The Bible is God's Word, His guide, His instruction book for us to follow. It contains all truth....and it tells us some things about God Himself. It tells us about His Spirit; now there is a complicated subject.
The Spirit of God is something that we might never understand fully in this life. God does reveal some things, but He also must know that matters of the Spirit are difficult for us mere humans to comprehend. But we will address one aspect of the Spirit in this article.
Acts 2:38 tells of an account where Peter and the apostles have just told the Jewish people there in Jerusalem that they killed the Christ, the Son of God. They are upset and say to the apostles, "What shall we do?" Peter says, "Repent, and let every one of you be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins; and you shall receive the gift of the Holy Spirit." This gift is the Spirit. We don't know from this account just what this means, but it is clear that the Spirit was being given to these people.
In Acts 3:19, the instruction is: "Repent therefore and be converted, that your sins may be blotted out, so that times of refreshing may come from the presence of the Lord." Comparing these two passages gives the idea that the gift of the Spirit brings times of refreshing from God.
We can perhaps add some understanding by looking at the teaching of Galatians chapter 3, one of my favorite chapters in the Bible. I like this one because it compares three phases of the Bible. The first is the "promise" that God gave to Abraham in Genesis 3 that one day a descendant (Jesus) would bless all people of the world. Later in the Old Testament God gave the Jewish people the "Law," a special law for them to follow. Following that is "faith" in Jesus Christ...in fulfillment of the Promise that was given to Abraham. I suggest reading all of Galatians 3, but here is an excerpt: (Paul is speaking to the Galatian Christians): "This only I want to learn from you: Did you receive the Spirit by the works of the Law, or by the hearing of faith?" In this passage He mentions the fact that they received the Spirit when they became Christians. In those days receiving the Spirit often came with the ability to do miracles. That is not true today. But we still have the gift of the Spirit; we have the Spirit of God within us. Let us rejoice in that....and try to live as Christ lived.
Thanks for reading. I hope your week is great.
Saturday, May 31, 2014
Sunday, May 25, 2014
Put God First
Today we will compare the beginnings of the 10 commandments to the Lord's Prayer. It is quite a stretch to make any comparison between these two things. We can say that they both came from the Lord; one through Moses in the Old Testament, the second through Jesus in the NT.
The point of comparison here is in the beginnings of each. We can note that the first 4 of the 10 commandments (Exodus 20) relate to our treatment of God. The first one is "You shall have no other Gods before Me." That is followed by You shall not worship any false Gods or idols, then Don't take the name of the Lord God in Vain, and Remember the Sabbath day to keep it holy. All four of these have to do with our respect for God.
Now note the Lord's Prayer in Matthew 6. The Lord Jesus was teaching them to pray:
Our Father in heaven
hallowed be Your name.
your kingdom come,
Your will be done
On earth as it is in heaven.
Give us this day our daily bread,
And forgive us our debts,
as we forgive our debtors.
And do not lead us into temptation,
But deliver us from the evil one.
For Yours is the kingdom and the
power and the glory forever. Amen.
The beginning of this prayer has 4 points, all putting emphasis on God...and our respect for Him. It recognizes that our Father is in heaven, that His name is to be hallowed, mentions His kingdom, and for His will to be done. These are all important matters; so important that the example prayer starts with this first.
So the conclusion to all of this is that it matters to God how we show our respect to Him. We must put Him and His wishes above all else. And if we study His Word, we learn what He wants from us.
Thanks for reading again. Have a great week!
The point of comparison here is in the beginnings of each. We can note that the first 4 of the 10 commandments (Exodus 20) relate to our treatment of God. The first one is "You shall have no other Gods before Me." That is followed by You shall not worship any false Gods or idols, then Don't take the name of the Lord God in Vain, and Remember the Sabbath day to keep it holy. All four of these have to do with our respect for God.
Now note the Lord's Prayer in Matthew 6. The Lord Jesus was teaching them to pray:
Our Father in heaven
hallowed be Your name.
your kingdom come,
Your will be done
On earth as it is in heaven.
Give us this day our daily bread,
And forgive us our debts,
as we forgive our debtors.
And do not lead us into temptation,
But deliver us from the evil one.
For Yours is the kingdom and the
power and the glory forever. Amen.
The beginning of this prayer has 4 points, all putting emphasis on God...and our respect for Him. It recognizes that our Father is in heaven, that His name is to be hallowed, mentions His kingdom, and for His will to be done. These are all important matters; so important that the example prayer starts with this first.
So the conclusion to all of this is that it matters to God how we show our respect to Him. We must put Him and His wishes above all else. And if we study His Word, we learn what He wants from us.
Thanks for reading again. Have a great week!
Sunday, May 18, 2014
They Pierced His Side
In this article we will examine why they pierced the side of Jesus.. It should be said initially that we don't have all the answers to this; but some answers are certain. We will look at what we know for sure...and maybe even make a few conjectures.
It must be noted that the only account of this in the Bible is found in the book of John, chapter 19. The other gospel accounts, Matthew, Mark and Luke do not mention the piercing of His side. "Therefore, because it was the Preparation Day, that the bodies should not remain on the cross on the Sabbath (for that Sabbath was a high day), the Jews asked Pilate that their legs might be broken, and that they might be taken away." It was common practice to conclude crucifixion with the breaking of legs, bringing sudden death.
"Then the soldiers came and broke the legs of the first and of the other who was crucified with Him. But when they came to Jesus and saw that He was already dead, they did not break His legs." So we know at least two reasons why they did not break the legs of Jesus. The first is that He was already dead. The second is in fulfillment of Scripture, Psalm 34:20, "He guards all his bones; not one of them is broken." This is just one of the many prophesies from the Old Testament that were fulfilled by Jesus.
Back to John 19, "But one of the soldiers pierced His side with a spear, and immediately blood and water came out."There could be several reasons for this piercing, but what we know for sure is that it is the fulfillment of Scripture. 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 have pierced; they will mourn for Him as one mourns for his only son, and grieve for Him as one grieves for a firstborn."
In addition to the spiritual reason given above, there could have been other reasons. The soldier may have just wanted to be sure that He was dead; or he could have done it for no good reason.
The reasons for there being blood and water could be spiritual or physical. Physically, there could likely have been a build up of fluid from the beatings or from the crucifixion itself. And there could be a spiritual connection involving blood and water. This part is too much conjecture for this writer. We do know that much of this account is in fulfillment of what had been prophesied, all brought to us directly from the Spirit of God who gives all knowledge through His Word, the Bible.
The writer John, speaking of himself, says further: "And he who has seen has testified, and his testimony is true; and he knows that he is telling the truth, so that you may believe. For these things were done that the Scripture should be fulfilled, 'Not one of His bones shall be broken.' And again another Scripture says, 'They shall look on Him whom they pierced.' " John insists that he was an eye witness and that he is telling the truth. And that is the end of the matter.....
Thank you for reading. Feel the love.
It must be noted that the only account of this in the Bible is found in the book of John, chapter 19. The other gospel accounts, Matthew, Mark and Luke do not mention the piercing of His side. "Therefore, because it was the Preparation Day, that the bodies should not remain on the cross on the Sabbath (for that Sabbath was a high day), the Jews asked Pilate that their legs might be broken, and that they might be taken away." It was common practice to conclude crucifixion with the breaking of legs, bringing sudden death.
"Then the soldiers came and broke the legs of the first and of the other who was crucified with Him. But when they came to Jesus and saw that He was already dead, they did not break His legs." So we know at least two reasons why they did not break the legs of Jesus. The first is that He was already dead. The second is in fulfillment of Scripture, Psalm 34:20, "He guards all his bones; not one of them is broken." This is just one of the many prophesies from the Old Testament that were fulfilled by Jesus.
Back to John 19, "But one of the soldiers pierced His side with a spear, and immediately blood and water came out."There could be several reasons for this piercing, but what we know for sure is that it is the fulfillment of Scripture. 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 have pierced; they will mourn for Him as one mourns for his only son, and grieve for Him as one grieves for a firstborn."
In addition to the spiritual reason given above, there could have been other reasons. The soldier may have just wanted to be sure that He was dead; or he could have done it for no good reason.
The reasons for there being blood and water could be spiritual or physical. Physically, there could likely have been a build up of fluid from the beatings or from the crucifixion itself. And there could be a spiritual connection involving blood and water. This part is too much conjecture for this writer. We do know that much of this account is in fulfillment of what had been prophesied, all brought to us directly from the Spirit of God who gives all knowledge through His Word, the Bible.
The writer John, speaking of himself, says further: "And he who has seen has testified, and his testimony is true; and he knows that he is telling the truth, so that you may believe. For these things were done that the Scripture should be fulfilled, 'Not one of His bones shall be broken.' And again another Scripture says, 'They shall look on Him whom they pierced.' " John insists that he was an eye witness and that he is telling the truth. And that is the end of the matter.....
Thank you for reading. Feel the love.
Sunday, May 11, 2014
A Good Goal For Us All
This blog has mentioned this before, but the topic seems important enough to mention again. A great goal for us all would be to Seek God; this is what He expects from His people. Many passages make this point throughout the Bible. We will look at some of these rather briefly.
One of my favorite verses is Hebrews 11:6, "But without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is, and that He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him." For our purposes here, the emphasis is on "...those who diligently seek Him." God wants to be sought. In fact, He demands it if we are to be His people.
Jesus said, "Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives, and he who seeks finds, and to him who knocks it will be opened." God will provide.....but He requires that we seek Him.
Psalm 9:10, "And those who know Your name will put their trust in You; for You, Lord, have not forsaken those who seek You." Emphasis is on seek.
And Deuteronomy 4:29, "...you will seek the Lord your God, and you will find Him if you seek Him with all your heart and with all your soul."
God wants us to seek Him. And if we seek Him, we will find Him.....and he will reward us! There is our goal.
Thanks for reading. You are important.
One of my favorite verses is Hebrews 11:6, "But without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is, and that He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him." For our purposes here, the emphasis is on "...those who diligently seek Him." God wants to be sought. In fact, He demands it if we are to be His people.
Jesus said, "Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives, and he who seeks finds, and to him who knocks it will be opened." God will provide.....but He requires that we seek Him.
Psalm 9:10, "And those who know Your name will put their trust in You; for You, Lord, have not forsaken those who seek You." Emphasis is on seek.
And Deuteronomy 4:29, "...you will seek the Lord your God, and you will find Him if you seek Him with all your heart and with all your soul."
God wants us to seek Him. And if we seek Him, we will find Him.....and he will reward us! There is our goal.
Thanks for reading. You are important.
Saturday, May 3, 2014
Cyrus, Persian King
It is amazing how much ancient history is given to us in the Old Testament. The book of Chronicles ends with a few words about Cyrus, the first Persian king of the Persian Dynasty: "Thus says Cyrus king of Persia: All the kingdoms of the earth the Lord God of heaven has given me. And He has commanded me to build Him a house at Jerusalem which is in Judah. Who is there among you of all His people? May the Lord his God be with him, and let him go up!" Cyrus is talking about his plan to see that the temple of God is rebuilt in Jerusalem.
Going back a bit in time, the Persian Empire follows the rule of the Babylonians. The Babylonians had taken the Jewish people of Judah into captivity and removed them from their land, taking them to Babylon. But when Cyrus comes into power, he makes this decree, stated above, that he wants to let the Jewish people return to their homeland and rebuild. This seems like a noble thing for him to do, but we will find out that God is directing Cyrus, that God is control....as He always is.
It is particularly interesting to note that the prophet Isaiah had predicted these events, this return of the Jews to their homeland and rebuilding. But we must remember that Isaiah lived some 150 years before this occurred. Isaiah was prophesying at the direction of God; he even named Cyrus as the king, well before Cyrus was born, even before Cyrus' mother was born. We read the words of Isaiah beginning in Is. 44:28, "Who says of Cyrus, 'He is My shepherd, and he shall perform all My pleasure, even saying to Jerusalem, "You shall be built," and to the temple, "Your foundation shall be laid." ' Thus says the Lord to His anointed, to Cyrus, whose right hand I have held--to subdue nations before him and loose the armor of kings to open before him the double doors so that the gates will not be shut: I will go before you.....that you may know that I , the Lord, who call you by your name, am the God of Israel.....I am the Lord, and there is no other...."
In this passage where Isaiah is predicting the king of Persia, he is also quoting God, stating that God is in control; that God controls kings. We are assured of this in Proverbs 21, "The king's heart is in the hand of the Lord, like the rivers of water; He turns it wherever He wishes." God is in control; He was then...He is now. God is amazing! The Bible, the Word of God, is amazing!
Thanks for reading. Have a great week!
Going back a bit in time, the Persian Empire follows the rule of the Babylonians. The Babylonians had taken the Jewish people of Judah into captivity and removed them from their land, taking them to Babylon. But when Cyrus comes into power, he makes this decree, stated above, that he wants to let the Jewish people return to their homeland and rebuild. This seems like a noble thing for him to do, but we will find out that God is directing Cyrus, that God is control....as He always is.
It is particularly interesting to note that the prophet Isaiah had predicted these events, this return of the Jews to their homeland and rebuilding. But we must remember that Isaiah lived some 150 years before this occurred. Isaiah was prophesying at the direction of God; he even named Cyrus as the king, well before Cyrus was born, even before Cyrus' mother was born. We read the words of Isaiah beginning in Is. 44:28, "Who says of Cyrus, 'He is My shepherd, and he shall perform all My pleasure, even saying to Jerusalem, "You shall be built," and to the temple, "Your foundation shall be laid." ' Thus says the Lord to His anointed, to Cyrus, whose right hand I have held--to subdue nations before him and loose the armor of kings to open before him the double doors so that the gates will not be shut: I will go before you.....that you may know that I , the Lord, who call you by your name, am the God of Israel.....I am the Lord, and there is no other...."
In this passage where Isaiah is predicting the king of Persia, he is also quoting God, stating that God is in control; that God controls kings. We are assured of this in Proverbs 21, "The king's heart is in the hand of the Lord, like the rivers of water; He turns it wherever He wishes." God is in control; He was then...He is now. God is amazing! The Bible, the Word of God, is amazing!
Thanks for reading. Have a great week!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
