgins (Matthew 25) is a picture of the Holy Spirit, the source of light in our life. John 14:26 tells us that the Holy Spirt will teach us all things. Afterall, it only makes sense that the author of the Scriptures would be the One to explain them. (II Timothy 3:16)Finally, you need time--that is patience. (Luke 8:15) Spiritual fruit doesn't come overnight, it comes in its season (Psalm 1:3). Never give up, no matter how long it takes.Alas--fruit! There is a lot of emphasis on fruit and rightly so! But we HAVE to know HOW to get that fruit. We can't go to the spiritual store and buy the fruit. We can't take anyone else's fruit. We can't just make up our own fruit (not sure how one would do that, but I do see people make up their own works that were not directed by God--remember Abraham and Hagar!). Oh, and that fruit--you do want it, because Jesus said in John 15 that every branch that does not bear fruit will be taken away! But notice that He tells us just a few verses down (vs. 5) that we can do nothing without Him. We must never forget that--it is through His power!
I hope you see a pattern here--want fruit? You need the Word, planted in your heart, sprinkled with more Word, illuminated with more Word, and patience. Word, Word, Word.I tried to keep this as simple as I could, since it was for my kids. I know there are more aspects to the parable of the sower. I went over this and then asked them, "okay, how do you make right choices (this is the fruit)?" The first response was, "make good choices." I said, "that's the fruit. How do you get the fruit?" The answer was, "prayer?" People, it takes repetition. So, we went over this list again. Word, Word, Word. Yes, prayer is a part. You can ask God to reveal things to you, to give you wisdom, and He will through His Holy Spirit, but it will be in proportion to how much you feed on His Word. So, I asked them again, this time they got it. They said, "plant a seed in good ground, water it, give it light, and be patient." Can we adults get this, too? It may take a few times of going over it, even for us. I sincerely hope you do get this as it is vital!
Friday, December 24, 2010
Christmas Prophecy 24
The Messiah would rise from the dead!
Prophecy -
Psalm 16:10
For You will not leave my soul in Sheol,
Nor will You allow Your Holy One to see corruption.
Nor will You allow Your Holy One to see corruption.
Fulfillment -
Matthew 28:6
He is not here; for He is risen, as He said. Come, see the place where the Lord lay.
Mark 16:6
But he said to them, “Do not be alarmed. You seek Jesus of Nazareth, who was crucified. He is risen! He is not here. See the place where they laid Him.
Luke 24:46
Then He said to them, “Thus it is written, and thus it was necessary for the Christ to suffer and to rise from the dead the third day.
Acts 2:32
This Jesus God has raised up, of which we are all witnesses.
Acts 13:26-33 (NLT)
“Brothers—you sons of Abraham, and also you God-fearing Gentiles—this message of salvation has been sent to us! The people in Jerusalem and their leaders did not recognize Jesus as the one the prophets had spoken about. Instead, they condemned him, and in doing this they fulfilled the prophets’ words that are read every Sabbath. They found no legal reason to execute him, but they asked Pilate to have him killed anyway.
“When they had done all that the prophecies said about him, they took him down from the cross and placed him in a tomb. But God raised him from the dead! And over a period of many days he appeared to those who had gone with him from Galilee to Jerusalem. They are now his witnesses to the people of Israel.
“And now we are here to bring you this Good News. The promise was made to our ancestors, and God has now fulfilled it for us, their descendants, by raising Jesus.
Our faith means NOTHING without this all important detail. This is the gospel, that Jesus died for our sins, according to the Scriptures, and that He was buried, and that He rose again the third day, according to the Scriptures. (I Corinthians 15:1-4) He was seen by Peter and then by the twelve. After that He was seen by over five hundred at once. (I Corinthians 15:5-6) But if Christ is not risen, then our preaching is empty and our faith is empty. (I Corinthians 15:14) If Christ is not risen, your faith is in vain--devoid of truth, useless, and of no purpose, you are still in your sins!
This Christmas season I want you to see more than the birth of Christ, I want you to see His sacrifice, His substitutionary death for you, His payment for your sins. But none of this means anything if He didn't rise from the grave.
He is now seated at the right hand of the Father in heaven. (Ephesians 1:20 & Hebrews 8:1)
One day, He will come back for us. (I Thessalonians 4:16-18) One day, He will rule and reign on a literal throne, on the earth, and He will remain forever and ever. (Luke 1:31-33, Isaiah 9:6-7, Daniel 7:14)
This is good news! He will put an end to injustice, pain, suffering, misery, fear, worry, dread.
Won't you accept the gift? (Ephesians 2:8)
Most of the information in these posts has been from The New Evidence That Demands A Verdict, by Josh McDowell. Check it out for much, much more detail. And check out my next post where I deal with the questions I brought up in the first post.
This is part of our Christmas Prophecy series. To read all the other entries, click on any of these:
Christmas Prophecy 1
Christmas Prophecy 2
Christmas Prophecy 3
Christmas Prophecy 4
Christmas Prophecy 1
Christmas Prophecy 2
Christmas Prophecy 3
Christmas Prophecy 4
Thursday, December 16, 2010
Christmas Prophecy 16
The Messiah's hands and feet would be pierced.
Prophecy -
Psalm 22:16
For dogs have surrounded Me;
The congregation of the wicked has enclosed Me.
They pierced My hands and My feet;
The congregation of the wicked has enclosed Me.
They pierced My hands and My feet;
Zechariah 12:10
And I will pour on the house of David and on the inhabitants of Jerusalem the Spirit of grace and supplication; then they will look on Me whom they pierced.
Fulfillment -
Luke 23:33
And when they had come to the place called Calvary, there they crucified Him.
John 20:24-27
[After the resurrection.] Now Thomas, called the Twin, one of the twelve, was not with them when Jesus came. The other disciples therefore said to him, “We have seen the Lord.”
So he said to them, “Unless I see in His hands the print of the nails, and put my finger into the print of the nails, and put my hand into His side, I will not believe.”
And after eight days His disciples were again inside, and Thomas with them. Jesus came, the doors being shut, and stood in the midst, and said, “Peace to you!” Then He said to Thomas, “Reach your finger here, and look at My hands; and reach your hand here, and put it into My side. Do not be unbelieving, but believing.”
The death penalty under Jewish law was carried out by stoning. Jesus should have been stoned. But that would not have fulfilled these particular prophecies. The prophecy in the Book of Psalm was written by King David hundreds of years before Christ. It was translated into the Greek (Septuagint) almost 300 years before Christ. My point is that at the time of the writing, crucifixion did not exist and the Jews did not pierce anyone. They stoned criminals. They only hung the body on a pole after the death as an additional punishment for idolaters and blasphemers, to brand that person accursed of God (Deuteronomy 21:23).
The Persians invented crucifixion and the Romans practiced it. They would sometimes crucify hundreds in one day. Tradition says that Peter was crucified, but did not deem himself worthy to die as his Lord, so requested to be crucified upside down. Crucifixion involved piercing the hands and feet with large, dull spikes--these attached the body to a wooden cross or stake.
Crucifixion was the most shameful and degrading death penalty even to the non-Jewish world, but the Jews regarded a person crucified as being over and above, accursed of God. I have no doubt that crucifixion is the most painful, awful type of execution invented, before or since. In order to draw breath, the victim had to push up on his feet, causing excruciating pain.
Jesus was brutally murdered, and you and I are the ones that killed Him. But He willingly gave Himself, so that you and I could be saved. He took our place of punishment for the sin we committed. He was shamed and degraded so that you and I could be exalted into right-standing with God.
This is a continuation of our Christmas Prophecy series. To read part one and two, click here:
Christmas Prophecy 1
Christmas Prophecy 2
Christmas Prophecy 3
Christmas Prophecy 4
Christmas Prophecy 1
Christmas Prophecy 2
Christmas Prophecy 3
Christmas Prophecy 4
Wednesday, December 15, 2010
Christmas Prophecy 15
The Messiah would be smitten and spit upon.
Prophecy -
Isaiah 50:6
I gave My back to those who struck Me,
And My cheeks to those who plucked out the beard;
I did not hide My face from shame and spitting.
And My cheeks to those who plucked out the beard;
I did not hide My face from shame and spitting.
Micah 5:1
Now gather yourself in troops,
O daughter of troops;
He has laid siege against us;
They will strike the judge of Israel with a rod on the cheek.
O daughter of troops;
He has laid siege against us;
They will strike the judge of Israel with a rod on the cheek.
Fulfillment -
Matthew 26:67
Then they spat in His face and beat Him; and others struck Him with the palms of their hands.
As with yesterday's post, you can read a full account of the beating Jesus endured in Matthew 26:57 - 27:56, Mark 14:53 - 15:41, Luke 22:63 - 23:49, and John 18:19 - 19:37.
This is a continuation of our Christmas Prophecy series. Here is a list of previous entries:
Christmas Prophecy 1
Christmas Prophecy 2
Christmas Prophecy 3
Christmas Prophecy 4
Christmas Prophecy 1
Christmas Prophecy 2
Christmas Prophecy 3
Christmas Prophecy 4
Tuesday, December 14, 2010
Christmas Prophecy 14
The Messiah would be wounded and bruised.
Prophecy -
Isaiah 53:5
But He was wounded for our transgressions,
He was bruised for our iniquities;
The chastisement for our peace was upon Him,
And by His stripes we are healed.
He was bruised for our iniquities;
The chastisement for our peace was upon Him,
And by His stripes we are healed.
Fulfillment -
Matthew 27:26b
...and when he [Roman governor Pilate] had scourged Jesus, he delivered Him to be crucified.
You can read a full account of the beating Jesus endured in Matthew 26:57 - 27:56, Mark 14:53 - 15:41, Luke 22:63 - 23:49, and John 18:19 - 19:37.
This is a continuation of our Christmas Prophecy series. Here is a list of the previous entries:
Christmas Prophecy 1
Christmas Prophecy 2
Christmas Prophecy 3
Christmas Prophecy 4
Christmas Prophecy 1
Christmas Prophecy 2
Christmas Prophecy 3
Christmas Prophecy 4
Friday, December 10, 2010
Christmas Prophecy 10
The Messiah was to be a King and would enter Jerusalem on a donkey.
Prophecy -
Zechariah 9:9
Rejoice greatly, O daughter of Zion!
Shout, O daughter of Jerusalem!
Behold, your King is coming to you;
He is just and having salvation,
Lowly and riding on a donkey,
A colt, the foal of a donkey.
Shout, O daughter of Jerusalem!
Behold, your King is coming to you;
He is just and having salvation,
Lowly and riding on a donkey,
A colt, the foal of a donkey.
Fulfillment -
Matthew 21:6-11
So the disciples went and did as Jesus commanded them. They brought the donkey and the colt, laid their clothes on them, and set Him on them. And a very great multitude spread their clothes on the road; others cut down branches from the trees and spread them on the road. Then the multitudes who went before and those who followed cried out, saying:
“Hosanna to the Son of David!‘Blessed is He who comes in the name of the LORD!’Hosanna in the highest!”
And when He had come into Jerusalem, all the city was moved, saying, “Who is this?”
So the multitudes said, “This is Jesus, the prophet from Nazareth of Galilee.”
So the multitudes said, “This is Jesus, the prophet from Nazareth of Galilee.”
Luke 19:35-39
Then they brought him to Jesus. And they threw their own clothes on the colt, and they set Jesus on him. And as He went, many spread their clothes on the road.
Then, as He was now drawing near the descent of the Mount of Olives, the whole multitude of the disciples began to rejoice and praise God with a loud voice for all the mighty works they had seen, saying:
Then, as He was now drawing near the descent of the Mount of Olives, the whole multitude of the disciples began to rejoice and praise God with a loud voice for all the mighty works they had seen, saying:
“‘Blessed is the King who comes in the name of the LORD!’And some of the Pharisees called to Him from the crowd, “Teacher, rebuke Your disciples.”
Peace in heaven and glory in the highest!”
See also Mark 11:1-11, Luke 19:28-40, and John 12:12-15.
This is called the triumphal entry. Jesus is entering as the King, He is allowing the people to worship Him as King. The Pharisees were not happy and asked Jesus to rebuke His disciples--why?--because to worship anyone as the King and Messiah, IF he was not the real deal, was blasphemy. Jesus was not just a good man, a teacher, a moralist, a prophet, He is the King of Kings, and IS the Messiah of Israel.
How can this be, you say? He did not become King, He died on the cross! You are right, and this is what confused the Jewish leadership. He has been anointed King, but He has yet to rule as that King. That part of this prophecy has yet to be fulfilled. He will rule and reign on a literal throne in the near future, forever and ever. (Luke 1:31-33)
He humbled Himself and rode into the city on a donkey, a symbol of humility. He will return on a white horse. (Revelation 19:11-16)
This is a continuation of our Christmas Prophecy series. To read part one and two, click here:
Christmas Prophecy 1
Christmas Prophecy 2
Christmas Prophecy 3
Christmas Prophecy 4
Christmas Prophecy 1
Christmas Prophecy 2
Christmas Prophecy 3
Christmas Prophecy 4
Sunday, December 5, 2010
Christmas Prophecy 5
The Messiah had to be born in Bethlehem.
Prophecy -
Micah 5:2
"But you, Bethlehem Ephrathah, though you are little among the thousands of Judah, yet out of you shall come forth to Me the One to be Ruler in Israel, whose goings forth are from of old, from everlasting."
I read an article recently by someone skeptical of this prophecy. Their main point was that we Christians take this verse out of context and just make it fit the life of Jesus. But to this I say that if you will read the whole counsel of God, you will find your answer. When the wise men came from the east to worship the Christ, they came to King Herod to inquire where He could be found. Herod had to ask the scribes (the scholars), they told him the Christ was to be born in Bethlehem. See Matthew 2:5-6. And then about 30 years later, during Jesus' ministry years, some people were debating as to whether He was the Christ or not. Their determining criteria was that the Christ had to be from Bethlehem! See John 7:40-43. Jesus was born in Bethlehem, but grew up in a region called Galilee, (Bethlehem is in Judea) so they were a bit confused. We don't even know if they knew Jesus was born in Bethlehem, so it is easy to see why they were doubtful. I imagine Jesus didn't come in showing his birth certificate (they probably didn't have those back then) and telling everyone His life history, everywhere He went. We have something they didn't have--Matthew and Luke's accounts of His life--they were written after Jesus died and ascended.
I love what Matthew Henry has to say on the matter. "It is only fitting that Bethlehem, which means house of bread, should be the birthplace of the one who is the Bread of Life."
Fulfillment -
Matthew 2:1-2
Now after Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea in the days of Herod the king, behold, wise men from the East came to Jerusalem, saying, "Where is He who has been born King of the Jews? For we have seen His star in the East and have come to worship Him."
Luke 2:4-7
Joseph also went up from Galilee, out of the city of Nazareth, into Judea, to the city of David, which is called Bethlehem, because he was of the house and lineage of David, to be registered with Mary, his betrothed wife, who was with child. So it was, that while they were there, the days were completed for her to be delivered. And she brought forth her first-born Son, and wrapped Him in swaddling cloths, and laid Him in a manger, because there was no room for them in the inn.
This is a continuation of our Christmas Prophecy series. To read part one and two, click here:
Saturday, December 4, 2010
Christmas Prophecy 4
The Messiah had to be of the house (descendant) of David.
Prophecy -
Jeremiah 23:5
“ Behold, the days are coming,” says the LORD,
“ That I will raise to David a Branch of righteousness;
A King shall reign and prosper,
And execute judgment and righteousness in the earth.
“ That I will raise to David a Branch of righteousness;
A King shall reign and prosper,
And execute judgment and righteousness in the earth.
Fulfillment -
Luke 3:31
...the son of Melea, the son of Menan, the son of Mattathah, the son of Nathan, the son of David...
[Partial genealogy of Christ. You can read the full genealogy from Luke 3:23-38.]
Matthew 1:1
The book of the genealogy of Jesus Christ, the Son of David, the Son of Abraham...
[Again, part of a genealogy. To read this one in full, read Matthew 1:1-17.]
Matthew 22:41-42
While the Pharisees were gathered together, Jesus asked them, saying, “What do you think about the Christ? Whose Son is He?”
While the Pharisees were gathered together, Jesus asked them, saying, “What do you think about the Christ? Whose Son is He?”
They said to Him, “ The Son of David.”
[The Pharisees, who were the scholars of the day, fully understood that the scriptures clearly spelled out that the Messiah must be of the family of David.]
Acts 13:22-23
[Paul speaking.] And when He had removed him, He raised up for them David as king, to whom also He gave testimony and said, ‘I have found David the son of Jesse, a man after My own heart, who will do all My will. From this man’s seed, according to the promise, God raised up for Israel a Savior—Jesus.
Revelation 22:16
“I, Jesus, have sent My angel to testify to you these things in the churches. I am the Root and the Offspring of David, the Bright and Morning Star.”
Matthew 9:27, Matthew 15:22, Matthew 20:30-31, Matthew 21:9, 15, Mark 10:47-48, and Luke 18:38-39 all show that the people called Jesus by the title of, "Son of David."
This is a continuation of our Christmas Prophecy series. To read part one and two, click here:
Friday, December 3, 2010
Christmas Prophecy 3
The Messiah was to be of the tribe of Judah (this is one of the twelve tribes of Israel).
Prophecy -
Genesis 49:10
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.
Nor a lawgiver from between his feet,
Until Shiloh comes;
And to Him shall be the obedience of the people.
Fulfillment -
Luke 3:33
[partial genealogy, to read in full, see Luke 3:23-38]
The son of Amminadab, the son of Ram, the son of Hezron, the son of Perez, the son of Judah,
Matthew 1:2
Abraham begot Isaac, Isaac begot Jacob, and Jacob begot Judah and his brothers.
[Again, partial genealogy, to read in full, see Matthew 1:1-17]
Hebrews 7:14
For it is evident that our Lord arose from Judah, of which tribe Moses spoke nothing concerning priesthood.
This is a continuation of our Christmas Prophecy series. To read part one and two, click here:
Wednesday, December 1, 2010
Christmas Prophecy 1
Christmas is a time to celebrate Jesus (yes, I know He wasn't really born on December 25th and there is no where in the Bible that tells us to celebrate His birth, but I think any time we stop and focus on Him, God is pleased).
But was Jesus really the Son of God? Was He really the Messiah?
I've decided to do a countdown to Christmas and post, every day, one prophecy concerning Jesus and show the fulfillment. What are the odds that one man could fulfill all these prophecies? Could He have engineered it Himself, just made His life fit each prophecy? Or was it coincidence that He just happened to fit all these prophesies? Or what about the context of the prophecies themselves, are we taking them out of context and trying to make them fit the life of Jesus? Stay tuned and I will answer these questions throughout and at the end of the series.
The first prophecy I want to focus on is that the Messiah had to be born of a virgin.
Prophecy -
Isaiah 7:14
Therefore the Lord Himself will give you a sign: Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a Son, and shall call His name Immanuel. [Immanuel means God with us.]
You can also see Genesis 3:15. It refers to the seed of the woman. Women don't have seed, only men do. This also implies a virgin birth.
Fulfillment -
Luke 1:26-35
Now in the sixth month the angel Gabriel was sent by God to a city of Galilee named Nazareth, to a virgin betrothed to a man whose name was Joseph, of the house of David. The virgin’s name was Mary. And having come in, the angel said to her, “Rejoice, highly favored one, the Lord is with you; blessed are you among women!”
But when she saw him, she was troubled at his saying, and considered what manner of greeting this was.
Then the angel said to her, “Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favor with God. And behold, you will conceive in your womb and bring forth a Son, and shall call His name JESUS. He will be great, and will be called the Son of the Highest; and the Lord God will give Him the throne of His father David. And He will reign over the house of Jacob forever, and of His kingdom there will be no end.”
Then Mary said to the angel, “How can this be, since I do not know a man?”
And the angel answered and said to her, “The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Highest will overshadow you; therefore, also, that Holy One who is to be born will be called the Son of God.
Matthew 1:18, 24, 25
Now the birth of Jesus Christ was as follows: After His mother Mary was betrothed to Joseph, before they came together [referring to marital relations], she was found with child of the Holy Spirit...Then Joseph, being aroused from sleep, did as the angel of the Lord commanded him and took to him his wife, and did not know her [again, referring to marital relations] till she had brought forth her firstborn Son. And he called His name JESUS.
Tuesday, October 26, 2010
Muffin Top
In this world we live in, health is such a big deal! But is it too big a deal?!?
Are you more interested in discussing vitamins than scripture? (Psalm 19:7-11, 14)
Do you care more about losing your muffin top than reading God's Word? (Proverbs 31:30)
Are you willing to get up early to hit the gym, but not to spend time in prayer? (Proverbs 15:8)
If a friend mentions something about health, are you all ears, but if he/she mentions the Bible, do you tune out? (Proverbs 28:14 & 1:33)
Do you find the time to exercise, but can't seem to find time to study the Bible? (I Timothy 4:8)
Do you earnestly want to know how to take care of your body and eat right, but care very little about the health of your soul and how to feed it right? You figure the meal you get on Sundays is enough to get you through the week? (Matthew 6:25-34)
Do you concern yourself with fine lines, but not your eternity? (I Corinthians 15:50-58)
Do you reach for the Tylenol, before reaching for God's medicine? (Proverbs 3:5-8)
This may be more of a women's thing. For you men, do you get more excited about financial books, than God's Word? (Luke 12:15-21)
Time for a priority check.
I Thessalonians 5:23
Now may the God of peace Himself sanctify you completely; and may your whole spirit, soul, and body be preserved blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ.
Spirit, soul, and body--they are listed in that order, for a reason.
Are you more interested in discussing vitamins than scripture? (Psalm 19:7-11, 14)
Do you care more about losing your muffin top than reading God's Word? (Proverbs 31:30)
Are you willing to get up early to hit the gym, but not to spend time in prayer? (Proverbs 15:8)
If a friend mentions something about health, are you all ears, but if he/she mentions the Bible, do you tune out? (Proverbs 28:14 & 1:33)
Do you find the time to exercise, but can't seem to find time to study the Bible? (I Timothy 4:8)
Do you earnestly want to know how to take care of your body and eat right, but care very little about the health of your soul and how to feed it right? You figure the meal you get on Sundays is enough to get you through the week? (Matthew 6:25-34)
Do you concern yourself with fine lines, but not your eternity? (I Corinthians 15:50-58)
Do you reach for the Tylenol, before reaching for God's medicine? (Proverbs 3:5-8)
This may be more of a women's thing. For you men, do you get more excited about financial books, than God's Word? (Luke 12:15-21)
Time for a priority check.
I Thessalonians 5:23
Now may the God of peace Himself sanctify you completely; and may your whole spirit, soul, and body be preserved blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ.
Spirit, soul, and body--they are listed in that order, for a reason.
Saturday, August 7, 2010
Freedom Part 2
This is a continuation of related posts. You can read the first installment here, and the second here.
11 Then He said: “A certain man had two sons. 12 And the younger of them said to his father, ‘Father, give me the portion of goods that falls to me.’ So he divided to them his livelihood. 13 And not many days after, the younger son gathered all together, journeyed to a far country, and there wasted his possessions with prodigal living. 14 But when he had spent all, there arose a severe famine in that land, and he began to be in want. 15 Then he went and joined himself to a citizen of that country, and he sent him into his fields to feed swine. 16 And he would gladly have filled his stomach with the pods that the swine ate, and no one gave him anything.
17 “But when he came to himself, he said, ‘How many of my father’s hired servants have bread enough and to spare, and I perish with hunger! 18 I will arise and go to my father, and will say to him, “Father, I have sinned against heaven and before you, 19 and I am no longer worthy to be called your son. Make me like one of your hired servants.”’
20 “And he arose and came to his father. But when he was still a great way off, his father saw him and had compassion, and ran and fell on his neck and kissed him. 21 And the son said to him, ‘Father, I have sinned against heaven and in your sight, and am no longer worthy to be called your son.’
22 “But the father said to his servants, ‘Bring out the best robe and put it on him, and put a ring on his hand and sandals on his feet. 23 And bring the fatted calf here and kill it, and let us eat and be merry; 24 for this my son was dead and is alive again; he was lost and is found.’ And they began to be merry.
25 “Now his older son was in the field. And as he came and drew near to the house, he heard music and dancing. 26 So he called one of the servants and asked what these things meant. 27 And he said to him, ‘Your brother has come, and because he has received him safe and sound, your father has killed the fatted calf.’
28 “But he was angry and would not go in. Therefore his father came out and pleaded with him. 29 So he answered and said to his father, ‘Lo, these many years I have been serving you; I never transgressed your commandment at any time; and yet you never gave me a young goat, that I might make merry with my friends. 30 But as soon as this son of yours came, who has devoured your livelihood with harlots, you killed the fatted calf for him.’
31 “And he said to him, ‘Son, you are always with me, and all that I have is yours. 32 It was right that we should make merry and be glad, for your brother was dead and is alive again, and was lost and is found.’”
God wants you to be free--wholly, utterly, completely free.
God's laws bring you freedom. (Now before you think I'm contradicting my last post, read on.)
Think about it, if you obey the seventh commandment, "You shall not commit adultery" you will be free from diseases, heartache, strife, guilt, and more, for example.
Rules actually give us freedom. When you follow a budget and set rules for yourself with your spending, you are free to buy bigger ticket items, go on family vacations, relax in your retirement age, etc.
The problem is that we cannot, in our own power, keep God's law.
The law was given for a few different reasons, but one of those was to show us how utterly we can't keep it!
Romans 5:20a
Moreover the law entered that the offense might abound.
Now that's not to say that God's law is evil.
Romans 7:7,12
What shall we say then? Is the law sin? Certainly not!...The law is holy, and the commandment holy and just and good.
Keeping the law will make your life more peaceful, as I mentioned previously, but it is not how we are saved.
Ephesians 2:8-9
For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, not of works, lest anyone should boast.
But as I said, we have no power to keep that law. The law shows us that we cannot save ourselves, we need a Savior. When we believe on Jesus, His Spirit actually indwells us and empowers us to overcome sin.
I Corinthians 3:16
Do you not know that you are the temple of God and that the Spirit of God dwells in you?
See also John 14:17, Romans 8:9, Romans 8:11, Ephesians 2:22, II Timothy 1:14, and James 4:5.
And we get a brand-new spirit. Our spirit is recreated, in the likeness of Christ
II Corinthians 5:17
Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new.
You are no longer a murdering, lying, adulterer. You are now clothed with the righteousness of Christ.
Isaiah 61:10
I will greatly rejoice in the LORD,
My soul shall be joyful in my God;
For He has clothed me with the garments of salvation,
He has covered me with the robe of righteousness.
My soul shall be joyful in my God;
For He has clothed me with the garments of salvation,
He has covered me with the robe of righteousness.
You do, however, have a choice (the freedom) to live in your old ways. You can choose the abundant life God has for you, or not. You can choose peace and joy, or misery.
Jesus says, "The thief does not come except to steal, and to kill, and to destroy. I have come that they may have life, and that they may have it more abundantly." (John 10:10)
You don't have to live that abundant life, if you so choose. You can choose to live in hell here on earth.
Read this parable of The Lost Son, from Luke 15.
11 Then He said: “A certain man had two sons. 12 And the younger of them said to his father, ‘Father, give me the portion of goods that falls to me.’ So he divided to them his livelihood. 13 And not many days after, the younger son gathered all together, journeyed to a far country, and there wasted his possessions with prodigal living. 14 But when he had spent all, there arose a severe famine in that land, and he began to be in want. 15 Then he went and joined himself to a citizen of that country, and he sent him into his fields to feed swine. 16 And he would gladly have filled his stomach with the pods that the swine ate, and no one gave him anything.
17 “But when he came to himself, he said, ‘How many of my father’s hired servants have bread enough and to spare, and I perish with hunger! 18 I will arise and go to my father, and will say to him, “Father, I have sinned against heaven and before you, 19 and I am no longer worthy to be called your son. Make me like one of your hired servants.”’
20 “And he arose and came to his father. But when he was still a great way off, his father saw him and had compassion, and ran and fell on his neck and kissed him. 21 And the son said to him, ‘Father, I have sinned against heaven and in your sight, and am no longer worthy to be called your son.’
22 “But the father said to his servants, ‘Bring out the best robe and put it on him, and put a ring on his hand and sandals on his feet. 23 And bring the fatted calf here and kill it, and let us eat and be merry; 24 for this my son was dead and is alive again; he was lost and is found.’ And they began to be merry.
25 “Now his older son was in the field. And as he came and drew near to the house, he heard music and dancing. 26 So he called one of the servants and asked what these things meant. 27 And he said to him, ‘Your brother has come, and because he has received him safe and sound, your father has killed the fatted calf.’
28 “But he was angry and would not go in. Therefore his father came out and pleaded with him. 29 So he answered and said to his father, ‘Lo, these many years I have been serving you; I never transgressed your commandment at any time; and yet you never gave me a young goat, that I might make merry with my friends. 30 But as soon as this son of yours came, who has devoured your livelihood with harlots, you killed the fatted calf for him.’
31 “And he said to him, ‘Son, you are always with me, and all that I have is yours. 32 It was right that we should make merry and be glad, for your brother was dead and is alive again, and was lost and is found.’”
Your sins are forgiven you (if you believe on Jesus Christ), God loves you. He wants you to come home, He wants you to choose the abundant life He has for you. You are not kicked out of His family. You may think that true freedom is doing whatever you please, but true freedom actually comes from submitting wholly to the Lordship of Christ.
Galatians 2:20
I have been crucified with Christ; it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself for me.
Jesus said, "Come to Me, all you who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For My yoke is easy and My burden is light.” (Matthew 11:28-30)
I will explain next time the consequences of living a sinful life, and it's probably not what you may think.
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