John the Baptist sent his own disciples to Jesus, asking if he was the one promised or should they wait for another. Jesus responded “Go and tell John what you have seen and heard: the blind receive their sight, the lame walk, lepers are cleansed, and the deaf hear, the dead are raised up, the poor have good news preached to them.” (Luke 7:22) Have you heard the Good News? And if so, who told you? Continue reading
Tag Archives: Christ
Prophetic Words – Part 2
When they heard this, they were enraged and wanted to kill them. But a Pharisee in the council named Gamaliel, a teacher of the law held in honor by all the people, stood up and gave orders to put the men outside for a little while. And he said to them, “Men of Israel, take care what you are about to do with these men. For before these days Theudas rose up, claiming to be somebody, and a number of men, about four hundred, joined him. He was killed, and all who followed him were dispersed and came to nothing. After him Judas the Galilean rose up in the days of the census and drew away some of the people after him. He too perished, and all who followed him were scattered. So in the present case I tell you, keep away from these men and let them alone, for if this plan or this undertaking is of man, it will fail; but if it is of God, you will not be able to overthrow them. You might even be found opposing God!” So they took his advice. (Acts 5:33-39)
Happy Monday
Happy Monday, proving there is more to the Internet than cat pictures since 2012.
Congrats to the Baltimore Ravens on Super Bowl 47! Apparently the 49er’s plan of only playing the second half didn’t work out this time.
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For Jews and Gentiles
A couple of weeks ago, our Sunday School lesson focused on how the first Christmas was for a Jewish audience. Joseph and Mary, the inhabitants of Bethlehem, and the shepherds who visited on the night of Jesus’ birth were all Jews. Jesus came first to his own people, knowing he would be rejected, all to fulfill God’s plan.
This week we looked at Christ’s birth for Gentiles. Consider these words of Simeon, who met Jesus at his dedication at the Jerusalem temple:
“Lord, now you are letting your servant depart in peace,
according to your word;
for my eyes have seen your salvation
that you have prepared in the presence of all peoples,
a light for revelation to the Gentiles,
and for glory to your people Israel.”
(Luke 2:29-32 ESV)
It had been revealed to Simeon by the Holy Spirit that he would see the Christ in his lifetime. Notice that when Jesus was only weeks old, Simeon recognized he was both light for the Gentiles and the glory of Israel. Sometimes we get this funny idea, even if we don’t put it into words, that throughout the Bible God sort of rolls with the punches. Sometimes we make it up as we go along, but that doesn’t mean God does the same. He didn’t come up with the plan of salvation after Israel failed to keep the Law. And offering salvation to the Gentiles was not some sort of plan B when the Jews rejected Jesus.
God knew all along, and the birth, life and death of Jesus were all part of his great plan. The birth of the Christ is good news for all mankind.
God is in the Manger
Have you ever seen a live nativity? Instead of plastic figures of shepherds and wise men, a live nativity scene has actors in costume, and for an hour or two each evening you can drive by and see them. The shepherds bow and worship, the magi present their gifts, perhaps Mary rocks her baby in her arms, or else Mary and Joseph simply admire him. It’s unlikely, even at a live nativity, that they have an actual newborn present. The “baby Jesus” might be a toddler, or even an infant, but you wouldn’t want to keep a real baby out in the cold for very long. Even a live nativity scene will often use a doll, or even just pretend there is a babe wrapped up in swaddling clothes and lying in the manger.
Contrast that scene with the night Jesus was born.
Advent: Week One
UPDATE: There are five Sundays in December this year, four of them before Christmas. Sunday, December 2nd will be the first Sunday of Advent.
Reposted from November 27, 2011
Advent is a season of waiting and preparation for the nativity of Jesus Christ. I have been pleased to see many friends doing the “30 days of Thanksgiving” thing on Facebook. I’m more encouraged by 30 days of Thanksgiving than by 60 or even 90 days of Christmas. If you watch some classic movies, from say the 40’s or 50’s, you’ll see Dad bringing home a tree on Christmas Eve! The family decorates the tree, hang their stockings, then celebrate Christmas the very next day. Part of the beauty of Christmas is waiting for it to arrive. Continue reading
Full of God
The goal of Christians is to be conformed to the image of Christ. The reason we ask “What would Jesus do?” is to put ourselves in the right frame of mind to be Christ-like in our decision making (Philippians 2). We know from reading the Gospels and the letters of Paul that we are to think like Christ, to have the heart and mind of a servant, to be humble, to love as Christ loved, and so forth. Like John the Baptist we must make less of ourselves and more of Christ. Realizing that we can never become perfectly like Christ, the goal is to continuously work at it. As we get closer and closer, others should be able to see Christ in us. They were called Christians first at Antioch why? Because the followers of Christ at Antioch sounded and acted like the one they were following.
Ephesians 3 mentions one way to be Christ-like, which I had never noticed before. Read Colossians 1, noting verse 19 that says “For in him [Christ] all the fullness of God was pleased to dwell…” Jesus was incarnate deity, the person of God robed in a body of flesh. One aspect of Jesus Christ is that he was full of God. Now look at Ephesians 3, a short chapter in which Paul reveals the mystery of the Gospel. In particular:
For this reason I bow my knees before the Father, from whom every family in heaven and on earth is named, that according to the riches of his glory he may grant you to be strengthened with power through his Spirit in your inner being, so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith—that you, being rooted and grounded in love, may have strength to comprehend with all the saints what is the breadth and length and height and depth, and to know the love of Christ that surpasses knowledge, that you may be filled with all the fullness of God. -Ephesians 3:14-19 ESV
There are many things we can choose to fill ourselves with; Paul says we should be full of God.
The Read and Share File
This is Read and Share File #10.
James said to be doers of the Word and not hearers only. Paul Wilkinson reports on on blogging vs. doing.
The purpose of sharing what I read is that some things are said better than I could have. Carley Evans at Grace Partakers has this to say about Growing Into Christ. And says it well.
2 Timothy 4:3 describes a time when people will no longer endure sound teaching; sound doctrine in the King James. Reformed Baptist Fellowship has done an excellent job with this post, and a few other bloggers have already linked to it. All I can add is to say that Paul told us so.
And now for something completely different.
So much of God’s wisdom and Christ’s love cannot be expressed because of the limitations of the English language and our own finite minds. Scripture relies on analogy, metaphor, symbolism, parables, and… poetry. David was a lyricist and musician, and his son Solomon had a knack for prose himself. Moses claimed to be slow of tongue, but at least twice he led the Hebrews in song. Sometimes we don’t know how to pray or what to pray, but we are told to pray without ceasing. At times we groan in the Spirit. Most of what I share on this site is based on scriptural teaching and preaching, but as beings created in God’s image one of his many gifts is creativity. Some people think in poetry rather than paragraphs. Captive Free is always in the blogroll; please read Little Lost Girl by Garment of Praise.
It’s Friday; Sunday’s Coming
Vocals by S.M. Lockridge, images from The Passion of the Christ
To see animation instead of the movie scenes, watch here.
Special Effects of Biblical Proportion
We live about an hour away from a big church that puts on a very good passion play each year. We took a group of students to see it earlier this week. I have some experience with drama, mostly on the technical side (sound, lights, set construction). There are some special effects that work well even in amateur theater to help the audience suspend their disbelief. This particular passion play uses a silk screen and shadows to show Jesus being scourged; a little bit of technical effect combined with good acting really sell the scene.
Movies have a whole other dimension of effects available, and today it is hard to tell what is real and what isn’t. Watching a play or film during Holy Week adds to our understanding by providing visual stimulation. We can read the story, discuss it, and even share it with others, but seeing and hearing the dramatization can still add to our experience. There are times when the Bible itself seems to have a flair for the dramatic and God uses some special effects of his own to drive the point home. After displaying his power and wonders in Egypt, the Hebrews cross the Red Sea on dry land and see Pharaoh’s army crushed by the same water. Mount Sinai shook and smoldered when God descended onto it. No other biblical display was greater than on the day of Jesus’ crucifixion. Continue reading
The Master's Table 