Jesus
Believing without seeing
1 Peter 1:8-9
The very same Peter who wrote 1 Peter is the same fisherman who saw Jesus resurrected. He was the second disciple to reach the tomb after Mary had announced worriedly that Jesus was not in the tomb and that the stone had been rolled out of place. When he entered the tomb, he saw that Jesus’ body wasn’t there (John 20:6-7).
John himself writes that when he went into the tomb and saw the grave clothes lying there, he believed that Jesus had been resurrected. Mary, after encountering the resurrected Jesus in person, exclaimed to the other disciples, “I have seen the Lord” (John 20:18)
Then Jesus appeared to the rest of the disciples, and John records, “Then the disciples were glad when they saw the Lord” (John 20:20)
Thomas missed the meeting with Jesus and, having not seen with his own eyes, declared, “Unless I see in his hands the mark of the nails, and place my finger into the mark of the nails, and place my hand into his side, I will never believe.” (John 20:25) But he too saw Jesus, and then he too believed, John tells us.
Jesus went on to say, “Have you believed because you have seen me? Blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed.” (John 20:29)
I guess it is no surprise then that; “seeing is believing” is a proverbial saying that is so universally understood. And yet Jesus, when he was praying for his disciples and for you and I prayed for us who would believe in Him without seeing Him; “I am praying not only for these disciples but also for all who will ever believe in me through their message.” (John 17:20)
In his letter, Peter, one of the ones who believed because he saw Jesus, one who believed because he was an eyewitness of Jesus’ life, transfiguration, death, resurrection & ascension, wrote;
Peter knows how he, Mary, John, the other disciples and Thomas all needed to see Jesus resurrected in order to believe. And Peter would have remembered Jesus’ words to Thomas about the blessedness of those who would believe in Him without seeing Him.
Maybe Peter was there overhearing Jesus’ prayer recorded in John 17 and remembered while writing to these believers how Jesus had prayed for those who would believe in Him not because they saw Him but because Jesus’ disciples would share the good news, the message of Jesus with them…
Because he writes;
You love him even though you have never seen him. Though you do not see him now, you trust him; and you rejoice with a glorious, inexpressible joy. 9 The reward for trusting him will be the salvation of your souls. (1 Peter 1:8-9 in NLT)
I detect a hint of marvelling in Peter. Knowing himself, knowing what people are like having seen the wrestle Thomas had, and then thinking of how those who have not seen but have believed in Jesus without ever having seen Him.
Fellow believers, even though we have not seen the resurrected Jesus, we have believed, we have trusted the truths we have read about Him in His word, we have believed & we rejoice with joy that is inexpressible.
How did this happen? I believe it happened because Jesus prayed for us (John 17:20) and because we were foreknown & elected by God before the foundation of the world was laid because of His love (1 Peter 1:1-2 & Ephesians 1:4-5).
You have believed in Jesus without seeing – you are truly blessed. You are an answer to Jesus’ prayer to the Father; you and your faith in Jesus are an exception to the way most people in the world think, and you are blessed.
And, one day, all of us who have believed will see Jesus as He is in all his glory (John 17:24).
“Father, I want these whom you have given me to be with me where I am. Then they can see all the glory you gave me because you loved me even before the world began!”
But until then, be encouraged; “though you have not seen Him, you love Him.” Love Jesus & trust in Him with all your heart, rejoice in Him, delight in Him with joy that is inexpressible and filled with glory because the reward for this believing without seeing is the salvation of your souls (1 Peter 1:9).
When Life Blurs Our Vision (Psalm 43)
Do you know the feeling – when life’s circumstances skew your perspective so much that you are no longer seeing correctly?
The Psalmist in Psalm 43 is overwhelmed & preoccupied by some hard times brought on by the actions of others. As a result, he begins with a request – he wants God to vindicate him, to defend & deliver him from unjust, ungodly, deceitful people.
His is the prayer of a person who feels powerless; they have reached the end of the limit of themselves, and so they cry out to God to do something on their behalf (43:1)
But that is not all. This poor ‘victim’ isn’t just feeling unjustly treated; he has another problem. He feels God has let him down like God, who ought to be his refuge, hasn’t been. Like God has dropped the ball and left him exposed to these ungodly people, and so his lament is actually against God (43:2)!
Effectively, he says to God, ‘You are my refuge, but You’ve been no refuge at all – you have left me exposed, You have rejected me; God!’ (paraphrase of 43:2a). His lament is about God.
How often don’t we do this? Life is hard; we face difficulties and trials, but before we know it, we are grumbling to God about God Himself.
The ‘victim narrative’ is not new; it is as old as the sun. The Psalmist is so self-centred and entitled at this point that he expresses disbelief that he has had to experience sadness because of the actions of others (43:2b).
Yet, God is so gracious! Although the Psalmist’s prayers begin with a request for protection & ejection from the circumstances he is enduring, and even though his prayer progresses to grumbling about God and accusing God of rejecting him & leaving him exposed so that he suffers at the hands of his enemies…God is quiet.
Thank you, LORD, for not responding too quickly to our rants – at times. Thank you, LORD, for your silence, for allowing us to blow off ungodly misdirected steam in prayer at times, and for just being silent.
Often, what we think our needs are and what is truly our most significant need are not the same. In his prayer process, eventually, the Psalmist realises that he has another need! More than vindication or protection from his enemies, he needs proximity to God (43:3).
Sometimes, trials and life circumstances can so occupy our attention that we drift from being close to God. Our vision is so full of our problems that we can’t see God anymore, and in those moments, we can find that we have drifted from His nearness. We can have drifted so far off course that we need help finding our way back into God’s presence.
So, the Psalmist’s prayer changes & then he prays;
Send your light and your truth; let them lead me. Let them bring me to your holy mountain, to your dwelling place. Then I will come to the altar of God, to God, my greatest joy. I will praise you with the lyre, God, my God. – Psalm 43:3-4 (CSB)
The Psalmist’s greatest need & ours – is God, our greatest joy. We were made for proximity to God. God hard-wired this need and desire into the very fibre of our being. It is a creation ordinance.
Adam and Eve walked daily in the Garden with God before sin ruined that perfect relationship. But the wiring is still in us; it is how we were made. Our internal compass points to God; we were made to be close to God, to desire God’s presence, to dwell with God & to have God as our greatest joy (43:4).
Yet, sometimes life has skewed our vision, distracted us, and our troubles can preoccupy us that we need help to get back to nearness with God. And so, the Psalmist’s request effectively becomes, ‘Help me find my way back to you, God’ (43:3).
Rick Warren famously said, People close to God are not ‘lucky’, they are not ‘blessed’, and they do not have some spiritual gift of closeness bestowed on them. Instead, they have made a decision!
The Psalmist started with a felt need; he needed God’s protection & deliverance & he felt like God was not delivering, and yet his prayer transformed his perspective so that he began to see his greater need – closeness to God.
And so, the Psalmist asks for God’s help to guide him back to God’s presence. However, as Christ followers, we know the One who is the Way, the truth and life. We have believed in the One who is the only way into the Father’s presence.
And so, we have the confidence to enter the holy places by the blood of Jesus. We know the way into God’s presence; we come by a new and living way opened up for us by the life, death & resurrection of Jesus (Hebrews 10:19-20).
More than this, we have Jesus, our great high priest, who is ever living to intercede for us in the throne room of God. Therefore, let’s draw near to God the Father with hearts full of confident faith because of our glorious Saviour, Jesus (Hebrews 10:21-22).
Our whole being is transformed by God’s presence so that depression, grumbling & despair are superseded by hope, praise, gratitude & faith (43:5).
Brother or sister, you and I have no greater need than proximity to God. And you do not need to ask God to send you light or truth to lead you into His presence – you have none other than Jesus Christ, the One who is the way, the truth, and the life eagerly waiting for you to come. Jesus is standing waiting for you to simply reach out to Him & if you do, if you invite Him into your presence, He will enter and dwell with you (Revelation 3:20).
So enter His presence, let us draw near to God; Jesus is with you now and omnipresent. Ask Him to make you aware of His presence with you right now – the very thing you need more than any other felt need.
Delight yourself in Jesus, God who has promised, ‘never will I leave you and never will I forsake you’ (Hebrews 13:5). So, because God is with you and for you, what can people do to you (Hebrews 13:6)?
Living as Exiles… (1 Peter 1:13-19)
“Therefore” (1:13)
Right thinking leads to right believing, which leads to right living. In his letter to the believers scattered throughout modern-day Turkey, the apostle Peter follows the pattern familiar to many apostolic letters.
The apostles knew they had received and been entrusted with good news, not good advice.
The gospel is not good advice but good news: “Advice is counsel about something that hasn’t happened yet, but you can do something about it. News is a report about something that has happened which you can’t do anything about because it has been done for you, and all you can do is to respond to it.” – Dr Martin Lloyd Jones.
The apostles had heard Jesus teach how the state of the heart mattered more than external appearances (Matthew 15:10-20 & 23:25) & they had experienced a personal heart transformation through following Jesus – which resulted in their changed lives & lifestyles.
And so, when wanting to encourage the believers in Jesus to live godly lives, the apostles habitually first laid a gospel foundation of truth, reminding believers of the good news (1:1-12) before giving them any imperatives regarding the Christian life. The apostles know that looking back at the gospel’s good news will motivate a gospel response in us!
Right thinking leads to right believing, which leads to right living.
So the apostle Peter has drawn our attention afresh to the wonders of the gospel past, present & future and then calls us to respond to this good news of the gospel by saying, “Therefore” or “consequently” (1:13) and what follows are some imperatives followed by a bookend which reminds us of the motivating power for all of them (1:18-21).
1. Prepare your minds for action & be sober-minded (1:13)
The apostle wants us as believers to keep ourselves in a state of mental readiness. The literal phrase translated as ‘prepare your minds for action (ESV) is ‘gird up the loins of your mind’!
This phrase doesn’t translate well into modern English; the image Peter is using is of a man picking up his garment and tucking it into his belt/girdle so that he is ready for action, prepared to respond or run.
Believers in Jesus need to be like this: alert, primed for action, and ready to respond. We are not to be indifferent or lazy. He then goes on to say that we are to be ‘sober-minded’ as believers. We are to be the opposite of a drunken person.
A drunken person is present but not truly alert; their reflexes are dulled, their vision is blurred, their perspective is unclear, and they are not entirely in control of their actions or thoughts & therefore, they are unguarded & are prone to be startled!
We are urged to be the opposite: sober-minded, alert, sharp, in control, and on our guard as believers in Jesus.
Too many bumble through life like a feather blown in the breeze, like a passenger, unsure what to expect. Hence, they are in a constant state of startled reaction rather than preparedness.
Peter is urging us to another way of living, clear thinking, having an appropriate expectation & therefore & being ready for action.
Being sober-minded & preparing your mind for action involves;
- Knowing who you are through faith in Jesus – a beloved elect chosen one of God (1 Peter 1:1)
- Locating yourself & also understanding the time in which you live as an exile (1 Peter 1:1) to have realistic expectations of this life & so that you can know how to respond.
- You have an adversary prowling, looking for opportunities to harm (1 Peter 5:8)
- You live in a fallen world tainted by sin in every way.
- You have a body impacted by the fall, prone to sickness, suffering & death.
- Positioning yourself to obey God as one of His children (1 Peter 1:14)
Such preparation will not only reduce surprise, confusion, questions & doubt but will help with realistic expectations and will help maintain a posture ready for quick obedience to the Father.
The apostle goes on to urge us…
2. Set your hope fully on the grace of God to come (1:13)
Having established the right mindset for the believer, we are then urged to set our hope fully on the grace of God that is to come. We are not to hedge our bets! We don’t trust in ourselves, our money or possessions, plus the grace of God for added insurance. Instead, we are instructed to fix our hope entirely & exclusively on ‘the grace of God to come’ (NLT).
But what is the ‘grace of God to come’? If we are to trust in it completely – what is it?
The ESV translation reads, “Set your hope fully on the grace that will be brought to you at the revelation of Jesus Christ”. This grace is God’s unmerited favour (we don’t even bring it near – it is brought to us) that is already ours through faith in Jesus Christ and the grace to come that will be ‘brought to us’ at the moment of Christ’s return.
For the believer in Jesus, although we have already received grace & mercy from God in God’s saving us from our sins & God’s adopting us into His family – there is more to come! What is to come for us is so magnificent & glorious that the apostle Paul says that our present-day sufferings will be overwhelmed by it (Romans 8:18 & 2 Corinthians 4:17). It is so wonderful Peter tells us to set our hope completely on it.
Are you trusting Jesus fully for your eternal future? Eternity is not some religious opiate to make us feel better in the present; the reality of our eternal life in the new heaven and the new earth in proximity to God is so marvellous & real that it is worth trusting fully in it & ordering your life around it.
“Typically, we can be too vague about the subject of heaven, simply thinking of it as up there, out there, somewhere. A clearer appreciation of the tangible nature of our bodies and of where we are to live for eternity as well as what we might be doing should help us to become more excited about our future”- John Hosier.
How much do you think about Jesus’ return & life in the new heaven and the new earth? Can you say that you have fully fixed your hope on the gracious kindness of God that is yet to be revealed to us when Jesus returns?
Any failure to fully marvel at the reality of our life in eternity will impact your life now on this earth & cause you to be vulnerable to hopelessness or susceptible to the temptation to settle for that which is way less than what God wants to give you at the return of Jesus.
“Satan need not convince us that Heaven doesn’t exist. He need only convince us that Heaven is a place of boring, unearthly existence. If we believe that lie, we’ll be robbed of our joy and anticipation, we’ll set our minds on this life and not the next.” – R.Alcorn
3. Do not be conformed to old passions. Rather, be holy as He who called you is holy (1:14-16)
It is sickening to me how often misguided believers or even leaders baulk so quickly at imperatives like the ones in vs14-16 squealing ‘legalism’ as they do! The New Testament is clear that we are saved by grace alone, through faith alone in Christ alone.
However, having been saved by grace, we are then to live the rest of our lives as a response to the grace of God we received at salvation. We are to walk in a manner worthy of the calling we have received from God (Ephesians 4:1). God’s grace towards us is to have an effect – that we pursue the things of God more than anyone else (1 Corinthians 15:10).
And so it is appropriate for the apostles to give us all manner of commands & instructions on how we ought to live in all our conduct. There are things we ought to stop & others we ought to start doing. We are to live transformed lives because we have been saved. In this, we are not trying to be saved but living as those who are already saved.
The apostle commands believers in Jesus to no longer be conformed to the old passions or desires of our former way of living before we knew Jesus. We should not slip back into our old worldly ways of thinking and living. To do so is inappropriate for the Christ-follower since the Holy Spirit would never lead us into such sin but will only lead us into a new way of living that produces the fruit of the Spirit & exceeds even the law (Galatians 5:16-26).
Therefore, as we obey the Holy Spirit, we will end up becoming more and more like our Saviour (Romans 8:29).
Peter ends this section with two motivations for the imperatives: to prepare for action, be sober-minded, set our hope fully on what’s to come and not conform to the old passions of our former life…
Do all this with reverent fear throughout your time of exile
Sin & ungodliness flourish in the absence of a correct view of God. This is the whole sad storyline of Romans 1:18-32. The opposite is also true – a correct view of God as holy and righteous has a preservative effect on us.
We know this from life experience, right? Kids who receive an instruction to not take or touch something in the presence of the parent who gave the instruction are suddenly way more likely to reach out and touch or take that banned thing if their parent leaves the room…
So, the apostle Peter urges us to live our lives during this time of exile with a reverent fear for God since he knows that awareness of God will help us not to conform to the old ways of our former life.
How can you grow in your constant awareness of a proper reverence for God?
Do all this because you know who saved you & what it cost!
The final motivation in the passage is the most positive and powerful one of all. The whole Christian life is a response to the grace of God in His giving you Jesus. We are to prepare our minds for action, be sober-minded, set our hope fully on what’s to come and not conform to the old passions of our former life but rather to be holy like our Father is holy all because Jesus!
We are to live this way because we know that we were saved from the futile ways & traditions of our families passed down to us not with something small or insignificant but by the precious blood of our Saviour Jesus Christ (1 Peter 1:19)!
When we see the extent to which Jesus went to save us & when we see how much it cost Jesus to save us, the only appropriate response is to want to live your whole life as a love response to Jesus!
Love is the most powerful motivator in the world. Think of all the crazy & remarkable things that have been done inspired by love. If we see how much it cost Jesus and how much He loved us to ransom us from our futile ways before we were saved, we will respond by loving Him back and wanting to please Him with our whole lives.
There is no more powerful motivation for godliness than seeing what our Saviour did for us & knowing what it cost Him. We can never pay Him back, but we can respond by giving our every waking moment to him in loving, willing obedience – because He first loved us.
Silent Saviour (Psalm 39)
Don’t just read the Bible; rather, let it search you & let God speak to you through it. Scripture came alive to me today as I meditated on Psalm 39.
What started as another Psalm of David’s lamenting injustice & detailing his struggle to remain quiet & at peace in his heart while feeling aggrieved by the actions of others (39:1-3)…Suddenly, it opened into a Psalm that helped me worship my Saviour today with a new light!
I was identifying with David on the struggle of holding your tongue in the presence of injustice & how restraining the tongue can lead to another fire – an internal one which ended up in hot words anyway… (39:1-3)
But then I was drawn to the phrase, “I was mute and silent; I held my peace…” And it struck me that Isaiah had prophesied about Jesus;
He was oppressed, and he was afflicted, yet he opened not his mouth; like a lamb that is led to the slaughter, and like a sheep that before its shearers is silent, so he opened not his mouth. (Isaiah 53:7)
The apostle Peter, who was an eyewitness of Jesus’ various trials and his death on the cross, wrote these words;
When he was reviled, he did not revile in return; when he suffered, he did not threaten, but continued entrusting himself to him who judges justly. 24 He himself bore our sins in his body on the tree, that we might die to sin and live to righteousness. By his wounds you have been healed. (1 Peter 2:23-24)
Although David struggled in the presence of evil & injustice, and I like him too. My Saviour Jesus kept His peace when oppressed; he didn’t fight back but was silent and didn’t insult back when He was unjustly accused, abused and insulted.
And so, Lord, where do I put my hope? My only hope is in you. (Psalm 39:7 in NLT)
Jesus Christ is our only hope, so
- We put our hope in the ONE (vs7) who didn’t speak when falsely accused! (vs1-3)
- We put our hope in the ONE (vs7) who, unlike us (vs4-6), is eternal, the unending ONE who can therefore save us completely (Hebrews 7:25).
- We put our hope in the ONE who alone can deliver us from all our transgressions BECAUSE He didn’t ask the Father to deliver Him when He bore our transgressions (vs8).
- We put our hope in the ONE who didn’t open His mouth to ask the Father to rescue Him from the cross so He could rescue us (vs9)!
- We put our hope in the ONE who endured the wrath of God against sin, who didn’t ask the Father to remove His stroke from him so that we would never receive the stroke of God’s wrath against our sin (vs9-10).
Jesus, thank You for not asking the Father to deliver You from the sin that was on You SO THAT You could deliver us, thank You for not opening Your mouth to ask the Father to rescue You SO THAT You could rescue us, and thank You for not asking the Father to stop the His punishment of You for our sin SO THAT You could be the propitiating sacrifice that took away the Holy Father’s wrath, SO THAT we would never have to face His wrath but only receive His loving embrace!
We are in awe of You, Jesus; we worship You & praise You for who You are & for what You have done in saving us.
Born into a living hope!
“Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! According to his great mercy, he has caused us to be born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead” (1 Peter 1:3)
Having greeted the recipients of his letter, believers throughout modern-day Turkey. Peter bursts into praise to the Father in heaven for His great mercy, which caused those who believed in Jesus to be ‘born again’ (1 Peter 1:3).
There was a day when every one of us had come into this world with a first gasp of oxygen filling our lungs. But Peter celebrates another birth here – the second birth of every believer in Jesus.
That being ‘born again’ that Jesus first spoke of to Nicodemus (John 3:3-7) & which John wrote of in his gospel when he said, “But to all who did receive him, who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God, 13 who were born, not of blood nor of the will of the flesh nor of the will of man, but of God” (John 1:12-13).
When a baby is born, they are hopefully greeted with eager expectation into a web of loving relationships & receive a birth name & surname that anchors their identity & belonging in the world.
Through this second birth, we too are supernaturally welcomed eternally into a new identity & sense of belonging as we are welcomed into a loving relationship with God, and all those who like us have been welcomed into His worldwide family through faith in Jesus (1 John 3:1).
In our text, Peter draws our attention to another thing – we are born again into a living hope. Peter’s lived experience fills this phrase, ‘a living hope’ with meaning.
The Old Testament prophets had prophesied in the hope of the Messiah to come. Simeon, when He saw Him as a baby, sang in hope;
“…my eyes have seen your salvation 31 that you have prepared in the presence of all peoples, 32 a light for revelation to the Gentiles, and for glory to your people Israel.” (Luke 2:30-32)
Thirty years later, Peter found Him, the One Simeon had sung a Messianic hope over! And when He saw Jesus, he left all he knew to follow Jesus (Luke 5:11). Peter’s hope that Jesus indeed was the Messiah must have grown as he spent time with Jesus, talking along the road, listening to every sermon, watching every interaction with people & with each miracle he witnessed Jesus perform.
Peter’s conviction & hope regarding Jesus indeed peaked just after seeing Jesus transfigured before his very eyes on the mountaintop, so much so that Peter proclaimed that Jesus was the anointed “Christ of God” (Luke 9:20).
But Peter’s hope must have been severely dented when soldiers whisked Jesus away to face charges of blasphemy before the High Priest & the Council. And, as he watched from a distance & denied three times the One he had fixed his hope to – Peter must have felt devastated as his hope was dashed.
Peter was there when his hope died & cried out, “It is finished” (John 19:30). What depths of despair, hope lost.
But! Just a few days later, when Mary Magdalene came running to Peter saying that Jesus was not in the tomb, Peter must have had millions of thoughts rushing through his mind… Was his body stolen? By whom? Why? Or, was Jesus actually alive like He said He would be (Luke 9:22)?
Hope is rising again amidst the questions. Then later, Mary returned saying, “I have seen the Lord” (John 20:18), and hope rose even more despite the questions. But when Jesus walked into the upper room, and the risen Lord Jesus came and stood among the disciples, I can only imagine how Peter’s heart leapt with hope!
Now writing to the believers in Asia, Peter writes;
“Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! According to his great mercy, he has caused us to be born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead” (1 Peter 1:3)
He had seen the resurrected Jesus in the flesh, and that first encounter was branded into his mind forever. Peter’s hope, our hope, was a person – Jesus Christ the One who was dead, but He is alive forevermore.
So, Jesus is our living hope. And He ever lives now to intercede for us & to act as our one Mediator for us before the Father in Heaven (1 Timothy 2:5).
Isn’t it incredible & reassuring that our Messiah isn’t just an idea, or some dead person or even worse some mythological figure of history, but living & active person who loves us. Someone we can cry out to, pour out our hearts to, someone we can love and be loved by.
In another sense, the phrase ‘a living hope’ represents the hope in Peter’s heart and ours that Jesus will return for us at the end of this age to take us to be with Him in heaven & the new earth, forever ushering in a new and everlasting era. A day when we will receive glorified bodies fit for eternity & all of creation will be renewed (Revelation 21:5). Jesus is our & all creation’s living hope!
Lastly, Jesus is our living hope because His resurrection life is the guarantee both of our life now as believers (Galatians 2:20) & our resurrection life to come (1 Corinthians 15:12-58).
“Our hope is anchored in the past: Jesus rose! Our hope remains in the present: Jesus lives! Our hope is completed in the future: Jesus is coming!” – Edmund Clowney.
Thank you Jesus for being our living hope, a hope that fills the present with meaning & significance and fills the future with joyful expectation.
Jesus: Your brother.
“Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! According to his great mercy, he has caused us to be born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead” – 1 Peter 1:3
Having introduced the letter with a greeting & a blessing to God’s chosen people spread throughout modern day Turkey. Peter then calls them & us to universally ‘bless’ or to ‘praise’ our Father in heaven. But note how the apostle describes our heavenly Father.
He is; “the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ!” (vs3a)
Pause for a moment to consider this statement. Your and my heavenly Father is also Jesus’ heavenly Father. Here we have the mystery & the wonder of the Triune God on display again for the second time in this letter (see also vs2).
“God eternally exists as three persons, Father, Son and Holy Spirit, and each person is fully God, and there is one God.” – Wayne Grudem
God your heavenly Father is also the God-man, Jesus’ Father! Jesus defers to the Father continually as is most beautifully seen in John’s gospel. I love Jesus’ words in John 5:19; “Truly, truly, I say to you, ‘the Son can do nothing of his own accord, but only what he sees the Father doing. For whatever the Father does, that the Son does likewise.”
Having walked with Jesus, observed Jesus, Peter is clear that Jesus the Messiah related to God as His Father. He heard Jesus speak of the Father, he witnessed Jesus’ prayer life continually taking time to be with the Father to wait on the Father & saw Jesus’ total obedience to the Father’s will, especially in the garden of Gethsemane.
Having just marvelled at the wonder of the salvation of those he is writing to (vs1-2), Peter calls these believers in Jesus to praise God the Father, the One who sent their Saviour, the Lord Jesus Christ so that they might be born again.
It was the Father’s plan to save them. We know that Peter and the believers just after Jesus’ death & resurrection believed that everything of Jesus’ life was the plan of God the Father’s since they prayed;
for truly in this city there were gathered together against your holy servant Jesus, whom you anointed, both Herod and Pontius Pilate, along with the Gentiles and the peoples of Israel, 28to do whatever your hand and your plan had predestined to take place. – Acts 4:27-28
The apostle knew that God the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, was the One to be praised for the plan of salvation because He was the One whom Jesus was obeying & therefore our being saved was ultimately His plan, so He is worthy of our praise & thanks.
All praise to God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. It is by his great mercy that we have been born again – 1 Peter 1:3a – NLT
I will come back to the wonder of salvation & the mercy of God another day. But for today, I want to behold the wonder of the Trinity & it’s implications flowing out of 1 Peter 1:3.
Because God the Father is not just my heavenly Father, but also Jesus’ Father – that establishes a relationship between Jesus & ourselves that is simply wonderful to marvel at.
Jesus is not just our Messiah & Lord, worthy of all praise, honour & thanks. But Jesus is our ‘older brother’! Jesus is and was truly God & truly human, Jesus became like us so that He could save us from our sin through His atoning sacrifice & become our merciful & faithful High Priest representing us before God the Father.
Since therefore the children share in flesh and blood, he himself likewise partook of the same things, that through death he might destroy the one who has the power of death, that is, the devil, 15 and deliver all those who through fear of death were subject to lifelong slavery. 16 For surely it is not angels that he helps, but he helps the offspring of Abraham. 17 Therefore he had to be made like his brothers in every respect, so that he might become a merciful and faithful high priest in the service of God, to make propitiation for the sins of the people. 18 For because he himself has suffered when tempted, he is able to help those who are being tempted. – Hebrews 2:14-18
But note, Jesus didn’t just become human, He became our ‘brother’ – Jesus & I are related to one another because of our common relationship to God the Father. Our brother is our High Priest who mediates in the presence of the Almighty God, our Father in Heaven. He knows us, He has shared our humanity, our frailness, our suffering and so he is touched by our experiences of life & sympathises with us (Hebrews 4:14-15).
And now in this life, we are being transformed more and more into our older brother’s likeness. God the Father chose us, predestined us, foreknew us (1 Peter 1:2) so that we would be conformed to the image of God’s Son – Jesus. So that He, Jesus, would be the first of many brothers & sisters.
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. – Romans 8:29
How great is the love the Father has lavished on us, that we should be called children of God! And that is what we are! – 1 John 3:1 NIV
Jesus, is not just your Saviour, He is your brother! What a privilege to be welcomed into this family over which the Father providentially cares & loves. This is who you really are, this is your primary identity now. You are in God’s family, you belong & you are being moulded daily more and more into the likeness of your brother – Jesus. He is your empathetic High Priest who is also your brother! Amen.
Contentment (Philippians 4:10-13)
Contentment is like a rare jewel of great value. It is rare in part because of the sinful inclination in our hearts towards covetousness and our propensity to making comparisons to the lives of others.
Contentment’s antithesis is discontentment which is sadly all too common. Discontentment is like an ugly mental cancer that spreads and ruins our lives.
It robs us of our joy, causes us to lose sight of who we have & what we have right in front of us. Discontentment undervalues these people & these things we do have, making us feel that they are not enough or not good enough – how horrible!
Comparison is the thief of joy
– Theodore Roosevelt
More than this, discontentment erodes our gratitude, steals our joy and destroys our worship!
After all, it is hard to be simultaneously discontent and joyful or grateful. In moments of discontentment, our vision becomes focused on what we don’t have, what we have to endure, and then so we lose sight of WHO Jesus is and what He has DONE for us, what He has GIVEN to us.
As I read these words penned by the apostle Paul in our passage, it is helpful to remember that Paul is writing from prison. If comparisons were justifiable, he would surely have had cause to compare and to grumble.
Reading between the lines of his words to the Philippian church, it appears as though there were times when their lack of financial support to him meant that he had either very little or nothing at all for his needs in prison (vs10-11).
And yet, Paul had learned to be content ‘in whatever situation’ he finds himself. What Paul learned was a type of contentment that is not restrained by circumstances but rather was free of his circumstances.
Sadly, my contentment is most often tied to my circumstances and not in spite of them like Paul’s was. Can you identify with this experience of mine?
I feel humbled and then inspired by Paul’s example of contentment ‘in whatever situation’. His contentment is free from the constraints of the life circumstances he is in at any given time, and therefore his contentment is remarkable and inspiring!
So what was such contentment’s well-spring or source?
In any and every circumstance, I have learned the secret of facing plenty and hunger, abundance and need. 13 I can do all things through him who strengthens me. (Philippians 4:12b-13)
So what is the ‘secret’, the key to such contentment that is possible in any and every circumstance? Paul is unequivocal, the secret the key is Jesus Christ. This is how he and we can have contentment in any and all circumstances.
How does this work? I have considered how Jesus strenghtens us to be content in all circumstances and will just leave the following 5 headings which I think I will expand on this Sun as I’ve decided to preach from this passage on Sun so check it out this Sun on our Reconciliation Road Church YouTube Channel – https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC9sxrhg5kUd44yD6wu1byww
- Worship & Gratitude
- New Life Mission
- Adjusted Life-Expectations
- An Eternal Perspective
- Divine Enabling Power
In closing, let’s return to two grace-giving phrases Paul writes; “I have learned in whatever situation” (vs11) & “I have learned the secret” (vs12).
This is vital information he is sharing with you and I. The fact that learned this type of unrestrained contentment is a huge encouragement. Because he learned it, it wasn’t automatic, instant or necessarily easy. The fact that he learnt it implies that it was a process, a journey – it took time.
And that breathes grace to you and to me who need to grow in contentment. This is a journey, it takes time, we are to make progress, but we also ought not to berate ourselves that we aren’t more content yet. Rather choose today to start the journey with Jesus towards a more godly and content life that glorifies God.
Sweet Assurance (Philippians 1:6)
Since this is the first Global Pandemic I have ever lived through, I can’t make sweeping generalisations. But, from my observations thus far, Pandemics have a way of polarising people if you were to categorise them according to their reactions.
- You get the nonchalant type, who’s in denial or is just ignorant
- The paranoid person petrified even to make a phone call for fear that 5G might transmit the virus
- The conspiracy theorists who seem to abound right now
- The well-read, and so the wisely cautious person
- People looking to make a quick buck off the whole thing
- And, then, of course, there is always the nutjob with a smartphone willing to record themselves to share their nutty ideas with the whole world …
You get the idea! Sadly in Christian circles, we see all of these varieties and then some. As a pastor, I have been inundated with videos/articles sent to me from all the types of people listed above.
The sender typically wants my read on what’s contained in the piece. And, it is no exaggeration to say that they have ranged from the sublimely insightful to the utterly ridiculous.
World shaking events like COVID19 and the ramifications emanating from the unprecedented strategies implored by national governments to try to contain the virus and mitigate the risk of loss of lives have unsettled many people. And Christians are not exempt from this all.
All of this has gotten me thinking a lot about assurance, and the unshakeable faith and confident security; I believe Jesus wants us, believers, to experience even in times like these.
Just the other day we were reading Mark 13 – an unsettling passage about the end times with people being led astray (vs5), a forewarning of false Christs (vs6), wars, earthquakes, famines(vs7-8), persecution of believers, being hated for being Christ-followers(vs11-13), something called the abomination of desolation and great tribulation (vs14-24) and the call of Jesus’ to be on guard and awake (vs23 & 37)…
I was struck by one of Jesus’ commands; “Do not be alarmed” (vs7)! It stood out like the first flower pushing up in a field after the veld has been burnt, almost out of place in the surrounding desolation.
Jesus wanted His disciples, Jesus wants you and I who have trusted in Him not to be alarmed by even tumultuous events and experiences. Jesus wants us to be assured, at peace, secure. Jesus wants us to trust Him who not only made everything but is the One who holds all things together (Colossians 1:16-17)
John records similar last moments with Jesus and explodes this theme of what Jesus wanted the disciples to experience in greater detail in the first verses of chapter 14;
Let not your hearts be troubled. Believe in God; believe also in me. 2 In my Father’s house are many rooms. If it were not so, would I have told you that I go to prepare a place for you? 3 And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and will take you to myself, that where I am you may be also. (John 14:1-3)
Jesus didn’t want the events of the days that would follow to unsettle His followers. He wanted them to contend for peace in their hearts and minds. Jesus wanted them not to let their hearts go to the place of anxiety and stress that they would go to if not restrained by faith.
Jesus wanted His disciples to believe, to trust Him, to trust the Father’s goodness and power. Jesus wanted them to see the final picture; these disciples could be assured that they would dwell with Him for eternity in His the Father’s house. That future hope was something to believe because it could not be seen. However believing it would produce something in the disciples – assurance, peace & security in spite of tumultuous days that would follow.
Assurance for the believer in Jesus is a strong theme in the New Testament, and it is found in our passage for today’s reading (we are reading Philippians + some Psalms in August for our Bible Reading Plan).
I am sure of this, that He who began a good work in you will bring it to completion at the day of Jesus Christ. (Philippians 1:6)
Paul wanted the same thing for the Philippian believers that Jesus wanted for those first Christ-followers: assurance.
Yes, they might have faced tough circumstances, challenges to their faith, struggle and hardship, but God wanted them to be assured IN IT ALL.
That the God who initiated their faith would be the One who would bring it to completion as well, God doesn’t start our Jesus journey and then let us go to walk on our own like some parent teaching their child to walk hoping they will get the hang of it.
No, rather God alone was both the author of their faith and would be the One to bring it to completion too (Hebrews 12:2). The confidence of these believers wasn’t to be in anything or anyone else other than their Saviour who both initiated and would complete their faith.
Friend if you know that have put your trust in Christ Jesus. If you know that you truly are saved by grace alone, through faith alone in Christ alone then you can be and should be, God wants you to be the most assured person on the planet. You and I are utterly secure, having believed in Jesus, He will save us completely (Hebrews 7:25).
You are immortal until the Day Jesus returns or the Day He calls you home to be with Him. You need not fret or worry, trying to discern the times and work out what not even Jesus knew when He walked on earth (Mark 13:32)!
So do not be alarmed even in the middle of a Global Pandemic, don’t stress yourself with worry when Jesus’ command to you is not to be alarmed and not to let your heart be troubled. Jesus wants you to sleep secure, live at peace knowing whom You have trusted your life to – and not just this life, but eternal life to.
Speak to Him now in prayer. If you have already believed in Jesus, simply ask for the help of the Holy Spirit to cast off fear with His perfect love and peace. Know this, Jesus wants you to experience the incredible peace that comes from knowing whom it is you have entrusted your present and future eternal life to – so live in the good of the assurance He purchased for you.
But, if you haven’t yet believed in Jesus for the forgiveness of your sins and the salvation of your soul, don’t feel any assurance or peace until you have believed in Him. So, call out to Him right now! We really do not know whether any day is our last day, and so as Matthew Henry resolved; live every day as if it was your last day.
And if you know friends who have not yet put their faith in Jesus – don’t delay speak to them share the love of God with them, appeal to them in love to believe in Jesus while they still can.
A Day Like No Other (Mark 15:1-32)
From the time of Jesus’ instructions to the disciples to find a place to prepare for and then celebrate the Passover with a meal we now call ‘The Last Supper’ to Jesus death is a period of just 24hrs.
And yet, these 24hrs take-up 92 verses in Mark, 103 verses in Matthew, 74 in Luke 74 and a massive 225 in John’s gospel. The gospel’s all slow down at this focal point of our faith. So much happens in this one 24hr period of Jesus’ life;
- Preparations for the Passover
- The Last Supper
- An agonising prayer in the garden
- Jesus’ betrayal and arrest
- Peter’s denial & the abandonment of all Jesus’ followers
- An unjust trial before the Chief Priests utterly alone
- A night of mocking and mistreatment by soldiers
- A hearing before Pilate & the crowd
- A hearing before Herod
- Pilate’s capitulation to the blood-thirsty mob releasing Barabas and sentencing Jesus
- Scourging Jesus by the whip
- The walk to Golgotha through the streets
- The crucifixion & death
So, what was the joy in the heart of Jesus that sustained Him through this most terrible 24hrs?
We know from Jesus’ prayer in the garden of Gethsemane that Jesus’ passion was to please Father God in all He did. Jesus desired to obey God the Father and fulfil the will of the Father. We know this because Jesus prayed;
“Abba, Father, all things are possible for you. Remove this cup from me. Yet not what I will, but what you will.” (Mark 14:36)
Therefore we can say that the greatest joy in the heart of Jesus, the joy that sustained Jesus was the joy of pleasing the Father, fulfilling the plan and the will of the Father.
Jesus’ whole life, His coming to earth as an incarnate human being, His 24/7 life and obedience and His death was all fueled by this same passion. Jesus prayed in John 17:1-4 that the Father would glorify Him ‘so that the Son might glorify’ the Father and He prayed saying that He had ‘glorified the Father on earth, by accomplishing the work the Father had given Him to do.
In addition to this, we also know that Jesus endured all that happened in these 24hrs because He also had another joy in His heart. Hebrews 12:2 reveals to us that part of what sustained Jesus through these horrific 24hrs was His longing for you and me.
“Because of the joy awaiting him, he endured the cross, disregarding its shame.” (Hebrews 12:2 in the NLT)
Brothers and sisters, you and I were in Jesus mind’s eye when He endured all of this pain and suffering. The joy awaiting Jesus was us! It was our being reconciled back to a right relationship with Him, which was only possible because of what He was doing by suffering in our place for our sin.
This means that as we see, as we contemplate the ghastly ordeal Jesus endured in these 24hrs we should feel the love of Jesus in each injustice committed against Him, in every droplet of spit sliding down His face, in every strike of the whip tearing flesh from His back, in every agonising step being led like a lamb to the slaughter in silence (Isaiah 53:7-8), in every thunderbolt of pain from the nails in His wrists and the crushing suffocation of the crucifixion. This is love!
“This is real love – not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as a sacrifice to take away our sins.” (1 John 4:10 in NLT)
Why don’t you pause now and pray? Contemplate these 24hrs Jesus endured, bring the details to mind and know this, He did this all out of love for you! Bask in that incredible love of Jesus’ for you! And then love Jesus back in this moment, love Him with your whole life, don’t give Him the left-overs give Him everything. What a Saviour!
Two T’s and a World Pandemic! (Mark 12:13-17 & 38-44)
Taxes, Tithing and COVID19 – what a combo! We are living in unprecedented times of financial hardship. In South Africa, our statistics are that more than 3 million people have been retrenched in the last three months. So we can safely say that for the majority of people we’ve never faced a time like this. In addition to this, many have had salaries reduced, or people’s businesses are under severe strain. Unemployment and uncertainty are at all-time highs.
And then our bible reading plan comes to this little section in the gospel of Mark that seems to have a bit of a mini-focus on money from Jesus as a result of some of Jesus’ interactions.
But is it insensitive to write about money at this time? No, I don’t believe it is, after-all in times of financial pressure or lack we need to speak more not less about money.
Taxes & Tithes
In Mark 12:13-17 Jesus teaches us to be faithful in paying our taxes making our contribution to the governance and upkeep of the country in which we live and in the same moment Jesus teaches us that similarly, we ought to give ‘to God the things that are God’s’ – tithes (Mark 12:17).
Bear in mind that the Roman authority over the Jewish people of the time would have been seen as an oppressive authority by most Jews. This was not a government the Jewish people welcomed, agreed to or voted for! Yet referring to tax, Jesus says that we are to give to Caesar what is Caesar’s.
Now for most people, tax is normally a grudge expense! It is not common to find citizens who just can’t wait to pay their taxes. However, taxes are necessary for civil society to function and when taxes when are administered well they provide things like physical infrastructure, policing, a justice system, healthcare, education and social services for the poor and vulnerable.
Before you understandably interject about corruption in South Africa and you’d happily pay taxes if you knew they would be stewarded well – may I remind you of who Jesus was telling the Jews to pay their taxes to!
The rule and authority of the Roman Empire was an authority that was not invited but imposed through military force. Yet Jesus tells His Jewish hearers to pay to that authority the tax it was imposing.
Let’s be clear, corruption and mismanagement of public funds are sinful, corruption ought to be lamented over and exposed wherever possible. However, corruption does not release Christ-followers from paying our taxes.
Although I can’t claim to have ever been excited about paying tax. I have tried to shape my heart and my thoughts by thinking about two things;
- My taxes are my contribution to all the good things that taxes enable; it is nation-building.
- And reminding myself that if I’m paying tax, it means I have a job and an income and that is something I never want to take for granted!
I’ve found that these things have helped me in paying tax with a good heart. Jesus doesn’t stop there but goes on in Make 12:17 saying that similarly just like Caesar is owed taxes, it is right for us to give to God, the ultimate authority, our tithes.
A Wonderful Example:
Jesus comes back to the issue of money when He does a remarkable thing. Jesus sits Himself down in the temple opposite the offering box and ‘watched the people putting money into the offering box’ (Mark 12:41).
Since becoming a church leader, for the past 17yrs, I have always kept myself from knowing what people are or are not tithing, but Jesus did the exact opposite! Jesus sat there, watching. People are coming and placing their tithe offerings into the box in the temple, some tithes are large, and some are tiny in monetary terms (Mark 12:41-42).
Jesus watches one poor widow approach the tithe box. She doesn’t have much, that is obvious to see. She isn’t dressed in fancy apparel like the rich people and the scribes (Mark 12:38).
We don’t know much about her other than that she was a widow and that she was poor (Mark 12:42). We do also know, however, that what she put into the offering box as her tithe impressed Jesus more than any of the other offerings given that day.
You see, in the maths of heaven, her two little coins (worth probably less than ten Rands) meant more to Jesus than the great sums of money given by others.
Why is that?
Well in the maths of heaven what makes your gift substantial is the heart with which it is given not the amount that is given. What matters is the wholeheartedness of the gift in relation to what that person has been entrusted with financially by God.
And so, it didn’t matter one iota to Jesus that she only had two coins to give! What mattered to Jesus was her heart of generosity with which those two coins were given. Giving is all about our hearts. Jesus taught that where our treasure is our hearts are too (Matthew 6:21), and I have found the reverse to be true as well – that where our hearts are there our money flows too.
This poor widow teaches us that giving to God is not about affordability but is about our heart’s condition. Her offering was small, but it was large, relatively speaking when compared to what she had – so she had given much. Jesus knows this and so says to the disciples (I think in her presence to honour her);
“Truly, I say to you, this poor widow has put in more than all those who are contributing to the offering box. 44 For they all contributed out of their abundance, but she out of her poverty has put in everything she had, all she had to live on.”
She had ‘put in more’ than all the others with their big monetary values! Because her heart of generosity and or love for God overcame her state of poverty. Her heart for God leads her into giving wholeheartedly in rich generosity with faith. We know that she gave in faith because having given she then needed to trust God for the rest of her needs (see vs44).
And because of her example, Jesus makes much of her and honours her above all those giving large monetary amounts but giving gifts that proportionately presumably weren’t generous or sacrificial at all.
Were these others’ tipping’ God rather than tithing?
It seems likely. They were all about appearances, but their hearts were not like hers, seemingly. I think to consider tithing as simply giving to God 10% of the income God has entrusted to you is a really helpful thing.
It is helpful partly because the maths is so easy. It is also helpful because giving a percentage of your income in a church like ours where some people earn more than R100 000/month, and some people earn only R1000/month giving 10% honours everyone’s giving equally.
What matters is not the Rand amount, but that you are willingly faithful with whatever amounts of income God has entrusted you with. And so, whatever your tithe’s monetary amount is it is valuable to Jesus!
We have an older single woman in our church, who actually reminds me of this widow. She is actually supported by our church every month and has been for some time. During the lockdown, she made more effort than anyone else I know to tithe on the money we had given her for her provision! She made a big effort each month to make contact and make arrangements for her small offering in monetary terms but big offering in proportion to be given to God! Amazing.
This is what matters that even amid COVID-19 we have hearts that are wholehearted like the poor widow in Mark 12, that we give from whatever it is God has entrusted to us financially even if that amount entrusted to us is less during this time. And, that we give the whole tithe, that we give with faith and with joy in Jesus.
Jesus seems to like to watch what we are giving and wants to commend us for our wholehearted and faithful consistent giving to God in bringing in the whole tithe. Let’s not be like these rich people Jesus rebuked in Mark 12:38-44 who appear to have been tipping God not tithing and so got rebuked.
Genie? (Mark 12:28-34)
Jesus had caused a stir in towns like Capernaum and Nazareth. His teachings and actions astounded and angered the religious establishment (Mark 3:6).
But he was now having come to Jerusalem, riding in on a donkey in what felt something like the inauguration of a promised Messiah king (Zechariah 9:9/Mark 11:1-11).
And having walked into the headquarters of Jewish religion, tearing up the place, effectively pronouncing judgement on the state of affairs at the Temple -Jesus had pulled the proverbial trigger that would lead ultimately to His death on the cross.
His reputation had proceeded Him, but since arriving in Jerusalem at a high point in their religious calendar, His actions had enraged the Jewish religious leaders.
And so, Jesus had the full attention of all the various religious groups who came to Him in unrelenting waves trying to expose Him, or trap Him in the public space with their crafty questions and wanting to arrest Him (Mark 12:12).
But one Scribe who most likely shared the angst of his fellow religious brothers was intrigued by Jesus’ handling of the various tricks and traps set by his associates.
Something about Jesus drew him towards Jesus. Mark records that he saw “that He answered them well” (Mark 12:28) and so he decided to risk asking Jesus a real question. One that wasn’t designed to lure Jesus into a trap but to learn; “Which commandment is the most important of all?” (Mark 12:28)
Often when Jesus was asked a question with a warped motive, He would answer in an obscure way or would tell a parable exposing the bad heart motive of those asking or even pronounce judgement on those asking. But this man’s question must have felt like a relief to Jesus after the barrage of tricks and traps.
He actually wanted to know Jesus’ answer. And so Jesus gives a succinct answer that helped not just him but helps you and me as Christ Followers to understand what matters most to God. Quoting Deuteronomy 6:4-5 Jesus replies;
The God of the Bible is the only One worthy of worship, adoration and praise. And so we are to;
- Love God with all our HEART (our emotions/desires)
- Love God with all our SOUL (our entire body & life)
- Love God with all our MIND (our thoughts)
- Love God with all our STRENGTH (our energy)
Almighty God is worthy of nothing less than our wholehearted worship. Every facet of our humanity (Heart, Soul, Mind & Strength) is to bow to God in loving worship that is to be expressed to fullest since facet of our lives is prefaced with the word “all” by Jesus.
There is a holy discontent in my heart, soul & mind. Brothers and sisters, we live in distracted days that seem so at odds with Jesus’ commandment here in Mark 12:31.
Love for God, worship of God by even those who call themselves Christ-followers is so commonly lukewarm, so partial rather than wholehearted.
For so many God is like a ‘Genie-in-a-bottle.’ God can stay in His corner of our lives ignored like the Genie concealed in its container until we need him.
And yet when we have some desire or desperate need, we pick up the bottle and rub it in prayer summonsing God to answer us and act as we desire.
Lockdown and a Global Pandemic, today again is an opportunity for us to hit the RESET button if we have slipped into such a form of spirituality.
Jesus’ answer to the Scribe reveals God’s desire for us all; it defines what true Christ-followers lives will look like. And it is radical; it is wholehearted. It is the only way to really live, and living this way will never result in regret.
Jesus wants all of YOU, all of ME. Are you distracted, are you lukewarm, are you acting like a consumer rather than a wholehearted worshiper of God?
This is the greatest commandment – love God with all your affections, love God with all your thoughts, make God the centre of your attention, love God with your whole being, your physical body and all the energy you have been given by Him.
Don’t hold anything back, expend it all, don’t waste your time and energy and focus on anything or anyone else, expend it all on loving and worshipping God. You will never regret that decision!
So, do you need to hit the RESET button today? The Scribe knew that Jesus’ answer to him contained the truth. And that truth of Jesus’ answer is still powerful to transform your life in the present and your experience of life in eternity. It is still powerful to shape your life and to fill your life with that which is truly valuable.
Jesus continued in vs31 to add a second bonus answer to the Scribes question. He had asked for the ‘greatest commandment’ and Jesus answered him, but as a bonus Jesus went further to explain that obedience to the greatest commandment would lead to something else…
True and wholehearted love for God would result in another love – love for other people. You see, love for God transforms who we are and transforms how we treat all other people God made.
It is utterly inconsistent, therefore to claim that you truly love God if you don’t love all people.
And, therefore it is also utterly inconsistent for Christ-followers to be complicit or silent about things like racism or Gender-based violence or injustice since all of these evils are rooted not in love but in a lack of love for individuals God created in His image.
To love God fully & to love people sums up all the commandments. We can easily make following Jesus overly complicated, but Jesus makes God’s will exceedingly clear.
As the Westminster Shorter Catechism states; “Man’s chief end is to glorify God and to enjoy him forever.”
This is our purpose, to love, to honour, to glorify God in all we do. And here in Mark 12, Jesus connects this with how we treat others. If we truly love God, our hearts will be soft toward God, and the Holy Spirit will lead us to love others as God has loved us. This is the whole message of Galatians 5:16-24.
Loving God leads to loving people, being compassionate, merciful, forgiving as we have been forgiven. That’s true godliness, true holiness, the Jesus journey!
And the only way to get to a life that truly looks like that is to have a life that is overtaken with love for God. And the only way to love God more deeply is to see God more clearly, to see who He is and what He has done for us and to live out your whole life as a response. #moreinawe
Life Intersections (Mark 10:46-52)
I love how in the Bible, we have a record of people just like you and me who encountered the living God. From these encounters, we can learn all sorts of things about God, faith and ourselves. In Mark 10:46-52, there is an encounter between Jesus and a man called Bartimeaus.
Jesus and his band of followers, plus the usual crowd of onlookers arrive in Jericho. Jesus is on His way to Jerusalem with the events of the Passion ominously on the horizon.
They stop in at Jericho, and as Jesus was leaving a man called Bartimaeus, a blind beggar, the son of Timaeus, was sitting by the roadside.
47 And when he heard that it was Jesus of Nazareth, he began to cry out and say, “Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me!” 48 And many rebuked him, telling him to be silent. But he cried out all the more, “Son of David, have mercy on me!” 49 And Jesus stopped and said, “Call him.” And they called the blind man, saying to him, “Take heart. Get up; he is calling you.” 50 And throwing off his cloak, he sprang up and came to Jesus. 51 And Jesus said to him, “What do you want me to do for you?”
And the blind man said to him, “Rabbi, let me recover my sight.” 52 And Jesus said to him, “Go your way; your faith has made you well.” And immediately he recovered his sight and followed him on the way. (Mark 10:46-52)
Two paths intersecting
Here we have two people’s paths intersecting! This happens in life all the time – people on different life journey’s, who share a moment when their life-journey’s collide.
In this intersection we have Jesus, incarnate Son of God, the centre of a crowd for the past three years, famous or infamous depending on how well you knew Him, passing Jericho on his way to Jerusalem to die for the sins of all of humankind and rise again!
And we have Bartimaeus, a seemingly insignificant resident of Jericho. This man’s name is a shocker! Bartimaeus means; ‘son of unclean man’! Not exactly flattering is it – sounds like his dad didn’t have a good reputation. More than this, Bartimaeus is identified in Scripture simply as a “blind beggar”, sitting by the roadside – what a complicated, painful identity.
But on this day recorded in Mark’s Gospel, Jesus and Bartimaeus’ life-journey’s are about to intersect! Seemingly insignificant, helpless, hopeless Bartimaeus is about to have his best day in a long time if not ever!
He is about to meet God.
What about your life journey and God?
- Do you maybe identify a little with Bartimaeus?
- Do you feel insignificant, like people and life are passing you by?
- Do you feel any sense of shame or remorse, regret?
Each of us has our own story. But today might even be your unique moment where you and God – intersect in a remarkable moment! I think of all my friends who don’t yet know Jesus, a day like today could be THEIR DAY!
Moving from knowing to encountering
Bartimaeus had heard about Jesus; he knew of Jesus. He knew his name, some of His titles. But now all of a sudden, Jesus was actually there, right in front of him! There are moments in our lives like that aren’t there?
Mine was at age 8 in my bedroom praying and giving my life to Jesus. Then again at age 12 on a youth camp, during worship being prayed for and being filled with the power of the Holy Spirit, and then many times since…
Christ-followers are people who have all had a moment and then subsequent moments where knowing about Jesus became KNOWING HIM & ENCOUNTERING HIM personally. Knowing Jesus is right there with you, knowing you can call out to Him and that when you do He will answer you personally.
In a country like South Africa, there are many people who know about Jesus – much like Bartimaeus did. But, knowing about Jesus is never enough to save you from your sin. What’s needed is not just more knowledge but rather a personal encounter with Jesus.
If you are already a Christ-follower, call out to Jesus again today, you can know that He wants to encounter you again and again.
Bartimaeus calls out (vs47)
Bartimaeus believed something about Jesus. We know this because if he didn’t believe something about Jesus, then calling out to Jesus as he did would not have made any sense.
After all, it makes no sense appealing to someone to help you if you don’t believe they have the ability or power to help you.
If I need help with woodwork I don’t call my friend Antony; I call Warren! I don’t call out to my friend Robert for medical advice – no, I call Wade or Nkanyiso two of the specialist doctors in my life…
When we decide to call out to someone for help, intrinsically there is embedded in that call a hope or even more likely a belief that they can help us in our need or else it is pointless.
We don’t know precisely what Bartimaeus knew about Jesus, but what He knew was enough for Him to cry out, “Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me!” vs47
‘Jesus’ is the name God told Joseph to give the child Mary miraculously carried from God. “She will bear a son, and you shall call his name Jesus, for he will save his people from their sins.” (Matthew 1:21)
Jesus’ name is also His role, His mission; it’s what Jesus came to do. He will save people from their sins – that’s what His name means. When you call on Jesus, you are calling out to the Saviour of the world.
Bartimaeus also called out using the title, ‘Son of David’ – a title that points to the fact that Jesus was the long-awaited Messiah (deliverer) promised hundreds of years before.
By calling out to Jesus using these names and asking Jesus for ‘mercy’ reveals something of WHO Bartimaeus believed Jesus was.
Bartimaeus had a need, but he also knew that he didn’t deserve anything. So Bartimaeus appeals to Jesus for Mercy – undeserved favour.
Like Bartimaeus, none of us can say that we deserve anything from God! Not even on our best days are we good enough to deserve anything. Our need unifies us, and what we all need is grace and mercy from God!
The GOOD NEWS I have for you and I today is that as Jesus Himself said; that He didn’t come for those who thought they’d done well in life or those who thought they were ‘good with God’ because of their exceptional behaviour. No, Jesus came for those who knew they needed MERCY.
Christ-followers are those who have had an encounter with God and who know that God hasn’t accepted them because they are good enough, but rather that God has accepted us because we cried out to Jesus for MERCY!
So if you need help, firstly you need to call out to someone who CAN HELP, but secondly, you also need to be sure that they WANT TO HELP you. After all, no one wants to be left hanging, rejected in public.
Bartimaeus heard Jesus was close by, and He cried out to Jesus for mercy! He had heard enough about Jesus to make him believe that not only COULD Jesus help him but also that Jesus WOULD WANT to help him…
Maybe he had heard about the woman who reached out to touch him in the crowd or the centurion who wanted his servant healed or the dad who wanted his son set free…
He believed Jesus wouldn’t leave him hanging, leave him on the side of the road rejected. So Bartimaeus calls out to Jesus loudly!
But many rebuked him (vs48)
Those around him didn’t like Bartimaeus’ calling out to Jesus! He was told to “shut up” basically, shunned, frowned upon…
You know, often for you to get to Jesus, you have to push through some opposition. This opposition can come from one of three sources:
- Your own voice (doubts/fears/ungodly beliefs)
- The voice of others (unbelievers, mocking, media, the age we live in…)
- The voice of the deceiver and enemy of your soul
But Bartimaeus wasn’t having any of it – ‘But he cried out all the more’ it says. What about you? Will you press past the obstacles between you and Jesus? The opinions of others? Your own internal obstacles to faith in Jesus, the questions you have, your fears? Will you press past the Devil’s stumbling blocks designed to keep you from calling out to Jesus?
Be like Bartimaeus. Cry out to Jesus, don’t stop, press past the opposition, you won’t be disappointed.
Jesus stops (vs49)
I love this part of this God-encounter. Jesus stopped.
He stopped, for the seemingly insignificant, blind beggar crying out to Him at the moment that their journey’s intersected.
51 And Jesus said to him, “What do you want me to do for you?” And the blind man said to him, “Rabbi, let me recover my sight.” 52 And Jesus said to him, “Go your way; your faith has made you well.” And immediately he recovered his sight and followed him on the way.
Today you need to know that you matter to God. Jesus will stop if you call just out to Him. Those around you who don’t yet believe in Jesus need to know this about Jesus too! That if they just call out to Him, He will stop for them.
More than that, in His incredible gracious generosity, Jesus will not just stop, but He will ask you what He can do for you – what love and what authority! Jesus is not limited in any way He can offer to do whatever is needed.
Bartimaeus’ most apparent need was his blindness. We often have needs we are most aware of. For you maybe it is a job, finances, a true friend, a husband or a wife, or for someone you love to be healed.
And yet, Jesus knows our greatest need. Our sin & shame to be dealt with once and for all taken away
So that we can have a life-giving relationship with Him!
All He asks from us is for FAITH in Him. Not even’ lots of faith’ just faith… Even a little faith. Because it is not your faith that saves you, heals you, but WHO that faith is in!
Bartimaeus’ life journey intersected with Jesus in a moment. He called out with faith to Jesus, and Jesus stopped, and offered to meet His need and did exactly that in an instant.
And so, Bartimaeus was healed physically but more than that He was also healed spiritually & so he became a Christ-follower from that day onwards. (vs52)
Every Christ-follower is a little like Bartimaeus. Each one has in their own unique way had an intersection moment with Jesus, has called out to Jesus, has put their faith in Jesus and has found Jesus stopped for them and answered their call. And Christ-followers don’t stop there but like Bartimaeus follow Jesus from that point onwards in their lives.
Today might well be a moment where your life journey and God intersect with each other either once again, or even for the very first time.
Will you call out to Him who will STOP & will MEET YOUR DEEPEST NEEDS?
The Cancer of Sin (Mark 9:42-50)
With regard to sin, take drastic action! – Jesus
When it comes to certain things in life, what is needed is decisive drastic action. Time wasted deliberating is counter-productive if not life-threatening.
A few years back, in quick succession, I had a lump on my back that my General Practitioner didn’t like the look of, and then one on my cheek that was reddish and would bleed with the slightest touch and didn’t respond to the non-invasive treatments prescribed.
As you know, cancer is a horrible result of the curse that has devasted so many people’s lives and brought so much heartache. And because of this, cancer is not to be messed with and so in both instances with the advice from the Doctor’s involved it was easy to decide to undergo surgery to cut out what turned out to be cancerous tissue on both my back and face.
Operations and surgery are not pleasant experiences, and my face and back will forever show the scars. But that is a small price to pay for a cancer-free body. No one in their right mind hearing that they had cancerous growth that can be removed surgically would say; ‘I’ll just see how it develops Doc…’
In my case, drastic action was necessary, temporarily painful invasive surgery was prescribed, but it was worth it 1000 times over. How many people have much more serious cancer in their body who would love to know that their cancer could be surgically removed.
In our passage today, Jesus is the great Surgeon. Jesus knows that sin is not something to be messed around with, not something to be treated lightly. Drastic intentional invasive action is needed for sin’s deadly progression to be halted.
Now let’s be clear, in Mark 9:42-50, Jesus is not advocating body mutilation as a solution for sin. Of all people, Jesus knows that the problem with sin is not external but rather a heart issue, a fallen humanity issue that can’t be fixed by us. Sin can’t be dealt with by removing external body parts!
Jesus knows this because, after all, this is why Jesus left heaven and came to earth. To do what we could not do ourselves, to take the drastic action that was needed to halt sin’s deadly progression in our lives.
So what is Jesus teaching in Mark 9:42-50?
I think we can understand Jesus’ teaching on at least two levels.
- Jesus is teaching that sin is serious and that if one sees the seriousness of sin, then one will see that drastic action is entirely reasonable. Don’t play around with sin thinking you’ll be ok, thinking you’ll be the exception! So if you are a Christ-follower but you know of some sin or compromise that you have in your life right now – treat it like cancer. Cut it out! Delaying only worsens the prognosis and allows the sin to spread impacting more areas of your life and the lives of others. So where you know you have sin, take drastic action, stop, repent to God, change your life patterns, change your friends if you have to, change places you frequent, speak to a fellow Christ-follower and confess or speak to a leader in the church, but do it now, don’t delay.
- Know your limitations! If you don’t know Jesus as your LORD and Saviour yet, know this – you can’t deal with sin on your own. That is why Jesus came, to live the life you and I could never hope to live and to die in our place for our sin and shame so that He could offer us forgiveness for our sins and redeem us from slavery to sin, Satan and ultimately death and hell. So put your trust in Jesus today, ask Him to forgive you of your sin and to exchange your shame and sin for His glorious love and forgiveness. In this passage, Jesus talks plainly, chillingly about hell. Hell is real, and hell is the only destination for those outside of true faith in Jesus Christ. Randy Alcorn said; “No man can get out of hell, but each man can keep out of it.” How? By acknowledging and repenting of the cancerous sin that is inside of us and asking Jesus to do what we could not do. Jesus took drastic action on our behalf; Jesus didn’t just have the cancer of sin cut out of Him; Jesus sacrificed His whole life to give you a sin-free eternal life. So put your trust in Him alone!
No one would turn to the Doctor who has just diagnosed them as having cancer and charge them of being unloving and harsh. With the terrible realities of a disease like cancer, honesty, facts & potential drastic solutions is the language of love.
Some would read this passage about the seriousness of sin and the reality of hell and baulk at Jesus’ words thinking; ‘I don’t like what Jesus said!’ But love speaks frankly about life-threatening situations, and this is what Jesus is doing here, loving us by speaking truthfully about the certainty of sins progression if left unchecked.
Thank You, Jesus, for loving us enough, to tell the truth about sin and hell and for loving us enough not just to diagnose our sin problem but to choose to take the drastic action you did to die in our place for our sin, for you to suffer so that we could be set free!
Amazing grace, how sweet the sound, that saved a wretch like me. Thank you, Jesus.
Four Spaces (Mark 9:2-13)
Six days after Peter’s revelation about WHO Jesus was and Jesus’ announcement about WHAT He had come to the earth to do, Jesus went up a mountain and took with Him just three; Peter, James and John.
Let’s pause for a moment to consider the different layers of relationship around Jesus; because the layers we see around Jesus are the same layers we see in our lives and church.
Proxemics is the study of the different concentric layers of relationship that we all have and which exist in any group of people.
Looking at those around Jesus I see the four layers of relationship described in proxemic theory as ‘spaces’;
- Public Space: (Crowds) Jesus often had a crowd with Him comprised of both expectantly inquisitive people & those in opposition to Jesus. These people knew of Jesus, were intrigued by Jesus, or they opposed Jesus. But, these people hadn’t yet committed their lives to Jesus in faith.
- Social Space:(Church) By the time Jesus ascends to heaven, there is a defined group, a community of faith of about 120 people in the upper room (Acts 1:15). Their faith in Jesus had established new secondary relationships with one another – this is the embryonic pre-Pentecost church, a community of faith in Jesus.
- Personal Space: (Community Group) Within that community of faith, Jesus had 12 who were with Him on a deeper level – the disciples. He had chosen them (Mark 2:13-20). So within the followers of Jesus, there was this small group, a subset of the whole community of faith. Jesus wanted these 12 to be in a special and close relationship with Him so that He could share his life and teachings more deeply. They lived with Jesus 24/7; they walked with Him daily; they shared meals & experiences – they shared life on a deeper level. Their relationship to Him brought them also into a deeper relationship as a small group of followers centred around Jesus.
- Intimate Space: (Trios) Four times in Mark’s Gospel Peter, James & John are found to be with Jesus in a setting the wider group didn’t share in;
- Peter along with James and John are the only ones to witnesses Jesus raise Jarius’ daughter from the dead (Mark 5:37)
- Peter ends up having the revelation of Jesus’ as the Messiah (Mark 8:29)
- Peter witnesses the Transfiguration with James and John (Mark 9:2-13)
- And Peter stands up on the Day of Pentecost to preach at what was the genesis moment of the church (Acts 2:14).
- James was one of that first group of disciples and part of Jesus’ inner circle. James was martyred for His faith by Herod (Acts 12:2)
- John also part of that inner-circle in his own Gospel describes himself as one that Jesus loved four times (John 13:23, John 19:26, John 20:2, John 21:20)
- John seemed to be the leader of the church in Jerusalem (Acts 15:6 & Galatians 2:9) before moving to Ephesus and becoming the last of the 12 apostles still to be alive in the late first century.
In our passage today, we see how this inner-circle in Jesus’ ‘intimate space’ got to see more of Jesus than anyone else. Jesus was transfigured before their eyes, and He begins to glow with a radiance reminiscent of Moses’ face, which shone after encountering God on Mount Sinai (Exodus 34:29-30).
Jesus unapologetically interacted with the people in these four spaces differently. Jesus revealed more of Himself, explained more to his twelve than the wider group and then even shared even more to his tighter group of three.
Jesus responds to our willingness.
Jesus responds to willingness. Peter is an example of someone who just always seems willing. He always seems to be asking questions, pressing in to know more, see more. I believe that Jesus was drawn to that willing eagerness and responded to it and showed Peter more as a result.
Likewise, John had a special relationship with Jesus. Was it that he listened more than the others, made sure he was close by to Jesus? Jesus seems to have responded to John attentiveness, and so John writes of himself that he was a favourite of Jesus’ (see texts above). John testified about Jesus’ existence in his epistle from those personal experiences with Jesus;
That which was from the beginning, which we have heard, which we have seen with our eyes, which we looked upon and have touched with our hands, concerning the word of life— 2 the life was made manifest, and we have seen it, and testify to it and proclaim to you the eternal life, which was with the Father and was made manifest to us— 3 that which we have seen and heard we proclaim also to you, so that you too may have fellowship with us; and indeed our fellowship is with the Father and with his Son Jesus Christ. 4 And we are writing these things so that our joy may be complete. (1 John 1:1-4)
Jesus had these four layers of relationship/spaces with those around Him, and the closer people were to Jesus, the more intentional or willing they were to spend time with Jesus, the more He revealed Himself to them and the more they, in turn, did for Him with their lives!
So what does this have to do with us and our followership of Jesus?
- God wants to move all people from the CROWD to the COMMUNITY:
This is the mission of the church and of every follower of Christ, to share the good news about Jesus with everyone we know so that they can move from spectators to believers and followers. [Who is there in your life who might be interested in Jesus as a man but is yet to believe in Him as God? Pray for them now, and keep asking God the Holy Spirit to give you opportunities to point them to life-giving faith and relationship with Jesus.]
- The Gospel always creates a COMMUNITY of faith, the church:
Our journey’s of faith lead us into a community; God’s family brought into relationship with one another through our common relationship to Jesus. A diverse new people who once had not been a people at all, but now through God’s choosing are the people of God (1 Peter 2:9-10). I love how those thousands who were saved on the day of Pentecost were saved and added (Acts 2:41), they became a community of faith that was not just devoted to Jesus but to one another sharing life and their possessions (Acts 2:42-47)! We were not made for walking alone. There is no such thing as biblical Christianity without commitment to a local church.
“There is no way you will be able to grow spiritually apart from a deep involvement in a community of other believers. You can’t live the Christian life without a band of Christian friends, without a family of believers in which you find a place.” – Keller
“Personalities united can contain more of God and sustain the force of his greater presence better than scattered individuals.” – Dallas Willard
“You must be deeply involved in the church, in Christian community, with strong relationships of love and accountability. Only if you are part of a community of believers seeking to resemble, serve and love Jesus will you ever get to know Him and grow into His likeness.” – Keller
- Healthy Church communities will have three of the different ‘spaces’ Jesus had around Him within each congregation:
Each of the three spaces within a church community plays a different role in the life of any Christ-follower.
- The whole church gathered (social space) for worship, sacraments, prayer & preaching has a significant role in catalysing faith, community and corporate vision.
- Small groups of 6-20 (personal space) gathered around God’s word, prayer, care, fellowship and for mission ensures that everyone in the church is caught up in life-giving relationships that spur them on in their faith and give them contexts in which to serve and bless others too.
- And finally, even smaller groups of 2-4 Christ-followers meeting (intimate space ‘TRIOs’ in RRC) allows for greater intimacy and intentionality. Peter, James & John’s experience with Jesus should provoke us to want what they had!
The pattern I see in the Gospels is like one big parable. The parables Jesus told, bemused the crowds but to those who pressed in with faith and intentionality – Jesus revealed more!
Those who intentionally pressed in became a community of faith (the church). Yet, there were those who pressed in, even more, and Jesus formed them into a small group to whom He revealed even more.
And then there was Jesus’ inner-circle, the TRIO of Peter, James & John to whom Jesus revealed the most. They experienced more of Jesus than anyone else, and correspondingly also accomplished amazing things for Jesus.
This is like a parable to you and I. Jesus doesn’t want anyone to stay just in the CROWD. But instead to be added to the COMMUNITY (the church).
More than that, I believe Jesus doesn’t want anyone to stop there with some connection to the COMMUNITY.
Instead, Jesus wants us to join ourselves to a SMALL GROUP (Community Group in RRC) so that we can grow close to some fellow Christ-followers whose relationships with one another are all centred around Jesus Christ.
And for those who truly wish to grow in God, to press in even further adding themselves to an even smaller group – a TRIO. Two to four same-sex Christ-followers who have committed themselves to an intentional spiritual friendship focussed on helping one another to follow Christ and His mission for their lives and the church.
Oh, that more people would want to move from merely being in the CROWD of admirers around Jesus to the COMMUNITY. And that they wouldn’t be satisfied to belong just to the wider church community but that they would press in towards greater connection in the personal and intimate spaces, and as a result would encounter more of Jesus and accomplish more for Jesus!
How are you responding to the parable of the spaces?
Jesus’ parables bemused and offended some and drew others in. And those who pressed in more got more, got closer had more revealed to them and as a result did more for God with their lives.
We live in a self-saturated age. This whole blog has been about relationships, a community of faith that all flows from the Gospel. This global pandemic, when we are restricted from meetings, can be a healthy moment for self-reflection.
How am I responding? Have I believed the lie that my relationship with Jesus is just a personal thing when in Scripture, that is never the case?
The Gospel creates community, and those who press in more to Jesus and to the community get more & do more for God.
So I challenge you. If you are a Christ-follower, don’t be satisfied to be part of the CROWD of onlookers, or even just being an isolated attendee in the COMMUNITY of the church.
Press in, join a small group and pray for an intimate band of friends (TRIO) who like Peter, James and John end up seeing more and doing more than they could ever have imagined! You will never regret that decision. Amen.
Turning Point! (Mark 8:31-38)
Mountain tops and valleys! One moment Peter is exclaiming; “Messiah!” (Mark 8:29), the next Jesus is bursting Peter’s messianic bubble, saying that He “must suffer many things…and be killed!” (Mark 8:31)
Keller writes in his excellent book (King’s Cross) how from Peter’s earliest memories learning from his parents would have been hearing that the Messiah would come and defeat evil and injustice.
Now the Messiah was telling Peter; “Yes, I’m the Messiah, the King, but I came not to live but to die. I’m not here to take power but to lose it; I’m here not to rule but to serve. And that’s how I’m going to defeat evil and put everything right.” (Kings Cross pp95)
Bewildering! What is remarkable is that Jesus while referring to Himself says; “the Son of Man (a divine title from Daniel 7) must suffer…and be killed”
Why MUST Jesus the Messiah suffer and be killed?
Well, in one sense He doesn’t have to at all. He is not obliged in the slightest. After all, He has never sinned, and so deserves no wrath against sin or punishment. He is God, and so His will is not constrained in any way.
But because of His love for You and I – He must suffer and be killed. Because there was no other way for our sin, guilt and shame to be dealt with and the wrath of God propitiated.
I am reminded of Jesus in the Garden of Gethsemane in agonizing prayer asking the Father if there was any other way (Mark 14:36), and the Father said nothing because nothing could be said because there was no other way but the cross and calvary.
Jesus had to die; the Messiah must die if our sin was to be atoned for, and if we were to be ransomed and reconciled back to a right relationship with God. What love, what sacrifice for you and me!
This is the turning point of the whole Gospel, WHO Jesus is has been the main idea, now Jesus has just introduced the focus of the second half – WHAT Jesus came to do for you and for me!
This is the lamb of God who came to take away, to atone for the sins of the world by dying as our substitute sacrifice – John recalls in his Gospel (John 1:29)
Peter is horrified and rebukes Jesus (the same word for Jesus’ treatment of demons) but ends up being the one rebuked as Jesus refuses to be tempted into believing there is an easier way. Jesus presses through the resistance with clear conviction and begins again to teach those gathered around.
“If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow me. 35 For whoever would save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake and the gospel’s will save it. 36 For what does it profit a man to gain the whole world and forfeit his soul? 37 For what can a man give in return for his soul? 38 For whoever is ashamed of me and of my words in this adulterous and sinful generation, of him will the Son of Man also be ashamed when he comes in the glory of his Father with the holy angels.” (Mark 8:34-38)
Jesus’ teaching makes sense since it follows what He has just revealed about His own purpose (Mark 8:31). Since the Messiah is going to lay His life down, those who choose to follow Him are called to do the same. Jesus’ purpose shapes our purpose.
Jesus literally dies. Most Christ-followers don’t necessarily have to die literally, but we are all called by King Jesus to die to our old way of living. We die to a life that has ME, MYSELF & I at the centre of it all.
Who is really at the centre of your life? Who is the focus of your attention? Is it yourself or is it King Jesus?
We are to fix our eyes on Jesus, the One who died for us, and in response decide to live the rest of our lives no longer for ourselves but rather for Him who for our sake died (2 Corinthians 5:14-15).
We live like this, believing that what Jesus said is true! We live believing that this is really the only way to live. We believe Jesus when He warns us that spending ourselves collecting things and experiences in this present life trying to satisfy ourselves will only leave us empty.
We believe Jesus who urged us to live our whole lives as a whole-life response to His love for us. Making pleasing Him and sharing His Gospel our whole life’s purpose, believing Him that living like this will result in us enjoying life that’s truly worth having, having satisfaction that is immeasurable and eternal!
You will never regret believing Jesus’ advice on how to live your life. At no point will you look back and think, ‘I really wish I hadn’t trusted Jesus’ advice!’ The Psalmist declares of the ancients of the faith; “They cried to you and were saved; in you they trusted and were not disappointed. ” (Psalm 22:5 in the NIV)
Since Mark 8 records the turning point in this Gospel that is so focused on WHO Jesus is and WHAT Jesus came to do, I pray that it would be something of a turning point for you too. Meditate on Jesus’ words captured here to you in Mark 8:34-38, don’t gloss over them let their eternal wisdom go deep into your soul and begin to produce a life wholly pleasing to King Jesus. The One who went before You and lovingly laid down His life for you and rose again victorious (Mark 8:31).
Two words that matter 