Christmas

Christmas Day, December 25 C

posted

Isaiah 62:10-12 -- Your Salvation Comes;
Psalm 98 – The Victory of Our God;
Titus 3:4-7 – Jesus, Our Savior;
Luke 2:1-20 -- The Birth of Jesus;

Isaiah:

Go through the gates and prepare the way for the people. Build a highway, level it and clear it of stones. “Lift up an ensign over the peoples” (Isaiah 62:10e). The Lord has proclaimed, “Watch and see, your salvation comes; note that he is bringing his reward and his punishment with him. His people will be called holy (cleansed of sin and consecrated to God's service), the redeemed of the Lord. They shall be known as “Sought out; a city not forsaken” (Isaiah 62:12c).

Psalm:

Let us sing a new song to the Lord, for the wonderful things he has done.
He has won victory by his right hand and holy arm. His vindication has been revealed to all nations. He has not forgotten his steadfast love and faithfulness to Israel. The victory of God has been displayed to the ends of the earth (both geographically and temporally).

Let all the earth rejoice in the Lord; let all people break forth in joyous songs of praise. Praise the Lord with stringed instruments and horns. In the presence of God our King praise him with joyful song.

Let all nature join in praise to the Lord; the sea earth, rivers and hills, and everything in them, because he is coming to judge the world and its peoples in righteousness and equity.

Titus:

When the goodness and loving kindness of God, our Savior, were revealed, he saved us not because we were deserving, but because of his mercy. He cleansed us by the “baptism” of regeneration (spiritual “rebirth;” the gift of the indwelling Holy Spirit) and renewal by the Holy Spirit, which were given in abundance through Jesus Christ, so that we could be justified (found “not guilty”) by grace (unmerited favor; a free gift), and become heirs of the hope of eternal life.

Luke:

Roman Emperor Caesar Augustus commanded that a census for assessing taxes be conducted in Judea,* and Quirinius was appointed to carry it out.

Every Jew returned to his ancestral city for the census. Joseph, and Mary, his betrothed, who was pregnant, went from Nazareth in Galilee, where they were living, to Bethlehem in Judea, the city of David, the great shepherd-king, because Joseph was a descendant of David.

Because of the census, there were no vacancies at the inn, and Mary and Joseph stayed in a stable. While there, Mary began childbirth labor, and delivered her first-born, a son. She wrapped him in swaddling cloths, according to the common practice, and laid him in a manger (an animal feed trough (which was not common practice).

Commentary:

God's people are to open the gates of the city and prepare a highway for the coming of the Lord. The (empty) Cross of Jesus Christ is the ensign of God's people (John 12:32-33:
“And I, if I be lifted up from the earth, will draw all men unto me”).

God designed the Savior into Creation from the very beginning of Creation (John 1:1-5, 14). At the perfect time, God revealed the coming of the Savior (the Messiah; the Christ; both mean God's anointed Savior and eternal King): Roman Emperor Caesar Augustus commanded that a census for assessing taxes be conducted in Judea,* and Quirinius, the Roman governor of Syria was appointed to carry it out. By establishing the dates of secular authorities, Luke documents the time of Jesus' physical advent (coming).

Jesus is the fulfillment of the long-awaited Savior and eternal King, the Messiah (Christ). Jesus' first advent (coming) was as a new-born baby. Jesus has promised to come again, on the Day of Judgment, to judge everyone who has ever lived. Jesus is the righteous judge, and the standard by which all will be judged. He will be bringing both reward and punishment. Those who have accepted Jesus as their Lord, who have trusted and obeyed Jesus will have been spiritually “born-again” (John 3:3, 5-8) by the gift of the indwelling Holy Spirit, which only Jesus gives (John 1:31-34), only to his disciples who trust and obey Jesus (John 14:15-17). Those who have rejected Jesus, who have refused or neglected to trust and obey Jesus will be condemned to eternal destruction in Hell with all evil (Matthew 25:31-46; 2 Thessalonians 1:5-10).

Jesus is the right hand and holy arm of God, who has won the eternal victory over sin and death at the Cross (Acts 5:30-31; 1 Peter 3:22). The enemies of God hoped to get rid of Jesus through his physical death, but Jesus rose again to eternal life. Jesus' resurrection demonstrates that there is existence after physical death. Jesus manifested himself to over five hundred people after his resurrection (1 Corinthians 15:3-8). Every truly “born-again” Christian has personal daily fellowship with God the Father and the Lord Jesus Christ through the gift of the indwelling Holy Spirit, and testifies that Jesus is risen and is eternally alive. Jesus' resurrection frees us from slavery to sin and death (Hebrews 2:14-15).

When we are baptized with water by the Church for repentance we are cleansed of sin (disobedience of God's Word) and prepared to receive the “baptism” of the indwelling Holy Spirit which only Jesus gives. Through the indwelling Holy Spirit we are “regenerated” (by spiritual re-birth) and are guided and empowered by the Holy Spirit to be “renewed” (Ephesians 4:22-24). We are being transformed from our spiritual likeness to Adam, our earthly ancestor, into the likeness of Christ (Colossians 3:9b-10).

Jesus is the spiritual “bread of life” (John 6:47-51), true eternal life. Farm animals can find their feed in a manger, but most of Israel couldn't find the true spiritual bread of life in the manger of their Messiah Jesus Christ.

Christ came physically at the perfect time to accomplish God's purpose, which is to establish an eternal kingdom of his people who trust and obey God. Jesus came to be the only sacrifice acceptable to God for forgiveness of sin (we're all sinners: Romans 3:23; 1 John 1:8-10) and salvation from eternal condemnation, eternal death, which is the penalty for sin (Romans 6:23; see God's Plan of Salvation, sidebar, top right).

Crucifixion was the method of execution of the Roman Empire; the Jewish method of execution was by “stoning.” Jesus' advent (coming) coincided, by God's will, with the circumstances of Christ's crucifixion.

In the period of wilderness wandering, Israel had been beset with fiery serpents and many people were bitten and died. God told Moses to make a (fiery serpent of bronze and put it on a pole (horizontally through a hole in the middle). Then when anyone was bitten, he could look to the fiery serpent on the pole and would be saved (Numbers 21:6-9). God had forbidden Israel to make an image of any animal, but God intended this serpent on a pole to prefigure the Cross of Jesus Christ (John 3:14-15; 12:32-33; Deuteronomy 21:23; Galatians 3:13).

By God's deliberate will, Jesus' birth also coincided with the first Roman census (Luke 2:2), so that Jesus' birth fulfilled Old Testament prophecy (Micah 5:2). Jesus was the fulfillment of God's promise to David (the great human shepherd-king of Israel, whom God intended to prefigure Christ), to give him a descendant, a Son of David (Matthew 1:1; 21:9, 15), who would reign on David's throne eternally (2 Samuel 7:5-13; Psalm 89:20-29). Jesus is the “Good Shepherd” (John 10:11, 14).

Is Jesus your Lord? Are you Jesus’ disciple? Are you trusting and obeying Jesus? Have you received the indwelling Holy Spirit since you first truly believed (Acts 19:2)? Are you making disciples of Jesus Christ and teaching them to obey all that Jesus commands (Matthew 28:18-20)? Do you know with certainty where you will spend eternity (1 John 5:11-13; Ephesians 1:13-14)?

*The Oxford Annotated Bible, Revised Standard Version, Ed. by Herbert G. May and Bruce M. Metzger, “Chronological Tables of Rulers, “C” p. 1534, New York, Oxford University Press, 1962.

**Eerdmans Dictionary of the Bible, David Noel Freedman, “Quirinius,” pg 1104, William B. Eerdmans Publishing Co., Grand Rapids Michigan, 2000, ISBN 0-8020-2400-5

December 26 C

posted

Psalm 111 – Redemption for His People;

Let us praise the Lord! Let us give thanks to him with all our hearts. Let us praise him in the congregation of his people, in the company of the righteous.

The works of the Lord are great, the delight of those who study them. His works are completely honorable and majestic, and his righteousness is eternal. He has done his works of wonder to be remembered; gracious and merciful is the Lord.

To those who fear him he provides food; he never forgets his covenant. His works reveal his great power to his people. He has given them the heritage of the nations.

Faithful and just are his deeds; trustworthy are his teachings; they are eternally true. They are to be performed faithfully in righteousness.

“He sent redemption to his people; he has commanded his covenant forever” (Psalm 111:9). The name of the Lord is holy and awesome! “The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom; a good understanding have all those who practice it. His praise will endure forever (Psalm 111:10)!

Commentary:

The Lord has done great things for us, and when we realize his goodness and faithfulness we will want to praise him and give him thanks, along with all God's people. Those who take the time to study God's great works will delight in them.

God has been progressively revealing himself and his purpose to the world from the very beginning of Creation, first through the goodness and complexity of the universe itself. Then he revealed himself to one man Abraham (Abram), who was willing to trust and obey God, and who became the father of the people of Israel, by faith in God's Word. Through Israel, God has given us his Word, the record of his great deeds on behalf of all people, in the Bible.

In his perfect timing, he revealed himself through Jesus Christ, the “living Word” fulfilled, embodied and exemplified (John 1:1-5, 14), the fulfillment of his promise of an eternal Savior and King. Jesus is the ultimate revelation of God to the world. The gift of the indwelling Holy Spirit is God's ultimate revelation of God the Father and Jesus Christ to us personally and individually.

Only Jesus “baptizes” with the gift of the indwelling Holy Spirit (John 1:31-34), only his disciples who trust and obey Jesus (John 14:15-17). The Holy Spirit is the seal and guarantee that one is in Christ and has eternal life (2 Corinthians 1:22; Ephesians 1:13-14; Romans 8:9b, 11, 15-16). It is possible for one to know with certainty for oneself if one has received the gift of the indwelling Holy Spirit (Acts 19:2).

God has always intended from the very beginning of Creation to establish an eternal kingdom of his people who willingly choose to trust and obey God. This lifetime is our opportunity to seek and find God (Acts 17:26-27) and to be spiritually “reborn” (“born-again;” John 3:3, 5-8) to eternal life by the gift of the indwelling Holy Spirit. All this is only possible through faith (obedient trust) in Jesus Christ, because God designed Creation that way.

The place to begin to seek a personal relationship with God is to read the Bible completely, but from the perspective of the New Testament, either by reading portions of both testaments each day, or by starting with the New Testament. I prefer and recommend the first (see Free Bible Study Tools, sidebar, top right).

The Bible is the record of God's great deeds done for his people through the history of Israel. When we begin to trust and obey God's Word in our own lives, we will begin to experience great deeds done for us personally. God intends to show us his goodness and righteousness through his deeds, for the world and for us personally. When we face times of trouble and difficulty, we can remember God's love and faithfulness in other circumstances and trust him to do similar things for us again. As we experience his faithfulness, he will cause our faith to grow to spiritual maturity (see Personal Testimonies).

Jesus is the fulfillment of the promise of a Redeemer. We have all sinned (disobeyed God's Word) and fall short of God's righteousness (Romans 3:23; 1 John 1:8-10). The penalty for sin is eternal death (Romans 6:23). Jesus is God's only provision for the forgiveness of our sin and our salvation from eternal death (Romans 5:8; John 3:15-16; Acts 4:12; see God's Plan of Salvation, sidebar, top right).

God initiated a Covenant of Law through Moses, which was intended to restrain sin until the first advent (coming) of Jesus Christ. Through Jesus Christ, God initiated an New Covenant of Grace (unmerited favor; a free gift) to be received by faith (obedient trust) in Jesus Christ (Matthew 26:26-28, RSV note “g;” Hebrews 8:8-10, 12:24. Under the Old Covenant we are all condemned to eternal death through sin; under the New Covenant we are released from the condemnation of the Old Covenant, provided that we are obedient to the Holy Spirit (Romans 8:1-14).

God is faithful to his Covenant. If we accept Jesus as our Lord, and learn to trust and obey him, we will receive the promise of the “baptism” of the indwelling Holy Spirit. By the presence of the Holy Spirit within us we are spiritually “reborn” to eternal life.

Until one learns to fear (have appropriate awe and respect for the power and authority of God), one doesn't know anything eternally useful. God's wisdom is unlike what the world falsely calls wisdom. Man's wisdom is constantly changing, because there's so much we don't know. The status of Pluto in our solar system is a recent example. God's wisdom is eternally true (1 Corinthians 1:17-25; 2:1-8). Jesus Christ is the only way to know divine, eternal truth, the only way to restoration of fellowship with God which was broken by sin, and the only way to have true, eternal life (John 14:6).

It is not true that one can never know for certain if there is existence after physical death until one dies. The only people who do not know where they are going to spend eternity are those who are spiritually “unreborn” and eternally “lost.” Those who trust and obey God's Word in Jesus Christ, will be “born-again.” By the indwelling Holy Spirit they will know personally that Jesus is risen from physical death and is eternally alive. Jesus' resurrection from physical death to eternal life is attested to by every “born-again” Christian, and demonstrates to the world that there is existence beyond the grave.

Is Jesus your Lord? Are you Jesus’ disciple? Are you trusting and obeying Jesus? Have you received the indwelling Holy Spirit since you first truly believed (Acts 19:2)? Are you making disciples of Jesus Christ and teaching them to obey all that Jesus commands (Matthew 28:18-20)? Do you know with certainty where you will spend eternity (1 John 5:11-13; Ephesians 1:13-14)?

December 27 C

posted

Jeremiah 31:10-13 – Return and Restoration;

Jeremiah declared that all the nations (Gentiles) and coastlands, near and far should pay attention to God's Word. The Lord God who had scattered Israel would also gather them and keep them like a shepherd keeps his flock. Jacob (God's people; named after the patriarch whose name God changed to Israel; the Church is the New Israel) has been ransomed and redeemed from his more powerful enemies by the Lord. They will return to Zion, the temple mount (in Jerusalem), singing and rejoicing to the Lord for his goodness. They will again rejoice in the grain,wine, oil and multiplication of their flocks and herds. Their languishing will be no more; their lives will be like an irrigated garden. Their maidens will again rejoice in dancing, and the men, young and old, will celebrate. The Lord promises to turn their mourning into joy. The Lord will comfort them and exchange their sorrow for gladness.

Commentary:

Jeremiah was a prophet to Judah and Jerusalem from about 627-580 B.C.. Jeremiah preached warning to Judah to repent and return to the Lord from disobedience and idolatry, to avoid the coming judgment of God. Jeremiah prophesied that unless Judah repented, they would be exiled in Babylon for seventy years (Jeremiah 25:11-12). Judah ignored the warning of Jeremiah until it was too late. As the consequence, Jerusalem was conquered by the armies of King Nebuchadnezzar of Chaldea (Babylon) in 587 B.C.. The temple and the walls of the city were destroyed. The people were deported to Babylon until they were amazingly returned and restored in about 517 B. C. through King Cyrus of Persia who conquered Babylon.

The Southern Kingdom, Judah, of the divided monarchy, hadn't learned the lesson of the Northern Kingdom, Israel, which ignored the warnings of the prophets until it was too late. The Northern Kingdom of the ten tribes, was conquered by the armies of Shalmaneser and and his successor, Sargon, of the Assyrians in 721 B.C., with the fall of the capital, Samaria. The ten tribes effectively ceased to exist, because of the Assyrians policy of deporting conquered people to other conquered lands. Because the deportees mingled with aliens, they lost their racial and their religious identity.

Judah was the remnant of Israel through whom the promised Messiah, God's “anointed” eternal Savior and King was to come. God punished Judah for its rebellion, disobedience, and idolatry, in order bring back a ransomed and redeemed Israel through whom he continued his covenant promise.

But note that seventy years is a virtual life sentence for those who were adults at the beginning of the exile. A redeemed and restored remnant of Israel did return to the Promised Land but it wasn't the same people who went into exile. Remember that this was similar to the Israelites' wilderness wandering for forty years. The Israelites who had rebelled and disobeyed God's command to enter and possess the Promised Land, died in the wilderness, but Joshua and Caleb, the two scouts who gave a favorable report and encouraged Israel to trust and obey God survived and entered the land (Numbers 14:6-10, 28-32; Joshua 14:6-13).

Who would have been able to imagine how God would accomplish his promise to bring Judah back to the Promised Land after seventy years? But Cyrus conquered Babylon, and not only gave the exiles permission to leave and return to their Promised Land. He also restored the precious vessels that had been looted by Nebuchadnezzar from the temple. He also gave them permission, funding, and the cooperation of provincial officials to help the exiles rebuild the temple in Jerusalem.

The remnant of Israel was redeemed from exile and restored to the Promised Land, and their fortunes were restored, but as they prospered they forgot the lessons of trusting and obeying God learned in exile, and drifted into disobedience and idolatry. As the result, Israel was not prepared to receive their long-awaited Messiah, Jesus Christ.

Jesus is the fulfillment of God's promise of the Good Shepherd (John 10:11, 14-15). Jesus' sacrifice on the cross is the blood offering which redeems all who are willing to receive it from bondage to sin and death in the “Babylon” of this present world. Satan is our ultimate spiritual enemy, and he his stronger than we are, but Jesus won the victory over sin, death and Satan at his crucifixion (Hebrews 2:14-15). His resurrection confirms that victory (1 Corinthians 15:54-57; 1 John 5:4).

The Babylonian exile is intended by God to be a parable and metaphor for life in this world. We are all exiles in Babylon. The Lord has promised to restore us to the heavenly Promised Land if we are willing to receive it. We are all born physically alive but spiritually “unborn.” This lifetime is our opportunity to be spiritually “reborn” to eternal life. Whatever is born of God overcomes the world of bondage to sin and death, and rebirth and victory are ours by faith (obedient trust) in Jesus Christ (1 John 5:4). To all who receive Jesus, and believe on his name (his character; his nature) who believe what God's Word promises, he gives the power (the authority) to become children of God, who are born not of blood, flesh or human will but of God (John 1:12-13). But we must claim it for ourselves by trust and obedience of God's Word in Jesus Christ (see God's Plan of Salvation, sidebar, top right).

America and the American Church are in a very similar situation to Israel at the time of Jesus' first advent. Prosperity has led many to turn from obedient trust in God's Word to rebellion, disobedience and idolatry. We've forgotten the lessons we should have learned from our early wilderness experience, and don't heed the warnings of the prophets and the experience of the Israelites, which should be a warning and lesson for us (1 Corinthians 10:6-11).

The ten northern tribes of God's people became so mixed with the worldly people around them in their captivity that they lost their distinctive identity and became indistinguishable. Judah, the remnant of Israel kept their religious and racial identity in exile and returned to their Promised Land.

The Church in many instances is in the same situation today. Can we live among the worldly people in our society without losing our essential religious identity? Can we proclaim the Gospel to them, or will they convert us to their worldly view? Do we require conformity of our members to the Biblical Apostolic Gospel (the Gospel received by the disciples directly from Jesus Christ, and recorded in the New Testament), or are we tolerating members who want to change the Church to suit themselves (2 Timothy 4:3-4)?

Is Jesus your Lord? Are you Jesus’ disciple? Are you trusting and obeying Jesus? Have you received the indwelling Holy Spirit since you first truly believed (Acts 19:2)? Are you making disciples of Jesus Christ and teaching them to obey all that Jesus commands (Matthew 28:18-20)? Do you know with certainty where you will spend eternity (1 John 5:11-13; Ephesians 1:13-14)?

December 28 C

posted

Hebrews 2:10-18 – Our Savior;

God is the Creator of all things which exist; Creation has been designed for God's eternal purpose. In God's loving, gracious and merciful nature, God considered it good that in bringing many people to glory, he should make the pioneer (Jesus; the “author,” “leader,” “trailblazer”) of their salvation perfect (complete; brought to maturity) through suffering. Jesus, who sanctifies (cleanses ceremonially and dedicates to God's service) and his disciples who are sanctified have one origin, God. So Jesus was not ashamed to call them his brothers (and sisters). The author of this Letter to the Hebrews quoted Psalm 22:22: “I will proclaim thy (God's) name to my brethren, in the midst of the congregation I will praise thee,” Isaiah 8:17: “I will put my trust in him,” and Isaiah 8:18: “Here am I and the children God has given me.”

“Since therefore the children share in flesh and blood, he (Jesus) himself likewise partook of the same nature, that through death he might destroy him who has the power of death, that is the devil, and deliver all those who through fear of death were subject to lifelong bondage” (Hebrews 2:14-15) Jesus' mission was not to angels, but to the descendants of Abraham. So Jesus had to be made like us in every respect, so that he could become a merciful and faithful high priest in God's service, to make expiation (atonement; reconciliation; reparation; specifically the reconciliation of God and mankind through the sacrificial death of Jesus Christ), for our sin (disobedience of God's Word). Since he himself has suffered and been tempted, he is able to help us when we are tempted.

Commentary:

God is the Creator of the Universe and everything in it. This temporal world was created by God for his specific purpose: to establish an eternal kingdom of his people who trust and obey God. God designed this world to allow for sin, so that we could be free to choose whether to trust and obey God or not, and to learn by trial and error that his way is good, acceptable, and our very best interest (Romans 12:2). We are all sinners and fall short of God's righteousness (doing what is good, right and true, according to God's Word, the Bible, and in Jesus Christ, the “living Word,” the fulfillment, embodiment, and example of God's Word lived in human flesh in this present world John 1:1-5, 14).

According to God's design, we are all sinners (Romans 3:23; 1 John 1:8-10), and the penalty for sin is eternal death (Romans 6:23). God designed the one and only Savior into the structure of this Creation, so that we could be forgiven for sin, and restored to fellowship with God that mankind had at the beginning of Creation, before the sin was introduced (Genesis 2:15-3:22). God loves us and doesn't want anyone to perish eternally (Romans 5:8; John 3:16-17). Jesus is the only provision for our forgiveness and salvation (Acts 4:12; John 14:6; see God's Plan of Salvation, sidebar, top right).

Jesus' obedience of God's Word was tested in the wilderness, before his ministry began (Matthew 4:1-11), and again in the last weeks of his ministry. Jesus had been trying to prepare his disciples for his crucifixion, and had foretold his death on the cross at least three times (Matthew 16:21; 17:22-23; 20:17-19). On the night of his betrayal and arrest, Jesus prayed to God his Father three times, asking that if possible, God would spare his Son from the agony of crucifixion, but accepted it willingly in obedient trust (Matthew26:39, 42, 44).

Jesus was tempted, but without succumbing to sin (Hebrews 4:15).
Jesus was thus the unblemished Lamb of the New Passover feast.

Passover is the celebration of God's saving act of bringing the Israelites out of bondage in Egypt. The last of the ten plagues which finally convinced Pharaoh to allow Israel to leave was the deaths of the firstborn of the Egyptians. On the eve of that plague, God instituted the Feast of Passover. God instructed Moses to have each family select a one-year-old, unblemished lamb (small households could share a lamb). They were to kill the lamb and mark the doorpost and lintel with its blood, so that the destroying angel would “pass over” them and their firstborn would be saved.

On the night of Jewish Passover, Jesus instituted the New Passover (the Lord's Supper; Holy Communion; the Eucharist; Matthew 26:26-28) and later that night Jesus was betrayed and arrested (Matthew 26:45-50). Jesus' blood, shed on the cross, marks his disciples who receive it by faith (obedient trust) in Jesus. Jesus' death (his body) provides meal of the New Passover feast. Jesus is the mediator of the New Covenant secured by his body and blood sacrificed on the Cross.

God had taught Israel that only a blood offering can spiritually cleanse and dedicate anything to God's service (Hebrews 9:12-22). By the blood of Jesus Christ, shed on the Cross, all who believe in (trust and obey) Jesus, are cleansed and dedicated to God's use.

Those who believe in (trust and obey) Jesus will receive the “baptism” (free gift; “anointing”) of the indwelling Holy Spirit. Our bodies become temples of the Lord, and we are spiritually “reborn” by the Holy Spirit within us. Jesus teaches that one must be “born-again” to see the Kingdom of Heaven all around us now, and to enter it in eternity (John 3:3, 5-8).

Only Jesus “baptizes” with the indwelling Holy Spirit (John 1:31-34), only his disciples who trust and obey Jesus (John 14:15-17). The Holy Spirit is the seal and guarantee that one is in Christ and has eternal life (2 Corinthians 1:22; Ephesians 1:13-14; Romans 8:9b, 11, 15-16).

The presence of the Holy Spirit within believers is a personally discernible, ongoing event; anyone who has to take the word of a spiritual counselor, hasn't been “born-again”! (Acts 19:2).

Several mainline Church denominations are teaching that one automatically receives the indwelling Holy Spirit through some Church ritual, such as (water) Baptism or Confirmation (Affirmation) of Baptism. This not only doesn't help members become sanctified and “born-again,” but actually is causing members spiritual harm, by not helping members to seek and be filled with the Holy Spirit. It takes “born-again” disciples to make “born-again” disciples. Those Churches aren't making “born-again” disciples because their leaders are not “born-again” disciples (see False Teachings, sidebar, top right).

Jesus commands his disciples to await the infilling of the Holy Spirit before going into the world to make disciples. (Luke 24:49; Acts 1:4-5, 8). After their “baptism” with the Holy Spirit, Jesus' “born-again” disciples are to go into the entire world and “make disciples of all nations, baptizing them (with water) in the name of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit (note the Trinity; Matthew 28:19) teaching them to obey all that Jesus teaches (Matthew 28:20).

Jesus demonstrated the “discipling” ministry that his Church, his disciples, are to follow. He made disciples, taught them how to live according to God's Word, told them to await the baptism of the Holy Spirit, and then to go into the world with the Gospel (“Good News”) of forgiveness and salvation through faith (obedient trust) in Jesus Christ.

The Apostle (messenger; of the Gospel) Paul (Saul of Tarsus) is intended by God to be the prototype and example of a “modern,” “post-resurrection,” “born-again” disciple and apostle of Jesus Christ (Acts 9:1-20). On his way to Damascus to persecute Christians, he was convicted by the Holy Spirit (Acts 9:4), the Spirit of God, the Spirit of Jesus Christ (Romans 8:9; Acts 9:5).
Paul repented (Acts 9:9) and accepted Jesus as his Lord (Acts 9:5a), and became obedient to Jesus (Acts 9:6, 8). In Damascus, God sent a “born-again” disciple, Ananias (Acts 9:10-12; we know he's “born-again” because he has a personal relationship with the Lord) to Paul so that Paul could be filled with the Holy Spirit (Acts 9:17).

As soon as Paul had received the “baptism” of the Holy Spirit, He began making “born-again” disciples (Acts 9:19b-20). Timothy is a good example of a “born-again” disciple taught to make “born-again” disciples who would repeat the process (2 Timothy 2:2).

By the cleansing, by the blood of Jesus and the presence of the indwelling Holy Spirit, we are “adopted” children of God, and brothers and sisters of Jesus Christ (Romans 8:15-17; Galatians 4:4-7).

Jesus came into this world to provide forgiveness of sin and salvation from spiritual, eternal death. He came into the world to teach us how to live according to the Word of God. Jesus demonstrated through his death that there is existence after physical death, and the the promise of eternal life. Jesus is the first-born from the (physically) dead (Colossians 1:16-18).

Hebrews 2:14-15 is one of my favorite passages; what a great promise and testimony of Jesus' mission! It is so true! Many in the world today pursue the idea of “eat, drink, and be merry, for tomorrow we die.” Commercials teach us that we only go around once in life, so we should grab all the gusto we can! Many believe in reincarnation; many believe that after death is nothingness. For people who have no hope of existence beyond physical death, this is all there is.

Jesus not only taught eternal life but demonstrated it. Every truly “born-again” Christian testifies from personal experience that Jesus is risen, and is eternally alive. God's Word declares that all are appointed to die once, not over and over, not reincarnation, not nothingness, and then comes judgment (Hebrews 9:27).

Christians know from the Bible and from personal experience with the risen Jesus, that the God who raised Jesus from physical death to eternal life will do the same for us who trust and obey Jesus (1 Peter 1:19-23; Romans 8:11). So we no longer fear anything, even physical death. As Paul said, it is better for us to be at home with the Lord, but it is more necessary for us to be in the world to save as many as possible (2 Corinthians 5:6-10). The only things we can take with us into eternity are our family and acquaintances.

Is Jesus your Lord? Are you Jesus’ disciple? Are you trusting and obeying Jesus? Have you received the indwelling Holy Spirit since you first truly believed (Acts 19:2)? Are you making disciples of Jesus Christ and teaching them to obey all that Jesus commands (Matthew 28:18-20)? Do you know with certainty where you will spend eternity (1 John 5:11-13; Ephesians 1:13-14)?

December 29

posted

Luke 2:41-52 – Jesus' Boyhood;

Jesus' family traveled from their home in Nazareth to Jerusalem every year to celebrate the Feast of Passover. When Jesus was twelve they had gone to Jerusalem for the Feast, and when it ended, Jesus stayed behind in Jerusalem. His parents assumed that Jesus was with others in their caravan. At the end of the first day of travel, they sought Jesus from among their kinsfolk and friends. When they had not found him, they returned to Jerusalem, where they searched for him for three days. On the third day, they found Jesus in the temple, listening to the religious authorities teaching and asking them questions. All who heard Jesus' questions and his knowledge of scripture were amazed at his understanding and answers.

When his parents found Jesus, they were surprised, and his mother asked why Jesus had caused his parents such anxiety. Jesus asked them why they hadn't checked the temple for him first. Did they not understand that he must have been in God his Father's house? They didn't comprehend what Jesus had told them.

Jesus went down with them (from the temple mount; Zion), and returned to Nazareth, and Jesus was obedient to his parents. His mother kept such things in her heart. “And Jesus increased in wisdom and stature, and in favor with God and man” (Luke 2:52).

Commentary:

The Feast of Passover commemorated the great saving act of God, in delivering the Israelites from slavery in Egypt. The final of 10 plagues which God caused among the Egyptians to convince them to let the Israelites leave was the death of the firstborn children and animals of the Egyptians (Exodus 11:1-5). The blood of the sacrificial lamb of Passover was to be placed upon the door-posts and lintel to mark the dwellings of the Israelites, so that the destroying angel would “pass over” them and not harm the firstborn children of the Israelites.

The week before his crucifixion Jesus took his disciples with him to Jerusalem to celebrate the Feast of Passover. Jesus had told his disciples, at least the four times recorded in the Gospel of Matthew, that he would be abused and killed and would be raised up again (Matthew 16:21; 17:22-23; 20:17-19; note 26:2). Jesus' entry into Jerusalem is celebrated by the Church as “Palm Sunday” (Luke 19:28-46), and the week as “Holy Week.”

Jesus celebrated the Jewish Passover Feast on Thursday evening of Holy Week. During the meal Jesus instituted the New Christian “Passover,” “The (Lord's, or) Last Supper” (Holy Communion; the Eucharist; Matthew 26:26-29). Moses had been the mediator of the Passover between God and Israelites. Jesus became the mediator of the New Passover. Jesus' body was going to be broken on the cross and would become the bread of Communion (John 6:32-35), the “bread of (eternal) life” (John 6:47-58) and his blood shed on the cross would become the wine.

Jesus is the “Lamb of God,” the perfect unblemished young lamb, sacrificed to provide the lamb of Passover. His blood marks his disciples to be passed over by the angel of eternal death.

The Exodus of the Israelites from Egypt is deliberately intended by God to be a “parable” (a common earthly experience used to teach a spiritual truth), a metaphor about life in this world. In a sense, we are all in bondage to sin and death in the “Egypt” of this world. Jesus is the New “Moses,” the only one who can free us (Acts 4:12; John 14:6; see God's Plan of Salvation, sidebar, top right) and take us through the “wilderness” of this world and into the eternal “Promised Land” of God's Kingdom in Heaven. Having been freed from sin and death God's people are to learn to follow Jesus, to learn to trust and obey him, through this present “wilderness.” God has sacrificed his own “firstborn Son” to free us.

Jesus teaches that one must be spiritually “born-again” (John 3:3, 5-8) in this lifetime to be able to see the Kingdom of God which is all around us now, and ultimately to enter it in eternity. Only Jesus “baptizes” with the Holy Spirit (John 1:31-34), only his disciples who trust and obey Jesus (John 14:15-17). The personal infilling of the Holy Spirit is a discernible ongoing event which every truly “born-again” Christian knows with certainty for themselves (Acts 19:2). Any person who must rely on some religious authority's word hasn't been reborn.* The indwelling Holy Spirit is the pillar of fire (Exodus 13:21) that leads God's people through the spiritual darkness of this world.

Jews were strictly forbidden to drink blood or eat meat with its blood. People believed that the blood of an animal contained its spirit. God doesn't want his people to be filled with the spirits of animals; he wants us to receive the Holy Spirit, the Spirit of Jesus, the Spirit of God (note the Trinity; Romans 8:9). But note that one doesn't automatically receive the Holy Spirit through participation in Communion. In fact, those who participate in Communion without discerning Christ's body condemn themselves to eternal destruction (1 Corinthians 11:29; John 3:18). For truly “born-again” Christians, the Lord's Supper provides “communion” with the Lord, not only during the Communion rite itself, but by keeping us spiritually cleansed and in communion with the Lord through the days between “Communion” services.

Is Jesus your Lord? Are you Jesus’ disciple? Are you trusting and obeying Jesus? Have you received the indwelling Holy Spirit since you first truly believed (Acts 19:2)? Are you making disciples of Jesus Christ and teaching them to obey all that Jesus commands (Matthew 28:18-20)? Do you know with certainty where you will spend eternity (1 John 5:11-13; Ephesians 1:13-14)?

December 30

posted

Psalm 147:13-21 – Praise the Lord!

Jerusalem and Zion (the temple mount; God's people; the Church of God; the heavenly city): Let us praise the Lord our God. The Lord strengthens the bars of the gates of his people. He blesses the children of his people. He gives peace within the borders of his people's land. He satisfies his people with the finest produce.

God sends his command to earth, and his word travels swiftly. The Lord commands frost, snow and ice; he sends them forth, and his word melts them. Who can survive his cold? God makes winds blow and waters flow. God has made known his Word to Jacob (Israel; for whom the nation was named; the father of the heads of the twelve tribes). He has given his ordinances and statutes to Israel. Israel is the only nation whom God has dealt personally with; the other nations do not know his ordinances. Let us praise the Lord!

Commentary:

God has always intended, from the beginning of Creation, to establish an eternal kingdom of his people who willingly trust and obey him. God has been progressively revealing himself and his purpose for Creation. Starting with Abraham (Abram) who willingly trusted and obeyed God's command to leave his home and extended family and go to a new land that the Lord would show him, God began building his eternal kingdom.

God's dealings with Israel were deliberately designed by God to be parables (common worldly experiences used to teach spiritual truth), metaphors for life in this world. The earthly Promised Land prefigures the eternal “Promised Land” of God's Kingdom in Heaven. The Church is the New Israel, the New Jerusalem, the New People of God, and prefigures the heavenly city.

As we begin to trust and obey God's Word in the Bible, and in Jesus Christ, the “living Word,” fulfilled, embodied and exemplified (John 1:1-5, 14) in human flesh, we will begin to experience personally his favor and protection. We will experience his power and faithfulness to provide for the needs of his people. Peace within the Church and within God's people is only possible through faith (obedient trust) in Jesus (John 14:27).

God controls all the forces of nature. The cold of frost, ice and snow are one example. We can't cause them or control them. We can't go forth into them and expect to survive without proper clothing.

God commands wind and flowing water. We try to make levies and dams to restrain and control water, but ultimately those works of mankind fail. We must learn how to live according to God's Word, to learn his plan and work within it.

God has made his Word known through Israel by the Bible, the written record of God's dealing with his people. God's Word promised a Savior (Christ; Messiah), and Jesus came forth through Israel by God's command. Jesus has been God's promised Savior from the very beginning of Creation, who has been built into the very structure of Creation (John 1:1-5, 14).

We have all sinned (disobeyed God's Word) and fall short of God's righteousness (Romans 3:23; 1 John 1:8-10. The penalty for sin is eternal death (Romans 6:23). Jesus came to us to become the only sacrifice acceptable to God for the forgiveness of our sin, and our salvation from eternal death (Acts 4:12; see God's Plan of Salvation, sidebar, top right).

Jesus came to show us how to live in obedient trust in God's Word, and to “baptize” us with the indwelling Holy Spirit, which only Jesus gives (John 1:31-34), only to his disciples who trust and obey Jesus (John 14:15-17). All who are guided by the Holy Spirit are freed from condemnation under the law of God's Word (Romans 8:1-11). Only by the guidance and empowerment of the Holy Spirit are we able to resist temptation to sin, and to live according to God's Word. We are “reborn” to eternal life by the “baptism” (gift, anointing, infilling), and the presence of the Holy Spirit within us assures us that we are in Christ and have eternal life (2 Corinthians 1:22; Ephesians 1:13-14; Romans 8:9b, 11, 15-16).

The meaning and purpose of life in this Creation is to seek, find, come to know and have fellowship with our Creator (Acts 17:26-27). Jesus is the only way to find and know God, the only way to know divine, eternal truth (Luke 24:45), and the only way to have eternal life (John 14:6).

Jesus warns that one must be “born-again” (John 3:3, 5-8) through the gift of the indwelling Holy Spirit, in order to see God's Kingdom all around us now, and to see and enter it ultimately in eternity. It is impossible for one to not know with certainty for oneself whether one has been “born-again” (Acts 19:2); anyone who isn't sure hasn't been. Any nominal Christian who hasn't been “born-again” should ask himself or herself, “Why not?”

By the gift of the indwelling Holy Spirit we are within God's favor protection. Nothing can happen to us to cause us to lose salvation and eternal life. Christians will still have to endure trials in this life, and we will all experience physical death, but our fear of physical death is overcome by Jesus' resurrection (Hebrews 2:14-15; Romans 8:35-39).

Jesus' resurrection from physical death to eternal life was witnessed by over five hundred people and attested to in the New Testament of the Bible (1 Corinthians 15:3-8). Every truly “born-again” disciple of Jesus Christ since the Day of Pentecost (Acts 2:1-11) knows and testifies that Jesus has risen to eternal life because they have a personal daily fellowship with him by the indwelling Holy Spirit.

Is Jesus your Lord? Are you Jesus’ disciple? Are you trusting and obeying Jesus? Have you received the indwelling Holy Spirit since you first truly believed (Acts 19:2)? Are you making disciples of Jesus Christ and teaching them to obey all that Jesus commands (Matthew 28:18-20)? Do you know with certainty where you will spend eternity (1 John 5:11-13; Ephesians 1:13-14)?

December 31

posted

Isaiah 61:10-62:3 – Vindication of Zion;

Rejoice in the Lord, O my soul. I will exult in him. In garments of salvation he has clothed me, and with the robe of righteousness he has covered me, as a bridegroom adorns himself with a garland, and as a bride enhances herself with her jewels. God us going to cause righteousness and praise to sprout and grow before all nations, like the earth causes seeds to bring forth shoots, and like a garden causes what is sown in it to grow and flourish.

The prophet will not keep silent or rest for the sake of Zion (Israel; the Church), until appears as brightness, like a burning torch in the darkness. The Lord himself will give you a new name. Then Zion will be a beautiful crown, a royal diadem (a headband indicating royalty) in the hand of the Lord.

Commentary:

Background:

Isaiah was a prophet to Judah and Jerusalem from 742 to 687B.C.. The Northern Kingdom of the ten tribes of Israel was conquered by the Assyrian armies of Sargon, the successor to Shalmaneser, with the fall of Samaria (capital of the Northern Kingdom) in 721B.C.. The Northern Kingdom and the ten tribes virtually ceased to exist.

Isaiah was prophet during the reign of King Ahaz, who led his kingdom into wickedness and idolatry, and made a ruinous alliance with Assyria against the alliance of Rezin, King of Damascus (Syria) and Pekah, king of the Northern Kingdom against Isaiah's warnings. He was prophet during the time of spiritual reform which King Hezekiah initiated beginning in 715 B.C. (2 Kings 18:4; 2 Chronicles 29:3-36). This text originated before the fall of Babylon (October 29, 539 B.C. to Cyrus of Persia. The Southern Kingdom of the 2 tribes had been exiled in Babylon from 587 to 517, seventy years as prophesied by Jeremiah (Jeremiah 25:11-12), dated from the destruction of the temple to its restoration and rededication. The result was that the exiles of Judah were allowed to return to the “Promised Land.”

Isaiah:

The prophet foresaw the vindication of God's people which would be witnessed by all the nations of the earth. That prophecy was fulfilled with the return of the remnant of Israel to their “Promised Land.” The conditions of the exiles' release by Cyrus is absolutely amazing: He returned the gold, silver and bronze vessels which Nebuchadnezzar looted from the temple, and Cyrus gave them money, help from the provincial governors, and authorization to rebuild their temple.

God's Word is eternally true and is fulfilled over and over as the conditions for its fulfillment are met. Isaiah's prophecy applied to the return of the exiles, but also applies to God's Plan of Salvation, through the Messiah (Christ) Jesus.

The history of Israel's exile was intended by God to also be a “parable” (a common earthly experience used to teach spiritual truth), a metaphor for life in this world. We are all in exile in the “Babylon” of this present world. The seventy years is about an average lifetime.

During this lifetime we are to seek God (Acts 17:26-27) through faith (obedient trust) in Jesus Christ (John 14:6), to learn to know trust and obey God's Word, the Bible, and Jesus Christ, the “living Word” (John 1:14), and to be spiritually “born-again” (John 3:3, 5-8) to eternal life.

This is only possible through faith (obedient trust) in Jesus Christ, by the gift of the indwelling Holy Spirit (Acts 4:12; John 14:6). Only Jesus “baptizes” (gives the gift of; “anoints”) with the Holy Spirit (John 1:31-34), only his disciples who trust and obey Jesus (John 14:15-17). The Holy Spirit is the seal and guarantee that one is in Christ and has eternal life (2 Corinthians 1:22; Ephesians 1:13-14; Romans 8:9b, 11, 15-16).

The vindication of God's people has appeared, in Jesus Christ. Jesus is the light of spiritual enlightenment (John 1:9), light of righteousness, and light of eternal life, in a world of spiritual darkness (spiritual ignorance; wickedness, and spiritual death).

Jesus has promised that he will return, as he departed at his ascension (Acts 1:9-12), on the Day of Judgment, to judge the living (“quickened”) and dead in both physical and spiritual senses. In that day “born-again” Christian disciples will be vindicated over the enemies of God. Those who have accepted Jesus as their Lord, who have believed (trusted and obeyed) Jesus, will enter eternal life in God's kingdom in heaven, but those who have rejected Jesus as their Lord, who have refused or failed to trust and obey Jesus will be condemned to eternal death and destruction in Hell with all evil (Matthew 25:31-46; 2 Thessalonians 1:5-10).

The gift of the indwelling Holy Spirit is the garment of salvation with which we are clothed when we believe (trust and obey) Jesus. Jesus' own righteousness is the robe which covers all of our sins (disobedience of God's Word).

Jesus taught that the kingdom of heaven is like a marriage feast (Matthew 22:1-14). Jesus is the bridegroom, and the Church is the bride. Jesus within believers who trust and obey Jesus, by the gift of the indwelling Holy Spirit, is the “wedding garment” that his disciples must have to enter the wedding feast of the bridegroom, Jesus Christ, and his bride, the Church. The Church is the “New Israel;” the “New Jerusalem” on earth.

Is Jesus your Lord? Are you Jesus’ disciple? Are you trusting and obeying Jesus? Have you received the indwelling Holy Spirit since you first truly believed (Acts 19:2)? Are you making disciples of Jesus Christ and teaching them to obey all that Jesus commands (Matthew 28:18-20)? Do you know with certainty where you will spend eternity (1 John 5:11-13; Ephesians 1:13-14)?