Acts 1:8

“but you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be My witnesses both in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and even to the remotest part of the earth." (Acts 1:8 NASB). After his resurrection, Jesus gathered his disciples together and explained to them that they would be baptized by the Holy Spirit in just a few days. With Jesus standing before them and the promise of the Holy Spirit coming upon them, the disciples wondered if this was the time he was going to restore the kingdom to Israel. They still thought it was to be an earthly kingdom to be established now. They didn’t understand it was to be a kingdom of believers that was being formed.

Jesus responds by implying that this was not the time and then gives some information on how they will take part in forming that kingdom. When the promised Holy Spirit comes upon them they will receive power, not to fight to establish the kingdom, but to be his witnesses. Notice that our verse says “you shall be my witnesses”. You do not have a choice about being a witness, but you have a choice about how effective you will be. How we reflect Jesus Christ to those around us as we live out life is our witness. We are to be intentional in being effective and we are to be so no matter where we happen to be in the world. Being a witness is a life long job and takes on many different forms when we are intentional about being effective.

Prayer

Father, it is clear that as believers we are part of the kingdom of your beloved Son and that we have the responsibility of searching for lost sheep and making disciples out of them. In parts of the world, believers are sacrificing their lives in their witness, but we in the west seem to be on vacation in regards to this assignment and as a result spiritual darkness is settling into our nation. Father, have mercy on us for surely judgment lies ahead for us. 

1 Corinthians 15:58

“Therefore, my beloved brothers, be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, knowing that in the Lord your labor is not in vain.” (1 Corinthians 15:58 ESV). Whenever you see “therefore” you must stop and ask what it is there for. It tells us to look back and in our case see why we are to be steadfast. When we do we find that as believers we are raised in imperishable form, in honor, in power and with a spiritual body. We are reminded that we were once dead, but now our mortal body has put on immortality. However, we must be careful as sin is still present and can damage our relationship with God. Victory over sin is available through our Lord Jesus Christ, but requires steadfastness on our part.

Having a glorious position in Jesus Christ, and knowing that we have eternal life, we are to be obedient to the instructions of our verse and live this life in a manner worthy of our calling. As believers we are beloved brothers of Paul, who is writing this letter. He begins his instruction with “be steadfast”; we are to be devoted or loyal to God who has chosen us in Jesus Christ and blessed us with the kindness of his grace. We are to keep the focus of our faith on Jesus Christ with our time committed to doing kingdom work. In addition to being focused and intentional in the use of our time, we are to be “immovable”; we are to be incapable of being influenced by anything that would distract us from doing the work assigned to us by God. The qualities of being steadfast and immovable are to be diligently applied in doing the “work of the Lord” to produce much fruit to the glory of our Father. Apart from the Lord our labor is in vain and will accomplish nothing that is lasting or eternal, but in the Lord our labor is not in vain. We know that from the Scriptures, from history, and from experience.

Prayer

Father, I pray that we as your children we will be devoted to you in worship and in service, doing the work of the Lord. Protect us from being distracted and encourage us to press on with the Lord in doing kingdom work. Thank you for choosing us and assigning to us work that will bear fruit. Help us understand that we are here on assignment, not on a vacation. 

1 John 2:15 - 16

“Do not love the world nor the things in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him. For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh and the lust of the eyes and the boastful pride of life, is not from the Father, but is from the world.” (1 John 2:15-16 NASB). The context of our verse includes topics of our sin and the fact that Jesus is the propitiation for our sins, the importance of keeping his commandments, that we are to walk in the light and love one another, and comments on spiritual growth. It is from these discussions that we are next instructed concerning our relationship to the world. This is important because we know, by looking ahead a few verses, that the antichrist is coming and that his influence is already in the world.

Our verses are a warning about being careful concerning the influence the world can have on us in drawing us away from our love for the Lord and other believers. “Do not” is a command pointing to what we are not to do; we are not to love the world because if you do it will draw your love away from the Father. We are not to love the things of the world because if we do we will spend time with them instead of with our Father. The things of the word may be desired and possessed, but used for the purposes which God intended. They are to be used by his grace and for his glory, for if they are not they will be used for selfish purposes, allowing sin to creep into our lives and cool our love for God.

The things of the world are grouped into three categories: “the lust of the flesh and the lust of the eyes and the boastful pride of life.” The lust of the flesh relates to wrong desires of the heart, which stimulates sensual pleasure. The lust of the eyes is the attraction to riches and rich possessions; a heart of covetousness. The boastful pride of life is seeking honor and applause from others. These things are not from the Father and therefore are only temporary, but what the Father has to offer through Jesus Christ are eternal and will meet, in a meaningful way, the desires of our heart. Be on guard and do not be deceived because the world is relentless in its pursuit to overcome you.

Prayer

Father, thank you for providing an alternative to what the world has to offer. In the world I see evidence of your creative hand, but I also see things that appeal to my sinful nature. Father, I need to be careful and take time to let my spiritual eyes look at eternal things not seen by the physical eye and see their everlasting beauty and usefulness. Encourage me to choose those eternal things you offer through Jesus Christ and not the temporary highs of the things of the world. 

Matthew 6:33

“But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added to you.” (Matthew 6:33 ESV). To seek is an attempt to find and implies action on our part, but what kind of action? Our first impression is that we are to go looking for something, but if we read the material that comes before this verse we find the context begs our action to be prayer with what we seek being given as a gift from God. To understand this verse, we need to go back to the beginning of chapter 5 where Jesus begins a major presentation to his disciples.

A quick review yields the following: Our potential blessings (5:3-12); We are salt and light (5:13-16); Our righteousness is to surpass that of the scribes and Pharisees (5:17-20); Required lifestyle (5:21-6:6); How to pray (6:7-15); How to fast (6:16-17); Additional behavior and attitude (6:18-34).

In 5:3, Jesus speaks of the kingdom of heaven, but here in our verse, he makes it more personal by speaking of the kingdom of God. But what is the kingdom of God? I have struggled for several days to form a simple definition. Here is my best for now: The kingdom of God is a great multitude of people chosen by God the Father and caused to be born again and placed under the loving care and rule of our savior, king and high priest and given a joint responsibility with Jesus of overseeing God’s creation. For additional notes on kingdom of God go here.

To seek the kingdom of God is to seek to be a Christian through belief in Jesus Christ and being born again. This is the first step. The second step according to our verse is to seek his righteousness. This is the process of sanctification; the process of working out our salvation. As we journey through life we are to become like Jesus.

In addition to seeking to become a member of God’s kingdom through belief in and surrender to Jesus Christ, we are to seek his righteousness. As we earnestly seek to become like Jesus and replace our righteousness with that of his, Jesus then promises that all these things will be given to us a gifts, but what are “these things”? These things are found in chapter 5 and 6 and include such things as: blessings, salt and light, ability to love our enemy, overcoming anger and lust, the ability to turn revenge over to God, desire to pray, desire to lay up treasure in heaven, overcoming anxiety by him meeting our needs. Walking with Jesus Christ is a life changing experience as we become a new creation with old things passing away.

Prayer

Father, I realize that I really didn't understand this verse when I first started to write about it, but after prayer and thinking about the context of the verse, an understanding began to form and I began to get excited over what I was learning. In the past I never connected salvation to seek and his righteousness as that which we receive from Jesus Christ through salvation. Then it became clear that those things pertain to what is available to us from our relationship with Jesus. Thank you for giving me this understanding. 

Psalm 119:9 - 11

“How can a young man keep his way pure? By keeping it according to Your word. Your word I have treasured in my heart, That I may not sin against You.” (Psalms 119:9, 11 NASB). These are two of many verses I memorized many years ago when I was a college student. As a young man I needed direction for my life and I found the word to provide that direction.

I became a believer 65 years ago at the age of 15 and immediately fell in love with the word and have either read it or studied it on a daily basis since. I love to write Bible lessons and teach the Bible to whoever wants to learn. The time I have spent with the word has been the best investment of time because of great returns. Over many years of life, I have learned the importance of knowing the word and living by it. I also have observed the trouble many believers have gotten into who have not lived by the word.

To treasure the word in one's heart means you have assigned great value to it and are willing to lay aside other time consuming activities to gain more insight about God and how to live. A verse that applies very well here is found at 2 Timothy 2:15 (NASB): “Be diligent to present yourself approved to God as a workman who does not need to be ashamed, accurately handling the word of truth.” Can you accurately handle the word of truth and use it to build up the body of Christ? Are you doing that or living for yourself? See notes on this verse.

Prayer

Father, how I love your word; I love to study it; I find it so nourishing. From it I have learned about you and your plan of salvation and how to live in fellowship with you and others as a believer. I have learned the importance of obedience and what to obey. I have learned about life and how to live regardless of what I experience. From it I have learned about love and worship. 

Matthew 6:33 Kingdom of God

Kingdom of God

The kingdom of God or kingdom of heaven is found many times in the New Testament, but it is not defined because any Israeli would know its meaning from the Old Testament. However, if you check you will not find the actual phrase “kingdom of God” used there, but the theme is. There God is presented as king over all of creation. He is also portrayed as king over Israel in a special way. To rule with him, God has appointed human kings a key role to play in his kingdom. This began with Adam when God established him as a king to rule the whole world under God as the true king over all creation. However, Adam fails and God initiates plan B.

God next turns to the nation of Israel that developed from the seed of Abraham.  God’s plan was to establish Israel as a great nation with a succession of kings who would rule over the entire world through his chosen means. Because of sin, if dominion over the earth was to be possible it would have to be a gift from God, which was to be given in the context of God’s saving redemption of a sinful people, which is why the sacrificial system became so central in Israel’s national life. Israel is saved through the Exodus in order to become a kingdom of priest and a holy nation, assigned the task of spreading the glory of God to everyone on earth and showing them the way of salvation. However, they failed to carry out their assignment and God had to turn to plan C, which comes out of a promise made to David that God would establish the throne of his kingdom forever.

With Israel in exile, God uses prophetic teaching to establish hope concerning the Kingdom of God. This teaching made it clear that the only hope for establishing an enduring and faithful kingdom would require a future work of God’s redemption. To accomplish this, God brings his people back from exile and sets up Israel again as a nation and makes a promise of a coming king in the role of Messiah. The Jews saw this as another earthly kingdom with Messiah as king. What they did not understand was that this was not a mere deliverance from their enemies, but an exodus of chosen people through spiritual birth who would establish the kingdom of God to inhabit God’s new creation. This coming Messiah that God was going to use to establish this Kingdom of God was his only Son who he sent and sacrificed as the person of Jesus.

What then is the Kingdom of God? It is a body of believers who have been born spiritually and have subjected themselves under the loving rule of Jesus Christ as their king. Together they will have dominion over the new creation.

An excellent source of information on the Kingdom of God is found at this location. 

Philippians 4:19

“And my God will supply every need of yours according to his riches in glory in Christ Jesus.” (Philippians 4:19 ESV). Looking at the context of our verse, we find Paul in prison explaining how God has met his needs through the help of the Philippians believers. He then exclaims that his God will supply our every need.

Through belief and surrender to Jesus Christ, his God becomes our God and as we seek help from him he will supply every need of ours; not just some, but all of them and not just now, but for as long as we live. These needs will be met according to the rich supply in Christ Jesus. We must not stop here, but ask what these needs might be? Are they simply things we want, or real needs required for proper living, or are they needs for spiritual growth? As these needs of ours are met through the kindness of his grace, how do they through us return glory to him? We might also consider for what purpose do we have these needs. Let us be careful to be sure our purpose is worthy to meet a sincere need to his glory and not ours.

Prayer

Father, there is such a wide range of needs and reasons for our needs which need to be evaluated through prayer as part of our asking for that need to be met. I believe we need to consider how the process of asking for our need, having the need supplied, and using that which is supplied affects our relationship with you and our walk with the Lord. Being supplied from the riches of Christ in relationship to his glory, begs an honest analysis of the purpose of, or reason for our need. God desires to meet legitimate needs for which I am sincerely thankful.

1 Peter 5:7

“Cast all your anxiety on him because he cares for you.” (1 Peter 5:7 NIV). The context of this verse finds Peter giving instruction on proper behavior to various people. First, he gives advice to the elders about being good shepherds of God’s flock. Second, he directs his instruction to those who are younger, telling them to submit to their elders and to clothe themselves with humility toward one another, because God opposes the proud but shows favor to the humble. Before continuing with a warning about the devil, we find our verse.

From time to time everyone experiences some degree of anxiety from a wide range of factors. Peter tells his readers to release it by casting it onto God because he cares for you. For many this may prompt the question of how is that done. In Philippians 4:6 - 7 (NASB), Paul gives valuable instruction on how to cast our anxiety onto God: “Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all comprehension, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.” (Philippians 4:6-7 NASB). See notes on these verses.

Prayer

Father, thank you for the joy I experience when I write these lessons. I find your word so nourishing to my soul. The wisdom I gain from my study far exceeds any wisdom the world has to offer. 

Numbers 23:19

“God is not man, that he should lie, or a son of man, that he should change his mind. Has he said, and will he not do it? Or has he spoken, and will he not fulfill it?” (Numbers 23:19 ESV). This verse is found in a section of Scripture where Balak was trying to get Balaam to curse the people of Israel, but God would not allow him to do so. It was during the second attempt to curse the people that God gives Balaam our verse.

In the verse a comparison is made between God and man; God can be trusted and will do as he promises whereas man is not as reliable. In the context of our verse, God gave his word that he would deliver the people of Israel safely to the promise land. This desire for a curse against Israel is an attempt to override or overcome God’s promise, but God is faithful and will not allow a curse to come against his people, but instead a blessing.

Here is a statement about God’s character in which we, along with the people of Israel, can rely upon. What God says in his word that he will do for us, he will do. God really wants to bless us with the kindness of his grace, but we are so determined to do life our way and miss out on the joy of a partnership with God.

Prayer

Father, we have only ourselves to blame for many of out trials and failures because we are not willing to walk with you in the light of your word. Have mercy on us and encourage us “to walk in a manner worthy of the Lord, fully pleasing to him, bearing fruit in every good work and increasing in the knowledge of God.” (Colossians 1:10 ESV).

Philippians 4:13

“I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.” (Philippians 4:13 NKJV). Here is another verse if taken out of its content and applied literally is false. It is essential that we consider the context to determine the range of “all things”; that which we “do” in union with Jesus Christ. Jesus said: “I am the vine; you are the branches. Whoever abides in me and I in him, he it is that bears much fruit, for apart from me you can do nothing.” (John 15:5 ESV). Now we can narrow down the “all things” to those things we can't do apart from Christ.

Going back to the context of our verse, we find Paul confined in prison, but yet he displays peace, joy and thanksgiving and he is not anxious even about his possible execution. In spite of being persecuted his thoughts are focused on things that are good and not on the need of justice for the evil brought against him. He is content to live under any condition, whether in poverty or affluence. He is able to love and forgive those who are determined to do him harm. From this we see that “all things” relate to righteous and holy living. Through our verse, Paul is saying he can do all things, through Christ, that are necessary for godly living in spite of his living conditions and circumstances. For example, in countries where there is severe persecution, Christians can and are willing to pay any price for their faith, even stand in the face of death because it is Christ that strengthens them.

Prayer

Father, as I was thinking about this prayer, my thought went from “do all things” to “am I willing to do those things I should do”, like sharing my faith even if it will cost me? There are those tragedies of life I face and there are things You asks me to do. Either may require strength beyond my own and thus the promise of our verse. Father, help me learn to lean more on the Lord’s strength to accomplish those things I can't or shouldn’t try to do on my own. 

God has spoken to us through his Son

Posted on Discover the Word on 9/9/16 in response to that days radio program.

Link to program series.

God has spoke to us in these last days through his Son who “is the radiance of the glory of God and the exact imprint of his nature” (Hebrews 1:3), but this begs the question of purpose. Consider the following:

• To reveal to us what God is like and give us an example of how to live,
• To purchase our salvation, which would provide us with an eternal relationship with him, and
• To provide us with instruction concerning our purpose as believers on earth.

Jesus came as a witness of his Father and in obedience, suffer and die for our sin and thus establish the church, the body of Christ, but just as the Father gave clear instruction to his Son, Jesus has given us clear instruction concerning our assignment. For example:

• “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. For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand that we should walk in them” (Ephesians 2:8-10 NKJV). The Father had an assignment for his Son and he through Jesus has an assignment for us.
• “By this my Father is glorified, that you bear much fruit and so prove to be my disciples” (John 15:8 ESV). As his disciples, we are to be diligent to obey him and do the assigned work, just as Jesus obeyed his Father and came to reveal him to us and die on the cross for our salvation.
• “Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you” (Mathew 28:19-20 ESV). This command can be lived out in many ways, depending on how God has gifted you.

Just as Jesus revealed God to the world and purchased our salvation, we have the assignment to reveal Jesus to the world and point out their need of salvation. Jesus suffered and died to accomplish his assignment and he warned us that we would experience the same. Today, Church growth is found in countries of persecution, where Christians are willing to suffer and even die to reveal God through Jesus in obedience to fulfill their assignment.

Why did God choose to reveal himself by putting on flesh and coming as Jesus? Maybe it was to reveal himself to us, purchase our salvation, and solicit our involvement with him to form the Church, the Bride of Christ. How much are you willing to sacrifice to be part of something that we will enjoy for an eternity?

1 Corinthians 2:12 #2

“Now we have received not the spirit of the world, but the Spirit who is from God, that we might understand the things freely given us by God.” (1 Corinthians 2:12 ESV). We enter this world spiritually dead and in Romans 3, Paul describes what we are like: “as it is written: "None is righteous, no, not one; no one understands; no one seeks for God. All have turned aside; together they have become worthless; no one does good, not even one." "Their throat is an open grave; they use their tongues to deceive." "The venom of asps is under their lips." "Their mouth is full of curses and bitterness." "Their feet are swift to shed blood; in their paths are ruin and misery, and the way of peace they have not known." "There is no fear of God before their eyes."” (Romans 3:10-18 ESV). Unless we are born again and the Holy Spirit dwells within us there appears to be no chance that we would seek God or have anything to do with him.

Since a spiritually dead person is unable, or unwilling, to seek God, God in his sovereignty decided, before the foundation of the world, who he would adopt as his children and sent Jesus Christ to die on the cross to purchase their salvation. These he caused to be born again and sent his Spirit to dwell within each of them. This brings us to our verse where the spirit of the world has been replaced by the Spirit who is from God in those who are his children. Having this Spirit who is from God, we are then able to understand the things freely given us by God. This Spirit from God interprets spiritual truths for us, giving us understand of them, proving us with the mind of Christ.

Prayer

Father, thank you for causing us to be born again and thank you for sending us the Holy Spirit to give us understanding of spiritual truths. Thank you for spiritual discernment that he provides us with, empowering us with the ability to navigate through life in a way that honors the Lord. 

Hebrews 2:18

“For because he himself has suffered when tempted, he is able to help those who are being tempted.” (Hebrews 2:18 ESV). This is one of many verses I have memorized without thinking about the context from which it was taken. It is a verse of encouragement during times of temptation. If the Lord was tempted and endured suffering, then we can also.

The verse by itself is like sitting down to a Chinese meal of just rice. How much nicer the meal is when the lazy susan in front of us is covered with many dishes of wonderful food to eat with our rice while we enjoy rich fellowship with those sitting around the table with us. The same idea applies when you look at verses that form the context of our verse. Why was Jesus tempted and what was his suffering and how might that apply to our temptation? Let's back up to verse 5 and read down to our verse and see.

For a time, Jesus was made a little lower than the angles and nailed to a cross to die for our salvation. It was through his suffering of death that he would bring many sons and daughters to glory. Along his route to the cross there were temptations to not continue. His temptations in the wilderness and in the garden. Even on the cross, religious leaders cried out, “Come down off the cross and save yourself”, but Jesus endured to the end. Because of this God raised him up and crowned him with glory and honor and as a result we are not ashamed to put our trust in him.

This brings us to our verse in which he is able to help us when we are tempted because he himself has suffered when tempted and endured. Thinking about an application in context I remind you of our brothers and sisters who face persecution and suffer for their faith. They may be tempted to deny Jesus to save themselves, but they endure with love and forgiveness and through their sacrifice the church grows. Context provides the main application while the verse by itself ends up with lesser but yet important applications.

Prayer

Lord, thank you for the suffering you endured to purchase our salvation. Thank you for the help you provide us when we are tempted in some way. Some may stand in the face of death for their faith and be tempted to back down while others are tempted to be unfaithful toward their spouse for a moment of regretful pleasure. In any case you are there to encourage us to endure, to do what is right and thus maintain an effective witness for those around us to see. 

Romans 8:32

“He who did not spare his own Son but gave him up for us all, how will he not also with him graciously give us all things?” (Romans 8:32 ESV). This verse comes from a section about God’s everlasting love, but the section begins with reference to “these things”, which points us back to the previous section which contains several popular verses; verses like: “In the same way the Spirit also helps our weakness; for we do not know how to pray as we should, but the Spirit Himself intercedes for us with groanings too deep for words;” (Romans 8:26 NASB); “And we know that God causes all things to work together for good to those who love God, to those who are called according to His purpose.” (Romans 8:28 NASB).

There are two more verses that complete the context for our verse and they are: “For those whom he foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son, in order that he might be the firstborn among many brothers. And those whom he predestined he also called, and those whom he called he also justified, and those whom he justified he also glorified.” (Romans 8:29-30 ESV). We now understand what “these things” are that God has done for us and if so then who can stand against us?

Paul then points out in our verse that God did not spare his own Son, but gave him as the perfect sacrifice as payment for our salvation. If God was willing to give his very best and most treasured gift for us, can we not expect that he would graciously give us all things that we would need in our walk with him?

One must not stop here, but look ahead and see why these things that he will graciously give are important. When any charge is brought against us it is God who will justify. Who can condemn us since Jesus died for us and is now seated at the right hand of God to intercede for us. Because of God’s protection through all kinds trials and tribulations there is nothing that can separate us from the love of Christ.

Prayer

Father, when we take time and look at the verses around our selected verse we find they add great meaning and richness. How important context is to understand the meaning of “these things”. That context clarifies that these things relate to our salvation and our walk with the Lord and not the things we might want in the world. Father, we need to be careful not to let verses we are using get separated from their original context. 

1 Corinthians 13:4 - 7

As you read these verses on love, replace the word love with “my Heavenly Father” or “Jesus”. Since God is love, these verses are a good description of him. Now read the verses again and replace love with your name. Since God lives in you and God is love, then these verses should be a description of your life. How accurately do they describe it? What do you think you should do to close the gap?

Philippians 1:29

“For it has been granted to you that for the sake of Christ you should not only believe in him but also suffer for his sake” (Philippians 1:29 ESV).

The context of this verse is life worthy of the gospel. No matter what happens, we are to conduct ourselves in a manner worthy of the gospel of Christ. We are to strive together for the faith of the gospel without being frightened in any way by those who oppose us. We are to honor Jesus Christ as a witness of the gospel.

This verse references two gifts: salvation and suffering. Jesus suffered and died on the cross, in our place, to purchase our salvation, a salvation that is a gift of grace received through faith. Having been saved from our sin, obtaining peace with God, we need to obey the command to bear fruit by making known the gospel of our salvation to others. As Jesus suffered to provide our salvation, we should expect, as a normal part of Christian life, to suffer while sharing the gospel with others. This verse clearly indicates that belief in Jesus is to be associated with the willingness to suffer for him. Unfortunately, in the west we tend to embrace safety, security and comfort and as a result we tend to preach and teach about the salvation part of this verse and ignore the suffering part. I believe this has resulted in a harvest of lukewarm believers, which are unwilling to suffer by learning about and living Biblical Christian lives of obedience.

Prayer

Father, we seem to embrace the habit of picking and choosing verses we want to live by that tend to strengthen our position of safety, security and comfort and ignore those verses that might result in a form of suffering. As a result, we have become a body of lukewarm believers that have little effect on our culture. The suffering we have been trying to avoid, through selective Christian living, may soon overtake us as society continues to disintegrate. Not only will we suffer now for our disobedience, but we will suffer shame as we stand before the judgment seat of Christ. Father, have mercy on us.